Lately...

Hello!

I just wanted to do a little update on life and tell you what I've been enjoying lately. I haven't done a post like this is ages so please leave me a comment telling me what you have been up to recently and if there are any products you have been particularly taken by! 

I was bought these lovely mint sandals by my boyfriend for my birthday and I think the colour is just beautiful! / Burt's Bees Pomegranate Sugar Scrub / This Disney Wonder Linen Spray is beautiful and steps away from a lot of the conventional scents / I actually don't dread taking my make-up off any more. How I love Bioderma / A While a go Lush stepped into the world of dry shampoo and I'm really liking No Drought! / I'm soverynearly at the end of my Diorskin Forever Compact Foundation and it'll be a sad day when I say goodbye.

£8.99 from Boots

If you saw my birthday post, you'll know that I received this wonderful hand cream as a gift! I have always loved Burt's Bees lip balms but have never ventured further afield with their products since now and I'm so sorry it's taken me so long! This hand cream is lovely and gentle but really hydrating. In the winter I suffer from quite bad (and painful) eczema so I'll defiantly be pulling this one out come October!

£12.99 from Boots

Another birthday gift I've been loving, Burt's Bees Pomegranate Sugar Scrub! Again, completely blown away by this one, I wanted to try and get a good picture of the actual product to show the gorgeous syrupy texture! It's quite difficult not to eat this I'll admit. But if you can fight off the urge, it's incredible on your skin. The sugar is so fine and it really works into your skin to deeply ex-foliate. Just lovely! 

£2.75 from Amazon

My boyfriend and I celebrated our three year anniversary on the 5th August and I couldn't wait to give him this Rob Ryan Card! It pretty much sums our relationship up. 

 

After going back and fourth between Despicable Me 2 and Monsters University, we saw the latter - and I'm so happy we did! Some of the characters were complete comedy gold and after seeing mini Mike at the beginning... I just wanted to squeeze him!

£15 from Waterstones

I picked this Fairytale Food Recipe Book up a few months back but wanted to include it here because I've been really enjoying flicking through the pages and seeing how creative the recipes are. 

What have you been enjoying lately?!

Erin, xx

Lush - Jackie Oates Review

Its taken me a while to get around to reviewing this product, mainly because its taken me a while to get my head around how I feel about it! Firstly I think when buying Jackie Oates, its really important to remember that though it says it can be used as a foundation, this is really down to your personal foundation preferences. The pot says it’s a ‘colour supplement’… along the same lines as a tinted moisturiser, and those who, like myself, prefer full coverage might not get on too well with the product. So I guess that brings me too why I bought it in the first place. I was under no illusions, the sales assistant clarified the finish would be sheer (while I prefer matte) and that the coverage wasn’t great. But I have really pale skin, (I honestly make Casper look tanned), so I struggle to find an exact colour match and most… okay, all of the appeal of Jackie Oates was the colour being a dead ringer for my sheet like complexion.

Before I get going, I just want to say that anyone with oily skin after something quick to put on in the morning - this product isn’t for you. You can put it on, but it’ll come straight back off again. I’d maybe try Benefit’s ’You Rebel’ or Bobbi Brown’s oil free tinted moisturizer for something with a bit more staying power.

First things first, I wasn’t too keen on the packaging and was really unsure how to approach applying it. After toying with the idea of dipping my foundation brush straight in, I decided I wasn’t Vincent Van Gogh and opted for finger application… which I hateeee doing. Though the pot doesn’t seem very hygienic, it’s the perfect size to pop in your bag for touching up throughout the day… and if your planning on wearing this all day, its probably best to take it with you. I found the colour was a 100% colour match for my skin and I really would recommend anyone with dry skin who’s having trouble finding something to suit, give this a try. For me, one of its biggest selling points (aside from the colour) was the oat based formula. A lot of heavy foundations have a tendency to clog up pores and break out oily skin types, but the soothing oats and honey allow the skin to breathe and even improve blemished skin. Another check in the box is being able to mix your own consistency with a moisturiser. Now this is something I haven't really experimented with… mainly because I don’t like tinted moisturisers… or I’ve just never found one I like. There is the possibility that with a really good lightweight liquid based moisturiser this would work for oily skin.

Okay so, in all honesty, the only thing I really liked was the colour. The product is by no means bad, I can think of so many people this would be suited to… I’m just not one of them. :)

4/10

The ins and outs

I actually feel quite out of touch with any new products that have come on the market in the past 2 weeks. I’ve been avoiding visual media recently as a result of Sky Living’s new series of Britain and Irelands Next Top Model. Yes, Elle Macpherson scares the holy hell out of me. Give her a head piece and she could easily pass off as a member of the Borg. So since they seem intent on promoting it in every crevice of media advertising - I have respectfully limited my exposure to it until it dies down. One thing I did do howeveeeer, was visit the new Smashbox counter in Debenhams when I was in Liverpool over the weekend. I honestly felt like an excitable puppy when I got near, my senses heightened, the urge to urinate increased… but all this pointless rambling brings me too…

Whats In:

Smashbox Photofinish Primer - I can’t say that I’m entirely convinced by primers, but after trying Too Faced “Primed and Poreless” (review to come) and seeing the difference it made, I decided to get the photo finish primer. I say “I“, my rather lovely and wonderful boyfriend bought it for me as an early birthday present =]. Even though I haven’t had a chance to give it a fair trail yet, this is staying in for now because its SO good to see Smashbox available in the UK.

Vanillary - I really can’t buy this. I love love LOVE sickly sweet smelling perfumes, but this one is so sweet it would make martians on the moon vomit. I love it.

I make and I sell, Soap.

 …well.. Not quite, but I have been making soap!… and its making the house smell rather spectacular =].

Golf - I’m rubbish. Theres no two ways about it, but I actually really like it. And I like even more, the thought of wearing a golfer hat… with a bobble on top. 

Out:

Dior Nude foundation - In my books, Dior cant put a foot wrong, (mentioning no Galliano shaped disasters). Even though the shades are to dark for my skin its been one of my favourite foundations. So what’s soiled this beautiful relationship? That god damn pump. The third time really isn’t a charm, I don’t know whether its meant to be a clever new mechanism that alerts you when your half way through or their just having a laugh, but £30 on a foundation… I really want to use the whole thing - not just half 

Shake it all about:

I am aware, at this point in the year, how wrong it is to say, I cant wait till Christmas. This is prompted mainly by the fact that my colossal sized Snow Fairy from lush ran out the other day. Devastated? Yes. Where else am I going to find a Calpol smelling shower gel.