Makeup Savvy 15 Day Nail Challenge - Join in!

Starting 1st August (Wednesday) I will be doing a 15 day nail challenge. This will mean every day I will post a nail post with a different theme (see the list below)! If you also love painting your nails and doing nail art I would love for you to join in with me! 

Plus if you join in I will link to your nail posts and you may also win some nail related products at the end of the challenge!

I will be posting my own nail challenge posts every day from the 1st at 4:30pm GMT each day. So if you want me to link to your entry you can e-mail me (makeupsavvy@live.co.uk) or tweet me (makeup_savvy) with the link to your entry and I will include it at the end of my post.  

But don't worry if you want you can chose to just participate on some of the days - just tweet or email me before 4pm so that I can link to your entry.

 Here is the list of all the nail post themes which are totally up to interpretation! Feel free to save the image/list above to store on your desktop or to include in your blog posts.

At the end of the 15 days I will look over all the entries and I will pick my favourite one which will win some lovely products... I'm not giving too much away but the prize already includes some lovely Colour Club nail polishes. Also for this I will send internationally, so you can join in where ever you are in the world!

 The first challenge will be Day 1: Bright on August 1st. I really hope you can join in! 

Fee xo.

Would You Take A Makeup Artist Course?

Today I wanted to talk about makeup classes! 

 I don't know about you but the most I have been taught about makeup has been all internet based. Yes, I own the odd makeup book and I have been learnt a few tricks from makeup artists on beauty counters. But my main source of knowledge comes from the internet.

Now the internet is amazing for learning about makeup... or should I sayYoutube is! With the likes of the Pixiwoo sister and Lisa Eldridge who are all very talented and offer such great videos. But surely a hands on makeup course can teach more due to being able to see techniques being applied in person and then trying them out yourself. Also of course I imagine it being very in depth, being taught about colour theory and how to achieve specific looks.

For me personally I would love to take a makeup course even though I don't have a desire to become a makeup artist, mainly so I could apply my own makeup perfectly (I still struggle with liquid eyeliner and contouring) and also so I could apply others makeup - something that is very hard to do well if you are only use to applying your own makeup I have found. 

In particular, make up artist courses from The Session School can go a long way towards achieving that goal of looking fab. The school offers a huge range of courses and even a £30 taster class!

I would love to hear your thoughts on taking a makeup course for your own personal practice. Would you ever consider taking one? 

Fee xo.

New Product - Balmi Lip Balms!

 

A totally new product today from a new brand - Balmi! 

Balmi are a entirely new range of lip balms which will be launching in Boots stores in August priced at £4.99.

 The Balmi Lip Balms of course bear a resemblance to the EOS lip balms (which you can actually find at Cutecosmetics.co.uk  for £5.95 with free p&p) making them really easy to apply. I actually enjoy putting lip balm on when it is shaped like this... it sounds sad, but if you try one you will know what I mean. 

The new range consists of 5 Balmi lip balms (all SPF 15) - Strawberry, Coconut (shown), Blackcurrent, Mink and Raspberry. The packaging being all different colours for each different scent - so bright pink/red packaging for the strawberry flavour etc. You can find more about the new range on the Balmi website here.

The Balmi coconut lip balm is very holiday like and smells so good. It reminds me very much of The Body Shop Coconut Lip Butter. It of course applies clear and isn't at all sticky, just smooth and hydrating. Also the domed shape of the lip balm means no having to apply this with your fingers, also it seems really nice & different to apply it in this way!

My only dislike about the product is the little key/phone attachment which makes me think the product is aimed at a much younger market even though the rest of the product doesn't appear that way. Though the cord does have the option to be removed - which I have done, so maybe it is a little fussy of me! 

Even though I do have the coconut one I will be trying out the strawberry flavour  when they hit the shelves next month! Also I am really hoping they add a cherry one and maybe some fun flavours like lemonade or even pina colada! 

Will you be trying out this new range of lip balms? 

Fee xo. 

NOTD - Models Own Manicure with Glitter Tips

Mermaid nails! 

As I loved Color Club Gingerbread on my nails so much in my last NOTD post (here) I decided to use it again just on the tips this time and some how with the mixture of blues I used I came up with some lovely under water/mermaid looking nails. 

 Models Own Jade Stone is one of my favourite nail polishes but lately it hasn't been getting used so I decided to use that as a base.  Two coats and it is perfect... though you can actually get away with just one coat! I then decided to add Models Own Indian Ocean because believe it or not I am not that in love with it, so I keep using it over different nail polishes in hope that I will eventually love it. I am thinking it may even end up in my upcoming blog sale!

Lastly I just added two coats of Color Club Gingerbread to the tips of my nails. Gingerbread really is my favourite glitter at the moment... it is just amazing. Though sadly Colour Club isn't widely available in the UK so you can only find this nail polish on eBay for £8.99 plus p&p (here). 

I really do love the combination of all three nail polish together, it just seems to work and look so pretty. 

 As for my 30 Day Nail challenge I have decided on suggestion of a few of you that read my blog that I am going to do it (starting August 1st) but only every other day... so not to ruin my nails! But now I don't know what to call it because it isn't even really a 15 day nail challenge!

Fee xo.

Stila Lip Trio Set from Direct Cosmetics

Today I have a bit of an exciting review... well for me anyway! Because I have discovered a website that you can purchase the NEW Stila bundles that you can normally find in TK Maxx which nine times out of ten someone has already opened and tried!!

But with buying online you get none of that! Just brand new lovely products for... wait for it... only £5.99. A pretty great price for three lovely lip products I personally think. 

The website is called Direct Cosmetics and there are two sets available, the Stila Lip Trio set (£5.99 here) which contains:  Stila High Shine Lip Color in Beatrice, Lip Shine in Sugar Shine 08 and Cherry Crush Lip and Cheek Stain. 

Also the Stila Makeup Trio (£6.99 here) which contains: Stila Oil-free Sheer Colour Tinted Moisturiser in Dark, Perfecting Concealer in Shade A and Lip Pots Tinted Lip Balm in Mandarine. 

Be warned my reviews of these three lip products may contain a lot of 'lovely's' because I did just find everything to be lovely. From the packaging, to the shades, to the consistency - all just very lovely! 

So the first product in the trio is the Stila High Shine Lip Color in Beatrice which I'm tempted to say is my favourite out of the three products. Firstly how pretty is the packaging? So much detail and just very chic but girly. The shade is a lovely high shine red and I mean this really is high shine, it looks so glossy on the lips and isn't at all sticky like a lipgloss. Also being totally new to Stila lipsticks I didn't know about the amazing vanilla-y scent, very similar to the MAC lipsticks and a lovely touch. Very much impressed by this!

Okay this is actually my favourite product as I am a sucker for stains and love the shade of this and the lovely metallic red packaging. The Cherry Crush Lip and Cheek Stain is one of those lovely fast drying gel products. On the lips this gives a nice dark (ish) cherry stain and on the cheeks it just gives a nice pink/red flush that blends in really well. It's lovely and smooth and I think equally as nice for summer as it would be for winter. 

My only slight disappointment with this was with how the product tasted.. of course you don't go eating the product from the tube, but from time to time you do lick your lips and it just tasted odd to me and a bit product-y. Though it you don't it just has a faint scent of cherries which is nice. I know I will definitely be using this a lot especially as a cheek stain!

Last but not least the Stila Lip Shine in Sugar Shine which is a pretty nice product but just not in the same league as the other two products. Maybe it's because it's a simple gloss but nothing really stood out for me, though the packaging is very cute. I will use this I'm sure, probably over pink lipsticks like my NYX Strawberry Milk lipstick to give a glossy finish. 

Overall I really am impressed at the value for money with this set and so glad it can be purchased online. The site also stocks a lot of other Stila products like the Lip Glazes stick for only £2.49 and there is even two Smudge Pots for £2.99! 

Direct Cosmetics also stock my favourite discontinued Bourjois Shimmering Shine Liquid Eyeshadows for £1.99 which are so lovely and last forever! I actually don't know why Bourjois ever discontinued them! Really so many bargains to be had. 

I now feel like I need to buy more Stila lips products especially the High Shine Lip Colors! 

Fee xo.

Nip + Fab Multi Fix Oil Offer at ASOS!

Another post today because I didn't want this offer/saving to sell out and then I couldn't mention it! 

A few days ago I talked about a few products in the ASOS sale and the Nip + Fab Multi-Fix Oil was my only beauty purchase. But I was unsure of how big the products were in size because the image and description didn't say - naughty ASOS. But now I know I really think this is a great offer and I had to share it!

Normally a single Nip+Fab Multi Fix Oil (100ml) costs £12.25 but the ASOS offer is THREE Multi-fix oils (so 300ml) for £7.50 here! A huge saving of £29.25.

Of course I haven't had time to fully try it out, only using it twice so far but I would say it is like a standard oil - quite like Bio Oil. But definitely worth the money as oils are quite pricey!

The uses for this oil are endless... as it states on the box this can be used to improve the appearance of scars, stretch marks etc but this can also be used as a cuticle oil, for the ends of the hair as a pre-wash conditioner or a small amount to smooth down split/dry ends. It can also be used on the face if you suffer from dry skin. Also down the shins to highlight the legs. I am sure there are more uses for it but as you can see this truly is a multi-purpose product. 

Really happy with my only sale buy! A fab deal. 

Fee xo. 

NOTD - All That Glitters!

A few days ago I decided to organise my nail polishes, because it's something I like to do as I never feel like they are organised in the correct way. So I organised all my glitter nail polishes into a pretty Cartier storage box and then because they all looked so pretty I picked out a few to paint my nails with the next day. 

While sorting out all my nail polishes (lots are going to be in a blog sale soon..  I'm talking 30+!) I realised that I have stopped wearing glitter nail polish and I miss it. So I am going to hunt down Sally Hansen's Kwik Off nail polish remover on Ebay or Amazon as it is the only remover that removes glitter nail polish fast, and I am going to start using all my beautiful glitter nail polishes again. 

Anyway, so for my nails I decided to start off with two mini OPI shades for the base.. but actually I didn't even need them as the two glitter polishes I used were quite packed glitter so it didn't make much of a difference.  You can see the swatches of the two shades above which are from the OPI  Designer Series. Very pretty indeed!

Then for the two amazing glitter nail polishes I used Color Club 'Gingerbread' which was from a past holiday collection and China Glaze 'Tinsel Town' from the Let It Snow Holiday 2011 collection (that collection was soooo nice). So quite a festive manicure... though I only knew that the Colour Club nail polish was called Gingerbread after googling it as they don't have shade names on them!

I just needed two coats of each and then I was done! 

I really do love this combination and really think it's just a bit more interesting than using one glitter.

To finish I used my new favourite top coat - NYC In a New York Color Minute Quick Dry Top Coat which is around £2.50 ish. This dries so fast and makes any nail polish look so glossy. I love applying this over nail art. 

On another note I am thinking of doing another 30 Days of Nails challenge were I post a Nail of the Day every day or nail art. I really enjoyed it last time but my nails did suffer a bit afterwards so I'm not 100% sure!

Fee xo. 

 

ASOS Sale Bargains!

With having an ASOS Premier account (a one off fee for a years worth of next day delivery) I always have to restrain myself when sale time comes around. I just see all the bargains and think 'Ooo these could be in my hands tomorrow!'. 

So this month I have had to be especially strict with myself as the ASOS sale has been full of bargains. 

The above products are my favourite picks from the Beauty sale and the reason I am mentioning it today is the it's the last day for an extra 10% off plus there is free international delivery on at the moment, I am sure! 

My only beauty purchase was the Nip + Fab Multi-Fix Oil (here) which I thought was a bargain for under £7.00 as it's one of those oils that can be used for all sorts. On the ends of the hair, for scars/stretchmarks, for spots, moisturizing the face, I'm sure removing makeup and anything else you can use an oil for! The only annoying thing is that it doesn't tell you what size the bottles are (you actually get the product as a pack of 3!) however from googling the product I am pretty sure it only comes in a 100ml bottle so that is 300ml for only £6.75!

I also picked up a dress for my mum's wedding, next month. Which will hopefully fit and look nice - if so I will have to show it on Makeup Savvy Extra. 

As for the other products on sale... The Bliss set comes in two choices and is only £5.00 (here), the OPI NICKI Minaj Minis are reduced to £9.00 (here) I was so tempted to get them but I have too many nail polishes now. Also there are two lovely Models Own trio mini sets - the one above is from the Beetlejuice collection and is only £4.50 (here) and there is also a glitter trio for £5.50 (here).

I'm sure there are lots of other amazing bargains, but they are my favourite beauty ones. 

Non-beauty wise there are so many dresses that I wanted! Mainly by Mango as they are always good quality. Also don't do what I did and forget to put in the 10% off code (10SALE) and have to cancel the order and do it all over again! 

Fee xo.

Hot Summer Shades on She Said Beauty!

It's not often I post about my articles for She Said Beauty but I thought I would today as this month I have lots of nail related posts going up! Very exciting for me. 

The post is on different summer nail polish collections whether you are into your brights or your pastel shades plus nail swatches of some of my current favourite shades. I'm also secretly quite proud of my photography skills as well with this one! 

So I would really love if you could have a look at the post - here! 

Fee xo. 

PS. Which shade is your favourite from the swatches. I'd have to go for the Maybelline Pro pastel (bottom middle) and the NYC polish (top left).

June 2012 Favourites

It seems like a million years since I did my monthly favourites - well it actually has been, seeing as my last post was in October last year! But for some reason I decided to stop doing them... I think it was a mixture of being too slow to gather up all my favourites to review and also I kept wanting to include the same products each month. 

However since then I have tried a lot of new products I feel like I'm ready to get back in to reporting my monthly favs. Also I am going to be strict with myself and not ramble about each product too much! 

June for me was a simple kind of month- I didn't seem to go out anywhere that special so my day-to-day makeup I kept fairly simple... mainly nude lips and a soft, slightly shimmery smokey eye with winged out brown pencil liner. Though I have been big on fluttery eyelashes recently! 

Collection 2000 Cream Puff Lip Cream in Powder Puff 

£2.99 - Boots (here) 

My love for this is on a par with the Barry M Toffee lip gloss that has has a place in my heart for many years now. But this is my newer love! Really it is the matte (more opaque) version on the Barry M lip gloss if I think about it. In June I used this a lot as it looks like a matte nude lipstick on the lips but is really moisturising and can be applied without a mirror. The texture is one I can't really explain but it feels so lovely to apply, it literally just glides over the lips and this shade is so wearable. I really do hope they extend the shades in this range especially with a vibrant red shade. 

MAC Satin Lipstick in Peach Stock 

Gift - CCO (only a place of dreams for me as I don't have one near by!)

This was a lovely birthday present from the beautiful and lipstick obsessed Maxi (@littlemissmaxi) because she knows how much I like my nude lipsticks. This is probably my only peach shaded nude and I just love it. It is such a warm nude that looks amazing with a clear gloss over the top (as satin isn't my most favourite finish from MAC). I have been wearing this in the day but it looks amazing with a really smokey eye for at night! Love it lots!

Avon Super Shock MAX Mascara 

£10.00 - Avon (here) or FREE with July 2012 issue of Marie Claire magazine

So this is a bit of a cheat as I have only had it for two weeks but I wanted to mention it now as it's actually a freebie with Marie Claire magazine this month! There are actually three mascaras to chose from however I do love volume mascaras the most. This mascara as you can see has a large plastic bendy wand which really grips the lashes and builds up volume. I've been loving this mascara because after the first coat I apply a second application to my outer lashes and it gives such a nice effect - quite feline/cat-like especially when wearing flicked out liner. 

MAC Paint Pot in Bare Study

£14.50 - Debenhams (here) or any MAC counter

 This has been my go-to eyeshadow base for the past two months. I mainly use this all over the lid with a matte brown in the crease and along the lash line for an everyday simple smokey eye. It is just a lovely shimmery champagne shade that never wears or creases and really is worth every penny! 

Revlon Scented Nail Enamel in Pretty in Papaya
£6.49 - Boots (here) 
NYC In a New York Color Minute Top Coat
£1.79 - Superdrug 

In the past year I have really fallen in love with Revlon nail polishes... discounted Revlon nail polishes I should add. This scented summery beauty was one of my savvy buys which I found in Poundland - bargain!! I have been wearing it on my toes for the past month as it looks so bright and glossy. Also I have been so, so, soooo impressed with my new top coat. After using my 17 Top Coat for nail art too much it got a bit murky so I decided to purchase a new top coat just for applying over nail polish. I could have got the 17 one again as I do really like it but decided I wanted to try something new. So I went for the NYC one as I love the formula of the NYC Quick Dry nail polishes and I could see from tipping the bottle it was the consistency I like. The brush is great as it covers the whole nail in one sweep and this really does dry the nails fast. A really nice top coat... it may even be out shining the 17 top coat at the moment!

Lavera Basis Sensitiv Organic Q10 Hand Cream

£4.25 75ml (full size) - Big Green Smile (here) 

Sadly an empty favourite here as I have used this hand cream all up! But I will be getting the full size tube when I find a website that sells it with free delivery. This came in the February Jolie Box (review of the box - here) and it really was love at first use. The scent is just so nice and fresh and the cream just absorbs so fast and isn't sticky. If you see the mini size in a shop buy it for in your handbag... I really don't think you will be let down by it! 

Eco Tools 5 Piece Brush Set

£3.78 (free p&p) - eBay (here)

 I won't ramble much about these brushes as I did write a post on them (here) but these two from the set I bought have been my favourite brushes. The baby kabuki brush I use with my Nars Laguna bronzer as it's a duo compact with Orgasm blush, so the brush size is perfect and it just fits into the hollows of my cheeks for quick contouring. The powder brush I have been using to powder with and it is just the softest of brushes. If you fancy some new brushes for under £4 I would so recommend the Eco Tools sets from Ebay. Just amazing value!

Cor The Silver Soap 

£35/30g - Blissworld (here)

This soap has been my favourite for the past 6 months but for some reason I haven't got around to reviewing it properly. I guess it is because when I first started using it I thought "how do I convince anyone that spending £35 on a small soap is a good thing". But now I have been using it for 8/9 months and as you can see I still have a lot left and I do use it every other day! I'm actually tempted to weigh it as the soap brand new weighed 30g so it would tell me how much has been used up. Geekiness aside this really is more than just a soap and is a vital part of my skincare routine for my oily skin. I am so pleased it has lasted so long and really £35 on a soap that will last me a year isn't too bad at all!

E45 Silky Radiance Body Lotion 

£3.99 - Boots (here)

I have so many moisturisers that I like to interchange them in my bathroom cabinet so I use a different one each month after my shower. This month I have been using this massive bottle of Radiance Body Lotion which is definitely one to use if you have a tan as it has a shimmer to it (nothing over the top) and looks really nice on tanned skin. The scent is light and it absorbs into the skin really quickly. Nothing wow but it is a little bit different and works well. Definitely one I will be pouring into a travel bottle to take on holiday I think.

Macadamia Deep Repair Hair Masque 

£13.75 - 250ml - Cheap Smells (here)

My favourite hair mask ever! At first the difference after using this product was amazing - this product seriously tames the frizz. But after using this for some months I have really noticed a change in my hair for the better. Since slightly trimming the ends of my hair this has kept the condition exactly the same instead of the ends normally splitting and going a bit frizzy. I do try to only use this once a week now as my hair is in much better condition and it still transforms my hair for the week. This really is everything I need in a hair mask and splashing out on a big pot was more than worth it. 

 Would love to hear what some of your favourite products have been recently or if you have done a monthly favourites post then make sure to link it below so that I can have a read! 

Fee xo.

Guest Post: What brands to Czech out while on holiday in Prague by Cityscape Bliss!

Today I have another guest post for you! I have decided I am going to make accepting guest posts a regular thing but I am going to write a detailed post on that this coming week. 

My guest post today comes from Tereza, who is a Czech girl living in England with a lovely beauty, lifestyle and fashion blog - Cityscape Bliss. Which I always make sure to read because it features affordable products and I always seem to discover products I've never heard of before.
 

What brands to Czech out while on holiday in Prague?

  Did you know that majority of tourists coming to the Czech Republic are British? Over 500,000 British people visited Prague last year! It’s cheap to fly there & the exchange rate is more than favourable. What would a Czech girl recommend you spend your holiday money on (apart from a pint of beer for a quid)? Make-up! There are quite a few brands in Czech drugstores that are definitely worth checking out!

Dermacol is one of a few original Czech brands with wide range of products. I recently discovered their Elixir Micellar Lotion (who needs Bioderma nowadays, right?) and Night Grow Lash Serum (apparently better than the L’Oreal one?!).  

Manufaktura is a super unique brand – with original spa tradition! Western part of Czech Republic is famous for its amazing spas and this brand took an advantage of the local healing thermal springs. If you love unusual scents & ingredients (beer, wine, thermal salt), this is a must buy for you! I’m in love with their Lavender Shower Gel, which smells like freshly cut lavender (imagine running through a lavender field – that’s how you gonna smells after shower).

Saloos facial oils became an essential part of my evening routine. First I was a bit worried – putting oil on my face just didn’t sound right. But soon I discovered that nothing has made my skin better than their Rose Facial Oil! When I have got trouble falling asleep, I use the Lavender version, which has got really strong but relaxing scent and works just as well as the rose one.    

When you go to DM drugstore, you’ll see that Balea is everywhere! It’s DM’s own brand (just like you can find Boots products in Boots) and the value for money is ridiculous! Their basic line is less than a quid per product and the smell is divine! The proof is that my boyfriend told me I can’t use my Balea Young Sugar shower gel because it’s his favourite shower gel ever and he’s gonna cry when it runs out. Oh my!     

 

Catrice is a strictly make-up brand (originally from Germany) and is famous for its limited editions. You can always spot some creative products – I adore their Big City Life eye shadow palettes, which have great pigmentation & each shade is named after a significant tourist sight in London, Berlin, Sydney or Paris. You can also find some lovely dupes in their nail polish line!   

Essence is a German brand, but it’s sold in almost every drugstore in Prague. Most products are around a pound and sometimes you can find really quirky innovative items (mainly in their limited editions) such as Nail Stamping Kit or Special Effects top coats. Their nail polish line is massive and one bottle is about 80p (not joking!). A little tip: shade Blue Addicted is a dupe for Deborah Lippmann’s Across the Universe!

Thank you so much to Tereza for such an interesting post - I didn't even know about half of the brands mentioned! 

Make sure to take a look at Tereza's blog - Cityscape Bliss (here).

Fee xo.

My Love of Detangling Sprays

I have long hair. Long but non-tangly hair really. However after I wash my hair I normally like to put it up in a towel and leave it there while I either do my makeup or just do nothing really. Then when I take my hair out of the towel it is normally semi dry and full of tangles! 

I do have a tangle teezer which 100% helps and gets through all the tangles but I have found it takes no time at all if I use a de-tangling spray as well. 

 I currently use two detangling sprays and like them equally on most points. But as I like my products to be free from nasties I'm now opting for the Naked Untangle Me Spray. Though these two do work is quite similar ways.

Supersoft Kids Tropical Fruit Scent Spray - 150ml/£2.20 - Tesco, Sainbury's

Naked for Kids Orange Lollies Untangle Me Spray 200ml/£2.99 - Naked online here, Boots

Supersoft also have a Strawberry and Milk scent which I'm dying to try because it sounds yummy. Just need to use up the last on my tropical scented spray.

Both products work in exactly the same way. You just spray the product all over wet/damp hair and then brush through. They don't leave any texture or residue in the hair however much you use and if you have a really knotty area you can spray a bit more closer up and it sorts it out perfectly.

Scent wise I do prefer the tropical scent the most as it's so summery smelling but it is on the synthetic side mind. Were are the Naked orange lollies scent does smell like oranges but isn't synthetic-y but oranges aren't really my thing.

I feel that detangle sprays are something that most of us would over look at they do all seem to be aimed at children, but if you do get tangly hair then getting a spray like one of these will just sort out the problem and I'm sure it must cut down of the amount of split ends as well! 

Fee xo.

Guest Post: Studs and Dreams Current Beauty Favourites!

A different type of post today!

A guest post from the Lorna from Studs and Dreams.

Lorna has a lovely and relatively new blog (only 2 months old!) which consists of great outfit posts plus some beauty posts in the mix! So make sure to go and have a look!

 

Garnier Ambre Solaire After Sun

This product has been a life saver for me while on holiday and while I’ve been back. It applies nicely and does exactly what it says on the tin. The only after sun I’ve used for years! I burn really easily and usually peel a lot and so always need a huge bottle of this stuff. I took it away for a week and I’ve still got plenty left. 

Lush Handy Gurugu Hand Cream

I’ve had this product for quite a while now but it’s my favourite hand cream by far and I’ll definitely be repurchasing when this runs out or runs out of date. It’s the most perfect moisturising hand cream. I generally use this at night before I go to bed by applying quite a lot to allow it to sink in overnight. I’ve also been peeling slightly on one of my hands since I got back from my holiday and this has worked a treat to subside the peeling!

HD Brows Brow Kit

I received this in a Glossy Box quite a while ago and have been in love ever since. I never used to fill in my eye brows at all but now all I can wonder is what on earth was I thinking! It frames your face so much more and really adds to the overall look of your makeup. I definitely wouldn’t go out without having them done now, completely adds to my confidence. I’ve actually got the one for blondes, which clearly I am not but I don’t actually find this a problem as the darkest shade is my shade anyway and I can just use the rest as eye shadows. 

E.L.F Mineral Eyeliner Brush

This is actually the brush that I use to apply the HD Brows product to my eye brows. I lost the one that I received with the product, I think I may have accidently binned it which I was gutted about at the time but now I’ve got this one I’m not really bothered. I got this one in one of the Mineral brush sets and actually couldn’t recommend these brushes more. 

Barry M Intense Black Eyeliner Pen

This is my favourite eyeliner of all time. I’ve tried other more expensive brands of which I am determined to find one I like better but for the moment I always go back to this one. It’s super black which is probably one of the reasons I like it so much and I find it lasts pretty well when I wear it. 

Travalo Perfume Atomiser

I got this for my birthday after knowing I wouldn’t want to take a huge heavy perfume bottle away with me on holiday. This is perfect! It’s so easy to use (even though it took me a while to work out how to get the lid off the perfume, oops!) and I would definitely repurchase for other perfumes. I filled this with my favourite perfume Daisy by Marc Jacobs!

Balance Me Rose Otto Intensive Lip Salve

I picked this up with the most recent copy of Glamour magazine after hearing a bit about it in the wonderful blogging world! I’m not usually a fan of a rose scent actually but this has totally grown on me and now I love it. It’s the most perfect lip balm as it smells beautiful and keeps your lips beautifully soft at the same time, what more could you ask for? I will definitely be picking up a few more copies of Glamour as I could never justify paying full price for this. 

MAC Lipstick in Shy Girl

This is my first ever MAC purchase and I definitely don’t regret it! I always knew that I wanted one of their lipsticks after hearing so many great things about them and it just came down to getting round to buying one and choosing the shade. I had planned to go to a counter and try on a few shades but I saw them at just over £10 on Debenhams and so knew it was fate! I decided to pick up Shy Girl after hearing so many good things about it and perusing over the swatches a lot. It was quite an unusual shade choice for me because if I wear a lipstick I usually go all out and wear a bright but I really wanted to try something different. I wasn’t so sure of it when I first bought it but after forcing myself to wear it (I really wanted to love it) I shortly fell in love with it and can’t stop myself wearing it constantly! The formulation is beautiful. I will definitely be picking another one up soon. 

Pixi Glow Tinkerbell Fairytale Nail Polish  

I’m in love with this shade! It’s the most perfect bright pink that looks great with a tan or without. I’m not shy with neon’s and bright’s which is probably why I love this so much. It has got a hint of a golden shimmer in the bottle but this doesn’t really transfer onto the nails, which I’m happy about as I much prefer a shade without shimmer. It comes out more on the matte side but to combat this I just apply a topcoat over it as I think it gives it a much better finish. The formulation of the nail polish is great and I definitely want to try out some of their other polish shades. 

Benefit Cha Cha Tint

I picked this up near Christmas time with a £10 off voucher as I’m a big fan of all of Benefit’s tints. I’ve recently rediscovered it and I think it works perfectly for the summer (if only we had a better one!). The colour looks quite daunting in the bottle but transfers beautifully onto the skin. The price also appears quite daunting but this will last me forever. I’ve been using much smaller bottles of the other tints and I haven’t even come close to finishing them so I can’t imagine finishing this one up in a hurry. 

Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish

This is a staple in the majority of people’s skincare routine within the blogging world and I can see why. I have both mini versions and a full-size and I’m loving it. It works beautifully into the skin and cleans it properly. I’ve always been a face wipe kind of girl, but after learning how bad they are for your skin I’ve been trying to shy away from using them and in place of that I have been using this and it definitely works wonders. 

Some great products from Lorna and also some of my own favourites such as the Travalo, HD Brows Kit and the pepto bismol coloured Pixi Glow nail polish! 

Hope you enjoyed this guest post and a big thank you to Lorna. Make sure to go follow her blog - here.

Fee xo.

NOTD - Models Own Disco Heaven

Back in May I showed you swatches of Ibiza Mix from the Models Own Hedkandi range and it's still a favourite of mine. But I thought it was only fair to also show you Disco Heaven - another nail polish from the music label collaboration.

You can view my nail swatches of Models Own Ibiza Mix - here. 

Disco Heaven is a gold glitter with random blue iridescent pieces of glitter and is definitely a top coat unlike some of the other Models Own glitters that are quite opaque over the nails in 3 coats. So this works best over different shades as you only need one coat. You can find Disco Heaven at ASOS £5 - here, or Boots that have a Model Own stand.. though be warned it is sold out most of the time at Boots.

 

I first decided to apply this over a really bright base so I chose Models Own Pink Punch as it is such a lovely neon pink... but sadly for some reason this doesn't show up on my camera! The bottle shade is more similar to what it looks like in real life but more vivid and bright. Even though this doesn't look that 'wow' in the images I did really like the gold glitter against such a bright base -very summery. This is definitely a combination I would wear on my toes on holiday!

I only applied one coat but I did find more glitter being applied to the centre of the nails than the sides as I applied it... I guess because the brush overlaps into the centre as you are painting the side. Not really a big deal at all but most glitters don't do this on me. 

 

I am so glad I decided to also try Disco Heaven over a black base because it just looks amazing and really shows off the blue glitter amongst the gold. For the base I went for Orly Black Out (£5.00 mini 5ml size) which I love as you only need two coats and it isn't watery like some black nail polishes. Again I just applied one coat of the Disco Heaven top coat. This really have a clubbing/night out type aspect I think!

If I had more time to spare I would have tried the polish over a nude base as I think glitters can look really elegant over nude shades. But I guess that can be for another NOTD post. 

I really am a lover of the Models Own glitter nail polishes! 

 

Fee xo.