Nourishing My Skin With Nivea

Over the past couple of weeks, my skin has really been suffering! I have had bouts of horrible dry patches, as well as my skin being more sensitive than usual. So, I wanted to pick up an affordable yet effective product to battle all of my current skincare woes. For an extremely reasonable £4.49, I opted for Nivea's Daily Essentials Sensitive Night Cream after browsing through what the budget-friendly brands were offering in my local Boots store. Having used the day version of this moisturiser in the past, I knew that it would probably be just as effective but its actually even better than I imagined!

The main things that Nivea's sensitive range helps to aid are redness, tightness and dryness. Its mild pH-neutral formula is free from all of the nasties (parabens, colouring and perfumes) that you might find in other moisturisers that are not specifically formulated for those whose skin is easily irritated. After reading up more about this lotion, I discovered that two of its main ingredients are licorice extract - which is a fantastic anti-inflammatory - and grape seed oil. Some of the other claims that Nivea listed are that this night cream calms your skin, provides intensive moisture and helps strengthen your skins barrier.

I can honestly say that even though I haven't been using this moisturiser for too long, my skin has already improved and my dry patches are definitely on the mend! Normally, I am not a big fan of night creams because they are so rich that it takes what seems like forever for them to sink in. However, the consistency of this night cream is perfect! It's a lovely consistency and it penetrates and seeps into my skin in a matter of minutes. Even after a couple of nights, my skin felt replenished and really supple. I would highly recommend this moisturiser to anybody who suffers with sensitive skin, whether it be mild like mine or more severe, as it really has worked wonders. Plus, for under a £5, its worth a try right?!

My Monthly Favourites - February 2015

Hi guys, I cannot believe how fast February has flown by! It's seriously hard to fathom that we are already into the third month of 2015. As far as beauty products went, this past month was a mixture of new and old discoveries - some super simple and others a tad more luxurious! As always, I wanted to share my five favourite products of the month with you, my lovely followers, so let's just right in and get down to business and talk all things beauty!

Marc Jacobs Daisy Dream Eau De Toilette - £51.50
You may already know this if you read my Daisy Dreamin' blog post last month but my parents went on holiday and generously bought me back a bottle of Marc Jacobs' Daisy Dream perfume. As I have done an in depth review already, I won't ramble on too much but I am in love with this fragrance already. It's the perfect scent to wear as we enter into spring and it's light floral yet woody notes are to die for. This is a must buy!

Nivea Sensitive Day Cream - £4.49
My skin has really taken a turn for the worse lately and it has become prone to a lot of redness and the occasional dry patch too. I decided that a really simple moisturiser would do the trick and so far, this one from Nivea has been wonderful. As far as day creams go, this is too rich for my combination skin so I opt to use it at night time instead. However, with that being said, this cream has bought my skin back to normality and has given it a huge hit of moisture too. I highly recommend it to anybody with super sensitive or unruly skin!

MAC Mineralize Eyeshadow Duo in Joy & Laughter - £17.00
Way back in my 'What I Got For Christmas' blog post, I showed you this gorgeous eyeshadow duo from MAC that my friend Sarah kindly bought me. This lilac marble-like shadow is sooo beautiful and gives such a lovely finish on the lids. The colour really makes my eyes pop too, which is always a bonus! Rather than using the two shades separately, I like to swirl my brush around to combine the two and then add a matte shadow from my Naked 2 palette into the crease. It's seriously the perfect glitzy combo!

MAC Plumful Lipstick - £15.50
I also have a second favourite from MAC this month in the form of their ever so popular lipstick, 'Plumful.' Being one of the brands 'lustre' lipsticks, this product adds a lovely glossy and semi-sheer wash of colour to the lips - although it can be built up too if you prefer a bolder lip. The shade itself is a beautiful plum/rose colour that is extremely wearable, no matter the occasion. I an imagine this shade flattering a lot of skin tones too, so it's definitely a must buy as far as MAC lipsticks go!

Soap & Glory Hand Cream Super Dream - £7.00
Last but not least is one of my most important favourites of the month. My hands and my cuticles have been especially dry lately and so, I have been using this hand cream from Soap & Glory religiously in order to get them back in tip-top condition. The reason that I like this one in particular is because its rich without being overly sticky, which is something that I really despise when it comes to hand creams!

So, that's another lot of favourites over! I hope that you all enjoyed reading about the products that I was loving throughout February! What beauty products have you been loving lately? Please leave your comments below!

My Monthly Favourites - November 2014

Hi guys. I am extremely excited that we have now come to the end of November because we can now well and truly focus on all things Christmas! I cannot wait to put up all of our decorations, wrap up tons of presents and eat too much indulgent food. However, before I can do all of those things, I have the small matter of my monthly favourites to address! I have to admit that I haven't been too adventurous beauty-wise this month as I have had a lot of days indoors or have just been running errands, but I still have a few bits so share with you all. So let's get started!

Garnier Body Oil Beauty Nourishing Lotion - £4.99
First up, my skin has gotten very dry all of sudden now that the cold weather is finally upon us. So when I saw this body lotion from Garnier on the shelf, I just had to pick it up. The fact that this particular lotion was oil-infused made me think that it could do wonders for my skin - and I was right! Not only does it nourish and hydrate my skin but the formulation of the lotion is amazing. It's very smooth and easy to rub in, so you don't have to do too much work in that respect. Although it doesn't sink in super fast, it still does it in less time than you would expect for such a rich product. I would highly recommend this to anybody who's skin needs an extra boost of moisture!

Revlon ColorBurst Matte Balm in Standout - £7.99
Like most beauty bloggers around this time of year, I love a good red lip! There's something about it that just screams Christmas and I recently rediscovered my Revlon matte balm in amongst my ever-growing lip crayon collection! The main reason that I love this crayon is because even though its matte, it is not at all drying on the lips. As well as this, it has great staying power too. As for the red colour itself, 'Standout' is a gorgeous true red shade that would suit a whole range of different skin tones. It's definitely a must-have product for me right now!

Nivea Sensitive Day Cream - £4.49
As I mentioned earlier, since the bitter cold weather has set in, my skin has gone haywire and in turn it is very dry in places. However, I have also noticed that my skin in the past month or so has a lot of redness too. So, I picked up this sensitive day cream from Nivea because I had already tried the Rich Moisturising version in the past and loved it. This version claims to reduce redness, tightness and dryness - which I totally agree with. I have really been enjoying this moisturiser a lot and so far it has helped with hydrating my dry patches a lot. Plus as it is quite rich in texture, a little goes a long way with this product, so I have a feeling that this tube is going to last me for quite a while.  

Lush Ultrabland Cleanser - £7.25
This cleanser from Lush is an old favourite of mine and I always come back to it! Sometimes I think that its a good idea to go back to basics with skincare and really strip it back, as let's face it, us beauty bloggers use a large concoction of products on our faces! The fact that Lush's skincare is so natural really appeals to me and Ultrabland is the perfect gentle cleanser for me. Its ingredients include almond oil and beeswax, which means that it leaves your skin feeling so soft and supple. As it is a balm cleanser, Ultrabland is also excellent at removing all traces of make-up without leaving a greasy residue like most oil-based cleansers do. Overall, I will always purchase this cleanser time and time again because it's just excellent and gets the job done!

Miss Selfridge Body Mist - £4.00
Last but not least is this gorgeous body mist from Miss Selfridge. I have to admit that this was a bit of an impulse buy whilst out with my Mum in our local Arcadia store. The mist was right at the checkout and I normally dismiss products like that but this time, I couldn't resist. After spritzing it, I realised that the fragrance was an incredible quality seeing as it was made by a high street clothing brand. On their website, the scent is described as being a blend of lemongrass, ginger and rosemary; so as you can imagine, it is a light and fresh smell. I tend to use the mist on days where I am not doing too much and I do not want to reach for some of my more expensive perfumes - and it certainly does the trick. For such a budget friendly product, I am really impressed with it and I highly recommend to all of you!

So, those are my five beauty favourites for the month of November. I hope you enjoyed reading all about them! Which products do you like the sound of? What are your favourites this month? Please let me know by leaving a comment below. As I said earlier on, I am really happy that November is now over because now I can well and truly get into the Christmas spirit. Also, remember to stay tuned to my blog in the up and coming weeks to see lots of festive posts! Thank you :)

My Monthly Favourites - February 2014

Hi guys. It's that time of the month again for me to talk about my monthly favourites. I always forget that February is the shortest month of the year, so this has come around so quickly! I have bought a couple of new items recently, as well as discovering an old favourite so I have a lot of recommendations for you all. So, on that note, let's get started!

Dove Go Fresh Nourishing Rebalance Body Wash - £2.39

First up is this Dove body wash. I have never featured a body wash on my blog before because let's face it, they aren't all that interesting! Although, I think I have become addicted to this one in particular. I have always been a fan of Dove as a brand because all of their products have great moisturising properties that do not dry out my skin in the slightest. However, the main reason I love this product is simply the scent. The combination of plum and sakura blossom (,a fancy name for cherry blossom,) smells divine. In fact, the whole Go Fresh line has a lovely range of scents and I have pretty much tried all of them. I will definitely be re-purchasing this body wash again in the future, I cannot get enough.

Phil Smith Life's A Beach Sea Salt Spray - £4.00

Next up is a product that had been forgotten about in the back of my drawer for a little while now. I am a huge fan of sea salt sprays as they give great texture for my fine hair, especially when I have my hair in loose, beachy curls - which I do most days. I bought this spray in Sainsbury's, which coincidentally is the only place I have ever seen it being sold, to replace my Toni & Guy Casual Sea Salt Texturising Spray. The reason for this is purely because I wanted a cheaper alternative to the Toni & Guy version, even though I do prefer that one by a slight margin. Never the less, this spray does an excellent job and I thoroughly recommend it.

Revlon ColorBurst Matte Balm in Standout - £7.99

This product is probably my favourite out of the bunch this month. Since it's release, this product has been extremely hyped up in the beauty blogging world but for good reason! After contemplating for at least 15 minutes about which shade to try first, I finally settled on 'Standout' - a dark, cherry red shade. My main concern about this matte balm was that it would really dry out my lips and cling to any flaky patches, however, it doesn't at all. It glides on so nicely and sits really well on lips, plus I love the colour! It is also so long-lasting, to the point where I only had to top it up once whilst I was out clubbing last weekend. In addition to this, I think the matte packaging is a nice extra touch by Revlon, so that you can easily differentiate between the these and the lacquer balms that have also been released. I highly recommend this balm to anybody who hasn't got around to trying them yet (where have you been?) It's definitely a toss up between the colours 'Elusive' or 'Sultry' as to which shade I try next.

Nivea Daily Essentials Rich Moisturising Day Cream - £4.25

Another great yet inexpensive product that I have been loving this month is this Nivea day cream. The reason behind this purchase was because the other week I had a terrible cold which left my skin really dry, especially round the nose area. Due to the fact that my skin is usually oily, I tend to stick to my Simple Hydrating Light Moisturiser but it just wasn't rich enough to treat those dry areas. Although this is a day cream I have been using at night time as it is very thick and rich, therefore its not good to use prior to applying makeup. Even after one night, my skin was so much softer and the dryness had already started to fade. Now after a week of using the cream, my skin is so supple and there is not a dry patch in sight. Not only this but strangely, my skin is now really clear and I have no blemishes at all. I don't know if this is merely a coincidence but hey, I'm happy! This is a great cream which will definitely now have a permanent place in my skin care regime.

Topshop Glow in Polished - £9.00

Last but not least is this gorgeous highlighter from Topshop. I have only just written a review of this product on Monday (click here to read,) so I am going to keep this review short and sweet. This product is a cream highlighter which blends seamlessly due to it's texture. It adds a lovely luminosity to the skin and it looks beautiful on the tops of your cheekbones. It is quite a glittery highlighter so I am going to use it more at night time when I go to parties or out clubbing etc, as it certainly isn't subtle but I love that look! This is the first makeup product I have ever purchased in Topshop and I will definitely be buying more in the future!

So, that's it for this month! I hope you enjoyed reading about my February favourites. Which products have you been loving over the past month? I would love to know what you have been reaching for! Thank you :) 

My Monthly Favourites - October 2013

Hi guys! Surprisingly, even though I have been blogging for roughly seven months now, I have never partaken in the ever-so-popular 'monthly favourites' posts. However, this is all about to change! There are so many products I love to use that I have never mentioned on my blog and I thought that doing a monthly favourites post would enable me to include a lot more of these. Though, with this being said, sometimes I go through a phase where I do not incorporate anything new into my beauty regime and so I may skip a month or two from time to time if I have no products to talk about. Now, let's get on with talking about my favourite products that I have been using throughout October!

No7 Beautiful Skin Foaming Cleanser for Normal/Oily Skin - £9.00
As probably many of you beauty bloggers are aware, Boots more often than not have a deal on No7 skincare where by you get £5 off printed on a receipt when you buy any product in the entire store. So, I bit the bullet and decided to invest in a new cleanser. I have combination skin and get a fair few blemishes and so I wanted a product to control the oiliness of my skin. This product is great and I have been using it every day. It foams up nicely (hence the name of the product) and is gentle on my skin too. I have definitely noticed a difference in my skin as it is far less oily of late. I definitely recommend this product!

Rimmel Moisture Renew Lipstick in Dark Knight Waterl-oops!- £6.49
Whilst preparing for a Halloween night out clubbing with my friend Sarah, we decided we wanted to buy a really dark lipstick to go with our outfits. We browsed every stand in Boots for the darkest lipstick we could find and eventually came across this amazing, rich purple colour from Rimmel. Although this product has been around for years now, Rimmel have recently altered the formula of this lipstick and have added many different shades into the collection. This lipstick has since been advertised so much and it definitely lives up to the hype! The end result gave us extremely dark, vampy-looking lips that were still really moisturised - which is just what we were after. The only bad thing I have to say about this product as that it tends to bleed out of the lip line after a while which can look a little messy.

Seche Vite Dry Fast Top Coat - £9.00
I am pretty late in terms of jumping onto the Seche Vite bandwagon, which is surprising seeing as I have been a huge nail varnish junkie for as long as I can remember. However, now that I have just completed a intensive three day nail course (as mentioned in my 'The Next Chapter Of My Life' blog post,)  I decided that I has best invest in some higher quality products. Now that I will be working on clients, I wanted a top coat that makes a manicure last as long as possible for optimum results. So far, I am loving using this product as it extremely chip-resistant with a super glossy finish.

Eylure Katy Perry Eyelashes in Cool Kitty - £5.95
Seeing as my natural eyelashes are quite short and sparse, I love to wear fake ones on a night out to really make my eyes stand out. I really like the effect that these particular lashes give, as they fan out at the end into slight points at the end that look gorgeous when applied. The pair I used to use religiously before these were released are the Girls Aloud Nadine lashes, (also made by Eylure,) which are pretty much exactly the same but for some reason I prefer these ones by a mile. I would also recommend the 'Oh Honey' lashes from the Katy Perry Range if you are looking for a slightly more natural finish. (Disclaimer: I am aware that my photo does not show the lashes as mine were a little mangled and I had to throw them out. However, I have put a link above if you wanted to see what they actually look like!)

Nivea Vanilla & Macadamia Nut Lip Butter - £2.25
I am going to keep this review short and sweet as I have recently spoken about this product in my 'Boots 3 For 2 Lipcare' blog post. All I want to say about this product is that I am absolutely addicted to the scent, vanilla and macadamia but is such a great combination! I love slathering this product on before going to bed at night and waking up in the morning with lovely, soft lips as the formulation of this lip butter is really thick and creamy. This is a must-have, affordable product for any girls handbag for keeping your lips hydrated on the go! 

Paul Mitchell Freeze and Shine Super Spray (500ml) - £18.25
Last but not least is this amazing hairspray from Paul Mitchell. For years now, both me and my Mum have been using this product to keep our styled hair in place all day long. This hairspray has an incredibly firm hold without making your hair feel crispy or hard, which the majority of lower-end hairsprays tend to do if you are not careful. As I have fine hair that is prone to dropping, this product is perfect for me as I curl my hair the majority of the time. Although this hairspray is pretty pricey, it lasts for absolutely ages and in my opinion, is definitely worth the money! 

I hope you have all enjoyed reading about my monthly favourites for October. I would love to know what your most-loved products have been this month, so please do not hesitate to leave a comment below :) 

Boots 3 For 2 Lip Care Review

Hi guys! I thought that today I would carry on the theme from my previous post (My Top 5 Favourite Lipsticks) which is lip care. Whilst shopping in my local Boots yesterday, I came across an offer that I just couldn't resist- 3 for 2 on lip care! Now that the English weather has taken a serious turn for the worse, it is feeling more and more like autumn/winter every day. With that in mind, I thought I would prepare for the season of dry lips and stock up on some top quality lip balms. Boots have a lot of amazing deals on at the moment including 3 for 2 on skincare, body care, indulgent bathing, self tan, vitamins and No 7. So, I seriously suggest going down to Boots and picking up all of your essentials whilst saving those all important pennies in the process. Now, without any further ado, let's see what I bought! 

Palmer's Cocoa Butter Formula Ultra Moisturizing Lip Balm - £1.89
Being a big fan of Palmer's body lotion, I thought that I couldn't go wrong with buying their lip balm too. As expected, the balm has the same amazing cocoa smell as all of Palmer's other products, which is what drew me in to buying this item the most. The lip balm also contains an SPF of 15, so this would be perfect to use in the summer too. This product lasts a long time on my lips and keeps them hydrated, however, the balm seems to have a slight fine, gritty texture to it. On one hand, this could be a positive as it does exfoliate the lips a little but to me, I find the texture a little annoying and impractical to wear at times. 

Nivea Vanilla & Macadamia Lip Butter - £2.25
Next up, and my favourite of the bunch, is this amazing lip butter from Nivea. I have fallen in love with this product after only one application. The vanilla and macadamia smell is so lovely and the consistency of the balm is so creamy, so it feels really luxurious on the lips. I have always heard great things about this product but I have only just got around to buying it. Now, I am keen on trying out the other flavours in the collection: Raspberry Rose and Caramel Cream.

Carmex Strawberry Lip Balm - £2.69
Last but not least is this strawberry flavoured lip balm from Carmex. In the past I have used the cherry version of this product, which I adore the smell of, but it was sold out in the Boots I went to. Although this lip balm does an amazing job of hydrating and protecting my lips during this harsh weather, I am not too keen on this scent. It is really sickly sweet, which is really not my cup of tea. However, this being said, I am still going to continue to wear this product of a night time before I go to bed. Similarly to the Palmer's balm, Carmex contains SPF 15 and so it is excellent to use in the warmer weather too.

Overall, I am really please with the three products that I chose to purchase for the 3 for 2 deal. They are all really beneficial to my lip care routine and I am sure to get a lot of use out of them in the up and coming months. As usual, if you have ever used any of these products before, I would love to know your opinions on them. So, please leave a comment below as I honestly love reading them! Thank you :)