February Favourites

Hey people, apologies for my lack of presence recently...I had no internet for a week and by the time I had access again, I'd kinda got used to going without and finally spent some time finishing up decorating around the house. Elyse's room is all done decorating wise and I couldn't be more pleased so I must remember to pop some photos up. Also, in case anyone may have noticed, I have merged my mummy and baby blog into this one as it started to make much better sense if I just throw in the odd related post here rather than having a whole other blog with a sparse amount of posts. If I have any parents reading, hopefully some of my baby/toddler posts will be useful reading to you in future :-)

I've been enjoying using up a variety of samples recently and getting to grips with skincare products that have become neglected in the "so, so" stash. All in all, I've had a bit of a topsy turvy month in terms of sticking to any products whether it be foundation, moisturiser, lipstick and perfume but it has been good to mix it up every other day and I've managed to collate a pretty good bundle of products that I've loved using the past month or so.

Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Gel
I like to use this on a day to day basis under my make-up, it isn't the best product I've tried in terms of controlling oiliness but I love how quickly it sinks in. It also feels really hydrating, even on my dry patches of skin.
Monu Recovery Balm
This was almost ready to be dumped in my unloved skincare box until a recent mishap led to me slathering this all over my face. After cleansing my face, parts of my skin became really inflamed to the point where my face felt like it was on fire. This really helped to calm the inflammation down and ever since then I've been whipping this out anytime my skin has flared up. I've also been using it at night as a preventative measure for instance if I've had a particularly make-up heavy day, I feel like this generally prevents my skin from going crazy and breaking out all over the show.
Estee Lauder DayWear Advanced Multi-Protection Anti-Oxidant Oil Free Creme
I've received this little Estee Lauder sample with a Debenhams order and was looking forward to trying this out considering I have loved their skincare in the past. I was not disappointed in the slightest when trying out this moisturiser, it smells amazing (unless you don't particularly like the smell of cucumber?!), it sinks into the skin beautifully and my face feels super soft. It's an oil-free cream and whilst my skin is in this combination phase, it seems to perform well in terms of keeping the oil at bay and feels very lightweight applied. 
Anew Clinical Eye Lift Pro Dual Eye System
My last post was a rather longwinded review about this because I absolutely adore it and would repurchase it time and time again. There's not much more I can add to it as I pretty much raved the behind out of it last month so check out my full review here if you'd like to get the full lowdown on what I think about this little budget beauty superhero in a pot!
Toni & Guy Heat Protection Mist 
I love the way the product is dispersed out of this, it is literally like a mist of heat protecting goodness. This has definitely helped prevent adding to my halo of singed hairs which popped up from the endlessly, blowdrying my curly hair straight and not protecting it with products...sorry boff. 
Michael Kors Very Hollywood Perfume
Definitely one of my more neglected perfumes so it's been nice to finally get some use out of it this. I honestly have never been madly keen on this but I've found myself having a bit of a moment with it last month and for that reason, I had to include it as perfume is something I wear pretty much everyday.

 
MUA Heaven & Earth Eyeshadow Pallette
I've never fully reviewed this but it was included in another favourites post, if you'd like to see swatches and all that shebang, go here July Favourites. I have been using this almost every made up day from January to the present and I don't think I would have the nerve to wear eyeshadow as much if it wasn't for this pallette. It's fool proof to blend, creamy to apply, super pigmented, gorgeous shades and it only costs four quid. Nothing more to say.
E.L.F. Studio Powder Brush
Such a fantastic multi purpose brush and I would highly recommend this to any budding, make-up ehthusiasts considering it is so inexpensive. I've used it to apply liquid foundation and also powder products, it works just as well with both. Definitely one of the better brushes from the E.L.F. range.

ELF Studio Blush
I would say this is very similar to the Rimmel Santa Rose blush in terms of the colour although it is slightly less pigmented when actually applied to my cheeks. I have enjoyed using this on days where I want a subtle glowy, peachy cheek.
"MAC" Pigment
This is actually a complete and utter fake MAC pigment, and whilst I do not condone using fake products, I have to admit that this has become a bit of a guilty pleasure. It's a really good quality pigment to be honest and I love the colour so I can't help but dabble with it now and again. Having had a quick search around, I'd say the colour is very similar to the MAC pigment Mauvement. The whole not knowing what could be in it though definitely puts me off using it too regularly so I am going to look around for something similar.
Rimmel Apocalips Lip Lacquer
Luna
I reviewed this not long ago and my love for it is still going strong. A perfect colour for an daytime, neutral face use or layer it on to make your lips pop. If you want to see my review of it, take a look here.
MAC Cremesheen Lipstick
Shy Girl  
Another lip product I reviewed not long back and without a doubt, on my list of failproof, nude lip shades. Like many others, I absolutely love MAC lipsticks but I cannot bear to part with my pennies on a regular basis to buy more so I much prefer to stick to the safer nude-esque shades.  
  Sorry if I've blabbed on, but I do feel like I had to make up for my lack of January Favourites as there has been so many products I've been using and loving recently!

What were your favourite beauty products last month?

Avon Anew Clinical Eye Lift Pro

I thought that now is probably a really good time to give my current eye cream a full review seeing as I have been using it for well over a month now. I'll be completely honest here in stating that I am no eye cream guru and I have only tried around 2-3 eye creams in my entire life. My poor peepers were neglected for many years until I really got into caring about skincare and the consequences of getting old! Nowadays, I feel almost guilty if I haven't used eye cream.

Based on my genes, it is more than likely that my eyes will age more so than the rest of my face. I already have quite dark shadows under my eyes purely from lack of sleep and going off family history, I will probably end up getting quite a bit of puffiness around the eye area. When I spotted this award winning eye cream in an Avon brochure, naturally I wanted it and luckily my mum overheard and got me this for Christmas. Come Christmas time I was absolutely scraping the barrel of my Clinique All About the Eyes sample so this was a much needed and wanted gift (thanks mum!). 

Not gonna lie, I was using this all wrong the first couple of days but I was still amazed by the results it had gave me. The product comes in the form of an upper eye gel and an undereye cream but I had been applying the cream to my undereye and eylid area, whilst only applying the gel to my browbone. However, I think you are actually supposed to just apply the cream under the eye. Regardless of my error, I noticed that the skin had significantly lifted and it appeared as though I had more eyelid than before (very technical explanation there, I know). This is something I have been longing for since I started experimenting with eyeshadow because no matter how brilliant I make my eyeshadow look, it always seems to be hidden due to the skin above my lid potruding over my eyelid and my small eyelids furthermore do not help! I also prefer to dab on eye creams unless I'm in a rush and I find that everything sinks in fairly quickly, something I definitely wasn't expecting from the gel half of the product. Just to note, the gel feels quite sticky when first applied but the tackiness completely disappears once it has sunk in.

Clearly, this isn't like your standard one step eye cream product and as much as my can't be arsed self thought I would really hate this concept, I actually don't in the slightest. In fact, it's safe to say I positively look forward to this step in my skincare routine. This retails at £19.50 in the UK which I'd say is very reasonably priced considering how good this product is and I will most definitely be repurchasing.

To sum it up, this little tub of wonder does exactly what it says on the front i.e. lifts your eye, and I would highly recommend it to anyone seeking out a new eye cream.

Available from: Avon for £19.50, currently on offer for £9.99!

My Favourite Perfume

Viktor & Rolf Flowerbomb Eau De Parfum
Available from: The Perfume Shop for £47.50 

I was dying to add to my perfume collection because if I'm honest, I've had owned some of my perfumes for that long that they were starting to smell off, lovely. Anyways, my lovely Pops bought me this little beaut that I'd been desperate to get my hands on forever and I wasn't disappointed. Personally, I think it may be a little overpowering for some people and I can see why it might divide opinion. I happen to absolutely love it though and it is without a doubt, my favourite fragrance, period.

It is extremely flowery so if your not keen on that, this probably won't float your boat. It also has a really sweet smell to it but not in the sickly, sweet sense which I adore. I can't really think of anymore raving quotes to describe how good it smells I'd just suggest you take a whiff if your passing a perfume counter.

My only hang up with it is the price...obviously. I have the smallest bottle which is 30ml and the cheapest I've found it thus far was around the £45 (GBP) mark. Call me old fashioned but I remember the days when you could get a nice bottle of perfume for between £20-25! I'm perfectly aware that this is supposed to be a luxurious product and all the rest but I'm just sad my purse can't stretch to a full size bottle, therefore I tend to just wear this for special occasions or days where I just wanna perk myself up a bit.

So it's safe to say I clearly love this although it hasn't stopped me drawing up a rather lengthy perfume wishlist #extremelywishfulthinking. If you have any fragrance recommendations please do pop your suggestions below ;-) 

A Few New Additions...

After taking in all the hype surrounding Rimmels Apocalips Lip Lacquer's, I of course headed to Boots when I discovered they had a 3 for 2 on all Rimmel products. I looked through swatches, upon swatches and decided I was going to go for three shades from the Apocalips line; Celestial, Luna and Nude Eclipse. Unfortunately, they had sold out of Nude Eclipse online and in every Boots I cared to drag myself to which was a bit disappointing as this looked like a gorgeous colour when I swatched it on my hand. Instead I ended up purchasing Luna and Celestial, and not being one to miss out on a bargain I purchased the Moisture Renew Lipstick in Notting Hill Nude, as I've heard lots of good things about these lipsticks.

  

Apocalips Lip Lacquers
I'm honestly so impressed with these!! I haven't really dabbled with budget, lip products for a while and in the past I haven't really been impressed so these were a bit of a jump on the bandwagon purchase, so glad I did though. I love the doe foot applicator and I've found that the bottle design somewhat helps you to apply the perfect amount. If you happen to purchase one of these, you should notice when you first pull the applicator out, the neck of the bottle squidges the excess out and leaves you with the perfect amount to apply. They are super pigmented and when I compared my lips to the actual content in the bottle, it is pretty much match for match; you definitely cannot be disappointed with the colour payoff. As I'm a bit of a a wimp with semi-bright colours, I blot and dab to my hearts content which helps the lacquer not to settle in any dry bits of my lips and obviously takes away that initial "in your face" colour. For the swatches below, I've layered on the lacquer twice as it didn't seem to be showing up as bright as it is in person, so hopefully I've given you a good representation of how these particular shades look.

  

Celestial

I'd describe this as a blue toned pink and I think this would suit a lot of skin tones. It is such a gorgeous colour although I think this will end up being saved for the more heavily made up, special occasions ;)

Luna

I actually wore this today and was so scared initially but even the make-up hating boyfriend gave his approval and he normally hates anything other than nude, natural i.e. boring plain old me. This is such a gorgeous peachy colour and will be perfect for Spring.

Moisture Renew Lipstick
 I'd heard quite a bit of rave about the Rimmel Moisture Renew lippies but too be honest I'm really on the fence about all the hype surrounding them! I love the colour I purchased, it is literally everything I look for in a nude lipstick i.e. my lip colour but better, however the whole moisturing nature of it...I'm not completely bowled over by? I'm not sure why but it feels quite drying on my lips and I don't think it does anything in terms of nourishing my lips like it claims. I definitely think the MAC Cremesheen formula is a lot less drying and more glossy to apply, although this is a great alternative if your on a budget. There are loads of gorgeous colours, some of which I swatched on the back of my hand and they were all amazingly pigmented, which is the main thing I seek out when purchasing lipsticks. Overall, I'd definitely recommend giving these a try if your on a budget.

Notting Hill Nude

 Here are some more swatches of all three products swatched together.

Swatch taken in natural daylight.

Swatch taken with flash.

 I sincerely hope I've helped anyone considering purchasing these products. As always, I'd love to hear any comments on what I've spoke about and likewise, listen to what you've been buying and enjoying using!