February 2015 - Channel Malia - personal growth to live consciously

If you've been reading me for a while you will know how I am about beauty hypes. I just never succumb and when I do I'm the last one to have jumped on the bandwagon. I'm a very skeptical creature and one that does not like to follow the crowd. It can get uncomfortable sometimes, but I have learnt that the best things happen when you attempt to go it alone.

I've collated eight drugstore make up must haves. Half of them are actually influenced by beauty hypes that I've only recently fallen for and the other half discovered by myself browsing the drugstore. I have to say that I am quite proud of my findings and I'm glad I waited this long. In today's post you'll see the four products that are relatively new or have not received the limelight they deserve. Don't miss next week's post where I will be talking about the best of the hyped products!

Left Clockwise: Collection Lip Pencil - 4 Pink, MUA Peel Off Polish, Collection Eyebrow Kit, Collection Fast Stroke Eyeliner

I'm excited to bring you the must-haves that haven't been talked about so much and which I think really should be because they are pretty awesome. Starting with the Collection Work The Colour Eyebrow Kit. Now, I haven't been too keen on the other products in their Work The Colour range but this is truly a gem of a product. I've been through various brow gels and powders that are either too overpowering even with a light hand or just do nothing. I am the girl who ends up lazily applying dark brown eyeshadow to my brows but this nifty product has been a joy to use.

Collection Work The Colour Eyebrow Kit comes with brow brushes

I use the angled side of the brush to fill in the outline and edges of my brows using the medium brown and then the other side to fill in areas I want to go darker with. This way I have full control over how much product goes on. Then, push back the stray hairs with the clear gel. This is a great product for those starting out with their brows or a perfectionist like me.

Swatched

Next up is an eyeliner that I've overlooked time and time again for a slightly pricier option like the Benefit Push Up Liner and my usual Bourjois Felt-tip Liner. I like an easy liner and thought that the Collection Fast Stroke Eyeliner would be a cheaper way to experiment my hand with liquid liner and oh boy was I impressed. The not so thin and slightly stiff applicator makes a shaky hand's application a breeze. I will be sticking to this for when I'm wearing dramatic eyeshadow.

Swatches show three strikes of one coat

Did anyone know that Collection also have neglected lip liners? There's only a few in the range but I was prompted to try this as Superdrug were doing 3 for 2 across selected Collection cosmetics, grab the deal here.

As lip liners go, this is surprisingly moisturising and very pigmented without compromising moisture. The colour melts onto your lips easily and has beautiful bright pink staying power. I love using lip liners as lipstick and this makes a perfect all day wear.

MUA Peel Off Polish Basecoat is perfect for glitter nail polish

Need I say why this is amazing? We all know how stubborn glitter nail polish is during removal but this product makes the whole removal process as easy as peeling a banana. It's simply what it states, it's a peel off polish. I still can't believe it hasn't made beauty bloggers' faves yet. My good old nail art tutorials are making a comeback in your Bloglovin' feed soon!

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Mulberry, Dior and Tiffany&Co, are labels really everything?

I've shelled out on my fair share of shoes, bags and more shoes all in the name of 'but it's an investment' only to have only worn said investment once or never and that once was in my back garden feeling fabulous. In recent years I've been good with my money, okay okay not with my money, but with buying wisely. So good in fact that I buy wisely a bit too much.

With that being said, an investment piece does not always come in the form of a bag, coat, dress or shoes either. Who said they had to be staple items? They don't come in blacks, greys, navys and nudes either. They also don't have to break the bank!

Comfort & Confidence

This comes before anything else and the two that distinguish whether I wear the piece often. Try it on, dance in it. Think about the events you will wear it to and whether it capsules with the rest of your wardrobe. For example, bright blue shoes will be no good if you don't already have a few outfits that will go with it. Do you keep tugging at the hem? Pulling the neckline up so too much cleavage isn't showing? Do you have to breathe in and squeeze into it? If you answered 'yes' to any of those, then no, you're neither comfortable nor confident in it.

Durability

Price does not determine durability. Surely, the higher the price the better the quality? Same goes with established brands. I've had £109.99 DKNY shoes that did not stand a chance against my humble £45 Clarks wedges. With that being said, brand does not also mean quality. Sure Clarks have been around for hundreds of years as well as other household names but even they can slip up on quality. Feel around the garment, check shoe or bag clasps. Will it outlive snagging and tugs? If the care label has further maintenance information, can you take care of it?

Thickness and heaviness does not constitute to durability. I cringe at fashion bloggers and vloggers who justify spending a lot of money on a blouse because it is made out of really thick polyester. I've owned delicate fabrics that have stood the test of time.

Short Term Passion or Marriage?

A short term passion? Well that's either one wear or nothing at all. So how do I determine whether there will be wedding bells? Think about whether cheaper alternatives fit the bill or whether you could do without it. Leave the shop. Sleep on it. I've often found myself dreaming about the dress I left behind two days ago and that's sure sign of love.

I have made it a shopping challenge to only buy clothes that make me go 'wow'. I have adopted this method so well that I'm very hard to please. I now find myself dreaming up styles and cuts that don't even exist, browsing niche fashion sites or design my own clothes!

You've only married the item when you're convinced you will never find anything as beautiful, figure loving and comfortable. Sounds like a perfect husband to me. I still have a pair jeans I can't let go of since I was 16 (22 now) because after every wash they come out like brand new jeans. I've never found anything quite like it since. By the way, they were New Look and cost me only £22.99.

Price Per Wear

Price-per-wear doesn't count for much to me personally but it is definitely something you could use to determine whether it's worth spending a lot of money on an item. Price per wear is a widely used fashion jargon to determine whether you have worn your money's worth out of the item. Say you bought a £100 dress and you wore it five times. That's £20 per wear. For me personally, it's a rocky marriage.

Wishlists aren't just for Christmas!

Add the items you're lusting after to a wishlist, or snap a photo at the store. A month later you will find you no longer want them. I use The Greedy Book, it's a perfect way to have everything you love all in one place and you can even buy direct from the site. You can also install it to your browser bookmark so that whenever you're feeling greedy you can add the product to your greedy book with one simple click. Share your wishlists with friends and family so they know what to get you for birthdays.

What are some of your favourite investment pieces?

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10 January marked one year of video making fun. Why did I put myself on the internet? Candid blogging is one thing, but videos too? Letting strangers into recesses of my bedroom, my things, my thoughts. Here are nine things I wish I knew before I started.

Be open

I've learnt to be open and let my viewers in. This is how you build a community and people will love to watch you. We love hearing other people's stories.

Editing. Editing. Editing.

All you need to learn to do is cut clips and put them together and there are so many tutorials online on this. Take your time. Cameras, sound effects and lighting may at first seem overwhelming but within weeks you'll be surprised about what you can learn.

Find your niche

My channel begun as a fashion channel but now it's taken a different direction into personal growth, intentional living and minimalism. Don't go in with a genre-specific username unless you're very sure you will keep to that genre. Your name becomes your brand and what people remember you by. If your username is MaliaMusic people will associate you with music.

You don't need a Mac

You can't scroll past an Instagram photo without an apple product being decorated in a flat lay. You don't need to shell out on a £1000 laptop just for its editing software. I know people who use Windows Movie Maker and have a successful YouTube channel.

It's not about how you look

I never click back to my older videos, even some recent ones because a) I hate listening to the sound of my own voice b) I will criticise and pick at myself non-stop. How I look, what I'm wearing. There have been times, and still are times when I log into YouTube determined to take a particular video down and get distracted by the notification bar with a new comment.

You Don't Have to Tell Anyone

I worry about what people think of me often, yes this is coming from a blogger who voluntarily chooses to put her life online. I worried more so what my friends and family would think bu as soon as I started I couldn't wait to share my videos with everyone.

It's Not That Hard

It really isn't. Your first video will be hard. Awkward to be accurate, but it gets easier. You soon find your own rhythm.

I hope this post has helped some of you who are thinking of starting your own channel. You can visit my channel here.

Have no expectations

I dived into YouTube with hopes, expectations, excitement and fears. I expected certain videos to drive a lot of views while others I thought nothing of. Every single one of my expectations were turned around. You just never know what people will love. I know it's hard not to overthink, but upload your first video with the least amount of expectations and presumptions.

You don't need an expensive camera

Practise talking to the camera and watch yourself back a few times. Use your phone or laptop, don't invest in anything expensive as YouTube may end up not being your thing.