Getting back on track, cakes, life updates and sorts

Hello everyone!

So I definitely haven't blogged for about a month. Which is quite unforgivable really. The only excuse I have is that I had such a busy July! I've also been quite down and not felt up to writing some days, but I feel a bit better now. 

Apologies if you're not in the UK, I'm sure you've been reading it everywhere, but WOW has it been hot! I am a sun LOVER, so have definitely been in my element in this heat! I blogged about our first BBQ of the year a few weeks ago, before the sunny weather had really picked up, and since then, I've lost count of how many BBQ's I've eaten. I just love sitting out on the swing chair, cider in hand, with the food flaming away nicely! That was until the bbq caught fire. We haven't had one since. You can imagine my devastation I'm sure. Haha.

I've attended a friends leaving party (off to work at Universal Singapore for 13 months!) my best friends 21st birthday, getting my cakes back on track, work work work, gym gym gym, and sorting out somewhere to live for when I move away for work in October! I just don't know where July went. 

I've taken a ton of photos this month but as they'd be highly out of context now, I don't feel like posting a backlog of pictures, but I thought I'd share with you some examples of the cake pops I've been baking. They are too yummy, (if I do say so myself!) I need to update my cake page on fb, which you can find at the link above if you're interested. 

So, I'm back, and I'm setting myself a challenge to post a picture of something every day. I am yet to decide on the theme....I've got a few hours yet...hmmm....any ideas would be good! 

Ooh, and check back in a few minutes because I HAVE to share with you the amazing sandals I treated myself to! 

Over and out for now, 

Sammy xo

I'm still here..Back properly soon, promise!

Hi everyone, 

Just a post to say that I'll be back shortly. I've had such a crazy week that I haven't had a chance to post anything, but hopefully I'll be able to get down to it tomorrow. I've got lots to share with you!

Hope you've all been enjoying this amazing sunny spell!

Sammy xo

L'Oreal Volume Million Lashes // Hair and Beauty

Hello lovely people!

So last month I briefly reviewed Rimmels new ScandalEyes Flex mascara here, which on first use I thought was pretty good, but after further use, I've decided isn't my new 'go-to' mascara. It goes on easily, and doesn't clump, but I feel like it never actually dries! I hate mascara that goes crispy, however, this mascara has no chance of that; it remains really easily smudgeable (is that a word?) but for some reason is still really difficult to remove! I really needed something different, because as far as I know, Panda Eyes aren't in this season, so headed to Boots today to find something new. When I got there, I found that they are currently offering 2 for 1 across all beauty products, and 2 for 1 on all hair products, score! 

L'oreal Volume Million Lashes Excess 

After some serious deliberation, (I'm not joking, I really couldn't decide what I wanted!) I went for the L'oreal Volume Million Lashes Excess waterproof mascara. It has an anti-clump wiper which is great; it prevents any excess on the brush, and shouldn't clump. I wasn't blessed with long luscious lashes (tounge twister alert, sorry!) so I always look for a volumizing mascara to better what I've got! As it has Volume in the title, I'm hoping I'll be onto a winner here. I tried it on one eye when I got home, and can confirm that it is not overly crispy, but has dried nicely and doesn't seem to be easily smudgeable. It also has nicely separated my lashes, which again, is a good feature. I wouldn't say it creates a particularly dramatic effect that you might like to accompany a smoky eye, but really I think it makes for a good multi-use mascara. 

Seventeen High Drama Liquid Eyeliner 

I normally go for Collection 2000's liquid eyeliner. It does exactly what you need, and is great value for money, but for some crazy reason the Boots I went to did not have a Collection 2000 stand! I chose Boots '17' Liquid Eyeliner which was only £3.99. They offered another liquid eyeliner which had a Wet Look finish, but I didn't think that was really the look I was after, however if you wanted to find a Wet Look eyeliner, that could be one to try! The High Drama eyeliner has a pen-tip for easy application, and comes in 5 different shades. Pretty standard, and should do the job nicely! 

Schwarzkopf Got 2 B Glued Blasting Freeze Hairspray

This is my FAVOURITE hairspray of all time. It absolutely does freeze your hairstyle, and makes your hair stay put. You only need a minimal amount too, because it's so strong! If you use too much, it doesn't brush out particularly nicely, but if you don't go overboard, it's fine. It also has a nice smell, which I think is an important deciding factor for hairspray! Spraying essence of bug all over myself is not what I have in mind when finishing off my look. 

Also, I do love Elnett hairspray. That and this one are the ones I'd recommend. And I've tried amd tested a LOT of hairstyles in my time.

Botanics Intensely Hydrating Shampoo

I was very pleased to discover the 2-4-1 offer on haircare; I have to be really specific because of my hair extensions and can only use Shampoos that are Sulphate free, so with Boots' big range of haircare products, I was sure I'd find one that I could use. You'd be surprised at how hard it is to find a shampoo that is sulphate free! There are benefits for using a sulphate free shampoo even if you don't have extensions, and especially if you have curly hair. The sulphate in shampoos is a drying ingredient, and shampoos without it are designed to keep moisture in your hair. So, obviously not a good choice for anyone who has oily or greasy hair. But great if you have naturally curly or dry hair. I like the Boots' Botanics skin care range, so thought I'd give the shampoo a try. It has a really nice floral scent, and I'm looking forward to trying it out on my hair! 

What are your favourite mascaras? Is there one you think I should try out? I'd love to know if there is!

Sammy xo

Fit Man of Steel! Wow..

Hello everybody! 

Now, for those of you who don't know who Henry Cavill is, go to the cinema and see Man of Steel right now. You get to stare at this face (and body, do not forget the body) for a whole two hours. 

Now, don't get me wrong, I love Rob and everything, but if I ever met Henry, I would definitely blush, go very unnecessarily giggly, and/or weak at the knees. Maybe try and throw myself at him...Don't try and tell me you wouldn't, because I definitely wouldn't believe you. 

It's a good film (if you can drag your eyes away from Henry whenever he's on screen). A lot of action and fight scenes. Maybe too many in my opinion, but obviously, the above makes up for that...

I don't remember the original Superman, or know masses about it, so I thought the storyline was great, and I quite enjoyed it, but Rob -who knows a lot more about Superman than me- felt that there were certain elements missing. But if you want to see a good sci-fi action film, (with some serious eye-candy) then this is a good one to see. 

I can't stop scrolling up to have another look at the picture, oh my, get a grip Sammy!

In other news, it's Wednesday evening, which means we're closer to Friday than we were this morning. Yay! I've had a bit of the mid-week blues today. Both of my best friends are working away for 4 months, so I'm pretty lonely, and it hit me a bit more than normal today. But I've got a busy weekend ahead, so I'm looking forward to that. Unlike most people, my weekdays are pretty empty, but my weekends are extra busy!

Cheer me up, tell me who your celebrity crushes are! (Other than Henry 'fittest man of steel' Cavill of course!) ;) 

Sammy xo

Happy 2nd July! // Minnie Mouse Nails

Afternoon all!
As you may have noticed, I've changed the url of my blog, and the header. When I started my blog, I didn't really know what I wanted to name it, so everything I had to name was something different. I'm not sure what made me choose Just Freckles either, (apart from the fact that I have a lot of freckles :]) but I think I'm happy with it! So re-welcome to my blog, Just Freckles!
Also, pinch punch, flick and a kick and all of that for the 1st of July. I am aware that it was yesterday, but I missed it. So, a belated, yay it's July! Bring on summer! To you all.
I attempted some sort of fancy nail art today, Minnie Mouse inspired. I have shaky hands for some reason, and can't seem to do my nails neatly, especially when I'm trying to do my right hand with my left! But I gave it my best shot.

There we go! I used a Nude Barry M nail varnish for the base colour, a no. 17 Red for the tips (which took me a long time to get straight. Anyone have any hints on how to make that easier?) and some nail art pens for the bows and polka dots, that I bought from eBay. They've got a thin brush, and a nib top for more precise detail. They are pretty adventurous for me but I'm pleased with them! The only other thing I can do is leopard print. I attempted some zebra-like stripes the other day, but it just looked like I'd had an accident with the black pen...

Does anyone else like to experiment with their nails? If anyone has any tips and tricks for me to try, I'd love to hear!

Sammy xo



Follow my blog with Bloglovin!