Boots Haulin' part two

In an earlier post I talked about the items I bought for myself in a recent Boots points promotion. As a result of being very spendy and getting a lot of christmas shopping done I ended up with almost £60 worth of points. 

I decided to spend these points with an upcoming night out in mind. Here's what I went for. 

Chanel Nail Colour in Black Satin 

Chanel Illusion D'Ombre Cream Eyeshadow in Imitation (see the swatch bottom right but the picture really doesn't do it justice!)

Sleek Face Form in Fair 

Sally Hansen Airbrush Legs in Tan Glow £6.66 (this is the price as it's 1/3 off currently)

Can't believe I got all this for free! 

Boots Haulin' part one

Boots recently had an amazing points event and I have to admit I went a little crazy. I got lots of Christmas gifts, but I also thought it was a great opportunity to stock up on some products I had run out of, some new things to try, and some items for an upcoming night out. 

From left to right:

1. Benefit They're Real Mascara (read my thoughts on that mascara in this empties post)

2. Origins Never A Dull Moment Face Polisher

3. Benefit Pin-Up Lashes

4. Benefit Lash Glue

5. Hydraluron Moisturiser

6. Origins Vitazing

I'll post an update on my thoughts soon! Part two of the haul is coming soon with the goodies I bought with my points.

Thanks for stopping by!

Empties #1

I love seeing what people have used up, I think it gives you the best understanding of how a product really works, and most importantly, whether you would buy it again! Here's my thoughts...

From left to right:

1. Origins Ginzing Moisturiser: I love the scent of this moisturiser and I love the texture of it. It's really cool, light and refreshing. Which makes it even more annoying that it didn't work for my skin. I found it made my eye area dry and I've had this patch of irritated skin since I started using it and I think it might be this that's causing it. I didn't repurchase this, and have tried another Origins moisturiser which I will share in an upcoming haul. £23

2. Benefit They're Real Mascara: I was sceptical about this mascara initially, particularly as it is so expensive, but I took the plunge and repurchased this. I saw a video from benefit about how to use the brush and it totally changed the results I had. What I love most about this mascara is it doesn't flake off, even after a 12 hour shift and that's really important for me. Also, it's not really difficult to remove which is another important factor. £19.50

3. Nivea Stress Protect Anti-Perspirant: Another repurchase for me and I love the big can of this. Again this is vital for me since I work such long hours and it's so effective. It also has no alcohol in it which is good if you have sensitive skin. Already working through another of these. £2.50

4. Revitalash Advanced Lash Conditioner: I will always have one of these on my bedside table and have recommended this product to so many people I should have shares in the company! This product has literally transformed my lashes and there is rarely a day that goes by where someone doesn't say something about my eyelashes. Read more about my experience here. I am already using my next tube and will buy another one soon, I always need a back up of this! £61.20

5. Alpha H Liquid Gold: Another product I absolutely love and I fully intend on repurchasing this when I have more pennies. These bottles always last me a really long time (the packaging has changed since I bought this one!) and I always see results with this. I feel it makes my skin clear, soft and much brighter. It's so easy to use too, it's a crime not to have this in your beauty regime. After I've cleansed my skin I apply this to dry skin with a cotton pad and go to bed without putting on any other products and the next morning my skin feels great. £29

6. Make Up Forever HD Foundation: I have already repurchased this foundation and I can't imagine being without this now. It's really difficult to get in the UK which is a real shame. I wear N130 and it's a great colour for me, I can get away with it when I'm slightly paler or with a fake tan and a bit of bronzer. Love this! £30.95

7. Sally Hansen Moisturising Polish Remover for dry, brittle nails: I love Sally Hansen nail polish remover and always have a few back ups of this in my stash. I find it's really effective at removing nail polish, especially with all the dark colours I wear at this time of year. £2.45

Thanks for reading!

My Week In Review #2

Due to working night shift there have been entire days this week that have been lost to sleeping through the day so it's not been the most productive week in terms of actually getting out of the house. However I did finish season 3 of Game of Thrones (OH MY GOD!). I confess I tucked into this bad boy one evening at 2am, which was really about dinner time to me which is kind of acceptable. 

I had my first red cup from starbucks which was pretty exciting! As I don't drink tea of coffee I went for the peppermint hot chocolate and it didn't disappoint.

I passed some pretty sights on my way to Burlesque this week (by the way I'm totally getting into it!) so I thought I'd share these beautiful lit up chandeliers

 And how fitting that I should pass this Jacobean Corsetry shop on the way to Burlesque! How beautiful is that sign?!

 I also spotted my first tree which was pretty exciting! It was in a restaurant but I'm totally counting that as a legitimate tree sighting. Woop!

It's become a bit of a tradition to have a cocktail before burlesque. Unfortunately the bar man wasn't in so we were told all the current barman could make was a cosmo so we went for that. It came in a wine glass and was the strongest drink I think I've ever had. The barman told us he thinks if he gets us drunk enough he will dance for him. Not enough booze in the world my friend!

I made some serious kick ass chilli which I will share the recipe for soon. The best bit? It tastes awesome but is so so good for you! And with with cold weather everyone needs a little bit of warming chilli in their lives...don't they?

I got a little bit excited when shopping in Tesco at 1am and picked these little beauties up to get me through the festive season. They were cheap as chips and the hairband has actual bells on them. So cute!

 I pained my nails (I've also done a separate post on this manicure) and its seriously my favourite right now. Ok it's a bit of a bitch to get off but it's totally worth it.

On Saturday night I went to stay with my sister who surprised me with flowers and a box of Krispy Kremes! How awesome was that? We got into our pjs almost immediately, drank bellinis and watched trashy tv. It was seriously awesome.

I had a great week, what about you?

Nails: Nails In Warwick Way and Sally Hansen Mermaid's Tale

One of my favourite manicures of the moment. Nails Inc Warwick Avenue and Sally Hansen Mermaid's Tale. The photos really don't do it justice. Try it! 

My Week In Review #1

Sunday: This morning I went a nice walk, and had to stop on this bridge near my house and take this picture. Looks at the gorgeous colours of the trees. The weather was beautiful, sunny but with a little chill. I also painted my nails with OPI Her Majesty's Secret Service and Essie Stroke of Brilliance on top. Love that combination!!

Monday: I went to the gym in the morning, so early in fact the sun was blinding me the entire time. Would it be weird to wear sunglasses on the treadmill when its only 3 degrees outside? Probably, but if I'd had sunnies with me, I'd have worn them. Then it was back to bed for a thrilling night shift!

Tuesday: My g-loves arrived! I'm kind of obsessed with the Les Mills Body Pump classes but the bars really hurt my hands. I saw that TrulyJess (an awesome fitness you tuber) had bought a pair and I decided to spring for a pair too. So pleased I've got them and every Body Pump class I've been too, someone has asked me where I got them. Another night shift was on the cards tonight so I slept the day away!

 Wednesday: Today was all about Burlesque! A friend and I started a burlesque course for beginners. It runs for 4 weeks and it was advertised on wowcher. We bought it on a whim and proceeded to freak out about actually going! So we met up early at a lovely restaurant/bar/deli called Peckhams in Glasgow for some food and liquid courage! The class was great! We had so much fun, and can't wait to go back next week! Just goes to show, if we hadn't stepped out of our comfort zone and gone for it, we'd have really missed out. It also gave me the chance to wear my gorgeous Vivienne Westwood shoes! If these are not burlesque appropriate, I don't know what is! I also saw this cute sign outside Paperchase which made me feel so excited about Christmas coming!

 Thursday: Thursday was all about shoes! My new free runs arrived and I took them for their maiden voyage to Body Pump in the morning, then Sh'Bam in the evening. I love them, they are so light weight and comfortable. Black and hot pink is my favourite combination right now (I'm looking at you g-loves!). I also got my new shoe boots which I bought for my work night out. I love them but I will need to practice walking in them! I originally saw them on the ASOS website for £29.99 which I thought was a steal but there was a problem with the ASOS website and I couldn't check out. So, I popped onto the New Look website where they had the shoes, in my size for £10 cheaper! Result! In the flesh they look very expensive so I'm really pleased with that purchase!



Friday: Today I went on a date. We had hot chocolate and he was sweet enough to bring cupcakes from my favourite bakery. It was a pretty miserable day weather wise so once I got home it was PJ's, takeaway and Game of Thrones!

Saturday: Today I froze at the football (I have a season ticket) but it was totally worth it because it was the day the club commemorated Remembrance Day and we won! However it was absolutely freezing so I'll be much better prepared next time. Then it was off to work for another night shift!

Hope you had a good week!

Christmas Tag

I originally seen this tag on Claire Does Beauty who had seen it on Makeup Pixi 3's blog, and I decided to share some festive cheer! 

1.  Do you prefer a real Christmas tree or synthetic?

I've never ever had a real tree! I've always had synthetic and it's never really bothered me. I do love the smell of a real tree so maybe I'll try it sometime!

2.  You're in a coffee shop, it's December, what do you pick?

It's got to be a Peppermint Hot Chocolate in a Starbucks Red Cup. Love it!

3.  Whats your favourite colour scheme for decorating the tree?

I absolutely love red and white and stick with that every year.

4.  Giving or receiving?

I have to be honest and say both! I love the excitement of wondering what your loved ones saw that made them think of you. I sometimes get so excited about the gifts I have bought other people I struggle to keep them under wraps until Christmas!

5.  To mince pie or not to?

I absolutely hate mince pies. Give me a Terry's Chocolate Orange instead!

6.  What's your traditional sunday lunch?

To start we have my Dad's prawn cocktail and my Mum's homemade soup with freshly baked bread rolls. We always have turkey and either roast ham or roast beef. We have every kind of potato you could imagine, brussel sprouts, pigs in a blanket, honey roast parsnips and yorkshire pudding. Then we have cake (this year I'm baking coconut cake) christmas pudding, and profiteroles. Then there are chocolate biscuits! Stuffed isn't even the word!

7.  Christmas day fashion

Really dorky christmas jumpers. The sillier the better, I've already bought mine! 

8.  What's your favourite Christmas song?

Probably Santa Baby by Eartha Kitt. Just love it!

9.  What's your favourite Christmas film?

Elf, White Christmas, Die Hard (yes it's a christmas movie!) and Love Actually.

10.  Open presents before or after lunch?

Definitely as soon as you wake up, the presents need to be opened. Why wait? 

Nails: Essie Bobbing for Baubles and Stroke of Brilliance

My first nail post has to be dedicated to my favourite nail combination of the moment. Bobbing for baubles is a gorgeous colour on it's own, but undoubtedly, when I put it on I always follow it up with Stroke of Brilliance. 

This time, I went for a graduated glitter look, which I absolutely love. This is a great combination for autumn/winter and for the party season. I love that we are well and truly into glitter nail season!

Boots have 3 for 2 on Essie just now, it would be rude not to add these beauties to your collection!

What's your favourite nail combination?

Beauty Wishlist Wednesday

Beauty Wishlist Wednesday

Ambient Light Powder in Luminous by Hourglass
buy here

At £38 this is not the most purse friendly highlighter, but it's certainly the most hyped! As attached as I am to my MAC MSF in Soft & Gentle, I'm seriously dying to try this one! 

Travel Essentials Part 1 - Suncare and the best kept tanning secret ever!

At the end of this week I am going on holiday to the beautiful state of Florida. I love seeing what other people take on holiday so I thought I would share what I consider travel essentials for my upcoming trip.

I've been lucky enough have packed for this particular trip a few times in my adult life and I know what I need to take with me to deal with the very hot sun in Florida. 

Firstly I have to mention that all of my travel essentials will be packed in my Cath Kidston Travel bag, as seen in the pictures. I bought this last year so it's no longer available but you can find similar items on the high street. I have to say I'd be lost without mine and it has a little hook so when you get to your destination all you have to do is hang it from the back of your door and everything is in one place!

source

I need to be really careful about not burning. Even though I have medium tone skin I have lots of freckles and my lips are prone to badly burning. Therefore, I always have a few options of SPF lip balm. I make sure to have at least 2, one I can throw in my pool bag and one I can keep in my handbag.  This years offerings are the Balmi Cube Lip Balm in the coconut option. It's SPF 15 and protects against harmful UVA rays. Its also a nice formula, not sticky and tastes amazing! The other lip balm I'm taking is also SPF 15 from the Tone It Up girls and is pineapple flavoured but it's currently not on sale at the moment. Boo! I like this because it's really small and handy to carry about with you and it tastes like a tropical paradise!

I tried Institut Esthederm tanning products for the first time last year and was absolutely blown away. They are very expensive and are definitely a considered purchase, but I'm very glad I invested in them. Also my sister has extremely sensitive skin and is prone to getting really bad prickly heat and she didn't burn or get prickly heat in two weeks baking in the Florida sun so it's worth looking into if you suffer from the same affliction!

I have the UV inCellium Bronzant  face and body spray which improves your skins natural defence in the sun. Institut Estherderm works differently from traditional SPF's which is why you won't see me talking about the SPF rating here, rather they go by the type of sun you will be bathing in. I'm also taking the Adaptasun Sensitive Skin tanning face cream for Extreme Sun which helps you tan quickly and safely. 

Next up I have the not very well known in the UK but utterly fantastic Amazing Maui Babe Browning Lotion. If you want to get your hands on this in the UK, I bought mine from eBay. This gave me the deepest tan I've ever had, and I don't usually go very brown. It has aloe to prevent burning, and other ingredients which help give you a truly deep dark tan even in a short amount of tanning time. This has NO SPF in it so make sure you wear sun tan lotion too! The lotion itself is brown but isn't a self tanner and it smells a little like coffee but trust me its worth it. 

As seen in the picture above I always take a mini high factor sun screen in case I'm out and about and I have burned somewhere. The Nivea pocket size is small enough to fit in my day bag and I wouldn't want to be anywhere in Florida without it. The other little mini I have (which comes as a pack of 3) is a cooling water mist for face and body for those really hot sticky days. I got these in Bodycare for £1 and can't find any details for them online!

So there are my sun care staples, hope you enjoyed!

Review: Origins Clear Improvement Active Charcoal Mask

I absolutely love this mask. Firstly I do have to say that when it comes to break outs I'm pretty lucky. Don't get me wrong I get the occasional spot, but never a full blown break out. My skin wasn't looking very clear, and I had begun to notice blocked pores on my nose and I decided to try this. I'm so glad I did!

I use this as a full face mask twice a week and my skin feels clean and a little tight, so I always make sure I moisturise well afterwords. After the first use I could really see and feel the difference. The first few times I used it I had redness but nothing that was painful or uncomfortable. I also use it as a spot treatment after reading online that people use this mask to treat spots and it really works. I feel it really dries any spots out and vastly increases the healing time.

Whether you suffer from break outs or not, I'd highly recommend this mask. You're going to look pretty weird wearing it, but your skin will thank you for it!

Boots Haul

My skin has been very badly behaved these days, I think it's been because I've been working out and my skin doesn't like it. I'd heard lots about the Origins charcoal mask and decided to give it a try. I used it last night and I'm so glad I did, full review coming up shortly!

Boots also had a special offer on origins that was buy two items and get a free gift AND get 500 points. I've always wanted to try the GinZing moisturiser so I thought this was a good time to try it!

I also bought the Too Faces boudoir eyes palette. Originally I bought the MAC Illustrated Collection face palette in plum but it went missing in the post and it sold out by the time I had contacted MAC, so I got this instead. So glad I did, I'm sure this will be much more wearable and a full review is coming soon!

I got two samples in the free gift which were the Origins drink up overnight mask which I've been dying to try and and GinZing eye depuffing cream. 

All in all a very successful haul!

Review: Revitalash Advanced Eyelash Conditioner - Results!

Now I know what you might be thinking. Eyelash serums are just gimmicks, they don't actually work and are so horrifically overpriced that the people that buy them should be pitied. Let me tell you something, you're wrong. This eyelash serum has actually changed my life.

You see I always had 'ok' lashes. To give you an idea, I'd say they were about a 5 out of 10. Not amazing enough that people would comment, but not short or thin enough that it ever concerned me. Honestly, I don't know why I decided to try this. Blame late night TV shopping.

So I'm talking about Revitalash Advanced Eyelash Conditioner. You can buy it here at QVC which is where I buy mine. It's expensive, I'm not going to lie, but put it this way, I wouldn't live my life without it now. 

The reason I feel so strongly about it is because I literally can't go anywhere now without someone asking about my eyelashes. This is how a typical conversation goes. Are they real? Are they extensions? What mascara do you use? They can't be real, surely? What's the name of that stuff again? And can you spell it? It then ends with the person toddling off with the details scribbled down and a promise to themselves to buy it, whatever the price. This has happened to me in restaurants, at work, at the salon, in a car park, at the hairdresser...really the list goes on. If you are on the fence about whether you should try this or not, trust me you need this in your life!

The pictures above are my lashes and the mascara I'm wearing is L'Oreal Telescopic. 

Weekend Haulin'

So this past weekend I went on a bit of a spending spree. Here's the beauties I bought:

Steve Madden sandals from TK Maxx which were a bargain at £25. I'm sadly having to retire my Steve Madden Gladiator sandals. I've had them for about 3 years and they are falling apart but I absolutely love them.

Next, I went a bit mad in Beaverbrooks. If there's anything you should know about me, it's that I love bows. Also I'm mad for anything rose gold. So you see I was helpless really, it wasn't my fault!

Thomas Sabo rose gold bow earrings £67

Thomas Sabo rose gold bow ring £99

Next up I just had to include pretzel M&M's. Have you ever had them? If you haven't you need to remedy that immediately. They're seriously awesome. 

I also bought a mini Bumble & Bumble Surf Spray. I thought I would try the mini size as my hair can often get dry and more often than not salt sprays always make my hair look and feel dirty and knotty. 

Some major damage, but there's nothing like retail therapy, right?

Bobbi Brown Beach Fragrance

I'm one of those people who just loves the smell of sun tan lotion. It might have something to do with the connection between the smell of sun tan lotion and the fact that I must be somewhere sunny enough to use sun tan lotion. Therefore sun tan lotion = happiness.

With that said, enter Bobbi Brown's Beach fragrance. The bottle is simple and sophisticated, and the fragrance delivers on every thing you would associate with the beach. Its described as a "lightly intoxicating blend of sand jasmine, sea spray and mandarin" which basically means its smells like someone has scooped up the beach and put it in a bottle.

I've worn this a few times and I've always been asked what I'm wearing and I can honestly say it brings me a little bit of joy every time I spray this. If you love the beach, you need this in your life!

Ren Glycolactic Radiance Renewal Mask

This is seriously amazing. Seriously. Amazing.

I enjoy skincare as much as the next girl, but am ashamed to admit that face masks never made it as a staple in my skincare routine. 

The Ren website describes this mask as "a potent bio active peel mask designed to renew the complexion, reduce the appearance of fine lines and dramatically improve skin tone." 

I mean, who doesn't want or need that in their life?!

This little beauty comes with 50ml of product and a cloth, with instructions to apply onto clean skin, leave for 10 minutes and then rinse off with the enclosed cloth. It also states that tingling may be experienced when using the mask, but I didn't experience this. I didn't feel the mask was thick, or sticky or unpleasant to use. It's easy to forget you have it on!

What I did experience was soft, smooth glowing skin. After one use the difference was noticeable. I use this once a week and feel like I'm getting pampered and seeing results. This is the first purchase I've made of Ren products, but I doubt it will be the last.

What face masks do you recommend? 

£30 for 50ml