Olympic Gold Medal Cupcakes

Hello,

In the spirit of all things Olympics 2012, and in light of Team GB’s recent gold medal successes, I decided to make some Olympic Gold Medal Cupcakes!

For the cupcakes themselves, I used a basic Victoria Sponge recipe, which can be found here.

For the icing, I used Betty Crocker vanilla butter cream icing and piped it onto the cupcakes. I then finished the cupcakes with a sprinkling of edible gold hologram glitter, and Haribo Gold Medals.

Grace xXx

Label: Cupcakes

Bobbi Brown Lip Gloss

Hello,

I went to the Cosmetic Company Outlet (CCO) a few weeks ago, and whilst browsing the Bobbi Brown products I came across this lip gloss in the colour Bright Pink. So I picked one up and have been using it for a while now, so decided to share my thoughts on it.

This is actually my first Bobbi Brown product, as I’ve always thought that the brand was too expensive, but CCO have a wide selection of reduced products (most of which are discontinued), making them more affordable. For example, this particular lip gloss was reduced from £17 to £12, making it around the same price as MAC lip glosses.

I had wanted to try one of the Bobbi Brown lip glosses for a while, as I’d heard a few people comment that they prefer them to MAC lip glosses, due to their consistency. But I have to say that I didn’t really notice much difference between the two. In my opinion both the Bobbi Brown and MAC lip glosses have quite a thick consistency, which enables them to stay on for longer.

As for colour, this particular lip gloss appears much brighter in the tube than it does when applied. However, it is still noticeable, and leaves a natural pink gloss.

Overall, I am quite impressed with this Bobbi Brown lip gloss. However, I do still feel that the brand itself is quite expensive, and so would probably only ever purchase more of these products from CCO, at a reduced price.

Grace xXx

Label: Makeup

Benefit Erase Paste

Hello,

I’ve been using Benefit Erase Paste for over a year now, and can definitely say that it is one of the best concealers I have ever used. So I thought I would do a bit of a review as a good concealer is a makeup bag staple, and can sometimes be hard to find!

Benefit Erase Paste is a full coverage concealer that can be used to cover dark circles and imperfections. Unfortunately I no longer have the packaging to show you, but I’m sure that most of you will be familiar with it already. On the Benefit website, the Erase Paste is described as follows:

“This concentrated, creamy concealer brightens and camouflages in one easy step! Targets dark circles, discolouration and imperfections. Three shades with brightening melon undertones to suit every complexion. Comes complete with a fully illustrated, step-by-step lesson and mini-spatula for easy application.”

I use Benefit Erase Paste in the colour Fair, which is the lightest of the three available (Fair, Medium and Deep). However, although the Erase Paste does come with a mini-spatula, I’ve never actually used it to apply my concealer, as I feel it picks up too much product. Instead, I prefer to apply my concealer with my fingers, as this allows me to blend the product into my skin for a better finish.

I purchased my Benefit Erase Paste from my nearest Benefit counter in Debenhams, for £19.50. However, I did agonise over whether to buy this product, as it is very expensive for a concealer. But after trying Benefit Erase Paste for myself, I can definitely say that it is worth the price as it seems to last forever! As I said, I have been using my Erase Paste for over a year now, and I have still only used a tiny amount (as you can see from the photograph above).

Grace xXx

Label: Makeup

Birthday Cupcakes

Hello,

It was my Mum’s partner’s birthday a few weeks ago, and as he lives quite far away I thought it would be best to make some birthday cupcakes rather than a birthday cake, as they are much easier to travel with.

For the cupcakes themselves, I used a basic Victoria Sponge recipe, which can be found here.

For the icing, I used Betty Crocker vanilla butter cream icing and piped it onto the cupcakes. I then finished the cupcakes with some coloured chocolate beans (which are essentially just mini Smarties), and some Happy Birthday candles.

Grace xXx

Label: Cupcakes

NOTD - Strawberry Ice Cream

Hello,

Another simple nails of the day for today.

For this design, I used two coats of Barry M Strawberry Ice Cream. I also applied a base and top coat. My favourites are Rimmel Stronger Double Duty Base Coat, and Seche Vite Dry Fast Top Coat. More information about these can be found here.

I love Barry M nail polishes as I feel there is a wide range of colours that are good quality and affordable, priced at just £2.99 each.

Grace xXx

Label: Nails

Graduation Cupcakes

Hello,

As some of you will know from my last post, it was my graduation earlier this week, so I thought I would make some graduation themed cupcakes to mark the occasion!

I had been thinking about making some cupcakes for my graduation for a while, and when I was browsing the internet for ideas, I came across this lovely graduation cupcake set by Meri Meri.

I ordered mine from Ebay for around £8, but I’m sure they will be available elsewhere on the internet as well.

For the cupcakes themselves, I used a basic Victoria Sponge recipe, which can be found here.

For the icing, I used Betty Crocker vanilla butter cream icing and piped it onto the cupcakes. I then finished the cupcakes with a sprinkling of edible silver hologram glitter, and the graduation cupcake toppers.

Grace xXx

Label: Cupcakes

Graduation OOTD

Hello,

It was my graduation earlier this week, so I thought I would share a few photographs from the day, and also show my outfit of the day.

I had a lovely graduation day with my Mum, Auntie and Boyfriend, even though it rained for most of it! We had champagne before the ceremony, and went for a meal in the evening with the rest of the family.

Unfortunately I don’t have a photograph that shows my entire outfit, as I’m covered up by my graduation gowns in most of them! So I’ve put together a bit of a collage to show my outfit in more detail.

The blouse is by Lipsy, and is also available in pink. I bought mine from ASOS for £35, along with the skirt which was £28. The shoes are from New Look, and cost £22.99.

The shoes are actually from the Extra Wide Fit range in New Look, which put me off to start with as I don’t actually need wide fit shoes, but I tried them on anyway and found that the smaller size fit perfectly. I am usually a size 6, but I bought these in a size 5. But even though they only have a small heel, I still ended the day with very sore feet!

Grace xXx