All used up....

Hello!

Just a wee update before I get started - its actually has a lot to do with doing an empties post. I'm moving house and so I have started the daunting task of packing up all my belongings. I always see a move as a chance to have a good clear out and I had so many empties products hoarded to blog about and so I thought I should get on with it so I could chuck them out.

First up is the ELF nail varnish in desert haze.

I LOVE this nail varnish and it is the fist ever polish that I have used up and re- purchased. This one has gone all goopy and so I got another while elf had discount offer running and I'm so happy to have it again. This is a perfect everyday which goes with anything. Elf polishes can be so hit an miss, some have terrible pigmentation and staying power while others are totally fab - this one included. Two coats and its perfect and with a top coat on it lasts for days. Not bad for £1.50!

Next is the Body Shop body butter in strawberry

I really like the Body Shop body butters and I have another 4 of them in my room at them moment that I'm working my way through. The scents are amazing and they make my skin so lovely and soft! I usually give myself a good scrub in the shower and then slather this stuff on and it make me feel fab! The Body Shop always have offers on so you can get these quite cheap but they retail for £12.50

This is a sample of Elizabeth Arden's new skin balancing lotion for combinations skin.

I got this in a Glossy box and decided to give it a try. I'm usually nervous about trying new face products as my skin usually doesn't appreciate any changes in my routine and punishes me with a lovely break out. not this baby! I loved it so much I even bought the full sized bottle - at a whopping 32 bucks! This is a lovely light cream that give my combo skin all the moisture it needs without overloading it and making it more oily. For me it was worth splashing out for.

I also got this next product in a Glossy box and it is the Balance me wonder eye cream.

I'm kind of on the fence with this stuff. I liked it, but it didn't do anything particularly wonderful for my eyes. I have anther sample of it so ill work my way through that and see how I feel but I don't think it will be re-purchased. I think I'm looking for something more that just a touch of moisture for my eyes these days. This is made from 99% natural ingredients and if that floats your boat, it may be a good one to try.

Last up is the Fake Bake airbrush tanning spray.

If you are very fair and looking for a light luxury tan to try then this would be the one for you. You can pick this up from a variety of places for as little as 20 pounds. I was using this for my face and upper body in the winter (shows how long this bottle has been hanging in my room for) to give myself a subtle glow. The spray is tinted so it helps you see where you have applied it and the colour is of a greenish tome so it develops to a light golden olive tone - no orange! Once it dries you can go over it to get a deeper colour. Its really easy to use and very natural and so I would get this again. My boyfriend even said he like it when I use it and preferred it to my other fake tans.

well I better get back to my packing...

A little love
Emma xo

Clinique Even Better Foundation Review

Hello!

Sorry for the delay in getting out this review as I have been a very busy bee. There has been loads going on at work and I have ended up changing jobs and I'm also going to me moving house.Crazy times but anyway, on to the review

I just want to say this first... I love this foundation!

I tried this out as I had seen Tanya Burr apply it on one of her tutorials and I just loved the way it looked on her. Now I don't have skin anything as beautiful as hers so I was a bit unsure of how it work on me. Instead of just rushing out and buying the full product I decided to buy a few sample sachets from eBay. I got 5 for 3.40 with postage - bargain! I emptied them into a little container and they lasted me over two weeks! This was plenty time to test it out, see how it sat on my skin, how long it lasted and if the colour worked for me. I would totally recommend doing this for testing foundations. I find it hard to go and ask the counter ladies for freebies sometimes

The photo in the left is me without any makeup (again yuk) and on the right with just the foundation applied.
The foundation itself is a quite thick and creamy and applied on the skin gave amazing coverage without feeling heavy at all. It really evens out my skin tone and covers my hyper pigmentation. id say its medium to full and leaves a slight dewy finish. I usually shy away for a dewy foundation but this actually worked very nicely on me. It says its suitable for dry combination or oily combination skin but I don't see any reason why this wouldn't work any skin type.

 The colour I have is 03 ivory and the is perfect for me just now whilst I have a bit of summer sun. I love the way it wears on the skin, usually by the end of the day I start to look pretty messy and patchy but with this stuff, thought wearing away, still look good! I do get a bit shiny as the day goes on and have to powder my skin once late afternoon - usually id have to do this umpteen times during the day.

Me after applying the rest of my makeup

I really cant find any problems with this foundation at all - it doesn't even break me out at all. (I told you it was love!) I have just picked up the full size bottle for £23 at boots - a fair price for a high end product. I think this is going to be a staple in my makeup kit!

Have any of you tried this foundation or any of the others from Clinique?

I have plenty more foundations to test and I will next be testing Collection 2000 lasting perfection foundation. Its going to be hard to put my Clinique one down though!

A little love
Emma xo

Mark Hill anti-humidity hair spray

So who loves it when you spend time curling and straightening your hair to preened perfection and then you step outside for a moment and you end up looking like Hermione Granger: The early years?

Not me!

I have really fine hair and find it gets really static and fluffy in the warmer months - especially when I have been curling it and using styling products. I received a trial sized tin of this at an event last year and it ended up rolling about the back of my makeup drawers unloved, until one particular frizzy day (we are talking Albert Einstein hair here) I gave this a whirl and it was magic!

I sprayed this over my hair and the static frizz disappeared instantly! it doesn't leave any noticeable product in your hair and it has a lovely fresh sent too. I have been keeping this in my handbag to use on the go and tame the mane when ever I need it. I have noticed that Mark Hill have re designed the packaging for this and it is now called Mark Hill Defrizz-ilicious Bedazzeled Anti Humidity Spray (cracking name) and is currently 5.99 in boots for a 200ml can. I hope the formula is still the same though.

I'll be picking this up again the next time I see it in store. Its been a god send in this warm humid weather and I imagine it would be great on holiday too.

Have you tried any Mark hill products?

A Little Love
Emma xo

Boots essentials cucumber eye gel

I was in boots the other day picking up a few bits and bobs and grabbed a tube of the Boots essentials cucumber eye gel. I have been trying various eye creams out lately and not finding one I like. This was only £1.42 and I thought that if it didn't do anything, at least I hadn't broke the bank paying for it

I was actually really surprised by how much I like it. I have really dry tired eyes and just need something to give it a bit of a perk and a touch of moisture and this does just that. The product is a clear gel and is really cooling and soothing on they eye. I apply it in the evening before bed and in the morning before I apply my makeup. I keep mine in the fridge to make it extra cooling for my eyes.

This would be perfect for someone in their 20s who isn't worrying about wrinkles just yet but just needs something refreshing and lightly hydrating for their eyes.

What eye creams have you been loving?
A little love
Emma xo

Foundation Reviews - Garnier BB cream for oily/combo skin

Hola!

So I have been testing out this BB cream for the last week and am ready to report my findings. I have been nervous all week about this post as my skin is not in tip top condition at the moment and I'm not at my most photogenic. At least this way you will get a good idea on its coverage!

So BB creams have been doing the rounds haven't they? I had my first dealings with a BB cream a couple of years back with the skin 79 gold version and I wasn't all that impressed (despite the hype) I just felt it didn't do anything at all really.

I have been on the look for one with a bit more coverage and that would work for my skin type and after testing soooo many I discovered the new garnier BB cream oily/combo.
I tried the tester out in the shop and once I blended this into my wrist I just loved the effect it gave my skin - so in my basket it went.

Here is me before its applied (I know yikes!) and you can see I'm dealing with an angry red breakout on my chin. I look a bit ghostly in the photos but in real life there is a bit more colour to me I swear.

I have it in medium as I'm a bit of a fake tan fanatic and it gives me a lovely sun kissed warm colour to my face. The coverage is light - medium and it dries to a matt finish. The consistency is very runny so I find the best way to apply it is with my fingers. It evens out my skin tone but does not hide my blemishes and acne scars so I go back over with my trusty Vichy concealer to hide these.


Here is it just applied without any other makeup

As you can see at lot more even but there is still a bit of redness (smile Emma!).

I really like the way this product wears on my skin throughout the day. I find that it doesn't go patchy and it manages to keep oil at bay. Usually I would be powdering 4 hours after I had applied my makeup but I can easily going about 8 hours before I get a bit of shine. It doesn't feel heavy on the skin and looks very natural - great for daytime use. Below is me after adding the rest of my makeup.

One thing that I don't like is that It stinks of alcohol which I thought was odd? Alcohol is well known for drying out and being generally not to great for your skin. I know that us oily girls need a bit of that but I don't like the thought of rubbing alcohol on my face to do this. Saying that, I haven't had any irritation with it.

Conclusion? alcohol aside, I do really like this BB cream and and love how it feels and looks on my skin. I'm looking forward to wearing it when my skin is in better condition and I'm not needing a fuller coverage. If like me, you have been searching for a BB to fall in love with and that's suitable for your oily skin then I would give this a whirl. Its costs between £7.99 and £9.99 which is not a bad price at all.

Hope that's been help full and the pictures didn't scare you too much. I have just got a few samples of the Clinique even better foundation so ill be testing that out this week. Stay tuned for a review on that...


A little love
Emmaxo

Just finished - Jergens Naturals Ultra Hydrating hand cream

I have just used up my tube of the Jergens Naturals ultra hydrating hand cream to the very last drop. They have a few different versions but I picked up this one as I have very dry hands - probably a lot to do with the hand sanitisers I use all the time

This stuff its lovely to apply and had a light watery/creamy consistency. It absorbs into the skin quickly and leaves no horrible greasy residue and leaves a very delicate fresh scent. I for one cant stand when a hand cream leaves you feeling like you have dunked your hand into a tub of butter and smelling like you have doused your hands in perfume.

I will defiantly pick up another tube of this and would really recommend it for anyone with very dry hands like me

A little Love
Emma xo

Foundation reviews

Image courtesy of Google images

Hello!

I thought I might start a new series of posts about foundations. They are the base to your whole makeup look and getting this part right can make all the difference to it.

My plan is to take a foundation, test it out for a week and then feedback on my experience with it. I'll take photos of it freshly applied and then after a day of wear so you can see how it looks on the skin and how it lasts.

I have a lot of foundations in my collection already so I have plenty to report on

At the moment I am trying out Garnier's new BB cream in the Oily/Combination version

Ill report back next week on my findings

A little love
Emma xo

I'm on twitter!

Hello,

Just a quick post to say that you can follow me on twitter.

I'm fairly new to the whole tweeting thing so if you have any recommendations or you want me to follow you just let me know in the comments below!

my twitter name is @wee_emzzy






Hope everyone is having a good weekend!

A little love
Emma xo

Girl crushing

Girl crushing sounds a bit Hulk-ish but I'm actually referring to my appreciation of other females. Like so many of us, I have a crush and Shenae Grimes is my ultimate!



Image courtesy of Google Images



I love her casual style and take a lot of inspiration from her looks when I style myself. I'm only 5 foot 3 and as she is also teeny tiny, I find a lot of things that she wears I can pull off too. I love Milly mackintosh from made in Chelsea and her style is impeccable but I could never pull off half the stuff she wears. I reckon I would only just come up to the top of those long amazing pins of hers.

Back to Shenae....

I also love her hair... in fact... I want I want!! I love a lose relaxed looking wave and shes always rocking that. She always has a gorgeous colour to her hair too.

Image courtesy of Google images

She now has her very own fashion blog which she features OOTD's wish lists and more which you can check out here: http://officialshenaegrimes.com/
Now I can take my girl crushing to another level! (not Hulk smash)

So what Girl Crushes do you have?

A little Love
Emma xo

My le guide sante experience and review

 

 

 

I hope you all enjoyed my skincare regime post and hopefully you found it useful. I did mention a couple of tims that I had recently placed an order for a few bits with le guide sante. As I was just finishing the post the buzzer went and there was my order! I thought I would share my experience with you as I have never heard much about it anywhere. I don't even remember how I managed to stumble across it myself actually! anyway....

 

 

So le gude sante is kinda like a french pharmacy online. You can find products like Bioderma, Vichy, Caudalie, Nuxe , Le Roche posay and many more. If you are a fan of french skincare this would be the place for you! The prices are much cheaper than I have seen anywhere else and they also sell herbal and organic produce, massage oils, and even things for pets - if that's your thang!

 

 

I picked up two bottles of the Bioderma crealine water for £14:06 and a mini 100ml bottle for travelling for £3.12. I paid £15.95 for just one 500ml bottle one eBay so I'm getting twice as much for that here. Ive seen the 100ml bottles for as much as £8. I decided to go for a 100ml bottle of the Caudalie beauty elixir for £22.12 which I can never find cheaper that £29 pounds anywhere else. There were so many products I wanted and I piled in my basket high at first, but thought I should go canny for my fist order.

 

 

I went for the basic shipping option which cost £6.81 and this got my parcel to me in 4 days. Amazing! I was able to track my parcel and I don't know about you but I really love to be able to do this. My items arrived neatly packed and I even received a free sample of nuxe body oil! a wee brucy bonus there! they also do a points system where you collect points with every order and can use them to get free products. I have 20 which will only get me plasters at the mo... I think ill save for something more exciting.

 

Ill defiantly be back on the website again as they really were amazing! With such a wide variety of products, fab prices, top service and super fast delivery... what more could a beauty junkie want!

 

Check it out here - http://www.leguidesante.co.uk/

 

A little love

Emmax

 

 

Skincare regime - combo skin

I have been working on trying to get a skincare regime I was happy with for ages and I think I'm almost there so I thought it would be a good time to share it with you. My skin is defiantly difficult! It gets very dry but I also fine it to get a bit oily at times too. Its very sensitive and I break out loads too. You don't get more combo than that! If you have skin anything like mine then you will know the struggle it is to find products that solve these problems. Anything you use to combat the dryness seems to cause spots and anything that you used to fight spots drys out the skin more and irritates it... geeees!

OK so after much playing about, I have found these little beauts have been working a bit of magic for me.

Cleansers

First is my Bioderma crealine micellar water. I gave into the hype and picked a bottle of this of eBay and I'm glad i did! I had been using face wipes to remove my makeup but they are just so harsh on the skin. Micellar waters intrigued me as i wanted something that would remove makeup quickly and easily but was also very gentle.  this stuff  really dose feel like water and takes off all my makeup without any irritation. I just soak a few Cotton pads in the stuff and sweep it all over the face and bam! done! The eBay i got it from has stopped selling it but there are many others selling there. I have just ran out so have just ordered a few bottles from Le guide sante.Ill let you know how that goes as they are much cheaper to buy there.http://www.leguidesante.co.uk/

Next I like a deep cleanse, and for this I use my Liz Earle hot cloth cleanser. Boy is this stuff is delish! its so rich and creamy and a dream to rub into the skin. I actually look forward to using it at the end of the day. It has a very spa like sent, it reminds me of the smell of a stem room if that makes any sense?? This gets rid of any last bit of grime (yuk) on my face and leaves it so soft. I got mine from John Lewis and it cost about 15 pounds for the 100ml bottle and some cloths http://www.johnlewis.com/147598/Product.aspx

Scrub

I have gone away from using exfoliating washes as I get I gentle exfoliating effect from my hot cloth cleanse. There are times, especially in the winter, where my skin get a bit dull and flaky and so I turn to my Ginvera marvel gel. Its a really interesting product, you massage it into your skin and after a few moments you can feel all these little bits forming and that's the dead skin coming away! I know it sound scary and a bit yuk but its not at all, it has never once made my skin sore or irritated. Its the best thing I have ever tried for getting rid of flaky skin and it makes it brighter looking too. It cost me £19 from eBay but you can get it from cult beauty too. It may seem steep but this bottle has lasted me over a year and a half so its well worth the money.

Treatments

I picked up the witch hazel night treatment gel from Boots at Christmas time and an now onto my second tube. It Helps calm my skin when I'm having a breakout with out drying the area out. I just pop it on after cleansing at night time and I always find any redness reduced by morning. I use this on the areas i ten to get spots on as a preventative measure and I find that it stops any bumps that form turning into full blown angry spots. its only 2.99 from boots. bargain!

The Caudalie beauty elixir is another one that has been doing the rounds in the blog-osphere. I wanted to try it as I claims to do so much and when you are in a bad skin rut that is just the kind of product that calls out to you... buy me buy me!

Its hard to put my finger on it, but its doing something! Just like the witch hazel gel I feel it keeps my spots from coming to surface and its lovely and refreshing. At around £9 a pop for a 30ml bottle its certainly not cheap! I added a bottle of this to my le guide sante order too as it was a lot cheaper there. I might have a scout for some cheaper alternatives but for the moment its a must for me.

In a extreme spot scenario ill reach for my panoxly gel to clear things up. I have been reaching for this much less often these days as  I think the other products are working at preventing these situations. I  have the 2,5% version but you can get versions up to 10%. This is very strong and does really dry out the skin so you have to be very careful when using it and not use too much. It does help clear my skin quicker but does make my skin a bit red and sore after. you can get this from the pharmacy counter and its only a few pounds.

Moisturiser and Toner

At the moment I have been using Oilatum natrual skin repair cream and I cant imagine using anything else. It moisturises my dry skin without being greasy and helps heal up my skin where I have marks from acne. I really love this stuff and I get mine from Salisbury's for around 6 pounds but you can get its readily available in many stores. I also love the Boots No7 soft and soothed toner. I have been using this for a while now and it does exactly what it says on the tin! I use it after cleansing and it gets rid of every last bit of cleanser and leaves my skin lovely and soft. Its 8 pounds at boots but I always stock up when Boots have their No7 5 pound off offer. 

Eyes and Lips

I have been using this vitamin E  eye cream from boots but to be honest, I'm not sure its doing much? i really want to find a nice moisturising eye cream so any recommendations would be welcome! at them moment I'm going to try use this up. For my lips I love my ELF therapeutic lip balm which only cost me 1:50 from their website here http://www.eyeslipsface.co.uk/product~prodID~24.htm.
I only use this at night as its very thing and buttery but my lips always feel lovely and soft in the morning. I do also like my Elizabeth Arden 8 hour cream for dry skin and my lips but I have just ran out. boo!

So that it! have you tried any of these? what products have you been using and loving lately?


A little love
Emma x

Setting sprays

Vitamin E and Vitamin C face mists

Hello! its been a very very VERY long time since I did a post! terrible! Anyway.....

I thought I would do a little review on these two beauties that I have resently purchased. I took full advantage of the 3 for 2 offer the bodyshop had on skincare this month, and picked up these and a moisturiser.

I have been wanting to try a setting spray for suuuuuch a long time as I hate the cakey dry look I get with powder. I really cant go without setting my makeup as my skin gets quite oily and my makeup ends up going all patchy. Yuck! Corrie at http://www.dizzybrunette3.com/ always raves about the Bodyshop Vitamin E spray, and how it helps keep here makeup in place for the day, so I decided I would give it a go.

I am loving this stuff! It really does help keep my makeup in place and makes my skin look lovely and dewy. I spray it after I have finished applying my makeup in the morning and then spray it on my face for a refresher if I need it throughout the day. I feels lovely and cooling on my skin too which is nice. I was a bit worried my sensitive skin would take a horrible reaction to this as it has a light scent but I have has no problems with it

The Vitamin C spray is reccomended for Dull skin and is supposed to give your skin a 'pick me up'. Now to be honest I feel the first spray does that for me anyway and this one has been stinging my face slightly (damm my sensitive face) I think someone with normal skin would have no problem with this though!

I did try the ELF setting spray but really didnt enjoy it. I wanted to take a photo to add in this post but I couldnt find the bottle anywhere. It had a such an odd smell and it really really stunk my face. I found that it did help set my makeup but made my skin look really dry.

I hope this has been of help and I would really reccomend trying a setting spray if you are wanting to get away from powders.

A little love

Emma xo