Let's Catch Up || Winging It

gettin glam

It's been a while...

.... here are 10 things about me :) 

1. For a reasonably small person my hugs are extremely ambitious.

2. My favourite flavours are lime, mint and vanilla.

3. I am mixed race, half British and half Zimbabwean.

4. My star sign is Aquarius.

5. I am a total closest Marvel and Harry Potter fanatic(shhhh).

6. I loveeeee Chinese food.

7. At the moment I live in the South East of England but will soon be moving out to go to university.

8. I am a vegetarian and have been for over a year.

9. My favourite pet animals are Chinchillas after having one placed on my head in Year 9, when it becomes possible, I hope to get one and name him Hendrix.

10. Finally I love to travel, learn and experience new places, but at the same time, im a home bird at heart. 

candid in Landannn

home of fish and chips

my friemds sparkle

Treat Yourself,

Mandy xoxo

"Sath Afrika" 🇿🇦 || Winging It

Saying goodbye to South Africa was bittersweet indeed. On one hand, it was time to move onto Zimbabwe/Zambia, which means more Safaris, seeing family friends and the best tasting Fanta on the PLANET (extremely worth the hype). On the other hand I will miss the beautiful scenery, the hustle and bustle of Cape Town and that South African accent❤️

So here is my digital photo time capsule for the future. Here is South Africa through my lens.

Gatwick, UK ✈️ Johannesburg, SA

    📍: Darakensburg Mountains 

    📍: Royal Natal Nation Park 

   📍: The Western Cape

    📍: Table Mountain 

   📍: Cape Point

       

                                                                   Treat Yourself,

                                                                    Lyl Mandy xo

Day to Dark, Light to Night || Winging It

Turning your everyday makeup look into something a bit more special in the evening is easy peasy with only a few products necessary, perfect for those times when your getting ready round a friends or last minute plan come about.

Urban Decay Naked Skin Concealer in Medium Neutral 

NARS Blush in Luster

NARS Contour in Paloma 

Soap and Glory Brown Archery in Brownie Points 

Maybelline Brow Drama in Dark Brown 

Urban Decay Eye Shadow in Naked 2 and W.O.S (from Naked Basics Palette)

Soap and Glory Supercat Eyeliner in Black

Rimmel Kate Moss Mascara in 004 Eye Rock Jet Black

Nivea Lip Butter in Raspberry Rosé

Just keep these bad boys in your bag and you should be good to go:

+Soap and Gloey Wonderbronze Blush Brick 

+ No. 7 Eyeshadow (bottom shade) Forest Fruits Trio or Urban Decay Eyeshadow in Diamond Dog

+ NYX Creme Matte Lip In Copenhagen 

Why do I look so scared?? Lol

                                                            

Treat Yourself, 

Lyl Mandy xo       

Brown To Blonde Balayage || Winging It

After months and months of googling 'caramel balayage', saying to my friends "I really want to dye my hair guysss" and trying to explain to my dad that I'm not going to leave the salon with bright purple hair, I finally did it. Now for some people this may not seem like a very big deal but because of the type of hair that I have, I never thought it would be possible to lighten my hair without causing some serious damage and breakage because of the bleach. I owe it all to my fabulous hairdresser Ashley who helped me find the perfect caramel blonde shade to match my existing hair colour and my skin tone, as well as introducing me to the OLAPLEX treatment which was mixed into the bleach to help rebuild the disulphide bonds in my hair that had been broken when colouring, blow drying and brushing my hair. I really do owe a lot to this treatment because not only has it saved my hair from being a split-end(ed) mess, it has also made my hair look shinier and stronger that it was pre-dye.❤️                    

The main reason for this post is becaus I wanted to document the process and the change but if you have any questions feel free to ask. 

Before:

During:

After:

I was definitely apprehensive at first but I am now over the moon with it. If it's something you want to get done but are maybe having reservations my tips would be, find a hairdresser that you fully trust and have known for a little while and always remember that things can always be rectified if you don't like it first time. 

                                                                   Treat Yourself,

                                                                    Lyl Mandy xo

Vintage Vamp || Winging It

A classic vintage flavoured lip with healthy glow-y skin and a soft vampy eye. New obsession.

Skin;

benefit - Hello Flawless Oxygen Wow Foundation 

No7 - Skin Illuminator in Beige (mix in with foundation and apply on top as highlighter 

Nars - Steven Klein Ons Shocking Moment Cheek Studio Palette - Laguna(to bronze), Paloma (contour and highlight), Luster (blush) 

Eyes;

Soap and Glory - Brow Archery 

Urban Decay - NAKED 3 Palette - Strange (inner corner base), Nooner (outer 3/4 base), Factory (outer 3/4 blended/lower lash line), Darkside (deepen eye socket) 

            - NAKED 2 Palette - YDK (transition shade), Bootycall (lash line/brighten) 

Maybelline - Lash Sensational Mascara 

Lips; 

Charlotte Tilbury - Matte Revolution Lipstick in Bond Girl 

and/or 

Urban Decay - NAKED Lipgloss in SESSO

no lip

CT - Bond Girl Lipstick

UD - NAKED Lip Gloss SESSO

Just a little something nice for the weekend.

Treat Yourself, 

Lyl, Mandy xo 

Brand Focus: Urban Decay || Winging It

If anyone were to ask me what my all-time favourite makeup brand is, I would probably get a little flustered and panic-y because that's a bloody hard question for a beauty addict like me. But after getting my thoughts together, I would most likely go on to say Urban Decay. I rave to my friends A LOT about Urban Decay and have definitely been the enabler for fair few purchases (soz Caroline). So it was only right that I make my first 'Brand Focus' dedicated to Urban Decay.  

UD is most famously known for their edgy designs, cool collaborations, funky names and buttery eyeshadows 'n' liners, and rightly so!  The Naked Collection quickly has become a cult beauty product amongst the community and even the most novice makeup appliers have one of these bad boys in their arsenal.

Bottom to Top: Eyeliners - Goldmine, Whiskey, Stag, Zero
Eyeshadows Diamond Dog, +oil, Moonflower, +oil

Eyes

The smoothness and easy blend-ability of the eyeshadows along with the wide range of fail-safe colours make these palettes a perfect gift or possession for someone starting to use eyeshadow, and with them being roughly £3 a shadow that's not too bad considering their AMAZEBALLZ quality. Whether it be the Naked Basic's or The Naked 3, there is a colour palette for everyone, cool, warm, rosy, neutral, whatever takes your fancy.
Eyeliners...nothing beats an Urban Decay eyeliner lemme tell you that. 3 words, Smooth. Pigmented. Blend-able. It's got to the point now where it's an actual tradition for me and my best friend to buy each other one for our birthdays regardless. So any mates of mine reading this that fancies getting me a gift for the bant, you know what to get yeah :)))
If you're looking for a mascara that gives you a lot of length and volume then look no further, with a large brush the Perversion Mascara does a great job. I will say that for a mascara it is quite expensive and you can get mascaras that do an equally good job that are considerably cheaper.

Lips
I've only ever tried one Urban Decay lip product which is the Naked Lipgloss in SESSO. Now these arent the most pigmented lipglosses by far but they do give a nice wash of colour which also perfecting the look of your lips. Sticky enough to last but not sticky enough to be uncomfortable, a nice medium. The smell and taste leaves something to be desired but hey ho, it's definitely not a deal breaker

I am yet to try anything from their range of face makeup but I have heard very good things about their Naked Skin concealer and I do love me a good concealer so will be getting on that very soon!

Treat Yourself,

Lyl, Mandy xo

Winter Berry || Winging It

Now I'd hate to be the enabler that causes you to crack open the old money box after you fall in love with what I'm about to show you, but I'm going to be honest with you. I have found a real corker of a duo! Singularly these two beauties are cult products in my book, but together they enhance each other beautifully.

top line : lip liner, bottom line : lip cream

The slightly lighter tone of the Charlotte Tilbury Lip Cheat in Hollywood Honey creates a more soft everyday finish to the lip line instead of a harsh one, and the NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream in Copenhagen which is beautiful burgundy wine shade adds a bold and beautiful colour to the lips (whilst still being able to stay between the lines). The longevity of both these products are great so you don't have to worry about one of them wearing out before the other, or them both disappearing all together. Along side these winning factors to top it all off the colour itself is bloody beautiful, versatile on a lot of different skin tones (tried and tested) and comfortable on the lips. 10/10 would bang..buy! Buy. 

freckle city over here

Treat Yourself,

Mandy xo

p.s shoutout to my friend Lauren who gave me the idea for this post, this is the bold lip I would recommend Lozza x