THE UPLIFTING SHOWER DUO

I don't know about you, but when I wake up in the morning, after hitting the snooze button numerous times, I feel ver groggy, and I just need waking up. I gravitate toward the fruity, citrus scents to really get me ready and prepared for the day.

I am aware that you can get cheap shower gels from just about anywhere, but I have found 2 that I really like, that are worth those extra pennies...or pounds.

First of all, we have the LUSH Happy Hippy Shower Gel which is the more expensive option when you want this in larger quantities, starting at £3.50 for 100g. Strongly scented of grapefruit, this will well and truly wake up your senses to kick-start the day - like a fruity breakfast in a bottle. Don't use too much, it lathers well and, well, less is more - a much loved, and sometimes a little annoying, phrase used by us bloggers.

Up next, we have the Body Shop Sweet Lemon Shower Gel - This one, is a little more affordable, at £4.00 for 250ml, the more for less policy. If you don't like lemon scents, don't get this. It is very much heavily scented with lemon, but sweetened that little bit, so there isn't any of this overpowering, headache causing stuff. Yet again another well-lathering one, which just makes you feel clean, literally for the whole day.

I used to be such a bath person, but at the moment I just don't have time - So I try to make a shower as luxurious as it can get, by using some nice scrubs and gels.

Lauren x

MY CREAM BLUSH/CHEEK TRIO

Cream blush...? If you asked me a year ago, cream 'anything for your face'  bar eyeshadows were my 'steer clear' product. I don't really know why, I guess I just had a bad application once and decided they were planning to attack me or something, I don't know. 
The bond has been built and my adoration for cream blush has grown, not that I don't have enough cheek products as it is, I want more. 
 I'll give you a quick tour of my cream products and 'the low down' on what I like... or not.

My collection of cream products, judging by the picture, is looking somewhat feeble, but I plan to change that, no matter how much my purse doesn't feel the same.

One of the favourites from them all is the Revlon PhotoReady Cream Blush in the shade Coral Reef. If you want a blush that is easy to blend, not too noticeable (it goes against what it looks like in the pan), and something for quick, everyday wear, this is one to go for - especially if you are a little bit afraid of cream blush.

The Topshop Cream Blush Duo in Up in the Air - This is one of the first cream blushes I can recall buying, after Christmas in the sale season - about 6 months after I really got into beauty... 6 months it took me to buy a cream blush!? This one is the most pigmented of the bunch, and has a very creamy texture. I wore this one religiously in the summer.

Then we have the Dainty Doll Cream Blush in Paper Roses - this is a perfect blush for those 'no makeup, makeup days'. It is so natural but can also be built up if you want to look a little more pinched. The fine silver shimmer through this compliments the pale pink so well and prevents you looking overly Barbie.

Up next is the ELF  HD Blush in the shade Superstar. This is a weird one, it is very, very dark and hard to control how much you apply. This requires some shaking as well, otherwise you end up with a separated product and an oily mess all over your face/hands. It is a good product when you use it properly, but for me, I find it a bit too much, I will have to look at the other colours instead.

Last but not least - or maybe least - we have the Rimmel Wake Me Up Shimmer Touch in Shimmering Sand. It isn't a blush, I know, I know, but I'm not sure what it is. A highlight/radiance esque product, but far too dark to do any sort of highlight work. I have mixed this in with foundation one or two times, and it works a little better, but otherwise it is a bit naff.

Cream blush... A product I would never go near, and now one of my favourite cheek products to use. I think a trip to Boots is due for me (I went yesterday, but shhh), and I can stock up.

Lauren x

                                              

SUPER FACIALIST BY UNA BRENNAN TEA FLOWER DEEP CLEAN MASK

I am on a mission. A skincare mission, to achieve a clearer, less spotty/blemish consumed face. I have been shopping around, and buying some skincare from... the higher end of the drugstore? The La Roche-Posay Effaclar Duo arrived on my doorstep today, so we'll see how that works out, but for now, let's focus on this mask.

This doesn't directly claim to help blemishes, but instead to purify, unclog pores, and basically, is like 'a home detox in a bottle'. At first I was skeptical, you only leave this on for five minutes, but boy, does it get tight on the skin when it is working it's magic, but slather on the night cream when you're done, and you are fine.

 I use this twice a week, and I can see some difference, my cheeks look more radiant and the blemishes and scarring fades by a small amount, I think this paired with the La Roche-Posay Effaclar Duo could work for me - ill let you know how it goes. 

The smell? I can't put my finger on it, but it is...weird. It isn't anything I can't bear at all, nor something I would choose over the smell of sweets, but let's be realistic and have some futility.

If you want a pick me up for your skin, this is something to consider, and for £8.99 it is worth the try before you go for the higher end stuff because, it's not going to break any banks.

Lauren x

 

NIVEA 'DAILY ESSENTIALS' DOUBLE EFFECTS EYE MAKEUP REMOVER

Being a waterproof mascara kind of a gal, I am always on the hunt for an eye makeup remover - a cheaper one that is. I can't afford Clarins, bareMinerals, or MAC, so I'll settle for drugstore for now.

Nivea have a consise collection of mascara removers, some better than others (I will opt for the 'one sweep' option when there is one), and I much prefer some with some sort of oil base in them, to really melt away the product, I try to avoid morning panda eyes as much as possible.

It costs about £3.59 if I remember rightly, and you get half of an oil solution, and half aqueous.

The best way for me to use this is to shake, pour onto a cotton pad, and then hold onto the eye for a few seconds, wipe away and the makeup is pretty much gone.

There is a little bit of an oily residue left over, but nothing I can't handle at all, if anything barely noticable - besides, you cleanse afterwards.

For a cheap drugstore one, I can't sing it's praises enough. One reason I love it? I am secretly fascinated, no matter how you move this around, the different solutions don't mix - I do know the science side of things, I just think it looks cool.

A short and sweet review, but overall, for the price you pay, if you want something drugstore based, and something that will get all that stuff off those lashes, this is the one to go for - and I have tried quite a few solutions which haven't worked in the same way. This is good, I recommend it.

You can even get this cheaper in places like Savers for £1.69, an even better deal, and it wasn't even going to break the bank in the first place!

BEAUTY HAUL - CAR BOOT, TKMAXX, AND MORE

Shopping is a healthy addiction for us beauty bloggers. I am constantly buying things to review and try out, and it happened again this weekend. 

I was on quite a bargain hunt, and I got quite a lot for under £15, leaving me with a beaming, beauty-caused smile.

Cover Girl mascaras are just one of the many products you people are blessed with in the US (not sure where else..), and so when I spotted this one in TKMaxx for £3.99, I refused to leave without it. The packaging is naff, yes, but that excused this is the one mascara that I have found to not go anywhere on my lashes and hold the curl for a long time.. I have no idea what I will do when I need to repurchase this.

I need to love a product a lot to repurchase it. This is my 3rd repurchase of this, and I have planned a full blog post about it coming soon. This is the best mascara remover I have tried from the drugstore, but I never really want to pay the full £3.50 odd, as there are some faults with it, but I spotted this in Savers fro £1.69, so I will be stocking up from there from now on. 

Impress nails are genuis, but can I justify the £8.99 for them? I don't think so. With a bit of filing I can get 2 uses out of a box, but I still don't like the price tag. I saw these 'Space Cadet' ones in Savers yet again (they have some good stuff in there at the moment) for £3.99! That is a £5 saving, and I will be going there again to get these when I next want them. 

I have been after a good white for a while now, and I saw this one in Pound Land from Sally Hansen called Ivory Skull, It is a crisp white creme polish, and I am wearing it right now with a 'flakie' top coat on it, and I love it. It isn't the best and you have to layer 3 coats for full opacity, but it cost me £1 so I can't complain. 

I went to a car boot sale today, and I thought if I was going to buy any makeup/beauty items I wanted to disinfect them in some way. Megan told me she has bought Surgical Spirit from Superdrug and mixed it with half water in a spray bottle, so you can easily spray it onto any makeup you wish to disinfect. I never actually bought any but this might come in handy in the future?

What I actually found in the car boot sale (it wasn't a good day today beauty-wise), which I have been going out of my way to find because every shop has stopped selling them, which I don't understand because they are genuis. These were 10p from a lady who said she had had them for ages and never used them. I wish there were more packs, because I would have gotten them all!

I think we all need to bargain hunt a lot more, it really pays off to your collection and your purse, I mean this stuff cost me exactly £12.12!