Bourjois Volumizer Mascara

Hello!

Happy Sunday to you all, hopefully you are not feeling too hungover...which I'm assuming me and m probably will be!
We were out last night and planned on going to a few 'dirtier' places and who knows how the night would have turned out!

This week we have a review for you on the Bourjois Ultra Black Volumizer Mascara.
M had this sent to her and I picked it up in another Boots deals...so of course we decided to do a joint post.

This mascara is one I've never seen before, its a double wand effect.
This baffled me and I swiftly took it apart to see if it had two compartments and how it works.

The top brush (No.1) is lightly loaded for defined volume.

No.2 is a fully loaded brush with up to 11x more volume with a guaranteed no clumps claim....promising.

What actually happens is when you use No.1 the brush is fed through a smaller tube and therefore more mascara is removed from the brush for a lighter look. For No.2 the brush is more fully loaded and therefore increases the effects on the lashes.

The brush for No.1 is shown below, its a pretty standard mascara brush and to be honest I didn't have high hopes for it. It's got a tapered end which I quite like and isn't loaded with too much mascara:

My photos were taken on my phone so they're a bit poor, but you can get the general idea from them.

Below is one coat of the No.1:



I was really surprised, I instantly loved it. My lashes were more defined and lovely and feathery. They barely looked like they had any product on them at all and looked so natural, it's the perfect work mascara!

No.2 can be seen below, this is the fully loaded brush for 11x more volume:

You can see above the brush has a lot more product loaded onto it and so would expect this to clump the lashes as it is a ridiculous amount!

However you can see how it looks on my lashes below:



A lot more product, more definition, more volume but no clumps!

I'm actually a little bit amazed at the effects and how little clumps there are. This has been a great surprise for me and I'd even buy it again.

It retails somewhere around £10.99....if the Boots website would actually load I'd be able to give a definitive answer but unfortunately it won't...again.

L xxx

When I first tried this mascara I wasn't convinced. I loved step 1 for a first coat but found step 2 just clumped my lashes so it ended up sat in my make up bag for a while.

After L picked it up I was reminded of it. I tried it out again and ended up loving it. I think it was one of those mascaras that gets better after it's been open for a bit.

Step 1 perfectly separates and lengthens the lashes the internal structure removes most of the product from the wand so anyone that's a fan of natural lashes will love this. step 2 adds volume to the lashes. I've found other mascaras like this I've tried just didn't work but after giving this one a second chance I love it.

It lashes all day without flaking and doesn't transfer to under eye concealer which I keep find happens lately.

Have you tired this mascara? How have you found 2 step ones?

Love M

xxx

   

Essie's After School Boy Blazer

Hello there!

I'm quite excited about this post as it's another tick in my checklist to own all of Essie's Winter Collection 2013.
I've previously posted about Vested Interest and Cashmere Bathrobe which I loved and now I'm here to tell you my thoughts on 'After School Boy Blazer'.

As soon as I saw this one I knew I had to pick it up but I just couldnt find it anywhere - everyone clearly had the same idea! I trawled all of Cardiff stores multiple times, the internet and also 4 separate stores in London within a 2 hour walking spree and still couldn't find it.
I'd given up all hope until I went in by chance not even looking for it and there it was! Along with the gorgeous deep red of Twin Sweater Set, but that's another post....

This colour is absolutely beautiful. It's a super dark blue/black. The photos do not do it justice whatsoever and it's hard to describe which means I'm in a bit of a pickle trying to explain this!

The photos were taken after 2 coats of polish and one of top coat without flash (above) and with (below). You can see how SUPER shiny the polish shows up and I was given many compliments when wearing it.

It's such a chic alternative to black as you can definitely tell it's not black but it's so dark it could be.



As always with Essie products the application was easy with their awesome brushes, I find that they can fill most of my nails with one swipe which makes life easy and 2 with my thumb nails.

The colour almost looks to me like it's part of a beetle; it's so dark and shiny and almost looks black but has that blue/purple/green tinge that so many of them have, this one obviously being blue.

I don't think I need to waffle on for much longer - this polish is a clear hit with me!

Have you been stocking up on the new Essie Winter Collection? Which is your favourite?

Don't forget to come back and see the next polish from the collection!

L xxx

Review: Vichy Dermablend Foundation

Hello!

I've got a foundation review for you here which has been a long time coming.

I bought this foundation a fair few months ago.....probably last Christmas!

It was a favourite of mine for a while but then got lost in the contents of my make up collection. I'm happy to say I've found it again and have been loving using it.

Vichy;s Dermablend foundation is a favourite of lots of bloggers and has a bit of a cult following.

As a foundation produced by a skincare company you'd be correct in thinking that this is a foundation that has a great bare skin feel with lots of good qualities.

Dermablend is a Fluid Corrective Foundation that lasts for 16 hours with high coverage and a matte finish. Not only all of this it's also suitable for sensitive skin, is non comedogenic, hypoallergenic and paraben free with SPF 35 just to put the cherry on the top of the cake!

My colour was the lightest shade, Opal 15.

I did worry that this would be too light on some occasions as for once it actually is a really pale shade which should make us British pasty girls rejoice! 

The packaging is quite simple and the tube is sturdy enough to stand on its own and allows the product to drain to the bottom which lots of bottle foundations tend to have a problem with.

So what is it like on the skin? Here's a super close up of my forehead so you can see how natural it is:

How much does that look like it's my skin?! I totally wish it was the case, but seeing as its not at least I know I can apply this foundation and hope for the best!

I love how blemish free my complexion is and it's blended in so easily it's like a second skin.

As for my face as a whole, this is with the foundation applied to my entire face with a Real Techniques Buffing Brush and no other make up:

It's hard to keep describing how much I love this foundation, but it truly is a second skin that makes your own complexion just look better. It's pretty effortless to apply and lasts for a long time on your face without slipping, I do get a shiny t-zone but I do with every product so this isn't a surprise.

What do you think of the Vichy Dermablend Foundation? Have you tried it? Will you be snapping it up?

I'm so glad I've found this in time for winter when my skin is definitely paler than it was in the summer months, and if not, it blends perfectly with other foundations to achieve your ideal colour.

L xxx

Benefit's Love Me B.right Christmas Set

Hi all!!

I'm sure you've all seen them by now, but Benefit have got some absolute corker of a Christmas collection this year.
Not only are they collections of their amazing top products but they're all in amazing collectable tins!

Obviously I want them all, in fact NEED them all.
I'm slowly making my way through them all and might have to get another as next months pay day treat....naughty!

My first purchase was made at the brand new Benefit Carnaby Street store, when we had an amazing day in London and popped in for a browse and tour from the lovely Alyson Rowe. (Post is here if you'd like a read!)

As soon as I saw the tins lined up on the counter I had to snap one up. At the time they were only available in the Carnaby Street store so I couldn't resist an exclusive buy...obviously!

I've tried many of Benefit's products, but by no means all of them and the one that stuck out to me from the collection was the Love Me B.right tin, as it contains skincare.

I was yet to try any skincare products from Benefit and the box is a lovely turquoise colour that would go in my room, essentially this one was sold the second I saw it!

I love the details on the tins, not only are the faces pretty funky but the words printed on top in gold are lush!

This collection contains 4 skincare products; Triple Performing Facial Emulsion, It's Potent! Eye Cream, Total Moisture Facial Cream and of course a mini sample of their infamous Porefessional primer. 

I've been using these for the past couple of weeks so have finally got around to writing my review. Here is what I think of them:

The Triple Performing Facial Emulsion is a full size moisturiser which is oil free and contains SPF 15.
This has been the moisturiser I've used in the morning and evening for the past few weeks, it sinks in quite easily and feels light on the skin.
My skin is combination so this was a relief as I didn't want it to upset the oily t-zone I have and give my face extra shine.

It has also hydrated the drier areas of skin I have on the sides of my face which is the perfect combination for me. The fact it contains SPF is also a great addition, I've started applying it separately in the morning which can be a pain when you're in a rush.

It's Potent Eye Cream is also another full size product in the set. It contains a peptide complex to restore elasticity and firmness, botanical extracts to boost collagen and protect skin from free radical damage.

The cream is very thick and feels luxurious on the skin, my eyes are something I need to be very careful with so this was a massive positive for me. My eyes are so sensitive and I didn't react to it at all.

The skin around my eyes was very hydrated as the cream sank in quickly. A tiny amount is enough to cover your whole eye area so I imagine this pot will last for a long time as there's 14g in it.

I really enjoyed using this product as it was a lovely surprise to realise how much my skin loved it too.

The Total Moisture Facial Cream is a large sample size of a thick hydrating cream. This product is much thicker than the Facial Emulsion and I've been applying this at night as an extra boost of moisture for my skin.

It's definitely thicker than the Facial Emulsion and is also more hydrating. This has been a treat for my skin in the nights when the weather has been colder and my skin drier as a result. I can imagine me using this a lot over the winter months and my skin is thanking me for it! However I cannot use this too often as it is significantly thicker and therefore may overload the oily areas of my skin.

The Porefessional primer sample is a nice touch, and I've already said previously that I'm a big fan of it and was gutted when it ran out recently!
This was a great collection though a few more samples of the other skincare products might have been more relevant, as I know they also do a facial wash and toner which would have been nice to try altogether.

What do you think of the Love Me B.right collection? Will you be snapping it up?

Have you picked up any others yet?

Let me know and send me your links! I'd love to see your reviews on them :)

L xxx