Nivea Lip Butter - Raspberry Rose

This has to be one of the yummiest lip balms I've ever used, or should I say lip butters. It's creamy and soft just like butter, it's not something I've come across before. In terms of it's appearance it leaves a very pale sheen after application, I like it but don't smother it on too heavily or it looks a little milky! It contains both shea butter and almond oil for long lasting care, according to the Nivea information. I pop it on before bed and my lips feel really moisturised until the morning. As you can see from the photos it's a tin so it's the kind you need to apply with your fingers - some people will love it, some will hate it but it's not sticky on your hands at all. The balm has a really fruity, raspberry scent to it so if you don't like strong smells then I'd avoid it but personally I love it. It's sweet and perfectly pink!

This tin retails from £1.99 at Superdrug (click!), £2.25 at Boots (click!) and £2.50 on the Nivea website (click!). There are 4 scents to choose from, Raspberry Rose, Caramel Cream, Vanilla and Macadamia or Original. I can't wait to pick up the other scents!

Have you got any of these??

ELF Studio Eyebrow Lifter & Filler

In one of my previous ELF shopping sessions I picked up the eyebrow lifter and filler pencil from their Studio range. I'm a die hard lover of my HD Brows kit but sometimes I'd prefer to be able to quickly fill in any tricky bits and be done with my brows. I saw this on the ELF website and was sold by the "lift" element of the pencil in the product description - 

"Create polished and defined brows for a flawless fuller look! The “lift” pencil’s sheer light-reflecting pigments act as an arch support under the brows to enhance and outline the shape for a more youthful and awakened look. While the “fill” pencil shades in the eyebrow to blend in the natural shape, fill in any sparse areas and define the lines."

I purchased the pencil in Ivory/Medium and as you can see the "Fill" nib of the pencil does look like your average medium brown.. This is my first let down with the product, it's actually quite red based when applied to the eyebrow which left me very disappointed.

It does look different in different lights but if you look at the photo on the right you can see where the pencil's nib was slightly thicker than what I needed for the end of my eyebrow and it's left quite a reddy/brown colour on my skin.
My second qualm with this product is its texture. It's so waxy! Both the "Lift" and "Fill" ends left me rubbing off excess product, to the point where I sacked off the highlighter completely! I'm absolutely not used to this as the HD Brows palette is a compressed powder and once it's on the skin it's on there all day. This ELF pencil left me quite disappointed which was a shame as I was looking forward to using it, however I did only pay £3.75 and I wasn't expecting miracles.
Finally, this product was so difficult to apply lightly. The thick texture meant that it was like using a really soft crayola on my face, naturally this meant that however hard I tried I couldn't just fill in the bits I needed to and leave them. I was left rubbing off the parts that were too thick and any flakey bits that had crumbled off and become caught amongst my eyebrow, boo!

I am sad that I can't recommend this product as I absolutely hate doing negative reviews and I really recommend ELF as a quick, go-to brand if you're after some make-up bag essentials.
I promise I have a more positive review of another ELF product coming up so keep your eyes peeled for that, in the mean time head to their website - here - and try some of their other products

Love,

P.S.- In the above photos I'm wearing ELF's Volume Plumping Mascara from their Studio range - a product that I think is the perfect every day mascara that you can see in - this post - xo

ELF favourites - Studio Lip Balm & Volume Plumping Mascara

A couple of weeks ago I had an emergency splurge on ELF (there was no emergency..I just wanted to buy stuff). Amongst all the goodies online I decided on a select few pieces to add to my make-up bag. In this post I want to show you their SPF 15 Studio Lip Balm and the Volume Plumping Mascara. Both of these products are from ELF's Studio range, designed to give a more professional finish than their basic range.

"Relieves and soothes lips with a drench of moisture. SPF 15 helps to shield lips from harmful sun rays. Softens lips to prevent and temporarily protect against chapped, cracked or chafed lips."  

I bought the Studio Lip Balm in the shade "Pink. It retails for £3.50 on their website and for that price I think everybody should buy one!

It's super moisturising and has a lovely minty scent when applied. I've always been one to reach for the Vaseline but this ELF lip balm has truly taken over. It adds a little hint of colour but nothing too offensive if you wear other lip products after a slick of balm. For me this lasted for around 3-4 hours which was perfect.

I'm definitely going to buy a couple more shades of this to take away with me over summer!

"Create lush and bold lashes with our Volume Plumping Mascara. The oversized brush fully coats lashes from root to tip for an intense and dramatic effect. The Vitamin B rich formula conditions and strengthens for visibly healthier looking lashes."

This mascara was also £3.50, possibly the cheapest mascara I own! I don't fully agree with the description, for me this is more of an everyday mascara rather than making them look "lush and bold". It doesn't particularly plump my lashes but I have noticed that my lashes are fully coated, even when they haven't been curled before using the mascara. The brush isn't so big that coating the lower lashes is impossible which I have found with so many other mascaras! I can evenly coat my lower lashes in the corners without them clumping together and without marking my skin with excess mascara. One of the best things about this mascara is that it doesn't crumble off through the day. With some mascaras this means that it's a nightmare to get off, but not this one. It is easily removable with a face wipe, eye make-up remover or my favourite choice - the Liz Earle Hot Cloth Cleanse & Polish.

So, out of the items I ordered these were my favourites but I will be posting a review of a couple of the other bits and pieces as well.

Do you use ELF for any of your make-up needs? I need recommendations!

Love,

 

Liz Earle Sheer Skin Tint - Bare 01

As I'm sure most people know Liz Earle are finally bringing out a highly anticipated (by me at least!) cosmetics range! After taking the first few steps on my cruelty free journey I've been trying my hardest to steer clear of the horrid brands so I was thrilled to hear that Liz Earle will be releasing a new range in May, although I'm fairly sure this product can be purchased online now!

After picking up the travel size skin care set I received a free sample of the new Sheer Skin Tint. I'm not going to lie - tinted moisturisers have never, ever appealed to me. I'm not sure why but I've always gone for full coverage foundations even though I don't have many problem areas on my face. I think foundation has always been a kind of security blanket for me but since I'm getting into a bit of a pickle with foundation matches I really didn't have anything to lose when trying these. 

 Each sample envelope contains 3 shade samples - Bare 01 for fair skin tones, Beige 02 for medium skin tones and Beach 03 for medium to dark skin tones. Being Casper the friendly ghost I discarded the two darker shades and opted for Bare 01.

"The perfect way to enhance your skin. Our rich, creamy fomula leaves skin looking naturally dewy, even and radiant. With mineral UV protection, SPF15 plus our own specially selected blend of botanicals."

As you can see from the above swatch the formula is rich and creamy but doesn't leave any heavy residue on the skin when blended. There's a slight dewy finish though it looks quite natural. I can't stand it when products claim to leave a dewy finish but it ends up looking like you've been sweating all over the place because it's so shiny! It gives an even coverage that's perfect for every day wear. I like how light it is and I feel reassured that my pores aren't going to be horribly clogged by it.

When finished with powder and blusher/bronzer I honestly couldn't tell that I wasn't wearing a foundation which I was very impressed by. It lasted a full day and didn't go patchy. All I found myself doing was a quick sweep of powder across my face about mid-afternoon. I'd recommend a concealer for under eyes or blemishes as it's not a thick formula but you could get away without it if you don't have many skin problems.

One of these small sachets has lasted 3 full applications and I'm pretty sure I'll get another one out for tomorrow so I'm very optimistic about the full size product!

How do you feel about Liz Earle releasing cosmetics? I absolutely can't wait to get my hands on this product and I don't know how I'm going to last until it's official release!!

love,

Liz Earle Essentials Try-Me Kit

After months of reading about Liz Earle's fantastic skin care range I finally caved and bought the Essentials Try-Me kit. Retailing at just under £25 this little bag contains 4 of the daily essentials for anyone looking to try a new skincare routine.

The little bag itself is very small but it fits in 2 pure muslin cloths, a hot cloth cleanse and polish, instant boost skin tonic, moisturiser and a brightening treatment mask.

I'm absolutely in love with everything in this kit! The cleanse and polish is incredible, after only a week of using it I've noticed any unwanted pigmentation on my skin has gone completely, even my boyfriend noticed which is saying something!
The skin tonic is nice to refresh your skin with after the cleanser. You only need a few drops on some cotton wool and it picks up any left-over residue. Saying that, every time I've followed the cleanser with the tonic I've hardly had a mark on the cotton wool!
The moisturiser is the perfect consistency, it isn't too thick but it replenishes the skin after rubbing away any make up with the muslin cloth.
 Finally, the brightening treatment mask is a very quick working face mask that you wash off after 2 minutes after application. It gives the skin a glow without leaving it feeling tight or dry.

So, overall I am a total Liz Earle fan! I've already repurchased the hot cloth cleanser and tonight I'm sticking the muslin cloth in the wash as it's got a few marks on after this week of using it. I couldn't be happier after switching to this new skincare routine, I've even got my mum hooked on it!
Have you tried Liz Earle??


Love,

ps, keep an eye out on my blog this week for a review of the new Liz Earle Sheer Skin Tint!

currently having a fling with Benefit...

Today I have a few Benefit presents to tell you about. Firstly, two beautiful facial products, the Foamingly Clean facial wash and the Triple Performing facial emulsion (i.e. moisturiser!)

(They are the wrong way around in this photo compared to the first one, forgive me!)

These two products are amazing! The face wash removes all traces of face make-up and eye make up! I  haven't tried it with waterproof mascara but with non-waterproof Bad Gal mascara there's not a trace left! I love the moisturiser because a little goes a long way. I use 4 pumps from the bottle and this gives me about a penny size amount which covers my face. I'd recommend using both products together as they seem to compliment each other well, the cleanser sometimes leaves my skin feeling a little "squeaky"(...do you know what I mean?!) but the moisturiser takes that away.

On to the cosmetics: my lovely mum bought me both of these, I'm Glam Therefore I Am and Tan About Town. Both quite wittily named and both really handy to have when I don't have hours to get ready. My favourite is I'm Glam Therefore I Am as I've used pretty much everything in it. With 4 shimmery eye-shadow choices, a miniature Bad Gal mascara, Life on the List lipgloss, Girl Meets Pearl illuminator and Glamming face powder, surprisingly, it's not too big to carry around in a medium sized make up bag. They all make for the perfect natural look when applied.

 Tan About Town took some getting used to. I love the Bad Gal mascara again and I don't mind that it's a "sample" sized product, however I was quite disappointed by the size of the Some Kind-a Gorgeous foundation and Hoola. They are practically Thumbelina sized!

(Both Hoola and Some Kind-a Gorgeous are smaller than my little tin of Vaseline. Quite a let down.)

Unfortunately for me I can't use the foundation as I'm the palest person in the universe, but I've come to like Hoola. If you know your Benefit products it's a pretty much Dallas but without the shimmer.

Anyway, aside from that little moan I have actually fallen head over heels in love with Benefit after using these. They are perfect to carry around and use daily and Benefit never try to be something they're not. They have pretty packaging and quirky names and although all of these products retail full size for over £10 they are products I will use, repurchase and recommend to my friends.

Do you have any Benefit products you can recommend to me?? I haven't bought anything from them in years so please give me your favourites. 

I hope you're all making the most of the bank holiday, lots of love