UNE 100% mineral foundation

Looks oranger in photo than it does in real life 

Iv never used a mineral foundation until this one, Iv had my eye on the Laura Mercier mineral foundation for a while, but the price tag has always put me off. As iv never used a mineral foundation I was always weary to spend big money on something I may not like. So when I spotted this one, I thought it would be an ideal chance to try one out. 

Its described as: 

Ultra finely crushes mineral powders that care for the skin and give an even complexion. A truly unique, natural and radiant result. 

This mineral powder gives my skin an even finish, with a medium coverage that looks natural but flawless. I apply it using my Real Techniques buffing brush, for a smooth and even coverage.  It doesn't feel heavy or tacky on my face, the light weight texture makes it feel like I'm not wearing any make up at all.

It costs £9.99 and comes in 6 shades, its dermtologically tested and hypoallergenic. Its a great alternative to 

a high end mineral foundation, its good for someone who has never tried a mineral foundation before and wants to see if they will like a powered foundation, or for someone who doesn't want to spend the big price tag on a high end mineral foundation. Its also ideal for someone who wants the 'no make up', make up look or school girls who aren't really aloud to wear make up to school but secretly do (as we all did) as it can be used as a light coverage base, or built up into a more medium coverage foundation. 

I'm very surprised at how well this foundation does actually cover, I think its a common misconception that mineral foundations don't have much coverage, but I find you can build this foundation up to be a heavier coverage without it looking cakey or overly done. I am very please with this, I feel like it lets my skin breath but also does everything I want from a foundation. 

O.P.I Skyfall nail polish collection

O.P.I is a high end nail polish brand that costs around £12 for one bottle of nail polish. Its a brand that's favoured by celebrities, beauty bloggers and beaut enthusiasts a like. Its also a brand that's typically very hard to get hold of in the UK, so this set was purchased online from buypower, but you can get it off ebay and various other sites. 

This is a perfect Christmas gift or stocking filler, its an ideal way for someone who may not have tried O.P.I nail polish before, to try it without having to spend the major price tag and only getting one nail polish. This is a set of 4 minis from the O.P.I Skyfall range, and retails for around £12. These colours are very festive and great for the party season, my personal favourite is the gold (Goldeneye). As expected these apply wonderfully, very pigmented and easy application. When using a top coat they last on my nails for around 4 days without chipping, the texture and consistency is lovely, its very thin but still very pigmented, so only one or at a push two coats are needed. Which in turn means you will get more applications out of one bottle. 

This is a great gift for someone who loves beauty, or as a secret Santa as its not to expensive. Its also light weight so easy to post if your sending a gift to a loved one. Its also a great way to test out the mini sized bottles before you buy the full size products. I think anyone would be pleased to have this as a Christmas gift. 

A little Lush review

As you might have realised, I love Lush. I think the products they sell are amazing and the general company is so smartly put together. For me, Christmas means Lush, I do use Lush all year round but my first ever Lush product was given to me as a gift for Christmas. They do a fantastic range of gifts for Christmas, already beautifully wrapped and ready to go. I think Lush is such a great gift idea and I would be over the moon if I received one. I have wrote many Lush reviews, and I thought now would be a great time to write another one. This can give you a bit of an idea of some of the products they so, to help guide you in your decision making if your thinking of buying Lush gifts this Christmas.

Yuzu and cocoa bubble bar 

This bubble bar smells like coconut, orange and everything tropical. It reminds me of holidays and pina colada, sun, sea and sand. This is perfect for the winter blues, it helps you escape to a sunny place when relaxing in your bath. It contains  Extra Virgin Coconut Oil,  Fair Trade Shea Butter and Grapefruit Oil, which not only uplifting but really moisturising your skin. Its a macaroon themed bar and costs £2.95. What more could you ask for?

It's raining men shower gel

This shower gel is my all time, hands down favourite Lush product. The smell is divine, a mixture of honey and toffee, I just want to eat it every time I use it.  This shower gel contains Honey, Rosehip, Lotus flowers, Tiger Lily Infusion  and Sweet Wild Orange Oil. It really is luxury in a shower gel. This scent is also in Honey I washed the kids soap, so if your not a fan of shower gel, the soap is equally as amazing. The starting price for this shower gel is £4.25, which may seem a lot, but this shower gel lasts me probably a year, so in the long run I save money. This is also in the Merry Christmas gift set, as well as the White Christmas set.

Floating island luxury bath melt

This is the creme de la creme of bath melts, if you would like. It contains cocoa butter, almond oil and sandalwood, a really nourishing bath melt for just £3.85. Its the perfect product to help you unwind after a stressful day of Christmas present shopping. 

Vanilla fountain bath bomb

This product is for all the vanilla lovers out there, it has a real vanilla pod in the top as well as being made from Sandalwood Oil, Vanilla Absolute and Jasmine Absolute. It gives of a lovely aroma that fills your bathroom and really helps calm your mind. This scent was so popular Lush made it into a perfume as well. 

You can also find this bath bomb in Quality Treats gift set

Bed head- Urban anti-dotes level 3 shampoo and conditioner

The combination of over dying my hair and winter weather caused it to becomes really dry, I had recently run out of shampoo and conditioner at the same time so was in dire need of something new. I got googeling and stumbled across this Bed Head pack, its the level 3, for seriously damaged hair shampoo and conditioner set. I bought it off Amazon for roughly £12, the set came with a 200ml conditioner and a 250ml shampoo.

Bed head (TIGI) is a salon brand that is raved about in the blogging world.  This brand has a massive rang of products and this particular set, urban anti-dotes, comes in three levels of intensity, depending on how damaged your hair is.

I have fallen in love with these, they leave my hair feeling amazingly soft. The condition of me hair feels like it has drastically improved and it looks far more healthier. It has become shiner and much less dry, which is exactly what I was looking to achieve. They have also lasted a great length of time, I have been using them for around a month and still have over half of both left. Defiantly a must have for someone suffering from over processed, over heat styles and generally dry hair. 

Winter essentials - hair care #4

During the colder months my hair becomes unbelievably dry, between that and all the rain we have my hair can become unmanageable, frizzy and out of control. I have chosen a few life saver products to share.

First of all, I think during winter a good conditioner is needed. I'm loving the urban anti-dotes bed head conditioner. I find due to the fact my hair becomes really dry from the cold air, I need to have a conditioner that will to maximum benefit. I also follow that with a leave-in conditioner for extra moisture. My current favourite is by Umberto Giannini.

In the UK winter equals rain, when it rains my hair becomes really frizzy, so I like to use a serum to try and counter act that. When its warmer I usually let my hair dry naturally and don't do much styling to it at all. But as the months get colder, it becomes far to cold to sit around with wet hair, so I then blow dry it and make sure I use a heat protecting spray to make sure I don't cause to much damage to it. 

I find combining all four of these products my hair looks and feels 10xs better, it becomes more manageable and much more hydrated, shiner and healthier looking. These are my winter hair saviours. 

Winter essentials - festive nails #3

I love festive nail vanish, the glitter and colours, I'm in my element. During Christmas my favourite colours to wear have to be red and gold, but I also think colours such as black and dark purple can look really edgy during the winter season. The Barry M  colours below are some great example of colours that you may not wear any other time of the year, but look fantastic during the party season. The black one to the right (326 magnetic dark silver) is great for someone who doesn't want a really bold 'in your face' colour. Its a sort of metallic black with a bit of shimmer, so its not as harsh as a plain matte black would be. The middle one (161 vivid purple) is a beautiful colour, its a purple with blue and various shades of purple reflex. While the left one (340 aqua glitter) is not your stereotypical Christmas season colour, I think its such a nice colour and it could look amazing with a little black dress. 

The three colours in the picture below are just another three colours that I think will look great with a simple dress and a pop of colour on the nails. The purple on the left hand side is very similar to the purple above, but has slightly more obvious shimmer. While the gold in the middle gives a great natural look on the nails.  

The bottom two O.P.I polishes are from the Sky Fall collection, these colours are the epitome of festive nails, the are highly pigmented and full of glitter. When I think of Christmas nail vanish I think of these two colours. Just wearing these on my nails makes me feel festive. 

You can have lots of creative fun with nail vanish, specially around the festive season. You can mix and match colours as well as having different kinds of nail art. Just pick your colours and let your imagination do the painting.  

Winter essentials - skincare #2

Facial skincare

For most people, winter means dry skin. For me, who has normally oily/combination skin, winter leads to my skin becoming difficult to manage. It become irritated, dry and spotty all at once.

So I feel like the best essentials for winter skin are those that will hydrate and repair skin, such as Cosmetic Lad and Skin drink moisturiser by Lush. Ultrabland is another soothing and heeling product but this is a facial cleanser and I swear by it.

Drop of Youth by the body shop is a facial serum that really helps to make the most out of your skincare routine. It helps to smooth out the skin and make it look glowing. which is great as skin can look dull during winter.

I also added Johnson facial moisturiser to this as its a cheap facial moisturiser that comes in a huge rang of   formulas for different skin types and concerns. 

Body skincare

Body care is often overlooked in winter, people focus more on how their skin looks during summer. I personally feel like my skin needs a lot more maintenance during winter. I'm prone to getting chapped, sore and dry skin from the cold air, which can be painful. 

I like to use Ro's Argan body conditioner on my legs, its designed to be used the same way as a hair conditioner but on your skin. I use it as a shaving cream, which makes my legs feel so soft after use. 

I also use all over my body a body lotion/butter. My favourite are the Body shop ones, but as a poor student I have to just settle for Boots Extract body butters. 

My new found love is Garnier hand cream, its great to pop in your bag and apply through the day. It keeps my hand hydrated and soft during the harsh cold weather of winter. 

Using all this combined I can keep my skin under control. I know many people have the same problems as me and cold air and air con can really dry out skin, so its best to keep the skin hydrated and looking great for the party season. 

Winter essentials - clothing #1

I'm going to be doing a series of winter essentials posts, first of which will be winter clothing. In this series ill also be doing a post on skin care (face and body), make up, nail vanish and hair care.

So firstly will be boots, I think you need a nice pair of heeled boots, they make you look that extra bit more classy without looking over dressed. I don't recommend super high heeled boots mind. As one, they can make you look rather 'Essex' like, If you know what I mean. And two, if it gets icy, which it will, they can be really dangerous. I have chosen a pair of burgundy boots from New Look, they cost £22 and fit like a dream. Iv had a lot of compliments on these. I feel like boots like this look a lot more expensive than they are .

The next thing I think is a must for winter is a flat pair of boots, preferably water proof ones, as the UK has a lot of rain during the winter months. Again these are from New Look and cost around the £30 mark, these boots I wear all the time, they are so comfy and just at a little edge to an outfit.

 My favourite part of winter fashion is Knit wear, I just love how cosy and warm it makes you. There are so many different ways to incorporate knit wear into an outfit and so many styles to choose from. From the classic Christmas knitted jumper to the slouchy over sized cardies to the plain and simple scarf. You cant really go wrong with knit wear, its sold everywhere and looks great on everyone. 

My everyday make up.

This photo makes me feel like I wear a lot of make up haha

I like to alternate my everyday make up quite a bit, depending on how my skin is looking, what sort of mood I'm in and obviously the occasion. Right now my skin is behaving itself so I am wearing a much lighter coverage foundation, the one I really like is the No7 Intelligent colour foundation, its a skin adapting sheer foundation with spf 6, I find this really smooth out my skin and gives just enough coverage to even out my skin tone. I use the Real techniques buffing brush to apply this to me face as it gives such a lovely finish. I then use MAC studio finish concealer to hide any pigmentation or blemishes I may have, as well as concealing under the eyes. For applying concealer under the eyes I use the Real techniques foundation brush from the core collection, I then use the smaller brush for any pinpoint concealing and the eco tools blending brush to make sure its all blended in. I then set it all with Rimmel stay matt powder (all the writing has rubbed off). With my powder I use my eco tools kabuki. 

I then use the Real techniques contour brush to apply the Bourjois bronzing powder, or more commonly known as Bourjois chocolate bronzer. I use to love this, but now I feel after Iv used it quite a bit the pigmentation and colour pay off has gone. I also use the No7 High lights Illuminating powder, this is very old (should probably through it away) but I really like it. I wouldn't class it as a highlighter mind, as its more of a peach blusher with a very small amount of shimmer. Its quite a natural finish with a bit of a kick to it. To apply this I use the eco tools powder brush, I find as its slightly tapered I can use it to apply a light wash of colour onto the cheeks. 

Then onto the eyes, first off I apply my Two faces shadow insurance, eye primer. I have oily eyelids and find that I really need a primer. I then use my Revlon colorstay quad, usually the two bottom shades for just a wash of colour. I apply them using my three eco tools eye shadow brushes, at the bottom of the picture. I also use the 'clear' or what is meant to be clear but now brown, gel to set my eye brows in place. From there I like to line (sometimes) my lower lash line with a black MUA eye liner and curl my lashes with a superdrug eye lash curler. I then apply two different mascaras, the first- one with no writing, is one from Collection, I cant remember what one though as the writing has come of.... I then follow this with the No7 Intense volume mascara for extra definition. 

I also wear lipstick, but this changes day by day, varying from red, dark pink to nudes. But right now im really loving berry colours and darker shades of pink. I feel like these are quite wintery and season appropriate. 

PS. Im so exited for Christmas! (in case any of you care haha)

Whats in my shower?

So I have a pretty Lush dominated shower, I really do love Lush products and my shower holds the evidence to prove it. I use Ultrabland facial cleanser every single day, I have repurchased it and will buy it again when this pot runs out, its my ideal facial cleanser, its very gentle, contains rose which calms the skin and is excellent at removing make up. Carrying on with facial products, I also use Angel on bare skin, its targeted as a 'scrubby' everyday facial cleanser, I use it however as a gentle exfoliating facial scrub, a few times a week. Its not harsh at all but leaves your skin feeling so soft. It contains 100% natural ingredients such as lavender and ground almonds, its brilliant at just reviving dull skin without the harsh scratching and strong chemicals as a conventional facial exfoliator. I then have sweety pie body 'jelly' which is described as half way between a soap and a shower gel, it smells amazing and is so find to use, my inner child loves it. Then I have a soap and a shower gel, both have citrus fruit scents, which is great for waking you up on the early, dull winter mornings. Happy hippy shower gel is more of a grapefruit based scent while sexy peel soap is more of a lemon scent. I like to alternate between using these, depending on how I'm feeling that day. Finally I have my two bed head products, they are the Urban anti-dotes shampoo and conditioner level 3.These are a fairly new purchase for me but so far I really like them, they make my hair feel, look and smell amazing. 

Lush - Cosmetic Lad facial moisturiser.

Just a little background about my skin before I get into the review, I have suffered with break outs ever since I hit puberty, I have had serious acne that I now kept at bay through medication (Ill save that story for another time), but I still get a few spots every now and then, especially during that time of the month. My skin tends to get irritated very easy and spots can turn to scabs pretty fast (gross I know). I never really know what sort of moisturiser I need for my skin type, I feel like I have oily but dehydrated skin, so it’s hard to find a moisturiser that can help with both. 

I went into Lush, not really looking for a moisturiser and got talking to one of the lovely sales assistance that work their, we got on the topic of my skin type and all that jazz when she mentioned to me that Cosmetic Lad is just what I needed. I have always over looked this moisturiser as the name to me implies its for men, the sales assistant assured me the only reason its aimed at men is because its excellent at healing and calming the skin, which is what men need if they shave their face. But women can also use it and it works just as well.

This moisturiser contains lavender, honey, aloe vera gel and chamomile, which are all amazing at soothing irritation as well as having good healing properties. So this really helps to calm down any redness in spots, its also great for the healing stage when your spots are starting to dry out or if you have picked them and caused  irritation (this isn't a nice subject I know). Cosmetic Lad leaves a fairly matte finish to the skin, so its perfect to apply under make up to help keep oily skin at bay. Its also designed to help sunburn or chapped skin that can be caused by cold weather, so its is ideal for this time of the year when the weather is starting to get really cold.  

I love this moisturiser, it leaves my skin feeling so soft, it helps to reduce any redness I have and also really hydrates my skin in a very gentle but effective way. It costs £11.50 for 45gs so It wont break the bank, and it last me for quite a while, so great value for money and such an effective product. I highly, highly recommend this to anyone and everyone.  

October empties

October for me was a month I just went mental for Lush products, I think its mainly because Lush reminds me of Christmas time and I'm really in the festive mood right now (early I know).

Its raining men (my favourite honey/toffee scented show gel!) , Ultrabland (my most reached for and used facial cleanser) and Cosmetic Lad (my go to moisturiser) are three products Iv bought over and over again, and can see myself buying a lot more of in the future. Iv already stocked up and repurchased all three, I just really love them. Oatifix is also a very nice face mask by Lush, Its the first time I have used it and Its an actual pleasure to use. It smells so nice and makes your skin feel amazing after. I highly rate this.

Boots Extract sugar scrubs are one of my favourite scrubs, they really do exfoliate well and also leave a layer of lovely oil behind that helps to soften the skin. Boots Extract body butters are also good, not my favourite and not the most moisturising ones iv used but they do the job...would I repurchase though? I don't think so. But I will and have bought the sugar scrub time and time again.

Avene Gentle cleanser use to be my holey grail face wash, Its very simple and very easy to use. Its designed for sensitive, combination skin but I found as time went on, and I used it more, It started to really burn my eyes. I'm not sure if it went out of date or If I just started to react with it, but it has sort of put me off buying another one.

The last two things are hair products, the first is a sample of Osmo hair oil that I had in a GlossyBox, I don't really rate this, I didn't find that It did anything at all to my hair. But the Toni and Guy hair mask on the other hand is a huge winner for me, I really love this and will defiantly buy it again. I have a full review of this mask here.

I cant believe its November already, I'm so exited for Christmas I might explode!

L'Occitane dry skin hand cream

Iv wanted to try a L'Occitane hand cream for a while now, but the price tag (£18.50) has always put me off. Iv heard rave reviews about L'Occitane as a brand, especially there hand creams, so when I saw that this was free in last months marie claire magasine, I couldn't pass up the opportunity. 

This shea butter hand cream is their best seller and is award winning. It contains honey and almond extract, as well as jasmine, vitamin E and ylang ylang. Its a balm texture which really coats your hands, making it feel that extra bit more luxurious. It really helps to heal, protect and moisturise dry and sore hands, making this perfect for the winter months. I suffer with chapped skin during the cold months and this really helps to prevent it. Its a non oily cream, which makes it easier to apply during the day and it doesn't take to long for a small amount to sink into the skin. Its also really good as a night hand treatment, you can apply a thick layer for a really intense treatment, which will make your hands extremely soft in the mornings. 

Right now L'Occitane are selling a travel size tube on their website for £8, this is a great way to try this out without committing to the full price. Its also ideal to pop in your bag and use on the go. During the Christmas season they also come out with really great gift sets which are good value for money, so it might be worth picking one of them up if you really want to try their products. 

Over all I'm pleased with this hand cream, I think iv become a L'Occitane convert. I know what ill have on my Christmas list this year anyway.