Farewell..

Whilst the title probably sounds pretty dramatic, I am actually pretty damn sad to be leaving my college after spending two amazing years there. Obviously it wasn't a smooth road the entire way but looking back, all I can think of are the fun memories made with my friends, funny classroom moments and all around good times spent during our free blocks. 

College has probably been the best two years of my life so far in terms of meeting lots of amazing people, building friendships for life but also starting to mature, grow up and becoming more independent. I absolutely hated my five years of high school and I think this is is why I enjoyed being at college so much - it was a fresh new start and it was very different to school. 

During the past two years I have made some awesome friends doing some crazy things along the way (Chilli challenge, standing in open, moving lifts (lol Tayyibah) and my college experience wouldn't have been the same way without these lovely peeps. 

It's crazy to think that we will all be parting ways, going off to live and build our own lives. Life is one crazy adventure!

Here are some of my friends whom mean a lot to me!
It makes me sad that that I won't be seeing them much next year but that's life for you!

My cute friend Sana and I. 

Myself and the lovely Faisa

Having fun in the park trying Tayyibah's selfie stick! 

Good luck to everyone - for exams and for what the future holds! 

Maryam

The Daily Look.

I've been homebound for the past couple days, stuck in my PJ's, ill and generally feeling like complete and utter crap! So to get myself past this feeling i've put my daily face on, photographed it and uploaded it to the internet in the hope that I will feel better about myself!

This a rough guide of my go to look everyday. Some steps I miss out and sometimes I put on a little extra but this is the basics. 

FACE:

Now, my skin has been in pretty good recently and I'm putting this down to my diet - I've cut out a lot of sugar and the veggies and overall healthier diet has really helped to clear my skin. The only problem is the black bags under my eyes!

The only concealer I own, my trusty, heavy duty Nars Radiant Creamy concealer is a daily MUST! It brightens and helps my face look that much less exhausted. I'm in the shade Custard. 

If I can be bothered I will slap on some bronzer or blusher but most days I just reach for highlighter. I love me a good highlighter and I normally use the lightest part of this Kevyn Aucoin Tropical Daze Warm Bronze. 

EYES:

I cannot go a day without my signature winged eyeliner look. If I've gone a day without it, it's probably a very, very, bad day. If the wings are on point it's a great day! 

I use whatever I can find to draw on my liner, my makeup is such a mess at the moment, so today I reached for the Barry M liquid eyeliner. This stuff is pretty good, affordable and the applicator makes it easy to create a good line. 

I always get a lot of compliments whenever I wear this mascara. The Tarte Amazonian Clay Mascara is my holy grail. It lengthens, volumises and separates all without looking spidery and fake (sorry if you like that look, it's just not for me)

LIPS:

My go to colour recently has been purple-y brown lipsticks. My favourite at the moment is MAC's Creme in Your Coffee but I couldn't fish it out of my collection (told you it was a mess). So instead I grabbed MAC's Capricious which is VERY similar in colour. Capricious is a Lustre formula so it is more balmy and moisturising than Creme In Your Coffee but the lasting power isn't as great as the latter. 

I took about a hundred pictures of my face and these 3 came out the best... Kind awkward because I was lying down, but this is how I managed to get the best lighting! XD

I hope you're all having a great day. I'm currently binge watching season 5 of Pretty Little Liars. I'm calling it 'research' though, seeing as I will be writing about it in my Media exam in less than a month.. 

: )

Maryam 

Product pictures taken with: Canon 700D 50mm lens

Face shots taken with Canon 700D 18-55 mm lens(Standard lens)

April Favourites

The past few months seem to have flown by and the end of college is near (3 weeks left!). It  really is crazy how time flies by and with each month that goes past I go back and ponder over the makeup items, accessories and random bits that I've been obsessing over. 

I've been in a makeup rut recently, going for the same makeup nearly everyday (let me know if you would like an everyday makeup post). To create my signature winged eyeliner I keep going back to this liner which I mentioned in my last post. It's the Etude House Brush Liner - Black. In my last post I mentioned I wasn't entirely impressed & it still isn't my favourite in the world but here's a few reasons why it's still pretty good:

• The felt tip applicator makes it really nice to work with, it really helps to achieve a nice wing. 
• I usually prefer my eyeliner a bit more intense than this but it still isn't too bad
• Lasts all day
• Easy to wash off

However saying this, you do have to keep shaking it to get the colour pay off which is a little annoying. You can get this from beautynetkorea. 

Would I repurchase?

No. I do enjoy using it but I much prefer Soap and Glory's felt tip liner which I defo need to repurchase. 

This is another product I mentioned in my last post and it's the Peripera Ah! Much Real My Cushion Blusher in the shade 01 Pleased Pink. I've actually fallen in love! This is a perfect baby pink colour that applies like a moisturiser and lasts ALL day! Which is amazing especially for a liquid product. Love this stuff. I would definitely repurchase but in a different colour. 

My accessory favourite this month is this bad boy from Zara. I can't stop staring at it! Everything I could ask for in a bag - deep burgundy red, studs, fringing, perfect size to fit in a lot of crap! My lovely mum surprised me with this about a month ago and I was finally able to take it on its first outing to London yesterday. The only slightly odd thing is the fasteners - they are a little stiff so it's hard to close completely so you just have to keep it safe and extra close to you when walking the streets! 

Lastly this phone case! Just look at it! The brand is Skinny Dip and my mum got them from Topshop. I've got the silver glitter case to match my grey iPhone and my mum has the pink glitter case to match her gold iPhone. It's very unqiue, the glitter moves up and down, you can sit, play and stare for hours! 

My friends also seem to be besotted by it! XD

I hope everyone had a nice Bank Holiday weekend, back to the daily grind for us all..

Thanks for reading : )

Maryam 

Korean Beauty Haul + First Impressions!

Hey everyone! It feels so good to be blogging again after ages.. I won't bore you in to why I had a little (long) break but I was just waiting for my post to come through so I could share these things with you. I've had a little obsession with Asian cosmetics ever since my mum introduced them to me a few years back and I never thought that they would be accessible here in the UK. But I stumbled across beautynetkorea.com and I have to say I am very impressed by their shipping (it was free and only took a week or less to arrive!). So if you are looking for some Asian cosmetics check it out! They have loads of brands and they aren't too expensive either. 

Peripera Ah! Much Real My Cushion Blusher in the shade 01 Pleased Pink

First of all, how cute is that name? Ha! Secondly how adorable is the packaging, I'm in love. It comes with a sponge applicator which is SO soft, you have to squeeze the bottle to dispense the product. The actual colour is a very soft, light, baby pink and it is super pretty. The consistency is like a moisturiser! It applies nicely (I just used my fingers) however I did find that this is better off if you have paler skin but I just layered it up a bit and the result was a gorgeous and natural pink - perfect for this time of year! 

Its Skin Babyface Petit Blusher - Lovely Pink. 

This is THE cutest thing ever! *insert heart emoji face*

It comes with a little powder puff that fits in perfectly making it a cute little compact to throw in your makeup bag or perfect for travelling. The actual colour when watched was a lot more lilac in tone if you can tell from the picture. The texture seems slightly chalky but I am yet to try it with the powder puff so you should see that in a FOTD soon! :)

Etude House Brush Liner - Black 

The packaging is pretty cool but the product itself is a little disappointing.. I had high hopes for the this liner. I love the application, it's so easy to apply but the only let down is the colour is not very intense, it comes out as a washed out black.  But something like Soap and Glory's felt tip liner is far better in my opinion. 

Bbi Last Auto Gel Eyeliner in '02 Mellow Brown' and '55 50's'. 

Another two products to rave about are these liners. My first impressions are pretty pleasing - both colours are gorgeous - a deep, warm brown with gold shimmer running through and a dark khaki green with gold shimmer too. The camera does not pick up how stunning they are! Consistency is very smooth just like the Urban Decay pencils, maybe even softer. Unfortunately I can't comment on the longevity just yet but I'm sure they will be mentioned very soon! 

I also like how they are twist up pencils so no sharpening required! 

Eco Soul Kis Button Lips Matte 

Lastly we have this super gorgeous deep red matte lip stick! I'm really impressed with this so far. The packaging feels nice and to access more product you have to press the little 'thing' at the bottom. I couldn't tell what this would look like online, but in real life it is a gorgeous deep red - not bright but a perfect, classy evening red. My swatch here doesn't do it much justice because it looks so much better on my lips! The matte finish is nice and surprisingly it feels very moisturising - not your usual matte lipstick dry texture! 

They also very kindly sent me lots of samples to try which I'm excited about and I've also got the Skinfood Black Sugar Mask too, but I've tried it and loved it before so I didn't mention that here but I can't wait to use it tonight! 

Also, I have made an Instagram account especially for my blog and YouTube so if you would like to follow me there it is @NoonsWrites www.instagram.com/noonswrites

Thank you for reading!

Maryam..

The Thoughts of an Introvert #1: Appearances

I've been spending a lot of time by myself recently and being an introvert it is something I enjoy. It is so easy to get lost in thought and I have been thinking about a lot of things recently. So I will be doing a series here on NoonsWrites about my thoughts - the thoughts, ideas and views of an introvert. Maybe you can relate, maybe you can't. But it will give you an insight into the way I think and how I view the world. 

The other day, I was on the train with my mother sitting opposite me. I looked at her for a while and began to think about appearances. As people we have the power to mask our sadness (or any other emotion) and we step into the outside world with a smile escaping the intensity of the happenings in the private sphere. When unfortunate things happen I always feel like I need to get away, I need a break from being in the same space. My mind craves refreshment and this is what I often seek when I am feeling low. Refreshment. It varies from the a sudden burst of energy and wanting to be outside of home to being alone watching my favourite TV shows (The Originals, Gotham, Arrow and The Flash if you are wondering) cuddled up in my bed. 

This got me thinking about other people. I am always surrounded by new people - whether that be at college, on the streets of my city or in the shopping centre etc. I know nothing about these people around me. I know what they look like and I am quick to judge in terms of appearance or the way they carry themselves. And I know a lot of us do this because it is so easy for us to judge based upon the way people carry themselves in the public eye. 

Everybody has a different story to tell, our life experiences are different. Everyone goes through hardships whether they are minor or major because life is simply not fair. My point here, is to recognise the ways in which we present ourselves to the public sphere. It's easy to pick up a concealer and hide the puffiness around your eyes from the night you spent crying your eyes out, it's easy to fake a smile and show the world that you are ok. It is easy to put on a decent outfit and show the world that you are put together when in fact you are in pieces, struggling to juggle life's hardships.
 Everybody has a story and not everyone chooses to share theirs, some prefer to express whilst others prefer to suppress their emotions and bury them away. But these are natural reactions and as humans it is our job to realise this before we judge and interpret a person when we know nothing of them, their life, their story, their experiences etc. 

We all seek comfort in different ways. We all show our emotions in different ways. We react to situations in different ways. We are humans. We are unique. We are amazing and powerful beings with the ability to hurt, endanger and create havoc but also to help, create, empower, change, inspire and much much more. We needed to be reminded of this more often..  

This is mainly a reminder to myself but before we are quick to judge others, think. What has this person gone through, why do they carry themselves in such a manner? There is a reason behind everything & I think we should understand this before misinterpreting. 

To conclude I would like to address this photo I quickly put together on photoshop.
The moon represents difficulties because most of the time it is the night when I am feeling down but I also rejoice in the beauty of its presence and the stars in the sky. Although I do not like the dark I appreciate the stars and the beautiful night sky.  The eye represents looking at life in a different angle, to look for the happiness even if it is the little things. I love the sunshine and it's warmth brings an instant lift in mood and the picture of myself just brings back happy memories of Summer time.

If you read this all, I would like to thank you. I would love to hear what your views are so please leave me a comment. Sorry if this was a bit all over the place, this is my first in the series but if you enjoyed reading please let me know and I will continue to write about what else goes on in this head of mine!

Maryam

My 3 Product Face Look!

Hi guys, sorry for the absence! I'm back and hopefully want to improve the content on here.

I thought I would get back in to blogging with a simple post and share a makeup look that I have been sporting the past couple days. 

With extremely cold mornings I always want to prolong my time in bed which means I have less time to get ready. So I've been gravitating towards three products that are easy to slap on within 5 minutes! 

The first is Nars Tinted Moisturiser, if you read my blog / watch my videos you are probably sick of me mentioning this but this is my holy grail base product! It's lightweight, provides sheer coverage and gives a gorgeous glow to the skin. If you prefer heavier coverage or have oilier skin you might want to avoid this unless you powder throughout the day. 

I use the shade Alaska and it is a perfect match for my skin. 

The next is the Tarte Gifted Amazonian Clay Smart Mascara. I got this as a birthday gift and I enjoy using it. Not my favourite mascara but it's still lengthening and separates the lashes nicely. I like combining this with my Urban Decay Perversion Mascara as this provides lots of volume so they go well together!

Lastly is Mac's matte lipstick in Taupe. I really love this. It's a perfect everyday nude colour especially for Asian skin tones! I like the contrast of glory skin with a matte lip. The lipstick is also really long wearing so I only have to touch it up once while I'm at college. 

 

A closer look at the mascara....

Sorry about the awkward hat (H&M) and headband (ZARA) combination.. I could not be bothered to put a scarf on so I chucked these on hoping they would look somewhat decent! How pretty is the headband though! I picked it up a couple of weeks ago from the Zara sale for £8!

Thanks for reading, hopefully you will hear from me very soon! 

Maryam 

Happy New Year!

Hey everyone!

Well I have a bit of explaining to do! I was doing so well with the blogging everyday but then I had a 'creative block' and felt like I was producing content that wasn't good enough! 
Since the last time I blogged a few things have happened:

- I turned 18! My birthday was on the 18th of December, it was an amazing day full of surprises and gifts with my amazing friends and family! My mum, dad, brother and friends were amazingly kind and spoilt me with gifts and lots of chocolate! (I need to stop using the word amazing!)

- The New Year has begun! Today is the first day of January so time for me to try and better myself! This year I thought I wouldn't have any resolutions but now that I'm sitting down and thinking about it I think it's good to have a few goals, because seriously what better time to start? Fresh new year, fresh new start!  So here are a few things I want to do this year:

• I want to be happy with myself: As narcissistic as this sounds but I want to love myself more. My mind is a dangerous place & I am constantly putting myself down, telling myself I'm not good enough... Hating my body, hating everything about it and being drowned by my self consciousness and paranoia about my appearance. A lot of people don't know this about me because I put myself and images of myself on the internet but there have been countless times I have wanted to delete all of my social media and quit blogging and youtubing. And this leads me to my second point
• Get healthier: This is probably the most generic resolution of all time, but it is a serious matter. I've struggled with my weight for many years now and I feel like I have to do something about it now. I don't want to go in to my 20's still overweight and depressed. 
• Start university happy and healthy: By the time I leave home I want to be a completely different person. I want to leave behind the unhappy overweight person that I have been for the past 7 years and I want to be confident in myself. I have become a little more independent recently but if I combine it with health and happiness, ultimately I will be content this way
• Become emotionally stronger: 2014 has had its ups and downs and sometimes I felt like I didn't react well in certain situations so I think it's time to cry less, buckle up and strengthen myself inside. 

There are a few other little things like being more organised but hey ho, we can't always be perfect. We are human after all and establishing everything is not always possible. Just striving to be the best we can be is good enough!