Beauty favourites!

This was originally supposed to be a March favourites post but I just kept putting off writing it due to the work load at University! So instead, I thought I'd just review some beauty favourites of mine instead, ones that I've been loving for ages and not just the month of March.

Micellar water is brilliant for removing the bits of make-up that removal wipes just can't clear. I love this product! The Garnier micellar water is a brilliant product and it leaves my skin completely clear. I use it after taking my make-up off with a removal wipe but I also use it first thing in the morning to clean my morning face before putting my make-up on. It is so gentle and it doesn't sting my eyes. I was using the simple micellar water before and I didn't get on with that at all, it stung my eyes and burned my skin a little. But each to their own! This bottle isn't too expensive, at the moment you can get 400ml of this in Boots for £3.33, original RRP is £4.99. There are 3 types of the Garnier micellar water that I'm aware of - one for sensitive skin, one for combination to sensitive skin and one for combination to oily & sensitive skin.

I find Avon a bit 'hit and miss', it all depends on the catalogue. But I really do rave about this product! I suffer quite bad with blackheads, particularly on my nose and this does help clear it up and prevent any further break outs. I use it a couple of times in a week, which is what the product suggests to get the best results. I couldn't tell you off the top of my head how much this product is but I don't think it's too pricey - I'm going to give a guestimate and say between £4 - £7?

Now, I love love looooove The Body Shop! I wouldn't class the products from this shop as 'high end' but it isn't cheap and the products definitely don't look/feel/behave (?) cheap! The vitamin C microdermabrasion (around £15) is a lovely skin exfoliator, the shea butter makes my skin feel soft and look somewhat radiant! It helps to tone my skin as well. I don't use it often, I want to try and keep it as long as possible!

The seaweed day cream (I think around £12) is a best seller at the body shop and I completely understand why. I have a combination complexion and this works well on my dry areas and oily areas! I absolutely love wearing this product before putting on my make-up.

Now this is a holy grail primer product! I got this tip from watching Kathleen lights on YouTube as she raved about using this under her foundation. When I tried it out, I absolutely loved it! It made my skin tacky and so my products stuck to my face really well without making it difficult to blend. I would definitely suggest picking this up as a primer. The bottle has 100ml of product and costs around £5, although I picked it up in Tesco for £2.50 so just keep your eyes out for rollbacks!

Unfortunately the bottles are glass. I realised this as I knocked it off the side and it smashed on the floor, the product spilling everywhere. I am still heartbroken about it and it happened a few days ago now.

I got these two products for Christmas (there is absolutely NO way I could afford this product on my student budget) from my boyfriend because I had heard wonderful things about them. Originally, the luminous silk foundation would not get along with my skin. Half way through the day there would be absolutely no coverage on my nose. That was back in the winter though and as the weather has got better and my skin has got better, I couldn't love the foundation more! The price ranges from £33 - £37 depending on what store you buy it in. It is a light/medium coverage foundation but it feels so light on the skin and I conceal the areas that need that little bit more coverage.

I wasn't intending to ask for the fluid sheer (shade 14) for Christmas but when the GA consultant tried the foundation on me, she put this shade of fluid sheer on and I instantly fell in love with it! It has a subtle shimmer so I mix it with my foundation on days I want to feel a bit more 'Spring-y'. Otherwise I put it on areas I would like to bronze. It really does illuminate the skin! Again, this product ranges from £35 to £37 depending on where it's bought.

Too Faced are a brilliant high end make-up brand so I am forever thankful to my boyfriend for buying me this product. It was £39 from Debenhams and it's definitely worth that money! I've never seen eyeshadows so pigmented. And they last all day on my eyes! I love my eyeshadow palettes, I do rave about the Urban Decay Naked palettes but the pigmentation on this particular palette is the best I have EVER seen. From the Chocolate Bar palette, you can make a really subtle brown look for the day or make a smokey purple eye for an evening do up. The best thing about this product? It smells like chocolate! If you don't have it, BUY IT!

Finally, my current favourite lipstick is Cherish by MAC cosmetics (satin finish). It's a lovely soft-peachy nude, which is wonderful for Spring/Summer! It's the perfect day colour. It is so pigmented and lasts for an extremely long time while feeling so light on the lips.

Lipsticks from MAC cost £15.50 and you can get them in MAC stores or department stores, such as Debenhams.










There you have it, my beauty favourites! What do you guys rave about? Until another day when I get around to writing again

Lush haul!

Evening folks (or early morning if you're in Europe)!

Anybody else have a problem when you pop into town to pick up one or two things and you end up going home with more stuff than you intended? I know I do. And that's what happened when I went to the Lush store in Cardiff on Saturday afternoon to pick up a lip scrub and I left with £30 worth of bath and body products.

Don't get me wrong, I love Lush! I usually just wander into the shop when I'm in the city centre just to smell a few things and leave again. This time I was cornered by a sales assistant who did her job up-selling really well. As you can see I bought my lip scrub but I also left with three bath products, a moisturising bar and a face mask.

One of the bath bombs was called "Twilight" and it amazed me, so I picked one up. Lavender and caramel scented. A weird combination I know but it smelled lovely. Also, it has glitter particles in which meant not only will my bath turn purple but it will also shimmer!!!

The second bath bomb I picked up and used in a bath tonight was called "Blackberry" and although I love lavender products, this one was lavender free but I really enjoyed the smell of bergamot and frankincense. It turned my bath purple and left me with a cute piece of paper that read "boom boom" (I think?). I used this along with a bit of my third bath bomb which was called "French Kiss". This had to be crumbled under the tap and gave my bath a lovely lot of lavender smelling bubbles. Tonight was definitely a chilled evening!

The next product this eager sales assistant talked me into buying was the "Strawberry Feels Forever" moisturising massage bar - and it smells divine! Almost edible. It leaves my skin feeling silky smooth as well.

The final thing she talked me into buying was the "Love Lettuce" face mask which is probably my favourite face product ever! The mask is a seaweed based product with honey and almond oil to brighten your complexion and balance your facial oils - which is good for me as I have an oily complexion! Organic products are usually a lot better for the skin as well as the ingredients are all natural.

The product is also lavender scented which really convinced me to buy it. I've used the face mask twice and it is leaving my skin feeling rinsed, a lot smoother and fresh which is just what I need as I wear a lot of make up on a daily basis. It is definitely worth the investment. The only issue that I have with these face masks is that they have an expiration date (30 days, I think) which means I'm going to be spending £6.50 a month on this product because it is definitely a must have! If you buy this product though and you clean the tubs and keep them, if you take 5 back to a Lush store you will get a free face mask! Pretty decent, isn't it?

Finally, the Bubblegum lip scrub that I picked up that intended to be my only product bought in Lush, was worth the investment. It is basically a flavoured sugar scrub that exfoliates the lips therefore making the lips nicer to put on balm and lipstick - again, good for me as I get a lot of dry skin on my lips and it makes my lipstick look pretty bad. As exfoliating is a little bit rough on the skin as well, it plumps up my lips which I really enjoy. You can use a soft bristled toothbrush to apply the product if you wish but I use my finger and then lick off the product. I'm sure I have eaten more of the product than for its actual purpose.

There we go. A non-intended Lush haul. I don't regret the amount I have spent though as I am loving all the products that I have bought! Any products that you like from Lush that I could consider?

Until another day x