Nail of the Day #1

 

M&S Limited Collection, Pale Peach - £3.99; Models Own Hed Kandi Ibiza Mix - Boots, £5.

I have LOVED the Models Own Hed Kandi range sinec I first saw it. I am truly smitten with glitter nail varnishes. They're just so much more interesting than a plain polish. I think I like that they're a bit tacky, but because it's only a teeny part of one's attire, it doesn't really matter.

Please everyone excuse my hideous fingernails in this picture; I swear no matter how hard I try, I always have horribly dry, crispy cuticles! I bought this M&S nail varnish for my sister when she came home from uni for the summer. I thought it was loving, sisterly thing to do, and she hasn't used it once! Hadn't even taken it out of the bag. So I thought in that case she probably wouldn't mind if I used it! I've never used M&S nail varnish before, and was a bit dubious, because if I'm being honest, M&S wouldn't be my first port of call for a nail varnish. I absolutely loved this though. The consistency is perfect - a lot of light colours look very streaky and need lots of coats for even coverage, but I think I could have got away with just one coat of this. In the picture I'm wearing two coats. I really liked the brush too. This is going to sound ever so odd, but I have very wide fingernails, so am always really glad when nail varnish has a nice wide brush!

A very bad habit of mine is to get bored very quickly with my fingernails. After less than a day of wearing just Pale Peach (how originally named!), I decided I needed to paint some glitter over it. I always do this; get really bored and end up doing it purely for the sake of doing something. And then usually regretting it. I decided to add Ibiza Mix on just the one finger, which I actually love. Even though my boyfriend says I look like I have a weird nail fungus. I just don't care. I've tried this over brighter polishes and it just doesn't look as good. You can really see the colour of the glitter when you paint it over a lighter colour. Success!

I really didn't think I could write this much about nail varnish, so I'm sure lots of this is very waffley. In the future I will endeavour to keep these posts to just a picture and the name. Job done.

PS. Check the rain in the photos, EUGH!

My Current Beauty Wishlist: July!

I'm going to make this a regular post, because it seems that every month comes a host of different beauty products that I want to try! I'm going to do a post later in the week with some mini reviews of the things I purchased from last month's wishlist, so look out for that. But for now, July!

YSL Touche Eclat Foundation - Debenhams, £28; Seche Vite Fastdry Top Coat - feelunique.com, £9.85; Nars Laguna - £25; Essie Fiji - Boots, £7.99; Real Techniques Blush Brush - Boots, £9.99; Nars Blush Duo, Albatross and Orgasm, £29; Sally Hansen Airbrush Legs - Boots, £10.29.

Are you sensing a theme here? Everything looks decidedly pink. This definitely wasn't intentional, but I do like a good theme.

I think the YSL Touche Eclat foundation is probably at the top of everyone's wishlist this month. As soon as I heard it was in the making I knew that I would buy it, probably on the day it launched. I'm a staunch user of Touche Eclat under-eye concealer, so I absolutely cannot wait to get using this! I'm planning to pop in one day this week to ask for a little sample pot. I want to wear it for a few days to make sure I'm definitely getting the right colour.

I've read so much about Seche Vite, I really just need to try it for myself. I'm an impatient nail painter, so if this really does make them dry faster, I'm there! Essie Fiji looks absolutely gorgeous. I'm a big fan of the neutral fingernail, but for the summer I fancy something a bit more than nude. I love that it's baby pink, but isn't horrendously tacky.

There's quite a bit of Nars this month. I must confess, I own absolutely no Nars at all. And I think it's time. I've wanted Nars Laguna for ages and Orgasm is such a talked about blush, that I definitely want to try it. My friend Arwen then recommended Albatross to me, and oh my, I love the sound of it. I think it's brilliant that Nars do these blush duos, it saves a bit of money! There's no way I'll be getting either of these this month, and definitely not at the same time; that would be SO much money! They'll be on the longterm wishlist I think.

I really need a blush brush. I'm using some shabby thing I've had since I was about 16, pretty sure it might have come free with a magazine. I've only recently realised how much better makeup looks when it's properly applied. I know, heathen! I absolutely love the Real Techniques buffing brush and the contouring brush, so I'm going to go for their blush brush too!


And finally, Sally Hansen Airbrush Legs. I really want to be able to wear dresses and heels this summer and not feel horribly self conscious. I'm going to give this a try and see if it covers up any of the marks on my legs! If it does, I might buy shares in Sally Hansen and would urge you all to do the same.

What are you lusting over this month? :-)

Getting my legs ready to bare..

I feel very strange divulging this on the internet, when I can't even wear a skirt to walk down the street. I suffer really badly from ingrown hairs all over my lower legs. And when I say really badly, I mean it's very bad and very unsightly - not just something I have a personal hang up about. It's not just the odd raised bump here or there, it's me entire leg. It's a dot to dot. And they are angry! I've done a lot of Googling and research and there doesn't really seem to be a lot of information about ingrown hairs on legs, more so on faces. My boyfriend and I have done a lot of research and I've used a lot of products and tried lots of things, so this post is about all the products I'm using on my legs and everything I'm doing! Hopefully if anyone else suffers from the same problem, this might help.

I don't shave my legs, always wax, so that can't be the reason. I can't really pinpoint a time when it started, I do remember a time when my legs just looked normal. It got really bad just after I got back from gap year travelling, about four years ago, and it's just got worse as time goes on. It really does get me down, mostly because I have so many gorgeous dresses and shorts and I can never wear them! I really don't like to expose my legs. So, I decided that this was the summer for some intensive leg care.

Let's start with exfoliation. I use the olive shower gel from The Body Shop on a puffy net thing (not really sure on its technical term). I really like the olive range, I think it's a lot less harsh than some of their other fruitier scents. I know I should probably be using something other than the netty-puffy thing on my legs. It's tied together with string in the centre, so stays pretty damp between uses. I've been told that this is an absolute breeding ground for bacteria, so if there is broken skin on my legs, I'm just constantly re-infecting them from the sponge. Sorry if that's too graphic. I don't want to use anything too harsh on my skin, and have no idea what I could replace it with! Recommendations anyone? For a deeper exfoliation twice a week, I use Molton Brown's Warming Eucalyptus and Ginger Body Scrub, which I absolutely LOVE. It smells so good, and makes the angry patches on my legs feel really soothed. I won't show you a picture of mine, the lettering rubs off the tub really easily and it looks fairly shoddy!

Molton Brown - £29

I've been using TendSkin intermittently for about a year now, not twice a day as it should be used and with long periods of no use. I soak some into a cotton pad and then just wipe it all over my legs. It does sting a bit if you've got any broken skin, but I think if it's hurting then it's probably working. I've realised that for this product to really work, it needs to be used religiously. After a few weeks of use, I would notice a definite improvement, get complacent and stop using it. I've accepted the fact that this is probably going to be something I have to use for the rest of my life! You definitely need to get into a routine with this, or leave yourself enough time for it to dry on your skin. It's incredibly drying so you need a generous lashing of moisturiser after this. Hence the drying time! It really is a fantastic product though, and so unexpected. I would never have thought that something that looked so unassuming and, dare I say, cheap, could work so well. Ever the snob! It's sort of aimed at men for their faces, but it works just as well on legs. It does smell of pure alcohol though, so one has to question what it does to the face! I order mine from Mankind, who often send out 20% discount vouchers to lure you back in if you haven't shopped recently! I think you can get it for about £8 and it does last quite a while. I wouldn't put a price on clear legs though, I'd buy this stuff if it was £100.

TendSkin - mankind.co.uk, £9.95; Malin+Goetz - Liberty, £27

 In the mornings, I slather on the moisturiser after TendSkin, but in the evenings I shake it up a bit. I've started using Malin+Goetz Ingrown Hair Cream. It was the first cream I'd heard of that targeted that specific problem. I picked mine up from Ministry of Waxing in Covent Garden, their partner for this product. You can also find it in Liberty and Brummell's of London, but they were sold out for an absolute eternity due to it being so popular. For £27, I was surprised at how small the tube was, but you only need a very concentrated amount on the particularly problematic areas. A little really does go a long way. I've noticed a difference in the few short weeks I've been using this; there is still redness, but so much less. I've definitely noticed less new ingrown hairs cropping up, it's all about getting rid of the existing stubborn ones now. I thought this product might have a Savlon-y smell to it, and it does smell a bit medicinal, but in a really nice, tangy, fresh way.

I really think these two products together might be a winning combination. I definitely like to see instant results but I'm having to learn to be a bit more patient with this. It's going to take a long time for the skin around the really bad areas to regenerate. I've taken some 'Before' pictures, and when I think I'm finally there, I'll take some 'After' pictures. But I'm definitely not going to share until I have a nice clear leg to show off! I'm optimistic. Finding a combination of products that seems to be working has made me more positive and convinced that before Winter is here, I WILL wear a skirt! Until then, I try to disguise the marks a bit with Garnier Summerbody. I find that I can't use this too often though and especially not if I plan to leave the house that day! It smells really vile, but does give my legs a lovely natural colour.

Does anyone else suffer from this problem? I would genuinely be really interested to hear about anyone else's experiences, are there any other products that have really worked for you?

Here's to smooth legs. <3

A very good eye makeup remover. With an even more agreeable price tag.

I'm a huge fan of oil based eye makeup removers. I don't know if they are actually oil based, in the technical sense of the term, or if they just feel oily? I have a paranoia that if I rub my eyes too much when removing my makeup that I'll get really wrinkly before my time. I love that with these oily eye makeup removers you only have to swipe your eyelids a few times to remove your makeup, even pesky waterproof mascara!

It all started off with Clinique,  then I moved onto Dior, and I'm currently in love with Lancome Bi-facil. The fact that it's £20 doesn't sit well with me though, particularly when I'm supposed to be saving! I'm still suffering the fall out from my student days, so spending that much on an eye makeup remover is an unaffordable luxury! I have found before that I have a very sensitive eye area; I've woken up with unsightly eye eczema one too many times now! For that reason I tend to spend a little more on eye products.

So imagine my unadulterated glee when I found No7's Beautiful Skin Eye Make-Up Remover. It caught my eye immediately because, aside from the packaging, it looks exactly like Bi-facil. 

No7 has always been on the periphery for me; it's generally not a brand that I go for at all. It reminds me all too much of stage makeup; caked on and with a definite makeup-y smell! But when I saw this was priced at only £7.75 I had to try it. I will add at this point that I did have a £5 No7 voucher which did considerably aid my decision.. £2.75!

And like it I do. It's easily comparable to any other eye makeup remover I have ever used. It removes every scrap of makeup, no fuss. There are no apres-cleansing panda eyes either, like with other makeup removers that only appear to have done the job! It does leave an oily residue on the skin, obviously, but there is absolutely no trace of this after cleansing. I'm sure it's probably all in my mind, but my general eye area seems to be brighter after having used this for a couple of days!

If you have a penchant for pricey makeup removers, I would seriously recommend this if you start to feel the pinch! I cannot even begin to explain how impressed I am with this little bottle, without sounding like a walking, talking advertisement. It's literally amazing! This is definitely going to become a facial staple. And with a No7 voucher, which Boots seem to be giving away these days, this is hard to say no to. I think you have to spend £5 in order to get one - deodorant and razors, BAM.

Are there any other holy grail eye makeup removers I should know about?

My First Batch of Empties!

It's not often that I have the patience, or even like a product enough, to use the whole thing. I find that nine times out of ten, I end up throwing away a lot because I've had it longer than you're supposed to, it's started to smell weird, or it's gone a strange colour! Particularly with skin care. I feel now that my tastes are beginning to settle down a bit and I'm becoming a little less fickle with my purchases.

So here are a few things that I've used up recently, with a little review and whether or not I'll repurchase!

Sanctuary Mandelular Sensuous Body Souffle; Yves Saint Laurent Top Secrets Eye Make-up Remover; Clinique Clarifying Lotion, Skin Type 2; ckIN2U her.

I love Sanctuary products, mostly because of the smell. My local Boots started selling the Sanctuary scented candle recently, so I've moved onto that as well now! I loved this moisturiser, it's so, so rich and creamy. I get a bit impatient if moisturisers don't soak in quickly enough, because I don't like feeling greasy, but this absorbs like a dream. It's around £10 for a huge tub, so it lasts ages; I think it's super good value. I'm holding off buying this at the moment because I'm going to try something different, I'm thinking Kiehls, but I know it won't be long before I buy a pot of this, even if it's a travel size!

The YSL makeup remover came in some kind of gift with purchase, I can't even remember when; there's a strong chance I snaffled this from my Mum's bathroom. I really like oily eye makeup removers, you know the ones that you have to shake to mix the two layers? I'm sure there's probably a technical term for this, but I don't know it. I think they're really gentle on the eyes and you don't have to rub too much to remove even waterproof makeup. This one is particularly gentle and works really well. I do prefer the Lancome one over this, and I've got a feeling this one is ever so slightly more expensive.

The first skincare I ever used, way back when, was the Clinique 3-Step Skincare system. I bought all three steps, but over time I've tried new things and found a better combination of things that work. It's probably psychological, but I think that using everything from the same brand means nothing works as well as it should. Totally all in my mind! The Clarifying Lotion is the one thing I have stuck with. It feels so fresh after cleansing my face and it takes off any last little bit of makeup that might have been left. I love the tingly feeling; it feels like it's really doing something! I've started to have little niggly doubts that maybe it's too strong for my skin, because it does smell like paint stripper. It was probably alright for my teenage skin, but what now? I have no idea what I could replace it with. I know I'll repurchase it because it's been such a constant for me!

The Calvin Klein perfume was something that I bought on a whim in the sale in Debenhams. I bought my boyfriend the men's version and the romantic in me thought it would be too cute if we had matching smells! Turns out I like the girl's version wayyy less. This has been the sort of scent that I'll use on a day that I'm not going out of the house, or just at work for a few hours. I can almost certainly say I won't repurchase this, not because it's not nice, because it is, but just because there's so many others I want to try!

RIP Chanel Coco Mademoiselle. My boyfriend bought me this for Christmas two years ago, and it's finally all gone! I knew this day would come, and now it has. Now I must not be a hoarder, and I should throw the bottle away! This was the first proper 'luxury' perfume I owned and I loved, loved, loved it. However, I will say I'm a little bit over the smell of it now. On other people it always smells very light and fresh, and just delicious, but on me I find it smells almost, hot? I don't know how to properly describe it, but it smells quite cloying on me and tends to get up my nose a bit. So for that reason, and the fact that it costs a million pounds, I probably won't buy it for myself again. It's been a good two years!

So now I'm on the hunt for a new perfume, any recommendations?

My Current Beauty Wishlist; June!

There are so many products I'm coveting at the moment, and I've managed to convince myself that I absolutely need them! Although some I actually do need; what's a girl to do with no make-up remover?!

Kiehl's Creme de Corps 500ml - £44; Bourjois Magic Nail Polish Remover - £4.99; Origins Super Spot Remover - £12; Lancome Bi-facil - £21; Malin+Goetz Ingrown Hair Cream - £27; Caudalie Vinosource S.O.S Thirst Quenching Serum 30ml - £26.10; YSL Volum Effet Faux Cils Luxurious Mascara - £23.

I'm seriously in the market for a new body moisturiser. I usually use The Sanctuary, but I just fancy a bit of variety at the moment! It's not going to freak my arms or legs out if I change product, so why not?! I used to use the Kiehl's Acai berry serum and loved it, so definitely want to branch out and try this.

OK. So the Bourjois pot of wonder. I cannot for the life of me find this anywhere! I don't want it badly enough to order it online, but I may find myself near a larger Boots store this weekend, so may sniff it out!

This Origins Spot Remover sounds too good to miss. Spot remover?! Why was this not invented when I was in Year 10? Could have solved all my teenage angst-y problems!

I got given a sample of Bi-facil when I bought my Lancome Visionnaire serum and loved it. Definitely purchasing a full size when the sample runs out. It is hands down the best eye makeup remover I have ever used. I have a crazy paranoia that I'm going to rub my eyes too much and have wrinkles in the morning, but this removes all my eye makeup with just a few gentle swipes.

I would love to know if anyone has used this Malin+Goetz Ingrown Hair Cream. I suffer really badly from ingrown hairs all over my legs and have hyped this up in my head to be the miracle cure! I'm definitely going to be trying this come payday. 

I tried the Caudalie serum when I received it in my Glossybox and love to use it in the morning. Visionnaire is much thicker and richer, so is better at night. It really hydrates my face and leaves it super smooth!

And last but not least, YSL Volum Effet Faux Cils. This is more of a shopping list than a wishlist actually - mine has recently dried up beyond use, so I need a replacement, STAT! This weekend poor eyelashes, I promise.

Has anyone used any of these products? I'd love to hear what you think! Any other recommendations?

What's in my make-up bag?

As a new blogger, I thought the best way to introduce myself was to show you what's in my make-up bag. Seeing as I'm going to be posting all about beauty, it's probably the best way to get to know me and my tastes!

I keep all the make-up I'm currently using in this nice, compact Cath Kidston bag. I didn't actually have a dedicated make-up bag until a few months ago, I just used to scatter everything I was using on my dressing table, or shove everything in a bag together. Keeping everything in this little bag makes things a lot easier and appeals more to my OCD ways.

1. Garnier Miracle Skin Perfector BB Cream. I LOVE this stuff. I think I've just about stopped wearing foundation for the summer now and moved onto this. I started using it last summer when it first came out, and loved it so much. It smooths the complexion so well and gives really good coverage. If I had a really bad breakout, I might think twice about wearing it though. It makes the skin look super dewy without looking oily. Winner.

2. YSL Flash Radiance Skincare Brush. I only use this with my foundation, and then not all the time. I know I should use a primer, but I tend to skip it out through sheer laziness. I also think this makes my make-up look very slightly cakey, like it can't get through to my skin. I don't really notice it doing a lot to the large pores on my cheeks either.. Might give this to my sister, she swears by it. 

3. Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua, in 10 Beige. I bought this after seeing so many bloggers raving about it. My, my I have not been disappointed. I don't like my make-up to be too obvious, so this is perfect. It's really light and is such a good match for my skin tone. At £31, I did think to begin with it was a little pricey for such a small bottle, but it has lasted me so long. And it smells AMAZING.

4. I haven't really properly entered the blusher world yet. For years and years I've used Benefit Dallas, until I woke up one morning and thought, wow, this really doesn't suit me. I popped to Superdrug and just picked up something cheaper to try a different shade. I absolutely love it. It's very much a 'your cheeks but better' blusher and doesn't leave you looking like you've smeared your Nan's pink lipstick all over your cheeks. Love it.

5. Benefit Lemon Aid. I actually rather cheekily commandeered this from my Mum's make-up bag about six months ago, and it's never gone back! To begin with, I thought it was just covering up the discolouration on my eyelids, but when I stopped wearing it for a period, I noticed that my eye make-up just wasn't staying on as long. This keeps the stuff where it should be!

6. Benefit Creaseless Cream Shadow/Liner, in Birthday Suit. I tend to just wear a sweep of one colour on my eyelids for everyday, and this is the colour of choice! It's a very beigey, champagne-like colour which is very subtle and flattering. And they're right, it doesn't crease! 

7. Maybelline Colour Tattoo 24 Hour, in 05-Eternal Gold. I'm not sold on this yet. I think the gold is far too bright and garish for my skin tone, it makes me look like I've stuck a ton of cheap gold sequins above my eyes! I think I'll definitely try it out when I'm a bit more sunkissed though! This stuff really does live up to it's name, there is no way this is coming off without a fight!

8. Inika pencil eyeliner in 06 Coco. I got this in the all-natural Glossybox, I want to say that was the April one? I just use this on my waterline. It doesn't seem to fall down my entire face like other eyeliners tend to do, I like it a lot.

9. L'Oreal Super Liner Perfect Slim. This is my first ever liquid liner! My sister is amazing at her eyeliner, me, not so much. The felt tip pen style brush makes this so easy to apply, for even the shakiest of hands! It doesn't smudge at all and stays on aaaaall day. Why did no one tell me about this before now?!

10. Lancome Hypnose Drama, in Excessive Black. I usually use YSL Faux Cils mascara, but it's run out! Nooooo! I'm using this at the moment until I convince myself to spend the money on a new YSL. I got it in the special edition Harrods Glossybox and need to use this opportunity to use it all up! I find it really difficult to apply, one swipe too many and there's no going back. It really is a fine art to keep this on the right side of clumpy. 

11. Revlon ColourBurst Lip Butter, in Strawberry Shortcake. I love these! I'm a bit scared of lipstick, I have a lip chewing habit, so find it looks awful in all the cracks! The Revlon lip butters smooth all of this out and are a brilliant pop of colour. I've noticed that Strawberry Shortcake looks better when I'm paler; I have a bit of a tan at the moment and it looks a bit tacky! I'm getting more use out of Creme Brulee shade in this weather! 

12. Benefit 10 Bronzing and Highlighting Powder Duo. I've had this little bashed up box for years and have only recently started getting use out of it again. I don't use the bronzing side anymore, I just use the highlighter on the tops of my cheekbones and on my browbone. This is seriously running out now, and I badly need recommendations for a new highlighter! Answers on a postcard please! 

I really hope this wasn't too long or boring! This is my make-up bag at it's absolute, post-student emptiness. It's a sad thing. I've used YSL Touche Eclat since I was about 16, so that would ordinarily be in here, but I find in the summer I can get away without wearing it. My bank balance agrees.

Obviously, being a new blogger, I would love to hear your thoughts! Are there any amazing products out there that could replace any of these well-loved old faithfuls? Any posts anyone would particularly like to see? I have so many ideas and so much inspiration, I would just love a nudge in the right direction! Thanks for reading!