Monday 30 January 2012

Carmine: January Box

I received my January Carmine box this weekend, and first thoughts? Well, I didn't really know what to think, to be honest.
Let me explain ....








First up is the Westlab Himalayan Bath salts. You simply pour the whole contents into your bath and they claim to turn it into a little detox session for you and maintain soft healthy skin. Now, these bath salts look pretty funky, with their pink colouring and all. But being a shower kind of girl, I'm not sure if these will ever get used or not. Westlab are offering 30% off their detox kit online at: www.westlabshop.com. Use code 4321 to claim this.








Next, an item that I have never received in a beauty box before, Eldora False lashes. I love the shape of these, and as a hugeee false lash fan, I will definitely be trying these bad boys out. I know Carmine mixed up the boxes a bit by using different style lashes, so I'd be interested to know how you got on with yours. I thought these may have been a more luxurious branded lash, but after checking the website, they sell for cheaper than the ones I usually purchase, around £3.90.
Use code eldoracarmine2012 for 50% off the full Eldora range when you spend £15 or more. Available from www.eldorashop.co.uk . Exp Feb 29th




Sooooo, the Balance me face oil (5ml). An item I feel other beauty boxes would have chucked in as a freebie, instead of counting it as one of our 5 'luxurious' items. But anyhow, The 100% natural face oil claims to dramatically improve your skin and make you literally glow. Massage onto skin before using moisturiser.
I am a bit gutted that I can't use this item, thanks to my skin producing too much natural oil of it's own! It is a rollerball type applicator which I think is a pretty nifty idea. And despite only vaguely being able to get a whiff of the sent because of it's applicator, the sent I smell, I like! It has a Bio-oil type smell to it.
Use code CARMINE 2012 for 10% off the full size face oil at www.balanceme.co.uk. Exp March 1st.





Now here is an item I have seen before. In the Boudoir prive box I believe? The Korres wild rose moisturising and brightening face cream. I do really rate this product, and if you fancy getting your hands on one, enter my first ever giveaway (see below), where this product is among others I will be giving away.
This organic face cream will not only brighten and repair your complexion, it will also pump up the hydration for a full 24hours, apparently! Because I only use this item on dry skin days, I'm not sure of the effects it will have on your skin with continued use.
We also received a £5.00 off voucher code with every purchase over £25 with Korres. Type WILDROSE6 at the checkout www.houseoffraser.co.uk
valid until 31/03/2012







Lastly, an item I have fallen in loveee with, the Eyeko Fat Eye Stick, in Old Gold. This creamy stick, glides on very smoothly, without any tugging what so ever, and leaves a lovely intense colour. After fiddling about for a while, I realised, nooo I won't have to dig out my super sized pencil sharpener, you just twist the bottom, and up it pops! A bit like a lipstick, I guess? The colour I received is Old Gold, which I don't think would have been my first choice if purchasing this item, but after having a little play around with, I really like. I think that aswell as an all over shadow, it will look good as an eyeliner, too. It is really easy to blend the colour, I had a go with the Smudger brush from our Jolie Box, and it worked great!


So overall, I had mixed feeling about this box. the 2 items I liked (the lashes and eyestick), I REALLY liked, but the over 3 items I felt were a bit tight. But hey that's just my personal opinion. 

What do ya'l think of this box??


Friday 20 January 2012

Hd Brows

I had heard of Hd Brows (High Definition) a while back, but it was only when I received the rather fabulous Hd brows palette in my Glossy box that I sat up and took notice of this brilliant brand! On the Hd Brows website, there is a salon finder, which lists the legitimate technicians which carry out this treatment. The treatment consists of 7 steps to get you some fab brows on that pretty little face of yours. The steps include tinting, waxing and threading... so it can be a bit painful!
I went and got mine done, the technician was lovely and made me feel very relaxed. She explained that where my brows were quite short to start with, thanks to past over plucking, it would take a few treatments to get them to Hd brow Perfection. I'm very happy with them and think the longer I keep it up, the better results I will achieve. It costs £25 and for me, I should really get them done every 3-4 weeks, but this can change from person to person depending on regrowth. However, I just lightly pluck stray hairs to pro-long resting time a bit, as it can work out quite expensive!

Here are my brows before the treatment...


And here they are after 2 treatments....
as you can see they are a bit red, thanks to the waxing and threading.



Visit http://www.hd-brows.co.uk/

What do we think of Hd Brows girls????

Wednesday 18 January 2012

FIRST EVER GIVE AWAY!

I'm ever soooo excited to be announcing my first ever giveaway. Seems as I am so obsessed with beauty boxes at the moment, I have devised my own mini one to give away to one of my amazing followers! I will choose the lucky winner once I have reached 100 followers... the more followers  I receive, the better my giveaways will become! The box includes: Daniel Sandler Baby Jet mascara, Urban Decay Mai Tai body balm, Scholl Party feet gel cushions, Malibu SPF 15 lotion, Clarins Intensive serum (3ml), Korres moisturiser (10ml) and Living Nature cleanser, toner and moisturiser 2ml samples.



You can start entering..... NOW!!!

All you have to do is...
  1. Follow my blog and...
  2. Leave a comment on this post asking to be entered, this will entitle you to one entry, no matter how many times you comment. (Please state in the comment what you have done to enter the giveaway).
  3. Follow me on twitter @ginachamberlain for an extra entry.
  4. Tweet about my blog and/or giveaway (with a link), for another entry
  5. If you're a blogger yourself, post a link to my giveaway, for another 2 entries.
The winner will be announced once I have reached 100 followers, and will be contacted by e-mail, so be sure to leave your e-mail addy. Get spreading the word, and remember, the more followers I get... the better the giveaways become!!
Good luck,
and a biggggg Thank You to all of you 
xxxx

Tuesday 17 January 2012

P-a-r-t-y Look!

One of my friends recently come home after 9 months of working on a cruise ship, and boyyy did we celebrate!

This dress I wore was from the Miss Selfridge concession at House Of Fraser.
 


I curled my hair with the Cloud 9 The Wand (a review will be up soon about that).
Makeup wise,  lots of bronzer: Bourjois bronzing powder
Fake Lashes: Girls Aloud, Kimberley's (Eyelure)
and a tonne of Red lipstick: Ysl Red, Rouge Pur Couture collection.





I don't think the pictures really do the dress justice... the colours are beautiful. I teamed it up with Nude and Metallic accessories.










And a group shot of friends and party go-ers! That pretty little thing in the white next to me is the worlds greatest friend <3

Friday 13 January 2012

River Island sale!

Hi girls, just a quick post to show ya'll an absolute bargain I picked up from the River Island January sale.


This little gem of a dress was just £15. Which is even cheaper than some Primark dresses I own! It's quite a classic style and can be dressed down a bit more with tights and a leather jacket.
I love the fact it hides all that weight I've put on around my stomach over Christmas haha.


















Oh, and heres me and the boyfriend being silly!!





















I love all my followers.... xxxx

Thursday 12 January 2012

Feel Unique: January Beauty Box

Hellooo guys and dolls!! Hope we're all OK and having a brilliant 2012 so far. OK, so today is quite an exciting day for me... my first EVER beauty box review blog post. And to prove my excitement...
Noooo, I'm not trying to eat the box, it's a picture of my 'excited face' ...before I had a look at it's contents...

I received my Feel Unique box last night... and my first thoughts are... Feel Unique, REALLY?! After 2 a-maze-ing previous boxes from them, I had ranked them top of my list with Carmine as far as beauty boxes go. But unfortunately this month they've slipped down a place or 2 for me. So what are the contents you ask?...welll....


Firstly is the Lierac Anti-age cream (15ml). This cream is totally suitable for my 22 year old oily skin...NOT. Although this cream is not specifically good for the likes of me, if I had more mature skin, I think I would definitely give this a bash. Saying this however, I guess prevention in ageing is better than cure! The cream claims to leave your skin visibly lifted and regain its optimal firmness with its advanced formula.
My mum is coming over in a bit to open her birthday presents (happy birthday mum!), so I'm quickly going to wrap this up for her...haha
The full sized item is 50ml and sells for (in Feel Uniques shop), £56.55




Then we have the Phyto Express conditioner (20ml) for colour treated hair. This is a product I'll be using as I do have coloured hair, however I will probably get just one use out of it, because of 'my' long hair (thanks to my hair extensions). It is rich in citrus extracts to bring long lasting colour, shine and silkiness to the hair, so they claim. I will give this a try soon and let you know how it goes. My extensions can get quite dry, so are very demanding!
Full sized item (150ml) sells for £10.20




Right, I know there are quite a few beauty box lovers out there who are not impressed with this next item, because the brand has popped up in boxes on more than one occasion. Dead Sea Spa Magik. I've previously received the bath salts and moisturiser from them and neither was I very impressed with. However, this time I received the Salt Brushing Exfoliating Scrub (2 x 50g packets). YAYY. As a fake tan lover, I can never have too much exfoliater, so this was a good thing to receive. Although, quite frankly...the packaging sucks! The packaging presentation never really bothers me, which is a good thing as Dead Sea Spa Magiks ain't brilliant. But it's more the functionality of the packaging. As with the bath salts, its just chucked in a non resealable packet leaving it to spill out everywhere when you put it down. But hey ho, I'm a hard to please girl.
This is a natural exfoliating scrub which exfoliates dead skin cells and helps aid skin repair and rejuvenates the appearance of skin.
Full sized item sells for £12.25 for 500g. (In a much more suitable tub container)

This is another brand we have seen before, Caudalie. Previously receiving face care from them, this time I've received their Nourishing Body Lotion (30ml). Another body moisturiser...great...Well, at least it would be great if I didn't receive them in pretty much every box. Yes this is an item I will use, but it's going to have wait in the long line of others I have waiting to be used.
This is for normal to dry skin and will (hopefully) soften and tone your skin and make it more radiant.
 Full size is 400ml which sells for £21.50





Next, an item from the brand Green People, a gentle cleanser makeup remover and cleanser (10ml). This is a very small size, so can't imagine it lasting very long, but hopefully long enough for you to discover whether you like or not. I won't be using it, simply because of the fact I'm in a medicated facial skin care regime. 
This is a light organic cleansing lotion which gently rids the skin of pollutants leaving it feeling soft sand refreshed.
Straight on to Ebay.
This as a full sized item sells for £15.25 for 200ml

As a little extra this month, I received a TINY Lierac Comfort peel (2ml). Which states is a wrinkle smoothing renewing cream, which give you the effect of 'new skin'.



On the contents card, you receive 10% off any of the brands featured in the box by typing in code BBJAN10B at the checkout. This offer expires 18/02/2012.

So a pretty average/below average box for me this month. I know you can never please everyone, but with a box pretty much full of skin care items, us makeup lovers are not going to be too impressed. This is the not the worst box for me though in the history of beauty boxes. NOTHING can beat Glossy box's November box to that award.
My personal opinion is that Feel Unique introduce a personal beauty profile to they can personalise their boxes a bit more. Which is exactly what some of the others have done.
I really do hope there are some of you that love this box.

Overall score this month?
4.5/10     Harsh I know, but like I say, I'm hard to please



Opinions girls?

Friday 6 January 2012

Fake that Bake!!

Yes, I'm an Essex girl, so it's a given that I'm a fake tan-a-holic. I own all sorts, from Piz Buin, to Fake bake and everything in between. So, I thought I'd share with you gorgeous people my loves and hates in my collection. I'll list them in order of my worst to my best:


In last place is the Piz Buin Max spray self tan. I definitely wouldn't recommend this one, especially to fake tan virgins/beginners as it doesn't have a colour guide to see where you have already applied the tan. This can lead to some streaky tanning!! This is suppose to be a dark tanning spray, but i personally wouldn't say it lives up to that. As for the smell, it's not too sad, especially compared to some tans out there!
Score: 3/10
In second from last place is the Hawaiian Tropic Island radiance cream tan. This glides on fairly smoothly, thanks to it's cream consistency, but again, it doesn't have a tinted colour, to give you a guide of where you have already applied it. It gives you an OK colour result, but I don't think I'll be using it again. The smell is quite nice and fresh, thanks to it's 'odor blocking technology'.
Score: 3/10
Next is the Banana Boat  Summer Colour Mousse tan. This didn't stand out for me at all really, not for good or bad reasons. It has the faintest colour guide, which is better than nothing. The smells not great. This one is over all just, OK.
Score: 4/10
Yes, I know this is a Face tan, but I thought it was definitely worth a mention. This is the Banana Boat SunDial Face. I love the fact you can control how light or dark you want the tan by turning the dial, which mixes more moisturiser with the tan, the lighter you want it. Goes on nicely, although I found it a bit too heavy for my oily skin.
Score: 6/10






The St tropez Every day tan, is a moisturiser tan which you apply everyday to gradually build your tan. Good for beginners, but for me, it doesn't give me a dark enough tan. It does work out quite expensive if you apply it over the full body every day, though.
Score: 6/10




This is the cheaper version of the department store Fake Bake range, called Beyond Bronze. This is the lotion version, which glides on nicely, leaving that all important colour guide behind to see where the tan has already been applied. The main difference I found with this one compared to the more expensive Fake Bake range is that with the expensive ones, as long as the area of skin is all covered, no matter how much tan you put on the area, you will get an even tan. Sadly though, with this one, it's not the case. But at more than half the price, you can't really complain!!
Score: 6.5/10

This is the Xen tan. I've tried all sorts of Xen Tan fake tans, and quite like them, so was thrilled when I received the dark version in a couple of beauty boxes some months back. OK, I'm going to sound real fussy here...but for once, i found the dark version TOO dark, and even though I followed the correct tanning preparations, it seemed to still gather in some places. I have tried the normal version before, and much preferred that. So as the Xen Tan range, I'm a fan! The face tanner is packed with skin loving ingredients including Antioxidants. Bingo!
Score: 7/10

In third place is...the brilliant St Tropez bronzing lotion. I have tried all of their range, but for me I found the lotion went on the best. As you can tell by the picture, this has been well used, which is proof that I really like this little darling! Colour guide, TICK. Even Tan, TICK. Good for beginners, TICK!
Score: 8/10
In second place is... the Fake Bake Airbrush tan, which I absolutely la la la loveee. In fact, if it wasn't for the expensive price tag, and the fact it runs out relatively quickly, this would be joint first. But because of those factors, it has been knocked down a peg. Again, I have tried all Fake Bake products and found this one to be the best for me, but comes close to the Fake Bake original lotion. The airbrush system is easy to use, and leaves a lovely not too dark, not too light, glowing tan. Oh, and did I mention, Amy Child's (from TOWIE) recommends it?! Love it.
Score: 9/10
And in first place is........... drum roll please.........The one, the only ST MORIZ INSTANT SELF TANNING MOUSSE!!!! With it's credit crunch busting price tag (just a few quid), it's colour glide, the smoothness it has as it softly glides on your skin, the end colour result...just... EVERYTHING!! Sorry I'm getting a bit excited!! Since buying this tan, I haven't actually gone back to any other. I have it in the original version which I use if I haven't got anywhere special to go, and the dark version I use for nights out etc.
Just pleaseee make sure you keep the bottle up the correct way, as it can tend to leak, my first bottle did as I walked back from the shops!!
I.Love.This.Tan
Score: 10/10 for sure!

For fake tanning advice and tips to help you achieve a gorgeous even tan, look up my Beauty tips, tricks and advice page.
xx

What fake tans are you girls rating or slating ?





Wednesday 4 January 2012

Eyes: Battle of the eyeliners

For Christmas from my lovely boyfriend, one of my pressies was the Benefit Bad Gal lash mascara/eyeliner duo (cleverly named 'Double The Bad'). I obviously had to pick this myself, as I doubt he has a clue what mascara even is. I had heard people raving about these products, and have been keen to give them a bash for a while now. The mascara is absolutely lovely, with its thick consistency, and big brush, it gets them lashes look H-O-T!! But what really drew my attention was the eyeliner... was it really all it's cracked up to be? Well girls, let me tell you... my usual eyeliner of choice is the lovely Bourjois Ultra black Kohl liner. And with constantly changing my makeup items, this fab liner is one I've been loyal to for a while. Occasionally trying others, but always coming back to this. With it's 'Ultra black' colour and good staying power, it suits me down to the ground! So yes, I was a bit sceptical about going out of my Eyeliner comfort zone. I have to say though, yes, the Benefit Bad Gal Liner is a gooden'. With the liner pencil one end, and a smudger brush the other, it's perfecto to create looks including the olde Smokey Eyes look. Compared to the Bourjois one, the Benefit version glided on a lot smoother, not dragging my eyes at all. I don't feel it's quite as dark in colour though, which for me is a disadvantage. These two factors together meant that for me to obtain my usual eyeliner look, required me to sharpen the pencil quite often, which obviously meant the pencil wouldn't last no where near as long. But having said this, the fact that it's waterproof is a hugeee bonus for me! Especially as holiday seasons fast approaching...

My Verdict: I love both of these little beauty's to be quite honest. I'll be sticking to my cheaper Bourjois liner for work, and indulging in my new Benefit Bad Gal liner for special occasions and days off. Dilemma sorted!

Here's a simple look I done on myself using the Benefit products.

I'm also wearing Rimmels Eyebrow pencil in Dark Brown, and a slick of my Cargo lip gloss in shade 'Serengeti' from my December Glossy Box.

Please be aware that these eye lashes are not all my own, I had a dodgy lash job done a few weeks back.
I apologise for the poor image quality, I've had to use my webcam, as my poor little digi camera took a bit of a beating during a night out. R.i.p digital camera.


The Benefit Bad Gal lash mascara/eyeliner duo was purchased from Boots for £20.50. These can obviously be purchased separately too.

Do you have a fave eye-liner?

Nails: Black and gold

Working in a hospital, I'm not allowed colour on my nails (think it's due to infection control/ health & safety?), but over Christmas I was one of the lucky ones to be granted a weeks annual leave (WOOHOO). So with one wholeeee week off of work I decided I would go wild and do something a bit more creative with my nails. So off I went to the nail salon to have my falsies infilled and took a little gem with me which I very greatfully received in the December Jolie Box. The Gold O.P.I shatter effect nail varnish. As far as nail polishes go, O.P.I is rather pricey (£10.50), but with other brands including Barry M giving the shatter polishes a go, getting this look doesn't have to mean going with out that new eyeliner you had your beady little eyes on! Most of my nail polishes are actually Barry M, as I think they're top quality, glide on smoothly, and leave you with a strong colour (normally after just one coat). Anywayyy back to the O.P.I varnish...after having my nails infilled, the technician painted my nails with a plain black varnish. If you're going to use a dark colour, such as black on your nails, I'd advise doing a base coat first, to protect your nails and prevent them staining... especially if they're your natural nails! Then once the 2 coats of black has fully dried, she went over with my Gold shatter varnish. At one point, I actually had a small crowd gathering around as she was doing this as it looked so god damn cool!... (when I say small crowd, I mean like a whole 2 people, ha!!).
Anddddd the finish effect? ...

What are your all time fave nail polish brands/looks girls??

Murad: The best exfoliater a girl (or guy) can get! Banish those spots!

This amazingly wonderful big talent is none other than THE Murad Age Reform Exfoliating Cleanser. Yes it's called Age Reform, but would be great for skins of all ages, young or old. And at 22 years old, with oily skin and with my skin a regular breeding place for some pesky little blighters (aka SPOTS), this product is PERFECT for me! With the fine particles and professional ingredients (including Salicylic, Lactic and Glycolic Acids), this big beauty leaves my skin glowing. OK, at £31 a bottle, its not the cheapest of exfoliaters out there, but with its huge 200ml size, and the fact that a little goes a long way, this really will last you a long old time.
So where did I discover this you may ask? GLOSSY BOX! Probably not the Glossy Box you all know and love though...this little darling was hidden beneath the lid of the Glossy Box... FOR MEN! Uh huh, so for once, I'm stealing the boyfriends cosmetics. (OK that sounds kind of weird seems as his the most least cosmetic loving guy out there), but he loves it just as much as me. I'm sure he'd agree that, like me, he's not got the most perfect skin in the world and suffers breakouts like many of us mere mortals. Since using this however, I must say his skin is looking  rather scrumptious! So for Men or Women, the young the old, the cats or the dogs, (obviously the last one is a very unfunny joke), this products suitable for you. 


What THEY(Murad) say: 
  • Cleanses and refines skin
  • Polishes away dullness and dehydration
  • Improves texture and tone
  • Reverses visible signs of ageing
  • The acids dissolve dull, dry surface cells
You can buy this in the Feel Unique site, with free delivery. Link below:


Tuesday 3 January 2012

Beauty Boxes: What are they...WHAT do they do?...

OK you beautiful people, I'm dedicating my very first blog post to a current obsession of mine... BEAUTY BOXES! They have been going for a while in places like America, where they have their version, Birch Box. And in 2011, they came to the U.K with a vengeance. The first to arrive was the fabulous Glossy Box, with others following in their perfect little footsteps. To date, I am subscribed to 4 of these boxes which are (in subscription date order):

1. Glossy Box (£12.95 per month including delivery) 
Brands included: BioEffect, Blink + Go, Daniel Sandler, Dermalogica, Hd Brows, KMS, O.P.I, Xen Tan and Stila.


2. Boudoir Prive (recently changing their name to Jolie Box) ...(£12.95 including delivery)
Brands Included: Cargo, Korres, Macadamia, Studio Makeup, Zoya, RMK, Jane Iredale, SachaJuan and Colbert MD.


3. Carmine (£12.75 including delivery)
Brands Included: Weleda, KMS, Myface.cosmetics, Japonesque, Dainty Doll, Trind, New cid cosmetics, Daniel Sandler, Neom.


4. Feel Unique (£9.95 including delivery)
Brands Included: Nuxe, Tigi, Jemma Kidd, New Cid Cosmetics, Redken, Kms, Xen Tan and Philip Kingsley.


Basically the idea of these beauty box subscriptions is that you pay the set price each month and receive a monthly box containing 5 or 6 beauty items, some full sized, some samples. I think it's a fab idea for us girls (and guys) to try products we may never have even heard of or tried before. And with brands including O.P.I, Bed Head, Korres, Murad and Blink + Go, It is definitely a win for me!

At the moment, it's hard for me to say which is my fave box, as it changes most months. However at the moment, Carmine and Feel Unique are full steaming ahead. Carmine is definitely the box of choice if you want more makeup items!!

Tune in soon to discover what little beauts are lurking in my January boxes.

However, don't expect a January review for Jolie Box as they sent out an E-mail last month to explain they're skipping the January box in order for them to sort out quite a few customer service issues.

Here are their website links in case you love this idea as much as I do and want to subscribe to any of the boxes:


What box do YOU like the look of?
Are you already subscribed to any?