Cosmic Bronze Eyeshadow Quad by Fleur de Force

When it was announced Fleur was releasing a makeup range I was really excited - she was the first beauty blogger I started following and I always turn to her when I'm looking for a review of a product as I find she's almost always right and has brilliant taste in makeup. I knew her makeup line would be special, because I couldn't imagine her releasing something she wasn't 100% happy with. It's taken me a little while to get my hands on her products, but better late than never!

Figgy Pudding Candle

I do love a good candle all year round, but there's something especially lovely about them at Christmas. The scents can make you finally instantly festive and the glow of the candle wick burning is comforting & soothing. Every year there's such an array of different candles with so many scents to choose from, I personally love the spicy Christmas scents, or the sweet cinnamony ones as they make me feel the most festive.
The only thing is candles can be very expensive and if you go for a cheaper option they're often not as good quality, the smell is weak or it doesn't last long. Every year I try to hunt down a bargain option with not much luck, but this year I've found one and it's totally dreamy.

The Figgy Pudding Candle by Sainsburys (£4) is one of the nicest smelling Christmas candles I've ever got a whiff of - it's sweet but not sickly with notes of vanilla, fig and cinnamon.
The candle burns really nicely and the aroma is so wonderfully festive and warming. I love that the scent isn't overpowering though as I find some candles are far too intense and end up giving me a headache!
Figgy pudding is encased in a sweet little white pot that has 'Warmest Christmas Wishes' written on the front and a little red & white stripped bow tied around it. It'd make a lovely Christmas gift!

For the bargain price of £4 for a multi-wick that smells this delicious you just have to go and pick one up before they sell out! 

What's your favourite Christmas candle?

x

L'Oreal Pais Super Liner Perfect Slim

I love a liquid liner all year around, but there's something about the festive season that makes me reach for the liner pen even more - nothing quite beats the cat-eye flick and a red lip!

I'm quite a fuss-pot when it comes to eyeliners, they have to be the right intense black colour, the perfect size and they must be long lasting. I've always gone with the Soap & Glory option which is brilliant, but after hearing rave reviews about the L'Oreal Paris Super Liner I thought I'd give it a go to see how it compared.

Pai Rosehip BioRegenerate Oil

Winter is the season I really amp it up with my skincare. I like to give my skin that extra boost and little bit of help to fight off the cold weather and give it a little extra lovin'.
I was doing some researching into new products to try and saw a lot of people saying how important an oil is and how much it can make a difference to the appearance of your skin, me being the skincare fiend I am decided to purchase an oil to add into my routine.
Pai is a brand I'd wanted to try for a while, having heard lots of brilliant reviews about their products and knowing they're all organic and vegan made me instantly interested in seeing what they had to offer. I took a look at their website and saw they had a Rosehip oil, and I instantly made a purchase.

Pyjamas & Tea

A hot cup of tea and cosy pyjamas is a match made in heaven. I'm a self confessed tea-oholic and drink at least 3 cups a day all year round, but the colder months make that mug of comfort all the more enjoyable, especially when I get to sip on it whilst wearing the softest pyjamas ever.

I love all tea but I drink green and white teas the most, sometimes they're plain and sometimes I mix it up a bit and go for flavoured tea, daring I know. I've got three firm favourites at the moment and they're so delicious and wonderful I thought it'd be a crime not to share them with you. It'd also be a crime not to share with you one of the best pairs of pyjamas I've ever owned (honestly, think about the softest thing you've ever felt and they're better than that).

November Favourites 2015

We all say it every month, but November really seems to have flown by so fast I don't quite know what's happened. We're now into December, which is a little crazy, the last month of the 2015 and lots of exciting things to look forward to (eeeeekkk Christmas!).
November's been quite a strange month for me, I've been backwards and forwards to doctors and hospitals with a hip injury and have been off work so I haven't had all that much time for shopping and discovering new products. That being said there have been a few things that have stood out as favourites this month.

All year around I'm normally a reds nail varnish girl; bright red in warmer months and berry toned reds in colder months, however I've been used a gorgeous grey colour on my nails during most of November and totally loving it. Essie's Chinchilly nail polish (£7.99) is a gorgeous grey with hints of purple in it, with the perfect balance between being cool and warm. The neutral tone manages to look classy yet edgy at the same time, meaning it goes well with any outfit or suits any occasion.

New - Dove DermaSpa

I can't remember the last time I used a product from Dove. They're just not a brand I think to turn to for skincare/bodycare, but when they approached me to see if I wanted to try some products from their new DermaSpa range I was excited to give them a go.
Dove, in partnership with leading skin and beauty experts, have created it's most scientifically-advanced body care products ever, with industry leading technology resulting from 10 years of skincare research and the involvement of 280 scientists the Dove DermaSpa range was born.

I was sent a few products from the range, and I've picked my favourite 3 to share with you.
The two products I got the best results from were hand creams, I know...I know...I don't normally like hand creams so this goes to show how good the Dove ones are.

The one I've been using every night for a restorative treatment is the DermaSpa Intensive hand cream (£4.99), which is designed to instantly soothe and restore very dry skin. This is a richer formulation out of the two, so I use it once I've got into bed and am ready to sleep; I rub it well into my hands and let it work it's magic overnight. It's non-greasy but quite heavy, and I find it works wonders at helping any dryness to vanish. If you have sensitive skin I think this would be ideal for you as it isn't scented and feels soothing.

Yes To Carrots Daily Facial Moisturiser

I'm not loyal to any daily moisturiser, I jump between different brands constantly and never seem to find one that wows me.

I've recently been hearing a lot about the 'Yes To..' brand, and knowing that they use natural ingredients made me even more interested in them. I was drawn to the 'Yes To Carrots', purely because I know how wonderful carrots are for the skin and whenever I eat them I feel really good, so a skincare product that contains these orange sticks of amazingness cannot be a bad thing! I purchased the Yes To Carrots Facial Moisturiser (£9.99) and have been using it for a few weeks now, so I thought I'd let you know my thoughts on it.

Halloween Bath Time

During the warmer months I'm definitely a shower over baths type girl, however as soon as the winter winter creeps up on us I instantly crave baths. I find them so comforting, relaxing and uplifting when it's cold, rainy and dark outside. My go-to bath products are always Lush, I love to use their bubble bars, bath bombs, bath melts, everything is amazing and there's so much choice...I'm also a huge fan of the brand itself and respect them massively for the work they do trying to fight animal testing. 

Lush are always bringing out limited edition products to fit the season, and I got my hands on the Sparkly Pumpkin bubble bar!

Night Time Skincare Routine

I've never felt entirely happy with my skincare routine, especially my PM one. I've never felt like it was doing much for my skin, and some steps I was taking seemed pointless. It's taken me quite a while to find products that really work for me, but I think my current routine might be a winner.

I'll start by saying I have normal to dry skin, that's quite sensitive. I luckily don't tend to get many breakouts (touch wood), but I feel like my skin needs a bit of help with evening complexion.
Also, I haven't included any face masks in this post as I tend to change them up a lot and don't have a stand-out favourite (recommendations welcome!), so this is just my typical every day evening skincare routine!

Estée Lauder Double Wear Brush-On Glow BB Highlighter

I'm all about trying to keep that healthy, glowing look in my skin at the moment. We're well into Autumn, and Winter is rapidly creeping up on us which means my skin is starting to suffer. Keeping on top of my skincare routine helps dramatically, but sometimes I feel like I need miracle makeup products to really awaken my complexion and banish any signs of dullness.
The Estée Lauder Double Wear Brush-On Glow BB Highlighter (£24.50) (longest name ever..) has been my go-to makeup product over the last month.

It's All About That Base

I'm all about that base....(refrains from singing Meghan Trainer.....).
Perfecting your base makes a huge difference to your makeup end result, and I love making sure I'm confident with how my skin looks. Over the years I've collected a few holy-grail base products, ones I know I'll continue to repurchase and have become staples in my day-to-day makeup routine.

Primer isn't something I use every day, simply because I don't need it and sometimes I feel it can clog up my pores. But a product I do use, which isn't marketed as a primer but I find helps to prime my skin and prolong the wear of my foundation, is the Elemis Pro-Illuminating Flash Balm. It's a relatively recent find for me, but it's quickly become a firm favourite for it's brightening, skin perfecting qualities. I'll be posting a full review soon.

Autumn Berries

Autumn is my favourite season. I love the crisp, fresh air, the cold but not unbearably freezing weather, the leaves turning beautiful browns and reds, conkers, Autumn fashion and of course Autumn cosmetics.
As soon as the season comes around I get so excited to whip out the berry lipsticks, nail varnish and when I'm feel adventurous the berry toned eyeshadows (think MAC Cranberry....*swoon*).

Berry lipsticks are my favourite. I'm a huge lover of a smokey eye and nude lip, but something about a berry toned lips makes me so happy. I instantly feel put together, confident and a lot more seasonal. I have a few lipsticks in this category, but I've whittled it down to 1 high end and 1 drugstore favourite.

Natural Deodorant, Why Is It So Important?

It's no secret that I'm passionate about living a healthy life, and I try to do the right thing by my body in every way that I can. The common ways would be eating a healthy, nutritious diet, getting plenty of exercise, getting fresh air daily, and drinking plenty of water. However, people seem to neglect to use skincare and body care products that are non-toxic. I'm not going to pretend I'm all organic and only use 100% natural products, but I am taking steps to become more and more that way.

A Passion For Palettes

Eyeshadow palettes are most probably the products I yearn for the most. I so often will see a new eyeshadow palette release and go all lovey dovey eyed over the sleek, glamorous packaging, the array of beautiful colours, the shimmer, the intense mattes.....I just get drawn in!
I thought I'd share the top 3 in my current wish list.

September Favourites 2015

The fact it's now October is slightly freaking me out...it'll be Christmas before we know it!
I always think the months fly by, but I really don't know where September went, I seemed to only blink and it was over. As quick as it went I still managed to find a firm few favourites over this month, a couple of new products and a couple of old loves that I've returned to.

Flowerbomb by Viktor and Rolf

I've been on the hunt for a new fragrance. I absolutely adore my YSL Black Opium, but sometimes find it a little heavy. I wanted something lighter, more girly but not too sweet, a combination that was actually quite tricky to find, especially as I'm quite fussy when it comes to scents anyway. After trying out goodness knows how many samples (I now have quite the collection) I decided on Flowerbomb by Viktor and Rolf. What can I say? It was love at first sniff.

NARS Sheer Glow, Worth The Hype?

As a lover of beauty blogs and discovering the best makeup trying NARS Sheer Glow foundation has been a long time coming. It's a product I've wanted to try out for what feels like forever, and seeing practically every beauty blogger in existence raving about the foundation just made me long for it even more. When it comes to foundation I do like a light/medium coverage every day, but for nights out, special occasions or just when I want to be a bit more dolled up I always opt for a fuller coverage that'll give me that flawless skin effect.

I can tell you now that I love NARS Sheer Glow! I have the shade Mont Blanc and it's a pretty perfect match.
The foundation comes in typically sleek NARS packaging - a glass bottle with a matte black lid, which feels expensive and sturdy. The only downfall when it comes to packaging is the bottle doesn't come with a pump, meaning you have to tip the product onto the back of your end…..often resulting in too much product which'll go to waste. For a foundation that costs over £30 I'd really expect a pump!
The foundation itself doesn't live up to the name 'sheer glow', as it's not sheer and not especially glowy. The consistency isn't runny, but nor is it thick; it's a brilliant in-between that glides onto the skin smoothly, is beautifully easy to blend and although it's a high coverage looks very natural on the skin. The foundation covers imperfections really well, so well that I don't need to use any concealer (except under my eyes), which is a really bonus.
Another winning point is that Sheer Glow is very long lasting. I often find even more expensive foundations tend to wear off by the end of the day, but NARS have done a fantastic job with the formulation because it looks almost perfect all day.

At £31 for 30ml it's quite pricey, but a little bit of this foundation goes a long way and it's definitely worth the money. It's my favourite foundation ever.

Origins Night-A-Mins Moisturiser - Review

Over the last couple of years that I've got into skincare I've tried out different cleansers, exfoliators and serums but night creams are something I've not focused on much. I've always just gone with a standard moisturiser, and never spent too much. However, recently I was browsing good old eBay and came across a 30ml sample of Origins Night-A-Mins, which is a night moisturiser I've heard rave reviews about but is quite pricey so I've never taken the plunge. A sample seemed like the perfect option, and I'm now considering splurging on the full sized product.

Origins Night-A-Minds is a night cream that's focussed on reduced the dullness of skin, and leave your face feeling refreshed, radiant and moisturised. It's enriched with vitamins C, E and H and has a slightly orangey scent which I really like. I find it isn't too thick nor is it greasy, but it still feels so nourishing and rich on the skin which is perfect for bedtime.
After about a month of use everyday (in conduction with my beloved hydraluron) I've noticed quite a difference in my skin! My skin feels soft and definitely looks more radiant, I've definitely noticed a difference in 'imperfections' as well; I've mentioned before that when I get spots they take a long time to completely fade, but I feel like this moisturiser has really sped up that process and my skin is looking clearer than ever….*touch wood*.
The full size product is £34.50 for 50ml which definitely puts it in the luxury product range, but I do reckon the pot would last you a while and as I always say 'you only get one face, look after it'. If you want to try it out before paying the larger sum of money there are several sample's for sale on eBay, which you can find here.

What's your current night cream?

Do you think it's worth spending more on 

luxury skincare products?

x

Clinique Take The Day Off Cleansing Balm - Review

I'm a bit of a skincare fiend, I love trying new products and I'm not really loyal to any part of my skincare routine as I like to test different things. I recently ran out of my Body Shop Camomile cleansing oil (which was actually a repurchase) and decided I wanted something new. Armed with a £5 off Feel Unique voucher I browsed the site looking for a new addition to my skincare regime, and I came across the Clinique Take The Day Off Cleansing Balm…which I'd heard a lot of good things about and it sounded dreamy, so I made the order. 

Clinique Take The Day Off Cleansing Balm (£22) is a lightweight cleansing balm that looks solid when you open the pot, but once you scoop the tiniest amount out (which is all you need) and rub it between your fingers it melts into an oil which you massage into your face. The oil is unscented, which is brilliant for those with sensitive skin, but feels luxurious, calming and really cleansing. 

The oil, although lightweight and not greasy, removes even stubborn eye makeup which I was rather pleased about. My skin is left feeling super clean, moisturised and fresh after using this cleanser.

Although it may be a little on the pricey side at £22 I think it's well worth the money, the 125ml pot will last you ages as you only need the smallest amount of product to cover your entire face, it has fantastic ingredients that won't do any damage or dry your skin out and I always think it's worth paying a bit more for good skincare, because hey…you only get one face, look after it!