Live a little....

Hi all :) 

I've had a lovely few days this last week now that I'm free from exams! I went home at the weekend, then popped to the north east to see my sister and grandma, and managed to slip in a day's shopping... WOO! I even managed to see the Great Gatsby yesterday (wow, that is all!). 

The costumes and accessories in Gatsby were stunning and really made me wish I had more confidence when it comes to party dresses! I have a few that I'm yet to wear (including one particularly sparkly one!) which I think I may have to leave until Christmas. However... it made me think that although certain occasions require certain types of outfit, the more wears you can get from and outfit the better and the less clothing you need to buy. Furthermore, if you do come to a bbq in something glittery, so what? Fashion is about creativity and expression, not just wearing whatever Cosmo and Vogue told us to. What clothes have you been saving in your wardrobe that you could bring out this week?

It's a bit pathet.... er... that's ''pathet', sanscrit for super cool.

It's FRIDAY!!!

I'm going home for the weekend to see my family for the first time in weeks and drive over to Durham to see my fabulous little sister and grandma. We're also going to do a spot of shopping on Sunday so I'll report back on the ethical fashion options I find in the Metro Centre :)

The title of this post is for two reasons. Firstly, I have an addiction to Friends, and it's a quote from Ross. Secondly, this is a cheery Friday song to keep everyone going throughout the day and make you excited for the weekend. Warning, it is a Eurovision song. When I heard it the first time I decided it was a mixture of Cher and One Direction yodeling. However, Mr Sweden has grown on me and I think it's weird cheeriness is one of the reasons I've ended up listening to it a LOT recently to get me through finals. Exams do strange things to you. Considering I normally listen to metal, this song is a very surprising thing for me to like. Sometimes we all just need a bit of a boost, and crazy Swedish songs apparently do that for me! 

Have a lovely weekend, and if you have instagram follow me here to see updates of the pretty things I find in the Metro Centre. 

Life's too short for bad foundation

Welcome back!

This little post is part of a story about my current quest for the perfect foundation. Today I'm reviewing the Body Shop's Moisture Foundation. 

I've been trying really hard to practice what I preach and make my beauty and fashion purchases as ethical as possible. As I am quite uncomfortable with my skin, I wear foundation almost everyday. I have pretty oily skin which is prone to blemishes, so I've been trying to marry my eco-quest with finding a foundation which is oil free and suitable for spotty skin. 

I purchased this foundation in the January sales. I was attracted to it because:

* It is oil free, which I assumed would make it less likely my skin would become greasy throughout the day, and wouldn't add any extra oil to my skin.

*It is SPF 15. You NEED SPF in your daily make up or moisturiser  Even living in the UK where the sun apparently doesn't feel welcome, there are always UVA and UVB rays flying around which you need protecting from. 

*It contains Marula oil from a Fair Trade women's co-operative in Namibia - ethical points :D 

* It was only £10 (it's RRP is £13, but the Body Shop always have discounts online and offers so it's worth checking those out!)

I use shade 01, which is great as it has a slightly peachy tone, rather than a yellow tint which often makes me look a bit ill! 

The shade on the left is the Body Shop 01 shade. The right is Rimmel Perfect Match  (in 100)  as comparison.  Apologies for the colour of my hand - revision has killed it :(

So - what do I think? 

To be completely honest, and believe me it pains me to say this, I really don't like this foundation :( It says on the website that it is suitable for light to medium coverage which I what I use it for, as I use a concealer on blemishes and really hate feeling like my foundation is heavy. However, when you apply it it seems to cake up on my skin (despite using it sparingly) and makes lines obvious. I don't mean that I have wrinkles, but like smile lines... it just goes a bit cakey which doesn't look great. 

(Apologies for how tired I look!) 

As you can see, it gives an even, fairly radiant coverage. It's not brilliant on dark circles (I normally use highlighter/dark circle concealer as well). 

Furthermore, it doesn't really attach to your skin. I apply my foundation before my eyeliner and mascara in the morning, and the light touch of my fingers on the foundation (even 10 minutes after application) leaves FINGER PRINTS on my face. No one wants finger prints on their face.... :( Furthermore, you really MUST apply this with a brush or sponge. I often try to do my make up with my (clean!) fingers, but it genuinely leaves streaks, finger prints and swirly lines where I've tried to blend in my highlighter/concealer. If you are a fan of quick, easy make up - this isn't for you. 

Finally, although it is oil free it makes my skin feel pretty shiny and I do need to wear powder on top. It is a 'moisturizing' foundation, so perhaps it is my mistake and the slightly oilier texture is intentional. For someone with drier skin this would be perfect as I imagine the oiliness would help balance out dry skin, but on anyone else it seems to just perpetuate the issue. 

There are positives to the foundation. 

* The colour is great, and it does come in a range of 7 adaptable colours (although I don't think they have tones for people with black/darker skin which alienates a lot of people).

* It does provide a full coverage, and you don't need a lot of the product for it to go a long way. The images I've taken here show the product I have which I've used maybe 50 times since January and you can see it's only about 1/3 used. It will last FOREVER. You can also see when you need to buy a new one as the packaging is clear. 

* It smells very pleasant, and is easily dispensed through the pump :) 

Overall, I wouldn't buy this again because:

* It makes my skin oily 

*It is too malleable, I don't want swirly lines and fingerprints on my face!

* It takes too long to apply to get a smooth, non cakey coverage and needs checking during the day, which for me is a big downside. 

However, if you have less oily skin, and you don't mind spending time applying it meticulously, then it will probably be fine! 
 There are over 300 reviews on the Body Shop website saying how brilliant it is, which makes me think I'm either just fussy or it's never going to be great for oily skin. Either way, I'm still on the hunt for the perfect foundation, as I've learnt with everything that's been going on recently, that life really is too short for bad foundation. 

What do you think? Have you tried this foundation?

Bexceptional is back :)

Hi everyone :)

Thank you for being so patient and waiting around to see what Bexceptional will do next! These last few weeks have been pretty crazy. There have been some ups, and unfortunately a lot of downs, but I'm proud to say that I have completed my degree! Yup, on Tuesday I sat my last ever Oxford exam, and I am now officially finished with academia! WOOOOO!!!!

This is me in college just after finishing. We have a tradition were we get 'trashed' - in other words our friends all come to college and throw water over you, and give you champagne which you open and try to pop the cork out and hit the big clock in the quad. My outfit (not my choice) is the sub-fusc we wear to sit our exams...... Oxford has to be different doesn't it?! 

Anyhow, this is a bit of a soppy post, so bare with me! I just wanted to say that part of the reason I've been letting Bexceptional rest for a bit is that I've had to focus incredibly hard on revision for these exams - they are b***dy hard! I've just needed a few weeks were all I concentrate on is work, and a few personal things that have been going on. As many of you know I have really struggled at Oxford. There have been some amazing times and I have been blessed to have met some wonderful people I will be friends with for life. However, Oxford is not somewhere easy to live and study when you suffer from depression - it can really floor you when you are surrounded by geniuses, the pace is fast and the pressure is intense. However, thanks to all the wonderful people around me I have made it through, and as you can see, have come out smiling! 

  

Now that I've completed this stage of my life, I'm not 100% sure where the next part will lead me. I will, however, be taking Bexceptional with me wherever I go :) 

My next post is coming this evening - I've been reviewing and road testing a new foundation from the Body Shop. 

Lots of love

A little update

Hi everyone, 

This is just a note to let you know that Bexceptional is taking a bit of a break for a couple of weeks. I'm about to sit my finals at Oxford, and I had an accident recently and am on crutches. I'm afraid I just don't have the time, energy or drive to write decent posts at the moment and I don't want to fill your home pages with rubbish. 

I will be back (the start of June I should be fine again!), but until then I will be doing my best to keep a stream of Bexceptional tweets going (check them out here) and post pictures of pretty things as and when I can. 

Once finals are over (oh my gosh I CANNOT wait for that day!) there's going to be some changes and hopefully Bexceptional will be back up and running again as it was prior to the last few weeks :)

Muchos love, 

Bex x x x 

Thinking about Climate Change

Do me a favour, please turn down the thermostat by 1 degree, recycle something today, or walk to the shop instead of driving. This is an image of London at the current rates of global warming. A sea level rise of only 6-7 metres, (that's less than the height of your house) or even a surge due to a storm, could do this. It may not affect us in our lifetimes, but think of your children, your grandchildren..... Just do your bit. It doesn't have to be a huge change - one degree in your heating will make next to no difference to you, but will make a huge difference to your children's futures. 

Image c/o Bannister 2012.

Here comes the sun : summer dresses :)

Hi everyone! 

I'm back after my blog silence. I've had exams and a lot of revision and submitted work to sort out so I'm afraid my blogging has been neglected somewhat. I'm sorry for not being around, but I believe that blogging is a fun thing to do and I never want to write posts that I don't really care about - I'd rather put my time and effort into writing something I cared about. I hope you agree!

Anyhow, I hope everyone is well, and are LOVING the weather at the moment! It's been beautiful in Oxford with the sun and warm weather. It's made me start to look for summer dresses. I often wear skirts and tops, and dresses on days when I'm not going to cycle to college. There are so many gorgeous dresses around at the moment - and I particularly love the pastel florals and skater style dresses (they're so much more flattering on my figure!) Hunting for ethical dresses has proved much easier than the last time I tried, although I do keep getting distracted by other brands, like these three from Goddiva. 

However, focusing on the ethical...... 

I'm still lusting after this beautiful dress from Komodo: 

One day you WILL be mine!!!

These beauties from People Tree are really lovely. People Tree have really upped their game recently, I think they're starting to realize the potential market in younger people as their new ranges certainly have a more youthful edge, and are more affordable than before. 

People Tree dresses are now available through ASOS - so log on through there to use your student discount on purchases! 

Finally - this Ruby Rox dress is stunning. The colour is so on trend, and the pattern makes the cut of the dress really flattering on any shape :) Plus - it's a little nod to the avian trend, without you having to cover yourself in actual bird print. 

What trends are you going to follow this summer? Are you ready to bring out the summer wardrobe yet?