Nivea Lip Butter - Raspberry Rose Review

Finally, a blog post after two long weeks! I've been wanting to write this review for ages but haven't had the time to get on my laptop and do anything at all. I can't believe it's March already, time is definitely flying in. I'll have to get my February favourites sorted soon!

Anyway, on to the review. After I read quite a few times how popular these were starting to get in America, I obviously had to buy one for myself since apparently the UK had had them for ages. I bought mine in Superdrug for only £1.49, which is pretty cheap for a lip balm in my opinion.

There are three flavours available in the UK. I choose to buy the Raspberry Rose one, but there is also Caramel and Original. The original was out of stock when I was in store, but the caramel one was there, but I personally found it a bit too sickening for a lip butter, so decided on this one instead.

 

As you can see, the lip butter comes in a little round tin, about the same size as Vaseline. The lip butter itself is a pale pink colour, and the smell is gorgeous, it reminds me of petit flous! Unlike a lot of other flavoured lip balms, it doesn't have much of a taste to it, but that hasn't bothered me too much.

The texture reminds me of hair wax, as it seems very sticky. This isn't a bad thing however, as it makes it really easy to apply to the lips, and it stays on for quite a while.

The colour is one I'm not too fond of. When applied, it comes out the same colour as it is in the tin, and looks too pale for my lips. I've found I have to really rub it in if I'm putting it on in public or else it just looks very strange. It has been good however for a base under lipsticks.

Most importantly, it does its job for moisturising. It's not the most amazing lip product I've ever tried, and I wouldn't go around recommending it to everyone if they want to combat dry lips, but it's been better than a lot of others so I would probably purchase it again if I just wanted something inexpensive.

All in all, I do like this product, it has it's pro's and con's, but it's definitely not beating my Maybelline Baby Lips!

If you'd like to purchase this product online, you can do so at the Superdrug website by clicking here.

Have you tried any of the Nivea Lip Butters? If so, what do you think?

Lush - The Kiss Lip Gloss Review

Of course, a new Lush review for you all! I've been testing this out for a week, and I have to say, I love it. Before I go any further though, I'd like to point out that this is a lip gloss, not a lip balm. When I bought it I thought that it was, and after applying it the same amount as I would any regular lip balm I was very confused as to why my lips have been super dry. I thought I'd came across my first Lush product which wasn't working for me! However, this is not the case.

The Kiss is one of Lush's first lip glosses, and has a new, whipped texture from their balms. I had read about this online, and hadn't actually intended on buying it until I got to the checkout.

Firstly, the texture. It was surprisingly soft and it is super smooth when applied to your lips.

I'm combining the scent, and the taste in one, and they are amazing. The scent is absolutely glorious, and the taste is devine. It tastes like drumsticks lollies, or love hearts sweets. I have to resist licking it off straight away.

The colour is also very pretty and subtle. It is a light shimmery pink, and looks perfect by itself, or over a lip colour if that's what you desire.

Pros: 

• Taste, scent, taste, scent!
• Subtle colour for those who like to remain natural.
• Not overly expensive for a lip gloss, £5.50 for the tin.
• Appearance, really cute and simple.
• Easy to carry around as it is such a small tin it fits easily into your pocket.

Cons:

• For me, not overly moisturising. This may be however because I've went the last week thinking it was a balm....
• Depending on you, it's a bit unhygienic for me. I have to wash my hands before I can use it.

Overall, such a lovely product which I would buy again despite my confusion. I'm going to keep mentioning this as it has literally taken me to open up this post to realise that it was a lip gloss, I still can't believe it!

If you'd like to try this product, you can buy it in store or online for £5.50 by clicking here.

Have you tried any of Lush's lipbalms before, or this product? If so, what did you think?

Lush - Grease Lightning Review

Another Lush review for you all. I've been saving this for a while so I could give it a few uses to see how I really felt about it. I bought this product just after Christmas, around the same time as I picked up my Lush Breath of Fresh Air which I have reviewed here.

Grease Lightning is one of Lush's spot treatments, and I'd been wanting to try this for a while. I have never tried a spot treatment before, so I can't compare this to any other products. I've always just left my skin alone in that way, but decided I should just give it a try and see if it helped.

To use, simply clean your face as normal, following your normal skin routine. Then using just one pump (I actually try just to use a half one) apply to affected areas. I usually apply the pump to the back of my hand and then put it where I think it's needed. I also apply it to any areas where I think a spot might pop up, just to try and stop it in advance.

For ingredients, it has some great ones for tackling problem skin. There is tea tree oil which is a great antiseptic to clean out any infection. Witch hazel is included which helps in shrinking any spots so they are less visible. Another big ingredient is Aloe Vera, which is very soothing for the skin.

I've really loved this product as I've found it's really helped in getting rid of spots, and stopping me from getting anymore. I apply this quite sparingly over my skin, and it hasn't dried it out at all, which was one of my biggest concerns.

Pros : 

• Not too expensive, £5.95 for a 45g bottle.
• Long lasting.
• Doesn't dry out skin.
• Instantly calming.
• Helps combat spots in advance.

Cons :

• None

I highly recommend this product, so you should definitely check it out! A little question for you all, do you apply your spot treatment before or after moisturising? I've been doing it before, but I just wanted to check if anyone does this differently.

If you'd like to buy this product, you can do so online by clicking here.

Have you tried Grease Lightning? What are your thoughts?

Nails Of The Day - OPI Teenage Dream

Time to change up my nails! I had a hard time deciding what colour to paint my nails last night (#whitegirlproblems) and rediscovered OPI's Teenage Dream. I bought this last Summer and absolutely loved it, and somehow managed to forget about it. I had originally painted one hand yellow, but then I decided it was much too bright and would be more suitable for Summer so I took it off again.

I first applied Essie's Sugar Daddy which is a super pale pink, which would be perfect if you want to do a french manicure. I only applied one coat of this as it isn't that noticeable anyway but I just like how it looks underneath.

Next, the main attration! Teenage Dream is a lovely pale pink polish with glitter speckled through it, and I absolutely love it. It makes me feel like I have princess nails. I applied only one coat of this last night as I didn't want it to be noticeable, but I've decided I'm going to apply another coat tonight because I want it super glittery.

Teenage Dream is from OPI's Katy Perry collection and I wish I'd had a chance to look at more of the polishes, as this is such a pretty polish and the photographs don't do it justice!

What's currently on your nails? Hope you're all having a great day!

Lush - Breath Of Fresh Air Review

As I've been promising for the past week or so, here is my review on one of my latest Lush purchases, Breath of Fresh Air. I bought this in their Boxing Day sale as it was 50% off, so I ended up paying around £3.70 for it instead of the usual £7.25. I will admit, if it wasn't on sale, I probably never would have bought it. However, I'm very glad I did!

Breath of Fresh Air is a toner water, but is also good at giving your skin a little refresher if you need it. It contains Aloe Vera which makes it great for locking in moisture, and helping if you have suffered from sunburn (not that you would in this weather, but maybe if we actually get some sun in the Summer!). The bottle also states that it's perfect if you travel a lot, or on a long haul flight, as it gives your skin some life again.

To use, you can either spray directly on to your skin, and then wipe off with a cotton pad. Or, you can spritz on to the cotton pad and and then gently wipe it across your face. I personally, do the second. I use about three sprays, but my sister only uses two, so it's really up to you. This should follow your normal make up removal, as it helps to remove any excess make up and dirt.

Pros :

• Inexpensive, only £3.95 for the smallest bottle, or £7.25 for the 250g bottle.
• Excellent at removing any dirt or make up left on skin.
• Doesn't remove any moisture from the skin, and instead, locks it in.
• Soothes sunburn.
• Can be transferred to a smaller bottle for travel purposes.
• Can be used as a pick me up at any time of the day.

Cons :

• Honestly, I still haven't came across any!

I really love this product, and I will most definitely be repurchasing once mine runs out. I've used this since I bought it on boxing day, which means it's been a month tomorrow, and it doesn't seem to have went down much. Once you see the excess make up that comes off your face, you won't want to be without it! I'd hate to think how much I leave on my face when I think it's clean.

If you'd like to purchase this product, you can do so by clicking here.

Have you tried this before or any of the other toner waters? What are your thoughts?

The Best Of 2012

Finally, it's here! My beauty favourites of 2012. I attempted to upload this post yesterday but blogger and I were having issues adding my photographs, and we all know a post isn't as fun without something nice to look at!

I'll start with my hair favourites first. I've been loving this for a few years now, so it's definitely making an appearance. It's the Batiste Dry Shampoo in Blush. I do like some of the other scents, and I usually stand and sniff them all to see which one I fancy, but recently I've always been going for this scent. I'd really like to try a few other brands of dry shampoo this year, just so I can see which is best, so I'd love for you all to let me know which is your favourite!

Next is another firm favourite in the beauty world, Moroccan Oil. I purchased this from BuyaPowa during the Summer and have used it every single time I've washed my hair and I love it. It makes my hair so silky smooth  and it smells delicious.

Although not featured in my photograph, you're all probably wondering where my Lush shampoo is. That's because I currently have no shampoo bars as I'm using my bottle of Fair Trade Honey from Lush. It's another shampoo I love, but the solid shampoo bars are my favourite, and it's a toss up between Karma and Jumping Juniper.

Shock horror! It's Urban Decay's Naked Palette. I absolutely adore this and I think I'll probably repurchase it once I finish up my favourite colours. I used this every day for months, and it's worked it's way back into my daily routine again.

Urban Decay's Ink For Eyes has been my favourite eyeliner for the year, and I don't actually think they sell it anymore as I haven't seen it in a while. This is a gel eyeliner which comes with a little brush to apply it to your eyes, and it's literally lasted me all year.

This mascara has it's own post because I love it so much, and you can read it by clicking here. FAIRYDROPS has been my favourite mascara since I got the little trial size version in my LashStash collection from Sephora last Christmas. It makes my short, invisible eyelashes super long and it's perfect for me.

One of my absolute favourites of the whole year has been my Mac Pro Longwear Concealer. I thought I'd already written a review on this, but a quick skim through my blog suggests otherwise. I will definitely put one of these up! I'm currently on my third bottle of this since discovering it during the Summer. It gives excellent coverage and I almost use it as a foundation.

Speaking of foundation, after trying a few throughout the year, my favourite has been Chanel's Perfection Lumiere. I had been wanting to try one of the Chanel foundations for months before I finally decided to give it a chance and this is my second bottle. It's the exact same colour as my skin and gives great buildable coverage. If anyone wants a review on this, just let me know!

I literally finished this last week and loved it. It's my Maybelline Dream Fresh BB Cream. I got this as a present during the Summer and have used it every day, and it lasted me such a long time for such a small bottle. This helped smooth my skin before applying my foundation and after using it once, I couldn't go back to applying make up without it.

Another item I loved so much, it got it's own review which you can read here. I don't know how I ever applied my make up without my Real Techniques Stippling Brush. I really could never go back to not using it as it applies my foundation so well and leaves such a nice finish.

I was very careful to keep my lip favourites down, as I could really go overboard with this.

Firstly is my Lush Bubblegum Lip Scrub. I think I'm currently on my third tub of this, and I love it so much that sometimes I just like to eat it. Obviously it has it's own blog post if you want a proper review. Click here!

The Revlon Lip Butter's where a huge hit this year, and I got my hands on quite a few, especially with numerous visits into Boots waiting patiently for them to appear on the shelves. I love all of them, but my favourite has to be Berry Smoothie. They're super moisturising and come in some lovely colours.

This was a hard choice with the EOS lipbalms giving some stiff competition, but I decided that the Maybelline Baby Lips Lip Balm's where my favourite lip balms of the year. Pictured is a brand new one which I haven't tried yet, but I'm currently on my third one and I still can't decide which colour I like best.

For lipstick, I'm choosing Mac Creme Cup which is another product I've reviewed separately. You can read that by clicking here. It's such a nice nude/peachy pink colour and it's also quite moisturising too which is a big bonus!

None of you will be surprised when you see my top three choices in nail polishes, and of course they're American brands.

Firstly is my Jag-u-are nail polish from Essie. This was used largely in the winter months, and you'll have seen it in a few of my Nail of the Day posts around Christmas time.

Another Essie polish, and this time it's Fun in the Gondola. I think I would choose this as my number one nail polish for the year, and I actually have it on my nails right now. It's the exact same colour in the bottle as my Creme Cup lipstick!

Finally, it's Rainbow in the S-Kylie from OPI's Kardashian Collection. I bought this at the start of last year and ended up buying a second bottle during the year just in case I ran out because I loved it that much. I said in a previous post I loved it that much I would give it it's own post, and that is still to come!

That's it for my 2012 favourites, 21 days late, but it's finally up! I'm so excited to try lots of new products throughout this year so if you have any recommendations for me please, please let me know!

Nails Of The Day - OPI Live And Let Die

Firstly, I'd like to apologise for my absence for the past few days. I know it really hasn't been that long, but when you check your blogs everyday, a few days feels like weeks! I decided to do a quick post on my current nails,  but I have a lot more interesting posts to come up soon, including my 2012 favourites (so late, I know) and a few Lush reviews.

My current nail polish is from OPI's James Bond collection which I had been lusting over for months. I had a list of shades that I wanted to pick up when I was in New York, but we couldn't find them anywhere! Eventually I found a mini set on ASOS, and I bought this at the start of last month. However, I couldn't mention it at all, as my friend who reads this blog received the set as a gift from me and I didn't want her to suspect anything. There's four colours in the set, but I'll review the set separately, and just talk about my current polish for now.

I firstly decided to use Live and Let Die as it was such a gorgeous colour and it was the one I had wanted most.

At first look, it looks like this polish is just plain black, but in the light you can see little flecks of a gold and very, very slightly dark green glitter. As you may know, I love glitter, so naturally I loved this. As with nearly all OPI polishes, this went on very smoothly, although I found I had to dip the brush into the pot a lot more since it was mini.

This polish is very easy to remove, for a glitter polish, and I found that only a few swipes with a nail varnish remover soaked cotton pad took it all right off.

What polish is currently on your nails? I hope you're all having a lovely evening/day depending on your time zone!

I Was Spoilt This Christmas

I noticed quite a lot of people doing these posts, and also asking for others to do them too. I wasn't sure whether to do one or not as a lot of people see it as showing off, but I decided to go ahead and do it anyway! I love seeing what other people got for Christmas because I'm so nosey, and I'm sure I'm not alone on this.

I'm not too sure how I want to do this, so I'm just going to show an overall photograph of what I got and then point out a few things.

I just want to point out, like everyone else, I'm not trying to show off or brag about what I received. Every year I set out all my gifts like this to admire them, and then I take a photograph, because I like to look back years later at what I got that year. I appreciate everything I got for Christmas and I have an amazing family, friends and boyfriend who know exactly what I like. 

The photo above, and a few others, were ones that I had taken on Christmas day so they weren't set out really for blogging purposes, and are just in any order, so I'll just pick random things out and if you have a question about something in particular, just comment below! The first gift is my Wildfox Couture sweater with the American flag skull on it. I absolutely love these jumpers and I picked this up while I was away as a gift from my mum for me. I then got these lovely Hollister pyjama bottoms from my friend Abbie as she knew I really wanted a pair while we were away but never got a chance to get them. They look so cosy!

 

My boyfriend got me a hot pink electric toothbrush. This may be random, but I've been wanting one for ages so I'm really happy I finally got one! My sisters got me a new curling wand since mine blew up recently, so I'm glad I can finally curl my hair again, and I used it straight away.

 

My mum and step dad also got me the book 'The Tiger Who Came to Tea' as it was one of my favourites when I was younger so it was a nice surprise to get that and I'm actually looking forward to reading it again. They also got me a Christmas bake book, as many of you will know I love to bake. I got two pairs of super cosy slipper socks from my friend Sarah and also my step mums parents which I love because this is what I live in whenever I'm in the house. I also got some slipper socks from Abbie to replace the ones I lost when I was in NYC so I'm so, so happy, as they are made from the rarest of lambs! (not really, but you might understand this joke if you watch MissGlamorazzi's YouTube videos). She also got me the super amazing present of three sachets of Serendipity's Frozen Hot Chocolate mix. If you have ever visit New York you need to go here, and order this drink, so, so good! She then got me two Essie nail polishes I've been wanting for ages, an EOS lip balm, a little donut mirror, and some yummy Hotel Chocolat chocolate which I scoffed today.

My biggest present (possibly after my Wildfox sweater), was a Kindle. This wasn't something I asked for, so was a surprise. I haven't got to use it yet as I'm not actually sure how to use it, but I look forward to putting some good books on it!

My Dad got me these four DVDS for Christmas and I'm excited to watch them all. I've already seen them all apart from I Don't Know How She Does It (although I watched it this afternoon), but I'm the type of person who loves to watch films over and over again. Serendipity has been my favourite film this year I think, so I'm so happy I finally own it on DVD.

My beauty gifts are some of my favourites (obviously) and one of them was a huge surprise. I got the Urban Decay Naked 2 palette from my boyfriend because I'd been wanting it for absolutely ages so I'm so happy that I finally get to use it. I also got the Tarte Lip Surgence from my mum and step dad which I'm excited to try out as I got the same set in different colours last year and loved it. Finally, my biggest surprise, was the Naked Basics palette which I got from my friend Rebekah and I was so shocked when I opened it. I never thought anyone would buy me it, and I'm so super excited to try it out. Obviously I'll have a review up for you all of it very soon! Check out her blog by clicking here.

I realise this is such a long post, and I was completely spoilt this Christmas. I want to say again that I'm so grateful for everything I received this year, and everyone who buys me gifts knows me so well!

You may have noticed that there isn't any mention of Lush in this post, and as it's my favourite, you may be wondering why. This is because I bought quite a lot during their Boxing Day sale and I want to do a separate post on it to show you all everything I got so you can see what reviews I'll be doing in the near future.

To end, I'm going to post my favourite gift...

My Marmie! He wasn't really a gift, but I just love this photograph of him. We got him his own stocking last year and filled it with treats and toys again this year, and he loves to climb inside everything.

What did you receive this Christmas? Either tell me below, or link me to the post on your blog if you've already posted one!

Blogmas Day 22 - Lush Angels On Bare Skin Review

Another review from my favourite brand, Lush. I've been meaning to write this review for a while now but keep forgetting somehow. This is the Angels on Bare Skin cleanser and I absolutely love it. It's perfect for sensitive skin like mine.

I done a bit of research before I choose this cleanser. I have quite red skin and its quite uneven so this seemed to be perfect. I try to use this every night if I can after I've taken my make up off and I've noticed the redness on my skin goes down straight away after using.

To use, I just pinch a small amount out of the tub and place in the palm of my hand. I'd say you only need product the size of your big finger nail and that should be sufficient. I then turn on the tap very slightly so only a small amount comes out and put that over the top. I then mix this around in my hand to form a paste. Next just apply all over your face, using circular motions. It's also quite good if you want to exfoliate as well.

Pros :

• Inexpensive, £6.25 for a 100g tub.
• Long lasting, this has done me a while now.
• Great for sensitive skin.
• Reduces redness (and actually works)
• Helps to even out skin tone.

Cons :

• Honestly, nothing. I can't think of a single thing wrong with this product.

Another great thing about this product is that if you bring back 5 clean tubs like this, you'll get a free fresh face mask.

Have you tried this product before, if so what do you think? If not, have you any other cleansers you would recommend for sensitive skin?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Blogmas Day 20 - Outfit Of The Night

Another outfit of the day (but actually night) for you all as I went out for my GB Christmas dinner last night. It wasn't somewhere overly fancy but I love this dress and I love my wedges so I thought I would wear them.

Dress - H&M

Tank top (underneath) - H&M

Tights - Asda

Wedges - New Look

Necklace - Marc by Marc Jacobs

Belt - H&M

Bracelet - Pandora

Then some little out takes from my sister trying to figure out how to take photographs on my camera. Then a photo bomb from my sister who was going out for dinner too.

Do you like these types of posts? I was thinking that my blog isn't as personal as it could be in that there isn't too many photographs of me and I think I could do with doing some more outfits of the day. Let me know!

Blogmas Day 19 - Maybelline Bit of Berry Lipstick

I am *this close* to missing Blogmas day 19. It's currently 11.32 pm here and I'm only back from going out for my Christmas dinner and I've been freaking out in case I missed this blog post as I haven't missed one yet!

Anyway, I decided to let you all see a lipstick I picked up while I was away. It's by Maybelline and it's in the colour number 175 - Bit of Berry.

If you watch Ingrid (Missglamorazzi)'s videos on YouTube then you may have seen this lipstick before. She wore it in quite a few videos and I loved it so much I made sure to get it. It's a lovely maroon red colour that I think is perfect for the season.

I really love the packaging, it's so simple and I love that you can see right through to the lipstick container. It also is quite a good reflection of the colour inside.

I feel like the photographs don't give a true image of how lovely this colour is. It's more pinky looking than red in my photographs, and I've just realised whilst typing this up that I never swatched it! I promise I'll do that tomorrow and add it in if you'd like to come back and see it. It's quite a strong colour, so I put only a little bit on my lips and then blended the rest in as I didn't want it to be as dramatic as it wanted to be.

Have you tried this lipstick, or do you have a current favourite lipstick that I should try? Let me know in the comments below!

Blogmas Day 13 - It's Here! Lush Rose Jam Review

If you read my Blogmas Day 7 - Lush Fragrance Party Exclusive! post, then you'll know I've been patiently waiting on my parcel from Lush. Well, today, at 8.10am, it finally arrived! As soon as I heard the postman I leapt out of bed to get my parcel. However, I decided to wait until I got home from work to open it, as I knew I would be so distracted by what was inside that I would be late. I'm home now, and it's time to open my parcel...

I love that once I cut open the side of the box, and began to open it, I found this little note printed inside. So cute, and company's don't usually do things like this, so it was a nice touch.

Another lovely thing I noticed, was that when I looked at the invoice which was at the top of the box, there was a signature from handy, which I could tell was hand signed, and not just printed on, to say that he had personally hand picked my items for me. Not really a big deal to many people, but I just thought it was a nice thing to add to a boring piece of paper.

Now to the good part...

Nicely packaged and padded, to protect my lovely products. By this point I was so excited and couldn't wait to tear into it to see what I'd got, but of course I had to take my photographs first. A spicy scent reached my nose as soon as the box was open, and I knew this must be my soap.

At the last minute, I decided to throw in a bar of soap from the Limited Edition section of the website, as these are the products which aren't available instore, and I thought I might as well while I was placing an order. I had a quick look and decided on this bar of Spice Mountain soap. I've just checked and this is now no longer available to buy online, so I can't link you to a place to buy it, but it smells like Christmas. It is a combination of clove, lime and cinnamon, and is a spicy scent which I think is perfect for this time of year. I'll be using it very soon and I'll have a review up for you very soon!

Now, on to what you read this post for... the Rose Jam perfume! My first thoughts when I saw the bottle was on how small it was, it's only 27ml, and I'm really sad that they only have bottles this size, as I don't want it to run out! I'm smelling it on my wrists right now, and it just smells ah-mazing. It's exactly the same scent as the Rose Jam Bubbleroon (yes, this is what Lush calls them, I didn't make this word up). I just want to eat it up. I can't even describe it in any other way than to say it smells like roses, jam, and a hint of lemon!

I've seen posts and tweets from other people talking about the Lush fragrances and I'm assuming they may be coming over to the US sometime soon? Hopefully they are, as you all need to experience this. To the UK, please bring this as a permanent item, as I'm going to have to ration this until you do!

Did anyone else manage to get a hold of any of these exclusive fragrances? Link me to your blog post if you did so I can read all about it!