June Favourites *blushes at the lateness of this post*

I've been a bad blogger... I have had such a busy month with work and at home that I have not done any blogging for almost a month :(  In fact, I wrote this June Favourites just before the end of June and didn't even have time to take the photos and upload, so it's just been languishing in my Drafts folder.  So here it is, my VERY belated June Favourites and what I hope will be the first of many posts over the Summer holidays! 

A bit about my June and July
I had the busiest month ever - (in my Primary Teacher job), I was frantically trying to finish writing reports when we had the call that OFSTED were coming in!  Cue hours and hours of preparation, worry and dread.  All was not in vain though - my lesson was graded OUTSTANDING (which is the top grade) as was the school.  Everyone pulled together, worked hard and showed what great stuff is done there so it all worked out in the end.  Then July just got crazy, trying to wrap up everything from this school year and prep for next year.  After all that work though, I am mostly prepared for September, so shouldn't have too much to do during the holidays, yay!

MY FAVOURITES:

Hair

Paul Mitchell Awapuhi Shine Spray
Skincare
Bio-Effect EGF Serum
Fragrance
Origins Ginger Essence
Make up
L'Oreal False Lash Telescopic Mascara
Chanel Les Quatre Ombres
Nails
Essie Tart Deco
Tools
Lancome Powder Brush
Around the House
Jo Malone Blackberry and Bay Candle
Food
Morrisons Wheat Poppers

Hair
Paul Mitchell Awapuhi Shine Spray  £21 for 125ml

I have said it before and I will say it again - I LOVE the Paul Mitchell Awapuhi range!  This month's offering is the shine spray - it has the same effervescent ginger scent that I loved in the treatment oil and gives a lovely sheen to blow-dried hair.  For reasons that are beyond me though, this range is so hard to find; I have given an Amazon link on here because hardly any shops, online or otherwise, seem to sell it.  Let me know if you find it anywhere!

Skincare
Bio-Effect EGF Serum £125 for 15ml (eek!)

I got this little bottle of wonder in a blog sale and it brings tears to my eyes that I am about to finish it - do I splash out on the full size or not???  If it was cheaper, I wouldn't even hesitate for a second.  I can honestly say that I have NEVER used a product that has made such a difference to my skin.  All the fine lines on my forehead that were seriously making me feel old (that coupled with turning 30!) have truly all but disappeared.  This stuff is amazing but boy is it pricey!

Fragrance
Origins Ginger Essence  £29 for 50ml

This has been my top perfume this month - I just can't get enough of its zingy sparkliness. Check out my full review here.

Make up
L'Oreal False Lash Telescopic Mascara  £10.99 - currently buy 1 get 2nd half price in Boots

I am a big fan of Benefit They're Real but have been disappointed by how quickly the product dries up and goes clumpy.  I find this mascara to be a great dupe - it has the same lash-lengthening power and lasts just as long (easily a whole day).  It gives enough volume without being heavy or clumpy and sets a nice curl to the lashes.

Chanel Les Quatre Ombres in 20 - Regard Perle  £38

This is a gorgeous palette but I chose it as my June favourite for just one of the eyeshadows - the one on the bottom left is a beautiful shimmery nude colour that works perfectly as a base colour and to highlight the inner corner.  A light sweep gives a simple, polished look that works well with either a bold lip or neutral lip, or it can be built up to create a more striking effect.  The best thing about these eyeshadows is that they stay perfectly in place for a whole day.

Nails
Essie Tart Deco  £7.99 for 15ml - currently buy 1 get 2nd half price at Boots

I picked this up to take advantage of Boots' Buy 1 Get 2nd Half Price when I bought my blog giveaway prize.  I was in a mega rush to get to the tills before closing time and didn't have a colour in mind to buy so I literally scanned the shelves and went for the one that stood out.  Turns out it was this one - a true blogger favourite!  And rightly so.  This is the perfect shade for Summer - a bright orangey pinky coral colour that works beautifully with a tan.

Tools
Lancome Powder Brush  £13 in House of Fraser sale

This was a House of Fraser sale purchase that was another rush-buy.  It did not disappoint - it is large and tapered and super soft.  And half price too!  Perfect for a swish of Chanel's Poudre Universelle powder.

Around the House
Jo Malone Blackberry and Bay Candle  £39 for 200g

 

I have been after a Jo Malone candle for soo long and the only reason I have waited is because I couldn't narrow down which one I wanted!  But I finally made my mind up and went for this beauty.  As with all Jo Malone candles, the fragrance fills the room after about 5-10 minutes of burning.  This scent is neither too feminine nor too masculine, so it passes the boyfriend test.  It is sweet and fresh with herb undertones and just plain gorgeous.  I just love the packaging too - I got this at the Jo Malone store in Westfield and watched the assistant expertly wrapping and tying the ribbon, spritzing some Grapefruit cologne in the bag.  I was stopped several times throughout the day to ask for directions to the store! 

Food
Morrisons Wheat Poppers  £1 (for about 8)

I'm not a fan of rice cakes (I find that flavour really weird) but I have been after a relatively healthy bread alternative to eat with salads, soup, cottage cheese, humus etc.  These are perfect.  They are £1 for about 8 and taste soo good - the texture is similar to prawn crackers or rice cakes but the taste is less strong.  Only 19 calories too which is amazing!  

What have been your favourites this month?

If you have done a June favourites post, leave your link below for me to check out. 

etailPR Competition

The wonderful etailPR are currently running a fabulous competition that I thought I would share with you.

Win a goodie bag of prizes worth over £250!!!

The prizes include:

a Yogi 3 in 1 Hair Curling wand

a £50 voucher to spend at Linzi Shoes

Dr Organic bundle: Body Oil, Hair treatment serum, hand & nail cream and more!

Macadamia Natural Oil gift set: Healing oil treatment, rejuvenating shampoo, deep repair masque and oil infused comb

Elemis 10th anniversary Pro-Collagen Marine Cream, 100ml worth £99

There are lots of ways to enter, including following on Twitter and signing up to etailPR.  Check out the competition here:  COMPETITION

Good Luck! (But not that much good luck as I want it for myself mwah ha ha!!)

REVIEW MAC lipstick in Patisserie

I am ALWAYS on the lookout for the perfect nude lip colour.  Although occasionally I will go for a bold lip (current fave is Watch Me Simmer), 9 times out of 10 I go nude (cheeky!).  I tend to find lipsticks are either too brown (Entwined), too pale (Shy Girl) or too neutral yet glossy (Moderne) to fit the bill as the PERFECT shade.

Until now that is! 

Cue . . .

Patisserie by MAC

This is, in the words of Goldilocks, "just right" and suits me to a tee.

As a Lustre formulation, it is subtle but buildable, with a good dose of creaminess and moisture without being overly glossy.  It won't last forever on the lips though and will come off if you eat or drink, so carry it with you in your handbag.

 

Just loses half a star for staying power.

What are your favourite nude lipsticks?

Have you tried Patisserie?  

Saturday Scents 5 - Origins Ginger Essence

I have been a fan of Paul Mitchell's Awapuhi Ginger Hair Range for a while now and the other day I received the shine spray and sea spray from a blog sale (Miss Makeup Magpie - she has now got a 2nd blog sale running, check it out here!).  When I tested them out I thought how much I loved the scent and how perfect it would be as a perfume.  That very same day I nipped into House of Fraser to use my Origins birthday voucher and I found this - it must be fate!

The Ginger Essence is a 'Sensuous Skin Scent' which is similar to the Eau Fraiche or Skin Scents from Estee Lauder (Bronze Goddess) or Chanel (Chance) and has a lower concentration of perfume to water meaning the scent is lighter, fresher and less longer lasting. 

As a guide, here is some of the concentrations for perfume types (thanks to ebay.co.uk):

Eau de Parfum - 10-15% perfume, the rest is alcohol and should last around 5 hours.
Eau de Toilette - 5-12% perfume, the rest is alcohol and water.  This should last around 2-4 hours.
Eau Fraiche/Skin Scent - 3% perfume, the remainder is mostly water, lasts around 2 hours.
Eau de Cologne - 2-3% perfume, the rest is mostly water, lasts around 2 hours.


So, if you want this to last through the day, make sure you take it with you!  Alternatively, you could go for the intensified version which should give you more staying power.   

The ginger fragrance itself is reminiscent of a ginger beer sparkling over ice on a warm Summer day.  It has a pure gingery scent unlike the sickliness of crystallized ginger.  Elements of bergamot, lemon and lemon add a refreshing note to the spicy ginger and give it a summery feel.  When I use this, I can't stop smelling my wrists over and over again- just delightful!

What are your thoughts on ginger as a fragrance?

Have you tried the Paul Mitchell or Origins ginger scented products?

GIVEAWAY WINNER!!

Thank you so much for those who entered my 1,000 Twitter Followers Giveaway.  I can now announce that the winner is:

Nicole

Cole of the Ball

 

 

 

 

Congratulations Nicole! Leave a comment below or tweet me with your choice of Essie nail polish and MAC lipstick. 

 

 

 

 

Thanks again everyone!



HAUL - Boots (Buy 1 Get 2nd Half Price)

I love a good bargain - blog sales, Ebay, flash sales, end of season sale time -  you name it, I'm there, credit card in hand.  I think it is because I can kid myself that I'm not spending if I'm saving!  Anyway, I popped into Boots to repurchase Effaclar Duo and took advantage of the 3 for 2 on skincare so I thought I would test out Effaclar K and their Micellar Water as my No. 7 eye make up remover is nearly gone (mini review - it works but is nothing exciting).

I was about to purchase some make up bits too when I noticed the shop assistants putting up the signs for the buy 1 get 1 half price offer that started the day after.  So of course, I had to go back the next day to make the most of both deals!

This is what I purchased:

TOP TIP!
Boots' tills are great - if you put 2 similar priced items through next to each other, the deal comes straight off them, rather than off all the cheapest items - so I aimed to get each offer in similar-priced pairs. 

Bourjois Bronzing Primer £9.99
I bought this because a lot of my foundations/tinted moisturisers are too pale for me now I have a bit of a (fake) tan.  I mix in a little blob and it corrects the colour before application.  It works well for this - demo coming soon!

L'Oreal Telescopic Waterproof Mascara £10.99
I have kept this sealed until I need it so I will post a review another time.  I have heard lots of good things about it though so I have high hopes.  It was really hard to get a good pic of this because the wrapper kept reflecting the flash so I nabbed this one from the L'Oreal website. 

Bourjois Cream Blush 2 £7.99
I am into orange/coral at the mo, having just bought a fab orange t-shirt from Zara and one from the Oasis sale.  I WILL be summery even if the weather is trying to stop me!

Soap & Glory Cheekmate £8
This is a pinky red stain with a thick texture.  It blends in nicely and lasts well on the skin.  I have just heard there is a voucher for this in the Boots mag - free if you buy any other S&G product.

Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer £4.19
I'm sure I have nothing to add to this much raved about product.  I bought this in Medium as Light 2 is great but too pale for me at the mo.  The only thing I don't like about this is that the black writing on the packaging smears off onto my fingers.  Ew. 

Bourjois Magic Nail Polish Remover £4.99
One word. Genius.

I also picked up a few magazines for the AMAZING freebies that are out this month.

I got:

2 copies of Elle
Rodial Fake Tan in Dark and Clear
I have a face and body set in Clear that I got from TKMaxx that I love - applies easily, natural colour and lasts better than any other fake tan I have ever used.

Company
a little stripy bag that I use to organise bits in my handbag - tooth flossers, hand gel, hair bobbles etc, that go all over the place otherwise.

Marie-Claire
a really cute Ciate manicure set with a gorgeous nude/beige polish and sparkly caviar.

Glamour
ModelCo nude lip liner - a gorgeous shade that gives a lovely even colour base. 

Have you found any good bargains recently?

Have you gone for any of the magazine freebies this month?

May Favourites

I have been so excited to write my first monthly favourites post, so here goes!


May has been so up and down in weather terms, I can't believe it is so nice today but only last week it felt like Winter - well that's England for you I guess.  My big car disaster happened earlier this month - I broke down whilst driving on a busy road and the AA told me to call 999 to close the road - very dramatic!  As of Friday I am the proud owner of a nearly-new Fiat Punto and I can't wait for it to be ready so I can have a car again.  Because of that though, I have decided to join some of you and start a spending ban :(  Let's see how long I can resist!


So, onto my beauty favourites:

Skincare

La Roche-Posay Effaclar Duo
I have been using this twice a day for a couple of months and my skin has never been clearer or had less blemishes (it's still not perfect but one step at a time!).  I love the smell too - although it is fragrance free, it has a light scent that I can't quite put my finger on it but it reminds me of fresh roses or newly cut grass.







Origins Oil Free Night-a-Mins
My skin is oily and I would like it to be brighter with a more even skin-tone.  I am also hitting the first signs of ageing with a few fine lines.  Based on these concerns, this night cream was suggested to me by a lady at the Origins counter in House of Fraser.  It was a good recommendation and has really helped to nourish and improve my skin.  It love the smell too - very fresh and orangey.





NSpa Skin Renewal Gel
The discovery of NSpa has been a bit of a revelation for me.  The range is stocked at Asda and is currently on offer at 2 products for £8.  Everything in the range is paraben free and packed full of great ingredients such as Neroli Essential Oil, Vitamin E, Ginseng and Algae Extract. 




This gel is an exfoliator that uses fruit acids to gently but effectively get rid of dead skin cells.  You massage in the gel for 2 minutes, leave it on for a minute then massage again.  On the final massage, the gel melts into an oil, then you wash it off.  This is such a different and effective product - I can't believe it is only £4!





Korres Lip Butter in Jasmine
I have reviewed this here: http://cloudnineindulgence.blogspot.co.uk/2013/04/review-korres-lip-butters.html and it remains my favourite lip product of the moment.  It feels luxuriously soft and creamy and it smells divine (but not of jasmine bizarrely).  I also use it to correct lipstick colours - the Jasmine is slightly pink so can brighten up nudes whereas the pale Guava tones down a bright lip.

Brushes

Real Techniques Expert Face Brush
This is the best brush I have used for applying liquid, cream and powder foundation as it buffs into the skin beautifully.  It feels really soft but strong and dense enough to buff well. 

Real Techniques Stippling Brush
I love this for applying cream blush and highlighter as it helps blend the product seamlessly onto the skin whilst maintaining a light touch.

Body Shop Mineral Foundation Brush
I love the Body Shop brushes; they are the softest I have ever used and the large face brush is a staple in my collection.  I recently bought this in the 50% off flash sale and it is perfect for using with my new Bare Minerals foundation.  I can't stop running my fingers over it either - it is just so soft!

Make Up

All of the make up in this month's favourites are from blog sales!


NARS cream blush in Cactus Flower

This a beautiful pink/red gold colour that gives a gorgeous subtle highlight to the cheeks.  I tried to swatch it but the camera just didn't do it justice! Both my friend Lyndsey and I wore it in the pic below though.








Estee Lauder Illuninating Powder Gelee in Topaz Chameleon (limited edition)

Again, I found this so hard to capture on camera but I used it on me and Lyndsey in the pic below.
This has to be used sparingly but is such a beautiful gold highlighter - perfect with a tan.  I love how gorgeous the compact is too - the striking gold lid and reptilian embossed effect of the gelee itself.  Stunning!





Too Faced Natural Eyes Palette

I had been eyeing up this palette for ages and was planning on buying it with my Boots points so I was ecstatic when I saw it in a blog sale for £5 - I repeat £5!  It didn't disappoint either  - a great selection of neutral/nude/pink/brown colours ranging from matte to super sparkly via light shimmer.  This can be used to create a natural day time look or a full-on evening face.  A fantastic set of colours that I am so pleased to own.

Soleil Tan de Chanel

Lyndsey also features this month because she bought me this AMAZING birthday present for my 30th last month.  I have used it just about everyday since then and have barely made a dint in the tub.  I use the Real Techniques Contour Brush to use this to contour my cheekbones and temples, or to lightly sweep across my skin to add some all-over colour.  I have also been dabbing my Expert Face Brush into this before applying my foundation on days when I have a tan but my foundation doesn't!

Lyndsey (far left) and me (2nd left) wearing all 4 of the make up faves:

So there you have it, my first monthly favourites!

As a celebration of  reaching 1,000 Twitter followers, I am running a giveaway of a few of my favourite things.  You can win: a MAC lipstick of your choice, an ESSSIE nail polish of your choice, a pot of KORRES lip butter in Jasmine, a tube of NSPA skin renewal gel and a gorgeous 'live, love, sing, dance' bangle from Adorn Accessories in Stamford, where I got my DogEared necklace from.  They have amazing jewellery and a great range of bags too - mine has been mistaken for a Mulberry several times!

ENTER HERE - good luck!

What have you been loving this month? 

Please leave me a link to your monthly favourites if you have made one.



1,000 Twitter Followers Giveaway

Hi everyone,

Today I am starting a giveaway because I have reached 1,000 followers on Twitter!  Thanks so much to everyone who follows, I am so pleased to have reached this milestone. 

I thought I would theme this giveaway as 'A Few of my Favourite Things'.  I am giving away 4 beauty items and 1 jewellery item that has been generously donated by my favourite shop, Adorn Accessories in Stamford.  I bought my gorgeous DogEared necklace from there (see my wish list for a pic), as well as a fab handbag. 

I have included 2 beauty options for you to choose too - I love the brands but you can select the shade.  I hope to see a few of you visiting my blog - let me know if you stop by, I love reading comments.

The winner will get of these gorgeous bangles from my favourite shop,

Adorn Accessories in Stamford, Lincs.

They have an online shop too - http://adorn-accessories.co.uk/



 

 

All the products received by the winner will be new. 

The Essie nail polish and MAC lipstick can be chosen by you but must be in stock when I go to the shop to get them.

 I will notify the winner by email - make sure you leave it in the comment box!

Good Luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Saturday Scents 4 - Body Shop Coconut EDT

As it has been such beautiful weather this weekend I thought I would celebrate it with the most summery fragrance EVER - Coconut!

 

 

I used to be a big fan of the Coconut perfume oil from the Body Shop and I was gutted when it was discontinued.  Imagine my joy when I found out that it was now available as an Eau de Toilette and on the same day as a 50% off flash sale!  So I went a bit mad and bought not only the EDT but the beautifying body oil and cleansing hand gel too. 

There is not much to say about this fragrance apart from the fact that it is pure coconut, strong but natural, super long lasting and the essence of Summer; reminiscent of tropical islands, cocktails, sun cream and exotic yumminess.

I have tried this layered with Jo Loves A Shot of Thai Lime over Mango and it is gorgeous - like a tropical fruit cocktail spritzed onto the skin.

Do you love coconut?

 

What is your favourite Summer fragrance?