(PRETTY EXCESSIVE) MANCHESTER HAUL

As a little birthday celebration (as hers is on the 7th and mine is on the 12th), my mum and I decided to visit Manchester for a five day long shopping trip. We picked Manchester purely because of the Trafford Centre, but were thrilled to realise that we'd picked probably the friendliest place we possible could have. Everybody there was so lovely, from Jade at the Bobbi Brown counter who helped my mum learn how to fill her eyebrows to Patrick the taxi driver who picked us up from the train station. The Trafford Centre was insane. I thought that the shopping in Glasgow was good but man, this place. There are so many shops that we don't have here, but the biggest surprise was just how gorgeous the place is. If you're a Manchester local and take the centre for granted you'll probably think I sound mad but compared to our shopping centres here in Glasgow, the Trafford Centre is like a palace.

The majority of my shopping list was beauty-related, but I actually ended up buying loads of clothes too, and some other bits. I also had a phone-related disaster which I'll explain at the end of this post.

Lush Shimmy Shimmy Massage Bar (£4.95)

I haven't yet used this but it's supposed to be super moisturising, with little flecks of glitter to make you all gorgeous and glowing. I'm very excited to try it.

Balmi Lip Balm (£4.99)

I've heard so much about this product recently and as a bit of a lip balm obsessive, I knew I had to try it out. I bought the raspberry flavour and wow. It smells and tastes amazing and is perfect under lipstick in a light application or at night in a heavier one.

H&M Striped Jumper (£10)

I've been looking for a jumper like this forever and luckily it was on sale! It's made of a gorgeous slouchy material and will look really cute with jeans.

Debenhams Grey Knit Dress (£10)

I adore this style of dress, and it's made out of the softest fabric. It's pretty warm so not one to wear at the moment, but in autumn this will be a winner.

Lush Ultrabland 100g (£11.50)

Do I even need to rave about this again? It's incredible. Buy it.

Travalo Classic Excel in Pink (£12.49)

So handy for carrying around perfume for top ups during the day. Mine is bright pink - my favourite - and made of metal so it's extra sturdy. A full container should hold around 65 sprays, which I'm very happy with. A little expensive, but worth it I believe. 

Urban Decay Perversion Mascara (£17.50)

My ultimate mascara. I finished my travel size and was waiting to purchase a full size, and I'm not quite sure what I did while I was without it. It makes my lashes thicker and blacker and not spidery at all. I'm in love. 

Benefit Gimme Brow in Medium Dark (£18.50)

Another repurchase, another love. It's quick and really simple to use, so perfect for beginners (like me, if we're being honest). The only criticism I have is that it's a little small, but I feel like the quality more than makes up for that. 

Urban Decay De-Slick Oil Control Setting Spray (£21)

I'd never tried a setting spray before, and after a week with this one I can honestly say that I'll never be without one again.

bareMinerals Precision Face Brush (£24)

Who can resist a new brush? I swear I tried, folks, but I just had to. This brush is like no other I've ever tried. It's cut at an angle for one, and is really dense. I believe it's intended for use with powder foundation but the woman who showed me their Complexion Rescue let me in on a little secret - that she much prefers this brush for use with Complexion Rescue to the Smoothing Face Brush that was released alongside it. I also love this brush for applying my beloved Illamasqua Skin Base, as it gives a higher level of coverage than my usual Illamasqua Highlighter Brush and Real Techniques Miracle Complexion Sponge combo.

Benefit Brow Zings in Dark (£24.50)

I got my (admittedly overgrown) eyebrows waxed at the Benefit Brow Bar this weekend, and while I was still buzzing about them looking for great I picked this up. I went for the darkest of the three shades, despite my light hair, as I'm really into having super dark brows at the minute. I'll admit, it does take a bit of getting used to, but once you've got it down this kit is amazing. I know it's expensive, but you only need a teeny tiny amount each time, so it is pretty cost effective.

bareMinerals Complexion Rescue in 01 Opal (£26)

I've been on the hunt for a super light summer base for a while, and this one in particular has been tempting me from day one. It's super lightweight but can be layered for a bit of extra coverage. I really need to powder with this, but despite wearing like ten pounds of the stuff this base still manages to make me look super glowy and lit from within. It truly is gorgeous, and it even has SPF 30! The only problem is that even in the lightest shade, it's a little too warm for me, but since it's such a light base it's very easy to get away with it being slightly off. I can see myself wearing this everyday for the foreseeable future. 

Zara White Shirt (£29.99)

The cut of this shirt is gorgeous and so unique, and looks fabulous with my favourite Levis. I got a size up from my usual as I wanted the fit to be slightly oversized and it's perfect. I've only worn it once so far and the amount of compliments I've had is incredible. This will definitely be a staple in my wardrobe for the next few years.

Zara Knit Cardigan (£29.99)

Man was this hard to get back home. It's deceivingly heavy, which is great while you're wearing it but not so much when you're traveling with it. Considering it was originally £80, I'm very happy.

Boux Avenue Henrietta Sparkle Balconette in Blush (£30) and Henrietta Sparkle Satin Shorts in Blush (£16)

I have a weakness for pretty underwear. What is a girl supposed to do? Boux Avenue always blow me away with their lingerie and this set is no exception. The material is fabulous and feels so luxurious to wear, and the fit is the best I've ever come across. It's expensive, but nothing beats how wearing pretty underwear makes you feel.

Miss Selfridge Blue Cropped Biker Jacket (£34)

Now this purchase I'm still not sure about. I love it, but I'm not sure it's very me. It's not leather, which I actually really like, as it makes it lighter and not as bulky, and is great on the animal cruelty front. I'm yet to decide whether or not to keep this, so I will let you know!

Urban Decay Electric Pressed Pigment Palette (£38)

I adore this palette. Every single colour is a winner, and I've been thoroughly enjoying putting looks together with each of them. Do let me know if you'd like a full review as I'm very tempted. *BeautyBay are selling this palette for £19 this week! A whole £20 off! Hurry!*

Lush Lust Gorilla Perfume 100ml (£48)

My absolute favourite perfume. It contains jasmine absolute, ylang ylang oil, rose absolute, and vanilla absolute, and smells gorgeous. It's a pretty heavy, sensual scent, more suited for nights out, but I have to admit I wear it every day and adore it. It's become my signature scent, and it's such a comforting smell for me now. I've had numerous 30ml bottles in the past (I'd say at least five or six over the past year and a half) and I've been saving out to treat myself to the 100ml bottle for a good few weeks now. I would 100% recommend Lush's perfume range. There really is something for everyone.

Office Waffle Block Heel Ghillie in Black (£70)

Definitely my favourite shoes of the season. These are so comfortable (after the inevitable first-wear blisters), easy to walk in, and can both dress up an outfit and be dressed down themselves. It's only been a week and I've worn them out at night with dresses and out during the day with jeans. If I could've designed a pair of shoes, they'd probably look like this.

Apple iPhone 6 Plus 64GB in Gold (£699) and Tech21 Evo Mesh Case in Salmon (£29.95)

Since we took the train down to Manchester, I didn't bring a proper handbag, only a tote, so I put my iPhone 6 in my makeup bag for safe keeping once we got off the train as we had a little time before we could check into our hotel and so went directly to the Trafford Centre. Of course, as these things always go, when I went to check on my phone the screen had a crack running across it. Fairly upset, I figured that it'd be okay until we got back to Scotland and then I could see about fixing it. However, the half of the screen with the worst crack began to flicker before turning black, and I couldn't use the touchscreen. We made an appointment at Apple for the following day, my birthday, and tried to forget about the whole thing. However, when we went to that appointment we were told that nothing could be done. As we wouldn't be back home for another four days, and I couldn't be in a strange city without my phone for that long safely, I had to bite the bullet and buy myself a new phone. This time I went for an iPhone 6 Plus, which was at first hugely intimidating but now, a week later, I can't imagine myself with one any smaller. Although it was a huge blow, I'm just thankful that I could afford a replacement and that it didn't ruin our trip. Having to shell out £700 for a new phone on your birthday is painful, but at least it all got sorted. Of course, I also picked up the case recommended by the guys at the Genius Bar to protect my new baby, and it's been doing a great job so far. No more cheap plasticy cases for me (boo).

I hope you enjoyed reading this post as much as I enjoyed writing it (and buying everything obviously).

I have to apologise for how bad the pictures of clothing are in this post! Unfortunately I'm not nearly confident enough to model them myself which would've been great, but hopefully as I get deeper into the blogging world I'll feel more up to it. I also couldn't find links for anything from Zara or H&M, so if anyone manages to track them down PLEASE let me know so I can add them. I know how awful it feels seeing something you love and then not being able to find it. Sorry!

Reading this back nearly makes me want to cry thinking of how much money I spent, but we had a great weekend and it's pretty hard to regret buying any of the fab stuff I did. It does, however, mean that I'm now on a very strict spending ban for the rest of the month (let's just pretend that I didn't just order a lipstick and a pot of eyeliner from Illamasqua before I wrote this post, eh?).

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