Dry hair savior? Clashing opinions...

I was contacted about this product and immediately said yes, not because of the brand name (I'd never previously heard of them before) or because of the packaging but because this is a conditioner aimed at dry hair which promises add moisture to hair. I have very long, very dry hair - basically I just need a hair cut! I've tried tons and tons of different products which promise to "rescue" dry and damaged hair, none of which have made any noticeable difference meaning my search is never ending.

The product is from a brand called BiOrganic an organic brand it also retails at £7.99 - not badly priced for an organic brand. Lets get down to business? Now you've had my hair's life story I shall tell you about this conditioner...

It looks like this, which will probably come as no shock to those familiar with conditioner (all of you I should hope!). The white cream is thick, I like this...the thickness makes me feel like it's got a job to do. I hate thin, runny conditioners - they are like the wimps of the conditioner world. 

In regards to the smell, it's not great - it's not the kind of smell people will compliment you on but it's not offensive either. I'm passive towards the smell.

I felt an immediate change in my hair, I doesn't feel as dry and yes it does look a little more shiny - but the major difference?!

This conditioner is amazing for knotty hair, my hair loves to create dreadlocks however it's not done so since I started using this conditioner something which no other conditioner has been able to manage! However having naturally straight hair it's likely that the knots were due to dryness (maybe? I'm taking a stab in the dark here so please correct me if I'm wrong) and that the conditioner has moisturized my hair resulting in softer, nicer hair?

So you know I love it but on the other side, I gave it to my mum to use as we have different hair types (she has short, curly and healthier hair than me) and my mum claimed that it left a "horrible coating" on her hair - something which I haven't noticed myself but should be taken into account.

In conclusion? Yes, I would buy this product again I do really like how it makes my hair feel however it's not for everyone I'd recommend trying a sample before buying (if it's possible to do so). When my 250 ml bottle runs out (which wont take long I am a conditioner fiend) I will definitely repurchase. If you would like to purchase this product it's available from: http://www.biorganics.co.uk/

Disclaimer: This product was sent to me for review purposes however all opinions are my own (apart from my mum's) and this has not effected my review. 

Pay day purchases - WARNING! Envy inducing sale item included!

So, as you may have gathered the concept of saving is something which I can't quite grasp...so as soon as pay day arrived I (naturally) went shopping!

These are the items I purchased (impulsively of course).

So this is the envy inducing purchase! A Juicy Couture Bag which I think is gorgeous (if only the picture did it justice). I bought this in the Selfridges sale for just £50 - the original price was £170. Justification? Apart from the price and cuteness? I don't have a pink bag!

Other purchases:

• Tom Ford "Black Orchid" perfume 35ml (£42) this is my favourite perfume, my mum has the bigger 100 ml bottle and I've been stealing hers since she bought it but I finally caved and bough my own. Also, I met a lovely guy who was working at the Tom Ford counter, Hi to Shane if you're reading!
• Orelia earrings from Topshop (£3) I saw these on my way out and noticed the sale sticker, these earrings are so cute and a steal at £3 they were originally £15. They're quite vintage-y looking and I just thought they'd look pretty!
• Topshop Bold Liner in "Graphite" (£2) another sale purchase, I've no idea why it was in the sale as I don't think there were many, if any other make up items at a reduced price but it's a lovely shimmery-grey colour.
• Topshop kohl eye liner in "Slate" (£4) a lovely grey colour which I bought as grey is a recommended colour for my blue eyes but also because I really like it! I'll review it soon as I've not yet used it properly however it feels lovely and creamy!

(Read more for swatches)

Product Rave: MAC Fix+ (the Marmite of the beauty world)

You're all probably sick of the sight of this bad boy aren't you?

I bought it mostly after it featured in a favorites video of Vivianna's however I was further enticed after a little research as some people raved about the product and were loving it whilst others were completely unimpressed and fairly disappointed that they'd spent £12.50 (or the equivalent) on what is essentially a water spray. Whilst this might be true, I am loving this!   

As you all must know by now, I have dry skin. It is the bane of my life. No matter how much I exfoliate and moisturize I still have the same patches of dry skin which just seem adamant on upsetting me, these pesky patches become visible under make up no matter how dewy. This product however eliminates this almost completely as it refreshes my make up making it look as flawless as when first applied. 

The only problem being that when my little trooper dry patches re-emerge I have to whip out the fix+ in order to keep up the illusion of flawlessness which I created so any MAC people if you are reading, please can you make this permanent on my skin?

I would definitely repurchase this and highly recommend it if you also have dry skin!

New Wink Marker pen eyeliner from Barry M - Great Idea, Rubbish Product!

I love, love, love felt tip eyeliners. I use them for precise 60s flicks (although recently I haven't strayed from my Bobbi Brown Gel Liner). I was actually really excited to try this eyeliner from Barry M because I like the packaging and love the thickness - the quality however isn't impressive.

I love the pinkness of this, the packaging is lovely for a lower end brand as often enough drugstore/high street cosmetic brands aren't often as nicely packaged as higher end or luxury brands.

The swatch shows, just how thin or thick the eyeliner can be. How crappy is the colour though?! Barry M claim that the product creates "intense, bold lines and flicks" however the washed out black does nothing of the sort.

This picture was taken straight after the product was applied and the colour is just so unimpressive - I had quite high hopes for this product but I'm really disappointed. It's also not the smoothest felt-tip eyeliner I've used however that may just be down to lack of practice as I've never used one as thick. 

Over all, although only £4.59 I'd have rather spent the money on a KFC...

Dewy foundation with a decent amount of coverage?! MAC Studio Sculpt, actually does the trick.

In case you weren't already aware, I have dry skin so dewy foundations are pretty much my only option (unless I want to look a bit scraggy) however - although I don't tend to have many blemishes - I haven't yet found a dewy foundation which offers more than minimal coverage. This isn't necessary a bad thing (for me at least) most of the time I only need minimal coverage but if I'm having a particularly rubbish-"ugly" day slapping on more make up makes me feel a little better! Especially if my skin does that tomato redness thing it loves to do.

Although I really wanted to buy MAC's Studio Fix Fluid I knew it wasn't a good idea, being a matte finish it'd only highlight any dry areas I hate how everyone who uses it has flawless skin though :( :( :( 

I do however really like Studio Sculpt, it has SPF 15 (which I featured in this recent haul post) - I like this however I know others don't because it makes pictures look a bit crappy? I think. 

The biggest flaw with this product however is that it STINKS you become immune to the strange smell over time though so I shall not complain...too much.

Want to see it in action? 

As you can see, my face is quite red (imagine how I look when I'm embarrassed!)

As you can see the foundation eliminates all redness - apart from the tiniest amount on my cheeks - it also covers blemishes; I have pale skin (which I swear is almost see-through) and I have visible veins at times but this foundation covers that and the pesky couple of spots I got during the exam period were also substantially covered, it might however still be useful to use a concealer for a little extra coverage though!

This foundation doesn't really highlight any dry patches but also isn't too dewy so those of you with oily skin would probably be able to make use of this foundation also. 

The foundation costs; £23 for 40 ml which is great compared to my HG foundation Diorskin Nude I wear Studio Sculpt in the shade NC15 (the NC shades apparently counter act redness so if you have the same problem as me I'd go for an NC rather than NW)

Simply VIP (Simple) - something you should all check out for skincare!

I signed up to Simply VIP (Simple skincare) a while ago and completely forgot until I received a birthday 50% off code (the code is actually valid up to 31 days after your birthday!). I decided to take advantage of the 50% discount and ordered the "bride to be" product set. I bought this, not because I'm getting married (I don't think the boyfriend would be impressed if I got married on the sly) but because the gift set contained a variety of products all of which I liked the look of!

This is what I received, Simple estimates that the postage priced at £3 will take around 10 days however mine arrived 3 days after dispatch. The items are all in a little simple cosmetic bag:

Okay, so it's not the cutest but it is a nice little surprise!

The products included are:

• Kind To Skin Smoothing Facial Scrub
• Kind To Skin Pore Minimising Toning Cleanser
• Radiance Eye Cream
•  Kind To Lips Intensive Lip Moisturiser 
• Vital Vitamin Day Cream

The set is normally £19.99 and although I purchased it at 50% off the original price is still great value.

I've not used anything properly yet, I did try out the Lip moisturiser which seems lovely but I'll post some reviews on the other products if anyone is interested.

I bought these products from: http://www.simple.co.uk/simplyvip/ where there are lots more gift sets which I'd like to try out! 

Revlon Super Lustrous Lip gloss in "Pink Pop" a wish list item which didn't disappoint!

I've wanted this Lip gloss for a while as I've seen it on so many blogs but just hadn't gotten round to buying it for a while. The colour is just a gorgeous pink - it reminds me of a colour my room used to be painted called "sexy pink" it's just so pretty and the pigmentation is really good too so I wasn't disappointed. 

As you can see, although the colour is slightly sheer (not completely opaque) there is actually colour to it and it's also the colour presented in the tube which I really like because I'm often disappointed after buying lip glosses in numerous gorgeous colours only to find that they're actually so sheer that no colour is present.

Like most lip glosses it's hydrating and the packaging and doe foot applicator is just standard however it's the colour which really stands out for me.

It's so lovely and adds a lovely pop of colour without much effort at all!

MAC Haul - Some pay day treats to myself (& birthday present)

So, anyone following me on twitter (you should be!) will know that I have been feeling pretty sorry for myself recently as I'd (due to exams grr) been unable to go shopping for a while. I decided to go to MAC and get a few wishlist items when I was finally free.

• Studio Sculpt foundation "NC15" £23 - I actually took a second trip to MAC to purchase this after getting a sample on my first trip. I really like this foundation so far however I'll do a full review after using it a little more.
• Studio Fix+ £12.50 - I've wanted this since it featured in one of Vivianna's favourites videos. This is a complete Marmite product in the beauty world with some loving it and others not really seeing the difference between the product and water! I personally am loving this but I'm going to post about this separately because I think this is amazing for dry skin and deserves it's own post as it's hard to find things aimed at dry skin.
• Prep+Prime Lip £10.50 - I've not really used this yet so I can't give feedback however I've been meaning to purchase a lip primer for a while. I encountered a slight drama with this this one and had to return it as the original one I bought snapped :( however my new one is fine!

The 2 lipsticks were a birthday present from my best friend Judy :)

• Cremesheen lipstick in "Creme Cup" £13.50 - Again bought on Vivianna's recommendation I'm loving this, it's a really pretty, subtle pink.
• Matte lipstick in "Please Me" £13.50 - Another pretty pink lipstick which is really wearable!

Sleek Pout Polish "Pink Cadillac" a new favourite!

Now, anyone who knows me knows that I am a lover of pink lips and lip balm however when the two come together I am often disappointed due to lack of moisture or pigmentation. Sleek have managed to create a tinted lip conditioner which not only hydrates the lips and has a really good level of pigmentation but it also tastes amazing and all for £4.29!

In regards to the packaging (as you all know I'm a sucker for it) it's quite simple - by no means the prettiest but it doesn't pick up dirt or fingerprints so I'm extremely happy with it!

In the pot the colour looks extremely scary and bright however as you can see from the swatch it's actually a really pretty pink. It's not completely opaque but it does add a reasonable amount of colour to the lips which I've found is actually quite long lasting! Although the glossy finish doesn't last long - mostly because I keep licking it off, 'cause it tastes lovely - even when dried out the product still leaves a pretty tint (I almost want to say flush but I'm not sure that's the right word) to the lips.

I'm really impressed with the product and will definitely purchase other colours because this is something which can just be thrown into your bag and applied on the go. I have a feeling that I'll be using this quite a lot!

NARS Blush/Bronzer Trio - A must have!

Sorry for blurring out the mirror but there was a beautiful "up-the-nose" shot of me which I wasn't so keen on...

This compact is £39 and it contains Orgasm Blush (5g) Albatross Highlighting powder (2.7) and Laguna Bronzing powder (7.3g). The bronzer looks so scary in the pan doesn't it? It's actually a pretty pretty build-able colour.

The packaging is a hard compact with a material casing - matte black which after having literally only swatched the products has gotten dirty :( Boo Nars I like my make up clean! The compact closes with a zip which is quite handy. I just wish the packaging didn't attract so much dirt! Apart from that however I like Nars packaging, it doesn't stand out but it seems quite classy, like the grown up items of my make up collection (ie not pink/sparkly). 

Swatch time?

Top to Bottom: Laguna Bronzer, Orgasm Blush, Albatross Highlighter

You might be able to see from the swatches that each product has a hint of gold glitter which isn't completely obvious that it makes you look like a disco ball but it's very pretty in my opinion. All the colours compliment each other in the palette and it's great for someone wanting to try the products for the first time because separately the blush and highlighter would have cost £20.50 each and the bronzer £24 and although the products in the palette aren't full sized you get a very generous amount!

I'm really happy with this product and I'm sure it'll be one which I use regularly.

Cute TKMaxx Haul, Some lovely bargains to be had!

So, if you follow me on twitter (which you should) then you'll know that I haven't had the chance to treat myself in a little while so I picked up a few bits whilst in TK Maxx with my lovely Mum and her friend Kaali!

So this is by far my favourite purchase of the day - I've been looking for a cute make up bag for a while and found this lovely Betsey Johnson for just £9.99 practically half price as it was originally $30 (just under £20) it's a good size - big enough to carry a fair amount but not too big to carry around in your bag!

 

I think the detailing is really cute and it was such a bargain!

I also bought this hair spray - it's so cute mainly the only reason why I purchased it. It's TIGI reduced from £9.99 to only £2 the scent is described as cherry and almond I'm not sure if I'm loving it but I'm sure I'll like the product! I've not actually tried it yet but I'll review it if any of you are interested.

I also bought these adorable make up brushes at just £3.99 each - they're by a brand called Essential Beauty which I've never heard of before and although I've not used them yet the foundation brush shed an awful lot however it seems fine now! These brushes are really soft and apart from a little initial shedding I think I'll like them.

Probably the best bargain of the day New Id i-dazzle Shimmering loose powder reduced from £21.50 to £4.99. It's so pretty as well;

It's very pretty, I got the colour Gold Pearl I think I'll enjoy this product because it's so versatile! 

This whole haul cost me just £24.96!

Cheap and pretty NOTD

This is a nail look which I like to covert often because it's extremely pretty and natural and is extremely unlikely to clash with an outfit!

Sorry about the bad quality photo :/ (also how cute is my tattoo hehe)

At my previous job (Hollister&Co) make up wasn't really allowed nor was nail polish but as I hate to not wear it I'd go for a very natural looking pale pink but I've started adding a matte topcoat as it looks very pretty and makes it more interesting. For the picture I used:

• ELF nail polish "Light Pink" - £1.50 It's not the best pale pink that I've used but it's not bad for the price it does take around 4 coasts to achieve an opaque colour.
• 17 Matte topcoat - £3.99 

The products I've used are extremely cheap - I don't tend to spend a lot of money on Pale Pinks because it's a colour I use a lot and it often dries up or runs out.

May Favourites (including cosmetics and skin care)

So, I've not blogged about skin care products before - would you guys be interested in reading posts about it? - which is why I decided to include my favourite skin care products (of this month) as well as make up products!

Skin care

• Simple Soothing facial toner & Purifying cleanser - I actually love these products they're so cheap (around £3 each) and a life saver for me as they don't irritate my skin, which seems to be hyper-sensitive to skin products (but not make up, hmm...) and leaves my face feeling clean and refreshed. I also like the smell or the lack of one it has that "clean" smell which I love because, erm...it makes me feel clean!
• Sally Hansen Airbrush Legs - This isn't the best value product it's around £10 for 75ml not a lot considering its for your legs! It is however so good - It's a foundation of sorts but I like the subtle tan it gives me (I get the shade fair) as being very pale it's hard to find something which leaves me with a tan that doesn't make me look a little...diseased (probably due to my terrible fake tanning skills!) however as much as I love this it is super glittery!
• Dove Go Fresh deodorant - is it strange that I'm including deodorant? I just love Dove, again it has that clean scent which I love my favourites are "cucumber and green tea" and "cool water-lily & fresh mint"
• Body Shop Hemp Body butter - My friend bought me this little version a while ago and I love how moisturising this is. Some find it hard to get over the not-so-pretty scent but it's not so strong that it's over powering, in my opinion. I think I may have had a reaction to this once but I've used it tons of times so it could have possibly been my skin adjusting to it because it hasn't happened again.
• Soap and Glory Breakfast scrub - This smells divine! You have to at least have a sniff next time you're in boots! This is my favourite exfoliator because it smells nice and does the job :)

Make up 

• Soap and Glory Sexy Mother Pucker lip plumping gloss - these glosses have been my go to glosses for such a long time now, they're not really pigmented (at least not on me) they're more of a "my-lips-but-better" kind of gloss but they taste and smell amazing - like chocolate yum yum - and have a lovely tingly sensation which I love as I am constantly striving for plump lips! They're £8.43 at Boots.
• MAC Viva Glam Lustre Lipstick (Lady Gaga) - Read review here I find this lipstick really wearable despite being such a vivid pink - I love the lustre formula and have worn it quite a lot since buying it (I may pick up a back up because it's not part of the permanent collection) I just wish it'd last longer on the lips as it doesn't fade straight away but isn't as long-lasting as some lipsticks.
• MAC Mineralize blush "Cheek and Cheerful" - This is a long standing favourite of mine read my review here!
• MAC Cremeblend blush "So sweet, So easy" - This is a really natural blush which looks really bright in the pan but isn't too pigmented when applied leaving you with a pretty pink finish, however the colour can be built up to create a brighter look, read my review here.
• Urban Decay Naked Palette - Do I even need to explain this? I was thinking of making a post about it but as there are so many out there I don't know if anyone would read it...? All I can say is this palette is worth the hype.
• MAC Hello Kitty Tinted Lip Conditioner "Pink Poodle" - Should I even still be using this, it's probably gone off? I don't care it's extremely hydrating and although very pink and glittery it's not that pigmented and just leaves a pretty sheen on your lips.
• Jill Stuart Fruity Lip balm - If you want to read about how much I love this then please click here! This is my favourite lip balm ever.
• Dior Nude Liquid Foundation - I really like this foundation I reviewed it here I've taken to using this foundation every day (or at least every day that I wear make up) it leaves my skin looking flawless yet it's still hydrating.
• Too Faced Naked Eye Palette - Ok, so I've had to include this because before my Urban Decay Naked Palette I was loving this but it took second place pretty much instantly. I still like the product though, of course and use it if you want to see swatches/read my review then please click here.

So that's it for my favourites, what were your favourites of May?

MAC Mineralize Blush - Cheek and Cheerful Blush?Bronzer?Highlighter? Bit of a hybrid really...

Pretty isn't it? Want to see more?

Think how gorgeous this looked before I got my grubby little hands on it!

I've actually had this for ages and it's no longer available in stores (I think) it is however available here. This is sold as a blush rather than a bronzer however it has a bronze-y tone with gold running through and doesn't really seem very blush like to me it is however a lovely colour and is the only bronzer I've used for the past year-ish. 

So pretty isn't it! This product is a bit of a hybrid it's sold as a blush however I use it as a bronzer it can also be used as a highlighter though (ONLY IF APPLIED LIGHTLY!) as beautiful as it is steer clear if you're a glitter-phobe because there is a ton of glitter! I however am attracted to shiny things more than magpies are so I like this also the glitter isn't too obvious when applied it becomes more of a shimmer. 

It looks pretty doesn't it? I generally have to be careful when using bronzers and this is perfect for my pale complexion as it adds a healthy glow without making me look as though I'd just been tangoed (remember the advert?). I love the subtlety of this product it's not too in-your-face but it does the job. 

And it's so, so pretty!