The Double Cleanse: on a budget

 I spent a long time hunting down a double cleanse in the drugstore that would make me happy, I didn't want to spend ridiculous amounts but I really wanted a good 2 product process that would get the job done and get it done properly. I heard really good things about the Superfacialist Una Brennan line on YouTube and I took the not-so-steep plunge. The oil (Step one) is the more recent purchase of the two. I've been using the creamy rose cleanser for a much longer time and loving it. 

Step one: Vitamin C+ Cleansing Oil

RRP:  £10.99

It breaks down all my eye makeup perfectly.You massage it straight onto your skin and then apply water and it kind of becomes a milky consistency. A slight warning - it is fine for the eye area but if you really get a fair amount straight in your eyes it can sting! Maybe not one for the people out there with very sensitive eyes. All in all however a great product. It also smells amazing, like oranges!

Step two: Rose Hydrate Cleanser

As you can see I've recently repurchased another bottle of this stuff, I love it that much. It's so creamy and perfect for my drier skin. It smells amazing, a faint rose smell not too overpowering. It works beautifully and I'm yet to try anything that makes my skin feel so soft. I've even tried the notorious Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish and this works so much better for me. I actually feel a difference.

RRP: £7.99

Much love, 

                      Natalie x

Amazon finds: Bargain Black Chelsea Boots

It is no secret that Chelsea boots have been seriously popular this season.I have been on the lookout for a nice pair of black chelsea boots everywhere but haven't been able to find them what with everything being all over the place in the sales. Finally I gave up looking in stores and turned online. I took a risk and picked up these off amazon with the 'oh they're on sale I may as well' approach. They ended up being £17.99 down from £22.99.  I have since seen some pairs in New Look which drove me crazy after me trying to hunt them down, but regardless i'm well chuffed with these ones and it did work out a tad cheaper. 

Here's what they look like. I was almost tempted to buy them in burgundy after I saw how nice they were. The heel is pretty substantial, but nothing overly drastic and thick enough that they're comfy. I was so worried about the sizing because I have one foot bigger than the other and ordering clothes and shoes etc on line is always a risk, I'm glad I did. I'm yet to give them a proper good trial on a day into town or elsewhere but I'm sure they'll fair just fine. They feel relatively sturdy and good quality despite them being faux leather (hence the great price point). 

Here's a quick snap of them I just took on my phone so you can see what they actually look like.

You can find these great little boots - here if you're interested! 

Much love, 

                     Natalie x

Maybelline Baby Lips - worth the hype?

I'm sure you're all more than fed up of hearing about the notorious Maybelline Baby Lips, especially if you're in the UK given we got them much later than the US. But I gave in and decided to try one out, and I'm completely split on my review. It's both worth it and not worth it at the same time.. it's a strange one. 

I bought the shade 'Cherry Me' and I have to say it smells delicious - if you're really into that sort of fake cherry sweetie smell. I think whilst when you first put it on it really does moisturise and makes your lips feel relatively soft. But after a while I feel like my lips are even drier than they were to begin with. It's very much artificial 'moisturising' and a quick fix product with a sort of instant gratification. I  can't speak for all the range, perhaps the plain 'hydrate' one is much better at not drying on the lips but this definately did me no favours in the long run. What I do love about it, however, is how easy it is to grab and use for the subtle hint of colour. 

 It adds a really nice tint to the lips (Especially lovely for this time of year) which is reasonably buildable as you can see below.

 For that alone I do think this product has a purpose. But overall I just wasn't as impressed as I expected to be given all the fuss, what can you really expect from a £3 lip balm is the question afterall? For the price point, it's good and certainly has a purpose as a nice tint of colour.. but for its moisturising properties alone I probably wouldn't buy it again.

What do you guys think? are any of the other shades different? 

Much love, 

                   Natalie xx

The £1 eyeliner I've fallen in love with.

I'm prone to a bit of eyeliner most days. Those of you who are also eyeliner fanatics will know that once a girl finds it, she never goes back. You'll also know that finding a decently pigmented and smooth eyeliner for £1 is practically unheard of. We've made our way through most of the flimsy eyeliners from Boots which broke off, didn't sharpen, disappeared quickly, smudged and were never quite the colour promised.
That in mind, finding one which ticks most of these boxes and even has a sharpener for £1 left me blown away. 

MUA are an excellent cheapie brand. I love most things they've came out with. I'd love to do a blog post on my current MUA products if you'd fancy it? I'm looking to try more of their stuff.
They seem to just bring it with the pigmentation for such reasonable prices. We're talking £1 here for lipsticks and the alike and £4 for palettes which I reach for constantly. Their intense colour eyeliners are no exception!

I opted for a dark brown given I own far too many black eyeliners and my brown Stila retractable liner dried out (boo). I wasn't really expecting much and I was so pleasantly surprised with this eyeliner. 

As you can see it is smooth to apply and richly pigmented. I would definitely say this is the best value and best quality eyeliner for the price on the highstreet, that's just my humble opinion of course.
 

I'm very picky so the only negative I could comment on was some transfer onto the top of my eyelid towards the end of the day. It was very minimal however and nothing to rant about, I had expected it to disappear long before that!

 It is perfect to apply and smudge out for a smokey effect. When I last used it I did a winged eye look and just ran over the eyeliner with some dark brown eyeshadow to soften things up, I loved it! 

This eyeliner more than gets my seal of approval and I highly recommend you guys give it a try. It's comparable to my Avon Supershock gel eyeliner and similar ones 5x the price. It's worth it just for the sharpener never mind the eyeliner as well. 

Have any of you tried these eyeliners? What are your favourite budget liners? 

Much love, 

                        Natalie x

Boots Botanics - A mixed bag

Hello there! I recently decided to delve into the Boots 'Botanics' range.

I think the general ethos is that it's all to do with the 'power of plants' and this intrigued me.

The line is totally reasonably priced across the board and if you're looking for low-cost, but totally natural, skincare this could be for you. The line is broken down into a number of categories: 

- All Bright (Brightens all skin types)

- Radiant Youth (Protects all skin types)

-Organic (Nourishes all skin types)

-Ultra Calm (Soothes sensitive skin)

-Shine Away (Mattifies oily skin)

-Hand and Body (Intensively moisturises)

I only sampled two things; one from the 'All Bright' range and one from the 'Organic' so I can't advise you on everything!

*Please excuse the shoddy camera work in this post.*

I tried out the Soothing Eye Make Up Remover (£3.99) and the Rosewater Toning Spritz (£4.99)

As you can see they're both reasonably priced. But one outshone the other rather drastically...

 Firstly, the least impressive (and that's putting it politely), of the two. The Soothing Eye Make Up Remover. The packaging  reads: "The clear oil phase effectively sweeps away impurities and make-up, including waterproof formulations. The aqueous phase is given it's colour by hibiscus, and helps to soothe the eye area and condition lashes"

As you can see from the description and the picture below the product is by-phase, so you have to shake it really well to mix both the oil and water layers and then it's good to go. 

My main problems with this product are the promises it simply doesn't live up to. I have to scrub at my eyes with the cotton pad to get it to break down the makeup effectively - something I thought would come with ease due to the oil. The oil leaves my entire eye area feeling particularly greasy and unpleasant. The smell is also VERY off-putting. It's hard to describe but it smells slightly medicinal and just horrible..

The hibiscus is supposed to act as a natural brightener but I can't say I've seen any difference at all. 

Something which also caught me off guard was how much it stings if you get it in your eye... god it packs a punch. I know you're not supposed to get it in your eye but it happens!

I flapped around my bathroom fearing I'd lost my eyesight for a good 2 minutes.

I ended up going back in with a face wipe straight after I used this anyway so I thought to myself, "What's the point?". 

I VERY rarely actually decide to stop using something after I've paid good money for it (I'm stubborn like that). But this I will not be picking up again.

Secondly was the rose toning spray and I was pleasantly surprised by this product!

The packaging reads: "Enliven your sense and refresh your skin with this revitalizing organic Rosewater Toner. Spritz generously after cleansing to visibly tighten pores and remove the last traces of make-up. Skin feels smoother, fresher and prepared for moisturising."

I bloomin' love this toner. Now I will confess I do not actually use this for its intended purpose. 

In my skincare routine post I made clear my love for the Liz Earle Instant boost tonic toner and I remain faithful to that for my day and night use. However.. for refreshing and perking up my skin throughout the day this is wonderful. I find myself grabbing it when I walk past and giving my skin a nice spritz. 

The liquid mists out as opposed to just soaking your entire face which is lovely. It's cooling and smells absolutely divine (if you're a lover of rose scents like I am). 

I have also noticed that, like it promises on the bottle, my skin does infact feel smoother since I started using this. This gets a definite 'thumbs up' from me! :) 

Have you guys tried anything from this range? impressed or not impressed?

 let me know in the comments bellow! 

Thanks for reading as always :)

Much love, 

                          Natalie xxx

L