My Glitter Fairy Giveaway Surprises :)

I recently entered a giveaway on the lovely Glitter Fairy's blog and to my surprise I won! :)

This giveaway came with a twist - which was that we didn't know what would be inside the make-up bag! I loved this idea as it gave the winner an element of surprise....and what a lovely surprise it was :)

Please check out The Glitter Fairy's blog it is written by the lovely Jazmine who blogs about all thing beauty and you really get a feel for her bubbly lovely personality through her writing :)

Ok, so now I can show you all the lovely things that I received - well apart from one (because I ate it! lol) which was a gorgeous Hershey Bar yum yum!!


Here is the lovely make-up bag I received......

And...

Here are all the surprises inside! :)

What jumped out at me straight away (well apart from the Hershey Bar which jumped straight into my mouth!! ;) was this GORGEOUS Miss Sporty glitter nail varnish! I absolutely love this nail varnish and think it will look fab on its own or over another colour. It is completely packed with multi coloured sparkles, some large and some small which gives it a 3D effect, simply gorgeous!

  ooooooooooo!

aarrrrrrhhhhhh!

Also I got something that I have wanted for ages but never got round to getting one and that's a nail colour wheel! I cant wait to put all my nail colours on here and will do a separate blog about my nail varnishes soon and now I have a handy colour wheel to put them all on YAY!

I also got a Aussie 3 Minute Miracle Deep Conditioner.....again this is a range I have been wanting to get for ages and this conditioner will do wonders for my hair I'm sure as I have been colouring my hair for years and occasionally needs a bit of a pamper so this will do the trick nicely!

Next was some Palmer's Cocoa Butter body lotion, I have never tried this product although I have heard a lot of good stuff about it so I am really looking forward to trying this out, especially as its for dry skin which is my skin type. 

Batiste dry shampoo...how I love you so!!! I totally ran out the other day so when I saw this it put a massive smile on my face! :)

And lastly I received this lovely hair tie which I think I will be living in come summer time and I really like the zebra print effect on this, so cute!

So there are all my wonderful items I received from The Glitter Fairy givewaway, I am going to enjoy using all the items and products and I want to say a big thank you to Jazmine for such a fantastic giveaway :)

Thank you!

TTFN

Becks x

Happy Friday! :)

Hi All! 

Firstly thank you to my new followers - it aways outs a big smile on my face when I see I have new followers! :D

I cant believe this gorgeous weather we are having, its supposed to be like this all weekend which is going to be flipping amazing! and sadly I'm looking forward to hanging out my washing for the first time this year! haha! (yes, I am really that sad!)

This weekend I will be taking my daughter to yet another birthday party (for a 4 yr old she has a pretty good social life!) then hopefully fit in a nice family walk somewhere then we are off shopping on saturday for a few items of clothing and of course some beauty purchases! I will do a haul post of what I buy :)

I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend in all this sunshine - don't forget to move your clock forward on sunday, depressingly we have an hour less of our weekend but I'm so ready for the brighter mornings and evenings and spontaneous BBQ's its a sacrifice I am willing to take lol! :)

TTFN

B x

Fabulous Friday! (Chatty Ramble)

Happy Friday To All!

I love friday's I really really do, for some reason it's the one day of the week where I am a pleasant colleague to be around! lol! 

So, what are everyone's plans for the weekend?

This weekend I will be enjoying some family time with my Hubby and daughter as this will be the first 'quiet' weekend we have had for ages so we will be taking full advantage of it!

And, of course I cant forget that it's Mothers Day on sunday!! All though I must admit I don't tend to get sucked in by all these 'special' days but I know that my daughter has been making me 'something secret' at school so that's what I will be looking forward to the most....oh and possible breaky in bed! However, other than that it will be a usual sunday for me once I have made a special call to my amazing mum to tell her how much she means to me and that I love her (although I tell her these things anyway!).

BLOG NEWS!

I have been brain storming blog ideas and I will be doing more make-up looks and tutorials as well as reviews etc. I will be doing a range of mini-series for different make-up styles, going through the history and trends throughout the century to present day.

Other mini-series will include bridal, vintage, vibrant, creative and many more (so excited!)

I would like to say thank you to everyone who is following my blog, it definitely makes the experience all the more exciting knowing there's a lovely bunch reading the odd post I do and please feel free to leave any comments or requests for anything you would like me to feature.

In the short time I have been doing this blog I have met some really lovely fellow beauty geeks and bloggers and soon I will be doing a blog dedicated to the blogs that I have been thoroughly enjoying, so keep a look out for that one - you may be on it! :)

And Finally.....

I will be posting quite a few blogs this weekend, hope you enjoy them and let me know what you think. I hope everyone has a fantastic weekend and to all the mumsies out there - Have A Wonderful Mothers Day! :)

TTFN

B x

THE NAKED 2 PALETTE WINNER IS...........

HANNAH @BETWIXTBEAUTY!!!!!!

Well done Hannah! :D

I used a fruitmachine style selector to genetrate the winner - I have taken a video so will try and post it on here (above is the screen shot of the video as it selected the winner.

Thank you so so much to everyone who entered and for following my blog, Its been really exciting doing this giveaway and I already have ideas to do another one soon - so watch this space!

Hannah - I really hope you enjoy using this Naked 2 Palette as much as I love mine!

I will contact you on twitter to inform you of your win :)

TTFN 

B x

Playing Around With Purple! :)

I was flicking through my Marie Claire mag and came across this Rimmel advert featuring Georgia May Jagger sporting a moody purple eye look which I love, so I decided to create my own version of it using the following products:

EYES

MAC - Satellite Dreams

MAC - Nocturnelle 

MAC - Brule

Naked 2 Palette - Verve

L'Oreal - Superliner

Soap & Glory - Thick & Fast Mascara

FACE

Rimmel - Wake Me Up Foundation

Sleek - Contour Kit (light)

MAC - Blushbaby Blusher

E.L.F - HD Powder

LIPS

E.L.F - Nicely Nude

E.L.F - Bare Gloss

So here is the finished look (apologies for poor photo quality!)

TTFN 

B x

NOTD - E.L.F Smoky Brown

My nail of the day - E.L.F Smoky Brown Nail Varnish

Application - 2 coats needed 

(maybe even 3)

Time to fully Dry - About 10-15mins

I have been wearing this nail varnish since Saturday and so far its has only very very minimal wear to the varnish. I am really impressed with this nail varnish and I absolutely love this warm mushroomy colour! :)

TTFN 

B x

****UPDATE****

As this is the first E.L.F nail polish I have ever worn AND because a few people have mentioned that they would expect them to chip (including me), I decided to show an update of the state of the nail polish after 5 days since application.

and all i can say is that the pictures speak for themselves!

minimal wear can be seen at the tips (thats from relentlessly typing for 8 hours a day!) 

NO chips or sign of flaking!! :)

Just to state that the nails are false so I cant be sure if that is the reason why the nail polish is lasting longer..maybe it adheres better?!?, I dont know but all i can say is I love love love this nail polish and will certainly be getting more from E.L.F!

If you want any more infor on my false nails please see my dedicated post HERE

My Harrod's Edition March Glossybox (picture heavy)

So this morning, after weeks of excitement and build up...my Glossybox arrived!

This is the first Glossybox or even beauty box for that matter that I have ever had, so this was really exciting and to add that excitement - to hear it was to be a Harrods edition just made me even more impatient!

My first impressions were that the box was a LOT smaller than I expected it to be, I mean I have seen so many Glossy box reviews both in blogs and on youtube and they never looked as small as what arrived this morning! However, I was really impressed with the quality of the packaging and it looks like a lot of care and thought has gone into how the products are packaged, which makes it feel quite special and luxurious.

So, what have I got in my glossy box........

Clarins - Extra-Firming Body Cream

It says...'The formula rich in regenerating and firming plant extracts which immediately helps lift and tone, for firmer skin and a younger looking body.'

My thoughts........Clarins for me has never been a brand that often pops into the forefront of my mind when thinking of trying new skincare etc. I'm not sure why exactly, although I must admit that Clarins, to me, has always felt like its a brand I would 'go to' when I am of a more mature age! and I'm sure I will do, however for now I will try the 30ml of product that I have and see if it actually helps firm any of my 'wobbly' bits (pah!, I would need more than 30mls to do that! lol)

SKII - Skin Signature

It says...'An anti-ageing moisturising cream which helps to re-condition the skin, improve its resilience and leave the complexion smooth and radiant.

My thoughts...Firstly, I haven't heard of this brand before - although it does say that it is 'exclusively available at Harrods' so that's probably why! lol. The consistency of the cream is quite runny and it is absorbed into the skin relatively quickly without leaving any kind of residue. There is no fragrance to the cream, which I guess is what you want for a face cream, although I'm a little apprehensive about using it on my 'temperamental' skin as it looks packed with lots of chemicals that I am unable to pronounce! (only tested on back of hand), but will try a small area and see how I get on.

Valentine - Valentina Eau De Parfum

It says...'A daring & addictive, oriental, floral fragrance. A true feminine classic, twisted with the pure insolence of Italian ingredients'

My thoughts....This perfume is really NOT my 'cup of tea', in fact it actually gave me an instant headache and even the tiniest amount left me choking in what I can only describe as cloud of 'old lady perfume' (sorry!) I won't ever wear this perfume and was really disappointed as I was hoping to get the Fendi perfume instead...however, I didn't, but I'm not bitter (grrrrrrr)

Shu Uemura - Cleansing Beauty Oil

It says...'A 3 in 1 cleanser, make-up remover and eye make-up remover that leaves skin soft, balanced and non-oily'

My thoughts....I was quite disappointed with this sample, its no bigger than what you would find in a magazine so compared to the other samples in the box- this just seemed out of place! I mean, I guess I will try it but to be honest there isn't enough product for me to get a 'feel' of what it does, so its a thumbs down for me (at this point).

Molton Brown - Vitalising Vitamin AB+C Bath & Shower

It says...'Vitamin-rich fruit extracts boost the skin and invigorate the senses'

My thoughts....Ok, so I do like Molton Brown but can't help but feel disappointed that this is in my glossy box. To me this isn't interesting nor does it smell nice (old orange peel!) but as said before, I will use it but I  certainly won't be rushing out to buy it once I have used it up.

Lancome - Hynose Drama Mascara

It says...'Instant full body volume mascara'

My thoughts....looking forward to using this mascara, and it will be interesteing to see if the 'S' shaped wand will have an effect on my lashes. I have really stubbon lashes so I am expecting good things from this mascara! I will do a review once I have had a bit of use from this, so watch this space!

Verdict

So, that's it....that is my glossybox! My overall feeling is one of disappointment, I had such high expectations for this box and it felt worth subscribing too! I had seen some of the media reviews and photos of what had been given out at the launch and to me, the products that I received seem a million miles away to what was put out in the media. Sadly, I decided that I would cancel my subscription and continue to look around at what other beauty boxes offer!

If anyone wants to take advantage of  the 20% discount off selected beauty products at harrods.com then please EMAIL ME directly. Obviously it would be better going to someone who was hoping to do a good spend, however I will pick a name randomly on FRIDAY 16TH MARCH and contact you with the discount code.

What beauty box would you recommend I try next?? (please comment below)

TTFN

B x

St Ives Apricot Gentle Scrub :)

HI Booper's

This is my first EVER facial scrub! As mentioned before I have really really dry sensitive skin which gets easily aggravated by a whole world of things such as, stress, weather change, diet, lack of sleep, certain products......I could go on and on!

I can tend to develop raised areas on my forehead and dry patches (attractive i know!) So I decided to be brave and try out different scrub products that were specifically for my terrible skin that would hopefully help me minimise these episodes of what I can only describe as the 'sunburn effect', without the pleasant memories of having been somewhere tropical and exciting! lol (maybe then I could live with it! lol)

So whilst browsing the 'facial scrub' aisle in Superdrug I spotted this St Ives Apricot Gentle Scrub and grabbed it off the shelf for closer inspection....the more I read, the more I liked! This wonder scrub wasn't just for normal/dry or sensitive its was for DRY/SENSITIVE my exact skin combination! its like it was made just for me! :)

So, obviously I bought it at a very reasonable price of £4.95 (you can buy HERE) and was very excited about giving it a try as I was in the midst of a 'sunburn face' episode and thought there was no better time to try it!

The consistency of the scrub is quite light, the best way I can describe it is that its similar to houmous (sorry to anyone eating houmous right now!)  and its filled with really small exfoliating beads that give it a grainy effect. 

Application

I only needed a small amount to cover my face and really worked it into my problem areas where I felt it was needed. It didn't feel coarse but just enough scrub to feel like it was 'doing something' which is what I was hoping for. After rinsing of the scrub my skin didn't feel instantly tight and it felt really smooth and clean, I moisturised as normal and left me skin bare so I could get a feel of the product and make sure there were no aggravating after effects.

Picture taken after 3 weeks of using this scrub daily

After rinsing off the scrub my skin is left clean and smooth without
 and signs of aggravated redness!

Results

I personally feel that this is a breakthrough scrub for my skin, it has given me confidence that I can use these types of products on my skin and specifically for my awkward skin type. I highly recommend the St Ives Apricot Gentle Scrub to anyone who has the same skin issues as me and is looking to try out a new product, its gets a BIG THUMBS UP! from me :)

TTFN

B x

My Celebrity Best Friend Would Be......

ADELE! :)

I was thinking the other day that if I could choose any celebrity to be best friends with, who would it be? (a bit random I know) and this lady popped into my head straight away! 

I have followed Adele since she released her début album 19 and loved the edginess of her songs and how her lyrics had so much depth and meaning even at such a young age, for me the song that stuck out the most was Home Town Glory, I can listen to this song over and over again and have done many a time :)

I really like Adele's grounded personality and how she seems so un-fazed by the level of fame she has achieved (unlike Lady Gaga...but lets not go there...) I imagine that she would be a great mate to have, that she would be that one friend who absolutely tells you the truth whether you want to hear it or not ;), she would be an absolute giggle at a girls night in!

Adele disappeared from the public eye for a while and although I happily continued listening to 19, I was itching for some more from Adele, wondering how she could possibly beat her first albums success....

One day I was at work and my colleague told me about a performance that Adele had done on Jools Holland and said that she sang her new song so beautifully,I was like 'what song?, how did I miss this?' so straight on you tube I was and we both sat there in silence listening to Someone Like You, utterly amazing, its was such a heartfelt song that I think somehow everyone can relate to the words of this song at some point in their life. Her voice was effortless and I love the stripped back deliverance and hoped this was the stamp of her new album and boy what an album it would turn out to be!

Regardless of Adele's health scares last year which saw her having to cancel her tour her fans have remained loyal and she has gone from strength to strength, winning awards at the Grammy's and the Brits amongst many others worldwide!

Adele's glamorous vintage style suits her perfectly and its very rare you see her without her signature false lashes! This women is certainly someone any young female could look up to and for me she is an inspiration and I admire her confidence and humbleness but most of all I love her laugh! lol

So there you have it...my dream celebrity best friend Adele :)

Who would your celebrity best friend be?

TTFN

B x

February Fave's! :)

Hi Booper's

I have never done a Fave's post before and decided that since my beauty collection has grown quite dramatically since starting my blog, now was the time to share my favourite beauty items with you all :)

Naked 2 Palette

Real Techniques Core Collection: Buffing Brush & Contour Brush

Soap & Glory This & Fast Black Mascara

MAC Blushbaby Blusher

No7 Protect & Perfect Intense Beauty Serum
Rimmel Wake Me Up Foundation

Urban Decay Naked 2 Palette - I have absolutely nothing but great things to say about this palette! I do not own the Naked Palette 1 but I dont feel like I am missing out on much as this palette seems to be a combination of the best shades from the first palette, along with gorgeous new shades.                              

The eyeshadows are so beautiful and by far the best quality I have ever had, the shades are 

                    wearable for both everyday make-up looks and dramatic nights looks.

The Naked 2 palette will live very happily in my make-up kit and will be perfectly suited for creating any bridal look!

I love this item so much that I have a 50 subscriber giveaway of a Naked 2 Palette
Click here for more details **GIVEAWAY**

Real Techniques Core Collection: Buffing Brush & Contour Brush - These brushes are the wonderful creation by one part of Pixiwoo's - Samantha Chapman. When Pixiwoo announced that their Real Techniques Brushes were to be stocked in Boots I knew I HAD to get my hands on them! My only dilema was which set to choose from as there are the Starter Set & the Core Collection, after much thought I felt the core collection would be most suited to me and after weeks of using the brushes I wanted to share my favourites with you.

I use the buffing brush daily and use it to apply my moisturiser and primer (when needed) as I saw in one of the Pixiwoo videos they said this would prevent the foundation from streaking and so far so good! I love the feel of this brush, its quite dense too so you can really feel it working the foundation into the skin but with such a softness that it feels effortless and creates a perfect even coverage.

The contouring brush is incredibly soft and is the perfect shape and size for applying a natural contour to the face, one other but very important point is that I absolutely love how these brushes have been designed! the handle is very ergonomic and the flat base allows me to stand the brushes up so they are not rolling around my dressing table when out for use.

You can purchase the Real Techniques Brush from Boots (check stockists near you) or online HERE

Soap & Glory Thick & Fast Mascara - I actually got this mascara for free with Elle magazine, although I has been keen to try it for a while but never got round to purchasing it so to get a £10 mascara for £3.20 was too good a bargain to resist! I was really impressed with the coverage and effect of this mascara as I have the worlds worst short stubborn lashes so need all the help I can get!

This mascara is supposed to give a false lash effect, however on me it just makes them thicker which is mainly what i want from a mascara. My only peeve with this mascara is that i wish the brush was slightly smaller at the tip to allow easier coverage of the corner and lower lashes as I have to be very careful when applying as it can transfer mascara onto my lid or below my eye. However it is still a current favourite and considering I only paid £3.20 for it I think its a bargain, although not sure I would pay the full £10.00 for it........


You can buy this product from Boots HERE




MAC Powder Blush Blushbaby - This is my first ever MAC blush and I adore it! I went to the MAC store in search of a versatile blush that would suit many skin tones so it could go into my kit. I was shown the blushbaby and to be honest at first it didn't strike me as an exciting blusher, however when applied to the skin it creates a really natural classic look and I knew it needed to come home with me!

The colour is a very sheer pinky/beige colour and can be built to create a dramatic look if desired, or it can be lightly applied to achieve a health looking cheek colour as part of an everyday make-up look.

I wear this quite often and find that what i apply to my cheek in the morning is still there at night when its time to remove my make-up, the lasting power is more than impressive and I would recommend that everyone have this in their make-up bag :)

You can buy this direct from the MAC store HERE

No7 Protect & Perfect Intense Beauty Serum - I was first introduced to this No7 range by my mum who bought me a selection of creams for christmas. One of the items that really stood out to me was the beauty serum, its incredibly soft and silky when applied and leaves your skin feeling really velvety. I like to use this after moisturising and prior to applying my foundation as it almost acts the same as a primer and my foundation really clings to it and gives an overall flawless finish.



You can by this direct from Boots HERE

& last but by no means least........

Rimmel Wake Me Up Foundation - I bought this foundation when it was at the introductory price of £5.99 and since using it i would happily pay the standard price of £8.99!

This foundation is fantastic on my horrendously dry/combination skin and leaves me with a really dewy natural healthy glow. The coverage is great and its build able for when you feel like you need that extra bit of coverage without looking cakey! I apply this with my Real Techniques Buffing brush and I only use a small amount to cover my face and it lasts ALL DAY! Im so impressed with this foundation and I will certainly be repurchasing it! Its a must have! :)

You can buy this directly from Boots HERE

So thats it for my February Fave's, hope you have enjoyed this post and found it useful in some way :)

TTFN

B x

Glossy Box, Harrods Limited Edition :)

I am super excited about the Harrods edition of Glossy Box!

This will be my first ever glossy box, and what a way to start, what with all these gorgeous products!

I still cant get over how little it costs, and recently I have had to give up drinking diet coke :( but now i don't feel so sad as this is my diet coke splurge replacement - and i will be spending less! YAY! :)

Once my box arrives I will be blogging away like a beauty nut to share all the lovely products with you.

Hope you all have a fantastic weekend!

TTFN 

B x

E.L.F Lip Haul

Well I recently had a lovely E.L.F haul and wanted to show the haul in different sections, so first up is all the yummy lip products! yay! 

I decided to get a variety of the lip products as I had not seen many reviews or uses in YT videos, so thought I would have to find out for myself! 

Here are the delightful bunch :)

E.L.F Studio Matte Lip Colour! - Praline

Well, I have to say that I absolutely LOVE this lip pen! It glides on well and even though its matte it doesn't dry out your lips (which is important for me as I have the driest skin on planet earth!) it is actually quite moisturising which I wasn't expecting!. Also what I noticed about this lip colour is that it lasts for ages, it even survived a cheese sandwich which in my book means a great deal when it comes to lasting lip colour!

The other colours they have in this Studio Range are beautiful, ranging from a pale nude to this gorgeous Praline and I will certainly be getting more of these, they are perfect to wear under gloss and the sleek pen style helps it to be easily carried in your purse or handbag.

   you can buy this product direct from the E.L.F website HERE.

E.L.F Mineral Lipstick

This lipstick range beautiful for a many reasons,

1. They are 200% mineral based and full of gorgeousness such as Shea butter, Jojoba and coconut oil! yum!

2. They are really moisturising and as I have said before, my skin gets really dry so needs all the help it can get to retain moisture!

3. The cost is great at £3.50! you can buy direct from the E.L.F website HERE

4. They come in a HUGE range of colours!

Nicely Nude

I adore the colour of this lipstick, its a perfect spring/summer colour, its not too heavy and feels like your wearing a really nourishing lip balm! It is described as having gold in it which is really subtle and gives it a really nice sheen effect.

Cheeful Cherry

Although I love this lipstick for all the many reasons I listed above, sadly this cheerful cherry is a bit too cheerful for me! For me this is too winey in colour which does not suit my skin tone at all and I was hoping for a deeper cherry colour, however, I know this will suit many other people so it will be happily placed in my kit which I am building up for when I become a pro MUA! 

E.L.F Hypershine Lip-gloss's & Luscious Liquid Lipstick

These lipgloss's and liquid lipstick are really thick in consistency and quite tacky (you certainly don't want to get your hair stuck in it!), so I would avoid wearing it on a windy day!.

Although the colour looks quite strong when the gloss is sitting in its tube, when applied it becomes very sheer and only shows a hint of colour! I even struggled to identify between the Ruby slipper liquid lipstick or the Mauve hypershine in the photos that I took - and still wondering if I got the selection right! You will have to let me know what you think!

The price of the hypershine gloss is £1.50, which I think is excellent value for the amount of product that you get!

The price of the luscious liquid lipstick is also at an incredible £1.50! 

You can buy these lip-gloss's directly from the E.L.F website HERE

You can buy the liquid lipstick directly from the E.L.F website HERE

Hypershine Gloss - Bare

Hypershine Gloss - Mauve

Luscious Liquid Lipstick - Ruby Slipper

E.L.F Glossy Gloss

These glossy gloss's are from the E.L.F studio range and cost £3.50 each, the colour pay off of these gloss's are fantastic and can easily be worn on their own when you want a strong colour or over any lipstick. Again, as above theses gloss's do last quite a while before you feel the need to 'top-up' and also I found they didn't leave an uneven looking stain to my lip if I chose not to re-apply.

The applicator looks quite simple but effective, however I have only applied these using my finger as these will be a must have in my make-up kit for using on clients!

You get get your hands on these lovely glossy gloss's directly from the E.L.F website HERE

I hope you found this review helpful! :)

TTFN

B x