Recent beauty hits and misses

I've bought a few new products here and there recently so thought it was review time!

L-R: Cherry Cola Lip Smacker, Revlon Nail Polish in Heavenly, Revlon Lip Butter
in Juicy Papaya, Paul Smith Floral Perfume, 17 Berry Crush Lip Stain,
Vaseline Paint The Town Lip Tint  and Collection Eyeshadow pencil in Vanilla Sky

I'll get the biggest disappointment out of the way first...the limited edition Vaseline. It caught my eye in the queue at Boots (yup, I am a sucker for browsing and buying from the queue barriers) I haven't gone for their Limited spin offs before (pink champagne and creme brulee?! It's Vaseline for goodness' sake, let's keep a sense of proportion here) but this caught my eye as it is a tint.

When you open the tin a gorgeous deep red pot of joy looks back at you, with a lovely fruity smell.

Then I put it on. 

It.makes.no.difference. The colour really, really doesn't show, it may as well be normal Vaseline.

The worst thing? It was 3 sodding pounds and 49 pence. For Vaseline! There was no price when I picked it up and I naively assumed it wouldn't be more than £1.99 - as it's Vaseline! What a fool.

No lip tint here Vaseline!

See - no colour at all and I've had to share this deeply awful photo to prove the point. Thanks a bunch Vaseline.

I will keep it in my drawer at work as it is always handy to have lip balm around if you are hooked on it like I am. But would I rebuy? Nope. 

In future I will stick with the only lipbalm I have ever used up and purchased again instantly...

...Lip Smacker Cherry Cola Lipbalm.

It smells DELICIOUS! You know sometimes products like this sometimes smell , odd? Well this doesn't, it really does smell like Cherry Cola.

Even better it is super moisturising, adds a tiny hint of colour (which it doesn't even promise to do UNLIKE SOME, VASELINE) is only £2.50 and can be found easily.

I have tried the lip smacker Sprite lipbalm which was a little bland, but am definitely keen to try the others in the Cola range.

This has become a handbag essential!

Rebuy? Hell flipping yeah!


Next up: Collection Eyeshadow stick in Vanilla Sky. I'd seen a couple of bloggers rave this range so had to try as it wasn't expensive at all. The choice in my local boots was rather limited - grey, brown or the cream. I tend to wear a light eyeshadow with eyeliner most days, and the perfect L'Oreal eyeshadow I used has been discontinued, wah.

This isn't bad - but the colour is rather bright. If applied to liberally it does look a little tacky, as it is very shimmery too.

The plus is it goes on very easily and dries QUICK! When I swatched it in Boots I couldn't rub it off by the time I reached the next aisle!

Would I rebuy? Possibly - it is good value and until I find my perfect everyday eyeshadow it is better than nothing.

Revlon's Moon Candy range has become a firm favourite of mine, and I was searching for a sparkly top coat similar to the moon candy effect. 

What makes it different to other sparkle polishes are the chunky, foil pieces instead of tiny glitter particles.

I spotted this polish called Heavenly in Revlon's range, and as it was Buy One Get One Half Price I thought it was worth a try.

I've popped it over my nude polish from the weekend and was a bit disappointed, it didn't show much and it took two coats to get lots of the shiny bits out.

Then I realised I am not being fair-of course it isn't going to show over such a light polish! I need to give it a chance.

Rebuy? I think I will end up loving this, so yes.

Sticking with Revlon, using the offer in Boots I added another Lip Butter to my growing collection.

A few bloggers seem a little divided over these, but I absolutely LOVE them. I have quite a few from the range and find on a night out I can just take one of these instead of two or three lip products, making my clutch bags much happier! I find them super moisturising with a great hit of colour.

I opted for Juicy Papaya, as an easy shade to wear. I went for a deeper coral in the summer, and it just didn't suit me.The colour was too harsh on my pasty chops and it also made my teeth look yellow, yeurch.

This thankfully is much kinder, however,it is the weakest colour I've had from the range so far.

As you can see from the pic on the right it doesn't offer a lot of colour, and perhaps if someone bought this one first from the range I can see why they would be a 
little unimpressed.

It's a good job I already own about 5 shades (!) and two I have already used up and repurchased (Berry Smoothie and Peach Parfait) so I am letting this one go.

It will be great for work as an easy wear, especially as when I wear bright lippie it can go horribly wrong when applied without a mirror (how does it find it's way to my teeth so quickly?!)

Would I rebuy? No, but I will still buy others from the range!

I discovered Paul Smith Floral when a friend was wearing it recently. It was on offer in Boots, just £11 for 30ml!

Don't let the floral title deceive you; it is fruity, fresh and a little bit different.

It's a great everyday perfume and lasts a good few hours. If you were to wear it all day you would need to top up again if you were going out for the evening, but I don't mind that at £11!

Would I rebuy? Definitely if it's on offer again, and preferably a bigger bottle as I think I will use this up very quickly as it is SO lovely!

 I have saved my favourite new product till last. 17 Lip Stain in Berry Crush.

This was bought on a whim at Boots for just £2! The till I was at had a little box of reduced make up on it (I know, I am Boots' dream customer, so terrible for these add on purchases) and the colour caught my eye.

It is so FAB! I love felt tip applicators, mainly because they are somewhat fool proof but also because I feel like a kid at school being a little bit silly.

It has a lipbalm applicator on the other end, which I am not a fan of as once you use it once it looks , well, a little bit skanky...but it is needed as the felt tip doesn't offer a lot of moisture. Once it is applied it does finish the look really nicely.


I have used it non stop since I purchased it and you should be able to see in the pic how nice the colour is.

It's a very wearable colour - that slightly berry tone is lovely and makes it great for everyday wear. I think it will be my Autumn make up essential!

Would I rebuy? YES! 

Can I rebuy? Not sure! It looks like this baby has been discontinued seeing as it was in the bargain box, so please, please dear bloggers send me your recommendations to replace this beauty when it finally runs out!

Have you tried any of the products I've reviewed today? Do you think I am 

mad for hating the new Vaseline but being so madly in love with Revlon's lip butters?

Let me know! x

OOTD: Happy Feet

Normally I don't these posts, but I am so in love with my floral court shoes that I just had to share, you lucky things.

You know when you spot something and it stays in your head for days, weeks even? That happened with these shoes. They caught my eye in Dorothy Perkins when they were full price, mainly thanks to the beautiful colours, but I tried to push them out of my thoughts  - as really, I had no need for them and couldn't justify buying a wear every now and then pair of heels.

Then they went in the sale.

For a couple of weeks I would pop my head into the local store (I work in town, making this easy, I would like to point out I am not a total oddball making a huge trip to do this), keeping my eye on the last pair, in a size 5, my size.

Finally payday came and they were still on the shelf; fate had made the decision for me. I splurged 12 English pounds on these beauties and skipped home (alright, in my head I was skipping)

I finally got to wear them on Saturday night when we went out for a meal to celebrate the other half's birthday.

The shoes deserved to have the limelight (which is a first as I've never really been a shoes girl) and paired them with a bargain outfit!

I paired them with my fave New Look supersoft skinny jeans (£4 ebay), a navy camisole from New Look (£9.99 - a rare full price buy, but a wardrobe classic), a statement necklace from Dotty P's I spotted in the sale for a whopping £1.50 and some bangles bought back in my days of working at Accessorize, they were probably about £2. I normally go for chunky rings over bracelets but fancied a change.

The outfit was completed with an Accessorize bag - I lusted after it for months and nabbed it for £8 down from £30 in their sale! It's a lovely nudey pink, and can be used as a clutch or shoulder bag, it's a fab buy.

I changed up my make up a little - normally it's black eyeliner with bright lipstick, but lippie and food is a no no - especially as I like my food, no nibbling at a bit of salad here!

Smoky eyes are a bit of a struggle for me, if I'm not careful they make my eyes look tiny. The pic looks like I just put on a grey shadow; I tried layering and struggled a bit. I put a little eyeliner on the ends just to flick at the corners and give some shape. Following all beauty rules I opted for a nude lip and as little blusher as my pale face could cope with. 

I kepy my nails simple for once, painting them in Barry M's lovely lychee Gelly Polsh.

We had a lovely night and the joy of New Look's jeans and loose top meant I got away with a hefty food baby by the end of the night, wahey!

I would love more tips on how to put together a great smokey eye look - any bloggers out there who can give some advice?

I still can't stop gazing at them!

Dreamy frozen nails

This has become a nail polish essential!

This week I have opted for much lighter colours on my nails as they were looking rather stained last time I stripped my dark pink polish off (perhaps it is time to invest in a base coat...)

I started last week with Revlon's nail art set in Silhouette, which has a lovely nude base which looks great on its own, but I decided to put the metallic top coat on too. A lovely chic start to the week!

It was quite refreshing to have neutral nails after so many bright looks. They always look smart and this polish really doesn't chip much. I also LOVE the moon candy range Revlon brought out - the dark green is too die for. I like that it's a little different from just glitter.

The colour looks more duck egg here, but it's a
real baby, sky blue

Then once the Revlon worn off a little I opted for Barry M Blue Moon. It is a very light blue and requires a few coats, but once on it is very pretty. Again it looked neat, smart but not boring!


This morning I felt like jazzing them  up a little. I have a work event this evening and wanted to make them a little more special without losing the base colour as it had lasted so well.

As you can see the Rose Quartz is well loved!

I added my favourite glitter top coat, Barry M's Rose Quartz. As the blue base is so light I decided to try doing the trapped / frozen glitter effect. Instead of putting a clear top coat on I put another very thin coat of the Blue Moon over the glitter. 

The final effect is lovely,  a much more muted glitter look. You need quite a lot of glitter to make sure it doesn't get lost once the blue coat is on top and it's really brought out the pink colour in the glitter coat. It's a little more grown up and understated.

I think I prefer my glitter to really sparkle, but this look has made a nice change!

So pretty!

Naked Skincare: The beginning of the end

In case I haven't mentioned it enough I have sensitive skin, including random attacks of eczema, dermatitis and generally awful skin. (Blotchy check, dry check, spotty check, you get the idea...)

For a long time E45 was the only cream I could use on my face but it still didn't quite feel right. Then Naked Bodycare (their products are great, check them out here) went and introduced a skin care range including the WONDERFUL Thirst Aid 12 Hour Moisturiser.

Here's what Naked say about it on their website:

Saying goodbye to this is proving traumatic

"Like all oils, starflower, neroli and argan are hydrating and they smell amazing too.

We have a bit of a crush on shea butter as it’s so good at helping keep our skin soft and smooth; much more rewarding than those crushes we had in school!

Clinically tested for sensitive skin. Dermatologically tested. Fragrance free. Alcohol free Vegetarian and vegan friendly"

Like all Naked products the ingredients are as natural as

possible (they do delicious SLS and Paraben free shower gels and bath foams; the coco de mer  range in particular is heavenly)

So now you're thinking, "we get it - this is a nice product, this girl clearly likes it, but what is the point of this blog post?"

The point of all this? They are flipping well discontinuing it. Yes. FOREVER.

The company recently posted on their Facebook page  that the entire skin care range is being discontinued basically due to a lack of retail support, including this super duper face cream. It probably didn't help that the tub only cost £7.50 and lasted for months... Superdrug were stocking it for a while which came as a surprise as Boots had previously been the only high street store stocking Naked products, but when it disappeared from all Superdrugs I got worried, and my worst fears were confirmed. I do understand why these decisions have to be made and at least the rest of their fab products will continue.

So now I turn to you, yes YOU! Bloggers, I need recommendations for a great face cream, that is luxurious, sensitive skin friendly but not going to cost the earth (I know, I don't ask for much!) 

The compromise, wah!

The joy with the Thirst Aid moisturiser was that it was lightly scented, rich in texture and never gave me a bad skin day. A lot of moisturisers that claim to be good for sensitive skin (Olay, Simple, Good Things, yes, I am naming and shaming you) have given me horrific rashes / spots, which is not what you want on your face.

I am stocked up for the time being, but eventually this wonder cream will run out and I will need a replacement. I will have to compromise with E45 but it just doesn't quite do the job... so please, please, pretty please send me your face cream heroes! 

A quick catch up

I've been a little slack in posting recently, so thought I'd keep it simple with some of my latest (and sometimes not so greatest) nail art looks!



This was a simple base coat of Barry M black with the gold 3D glitter from Asda's range dragged on top and spread out with a dotting tool. I did a few nails with too much glitter, some not enough, but overall they looked alright!

This was a little fiddlier, mainly due to needing lots of colours! Two coats of Barry M white for the base followed by doing one colour at a time with a dotting tool. I got carried away adding the purple at the end but overall they looked fun, required patience but were easy and I got LOADS of compliments!

This look reminded me of those Donuts with the sprinkles on! 

Two coats of a lovely pink from Asda, a generous coating of the Barry M confetti effect and a top coat. 

They did chip quickly, which was a shame as they looked fab!

This was probably my favourite look recently. Two coats of a sky blue from Barry M with 17's Graffiti effects polish with plenty of top coating to stop those pesky graffiti bits catching and chipping!

They reminded me of Mini Eggs, mmmm....



My nails are having a little breather right now, with a light pink metallic shade on from Revlon. I noticed they were looking a little stained from all the strong colours so this week is light pastels all the way! (I can't stand having bare nails so this is the compromise!)

No doubt I will be posting more nail looks soon...

Liebster Nomination

Like Lucy at Florals and Corals I am also trying to build up new followers to my blog and she sweetly spotted mine and nominated me! 

The rules seem a little confused here and there, with some places saying you must post 11 things about yourself AND answer the 11 questions given by the person who nominated you while some just suggest answering the questions only.

That's what I've decided to do, so without further delay here are the questions that Lucy gave me!

 1.  Who is your favourite high fashion designer brand? 

H&M, they do great high fashion pieces, fantastic basics, good accessories and it's always so affordable! 

2. What is your favourite season for clothes? (spring/summer or autumn/winter) 

I do like it when cosy Autumn clothes come in despite hating winter itself!  Although I do find most brands repeat the same ideas every season (Spring = pastels, florals, nautical trends, summer= neons, aztec/tribals, Autumn = dark florals, browns and purples, winter = glitzy party wear...) change it up high street!

3. Why did your start blogging, who or what inspired you?

I run a blog for the theatre I work for (www.staffordgatehouse.blogspot.co.uk) and really enjoy it, so it felt natural to start my own all about the things I love.

4. What is your favourite blog? 

As I am newer to blogging I am still searching out for new blogs and yet to find a favourite! There are so many fab ones out there!

5.  If you could have any handbag, what would it be? 

 A classic Mulberry Bayswater in Tan

6.  Who is your fashion/style icon? 

I wouldn't say I have one as I don't really suit a super high fashion look, but if pushed Olivia Palermo does always look fab, as does Millie Mackitnosh (you know, her off Made in Chelsea and engaged to Professor Green)

7.  Chocolate, sweets or cake? 

All three! I have an atrocious sweet tooth!

8.  What is your favourite high street shop? 

Boots! I'm always in there and save my points for perfume, I am currently saving for Marc Jacobs Daisy Eau So Fresh and I'm nearly there!

9.  Heels or flats? 

I mainly wear flats, but wedge ankle boots have been a revelation!

10. What is your all time favourite book? 

Audrey Niffeneger's The Time Traveller's Wife. I first read it in a day, it's beautiful and I cry my eyes out every time I read it!

11. If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be and why? 

I would be greedy and spend each day of the week in a different place, perhaps Monday could be London, Tuesday Florida, Wednesday Australia, Thursday Lake Bled in Slovenia, Friday Edinburgh, Saturday a deserted tropical island and Sunday back home in Staffordshire!

Now it's time for my questions for my nominees!

1. Where do you hope your blog will be this time next year?

2. Cats or dogs?

3.What is your favourite thing about blogging?

4.What is the best purchase you have ever made?

5. Where is your favourite place to eat out?

6. What makes you laugh the most?

7. How do you cheer yourself up on a bad day?

8. What website do you visit the most?

9. What is your most and least favourite fashion trend in the last year?

10. Name one beauty essential you could not live without

11. How do you like to spend your weekends?

And now to do some nominating! I will be posting a comment on my chosen blogs; can't wait to find more and more great blogs to read!