Summer empties...

It appears I have a favourite deodorant….Also loved how long the Soap & Glory Foam Call shower gel lasted and it smelt delicious. I'm fairly fickle with body products though, and I can't say I've repurchased any of these...

Elvive Fibreology shampoo is my all time favourite I'm well into my second bottle of this stuff and I'll 100% keep using this for the foreseeable future. Also loving the Batiste XXL dry shampoo…forever a staple in my hair routine. I didn't love the Philip Kingsley Elasticiser as much as I expected to - it's one of those cult blogger products I just couldn't get into. Another re-purchase has been the V05 dry backcomb spray - it's the perfect texture and not sticky at all, an absolute livesaver in my freshly washed hair. 

The Garnier Micellar water is an empty from my professional makeup kit…I get through this SO quickly its ridiculous but it is a perfect dupe for Bioderma. The only two products I've not repurchased were the Nivea eye cream (an eye cream is an eye cream and I've since found cheaper alternatives) and the Vitamin E Hot Cloth Cleanser. This was nice but a bit heavy for my oily skin. 

The second my Seche Vite top coat ran out, I could have cried. Don't fear though, I've got back ups of this as it's probably one of my top five holy grail products of all time. The Elf brush shampoo and Scandaleyes mascara were definite no-loves. My top tip of the day is STAY AWAY from this mascara, awful awful awful. 

What has everyone else used up over the summer months?

Loves

xxx

June favourites...

Glossy lips have been my go-to this month, and I've completely adored Tanya Burrs lipgloss in First Date (and not just because it smells like milkshake, although that helped). I've also discovered the l'Oreal L'Extrodinaire glosses which are super long lasting, beautifully glossy with just the right amount of colour to wear on their own or over a lipstick. I want to pick up more of these they're just gorgeous. For the face I've rediscovered the famous Benefit High Beam dupe by Me Me Me, Beat The Blues liquid highlighter. It's a super subtle, pale pink highlighter that looks great under foundation for a really subtle glow, or over the top of a liquid foundation for a bit more impact. I've loved wearing it teamed with the Borjois Exlusif cream blush - a really interesting product that adapts to your own skin colour and gives a stunning pink glow to the cheeks. Another re-discovery this month has been my brow tastic Illamasqua Brow Cake in Gaze. Holy Grail brow product without a doubt and, as you can see, very well loved! I've been all about the winged liner and lashes for eyes this month, and have been pairing my Kate Moss for Rimmel mascara with the Maybelline Lasting Drama Black Shock gel liner…another Benefit dupe! And lastly for makeup…Essie Blanc has been firmly on my toes for the entire month. Nothing screams SUMMER to me more than white nails!

I've started a new job this month so I've been all about products that make my life that little bit easier. The Batiste XXL dry shampoo has saved my hair through day two, three, and sometimes even four when I've had no time to wash and dry it. The Body Shop Camomile cleaning oil has been a great quick fix to remove my makeup at night before bed, and to save my tired, stressed out skin I've been applying the Avon Clear Skin pore penetrating black mineral mask. It looks a bit odd as it's black, but leaves my skin looking and feeling fantastic, I get a really great glow when I apply makeup the day after I've used this! Another Avon product I've loved is their overnight foot renewal cream…I'm on my feet all day every day at the moment so they've needed a bit of extra attention. Lastly for June, is f course a tan. Again another quick fix product, the well blogged about Cocoa Brown one hour tan. It says one hour, but to be honest I apply this at night and wash off in the morning and get a beautiful, natural, non smelly, non streaky glowing tan that lasts a week on my skin if I keep up with good skincare between applications.

What has everyone else been loving?

Loves

xxx

From the brand that can do no wrong....

V05. Let's talk. You've heard me rave about their dry texturising spray over and over again, and now is the turn of the Plump Me Up dry shampoo. I'm a Batiste girl through and through, and even though I know there are much better offerings out there on the market, the price, packaging and range of scents (Tropical or Wild every time) win me over and keep me brand loyal. 

Until I picked this up in Priceline when it was offer last week (Batiste is EXPENSIVE in Australia!!) and then the game completely changed. 

"Boost body and grip whilst refreshing your style. For fine, flat or oily hair"

Smells nice, isn't sticky, doesn't make hair feel sticky or chalky, easily rubbed in with no white residue left, volumizes, and keeps hair in it's style. This was great on second day hair, but didn't quite manage to tackle third day hair as well as Batiste does. Which is fine. I just need to stop being as lazy and wash my hair more. 

The verdict? I love this. I may even be tempted to buy this alongside Batiste (I find Batiste holds my hair better if I'm going to put my hair up on day three so I couldn't replace it completely) and recommend this to anyone who finds Batiste sticky and uncomfortable in the hair. 

Anyone else tried and loved this? Is there any other V05 offerings I need to know about and go purchase?

Loves

xxx

July favourites....

Not many this month, I've mainly been finding my feet in Australia rather than finding my favourite moisturiser, however I think the latter may be my next mission. 

Tigi Bedhead Sugar Shock - a much nicer texture (and smell) than most sea salt sprays, I've turned to a sugar spray instead. Non of the crunchiness but all of the volume and texture, I'm not sure why we don't hear more about this beauty!

Batiste dry shampoo in Wild - my favourite of all the Batiste scents, my hair has been so oily recently that this has been a life saver.

Benefit Erase Paste - a few sleepless nights worrying about jobs etc have caused me to reach for my heaviest of heavy duty concealers. This literally hides EVERYTHING.

L'Oreal High Intensity Pigment cream liner in black - apologies but I bought this online and am not sure you can actually buy this in the shops in Aus or the UK??? If you can track this down then please purchase immediately if you're a fan of the gel eyeliners that are doing the rounds. This is a lot softer and doesn't dry out as quick as I've found most gels to. 

Bourjois Healthy Mix serum foundation - not too much explanation needed here. I. Love. This. Holy grail foundation, just needs a bit of powder and it lasts all day, doesn't look heavy on the skin, doesn't show dry patches, and doesn't slip or slide. Perfection. 

Barry M lipstick in shade 147 - erring on the peachy side of a peachy pink, I've worn this over lip balm, slightly patted out for a subtle look.

Anatomicals Help The Paw hand cream - a bargain of a hand cream for such a big tube, this is my go-to last thing at night hand cream. Smells lovely!

Reading in general - Some of my favourites have been Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn, and The Case of the Missing Boyfriend by Nick Alexander. Currently reading Revenge Wears Prada and loving it!

Raspberry Liquorice - I've been going through a couple of bags a week of this, so tasty and really keeps my sugar cravings at bay!

What's everyone else been loving this month?

Loves

xxx

Beauty boxes...my first experience with BellaBox...

Back home I admit I was a big fan of the beauty box craze that went on, and I felt I was missing out a bit being out of the loop over here in Australia. I did my research and decided to subscribe to bellabox http://bellabox.com.au/. It's $15 per month and I'm only subscribing for 3 months, before I go home to the UK. This month was the February 'shimmer and shine for Valentine time' box. Sounds promising!

First up: packaging. Basically it's cute, but the colour doesn't interest me at all. I'm much more a pink, glossy, girlie fan when it comes to these boxes and this just didn't do it for me at all.

 

Inside, same kind of story, just a bit of love heart tissue paper, and the little card with all the products on, neither of which 't really fit in with the theme at all. Sorry bellabox, just not feeling you so far.

 

Inside, it got a little bit better...

  

What bellabox say: Batiste Dry Shampoo- Must Have! Our bb favourite Batiste is back  in their new pretty in pink packaging- we guarantee it'll be the new love of your life next time you need fresh locks fast!

Back in the UK there was some controversy when a mini Batiste dry shampoo appeared in one of the monthly subscription box. My opinion? When this stuff is SO expensive on the other side of the world, I'd class it as a luxury product! So far, so good. 

 

What bellabox says:U skin solutions clean and go exfoliating gel cleanser - super skin care. This two in one cleansing and exfoliating solution is perfect for keeping pores clear and clean. Caldendula, anti bacterial tea tree oil and super fine bamboo beads leave your skin feeling soft and smooth.

Forever on the look out for the magical perfect cleanser, andything that may be taking me one step closer to it is a winner for me. Tiny downside is that the product sample is, literally, tiny. 

Bioderma crealine H2O - cult! This cult cleansing water removes every trace of makeup (even waterproof mascara) as well as the impurities in your skin at a cellular level. Plus, it's safe on eyes. Wonder product alert!

There are no words to describe how much I have wanted to try this, it's provably the product in the box I was most excited about. I'm just a little bit worried that it's going to make me want to buy the whole thing, I don't think my purse can handle it!

 

Sally Hanson complete salon manicure - colour product. No time for a salon mani? No stress! Achieve the at-home trifecta: a gel-like shine finish, fast and easy application and chip resistant. 

Mine came in Mermaids Tail, a gorgeous blue polish with green and blue chunks of glitter. It's at least a three coater but so far it's lasted two days chip free - unheard of on my terrible nails!

 

Be in awe skin Samskrta skin polish - Luxe. Designed to remove dead skin cells and leave skin looking (and feeling!) soft and radiant, this polish combines cranberry extract, gluconic acid, vitamin B3 and co-enzyme Q10 with micro jojoba beads. Hello vibrant shimmering skin.

Again, anything that can help me on the path to the perfect complexion is a winner due to the fact I'm to stingy to buy full size products in the fear that they won't work and I'll have wasted money. 

Bonus product was a sachet of sun screen, always a good shout in the Australian sunshine!

In my honest opinion, too much skin care and not enough makeup. The packagine does put me off but I guess it's what on the inside that counts! Can't wait to get next months box and see what's in there (fingers crossed more makeup....)

Loves

xxx

Top products of 2011....

Well as my blog is still a baby and less than a year old, I've spent a lot of the past 10 months discovering lots of new things so here's what I recon come top of the 2011 class (warning: it's a biggie!)


Haircare: KMS California came in one of this years Glossybox's and has turned into my go-to product for putting through the ends of my (towel dried) hair to not only help protect it from heated appliances but to help lock in colour. Batiste XXL Volume needs no other introduction other than to say I LOVE this and were I to (painstakingly) put the entire contents of this blog into some sort of order, it would probably come out top! And lastly my good old tangle teezer: not just a normal hair brush!

Skincare: This moisturiser has been one of my products of the last few years but I'm still in a long term relationship with it therefore I though I'd better include it. No other moisturiser has touched my skin for the past 12 months. The Body Shop night cream has been a revelation after switching from an all purpose moisturiser to a separate one for day and night. Oh and as for a little extra in my skin care - Soap and Glory Scrub Your Nose In It. I challenge you to find a better drug store exfoliater! 

Makeup: I'll try and keep this simple as there are SO many. For face it has to be the Benefit Porefessional along with the Revlon Photo Ready foundation, my bobby brown corrector and the Collection 2000 Lasting Perfection concealer. I've loved Topshops bronzer in global for most of the year, and been blushing with the aid of Vivo blush (not sure on the colour) and MeMeMe in coral throughout the summer months. My favourite eye products of the year have to be HD brows thanks (again) to GlossyBox, Bourjois Volumizer mascara and the Maybelline gel eyeliner pot. Lips is a tough one but it has to be the Lush lip scrub which has been a life saver, along with my Mac lipstick in Saint Germain and Topshop lipstick in Brighton Rock. I've only just started getting into brushes, but my favourite are the stippling brush and powder brush from the Samantha Chapman Real Techniques range, and my Mac 217. 

Perfume: My signature scent has continued to be Burberry, but I'd say my ultimate perfume of the year has to be D&G 10. 

What has everyone else loved in the year of 2011? Have any of these products made your top lists?

Loves

xxx

My Amazing Weekend...

Well it pretty much started off with a spot of shopping on Friday lunch time where I picked up these beauties....

Just a few basics like dry shampoo (and yes, that there is the SHIMMER Batiste....it's basically just disco in a can!) and some clear nail varnish, but I also picked up the Sleek Pout Polish from their nude collection...

Which I do love the colour of but HATE the weird after taste you get after it's been on a while. I also picked up another of the Famous by Sue Moxley shimmer bricks, this time in rose pink. I've almost got the full set of these now, and no doubt this will come up in my August favourites because it's all I've worn all weekend!

I also picked up the Garnier BB cream that everyone's been talking about, can't say much about this yet as I've not given it enough testing but I will do a full review later in the week when it's had a reasonable trial! 

Friday night I went to a charity clothes swap for my mums friend who's doing a trek in Cambodia and raising money for the fund. I did quite well and came away with a dress and a necklace, which I'll feature in an outfit of the day post sometime this week! I went quite casual for it in an old Topshop stretchy dress, tights and flat black boots...

I especially love my hair in this one, I used my Andrew Barton wave makers I featured in a video a couple of weeks ago and just pinned it to one side with loads of extensions in. I think this is going to be recreated quite a lot over the next few weeks!

Anyway on to the most exciting part of the weekend! If you follow me on twitter you'll know I've been up to Lincoln this weekend for a Uni reunion with most of my old housemates. Basically it was one of the best weekends I've had for ages and was nice to get away from Leicester for a night!! It pretty much revolved around fatty foods, alcohol, meeting foreign men and tampons (the less said about that the better but put it this way, a tampon is NOT acceptable currency to pay for a drink in a bar....)

I apologise now for some of the following pictures the word 'messy' springs to mind....

And I do believe this last one about sums up the night...

Hope everyone had equally amazing weekends!

Loves

xxx

Don't leave me hanging on the telephone....

Beautiful day in the sunshine today, went to see my best friends cousins band at Music in the Mead in Hinckley and we were graced with beautiful weather. 

Anyway, I used this little beauty to do my hair this morning, my hair was due a wash and it was just a bit limp and rubbish, so it would be about the time I'd reach for the dark brown Batiste dry shampoo to bring it back to life. Instead this morning I tried their XXL Volume new spray...

(sorry these are the same pictures as yesterday, I didn't see any point of taking any more today!)

Anyway all I can say about this is WOW!

My hair this morning needed the straighteners over it before I'd even take a picture of it because I'd put it up wet yesterday! But anyway, this is how it looked to start with....

I admit my hair isn't totally flat but my hair never is. It's got quite a bit of movement to it and is really thick so never looks mega lank or greasy, and also my hair is used to only being washed twice a week. But to me, this is far too flat, I like my hair BIG.

So anyway after straightening I usually just backcomb and choke myself on hairspray until I get the desired effect. Today I didn't pick up a comb or my trusty Tresemme, and just gave Batiste XXL Volume a chance....

This is literally ALL down to the new Batiste spray, and it stayed like this all day. If it did flatten down a bit all I had to do was jjush it up with my hands and it went back to looking like this. Also, really loved the fact that it made me not want to put my extensions in. Think this is the first time I had my hair down extensionless and have been happy with it for over 12 months. 

The only tiny down point of this product is the fact it's a white spray, like the original dry shampoo. Which is fine because I do rub it in really well, but I personally would love to see a version for dark hair like they did with their original formula in a few months. Other than that, AMAZING and it will be a staple in my hair regime from now on.

I gave you all I had and you tossed it in the trash...

Ok well this one was only going to be a short outfit of the day posts but then I came home to a couple of lovely packages so I decided to get myself a green tea and the last cupcake left over from my raffle win at the Pamper Party on Wednesday and get down to business....

Bit of a thrown together outfit today, a Topshop tan top and Miss Selfridge black stretchy skirt, with my new Primark tan loafers. 

So anyway I came home to find my goodies I ordered from Chelsea Doll on Wednesday with their 20% discount code for reaching 3000 followers. They have some gorgeous things, I'm personally a fan of their The Skullery range, but there's something to suit everyone on there. I wish I had some birthdays or something to buy presents for but as I don't, I'll just have to treat myself! Check them out here, but you have been warned, purchases will be made!

Apologies that you can see the tiles of my kitchen floor on these, but I'm still experimenting where the best surface is to get good pictures!

And now to THE most exciting part of my day...I received this in the post in one of my packages:

Yes that's right.....the brand new Batiste dry shampoo that is supposed to give big and bouncy XXL volume. And anything that claims this is going to be a potential winner/beauty staple in my life!

I'm going to test this out and review it tomorrow with some before and after pictures. From what I can tell so far it smells lush, fingers crossed I'm going to fall in love with it like I have with all the other Batiste products (currently on the extra dark dry shampoo!)