The Twenties Crisis Checklist

Your twenties can be tough... 

It seems that there is so much to work out, so much that we are supposed to know, when really, if we are honest, the days of sitting on the sofa watching Playdays, Rainbow or Teletubbies if your a bit younger didn't seem like that long ago..... No, just me then...

Anyway below I have listed some essential criteria so that you can be sure you have hit your "Being in your twenties crisis:

1. The constant need to compare your life with all friends, family, strangers on the internet, the girl that lived down the road 10 years ago etc.

Why do we do it to ourselves? Everyones like takes different turns, everyone has their own unique set of circumstances. We need to just stop!

2. The regularity of being asked the most boring questions in the world. 

"Have you met anyone yet?" 

"When do you think you'll move in together?" 

"When are you getting engaged?"

"When are you getting married?"

"When are you having children."

This is one of the most annoying things ever. It seems like no matter what stage you are at people always love to ask the same ******* questions! I for one find this the most boring topic to talk about. Yes all of these things are amazing, but people are really so nosey and judgemental. The constant pressure to keep giving the same answers to these same questions week in week out is draining. Don't worry Karen from payroll, when I'm pregnant you will be the first to know!

Wondering how the hell you are ever going to afford to move out.

Finding your first grey hair.....right at the front....on a Monday morning....bad times :(

Regularly attempting to devise a plan where you reach instant levels of fame and fortune so that you can get a deposit. X Factor? The Voice? (Unfortunately I have no talent so the closest I get is calling in to the radio to guess Whose on Heart...) 

Looking back at old photos of yourself thinking how much better you looked, even with the metallic blue eyeshadow and concealer lips.

Getting paid, thinking you can go and spend all the money in Topshop before realising you have bills to pay - council tax you little charmer.

Spending large amounts of time with you friends trying to work out if your boyfriend is going to propose this year.

Wondering if you should be planning to have a baby yet, when you still feel about 12 yourself.

Finding your first wrinkle in between you eyebrows and analysing it from every angle.

Realising that everyone is pretending and no one really knows what their doing....

The Quarter Life Crisis....

Hey! Long time no speak!

Today I watched a Youtube video from Estee Lalonde where she spoke about having a quarter life crisis. I found this video so refreshing as I feel that it is something that a lot of people experience in their twenties.

I myself am in the later part of my twenties and I would definitely say that I have experienced these types of thoughts and feelings, you see when you are younger, time seems endless. You feel like you have all of the time in the world and that things will just magically work out, that you'll get that perfect job, that you'll meet the right person, that you'll have the money to afford the type of lifestyle that you want. The truth is, the older you get the more you realise that nothing is guaranteed and thats when the panic sets in!

I remember being twenty. I didn't really have much of an idea of what I wanted to do with my life, I drifted through my A Levels and I did alright-ish.... well, as well as you can do when you spend most of the time in the common room or at the McDonalds drive-thru....

The truth was that I had no goal, no direction, no master plan. I went and visited a few universities but nothing really caught my eye so I didn't go. This is a decision that I do now regret, I wish that I had been more academically focused and that I had thought a bit more about my future and what I wanted from it. As the years passed I convinced myself, oohhhh I'm to young for this and that, maybe when I'm older, maybe next year, but then, without really noticing it was next year and then the year after that and the one after that. The pressures of what do I want to do with my life changed into when do I move out? and when should I start saving for my deposit? Now as I sit here the worries have changed to when should I have a baby?

I guess what I am trying to say is there is always going to be something to worry about, something to panic about and something to worry yourself to sleep at night wondering "Am I doing what I should be doing at my age?

The truth is that I think without saying it, everyone feels some element of this pressure and I think that we are the people that put the biggest pressure on ourselves.

Some Recent Faves

Recently I have felt stuck in a bit of a make up rut - sticking to the same safe products that I know will deliver and being a bit scared to try anything else. In January after my skin going through a particularly bad stage I decided to try the Vichy Derma Blend foundation in 05. At first I was sceptical about how anything could match up to my faithful Doublewear in terms of coverage, but since using this I can honestly say I love it. It might not quite have the staying power of Doublewear and I advise you set it with a powder but in terms of coverage and they was it makes my skin feel I love it! I have seen a DRAMATIC improvement in my skin since I switched to using this daily alongside the Vichy Face Wash, even my husband and mum have commented on the visible difference in my skin so I will definitely be sticking with it.

Another newish favourite it the Clarins Lip Oil. This stuff is AMAZING! I have always always suffered with the most horrible dry lips since as long as I can remember. No amount of any lip product made the slightest bit of difference. I received the Clarins Lip Oil for Christmas as a present and I honestly wish I had found it sooner. It makes the lips feel so soft and nourished and looks lovely either worn on its own or over the top of lipsticks. Recently my favourite way of wearing this is over the top of Clinique's Chubby Stick in Mightiest Maraschino. I have never really been one for a red lip but a dab of this brightly coloured balm underneath the lip oil has really been brightening up my face.

Two favourites that I have been using for a lot longer are the Bourjois liquid liner and the Smashbox Full Exposure mascara. I love this eyeliner and it has been my favourite for over ten years! I am yet to find anything to take it's crown! The mascara is also lovely, I am yet to find anything that I don't like about it. It lengthens, adds volume, stays on all day and doesn't smudge. What more could you want?!

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Benefit Blush

Long time no blog! I must say that over the Christmas period I did not pay this blog as much attention as I would have liked to! January to for that matter. Is it just me or does the promise of a new year and new goals actually makes me want to do less? The colder and wetter it seems to get the more time I want to spend tucked up on my sofa with a big bag of Revels! 

Anyway..... I purchased the Benefit Cheeky Party set just before Christmas as a little treat to myself. Even though I have previously worked for Benefit I had never actually tried out all of their shades, preferring to stick to my trust Rockateur and Dandelion. I am quite pale so Dandelion type shades are what I feel most comfortable with as I feel they suit my colouring more. Rockateur actually launched whilst I was working for Benefit and I was instantly in love, it just seems to suit everyone and gives such a pretty glow and shimmer to the skin without looking too much.

This set was on sale for £29.50 which I thought was an amazing price for the amount of product that you get. Obviously the blushers are a lot smaller than the usual size, but when you consider the price of one blusher is around £23.50 I thought it was too good a deal to pass up! I actually bought this with the intention of putting it in my makeup kit, but it seems to have snuck its way into my own daily makeup bag! At the minute I am really enjoying Sugarbomb. It's not a colour that I would usually go for as it is quite on the warm side, but i find that it looks quite soft and blends in quite nicely whilst giving my skin a healthy glow. Coralista I have only experimented with once when I went for a warm brownish eye makeup and I thought it gave me a nice peachy flush to my cheeks. 

Now I know that this will come as a bit of a shock but I am still on the fence with Hoola.... I know that it is such a popular and much loved bronzer but it just seems that bit to dark for my skin. i have heard that Benefit is bringing out a liquid version in March so I might give that a go and see how I get on.

The set also comes with a little compact of Watts Up which is my ultimate favourite high lighter, i just can't say enough good things about it! There is also a mini They're Real - again, you can't go wrong and also the Push Up Liner, although I must confess I am struggling a bit with the application, think I must be doing it wrong!

Overall I am really pleased with this set. I love the way that Benefit sell mini versions of their products to let you try out products that you might otherwise not get the chance to try.

What is your favourite Benefit product? Any recommendations?