Christmas Tag!

I saw this floating about the blogging word and thought I would give it a go. I haven't done a tag before and I thought this was a good one to start with! Enjoy! 

1. What is your favourite thing about christmas ?

The thing I love about Christmas is the run up to the day, everyone is always in a brilliant mood! I love is being able to justify all purchases I make by saying 'Its Christmas'. At work at the moment we play christmas songs and wear santa hats and I love it! 

2. What is your favourite make up look for festive the season?

During Christmas I love whacking out the darker colours, when i go out i ilke wearing a deep red or plum colour on my lips :)

3. Real tree or fake tree?

Until this year I haven't really cared if I had a real or fake tree. Every year up until now we've used the same fake tree that sits in the loft, but this year we've moved and we now don't have one so we went out tree shopping. And although I wanted a real tree at first (for the smell) we got another pretty pre lit, snow covered artificial tree. And I actually love it. It's so pretty and perfect! 

4. Giving presents or receiving presents?

I love giving presents! I know everyone says this but I'm the person that sits and waits for a persons reaction before opening my own gift. I love getting gifts too obviously! But unless its a main present from my family I prefer giving!

5. Do you open presents christmas morning or eve / evening

Christmas morning of course! My mum bought me up with a relatively strict structure when i came to christmas, i open my stocking in my parents room then get dressed and eat and then start on the presents under the tree! Christmas presents are for Christmas Day! 

6. Handmade christmas cards or bought?

When my brother was younger he used to love making me Christmas cards, they were always so cute but now he's older my family tends to buy cards, and you can get such cute ones! 

7. What is your favourite christmas film?

My family don't really have a traditional christmas film but I recently watched The Grinch again and I think that has to be my favourite! Who doesn't love Jim Carrey?!

8. What's your favourite christmas food?

I don't think I can pick just one thing! I think maybe the turkey, its the only time of the year my mum cooks turkey and its special because of that. But I love a yorkshire pudding or two swell! 

9. What's your favourite christmas song?

Like I said earlier we listen to Christmas songs at work all the time so I think I'm fully qualified to answer this question and for me it has to be Slade Merry Christmas Everybody. I remember dancing to this song for hours when I was younger when we used to put our Christmas tree up! 

10. What's your favourite christmas memory?

My favourite christmas memory is a bit of an odd one and its more of a tradition. Every year after christmas dinner we go to my grandparents house for nibbles. And the part I love most is afterwards we all sit and play 'New Market' which is a card game, we play with 1ps and it always gets competitive but in a good way! I don't have any cousins who live in the area so the majority of the time I'm the only person under the age of 40 but I love it! Its part of my christmas tradition and last year when I went away over Christmas I really missed doing it! 

Update | Life, Uni and me

Hello Lovelies,
Long time no see. Once again, I've been a bad blogger. I can't remember the last time I sat down and wrote anything beauty related. University has very slowly taken over my life and in the last few weeks before my hand in dates, I decided to have a break from blogging and focus. But now I'm home for christmas I though I could sit down and write. 
 I wrote a post about going to uni during the first week of being there (here), so I thought I would do a follow up. So much has changed since that first post, when I wrote that I still hadn't even meet everyone I was living with or started my course! But now i'm half way through my first year! Time had gone unbelievably quickly! 

 I'm loving my course and the people on it. I've learnt so much and I'm more certain than ever that I want to be a journalist. There are some areas of the course that aren't my favourite, but I expected these things. In March as part of my course I get the chance to go to Paris for four days, which I'm so excited about, I've never actually been to France! They even throw in a day in Disney Land! The prospect of travelling as part of my course and the upcoming Work experience just makes me even more excited about my course!

 Living in halls has been the most difficult part about university life, and I didn't expect this, I was all set for the deadlines and heavy work load but not living in halls. I love the people I live with, and I've made some friends for life, but being with people 24/7 can be difficult at time. Girls can be bitchy and Guys can be messy. 13 of us are together all the time in one extremely tiny kitchen. I've learnt a lot from living in halls. You won't love everyone, everyone won't love you. But it doesn't mater. It's just not worth my time or energy to be a part of it, and life is a lot more important than juvenile games. Don't get me wrong I love halls, I love having my friends there all the time, Its like a year long sleepover. Going out the night before a 9am start. Living so close to everything. Nights in watching DVDs in each others rooms. Its Brilliant and then its awful all at the same time. 
 In summary It's great to be home, I miss my friends and my new life at uni, but home will always be home.

Love 

Megan 

x 

Review | Nars Sheer Matte Foundation

Prepare yourself, this is going to be a long one! 

Although I loved, and still love my benefit Hello Flawless Oxygen Wow. I felt like I wanted something more from my foundation. During the summer months I've loved the lightweight feel of it however I feel like with my oily skin a dewy finish isn't what I truly needed or wanted out of a foundation. So I started looking around for that 'perfect foundation'. 
 Wanting a matte finish meant that Nars Sheer Matte was an obvious choice for me and never having tried anything from Nars (but having heard wonderful things) I was happy to give them a go. I also like that the foundation didn't have SPF in it, which means on a night out you don't get flashback in photos and end up looking like a sweaty mess! I went and got myself matched and £29.50 lighter in pocket I left with it! 
 The first thing I noticed about the foundation is that it doesn't come with a pump, which meant I had to buy a separate one for £3.00, slightly annoying after forking out so much for the foundation, you expect a pump. I then quickly realised that you can't put the lid over the top of the pump! I'm constantly travelling to and from university and home, which means whenever I do go home, I have to take the pump out (covered in foundation) to travel with it otherwise you end up with a pretty puddle of foundation at the bottom of your bag. 
 I'd heard a lot of people say that the foundation is very difficult to work with and most people opt for their fingers and I would agree with this comment, the foundation is quite thick and dries quickly meaning it doesn't spread very well. However I find that if I apply it almost straight on top of a primer and work it a lot that I get the same results. 
 Soon after I got the foundation I was lucky enough to suffer a HUGEEE breakout, and I'm not talking a spot or two, and although they've now gone I have a lot of marking from them. This instantly put me off the foundation as it was the only change i'd make in my skincare. I put it away for about a month and didn't use it as I was to scared about what state my skin would be left in. Whether this was the foundation or just an awful coincidence I have no idea, but since I plucked up the courage and started using the foundation again my skin has gone back to normal. 
 Nars claims the foundation 'controls shine throughout the day while evening the skin tone.' and I would agree with these statements. Ive noticed a significant reduction in shine, and yet my skin still looks luminous and bright. I do agree that the foundation evens out my skin tone, it does a great job of covering up any dark marks. The 20 shades Nars offers means that finding the perfect shade for you isn't a huge challenge and càdiz is perfect for my winter skin, however without a tan I'm not too sure how this foundation will look. The only downside is the foundation doesn't last all day. When I leave the house it looks amazing but after a day at uni theres nothing left, and I'm not a girl who loves to do touch ups in the toilets.

Overall have I found my perfect foundation? In truth, I don't think so. I'm just not in love with it. I'll happily use it until it runs out and it has done most of what I expected it to do. But there wasn't that amazingness that I was looking for, and the fact that it doesn't last on my skin all day is a real downer for me. However It keeps my skin matte, and works brilliantly on a night out when you only need it to last a few hours.

Have you tried Sheer Matte? What do you think?

Insta Updates!

1. Me and the beautiful Brogan on a night out! 2. Watching Dumbo for the first time. 3. Candy nails (post here) 4. 'Mega Pints' at the uni bar 5. Pizzzzzaaaa   6. New Sleek brow kit 7. Halloween make up! 8. Me and a friend on Halloween 9. I think every week there will be a photo of my dog! 10. Yankee Candles.  11. Toys R' Us! 12. The joys of living in Southampton. 13. First Essie polish! 14. Essie Matte about you. 15. Elvis quote. 16. Brogans lovely message about me was published in this weeks More magazine, Yaaaaay! 

Hey Lovelies, 
 Back with a quick insta update for you! Im super busy at the moment with uni work but i'll be sure to sit down soon and write a proper post. If you have any requests please let me know! Until next time! 

 Megan 

x

NOTD - Candy Nails

Hey Lovelies,

 Living so close to West quay means I seem to constantly be popping in for bits and pieces. On one of my usually shops between classes I picked up the MUA Nail Constellation. I've seen several posts featuring this and for £3 I thought I'd give it a go.

 You paint your nails with whichever colour your using and simply shake the beads on top of the wet nail varnish and voila!  The one downside, they look brilliant for the first 5 minutes but after sleeping in them they had all come off. I'd advise a top and bottom coat to try and keep them on. But at £3 I wasn't expecting miracles. 
 I love the look though and they look great on a night out, then after that I'm not to fussed if they come off! I'm loving the trend and although they don't last very long I got several compliments on them during the night! 

Have you tried them? If yes did you like them?

Love Megan

x

Bournemouth Bloggers Meet Up

Hey Lovelies! 
 Last Saturday I was lucky enough to be invited to my first bloggers meet up! Organised and held by the lovely Hannah from Baileycakes. 
 We meet at Aruba, which is a bar/restaurant right on the pier and had a few drinks while getting to know each other. Hannah also bought a couple of goodie bags with her and we voted for a 'best blogger' and a 'best dressed' and yours truly won best dressed! I won some brilliant lush products which I can't wait to try out, I stupidly left the majority of the products at home, but i'll put in a photo of the one product I did bring with me. 
 After the drinks we headed to Wetherspoons for some food. (Another first for me, the burgers are amazing!) From there we hit Benefit, where the lovely Sophie was waiting for us and showered us in testers and samples and also tided up my make up and giving me some tips on my brows. She tried out a few products on Brogan and Hannah, and even offered us a complementary brow wax, (yet another first!)
 Overall I had a brilliant day and meet some lovely people who I can't wait to meet again! 

Hannah, Brogan, Me, Leanne, Hannah, (Joe, Becca)
Image taken by Brogan

One of my prizes 

Layla D Beauty - Honey Moisturiser

Hey Lovelies
 As a few of you may remember I was lucky enough to go to the She Said Beauty: Social Network Website Launch event during the summer, (you can see my blog post on the event here) while I was there I met the lovely Layla the founder of Layla D Beauty (check out her new website here!). We sat down and had quite a chat about the day and what we do, including her business and also some of her products and she even gave me a couple of products to try out! (I know right?!) So a few months on I'm back with a review to sum up my thoughts and feelings on the Honey Moisturiser.

'Our Honey Moisturiser is thick yet light-weight and will be absorbed by the skin in minutes. Your skin will feel soft, smooth, calm and nourished and a little goes a very long way. During the winter months this is also lovely to use as a hand and cuticle cream which will get absorbed straight away.'

I can certainly agree with everything they claim the moisturiser does! When I first opened the moisturiser it was the smell I first noticed, I wasn't to sure and Im awful at describing scents but it wasn't what I expected when you thought of honey, it is quite strong and to begin with I wasn't to sure but it has definitely grown on me. I find the scent relaxing even and I like applying the moisturiser at night as it relaxes me, which is just what you want before bed.
 Although the moisturiser is aimed at dry skin i find it works just fine on my oily skin, giving me plenty of moisturiser especially as I do have some patches of dryness on my forehead. 
 It is also quite a thick consistency, another reason I prefer to use it at night, but it soaks in quickly and really does leave my skin feeling amazing! So soft I even found myself stroking my cheek in wonder. It almost felt as if I was applying a mini face mask before bed, and when I woke up my skin felt amazing, I could honestly say this moisturiser has done wonders for any dry skin I had on my forehead and has left the rest of my skin super smooth.
 I was slightly worried about using this moisturiser when I had any blemishes, but I was pleasantly surprised. I felt, like they claim, the moisturiser calmed my skin down. If i had a slight rash or spot, although the moisturiser didn't necessarily help with the spot itself but the skin around the spot, (which I find can be inflamed and tight.) was a lot better from using this product. 
 And like they claim, a little really does go a long way. Ive been using this pot pretty much every night if not every other night since I got it and as you can see I've barley made a dent! This little beauty is going to last my years! 

 In summary I'm loving this product and feel its done my skins wonders! And along with being able to share my opinions with you I'm also so happy to have been given a cheeky 10% discount code by Layla! Simply type in 'ldb10' for a 10% discount on all orders over £15 before October 27th 2012 to receive this brilliant discount. 


Have you ever tried any Layla D Beauty products? If not which one takes your fancy?

Love 

Megan 

x

Insta Update!

1. Favorite Magazine, company 2. Loving my uni course in the radio studio 3. My amazing new shoes (which I'm still to scared to wear) 4. Quick selfie before a night out! 5. Home sweet home 6. Trying out 'Impress nails' for a change 7. Living up to the student stereotype 8. Nandossssss 9. Chocolate soufflé 10. My new 'balmy' lip balm in strawberry 11. Proving students don't always have to be poor! 12. My finished wall in my room. 13. Toby Carvery with mum! 14. Izzy, missed her while I've been away! 15. My roomies and I! 16. My read at the moment! 

Hey Lovelies, Hope your all well! Just a quick update on what I've been doing and to also let you know that I finally jumped on the iPhone bandwagon and got the new 5! So if you fancy seeing more snaps of my day to day life then my username is - meganmanneh

Love 

Megan 

x

Shoes | Jeffrey Campbell Madame

Hey Lovelies hope you are all well! 
 As some of you guys know I recently moved to Southampton for uni and since then I have well and truly been enjoying all Southampton and my uni have to offer, the first and most important being West Quay, which is the shopping centre there. During one of my quick trips down I spotted these babies sat in the window of a shop and nearly had a heart attack. Im in love. Another brilliant part of being a student is the Student Lock in that West Quay hosted last Thursday, which is basically hundreds and hundreds of students gathering to enjoy raised student discounts of up to 30%. Put the two together and you can probably guess I bought these using my student discount at Office and the cost me £76 (eek! I know) compared to the usual £95. 
They haven't actually made it outside yet because one of the studs did actually break off the back while I was walking around in them, which I wasn't to impressed with after spending that much money on them, but a friends nail glue soon sorted that out and I can't wait to bring them out on a night out. I love the studded trend at the moment so these shoes are perfect for me! 

How do you feel about the stud trend? Do you own anything studded?

Im slowly getting into the swing of things at uni so expect more regular posts, let me know if they're is anything you'd particularly like to see on my blog as it always helps me out! Till next time.

Love 

Megan 

x

Giveaway Winner!

Hey Lovelies! 
 Thank you all sooooo much for your support and to the huge amount of people who entered my giveaway! I never in a million years expected this kind of feedback and response! So onto the winner. The winner is......

Ashley Harris! 

I will be emailing you shortly. Thank you again to everyone who entered and to everyone who takes the time to read my blog! Until next time!  

Love

Megan 

x

Escada Island Kiss Eau De Toiletee

In the summer of 2011 Escada released three perfumes, aimed, strangely enough, for summer! I've seen several reviews for these perfumes before I purchased them, and had wondered casually into Boots, only to find myself sniffing at each one. But it wasn't until I went on holiday in July that I picked it up the Eau De Toilette at Duty Free for around the £28 mark.
 As you can probably see I've taken a sizeable chunk out of the bottle since I bought it. With top notes of orange, passionflower and mango, peach and magnolia magnolia heart notes and woodsy, musky base notes this scent is 100% a summer perfume. Fruity and exotic it almost smells like it should be edible and became my staple scent, especially if I felt like being bold and daring. 

I love the packaging and I feel it works brilliantly with the whole style and smell of the perfume, fun! The bottle definitely stands out against my other bottles. 
I wouldn't class this as a hugely 'sophisticated grown-up' scent, but I think every now and then you want to be wearing something braver and exciting! (Well I do anyway) However its not over powering and all over the place. Im loving this scent and will definitely be bringing it into autumn.

I loved the summer collection Escada bought out, Island Kiss, Sexy Graffiti and Rockin' Rio and in an ideal world where my bank account was never ending I would have each of them sat in my collection, but alas no, until then I shall just wonder into Boots and smell them longingly! 

Have you smelt any of the collection? What do you think about them? 

Love 

Megan 

x

Update| Uni, Moving and Chit Chat!

Hey Lovelies! 
 My posts have been slightly sporadic lately, but I promise I have a good reason! I like many of you guys I'm sure, have recently taken the plunge and moved out! Although I don't really call it "moving out' as I only moved Monday and have been home twice already... Slight failure ha! Many of your probably don't know but I'm about to start my degree in Multi-media Journalism at Southampton Solent University, and along with that embark on a life filled with pot noodles and drunken nights more commonly know as life in halls! 
 As I said I moved in Monday and was pretty unprepared for life away from home. I am one of those few lucky people that moved with a couple of friends, and by sheer chance ended up in the same hall right next door to one of them! 
 Since I moved in my life has seemed to revolved around saying 'Hello' about a million times a day, and awkwardly being caught in your jim jams first thing, bare faced, trying to make a sly cuppa in the kitchen. I don't quiet know what I expected moving into uni, but I didn't expect to be in bed at 10, shattered and watching 'Neighbours' on my laptop on the first night (Ha!). I think its obvious to say it took me a few days to settle in and meet the right people for me. But I'm beginning to feel at home there, and I can actually see myself living here in 6 months time. 
 I can't remember the last time I was so excited about the prospect of what's going to happen next week, and the uncertainty that goes with that. The worrying about money and the 2 week long party I have ahead of me for freshers. All the people I still haven't meet, and starting a course that's hopefully going to be the beginning of my career. (cheesy I know!)
 My blog, and you guys have been a huge motivation to jump in and stop caring about what people are going to say and more than that think about me. So if my posts are few and far between at the moment please bare with me! Thank you for all your lovely comments and support. Until next time! 

A little snap for you of me and my new room!

Love 

Megan 

x

NOTD | Sparkle Sparkle!

Hey Lovelies,

 I went a little crazy with my nails last night and thought I'd share the finished result with you! Thank you for all your lovely comments! Leave any requests or questions below and I'll get back to you! 

Sally Hansen Hard As Nail/ 17 Silver Nail Polish/ Barry M Limited Edition Glitter Polish/ Barry M Base Coat, Top Coat & Nail Hardener 

Top 5 Makeup Brushes!

Hey Lovelies 
Now, I'm not one of those girls who owns every makeup brush for every possible task you could possibly think of. In fact I don't think I even own close to 20 brushes, I'm sure my brush collection will grow but right now these are my top 5 brushes, the ones that I reach for on a daily basis. 

E.l.f Powder Brush - £3.75
 This is where my collection began (other than those little sets you get from you grandparents when your about 5) Before this brush my foundation went on with my fingers. I love this brush, Its so cheap and effective, perfect for anyone starting out with make up. The flat densely packed top makes this brush a brilliant multi tasker. Now I don't tend to use it for foundation but I like to apply powder with it, it works great at pressing the powder on and setting my make up! 

Real Techniques Buffing Brush (Core Collection £21.99)
 This brush is like a step up from the Powder Brush. Its slightly more domed shaped and does what it says on the tin! The longer you buff in your foundation the better result you get, It creates a flawless natural base and is incredibly soft. In my opinion a brush everyone should have in their collection! 

E.l.f Mineral Powder Brush - £3.75
 I love this brush for applying powder, I tend to carry this brush around in my handbag and use it with my powder, blush or bronzer for touch ups, when I don't have time to properly re apply my make up. Its great for sweeping product on when I'm in a rush. Although its similar to the powder brush, I had to include it because I use it daily for so many different things.

E.l.f Flat Eyeliner Brush £5.50
 I actually got this brush in a mystery bundle with one of my orders so didn't actually intentionaly buy it. I used to use this for my eyebrows with an eyeshadow, but more recently I started applying cream eyeliner with it. Its small flat top makes it perfect for precise application and I feel have a lot more control when I use the brush.

Real Techniques Contour Brush (Core Collection £21.99)
 This brush has become my Blush brush, I love the shape of the top of the brush and think it allows to blend in your blush well so your not left with clown cheeks! The smaller head also means you can precisely apply your blush and not go over the top. And like the rest of the Real Techniques brushes they feel incredibly soft against your skin!

Everyday Makeup!

Hey Lovelies! 
 First of all I would like to say a hugeeeee thank you to all the amazing support I've had from you guys and also a Hi to all my new followers! I seem to be awful when it comes to regularity on my blog so I thought I'd come back with a quickie on my everyday make up! Im not a girl who wears make up every day. I don't see the point of slapping on a full face when theres only my dog to see the benefits! But if I'm going to work or out with friends these are the products I reach for on a daily basis! 

Witch Anti- Blemish Skin Clearing Primer/ NARS Sheer Matte Foundation in Cadiz/ Boi-ing Concealer in 05/ Natural Collection Concealer in Medium/ Maybelline Baby Lips/ NARS Blush in Taj Mahal/ Rimmel Eyebrow Pencil/ E.l.f Cream Eyeliner/ L'oreal False Lash Telescopic/ E.l.f  Brow Gel/ A.K.A Eye Pencil/ L'oreal Color Riche Lipstick in Luminous Coral/ MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural in Medium Deep.

If you haven't seen yet I'm running a giveaway on my blog here!

100 Follower Giveaway!

Hey Lovelies! 

 Im so happy and excited to be bringing you guys this giveaway, I'm so thankful for all your support and comments, they really do make my day! So to say Thank you I thought I would hold this giveaway! I know 100 isn't the biggest of milestones but 100 people reading what I write is a lot of people to me and I couldn't be more grateful! I tried to include some of my person favourites in this giveaway. I feel giveaways are all about giving other people a chance to try out new products, so they should be products I value. The majority of the items are bought by myself however 3 items are from beauty boxes and samples that I won't be using, I hope this is ok with everyone. I won't ramble on and on and cut straight to the giveaway! 

 This giveaway is open internationally and will be running for one month, from September 1st - October 1st. To be apart of this giveaway simple enter the RaffleCopter below! 

What you could win! 

Denise McAdam Intensive Moisture Hair Masque 

Denise McAdam Miracle Repair With Argan Oil 

Treacle Moon Raspberry Kiss Body Butter 

Carmex Moisture Ultra Hydrating Lip Balm

Witch Anti-Blemish Skin Clearing Primer

2 Maybelline Forever Strong Nail polishes  

Dr. Bronner's Lavender Hand Sanitising Spray 

Next Diamonds Cleansing Bath Essence 

Benefit Triple Performing Facial Emulsion 

Maybelline Colour Sensation Lipstick in Mauve Diamonds 

Ginvera Green Tea Whitening Marvel Gel 

Batiste Dry Shampoo 

Maybelline Colour Tattoo 24HR in Eternal Gold 

VIVO Colour Block Eye Palette 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Glamorous Disco Pants!

crop top - topshop/ bag - ebay/ disco pants - glamorous

 Im sure many of you have heard of Disco Pants, the wonder trousers that suck you in and look phenomenal at the same time. Their everywhere in the blogging world and I like many of you guys, I'm sure, have scrolled enviously through blog posts. As much as I loved the look of Disco Pants, I was never willing to fork out £74 at American Apparel for them. After some online searching I found that Glamorous sold Disco Pants for a £29.00!(link above)

  They're so similar to the American Apparel version, with the pockets at the back and fastening on the front, I can't see any difference! They really do suck you in and really show off your figure, and to top it off they're super comfy, and since I've got them I've pretty much lived in them. They're fast becoming my wardrobe stable, you can dress them down or add a pair of heels and wear them on a night out.  (Which is perfect for the colder nights). Im actually considering on stocking up in more colours! 

Thank you for all your wonderful comments and support! Yesterday I hit 100 followers which is brilliant! Every milestone counts in my eyes! Look out for a giveaway in the next few days!

Love

Megan x 

Ebay Tote Bag!

Hey Lovelies,
 Ive been watching the 'Tote Bag Trend' for awhile now and been sitting on the side lines waiting for a cheaper alternative to spring up. Although I love the bags I couldn't justify spending £80 on Zaras version. So during a scroll through Ebay I found this bag for a fraction of the price! £4.98 to be precise! The only down side was having to pay £5.99 delivery as the bag was coming from China, but still £10.97 compared to £80 any day of the week! The link to the seller I used can be found here. As the bag was coming from China it did take awhile to get here, (22 days but nobodies counting) but when it did arrive I was pleasantly surprised.
 The bag is brilliant quality, made from faux leather its sturdy and durable. I wouldn't worry about over filling it to the point where it breaks, plus its a big bag which I'll be able to cram full with all my unnecessary items. The bag has the standard plaited handles which is a feature that first drew me to the bags.
 Another feature I love about the bag is the internal pocket which clips to the inside of the bag and can be removed. I hate having my valuable items floating around my bag and like to keep them separate, especially if I'm carrying drinks with me, so this is perfect.
 All round a brilliant bag, which I've used every day since I've had it. Thought I would share the bargain with you!

Thank you for all your support guys! I love all the comments and I'm at 99 followers eeeek! So look out for a giveaway soon!

Love 

Megan x

What A Lucky Girl I Am!

Hey Lovelies!
Giveaways are one of the best things about the blogging world! It gives you the opportunity to try new products and also find new blogs! (Plus everyone loves to win stuff!) Nearly two months ago when I got off the plane after my holiday with my friends I scrolled through my endless emails and realised I had been lucky enough to win a giveaway run by the lovely Dawn from See it, Love it, Swatch it I was incredibly lucky because I was on my last day before she picked another winner! She was lovely and friendly and sent my prize super quickly, she even sent from Australia all the way over to the UK! I was overwhelmed when I got my huge parcel and shocked as to how many products I had won! 

What I Received 

 An Orange Sally Hansen Travel Bag

 Natio Make up Bag 

Colette  Necklace

 Colette Bracelet 

 Natio Pressed Bronzer/Blusher 

 Natio Translucent Powder

 Covergirl Eyeshadow Quad 

 Maybelline Baby Lips

 Sportsgirl Lipgloss

 Natio Lip Balm

 Face of Australia Lipstick in 'Lychee Crush'

 3 Ultra3 Nail Polishes

 Sally Hansen Purple Crackle Polish 

 2 Sally Hansen Nail Polishes 

 Sally Hansen Hand Cream 

I was completely overwhelmed by what I received, and completely grateful to Dawn for her giveaway. Ive been loving the jewellery and they have become statement pieces in my Outfits! Also Love the nail polishes because a girl can never have to many nail polishes! The Maybelline Baby Lips I now swear by, and when it runs out I may have to think about ordering it. I'm so thankful for the opportunity to try products not available in the Uk too, so thank you Dawn!  I can't wait to hold my own first  giveaway when I reach the 100 followers mark, I have a few ideas in mind, so keep your eyes peeled! 

Love 

Megan x

Pizza : Parma Ham, Red Pepper and Mozzarella

Hey Lovelies
 Today my mum gave me free reigns with buying and cooking dinner so do I make something uber sophisticated and healthy? Nope! Pizzaaa! I haven't made pizza from scratch in years and I loveee making bread which is a bonus! I got the original recipe from here and tweaked it slightly. Enjoy!

Ingredients 

Makes 2 Pizzas 

For The Base 

300g Strong Bread Flour 

1tsp instant yeast

1tsp salt 

1tbsp olive oil 

For The Tomato Sauce 

100ml Passata (I just use a jar of pizza topping if I can't get this)

Basil 

1 Garlic clove 

For The Topping 

125g Mozzarella 

Grated Cheese 

Handful of Cherry Tomatoes

1 slice Parma Ham per pizza

1 Red Pepper 

1 Red Onion

(Experiment with anything you have in the cupboards for different toppings)

Method 

- Preheat the oven to 240C/fan 220C /gas 8 

- Put the flour into a large bowl, then stir in the yeast and salt. Make a well, pour in 200ml warm water and the olive oil and mix together, I find it easiest with your hands until you have a soft, fairly wet dough. 

-Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 5 mins until smooth and set aside. You can leave the dough to rise if you like if you prefer thick crust pizza.

- Mix the passata, basil and crushed garlic together, then season to taste. Leave to stand at room temperature while you get on with shaping the base. Or if like me you couldn't get it whack out the jar of pizza topping ready! 

- If you've let the dough rise, give it a quick knead, then split into two balls. On a floured surface, roll out the dough into large circles, about the size of a pizza tray, using a rolling pin. The dough needs to be very thin as it will rise in the oven. 

- This is where the recipe got confusing so my edit is, put the baking tray/pizza trays in the oven to heat them up BEFORE you put the pizza on them, this way your base will cook completely and go nice and crispy.

- Smooth the sauce onto the bases and add your cheeses and the rest of the toppings, place onto the pre heated baking that and bake for 8-10 minutes or until nice and crispy and voila!

Thank you guys for reading, and I hope you don't mind more foodie posts! Until next time! 

Love 

Megan x