- Small Superdrug Haul

It's been over two weeks since I last blogged and all I have for you is this teeny tiny haul. Sorry. Being a student again has meant a lack of time (and money) so I've not shopped much recently but I did go into town the other day and picked up a few things in Superdrug. I was planning on staying in town longer than I did and having a good look around the shops but it was so busy and hectic with Christmas shoppers that I didn't hang around. I definitely plan to do as much of my Christmas shopping online as possible (if I don't leave it too late)!

Nice N Easy Colour Blend Foam Medium Brown - £6.99

 Zoella Fizz Bar - £5.00

Collection Extreme 24 Hour Felt Tip Liner Black - £2.99

Have you tried any of these products? What did you think of them?

Thanks for reading.

Julie x

- Mag of the Month | Benefit in Elle

I will hopefully be starting a new series on my blog called 'Mag of the Month'. I do enjoy reading magazines but to be honest I am like a child and am more interested in the freebie. Every month I'll be showing you what magazine I've picked up and what beauty product I got with it. I'll try to do it as close to the issue's release date as possible in case you want to grab one yourself although as I am in the UK it may be different if you are elsewhere.

Today I picked up a copy of the December issue of Elle magazine. This month Elle comes with a free travel size of Benefit They're Real push-up liner. I have previously tried Benefit's They're Real mascara (which I also got free in Elle) and posted about that on my old blog here. I loved the mascara from this range so I definitely have high hopes for this. The eyeliner shape is very unique and not like any others I have tried before so I am keen to give it a go.

Have you tried this eyeliner?

P.S Happy Halloween!

Julie x

- An Insider's Guide to Blogging

Earlier this week I was contacted by the lovely people at luxury fashion brand Farfetch. They've recently put together a new infographic with advice for bloggers, by bloggers. As someone who is relatively new to blogging, I am always on the lookout for tips and as I know many of my followers also run their own blogs, I thought I would share it with you.

As well as the infographic, I thought I would give you some of my own tips.

Be organised - For many bloggers (like me), blogging is just a hobby and not a full-time job. This can mean juggling blogging with studying, working and everything else life throws at us. If you do post weekly, you've probably been shocked in the past at how quickly the week goes by and before you know it, you're due to post again. I've found planning your posts a few weeks in advance helpful to stop any last minute panic.

Make the most of your drafts - I have tons of random drafts saved on Blogger. Some are just vague ideas that I might do one day and others are posts that are practically finished and ready to go. This means if I have a particularly busy week I can at least post one of them as a 'filler' instead of posting nothing. If you are going to do this though, make sure it's not a post that will quickly go out of date and be irrelevant by the time you post it.

Take photos in bulk - For me, photos are one of the most important and enjoyable parts of blogging but taking photos can be time consuming. I find when I come home from uni/work it is already too dark to take pictures with natural lighting so I prefer to take photos in bulk on my days off. This way I have them ready to edit and add to the post when I need them and helps posts come together a lot faster.

Make the most of tutorials - When you're first getting into blogging, trying to get your blog design the way you want can definitely be a little confusing and overwhelming. You can always pay someone else to do it, but if you're feeling creative you can have a go yourself. If you're trying to find out how to do a particular thing, just google it and you'll usually find an answer within seconds. I've found tutorials by xomisse to be incredibly helpful and easy to follow.

So, what do you think? As a reader, do feel these things make a difference to the blogs you visit?
If you blog, what advice would you give your fellow bloggers?

Julie x