Mummy Lou very rarely makes it in to Newcastle so it was a nice change for both of us, I had my brows tinted and waxed at Benefit and Debenhams, we went to Patisserie Valerie for afternoon tea, and on the way back home, I managed to have a little look into the Intu Metrocentre branch of Primark.
Because I'm in the process of losing weight at the moment, buying clothes isn't a huge priority for me, I'd rather loose a bit of weight and fit into the stuff that I already own then go out and spend money and things that might not fit in a month or so, that said though I did pick up a pair of trousers.
I'm going to be honest and say that these terracota coloured pants don't look like much on the hanger, but on the body they are so, so flattering and easy to wear. They are basically a pair of slightly cropped wide culottes, with a paper bag style, tie waist. They are a just a pull on pant with an elasticated waist and I love them. I don't normally like tucking tops into my trousers or my skirts, but in this case I'm going to make an exception, I'm planning on wearing these with maybe a black vest or camisole tucked into them in order to show off the waist detailing. By doing that I'm probably drawing attention to the area of my body that I'm most self conscious about but sometimes you just need to do something that scares you. These trousers were just £10 and they also come in a navy blue, so even if I hate how they look and I don't think that I pull them off, I haven't really wasted a lot of money, nothing ventured, nothing gained as they say.
That was it for clothing but I did pick up a couple of pairs of shoes, including another pair of Primark's metallic faux Converse.
These are just a metallic silver, low top, lace up pump, with grey laces, and grey rubber detailing, they were only £8 and I think they are a good alternative to real Converse if you're on budget. I already have the metallic teal, turquoise pair, and I believe they also do them in metallic copper, bronze and in a few plain and patterned canvas designs
Converse and Converse a likes, are probably my go to shoes at the moment, I wear them with pretty much anything from leggings and jeans to jersey dress, they are a real all rounder shoe and I know that I'll be able to wear them all year round. The other pair of shoes that I got though are a little bit more summery.
I've seen just read something on Twitter that the temperature in Cyprus today hit 42 degrees, and what do I see outside of my window? Nothing but rain, rain and more rain, I know it been nicer down south but in my little corner of north east England, today's weather's been more akin to January rather than July! but I have to keep praying that weather will get better and I will at some point be able to wear my pretty new sandals.
I first saw this Valentino esq sandals on +suzyheartsbeauty Instagram and I fell in love on sight. Primark's shoe game is red hot at the moment, and these sandals are just one example of their designer inspired designs. These particular ones come in a few different fabrics and finishes but I love these nude suede effect ones. They have a zip at the back and the straps are covered in a mix of square studs and faux pearls. These were just £10 which is pretty decent for a designer inspired look.
If you were to ask the average person on the street why they shop at Primark - probably the most common answer would probably be because of the price, and I think that's probably the reason I shop there. I'm one of those people who likes to get a lot for their money, and I love that I can buy a whole load of things for maybe the price of one, similar item, elsewhere. One of the reasons that I love Primark though is that it gives me the chance to try out different styles and different looks without spending a fortune, and without potentially wasting a fortune. I do buy a lot of clothes in Primark but I also buy a lot of their jewellery and accessory pieces. If you love an outfit but you want to switch it up a bit and give it a bit of a refresh, then just change your bag, or your shoes, or add a difference piece of jewellery, to update your look in an instant. I love high end jewellery pieces as much as the next person but I also have a huge collection of fashion jewellery pieces and budget buys, and Primark is one of my favourite places to pick up on trend, purse friendly jewellery pieces.
Pick up any fashion magazine at the moment, and I can pretty much guarantee that you will spot a long length necklace, they are everywhere at the moment, and predictably Primark is there to fulfil all of out long line necklace fantasies. As well as the length, this one also combines several more of these seasons key jewellery trends, tassels and discs or circles. This gold tone necklace was only £2.50 and I think it will look equally good worn over a vest or a floaty top in the summer, as it will with a roll neck or chunky jumper in the colder months.
Given the versatility of the long length necklace, it made sense to buy all of them, well okay not all of them but I couldn't resist this one which has a bit more of an ethnic / boho vibe.
This necklace was £3 and to be honest I would have paid way more for it. It's made up of gold tone filigree designs, and embossed discs, with lengths of gold tone, snake chain in between the discs. It's a lovely necklace and I really don't think that my photographs do either the detail or the length any justice.
Now something that I dabble with occasionally is Primark's beauty range, the cleansing wipes, cuticle oil, make up brushes and nail polish remover pots are staples in my beauty routine, and every now and then I'll maybe try a nail polish or a make up item. Primark's beauty range has gone from strength to strength, and you can now find on trend items such as contour sticks, strobing palettes and even Ms Jenner esq matte lip kits on their all be it, chaotic beauty stands. Despite that, you still don't see a lot of Primark items on beauty blogs, but at long last all of that seems to be changing, and there seems to be a bit of a buzz about some of their most recent releases.
Described by some reviewers as MAC inspired, the range is comprised of several different make up items, all with a hint of designer like, rubberised pastel pink packaging. I got a couple of bits just to see whether or not the hype was justified.
The first thing that I got was the PS...Eye Candy Eye Pigment in the shade Iced Gem which was £1.50.
From the outside this is the most MAC like item of all of the pieces, it's almost identical to a MAC pigment pot, in design, size and shape. Unscrew the lid though and your met with an internal cap to stop any accidental spills. I must admit it's been years since I last bought a MAC pigment, but none of the ones that I have, have anything like this, maybe MAC can learn something from Primark here, it's a great idea and I really do think that it will cut down and both wastage and spillage.
I must admit I wasn't expecting a lot from this product but I actually really like it, it's a lovely pinky, brown, nude shade that is packed full of sparkle. For just £1.50 the pigmentation is excellent, it's blendable and it's one of those colours that you could wear on it's own whether your just going to work or whether you're going out on the town.
Like most pigments you do get a bit of fall out, only in this case it's sparkly fall out, as long as you have some loose powder or a fan brush on standby though then you shouldn't have any real problems. For the price I think that this pigment is great value, the colour is perfect and a little goes a long way. I could only find this one colour, but if you've seen any more shades then please leave me a comment and let me know X
The final item that I bought was a lipstick from the same line, and keeping UP with current beauty trends it's a matte shade, and it's one of the PS...Super Matte Lipsticks
In case the packaging isn't very MAC like, instead you have a pastel pink, rubberised, chunky, angular style tube.
These lipsticks come in several shades, and annoyingly Primark have done it again, and don't seem to have given any of these shades a name, the only way of identifying them is via the colour of the lips on the outer box that you can see in the second picture.
It actually looks slightly different in the tube but when it's swatched this one is in a warm bright pink shade.
It's has a pleasant fruity, taste, and as you can see the pigmentation is superb.
I love the colour but for me this is just a bit too matte. It drags ever so slightly on application, and once it's on the lips it just seems to suck every ounce of moisture out of them. It clings to and emphasises every lip line, and every dry patch. Understandably it wears incredibly well before gradually fading down and giving that not so attractive butt hole lip type look! If you love the matte lip look, or if you have perfect lips with no lines and no dryness, or if you love slapping on a that lip balm like it's going out fashion, then these may be worth trying. I really do love the colour, it's very me but unfortunately I just found the formula too drying.
You win some, you lose some I guess and least I didn't spend a fortune on it, I think I'll try layering it up with a bit of lip balm and a bit of gloss, to try and up the hydration a bit, never mind x I've filmed a little You Tube video to accompany this haul and I would love it if you could a little watch of it below or via this link, and pretty, please maybe subscribe to my channel as well x.
Have you bought anything nice in Primark or anywhere else for that matter? Let me know the comments and don't forget to let me know if you have any questions on any of the items in this post x
