Empties: August

Hi everyone,

So here I am again with this month's empties. Not too many this month as I have a few products that I'm still trying to use up, so should have plenty next month! Anyway, let's get on with it!!

Cutex Nourishing Nail Polish Remover

This has fast become one of my favourite nailo polish removers as it doesn't dry out my hands or nails. My nails have been a lot less flaky as well since I've been using this although it says it has a nail whitening formula which I didn't notice at all. All in all, does it's job with a little extra and I'll definitely be repurchasing.

The White Company Verveine Orange & Lemon Hand Wash

I was bought this originally as a gift and I loved it so much that I repurchased it and am very sad that I've used it all up. It smells absolutely gorgeous, more lemon than orange but still very citrussy and fresh. Leaves my hands feeling quite soft as well - I'll be repurchasing this, it's lovely!

Vie Honey Bath Treat

This is another of the products I have purchased from my many Vie at Home parties that has now gone into liquidisation. This is a lovely bubble bath that comes with a cute little honey spoon thingy (if you know what that's called - let me know!!). Its a lovely bubble bath that is really thick and luxurious and smells like.... honey!! It lathers up really nicely as well and it's just a real treat to use this product. I'm sad now as it's discontinued, booooo! Otherwise I would definitely re-purchase.

Natural Collection Wild Strawberry Bath Cream

You can tell I've been loving my baths this month as this is another bubble bath! I think most of us have used the Natural Collection range at one point of another so I won't go into too much detail other than to say that it lathers up really nicely and the smell is much less that fake strawberry smell you usually get and much more natural, it smells gorgeous - yummy! A definite repurchase although I may go for one of their other scents, not decided yet!

Icare Eye Make-up Remover Pads

These are a little gem that I found in Poundland, but I know that they sell them in Bodycare as well. They are perfect for using to remove those last scraps of eye make-up if you're cleanser has missed anything. I also use them for repairing my make-up if I go wrong, which I normally do - I get mascara under my bottom lashes all the time - so annoying!! I got two packs of these for £1 so an absolute bargain and think I've repurchased them around 3-4 times now. Definitely worth checking them out!

The Very Hungry Caterpillar Tissues

These aren't an 'empty' as such (although it is empty!) I just thought they were so cute and had to show you! I got a multipack of around 8 packs of these so still have plenty more - they're adorable!!!

So that's it for this month, very short and sweet!

What's been your favourite product of the month?

Lotsa Love
Lullahblog xx

Mini Haul: Accessories

Hi everyone,

Hope you're all well.

So I have done a little bit of jewellery shopping lately and thought I would share my purchases with you.

The first item I got is this owl necklace.

I have seen quite a lot of people raving about this style of necklace online over the last few months and I just think it's really pretty so treated myself to one. It's a bronze colour and has quite a long chain, although I don't think you can tell on this picture (really need a new camera!!).

The next item I got was this bracelet.

It's silver with large black 'pearls' and it's the elasticated type so just slips on and off. I thought I could dress this up or down and wear it with a lot of outfits that I already have.

Lastly, I got this bracelet...

This is another item that I have seen raved about online so I thought "why not?".

This is my favourite item, it's just so funky and cool!! It came in either this gun metal colour or in silver and I'm glad I went for this colour. It's elasticated so just slips on. Can't wait to wear this out!!

So that's it! Just a couple of pieces to add to my jewellery collection. I'm so happy with them and may even purchase a few more bits when I next go shopping.

What do you think? What's your favourite item of jewellery that you wear all the time?

Lotsa love
Lullahblog xx

NOTD

Hi everyone,

Hope you're all well.

My nail of the day is the gorgeous Maybelline Ultra Lasting nail varnish in Deep Red. It's exactly as described, a lovely deep red colour. This is one of the first nail varnishes I ever bought back in the day and it's still going strong!

It's got quite a long brush and that, combined with the formula, helps the varnish to go on super easily and I can do my nails from start to finish in about 5 mins!

It dries really quickly as well into a beautiful glossy red.

Hope you enjoyed this quick post!

Don't forget to check out my blog sale!

Lotsa love
Lullahblog xx

Review: Collection 2000 Skyscraper Mascara

Hi everyone,

Hope you're all well.

After giving both the waterproof and non-waterproof versions of this mascara a thorough testing, I thought I'd let you know what I think.

Overall, they are both amazing mascaras. The wand is one of those rubbery-type ones with spikes which are long on one side and short on the other like this...

I used the short side to really get into the roots of my lashes and then the long side to really get the product through my lashes and it was great for really brushing them through and minimising clumping. The short side of the wand was absolutely amazing for applying the product to the bottom lashes. Seriously fantastic wand - look how long my bottom lashes look!!!

Also, the wand is really flexible so can really move around when you're applying and coats every single lash.

The product itself wasn't too clumpy but certainly wasn't dry, it was just in the middle (perfect for my liking!). The packaging claims to lengthen and define lashes and as you can see in the pic below, it certainly does...

Here's my before and after pictures...

Before

After

As you can see from the before picture, my lashes are naturally quite fair (and imvisible!) although they are quite long and this mascara just makes them look fantastic without me having to apply several coats (I have only one coat on, on the above picture).

There isn't really any difference between the waterproof and non-waterproof versions (apart from the obvious!), although the non-waterproof version claims to be 'Ultra Black' which I didn't notice at all on my eyes and only noticed when I was looking at the packaging before typing this review!!. I started off using the waterproof one and while I loved it, it just would not budge while it was on. I washed my face with my Freederm face wash and used a cloth on my eyes which usually removes any excess mascara. I then used my Bioderma on a cotton pad to remove the mascara that was left and I STILL woke up the next morning with panda eyes!! I just found it impossible to remove it all. With the non-waterproof version however, it came off easily with face wash but at the end of the day I didn't have any mascara under my eyes or notice it running when it rained (and let's face it, we've definitely had rain!!).

All in all, I adore this mascara and have been choosing it over higher end brands such as Mac, CK, Stila etc that I have in my collection. I just love the look it gives my lashes and I will definitely repurchase.

I'm not sure how much these mascaras usually are as I picked them both up in Poundland, although I have seen them still on the Collection 2000 stands in Boots and Superdrug.

I have to say (again!) that I am so impressed with the Collection 2000 brand as a whole and in particular the Lasting Perfection range. I have the foundation, concealer and pressed powder and I have to say, they are pretty amazing! Definitely worth a look next time you're in Boots!
Hope this was useful for you - what's your favourite drugstore mascara?

Lotsa love
Lullahblog xx

Review: Olay Ultra Moisture In-Shower Body Lotion

Hi everyone!

Hope you're all well.

Today I'm going to talk about the Olay Ultra Moisture In-Shower Body Lotion which, if you read my last Haul post, I picked up in Poundland on a total whim because I thought it looked interesting.

Turns out it IS interesting..!

I am absolutely terrible at applying moisturiser. I have tonnes of different ones, most of which I love but I just never remember to apply it! So when I saw this product that you apply when you're in the shower I just had to give it a go. As I also hate waiting for body lotion to sink into the skin and I hate the tacky feeling you're left with, the fact that you also have to rinse it off was an added bonus!

The consistency of this lotion is a little runnier than I have come to expect from a body lotion and it smells clean and fresh, almost floral. I'm rubbish at describing smells so please excuse me!!

So... you wash your body with your usual shower gel or whatever you use and then once you're rinsed, you can then apply the body lotion. It applies as you would expect a body lotion to apply to wet skin, it goes runny and rinses away. Once you've rinsed away any remainder of the body lotion, you pat dry your skin and voila! When I used this product, my skin felt so soft and moisturised, I just couldn't believe it. The scent doesn't particularly stay on your skin (well not that I noticed anyway) but that is fine by me as I don't like the scent of products to compete with whatever perfume I'm wearing.

I'm so happy with this product, my skin just felt amazing when I'd used it and the softness actually lasted a few days so I don't think it is necessary to use it every day. I just love the whole concept of this product and will definitely be purchasing a back up when I am next in town.

If you come across this product, I highly recommend that you pick it up. It comes in a pretty recognisable bottle so you shouldn't be able to miss it!

Hope you liked this review.

Lotsa love
Lullahblog xx

Haul: Superdrug, Boots, TK Maxx, Poundland, Ebay

Hi everyone,

So I've done a little bit (!) of shopping today and I thought I'd share with you what I got.

First I went to TK Maxx where I picked up one of the Stila goodie bags that they put together. I paid £7.99 for my bag which contained three items...

Multi-Effect Mascara in black

There isn't any information on the box or on the tube as to what these 'Multi-Effects' are so I had a little look online and apparently it volumises and lengthens so we shall see..!

Lip Polish in Twinkle

This I love. It's such a wearable colour, I can see myself dabbing a bit on for the office or slapping it on for a night out. Can't wait to use this!

Lip Shine in Orchid Shine

I took a chance on this as you can't see the colour from the outside of the packaging so I held my breath before I opened it (as I have had some corkers from Stila colourwise in the past!!) and it's a beautiful dusky/rose pink lip gloss. Really really pretty. I've dabbed this on the back of my hand and it's got a gorgeous shine to it and it's a lovely colour - excited!!!

So on to my next TK Maxx bargain...

Ok, so I am quite a big fan of Ingrid on Youtube (aka Miss Glamorazzi) and she's started doing what she calls GIY (Glam it Yourself) videos. She's done one on how to make a make-up brush holder - here's the link to the video if you want to check it out http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRPvlXJbzGI&list=UU5zSySQab9SA6Wz569WDgqw&index=1&feature=plcp

So when I came across this clear acrylic holder thing for £1.00 in the clearance sale in TK Maxx, I snapped it up! I've order my Mod Podge and my glitter and I can't wait to get started. If all goes well, I'll post some pictures of the finished article (fingers crossed!).

Next I headed into Superdrug and, as I love the Vitamin E Night Cream, I picked up the Day version...

It has the same cocoa-butter smell as the night cream does and if it's half as amazing as the night cream, I know I'm going to love it.

Superdrug had a Buy 2 for £3.99 offer on the Vitamin E range so I also got this SPF cream. I thought I could use it under my foundation over the summer months as it has an SPF of 15 and will just give my face a bit of protection if this glorious weather continues. If you decide to try this cream, just bear in mind that the SPF will have light reflecting particles in it, so if you're going to be photographed I would avoid unless you want to look like a ghost!

MUA Waterproof Mascara in black

I love the MUA brand. I just think the quality and range of products is amazing for such a budget brand and I have a lot of their pallets and eye shadows as they're just fab. I also have the BB cream which is one of the best I have come across. Anyway, I had heard such good things about this mascara so thought I'd pick it up and give it a go. I have quite a pile of mascaras to review at the moment, but I will get them all done eventually and this will be one of them!!

NYC Natural Matte Foundation in ivory

I'll be honest, I only picked this up because it was on offer at £1.99 and I thought "why not?". I have been looking for a matte foundation so I'll give this one a go and see what it's like - review on it's way!

My first impression (on the back of my hand) is that it goes on well but it has a rather bizarre smell, I can't even describe it but I think it's supposed to smell 'spa-producty' if that makes sense!

So off I trotted to Boots next and this is what I picked up...

Collection 2000 Lasting Perfection Foundation in ivory

I absolutely love the Lasting Perfection concealer so I've been meaning to try this foundation so when I saw it was on offer, reduced to £3.99, I grabbed it immediately. I'm going to trial this alongside the concealer to see how they work together and see what I think. I have high hopes for this, please don't let me down!!!

Collection 2000 Metallic Cream Eyeshadow in Rock n Rose

I have one of these eyeshadows in Gold Rush and I love it. They go on easily and they do not budge even after hours and hours of wear (and without a primer!!). Collection 2000 has really gone up in my estimations over the last few months and they really seem to be holding their own in the drugstore market - good on them!! This was £2.99 and is a lovely metallic pink.

Poundland next and straight to their make-up section!!

Collection 2000 Skyscraper Length & Definition Mascara

You may recall that I bought the waterproof version of this mascara last time I was in Poundland and I am currently trialling it. I got this as I would like to compare them and see what (if any) the difference is. I'm planning on doing a complete review once I've properly tested them both out.

Collection 2000 Dazzle Me Pigments

I thought I'd add to my collection so I picked up Enchanted (a lovely sparkly brown, Fairy Dust (sparkly purple) and Magical (shimmery white with gold undertones). You all know I love these and I pick them up whenever I spot onces that I haven't already got!

Rimmel Duo Eyeshadow

The green shadow in this duo originally caught my eye. It's shimmery and it's got a bluish undertone to it which gives it almost a two-tone quality. It's really pretty. The other shadow is a champagne colour, always good for highlighting the brow bone or for the inner corner of the eye.

Revlon Perle Eyeshadow in Sparkling Gold

The name says it all, this is a true sparkly gold. It's got quite large chunks of glitter in it so would be fab for adding a bit of glam for a night out. Quite crumbly though so will probably use a primer with this eyeshadow.

Olay Ultra Moisture In-Shower Body Lotion

This intrigued me when I saw it as I've never come across an in-shower body lotion before. Basically, you wash as normal and then apply the lotion as you usually would but you rinse it off while in the shower! I'm not sure what I'm expecting from this but I'm looking forward to testing it out! It contains Shea Butter so should be very moisturising.

Ok, so the last item on my list I got from Ebay. It was delivered this morning and I am so so happy with it. It's a satchel with the face of a fox on it and it is super cute. It actually fits more in it than I thought and can easily get my phone, keys, purse and sunglasses in along with my lip balm etc. It can be worn either as a shoulder bag or as a messenger bag and it has little ears!!! I love love love!!!

Hope you enjoyed my haul post. I'm going to play with all my new products!

Lotsa love
Lullahblog xx

Review: Gilli T Bracelets

Hi everyone!

So today I would like to talk to you about something I am very very excited about - Gilli T Bracelets!

I received mine this morning and I sprinted to the door as soon as I heard the postman, I was so excited!!

They are available in any colour so desire and are made by hand by my very own lovely sister Shelly (hi Shelly!!). I know that she hand makes them to order and she has a few different styles available.

And she even makes kiddie sizes :o) (cos you know if mum's got one, daughter wants one - ha ha!!!).

I absolutely love mine and it looks fab stacked with my Thomas Sabo bracelet. It's just so sparkly and pretty, it's amazing! Obviously mine is golden, but I think I might order the same in silver as well.

I know they are made by my sister but I genuinely wouldn't rave about something because it was made by a family member. If I didn't like it, I just wouldn't have mentioned it!

The quality is amazing, the colours are amazing and the prices are amazing, check her out on her Facebook page for more info on prices, styles and for her contact details, (http://www.facebook.com/#!/GiliTBracelets). Or you can email Shelly direct (michellehirst007@yahoo.co.uk). Make sure you quote Lullahblog when you order so she knows her fave sis has recommended her!!

Gilli T Bracelets are based in Leeds but I know that she would be happy to post them to wherever you are.

What do you think?

Lotsa love
Lullahblog xx

NOTD

Hi guys!

Hope you're all ok.

Well seeing as it's such a beautiful day, I thought I'd sit outside in the sunshine and do my nail of the day. Here's a view of my new flower bed that we (by "we", I mean my husband and father in law!!) built yesterday, I love it so much!!

I've been loving nude/beige nails recently and fell in love when I spotted this Essie nail varnish in Brooch the Subject. It's really really nude and has a subtle sheen to it - my new fave!!

I picked it up in TK Maxx along with this Essie Ridge Filling Base Coat, Nail Foundation. I've heard good things about this from the online beauty world so when I spotted the set for £7.99 I snapped them up! I'll let you know what I think about this 'nail foundation' when I've given it a goof test drive!

What's your favourite summer nail colour? Have you tried this Nail Foundation?

Lotsa love

Lullahblog xx

Review: Collection 2000 Dazzle Me Pigments

Hi everyone!

Hope you're all well.

I've been collecting the Collection 2000 Dazzle Me Pigments for quite some time now and have got 11 of the colours so I thought I'd share them with you.

As there are so many, I've swatched them so will give a brief description of each one.

From the top...

1. Mystery.
This is a deep grey with blue tones to it. Really dark and pretty and perfect for a glittery smokey eye!

2. Sugarplum.
This is one of my favourites. At first I thought it was a baby pink but when you apply it, it's has a beautiful goldy shimmer to it which is really surprising, but it's absolutely gorgeous.

3. Bedazzle.
A beautiful shimmery gold colour, really girly and pretty.

4. Tinkerbell.
A shimmery bright green. Not one of my favourites and it tends to stain the skin, but still very very pretty.

5. Spellbound.
A matte blue colour. This was a bit of a surprise actually as it doesn't seem to have a shimmer in it and I thought that was the point of the dazzle me's??? Could be wrong. Again, not one of my favourites and this one also tends to stain the skin.

Again, from the top...

1. Enigma.
Similar to Mystery but has a green undertone not blue. Absolutely stunning, and one of my favourites.

2. Lustrous.
A really pretty gold colour, it's more of a true gold than Bedazzle which is quite yellowy, this one is a deeper colour. Beautiful.

3. Angel.
This is a shimmery grey with a blue undertone. Really nice when used as part of a grey smokey look and beautiful on its own as well.

4. Jaffa.
A bright shimmery orange colour. As with Tinkerbell and Spellbound, this is very bright and is not one of my favourites. And... you guessed it... it stains the skin.. not much fun to try and get off!!

5. Inky.
A beautiful shimmery dark grey colour. I love this one so much and it's the one I use the most. Just stunning.

6. Paradise.
A shimmery orangey colour with a golden undertone. Much more gentle than Jaffa and a lot more wearable. I like to add this on top of my eyeshadow to add a bit of sparkle.

So there you have it, that's my collection of Dazzle Me's. Hope you enjoyed this post.

What's your favourite pigment?

Lotsa Love
Lullahblog xx

EOTD

Hi everyone,

So today I thought I'd do something a little different and do my Eye of the Day. I'm wearing quite a natural eye today with no eyeliner as I'm quite tired so don't want to close my eyes up. Here's what I'm wearing:

All over lid: Urban Decay Primer Potion
Lid: Vie Time Proof Cream Eyeshadow in Taupe
Crease: Urban Decay Eyeshadow in Buck (from Naked Pallet)
Browbone and inner corner of eye: Mac Eyeshadow in Nylon
Under eye, inner corner: MUA Chocolate Box - lightest colour
Under eye, outer corner: MUA Chocolate Box - medium colour
Mascara: Collection 2000 Skyscraper mascara in Black.

I know I've only used it under my eye today, but I am loving the MUA Chocolate Box, I have done my complete eye using only this little magical pallet, it's fabulous. I think I may do my next EOTD using this product and do a review on it as well for you.

What is your favourite eye shadow combo?

Hope you enjoyed this post - see you next time!

Lotsa Love
Lullahblog xx

Olympics 2012!

Hi everyone!

Hope you're all ok.

So as some of you will know, yesterday I went down to London to watch the Women's Freestyle Wrestling at the Olympics!! I was so so so excited when we got tickets, I just think it's a once in a lifetime opportunity to be a part of something so amazing, it was just brilliant.

Anyway, the Wrestling was held at the ExCeL so we headed there and had a wander around and had a look at everything. It was mainly food places but there was an Olympic shop so I picked up a t-shirt and a golden Wenlock stuffed toy! Anyway, so we then headed into the arena to wait for the Wrestling to start. They had big screens on with someone explaining about the different types of wrestling and the basic rules and moves etc which was good as I didn't know a thing about it!

Here's a couple of pictures..

And a video...

And then the wrestling started! It was pretty brutal and unfortunately the GB lady got knocked out in the qualifying round. The crowd went absolutely mental when she came out and it was such an amazing atmosphere, you couldn't help but get swept away by it. I was so disappointed when she lost as she did really well, I felt so bad for her. We watched about 20 different wrestling matches in all which was brilliant!

So after the wrestling we decided to take the tube to Hyde Park as the London Live event was happening there. We were really lucky as there wasn't a queue when we arrived so we just walked straight in. They had a main stage where Dr Fox was interviewing some of team GB and there were some bands playing. And then there were about four big screens playing the Olympic events that were taking place so we sat and watched some more wrestling. Then we had an ice-cream, had a wander around and decided we'd better set off back home.

All in all it was a fantastic day and I'm so glad we were a part of it. In hindsight I do wish we'd stayed maybe another night to enjoy more of the festivities, but never mind!

Have you managed to snag some Olympic tickets? If so, I'd love to hear about your Olympic experience.

Lotsa love
Lullahblog xx