Rimmel 3 for 2 haul. I must have APOCALIPS now!

You can't go anywhere these days for talk of Rimmel London's Apocalips. So I broke out the trusty advantage card and succumbed to the hype. I used five hundred and ninety-nine loyalty points on what is heralded as a travesty in the beauty blogosphere: it works as a lipstick as well as a gloss, marvellous!

Here is celestial. Currently there is a 3 for 2 offer on Rimmel in Boots, but isn't there always?. (Buy it here). It has a lovely doe foot applicator where the gloss oozes from a hole in the middle; a liquid lipstick if you so desire.

Now, from previous experience I have learned that a lip liner is required, particularly with a strong shade of lipstick, gloss or lacquer. I pushed out the proverbial boat out and bought a MUA lip liner. I'm still marvelling at the nifty little sharpener built into the lid. It really is a wonderful idea. I bought 

mine in store at Superdrug, so not to worry this isn't a rant about their delivery or the rather abrupt social media faux-pas that happened earlier this week.

Ooooooooh cliffhanger...

 I've left you wondering what else I hauled from the Rimmel counter, never being one to miss a bargain...

The latest sparkle in the nail department. There are three shades available, all with suitably witty colour codes: Hawaiian Punch, Berry Bellini and a fearless bright orange toned glitter called Shirley Temple. 

I opted for Hawaiian Punch, it appears red at first but it really is a bright anodised pink. I can't wait to try it!

The only other item I redeemed in the three for two offer was Rimmel Scandaleyes waterproof kohl in smokey violet. I am addicted to these liners, they give a lovely effect with a long lasting hold. I'd recommend them to anyone and everyone!

I'll take my leave but I'd love to know if you haven taken advantage if this offer, what did you get?

Thanks for reading!
 

Hair brushed and parted typical me, typical me, typical me... [Liebster Award]

The lovely lady who introduced me to beauty boxes: Romany over on Me, Mitch, Monty and Munchables has tagged me in a Liebster Award post. Seeing as I'm new to beauty blogging I grabbed the opportunity by the guilded beams and easily thought of 11 things about me. That's what tradition means, but you want to know things about me, not Morrissey. A double challenge, you say? BRING IT ON!

11 facts about me.

 (I don't use the word random, unless absolutely necessary.)

1. I have an acronym of a sweary phrase tattooed on my back.
2. One of my favourite poems is Jenny Joesph's Warning.
3. People always expect me to know about films. I only watched Fight Club in 2012 under duress.
4. On the other hand I read The Da Vinci Code and the entire twilight saga to dynamically express why and how it was utter tripe. Needless to say I did not go as far as 50 Shades. 

I've started something and now I'm not too sure.....

Oh 18 minutes hard labour seems...fair enough.

     5.  I completed Juiced 2: Hot Import Nights on the Xbox 360 twice.

     6.  I am hyper flexible and can touch the inside of my arm with my thumb. 

     7.  Another venture with a gesture that was absolutely vile; selling my soul to Apple moons ago.

     8.  My front teeth are porcelain. 

         (On the upside my absolute phobia of the dentist has waned).

Typical me, typical me, typical me. 

    9. I never tire of taking pictures of myself pulling silly faces.

    10. I was once in the Daily Mail talking about OCD and got paid £200 for it. 

    11. I know I wear too much blusher. 

My Questions from Romany:

How old are you? 31. 

What is your first memory? Pretending to do aerobics to fit Lizzie from TVAM? with my mum in a blue dressing gown.

Who would play you in a movie of your life? Jessica Hynes. She likes pulling silly faces too.

What is your favourite book?  L.P Hartley - The Go Between. 

If you could only eat one meal for the rest of your life what would it be?

BUBBLE AND SQUEAK FTW!

Do you have any hobbies? Does making and taking photographs of lego dioramas count?

Where is your favourite place in the world? Manchester.

Do you have any interesting scars? I was bitten by Lassie and needed 38 stitches in my arm. I have stretched freckles all over my right forearm. 

Do you have any phobias? 

DO NOT MENTION THE L-WORD!

I can't think of anything more frightening apart from The Smiths reforming. That, readers, is my worst nightmare. 

Do you have any pets? A seagull that lands on my windowsill. His name is Frank. 

Pirates or ninjas? Pirates. I have a bigger pirate vocabulary, I wouldn't know what ninjas say.

Now my questions...

1. What is your favourite poem?

2. What beauty item could you not live without?

3. Kindle or book?

4. How many nail polishes do you have?

5. Any tattoos?

6. Any regrets?

I'll tag some of the blogs I like reading! Do a post if you like, just leave your link in the comments box below.  #sharethelove 

Rachael at Rachael Philips Lifestyle Blog

Fiona at La Belle Dame Sans Merci

Lora at Tans and Tiaras

I shall leave you with a video of The Smiths and then you can work out all the mad references from above. You knew I'd get him in somewhere. 

Sachet Training #3 Doctor Duve Anti-ageing Skin Cream

I sit and I stare at the packaging. Is it 'aging' or 'ageing'? My mind naturally flickers to the latter spelling. By this point I am convinced it is the latter and I head to my friend Google, just to be on the safe side. You can see for yourself the whole debacle here. As I live outside of North America I'll continue using anti-ageing and be done with it.

£129 for 50ml Jar of Clarifying Face Cream

£115 for 30ml Tube of Eye Cream

Doctor Stefan Duve, pronounced exactly like the bedspread, claims this is perfect for priming skin before and after aesthetic surgery. Lovely. Hefty price tag to match, growth factors must be expensive whatever they may be.

I don't know how keen I am on layering acid on to my clear skin, even if it is hyaluronic. An extensive search as to what this meant left me flustered but I think it aids cell reproduction.  The plus side to this cream is the fact that it is totally fragrance and colour free. Still, this type of sample just does not appeal to me.

The eye cream was suitable for my sensitive skin, it eliminated puffiness but my tender skin was left feeling dry and nothing really differentiates it from the face cream.

The same thing in two stingy packages. 

I won't be heading out to buy this. In actual fact I'm quite glad it is such a small sample, I can swiftly move on to the next.

Which spelling do you prefer? Aging just looks wholly strange to me!

Any anti-ageing eye creams you can recommend? Feel free to leave me links below.

My final She Said Beauty Box

So I arrived home from my invalid holiday to the final beauty box from She Said Beauty. I had been hearing disappointing things. I was kind of used to it at this point; being asked if my tonsillectomy included the removal of both of my infected useless tonsils was just the start of it.

Next thing; Norovirus. (December did indeed spawn a horrible monster).

 THE LESS SAID ABOUT THAT THE BETTER!

It took all my energy, but wowsers, I've photographed my beauty box to share with you all.

I'm certainly intrigued by the Doctor Duve products, they come with a pretty hefty price tag.

 £115.00 for the anti-ageing firming eye cream 30ml

£129.00 for the Skin Boosting Cream 50ml.

This cream is marketed as a wonder cream for mature or demanding skin. One trick I learned from Mizz magazine? The earlier you use anti-ageing products the more benefits you get. Prevention is better than cure. I'm not sure that I'm fond of the word acid on the packaging when it claims to be natural yet innovative. Hmmm. We shall see.

Luxuriating in festive bliss will be fun with 24K Gold Under Eye Masks by Jamela. I could look like a festive Lady Gaga! Imagine that! I am so looking forward to that post!

They look fairly yellow in this picture, but they are gold in colour and vacuum packed with a liquid in a pack with no instructions. I'm guessing it's fairly straight forward, the name gives it away, but you never know!

So I found their website and I think I'll be haunted for life.

Cleopatra does luxury, now where is my bottle of asp's milk?

Here is the rest of the goodies included in the box. I won't bore you with the trivial details but technics? Reeaaaallly? 

I don't know which beauty box to try next now that SSB aren't doing anymore. Glossybox? I am up for ultimate luxury. You can find me on She Said Beauty here.

Which beauty boxes do you like? 

For all the trouble of making it paraben free they can't get the packaging right.
£25.00 for 100ml

Xmas treat: Spring Clean Cooling Clay Mask - hardly seasonal.
Retail price £1.50

technic - Tawny Port nail varnish
Retail price of £1.25

£5.40 for 15 whole leaf bags of tea.

Lastly luxury tea to have while I bathe in asps milk with gold eye masks under my eyes. 

Oh the glamour!

Thursday's travel-sized tresses: ORGANIX Moroccan Argan Oil Shampoo & Conditioner

You may, or may not be aware that I am trying to pace myself on the products by doing some serious sachet training. We can all go rushing out to the shops and spend on the latest development in the hair care and cosmetics industries. No not me. I'm using samples from beauty boxes and travel sized products to sample and review.

This week the shampoo and conditioner trying to tame my unruly, dry, fine and brittle hair is the renewing Moroccan Argan Oil Shampoo & Conditioner by Organix.

Travel sized Organix Moroccan Argan Oil Shampoo & Conditioner 88.7ml £1.99

Oils are a big thing now, right? Argan oil, mythic oil, macadamia oil? Oils feel so much more luxurious, especially in this cold weather where central heating blasts is and frost dampens it. Short of putting honey on my hair I tried the next best thing.

At £1.99 you get a fairly large sample, worth pretty much a whole week on my shoulder length hair. The only way I can think to describe the product is like the Royal Jelly talc and body lotion sets, slightly peach in hue with a rich exotic scent.

You can buy the full size shampoo & conditioner at Boots for £6.99 a piece. 

They claim the formula is hundreds of centuries old. I am sure they mean the oil and not the shampoo, did they use shampoo hundreds of centuries ago? The shampoo lathers into an indulgent foam but the conditioner merely coats my fine hair with protective sheen. My hair is left feeling soft and shiny but still quite brittle.

I'm sure Morrissey would approve of this highly environmentally friendly product using post consumer resin, whatever the hell that is!

Healthy ends. What more could you ask for? 

Thursday is obvs the day to talk about hair. Click here to see more Thursday Tresses.

Sachet Training #2 Liz Earle Sheer Skin Tint Beige 02

Today I decided to give my face a bit of a breather. I soaked it in the last of my Night in Shining Armour by Soap & Glory overnight. It has such a truly sumptuous and luxurious scent to it. (Again with the witty name; always a sucker for a witty name!) I mentioned it in my first ever blog. You can't go without a night cream; it provides an ultimate base, before you even mention primers and BB creams.

Well it just wouldn't be Soap & Glory without its trademark wit and retro packaging.I'm considering a change for my next skincare staple, it feels as if my skin is getting used to this one, and sometimes my face can feel rather oily in the morning.

Liz Earle's Sheer Skin Tint 02 Beige

I haven't tried Liz Earle before but I was lucky enough to get a few samples from a friend. I feel I am making a more informed choice about products since joining the blogosphere and people RAVE ABOUT THIS STUFF! Well lots of people are posting stuff as she appears to have an advent calendar, I've been distracted by TattooedTeaLady's Liz Earle's Advent Calendar. (You can click here to see her post of the first week's goodies!)

I always opt for the warmer shade to my skintone. I can be drastically pale but I prefer to have a honeyed glow. In this case it was beige 02 as it said it would suit most caucasian skin tones. I'm not sure the inside of my wrist is the closest colour to my face but here is a swatch!

I was surprised at the amount of coverage it gave from such a frugal droplet. I found it quite difficult to spread as the formula is quite thick. I loved the feel of it on my skin, it was refreshing, but nowhere near light weight. Disappointed slightly, I dabbed dots all over my face and tried to stretch them together. I found it difficult to blend, it took a whole lot longer than usual. 

After it had settled in I felt it gave long lasting coverage as this photo was taken after several hours wear, and the thick balmy consistency tricked my mind into believing my skin, albeit briefly, could face the cold wind for a few hours. 

It was nice for a day off foundation, but I'm sure I'd end up using too much product if I bought a whole tube. The sachet training has paid off.

What tinted moisturisers do you love? 

Thursday Tresses: REDKEN Smooth Lock Shampoo & Conditioner

Having a vibrant hair colour is hard to maintain. I'm caught in a trap. Red looks good. Being naturally fair is the bane of my life. My hair goes blonde.

 I am also burdened with really dry and fragile hair with a tendency to tangle. It will tangle in the wind. I am always seeking that imaginary rescuing elixir that will boost or clarify my hair. Or a magical brush! I must admit my trusty Kent brush does work wonders but it needs a little encouragement with a good shampoo.

To no great surprise my hair falls victim to product overkill. I have a mountain of 'build-up' or product pinning my fine hair down.  So I have been using sachets of hair goodies to tame my shampoo/conditioner extravagance.

One such sachet I've had the opportunity to try is Redken's Smooth Lock Thermal Care for dry/unruly hair. It has some silly science on the front 'Interlock Protein Network'.I mean seriously, that means absolutely nothing, nada, nil. (There is some serious creative writing gone into thinking up ridiculous names for an imaginary elixir. Here is my window).

Less conditioner is more. Who knew?

 I managed to get two fully lathered washes from the shampoo and one us from the conditioner. I'm not fond of heavily scented shampoos they rather focus on the scent rather than the actual washing of the hair. Not in this case. The conditioner detangled my hair and made it a whole lot stronger after the first and only use. A little bit went a long way. Thick foam that saturated the hair and revived it. Whatever the interlock protein network actually does who knows? My hair did feel silky and free of build up albeit heavily scented.

I've found it online for &9.95 shampoo & £10.90 for the conditioner. Perhaps I need to get my measuring cups from the kitchen and keep them in the bathroom.

Here's my 'science' bit: 
10ml = 5ml per wash = WIN!

Tempted to try a full size, but pace myself on the use. The sachets have trained me well. What products do you use? Have you tried this one?

If in doubt. Pout.

What can I say? My sore sore fingers from tap-tap-tapping out a critical evaluation and other such bibliographical formats has left me bereft of words. Well that's a lie; I am NEVER lost for words until I see Morrissey far across the other side of the room. Then, and only then, do I stand and stare with patient distant admiration, but what I really want to talk about is Kate Moss for Rimmel London.

You can't move for matte effect in AW12. Matte black nails look very sleek and even chic. Does this mean a matte block colour will look oh so chic? A look that everyone can pull off? Well maybe!

 It is a look that I love but can be quite difficult to achieve. To create the effect the make up must be heavily pigmented and this can make the texture of the lipstick very thick and dry.

Can anyone pull off matte burgundy lipstick?
I paired it with a smokey eye and I just could not resist adding a blush. When in doubt I always err on the side of drag queen; at least I look alive.

For handing in my university work I treated myself to Lasting Finish by Kate Moss Matte Effect Lipstick shade 107. You can buy it here.

WHAT I ALSO SHOULD HAVE INVESTED IN WAS A LIP LINER, BUT THERE WE GO.

The lipstick felt silky on application but I found I kept applying more as if I was craving some kind of lip moisture.

It held well and stained my lips for a whole portion of a night out although I did finally cave in and dab a tiny spot of Nivea's original lip butter over the top so my lips didn't dry out entirely while keeping with the flat matte effect.

It slowly began to bleed, but that really was my own fault; I hadn't used a lip liner.

I hadn't really tried a dark lipstick before. Lip colour is something new for me but I can see I've started something I just couldn't finish.

Are there any lip liners you can recommend? Any good lip tips?

There are a whole host of other products that used to create this look such as; a sparkly flapper dress from Asda; Rimmel Gel eyeliner in aubergine; and a nifty little fringe trim.

That one shade braver? I went 107 shades braver.

Remember: If in doubt. Pout.

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Matte Finish: more high-end than rat look.

No one told me that matte black nail polish looks so classy. A subtle change that works well, I'm really pleased with the expensive effect a matte top coat creates.

First a good base is needed. Nails stain easily but the stains can't be removed that easily. Trust me; I've done it too many times to think about it.

Dark nails make fingers look longer and slimmer. I wasn't overly keen on a crackle coat until I bought a lovely gold colour, so wasn't convinced I was going to achieve the Chanel Black Velvet effect I was striving for.

After a recent post I went in search of a mattifying top coat gratefully aided by my beauty loving friends. I had seen an Essie version but was not willing to pay the £8.99 price tag.

Bourjois & Rimmel Matte topcoats.

Well I was just beside myself. Boots had an offer buy one get second half price (I think boots have eventually cottoned on that three items would be considered a haul and therefore frivolous). I opted for the cheaper of the two and made a handy little beauty set how to guide. 

Please do feel free to comment and leave links, have you ever tried matte finish or so matt? What did you think? 

I endeavor to let you know how long this mani lasts!

High-end nails in no time.
with Nails Inc., Rimmel London

I am really surprised with the effect it creates. I'm pretty darn sure Morrissey wouldn't recognise it as a fake. 

Nail Wraps for the National Front Disco

One of my pet hates is painting my toe nails. They all seem to squish up against each other so I end up with painted toes rather than nails. I would do anything to have them done in an instant. I'm so clumsy that I generally steer well clear of nail art that requires precision; the one hand will look fine, well the other? We'd best not mention that.

Nail art is a trend that sooner or later you just have to try. Colour changing nail polish, magnetic patterning polish, holographic, heavy duty glitter, safe to say there is much more than your average UV top coat that was scientific feat way back in the '90s. They even sell nail wraps in Primark now. Encouraged by my last experience: MUA's Nail Constellation in scorpio I gave some cheap glittery nail wraps a try.

When I bought them I found I had to wade through big piles of patriotic union flag nail stickers and foils. There has been a very specific trend that glued itself to the country's nails for two whole weeks this year; the one where everyone, I MEAN EVERYONE tried to paint a union flag on one, if not all of their nails! I just wore the earrings and a tee shirt I thought revolutionary in 2004. 

Anyway. I tried nail wraps and they worked! All you need to do is choose the right size, possibly shape too. Most seemed to fit my nails nicely even if I did have to jump two spaces on the nail scale leaving me with the thought that my feet are really strange. After that you fold the excess wrap over and file downwards until the nail peeps through. It makes the wrap perforate and separate from the nail easily. Seal it with a top coat 'for a longer lasting effect' or in my case to stop me peeling off the sticker that it really is!

Despite the weird toes I think it is quite a good effect. No painful toe separators needed, just a little bit of patience and a nail file. Now I know I'm no expert but I could do them!

WE ALL KNOW I LOVE A BIT OF GLITTERING GOLD LEOPARD PRINT.

I'm saving my finger nails for a treat with a matte top coat tomorrow, but that's for another time.

Have you tried anything new? You should, you could surprise yourself!

What a difference it makes...

I can't begin to describe such a little thing that makes a big difference.

Being a big believer in skincare I have found another product that I totally adore thanks to a beauty box. A She Said Beauty Box. Pleased with the large sample I smothered it on, not thinking it would last the whole week.

Lovely cream that seeps into the skin, locking in moisture overnight. Tendency for very dry skin, especially during the winter months. It took a week to use the 5ml sample from the She Said Beauty box. At first I did not think it was rich enough, and the smell was a bit grannyish, but I have found my skin to be beautiful and supple in the mornings, without leaving a layer of grease. It didn't feel as if it was clogging my pores making fertile ground for spots and black heads but rather left my cheeks fresh and ready for make up!

I love my night time routine. I trick my body into falling asleep. So much so that I actually have grown fond of the rose granny scent. I reminds me of a few summers ago when I wore nothing but Paul Smith's Rose. Delicate is the word I am looking for.

[Tenuous Morrissey link: All his fans want to get on stage and give him a blue rose. Not me, I just have quiet admiration from a distance and that is enough for me]




So if 5ml lasts a week then 30ml should last a month. So £14.95 for a full size tube is a reasonable price for one made so environmentally and Morrissey friendly. I'm just lamenting the end of my free sample. Still, it could always be worse.

I said I couldn't begin; before you know it I've ended my beauty diatribe.



Do you have any night time tricks? I'd love to hear about them.