Best of Beauty Blog Challenge | Pamper Products

Can't believe we're already onto week 4 of #BOBBlogChallenge, time is flying in! Ok this week's post made me realise I need to have a little more "me" time... I genuinely have nothing to put in here. Perhaps that's a little sad. I don't even have a bath in my apartment, so no relaxing soaks for me anyway. I genuinely cannot remember the last time I used a face mask or gave my hair a conditioning treatment...

If I have some extra time before heading out at the weekend, I'll try a little harder with my makeup or I might try a new style in my hair, but I just point blank do not "pamper" myself with little treatments. This week I have definitely realised that needs to change.

I did however recenrly pick up a conditioning treatment from LUSH for my hair, so I'll be giving that a go tonight. I will report back on what I think.

I think from this week's challenge, what I'm mostly looking out for is ideas from fellow bloggers. What suggestions do you have for me and my pampering starter kit?

Best of Beauty Blog Challenge | Make Up Must Haves

Week 3 of the #BOBBlogChallenge already? This week the focus is Make Up Must Haves, those essential items you just can't live without! I also recommend heading over to All The Buzz to check out Samantha's post and to see all the participants in the Challenge!

So I've rounded up the troops and I think I'm left with the following essentials...

First up is the Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum, not to be confused with the foundation, the serum has a nice light, velvety feel to it. I have mentioned this foundation time and time again on my blog, so instead of boring you, here is a full review. I wear it day and night, I love it!

Next up is the Bobbi Brown Corrector. It's perfect for on the go, it covers under your eyes well, with a tiny hint of highlight. I have my one quite a long time now and I still haven't hit pan, so while it's not super cheap, it definitely is lasting a lot longer than any concealer I have ever owned. To top it all off, it has a little mirror in, which saves me carrying around an extra item in my makeup bag, perfect!

This is definitely my "go to" lipstick. I think it's great for everyday wear, while also having enough colour for nights out too! I'm rarely without this Bourjois Shine Edition Lipstick. So much so, it's almost finished at this stage. Would you believe it'll be the first EVER lipstick I completely used? I usually lose a lipstick or grow bored of it before I could ever possibly reach the end. So I don't think it could come with a stronger endorsement from me! 

I have five of these Maybelline Colour Tattoo 24hr Cream Shadows in total and I love them all. They're great as an eyeshadow themselves, but even more commonly I use them as a base for other shades. I find using these stops all other shadows from budging, even after hours of wear. I also find whenever there is some wear, it's great to have a lasting shade underneath (which is why I have 5 shades, I will try to match the cream shadow base with the colour I am actually wearing).

Finally I have the Rimmel Lash Accelerator Endless. I love this mascara for really separating and lengthening my lashes. Then if I want dramatic eyes I will usually layer it with another volumising mascara. It's perfect on its own for everyday wear as well as for nights out!


So that's it for another week, do you own any of these products, what do you think of them?
What are your make up must haves?

Mini Haul | MAC, Chanel, Bourjois...

Ok so I couldn't entirely resist the shops this weekend. I might have no money, but that didn't seem to stop me last week. Sure isn't that what credit cards are for? So I thought I'd share with you the few bits I picked up....

So I made a quick lunch time trip down Henry street and somehow within 30 minutes managed to drop into MAC, Arnotts and Boots. So from MAC I picked up Plumful from the Lustre range. Which I've been meaning to pick up ever since I heard Estée from Essie Button mention it in one of her videos a few months back. It's such a pretty shade and it feels so nice on the lips.

Next it was into Chanel where I initially went in to pick up their pressed powder, as I heard great things about it for someone like me with dry skin. I had a good chat with the lady in Chanel about dry skin, dehydrated skin and the difference between the two. She was fairly confident my skin was just dehydrated. So instead I left the powder and picked up the hydrating serum (the price tag is not for the faint of heart). But after using it for a couple of days, my skin feels much softer and all the breakouts I've had for the last few months seem to finally be clearing (breakouts are apparently a by-product of dehydrated skin I'm told). I will definitely do a proper review, once I've been using it for a few weeks...

Next up I went to boots and picked up a moisturiser, if I'm being totally honest I have yet to land on a specific brand here. I swap and change all the time. I'm completely committed to my cleanser, but I jump from moisturiser to moisturiser. It's one area, I need to give a little more care and attention. So I've tried this one before and it seemed okay, so I'm back again to No7 Protect & Perfect Day Cream.

Then I picked up one of all time favourite foundations, Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum. If you want a full review of this foundation, you can look back to a previous post here. Although now I use the Real Techniques buffing brush to apply it for a much more even, flawless, finish.

I also then picked up these two sprays from V05 which I've heard a bit about through the blogging world, I have never tried any texturising sprays before ever, so I look forward to reporting back on how I find them. I have heard a lot of buzz about the Oribe texturising spray, but I wasn't ready to part with €50 for a type of product I've never used before. I will however give this pair a try at only €7 for the 2 of them, what a bargain!

And the final product is a cult favourite, which needs no introduction, the Batiste dry shampoo. I always get the original one as I am not a big fan of scented hair products. But of course you couldn't fault it and I need not go into any detail here, as everyone is fully up to speed and obsessed with Batiste!

So guys and gals, do you have any of these products?
Or have you been hitting the shops lately?

Best of Beauty Blog Challenge | Hair Heroes

Ok so we're on to Week 2 of the #BOBBlogChallenge started by the amazing Sam over at All The Buzz. This week focuses on Hair Heroes.

So when it comes to hair maintenance I wash my hair with shampoo and then condition (the ends) with whatever brand I have on the go. So far I have yet to be tied down to any particular brand. It's moreso the after shower maintenance where I've made some long term commitments! Once I've towel dried my hair, I spray it with Aussie Miracle Hair Insurance Leave-In Conditioner and comb it through. It's perfect as a de-tangler and helps to give my highlighted hair some shine. Not to mention it smells fabulous!

Next I use TRESemmé Heat Protector. I find it works well for me and leaves a nice finish on my hair. What I particularly like is the spray you get from the product. I have found a lot of other brands, the spray fire out the spray in a concentrated line, thus giving you spots with loads of product and other areas with none. The fine mist with this product is perfect.

When it comes to combing these products through my hair, I couldn't be without my Tangle Teezer. While I feel more like I'm combing a horse's mane than a head of hair (due to the lack of a handle), I cannot argue with the results. I absolutely love this comb. I don't know how I did without one before, as I only have it less than a year, but I certainly won't go back. The version I have here is the travel one, so it's perfect for taking with you on the go, as the little cover stops the bristles from being bent or damaged. I would recommend this to everyone, I find it much less stressful on my hair than a wide tooth comb. It is also amazing for detangling my hair, which used to be quite the nightmare as I have highlights.

So while some of the other products I use change week in, week out, these three are consistently part of my hair care routine! And I don't see that changing for some time.


So what are you hair care heroes that you cannot be without?

Best of Beauty Blog Challenge | Skin Care Saviours

I'm very excited to be getting involved in a Blogger challenge as this is my first one ever. It is the brain child of the fabulous Samantha over at All The Buzz. It is an 8 week challenge, and as the title of this post suggests, it's the "Best of Beauty Blog Challenge". You can find everyone who is involved through Twitter via the hashtag #BOBBlogChallenge.

For this post I am going to talk about my one true Skin Care Saviour and that's the Clinique Take Off The Day Cleansing Balm. It has changed my skin care routine forever. I have been using it for 6 months now and I can't imagine how I ever went without.

I first heard about it from the YouTuber, A Model Recommends and have never looked back. As with all cleansing balms, it is quite a lard-like consistency. Once you take an amount into your hands however, it melts from the heat of your skin. So when you massage it into your face, it is more of an oil-like consistency. Fear not if you suffer from oily skin, this cleanser is suitable for all skin types. It does not leave your skin feeling oily, just incredibly refreshed.

When I've finished massaging it all over my face (including my eyes), I use a damp piece of cotton to remove the balm. I know a lot of people use cloths of various kinds, but to be honest I have an excess of cotton pads at home and the nice lady at the Clinique counter actually suggested dampening a cotton pad, so I went with it and it works a treat so far anyway. One of my favourite things about this cleanser is that I can use it to remove waterproof mascara, which means the cleansing process only requires one product instead of an extra step using eye makeup remover. In summary, I would recommend this product to everyone. It retails for €28 in boots and lasts for over 2 months. An excellent investment as far as I'm concerned!


Have you ever used cleansing balms, what is your favourite one?
What is your holy grail skin care product?