Author: ramblingmads

I am a thirtysomething from London, with a cat, a husband, bookshelves which keep threatening to crush me under their load and chronic health conditions. Basically your average over stressed millennial. Welcome.
beauty boxes, birchbox, glossybox, reviews

Box Battle – Birch vs. Glossy

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Glossybox – 5 products, two full size. This month; -417 Catharsis Vitamin Mineral Shampoo & Conditioner (travel sized), Olay Regenerist Luminous Skin Tone Perfecting Cream (sample size), Hey Honey Good Morning Silk Facial Serum (sample size), So Susan Light Diffuser Highlighter (full size), Luxie Rose Gold Large Angled Face Brush 504 (full size).

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Birchbox – 6 products, three full size. This month; Arrow Boost Colour Enhancing Lip Balm (full size), ModelCo More Brows gel (full size), Lanolips Antibacterial Hand Cream (full size), Crea-m Anti aging Serum (sample size), Amika Nourishing Mask (sample size), Doctor Duve Anti-aging & Firming Eye Cream (sample size).

Birchbox is themed and the box decorated with a beauty themed wordsearch.

Glossybox is in its usual pink and black.

To be honest, I’m a little bored with Glossybox, every other month seems to bring similar samples and it feels a little lacklustre.

Birchbox has been powering along, this month brings the launch of their second in-house brand, vegan, paraben free Arrow, with a lip balm in every box.

What are your thoughts? Are you a Glossy or Birchbox subscriber?

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feminism, life

International Women’s Day

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This month is Women’s History Month, and I’m reminded of the Virginia Woolf line “For most of history, anonymous was a woman”.

For much of our history women have toiled in the background while men filled the history books with their deeds.

So in honour of International Women’s Day, here are some of my top historical women.

Ada Lovelace – daughter of the ‘mad, bad and dangerous to know’ Lord Byron, Ada’s passions were for science not poetry. She wrote some of the first computer code while working with Charles Babbage, the father of computers.

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Rosalind Franklin – the only woman in the team that first sequenced DNA, she missed out on the Nobel Prize won by her colleagues as she had died of cancer and it’s not rewarded posthumously. Then she was pretty much written out of scientific history. Which is really bad. Watson and Crick failed to thank her when they received their prize and she doesn’t feature in many textbooks.

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Boudicca (Boudicea) – queen of the Iceni tribe, scourge of the Romans, fierce and fabulous. Her statue stands at one end of Westminster Bridge to remind Parliament of the wrath of angry women. Or what happens when you try to crush the spirit of these isles.

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Marie Stopes – a controversial figure, Stopes pioneered safe abortions and taught women about contraception. Her work saved lives and continues to through the organisation named after her.

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Elizabeth I – my favourite of the small group of women to have held the British throne. She was the last female monarch to hold absolute power, famously never married and is thought to be the hand behind several anonymous poems (some to the French ambassador! Scandal!). Good Queen Bess was a tough cookie, seeing off claims to her throne, Spanish armadas and amorous attempts to control her through marriage. The last Tudor monarch was also famous for her incredibly pale skin – created by wearing lead based paint, which ate at her skin. Beauty was definitely painful.

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Which historical women inspire you?

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beauty, beauty boxes, make up, reviews, skincare

Blogger Beauty Box

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This is a beauty box designed by a blogger for bloggers and all for only £10 a month.

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It’s a pretty new venture and doesn’t yet have a whole slick website set up, and in a way, I prefer that. It feels more friendly and hands on.

It’s a really packed box, full of fab products. Many of them full size, which is always a plus in my book.

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Merumaya Eye Make-Up Remover – this skin kind remover says it removes even stubborn mascara, while not causing upset to your skin.

DHC Mineral Mask – mud mask that only takes 10 minutes to deep clean skin and brighten complexion.

Threads Sex Kitten Lashes – while I don’t wear false lashes (I don’t have the knack and have ended up with lashes on my cheeks) these feathery, soft lashes come with adhesive and would look amazing.

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Madame La La Tan – instant bronzing for your face, already swiped by my bestie for her winter glow. Not tested on animals, paraben free this builds up a bronzed finish.

Puriskin Lip Treat – a clear balm that is suitable for vegans, gluten-free, and contains lots of lovely ingredients to keep lips moisturised and soft.

Jrnaturorganics Mandarin & Chamomile Hydrating Mist and Balancing Moisturiser – designed for sensitive skin, choc full of essential oils and skin friendly natural ingredients, these tiny pots smell gorgeous too.

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beauty, beauty boxes, nail polish, reviews

Nailbox February – Retro Disco Nails

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This month’s Nailbox arrived and it’s full of bright colours and sparkles in a retro disco theme.

Inside the box are four colours to make your nails pop.

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Rimmel lasting finish in Wedge of Lime

Essie in flowerista

Nicole by Opi in Sky’s the Limit

Eye Candy London in Juicylicious

Then to make your nails into disco balls of sparkles Eye Candy London 3D nail wraps.

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beauty boxes, make up, reviews, skincare, vegan kind

The Vegan Kind Beauty Box Spring 2016

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Every three months TVK dispatch a beauty box of cruelty free goodies. And they’re usually all full size.

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Let’s dive in to the first box of the year.

Amie Morning Clear Purifying Facial Wash – no harsh chemicals, great for sensitive skin, pH balanced, not tested on animals, smells fairly pleasant. Not sure what else you need – oh and there’s a 25% off voucher in the box.

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Saturated Colour KISStick in First Kiss (different colours in different boxes) – unfortunately this isn’t my colour, but bright colours and moisture aren’t bad.

Barry M Radiant Rod Highlighter – I use this every day, basically a gold crayon that makes me look bright and healthy. I love that Barry M is cruelty free when so many high street brands aren’t. It doesn’t cost more to be kind.

Floral Engraved Wooden Incense Holder and Sacred Elephant Sandalwood Incense – something a bit different, sandalwood is a delicious, woody scent, used all over the world.

A donation from each box sold goes to the Dr Hadwen Trust – the UK’s leading non-animal medical research charity.

I really like this box, even though the lipstick isn’t my colour, and it saves me a trip to Boots for a new highlighter!

Do you subscribe to this box? Share your thoughts below.

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challenges, crafty stuff, jewellery, lifestyle boxes, reviews

Blackheart Creatives DIY Jewellery Box

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I discovered Blackheart Creatives through Twitter and loved the fun things they sell.

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So when they released a DIY jewellery box I leapt at the chance. For £20 you get everything you need to make some pretty cool, totally unique jewellery.

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Unique and fun

I sat myself down in front of The Good Wife last week and had a go. Following the step-by-step instructions was super easy and since the box not only contained the components but also the tools I needed, there was no faffing about.

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Super duper easy peasy

This month’s box contained a pair of earrings and a necklace, which you can put your own unique spin on and make something no one else has.

This was a limited run of 30 kits, but if there’s enough demand, I imagine there will be more in the future. The plan is to give you something different each time and build up your skills and tools at the same time.

The lovely Charlotte even made a how to video for you, if you’re all thumbs or just want tips from the pros.

As a not very crafty person I found it really fun and as you get something unique to keep and wear at the end, complete value for money.

To find out more, visit Blackheart Creatives online, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook, they’re a friendly team and respond quickly, should you have any questions.  You can also see everyone else’s fab creations there.

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beauty, beauty boxes, reviews, skincare

Dollibox February

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This month’s Dollibox just popped through the door with five full size products for £10.

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Bubble T Hand Cream in Lemongrass & Green Tea – paraben and SLS free, this hand cream is lightly scented and keeps hands soft.

Pixi Lip Blush in Youth –  the best way to describe this is felt tip for your face. Unfortunately this shade is way too girly pink for me, I prefer a darker tint. (4 possible shades)

Little Ondine Nail Polish in Red Red Wine – these are super clever nail polishes, paint on, peel off when you want to change. With only three ingredients (water, resin, colour) it’s nail friendly too. (3 possible shades)

Pop Kajal Pen Eyeliner in Inky Purple – a dual ended pencil to deliver a splash of colour to your lash line. Coloured liner is big news this year.

The Hippy Bee Collection Plane Perfect – coconut oil that you can take on a plane as it comes in under the allowance. Use it pretty much anywhere, probably my favourite multi use item.

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beauty, beauty boxes, glossybox, haircare, make up, reviews, skincare

Glossybox: Love is in the air

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So Glossybox loves Valentine’s Day, with a special edition, themed box.

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Five beauty products that are apparently designed to be our beauty soulmates. Randomly this may be the cheapest item selection I’ve seen – only one item tops £10.

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Nicka K New York 24hr Waterproof Eyeliner in Dark Brown – I rarely, if ever, wear eyeliner, but when I do I go for black, so this pencil won’t get much use.

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MUA Power Pout Glaze Low Voltage Gloss – there’s already been several complaints I’ve seen about this item, ranging from the low cost of it, people want items in their beauty boxes they otherwise couldn’t get, and also the rather bizarre way it’s been promoted. In the January box GB said you’d receive an email soon to select your shade, but it turns out that the email was supposedly sent in December, and not everyone (including me) received one.
Now as I don’t have a flux capacitor handy I don’t know how I’m supposed to pick a shade, but never fear, the intern will pick one not remotely based on your beauty profile – so I received a brown gloss. I’m a pale skinned, natural blonde, what use is this to me.

The Vintage Cosmetic Company Floral Slanted Tweezers – because you can’t possibly already have tweezers.

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Naobay Protective Hair Mask Volume Conditioner – I don’t know about you but I usually do a hair mask before washing my hair, but this apparently goes on after and rinse off. I don’t have time to faff about, so this probably won’t get used much.

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Wilkinson Sword Intuition Razor – last February I got a razor in Glossybox, and look, the same thing a year later. Never mind how rude it is to assume we need to shave our legs (FYI you don’t, it’s a personal choice and I have friends who don’t), but a £7 razor doesn’t scream beauty treat to me.

Wow, is this box underwhelming. What is happening to Glossybox? Is this just stuff cluttering up the stockroom?

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