Thursday 13 December 2012

December Glossybox Opening


Hey,

So, it's time again for beauty boxes and I thought that this month I would make a real effort to take some pictures before I get too excited and mess up all the pretty wrapping so I could blog about it! Also, since I only received my box today, this post is more of a first impressions of the products more than a full review! 

If you haven't heard about Glossybox before, it's basically a subscriptions service which every month sends out five sample sizes of beauty products for you to try and then buy full sizes if you really like it. I think it's a really good way to try out more products for cheaper- usually the cost of the items in the box adds up to much more than the £12.95 it costs. The only thing is you don't know what items are going to be in the box before it arrives so there's always a risk that you won't find anything in the box that you're interested in, but I think that this years December box is one of their best ever! 







 This month's box was a really pretty silver colour with a silver ribbon and black tissue with tiny silver stars. Usually the boxes are a pale pink with a pink ribbon and plain black tissue so I thought this was a really nice change for the Christmas box. Also included is the little note which explains the theme of the box (this one is the 'Festive Celebrations' to treat people for Christmas gifts or yourself for parties) and instead of the usual card it unfolds into a big sheet detailing the products and their full size costs. Also, we recieved some discount codes for other brands which have been featured previously as a little Christmas treat which I thought was really nice! 

The products inside when I opened the box 




 The first product I spotted in the box this month was the Anatomicals What A Complete And Utter Glosser Fruity Lip Gloss Tube because of the bright pink packaging. I really love the cool names that Anatomicals come up with for their products as it makes it a bit more fun and the packaging is always really bright and colourful too. I got the colour/flavour 'I Never Fake Strawberry Milkshake' It comes out as a very pale pink, if not clear and it reminds me of the smell of Strawberry Calpol medicine, but I'm not really a fan of strawberry scented things so I'm not sure about this at the moment! However I think someone who loves strawberry would love it. 


 Next up is the Rituals Magic Touch which is a whipped body cream, with cherry blossom and rice milk. This is a really generous sample size I thought, at 70ml (£5) and a full size is 200ml (£15). It's quite a thick white cream which sinks into the skin really well and doesn't leave any residue but makes your skin feel really soft and moisturized. I think my favourite thing about this product is the scent- it's quite floral but not overpowering. 


 As I mentioned before, sometimes you get a product in your box that you really just don't like or won't use and I think this MILK_SHAKE Conditioning Whipped Cream will fall into that category, for me at least. It's a leave in conditioner for your hair and is like a mouse, but the nozzle is designed to make it look like whipped cream from a can, and it's supposed to smell like that too. It smells, to me, like natural yougurt and it's actually made me feel quite sick just from spraying it onto my hand for a quick test. Now that might just be because I don't like the smell of dairy products to begin with, so I feel like I'm not giving it a fair chance but I can't help it! I'm not entirely sure I can bring myself to put it into my hair even! But that is totally down to my own preferences and not because of the actual quality of the product itself. 


This Seche Nail Lacquer is the thing that I got most excited about when I first saw it in the box as I'd heard that Seche were bringing out a coloured nail polish range as well as their famous top coats and I was dying to get some! This is a grey colour called ''Nouveau' and I really love it. It's a mid-dark toned grey and would be really nice if you wanted to wear a dark colour but didn't want to go all the way to black. I quickly applied it to one nail just to try it out and was amazed that it only took one coat for it to be almost fully opaque when most nail polishes would take at least two, if not three coats to get the same effect. Having said that I think I would apply two coats, just to be sure as I noticed that the tip of my nail seemed to have less colour but that isn't a big deal. I'm not sure what the staying power of the polish is, as I haven't had time to apply it properly but I'm hoping it chips less than my Seche Vite top coat, which as I've said doesn't seem to last a whole day with me! Also it comes in a range of 33 colours so there is bound to be a colour to suit everyone! 

The last product in the box was this Sleek i-Divine Palette in the Ultra Matte V2 colours. I'd heard of Sleek Make Up before but had never tried any of their products and I have to say this palette has left me pretty impressed. The packaging is really nice and all black, with a big mirror and a double ended applicator. At first I thought it was just the usual sponge applicators you get with most eyeshadows but I've just realised it's more rubberised, so I'm not sure what sort of effect that would give, if it's better than the sponge or anything. The pigmentation is excellent in this palette and there's a wide range of colours to create a variety of looks. Also it's only £7.99 for the 12 colours which I thought was a bargain especially since they're such high quality. 

Now for the maths before I move onto the last little bonus item in the box this month-

Cost of Glossybox (inc. P&P) = £12.95

Cost of the Items in Glossybox this month = Rituals Magic Touch (Sample) = £5
                                                                                    Sleek Palette (Full Size) = £7.99
                                                                                    Seche Nail Lacquer (Full Size) = £9.95
                                                                                    Anatomicals Lip Gloss (Full Size) = £3.49
                                                                                    MILK_SHAKE (Half Size Sample) = £7.40
                                                                     TOTAL = £33.83
                                GlossyBox Sample Saving = £20.88

The cost if I'd of bought all full sizes seperately = £36.22
                                             Saving with Glossybox = £23.27

Finally also included in this months box since it was the Christmas Edition was a bonus product of the Glossybox Blusher by Kryolan in the shade 'Glossybox Rosewood'. 


It's in a simple black compact with a clear lid featuring the famous GlossyBox crown logo and is a really pretty light dusky pink colour which I really like as it's quite an everyday blush colour and I think most people would like it. 

All in all I was really pleased with this months's box and think I'll use all the products except the Milk_Shake stuff, which I shall pass on to a friend who didn't receive it in her box to see if she likes it more than I do. That would have to be my least favourite product this month, with my favourite being either the Seche Nail lacquer or the Sleek Palette, but really they're joint first! 

If you received a Glossybox, what were your favourite products or did you get any different ones? Leave a comment below as I'd be really interested to hear some other opinions or other products! 

Lauren
xx                                                                              

Sunday 2 December 2012

November Favourites 2012


Hey,

So, we're back around to the time of the month where everyone starts to post their favorite products/things from the previous month. I really like these kinds of posts (and the similar videos on Youtube) because you can see what products people have been loving and it helps if you want to get a few opinions on a product before you buy it yourself. As always, links are included wherever possible!

First up, I've gone slightly nail polish mental this month and they are a large chunk of my favourites and this is why. I went through a very long period of time without wearing any nail polish at all, because of my emetophobia (I was worried I would associate which nail polish I was wearing with being ill, if it ever happened. Sounds crazy but it just shows, when I say it affects every aspect of my life, i really mean it!) and it's only been the last few months that I've been gradually starting to wear it as regularly as I used to. These are the ones I've been loving the most-

Models Own Nail Polishes in Snow White and Juicy Jules
(L-R: Juicy Jules & Snow White taken with flash)
(L-R: Juicy Jules & Snow White taken without flash)
 These colours are currently what I have on my nails at the moment and I really love the combination- it's very wintery looking, especially the Juicy Jules glitter polish which reminds me of frost. The Snow White polish is just a basic white polish that is pretty much opaque after two or three coats. You get 14ml of polish for just £5 which is a bargain really, especially compared to some other brands such as Nails Inc or Butter London. Also if you purchase them from the Models Own website if you buy 3 polishes you save £3 and if you buy 5 you save £7 and the packaging they are delivered in is really nice too!

The Juicy Jules polish is what I really want to talk about though! At first glance, and even in the picture on the Models Own website, it seems to be just a basic silvery glittery nail polish but it's so much prettier than that. The glitter particles are really fine and circular, but when the light hits it just the right way either in the bottle or on the nails it turns almost holographic and instead of plain, boring silver it becomes rainbow coloured. I really love the look of this polish as it can be quite subtle or you could apply more or even mix it with a different size or shape of glitter polish.

I also mentioned these polishes in my recent Movember Favourites post, with more pictures of them on my nails rather than in the bottle. 

E.L.F Nail Polishes in Mint Cream & Fire Coral 


(L-R: Mint Cream & Fire Coral)
 E.L.F is another brand that I've recently been using a lot and I particularly love the formulas of their nail polishes. These are only £2.50 a bottle for 10mls and E.L.F quite often have special deals and codes which mean you can pick them up for even cheaper than that!

Mint Cream was one I recently purchased after seeing quite a lot of people wearing minty coloured nail polishes and really liking it. Normally I steer very well away from anything with even the slightest tint of green, and although I am still on the lookout for a slightly bluer toned mint polish, I fell in love with this colour almost straight away. I think this is about as close to green nail polish I will ever get to! 

I received the Fire Coral polish in a goody bag that E.L.F were doing a while ago with every purchase (they do these occasionally so keep an eye out for that, as well as the codes!) and again, it's not normally a colour I would have chosen if I'd seen it on the website but I instantly fell in love. It's a mix of red and orange, verging more on the red side I would say so is perfect for people like me who aren't a fan of bright bright orange but don't want a bog standard red polish either. 

E.L.F are currently running a discount code to celebrate their 5th birthday but it only last until 10.30AM on Monday 3rd December 2012, as it is only a 24hour code. It's a 50% discount for purchses over £30 so I will definitely be making a little purchase and I would reccomend you do too!! 

Nails Inc Kensington Caviar 45 Second Top Coat



I promise this is the last nail polish related item in this favourites post! I hadn't realised how many I actually had until I started to write!! 

I received this in the November Glossybox in a 4ml sample size worth £5 and I was really pleased to see it in my box as I'd wanted to try it for a while but wasn't sure if I wanted to pay £12 for a full 10ml bottle. After trying it a few times this month I will absaloutely be reurchasing it in a full size. I was using Seche Vite previously and I don't know if I was applying it wrong or something but I could paint my nails in the morning and have a guarenteed chip in my nails by the end of the day which I was not impressed with! If anyone has any tips for getting Seche Vite not to chip that I'm clearly missing, then please leave a comment! Anyways, Kensington Caviar is doing much, much better on the chip proof test! I painted my nails on Tuesday and it's now Sunday and it's only been today that I've got a real chip on my nails which is pretty good going! I currently have two of these mini bottles to get through, thanks to the free gift from Nails Inc after I spent above a certain ammount on their website and then I can definitely see myself purchasing the full size! 

Ok, onto products that aren't nail polish!! I thought that was never ending hehe...

Dermalogica Daily Microexfoliant



This was another product from the November Glossybox and at first, I admit I was a tad sceptical. It's a powder, rice based exfoliant which when mixed with water becomes a paste and you use it as any other scrub after that. I couldn't believe that a powder could exfoliate but I was definitely very wrong and this has quickly become one of my favourite ever products and not just for November! It's a very strange product to use the first time but it has a nice smell and texture to it and it leaves my skin feeling so soft and smooth and just lovely! The only downside I have to this product is it's difficult to gauge how much to use as it just pours out the top really quickly. It is expensive at £38.50 for 75g which I would pay because it is such a good product! 


Garnier Skin Naturals Pure Active Fruit Energy Daily Energising Gel Scrub





This is the face scrub that I've been using for the past few months (and there is also a gel wash which I haven't tried yet) and it's the best one for my skin that I've found so far. My skin can be quite oily (lovely I know!) but I also have patches of dry skin, especially across my cheeks and my nose. This is meant for use on oily skin prone to imperfections and it's definitely the best scrub I've found for my oily skin but I'm sure if I'm a fan of the actual scrub. After using it my face does feel a bit tight but once I apply moisturiser it's fine so that doesn't bother me. It has extracts of grapefruit, pomegranate and Vitamin C and has a really nice fruity scent to it. 

So, after feeling like I would never get to the end of this post i finally made it! Hooray!! I hope you enjoyed reading about my favourite things from this month- what have been some of yours? 

Also, my next post will be a review of The Body Shop 3-in-1 Honey and Oat scrub mask which has also been one of my other faves this month. Keep an eye out for that, it should be up sometime this week, if not the next few days! 

Lauren
xx







Saturday 1 December 2012

Movember Favorites 2012



Hey,

Now, you might be looking at the title of this post and thinking “Lauren, that isn’t how you spell November” or possibly even “Well… it’s finally happened- Lauren has lost her marbles” but fear not, the spelling is totally intentional.
See...even my calendar knows it's Movember...with a little help from a Sharpie that is! 
 For those of you that haven’t heard about Movember, it’s a charity fundraising event where for the whole month of November, guys agree to grow a moustache (or Mo as they’re known, hence Movember) and keep it for the whole month in order to raise money for Men’s Health and  awareness of the subject, specifically for Male cancers. I’ve only really known about it for the last couple of years but it started in Australia in 2003 and has gradually become more and more famous and worldwide as the years have gone by. Loads of famous people do it each year but anyone is welcome to sign up, grow their Mo and raise money. Last year, more than 854'000 people -known as MoBros and MoSistas (girls who support Movember but obviously can't participate themselves)- took part, raising 79.3 million pounds! I think it’s a really cool idea and it really gets people talking about the cause and of course raises lots of money which can never be a bad thing. (Links to more info at the end!)

So, back to the reason for this post. I know that this is the end of Movember but I decided this month that since I can’t grow a moustache and raise money myself, as well as donating, I’ve gone slightly ‘Movember Merchandise’ crazy this month… basically if I saw anything with a moustache on it, I had to buy it! Also, in my defence my mum has been doing the same and buying things for me, knowing that I’ve developed a small obsession with Moustachey things! I thought it might be a good idea to do a post on the things I’ve collected together, sort of like a usual monthly favourites post but with the Movember twist just in case anyone hadn’t heard of the cause or was wondering why loads of guys have suddenly decided to grow a moustache. I’m pretty sure that donations will be accepted into the month of December if you haven’t had time yet (that was the case last year, so I’m assuming the same will apply this year but if not please don’t go crazy!!).

Also, where possible, I've included links to the products online! :)




This is the thing that started the whole of my little obsession off. A few months back I decided that since I couldn’t grow a moustache for Movember, instead I would show my support by having an iPhone case with a moustache on it. This is the one I chose, but there were loads of different designs if you just search ‘Moustache phone case’ and they were all pretty cheap. I did see some other ones available when I searched the same on Etsy, but these were much more expensive. My favourite (slightly childish) thing to do all month has been to hold my phone up against my mouth to make it look like I had a moustache!

Moustache Jumper & Travel Cup – Both Primark





These were the first things my Mum picked up for me when she was Christmas shopping and she actually had to go back into Primark when she spotted them, so unfortunately I’m not sure how much they were or if they are still available in store. There’s not much to say about the cup really, except it has a rubberised bottom to stop it slipping over and also a ribbed, rubberised hand grip around the middle. I’m currently keeping paperclips in it so I’m not sure how effective it is at keeping drinks hot or anything but I just thought it was really cute.

The jumper is probably my favourite thing out of the whole lot as it is so soft and cosy even though it only has half sleeves. I’ve worn it slouched off one shoulder with a black vest top underneath as it is quite baggy but personally I loved the way it looks like that. I can see it becoming a winter favourite and not just for Movember as it’s so cosy for during the cold weather.  



I know it's horribly blurry but you get the idea!
I bought these for myself when doing a little bit of Christmas shopping on Grindstore and I just thought they were really cute. Grindstore had quite a lot of Moustache things like mugs and cookie cutters and tshirts- again, just search moustache and it will all come up. I managed to restrain myself to just these two things and although unfortunately they are both a little too big for me, I still love them!

Also, in the picture of the ring you can see my Movember nail art that I attempted with Models Own Snow White Nail polish, Models Own Juicy Jules Glitter Nail Polish and a Models Own Nail Art Pen in Black. I’m really pleased with how it came out, although I may need to practice my moustache drawing for next year!! (Also there will be a more in depth review/ramble about those two Nail Polishes in my ‘normal’ November Favourites Post, if you’re interested!)

‘I <3 Moustaches’ Cushion – Primark £6


This, again, was bought for me for my mum the other day but luckily I haven’t taken the price tag off yet so I can tell you that it was £6 which isn’t bad for a cushion and a cushion cover if that makes sense. The cover has a zip so you could take it off if you wanted to or it needed washed or something which I think is quite useful. On one side the cushion is a sort of linen material in cream with I, then a red and white polka dot heart and then a black with flowers print moustache which I thought was really cute and quite unusual as well. The other side of the cushion is just the black with flower print pattern, which I’m not that keen on to be honest but because of the moustache side, I can live with it!

So, that was the things I’ve collected together in my kinda month long Movember haul if you like and I love all of it! There were a few other bits and pieces that I’ve seen that I would really love to get so maybe I’ll just have to gather them together for Movember 2013 and be super organised and ready for it. I’ve already started trying to convince my dad to do Movember next year, by shaving off the moustache he has had for nearly 40years and starting again… I guess we’ll just have to wait and see next year!!

Hopefully, if you know anyone that’s done Movember this year (whether it be someone you know personally or a famous person) you’ll have already sponsored them but if not, as I said before I’m sure there’s still time heading into December!

UK Movember- http://uk.movember.com/ 

Ireland Movember- http://ie.movember.com/

Worldwide Movember Site- http://www.movember.com/

More Information about Movember which explains it all way better than I ever could!- http://uk.movember.com/about/

Thanks for taking the time to read this and happy end of Movember!!

Lauren
xx