February Favourites 2015

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Hello everyone,

Who can believe its March already? I certainly can’t. I feel like Christmas was only last week!

This is going to be a rather quick post. I am still loving the majority of products from my January favourites, but these are a few little lovelies that I have also been gravitating toward most of this month.

Body Shop Satsuma Body Butter – Cold weather over the past few months has really given my skin some grief. I am a bit of a body cream hoarder but I am so in love with the smell of this body butter it is getting used up particularly quickly. It reminds me of summer so I slather the stuff all over me to cocoon myself in the glorious, uplifting scent. 

Body Shop Vitamin E Overnight Serum Oil – I have been in need of a serum for ages so thought I would try this out as it’s not too expensive compared to some! I haven’t really noticed anything majorly different in my skin, but then I haven’t been using it religiously every night. It does feel silky soft when massaging it in and the smell is divine. I shall start putting it on every night and give a proper review of it soon.

 Crest Glamorous White Mouthwash – I first purchased a bottle of this when I was in America last October/Novemeber. I find it really whitens my teeth, especially when used inconjuction with a whitening toothpaste. It does have a bit of a funny after taste due to the hydrogen peroxide but that’s to be expected and you do get used to it. Again I don’t use it religiously just for a few days in a row to get them whiter when I need. 

 Revlon Colour Burst Balm Stain in Striking – I love these colour burst balm stains for a quick on the go lip. They’re moisturising, long lasting and super quick and easy to put on, even without a mirror to hand.

 Anastasia Brow Wiz – I was adamant this really wouldn’t change my life like every beauty blogger/ youtuber made out but once I gave it a go I could see just what all the fuss was about. It makes your brows look like HD brows – if you spend the time to draw the shape in. On a day to day basis, if I’m not going anywhere particularly special, I will use my cheap brow powder compact to fill them in. I use the brow wiz for more special occasions – when I don’t mind using expensive products.

 Dior Diorshow Maximiser Mascara– This stuff is an absolute god send to lashes! It makes my lases look so much fuller. It is rather expensive but I do really like the effect it gives and will definitely repurchase. Unless anyone can recommend a cheaper one that is just as good?

 Buxom Mascara – This has one of the plastic brushes which I find is really good for separating lashes and coating them in the product. Gives really good definition and length, doesn’t smudge and doesn’t flake off.

Seche Vite Top Coat –Again I was dubious about all the claims, but it really does make your nail varnish dry almost instantly. Takes so much time off painting your nails.

 Formula X Nail Varnish in Ignite – I just really love this colour. Simple.

 Vita Liberta Nkd Skn Liquid Tan Dark. – I am always in search of a great faux tan, especially when the weather warms up and the arms and legs start to make an appearance. I bought this quite a few months ago, at the time it was on offer so thought I would give it a go, and I am so glad I did! It is an almost water like liquid that you spray. I find because it is so fluid it doesn’t leave a sticky residue and you can pretty much slip your clothes on straight away. It does transfer abit when you first put it on and put clothes on, but nowhere near as some of the more thicker gel or cream/lotion type tans. I always put mine on at night and wash off in the morning. Once washed off the tan doesn’t transfer and is a lovely golden brown colour. It lasts about 4-5 days with washing every day and moisturising afterward. If washing less often it would probably last about a week without going patchy. I’ve never experienced it going patchy, it just tends to fade which I love! Personally I think this is a great tan and will definitely re-purchase when I run out, which will be quite soon!

Random favourites

This month I have had a few non beauty favourites that I feel deserves a mention.

Favourite song: Ten Walls, Walking With Elephants – I just can’t get enough of this song as of late. It’s so funky but also quite chilled, which I know sounds bizarre but give it a listen and you may catch my drift. If you’re in to this type of music that is! I love bass and deep house and this is just simple but effective for me. Playing it on repeat for days!,

Favourite TV Programme: Impractical Jokers – I first watched this when I was in America last October and I just haven’t been able to stop watching it since discovering we have it on UK TV too! It is literally the funniest thing I have seen in a long time. 

Favourite Youtuber: ZuzkaLight– This past month I have been trying to get back into working out, start loosing some of the Christmas/January weight and just generally start being healthy again. Whenever I need inspiration to exercise I always watch Zuzka! Just seeing her super fit bod gives me a kick up the bum towards working out, but her videos are brilliant and really motivational. She does all sorts, from quick 5 minute workouts to 40 minute killer cardio. Diet and food talks to specific exercises for certain body areas. She is also really lovely and so pretty.

Favourite Drink: Twinnings Salted Caramel Green Tea – Need I say more? Healthy and tastey, a match made in heaven. Just what you need when restarting a health kick.

And that’s all for now folks. Hope you enjoyed. If you have any questions please ask 🙂 

Until next time, cheerio! xx

Boots and Xtras.com Haul!

Happy 2014 everyone!!
Hope you have all had a fabulous NYE and that 2014 brings you all health and happiness!

I realise I have been absent for a long time and that is not what I intended for this blog. December is a particularly busy month for me as I have various family birthdays at the beginning of the month, my birthday in the middle, coupling that with Christmas shopping and then celebrations.. I thought I would leave the blog for December and ensure I make a fresh start in the new year!

So here is the very long awaited boots haul (and whilst I was making preparations for this post, I had a delivery from Xtras.com of some makeup bits I ordered a few days ago so thought I would include them as well!)

Below is everything I bought from boots. It includes: Loreal Skin Perfection 3 in 1 Purifying Micellar Solution, Loreal False Lash Architect, Rimmel Lipstick in no. 170 “Alarm”, 17 Mirror Shine Lipstick in “Belle”, Barry M Dazzle Dust in no. 39, Bourjois Colour Edition 24H cream to powder texture (not sure of the colour name but it is a deep purple with golden hue), Rimmel Apocalips in “Across the Universe”, 17 High Drama Intense Liquid Eyeliner, Rimmel Glam’eyes Liquid Eyeliner, Bourjois Bronzing Primer and Schwarzkopf Got2b Glued Hairspray.

 I ran out of my Bioderma and desperately needed a makeup remover as I was staying in London for a few days, I already used the Loreal Cleansing oil so thought I would give this a go, It works really well at removing all makeup! Probably just as good as Bioderma and literally 1/4 of the cost! My only qualm with it is the smell… It’s not a strong smell but it does have a funny odour that kind of reminds me of diesel oil or something but as I said it’s not strong, some people may not even notice it! Either way I will definitely buy again.

 I really wanted a nice nude lipstick that was quite sheer. I’m really not a nude lipstick girl at all (I love my reds!!) but I’ve seen so many girls on Youtube wearing nude lips and I think they look so lovely I really wanted to give it a go. As you can see the lipstick is very sheer but on the lips it does give a nice amount of colour and feels very moisturising. The colour doesn’t last very long, especially when eating and drinking but I think that’s quite obvious by how sheer it is. It is a very lovely lipstick though and think it’s perfect for those of us that are just dipping our toes into the nude lip look!

 Another red to add to my collection! I really wanted a deep red with like a gold sheen. I had no idea if such a lipstick existed so I went into boots and swatched pretty much every red lipstick I could find and came across this one “Rimmel 170 “Alarm”. It’s not completely what I had in mind but comes pretty close. It’s a really lovely colour on the lips and is not at all drying. It has pretty good staying power, even when eating and drinking. Good quality lipstick for approximately £5.00 – winner winner!

 Another Rimmel red lip product! Everyone and their mother has heard about Apocalips lip lacquers. This is “Across the Universe” and is a really beautiful deep, plummy red. Lasting power is amazing! They really remind me of YSL Glossy stains in the way that they go on feeling really glossy but once the gloss effect has worn off you’re still left with a really nice colour on the lips. I have one other Apocalips, it’s the bright red shade which I believe is called big bang? That is also extremely beautiful and colour payoff is amazing! I would definitely recommend these to all ladies – they are just a must have for any makeup collection.

I’ve heard really good things about Loreal mascara’s and have not bought one for years! I am a sufferer of dodgy eyelashes – they’re not paticularly long, thick, dark or full. I just have crap eyelashes basically! I liked the sound of this one but having now used it a few times I just cannot get on with it! It does nothing for my poor lashes no matter how hard I try 😦
Maybe when it drys out a bit I may get on with it more successfully… But for now I don’t rate it and would not buy again.

 I had run out of my last High Drama eyeliner so popped in to Boots to get another. I’ve always preferred the thick tip on eyeliners, it just feels a lot more steadier to me.. I used to buy the Barry M eyeliner that has the same tip as this one but after using it for years I wanted to try something different so picked up this 17 one. So far I like it but would prefer it if the colour was a bit more intense. As it drys it doesn’t look quite so black!

 The bottom line is the glam’eyes, the top line is 17 High Drama. The only reason I bought this was because it has one of those very thin tips. As stated above, I’ve always preferred the thicker tip eyeliners but wanted to give this a try. So far i’m getting on o.k with it.. It does make me feel like I have to concentrate much more and take my time but so far so good!

 ( Top swatch = 3 layers, bottom swatch = 1 layer)
Very similar to Maybelline’s Colour Tattoo but has a slight more powdery feel to the touch. I picked this up because the colour reminded me of “black heart” in the Naked 3 palette. I haven’t got the naked 3 palette but I’ve seen enough reviews and swatches to know what black heart looks like. As you can see in the pictures the colour in the pot looks very purple, but when swatched it has an almost brown look to it and as you build it up it does become more purple but does have the dark undertones to it.

I really wanted to try this out because I’ve read it’s a really good dupe for Mac’s “All that glitters”. I bought my mum All that Glitters for Christmas so I will make a comparison soon. It is a really lovely gold tone bronze that looks perfect for everyday wear or even Bridal looks. I have lots of Dazzle dusts and think the colour pay off and colour range is fantastic! They can sometime be a bit of a faff because they are loose shadows but when taking the time to use them correctly they produce gorgeous looks.

This has also been something I have wanted to try for quite a while but as I already have quite a few bronzers that are still pretty new I wanted to wait until I had used at least one up… Alas, I could wait no longer and gave in to temptation!
I’m so glad I did because it is such a lovely texture and feels silky smooth on the skin. It can blend out to a very subtle shadow or you can build it up to be quite intense. I also really love the smell! I mainly use my fingers to apply and blend out as I like quite a heavy contour but if I am favouring a more subtle look I use my real techniques blush brush to blend out. Will definitely purchase again.

 The final thing I got from boots was this hairspray which I was in desperate need for! I have very fine hair but love big, bouncy hair so I like to use a very strong hairspray. I’ve used this for years and it’s served me well. It is very strong and so can sometimes get quite sticky if you use too much in one place but it also brushes out quite easily.

O.k, so that is everything from Boots. Below is what I bought from Xtras.com.

Becca Luminating Skin Colour:

Since finding out “Sunbeamsjess” uses this as her everyday foundation I have been desperate to try it. It is a very sheer foundation, basically a tinted moisturiser. I wore it today with concealer and powder on top and liked how it looked. I normally wear quite a full coverage foundation but I think wearing a heavy foundation every day must be bad for the skin so thought I would try something lighter. It is hard to get used to the lighter coverage but i’m sure once I’ve wore it a few times i’ll feel more comfortable with it. It is a very lovely consistency and feels so light on the skin.

Becca Compact Concealer:

 I wondered if this may be like the Bobby Brown Creamy Concealer. It supposed to have one side as medium coverage and the other side full coverage. I used it today and found that it was good coverage, wasn’t quite good enough to cover my dark circles (but then again after almost a whole month of indulging and partying my dark circles are worse than ever!) So far so good though. I shall try applying it with a concealer brush next time..

Becca Radiance Primer:

Also used this today and it did give a soft glow to the face. I’m looking forward to trying it with a fuller coverage foundation to see if the glow shines through. Because the Becca luminating skin colour foundation is very dewy it was hard to decipher if the glowy look was due to the primer or the foundation. I shall do a more in depth post on the Becca products after I have tested them out some more.

Various False Eyelashes:

 I love wearing false eyelashes on a night out or to a glamorous event. I thought these all looked nice styles so wanted to try them out. They were all very reasonably prices, between £2.49 and £2.99. Can’t wait to try them out! 🙂

Well that is my first post of 2014 finished! I shall do more in depth reviews on some of the products when I have tested them out some more. I’m planning on doing a “What I got for Birthday and Christmas” post next. Not to brag or anything like that! I just like watching them on Youtube so thought it might be a nice idea to do on blog post on the presents I received!

Hope you all enjoyed. Happy 2014 once again!!

Ciao for now x

New blogger on the block..

As I rapidly approach the “quarter of a century” mark I have decided it’s high time I take the plunge and begin writing my own blog.
I spend many hours each week browsing and reading blogs and watching my favourite beauty gurus on Youtube, so I thought to myself “I could do that”. 

It has taken me quite some time to pluck up the courage to delve into the blogging world. There are already so many wonderful bloggers out there, I often question if my blog will have any impact at all… Well there’s no room for negativity now, I’m doing this and hope I can make my blog informative and successful.

I intend to blog mainly about makeup and beauty, but as I am also very interested in; fitness, nutrition, gadgets, animals, my own upcoming wedding and many other things, I shall include many posts in these areas as well.

Thank you to everyone that reads my blog. I hope you enjoy my posts and I shall try my best to not disappoint!

With love and optimism,

X