February Favourites

Hello All,

February is over already and I cannot believe how quickly it has flown by. Many of my January Favourites are still things I am loving but I have a few more products which I have been reaching for more and more this month.

Soap & Glory - Face Soap and Clarity : £8

If you read my recent empties video (click here) you would have seen that I had finished my Benefit Foamingly Clean facial wash and needed something new. This product has been in my bathroom for a while now and so its not a new love but rather a rekindled one. This makes my skin feel so clean and fresh. It turns into a really nice lather and has some small exfoliating particles but not too many which I really like.  The only issue I have with this is the smell. I know shock, seeing as Soap & Glory products on the whole smell incredible! This however has a minty smell?! Well I think so I can't really tell but it is just a little to overpowering.

Sally Hansen - Miracle Cure : £2.50 

I still cannot get over how much of a bargain this was! I needed a nail strengthener as I recently took off my acrylic nails and as expected my nails are looking a little worse for wear. I popped into Sainsbury's quickly to see what they had and this was on the shelf for £9 which I wasn't willing to pay. I then came home and trawled the internet and found it for just £2.50! (that nearly 75% off).  This is one of my favourites mostly for the price but it is a really good strengthener and has been working wonders on my nails.

Body Shop - Vitamin E Serum-in-Oil : £12

I feel like I have raved about this non-stop since I bought it but it is literally incredible! I never in a million years would have considered putting an oil on my face but boy am I glad I did.  I won't talk to much about it as I will upload a full review on it very soon but I have been absolutely loving this and it does wonders to my skin.

Revlon - Colour Burst Lip Butter : £7.99

This lipstick is moisturising, glossy, pigmented...its just basically all you could want. I adore this colour it's such a beautiful, pretty pink and looks lovely on the lips. I really like this as I suffer with very dry lips, so as much as I love matte lipsticks they don't mix well with chapped lips, where as this is super hydrating and doesn't dry out. This is my everyday go to shade and I will definitely be picking up some more shades in the near future.





I would love to know what your February favourites were!

Until next time,

RebeccaAnn.

Empties

Hello All,

I have a few empties which I have been saving for a while to review for you guys. There has only been one of these products which I have re-purchased so keep reading to find out which one it is.

One issue with my hair, its like a pancake...FLAT! Anything with the word texture in it, I am immediately drawn to. I thought I would give this one a try as it was on offer. I wasn't super impressed but it does add some texture. Its a mix between a dry shampoo and a volumising powder,  the issue being that it turns your hair white, much like a dry shampoo. I also found that this product didn't have amazing lasting power on the hair as it doesn't have an hairspray style hold. I recently bought the Charles Worthington texturising spray and its safe to say I much prefer it to this.

I got these for Christmas 2012, when the Benefit skincare range had only recently been released. They have lasted me over a year, which is a good amount of time as with these a little really does go a long way. They are around £18.50 each which is about what you would expect for Benefit. They have a really nice fresh scent and do make you skin feel really clean however the foamingly clean can be quite drying on the skin, which was fine for me as I have combination/oily skin. I wouldn't repurchase these as for the price I would prefer to try skincare brands with better ingredients as I don't feel this brand does wonders for your skin.

Now this is a product I had to repurchase. I change mascaras regularly as I have never found a perfect one that I really really love but this one is pretty damn good. I originally picked it up because there was a 2 for £10 offer and this was £9.99 on its own so I just couldn't refuse. I really like this as it separates the lashes really well (no spider lashes here). If I want really voluminous lashes then I will use this with another mascara as it doesn't create masses of volume but for an everyday mascara I think this is great.

As the packaging would suggest this product has been loved. It's the Carmex strawberry lip balm. Carmex is my all time favourite lip care product, I haven't found any other product that even comes close. I have had man variations of the different Carmex products and will continue to try them as they have some new flavours like pomegranate which I am excited to try. The smell of the original Carmex is not something I enjoy but the product is so incredible that it wouldn't ever put me off, anyway they now have plenty of different flavours which is a vast improvement of the original. I haven't repurchases this particular product but I will always have a Carmex in my handbag.



Let me know if you have tried any of these and what you thought of them.

Until next time,

RebeccaAnn.

Update

Hi Everyone, 

Just a quick post mainly to apologise that I haven't uploaded in a while, I have a few posts that are in progress but I have been so mad busy with all my uni work that I haven't had enough time to finish them. 

I promise a new post will be up soon, hopefully by Monday.  

Until next time, 

RebeccaAnn. 

Date Night

Hello All,

With Valentines Day just around the corner, whether you are spending an evening with your other half, going on a blind date or celebrating singledom with your girlfriends,  it is an opportunity to dress up and feel fabulous. I thought I would share with you a couple of looks I love and hopefully give you some inspiration.

Daring 

I am wearing more colour here than I am usually comfortable with, but if you are feeling daring I think this is an amazing look. The yellow matches in really well with the yellow of the trousers and really brings the outfit together. I would go for VERY simple make-up, as to not go overboard. 

Top // River Island 

Trousers // River Island 

Shoes // New Look 

Leather Jacket // 

Classic

If you are going out for a slap-up meal this valentines or just want to feel glam then an LBD and cream blazer is perfect. This look is so classic, classy and simple, which is why I love it so much. A bold red lip will add a little pop of colour and you could always add a leopard print clutch for a little something extra.

Dress // Urban Outfitters
Blazer // H&M
Shoes // New Look

Enjoy your Valentines day.

Until next time,

Rebecca Ann.

E.L.F Haul

Hello All,

So not so long ago I received an e-mail from E.L.F offering £10 off when you spend £20 and it was an offer I couldn't refuse. This offer had ended now but if you sign up to their mailing list they send frequent offers. I have never tried anything from E.L.F before but I was intrigued to see what they were like, so thought this was the perfect opportunity.

All of the products are bargainous, with each product costing no more than £3.75 which is absolutely crazy!

I have been using these products for a while now so I can give my verdict on each of them.

Mineral eyeshadow primer - £3.00: This is a really nice creamy texture and glides nicely over the eye, giving a nice even texture. The only thing is I don't feel it provides much durability in making my eyeshadow stick for much longer than normal.

Brush cleaner - £3.75: I really like this, I am quite lazy with cleaning my brushes (oops) and so this is perfect for me. It smells really nice and is quick and easy yet effective. I will still give my brushes a good scrub with some Johnson's baby shampoo but this is great for day to day cleaning. 

Sharpener - £1.50: I bought this pretty much just to get my order over the £20 mark and it broke on its first use. Either I am heavy handed or this is just a crappy sharpener. 

Pressed powder 'light beige' - £1.50 : this is a lot smaller than I expected but for £1.50 it's a reasonable size. I use the translucent pressed powder from Rimmel usually which is just a setting powder so I thought this powder would be good for when I needed a little extra colour. It's a good colour match. Which I was surprised about as it's always a guessing game online. Overall a nice enough powder for the price. 

HD blush 'superstar' - £3.75: I was really intrigued by this product, a blush with a pump? I had never seen something like this before. Its a really pretty pink but needs to be used sparingly otherwise rosey turns to clown (not a good look). I find that the pump always gives more product than required, which is slightly annoying but after a few goes I have begun to get used to it.

Studio Stipple Brush - £3.75: I had heard good things about E.L.F brushes and they are amazing value. I bought this one to go with the blush, I wish the bristles were slightly denser as for blending blusher this is slightly useless. I'm kind of on the fence with this brush and can't decide how I feel.

Lip primer and plumper - £3.75: I was most interested about the primer part of this double ended device. A product that would make my lipstick stay for longer, was a product I needed to try. For me it just accentuated any dry or cracked part of my lips and therefore a terrible base. The plumper end has a really strong cinnamon scent and wow is it tingly, even slightly painful. This was the product I was most excited to try and was the one I was most disappointed by.

My impression of E.L.F overall isn't fantastic. A lot of the products didn't live up to the expectations I had of them but for the price of these products maybe my expectations were too high. 

Let me know what you have bought from E.L.F and how you found it. 

Until next time, 

RebeccaAnn. 

Body Shop Haul

Hello All,

I love the Body Shop and they always have fabulous deals on and there was no way I could refuse these offers. I was lusting after the serum-in-oil after hearing so many amazing things about it and it's no surprise it wasn't the only item I left the shop with.



They have loads of these adorable little packages which are great value for money and they have them across all their skincare ranges. The serum-in-oil along with the intense moisture cream was just £16 when the products separately cost £23. I then spotted the tea-tree goodie bag which was much needed with the mess that is my skin right now, for £10 I got tea-tree oil i.e. the 'zit zapper' and a pore minimising primer.



I also got a free gift with a mascara, eyeliner, vitamin E cleanser and moisture mask which was just an added bonus, after all who doesn't love free stuff? The Body Shop always has amazing offers on and I love their products (the coconut body butter being a personal favourite), so if I were you I would snap up these offers while they are still there.

I will post a full review of these goodies once I have had the chance to form a real opinion of them.

Let me know if you have already tried these or if you have any others to recommend.

Until next time,

RebeccaAnn.

January Favourites

Hello All,

So its the end of what is supposedly the most miserable month of the year and I thought I would share with you some of the things I have been enjoying, both beauty and non-beauty.

Beauty

Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum - No. 53, £9.99:

I reviewed this recently in my 'battle of the foundations' post, so I won't go on about this for too long, but I think its a great foundation and have worn it nearly every day since I purchased it. It's a lovely texture, blends nicely, is buildable and gives the skin a healthy glow.

Real Techniques Setting Brush - £8.99:
My skin has really been suffering this month, so the concealer and this brush have been my saviours for covering blemishes. This brush blends concealer in so well and its small enough for under eyes too. I'ts just a really lovely brush and makes the skin look flawless.

Nars Laguna Bronzer - £26:

I got this bronzer for Christmas; now I am not usually one to purchase high end products and wouldn't have spent this much money on a bronzer but now that I own it I understand why people do. This is just the perfect colour, its not orange, not too shimmery it's just, well...perfect. I cannot say enough nice things about it and I have never found a drugstore bronzer which comes close. Regardless of price it's safe to say I will be re-purchasing this when the time comes.

Clinique 'take the day off' cleansing balm - £21:

This product baffles me, it literally melts the makeup off your face. I use this in the bath when I am being a little lazy and it does the job a treat. It is fragrance free, feels lovely on the skin and it hasn't cause any breakouts. I don't use this everyday but I have really been enjoy this just as an occasional treat.






Non-Beauty 

I heart christmas by Lindsey Kelk - £5.59

I absolutely adore Lindsey Kelk, I have read all of her books and this is the latest installment of her "I heart..." series. If you are looking for a hilarious girly read then look no further. I realise it's not Christmas anymore but that's not going to stop me! I just love Lindsey Kelk and couldn't resist purchasing this new release.

Breakfast

In an attempt to keep healthy I have found a new breakfast which is delicious and nutritious. I have granola (the Kelloggs Crunchy Nut one is really good), low fat natural yoghurt and whatever fruit is available, usually raspberries. I have just really been loving this, its filling,  healthy and so tasty!






Let me know what your January favourites have been and then maybe they will be in my February favourites.

Until next time,

RebeccaAnn.