Little Jewellery Post!

Hi everyone! I hope you all had a fabulous Christmas and got all the beauty and fashion related goodies you wished for :D. I'll probably be posting about some of my gifts at some point, but I wanted to show you some jewellery I've recently brought with my birthday money - my birthday is in December and I spent my money before the sales! As I've been Christmas temping at a jewellery store, I've been buying even more jewellery than before.

I've discovered my favourite semi-precious stone which is sandstone. I currently have a blue sandstone necklace. It's totally gorgeous, the way it's naturally glittery and catches the light perfectly just fascinates me. 

This is a blue sandstone heart pendant and silver chain from Argento. I wear it ever so much! It goes with a lot of outfits I wear and isn't overly dressy. I've had so many compliments on it.

I've also brought a new pandora leather bracelet in pink. I also brought two pandora charms - a sleigh and a carriage. I then brought a Chamilla charm which is thumper from Bambi and two Chamilla locks to stop the charms moving around. It works perfectly. The carriage charm is my favourite! It has gold and a pearl on the top and the detail is amazing, you can see the princess sitting inside the carriage.

Have you invested in any new jewellery recently? Do you have a favourite semi-precious stone?

Becca :) x

Disclosure: I brought all this jewellery myself.

Glossy Box V's Feel Unique Box - December 2011

A good ol' battle of the beauty boxes :). Find out which was my favourite box!

Becca :) x

Disclosure: I brought these boxes myself.

The Sanctuary on Christmas.

The Sanctuary are one of the most famous day spas in the UK. They develop and create their own products, which they use in their spa and also sell in their spas and Boots stores. Around Christmas time they bring out some great Christmas sets, which are sold in Boots on the 3 for 2 offer! Perfect for picking up all your pressies for the women in your family.   

One of the new Sanctuary Christmas sets is the 'Ultimate Facial in a Box'. 

This isn't a brand new concept. The Sanctuary do sell other 'facials in a box' all year around, these cost around £16 and don't contain the extra facial oil and cloth. This set costs £20 and is meant to suit every skin type, although I really wouldn't say that myself. I wouldn't personally use this if I had dry skin due to the drying nature of the mask. The box is a great design, it has a ribbon on the side which you pull and the tray of products slides out, however the products are so difficult to get out the box. The facial is meant to have similar effects to that of having a facial at the Sanctuary, and it's much cheaper! Well worth it if it works, although many people do have facials for the relaxing effects produced by a therapist, which doesn't come in the box.

You don't receive any full size products, however they will all last for a few facials, bar the face mask which is only one sachet. The products are: Hot Cloth Cleanser, Microbrasion Polish, Therapists Secret Oil, Five Minute Thermal Detox Mask, Eye Complex and Stop the Clock Moisturiser.

The first step is the Hot Cloth Cleanser, which is used twice. You rub it in and wash off using the cloth which is provided. It's great for removing make-up and any dirt from the skin. This was my favourite step! Hot Cloth Cleansers always feel so lovely and creamy on the skin.

Then you use the microbrasion polish. It's quite a tough exfoliator, so if your skin doesn't go well with exfoliators I'd miss this step. It really clears out your pores and removes any dirt and make-up that may still be left. My skin was a little red after, but it felt so clean. It also warms slightly as you use it, helping to open pores. I found this a little messy and difficult to remove, but most exfoliators are!

Then you massage the face using the Therapists Secret Oil. This oil is quite difficult to get out the tube, I just banged it on my hand for a while to make it come out! You don't need much though, it's a great quality oil and a little goes far. It's great for brightening the face.

You then apply the mask over the oil. You only get one application of the face mask which is a shame, but I think you can buy more little sachets of it in Boots. It's a warming mask containing charcoal, so is perfect for oily skin as charcoal will absorb excess oil, it's also pretty good for normal skin. The mask only needs to be left on for five minutes which is great, I sometimes get bored when a mask needs to be left on for ages, this is a quick fix mask for busy lifestyles! It leaves the skin feeling lovely and clean.

Next you apply the eye gel and moisturiser. The eye gel made my eyes tingle, which I don't believe is a good sign. This shows your eyes are reacting to the cream, it might have brightened them, but I didn't really like how it did it! The stop the clock moisturiser is great as it contains SPF 15, many companies don't bother with SPF but they should! I was happy using this moisturiser.

Overall, I really enjoyed giving myself a facial with these products. It was great having all the products ready and waiting, and knowing that they would work well together. Perfect for a little pampering time in your own home. If your still wondering what to get your friends for Christmas, nip down to Boots and pick up the 'Facial in a Box' for a wonderful Christmas pamper!

That's me done for Christmas now! I'll be back after Christmas with some great new posts for you all. I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas :D.

Happy Christmas!

As always let me know what you think to The Sanctuary products and Christmas gifts?!

Becca :) x

Disclosure: This gift set is a PR sample. However this in no way sways my opinion towards the positive side. 

Philosophy bring us cosmetic decorations :D

I absolutely love decorating the tree at Christmas time, it really puts me in the festive sprit! We went out and brought our first ever Christmas tree to put in our little flat. I decided to add my own touch by adding a little cosmetic goodness to the tree. This cute little Christmas decoration comes from philosophy, and is sold in Boots for £7. 

The packaging is beautiful, festive packaging with a glittering ginger bread man and a ribbon at the top so you can hang it on your tree. It's quite heavy so I put it at the top of the tree so it didn't break the branch. Inside is a cute little philosophy shower gel, it's a gingerbread scented shower gel. It's only 60mL which isn't much for £7 but philosophy products are expensive and it looks gorgeous on your tree. 

I'm going to wait until Christmas to use this! I think I'll use it on Christmas day. The decorations/shower gels come in two other scents: peppermint bark and snow angel.

What do you think to this decoration? Do you have anything cosmetic on your Christmas tree?

Becca :) x

Disclosure: I brought this myself using my Boots advantage points!

L'Occitane have made my Christmas!

So L'Occitane have brought out so many amazing gifts this Christmas, a stunning new collection and great gift wrapping (see 'here' for more info). However that just isn't enough for L'Occitane. If your a regular reader you'll know by now that I love L'Occitane and I love Christmas, so when this popped into my inbox I was a little too excited.

L'Occitane have created an app, in which you create your own Christmas tree. When you've created your tree they send you a voucher for a free 75mL body lotion which you collect in store. Also people can vote for your tree and you have the chance of winning a L'Occitane gift set! Creating the tree is so much fun too :D. A little bit of fun this Christmas does us all a world of good!

The app is available here - http://uk.loccitane.com/FO/Holiday.aspx?appParams&lang=uk.

PLEASE VOTE FOR MY TREE HERE :D - http://uk.loccitane.com/FO/Holiday.aspx?appParams&lang=uk&source=ShareInApp&source=share#/home/view/50523

Becca :) x

Disclosure: I haven't been asked to write out this. I do want my Christmas tree to look like the one I created though!

Nails Inc bring out more Magnetic Colours!

When Magnetic polish hit the shops around half a year ago now, Nails Inc lead the new craze. With various companies following with their versions. Nails Inc's magnetic family is their best selling range, their original colours being 'Trafalgar Square' a silver colour (my personal favourite :D) and 'Houses of Parliament' a purple colour. Now Nails Inc are expanding this range and bringing out two brand new colours (yay!); 'Whitehall' a teal colour and 'Kensington Palace' a raspberry colour. 

My favourite shade out of the new collection is 'Whitehall', the teal colour. It's such a gorgeous colour and the magnetic effect works so well with it, it's a little bit different to your normal nail polish colours too. 

The nail polish has the magnet on the top of the lid. The magnetic pulls off and then you can unscrew the lid. I recommend that you apply a normal polish before the magnetic to maximise the effect. I've applied a black underneath the magnetic, then you apply one coat of magnetic, let it dry then apply another coat, which you then hold the magnet over. I feel it's much easier to show you how to do this, so here's a video demo of me using the 'Trafalgar Square' the silver magnetic polish. 

So the end effect looks like so. Sorry it's a little messy! I still prefer the silver colour, but I don't think anything will beat the effect that creates. This colour comes very close though, it adds something different to your look.

I have to say, magnetic polish certainly beats the crackle effect for me! The polishes cost £13 each and are available from Nails Inc stockists and http://www.nailsinc.com/.

What do you think to magnetic polish? Do you prefer it too the crackle polish?

Becca :) x

Disclosure: I brought the 'Trafalgar Square' polish featured in the video myself. The 'Whitehall' polish is a PR sample, however this in no way sways my opinion towards the positive side.

L'Oreal + Me = Happiness!

L'Oreal are one of the few make-up companies I haven't really tried much of, I love the mascaras but everything else seems to have escaped my grasp. On a recent trip to Boots, while looking for my new face products, I came across L'Oreal and their 3 for 2 offer. I ended my buying a new primer, powder and blush; everything I needed for a brand new face! 

The one thing I struggle with is shine coming through during the day, so I brought the anti-shine primer (£10.29). The anti-shine primer is a silica based primer, making it perfect for oily/shiny skin. Silica has a mattifying effect, it also fills in pores and fine lines. Resulting in such a flattering effect, it gives the skin a more flawless look, and banishes any shine you may have.

The liquid is clear and spreads well, you won't need to use it all over your face. I normally just apply to my t-zone. This really is the best primer I've used (and trust me, I've tried loads)! I keeps me shine free pretty much all day and creates the perfect base for my powder, it's very quickly become one of my must have products.

I also brought the powder foundation (£8.19). As I have oily skin I often wear powder, alone or on top of liquid foundation. With this one I've been wearing it alone as I don't feel I need anything else with it. It provides a good coverage without feeling too thick on the skin, it does feel a little dry at first, so if you do suffer with dry skin I'd stay away from this product. The powder is called true match, as it adjusts itself to match to your skin tone, creating a natural, flawless look. It also helps to keep my shine at bay. The powder goes so well with the primer, the perfect pair!

Then I decided to pick up the blusher (£7.69) to finish off the 3 for 2 offer. I brought quite a light shade to keep it looking natural as I'm really pale. The blush is also a True Match product, meaning it adjusts to my skin tone really nicely, it leaves such a natural looking glow. As for staying power, it doesn't stay for as long as my Benefit blush but it does go on so nicely with the foundation and primer.

Overall, I love these products. I'll be using the primer and foundation until they run out! The blush I'll use sometimes, but I have gone back to using my Benefit blush when I'm out all day as it just lasts that little bit longer. So happy that Boots has these products on 3 for 2! I'll be trying more of L'Oreal in the future :D. I'm wearing these products in my brand new 'About' photo: 

What do you think to L'Oreal? Have you tried any of their products?

Becca :) x

Disclosure: I brought these products myself. 

Liz Earle and Festive Sparkles

I've probably mentioned this many, many times before. But I LOVE Christmas! My most favourite time of the year. Even with all the uni deadlines, I love the decorations, the festive atmosphere and giving out gifts to friends and family. Christmas always brings sparkle to everyone's life, all the shops in cities cover themselves in sparkle, so there is no harm in covering yourself in a little sparkle too, right?!

A great product for Christmas time is Liz Earle's Sheer Gold Shimmer. I've always loved what Liz Earle stand for, meaning this Christmas time you can feel totally guilt free. Their products aren't tested on animals and come animal ingredient free, the packaging is designed to have as little impact as possible on the environment also all ingredients are safe and never genetically engineered.

This product is a beautiful gold tinted shimmer, with the most gorgeous smell. The first time you open this product the smell is the first thing you notice. It's a refreshing scent, not floral like a lot of Liz Earle products, it has more of a citrus scent. Once you've rubbed the shimmer in the scent is less noticeable, but adds that little something extra. If you like citrus scents (and Christmas!), you'll love this! 

The consistency is just perfect. It's not too watery, so it's not too difficult to control, and not too thick so you don't get shimmer dust absolutely everywhere. You can rub it in easily, and it dries really quickly, leaving a very subtle shimmer and sheen on your skin. Perfect for people that don't want anything too obvious, I rather think I'm past the age of covering myself in glitter (which was also very itchy), this shimmer is more of a shimmer dust than a glitter, so feels so smooth on the skin and you won't notice you have it on until it catches the light so starts to shimmer away.

This product can be used on body and face, so has many, many uses. I've used it to highlight under my eyes a few times and had no problems with it, which is great seeing body products would normally cause my eyes to react. I can't wait to start wearing it on my neck and chest for festive gatherings, the perfect edition to my Christmas make-up!

The Liz Earle Sheer Gold Shimmer costs £9.25 for a 50mL tube from http://uk.lizearle.com/ and Liz Earle stockists - typically John Lewis stores. 

What do you wear during the festive season? Do you have any particular favourites? Will you be trying this product?

Becca :) x

Disclosure: This product is a PR sample, this in no way sways my opinion towards the positive side.