Birchbox March 2014 Review

So, welcome to March's Birchbox! This month was a collaboration edition with Lulu Guinness, so she had chosen two picks in the box so I'll you see those later on! I have to say, I was a little disappointed at the box design itself. I was kind of expecting a stripey box that would stand out from the normal birchboxes. But it was simply the usual box with a sleeve around it. I wanted a funky box I guess. But hey ho, time to look at the products inside!

Dr Brandt Pores No More Refiner - Full Size £39

So this product is meant to minimise pores and absorb excess oil. You pop it on before makeup and it should help makeup apply smoother as well basically. It is quite smoothing I found, but for the price there are plenty more primers out there that do a similar job.

Aroma Works Nurture Body Oil - Full Size £32.50

This oil is applied just after you come out the bath or shower and is meant to nourish your skin and leave you smelling nice. I felt it smelled mostly of verbena and lemon which was quite pleasant. I did use all the product up and it was nice to treat my skin to oil on occasion, but I definitely don't like oil enough to invest in the full price of this one!

Cellu-Cup - £16

First thought when I saw this item was pretty much 'what the frack?!', it's rather odd. It's designed to help fight cellulite basically, and is used on soapy wet skin or after applying oil. You basically slide it back and forth over the area you are wanting to treat. Now, in all honesty, I have not yet tried this product. It seems so random. But, having booked a holiday this week, I guess trying anything to fight cellulite is worth at least a few tries. My other half has already raised his eyebrow at this tho! I'll be keeping it in the handy wee bag anyway, it's just so odd looking! But hopefully it might help!

Candy Rock

This was one of Lulu's picks. Her newest collection apparently took inspiration from this kind of design in rock. Fair enough, not that exciting, but I'll certainly get it eaten. No bother.

English Laundry No.7 for Her - Full Size £47

Now, if you've been reading my blog for any amount of time, you'll know I detest perfume samples or sachets of things. If I can ask for one for no cost in a department store or Boots, then I don't feel it's a good item to get in a beauty box I pay for. Basically. Every time I review my box on the birchbox site I comment on this as well, but still, here's another one. This one is very vanilla scented, not really my kind of fragrance I have to say. Far too sweet. It's nice to try new scents I agree, but if I really wanted to do that, I'd go and hit Boots.

Benefit Stay Don't Stray - Full Size £20.50

Finally, onto the other of Lulu's picks in this box. This is Benefit eye primer called Stay Don't Stray. It can be put on your eyelid as well as under the eye to help any concealer stay in place. I've been using this since I got it and it's been pretty decent so far. I normally use Urban Decays Primer Potion and this is certainly close to as good as that. It is helpful it comes with an applicator so you can limit how much product you use, and I guess you might get more out of the bottle than you could with the potion. It certainly does it's job, but if my primer potion is still cheaper than this, I won't be swapping over as yet.

So there you have it. March's collab box. I have to say, out of the items in this one, I will use everything, but I really only like 2 products (candy doesn't count!). Above you can see everything else that came with the box, a voucher to try Benefit's 'gimme brow' at a benefit counter, the usual insert card, the box covering and a booklet of 'Life Lessons as told by Lulu Guinness'. I have to say I didn't really learn anything by reading it other than things about her new collection and that she likes red lipstick. Fair enough, onto April!

February Shopping Haul

Starting to think this might become a regular monthly feature at the rate I'm going! normally I don't have very many shopping trips and I do far less random trips to the shops now I've changed jobs and I no longer work near shops so that's been helping and I'm spending less! Win Win! But in February one of my oldest friends was having a birthday party, so a small shopping trip was called for. Mostly in search of a dress or outfit to wear. But of course, I never managed to get an outfit. Instead I came back with other stuff. We hit Glasgow to get some bigger, better shops than usual, but still no success! But here's what I managed to sneak away with!

 

Philosophy - Pumpkin Pie and Apple Pie Shower Gels

 

 

First stop naturally was Boots. Where we all discovered these awesome bargains. I love Philosophy proudcts but very rarely will pay the high price that goes alongside them. However, Philosophy products on sale? I'm all over that. These were apparently from the Christmas range, and they were wait for it....£3.50 each. Holy Moly. And literally the apple pie one makes me hungry. Can't wait to get using these anyway! Yummy and a bargain, amazing.

 

Loreal Studio Line - Texturisng Spray and Heat Activated Wave Spray

 

I'd heard great reviews on this texturizing spray and thought I would have to try it on my curly hair days so I snapped it up. It was also buy 2 products for £4.50, so I found another one that took my fancy. Again, it's one to help with my curls, but I was curious and it states that drying my hair will still help keep waves and hopefully curls, so I need to get trying these both this weekend!

 

Forever 21 - Monochrome Scarf and Black Cardigan

 

 

Fairly standard for me. I needed another boring cardigan for work and I'm addicted to scarves. Pretty straight forward really. Plus the scarf is so soft it's loverly.

 

 

I also snapped up these accessories in Forever 21. Two funky hair bows and a chevron bracelet. I have a slgith thing for chevrons and I occasionally fancy bows in my hair at random times.  Not had a chance to use the bows as yet, annoyingly my job involves wearing a headset most of the time, so I'd probably end up knocking them around in my hair and looking silly. Save them for days off perhaps. I've worn the bracelet lots though so far, love it a lot. As far as I can remember the bracelet was £6.99 and the bows were around £4.

 

MAC - Black Grape Pressed Pigment and Amber Lights Eyeshadow

 

 

It's not a proper shopping trip to Glasgow without going into MAC really. I was only aiming to buy one more eyeshadow for my palette and somehow this pigment caught my eye. It's so shimmery. It spoke to me. Love them both. I have a feeling my MAC collection will just keep growing. Ahh well. What can you do?

 

Lush - Popcorn Lip Scrub and Celestial Moisturiser

 

 

In my aim for this year to wear lipstick more often, I thought I better start taking better care of my lips, so I headed right towards the lip scrubs when we hit Lush. And this one smells amazing, good thing you can eat it. I decided to go back to an 'old faithful' moisturiser I used to use a while ago that my skin seems to love. More than I would normally spend on a moisturiser, but my skin has been crying out for something decent, I thought it was worth a try going back to something I used to really like.

 

Shopping trip over. No outfit bought. I hit the internet shopping when I got home and found a dress though, so hooray!! but hey, it was a good day and I got some things I'm looking forward to using!

 

American Makeup Swap Haul!

Towards the end of last year the opportunity came up through a facebook to do a makeup swap with a lovely girl over in America. I sent over a selection of UK make up products, and in return I got a selection of make up from the USA! The package finally arrived last week, and I was so excited to get using some of the products! I've taken some shots of the products I was most excited about, but I'll go through everything I got if I can!

 

Are you ready? Here's the full haul!

 

 

 

This is just the candy!

 

 

I've already munched through a lot of this! I've still got all the chewing gum and some of the cookie dough bites, and gummy bears. The bears are really odd, but at the same time yummy! Never had chocolate coated gummy bears before!

 

 Just the Makeup Products

 

 

New Physicians Formula Treats

 

 

I've already had a go of these two and I've loving the mascara! The Nude palette is really nice, the colours are quite subtle and need a bit of building but they look great along side some black eyeliner! They can be used as eyeliner too when went, so I'll need to get around to trying that!

 

Finally, a funky Maybelline Lipstick

 

 

I've always liked the look of the color whispers when I've seen them on youtube, so I'm excited to have one! This is a lovely peach colour that is quite subtle, but is really moisturising and I love the packaging.

 

Other products I got include: Wet N Wild Mascara, Loreal Lipgloss, Physicians Formula Bronzer, City Color Bronzer blusher and highlighter set, Urban Decay eyecolour, Bath and Body Works Shower gel, anti bacterial gel and various creams and a mini candle and Maybelline Baby Lips in Rose. I adore everything and I'm really enjoying trying some different products! It was worth the wait!

 

Glossybox February 2014 Review

So, time for the February Glossybox! What a cheesy box print we had this month, but as much as it pains me, I am actually fairly impressed with this months box. Uhoh. The theme was 'Be Mine' so I'm guessing this is rather obviously directed at Valentines day! Much happier the box came earlier in the month this month as well and I've actually got my review done on the same day I received the box! Go me! It does mean that I can't really comment on the products as I have only had a little test though, but anyhoo! Onto the products!

 

Eldora - False Eyelashes £3.90

 

 

I really need to be able to put on false eyelashes. I discovered today that I have more than 10 sets of lashes (all from previous beauty boxes) but I never wear them. Mostly, because I just can't put them on. I sense a lot of youtube tutorial watching coming up! This pair look nice, so I'll try and give them a shot this coming Saturday night.

 

Nought London - Sparkling Body Shimmer £14

 

 

This is basically a cream with a slight shimmer in it. It's fragrance is cherry blossom and it does smell pretty yummy! The shimmer is very subtle and pretty so again, I'll be trying that out properly for next Saturday night, yey!

 

Lindt - Lindor Treat Bar 79p

 

 

I can't believe I actually managed to get a photo of this. It was gobbled up pretty quickly to be honest!! Damn tasty.

 

Giovanni Eco Chic Cosmetics - Ultra Sleek Range from £7.99

 

 

Ok , I'm not gonna deny that getting samples is pretty annoying. But to be honest, for once I'm glad it's hair stuff and not more frigging moisturiser or serum or something. And these look interesting at least. I got the ultra sleek range, handy since I almost always straighten my hair, and it comes with a shampoo, conditioner and a leave in conditioner so a good selection to try. I'll try these out next week!

 

Maybelline New York - Color Sensational Stripped Nudes Lipstick £6.99

 

 

I'm a sucker for nice packaging (ha!) so this lipstick caught my eye before I even saw the colour. Whoops. This is the nudes collection so this is very different from anything I might normally pick up. I have swatched it quickly on the back of my hand and it's definitely a really nude shade (it was called coffee I think) and only has a subtle colour pay off. I'm looking forward to wearing this properly tomorrow, might as well give it a go! I've decided to try and wear lipstick more often so it looks more normal on me, at the moment my other half looks at me strangely when I wear it, because it's so rare I ever do, even though I have a good selection! Must try harder with this!

 

Ciate London - Paint Pot £9

 

 

Wahey again! I love me some Ciate polish! Again, this isn't a colour I would normally gravitate towards, so it's nice to have a change. This very red colour is called 'Cocktail Dress' and it's fully opaque in two coats. I reckon this will be saved for my toes in the summer months! It's very rare for me to wear red on my nails, but I might give a shot with some extra designs over it, I might manage to use this some!

 

Well, like I said at the start, annoyingly, I actually liked this box. Are Glossybox trying to make a come back? I still feel overall that Birchbox are winning here, but this month Glossybox made a much better attempt than normal and it has left me debating again over keeping my subscription going or not. I think it depends how many glossydots (reward points) I have left. We shall see!

Birchbox February 2014 Review

 

Birchbox were quick off the mark this month, boxes out in great time, love receiving it quickly! This months theme was London Fashion Week and We Love Your Style and it's showcased a lot of products to help you look fab and survive a hectic week! As usual, birchbox were doing pretty great this month, so let's get onto the products!

 

Eyeko - Skinny Liquid Eyeliner £12

 

 

I've used this product before, but not in black, but olive green. I tested it out on dress down Friday just passed at my work, and even over a very strong silver eyeshadow it went on well and lasted all through my shift without budging. It did look a little worse for wear later in the evening, but otherwise, all good and I'm pretty impressed with this one.

 

Beauty Protector - Protect & Oil £16

 

 

This was pretty hard to photograph, but hey! It's a small bottle of hair oil. You put a few drops onto damp hair and it'll help smooth and protect against UV rays, heat and breakage. Not half bad. I love the smell of it. It's just lovely, and I can smell it all day too. It has made a difference to the feel of my hair as well, it seems a lot smoother. Only small thing that annoyed me about this was the fact that it doesn't have a pump (the full size might though I guess), which means that sometimes I was getting too much oil out from it, but otherwise, I do really like it.

 

Janjira - Argan Oil Concentrate Serum £48

 

 

Serums have become a stable in my morning skincare routine now, so I do actually like trying new ones. This one so far has been lovely feeling on my skin, it smells ok but I've yet to see if it'll make any difference in my skin. It's meant to be youth boosting and plump up the skin, this still remains to be seen! But either way, no chance would I be paying the full price for this. Holy moly.

 

Green & Blacks - Dark Chocolate £2.29

 

 

Nom Nom. That is all.

 

Gilchrist & Soames - The London Collection Shower Gel £13.75

 

 

Standard showergel sample again, but this one smells pretty yummy so they're almost forgiven. It wakes you up nicely in your morning shower and it has left my skin feeling really soft today, so wahey!

 

Leighton Denny - Nail Colour £11

 

 

Yey a nail polish! by now you all know I love me some nail polish. Just a tad. Honest. I'm not the biggest fan of Leighton Denny, but it's a nice dark silver colour and probably worth a shot. I feel like I already have a colour very like this in my stash though, so I'll have to compare and keep the best one! I'll let you know how I get on!

 

Now, I really can't wait until the march Birchbox. Apparently, Birchbox have partnered with Lulu Guinness for this one, so that's really exciting! Hopefully it'll look gorgeous as well! I'm looking forward to reviewing it anyway!

Glossybox January 2014 Review

 

New Year, new Glossybox? So apparently the box was redesigned this month...

 

 

 

so, yea. It's pretty much the same. The box was more shiny and there was a different ribbon. Bout all I noticed anyway! Nothing desperately exciting! This was meant to be my last Glossybox but since hearing we're meant to be getting a Ciate polish in the Valentine's one, I'm hanging on for February, then I need to start saving money so it really has to go! Plus they seem to charge you for them really quickly at the moment, like they charged for the Febraury box on the like the 5th, before I really had to chance to decide what I was going to do! But if I get a Ciate, that at least softens the blow I guess. Anyhoo, let's get onto January's box. Well, again, I just wasn't overly impressed. Let's see how.

 



 Yu-Be Moisturising Skin Cream: Full size £13.50

 

This, I've definatley tried in a box before and was never really bothered by it then either. It's meant to revamp your skin and protect it from the elements. It's trying to be the 8 hour cream I think. And it just doesn't get there. Handy size for the handbag to help with dry patches, but otherwise, I'm just not bothered!

 

Balance Me Super Toning Body Wash: Full Size £10.25

 

 

I dunno what it is with Glossybox and balance me products. But, generally, I've had enough of receiving them. They are always very floral smelling (bleurgh!) and they just don't entice me at all. I would never pay the full price for any of their products at all. I appreciate that their organic and natural products, but still! Give us something different rather than a shower gel I'll end up saving to take travelling!

 

Vintage Cosmetics Company Floral Tweezers : £8

 

 

Awww. Cute. But at the end of the day? It's just a pair of tweezers. They do work well, and they look pretty, but they do seem expensive for basic tweezers with a pattern.

 

Vaseline Essential Moisture Lotion: Full Size £4.99

 

 

Vaseline Lotion. I can easily pick this up in Boots. Which makes it less exciting really. This has pure oat extract in it, which means it smells rather odd. Not unpleasant but kinda odd. It does the job and is a good moisturiser, just not overly exciting I guess. If I'd wanted to try this I probably would have bought it already myself.

 

Anatomicals Puffy the Eye Bag Slayer Wake-Up Under Eye Patches: Full Size £6 for 3

 

 

Now, I do love me almost anything from Anatomicals. Mostly because of their names and the blurb on the products that makes you laugh. I've used these previously so I did actually appreciate getting more of the them. They generally revitalise your eye area and are cooling as well. Lovely stuff. So, all in all a bit of a miss mash this month, some good and some annoyingly familiar. I must be picky that I just want to see something I couldn't find down the shops, or to try something I might normally be able to afford and these days I feel Glossybox is going more high street and there's just less of that! Here's hoping the valentines box is good anyway, I'll aim to get the post up quicker this time I promise!

 

 

 





 

 

Holiday Essentials - Cyprus 2013

Aww, I miss it already! So in June this year we headed off to Cyprus for a wee break. It was roasting hot! As I was packing my case, I thought it would be a good idea to take some pics of the essentials I was putting in my case! Hope you guys find it useful!

 

First essentials! Facial Sunscreen and the classic Soap and Glory Hand Food hand cream. The sunscreen I got in a beauty box and it turned out to be the perfect amount to last all week. Both myself and my partner used it and it worked well. It apparently has a tint in it, but as I was tanning anyway, I can't say I really noticed it as yet! and he never did anyway! It was a good high factor so great for the face and felt very moisturising and not too drying, definitely a good choice! And as always, the handcream no girl should be without, soap and glory handfood. I love this stuff! I like using it morning and night before bed and always keep one in my hand bag, it's an immense product - if you've never tried it - go and get a mini one!

 

 

My £1 buys to keep us going on holiday! I can't resist a fruity shower gel to keep fresh on holiday, so this original source lime one was amazing. I can't survive anywhere in the world without a detangler, so I got a lovely fruity (again!) smelling one from Schwarzkopf, it does the job pretty well for only a pound and was refreshing on my hair when I needed a cool down.

 

 

Miniatures to help me cool down! The lovely orangey smelling cleansing milk from Paul and Joe. This came in a set I got for my birthday and it was so cooling after a day in the sun, just to refresh the skin it was perfect. Fruit of the Earth pure aloe vera gel was a real saviour from the sun burn, just nice to put on at night to calm the red burnt bits!  

 

 

This was a new discovery for me I found just before I went on holiday. It's a very light aftersun sorbet. It was very refreshing and it's smells of melon - win win! I would really recommend this for sunny holidays (or here in the UK at the mo!) it is a great product for soothing red skin. I got mine in Boots when it was on promotion, it's made by Garnier and it was in the suncream section and only about £5 for this massive tub! Good holiday investment I promise!

 

 

Finally, a wee miniature selection from Clarins. My mum is a huge fan of Clarins, and always seems to get free minis when she buys full size products, so I inherited these two just before I went on holiday since they were a perfect size to take away. Beauty Flash Balm is a reliable product for keeping skin looking well and brighter and as I wasn't really planning on wearing a lot of make up on holiday I thought this would be a good idea to be using instead. It smells lovely too, so I enjoyed using it to try and keep my skin looking good despite the heat! The orange scrub I've used for a few years when I can afford to, and I love that it's not too harsh a scrub, so I was good holiday treat in the mini size.

 

Well, I hope this has been a good feature for guys, I'd love to hear if any of you have enjoyed these products on holiday or at home! :)