Boxing Day Beauty Haul (Just a LITTLE late to the blog(!))

Hello everyone! I hope you're doing really well. Todays blog post is a bit of a continuation from a recent youtube video I filmed...my boxing day beauty haul. I ended up filming a bunch of videos that day which I then posted over the next 5-6 weeks cause...there is such a thing as too many hauls haha. So I've had a GRWM up since this and I've just finished edited the brand new makeup revolution concealer review (yes THAT one which is a dupe for the shape tape!). However I wanted to dedicate a whole blog post to the haul and add some more thoughts behind the products. Some of these things I've used more since then and sometimes it's just nice to sit and type...my fellow bloggers will know exactly what I mean haha. I don't just want to post blog posts with the video embedded, I want to actually blog when I can...and clearly since it is already February I am finding it hard to juggle everything...and that is o.k!

So the first thing I've been loving from my haul is the Brazilian bum bum cream (£18.00), which
was in the majority of youtube videos in 2016/17! I finally gave into the hype on boxing day as this three pack was fantastic value for money, but also because I wanted to step up my body care routine. Since I've opened my first post this month I have been LOVING how hydrating this is. The scent is nice, not as insaaaane as it has been made out to be, lets be honest, but the product works REALLY well. Will I still use up my more affordable moisturisers for the body? Of course, since I hate wasting product in any form. However I can see why this has been so popular, a little goes a long way and my skin drinks it up in the best way. So far, I am a big fan of this cute lil thang which is supposed to be pronounced as I said in the video haha!

Moving on to this adorable little set from Alpha-H, I couldn't resist it. Mainly because it contains a version of my favourite chemical exfoliator - liquid gold, but also because they didn't give ridiculous sizes for their sets. I know some brands are insanely expensive, so getting a mini is usually great value for money, but I noticed that a lot of brands were selling 5ml things and that just doesn't sit right with me. These sets are meant to give you enough product that you can come to a good judgement as to whether it works for you or not....5ml isn't going to cut it for me! I need to be able to use a product for a good 3 weeks - to a month at least in order to come to the important decision of if I should spend my hard earned coins or not. So yeah, anyway, this set ticked a lot of boxes. I'm currently using up a few cleansers and trying out a new moisturiser AND glycolic product, so this will sit in my drawer till the summer time I expect, since I do really want to try all three together as a separate but still consistent, skincare regime.

Moving on to this lil bougie set that I really couldn't resist, bougie for me cause I usually don't splash the cash on perfumes...ever...so this was a bit of a treat. I justified it as the end of my first term as an NQT treat haha. These will most likely last me for agesssss too because I also purchased a bunch of new Zara scents, which are much less expensive and also less strong, so I'll reach for THOSE on a daily basis. A-N-Y-W-A-Y-S all that to say

And finally I couldn't help but share this adorable Bourjois gift with purchase! Honestly to me this is one of the only advantages of actually browsing stores like boots and superdrug. I HATE how most items have been opened and swatched/touched/USED, so I generally avoid purchasing from the stores themselves, but back in uni days, I would always have a proper browse. This time around I was looking at some of the new things and I noticed that bourjois had this really generous gift with purchase offer. The contents are below!

So as you can see I managed to get my hands on FOUR free items! All I had to do was spend £15, so I picked up a beautiful rouge velvet lipstick in the shade flaming rose, the bourjois sculpt light illuminator, a pink gel nail polish and the bourjois volume clubbing mascara (which I remember reading about on a blog AGES ago and really wanting to try!). Can I just say how happy I am that all the colours and items I'm actually going to wear and use?! Bourjois did real good 🙌🏽

Now to be totally honest, the lipstick shade is a LITTLE bright, but I can mix it with deeper shade and make it work...plus the formula is delightful. The packaging is also super luxe for drugstore, I mean I know prices of lipsticks are getting higher and higher, but I feel like they're also upping their overall feel of the products - glass bottles, sturdy packaging etc.

To see EVERYTHING I picked up, have a little watch of the actual video:

And that is about it for this post! I honestly feel really guilty every time I think about my blog, because I've been pouring the majority of my spare time into my youtube channel, but it's always somewhere in the back of my mind haha.

Thank-you for reading ♥

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Boxing Day Beauty Haul (Just a LITTLE late to the blog(!))

Hello everyone! I hope you're doing really well. Todays blog post is a bit of a continuation from a recent youtube video I filmed...my boxing day beauty haul. I ended up filming a bunch of videos that day which I then posted over the next 5-6 weeks cause...there is such a thing as too many hauls haha. So I've had a GRWM up since this and I've just finished edited the brand new makeup revolution concealer review (yes THAT one which is a dupe for the shape tape!). However I wanted to dedicate a whole blog post to the haul and add some more thoughts behind the products. Some of these things I've used more since then and sometimes it's just nice to sit and type...my fellow bloggers will know exactly what I mean haha. I don't just want to post blog posts with the video embedded, I want to actually blog when I can...and clearly since it is already February I am finding it hard to juggle everything...and that is o.k!

So the first thing I've been loving from my haul is the Brazilian bum bum cream (£18.00), which

Colourpop spring haul | Trying pressed shadows and glossy lips

Well hello lovely people! It feels wonderful to be writing an actual beauty post again and this one has been a long time coming. Whilst I was drowning in the intense pressure of teacher training, I had a cheeky splurge on colourpop thinking I was going to avoid customs...but sadly it was quite the spectacular fail, I can tell you that much! 🤦🏽‍♀️ I don't really want to go too much into the ins and outs but it was a huge error on colourpop's behalf as they didn't bother to change the prices on the customs label, meaning it looked like I had spent a lot more than I actually did - which, yep you guessed it, customs GALOR 🙄. Its a jolly good thing that I actually like most of what I ordered, since I ended up paying a lot extra for it...and hey, the day colourpop comes to beautybay will be a wonderful one haha!

Starting off with what I was most excited for, their new(ish!) single pressed shadows. I did always wonder if colourpop would release their own because their super shock versions are pretty much what they started with. Personally I'm not a huge fan of the super shock, I do own around 12 shades, but I don't think they're the best value for money since they do dry out within a year - especially the mattes. So when I saw the pressed powder versions I was really looking forwards to giving them a go. I purchased a palette and then six single shadows cause there was some sort of deal on with them.

It's been a good few weeks since I've had these in my stash and although I am currently trying to review all my single shadows from ABH and MUG together, I've decided to keep the colourpop one separate. A full review for each of this shades'll be up very soon because I've tested them quite a bit. I'm going to run through the shades I picked up now, but if you're impatient for the review I'll give you the bottomline now: these shadows are not as good as ABH or MUG but they're decent shadows to own and the shade range already is beautiful. Now that I've had a good chance to try out the different formulas, I don't think I'll be rushing to pick up their newer shades. Don't get me wrong, they're great if you're in America and can order them with no customs or excessive shipping fees - even better if you can get them on sale for like $3 each! However if you're like me, from the U.K and you HAVE to go through customs etc. I personally don't think they're worth the extra amount of money. If there is a shade or two that I really love (and knowing colourpop's amazing shade range, there will be), and I'm placing an order anyway then I'll probably pick it up and let you guys know about it too haha. For the most part though, I feel pretty 'ehhh' about them - they're good, but they're not on the same level as MUG or ABH, which you can get for a cheaper price point in the U.K if you combine the customs that are added to the colourpop price tag. (To read about my MUG shadows click here and to read about ABH click here).

This palette is called heavy hitter, and it has a nice range of warm toned shades. I have been loving the matte ivory shade as well as that deep red. The shades in order left-right: Full-Zip, Ringer, Side Tracked, Top Notch. My palette doesn't look like this anymore though, because I have done what many other have done, I've ripped the inside of it out! Which means I can now hold all of my 10 shadows comfortably inside, which is awesome ^_^ I highly recommend you do the same if you own any of these palettes because it's so good for travelling. The actual palette itself is made out of cardboard, but its sturdy and will last a decent amount of time. The only complain I have is that white colour, combined with the matte - it's already so grubby which was inevitable.

I also purchased the following 6 shades: Labyrinth, High-strung, Boxer, Paper tiger, I owe you and cut-outs. I have definitely spent long enough chatting about these shadows for one post, but if you're interested on a full review of the shades, watch this space! And for now, enjoy some swatches below. I will say though that paper tiger wasn't the colour I had hoped it would be, I've just had a look on their site and a newbie which is already sold out -  'tiki' is definitely the colour I was hoping for!

Some VERY pretty colours there, like that yellow is nice and I have to say I was kinda lacking on just matte light shades for the brow bone (check out my single shadow series here for the brow shades I already own). I think you can see some of them are kinda lacking though, so I wouldn't recommend them all.

Okay moving on to some lip products, I was VERY excited to get my hands on both of these! The first thing I wanted to try out was one of their ultra glossy lips, and I went for weho, which is a very opaque nude shade. I LOVE it. So so much, and I think its particularly because I have been so obsessed with liquid lipsticks for the longest time, so to go completely the other way is probably what I've needed for a while. Especially for spring, throwing on some gloss is just the perfect thing with a glowy base and light eyes! I then had to pick up another ultra satin lip in strip. I own a couple of these and have reviewed half of them here, so I thought picking strip up would mean I'd have that perfect wearable nude....and it's not bad! I wouldn't wear it without a deeper lipliner, cause it can appear a little too chalky, but it's definitely more wearable than some of the shades I own and I do reach for it to add some lightness.

And a product I HAD to repurchase is the colourpop brow pencil, absolutely love this thing. Now I am definitely a brow pomade fan, especially cause I don't remove the hair from my brows and like to go for that super au natural look, but this brow pencil is fantastic. It reminds me a lot of the ABH brow wiz, which I also liked but wouldn't pay that price tag for again. This time I picked up bangin brunette AND dope taupe, which I've not had the chance to try yet, but I shall keep you posted. They also threw in a cute little ultra satin lip, which is perfect for the handbag and luckily in a shade I don't own - dopey (which was hugely popular after it released some time last year). I like it, a little darker than I imagined but still, it's a shade I'd reach for often so I cannot complain #FREEBEZ.

And that is my final colourpop haul for a long time, because let me be real frank, my cheeks are still stinging after being slapped with those custom charges 😭. Have you picked up any of that new new from colourpop lately? What do you recommend?

Thank-you for reading ♥
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Colourpop spring haul | Trying pressed shadows and glossy lips

Well hello lovely people! It feels wonderful to be writing an actual beauty post again and this one has been a long time coming. Whilst I was drowning in the intense pressure of teacher training, I had a cheeky splurge on colourpop thinking I was going to avoid customs...but sadly it was quite the spectacular fail, I can tell you that much! 🤦🏽‍♀️ I don't really want to go too much into the ins and outs but it was a huge error on colourpop's behalf as they didn't bother to change the prices on the customs label, meaning it looked like I had spent a lot more than I actually did - which, yep you guessed it, customs GALOR 🙄. Its a jolly good thing that I actually like most of what I ordered, since I ended up paying a lot extra for it...and hey, the day colourpop comes to beautybay will be a wonderful one haha!

Collective Haul | Typo, Colourpop and Illamasqua

Hello hello, welcome back to the blog! Today I'm sharing the stuff I've purchased over the last few weeks. I've been a bit too spendy because theres yet another haul coming up after this tsk._.  Also I just wanna say I HATE the way these photos came out, hate hate hate them cause the lighting was so awful and although they looked alright on screen, on the laptop....a different story!


Right starting with the only non-beauty items, that marble mug that you see camouflaging was something I couldn't say no to when stepping into the store Typo, for the very first time. When you work in a school, usually you aren't allowed to carry cups of tea around for obvious reasons. However my DIY caramel lattes are usually what gets me through the morning, so not being able to have them was a problem and a half! Luckily this mug is now in my life and I L  OVE IT. Its a really huge size, you could fit two mugs of tea in there no problem, but also it has a secure lid which stops any liquid from getting out and is easy to remove and clean too. Plus you don't get the tiniest amount to sip from, its a large enough size - love it! I also couldn't help but pick up this set of tiny pegs and try and make my own lil polaroid wall. BTW TYPO have a random flash sale for TODAY only, srsly check it out if you want the quirkiest and cutest stationary/items/gifts.

It had been a while since I had shopped from the essence range, because its not the most easy brand available. However you can find essence at your local Wilko store if you're from the U.K (I tend to order them online though!). I picked up a couple of mascaras, which I have now given as part of gifts because they're the BEST mascaras from the highstreet! Nothing compares. I especially love this one, but I wanted to try some others from their range, so I purchased a topcoat mascara this time called forbidden volume (£2.80). It has lash fibres in it and I'm so excited to try it out and see if its as good as my favourite! I also repurchased one of their matte lip things, no idea why they call them lip glosses because they clearly aren't...but this is the shade 3 and its stunning! One of my favourite everyday shades, very comfortable more of a cream that dries down a little matte and it's just super effortless.

This haul post photography wise is such a fail, but I also picked up the make me brow (£2.50) in shade 3, which is an exact dupe for the Benefit one...honestly idk why anyone would actually pay a silly amount for a brow mascara - BUY THIS ONE. It's great, my brows stay in place all day and the colour helps to tone them down, which really is always a good thing haha.

Moving on to slightly more high end makeup, Illamasqua were one of the only stores this year to have a decent sale on (thankyou Illamasqua for understanding the word sale!). I didn't want to splurge on too much but honestly I could have easily spent £80+ because I know that what I'm getting is really fantastic quality makeup. I have a post coming up on my fave blushers from the brand, because they don't get as much love as they deserve! The first thing I picked up in the sale, was the Illamasqua precision liner in Wisdom (£20.50), which I got for less than half price! I purchased it because its a KHAKI eyeliner, and y'all may know that khaki is my all time favourite colour. Recently I've been wearing it instead of black and I LOVE how it looks! Still a sharp wing, but a lot less intense which is perfection for a normal school day. I also couldn't resist picking up their vintage cream shadow in bibelot, which is out of stock from their site but I've linked it from the selfridges site. This isn't quite as dark as it appears when first applied, but you can build it up and I love the soft golden shimmers too. Its been a while since I've purchased new Illamasqua products, so I'm really glad to have these two beauties to play with!

I did a lil shopping on beautyjoint.com, which is my go to site for U.S beauty items! I purchased two shades of the Wet n Wild come correct celebrity concealer ($4.99), because I heard its a dupe for the IT cosmetics one. I've not used it much so far, but of course I'll be sharing it with you all when I come to a verdict. I also picked up the L.A Girl Pro Primer ($2.00) which is skin coloured and is basically a matte pencil. So far so good with this, especially for that bargain of a price! A product that looks a lot nicer than it is, that glitter thing from wet'n'wild...awful. Don't bother purchasing this because its pretty much useless, I feel like they got vaseline and dunked a bunch of glitter in it and then pressed it down...nah certifeye glitter is a LOT better!

The eyeliner I've really been enjoying lately is one from boots, the collection extreme 24 hour liner (£3), which is super black and lasts really well throughout the day. I don't remember liking it this much last time I picked it up, which makes me wonder if they changed the formula? Either way, I'm a big fan. Ohhh and how could I not mention these primark NON-LATEX mini blender sponges?! They are fantastic, you get FOUR for only £2.50 and nothing blends in concealer better, ditch those brushes for the under eye cause this is what you need for flawless application. I love how easily they double in size and how super soft they feel on the skin - definitely giving the original beauty blender a run for their money haha.

And I also placed a cheeky colourpop order in the holidays - they always get me with their free shipping over $50! When they released their peachy collection, I was instantly drawn in (although I do think it was an odd time of the year to be doing so!). I was unsure about which ones to purchase, but then I saw this had put together a trio called Just Peachy ($15.00) which includes two mattes and a satin. You don't save a tonne, but its a lovely little kit and I have been obsessed with the shades, fingers crossed the review and swatches will be up tomorrow! I picked up a few bits for friends, and so I just had enough for one more eyeshadow...game face! It's a gorgeous metallic copper shade which is so easy to apply and beautifully pigmented. Game face all over the lid, blended out with warm mattes is going to look stunning. Finally they gave me a free liquid lip, in the shade wild nothing, which is a deeper mauvy rose colour and I LOVE the frosted packaging of this one! Not had too long to try the shade out, but I will be reporting back soon.

And here are some of the swatches! I'm so glad I've finally been able to publish this blog post, its literally been a draft for about 6 weeks ._. I hope you can take advantage of the Typo sale - if not today don't worry, if you sign up to their newsletter you get 20% off! And no this post isn't sponsored by them loool, I wish!! I just really enjoy the store and the quirky range of products they have, so I wanna share it with you all.

P.S I'm really sorry I didn't get this up in time for you to also take advantage of the sale, but please do follow me on social media for the best deals - especially twitter (@blushinggiraffe), because I can share things MUCH quicker on there!

Have you tried anything in my haul? What have you been buying recently? 

Thank-you for reading ♥

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Collective Haul | Typo, Colourpop and Illamasqua

Hello hello, welcome back to the blog! Today I'm sharing the stuff I've purchased over the last few weeks. I've been a bit too spendy because theres yet another haul coming up after this tsk._.  Also I just wanna say I HATE the way these photos came out, hate hate hate them cause the lighting was so awful and although they looked alright on screen, on the laptop....a different story!

Autumn Colourpop Haul

Oppps...I accidently splashed a bunch of dollars because Colourpop hit us with that free international delivery and I caved in as soon as I saw their new 'fall edit' photos! Now this post has been sat in my drafts for 21 days, insane. I am finally getting around to editing the pictures and publishing it for you all - hopefully it's helpful. Plus colourpop have YET ANOTHER INTERNATIONAL DELIVERY OFFER ON RIGHT NOW, when you spend over $50! I placed a second order, but this time there were presents for friends and two products for one of you lovely readers, because its been a while since I've done a giveaway and I feel like I've been so busy, its only fair to plan lil treat for you all. Anyway onto za haul...

I purchased a gift set of three, which I'll be reviewing and swatching separately so look out for that soon. I also picked up three shades of ultra lips and four eyeshadows because the colours were calling my name.

Starting off with the three shades I picked up that aren't in a set, we have ultra satin lip in Calypso, ultra satin lip in Alyssa and ultra matte lip in Love bug. 

As it's been so long since I've had these products, I can tell you that I'm a HUGE fan of Calypso, its a lot lot lot darker than it appears in the tube which is a bit annoying, but I love the shade so I cannot complain. It's a slightly darker colour of my natural lips and although in the swatch below it looks like a warm terracotta shade, on my lips it appears like a wearable mauve. I can wear this colour every single day, its totally fine for work, not out there at all and as I'm typing this, I'm kicking myself for not picking up a back up 🙄.  The formula is beautiful, very comfy to wear, creamy and fairly long lasting for a product that isn't matte.

Alyssa is another ultra satin lip, which is a collab created by the gorgeous Kathleen Lights - its just the right shade to make me not look horrendously ill y'know? Nude shades against an olive skintone are always challenging, but I would definitely wear this alone if I wanted a nude colour. Again it swatches differently on my arm, to how it looks on my lips, but I may be doing some lip swatches on the gram, if I ever got over my cold and have time in the xmas hols! I also really like this shade for nuding up and lightening any other colour, its great and I highly recommend it!

Finally the only matte lip I picked up is Love Bug, which is SO beautiful! Not even gonna pretend, the model shots of them wearing this colour had me sold in a heartbeat. Plus seeing all the photos of people wearing it on twitter, I just knew it had to be mine. Now this one is an ultra matte and actually I do find the formula to be a tiny bit more drying than others in the range. If my lips are feeling sore and dry anyway I won't reach for this, because liquid lipsticks are going to be drying regardless of the brand. It's a deep deep red/terracotta, with brown undertones and if you can get past that drying feeling and you have an olive skintone...you NEED this shade!

Like I said I picked up one of their holiday gift sets, for only $15 which I thought was a good deal. The 'out and about' lip bundle contained two shades I had my eye on and I thought I'd take a risk with the third - cause money off! Like I said a whole separate post will be out on this bundle, but let me just say my perfect nude liquid lipstick might have been found! Shades in this kit: Viper, Times Square, Baracuda with the last being an ultra satin formula.

Moving on to the eyeshadows, I was so drawn into these four shades and I couldn't resist picking them up - don't they just scream autumn?! Now I had actually decided that I wasn't going to be picking up any more colourpop matte shadows, because the ones I purchased last year have become VERY dry, despite me tightly closing the lid after every use. The other formulas will last longer, but it's important to bear in mind that the mattes dry out quicker and I wish they wouldn't! Still like I said I was very very drawn into each of these shades, so instead of not adding them to my collection, I've just decided to keep the mattes close by and use them as often as I can so I am getting my moneys worth.

So sticking with the mattes, I purchased Elixir - which is a stunning burnt orange shade, Although it appears quite bright in the swatch, when blended into the eyelid I find it to be a bit more wearable and I have been loving placing this into my crease to warm up any makeup look. I've been on the hunt for a shade like this for a while, so when I saw it was part of colourpop's  fall collection I snapped it up. It blends really well and like I said, I'm going to keep it out and use it as much as I can before it starts drying out! The second and final matte shade I purchased is the colour brandy. It is like a dusty pink which again blends out darker on the lid and adds a beautiful bit of definition to any eye look. If I'm not using elixir, I'm blending brandy into my crease.

Now I LOVEEEE colourpop's metallic shades and I already have two I know I'll be repurchasing when I'm finished with. They are the perfect addition to a basic eyeshadow look and can take your makeup from day to night with a simple pat of colour. So when I spotted the next two shades I swoooooned. Hammered is an olive khaki green and if you know anything about me, you know thats my favourite colour of all time ever. I do obsess over khaki shades but I now need to practice actually wearing them haha. Anyway hammered is a really pretty shade with beautiful glitter in. No regrets here what so ever. I also spotted the gorgeous 8 track, which is a beautiful antique gold shade. When applied with a brush it appears darker than the swatch, but if you pack it on with the warmth of your finger it comes out more true to colour.

All colourpop shadows are $5 each and you definitely get different pay off when you use your finger, vs a brush. I think that has something to do with the formula. Anyway my advice is to skip the matte shades, unless you see a really unique or pretty colour  - just go for the metallics or shimmers or sheens, they last longer in the long run and give you better colour pay off!

And there is my colourpop haul lovely readers! Have you taken advantage of the free international shipping? By the way, it cost me £16 in customs to get this to me, which is not bad at all, seeing as I didn't pay anything for the shipping. So you can expect to pay around that much if you take advantage of the free international shipping over $50 deal they have on right now. No there is no way to avoid customs, you just have to accept it to be honest D: Waiting for that free international shipping deal is the way forwards, I mean forwarding companies are great too, but waiting for this means you save time and money. Plus the prices are so cheap anyway, that it's much more justifiable.

Have you ordered from colourpop recently? What are your standout products?

Thank-you for reading ♥

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Autumn Colourpop Haul

Oppps...I accidently splashed a bunch of dollars because Colourpop hit us with that free international delivery and I caved in as soon as I saw their new 'fall edit' photos! Now this post has been sat in my drafts for 21 days, insane. I am finally getting around to editing the pictures and publishing it for you all - hopefully it's helpful. Plus colourpop have YET ANOTHER INTERNATIONAL DELIVERY OFFER ON RIGHT NOW, when you spend over $50! I placed a second order, but this time there were presents for friends and two products for one of you lovely readers, because its been a while since I've done a giveaway and I feel like I've been so busy, its only fair to plan lil treat for you all. Anyway onto za haul...

Introducing Joan Collins Timeless Beauty | Makeup Spray and Dry Oil Body Polish

Hello everyone, today's quite an exciting blog post because I'm going to be sharing two products from a brand that is very new to me. Joan Collins Timeless Beauty, is a brand owned by the Dame herself. She created it with the vision of it being an international luxury brand. Within the range it covers fragrance, makeup and skincare! Today I'll be reviewing a skincare/makeup item and a body care item too.

“Beauty is not just for the young. I believe with a little care and attention any woman can look good through her 40s, 50’s, 70’s and beyond.” - Joan

When I received the email with the press release I was super excited to see that there was a makeup setting spray in this range, because if you're a long time reader of my blog you know that I love makeup sprays! I've been testing out both the Ten effects skin treat and makeup fixer*(£18.00) and the I am woman dry oil body polish* (£16.00) for a few weeks now and I'm ready to share my thoughts.

Staring with the Ten effects skin treat and makeup fixer (£18.00) this was the item I was most excited about and it has not disappointed in the slightest. Now I'm definitely one to ignore huge claims that manufacturers make, because often they don't live up to them. This particular spray has been claimed to:

Super Hydrates

Firms

Refines Wrinkles

Minimises Pores

Improves Tone

Adds pH Balancing Layer

Softens

Calms Redness

Locks Makeup

Cools

And aside from 'firms, refines wrinkles and minimises pores' I can vouch for the other claims! It's quite a strong spray, not really a mist but I don't mind that because I hold the bottle far enough from my face. I have been applying this before my makeup (or on no makeup days) and it instantly adds a glow to the face. I then spritz my beauty blender/mini primark sponges before blending in my concealer and finally I finish off my makeup by spraying this a couple of times. The result is a beautifully dewy, hydrated base which lasts a long time. I have been enjoying using this so much and the fact that it gives the skin such a glow makes it well worth the price tag for me!

It's also packed with beneficial ingredients such as rose water AND 'glycerin', which is the key to keeping makeup in place. If you've tried the Nivea mens post shave balm, glycerin is also an ingredient which is high up on the list and again it's what keeps makeup in place. I'm really finding it difficult to not use this spray these days, which says a lot!

The second item I've been trying out is the I am woman dry oil body polish (£16.00), which I have been LOVING! The skin on my body is very sensitive so I'm always a little apprehensive to use new products in case my skin flares up. I didn't have anything to worry about with this however, which again comes down to the great ingredients in my eyes. It contains kiwi seeds and avocado oil, olive oil and jojoba oil so it is super kind to the skin, whilst also buffing away dead skin and leaving my arms and legs feeling silky smooth! The granules of salt aren't too big or rough, again making it fantastic for my sensitive skin and you get a HUGE 300g, so its great value for money too.


*This post contains PR samples or products gifted to me. All opinions are my own. For more info check my Disclaimer 

Thank-you for reading ♥

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Introducing Joan Collins Timeless Beauty | Makeup Spray and Dry Oil Body Polish

Hello everyone, today's quite an exciting blog post because I'm going to be sharing two products from a brand that is very new to me. Joan Collins Timeless Beauty, is a brand owned by the Dame herself. She created it with the vision of it being an international luxury brand. Within the range it covers fragrance, makeup and skincare! Today I'll be reviewing a skincare/makeup item and a body care item too.

Lush Bloggers' Event & Haul

Hello hello, todays blog post is on the wonderful annual Lush event - honestly if you're a blogger and you haven't gotten in touch with your local store, you're missing out! They love holding these events and educating us bloggers on the beautiful new seasonal products. I was exhausted that day but very much looked forwards to attending and it was so nice meeting a couple of new people too! Seeing all the new halloween and Christmas products was great and I thought it was so nice how they had vegan snacks and non-alcoholic drinks for everybody to enjoy. The event always starts by passing around a Lush shower jelly and introducing ourselves, along with our blog/youtube channel. We then were given a quick tour of the store set up, followed by a 'spot the new release' sort of game, which was different and a more exciting way of seeing each product as a group. I managed to create a couple of GIFs I know I know, how fanceeh!

This is the Autumn Leaf Bath Bomb (£3.75) which I was simply mesmerised by...look at all those stunning colours! 😍 The colours are supposed to reflect the stunning autumn leaves falling onto the floor, although I love the more pastel colours in this version. The three main oils in this bath bomb are Neroli Oil for uplifting and toning, sandalwood oil for uplifting and soothing the skin and bergamot oil for uplifting and cleansing. So as you can imagine it has quite a woody scent, which isn't my personal favourite as I love sweeter scents. But I think we can all agree that it is BEAUTIFUL 🙌🏽.

Another bath bomb we were shown is this oblong shaped one, which try as I might, I just cannot find it on their website...so I'm assuming its an Oxford st. exclusive that we have in our local store too. Sorry I couldn't be much help here, but I just had to show you the pretty gif I made from it! 😍

Next up we have monsters' ball (£4.25), which is clearly a halloween exclusive! It has quite a fresh smell due to the ingrediant of lime oil, howevr I love that it also includes fair trade organic cocoa butter. This makes the bath so much more relaxing and the smell is fresh, with a slight gloral mix and it turns the bath a bunch of different colours from pink - blue. I love how it was still fizzing for a while after it was placed in the bowl and I think its the perfect autumnal treat!

On the left hand side we have butterbear (£1.95) which is by far one of the most affordable lush bath products! Although it doesn't look as exciting as the others, this bath bomb is one of the most comforting and contains very few ingredients. Amongst those we have fair trade colombian cocoa butter, ylang ylang oil and cocoa powder. I think this is one of the most moisturising bath products in the whole store - do pick it up if your skin needs some comfort!

Moving on to the brighter yellow and pink concoction, this bath bomb is called Never mind the ballistics (£4.25), which has a very sweet smell - not snow fairy sweet, but literally candy sweet! It contains the wonderful cocoa butter, as well as lime oil, sweet wild orange oil and fresh banana! Again its lovely for the skin and a real beauty to look at.

And finally one of the beautiful bubble bars: The magic of christmas (£5.95), look how pretty it is! I have to say I do love a good reusable product and I think you'll love this if you're into warm cinnamon scents. This product contains cinnamon leaf oil, Almond oil and sweet orange oil and has the cutest little bell attached to it too!

I hope you enjoyed those gifs, it is very cool to me that I can make them now relatively easily so expect more in the future ☺️. Now on to MY haul of products I picked up...

Firstly we have another reusable bubble bar wand, which does by the name of magic wand (£5.96). This version makes the bath water turn a hue of pink and of course has the classic bubblegum snowfairy smell, which I adore! I am a huge fan of sweet smells, so I had to treat myself to this.

I also picked up two bath bombs...with the first being Father christmas (£3.75), another repeat from last year. It again has the snow fairy smell and it also has a green centre - which means the water turns this colour! Lets be honest, I don't plan on using a whole one for just one bath so who knows how much of the colour I'll see - but I love the fact that this smell lingers and I think it'll make a good couple of soaks!

The final bath bomb I purchased is one I showed above: Never mind the ballistics (£4.25) which I'm super excited to use 🤗.

I also asked the lovely lush ladies to recommend me something for my very sensitive skin, after or before shaving. If you've been following my lumea journey, you'll know how much I despise shaving because my skin comes out in rashes and bumps. They recommended the Ambrosia shaving cream (£4.95 - 100g), which contains oat milk, cocoa butter and several oils. They all go a long way in ensuring my skin is comfortable and so far it has been working a treat! My skin is less irritated and feels super smooth to touch, making shaving less of a pain.

I also purchased the well known cleanser from Lush, which I totally forgot to take a photo of. The Ultrabland cleanser (£12.95 for 100g). Now it was a little pricy as you can see and perhaps I should have purchased the smaller one, but in terms of value for money this made more sense! This is a cream cleanser, so a little goes a long way and it is packed full of brilliant natural products, a few of them are: honey, almond oil and rose water. I love how nourished and clean my skin feels after wiping this off with a damp flannel, however I will be using another cleanser alongside this so I can keep using my vanity planet cleansing brush - as I've really noticed a difference in the lack of exfoliation with my skin! So, so far I'm enjoying it, but it's not my only evening cleanser in use.

The final thing I wanted to share with you all is the two samples we were kindly given. I was thrilled to get the Mr. Sandman dusting powder, which is a stunning golden/silver powder that you literally dust over your skin. I think its perfect for a special occasion and it also has a beautiful lavender scent.

They also gave me a small sample of a shower gel which'll be interesting to use!

What has caught your eye from Lush's recent collections?

Thank-you for reading ♥

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