Review | Urban Decay Primer Potion

Why, oh why, have I not tried Urban Decay Primer Potion before now?

I have quite oily eyelids and recently I have tried to combat this with many other eyeshadow primers... They were all useless! In fact, my eyeshadow stayed on better when I just used a cream eyeshadow underneath (Maybelline 24hr Colour Tattoo being my favourite) rather than the cheap primers I'd tried.

But alas, I saw sense and bought the eyeshadow primer that every beauty blogger and vlogger has raved about since it was released. Urban Decay's Primer Potion.



So the product itself: You know when you go to a counter and they reel off reasons x, y and z why their product is going to revolutionise your life and you just won't be complete without it? Well this time Urban Decay are actually telling the truth!

I kid you not dear friends, my eyeshadow goes on more vibrant, doesn't crease and stays on all day! It's incredible stuff. Seriously good, and for the quality of the product, I really don't think the price is too bad. The Primer Potion comes in two or three other shades but I stuck with the original which dries nude. The packaging is great, it has a small nozzle so only a small amount is dispensed and I love the whole potion-bottle, mystical and magical vibe! I bought the travel size tube as a tester which cost £8 and considering how little you need for each eye, I can see this tube lasting me a decent length of time.

So yes, Primer Potion will now be a firm staple in my make up bag and I can't recommend it enough, especially if you have oily eyelids! You can pick it up from Debenhams and House of Fraser in the UK.

Have you tried Primer Potion? What do you think? Leave links and comments below!

Rx

Aussie Miracle Moist Shampoo and Conditioner

Apologies for the lack of posts this last ten days or so but I do have a good excuse, honest! I went on holiday to Cornwall with some family and friends and it was marvellous. I didn't realise how much I needed to get out of London until I left and I feel so much better for doing so, but I'll save that story for another post.

As I was in Cornwall I donned my wetsuit and did some body boarding in the sea, which of course means hair drenched in salt water, which means hair like straw ordinarily. Which leads me on to what I wanted to talk to you about today is the simply stunning Miracle Moist shampoo and conditioner from Aussie.

I picked up some Aussie shampoo and conditioner for my holidays for three reasons:

1) My ordinary shampoo/conditioner is the Tigi Curlesque range in giant salon size bottles which are less than practical for travel!
2) I'd used Aussie before at a friend's house and was really pleased with the results on my hair.
3) It was on offer. *Confession time* Most of the things I buy are because they're on offer - I can't help it, I can't resist a bargain!

I am so glad I bought this shampoo and conditioner - it was like a refreshing drink for my hair after the salty sea water had dehydrated it everyday. I washed my hair everyday on holiday (I couldn't not with all that salt!) but the Aussie range didn't make my hair greasy from over washing. The conditioner in particular was brilliant for rescuing my salt-ridden locks.

There's more to life than hair but it's a good place to start
- The Aussie Philosophy

Furthermore, my hair is dyed, with bleach, which also dries out hair and using Miracle Moist really felt like my hair was being nourished. My hair felt soft, shiny, lucious and healthy. I am definitely going to use this again - I'll probably use these once a week or so to inject some moisture into my hair. And I think I'm going to try out the 3-Minute Miracle Recontructor (aka hair mask) too.

If you're suffering with dry hair or heading to the beach (and want your hair to be manageable) I would really recommend giving the Miracle Moist shampoo and conditioner a go. Plus, they're usually on offer in either Boots or Superdrug which makes them a little cheaper!

Have you tried Aussie shampoo and conditioner before? What did you think? What do you use to inject some moisture into your hair? Leave links and comments below!

Rx

Review | Body Shop Camomile Gentle Eye Make-up Remover

You may (or may not) have noticed from earlier posts that I'm quite pale. I'm fair skinned, blonde and generally very pasty. Whilst I enjoy being fair and blonde it is a royal pain in the arse on two counts:
1. I burnt like a bitch. Seriously, the sun hates me. The first sign of sun and I start burning, and after 24years you'd think I'd learn how to deal with such things but no, year on year I get caught out by the sun!
2. I have ridiculously pale eyebrows and eyelashes which means if I don't apply mascara, eyeliner, eyeshadow etc so my eyes don't look sunken into my head!

As I personally think my eyes are my best feature I'm keen to define them and show them off. For a standard day I would use a little bit of shadow through my crease to define (usually Mac's Mystery or Sable) then slick over some black eyeliner (my current favourite being the Rimmel Glam'Eyes liquid eyeliner) and finally some black mascara. Once I've done all that it looks like I have eyes! Yes!

So anyway, getting to the point of this post, everyday I have to taken a lot of eye make up off and my favourite eye makeup remover is the Body Shop Camomile Gentle Eye Make-up Remover (as if you hadn't already guessed!)

This stuff is brilliant. I just pop some on a cotton pad, and take off my make up with it. It loosens your make up really quickly, it's very gentle, it just feels like water on your eyelids - it's not chemically or abrasive in any way. It removes all my make up quickly and easily - a great product! Plus, the bottle is quite big - you only need a few drops of the stuff for each eye - so it lasts ages!

I don't like to use make up wipes as they can be quite drying on my skin so I love this separate eye makeup remover. It's just a wonderful product. It costs £8 from the Body Shop.

Have you tried this? What did you think? What is your male up remover of choice?? Leave links and comments below!

Rx

Clinique three-step skincare

My skin has been looking a bit lack-lustre of late (ooh alliteration) so I thought I'd change up my skincare regime. One of my good friends raves about the Clinique three step regime. This skincare range is one of Clinique's most famous and well know ranges. And as the cornerstone of their product range I thought I would give it a go.



I have skin type two (dry combination) and I bought the trial, tester size pack to start. The kit lasts 4-6weeks according to the nice lady at the counter.

You get:
Liquid Facial Soap Mild
Clarifying Lotion
Dramatically Different Moisturising Lotion

I used the range last night and this morning - the first two days on my month of Clinique. So far in two days) it seems good, the wash is nice and the moisturiser is rich and feels quite nourishing, the clarifying lotion does seem a little abrasive but, I've never used an exfoliant like it before o tat ay just be me!

Anyway, I will report back when I've used up the kit to let you know my verdict!
Make sure you follow my blog and then you'll be notified with the results as well as all the other things I'll be writing about in between!

Rx

Emirates Air Line

The Emirates Air Line is losing money, rapidly. And I can understand why. The Air Line links North Greenwich, which is home to the o2 and Royal Victoria Docks, which is home to virtually nothing. There is hardly anything at Royal Victoria, just some houses and remnants of the London's dock yards - which are quite nice to see but not worth a day trip to. But regardless, me and a friend had a spare day so thought we'd go ride the Air Line to see what its all about.

We boarded at North Greenwich, went over the river to Royal Victoria, stayed in our cable car and went back to North Greenwich. It was a beautiful day and the views were stunning - you can see all of Canary Wharf, Greenwich, the Olympic Park, the Thames Gateway, it's pretty spectacular.

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All in all, the views are amazing but I'm not entirely sure why they built the Air Line. It doesn't connect useful points - I mean as good as the o2 is, you only go when you're going to a concert... It's not got great tourist appeal as it is all the way out in Greenwich; there are much more interesting things to do in central. Unfortunately I don't see the Air Line making money any time soon as most of the cable cars were empty (and we weren't charged for our trip!) I'm just not sure what they can do to improve traffic... I had a lovely time though, seeing great views in the sunshine, so if you're out that way and you've got a spare half an hour, give it a go!

Have you been on the Air Line? What did you think? Would you go all the way out to Greenwich to go on it? Leave links and comments below!

Rx

Review | The Great Gatsby

I went to see the Great Gatsby last night. I realise I'm a little late to the party with this one, but last night was the first chance I had to go see it, and wow, oh wow, I loved it.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TaBVLhcHcc0&w=640&h=360]

*SPOILER ALERT*
If you don't want to know what happens, look away now.

Firstly, this film is very Baz Luhrmann, it's very flash, loud, over the top and fabulous. But if Baz isn't your thing, you probably won't enjoy this film (my friend hated it!). But if you loved Moulin Rouge and Romeo + Juliet I think you'll enjoy this.

[caption id="attachment_667" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Leonardo DiCaprio as Jay Gatsby[/caption]

The film sticks to the book very accurately, which I think is great. I hate it when books-into-films ignore the books (such as the Harry Potter films!) The stand out performance in this is Leonardo DiCaprio as Jay Gatsby. DiCaprio is one of my favourite actors of all time, I think he is incredible and here he does not disappoint. He captures the endlessly hopeful Gatsby brilliantly; his devotion to Daisy despite her selfish ways and the pain he feels when he starts to lose control. His performance was filled with so much emotion, I shed a tear for him at his end; his portrayal is a great testament to F. Scott Fitzgerald's protagonist.
Joel Edgerton is wonderful as the selfish, brutish Tom and Carey Mulligan's Daisy is carefree, sweet, false and fickle, just as she should be. Tobey Maguire is questionable... he's not the best and it doesn't help he is the narrator... thankfully, the other performances make up for him.

I loved the special effects. The zooms in and out of West and East Egg and New York City are exhilarating and visually stunning. Although, my friend who I saw Gatsby with, hated this. I also thought the old 20's footage interspersed with the modern, CGI footage was great; I liked the contrast a lot.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o_1aF54DO60&w=640&h=360]
There is brash contrast between the 20's New York scene and the very modern music score. At first, I found this a bit weird but after a while I totally got it and really enjoyed Jay Z, Lana Del Rey and Beyonce singing the score. The use (and omission) of these brilliant songs created amazing tension which I think made the film. Also since watching the film I can't stop listening to Lana Del Rey's Young and Beautiful (above).

[caption id="attachment_671" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Daisy (Carey Mulligan) and Jay[/caption]

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this film. For me, the sign of a good film is how long afterwards I keep thinking about it - and I dreamt about Gatsby last night. I loved the book so I was keen to see the film and I think it was a great tribute to the book. I can see why some of the reviews are mixed, if Luhrmann isn't your thing, you'll probably hate this film, but I loved it.

Go see it! Check out the website for more pictures, music, video etc.

Have you seen The Great Gatsby? Did you enjoy it? Leave links and comments below!

Rx

Review | Maybelline The Falsies Mascara

You may have noticed in my recent make up posts that my current favourite mascara is Benefit's Bad Gal Lash (though I do cringe at the name everytime I have to write/type it!) And it is a fabulous mascara, it gives volume, length and a generally gorgeous lash when you've finished applying it! However, the downside is the price. At £18 a pop it does not come cheap!

So I thought I'd try out a cheaper high street mascara. Having heard many bloggers and vloggers rave about the Maybelline Falsies range I thought I'd give it a go too. Here is my verdict: IT'S AWESOME

I totally understand the hype.

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I have very fair eyelashes and I feel awful without mascara as my eyes look sunk into my head (well I think they do anyway, it is perhaps my biggest failing.) So everyday I use black mascara to define my eyes. And the Falsies is just brilliant. Great colour pay off (I have the colour Black Drama) I usually just use one coat of mascara and I think that is the nicest look (above centre picture). Also, when I applied the second coat it became a little clumpy towards the end - so one coat looks better (on me anyway).



The rubber wand is scoop shaped so it really fits around your eyelashes well, defining them perfectly, giving great length. The formula is brilliant too - it doesn't imprint at all (unlike the new Volume de Chanel mascara which ended up all over my face!) It last all day too - I wore it for a good 13/14 hours yesterday and it looks as if I'd just put it on when I came to take it off.

And for £7.99 I think the Falsies mascara is a bargain - such a good quality product for a snip of the price of high end mascaras. I can't recommend this enough!

What is your favourite mascara? Have you tried the Falsies - what do you think to it?

Rx