Nip + Fab Sheer Make up Fix £14.95

The Nip + Fab products have been so popular they normally sell out before they have even hit the shelves. My two favourite products are scrub fix and lip + nip fix so of course I wanted to try the makeup fix when it came out. Primers have been huge this year and I have tried some really great ones so it had a lot to live up to. It doesn’t have such a velvety feel as some primers but still feels soft as you apply it. It certainly kept my makeup on for longer and I didn’t have a shiny forehead after a day’s work as usual.  

Living Nature Gentle Makeup Remover £11.75

The older I get the more sensitive my eyes seem to get. If I have been out for a night with thick eye makeup by the time I get home my eyes are always desperate to to be cleansed of all makeup. The gentler the makeup remover the better and the one from living nature is lovely and gentle without losing its removing power. It contains witch hazel which is an anti-inflammatory, just the thing to sooth my sore eyes. It also contains a host of other lovely natural ingredients to cleanse and clean my skin of all makeup. With some eye makeup removers you have to wipe your eye several times to get all eyeliner and mascara off. With Living Natures makeup remover I only need to soak my eyes with a makeup pad with the remover on, a few gentle sweeps and my eyes are clean and fresh. As I haven't had to scrub at them they don't get irritated making my sore eyes worse. Even if you don't have really sensitive eyes you will still be impressed with how well Living Natures makeup remover cleans up your eyes at the end of the day.

Kerastase Elixir Ultime £26

I have not been looking after my hair as best I can recently and as a result it has felt quite dry and damaged. I decided it was time to give it a bit of a treat and went for Kerastase Elixir Ultime, it was the sleek packaging that got me, and it just looked really luxurious. It’s quite unusual to apply a product before you wash your hair and I thought it would just wash out without really doing anything. I was wrong though as my hair felt much more nourished and not about to break if it gets lightly tugged. As my hair is quite thin when I left it on after washing my hair as a leave in treatment I found my hair got greasier quicker. Normally I can leave my hair a day in-between washing but if I use Kerastase I have to wash my hair everyday. It has certainly made an improvement on the condition of my hair and a little goes along way which is helpful as it’s not the cheapest product. 

Elemis Aching Muscle Soak £32.70

Although it makes me sound like an old lady, I do have problems with a few of my joints, they are quite loose and tend to dislocate very often. Anyone that has ever had a dislocated shoulder or hip it’s not a nice experience and can tend to be quite painful. One of my favourite things in the world when my joints are painful is slipping into a super hot bubble bath with a good book. I am always suspicious of products that claim to ease sore muscles as more often than not they don’t. It does smell slightly of Germaline but I like the smell as it reminds me of being at my Grandmother’s house, she used to smear it on any cuts when I inevitably fell over trying to run faster than my legs would allow. Bubbles aplenty came from three capfuls which is always a good start. I relaxed in the hot water, thinking about childhood memories and not about my aching bones, which is a start. The muscle soak wasn’t a complete reprieve from painful joints but it was certainly a lovely relaxing experience and one I will be recreating again.

Another bath foam I have been using recently is Sainsbury’s Blue Bath Soak 61p and I only picked it up because it was cheap. I love it though because it smells of cool water by Dafadoff which is my favourite man smell in the world. 

Scented Nail Wraps £5.95

The first scented nail wraps have arrived and even better they smell like rose wine. The people at Gallo have teamed up with the people at Sphix to create these great scented wraps. The advantage of using nail wraps over varnish is that you get a completely faultless finish and I find they are much quicker to use and last longer. The scent is thankfully full of fruity smells as I was slightly worried that the odour would be slightly sickly. Perfect for a girly night in or a night on the town, your nails will certainly be a talking point. 

Benefit Watt's Up £24.50

In my continued quest to try ever product Benefit does I recently got sent the new highlighter Watt’s Up. The packaging as usual with Benefit is far from boring but it did take me a minute or two to figure out how to use it. I thought maybe the sponge bit at the end allowed the product to seep through it and started to pump it against the back of my hand. After realising my stupidity I took the top off the other end and was greeted by the pearlesant coral coloured highlighter. The trick is to apply a couple of dabs of the product and blend with the soft sponge end. I like to use it at the top of my cheeks and brow bone for a sculpted look. A smear under your eyebrows also lifts the eyebrows up and makes you look more awake. Like all Benefit products it has great staying powder and you only need a little bit to completely lift your look. I also mixed a small amount of Watt’s Up with some foundation and it gave my skin a lovely healthy glow. 

GOSH Nail Glitter £3.99

Nails are big this season, from patterns and prints to glitz to glitter, the more dazzling the better. I love these GOSH pots of nail glitter as they are really well priced and in some lovely colours. You can apply them by slicking on some clear nail varnish and before that goes hard dipping your nails into the little pot. To finish just dust off the excess with a makeup brush and marvel at your sparkly nails. To add even more glamour paint your nails with your favourite colour varnish and dip the tip of your nails into a contrasting colour glitter. For exclusive news and offers from GOSH just 'like' their Facebook page. 

National Wedding Show

I have had a really busy couple of weeks and so haven’t been posting daily on here like I normally do. I have been introduced to some great beauty products though so have plenty to write about over the next couple of weeks.

My beautiful sister is getting married next year so asked me along to the Wedding Show at Earls Court the other weekend. It was a lovely day and I got quite emotional seeing her try on headdresses. I was exhausted getting the train back but it gave me time to go through all the goodies I got.

I bought some Helen E Cosmetics as they were such a bargain, £10 for a foundation and concealer set, an eyeliner, lip gloss, eye shadow and mascara. The foundation is unusual as it is meant to be perfect for any skin shade. When it was tried on my sisters skin it did blend really well although she didn’t like the feel of it at first. The eye shadow is a lovely glittery gold that will be perfect for parties. All in all not bad for a tenner.

Our goody bags were also filled to the brim with beauty products, cereals and leaflets. If you are getting married it’s a great place to get some ideas and really get in the mood for the celebrations to come. 

New CID i-flick £18.50

What a fabulous idea to have a both a liquid liner and kohl liner in one pen. I use the liquid liner to give my eyes a subtle line on the tops of my lids for the day. In the evening I add more liquid liner to the tops of my lids and extend the line out to give them sexy cat’s eye flicks. I then use the kohl liner underneath my eyes to enhance them. If I am feeling really daring I apply the kohl to the water lines and heavily smudge it under my eyes for classic smoky eyes.

Laura Geller Brow Marker

After having spent years using the same eye brow pencil I am now exploring the different options available to me. Although it’s always done me proud in the past on a hot day it can leave me with eyebrows that are too thick and uneven. This brow marker from Laura Geller rids all those problems and it looks so natural. The felt tip nip lets you create small, soft strokes so you can effortless fill in any gaps. Available in a range of colours so you can get the perfect match for your hair colour. What’s more it’s extremely long lasting and completely smudge proof. 

Beauty Truths Not Ugly Lies

Beauty Truths Not Ugly Lies in Print 

QVC are raising money for breast cancer

Next Wednesday 12^th October from 7pm to 10 pm QVC will be broadcasting a special 3-hour live show called ‘be aware, show you care’. We’ll be playing moving moments from the show and offering you the chance to buy some limited edition pieces from Bare Escentuals, OPI and Leighton Denny to name a few with every penny of the net proceeds going to helping women and men with breast cancer.

QVC tune in details below:

Wednesday 12th October, 7pm - 10pm

Freeview channel 16, Sky channel 640, Virgin TV channel 740, Freesat channel 800

www.qvcuk.com

What's with the weather.

The weather this year in the UK has been somewhat mixed. We started the year with mountains of snow, had a blissfully hot spring and summer was below par even for the UK. Now moving into Autumn, the sunshine has had a reprieve and even though the nights are cold and windy the days are so hot sunburn is a real possibility. The other week I went out to meet a friend for lunch and ended up burning my shoulders and back after only being in the sun for 30 minutes and the sky was pretty cloudy. 

I got home slightly bemused by my red shoulders and applied Queen's Sensitive Skin Oil (£17.65) not only to my burnt bits but everywhere. I have been using the oil quite a bit since I got sent it to try. I tend to apply a couple of drops into a hot bath for a decadent feel and then glide it over my skin after I have got out the bath. I have satin sheets on my bed and there is something so lovely about freshly oiled skin slipping into satin sheets that makes me smile. As it's sensitive I don't need to worry about it upsetting my skin, I even use it after waxing to get all the small bits of wax off my skin and to sooth the skin, something I wouldn't do with most body oils. The oil also helps my legs to stay moisturised as my calfs have a tendency to get quite dry. I also you it after a shower before I go out. It makes you skin look softer, smoother and devastatingly touchable.  

Although Queen's Sensitive Skin Oil was great at soothing my sunburn it would have been much better if I had avoided getting burnt at all. What I should of done and will promise to do from now on is to apply sun cream. During the summer I used Ahava's Mineral Suncare SPF 30 (£19) and I didn't even go slightly pink all summer. It easily absorbs into your skin and you don't have to spend precious time on your holiday rubbing it in and as its moisturising, my skin was left feeling soft and not greasy like some suncreams. It is water resistant so I didn't need to reapply it every time I went in the pool. It also has a great smell, it still has that summer smell you only get with suntan lotion but it also has a slight perfume. My friend is off skiing in a few weeks and asked me what beauty related products she should take. The first thing I told her to get was Ahava's Mineral Suncare as you can get really burnt whilst skiing as the sun is reflected off the snow. I would have given her my spray bottle but I am holding onto as I am pretty sure I will be needing it again this year.