Review: The Body Shop Christmas ranges

I love brands (like The Body Shop and Lush) which actually make specific products for Christmas, it makes it so much more exciting than gift sets of stuff you can get everyday!

I picked up a few things: the Spiced Vanilla shower gel, the Candied Ginger shower gel, the Candied Ginger Body Butter and (not pictured) the Candied Ginger lip balm.

I'm not wild about the Spiced Vanilla range- to me it's ok, and I will use this shower gel, but I'm glad I didn't get anything else. The Candied Ginger on the other hand- OMG YUM. The only odd thing is there seems to be a variation between the scent in this line. The shower gel and lip balm are very like sweets, which I like, but the body butter seems a bit more bitter? It may be worth just smelling each individual product before purchasing if you fancy buying anything.

The shower gels are lovely- thick and they rinse cleanly, but I wish they left my skin with a scent like the normal ones do. I can't really smell anything on me after showering with them! The body butter is standard- thick and sinks in well. The lip balm is on the thin side, but it's nice for quick top ups here and there.

There are other products in these scent ranges, and also a Cranberry line. I managed to get the body butter for £1 (you have to spend over £25 to get this though, but I didn't find that a problem *sighs at own lack of self-control when shopping*.)

Have you got any favourite Christmas scents?

Love B xxx

Review: Along Came Betty 'Hey! Sugar Sugar' Scrub

I picked this little (I say little, it's kinda big and very heavy!) scrub when I was at Tesco a few weeks back.

Yesssssssssss I know, another retro style range! It's cute, but there are so many now. Still, ignoring that, I love the packaging of this. 'Travel friendly' doesn't exactly spring to mind with this glass jar, but I actually love it.

It's a very thick sugar scrub with an oil base. It smells exactly like Sleek's Pout Polishes, which have this vanilla icing scent. I didn't think I'd like it but it's actually rather nice (in the right mood of course). What I love about this though, is the combination of sugar scrub and oil base leaves my skin so so soooo soft! I hardly ever moisturise on my body because my skin is just normal, and doesn't really need it that often. I love this because I don't have to feel guilty for not bothering with moisturiser. Just make sure if you shave anywhere that you do it before using this, as the oil makes it impossible after. All in all, I will definitely be using this all up!

This range is solely found at Tesco, I purchased this for £5.99.

Love B xxx

Stargazer Goodies...

Next, another haul! This time, its from Stargazer.

 

I got 2 Semi Permanent Eyeliner pens, one in Purple and one in Black (which was on holiday when I took this photo).

 

I got 2 of the Semi Permanent Lip Liner pens (basically a lip tint). I got one in 03, a wine colour, and one in 05, a cherry red (review coming soon!).

 

These colours are: 2 from the Opal range (242 and 246), and 3 from the normal range (117, 120 and 161). Sorry can't remember which is which! I love these colours though. If you like shimmery duochromes, the Opal range is amazing!

Love B xxx

Beauty LAT- e.l.f. Order and Beauty Baron Mystery Box!

I got a little e.l.f. haul!

 

 Lots of lovely stuff!

Cream eyeliners in Golden and Plum Purple

Angled eyeliner brush, blush brush and powder brush. Am definitely going to do a comparison with the powder brush and my Sigma flat top kabuki!

Mineral eyeshadow primer. Really hoping this is good as I am so not willing to pay £14 for UDPP, however good it may be!

Blusher in Peachy Keen. I'm so glad to get this, I've never actually seen it in stock before now!

e.l.f. always has some interesting codes going, this time it was to get a free Mystery Box! (ooooooh)

I got the Nail Polish in Golden Goddess, the Flat Eyeliner Brush from the Mineral line, a Nail File set and a Shimmer Pencil in Plum Passion. I like the brush, polish and eyeliner, not so keen on the nail files (I prefer metal ones). I am a little disappointed I didn't get the Cream Blush I've seen in other boxes, but such is life!

There's also a 25% off sale on now (look on the FB page for codes). Have you indulged in any e.l.f. recently?

Love B xxx

 

Beauty LAT: A moisturiser to improve sunscreens...

So following my recent post on sunscreens, I briefly mentioned a product that could improve the dreaded greasy sunscreen. I always use a moisturiser with sunscreens- my skin is combination, and while my T-zone would be happy without any more product, my dry cheeks need something more. I also find that sunscreens can tend to just sit there and not really sink in- so 20 minutes later your face is no less greasy than it was when you first put it on. Enter this...

The Body Shop Mattifying Seaweed..... As a moisturiser on its' own, it's a bit rubbish. Maybe ok for the very oily, but it doesn't add that much. On top of sunscreens though, it performs a mattifying miracle. I apply my sunscreen and let it sink in for 10 minutes. I then apply a dollop of the moisturiser (and this is quite important) I rub it in. After a minute or two it rubs down to a lovely matt finish. I didn't find myself overly oily through the day either.

It has a rather gloopy jelly like texture.

I have to confess I don't use this often. My skin is a little too dry and I'm using other products which work better. But if you want to use your expensive but useless sunscreens and not look like a greaseball, this is definitely worth trying, even just occasionally as I do so they weren't a complete waste of money!

7/10

Love B xxx

Beauty LAT: Kleenex Facial Cleansing Range

So recently I mentioned I picked up a few items from the new Kleenex face range. I thought I'd do some mini reviews on the things I picked up.

Kleenex Extra Gentle Facial Cleansing Wipes

I'm a big fan of face wipes, I hate using eye make-up remover and tend to just use wipes to get all my make-up off before I wash my face (it's a budget method for double cleansing). The only thing that tends to irritate me is that they can dry out very quickly which can mean they drag when trying to remove heavy eye make-up. And so we come to these wipes. I LOVE them! They are really wet (it was still wet 8 HOURS after I'd used it!) and lovely and soft. They aren't perfect for really tough eye make-up (the kind nothing but cleansing oil will get off) but they are really very good otherwise. I'm definitely stocking up on these!


Kleenex Facial Cloths

I don't know about these. I can see a lot of uses- not so much for daily use, but for travel, for removing heavy make-up, for getting off hair removal cream, for homemade face masks (you could soak them in toner, rosewater or witch hazel) and just generally for emergencies. I can't help thinking though... they seem like a waste. They are supposed to be eco friendly, but you still have to throw them away, and they just seem a waste compared to a normal washcloth. I will keep these for the reasons above, but I can't justify buying these for everyday use sadly.



Kleenex Oil Removing Sheets

I've used oil blotting sheets on and off for a while- they were a boon when I was a very oily teenager, but now I just tend to get more dewy than oily on my T-zone. Still, these are handy to have around! I wouldn't recommend dragging them across your skin, as that seemed to take off a lot of powder. I found they were better when dabbed on the oily parts, and they did a decent job. These are ok, but I'm not sure they're a repurchase for me (love the colour of them though, they're bright purple!)

All in all this is a decent attempt by Kleenex to get back into a tough market, and with the facial cloths they are trying something which I haven't seen elsewhere. I do love the wipes a huge amount, and will keep buying, the other stuff... maybe not. But definitely worth trying!

Love B xxx

Beauty LAT: Manchester Haul and trip

So last Saturday I had a day trip to Manchester so my sister could look round the uni there! It was a bit of a miserable day, very cold and rainy, but a little shopping trip towards the end of the day perked us all up a bit. I got a few little things:

 

I finally got round to buying the Illamasqua Skinbase! First thoughts... I'm not really that sure I like it. I'm going to do a proper review of it soon but right now... hmmm. Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm. Lots of hmm-ing about this!

I also picked up two MUA Intense Colour eyeliners, and some of the new Kleenex range- the face wipes, the facial cleansing cloths and the oil absorbing sheets.

I'm hoping to have reviews of all these coming up soon!

I also took a few photos of the Manchester Museum, which is part of the university:

How beautiful are these paper cranes?

Skelly skeletons.

Desperately wanted to steal these, but they were a bit big to smuggle under my coat.

Check the badass T-rex.

My new pet. I'm going to keep him in the garden and call him Fluffy.

So that was my trip!

Love B xxx

Beauty LAT: Some goodies from MUA and Sleek

I was really excited to try the MUA Pro range when it was released and have been looking for it ever since. Except.... I haven't seen it anywhere. Not a single shop. Nada. I must have been to 7 or 8 Superdrugs (some quite major ones) and it doesn't seem to exist! So I gave up and ordered a few bits from online....

MUA Pro Matte Foundation

MUA Pro Heaven and Earth Palette

MUA Pro Starry Night Palette

Although I'm not a huge shimmer shadow fan, these two palettes are really beautiful and have fantastic pigmentation, especially for the price! I already had Shade 2 of the Matte Foundation, which I was given by the lovely Lena from The Student's Guide to Nail Polish, but it was sadly too dark (this was before they were up on the website so I didn't know where it stood in the range). I bought Shade 1 instead to try out.

I also went shopping and found the Sleek Oh So Special Palette which I had my eye on. I do like it, although the shades and names are a bit eclectic.

 

Despite not being much of an eyeshadow girl, I seem to be getting a fair few palettes lately!

Love B xxx

Beauty LAT: Make-Up Pet Peeves

I was thinking recently about things that can annoy me about a product, my pet peeves. While I try not to expect every product to be a Holy Grail one, it's so disappointing to buy something and find it just doesn't come up to scratch. So here, in no particular order, are my make-up pet peeves:

• My number one pet peeve? When a product doesn't do what it does on the description. I'm not talking about the made up ingredients or miracle results, but the basic stuff- 'non-greasy', 'easily absorbed', 'won't rub off'. If it can't do what you claim it will, it certainly won't live up to my standards.

•  Nail varnish that won't dry. I've tried to be more diligent about my nail varnish application over the last few months- doing it in an evening when I'm watching TV, making sure I've done any nail ruining activities like washing up before hand, and leaving as much time as possible for it to dry. And I mean lots of time. I try to do at least half an hour between coats, and preferably an hour or more on the top coat. It is unbelievably irritating then when it still hasn't dried and smudges after all that time! This isn't a particular brand, it happens within all price ranges. If I (a currently unemployed idle layabout) don't have time to let it dry, how will someone busier than me (i.e. everyone else) have time to do it?

• Foundation ranges with only a few shades in them. I'm talking about the brands with 6 shades of foundation (that covers about 5% of the population) or brands with massive gaps inbetween shades. My particular fury is for shades called 'Ivory', or some variation of that, that come out about 4 shades darker than my skintone. I AM NOT ORANGE, NOR DO I WANT TO BE. 

•  Lack of counters. Now I am biased because I live in the North (it's a barren wasteland up here), but I hate it when brands only have counters in a few cities. I know that they can't be everywhere, but I live in the 5th biggest city in England and I'm severely lacking in a Nars or Illamasqua counter for example. Yes I'd love to live in London and be able to pop out to a counter, but being unemployed and severely broke (my life sucks right now) I can't afford to. I don't mind per se ordering online, but a quick swatch at a counter can save a lot of anguish compared to guessing at a shade online and getting it wrong.

• Products that don't work with other products. This is probably more skincare, but it's so annoying when your suncare won't work with your moisturiser, or primer with your foundation. The ability to join seamlessly into my current routine is an essential thing for me. 

• Foundations that only work with one (very specific) brush. No I do not want to buy a £30 brush because this foundation will not work with anything else. I do not like it that much.

• Products that slide off easily. Foundations that disappear by lunchtime. Lipstick that smudges or leaves the ring of death when you try to do anything. Eyeshadow that vanishes, mascara that flakes off. My day can last longer than 3 hours, it isn't unreasonable that my make-up should too.

What are your pet peeves?

Love B xxx

Beauty LAT: Big Haul, Part 2

So this is part 2! These are things I acquired on my work experience trip, a 24H Tesco two minutes walk away proved quite fatal for my bank account!

 

Avene Light Hydrating Cream SPF 20

La Roche-Posay Fluide Extreme SPF50+ Anthelios XL

Tesco Clear Skin Mattifying Moisturiser. I also got the Clear Skin Cream Wash.

Barbara Daly for Tesco Foundation Brush

(l-r) Barbara Daly for Tesco Oil-Free Foundation, Face Lift Foundation and Moisture Foundation, all in Ivory. I also got one in Porcelain, but it's a weird colour to my eyes.

Barbara Daly for Tesco Lipsticks in Icon and Begonia

Barbara Daly for Tesco Flawless Primer

That about covers it I think! I went a bit Barbara Daly heavy, but I've never seen her range instore before and I was a bit overexcited :) Again, anything you really want reviewing, let me know! 

Love B xxx

Beauty LAT: Big Haul, Part 1

Have I got a haul post and a half for you!

Firstly, this wasn't all bought in one go (it really wasn't. Promise.) I had a fair few things ordered from Asia and America, so they took ages to turn up! This post focuses on those things, part 2 is on a few goodies I bought when I was away on work experience. So here we go....

Missha Perfect Cover BB Cream, in shade 13, the palest one.

From Sigma 2 brushes, the 1st is the F82, a round top kabuki brush, and the 2nd is the F50, a duo fibre. I also got a mini eyeshadow blending brush free!

From Cherry Culture (there was a lovely big sale on, as there is now!)

 

Nyx Matte Lipcreams in Antwerp and Monte Carlo

 Nyx Jumbo Eye Pencil in Milk

Nyx HD Studio Primer in 01

I also got 3 nail polishes from L.A. Girl, but will feature them in a few days as I've been wearing one of them this week!

Some cheap nail art wheels I got off ebay.

So that's part 1! Let me know if there are any particular products you are keen for reviews on :)

Love B xxx

Beauty LAT: Botanics Conditioning Clay Mask Review

I got this a while back because I needed a new mask, as my Body Shop one had sadly dried up.

This is a very runny mask compared to the one I'd been using before, it's very thin which does mean it dries fairly quickly.

The catch with this seems to be the time needed: the recommended time on the bottle is 10-20 minutes. In my opinion you kinda need this: what it seems to do is dry, and then as time passes you can see the oil and gunk coming out of your pores.

This works particularly well on my oily nose with lots of blackheads, as it clears them out really well. On the rest of my face, it's a bit blah. It doesn't seem to help spots much or brighten that much. Being thin, it does rinse off really easily, which can be a pain with mud masks.

It's a nice enough mask, pretty gentle and good for a light clear out. If you want something to really deep clean your skin though, you'd be better off looking elsewhere.

7/10.

You can buy this at Boots for £4.98 or online here.

Beauty LAT: elf Complexion Perfection powder review

I thought I ought to do a quick review of this powder, as it has appeared in every FOTD I've done!

I LOVE this powder. I was worried about the colours, because it looked a bit odd on the website pics! But when you use a brush over it, it all sheers out into this beautiful pale sheer powder.

It's perfect for setting foundation, and the mirror is great for those of us who never remember to take one with us anywhere (I seem to use the back of my Ipod a lot instead. Fail.) You can even see the pan. This never happens with me!

In short, this is cheap and works brilliantly. My HG powder!

10/10, I adore it.

This retails for £3.50 on the elf website.