Beauty & Style

BODYSHOP HAUL

Published on November 11, 2018November 7, 2018 by simplycarinaxo12 Comments

Good morning beautiful souls,

I recently purchased some new Bodyshop goods, products I haven’t tried before. I thought about doing a first impressions post, but then decided to try them out a little first before reviewing them. So without further ado, here’s what I thought:

Waterproof Mascara –

I’m going to be blunt – I hate it and definitely will not be repurchasing this again! Saying that I like the brush, it makes for a an easy application and creates good lash length. However the product itself leaves me with dark circles under my eyes quite quickly and removing it at the end of the day is practically impossible without ripping out half of my eyelashes!

Lipgloss –

I didn’t need a new lipgloss but this beautiful shimmery metallic rose tone just wanted to be bought haha. The application brush is a works really well and the lipgoss has a nice consistency and sparkle to it without being uber shiny and sticky which I hate.

Vitamin E Face Cream –

I’ve been really enjoying this face cream as it is nice and light and doesn’t feel like it clogs up your skin. The reason I picked this though is because it has an SPF 30. It’s important to remember to protect our skin from the UV rays in autumn and winter too when the sun and sunburn aren’t as obvious! I use this every morning and am very likely to repurchase!

Primer –

I’m going to admit I one of these people who doesn’t really pay much attention to primers, I mean I understand what they do, but as to whether my makeup is really smoother or stays on longer, I really couldn’t tell you. Saying that it does make the application process easier and does seem to soften and even out the skin well.

Have you tried any of these products?! I’d love to know 🙂

MY FAVOURITE FACE CREAM

Published on February 21, 2018March 2, 2018 by simplycarinaxo14 Comments

Good evening beautiful souls,

For Christmas a friend of mine gifted me with one of her beautiful handmade face & body creams. As I still had plenty of face creams open at the time I didn’t use it immediately. I was excited though because it smelt divine!

Now I know this review won’t be of much use to you as it is not a cream you can buy, however I’m so in love with it that I had to share!

It’s a thick cream but softens quickly through the warmth of my skin making the application nice and easy. At first I thought it would take forever to sink into my skin as it seemed somewhat oily once applied, however to my delight I was mistaken. It soaks up quickly and leaves my skin glow and smooth. What I also love is that it still feels like my skin can breath unlike some thick creams which feel like they leave a layer on my face. Best of all because it’s homemade there’s no nasties or preservatives in it, just natural goodness!

So as you can see my beautiful readers I’m in love with this cream and hope my friend will keep making it for me once this little tub of gold has run out!

Has anyone else tried any homemade creams??

Love Carina xo

HALLOWEEN MAKEUP TUTORIAL

Published on October 26, 2017October 26, 2017 by simplycarinaxo11 Comments

Good evening guys,

Halloween is one of my favourite times of year in part because I love dressing up and having some fun with face paint! So with only 5 days till the 31st here’s an easy skull inspired makeup look – hope you enjoy!

You will need:

White face paint – black face paint – a little dish of water – black liquid eye liner – black pencil eye liner – dark grey/black eye shadow – white eyeliner – black mascara – makeup brush – beauty blender/sponge

Fresh faced – make sure you have washed you face and moisturised it before you begin.

Start by wetting your makeup brush to dilute the white face paint and apply all over your face and down your neck. Use the beauty blender/sponge to pat out any brush strokes and blend the paint into you neck.

Next use the black face paint and apply similarly to your normal contour lines (as well as encircling your eyes in black) before blending in with your sponge. Tip – do one contour line at a time and blend in with sponge; if you paint on all the lines first they will dry very quickly and prove difficult to blend!

Once the basic contouring is done, keep layering on the colour till you have the depth you want before setting in with dark grey/black eye-shadow. Next grab your black liquid liner and paint on the nose bone or rather lack of and go on to blend your eyes into their dark surrounding with your pencil liner. Use it to fill in your eyelids and darken your waterline. Now it’s time to use your black mascara to define and darken your eyelashes.

And last but not least take your liquid liner again and draw on the stitched up mouth – start with the horizontal line before adding the smaller vertical lines. Remember to take the horizontal line all the way from right to left and over your lips not just from the corner of your lips outwards.

And there you have the final look! Nice and easy and quick!

Hope you enjoyed this post!

Love Carina xo

RECENT BUYS – HAUL TIME!

Published on September 24, 2017 by simplycarinaxo4 Comments

Hello guys,

So I’ve been really excited to write this blog post! I have been spending a little too much money recently aha but sometimes I just can’t help it, all things fashion, beauty or homeware just excite me too much and I don’t always have enough willpower to listen to my reason telling me ‘No Carina you don’t need this!’ aha. So here is my haul, anything I can find online I will add a link to. I hope you enjoy!

Unicorn Slippers – £4.99 B&M

Black Loafers – £15 Asda, Sunglasses – £1 B&M

Palm Leaf Duvet Cover – £14 (King Size) Asda, Yellow Cushion – £4 Asda

Buddha Tealight Holders – £3 each Asda, Fairylighs – £1 Poundland

Ivy plants – £1.50 each B&Q, White Romantisk Tray – £7 Ikea, Napkins – £0.90 Ikea, Tealights – £1.35 Ikea

Trinket dish – £1.50 Ikea, Candle holder – £2 Asda

Reusable Glass Bottle – £3 TKMaxx

Anybody else in a current shopping phase and buy anything exciting?

Hope you are all having a lovely day!

Love Carina xo

AUTUMN WISHLIST!

Published on September 21, 2017 by simplycarinaxoLeave a comment

Good morning guys,

Recently I have been in a real shopping mood because there are so many cosy autumnal things that I currently want. It’s a dangerous time seeing all these things I want to buy and it’s difficult trying to restrain myself from spending too much money aha.

I like all seasons and can never decide which is my favourite time of year; however when it comes to fashion, Autumn has definitely got to be my favourite! I am a sucker for deep dark colours so when the mustard’s and wine reds come out and it’s time to snuggle up in big knits, I get really excited, I mean what’s not to love?!

Another thing I have become obsessed with in the last 3 years is homeware. I feel like I should have studied interior design so I could homeware shop all day long for other people, because I just don’t have the space or money to constantly rejig my bedroom theme or buy more homeware decorative pieces or add to my kitchen… aha.

Well, here are some of the things on my current wishlist, I might treat myself to some, like a new candle, others, like the yellow velvet shoes, I really want but would barely get any wear out of, I will only gaze at from a distance but not buy. Sometimes I wish I had an office job so I could wear nice clothes, get my nails done and wear heels aha, but when you work in a cafe/as an artist your clothes will always get dirty with coffee or paint, your nails would be ruined in no time and you’re on your feet most of the day so heels are not comfortable at all. Anyway, here’s my current autumn wishlist:

Yellow Velvet Block Heels, Wanderlust Canvas, Chevron Knit Throw, Cream Colour Block Ladder Lace Up Jumper

These New Look Mustard Velvet heels are the bomb! I am in love! However I know I would only ever wear them once or twice as I am not good with high heels; but that doesn’t stop me from admiring them from a distance!

This canvas from Wilko’s is just super cute and would fit well into the accessories scheme in my bedroom I think. I dream of travelling one day, this wish is so rooted into me that I feel it would only be appropriate to have the Wanderlust definition on my wall with this pretty floral nature pattern around it.

Throws, throws and more throws, I mean you can never have enough right?! This throw from Next just looks super cosy and snuggly and I need it aha. It’s getting solder now and my duvet just isn’t quite warm enough anymore so I want a new throw to match my new bedroom colour scheme to keep me that bit warmer at night.

What can I say about this River Island jumper?! It’s just so funky! I love the colour mix and pattern with the laced through effect on the side and sleeve. This would also look well cute with the velvet boots and a pair of black skinny jeans.

black-suedette-embroidered-block-heel-boots

Black Suedette Embroidered Block Heel, Yankee Candle Cosy By The Fire, Urban Decay Naked Heat Palette, Black Sheer Floral Duster Coat, Black Fringe Sleeve Sweater, Vegan Polley Shoes

Again another pair of beautiful New Look Boots and again a pair I will probably admire from a distance as I sadly just wouldn’t get much wear out of them, but oh the embroidery is just stunning. I love floral patterns and this is a really nice design in beautiful colours.

I know it’s not Christmas yet but Yankee candles just smell amazing I think it’s never to early to accost your nose with wintery smells. They just ooze out cosy evenings and I love nothing more than to enjoy an evening in candle light whether it be with my favourite book or watching a movie with my housemates.

OMG can someone please just buy me this pallet already!?! Ever since Urban Decay’s Naked Heat pallet came out I have been drooling over these beautiful rustic colours and itching to try them. However I try to be sensible and I’m not sure I can justify splashing out on this at the moment whilst I have plenty of eyeshadows for the time being; but wee’ll see, maybe I’ll cave aha!

This River Island duster coat just aught my eye because of the beautiful rusty hues. This is probably to cold to wear without a coat in autumn, but would be perfect for a night out with a LBD for example.

Ah Dr.Martens how long I have eyed your shoes up! These pretty Polley shoes are from their Vegan range as I would not buy real leather shoes anymore. I am in love but at £115 I’m going to have to save up for quite a while!

I do love black as it just goes well with anything and this tassel jumper is just fab. The tassels just add that something extra and make it fun. You could pair this with a skirt, on top of a dress or with jeans, it’s a great versatile jumper.

the-little-book-of-hygge-penguin-hot-chocolate-lisa-hjalt-02

Grey Check Trousers, The Little Book Of Hygge, Palm Leaf Duvet Set, Light Wash Ripped Mom Jeans

Trouser time! I have always been a leggings girl, but recently I have been loving my black cropped jeans and really want to add to my trouser collection. I love these checked high waisted trousers from River Island. They are smart but can be worn casual with just a black t-shirt and so they’d be perfect for me to wear to work still as well.

The Little Book off Hygge – it’s been on my wishlist for a while. Learning how to live well, finding a peaceful state of mind, seems like an important thing fro everyone to do! I think this is one of my wishlist items I will treat myself too!

Bedding – I love new bedding and I have resisted so long to buy new ones, but this one from Asda I just love. All my bedding is white or light colour based with greens and greys, but I love that blue is the background colour here. It gives a nice rich feel and with it getting colder I think I want a deeper darker coloured bedding, so I think I will invest in one.

And last but not least these cute River Island Mom Jeans. I struggle to find jeans that fit; as I have big thighs for them to fit there they will then usually be to loose around the waist. But I as I mentioned I have been loving a pair of black cropped skinny’s which I found in a charity shop actually, and they made me want to start wearing jeans more often which is great for this time of year anyway. I think I will definitely have to go jeans shopping soon!

So that is it for my current wishlist, do let me know what you think guys and I’d love to hear what’s on your current wishlist too!

Love Carina xo

3 WAYS TO STYLE A DENIM DRESS

Published on August 20, 2017March 3, 2025 by simplycarinaxoLeave a comment

Hey guys,

Before summer disappears I thought I’d share 3 of my favourite ways to style my denim dress for sunny days. I had searched high and love for a denim dress that would look good on me but was never satisfied with any I tried on. Then finally one day I was browsing a charity shop and discovered this beauty! It fits well and suits my bodyshape. I would say the only problem is that when sitting down it is a little too stretched for my liking and so if I’m sitting for a while I will undo the two bottom buttons. Anyway lets get to it;

Outfit no.1:

Top: Primark, Bag: Primark, Shoes: New Look

Outfit no.2:

Top: Primark, Bag: ? , Shoes: New Look, Sunglasses: Camden Market

Outfit no.3:

Blouse: Topshop, Shoes: Primark, Bag: Primark

I love the versatility of a dungaree dress! It can be dressed up or dressed down and worn for so many occasions.

Hope you are all having a nice weekend!

MY CURRENT CRUELTY-FREE & ECO EVENING SKIN CARE ROUTINE

Published on July 31, 2017 by simplycarinaxo7 Comments

Hey guys,

I have been wanting to blog my Cruelty-free Eco Skin Care Routine for quite a while now and I’ve finally got round to taking some photos and being organised again. I hope you enjoy and can be inspired to start in-cooperating your own cruelty free eco products into your skin care routine!

Firstly I want to introduce you to an amazing eco friendly cleansing pad hack which my best friend Emily told me about! I love it – it’s fab! Instead of using cleansing wipes or cotton pads which only add to our piles of landfil rubbish that can’t be recycled why not use Organic Nursing Pads which can be washed and reused time after time again and will save you a fair bit of money in the long run too! I find the nursing pads are gentler on my skin in comparison to the harsh chemicals on cleansing wipes which I used to use all the time!

Now as for my skin care routine, I’m feeling great knowing the things I ma now buying are cruelty free and mostly vegan too. In this blog post I am using products from the Bodyshop (a brand that doesn’t test on animals and which is mostly vegan bar products like the honey range) and BalanceMe (a brand that doesn’t test on animals and aims to be as natural as possible) just going to put it out there, I very often don’t use products the way they are designed to be used; eg. I might use a toner as as a makeup remover instead of using it as the last step in my makeup removal cleansing routine.

I begin taking my makeup off with the Bodyshop Vitamin E Hydrating Toner. I love this toner. It is gentle on my skin, works well at removing makeup and leaves it feeling fresh and bright. What’s not to like?!

The Bodyshop Tea Tree Clearing Foaming Cleanser is what I had originally bought to remove my makeup before using the toner, however even two pumps of the foam doesn’t go very far. It doesn’t wet the nursing cleansing pad well enough for my liking to efficiently remove makeup and just kinda disappears. Thus I use it after the toner to just remove the last dregs of makeup.

Next I use the Bodyshop Vitamin C Energizing Face Spritz. I’m not exactly sure it energizes my face, however it is very refreshing especially on a warm summer morning and I feel gives some hydration to my just cleansed skin.

Now these my next two products are testers I received in a magazine and I love them!!! I really want to repurchase them but they are on the pricier side of things although then again they do stretch quite far too. Both the BalanceMe Restore and Replenish Face Cream and the BalanceMe Wonder Eye Cream smell amazing! They really do smell like the natural ingredients that they use, which I love! I massage the eye cream onto my skin first and then follow with the face cream. I find they are also absorbed quite quickly into the skin and leave it feeling very soft and refreshed! If you haven’t tried any BalanceMe products yet but don’t want to splash out the big bucks, definitely keep you eyes open in magazines for testers!!!

Well that’s my evening skin care routine for you! I hope you’ve enjoyed it! Let me know of your favorite cruelty free/vegan products in comments below!

Love Carina xo

MINI PRIMARK HAUL

Published on March 24, 2017March 24, 2017 by simplycarinaxo2 Comments

Hello my beautiful readers,

On my day off on Tuesday I went into Newcastle in the afternoon as it was such a nice day, although really windy, and I just needed to get out of the house for a bit and enjoy some me time. I popped into Primark as I needed some new leggings and trainers, but as usual ended up picking up a couple of other things too, so I just thought I’d share!

First I just picked up some plain black leggings; they are my no.1 wardrobe staple. I then spotted this cute peplum top for only £3 and had to get it. Admittedly it’s not quite warm enough yet to walk around in tops aha, but it has such a cute floaty shape and is great for layering. Shoe wise I only needed new light breathable trainers but I fell in love with these greeny/grey slightly sturdier trainers and had to get them too!

Next I decided to treat myself to some new gym wear; having new stuff to wear to the gym is always motivational don’t you think? So my old gym trainer were very worn through and needed replacing, these black ones are super lightweight and airy which is perfect for the gym. I always get sweaty feet and hate trainers which are too thick and don’t let your feet breath, so I hope these will do the trick. On my way to town on Tuesday I dropped of some clothes at a charity shop, including a pair of gym leggings which were just too large, so when I saw these beautiful leggings I had to get them! Such cute floral pattern with a bit of meshing at the knee – I am in love! Although I’m a sweaty mess at the gym it’s nice to at least feel a little pretty in what you’re wearing aha. I also decided to get a new sports bra as I really liked the back mesh like pattern.

Just to mention, this is the first time I’ve posted photos of me in skin tight clothing and part of my stomach out, but you know what, it’s all about self love, and I felt great taking these photos and knowing I’m on my journey to self improvement makes me very happy and proud, this is my body, the only one I’ll ever have and I am learning to love it!

Love Carina xo