In A Nutshell | Quiet Week...

This week has been pretty uneventful in all honesty, going back to school has taken up the majority of my time; if I'm not at school, I'll be at home revising... Such excitement... 25 days until my exams, and I'm freaking out... Where the heck has all that time I thought I had gone!?

As you may recall, last Sunday I mentioned going to my friend Victoria's 18th party... Obviously my Sunday post went up before the event itself, meaning I was unable to talk about it...

It was great fun, and because it was a private party I didn't get ID'd to buy drinks - wooo!

We sang, we danced, we laughed... We also gazed affectionately at the very handsome acoustic singer who had been hired... Guys with guitars and amazing voices are my weakness... 

The rest of the week was very boring... Getting back into a routine is more difficult than it seems! Today, however, I ventured to the Cheshire Oaks retail park with my Dad and Sister for the day as a mini-celebration for my sister's upcoming 13th birthday. Some retail therapy was needed, and I purchased a few tops from H&M as well as some Barry M nail polishes. We also went to one of my favourite places to eat, ever... Nando's... Yum! As usual, I went for the plain chicken pitta with a side of peri-salted chips and garlic bread...

The weather FINALLY improved this week, so much so that I found myself sunbathing in the back garden during my "study" time... I even caught the sun, and developed many more freckles... Hopefully it'll stay like this, and if not, then I might cry... Please hurry up, summer...

What have you been up to this week?

The Revision Playlist...

With summer exams coming up for many of us students, me included, there's only been one thing on my mind... Revision... Even the word makes me shudder...
I'm not particularly a fan of revision, and I've never ever met anybody who is... Who would rather be sat inside during the spring and summer months, practically copying out your textbook over and over again, than being outside chilling with friends, or you know, staying in bed and watching Netflix... Not me, that's for sure...

Seeing as I have 13 dreaded A-Level exams approaching that I cannot afford to fail, I've been spending as much time as I possibly can getting my head stuck into books, and actually cracking on, much unlike last year where I left way too much until way too late... Obviously, I try to take as much stress away as I can, and attempt to make the whole horrible experience into something slightly more bearable and even, dare I say, enjoyable...

TV is not an option, no way, I end up abandoning my work and centre my whole attention on what's happening on my TV screen as opposed to my laptop screen... I tried that, and it failed miserably... Music, however, is something else entirely... Personally, I find that music helps me concentrate even more on the task at hand, and being able to zone out and listen to some of my favourite tracks while getting some serious work done is something I actually look forward to... 
Listening to music is something that makes me genuinely happy, so once I started associating music with work, it became a whole lot easier to find myself wanting to open my laptop and type away...  Admittedly, I am tempted to start singing and dancing along sometimes, especially to those more catchy tunes, and in all fairness, I let myself! Taking (reasonable) breaks is a vital part of the revision process, and my way of doing that is jamming out to some of my favourite songs... Even those guilty pleasures... We all do it...

As you may be aware, I'm quite keen on sharing playlists every so often, and letting you know what music I've had on repeat recently. I wanted to do the same with my revision playlist, but seeing as there are 50 songs (and counting), totalling 3 hours worth of music, I've decided to link my Spotify "Late Night Power Hour" Playlist! If the embedded playlist below doesn't work for your browser, I've alternatively linked it here!

What are your favourite songs at the minute? Tell me in a comment!

In A Nutshell | Easter Break: Week #2

The last week of my Easter Break has drawn to an end... How the heck is life going so quickly!? In five short weeks my time at sixth form will be over, when it only feels like it began yesterday... Assuming I don't have to re-sit the year, of course...

The past week has been mostly full of revision; attempting to get notes and flash-cards written, and making sure the ridiculous amounts of information I need to remember is stuck in my brain... I still haven't quite mastered that yet...

On Wednesday myself, Catherine and Alice ventured over to Liverpool for a well needed catch-up and of course, retail therapy! I had a few birthday gifts I needed to buy for people, but I also picked up a couple of things for myself, spending waaay to much money in the process... I also learned in Lush that they purchase ingredients for the Peace massage bar straight from the Peace Villages in Colombia, allowing them to fairly trade! See guys, shopping can be educational... I have to say, I did feel very sophisticated walking around Liverpool carrying seven shopping bags... I also bought the most amazing candle ever, it's pomegranate and pineapple scented, and smells just like summer, it's very nostalgic and brings back memories of last summer... I like it, a lot.

We stopped off at Starbucks for lunch and spent a lot of our time quizzing Cat on her geographical knowledge, or rather lack of... I very nearly cried with laughter... No Catherine, Edinburgh is not in the South East...

I ordered the Croque Monsieur Panini and a hot chocolate, Alice got a Ham and Cheddar Croissant and a Strawberry & Cream Frappuccino, while Cat got a Pulled Pork Corn Ciabatta and a Mocha Frappuccino. I can only speak on my own behalf, but it was lovely...

The same night I also went to see Insurgent with my Mum and Sister, I think I preferred Divergent, although Theo James.... Beautiful!

Yesterday, I had my first BBQ of the year seeing as the weather was glorious! Spring has definitely sprung... I also relaxed in the garden for a little while, managing to slightly burn my chest and gaining a face full of freckles... It felt like summer and I loved it...

Speaking of weather, I managed to capture some lovely pictures of the sky this week as the sun was setting. My bedroom is west-facing, meaning I'm able to watch the sun set (or at least majority of it due to obstructing houses and trees) every night... It's extremely calming, and is typically my favourite time of day!

A single star

Tonight I'm going to my friend Victoria's 18th party - everyone's turning 18 recently and it's great! I can honestly say I've never been so sociable in my life... The best thing about 18th's is that everyone (usually) has them or celebrates in some way, and at this point in sixth form everybody pretty much knows everybody, so there's a hell of a lot of them to go to!
What a way to end the Easter Break! Don't worry guys, my sixth form is closed tomorrow, hence a Sunday party!

What have you been up to this week?

Budget Brushes

Makeup brushes are a staple in any makeup collection, or at least should be... Finding affordable brushes that are still of a great quality can be quite the challenge, as let's be honest, who wants to be spending £20 on a single brush? Definitely not me...

I understand that where there are pricey brushes, there's great quality which is difficult to beat. However, for beginners who are just starting out in makeup or people like me who simply can't afford to splash out, there are cheaper alternatives that do everything you need them to! 

Starting off with a brand I'm sure most people in the know are aware of, Real Techniques. Although single brushes can range between £5 and £15 on average, there are sets and collections that work out cheaper and provide you with all the tools you need. 
My favourite, and typical go-to brushes are from the Core Collection (£21.99) which includes four basic brushes that everybody needs in their collection. 

First off there's the pointed foundation brush - good for applying foundation, but better for smaller details such as concealer or applying foundation in harder to reach areas such as around the nose. Also included is the buffing brush; one of my absolute favourite brushes, which I love using in a circular motion all over my face once I've applied foundation, to ensure there are no streaky lines and that everything looks nice and even. I also use this brush to apply powder over my foundation, as the densely packed bristles ensure that all of the product is picked up and transferred to the face without dropping loose powder.
The contour brush is another favourite, and is perfect for the application of bronzer in the hollows of your cheeks to create a sculpted and more defined look, all in all, I love it!
Finally, is the detailer brush. The great thing about this brush is the fact it lacks a single use... It can be used just as well for precisely applying lipstick, as blending a cream highlight under the browbone. 
The softness of the contour brush and buffing brush is simply amazing, and they last a long time too! I've had my set since July of last year, and have used them religiously since... Although the ends of the bristles are slightly more bent, they still work like a dream... If you're in need of some basic brushes but don't know where to begin, this is a recommendation I'd make any day!

Real Techniques also have another foundation brush, which admittedly I prefer over the one in the Core Collection set. Available for £9.99, this brush works wonders with any foundation, whether it's of a light or thick consistency. It does leave a few streaks here and there, but nothing that can't be fixed with buffing it into the skin. It's been one of my favourite purchases, and I love using it! It may be classed as slightly pricey, but it's an investment... Trust me...

Sticking with Real Techniques for a little while longer, they also offer some great brushes for everything eye-related! Again, purchasing each brush individually can add up, but the Starter Set is perfect for fitting all of your eye-makeup needs! For £21.99, it contains two shadow brushes; the base shadow brush, and the deluxe crease brush, as well as an accent brush, brow brush and pixel point eyeliner brush.
Again like the Core Collection, these brushes are soft beyond belief, and pick up eyeshadows beautifully without depositing product where you don't want it! I typically use the accent brush for fine details such as building up a little bit of smokiness in the outer corners, as well as using with eyeshadow to create an eyeliner along the bottom lash line. The angled brow brush is wonderful for use with eyeshadow to fill in any sparse areas of the brows, and although I haven't used it in this way, I'm sure it would work equally as well for gel brow products. Finally, the eyeliner brush; great for applying gel eyeliner, and its petite point is perfect for creating a precise wing.

Top tip! - shops such as Boots, Superdrug and even the Real Techniques site itself sell these sets and brushes for full price, but you can purchase them from Amazon for only a fraction of the price! Although prices often change, the Core Collection set is currently available (as of today) for £15, while the single foundation brush and Starter Set are available for £8 and £13 respectively! Have you ever searched Amazon as an alternate store to buy your makeup products?

I am aware that these brushes may not exactly be classed as "budget", but I can speak with experience when I say they are worth every penny, and you'll get a lot of use out of them... For those people who still can't afford it, or would much rather start off cheaper, don't fret! There are plenty of alternatives out there!

Face brushes

Eye brushes

After searching online for quite a while, I came across these makeup brushes on Amazon... I'm not entirely sure of their name, as the seller I purchased them from is different to this one, however they're exactly the same. At £6.99 for a full set, including five face brushes and five eye brushes, I was pretty skeptical... How can brushes be that cheap? Can I trust them? Are they good quality or will they fall apart in my hands? Despite my concerns, they had great reviews, and so I decided to bite the bullet and buy them, what's £6.99 if they're rubbish, right? Well, they're flipping amazing. Albeit looking very similar, I've managed to find uses for all of the face brushes, using angled ones for contouring and highlighting, the rounded one for blusher application, and the flat-topped one for stippling and buffing. The eyeshadow brushes are quite large, and I was worried that I was going to end up with eyeshadow all over my face, but they also work wonders! I've used these brushes for two months now, and all of the bristles have remained intact and feel very soft! As you would imagine, they're not of the same high quality as more expensive brushes, but they're still amazing for their price. £6.99 for 10 brushes! I couldn't quite believe it myself...

So there you have it, my top budget brushes... I hope this has been insightful for some of you, or that you at least enjoyed reading this post! Are there any makeup brushes that you couldn't live without? Or any tips on finding great, affordable brushes? Let me know in the comments!

In A Nutshell | Easter Break: Week #1

The first week of my Easter break is over... *cries*... It's going far too quickly... I don't like it...
Not only do I feel so underprepared to go back to sixth form in just over a week (seriously, two weeks is not enough), there's also exams... In one month... No...

I've had such a lovely first week off, despite spending the vast majority of my time revising for thirteen exams... On Tuesday, myself and Alex went to see Furious 7, and boy was it good... Have you seen it?... I'm a serious adrenaline junkie when it comes to action films... I can't get enough... Anything remotely thrilling gets me excited, so long as I'm watching it on a screen and not doing it myself! We also sat in the most amazing cinema chairs I've ever seen... Ever... Not only do they fully recline, but they have SO much room and also a little table that slides across you... I must have spent the first ten minutes playing with the recliner button and getting all excited by the fact I could practically lie down whilst watching the film... Amazing... Thank you Odeon...
We found ourselves in Pizza Hut, where I devoured the most delicious cajun chicken pizza ever... It was the best day...

I decided to take my sister mini-golfing on Thursday seeing as it was such a warm, sunny day, and I won - woo! I never win anything, ever, bowling being a prime example... We also went to Costa afterwards; where I ordered an Iced Lemonade and my sister got a Tropical Iced Cooler... It was practically the perfect Spring day, and got me extremely excited for Summer!

This past weekend has been... Different to say the least... I was expecting to lock myself in my room and crack on with some revision, but my leaky kitchen ceiling had other plans and decided to start caving in... My Mum and I made the decision that rather than letting it fall down on its own accord - potentially coming down on one of us, we would pull it down ourselves... Hence, I spent my Friday night making a massive hole in my kitchen ceiling... For the rest of the weekend we've been presented with the task of bringing the whole ceiling down, driving back and forth to the tip, and basically not stopping... Thankfully a plumber is coming to fix the pipes pretty soon, and a plasterer not long after... Assuming everything goes to plan, everything will be back to normal in no time...

How have you spent your week? Are you on Easter break like me? Tell me what you've been up to in a comment!

The Body Shop Skincare | Haul

Who doesn't love The Body Shop? I know I do, so much in fact that two years ago I decided to become a Love Your Body member. If you're a big Body Shop lover like myself, you can easily become a member for only £5 a year! You get 10% off every purchase and also receive a free product worth £5 after 4 transactions (that basically pays for the membership itself!) and one for £10 after 8 transactions. One of my favourite perks is that you also receive £5 off any product in your birthday month! As if this isn't tempting enough, you also get emails with exclusive offers and savings, a lot of which are for members only!

I have to admit, I've neglected my membership for a while, and haven't set foot in The Body Shop or browsed it's website for quite some time... Is there a specific reason? Not really... I think the only thing that's deterred me is the fact I have more than enough bath products - countless body butters, scrubs and shower gels... 
Recently however, I've been seeking change in my skincare routine, and what better way to do it at The Body Shop, during a 40% sale!

I have combination skin, whereby my forehead and chin become quite oily yet my nose and around my eyes can become dry and flaky... Not a good look... I also suffer with blemishes, mainly on my forehead and chin, and sometimes my cheeks too. Thankfully, they're not regular guests on my face, and typically appear during that dreaded time of the month (girls, you all know what I mean) or when I'm ill and run-down. Tackling all of these problems can be difficult, as products often work against each other rather than with each other, leaving oily areas oilier, and dry patches drier... The Body Shop offer some great products, and I decided to splash the cash and give some a try...

The first area I wanted to address was the oily areas of my face. The seaweed range of skincare is associated with combination/oily skin, and combats excess oil. I've tried some of the seaweed products before, I think they were in-fact the first Body Shop products I ever purchased... I didn't feel like they did much for my skin at the time, but I was young and naive, chances are I just didn't realise! 
The first thing I picked up was the Seaweed Iconic Clay Mask (£13). The "best seller" label certainly jumped out at me, and I couldn't resist! This face mask aims to purify, cleanse and remove impurities and excess oil, just what I was looking for! It smells very fresh but not at all overpowering. 

As someone who suffers from enlarged and exposed pores, I wanted a product that was able to reduce their appearance without clogging or drying out the surrounding skin... Hence my next purchase of the Seaweed Pore Perfector (£12)! Again, designed for combination/oily skin, this product reduces pore appearance and also helps control blemishes - double bonus! To achieve the best results, it's to be used after cleansing and before moisturising...

My next agenda - dryness... I bought the Aloe Soothing Day Cream (£4-£11), but because I'm an idiot, I only selected the 15ml tub... Fortunately, my idiocracy paid off, because I also accidentally ordered two of them... Hence two tiny 15ml pots of cream... I guess they'll be handy for travelling! Aloe has many great properties, it's great for sensitive skin, is soothing and provides calming moisturisation! The cream is of a light consistency and isn't too thick, has no fragrance and no added preservatives. It helps my skin feel fresh in the morning and leaves it feeling that way throughout the day, and is instantly reviving. Another Body Shop bestseller, and one I'd highly recommend to battle those areas in need of a little re-hydration!

Finally, blemishes, and what better way to banish them than tea tree? As I'm sure most people are aware, tea tree has amazing natural healing abilities. I was instantly drawn to the Tea Tree Oil (£7), as simply dabbing a few drops onto a cotton bud and applying it on the affected areas can get rid of any spots in a matter of hours! The only downside to this product is that it tends to get rid of spots once they've appeared, and the ideal situation is to prevent them altogether... Despite this, it has been my spot-saviour! 

To try and provide a more permanent solution, I also picked up the Tea Tree Cool & Creamy Wash (£5), which gets skin spotlessly clean without over-drying - perfect! I've incorporated this into my daily routine, and have been loving it so far! It also includes Community Fair Trade organic tea tree oil, which makes it all the more special.

As I mentioned earlier, I love The Body Shop and their amazing products! They use some of the best fair trade products from around the globe and never test on animals - factors which clearly shine through in the great quality of pretty much everything they sell.

Are you a Body Shop enthusiast like myself? Have you tried any of the products I've mentioned in this haul, or are there any you swear by yourself? Leave me a comment and let me know!

Happy Birthday Chloe Marie!

Where has the time gone... I can't believe it's been a year since I started this blog! Yesterday, Chloe Marie turned one year old... I wanted to post on the actual anniversary of its creation, but seeing as it was Easter Sunday, I thought it would be better to post today... 

I feel as though my blog has grown a lot in the past year... At first I was just experimenting, trying it out and seeing where it would go from there. Looking back, I never really had a direction for my blog, and although I still may not have an exact plan, I'm much more organised than I used to be... I am by no means an expert, and still have a long way to go before knowing what I'm doing, but that's the fun of it! 

Chloe Marie has become one of my favourite hobbies, and I can't imagine not doing it... Sometimes it gets a little stressful, feeling the pressure to write posts and have them up at certain times, to take good photographs and just to generally produce content that you will enjoy reading... I've realised that the only person who puts that pressure on me is myself, and once I realised that, took the pressure off myself, I found I started to love it even more...

I don't particularly have any plans for the future regarding the blog, but I guess that's what makes it exciting! I can't wait to look back in another year and see how far it's come.... 

I'd also like to thank all of you; who leave lovely comments, and even simply taking the time to read my posts... You make my day...

If there are any suggestions as to what you'd like to see from me, please leave a comment and let me know! I'm always open to suggestions and taking them on board! 

Chloe x

In A Nutshell | Happy Easter!

Source

So I may have skipped my Sunday posts for the last fortnight... Sorry! I've had the most boring two weeks ever, doing nothing but work and pray for the school term to end... Thankfully, it has! Two and a half weeks off school... Relieved barely scratches the surface... 

I say that, but it's pretty much guaranteed I'll be spending the vast majority of my Easter break revising, with exams approaching much more rapidly than I'd like, I need to be as prepared as possible to ensure I'll actually end up going to Uni in September... Yikes...

This past week has been a pretty quiet one, although last night it was my Auntie's 70th birthday, and we had a party to celebrate! I also got the chance to meet some members of my family I've never met before, as my extended family is massive! My Nan is one of nine children, whilst my Grandad is one of fourteen... That's a lot of cousins and second cousins! And that's just one side of the family...

Also, Happy Easter (for those who celebrate) and happy Chocolate Day! 

I think today is going to be a relaxed one, with a lovely Sunday roast of course! 

What have you been up to this week? How are you spending your Easter Sunday? As always, let me know in a comment!

The Versatile Blogger Award!

Recently, I was very kindly nominated by the lovely Brittany from Living In June for the Versatile Blogger Award! This is the second award nomination Brittany has bestowed upon me, and for that I am very grateful, so thank you Brittany! 

For those of you familiar with any awards in the blogosphere, you all know what comes next - the rules!
1. Thank the person who nominated you
2. Share 7 interesting facts about yourself
3. Nominate ten other bloggers to do the same, and notify them of their nomination!

Now, personally, it took a seriously long time for me to think of seven interesting facts about myself... If you can't do the same then don't feel pressured to! I'm actually surprised I managed to come up with seven! Onto my facts...

1. When I was born, I had a congenital disorder called DDH, which basically means my hip joint was deformed... I was in and out of plaster casts for the first two years of my life, had pins and plates inserted into my hip, and now have a 16cm scar down my right thigh... Yep...

2. When I was little, my parents and I very nearly emigrated to Australia for my Dad's work... We didn't in the end, but I often wonder what my life would be like if we did...

3. I got the highest GCSE results in my year at school... I'm never one to brag, and I hardly mention it, but I was a little stuck for interesting facts! 

4. I used to swim semi-competitively in a local swimming club, but eventually gave it up to focus on my GCSE and then A-Level studies. Over the years I won a few certificates and awards, and they're always a lovely little reminder of when life wasn't so hectic...

5. I am allergic to grapes and raisins... Not wine, not Vimto drinks, not anything else grape related, but just grapes and raisins... I don't know how that's possible - but it is!

6. When I went to Egypt on my summer holiday last year, I was unfortunate enough to acquire over 40 mosquito bites... My sister got none. Each night before I went to sleep, I had to put hot spoons on each bite, and then cover them with various creams and even resorted to toothpaste... Thankfully, none of them scarred! 

7. I can't roll or curl my tongue in any way, shape or form, I can't roll my R's, but I can wiggle my ears...

I couldn't find 10 other blogs to nominate, most blogs I follow have already done it! I did manage to nominate 5 people though, and they are...

Gemma from Mexican Lime
Beth from Beth's Honest Ramblings
Rachel from WHERE SHE GOES
Lauren from Lauren Loves Laughter
Gillie from Gillie Blogs

I hope you all take the Versatile Blogger Award on board, not only is it a great way to interact with other bloggers, but it's also amazing to let your readers know that little bit more about you! Plus, it was nice to have a little reminisce about things from the past... I hope you enjoyed reading this post!

Are there any interesting facts about you? Leave a comment and tell me!