Monday, 12 September 2016

Product Empties #12

product empties danielles beauty blog skincare haircare bodycare makeup soap and glory

I’m back today with another empties post! I've finished quite a lot of full size products and its Soap and Glory heavy! I’ve also slightly changed the time I post at which I’m not sure if anyone actually notices (I know I don’t) but I’m so busy with work at the minute it’s easier for me to promote the post in the evenings for the time being! Anyway, admin over, onto the empties!

product empties bodycare soap and glory nivea

Body care
Soap and Glory Butter Yourself Moisture Lotion
I have quite a few S&G products to get through so I'll try and do them quickly! This isn't my favourite scent but it's lovely and moisturising! I'm a fan of the packaging until it gets to about ¾ of the way down then the pump stops working and to get anything out you have to keep the bottle upside down and squeeze it out or stick your pinky in which becomes a hassle! This is one I always seem to get in gift sets but not one I would go out to buy!

Soap and Glory Shower Jelly Clean on Me
This is one of the newest lines in the shower gel range and after being a bit disappointed with it on its own, when used with exfoliating gloves it works really well to scrub the remnants of my tan off! The formula is really refreshing too but it’s more expensive than the standard S&G shower gels that I love so I won't be rushing out to repurchase! 

Soap and Glory Mist You Madly Body Spray
I am obsessed with this, it's probably my favourite scent in the entire world, it's so musky and understated and I absolutely love it! It also lasts all day on me and it's only £6.50! I already have a backup open and a mini in my handbag! Give it a sniff if you get a chance!

Soap and Glory Heel Genius Foot Cream
I feel like everyone has probably tried this at some point, it's a lovely foot cream but I do get a bit bored of it by the time I'm finished mine because it lasts so long! Again I probably have about 5 of these stashed away from various gift sets so won't need to repurchase for a while!

Soap and Glory Hand Maid Hand Cleansing Gel
I love this stuff and always have one in my bag! It smells so much better than standard hand sanitizers and doesn't dry my hands out at all! Already repurchased!

Soap and Glory Sugar Crush Body Scrub
This is probably my least favourite body scrub in my least favourite scent! I don't find its effective at scrubbing my tan off (if you are just using it to scrub dry/dead skin it's probably OK) and I waste so much product scooping it out! I’m glad to be finished and can't wait to get back to my favourite Pulp Friction scrub!

White to Brown Body Wash
I got this in a gift set along with the tan last Christmas, it has the same scent of the tan which is quite nice but I didn't find it optimised my tan like it said it would and I wouldn't go out of my way to buy it again!

Nivea Invisible Anti-Perspirant
I usually use a roll on but I won this in an Instagram competition and loved it! I took it on holiday with me and it was so handy to just spray and go without having to wait for anything to dry in and it worked really well too! Will repurchase!

product empties skincare pixi fab biore lush garnier eucerin

Skincare
Garnier Express 2 in 1 Eye Makeup Remover
I won’t go on about this again but it really is one of the best eye makeup removers I've ever tried and works brilliantly to remove my waterproof mascara and eye makeup! I will continue to repurchase!

Pixi Glow Tonic
I absolutely love this toner! My skin always feel much clearer and looks smoother when I use it, its gentle enough to use every day and I have already repurchased a full size! It was also included in my forever repurchased post!

First Aid Beauty Facial Radiance Pads
I couldn't wait to be finished these pads. I love the concept of the pre-soaked pad but I really didn’t see a difference any night I used these and I don’t think they were strong enough for my skin! I won’t be repurchasing!

Eucerin AQUAporin Active Hydrating Care*
I have a whole post on this moisturiser when it was included in my skincare saviours but in short it is a lovely rich hydrating cream! I actually switched to using it at night even though it has SPF because it was too much for my oily/combo skin this summer but I think this would be great for dry skin types for the daytime! I have used a few different Eucerin moisturisers now and will definitely come back to them after a break to try some new products!

Biore Deep Cleansing Pore Strips
I don't use these often but I like having a pack at home for when my nose just feels too bumpy and clogged and nothing else will work! I love these for getting rid of blackheads and they work so well on my nose! Definitely a repurchase for me!

Lush Bubblegum Lip Scrub
I use this daily and it gives me the perfect base for lipstick! It’s an absolute essential for me and I already have another one open!

REN Vita Mineral Active 7 Eye Gel
I got this in a little try me set and really liked it, it was very cooling around my eye area and I loved using it in the morning to reduce any puffiness. I prefer the Eucerin one that was included in my last empties so I will probably repurchase that over this REN one when the eye cream I’m using at the minute is finished.

product empties haircare vo5 loreal elvive

Hair care
VO5 Plump it Up Dry Shampoo
I love this stuff and like the eye makeup remover, it features heavily in my empties so I won’t bang on about it! It leaves no white cast, smells lovely and gives a little volume to my usually lank hair! I bought four the last time I spotted it in a shop because it's so hard to find!

L’Oreal Elvive Nutri-Gloss Shine Shampoo
I bought this hoping it would be a replacement for my beloved Nutri-gloss light shampoo that L’Oreal discontinued but this isn't sadly :( The light version made my hair so shiny but I just don't get that with this version. It smells basically the same but there is something missing so I won't be repurchasing!

product empties makeup benefit stay dont stray

Makeup
Benefit Stay Don't Stray Primer
This mini lasted me absolutely ages! I loved it at the start but the older it got the less well it worked on my oily lids which is no surprise! Still, I wouldn’t buy the full size because I’d never get through it and the mini lasted so long and is great value for money!

So that's another empties done and dusted and I have a box half full ready for another one! Have you tried any of these products? What did you think?

*denotes a PR sample that was sent to me. All opinions are my own.

Danielle xx

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Monday, 5 September 2016

A Working Week in Blush #1

blush blushers tarte supreme nars orgasm laura geller rosewater soap and glory rosy chic the balm down boy brush

Hi everyone! I recently did a working week in lipstick post so thought I would follow up with a blusher version! I mentioned I like to try and change the products I use on my lips and cheeks every day if I can as they are the products I have most of and it lets me get better use out of my makeup! Here’s what I wore last week!

blush blushers tarte supreme nars orgasm laura geller rosewater soap and glory rosy chic the balm down boy

Monday
I had wanted to try the Tarte blush formulation for months so when I saw a set of four mini blushes on QVC at the end of last year I couldn’t resist! Some in the set are a little glittery for my liking but this matte coral shade is just the right amount of pigmentation and stays on all day!

Tuesday
I got this mini cult classic in the NARS Modern Minimalist Box a few months ago as I had a code for £15 off a £60 spend and I wasn’t expecting to like it as much as I do! As you can see from the swatch below it has a lot of gold glitter in it but on the skin this translates as a gorgeous sheen!

Wednesday
This is probably the prettiest indentation in a blush ever! I’ve found there are two ways to apply this – a little dip in the centre with your brush to build it up slowly or if you are going all out, follow the pattern of the swirl and watch the pigmentation increase! I’ve dipped my brush in blushes before and looked like a clown because I haven’t realised how pigmented they were so this is one I like to build up with maybe 3 or 4 swipes over each cheek. It has quite a noticeable glitter in it which I normally don’t go for but there is something about the formulation that works with this and it translated to a subtle glow on the skin.  

Thursday
Soap and Glory Made you Blush in Rosy Chic
This is quite a recent purchase as it only came out at the start of summer and out of the three shades they released I went with this one as it was matte and less pink in tone than the other two! This is definitely the most pigmented of the blushes in this post so I have to be careful when applying and you really only need the smallest tap of the brush in the pan for it to show up! The packaging is a little deceptive and there isn’t as much product as I originally thought – the blush flips up and there is a mini brush underneath but other than that I have nothing bad to say about this and I might go back for the other matte one!

Friday
I *think* this is my all-time favourite blush. Big statement but when I think about it, it comes with me when I travel anywhere (even if I take something like the NARS Virtual Domination palette which has four blushes with me), I wear it on occasions I know there will be photos because it shows up, it doesn’t fade or go patchy and it’s the most perfect pink colour. I love the packaging, the size of the blush pan is generous and it’s well worth the £15.50!

blush swatches tarte supreme nars orgasm laura geller rosewater soap and glory rosy chic the balm down boy
Swatches l-r: Tarte Supreme, Nars Orgasm, Laura Geller Rosewater, Soap and Glory Rosy Chic, The Balm Down Boy

Brushes
I am a massive fan of using angled brushes to apply my blush so I thought I’d add in a quick note here about my favourites!

blush brush zoeva luxe sheer cream spectrum ao5 soap and glory

First up, the Zoeva offerings - I have a few Zoeva brush sets now and these two are definitely up there with my most used! I love using the luxe sheer cheer brush with my Hourglass brushes especially and use the Bamboo cream cheek brush with powder blushes as well. Both are super soft, pink up product easily and blend like a dream!

I got the Soap and Glory blush brush in a Christmas set last year and I wish they would bring out a permanent range because I am so impressed! The bristles are so soft, it’s the perfect size and the handles are nice and weighty! I’d buy the whole set if they brought a range out!

I bought a set of Spectrum brushes a few months ago to see what all the fuss was about and honestly, for me, they don’t beat the likes of Zoeva or Real Techniques. I found the eye brushes far too big (I have hooded eyes) and hard to use however I do love this AO5 brush and a few others in the set I got! It has a longer handle than I’m used to but again its really soft and blends blush easily!

Anyway, that wraps up a week in blush for me and as you can tell its peachy pinks all the way!

Do you change the makeup products you use every day or stick with the same ones? Have you got any blush recommendations for me?

Danielle xx


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Monday, 29 August 2016

Best UK Beauty Sites and how to save money

best online beauty shops site uk boots beauty bay look fantastic space nk feel unique escentual debenhams house of fraser

Happy Bank Holiday Monday everyone! I've been planning this post for a while and scheduled it last week without realising today was a bank holiday so if you are planning a splurge - now is the time! The majority of my spending is done online because more often than not there will be a discount code flying around or my favourite brands are only sold online but yeah mainly the discount codes, with an expensive beauty habit I need all the money off I can get! I’ve put together a list of my favourite online shops for beauty and skincare and what I like to buy from them! A lot of the brands crossover but some sites have better offers/more frequent offers/a better loyalty card etc. so I’ve tried to make it as detailed as possible without writing a dissertation on it!

boots haul makeup skincare origins liz earle smashbox bondi sands nyx no7 burts bees soap and glory

Probably my most used beauty site and where half my wages seem to disappear every month - good old Boots! As well as shopping frequently in their stores I seem to make orders regularly too as a lot of my local stores don’t stock what I want!

Best time to buy?
Anytime! Boots always have 3 for 2 or buy one get one half price offers on but I also like to wait for a coupon with a points offer like 400 points when you spend £40 (easily done)! The advantage card is my favourite loyalty card and the points add up quickly so you can treat yourself and feel a little less guilty! Oh and they do the best Christmas/Boxing Day sale but you need to get in quick!

Brands to check out?
Soap and Glory, Bondi Sands (their dry tanning oil is amazing and exclusive to Boots), No7 (Perfect Light translucent setting powder in particular), SEVENTEEN, NYX, Smashbox, Origins, Liz Earle…I’ll stop now!

beauty bay haul online shoppping uk morphe makeup geek zoeva spectrum la girl hd brows z palette

Ah Beauty Bay, probably the most controversial of the shops I’ve listed as a lot of people seem to complain about their delivery service. I’ve never had a problem though and they are my favourite place to get my Makeup Geek and Zoeva fix! They don’t usually have many offers on, things go out of stock fast and bear in mind that discount codes don’t work on a lot of items because they are excluded but delivery is quick (for me anyway) and they have a great range of hard to find brands!  

Best time to buy?
Wait until you have a few things in your basket – their deluxe gifts are brilliant, I’ve gotten a High Definition Eye and Brow palette and a deluxe Kevyn Aucoin Flesh Tone lip pencil before and been really impressed with both! The best offer I’ve seen was the half price Makeup Geek sale but as I’ve mentioned, things went out of stock fast and I know people had trouble getting it to apply to their basket (they have also now upped their prices too)! See my Makeup Geek collection here! 

Brands to check out?
Makeup Geek and Zoeva as previously mentioned as well as Morphe LA Girl, Z palette and Spectrum! Gerard Cosmetics are next on my hit list and I may have placed an order on Friday with the money off spend code Beauty Bay have up for the weekend!

escentual haul skincare eucerin vichy la roche posay grown alchemist hylamide

I love Escentual for their skincare offers, they seem to have a new one every week and a great range of products from some of my favourite brands!

Best time to buy?
Wait for a big percentage off – they do them all the time and I think the most I’ve got off was 25% which was applied to everything on site! Their 1/3 off French pharmacy offers are also very regular and great for stocking up on your faves!

Brands to check out? Hylamide, Vichy, Eucerin, La Roche Posay, Bioderma. 

cult beauty haul makeup skincare stila pixi alpha h ouai fairydrops abh moa

A little more luxe and edited, Cult Beauty stock - you guessed it - cult beauty and skincare products!  

Best time to buy?
Wait for the gift with purchase offer! I always splurge on things I’ve been wanting for a while when this offer comes round then feel a little less guilty because the GWP is always filled with loads of new products to try from amazing brands! I am hoping they have another one soon because I have my eye on quite a few things!

Brands to check out? Pixi, Becca, Huda Beauty, Beauty Blender, Anastasia Beverly Hills, OUAI, MOA, Stila.

feel unique haul makeup urban decay estee lauder giorgio armani the balm

Another great site that stocks loads of brands and always seems to have an offer on or 10% off! They also have a new Pick ‘n’ mix service where you can try five samples of products out for £3.95 shipping then get the money back on your next order!

Best time to buy?
Wait for 10% off site wide or a save on spend offer and have a splurge!  They also do 10% off for students if you have an account with something like Unidays (but this can’t be used with other offers!)

Brands to check out? Urban Decay, Estee Lauder, Giorgio Armani.

look fantastic haul skincare makeup trilogy rosehip oil niod shiseido illamasqua

I literally get an email from this site every day, it’s a pity most of their discount codes have a lot of excluded items but like all the websites I’ve mentioned, they have a good range of brands and other offers like free gifts on constantly! They also do a monthly beauty box which you don’t have to subscribe to for £15. I like to check any reviews at the start of the month for spoilers to see if I want it – I haven’t bought one in ages but it can include products from brands off their site so NUXE, Caudalie and Ren pop up quite a bit!

Best time to buy?
They do timed offered like the first 200 people to checkout get 20% off quite often though see above note about excluded items!

Brands to check out? Illamasqua, Deciem, Trilogy, Shiseido.

space nk haul makeup nars kevyn aucoin grown alchemist

Like Cult Beauty, Space NK to me is a little more luxe and on the expensive side of things! I have managed to get a few good things from the sale but you have to be quick as things sell out so quickly!

Best time to buy?
Wait for a £15 off £60 spend offer, the sale, or until you have enough N.centive points to get some money off!

Brands to check out? NARS, Kevyn Aucoin, Hourglass, Grown Alchemist.

debenhams haul makeup too faced mac

Debenhams
I thought it was worth mentioning Debenhams too as they often have 10% off beauty and do a loyalty card. I never get much use out of mine but I suspect this will all change as Kat Von D is coming next month! Exciting times!

Best time to buy?
A 10% off beauty offer, they do them regularly and they last for a good few days!

Brands to check out? Too Faced, MAC, Urban Decay, Benefit, Kat Von D.

house of fraser haul makeup charlotte tilbury laura geller

Very similar to Debenhams in my opinion and I am just realising they do a loyalty card too, I don't order off these two websites as much as the ones at the start of this post so I think my points expire before I get a chance to use them! They do student discount like Feel Unique so you can get 10% off!

Best time to buy?
They do 10% off beauty offers too and a regular £10 off £50 spend when you buy one of their favourite beauty products but if you are a student, any time really!

Brands to check out? Charlotte Tilbury, Laura Geller.

Special mention also goes to ASOS who have a pretty good beauty section with brands like NARS and Illamasqua and regularly have offers on (as well as doing student discount). Marks and Spencer are great for Pixi and Emma Hardie, Cloud 10 Beauty for The Balm, The Body Shop for their 30% and 40% off codes and Superdrug for most things that Boots does as well (I just don’t have one near me so rarely shop in it!).

I’m signed up to all of these sites email newsletters and while some can be a bit overkill with how often they send them out most are great informing you of offers or new arrivals to the site! I also always google discount codes before I buy something in case I've missed an email so it’s good to check before you hit buy!

Like I said, I’ve added a brands to check out list under each online site but obviously a few of these crossover into different stores, I’ve just went with where I’ve found the best deal!

I may have also made a few orders this weekend as it was payday on Friday and there were some offers on that I couldn't resist! I post a lot of my hauls to Instagram so follow me there if that’s the type of thing you like to see!

Let me know if you bought anything this weekend! What’s your favourite online beauty site?

Danielle xx


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Monday, 22 August 2016

Wishlist #4

beauty wishlist ft. urban decay vice all nighter naked, kat von d shade + light huda beauty lip contour

Hi everyone, I have another beauty wish list post today to coincide with a few new launches happening soon! As usual, its palette heavy J

I have had my eye on this for what seems like forever! It gets raves reviews, seems to be perfect for fair skin, it’s cool toned and it’s all matte! I will not be a happy bunny if this sells out before I get my hands on it! I never wanted to make a Sephora order for it because I was worried the powders would smash in transit so I’m glad the brand has finally made its way over here after months of rumours! I think it’s due for release on Debenhams online on the 13th September and will make its way into stores in October!

See above! If you have read my blog for any length of time you might know that I like matte formulations especially when it comes to eyeshadows. For me they are just easier to wear on a day to day basis so I am all over this release like a bad rash!

A full coverage, matte, waterproof foundation from one of my favourite make up brands? Yes please! I will be hot footing it to my local Debenhams as soon as this comes in store to get matched and hope it lives up to the hype I have created in my head for it! It’s release in the UK on September 1st!

It goes without saying that Urban Decay’s huge lipstick overhaul has been one of the most exciting launches of the year! I can’t believe I haven’t actually bought one yet but there are so many I want I can’t decide! Every time I’m near a counter I swatch the life out of my hand and still can’t decide what I want! Backtalk, Wrong Number and Morning After are top of my list at the minute and I actually went to order Backtalk from Feel Unique a few weeks ago when they had 10% off but it was out of stock!


Urban Decay Naked Ultimate Basics
Naked Basics 2 is my favourite Urban Decay palette and contains the only shade I have ever hit pan on – Frisk – so it only seems right that I add this to my wishlist! I am loving the shade range and I know it’s another matte palette but man I really want it! Maybe one for the Christmas list! It launches in September in the US so I’m assuming the UK should be around the same time! 

I am currently loving lip pencils so after seeing a lot of hype around these they are next on my list to try! Bombshell looks like the perfect pinky nude which is a shade I wear very often and if I’m going to pay £16 for it I want it in a shade that will be in constant rotation!

Special mention also has to go to the new Too Faced/Kat Von D magnetic palette, I love the concept of this but a lot of the shades don’t appeal to me and there aren’t enough mattes for me to justify it but I think it’s an amazing idea! I’m very worried for my bank balance over the next few months! Expect to see these in a wish list purchases post soon!

If you liked this post you might like these:

Have you tried any of these products? Tell me what you are lusting after at the minute!

Danielle xx



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