Tuesday, 21 May 2013

BeautecoBox May 2013




BeautecoBox* - £10 + £2.95 Delivery

The beginning of May saw the launch of a brand new beauty subscription box in the UK - BeautecoBox. The name stems from them being an eco friendly company with 100% recyclable packaging. The main advantage of this box over any other beauty box on the market is that you get to choose which set of products you'll be sent. When I used to be subscribed to a certain other beauty box I always hated seeing what other people had received and feeling left out because I'd been sent a tiny sachet when they'd gotten a full size product. This style of box completely eliminates that risk as you know exactly which products will be delivered to your door. Some people might prefer the surprise of opening up their box without knowing what is inside but I think this process is a lot fairer and only you know what kind of stuff you'd want to try. Every month there are three sets of boxes available. I went for box 3 and this is what was inside:

Melvita Milky Cleansing Oil
The main reason I chose box 3 was because I really wanted to try this cleansing oil. After falling in love with the Superfacialist Rose Miracle Makeover Facial Oil I knew this would be something I'd like using too. This is a really lovely cleanser & the rose scent isn't too overpowering. It's brilliant at removing makeup without stripping the skin. It's very fluid so a little goes a long way & it's perfect for facial massage. It turns slightly milky on contact with water so no film is left on the skin & it doesn't give me foggy eyes either. The full size bottle of this actually works out to be a lot cheaper than the Superfacialist one so I think I might actually buy this when I run out of my other cleansing oils.

Mitchell & Peach Body Cream
I'm not a big fan of the scent of this cream, it's far too masculine for my liking & smells strongly of lavender. Having said that the cream itself is quite moisturising. It's packed full of goodies like honey, shea butter, cocoa butter, Vitamin E and sweet almond oil. Plus it gets a thumbs up for having 100% natural fragrance. It's just a shame that I dislike the scent so I don't think I'll be using this again.

Anatomicals Body Scrub
While I appreciate the witty names of Anatomicals' products I couldn't help but be slightly disappointed with this scrub. I like my scrubs to have a lot more grit to them and this texture of this was far too fluid to exfoliate my skin properly. I do love the grapefruit scent & I will use it up but I won't be repurchasing this.

Anatomicals Vitamin Rich Hand Cream
This is really really moisturising. My cuticles are ridiculously dry but this manages to sort them out nicely. It's not greasy & sinks in fairly fast. My only gripe is that it smells a bit plasticky.

Dr Bragi Age Management Moisturiser
This is a lovely light gel moisturiser featuring marine enzymes and hyaluronic acid to deeply hydrate and plump the skin. It firms up my skin & adds a healthy glow to my face. You need the tiniest amount, even a pea sized blob is a bit much or it'll end up feeling quite sticky. This is a really cool product because it's kinda like Hydraluron, a moisturiser and an eye gel in one. It claims to brighten the complexion, reduce blemishes & eliminate dark circles but the sample I received wasn't really enough to notice the full effects. The full size 60ml tube of this moisturiser retails at a whopping £120! It is very expensive but I can see why it is so expensive as it's basically three products in one. I do really like this stuff but it might be a while before I ever feel the need to splash out 120 quid on a moisturiser.

For me the Melvita & Dr Bragi products were the best samples in the box. I loved being able to choose which products I received. I also really like the design of their packaging & branding. Again as with pretty much every other beauty subscription box I've tried the products were very hit and miss. But I do feel like this BeautecoBox has the ideal ratio of full size products & samples. Even the smaller samples are quite generous ones. If they can keep up the quantity of products in the boxes every month then this box could be well worth the money.

You can subscribe to BeautecoBox for £10 a month plus £2.95 delivery with no minimum subscription term. Visit the BeautecoBox website to find out more.


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Monday, 20 May 2013

Organic Surge Citrus Mint Shower Gel


Organic Surge Citrus Mint Shower Gel* - £4.07

Fragrance is a big mood enhancer for me when it comes to bathing. I like my products to smell either sickly sweet or citrus fresh. One problem I continually seem to run into when buying shower gel is that some ingredient in them is far too harsh on my skin resulting in dry elbows and patches of eczema on my body. It really sucks when you find something that smells incredible, feels great in the shower but you later have a reaction to. So recently I've been looking for more natural products in the hopes of reducing my eczema flare ups. Luckily this Citrus Mint shower gel from Organic Surge ticks both the boxes when it comes to having an awesome scent & being kind to my skin. It contains organic peppermint, lemon and orange essential oils which result in a very refreshing shower experience. The scent doesn’t linger on my skin at all but it'll fill your bathroom with those lovely invigorating oils. Natural glycerine, aloe vera and Vitamin E are also included to keep your skin feeling soft & perfectly moisturised. I love how tingly it feels on the skin and I definitely feel more awake after showering with this stuff.

What I really like about Organic Surge is that their products are untouched by harsh chemicals. They don't contain any parabens, SLS, synthetic perfumes or colours. These ingredients are something I'm becoming increasingly concerned about in my beauty products. I'm pretty sure they're what I've been having reactions to. So I really think that natural, organic products are the way to go if you have sensitive skin. I'd really recommend this if you're looking for something to give you a bit more pep in the morning!


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Thursday, 16 May 2013

WIMH Discovery Kit: The Best Of Ole Henriksen




The Best Of Ole Henriksen Discovery Kit* - £19.50 (Worth £54.00)

What's In My Handbag is one of my favourite online beauty destinations. Their online magazine is a fantastic way of finding out about new products. They even offer free product samples on occasion including things like the Emma Hardie Moringa Cleansing Balm & the new REN BB cream. Recently I've been testing out one of the sample kits they sell in their shop - The Best Of Ole Henriksen Discovery Kit. Ole Henriksen are one of those brands I hear so much about but have never delved into myself. Mainly because a) individually the products are fairly expensive and b) I had no idea where to start. This kit solves both of those problems because it gives you very generous samples of some of their most loved products at a low price. Every item included in the kit is designed to be used on all skin types and the brand has a strong focus on natural, botanical ingredients.



I gave up using wipes as a makeup remover a long time ago. They never got my face clean enough & I had to use about 4 to get rid of all my eye makeup. But these Truth To Go Wipes are probably the best ones I've ever tried. You only get 10 wipes in the packet but just one wipe manages to remove every trace of makeup from my face, even waterproof mascara. I would normally only advocate using a balm, oil or micellar water to remove your makeup but if you ever find yourself in a situation where wipes are the only answer like a festival, plane or you're a drunken mess, then these are perfect. The ingredient list is very impressive, they're full of Vitamin C, micro algae & fruit extracts designed to brighten & firm your skin so you don't have to feel guilty about taking a cleansing shortcut. The wipes themselves are very soft & don't strip the skin at all. Plus they smell like orange sherbet!



The African Red Tea Foaming Cleanser is another product with a delicious citrus scent. This is due to the grapefruit, orange and tangerine extracts that help to purify & brighten skin. Such a light foam might seem like it wouldn't do a good job of cleansing but this actually works really well. You only need one or two pumps before massaging it onto your damp face. As you massage it becomes quite creamy & feels luxurious on the skin. The foam did get up my nose a bit so less is definitely more with this cleanser. It completely melts away makeup and leaves my skin feeling very clean & not dried out. It's very gentle so it's ideal for those with sensitive skin. I've noticed that this product helps to minimise my pores a lot. African Red Tea is one of the ingredients that Ole Henriksen is known for championing as it contains 50 times more antioxidants than green tea. It's apparently great for anti-aging so this could be a good one to try if you're starting to get worried about the appearance of fine lines.



This is the Ole Henriksen product that I hear the most rave reviews about and therefore have been most eager to try out. The Truth Serum Collagen Booster is a potent Vitamin C serum that plumps up the skin, firms and helps to reverse the signs of ageing. Vitamin C is brilliant at brightening the skin and fading freckles. This stuff seriously makes your skin glow. Being so pale its a struggle to find products that make me look healthy but this definitely does it. I've really noticed the brightening effect & it's helped to reduce my post-blemish scarring. The consistency is quite thick for a serum & I find it to be a bit on the sticky side so I've only been using it at night. It does leave my skin feeling silky & soft once it's absorbed properly though. I'd say that buying this kit is well worth it for this serum alone, this really is a star product.



Sheer Transformation is an oil-free moisturiser with a super light consistency. It hydrates my skin nicely & dries down to a semi-matte finish. I think it's a great choice as a base for makeup. It kinda reminds me of a lighter version of the Origins Make A Difference Plus+ Rejuvenating Moisturiser as it contains natural extracts that help to fade discolouration in the skin.



The Ultimate Lift Eye Gel has a really thick consistency, almost like a balm. It's very cooling, hydrating and instantly firms the under eye area. I don't really have fine lines around my eyes yet but even I can notice the smoothing effect this provides. The cucumber extract in it works as a decongestant which really refreshes my tired & puffy eyes. As this is such a thick product it is only recommended for night time because something like this might be too heavy during the day. After using this at night, I find I don't look so tired in the morning anymore. This might be a keeper.

Overall I think this kit is a really great buy. It's the perfect set if you want some miniature products for travelling with or just want to try out some new products from a less easily accessible range. The What's In My Handbag shop is full of wonderful discovery kits just like this one & they have some fab deals on individual cult products too. WIMH are kindly offering all of you an exclusive 20% off voucher code to spend in their shop which is valid until 31st May on all orders over £10. Just enter SPARKLY20 at the checkout. I'm sure you all know that I'd recommend buying Alpha-H Liquid Gold & if you order it from WIMH you get a risk-free 4ml sample with it. That way if you don't get on with the sample product you can return the full size item for a full refund. Bargain!

What do you think of this Ole Henriksen discovery kit? Which kit would you like to try out?


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Thursday, 9 May 2013

Zalando Home Haul



I'm forever complaining about the decoration of my house. Orange and yellow walls just don't do it for me. But I can't really redecorate much as it is rented. Instead I've been trying to buy little bits now and then to help spruce up the place and organise my things better. Zalando recently came to my rescue by kindly gifting me a voucher to spend in their homeware section. Zalando are a big online shop known for having a huge selection of clothes and shoes from some big brands but their homeware section is probably the best part of the website. It's full of quirky pieces and great storage solutions. Here's some of the things I chose:


CALANDO Heart Tray

I love this white heart shaped tray. It's perfect for keeping all kinds of bits & bobs in. I've decided to house all my perfumes in it. They look a lot neater in here than just scattered on my dresser. I kinda wish I'd bought two of these as they're just so cute & you can fit so many things in them. Might have to make another order in the near future!


Sass & Belle Heart Picture Frame

I bought this with the intention of putting a nice photo in here but I actually really like the floral canvas inside the frame. So I think I'll keep it like this for the minute. Again this is something I wish I'd bought more than one of as it looks so sweet. Sass & Belle are one of my favourite brands for home goods. I have quite a few things by them in bedroom such as my jewellery hanger. There's a great range of Sass & Belle products available on Zalando.



Zak! New Gallery Tray

This probably seems like quite a boring purchase but I think this is a great versatile piece. It's very large and sturdy despite being made of melamine. I bought this for a few reasons. My bedside tables are tiny so this will help me organise the stuff on them a bit better. It's also a great blank canvas for taking product shots. Sometimes I get a bit bored of laying all my products down on my floral pillows so this will make a nice change for my blog photos. Plus my lunch of avocado on toast, jazz apples and mango & lychee green tea fits on it perfectly. Maybe I need to buy another of these too, eek! The white one has sold out but you can get them in a couple of other colours .



Hello Kitty By Camomilla Washbag

Even at my age I'm such a sucker for anything with Hello Kitty on it. How cute are the sticky out ears & bow?! I'm using this to organise all the little bits that normally just float around in the bottom of my handbag such as lip products, gum & hand cream. My everyday makeup bag is far too big to take out with me so this is good for things I need to top up with. The washbag has sold out now but you can still get a similar looking wallet.

I'm so happy with all my purchases & the customer service I received has been brilliant. Delivery was free & fast too! Have you ever bought anything from Zalando before? Definitely check out the homeware section if you haven't already as they do have some rather lovely pieces available.


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Wednesday, 8 May 2013

Stila Lilium Convertible Colour





Stila Lilium Convertible Colour - £16

Spring is finally here & as a result my makeup has become a lot lighter. Instead of using a full coverage foundation & powder blushers I've been favouring a less opaque base & creamy blush. I still adore Topshop & Illamasqua's cream blush offerings but Stila's Convertible Colours really do come out on top. I've previously reviewed the Petunia Convertible Colour and everything I said there still stands for this shade. I absolutely love the dewy finish of these blushers & they last for ages too. Whereas Petunia was a bright rosy pink, Lilium is a pale dusky pink. It has a nice blend of nude & pink tones which makes it one of the most natural looking cheek colours I've come across. I used to apply these with the Real Techniques Stippling Brush but I now think that the Real Techniques Expert Face Brush is a far superior applicator when it comes to cream blush. It makes it really easy to blend these in & either sheer out or build up the colour intensity to your desire.

Lilium also makes for a rather gorgeous lip colour. Pale pinks are my fave for everyday wear & I think this one really suits my colouring. I really like how the colour transforms from my cheeks to my lips. They might look a bit different as they're applied in different places but as I've used the same product they go together perfectly. I always apply some NUXE Reve De Miel lip balm before applying this as otherwise it is a bit drying on the lips. The colour will disappear completely as soon as you eat something but it's easy enough to top up. One of the things I like best about these Convertible Colours is their portability. They're perfect for slipping into your handbag as you get a mirror, blusher & lipstick in one. These are fast becoming one of my favourite ever products. I need more of them!


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