Beauty, Bargains and Beyond

Check out my blog sale here.  I've reduced loads of items.

Leighlee

I spotted the new L'Oreal Colorista Hair Colours in Boots and Superdrug recently so I decided to pick up some of the range to give them a try.  I am a brunette and I love the idea of colouring my hair some crazy colours without it being permanent.  The range has 34 customisable  shades and 1000 possibilities (that's what it says on the advertising, so I will take their word for it).  The range offers the following: 1-Day Spray - Instant  colour that disappears in 1 shampooWashout - Conditioning colour that gradually fades in 1-2 weeksPaint - Permanent colour you craft with a brushLightening Kit - Lightens first to see your colour brighterThere are colours to suit everyone from pastels to crazy blues and red.  I picked up the following products to try out. L'Oréal Colorista Washout Red Hair - This one works on brunette hair (it's visible on all hair types) and you can apply it all over or just create an ombre look. Apply to hair for 20 minutes (30 for a more vibrant look)…

I recently received Head & Shoulders Smooth & Silky Shampoo* to try out and review.  If like me you just think of Head & Shoulders as a dandruff shampoo then think again.  I don't suffer from dandruff, but I do have an itchy scalp sometimes and I have found that using this shampoo has definitely helped to clear that up.  I also found that it left my hair feeling smoother and softer and that takes some doing as I have curly, frizzy hair.  I found that my hair was less knotty that normal after washing and I could get away with not using a conditioner.
Head & Shoulders Smooth & Silky Shampoo has a 3 Action Formula: Cleanse - This shampoo helps to remove flakes;Protect - It protects the scalp and targets the cause of dry, flaky scalps;Moisturise - The shampoo leaves hair fibres softer and instantly hydratedthanks to ingredients that lock the moisture into the lengths of the hair.
If you fancy trying out Head & Shoulders Smooth & Silky Shampoo, then I have 5 sa…

This week I am:
Binge watching Quantico Season 1 on Sky - this season is available to download at my leisure and I am really enjoying it.  It's about an American woman of Indian descent named Alex who has joined the FBI Academy at Quantico and it's the story of her training to become an FBI Agent with flash forwards to her being set up, so that it looks like she is guilty of terrorism.  As well as a fascinating insight into how intense the training is to become an FBI Agent, it also deals with Alex trying to prove her innocence against the very people that trained her.
Binge reading (is that a thing) Kathy Reichs Temperance Brennan books.  These books are about an American Forensic Anthropologist who divides her time between South Carolina, USA and French speaking Montreal, Quebec in Canada.  It's an interesting series of books that follows Tempe as she gets involved with various murder cases alongside the Canadian Police and how her Forensic Anthropology helps to solve horr…

I am trying to eat healthier this year.  I am not much of a cook and I like convenience, so I picked up these Bioglan Raw Bites to try out instead of my usual snacks of biscuits and crisps.  Bioglan Raw Bites are free from refined sugars, added flavours, colours and preservatives.  They are 100% natural and each tub contains 2 servings of superfoods.  They are gluten free and Vegan. 
I bought the Cacao + Coffee + Coconut and the Cacao+ Quinoa Raw Bites and they both tasted really nice and satisfied my sweet tooth.  I bought them at Superdrug when they had a 1/3rd off, but normally they cost £4.99 for 140g.  I know that's not cheap, but when you consider how much normal snacks cost then it's not too bad.  They are little cubes of goodness, and you only need a few at a time to satisfy any snack cravings.  If you prefer to make your food from scratch, then there is a great recipe on Deliciously Ella's website for Raw Brownies that are just as good, if not better and again are …

I have been using store loyalty cards for as long as I can remember and at the risk of preaching to the converted, I thought I would do a review of the ones that I use and what they offer.
Boots Advantage Card – This is one of the cards I use the most.  You collect 4 points for every £1 you spend in Boots.  You also get regular coupons by post or on your mobile app, which give you different offers such as double points, 250 points if you spend £25 or more and 10% off certain products.  Each point equals 1p so if you have 1000 you can spend £10.  You can’t use points to pay for part of an item you do need the full amount.  I love this card, what have you got to lose by collecting points when you are shopping in Boots and then every so often getting free items.


Sainsbury’s Nectar Card – Every time you shop at Sainsbury’s you earn 1 point for every £1 you spend.  You also get money off or additional points if you purchase over a certain amount by logging onto their website or mobile app an…

I haven't done a post about Birchbox for a while, but I thought this months was pretty good, so I wanted to show you guys what I received in my beauty box.  I have subscribed to Birchbox (and it's earlier incarnations) for quite a few years now and it's the only box that I have subscribed to nonstop over that period as it's never disappointed me (yes sometimes the products aren't to my taste, but I can't expect every single product to be something that I would buy myself).  Anyways here's what I received:
Spectrum Collections Marbleous  C06 Tulip Eye Contour Brush - Worth £4.99 - I love the look of this brush so definitely glad this was in the box. Show Premiere Dry Shampoo (worth approx. £5.66) - I have had a couple of products from this brand, so happy to give this dry shampoo a try. Pop Beauty Bright Up Your Life Eye Shadow Trio in Champagne Mocha (worth approx. £4.65) - I love the 3 eye shadows in this set, they are exactly what I would buy for myself. Keeo…

I decided to set myself 1 challenge a month in 2017, which is much more manageable that setting 12 for the year all at once (not sure why, but it just is).  You can read my original post here, but I just wanted to give you a quick update on how it went. Challenge 1 - Completed My first challenge was to give up chocolate and fizzy drinks cans for 30 days and I am pleased to say that as of the 8th February I totally achieved this challenge.  I usually drink at least 2 cans of pop a day and have at least 1 bar of chocolate, so I am very pleased with myself and I don't plan on going back to my old bad habits.  I will treat myself to a can of Pepsi or Cherry Coke occasionally and also a bar of chocolate, but it certainly won't be a daily occurrence.  Hopefully I may have lost a few pounds as well, but that was not what this challenge was all about.
Challenge 2 - Completed Challenge 2 is a 30 day no spend on makeup, toiletries and any other beauty items and I am pleased to report that …

I love using body oils in winter as you can warm them up in your hands before applying the oil to your body.  This is essential while we are suffering these cold wintery nights here in the UK.  I already love to use L'Occitane Almond Shower Oil, so the Almond Supple Skin Oil is a great addition to the body products that I use on a daily basis.  Yes, it is pricy at £34 for 100ml, but we deserve a little treat now and again don't we and L'Occitane quite often do great offers, including free products or discounts when spending a certain amount. It’s formulated with more than 50% Almond oil and feels rich and smells wonderful, but it’s not greasy and absorbs fully into your skin without leaving a sticky residue.  My skin definitely feels smoother and more nourished after using this oil.  The great thing about this oil is that it is a spray so you can apply it all over your body much easier than oils that you pour directly onto your hands.
L'Occitane does not test their produ…

I was recently sent some Eyelashes by Invogue* to try out.  I am not an expert in applying false lashes by any means, but I have quite short sparse eye lashes, so I do like to use them for special occasions.  I received a selection of 3 different lashes to try out and I found them easy to apply, the glue worked really well and they stayed in place all day and were easy to remove at the end of the day.
Glamourise#10 give you thicker, fuller voluptuous lashes.  These are totally different to the other two sets of lashes.  There seems to be more lashes, but there are spaces in between the lashes.  There are also some extra long lashes dotted through as well.  These are definitely not lashes I would wear through the day as some of the lashes are very long.  That being said they are interesting and make a nice change to the standard lashes that most of us choose to wear.  If you want super long lashes, then these are the lashes for you. Glamourise #06 give you long luscious lashes, although …