Review: Benefit's High Beam, Moon Beam & 'V.I.P' lip gloss + Alternatives!

I intended to review one of my many Benefit palettes, Valley of the Stars, until I realised that it is not actually stocked at Benefit anymore! Even so, I will still review the products inside, as they are sold separately and in other palettes similar to this one:

High Beam

This has got to be one of my favourite Benefit products, EVER! It's a complexion highlighter that's described by Benefit as "supermodel in a bottle". It's silky pink with a gorgeous shine, and is designed to catch the light and make your complexion glow and generally draw attention to your face! Use on your cheek or brow bones or around your eye. For your eye, put 6 dots of the highlighter around the edge of the eye and brow bone and blend in a circular motion. For your cheeks use 3 dots either ontop or above your blusher and blend. You can also use down the bridge of your nose too.

High Beam can be bought in full here  for £18.50 or in smaller versions as part of the Finding Mr. Bright and Realness of Concealness make-up kits. This dewy highlighter is a must-have for 

healthy, glowing skin.

Moon Beam

In my opinion, Moon Beam is simply a warmer shade of High Beam. Although High Beam has a more watery texture for easy blending, Moon Beam is perfect if you have darker or tanned skin. For pale skin, it's far too shiny even when blended. You apply it the same way as High Beam, over the cheek and brow bones and around the eye. However, I would recommend using it sparingly as it is a lot shiner that High Beam and you really don't need much. Benefit also recommends mixing some in with your foundation for a permanent glow throughout the day?  A lovely looking product, but just not for my skin tone, but I know if I was olive skinned or miraculously developed a tan, this would replace High Beam. Moon Beam can be bought in full here for £18.50.

'Her Glossiness' Lip Gloss in 'V.I.P'

This is a gorgeous strawberry coloured gloss that's perfect for achieving candy coloured lips. However, Benefit do not stock this anymore, but I decided to review it as it's too gorgeous to leave out and Benefit have brought out three gorgeous shades that are practically identical to this: 'who are you wearing?' (passion-fruit pink), 'foxy lady' (diamond pink) and 'dancing queen' (watermelon pink) in their new Ultra-Shine range that are silky and bursting with colour and shine. A perfect alternative, take a look here.

Apologies...again!

I know it hasn't been as long between posts as it has been before, but I feel like I should explain as I don't know when i'll be posting again. It's more personal than usual, so if that bores you then feel free to stop reading.

After an assessment on Monday, I got a phone call from my mum telling me that our dog, Bella had to be put down. It was very sudden, and turns out she had cancer and suffered a lot of internal bleeding. I'm absolutely devastated. We had Bella since I was 7 years old (13 years in total) and practically saved her from a pretty terrible life. She was always extremely spoilt, and liked to lay in the middle of the bed so I had to lay in an awkward angle around her! She always knew when I was upset or sick, and loved to jump in-between me and Jason on the sofa so she wasn't left out.

I didn't get the chance to say goodbye, but I know she knew she meant the world to me.

It's got me a little thrown, and I haven't been able to concentrate much this week, which isn't too great as I have a shorthand exam on Friday. I hope my day of practice goes ten times better than it did today.

I have some posts lined up, but at the moment I have a lot on my mind and need some time to get over the fact that i've lost not just a pet, but a member of the family.

I miss you Bella x 

Review: MUA's Shade 1 Blusher!

Finally, a decent make-up brand with every product ranging from £1 to £4. No, you're not imagining things, MUA (Makeup Academy) is a budget makeup brand that strive to produce eye-catching and professional makeup products at low prices.

If you haven't noticed already, I tend to naturally sway to more expensive brands which isn't particularly suited for my student lifestyle, so when I saw this gorgeous pink blusher I hope i'd finally found a duplicate for the £20+ blushers I tend to go for:

This particular product comes in 6 shades including a coral, deep plum and nude. However, this was my favourite as I always like having rosy cheeks.

As you can see, it's actually quite bright so be sure to tap off any excess blush. Also be careful with what size brush you use, blusher brushes can be huge and in order to cover the brush you could end up getting it everywhere, and pink blush marks on black leggings isn't great!

Here's the product once it was applied, but as you can see it still needed a bit more blending, which is the only downside to this shade. Even though it's not as bright as it comes out on the brush, it needs to be heavily blended to avoid looking like a drag queen :P However, I think it's a really pretty shade that could give Benefit's Hervana a run for it's money!

It's not the best photo, but it's the only one I took wearing that blusher. But as you can see, once blended it gives a really natural flush of colour to the cheeks.

Overall, I think this is an incredible product that is great value for money at only £1. It's slim and compact so it doesn't take up too much space in your makeup bag too, which is a bonus! It'll take a lot to ween me off my Benefit blushers, but i'll certainly begin alternating between them and this MUA blush.

MUA is available online here and in your local Superdrug. So get down there and stock up, you could have a brand new look for less than £10!

March Obsession: Candy Coloured Nails!

 

It's no surprise that candy colours have become the go-to trend this year, with the Queen's trademark pastel two pieces making regular appearances in our magazines and on our television sets due to her Jubilee Tour. So here's my contribution, candy nails! 

I used these colours: 

1. Misty Jade - Rimmel London   2. Pure Turquoise - Barry M   3. Strawberry Ice Cream - Barry M   4. Berry Ice Cream - Barry M

I used mint for my middle finger as it's by far the best of the pastel colours this season, and it's always great to go back to your inner-child and paint each nail a different colour like I know I used to when I thought that wearing as many different colours as possible was the key to good style!

Barry M is by far the best place for pastel nail paint, and you could even go one step further by painting your nails white and then applying some pastel nail crackle on top?

Happy painting!

My mini H&M and vintage haul!

I don't know if I told anyone on here that i'm going on holiday in 4 weeks time, and being a curvy girl i'm not a big fan of wearing hotpants and bandeau's  like most people seem to wear on holiday. So I decided i'm going to wear as many gorgeous dresses as possible :) I took a trip to Boscombe today to have a look at a vintage shop called What Alice Found after reading Shanae's post about how unique and interesting it was. So I ended up going there, as well as a few high street and charity shops, and made a day out of it! So here's what I bought on my mini haul today.. spending £66 (With the cheapest being only £1.50 .. the joy of charity shops!)

 

Dress - £14.99, Jumper - £7.99 both H&M

I love the rabbit print on the dress, and it has a 50's feel with the jumper on top. It's a comfortable length and the tie nips the dress in at the waist giving me a nice shape.

Chiffon Dress - £19.99 H&M

If you haven't read my previous post you won't know that i'm really into chiffon at the moment. It's floaty and feminine and great for the spring time. I love this sleeveless dress with a gorgeous retro polka-dot print, it will look great with a cropped cardigan or a cable knit jumper for cold evenings.

 Fruit Jersey Top - £7.99 H&M

This top is one of H&M's basic designs. A simple loose jersey top that I can wear with denim shorts or even leggings, as it's just the right length. However, because it's such a low back my bra is really visible, so i'll either wear another top underneath or wear it over a bikini top when i'm on holiday. 

 Jumper - £1.50 Age Concern

What a bargain at £1.50! It's a lovely peach colour and it's so soft. It's the cheapest item of clothing i've bought in a long time! 

 Jumper - £15 What Alice Found

Another gorgeous printed jumper to wear over some lovely tea dresses! It's actually a size 18 so it has baggy sleeves but I usually push them up to my elbows anyway, and it turns out it has a brown mark on one of the sleeves as if it accidently had bleach spilled on it! Other than that, I love this jumper and it's super comfy (I'm wearing it now with a pair of leggings lounging on my sofa!).

So it's safe to say I have basically all my clothing for my holiday, as well as a couple of new jumpers to snuggle up in at night! I'm wearing the bunny dress and pink jumper tonight, so i'll try and get a picture to show you what it looks like on.

Hope you enjoyed the post, have a great day! x

Benefit is coming to Bournemouth!

Hi guys,
Just a quick post to spread the word on the new Benefit boutique that arrives in Bournemouth on the 30th march! I am soo excited about this, as the only boutique i've been in has been in London! I'm definitely going to take advantage of the free brow tint with every service, I was planning on getting mine done in time for my holiday in April, so a freebie will be much appreciated!
As you can see the decor is going to be incredible; really girly and relaxing ... I know where i'll be spending all my free time! Great for me, bad for my bank balance... OH well :D

Have a great weekend x 

Review: My first Glossybox! The Harrods Edition - March 2012

I've been so excited to write this post. Ever since I started blogging i've wanted to start receiving a monthly Glossybox - a selection of luxury miniature products for a bargain price of £12.95 a month (Including P&P) delivered right to your door for you to sample and adore. To be honest, although it isn't an insane amount of money for what you receive, it took a lot to convince me to sign up. After reading lots of reviews on February's box, I saw that they were bringing out a limited edition Harrods box. They had me at 'limited edition', I could not wait to see what products I would receive.

First of all, let me apologise for the quality of the photos. I didn't have a lot of time to take them and only had my iPhone with me.

I love the gorgeous packaging, the chic white box definetely adds to the exclusivity of the limited edition box. 

Here's what I received in my first box:

Vanitas Versace Eau de Parfum

What a gorgeous little sample of one of Versace's newest fragrances that's perfect for spring. It's floral but not too overpowering, with hints of cedar wood to create a balance of innocence and seduction. The little bottle is so cute, it's great for my handbag. 

Clarins' Extra-Firming Body Cream

 I was so excited to see something from Clarins in my box, as I'm such a big fan. It aims to create firmer skin and a more 'youthful' body - Well, i'm only 20 so I'm unsure whether this applies to me. However, a full size version of this product costs £39.50 in Boots, so I'm happy with the tester to see if it tones and smooths my skin. As it is for the whole body, I don't know how far this product will go.. I can only see myself getting three or four uses. 

Bliss Blood Orange + White Pepper Body Butter

I don't quite know what to think about this product. I've never been too fond of the use of orange as a scent, I find it too tart and makes my face scrunch up like i've just bitten into a lemon. The back of the bottle describes the product as 'vibrantly-scented' - you could call it that! There's no need for perfume with this body butter! When I tested it, I found that my skin clearly felt softer, but I found the mixture quite thick and heavy on my skin and required a lot of rubbing in so my skin wasn't sticky. This will be a good travel product as the blood orange does give it a tropical feel and it's a good size, and luckily you can't smell any of the white pepper! 

Revive Intensite Creme Lustre SPF30 

 

This is the smallest sample of moisturiser I have ever seen! I didn't know quite to do with it. Much like the Clarins product, this moisturiser promises to produce firmer skin and reduce wrinkles (I suppose it's never too early to start trying to stop wrinkles - i'm sure to have visible laughter lines by the time i'm 25!).  I don't think this will do for more than two or three applications, however this is a generous size seeing as the full price product retails at £235! I haven't tested the product yet, but i'm unsure as to whether I will bother writing a review - £235 for a moisturiser is just plain ridiculous.

Lancome Juicy Tubes in Toffee

This was the product that immediately caught my attention, and what I was the most excited about! I've always wanted to purchase one of these legendary lipglosses, but never got round to it. It smells absolutely delicious, so much so that I will probably need to buy another tube as I keep licking it off my lips! The perfect end to the Glossybox, i'm so happy to have one of these gorgeously scented glosses to carry around with me at all times! 

Overall, I have extremely satisfied with these products. I read disappointed reviews on various other blogs about the limited edition box, but I can safely say that I will be continuing my subscription with Glossybox, and can't wait to show you all what I get next month! 

Review: Lush's 'Enzymion' Moisturiser

I apologise for my lack of posts this past week, once again University deadlines have left me with little time to blog. However, on my day off I managed to pick up a new facial moisturiser. My face has started to become oily again, and I ran out of my Porefessional primer that tends to dry up all the excess oil, so I thought I should really get a good moisturiser that does the job for me on a daily basis,  so I don't have to wear makeup in order to achieve good looking skin.

I chose Lush as I love using their cleansers and charcoal scrubs, which are both featured in this post, so I knew they would be reliable. I was immediately directed to a moisturiser called Enzymion, which is described as a 'fruity moisturiser to liven up oily skin'. Simple.

It uses fresh lemons and papayas, along with cocoa butter so it leaves your skin feeling smooth and moisturised but soaks up all that excess oil. It has a really fruity frangrance to it also, which can be quite overpowering at times. I'm not the greatest fan of the smell, however it doesn't transfer onto your skin so it isn't really a problem.

The great thing about Lush products is that they are sold in generous portions. Enzymion is sold in tubs of 45g, and as you only need the smallest amount to dot on your cheeks, t-zone, chin and neck it's really great value. It can be worn alone or underneath makeup. I have tried with both, and have found that it makes a really great base for foundation and helps keep my skin looking flawless for longer.

The oil is gone and my skin feels fresh and looks bright and healthy. For £13.50, you could say that it's quite steep. However, Lush products are always made with love and care, and use the finest natural ingredients so you don't have any harsh or nasty chemicals creeping their way into your skin.

This is now part of my daily cleansing routine, and will remain there for a long time. I love Lush, and I love what this moisturiser has done to my skin.

You can purchase Enzymion here, or at your nearest Lush shop.

Review: MAC's Fix+

Yet another MAC post, I hope you all don't mind! Surely, with all these rave reviews I give the brand it just shows how much I favour it over any other (Apart from Benefit, perhaps!) .. and this is no different.

Fix+ is a finishing mist/skin refresher from MAC that is used to hydrate the skin and set makeup after application. I have always found that after using powder skin can look dry, chalky and it is quite obvious that you've used powder .. but with MAC's Fix+ it enables your skin to look natural again.

Beyonce has given the product amazing reviews, resulting in the product sky-rocketing to makeup stardom:

"After you put your powder on - I don't know how it does it - but it makes your skin look like skin again. It takes away the chalkiness. That always makes me look more natural - you can see my pores and the shine in my skin. I use it every day now. I won't wear a powder if I don't have that. I keep one in my purse!"

 She was quoted last year, and couldn't wait to try it out. If it's good enough for Beyonce, it's good enough for me .. right?

 As you can see the packaging is the typical modern black and white contrast, with the MAC logo embossed repeatadly over the packaging. On the back of the packaging it instructs that the bottle must be sprayed 12" away from your face .. has anyone got a ruler? "..at arms length" would suffice.

The bottle has a useful safety top that you can turn and lock into place so that you cannot spray the product anywhere, and the transparent bottle clearly displays the simple, hydrating solution.
 As the top of the bottle is quite large, one pump is all you need. I only tend to use two as I don't want the dewy look, however three or four would achieve this if desired.

With hints of cucumber, green tea and chamomile, the mineral infused aqua-spray smells fresh, pure and soothes the skin. It is as hydrating as Beyonce said, it brings the natural texture and shine of your face through the powder so it doesn't look like you're wearing another layer. It's also is cool and refreshing, and breathes life into tired looking skin at every application. I'll definately be keeping one in my bag so I can rehydrate my skin whenever it's needed.

I use mine after both my liquid and powder foundation, to ensure maximum hydration throughout.

Fix+ retails at £12.50 for 100ml and can be bought here or at your local MAC counter. *Price amended June 2012*

Review: n-spa's indulgent 'hot butter fudge' sugar body polish

Happy Monday everyone!

Hope you all had a relaxing weekend, as I certainly didn't! I'm definitely finding it harder to do posts nowadays because of uni and stuff, and being forced to photograph the products used at night makes it a lot harder to produce actual quality photographs.

N-spa is a moderately priced cosmetic range from the experts at Nirvana Spa. From skin-care to bubble bath, N-spa has a product for everyone.

I was browsing the cosmetic aisle in my local Asda whilst waiting for a coach, when I finally plucked up the courage to buy the 'hot butter fudge' sugar body polish. I'd been back and forth with this for a while, as it was priced at £6 and didn't really want to spend that much on a scrub that I could get cheaper in a normal body wash. However, after not being able to resist the mouth-watering scent I decided to try it out for myself.

'Hot butter fudge' is part of N-spas' 'indulgent' range that features a selection of body washes, shower syrups and bath melts in delicious flavours such as 'Angel Cake' and 'Gingerbread latte'. I get hungry just reading the names of the products, so as you can imagine I couldn't wait to use my new scrub.

I love the labels on N-spa products, as they always have really quirky stories with thoughtful quotes. The label says:

"Decadence" said the wise man "is like a sumptuous caramel with a slow-burn creamy sweetness. Soft brown sugar and toffee, like clotted cream ice cream in the summer melting to hot butter fudge.

 I don't know who this wise man is, but he's featured on every n-spa label, and he comes out with some great stuff!

 As you can see, the scrub is more of a sludge. The sugar particles are scarce and it's quite watery but it smells lush. You need quite a lot of the product (I can see now why it instructs to use a 'generous helping'!) as it slides around everywhere, and it sort of feels your just rubbing a body wash over your skin. Don't get me wrong, it smells so much like hot fudge it is unreal, but it did practically nothing for my skin.

The packaging is gorgeous and you get 350ml for £6 (Or £6.50 if you buy from their online store), however if you're looking for a scrub then this is not for you. You'll smell amazing, but with the hassle it is to scoop it out of the jar and rub it all over your body, you'll wonder whether it's worth it.

Review: MAC's Limited Edition 'Innocence, Beware!' Cremesheen Lipstick + swatches!

Nothing cheers me up more than a trip to my local MAC counter, which is shocking as I always have a mini heart attack whenever I hear the total amount!

Today I went looking for a nude lipstick. I've been hunting for one for a while now, and i'm fed up settling for shades that have that dreaded 'concealer lips' look and give the impression that your lips blend in with the colour of your skin. And within 10 minutes i'd walked out of Beale's in Bournemouth with a gorgeous new cremesheen lipstick from MACs newest collection: Limited Edition - Innocence, Beware!

 I just wanted to take a moment to admire the packaging. MAC is known for having sleek black matte cases, which are as modern and chic as the products themselves. However, Innocence, Beware! is part of the 'Shop MAC' collection. MAC describes the range as 'Tongue-and-cheek that elevates the everyday into the extrodinary." And this fun packaging conveys this well! It's bubbly and bright and instantly draws in a customer, so much so that i'm keeping the lipstick in the packaging permanantly.

I love this colour because it's got a hint of peachy pink, which eliminates the 'concealer lips' factor, and the fact that it's part of the cremesheen collection means it's very sheer and doesn't look like it's been caked on so it's very natural with slight sparkly pigments. It also smells (and tastes!) delicious. What I like about MAC lipsticks is that they smell of a mixture of chocolate and sweets - I can't think of anything worse when a lipstick/gloss that tastes like chemicals, it just makes it feel cheap!

MAC says: "Spring lips dish it up! With our shop-til-you-drop shades and the collection's colourful and fun packaging these shades stay fashionable long after check-out. Limited edition!"

And they are right, this is the perfect accompaniment to my spring wardrobe :) Here is what it looks like when swatched:

 It was swatched quite heavily, because as I said it's quite sheer and isn't designed to be as bright as other MAC lipsticks such as the matte collection. The name is perfect for it, as the pink is quite sweet and delicate however the slight shine attracts the eye without being too obvious. Described as a light yellow pink, here is the official swatch from MAC.co.uk:

Picture taken from mac.co.uk

A perfect natural shade for fair skin, and is suitable as your every-day lipstick. I'm wearing it now, and trust me .. it looks (and smells) amazing! 

You can find 'Innocence, Beware!' at your local MAC counter, or here at MAC's official website. It retails at £13.50 fora 3g tube.