To buy or not to buy?!

I have been on a real mission to use up some of the lotions and potions I have collected over time.  I'm really bad for being impulsive in the supermarket when it comes to skin and hair products in particular so I'm making a real effort not to buy any more.  Fun times no? 

First up to be used up was my Percy & Reed splendidly silky moisturising shampoo and conditioner.  These were nice to use but I felt the moisturising element was too much for my fine hair if I used this for more than two washes in a row,  the conditioner was nice and I used it almost as a mask before shampooing.  The have a nice, subtle smell and something about them reminds me of the James Brown range of shampoos.  Both shampoo and conditioner contain blueberry extract to cleanse and sweet almond milk to moisturise.  At £14 and £16 respectively, these are not cheap and although they are nice, I expect my mind to be a bit more blown for that price.  

Next up was the Caudalie cleansing water.  This was a real eye-opener of a product.  It takes make-up off with ease, leaving no residue and no sensation that it was ever there.  I bought mine from feelunique.com a while back and it lasted for ages.  With grape water (full of vitamins and antioxidants) and camomile (to calm and soothe) this is suitable for all skin types and can be used to remove eye make-up too.  I have since discovered l'oreal skin perfection, see here, but if I see this on offer, I may very well buy it again.  

Tesco Vitamin E toner was also something I used up and to be honest, I was quite glad when I did.  Toner is like the forgotten step in skincare for me, I always try and remember to use but then I slap on my moisturiser without a second thought for it.  This was not a bad product by any means, it was nice and gentle on the skin, removed any residue of make-up left on the skin and was only about 80p.  It just didn't excite me very much, but is any toner that exciting? I don't think tesco do this particular one anymore but they do a cucumber one for the same price.

Charles Worthington Dream Hair.  I really did not like this for my hair at all.  this was part of a set and was the last part to be used up/ given away. For a cleansing shampoo, I felt this was so heavy on my hair.  the scent was quite nice but that is only ever a bonus.  Growing up, Charles Worthington shampoo and conditioners were, to my eyes, proper grown up luxury.  I used to get the moisture seal products as a treat and they made me so happy! I still like the products but this set was a huge disappointment. No link for this set at the mo' as Boots.com is not co-operating again.

Lastly, Balance Me wonder eye cream is something that I actually have a back-up of and I'm glad I do.  I just have to finish a dermalogica one first! |this contains hyaluronic acid which helps lock-in moisture and plump up the undereye area.  I did find it was nice and soothing on my undereye area and it did help to diminish my dark circles somewhat.  Again, this is quite pricey but a little definitely goes a long, long way and it is jam packed full of natural, skin friendly ingredients.  

Do you have any favourite products that you repurchase over and over?

Hugs,

Jodi 

xxx

Shiny things

The other week I got it into my head I wanted some jewellery.  I don't have a lot of jewellery and most of what I do have is cheap and cheerful stuff which I don't mind as it's usually pretty interchangeable.

I was picking up some trousers from houseoffraser.com and just so happened to go in past river island.  I had never given their jewellery range much thought but that has all changed!!

Leaf detail thumb ring, Triangle finger top rings, heart bracelet, owl bracelet

The finger tip rings are a size L but they don't fit my fingers very well.  I might try ASOS curve for a better fit although I have never had problems with rings before.

I have a confession with this ring, I had originally thought it was hearts but then got it home to discover it was a leaf pattern?! I don't know what that was all about, it's nice though and it was only £2.

And the bracelets are just cute, dinky things!  I love them and they work with loads of different outfits.

Have you tried River island jewellery before?

Whats your verdict of finger tip rings?

Hugs,

Jodi

xxx

Weekend Mani #4

Following on from last weeks foray into textured nails I happened across the Velvet Goth Collection by models own.  I only bought one from the collection as I also had my eye on one of the Artistix Duo's and it was a 2 for £8 offer in boots the other week.

I went for the green which is called 'Absinthe' and it is an emerald green glitter which dries semi-matte.  I love this colour, something about it reminds me of the evil queen from Snow White.  The velvet cap is a nice touch too, I may have to collect the rest of the collection!

The polish went on pretty well, it is packed with small green and black glitters and possibly silver, I couldn't quite tell as the sparkle was so intense!  Also in the mix was a slightly lighter green, larger glitters which gives this polish another dimension.  

I couldn't get this as neat as I would have liked but I think with larger glitters that is always the case.  The one and only bugbear I have with larger glitters in polishes like these is that if they land on the free edge of the nail, they can catch and cause the polish to chip.

The polish dries quickly and dries down to a demi-matte finish.  The texture when it dries is not particularly rough, which is great for those of you who don't like the feel of textured nails

My mani unfortunately chipped quite a bit and so I had to fill in the tips the next morning.  I ended up putting my trusty Seche Vite over the top to make it last as I was off work for four days.

All in all, I love this colour and I think it's a great winter colour.  The rest of the collection is also gorgeous and for the price they are really good.  The bottles are so easy to store and identify with their cutesy caps too.

Have you tried any of the Velvet Goth collection?

What colours will you be wearing for autumn/winter?

Hugs,

Jodi

xxx

Weekend Mani #3

Heya!

So I know I'm way behind in the textured nail polish trend but I have actually owned one of the O.P.I liquid sands since they were first released last year.  The Mariah Carey collection had four liquid sands of which I own one but now kinda want the rest! 

This is 'Get your number' and its a gorgeous, multi-dimensional blue.  The picture is of just one coat on the nails and it provides pretty darn good opacity for a jelly type base. I'm also quite pleased at how neat this hand is as my right hand is my dominant hand *pats self on back* I think my perseverance is starting to pay off.

The polish dries reasonably quickly to a mostly matte finish.  There is a variety of different glitters within it and it has a holographic sparkle to it aswell.  

In the photo above, I have used the flash to try and capture the holo.  The index finger and ring finger have seche vite topcoat applied to give a glossier finish.  I didn't mind the texture feel of the polish but I love the effect adding the topcoat had, it was almost as though it was lit from within.

We went out for tea and the lighting was quite good so I couldn't resist sneaking a wee pic! Again, this shows off the holo a bit more and I really feel like the holo adds an extra dimension.

All in all, I really like this polish although I am slightly biased when it comes to OPI! I couldn't stop looking at my nails the whole time I was wearing this and the texture was something I quite enjoyed.  It didn't look too gimmicky either, which is good if you just want a slight break away from the usual mani but don't want to go too wild!

Have you tried any of the liquid sand polishes?

How do you feel about textured nails?

Hugs,

Jodi

xxx

If you like chocolate...

You must buy this!!

Vaseline have brought out a new body moisturiser and its a good 'un! If, like me, moisturising after a bath/shower is an evil necessity then you have just found your best bud!! 

This bad boy right here is the cocoa butter variety and it smells soooo good!! 

I picked this up in boots (don't say it, I know!) for £4.99, and for the novelty and smell of it alone, I'd say it was worth it.  

The reason this moisturiser is different is the spray nozzle, yes that's right, spray on moisturiser! Vaseline's Spray & Go does exactly that! It sprays on as a slightly milky liquid, rub it in and hey presto, feelin' smooth and smellin' fine.

My only con for this is of course product wastage. The spray is great for large surface areas i.e. my thighs my belly my back, but as soon as we get into forearm territory I see a fine mist (for it is a very fine mist) heading off into the ether, much like loose face powders and spray on sun lotions.

If you were to leave this to dry in itself, it would take a good five or so minutes but can be very refreshing if your anywhere near a fan.  Rubbing it in takes some of the novelty away but you can then get dressed straight away.

The two other flavours (please do not eat these!) are aloe and oat(essential moisture), which sound refreshing and soothing all at the same time.

Have you tried these yet?

Do you have a favourite moisturiser?

Hugs,

Jodi 

xxx

Impromptu presents - the best kind!

My mama was away for a wee city break to lovely Edinburgh two weeks ago and she came back with pressies for me - so cute and so unexpected!

She bought me a top from next which is charcoal with a slightly dipped hem and some sparkly bits on the shoulder area, it's really cute and comes in a huge six different colours, here, I really like the prune one which is about the only ever time I will say anything nice about prunes! Bleugh! Anyhoo, I digress...

She also got me a supercute packet of Cath Kidston tissues (available in stores for about 85p), I will never ever use these, I think I have a pack of pink poodle tissues in my drawer from about 7 years ago, some things are just too cute to use! If I'm being honest, I don't find novelty tissues particularly absorbent, no use if your nose is beating Hussein Bolt's personal best!

She also bought me L'oreal Colour Riche Nail Polish in Sequin Explosion - it is rather beautiful!

My mama is a cheeky monkey though as I had swatched this in Boots a few days before and she really liked it, I think this might make up part of her holiday nails mani! 

This polish is not available anywhere online at the moment but you should be able to pick some up in the stores. 

I think this is one of those polishes that deserve a separate review over a few different colours, I love it though, the colours are just gorgeous, almost jewel-like.

All in all, turns out being 29 still doesn't mean you're too old for presents!

How do you feel about the L'oreal confettin range of topcoats?

Hugs,

Jodi

xxx

Weekend Mani #2

The Sun has made an appearance this weekend and so I fancied a nice, cheery nail to celebrate! 

You may remember that very recently I made some Barry M purchases, I posted about them here.  I have used the matte white as a base on my accent fingers, O.P.I Shorts Story (please do shop around for this!) for the other nails and some polka dots and the Ltd Edition yellow by Barry M for some extra dots.  I do like polka dots! 

Application was easy breezy, I used Sally Hansen 'hard as nails' as a base coat and two coats of the base colour on each nail.  I'm not really too fussy about base coats etc at the moment as my nails only have to last two days at the weekend, I like the Sally Hansen one as it's actually really easy to pick off, tut tut! 

To jazz things up a bit, I decided to try a matte finish.  This is just a cheapie I got from George at Asda. It's not great and if the polish is applied too thickly, it doesn't really go particularly matte.  As I say, I only wear this for two days and so can't really comment on durability.  I would also imagine it is harder to wrap the tip of the nail with a matte polish.  That's maybe an idea for a future post! 

Are you doing anything nice this weekend?

What is your 'go-to' nail art? 

Hugs,

Jodi

xxx

P.s. please excuse the cut on my thumb, whoever thought a double edged serrated bread knife was a good idea has a lot to answer for!