Glossybox: Valentine's Day Edition

Hello all :) Apologies for dropping off the blogging radar recently, things have been a bit hectic lately but I'm getting back into the swing of things, starting off with a Glossybox post!

As you may have heard, the first Glossybox of 2012 is a limited edition hot pink box in celebration of Valentine's Day which is just 2 weeks away, packed with items to make you look your best on the day.

The Goodies

On to the products and first up there are two items from Davines. First up there's the Authentic Cleansing Nectar for hair and body, and secondly the Authentic Moisturising Balm for face, hair and body. These smell absolutely divine, I cannot wait to use them!

Next, we have the First Aid Beauty (or FAB) Gentle Body Wash Daily Treatment with Antioxidant Booster which claims to cleanse, calm redness and relieve dry skin. Perfect time of year to receive this. Check out the cute Glossybox sweetie!

Up next we have the Eyeko Skinny Eyeliner in Black. It's your standard pencil liner, with extra long handle. I haven't used Eyeko since they rebranded and hiked up their prices so it'll be interesting to see what this liner is like and whether it's worth the price tag.

Finally we have the Murad Skin Perfecting Dewy Finish Primer. I usually stay clear of anything that contains the word dewy, as I much prefer a matte finish to my make up. However I'm more than willing to give this a go and see how it looks on the skin.

Swatches

On to the obligatory product swatches and from left to right we have: Murad Skin Perfecting Primer, Eyeko Skinny Liner, First Aid Beauty Gentle Body Wash, Davines Authentic Moisturising Balm and Davines Authentic Cleansing Nectar

♥ ♥ ♥

Have you received the Valentine's Day edition Glossybox? Will you be making a special effort on Valentine's Day? Have you tried any of the products in this month's box? Let me know what you think :)

Win with Witch!

The lovely ladies over at Witch are currently hosting a competition on the old Facey B to give you and a friend the chance to hot foot it down to London town to receive a make up tutorial with celebrity make up artist Lisa Valencia on March 16th.

Check out this perfect fresh faced look that Lisa created using Witch Cosmetics:

You've got to be in it to win it

All you have to do is pop over to the Witch Facebook page and tell them why you should win. Simples!

The competition is open until February 2nd

♥

Good luck sugarpuffs!

Zebra Print Nails

I think I'm going to have to admit I'm a little bit addicted to Instagram! I've been wanting to do zebra print nails for a while so here we go :)

Base colour: Rimmel Lycra Pro Show Off topped with OPI Princesses Rule

Zebra Stripes: Art Deco Black Striper Polish

Top Coat: China Glaze Fast Forward

♥

A little Liz Earle loving

Just before Christmas, I had a bit of a Liz Earle splurge. I've been loving Cleanse & Polish for months now, so I thought it was time to try some other products. The great thing about the Liz Earle website is that you can buy mini versions of the full sized products so I ordered everything that I wanted to try and also stocked up on a large Cleanse & Polish. Look how they wrap everything up :) So cute!

Cleanse & Polish Hot Cloth Cleanser

I picked up the Christmas edition as it was a larger size and also came with a muslin cloth. They also sent me a complimentary sample size which will be handy to take to IMATS with me :)

Skin Repair Light Moisturiser for Combination/Oily skin

I really want to get my skincare routine down to products from one single brand so after hearing good things about this moisturiser, I decided to pick a sample tube of this up. It smells amazing, hydrates my skin without leaving it greasy or sticky. I also find I can wear it under make up and it doesn't make a difference to the longevity of my foundation.

Instant Boost Skin Tonic Spritzer

I needed a good toner so picked up the small spritzer bottle. This smells just like the moisturiser - heavenly! I use it after cleansing with Cleanse & Polish. It's lovely and refreshing.

Energising Body Scrub

I purchased this after trying a sample of it because I really loved it. I nearly bought the full sized product, but I'm very fickle with body scrubs - love them for 5 minutes then move on. I think once I've used up the ridiculous amounts of scrubs I have, I'll be buying the full sized version of this.

Sheer Pink Lip Shimmer

Finally, I thought I'd pick up this lip salve. It's pretty but the scent is an acquired taste. Not really my cup of tea but if you like herbally scents, this could be one for you.

♥

Have you got any favourite Liz Earle products that I should try?

Boxing Day Sales: The not leaving your sofa edition

Thanks to work, this is the first year I've not had the luxury of being able to go sale shopping after Christmas. On the one day I did have off over the festive season, I wasted no time hunting down some beauty bargains on the old interweb :)

Buyapowa

Ladies, I am a convert. I'm on my third fourth purchase, and counting. I've saved myself a few precious pounds lately, my first purchase being Benefit's They're Real mascara (£12), and my second purchase being the highly sought after YSL Touche Eclat (£13).

I'm quite glad I got both of these at such good prices. I hate buying things full price only to not like them. I'm afraid that the Benefit mascara is one of them. Although I'm really liking Touche Eclat. Dark under-eye circles be gone!

I've also just bought Origins Vitazing Moisturiser and Origins Super Spot Remover, both of which I'm totally blaming on Vivianna ;) Really quite excited to try them!

Total savings at Buyapowa: £18.50

Avon

I was attracted to the Little Red Dress collection in the Christmas Avon brochure and I picked up a few extra bits too!

Little Red Dress Eye Shadow Quad in Starlet

Can you believe I don't own a set of shadows to create a dark smoky eye? Me either!

Little Red Dress Mascara in Black

The wand on this mascara really intrigued me - do excuse the slightly out of focus photo, I must have taken about 30 and this was the best of the bunch! A lovely mascara that coats each lash without clumping. Perfect for those small inner lashes and lower lash line.

Little Red Dress Lipsticks in Red 2000 (top) and Pout (bottom)

Red 2000 is a perfect classic red, and Pout is a perfect nude shade that goes with any make up look

True Colour Blush in Russet

A bit of an impulse buy - it looked beautiful on the model - a lush peachy shade

Barcelona necklace

Retro glam!

Advance Techniques

And finally, on my quest for big, bouncy retro hair, I picked up a large barrelled brush and some Curl Defining Gel

I think everything I ordered from Avon was on offer!

Total savings at Avon: £27.91

Feel Unique

Another purchase I'll be blaming Vivianna for - sorry haha - the Jemma Kidd Light As Air Foundation (£20), and the Jemma Kidd Dewy Glow Radiance Creme in Ice Gold (£13.60)! Both are causing a bit of a stir in the blogging community lately, so I thought it was about time I saw what all the fuss was about :)

Loving the foundation - I can use it over moisturiser, powder with my Kryolan anti-shine powder, and it stays put all day and doesn't go shiny! That's a first for me! I picked up the Ultra Light shade.

The Radiance Creme gives such a subtle, beautiful shimmer. It's the perfect finishing touch to any look. I've been using a fan brush to apply on cheekbones.

I also picked up some holographic polishes from Nubar (£7.25-£8.05) which I'd been lusting over for a while. I'll have some NOTDs coming up soon :)

Total savings at Feel Unique: £9.20

eBay

Carrying on the nail polish shopping spree, I went a little crazy on eBay and picked up 5 Essie polishes

L-R: Kisses & Bisses, Topless & Barefoot, My Place or Yours, Tart Deco and Cute As A Button

I really only wanted Topless & Barefoot - yet another Vivianna inspired purchase! As they were coming from across the pond, at such great prices, it was rude not to indulge, right? This little lot cost £27.88 including shipping. If I'd bought them in the UK it would have cost £49.75 for the polishes alone!

Total savings on eBay: £21.87

The Body Shop

I'd been lusting after another Face & Body brush from the Body Shop for ages, but didn't want to pay £16 for it. Thanks to a heads up from a few other bloggers, I picked up this brush set and brush roll for a bargain-tastic £15 - saving myself £27!

Total savings at The Body Shop: £27

♥

Total overall savings: £104.48 - incredible!

These are my beauty bargains - I'm quite pleased with myself - saved a fortune! Have you gone crazy in the sales?

These are a few of my favourite things

♥ Sleek Rose Gold Blush
Rediscovered and fallen back in love with it :)

♥ 17 Metallic Eyes in Wild Nude
Beautiful colour and a fab base - I've been loving nudey browns for a bit of a quick smoky eye.

♥ Collection 2000 Glam Crystals Gel Liners
Perfect to add sparkle to your make up!

♥ Queen Cosmetics Eyelash Cream

I am loving this product! My eyelashes are so much fuller and longer! *flutters*

♥ Marc Jacobs Oh, Lola!
This perfume is the perfect mix of fruity and floral and perfect for daytime wear

~*~

Which products have you been loving lately?

Things I learned in December 2011

My last ever things I learned post for 2011! I've really enjoyed writing these, it's a snapshot of a bit of every day. Shall I keep these up in 2012? Let me know :)

Source

001. Following on from my Things I learned in November 2011 post, I learned today that my boss must be able to dance as he has a gold line dancing medal on his desk. Well I never.

002. Frankie & Benny's hotdogs are just delicious. So are their waiters ;)

003. I am a little bit addicted to Monopoly on the iPhone. Saying that I am yet to win. My competitive streak dislikes this!

004. Sundays at work aren't as quiet as they used to be.

005. China Glaze Ruby Pumps is a lot less hassle when you layer it over an opaque polish.

006. This saving money thing isn't going well.

007. I own a ridiculous 174 nail polishes.

008. Dreams are sent to try us. Or just plain freak us out.

Source

009. I'm not a massive fan of change.

010. I now own 183 nail polishes. Whoops. Superdrug suck. And bah humbug to Christmas shopping on a Saturday!

011. I think I've finally gotten used to our new car.

012. Late shifts can go quickly.

013. Men also do subtle. Who knew?

014. People do get terribly irate over the silliest things.

015. We'd be lost without fossil fuels.

Source

016. Sometimes I just never learn

017. When it comes to baking, you really can make it up as you go along!

018. I should stop reading too much into things...

019. BuyaPowa is actually quite good!

020. Tu Clothing at Sainsbury's should not be ignored. Quite impressed to be honest.

021. My bank like to have random amounts disappear from my bank. I dislike this.

022. I have lost all sense of date, time and common sense.

023. Unexpected bad news is the worst kind

Source

024. It's fine to make up the rules of pool as you go along ;)

025. I'm a bit addicted to a Snoopy game on my iPhone

026. Sale shopping can be done from the comfort of your own sofa. Perfect.

027. People don't phone call centres on a bank holiday. But cheers for paying me double for doing nothing :)

028. I am feeling broody. There are too many cute babies dressed in festive outfits!

029. Maybe, just maybe, this is the start of something new and very good.

030. I can get Staffordshire oatcakes in my local Sainsbury's. Amazing.

031. New Year's Eve is always full of drama.

♥

What have you learned this month? Have you had any big life lessons this year? Feel free to share :) Just call me Auntie Kim ;)

Source

Last but not least, have a bloody fabulous 2012!

Love to all :)