Best Blush & Bronzers

Hey guys! I thought that it would be quite fun to do a post about my favourite blushes and bronzers, because after all they are the things that transform your makeup. I've picked six of my favourites (three of each), a few being higher-end and a couple drugstore ones so there is hopefully atleast one that would suit you! Now onto the products, starting off with bronzers first and then blushes! 

Sleek Face Form Palette - Light - £9.99

The bronzer that I have been using the longest has to be from the Sleek Face Form palette, as it's a perfect bronzer. This actually comes in a palette with a blush and highlighter (which are lovely too), but for the sake of this post just imagine they aren't there! The bronzer shade is perfect for my skin, plus it is matte for those of you who are wondering.

The pigmentation isn't that strong, but that can be quite handy as it makes it slightly easier to buildup and it reduces the risk of ending up with an orange line where you've over-applied it (you all know what I'm talking about)! It is also easy to blend, and last all day.

GloMinerals Bronzer - Sunlight - £37.83*

GloMinerals is a brand that I hadn't actually heard of before getting this bronzer, so I was really excited to test it out! I must say that this has quickly become one of my favourite bronzers for a number of reasons. First off it blends beautifully, which I learnt the first time I used it and put slightly too much on my brush - woops! It is also very, very pigmented - you only need to lightly dab your brush in the powder and you have enough to bronze everywhere you need. 

In the pan it does actually look like there is a lot of shimmer in the bronzer, which did make me a bit apprehensive at first, but when applied I can barely recognise any sort of shimmer! 

Bourjois Delice De Poudre Bronzing Powder - 51 - £7.99

The Bourjois Delice De Pourdre Bronzing Powder is probably known to most bloggers as the bronzer that smells and looks like chocolate! I know that some people think that the shade 51 is fairly orange, but for me I can't really see the orange once applied. 

There is a slightest shimmer, however when applied to the skin you don't notice it, so it's great to use for contouring! It also blends nicely and lasts all day without wear. This is just a generally nice and purse-friendly bronzer which is definitely worth picking up, if you don't already own it!

Clinique Cheek Pop Blush - Ginger Pop - £16.50*

Ginger Pop is a pretty satin pinky coral shade, which is set in the cutest little daisy shape! The formulation is gorgeous, as it's very smooth and doesn't feel powdery, helping it also feel light and airy on the skin. As for pigmentation it is spot-on, not too strong and not too weak, making it the perfect blush to blend onto the skin with minimal effort! 

Chanel Joues Contraste Powder Blush - Accent - £31*

This is a blush that I have mentioned many, many times on my blog in the past! Rather than being the generic peach or pink toned blush, this is a shimmering rose shade which I think is beautiful. The pigmentation is very high, so a high dab on your brush is all that you need! I must have used this atleast fifty times, and there is barely a tend in the powder "dome", meaning that even though it's on the pricey side I'd definitely say that it's worth the money! 

Daniel Sandler Watercolour Fluid Blush - Cherub - £15.50*

I had heard quite a few bloggers talking about the Daniel Sandler Watercolour Blushes in the past, namely Essie Button, and I was really intrigued by them! The thought of a blush that is like a watercolour paint just sounded very strange, but like it could be a very good idea. I was lucky enough to be able to try one out in the shade Cherub and it is honestly an amazing blush!

You need to use the smallest bit of blush on the end of your finger, since they are seriously pigmented, then I just blend it in quickly with my finger tips! I love how easy it is to apply, plus the shade is a lovely light rose shade that seems to suit me really well. You do need to be careful with how quickly you apply it as it dries quickly, so just be a little cautious of that! I'm definitely going to have to buy some more of these blushes as they are great, plus I don't think that £15.50 is that bad for a bottle of blush that will last me ages. 

They are my best blush and bronzers! I hope that you enjoyed this post, and if you'd like me to do more like this in the future then let me know. I'd love to know if you've tried any of the blushes or bronzers mentioned, and what you thought of them!

What are your favourite blushes and bronzers?

My Diamond Advertiser for October is Jordan from Jordan Alice!

Monthly Advertisers - October

Hey guys! Can you believe that it is already the 25th of October?! Today I am back today for a quick post about my Monthly Advertisers, to introduce you to a great blog which I'm sure that you will love, so without further ado onto Jordan...

Blog | Bloglovin' | Twitter  

Hi everyone! I’m Jordan, a 22 year old beauty blogger, currently on medical leave from university with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. My blog focuses on beauty reviews, favourites and hauls. I set up my blog mainly because I’m sure my friends and family were getting fed up of me constantly telling them about my new favourite blushes or the new products I was looking forward to trying! It has also helped me to deal with my illness a lot, being bed-bound for days on end can get very boring & lonely! Although I haven’t been blogging for long, I absolutely love it! I hope if you pop by you enjoy reading my posts as much as I enjoy writing them!

Make sure to have a look at Jordan's blog as it is lovely (plus how cute is her blog design)! Also if you would like more information about the advertising pages that I offer please have a peek here.  

My Diamond Advertiser for October is Jordan from Jordan Alice!

Twice Haul

Hey guys! Today I am here with another haul post, containing some very exciting things, all from Twice. If you had never heard of Twice before, they are an American company which sell second-hand, and sometimes new, clothing and handbags! Now when I said second-hand your mind may think of old clothes, that nobody would want, however Twice only sell like-new products from recent collections. The brands that they sell include Kate Spade, J.Crew, Ralph Lauren and much more, the only difference is that they cost a fraction of their original RRP!

Even though Twice are an American brand they actually post internationally to the UK, Canada and Australia (also I checked, you don't have to pay tax and duty)! Ontop of this, you can also sell any of your unwanted clothes and handbags to them, helping you earn some money. Sadly this option is currently only available for those living in America, but hopefully they change that in the future!

I must admit, when I saw that they saw that they sell a lot of high-end brands, I was a little hesitant about whether or not the products, bags especially, were genuine or not! After having a little look around the Q&A section, I read that they check all of their products for authenticity, so I guess that clears that one up.

Now that I have got that little explanation done, onto what I bought from Twice when I was given some money to spend! I honestly spent hours searching through everything on the website, trying to find my few favourite things (which was so hard, especially since there seemed to be loads of new products coming onto the site every hour), however I eventually narrowed it down to five things!

Their handbag section is actually quite new to the site, so I obviously had to get something from there, or should I say two somethings! The first one that I ended up going for was the gorgeous Kate Spade Palm Springs Maggie Satchel* in Pebble, which cost $114.95/£71.52 (RRP of $398/£247.63). I spotted this beautiful light, blush pink leather bag and had to buy it! It has so much room inside, plus it is actually my first designer handbag which is exciting. This was brand new with its original Kate Spade tag and dust bag, and even though it had a couple of little marks on the back (which I've managed to wipe off), it is seriously amazing value for money considering the original cost!

The other bag oriented thing that I got was again from Kate Spade, this time it was the Kate Spade Spotted Neda Purse* for $49.95/£31.08 (RRP of $198/£123.19)! I have wanted a Kate Spade purse for absolutely ages, so when I saw this I knew that I would be buying it, especially since it has spots on which is probably my favourite print. The lining of this is lovely, and also fits so much in it!

Strangely I don't own a single pair of black jeans, so I thought that it would be a good idea to get some, especially since monochrome seems to popular for autumn and winter this year! With that in mind I decided to go for a pair of American Eagle Black Jegging Jeans*, for $16.95/£10.55 (RRP $50/£31.11). Even though these are classed as jeggings on the Twice website (since they contain 2% spandex), they feel, for all intensive purposes, like normal jeans! The fit of these are honestly amazing - they aren't too long and are really comfy.

I got a couple of tops too! The first being a MANGO Brown Striped Blouse* for only $8.95/£5.57 (RRP $50/£31.11).  I must admit that even though this is in the size XS, it is very oversized, and I did think that the brown was a bit darker than it was in real life, but I think that it looks alright on - I just need to find a belt of some sort to help pull it in at the waist! Apart from that though it feels well made, and the material is nice!

The second top, and last thing that I bought, was a Uniqlo Oatmeal 3/4 Sleeve Top* for $7.95/£4.95 (RRP $14.90/£9.27)! I love 3/4 sleeve tops, and loved the colour of this, so obviously I had to buy it. Uniqlo isn't a brand that I had heard of, however the material of this is quite thick and extremely soft, meaning that I'll have to look into some of their other tops!

I was really impressed with my purchases and what you could get from Twice, for a fraction of what the products would normally cost! I really wish that there were more shops like this, as it's a great way of being able to buy designers labels without paying the full cost.

I have also kindly been given a 50% off code (yes, 50%) for all of my readers on their first order, to help indulge in some somewhat guilt free shopping! If you'd like to take advantage of that lovely offer then make sure that you click here, and you should get a little code popup for you to use. I'd love to know what you buy if you get something from Twice too!

What do you think of the concept of Twice?

My Diamond Advertiser for October is Jordan from Jordan Alice!

Top 5 Autumn Nail Polishes

Hey guys! Autumn has officially started and October is here, so I thought that it would be fun to post about my top 5 autumn nail polishes! I am a little stereotypical with my autumn nail polishes, and love berry red shades, however blues and nudes are also lovely. I actually had quite a hard job picking my favourite five, out of the fifty-plus shades that I own, however I just about narrowed it down!

China Glaze Nail Lacquer - Blue Bells Ring (80653)
How pretty is the shade of this polish?! This is a light midnight blue, with tiny pieces of silver glitter contained in it, which makes it a stunning shade. In the swatch I used two coats of polish, although you can very easily get away with only one thin coat, which just shows how pigmented it is!

I also must say that the application is gorgeous. You get no streaks whatsoever, and it applies very smooth and evenly! I get easily atleast five days wear out of it with practically no wear at all, which I am really happy with. Infact I may apply this on my nails tomorrow, so keep an eye out for a possible NOTD (nails of the day) on my Instagram!

OPI Nail Lacquer - Glints Of Glinda*
Forget autumn, this is my absolute favourite nail polish any day of the year! Glints Of Glinda is a peachy nude, with quite a gel-like texture. I use two coats of this to get the perfect shade, and it then lasts for atleast four days (that's as long as I can last without picking it off my nails), but even then there is no signs of chipping or damage at all. This dries pretty quickly, although I do find that it can be a little delicate a few hours after applying it, possibly because of the gel-like formulation!

Of course this isn't your traditional autumn nail polish shade, but if you like lighter polishes in autumn then this is definitely one for you!

Barry M Nail Paint - Raspberry (273)
Raspberry is a deep raspberry shade, with a very strong shine! The formulation of this is fairly runny, and I would have to say that this does take quite a while to dry, so be a bit cautious about that if you're in a rush. I find that I need two or three layers to get a really strong shade! The lasting power is fairly average, around two or three days before it shows wear. I admit that this isn't a great polish if you are rushing, or want it to last you for days, but I just adore the colour!

Essie Nail Lacquer - Leading Lady (934)
Some may say that because Leading Lady is a glitter red shade it is more winter/Christmas orientated, but since it is a wine red/burgundy instead of bright red I'd say that it would be perfect for either! You only need two thin coats to get a really strong, glittery shade and it also dries ridiculously fast (does anybody else notice that glitter polishes always seem to dry quicker than those that aren't?).

This is more of a semi-matte polish than a glossy finish, and it also dries quite rough, meaning that you will definitely need a top coat! I do need to say that this is a complete and utter pain to remove, although that seems to be a reoccurring problem with glitter polishes, so I'm sure that you all know what I mean.

It's just generally a lovely glitter red nail polish, which is definitely worth buying!

Chanel Le Vernis Nail Colour - Accessoire (573)*

Accessoire is a deep burgundy shade, which is quite vampy! You only need two, possibly even one, coats of it as it is quite opaque. It doesn't dry as quickly as Blue Bells Ring, but it isn't as slow as Raspberry, so somewhere inbetween those two! I get around three days wear before it starts showing any signs of wear, plus the finish is very even and it rarely ever goes streaky when I apply it.

If you are after a dark shade for autumn then this could be it! Accessoire is a very classy shade, which I think would suit most people.

So they are my top 5 autumn nail polishes! Whilst writing this post I actually remember that I still haven't used my OPI Matte Top Coat (which I got for my birthday or Christmas last December), so I must try that out really soon, since I think that matte nails look nicer in autumn and winter. If you could let me know what sort of shades you wear with a matte top coat I'd really appreciate it! I've also been looking at some other, non-berry, shades for autumn like the Nails Inc Gel Polish in the shade Porchester Square, so I'd love to know if you've ever tried/reviewed that one.

What are your favourite nail polishes for autumn?

My Diamond Advertiser for October is Jordan from Jordan Alice!

My Little Parisienne Box // REVIEW

My Little Parisienne Box*

Hey guys! If you haven't heard already My Little Box officially launched in the UK this month! For those of you who have never heard of My Little Box, they are a company who make monthly lifestyle boxes (think Glossybox but far better and prettier) each with their own theme or "story", whether it's the My Little Weekend Box or My Little Smile Box. I say lifestyle as it isn't a completely beauty-orientated box, instead it will have a few beauty products and some other bits! This month was the Parisienne box, or should I say My Little Parisienne Box as it is formally known, which is full of Paris chic!

Every box has a really cute and fun feel to them, be it a bold colour scheme or the gorgeous little illustrations dotted over the box and products contained within! If you just look at some of the past boxes here you will see what I mean - I wish that I could have them all.

Now, the exciting bit, what I actually got in the box! When you first open the box it is all kinds of exciting. I was first greeted with a little card showing an Eiffel Tower illustration, which I absolutely love (I'm definitely going to keep it and put it somewhere on my bedroom wall). You then get a little bundle wrapped in a pretty black and white My Little Box bow, which held together a notebook, a sheet of stickers, a laptop sleeve and a cute little bag, which I will talk about more in a second!

Within the notebook there's an introduction about My Little Box, of course containing a lot more little illustrations, how they came to be, some photos of their HQ and much more! I also love how there are a few funny bits included, such as the dictionary themed definition of My Little Box saying: "a surprise package (not a bill) that finds its way into your mailbox each month, filled with a carefully edited selection of beauty products, fashion accessories, personalised stationery and more. Synonyms: lifestyle box, treasure chest, box of goodies, beauty box - Potential side effects: addiction - Precautions for use: keep way from your sister, mother or girlfriends to avoid jealousy - or theft", which I think sums it up completely! Then after that, the rest of the notebook is made up of completely blank pages, leaving you to do whatever you may please with it (possibly coming up with some illustrations of your own?)

As for the stickers they are very Parisienne, be it the lady in a striped top walking a dog, holding a bag with a baguette in or the little Eiffel Tower and coffee! Like I said there was also a lovely laptop sleeve included in the box, with a navy and white spotty theme, again with an illustation on. Sadly this doesn't fit my laptop, as I believe that it is for the 13" Macbook, but I can hopefully find a use for it! 

Now, onto this little bag covered in navy bows! I found inside three very exciting beauty products, which still kept up with the Parisienne theme - the first being a 30ml Laura Mercier Foundation Primer (worth about £18), a 10ml Nuxe Huile Prodigieuse Multi-Purpose Dry Oil (worth about £2.80) and a My Little Beauty Stylo Lumiere (worth £11). I've been using the Laura Mercier primer for the last couple of days on its own, rather than under foundation which is one of the uses for me, and it has made my skin look a lot smoother, plus it feels very light! I'm actually yet to use the Nuxe oil, but I'm really interested in the whole "oil to fight oil" stuff, so I'll definitely be testing this out soon. As for the My Little Beauty highlighter pen, this is actually made by My Little Box's little beauty company, and it looks like a gorgeous rosy highlighter which I really must try! 

The cost of each month's box is £11 plus £3.95 delivery, however you can get it for £13.95 including delivery if you get it delivered to your work address! I do think that's a very reasonable price, considering the quality of the products in the box and the fact that the beauty products alone worked out to be worth about £31.80. 

You can just see the amount of effort that has gone into creating each box and I am completely blown away! If there is one beauty/lifestyle box that you are ever going to buy, then make it a My Little Box because you will honestly not regret it.

What are your thoughts on My Little Box?

My Diamond Advertiser for October is Jordan from Jordan Alice!