June Favourites

I really enjoy doing monthly favourites. I love sitting down and sorting through products that I have loved through out the month and sharing them with you. 

So this month seems to have been a brilliant month for all things beauty related, not so much for my bank balance however! I've been overwhelmed with the amount of things catching my eye. 

First of all I will start with Bourjois healthy mix serum in the shade 52 vanilla. Now I know this foundation has been talked into the ground so I will keep it short and sweet. But I just wanted to comment as I have a very dry skin type I like foundations to be light weight and feel hydrating. This appears to tick all the boxes, leaving a radiant dewy finish on the skin and it smells lovely too. 

The Revlon Super Lustrous Lip Glosses in Kiss Me Coral and Pinkissimo! For the longest time I have sworn I am not a lipgloss person so to have two in my monthly favourites is quite a big thing for me haha! But I absolutely love the formula to these! When I think of gloss I immediately think of walking along on a windy day having to drag my hair away from my lips urgh* I hate stickiness!! But these Revlon glosses are so soft on the lips they're not sticky at all. I've been wearing them over the tops of some of my favourite lipsticks but alone they're so pigmented and leave such a beautiful finish. 

On to skin care I have chosen the No7 beautiful skin hot cloth cleanser for all skin types. I have used the Liz Earle hot cloth cleanser previously and loved it but as there is not a store near me that stocks Liz' miracle cleanser some times you can't wait for online delivery!! I have been reaching for the No7 alternative and I must admit I have found a use for the numerous No7 £5 vouchers that accumulate at the bottom of my handbag. It's a really gentle cleanser that does a a pretty fab job of getting off all my makeup! All I do is pump about two pumps worth on to the back of my hand and then massage all over my face and eyes. Then remove with a warm flannel and jobs a good'n you're done! :) 

Next up is Clarins Gentle Exfoliator Brightening Toner I purchased this probably about a month ago now and have been using it continuously since. I have sensitive skin and have found this really lovely to use, it's gentle but really helps to leave the skin looking bright and since using this the condition of my skin has been clearer and smoother. It contains an alpha hydroxy acid and I was a little dubious at first to whether or not my skin would react badly with the intensity of the product but it has been absolutely fine! 

Lastly is a palette that I have lusted after for a while now. I purposely have brought this for my holidays later on in the year as I think from a traveling aspect this will be perfect because its so compact with pretty much all you'll need. It's the Early Bird Palette from Pixi. It contains 3 blushers 2 bronzers a highlight powder 4 eye base powders and 16 colour shadows all for just £16 :) bargain! & it folds down so tiny! All the powders are so pigmented and the colour choice is brilliant being able to create just about any look you'll desire after! I'd really recommend it if any of you are off on your jollies :) 

Have you tried anything from my favourites? I'd love to read about yours so leave a link  :) xxx

Sunday Face of the Day

I wanted to do a post on a more relaxed face of the day, as that's definitely what I sported on Sunday!

I kept everything quite natural as I'd had such a pamper before hand, but that's an entirely different post! :) 

So for base I used Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum in shade 52. I love the coverage of this foundation it's so lightweight and evens out the skin tone perfectly. For blemishes and darkness under the eyes I used Benefits Boiing concealer in shade 02. It's a full coverage concealer with green tea oil so it's perfect to keep pesky blemishes at bay. 

On the cheeks I opted for a cream blush, the weather on Sunday was beautiful so I wanted a natural finish on the skin. I used a Dainty Doll cream blush in the shade 02 which is a beautiful pink/coral colour with hints of gold. I love this blusher as its not too liquidy and drys as a cream not a powder. 

I set the make up with Soap & Glory's One Heck of a Blot Powder which I'm currently still testing. 

For my brows I always use Benefits Browzings Pallette in the colour Dark. I swear by this for my brows, as the wax will keep the long hairs in place and the powder creates the fullness. It's waterproof and last blooming ages, what more could you need! 

For eyes I used a mix of colours from my Stillia In the Light Pallette, I used the matte cream shade for base, with a dark matte brown in the crease. Then I used Stilla's Kitten in the tear duct, it's a gorgeous shimmery pink colour and really opens up the eye area. On the lashes I used Diorshow Maximizer Lash Plumping Serum, which acts as I white primer for the lashes before you apply your mascara. And I have been using the new Diorshow Extase mascara in black! Both of these products together work like a dream to create long voluminous lashes! Addicted! 

Then to finish the look I mixed to lipsticks together Barry M's lipstick in shade 151, which is a matte red toned coral. Then i applied Loreal's colour riche lipstick in sensual rosé 379 on top to give a softer tone. I love the finish of this lipstick so much! 

So that's about it for my FOTD :) I love this look it's so natural and pretty! Have you used any of he products I mentioned? What are your favourite natural products? 

May Favourites

Firstly I am apologising for the lack of bloggyness through out the end of May! I feel like the last three weeks have just flown on by and now I can't believe it's June! But still, I thought I'd do a little monthly favourites post to show you all what I've been loving.

I'll start with skin care. During May I introduced a night cream to my skin care routine which is something that I haven't really done before. My skin type is generally on the dry side so heavy duty moisturisers are my best friends. The one I chose is the Elizabeth Arden Visible Difference Gentle Hydrating Night Cream for dry skin. And ohmygoodness I love this stuff! Not only is it purple which is one of my favourite colours but it has lavender essential oils in it so it smells amazing! The morning after first using this product I woke up to skin that looked soothed and calm and felt amazing! I also think its helped with blemish scarring which is an even bigger bonus! I'm officially addicted to this product! & would definitely recommend!

Make up wise I have three products from Dior, who have been killing it for me recently!

I have mentioned the DiorSkin Nude BB Creme in a previous favourites post so I won't go into too much detail but this stuff is truly amazing! And as soon as I finish up my bottle (I'm about half way through and really don't want it to end) I'll definitely be repurchasing this! It gives such a lovely coverage on the skin leaving an effortless finish which looks flawless swooooon*

Then these two products I have been using together and that's the Diorshow Maximizer Lash Plumping Serum, which acts as I white primer for the lashes before you apply your mascara. And I have been using the new Diorshow Extase mascara in black! Oh my god! I had my make up done by one of Diors MUA's and as soon as she popped this combination on my lashes I was blown away! Naturally my lashes are short and lack volume but these pair make them look so long and full I urge every short lashed lady to go try these bad boys out!!!

And finally a bit of a boring favourite but it's my Tweezerman for Benefit slant tweezers. I've had these for about two months now and they've changed everything. They really are the best tweezers I've ever tried and I know some people will just think tweezers are tweezers why buy an expensive pair, but these save me so much time compared to my old ones that were so useless it'd take me ages to dee fuzz my brows between services.

So there we have it a few products that I have reached for constantly through out May! :) I'd love to hear about what you've been loving so please leave me a link to your monthly favourites or leave a comment below xxx

Empty Products #2

I'm actually really enjoying collecting up finished products it gives you such a sense of satisfaction! :)

I'll just jump right in and start with moisturisers.

So this month I have two moisturisers for the body which I have finished up. First of all is The Body Shop's Strawberry Body Butter 200ml. Now I'm not going to go into too much detail as I've previously reviewed this on my blog before! But what I will say is its fantastic! :) I've gone through so many of these now, they smell amazing and leave the skin super hydrated!

Then I have the Aveeno Skin Relief Moisturising Lotion with Shea Butter - for extra dry, irritable skin. The only one flaw I have of this product is the smell is a little odd, it's not unpleasant just a tad on the strange side. But ohmygod I have never got on with a moisturiser so well. I struggle on and off with eczema especially on my neck from fragrance and one application of this and the rash and redness had 70% disappeared after using it twice it was barely even noticeable. I was so impressed I've repurchased the moister cream not lotion for emergencies now this has ran out!

The Breakfast Scrub by Soap & Glory!

Oat, Shea Butter & Sugar Body Smoother. 'With organic cupuacu bio scrubs, bananas almond & honey extract' I'm actually so sad to have finished this as its so lovely! The scent is so sweet and yummy you just want to take a handful and munch away! It leaves the skin so soft and it really helps to remove any dry patches. Also it last really well on the skin leaving you smelling beautiful all day! A really wonderful product! I'd urge anyone wanting a good body exfoliator who hasn't tried the soap&glory ones to definitely give them a whirl!

Lush's Let The Good Times Roll Facial Cleanser

This product I purchased around Christmas time and I'm not sure but I think it was limited edition. I chose it as it was targeted for those cooler months when our skin care is in need of a few tweaks. I must admit I did enjoy using it. With popped corn oil, maize flour and cinnamon it smells absolutely delicious! It is quite an abrasive cleanser so I did use it sparingly once a week as I didn't want to strip my skin but it left it feeling and looking lovely and smooth! It was nice on a morning to start the day off as it was quite an uplifting fragrance :) I'm hoping if it was limited edition that it'll return again around Christmas time!

Last two products now are hair care items.

First off is the Loreal Elvive Triple Resist Masque. This masque is supposed to help control the fall of hair so that it stays stronger and you lose less. I don't think I noticed any difference with hair loss haha I do malt quite a lot. But it did leave my hair soft and manageable with less tangles. I don't know whether I'd repurchase this however as I didn't find it did anything amazing for my hair.

Rehab Shampoo from Lush.

'If you don't have any priory engagements, then why not spend a night in, putting your hair into Rehab. Shampoo your hair back to health with cleansing enzymes, softening seaweed and scalp toning essential oils' This shampoo is pricey but lovely it's definitely over the £11 mark. It again keeps hair lovely and soft and is fabulous if your hair is on the dryer side like my own. It's smells fruity yet sweet and leaves the hair feeling nice and light as well. This is my second bottle of this and if my boyfriend didn't keep stealing it I'd be more than inclined to repurchase it. Maybe I'll have to find a good hiding spot and keep it locked away :)

There we have it for empty products this time. Fingers crossed I can keep getting through them :) Has anyone else done a recent empties post? I'd love to read them!! Xxx

Sleek MakeUp PoutPolish

Just a mini review today :) as it was requested!

Sleek MakeUp PoutPolish with SPF 15 in Electro Peach 946

These little pots of lovelyness are actually amazing! They apply a sheer colour to the lips yet are very buildable! So you can create a really lovely high colour finish! And they smell like vanilla :) They're super soft and very wearable! And having an SPF 15 makes them a perfect addition for summer! I love the colour Electro Peach it's a perfect red toned coral and is the perfect companion for any handbag :)
With the low price tag of around £3.99 you really can't beat Sleek make up for price and quality!

Can you recommend anything else I should try from the Sleek range? I'd love to try some new bits :) xxx

Putting a Spring Back in Your Step! :)

Hello lovelys :)

Today's post is about getting ready for spring and summer time! All I can think about is readying myself for my holibobs (even though it isn't until October and then I'll be thinking about Christmas) and sorting out my summer self haha.

First of all dry body brushing! I'm a big big fan of body brushing! I do it daily before hopping In the shower. I've been doing this for about 2 months now and the difference it has made is amazing! Not only is my skin so much smoother, it helps give a closer shave and has improved the skin from shaver rash afterwards. It helps the appearance of cellulite and helps the body's circulation too. You can pick body brushes up from Boots or Superdrug and they're nice and cheap. Mine is a Boots Botanics one.

Secondly, this step is one I follow all year round but in summer we expose more skin so keeping it moisturised daily is important. Popping on moisturiser after a shower is actually proven to make us feel better as well :) hehe. At the moment I'm trying to finish up products still so I've been slathering on Palmers Cocoa butter.

Third is those things we neglect all through the winter months then it gets to summer and ultimate nightmare, our feet!! (Well I do anyway) So as we had those few hot days I was ashamed of the state of my feet so pedicures are under way through out the month of May ;) Beginning with a trusty old pumas stone to help remove the tough skin from the bottom (ewwww) then lots of lotion afterwards. At the moment I'm using the Fair Trade Foot Lotion from Lush. It has peppermint oil in it so it smells beautiful and is really cooling :) Then trimming those toenails, checking the cuticles and picking a nice bright polish to finish them off. I mentioned in my make up items for May that I'm using O.P.I's Come To Poppy! :) which I'm loving at the moment.

Lastly I've been trying to lay off using too much heat on my hair! I'm such a heat junkie :( that I'm left with frazzled locks that are in need of a complete make over! So in conjunction with using hair oils and deep treatment masks I've been trying to sleep with my hair in platts instead of curling it to create natural waves. I always think in the summer you can get away with less polished hair so I'm embracing it as much as I can to try and save my poor fried hair.

So that's about it for my steps in preparing myself for the warmer months, hopefully we haven't seen the last of the sunshine!! If anyone has any good tips for getting ready for summer please leave them below as I'd love to read them :) xxx

Makeup for May

I've actually done quite a bit of shopping considering we're only a week or so into May, so I thought I'd share some of the things that I've picked up!

One of the things is a repurchase but one that I haven't had for a few years. Maybelline's the Colossal volume express mascara in 100% black. Now I used to absolutely love this mascara, and using it again I don't actually know why I ever stopped. Previously I must have gone through five or six tubes of this but then I started trying so many others it just got pushed to the back of my mind! I have naturally quite short lashes and I find that this gives dramatic length without making them look spidery and lots of volume! A firm favourite of mine! :)

Next up is two Urban Decay eyeshadows from their new Moondust Collection. I have swatched both colours below but the glitter has made it quite difficult to see the colours on my camera :( the top colour is Space Cowboy and the bottom Diamond Dog. These eyeshadows just attracted the true magpie in me they're so sparkly! I'd seen lots of the MUA's wearing them at work and they look beautiful so I couldn't resist. The only thing I will say is I was advised to apply them with my finger, and press firmly to pick up the glitter. Applying them when using a brush doesn't really seem to do much plus you'll probably find it difficult to get the glitter off your brushes haha. I used Diamond Dog on the outer corner of my eyelids to create a smoky look and loved it!

Another Maybelline item is their Colorsensational lipstick in 630 Velvet Beige, also swatched bellow. I love the formula of these lipsticks. They're really pigmented so the colour is really long lasting but they're not matte. I chose this colour as it's more of a deeper nude then I'd normally go for, and I don't have anything else like it. It reminded me of Benefits Do Tell lipstick which I've lusted after for quite a while, but is sadly now being discontinued. For a fraction of the price I am very happy :)

Lastly this nail varnish was actually a present off my besty Charlotte over at Stand For Style blog who I've linked below, she gave it to me during one of our swap sessions and I absolutely love it. I've included it in this as I painted my toes this colour last night and thinks its a perfect Spring colour. It's O.P.I's Come to Poppy. It's so vibrant and well pigmented I love the formula of O.P.I polishes as I think they're such good quality!

Ok well that's about it for my few new makeup items! Has any one tried any of these? Or can recommend the lipsticks in any other colours for me to try? xxx