Score With Your Credit

Saving is something that we all strive to do.  Whether you are saving for someone's birthday treat, a holiday or in my case, saving for my future move; we all have times in our life when we try to actively save.

When you are living from payday to payday, trying to save and conserve your money can be challenging, but there are a few tips that I have picked up over the years that can really help, while still letting you enjoy a few things that you enjoy.

You Don't Need To Cut Out That Treat Coffee

Coffee is life.  For me anyway.  The idea of the cheap ground coffee that we have in the office makes me shudder.  I NEED real coffee.  But can I justify the daily trip to Starbucks?  No.  The £3-4 pounds a day I would, and have, spent in the past would be better placed in my savings than wasted on a temporary coffee hit.

One way to work around this is to buy your own fresh coffee and a one cup cafetiere and take them to work with you.  Get to work ten minutes earlier and you can make your coffee without the boss complaining of the extra time involved and you can start your day with a delicious coffee hit.

Cashback on your Purchases

We all love shopping and sometimes, even when you limiting your clothing and shopping budget, you may need to replace your favourite makeup product or buy a necessary kitchen appliance.

I have signed up to a site called TopCashBack which gives you cashback on online purchases.  Yesterday I wrote about the makeup products I use and one of them is Benefit Dandelion Powder , which is currently on sale in LookFantastic.  You can get up to 10% cashback on that site and the cash can surprisingly really build up.

Use a Piggybank

I have a long pink boot shaped piggy bank that I throw my spare change in.  The thing about piggy banks is that they are very tempting at the end of the month to break into when you are short on cash.  
The way that I combat that is to only save certain denominations of coins so that you would need a lot to make a difference.  I only save copper and 5, 10 and 20 pence pieces so that it does not tempt me to dip me.  

Having a larger piggy bank means that you can save for longer and get a nice surprise when you take it to be changed.

Keep An Eye On Your Credit Score

If you have a poor credit rating like me (damn carefree shopping years), it is important to keep an eye on your credit score and work hard to improve it.  You can check for free these days and it can really help in improving score.

Things to work on are not necessarily the bigger balances that you need to pay off.  I always used to focus on paying off the bigger balances and paying a minimal amount on the smaller ones.  But paying off those smaller ones can help to improve your score so bear that in mind.

Hope the tips help, happy saving!

What Is In My Makeup Bag?

I have been clearing out my makeup box recently, getting rid of all the old or half used products that I no longer reach for regularly.  I thought that I would show you the products that is my core kit to use, some expensive, some cheap!

This is my makeup box.  I got it as a gift one Christmas.  If you have read this blog before you will know that I love anything that is Paris, so this makeup box is perfect for me.  It isn't too large which is helpful in that I do not splurge on makeup, but fits everything that I need.

The first photograph contains all the regular things that I use on my face.  I will list them below.

Foundation: Collection Illuminating Touch £5.99 - Superdrug

This is a new foundation for me.  I have been trying out a few, more expensive versions but this one goes on beautiful and has really nice illuminating quality.

Loreal Paris Lumi Magique Primer - £9.99

I really love this primer.  It goes on lightly and again, gives a really nice luminating quality.  If my skin is looking well, sometimes I just use this with a little powder on top and forego the foundation.

Loreal True Match face powder £6.99

This is a great face powder.  I use a huge brush to apply and a little goes a long way.

Benefit Fake Up Concealer - £18.00

This is really nice concealer that is hydrating and goes on really smoothly.  I use this under my eyes and dotted around my face.  I would recommend letting it set for a couple of minutes before you move on with your routine.

MUA Eyeshadow in Chestnut - £1.00

I use this product for my eyebrows.  I simply use a slightly damp small angled brush and use it to lightly fill in my eyebrows and slightly extend the line.  Far, far cheaper solution than the alternatives on the market!

Rimmel London Rock n Roll Nude from Kate Moss - £6.50 

I originally bought this lipstick as I wanted to try out a different colour from my usual red.  I was not happy with the shade on my lips so at first, it was regulated to the bottom of my make up box.  But then, I remembered a trick that I learnt recently when covering up bruises on my legs.

If you apply a pale pink lipstick over the bruise and then concealer, the bruise disappears.  It is like magic.  Remembering this trick, I wondered if I could use it to help with the occasional dark circles I get under my eyes.

I used the makeup hack this weekend when I was going to a class early on Saturday morning.  I had quite a few comments from people saying how alive and alert I looked.  Believe me, it was just the concealing trick.  I felt like a zombie! 

I would highly recommend it if you get dark circles under your eyes.

This second photograph has the more fun items of my makeup collection.

Benefit Dandelion Powder - £20.83 on sale at LookFantastic at the moment

This is a very well known product.  It is a beautiful rose colour with a slight shimmer that looks wonderful when used as a blusher.  Sometimes I sweep a light dusting all over my face.  It looks great when you have a tan and gives a lovely but subtle shimmer.

Loreal Volume Million Lashes £9.99 & Clinique Chubby Mascara £15.75

I love both of these mascaras.  They give great defination and you can achieve a lovely height with your lashes.

Barry M Natural Dazzle Bronzing Powder

I have had this product a while and upon Googling for the price, it appears that this product is now discontinued.  I really like to use it in the summer months for added colour but I think I may need to buy a new one!

Nars Larger Than Life Longwear Eyeliner £19.00

£19.00 is a lot to pay for an eyeliner, but it is the best that I have ever used.  This is a product I will always buy.  It goes on easily, like a small crayon and once applied, it lasts all day and in some cases when I go out and forget to take my makeup off (oops), all night too!

NYX Illuminator - £9.00

I like this product a lot.  A little goes a very, very long way so be careful when you apply it.  I like to sweep it on the top of my cheekbones and just under the eyebrow to highlight.  This is a great product to use for  night out, but I don't generally use it during the week at work.

MUA Eyeshadow Pallette - £4.00

This pallette has some lovely colours in the brown tone.  It also has a lighter colour which is great for highlighting under the brow,  I like the light browns and the gold tones.  I do not use eyeshadow too much, but this pallette is my go to when I go.

So that is it!  I hoped that you enjoyed the tour around my makeup products.  As you can see, I use products from the very cheap, to mid range and then the more expensive products like Nars.  The thing is, is to find the product that works best for you.  More expensive is not always better.

Do you have any beauty hacks that you use?

Hair Care on a Budget

I have done so many things to my hair over the years.  I have been a blonde, a brunette and a redhead.  I have had very short hair, very long hair and everything in between.  I am lucky in that I can have my hair straight or curly, but the thing about all these different hairstyles and hair colours is that it can do damage to your hair.

I have had colour in my hair since I was around 15 and straightening irons have been a major part of my life for years.  Although my hair is very thick, it can be coarse and in summer for reasons that I do not understand, my hair falls out everywhere.  Good job I have a lot of it!

Here are some of the styles I have had over the past couple of years.

Hair care is so important.  There is a misconception that you have to spend a fortune on your hair products in order to maintain healthy hair, but it simply isn't true.  The important thing is to spend wisely and in the right places.

For shampoo and conditioner, I go to the pound shop.  Now I have always (stupidly) turned my nose up at things from the pound shop, but the truth is, you can get some great products for, surprising haha, a pound.

You still get your named brands, the only difference is that they buy them in when the expiry date is running out.  With things like shampoo and conditioner that you replace every month, that is not an issue.  At the moment I am using coconut oil shampoo and conditioner which is giving my hair a wonderful shine.

For heat protection and styling I use more expensive products, but they are still under £10:

I use the TIGI Catwalk Sleep heat spray to maintain healthy hair when I use my irons which I got from Cloud Nine.  This one is infused with lychee and honeysuckle which prevents moisture loss which is important for my coarse hair.

I also use the TIGI Bed Head Joyride Texturising Powder  This is a primer which you put on prior to using your irons.  It adds texture and grip which makes styling so much easier.

Finally, rather than using an expensive hair mask every month, I buy a thick moisture infusing conditioner, again from the pound shop.  I wet my hair and then apply a ton of it on my hair and then comb through,  I then put a wrap over my hair and sleep in the conditioner overnight.  After washing out the following morning, my hair feels wonderful!

What hair tips do you have on a budget?