Putting my face back on

I do love the holidays for doing nothing much, catching up on things that need doing and just lounging around the house. I am glad that my kids are old enough to keep themselves entertained and have been out to all sorts of places with their friends. I am also glad that I have a job and go to college during term time otherwise I fear I may turn into a bit of a recluse and sit and watch call the midwife everyday!

It has only dawned on me at the end of the Easter holidays that throughout the past two weeks I have not used any cosmetics, not even nail varnish! I haven't worn a single piece of jewellery, not even earrings and I normally wear them everyday! I haven't even taken any notice of what clothes I have put on each morning, just grabbing the first comfortable thing I see out of the wardrobe.

I have left the house, but nowhere of any purpose that I have felt the need to look presentable and it has been nice to not have to worry about my appearance. Looking in the mirror however, I do feel plain and dull and like I need to brighten myself up a bit.

Summer term is my favourite time, everything is fresh and bright, everybody seems happier and I don't even mind doing playground duty as I get to top up my tan while outside... nothing like multitasking! I only have ten weeks left of college and we can all count down to the summer holidays...yay!

So tomorrow, although it's the end of the holidays I will smile, put my face back on, and be ready for what is ahead!

New year Boots treats

Having spent quite a lot of money in Boots buying Christmas presents I managed to accumulate a few points on my advantage card and what better way to spend them than to treat myself to a few things!

Summer is still a while off and the winter makes me feel very pale so when I saw that cocoa butter has a bronze lotion that gradually adds a natural looking tan I just had to buy it and the fact that it was on offer made it even better!
I don't normally use foundation but I do like BB cream as it is a bit more natural looking. I have had these annoying lines under my eyes for a while (it's definitely not due to sleep deprivation) so I thought I would try this BB cream eye roll-on to see if it would remove them.

I know dental floss isn't much of a treat but I have managed to avoid the dentist recently and hope to hold out a bit longer so good dental hygiene is a must!
Earrings are probably the only jewellery I wear regularly so I like to update them every so often. There was a large range of jewellery on sale and I picked up this set for only £2 - Bargain!

I have been saying that I am going to cut my hair short for the past year...or maybe a bit longer than that, I have even put it on my bucketlist. I am sure that I will get round to it at some point in 2015 but until then I thought I would treat my hair to a nice conditioner to keep it under control.

I had just over £20 worth of points on my advantage card and this lot came to around £16 so I even have a few pounds left over towards my next shop!

Have you treated yourself to anything in the January sales?

Beauty product of the month - June

You know when a smell takes you back to another place or time, well that's exactly what this White musk sun glow does for me.

One of my favourite perfumes is the original White musk from The Body Shop so when I saw this limited edition of white musk last summer I thought I would try it out and bring in on holiday with me to Spain.
At first I admit that I wasn't too keen on it, maybe because it doesn't actually smell much like White musk! I thought I would try and use it up while I was away and forget about it, but after covering myself with it everyday of my holiday it grew on me and now I love it.

On returning I used the perfume occasionally as there wasn't much left, it immediately transported me back to my Spanish apartment with the hot sun shining onto the large balcony that overlooked the swimming pool.

Unfortunately I have just finished the bottle and I feel like I have lost the scent of Spain!

What smell transports you back to another space in time?

Eyebrow threading

I have been meaning to get my eyebrows threaded for quite a while but never got round to it, or maybe I just heard that it was really painful and purposely put it off!

Well yesterday I had to take a trip into Superdrug and I knew they had a small area set up just for eyebrow threading and thought if it wasn't too full (another excuse) then I would go for it... it happened to be empty!

I notice a lot of ladies that get their eyebrows done have pretty good eyebrows already, they probably get them done regularly but mine have not been touched for weeks and were a mess. I have had them waxed in the past and like how quick it is and how neat the brows look as opposed to when I pluck them and randomly pull out stray hairs.

The actual experience wasn't as bad as I was expecting it to be, it was more uncomfortable than painful and was over really quickly. The one thing I didn't like was that I could feel all the tiny hairs hitting my face as she was pulling them out and afterwards I kept brushing my face thinking there was hair over it. I found the fact that you could hear the hairs being pulled out quite strange too, it was almost like the sound of pulling sellotape off your skin.

I think I prefer to have my eyebrows waxed as there is not much difference in the outcome and having the hot wax applied can actually be rather relaxing but I am glad I gave it a go.

Have you had your eyebrows threaded before and is it something you would do again?

Beauty product of the month - May

I haven't bought many beauty products this month but something that I do buy regularly is new nail varnish. I love wearing pretty pastel colours in the spring and found this lovely babydoll pink that I thought would look perfect in the sunshine.

I love the light shade and think it suits my skin tone especially as it makes me look more tanned! It is a good shade for both hands and feet and at a mere £1.99 it doesn't break the bank either! I bought this bottle in Superdrug but it is probably available in other make up retailers as well.

What products have made your fav list this month?

May Glossybox

I actually forgot to post my Glossybox contents last month and cannot remember what was in there so it couldn't have been that great! This month however I am very impressed with and have already used all the products that were in the box.

I have always wanted to try John Frieda Frizz-Ease and never got round to buying it so I was very pleased to see it in the box. It is a full size product and at only 25ml it does seem quite small but as only a small amount is needed each use I think it could probably last a while, saying that we do have 3 females with frizzy hair in this house so it may not last too long!

I am not really a lover of foundation so when BB creams came out I was swayed by the fact that they cover your flaws but feel like a moisturiser. The Garnier BB cream covers really nicely and was a great shade which is suitable for myself and my daughter, who is a shade darker than me. This particular one also hydrates and protects with SPF 15.

Another 2 full size products were the Scholl overnight foot mask and the Maybelline crystallize nail polish in nearly black shade.

I have to say the velvet smooth overnight mask for the feet really did work. I had quite dry heels which felt rough to touch but after leaving this cream on overnight they really were velvety smooth. I do not recommend using this night mask when it is a hot or humid night though as my feet felt sticky through the night and made it uncomfortable to sleep.

I don't normally wear really dark nail varnishes and I don't think I own any black shades, I prefer pastel and pretty colours but it is nice to have a change once in a while. I have a St Trinians party that I'm going to at the weekend so I think I will wear this then. It is a little sparkly and rough to the touch, not smooth like most varnishes but still looks nice.

There was another full size product in the box which was a sheer conditioning lipstick but my daughter seemed to disappear with it before I could take a picture!

The 2 bonus items were the Ghost Eclipse fragrance which has a fruity, floral fragrance and is definitely one which I would wear, perfect for summer. And the other is the Garnier oil beauty lotion which I have not opened as yet but think I will use it on my legs when I get them out!

Were you impressed with your Glossybox this month?

Beauty product of the month - April

With the sun now making an appearance I have seen quite a few ladies rocking their sandals and showing off their tootsies. My feet are not quite ready to be aired but I'm sure after a couple of applications of this heel genius from Soap and Glory they will be ready to roam free!

The cream is a green colour and not too heavy consistency, it has a pleasant smell and like other foot creams it has that powdery feeling, although it does dry quickly.

I have never had a proper pedicure and probably wont get one anytime in the near future (will have to add it to my bucketlist) so for now this fruity foot cream will have to do. Lets just hope the sun stays around long enough to get the flip flops out!

What beauty products are you using to get summer ready?

Beauty product of the month - March

Each month I am going to share with you the beauty product of the month that I have been using. Last month it was Seaweed face scrub and this month it is...

Maybelline brow drama sculpting brow mascara. 

I keep meaning to get my eyebrows threaded but still haven't got around to it so I need something that is going to tame and define them. I have never been a fan of eyebrow pencils as they make your eyebrows stand out too much (especially when you shave your eyebrows off first!) and I like the more subtle, natural look.

I do have the problem of having faint looking eyebrows, they tend to disappear a bit in photos that are taken from afar so this product is great for defining them, it also keeps them in place and being a dark brown colour it blends in perfectly.

I haven't tried any other brow mascaras so I cant really compare but I am glad that I've come across this one and it is now part of my daily routine so I will definitely buy it again!

Beauty product of the month - February

Ive never been one to buy lots of beauty products. I would only ever go into superdrug or boots to buy baby things and essentials. There were just so many cosmetics, I wouldn't know where to look first so I would just pass by them to get to the items I needed.

Just recently, what with Christmas, selling body shop products, subscribing to Glossybox and basically having a teen daughter that has just started obsessing over her looks, I find myself surrounded with make up, skincare, perfumes and all sorts of other fabulously smelling stuffs... I think I just made that word up!

I still don't overdo it with make up or anything but I do have certain products that I favour and tend to get into a routine of using, so I've decided each month I will share with you my favourite beauty product, be it haircare, make up or toiletries.

I do love The body shop products (lookout for giveaway coming soon) and have been using their seaweed skincare range. The item that stood out for me is their pore-cleansing facial exfoliator.

It is for combination/oily skin and is described as an 'oil balancing polish to deep cleanse pores and reveal smooth skin.'

I only use it weekly as it does feel like a deep cleanse. The texture is kind of runny like honey but with grains of sand to exfoliate and it has quite a pleasant, subtle scent. The thing I liked most was that when I used it at night my face still felt fresh and smooth the next morning.

Within the coming week I will be celebrating my one year blogiversary, so to celebrate that I've kept at it that long and because, well, I'm just nice like that, as I mentioned above I will be doing a Body shop giveaway!! I don't have any of the above item but I may have something from one of their other fab skincare ranges to add to the box, so keep your eyes peeled.

Salt Of The Earth - Giveaway

As you may of seen yesterday I did a review on the Salt Of The Earth deodorant from the award winning company Crystal Springs. They sell all sorts of natural products from haircare to candles, to have a browse of their luxurious and organic products visit their website here.

I have a set of deodorants including the Rock chick stick described as "A natural antibacterial crystal that fights underarm odours. Prepare to be amazed!" This is suitable for children ages 6 and over and can be used on adults too. Also included is a travel sized unscented spray.

To enter to win this deodorant set just follow instructions on the rafflecopter widget below, don't forget to follow terms and conditions...
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Salt Of The Earth - review

When I was asked by Crystal Spring if I wanted to review a new deodorant aimed at young girls the first thing I thought about was the smell of sweat that wafts through my house of an evening (way too many hormones in my house) and I emailed straight back to accept. 

Not only did I receive a 'rock chick' deodorant for my daughter but also the classic stick and spray version, as well as a set to giveaway on the blog... oh you lucky readers!

The first thing I did when opening the package was to take the top off the deodorant and have a sniff (well that's what you do with toiletries isn't it) after reading the label and realising there was nothing wrong with my sense of smell I thought I would look at the ingredients and see what was actually used in the product. Basically there is only 1 ingredient; Potassium Alum - a natural mineral salt.

The product actually reminded me of a block of ice, it is dry and needs to be run under water to use or used on damp skin when you get out of the shower or bath.

Ive never really looked into products and what makes them smell nice, I know I always buy things because of the nice scents they have but does this have an effect on our health?. Here is some information provided by the Women's Environmental Network

"The amount of fragrance chemicals used each year is enormous – nearly 1 million kilograms of benzyl acetate, a synthetic ‘floral’ fragrance ingredient, are used in the US each year. Ingredients in fragrances are the most frequent cause of allergies from cosmetics, and have been found to cause one third of all cosmetic allergies. Children in particular tend to be more sensitive to fragrances, and can develop allergic reactions easily. Data from Sweden shows that perfume is the most common contact allergen in men, possibly caused by shaving, and damaging the skin, increasing the chances of absorbing the fragrance chemicals and thus developing an allergy. Might a similar response occur for women shaving their legs or underarms and then applying cosmetics such as lotions or antiperspirants/deodorants?"

 "Current legislation does not restrict the quantities or combinations of fragrance chemicals that may be used in cosmetics. This is due to change; the European scientific committee (SCCNFP) has recently introduced restrictions concerning certain fragrance chemicals, many of which are known allergens, either restricting or banning their use completely, or insisting on their labelling in the ingredients list. Currently the law requires only that the label includes the word ‘parfum’ in the EU or ‘fragrance’ in the USA. According to the cosmetics industry this is because a typical cosmetic often contains between 50 and 100 fragrances, which is too many to be easily labelled. This creates a problem for people who are sensitive or allergic to a particular fragrance chemical as they cannot determine what compounds are present in the fragrance."

I like the idea of using natural products but I'm not so sure that many people worry about what chemicals are used in everyday toiletries, I mean we see everyone buying them in their local supermarkets and drugstores so we assume that they are safe, unless we know that we suffer from a certain allergy ourselves we don't look out for ingredients that may have an adverse reaction.

When it comes to our children on the other hand I'm sure the majority of people tend to buy things that are seen as 'environmentally friendly' or 'gentle on the skin' because we wouldn't want to cause any unnecessary harm to them.

The Rock chick deodorant is described as suitable for children ages 6 years or over, is suitable for vegetarians and vegans and is not tested on animals.

My daughter was very happy with the deodorant and didn't mind that it was unscented as she uses it straight out of the bath and tends to use her own scented products ( body spray, perfume) on top of her clothes afterwards anyway.  She did say that the fact that you have to use when you are already damp or you have to run it under the tap meant she couldn't use it on the go, however there are the spray versions that contain aloe vera and are unisex. A travel size version of this will be included in the giveaway.

I think this product is perfect for girls (or even boys) that are just hitting puberty and want to start using toiletries that are natural and safe for their young skin.

To have a look at all the products that are on offer from Crystal Spring including their Salt of the earth range visit their Website 

February Glossybox

Yesterday I got the latest glossybox in the post, but only just! I didn't hear the door knock but the man noticed a card being dropped through the letterbox and opened the door to find a ranting delivery woman moaning about how customers never open their door, and how they have rude neighbours who refuse to take in parcels... and there's me thinking I had nice neighbours!!

 Anyway back to the parcel in question. Myself and teen daughter were very pleased with this months box especially as it contained chocolate and one of my favourites, Lindt... yum! Shame I had to share it :(

 Here's what else was on offer..

The Nougat London sparkling body shimmer is a light moisturising lotion that sparkles in the light and has a lovely scent, Ive never heard of this brand before but will be looking out for other products from the same company.

NV chunky eye crayon is a pink shade and looks very natural on the eye, not to heavy or over powering. I love that it has a twist at the end so it doesn't need sharpening like some of the other pencils I have.

I already have a couple of Ciate paint pots and I love this shade called Pocket money. I would probably be wearing it right now except I cant find my nail varnish remover... grrr

The Giovanni Eco chic range is the number 1 selling natural haircare brand in the United States. I haven't as yet used this product but with the Moroccan argan oils, avocado and papaya to nourish the hair I'm hoping to look like Kim Kardashian by this time tomorrow...hmmm wishful thinking!

The teen got really excited when she saw the Maybelline New York big eyes mascara in the box. She has seen the advert and was desperate to get it for the small brush used on the lower lashes, it is a nice product but I have so many mascaras now I think the teen will steal this one!

I'm not liking the idea of sharing my box (yes I'm selfish, I know!) so was thinking of getting a different beauty box as well as the glossybox. I'm not sure which others are out there, any suggestions or links to other box reviews would be welcome...

Glossybox January

This months Glossybox arrived on Thursday and I eagerly awaited the for the girl to arrive from school as I promised I wouldn't open it without her.

I think they must know that the daughter and I are sharing the box as there were 2 little tubes of cream and 2 sets of eye bag patches in the packet. 

The Yu-Be moisturising cream was very smooth and hydrating but it does have a slightly medicated scent which I didn't find very pleasant.

I haven't tried the eye patches yet but having dark circles under my eyes, I'm intrigued to see if these will make a difference to the appearance.

The CC cream which I think is quite similar to BB cream (Don't quote me on that, I'm no expert) was too light for my daughter and closer to my complexion on a pale day... I have a few of those! So I guess I will be keeping that :)

The tweezers are very pretty and do their job, although watch this space as next month I'm going to get threaded!! I'm sure I will still need these for the touch ups.

I haven't as yet tried the bodywash as I have so many in my bathroom left from Christmas, I'm not sure any of them are 'super toning' though!

Do you subscribe to glossybox, if so what did you think of this months goodies?

December Glossybox

I know I'm a bit late with the glossybox but my daughter has been asking me for months to subscribe to it so as a surprise I ordered it for her for Christmas. I love that its a gift that just keeps giving as there will be one delivered to the door every month!

I don't normally spend much on cosmetics and as I have just finished with The Body shop I have loads of  their skincare range that I can now use for myself. But I do like the idea of having a surprise box every month (did I say I ordered it for my daughter or myself?) So this is what we got in our box this month.

 

 

 

The razor is amazing, I wasn't sure it actually worked as I could only feel the soap/cream part but it did!

I love the nail varnish shade but haven't had a chance to use the mascara yet as my daughter wont let me open it!

 

Anyway I'm looking forward to next months already, it will be like Christmas all over again!!