Mini Sephora Haul

You may have seen in this post that at the end of June I spent a week holidaying in the South of France.  We managed to spend an evening in St Tropez where I popped into Sephora.  I've never been in the beauty mothership before, and although it was quite small I was pretty impressed (read as: I looked like a human heart-eyed emoji).  I didn't get too much, but I couldn't resist a couple of treats.

Bare Minerals Matte Foundation

Between the ages of 15 and 18 I swore by the L'Oreal True Match Mineral Foundation and wore it every single day.  Looking back, it wasn't particularly finely milled, it didn't blend well and to say the included brush was scratchy is an understatement.  Back in May when the weather started warming up I couldn't cope with my high-coverage liquid foundations any more, and fancied trying a mineral powder foundation again.  I decided that the Bare Minerals Matte Foundation (the cheapest I found was £21.95 at Feel Unique) was the one for me and my oily skin.

I used the Temptalia Foundation Matrix (here) to find my shade which is so useful - if you haven't used it before it's amazing.  You choose your current foundation shade, and it matches you to hundreds of other foundations.  I popped in my Clarins Ever Matte shade, and was able to find the shade-match for this Bare Minerals one.  So useful if you don't have a counter for a brand near you!  Fairly light is a good match for my skin, and I didn't experience any oxidising which I know some people struggled with.

I apply this with my Real Techniques buffing brush and its really easy to buff into an even finish as it's pretty finely milled.  It feels so light on the skin and it's really comfortable to wear.  This is definitely a low-coverage foundation and for me it's necessary to pair it with a concealer.  For day-to-day wear I would like a bit more coverage but whilst I was on holiday this was perfect.  I wore it every single day, I loved that my freckles were visible through the makeup and it felt almost undetectable on my skin in the hot weather.  Although it's a matte finish it isn't dry looking at all, although if you excessively layer it it can look a little cakey.  However, if you're a seriously oily-skinned girl, this isn't going to keep you shine free all day.  Even when paired with a primer and set with a mattifying powder it still doesn't last a full 9-5 day without a bit of powder over the top every now and again.

A little tip I've found out is that when you're wearing a mineral powder foundation and you feel like you need a bit of  top-up, buff a product-free brush over your face.  The minerals are re-distributed and recharges your foundation.  It definitely works and saves you using up more product.  If that isn't enough for you, it's so easy to top-up this foundation, and the plastic packaging with a sifter makes it pretty portable.

Although I like this foundation and I'll definitely use it all up, I doubt I'll repurchase it in the future because I'd like something with a bit more coverage - any recommendations are welcome in the comments!

Graduation Day & Tips

If you follow me on twitter, instagram or read my University Experience post you'll know that I graduated from the University of West England last week after studying Primary Education for three years.  The ceremony was in Bristol Cathedral which was such a nice place - the building itself is beautiful, the common next to it is lovely and there was plenty of trees to shade us from the sun (although it was lovely that the sun was shining, it was boiling in the robe!). 

July Favourites

July has been a pretty full-on month for me; between a week in portugal, turning 21, meeting my new class for September, finding a flat and graduating the month seems to have literally flown by.  This afternoon Rob and I are travelling to the Midlands to spend the weekend in a cute little cottage as my birthday treat (see updates on my twitter and instagram) which I'm so excited for, but before that I thought I'd pop up a quick favourites post.

My University Experience

For the last three years, I've studied Primary Education (Initial Teacher Education) at the University of West England in Bristol.  I chose the course because it meant I could fully qualify as a teacher after three years instead of doing a PGCE after a degree.  For a lot of people, it's coming up to decision-time before either applying to university in November or beginning their degree in September.  As today is my graduation, I thought it was the perfect time to reflect on my last three years at uni.