9- Favourite type of post to write?
10- Favourite Colour?
11- If you could collab with anyone who would you collab with?

Again, thank you to Autumn for nominating me for this award and I will see you all again very soon!
Love Lou
xxxxxxxx

Hey guys, welcome to my 6 month anniversary post! I know this is a day late but I didn't want tot rush this post because this is probably one of the most important posts I have ever done. Anyway, I wasn't tagged to do this but as I have been blogging for 6 months I thought it was time that you lovely people got to know me better. I hope you enjoy at I will see you again at 5pm GMT. xxxx (By the way using the questions from Tried and Tested Blog and click here to see the post I am using the questions from).

1- What is your favourite way to style your hair?

I am stuck between two styles. I love taking the front section of my hair, twist it or plait it and then pin it at the back of my head. This helps to keep hair out of my face when I am working on blog posts. I also really like tipping my head upside down to create a really voluminous high pony tail.

2- What is the one movie you could re-watch over and over again?

I could 100% watch Elf over and over again. I love Elf and as soon as it goes into December it is nearly constantly on!

3- Do you have any pets? If so tell us about them!

I actually don't have any pets but if I did I would have a Maltipoo - which is a cross between a Maltese and a Poodle! It's so cute!

4- What's on your nails right now? If you aren't wearing any what is due to go on next?

I don't have anything on and as you will know if you read my Day in The Life I had on Kiko in 486 Tea Rose and the one that is due to go on next is Kiko 507 Blush and the Avon Magic Effects Matte Top Coat which is basically just a top coat that makes any nail varnish matte.

5- What's your favourite thing about blogging?

My favourite thing about blogging is interacting with you lovely lot on a daily basis. I also really love reading all of your blogs. By the way, if you want me to check out your blog - just leave it in the comments below and I will be sure to check it out. xx
6- Bold eyes or Bold Lips?

If you had asked me this a few months ago, I would have said bold eyes, but recently I have been loving paler shimmery eyes and bold lips.

7- If you could blog about one brands products - which brand would it be?

This is so difficult! A make-up brand I would blog about would probably be Smashbox - their products are quite affordable but they are still really good quality!. If it was any other brand it would have to be Lush.

8- Most used/loved product?

My most used product is probably Smashbox Full Exposure mascara. This makes your lashes look really full but also quite natural.

9- Would you rather have forever flawless skin and not be able to wear any other makeup or never being able to wear a base (foundation, BB cream) but being able to wear eyeshadow, mascara, blush, eyeliner, lipstick, etc ?

As I don't really wear skin make-up so I would say never be able to wear a base.

10- What is your most hated thing about applying make-up?

My most hated thing about applying make-up is probably when I always sneeze after I put on my mascara!

Anyway, that is the end of this post and I tag:

Marti (Pink Smarties)
E Pop 14
El The Bookworm

Than you so much for reading and all your support over the 6 months I have been blogging. xx

Love Lou
xx

Hello everyone, and welcome to a new series here on Lou Loves . I have taken inspiration for this post from one of my favourite bloggers/youtubers - Anna Saccone. Hope you enjoy xx. By the way, this is going to become a bit of a series on my blog so hopefully you enjoy (I will be uploading one every other Friday). xxx


Breakfast



This is just a pretty standard breakfast for me - I have it all the time. It's the Belvita Tops Chocco Hazelnut (basically nutella) and water. The Belvita's come in packs of 3 and fill you up for 4 hours so it pretty much fills me up until lunch!

Snack

Not going to lie, I had a hot chocolate and a biscuit. The hot chocolate I used was the Galaxy Instant  hot chocolate. This makes really frothy hot chocolate and it tastes a lot creamier than the Cadburys hot chocolate.

Lunch

Really sorry but I forgot to take a photo of this but I just had Chicken and Sweetcorn soup with some French Bread. I also had a bit of Robinsons' summer fruits with this (it's my favourite).

Tea

Again, I forgot to take a photo of this but I will try and take photos on the next one I do. Anyway, I had chicken pizza. Not literal chicken pizza but basically it is were you put tomato passata and cheese on top of a chicken breast and put it in the oven. It's really quite good.

I hope you enjoyed this post and hopefully I will remember to take photos next time.
Love Lou
xxxxxx

Hey guys, today is going to be a bit of a different post. It is more of a lifestyle post than usual so I hope you enjoy. This post is also a collab with Marti (from Pink Smarties) so go and check out her post to find out what she got up to. Anyway, I hope you enjoy. xx

20/2/16

At 9am this morning I woke up and just stayed in bed for a bit checking all my social media and reading some of your guys blogs (if you want me to check out your blog just leave it as a link in the comments). Anyway, today we had some friends coming round so I went food shopping to pick up a few bit and bobs. Whilst I was having a bit of a tidy I noticed how chipped my nails were (I had on Barry M Gelly Hi-Shine in Prickly pear which had been on for about a week) so I decided I would re paint my nails in one of the new shades I picked up from kiko. I settled on 486 Tea Rose and it only needed 2 coats which didn't take long to dry at all (I have no patience when it comes to my nails drying!!). I also had a bath and used Lush's Five Gold Rings which was part of the Christmas range. I thought I would include a little FOTD and FOTN (face of the day and night). In the day I wore the Smashbox Photo-Op hydrating under eye primer, Collection Lasting Perfection concealer in 1 Fair, Smashbox Full Exposure Mascara and the Rimmel London Colour Rush Balm in give me a cuddle (a pinky toned shade). In the evening I wore Smashbox Photo-Op hydrating under eye primer, Smashbox 24hr shadow primer, Collection Lasting Perfection concealer in 1 Fair, L'Oreal La Palette Nude in Beige (7th shade first ,then 2nd shade second and the 1st shade as an inner corner highlight), Smashbox Full Exposure mascara in Jet Black and MAC Lustre Lipstick in Plumful.

(sorry the photos are all different sizes).





Thank you so much for reading and let me know if you want more posts like this.

Love Lou
xxxxxxxx

Hey guys, as you may know on Wednesday I uploaded a post which was just photos and links for everything I bought so today I thought I would talk through what I got and why I got it. Hope you enjoy. xx

American Apparel High Neck Tee

I got this in a size small (equivalent to size 8-10). I originally tried the grey and white one on in an extra small but I found that it was a little too tight but unfortunately they did not have that colour in the small but they did have the black and white one in the small. I tried the black and white one on in the small and it fit perfectly. It has a slightly higher neck than a regular tee which I don't usually like but I thought this really suited me.

High Waisted Jeans

I got these purely because I needed some new ones as I had had some for ages and they were in desperate need of replacing. I really like the new look jeans they are really good quality and last for years!

Primark Tees

I got 3 of these - I get some very year. These are great for lasting a year and all of the designs are really cute. Obviously, if you are looking for a t-shirt that lasts a lot of time I would not recommend these but they are great for 1-2 years.

Fluffy White Slippers

I got these because I have had some ones with pugs on it for about 6 months and they had started to get very saggy so when I was in Primark I saw these and thought I would pick them up so I would be able to wear slippers again! They were only £2 and they can be washed which is another bonus of them!

Lint Roller

These are just really handy for when you are wearing black jeans and hey are covered in fluff which mine always are. This is also really good because it has a cover so it doesn't pick up dust from the air.

Weekly Unicorn Planner

I bought this as I had just finished my last blogging book which I used to plan blog posts in. As my blog has been getting a lot more popular I really felt the pressure of creating good content for you all. I really like being organised and know what I am doing and when - this is really good for writing in what you are doing but also has a squared page on the other sides for notes which I use for planning.

Nivea Daily Essentials Rich Moisturizing Day Cream

I picked this up because my last one had nearly run out of my last one as I use it every day in the morning. (Let me know if you want a skincare routine or product empties post).

Simple Spotless Skin Action Spot Zapper

As you may know I am obsessed with the Superdrug action Tea Tree spot stick but I thought I would change it up and see which other ones were like (let me know if you want a review - it seems quite good so far!).

Kiko Nail Lacquers

I went into Kiko the other day wanting to pick up some new nail lacquers/varnishes. These 2 immediately caught my eye. 486 (Tea Rose) is a really pretty dusky nose and 507 (Blush) is a pretty pink nude shade.

Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer

I picked this up in the shade fair because after looking around on the boots website and in store this shade was the best suited to my skin tone. I am really pale and on my skin this doesn't appear too orangey.

EcoTools Airbrush Concealer Brush

I was going to pick up the Real Techniques Concealer brush but the reviews online said it just moved the product around you face and doesn't buff it into the sin very well. So I was looking around the brush aisles and saw tis brush which seemed perfect. I have heard many good things about EcoTools and so far it seems pretty good

Smashbox Full Exposure Mascara

Finally, I picked up my trusty Full Exposure Mascara - I am not going to ramble on about this so click here if you are interested in it.

Thank you so much for reading and your support as this is my 100th Post to me it is insane that some of you have stuck around for 100 posts!. If you are interested in any of the products I mentioned above I linked them all in my part 1.

Love Lou,
xxxxxx

American Apparel High Neck Tight Tee £38

New Look Teens High Waisted Skinnies 317.99

Primark Crème De La Crème Tee £3

Primark Grey bird Tee £3

Primark Minnie Mouse £4

Primark Fluffy White Slippers £2

Paperchase Unicorn Weekly Planner £6

Primark Lint Roller £1.50

Nivea Rich Moisturizing Day Cream £3.99

Simple Spotless Skin Action Spot Zapper £5.49

Kiko Nail Lacquer in 486 and 507 £2.50 each

Collection Lasting Perfection concealer £4.19

EcoTools Airbrush Concealer Brush £5.49



Smashbox Full Exposure mascara £9

Thank You So Much For Reading,
Love Lou
xx

Links

American Apparel High Neck Tee
New Look High Waisted Skinnies
Crème De La Crème - Not Listed
Grey Bird - Not Listed
Primark Minnie Mouse Tee
Fluffy Slippers - Not Listed
Paperchase Weekly Planner- Not Listed
Primark Lint Roller
Nivea Daily Essentials Light Moisturising Day Cream
Simple Spotless Skin Spot Zapper
Kiko Nail Lacquer in 486 Tea Rose
Kiko Nail Lacquer in 507 Blush
Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer in Fair
EcoTools Airbrush Concealer Brush - Not Listed
Smashbox Full Exposure Mascara (full size - mini not listed)


Hey guys, today I am going to share with you 5 beauty related items/products that I would take with me to a desert island. Hope you enjoy. xx



Ted Baker Body Sprays

I have both of the scents and they both smell absolutely gorgeous. The mint green one is a florally scent that is also a little bit fruity - the website says it smells of violet, peach, cherry and vanilla. Vanilla and cherry are my favourite scents ever so that is probably why I love it so much. The pink scent is a little bit sweeter but it is still quite fruity. The mini sprays are plastic so they are great for travelling or to put in handbags, they are also only £3 which I think is actually really good. I would take this because  I just smells nice and you always need to smell nice on a desert island (hehe).



Smashbox Full Exposure Mascara

I talk about his mascara so so much but I feel like no one ever talks about this on the internet so I talk about it. It makes your lashes really natural looking but they also look fluttery and quite girly (if that's possible!?!). I would take this because it is my all time favourite mascara - I prefer it to the Maybelline Lash Sensational which is my 2nd favourite mascara.



L'Oreal La Palette Nude in Beige

This palette is my all time favourite palette . It has 10 shades - 5 shimmer shades and 5 matte shades - and it also comes with a brush which has a foam applicator one side and a normal brush on the other side which is actually really soft and applies quite well. It also has a mirror the length of the palette so it is really big. The shades are mostly brown shades but it has a few gold shades and a couple of silver/grey shades. The packaging is a really sleek black with gold writing. I would take this palette because it has potential to create a lot of different looks.



Maybelline Baby Lips

These balms are so pigmented but they are also really moisturising. They are essentially a tinted balm which would be great for school if you are not allowed to wear too much make-up. They are also really affordable and they are available on the high-street. I have 2 of these - an original collection one in the shade Pink Punch and an electro collection one in the shade Pink Shock.. Both of these shades are pinks (hence the names), the pink punch is a light/barbie pink and the pink shock is a vibrant darker pink.



Zoella Beauty Wonder Hand

This has replaced my Soap&Glory Hand Food which I used to talk about all of the time but this one is a lot more moisturising and it also smells a bit better. This is in the original collection scent which is a really floral, fresh scent. It is great scent for spring/summer . My hands get really dry so I use this
twice a day to stop my hands from getting dry.


Thank you so much for reading,
Love Lou

Links

Ted Baker
Smashbox
First Impressions
Boots
Superdrug

Hey guys, I haven't been tagged to do this but I thought I would do it anyway. I will be using the questions from Sophia Anna so go and check out her blog. I know it is coming towards the end of winter but I thought this was a really cute tag. Hope you enjoy. xxx

What are your favourite things about Winter?

Hot Chocolates, blankets and candles.

What is your favourite Winter outfit?

I love black jeans/leggings with checked (plaid) shirts and a white vest top underneath.

What is your favourite Winter food?

I wait all year for Christmas Dinner and I love it!!

Favourite Winter drink?

Starbucks hot chocolate with whipped cream, marshmallows and flake. (Healthy I know!!)

What is your dream way to spend a Winter’s day?

Snuggled under a blanket with a hot chocolate watching films and Tv

How do you like to do your make-up in the Winter?

I like to do really fluttery lashes and a dark berry lip.

What are the first three things that remind you of Winter?

Hot Chocolate
Fire
Christmas

What is your favourite Winter song?

Christmas songs - no particular one. Just all of them!


Thank you so much for reading and I will so you very soon,
Love Lou.

Hey guys, today I am going to be sharing with you some tips for new bloggers. As I have been
blogging for nearly 6 months I have accumulated some knowledge about the world of blogging and I thought that you may find it helpful if I shared my knowledge with you. Hope you enjoy! xx

Use Google+

I have had a google+ since I started my blog and I have found it really helpful and it makes connecting with your audience a lot easier. It means that you can follow back the people who follow you and can hopefully discover some amazing new blogs. If you didn't know my google plus is Lou Loves 01 but click here to go straight to it.

Join Communities

I have found that joining communities on google plus drives more traffic to your blog and you find some really good blogs and discover blogs that you may have not discovered before

Connect On Social Media

This leads on from the last point and I like to connect to my followers on google+, Pinterest etc. By the way if you want me to get any other social media let me know in the comments. All my social media accounts are listed in the "Contact Me" page along the navbar.

Comment on other blogs

After you have found blogs on google+ etc make sure you go to their blog and leave a comment containing your URL so they can visit your blog in return. I found I get more traffic from blogs in my niche and on the same amount of followers.

Find your niche

When I first starting blogging I didn't know what a niche was never mind finding mine. For tose of you who don't know what a niche is it is what sort of post you upload e.g. Lifestyle, Beauty, Baking, Blogging, Fashion etc. After I established what a niche was I settled on beauty but I also loved baking so I occasionally throw an odd baking post in. Let me know in the comments if there is any baking posts you want me to do.

Post what YOU want

I have found this has effected me a lot and at one point I was just posting what I saw on other peoples blogs and they weren't really posts I enjoyed writing but know I make sure I enjoy writing each of my posts and I am not influenced buy the current blogging "trends". Blogging should be a hobby not a chore.

Plan posts

I make sure I plan posts before I write them - I make notes in a little note book. I find that then when it comes to writing posts it makes it a lot easier and I don't have to worry about what I am going to post as I plan months in advance (I am currently planning for mid-March)!!!

Get a regular posting schedule and time

This just makes sure readers know when you are uploading and know what time to come and check on your blog so for example I upload on Wednesday, Friday and Sunday at 5pm GMT.

Write posts in advance

This takes a lot of stress of the day when you upload the post, I used to panic if I don't have posts written and now I know most of the time I have my posts pre-written in my "POST BANK".

Don't expect millions of views

I didn't do this but I know a couple of people who have and all I can say about this is any view is a bonus.

Use your own photos and natural lighting

Honestly, it is not worth possibly losing your blog over a photo. You may as well take a few moments to take a photo and if you can always use natural lighting as it improves the quality of the photo. Try taking the photos in front of a glass door or window.

Thank you so much for reading and I hope this has helped you,
Love Lou
xxxxxxxx

If you have any other tips please leave them in the comments below.

Hey guys, today is a long awaited post from me and I think now is the right time to post this. Today I am going to be sharing with you my blogging story. I hope you enjoy. xx

I started my blog on 27th August 2015. It was a Thursday if I remember correctly and I had been thinking about creating a blog for a while but that afternoon I got my laptop out and typed "blogger" into the google search and "Lou Loves" was created. On my first day blogging I had 5 pageviews and they were all from the UK.

A week or so later, I hit 100 pageviews and I sat and nearly cried. This was a huge achievement for me and I honestly didn't expect my blog to grow anymore than it had. But to my surprise I hit 200 the week after and this honestly shocked me - if you think about it 200 views is still quite a few views. Over the following weeks my blog began to grow and grow. By this point I think I had 3 Google+ followers and I honestly couldn't believe that people were actually interested in what I was writing.

The next milestone in my blog timeline was when I hit 1000 views this completely blew my mind at what I had achieved over the 3 months I had been blogging. On that night I think I got into bed and thought about how many views that was and my mind was blown. Then my blog grew by the 100's and now I am only a few views off 3000 views which is absolutely insane.

Around my 4 month blogging I was approached by a company who wanted to advertise on my blog. When the e-mail came through I was shocked but also a little sceptical as to whether it was 100% legitimate. It turns out the company was but the advertising did not actually go ahead.

The most recent milestone I hit was 15 followers on my Google+. To many other bloggers this is nothing but to me this is the absolute world. To actually think that people are interested in me and want to read my content really surprises me.

Currently, I have 16 followers, nearly 3000 views, Ads on my blog through AdSense and a hugely supportive group of friends (I don't want to call you fans). You guys honestly shock me every single day and I couldn't ask for a nicer group of people. I just wanted to take this tame to tell you all how much you mean to me and I am really thankful for every single one of you.

Thank you so much for reading and your continual support over the nearly 6 months I have been blogging! Time flies when your having fun!

Love Lou,
xxxxx

I would love it if you could create a "My Blogging Story" as well and leave it to me as a link in the comments and I will be sure to check it out.

Hey guys today I am going to be sharing with you all the bits I have from Tanya Burr Cosmetics. I hope you enjoy. xxx

Original Collection (No Longer Sold)

I have 2 products from the original collection and I got these when Tanya Burr Cosmetics are originally released.

I have the lipgloss in First Date. This is a pink shade and I can be built up to a more pigmented shade or just lightly applied for a little wash of colour. The packaging of this (is different to packaging now) is clear on the body which is helpful because you can see how much (or little) you have left. Then it is black trimmed and had a black cap. It has a classic lipgloss wand (foam applicator). All of the lipglosses are really affordable but I cannot find the price for you because it is obviously no longer sold in superdrug. However, I did see this shade on Amazon but I didn't know if it was 100% legitimate but it may have been.

I then have the nail varnish in bright and early which is a really summery bright coral which looks great with a tan. Although this is not sold there is many good brands who sell this type of coral e.g. Kiko or Barry M.

I also have the lipgloss in aurora which is pretty similar to First Date but this is a bit of a darker pink shade. This isn't as pigmented as the other so you do need to build up the colour a little bit more but it is still really pigmented.

New Collection (still sold at time of writing)

I also have 1 product from this collection and I got it a couple of months after the new collection and packaging was released.

I got the Hollywood eye palette which I think is probably one of the most popular products Tanya sells. It contains 4 super pigmented nude shades which last really well but last longer with a primer. The 4 shades are Nude Delight (a creamy shade and a nice base), Gold Coin (a shimmery light gold), Enchantment (a really sparkly copper brown) and Bookworm (a dark brown). I have been using the shades for over half a year now and none of them have hit pan.

Christmas Collection

I have 2 products in this collection and they came in a set (Candy Cane).

The Candy Cane set came with the lipgloss and a nail varnish. The lipgloss came in the shade Cotton Cane and this is a clear/pink shade which looks great over a nude lipstick. The nail varnish is Be Bright, Be Happy, Be You. This is a purple/pink/plum shade. This would be really great all year round.

Thanks for reading,
Love Lou
xx

Hey guys, I can't believe it's February all ready!! It only seems like 2 minutes since I was writing my 2015 favourites! Anyway, today I am going to share with you which bits I loved through out January, I hope you enjoy. xx P.S. Thank you so much for all your support through out January!

Beauty

The first thing I have been absolutely loving is L'Oreal La Palette Nude in Beige. I got this for Christmas and I have to say it is one of the best palettes I have. The shades are really pigmented and creamy - they also last all day. It is a drugstore palette but it is slightly on the pricey side for drugstore palettes (£14.99). I did a full review of this palette so if you want to find out more click here.

The next thing I have loved in January is Natural Collection Moisture Shine Lipstick in Pink Mallow(£1.99). This lipstick is really affordable (all Natural Collection products are affordable) and it is a gorgeous pinky nude so it would be perfect for school or maybe work. It is matte and doesn't have any glitter in it. I would say that I necessarily agree with it being moisturising but I find it sits better if it has a balm underneath it.

I have also been loving the Nivea Moisturising Day Cream. This is a really moisturising day cream but it sits really lightly on the skin and you can't tell it's there. It is designed for people with dry/sensitive skin (like my own) and it has in it Natural Almond Oil and Hyrda IQ. It would also be helpful in summer as it has SPF 15 in it. This is also quite affordable as it is £3.99 for a 50ml bottle.

A hand cream I have been loving is the Zoella Beauty Wonder Hand. I mention this hand cream a lot but only because it is so good! It is in the Original Zoella Beauty collection scent (floral and fresh). Also, it has the prettiest packaging (on the box and on the actual tube) and it looks really nice on dressing tables as it gives a pop of colour as it is quite brightly packaged.

Bath/Shower

A bath product that I enjoyed through out January is Lush Peeping Santa. This was obviously in the Christmas range at Lush and I was designed to look a bit like a strawberry but also like a santa hat. It was a red bubble bar with white "cream" in the middle and I wasn't exactly sure what to do with the cream so I just crumbled it in with the rest of the bubble bar and it made the bath really moisturising.

Fragrance

Through out January I was obsessed with using the Hollister Pure Cali perfume. I am really bad at describing scents but this is quite a florally scent but it is also quite fruity. This was reasonably priced for a perfume and I think it would be suitable for any age really. I haven't really got else to say about his except it is really nicely scented and lasts all day.

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