Christmas Sale Purchases and More

I went shopping today! I felt like I hadn't been in ages, but it was probably just a few weeks. It was so quiet it town, considering the Christmas sales started yesterday. In fact, it was quieter than it normally is throughout the year! There was no one in Lush and there were no queues in Primark - Shocker! I'm always quite level headed when it comes to shopping, and the Christmas sales are no different. I feel so guilty at the thought of wasting money (so I try to justify everything haha). Quite a few of the items you see below are for birthdays, Mother's Day, even next Christmas! Here we go...

 

Of course Lush was on the agenda. They didn't have any of the Christmas bath bombs though, so I'm not sure what's going on there. They had loads of everything else. Anyway, I bought my first bottle of Snow Fairy shower gel for £3.12 (the prices I'm giving are after the 50% discount), 2 Magic Wand bubble bars which were around £2.50 each (these are for birthdays!), a Rocket bubble bar for £2.50ish (which smells like Parma Violets! I wish I bought another one now), a Santa's Sack bubble bar for £2.09ish and a 200g chunk of Mr Punch soap for £3.75. Once I got home, the Mr Punch soap smelt different to me, so I'm going to try and swap or sell it. 

I then went to The Body Shop. I think this was the first time I've bought stuff in store. I normally buy online because of all the amazing discount codes. I was buying my mum a bottle of the Vineyard Peach shower gel, which was half price at £2, and once I smelt it, I had to buy a bottle for myself. It smells delicious! The Ice Blue shampoo, Cranberry shower gel and Cranberry hand cream were also down to £2 and I bought them for my dad for his birthday. The Cranberry products... oh my. They smell good enough to eat. I may have to keep them!

 

I'm always underwhelmed by Boots' Christmas sale. I know people love it for the Soap & Glory products, but I've never tried or been interested in them. I do love Boots Extracts though, and thought this mango gift set was a bargain at just £5. One Christmas present for 2013 down ;)

 

I can't go shopping without visiting Primark. These two items were not in the sale, but they were cheap anyway. The large cosmetics bag was £4 and the slippers were £3. I also bought a pair of ugly moccasin slippers because I knew they were going to be super comfy. They also have a rubber sole, meaning they won't get disgustingly dirty on the bottom!

 

I spent a small fortune in H&M. I don't regret it though because they're items I always wear. The pink, mint green and yellow garments are cardigans and were £9.99 each. I think I have every colour of their cardigans now! The lilac garment is a lightweight jumper and was £14.99, which is pricey for what it is, but I bought it in the heat of the moment! The teal and black tops are scoop necked and long sleeved, and cost £7.99 each. Again, I have a variety of colours of these and wear them most days. The quality of them is amazing and they last so well.

 

After my sister and I got back from town, our dad informed us that he was going to Tesco. I couldn't pass up a trip to Tesco. I found these boots for just £15, and they weren't even in the sale. I love them. I really hope they last. My other boots from Tesco didn't last very long, but that's because the soles weren't durable. These soles are rubber and chunky, so finger's crossed!

 

I've also bought a couple things from the online sales, and they're all things I've had my eye on for months. The coat is from New Look and was £35 down from £55. I wanted a more formal coat, so I'm hoping this is nice enough to keep. From Superdrug, I bought the Remington Pearl hair dryer, which was £24.99 down from £38. I rarely blow dry my hair, but I do blow dry my dogs after I've bathed them, and a hair dryer is always useful to have. The one I currently use is really old and I'm always scared it's going to explode because it has sparked a couple of times! I chose the Remington Pearl one because I have the Remington Pearl straighteners and the Remington Pearl conical wand, and love them both. To receive free delivery, you needed to spend over £25, so I added a little chocolate truffle to my basket which cost 29p haha

This bedding was the first thing I bought in the sales. It's from BHS and cost £22.50, down from £45. It's not to everyone's taste and I'll admit that it's quite garish and in your face, but I'm drawn to it! I was looking at it months before the sales, so I think it was meant to be. If the design gets too much for me, I can flip it over and have a simple, floral pattern :) I also found a £5 off code which worked on sale items. To redeem it, you had to spend at least £25, so I also bought a mug.

I would love to see what you've bought in the sales, so link me up!

My Current, Daily Beauty Routine (Morning)

Good evening, everyone! Here are the products I am currently using every morning. They are mostly make-up items because I shower and use my body products in the evenings. A post for my evening beauty routine will be up shortly.

Before I apply my make-up, I quickly wipe my face with a facial wipe to get rid of any excess oil and then use a light moisturiser. I'm currently using the Nelsons Pure & Clear Purifying Daily Facial Wipes* (Boots, £5.49) and Nelsons Pure & Clear Balancing Moisturiser* (Boots, £8.49). The moisturiser is light and absorbs into my skin well, which is just what I need before I apply my make-up. The facial wipes have a plastic lid on them - I wish more brands did this! Before I started using the Nelsons products, I was using Skin Therapy's Facial Wipes (Wilkinson, 2 for £1) and The Body Shop's Vitamin E Moisture Cream (The Body Shop, £9).  Once I've finished using my current face wipes, I'm going to buy a big packet of baby wipes because you get more for your money.

Once my moisturiser has sunk in, I apply my Collection 2000 Lasting Perfection Concealer (Boots, £4.19) to any blemishes. Before applying it around my eyes, I use Witch's Anti Blemish Skin Clearing Primer (It's not showing up on Boots' or Superdrug's websites, but I know they stock it. I think it's around £5) because I have oily eyelids. I also sometimes use ELF's Eyelid Primer (ELF, £1.50). My skin normally looks quite even by this stage, so I just use ELF's Mineral Booster (ELF, £5) to keep any shine at bay. I then use my trusty ELF Studio Eyebrow Kit in Medium (ELF, £3.75) (Review can be found here) to fill in my eyebrows.

Blusher is one of the only products that I change daily. Above is some of my most used. At the back, you have Sleek's Pixie Pink, Flamingo and Rose Gold (Superdrug, £4.49), Natural Collection's Pink Cloud and Peach Melba (Boots, £1.99), 17's First Kiss (Boots, £3.49), Revlon's PhotoReady Cream Blush in Flushed (Boots, £5.99) and NYX's Cream Blush in Glow (Joy017, £6-7, including P&P). As you can see, most of them are warm toned. They look the most natural with my freckles and ginger hair.

For months and months now, I've lined my eyes with NYX's Jumbo Eye Pencil in Iced Mocha (Joy017, £4-5, including P&P) (Review can be found here). Recently, I've been using the NARS Larger Than Life Long-Wear Eyeliner in Campo de' Fiori* (NARS, £17), which is a beautiful gold. It is strongly pigmented and lasts for hours. This is great for someone like me who cannot be bothered to touch up my make-up throughout the day. I then curl my lashes with ELF's Eyelash Curlers (ELF, £1.50) and use Maybelline's One by One Mascara (Boots, £8.49). I've repurchased this mascara so many times. It has a plastic brush, so I was sceptical at first, but I was pleasantly surprised and haven't looked back since. I love it because it separates every last eyelash, making them look natural. If I want to wear an eyeshadow, I've recently been opting for Maybelline's 24HR Colour Tattoo Gel Cream Eyeshadow in On and On Bronze (Boots, £4.99), and if I want to use a liquid eyeliner, I've been using Collection 2000's Extreme 24 Hour Felt Tip Liner in Black (Boots, £2.99). Both the eyeshadow and felt tip liner do not budge once dry - I love them.

NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil in Iced mocha, NARS Larger Than Life Long-Wear Eyeliner in Campo de' Fiori and Maybelline 24HR Colour Tattoo Gel Cream Eyeshadow in On and On Bronze

Like the rest of my make-up, I like my lip products to be fuss free and last most of the day. The shades I've been wearing the most are Collection 2000's Cream Puff Moisturising Lip Creams in Fairy Cake and Cotton Candy (Boots, £2.99) (Review can be found here), NYX's Soft Matte Lip Cream in Milan (Joy017, £5-6, including P&P) and Revlon's Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in Sweetheart. Sweetheart is not available in the UK, but you can buy other shades in Superdrug and Boots for £5.99 at the moment (Normally £7.99). The Balm Stain is quite bright, so I like to sheer it out with my finger.

Collection 2000 Cream Puff Moisturising Lip Cream in Fairy Cake, Collection 2000 Cream Puff Moisturising Lip Cream in Cotton Candy, NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream in Milan and Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in Sweetheart

That's it for my make-up! I'm left with a natural look. The brushes I use are by ELF Studio and Ecotools.

I don't use any products on my hair in the mornings. I just straighten or curl my hair using my Remington Pearl appliances. The Remington Pearl Curling Wand (Review can be found here) makes the curls in your hair last for days, so I don't need to use any hairspray to keep them in place.

And that's me ready for the day! Holy Moly, this post is long. It's because of the make-up products. My evening routine post shouldn't be as long!

*PR samples

Remington Pearl Curling Wand

Price: £25.49 from Boots

I've had this curling wand for over a year and a half, so thought it was about time I reviewed it!

I absolutely love it. I love the packaging, the digital display, the temperature it heats up to, the amount of time it takes for it to heat up, the auto shut off, the pouch and glove that come with it, the curls it produces and the length of time the curls stay in for.

It produces the most amazing curls. They look much more natural than the curls you get with a normal barrel curling tong, and that is because of the decreasing size of the wand. The curls really are long lasting. After 24 hours, they are still in tact.

My hair tends to slip towards the end of the curling wand, which is annoying, but I think it's just the way I curl my hair.

You can curl different sized sections of hair to create an effortless look, you can curl large sections of hair to create a natural look, or you can curl the same amount of hair each time to create a neat, structured look (I did this on my sister's hair for her prom last year).

Here is the result of quickly curling different sized sections of hair:

And here is what it looked like 24 hours after curling. The curls have dropped, but are still in shape:

I love this curling wand and would definitely recommend it!

Oops! I did it again...

Yes, I did just quote a Britney song. It popped into my head and I just couldn't shake it! At least it's more interesting than 'recent purchases'...

As the title suggests, I did it again. 'It' being spending money. Hehe.

Primark:

Winter socks (pack of two) £2.50, knee high owl socks £2

Oh how I love Primark socks...

Long sleeved pj top £5

Pj bottoms £5 and £3

New Look:

Suede desert boots £23.99 (£29.99 before student discount)

White string vest £2.49, teal vest £3.99

'Shell pink' loose boxy t-shirt £7.99

I attempted to take a photo of me wearing this, but the photos didn't do it justice! The back has a sheer panel (which you can see near the tag).

Republic:

Soul Cal deluxe hoodie £24 (£30 before student discount)

John Lewis:

Remington Pearl straighteners £39.95

I have wanted these for agessss! I wanted them even more after buying the curling wand from this range, which is amazing. The original price of these is £80-90. Boots currently have them on offer for £56 and I was going to buy them from there, but thankfully I saw them on the John Lewis site for a lot less!

Here is a rubbish webcam photo of my hair this morning, after using the straighteners:

Topshop:

Cream blush in High Five £5.40 (£6 before student discount)

I'm not a fan of Topshop. I think many of their items are ugly and overpriced. However, I've wanted one of their blushes for ages. High Five hasn't been talked about much because Head Over Heels has been receiving most of the attention. So far, I really like it. It's very pigmented, so I have to use a light hand when applying! One thing I don't like about this product is the white packaging. It's already filthy!

ASOS:

Barry M Nail Paints in Pink Flamingo and Berry Ice Cream £1.80 each in the sale

I've previously owned Pink Flamingo, but I made the mistake of letting my sister borrow it. She used it so much that I was left with half a bottle of gloopy polish. I've wanted to try Berry Ice Cream for a while, so this was the perfect time to do so.

eBay:

My Blue Nose Friends- Thomas the Hippo and Twiggy the Giraffe.

I've wanted these for ages, but they're no longer sold in stores and are rare to find. The ones you do find are going for stupid prices on eBay. Thankfully, I didn't pay too much over the retail price for these.

I've also ordered some other bits and bobs from eBay, but they're coming from Hong Kong and won't be here just yet!

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September Favourites

I really should just call these posts 'New products I've tried and liked in *insert month here*' because if I did show you my favourites, you would be reading the same post each month! I rarely change my routine.

I would just like to say that I am sorry for the photo below. My camera is getting worse (or my expectations for quality are getting higher). I wasn't going to write this post, but I really wanted to blog, so I'm putting up with the photo.

Also, I haven't included a swatch of the blush or lipstick because of how rubbish the photos were, but I will be reviewing each of them soon, where I will include some :)

Remington Pearl curling wand- £25.49 from Boots (review coming soon)

This should actually be in my 'Favourite products of 2011' post. It's amazing. I curled my hair with it about a week ago (without hairspray. I never use it) and two days later, the curls were still in. The packaging is also very pretty.

Original Source Vanilla Milk and Raspberry shower gel- £1 when on offer (which is regularly), £2ish when not, from Superdrug, Boots and most supermarkets.

I love Original Source shower gels. I always use their Lime one and it's super duper yummy (very informative, I know). This one is just as delicious and smells of Strawberries & Cream sweets. I picked this up in Asda a couple weeks ago but when I was there last night, I couldn't find it. I really, really hope it hasn't been discontinued.

Accessorize With-Love Merged Blush in Starlet- £5-6 from Accessorize or Superdrug.

I added this to my virtual basket when Accessorize had an online (and in-store) sale. The main reason I bought it was because it was £2.50. I didn't actually think I'd get much use out of it. However, I have! The pigmentation is average, which can be built up, and it gives you a nice glow.

Maybelline The One by One Volum' Express mascara- £8.49 from Boots (review coming soon)

I won this from a Womans Own magazine competition and my first thought was 'Ahh a plastic brush'. I am not (well, wasn't) a fan of plastic brushes because years ago, I tried one that was awful. Plastic brushes have developed since then and this mascara has converted me. The one rule I have with mascara is that it must not clump. At all. I've seen some mascara reviews where girls say 'it doesn't clump' and when I look at the photo, I think their lashes look clumpy. This mascara coats your lashes One by One (shocker!). I love Maybelline's Colossal and Falsies mascaras, and this one joins the list.

17 Mirror Shine lipstick in Belle- £4.89 from Boots (review coming soon)

I'm not a lipstick wearer. In fact, I don't wear any kind of lip product regularly. A bit of lip balm here, some lip stain there, but that's all. So the fact that I've wore this out of the house a few times is amazing. It's a natural, 'my lips but better' shade and feels like a balm on. Sorry I don't have any swatches to show you today, but I will try and write the review as soon as possible.

My favourite shop of the month is... New Look!

This month, I've bought two pairs of jeans, four vests, a pair of heels (and soon to be a pair of boots) from them. All basics, but that's all I wear. I do think some of their jumpers and cardigans are over priced, but their shoes are reasonable (and loved by many), as well as their other basic items.

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Shop and Schwarzkopf got2b prizes

Accessorize:

Underwear - £3.50

Hot air balloon necklace - £6

Blush in Starlet - £2.50

Stickers - 87p each

Accessorize currently have a 50% off sale, both online and in store. I ordered the above online and would have bought so much more, but a lot was out of stock. I really like the underwear! I can see some people hating them, but ah well! I've been thinking about buying the blush for a while so when I saw that it was half price, I popped it in my basket. I think it's on sale because they have new blushes and bronzers coming out, including duos. I love Accessorize stickers! I have a few other packs in adorable designs. I've had one on my phone for a year & a half and it's still going strong!

I went in store today and my store had tons of half price goodies, but nothing caught my eye.

Boots:

Remington Pearl curling wand - £25.99

I wanted some new curling tongs and was asking people on Twitter about the Babyliss conical wands. Many liked them but in the end I decided to go with the Remington Pearl ones. I like the brand and have heard great things about the Pearl range (I really want the straighteners!). These also come with a heat protective glove. I'm going to use them on my sister's hair for her prom on Thursday, so will show you the results!

Thorntons:

Lenny Lamb chocolate - £3.50 each

Chocolate truffle bar - 75p

I won a competition Glamour held on Twitter and the prize was a load of Schwarzkopf got2b products. Because they were late sending the prizes out, I was allowed to choose a LIVE hair dye. I chose Cyber Purple because my mum dyes her hair that colour. They're also sending me a Powder'ful, which didn't arrive with the rest of the products because of short supply. If you would like a review of anything, let me know!

Oh and, sorry the photos are shoddy! I don't know what is up with my camera these days!

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