October Favourites: Masquerade Ball Edition

Sunday, November 09, 2014

This October's 'Favourites' post is going to be a little different as I am going to combine it with details of my outfit, makeup and nails from a Masquerade Ball I went to last week.

My whole department at work is being made redundant at the end of the year and to celebrate our achievements and as a "thank you" for our hard work, the big bosses threw us a leaving party. We'd been planning it for weeks so I was able to sort my outfit down to the last little detail and it's created my new favourite...well, everything.

Accounting Services masked team photo. Photograph by Ella Parkinson Photography



I'll start with the outfit first and I got my dress from Lipsy. It is stunning and by far, the nicest dress I own. It's a cream-with-black-lace figure-hugging maxi dress, that has a slit up one leg and is v-necked to emphasise my cleavage in classy manner. It was love at first sight but at £75, it was way out of my price range. However, after trawling the internet, I found it at a much lower price of £30 - bargain! Unfortunately, the sale is now over so I'm not able to link back but if you're interested in buying the dress, keep looking on the internet daily, I'm sure another amazing sale will pop up somewhere. I paired the dress with some black heels that have lace detailing, which I bought from New Look about three years ago. These shoes are classy and elegant, plus they're not too high that I find it hard to walk anywhere under the influence of alcohol! 


For jewellery, I played it simple; going for my butterfly necklace (which is worn pretty much every day), my two normal rings, my pearl drop earrings that were a present from my mum and two plain gem studs in the second earring holes (I have quite a few ear piercings; to see what I mean, click here). Simple but pretty.

For the handbag, I didn't know what to go for. I'm not a woman that owns hundreds upon hundreds of handbags as I never see the need and would much rather spend the money on something else. This then means that I have a choice of about five and always end up going for the same black bag that will hold all I need and then some, and it's one I can keep on my shoulder. I do need to invest in a smaller clutch or over-the-shoulder bag, but for now, my trusty black one does the job. I believe I picked this up from Tesco, many years ago. 


Outfit done, now on to my nails and apologies for no Nails of the Week post about it, but if you saw my Birchbox review, you'll know that time has simply run away me recently - slap on the back of the hand for Amy. But the combo that I used on my nails has got to be one of my favourites ever and it is: Barry M's Gelly Paint in 'Lychee' and Nail Glitter in 'Yellow Topaz' on my thumb and ring finger. Paired together, it makes for a beautiful look that is eye-catching and elegant. The formula for both is fab, as I've said before, so they lasted well and they went with my outfit wonderfully.




Finally, the makeup and hair. I used L'Oreal's EverSLEEK Smooth Intense Mask to make my hair uber soft and curled it using GHD Straightners, then set with Tresemme's Extra Hold Hairspray to keep it in place. And it did! All night - hurrah!

For my face, I kept it very simple for the most of it, sticking to my everyday makeup set up. However, I did mix it up with the eyes and lips. For my eyes, I wanted a dramatic look so decided to use black liquid eyeliner for above my lashes along with 'Devotion' (on the lid) and 'Dreamy' (in the crease) from MUA's Undressed Me Too Palette. I used eyelash curlers first and then my sampler bottle of Benefit's They're Real! Mascara, which is incredible. My eyelashes elongate, become thicker and curve perfectly. It also lasts pretty much all night - though if it was waterproof, it'd be the perfect mascara! For the lips, I used Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvet Lipstick in 'Hot Pepper'. This is a beautiful bright red and if you read my review on them, you'll know I adore them as they last aggggggges!

Finally it was time to mask-up! I found my mask on Amazon and it was the perfect one to go with my dress; light coloured with lace on and a feather flower detail next to one eye. When it arrived, I was impressed! Sure, it wasn't the best quality but for £4.59, what did I expect? To be fair to it, it's pretty great for the price it is and I'll be sure to keep it for when I need it again. Loved it.



Photo booth fun! Top: Lucy, Inder, Paul and I. Bottom L: Steve, Kirsty and I. Bottom R: Inder and I looking fabulous, darling!
Photographs by Ella Parkinson Photography.

Top: Sharon, Christina and I. Bottom: Enjoying the bubbly.
Photographs by Ella Parkinson Photography

So there you have it: my masquerade ball set-up with a new favourite dress, old favourite heels, new favourite nail combo, favourite lipstick make, favourite hair 'do', old favourite bag...see? I managed to make this in to a favourites post still!

What were your October favourites?

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2 comments

  1. Wow, what a stunningly dress!!
    I would really appreciated, if we could follow each other on BL and GFC, so that we can keep in touch!
    xoxo Colli // my little blog - tobeyoutiful // Bloglovin'

    ReplyDelete

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