So I don't know if you've heard but a couple of days ago it was the opening of the biggest H&M in the UK and it's in Cardiff, where I live. Isn't that awesome!? Anyway, I could not help myself and I had to go have a browse as soon as I finished work. It was so busy I couldn't really look around much, let alone trying any clothes on! As it was so busy I decided to go straight into the 'home' and the 'beauty' section ignoring all the pretty clothes on my way.
The home section is amazing, I literally wanted to buy everything in there but again, it was so packed in there I couldn't have a proper look so I just grabbed a pretty candle holder (£2.99).

Now, the beauty section, oh my God. I know every body had been raving about their beauty products but I had never seen them before in any H&M store so I was so happy to see there is a full beauty department in this new store. I obviously had to check it out, regardless of all the people in my way. I can honestly say I spend over 40 minutes browsing and swatching everything!

I love the packaging of their products and the way it was all presented made me want to buy every single piece of make up. Obviously I couldn't afford that so I had to narrow it to the following items.

   

   

   

   

I got two eye shadows (Down to Earth and Wild Sable). As you might know by now if you read my blog, I love berry colours and browns so I couldn't leave without getting these two shades. There is so many different shades in this collection that it was hard deciding which ones to take home (I have a feeling I will end up getting a lot more of these). They are highly pigmented and they're only £4.99.

Next I moved onto the lip section and for a lipstick addict that was a bit of a torture because I can honestly say I loved all the colours! The packaging of the lipsticks is amazing and gold but in the end I decided to go for this lip stain in the shade Chic Choc. It's similar to MAC Mauve, just a little bit darker, which I love. I got a lip liner too (Cherry Tart), again berry colour. This lip liner is extremely pigmented and it wasn't easy to take it off my arm when I did the swatches so I'm hoping it will last long on my lips!

Talking about lips, just like most people my lips get really badly chapped in winter and they look horrible so when I saw this lip scrub I had to get it. It smells amazing too! I will let you know if it works when I've been using it for a while!

I also got a eye shadow blending brush and a lash curler because I love the rosy golden colour so much!

So here's everything I got at the H&M opening. Everything was 25% off yesterday so I did end up saving quite a lot of money!

Have you tried any of H&M beauty products? What do you think of the package? I think it's all beautiful and looks very expensive considering the price!

HOW I CLEAN MY BRUSHES QUICK AND EASY.

First of all, let me apologize for a few things...

• My nails. Yes, they are disgusting. I have been picking them all day but worry no more, I'm getting them done later on today.
• The lighting. The light in my bathroom is rubbish so I had to take photos with flash and they don't look very stylish unfortunately.
• The water I've wasted while taking this pictures. I always turn the tap off when I don't need the water while cleaning my brushes, but it really is difficult to combine cleaning your brushes, the camera and the water all at the same time.

Ok, now that that's out of the way, let me tell you a thing or two about cleaning make up brushes. I gotta say, this is something I hate with passion. I am the laziest person when it comes to clean them up, I know I should do it at least once or twice a month but I must admit I should be lucky if I do them once every couple of months! I do 'wash' them with a brush disinfectant every time I use them, but it's a very quick process and to be honest I doubt it cleans them much.

With that been said, when I know it's been way too long and I can't put it off for any longer, here's what I do.

Take any soft shampoo ( I just use baby shampoo from the £ shop ) and put a tiny bit into a bowl or a plate. As you can see, I use the lid of my hair conditioner.

Dab the brush slightly in the shampoo and put your hand under the warm-ish water. Then rub the brush on the palm of your hand. Run it through the fingers as well and repeat the process a couple of times until it turns completely white.

Once it's white it means there isn't any foundation left in the brush so I move onto the BrushEgg. Some people skip the hand process and do it straight onto their make up cleaner glove, I just like to do it that way first as you can feel the hairs of the brush go softer as it gets cleaner and cleaner. Also, if you don't have one of this, you don't have to use it. They get clean enough using only the hand anyway.

Repeat the same process with the BrushEgg.

Remember to always keep your brushes upside down as you don't want the water to go inside and dissolve the glue that is keeping all the hairs together.

Once you think your brush is all clean, squish it with your fingers and you'll see if there's any foundation/colour left. If there's still coming out of the brush it obviously means that it's still not clean 100% and that you need to do it all again! If nothing but water comes out of the brush, you're good to go. 

Leave them dry for a good few hours always making sure they're not completely flat or it can misshape them.

To be honest, it's quite a simple process and I really don't know why I hate it so much. I guess I am just super lazy and I just wish I could have new brushes every time I do my make up.

How do you clean your brushes? Do you have any more tips?

THE THREE RULES FOR BETTER SKIN

I must admit that up until a couple of years ago I didn't really pay attention to my skin at all. Taking my make up off at nights was the last thing on my mind before going to bed and I didn't even use moisturizer! Pretty bad, I know.

Now days it's not like I'm obsessed with my skin but I have learnt to take care of it with a very simple routine. I don't particularly like to spend a lot of money on skin products as I confess I am very lazy and I probably wouldn't end up using them enough, I mean, using only a couple of products is hard enough for me! Apart from the ones I'm going to mention, there is plenty more things that will make your skin better like eating well, drinking plenty of water, exfoliating once a week, face masks, etc.

For those who don't know me well here's a little bit of history about my skin; As a teenager I had very oily and greasy skin, a lot of spots and massive pores. My skin is more on the dry side now, however I still have a few marks and discoloration from those teenage years.

Here's the top three rules that have helped me to clear my skin in the last couple of years.

• Take your make up off every night. This is probably the most important one. I use a regular make up wipe and then cleansing milk with a cotton pad. After that I use my electric cleanser brush with a anti-spot soap and I make sure I rinse it properly. I got my electric cleanser from eBay for a tenner and it works perfectly fine so you don't have to spend hundreds on one like most guru's do.
• Anti-spot soaps are normally very drying, and that's why having a moisturizer that works for you is very important. I moisturize every night, every morning, and every time I put make up on. I also put Vaseline on my lips every night and morning. You don't have to use a very expensive moisturizer but you have to try a few and find the one that works best for you as every single one is different in each skin.
• Not touching your face constantly is super important. This is something you might not notice but we're constantly touching our faces. It's natural and very hard to stop. Unless you're a clean freak and wash your hands every two minutes, our hands are full of bacteria most of the time and that transfers to your skin every time you touch your face so next time you find yourself touching your face, remember that! Having your hair off your face will help not getting a greasy forehead too. As a teenager I used to have a fringe and my forehead was always covered in spots and very greasy which wasn't pretty! For some reason I was embarrassed or showing my face completely but now, hair tied back days are my favorites. 

So as you can see, you don't need to splash out £70 on an eye cream, another £50 on moisturizer, £30 on a lip scrub and plenty of other things to clear your face, as long as you follow these simple and cheap rules your skin will improve a lot. 

Now, I'm not saying that using expensive products don't help, of course they do, but if like me, you prefer spending your money on other things *coughs* *make up* these simple rules work miracles too.

Do you have a simple routine too? Let me know guys as I love reading about skin routines! <3

THE BEST ANTI-SPOT TREATMENT

I guess I can consider myself quite lucky that I don't get a lot of spots very often, just the occasional one after my period. However, as a teenager I had very bad skin and I can't even remember how many different soaps, creams, tablets, etc I took to get it rid off them.