Charity Shop Challenge!

Hi Everyone!

I've spent this past week staying with my parents. My Mum gave my sister & I £10 each & the three of us set off with the challenge of who can get the best bargains for their money.

The town we planned to go to, where the best charity shops are located, had an event going on so we decided to avoid the crowds & headed further afield. There were fewer charity shops (only one), but there were still some good sales & great bargains to be found.

My Mum:

My Mum purchased 3 magazines at £1 each. Spending a total of £3.

My Sister:

Chrissy bought 3 head ties from a market stall for £1.99 each. Spending a total of £5.98.

Me:

I spent the most (surprise, surprise!)!

I bought a New Look blouse for £3.25 from a charity shop. When I got home, I found the top 2 buttons were missing. It isn't obvious &, though it will bother me a little, I don't think it's enough to stop me from wearing the blouse. I can always replace the buttons if it really annoys me! I'm usually really good about checking items for wear & tear, but this clearly slipped by me!

I also bought a Loom set for £3.99. I wanted to get one as I enjoy making things, but didn't want to pay shop prices as I don't know how much use I'll get from it. I found this on one of the market stalls. It'll also be a fun thing to do with my niece when she comes to stay.

I spent a total of £7.24.

Do you enjoy thrift & charity shop shopping?
What's the best bargain you've got?
Who do you think 'won' our challenge & what's your favourite item?

Tania Xx

Liebster Nomination from Life of a FAB Obsessive

Hi all!

Shannon from www.lifeofafabobsessive.com (no longer blogging) nominated me for a Liebster award for my previous blog (www.taniad5786). As I am moving everything over to this site I thought I would do my post here for you all as my content so far has been from my previous blog.

So for those who don't know (which I didn't either), a Liebster award is for bloggers with fewer than 200 followers. The German noun Liebster translates to English as sweetheart, beloved person, darling. It allows little-known bloggers to meet new people and gain a bigger audience, while finding new blogs to follow. It also recognises the hard work involved in creating and maintaining a blog.


What does the Leibster award involve?

•   Answer 11 questions asked by the person who nominated you

•  Nominate 11 bloggers with fewer than 200 followers & comment on their blog to let them know they have been nominated

•      Create 11 different questions for them to answer

So here goes!

What's your favourite High Street Store and Why?

I love Dorothy Perkins they have some really stylish, well fitting items that don't cost the earth! Slightly cheaper but also really good is New Look. I find their shoes fit particularly well for someone with wide feet. I also love TKMaxx - more & more of my wardrobe is coming from there. You have to hunt to find your gems, but when you do they are well worth the effort!

What was the last item of clothing you bought?

I purchased a pair of knee length Denim shorts from Next for £25. They're really comfy & I feel confident in them as they cover up my thighs (I've inherited tree trunk thighs & they're not helped by the weight I've put on as a result of my medication!).

What's your favourite blog to read?

I don't have a favourite blog as there are so many, that all have an emphasis on different things. The blogs I like to read are the ones where the reader is passionate about their subject matter, as that makes me passionate about it too! As someone with dyslexia I need the writer to catch & hold my attention or I get bored! My favourite subject matters are health & beauty - funnily enough the focus of my two blogs!

What's your favourite nail polish colour?

I don't like cream finishes to my nail polishes, I prefer a shimmer. I don't really have a favourite colour of polish as I like to switch my nails up frequently to complement the time of year, my mood and my outfits. I'm currently trying to find a nail polish brand that I love and that performs consistently - any ideas, please let me know in the comments!!!! I'm currently loving a very old duo-chrome 'Jessica' polish that's lilac with elements of pink & a shimmer. It doesn't have a name on it unfortunately.

What's your favourite thing about blogging?

I think my favourite thing about blogging is being able to put my thoughts down into words about things I love. If people stop by to read it & enjoy  that's great! I love the interaction it creates. I have made some amazing friends through my YouTube, Twitter and Instagram accounts and I'm hoping the same will happen through my blog.

What's your favourite season of the year?

My favourite season it definitely the summer. I prefer getting my feet out in a pair of sandals & showing off my polished toes! I like to feel the warmth of the sun on my skin. It makes me happy! I also don't like getting caught in the rain (so I live in the wrong country really!) and the cold affects my joints, making them rather painful.

Fake tan or au natural?

For me, a little of both! For the majority of the time, I prefer to go au natural. I lather on SPF 50 and avoid the sun. I'm on the paler side & prefer to keep this look through the summer. My foundation shade doesn't change from summer to winter. Saying this, I caught the sun this past summer the most I ever have in my life. My legs are pasty white and will not catch the sun at all. So I do use a gradual tanner during the summer months to match my legs to the rest of my body!

What made you start your blog?

I started my blog to complement my YouTube channel (whentaniatalks). I was finding that I wasn't able to go into the depth I wanted to in video format. Two examples of this are:

1. I wanted to go into more detail about products in my monthly favourites video. So I decided to start up my 'Product of the Month' post. A review of my favourite product from the respective YouTube video.

2. With my channel's USP being angled towards the the use of common allergens in beauty products I felt a blog would be a more suitable platform to be able to link to other posts (as you will see in my 'Journey To Find My Lip Product Allergen' series) and to provide comprehensive ingredients lists.

What's your favourite makeup brand and why?

I like a lot of brands for different reasons from drugstore/high-street to high-end and am coming across new products from brands previously untried all the time. My allergies make it really tricky to pick just one brand as everything seems to have one type of product I'm allergic to in! If I had to pick though, it would be Urban Decay or NARS. The Urban Decay eyeshadow palettes are amazing, with colours ranging from neutral to bold, they have a great foundation, lovely brushes and, although I can't use the new Revolution lipsticks or lip glosses because they contain shea butter, the lip love honey infused glosses are lovely, as are the super-saturated high gloss lip colours. Though Urban Decay have a limited range of powder blushes (being in palettes only). The quality of Urban Decay's products are impressive and the price point is mid-range, being comparable to MAC. The brand are also very good at having a book with the ingredients of all their products available & I've even been given the direct number to one of the top bods (can't remember his name or title I'm afraid) in the country to phone to check something out about one of the ingredients in their BB cream! Apart from mascara and concealer, I could do a whole face of makeup with just Urban Decay products.

I am also a huge fan of NARS. Though they are a higher price point, they too are great with ingredients. Their powder cream & blushes are amazing & they have a fantastic lip gloss range (again I can't use their lipsticks though!). I love the tinted moisturiser, which has a wide shade range. I was never completely convinced about them as a well rounded brand because of comments I'd heard about the quality of some of their eyeshadows. Then the NARSissist eyeshadow palette came out. I swatched it in store & bought it. I've been nothing but impressed! NARS also make the only eyebrow product that is the right shade for me - everything else has varying degrees of auburn in them, which doesn't look quite right! Again, I can't wear their lipsticks or mascara, but everything else is safe for me to use.

Whats your signature fragrance?

I have two signature fragrances. The first, Givanchy's Very Irrisistible. I have had this scent for a number of years but can't remember when or where I first purchased it. It was the perfume I wore on my wedding day so will always have a special place in my heart. A couple of Christmases ago, my husband Dan bought me Gucci Flora. I had a tester of it in my bag for times when I forgot to put perfume on before leaving the house. I sprayed it while in the car with him & he told me it made him want me then & there!!! Christmas was coming up so he bought me that & a necklace! Dan is allergic to alcohol (we're talking full anaphylactic reaction!) so I have to be careful with my perfume choices around him.

Do you prefer wearing your hair curly or straight and why?

My hair used to be straight with a kink in it. When I started to take Epilim (Sodium Valporate) for my migraines it turned my hair REALLY curly. As a result, I prefer to wear my hair curly. It is so quick & easy to style, where as to straighten it takes a lot of effort and doesn't give a very good end result if I'm honest! I love wearing my hair straight when it's been done by my hairdresser after I've had my hair cut - I try to make it last a week with a lot of dry shampoo!!!!

So now to my nominations...

Alma-Bella - A great variety of posts, including drugstore hauls & dealing with self-esteem issues.

Tiny Alis - Great Drugstore makeup, dupes & makeup looks.

Alicia - I love Alicia's honesty & openness. It really enhances her style of writing & you feel you are listening to a friend.

Hello-Aj - AJ mixed beauty, fashion & lifestyle effortlessly. Something I aspire to!

Ashley Roy - Written by a stunning makeup artist, this blog is a must for those wanting to learn more about makeup or experiment with different looks.

Adore Beaute - Amy has some wonderful photos, with great looks & content! I love the layout of her blog too!

Jasmine Cara - Austrailian blogger Jasmine has an eclectic mix of posts, from OOTDs to hauls, reviews to hair tutorials & lust lists. I enjoy the variety she incorporates in her blog.

Dreams Of New York - Written my Jemma, this blog is extremely well thought out & written. If you want FOTDs, Hauls & Reviews, Jemma has you covered with high-end & budget friendly options!

Perks Of Being Ami - Here is another blog that contains great content & photos. There is no sense of repetition in the subject matter, ensuring the reader stays engaged.

Painted Lips - Not only does Stacey have a great blog, she also has an amazing Instagram account, both of which have fantastic photos. You can tell this girl has a passion for what she writes about!

Vintage Laura xx - If you love vintage, Laura's blog is the place to be! She has wonderful taste & amazing pictures of all things vintage!

...and the questions

1. How old were you when you first started wearing makeup?

2. Do you prefer heels or flat shoes?

3. Who is your style icon & why?

4. If you only had time to fix your hair or put on makeup, which would you choose & why?

5. Are you loyal to a particular brand of skincare or do you like to experiment? Explain.

6. What is your favourite accessory & why?

7. If you could live in any decade, which would you choose & why?

8. How is your favourite way to style your hair? Up, down, with or without a hair band...?

9. If you were given £100 to spend on what ever you wanted, what would you buy?

10. If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you choose & why?

and finally...

11. What would you say your blog's USP (unique selling point) is & why did you choose that direction for your blog?

I hope you've enjoyed this post. Thank you to Shannon for nominating me & I look forward to reading my nominees answers to my questions!

Tania Xx

MAC #168 Brush - Review

Hi Everyone! 

I wanted to talk to you this week about one of my favourite brushes, the MAC #168. 
This brush is made of goat hair & cost £27.

I bought it as a contour & blusher brush but found that it also works well for applying a powder highlighter. The brush is easy to use, it picks up just the right amount of product & has a great shape for applying product to the face.

Contouring with NARS' Laguna bronzer

Blusher using the Urban Decay Flushed palette

Highlighting with the Urban Decay Flushed palette

The MAC #168, although pricy, is definitely worth the investment as it is a good quality, versatile brush. It can be used with both cream & powder products. I found I was using it so much that I now have two!

What are your favourite brushes?




Tania Xx

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