Lush Christmas Wishlist 2013

Looking on the Lush website genuinely makes me quite depressed because I know I can't buy anything until my birthday. I sort of add all my favourite items into the shopping basket, stare at it for a while in hope it'd pay for itself, then cross off the website and go back to sulking. Anyway, I thought I'd share with you my favourite Christmas items from Lush this year. 

Rose Jam Shower Gel - £4.65/100ml
"Our Rose Jam shower gel with its sweet, addictive scent is back by popular demand. With a vanilla pod infusion, goji berry juice and vitamin rich, nourishing Argan oil, this shower gel is truly indulgent. People who love Rose Jam Bubbleroon and Ro’s Argan Body Conditioner will love this too as we use the same floral, fruity-smelling combination of Turkish rose absolute and geranium oil."

Snow Globe Soap - £3.10/100g
"A huge snowy dome of soap with an uplifting lemon myrtle and lemongrass fragrance – a soap that shakes things up a bit."

Christmas Eve Bubble Bar - £2.95/each

"This bubble bar was invented for those times when you are getting ready for a big event. Soak in a bath and relax in mountains of bubbles and rise with a hint of sensual jasmine fragrance lingering on your body."

Magic Wand Bubble Bar - £4.95/each

"A reusabubble bar star that gives mounds of sweet-smelling foam. This is a solid version of our best selling Snow Fairy shower gel for those who prefer to bathe."

Secret Santa Bath Bomb - £5.75/each
"Modelled on the original Lush shop, 29 Poole High Street, this is our very own Santa’s grotto. The fragrance was created to emulate the rich smell of essential oils inside the shop, and there's even a miniature red Father Christmas inside!"

So White Bath Bomb - £3.25/each

"An apple a day keeps the doctor away. A bath bomb as pure as the driven snow, with a secret pink centre for a rose coloured bath."

Star Light, Star Bright Bath Melt - £3.30/40g
"Catch a falling star and put it in your… bath. We have been working for a long time to make this Christmas bath melt – a shimmering bright star for an extra special bath filled with light and lustre."

What are your favourite Lush products?

Caitlin x

New Illamasqua Brushes

These are the three amazing new Illamasqua brushes in their collection. Go check them out at www.illamasqua.com.

Smoothing Brush - £22.00
"Unique ultra thin, flat 'featherlike' brush designed to delicately smooth and blend products around the eye area- to finesse to perfection"

Smoulder Brush - £19.00
"Ideal for blurring pigment to make it smoulder - creates smoky/blurred smouldering lines around the eye area to perfection."

Concealer Brush - £19.00
"Ideal to build coverage and conceal. Excellent for use with Skin Base Lift/ Cream Pigment/ Cream Concealer and general flat brush techniques."

Click here to see the whole collection of Illamasqua brushes.

Which one is your favourite? I really want to give the Concealer Brush a go!

Caitlin x

 

 

 



Josie Maran Coconut Watercolour Cheek Gelee

"Get 14 hours of natural-looking hydrating colour with this cooling Cheek Gelee. Infused with 50% Coconut Water, the buildable yet see-through blush drenches skin in moisture while nourishing with Argan Oil."

Admit it, if you saw this on a shelf in Selfridges, you'd keep your distance. As soon as you set your eyes on the bright colours of the Gelee revealed in the tester pots, it'd make you feel slightly intimidated, so you go running back to your safer looking products. Am I right? Yes, this does look very bright and Aunt Sally-like, but don't judge it until you have faced your fears, gone over there and given it a go. You will be pleasantly surprised at how subtle and natural the colour actually is. But unfortunately it isn't sold in Selfridges or anywhere in the UK so we'll just have to imagine that it is.

I've been wanting to try a Josie Maran product for absolutely ages so I was extremely excited to get this when I was in America. I went for Pink Escape as I am very pale and suit more pink blushers as opposed to coral colours. The colour is buildable without looking cakey, and still gives your skin that dewy, fresh look which is amazing for autumn and winter.

The packaging is a bit smaller than what I was expecting but I was surprised at how little of the actual product you need, therefore this will still last you forever! And with it being recyclable, paraben free, vegan, gluten free, cruelty free and containing only natural ingredients and no synthetic fragrances, this really should already be on your Christmas list.

I definitely recommend you try this product, it's not as scary as you may think. But please, the Aunt Sally look is not what we're going for here.

You can buy the Josie Maran Coconut Watercolour Cheek Gelee on Ebay, with prices starting from £12 +P&P.

What are your thoughts on this product?

Caitlin x

Yankee Candle Festive Glow

 

Why didn't anyone tell me that Yankee Candle is considerably cheaper in America?! Due to me not knowing, I over-packed my suitcase with clothes and shoes I never wore once while over there, meaning I hit my 23kg weight limit with only one candle on the way back home! And because I could only choose one, I made sure I smelt every candle in the shop just to be sure of my difficult decision. But boy I made the right decision.

This is Festive Glow, a fresh but Christmas-y scent (I'm bad at describing scents as you can tell). I think most people who don't like over-powering candles will love this because it's faint but still fills up the room with a lovely winter scent. And not to mention how beautifully simple and unique the packaging is!

I purchased the Festive Glow Yankee Candle for $9.99 in the Yankee Candle Store in America.

What Christmas candles do you have?

Caitlin x

Florida Beauty Haul

I recently got back from a jam-packed holiday in Florida and managed to squeeze in a few days of shopping while I was there. I had a embarrassingly long list of products that I knew I wanted to either buy, or consider buying (depending on if I could afford to!). Therefore I went for the spend-less-get-more option of buying all the cheaper things on my list, and in result getting a larger quantity of products.

Burt's Bees Nourishing Lip Balm with Mango Butter $4.95
This is such a good lip balm and smells amazing!

Maybelline Baby Lips in 95 Strike A Rose $4.95
This baby doesn't launch in the UK till January 2014 so I had to get one!

Lush Bubblegum Lip Scrub $9.95
I wasn't planning to get this until I got back home but I saw it and had to get it, it works so well!

Smashbox Photo Finish Colour Correcting Adjust Foundation Primer $10
I haven't used this properly yet but it seems like a great foundation primer so far!

Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics Lip Tar Stained Gloss in Meta $18
I'm so glad I bought this because it is so long-lasting and the tube will last me for ages! I wear it nearly everyday.

Josie Maran Coconut Watercolour Cheek Gelee in Pink Escape $22
I haven't used this much yet but I love it already.

Sephora Formula X Effects Top Coat in TNT $12.50
I've used this so much over the past week and had so many compliments.

Philosophy Purity Made Simple One-Step Facial Cleanser $10
I find this removes all dirt and make up, leaving my skin feeling clean but sometimes too dry.

L'Occitane Rose Petals Ultra Rich Body Cream Limited Edition $21
I daren't use this because the tub is so small and I don't want it to run out, it smells absolutely amazing and is so moisturising.

Dot by Marc Jacobs Gift Set (includes Dot Eau De Parfum Spray, Dot Eau De Parfum Rollerball, Dot Fresh Shower Gel, Dot Radiant Body Lotion, Dot Vanity Case and Dot Tote Bag) $99
I wasn't sure whether or not to purchase this but I'm glad I did because I saved so much money. It smells absolutely amazing, I love it.

Have you got any of these products?

Caitlin x

Christmas Beauty Advent Calendars 2013

I absolutely love the idea of beauty advent calendars; even just thinking about getting a surprise beauty product everyday makes me happy, never mind that it counts down to Christmas! These are some of my favourite...

Boots Beauty Advent Calendar - 24 Days of Beauty Treats

 

"Wake up every morning to a new beauty treat and fill the month of december with gorgeous gifts to pamper yourself from head to toe. Featuring brands such as; Soap & Glory, Nails Inc, Paco Rabanne, Juicy Couture, Rimmel, Mavala, Umberto Giannini and Many More...."

The 24 Days of Beauty Treats advent calendar is available exclusively in store and online at Boots for £30.


Selfridges Beauty Advent Calendar

                           

"Selfridges' exclusive bijoux Christmas advent calendar bringsyou the best in beauty. From Viktor & Rolf, Yves Saint Laurent, Kiehl's and Giorgio Armani to Lancôme and Maison Martin Margiela, you can discover a precious treat behind every door to make you dazzle, sparkle and shine this festive season."

The Selfridges advent calendar is again exclusively available in Selfridges stores and online for £84.


Benefit Advent Calendar - Countdown To Love

                                   

"Our one-of-a-kind advent calendar comes in a show-stopping Pop Art box and is filled with 24 fun and flattering beauty treasures! It contains a bevy of Benefit bestsellers and three glitzy little look goods... a charm necklace & bracelet and an adorable barrette. It's the gift that gets more gorgeous every day!"

You can buy the Benefit Countdown To Love advent calendar from early November in store and online for £50.


Ciaté® Advent Calendar - Mini Mani Month

 "The excitement of the traditional Christmas-countdown has been transformed from chocolate to girly nail treats in the Mini Mani Month gift set from Ciaté London. Every girl’s diary can now be filled with a daily dose of delectable mini nail treats, as behind each door lies a very colourful surprise. Gorgeously packaged with nineteen of our bestselling mini Paint Pots, four textured manicure toppers from Caviar to Sequin and a surprise full size paint pot, a girl will never be bored with this adorable nail gift."

Ciaté® Tree Trinkets

 

"Our mini Paint Pots take centre stage on this year’s Christmas tree, as we’ve given them a thoroughly festive twist. Each bauble is wrapped in a signature Ciaté bow, with a mini Paint Pot in a glamorous glitter shade peeking through ready to be worn. Deck the halls with bells of holly and make your Christmas tree and you manicure sparkle with Ciaté!"

Both the Ciaté® advent calendar (£42) and tree trinkets (£30) can be found online at Ciaté® or Selfridges.


Will you be getting your hands on any of these amazing beauty advent calendars?

Caitlin x
 

Yankee Candle Advent Calendar 2013

You know them moments where you notice something and have to double-take due to disbelief? Well I may have just done that when seeing posts about the Yankee Candle Advent Calendar. Any fellow candle addicts out there?

 

"Count down to Christmas with this collectable advent calendar from the world's favourite candle company! Every day reveals a tealight candle in one of six seasonal scents, including an extra treat in the 24^th! Light a new Candle each day and celebrate the festive season with your favourite Yankee^® fragrances.
Fragrances included are: Snow In Love™, Balsam & Cedar, Merry Marshmallow™, Red Apple Wreath, Snowflake Cookie™, Sparkling Cinnamon"

Now as soon as I saw this I was ready to add to my shopping basket, but after reading what their website says I was disappointed to see there was only 6 scents. Yankee Candle have so many delicious Christmas scents; I don't see why they have only put 6 into this advent calendar! On a lighter note, the 6 included do smell amazing so I may forgive them.

You can purchase the Yankee Candle Advent Calendar from selected stores and online for £21.99.

What are your thoughts on the Yankee Candle Advent Calendar?

Caitlin x

Review: Avon Eyebrow Kit

                                        

For the past month I've been delving into my make up drawer and pulling out this must-have eyebrow product, the Avon Eyebrow Kit. I know not many people will try products from Avon because you are unable to buy them from a shop, unlike many high street brands. I kind of stumbled upon this palette by accident when I was searching for the eyebrow pencil I loved which I think they have unfortunately discontinued. I actually just bought this in replacement to the pencil and hoped it'd be as good. I hate to say this and be unfaithful to my loved pencil but this may be slightly better. By slightly I mean considerably better..

                                       

The packaging is nothing special but it does the job of housing the product inside well as it's very sturdy and looks sleek.

I got the colour Blonde for my fair eyebrows and it's a good colour match. It's stays put all throughout the day even without applying the wax. I use the small double-ended brush to apply the colour to my eyebrows. I have to admit they aren't the best brushes; they feel plastic-y if you know what I mean, but they'll do for now.

I really think this is a super high street eyebrow kit which is not only effective but affordable. You can purchase the Avon Eyebrow Kit from the Avon website or selected brochures for £7.

                                                         

What eyebrow products do you recommend? Have you tried this Avon product before? If so, what did you think?

P.S: I got back from Florida a few days ago so there will be hauls and reviews coming up soon. Please don't forget to follow my blog to keep updated!

Caitlin x