Saturday 25 June 2011

SUMMER SERIES: Pt 6 - Hair Feathers

After seeing Fleur and Ingrid with hair feathers, I knew that I had to get some (I know, I'm such a sheep haha) and I was fortunate enough to be sent some! 
I was sent the hair feathers in the colour Natural Princess and this set of feather consist of whites, silvers and soft oranges.

The feathers are extremely easy to attach. The website offers you certain tools to attach them with but I didn't have them so I just got a small cluster of hair, threaded the hair through the rings and then slipped the hair feather underneath - it's that simple! And once attached, the feather do not move as they're so secure. You can see how to attach them here.


 I absolutely love these feathers and I have won them every single day since receiving them and as of yet, they have shown no sign of daily wear and tear. When people notice them, the amount of compliments and questions you receive is just outstanding! I'm not one for wearing a lot in my hair, I generally wear my hair straight or curly but now thanks to these feathers, my hair doesn't seem as boring! Also, the feathers can be brushed, blow dried, curled or straightened (on a low heat setting).

I highly recommend these! They're strong, last a long time and of course, they really are beautiful. You can check out the 6 different hair feather styles here

Also, click here to find out the new prize that has been entered to my giveaway! Don't forget to enter!

Have you tried hair feathers? Are you going to?
xxx

Wednesday 22 June 2011

FAVOURITES: Face Products

Hello girls! I hope you're all well..
I thought I'd do a post (and possibly a series) on my favourite products; the ones that I tend to reach for on a daily basis. And this time, I've decided to go for my favourite face products. This is mainly because face products are definitely my favourite products! So, I decided to choose my favourite over these catogories; foundation, primer, powder, highlighter, bronzer, concealer and blush. If I didn't, this post would be VERY long haha!

 Clockwise from top left - Estee Lauder Double Wear, 17 Photo Flawless Primer, Lily Lolo Translucent Powder in Silk (bottom compartment), Benefit High Beam, Sleek Face Contour Kit (Light), Benefit Boi-ing Concealer (01), Nars Blush (Deepthroat).

The Estee Lauder foundation really is perfection. It's full coverage, easy to blend (kinda) and it doesn't budge throughout the day. I always stray from this foundation but always come back to it in the end. The Boi-ing concealer is full, industrial strength and covers everything! It's hard to work with but I'd recommend warming it up beforehand - whilst applying my foundation, I put mine on top of a radiator! And the 17 primer is just amazing. It's cheap, evens the skin out, gives an amazing base for make up and also helps it last long.
 I'm sorry for the awfully blinding flash but without the flash, the bronzer was not true to colour. This is the Sleek contour kit and on the left is the bronzer and the right is the highlight. I do love the highlight but for this post, I'm just going to be talking about the bronzer. This contour is definitely the easiest to work with in my opinion. I have wrote two reviews on this (I think), one being bad and the other being good. This is because I'd tried it before but I ended up not liking it so I gave it away. But then I won another in a giveaway and by that time, I'd learnt a lot more about contouring. This product is so cheap and very easy to work with - I'd just recommend watching a few YouTube videos on how to contour beforehand if you're new to it!
Of course, the infamous Deepthroat! The softest, most beautiful blush in the world. It's so easy to blend, very pigmented and of course.. that colour! A gorgeous coral colour that can be toned down for day and worked up for night. A must-have in everyone's collection.
I received this in Glamour magazine and as soon as I've used this up, I'm buying the full sized. It's the most beautiful highlight in the world. A soft pearl pink colour that is easy to blend, easy to use and is very versatile. 
I do love this powder but because of the silk formula, I have to use a mattifying powder over the top of it on my t-zone. But that doesn't stop me from using it! It really makes your face look flawless and glowing but the best part is that it just sinks into the skin.. It's so finely milled that you cannot see it on your face!
L-R Lily Lolo Powder (not blended so you can see the shine it gives off), Sleek Contour Kit, Nars Deepthroat, Benefit High Beam.

What are your favourite face products?
xxx

Tuesday 21 June 2011

SUMMER SERIES: Pt 5 - Must Haves

When it comes to summer there's a few must-haves that everyone should own! Here are mine..
Avene Eau Thermale Water Spray
I absolutely love this product mainly because it's incredibly versatile and can be used for virtually anything. For the summer, I'd recommend keeping this in your bag (don't worry, Avene also do a smaller version) to freshen up throughout the day and also cool yourself down. You can see my full review of this product here.
Soap Glory & Hand Food
My favourite hand cream! It smells beautiful (like marshmallows), leaves hands feeling very soft and doesn't leave a nasty residue behind. Like the Avene spray, you can get this in a smaller size so of course, perfect for throwing into your bag! You can see my full review of this product here.
Liz Earle Foot Spritzer
This is so good! You use it on your feet, legs and ankles and it cools the area and fights odour-causing bacteria meaning that your feet stay fresh! I spray this in the morning mostly because it smells beautiful (like mint), wakes me up and makes me feel revitalised, but for summer, definitely carry this around with you to cool your feet down! Also in summer you barely ever wear socks so this is perfect for making sure your feet smell sweet!
Liz Earle Superskin Bust Treatment
Who doesn't want to look good in a bikini? This serum is super light and immediately sinks into the skin. I originally thought that this would take weeks to show results however, I saw results a few minutes after using it! My bust area looked more toned, even and smooth! I haven't been using this long enough yet to see if it has a lasting effect but I will definitely keep your updated! But for now.. it's an amazing quick fix. 

Avon Advance Technique Lotus Shield
When my sister came back from university I quickly stole it from her (well, she gave it to me). This is my favourite hair care product ever! Basically this cream helps to block humidity and keeps your hairstyle in place. The heat from the sun in summer really messes up my hair and leaves it frizzy but with this product, my hair stays straight and beautiful all day long! And what's best, this product doesn't weigh hair down or leave a greasy residue! Oh and it also lasts 2 washes! This is a definite must have.
Amplex Natural Deodorant
This deodorant doesn't leave white marks, sticky residue and stops you from sweating.. what more can you say?! You can see my full review of this product here.
Ministry of Waxing Ice Cream
Yes, I've burnt myself since the sun has been showing its face and this product literally works a miracle on sunburn. It instantly cools the burn, soothes it and even heels it! It's definitely worth the expensive price tag. You can see my full review of this product here.
Avene Factor 50+ Mineral Cream
Sun tan lotion is a must have and this one is my favourite. Mineral means that is it good for the skin which is always a bonus but this also sinks in quickly, does the job and doesn't dry the skin out (or make it feel greasy). It's also (light) skin colour so it blends really well and doesn't leave a white cast. I've also used this on my face before and because of its colour I found that it evened my skintone out - perfect!
Liz Earle Spot On
This is definitely a must have in your bag! It works on spot (over or under make up), bites, cuts.. you know it, it heels it! You can see my full review of this product here.

What are your summer must haves? Don't forgot to enter my giveaway!
xxx

CLOSED Giveaway for 300 followers!

First of all I'd like to say a big thank you to all of my followers! I've now passed 300 and because of this, I'm going to hold a giveaway. Looking at my page views and my followers makes me extremely happy - I would never have imagined that so many people would enjoy reading what I have to say so once again, thank you! And also thank you to everyone who has helped in promoting my blog - it really means a lot! I've also recently passed 500 blog posts!
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Each week I will be adding some new prizes to this post (I'll also tweet and Facebook about them). I'll give you a clue, everything that you're going to win is in my favourite beauty items list! So here's what you can win as of yet:
- Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish
- Tisserand Intensive Hand & Nail Cream
- Sleek Contour Kit (in your colour choice)
- MAC Lipstick (in your colour choice)
- Hair Feathers (in your colour choice)
- A £15 New Look Gift Voucher
- A Selection of Soap & Glory Products including Breakfast Scrub & Hand Food
- Sleek Storm Palette
- Lush Giftset (up to the value of £15 in your choice)
- Clarisonic MIA

To enter you must be following my blog via GFC or bloglovin' - or both!
For one entry, comment on this post letting me know what you'd like to see more of.
For an extra entry, head on over to my Facebook page and click 'like' for the latest updates on my blog! (Please note that I haven't fully started using this page so at the moment, it looks a little dead)!
For another extra entry, follow me on Twitter and tweet about my giveaway with a link and my username @bamboozlebeauty so I can see it.
For another entry, put a link to my giveaway in your sidebar or blog about my giveaway.

Please make sure that you let me know which of the above you have done so I can write everything down and give you your extra entries.
This giveaway is open for international readers as well!

So what are you waiting for? Enter now!
xxx

Saturday 18 June 2011

MAC Lipsticks + Storage

I don't have many MAC lipsticks at all and this is because my closest MAC is pretty far away and I don't like ordering offline. Also, when I walk into a MAC shop, I'm so overwhelmed by all the beautiful colours and I never know what to get! But I thought I'd show you my collection anyway just incase you're interested :) I highly rate MAC as a brand and in particular, I recommend their lipsticks. They're wonderful quality, last a long time on the lips and of course, the colour range is spectacular.
L-R Lazy Day (from the To The Beach collection), Saint Germain, Kinda Sexy, Costa Chic

I hate how little I have left of Lazy Day! It's definitely one of my all time favourite lipsticks but unfortunately it's limited edition from a collection. I just hope that they release it again soon!
L-R Lazy Day (from the To The Beach collection), Saint Germain, Kinda Sexy, Costa Chic

I love all of these colours so much! I'd say that Lazy Day and Kinda Sexy are the most wearable for the day time whilst Saint Germain and Costa Chic are definitely ones to get out at night! But that doesn't mean you can't work them during the day.. I use a light hand and light dab Saint Germain or Costa Chic over my lips to give a 'stained' finish.
 
This is what I keep my lipsticks in. This box is from Boots but I don't believe that it's available anymore as it was in the Christmas gifts section. Hopefully it'll reappear this year :) It's made of glass, really sturdy and of course, it's beautiful!
And a quick picture of my cat Ratchett - he certainly made it a hard task taking these pictures. He kept getting in the way and wanted his picture taken so I thought why not?!

What are your favourite MAC lipsticks? Do you have any recommendations? And also, how do you store your lipsticks?
xxx

Sunday 12 June 2011

Skincare/Haircare/Bodycare storage!

I don't know about you but I love looking at people's storage! So I thought I'd show you mine. Recently as you know, I've moved into my dads and I didn't feel at home until I had my make up and beauty collection with me! It's finally here and I've changed the way that I've stored it a little bit.
This is an overview. I apologise for the mess underneath but it's where I store my wires and chargers etc. It also has a Umberto Gianni bottle underneath which I didn't notice until this picture haha! Anyway, this is a TV stand from Argos (I do believe) but I've removed my TV to make room for my beauty products.
These are my favourite haircare products. If you see anything that takes your fancy, do let me know and I'll do a full review for you :)
These are my body washes. Some of them are downstairs in the bathroom though and others are in my other beauty storage (which I'll explain later why I haven't taken pictures of).
This is basically a miscellaneous section. It mainly has deodorants, suncare, hand and feet care and fake tanning products. It also has a bath milk but I don't tend to like products like that as they make my hair greasy. But, I love the smell of this one and couldn't risk not buying it!
My body scrubs! This is right next to my bed and where I lay. I normally wake up to find that one of my Flake Away's is on the other side of the room from me knocking it over in the middle of the night.
These are my moisturisers. Including Liz Earle's Superskin Bust Treatment that I'm currently trying out. Oh and Lush's Ring of Roses soap - so basically body moisturisers plus random other findings.
My skincare products! Now that I'm looking, I think something is missing as there seems to be a big gap between my Liz Earle Spot On treatment..

I also have 8 more drawers and a box full of skincare/haircare/bodycare products but I haven't taken pictures of these because they're not very tidy at the moment. I will post pictures in time though! Also, the products that are on this stand are my favourites and they get used all the time; the products in my drawers unfortunately don't get shown a lot of love.

If you see anything that catches your eye, please let me know and I'll do a full review on the product :) Also, like I mentioned earlier, I love looking at ways that people store products, so if you've done a storage video/post, link me in the comments and I'll take a look!

How do you store products? Would you like more storage posts?
xxx

Current Favourites

I've missed so many monthly favourites so I thought I'd catch up a bit and do a 'current favourites' post. These are the products that I've been loving for a while now!
Clockwise from top.
Soap & Glory Breakfast Scrub
I've always loved this scrub however I find myself using it a lot more nowadays. With the weather in English slowly getting better (minus today) I'm wearing less clothing which means my skin needs to be as soft as possible. This smells delicious and also does the job. It's a bit expensive for a drugstore scrub but it's completely worth it.
 Avene Extremely Rich Compensating Cream
My skin has been a nightmare recently and at one point, it was completely dry. My make up wouldn't apply nice and I generally did not want to leave the house. Then this moisturiser came to the rescue. I'd always had it in my collection but I'd never really used it. It's a lovely moisturiser that smells fresh, sinks into the skin quickly and provides a gorgeous, supple base for make up. 
  Accessories Blush in Pretty Pink
This is lovely blush that can be used gently as a highlighter or full on a blush. There isn't much more that I can except for that I'll let the swatch do the talking.
Bourjois Healthy Mix Concealer
I've only just recently bought this after being a bit bored of my Collection 2000 concealer. Don't get me wrong, it's a beautiful full coverage concealer but I wanted to try something new. This appealed to me mainly because of the smell - it smells gorgeous and fruity! It's medium but buildable coverage and I find that with two coats, any blemishes are completely covered. It lasts throughout the day and it's also perfect for using underneath the eyes as it's anti fatigue.
Sigma Tapered Blending E40 Brush
I've always used a foundation brush to blend my concealer yet after 'discovering' Tanya Burr's tutorials I've been using this blending brush and it's amazing. It makes blending concealer so much easier, quicker and allows the concealer to look flawless.
Sleek Face Contour Kit Light
I bought this a while back but I didn't like it so I swapped it for something else. But I recently won it in Jess' giveaway and I haven't stopped using it since! I've been using it with a range of different brushes and I think that the brush you use makes a big difference to the product.
17 Photo Flawless Primer
The cheapest primer out there and I adore it. It fills in pores, makes make up last longer and provides a lovely, velvety base for make up. This is comparable to Gosh's Velvet Touch Primer yet it's just £4.99. A definite must have!
MAC Costa Chic
My current favourite lipstick! It's perfect dapped onto lips to create a stain or applied straight from the tube to create full on, powerful lips. You can view the swatch here and me wearing it here.
Trilogy Very Gentle Calming Fluid
As I mentioned earlier, my skin has been a nightmare recently and I've been finding it really hard to apply foundation without it sinking into my dry areas. This has been an absolute godsend. I pour my foundation out (Estee Lauder's Double Wear) and mix it in with this fluid and it waters down my foundation and makes the formula more like a tinted moisturiser - but with flawless, full coverage.
Lush Yummy Yummy Yummy Shower Cream
This has now been discontinued but before it was, I stocked up. I love the smell of this and I love the way that it lingers on your skin and in the bathroom after you've used it. It's also moisturising on the skin! The only problem is the consistency which is why it's been discontinued.
Britney Spears Radiance
As a big Britney fan I have all of her frangrances and this one is possibly my favourite. I'm no good at describing smells but it really is beautiful! I have 2 bottles of this perfume; one that I bought myself and another that I was sent by Britney's UK publicist for winning a competition - this is why I love the 100ml one more because it seems  much more special!
Amplex Natural Deodorant
I carry this with my everywhere because it's such a lovely deodorant. It's scentless, isn't sticky, doesn't leave marks and drys into the skin very quickly. Infact, I don't know why I carry it with me because I never need touch ups as it lasts all day.
Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish
My skin staple. I just can't describe how flawless this cleanser is. You've probably heard about it a lot and it does not have one bad review written about it. It's completely changed my skin and I'm still in love with it - nearly a year on.

What products have you been loving recently? Have you tried any of my favourites?
xxx

Saturday 11 June 2011

Thank You!

I have now surpassed 300 followers and for me, this is amazing! Thank you so much. I honestly never expected to see my followers get into double figures, never mind triple figures!
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It's an honour knowing that you enjoy reading my ramblings and here's to another few good years of blogging! I've met some lovely people through blogging and my knowledge for beauty and make up application has grown so much. I'm very grateful and I can't thank you enough.
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I'm holding a giveaway as a thank you. I'd love to be able to give you all a little something but unfortunately, I can't. So far I have one item confirmed and let's just say - it's one of my all time favourites from my favourite skin care brand!

Once again, thank you so much :) don't forgot to 'like' my Facebook page and follow me on Twitter.
xxx

Friday 10 June 2011

Hair Diaries [pic heavy]

I love reading/seeing pictures of how people's hair has developed over the years so I thought I'd do the same! After scanning through Facebook and searching for different hairstyles, I've finally found some pictures that show how my hair has evolved.. cue embarrassing pictures;

I'm unsure how old am I here but I'm guessing I'm between 1-2 ish. I'm the one in the Mr Blobby tshirt and as you can see, my hair is just awful! I was born bald and didn't start getting a lot of hair until I was older. Disaster! 

Once again I'm unsure how old I am here but I'm guessing about 2-3ish (I'm no good at guessing people's ages). My hair is shoulder length and very fine.. no change there then!

Once again I'm unsure of my age, oops! But as you can see here, my hair is so long! And it's in pigtails (Spice Girls, Baby Spice)! I'm the one in the blue tshirt in case you don't know! I do like my hair here, even know I'm 18 haha. Well, I like the length!

Oh my. I hate this picture. This is in year 8 at school and I'm on >>> that side. It's the only picture that actually shows my hair good though. But yeah, it's kind of long and as you can see, it has blonde in it. At this point I was growing out my blonde highlighs which I had had for 2 years!

This one is from year 9 in PE - we hated PE incase you can't tell haha. I'm on the bottom row and >>> side. I'd finally discovered the beauty of a side parting haha! My length is still pretty short and my hair has no style at all!

This is in year 10 - excuse the posey pose! I liked my hair here. It has shape, a nice fringe and I had it darkened aswell. At the time it suited me as I had a tan but now, the dark hair would not suit me at all and would wash me out!

Again with the pose! ugh! But this shows my hair well. I had it cut off to shoulder length I LOVE MY FRINGE HERE! It looks gorgeous and also there's a lot of volume in my hair! I do like my hair like this but I've always wanted long hair and it's taken me a long time to get my hair to the length it is now.

This is in year 11 when I went to Italy for performing arts. My hair had grown and I've now got a side fringe and layers. I don't mind my hair here to be honest, it's just not as long as I'd like it! But I do like my fringe!

This is in year 12 and an awful picture! I'm on >> side and my hair is basically the same as in year 11 but it has more volume and my fringe has grown out a bit more. The length is still the same. Up until this year I've had a lot of trouble growing my hair - it never seemed to grow!

This is my hair now and I love it! It's the length that I want and that finally means that I can curl it and still have length! I do however what a fringe like I used to have when I cut it short in year10 - maybe I'll have to have it cut again.

I'm sorry if I've rambled on a bit and don't make much sense but the pictures are quite self explanatory! I hope you've enjoyed this and I'd love you to link me to yours if you've done one.
xxx

Tuesday 7 June 2011

FOTD

Well, Face of Yesterday! I also apologise that it isn't good quality - I took it on my phone.
Foundation - Estee Lauder Double Wear
Concealer - Bourjois Healthy Mix
Eye Concealer - Benefit Boi-ing
Powder - Rimmel Stay Matte
Blush - MAC Pink Swoon
Contour - Sleek Contour Kit in Light
Highlight - Liz Earle Sheer Gold Shimmer
Eyeshadow - Urban Decay Virgin, Sin, Buck and Sidecar
Eyeliner - Urban Decay 24/7 in Whisky
Lipstick - MAC Costa Chic

This is a really simple look that I wore to college. It's quick and easy to do and it looks asthough I'm not wearing a lot of make up which of course, is perfect for college! I am in love with MAC's Costa Chic and I'm constantly wearing. In the above picture, I've just dabbed it on to give a stained look. But it can be applied straight from the tube to give a more done look.
I hope you're all okay :) what make up have you been loving recently?
xxx

Sunday 5 June 2011

SUMMER SERIES: Pt 4 - Moisturisers

Hello & welcome to part 4 of my summer series! I thought that I'd talk about my favourite body moisturisers for summer this week! I love moisturisers; there's nothing like having beautifully soft, gorgeous smelling skin.

I don't have dry skin on my body - I'd say it's pretty normal. However, when it comes to summer I love coconut, warm scents that remind me of being on holiday. And typically, these scents are for dry skin. So I look for moisturisers that sink into the skin quickly, leave the skin feeling soft and of course, smelling beautiful! 

Dirty Works Coconut Caress Body Butter
This is described as being 'the perfect cocktail' and I agree! I've reviewed a few Dirty Works products before and I must say, they're incredible. For a brand that you purchase from Sainsburys, I didn't have high expectations really but they surpass them. This body butter in particular has a beautiful, coconut scent that takes me right back to being on holiday. The light moisturiser quickly sinks into the skin and coats it in a lovely layer that ensures skin stays moisturised all day long. The packaging is also amazing and reminds me of Soap and Glory - it's very quirky and definitely fits in with the tub. The price is also very nice; a 300ml tub would cost you just £4.99. You can check out the full brand range here.

Boots Extracts Fairtrade Cocoa Butter Body Butter
I absolutely adore this! It's of a more thicker consistency than the Dirty Works one but it still sinks into the skin well. It has a more chocolatey smell than the Dirty Works one and it really makes me want to eat it up! But of course I can't. So instead I smother my body with this and it envelopes my skin with a gorgeous smell that lasts throughout the day. The skin is definitely left moisturised and like I said, it sinks in quickly and lasts a long time. I'd definitely recommend this for more drier skin types. You can find more information about this product here.

Ministry Of Waxing Ice Cream Cooling Lotion
Now this is a must have for summer! This lotion cools your skin after waxing and of course there's going to be a lot of waxing throughout the summer months as you want to ensure your skin is kept hair free. However if you don't wax, this product is wonderful for shaving or any type of hair removal. This lotion eases burning sensations and also keeps the skin hydrated so it stays soft and silky throughout summer. It is scentless but of course, on a product like this you don't really want a scent. It can also be used on sunburn, hair removal, insect bites, spots and eczema! So like I said, this is definitely a must have for summer. I keep it in my bag at all times. And a little tip for you all - pop it in the fridge for an extra cooling sensation! You can find out more about this product here

These are my favourite summer moisturising products.. But what are yours? I'd love to know so leave me a comment or tweet me @bamboozlebeauty!

Also, don't forget to join in the bbloggers chat tonight on Twitter at 8pm!
xxx