Get Away Gorgeous with Benefit Cosmetics - Yes Please!!

Hi lovelies, I hope this post finds you all well. 

Last week I was invited to The Morgan hotel in Dublin by Benefit Cosmetics and I wanted to share my experience with you. I had never been to The Morgan before my visit but I had heard about the great night life with resident house DJs, live sax and bongo players. Something different aye girls!

Upon entering the hotel I was impressed immediately with a warm welcoming, friendly and helpful staff. I was then escorted up to the penthouse suite (oh la la) where I had to remind myself to close my jaw, it was so lavish. The above photo was taken on the rooftop balcony, I didn't want to leave girls. I can picture myself up there all night with friends, sipping on cocktails and taking in the Dublin night sky.

Benefit have teamed up with The Morgan hotel and created what can only be described as a must do night out. You would be a fool (yes I said it) not to take advantage of the "Get away gorgeous" experience. It costs €100 per person and includes your overnight stay, a Benefit masterclass, cocktails, tapas food, entertainment in the hotel on the night and a decadent buffet breakfast in the morning.

Brow me up before you go-go, Mark Rogers making my brows more acceptable for the public eye! Photo taken by Marian, thank you lovely.

What more could you ask for girls. I think this is a fantastic experience. You'll get to learn lots of tips and tricks from the Benebabe team and get to play with the latest products from Benefit. After experiencing the tapas myself I can tell you that you won't be disappointed. The cocktails in the hotel bar are also very reasonable with speciality cocktails at €7. Oh and if you thought it couldn't get any better, each girl will also receive and exclusive benefit treat to take home.

Would you book the "Get Away Gorgeous" experience? 

There you go, I can say no more...who wants to book with me?! If you are interested you can contact reservations by email reservations@themorgan.com or call 01 643 7000 .

Love,

Sarah
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Blingin' Fantastic D.I.Y Shoes

Have any of you noticed the recent craze on Facebook for blinged out converse style shoes or is it just me? I decided to give them a go myself because...well...why not?! I bought these grey converse knock off's from Dunnes Stores for €10, they also currently have them in red, navy, white and brown.

You can get these Stickcons in a variety of colours from www.stickcons.com for €12. They could not have been any easier to apply. It took less than five minutes and three easy steps. Remove from packaging, place where you desire and press firmly for a moment to stick them in place. Honestly, fool proof! They also stick to fabric and other surfaces. I was left with a few extra strips which I can use to bling anything else, I was thinking maybe my phone cover.

There you go, let me know what you think in the comments below. It's a lot less time consuming than using a glue gun and individually placing each gem on so a big thumbs up from me. I also have a pink set of Stickcons so I might use them to spruce up a pair of shoes for a friend. I think that would make a cute gift, as long as I get the right shoe size!!

Love,

Sarah

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Debt Free and loving it...*Happy Dance*

As of 10:30 today I became debt free! Wooo hoooo!! Can I get a "Whoop whoop" in the comments below! 

I am beyond excited about paying off my student loan which has been hanging over my head for seven years. Not having to worry about loan payments every month is going to be such a huge weight off my shoulders. I will not know what to do with myself. Well... I have a fair idea, it may involve a new wardrobe!

To celebrate I took my brother David for breakfast to a cafe which opened recently in Navan town called No.8 Watergate. I had yet to go and I heard great things about their american style pancakes and I was not disappointed with what I received! It look's like a lot but boy was it good, I even asked for extra maple syrup. Yum!

Noting works off a big breakfast like shopping, aye girls! While looking for a dress for another occasion entirely I came across this little number in River Island for the bargain price of €12 reduced from €25. I had to try it on! I've never worn a dress which was short short and tight tight at the same time. Usually if I'm going short I stick to flowy girlie dresses. I tried it on anyway and asked you lovely girls what you thought and I received a heck load of "BUY IT" and lovely compliments and Twitter and Facebook so you can bet your bottom dollar I bought it. Thank you girls for the push. I also treated myself to some new gym clothes in Penneys, they really have great selection in there for practically noting.

The best part of being debt free are the new things I can focus on. My number one mission at the moment is too get on the road. I've had my provisional license since I was 18 but because I lived in the UK and then Dublin for the last seven years I never needed to drive. I actually love public transport but that's a whole other post! So yeah, I can't drive...It's mostly nerves I need to get over and then I'll be flying. My goal is to be on the road in a little banger by the end of the summer.

I hope you don't mind these types of posts. I just love sharing my happy news with you all. Have you ever cleared off a loan and felt on top of the world like I do now?

Love,

Sarah

INGLOT NEWS - Colour Play Lipsticks and Inglot Addicts database

This week I had the opportunity to stop by my nearest INGLOT store in Blanchardstown shopping centre in Dublin for the launch of their new Colour Play Lipsticks and to sign up too their new addicts database. I was very excited to see what new products they had launched since my last visit. I've always loved INGLOT for their continued success for great quality, fun and vibrant collections.

Aisling, myself, Rachel  and Jane

Colour play Lipsticks

(Left) Shade 98 with 97 in centre (Right) Shade 94 with 100 in centre.

Thank's to the lovely Aisling and Rachel (as pictured above) who happily volunteered me while I was off waffling I got to try some of the colour play lipsticks out, thanks girls! There's noting quite like sitting in front of a room full of bloggers and their cameras to remind me that I need to dress myself better for these sort of occasions!

The Colour play Lipsticks are not for the faint hearted, they are colourful and they are highly pigmented. You can get the entire collection of nine vibrant colours and a white shade for €68 as part of their freedom palette system. They cost €6 individually, isn't the freedom system wonderful. I personally would not be interested in the blue shades because I don't think they suit my skin tone, I do however love the pinks, coral and purples. With the Freedom system you can buy these in palettes of 2,3,4,5 and 10. Prices range from €18-€68.

The lipsticks felt very lightweight and moisturising on my lips. I was saying to the girls on the night that it felt like I had applied my regular nourishing lip balm. When you head in to your local INGLOT store be sure to check out the new Kohl eyeliner pencils which I got to see being demonstrated and looked perfect for blending into a smoky eye look.

While I was there I signed up the their Addicts Database which INGLOT started back in January, this means I can now avail of special offers and be invited to events such as the one I attended this week. You can sign up here online or in store. You do not have to be a make-up artist or a blogger to sign up and it's a great opportunity stay up to date with competitions, new product updates and avail of complimentary master classes.

Some people won't be fond of these bright lip colours but I love the idea of people being a bit wilder and getting away from those nude lip shades. Last year I tried my hand at going for brighter eye looks. Will this year be my year for daring bright lips? We shall see...

Love,

Sarah

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Change is hard but worth it - Focusing on Health and Fitness

It's never too late to make changes in you life, I say this all the time to people and I've only recently
started taking my own advice. I think that no matter the reason, if you're not happy only YOU can make the changes. You may have noticed I have been absent on YouTube and my blog posts have become sparse over the past couple of months. I've made some big colossal changes in my life recently and I'm beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel now. I walked out of a long relationship, left an amazing job and moved. While I had my reasons it doesn't make it any easier but I'm glad I had the strength to realise that I wasn't happy and that I had to start doing things differently. 

I've been focusing a lot on myself, which might sound selfish but I have to put myself first now. Health and fitness has taken over my life at the moment. I've developed a real thirst for it. I'm excited about the opportunities that await for me and I've all sorts of plans for what I want to accomplish. For now anyway I've been focusing on getting fit and feeling great. I wanted to share some of the activities I've been doing with you in the hope that it might encourage even just one person to get up, get out there and start making the changes they want too.

Zumba Classes

Zumba is great if you go on your own or with a group of friends. Zumba is a dance fitness programme, I know what you're thinking but don't worry because I can't dance to save my life and I really enjoy it. I like that it has variety, in any given class I can find myself doing salsa, martial arts, belly dance moves, squats and lunges. The music is great and most instructors make the classes really fun and enjoyable. You don't feel like you're at the gym anyway!

TRX Suspension Training Classes

Now what the hell is TRX Suspension Training you might be thinking to yourself! I didn't have a clue up until two weeks ago. I had never heard of it before. It stands for Total body Resistance Exercise and involves preforming a number of body weight exercises while holding or placing your feet onto ropes. Now, when it comes to trying new things the first time is always the hardest but it gets better. My arms and legs were in bits the day after the first time but it was worth it. I keep telling myself that, ha!

Bum, Tums and Thighs Classes

Tone, tone tone! I'm not actually interested in focusing much on weight loss. I'm a curvy girl and I always will be but there are a few areas I would like to not jiggle so much and that's why I do bum, tums and thighs classes. The class combines standing and floor aerobic exercises with the use of weights and a step. It can be a shock to the system and I look a bit of a fool when trying to co-ordinate myself on the step but I feel great afterwards and feel like I get a full body workout. 

Spinning Classes

I am quite lucky that my brother is a professional gym instructor and he calls me occasionally  daily, yes daily to go to his classes! I couldn't ask for any more encouragement really! After I went to his first spinning class I didn't want to talk to him for at least a week, it was the first class I went too and it made me realise how unfit I was and spurred me on to try all the other classes. I did one of his classes last week and felt bloomin marvellous afterwards! "PICK UP YOUR RESISTANCE" he would shout, and I didn't even want to hit him once! Success. I always thought spinning was for the really physically fit people but I've seen people of all shapes, sizes and ages in my gym doing the spinning classes.

Indoor Climbing

I've only had the chance so far to try this once but boy I can't wait to go again. I went along to Awesome Walls in Dublin not knowing what to expect and honestly a little nervous! I was going with someone who has done climbing many times but I was more worried about looking like a fool and was worried that I wouldn't be able to do it at all. How wrong was I! Again with the spinning I was so surprised to see people of all shapes and sizes, even children as young as six climbing. If you are not a fan of gyms and love to try something different I could not recommend this enough. I didn't have to worry about heights because they have walls of all different heights to start you off. I didn't have to worry about safety because they have equipment you can hire and the most amazing, friendly, helpful experienced staff you could ever meet to guide you if you need help. 

I said before, I'm not on a mission to lose a tonne of weight, I want to tone up, wake up with a spring in my step and have the energy to follow my dreams. At first it was hard but now it's so much easier and I'm....eh...enjoying it. Gah I must be going mad! I've received lots of lovely messages over on YouTube about when I'll be returning to making videos again and that won't be for another while I'm afraid but I will be back. 

Do you do anything that I haven't mentioned above that you think I would enjoy doing. I really want to try everything! I hope this isn't just a phase and that I can adopt this fitness buzz as a new way of living. Wish me luck girls.

Love,

Sarah

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