Have I Ever Been Paid To Blog?

Recently I've seen this topic floating around social media a lot. 

I read a lot of differing opinions. 

I wanted to write this short post to give a little shout out to the small bloggers doing it for themselves...

I have never received payment for a blog post in my life. 

Everything I blog about is my choice. I use my own words and my own photography. Yes, this can be really hard. For example I can't just throw together a post trialling lots of different makeup or trialling high end makeup for the first time because I cannot afford the makeup. I am not receiving the makeup for free and I don't currently have permanent employment to earn the money for the products. 

I won't deny that it is frustrating to see bloggers receive multiple products for review or for promotion purposes. Typically these people have to have a "social media influence" or a "big blogger status". It kind of reminds me of the old saying money goes to money. 

I understand many of these recipients would argue that they have worked for these luxuries or opportunities. 

But I won't deny that its frustrating when your trying to work hard and can't seem to strike it lucky.

Finding the positives:

For me, the biggest positive is that no one has control over the content I post. I am not told what I should write or what I should photograph. I have complete freedom. I don't have to give false praise to a product if I think its trash. I am not obligated to write anything on behalf of a company. If I want to post about a makeup look one day and baking the next - I can. I love that!! Its so refreshing. 

Yes, its frustrating to not have the financial gain or reward and I do get frustrated by it often .. but I remind myself that its freeing to know that whatever I decide to post is up to me!

So there it is, for the small bloggers who don't receive anything for their work. For the bloggers that are just solely sharing their thoughts and life through their page - how transparent and genuine and personally rewarding. 

Whats your thoughts on receiving payment for blogging?

xo

  

The Fashion Bible Wish List

It's been so long since I've posted a wish list on my blog so I thought today was a good time to share one.

My wish list is purely from The Fashion Bible. Everything is available via their website.

Rosie Floral Shift Dress £20.00 

Lina Black Crochet Bodysuit £19.99

Nesa Red Floral Playsuit £25.00

Florita Black Floral Playsuit £25.00

Love these gorgeous floral prints. So perfect for summer!

Tiaga Red Floral Bardot Top £22.99

Effy Black Bandeau Maxi Dress £19.99

Salma Peach Strappy Lace Bodycon Dress £24.99

Love the gorgeous colour and the flattering style of this dress - Never go wrong with a bit of lace too!

Reva Turtle Neck Stripe Mini Dress £19.99

I really like how easy this striped dress is to wear - paired down with flats and a nice handbag.

Venice Pointed Gold Strap Pink Heels £14.99

Lola Black Crochet Choker £5.00

Prini Black Tie Waist Paperbag Trousers £23.99

Amber Gold High Bar Sunglasses £13.99

Sunrise Gold T Bar Sunglasses £13.99

So many gorgeous pieces!

Whats your favourite?

This is not a sponsored post. I am not receiving anything for this blog post.

My New B. Makeup Box

I have been lucky enough to win this gorgeous new B. makeup box. B specialise in creating amazing beauty and skincare products that are cruelty free and suitable for vegans. 

B. have teamed up with makeup artist Cassie Lomas and created this incredible makeup box! I am so excited to try all of these gorgeous products! 

I will be reviewing these products and will show them in more depth as soon as I can.

B. products can be purchased from Superdrug. 

Find out more about B. by following their twitter account. 

Here's some photos:

I can't wait to try all of the products. The lipstick colours are really gorgeous too. All products will be shown on my blog.

I'd like to take this opportunity to thank B. and Superdrug for choosing me as their competition winner.

xo

This is not a sponsored post. I have taken and own all of the photographs above.

21 Things At 21

With my birthday coming up this weekend I thought I should see out being 21 the right way. With a witty blog post to share my (worldly) wisdom in my two decades! Disclaimer - nothing worldly wise below!

1. These are officially the best years of my life! Twenties are special and meant to be fun. I've had a rough run in the past 5 years but I'm gonna make being 22 the best year yet.

2. Stop worrying over stupid things. I've been known to over think and dwell on things in the past that I really need to let go of. Sometimes my worrying causes me to lose myself and I need to relax more.

3. Remind myself how strong I am. I spend so much time telling people how I'm shy or not very brave when in actual fact, I am really strong. I've overcome some tough things and I can do it again.

4. Laugh more. I need to lighten up. There is so much misery and moaning in the world. Find something to laugh at every opportunity.

5. Stop worrying what other people think. In recent months its destroyed me. I have let other peoples opinions get inside my head. I need to accept that not everyone will understand my life or the way I choose to live - let them judge and say what they want. Its peace of mind to let it go and clear it from my head!

6. Accept My Acne. I will always struggle with bad skin. I always have. I am very hormonal. I have tried everything on the market. But mine just likes to keep coming back, the sooner I learn to live with it the better or easier life will be.

7. Music makes everything better. I love to dance (for fun), laugh and work out to music. It even makes cleaning easier and better! 

8. I'm probably never going to be a "natural girl". I mean that in the senses of makeup. I can try but I like high coverage because of my acne and acne scares. I love makeup and I love experimenting and that's what makes me happy.

9. Accept that I and everyone else are going through "stuff". I spend a lot of time thinking I'm the only one in the world with a few issues. But I guess you never know what other people are going through. Be gentle.

10. Everything will work out in good time. Most things are timing. What is meant to be will be.

11. Take more photos and videos. I love capturing memories. I believe you can never have enough! Nothing better to cheer yourself up than watching back an old funny video! (and cringing!)

12. Accept that people talk behind your back. It's human nature and I've spent far too long letting it bother me. Its bothered me to think people have spoke about me behind my back and I've also given myself a really hard time over doing it myself. We've all bitched, its human nature. It doesn't make people bad people.

13. Don't get so stressed about things I can't change. For years I've taken on the responsibility of thinking I could fix every persons problems in the world (especially the people I love & closest to me). I'm coming to terms with the fact that I can't fix everything as hard as it is.

14. Its okay that I'm not succeeding at the pace of my peers. I don't know if I'm the only one that ever feels like this. But I feel like all of my friends are steaming on ahead and achieving so much so young and I feel like I'm at the back of the pack. I'm learning to accept that I can't work at their pace, we all have our own pace in life. I can't rush but I can try to stop over worrying about it.

15. Make time for things I enjoy. I love makeup, blogging, taking photos and also catching up with friends, Stop feeling bad about investing in things that make me happy.

16. Come out of my own head. Too many of my problems are caused when I get too into my own head. Come out. Talk, read, share - laugh more!

17. Experience as much as you can. This has been tricky for me the past couple of months especially. But I am determined to get back to living life to the fullest as soon as I can. Meet people, try new things, explore new places! Enjoy experiences again!

18. Nothing a good pamper session can't fix! I love pampering myself and it always guarantees to make me feel so much better. I love a long soak in the bath, exfoliate and a full tan! Looking sun kissed always makes me feel brighter and happier! I love the feeling of fresh nails to make me feel good as new!

19. Snap it, Say it, Share it. I love social media. In fact, all forms of media. I wouldn't have studied it otherwise. I hope to be more courageous and post more photos and videos, tweets and blog posts without worrying what others may think of me!

20. Pay attention to the little things. I try my hardest to pay attention to the little things that fly under the radar - by that I mean, the person that gets interrupted in a group of people, the person that gets left last in line, the person who feels so awkward when everyone is included in a conversation and they are not. I will try my hardest to pride myself on including them people. Make time for these people as I spend so much of my time being one.

21. Be brave. I need to be braver in every sense. I need to say what I mean, say whats on my mind and say if something bothers me. I must learn to stick up for myself in all walks of life. It does increase respect and I must get used to using my voice.




What would make your blog post?


xo

Brows From Eylure

This post is so exciting for me! 

For years I've struggled with my eyebrows. I hated them for so long. Throughout my teenage years I was plagued with awful brows that caused me lots of embarrassment. I spent years feeling so self conscious of my eyebrows. My Dad has very thick eyebrows. Wild beasts in fact and unfortunately they got passed down to me. I didn't know how to work with them and after going in strong with the tweezers one afternoon, I had made them worse. The backstreet beautician didn't help either - over waxing and even burning my skin once too, I never returned. 

Luckily in my later teens, I found a lovely beautician called Gemma who helped my brows. A couple of years and a whole heap of beauty tutorials later I decided it was time to grow my eyebrows a little thicker. But I was still left with sparse areas particularly at the start of my brows that didn't want to grow back. I soon learnt I needed to master the skill of filling them in and shaping them myself everyday.

I went through a lot of trial and error with products. 

So, I was so excited when I was lucky enough to win the whole brow range from Eylure.

They held a twitter competition and a masterclass specifically for brows alongside brow genius Sal, The Eyebrow King. 

I was so excited to see I had won the range. I could feel my eyebrows breathing a sigh of relief. 

Take a closer look at the amazing products:

I wish I had found these stencils and shapers years ago - way before letting other people touch my eyebrows.

You can really smell the rosemary in the brow tame and define wax. Its so good. 

I've never paid much attention to brow tints in the past. I'm intrigued to see what this product will do for me.

These tweezers look amazing. They will help to tame my crazy stray hairs and a great comb to tidy them up.

A girl can never have enough help when it comes to brows in my opinion.

The brow luminizer and contour sticks are something I've never seen before. Instead of hiding my brows now, I get to exaggerate them! 

I went for mid brown. I'm excited to work with these perfectly coloured products. Its going to save me time and effort searching and mixing for the right colour to use on my brows.

I've never used a pomade before. I've seen them used in tutorials and was desperate to get my hands on one but I didn't know what to try. I'm excited to try this smudge resistant pomade.

How great does this palette look. I can't wait to try these.

I've not come across a brow amplifier before. This should be interesting to quickly apply and to see the difference. 

This thin, easy to use crayon will speed up my brow routine so much. I can fill in right where I need it.

My wild brows need all the help they can get when it comes to keeping them in place. I'm absolutely sure this brow control and shape gel will work like magic. 

What products have interested you?

Do you have any Eylure products?

I will be sharing more beauty posts on my blog including these amazing products.

What would you like to see?

xo

This is not a sponsored post.

Wearing Pretty Little Thing

Last month I took a little break to sun it up in Spain. Just a few days away was dreamy! 

I had to pack my favourite summer dress from Pretty Little Thing. 

Pretty Little Thing have so many gorgeous pieces right now. So gorgeous, you have to check them out at Pretty Little Thing.

When I'm in a hot country I try to let my hair dry naturally. I wash it, plait my hair and let it dry naturally and this is the result. I love it because it doesn't take too much effort and I don't have to spend time using heat appliances. Beachy, soft and healthy!

Follow me on Instagram!

xo

This is not a sponsored post.