Wednesday 29 December 2010

I Have Finally Given In To The Whole Depotting Thingy

I have never before been interested in depotting my Mac eyeshadows but tonight something snapped inside me and I had a little go at depotting!  I'm pleased to announce that there were no casualties and it was much easier than I expected.  I might even do more (well lets not get too carried away lol).

I only buy Mac eyeshadows in pan form now but I still have loads of eyeshadows in the pots from my early purchases.  The reason that I have decided now to depot is the fact that my potted eyeshadows (or at least most of them) get very little or no love whatsover.  So my thoughts are that if I have them in a palette then at least they will be loved like they should:)

So here are my first 4 babies:

They are from top left: Shadowy Lady, Femme-Fi, Expensive Pink and Smut.  As you can see they definitely do deserve some love:)

I'm going to attempt to Back to Mac the pots tomorrow.  I'm not sure about the whole not being able to B2M pots without the pans in them.  Anyone who knows for sure please let me know:)  I'll chance my arm and hope for a nice MUA.  I've always got hope lol

I've also got an empty foundation and an empty Strobe Lotion to return.  Wish me luck!!

Tuesday 14 December 2010

The End Of The Body Shop As We Know It?

As anyone who has read my previous posts on The Body Shop will know I am a huge fan of their products.  They take me back to really happy times in my life from the time it first opened in Belfast and my friend got a job in it to the time I lived in Brighton and was able to do a Body Shop tour in their place just up the coast in Bognor and all the great times inbetween and since.

So you can imagine my dismay when I saw this in my local shopping centre:

The actual Body Shop shop had closed and this replaced it.  A very sorry excuse for The Body Shop.  It obviously stocks a lot less than the shop did and the makeup section is non existant.  Pathetic really and I find it extremely sad.  It depresses me every time I walk past it.  The worst part though is the fact that it is only like this until Christmas and then it will be GONE!!  The staff who have worked there for years are to lose their jobs.  An unfortunate reminder of the times we now live in.  I really feel for those girls, some of whom have been there for a long time.  They have to spend their final days as Body Shop employees sitting in the middle of a shopping centre.  The chairs look really uncomfortable and if they are there on their own at any time how do they manage a toilet break?!  Just to make their last days in this job even more depressing they have to completely stock this stall in the mornings and then completely unstock it at closing time so that it looks like this:

Seing it like this depresses me even more:(  Of course we will still have an actual Body Shop shop to go to in Belfast (at least I think I do but it may have been reduced to a similar stall type thingy) but it's just not the same.  I loved having a browse before I did my weekly groceries and if I needed anything it was literally a 5 minute drive away.  I loved the  smell of the shop and the friendliness of the girls. 

There is also the online side of the Body Shop where I will still be able to buy stuff but it's so much more difficult to try anything new if you can't see it.  I feel that is a very important aspect of The Body Shop that really shouldn't be lost. 

I'm sure Anita Roddick would be turning in her grave to see what's become of the actual shops. 

Do you still have a local Body Shop?  Would you be sad to see it go or am I alone here?

Tuesday 7 December 2010

YouTube Guru and Blogger Rant

Recently I have been becoming increasingly annoyed by the amount of YT gurus and bloggers who post "reviews" of products that they have literally just opened.  I don't know about you, but I believe a review should be about a product that you have used for a while.  It's impossible to get all the good and bad points simply from opening the product.  These types of posts/videos should be more appropriately titled as "unboxing" or something similar because that is basically what they are.  I clicked on a product review video this morning and as soon as I realised that it was really just a product promotion video for products that had been sent to them I quickly stopped the video and went to do something less boring instead.

Whilst I am on the subject, another pet hate of mine is YouTubers and Bloggers who don't reply to any comments you make.  Even worse, some Bloggers in particular, don't reply to ANY comments made on their posts.  I feel this is incredibably rude and extremely big headed of them not to interact with their viewers/readers.  After all, without the viewers/readers then what is the point?   Viewers/readers and their loyalty to the YouTuber/Blogger shouldn't go completely unnoticed.  Granted, some gurus receive a large amount of comments and can't physically answer them all, but bloggers in general receive a lot less and I don't think there is any excuse for not replying to people on a blog. 

Perhaps I am expecting too much of Gurus/Bloggers.  Is a little display of good manners to much to ask?  What do you think?

Friday 12 November 2010

Z Palette

I have seen these before on Pixiwoo videos and have always managed to resist.  However, on the last Products of the Week video I saw these again and decided I needed one in my life.  So I actually bought 2.  I got the small one and the big one, both in zebra print. 

For some reason Blogger is showing the picture on its side even though it was the right way up before.  Grrrr!

Anyway you get the idea.  I wanted one of these mainly because it means I can store blusher and eyeshadow together and make them much more accessable in the mornings when I'm getting ready.  I find the Mac blusher palettes too large and consequently I don't use my pan blushers but tend to reach for the ones I have still in the pot.  So, in a way, this will help me to be able to use up more of my makeup.  Score!!

The palettes themselves are incredibably sturdy and the lid closes very securely on them.  I have filled my small one and will leave the larger one for a while yet.  I'll probably put more blushers in the large one ao that I can get at even more items in the same palette.

So here is a picture of the palette opened.  Again Blogger has published it with a different orientation than it had ariginally.

The shadows are:

Top Row:
Omega
Vanilla
Patina

The 2 shadows below Omega are:
Twinks
Satin Taupe

and the blusher is Well Dressed.

The Omega, Twinks and Satin Taupe are all brand new and I couldn't wait to get them in their new home:)


Finally here is a picture of the large palette on its side.  I still have the wrapper on it as I'm playing with the smaller one first:)

The small one cost £12.95 and the large one was £18.55.  I suppose these are expensive and I hope they turn out to be worth the money.  I know I could take my Mac palettes apart to achieve my aim of being able to store blusher and eyeshadow in the same palette but where's the fun in that?  I want to have something that does the job and is nice to look at.  The Z Palette ticks both these boxes.

I bought them from Makeup Provisions and I have to say their service was incredible.  I only ordered these yesterday and they arrived today!!  That is amazing in my opinion.  The postage was rather steep at £9 but they were sent via Royal Mail Special Delivery which I think costs £5 plus the normal postage.  So taking that into account it's not too steep after all.  You get what you pay for at the end of the day!

20% Off At ELF Until Sunday

Just thought I'd share this festive treat with you.  ELF is great at it's regular price but not to be missed at 20% off!!



Click here and use the codes above:)

Enjoy!!

Wednesday 3 November 2010

Bargain of the Week

Today as I was walking through my local shopping centre my attention was drawn to the sign below:





















Marks and Spencer have, as their offer of the week, half price on all Tess Daly products.  I thought it would be rude not to try a few items.  I have looked longingly at these products before and thought they are slightly too pricey.  Perfect opportunity now, at half price, to give them a whirl.  So I purchased the following 2 items:




Daly Face Glow and Daly Body Glow.  Each of these normally cost £9.50 each so today I got both of these for £9.50.  A much more civilized price!!

And here is the Daly Face Glow swatched on my hand and also pictured open. It looks like a lovely highlighter and I can't wait to give it a proper trial.





Next up we have the Daly Body Glow rubbed onto my hand and also pictured open.  It gives a lovely glow to the skin and would be perfect for any upcoming Christmas parties.  Oh and it smells amazing too!!

Finally I used a Boots No 7 £5 voucher to buy a No 7 Eye Makeup Remover.  I have never used this before and I love using these vouchers to try out new stuff.  With the voucher this only cost me £2.75.  Bargain!!


Sunday 31 October 2010

Outfit of the Day

Here's a quick ootd post as it's been quite a while since I've done one. Yesterday I was wearing:






Tunic top from Next (last year)
Cardigan from Marks and Spencer (also last year)
Black leggings from Next
Black boots from Next (current)

I only got the boots the day before yesterday and it is love!! They are so comfy, and I can walk in them!! I wanted boots with a bit of a heel this year. A break from the norm!!

Here's a close up of my new love:






And a side shot:






All the better to see the heel with:)

Have a great rest of weekend:) xx

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Thursday 28 October 2010

Six Times is a Habit

I read somewhere once that you only have to do something six times for it to become a habit.  I for one believe this to be true.  Last year I religiously moisturised my body after every shower.  It was definitely a good habit to be in and my skin thanked me for it.

However, the flip side of this coin is that it only takes you to stop doing something 6 times for that to become the habit.  Over the summer I became very lazy about body moisturisation.  I don't know why, as it's so much easier to do when the weather is warmer and you're not freezing when you step out of the shower.  I can only put it down to laziness.

Now though my skin is becoming very dry again and we are definitely in dry, flaky skin kind of weather.

Today I bought this:



















It's the Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Cream Intensive Moisturising Body Treatment.  It sounded just up my street and exactly what my skin ordered.  Plus, there is nothing like a brand spanking new product to help form new habits, right?

What it says on the info:

"A fast absorbing moisturising treatment for the body.
  • Saturates deeply and moisturises intensely
  • Reverses skin dryness and flaking
To use: apply generously on body.
Clinically and dermatologist tested."

Sounds just the job for my dry skin and I have already applied my first application post shower.  Only five more times to go for my old habit to be reinstated!!

What good beauty habits would you like to start?

Tuesday 26 October 2010

Mac Mineralised Products - How I Hate Thee

These products are just too damned delicate to have any lasting power. I am almost afraid to use them now for fear of breakage. Take a look at what happened to my Fresh Green Mix mineralize eye shadow. It's so sad:(





And tonight I dropped my Pleasantry Mineralize Blusher. Although you can't tell from the picture, it is sounding really rattly now.





I have actually stopped buying this kind of product now as a clumsy person like me can't get any sort of decent lifespan out of them. I am just awaiting the demise of the rest of my collection.

What mineralised products have you broken?

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Sunday 24 October 2010

Estee Lauder Makeup Artists Professional Colour Collection Unboxing and Haul



Just me unboxing the new Makeup Artists Professional Colour Collection from Estee Lauder.  A definite bargain and one that is sure to fly off the shelves like hotcakes!!

Monday 11 October 2010

Aluminium Free Deodorant - Breast Cancer Awareness



My latest Youtube video is about the pros and cons of using aluminium free deodorant and I have found one that works reasonably well and is streets ahead of its rivals in terms of stopping the pong!!

Saturday 9 October 2010

Nails of the Day

Today I'm sporting OPI's Significant Other Colour on my nails. I have to say that I was disappointed by the intensity of the polish. I had expected it to be darker, judging by how it looks in the bottle.




However, it is still a beautiful colour, even if not as intense as it looks in the bottle. It's perfect for every day use. It's a beautiful pale purple colour with a hint of shimmer running through it. It applies really well. Not too thin, not too thick and definitely not streaky like other polishes I have been trying of late.

I'll definitely be getting a lot of use out of this one:)


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Friday 1 October 2010

Estee Lauder Breast Cancer Awareness Elizabeth Hurley Lip Gloss Collection and Swatches

With October being Breast Cancer Awareness month I thought it would be a nice idea/good excuse to buy some of the Estee Lauder Pink Ribbon Collection.  I decided on the lipgloss collection first and I may go back later on in the month and get the lipstick collection.

These sets cost £25 and £7.50 of that will be donated to The Breast Cancer Research Foundation.

The set comes with 2 double ended lipglosses, giving you 4 lipglosses in total and they come in a really cute little clutch bag/purse.  From pictures I had seen of the clutch I had imagined it to be rigid but it's actually soft and is really pretty.

The lip glosses are quite thick in texture and you don't need to apply much to get a good coverage.

I have swatched them for you so that you can get a better idea.  This is my first attempt at posting swatches as I've never had a camera before that was up to the job, however I think my iPhone 4 is.

The colours are swatched in the same order as they appear in the first picture.

They are from top left Brazen Berry (shine),
Extravagant pink (shimmer), Nude Rose (shine) and Rock Candy (shimmer). 

As you can see they are all beautiful and wearable colours and as they are for a worthy cause they are definitely worth picking up.  They are limited edition and are available on Estee Lauder counters in October.

I purchased these myself, with my own money.

Are you going to get anything from this collection?

Wednesday 29 September 2010

Essie Nail Polish Haul and NOTD

Last week I placed an order on eBay for some Essie nail polishes and I also got a Colour Club polish.  I used the seller recommended by Laura, Lollipop26 which can be found here

My polishes arrived yesterday which was very quick.  They took about a week to come from the States.  They were very well packaged in a box with plenty of padding and inside was a cute box which contained all the polishes.  It looked like a tiny wine holder that you can get from the supermarket:)


I had bought 5 polishes in total.  They are:

Essie - Soiree Mauve, Little Brown Dress, Charleston and Sequin Bash. 

I also bought Nothing But Truffle from Colour Club.

I have never tried any polishes from these brands before so I was very eager to get trying.

Last night I painted my nails in Charleston.  It's a beautiful purple/brown/mauve colour.  Last night when I applied it in false light it looked very brown but today in the daylight it looks more of a purple colour.  It's very unusual and quite unlike any other nail polish I own.  Here's a quick NOTD pic:)

I have to say I am already disappointed in the quality.  It applied very streaky and took very careful application to get an even coverage.  In the picture I have applied a base coat, 2 coats of the Essie and Seche Vite top coat. Today, only 12 hours later, I am sporting my first chip on the left thumb.  Not a great start but I'm still looking forward to trying the others:)

Have you ever tried Essie?  What are your favourite colours and did you get any more staying power than me?

Friday 17 September 2010

Black and Gold Crosshatch Nails

Today I decided to have a little fun with my nails and go for a black and gold design.  I decided to do a simple crosshatch pattern and I was pleased with the results.  I like how my nails look with this pattern and I have had a few compliments on them as well. Not bad for a days work.
Cue silly pose:

I used:

Boots No17 Strengthening Base Coat
Boots No17 Nail Polish in Nightshade
Gold Nail Art Pen
Seche Vite Top Coat

I applied my base coat, followed by 2 coats of the black (Nightshade).  It was taking a really long time to dry so at this point I applied a coat of Seche Vite top coat to speed things up.  I then applied the gold polish in the crosshatch pattern and another layer of Seche Vite.  I'm pleased to report that I have had no minor mishaps with my nails today and they are still as good as they were when I first applied.  I normally smear/smudge at least one of them lol

Tomorrow I am going swimming and hope that my nails can survive half an hour or so in the pool:)

What are you sporting on your nails today?


Thursday 16 September 2010

Bioderma Haul

About a year ago I discovered Bioderma Crealone TS H2O.  This is a well known cleanser and it is said to be popular among models as it is very gentle on the skin and is ideal for removing lots of makeup, several times per day.  I first saw this stuff when Sam from Pixiwoo mentioned it in one of her videos here. She told us where she bought it from Pharma Discount which is a French based company.  I hot footed it over to their website and duly purchased a bottle.  One year later and my bottle is empty (see the sad empty bottle above).  So I went back to Pharma Discount to buy some more, only to discover that they no longer ship to the UK.  What a disappointment as I had been loving this product and really needed more.  One quick Google search later though and I had found somewhere else to purchase and they delivered to the UK.  I got mine from LeGuideSante which is also a French based company.  Bioderma is a French brand and therefore is more readily available in France.   

So just in case of any repeat episodes in a year's time I bought 3.  See the 3 happy bottles below. 


I had found this cleanser for sale on eBay also but I would have had to pay £20 for one bottle (500ml).  The 3 bottles above cost me £19.33 plus delivery.  The delivery charge was £15 which is perhaps a little expensive, but then it is coming from France and it is quite heavy so maybe not extortionate.

I also got myself some lip balms (well 4 to be precise, don't ask me why I needed 4 lol).


The lip balms are ridiculously cheap.  These 4 cost me £3.72.  They are lovely and moisturising on the lips and I love the fact that they are French and noone else here might have one like it.  Sad I know:)

So on total for the above lot I paid £43.07.  Not bad considering I would have paid £40 for 2 of the bottles on eBay.  I'm happy with my purchase and the service I received.  The parcel took only 6 days to arrive.  Of course I wasn't in when it did arrive but the Parcel Force man took it to my local Post Office rather than all the way back to the Parcel Force depot, so I had no bother getting the parcel.  I was able to walk to the Post Office after dropping the kids at school.

If you haven't tried the Bioderma cleanser you should.  I am in love with it and really missed it when I had run out.  It is suitable for sensitive skin and can be used on face and eyes.  I don't really rate it as an eye makeup remover but I love it for the rest of my makeup.  I use it on dampened cotton wool as this saves a tonne of product.  Your product will not be absorbed right into the cotton wool, wasting most of it.  This is how I got my bottle to last a whole year.  I used it most days too (probably 5 or 6 days a week) and sometimes twice in the one day although I normally only use it to remove makeup at night.  In the morning I need a soapy cleanser as I find this more refreshing at that time of day.

Have you tried any Bioderma products?  I want to try more:)

Saturday 11 September 2010

Nude Nails of the Day

Today I thought I'd jump on the nude nails bandwagon.  I have had this polish for a while and with a free house this afternoon (hubby and kids are out) I thought it was the perfect opportunity to have a wee play:)

The polish I have chosen is by 2True and is Shade 30.  2True make up is available in Superdrug and is from the cheaper end of the market.  Normally you can pick up 3 items of 2True make up for £5.  Great to cheer yourself up on a budget!!

The colour of Shade 30 is beautiful and I have applied 2 coats to achieve this.  I also have a base coat on and Seche Vite top coat.  The colour is perfect for every day wear as it's not too "in your face" which is perfect if you need to keep it subtle for work/school/college.  If you are allowed to wear nail polish to work/school/college of course. 

However I was disappointed with the ease of application.  Well basically it wasn't easy at all.  The brush is really short (although it does go all the way to the bottom of the bottle, so it's as long as it can be).  You get 9ml in the bottle and I found it really cumbersome to apply.  The lid/handle is quite large and is difficult to dip into the bottle for more polish and when you have wet nails this makes it difficult to apply without having any mishaps!!  I did have a few minor ones.  Maybe this could be resolved by having a taller, narrower bottle.  Compared with Boots 17 nail polish (which only has 8ml in a bottle) this is much more difficult to apply and I think this can be attributed to the shape of the bottle and lid.

I do like this colour but I'm unsure as to whether the faff of application is actually worth it.  Surely I can find something similar that is easier to apply?  My quest starts here!!

Wednesday 8 September 2010

What Goes First?

Which do you use the most of? Shampoo or conditioner? I'm just being nosey here;) I seem to use more conditioner than shampoo. I only ever shampoo my hair once though. I think the old double shampoo idea is just a con to get us to buy more shampoo!!



Does anyone ever get their bottles of shampoo and conditioner to run out at the same time?

Tuesday 7 September 2010

Red and Black Zebra Stripe Nails

My most recent upload to Youtube is a tutorial for red and black zebra nails. The camera didn't pick the detail up as well as I would have liked so here is a picture of the finished nails:)



Catch the video on my YouTube channel.

Wednesday 4 August 2010

Autumn Winter 2010 at Next - Clogs



Today I had a little splurge at Next but I wanted to show you my favourite purchase. It is a pair of clogs and apparently they are going to be hot for Autumn/Winter 2010.

I chose a pair with an open toe as I want to start wearing them right away and they were cheaper than the closed toe ones;) As you can see from the picture they are brown and are (in my opinion anyway) quite high. On trying them on I was pleasantly surprised at just how comfortable they are. I know that clogs have a reputation for being comfortable but let's face it, the traditional style of clogs just don't look it do they? Of cousre only time will tell if they are comfortable or not but first impressions are good!!

These set me back £22 (a total steal if you ask me) and are available now at Next:)

Which must have shoes are on your wish list for this Autumn/Winter?

Monday 26 July 2010

A Little Help Please

I have a relative coming soon from the USA and she wants to know if I want anything brought over. So what are must have American products that I should put on my wishlist? So far all I want is Covergirl Lashblast mascara.

Thanks for your help:)

PS I am doing this from my iPhone. I hope it works ok;)

Thursday 22 July 2010

Weirdness at the Dentist

Yestereday I went to the dentist for my regular check up. I also got the usual scale and polish which is a horrible experience but unfortunately totally necessary. I just hate the noise of all those machines!!

Anyway, when the dentist put the cream/paste on my front teeth for the polishing part of the treatment I smelled a very familiar smell. After a couple of seconds of pondering where I had smelled this smell before it clicked! It smelled exactly the same as my Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Cream. How weird is that? I found it quite a comforting smell, once I had recognised it and it made the last few minutes of treatment more pleasant:)

Wednesday 14 July 2010

Short Nails Are The Way Forward

Yesterday I took the head staggers and cut all my nails short.

Not so long ago I used to do this religiously whenever I broke a nail but not so much lately and I think my nails were suffering because of it. They were splitting and I was getting tired of it. So now I'm sporting 2 hands of short nails and I'm loving it.

I love that feeling you get when you initially cut your nails short that something is missing:)

My top 10 reasons for having short nails are:

1. Much easier access to little pots of lip balm etc
2. Much easier to type on a keyboard
3. Much easier to use my iPhone
4. Less nail polish required to paint nails so also money saving
5. Less likely to scratch my kids accidentally
6. Less likely to break a nail
7. Much easier to open tins with ring pulls (beans, coke etc)
8. Much easier to apply cream eye products to my eyes (my nose always gets in the way of long nails lol)
9. Much more neat and tidy for work
10. Less chance of scratcing myself accidentally when applying moisturiser etc

What are your reasons for liking short nails, or long nails if you don't like short nails;)

Monday 28 June 2010

Hair of the Day - Beach Waves

Today I decided to go for a slightly more wavy look than what I normally achieve with my hair from just scrunching alone.

I washed my hair in Umberto Giannini Curl Friends Keep Calm Shampoo and conditioner. I then used my usual John Freida Frizz Ease Curl Perfector spray, combed it through and then turned my head upside down and scrunched. I left it to dry naturally and when it was completely dry I used my conical wand to add some waves to the top layers of hair, then turned my head upside down again and used it in the underneath layers. I then used two kirby grips to pin back the fringe section of hair and voila!



This is the finished look and I was quite pleased with it:)

I'm not sure of the quality of the photo though. I took it with my new iPhone and I used the function that allows you to take the picture with the screen facing you so that you can see what you are photographing (great for taking pics of yourself). However, I don't think the quality this way is the same as the quality I would get if I used it the normal way.

What way did you wear your hair today?

Sunday 20 June 2010

Easy Daily Exfoliation

Now that summer has made an appearance in the UK it's time to think about getting your skin in tip top condition so that you can show more of it than normal. Strappy vests, shorts, skirts now form the dress code for summer and the jeans, long sleeved tops and boots have been banished to the back of the wardrobe, if only for a little while:)


So here is my top tip for easy daily exfoliation and you won't even know that you are doing it. It requires no extra effort whatsover.



First of all you need one of these:










A good old faithful scruncie for the shower. Now, maybe you already use one of these and therefore don't need to be converted. If you haven't used one then now is the time to get one. Squirt some of your shower gel on to one of these babies and it will lather up good and proper. Give yourself a good allover scrub with this and it will gently exfoliate at the same time as washing you. As an added bonus your shower gel will last a much longer time, saving you ££££s.



Step 2 invloves ditching your beautiful tumble dried soft and fluffy towels for scratchy towels that have been line dried. Rougher towels will help to exfoliate your skin as you dry yourself.

So now you can exfoliate without even knowing you're doing it and say hello to smooth skin:)

Sunday 13 June 2010

Embrace the Pale

I was at an outdoor concert last week and the Beauty Therapist in me was genuinely shocked at the sheer number of girls with very badly applied fake tan. Everywhere I looked all I saw was streaky orange body parts. Not really a good look;0

Check out here for some celebrity tan disasters.

These celebrity disasters are nowhere near as disasterous as the tanning disasters I saw. At least the celebs have the main body of their tan well applied (even if they did forget their hands or legs lol). The girls I saw were simply a mass of orange streaks.

There were many other girls there who had embraced the pale and gone as their natural selves. They still wore the short skirts/shorts/skimpy tops but they looked a million times better than their orange counterparts.

The moral of this story is if you can't apply a fake tan well then don't;0

Friday 11 June 2010

Instyle Freebie

Lots of UK magazines are giving away great stuff with their July issues (see previous post on free Benefit makeup with Glamour).



Today I picked up July's Instyle issue and bagged myself (literally) a free shopping bag. The bag is by Moschino and is gorgeous. I can just picture myself with this bag;)


What freebies have you had lately?

Elizabeth Arden Makeover

Today I decided to go to my local Elizabeth Arden counter to get some of their 8 Hour Cream. This is a cult classic product and also one that I have never tried. I decided today was the day that I was going to get me some of that. I have never tried any Elizabeth Arden products in my life, so in order to become a better beauty addict I decided that I really must try some EA;)

I went to my local counter which is in a small Boots. The EA assistant was extremely helpful (Clinique staff, you could learn a thing or 2 from this lady), telling me all about the 8 Hour Cream, how she uses it and what general things it can be used for. It sure does sound like a miracle as it can be used on very dry patches of skin, minor cuts and also burns, although I hope I never have to find out if it works on minor burns lol

She then went on to show me a special box of 8 Hour goodies (hand cream, body lotion, lip balm etc) and told me that this was much better value for money. Of course they always say that but I am a sucker for more stuff for only a few quid extra, so of course I caved and got the box set.

There was an offer on in Boots that if you bought 2 or more products you got 500 Advantage Card Points (don't you just love Boots Advantage Card?) and she also knew that there was an offer in the Advantage Card Machine which would give me a further 150 points. Top score for this sales assistant!! I bought some moisturiser so that I could get the points. I got Intervene which was recommended by the SA.

Then she suggested that I come in any time for a makeover and as it was quiet at the time I asked if I could get one there and then. That was no problem and here is the makeup she applied for me:



I was very happy with her choice of colours for me and also the application. I loved the lipstick colour and might go back and purchase that. The makeup lasted all day although the lipstick only lasted until I needed some food.

My neck always looks much lighter on camera than it is in real life. I just can't get the lighting right:(

Expect some 8 Hour Reviews in the next few weeks. I can't wait to give it a try.

Have you tried any EA products? What are your faves?

Tuesday 8 June 2010

Free Benefit Makeup

Get your mits on some free Benefit makeup with the July 2010 issue of Glamour Magazine which goes on sale tomorrow, June 10th 2010.

This year they are giving away pencils. You have a choice of:

Eye Bright - Instant Eye Brightener (worth £14)
Bad Gal - Smouldering Black pencil (worth £14) or
It Stick - Conceal it all pencil (worth £17)

You can choose your product or collect all 3!! I'll definitely be collecting all 3:)

This is a bargain not to be missed as the magazine only costs £2. So for £6 you can have all 3:)

What will you be picking up?

Friday 4 June 2010

Paint Brushes for Makeup?

I saw a Youtube video recently from a very lovely lady, debbick1 (click on the link to check out her YT channel and subscribe) who had discovered a much cheaper alternative to makeup brushes. We all know that really good ones (ie MAC) can cost an arm and a leg so if a cheaper alternative can be found then why not give it a go?

Debby very kindly offered to send me some and I very readily agreed:) Today my parcel arrived and in it was 3 of the nicest brushes I have ever seen. They are every bit as soft as she said they were in her video and they feel like really great quality.




From left to right we have Loew-Cornell 270 Maxine's Mop

Robert Simmons E52 Oval Mop and finally

Robert Simmons S57


The Loew-Cornell one looks like a bigger version of the MAC 239 and it will be great for putting colour all over the lid. The middle one looks perfect for foundation and the last one is like a slanted eyeliner brush. I am really looking forward to trying these out and can't wait to let you know what I think.


Debby also has a great blog you should check out and follow:)


Have you ever used paintbrushes for your makeup?

Friday 28 May 2010

Colourful Party Eyes With 88 Palette

This is a look that was requested. I had great fun doing it:) I hope you enjoy it xx

Wednesday 19 May 2010

FOTD With Superdrug MUA Makeup



Today I have done a purple look using the new MUA makeup range from Superdrug. This is available at larger branches of Superdrug and also at http://www.superdrug.com/ Each item costs just £1 so it's easy to try out lots of items from this range.

Here is what I'm wearing:

Face
Nars Sheer Glow
MUA Bronzer Shade 1
MUA Blusher Shade 1

Eyes
Nars Sheer Glow as base
MUA Eyeshadow Shade 4 pearl on outer half of lid
MUA Eyeshadow Shade 16 Matte on inner half of lid
MUA Eyeshdadow Shade 2 Pearl as a highlight
MUA Mascara in Shade 5

Lips
MUA Lipstick in Shade 9

My initial thoughts on this range are that it is good for the price. The eyeshadows and blusher are slightly powdery and can give you a lot of fallout. The pigmentation of the shadows I tried wasn't brilliant. Certainly not on a par with other cheap shadows like the 88 palette, but they do make for an easy to create, everyday wearable makeup. If you are looking for more pigmentation then these are not for you.

ITEMS NOT TO BE MISSED

from this range are the nail polishes and some of the lipsticks. The nail polishes have great pigmentation and apply really easily and smoothly. I have a YT video on these which will be posted over the next few days. The lipstick I am wearing in this look is awesome. Great colour payoff and very moisturising.

MY ADVICE

would be to try this range in the shop before you buy. If you're like me and don't have a larger branch of Superdrug close by then check out other peoples blog reviews and YT videos before purchasing. Although at a £1 a pop it won't really matter if they aren't that great. At the end of the day we can't really expect miracles for £1

Have you tried anything from this range? What are your faves?

Wednesday 12 May 2010

New Do.....

.....or at least a similar haicut to what I had before. I was in desperate need of a trim. My regular hairdresser is on maternity leave and I've been putting off going to someone else. I am pleased to report that I love my cut!!



I am growing my highlights out. It's official:) It's an expensive habit to get into and now that I have got back into regular swimming I think it's too much money to be ruined by chlorine. I may have a dabble in home dying which I have never done before!!

I'm off to see Metallica in concert tonight. I have been looking forward to this for ages and am so happy it's finally here!

I hope you are all well xx

Sunday 25 April 2010

NOTD China Glaze Touch Of Glamour Nail Polish



The current nail polish that I am sporting is China Glaze Touch Of Glamour Nail Polish. It's a very pretty pale gold colour, another one that is perfect for every day wear. It's perfectly understated but makes your nails look well cared for. I think it would look even better on tanned skin or on darker skin tones. A perfect colour for summer!!

China Glaze is my new obsession;) What's yours?

Saturday 24 April 2010

Free Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish

This is of absolutely no use to me but may be useful to anybody in England or Scotland:)

Buy The Mail on Sunday this weekend to find out how you can claim a free Liz Earle beauty product at your nearest John Lewis store. Click here for more details and to find out where your nearest participating store is.

And there is more to look forward to over the next 4 weeks. I wish we had a John Lewis:(

Scary and Cute

A few weeks ago my local pet shop had face painting and baloon modelling to mark the reopening of the refurbished store. I think the girl who did the face painting is probably the best I have ever seen. My son got a scary monster:



and my daughter got a cute bunny rabbit:)




I passed up the offer to have mine painted lol

Friday 23 April 2010

Prize Draw Winner

Sorry this has taken me a while to do. It's not like it was difficult, I only had 4 people who entered, I just didn't have the time until now:)



Altogether I had 4 people entering. 1 person blogged and tweeted about it and therefore got 3 entries and 1 person tweeted about it for 2 entries. This afternoon I wrote the entries out, folded them up and got my daughter to draw the winner from my hand:)



So without further ado the winner is nicolacc2008:)


You can just about make out my writing on this piece of paper.
Well done to Nicola and thanks to everyone who entered.
Nicola can you email your address to jenny9119999@hotmail.co.uk so that I can post your prize.

Wednesday 21 April 2010

Get £5 off at House of Fraser

Beauty Offer

Receive £5 off when you spend £50 or more on beauty and fragrance in store and online.

Code: BEAUTY10

Valid from: 19/04/2010 to 03/05/2010 (inclusive)

T&Cs: Terms & Conditions

A great excuse to spend at House of Fraser:)

Monday 19 April 2010

China Glaze Ruby Pumps



Sorry this is a day later than I promised but here is what China Glaze Ruby Pumps looks like on toes:) It's a beautiful deep red and less sparkly than Good Witch? This was achieved with only 1 coat over a base coat. I think it's lovely and perfect for summer:)

I will be doing my prize draw in the next few days. There were only 4 entries so it won't take long sorting it out:)

Friday 16 April 2010

Busy Busy Busy

I have been so busy at work this week that I haven't had time to show you the other polishes form China Glaze that I promised. I hope to get them both done on Sunday though:) Before my competition closes xx

Sunday 11 April 2010

A Sneak Peak at Good Witch?

As you may or may not know, I am having a giveaway of 3 of the Wizard of Oz nail polishes from China Glaze. I hope to do a few posts on what they look like on before I give them away. I bought myself the same ones, so don't worry, the prizes will be brand new and unopened.

The first one I have tried is Good Witch?

It's a beautiful pink colour with glitter in it. If you don't like the feel of glitter then these polises are not for you. I have used a base coat and applied 2 coats of Good Witch? to get the coverage seen. 1 coat is pretty good but it does take 2.

The first thing I noticed about this polish was how quickly it dries. I haven't tried any other China Glaze polishes so I'm not sure if they all do this but Good Witch? dried rock hard in record time. Normally I have to be careful with my nail polish for a couple of hours after (you know the kind of thing - careful lifting things, touching things, going to the toilet lol etc etc) but this baby was rock solid within about 30 minutes. I couldn't believe it. This is definitely a big plus for this polish.

I love the colour, it's a nice every day sort of colour. However, after less than 48 hours of wear it is starting to wear away at the edge of my nails. I have not applied a top coat as I'm not a big fan of top coats but maybe in this case it might be useful. Admittedly I am quite rough with my nails/hands. I wash dishes without gloves (Shock Horror!!). I am amazed that I manage to keep my nails so long most of the time:)

So here's the pic:)



I love this colour and can't wait to try the others:)

Friday 9 April 2010

Win China Glaze Wizard of Oz Nail Polishes



It's time for me to do a giveaway. It's over a year since I started this blog and now is the time to give something back to my loyal followers. New followers are welcome too!! However, if you have previously followed this blog and then unfollowed, then you are not eligible to enter this contest. This is for my loyal followers.

The prizes are pictured above and are 3 China Glaze Nail Polishes from the Wizard of Oz collection. They are Ruby Pumps (the red one), Dorothy Who? (the blue one) and Good Witch? (the pinky one). One lucky winner will win all three polishes.

So what do you have to do to enter?

First of all you must be a follower of my blog.
You must be over 18.
This is open internationally, so anyone can enter. I will post to anywhere in the world.
You must leave a comment below saying "enter me" and you must also tell me who your favourite character from the Wizard of Oz is and why.
You can only enter once but if you Tweet or Blog about this then you can have an extra free entry for each one. Just tell me who your 2nd and 3rd fave characters are and leave me the link to your Twitter and/or Blog. Maximum number of entries is 3 (1 for commenting below, 1 for tweeting and 1 for blogging).

The winner will be the person who's comment I like the best!!

ETA: I have changed my mind and will actually have a draw for the winner. I will do it the old fashioned way of putting everyone's names into a hat:)

Good luck everyone:) This will be open until Sunday 18th April 2000hrs BST.

Thanks in advance to everyone who enters:)

Monday 5 April 2010

The Feel Good Factor

Why do we wear makeup?

The reason I do is that I look and feel so much better with it on. Now don't get me wrong. I can leave the house without any makeup on and quite often do but when I wear it I feel so much more confident and better about myself. Shallow eh?

Why do you wear makeup?

Saturday 3 April 2010

Happy Easter

I want to wish all my lovely followers and everyone else who reads this a very happy Easter:) Enjoy indulging in chocolate (I certainly will although that's not really specific to Easter lol).

I will be holding my giveaway in the next couple of weeks so be sure to be a follower, if you're not already, for that xx

Friday 2 April 2010

Easter Discount at Barry M

Another offer I received by email which I thought I'd share:)

Barry M are offering 10% off orders over the bank holiday weekend. It ends at midnight on 5 April 2010. Enter code EASTER10 at the checkout.

Check out the website here Barry M

Tuesday 30 March 2010

e.l.f UK One Day Sale

Get 20% off ELF Studio products for one day only. I received an email about this and thought it was definitely worth sharing:)

Visit the ELF website at:

http://www.eyeslipsface.co.uk/category.asp?catID=13

Get 20% off all Studo products when you spend over £15. Use code MIDWKSALE at the checkout. Ends at midday on 31st March 2010.

Saturday 27 March 2010

Lipstick or Lip Gloss?

Which do you prefer?

I am currently going through a lipstick phase but I was a gloss lover for such a long time before that. I'm not a fan of doing the whole lipstick/gloss combo thing though. Far too much effort involved in applying 2 products;)

I may start preferring gloss again when the sun eventually makes an appearance lol.

So do you like lipstick, gloss, both or do yougo through phases like me? I'd love to know xx

Friday 26 March 2010

Primark Shoes

What's not to love? Cheap, on trend and comfy. So I picked up these 2 pairs for summer today:)

First of all I loved the look of these pumps. I love flat shoes and I like the fact that these are elasticated. They fit really well and because of the elastic they will stay on my feet much more easily and therefore be more comfortable. They cost £6 so I had to have them. They come in a few colours and I may get more if these ones are as good as they look.
I got size 7. I find that Primark shoes are quite small fitting so definitely worth trying on before you buy. I am generally a size 6 and in M&S shoes I am a 5.5. Quite a variation form 5.5 to 7.
Then I saw these sandals. They cost only £2. Apparently they are going like hot cakes (I heard 2 members of staff saying that this morning so that made me want them even more lol). I hate footwear with toe thongs and this year I am determined to get past this problem. So for £2 I thought they were worth a go and if I really can't stand the toe thongs then it's not a great loss. I picked these up in size 7 as well.

Do you like Primark footwear?

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