Urban Decay Haul, featuring Pulp Fiction & More

So  I did actually scream when MAC announced the Rocky Horror collection but in the meantime the Pulp Fiction Collection from Urban Decay really caught my eye!

Overview of what I picked up

 First of all, it is a hugely iconic film and being an avid lover of all things Tarantino, I HAD to buy the palette. PLUS, at just £17.50 it seemed really rude not to! (Almost like me saying "No Thanks UD, I like to pay £36+ for your palettes" ;) so I really could not leave Debenhams without it...).

Close up of Palette

Swatches of Palette Colours

The first thing I have to say is that this palette is just extremely good value for money.
The shadows are so soft and butterey, blending like a dream! The colour pigmentation is so strong and y'all know I keep on saying Sugarpill need to release a nude palette, because even though we like nude shades, that doesn't mean we don't want any colour payoff!? UD hit the pigment hard which I like. The White, , is slightly shimmery too and that mixes it up a bit. I think if you're still umming and arring, just go buy it!? What's £17.50? A pair of shoes or a jumper from Primark!?
Upon first look I thought that the Black/White duo of Furious & Anger would be similar to my Nars duo eyeshadow in Pandora; take a look at the comparison below...

Furious/Anger, Pandora

I think I prefer Anger as a white and Pandora's black aha!

I then remembered I don't actually own any of their recent lipsticks so decided to have a gander. After just recently purchasing a whole load of new bright lippies from the drugstore I couldn't justify anymore bright pinks...I have too many red as is, but I do love nudes and I need a good replacement for when my Viva Glam Gaga runs out! So this lipstick in Naked2 was a must, I then remembered that I needed a nude lip liner so the Naked2 of that seemed like a great idea too ;D

Lipstick left, Liner right.

The liner is just slightly deeper in colour, completely matte and very smooth. The lipstick is a bit more satin than the liner (still more matte than satin though as a finish in itself) and is so creamy. It just looks beautiful applied to the lips. I find the duo together last a good long while with me drinking from a cup etc. I will definitely be buying more liners!


After this I then had to make it up to over £50 to get Debenhams' special offer of an extra £10 worth of points! (Of course!?) so I ended up purchasing one of the new flushed palettes-I already have the original so Streak looked like the next best one for my colouring.

I was a tad upset when I got home that my palette has been kinda pushed over to the left, however, it is quite sturdy in there (just a few millimetres space to the right) and I have been using it with no problems nonetheless :) I am sure you know it's disappointing when this kinda thing happens though :(... In my swatches it kinda shows the bronzer part as being shimmery, this really does not show shimmery when applied to my skin at least not really noticeably. I use it as a contour over my scarring and it doesn't show them up more so. I love the blush colour, I think it's so gorgeous :') I really love the original but I find this one so much easier to just whack on when in a rush. A* product.


Well Done UD, I am so converted to you over Benefit!? Benefit just kinda cheat me out with their staff, I find UD Staff so much less pushy, anybody else?
Hope you like my overview and I highly recommend you go get the Pulp Fiction Palette! x x x

Elf Brushes. Yes or No?

Elf brushes have always been talked about as being good quality and I don't know about you guys, but I am convinced with brushes you get what you pay for. So, I had to try for myself to see if they were any good or not. At £3.95 a pop I decided to get 3 and the Lip Exfoliator (Can you tell Emily Noel from YouTube is being my guide here ? ;))

Overview of the brushes I got!

 
BUT have I been converted?? First up the Powder Brush!
1)

Powder Brush Close Up

 The Powder brush is soft yet firm enough, picks up hard pressed powders well and is good at tapping off excess from loose powders. It's a lovely brush and I love the cut of it, I haven't tried it with any cream or liquid products because to be honest...I kinda think it wouldn't work with a liquid foundation very well as I feel the bristles are almost too soft/not dense enough for that. Overall, great brush for a great price, would I recommend it for blush? Just, Powder all over the face? Absolutely, Contour? Urr...I feel as though it's too wide for that but you could! All over blending? Heck Yeah!


2) Small Stipple Brush;

Front View

Side View!

 The only trouble with elf packaging! The Plastic cover it comes in squishes the brush! So my brush is more of a fan shaped, still I love this brush. On first touch I was worried the bristles were too soft but on Emily's recommendation I powdered through trying x2 different creamy blushes on my cheeks with this. It's fantastic. It is very small, but I feel as though this makes for a better application! It's small & cute but gutsy, it picks up product from the pans well and distributes across your face and cheeks wonderfully, makes even the stickiest "cream blush" glide onto your cheeks. I am SOLD. I will be buying these for all my friends for Christmas!


3) Small Tapered Brush;

Small Tapered Brush sideways on

This brush. This is the pick of the bunch for me. The size is just perfect for getting right in that contour line y'all know you need! For even the smallest of faces and cheeks, this is amazing. Soft bristles, blends out powders so nicely (I tend to do a lil' back forward blend and it just blends in even the darkest contour powders beautifully :')). If you're looking for the Perfect Contour/Highlight brush this HAS to be it! Again, some friends' will find this in their stockings!

Overview of the brushes;
Good Quality Bristles
Good Quality Handles
Look Nice
Don't shed all that much (only expected with new brushes)
Packaging they come in can squeeze or alter the brushes shape for a little while
They're like never in bloody stock online!? -Seriously Elf please just get up to date with suppliers, I almost didn't bother!
Elf almost always have a code or promo on their site so you may even get the brushes cheaper or with free shipping! Woo!

 The last thing I got was the Lip Exfoliator...

Close up on the exfoliator

 I love this product so much. It is now a Holy Grail Product of mine, it's so deeply exfoliating-almost harsh on lips, so if you don't like really hard exfoliators then don't go for this. If like me you suffer with crusty lip syndrome sometimes and you lips almost feel itchy, this is great! Going to get rid of all your scuffiness plus where it's made of all sugar and oils etc it tastes amazing! It reminds me so much of the Lush lip scrub but it is in a much more accessible lipstick form. I cannot express my love for this product it is simply incredible. A***!


So that's it for my lil' tiny elf haul! Hope you like my mini reviews of the products, quite a lot of love in here!
See you in the next one, it feels great to be blogging again x x x

L'Oreal Color Riche L'Extraordinaire Liquid Lipsticks!

So as some of you may know/remember from my MaxFactor post: http://januarybeautyful.blogspot.co.uk/2013/07/quick-review-of-maxfactors-new-wild.html
I am a member of the Boots tester panel and so they sometimes send me things for free to try! Which is super nice of them and it's always a nice surprise to have a package waiting when I get home!!
I have had all sorts from toothpaste to really expensive Charles Worthington hair products so when I get makeup it's an extra bonus in my opinion :D


This month they have sent me the new L'Oreal Liquid Lipsticks...
FORGET everything you know of "Liquid Lipsticks". Now, I want you to think of balms, glosses, stains, lipsticks, all lip products. Now, roll them all into one. What do you get? A Balmy, soft lipstick that doesn't feel sticky yet has the amazing shine of a gloss, has great pigmentation and lasts relatively well!

I am not a huge lover of these but I do like the fact there's nothing else like these on the market. If you're not a fan of lipsticks, you prefer the gloss, but get annoyed you get not a lot of colour payoff-these are great!

Lovely Packaging! 'Scuse the finger prints!!

Tops :)

Applicators & Colours on side of tubes :)

Pros:
-Pigmented
-Soft & Balmy
-Last well (couple hours no retouching needed-which in my opinion is great for something so soft!)
-Fairly Inexpensive
-Lovely packaging
-Nice soft applicator that's a good size too

Fuchsia Drama

Nude Ballet

Cons:
-Smell. I don't mind the smell but it is very strong (kinda passion fruit/mango-ey, so if you don't like strong fruit smells see if you can sniff it out in store first!)

That's it, the smell is literally all I can think of that is wrong with this product! I really like these :) Go get yours here: http://www.boots.com/en/Loreal-LExtraordinaire-Liquid-Lipstick-by-Color-Riche_1427476/
There's a tonne of colours to choose from! I am looking out for a purple :3 x

*UPDATE-I found this amazing gal on YouTube who swatches stuff really well-Give her a Subbie! https://www.youtube.com/watch?annotation_id=channel%3A52941ae4-0-2179-99e6-1a11c2d77a&feature=iv&src_vid=w-aIejpAGf8&v=B7h5VEFWX6I

Apivita Apricot Scrub from M&S Review

I got these little sachets from Marks and Spencers the other day, it's of the Apivita Apricot Scrub.
I originally picked up the big tube but as that was £13 and these two sachets were £3.50 or something like that and that seemed a bit more budget friendly at the time and then I could give it a try before (if I liked it) I would purchase the whole bigger tube.

My first thoughts were that it smells absolutely divine, all apricot-ey jam like :3 and looked so good in the tube! (Sorry I didn't get a picture of the formula, it was difficult when it was in the sachets)

I used it in the shower (as I do with all my facial exfoliators) and the first thing I noticed was that the smell faded very fast into a more plastic fake smell-Which, didn't bother me a huge amount but was a tad disappointing. I found it was very gentle on my skin-as it says on the tube!

I didn't notice anything immediately, like that my skin straight after my shower felt baby smooth or whatever...but that night putting my moisturiser on, my skin must've really enjoyed and absorbed the goodness from all the products as the next morning. WOW. My skin felt so soft and healthy! And that was after one use!

I tried it again a couple days later just to check it wasn't a fluke and it wasn't. I LOVE this exfoliator, I wouldn't say it made my spots/breakouts better or worse but it did make my actual skin feel healthier and happier.

I haven't gotten round to buying the full size yet but I definitely will be! (or as I've got quite a lot to try out at the moment, maybe I'll chuck it on my Birthday wish list ;) ).

Have you guys tried anything from M&S? I sometimes find myself thinking there stuff is so overpriced...
You can get this scrub in larger M&S stores or online here: http://www.marksandspencer.com/apivita-face-scrub-with-apricot-40ml/p/p22255050


Thanks for baring with me whilst I settle into my new job, guys! Speak to you soon x x x

Lush Dark Angels, Face & Body Cleanser Review.

This review on Lush Dark Angels face and body cleanser is going to be rather quick!

The Outer Packaging...

In short: I did not like this.

Okay so the good points:
-You get a tonne of product in here, this pot is going to last you a while!
-The Smell is AMAZING. It smells like aniseed & liquorice-ey and is just so good to the nose ;)
-It feels very natural, almost like you're exfoliating your face with cooled lava!? Haha
-It's very exfoliating, really, really exfoliating-so if you like that, this is for you

The not so good points:
-It's waaay to exfoliating for my skin and made my chin and nose area break out really badly-Horrible big red sore spots...not nice
-A bit....fiddly? So, you break off a tiny bit and make a paste in your hands. I like to cleanse/exfoliate/wash my face when I am in the shower and this is very difficult to use in the shower not to get water in the pot or too much water in your hands so it's no longer like a paste more like just black water...

So I am just going to have to give this product a....3/10. As the fact it broke me out so bad kinda overshadows everything else for me. Unfortunately all the lush face products I have tried have seemed to make my skin worse rather than better :/ Might stop trying them now.

Have you tried any Lush face masks or scrubs? What do you think of them?
Thanks for reading guys! x x x

The AMAZING Illamasqua Lip Set

When I went out to London last year (well, December so it really does NOT feel like last year ;)) I went to the Illamasqua store (just off Carnaby Street) I bumped into it after going into the Benefit Carnaby Street Boutique and I nearly died, the store is so beautiful, if you ever get the chance-GO!

The assistants were very helpful and looked amazing, wish I could go to work with blue brows on!
But seeing as I went in to get myself a lil' something, I got the Perfect Pout set which was £60 (if I remember correctly! :S) for 6 lipsticks, which I thought was pretty good :3

Outer Packaging

With the sleeve removed...

How Pretty is this paper!?

Inside the pamphlet...
(Please note I really turned up the brightness on this photo
so the swatches in this photo in real life are not as vibrant)

A sneak peak of the catalogue I also got.

The packaging was extremely luxurious...the paper and bag were really gorgeous too :3

An overview of the lippies...

Another view of the lippies...

Over
Described as a "Bright Coral Pink"

Fable
Described as a "Bright Rose Pink"

Plunge
Described as a "Bright Mauve Pink"

Scandal
Described as a "Warm Coral Pink"

Isis
Described as a "Red Pink"

Esp
Described as a "Vivid Violet"

My Favourite shades in this set are Esp (and you can see that famous NYE look with it here: http://tinyurl.com/n67cafb) and Plunge! Plunge is the most awesome bright pink with an orchid tinge! I LOVE IT.

These lipsticks are all matte, apart from Esp which I feel has a little shimmer in it. ALL of them have outstanding colour pay off and are not overly drying, I feel like MAC's mattes are really drying, these aren't as bad as those...Though I still recommend applying lip balm before you go for these!

The only shade that is limited edition is Isis, the "Christmas" red so if you can get your hands on Esp I really would! (don't forget Debenhams online sell Illamasqua too!).

Hope you liked this post and I'll see you in the next one! x x x

Quick Review of MaxFactor's new Wild Mascara & Shadow Pencil XD

I was so, so excited to try these out!

First up, Wild Mega Mascara:
http://www.boots.com/en/Max-Factor-Wild-Mega-Volume-Mascara_1359147/
Soo gorgeous, does give amazing volume! Doesn't flake or fade or smudge throughout the day. My only niggle is that the end of the brush is still thick making it difficult to get right into those inner corners and grab every last lash in there! Otherwise truly fantastic mascara, worth every penny. Love it. Curl your lashes and you'll faint with how fantastic it looks! (Absolutely perfect results without curling, btw)

Next up, Wild Shadow Pencil (number 10-Lime Green): 
http://www.boots.com/en/Max-Factor-Wild-Shadow-Eyeshadow-Pencil_1359138/
I absolutely adore the colour, it's payoff is good. It's smooth, creamy and......DOES NOT CREASE!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am buying all these colours. 'Nuff Said.

Swatches-Gosh my skin looks pale here! haha

No creasing! Even in this gorgeous hot weather and my hayfever!

Beautiful Fanned out lashes :')

I now cannot wait to get my hands on the rest of the collection. I think I might have to buy all the pencils and some of the powder shadows! Might go have a look for 'em in Boots after my Benefit Appointment on Monday (if I still have any money!).

Yes, that's right folks I am planning on grabbing the new Blusher Rockateur, Fake Up & at least one new Eyeshadow (hopefully they'll throw in a free something too...!?) at my Benefit Appointment on Monday, so keep your eyes peeled for my review and first impressions etc! xxx

Quick Review for Revlon Colorstay Ultimate Suede Lipstick & my Band's First YouTube Video!

Just a real quick post of my review of Revlon's Colorstay Ultimate Suede Lipstick (mine is in the colour Finale) on the Boots website:

Overall Rating: 4 stars

Quality: Good
Value: Good
Application: Excellent
Appearance: Good
Would I recommend? Yes

This lipstick has me split. I don't like the packaging that much (for some reason it clicks as you turn it up??). I think it's a tad on the pricey side (only just) but on first application it's soft, very easy to apply and stays for a couple of hours (it becomes dry and a stain quite quickly) At first I'd compare it to a Benefit Silky Finish Lipstick but after around 20mins all softness is gone :( Staying power for colour is fantastic and that's probably why I've given it a better score :)
Overall, worth it for the pigmentation & lasting power.

I would like to try some other colours though, as I am not sure the pigmentation would be as great for nude/softer colours, as Finale is a bright red...

Also, while I am here, just wanted you guys to see me and my band playing! (though, I couldn't watch it all the way through-I HATE listening to myself again as I am very critical ahaha! :P). This song was written by JB our bassist and is a lot of fun to play/sing :) x

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NyQyI0TIP7E

If you like it "LIKE IT" haha thanks guys :) xxx