October 2015 Non Beauty Favourites ♥

Hey beaut's!

I cant believe its favourites time already, where are the days, weeks and months going, it's crazy! I must admit I'm absolutely loving this time of the year and I actually hate how fast it's going, I seem to literally embrace all things Autumn/Winter so much that I just want it to all last longer hehe. Anywhooo onto my current lifestyle favourites....

Christmas Catalogues

I'm kicking my October non beauty favourites off with Christmas Catalogues, I just love them! I get sooooo excited when I start seeing these out in the shops because you then know Christmas is well and truly on it's way and that the shops have started stocking pretty gifts. Who else circles everything that they like the look off and then casually leaves the books open around the house he he, I do!

Pumpkin Picking

I love going Pumpkin picking and oddly it's only become a tradition for us over the last couple of years but I always look forward to going now. I just love buying all the unusual pumpkins and gourds that you cant find anywhere else and then going home and decorating my living room with them for Halloween. 

Carving Our Pumpkins

I always looks forward to carving our pumpkins and I'm so happy with how ours turned out this year, I done the witch and my boyfriend Michael done Frankenstein and the general pumpkin face, it was so much fun although I do hate the 'empting it out' part where the seeds fly everywhere and the wet, stringy pumpkin gunk sticks to your hands and arms, uuhhh gross!

Adele - Hello

Shes back, yessssssss! I absolutely love Adele and have been waiting patiently for her comeback for so long, I love her new single Hello and have it constantly on repeat in my house at the moment. Bring on the release of her new album, I bet it will be so good!

One Tree Hill

Arrhhh One Tree Hill is probably my favourite TV show ever!!! Even though series nine, which finished a few years ago, was the last in the series it hasn't stopped me getting my box sets out and watching them a lot recently. I love nothing more that getting into bed nice and early all snuggled up and having a One Tree Hill marathon, and Autumn/Winter is certainly the perfect time to do just that!!!

What have you been loving non beauty wise throughout October beaut's?? I'd love to know!!

Lush 'The Experimenter' Bath Bomb Review ♥

Hey beaut's!

You may remember a little while back I posted a Mini Lush Haul and within that haul was some newly formulated products from Lush's original line and some new products that have previously only been available in the Lush Oxford Street store. I excitedly picked up a few to try and one I couldn't wait to pop in my bath was The Experimenter Bath Bomb.

The Experimenter Bath Bomb (£3.95) is pretty spectacular to look at and is very eye catching, the hexagon shape has bright pink, blue, purple, white and gold colours splashed all over it so I knew it was going to look pretty amazing when I popped it into my bath water. Just as I thought as soon as The Experimenter went into my bath there was a rainbow of shimmering colours in the water, it looked so pretty and I couldn't stop watching it, however the colours quickly all merged together to create a very dark purple/grey colour which I must admit didn't look that appealing but the smell was divine, I also have to add although The Experimenter doesn't look like it contains many shimmers or glitters but in fact its does, these shimmers did stay on my skin after getting out the bath so it'd probably a good bath bomb to use before going on a night out or for any Christmas party's that you might have coming up he he.

The scent of the Experimenter is what I love the most about this bath bomb, it contains fair trade vanilla absolute and tonka absolute which give it a very creamy, strong vanilla scent but it also has a warm, woody ever so slight Christmasy scent to it to which is perfect for those Autumnal evenings. Theirs also vetivert oil within The Experimenter which is so relaxing and calming so if you've had a long, hard day it might be the bath bomb that your looking for.

Have your tried The Experimenter Bath Bomb yet beaut's? What did you think? I'd love to know.

Whats In My Norwich Blogger Event Goody Bag?

Hey beaut's!

I recently attended my very first blogging event with my girlie Kate from Kates Closet so I thought I'd tell you all about it today and share with you all what I got in my goody bag he he. The event was in Norwich which was so convenient for me and Kate as we live close by and was held in the intimate Aroma Cafe/Bar and organised by the lovely Norwich Blogger girls, better know as Courteney, Hannah and Justine. As soon as we arrived I was greeted by Hannah with a goody bag and yummy Halloween themed cupcakes, we then chatted amongst ourselves before MUA Charlie Long began her makeup presentations. Charlie created two looks in total, one of which was a pink eye and matching lip and the second was Halloween themed where she transformed Courteney into Poison Ivy.

The goody bag was crammed full goodies including a Real Techniques Silicone Liner Brush, Nanshy 4 in 1 Blending Sponge, Eco Tools Stippling Brush, Wild About Beauty Lip Balm, Kiss Fake Lashes, Virtue Ice Tea, Yves Rocher 3 in 1 Shampoo, some Witch samples , two I Love... Perfectly Peach samples, Lipcote and two Daily Cultures Tea samples....Wowza, now that's a heck of a lot of goodies and everything came in a cute re-usable 'The Blogger Programme' tote bag.

Thank you so much for inviting me girls and for organising the whole thing, I had a great time and it was so lovely meeting you all in person rather than just existing on the inter-webs he he.

Meet my October 'Sparkling' Advertisers!

Hey beaut's!

 As we are nearing the end of October I thought it was about time that you lovely lot got to know my gorgeous October 'Sparkling' Advertisers a little bit more, hopefully you have seen their blogs sitting in my sidebar and have already had a cheeky little peek and found some great, new reading material... arrrhh I love finding new blogs to read, it's so inspiring and often sends me into wish list overdrive ha ha... Anyway enough of me rambling, let me introduce you all to my October Advertisers!

My name Is Kate and I'm from Norfolk , England, Kate's Closet is my opportunity to share with you all , some of the things I love , anything from Fashion and beauty, Lifestyle to just stuff I wanna share with other women ( I live in a house surrounded by men , my husband and my two sons) so don't get much chance to talk about my latest beauty find or that new handbag I need . Lol 

Thank you for taking a look at my blog , I hope you enjoy.

Love Kate

xxx

Blog | Twitter

I'm Stephanie and I run www.merrymusing.co.uk. I set up my blog is late 2012 as a creative outlet to talk about me love of all things beauty and fashion and over the years it's grown and developed into my biggest hobby! I mainly write about makeup, beauty, skincare, fashion, nails, hair and blogging with a hint of home interiors, food, travel and personal posts thrown in for good measure. 

Blog | Twitter

Hello everybody! I'm Sam, 23, and I live in Scotland. I'm a mum to my gorgeous boy Rhys, and I blog all things beauty, food, and vegan related at Lashes and Diamonds. I'd really love for you to come and check it out - Hope to see you over there soon! Much love, Sam xoxo

Blog | Twitter

Sparkles at Midnight is ran by Nikki who blogs about life and loves and a few gluten free goodies along the way!
Blog | Twitter


If you would like to come a join in on the fun and advertise with HaySparkle all details can be found HERE!

KIKO Midnight Siren Collection Review ♥

Hey beaut's!

In September KIKO launched their Autumn collection aptly named Midnight Siren, the collection consists of a good mixture of products from eyeliners to lipsticks plus much more, all of which come in darker more sultry shades and the packaging is just beautiful, it all has a blackened purple duo-chrome theme which definitely echoes the darker nights ahead. I'm quite new to KIKO so I was soooo happy to finally be able to try some of their products and this range seemed a good place to start so today I thought I share with you all my thoughts on the Midnight Siren Collection.

Silk Pearl Illuminating Bronzer in 02 Irresistible Sienna* £14.90 

The first product I couldn't wait to try was the Silk Pearl Illuminating Bronzer mainly because the packaging just lured me in, the bronzer sits inside a large plastic ball that reminds me of a Pacman from the side, it's not very practical I must admit because it just takes up so much room in my makeup bag but it's definitely eye catching an sturdy that's for sure. The bronzer itself is split into three strips of colour, firstly the largest strip contains a semi-matte dark bronzer that has just enough coolness to make it suitable to contour with as well as bronze, the second strip is a semi-matte light to medium bronzer shade which is great if your slightly scared of bronzer like I am and the last strip is a pretty intense gold highlight shade that isn't really shimmery but adds a real glow to the skin. The formula of this bronzer has literally blown my mind, I've never comes across a powder that is literally as silky and soft as butter and it has such intense colour pay off, it's honestly incredible. 

Midnight Siren Face Brush* £16.90

Next up is the KIKO Midnight Siren Face Brush which is ideal for applying and blending setting powders or bronzer and is exactly what I've been using it for. The fluffy, dense synthetic bristles really ensure the powder is dusted on evenly and blended flawlessly and it's honestly the softest Kabuki style brush I have ever felt, I literally cant stop running my fingers across the top of the bristles as it feels so nice he he.

Dark Tide Eyeliners in Intriguing Blue* and Black* £7.90 each

These Dark Tide Eyeliners are pretty epic, I have the shades Black which is just your typical, straight up matte jet black and Intriguing Blue which is a very deep matte navy both of which have such a creamy, strongly pigmented formula and are so smooth to apply. The lasting power on these is great, both set within around 30 seconds and wont move or budge thereafter which is amazing if you like popping eyeliner into your lower waterline like I do. I also love the packaging on these because they have a twist up function which makes it so much easier and save all that time sharpening like I have to do with kohl pencils. Overall I'm so chuffed with these, so if your look for bold, intense colour payoff that wont move or smudge these are the beauties to go for.

Moon Shadow Water Infused Eyeshadow in Attractive Plum* £7.90

The KIKO Moon Shadow Eyeshadow Sticks are available in four gorgeous shades but I have Attractive Plum which is a deep blackened plum shade with tiny purple micro shimmers running through it, perfect for smokey eye looks and the up and coming party season. The formula of these Moon Shadow Sticks in amazing, it has such a creamy, velvety, light texture that blends with ease and is so long lasting without creasing, the only thing I have noticed is that you have to work fast when blending these eyeshadow sticks out because it sets quite rapidly so I would suggest working on one eye at time. 

Matte Muse Lipstick in Embellished Peony* £6.90

And lastly but in no means least is the Matte Muse Lipstick in Embellished Peony, I couldn't quite believe this was a lipstick to begin with because the packaging actually looks so much like a nail polish doesn't it he he. The Matte Muse Lipsticks are actually liquid lipsticks that are available in six shades ranging from pinks, purples and reds which all look gorgeous, I have the shade Embellished Peony which is a muted mid tone rosy pink shade perfect for everyday wear and is super matte. The Muse Matte Lipsticks apply extremely creamy and you do get quite a bit of time to perfect your pout before the lipstick sets but once it has set that's it theres no going back. Wear time for me was a good 4 hours until I ate and then I had to reapply which I thought was pretty good, the only thing I will say about the Matte Muse lippie's is if you do suffer from dryer lips then these definitely wont be for you because they are just soooo matte, I even find myself whacking on the lip balm after wearing it and I don't really suffer with dry lips usually. 

Overall Im super impressed with everything I tried from KIKO's Midnight Siren Collection and it's defietly got me lusting after more of their products because the quality is just brillaint!

Have you tried anything from KIKO before beaut's? What did you think? I'd love to know.

ANOTHER A/W Primark Wishlist ♥

Hey beaut's!

I'm pretty much obsessed with Primark at the moment, I tend to find they have the best things ever at this time of the year and I just want to buy everything, so I thought I'd put together another wish list for you all, enjoy!

 Red Faux Fur Keyring £2.00 / Pink Disney Thumper Gift Box PJ Set / Wine Faux Fur Hood Biker Coat £28.00 / Black Lace Sweetheart Play suit £16.00 / Elf OMG Santa Nightshirt £7.00 / Navy And Red Tartan Super soft Throw £5.00 / Red Minnie Cosy Socks £3.00 / Charcoal Love Light £12.00 / Cup With Straw And Christmas Hat £3.00 / Green Faux Fur Pom Pom Beanie £3.00

Have you got your eye on any of these Primark Autumn/Winter goodies beaut's? I'd love to know!

Makeup Revolution Ultra Sculpt & Blend Collection ♥

Hey beaut's!

Our friends over at Makeup Revolution are literally killing it with their new releases at the moment, they just keep getting better and better and still offer affordable prices and amazing makeup and tools. This time around Makeup Rev have launched some fancy new makeup brushes, blending sponges and sets that have me seriously excited, so say hello to the Makeup Revolution Ultra Sculpt & Blend Collection.

The Makeup Revolution Ultra Sculpt & Blend Collection* (£14.99) consists of four makeup tools in total, theres three beautiful brushes and one blending sponge all of which have been specifically cut and shaped for the perfect application of contouring, sculpting and blending of the face, cheeks and eyes. Each brush is made from the finest, super soft, synthetic hair, making them work amazingly well with cream, liquid and powder makeup and can we just take the time appreciate their on-trend rose gold handles, my goodness these are super good looking makeup brushes he he.

Onto the Makeup Revolution Ultra Sculpt & Blend Collection run down...

Powder, Sculpt & Blend Brush

The Powder, Sculpt & Blend Brush is great for blending out any contouring you may have mapped out but best of all this is a pretty epic foundation brush, because of the super soft bristles and it's flat top it works incredibly well as a buffing brush and buffs foundation seamlessly into the skin. Im defietly going to get lots of use out of this little beauty.

Cheek & Highlight Sculpt & Blend Brush

The Cheek & Highlight Sculpt & Blend brush is my best buddie when it comes to sculpting, it's the perfect shape, size and angle for me to apply cream or powder contour onto the hollows of my cheeks, around my jaw line and down the sides of my nose, even though it is a super soft brush it's also very dense which really is great for precision and allows you to contour like a queen. 

Ultra Metals Eyeshadow Blender

The third and final brush in this collection is the Ultra Metals Eyeshadow Blender, this is simply incredible at blending out eyeshadow work especially in the crease area, the super soft bristles make light work at leaving a seamless finish and I'd go as far as saying this is up there with my all time favourite eyeshadow blending brushes! Of course you could still use the Eyeshadow Blender for precise highlighting and blending in concealer but I just adore it for eyeshadow work.

Foundation & Base Blending Sponge

The final piece of the Ultra Sculpt & Blend Collection is the AMAZING blending sponge. This little beauty hasn't left my side since I got it in terms of applying my foundation and concealer because it just leaves me with an airbrushed, flawless finish. To use the sponge I simple submerge it in water until it doubles in size, squeeze the excess water out and use the rounded bottom and sides to press/bounce my base makeup on, the pointed tip of the sponge is really handy too and great for precision, it really gets into those hard to reach areas like around the nose and eye area, ohhhh I do love this little sponge A LOT.

Overall I'm so happy with this little collection and I'd really recommend picking it up if your looking for some great quality, affodable makeup brushes that cover most bases, it would also make a fab Christmas present or stocking filler too. I must add since using the brushes I haven't experienced any shedding bristles at all and I did give them a quick little wash last night and they washed well and still feel nice an soft against my skin too.

The Makeup Revolution Ultra Sculpt & Blend Collection retails for £14.99 and can be found on the Superdrug website or the Makeup Revolution site.

Pink Parcel Subscription Box Review | It's A Monthly Thing! ♥

Hey beaut's!

Now you all know how much I love a good ole subscription box and a couple of weeks ago I came across a new kind of 'Monthly' subscription box that I'd never heard of before, one which is designed to make 'that time of the month' something you might start looking forward to, wait what!!!! Pink Parcel* have come up with the great idea to not only deliver the essentials you will need for your period but also some beauty and lifestyle treats each month that will make you feel a little bit brighter.

The way Pink Parcel works is very easy and convenient, firstly when you sign up to the subscription on-line you select which brand of towels or tampons you would prefer, then you select the date of when you period is due, there will be three dates to choose from so you will either receive your box at the beginning of the month, mid month or towards the end and it will always arrive 3-5 days before your monthly cycle arrives. The box is also designed to fit through most letter boxes which means you don't have to wait around for the postman and it comes discreetly packaged which is a bonus, it honestly couldn't be simpler. 

Upon opening my very first box I was pleasantly surprised how everything was laid out, everything came in little labelled compartments, the first box was the 'For You' box which I quickly dived into, I received the MUA Amour Palette, a Revlon Nail Polish in the shade Gray Suede, a Pink Parcel Moisturising Hand Sanitiser perfect to pop into my handbag, a selection of Bandzee hair ties, two Amie Skincare samples, a Mad Beauty Hand Warmer, an I Love.... Perfectly Peach sample, Mini Nail Files, a mini organic chocolate bar and finally a Tea Pigs Chocolate Flake Tea... Wowza, now that is a lot of treats! The next box was the 'For Bedtime' box which contains five long plus sanitary towels perfect to use throughout the night. Then theres the 'For Now' drawstring bag that is designed to be popped into your handbag and contains a few of your daily sanitary towels and a hand full of panty liners. Then we move onto the 'For Later' box which contains 14 of your main sanitary towels that you'll need throughout your cycle and lastly theres the 'For Down There' box which this month contains a SASS Intimate Refreshing Mist, this will change each month though. 

As well as being super convenient Pink Parcel is also super affordable, your first box costs just £7.95 including delivery and then £12.95 each month thereafter which I think is really good considering how much you actually receive in your box, I worked out that roughly just for the MUA Palette, nail polish and SASS Mist alone is £19-ish, that's without the rest of the goodies or the sanitary items, how amazing is that!

What do you think of a 'monthly' box beaut's? I'd love to know your thoughts.