What is in my Make-up Bag

So to start off with my make-up bag currently is Zoella's Just Say Yes make-up bag as still she started opening up more about her anxiety it has made it easier for me to come to terms with my anxiety and also to be able to just even speak more to my parents about it. She has helped me realise that I can't let it ruin my life and make me regret something I wish I said yes too.

So to start with my foundation of choice currently is Maybelline Better Skin, my shade is 005: Light Beige. I started using this after hearing some good reviews on it plus also due to the fact it's meant to have vitamins and minerals to help make your skin look better, I have several issues with my skin lately with breakouts, redness, dark under eye circles and just general dullness to my skin.

I also use two different concealer, the first being Soap and Glory's Trick and Treatment in the shade Bright On which I use under my eyes as it says it's meant to help with dark under eye circle and help to reduce them over time. The concealer I use to help with any redness or spots changes between the Collection Lasting Perfection concealer is the shade Fair or Maybelline Fit Me concealer which I use in the shade Fair or Light. 

When I am going for the bronzer I generally use The Body Shop Honey Bronzer in the shade colour 01, when I am going for this look I will also use the Topshop Glow Highlighter in places the shade I use in this is Polished. I like to mix things up so when I want to use a blusher instead of bronzer the blush I am currently using is Sleek's Rose Gold. I like using this blusher due to the fact it's a two in one product, the blush as a slimmer to it so you don't need to use a highlight with this product. 

If I am having a typically oily day I will use a power to help create a Matt look by using Soap & Glory's One Heck of a Blot, it's a nice thinly milled power and a little goes a long way.

When it comes to eyes, I am using Benefits They're Real mascara, this mascara is great for lengthening your lashes perfectly just a real pain to take off at night when using the wrong product to remove your make-up. As far as eye shadows go, I am really not adventurous with this I use either Urban Decay Naked Basics palette which everyone has heard about or Boot's 17 Wild Metallics Eye in the shade Wild Nude which is a great all over cream shadow when you either have no time for more complicated looks or you are in a rush.

With my eyebrow, I find the ends of them are pretty non existent as the hairs are so light which mean I need to fill them in otherwise I only have half an eyebrow. The product I have been using for over a year is the Soap and Glory Archery which has a great felt-tip pen like nib which is the tint I use.   

Lately the lip colours I have been going for is either Nars Satin Lip Pencil in Rikugien which is a lovely pinky your lips but better colour or I am using Maybelline Colour Drama in Nude Perfection which is my perfect nude over the last 2/3 months when lightly patched on the lips. 

Much Love

SophieClaire <3

AWOL: My Struggles with Life Continues!

So I haven't really been writing on my blog for a long while, I am at a point in my life where I had enough of the judgement from people in my life about how I act in situations. Which I am still struggling with now a lot. I am going to be writing a lot about my personal demons and fears on here as my own personal therapy hoping maybe it will help release my negative thoughts, as I know my blog is called Sophie Claire Beauty I will attempt a beauty post after this one depending on how I am emotionally feeling.

My anxiety is causing so many problems for me at this point still, from personal issues with the people I care about most of all, my work situation as I have been off sick for almost 3 weeks due to a kidney infection which may turn out to be something more (will have to wait and see what happens with this in the near future) but I now find I have a lot of anxiety at the thought of returning to work nothing to do with my colleagues or the work itself as I love my job colleagues they are all great in their own special ways. It's just due to the fact I have been off for so long, this little voice in my head just keeps saying all this silly things e.g. Judgemental thought about me being off, thinking I haven't actually been ill. Which I know many of you may think it's silly while others will understand exactly where I am coming from. I am now beginning to realise where my anxiety/insecurities are holding me back so much in life.  

This time last year I was about of start a 6 week course of counselling with a charity based in Bristol called OfftheRecord, which at the beginning I was extremely anxious and unsure about as I normally hold everything back for anyone I know and just let the thought be put to the back of my mind as I personally think I don't want to force or push my problems onto anyone else as when you get older you soon realise many people are dealing/fighting their own personal demons. I have now realised I can't keep holding all this inside myself as it will get to me twice of much as I am now finding myself crying which I think is for no reason but in the back of my mind it's because of all that I am holding back. While I was at my counselling I soon began to realise I have many issues that I hadn't began to realise were effecting me so much, family, friends, old school related issues, work related issues. The counselling I found helped in one respect to get certain things off my chest which I haven't spoken about with anyone at all while in other ways I found it made things twice as worse as I found I was struggling with a lot more than I was wanting to admit to myself let alone someone I didn't even know. Which I won't be going into detail now but maybe do a post on each in the near future. 

Lately due to my kidney infection I am finding I am anxious about my work life being completely different, my health getting worse or even becoming sick again, my personal life is struggling a lot at the moment with issues with my boyfriends, loss of a friend, losing touch with other friends, struggling to open up and speak to family members. Which is causing me to feel very alone and lost. I am currently using the app called Calm to help me sleep and to also help me when I am feeling extremely anxious to the point of almost having a panic attack. 

If anyone can give me any tips or pointers that they have used to help the emotional stability that would be great.

Much Love

Sophie Claire <3