My First Birchbox - April Edition 😍💄💐🎁

When I had told my fellow beauty obsessed friend that I hadn't signed up to Birchbox naturally she was shocked and got me straight on her computer to sign up! I didn't need much convincing however when I visited the Birchbox website and saw how beautiful the April box was and that it included a Benefit trial product too! I was literally counting down the days until my box arrived, wondering what little goodies the lovely people at Birchbox would surprise me with! Finally the day came and it felt like Christmas, I've never opened anything so quickly and the first impressions of the box itself did not disappoint. The Rifle Co design 'Jardin de Paris' is beautiful, a modern floral pattern in pinks, oranges and yellows it's definitely something I'm going to hoard!

Inside was a mixture of treats they are as follows -
Beaver Professional Hydro Nutritive Repairing Shampoo 40ml and Conditioner Sachet 10ml
Kueshi Foot Care Cream 40ml
Cynthia Rowley Beauty Eyeliner in Black 0.8g
LOC One and Done Shadow Stick in Empress Me Full Size
Benefit Cosmetics Air Patrol BB Cream Eyelid Primer 1.5ml

Beaver Professional Hydro Nutritive Repairing Shampoo & Conditioner - RRP from £11.50
I tried the Beaver hair products first, admittedly it's not a brand I'm familiar with so I was very curious to see how well these products matched up to their description. This particular range from Beaver Professional is to benefit dry, damaged hair containing avacado oil and aloe vera to nourish and repair split ends, leaving hair feeling softer and looking shiner. To be honest I was unsure of why this collection was chosen for me as I put my hair concern as "oily" and "wavy hair" so this emrange doesn't really match up buy of course I tried the products anyway! Despite my concerns I actually really like the results of the products, both the shampoo and conditioner left my hair feeling surprisingly purified, nourished, amazingly soft and shiny and my ends looked smoother! I would definitely recommend these products for anyone who has damaged hair from colouring or suffers with split ends!


Kueshi Foot Care Cream - RRP £12
This is another brand that is new to me and honestly body products are my downfall, I hardly ever use them! Any foot creams I've tried previously have been really heavy duty and made me unable to walk for 20 minutes until the product absorbed so I was really hoping this one from Kueshi would be a game changer. Upon application I was worried the texture was too thin but as soon as you've massaged the product in even slightly it's instantly absorbed and leaves no residue behind at all! Tea Tree gives the feet a cooling, refreshing feeling and Royal Jelly hydrates the skin, my feet have never felt so soft and smooth! This is something I'd definitely purchase!

Cynthia Rowley Eyeliner in Black - RRP £11
The Cynthia Rowley Eyeliner is a Birchbox exclusive, as soon as I saw the packaging I couldn't wait to try it! The texture of this liner is gorgeous, it glides on the lids so smoothly making it so easy and foolproof to apply and within 30 seconds it's set and ready for the day! It's definitely a budge proof formula as it lasted me all day long and even the swatch I did on the back of my hand I struggled to get off for 2 days!  All in all, probably the best pencil eye liner I've used! This could be the one to convert me from my liquid liners!

LOC One and Done Shadow Stick in "Empress Me" - RRP £8
I've not really used shadow sticks before, I tend to always use your standard pan shadows and due to my oily eyelids I always opt for matte eyeshadows. However I could very much be swayed given the beautiful "Empress me" shade of this LOC One and Done Shadow Stick and what a pigment punch this packs! It's a gorgeous taupe/gold shade with an almost metallic finish that lasts all day! LOC provides waterproof, creaseless colour and foolproof, quick application all in one product, it's simply perfect for those of us who are always on the go just apply on the lids and blend with your fingertips or use a bold liner!

Benefit Air Patrol BB Cream Eyelid Primer - RRP £21.50 
My Benefit treat in my box was Air Patrol, a BB Cream Eyelid Primer and I have to admit even as a Benefit fan I've not heard of this product before! However as I said before my eyelids tend to be oily making a simple nude eyeshadow look hard to hold for even a few hours so an eyelid primer is something I'm always shopping around for. The shade is a natural nude shade with a yellow undertone, perfectly disguising any discolouration on the lids and providing a suitable wear-alone shade. The texture at first I thought was going to be slightly too wet but once you begin applying to
the lids (I used my fingertips) it sets to a beautiful semi-matte finish, making it an ideal base for any eyeshadows or liners! As for helping to prolong the wear of eyeshadows, I would say it helped mine to stay for a few hours longer than what I would get without a primer but it's probably the longest lasting result I've had from any eyelid primer I've tried as my lids are just too oily!

 I love how Air Patrol offers SPF 20 protection and uses their unique EnviroDefend complex to offer total eye protection against the harmful effects of sun, pollution and smoke.
A product that can offer you all these benefits (Get it?) in one product is very hard to find and for me very sought after, I can see this becoming something I use everyday!

That sums up my very first Birchbox and I have to say I'm impressed and cannot wait for next months edition after seeing my May sneak peek!

What are your thoughts on Birchbox? Did you recieve April's edition, I'd love to know what goodies you got!

💕 Lucy 

L'oreal Elvive Extraordinary Clay Collection 💆🏼🛀🏼

These products are what I have been waiting for for as long as I can remember, they perfectly describe my hair type "Oily Roots and Dry Ends" so as you can imagine I was instantly excited when I saw the product advert online and couldn't wait to get my hands on these products! Launching earlier this year, L'oreal have created a innovative product range using a blend of 3 refined clays to 'deeply purify the scalp for 72 hours', hydrate dry ends for 'fluid, free flowing lengths' and to 'revitalise the hair with softness, shine and bounce'. I honestly think this is the most exciting product launch this year so far,  there really isn't anything else like it on the shelves!

I managed to snap up these beauties in Boots during their 3 for 2 haircare offer, which meant I got the 150ml Pre Shampoo Clay Masque, 400ml Extraordinary Clay Re-balancing Shampoo & 400ml Re-balancing Conditioner for £9.98, saving me £3.99! The Clay to Spray Dry Shampoo I managed to get in Superdrug on a 'better than half price' offer for £1.98 instead of £3.99!

I was so excited I tried the products that same day, starting with the Pre Shampoo Clay Masque. Surprisingly there's actually very little instructions on the Masque packaging so I turned to Google (naturally) to make sure I was applying it correctly. Some hair masques you apply on wet hair however this one you apply to dry hair directly onto the roots whilst massaging in, covering the whole scalp, leaving for up to 5 minutes. I found it very strange to apply, given the very thick and bouncy consistency, especially on dry hair but overall simple and quick to apply and surprisingly not a lot of product is needed to cover the scalp when you section the hair! The smell was a little strange for me personally, it's certainly a fresh almost mineral like scent but it kind of reminded me of washing powder! Rinsing out the masque is as easy as A, B ,C with the only instruction being massage scalp whilst rinsing until water runs clear and it does rinse out very easily without leaving the scalp feeling dried out or tight. Using the Pre Shampoo Masque definitely helps the shampoo to lather up easier, making a small amount go further! Both the shampoo and conditioner rinse out very easily, don't weigh the hair down or leave any residue behind.

The result on dry hair? Amazing! My hair has never looked so shiny, even making my highlights look more visible and brighter, roots very fresh and wonderfully clean and ends hydrated just the right amount. So yes the promise of 'fluid, free flowing lengths' and revitalised hair 'with softness, shine and bounce' is spot on however the promise of a purified scalp for 72 hours needs some editting! Something like "72 hours... with the help of a little dry shampoo 24 hours later and a hell of a lot 48 hours later!" I bet you're thinking hold on I thought they had a clay to spray dry shampoo? You're not mistaken, yes they do indeed but when I've used talc based dry shampoo's such as Batiste for a long time that instantly refresh oily roots this dry shampoo just didn't live up to expectations. It's an invisible finish so you can say goodbye to white powdery roots that scream 'I couldn't be bothered to wash my hair last night' however you can say hello to your oily roots because this dry shampoo just doesn't absorb excess oil or refresh roots at all. I'd waited till the day after I'd washed my hair to use this so it's not even that I'm extraordinarily greasy but it's got that 'It could use a wash tonight' kind of look, so after spraying lots of clay to spray onto my roots I resorted to my usual Batiste to save the day!

Overall I think this is probably the best Shampoo, Conditioner and Masque I've used that is predominately for oily roots simple because for 24 hours my hair is glowing, fresh, purified and isn't left feeling weighed down but I just wish the results for me would last longer than a day. I certainly wouldn't purchase the dry shampoo again but that could be down to the fact my hair is fine (so the roots would possibly be greasier) and might work better for someone with thicker hair especially with the invisible finish.

Have you used this range before? How did you find them?
Let me know in the comments below!

💕 Lucy 

Its a Lush Easter! - Lush Easter Collection 🐣🌷🍳

My favourite holiday season? It's gotta be Easter! Creme Eggs are back, beautiful daffodils are everywhere and cutesy little bunny and chick decorations are in all the shops! But mostly for me it's about family time, celebrating what Easter is truly all about but that's not what this post is for! It's about my absolute number one favourite part of Easter, Lush's Easter/Spring collection (and of course that chocolate goes dirt cheap after Easter!) When you're already in love with Lush, whether it be the bath bombs, bubble bars, shower jellys or their amazing haircare, you'll understand how the temptation to maybe buying some more Lush goes completely out the window and turns into a need when the Easter collection comes into stores. This is exactly what happened to me this year just like the last I walk in with a "I'll get one or two things and that's it" and I walk out having spent nearly £30 and 5 products, 3 being from the Easter collection. But do I regret it? Not in the slightest!

I chose to go for some different choices this year and with the help of a very lovely and helpful Lush assistant I found 3 wonderful goodies that I was very excited to use! I chose the Humpty Dumpty bath bomb, Bunch of Carrots bubble bar and Fluffy Egg bath bomb. Humpty Dumpty caught my eye mostly because of how big it was and when I smelt the beautiful caramel like scent it was definitely going in my basket! A wonderful lush assistant came to my aid, after I stood staring aimlessly at the Easter stand trying to whittle down my choices, and explained how this sweet treat has a minimum of 3 bath's worth of product which is instantly better value for money! Not only this but it's wonderfully creative, to get your 3 bath's worth you need to crack the bath bomb to reveal a surprise in the center! Now in my case it was me standing over the bathroom sink smashing Humpty Dumpty on the edge, making one hell of a delicious smelling mess and wishing I had put the bin under the sink to catch the excess! Mine cracked not so perfectly into 4/5 pieces plus the fried egg surprise in the middle but that only means more uses with this lovely scent! Humpty Dumpty as well as the delightful caramel fragrance, contains Brazilian Orange and Bergamot Oils making it a perfect uplifting and pampering bath treat after a long day at work or just to uplift the senses!

Anyone who's anyone loves Lush's signature scent 'Snow Fairy' and that's exactly why I fell in love with the Fluffy Egg bath bomb, it's like a candy scented snow fairy withdrawal cure! It's such a simple product that turns your bath water to a beautiful candy pink and leaves your skin smelling deliciously sweet!

The Bunch of Carrots bubble bar is innovative and exciting through and through! I needed these as soon as I saw them I didn't even need to smell them to fall in love with them but when I did it was the Brazilian Orange and Bergamot oils again that got my senses all excited but this time with a twist of Buchu to spice up these carrots! Really simple and easy to use, you just hold one 'carrot' under running water or swish it in the bath to create bubbles and place aside to dry! I can never get bubble bars to make lots of bubbles especially the ones you swish rather than crumble but that's clearly something I'm doing wrong as everyone else can but despite that they're a simple citrus treat that
make a boring bath a little more exciting!




















I'd definitely recommend these limited edition beauties they're cracking (wink wink 😉) little treats and they won't be around for long so snap them up here while you still can!

Humpty Dumpty bath bomb £6.95
Fluffy Egg bath bomb £2.95
Bunch of Carrots bubble bar £6.25

Wishing everyone a very happy Easter!

💕 Lucy

Spring Fragrance Favourites 🌷🌱🍬🎀

There's nothing I love more than indulging in a new perfume! Now Spring is here (finally!) I love using more floral, sweet based fragrances so I can say goodbye to my spicy, warm Winter scents and hello to Modern Muse Le Rouge, Olympea and Gucci Bamboo. Having worked in the beauty industry and on a cosmetics department I think I've smelt every fragrance new and old but these three are definitely some of my favourites!

Modern Muse Le Rouge from Estée Lauder is an innovative twist on their bestseller Modern Muse eau de parfum that I treated myself to at Christmas in anticipation for the spring, I didn't even indulge in the first spray until a few weeks ago I don't know how I lasted so long without it! The gift set I treated myself to contained a 50ml eau de parfum of Modern Muse Le Rouge, a 100ml shimmer body lotion and a gorgeous mini purse size spray of Le Rouge. This fruity yet floral fragrance is bursting with notes of Bulgarian Rose, Raspberry, Patchouli and Pink Pepper and is described by Estée Lauder as "extroverted, glamorous and sophisticated". On first spray it's an instant oriental floral hit of the rose and the slight spice of pink pepper with the raspberry completing the sultry scent. It's truly an addictive fragrance that lingered on my skin for hours and always got me noticed! Its perfect for wearing both during the day and night, layering the fragrance on top of the shimmer body lotion is amazing for the night giving a subtle sparkle and a longer lasting scent. It's certainly different to any other fragrance I've purchased before but each spray leaves me wanting more so it's definitely a classic for me.

 Gucci Bamboo is another fragrance new on the scene, I didn't quite know what to expect from the scent when I had first heard the name of the perfume but it's a unique soft but intense array of notes. These include Italian Bergamot, Ylang Ylang, Sandalwood, Tahitian Vanilla and Grey Amber; on first spray Bamboo uplifts with ylang ylang but becomes more intense with the vanilla and Amber bouncing off each other. It's an oriental floral through and through that screams unique to stand out above the rest. Bamboo is wonderfully long wearing, very feminine and exudes confidence. Personally I'd only wear this in the day, it doesn't have the sexy twist for night that I always look for!

Now I believe I've left the best till last, Olympea by Paco Rabanne. I remember last year when this was launched and how excited I was at work when we received the tester, I instantly fell in love with this fragrance! It's a stunning oriental but sexy fragrance with notes such as ginger lily, mandarin, hydroporic jasmine, salty vanilla and cashmere wood. It's simply gorgeous, it's almost delicious with the mixture of the mandarin and salty vanilla and I can definitely say I agree with Paco Rabanne when they describe their use of salty vanilla as bringing "carnal and addictive magnetism" to the fragrance! It's certainly a confident, empowering perfume that really does reel people in; I'm forever getting compliments when I'm wearing Olympea and its quickly becoming recognised as my signature fragrance! This is always going to be a classic Spring/summer fragrance that I come back to year after year!

You can find all three fragrances in your local department store, boots or superdrug! Estee Lauder's Modern Muse Le Rouge EDP ranges from £45-£90, Gucci Bamboo EDP ranges from £49-£80 and Paco Rabanne's Olympea EDP ranges from £40-£70.

What's your go-to Spring fragrance?
💕 Lucy

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My oh mi-cellar! Garnier PureActive Micellar Cleansing Water 💧💁🏼

Yes micellar cleansing waters aren't brand new but to my routine they are! I tend to be quite stuck in my ways of cleansing, sticking to what I've used for years but that doesn't mean it's right or the best way to cleanse my skin. So I ventured out to Boots (one of my most favourite things to do) and spent a questionable amount of time searching for something new, something quick but most of all something effective. Seriously I spent so long in my local Boots I think the security guard was following me, but much to his dismay I purchased the Garnier PureActive Micellar Cleansing Water. Sitting in the new products section I had to pick it up and upon reading the product details I just had to have it, I mean cleansing with no rinsing? This is my lazy girl paradise product! There were two other varieties of Garnier Micellar Water's one pink cap version for all skin types especially sensitive and one green cap version for combination skin, however the PureActive version drew me in more due to it being specifically for oily and blemish prone skin types. The product details boast that it easily removes makeup including eyes and lips with no rinsing required, purifies and minimises blemishes and reduces imperfections. It also comes in a luxury 400ml size claiming to be 200 uses and on offer at £3.00 (RRP £4.99) I just couldn't walk out of there without it!

I've used this product now for 7 days, using most mornings but every evening to remove my makeup. I really wish I'd found this product sooner as I've never removed my makeup so easily or so effectively especially without rinsing! Whether it was a full Double Wear & Dipbrow day or just BB cream this magic micellar water removed every trace including eye makeup without ever feeling harsh or drying on my skin. Surprisingly for a anti-blemish product there is no overwhelming alcohol smell but I can't say it's helped to reduce my blemishes or imperfections but then again I haven't had my full "200 uses"
Personally I would recommend this to anyone with oily skin looking for a new quick cleansing fix or for those lazy cleansers out there who like me just can't get out of bed to the sink after 8pm!
You can find the Garnier PureActive Micellar Cleansing Water in your local Boots, Superdrug or even Tesco store for RRP £4.99.
What are your thoughts on the Micellar water craze, have you tried one before?

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