Skin perfection?

L'Oréal Paris Skin Perfection 3 in 1 Purifying Micellar Solution 

There's been a lot of blogs written about Micellar Water and they are the reason that I NEEDED to get my hands on some to try some for myself. The Boot's near me didn't have any (much to my distress!).  I was delighted when I popped into a Boots in London and found the L'Oreal version. You know that you're a beauty addict when you get this excited about cleanser!!   I've been using this for a couple of months now so I thought I would add in my tuppence worth....

The L'Oreal version wasn't the version that I was planning to buy, however I didn't have a lot of options so L'Oreal it was.  Plus it was less than £5 so I didn't feel guilty buying yet another cleanser. 

I don't have another water to compare to but I've been pretty impressed with this.  I've found this really handy to have in my cleansing armour I really like the natural feel of this and it's more soothing than my normal lazy day fall back on face wipes. The water is great as an addition to my normal cleansing routine  and I'm still on my first bottle, which is a bonus for my wallet too!

I did get lazy for a few days and only used this as a cleanser, for my skin this isn't good enough to keep my skin clear and I still found traces of make up even after 2-3 cleansing pads worth.... and I don't wear a lot of foundation! In that respect I don't think it lives up to "skin perfection".

 I will be keeping this in my routine as an addition to my cleansing routine to freshen up my skin/ sort me out on late nights and the perfect way to remove mascara!  I will be buying this again & I can't wait to try other versions. Have you tried this version, how does it compare?

xxx

Fab Friday

I can't think of many better things to do on a Friday than to have a total chill after a busy week. I had a total pamper night the other evening. Nails, hot chocolate and gossip girl .... AMAZING!

I am totally in love with this candle at the moment. It's a Yankee Candle in Midnight Jasmine that I got for Christmas. It smells much better when it's lit than I initially thought it would. I think it smells like a much more expensive candle.

Now that Spring has arrived I've been  loving brighter nail colors. I couldn't decide between the gel style pink from Barry M or a bright red from the Fearne range of colors. Both of these are pretty old but I still love them both. I ended up going for the red and topping it with a NARS glitter polish. 

Topped off with Elemis pro collagen hand cream and a few episodes of gossip girl made for a perfect evening!

xxx

All things glitter

As a bit of a different post, I thought I would share with you my fave jewellery.  

I wear my Micheal Kors watch pretty much every day, I love it! I've never found a watch that I have wanted to wear before this one. It was a risk buying such an expensive experiment, thankfully it paid off and I have worn this to death!  I think having a statement watch which really adds to my outfit makes me want to wear this as much as possible. Plus it's covered in sparkly gems! I'm very tempted to get the silver version....

I don't often wear a lot of jewellery however I do love rings. These are two of my current favorites! The little bow ring is from Astrid and Miyu & the Love ring is from Zara Taylor (I'm on my second version of this ring!).

xxx

Liz Earle Body Wash Review

I've recently been using the Liz Earle Orange Flower Botanical Body Wash.  I would never normally consider buying a Liz Earle body wash as I assumed it would be quite expensive, but as with all of these things it came as part of a QVC pack.  It's actually a lot more affordable than I thought it would be, it's £12 for 200ml. Plus, the bottle has lasted me quite a while too.  This is well and truly on my re-purchase list.

The body wash is fairly thick and lathers up really well meaning that you don't need to use much. It smells really lovely (and leaves my bathroom smelling amazing for ages after a shower!). 

I've got quite sensitive skin and it's not reacted at all to this. In fact, it feels very natural on my skin.   Before I started using this I had been using up a lot of  Elemis body washes (also part of QVC deals!) and, yet again, Liz Earle has lived up to the same standards and my beloved Elemis.

Have you used this? What did you think?

Handbag Make Up

I thought I would share with you all my handbag make up bits and bobs today. I love seeing what everyone else uses day to day so I thought I would share my handbag favs.  I'm not very good at topping up my make up during the day but I always have a selection of these with me and the full lot when I have a date night after work!! 

 Stainiac Lip Tint, Super Shock Max Mascara (review here),  Maybelline Master Smoky Eye shadow Pencil,  Sephora Face Sheets, Mini Dandelion Lip Gloss,  LAQ & CO fat lip pencil.

My selection includes a brigh red lip colour, I love this for an immediate evening update to my makeup. Alternatively I use the mini lip stain and gloss for a more natural look. Rather than carrying around more than I need to in my already packed handbag (how does that happen?) I tend to use the stainiac for a top up of colour on my cheeks.

I picked up the sephora sheets when I was in America at the end of this year, these are a great handbag addition for me. They get rid of any shine and I think really freshen up makeup.

Finally my fav mascara and eyeliner. A top up of mascara always makes me feel ready to face the world. Complemented with a little brown eyeliner to (hopefully) make my blue eyes stand out.

I had to share this makeup bag with you, I love it.  I think it looks a wee bit retro and I love how it opens right up at the top so that you can see everything inside. Plus, It makes me feel super glam carrying my make up in it. It's not the most compact bag but I love the look...hmmmmmmm, this logic may also explane why my handbag is always so packed! Unfortunately I didn't also get to enjoy the first class flight that the bag came from, but I do have some generous relatives who donated to to me.

Xxx

A Wee Break

                

This weekend I got taken away for a LOVELY weekend in the Scottish country side. It was such a treat to be taken away. We had some amazing food, lovely views, a little snow and a few glasses of vino!

 One of my favorite parts about going away is picking my outfits for the weekend. I thought I would share with you what made it into my short list for the weekend.

Firstly my Mulberry and Hunters... I maintain these are practical (!) but also love the opportunity to wear them both at once and make the most of two great British brands in my eyes!  ....... even if they did make me look like a city girl dropped in the middle of the countryside!

During the day we spent most of the time checking out the local views & enjoying a few hours in front of the fire with the papers, magazines and a glass of red wine. BLISS  

                                                 

My daytime outfit consisted off M&S leggings, white long vest from Primark under my Reiss T-shirt, I love this top!! I paired this all with my trusty Uggs, H&M tweed blazer, Micheal Kors rose gold watch & my tan bag.

For dinner we booked into the hotel restaurant which had good reviews. I took the opportunity to pack my glad rags. Well I actually packed two outfits but this is what I wore..

                                      

I picked up this dress from Primark this week, it was only £5!! I've not bought anything from Primark for ages but I fell in love with this dress. I think it looks much more expensive than £5... win win!

I paired this with black tights, a vintage black patent bag and my trusty Jimmy Choo heels. What do you think? I loved wearing this outfit, plus it's super comfy!

                                      

As a wee non clothing item we packed a bottle of prosecco to enjoy before dinner. Since there wasn't a fridge I put it into this cute little cooler!! It's far too cute not to share....

xxx

St Moriz vs St Tropez.... The good, bad and ugly!

As a Scottish girl with the typical Celtic colouring (read GREY skin tone) I have tried out a fair few fake tans in my time. 

I've done a full circle with St Tropez, they were the first tan I ever used, back when they only did the cream. After years of faithful use I went off St Tropez and tried out lots of others including Fake Bake, Sun etc. etc. etc.

 I haven't written off any of these tans, I like to keep my options open!!!............However, I have come back to St Tropez since I started using the mousse version. I know that it's been around for a long time but I'm sure that it's getting better! It is so easy to apply and I've found that I can use it during the day without looking like a crazy person.  

It goes on evenly and gives me a great colour. Using it with a Mitt I've never had any issues with application... which is saying something seeing as my boyfriend does my back & he's not exactly an expert! The downside? That's got to be the price. 

That's when I found St Moriz (mousse), at first I was VERY cautious about using this since it is SO cheap but I have to say. It does a great job for the fraction of the prices St Tropez. The application process is similar to St Tropez. It gives me even colour which doesn't go orange and it's just as easy to apply. It's currently on at the moment, developing away nicely - I find I can put a little on in the morning and it's not too obvious that it's developing WIN in my book. 

The downside? I find that this dry’s out my skin after a few applications.  I apply lots of moisturiser before I apply it to solve this little problem - although that's just good practice for all tans in my book!!  I'm also not convinced that the tan lasts for as long as St Tropez. Great for a night out though.

I am a fan of both of these and highly recommend using them, particularly using St Tropez as a base and St Moriz to top up ..........my personal favourite combo!  I have a fabby 'natural' tan my purse is happy and my skin doesn't dry out, what's not to love.

xxx

PS... If you are using these don't forget to mix with moisturiser for your face. It gives a much more natural colour. Happy Tanning!