November Books List

Wednesday 28 November 2012


This month, I've managed to read four books which I'm really proud of because it's been such a crazy, busy month for me.  If you struggle to find time to read, try to always keep a book in your handbag - it's amazing how much I manage to read during the day just because I know I have a book with me.  Here are the books I've read in November:-

November Favourites

Tuesday 27 November 2012


It's been another good month for discovering new beauty favourites.  This selection features a bit of skincare, bodycare and of course, make-up!  So without further ado, here are the products I have been loving throughout November:-

Mavala - Arabesque Winter 2012 Collection: Peacock Green & Metallic Grey

Friday 23 November 2012

 Mavala Nail Polishes in Peacock Green & Metallic Grey (5ml, £4.30 each, link)*

Being a typical nail polish junkie, I have tried out many different brands over the years, but Mavala are one that has managed to escape my attention until very recently.  I've seen this Swiss brand pop up on many of the European based beauty blogs that I follow, but I don't think they're that well known in the UK.  So I was very excited to be sent these two beautiful shades from Mavala's new Arabesque 2012 Winter Collection to play with.   

My Handbag Beauty Essentials

Wednesday 21 November 2012


I've had a few requests to do a 'What's In My Handbag?' style post, but not much has changed since I did this old post which mostly consists of the mundane usuals; phone, purse, keys, diary, book, Ipod etc.  What has changed however, is that I now carry around a lot more beauty products than I used to, so hopefully this post will be much more interesting!

Winter Skin Saviour: Lavera All-Round Cream review

Tuesday 20 November 2012

 Lavera All-Round Cream (150ml, £6.95, link)

I wrote a Winter Skin Saviours post a little while ago and after I'd taken the photographs for it, I realised that I'd forgotten to mention this amazing tin of goodness that I received in an Amarya box months ago.   I've been a big fan of the German natural brand Lavera for a very long time, and their All-Round Cream is a fantastic product to use when the cold weather starts to settle in.

Haircare Review: DGJ Organics Hangover Hair Luxury Shampoo & Conditioner

DGJ Organics Hangover Hair Luxury Shampoo & Conditioner (250ml, £5.99 each, link)*

Last month I tried out the DGJ Organics Glossy Brunettes haircare duo and instantly loved it, so I was looking forward to seeing how their Hangover Hair set compares.  I've been trying out these two products for a couple of weeks now, so here are my thoughts and how I think they compare to the Glossy range.

A vey disappointing Joliebox for November 2012

Sunday 18 November 2012

 Joliebox (£10 per month + P&P, link)

November beauty boxes are usually expected to be a little disappointing.  Think about the marketing for a minute here - the December box absolutely has to be amazing, because you want your subscribers to be happy around Christmas time, and you also don't want them thinking about cancelling their subscription in the new year.  So if you send a slightly meagre box for November, some customers will simply think that the December one will be extra special to make up for it.  If this concept is to be true, then the December Joliebox must be pretty incredible...

NOTD: Essence - Circus Confetti & Urban Decay - Perversion

Friday 16 November 2012


This has been one of my favourite combos to wear on my nails recently: black (or almost black shades) with chunky multi-coloured glitter!  Here I'm wearing Essence's Circus Confetti over Urban Decay's Perversion.  The confetti glitter needs a good top coat to smooth out the bumpiness, but that's to be expected with glitter particles this big.  If glitter on all nails isn't your thing, just give it a go and do an accent nail instead.  Happy Friday!

What are you wearing on your nails this weekend?

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Review: Daniel Sandler Watercolour Liquid Blush in Cherub

Thursday 15 November 2012

Daniel Sandler Watercolour Liquid Blush in Cherub (15ml, £14.49)*

Oh Daniel Sandler Watercolour Blushers, where have you been all of my life?!  Wait, I already know the answer to that question - you've been stuck on my enormous beauty wishlist for far too long, that's where you've been hiding, d'oh!  But yeah, this dinky little tube of liquid blusher is AMAZING.

The A-Z of Beauty Tag


As blogs and Youtube are now my main go-to places for recommendations of new beauty products to try out, I thought I would take part in Fleur De Force's A-Z of Beauty Tag.  For each letter of the alphabet, you pick a brand that you love and then recommend a product from them.  Simples!

Review: Liz Earle Signature Foundation in Nude 03

Wednesday 14 November 2012

 Liz Earle Signature Foundation in Nude 03 (25ml, £21, link)*

I know this sounds incredibly silly, but when this came through my letterbox a few weeks ago, I was a little scared to try out.  As much as I love Liz Earle's skincare and the rest of her make-up range (you can read my reviews of various products here), I did not get on with her Sheer Skin Tint at all, and was worried that the foundation would be too heavy for my oily/combination skin.  But I needn't have worried, because this is one of the best foundations I've tried all year.

Budget Beauty: Laidbare DIY! Two In One Cleanser & Toner Review

 Laidbare DIY! Two In One Cleanser & Toner (125ml, £5.99, link)*

As much as I love multi-purpose products for hair, body, shower etc, I've never been one to embrace them in my skincare routine.  That was until I started using this two-in-one cleanser & toner from Laidbare, a natural British brand that I only discovered recently.

Amarya Organic / Natural Beauty Box - November 2012

Tuesday 13 November 2012

  Amarya box (£10 + P&P per month, link)

My Amarya box has finally arrived!  I contacted them yesterday as my box didn't arrive with everyone else's last week, and a replacement came bright and early this morning.  Fantastic customer service from Amarya as always!  Although I'd already seen what was in this month's box from reading Sandra and Kat's posts, I was still pretty excited to open it up as two of my favourite natural brands are included this month.

5 Mini Reviews: REN, Clarins, Dr Bronners, NEOM & balance Me

Monday 12 November 2012


I think this is the first 5 Mini Reviews post I've done where I've wanted to buy full sizes of all of the samples that I've tried - my wishlist for Santa is going to be enormous this year!

Review: Violent Eyes Temporary Eye Appliques

 Violent Eyes Temporary Eye Appliques in Silver Glitteratti and Rainbow Glitteratti (£6 per pack, link)*

The current trend for 'stick-on make-up' shows no signs of slowing down as we begin to head into the Christmas party season.  I was recently sent two packs of Temporary Eye Appliques from Violent Eyes (the same brand that bought you Violent Lips) to try out.

LUSH Christmas 2012 Haul & Reviews: Cinders Bath Bomb, Ponche Shower Gel, Popcorn Lip Scrub & The Melting Snowman Bath Melt

Sunday 11 November 2012


Last weekend, I popped into LUSH to have a look at their Christmas range.  Although I shop at LUSH throughout the year, I always think that now is definitely the best time to go in and pick up some bits!  I have since tried out everything that I bought, so here are my reviews of the products.

The 24 Days Of Christmas With Liz Earle Advent Calendar 2012

Friday 9 November 2012

 24 Days Of Christmas With Liz Earle Advent Calendar 2012 (£100, link)*

Last year, I don't recall many luxury beauty filled advent calendars being around, other than the infamous Selfridges one that always sells out in lightning speed.  But this year...oh my! There are quite a few out there!  I'd already treated myself to the Ciate one, so you can imagine that I was feeling pretty damn spoilt when I saw that this had arrived from Liz Earle today.

Review: Korres Lip Butters in Wild Rose, Pomegranate & Quince: Photos & Swatches

Thursday 8 November 2012

 Korres Lip Butter (6g, £6 each) 

I have loved Korres Lip Butters for a very long time, so this rave review is very much overdue.  They are in fact one of only a tiny handful of lip products that I have repurchased the same shades of when they had run out.  Now that's some serious loving right?

How I Clean My Make-up Brushes

Wednesday 7 November 2012


Cleaning make-up brushes can be one those chores that you just don't want to do, but know that you have to.  I try to deep-clean (as in properly wash them rather than just wipe them after use) my used make-up brushes every 10 days or so because my skin is a little on the oily side and is prone to breakouts.  Everyone washes their make-up brushes in their own way, so this is just how I do mine. 

Budget Beauty: M&S Limited Collection Lip Gloss in Fondant

Tuesday 6 November 2012

 M&S Limited Collection Lip Gloss in Fondant (£5, link)

As I posted my Drugstore Beauty Tag earlier today, I thought I would do a review of one of my favourite recent discoveries on the highstreet.  But you'll need to look on the other side of the highstreet for this one, because you won't find it in Boots or Superdrug.  

Tag: I Love Drugstore / Highstreet Make-Up



I spotted this tag over on Beth's blog recently and thought it would be a great idea to do it.  I have to admit that over the last few months, my tastes have been veering towards more high-end make-up, so I hope this tag inspires me to rekindle my love for all things highstreet/drugstore.  There are a lot of beauty bargains to be had out there! 

Q&A with SFX MUA Gaynor / Secondskin

Monday 5 November 2012


A friend of mine is in a gothic punk rock band called Lesbian Bed Death and they recently shot a video for their new single, Soul Sucker.  As I've always been fascinated with the world of SFX (Special Effects) make-up,  I had a quick chat with Gaynor who was the SFX MUA on the shoot.   She spoke to me about how she got to working in the industry, why she does it and tips for budding SFX MUAs.  Post below contains faux gory imagery! 

Review: Bellapierre Lash Building Mascara

 Bellapierre Lash Building Mascara in Black (9ml, £19.99, link)

Over the weekend, I had a brief switch up of my everyday make-up items and decided to include this Bellapierre mascara in my new set up.  This is one of many mascaras that have been languishing in a drawer, waiting to be opened up and taken out of their boxes.  To put it into perspective, this particular mascara came to me via a Joliebox back in April, so it was really time that I finally tried it out.

November/December Magazine Freebie: Glamour & Nails Inc

Sunday 4 November 2012


With this month's Glamour magazine, they are giving away a free full sized Nails Inc nail polish worth £11.  You can choose between four different shades - Elizabeth Street (a pale pink), St James (classic red), Motcomb Street (a deep blue/black) and Glamour Glitter (a gold glitter topcoat).  Not bad for £2 each!   

Tried & Tested: bareMinerals Prime Time Foundation Primer

Friday 2 November 2012

 bareMinerals Prime Time Foundation Primer (30ml, £16.15, link)

Last week, I popped into TKMaxx to have a browse at their xmas stuff and eventually wandered upstairs to their little beauty department.  Well, I say 'department', but in my local one it's mostly a mad mish-mash of shelves with a bunch of random beauty products scattered about.  Having a quick rummage through the chaos, I found one solitary bottle of bareMinerals Prime Time Foundation Primer for the bargain price of £7.99!  This primer has been on my beauty wishlist for quite some time, so I snapped it up and have been testing it out over the past week.

Review: Japonesque Safari Chic Brush Set

 Japonesque Safari Chic Brush Set (£28, link)*

I'm sure by now you'll have already seen these ultra cute animal print make-up brushes from Japonesque on the blogosphere, so as always, I'm going to throw my own two cents into the mix anyway!

October Favourites

Thursday 1 November 2012


I have another handful (or two) of favourites for October.   Whilst I usually keep it strictly just beauty products, I couldn't help but include two non-beauty favs with this bunch.
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