My Monthly Favourites - March 2014

Hi guys. It's that time of the month again where I share with all of you what I have been loving beauty wise all throughout March. I have gone a little crazy recently in terms of buying new products - there have been a lot of amazing deals on the high street that were just too good to pass up! Furthermore, a lot of these items are relatively new favourites, apart from one product that I re-discovered and have fallen back in love with. So, without any further ado, let's dive right in!

Dove Go Fresh Nourshing Body Wash Pomegranate & Lemon Verbena Scent - £2.40
First up is a body wash from the Dove 'Go Fresh' collection. After loving one of the other washes in the collection, which was featured in my February favourites (which you can read here,) I decided to give another scent ago. Whilst I was in Sainsbury's recently, there was a half price offer on, so I snapped up two more; Revive and one other scent which I am sure I will talk about on my blog soon. Every product I have ever tried from Dove has been really gentle on the skin and extremely moisturising at the same time, and this product is no exception. However, of course the main reason I love this body wash is the scent. The pomegranate and lemon verbena smells absolutely amazing and is a lovely pick-me-up in the morning. I cannot recommend this range enough!

Revlon ColorBurst Lacquer Balm in Whimsical - £7.99
Next is a product that has been raved about ever since it's release here in the UK back in January. Both the Revlon Lacquer Balms and Matte Balms have taken the drugstore by storm and it's no surprise as to why - they are seriously amazing! The newest lip crayon in my collection is 'Whimsical,' which is a lovely berry pink/purple shade that contains lots of little flecks of glitter too. Although the glitter can feel slightly grainy on the lips from time to time, it's pretty easy to ignore because the colour pay off and the formulation of this product is great. After it has been on your lips for a while and has started to wear off, Whimsical leaves a subtle stain too the lips too - which is perfect if you are after a product that is long-lasting and great for a night out.

Rimmel Sun Shimmer Instant Tan 9-in-1 BB Perfector in Light Matte - £6.99
I have recently done a full review of this product on my blog (read here,) so I am not going to go into too much detail. However, I am seriously in love with this instant tan! I am not an avid tanner and I am always dubious of using fake tan in case it goes horribly wrong, so a wash off one is right up my street! This instant tan and BB cream hybrid gives an amazing bronzed colour to the skin whilst hiding any imperfections really well - such as scarring or uneven skin tone. It glides onto the skin seamlessly and does not cling onto any dry patches of skin, even if you do not exfoliate beforehand - which I accidentally did. For a mere £6.99, this product is definitely worth trying if you like having a tan for special occasions without having the commitment of a fake tan that develops and is ore permanent!

Essie Nail Polish in Splash Of Grenadine - £7.99
All I can say is... this nail polish is gorgeous! This may come as a surprise to some of you but I have only ever owned one Essie nail varnish, which is one of the nail effects glittery top coats. So, this is the first normal Essie product that I have tried. I heard about this colour after watching one of Essiebutton's videos and I wanted to to give it a try immediately. 'Splash Of Grenadine' also reminded me of a L'Oreal Color Riche polish I had that dried out called 'Acid Watermelon,' which is almost identical. This beautiful shade is a vivid orchid colour which is extremely eye-catching and perfect for this time of year. Plus, this colour is deemed to be huge this spring/summer, so this polish will keep you on trend too which is always a bonus!

Palmers Eventone Dark Spot Corrector - £9.99
Last but certainly not least is an old favourite that I re-discovered whilst having a product clear out! Last year, I had a lot of scarring left on my cheeks after multiple ghastly breakouts. So, I decided to look for a product other than Bio Oil that could banish the dark pigmentation left on my skin. Palmers Eventone Dark Spot Corrector was my product of choice and my god, it's amazing! Within weeks, my scarring had gone down significantly and I was left seriously impressed. However, along with correcting dark areas, this moisturiser/serum is great for brightening your entire face too as it features vitamin C in its list of ingredients. The only thing I would say is that this does leave a film of glitter all over your skin, so it is best used at night time unless you want a sparkly base to apply your make-up on top of! 

I hope you have enjoyed reading about my March favourites, I have definitely fallen in love with all of these products! Have you tried any of these before? What beauty items have you been reaching for this month? Please let me know in the comments below! Thank you :)

Rimmel London's Sun Shimmer Instant Tan 9-in-1 BB Perfector

Hi guys. Now that spring and summer are fast approaching here in the UK, it's time to whip out our skirts and dresses and embrace this wonderful change in weather. However, after hiding away our bodies during the majority of winter, we are probably all a little bit on the pasty side - unless you are a religious fake tanner all year round! After noticing my own paleness ahead of a girls night out, I decided to quickly nip into my local Boots in search of an instant fake tan that didn't break the bank. This is when I came across Rimmel London's Sun Shimmer Instant Tan 9-in-1 BB Perfector (£6.99) and I was intrigued to say the least. Of course we have all heard of BB creams for our faces by now but the thought of a BB body product excited me a lot!

Rimmel claim that this is a 9-in-1 product that softens, smoothes, moisturises, gives an instant tan, creates a healthy looking glow, evens out your skin tone, covers, perfects and lasts up to 24 hours. Now, that is an awfully big list of promises to make but I really do think that it does most of those things pretty well! This new product comes in two shades; Light Matte and Medium Matte. On the back of the packaging is a little table that tells you the intensity and the desired look that you can achieve with both shades. The light version has an intensity level of 1 that gives you a natural sunkissed look, whereas the medium has an intensity level of 2 that achieves a healthy bronzed glow.

I decided to opt for the light version as I didn't want to go too over the top. That night, my friend whom I was going out with helped me apply the product using a tanning mitt. You could use your hands if you prefer, although a tanning mitt does tend to give a nicer, more even finish. Seeing as using this product was a last minute decision on my behalf, I did not have the time to exfoliate and moisturise like I usually would before applying any type of tanning product. However, the creamy and thick texture of the lotion meant that it did not cling on to any dry patches of skin and it glided on seamlessly! With that being said, as well as the two instant tan shades, the brand have also brought out a Sun Shimmer Pre Tan Exfoliator (£3.99) which could come in handy, though any body scrub or exfoliator (or even exfoliating gloves) would do the trick.

All in all, the end result was lovely! Just like Rimmel claimed on the packaging, I got an instant tan that made me look super healthy and that evened out my skin tone, whilst being moisturising and softening at the same time. I am very glad that I decided to go for the light version as the finish was much darker than I first anticipated, meaning that I had to bronze up my face a lot in order for it to match my body - though that was to be expected! The only thing I would say that I do not think that this formula does last for up to 24 hours, although it is still very long wearing and it lasted extremely well seeing as I was in a clubbing environment. The next day, all I had to do to remove the product was simply use a loofah and some shower gel and viola, it was gone!

Unfortunately, no matter I did with my camera, I was not able to get a good swatch of the tan on my hand before and after application, so I have included this photo of me and my friends before we went out instead. I am on the far right and as you can see, despite being a light tan, the outcome was very dark. My friend (far left) uses St Moriz's Dark Mousse Tan (£4.99) and we both look similar in colour here! I'm not sure if I applied the tan a little too thick, so I might try and be really stingy with the amount of product next time to see if I can achieve a more natural look.

Overall, this new Sun Shimmer product has definitely impressed me and I have a feeling I am going to be using it a lot from now on! Have you tried this product yet? What do you think of it? Please let me know your thoughts by leaving a comment below. Thank you!