M.I.A!

University has been absolutely crazy hence the complete lack of updates.

For slightly more consistent updates on my photographic career head on over to my Facebook page and click the like button to show your support!

https://www.facebook.com/lauragoldupfashionphotography

Product Review: Gosh Cosmentics 'Smokey Eye Liner'

Link to product here

I picked this little lady up a while ago and it's only now that I've actually got round to reviewing it! I thought this was one of those twist-up eyeliners when I bought it and I was gutted to find out it wasn't.

Okay so here's the lowdown. The actual stuff that goes on your face is lovely - it's nice and soft, creamy, intensely black and goes on like a dream. It kind of sets and is ever so slightly smudge resistant. The sponge blender thing on the opposite end is actually rather good in my opinion: I was able to create a nicely smokey winged out look by dabbing a bit of product on my outer eye and blending out from there. However.

As with all pencil eyeliners, it was an absolute nightmare to sharpen. The product inside is so soft and creamy that any point you manage to coax out of the pencil will snap off if even a feather touches it. This feature also means that you're going to go through the initial point you get when you buy it fairly quickly - it's so soft the whole thing gets applied in just a few uses. The wood of the pencil might as well be made of Oak or something ridiculous like that - a sharpener just won't do the trick. This product is almost impossible to sharpen. I did manage to get some form of usable product out of the pencil the first time I sharpened it, but I was left with a horrible tiny spike at the end of the wood that literally scratched my entire waterline. I've wasted at least 1/4 of the product just from sharpening alone and after today I'm just going to throw it away because it's just not worth the hassle.

Overall: 4/10
I'd recommend switching to twist-up eyeliners.

Settling in to University

Hi guys!

It's been ages since my last blog post and since I have some time with no lectures I figured I'd give you all an update of what's been going on!

So I moved to uni on the 21st September and being so far away from home (over 200 miles eeek) is both amazing and terrifying. Having so much freedom to do whatever I want all the time is so overwhelming sometimes that every now and then I just want to go back home and go back to college! The drastic change from strict regimes all day every day (wake up at 7, leave the house at 8.15, do college work until 4, eat tea at 6.30, go to bed at 10 so you have enough energy to repeat tomorrow) to not even being in timetabled lectures all day, sometimes not even being in every day of the week - I'm only in 3 days this week - is so alien to me. I can eat as little or as much of whatever I want and I can drink chocolate milk out of a wine glass and nobody can stop me. I can tidy my room if I want to or I can leave everything out after I've finished with it. I can stay in my pj's all day (we had a fire drill 2 days ago, late afternoon, and at least half the campus was in their pj's; one guy wasn't even dressed he just wrapped himself up in his duvet) and I can take a shower at 2.30am if that's what I fancy. In short - university life is terrifying.

Other than the amazing overwhelming-ness of literally everything I'd say I'm surviving quite well.

Laura

Life Update

So my Campus is definitely closing and I've now started the process of transferring universities for September 2015. My life is in total upheaval at the moment - we're moving house, my parents are splitting up, I'm moving to university and also in the process of transferring universities - so posts will be few and far between until my life calms down.

Laura

David Koma at London Fashion Week!

We arrived at Somerset House in London last night after navigating the nightmare that is London's replacement tube services to find hundreds upon hundreds of the most fabulously dressed men and women I've ever seen. We arrived an hour early because it took so long to get in to central London that we didn't have time to go exploring like we originally planned. There was also this funky bike race type of event - I'm not entirely sure what it was even now - but seeing so many bikes was an entirely new experience.

The tickets we won were to see David Komas' SS15 collection at 7pm. We ended up on the 5th row which wasn't ideal for an aspiring fashion photographer as there were so many bodies in the way, but I enjoyed every second of it nonetheless! I could sit and watch fashion shows all day long and not complain; there are no words to describe the adrenaline rush I got from taking photos at my first ever fashion show! A lot of my images suck for a variety of reasons - mainly people's heads in the way - but the decent ones are fantastic. Even if I do say so myself.

This was an absolutely amazing experience and even if you're not wanting to work in the world of Fashion I would highly recommend you attend a catwalk show. I can't wait to start my university course next week (please sign the petition against my campus being shut down here) and this was undoubtedly the best way to get the ball rolling for my degree!

Please do not steal my pictures. You can re-post them on your own platforms but please credit photographer Laura Goldup. Link to my website here.

Not the Usual!

As previously mentioned I move over 200 miles away to attend university next weekend. Just this morning I have found out that they're planning to close my campus. It's taken me a year to get in to uni and not once have they told me they were planning to close the campus in that time.

The petition against the closure is so close to its goal and I want to do everything I can to help. I don't want to be carted off even further away from home this year or next year or the year after, and I don't want to be in a campus with nobody but the students in my own year. Neither does anyone else.

Please if you have a spare 30 seconds then sign this petition against the closure and spread the link anywhere you can. You'd be helping thousands of students, not just me.

Link to petition: http://www.newportliberaldemocrats.org.uk/savecaerleoncampus?recruiter_id=2540

Thank you from the bottom of my heart to anyone who signs.

Laura

Moving to University Masterpost!

Moving to University is more than likely the first time you've spent any considerable amount of time away from home where you have to fend for yourself - for me it certainly is! Since I move away to Wales next weekend I figured I'd write this post to share some of the awesome benefits of being a student that I've discovered over the past few weeks.

Money Things

• Apparently 3/4 of students are in some form of part time employment during uni and a lot of these people will be overpaying on tax and NI contributions throughout the year without even realising it. Obviously each case is individual and you're going to need to do your own research on your own circumstances, but chances are you'll have overpaid on tax/NI contributions and you will be entitled to a rebate of any overpayments. Please note this only definitely applies to the UK - I have no idea about anywhere else in the world but if you don't ask you don't get!
• A student bank account is a necessity. I, for one, had no idea about student bank accounts until around a week ago - I didn't even know they were a thing until I stumbled upon a Facebook group for students and they posted about the best student bank accounts! Link here. (I am no way involved with this organisation) I've opted for the student account where I get a free £60 Amazon voucher and an immediate £500 overdraft which can be increased to up to £3,000 over the duration of my course. This overdraft is going to be essential for me as I won't get my student loan for at least a week after I move! There is also a really handy comparison grid which tells you what the crack is with the offers from different student accounts - most of them come with freebies such as vouchers, free rail cards or a free NUS card! Definitely worth looking in to.
• Pretty sure everyone knows this, but, there are tonnes of websites/organisations/companies that offer student discount and you'd be crazy to miss out! The most popular student discount places are NUS (link) - £12 per year, UniDays (link) - free, most high street shops such as New Look, Paperchase, H&M, Apple Education Online (possibly in store too but I'm not 100% sure) (link) and Ark to name a few!
• Buy unbranded/basic everything. There is literally nothing wrong or drastically different about unbranded products. If it wasn't decent enough for consumption/use then they wouldn't be allowed to sell it. Supermarkets have drilled it in to our heads that branded = better and basic = substandard, and while that may be true for some products, the general rule of thumb is that you won't die if you eat/use unbranded/own brand products. Swallow your pride and try switching from branded products to the cheaper versions in the first instance - if you can't stomach the thought from going to branded products straight to the cheapest available, try moving down the price range. Most supermarkets have brands, own brand and then 'basic' versions of the same products and chances are you'll be paying more for the same thing inside the packet just because it has a name on it. A bit like clothing.

What to Take to Uni

• Clothes. Obviously. But keep in mind that the less you take, the more often you'll have to do your laundry. On the other hand, the more you take, the more laundry you have to do in the end. Find a balance between taking enough clothes to last you long enough so you're not in the laundry room every few days (and therefore paying for the washing machine more often!) but not so much that you don't have anywhere to put it. No, the floor doesn't count.
• If you're terrible at ironing like me then take as many clothes as possible that don't require expert ironing/any ironing at all.
• Focus on taking warm and comfortable clothes initially as it'll be the dead of winter before you know it and if you don't have a coat I can guarantee you will regret it.
• Money to last you until your loan comes in.
• Over-door hooks, desk tidy/desk drawers and coat hangers. Utilise your space.
• Any bulk foodstuff that you're sure you won't be able to purchase while you're there. E.g. I'm taking a bulk box of coffee that I'm getting from Makro because I need to use my mums Makro card.
• Personal documents: ID, EHIC card, passport photos, CV, bank card, confirmation letters (place at uni, room confirmation, any insurance documents, any tenancy contracts etc)
• That funky tool that's a bottle opener but also a corkscrew but also a mini knife.
• First aid kit and any medication you need.
• Your course equipment.

I can't think of anything else right now. If you have any other suggestions or knowledge to share, let me know!

Laura

SheInside Update

A while ago I mentioned my experience with ordering from SheInside for the second time. My order had been misplaced somewhere in China and the estimated shipping period had been and gone so I went after a refund. I've seen online that a number of people haven't managed to get their money back from SheInside but this post might help some of you that are in the same situation as I was!

As with my first order I worked out the dates when my order was supposed to be shipped, when my order was supposed to be delivered and the PayPal dispute deadline. Generally the shipping estimates SheInside give allow a 2 week period before the dispute deadline comes around - for example my dates were as follows:

Order placed: 6th August
Shipping: 13th-15th August
Delivery: up to 5th September
Dispute Deadline: 20th September

During the days before my Shipping deadline I got on to SheInside customer services warning them that if my order wasn't sorted by the 5th then I'd be opening a dispute - see my last post on this order here for my email correspondence. Vigilance is extremely important here as they will almost definitely try and fob you off with compensation credit to spend on the site or ask you to wait longer to see if they can 'find out what happened'. You need to be extremely clear about what you want when you're in the process of getting your money back or else you could get stung by missing the dispute deadline.

The morning of the 5th I got straight on to PayPal and opened the dispute. I would have done so sooner than this date but I figured that if I opened a dispute before the estimated shipping period was up then I'd just be told to wait until it was done with. My message to SheInside on the dispute claim quoted the past emails I'd sent them, reminded them of the fact that I pre-warned them that I would open a dispute, and also stated that the only way this dispute would be resolved is if they issued me with a full refund. I also gave them a 7 day time limit to issue this refund before I escalated the dispute further - as PayPal automatically close a dispute if there's no resolution within 20 days. I also sent their customer service department a separate email stating that I'm now after a refund. SheInside didn't reply back with any more plea bargains - instead I received a full refund this morning and a fairly pleasant confirmation email that my refund had been sorted.

Good luck to anyone after a refund from SheInside!

Laura

London Fashion Week(end)?

Disclaimer: I am in no way affiliated with Vodafone or Facebook or LFW. I have not been paid for this post.

I entered Vodafone's competition on Facebook to win 2 tickets to London Fashion Week. Or is it London Fashion Weekend? I have no idea I've seen a million different things ha.

But I've only gone and won it!

I'm actually going to Fashion Week!

There are literally no words to describe how excited I am right now. This is the absolute PERFECT start to my Fashion Photography degree - where better to find some awesome street style than at LFW?!

Going to have some absolutely AMAZING posts coming up in the next couple of weeks!
(I promise I'll get round to doing all the posts I said I'd do previously. weh)

Laura

SheInside Review #2

Okay so after my first success with ordering from SheInside I placed a second order for me and my mum. This order has somehow got lost in the post in China - Royal Mail haven't even received it and the 15 working day delivery period will be up this Friday (5th September). Not only has my trust in this company been completely violated but I am also extremely disappointed - I will not be ordering from SheInside again. I will be opening a PayPal dispute the minute the Friday post comes - more info about my experience to follow.

As I said in my previous SheInside Review - please be vigilant if you are ordering from this company and do not hesitate to exercise your right to open a PayPal dispute if anything seems wrong.

These are screenshots of my email correspondence (in order).

Me:

Them:

Me:

Them:

Me:

Them:

Laura

I Got a Haircut!

This haircut is long overdue - it must have been at least a year since the last one! Huge thanks to my amazing hairdresser Debbie who has cut my hair in my Grandma's kitchen since I can remember. There isn't much of a change this time; we pretty much just attacked the hair that serves as a sort of fringe, chopped the split ends off and added in some layers to give my hair some shape. I styled it all myself after it dried naturally (I'm atrocious at styling my hair so I'm pretty damn pleased with how it turned out) but here we are! I plan on doing a review on the leave in conditioner/de-frizz spray I've recently started using so watch this space!

this is my face

Laura

Fundraising

This isn't the type of post I'd normally write on this blog but apparently you can help a variety of causes simply by clicking a button. I've seen links to this site numerous times on Tumblr and I figured that it can't hurt to share the link here too. The website in question, http://greatergood.com/ offers a range of charitable options from raising funds for breast cancer to feeding homeless veterans to animal welfare - I've just clicked every button I can because, well, the worst that can happen is nothing. I have no idea if this organisation actually works, but again, what's the worst that can happen?

It's totally free, there's no signing up to anything - all you have to do is literally press a button.
http://greatergood.com/

Laura

Challenge Cup Final!

So I planned on writing a post earlier than this but hey ho I'm here now!

I popped down to London with Liam yesterday for the Challenge Cup Final - I'm really not much of a rugby fan (give me a catalogue of photographic accessories any day!) but I really liked the make-up I managed to throw on my face given the time - 4.15am ugh.

We didn't take many selfies as it was more about exploring London and the rugby itself but here is my Face of the Day!

Collection Match Perfection Concealer in shade 1 Fair

Revlon ColourStay Foundation in shade Ivory

Natural Collection Pressed Powder in shade Cool

Beauty UK Shadow/Eyeliner Palette  in #2

Sunburst Bronzer

#17 Cream Blush in shade Bronze

Daniel Sandler Eye Delight Loose Pigment in shade Peach

Re-vamp!

I've completely re-done the layout of my blog and it now includes a direct link to my online store! Check it out here.

Laura

Make-up for Pale Skin/Product Review: Natural Collection Pressed Powder

(Purchase link here)

I rediscovered this powder after I demolished my Revlon Photoready Pressed Powder (which is also AMAZING, by the way) but after a couple of uses I totally remember why I loved this powder in the first place.

Natural Collection is an incredibly cheap drugstore make-up brand - everything under £5 if I remember right - with some real hidden gems. It's perfect for those on a budget, anyone just starting out experimenting with make-up or anyone who just doesn't want to spend much on their make-up.

This powder comes in at £1.99 at Boots (link above) and although it only comes in 3 shades (Warm, Neutral, Cool) I find that that this powder is perfect for my paler than pale skin - a rarity! I use this to set my Revlon ColourStay foundation for combination/oily skin in shade Ivory (found here) by taking a stippling brush and pressing a thin layer of the product on to the skin before buffing in another light layer on top. This layering technique prevents the foundation underneath from being moved while I'm buffing in the powder and also improves its staying power. I deem a powder to be good if I have any make-up left to remove at the end of the day and this powder definitely gets the job done. My skin tends to get oily around the T-zone/forehead and this product significantly reduces shine throughout the day.

However this product is not a miracle worker and I don't find there to be much coverage in this powder. If you're looking for a higher coverage/powder foundation kind of product then this might not be right for you. It can also look slightly heavy if you go in all guns blazing and try to buff a lot of product in from the get go - I definitely recommend stippling and layering this product for best results. The colour selection isn't the best either, but it definitely isn't the worst, and for £1.99 there isn't much to complain about!

All in all I think this product is excellent value for money and deserves more attention than it gets. It does what it says on the tin and gets the job done for me with no issues. I highly recommend this product for anyone - especially all you pale skinned beauties out there!

Laura

Lifehack #2: Miracle Product!

It's official. Tea Tree Oil may just be the product of Gods.

I've raved about this product before in my post 'The Spot Remedy You (probably) Haven't Tried!' here but Tea Tree Oil has so many more uses than skincare alone.

(Image taken from Google. Here is the source)

Many retailers have a whole range of Tea Tree skincare products but here I want to rave about some of the lesser known uses for it so here we go!

Skincare

• (Neat) Helps clear up spots/acne
• (Neat/Medium mix) Can be used as a toner
• (Neat - cotton ball) Disinfects cuts/grazes
• (Neat - cotton ball) Helps to reduce blisters
• (Neat - cotton ball) Helps to heal bruises
• (Neat) Softens calluses
• (Diluted with lib balm) Improves the performance of lib balm
• (Optional: diluted with coconut oil/moisturiser) Helps with eczema
• (Neat) Reduces inflammation/insect bites

Haircare

• (Medium mix with shampoo) Helps with dandruff/dry scalp (a personal favourite!)
• (Neat or strong mix with shampoo) Helps to remove headlice
• (Neat) Helps with split ends

Other

• (Weak/Medium mix with water) Kitchen disinfectant spray
• (Medium mix with water) Helps deter pests such as ants
• (Weak mix with water) Natural mouth wash (do NOT swallow!)
• (Neat) Helps to cure fungal nail infections
• (Optional mix) Helps with cold sores/herpes
• (Neat - use sparingly!) Hand sanitiser
• (Weak/Medium mix with moisturiser) Helps to soothe sunburn

This list is just what I can think of off the top of my head. If you find a new miracle cure in this list or have any other uses for Tea Tree Oil then leave a comment! 

Laura

I'm Back!

Okay so I am finally the proud owner of no money and a brand spanking new Macbook Pro! I've had a couple issues with purchasing it which is why I've been gone longer than I anticipated but it's all good now.

Just as a side note; Apple, if my bank has to stop the transaction to you because they think it's fraudulent then I think you could really benefit from lowering your prices! Wink wink nudge nudge. And I think it would make a lot of people more comfortable if you gave them the option to A) place an order to configure their Macs in store B) allowed delivery of purchases to a store and C) offered more delivery options to people's home addresses. But that's just me.

I'll be back real soon with more posts, reviews, tips and lifehacks so I hope to see you then!
Laura

Weh weh weh

Okay so my dear old laptop is definitely on its last legs so I am pretty much unable to post until my new laptop is delivered. I'm ordering it on Monday so with any luck it'll be here by the end of next week!

Goodbye for now
Laura

Depop!

I'd just like to take this opportunity to rant and rave (after a period of silence, I know, I'm sorry!) about an app that goes by the name of Depop. This is a free app available on both iPhone and Android where you can sell your stuff. I came across this app when a number of my favourite bloggers posted about their Depop sales and I figured I'd check it out.

In my opinion, Depop is infinitely times better than Ebay. Ebay is awesome for buying, but for selling, there's fee after fee after fee. On Depop, listing any item is completely free. Payment is sent through PayPal, meaning buyers and sellers are protected, but if you buy/sell through the Depop app itself, it also has its own protection - meaning you're doubly protected. When you sell an item on Depop, they take 10% of the overall sale and PayPal takes their usual percentage - about 3.4% I think? You have the option to message a buyer/seller and offer to complete the transaction through PayPal alone - meaning less fees.

There are SO many bargains to be found on this app - I found a pair of Vans that were essentially brand new - never worn outside etc - I paid £10 inc shipping. Just recently I've bought a vintage faux fur coat for £15 inc shipping. I have so much more in the lineup to be purchased - as soon as I have some spare money!

I can't rave about this app enough - if you stumble across the right item at the right time you can find some right bargains. My username is 'lgoldup' and I've just sorted through some clothes so check out my Depop!

Laura

SheInside Review

DISCLAIMER:

I am no way affiliated with SheInside.com. All opinions are 100% my own and I have not been sent items/paid to do this review. I paid for all items with my own money and this is my true, honest opinion of my experience.

After watching so many hauls of Youtubers showing items they've been sent/bought off www.sheinside.com, I finally decided to take the plunge. I have ordered from Chinese Wholesalers before, and while this wasn't the worst experience, it certainly wasn't the best. I was hesitant to order from SheInside because of all the seemingly 'too good to be true' offers: free delivery with 30 USD (around £17) orders, 20% off when logged in with Facebook, discounts on near enough every item, reward points and so on. Coupled with all the negative reviews (which I only found after I ordered!) it's safe to say I was in 2 mind about ordering.

I initially intended to order as little as possible so that, if it did all go horribly wrong, I wouldn't have wasted too much money. I trawled through the site for ages and my order eventually consisted of 5 items, totalling £29.45 (with 20% Facebook discount):

Shipping!

SheInside claim to ship orders in 5-7 business days and claim to deliver in 5-15 business days. This means that it could take up to 22 business days to receive your parcel if you live in the UK. This is to be expected; they are based in China, after all. You can opt to pay for faster shipping or you can automatically get free express shipping if you spend over a certain amount. There are also different shipping estimates for different countries, and some parts of Asia will be subjected to a duty fee - make sure you check the shipping information relevant to your country before you order: http://www.sheinside.com/Shipping-Info-a-280.html

I ordered on the 3/07. My order was shipped on the 10/07 (5 business days from date of order) and I received my order today: 15/07 (3 business days from date of shipping). I'm quite surprised and pleased with the delivery service - I spent enough to achieve free standard shipping but my parcel was Royal Mail Tracked - I'm not sure if this is classed as standard, but either way I was chuffed that I got a tracking number. I appreciated the fact that it was a proper tracking number - i.e I was able to find out exactly what time my parcel was shipped, what time it arrived in London and what time it arrived up North, rather than being fobbed off with 'yeah your parcel is shipped'.

This is what arrived:

Everything arrived in its own protective plastic bag and it was nicely packed - shows that they didn't just chuck it in a bag. The jewellery was in a padded envelope, everything I ordered was there (unlike my last experience with a different wholesaler!) and everything was sealed nicely.

The Clothes!
I bought the crop tops specifically for when I've lost the weight I put on during college, so they don't fit properly just yet. I was particularly impressed with the white crop top; the material is thick, very stretchy and good quality, the colour is a brilliant white and I have a feeling I'm going to love it when it fits properly! The flowery crop top is also lovely; a light-weight material with a good quality zip and good quality fastenings on the straps. I forgot to properly check the measurements on this top, so it's likely that it will never fit me right, but that's my own fault for not checking the sizes. You might find it handy to have a conversion chart open while you're ordering as they show the measurements of the garments in cm, rather than actual sizes, and Chinese sizes run smaller than UK sizes.

The shorts that I received weren't like the ones in the picture. The hem wasn't rolled up and they looked more like stereotypical American farmer shorts than anything, but it should be easy enough to fix them up so they look like the ones online.

The necklace is really nice: the teeth things hanging at the bottom are secured well to the rest of the necklace and it doesn't look cheap (in my opinion!). The only niggle I have with this necklace is the chain - it's either made of plastic or really really cheap metal, but it seems sturdy enough all the same. The rings are lovely: they don't feel cheap but at the same time I'm going to be surprised if they don't leave my fingers green. These rings only come in one size - if you generally take a size M or up in rings these probably won't fit you. I can only fit a couple on my ring fingers comfortably - even then they're slightly tight.

Communication!
The rings were supposed to be shipped within 24hrs from purchase. However, I didn't receive any confirmation of shipment for these rings the next day so I emailed their customer service asking what the crack was with these rings and my whole order. I got a response in 3ish days - at least one of which was over the weekend and they say their customer service team is operational Monday-Friday. The reply was very vague - something along the lines of 'don't worry we are processing your order. We will send confirmation of shipment'. Their reply wasn't very professional - the English was good I guess, but there was no proper use of punctuation, words were shortened and there was a lot of slang. This didn't fill me with confidence that I was going to receive my order, so I worked out the estimated dates for shipping and delivery to make sure that I didn't miss the 45 day deadline for a PayPal dispute. However, I received my shipping confirmation and tracking number a couple of days later, so I was a happy bunny.

Verdict!
Basically, if you order from SheInside, you need to be vigilant.

• Check out the reviews for all the items you're thinking of purchasing to get an idea of the product you'll be receiving. If there is any problem at any stage of the ordering process then do not hesitate to start sorting it out. PayPal does have a safety net dispute system, but there is a time limit - miss the deadline and you're on your own.
• The sizes run small so make sure you check the measurements and use a conversion chart to ensure you're ordering the right size - SheInside will not pay for returns.
• SheInside have great offers - 20% off, free shipping, reward points on every purchase, 50% off if you get 5 Facebook friends signed up.
• The customer service at SheInside is a bit shady - I would recommend for you to not rely on them.
• The quality of the products are very decent, especially for the price.

Overall I am very happy with my first experience ordering from SheInside and I am happy to order from them again.

York Dragon Boat Race 2014

Yesterday (Sunday 13th July) me, my boyfriend, my mum, my sister and her boyfriend travelled up to York to see  the Dragon Boat Race. It was really fun - the weather sucked throughout the morning (cheers, England!) but this was to be expected. The weather was forecast to be sunny, after-all. We wandered around the city centre around mid-day to keep my ginger skin out of direct constant sunlight, and I ended up buying a flowy cami top from H&M for £7 - styling post to come?

Watching Dragon Boat races always want me want to have a go myself - they look fun!

While walking through the gardens surrounding York Minster (I think it was the Minster) there was a little tent with birds of prey in. I loves me some birds of prey! This little guy was adorable.

The Shambles: my second home. My boyfriend had never been here, or to York, before: shame on him! I love the Art Shop; it's so cute in there and they have awesome stuff!

No trip to York is complete until you have some PROPER Lemonade. I love this stuff so much.

This adorable bike basket really stood out from the bleak street. It had been raining for hours so it was refreshing to see a bit of colour in my life.

Mama and Papa swan with their army of Swanlets! (I know they're not actually called swanlets).

This guy was the highlight of my day!

Basically, York is awesome.

Laura

Lifehack #1: Mascara!

Welcome to the first  post of my Lifehack series! This will be the place where I share all the life-changing information I stumble across. First up: Mascara!

I know for many people that mascara causes more trouble than it's worth - from constant smudging to not holding your lashes curl to any number of problems - here are my lifehacks to help you out!

• My mascara always smudges, even though I use waterproof mascara!

The key to solving this problem is in the name: waterproof mascara is exactly that - waterproof. People with oily skin tend to switch to waterproof mascara to try prevent their mascara from giving them panda eyes. Faces produce oil, and waterproof mascara is oil soluble. Try switching back to a good quality regular mascara to vanquish your mascara woes. Apply your base, set with powder and apply mascara last to ensure its surroundings are completely dry.

• My mascara won't hold a curl!

I've experienced this problem first-hand so here's my solution: the key here is layering. Curl your lashes as you normally do - personally I just do a couple of pumps of the curler near the base of my lashes and another around half-way up. After your lashes are curled you want to apply a reasonably thin layer of mascara. Let this layer dry for 20-30 seconds and then, gently, re-curl your lashes. Apply another layer of mascara, let it almost dry, and curl your lashes one last time. Curling the last coat as it's almost dry forces the mascara to dry curled - et voila!

• My mascara clumps all the time!

My first suggestion to solving this problem would be to research any mascara (and any make-up product for that matter!) and read up on the product's tendencies before you buy it. If 1000 people are all saying a mascara clumps, chances are it's going to clump for you too. If you've already bought your mascara and it's relatively new (i.e it's not 5 years old) and it's clumping like there's no tomorrow then try cleaning the wand thoroughly. There could be any number of causes of clumpiness hidden in the wand - eyelashes, bacteria, skin, etc. If you've had your mascara for a long time then I'd suggest binning it and buying a new one. If you're adamant about keeping a clumpy mascara then you can always run through your clumpy lashes with an old (but clean!) mascara wand or spoolie to remove the clumps. Prevention is better than cure.

Let me know if you have any other issues with mascara that you'd like some advice on!
Laura

!!!!!!!

I got a Distinction!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This is a few days late - I've been experiencing some worrying technical issues (don't die on me, laptop!) and I've been looking for jobs to see me through the summer. However, I am officially a Distinct student!

Laura

Final Show

My Final Show at NEW College Pontefract was amazing; even if I do say so myself. The past few days have been an emotional rollercoaster ride (hence the lack of posts!) and it's safe to say I'm glad I got this thing over and done with. There's an examiner out there, somewhere, who knows my grade - meaning he knows whether or not I'm going to university in September. I'm terrified.

When I arrived I was greeted by this lovely arrangement of a years' work:

There was absolutely nothing that was untouched and that makes it all the more scary because I know full well where my weaknesses lie and there was no-where to hide. I've experienced moderation for years now and it's never really bothered me; I'm not sure why I've been so anxious this time around but I guess that just means I care.

Fashion things

I kept my make-up and outfit simple mainly because I knew it was going to be extremely hot in the studio and I was hitting the town afterwards so feeling comfortable and confident was key for me.

 Face

Revlon Colourstay Foundation - Ivory

Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer - No.1 'Light'

Collection Fast Stroke Eyeliner - Black

Urban Decay Primer Potion

Urban Decay Naked Palette

Beauty UK Eyeliner/Shadow Palette - No.2 'Amazon'

Rimmel Lasting Finish Lipstick - 'Birthday Suit'

(That's a lot of products for a simple face oh my)

 Outfit

Hair - Straightened

Dress - Missguided

Bag - New Look

Tights - Asda

Boots - Boohoo.com

Accessories - Everyday

I might do a separate post on my actual exhibition piece so watch this space!

Laura 

Spot Remedy You (probably) Haven't Tried!

Like a lot of people I've been plagued with spot-prone skin since I was a wee babe. I started noticing my skin was changing in primary school - around year 5/6. My skin erupted in angry spots that didn't seem to improve no matter what; over the years I've tried Clearasil's products, facewipes, exfoliators, tea tree oil, changing my diet, drinking twice as much water as usual - the lot. My confidence plummeted as I thought I had spots because my face was dirty and therefore I was dirty, no matter what I tried. Tea tree oil did help considerably, for me, and it was the best thing I'd discovered since sliced bread!  I'd do this every night and it significantly improved the appearance of my skin, so my first suggestion is:

• Cleanse your skin with your go-to cleansing method and remove as much make-up, dirt, oil etc as you can. Repeat. I found repeating the process helped me maximise the usefulness of facewipes - yes, I know they suck but I'm not made of money! I used one to remove make-up and dirt followed by one to clean my actual skin. 
• Apply generous amounts tea tree oil onto the affected area. Avoid eyes, nostrils, mouth, any open scabs - it'll sting like a b*!

I did this every night for around 2 weeks last thing at night before I couldn't be bothered to keep it up. I noticed a significant difference the morning after so give it a shot!

How I'm getting rid of my spots now:
My mum randomly received some hand sanitiser samples from work and since she has no use for them she kindly donated them to me. My prior experience with the tea tree oil tempted me to try this sanitiser on my face, since they essentially do the same job.

I use two of Nivea's Refreshing Facial Cleansing Wipes (found here) to cleanse my skin first thing in the morning and last thing at night.

When I'm in the bath I exfoliate my skin using St Ives Naturally Clear Apricot Scrub (found here) twice again to ensure I nab all the gunk and dead skin cells but ou can use any exfoliator you prefer. The hand sanitiser I use is Kleenex Foam Hand Sanitiser (found here) and I find that a single pump is plenty to disinfect my skin.

Sanitising my skin every morning and every night has really helped with my pre-existing spots as well as preventing new ones. This process doesn't completely stop my spots but it has significantly improved the appearance of my skin and makes new ones less of a problem.

If you try this technique or have any other suggestions then let me know!
Laura

Hello, My Name Is:

Laura! I'm a 19 year old student from Leeds, West Yorkshire. I've just finished college and, depending on results next Friday, will (hopefully) be starting uni in September studying Photography for Fashion and Advertising.

This blog will primarily be dedicated to sharing my knowledge/experiences in fashion, style, beauty, lifestyle and everything in between.

Awkward first post over. Good. Bye for now!