It's Spring one of my favourite times of the year due to the fact that; a) it's starting to get warmer, b) new flowers are in bloom+my favourite fruits come back in season and c) I can justify wearing summery dresses and lighter layers again without getting the "you'll catch a chill" lecture. Today's post, funnily enough is not about any of the above, as I'm sure the title will have suggested. This time of year calls for a rotation of the stash and a lightening of the eye makeup, and perhaps lip if you're that way inclined. It's time to embrace the fresh fragrances, the peaches, pinks and the glow-givers...

The Floral and Fruity Fragrance-This may have been in my Spring-themed post last year but it deserves a mention again. Marc Jacobs Daisy fragrances are all so light and fresh. If you've spritzed them before you'll know these are perfect for Spring. Check out the new Daisy Dream fragrance if you haven't already. It's like Daisy's sophisticated older sister. 

Peachy and Bronzed Cheeks-Winter is all about the minimal blush look for me, Tarte's Exposed was on high rotation this year. By the time Spring rolls around the peaches and the bronzes come back out to play. Seen here are the  Tarte Amazonian Clay Blush in Tipsy and the Bobbi Brown Bronze Brightening Blush*. The latter is perhaps a tad too warm toned for my porcelain complexion at the moment but it's certainly going to get a lot of wear in the warmer months. Tipsy is one of those blushes that seems to brighten up your complexion-great if you're having an off day. 

Pink Pout-In an effort to step away from my trio of Mac Nudes, I've started embracing the new pink lip products Tamira sent me. That Jouer Lipgloss in Pink Glace is lovely on its own or layered over the aforementioned nudes (I just can't get enough of them...). Marc Jacobs Kiss Pop Lip Color Stick in Wham is the perfect raspberry pink. It has a matte-velvet texture, is ridiculously long-wearing and is not drying in the slightest. Lurve.

Sheeny Lids-First things first**, I am rather smitten with the Marc Jacobs Twinkle Pop Eye Stick in Honey Bunny as you will know if you saw my video yesterday. I'll save the raves for now because this will be in my September Favourites-go check out the Sephora reviews in the meantime. A slightly less spendy favourite is the L'Oreal Colour Infallible Eyeshadow in Amber Rush. It's a sheenier version of All That Glitters from Mac and looks beautiful worn alone or over most neutral shadows. Last but not least we have my current liner love, Bobbi Brown's Long Wear Liner Pencil in Bronze*. It's the closest thing to a bronze, rose-gold hued eyeliner that I have seen. As the name would suggest, this stays put all day long and looks so subtle once blended out. 

Radiant Complexion-The photo above really does not show you just how worn out my Hourglass Ambient Lighting Palette is, given it's in use every time I wear makeup. Subtle powders that disguise shine and add the subtlest veil of powder to your complexion. They reduce the appearance of uneven texture and just leave things looking a lot more flawless. Another product that is great for low key days or fans of a light base is Estee Lauder's new Clear Difference BB Cream*. Not too matte, not too dewy and with enough coverage that leaves me skipping concealer and just reaching for the above powders. 

-What are your Spring beauty essentials?

**I'm the realest. Sorry couldn't resist using and abusing that reference.

*PR Sample

I am back, and out of YouTube hibernation for now. Earlier in the week I filmed two hauls, the first of which you are seeing today. This lil' mishmash of clothing, stationery and makeup has been accumulated over the last couple of months and given you seemed to want to see hauls when I asked on social media, I was more than happy to oblige. Keep an eye out for Part 2 which is a book haul and enjoy! Oh-and apologies for the umms and ahhs. I was very nervous about filming hauls for some reason. 

                                  

Martha My Dear-I hope at least one of you gems gets that reference. Now there is no picture here because I could not for the life of me find one, but head here to get an idea of what I'm harping on about. The lovely Anna of VDM sent me one of the Martha Stewart Home notebooks, along with some organisational tabs and it's totally changed the way I organise all things blogging. This feels like such a dorky inclusion but I love it and I'm a stationery lover so yeah, go figure.

Liv Joins YouTube-One of my favourite blog discoveries of late has to be What Olivia Did so when she recently jumped on the YouTube bandwagon I knew it would not disappoint, in fact I was rather excited.There's a beehive tutorial, her current monthly favourites and more on there. Go subscribe to her channel if you've not already done so. You won't regret it. 

Fashion Weekend-Last weekend Tara+Ellen and myself went along to the Mac seminar which was..interesting for lack of a better word. We also went to the Designer Garage Sale where I got a bit lingerie-happy over the amazing deals on Lonely Lingerie and we had lunch at Miss Clawdy. So basically it was an awesome time, with even more awesome people. Tara and Ellen were vlogging the day as well so keep an eye out for that.

Rifle Paper Co-Stationery addicts listen up, if you're yet to discover the Rifle Paper Co goodness then you need to get yourselves on that bandwagon, right now. After discovering them in Frankie magazine I have been obsessed with their designs and products. Florals, gold foil, temporary gold tattoos. LOVE. Pictured above are two of their notebooks which are just beautiful in my opinion. Proceed to their site with caution, more so if you're feeling particularly spendy.

The Weekly Staple-I've never been one to use face masks on the regular but that's changed recently thanks to this delight from Una Brennan. It's a clay mask that contains salicylic acid which is perfect if you've got blemish prone skin. My skin's been acting up a bit recently which I'm putting down to Uni stress and this is doing wonders. It reduces the size and angry appearance of blemishes, minimises redness and more. For a budget friendly mask I've been obsessed and find myself reaching for it at least once a week. 

-It's Friday & mid-semester break! Whoop whoop. I'm handing in one of my last assignments before I go on holiday today. Then I have an essay to finish and then I am free for 2-ish weeks. This week's been a bit stressful because of said assignment so I'm looking forward to putting my feet up this weekend and just chillin'. Tomorrow I'm catching up with my blogging bff Hannah which'll be fun and I have a video to edit. Oh-and sleep to catch up on! That is certainly a priority. Have an amazing weekend everyone!  I'll be back with four posts for y'all next week xx.

Another month, another bag to showcase. This time I'm shining the spotlight on Katia of BEAUTYMINDED and she's kindly given us a look inside her well-stocked makeup bag. Belgium-based Katia has exquisite makeup taste, although I may be ever so slightly biased. After all, I did spot more than one of my favourite products in the photos above. Sit back, relax and grab that pen and paper because you will be wanting to draw up a wishlist right about now..

"My makeup bag is filled to the brim with all the essentials for a daytime look. For my base, I usually stick with the Laura Mercier Oil-Free Primer as shown or the Clinique Superprimer. They both make my favourite foundation, CHANEL Perfection Lumiere Velvet last that little bit longer. I've learned from several makeup artists that primer is very useful for girls with oily skin like me.

When I've got my base covered, I fill in my brows with the Chanel trio "Les Sourcils de Chanel". I've had this for over a year now and even though I use this daily, it's nowhere near empty-think of it as a good investment. You can use the powder with an angled brush but I just use the tools that come with the palette. They do a nice job. If you want to see it in action you can check out my video here.

After that I concentrate on the eyes. I prime my oily lids with the Nars Pro Prime Smudgeproof Eyeshadow Base and then I reach for one of my favourite eyeshadows of the moment: By Terry Ombre Blackstar in Brown Perfection as a smokey option or the Marc Jacobs Twinkle Pop Eye Stick in Honey Bunny combined with the L'Oreal Paris Colour Riche Mono shadow in Cafe Saint Germain. Sometimes I also use the Maybelline Color Tattoo in Bad To The Bronze all over the lid.  A little tight-lining with Bobbi Brown's Perfectly Defined Eyeliner in Pitch Black creates a bit more depth before I move on to mascara.

In the mascara department, I'm hooked on Marc Jacobs' new O!Mega Lash Volumizing Mascara, as it's all my lashes need for dramatic black colour and volume. When that's all done, I apply a little of the Maybelline Age Rewind Concealer under my eyes. I love the formula as I find it to be more like a tinted eye cream than a concealer. 

Eyes done, I then apply the Clinique Chubby Stick for Cheeks in Roly Poly Rosy or the Tarte Amazonian Clay Blush in Exposed if I'm after a subtler look. My go-to lip options at the moment are rather colourful.  I love By Terry Baume De Rose Nutri Couleur in Cherry Bomb or my two picks from the Chanel Fall Collection, Rouge Coco Shine in #96 and the Levres Scintillantes Gloss in Songe. After applying the Marc Jacobs Daisy Dream Rollerball I am good to go!"

-What are your current makeup bag essentials?

The brilliant folk at Escentual had a rather major sale going on a few weeks back and I decided to grab a couple of things from Bumble and Bumble to try. The Hairdresser's Trio set I featured on Friday was sold out at the time so I opted for this little beauty instead, the Hairdresser's Invisible Oil Primer...

Now skepticism was present, after all a hair primer does sound a bit unusual. This is designed to be used pre-styling your hair. I usually spritz it onto my hair after using the hairdryer or before I brush and style it. First things first, this is holidays in a bottle. Seriously, it smells like coconut and exotic tropical drinks. Yum! It's essentially a heat protectant, so you can use it pre-GHD's, curling tongs, whatever. However it's also designed to protect the hair from harsh UV rays. With a blend of six oils it also leaves your locks looking a whole lot glossier too. I wouldn't say my hair is overly damaged but if your hair is feeling lacklustre or dehydrated then you'll probably love the Invisible Oil Range.

I'm so glad I ignored my skepticism at the virtual till with this one. I use this primer on my hair daily and love the effect it has. I have a couple of samples of the shampoo and conditioner from this range which you'll be seeing in another post later this month so keep an eye out for that.

*Have you tried the new Bumble & Bumble Primer yet? What did you think of it?