Spring/Summer Beauty and Skincare Superdrug Haul

Hey Sweeties,

I haven’t done a beauty/skincare haul in forever, I’ve run out of things, sure, but those items haven’t really been repurchased in bulk…. until now. I’d run out of serum, concealer, micellar water, my favourite Stila mascara had dried up, so it was time to get my act together and hit up Superdrug. Usually I would go to Boots, but Superdrug had a couple of offers on that made it more worthwhile to do a little bit of a haul there for a change. So here is what I got… some repurchases and a couple of new treats… and something for my husband (the razors FYI).

My Spring/Summer Beauty & Skincare Superdrug haul-

Superdrug Haul

Garnier Micellar Water

A staple in my evening skincare routine, I use it to remove eye makeup before using the Soap & Glory Peaches n’ Clean 3-in-1 Purifying Cleanser or The Body Shop Camomile Cleansing Butter, to remove the rest of my makeup. I’ve reviewed this product here previously.

Garnier Summer Body Moisturising Lotion

Confession: I have NEVER used fake tan, had a spray tan, or used a sun bed. Why? Because I don’t have a problem being a little pale sometimes and to be honest, when the sun is out it doesn’t take me too long to catch some colour. However, following a gloomy winter and not getting a chance to catch any pre-honeymoon sunshine, I fancied giving this gradual tan moisturiser a go.

As first impressions go, it has scored incredibly highly -it smells lovely, easy to apply, absorbs/dries quickly and results can be seen quickly. So far, I would definitely recommend it to others.

Maybelline Lash Sensational Mascara, Intense Black

As I mentioned at the beginning of this post, my favourite mascara to date is the Huge Extreme Lash mascara from Stila (review here) which if you like big thick lashes, you must check it out. However, it is £18 (prices may vary) and sometimes I just can’t spend that on a mascara and this is one of those times. In these situations, I return to the high street’s best mascara -the Maybelline Lash Sensational and I like it in ‘intense black’. Does anyone hate this mascara? I don’t think so.

Superdrug Haul

Superdrug Haul

Oral-B Precision Clean Heads

I purchased an electric toothbrush a couple of years ago but for whatever reason, it until recently remained untouched in its box. I was about to look into selling it on but decided to use it instead and oh my word, why didn’t I use it sooner?! As an ex-dental nurse, I know first-hand that a simple manual toothbrush works perfectly fine, but an electric toothbrush achieves a deeper, stronger clean and arguably can enable better oral health. I purchased some replacement heads so that my husband can use the brush too, and that we have some spare for the cupboard.

Vitamin E Nourishing Eye Cream

My 30th birthday is now on the horizon and with that I know that my skincare needs to be upped to ensure my skin is looked after and get what it needs. One of those steps I recognise I should look into introducing into my routine is an eye cream. I thought I would give this very affordable product a go and so far, so good.

Simply Pure Hydrating Serum

I love serums and I really hate being without one in my skincare routine. I have tried a few so far over the last couple of years and this one I heard beauty journalist, Sali Hughes recommend. It’s an incredibly affordable product (less than £3, I’m not lying!) so I thought I would give it a go myself. So far, it just proves that you don’t need to always spend a lot to get/find good quality skincare.

Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer 

I am sure I have spoken about this product before on here in previous beauty hauls and posts. This is a great concealer and one I just always have in my drawer available to use. I have also recently been using the Bourjouis Radiance Reveal concealer which I will also repurchase when I run out.

 

What are your must have skincare and beauty products? And do you prefer Boots or Superdrug?

Until next time x

Rimmel, Collection, Maybelline, Batiste & L’Oreal Beauty Haul

Hey Sweeties,

So someone has been a bit spendy lately and I wish I could say it was just on beauty bits.. (cough, fashion haul coming soon, cough!), so I thought I would show you my latest purchases; some of which are repurchases as well as some completely new ones.

Boots beauty haul

L-R: L’Oreal True Match foundation in C2, Rose Vanilla; Collection Lasting Perfection concealer in shade 2, cool medium; Rimmel Lasting Finish primer; Rimmel London Lasting Finish by Kate lipstick, shade 45; Maybelline Lash Sensational mascara; Baptiste dry shampoo in Oriental; and finally (right at the top) Revlon highlighting palette in 020, Rose Glow.  View Full Post

Drugstore Beauty Haul

Beauty haul

Hey Sweeties,

So I have made a few little cheeky purchases lately, mostly beauty but a bit of fashion too and I know how much we all love these kind of posts and videos (not on here necessarily, I mean in the blogosphere more broadly!). My last haul was in January which I filmed -possibly not very successfully- so I thought I would keep this one strictly to text and photographs. Also, rather than have a super long post involving everything, I figured it would make more sense to split this haul into two posts.

So let’s begin: Beauty

Beauty haul

From left – right:

Soap & Glory Peaches and Clean 3-in-one Deep Purifying Cleanser

I have a review of this cleanser going up on the blog next week which explains in more depth why this landed in my basket as I have yet to try anything from Soap & Glory. Without giving anymore away, you’ll have to wait until next week! 

Rimmel Brow This Way in dark brown

My brows are a bit unruly at the moment which I am sure I have made no secret of, but while they could do with some professional maintenance, they aren’t so bad they need it yet I don’t think and with a good application of pencil, I am doing alright at disguising this. I have been meaning to get a brow gel for a while and I have been seeking out a cheaper alternative to Benefit’s Gimme Brow. In a recent haul post from another Blogger, Rimmel’s Brow This Way was mentioned and the review wasn’t bad so I thought I would give this one a shot. I’ll let you know how I get on! Anyone else tried this?

Collection Lasting Perfection concealer in 03 warm medium

This is a repurchase and I don’t think I need to explain why! It’s quite simply one of -if not the best- high street/drugstore concealer on the market.

Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvet in 05 Ole Flamingo

I love these lipsticks from Bourjois, so much so that I just had to add this one to my collection which now stands at four, the other three being; Happy Nude Year, Nude-ist and Frambourjois. I have spoken about them on here before but not all together as they have each been purchased at different times, so I may do a post involving them all, if for no other reason than for a single referal point going forward.

Autograph Pure Luxe Multi-Blusher

Autograph blusher

I have had a voucher for M&S for a while but it has taken me ages to find anything I like in store and it was only the other day while mooching in Windsor that I stumbled upon their beauty section. This blusher caught my eye for it’s pretty flower embossing and a quick swatch suggested it was definitely worth a punt. However, had I not had a voucher, I might not have been so keen to spend £12.50 of my own cash on it without being sure it was worth it. So we’ll see, I’ll let you know in due course!

Rimmel Lasting Finish 25hr Foundation in 100 Ivory

Again, a re-purchase. My existing review of this product can be found here.

Maybelline Baby Skin Instant Pore Eraser

Something else I have been waiting to try for a while as although I have no doubt it’s not the best out there, I’ve not actually heard a bad review. I think this usually retails for around £7-8.00 but while in Asda last week they were doing a deal on their Maybelline products which meant I snapped this up for a cool £5! Currently I switch between sample sized tubes of Benefit’s Porefessional Primer and Smashbox’s Photo Finish Primer.

Primer is one of those products that are hit and miss across the beauty world with as many people insisting a primer forms part of their base, whereas others never touch the stuff. For me, I have just got into the habit of wearing primer and I do think it makes a difference. However, I struggle to justify spending a lot of money on primer so I have high hopes for Maybelline’s doing the job for the long term.

Sleek blush By 3 palette in Pink Lemonade

Sleek Pink Lemonade

One drugstore brand to never underestimate or easily dismiss is Sleek, their products are not only very affordable, they are also good quality and well pigmented. Not that I really need any more blushers (said no woman ever) but this palette caught my eye and it involves two powder and one cream blush. Very pretty! I can’t wait to share a more in depth review of this palette in a future post with you guys!
The second part of my haul (fashion purchases) will be posted in a week or two, so stay tuned Sweeties!

Until next time x

Recent Beauty Purchases

Blogmas day 3

Hey Sweeties,

I thought I would share with you today a few recent beauty purchases.

*FYI I have now put a ban on buying anything until after Christmas but there were a couple of things I just couldn’t resist…and also needed…

Anyway.

Beauty Haul

Firstly I ventured into Superdrug. This isn’t really my go to place for cosmetics anymore but from time to time they will have a deal on that’s worth investigating but more so lately, I have been stalking the place to see if I can get my hands on the October/November issue of Superdrug’s Dare magazine with Zoella on the cover. I failed at this. Slough didn’t have it and the staff in Windsor had never heard of it… Wow. Anyway, I picked up a replacement Rimmel Bronzer in 022 Sun Bronze as although I said to myself I can wait to repurchase it… I basically can’t as although I have other bronzers in my collection; this is my favourite and the one I use every day. So a new one was a must! I also picked up another Collection Match Perfection Concealer in no. 3 warm medium (which I forgot to add in the photo, silly me).

For something new I finally have succumbed to the Maybelline Babylips range and plumped for the lip balm in Peach Kiss. On a future date I will also eventually try their primer –anyone else tried this or anything else from Babylips?

Secondly (on a different day) I went to my old haunt, Boots. Man that place is as good as any Santa’s Grotto in my view as it is filled to the brim with temptation and pretty things… minus the dodgy looking geezer in a red suit asking us to sit on his lap!

Two things that went straight into my basket were replacement products I had run out of, the first being Burt’s Bees Lip Balm with pomegranate oil. Since purchasing this last year I have loved it from the word go and I apply it first thing in the morning when I wake up and sometimes last thing at night if my lips feel particularly dry. I have also been enjoying the Burt’s Bees cream cleanser lately, you can read that review here.

Now, my regular readers will be well informed that this year I have tried a few different foundations to prolong the repurchasing of L’Oreal’s True Match foundation and until the weekend I was doing fantastically…Until I saw on my Boots app an offer for £2 off the product so of course I jumped at it. Some of you may frown at my lack of self-control but despite loving this foundation, having now explored the market more this year it’s now not the only one I love so I think I am now perfectly in my right to bring this back into the mix. I bought this product in the shade C2 Vanilla Rose.

For another new purchase, I then bought the Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvet 09 Happy Nude Year. I was resisting these for as long as I could but then I watched one of Vivianna Does Makeup videos and she had both reviewed and was wearing this one (I think) and that made up my mind for me really, I had to try it for myself! A full review of this product will be posted up here soon.

These next two products are also new and come from TK MAXX of all places which -if you can find a couple of good, well stocked stores- are well worth a rummage around in as there really are some bargain finds to be had. On this particular day I came across Rituals Natural Eyebrow Pencil in shade Brunette, and their Matt Finish Foundation in shade 1. I pondered about these two products for ages to be honest but I am still really keen to be giving new things a go so after a while of picking up and putting down again, I did eventually take them both to the checkout. Again, once I have given these a good test I will also post a review up on here.

I would love to say that is everything and it is… except that yesterday I treated myself to the Glamour Party Beauty Edit box from Latest In Beauty.com so stay tuned on here to see what’s inside once it arrives!

So I will just reiterate -more for myself than anything else- that I am now on a spending ban until after Christmas!

Until tomorrow x

Recent Beauty Faves

Hey Sweeties,

It seems routine that all beauty bloggers, aspiring beauty bloggers and people that are just generally interested in beauty, on a monthly or at least regular basis post about their beauty favourites of that past month or of recent times. So why not join in eh?

This past month one of my favourite beauty products has been Maybelline’s Super Stay 24H Waterproof Powder (40 Fawn) which isn’t as exciting as some mascara’s and lip products I have been using, but from having quite low expectations when I bought it, I have been thoroughly impressed with the powder of which I am keen to rave.

2014-05-07 06.45.46 For years I have been using Mac’s Mineralize Skin Finish (medium) and until recently never thought to try anything else. I was looking to replace my Mac powder with something lighter on the skin, less matte looking and more purse friendly. Also just for the sake of exploring a bit of what’s out there and not just sticking to what I know, I needed change! On my new face powder mission I expected to leave the shop with a product from the Rimmel collection after hearing so much about them but actually, just by doing a quick in store test I wasn’t convinced it was the product for me which is how I stumbled upon Maybelline’s Super Stay 24h powder.

Powder sizedThe packaging doesn’t scream “buy me” but for £6.99 it was worth a punt and I am so pleased I did. It’s light and smooth on the skin and although I debated shades ‘nude’ or ‘fawn’ (I eventually settled with fawn), it works fantastically with my skin tone and lasts all day. It’s one of my favourite beauty products at the moment on the basis that it was such a surprise to so love using it and actually, because I found it by myself without direction or influence from another blogger/ beauty review assuming that because they like it I would.

The second beauty item I am really enjoying at the moment is the Bourjois Beauty’ Full volume black khôl mascara which I got as part of a gift set with my Company magazine subscription.

Mascara sizedI was a bit unsure before using it as the applicator didn’t fill me with confidence that it would apply all that nicely but actually, really rather impressed! My usual mascara of choice (as you have no doubt seen) is Maybelline’s the Falsies volum’ Express, black drama and/or Benefit’s They’re Real. I like thick, black lashes and it has been a real mission finding the mascara’s to achieve this on the high street but I think between these three I am pretty much there!

Mascara & applicator sizedI was a bit fearful that the Bourjois mascara would be a bit pricey (by ‘pricey’ I mean over £10) but when I was last in Boots I had a quick look and was pleased to see it can be purchased for the purse friendly amount of £7.99! Of course for the right item I will spend more but while I am on such a tight spending limit with anything right now, price really does play a large part in my product selection, especially if I am trying something new. I also feel that the high-street has so much to offer that unless the product really is truly and utterly fantastic, quality products can be purchased for under a tenner each and there’s no need to spend more.

Until next time x

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