Papa was a rollin' stone

 Let me start this post off by wishing you a very Merry Christmas! I truly hope you had a fabulous time, getting merry, eating plenty and having a lovely time with family. I went to Worthing to visit family on the day itself, then battled it home on the motorway with Matthew to spend the evening at home with friends, eating plenty of nibbles and watching the Inbetweeners film. I received some wonderful gifts both from friends, family and Matthew, and definitely found time to raid the online sales - of which i will be posting shortly. This post is all about a rather lovely Benefit set i was gifted from my brother for my birthday, but has recently gone into sale at a rather steal worthy price. Sharing is caring after all ;).

Ticket to Glossy Town - Benefit @ Boots (reduced from £19.00 to £13.00!)

This set contains five dinky miniature Benefit lipglosses, ranging from nudes to pinks to more daring shades such as a light lilac toned pink and a festive red. Benefit is a one hit wonder kinda brand to me, some of the items i think are truly amazing - i adore Highbeam and Magic Ink - but some are godawful, looking at you Bad Gal mascara and Some-Kinda Faker foundation. I also had the worst experience at their Croydon counter, it was my 18th birthday i went for a classic navy smoked eye, and resulted in a cross between Dame Edna and a glittery hooker - not cool. However, one of my gorgeous friends Victoria had worked at Benefit in one of their London boutique and introduced me to their lipglosses. They really are an understated gem in the Benefit line, non-sticky, amazing shades and ultra shiny. I fell in love with a shade Life On the A-List a few years back but it got bloody discontinued, the most beautiful perfect nudey pink. As soon as i saw it was in this set i was delighted! They may be dinky sized, but i think its a great way to try out more daring shades, or even to pop in a clutch on a night-out. 

Kiss You - 'a clear fuchsia'

A somewhat scary purple in the tube, but a beautiful lilac toned pink applied. 

Life on the A-list - 'a bubblegum pink'

Not bubblegum pink in the slightest! A lovely pale pink/nude gloss - my go to shade.

Spiked Punch - 'juicy coral'

A very bright juicy coral shade, perfect for the summer.

Foxy Lady - 'diamond rose'

A true winner of the set, a true bubblegum pink with beautiful silver and blue reflective shimmer, so sparkly!

Nude-tudie - 'gold-spun twist'

Peach toned nude, with gold shimmer. Your lips but better.

So Frisk Me - 'gilded berry'

Another shade that looks rather scary mary in the tube, but rest assured on it applies to a berrylious dark pink jam packed with sparkle.

L-R Life of the A-List, Spiked Punch, Foxy Lady, Kiss You, Nudie-Tudie, So Frisk Me.

I highly recommend this set, even though i'm not a full blown lipgloss wearer, i do think they are perfect for travel or evenings out. I do love me a Benefit gift set, i received one or two for Christmas! I am pondering over a Christmas gift post as they are rather controversial, but will definitely be revealing my sale bargains as soon as they land on my door step. Never ending. I still have a few presents to receive thanks to mailing/postage cut off dates being missed - boys eh? Can't complain though, two lots of present opening! I was very, very well behaved when it came to the Mulberry sale, though it pained me. I thought the Net-A-Porter one was complete pants, though i still have a gift credit to use, watch this space! Also pondering on what to spend some Christmas pennies on, this Liz Earle set is calling my name, thoughts? Talk to me ladies, yay or nay!

MR BLUE SKY

Sitting in my garden in my sunshine is my absolute favourite place to be, especially with a good book and an iced tea - my idea of heaven! So before i pack up my books on masculinity - who knew men were so interesting? - and head on out to the sunshine i wanted to share a few items that i picked up the last couple of days.

Yesterday i popped into Central London for a few errands, mainly to pick up a few books from London College of Fashion, attend a press day with Sarah and of course, track down that dress.

After many squeals of delight of spotting the perfect summer dress, i practically legged it to the fitting room to try it on. Thats when the disappointment crept in. Although it fits perfectly, its just too short, literally only just covering my bottom! I'm no stranger to short hemlines, but theres a difference from mini to practically showing your ass off. Major sad times, hopefully they will bring this out in the Tall range and i might have better luck - here's hoping..

In the meantime, i  came across this cotton, floral summer dress. I snapped this pretty sharpish i can tell you! I cannot wait to wear this with my plaited waist belt and sandals, for lazy summer evening drinks.

And finally! last week i placed an order with ASOS using my two Groupon vouchers, i had £40 to spend so i decided to divulge in some high-end make-up, as its a fail safe option to purchasing clothes and hoping the sizing is correct, well so i thought! 

I had set out to purchase some bits and bobs from Nars, however every time the pieces i wanted appeared online, they were snapped up so quickly by other shoppers that they sold out on the asap. So i decided that i would branch out and purchase the Benefit Magic Ink and a Jemma Kidd blush with my voucher. The very next day, they re-stocked the entire Nars line..

Jemma Kidd Blush - 5th Avenue (£12.00)

There's been a lot of hype around Jemma Kidd products, it has a fairly reasonable prices and some really pretty shades. I chose the Jemma Kidd blush in 5th Avenue, it is simply beautiful, light and slightly shimmery. It adds a sheer but reasonable amount of colour on the cheek. With many coral blushes you have to employ such a light hand, but this always distributes just the right amount of colour without resembling being tangoed. I'm so very glad i purchased this - definitely should check this out. This is the perfect coral for pale skinned girls, at a very reasonable price!

Although i am slightly baffled as to why the pan of product isn't attached to the actual packaging, odd?

Benefit Magic Ink Liquid Eyeliner - (£14.50)

This item was a slight impulse purchase, only after declaring my love for the L'Oreal liner, i thought i would try a more brush type liner rather than a wand, as i find it easier to create a better flick with this type of brush. I had high expectations for this product, many moons ago Benefit produced a Bad Gal liquid eyeliner which i swore by, but of course like most of their products they eventually discontinued it - boo! And i was pleasantly surprised to see this is basically the same product, good black pigmentation and long-wearing eyeliner. 

With my final voucher left and to my uttermost delight i finally got my hands on a lipstick and blusher from Nars! But of course, things never ever run smooth do they? ASOS sent me my package and i received it yesterday afternoon, i eagrly ripped off the packaging (as you do) and went to swatch away. After modelling the new blusher to the Mother, i realised that they had sent me the wrong bloody shade.

 I swear ASOS and i have a long, turbulent relationship which has amounted in most of my orders being lost or equally messed up. I hopfooted it on to Twitter to moan my heart out, and amazingly their customer service team were EXCELLENT. They apologised, sent the right blusher out to my first thing this morning and told me to keep the wrong shade. So i now have two Nars blushes, thank you very much ASOS! 

I've had long had my eye on Nars' lipstick in Barbarella, a very sheer peach is the ultimate summer tone! Especially on days like this!

On the left we have Gilda, a warm rosey red coral and then Gina, the mistake, which is a very bright pop of coral. I must have an entire family of coral blushes in my collection now, who knew there were so many different tones and shades of coral? ;)

And here are some very pretty, more accurate swatches: Gilda, Gina and 5th Avenue.

A very long, coralisous post indeed!

the specials

Whilst waiting for student funds to arrive - my wardrobe is seriously lacking the much needed A/W must haves. In the time being i thought i would show you my loves, 'mehs' and dislikes of the beauty world of this moment in time, there are many products you hear me batter on about but truth be told i'm rather addicted to trying out new skin and body products, so here goes:

Loves.

Queen Helene's Mint Julep Mask 

This mask is a godsend, something pretty special - have i ever found something like this on the UK market? No. This American brand Queen Helene's clay mask is formulated to dry up acne pimples, rinse away blackheads and shrink enlarged pores, gross?  But, hey it works a treat. I've used countless clay masks promising to do the same, and sure they make a slight difference but not in any way as deep cleansing as the Mint Julep Mask. Working like any other clay mask, it is to be left on the skin for 15 minutes and then washed off, yet straight after use-age you can visibly notice the impurities being bought to the surface, yes, pretty gross again but the mask is actively working away at imperfections you have rather than just working to prevent new ones forming. I use this two/three times a week and can see my pores improving. The only drawback is that this brand in American, meaning it can only be bought online, i bought mine off of Amazon for roughly £5 - and this is amazing for the size of product sold (i cannot see myself running out of this any time soon!).

No7 Tinted Moisturiser - Boots (£11.00)

I have pretty much always over looked the No7 brand, simply because it struck me as outdated, with thoughts of blue crumbly eyeshadow accompanied by orange cakey foundation was enough to scare me off. But since Boots introduced their £5 off vouchers, it was practically inviting me to try some products rather than just stocking up on the amazing eye shadow brushes that they offer. I am a self confessed foundation addict, always on the search for the next perfect formulation. After my stint with the Lancome lady (for an update see end of post) i decided that at the moment my skin doesn't require such a heavy coverage, and slathering on foundation looks so tacky. So i gave the No7 Tinted Moisturiser in Fair a shot, it states that it is suitable for all skin types, it has SPF 15 and provides a beautiful sheer colour. First off i wondered how can one product be suitable for an oily skin as well as a dry skin? Secondly, already a winner for having an SPF. And thirdly, i don't understand the term sheer..

All you need to know is that this tinted moisturiser covers and blends perfectly to provide a very light base, enough to look like you are alive, but enough to make you look very natural. I simply add concealer on any blemishes or dark circles, and to keep the shine at bay i just re-powder like normal. I have an oily skin, and i wouldn't stay it applies either dewy or matte - just enough balance.


(click to read moar)

Johnson's Facial Wipes (£2.99)

I bought these for my holiday in Egypt last year, since then, i always have a pack of these within my beauty box. These go so much further than just your normal wipes, they check all the boxes for removing make up, but the way they make your skin so soft is just damn right crazy. I went through a stage of stoking my face after using these, in awe of soft they made my skin! Plus they smell so refreshing and don't tend to dry out at all. Winner. 

Chanel Soliel Tan De Chanel (£28.00)

Yes, a tad pricey but this product has been a staple in my make-up routine all summer, in-fact i have used this ever since i bought it and i haven't even dented the amount! This bronzer politely shoved my Nar's Laguna to one side, creating the perfect bronzed base. It can built up to create a really sunkissed glow or applied lightly to contour and add that extra hint of colour. I apply this after my foundation, using the ELF powder brush, which creates a seamless, natural finish. I really recommend this product for fair skins, who just want that light touch of tan. Plus is smells LOVELY, all tropical and fruity, yum.

Laura Mercier Eye Brow Pencil (£18.00)

I have very, very fair eyebrows. Needless to say, it actually looks like i don't have any. grump grump. Thanks to Mrs Mercier, i have conquered the brow pencil in a shade that actually suits me. Due to very crappy experience at the Mac counter, where the SA shaded in the darkest brown eyebrows which resulted in caterpillar vs alien territory, i'm a firm believer in sticking to your own mind, and thank god i did, this blonde brow pencil works wonders!  

Dislikes 

Revlon Colour Stay (£11.99)

For some people this is the holy grail drug store foundation, and i'm not going to lie, i thought so too. Until i looked in the mirror one day and wondered why my pores on my face looked twice the size, for that reason alone it completely fails. The coverage of this product is surprisingly good for a drug store foundation, i want to love it, but i just can't. Plus the shade Buff that i bought, is slightly peach toned which could possibly verge of the balance of looking to orange - it sucks. Another major rant, why the hell did Revlon not add a pump? See all that mess? Do not want.

Benefit Pop of Colour Palette 

Giving this product it's due, i did buy this a few years back and granted you can no longer buy it. Yet, Benefit do still stock the shades with the palette, so i thought i would throw my two cents in. The pink shade, known as Dandelion does not show on the skin. Instead if the pop of baby pink you expect: nada.    It states that it's a brightening face powder, but why on earth would i want a dusty layer of this on my face? Hoola, the bronzing face powder is like mud, it literally just looks like dirt. And Dallas, another bronzer, i personally dislike due to the glitter - ew. All round waste of money, and the brush is laughable. 

Nivea Visage Tinted Moisturiser - unless you are actually orange do not purchase

Bastistse Dry Shampoo in Blush - the smell of this, i find nauseating - stick to the original or Tropical.

And a product that doesn't get enough love..

Mac's lipstick in Chatterbox.

Have you tried any of these products?

(I'm still conversing with Boots on my experience at Lancome, but they Customer Service team are fantastic (oh the irony!) and i will post once i have received further correspondence).