Emma Hardie Moringa Cleansing Balm

 

I'm back!!!  I've been very unmotivated to write on this blog in recent months.  Not much of my beauty regime has inspired me to write here...until I made some incredible finds which have sparked my love of beauty again.  I rarely find products that I feel actually make a big difference.  That has changed with the discovery of some beauty gems.

 

I have been using hot cloth cleansers for a while now.  I've used Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish and tried the No7 hot cloth cleanser.  I think they are great but nothing could prepare me for the awesomeness of the Emma Hardie Moringa Cleansing Balm.  It may be a little on the expensive side but the effect it has on my skin is amazing.  I had seen it recommended by various youtubers and bloggers but was a little wary to shell out the cash for the full size until I'd tried it.  I was able to purchase the Amazing Face Starter Kit from Debenhams for £23.  It includes a 50ml pot of cleansing balm, dual action cleansing cloth and a 15ml Age Support Cream. 

 

I have to say I have never been so impressed by a skincare product.  My skin felt amazing after cleansing.  It felt so clean and my eyes were not irritated at all.  You only need use a tiny amount as you mix it in your hand with water till it becomes a smooth milky cream.  It cuts through the thickest eyeliner with no problem without having to rub to hard. 

 

I only bought this kit for the cleansing balm but thought I might as well give the Age Support Cream a try.  Wow, beautiful soft skin like I have never felt before.  It is my new best friend. 

 

I do love the Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish and will continue to use it but this cleansing balm will always be in my cupboard.  I've been using the Liz Earle during the week and switching to the Emma Hardie one on the weekend when I want my skin to feel extra special.

 

You can purchase the Amazing face Starter Kit from Debenhams here for £23.  If you want to purchase the full size it will cost you around £38 and is available here.

 

I hope you will love it as much as I do.  Watch out later on in the week to see what makeup products have turned my head.

Growing my nails and Avon Nail Illuminator review

I've recently been trying to get my nails into better shape and grow them.  I have bitten and picked at my nails for the best part of 30 years.  Even though I have always longed for beautiful long nails I just can't resist biting them.  Well this time will power has won over and I have managed to go for at least 3 weeks without so much as a nibble.  They aren't growing at great speed but they have the strength I was hoping for.  They were looking a little bit dull and weren't smooth so I have been using a 4 in 1 nail buffer.  I used it to smooth the nails and get rid of any ridges and then buff them to a beautiful shine. 

When I saw the Avon Nail Illuminator on special offer I had to try it. 

 It goes on easily and doesn't clump.  I was left with a beautiful glossy shine.  My nails reflect the light and seem to shimmer slightly.  I did think that I could have gotten the same effect from a clear nail varnish but I have noticed that the whites of my nails seem brighter and the finish is very hard wearing.  If I ever use a clear varnish it chips almost immediately and I need to re apply every other day.  With the Nail Illuminator I haven't had so much as a chip and I'm on day 4 and my nails still look fab.  The Nail Illuminator also claims to reduce the look of staining on nails but my nails weren't particularly stained so I cannot comment there.  All in all I think that this is worth a try if you like to have natural looking nails.  I don't tend to have the time to maintain beautifully painted nails so I'm liking the natural look.

I think this is a great product which is easy to apply and does illuminate my nails.  I paid £2.49 for this but the rrp is £5.  It's in the current brochure for £2.50 here.  I'd love to hear your thoughts if you've tried it.

Hopefully when I get my nails to the length I want I'll treat myself to a CND Shellac manicure.  Ticking off one of my "7 Things for 7 Days" goals.  YAY!!!

Thanks for reading ;-)

Emma xx

7 Things for 7 Days : June

What do I need above everything in my life???  MOTIVATION.  And I've found it in the form of Louise (Sprinkle of Glitter).  She is running '7 things for 7 days' blog posts here so I thought that I would join in.  I am hugely disorganised and procrastinate far too much and need to do something about it.  If I write it here on my blog I may be more enclined to go for my goals.  Oh, and I love list writing too so this is right up my street.

My first priority is to sort my mess of a house out but I thought I'd throw some beauty related stuff in there to keep me interested.

1.  Take real good care of my skin - I'm often too busy with the kids or tired that my skin doesn't often get much more than a wipe over with a face cloth.  I'm quite lucky that I have pretty good skin but with a little pampering it could be so much better.

2.  Don't bite my nails (and reward my self with a manicure) - My nails are terribly short because I bite them.  I have found, over the last couple of weeks, that If I take time to keep them looking nice I don't seem to bite them as much.  They are starting to grow and hopefully I'll have beautiful nails in no time.

3.  Tackle the boys bedroom.  And keep it from becoming a mess again - It is horrendous.  I can't even open the wardrobe door.  My youngest is 6 and he can mess a bedroom up in 30 seconds flat.  I have been putting off sorting it out because I know it will take me a least a whole day.  The thought of spending a whole day tidying it, only for it to be back in the same state after a couple of days, is really putting me off.  WILL I DO IT?

4.  Find 7 bargains - just for fun ;-) - I love looking for bargains.  Whether it's beauty bargains or bargains for the home, I love finding them.  I get a real sense of satisfaction when I come across something cheap.

5.  Sort kitchen cupboards out - Can't find anything in my kitchen.  I have sorted it out so many times but my husband doesn't seem to get the concept of 'everthing has a place'.  I'm going to give it one last try and see if I can educate him about where things go.  Wish me luck. 

6.  Try to eat better - I'm very overweight but I love food so much.  I'm going to try to reduce my portion sizes and eat a few things which are 'better' for me.

7. Get some followers on my blog - Sometimes I feell ike not bothering writing anything on here because nobody ever reads it but if I don't then nobody ever will.

I'm really hoping that I manage to achive these goals in the next 7 days but I suppose all I can do is try.  I should have put an extra one in there - When the kids have been asking for breakfast for the last 20 minutes, stop writing a blog post and get them some (poor starving children awww).

Thanks for reading

Emma xx 

Jubilee Fun!!!

What a weekend its been!!!  Had a whale of a time celebrating our queen's 60 years on the throne, mainly by relaxing and not doing much.  I'm not really mad about the monarchy like some people but I do love to join in celebrations like this and royal weddings etc.  We've watched most of the jubilee celebration events on the tv including the fantastic concert outside Buckingham Palace.

We went to my parents house on Monday for a street party.  It was the street where I grew up so got to see loads of familiar faces.  The kids had a great time as there were lots of activities organised like a treasure hunt and even a hat competition.  For the adults there was a quiz with a royal theme.  If that wasn't enough there was some live music provided by one of the residents' band. 

I really enjoyed baking for the event.  I get sick of baking the same old fairy cakes which the kids like so it's nice to be a little more adventurous.  Unfortunately I wasn't able to contribute to the "wear red white and blue" theme as my wardrobe can only fulfill the white criteria. 

Hopefully I'll get round to putting the recipes on my cooking blog and I'll maybe try to re-create my OOTD.

Emma xx 

Garnier BB Cream

I'm almost at the end of my first tube of the Garnier BB Cream.  I've had it since November and have used it almost every day.  I have to say I'm really pleased with it.  I had gone for quite a while without wearing foundation.  I have a very quick morning beauty routine which only gave me time for a quick dust of powder and a little eye make-up.  Now I have introduced this into my regime it really makes a difference to my overall look.  I can still do my whole face in five minutes but I now have a lovely glow to my complexion.  It looks natural and I definately not like I'm wearing a foundation.  It's kind of a half way house for me.  It lasts for most of the day but if I need it to last longer I use the Clarins Beauty Flash Balm underneath.  If I want a more flawless finish I use the MAC Mineralise Skin Finsh Powder over the top.

I've just tried the Estee Lauder BB cream but it was a little too orange for me. Don't get me wrong I do like it and will use up the whole tube but I prefer the Garnier.

Emma :-) xx

M&S Ingredients Lip Butters

If you see these you may overlook them as just another cheap gift set.  Think again.  M&S Ingredients Lip Butters taste great and are really hydrating on your lips.  The coloured ones leave a lovely pink sheen to lips too.  I was given theses as a Christmas present and they have been lurking at the bottom of my drawer.  When I tried them I was really impressed.

They come in a pack of three flavours; cherry, coconut and raspberry.  They are reasonably priced at £5.  It's great having the three to choose from.  I keep one by my bed (the coconut as it is not coloured), one in the kitchen and one on my handbag.  I'm not normally a fan of flavoured lip products but these have changed my opinion.  They are beautiful fresh, non sickly, flavours which actually seem to make my mouth water.

A lovely additon to my handbag.  Great for a mothers gift too. 

Latest in Beauty!!

I have been a subscriber to Boudoir Prive/Joliebox since their first box last August and I'm a bit unsure as to whether I want to continue.  I haven't been that overly impressed with what I've received lately so I've been looking around at the alternatives.

I stumbled across Latest in Beauty after reading an article in a magazine so I had a look at their website and was very impressed at their different approach to the beauty box.  You always know what you are going to get and you don't sign up for a subscription.  Their are lots of different ways to get your samples.

Little Beauty Box:  You select the samples you want from the list on the website and then you send a text to their number and they reply with a code which you input into the checkout screen and that's it.  Done.  The text costs £1.50.  They are only sachets usually but for £1.50 incuding postage is not bad I think.  You can do this once each month.

Luxury size samples:  They have a selection of luxury samples from various brands whuch you can purchase to try out.  You can buy as many as you like and they range in price from a couple of quid to a tenner.  They include brands such as Clarins and ARK.  You can pay for these online using credit/debit card or via Paypal.

Occasionaly they have special samples on offer.  At the moment they have the Estee Lauder BB Cream sample for £1.50 (paid via text).  I have recently received this and think that for the size it was well worth the money so that I can try before I buy the full size.

Then they have the themed beauty boxes.  There are six boxes per year and you get to see what's on offer before you commit to buy.  They are priced at £14.99 but you do get a lot for your money.  This time it was the Red Carpet Box which contains quite a few full size make-up items.  Unfortunately it took me too long to decide if I wanted it or not and they sold out.  The next one is going to be the Anti-Age Box so I'll have to be quick off the mark.

To launch their concept they recently gave readers of Daily Mail the chance to pick up an exclusive 20 years of beauty box for around a fiver.  I had to snap this up and have to say i wasn't disappointed.  I was very eager to try out the Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish so you can imagine how thrilled I was to get this as a sample.

Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish; Bare Minerals minature foundation and brush; Bamford bath and body trio; Sisleya Anti-Age Cream; Lanolips Ointment; Dr Nick Lowe Day Cream

My favourites from this box - Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish (cloth included) and Bare Minerals Foundation and Mini Brish

If this box is anything to go by I think we can expect good things from LIB.  I will certainly be keeping an eye on their website to see what's in store.  All in all I'm very impressed with the service offered.  I don't think it will replace my regular subscription box but is a great addition to search for the perfect beauty products.  See for yourself here.

Emma x