NOTD: Essie's Winter Collection 2012

I wrote a few weeks back how i had a ridiculous Essie splurge and picked up the Winter Collection from Boots.

This collection box only had 3 polishes from the 2012 set which doesn't seem to be available anywhere else nor in the original store where I got it from.

However if you did want to pick up a similar one ASOS have a set with 4 of the colours in including the following 3 for £12.95 in their sale, woo!

I am assuming the collection is called 'Leading Lady' as one of the polishes is and i am in love with the quote from the back of the box:

Too true Essie, too true!

I also love the names of these polishes, shown in the picture below:

I won't waffle on too much and please excuse some of the messy nail applications!

I painted my nails various times over the past few weeks since having them and was almost always in a rush.

Beyond Cozy:

This beauty is a combo of gold and silver which is my ultimate nail polish for a night out, as you literally cannot do wrong.

This was opaque in 2 coats, lasted really well with a top coat and got me a hefty load of compliments.

You can see in the photos the variation of colour where the flash has hit the glitter, but this is beeeeeeeeeautiful in day and night. 

Big fan!

Snap Happy:

Again this was 2 coats and a really good consistency to cover.

I love red nails and this one is no exception, an orangey 'plastic' red as I like to describe it, it would go with most skin tones.

This was a beautiful polish also but not a lot different to any other year round collection, having said that everyone needs a red like this!

Leading Lady:

This beauty is what i was really looking forward to getting my hands on.

It's a beautiful jelly polish with glitter in and the colour is just gorgeous!

I really did like this one though it would take 3 coats for an even consistency of packed glitter (which is the look i like) and then a few coats to make the top coat smooth as the glitter is quite chunky.

(The photos show 2 coats)

Having said that the results are worth it and I had so many people ask me where it was from it is probably the reason there are none left in Boots haha.

Definitely love this too!

Basically aside from wanting to show you how amazing these colours come out I wanted to make you all buy the collection from ASOS...

For £12.95 you can pick up these 3 plus another polish in a mint green colour called 'Where's My Chaffeur?' and i think this is SO worth the money!

The red and gold can be used all day every day and for weekends and nights out also, and the jelly glitter is just a beautiful colour that will mesmerize you as it did me.

What do you think of these colours? Are you loving them too?? Have you picked them up in the sale??

Essie just go up in my estimations every time!

If you wouldn't buy this for yourself it would make the perfect gift for any female in your life :)

L xxx

New Year's Resolutions

I know it's already the 4th of January but it has taken me a little while to think up some resolutions this year.

Last year's resolutions were to successfully go to the gym, lose weight, tone up and eat healthily, as well as pass uni and graduate.

I completed all of these which was a massive shock to me as I am massively partial to food and not the gym, however once I got into it I couldn't quite stop! The endorphins obviously got to me and I loved the feeling.

To top off my year the perfect thing would have been to get a job, but unfortunately that didn't happen (in my field anyway!).

I did get a Christmas job at Boots and I have been kept on permanently so I am very grateful for that and knowing that I will still have some money coming in and just have to keep my fingers crossed that something more relevant will come up soon.

With regards to this year I have a few aims I would like to share with you and certain tasks I would like to complete.

Firstly of course, I would like to successfully complete the 100 day spending ban that me and M have both begun on the 1st of January. You can read an update on that on Sunday to see how were getting on in our first week!

Secondly I would like to continue my healthy eating and exercising and hopefully manage to get some more regular hours in work making going to classes a little easier. I was going 4/5 times a week and I have been lucky the past 2 months if I went twice! 

This was largely due to late shopping hours but now those are over I'm hoping I won't have any more excuses...

Thirdly I would like to complete more of my 101 Things in 1001 Days challenge which you can access using the page tabs on the right of the web page. 

This includes reading more and completing project 365 which I have begun on my tumblr (let me know if you'd like to follow me or if you're completing the same thing!)

Lastly my biggest resolution for this year is to have fun!

Even though I've had some great nights out with some friends and went to America for 7 weeks, those nights were few and the purpose of my America trip was a university module which took up most of my time over there.

I have completed uni now and should have more free time, all I need is to pay off a few bills and debts from a year without work and then start saving up for the future.

I would love to do more cinema trips, more meals, more day trips (not necessarily shopping!) and an actual holiday would be luscious!

I have lots to look forward to in 2013 including 2 of my friends weddings and a few concerts planned as well as I would love to go to a festival and travel more.

Basically what I'm trying to say is.....

L xxx

Review: Skinetica (Part 2)

Hi all!

This post follows on from my previous post where I showed you all my horrible spotty skin and wrote about the product that was sent to me to try out, Skinetica*.
If you need any details on the product I have previously detailed them all in that post so take a look before reading this one!

You can read it here.

As you can probably tell from how I left that post, the results I have had since using Skinetica have been really positive.
I had had no luck whatsoever with other blemish fighting products that I've used in the past nor tested recently so this was a massive deal for me, especially as I had graduation the week before Christmas and didn't want my skin to look awful nor did I want to look caked in make up!

Sooo. I'm sure what you're most interested in right now is the results!

1 Week:
So after 1 week of using Skinetica the red lumps/cysts had reduced in size and in number.
They weren't as painful as they were and although it's still a task to cover them up, it's not as hard to do when they are smaller and less painful.

The healing time is still painfully long which seems to be why I have lots of red marks covering the majority of my face as they're taking so long to heal.
Skinetica does not help with this, but the amount of new spots and cysts I have been having has decreased.

Due to the nature of Skinetica, you can apply it and once it's dry you can still apply moisturiser and make up as required.
Because of this it meant I could go about my day as usual knowing that Skinetica was working underneath my make up and overnight whilst I slept with my night moisturiser and choice of oil to help with the scarring I was experiencing.

2 Weeks:
After 2 weeks of using Skinetica I was told that applying it without applying products afterwards would increase the effects, much like when using Alpha H Liquid Gold and other similar products.

After finding this out I did stop applying moisturiser in the evenings and noticed an improvement.
However, as my skin is slowly clearing up I am noticing that my t-zone is becoming oilier again and my cheeks/jaw line in need of moisturising so some nights I have had to compromise and apply both! But where I can I don't apply anything extra.

4 Weeks:
After 4 weeks of applying Skinetica my skin has cleared of 'active' spots and now I only have the red marks left behind to contend with.
The pictures do show a difference but as the marks/scars are still there, at a glance it might not look like much.

I can tell you though that having had the huge, painful lumps on my face decrease down to near enough nothing has meant that my skin is much easier to cover with make up and when I have it on you can barely see a thing.

The Proof:
Here are some pictures for you to compare.
I've put the same ones next to each other so you can compare the difference more easily.
The first photos are the original ones from my previous post, the second are after 2 weeks and the last photos (underneath the other 2) were taken yesterday which is after 4 weeks:

You can clearly see the difference between the first and last photos, there aren't any lumps on my face at all and all the spots have dried up.

The main thing you'll be able to notice in all photos is how much better my skin is generally, it is actually glowing which is never something I thought I'd say about my own skin!

M said as soon as she saw the pictures she noticed this which was lovely to know!!

Unfortunately a night out for New Year's Eve has brought me out in a lovely spot in the middle of my cheek, but this has already gone after using the Skinetica on the night after and only the red mark is left behind.

(If only late nights and alcohol didn't bring you out in spots!)

That is another good thing to note about Skinetica, your average white head spots often found on oily t-zones will usually dry up overnight meaning there is no need to pop them yourself!

I know the temptation can get too much and I am one of those people that loves popping them (immense satisfaction!) but the marks left behind are not worth it, plus the risk of bacteria making them worse.

Lastly this is the picture where the difference can be clearly seen and is quite miraculous!!

This area runs along my jaw line under my ear up to my hair line and was the place where most of the lumps appeared initially making them really painful as I could feel them every time I ate or talked....lush.

Now you can see that even the scars have almost healed up and gone!

To Conclude....
It has been a long and slow road to getting my skin to recover as my skin has been like this for a good 6 months now.
Although Skinetica claim that results can be seen in 2-5 days, this sadly wasn't the case for me.

However after 3/4 weeks usage morning and night my skin has improved with visible results and the number of new cysts has reduced to gaining 0 per week which is miraculous!

I for one am super impressed with the results I've had with this and have purchased myself another bottle from their website and it was so easy through paypal with super speedy postage again.
The first bottle lasted for 3/4 weeks with application morning and night.
I was so pleased with the results that I actually got my brother one to try as one of his Christmas presents ha, I'm sure he'll love me for it when the results start coming through though!


The next thing for me to tackle are the scars.

I have a choice of 2 other products which I will now be applying at night time to see if my skin will heal without any permanent marks at all and hopefully without any kind of relapse back into the cysts I was getting before.
At least I know what to use now if they ever come back!

What do you think of the results? Will you be trying Skinetica to get rid of your spots??

I am a number one fan!!

L xxx

Whats on my dressing table

I finally have a dressing table and organised make up, as well as somewhere to sit and do it which is amazing.  When I say dressing table I technically mean desk but it's my beauty area. When I own my own place hopefully I'll be able to have a gorgeous vintage one,  for now I'm over the moon and it beats sitting on a small gap on the floor and having my make up under the bed.

First things first I needed a mirror. Ideally I'd have a big one with lights and attached to the wall but being rented property a free standing one would do. I spotted this one in ikea. It's a great size and I like the metal feet. For £10 it went straight in the bag. Along with fairy lights (which my other half hates and thinks are pointless. He doesn't understand some things are there just for the pretty factor.

Next up was brushes.  My RT ones go in their holders but I needed something else. I originally had them in a cleaned out Yankee Candle jar but it was too big and not organised enough. I spotted this clear stationery organiser in my local staples and as they are closing it was half price and around £3. It's perfect. The Yankee Candle jar now houses my pretty lights.  I want a second set as it looks a little empty.

For my everyday grabbed for items I picked up these cute blue patterned boxes which go with the carpet and curtains perfectly for around the £4 mark from Ikea (I got lots of stuff from ikea. It's perfect for cheap storage). You get four different sized boxes. The largest I used elsewhere and these 3 house my most used items. I will post on these soon. And of course my Naked 2 palette which gets used every day!

Underneath is a box I had a Christmas present in that I thought was too pretty to mot use. I'll find a use for it. And the white bag holds my dirty make up brushes away from site. 

All my perfume and perfume samples also sit on here. I really need to use some up.

Lastly on my desk is my Yankee scented beads in my favourite scent, pink sands. I hope they bring these to the UK they are amazing.  Mine have been open since Mid October and still smell great!

Lastly under my desk is my jewellery which I'm yet to find a home for, my heated rollers which I adore and have reviewed on here before (as I'm Internet less on my laptop still I'll link at a later date but I think it was Feb/March time). The soap and glory bag holds my wand, curling iron and heated air styler.  

I wanted my straighteners and hairdryer easy to get so picked up some command strip hooks. Command strips are great as they stay stuck well and don't mark walls or surfaces when removed correctly.

The gold bag holds all my skincare stuff. Like samples, wipes and cotton pads.

So that's my dressing table. What do you have on yours? What's your must have items?

Love M

Xxx