Major Excitement! Anastasia Beverly Hills Contour Kit has arrived!

Hi Everyone,

This week I finally got my hands on a product that has been on the top of my lust list for a looong time: the Anastasia Beverly Hills Contour Kit. This nifty little kit from the Queen of Brows Anastasia Soare has been out of stock and virtually impossible to get hold of for months, so I was absolutely delighted when I got an email from Cult Beauty (http://www.cultbeauty.co.uk) to say that it was back in stock. Needless to say I didn't hesitate to grab one for myself!

The kit arrived yesterday and my first impressions of it was that the packaging was sturdier than I was expecting, with a cardboard case that would be perfect for travelling. Inside the kit there are three highlighter shades (from left to right Vanilla, Banana, Sand) and three contour shades (Java, Fawn and Havana). All the shades are matte with the exception of the Sand highlighter, which has a slight shimmer without being glittery. 

I could hardly wait to experiment with this kit when I got home and I instantly fell in love with the Fawn contour shade, perfect for my skintone, and the Banana yellow-tone highlighter for the under-eye area. The surprise hit for me though with this kit was the Sand highlighter! I have an abundance of highlighters and wasn't all that excited about the Sand shade at first, but on application I really loved the way it looks. Unlike my usual go-to highlighter (Soft and Gentle by MAC) Sand is not glittery and gives a very subtle, dewy look without you looking like you're wearing anything at all. It genuinely looks so natural, as though your face is bathed in natural light, and I am sure this will become a firm favourite of mine the more I use it,

I can't wait to try this kit before a night out for a more dramatic contouring look. At £39.00 I think the price is pretty reasonable for six shades, although I do feel like Havana may be a little on the orange side for me so may not get that much use.

Have you tried the Anastasia Beverly Hills Contour Kit? Snap one up now at Cult Beauty while stocks last!

Rosie x 

Skincare Regime: Pepta-Bright

Hi Everyone,

I wanted to share one of my recent skincare discoveries with you all: Indeed Labs' Pepta-Bright Even Skintone Enhancer. I have been using this 'moisturing cream-serum' for a few weeks now and I have to say that I've been delighted with the results!

Pepta-Bright aims to improve skin clarity and tone, as well as diminishing dark spots and redness. I have never had particularly bad skin but I do suffer with some redness and dark circles, particularly in Winter. Pepta-bright is a lightweight cream that should be applied after cleansing and underneath your regular moisturiser. In my case I also apply Indeed Labs' Hydraluron beforehand which helps skin to retain moisture and makes it plumper and more healthy-looking.

Since using Pepta-Bright I have really seen a difference in my skin. I feel so much more confident both with and without make-up, and my skin looks really clear, bright and healthy. The Pepta-Bright also leaves my skin feeling really soft and well-moisturised with barely a spot or blemish in sight.

Pepta-Bright is free of certain 'nasties' such as kojic acid, mercury, hydroquinone and parabens, and I think it would be especially good for slightly more mature skin (a hunch that was confirmed in Caroline Hirons' review).

If you invest in this product (at £29.99 from Boots it is certainly what I would classify as an 'investment'!) then don't expect instant results. However, if you persist with it twice a day for a few weeks then I'm sure you will witness the results and will love it as much as I did!

Have you tried Pepta-Bright? I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Rosie x

Product Review: Bouffe Dry Spray

Hi Everyone,

On a recent peruse around my local Boots I was drawn in to their 'new product' section and was interested to spot this: the Bouffe Dry Spray for Dark Brown Hair. The product promised to deliver a revolutionary formula for 'bigger, thicker looking hair' (the quickest way to my heart other than chocolate!) and so I was immediately sold. Not to be confused with a dry shampoo, this product won't work on a grease-day but instead promises instant oomph-in-a-can.

Having tried the Bouffe Dry Spray however, I must admit that I'm disappointed, Did it make my hair look thicker? Yes, but in doing so it coated my roots in a sticky, dark brown powder which got all over my fingers (and forehead!) when I rubbed it in and left me touching my hairline self-consciously approximately every 5 seconds.The only way I can really think to describe it is 'rubbery'- my hair felt stiff and, although the volume held well, it was almost too long-lasting to the point that I struggled to wash it out.

Having subsequently read some reviews of this product it seems other bloggers had similar feelings about it, but have suggested that it might be good for voluminous up-dos. I agree that perhaps that might be better suited to this product's purpose, but unfortunately I just don't think this product will work for me at all as I can't stand the texture of it and it just made my hair feel horribly dirty.

This spray is available at Boots for £5.99 and comes in a range of colours from Black, to Grey, to Transparent.

Have you tried the Bouffe Dry Spray? Let me know what you thought!

Rosie x

Product Review: Soap & Glory Archery Brow Pencil

Hi Everyone,

The Soap & Glory 'Archery' brow pencil came on to my radar a few weeks ago but I struggled to track it down in any of my local Boots stores. Eventually I had some luck and found my shade 'Hot Chocolate' in a large central London branch, but even then it was tucked away under a heap of other products, as though someone had expertly hidden it for safekeeping!

This brow pencil is slim and delicate, with a precise pencil at one end and a small brow brush on the other. I personally really like the slim pencil as it produces small, hair-like strokes and looks natural even on sparse brows like mine. The brush end does what it says on the tin and is precise enough to blur any obvious pencil strokes whilst still keeping the brow shape that you create.

I am usually a slave to my Anastasia Beverly Hills Dipbrow pomade, but since buying this pencil I have found that this is the one that I reach for instead. It is remarkably easy to use and I do think the overall effect is natural and long lasting. My only real criticism of this pencil would be its limited colour range; available in only blonde or brunette shades. Fortunately I find the brunette is a fairly good match for me without being orange-toned, although maybe not ideal for those with darker colouring,

Overall I'm happy with this purchase. At £8 it hardly breaks the bank, although I would love this product even more if there was a brow gel thrown in there as well.

Have you tried the Archery brow pencil? Let me know your thoughts!

Rosie x

Lifestyle Post: Richmond Park

Hi Everyone,

I had a rare treat this weekend as my boyfriend had his first Saturday off work in months, and so after the compulsory Friday night out, what better way to spend the weekend than in the beautifully Autumnal Richmond Park?!

For anyone that hasn't been to Richmond Park- it is ginormous. We walked for what felt like miles but barely made our way across even the tiniest section of the park. It is also absolutely beautiful, and full of wildlife (most notably deer, as you can see from my photos!). They are beautiful animals but not as placid as they seem, and we saw quite a few of the young males scuffling and clashing antlers.

Autumn seemed to be in full swing in Richmond Park and we crunched our way through the park admiring the lovely colours. I wore my favourite new coat from Next and my Topshop boots, teamed with jeans and a cosy knit, perfect to protect against the Autumn chill.

After the park we traipsed back to our car and heading into Ealing for dinner. It was a lovely end to a great day, and it really made me appreciate this wonderful Autumn sun we've been having!

What did you all get up to this weekend?

Rosie x

First Impressions: Fairydrops Mascara

Hi Everyone,

I recently invested in the Fairdrops Mascara having heard about it first on Vivianna's blog. I am fortunate enough to have quite long eyelashes, but the problem I have is that they are dead straight, and so this mascara really appealed to me as it promises to lift and separate lashes (like a bra for your eyes!).

This is a Japanese mascara originally designed by Japanese celeb Aya Yasuda, and as such it is not the easiest to track down in the UK. I managed to find it in stock in the Topshop flagship store in Oxford Street in their new Beautymart section which is filled with lots of exciting makeup products from overseas!

First impressions of this mascara is that the packaging is really cute, yet feels quite luxurious. The gold mascara tube reminds me of high end mascaras like YSL Babydoll, but at £18.50 the Fairydrops mascara is a little easier on the pocket. The wand itself is separated into three thick 'bulbs' and is slightly bent which makes application nice and smooth. The above photo is taken without using eyelash curlers and I was quite impressed with the level of curl I achieved- I have since used the mascara with eyelash curlers and was even happier with the results.

The problems I've encountered with this mascara so far is that it is not 100% waterproof and does have a tendency to run slightly, although it is stubborn and is not the easiest to remove at the end of the day. I also find that the solution is quite thick and makes my lashes a bit gloopy looking, although I have managed to reduce this by using less product.

I feel the price is a little steep for what it is (the tube was a bit smaller than I expected) but then I am not a fan of spending a lot of money on mascara generally as I find it quite an unexciting product to splash out on!

Overall I like this mascara for the much needed curl that it gives my poker straight lashes and for its staying power. It will probably become my go-to daily mascara, although for nights out I'm not sure it will give me the volume and waterproofness (if that's a word!?) that I'm looking for.

Have you tried Fairydrops? Let me know what you thought of it!

Rosie x

First Impressions: bareMinerals bareSkin Pure Brightening Serum Foundation

Hi Everyone,

Today I wanted to do a quick 'first impressions' post for the new (and first!) liquid foundation from bareMinerals. They say that it helps you to achieve 'full coverage with a natural finish', and of course being bareMinerals its full of lovely natural ingredients.

My first thought was that I was impressed with how full the coverage was with this foundation- with a name like 'bareSkin' I was expecting little more than a tinted moisturiser. However, the bareSkin Pure Brightening Serum Foundation (try saying THAT three times fast!) is actually a nice, medium-to-full coverage foundation.

I did find the formula to be quite oily which is probably down to the serum element and I also found it really tough to blend. I was using my Real Techniques Expert Face Brush but found that it left visible brush strokes even after quite a lot of blending. bareMinerals have released a new brush to go with this foundation which maybe does the job better, but as I only have a sample I haven't tried it. 

Overall I have my doubts about how this foundation would fare over several hours due to the oily feel, but I really liked the fresh, almost-dewy finish and I will definitely be trialing it in more detail over the next few days!

Pros:

- Good Coverage

- Natural Ingredients

- Feels Light on the Skin

- Nice Finish

Cons:

- Not Very Blendable

- Oily Consistency

- May Not Be Very Long-Lasting

I hope you found my first impressions helpful! Have you tried this foundation yet?

Rosie x