Thursday Tittle Tattle #3

Last month I launched a new series on my blog called 'Thursday Tittle Tattle', a series dedicated to breaking news of the beauty world. From time-to-time, I'll feature beauty and lifestyle news, events, discounts, and even a bit of fashion news thrown in too! Here are the things that have caught my eye this week:

Buffer Introduces Compatibility with Pinterest 
I'm sure a lot of people have been waiting for this! You can now officially schedule Pinterest posts with Buffer. It's available to all accounts, no matter what plan you use! To start scheduling, click here.

Sephora Announce "Once In A Lifetime" Points Rewards
If you're unfamiliar with 'Beauty Insiders' from Sephora, you've been missing out. Basically when you shop online or in store you can collect points. You can them redeem these points to try out products or samples. Well this week Sephora announced "once in a lifetime" points rewards, including the coveted Urban Decay Naked Vault. 

SpaceNK Beauty Box
Yep, you read that right! SpaceNK have launched their very own beauty box! The first one launched on Tuesday and it's packed full of luxury products. It's fairly pricey as it retails for £55, but the value of the box exceeds £175! Read all about it here! Sadly the first beauty box is already out of stock, it flew off the shelves! I'll be eagerly awaiting the next one...

Amazon Local is 'The New Home For The West End'
Going to the theatre in the West End can certainly be pricey, but Amazon Local just made it a little bit easier. You can now pick up tickets directly from Amazon and save the hassle of using other box offices! To check out the latest tickets, click here. You can grab tickets to hit shows such as; Lion King, Book of Mormon, Matilda, Les Miserables and Cats!

Save 20% on Too Faced Cosmetics with Love Me Beauty
If you love Too Faced I have news and an offer for you! Too Faced are now shipping to the UK and you can save money with a code from Love Me Beauty! Simply enter 'LOVEMETOOFACED' at the checkout at www.toofaced.com and save yourself 20%! I'm very tempted by the Chocolate Bar Eyeshadow Palette! I've been told the shipping and taxes are quite steep though, so it might only make sense if you group together with some friends! 

Be the Face of Charlotte Tilbury
Here's an interesting one! If you head down to Charlotte Tilbury's brand new counter (Fenwick Bond Street) on Saturday 2nd May, you could be treated to a 'Tilbury Transformation'. From 10am to 5pm, each hour a new winner to be transformed! Plus three runners up will also be picked to have an exciting 'Tilbury Treat'.

NEW from YSL: Touche Eclat Rock Lace
I know people go mad for the limited edition Touche Eclat tubes, so I had to share this. The latest design is called 'Rock Lace' and it features a lace design, complete with polka dots! Click here to read more information! 

Pop & Glow With No7

The Pop & Glow Duo Blusher from No7 caught my eye straight away. It was in the "new" section on the Boots website and I absolutely fell in love with it. I've already tried the 'Pop & Glow' from No7 in the past (see Instant Radiance review here and cream blusher review here). So when I saw this new product idea, I was completely sold. 

Lets be honest, what immediately caught my eye was the playful packaging. Packaging like this normally doesn't appeal to me, but I thought it was funky and cute! There were two colour variations to choose from; Sunrise Glow (bright pink blusher with champagne highlighter) and Sunset Glow (deep pink blusher with bronzed highlighter). I opted for Sunrise Glow as the colours looked like they would suit my pale skintone the best. 

The one thing that worried me about this is if I'd be able to keep the blusher and highlighter separate on application. Luckily it's surprisingly easy and I've never ended up with bright pink on my cheekbones! You just hold the bullet at an angle on the side you want to use, very simple!

As with the other Pop & Glow products, the formula of this is really nice. It's not wet or sticky, but it's not drying or matte - it's the perfect halfway house! The product itself is really soft, so it applies to your face with minimal effort, without dragging or pulling. It blends out very easily too, I've used it with both my fingertips and a Real Techniques Expert Face Brush and it works great with both. The colour is buildable, so whether you want a subtle finish or a real pop of colour, it's all achievable! 

The Pop & Glow Duo Blusher from No7 retails for £9.99 here and I think it's worth every penny! 

Gift Box Pendant by Diamond Style

I do love some sparkle and this beautiful necklace certainly does not fall short! This is the Gift Box Pendant* by Diamond Style. 

Diamond Style are a jewellery manufacturer, retailer and distributor and better still, they make all their products right here in the UK. Diamond Style's speciality, is encasing Swarovski Elements into all their jewellery. They aim to use the highest quality of components, including freshwater pears and sterling silver.

The Gift Box Pendant comes packaged in a pretty white box with the Diamond Style logo. Inside the box there's a pretty pouch and the necklace is secured safely inside. The necklace itself incorporates a 10mm clear crystal inside plated White Gold. The pendant itself feels huge, I've never seen something quite like it! Although, my favourite part is the pretty bow that is sitting on top!

It certainly feels special and I really think any woman would like it! If you have ladies in your family having prom this year, I particularly think this would make a great gift. It would really finish off an outfit. 

If White Gold isn't their colour, you can actually pick it up in Gold which I think is just as sweet! You can buy the Gift Box Pendant here for £85. 

Sephora Lovin'

I'm not the biggest fan of traveling, but my job requires me to jump on a plane around six times a year. Now there has to be some benefit to this surely? A little treat to myself, is placing a Sephora order which I send to my hotel. 

This month I had one particular thing on my shopping list; the "Tarte Poppy Picnic" palette. Inside there are six eyeshadows and a blusher. The packaging of this actually makes my heart skip a beat! I'll be sharing a full review in the very near future, but I've left a sneak peek below. 

The other thing on my shopping list was the "Detox it out: Charcoal Swabs", which are basically black cotton buds. I was really intrigued by these, simply because I've never seen black cotton buds before. I think they are a bit of a gimmick really, but they are good for correcting makeup. 

The best bit about Sephora for me though are the samples. They really pack out your order and it feels like a full haul. On every order, you can select three samples to receive absolutely free. I picked out an Urban Decay Sheer Revolution Lipstick sample set, a Nest Perfume in 'Midnight Fleur' and a Marc Jacobs Perfume. They were also offering the option to sample the Benefit "Hello Flawless" foundation which I couldn't resist. After all, it is free! 

If that isn't enough, you can also be a part of the 'Beauty Insider' programme. It's completely free and you just collect like points, like Boots or Superdrug. Instead of getting money off your order, you swap them for products. I jumped at the chance to swap 100 points for the Diorshow Maximizer Lash Plumping Serum. When you're part of the Beauty Insider programme, you also get a special gift on your birthday. I was eligible to redeem mine on this order and it's fabulous! This years gift is two NARS lip pencils; there's a matte pencil in Cruella and a satin pencil in Rikugien. 

If you haven't ordered from Sephora I highly recommend it, you really get you money's worth!

Smashbox Blush Rush in Radiance

Smashbox Blush Rush in Radiance joined my makeup collection not too long ago. I picked it up at the same time I bought the incredible eyebrow brush (review here). After being blow away by Brow Tech To Go, I had high hopes for this blusher.

First of all, lets talk packaging! The compact is matt black, you can see through the lid to see the pink colour underneath. A little mirror slides out from underneath which is a really pleasant surprise - I like something a little different. It's the best of both worlds, because you can see the colour through the packaging, but you don't loose out on the mirror. 

Blush Rush comes in eight shades and it's a powder blusher. It has a very silky texture and it's nicely pigmented. It's not too strong and it's not too weak, it's a nice buildable texture. The shade Radiance is a pretty pop of pink, which is perfect for this time of of year. The finish itself is really natural, just a soft pop of colour!

So far I've now tried two fabulous products from Smashbox, it's a brand I somewhat ignored for quite a long time, but now I'm really addicted. Smashbox Blush Rush in Radiance retails for £21 here. I'm not 100% it's worth £21, there are better high end blushers on the market, but the swiveling packaging is a nice touch. 

 

My Little Dream Box

Oh My Little Box, you do it to me every single month! A box filled to the brim with beautiful products, goodies and imagery. The boxes are always so full that you can't fit everything in one picture!  

This months theme is 'My Little Dream Box' - in the box I have three beauty items and three lifestyle items. The 'magazine' this month is in the form of a booklet that folds out into a really pretty poster. You can't miss the cloud shaped envelope, reading 'Once Upon A Dream'. Better yet inside the cloud there's a gorgeous little pendant! How do My Little Box think of these wonderful ideas?! There's also a rotating stamp and an ink pad, this is going to be super cute for my scrapbook! The boxes also had a piece of artwork which was a cute cloud with a famous Disney quote, but I think mine didn't make it's way in the box. 

The beauty items are a My Little Box hair mask, a Nominoë foaming cleanser and a really cute red tinted lip balm. A lot of people received a solid perfume instead of the Nominoë, which is the first time I've seen a variation in boxes. I love that every box has a beauty item made directly my My Little Box, the packaging is so sweet. 

This is truly the best subscription box on the planet! I honestly do not feel like I need to put it into words, the pictures speak for themselves. This month felt like a proper journey through the box, with hidden items and things that had me 'oohing' and 'ahhing'. My Little Box is a subscription service costing £11 a month, plus £3.95 P&P. Check out the website here: mylittlebox.co.uk

MAC Soft & Gentle

When it comes to my makeup wish list, MAC Soft & Gentle is possibly the product that's been on there the longest. It goes back to when I first started blogging and the huge YouTube clan were ALL talking about it. MAC Soft & Gentle is a soft highlighter, which is baked to create a really pretty marbled effect in the pan. In comes in the standard chic MAC black packaging, which has a window to reveal the beauty inside. 

There are tons of ways to use this product, you can actually use it all over the face for a dewy glow. Or you can concentrate it on certain areas, which is my favourite way to use it! I've been taking it on my Real Techniques Contour Brush and applying it to my cheekbones and the centre of my nose. I've also been taking my Eco Tools Full Eyeshadow Brush and using it on my eyebrow bone which looks really pretty! 

MAC Soft & Gentle is part of the Mineralize Skinfinish range which comes in a few different colours, so there should be something for everyone. I'm so glad that I've finally got this in my stash! It's so pretty and I know that I'm going to have it for a long time to come. It retails for £23 (here) so it's fairly pricey, but so far I think it's worth it! 

Thursday Tittle Tattle #2

Last month I launched a new series on my blog called 'Thursday Tittle Tattle', a series dedicated to breaking news of the beauty world. From time-to-time, I'll feature beauty and lifestyle news, events, discounts, and even a bit of fashion news thrown in too! Here are the things that have caught my eye this week:

Models Own Launch Lip Products
Lots of brands have started experimenting with new product lines, Models Own are no exception. They've recently launched new product lines, in the form of HyperLip Lip Glosses and Semi-Matte Lipstick. Browse the new lines here.

New from DECIEM - HYLAMIDE
One of my favourite brands is DECIEM, every single product I try from this brand impresses me! My favourites so far have been from Hand Chemistry, but last week they introduced Hylamide to the family. There are two new products SubQ Anti-Age and SubQ Eyes, which are both serums. They are designed to target "every layer of the skin with next generation ingredients". I've got a full feature coming on these products next week! Shop and learn about the products here. 

Try All FIVE Face Masks from GLAMGLOW for just £39 at HQ Hair
I'm obsessed with GLAMGLOW and I love a good bargain! HQ Hair now stock the GLAMGLOW Glamtastic Facial Set for £39.99. Better yet, if you buy it, you get the Powermud mask absolutely free! Shop this offer here.

Marks & Spencer Petite Range
Marks & Spencer have a brand new range of clothes for Petite ladies! Perfect if like me, you're a little on the short side. The most exciting part for me is that there is a range of Maxi Skirts! You can check out the full style guide here.  

New Bobbi Brown Long Wear Collection

The Long Wear Collection from Bobbi Brown contains some of their best selling products and recently they've been expanding the collection. Bobbi Brown has added a brand new brow pencil to the mix, what's most exciting is that there are EIGHT shades of brow pencil. There has to be a colour to suit everyone! Check out the new brow pencil here. If that's not enough, they've also added SEVEN brand new Shadow Stick shades! 

Buy Two Serozincs for £10

One more offer for you this Thursday! I've made no secret of my love for Serozinc - my skin loves it! At the moment you can pick up two full size cans of Serozinc from Escentual for just £10, yes £10!  This is literally too good to miss - shop here. 

Boots Haul

We've all been there, a Boots store and a three-for-two offer across all makeup. It's a dangerous situation for any makeup fanatic, let alone a beauty blogger. I debated what I wanted to get for quite some time, but I eventually settled on six items that I'm super chuffed with! When I haul makeup, I like to get items from my wish list that I've wanted for a while or items that have a lot of coverage on the bloggersphere. However, two sneaky things fell into my basket, that I hadn't seen before.

Soap & Glory Solar Powder
I've heard so many good things about the Soap & Glory Solar Powder and I couldn't resist any longer. After all, it is officially bronzing season! Vivianna Does Makeup and Lily Pebbles completely sold this too me, so far I have no regrets! It's such a natural coloured bronzer and I think it's just beautiful! I actually think that sometimes Soap & Glory products can be a little over priced for the highstreet, but I'm in love with this and it's totally worth the pennies. This retails for £11 here.

Maxfactor Creme Puff Blush
I couldn't leave my Boots order without chucking one of the new Maxfactor blushers into the mix. They are the most gorgeous colours and they've been raved about no end. Tipped to be the high street dupe for the Hourglass Ambient Lighting Blushers, how can you resist?! I picked up the shade 'Gorgeous Berries', I love the deep pink undertones. These retail for £8.99 here.

Seventeen Define and Conquer Kit
Never one to resist a contour kit, when I saw the Seventeen Define and Conquer Kit (love the name!), I knew it was coming home with me. It retails for a tiny £5.99 and there are two colours to choose from on the website (light and medium). This is another product that gets some dashing reviews, I cannot wait to try this out. You can buy it online here.

Rimmel Good To Glow Highlighter
This is a brand new product from Rimmel which I first spotted on British Beauty Blogger. I'm a bit of a highlighter fanatic, so I can never resist trying something new. These are a liquid highlighter, blend it directly onto your skin, or add to foundation for a summer glow! There are three shades available, so there should be something good for a different skintones. These retail for £4.99, bargain! 

No7 Pop and Glow Duo Blush and Shimmer 
I'm a huge fan of my Pop and Glow products from No7! I have the highlighting stick and a gorgeous bright pink blusher. So when I saw the Pop and Glow duo in Sunrise Glow, my heart skipped a beat. First of all, the packaging is so sweet! I love the swirly design and the packaging gives me a real pick me up on a dull morning. Secondly, the product is amazing! The blusher is pigmented and blendable, the highlighter is dewy and creamy. Win, win! It retails for £9.95 here.

LOreal Paris Color Riche Eyeshadow Primer Base
Last on my list is this primer base for your eyeshadow from LOreal. I have really oily eyelids, so I always need something to make my eyeshadow last through the day. I've not tried this product and I haven't read any reviews, so I have no idea what this is going to be like. I love the idea of a primer in pencil form though, perfect for travelling?! It only cost me £5.99 too, so if it's good, it's a blooming bargain! 

Days Out - Knebworth House

Last weekend we felt the need to embrace the beautiful weather! We were hunting for something to do and we decided to head to Knebworth House. These days Knebworth House is most famous for it's rock concerts, but in days gone by it was the home of Victorian novelist Edward Bulwer Lytton. Knebworth House has a lot to offer from playgrounds, to dinosaurs, to gardens, to the house itself! There is definitely a lot to keep yourself entertained.

The weekend we visited, Knebworth House was hosting the 'East Of England Food Festival', which was what originally attracted us. The festival itself was a little thin on the ground, we picked up some cake, some Baklava and some sausages, but there were more home items on sale, than food. 

We don't have children, so we often find that attractions like Knebworth House can be a little too family focussed. However, we really enjoyed walking around the gardens and trying to find the center of the maze! The gardens offer a 'Dinosaur Trail' which features 'life size' models of Dinosaurs, hidden amongst the foliage and the trees. There's a self-service restaurant of you fancy grabbing a bite to eat and also a gift shop to take a momento home. It's easy to how a family could make a full day of out of visiting! We opted not to go inside the house itself, we had already paid £10 a ticket to go inside the estate and felt an extra £3 for the house wasn't worth it. Plus, we were enjoying the Spring sun far too much!

For more information you can visit the Knebworth House website, www.knebworthhouse.com. 

Fleur de Figuier Perfumed Soaps

I love a good multi-purpose product and the Roger & Gallet Perfumed Soaps* is one of them! In this beautiful gift box from Roger & Gallet, you receive three 100g soaps. All beautifully finished with pink pleated silk paper and a pretty sticker. The soaps are 100% plant based which means they have no artificial ingredients. 

How can a soap be multi-purpose I hear you cry?! Well these soaps are created in special packaging which allows you to use them in your drawers and wardrobe. The scent infuses your clothes and linens with a really subtle scent of summer, which is gorgeous! 

These ones carry my favourite scent 'Fleur de Figuier' - which is a blend of fig pulp, caraway and grapefruit - which makes a really pretty fresh, light scent! However, you can get these little gift boxes in a whole range of scents including; rose, ginger and citron! They retail for £14.50 (here) which makes them a great gift or a nice treat for yourself! 

Bourjois Colorband Eyeshadow Pencils

The Bourjois Colorband Eyeshadow Pencils had a whole heap of coverage on their release and I've been eager to try them. In fact they went out of stock almost instantly online, so I've been waiting patiently for them to return. 

I originally picked up Beige Minimal, which I've had for a couple of weeks. You can see by the swatch that it's a very basic beige shade. As the shade name suggests, it's very minimal on the lid, but it just adds a wash of colour which makes your eyes look wide awake. I was really impressed with the formula, it stayed all day and it did not crease on my oily eyelids. 

I decided that I'd try another shade and this time I opted for Brun Dadaiste. Again, you can see in the swatch that this is a rich chocolate brown. I've been using this with Beige Minimal, I cover the lid with Beige Minimal and literally draw a line in my lid with Brun Dadaiste. I take my MAC 217 and I blend the colour out and it's literally an effortless smokey eye. 

These pencils are only £5.99 and they are fantastic value for money! I already have my eye on the Mauve one!

 

Rimmel & Rita Ora Colourfest Collection

I find Spring such an exciting time for nail polish releases! The high street is rocking colour at the moment and Rimmel London is no exception. The latest from Rimmel is the Colourfest Collection, featuring a whole host of gorgeous nail shades. The polishes come in the standard Rimmel 60 Second packaging, but with a flower decal to the lid.

In a recent trip to Superdrug I picked up two shades from the collection 'Rain Rain Go Away' and 'Go Wild-er-ness'. Rain Rain Go Away is a gorgeous taupe shade, which is actually different to anything else in my collection. Go Wild-er-ness is a stunning pastel purple lilac shade, which is a colour I cannot get enough of at the moment.  

The formula of these is beautiful, they have the fabulous Rimmel flat brush which makes the application dreamy. They dry quickly and they are opaque in one coat! They last well on the nails too, they do not chip easy and they don't flake. All-in-all for £2.99, these polishes are gorgeous! 

 

After Shower Beauty

For a long time I've hated moisturisers, they are just too sticky and too much fuss for my liking. However, over the last few months I've found three products that make moisturising a breeze! Each of these have different qualities that I like and I use them for all different purposes.

The One For When I'm In A Rush
The Vaseline Spray & Go Body Moisturiser hasn't been short of coverage in the bloggersphere and it's no surprise why! This moisturiser is the simplest of formulas, you just spray it all over your body and rub it in. It disappears instantly, yet it still supplies a whole load of moisture. These moisturisers come in a few different scents including Cocoa which makes you smell like chocolate! It retails for £5, but is often on offer for £3, (buy here) which makes it a high street bargain! 

The One For When I Want To Smell Beautiful
This is the one that gets the most use out of all three featured here. I've featured the Roger & Gallet Fleur de Figuier Body Lotion* before and it's still a firm favourite in my collection. It comes in a handy pump bottle and it's much thicker in texture. It still soaks into the skin quickly, but it leaves behind the most beautiful scent, which really lingers! If fig isn't your thing, there are a few other scents you can choose from. This retails for £13 (buy here), which makes it more expensive than the others, but its oh so worth it! 

The One For Dry Spots
The Body Shop Body Butter has been on the market for longer than I can remember and it's a favourite of many worldwide. I find this far too thick to use all over my body, it just takes too long to soak in! However, I use this on all the spots that are prone to being a little too dry. It injects your skin with buckets of moisture and they come in a variety of scents. I'm currently using Honeymania, which is a sweet floral and honey scent, which is lovely for summer. This one retails for £13 (buy here) for 200ml and it lasts forever! 

Blusher Beauty By Bobbi Brown

I'm not joking when I say that as SOON as these dropped, I added them to my wish list. I've wanted to try a Bobbi Brown blusher for so long, so three in one handy palette was heaven to me. This is officially called The Cheek Palette and it was released in three different shade combinations. 

I had a House of Fraser gift card to spend, so I ended up ordering this beauty from there! I actually wanted the Berry combination, but when that one was out of stock, I opted for Pink. Inside the standard Bobbi Brown black sleek packaging, you get two powder blushers and a powder highlighter. The palette also houses a huge mirror, which makes it good for travelling or for your handbag for when you're on-the-go. 

You can see by the swatch below that these are very sheer in one wash. I've been using this with my Real Techniques Cheek Brush and slowly building up the coverage to my desired effect. You can barely see any difference in the swatch of the two pink shades, however, the left one is slightly more berry-toned. I've been using the highlighter shade with my Real Techniques Contour Brush. Again it's pretty sheer, but it creates a 'glowing from within' look which I think is gorgeous for spring time! 

The Cheek Palette retails for £34, which is pretty good value when you consider one shade from Bobbi Brown is £19. These flew off the shelves like hot cakes, but the Cheek Palette in Pink is still available here on the Bobbi Brown website.

Bourjois Healthy Balance Powder

My oily complexion means that I can never really get away without powdering. Luckily there are some pretty beautiful powders available these days; Bourjois Healthy Balance Powder is certainly one of them. I personally like a bit of extra coverage from powders, so I was happy to see that Bourjois made one for me that was a perfect colour match. Although there are actually only four shades available, which is not the best selection. I'm very pale and I use 'Vanilla' which is the same shade that I wear in Bourjois foundations.

The ingredients inside Bourjois Healthy Balance Powder, include 'Yuzu' for anti-shine and Sharon Fruit' for Hydration. What I personally like about this powder is that it's incredibly fine milled, so it does not feel heavy at all. Yet, it still gives coverage, sets makeup and keeps shine at bay all day long. Some powders can feel quite drying on the skin, but this is really comfortable. It also comes in a really sleek and small compact; with a good size mirror too, which makes it perfect for chucking in your handbag. It's rare that you find a powder which has a mirror inside, yet is not too bulky for travel, this is perfect.

At £8.99 the Bourjois Healthy Balance Powder is in the middle price range for high street powders. It's not as cheap as Rimmel's Stay Matte Powder but nowhere near as expensive as the Revlon alternative. I'm really happy with this purchase, I think I might go as far as to give it holy grail status! You can pick it up from Superdrug here. 

Pug Phone Case by Head Case

Remember when I said I had a phone case obsession? Well I've been at it again - this time it's pug themed. My sister actually surprised me with a pug phone case a few weeks ago, but she bought it for the wrong phone. I was gutted and it sparked an obsessed Stephanie, I had to have a pug phone case! 

I searched eBay for a good couple of hours and I finally settled on this Pug Hard Case by Head Case, isn't he cute? This case only cost £5 and I'm always worried about what the quality will be like when they arrive. This particular case is fantastic! The case is made from good quality materials, which means it hasn't cracked or broken. Not to mention, the image is crisp and clear which means it looks a lot more expensive than it is.

I'm really impressed with my latest phone case, I think he'll be sticking around for a while, he's too cute to replace! 

Boost Moisture With Vichy Aqualia Thermal

Vichy is a brand that I haven't had a chance to really explore in much detail. So when I was offered to try Aqualia Thermal, I jumped at the chance. Aqualia Thermal offers everything my skin craves in the Spring time; a shot of moisture to hydrate and make the skin look plump.

Vichy was created in 1931 and since that time, they have constantly strived to be at the breaking edge of cosmetics. Recently they introduced a whole range of products to add 'dynamic hydration'. The new products are all under the Aqualia Thermal line and there are three products. Here I have the Aqualia Thermal Dynamic Hydration Power Serum*, what a name! It's concentrated with Thermal Spa Water and enriched with Hyaluronic Acid with allows to soothe, protect and hydrate all in one handy serum. 

So science and ingredients aside, what did I think of it? Well lets start with the shallow stuff; I love the bottle. It feels lovely to hold and feels expensive (which I expect for £17). The formula itself is a lot runnier than over serums I've tried, which makes it incredibly light on the skin. It's really cooling on the skin, which I love, there's nothing nicer than a cooling serum first thing in the morning! 

I apply to the skin after cleansing and it just takes a couple of minutes to absorb in. It really injects lots of hydration into the skin, which means it makes a great base for makeup. I've found that normally my foundation clings to my dry patches, but this hasn't happened with Aqualia Thermal in my routine. The one thing I don't like is that the product is quite scented! This normally puts me off, but I've been ignoring it as I find this has been doing wonders for my skin. 

So far I'm really enjoying this Aqualia Thermal Serum, I can see why it's called the 'Power Serum'. I've packed this in my suitcase this week as I'm heading to Santa Cruz, which involves a 12-hour plane journey! I'm hoping this is going to rescue my skin both during and after the flight!

You can pick up the Aqualia Thermal Dynamic Hydration Power Serum from Escentual (buy here) and Boots (buy here) for £17. 

Stephanie's Spring Scents

When the sun starts to shine, I quickly switch to my light airy scents! I thought it was time to share with you some of my favourites!

Marc Jacobs Daisy Dream
This is the strongest of all three scents! To write this post I've sprayed them all on a piece of paper in front of me and this is the only one I can smell. To me it has a very clean scent which has floral base. I'm talking a clean cotton which has been paired with daisies. As it settles it leaves a musky scent which has a strong scent of coconut, which happens to be my favourite scent of all time! I wore this a lot last summer and it reminds me of holidays by the beach. Being Marc Jacobs, it has the most beautiful bottle too, I think it's my favourite packaging of all the Marc Jacobs scents! 

See By Chloe
This is the latest addition to my perfume collection and I've been obsessed with wearing it recently. To me this smells the most floral but it's not got that sharp base that you get with some floral scents. Instead it's incredibly wearable, it settles with a woody vanilla scent but with the floral scents still coming through. This perfume is packaged in a gorgeous bird cage bottle which has a pretty silver lid, so pretty! 

Roger & Gallet Fleur de Figuier*
This one isn't actually a perfume, instead it's described as a 'Fragrant Water'. So you can imagine that it's the lightest of the three. It's also the sweetest of the three and instead of being floral, it's fruity. It's rare for me to like a fruity scent in perfume, so this is pretty unique for my collection! Obviously the main ingredient of this is fig pulp which smells beautiful, but it's just got a real sweetness about it. It reminds me of a particular sweet, but I cannot but my finger on what it actually is. Being a fragrant water it's obviously the cheapest of the three, but it's also the one that needs reapplying through the day.

What scents do you like to wear in Spring?

The Benefit Of Glass Nail Files

I'm quickly coming round to the idea of using glass nail files. I used to be a huge fan of the normal 'classic' emery boards, but there are actually lots of advantages to using glass. 

They Leave Your Nails In A Better Condition
Emery boards are designed to be used only in one direction, but most people ignore this. They leave your nails quite brittle and damaged. However, glass files your nails a little differently! They are not as harsh as sandpaper, and instead of tearing the nail, the glass fuses the ends of your nails together. This in turn makes them stronger and stops them from breaking and chipping. Glass files also tend to be sharper which means that they leave a nice smooth finish. 

No Sound & No Mess
To me emery boards sound horrible! They have a sawing effect which to me sounds like nails on a chalk board - yuck! Glass files are smooth and delicate, so they actually make no sound at all! Which if you're sensitive to sounds like me, is a huge bonus! They also make a LOT less mess than your classic emery board. Both of these factors makes them easier to use whilst on-the-go!

Long Life
Another huge bonus is that they last longer! A normal emery board can go blunt very quickly, perhaps in two/three uses. However, glass files last a lot longer, in fact many files promise a 'lifetime'! If they don't promise a lifetime, you can normally get at least a years worth of use from one file!

They Are Washable
This tends to be a benefit for the professional beauticians amongst us, but glass files are actually washable. This means they can be sterilised after each use; you just wash them with soap and water and spray them with antiseptic spray. Some people actually put their glass nail files in the dishwasher!  

There are loads of glass files on the market, but the one I'm currently using is one by Dr Lewinn's*. It's double sided and it is pointed at one end which allows you to be more precise. Like most glass files, the Dr Lewinn's Glass Nail File, also comes with a little white pouch which protects it (and your other belongings) when it's rattling around your handbag. 

When A Wish List Becomes A Haul

I haven't bought something high end for quite a long time, so when I converted my Top Cashback money into a House of Fraser gift card, I knew exactly what to do! I finally ticked off several items off my wish list and I'm so excited to finally have them in my collection. These are all literally "box fresh" still, so I haven't had a chance to play with any of them yet! 

Bobbi Brown Cheek Palette in 'Pink'
These palettes have completely flown off the shelves (and rightly so)! Three stunning Bobbi Brown blushers in sleek black packaging, two words; simply gorgeous! I actually originally wanted a different shade combination but by the time I got round to ordering they had sold out. I went for 'Pink' which combines three pink shades; a bright pink, a powder pink and a pink highlighter shade. Bobbi Brown says that this palette suits anyone with a light-medium skintone who wants a "a fresh, healthy-looking glow".

Clinique Cheek Pop in 'Berry' I've wanted one of these bad boys since they launched and I'm so glad to finally have one in my collection. I went for the shade 'Berry' which is a really nice deep pink shade. 'Cheek Pop' was launched last year by Clinique, marketed as the blusher made for Spring time. They come in a variety of shades and aim to give you the 'just-pinched look'. These are so pretty, I'm not sure I'm going to be able to bring myself to swatch it!

Bobbi Brown Long-Wear Cream Eyeshadow in 'Stone'

Another product that has been on my wishlist for a long time - these cream eyeshadows get some rave reviews by Bloggers. I opted for the shade 'Stone' as I like to invest in neutral products that I'll get a lot of use from! 

MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in 'Soft & Gentle'

Now this product literally spans back years! It's been on the beauty radar for longer than I can remember and everyone has raved about it. I cannot resist a good highlighter, so I'm pretty chuffed to have this in my stash. It comes in the nicest packaging too?! It has a very satisfying magnetic clicking lid and the box is pretty too! 

There you have it, the four products that make up my naughty haul! I'm pretty chuffed though, I'm really happy to have ticked off some products from my wishlist. It's actually much more satisfying finally owning something when you've given it a lot of thought!

Spring Trends With Boots #GiveItAGo

A few weeks ago Boots hosted their very own Twitter chat (using the hashtag #GiveItAGo)! It was hosted by Sabrina (A Little Bit Obsessed), Fee (Makeup Savvy) and makeup artist Louise Constad. The idea of the chat was to share beauty tips and ideas, to encourage each other to #GiveItAGo. I joined in the chat and I really had a great time! There was a wealth of ideas and lots of lovely chatter! 

I'm really enjoying Boots' presence on Twitter, it's great to see them getting involved in social media! Boots are pushing four trends for Spring/Summer; 'Contouring', 'Red Lips', 'Negative Space Nails' and 'Woodstock Waves'. As part of the Twitter chat Boots gave away some goody bags and I actually won one! Boots sent me a huge box of goodies to try out two of the trends.

First up we have the Red Lips Trend featuring everything you need to create the perfect red lip look. I have three lipsticks in Rimmel Apocalips Matte Velvet in 'Burning Lava', No7 Match Made Perfect Lipstick in 'Pillarbox' and the Clarins Rouge Eclat Lipstick in 'Passion Red'. I also have the Estee Lauder Lip Brush, No7 Lip Pencil in 'Red' and the Lancome Creamy Lip Base. 

The other trend I'm getting to try is Woodstock Waves! The products for this trend include Batiste Dry Shampoo, Umberto Giannini Extreme Hairspray, Lee Stafford Volumizing Mousse, Aussie Dual Personality Serum and the Boots Black Blending Hair Grips. 

I actually have permed hair, so I do waves every single day but red lips is something I've never done in my life! I'm definitely going to give these products a go and report back on what I thought of everything, let me know if you've tried anything in the comments below!