Mac upcoming Collections

I'm a little slow on the uptake for mac collections, I'm still trying to get my hands on the cool and warm neutral 15 palettes! The only ones I have been prepared for are the Rihanna collaborations and now own a few lipsticks from her collection. So I have looked ahead and seen on Instagram and twitter that on June 14, Kelly and Sharon Osbourne are releasing their own makeup together with Mac! 

Sharon's will be more for darker haired women and Kelly's is for lighter haired/complexions. I'm really intrigued to see what they come up with, I'm assuming there will be a bright red somewhere maybe and a bright pink probably in Kelly's collection. I'm guessing from these ads released that Kelly's will include a peach nude lipstick and possibly some sort of kohl. Sharon's won't be as bold, instead being more muted and classic. They're my guesses anyway, we will have to wait until June to find out how right or wrong I am! 

The Simpsons collaboration will be a bright affair judging by this picture posted on Instagram by Mac a few hours ago. I am looking forward to seeing what this collection entails, bright makeup isn't really my thing but I might be pleasantly surprised by it. At least it won't be boring! Just when I wondered what Mac would come up with next- they never fail to surprise me. It makes a welcome change from samey Rihanna collections, while being popular and wearable, it's nice to see something more out there. I don't think there is a release date for The Simpsons yet but I'm assuming it will follow after Sharon and Kelly's. Can't wait!!

Xx

April Favourites

I always mean to do monthly favourites but time flies by before I get round to it and then I'm too late. So I'm being organised this time, I can't promise it will be a regular thing though but I'm trying! This month I have been loving quite a few things: 

Firstly, as my holiday is slowly creeping up, I have been making a conscious effort to exercise. My trainers have seen better days due to also wearing them to help my dad do the gardening (!) but I am planning on getting some new ones in the near future. I used to jog a couple of times a week but I have injured my knee so I can't anymore, instead opting for aerobic exercise routines on YouTube with my sister and one of my friends combined with a few power walks when my knee will let me! I've been drinking a lot of green tea with lemon as I don't like plain green tea and struggle to find a nice one that I can stomach! This PG Tips Zesty Lemon one seems to do the trick though and I don't find myself struggling to put up with the taste. 

Beauty favourites this month are in the form of Bioderma, L'Occitane Cherry Blossom Fragrance, Fake Bake Original Tan and Maybelline ColorSensational lipstick in Tantalizing Taupe. I use Bioderma every morning to cleanse my face and every evening to remove my makeup. I just soak a few cotton pads with it and wipe over my face until it is clean. It's so easy to use and I'm sure it will be in every monthly favourite! I'm nearly out of my L'Occitane Cherry Blossom and I always repurchase this over and over again as it's such a lovely fragrance that lasts on my clothes all day. Now the sun is shining I have been regularly tanning again. I do it on and off or if I am going somewhere nice but when it gets warmer I can't reveal my lily white legs without it on pretty much constantly! I find this Fake Bake one is a lovely colour and has quite a pleasant smell. I have been in love with this Maybelline lipstick since I received it in one of my Glossyboxes a few months ago. It's been really hard for me to find that perfect nude and while this may not be it, it is certainly the closest I have come! I have dry lips and this is quite moisturising and long lasting. 

A couple of random favourites this month- my new sunglasses from River Island, I think they were £10 or thereabouts and one of my favourite films Pitch Perfect!  I have worn the same £3 pair of tesco sunglasses for a few years now as I could never find any that suited me as well as my old faithfuls. Needless to say, they are now in the bin as I have these gorgeous ones! They're UVA and UVB protective and are so lovely that I find myself wearing them even if it's not very sunny outside. Pitch Perfect is such a funny film and I could watch it over and over again, which I have these past few weeks! Our housemate had never seen it and doesn't own any DVDs that I would watch so I vowed to convert him, starting with this. He is now addicted to it and even downloaded some of the songs onto his phone. Mission accomplished! 

Xx

Real Techniques Makeup Palettes

I have just discovered these makeup palettes from Real Techniques, the makeup brush brand from Sam and Nicola Chapman. I'm glad they have branched out to makeup as they have a full set of makeup brushes out and then released travel brushes so I wasn't sure what else they could bring out. I have quite a collection of their brushes already so I may buy these palettes to increase my collection! 

Each palette contains four eyeshadows, a gel liner, a highlighter, a blush and two lipglosses. I don't usually like palettes with glosses/shadows etc in but they have made the glosses in their own mini tubes instead of being with the eyeshadows, thank god! The palettes are called 'modern natural' and 'night owl' and are available on the Real Techniques website for $25 each with shipping to other countries. They are limited edition though so hurry!!

The return of the Glossybox!

Yes you've guessed it, I gave in and renewed my subscription to Glossybox. I just couldn't hold out any longer! I thought I would leave it a good few months before getting them again but I missed the emails telling me my lovely box was on its way and then the excitement of receiving it and finding what was inside. I signed up for another 6 month subscription and will then look around again at other beauty boxes that are available, just to see if I'm missing anything :). 

This month I received quite a varied and useful box. 

The first thing I picked out the box was the MONU Spa Warming Ginger Massage and Body Oil. Now being a Beauty Therapist, I use a lot of different oils for massage etc and I'm really intrigued by the warming element of this one. Ginger is not my favourite scent in the world but this is actually quite pleasant and not overpowering at all. From reading the back of the bottle, it says it turns into a milk when water is added so it would be useful for massaging tight areas and then washing off in the shower afterwards. I really look forward to trying it! 

Two useful items I received are TRESemme dry shampoo and a lip brush by Emite Makeup. In the kit these go! I'll be interested to see if any hairs fall out of the lip brush, very annoying! 

One for the holiday bag- SunSense Daily Face SPF 50+ invisible tint finish. So from the name I can assume it's more like a tinted moisturiser with sun protection added. This will be really useful for me for holiday and I'm saving it for when I go away as it doesn't have a lid on it so I can't test it even if I tried! 

I'm so glad I have renewed my Glossybox subscription and can't wait for next months to arrive as apparently it's going to be a good one! And it's the last one before my holiday so I hope I get some good products! 

What did you get in your box? Are there any better beauty boxes out there that I should look at instead? 

Xx

A few beauty bits..

Hi guys hope you have been enjoying the sun (if you're in the UK). I have been trying to be out in it as much as possible and spent the weekend at a farm watching the lambs and piglets being born, then went for a 7k run which definitely blew away the cobwebs! Today I popped into my town to do a few jobs and ended up picking up a few things that I shouldn't have, as usual! I had seen a pair of flip flops in New Look a few weeks ago and really wanted them but thought I would wait and see if they got more stock in as I'm really picky with shoes. When I went in today, I saw the same pair and still loved them more than the others so I ended up buying them. They were £24.99 but I will wear them to death as I needed to throw out my 2 year old pair of flip flops that had definitely seen better days. The old ones are similar to these ones but when I sit them side by side, I can see how worn and old they now look compared to the brightly coloured new ones. 

I popped into a shop called Savers which is a cheaper version of Boots or Lloyd's Pharmacy. Here I picked up a new Rimmel Stay Matte Pressed Powder in Transparent- I have this in my personal and professional makeup kit. I find it makes my makeup stay put longer and is easy to use for touch ups through the day without adding any colour or dislodging the makeup. 

I needed a new mascara so thought I may as well buy a Rimmel one while I was there. I'm a bit clueless when it comes to mascaras, having had eyelash extensions on for years and so I get easily overwhelmed with all the different ones. I settled on the Scandaleyes Retro Glam in extreme black on the recommendation of my sister so I will be interested to see how good it is when I put my makeup on tomorrow morning. 

The most exciting purchase I made was the Schwarzkopf got2be Volumising Styling Powder which I had been wanting to try since seeing Pixiwoo use this or a similar one in one of their YouTube videos. It's a little pot with holes in the top, a bit like a salt shaker. You can either dust this at the roots of your hair and rub in to create volume or shake some into your hands and dust through. I'm really looking forward to trying this for my next evening out! 

Have you tried any of these products? What do you think? 

Xx

Sanctuary Sensuous Body Soufflé

This product has been around for ages and I have used it on and off but only when I receive it as a gift. Not because I don't love it but because it's just not on my go to list of body products I buy myself. I first used products from the Sanctuary range when I was given a set years ago and this was one of the products along with the sugar scrub, who doesn't love one of those!? There's nothing better that having a hot shower and exfoliating all the dead skin cells off, or layers of fake tan if you're anything like me, and following with a body cream. It's fair to say I have a ridiculous amount of body lotions and potions in my house varying from L'Occitane and Tesco to a huge Soap and Glory obsession, many of them being gifts. I think I will always come back to this one though, it smells nice (the usual Sanctuary fragrance) and it soaks in incredibly well. Don't get me wrong, I really enjoy using luxurious creams that stay on your skin that bit longer but when you have to share a bedroom with 2 cats, one being long haired, I would end up looking like one of them- covered in hair! Don't worry this is a very temporary thing, I don't always confine my cats to our bedroom and in my defense they love snuggling on my bed so it's not all RSPCA necessary! 

Now back to the topic in question, sorry I tend to ramble on! As well as the smell, I really like the texture. It is described as a soufflé (clue in the name) and that's exactly what it is. It seems sort of air whipped although mine is nearly empty and isn't as light and fluffy as when I first opened it but I suppose that is to be expected. 

So overall, a great body cream that does exactly what it says on the tin and leaves my skin feeling soft with a hint of the aroma still lingering after a few hours-bonus!! 

Xx

Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Cream The Original

This has been a favourite of cult beauty addicts for years but I have only just got my hands on this much loved tube. Now I don't know what I was expecting but I was taken a bit by surprise when I squeezed some of the cream out into my hand. Its a lot thicker than I thought I would be, which isn't necessarily a bad thing as it is great for burns or cracked lips and hands. I tend to suffer with eczema a lot so I will definitely be giving this a go and also will be donating it to my boyfriend who has chapped and very rough hands. It's like holding hands with a block of sandpaper and actually hurts me if he rubs my arm so I will be interested to see if it manages to help him. The downside to this product is the smell. I'm very particular when it comes to fragrances of beauty products or perfumes and I didn't realise this would have such a strong smell. This however is just my opinion, it's loved by many people so I may just have a sensitive nose! I shall persevere and see how I get on! I did receive this as part of a gift set for Christmas that also contained a day cream, hand cream and lip balm, all of which I am currently using and loving. 

Does anyone else use Elizabeth Arden? I'd love to hear what you think of the products

Xx