Instagram Diary #6

Birthday boy | Loving my models own bubblegum | My fav ever dessert from zizi | Cider in the sunshine! | Pret a manger in Bicester is hugggeee | Pretty bottle of ice tea | Shopping in Westfield London | Red velvet cupcake! | Boyf hard at work | Quick frappuccino before work! | A three wheeled motorbike jobby I saw today on the way home from Portsmouth! | Ben and jerry's smile :) 

And the last one is a little treat from my boyfriends instagram of me having fun with photo booth!

<3

xgeorgia

Sprinkle of Glitter's 7 things...

Louise's Post

In August I will.... 

Work I have been on holiday from uni now for what seems like years and seem to have completely forgotten I actually have work to do over summer! I have to do some reading and re do my lit review in preparation for my dissertation so I am to at least start this over August! 

See the sun! I realise this sounds weird, I work in a cinema so I'm indoors with no natural light on my skin for hours on end and it's finally hot in England like it is now I'd like to be able to get some vitamin D!

Do something Olympic-y! I'm currently catching up on what I missed from the Olympic ceremony last night as I was at work and it's amazing! It's such an exciting thing for London and I want to be able to tell my children and grandchildren about it! I'm off to one of the free music events in Hyde park next week and I definitely want to watch and get involved in some of the other things going on! 

Save I've been spending rather a lot recently and need to really start saving money for when I move back to uni in September! 

Blog I have a long list of different posts I want to do but haven't had much free time over July so I shall get going on this during August. 

Decorate I have been itching to redecorate my bedroom at home and now it's summer I may try and rope my boyfriend in to helping me! 

Try I have recently bought a few new makeup bits and bobs to try but I always seem to be in a rush when doing my makeup (maybe I should get up earlier!)so usually just reach for the same things! Then I can do a few more reviews too :) 

So that's my seven things for August! I was so excited to see that Louise from Sprinkle of Glitter linked my blog in her list from last month! All those links must have taken her ages to do so it's very nice of her to make the effort to include everyone :) 

 Thanks for reading!

 Georgia

☼

High Five for Friday!

Lauren's Post!

1. It was my boyfriends 21st birthday :)

2. I enjoyed using my free models own bubblegum shade!

3. I had a red velvet cupcake, highlight of the week!

4. I did lots of shopping, I went to Bicester, High Wycombe and Westfield this week! Lots of fun but bad for my purse!

5. I'm home from work now and about to finish off the week with a comforter bubble bath!

♥

Emotional brilliance

Hellooo!

I don't know how normal it is to get this excited about makeup products...

As you may have seen in the pictures I added in this post a few days ago, I have recently purchased a few things from Lush's brand spanking new makeup range!

The lovely Alexandra from The Wallflower expressed her eagerness for a review ASAP (with lots of exclamation marks!!) so here we are!

Lush have obviously put a lot of effort in to making their makeup campaign different and original, they have named it Emotional Brilliance.

They have given each eye, lip and cheek colour a name which corresponds to an aspect of your personality. The Lush shop assistant described the concept to me, saying 'different emotions bring to mind different colours' so Lush have used this to create a original and memorable colour wheel!

You can have a 'reading' in the shop or also online here, where you choose three colours which jump out at you first and these are meant to reflect something about your personality. 

Today mine are Dynamic, Ambition and Charm! ;)

It's a bit of fun and I think it creates a personalized feel but will also appeal to a wide range of people.

I didn't actually choose to purchase any of the products from the colour wheel just yet but I did buy the Feeling Younger Skin tint and the Eyes Right Mascara for £12 each.

Feeling Younger Skin Tint - £12 for 20g

Featured Ingredient -

'Almond oil - 

There are two types of almond, sweet and bitter. We use sweet almonds (Prunus dulcis) to make sweet almond oil. The almond is part of the plum family. Botanically, they are a fruit and an ancient ancestor of large-stoned fruits, such as apricots, peaches and plums.' (Lush website)

Product claims - 

• 'Magic Orange' pigment works as a reflector on the skin.
• Made with natural ingredients and safe synthetics.
• Can be used as a highlighter over makeup.
• Can be mixed with moisturizer or foundation.
• Can be applied between moisturizer and foundation.
• Gives a radiant glow to the complexion. 
• Can be applied under eyes to combat dark circles.

I say - 

• Nice smell, not too strong.
• Light consistency, not to heavy on the skin.
• Lovely colour when rubbed in, almost a peachy pink glow in the light.

There are so many ways you can use this product and I feel like that makes it worth the pretty hefty price you pay for a small amount of product. The first day I used it I applied a layer between my moisturizer and my makeup. It definitely made my skin look glowy and it didn't fade either which I thought was good. I don't know if this is due to my Hello flawless Oxygen Wow foundation or this product, but I found towards the end of the day my foundation had separated and I had some random patches of shimmery bits which is not really the look I was going for!

London, birthdays and shopping!

Hellooo!

Warning! This is going to be a very picture heavy post!

I've been a very busy bee organising my boyfriend's 21st birthday and it all came to a head this weekend! Our friends and I surprised him with a night out in London on Saturday, then I was left to deal with his mega hangover Sunday! I had to go to work Monday but today has been his actual birthday so we had a trip to Bicester village we also popped into high Wycombe on the way home for some more shopping and a meal at zizi :) Topped off by my mum taking us out for a drink at a pub near our house and bumping into the Korean Olympic table tennis team!

All in all it was amazing!

So I'll leave you with some pictures, including a mini haul from shopping today with some products I can't wait to get reviewing! (psst Lush makeup!! Eee!)

Thanks for reading :)

Georgia x

Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain

Hellooo!

I have an amazing product I really want to rave about, so if you only read the first sentence of this post, GET THIS... IT'S GOOD.

I had seen a few good reviews about the Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain and I'm liking the new moisturizing colour trend occurring at the moment with the Revlon Colourburst Lip butters, the No7 Nourishing Lip Shine and the Clinique Chubby Sticks, as well as these!

I saw it in Boots the other day for £5.99 down from £7.99 and thought I'd get in on the action while the offer is still on, and I'm so glad I did!

I swatched all the colours in the shop and decided on the number 20, Lovesick shade!

I love how it's like a big crayon! And I also like that you twist the bottom to make the top come out, so you don't have to sharpen it. The colour range is great and they are all really pigmented.

And stain is deffo the right word!

I swatched this to take these photos and hours later, after washing my hands multiple times it was still there! It doesn't come off!

I wore it out on Saturday night and it's perfect because I didn't have to re-apply it once!

It's really moisturizing, it stays on forever, you don't have to use a lot so it's worth the money and they have such pretty colours!

I literally have nothing bad to say about this product!

I think I'll be trying the Rendezvous shade in a lovely coral colour next!

Have you tried any of these balm stains?

What did you think?

Thanks for reading :)

Georgia

☯

The Porefessional review

Hellooo!

Just a quick review today as I am currently looking after a very hungover boyfriend after his 21st birthday celebrations last night! 

As I wrote about in my review of Hello Flawless Oxygen Wow (which you can see here), the Benefit Make up artist recommended that Porefessional Primer works well with this foundation, making it last up to 24 hours. I got a little sample of it and used it under my makeup before I went out last night, so here's what I thought...

Benefit Says: 'Quickly minimise the appearance of pores & fine lines for smoother-than-smooth skin! Apply this silky, lightweight balm alone, under or over makeup. Translucent, oil-free formula complements all skintones and helps makeup stay put. Contains a Vitamin E derivative, known to protect skin from free radicals.'

I Say: I really liked the consistency of it, it's really soft and velvety and a little goes a long way which is always a bonus! It's a peachy colour but this doesn't show up on the skin which I liked. It definitely minimized my pores and smoothed my skin out ready for makeup.

When I put my foundation on I noticed that it was easier to blend out and it set really well on my face with no creases or dry patches. However I don't think it really enhanced the staying power of my makeup as much as I was anticipating. (Bear in mind I did test it to the max with sunshine, underground trains, drinking and dancing!) It definitely holds the foundation in place and stops it from fading at first but I found that by the time I was home taking off my makeup it was starting to fade and it hadn't yet been 24 hours!

Overall I really liked what it did to my skin and how it worked with the Hello Flawless Oxygen Wow Foundation, but I do think that £23.50 for 22 ml is rather expensive! However, I would say this is comparable to the Bourjois Flower Perfection Primer which is £9.99 for 7ml (you can read my review here), so the Porefessional actually works out cheaper and I would rate it higher.

Payday is coming up and I may treat myself to this!

Have you used Porefessional?

What did you think?

Thanks for reading!

Georgia

✩ 

Instagram Diary #5

Mega Bourbon! | Rainy day coffee | Magazine heaven | Finally a victory on Songpop! | Brownie points for picking me up from work with a pizza Craig! | We share the car | Tequila time! | Georiga has a nice ring to it | Ended the night in the Soho walk in center oh dear...

Lush Eau Roma Toner Water

Hellooo!

You may have seen in my Haul a while ago that I picked up this Eau Roma Water from Lush! I was trying to decide whether to buy this one or the Breath of Fresh Air toner water so I thought I'd get the smaller size which cost me £3.95 (100ml) and give it a try then perhaps try the other one at another time!

Lush Promise: 

• It is Made with a mixture of natural ingredients and safe synthetics.
• It's Preservative free (has an expiry date.)
• It's Vegan friendly.
• It is Not tested on animals.
• Recycled packaging is used.

Lush Claim:

• 'This toner is sophisticatedly simple and is intended for skins that need a little extra love and care. Dry, sensitive or mature skins will find the rose water is calming and reduces redness, whilst lavender water will soften the skin and balance sebum production. A gentle tonic for everyday use that will help hydrate the skin without causing it to overreact.'

How to use:

• 'Close your eyes tightly and spritz directly onto the face and leave to dry. Can be used for removing traces of cleansers and face products – but can also be used at any time of the day as a quick facial refresher or to cool the face.'

As I still have quite a bit left to use of my other Tea Tree toner from the Body Shop, I use that on a cotton pad to remove cleanser. And then after I have moisturized I spray this all over my face and leave it to sink in.

I also use it in the morning after I have cleansed and moisturized and I have really noticed a difference. It has really helped to remove redness and has even cleared up a few of my blemishes! It feels so nice and fresh, and it's a really nice way to wake yourself up in the morning! It smells really lovely, not my typical sort of smell as I usually prefer fruity or sweet scents, but this is really light and herbally.

I have heard some people complain that it's drying, I don't know if it's because I use it after moisturizing or that my skin isn't too dry at the moment because it's summer, but this isn't a problem for me. I find it plumps my skin up nicely and makes it really soft and all in all I loves it!!

Has anyone tried this one and the Breath of Fresh Air?

Which one would you recommend?

Thanks for reading!

Georgia

☼

Balance Me rose otto intensive lip salve

Hellooo!

Last week I posted this rather lovely sight on Instagram of my relaxing evening, candles, tea and magazines :) And to make it even better, with Glamour magazine this month they are giving away a  free Balance Me Rose Otto intensive lip salve. I was excited to see this because I'd heard a lot of good things about the brand, and everyone loves a freebie!

The first thing that impressed me about the brand in general was the fact that the ingredients are all organic. I use a lot of products that have ingredients in that I wouldn't even try to pronounce, and I always get a slightly guilty feeling about the damage all these different chemicals could be doing to my skin, hair etc. Eeek! But with this, I had no such concerns!

It is describes as an: '100% natural deeply nourishing lip and skin balm. Rose Otto and Palma Rosa are renowned for their nourishing, protecting and skin calming properties. This Balance Me salve provides an ultra glossy sheen to lips, whilst locking in moisture thanks to its organic castor oil and shea butter. The essential fatty acids and vitamins in Sweet Almond Oil and unrefined Beeswax give an instant hit of skin boosting benefits.'

I think: it is a really nice product and I've enjoyed using it throughout the day when my lips have felt dry, and also as part of my night time skin care routine so it can work over night. It smells lovely and is really thick so not much product is needed for each application. After a few minutes it begins to tingle slightly, which I imagine is the 'skin boosting benefits' at work! It plumps up my lips slightly and has really helped prevent dryness. I also used it before I applied my lipstick today and it also acts as a really good lip primer!

Overall I am very much enjoying this product and may repurchase once the sample has run out as it's £7.20 for 15ml on the Naturisimo website!

Which balance me sample did you pick up with Glamour this month?

Thanks for reading!

Georgia

✿

Wednesday Wishlist #5

Bag | Bath Melts | Jumper | Rings | Skincare set

Feel Unique Wish List #2

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 

Bourjois Paris Magic Nail Polish Remover

Hellooo!

As you may have seen, I bought this last week in my Haul! I had seen some bloggers talking about it and was very intrigued about how it worked! 

I'm am very lazy when it comes to nails, and have been known to leave nail polish on until it has all chipped off :/

Since I bought this, I have ditched my old nail-neglecting ways and I have changed my nails twice this week! 

I imagine the novelty will wear off after a while but for now I'm rather enjoying this product! :)

You shake up the bottle before use then just push your nail into the foam, twist it about a bit, pull it out and it's nail polish free!

It saves cotton pads, it's really quick and it's only £4.99 at Boots.

I would definitely recommend this :)

Have you tried this?

What do you think? 

Thanks for reading!

Georgia

♥

Hello Flawless Oxygen Wow Brightening Makeup

Hellooo!

As you may have seen in my Haul this time last week, I recently bought Benefit's Hello Flawless Oxygen Wow foundation. I'd heard mixed reviews so was unsure about forking out £24.50 for it, but I'm glad I did! I have been using it all week and thought I'd share my thoughts with you all :)

First off I love the Packaging! It comes in this rather cute little box and inside is this plastic 30ml bottle which has the name of the foundation written on the front. I usually prefer glass bottles as I think they look more expensive and sleek but this product has turned me, I like the matte effect and the print on the top of the lid is a nice touch!

When you open the box, there's a little sample of Benefit's Pore-fessional primer which the Makeup artist in the shop suggested I try to complement the foundation. She told me it makes it stay put for 24 hours, however I am yet to use this sample, I thought I'd save it for when I need my makeup to last a long time, perhaps on Saturday night! ;)

More on the staying power to come...

Product details and claims:

• It costs £24.50 for a 30ml bottle
• It comes in 9 shades which cover a broad range
• SPF 25 
• Oil free
• Light to medium coverage
• Hydrating complex gives plumping effect
• Contains vitamins C&E known to prevent signs of ageing. 

My Thoughts:

Good:

•  It lives up to its name... It makes my skin look flawless!
•  It is very light and almost watery and this makes it so easy to blend in and means that you don't need to apply as much product.
•  When I put it on, it honestly felt like I'm not wearing anything at all! It's so light and just feels really fresh and nice on my skin.
•  It gives a really nice dewy look which I really like.
• I love that it's SPF 25, it will be perfect to wear over summer (if we ever get any sun!) and avoid a red face!
• I also like the fact that you can pump a small amount of the product out instead of being left with too much and wasting the product.

Bad:

• The only problem I have with the foundation is its staying power! I wore it one day last week with just setting powder over the top, went to work, looked in the mirror on my break and it had all gone wrong! It had made my blusher go all patchy and there was hardly any coverage left! 

However, I have rectified this situation! I use my Benefit That Gal primer underneath and I also use ELF's Mist and Set over the top and this helps a lot! It keeps it on all day and no more patchy blusher... thank goodness!

Hope you like this post and found the review helpful!

What do you think of Benefit's debut liquid foundation?

Has anyone found any good primers that help it stay put a bit longer?

Thanks for reading!

Georgia

☼

Instagram Diary #4

Polka dots | Starbucks changed my name to George | Crunchy Nut Cafe! | Amazing Cupcakes! | Cosmo and a Lush bath mmm | Pancakes for breakfast! | Topshop delivery! | Beach party brightening up my day | Friday night treat!

Soap and Glory Collection

Hellooo!

I'm sitting here trying to think how to describe the smell of Soap and Glory...

Marshmallowy, floraly, vanilla-ry, sweet...

I can't pinpoint it, It's just Soap and Glory!

There isn't anything else like it.

I'm sure you have all given these products a sniff at some point but if you haven't then you MUST!

I have been using this brand for a while but I got a super, mega, huge gift pack jobby for christmas from my Dad and I love it so  much. I have been using all this stuff for months now and it's still not finished, (which is impressive) but it's running low so I though I'd do this post now before I have to say goodbye! (And then say hello to new ones!)

The Righteous Butter -  £10.50

S&G say: 'It has softening shea butter and aloe vera. A body moisturizing formula so virtuous you might swear you're wearing velvet.'

I say: This is my favourite product out of them all! I don't know about velvet but it leaves my skin really soft, smelling lovely and it's not sticky either. A little bit goes a long way so it's worth the price as well!

Hand Food - £5

S&G say: 'Non-greasy hydrating hand cream with shea butter, macadamia oil and marshmallow.'

I say: Wait did I say the body butter was my favourite, can this be my top favourite too? I love it just as much, so moisturizing and again, not sticky or greasy. I use this whenever I do my nails and it makes my cuticles really soft.

Wednesday Wishlist Sale Edition!

Dress | Purse | Bracelet | Ring | Top | Bag

Haul time...

So five years ago yesterday, when we were just teens, my boyfriend said 'Will you be my girlfriend?' and I said 'Yeah alright then'. And to celebrate this occasion we spent the day together in Westfield London, did some shopping, had a nice meal and then got a DVD for the evening (which we didn't realise was actually in Polish with English subtitles, how cultured of us!) My boyfriend very kindly put some money in a card for me and I bought quite a few bits and bobs, and got some good bargs that I will tell you all about here! :)

I have jumped on to the bandwagon and got one of these basket bags from Zara. Not the cheapest bag in the world at £39.99 but I love it, it's really sturdy and big and I will be able to fit all my uni stuff in it come September.

Next up, I bought myself this month's Cosmo, and with it came a very cute little miss guided nail polish in a very pretty hot pink colour! I shall be reading this in a little while with a cup of tea :)

I've been toying with the idea of putting some pink through my hair and when I saw this I had to get it! It's comb in pink rose hair dye which washes out, so perfect for my experimentations! I bought this for £6 Urban Outfitters, but I'm pretty sure they sell this in Topshop too! Can't wait to use it, I shall report back!

Also from Urban Outfitters I got this really pretty sheer polka dot peplum top. It was only £10 down from £35 so let's face it, that's a barg! There was only a Medium left which is a little bit baggy on my but I pulled my waist belt around the middle, just above the peplum bit and it looked great so I had to get it!

This new Benefit foundation, Hello Flawless Oxygen Wow, has been all bloggers everywhere have been talking about and I fancied a piece of the action! I have heard mixed reviews but I think that it probably differs between skin types and for me personally, this sounded like just what I need. The Benefit makeup artist matched me to the shade 'Honey' and I really liked the dewy effect it creates! I am wearing it again today and I'm already falling in love with it!! A full review is on its way once I've tried it out properly.

Now I'm a bit of a chicken when it comes to piercings and tattoos and the like, so any way I can cheat these looks, I will! These Ear cuffs were £6.50 from Topshop, which I thought was actually quite good value considering you get four in a pack! They are so cute and look really nice with hair up or just clipped back!

This beauty was in my Wish list last week and when I saw it in real life in Topshop, I loved it even more! It was £8.50 and I got 10% student discount so only paid £7.65!

When I buy my lunch for work at boots most days, I accumulate lots of No7 vouchers! So I put them to use by buying this Beautiful Skin Eye Makeup Remover which was meant to be £8.50 but with the £5 off I got it for £3.50! Definite barg. I used it last night and it took my eye makeup off really well, so I may do a review on this when I've used it a bit more.

Also with a No7 £5 off voucher I got myself this Concealer brush for £3 down from £8! I am yet to use this so will let you know how it goes!

Also from Boots, I picked up this  Bourjois Nail Polish Remover because I have heard a lot about it on blogs and Youtube and wanted to see how it worked! I took my nail polish off with this last night and really liked it! It's really easy to use and saves a lot of time and cotton pads and was only £4.99!

I ranted and raved about this product in my Tea tree Must haves post and this is the third time I've repurchased this Skin Clearing Lotion from The Body Shop. It's amazing, it does wonders for my skin and I'd really recommend it! But It is £7 for only 50ml and it goes quite quickly!

I've read a lot about Lush's Toner Waters and wanted to try them so I went in store and spoke to the shop assistant who recommended either this Eau Roma Water or the Breath of Fresh Air one for my skin type. I decided to get the smaller bottle of this for £3.75 to see how it went and perhaps when this runs out I'll also try the Breath of Fresh Air!

I also went ahead and got the Comforter Bubble Bar from Lush. I have read lots of good reviews about this product and really wanted to try it and when I smelt it in the shop, my mind was made up! And although it is quite steep at £4.15 it can be broken into 5 pieces for 5 different baths so really that's quite good value for money.

Saving the best barg for last, I went to the models own bottle bar and discovered that they were doing an offer where you could mix and match any 3 nail polishes for £12 and then you also get a free gift! You could choose out of a nail art pen and the bubblegum nail polish and as I already have enough nail art pens I chose the polish! (as if I don't have enough of those too!) So four models own nail polishes for £12 is good going I say!

I also ordered this beautiful Maxi Skirt from Topshop online when I got in, as they didn't have my size in store and I'm soooo excited for it to come! 

That's all for my Haul! (see what I did there!) Hope you enjoyed the read!

☻