Products iv used up

August is almost over now, so that only means one thing, monthly empties blog post time. I haven't used up that much this month, I have a lot of almost empty products though, so I have a feeling next months blog post is going to have quite a lot of products in it. 

The first three things are all from the body shop. 

Rainforst moister shampoo - This was a free sample I received with a purchase I made online, It was nice and smelled really good. I'm not sure id bother to buy a full size one though. 

Chocomania body lotion- Iv done a full review of this here, I love it, it smells so good. I defiantly want to try some more in this line. 

Cocoa butter body wash- I didn't really like this, It didn't smell very nice and the bottle was so hard that I couldn't squeeze the product out. For the price I don't think its worth it, I wouldn't buy this again.

Tea tree water by Lush - I did enjoy this, but found that it could be a little over drying if I didn't have any active break outs or a bout of greasy skin. I do really like the toner waters but I think id only use this one during times when I have very spotty skin. 

Lush volcano foot mask - Iv already done a full review here, I do like this product but I want to try some more of their body masks and foot lotions and potions before going back to buy this again. That doesn't mean I wont buy this again as I would, but id like to try some more stuff first.  

St tropez gradual tanner - I loved this, the colour was great, the application was great, the smell was even good. But the only thing I didn't like was the fact this ran out so fast. I didn't even use it every day, but it seemed to just go so fast. Iv blogged about this already here. I do really like it but it went so fast, and its not 

like its a cheap product either. 

Avene TriAcneal- I have used this for the past year and loved it, I still do. But iv found a new retinol cream that I'm testing out, so for the time being I wont be re purchasing, but that's not to say I wont come back to this. 

Monthly favourites

I think I say this every month, but I cant believe its been a month already. I'm off back to university next weekend after having a 5 month summer holiday, it only feels like a week ago that I was coming home from university for the summer.... crazy, anyway that's not the point of this blog post lol.

I have quite a few favourites this month, mainly because I went on a crazy spending spree this last couple months and have accumulated a lot of new things that I just seem to love. There is a lot more stuff that I have got that I love and old products that I still love, but I think the blog post would be to long if I added everything.

As some of you may (or may not) know, iv dyed my hair a lot lighter than It naturally is, I had it done professionally and I think they used bleach on it. Now my hair is pretty dry and doesn't feel very nice, so I bought a new leave-in conditioner by Umberto Giannini, iv already done a review on it here, I love it.

You might be thinking 'what the hell is that red thing', well its a shampoo bar by Lush called 'New' and its designed to help promote hair growth, I bought it on a whim after hearing the lady at Lush trying to sell it to another women. It smells sort of like spices and lathers really well. A full review on this will be soon, but I am  really enjoying using it.

The body shop coconut body mist is great, I have had a lot of people asking me what perfume I'm wearing when Iv used this, including my step dad and men don't even pay attention to things like that so it says a lot. Even the women in the post office stopped me and asked me about it haha Its such a nice smell and seems to last a long time considering its a body mist.

If you follow me on twitter, or just read my blog a lot, you might have seen the influx of Lush posts and mentions about Lush products. I must have spend at least a million pound at Lush this last few months... ok maybe not a million but I did spend a lot.

Ro's argan body conditioner is the first ever product of this sort that Iv used. It smells amazing, Im not usually a fan of rose but this smells so good I could just eat it. It leaves my skin feeling so soft and smelling great.

Cosmetic lad is a facial moisturiser, I realise im not a 'lad' but the lady at Lush said it was ideal for my skin type (combination, irritated and occasional spots), it smells nice, as do most of the Lush products and it leaves my face feeling so hydrated and plump.

Eau roma water is a toner, yet again by Lush, (your all fed up of Lush now arnt you?) Its a very simple toner only consisting of rose and lavender water but it really helps to calm any irritated spots, or redness on my face.

Help me is a retinol cream by Philosophy, the women who works for them that I spoke to told me this product contains the highest legal amount of retinol thats aloud in the uk, It is meant to work wonders on the skin and is great for people with acne, scaring and redness. I love this so much, retinol creams are fantastic.

The little kabuki brush is by Eco tools, its one of the softest brushes iv ever felt and is ideal for carrying in your make up bag.

This Barry m nail paint iv already reviewed here, its such a good glittery colour and inexpensive.

The lipstick and the gloss are both from No7, Iv talked about them both already here, they are lovely and high quality. I'm so glad I bought both of these.

And finally the last thing is the lip pencil in 063 eastend snob by Rimmel, this lip liner and the pink lip gloss above is such a pretty combination.

No7 half price sale!

Picture heavy post sorry!

Boots are currently having a half price sale on all No7 products bar their foundations. So naturally I picked up a few things.  The first thing I got was this stay perfect lipstick in 25 classic rose, its such a beautiful colour, however I do find that the shape of the lipstick itself makes it hard to apply it neatly onto the lips.

 I then went for another lip product, this one being a gloss. It perfect to wear on its own to give a bit off colour, or over the top of a nude/pink lipstick to give it that extra something. 

I then saw this trio and loved it straight away, I have green eyes and purples look fantastic on that colour eyes. So I thought id go for it, even though I hardly wear anything other than neutrals on my eyes. I was slightly disappointed in this, purely because the pigmentation isn't great, you can build the colours up to make them more pigmented which is fine, but I was expecting slightly more colour pay off. 

 The last thing I bought was a mascara, I was in need of a new one and thought this would be an ideal time to pick one up. I loved the fact the brush wasn't plastic, and that it was a chunky wand.

 Right now is a perfect time to try out some of No7 products, I find this brand always has great deals on and the quality of most of their products is fantastic. Its a shame their foundations weren't on sale as I defiantly would have picked one (maybe more) up. I'm not sure how long this sale will last, so go and grab some things now before its to late!

Eco tools 5 piece eye brush set

 I have been tempted to buy new make up brushes for such a long time, but good quality ones can be very expensive and on a student budget its not something I can easily afford. I already own a Ecotools foundation brush (iv done a review on it but its so old that I can bare to link it here :P ) which I love, so while I was searching the Internet, I came across this brush set. They are 5 mini eye brushes and the fact they are mini doesn't bother me at all, in fact I prefer them to be smaller as I can control them better, store them easier and travel with them. They come in a travel roll that has a mirror which is ideal for travelling as it keeps them tidy and clean. 

The 5 brushes are label with what they 'should' be used for eg highlight, smudge brush and so on. But I use them in what ever way I want, you don't have to only us it the way the brush is label. I find them to be very soft, but if I were to nit pick id say the slanted large brush (second in from the left) can be a little bit scratchy, not really that much at all though. They are all made with synthetic hairs and cruelty free. Eco tools is a very environmentally friendly brand which is excellent, they are easy to clean and they don't seem to shed any hairs.  

They are very affordable and good quality, they apply and blend eye shadow lovely, they are also soft which means no irritation on the eyes.  

This brush set can be bought from Boots and Amazon for roughly £7 (price varies on Amazon) 

Lovely jubbly brush set

John Frieda frizz-ease hair serum.

For those of you who don't know, I have naturally curly, frizzy and coarse hair, so I am always on the hunt for products that help my curls look less frizzy and more defined. I was looking for a heat protection initially but then noticed this product, it is a hair serum that  is designed for medium to coarse hair  types to help eliminate dry and frizzy hair, as well as having heat protection built in. 

About

This product is an award winning serum that claims to repel humidity and leave your hair glossy and silky smooth. You can also use this product if you were going to straighten your hair, to help give a more sleek finish to it. It also contains UV filters so really help protect the hair. 

How to use

You apply it to soaking wet hair, it suggests using it in the shower after shampooing and conditioning, but I use it after I have gotten out. You use one pump giver or take, depending on hair thickness and length. You apply it to your hands and work through your hair, making sure its distributed evenly. It suggestive that you use it sparingly and avoid the roots, so you don't make your hair to greasy from the oil. You can then either leave your hair to air dry like I do, or blow dry it. 

My thoughts

I find this product really helps to define my curls, it looks very shiny and sleek without making my hair feel or look greasy at all. I find one pump/one and a half pumps is enough product for my hair, it doesn't leave it feeling sticky, or hard. It doesn't weigh my hair down and makes my hair look so much more tidy, like iv put a lot of effort into making it look nice (even though I haven't) 

I would really recommend this serum to people with naturally/chemically treated curly hair, as that type of hair can tend to look very frizzy, dry and over all messy. This product is so easy to use, very fast and very affective. As long as you don't use to much or apply it to your roots you cant really go wrong. They also sell different formulas for those with very curly hair, and one for all hair types. Its a 2 in 1 product that's ideal for people who like effortless hair or just don't have time to be fussing about with lots of different products.

O.P.I gel nails

So I recently went to my local salon, where I had the O.P.I gel nails done, I chose the shade Pink flamenco and it cost me £15. Before I went I didn't fully know what the procedure was to get these nails done, I talked through what I wanted with the nail technician who then started her magic. 

How its done

The first step is to buff and shape your nails in whatever shape you want them to be, as mine were all different lengths I asked for them to all be filed down so they were looking more like they were the same length.

The a base coat is applied to your nails, you then put your hand under a UV light for 30 seconds to dry the base coat. Some people may experience discomfort with this light, it can cause your nails to feel very hot, and for some people this pain may be to much. It all depends on how sensitive your hands are, the women also told me its to do with hormones. I felt a slight pain that lasted for literally seconds so I didn't mind. I don't want to put people off, but I think people should know this before having it done.

Then your chosen colour is applied, you return your hand to the light and once dry a second coat is applied, and the same process is used with the base coat and the layers of colour.

The top coat is then put on every nail and you put your hand under the light for the last time for another 30 seconds. All in all this process took around 30 minutes.

Once the colour was done the lady applied a shine cream to my nails and pulled off any polish that might have got on the skin (that didn't hurt at all, in case people were thinking it sounds painful)

My thoughts

These gel nails are meant to last for about 3 weeks with no chips, there is also a large range of colours available depending on where you go.

As for damage done to your nails, I was told that this is no where near as damaging as acrylic nails, but I guess we will have to wait and see. Ill keep you all updated with what happens, if it chips/peals, or if it damages my nails once removed. 

Before (ugly I know)

After

Lush time....again

So I popped into Lush again, for the millionth time this month. I wanted to buy some new bath products after seeing Louise from sprinkle of glitter youtube video about her favourite Lush products. It actually inspired me to try some new products that I wouldn't normally go for, and Its safe to say, I'm so glad I did. 

First I picked up sunnyside which is a glittery gold bubble bar, this was purely due to Louise's' recommendation, I usually go for sweet smells but this one is more lemony and citrus. It turns your bath water gold and glittery, which some people might hate, I thought I would hate it but I actually really liked it. Its a fun bubble bar to add to what may be a very boring bath. 

I then bough space girl because I heard that it smelt like the sweets parma violets, I went into Lush and smelt it and to my surprise it smelt exactly like them. I avoided this bath bomb before I new it smelt so good because it seemed pretty childish and just didn't appeal to me at all. But as soon as I smelt it I was sold, it turns your bath water a beautiful lilac colour, it has a small amount of glitter and popping candy in it! What more could you possibly want from a bath bomb. 

 Rose jam bubble bar is in the shape of a macaroon and a bright pink colour, Its something Iv always wanted to love but was never really keen on the smell. I bought it anyway and its now become one of my favourite bubble bars. I use it in conjunction with my space girl bath bomb and it gives of the most amazing smell. I'm not a massive fan of rose, but this bubble bar is a sweet rose smell, Id expect this to smell just like rose jam really haha I really love the smell of it once in the bath, I just cant get enough.

I have a lot more Lush products to review but I think ill leave it there for that blog post or my blog will just be to full of Lush products. 

Umberto Giannini-Instant beauty leave-in conditioner

Umberto Giannini is a brand that was introduced to me through the whole 'back comb in a bottle' hype, ever since then Iv just been waiting to try some of their products out for myself. I was in desperate need of a leave-in conditioner due to the fact my hair is just naturally so dry, so when I saw Boots were having a 3 for 2 sale on their hair care, I immediately thought this was my chance to try out some new hair care and went straight for Umberto Giannini. They have a huge range of products, with pretty much everything you could need/want. I was scanning through and my eyes met this leave-in conditioner, I grabbed it and read the back, it said that this leave-in conditioner will make your hair feel soft, look shiny and generally improve the overall look of the hair by smoothing and strengthening dry and damaged hair.  

This leaves my hair feeling so soft and the ends feel smooth, when usually my ends feel really coarse and frizzy. I also think my hair looks a lot shiner and healthier after using this, which is a huge plus for me. I really am In dire need of a hair cut, but this product makes my hair looks so nice, almost as if Iv just been to the salon even though I haven't (not for a good 6 months now D:) 

I tend to find leave in conditioners don't really do much to my hair, but this one I really feel like its helping. My hair does not only look better but feels so much nicer than it did before. Its a great product for people with naturally curly hair as well because it does not weigh your hair down, which can happen with some products if they are to heavy. 

On a side note, I really love the packaging of this bottle and Umberto Giannini as a whole. 

Boots extract - Body butter

I have so much love for the Boots extract body scrubs (review here) that It was only natural that I tried there body butters. I bought the Brazil nut and vanilla 'flavour' purely due to the fact they both smell so good that I could eat them. They cost £7.95 which compared with The body shop body butters is great. Just like the body scrubs by Boots extract, they are made with fair trade and organic ingredients, which helps developing countries as wells as our own peace of mind.

The consistency of these body butters is like a thick cream, they are a slightly runnier in consistency than The Body Shop body butters but still a nice texture and perfect for coating your feet/hands with before bed, for an intensive moisture treatment. The level of moisturisation is just under that of The Body Shop body butters, but it still adds a great deal of moisture back into the skin. Which is exactly what you want/expect from a body butter.

They have a huge range of scents, from fruity to floral as well as also carries body sprays, body polish and shower gel. This brand is a Boots own brand, which if I'm honest I tend to over look, but I really do like this rang, especially the body butters and scrub. 

Bath time! My new Lush loves.

So I went into Lush the other day purely because my shower broke and I was looking for some bath products as I didn't have any. I usually hate having a bath and the idea of it creeps me out, I'm not sure why It just does ( I guess I'm just weird) . But I didn't really have a choice, it was either bath or smell, so I chose bath haha.
One of the sale assistance came up to me and asked if I needed any help, I told her the situation and she asked me what scents I like. She then went around the store picking products that she thought Id like, she actually got it spot on because I loved them all. I then had to narrow it down to about 3 products because I'm not a millionaire and couldn't afford to buy to many, and In Lush I do tend to get carried away and end up buying the whole store when all I originally go in for is one bar of soap.

So first off I purchased 'Happy blooming'. 

This is a bath melt which is, for those who don't know, something you add to hot water that melts and adds lot of oils and other good stuff to the water, that moisturise your skin while you sit back and relax. This one smells like cherry pie, its sooooo nice I could actually take a bite out of it. Once I bought it I sat in my room for far to long just sniffing this bar....strange I know, but it just smells so good. It contains almond oil, cocoa butter and ylang yland oil so its very moisturising and really does help to soften the skin while you take a nice long bath. This bar is already cut into three seconds, you just break one off and either add it to running water or place it in the already filled bath for the most luxurious bath you have ever had, Trust me!

Happy blooming turns your bath water pink!

 The next thing I bought was 'The comforter' which is a bubble bar. As the name suggests it gives your bath bubbles, but not just any bubbles. The most amazingly soft bubbles I have ever felt.  This bubble bar smells like sweet blackcurrant, and works perfectly with Happy blooming bath melt. Together they make the most vibrant pink colour in your bath water, which makes having a bath all that more fun. This bar costs £4.25 and lasts about 3/4 baths, depending on how bubbly you like your bath to be.

The last thing I bought, I was pretty much talked into by the sales assistant. She told me this bath bomb was like having a party in your bath, which to me sounds great. 'Dragon egg' looks like such a boring, plain old bath bomb. Its just big, white, not very exiting and not that appealing to the eye...right? WRONG. This bath bomb changes colour three times in the bath, eventually leaving the water bright orange. It smells very fresh and citrusy and is ideal for those groggy mornings or a pick me up after a long day.  Not only that, the centre of this bath bomb has glitter! Its a beautiful glitter that looks like liquid gold (see photo below). So this bath bomb went from being plain and boring to being the best bath bomb I have ever used. If your someone like me, who isn't a huge fan of baths, this bath bomb is ideal. It turns the most boring of baths into something so great that you wont even want to get out of the bath. 

These three bath products have actually made me a bath convert. I really did enjoy taking a bath and I'm actually going back to Lush in 2 days (making it the 3rd time iv been in 2 weeks). Just so you know, my shower was fixed days ago and I'm still taking baths!!!!.

I forgot how much I loved Lush products, well not just the products, Lush as a whole. The stores are always nice, the staff are great and there ethos is fantastic. Everyone needs to get on board the Lush train with me! 

Bits and bobs

Iv only tried one long wear lipstick before and it was by maybelline and I hated it, it put me off long wear lipsticks for years. This colour however was to pretty for me to say no to, though I was sceptical when buying it, because my last experience with a long wear lipstick wasn't great and they arn't that cheap to just keep buying and hating. This one which is 010 Whisper by maxfactor is such a beautiful colour. I really do love it, but I found that it can wear off in places and not in others. So I'm left with a patchy lipstick that wont come of because its super long wearing haha. I'm not sure if its because I'm doing something wrong, because my lips are dry and cause the lipstick to flake, or if its just the lipstick (if anyone knows, please help me!) I really wish It didn't do that because its so nice and if it didn't flake off, it would be the most ideal lipstick for me. 

I never really thought I needed a tanning mitt, I thought using gloves was perfectly fine and did the job, how wrong I was. Since using this my tan has looked far more even, natural and just generally better. It allows for  the tan to be applied smoothly and consistently all over without leaving you with orange hands. I find the tell tail sign of fake tan is around the wrist and foot area, but a tanning mitt blends the tan in so well that its seamless. I really should have listened to my friends when they told me I should buy a tanning mitt because they work so much better. Iv defiantly learnt my lesson. 

I was going out to meet my friends, when I realised that I forgot to paint my nails and they weren't looking to nice. I popped into a local drugstore and picked up this Rimmel 60 second nail polish in 620 'How do you Lilac' I a huge fan of Rimmel 60 second nail polish as the applicator is one of those brushes that fit your nail, making is incredibly easy to do your nails and super fast. It dries quick so its really easy to do when in a rush, or in my case on a train. I have done a few reviews on these nail polish before here and here, both reviews fairly old but they explain my love for this brand in greater depth. 

Barry M - Aqua glitter 340

Barry M was a nail polish brand I used back when I was around 15, now im my 20s its a brand I tend to over look....until now. 

While I was browsing the models own stand at Boots, I spotted this Barry M nail paint in the stand next to it, its such a beautiful colour (slightly more green than the picture looks) that It caught my eye instantly. I then realised it only cost £2.99 , so I obviously had to buy it.

I applied two/three coats to my nails and then finished with a top coat. I am so impressed with this nail polish, for £2.99 its a barging. Its really eye catching and defiantly a statement nail polish, perfect for summer time. It has a bog standard brush which I normally dont like because it takes to long to paint my nails with, but this brush and polish seemed to apply like a dream. It didnt take long to dry either which can be really annoying, I hate waiting around for nail polish to dry and usually get fed up and end up smudging it. But this nail polish I had no trouble with, also If you apply a good top coat it will last a 3/4 days without chipping, which for a £2.99 nail polish, is great.

I applied this colour alone, but I think it would also look great with one coat over a black or white nail polish, to give an extra omph to the nails. 

I think ill stop neglecting Barry M nail paints from now on, as Iv realised they really do have some nail polish gems, and for the price, I cant complain. 

Boots Extracts cocoa butter body scrub

I originally picked up the mango version of this purely because It smelt exactly like The body shop mango body butter and scrub. It costs half the price of The body shops scrubs and I find it to be so much better. After getting my first ever tub home I realised it contained fair trade ingredients sourced in the Dominican republic, as well as organic cocoa butter. I was sold from then on.

This body scrub has just the right amount of 'scrubby beads' (probably not the technical term for it but never mind) so It isn't to harsh, causing irritation, but its scrubby enough to give you a really nice exfoliation. The thing I love the most about this sugar scrub is that after you wash it off your left with a oil residue on your skin that last long enough to really moisturiser the skin. Which is exactly what you need after exfoliation. It does such a great job at removing dead skin, and revealing bright glowing skin. 

Its 400ml for £7.95 compared with the 200ml of The body shop scrubs for £12. Its not only good for you pocket and skin, its good for the economy and helping those in developing countries. I really do love this brand, the smell of their products are also fantastic, I love the mango, vanilla, cocoa butter and Brazil nut products. They smell so good I just want to eat them.