No7 Beautiful Skin Purifying Exfoliator Review

I have mentioned before that I've been having trouble with dry skin patches on my face and it has been driving me up the wall! My usual exfoliator Clinique 7 Day Scrub (Review here. ) just wasn't doing the job for those pesky flakes. So off I went to my local Boots to hunt down an industrial strength facial exfoliator (OK not quite but it needed to be pretty gritty!) 

So after testing a few out on my hand that barely had any grit in at all, I came across this one which is grit-galore! I also really liked its scent, as it is mild and fresh. So I got it home, took my make-up off and tried it out. It has a nice creamy, thick lather and it felt the right amount of abrasive-ness on my skin. I rinsed it away and my skin felt suuuuper smooth and looked really radiant.

This is definitely going to become part of my skincare routine! (Which I will hopefully be doing a post on soon.)



Have a great day! xx

SUPER Easy Nail Art Tutorial

What inspired this post, was quite frankly, boredom. I was sat at home doing absolutely nothing and got a creative surge, but to my dismay, had no dotting tools to hand as my mum had them in her salon. So I improvised...with a bobby pin. Here's how to do it:

Step 1: Paint nails with desired colour.

Step 2: Place four blobs of a different colour nail varnish (co-ordinating colour hopefully!) in a sort of square.

Step 3: Then with stretched out bobby pin, take the end and pull blobs to meet in the centre.

Step 4: You can either place a diamante in the centre or dot of a contrasting colour nail varnish.

Step 5: Wait to dry for a while and then apply high shine top coat.

Voila! (Mega) Simple nail art!

Have a great day! xx

My instagram!

Just a quick post to say that my laptop charger has broken and so has my spare! Typical eh?! So there may be a lack of posts over the next couple of days as I wait for my new one to be delivered. BUT in the meantime, I've just started using Instagram again so don't forget to follow me! (@thebeautybloggersnotebook).If you want me to follow your Instagram, just leave your account below :) Ciao for now! Xx

Glossybox June 2012

I really wasn't expecting to get my Glossybox so soon this month, but it was a nice surprise on my otherwise boring day. 

Vichy Dermablend Ultra-Corrective Foundation Cream Stick

Vichy's expert camouflage foundation stick for minor to severe skin flaws.

This looked a little heavy for me to apply as a foundation so I tried it out as a concealer, and it is UH-MAZING! It last's all day and doesn't look cakey at all. 

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Clean Start By Dermalogica Day/Night 3-Step Kit

Cleanse, tone and moisturise with the Day/Night 3-Step mini kit.

First of all, these smell like the Refreshers Sweets, sooo nice! I have only used them once so I can't comment on how they work long term, but I can say that they feel really nice on the skin, and the spray toner is so lovely and refreshing. 

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Glossybox Serie Exclusiv Pro Beauty Brush

This classic series natural goat hair blush brush gives a supersoft make-up application.

This brush is nice, but nothing spectacular. The brush is a little stiff, so I'll probably keep this one in my bad for on-the-go make-up.

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BM Beauty Summer Warmth Bronzer

Multi-Purpose pure-mineral bronzer. Add a touch of summer warmth to your face.

No thanks. This product is not 'a touch of warmth', this is full on metallic. I wouldn't put this on my face, but it's got a really nice, heavily pigmented finish, probably better suited for a eye shadow.  

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Yves Rocher France Mini Mascara Ultra-Volume Sexy Pulp

(I could NOT get an in-focus picture of this! So frustrating!)

An innovative maxi-brush with generous curves for a lash plumping result. 12 hour wear.

This mascara is, for lack of a better word-rubbish. I'm not sure whether its just because it's the mini bottle, but it seems to have no mascara on the wand, and it made my eyelashes look spidery and straight. I do like the brush a lot though.  

Overall, not a bad box, just not as exciting as some of their boxes have been.

How did you feel about this months Glossybox? What did you get in yours?

Want to Subscribe to Glossybox, click here!

L'Oreal Paris True Match Foundation Review and Swatches

Swatches Below (Sorry for my scuffed up hand, I scraped it unloading the dishwasher!)

I'm quite a lucky person as my skin has always been quite good to me. I have the occasional break-out on my forehead and chin, but nothing too major. But as of late, I have had this damn stubborn patch of dry skin on my right cheek that is refusing to go! I have a few other dry patches on my skin, but they are not as stubborn as the other. Anyway, I tried many, many foundations and had the same problem with all. They will look fine just after application, but then throughout the day my foundation would melt off my face and just be stuck in my dry patches and look horrible. 

BUT I was tidying my draws in my room the other day and came across this which I bought a month or two ago because it was on offer with a mascara I bought. I wasn't expecting big things from this as I thought 'if my £30 foundations not working, this one won't!' So, I applied it in the morning with my MAC 190 foundation brush, and was very impressed with it's finish. It has a matte finish, but skin looks radiant still and not dry or powdery, but as I mentioned before they all look OK just after application and then it's downhill from there. That evening, I looked in the mirror and was pretty damn amazed! The foundation looked just as it did when I'd applied it. It hadn't melted off my face and it wasn't stuck in my dry patches! RESULT. This is my new favourite foundation AND it doesn't break the bank which is always a plus! 

FOTD: June 11th.

Wow, I can't believe I haven't posted anything in over 2 weeks! I thought things would get less hectic once my exams were over but things don't seem to have stopped! Anyhoo, hopefully (fingers crossed!) posting should be back to normal this week. 

I thought I'd ease myself back in with a quick and easy FOTD (Face of the Day) post. (Is it bad that I can't say 'FOTD' in my head without it sounding like the voice-over guy from X-Factor?!)

Face: 

Embryolisse Lait Creme Concentre

Nars Sheer Glow Foundation in Siberia 

MAC Pinch O' Peach Blusher

Virgin Vie Bronzer

Eyes:

Urban Decay Primer Potion

MAC Shroom all over lid.

MAC Sketch-Crease

L'Oreal Super Liner Carbon Gloss

Maybelline Define-A-Lash Mascara

Brows:

HD Brows

Mac Brow Set

Lips:

The Body Shop Lip Tint

Clear Gloss

Have a great day! :D

Glossybox May 2012: Birthday Box

Hi guys, this months Glossybox was their 1 year anniversary box! Hasn't time flown? So as well as their usual delights, they added in a few of their own little treats. We got a Glossybox pink balloon, and a fantastic little mirror. Read on to see what else was in the box..

Eldora False Eyelashes

'Eldora is about beautiful, quality and value-priced lashes for any occasion'

I have not yet tried these so I don't know what the quality is like, but they look lovely.

Neal's Yard Remedies Rehydrating Rose Daily Moisture

'Hydrating rose extract and damask rose oil soften, smooth and help restore skin's natural radiance'  

This feels really smooth and it sinks into skin really well and feel's very nourishing, but it smell's a little bit old lady-y.   

Noble Isle Summer Rising Bath & Shower Gel

'An immaculate fragrance evoking the beginnings of summer.'

This smells absolutely to-die-for! It has a very fresh, very summery scent that smells expensive (if that makes sense)!  

Lolita Lempicka L'Eau en Blanc & Eau de Parfum

'Discover Lolita Lempicka's feminine world where Parisian chic meets fantasy fairy tale to create the perfect fragrance'

Both fragrances have a gorgeous smooth, feminine scent and the L'Eau en Blanc smells very familiar but I just can't put my finger on it!

Collection 2000 Lasting Colour Gel Eyeliner

'Creating longed for perfect liner with lasting lustre is easier than ever to achieve with Collection Lasting Colour Gel Eyeliners'

I have not tried this properly yet, only on the back of my hand but it applies very nicely and the colour is very pigmented. I will try this out properly over the next few days and do a full review on it. 

What did you get in your birthday Glossybox? Want to find out more about Glossybox? Click here :)

Where else to find me:

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What Are The Best Hairsprays?

Hey guys, sorry for the lack of post's in this last week I have been mega busy with exams and revision, but they will be over after Thursday, yaaaaaay!

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I have always struggled to find the right hairspray as they are always either too sticky, too crunchy or just not hold-y enough (if you get my drift?). Anyway, after many years and I would imagine lots of money later, I think I have narrowed down my favourites (and one definitely not favourite).

 Tigi Rockaholic Flexible Hairspray Review


I am a huge fan of the Tigi hairsprays and have probably tried most of them, but this one and the 'Hard Head' are my favourites. This hairspray is great for holding up-do's in place and is rather good at holding in curls too although it does tend to make the hair a little frizzy towards the end of the day.

 Bed Head 'Hard Head'  Hard Hold Hairspray Review

This is the strongest hairspray I have EVER used. This is fantastic for holding up those very tricky up-do's that don't like to stay put! I wouldn't recommend this for curls as it does make them a tad crunchy. It also smells reaaaally good.

 Toni and Guy Firm Hold Hairspray Review


I only have the iddy biddy bottle that I keep in my bag at the moment as my big one ran out, but this hairspray is amazing at keeping in curls and you can hardly feel it in your hair. It make's my curls last aaall day (and even the next day too sometimes!) As with all Toni and Guy, this has its yummy signature scent.

L'Oreal Elnett Hairspray Review

I never have and never will understand the hype about this hairspray. I think it is absolutely rubbish and smells dreadful. I heard that they were changing the scent of this, but that still doesn't make up for the fact that this hairspray just doesn't work! The only thing I like about this hairspray is that it has a good spray on it. 

I hope you found this helpful and feel free to ask any questions! :)

Where else to find me:

Twitter  | YouTube 

NOTD: Fishnets and Glitter

Hi Guys, just thought I'd share today's nails. I used Models Own Blue Moon as a base on all nails apart from the ring finger which is Thunder and Lightening, and I used my Konad Stamper and M57 plate to create the fishnet pattern on the others. 

Have a great day! :D

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Nina Dobrev Met Gala 2012 Make Up Tutorial

Hey guys, just posted a new tutorial on YouTube so thought I'd leave it here too. Hope you like it! xx 

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