BeautecoBox July 2013

BeautecoBox* - £10 + £2.95 Delivery

BeautecoBox just seems to get better and better every month. The July box is probably the best beauty box I have ever received. Out of the three menus available, this month I opted for box 2 which contained four full size products and only one sample. You have to admit that's pretty incredible for the price! Like I've said before they really do have those ratios down to a T and it's so brilliant to be able to try out some new products properly instead fiddling about with tiny sample sachets.

Artdeco Soft Kajal Liner
I'm not really into pencil eyeliners as I think they make my eyes look smaller (something I definitely don't need!) but this one is really nice. It's so soft and ready to use without having to warm it up on your hand first. I always end up stabbing myself in the eye with stiffer liners when I'm tightlining but I can do it with this one no problem. It also smudges out really well for a smokey eye. It's very pigmented and seems to last a long time on my eyes.

Artdeco Eyehadow Base
I normally go for the Urban Decay Primer Potion or MAC Painterly Paint Pot if I want a neutral eye primer but both of those have been pushed aside for this little pot of wonder. It sits so nicely on my eyelids and stops creasing completely. My eyeshadows last incredibly well when I use this and it helps to boost their pigmentation too. In the pot it looks like a sparkly beige cream but it appears matte once applied. I normally apply it with a MAC 239 brush and then use the same brush to pack on my eyeshadow. This has worked it's way into my everyday makeup bag and it's definitely my favourite eye primer at the moment.

Pukka Radiance Serum
I'm a big fan of the Pukka Castor Oil so I was interested in trying some more of their skincare products. This is a light yellow serum that contains aloe vera & manuka honey to soothe & refresh the skin as well as gotu kola & lemon balm to tone & brighten the complexion. It is an organic ayurvedic formula so it has a very herby scent which might not be to everyone's taste but I quite like it. The texture is a bit thin & watery but after a little while it made my skin feel super soft which must be down to the manuka honey. I didn't notice much difference in brightness or radiance but this is a nice serum if you want something to soften and soothe your skin.

Neal & Wolf Harmony Intensive Care Treatment
I've tried this product before and even featured it in one of my monthly favourites posts a few months back. I absolutely adore this conditioner so I was more than happy to receive a new bottle. This stuff instantly transforms my hair from dry & damaged to soft & smooth. It's one of the few products that can make my bleached hair look healthy and it works so much better than many of the more expensive hair treatments that I've tried.

Neal & Wolf Elevate Volumising Lotion
With all the oils and treatments I use in an attempt to restore my hair, it can get a bit weighed down & look flat. As soon as I tried this lotion I was instantly impressed. My hair actually had some volume for once! This product makes my hair feel thicker and look fuller. The effect lasted until I washed my hair again a few days later. Best of all, it didn't affect my hair in any other way. Most of the other volumising hair products I've tried either dried out my hair or made it feel sticky & horrible. With this, my hair just feels like hair but with added body. Really great stuff!

All in all, this was another brilliant set of products from BeautecoBox. Not only did this box have loads of full sized products but I actually really liked them all and will continue to use everything in here. The Artdeco Eyeshadow Base is a complete must-have product for me now and Neal & Wolf are fast becoming one of my favourite haircare brands. I think this particular box has sold out now (no surprise there!) but 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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March Favourites

Pepta-Bright
As I'm such a big fan of Hydraluron, which is also made by Indeed Labs, I had to try out their latest product. Pepta-Bright is a creamy textured serum which helps to brighten my skintone & has been really effective at reducing scarring. I hate the freckles & brown spots on my face and this has helped to lighten them a tiny bit. Hopefully over time they will fade a lot more because then I wouldn't need to wear a high coverage foundation. It also boosts skin hydration & radiance. I apply this, then Hydraluron, followed by my moisturiser. This product goes well with the Clarins toner to give your skin maximum brightness & clarity.

Clarins Gentle Exfoliator Brightening Toner
This lovely toner is also a chemical exfoliant so using this every night has made my skin feel so much softer & smoother. I have a real problem with bumps under my skin and other than Alpha-H Liquid Gold, this is the only product that has managed to shift them. As the name suggests it is incredibly gentle so this would make a great alternative to Liquid Gold for anyone with sensitive skin. Read my full review here.

Neal & Wolf Harmony Intensive Care Treatment
This intensive conditioner is one of the best I've ever tried. I've shelled out for products double the price of this one that were far less effective. Kerastase, I'm looking at you. It really improves the appearance and feel of my hair. Whenever I've used this my hair is instantly transformed from looking dry and damaged to healthy and shiny. The difference it makes to my hair is just incredible. Its so nice to not have my hair looking like a heavily bleached dry mess for once!

La Roche-Posay Cicaplast Baume B5
I've suffered with eczema since I was a baby. I've managed to control my symptoms a lot through watching my diet, changing my shower gel and using various oils & creams. But nothing was working on the patches on my elbows until I tried La Roche-Posay's Cicaplast Baume. It offers instant relief to any itch and adds some much needed moisture to the area. This is a multipurpose soothing balm which is suitable for very sensitive skin so you can use it on dry lips, rashes, minor burns or even as a face cream. This is a brilliant product for anyone with dry skin anywhere on their face or body.

Illamasqua Scarce Nail Varnish
This gorgeous speckled pink hasn't left my nails all month. Its the perfect polish for Easter and as with all Illamasqua nail varnishes the formula & quality are impeccable. Check out my nail swatches of this shade here.

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Current Haircare Routine

When it comes to haircare my main concern is trying to stop my hair from looking dry and straw like. I've been bleaching my hair this colour since 2006 with a one year break in 2009 so I've tried a fair few treatments in my time. I've noticed the last few times I've washed & styled my hair its been looking better & healthier than ever, even more so than when I sported my natural hair colour. I think I've finally got my haircare routine locked down to these few products so this might be helpful to anyone with dry or damaged hair.

L'Oréal Professionnel Serie Expert Silver Shampoo / Tigi Bed Head Urban Antidotes Resurrection Shampoo & Conditioner / Neal & Wolf Harmony Intensive Care Treatment*

I've used an absolute ton of different purple shampoos but the L'Oreal silver shampoo is the best one if you just want to eliminate all signs of brassyness. I found that many others would leave my hair tinted rather than just white blonde. Clairol Shimmer Lights often left my hair with blue tones & Lee Stafford's offering made my hair really pinky. Purple shampoos are normally quite drying too but the L'Oreal one keeps my hair feeling soft. I picked up the Tigi Urban Antidotes duo in TK Maxx but you can find them just as cheaply online. I really like all the Tigi duos because the bottles are so big they last for months. I used to use the Dumb Blonde ones but switched to Urban Antidotes as these are specialised towards extremely damaged hair. Over time this duo has definitely helped to strengthen my hair and reduce breakage. They also have the most amazing bubblegum scent. A product I recently introduced into my haircare routine is the Neal & Wolf Harmony Intensive Care Treatment. I received this at a blogger meetup and when I tried it I couldn't believe the difference it made! It has worked so much better than every other conditioning treatment I've tried including those expensive Kerastase ones. This is a must buy product if you have dry or damaged hair. It just makes my hair look so healthy & glossy. Neal & Wolf are a brand I definitely need to investigate more because if the rest of their products are as good as this I am converted!

Philip Kingsley Elasticizer

I am rather lazy when it comes to my hair so I don't use this product very often but when I do, the difference is just incredible. Elasticizer is a pre-shampoo treatment so it is a bit of a faff to use. You have to wet your hair, apply it, put on a shower cap and then leave it in for ages before shampooing it off. You can leave it in for just 20 minutes or overnight if you prefer. I like to apply it to the ends of my hair and leave it overnight before washing it out in the morning. It restores your hair to almost virgin condition making it feel silky & sleek. This product can also help with hair growth if you use it often enough as one of the main ingredients is castor oil. It is very expensive for a hair treatment but worth every penny.

Kérastase Ciment Thermique / Moroccanoil / Bumble & Bumble Brilliantine / Alterna Caviar Rapid Repair Spray

I'm still using my Ciment Thermique & Moroccanoil combo as my blow dry base products. Together they give me the perfect amount of heat protection & moisture. A couple of months ago I added Bumble & Bumble Brilliantine to the mix and this stuff is basically a good hair day in a tube. You can use it on wet or dry hair to add definition and lots of shine. I've started to use this through the lengths and ends of my hair before blow drying and it just completely renews my hair. It makes my ends look super healthy, like I've just had a trim even though my last hair appointment was a few months ago. So much love for this product! After I've finished drying my hair I like to use a bit of the Alterna Caviar Rapid Repair Spray to add even more shine & get rid of any fluffyness. I've never come across a finishing spray as lovely as this one & it smells divine to boot!

Babyliss Pro Speed 2100W Hair Dryer / Babyliss Big Hair Rotating Styler

I always have to blow dry my hair as I cannot stand having wet hair. Air drying would just make my hair stringy and lifeless anyway. I don't really like to use a curler or straightener so blow drying allows me to get the shape I desire. I know its not the best thing to do to your hair but I only wash my hair once a week and use heat protection products every time so I guess its not too bad. First of all I blast my hair with my hair dryer and run through it with my fingers. I use a Babyliss Pro Speed hair dryer which is really brilliant. I'm pretty loyal to Babyliss when it comes to hair dryers, they always last me years. Theres a newer model of this now but this one is still going strong. When my hair is almost dry but still a bit damp I switch over to my Babyliss Big Hair styler to add volume and shape. I couldn't live without this styler. It just gives you a perfect blow dry without all the effort of sectioning your hair and drying it against a round bristle brush which can be quite tricky to do by yourself. I never used to be able to do it as well as my hairdresser but Big Hair really does help to give you that professional blow dry at home look.

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