My Top 10 Beauty Products of 2015

Is it the end of another year again already? To be honest, a lot has changed for me since January and I've been very busy so at the same time 2015 feels like the end has been long awaited. Whilst I'm not ready just yet to let go of 2015, I'm also excited to start a new year and see what life will bring to me. I'm hoping it will bring me some new straighteners, actually.

Nevertheless, I have decided to bring my top 10 beauty products of 2015! Some things have been long time favourites, others are newbies and some have saved me from self-hatred.

Without further ado and in no particular order, our 1st beauty product is .....


















Oxg : Anti-breakage Keratin Oil Range (1) (2) (3) £6.99-7.35

We are starting of the list with a product I've never mentioned on my blog before because it is a new favourite! And let me tell you, Oxg may be a new brand for me to try but it is on this list for a reason.

I have had trouble with my hair since my exams finished in June, earlier this year because of all the stress they gave me. Seeing my hair as thin as it was and clogged plug holes blocked with weak, dark blonde strands of hair made me even more stressed. I tried a lot of different hair care products with one eye on my purse and finally found these God-sent wonders.

This is the second time I have bought these products and within a few days my hair felt stronger and was far from falling out. Next thing for my hair is for it to get thicker again.

Skin79 : Superplus Beblish Balm

I thought I better put this friend in my favourites because I may well be saying goodbye to it. I cannot find anywhere online that sells this anymore other than Amazon (and I don't trust the sellers on there to be selling the real thing). If you know where you can buy this then please let me know!

This year, Superplus BB Cream has never not been on my face, apart from when I'm sleeping. I have linked my review underneath the picture if you want to read more about my friendship with this super loyal beauty product. In short, it evens your skin tone, has my ideal consistency and is kind to skin.

Maybelline : Baby Lips Electro Pink Shock - £2.99

We all go into the shop planning to buy one particular thing then leave with again without even touching what we went in to buy. That's the story on how I bought this. I loved the Electro 'Oh Orange' but mine was running out, so I rushed straight to the make-up section as soon as I got the chance to go shopping and saw 'Pink Shock' and bought it. I didn't even glance at 'Oh Orange'.

If you know me then you would have only ever seen me wear this since about April as well as see me apply this to re-moisturise my lips after my lunch. Thank you Baby Lips, you never fail me.

Banila co. : Clean it Zero - £15.00

THIS PRODUCT IS A LIFE SAVER! Well, maybe I'm exaggerating a tad but I genuinely feel lost without this product in my life at this moment. It is a cleansing balm and you can read my review on the link under the picture.

My heart sometimes sinks when it comes to my make-up removing routine. The wiping of the face, the annoying scratching on my eyelid with a make-up wipe to get rid of my eyeliner, then the cleansing and the washing of the face UGH. It is the worst part of my day sometimes. This holy grail would take all my make-up off and cleanse at the same time. That's it. Done.

Quick Fix Facials : Exfoliating Scrub Mask Blackheads and Blocked Pores - £4.99

This is another product that saved me in one of my darkest times. It let my pores breathe a sigh of release once every few days - and still does.

I rarely get spots any more (lucky me, I know) but I do get clogged pores that I can only see when I inspect every millimetre of my face for 15 minutes in front of a mirror. Then I can see them when I see a reflection of myself in a shop window 10 feet away from me. Not good. Something had to be done. And this is what saved me. I can see inside every pore on my face now. Almost....

Simple : Kind to Skin Foaming Cleanser - £4.49

This cleanser is simpley the best. *wink wink* I have mentioned before how this is my everyday cleanser and it's great. I must have bought this 4 times now since I first started using it. Though I said what a drain it is to remove my make-up and then cleanse, I know that this is going to clean all the make-up out of the little crooks and crannies on my face. Because you do know that a make-up wipe doesn't remove all of the gunk on your face, right?

The Body Shop : Japanese Cherry Blossom Fragrance Mist - £8.50

This fragrance isn't one of my all time favourites but it is one that I use often and it great for an everyday scent (more in my the post that is in the link above). Not only is it a very pretty and not too fancy, this is not your widely popular fragrance that your Dad bought you for Christmas that every female in your village has, oh no.

I would recommend buying a fragrance from The Body Shop, maybe even this one, if you want a casual everyday scent that not everyone has smelt on everyone else already.

Soap & Glory : The Scrub of Your Life - £7.00

Don't we all hate that dry patch in that really awkward place and moisturising whenever we can remember just doesn't help it? Well my awkward dry patches have gone and even my dry and cracked heels on my feet have started benefiting thanks to The Scrub of Your Life!

I don't know if this is meant for feet but it has certainly helped them to start healing. Plus it has a wonderful scent of Soap & Glory's 'Original Pink' fragrance, which is fruity, flowery and a teeny bit musky. Perfect for that love-yourself feeling in the shower.

Well that's the end of the show folks! Let's wish that the new year brings many more new beauty products that I will fall in love with, a pair of new straighteners and happiness. Happy new year!
- Zin

Shopping Haul | End of Summer into Autumn

So who else is trying their hardest to hold onto summer even though we're only a few days away from October? It's pointless really but I even changed into shorts and had an ice cream in the sun that lasted for half an hour the other. I supposed I'm just really bad at letting go of things I love.... which sounds very very sad.

Anyway, I have been shopping a few times in the past month and picked up a few things that I should have bought mid-summer rather than beginning of autumn but, well, what can you do? So here is my end of summer into autumn haul!

First stop, The Body Shop.

I usually only go into The Body Shop if it's for a friend/family member's birthday or Christmas and I have never bought anything for myself in there before, yet there I was 10 minutes after entering the shop buying 2 products.

Fuji Green Tea Exfoliating Soap
Japanese Cherry Blossom Fragrance Mist

This soap is one of my favourite things at the moment. It had a strong but subtle scent of green tea as you could definitely smell it but it was quite gentle, which is something I notice when I buy soap.

I really hate being able to smell something 40 minutes after I wash my hands especially when my hands aren't anywhere near my nose. But with this I can only smell it when I smell my hands and it's a nice smell. Bonus: my hands get dry very easily but since I started using this soap they have not got dry once!

The smell of the fragrance is also a favourite right now. I reckon that if the sky on an early summer sunset had a scent it would be this! It's weird to say this but it smells pretty. I know, it's strange how I would describe it that way but it's true.

Original Fruity Flapjack

Next I popped into Boots to pick up one thing (it turned out to be four things but we'll get to that bit later) and the food section started to scream at me - literally. OK, maybe it didn't but it felt like it was. Anyway, I have tried Graze a few times before online and I love their snacks and I was so glad they sold this because this is a real winner with me.

Vaseline Intensive Care Essential Body Lotion
No 7 Beautiful Skin Hydration Mask for Dry/Very Dry Skin
Baby Lips - Pink Shock

On to the rest of what I got from Boots. A very good body lotion for the dry skin on my arms, legs and feet was needed and Vaseline is notorious for helping dry skin plus this one had a nice scent that was not too powerful.

The No 7 mask was an impulse buy. I had just enough money left to buy it so I did. But I do not regret it! So far it has been really hydrating to my skin and I am going to do a proper review on it at some point.

And finally, a second purchase of Pink Shock. I love Baby Lips, as I have probably mentioned in previous posts, and this colour is perfect. I used to always go back to buy a Baby Lips that I had just finished but I would always get a different shade, but this time I have actually re-bought a colour that I already have.

Aaand last but not least (indeed - these were quite pricey!). I have been wanting some circular sunglasses for well over a year now but I have never been able to find any until I walked into Topshop!

Thankfully there are still days where there's not a cloud in the sky and I can whip these out and look the pinnacle of fashion no matter what I'm wearing. Unfortunately, I think Topshop are no longer selling these particular ones but there are some similar.

Phew! I feel quite puffed out after this post and I certainly did after buying these products. Now I just need a job to get some more money.....

Anyway, until next time goodybye!
- Zin

Thinking out Loud #3

What to know what's going on? Click here.

1. I miss a ToL last week. I wasn't expecting to but the day slowly came to an end as did my motivation so I just told myself that I'll just pick up as soon as I feel like it. Which was last night after my guitar lesson was cancelled. Anyway, enough rambling about events that led to other events!

2. My college starts next week and I want to know if I'm the only one who thinks about upcoming events like starting college solidly all day from the week before? I'm serious! From the moment I stop talking to someone I will think about college. I'm not exactly nervous but rather excited (if I'm honest I don't really understand why I'm excited either) and I think I'm over thinking too much because I'm not really sure what it will be like. I mean I've been off school for like 10 weeks and it's going to be hard changing my routine, you know?

3. I crave feel good songs daily so much that I usually get bored of them quickly from listening to that one song only. Common problem, right? Well, Verbal Jint and Sanchez's song 'Doin' it' is one of those songs so I was super pumped when they released a new song.

I love Sanchez's kind of imitation of Michael Jackson's voice (You are my Fav O RIT-a AC! cident) along with the funky guitar makes this my favourite ;)...

4. I also just want to share with you what I have been baking this week, which was super easy can I just say?

May I present to you home made Jammy Dodgers! I actually haven't had one of those delicious sandwiched biscuits in way too long but these certainly made me want to buy some.... or just make another batch of these. As you can see I slightly over filled them with butter cream and jam so they look proper rustic!

But these really are so simple because you just get an easy plain biscuit recipe (maybe add a drop of vanilla extract but they are just as good without), bake them for less than 10 minutes, prepare store bought butter cream and jam or even better - make it yourself then sandwich together and viola! Simple as simple does.

5. Finally, I realised that once I posted what was in drafts it motivated me to actually post them instead of keeping them hidden for an extra 2 months so I think I will give you another sneaky peek at some pictures that will feature in posts to come.

Stay tuned if you want to know how these pictures are relevant to anything and see you next time!
- Zin