A Letter to 2016

 

Normally (for the past two years anyway) I'd post a 'lessons I learned this year' type of post on New Years Eve. List posts are addictive, and its nice to reflect neatly on all the little and scattered lessons you came across throughout the year. This year has been so full of change for me however, that I honestly wouldn't know where to begin, and I think the list would go on forever. Its not often that I post anything personal on my blog anymore; as more people from my real life have been let into the secret I feel like this space is less of a diary, and its changing into something I treat professionally. That's neither a bad or a good thing, but since we are reaching the end of a chapter, I thought I'd add a little bit of personality to ASD where I am aware that it is lacking.

 

Blog-wise, this year has been my favourite yet. Although I've hit a few bumps in the road, I feel like my photography and content has developed its own style to match my own. If you had told me when I started my blog that I would now fit comfortably into the beauty niche, I'd probably have laughed. I made lots of effort last year to turn this into a fashion blog, but honestly I just don't know if I'll ever feel confident enough to own a blog full of photos of myself, dressed up for the world to see. Make up is something I feel passionate about, and although it can sometimes feel a bit trivial to have such a huge part of my life revolve around products and brands, I'm quite content with writing light hearted posts. Why shouldn't we get excited over pretty lipstick packaging and killer eye shadow formulas? This blog is literally branded as 'a small distraction' from everyday life, after all.

 

I thought last year taught me a lot about relationships (of any kind), but this year has definitely shown me more, potentially because the dynamic of my life and routines has been turned upside down, and along with it so has the way I view my relationships. I am in such a good place right now, and so excited to be surrounded by the loveliest group of friends that I could imagine, but it took me a while to realise that there is nothing more important than that. Dancing around the room singing throwback songs and eating pizza with your best friends is the best way to heal anything. They make my heart happy whenever I see them, honestly. Going through another break up was not a topic I ever addressed here, or anywhere online, and I'm not going to elaborate much here, either. I've learnt to love being on my own, which is a step that I'm so glad to have taken. You can miss people so intensely, but learning to put yourself first is something I value most of all, and will be the biggest lesson I take with me into the new year.

 

2016 has been full of changes. I started university and moved out, had to push myself to come out of my shell, learned to cook, and started to appreciate myself and the little things a lot more. For 2017, I have my hopes set high, because I don't believe in that low expectations nonsense. In the New Year I'm going to try and incorporate vegetarianism into my diet (baby steps), get a tattoo I've wanted since I was fifteen, and accept that life is a little crazy most of the time.

 

Happy New Year. Let's make it a beautifully wild one.

What I got for Christmas 2016

 

I hope you had the loveliest Christmas with all of your families and friends!

 

Obviously the gift side of things is not the most important (insert the cliché disclaimer here), but as Bloggers I'm sure we're all just as nosy as each other, and I love reading what Santa brought for everyone else, so I thought I'd pick a few of my favourite gifts to show you all since it went down so well last year.

 

One of my main presents from my parents was a gorgeous Pandora ring in a pretty diamante ribbon design. I absolutely love Pandora rings - to receive this under the tree was a dream come true. Another surprise that I had no idea about was a Charlotte Tilbury palette; I've never owned anything from the brand and my Mum picked out the 'Instant Look in a Palette', which has a little bit of everything. I won't go into too much detail, as this beauty deserves a separate review on the blog which I'll get to ASAP.

 

 

I got quite a few lip products this year, which is right up my street (you only have to read my blog for two minutes to agree with that!) The TooFaced Melted Lipstick in 'Chihuahua' has been on my wishlist for the longest time to add to my evergrowing collection, and ever since trying 'Snapdragon' by Jouer I've had my eye on 'Citronade Rose', a beautiful metallic ballet pink. My Aunty bought me and my Sister some Victoria's Secret lip products, which I'm excited to use as I've never had any make up from there either. Tis the season for new brands!

 

Other beauty bits included a festive set of EOS lip balms, a product that I've adored for years, and a PINK body spray that I can't wait to spray all over myself. I was so lucky this year because my Dad knew how much I wanted the famous Alex 9 drawer set from Ikea, and surprised me with it on Christmas Eve. I cannot tell you how much it thrills me to finally have proper organisation for my make up; its the drawer set of dreams let me tell you.

 

 

My Mum confessed that she actually found my blog twitter account in October and has been using my tweets to pick out gifts for months. I was over the moon to receive a leopard print scarf that I'd seen in Urban Outfitters, and a blue velvet bag that I'd seen with her in Pull and Bear and thought was an almost identical match for a Chanel bag that I'd loved. I am so thankful for such thoughtful gifts - aren't Mums just the loveliest? 



 

I'd love for you to comment your favourite gift this year, or link me your blog posts! Here's to the post-Christmas slump, with a box of chocolates attached permanently to your lap for at least a week and a continuous flow of festive drinks.

15 reasons why the festive season is the best ever

 

Only five more sleeps until the big day!

 

The Christmas period is without a doubt my absolute favourite time of year; I can't imagine a season which is more family-orientated than this one, so it felt right to compile a list of all the things that make Christmas (or whatever holiday you choose to celebrate at this time) the best ever.

 

1. Sticking a candy cane in a hot chocolate and voila! You're practically a Starbucks barista.

 

2. Counting down to a celebration by using 'sleeps' as a measure of time. Yes, please let me be five years old again.

 

3. Coming home (if you're in university or just live away) and catching up with your best friends. A bottle of wine and a good conversation is proven to be good for the soul.

 

4. Taking festive polaroids - need I explain more?

 

5. Wearing red lipstick and feeling utterly fabulous. You pout it out girl, you do you.

 

6. The limited edition Christmas make up collections *drools over the Nutcracker Sweet collection*

 

7. Dancing around in your onesie to Christmas music and believing every year that this year, might be the year you sing All I Want for Christmas just as good as Mariah.

 

8. Watching Love Actually on repeat and basically just swooning over Hugh Grant the entire time.

 

9. Winter walks on the beach with about 100 layers on because holy crapoli, it is freezing.

 

10. That gingerbread/cinnamon smell that just magically appears around Christmas (its probably just the candle you lit, but lets believe it magically appeared okay?)

 

11. Incorporating glitter into every make up look, because if you can't do it in December, when can you?

 

12. Laughing at your pets reaction to the Christmas tree, which is more enjoyable than the tree itself tbh.

 

13. Sitting by the fire and writing blog posts (current situation, if you hadn't guessed.)

 

14. That feeling when you open your eyes on Christmas morning and get butterflies - I don't care how old I get, I don't think that will ever disappear.

 

15. Reflecting back on the year and thinking that although you may not have achieved all your goals and things might have gone a bit pear shaped, you're here and things turned out okay anyway (and if they haven't, it will all look up!)

Glossybox || Mistletoe Kisses

 

I know I've had my doubts with Glossybox in the past, but I have to say that I think that they've nailed it with their box for December 2016. It seems as though they're finally taking notice of customer criticisms, avoiding the same old brands and including more make up products. Every single item I received this month was make up, which is a pretty impressive feature of the box, and one that I'm sure beauty lovers are raving over.

 

The most exciting product within the box is the semi-matte lipstick from MDM Flow in the shade 'Vamp', a gorgeous plum shade. The lipstick retails at £18 and the formula is a perfect balance between a matte finish and a satin feel. Often matte lips can be uncomfortable, so to find a product that combines the look of a matte lip with a formula that is easier to wear is an impressive feat. This month the box could have been themed Sugar or Spice, with these vampy shades making up the 'spice' section. The element of choice is a nice touch to the box, considering a bold plum shade may not be for everyone.

 

 

The second product that jumps out at you is the 'Light up your face' Luminizer palette from Essence, which only sells at £3, something you wouldn't guess when swatching the highlight shades. Even though its lovely to receive luxury items in Glossybox, getting cheaper options that you will actually make use of is just as exciting, especially since its affordable to then purchase other items from the brand. This is the same with the Collection Eyebrow powder, which thankfully came in the exact dark brunette shade that I need for my eyebrows. I can't wait to try this as I tend to stick to NYX Tame and Frame way too often; and this little gem is only £4.19.

 

 

One thing my Mum was happy to see included was Lipcote, the classic lipstick topper to keep that bold Christmas lip in place. This brand was one that my Mum used when she was my age, so I'm definitely intrigued to see what I think of this £3.99 cult favourite, and hopefully make it a generational product in our make up bags.

 

Last, we received a Revlon Nail Enamel (£6.49) in the shade 'Valentine', which is a beautiful deep red to match the MDM lipstick and conclude the ideal winter look. Although I probably won't get a lot of use from this since I've started having acrylic nails, I can appreciate what a good finale to the box this nail polish makes, considering the high reputation of the brand. It's always a thrill to see your favourite drugstore brands appear in the box, when it might be something you've passed by in Boots and wanted to try out for a while. 10/10 to the Glossy Christmas special - my favourite box by far!

 

 

My First Colourpop Order

 

*Drum roll*

I finally did it! Ordering from Colourpop has been something on my beauty bucket list for quite some time now, but the whole delivery process kind of scared me off. For Black Friday Colourpop did free international shipping for 24 hours (praise the Lord), so obviously I got straight on that and placed an order. I did some research and found that generally, if you spend less than £15 you dodge a customs charge, and since I didn't receive a charge I would be inclined to use that rule in the future.

 

Products-wise, I went for three of the liquid lip colours; they're the product that I've heard the most about, and there was a particular few that I wanted to try out. So far, my favourite formula is definitely the 'glossy' lip, which has that typical glossy look, but without any of the sticky texture. I avoided matte shades because I own so many matte lipsticks that it seemed a better idea to try out other, possibly more comfortable formulas. I'm so fussy about formula; if its even slightly drying its a complete turn off, and I much prefer moisturising lip colours.

 

 

The first one I knew I absolutely had to include was one from the Kathleen Lights collection, and I'm all about the nude-browns so I added 'Point Zero' to my basket. Its described on the website as a cool toned grey brown, and I think I would agree with that, its almost an exact mixture of 'Stone' and 'Spirit' by MAC. This one is in a satin finish which I like, it looks pretty much matte but the colour is comfortable and it doesn't settle onto my lips like cement.

 

The other satin lip that I went for was a shade completely different to anything else I own. 'Femme' is described as a 'muted dirty lilac', and whilst I wasn't originally sure that a lilac shade would suit my pale skin tone, it actually works better than I thought. Lilacs are increasingly on the beauty trend, and for $6 I couldn't exactly say no, could I? After trying two of this formula out I can definitely recommend the satin finish, which seems to me to be similar to the satin finish that MAC lipsticks have.

 

  

Last but 100% not least, my favourite purchase was 'Furry' from their Holiday collection, which is a 'rich burgundy in a metallic finish'. This colour is the perfect Christmas day shade, and I've already worn it multiple times. As I mentioned at the start of this post the glossy formula is a winner in my eyes, and in a bold shade like this it gives a make up look the pop that is needed during this season. Imagining this with a gold glitter eye look almost brings happy tears to my eyes.

 

Furry, Femme, Point Zero

Urban Decay Full Spectrum

 

Can we just take a second to appreciate how beautiful this palette is?

 

I was lucky enough to win a giveaway hosted by Estee Lalonde a few weeks back (a million thankyous to you Estee!) , and part of my prize was this pretty lil thang. I'd seen the Full Spectrum palette by Urban Decay all over social media as bloggers began to talk about it, and I never imagined that a few days later it would arrive at my own doorstep.

 

Generally, I'm a very low key make up fan; apart from lips I don't really venture into the classic bold category and I'm a big fan of the traditional subtle brown eye looks. Since receiving this palette though I've been dipping my toes ever so slightly into the world of crazy coloured shadows, and you know what? I think I might be in love. Urban Decay palettes are some of my favourites - the Naked palette is my holy grail along with the basics, so I knew from past experience that the formula of these shadows was going to be up my street.

 

The basic idea of this product is to whack a 'full spectrum' of colour into one place, which I think it's safe to say was a goal that UD achieved. Of all the shades provided, I think my go-to colours would have to be Alchemy (a gorgeous shimmery deep rose colour), and Warning, which is your typical muted copper. It might take me a while to work up the courage to use all 21 shades, but I'll settle for starting with the more subtle ones. The brush included with this product is great, as all Urban Decay brushes typically are, and the packaging of this palette is to die for. That multi-coloured, jewelled logo on the front is practically the most beautiful thing I've ever seen, and isn't it just so darn photogenic?

 

I'd like to say that if I hadn't won this then I would have gone out and bought it, but since it's quite a pricey investment with such bright colours, I'm not sure that I would have done prior to trying it out. It is however a story of 'don't judge a book by its cover', because having used this and fallen in love with it, I know that it's worth the splurge, and I would go back in time and convince myself to part with the cash. Even if you're feeling a bit intimidated by some of the shades in here, I'd consider splashing out - bold eye looks are so on trend at the moment that it can't hurt to take a chance and just create a rainbow on your eyelids. And even if you don't reach for it every day, we all need something a little more unique in our collections.

Iced, Jones, Warning, Alchemy, Hundred.

 

 

December Lip Library || Christmas Reds Edition

 

Happy December 3rd!

 

Sadly I know I wouldn't be able to hack Blogmas (major bonus points to anyone tackling that this year), but I have got some Christmas posts lined up this month, beginning with a seasonal version of my lip library series. Red lips aren't something I wear often, although everyone knows that if you're going to bring em' out, its got to be during the holiday season.

 

I chose a selection of shades and finishes, to the point where I really do think I've cracked it - the perfect selection of festive reds to satisfy those December lipstick cravings.

 

Nars Velvet Matte Lip Pencil in 'Dragon Girl':

To be quite honest, I bought this shade back in the day because it was Taylor Swift's go-to colour (and anyone that knows me knows that if Taylor has it, I've just gotta get my hands on it.) If you want a bright festive red that's going to be drop dead matte, this is the perfect choice. And who can resist a shade with a name as fierce as 'dragon girl'?

 

Too Faced Melted in 'Ruby':

Too Faced Melted lipsticks are without a doubt my favourite formula on the market; my collection is slowly growing and within it is a gorgeous red shade called Ruby. I was expecting this to be a deep red, but instead its vibrant, which is great for a Christmas party where you want to stand out. If you're looking for a comfortable red lip that sits for hours without drying out then I'd recommend this one, and there are also a couple more variations of red within this collection for if you want something a little less bright.

 

Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvet in 'Grand Cru':

Hands down my perfect red, and ironically the only drugstore option in this library, Bourjois have nailed it with their deep red shade. I prefer darker reds with slight blue undertones for the maximum 'white teeth' effect, and this formula stays put on my lips all night, particularly with a bit of lip balm underneath. Not only is this shade 10/10, but there are so many other gorgeous shades in the range to try out as well. You guys know that my heart lies with Bourjois - they do everything right.



 

 

MAC 'On Hold':

Now we move onto the sheerer red shades; the subtle festive look without going totally bold. MAC is famous for its killer reds, but I never really hear much about On Hold, which is a pretty Cremesheen lipstick in a pink toned red. I love having a couple of slightly less wild reds in my Winter collection - sheer reds like this are ideal for work or school and have the added bonus of actually feeling very moisturising on your lips.

 

Benebalm:



Last but certainly not least is one of my favourite products of all time. Benefit's tinted lip balms are the best tinted balms that I've ever tried, and although they can be a bit pricey for what they are, you can never go wrong. The perfumed scent is right up my alley, and Benebalm is a go-to hint of red that makes a simple look tie together. I've not been wearing a lot of face makeup recently, and this has been a great addition to my easy make up routine.

I'm actually giving Benebalm (along with Benetint) away over on my Twitter, which you can enter by following this link and simply RT-ing my tweet. Good luck!

Left to right: Grand Cru, Ruby, Dragon Girl, On Hold, Benebalm

 

New Make Up Geek Additions

 

*Prepare yourselves to hear me sing the praises of  MUG once again*

 

When it comes to single eyeshadows, I very rarely buy them; palettes are so much easier to carry around and travel with, and you know what? Single shadows can be pretty darn expensive. With the exception of a couple of MAC shadows (which I very highly rate by the way) and some NYX single pans (which I sadly don't rate as much), I stick to Make Up Geek and fill up my z-palette to get the best of both worlds.

 

Make Up Geek have two main variations of eyeshadow pan that I gravitate towards, the standard shadow and the foiled. Not long ago I splashed out and bought Grandstand (foiled) and it just changed the eyeshadow game for me, so I knew that I'd have to get back on Beauty Bay and order a couple more to review on my blog. The shades I picked out were Cocoa Bear, which I've heard nothing but good things about and have seen Jaclyn Hill use countless times, Cosmopolitan, and Shimma Shimma. 

 

 

 

Cocoa Bear is your typical warm, red-brown matte shade, and I don't own anything else like it in my collection. It ties together a warm toned eye look perfectly and the pigmentation is crazy. The formula of Makeup Geek shadows is so far away from chalky and almost feels buttery, which I think a lot of people would agree is the ideal formula for a shadow that you want to be able to blend into oblivion. With a lot of brands, the shimmery shades are brilliant but the matte shades often feel like an afterthought - not the case here!

 

Shimma shimma is such a pretty metallic champagne shade (and obviously a shimmer), which I picked up for the corners of my eyes and below my browbone to add some highlight. If you read my fall favourites post you'll know I'm all about the champagne shades right now, so it probably comes as no surprise that I would add this beauty to my basket.

 

Finally, Cosmopolitan is a shade that I've been eyeing up for absolutely ages, purely because I've never come across a shadow like it. Who doesn't adore a rose gold shimmer shade? I haven't been able to incorporate this into a look yet, but I know I'll get lots of use out of it in this run up to Christmas; the shadow has gold flecks running through it that just scream New Years Eve. 

 

Let me know if you want a full MUG collection - over the past few months I've accumulated quite a few new shades to add to my Z-palette.

 

MAC Nutcracker Sweet || Sweet Copper Face Compact

 

I have had this beauty sat in my 'to photograph' pile for weeks, and I can't actually believe that now I'll finally get to use it (the struggles of being a blogger, am I right?)

 

Usually, I don't get drawn in by limited edition collections; the hype has never hit me and to be honest, it often annoys me that the packaging of limited edition collections is different to the nice neat normal brand packaging. Like hello, why would I want my line of black MAC lipstick bullets to be broken up? But this time, MAC have completely nailed it with their festive line. The packaging of the Nutcracker Sweet Collection is to die for - the outside of the products look magical, and the inside appears to be no different.

 

If I was a little richer I'd have walked into MAC and done a complete Blair Waldorf and bought everything within sight, but sadly that obviously couldn't happen, so I picked up the 'Sweet Copper Face Compact', which I had set in my sights from the word go.

  

 

Within the face compact, and I think is possibly the factor that drew everyone to this item in the collection, is the Extra Dimension Skin Finish in the shade 'Whisper of Gilt', a gorgeous shimmery pale gold highlight that I believe was limited edition and a cult favourite in the past, re-released for this collection. This shade reminds me a lot of Mary-Lou, but for me the finish works a lot better with my skin and doesn't show any texture. As you can see from the swatch below, this is your perfect gold highlight that works well with a variety of skin tones; I thought this compact would be way too dark for me when I first saw it, but after trying it out I can see that the shades adapt to work with pale as well as dark skin tones.

 

The Extra Dimension Blush that you get in the compact is in the shade 'Pleasure Model', a copper toned blush that works beautifully with the highlight. I wouldn't usually go for such bold colours, but after trying this out I would definitely be inclined to try blush tones like this again. The compact shuts with a magnetic mechanism which I am completely on board with; it can be annoying when products are difficult to close, and its definitely handy for travelling with over the holiday season.

 

MAC have well and truly nailed it with these compacts - the Sweet Peach version also looks super pretty and is still available in some places, although the whole range is selling out as every second passes.  I paid £29 for this, which I think is a good deal considering the amount of product you get in the compact. Congrats to MAC for creating a stunning Christmas collection; its not every day that limited edition collections stand out of the crowd as well as this one does.

Pleasure Model, Whisper of Gilt

 

A Few 'Fall' Favourites

 

I hope you're having the loveliest Monday (as lovely as a Monday can be anyway.)

 



Technically I don't know if we're actually in 'fall' anymore, but there were definitely some products during the last few months that are worth a mention over here on ASD, since they repeatedly made their way into my routine. I've got myself into a pattern of switching up my make up bag at the start of every month to make sure I use some of the gems that I often forget about, so lets raise a glass to finding old favourites!

 

The only perfume I've been reaching for lately is Wonderstruck Enchanted by Taylor Swift, which I was given as a gift years ago. I'm not going to pretend to be a fragrance expert since I have no clue how to describe scents, but the notes of this are described as wild berries, pink poppies, white musk and vanilla. Her original perfume (Wonderstruck) had a younger vibe than this one, which is why I think that I'm appreciating it more as I get older and continue looking for that one scent to associate myself with. Most retailers have stopped selling this now which is such a shame, but I get mine from Amazon so there's definitely still a point to me raving about this. Also, major brownie points for the packaging on this - how beautiful can a perfume box be?

 

 

Another 'oldie but goodie' that I've constantly been reaching for is the original Naked Palette by Urban Decay, which I still maintain is the best of the bunch and is my go-to for a shimmery eye look. My favourite shades in the palette are 'Sidecar' and 'Buff', a shimmery pink and a chocolate brown, which I pair with 'Naked' for an everyday eye look to wear for university. I love palettes when it comes to eye shadow, so when I find one as good as this it takes a lot for me to put it down and start reaching for an alternative.

 

Also on the eye shadow train, I've been loving using champagne/gold shades to brighten up my eyelid. I find it extremely strange how our makeup preferences change as we get older (thank god that they do), because before this year I never wore eye shadow during the day and now I feel naked without it. The Stila Smudge Pot in 'Kitten' is a gorgeous champagne cream shadow that I swipe over my lids in about five seconds and consider myself good to go. These shadows stay all day, so although they're a bit of an investment I would 100% recommend them to you guys. As a gold cream shadow to mix it up a bit during the festive season, I've been loving the Topshop Cream Highlight in 'Gleam', which is actually a highlighter but is way too dark for my skin tone. It works wonders as an eye shadow base or on its own though, so not all is lost!

 

What have you been loving lately?



A Mini Selfridges Haul

 

So you know when you're super proud of yourself for sticking to a make-up spending ban that you decide to reward yourself by breaking it? We all know the feeling.

 

When I went to the Trafford centre last week I did the one thing I thought I would never actually do, which is buy a YSL lipstick. I honestly think that they have the prettiest packaging out there (with Too Faced Melted in a close second) and are basically a blogger's dream, but you know that £26 price tag is a bit of a turn off. I finally bit the bullet and splashed out on the shade 44 of the Rouge Volupte Shine range, a gorgeous nude shade with the perfect lipstick formula. Uncomfortable mattes are not the one, so a moisturising formula is definitely what I lean towards. I thought I'd feel buyers guilt for this one, but having it in my lipstick display is so satisfying that I can't help be anything but crazy in love.



 

 

Next on my wish list was a single eye shadow from MAC, because I've never actually tried the quality of them to test next to MUG. I completely had my eye on the shade 'Mythology', which is a beautiful sparkly pink that reminds me a lot of 'Sin' by Urban Decay, but sadly the Selfridges I was in didn't stock it, and being the make up hoarder that I am, I decided to just get a different shade instead. 'Woodwinked' is a shimmery brown that I am all over at the moment; I cannot believe its taken me this long to try shadows from MAC. It's the first eye shadow I've ever approached with the 'I'm going to fly solo and just whack this over my entire lid' attitude, and I'm loving how long it stays on the lid without creasing. Plus, its shimmery without being over glittery, which is always a bonus. 



 

 

Left to right: Woodwinked, 44.

 

November Lip Library

 

How on earth are we in November already? November is an odd month for lip colours, because the berry craze that is October has died down and we aren't quite ready to get on board with wearing Christmas reds every day of the month. Sticking with a slight berry theme and moving as gradually as I can into the December lib wardrobe, I think I've nailed it this month for the perfect four to keep you going in this weird transition period. You're welcome.

 

Starting off with an obvious pick since I always need a tinted balm on hand in my monthly make up bag is Lollitint by Benefit, which is a gorgeous berry pink shade that looks like a gloss but is much more comfortable. I have to say that the tinted balms by Benefit are probably up there with my favourite products that have a shade for every season (Posietint is perfect for summer and Benetint was born to be a winter lip).

 

Also on the Autumn trend is 'Plumful' by MAC, which is a beautiful berry lustre lipstick that is the ideal balance between a bold lip colour and something more subtle. I mentioned this in a recent post but its too fitting for November for me to not mention it again, and how could I not include MAC in a lip wardrobe?

 

 

'Blushed' by Revlon is one of my all time classic lipsticks that has been in my collection and that I've repurchased for years. Its so different to anything else that I own; a coppery metallic shade that stands out and has the staying power of a lipstick with a much higher price tag. I think Revlon do one of the best drugstore lipstick formulas, and there are several shimmery shades like this that are just the trick for a party look.

 

Finally, and definitely the one that I'll be wearing the most is 'Wine' by Jack Wills. I'm not sure if this is still stocked, but I was blown away by the quality of this lipstick. Its moisturising (kind of with the finish of MAC lustre) with high pigmentation and the best plum tone that I've found in a lip shade. After purchasing this I'm extremely intrigued as to what else beauty-wise this brand has to offer, considering I'm pretty sure I picked up this lipstick for under £5.

 

 

What's in your November lip library?