Tag: reviews

books, reviews

Book Preview: Red Sister – Mark Lawrence

ramblingmads

This ARC was in Illumicrate 6 and I didn’t so much read it as devour it in one sitting. 

I liked Lawrence’s previous trilogy The Broken Empire so I knew his style but this book was just so good I couldn’t put it down. 

It’s fantasy but it’s also a thriller. Nona Grey is given to the child-seller and sent off to the capital where her life is saved by a rather unusual (by our standards) convent. 

Nona comes to see that what makes her different makes her special. 

I desperately don’t want to spoil this for anyone but it’s really good. Lots of mystery and intrigue, great plotting and characterisation. Well written and gripping. 

It’s properly published in April but I already can’t wait for the sequel which probably won’t appear till next year. 

books, Illumicrate, lifestyle boxes, reviews

Illumicrate review 

ramblingmads

The new Illumicrate has arrived and it was a heavy one. 

The book in the box is Wintersong by S. Jae-Jones and it looks like a good ‘un. Inspired by the author’s love of the film Labyrinth yes, the one with David Bowie in those trousers. There’s also a note from the author and a bookmark. 

As well as that book, there is also a sampler from an upcoming book and an advanced reader copy of Mark Lawrence’s soon to be published Red Sister (a review of which is upcoming). 

There’s a whole bundle of other book based goodies too. 

There are fridge magnets with quotes from V.E. Schwab’s books. 

A really cute pouch featuring Baloo the bear from The Jungle Book and a Magic and Mischief lipbalm. 

There is also a Newt Scamander bookmark, as well as the usual freebies promoting some interesting looking upcoming books and discount codes at the included shops.  


I was really pleased with this box – I have already read one of the books included and am about to read the next one. 

beauty, beauty boxes, ethics, make up, reviews

The Pip Beauty Box

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This new beauty box, named after the founder’s canine chum, is all about championing cruelty free beauty. 50p from each box has been donated to Cruelty Free International. 

Inside are five cruelty free and vegan friendly beauty treats. 

Bloomtown Botanicals Nourishing Mini Soap (RRP £1.40) – made in small batches with plant oils and butters, this vegan friendly Soap comes in a whole range of scents. 

Akamuti Green Clay Face Mask (RRP £2) – sundries green clay that you mix yourself to make a purifying face mask that is suitable for sensitive and problem skin. 

Saturated Colour Lip Vinyl Liquid Lipstick in Frisky Fuchsia (RRP  £7) – a deep pink shade in a liquid lipstick – something of a recent beauty trend. 

PHB Ethical Beauty Black Mascara & Nearly Black Eyeliner (RRP £24.70) – both award winning formulas that complement each other. Made with botanical oils and water resistant, suitable for sensitive eyes. 

There are discount codes in the box for PHB and Saturated Colour. 

For a first beauty box this is well balanced in terms of skincare and make up – and fullsize items to boot. 

books, reviews

Book Review: Sweetbitter – Stephanie Danler

ramblingmads

When I was 17 I got my first weekend job – I was a waitress. Luckily the restaurant I worked in was nothing like as claustrophobic as the one Tess works in in this book. 

Tess is 22 and newly arrived in New York, like me she read English Literature at uni but unlike me she’s not really a city girl. 

She gets sucked in to the swirl of drinking, drug taking, bickering and family meals of the restaurant, and even more so into the lives of Simone and Jake.

The writing is fluid, like quicksilver, Tess is a unreliable narrator, my favourite kind, filtering everything through her own self-interest. 

I really enjoyed this book, Danler’s first, and look forward to seeing what she does next. 

beauty, beauty boxes, fun stuff, lifestyle boxes, my little box, reviews, skincare

My Little Box – Fresh Start

ramblingmads

This is January’s MLB, better late than never! 

Instead of the standard box, this month is a canvas bag, designed to be reusable. 

Inside are a variety of things designed to help you start afresh in a new year. 

There’s a cute little journal, without dates, so you can start it whenever. 

There’s a cute printed infinity scarf or snood. 

The final lifestyle item is a set of inspirational postcards, suggesting ways to get fresh starts in the different aspects of your life. 

Then there’s the selection of beauty treats. 

Merci Handy Holy Mint Toothpaste – I’ve only had antibacterial hand gel from this brand before and I’m really particular about toothpaste so I don’t know whether I’ll use this. 

Garnier Ultimate Blends Strength Restorer Balm – this is a tiny sample of hair mask containing royal jelly and honey.  I’ll hang on to it for a really bad hair day. 

My Little Beauty Boost Yourself Body Cream & Sweet Hand Cream – two items from MLB’s own beauty range. These both snell inoffensive and having had several other skincare items from this range I know they’re pretty standard stuff. 

MLB has decided to scrap their My Little World magazine for good, in favour of things like the inspiration postcards and journal. 

The box is back next month, which is good as the bag is all well and good but required extra packaging to keep it safe.

 

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

Glossybox Edible Edit

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For a box called the Edible Edit in conjunction with comedian Bella Younger’s Instagram alter ego Deliciously Stella, there’s not even a tube of fruit pastilles inside. 

Instead there’s a range of beauty products (mostly skincare) which contain Edible ingredients, just don’t take a nibble.  

Nip & Fab Kale Fix Moisturiser – with kale, watercress and almond oil to enrich and protect skin and aloe vera and shea butter to soothe and smooth. 

The Balm Meet Matt (e) Trimony Single Eyeshadow – in an aubergine (eggplant for my US readers) shade this teeny, tiny sample shadow is velvety soft. 

Vitamasques Manuka Honey Face Mask – Korean sheet masks were a big thing in beauty last year and it looks set to continue as a trend. This one is infused with the most expensive honey you can buy to nourish and love your skin.  

Unani Illuminate Milk Cleanser – full of natural skin loving oils to purify and protect your skin as they remove make up. 

Hairon Zero Crease Hair Tie – not entirely sure how these fit the theme but there you go.  I actually hate these hair ties, for some reason they get snared and tangled in my hair, so my sister will be getting these.  

This will be my last Glossybox for a while as I need to save a little money and use up my stash, which is getting out of control. 

beauty, beauty boxes, birchbox, make up, reviews, skincare

Birchbox Merry & Bright 

ramblingmads

This month’s Birchbox has arrived. Instead of the classic box they’ve sent a pop top style box, which they claim can be used as a keepsake box. However it is smaller than the usual box and I can’t really work out what I’d keep in it. 

Inside are five beauty items – they tie into the colour scheme rather neatly. 
💋Ciatè London Fierce Flicks Eyeliner (fullsize RRP  £15) – felt tip style eyeliners are my preferred kind, mostly because I can’t quite handle gel and I have never managed to get a decent line from a kohl pencil. 

💋Bobbi Brown Smokey Eye Mascara (RRP £23) – I’m not entirely sure what makes this specifically a smokey eye mascara but there you go. 

💋Benefit Cosmetics Benetint  (RRP £24.50) – teeny tiny Benefit samples I’ve had a few. I used to love benetint but I haven’t used it in years. 

💋Leighton Denny Nail Polish in Just Perfect (fullsize RRP  £12) – this is a really baby pink polish which I really don’t see getting used. Which is a shame as these are good quality polishes. 

💋Amie Skincare New Leaf Deep Pore Exfoliating Polish (RRP £5.95) – this uses rice proteins to exfoliate away dead skin cells rather than nasty plastic beads so yay. Plus this range gets on well with sensitive skin – I just wish it was a bigger bottle. 

This box was a bit mixed, it’s nice that the colours all tie together and I will definitely get some use out of most of the contents which is nice, especially considering the very hit and miss year Birchbox has had. 

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

Glossybox December 

ramblingmads

The seasonal Glossybox has arrived all white and gold. 

Inside are five fullsize products. 

MDMFLOW Semi-matte lipstick in Vamp – subscribers were invited to pick their choice between two shades for this month’s box. I went for this plum shade over the nude option as I quite like a statement lip. Wearing glasses means no matter what I do with my eye makeup it doesn’t really show but a bold lip pops  every time. 

Essence Light Up Your Face Luminizer Palette – other bloggers have said that Glossybox used to be packed full of high end cosmetics – well now it’s full of budget options like this. Essence is stocked in Wilko and this is £3. It’s also really too dark for my skin. If I used this, my face would just look dirty. 

Collection Cosmetics Define & Perfect Eyebrow Powder – another budget choice and another that seems aimed at someone else. This is just frustrating. I’ve told them I’m blonde and that includes my eyebrows but no – more brunette products. Having said that this is a nice slim brush but the rattling noise it makes worries me. 

Lipcote – my mum uses this to secure her lipstick but I found it unpleasantly tacky last time I used it. But I am going to try it again as I think I eat an awful lot of lipstick. 

Revlon Nail Enamel in Valentine – an old school vampy red polish in Revlon’s iconic bottle. 
This box was a bit hit and miss. All the products are fullsize and I like the colours of the polish and lipstick but the rest is a bit ‘meh’. Hopefully next year there will be a better mix of items, and not just the cheap end of the range. 

beauty, beauty boxes, look fantastic, make up, reviews, skincare

#LFXmas 

ramblingmads

Look Fantastic’s December box has arrived and it’s rose gold decor lines up with one of the big trends for 2016. 

The new issue of Elle was also included – The feminist issue – because feminism only matters once a year *eyeroll* 


Inside are six beauty products collated for the party season. 

💋Illamasqua Hydra Veil Primer – part primer, part hydrating moisturiser, this is designed to create a flawless base for your make up. While I am pretty wedded to my Soap & Glory primer at the moment, I might just try this out – just a shame it’s such a tiny pot. 👎

💋Philip Kingsley Elasticizer – this has been in dozens of beauty boxes this year and has never made any difference to my hair. 🙁 It’s supposed to give my hair a boost and make it shiny. But no. 👱

💋Balance Me Pure Skin Face Wash – with grapefruit oil to gently cleanse the skin and keep skin happy. 🍑

💋Bubble T Bath Bomb – why don’t I have a bath tub? Why? Sadly this is completely wasted on me. With Hibiscus and Acai Berry, Goji Berry, vitamins A and C, this is a super soak for party weary body and soul. 🍒

💋Skin Republic Caviar and CoQ10 Face Mask – yes this contains fish eggs but 2016 beauty trends have included some weird things (like snail gel). It also contains Vitamin E, Witch Hazel and CoQ10 to fight blemishes and boost skin health. If you can get your head around smearing fish eggs on your face. 🐟

💋Mellow Cosmetics Lipstick in Madness – a matte formula in a rather nice red, although not as deep red as I’d like. Long lasting with smooth application full of pigment and polish. 💄

All in all I quite like this box even if the elasticizer and bath bomb are more miss than hit. 
 

beauty, beauty boxes, make up, reviews, skincare

Bow’s Beauty Box 

ramblingmads

“Brown paper packaging tied up with string – these are a few of my favourite things” so sang Julie Andrews in the Sound of Music. 

This new beauty box, curated by two bloggers, just launched on etsy, is very well wrapped in brown paper and string with a candy cane as well. 

Inside this neat little package are five beauty items.

– technic Colour Mix Cream Corrector Palette  – I’m never sure what colour corrector to buy in the shops but this palette has eight different colours to correct a multitude of sins.  

Pure Potions Skin Salvation Intensely Moisturising Ointment – suitable for sensitive and stressed out skin (conditions including eczema, psoriasis, dermatitis etc). My angry skin might just have found a new friend. 

Earth Conscious Natural Deodorant in Spice – this coconut oil based, cruelty free, organic deodorant smells like Christmas and is a bit too strong for me. But if you’re allergic or irritated by conventional products, this might work for you. 

Dr Botanical Japanese Orange Superfood Facial Oil – a vegan oil for your face, designed to renew and refresh tired skin. Smells fairly nice too. 

 Mitimo Natural 512 Avocado Seed Facial Essence Mask – Korean skincare has blown up in 2016 and sheet masks like this are everywhere. Infused with Avocado seed, aloe vera extract and other skin loving ingredients, this mask is designed to deep cleaning skin and leave you looking all fresh faced and shiny. 

For a brand new beauty box put together without the backing of a big firm this is a great start. At the moment they don’t have a subscription plan but considering they’re all sold out, that’s presumably in the plans.