Recent Summer Purchases

Hey guys! It seems like I haven't done a haul in ages, because truth is I haven't really bought much this year. There haven't been many makeup/beauty products that have really caught my eye (except the Hourglass compacts, but they are so expensive), and I know a lot of other people have thought this too - clothes just seem to be so much more interesting this year! I have bought a few bits over the last couple of months, meaning I thought that it would be a great opportunity to do a haul post, especially since I have found myself really short on blog post ideas.

I'll start off with clothes first! All of the clothes are actually from the ASOS sale, because it seemed really good this time so I couldn't resist getting a few things. The first thing to go into my basket was a really pretty Tan Scallop Edge Satchel that I have had my eye on for ages, plus it was a bargain at only £10! It's actually very spacious, even though it may not look it, and it's a lovely quality. 

Next is the gorgeous Bird And Heart Print Skater Dress (this is sadly sold out now, but I have left the link in if you'd like to see some better pictures)! I have been trying to wear more dresses this year, and it's going really well, so I've been gradually increasing my collection of dresses and thought that this would make a nice edition, especially at just £8.50. I got the dress in the size 8 as it was the only size left, however it's a little looser than I'd like so it would have been good to get a size 6 if they had it - oh well! 

The last thing from ASOS is a New Look Twist Bikini Top, which cost £6! I had been on the look out for just a basic black bikini top for quite a while (I had some bikini bottoms that had nothing to match with), and when I saw this it looked perfect. It's a very pretty twist/ruffle top, that isn't too small, I just wish that I was going on holiday somewhere this year to wear it! 

Onto beauty orientated bits! I bought three things when Boots had their 3 for 2 beauty offer on back in April, which I had kept my eye on since they were released and had eagerly waited for the offer to come back on. The first thing I went for was the Revlon Colorburst Lacquer Balm in Demure (which I reviewed in my last post), because I had heard so much hype surrounding them and wanted to put one to the test myself! Demure is a lovely nude pink shade, with a slight silver glimmer in it, so if you'd like to hear more make sure you read my review. I also got another lip product - the Soap & Glory Sexy Mother Pucker Gloss Stick in Bashful! I had troubles trying to decide between Bashful and Nudist, but decided on Bashful as it was that little bit more pink toned. The third thing I bought was the Maybelline Eye Studio Lasting Studio Gel Eyeliner in Intense Black! This has had hype surrounding it probably since I started blogging, but for some reason I had just never bought it. I've only used it a couple of times since I got it, however from what I have tried it seems really good, albeit quite hard to remove! For the three products it cost me £15.98 which I think is pretty great value for money. 

I noticed that Bank had all of their Barry M products reduced online to only £1, so I was definitely obliged to pick out a few products! I ended up getting three of their nail polishes, all of which are blue or green for Summer! The first one that I knew I was definitely getting was the Gelly Hi-Shine Nail Polish in Sugar Apple. This shade was from their Spring Gelly collection and is a gorgeous shade of mint green, which reminds me of Essie's Mint Candy Apple polish! When I tried Rose Hip, which is also from the Spring range, it did disappoint me quite a bit as I didn't find the colour that great and it looked quite streaky, so I hope that this one is better. The other two are both from the Barry M Aquarium Collection, which came out in March this year! The two shades that I got were Pacific, a metallic ocean blue shade, and Arabian, a metallic emerald green with gold shimmer. I thought that £3 for all three of these polishes was an amazing bargain, especially since they are £3.99 each in Boots!

Finally is the Korres Pomegranate Lip Butter from Debenhams! I know that a lot of people love the Korres Lip Butters, and I had a £5 voucher to use at Debenhams, so I decided to treat myself to the pomegranate version. I've only used it once so far, but I must really soon!

That is what I have bought recently! It doesn't actually look like a lot however I've come away with quite a few things that I have wanted for a while. I wish that I was going on holiday this Summer though, because I have seen so many pretty things that would be no use in England, but perfect for somewhere hot! I'd love to know what you've got your eye on at the moment, as it may give me some ideas on what I should buy.

What have you bought recently for Summer?

Revlon Colorburst Lacquer Balm - Demure // REVIEW

Revlon Colorburst Lacquer Balm - Demure - £7.99

Hey guys! One of the products that I had my eye on, after seeing all of the hype surrounding them, was the Revlon Colorburst Lacquer Balms! I had done some research (also know as looking at swatches on various blogs) and decided that the shade Demure was for me! I spotted that Boots that they had their 3 for 2 offer on a few weeks ago, so I decided to stop messing about and just buy one. 

Demure is a really pretty nude pink shade which, as some of you may know, is my favourite sort of shade to go for in lip products. It also contains the tiniest little bits of silver glitter, which gives more of a shimmery effect rather than glittery! This is quite a sheer shade, however it is definitely easily buildable, as you can see from the swatch, so I definitely wouldn't rule it out as only suiting somebody with my complexion. 

These really do have a lovely balmy texture, which helps give a really moisturising and glossy finish, without being at all sticky! It works fairy well on dry lips, although I wouldn't say it would work the best on any flaky bits as it does tend to stick a little. It has a slight minty scent and taste, which is quite nice, especially during Spring/Summer! 

I find that Demure tends to last around three or four hours before it fades, which honestly isn't the best and I wish was better, but I don't have much problem reapplying it really! 

Thankfully the Revlon Colorburst Balms (available in both matte and glossy formulations) can be twisted up at the bottom, so you can easily get more product out when it's worn down, without having to sharpen anything! 

I really must buy another Lacquer Balms soon as I loved Demure, possibly in Ingenue! I hope that Revlon bring some more neutral shades out in this range though, because so many of the shades are too bold for my liking.

Have you ever tried the Revlon Colorburst Balms?

Raspberry Routine

Hey guys! Some of you may be wondering from the title of this post, what is this raspberry routine you talk of Millie? Well, I was very fortunate to be sent a few bits from The Body Shop the other week, and contained in that parcel of amazingness (I realise that "amazingness" is not a word, but I'm it does apply here) there was three of their products from the new raspberry line! The products were the body scrub, body butter and eau de toilette, which I had high hopes for.

I don't believe that I had ever tried any of The Body Shop body scrubs before, although I may have done a long time ago, so I was really excited to try it! I'm a big fan of the body butters though as they feel really luxurious, which made me kind of realise that I would hopefully like the raspberry version. My eagerness to try them was also helped by the great things that I had heard various Youtubers say! Also before I go on, I'd like to note that this isn't a sponsored post - whilst, yes, I was sent these three products from The Body Shop, I do honestly love them all and really wanted to share my thoughts!

The routine that I have been doing is using the Elemis Skin Nourishing Shower Cream (which is extremely moisturising), then following up with the Raspberry Body Scrub* in the shower! It may seem like a bit of a weird way to use them, i.e using the scrub afterwards, but I find that it really helps to keep the raspberry scent on my skin for that bit longer. Once I am dry I begin to apply the Raspberry Body Butter*! For some reason I actually find that I need a lot less of this to cover my body than I do of the Shea Body Butter, so this pot should hopefully last me a long time. Depending on whether I am using the raspberry products in the morning or evening, I will apply the Raspberry Eau De Toilette* on my neck, wrists and basically anywhere really! I don't tend to use this in the evening because it would be a bit of a waste, however I do occasionally sneak some on.

I tried this for the first time around two weeks ago in the evening, and my mind was seriously blown! I already knew that they smelt lovely and the scent should last for quite a while on my skin, but by the next evening the raspberry scent was still there, which I think is pretty good if you ask me. The scent is a gorgeous raspberry scent, without being too sweet, and it is also true about people saying that the scrub looks like raspberry jam!

Used together, all three left my skin feeling soft, smelling lovely and feeling great! I'm definitely impressed with the new line, so I'd highly recommend it, plus I know that The Body Shop also have a 40% off offer currently going on, online and instore, meaning it's a great excuse to make a couple of little purchases. I will most likely be buying them all again once I run out, especially the body scrub, so hopefully they don't stop making the products too soon!

Have you tried any of The Body Shop's raspberry products? 

Perfect Palettes/Compact

Hey guys! Palettes and compacts are great things to own - you can pop them in your bag for any touch-ups that you may need to do, or they are the perfect size for travelling, so palettes and compacts is what this post is about today! I have picked out five of my favourite palettes/compacts, which I think are all genuinely lovely, and without them my makeup routine would be a little lost, meaning I'd definitely recommend them all.

Urban Decay Naked Basics Palette - First off is my favourite eyeshadow palette! The Urban Decay Naked Basics Palette is one that I'm sure most of you will have heard of, and if not where have you been?! Urban Decay are quite renoned for their "Naked" eyeshadow palettes, so with this being the first ever one that I've owned, I can easily understand the hype. 

This palette contains six lovely shades, all of which are very neutral and matte (baring one shimmery highlighter shade called Venus), and at the price of only £22 I would say that that is pretty good value for money! All six have strong pigmentation, although Foxy (the yellowy flesh shade) isn't all that great for some weird reason. 

The lasting power is probably one of the things that struck me most about this palette since it is absolutely amazing! The eyeshadows can last quite happily without a primer for around 9 hours, and could probably last longer than 12 hours with a primer (12 hours is the longest I've probably tried to wear them for in one day). Some of you may have seen that I reviewed this a few weeks ago, but if you haven't definitely have a look here if you'd like to hear more.

Sleek Blush By 3 Palette - Pink Lemonade - I bought this a little while ago after seeing so many people raving about it! The Blush By 3 palettes are pretty self explanatory, each have three different blushes contained in one pretty little black palette. Pink Lemonade contains quite an intense looking pink shade, called Pink Mint, with a slight silver shimmer, however when applied it is a lot more mellow! There is also Macaroon, which is a candy pink cream blush, and Icing Sugar, a coraly peach shade with gold shimmer. 

The three have strong pigmentation and last for around seven hours, although I would say that Pink Mint does start to fade sooner! I will admit that I haven't had a lot of use out of Macaroon (the cream blush) yet, as I still haven't bought a stippling blush (I'm still debating between Real Techniques and ELF), but from what I have used it is a gorgeous blush. 

Chanel Joues Contraste Powder Blush - Accent (84)* - Accent is a quite a unique blush, rather than being the generic pink or coral shade, this one is a really pretty dark rose, amber shade with a slight golden shimmer! As with all Chanel products the quality is extremely high, and this is no exception. The pigmentation is great and easily last all day!

This is probably the blush that I use most as it seems to suit my skin better than pink blushes, because instead of giving a rosy look it gives more of a glow and bit of colour! I spoke about this lovely blush a little more in my "Chanel Holiday 2013 Post" last year here.

Estee Lauder Illuminating Powder Gelee - Heat Wave* -  Introducing the prettiest highlighter you ever did see! Even though this is sadly not available anymore, I had to include it in this post! I got this about a year ago and I swear that it is one, if not the, most beautiful products that I own. 

Heat Wave is a gorgeous golden champagne highlighter/illuminating powder, which I adore. This is my favourite highlighter in summer as it is more warm than an white or off-white highlighter! The pigmentation is ridiculously good, and as you may be able to see from how much wear the compact actually appears to have, you barely need to use any! This will probably be one of those products that is still going strong in another ten years, no matter how unhygienic that is. The lasting power is fairly good too - I can get around five hours wear before it starts to fade, so some touch ups may be necessary! 

I remember a few people saying that this is a great dupe for a golden MAC highlighter from a little while ago, however I'm not quite sure what the shade name is, so if anybody knows please tell me. I also reviewed this last year here if you would like to have a look at it (excuse the horrific photo editing)!

Sleek Face Form Palette - Light - The Sleek Face Form Palette seemed to become quite a cult product last year, and I definitely know why! There are three or four types of this palette, each with different shades of blush, highlighter and bronzer. 

The light and fair palettes contain the Rose Gold blush, which is a very pigmented pink shade with tiny gold flakes, and many people compare to the Nars Orgasm blush! I adore the bronzer in this palette too - it is my favourite of all of the ones that I own since it is completely matte, plus it's actually really hard to end up with the orange/brown tell-tale contour line. The highlighter is a gorgeous white, with a tiny bit of pink, shade and extremely pigmented! I love to use it on my brow bone and just under my eyes, to really give some dimension and illumination. All three last all day without fail and used together look perfect! At only £9.99 it is amazing value since you are in effect getting three products, which works out at only £3.33 each! 

Palettes are one of my favourite things since they are so much easier to store or carry around, rather than having a few different individual products. They also normally work out pretty cheap when you think about how many things you get in each! I'd love to know what palettes/compacts you've had your eye on lately too - personally I love the look of the Hourglass compacts at the moment, but they are so expensive!

What are your favourite palettes and compacts?

Bargain Alert! Primark Midi Rings

Hey guys! For a while now I have been on the look out for some midi rings that fit me, and since I have really narrow fingers (meaning that quite often even size small ring's don't fit), this has made it even more difficult. That was until I spotted these really cute little midi rings in Primark and tried them on without much hope of them fitting at all! I was seriously surprised to find that these fit, not as normal placed rings, but as actual midi rings! You wouldn't believe how excited I was about my "midi ring quest" being over.

Now as I said in the title these were definitely a bargain! Of course when you think Primark, you think of products for fairly good value for money, but these are beyond that. These lovely rings were in a pack of four - containing a cut out heart ring, "contour" ring with little gems in, a wrap-around feather ring and a three section ring, with a gem in each section (I have no idea how else to describe it, so have a look at the photos to see what I mean). These were only £1.50 for all four, yes you read that right, £1.50! That makes them around 37p per ring, which is very good value for some rings that are of a great quality and actually better than many higher priced rings, such as those that I have tried from Accessorize which have cost around £8 for a single ring. The contour ring is definitely my favourite of the four, it's such a pretty ring and I do think that it looks like it would cost far more than 37p!

I had never actually bought any rings from Primark before these, as I was always worried that they would turn my fingers green after a few uses, which is an absolutely lovely though! However I can safely say that so far these haven't and I have had a lot of use out of them in the past couple of weeks.

Make sure to pick up this little pack of rings in Primark if you spot them, as I'm pretty certain that they are still on sale, plus for £1.50 what's the harm! You could even buy these as a little gift for somebody to hopefully make their day. I know that I will definitely have to keep my eye out for more rings in Primark for the future, since I was extremely impressed with the quality of these.

Do you own any rings from Primark?

Remember to enter my huge 1000 follower giveaway here,  which ends TONIGHT (the 1st of June), where two winners will receive lots of lovely products!