Haul: No7, Models Own and much much more!

On Friday morning I woke up to my bank account looking plump and healthy after my very last pay cheque (boo.) I decided that I was going to go out in style. I passed a lot of it onto my boyfriend to cover some bills and to put some into savings. The rest was for me to spend on things that would make me happy. Queue teen movie style shopping. I've grouped the items into purpose.
First up, Skincare:

From L-R: The Body Shop Absinthe Hand Cream (sample), The Body Shop Mango Lip Butter £4, No7 Beautiful Skin Eye Make-Up Remover £8.50, No7 Beautiful Skin Hydration Mask £12.50, No7 Beautiful Skin Cleansing Balm £9, Nivea Daily Essentials Express Hydration Primer for Dry & Sensitive Skin £4.99

I tried out the Absinthe hand cream in store and really liked it. It has a light nettle scent that's really refreshing. It's thick and smooth and also comes in a hand butter which I'm quite curious about. I'm glad the assistant gave me this because I'm going to try and collect the little pots and one day mix Sleek Pout Paints in them (I WILL HAVE THEM ONE DAY!) The Lip Butter is my Holy Grail. I just finished up my Dragon Fruit one and it's lasted me absolutely ages and smells divine but I really wanted to try something new. It has a slight shimmer and more of a neutral tone to it which means I'll probably be able to wear this during the day more than my other one. Here's hoping. No7 Eye Make Up Remover is to serve as a replacement for the body shop cucumber cleansing milk which I find leaves a residue behind on my skin. Ick. I'm really excited to try the Hydration Mask. I've read some reviews and they all sound really promising. I suffer from dry patches of skin so this should help. Cleansing Balm is again to try and help my dry skin. I currently use the body shop aloe foaming facial wash, which I do love and recommend to anyone with sensitive skin, but I'm hoping this will give my skin the extra push it needs for moisture. I asked the #bbloggers a week or two ago during the chat to recommend a primer and the Nivea Express Hydration cropped up a lot. Since it was only £4.99 in Superdrug I couldn't really say no.

Nails:

From L-R: Models Own 3 in 1 (clear,) Golden Peach, Blooming Pink, In the Navy, Juicy Jules, Blizzard £5 each, Revlon Liquid Quick Dry £6.49

So I went a little crazy on the Models Own offers in Boots. I've never tried them before but they seem to be really highly rated by a lot of bloggers and I absolutely love the colours I picked up! The only one I've used so far is Blizzard which you can see here with Illamasqua's Caress. I've been a bit nail varnish mad recently and I think I'll be doing some collection posts soon which I'm excited about! Revlon Liquid Quick Dry is a product that goes on after the top coat to speed up drying time. It contains oils and vitamins which (apparently) help your nails stay healthy. I saw this and I was like omg if this works it will change my life. I'm one of those people that is just terrible for getting smudges and indents in my manicure. I've tried this once today and so far I'm pretty impressed. it definitely helped give me a rock solid mani. I'll give it a few more tries and review soon!

Hair:

Colour B4 Hair Colour Remover in Extra Strength £11.99 each

Eye wateringly expensive. I resent paying full price for anything so this was a struggle for me. I've been thinking about doing this for over a year now and I've finally decided to buy the stuff and take the plunge. The issue is that I'm currently trying to grow out my chemical-laden coloured hair and I can't deal with the bizarre colouring any more. It's dark blonde/light brown at the top, dyed brown in the middle, and auburn at the bottom. It could look a lot worse but I'm very aware of it and that's all that matters to me. By no stretch of the imagination do I think I'm gonna be blonde again afterwards but I'm hoping that this will make the divides less noticeable. I will definitely let you know what happens!

Miscellaneous:

The Body Shop Amazonian Wild Lily EDT 50ml £15, Collection 2000 Lasting Perfection Concealer in Light £4.19

I'm always on the hunt for another perfume that I like and I gave Amazonian Lily a spritz on a whim and fell in love. It's very fresh and light and the floral notes aren't overly strong. I dislike exptremely sweet/floral perfumes and I wasn't expecting to like this. Perfume scents are very personal but if your tastes are anything like mine I urge you to give it a try! I bought this with 40% off. £9 for a perfume! Bargain. Believe it or not I've never tried the Collection Concealer.  I have the illuminating touch version and I really like it, but I needed something a bit heavier for pigmentation issues. I swatched the fair shade but it is very very pale. I think Light will do nicely!

So that's everything! I did also snag a couple of the Apocalips today but it was after dark so no photos I'm afraid! I'm sure you'll see them here soon enough.

Have you tried any of the products I bought? What do you think to them?

Lauren

Review: Collection Extreme 24 Hour Felt Tip Liner in Teal

I am a full on lover of liquid liner and am rarely seen without my black flick when I'm wearing make up, but  this time I was after something different. I love shades of green and thought this teal coloured liner would enhance the green tones in my eyes, and since it's a felt tip liner it would be very easy to control.

It comes in a sleek black pen with silver labelling and feels comfortable and sturdy. The cap (not shown) doesn't fall off and isn't at all flimsy. 

Here's a quick swatch on my hand:

I really struggled with this! I'm so used to the kind of ink-pot liquid liners with a brush that the felt tip just felt so hard and bizarre. Once I had actually go into the swing of things it wasn't bad at all, it was just a case of getting used to the change. I really love the vibrant colour of this liner, it's certainly different and I'd love to use it with a smokey blue or green eye. 

I trialled this liner on a cold, rainy, December day and the longevity really surprised me. It was nicely pigmented and didn't fade at all during the day. I had some slight bleeding from the rain (it doesn't claim to be waterproof) but other than that it literally did not budge. Obviously I didn't wear this for 24 hours. It annoys the hell out of me when companies claim 24 hour wear because honestly, I don't think anybody is really willing to test it! I've worn this a couple of times since and it hasn't let me down. Particularly now I've learnt to control the pen a little better. It is really easy to create precise shapes with the nib. I really wish Collection did this product in a brown because that's what I'm currently on the hunt for, but for a fun pop of colour you can't beat it. Particularly when it's only £2.99! Plus there's usually some great offers on with this brand so it's well worth giving them a look. 

What do you think to this liner? And which Collection products do recommend? (other than the concealer of course, we all love that!)

Lauren

Bargains That Really Work: Collection 2000 Illuminating Touch Concealer

One of the really rewarding things about make-up shopping is finding a "perfect" item for you in the total-bargain section. This is what I did a couple of months ago with the Collection 2000 Illuminating Touch Concealer. I'm afraid that I literally just could not get a good photo of mine without it blurring, so here is a stock image (boo.)

£4.99 from Boots or Superdrug

Available in: Natural, Naked and Glow

First things first, I do not believe that this illuminates. I use this almost every day and it does not highlight anything on me. However, it is a fantastic concealer. I use this under my eyes, around my nostrils, on the bridge of my nose, on my chin and anywhere that needs a little bit of extra coverage. I use this in natural and it is just the perfect shade for me. It blends into my skin tone invisibly. 

I'm not wearing any make up here apart from that smudge of concealer. The picture on the right is blended out.

I've seen a few reviews of this where people say that for them this really does highlight and doesn't work as a flat concealer for them. So keep that in mind! I have also read that some people find this to be cakey and dry. I haven't experienced this myself but I do apply with a moisturising foundation and a light hand, so it's possible that I have counteracted that problem without realising it. All in all, I really do feel that if you are looking for a cheap concealer that really works, this is the product to go for. 

The only negatives I have is the small selection of shades and the lacklustre packaging. I'm fully aware that at £4.99 I can't expect the earth but I would have at least hope there would be a few more shades. If my skin had been much darker than it is this product would not be available to me which is disappointing.

Have you tried this? Do you recommend any other concealers?

Lauren