Best i ever had.

Prompted by a purchase on a naughty-lunch-break-make-up-binge, i decided to write a post dedicated to all the great products i've purchased in one the high-street counters. As much as i adore popping another Laura Mercier blush in my make-up bag, i'm no snob when it comes to finding a great bargain. Clearly, the high-street brands aren't going to have the most award-winning ingredients, but the sheer pigmentation, formula and colour range around now has seriously upped it's game. Dowdy and dull No7 has been completely revamped by MUA Lisa Elderidge their new summer collection, and has topped numerous skin care polls for its amazing skin care line, with one of their famous skin creams selling out in minutes. 

Here are some of my favourite drug-store products, i haven't included products such as foundations or concealers, because frankly i haven't found any outstanding ones!

Limited Edition Bourjois Blusher in shade 16, Rose Coup - Boots (£7.00)

I remember buying a Bourjois blusher when i was 14 years old, it smelt horribly of roses and the pigmentation was poor, so bad in fact i hadn't looked since. Somewhat a few years later, they have clearly taken this onboard and boy is it a whole other story. 

They have created the perfect pink/peach shade with a slight gold shimmer shot through, that actually translates on to your skin. This is everything that i wanted from Nars Orgasm, but without the chunks of glitter. Albeit, it still stinks of roses, i can ignore the smell for the beautiful flush of summer peach flush it gives. I really do urge you to swatch this in-store! The shade on the skin is bloody amazing, where as the pan colour looks like your bog-standard pink blush.

No7 Make-up Brushes - Boots (£6.75+)

Every time i get a £5 off voucher i frog march straight to the No7 brushes, for £1.75 the eyeshadow brushes are simply amazing. They are fluffy and light, perfect for packing on colour or blending out. Even so, i reach for these over the Mac brushes i received last year as a present. They can easily double up as a tool for blending concealer, and i definitely prefer to use the large foundation brush for putting on cream blush. And the fact of the matter is the more i buy, the less i have to wash. Savvy.

L'Oreal Super Liner - Boots (£6.19)

The only eyeliner i have ever been able to master. The blackest pigmentation, it has a long-lasting staying power, with the actual brush it's self being a dream to handle. I don't think i'll ever stray.

Revlon Super Lustrous Lipgloss in Peach Petal - Boots (£6.99)

This is everything i wanted from Mac Underage nude lipgloss, but wasn't. Its creamy, opaque and highly moisturising. It literally pairs it's self with every lipstick i own, from corals to nudes to pinks. Theres no need to use a lipbalm underneath, its that moisturising, so subtle and creamy! No nasty streaks here. Even when i haven't got a lipbalm to hand, i wack this on to plump my lips. I adore the shade too, nudey pink, but not concealer lips. 

17 Wild Curls Mascara - Boots (£6.29)

This is the mascara i purchase when i'm near the end of the month and i can't stretch to my overpriced disgusting mascara habit. It never fails to amaze me. Sod the curl, it gives the lashes serious va-va-voom and so much length, it leaves my Diorshow quivering in its empty tube (as seen here). 17 is also a brand that always has a fantastic range of products, especially blushers, varnishes and eyeshadows. I also have a fascination with a pink lipstick i bought years back called 'Candy Pink,' which makes an appearance in the summer. 

All in all, its obvious that the drug store make-up still has many flaws; limited skin-type shades and crap staying power to name a few. And most shockingly the prices have sky-rocketed recently, questioning whether its worth splashing out that extra few quid for a high-end item. But never the less, there are some real gems in the drugstore to be found, it really is worth hunting out. 

Whats your favourite drugstore item?

taper jean girl

Each year, at Christmas my mother buys me a chocolate advent calendar. Don't get wrong, i'm all for tradition,  but i'm not all that fussed about chocolate really- yes, i really did just say that.  And after reading this post a few months back on British Beauty Blogger's blog i knew i couldn't just settle for the run of mill Cadbury's calendar..

The L'Oreal Advent Calendar has just landed at Selfridges, retailing at £60 a pop, this little piece of Christmas came early, counting down the days with a beauty treat. Say what? Each little window houses a miniature skincare, perfume or make-up item to trial and test, from brands such as YSL, Lancome, Armani, Shu Uemura. 

For a full list of products included visit the lovely Charlotte's blog Lipglossiping.

What a fabulous idea? £60 is a bit of a stretch, but in terms of the amount of products and quality - is it not worth it? I'm seriously toying with the idea, and i don't even think i'm falling for the gimmick side of it, package it as an Easter Egg gift, i would probably still be interested! No, but seriously if they were marketing it as a 'testing the best of..' i would be still be inclined to buy. 

Would you?

(also, if you haven't already check out British Beauty Blogger and Lipglossiping, because they are simply two of he best beauty blogs in town.)

stop crying your heart out

After what seems like an eternity of the foreign (drug store mascaras), i finally succumbed to indulging in my all time favourite dirty little piece of luxury - the amazing Doir Show mascara. Ever since i resorted back to this mascara, i've had a whole host of compliments; yet when the complimenter asks the brand/price i get the reaction that i've just murdered their first born. I mean come on people, i don't smoke, do drugs, and yes occasionally i like to have a good (round) of cocktails, but seriously, if i want to spend twenty one pounds fifty pence on a mascara, then i will.

Some ladies need that show-stopping red lipstick, some need that immaculate, flawless finishing foundation - i just need this mascara. The following photos show the Doir Show in all its fabulousness, compared to a top contender that i found.

First up, i apply L'Oreal Lash Serum before applying any mascara, it lengthens and nourishes lashes, while separating lashes. It transforms any mascara to their full potential, generally making it much easier for the mascara to apply. Plus, this does wonders to any mascara thats on it's last legs. buy it, buy it.

17 Wild Curls Mascara (£5.99) vs Doir Show Black Out (£21.50)


(click to read moar)

with the 17 on the left and Doir on the right.

Well i can certainly tell the difference, basically the Wild Curls is more separating and more wispy looking with a good level of length for that price. The Doir elongates ever lash for a false lash effect, boosting each lash to crazy volume. And in the top photo you can clearly see the umph!

But still both mascaras have cons, the Wild Curl drops during the day as well as leaving bleeding under my bottom lashes, and with the Doir the wand is nearly as big as the Bad Gal mascara by Benefit, which some people have difficulty with, although i don't.

Basically, Doir Show in Black Out is fabulous, but if i need a cheap fix the Wild Curls is the next best thing.

Have you tried these mascaras? A lot of hype has been around the Max Factor False Lash Effect, i have serious issues with the mascara, firstly i cannot stop prodding ones eye and secondly its just dull.

Oh, and if your going to judge my expensive mascara habit, i'll just bat you off with my long pretty lashes ;)

looks like your lucky day sweet cheeks!

Over the past month, i have spent many-a-pennie on quite a few beauty bits and pieces. I thought i would post some speedy reviews on each item in one, big she - bang! So here goes..

Boots Buff Puff

I love these. They literally buff your skin, exfoliating your skin, ridding off old, dead skin cells. A bargain at £1.89, they can be used every day or a few times a week, at your own desired pressure. I'm usually a slave to my St. Ives exfoliator, but i get the feeling my skin 'adjusts' to it and my skin doesn't feel any brighter. So i switch every now and then to my buff puff, they instantly smooth and make skin brighter and fresher - genius! You have to buy one, me and my mother are die hard fans of these weird puffs of material! Simply use alongside your normal cleanser and be amazed by the results!

Boots Essentials Facial Exfoliating Sponge - Boots (£1.89)

Clinique City Block Sheer SPF 25

This has changed my life. Alright, slightly dramatic - but if your not aware i suffered from a long painstaking search of the perfect foundation. My search has been high and low, i just can't seem to find the correct formulation to suit my skin. sigh. I am however currently using Mac Select Foundation which seems to be working, i just feel like it wears off halfway through the day.. until i came across City Block Sheer. It's main priority is to serve as a sun block for the face, but it acts as an excellent primer!

I, myself have never encountered the world of primers, but City Block Sheer really does provide an excellent base for my foundation. I firstly moisturise and then apply a pea size amount of the City Block to my face, its light and easy to apply, sinking in fast. My initial thoughts were that it would be that the formulation would feel heavy on the skin because its a sun cream, but its light and doesn't make my face feel 'tight'. What's more important that my foundation is easily able to be blended over the top, leaving my face looking like my foundation has just been freshly applied all day without the need to re-powder or wonder where my foundation has ran off to during the day?

Overall, a great primer that works well under any foundation, with the added best bit of it actually being a SPF sun block? Because we are all guilty of not applying sunblock in summer, let alone the winter.

Clinique City Block Sheer - Clinique (£15.00)

Clinique Rinse Off Foam Cleanser

I got this trail size bottle in a Clinique deal, after i've used this i will most definitely be buying the full version. It states to effectively remove all traces of make up, dirt and grime before the cleansing process. I wasn't sure about washing my face twice - as i already use the Clinique Three Step Cleanser. However i gave a whirl, the SMALLEST amount lathers like crazy! It made my face super, super squeaky clean, with squeaky noises and all; i then went on to use my other cleanser. After doing this for a two weeks now, i feel like my skin is more fresher, cleaner and clearer. My skin is benefiting from the actual second cleansing. My Three Step Clenser is able to 'work' and 'do its job' without the tough job of having to remove make-up first. I'm quite hot on skincare as you can tell, sometimes i feel conflicted with the idea of using too many products on my skin but then there are so many products that do different things, such as night and eye creams, the list is endless. However, if my skins happy and responds well, im happy!

Rinse-Off Floaming Cleanser - Clinique (£14.50) - warning you only need the tiniest amount.

Pan Oxyl

I was both excited and nervous to use this product, Pan Oxyl is quite strong medicated treatment for acne. My skin does not suffer from acne, yet ocasionally i do suffer from the odd pimple and i do have large pores on my nose. Pan Oxyl can bought over the counter at large Boots stores and chemists and can be bought in three strengths, the weakest being 2.5, 5 and the strongest being 10.

I purchased the weakest formulation in 2.5, after reading quite a few horror story reviews about the stronger formulation, i decided to try the weakest.. just in case. I first applied this onto clean, moisturised skin just before bed, a very, very, very thin application on my nose. When i awoke in the morning, i could dramatically see a difference. The pores had radically reduced in size and were alot 'fainter.' I was pretty fucking ecstatic to be honest, i've used all lotions and potions, cheap and cheerful to quite expensive and they never made an ounce of difference. However, after a few days application, my skin seemed faintly red and very dry. After lathering lots of Nivea on the dry patches, i've decided to use it once every other night, just in case!

Overall i am so glad i gave this a try and i am excited to see how my skin improves! I do suggest that if you want to go down the Pan Oxyl route, try a test patch first before going heavy handed.

Pan Oxyl - (price varys - roughly £3.50)

Botanics Soothing Eye Make Up Remover

I had heard some rave reviews about this product, but i have to admit i'm disappointed - boo! I have used other products from the Botanics range and i have been very impressed, yet i felt this eye make up remover was good at removing eye make up at the end of the day, but it doesn't really suit my use of which i intended. (if that makes sense?)

Whatever mascara i use, i simply always get mascara on my top lids (annoying if you have long lashes! although i wont complain! ;) ). I usually dip a cotton bud in eye make up remover and wipe away the mascara or eye liner mistakes, but this product left a oily residue on the skin. Which looked greasy and noticeable, meaning i had to blot with powder and ruin my eye make up. When i have used other products such as L'oreal that don't leave this weird train of oily mess on my eyelids. So im afraid this one will be buried in the dark realms of my beauty box.

Botanics Soothing Eye Make Up Remover - Boots (£2.99)

So thats my fast, speedy, yet quite long reviews. I hope they prove useful, i definitely think i could get a job writing advertising copy now. ;)

I also purchased a Mac Brush in 210 for my Clinique Gel Liner and so far, its so easy to apply! So glad i purchased this brush.

yes, ;) my hunt of mascaras is still on-going, im currently trailing L'Oreal's pretty damn famous Telescopic, so far so good. Not used to ever using such a thing brush, i like 'em fat and big!

Have you tried any of these products?

L'Oreal Matte Morphose

iPhone Photo

The April issue of Glamour appeared on doorstep this morning, (which comes with a free bottle of James Brown hair conditioner - although this is actually really naff and made my hair ultra greasy last time i used it) and they were offering a free sachet of the new L'Oreal Paris Matte Morphose Foundation (what a name!). Out of boredem and sneaking away from a half written powerpoint, i gave it a try. Usually, it really hacks me off that most of the samples are so unsuited to my skin tone -ivory - i end up looking perma tanned. However i usually look beyond this but this shade (Beige Natural) blended in well with my skin tone surprisingly.

This foundation has actually wowed me!

The Matte Morphose claims to be a feather-light souffle texture, that extends seamlessly across the skin for a transformation you can see and feel. And boy did it do that! The thought of a mousse foundation grosses me out, the Maybelline mousse just looked ick and a ground for breeding bacteria. Plus it dried out my skin, not letting me blend it properly, with my face looking as dried up as the remains in the pot - eurgh!

However, i am mostly intrigued to try this out, the texture was very weird, but oddly creamy satin to touch. As soon as i blended the mousse onto my face it gave an even and smooth finish, giving a good coverage but tricking my skin to look like it wasn't wearing any make up in the slightest - win win! I wouldn't necessary replace my Mac foundation for this, but definitely a must for my make up bag - a great fix up during the day.

Plus i think I'm slightly biased to this product as Diane Kruger is fronting the L'Oreal ads. ;)

This is currently on offer in Boots for £9.99 (usually £11.99), i will definitely pop into my local Boots to snap this up. I'm interested to see if it really is too good to be true? Let me know if you try the sachet and your results..

Skin /Body care routine.

I have had so many university assignments recently (lack of posting), i decided to do a mammoth post and update on my skin care and body products. Partly because i went on a mass haul in Superdrug a few weeks ago; it really does help when you have the Mother's discount card and vouchers - she works there.

I also decided to post this as now Winter has approached us, with the chucking-it-down rain and chilly cold weather, it really effects our skin. I for one, can't be doing with all that bloody nonsense of dull and pale skin! So i try to remember and religiously moisturise, moisturise, moisturise every night - very impressed with ones self! Anyway, heres what i use!

Superdrug Vitamin Nourishing Night Cream and All Over Body Moisturiser (both under £3)

What it promises?

"Night Cream – Our naturally sourced Vitamin E is a power antitoxant which not only revitalises skin and protects the skin, it also helps combat the damaging effects of free radicals and shields from the environment."

"Body Cream – Give your skin an intensive hydrating treat everyday with this all over body cream that’s rich in naturally sourced Vitamin – E."

My use?

I use both these products straight after I get out of the shower, they are both light, easily and quickly sink in (bonus for the body cream – I hate waiting for it to sink in) with a faint, summery scent. They are just perfect for what you need, just proves you don’t need highend to work miracles. Sometimes, basic is best.

L’Oreal Elvive Re – Nutrition Night Serum (£4.99)

What it promises?

"An overnight blend of nourishing ingrediants for hair thar feels silky and replenishment when you wake up!"

My use?

The Mother bought this for me, in another bid to recsue my endss. (We both share a passion and hatered of split ends.) I use this on top of my other conditioner (not when I use a mask) when its wet, I comb it only through the ends - missing the scalp, in fear of greasy locks. Its very light, meaning no product build up and adds extra strength againts the harsh winter cold!

Aussie Colour Mate Conditioner (£3.49)

What it promises?

"Our unque formular, with Austrailan Wild Peach extract, gently conditions the hair, leaving it with a radient shine and vitality."

My use?

I used this before I even started dying my hair, this conditioner gives ultimate shine (like no other!) whether you do or don’t colour your hair. It doesn’t weigh your hair down plus it gives a vibrant shine with sleek, soft finish. This is a religously bought product for my beauty cabinet.

L’Oreal Elvive Full Restore Replenish Masque (About £4)

What it promises?

"In itensily conditions to help restore the visable signs replenished hair."

My use?

I use this lovely smelling mask one or twice a week, as i'm trying to grow my hair its important that I keep it in top tip condition. I though this would be quite heavy or make my hair greasy but it makes it very, very smooth and I can defininatly tell the difference – waging a war against split ends.

Scrubilious Coconut & Shea Body Scrub (from Boots – on offer £2.99 roughly)

What it promises?

"This delectable mix of coconut oil and shea butter will leave you revlised and refreshed, while the sugar scrub will leave you perfectly smooth and ready for anything!"

My use?

I orginally thought this was a Boots product due to the lower price, but its not! I refuse to spend £7+ on a scrub, when they all seem to the job perfectly fine. The boy jokes that I love this product because it smells of Malibu.. not true. Does what it says on the tin, at great price. I use this about one or twice a week (aka. when I can be bothered, if fake tanning or going out somewhere special). Hah.

Niva Crème (about £3.60)

What it promises?

"The world’s favorite moistriser, where ever skin needs care."

My use?

I purchased this to banish a dry patch on my face and it worked like a miracle. I personally find the cream far too thick to apply to the body, but I slather it on my tootsies after showering with some cotton socks, my feet are prepared for summer sandals already!

Clinque Super Defence SPF 25 (note – this product is a sample. 50ml is £34.00)

What it promises?

"Skins most complete defence against the visable signs of aging in a daily moisturiser."

My use?

I received this as a sample from Clinque when I ordered my toner (I love ordering online at Clinque, am I the only person who gets excited about the two free samples?). This moisturiser is very pricey so I have been scraping the diddyest amount each day, boo. But it turns out to be amazing, it provides the perfect, matt yet moisturised base for my foundation and make up; giving a sutble radiance shine through. I think I’ll check out some other products before I rebuy..

Clinque Moisture Surge (£30.00 – I love pay day treats and online shopping ;) )

What it promises?

"Rapid, long lasting hydration in a refreshing oil-gel. Delivers a burst of moisture. Smooths, softens. Locks moisture all day."

My use?

I battled and battled with this moisturiser, its gel like formular baffles me. It didn't visibly improve my skin – just made it feel tacky and tight. However, if you apply a thin cream moistriser to the skin – aka pre – prep, it can do wonders. Although, I very typically realised this last week, when I have the tinyest amout left. Gr.

Clinque Liquid Facial Soap (£13.00)

What it promises?

"Throughly cleaning developed by Clinques dermatologist for the needs of skin comfortable in cheeks/oliy in t-zone, or oily all over. Leaves skin feeling fresh and clean."

My use?

I use this cleanser morning and night, it completely washes all the make up and grime off my face. I really think this product along with the toner, has helped to overall improve my skin, fighting away imperfections. This cleanser seems to last me forever! I bought this in the beginning in October, with two squirts a day it goes a bloody long way.

Clinque Clarifying Lotion Toner (£14.00)

What it promises?

"Gentle exfoliating lotion developed by Cliques dermatologist to clarify skins that are comfortable in the cheeks, oily in the t-zone."

My use?

I use this toner morning and night, over the last few months this toner has cleared my skin dramatically. My skin is more freshfaced with only a few imperfections (when time of the month lurkes), it visibly tightens my skin making it feel clean and happy. Happy skin = Happy Me. I really advise any one to look in to Three Step Routine by Clinque – girls, clense, tone, moisturise!

St. Ives Apricot Scrub (blemish fighting) (About £3.99)

What it promises?

"Effectively lifts away surface oils and dirt that can lead to black heads and blemishes."

My use?

I always result back to this scrub, its bloody amazing. A little goes a long way. I really notice my skin clearer and brighter after using this for a couple of weeks. Use twice or three times a week.