New Years Babbling & My 2010 Faves

I never make New Years Resolutions, purely down to the fact that I know I will never stick to them, because I am a sham like that. There are a few things I know that I DO want to do though, but Im not one to make a resolution. Because in a few days it will probably change. Because Im indecisive like that.

I added in a bit of a list of my favourites from 2010 at the end. I hope you all had an amazing New Years! Mine consisted of playing charades and getting sloshed with my boyfriend and parents. He was in work late and so couldn't make it out pubbing on time so we thought we'd have a quiet one in mine and ring in the new year that way. It was quite lovely really, the only thing was, watching all the fireworks from London on Sky News made me wish I was anywhere else but Dublin.

Any other Irish girlies reading will be all too familiar how this country has hit a huge downturn, and most of us feel like there is nothing left for us here.
It made me feel like I should be out experiencing places like London on NYE and not sitting in watching it on television. I think being in my final year of university has dampened my spirits. The past year was very hard in many ways for me. I feel like I am getting old. (21?! Old?!) There is just so much I want to experience, and I guess Im a bit fed up of doing the same old things. Knowing that i'll close a huge chapter of my life this year is so daunting. Its like, hello, wake up, real life starts NOW!

In terms of changes for the new year, Im not going to say 'I want to eat more fruit and vegetables' and 'drink more water', because surprisingly, I find that I do look after myself that way. I love being healthy and hydrated! Weirdo I know.
Finishing my dissertation in feb and getting my BA degree will be a huge weight off. Hopefully I'll do well. (if I stop procrastinating!)

I definitely want to travel. I want to experience places like Thailand, Cambodia, New Zealand, Tokyo.. Experiencing different walks of life and different foods and cultures is so exhilarating for me. I get such a rush out of it. Life is about the adventure. And I want to go and be free and experience as much as I can while I can. I don't know if that is a possiblility this year. There is an offer on the table, but its such a big commitment right now, because I'd be leaving so much behind.

I may also have an opportunity to work with a really well established chef here in Ireland, but it means packing up and moving to a different county. I'd have nowhere to live either, and Id be on my own, so I don't know what will happen with that.

One thing I want to do which is totally generic resolution is excercise more. Having done Karate for nearly 10 years, I gave it up, and since then, I just miss being fit. I love the rush you get out of exercising.

There are obviously more things I want to do but I wont continue to bore you with the details!
Onto something more upbeat.

Beauty Faves of 2010

Sephora Sculpting Disk

Benefit Coralista Blush

Make Up For Ever HD Foundation

Barry M Dazzledusts

Les Floressances Creme Lift Visage Face Cream

Umberto Giannini Backcomb in a Bottle

Barry M Lip Wands

Kate Moss Perfume

I really loved using these products in 2010 and would recommend them to everyone.
I hope you all have a lovely monday :)

Aoif x

NEW LOVE: FCUK Polished Whipped Bodycream

Hello my lovelies!
I got this gorgeous bodycream for Christmas as part of a set of goodies
from French Connection. I just HAD to post about it because I am actually obsessed with it. NO JOKE PEOPLE! Every chance I get I am smoothing this onto myself. I can not get enough of it. Sometimes I even just find myself opening the lid, having a sniff and closing it again, just to give myself a hit. Gosh I sound like a junkie.

This stout tub contains 300ml of creamy goodness. I must admit I love that its pink.
It boasts extracts of orange blossom and pomegranate, shea butter and sweet almond oil. Ok orange, pomegranate, almonds? YUM. Im getting hungry now. Anything with shea butter in it and im sold anyway.
The back of the tub states that it has a rich and velvety texture and provides lasting hydration. The sweet almond oil helps to nourish and smooth while the shea butter helps lock in moisture and protect against dehydration.

I can honestly say this is the goddess of bodycreams. I never post about beauty products I love. Maybe because I rarely find any that Im so mad about. But this thick cream leaves my skin feeling supple and soft, and smelling delicious.
I wish I could somehow capture the scent of this beautiful cream and send it to you all. I love it. It smells sexy and warm and sunny and nutty..And ts so rich and creamy that you feel pampered and amazing after using it.

If you don't believe me it is available in Boots for £5.75 or about €7 if you want to pop in and have a cheeky sniff!

**Times I opened the tub to have a sniff during the writing of this post: 3

Hope you are all having a lovely evening and i'll speak to you all soon :)
Aoif x

Stylish Thinking

Hello dollies! I hope you all had a lovely Christmas! Today for me will mostly consist of lounging around doing nothing, procrastinatng while I should be getting on with my dissertation, eyeing up potential beauty and clothing purchases online and cooking some nice healthy dishes to eradicate the guilt of eating so much food yesterday.

But first i'd like to introduce you to the newest member of my shoe collection, Mr. Kurt Geiger. :D

If you've followed me for a while you'd know how much I love these babies, and imagine my shock yesterday morning when my boyfriend handed me over a beautifully wrapped package with a cheeky smile on his face. Upon rippage, I came to find that I had finally been united with the most beauiful shoes in the world. :) I am still in shock to be honest. My boyfriend (like most men) does not understand how important material goods are to women, and these items are not things we want, but things we need. Something 'practical' would be a better present, i've heard him say too often. But it seemed as if the heavens had opened and my prayers had been answered, because yesterday, my boyfriend finally showed me that he understood my obsession and necessity for material goods. :) Hallelujiah!

I got a few other bits and bobs that I will show you all in another post, but I thought I would nab this from the gorgeous Missy Elz because as I have already stated, I am procrastinating. :P

One of my first fashion memories... Aged 6. I stepped out donned in a bright blue wooly jumper with a giant cartoony panda on the front, knitted by my mother. It was quite retro, and since then, my secret love for wooly knits has never faltered.

One of the most treasured items in my wardrobe... My new Kurt Geigers. I don't know how Im ever going to wear them out because Im so afraid of anything happening to them. Sad or wha.

You may not know this but... My arms don't straighten the whole way. Its unnoticable until pointed out, and its hard to explain, but the bone at my elbow is positioned in a particular way that makes my arm look as if its bent when really its straight. Sounds daft I know.

My favourite place in the world is... France. I have something of a love affair with France. Everyone says they adore Paris, and it really is an amazing city, but over the summer I became so attached to the little town of Brantome, in the South West. The culture, the language, the food... Its everything I want in my life. The French know how to eat.

My style icon is... I really don't have one. There are people whose fashion sense I admire and draw inspiration from; Coco Chanel, Zooey Dechanel, Diana Vickers, Ashley Olsen, Fearne Cotton, Dita Von Teese, and Irina Lazareanu to name a few. I have no one person whom I derive inspiration from.

I own so many... Shoes. Its terrible.

It's important for me to... Look good when I go shopping. It sounds shallow but I always feel that the shop assistants judge what I wear. Same goes for makeup.

A moment I will always remember... When I realised my boyfriend was the One. Yes with a capital 'O'!

My trademark is... Im not sure really. Ive been told I change my look a lot. Im a Gemini, what can I say, I get bored easily.

If I could turn back the clock... I would have kept my peroxide blonde hair. It was awesome.

A person who changed my life... The guy who invented Youtube. Because if it weren't for the beauty community I would still probably be my 14 year old self in the head and know absolutely nothing about makeup.

Thanks for reading and i'd be interested to see if anyone else did this little thing :)
Aoif x

Beauty Haulage

Hello dollies! This post was meant to be posted last week but the photies didnt upload. Here it is now!

So when I popped myself into Boots a few weeks ago I found myself diving for bits and pieces I knew very well I didn't need, but thought to myself, 'hey, i've got cash to burn on this gift card, go on Aoif, treat yourself!' :P
But me being me, I persuaded myself that I did of course need these items, and told myself it would be ok as I kind of made up for it by purchasing a few 3 for 2 items. Yes! I go for the bargains!


Heres what I bought:

And a few closeups:

Boots Botanics Skin Brightening Cleanser and Toner - I decided to change up my skincare routine a tad and opt for a wipe away cleanser for once. Most of the time I feel like my face isn't actually clean if I don't use water, but this stuff is just lovely. It smells divine too. If im wearing a lot of makeup i'll use a makeup wipe first to get rid of the excess, then use this to ensure every last bit of dirt and grime has been removed from my face :) It's a skin brightening cleanser, which is just what I need during these harsh winter months. I am quite happy with the toner as well, I could drink this it smells so good; like a liquid rose garden, so fresh and clean scented. It refreshes my face after using the cleanser and makes sure it is squeaky clean.

Boots Botanics Organic Smoothing Face Polish - This scrub does exactly what it states, and that is exfoliate! Its nice to use two or three times a week to remove dead skin cells and leave behind a bright complexion. It contains cranberry and cupuacu (I have no clue what that is but it sounds fab!), but it kind of smells and feels like liquid brown bread. Please do not be alarmed, I was not keen to use this as I detest brown bread, but now I have come to enjoy it.

Aussie Volume and Conditioning Mousse and Coloured Hair Protection and Shine Serum -
Aussie products are quite the dark horse next to leading brands such as Tresemmé and the like. They are fantastic. This mousse smells amazing, volumises, and leaves hair shiny without any frizz. The serum is amazing too. The best thing about it is you dont even have to use a pea sized blob to tame your entire head, meaning it will last AGES! It smells delicious, and when used on a recent night out, it kept my hair in place all night. Tres happy with that like.

Lipstick from L-R: Revlon Superlustrous Lipstick in 700 Fire and Ice, Revlon Matte Lipstick in 006 Really Red, Barry M Lip Paint in 100 (Baby Pink)
First off, the lack of lighting in this picture does not do the red lippies any justice, because they really are so vibrant. I apologise!
I love Fire and Ice. Its beautiful, lasts ages and moisturises my lips. Really Red I was not so sure of because I find that Matte Lippies tend to dry my lips out but this is great for a really striking classic pin up look. :) To be honest I haven't tried the Barry M one yet as I had not intended on purchasing this. I thought I had picked up 101 Marshmallow, but to my dismay I had picked this one up instead and only realised after I had got home and torn off the packaging. I find that it does feel a bit chalky in texture and im not sure it will suit my complexion. But I will do a more in depth review at a later date :)

Barry M Limited Edition Lip Wands in Red and Baby Pink, Cocoa Butter Vaseline, and Barry M Liquid Liner - I did a product rave post last month regarding the Barry M lipwands and I couldn't resist picking up the Limited Edition ones when I saw them in Boots. The red seemed perfect for smoothing over Fire and Ice when I wanted a glossy finish, and the baby pink is perfect over nudes, worn alone, or over well.. baby pinks. I only picked up the liner because after a quick trip to Inglot I was told the gel liner I had waited patiently for for ages was sold out, again, so thought i'd give this Barry M one a go until I could get my hands on the Inglot liner. So far it does suffice, the liner tip is quite thick so its thick liquid liner whether you like it or not! It doesn't last as well as the Rimmel Glam Eyes Professional Liner I have been using for aggggges so I may resort to that again.

Catrice All Around Concealer - I had heard the lovely Dazzledust25 and gorgeous KatieElisabeth21 talk about this concealer palette before and was interested to see what the fuss was about. This baby was €1.99! Seriously. I was shocked as well. And so I didn't expect much from it. It contains 5 concealer colours; A pink to conceal dark circles, a green to cancel out red spots, and 3 skin coloured shades that can be mixed and matched to suit your skin tone. I have been using Benefits Erase Paste in No. 1 Fair for the past while but it is too pink for my skin tone. The second shade in this palette matches my skin perfectly. I was quite surprised at this! This is a bargain to be honest, the coverage is fairly all right, it not the best concealer in the world or anything, but for €2 it is an absolute steal. 5 shades?! Come on!

Anyway rambles over! I got some more lovely Beauty goodies for Christmas so I will review them soon enough. Product Rave also!
Hope youre all having a nice monday :)
Aoif x

Yes.. Another Foodie Post.

Ok so I have no idea whats up with my bloggy. My info on the sidebar has completely
vanished, so I thought I'd annoy you all with another wee post about my food blog, to make up for the missing link on the side there.
It is also to get you all in the festive Christmas mood and such as I CANNOT WAIT for Christmas dinner and thought i'd sprinkle a bit of festive sparkle unto all my readers. It will also allow you to coo over my latest seasonal creations which are my lovely little gingerbread men :)

Check them out as well as some of my other recipes here at The Kooky Crumb

Thank you all for reading and I will be posting a little beauty post for you tomorrow :)

Aoif x

What I Wore.. Last Night

Hello lovelies, heres an outfit post for you from last night.
My college friends and I ventured out into Dublin's City Centre for a bit of a Christmas do, and my god it was freezing!

Apologies for the blurriness!

Blouse - Asos
Dress worn as skirt - Also Asos
Shoes - Topshop
Belt - Primark

Face: Revlon Photoready Foundation in Shell (Coquillage)
MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural in Light Medium
Benefit Coralista
ELF Bronzer
Sephora Highlighter

Eyes: MAC Thunder, MAC Sketch and Urban Decay's Zero
L'Oreal Volume Million Lashes Mascara
Lord & Berry Black Eye Kohl
Barry M Liquid Liner
ELF Falsies

Lips: Revlon Matte Really Red
Barry M Limited Edition Lip Wand in Baby Pink

Thnaks for reading and I hope youre all having a nice weekend! :) x
Aoif x

FOOD BLOGGAGING!

Hello dollies :)

Just a quick post to inform you all aboot my lovely new food blog if you missed my previous food blog announcement!

I have just updated my blog with a post about Christmas Food Hampers and edible gifts I will be making this Christmas so if youre a foodie like myself you should definitely check it out!

Blonde me! FOODIE!

Check it out HERE: The Kooky Crumb

Love to you all! :) xxx