Shoe Zone Shoes

Growing up, Shoe Zone was the place my family would go to for school shoes and trainers. I don't go in there as often these days, but I decided to have a browse whilst my mum was buying some shoes for my dad. I ended up buying two pairs of black dolly shoes, which will be great for when I wear black tights or want to dress more formal. The first pair were £9.99 and the second pair were £12.99. They also had quite a few other black dolly shoe designs, so I would definitely recommend Shoe Zone if you're on the look out for a pair :)

H&M perfumes

Whilst shopping in H&M today, I came across these perfumes. They smell delicious and are only £3.99 each, so I just had to share them with you! I don't know what notes they have, because they don't come with a description, but I'll try my best to describe them for you. Wildwood Flower is comforting to me, so I'm sure it has some vanilla notes in there. I also think it has some woody undertones (I'm probably getting that from the name!). Rising Sun is a lot more Summery, having a sweet, citrus scent to it. It reminds me of grapefruit. I find that some citrusy perfumes can smell too alcoholic, but this one doesn't. These perfumes come in cheap, plastic boxes, so I threw them away. 50ml of great smelling perfume (or eau de toilette, to be precise) for £3.99 - What's not to love?!

Nails of the Week

*short nails alert*

Natural light

Flash

Barry M Indigo and Deborah Lippmann Razzle Dazzle

I'm sorry for the messy application, but I just wanted to show you this pretty combination. Barry M Indigo is one of my all time favourite nail polishes. With Deborah Lippmann Razzle Dazzle applied over it, it reminds me of a galaxy (far, far away...). It's dark and very appropriate for the gloomy weather we've been having!

Enjoy your Sunday!

Lush Vanilla Puff Dusting Powder

Puddin' investigating Vanilla Puff

Price: £4.50

Vanilla Puff is my new favourite product from Lush. Although the bottle looks small, it contains a lot of product and will last you ages. It's vanilla scented, so of course I was going to like it! It's a 'grown up' vanilla, though, and isn't too sweet. I use this for many purposes: on my skin to make it soft and scented, on my duvet and pillows to make them smell comforting as I drift off to sleep, and as a dry shampoo. The powder is very fine, so doesn't leave you with grey hair! Lush actually have a dry shampoo, called No Drought, but I'm happy with this for the time being. Vanilla Puff holds the same amount of product as Batiste's Nude dry shampoo, so if you like that, but would prefer a scented version, this is the product for you. I've also heard of people sprinkling this on their carpets, like Shake 'n' Vac, and then hoovering it up, leaving their home smelling divine.

This bottle is going to last me a while, so I think the price is great.

Have you tried Lush's Dusting Powders? I've got my eye on Silky Underwear now. Also, have you tried their No Drought dry shampoo? The scent sounds delicious!

April 2012 GlossyBox

I haven't posted about GlossyBox in a while because I haven't thought much of the boxes, but I quite like this month's, so thought I'd talk about it! Apart from the odd box, I think sample boxes are a waste of money. Being sent the occasional box (including this one) has not changed my opinions at all, hence why I haven't promoted them for a few months. However, I think April's box is that rare one I would actually pay for.

I adore this month's packaging, which compliments the natural theme of the box well. The serum smells nice, like fresh, sweetened roses. The eyeliner is... black - I don't know what else to say about it! I'm glad there's a shower gel in the box because they're one of the few products I actually end up using from sample boxes! I received the tea tree and peppermint one, which smells very refreshing. The Figs & Rouge Rambling Rose balm actually came in some cardboard packaging, but I opened it before taking the photos. I think Rambling Rose smells like turkish delight. It has a similar scent to The Body Shop's Vitamin E range. The scent reminds me of my dad, and is very comforting :) When I saw the perfume sample, I thought: 'Not another one. I probably won't like the scent because I'm not fond of natural smelling perfumes'. Surprisingly, I really like it! I cannot describe it well, so I'm going to throw some words at you! Light, fresh, natural and sweet.

I will definitely be using the shower gel, balm and perfume. I'll probably use the serum, but just to use it up more than anything. I don't wear black eyeliner, but I'm sure my mum won't mind taking it off my hands :)

Outfit of the Day - Dorothy Perkins and Topshop sale items

Sequin daisy jumper - Dorothy Perkins

Blue knitted cardigan - Topshop

Dark blue skinny jeans - New Look

Navy plimsolls - New Look

I like pairing this jumper with bright blue cardigans. Daisies remind me of blue skies, bright green grass and happy times :) The jumper was £12 down from £23. I ordered it in sizes 8 and 12, so I could see which one fitted me better and then return the other. They're definitely on the large side, so I kept the 8. The Topshop cardigan was £10 down from £40 (£9 with student discount). I'm not a huge fan of Topshop. I think a lot of their items are ugly and overpriced. I like this cardigan, though, and it was cheaper than similar cardigans I've seen in H&M, and even Primark (Primark knitwear seems to have increased in price). 

Time to get back to my assignment! I hope you're enjoying your Sunday.

Outfit of the Day

White long sleeved top - H&M

Dusky pink scarf - Tesco

Indigo skinny jeans - Primark

Brown ankle boots - Office

My camera cannot handle dim lighting, so apologies for the quality of the photos! I'm not showing you swatches or anything though, so I don't think it matters too much.

The top is quite thick and great quality; I'm definitely going to buy more! Especially considering they're only £7.99. A scarf can make a simple outfit look a lot less boring. Seeing as most of my outfits are boring, I'm on the look out for more! Over this outfit, I wore my khaki green coat, which is from Asda.

Enjoy the rest of your day!

Louise xo

Pixi and NYX treats! Swatches and First Impressions

Pixi Endless Silky Eye Pen in Cafe Gold, Pixi Lid Last Shadow Pen in Mocha Mauve, NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream in Milan and NYX Rouge Cream Blush in Glow (I couldn't resist swatching it before I took the photos!).

Swatches in same order as above. Natural light.

Swatches in same order as above. Direct sunlight.

Look what arrived in the post today!

I was interested in buying some Pixi products, and when a handful of them went in the ASOS sale, I couldn't resist! The Endless Silky Eye Pen in Cafe Gold was £6.50 down from £11 and the Lid Last Shadow Pen in Mocha Mauve was £6.50 down from £12. I couldn't find any swatches online, but gambled and ordered them anyway. Thankfully, that gamble paid off! Both of them are insanely creamy and pigmented, and do not budge once dry! I'm already looking at the other shades they have to offer. Also, how beautiful is the packaging?!

I ordered the NYX products from this eBay seller, who I've ordered from four times now and couldn't recommend enough! I paid around £13 for both products, including P&P from America. I think that's pretty good! I love lip creams, so I knew I would love Milan. I also already love the cream blush. It's very creamy and blends like a dream. So far, I like it more than my Topshop one. Because the Topshop one is a cream-powder blush, I find it harder to blend. In the photos, Glow looks quite orangey because it is next to Milan, which is a cool toned pink. Glow is definitely more pink when on its own. A warm pink, but a pink nonetheless.

I will be reviewing each of these products in detail soon, so keep an eye out for those!

I hope you're having a good day,

Louise xo

Office boots

These are my new boots. I was eyeing them up for a while, and when size sevens came back in stock and I found a free delivery code, I couldn't resist. They were £50, down from £80, which is ridiculous! In fact, that's the most I've ever spent on a single item (I still live at home with my parents, so I have yet to make a big 'grown up' purchase). However, *cue the excuses* I live in boots, it's rare for me to find a pair I actually like, and I had the money. I only have a few pairs of shoes, and I live in Britain, so these are going to get worn a lot. The toes are more pointy than the boots I've worn in the past, but I'll get used to them. They also came in a box; fancy!

After I took the photos of the boots, I took a few photos of Jessie, and just had to show you this one. I don't know what the fascination is, but a photo of an animal yawning (or in this case, talking) is a golden shot, in my eyes!

(A not so) Wordless Wednesday

I didn't think a picture with words in it was a true Wordless Wednesday, so I altered the title :) What procrastination stage am I at right now? 4/5. I've been procrastinating for a week, and I hate myself for it! Time to start writing this assignment...

ELF purchases

It's a typical British day today, in terms of weather, so the lighting in every room of my house is terrible. I had to go outside and freeze my bottom off to take these photos!

Mechanical Eyelash Curlers £1.50, Studio Powder Brush £3.50, Studio Complexion Brush £3.50

All of these are repurchases. I use them every single day and just love them. Every one of my ELF orders have included these brushes!

Mineral Booster in Sheer £3.50, Studio Eyebrow Kit in Medium £3.50

The Eyebrow Kit is also a repurchase and a staple in my routine. I wanted the large Mineral Booster (you get 17.8g for £5!), but it was out of stock, so I settled with the smaller pot. I just needed a new powder that would control my shine.

Mineral Moisturising Lip Tints in (top to bottom) Berry and Blush £3.50 each

I wear lip stains, matte lip creams and tinted lip balms, so was intrigued by these. So far, I like them. You only get 2.8g of product though. The price is not an excuse for this because Natural Collection lipsticks are £1.99 and you get a considerable amount of product.

Mineral Moisturising Lip Tint in Pink, Brightening Eye Colour in Teal Dream, Mineral Bamboo Lip Brush 

If you spent over £10, you received a Mystery Bag worth at least £10. I'm glad I received another Mineral Moisturising Lip Tint, and it wasn't a shade I already had! The eyeshadow quad is... meh. I'm giving it to my mum because I rarely wear eyeshadow, and if I do, it's of a taupe shade. I don't use lip brushes, so I'm going to see what else I can use the brush for.

Mineral Moisturising Lip Tints in Pink, Blush and Berry

Here are some arm swatches of the Mineral Moisturising Lip Tints. I will be reviewing these properly and will include lip swatches. The Pink shade appears quite orange here, but it's definitely more pink on your lips.

The trouble with having a lot of animals is that they can get in the way when you're taking product photos! This little monkey would not stop wiggling his bum and pouncing on the products. Also, one of my dogs wanted to play and kept dumping her toys on the wall.

Lush purchases

Squeaky Green shampoo bar £5 - I won my local Lush's Facebook competition, so I was allowed to choose a shampoo bar for free. Initially, the competition was to win a henna block, so I told them I didn't want a prize because I wouldn't use it, and just wanted to guess the figure they were after. They then said I could choose a shampoo bar instead, which was very nice of them. I've wanted to try one of their shampoo bars for a while. I was going to go with Seanik, but I didn't know if the salt would be too harsh on my hair, so settled with this one. It is made with freshly cut nettles, rosemary, and peppermint herbs, so no wonder it smells so fresh.

You've Been Mangoed bath melt £2.95 - I don't have baths, but I do like to soak my feet, and I think bath melts will make them incredibly soft. Because a foot soak doesn't require much water, I'm going to cut this in to 4 chunks. It smells amazing! I wish Lush would bring out more mango scented products... and lime ones, mmm.

Melting Marshmallow Moment £3.75 - This bath melt is more expensive because it's a lot bigger (100g!). I'm going to divide it in to about 6 chunks. Imagine the sweetest, girliest scent you can - This is that scent.

Vanilla Puff dusting powder £4.50 - The bottle looks very small, but it holds a lot of product, so this should last me ages. I wear vanilla perfume, so I think a sprinkle of this on my skin will compliment it well. I'm also going to use it as a dry shampoo.

My Each Peach massage bar also arrived from eBay, and I love it. It smells like sherbet. It retails for £5.25, but because of the £5 eBay voucher code that was going around the internet a few weeks ago, I only paid 75p, including delivery (technically, I didn't pay anything because I used my dad's account, hehe). I've been using it on my elbows and knees, and it works a treat!