Pumpkin Carving!

Since it's almost Halloween I thought I would try and get as many Halloween posts in as possible, because I love Halloween!! So today I am going to show you the steps of how I carve my pumpkins! This was a practise run, I am aware that this pumpkin will not make it to Halloween haha!

Firstly and most importantly you're going to need a Pumpkin of course! I absolutely love going into a shop and searching through there collection of pumpkins to find the right one for me! I got this guy from Sainsbury for £3.

Secondly you're going to need some pumpkin carving tools, you can get pumpkin carving kits but there is nothing wrong with some good old kitchen knives, a big spoon and a skewer. You will also need a bowl for all the mess!

Right so that is my table all set, try and make sure you have got everything you need at the beginning it makes the carving a much more relaxed and fun experience.

The first thing you need to do is cut a circle out of the top of your pumpkin, this is how you get all the guts out and then you use the top bit as a lid! You can be as adventurous as you want, it doesn't have to be a circle.

Make sure you clean all the pumpkin guts off the lid. I then also like to carve down the edges a bit just so it slots back into the top a bit easier.

Now time for the fun and messy part! Removing all the pumpkin guts, this can but a bit of a workout but keep going it will be worth it!

I like to use a big spoon for removing the guts, I scrap the spoon along the edges and this removes everything. It can be really hard to get all the stringy bits off the wall but by scraping the spoon along it works like a dream!

You should then be left with a nice empty pumpkin...

And a bowl full of pumpkin guts!

A little trick I like to do is add a couple of toothpicks just under where the lid will sit just so it stays in place nicely.

This is down to personal preference but I like to draw a face design on my pumpkin to use as a guideline while cutting! I think it helps with getting the positioning and sizing of the face correct, cause once you've carved it there is no going back! I've gone with a bit of an angry scary pumpkin face.

This is my pumpkin all carved out and I am very very happy with him!! I wish he would last till Halloween :( As you can see I used a couple of techniques, you don't just have to cut holes into your pumpkin, I like to carve off the skin so that you still have pumpkin but it's a different colour, this is what I've done with the eyeballs and the teeth! I used the skewer to help poke out the unwanted bits of pumpkin, and I used the knives just to literally carve over my drawing!

My pumpkin with a candle inside!! I personally think he looks great haha!

If you carve any pumpkins this year please do tag me on instagram or Twitter my links are on my home page, I would absolutely love to see what amazing creations you come up with! I also have some really cool ideas for my pumpkins this year so I will probably do another post on them ones for you! 

Talk soon x

14 Life & Beauty hacks

These are my quick and easy 14 life and beauty hacks just to make your life that little bit easier! Some of these you may already know and some of them you might not so I hope you learn something new and can be that little bit lazier in the future.

1. Soak your beauty blender!

Beauty blenders are a great tool for when apply your make-up and they are huge at the moment, but some of you may not know that soaking your beauty blender in water before you use it will help with a smoother application. 

2. Masking tape for the perfect wing!

I always use a small strip of masking tape on the edge of my eye to help get that perfect sharp and straight line for my winged eye liner. One important thing is make sure you use masking tape because regular tape is to adhesive and could irritate your skin.

3. Spray Bobby pins with hairspray!

If you struggle with keeping you up do in place and the Bobby pins always slid around or fall out, then try spraying them with a little spritz of history before you put them in. This will help them grip to your hair and stay in place.

4. Don't dot, Triangle!

When applying concealer under your eyes do not just dot it in a straight line underneath, draw a triangle under your eye and this helps avoid a thick appearance and brighten up the area.

5. Don't pump, Twist!

I see so many people pump there mascara to try and get more product on the wand!! NO! This pushes air into your mascara and makes it dry out a lot quicker. So to get more product on your wand twist it as you're pulling it out this helps prevent your mascara from drying out and therefore it will last longer.

6. Cut the tops of bottles for left overs!

When you think you have finished a product and you're about to throw it away try this first and you'll be surprised at how much product is actually left. So about 2 inches down the tube cut right across, you can then use the top part that you have cut off as a lid and VUALA! You have more to use.

7. Vaseline around your varnish bottle!

You know when your varnish dried up and its next to impossible to remove the lid! Well here is a hack that can get rid of that! Rub Vaseline all around the neck of your varnish bottle and this will stop your varnish from gluing shut.

8. White shadow to brighten up your eyes!

When doing your eye make-up you want your eyes to look wide and bright, to do this you can apply a white eyeshadow to the inner corner of your eye and it will make a HUGE difference.

9. Cold spoon for eyes and spots!

If you're prone to red puffy eyes, or a big nasty red spot has appeared on your face here is a nice quick and easy hack to solving that! Pop a teaspoon in the freezer for a couple of minutes and then rest it over your eyes this will reduce the puffiness and if you hold it over any spots this can help reduce the redness.

10. X on your cupids bow!

To help get that perfect lip line draw an X on your cupids bow to help define it then outline the rest of your lips as normal and apply the lipstick.

11. Quick dry nails!

I always realising minutes before I need to leave that I haven't painted nails, and I rush to do them and they end up all smudge and ruined because I'm not allowing them to dry. This is a super quick and easy way to dry your nail varnish, once you've painted them dip your nails in really cold water for about 10/15 seconds and you've got dry nails in no time at all.

12. Scrub your lips with a toothbrush!

If your lips are a bit dry and you want them to look nice and smooth under your lipstick this is a clever little hack that you can add to your beauty routine. Gently scrub your lips in circular motions with a toothbrush and this will remove any dead skin and help smooth them out and plump them up a bit.

13. Vaseline before your perfume!

If you want your perfume to last a bit longer throughout the day then apply a small amount of Vaseline to the areas you're spraying and this will help the perfume almost stick to your skin so you can smell lovely for the rest or the day.

14. Keep make-up wipes next your bed!

Now I have a make-up removal and cleanse routine before bed, but sometimes you either forget or you just cannot be bothered! The amount of times I have got all comfy into bed and then realised I have still got my make-up on is ridiculous, you then have to get out of bed and get to work but with this hack you can forget that! Keeps some make-up wipes next to your bed so on those lazy days or when you just forget you can stay in bed and just use a wipe to remove your make-up.

I hope you guys have enjoyed my Life and Beauty hacks and these will help make your life that little bit easier! Leave comments with your favourite hacks because I am constantly looking for ways to make my life simpler cause I'm lazy!

Talk soon x

Autumnal Make-up

This is my darker autumnal make-up as promised! I am in love with this look and I hope I am daring enough to wear it out and about more often because it's Autumn and that means dark cosy colours. These are the products that I used to create my wonderful autumn look.

Arbonne - Perfecting Liquid Foundation, Honey Beige

Revolution - Bronzer, Bronze Shimmer Highlight

Revolution - Eyebrow kit, Light Medium

Urban Decay - Naked palette

Maybelline - Master Precise liquid liner

MAC - Matte lipstick, Diva 

I went for the typical Autumnal look with a lovely gold and brown eye shadow with a good old cat flick eyeliner, and of course I chose a gorgeous dark red/purple berry lipstick, Diva is a perfect shade for Autumn time I am soo in love with it and I have my boyfriend to thank for this lipstick! Such an amazing present!!

Now enjoy some pictures of my Autumnal face...

(My attempt at winking! Oh how I wish I could wink)

Talk soon x

How I clean my make-up brushes

Cleaning your make-up brushes is a mundane task but it is one we all must do!! It is so important to clean your brushes I would say at least once a month, every day you use those brushes to apply your make-up your picking bacteria that is on your face, you then leave the brush and let the bacteria sit there, you then come back the next day and use the same brush you're now rubbing bacteria into your face and picking up more bacteria into the brush. It's just one nasty cycle and if you suffer with acne or spots from time to time this could help sooo much! I know no one really wants to do it but we have to and here is how I clean mine.

First off all I pop my brushes under running water, keep in mind that you don't want to use hot water because if it gets too hot it can start to melt the glue and loosen the bristles in the brush! So I use cold or warm water to wash my brushes.

I will then put a pump of hand soap on all of my brushes and my beauty blenders. There are products out there which are specific soaps for cleaning brushes I have never invested in those because soap works perfectly fine for me! I will then rub that into my brushes and beauty blenders and you can watch all the old product squeeze out! Do not rub or pull on your brushes to hard because eyou could pull out the bristles.

I will then put them back under the running water and give them a gentle rub and with the beauty blenders continuously squeeze them until the water runs clear. You can repeat the soap step again if the water still doesn't run clear but just remember not to be to ruff with the brushes.

I tend to spin my brushes in-between my hands, I don't like to whip them to try and dry them because this can be quite harsh on the glue which may have loosened up in the process of cleaning. I give my beauty blenders and good squeeze to try and get most of the water out.

I then leave them hanging off a side so that they can just air dry I tend to leave them there for the rest of the day and over night! Just look at how clean they are now, that makes me so happy that the tips of my brushes are now white again!! Although it doesn't stay that way for long. Just remember how important it is to clean your brushes, so if you're reading this thinking to yourself "When was the last time I washed my brushes??" Then go do it now!!

Talk soon x