Easy DIY Canvas & Framed Quotes

Hey everyone,

Thanks for tuning back in, I think this little project may have given me my mo-jo back. Life just gets hectic doesn't it!? Anyways, back with a fun really easy project to help you decorate your own space. I wanted to spruce up my little bloggy room a tad until I have the funds to get a few furniture and decor bits I've had my eye on. Such an inexpensive way to make any small space feel a little more fab. Below I have put pictures of how I did these cute quotes step by step. Let me know if you try it out yourself and if you enjoy these types of videos. 

1. Supplies: 

So all you need is some canvas and picture frames you like and then some tape or glue to do the crafty bit. I used A4 size for the canvas to keep it simple but if you are willing to get larger quotes or designs printed somewhere then you might want a bigger size. I got this in Dealz so it was only €1.50, have a look in your local pound shop in the crafts section for these. I had the small white frames already and they went perfectly with the room so definitely search through your old frames, there's bound to be one you can re-use or refurbish!

2. Find your Quote/Design:

This part is fun, I really enjoyed looking at all the different ideas out there for framed quotes and office decor. I just searched quotes on Google but Pinterest is great for this kind of thing also.

3. Choose your font and get started:

Next I used Microsoft Word and created a blank document. I used the fonts in microsoft for the quotes and just played around with a few different styles, alignment and colours. You could also print images or used coloured/photograph paper to achieve different textures and make them one of a kind.

4. Print out your design:

This step is the easiest of all. I simply found the quote I liked, typed it up on microsoft and printed it out.

5. Stick the printed design to the canvas:

Next you need to place the printed sheet on top of the canvas and line it up the way you like. You could cut the paper to size and create a border around the edges to make it seamless. I decided I wanted it to be super simple looking and stuck the edges of the paper around the sides of the canvas, not cutting the printed paper at all.

6. Cut the design to fit your frames:

This part is for the framed designs you want to do. I printed out another couple of quotes that I liked in a smaller size and used these to pop into frames.

Well that's it for this crafty post! I told you it was so easy, it's nearly too easy to be writing a post about but I liked how they turned out so why not share it. Thanks for reading and chat soon,

Love, Kensey 

xoxo

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BH Cosmetics Modern Mattes Palette Review & Swatches

Hello again,

I'm coming back with a bang and a really exciting blog post about this babe of a palette. I made a decision to really put blogging and youtube in my list of priorities as I think it's so important to have something you love, just for you! So, on that note, I won't babble on about life updates and bore you to death (specially because I have an extremely chatty get ready with me video coming very soon!). This post is all about mattes. My favourite trend to burst back onto the beauty scene in the past year or two. Before that I felt everything was about shimmer and personally I've always been a matte girl at heart. I have so many ideas and plans for this palette in the coming weeks because, as you can see, the possibilities are endless! This will also serve you gals well in festival season, bring this bad boy with you to electric picnic and its the only thing you'll need. Not to mention it's so inexpensive you won't have to mourn the loss of a luxurious palette if you're unlucky and happen to lose it/have it stolen. I purchased this palette on beautybay.com for €15.80. I picked up a BH Cosmetics Blending Brush for €3.60 which made my order qualify for free shipping. I live in Co.Meath and it arrived on the 6th working day after purchase. Seeing as the palette was so cheap I was not exactly expecting miracles but when it arrived I was pleasantly surprised! Don't get me wrong I have heard nothing but great things about this brand but a 28 shadow palette for that price had the skeptic in me curious.. 

I was so impressed with the pigmentation in these shadows and the vibrancy of the colourful shades. They are not the creamiest most buttery shadows I have ever used and can produce a bit of chalkiness but actually blend beautifully on the skin. I love how they can be worked up to a really solid colour and this palette enables you to create anything from an everyday neutral eye to a festival fairy look. I've included some pictures of a purple smokey eye I tried with this palette.

BH Cosmetics Modern Mattes Palette - http://www.beautybay.com/cosmetics/bhcosmetics/modernmattes28coloreyeshadowpalette/

BH Cosmetics Blending Brush -

http://www.beautybay.com/makeupbrushes/bhcosmetics/brush12blendingbrush/

Thanks for reading gals and I'll be back soon with another post and video! 

Love, Kensey 

Warm Smokey Makeup - Product List & Back Blogging

Hi guys,

Wow that feels strange... It has been almost a year since my last post and youtube video! Which is insane but it has a lot to do with what's been happening in my life this past year. I have actually said so many times that each year is the busiest year of my life so far but really this one has been! Starting my final year of my nursing degree and working full time in the hospital for most of this past year has meant I have let my blog and channel fall to the side. I have missed it soooo much! Anyways, enough boring excuses, I am determined to make 2017 the best year yet for my blog. I have so many new ideas that I am dying to put into action but am holding off until I begin getting paid for my hospital shifts in January (which I am BEYOND excited for - a life again!). I have been jotting down video and post ideas here and there over the last few months but seeing how well all the Irish gals are doing and the amazing quality of their blogs and youtube channels I have been so inspired recently to just give it my all. I can finally let go of the fear of my blog "not being good enough" and just get back to enjoying what I'm doing.

To kick-start me back into makeup posts I did this warm smokey look last week. I feel like I have nearly lost touch with how to do makeup properly (I know.. it's a sin!), and I definitely need to brush up on my skills a bit through practicing more. I have listed all products below each image including the shades but feel free to leave any comments or questions.

Nivea Soft Moisturiser, Blister MedPlus Lipbalm, Maybelline Matte & Poreless Foundation (115), Smashboz 24 Hour Photo Finish Eyeshadow Primer, Catrice Liquid Camouflage Concealer (Light), Rimmel Match Perfection Concealer (10 Ivory). 

MAC MSF (Medium Deep), Sigma Mini Sample Palette (Reveal), FACES Cosmetics (Cranberry)






Tarte Light of the Party Palette (Peach on Earth, Cocoa What Fun, Black Velvet, Haute Chocolate)

Tarte Light of the Party Mini Palette (Social Butterfly, Pink Champagne)

Ingot Gel Liner (77 Black), Maybelline Lash Sensational Mascara (for top lashes), NYC Showtime Mascara (for bottom lashes), Catrice Brow Stylist (Don't Let me Brow'in), NYX Wonder Pencil                        

NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream (Athens), MUA Lip Liner (Toffee)

PS Love Lashes (Double Trouble)

That's it for today's post, thanks for reading and if you want to keep up with when I'll be posting on here and on youtube then follow my social medias that I'll have linked below. Have a lovely day/evening lovelies!

Love, Kensey xo

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Orange Really IS the New Black



Firstly, I must give credit where credit is due and admit that I was totally inspired by the gorgeous Rosie Connolly to purchase these beauts! She featured them on her instagram (rosieconxxx) in black and I fell in love. I really wanted to grab them in black too but these were the only ones I saw in my local penneys. Definitely will be keeping my eyes peeled for any other colours!

 



 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For €13 you really can't go wrong with a pair of smart flats that instantly dress up any outfit (without the hassle of the heel!). Of course these will be primarily worn in the Summer - however debatable our irish so-called 'Summer' is - with cute flowy dresses and playsuits but I can also picture myself wearing these in the Autumn with a pair of skinny jeans and a fedora (see below). I promise to get a picture of an outfit styled with these babies soon, I actually did wear them a couple of days ago but have bigger and better ideas for how I want to style these statement flats.

 

 (*fashion images below found on pinterest and do not belong to me)

 

 

 

 

 

*both the skinny jeans and fedora hat are from ASOS.com and can be found here:
Jeans:  http://www.asos.com/asos/asos-rivington-high-waist-ankle-grazer-jeggings-in-tyne-70's-blue-with-displaced-ripped-knees/prod/pgeproduct.aspx?iid=5221901&clr=Midblue&SearchQuery=ripped+skinny+jeans&pgesize=36&pge=0&totalstyles=317&gridsize=3&gridrow=8&gridcolumn=2
Fedora Hat: http://www.asos.com/river-island/river-island-felt-oversize-fedora-hat/prod/pgeproduct.aspx?iid=4907398&clr=Greendark&SearchQuery=fedora&pgesize=36&pge=0&totalstyles=65&gridsize=3&gridrow=3&gridcolumn=2

 

So that's it from me today, thanks for stopping by to have a read! I have actually indulged a little bit more in Penney's recently so will be sure to feature what I got on here and hopefully on my Youtube aswell. Follow my blog snapchat for sneak peaks of hauls! As per usual, all of my links will be listed below.

 

Love, Kensey xo

 

 

Facebook: www.facebook.com/lovekensey

Instagram: kenseycowley

Twitter: @kenseyc

Snapchat: lovekenseyblog

 

 

Check out my most recent Get Ready With Me video on Youtube! :)

 

 

 

 

L.A Girl HD Pro-Conceal Review (Vs. MAC Prolongwear)

Hey there! As I sat here on this dull rainy day in Dublin I wracked my brains for possible blog posts to write (having a bit of writers block at the moment!) and I realised I never wrote anything on here about these concealers I purchased a while ago. It's actually worked out to my advantage because now I can give a thorough, accurate review because I've been using them for about 2-3months now.

Literally everyone on YouTube has used these concealers in videos in the past couple of months, so naturally I wanted to give them a go myself after I lost my MAC Prolongwear concealer (*tear). A lot of bloggers liken this product to the MAC one and it even promises the same results - "Crease-resistant, opaque coverage in a creamy yet lightweight texture. The long-wearing formula camouflages darkness under the eyes, redness and skin imperfections. Provides complete, natural-looking coverage,evens skin tone, covers dark circles and minimizes fine lines around the eyes". 

The colours I chose were (from left to right): Classic Ivory, Creamy Beige and Almond. Firstly lets talk about these colours. Classic Ivory is a very pink toned shade and to be honest I was very disappointed with this colour for me. It's still a tad bit too dark and when it oxidises it appears even more pink. I thought this might be perfect for the under eye area as it looked a lot brighter online and I love using a salmon-toned concealer directly on my dark circles or blue-ish areas around my eyes. However, for me it was not a great match. I have since discovered there is a lighter shade called Porcelain and would love to give this shade a go - it could be the intensely fair tone I'm looking for. Creamy Beige ended up being the shade I reach for the most. This is a much more yellow toned concealer and I have been using it for blemishes and areas of redness. This colour is one of the most popular and goes well with my MAC NC20 foundation. The final shade I picked up was Almond. As you can see, this is much darker than my skin tone but I actually bought it to contour with. I have to admit, sometimes this shade can look a little bit too orange on my skin tone when used on the forehead but it works well for a bronzing effect across the cheeks and as a light contour. I find Almond to be far too warm toned to contour heavily with on my fair skin. Overall, I don't think this concealer range caters to very pale skin tones and when I am wearing anything lighter than NC20 as a foundation none of them work for me but for darker skin tones you're bound to find the right shade for you as there is a total of 24 shades (including colour correcting shades). 

As for the packaging of this product, it's definitely not my favourite. At first, I thought it was a great idea to have the product in a squeezy tube with a brush applicator tip but for some reason the two lighter shades I purchased don't dispense the product easily through this applicator. The product comes out in big blobs and can be hard to apply evenly. As for the darker shade, the applicator seems to work much better. I don't understand why this has happened but when using Almond the applicator dispenses the product evenly from all bristles of the brush tip - just as you would expect it to. It may be that I have just become accustomed to other types of packaging but I definitely prefer a doe-foot applicator for concealer application. 

The formulation of these concealers hasn't impressed me as much I wanted them to. I was expecting something extremely similar to the MAC prolongwear concealer and although it's one of the closest formualtions I have found, it's not quite there. In saying that, these concealers are extremely affordable compared to MAC prices so it's only natural there be a sacrifice. This formula is a little bit thinner than the MAC one but this isn't necessarily a good thing. This means the product can disperse less evenly and I find I have to go in and apply more in certain areas where it thins out. If you're a fan of the MAC prolongwear concealer and are searching for a thinner consistency, then this could be the product for you. The finish of this product is very matte and I like that in a concealer but it can tend to dry your skin out a little bit. I find this also happens with the MAC concealer though so I can't really complain. The product promises to be "creaseless" but I found that it did crease a little bit just directly beneath the eyes and in the corner of the eyes when worn for a long period of time. As for the longevity, this concealer does stay in place all day. Sometimes it can need a bit of touching up on my chin or blemishes but other than that it's quite long-lasting. I don't believe it is as good as MAC prolongwear for staying power but it definitely can compete. 

Overall, the general appearance of this concealer on the skin is not as flawless as the MAC Prolongwear concealer. I do prefer the MAC one and am planning to repurchase it again soon. However, this concealer is incredibly affordable and is one of the best drugstore/highstreet versions I have found. If you want to purchase these concealers I bought mine from a reputable ebay seller for $1.89 (€1.74) with $3.45 (€3.17) International Shipping rate and they took about 3 weeks to arrive. (Link below).

http://www.ebay.com/itm/L-A-LA-Girl-Pro-Conceal-HD-High-Definition-Concealer-Corrector-Pick-Color-/221725362744?var=520569041292

Thanks for reading guys! Check out my facebook page and give it a like if you want to keep up to date with my blog posts/videos etc. 

Love, Kensey xo

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Facebook: www.facebook.com/lovekensey
YouTube: www.youtube.com/lovekensey
Instagram: kenseycowley
Snapchat: lovekenseyblog

Twitter: @kenseyc

Girl Power Post - Other Irish Bloggers I Love!

Okay.. so it has been a while. We shall not dwell on exact measures of time but I say a while with a rather shameful tone to my voice. I genuinely love writing on my blog and have neglected it too often. It's time to try and give it a good make-over and general vibe change to keep me working on it and motivated to write. Anyway, enough excuses, I wanted to dedicate this post to some Irish bloggers/Youtubers that I have been obsessed with lately! I love reading these types of posts because it opens my eyes to so many new or up and coming bloggers/vloggers. It's even  better when the products they mention or places they go are accessible because they're Irish too! So grab a cuppa' and prepare to read all about why I think these bloggers are worth checking out (#girlpower)

Ally Maher
This girl is not only gorgeous and dedicated but she has the most amazing personal style. From her glowing blonde hair to the TASTY shoe collection, everything about her screams fashion-icon but yet she is so relatable. She has a variety of posts for you to feast your eyes on on her newly renovated blog (her new design actually motivated me to kickstart mine again!), from weightloss/health to fashion/beauty to lifestyle and travel. This girl makes you want to go shopping, big time! www.allymaherblog.com

Rosie Connolly
I am sure all of you have already been following Rosie Connolly long before this post but I had to mention this lovely lady as I have been loving her blog, instagram and snapchat lately. Rosie and her absolutely adorable baby boy Harry Peter Quinn are so fun to watch everyday and she is always mentioning great products or featuring hauls on her snapchat and blog. She really listens to her readers and writes great beauty/makeup posts, I particularly enjoy her product list posts where she lists everything she is wearing on her always flawless face.
http://heartsheelsandhandbags.blogspot.ie/

Terrie McAvoy
I was first drawn to Terrie's instagram through Rosie's and instantly knew I would love her style. She is also a nurse here in Dublin which I was very interested to find out as I'm currently studying nursing. I often make the excuse to not get glammed up or get my nails done because I'm constantly in and out of the hospital and working but after following Terrie for the past few months she has inspired me to keep my blog and instagram going and make the effort to do the little things that I enjoy such as getting a manicure. This girl is literally just so much fun and hilarious to follow on snapchat and her instagram is full of gorgeous nail pics, clothing pieces and makeup looks.

The Makeup Fairy/Joanne Larby
I was so late to the party when it came to following Joanne in the blogosphere but somehow I hadn't stumbled across her until this year, and I'm really glad I did. Joanne is so motivational and upbeat on all her social media platforms and really emphasises that everybody is beautiful no matter what shape or size they are or what clothes/makeup they wear. She also has a youtube channel where you can watch hauls, reviews, makeup tutorials and more. I love watching her fitness/gym hauls - it definitely gets you motivated to workout (..and buy cute gym clothes too!) http://www.joannelarby.com/

Faces By Grace
I also discovered Grace through Rosie and was hooked instantly. I really love following her healthy living lifestyle on her blog and snapchat and the best part is she seems so down to earth. She talks about having bad days and understands that everyone falls off the track every now and again - my kinda gal'! Grace seems like such a nice person and her makeup is always on fleeeeek.
 http://www.facesbygrace.com/search?updated-max=2015-06-24T07:44:00-07:00&max-results=3

Barry M Contour Kit First Impressions

I'm back with another review, I wanted this post to be something lifestyle-y but it seemed more appropriate to publish this review first seeing as I put the corresponding YouTube video up yesterday. When I first heard about this product I was thrilled, finally a promising contour kit that wouldn't cost you an arm and a leg (and have to be shipped from the states!). Now don't get me wrong I have been lusting after the Anastasia Beverly Hills Contour Kit just like everybody else but I will certainly be waiting until my next trip across the water to purchase it. In the meantime we have this little gem - the Barry M Chiseled Cheeks Contour Kit. I have done a complete video on this product where I apply it and give my first thoughts on it (linked below if you want to check it out).

I was very impressed with the fact that this compact little palette had a warm toned bronze, a cool toned bronze and a highlight shade (that isn't super shimmery). On first application I was pleased with how the cool toned bronze blended in with my skin. I am quite pale and this day I was wearing MAC NC20 Studio Fix as a reference if you're wondering will this product work for your skin-tone. I believe it is quite suitable to pale skin like my own but I do suggest using a light hand. One great thing I noticed about this product is that it is buildable and it won't look cakey or dirty very easily. I found that the warmer toned bronze was helpful for blending over the cooler shade to give a more natural, sun-kissed appearance while at the same time giving you that definition you want.

On to the highlighter shade. This shade pleasantly surprised me. On the first sweep I thought that it might be a little bit too sheer to make a difference. However, once I went over it again I could notice a real difference. I particularly liked this product on top of my cheekbones as it gives such a natural highlighted effect. I found it worked well for my under eye area also but after wearing this alone under the eyes for a day I did see it starting to wear off. Since then I have been setting my under-eyes with the highlight shade and also applying a tiny bit of the Rimmel stay matte powder and this gives me that highlighted/matte look for the whole day.

Overall, I think this product is really great for the price. If you want to build up your makeup kit/collection without spending a fortune this one is for you! It definitely gives that airbrushed professional look and it is literally fool-proof. I tried this product out first about a week ago and have used it everyday since. If you want to check out my Youtube video on it just click on the video below.

Thanks for stopping by!

Love, Kensey xo 

Where else you can keep up with me:

Instagram: @kenseycowley

Twitter: @kenseyc

Youtube: www.youtube.com/lovekensey