January favourites

I feel that January has been a good month for discovering new products! Good start to the year hey! My first favourite is mac eye shadows in general. But my favourite shades are naked lunch, a subtle shimmery peachy champagne colour, and satin taupe, a silver shimmery taupe. They are the perfect pair and mac eye shadows in general are of such high quality! 

Next up is the much loved origins drink up mask! Now, I admit it has taken me a while to jump on the bandwagon, but I simply did not think my skin needed this mask as it was quite oily. Well my skin decide to get dry, and I mean dry! But this beauty has saved it so much and smells like apricot too!

I love a good body butter, especially a soap and glory one! I got 'butter yourself' for christmas and have been using it ever since! It smells amazing, it contains orange and shea butter. It's really moisturising and softening too, but the scent alone has me hooked! 

Origins super spot remover was always a product I was a little sceptical of. I've tried many 'spot removers' in the past and nothing worked. Admittedly this is not a miracle worker, but it does a pretty good job of stopping a spot getting worse and calming redness.

Last but not least, I have been loving mac's prism blusher. Prism is a matte pinkish brown and is quite subtle and just adds that extra colour to my cheeks. Admittedly it doesn't show up as much as I would have hoped, so quite a bit of product is required to build up more colour.

What have you been loving?

♥

Make up storage

Muji acrylic wide draws

It's probably no surprise that I store my make up in muji draws! I used to store my make up all thrown into a basket in a random mess. It took me ages to find things and I often forgot I had certain products! Since I got these draws in summer they have seriously changed my daily make up routine (as odd as that is). It just makes grabbing everything so much easier and actually seeing what I have! They actually store a lot more than I initially thought! However, I do need another stack! Maybe I should just stop buying make up? The adorable cotton wool jar is from Abbey's shop, gifts and pieces. She sells the prettiest stuff, honestly check it out! Then the little bird letter holder is off ebay and neatly stores my naked 2 palette!

I need more storage inspiration, send me links of your posts please!

♥

Boots botanics skin relief serum

Boots botanics skin relief serum

So for some very odd reason my skin decided to get super sensitive as of recently. I would constantly have sore, red and itchy skin, particularly when waking up and had no clue why. I bought this serum as it claims to reduce skin sensitivity in two weeks! It's key ingredient to do this is marshmallow, which soothes skin and makes it less reactive, who knew hey! Does this mean drinking lots of hot chocolate with marshmallows in will help too?

The serum is of a super light consistently, a little like caudalie thirst quenching serum, however not as moisturising. In fact it's not really moisturising, but that is okay as that's not what it claims. I apply this after cleansing and toning, but before moisturising and instantly my skin, particularly when irritated, feels instantly soothed and calm. After two weeks use I can say this has definitely got my skin back to normal! I only need to use this maybe once or twice a week now, which is great! My skin is not as red, rough, sore or itchy. This is currently on offer in boots for £4.99, so give it a try if you have sensitive skin maybe!

♥

I may have broke my spending ban (a lot)

My old camera decided to retire and leave me for good. So I needed to buy a replacement. I have always wanted a DSLR camera but have always been put off by the prices and of course the skill level required to use them. My old camera was just an average 'point and shoot', nothing too fancy. After much searching I decided to take the plunge and buy myself something I could learn to use and would last a long time and hopefully develop into a hobby! I decided on the nikon d3000 and so far so good! There are lots of buttons and strange numbers, but thank goodness for google! I would love some tips if you have any!

My 50 day spending ban starts again today!

 (I don't have much hope after this incident and many others)

♥

Enrapture extremity heated rollers

 Enrapture extremity heated rollers* 
(please ignore my disgusting student housing bedroom)

I am a huge, and I mean huge, fan of the Enrapture encode totem styler, so I was delighted and incredibly lucky to have been kindly sent the Enrapture extremity heated rollers to review! Now I've never tried heated rollers before so was super excited to see the results. The way in which these differ from the encode styler, is that they provide much more volume, bouncier and softer looking curls.

You get ten large rollers and ten smaller ones, which means you can create softer, looser curls with the larger ones and tighter ones using the smaller rollers. I tend to either put the larger ones at the top of my hair and the small at bottom/underneath or just use the large ones at the ends. What makes these so unique is that the clips and the rollers both heat up, allowing the clip to lock the curl into place.

The rollers heat up in around five to seven minutes and when your using them they don't burn your hand at all, something I was an little anxious of at first! I found them super easy to apply, even when it was my first time. They sit in really easy, not tugging on your hair and they stay in until they are completely cool. Once they are taken out I do sometimes have one or two marks from the clips, but these can quickly be straightened out. The curls hold all day with the help of some hair spray and are they so bouncy and voluminous! I really like these rollers, they will be perfect for nights or even nice days out and special occasions!

If you think you will love these as much as me you can buy them from boots, john lewis and debenhams for £74.99!

Have you tried these?

♥

I've started a mac eye shadow palette

Swatches 

naked lunch, all that glitters, sable, satin taupe and embark

After a long time of waiting, I finally started a mac eye shadow palette! I've recently become eye shadow obsessed, funny considering about a half year ago that I never, ever worn them! I'm already in love with this palette, it gets used every day! The eye shadows are all really pigmented, compliment each other nicely and apply super easily! My favourite combo is naked lunch all over the lid and then satin taupe blended in the crease! As you can see my palette is looking very lonely with ten whole empty spaces! So I would love some recommendations to splurge on when I've done my spending ban (which has not been going to well as of recently, try harder kelly!)

What shades should I pop in next?

♥

Out with the old and in with the new

So as you probably know I am a huge fan of liz earle skin care products. I religiously used her products for a good year, but recently they have not been agreeing with my skin. I found that my skin was quite red, sore and itchy and was becoming a little more 'problem skin' like. So I decided to shake up my skin care routine to see if that helps.

I've decided to try a few origins products which are good for helping with problem skin, in particular the zero oil cleanser, super spot remover and out of trouble mask. I then bought some products targeted at sensitive skin, the boots botanics sensitive skin relief serum and then aveeno moisturiser, which is also apparently good for eczema, which I have on my face also. 

Fingers crossed these products help my skin! I will review them once I have used them for a good while! 

Please tell me your thoughts on these products!

♥

Little skin care blog sale

My spending ban has made me realise I own too much stuff I don't use. So I'm selling some bits on here if anyone is interested.

Uk only please

Postage will be £2.50 plus 50p per additional item

Please leave your pay pal email so I can invoice you :)

Soap and glory the daily smooth body butter £4

Used about four times, pretty much full.

Avene cold cream hand cream £3

Used around five times, lots left!

Superdrug vitamin e eye cream £1.50

Only used once!

 Nivea express hydration primer normal/combination skin £2.50

Usage shown, probably used around four times

Liz earle skin repair moisturiser normal/combination skin £8

Usage shown, about 75% left

Body shop cocoa body butter £4

Usage shown, about 85% left

♥

Why I'm looking forward to 2013

Image source

Happy new year guys! If you haven't guessed by the title, I'm super excited for 2013! I'm hoping to graduate, get my first teaching job, get myself a car, move somewhere new, smile more and see more places! One of my resolutions is definitely to buy less and save more and I've decided to do a 50 day spending ban to help me on my way! If that goes well, ill take it to 100 days! I've decided that this year I want to start documenting every single day of my life for the next five years in a one line a day journal. It will be such a lovely thing to look back on and show my achievements, especially as this year should have many!

I would love to know what you are excited about!

♥

2012 favourites!

2012 has been my 'main chunk of my blogging life', so I have discovered so many lovely products!

It was hard to narrow this down, but the products here are just my absolute favourites from this year!

 2012 make up favourites

Mua heaven and earth palette

This has been my most used eye shadow palette of 2012.

I just love the quality, the lasting time, the shades and the price.

This is a real staple in my make up collection

YSL touche eclat foundation

This has been a recent discovery, but I've found my all time favourite foundation!

My skin is dull, often dry and red from eczema and has a couple blemishes (lovely).

But this foundation covers it all and makes my face look so glowly!

Benefit sugarbomb blush

I have loved this blush for a long time.
It's just an easy to wear gorgeous shimmery peach.

Elf tickled pink blush
Another blush favourite, this time from elf (the purse is happy)
I really like the colour of this, just a subtle, everyday, light matte pink.
The quality for the price is unbelievable!

Mac studio fix concealer

As I mentioned earlier my skin isn't in the best condition.

This concealer covers everything, it's amazing

It's perfect for my handbag, covers dark circles without caking and leaves such a natural finish.

2012 hair care favourites

Only a few hair care favourites from the year, but honestly these are amazing products! 

I've tried a lot of hair products and they have been good, but these are really really good!

Redken colour extend radiant 10

I don't even have coloured hair so can't comment on this extending the life of my hair colour.

But, this has given my hair so much shine! 

It's a really quick fix for out of control, dull and frizzy hair!

It's leaves my hair super sleek and full of life!

Aussie take the heat deep treatment

This is the hair mask my hair has been waiting for!
It's just so thick and creamy and really moisturises my hair deeply.
It leaves it really soft and manageable too!

L'oreal elvive extraordinary oil
Quite a recent discovery, but it's my favourite oil!
Even over moroccanoil (something I thought I'd never say)
It just ticks all the right boxes, moisture, shine, smells good, controls frizz, the lot!

2012 everything else favourites

Soap and glory sugar crush body scrub
Probably my nicest 'scent' discovery of 2012!
It just reminds me of lime coke and it's a fab exfoliator!
(I actually only just tired soap and glory for the first time this year, I'm hooked!)

Body shop body butters
In general, I've been loving the body shop body butters!
I use them everyday to moisture and make my skin smell delightful.
Almond and cocoa have been my faves!

Liz earle super skin concentrate
I love liz earle skin care products, they are just so natural.
This oil has sorted out some pretty bad dry phases and even oily ones!
It has a relaxing scent and makes my skin look fresh and plump!

Nuxe reve de miel lip balm
For so long I suffered with dry, chapped and sore lips.
Until I took the plunge this summer and bought this!
It's been on my lips everyday since I got it!

Juicy couture viva la juicy perfume 
I'm a huge fan of very sweet smelling scents.
This is just one of them!
I adore this perfume, it's become one of my favourites!


So there we go, my 2012 favourites!
I'm excited to see what I discover throughout 2013!
♥

My little peanut and pickles

I thought I would share with you two little guys that are a big part of my life.

Peanut and pickles, my two gerbils!

I've only had them since september, but they are just the best pets!

They are very, very, very curious, everything I do, everything I put in their cage they have to explore!

They thump their feet when they get excited and stand up like meerkats to have a little nosey!

They are burrowing animals, so live in a gerbilarium which has a big tank at the bottom for tunnelling.

They chew a lot! Ill spend lots of money on toys, but they would much rather have a cardboard box!

They are very social! Hence why I have two, they get very depressed without a cage mate :(

They also love humans, especially pickles, who loves to climb up my dressing gown sleeve. 

They are like two peas in a pod, they always play, sleep together and groom each other.

They are so cute and I'm so glad I got them! 

♥

Empties 003

(for some odd reason the majority of these products are either from liz earle or dove)

Dove go fresh deodorant 

To me a deodorant is a deodorant, it does the job! It did smell lovely though, it's pomegranate and lemon scented. 

Repurchase? - I do regularly

Liz earle eye bright soothing eye lotion 

I loved using this! It helped my often irritated and puffy eyes feel  and look normal again!

Repurchase? - It's not an essential so probably not

Liz earle cleanse and polish

My favourite cleanser! (as you probably know). However, I feel that I want to try something new as I've been using this for a year now! This may be one of them 'if it isn't broke don't fix it' situations!

Repurchase? - yes in the future

Dove colour radiance deep treatment

I don't have coloured hair so can't comment on the results of that. But this did leave my hair amazingly feeling soft like the nourishing oil one does

Repurchase? - not this particular one as it's for coloured hair

My face cosmetics my mix foundation

This was actually a lovely dewy natural foundation, I posted about it here.

Repurchase? - probably not, lasting time wasn't great

Liz earle instant boost skin tonic

This leaves my skin looking fresh, bright and removes any extra make up cleansing missed.

Repurchase - already have

Liz earle deep cleansing mask

My skin has decided to change it's skin type and now become 'problem skin'. Thanks skin :( This helps to control any excess oil and calm my breakouts.

Repurchase - already have

White glo toothpaste

You know when you go to the dentist and they clean your teeth with that 'gritty stuff'? Well this tasted like that, not good. It didn't whiten my teeth either.

Repurchase - no!

Dove nourishing oil care shampoo and conditioner

I love the nourishing oil deep conditioner so had high expectations of these. They are not bad products at all, just nothing special. They left my hair feeling clean and conditioned.

Repurchase - probably not

Collection 2000 lasting perfection concealer 

A loved concealer by many! I've bought this a couple times not. It's my go to concealer for blemishes.

But I'm after something lighter for under my eyes, which can be quite dry at times!

Repurchase - yes as it's amazing at covering spots!

Do you have any under eye concealer and cleanser recommendations?

♥

Christmas beauty wishlist

Balance me wonder eye cream - I still haven't got round to buying this beauty of a product! It just ticked all the boxes for me, brightens, tightens, intensely moisturises and de-puffs!

Models own winter wonderland collection - I tend to wear a glitter nail polish over everything! This is just the perfect set, especially in winter!

NYX blushers in taupe and dusty rose - I've heard a lot about taupe being the perfect contour shade for pale girls! For that reason I really want to try this product! Dusty rose also looks like a lovely shade, I don't own many blushes that shade!

Origins ginzing mascara - From reading blog posts this mascara does wonders for your eye lashes! I'm always trying new mascara's and this one seems like a good one to try! It also claims to brighten your eyes too!

Antipodes divine face oil - Since falling in love with the liz earle super skin concentrate I've wanted to try a couple more face oils! Especially as it's winter and my skin is quite dry at the moment!

Sugar crush body buttercream - I'm a huge sugar crush body scrub fan, just because it simply smells amazing! I therefore want to constantly smell like this so I need this body cream! They also have it in a body wash too!

Antipodes vanilla pod day cream - As much as I love my liz earle skin care routine which I've sworn by for a year now, I feel like a change. There has been a lot of hype around antipodes skin care and we all know I'm a sucker for a hype! It sounds like it would smell delicious too!

What are you wishing for?

♥

Liz earle super skin concentrate

Liz Earle super skin concentrate

I've never really been that interested in skin oils, mainly because I've never tried any. But I received Liz Earles super skin concentrate free with their monthly skin care packages and had to go give it a go!  The oil claims to soften dry or mature skin and balance oily skin, so it's pretty much suitable for anyone! It does have a strong smell and at first I wasn't that keen on it. But it's bearable and has become quite a relaxing scent now.

I apply this after cleaning and toning, but before moisturising. I find that moisturiser helps to sink this product in. However, it does sit on the skin a little, so I always wear my hair up to avoid getting oily hair. By morning my skin is soft and plump and I find my make up applies so smoothly! This really does balance my oily skin, more so than any oil controlling masks I use!

What's your favourite skin oil?

♥

November favourites

Urban Decay naked palette 2 

I was certainly late to the party with this! But oh my I'm in love! The shades are just perfect for me, the quality of the eye shadows are lovely too, really buttery, gliding on really smoothly. You can just create so many looks with this palette. Although I like to save this for best, Mua eye shadow palettes are a much cheaper option for day time wear! 

Revlon lip butter in berry smoothie*

This is just my perfect winter lipstick shade! As with all Revlon lip butters, the quality is amazing, they are very moisturising and have great pigmentation! I find due to it's dark shade that this lipstick stains the lips a little, in a good way, which makes the lipstick last much longer!

Nuxe reve de miel lip balm

Winter always results in very dry and often chapped lips! But luckily this year I have this beauty to help fight this and make my lips lovely and smooth! This has been one of my favourite buys this year!

Liz Earle super skin concentrate 

This beauty is my skins saviour! Whenever my skin is feeling dry I just roll some of this oil onto my face and by morning my skin feels softer, looks plumper and is full of moisture! I have oily skin and I actually find that this helps to control it in some strange way! It's also very relaxing, can see this lasting a long time!

What have been your favourites?

♥