Rambling on about books, baking and beauty…
So I found a discount voucher for Nails Inc and as I can’t resist nail polish I treated myself.
I got nail kale nail strengthener, top coat and two nail polishes as well as the blossom nail decoration set.
Nails Inc sent me a free gift of three mini shades and randomly a kinder bueno chocolate bar.
Free delivery on top of that. Ordered Saturday and here this morning. Rather chuffed. Now if only my nails were not so brittle.
ramblingmads
I quite like that My Little Box has a theme each month, last month it was My Little French Box and this month it’s My Little Super Box.
The packaging is really cute and addressed to the Marvellous Madeleine, which is always welcome!
Inside is a whole bundle of goodies.
As well as the usual mini magazine, there are superhero stickers, a t-shirt rolled up, and three full-size beauty products.
My Little Beauty branded cheek and lip tint in coral, I do like a two-in-one product.
Garnier Miracle Sleeping Cream – I don’t currently use a night cream so I might give this a road test.
Kerastase Cristal – a conditioner for dry hair and split ends. Not sure about whether my slightly greasy at the roots and grumpy at the ends hair will like this, but it’s worth a go.
On the little ‘what’s in my box’ sheet it gives the prices if you were to buy the individual products and trust me when I say the £13 this box cost is an absolute bargain.
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I bought this on a whim. But it’s full of nice goodies and randomly came with three samples of Avon’s Cherish eau de parfum.
A mix of sample size and full size products.
Pitrok Crystal deodorant wipes – not something I’ve come across before but probably incredibly useful, especially if you commute in the summer.
Crabtree & Evelyn Verbena & Lavender hand cream, handbag size and nice scent.
Merumaya Melting Cleansing Balm sample – you just get one but it seems to be really easy to use and a nice little tester.
Dr Organic Dead Sea Mineral Bio-Plasma Mask – I do like a face mask, and Dr Organic products are usually out of my price range.
Bellapierre Cosmetics volumizing mascara – I’m a bit fussy about mascaras but my mum and bestie do quite well out of that fact.
Rituals Miracle Scrub – a hand scrub which I will be road-testing not on my well moisturised hands but on my boyfriend’s sandpaper palms.
John Masters Organics detangler and shampoo samplers. I was thinking of changing shampoos, well I will be testing this next time I wash my hair.
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This was an additional box I ordered thinking my mum might like it for Mothering Sunday which is fast approaching but it’s a good thing I bought another gift as I think I might keep this one.
The box contains mostly full size goodies.
Sachajuan Hair Repair – for damaged and stressed hair.
Naobay Body Radiance Lotion – contains olive oil, avocado oil and shea butter. Not sure if I eat it or smear it on my skin.
Wild About Beauty Botanical Skin Prep Serum – apply on bare skin or over moisturiser to make you skin smoother and allow make up to be applied with ease.
Scentered Stress Less Therapy Balm – chamomile, neroli & mandarin, apply to pulse points to destress and soothe.
Vichy Liftactiv Supreme anti-wrinkle cream. I don’t currently have wrinkles but 30 isn’t too far away.
Urban Apothecary scented tea light candle – I love candles and this one smells yummy.
Little Ondine Twins nail polish duo. Cute design, red and cappucino coloured polishes.
Decleor Iris rejuvenating serum – a teeny, tiny bottle of something that smells rather good. My work wife loves decleor and is always recommending their products to me.
What is your mum (not) getting for Mother’s Day?
ramblingmads
I don’t get all the Latest in Beauty boxes, unlike most, they’re not monthly as such.
But I have bought a couple of the ones curated by Glamour magazine’s beauty editor.
The good thing about LiB is that you can see what products are going to be in the box before you order, so if there’s nothing that interests you then there’s no obligation to buy.
Inside this box is:
Moroccanoil Intense Hydrating Masque – I have wanted to try Moroccanoil for a while as I’ve heard good things but they’re quite pricey so this is great.
Rimmel Oh My Gloss lipgloss in My Eternity. I don’t often bother with lipgloss and I’m not sure about this shade on me, but it’s sparkly and not too gloopy.
Revlon Colorstay Gel Envy nail polish in light turquoise. Not a pastel shade = result in my book.
Revlon Colorstay Gel Envy Diamond Topcoat – now I don’t need to buy topcoat. I just wish ‘colour’ was spelt correctly.
BeautyUK High Brow all in one brow definition kit – my eyebrows are basically ignored, they don’t need much work.
Model Co Creme Rouge lips and cheeks in Just Peachy – I do like a product with more than one use.
Kiko long lasting stick eyeshadow in a bronze/gold shade. I prefer eye crayons to powder so this will probably get a lot of use.
Nuxe Paris Masque Creme Fraiche 24hr Soothing and Rehydrating Fresh Mask – I think I will be slathering this on, smells nice and would give my skin a treat.
Elie Saab le parfum sampler – a quite strong scent. Might have to let it sit and simmer.
Free 12 month subscription to Glamour magazine – print and digital. Plus entry into a prize draw for over £500 worth of products. This is the USP of the Glamour boxes, a free subscription.
ramblingmads
New month, new beauty box from Birchbox. This one’s in association with homeware store Habitat.
Again it’s the slimmer letterbox size, although as it was delivered by courier that didn’t really matter.
Inside there was a selection of goodies.
A massive packet of Serenity Skincare Dead Sea Bath Salt, I don’t have a bath, I live in a flat with a tiny bathroom, but my feet will get a nice long soak.
Sample size Benefit They’re Real! mascara. I like Benefit and this is one of their new products.
Philip Kingsley Elasticizer (sample) a pre-treatment for hair.
Lord & Berry Bronzer – I don’t really use bronzer, it looks a bit odd on my very pale skin.
Catherine Malandrino eau de parfum sampler – not sure whether I like this yet, but will wear it for a bit to see if it’s a grower.
Birchbox & Habitat notebook – a tiny red notebook, perfect to pop in your handbag and scribble thoughts and ideas in.
Chapter sample of Penny Vincenzi’s new book A Perfect Heritage. Funnily enough I picked up a copy of this the other day. I enjoyed her book No Angel, and this one, set in the world of beauty companies as three women vie to run a prestigious cosmetics firm seems to be just a good. I do like a decent doorstep novel.
All in all an eclectic selection of goodies. Wonder what next month will bring?
ramblingmads
I’ve been doing the Herbalife weightloss/get healthy program since January, I lost half a stone in a month so far and am really enjoying learning about better ways to eat and coming up with healthy recipes that still taste delicious.
So I asked my lovely friend & nutrition coach Kayleigh about their range of skincare goodies. Her skin looks amazing and she regularly posts #MintMaskMondays selfies on Instagram and Facebook.
I decided to start with the sample size Results Kit.
It comes in a little pot (above) and contains five products in the range. Though sadly no mint mask for me.
Soothing Aloe Cleanser – aloe is a substance Herbalife are very keen on, and it is very good for you, inside and out.
Daily Glow Moisturiser – for all skin types.
Firming Eye Gel – for all skin types
Hydrating Eye Cream – for all skin types
Replenishing Night Cream – for all skin types
I don’t currently use eye creams, mostly because when I have done so my skin has become itchy and irritated. Hopefully this won’t do the same.
I’m going to give these a go and if my skin seems happier with them, invest in some full size products.
ramblingmads
Another beauty box in my quest for the perfect one.
I filled in a beauty questionnaire intended to make the ideal selection, but there was a definite mis-fire amongst this little lot.
A fullsize Nails Inc. polish in bruton lane, which is a pastel shade (and if you read my post about nail polish, you’ll know they’re not my favourite).
Mirabella lip gloss in Muse, which is baby pink in the bottle, so will be used sparingly.
Cailyn eyebrow gel in Cocoa. Now I told them I’m blonde, which is my natural colour so a dark brown gel would make my very pale brows look silly.
Organic Surge Perfecting Face Polish (sample size) this says it’s suitable for sensitive skin, which I have, and contains rosemary and lemon essential oils, which means it smells amazing.
Monuspa Conditioning Bodywash (sample size) for all skin types – this contains honey and essential oils, and again smells delicious.
The goodies come in a little cloth bag inside a frankly enormous box. Their USP is that if you refer a friend with a unique code on their site you get credits towards products in your next box and so will your friend.
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I rarely get called wonderful so it was rather nice coming home to find a parcel in my letterbox doing just that.
Inside was February’s Birchbox. I had opted for the slimmer letterbox size, and as you can see above, it was packed with beauty goodies (and a sample packet of oats + chia porridge, not pictured).
There were discount codes and vouchers for beauty products.
The products themselves were a mixture of sample and full sizes.
I had filled in a beauty profile on the site, which should mean that the items in my box are tailored to me.
I received: a sample of Benefit High Beam, which is a product I already use so this was a little bonus bottle.
T London Darjeeling Bath & Shower wash, perfect size for my washbag and holiday travels.
Fullsize Eyeko London Fat Eye Stick in gilt – I like an eye crayon, easy to use and no mess.
Electric Hairdressing Hydrate Shampoo, again perfect size for my washbag. Finally Caudalie Paris Radiance Serum – I don’t use serums much so this will be fun to try out.
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So, pretty much every time I go to somewhere like Boots or Superdrug, regardless of what I actually need to buy, I come home with at least two more nail polishes. There is a large box of them in my wardrobe/dressing room/beautifying corner. Most are Barry M or Nails Inc, with a few random ones (usually freebies from magazines or gift sets, sometimes beauty boxes) thrown in for good measure. I had a clear out recently off all tge manky, dried out ones.
The thing is, I don’t paint my fingernails, it chips too quickly and my nails are pretty brittle to start with. So all these lovely colours only get used on my toenails and only get seen in the summer flip flop months.
I have to have painted toenails at all times and redo them every fortnight, changing colour each time. I don’t like feet and one of my toes is bent from being broken and reset badly when I was 19. Even wrapped up in thick socks and my knitted Ugg boots (which I love for their warmth and don’t care that they’re rather ugly) my toes need that pop of colour, they look sad and naked without it. And I know it’s there!
I don’t really like pastel colours, I prefer bright jewel tones, they contrast quite nicely against my really pale skin. I’m the same with clothes, I will pick the emerald, sapphire or royal purple every time.
Which means I get really fed up when new colours come out and they’re weedy pastels. Like Barry M’s new speedy dry colours, all pastels – boring.
I’ve also got quite into matte finish polishes too, sometimes it’s more interesting than a gloss finish.
Just whatever you do, make sure it’s completely dry before you put socks on, take it from me, fluffy toes are not a good look!
ramblingmads
ramblingmads 