30 Mar 2015

Monthly Favourites Playlist: March 2015

This month's playlist is a little mish-mash, which I think represents my tastes somewhat. From Joanna Newsom to Becky G, I love them all, and I hope you like something on this little compilation too.


1. Lean On (feat. MØ & DJ Snake) - Major Lazer // 2. One Last Time - Ariana Grande // 3. Good Intentions Paving Company - Joanna Newsom // 4. I Want You To Know (feat. Selena Gomez) - Zedd // 5. Collect Call - Metric // 6. Tonight I'm Getting Over You - Carly Rae Jepsen // 7. Problem (The Monster Remix) [feat. will.i.am.] - Becky G // 8. '81 - Joanna Newsom



xx

25 Mar 2015

Everyday Makeup



Uni is back and life is rolling on, which means that the number of days I wear makeup per week has increased. I personally prefer to wear at least something to cover up my skin when I leave the house because I have the skin of nightmares (I'm not even kidding, I'm pretty sure people have had terrible dreams about having skin like mine), but I also don't like to go completely all out for just an ordinary day. Over break I decided to cut down on the products I use to save both time and effort, and just stick with the things I like to wear the most. So here they are!



After I moisturise my face (right now I'm using Neutrogena Hydro Boost Water Gel), I apply a pump of Rimmel Match Perfection Foundation and blend with my fingers (the most underrated makeup tool, apparently). If I'm having a particularly bad skin day, I'll mix it with some Garnier Pure Active BB Cream, which does darken it (depending on your skin tone, I just happen to be super pale), but it also creates heavier, more matte coverage.

Next I cover any still-visible spots and the area under my eyes with Maybelline Fit Me Concealer, and blend it in with the Real Techniques Domed Shadow Brush. I then powder over the concealer with the much loved Rimmel Stay Matte Pressed Powder using the Real Techniques Your Base Flawless Powder Brush.

Next up is blush: you can of course use whatever you like, but I tend to use the nice pink of the Chi Chi Mosaic Blush in Pink Peach, applied with the Real Techniques Multi Task Brush. I skip bronzer most days because I prefer having rosier checks to looking more bronzed.

I'm lucky enough to have naturally thick eyebrows (thanks, dad), so I often leave them as is after combing with the Real Techniques Brow-Lash Groomer, but I sometimes use the matte brown in the Chi Chi Classics Palette and an angled brush to fill them in a little. It's also just a really great all-round natural palette that you can use for any eyeshadow needs.

I'm a bit of a mascara addict, so I don't go out without it. At the moment I'm using the Revlon Grow Luscious Plumping Mascara in Blackest Black, which I apply liberally to my top lashes, with just a touch on the bottom ones, too.

The final step, and the one that ties everything together, is lip colour. This is the thing about my makeup routine that I change the most, but the products I frequently use include the Revlon ColorBurst Lip Butter in Tutti Frutti, Candy Apple (worn below) and Red Velvet and the Rimmel Apocalips in Celestial. I tend to shy away from lipsticks because I don't have time to be constantly touching up, and even if these products do wear off, they do so pretty naturally so you don't have to worry about it smearing everywhere.


That's my finished look for my average day! Having written it all down, it does seem like quite a lot, but it makes me feel nice so I'm prepared to do it all. 

I hope you enjoyed this peek into my makeup bag!

xx

21 Mar 2015

Relaxing Soundtrack

I listen to music without fail every single day. Whether I'm walking, taking the bus, writing or just doing nothing in particular, I probably have my headphones in. 

As much as I do love my poppy dance music, sometimes the mood calls for something different. I like to have a range of songs to play when I feel relaxed, so naturally I have a few favourite albums for doing exactly that:


Evergreen by Broods / Broods was one of the amazing discoveries I made when listening to Triple J's Hottest 100 earlier this year, and I love every track on this album. I just let it play on repeat constantly. It has some more upbeat tracks, but who doesn't love that? ~ Favourite tracks: Mother & Father / Bridges / L.A.F / Superstar

Have One On Me by Joanna Newsom / Joanna Newsom is a pretty new discovery for me, and I'll admit it took me a few listens to really get enthused, but now I seriously love her. She plays the harp and writes songs that read like poetry. It does feel like a very mellow record for the most part, but I do enjoy that. Also check out her live performances. She's so beautiful and talented. ~ Favourite tracks: Easy / '81 / Good Intentions Paving Company

Goddess by Banks / I've been listening to Banks for the longest out of these three, and I've had this album since it was released. There's something almost thrillingly dark about it, and some of her lyrics really hit you hard (in a good way). I'm glad a lot of people have been listening to this, because it definitely deserves recognition. Favourite tracks: Goddess / Waiting Game / This Is What It Feels Like / Drowning 

I listen to all three of these albums a lot, and I hope it inspires you to give them a try too. Let me know if you have any recommendations you think I might enjoy!

xx

7 Mar 2015

Summer Instagram Roundup

Instagram is one of my favourite things. I love pictures and visuals, and I think expressing yourself and documenting your life with them is really cool. I'm not super duper active on Insta (I usually only post when something exciting happens, which isn't all that often), but when I do post, I like to share things that I'm proud of. In this roundup, I've only selected a few photos of things that I was really excited about over summer, so if you want to see more, check out my Instagram @laurenies!!


1. We had a very stormy December last year. December for me now is a rest month, for the most part, so having it storm while I was snugged up inside was so lovely. I do love a good storm.

2. I love baking, but I don't get to do it all that much, either because of a lack of time or ingredients. But I of course found time to make Taylor Swift's sugar cookies. It took me a while and my legs hurt a bit afterwards from standing for so long, but it was worth it. Sugary goodness.

3. It rained on Christmas Day for the second year in a row. I adore rainy Christmases, especially living in Australia where it's usually hot and humid and gross. The rain is as close to a white Christmas as we're ever gonna get.

4. I got my second piercings done! I got my firsts done when I was 10, and had thought about getting my seconds done but never got round to it. I really like them (especially now that I can change them), so better late than never.


5. I love Sydney, but I never take the trip into the CBD without reason. I think it makes it a little more special. Hyde Park is one of my favourite places to go after shopping.

6. I'm a Japanese major at university, and I constantly need to be doing reading/writing/listening practice so everything I've learnt doesn't fall out of my brain. I found this issue of ELLE Japan and snatched it up, and it's really being helping with some reading. It probably helps that I love ELLE already anyway.

7. I cut my hair! Anyone who knows me knows that this is a pretty big deal. I've had super long hair since I was six years old. But I finally decided that it was time for something new and just went for the chop! I feel like I've had time to grow into it now, and I've even had more cut off since this photo was taken.

8. We got a new dog! Her name is Rosie, she's turning 7 this year and is a toy poodle (just like our other two dogs). We adopted her from a family that couldn't look after her as well as we could, and I'm glad we did because she's such a sweetie.

That's it for the roundup, but one other thing that happened over summer was the start of uni for the year. You've probably noticed that I've been posting a bit less as I try to get into a routine and perfect my time management. I'm not gonna make any promises because uni can be busy and stressful, but I will of course put some things up when I find the time.

I hope you all had good summers (or winters, depending on where are in the world)!

xx