Wednesday 30 June 2010

June Favourites

Hai kids :)

It's that time again. Can you believe we're half way through the year now? Here's what I've been loving this month:

Image Credit: Superdrug

Revlon ColorStay Foundation - I have this in Buff, and I absolutely love it. It's a great colour match for my skin and gives a fabulous finish with just the right amount of coverage without being too obvious, leaving a flawless complexion.

Image Credit: Benefit

Benefit Eye Bright - Thank you to Glamour for having this as a freebie - I absolutely love it and have used it every day since I got my mitts on the magazine. I even bought a second copy so I had a back up haha!

Image Credit: e.l.f.

e.l.f. Mineral Lipstick in Runway Pink - A lovely colour, and a great formula.

Image Credit: Superdrug

GOSH Velvet Touch Foundation Primer - This leaves my skin silky soft and helps my foundation last all day. Best primer I've used :)

Image Credit: Soap & Glory

Soap & Glory Clean On Me Clarifying Shower Gel - Mmm this smells heavenly <3 So glad I bought the huge bottle :D

Image Credit: Benefit

Benefit Coralista - Yes, we're friends again :)

What have your favourite products been this month?

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June Snapshot

Hello lovely ladies :)


Can you believe we're halfway through the year now? Scary!

Listening to... Lady Gaga <3
Reading... Glamour
Watching... well not much this month. TV is of somewhat terrible quality. It's all sport, sport, sport. Go away already. The only great thing I've seen this month is the season finale of Glee <3
Buying... Soap & Glory items, Glamour mag(s)
Wanting... money and a holiday. Oh and Mr Perfect would be quite nice too.
Trying... new cosmetics items I wouldn't normally have tried - hello Revlon ColorStay/PhotoReady & Benefit Eye Bright!
Loving... having nothing to do although it is rather boring
Planning... Graduation
Making... muffins and scones :)
Writing... in my journal more. God knows, it helps!
Cooking... muffins. But I already mentioned this haha
Inspired by... other bloggers :)

How has June been for you?


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Tuesday 29 June 2010

Flower power water decal NOTD

Hi de hi!!

I finally got around to trying a set of water decals that I received from Viva La Nails. I thought I'd show you my efforts :)

*Flash*


*No flash*

This particular set can be found here (middle image from the bottom row) for a mere £1.95! Bargain! There are 20 decals on a sheet. If you use 1 per nail like I did, then this will complete 2 sets of nails.

To see how to use water decals, you can watch this video

Products I used
MUA Nail Polish in Shade 12
VLN Flower water decals
GOSH Birchwood stick
A bowl of water
Rimmel Lycra Pro Nail Polish in Clearly Clear

What do you think? Are you tempted to try them?

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P.S. I was sent these water decals for free to try from Viva La Nails

Monday 28 June 2010

Review: Veet Ready To Use Hair Removal Wax Strips

Hiya

In the aim to defuzz for summer, I saw these on offer in Superdrug a while back so thought I'd try them. Really wish I hadn't wasted my money!! I'm sorry, but Veet, you totally suck. Do I even need to write this review now haha?

Product
Veet Mini Strips For Face
Image Credit: Superdrug

Veet say: Veet's small wax strips are great for targeting those hard-to-reach areas of your face as well as touch-ups around the body. Our strips are designed for hair as short as 2mm, so you never have to wait for your hair to get "long enough" to wax. Just wax and go.

I say: Oh I'm sorry Veet, but did you bother to even test these before marketing? They're not great for hard-to-reach areas at all. The wax strips are rectangular. My top lip is not rectangular. So you have to cut these up to use them. *Sigh* They also don't appear to work on short hair. And saying you can "wax and go" is a load of rubbish. Sorry, but this girl is not impressed. There is one positive. They smell nice. But that's somewhat beside the point methinks.

Application

Veet say: Just smooth a strip onto your skin, remove with one swift movement and sweep over a Perfect Finish Wipe to remove any traces of wax residue. No preparation time - the wax strips are ready to use. Ideal for removing hair from bikini line and facial areas, leaving you smooth and hair free for up to 4 weeks.

I say: These wax strips come with an instruction booklet to tell you how to use them properly. They instruct that you have to rub the wax strips between your hands for 5 seconds to warm them up. Ok. Easy enough. But have you tried peeling them apart with the rubbishy paper they're attached to? Some of them were virtually impossible. And by the time you had, the wax was no longer warm. Fail. It then tells you to smooth onto the skin and massage in the direction of hair growth. Then you have to remove with one swift movement. Now I have to say, this isn't as painful as I'd expected. And the quicker you do it, the better. It's like the old adage about a band-aid. If, by any miracle, the wax has worked, you'll see. But there's also a lot of sticky residue left on your skin. Once you've done the entire area, you're supposed to use a Perfect Finish wipe to remove this residue. These have to be the most ridiculously oily wipes I've seen in my life. They feel horrible. And the fact that they only include 4 is annoying. There are 20 wax strips... Veet advise you to use baby oil in order to remove residue when you run out of wipes. So, essentially, you have to go and buy this if you don't have any in. I bought a small bottle that cost me just over £1.00 in Boots. Ok, so once you've removed the residue and washed the oil off, you should have perfectly smooth, hairless skin right? Wrong. It worked in some areas and not others. Great. And you can't go back in with another wax strip to try again because it won't adhere to the skin. Brilliant. Oh and just so you know, the effects do not last for 4 weeks. I'd say 1 week, tops. Absolute fail.

Price: £4.99 in Boots, £3.97 in Superdrug
Size: 20 wax strips + 4 Perfect Finish wipes - Erm do the math, Veet, this is an incorrect amount of wipes!!
Available from: Boots, Superdrug

Ratings
Product: 2/10
Price: 7/10
Packaging: 7/10
Overall: 5/10
Repurchase: Absolutely not.

Have you had better luck with these? Or do you have any better recommendations?

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Sunday 27 June 2010

Sunday Selection

Hello :)

I'm back with another Sunday selection! Granted, you lovelies are probably soaking up the rays on what promises to be the hottest day of the year so far! I hope you're all having a lovely day :)

What pieces of magic have I discovered this week?

~*~
~*~
Pink Pom Poms - say hello to newbie blogger Anna :)
~*~

Blog posts I've loved this week


Smaira over at The DollyMix Fits has a good old rant about magazine freebies
~*~
Leanne from DoNotRefreeze shows us her candy stripe nails
~*~
Karleigh over at Nooberella's Secret Beauty Blog gives us some tips for wearing Revlon ColorStay & PhotoReady
~*~
Rachel from Queen of Turquoise shows us an awesome dotty NOTD
~*~
Sophie from Sophiephiephie shows us how to make our own nail polish here

Budget-tastic offers


It's 3 for 2 on all L'Oreal ranges!!
Save up to £2 on Rimmel
Save up to £8.99 on Olay
Buy 2 for £7 on John Frieda
And don't forget if you order online, it's free delivery over £25!!

And it's sale time over at:

NailsInc Logo

The Body Shop

Click the images to go to the websites :)

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Saturday 26 June 2010

Loving & Loathing

Hiya

Finally the warm weather is back :D I hope you've all been making the most of it :)

Loving
* Warm weather
* Twitter
* Big Brother
* Royal Fail actually delivering a parcel the day after it was dispatched. Someone had their Shreddies for breakfast!
* Selling a book on Amazon (especially the one I least expected to sell!)

Loathing
* Snobbiness
* Annoying friends
* Insomnia
* Not liking the dress I ordered for graduation
* Vuvuzelas!!!
* Not being able to afford a dress I love :(
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Friday 25 June 2010

Fave 10 products under ten quid!

Hi girlies :)

I saw this post over at The Tiara Fits, and Lauren tagged all of her followers. Alas, here we are :D I give you my favourite 10 cosmetic products for under £10 :)

Palmer's Cocoa Butter Lip Balm - £1.69
Palmers Cocoa Butter Lip Balm
I absolutely love this because it moisturizes and protects my lips all year round

Rimmel Lycra Pro Nail Polish - £4.49
Rimmel have really cracked it with this range - great colours, great formula, great brush!

Soap & Glory Hand Food - £4.50
Hand Food™
The perfect hand moisturizer for me :)

Batiste Dry Shampoo for Brunettes - £2.99
Ah Batiste <3 Whether you're in a rush or just can't be bothered, this has saved me from a few hair 'mares

e.l.f. Studio Cream Eye Liner - £3.50
Cream Eyeliner
My HG eye liner!!

NYC Loose Face Powder - £2.59
NYC Smooth Skin Loose Face Powder Translucent
I use this as a setting powder and it certainly does it's job!

MUA Lipstick - £1.00
Make Up Academy Lipstick Shade 6
I love my MUA lippie in Shade 7 (Coral) - It's gorgeously pigmented, moisturizes and lasts for ages

Soap & Glory Clean On Me Clarifying Shower Gel - £5.00
Clean On Me™
I think every girl needs this in her bathroom! Smells heavenly! Gorgeous moisturizing shower gel that leaves a lovely lingering scent on your skin. And this huge bottle will last forever!

Sunsilk Lively Blonde Shampoo - £1.00
Now as you know, I'm not blonde. But I do have blonde highlights. This stuff is brilliant for keeping blonde highlights alive and prevents them from fading. And it's so cheap!

 L'Oreal Elvive Smooth-Silk Light Conditioning Smooth Spray - £3.29
I love this for every day styling as it not only tames my hair, but also conditions, and smells lovely

I tag you all to let me know you favourites under £10 :)

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Thursday 24 June 2010

Review: Revlon PhotoReady Foundation

Hiya :)

I've ummed and ahhed over whether to get this for absolutely ages. I swatched it in Boots and wasn't too sure about the glitter thing, but when I saw a brand new bottle on a blog sale for £6 I snapped it up. At least it wasn't full price if I didn't like it right? So, did I? Keep reading to find out :)

Product

Image Credit: Google Images

Revlon say: For poreless, airbrushed skin in any light. Photochromatic pigments bend and reflect light to erase every flaw. Complete, yet undetectable coverage. Soft, luminous finish. Oil free, fragrance free, and contains SPF 20.

I say: On first application, I really didn't think this was anything special. Luckily it was not a glitterfest as I'd previously worried about. However I didn't look flawless or airbrushed. I think ColorStay does a much better job on this front. Sorry Revlon. One thing I am pleased about is the fact that PhotoReady is oil free and contains SPF20. This means I don't go shiny towards the end of the day, and my skin is protected.

Application


Revlon say: Using finger tips or a Revlon Foundation Brush, blend foundation onto skin starting in the centre of your face, forehead, nose and chin, blending outward.

I say: As with all foundation, I use a brush to apply, in particular the GOSH Duo Fibre brush. I always use a primer first. The first time I used PhotoReady, I found that it looked a bit cakey and I have no idea why. I tried it again and it was fine. Maybe I had too much on first time round. Overall, it gave a nice finish and I didn't look like an extra from Twilight. Win.

Price: £12.99 (Currently £9.99 in Boots)
Size: 30ml
Available from: Boots

Ratings
Product: 8/10
Price: 9/10
Packaging: 10/10 (A pump finally!)
Overall: 9/10
Repurchase: Probably not, I prefer ColorStay

EDIT: I mixed PhotoReady with ColorStay and it applies so much better giving a much nicer finish. LOVE :)

Have you tried PhotoReady? Would you in the future? Let me know what you think :)

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Wednesday 23 June 2010

In the summer time when the weather is high

Hiya

Finally, summer appears to be here :D And I have a question for you.

Tumblr_l4cnp9dv5i1qc28oro1_500_large
Image Credit: We Heart It

Do you have any recommendations for tinted moisturizer?

I've never used it before and this summer I want to, because wearing foundation in this heat, is quite frankly ridiculous and too heavy.

I'm after something preferably cheap and something that can be found in Boots/Superdrug/supermarkets etc

So hit me up with your favourite brands :)

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SmART Nails!!

Hello kids :)

I was lucky enough recently to be crowned the winner of Leanne's SmART nails giveaway. I was so pleased to have won, as I thought the concept behind SmART nails was flipping fantastic!!

Basically, SmART Nails have created a system of nail art whereby you paint your nails, attach a stencil, paint over it, remove the stencil, and ta da! You have beautifully stenciled nails.

Check out these gorgeous examples:

Image Credit: SmART Nails

A few days ago an envelope landed on my doormat. It wasn't until I saw the logo that I realised what it was. "That can't be right", I thought. Until I opened it and saw the genius packaging!




I was lucky enough to receive 10 different designs that I got to choose :D







Even comes with instructions :D


I can't wait to start using these! You can expect a full review and a few NOTDs featuring SmART Nails in the near future :D

Thanks once again to Leanne :D

If you're interested in finding out more, you can check out the website, complete with catalogue and tutorials.

Have you tried SmART Nails before? Would you in the future? Let me know :)

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Tuesday 22 June 2010

Lace Effect Nails

Hi kids :)

Can you believe my nails were polish-less for 7 days up until Sunday? No, me either. I think I lost my nail art mojo :( Anywho, I was scouring YouTube for some ideas and I came across this design by Love4Nails. At the moment my nails are relatively short, so I wasn't convinced that it'd work/look right. I didn't attempt to recreate the full design, I did my own little twist on it. I think it worked.



Products used
Rimmel Wear Maxx Nail Polish in Baby Pink
Nails Inc London Nights
GOSH Holographic
George @ Asda Nail Polish in White
Collection 2000 Sparkle Topcoat
Dotting Tools
Sellotape

I'm not so sure about the sparkle top coat. What do you think?

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