Tuesday, 9 April 2013

Currently Loving #2



Lotus Original Caramelised Biscuit Spread
Whenever I go to the hairdressers they always bring me copious amounts of hot chocolate and those little caramel biscuits. They're a welcome bit of sustenance when I'm starving after four hours of bleaching & toning. Recently when I was doing my weekly shop in Sainsburys I came across those very biscuits but IN SPREAD FORM. This stuff is absolutely delicious. I went through this jar in about a week (oops!). This is the smooth version made with the blended biscuits but there's also a 'crunchy' one too. If you spread it on hot toast it transforms into this amazingly gooey melted caramel cinnamon concoction. So good!



Rupaul's Drag Race
Words cannot describe how much I love this programme and look forward to watching it every week! The basic premise is quite similar to America's Next Top Model but with drag queens instead of models. Its a hell of a lot more fun and entertaining though. They do a couple of challenges in each episode before displaying a runway look. The bottom two have to lip synch for their lives before one is eliminated each week. The queens are so bitchy & hilarious and its fascinating to see how they transform themselves with wigs & makeup. Some of them look prettier than actual women! There's so many internet memes and gifs that have originated from this show. I love all the sayings like 'no tea no shade' and 'read to filth'. I watched all the seasons in a few weeks and I've been streaming the current season. I really hope Jinkx Monsoon wins season 5, she is simply amazing. RuPaul is such an inspirational person too. I always feel happier after the watching the show, it's just got such a feel good factor to it. I have to admit that RuPaul's music has also become a bit of a guilty pleasure of mine lately. I love a bit of Glamazon & Jealous Of My Boogie.



Exerbeat
I don't get the chance to go to the gym anymore as I don't have anyone to look after Chloe so power walking is my main form of exercise. With all the snow we had last month I found it difficult to walk anywhere seeing as I couldn't even push the pram through it. So instead I dug out one of my old Wii games to make me feel like less of a lazy slob. Exerbeat is probably my favourite out of all the Wii fitness games as it has lots of cardio activities such as boxercise & hip hop dancing. Whenever I do this my arms really ache the next day so I think its pretty good for toning. It also has a fairly accurate calorie counting system as my Fitbit seems to add a similar amount to my daily burn. The controls aren't amazing even with the MotionPlus controller as sometimes I do the right movements & they don't register but as long as I'm burning calories I'm not too fussed. I totally recommend this if you're looking for a workout game that is fun but really makes you sweat too.



Skinny Caramel Lattes
My normal drink at Starbucks is a Caramel Macchiato but I live in crappy Huddersfield where Starbucks doesn't even exist. I hate the taste of Costa & Nero's coffee so I refuse to go to those either. To get my caffeine fix I decided to recreate my favourite coffee at home. I had previously bought the Starbucks caramel syrup but always felt guilty using it as it contains so much sugar & is rather pricey for such a tiny bottle. I was browsing in TK Maxx the other week when I spotted this sugar free caramel syrup. It was only £3.99 for this huge bottle & it adds the perfect amount of caramel-y sweetness to my drink. The company who make it also do skinny cocktail mixes which I think I might have to buy too! I also use this electric whisk from Amazon called the Aerolatte. It works in a similar way to a milk frother but it's so much cheaper. These two products help me to make the perfect caramel latte at home without the Starbucks price tag.



Final Fantasy
At the risk of sounding like a huge geek, I am obsessed with turn-based role playing games. Final Fantasy was one of the first games in this genre and although I completed III & IV on the DS, I'd never played any of the others. I was bored the other day so I downloaded the original Final Fantasy game for iPhone and beat the whole thing in 16 hours. It was really fun & fairly easy for a RPG. I think it's cool to see how the franchise has evolved over the years to the games they produce today. I can't wait to start playing Final Fantasy II & V now.


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Tuesday, 2 April 2013

MAC Veronica's Blush Pearlmatte Face Powder







MAC Veronica's Blush Pearlmatte Face Powder - £21.50

As soon as I saw the previews for the MAC Archie's Girls collection I had my heart set on buying just this one item. It was love at first sight. Veronica's Blush is one of the prettiest products I've ever seen. How cute are those hearts?! There's nothing I love more than highlighting products but I hadn't bought any new ones for a whole year after finding my holy grail highlighter in the form of theBalm's Mary-Lou Manizer. However I knew this Pearlmatte Face Powder was too good to miss out on.

Being such a pale person, I find this doesn't actually work as a highlighter on me as it is far too pink. Instead I've been using it as a blush by swirling together the light shimmery part with the darker pink hearts and then applying it with a small duo fibre brush. The texture of this powder is silky smooth so it applies likes a dream. The colour is very subtle, adding a light touch of pink to the cheeks. But the real beauty of this powder is the gorgeous glow it gives to the skin. It can sometimes be difficult to properly showcase highlighting products as the sheen often doesn't translate on camera but this one clearly adds a healthy bit of shine to my face. I love how it looks on my skin & unlike many other highlighters it doesn't emphasise my pores or imperfections.

Sadly this product is now sold out on the MAC website but it is still available on the Selfridges website & you might be able to find it at your local MAC counter. MAC also launched another Pearlmatte Face Powder in this collection called 'Flatter Me' which might be more suited to the peachy blush lovers amongst you. These powders are so lovely to use and look amazing so I'd really recommend trying one out if you can. Did you pick up anything from the Archie's Girls collection?


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Monday, 1 April 2013

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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