Hello everyone!

So as I'm sure you are all aware it's getting towards the end of November already... where has the time gone?! Personally I despise this time of the year. The nights are drawing in, the temperature rarely reaches double figures and I'm pretty sure you can count the amount of times you see the sun shining on one hand. All in all, I find this weather can really cause havoc on your skin; making it appear dry, dull and a bit lifeless. However, fear not, as I was having a good rummage around in my make up bag and discovered a few little gems that might just get your skin glowing again through these harsh winter months. Best of all, you can pick all of these little skin-saviours up in your local Boots!

Simple Kind To Skin Light Moisturiser

First up is moisturiser, which is essential for keeping your skin hydrated. I picked up this Simple Kind To Skin Moisturiser a few months back which I like to apply before my make up to prevent my skin from getting dry throughout the day. It's a light consistency and doesn't feel too heavy when you apply it to the skin, which is always something I like in a moisturiser (I hate the greasy feel you get from moisturisers that don't sink in fast enough!) I also find that a good moisturiser will allow your foundation to glide on evenly, instead of clinging to any dry patches that you may have. It's an added bonus that this moisturiser is suitable for sensitive skin, meaning it's free from any harsh chemicals that could cause irritation. All in all this is a great product suitable for any skin type, leaving your skin feeling soft, smooth and nourished all day.

Garnier Caffeine Eye Roll-on

Next up is the Garnier Caffeine Anti-dark Circles Eye Roll-on in the colour Fair. I've been wanting to try this product out ever since it was first released as I have awfully dark under-eye circles that refuse to budge, but I was always persuaded by my mum to just "drink more water and go to bed earlier." However, waking up ridiculously early in the morning is starting to take its toll and I decided enough was enough, so a few weeks back I popped into Boots and picked this up in the hope of banishing the dreaded dark rings that lurked under my eyes, and I'm so glad I did. I have to say I actually LOVE this, the roller ball glides the product smoothly under the eyes allowing you to target the dark circles with precision, and I really like the consistency; it's light but has a high coverage in order to tackle the dark under-eye circles. I like to apply this before my foundation and then set it with a small amount of powder, which I've found is vital if you want to stop it from budging in the day. 

Rimmel Match Perfection Foundation

Now onto foundation. I bought this back in the summer in the colour 103 True Ivory, as I wanted something yellow-toned to counteract the redness I have in my pink-toned skin. I find this colour a perfect match for my skin; not too dark and not too light. It contains SPF 18 and gives a lovely subtle glow without looking oily. I would say this gives a light coverage, but once you've built up the colour with blusher and bronzer you're good to go!

Real Techniques Expert Face Brush

I fell in love with this brush the very first time I used it. It gives the most perfect, flawless finish when used with liquid foundations, and the density of the bristles allows you to build up the coverage on any problem areas. As you can see from the picture, the bottom of this brush (as with many other Real Techniques brushes) is completely flat, allowing it to stand up if you want to reach for it in a hurry or if you want to display your brushes on your dressing table. I honestly think this is the best brush I've ever used for applying foundation. I've used various flat foundation brushes before, but nothing has ever come close to giving me such a perfect finish as the Expert Face Brush does. The Real Techniques Stippling Brush is another close favourite of mine which also gives you a flawless finish, though I feel the bristles on the stippling brush are less dense and so they work better with lighter foundations and BB creams.

Rimmel Stay Matte Pressed Powder

Whether you have dry, combination or oily skin, a powder is a must-have staple that everybody has in their make up bags. I picked this up after seeing so many beauty bloggers rave about it, and for the price I totally agree that you cannot go wrong with this. With combination to oily skin, I notice that my T-Zone in particular begins to get oily throughout the day, but since using this powder I feel my make up lasts longer and the areas on and around my nose appear less shiny than before. I bought this is the colour Transparent, which means that when it's applied over foundation it won't alter the colour in any way. A real essential at an affordable price, you can't go wrong!

Rimmel Lasting Finish Mono Blush in Bronze

This will probably seem really odd, but this is the first blusher I have ever bought.. EVER. *Gasp* Throughout my teenage years I've always steered clear from blusher, mainly because I thought it would just add to the redness in my cheeks and make me look like a clown, but I discovered this when I was mooching around Boots and I found this: a Rimmel blusher in the colour Bronze. That may seem a little bit pointless to some of you as essentially this is a bronzer, but that's what I like about it. In the winter months your skin is generally a lot paler due to the lack of sunlight, and so I picked this up because I thought I could use it for its main purpose of being a blusher for the apples of my cheeks, but also along the cheekbones as a light alternative to a bronzer, as a lot of my bronzers are now too dark or orange-toned for my skin at this time of the year. I wouldn't say it's amazingly pigmented, but in a way I find that a godsend because it means I don't use too much when I'm frantically trying to apply it at 7am in awful lighting. Overall it does a good job of adding colour to the face, which is exactly what you need to prevent yourself from looking washed out in the winter.

Palmers Cocoa Butter Lip Balm

So this next product doesn't really belong in the skincare category, but nonetheless it is an essential. Ever since going to Portugal earlier this year and getting a cold sore from exposing my lips to the sun without having them SPF protected, I've carried a lip balm everywhere with me. The cold weather is equally as damaging to your lips, which can leave them dry and chapped if you don't regularly give them a bit of moisture. I bought this for one reason in particular, which was because of the smell. It smells AMAZING. If you like the smell of chocolate or y ou're familiar with the Palmers Cocoa Butter Body Lotion, you will love this. It's super nourishing and even has SPF 15 if the sun does decide to make a little appearance any time soon!

Maybelline Colour Sensational Lipstick

The last essential I have for you is another not-really-skincare-but-lipcare-instead product: the Colour Sensational Lipstick by Maybelline in the colour 'Choco Pop'. I've never been a huge fan of lipsticks as I find a lot of them are too mattifying, however this one is extremely rich and moisturising, leaving your lips feeling smooth and nourished. I also really like the colour of this one; it's a lovely medium-brown colour which is perfect for this time of year when you want something a little bit darker, and it has a lovely soft, pearl finish. I love the packaging too, the shiny, mirrored casing makes this product look a lot more expensive and high-end; a real must-have for winter.

I thought I'd do a quick review on this little eyeshadow set I bought recently, seeing as I've been meaning to do this for days now.. and it's October tomorrow! (Where has this past month gone?!)

Anyway, I bought this little set a few weeks back and I've been trying it out so I can tell you a bit more about the eye shadows and how they wear throughout the day. I have to say I was drawn to the packaging before I even knew there were eyeshadows inside, how adorable is the giraffe print?!

The set consists of 9 individual eye shadows in a variety of colours- I'd say there's probably something to suit everybody as they do range from light, neutral colours to slightly brighter shades. One thing I would just like to mention about this set is that all of the shadows are glittery, there isn't one matte shadow in the set (*insert sad face*.) I do think it's a real shame there isn't a mix of shimmery and matte shadows, as I can find shimmery eyeshadows a bit restricting if you don't want to look too "dolled up" in the daytime. I tended to play safe and stick with the lighter colours as best as I could... I think using the darker colours around my blue eyes would have probably looked somewhat a disaster!

The colours I particularly liked to use were envious erin, come-hither heather and runaround rebecca. I liked that some of the shadows are multi-purpose and actually double up as a liner, such as the olive shade runaround rebecca; which I applied along my lower lash-line.

I found that envious erin was a nice colour to use in the inner corners of my eyes to brighten them up and make my eyes look more awake, and I used come-hither heather through the crease. 

Being completely honest, they were the only colours I have used so far, and I'll explain why. I was so excited when I found this set because I thought I might finally be able to find my dream eye shadow (Mac 'Woodwinked' is currently my go-to shadow!) I was so impressed with the cute packaging and the way the eye shadows are all neatly displayed in the set, so I had high hopes that the eye shadows would deliver as they are such pretty colours... but the main problem I had was that the colours didn't last as long as I thought.  This was probably my own  fault for not applying enough, as I found that a few hours after applying these eyeshadows, most if not all of the colours had disappeared from my eyes. This could also be down to me not using a primer to set my eyes beforehand.. it can be really hard to get your eyeshadow to stay on if you don't prep the eyes first. For those slightly more adventurous people out there, this could be the perfect palette for you. There are so many different colour combinations this set has to offer, and like I previously mentioned, it's great how some of the colours have a double-purpose so you can use them as liners.

To put it simply, if you're a fan of shimmery eye shadows this could be the set for you. The compact packaging means it's small enough for you to have on-the-go, and it's rather handy that they've included a mirror. The colours are extremely rich and could really make your eyes glisten and "pop" for a perfect party look!

L-R: Soap & Glory 'Night in Shining Armour' Night Cream, Tangle Teezer, La Roche-Posay Effaclar Duo, Essie 'we're in it together', Jemma Kidd Front Cover Concealer, Seventeen Photo Flawless Primer, Elizabeth Arden Green Tea & Honeysuckle EDT

As a self-confessed shopaholic, I'm always on the lookout for new products to try. So when I found out my mum was due to place an order with Fragrance Direct, I couldn't resist having a little nose around on their website myself. To my surprise I actually found some pretty good bargains, the Essie nail polish pictured above was just £1.99!! As well as that, I thought I'd give the Jemma Kidd Front Cover Concealer a try, so before I knew it the online basket was bulging full of things for myself rather than for my mum.. whoops!

Of course the spending didn't end there. Whilst in town I thought I'd just quickly 'nip into Boots', but as you can probably guess that didn't quite happen... consequently leaving my purse empty but my shopping bag full of more beauty goodies.

The first thing I spotted was this; the Soap & Glory Night in Shining Armour night cream. When it comes to Soap & Glory products I always find it's the packaging that entices me, and this was no different. I love the mixture of pinks with the black & white photos; it gives off a real sophisticated, vintage vibe. Priced at £13 it is a little pricey if you're used to buying cheaper products available on the high-street, but you do get a 50ml jar and as you'll only be using this at night time it should last longer than your average 'use whenever you like' cream.

Tangle Teezer, £10.99 available at Boots

Ahh, the Tangle Teezer. This is something I've been wanting to try for a while now, so when I stumbled across one online I just had to go ahead and buy it. 
My hair isn't particularly long, (I'd say it was just past shoulder length)- so generally I don't find knotty hair to be a huge problem. Although combing through my hair when it's just been washed always proves to be a challenge, I seem to end up with just as much hair in my brush than on my head (ouch). But alas, the Tangle Teezer has entered my life and WOW, I LOVE it. The bristles glide through your hair effortlessly which in turn makes it so much easier to keep your hair in pristine condition with minimal breakage. When I first used this it felt as if I was brushing through my hair with a piece of velcro; it's so light-weight it doesn't feel like you're even brushing your hair! And best of all, it's the perfect shape and size to carry in your handbag for any hair-related emergencies you might encounter during these autumnal months ahead.

La Roche-Posay Effaclar Duo

This is something I've heard SO much about from online reviews and various beauty bloggers and vloggers. It's the Effaclar Duo by La Roche-Posay; the 'dermatologists brand of choice recommended by 25,000 dematologists worldwide.' Of course this persuaded me to take the plunge and buy it.. 25,000 people can't be wrong, can they?
I've been using this product for a few weeks now and so far, so good. I've been applying it all over my skin in the mornings and at night, particularly focusing on areas where I have spots or where I'm prone to blemishes. Upon first use, it was if I could feel the product working as a few seconds after applying my skin felt a little stingy (though personally in a strange sort of way I do quite like to feel some effect from the product... at least then I feel like it's doing something and it isn't just a load of watery nothingness). 

Priced at £13.00 it is a little steep compared to other spot treatments on the market, but my skin was in such a state I felt I had no choice but to give this product a go, and I'm so glad I did. I've also noticed that applying this before my make-up has made a huge difference in how my skin looks during the day. I used to notice my skin start to go oily around midday, but this product seems to really help in reducing the appearance of shine... something that was always a huge bugbear of mine ..(who wants to keep reapplying powder all day?!) Thankfully this is much less of an issue now I have this product in my life, so I'd definitely recommend this for those of you who suffer with oily or acne-prone skin.

Essie 'We're In It Together'

Next up we have this lovely little nail polish from Essie. It's a really gorgeous baby pink colour with a slight glittery shimmer, perfect for those days when the sun is shining and you want to feel a little bit girlie. This is the first Essie nail polish I've ever bought, but I highly doubt it'll be the last. The brush is a lot bigger than most other nail polish brushes I've used which means you can cover over your nails a lot quicker. As with most pastel nail polish colours, I'd recommend you went over your nails a couple of times to make sure you have a really even coverage, as I didn't find one coat of this to be enough.

Jemma Kidd Front Cover Concealer in colour 01, Fair

Now I'm going to be completely honest here, I don't really know why I bought this, but I'm the type of person who can't only have one concealer... although that being said I now have five- (I guess you could say my obsession is becoming slightly out of hand). Anyway, I decided to give this a go as it promises to help 'soothe and hydrate skin', with added vitamins A and E. I opted to use this mostly under my eyes to hide those dreaded dark circles, and after a few hundred twists of the bottle later the concealer decided to make an appearance and seep out onto the little brush. 

Coverage-wise it is pretty good, my under-eye circles seemed a lot less noticeable but I can't help but think that the packaging is made to make this product appear a lot better than it actually is. At the end of the day it's just a concealer, does it really need to be in a bottle that you have to keep twisting in order to even get a glimpse of the product? (The more you twist the more you hear little clicking sounds.. it does get a bit monotonous). Apart from that, it does do the job and is streamline enough to take with you on nights out so there are a few plus points at least.

Seventeen Photo Flawless Primer

Next we have one of my favourite products so far. I came across this when I was mooching around Boots, and I'm so glad I did. The gel-like texture feels a bit odd at first but as soon as you apply it to your skin it makes your face feel super soft and silky. When I first used this I applied it before my concealer, which lets just say didn't work out too well as the texture of the primer meant the concealer didn't have anything to 'grip' onto, so it basically just slid back off. Then again that was probably down to my inexperience of using primers... this is the first one I've actually gone out and bought (after sampling many on the back of my hand!) Anyway, this product did make my make up stay on a lot longer than I would've originally thought, and like I previously mentioned I tend to get a little bit oily around my nose and after using a primer it did make a difference in reducing the amount of shine.. meaning I could go longer without reapplying powder, yay!

Elizabeth Arden Green Tea & Honeysuckle EDT

Last but by no means least I have this; the Elizabeth Arden Green Tea and Honeysuckle Eau de Toilette. I bought this around the beginning of August as I was on the lookout for a light, summer fragrance- and this ticked all the boxes. To start off with it cost around £15 and that was for 100ml which I thought was extremely good value. The scent itself I would describe as very light and fresh- (emphasis on the 'light'... it doesn't last very long so you need quite a few sprays) but I do really like it; it's very clean and nowhere near sweet and sickly like many other 'summery' fragrances out there in the shops. 

Top notes: bergamot, lemon, green tea, tangerine and boysenberry

Middle notes: honeysuckle, jasmine sambac, ylang ylang, green tea and Tunisian neroli

Base notes: peach, musk, birch and ambrette.

Before I start, I'd just like to say that before this summer I'd never actually used a liquid eyeliner before (unless you count the endless times I've attempted to and ended up looking like a panda in the process) so understandably, I'm a little bit clueless on what makes a perfect liquid eyeliner. That being said, I do know that they are not supposed to stop working when you're mid-way through perfecting that cat-eye look... which is exactly what happened to me.

I was browsing through the selection of magazines at my local Post Office when I spotted the free gift in the latest copy of Marie Claire. It instantly caught my eye because it looked familiar and I knew I'd heard of it somewhere before, so of course I proceeded to buy it.

Looks wise, I am quite fond of the packaging and the eyeliner itself appears sleek thanks to its silver outer cover.

Like I previously mentioned, i'm no expert at applying liquid eyeliner but as it's in the form of a pen I found it fairly easy. However after going along the top of my eyes I noticed a problem... the eyeliner began to stop working. The lines became light and faded as if there was no product left, which I put down to the heat (I bought this around the same time that England experienced hot weather for once.) But I'd literally only just used this product before it began to feel like it was running out; so my initial first impressions of it being a great eyeliner slowly turned to disappointment. 

So despite slightly disliking this eyeliner when I first got it, I left it a few weeks and then decided to give it another go. I have to say, I think leaving it for a little while definitely did it some good, as it started to work a lot better (I could draw full, black lines.. yay!) I found the eyeliner itself to be pretty good, with no smudging or running.. but I felt the nib start to curl up slightly on the end which made creating a winged effect fairly difficult. It was either making the lines too thin or too thick, with no in-between. 


Having looked at other people's reviews on this product, I've discovered that a few others felt the same in regard to it feeling as if it's drying up. Overall I did get on well using this and I do feel it is a good eyeliner despite the issues I had, but I'm quite thankful I didn't actually have to buy this at full price as I would have been a little bit disappointed.

Hello!

So I've had this product for a little while now, but as you can probably tell this is my very first blog post so I've never had the chance to review it!

I bought this product a few weeks back from Boots out of sheer curiosity after hearing a lot of good reviews about Hot Cloth Cleansers. I did a little bit of research and found out that many beauty bloggers are fans of the Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish, which I was almost definitely going to try until I found out about the slightly more affordable one from No7.

Usually priced at £9.95, you receive 200ml of product in comparison to paying £13.25 for just 100ml of the Cleanse and Polish from Liz Earle. However I have to tell you that I didn't actually have to pay the full £9.95 for this product; as luckily I had one of the No7 £5 off vouchers making this a complete bargain at only £4.95! Obviously I had to buy it at this price, and to tell you the truth as soon as I noticed that the voucher was due to expire the following day I hopped straight on the bus and made my way to the nearest Boots. (This was on a Sunday too, talk about dedication!)

Anyway, back to the actual review. This product comes in a box along with a muslin cloth. This is used to help lift away any dirt from the face by gently exfoliating the skin. The product itself comes in a bottle with a little pump, which you apply onto dry skin all over the face using circular motions. You then soak the muslin cloth in hot water, before wringing it out and applying it to the face to open up the pores. 

I have to say when I first used this product I didn't experience any kind of 'wow factor'... colour and texture wise it reminded me of just an ordinary, everyday moisturiser which surprised me as I expected it to foam up in the same way that a face wash would; (little did I know this isn't the case with cleansers.) Nonetheless, I carried on using this product every night to remove my make up and it's definitely grown on me... so much so that now I feel like I actually couldn't be without it!

Despite never using a hot cloth cleanser before, I'd definitely recommend this product to anyone. It has an incredibly light texture which makes it easy to smooth all over the skin, and there's no overpowering smell to it either; just a simple, clean scent. I wouldn't say it left my face feeling overly hydrated, but my skin did feel smooth and clean afterwards.

So, there you have it. Long gone are the days where I'd take the lazy option and reach for the nearest pack of make-up wipes. Now I actually cleanse my face properly every single night with this trusty hot cloth cleanser, so thank you No7!