Dreaming of paradise

20th Jun 202120th Jun 2021Leave a comment

Glossybox this month had a Dreaming of Paradise theme which was all about summer products to take you from pool to party. In my case it’s more like paddling pool to dinner as I don’t think it’s likely to be going abroad anytime soon. I’m just as happy with a sunny day and a BBQ in the garden to be fair and the weather lately has been so lovely, summer is definitely here!

First out of the box is Oui Cherie Lip Oil from The Beauty Crop in the shade Sacrebleu! Now, on first glance I was dubious about this as it explains it’s a pH changing lip oil so I wasn’t expecting much to be honest. However I was pleasantly surprised as it actually changed colour as I was applying and gave a really nice tinted berry colour. Now with it being a pH based product it should react differently on every person, it was a fun item to include and it is super moisturising and smells gorgeous.

Oui Cherie Lip Oil from The Beauty Crop £13

Next is a Vitamin C Face Scrub from Nip + Fab. I recently took part in the Glamour Big Beauty Call and Vitamin C is really being touted as the most beneficial and easy to use product for your skin. I’ve introduced the Nip+Fab Vitamin C toner recently (this was in one of my advent calendars) and loved the results so I was excited to try the face scrub. It’s a really nice product lovely smell and gentle on the skin. It’s designed to soften and cleanse as well as exfoliate the skin. I’m going to use this 1-2 times a week to give me a nice glowy skin!

Also in this box is a full size Mitchell and Peach English Leaf Body oil. Last year we got a bath oil from this brand and I find their scents really strong. This oil has changed my mind though as it’s really light and fresh smelling. It’s a blend of citrus, coriander, basil, mint and floral oils, giving it a freshly cut grass scent. Got to say when I read it smells like cut grass I thought that was a bit weird! However I actually really like it, I guess it’ll be one of those marmite things- you’ll either love it or hate it!

Mitchell and Peach English Leaf Body oil £23

Another full size with a Micellar water from a Garnier. Although this is quite a basic product I was really pleased to get this in my box, it’s something I know I will use as I use reusable washable cotton pads and makeup cloths so this is ideal to use with those for more stubborn makeup but still gentle on the skin.

And finally a Christophe Robin Regenerating Hair Mask, I’ve actually had this before in a Lookfantastic box and it was soooo good for my hair! So I’m delighted to get another one, it literally leaves your hair so soft and you only have to leave it on for a few minutes, perfect if you don’t have loads of time. Also you only need a tiny bit to emulsify between your hands and apply so although this pot is small it really does last for ages. For anyone following Curly Girl method, this is an approved product you can use as well.

Christophe Robin Regenerating Mask with Prickly Pear (Deluxe mini size) £10.80

Julys sneak peek is a beautiful looking bronzing powder from KNDR worth £14. The July theme is Beauty Treasures which sounds lovely and I’m looking forward to seeing what products we get next!

I have a yearly subscription to Glossybox which costs 11.75 per month including postage and packaging. There are loads of different options if you wanted to sign up from a monthly rolling subscription to 3, 6 and 12 month plans like the one I do. I do have a referral code if you click here which will get you 20% off your first box.

ASOS The Full Package!

19th Apr 202119th Apr 2021Leave a comment

This month ASOS brought us the “full package” with everything you need to get ready for Spring makeup and there are some great goodies in this box!

The Full Package Beauty Box £12 from ASOS

First is a skincare goodie, Charlotte Tilburys Magic Cream. This has the wonder ingredient of the moment hyaluronic acid, rosehip oil and Shea butter to keep your skin hydrated and on point. This is a sample size but enough so that you can get an idea of whether you like it. It’s a nice cream, sinks in really well and it’s quite a rich texture. I personally wouldn’t go back to it purely for the scent, it has a faint rose smell and unfortunately that’s just not a scent I enjoy.

Charlotte’s Magic Cream, Charlotte Tilbury £7.50 for 7ml sample size

Next is a beautiful light setting powder from a Ciate to set makeup and reduce shine. This is their Everyday Vacay Setting Powder and it is so incredibly fine. It also has a coconut scent which is really lovely and definitely makes me think of going on holiday! It’s a translucent powder as well so no worries about matching to your foundation or equally you could wear this without foundation just to reduce shine on your face if you wanted to have a low makeup day. This is a full size of the powder and is £18 to purchase.

Ciate London Everyday Vacay Setting Powder full size £18

Next is my favourite item from this box, a Morphe 9V Pan eyeshadow palette. This palette is called Vintage Rose and is a collection of nude, dusty rose and browns. A lovely neutral palette which you can create a fab range of looks with. It’s a perfect size for travel as well with a nice selection of shimmer, matte and transition shades, definitely one I am enjoying at the moment and easy to use for every day. This is full size and costs £12.

Morphe 9V Pan Vintage Rose Eyeshadow Palette £12

A travel size is included from Benefit with their new They’re Real Magnet Extreme Mascara, which aims to give a false lash effect. I’ve used the original formula of this before and I really liked it. With this one I found that it flakes quite a bit over the course of the day so although it makes my lashes look great unfortunately as I wear contacts flaking all day from my mascara isn’t great for me so I’d give this a thumbs down. It’s a shame as it does really lengthen and lift but I just can’t deal with the flaking!

Benefit They’re Real Magnet Mascara Travel size £13

Our final item is from Sleek Makeup and it’s a clear lipgloss which will would be lovely to wear alone or on top of a favourite lipstick. The thing I do like about this is that the applicator isn’t made of sponge it’s plastic. So I’m thinking you can easily wipe it off after applying over your fave lipstick and avoid getting a dirty looking applicator sponge.

I absolutely loved this box it is amazing value as it costs just £12 but the value of all of the items was £56.49! My stand out products are the Morphe palette and Ciate Powder and I know I will get a lot of use of them.

What do you all think ? Did any of you manage to get your hands on this box?

If you want to try and grab next months box in May I recommend getting the ASOS app and periodically searching for beauty box, from around the 1st of the month. Sometimes they go live on the 1st other times it’s been around the 6th and there isn’t really ever any notice given.

Pretty Pleasures

10th Mar 202110th Mar 2021Leave a comment

As we move into March and toward an end to the lockdowns in the UK, fingers crossed! This months Glossybox is all about thinking about the warmer days pastel colours and generally feeling the pretty pleasures of spring!

There are 5 products this month and a makeup heavy box this time which I am pleased about. So let’s dive in and see what we have.

Figs and Rouge Satin Soft Blurring Primer & Finishing Fix is our first item. I love a good primer and having used Figs and Rouge products before I have high hopes for this! This costs £38 to purchase and contains hyaluronic acid, marshmallow root and as the name describes it aims to blur imperfections and minimise shine for a perfect make up base. It also has anti inflammatory properties to reduce breakouts. I love the Figs and Rouge packaging it is so pretty and very millennial pink.

Figs and Rouge Satin Soft Blurring Primer & Finishing Fix £38

Nails Inc is our next treat with a nail polish called Palace Gardens, a really pretty pastel blue grey . Nails Inc has long been one of my favourite brands for nail polish and this one is no exception. Really love the colour and this is one I can see getting a lot of wear out of. This is £11 to purchase.

Beautaniq Beauty Nourishing Mascara is next and this is not a brand I’ve used before. This has conditioning ingredients like Camellia and Almond Oil to strengthen your lashes. The brush is oversized and designed to grip and coat every lash. I’m coming to the end of my mascara so this was a welcome addition !

Beautaniq Beauty Nourishing Mascara £15.50

The So Eco sponge I actually got in a Lookfantastic box previously but I like to change my sponges regularly so this is a nice addition to the box. They are a really nice sponge and I find they blend really well. Make sure to use your sponge damp so it doesn’t soak up all of your product! These sponges also have a pointed tip, this is great for under your eyes and blending concealer. The best thing about the So Eco brand is they plant a tree for every 100 products sold which is really important to know that they are considering the environment around them.

NYX Professional Makeup is one of my faves and this item is different for each subscriber. There was a lucky dip between highlighter, liquid lipstick and regular lipstick. I am so pleased with mine! Mine was a gorgeous hot pink liquid lip so pretty and definitely one I might have chosen myself. I really love NYX lip products so this was a really good choice for me.

NYX Professional soft matte metallic lip creme £6

Next month we have a sneak peek announcement of an eyeshadow palette from a new brand Sophia and Mabelle. No details on colour or anything just yet. Their website details them as a very inclusive brand which is really great to hear. A quote on their website reads

“With all skin tones and age ranges in mind, we created this beauty brand where anyone can come and find something that will be a staple in their beauty routine. S+M welcomes all walks of life, because beauty should reflect who you are on the inside, not the outside. We are proud to sample our products on persons of all ages, genders, sexualities, and will continue to strive at being an all-inclusive “made for everyBODY” beauty brand.

I’m looking forward to seeing what the eyeshadow palette is next month!

Glossybox February 2021

9th Feb 20219th Feb 2021Leave a comment

Sing dance love repeat! Or so goes the theme of the February Glossybox with the cutest cassette design to the box, very retro and giving me major flashbacks to buying cassette singles in Our Price… showing my age there !

There are 5 products in this months box which, as it’s February, are aimed at giving you everything you need to be prepped and reading for Valentine’s Day.

First is our sneak peek from last month and it’s an Avant Velvet Perfecting Rose Sugar Lip Scrub. Of course this is to perfect your pout for Valentine’s kisses. Rose is not my favourite scent for skincare but this seems ok and as it’s a scrub I don’t think it will bother me as much. This is a full size and costs £58 to purchase. It’s meant to get rid of any dead skin cells so your lips are prepped and kissable for Valentine’s Day.

Continuing the lip theme is a Steve Laurant total repair lip mask which is £5. This is to give your lips a burst of hydration so perfect for getting over the cold winter weather.

Next we have a product we were meant to get last month but which was delayed due to COVID and the issues at ports. It’s a Rose Gua Sha. This is a skin tool which helps reduce inflammation and promote better circulation. It’s not something I’ve tried before but I will definitely give it a go to see if it works! This is £10 to purchase.

What would a Valentine box be without a nice lip pencil? I’ve had one of these Nudestix lip and cheek pencils before and I loved it. The formula is so creamy and blends brilliantly. This one is more of a balm than the previous one I had which is nice and I love the red shade for Valentine’s Day. This is a full size and costs £20 and I like that it’s multi use as well being for lips and cheeks.

Bubble T Peach Bellini hand cream is our next product and it smells amazing! All of the cold winter weather really takes it’s toll on my skin so this is perfect for sitting next to me in the office so I can keep applying throughout the day. I go through a lot of hand cream and this is a really nice formula. This costs £4.99 and is a full size item.

So in total this months box is worth £97.99 making it great value for money once again!

Self Care treats with Burts Bees

25th Jan 202125th Jan 2021Leave a comment

This post contains affiliate links.

If lockdown has taught me anything its that making time for some self-care is so important. Self-care doesnt have to be a massive ritual it can be as simple as taking the time to get a few products in your life you really enjoy and using them regularly. Burts Bees is one of my favourite brands for lip balm and their hand salve is a real life saver when your skin gets as dry as mine does!

The cold snowy weather has really been drying out my skin and its products like these which use natural ingredients which make all the difference. On average the product range is 99% natural but over half of the products are 100% natural! They have fab gifts if you have someone with a birthday coming up. The Trio Tin Gift Set is my pick as its got my favourite lip balm included Pomegranate which gives you a hint of colour as well as keeping your lips in tip top condition.

Burts Bees has a fab offer running from now until 31st Jan for free gifts with purchase! Spend £15 to get free Cleansing Towelettes with your purchase or spend £20 to receive the towelettes AND a free lip balm! Shop the offer here

I’d love to hear about any favourite products you have from Burts Bees ! Drop me a comment with any ones I should check out next!

Glossybox January 2021

24th Jan 202124th Jan 2021Leave a comment

January’s theme is The Power of Beauty with 6 products to get us kicking off 2021 feeling fresh and showing our natural beauty!

So first we have some reusable face pads, designed to replace the need for disposable wipes and cotton pads. I’ve been wanting to try something like this and I was pleasantly surprised. I’d always been put off by the idea of having to wash them and also whether they’d work as well as cotton wool. I used these with makeup remover and they work really well. My only recommendation when washing would be to use a delicates bag so they don’t end up getting lost in the washer! They washed and dried nicely and stayed soft so these are a winner for me.

Next is a moisturising serum from ECooking perfect for the winter weather. This is a really fine serum and works nicely under my moisturiser. I’ve been using it daily and am seeing my skin looking more moisturised and fresher.

Moisturising serum ECooking £22.50 Deluxe mini size

Saint Luxe Beauty is a brand I’ve had before in a Glossybox, we got some lip liners last year which were nice. This time it’s a brow gel to keep those brows in shape and make them stay put. It’s a really nice clear brow gel, no stickiness when applying and keeps everything in place, a nice addition to the box.

Mudmasky Undereye Mask is our next product . Mudmasky has been in quite a few Glossybox’s and is a brand I really enjoy using. This is an under eye mask to apply to clean skin and to help with the elasticity of the skin which as I’m sure you know is thinner and more delicate in your under eye area. This is a really nice serum infused mask and my skin felt lovely afterward. They say it takes between 4-7 uses to see improvement so I will look forward to that if it happens! This was a replacement product as Glossybox had a supplier issue but they did inform everyone via email prior to the box being sent.

Beauty Pro Avocado Infused Sheet Mask is a hydrating and moisturising mask, completely plant based so great for anyone who is wanting to put more skincare of that range into their routine. Beauty Pro products always seem really nice and this is no exception a lovely sheet mask and nice for a little pamper afternoon!

Well hand sanitiser is something we are all getting used to using on a regular basis so this Your Sanitiser was a good addition to the box! It’s a perfect handbag size so great for on the go and works well on sensitive skin. It also kills 99.999% of germs so definitely a great find in the current climate!

If you got this months box what did you think? My favourite is the E Cooking serum and the brow gel but I think it was a really well rounded box for January.

Total value of this months box is £94.97 which is fantastic value for money. The sneak peek for February is an Avant Velvet Perfecting Rose Sugar Lip Scrub to prep our pout for Valentine’s Day!

Fenty beauty x Glossybox

21st Jan 202121st Jan 20212 Comments

Hey everyone! Hope you enjoy this post about my special edition Glossybox purchase which was a collaboration with Fenty Beauty in December. If you don’t know Fenty Beauty is the line created by Rhianna and has become iconic for its products which are known for their pigmented shades and staying power. This box was a limited edition and sold out super fast, it was my Christmas present to myself ! There are 6 products here to show you and as I’ve had a little time to try them out I can give a review.

So first we have the Killawatt Freestyle Highlighter in the shades Mean money / Hustla Baby. These are described as a soft champagne and peachy champagne and it’s a full size. This is £28 to purchase usually and pretty much means the box pays for itself after this. I really like these colours and they are perfect for an everyday highlight. You could layer it up to be more dramatic too.

Next is the Fairy Bomb Shimmer Powder in the shade 24Kray again a full size item and this is a really fine loose powder and a glittery gold shade. It really is a gorgeous powder which can be used over the face and eyes for an illuminating effect. I used this at Christmas for a sheer effect on the eyes and it looked so nice. I think this would be really great for another highlight effect on the cheeks. This is £24 to purchase.

Also included is a portable highlighter brush which is slanted so you can trace the angle of your face. This would be fab for either your hand bag or for travelling. I absolutely love all of the packaging for this range it’s really edgy and sleek. This retails for £19

Pro Filt’r Mini Instant Retouch Primer £15 is a mattifying primer to give you a filter effect and blur all those imperfections. I’ve been looking for a new primer for a while and not really found anything I’ve been wowed by. I really like this formula and found my foundation sat beautifully and didn’t slide off during the day!

Stunna Lip Paint- Unbutton £20 is a peachy nude matte liquid lip colour and having used a couple of these previously I can definitely recommend their staying power! I really love this colour as it’s perfect for everyday and stays put. A perfect nude shade that would suit a range of skin tones.

Deluxe mini size of Full Frontal Volume Lift and Curl Mascara full size £21 this is one of the newer products from the Fenty range and has a specially designed “flat to fat” brush to give lashes volume, length and curl- who doesn’t want that for their lashes? This was ideal for a test of whether or not I’d like the formula , I hate purchasing mascara and then finding that I just don’t like it and having wasted money. I really like this formula and the brush is great for grabbing all your lashes and really coating them in the product. I would definitely consider purchasing the full size of this.

I loved this box for giving me a chance to try more of the Fenty Beauty range as I’ve previously just had an eyeshadow palette and a couple of lipsticks. It was an absolute bargain when you add up the total value of the products they are £106 altogether and the box was £30. (I haven’t included a price for the mascara sample)

Some of the collaboration boxes have been hit and miss for me with Glossybox but this was a really great one and such good value, I’m hoping there might be more like this on the cards during 2021!

What do you guys think? Do you have any Fenty Beauty recommendations? I’m thinking of trying their foundation next as I’ve heard great things.

Lookfantastic January 2021

14th Jan 202114th Jan 2021Leave a comment

Lookfantastic have had a mini makeover with a fresh look to the magazine in the box and packaging. I especially liked that the theme this month was Restoration, as I think after 2020 we could all use some of that! Instead of focusing on a new year, new me angle the focus is on products to make us feel confident, and give a moment of escape from the stresses of the world, and there are lots right now!

So first we have a hand mask! Something a bit different, I’ve tried one of these before from Seoulista and really liked it as it made my skin so soft and this was the same. Basically it’s a set of serum infused gloves that you place your hands in and then fasten the tabs around your wrist to keep in place. You leave it on for about 15 mins and then just massage any remaining serum into your hands. It’s like having a mini spa treatment at home and my hands really needed some tlc after all the cold weather we’ve been having! These are from Starskin and have Shea butter, goji Berry and macadamia nut and olive oil so smell amazing too.

Starskin Nourishing Hand Mask gloves £8.50

Next is a product from SVR which is a french brand. I’d not heard of this brand before but I was interested to try it and see if it’s a good moisturiser. It’s a face moisturiser for very dry and sensitive skin, so far so good! It can be used day and night and is a really nice texture. I’ve used it for a few days and it hasn’t irritated my skin at all and it really does help with any dry patches you might have.

I do love a good hair mask and this one from Intelligent Haircare is an overnight one. It’s a deluxe mini size so if you’ve got long hair like me you’d only get one use out of this, shorter styles you’d likely get two maybe three. It’s a vegan formula and also free from parabens, sulphates and silicones- basically all the nasties you don’t want on your hair! Really easy to use, just run it through your hair and scalp and then tie it up. In the morning rinse and shampoo/condition as normal. This is a really lovely formula and my hair felt great afterward, it’s a bit messy and will leave your pillowcase messy but as you’d probably not do this often then I’d say it was worth the trouble.

Deluxe sample size (full size is 200ml and costs £25)

I got a few of these for Christmas and a blending sponge is always a welcome addition in subscription boxes for me. This is an eco friendly makeup sponge. These are great for applying liquid or cream face products and best used damp so it doesn’t absorb all your products.

I really like these lipsticks from Sleek and this is the shade Hellacious , a sort of autumnal brown with an orange hint. It’s a matte finish and lasts for ages.

Sleek Matte Me lip cream in shade Hellacious £4.99

Finally we have the Dr Botanicals cleansing bar in avocado and cucumber. I could smell this when I first opened the box and it is so lovely and fresh. You can use it on face and body and it has antibacterial properties to cleanse and purify your skin.

So altogether this months box has a value of £53.49 !

Lookfantastic have a range of subscriptions available here . I’m currently subscribed on a monthly basis and pay £15 inc postage and packaging for my box. If you got this box what did you think?

For me it’s a great box, I know I will use everything and it’s really nice to get some different items like the hand mask and very fitting for this time of year!

ASOS Winter Glam December 2020

4th Dec 20204th Dec 20202 Comments

The ASOS December box hasn’t disappointed with 5 fab goodies to get us glammed up for winter! If you’ve not got one of these boxes before, it’s not a subscription. They just appear each month on the ASOS website and you can see the full contents before you purchase. The boxes are normally around £12 but special editions and collaborations are normally £15-18. So I’ll dive in and show you the gorgeous products we got this time.

First is this beautiful Revolution Pro Ultimate Eye look palette called So Jaded. It’s got four shades with green being the main colour, a matte cream and a gold shade. The palette itself is bejewelled and would look amazing sitting out on a dressing table. The shades are really easy to blend and you could create such a nice smoky eye – I’m excited to play around with this and it’s a fab inclusion in the box.

Revolution Pro Ultimate Eye Look So Jaded Palette £10

Next is a mini Bare Minerals Lipstick in the shade Courage which is a really nice warm toned red – who doesn’t love a bit of red at Christmas??

Next two lash products to keep those peepers fluttering! First is the Smashbox Superfan mascara. I’ve had this before in a box and it’s a nice mascara, this is a travel size and it lasted quite a while when I had it before.

Next is a set of false eyelashes from Prima Lash to give some extra glam and volume. These look like a nice set of lashes, there’s no glue but that doesn’t bother me as I usually have some kicking around!

Last is a Real Techniques Miracle Complexion sponge , I use these a lot to blend out foundation and concealer so this is another win for me!

Real Techniques Miracle Complexion Sponge £4.99

So although I can’t really calculate the cost of the mascara and lipstick, with the full size items we can get a cost for they total £21.99 making it really great value.

What do you all think is this a box you’d enjoy? It makes a really great Christmas gift especially if you are in a secret Santa or something similar.

Code Beautiful

4th Nov 20204th Nov 2020Leave a comment

I’m really excited to write up this review about some great new beauty products I’ve just discovered and am loving. Code Beautiful has kindly gifted me four items which are perfect for getting you out the door in the morning and feeling amazing! Everything is cruelty free and vegan, and the whole purpose of their products is simply to enhance your natural beauty.

First is the Code LLE (Lid Lift Enhance) , this is a 3 in 1 product which acts as a concealer, primer and eyeshadow. The main aim with this is to give you the ultimate antidote to tired eyes, and if you’re anything like me chasing after a 5 year old and working a full time job along with all of life’s day to day makes me tired!

Staying in the eye area next is the Code VLM (Volumising Lengthening Mascara) I have mentioned a lot over the past year about trying to find a mascara that I really love. One of my favourite things about this one is the formula doesn’t flake or irritate- a major consideration when you wear contact lenses like me! The other thing I love, aside from the fact it makes your lashes look amazing, is that it’s waterproof so no worries about panda eyes after a wet school run! It doesn’t clump and it’s buildable so if you just want a quick coat to add some definition and get out the door you can. But equally for more drama you can layer it up and have a really pretty look for a night out.

Finally we have two lip products both aimed at giving you a gorgeous natural pout. Code SSL (soft Smooth Lipliner) is a total gamechanger for me with lipliner! It is so incredibly soft and creamy, absolutely no dragging here! It is a really lovely nude shade and is infused with plumping ingredients as is the Code LIP Lipgloss. You can either literally just line your lips and use a lipstick or gloss to coordinate or because it’s so creamy you can fill in your whole lip and use like a lipstick. The packaging is great for being able to throw in your bag and it has a built in sharpener, because if you’re anything like me you constantly loose sharpeners.

CODE LIP is an amazing lipgloss which hydrates and plumps lips with that amazing ingredient hyaluronic acid. I’ve used lip plumper lately before and lots of them use ingredients to make your lips swell and they are really irritating. This is so not like that! They recommend you use daily for at least two weeks to see a difference to your lips and it’s highly recommended from me, especially as the weather is getting colder. It is a sheer tinted formula which is a nude Rose and just highlights your natural lip colour. You can also layer over the top of Code SSL to further enhance your pout.

The main thing I love about these products is its 4 steps that can get you out the door and just feeling more put together with a gorgeous natural look. Makeup can be quick and doesn’t always have to involve a million different products.

A finished look with all of the products

To find out more about Code Beautiful visit their website or find them on Instagram. You can check out more looks from me on Instagram too.

Vanessa Kay

Beauty, Fashion and Fun

Tag: lip gloss