Monday Manicure: Chanel Rouge Noir - A Classic

Chanel Le Vernis Nail Colour in Rouge Noir 18 available from here 

Rooting through my collection the other week I realised that I'd somehow missed this classic nail polish from my regular NOTD posts. Chanel Rouge Noir is undoubtedly the Rolls Royce of nail polish. Made famous by Uma Thurman who famously wears the shade in the film Pulp Fiction, the shade is meant to look like dried blood (nice). A mix of red and black, the shade has cult status and was the first premium bottle of nail polish I ever purchased.

Here it is on my nails for you guys, I used two coats and sealed it with Seche Vite although I got some extreme shrinkage from it!

The colour is so sophisticated, a real grown up look and at £17.50 for a bottle it is a definite investment shade. In truth, I've had this bottle for years and it's still going strong.

What was the first bottle of nail polish you guys bought?

Birthday Present Haul!

Hi guys! So it was my birthday the other week and I know how much you love to see my birthday and Christmas present hauls, so I wanted to share these with you.

I received some lovely gifts from family and friends this year so here goes.

First off this pink and gold Eiffel Tower box. Is it just me or is this the most beautiful box you’ve ever seen?! I cant wait to start filling this up with beauty bits. There is a little story behind this. Along with the coral and mint Barry M Polishes, MAC lipstick and Balmi this was part of a beauty box my friends very sweetly put together for me! There was also the Real Techniques brushes core collection and MUA Heaven and Earth palette in there too but I already had them!! They put so much thought into getting all the blogger must haves for me so thank you!

Models Own nail polish, Balmi, Barry M Gelly Nail Polish

Next is a bottle of Tia Maria, no explanation necessary.  I had to include this handmade card, it’s the most adorable thing and I was so touched that my friends had spent time making it!

L'Artisan Du Chocolat chocolates

I’d forgotten how much I love flowers! This gorgeous bunch is still going strong and has really brightened up my room. Along with the flowers I received the Gluten Free cookbook and (drumroll please) YSL ring from work. I can’t believe how generous the girls were so thank you girlies!

Owl necklace from Accessorize, tote bag, leather card holder, Barry M Textured Nail Polish, Barry M Magnetic Nail Polish, MAC lipstick, Caffe Nero card and Lola's Cupcakes set

YSL arty ring

Next up is the beauty contingent, courtesy of a Balmi lip balm in Raspberry, Barry M Gelly nail polish in Papaya and a set of three glittery mini Model’s Own nail polishes in Blizzard, Pink Fizz and Southern Lights. Swoon! Can’t wait to try these out especially the pink glittery polish. I also got Barry M Textured Nail Effect in Ridley Road, Barry M Magnetic Violet Nail Paint and MAC Amplified Creme Lipstick in Chatterbox; a beauty bloggers idea of heaven!

A few other bits were the letter tote, owl necklace, a leather card holder (perfect for clutch bags), a cupcake decorating kit from Lola's Cupcakes and a full Caffe Nero card (I adore the Italian Iced Lemonade here).

I think I'm going to treat myself to a new handbag soon too as it's always good to get yourself something special so keep your eyes peeled as I'll be sure to post some pictures if/when I get it!

What have you asked for this year?

Monday Manicure: Nails Inc St James

Nails Inc St James available here 

St James is a colour I've had in my collection for quite some time but I've never actually shown it to you guys. Although it's described on the Nails Inc website as a pillarbox red, I think you'll agree that there is far too much pink in this shade to really call it that. I have however seen other bloggers say that with three coats it turns out a lot more red so definitely worth a try.

As always, I used a base coat and two coats of colour to get this look. The application on Nails Inc is usually really good and this one didn't disappoint. Easy to apply with a nice shiny finish, what's not to love? I love this colour as an alternative to a traditional red and would definitely recommend it to anyone who wants a lighter red for summer.

What do you guys think?

Drugstore Beauty Haul basics featuring Collection Lasting Colour Lipstick and Rimmel Exaggerate Liquid Eyeliner Reviews

Not every trip to the shops is an exciting one; sometimes you just need to grab a few essentials and go.

Last week I made a quick dash into my nearest town to grab a few essentials I was in need of, but don't worry I did find a few treats for myself too! Can you believe it, all of this is from Wilkinsons and Bodycare!

Really, I needed sponges, make up sponges and cleansing sponges, but I did get a few other bits I'd been meaning to get hold of too. Here goes.

First up, these facial sponges from Bodycare's Salon Basics range. I think you get 4 in a pack for £1.49. I love using these to wash off my cleanser and remove daily debris and they help to gently exfoliate the face too. They can also be used to remove facial masks.

The sponges on the right are great with foundation and I use these after my foundation brush to smooth out foundation if I feel it needs it. Another bargain at £1.59.

The pumice is hardly glamorous but an essential (£1) along with these cuticle sticks (50p), both from Wilkinsons.

A word about the foundation brush. I've been using my ELF brush for over a year but last week it gave up the ghost and lost all it's bristles. I was in desperate need of a brush and picked this up from Wilkinsons for £3. I have since tried it and sadly it's really bad for losing bristles! 

I'm really interested in tooth whitening but am wary of a trip to the dentist as I have really sensitive teeth. For now, I'm going to try out Pearl Drops Ultimate Whitening which can help to make teeth 4 shades whiter in 3 weeks. This was just £1.49 from Bodycare!

Onto the makeup section of the haul. The most exciting part of this haul has got to be these lipsticks from Collection. I picked up the shades Pink Shock 2 and Sweet Tart 8 from the Lasting Colour range. I've been trying to be a bit braver with my lipstick choices and picked these up as an experiment. 

Pink Shock has turned out to be my best buy. The formula is so rich, thick, intense, matte and moisturising. It's a perfect pink for a lot of skintones and I love the way it gives a grown up pop of pink colour. The colour gives a huge colour payoff and is a rich opaque formula. It is a long lasting lipstick and I really put it to the test when I wore it to work the other day. On first applying, I used a lipbalm underneath to help moisturise and prevent the matte colour from picking up ay imperfections. 11 hours later then I admit, my lips had dried out a bit but the colour was still going strong. I'm so impressed with this lipstick and judging by the  5 star ratings on the Collection Cosmetics website, so are you guys! You should definitely try it out, and the best part is it only costs £2.98.

The next colour is Sweet Tart. This is a great coral pink shade and is as good quality as any high end lipstick. 

Last up is Rimmel Exaggerate Liquid Eyeliner in black. I bought this after a recommendation. With a long handle, the brush is short and thick with a tapered edge. As you can see, the brush gives a thick, black line. This is great for any dramatic eyeliner look, especially a retro one. It lasts really well and doesn't flake. I do prefer this as an evening eyeliner and will still be on the hunt for a good everyday liner that is just a bit thinner. This was the most expensive part of my haul at £4.98 but it get's a thumbs up from me! 

Monday Manicure: Ciate Paint Pot Gold Digga 030

Ciate Paint Pot Gold Digga available here

I've been on a bit of a Ciate spree lately, here's my latest from Ciate, a rich bronze gold shade called Gold Digga.

In the bottle this looks like a real molten gold colour with warm bronze/copper tones. The colour looks great on tanned hands.

In the pictures I've used two coats but honestly, there's no difference in appearance between one and two so you can definitely get away with just the one coat. Not only that, but this is dry in such super fast time that it's the perfect polish to keep on hand for those emergency nail polish applications when you need to be out the door in 10 minutes!

This gives great coverage, a great application and has a wide brush meaning you only need to use one stroke to cover the nail and the long thin handle is easy to hold.

Verdict? Perfect for fast applications and summer nails.

Sanctuary Deep Cleanse Facial In-A-Box Review

I got this box as part of a big Boots haul a few weeks ago. I’ve been using an Origins scrub and face mask but wanted to try something different so I picked up this handy kit. With 5 travel sized products inside I put it to the test.

First of all, I love the fact that on the inside cover there’s a full set of instructions on how to use the products, complete with pictures! It even goes so far as to say how long to leave the products on for and what motions to use during application. Result.

Step 1 – Fresh Faced Purifying Wash – Smells divine and feels just like the kind of product you would use at the spa. A rich, soapy texture that doesn’t really foam, it feels really wet. A luxury product.

Step 2 – Exfoliating Pore Refiner – A white cream with small blue beads inside; this looks a little like Clean and Clear! Although this does the job, it could do with having a higher density of beads inside and with having a few microparticles inside too.  Not as luxurious as the wash

Step 3 – 5 Minute Thermal Detox Mask – A self warming clay mask to be used all over the face and left on; very thick and gooey.

Step 4 – Blemish Serum – Apply this to any blemishes after the mask has been washed off. This has a silicone texture to it and although it contains salicylic acid and hyaluronic acid, didn’t work on my skin and rubbed off.

Step 5 -  Matte Perfecting Hydra Lotion – A light, cooling lotion which is non sticky and matte. Simply pat a tiny amount of this onto the face and relax.

Overall

It took around 20 minutes to administer a decent at home facial.  Although not all the products were right for my skin type, I think this is a great little box for anyone looking for a fast treat. It’s so convenient to get everything you need in one box J

Have you tried The Sanctuary Deep Cleanse kit? What did you guys think?