Hair

Free product joys

August 13, 2013

It’s always sad when festival season finishes, however it is made slightly better when you come back to parcels that contain free things!!!

On my return from Wacken, I received my two free products after signing up to Birchbox:

Wen Cleansing Conditioner, which I confess I used during my first shower back at home and it felt amazing! I was also filled with joy at receiving another L’Occitane moisturiser. I already have one of these from a Glossybox a few months ago and have been using it sparingly so I am pleased this has now been replenished.

To make things even better, upon returning from Bloodstock yesterday, I received this through the letterbox:

A free Maybelline “The Rocket Volum’ Express” mascara. This was from a competition I had entered and clearly forgotten about. I have resisted opening it to test it out for now so I am sure this won’t be the last you will be seeing of this!

Totally hellbent for bonus postal goodies

-Pants

Hair

Superdrugs Colour performance permanent creme colour.

July 21, 2013

Since hair dye day was fast approaching, I stood for at least 10 minutes in Superdrug looking for my usual blonde to lighten my roots. Normally a user of Live colour foam, much to my dismay, they had sold out. So it was either pay an extortionate price of £7.99 for L’Oreal or something equally expensive, or try out this Superdrug blonde for less than a fiver – meaning I could spend the money I saved on more shinies!

Always up for trying new products, I put this on Friday night. In terms of coverage and application, it actually went on quite well.

I left it on for the stated length of time but instead of the usual “white blonde” I get, I ended up with a dark ash blonde. The longer I left it, the more it did nothing until eventually I had to wash it off.

The colour wasn’t -too- bad although much darker than usual. It was only when I put the red over the top the following day, that I noticed it wasn’t applying as well as it usually does.

Now my roots look a lot darker than usual and the coverage of the directions hair dye was not good at all! I had almost reserved myself to the fact that it may just be a “bad batch” until I turned up at Gem’s house, and her roots were exactly the same!

I am severely disappointed in this product and will not be using it again. If you want that all over dark ash blonde look, then I’m sure this is the one for you, but lightening your roots for more extreme hair colours I would steer well clear of this. I will most definitely be returning to my Live colour mousse.

Totally hellbent for stress free hair dye days

-Pants

Hair

Superdrug’s Red Colour Conditioner

July 21, 2013

I’m a fan of trying out anything that promises to keep my locks red and avoiding the inevitable of the washed out orange and pink parrot look.

A few weeks ago, on one of many quests to procure hair items, I stumbled across this in the hair dye aisle. Initially I saw the “brown” conditioner, but noticed a red one hiding behind it. Looking around I grabbed it, studied the bottle and accidentally dropped it into my basket. I figured it couldn’t hurt to try it at the bargain price of 99p.

I’ve been waiting about three weeks to use it now for when I had fresh hair. Since it was hair day yesterday, I used it for the first time. I have to say, although it is too soon to notice any colour prolonging affects, I’m pretty impressed!

Normally I have to shampoo my hair when I rinse the dye off else it feels dry and brittle, this time I didn’t use any and just shoved a nice splodge of this stuff on. Left it for about 5 minutes whilst I did other shower like things, and rinsed. I wasn’t wholly convinced at first as my hair didn’t feel particularly soft, but after leaving it to dry (having naturally curly hair), waking up in the morning with a mass of knotted hair and brushing it ready to straighten for this mornings shoot, my hair feels absolutely amazing! It is so soft and feels beautiful!

I’m going to stock up on these and it will be coming with me as an “essential” to Wacken next week!

You can buy the Superdrug colour conditioner range in store – unfortunately I have been unable to find it online.

Totally hellbent for preventing hair fade

-Pants

Beauty Boxes, Hair, Skincare

Latest in Beauty – Little Beauty Box

July 18, 2013

I love my beauty boxes, but sometimes waiting a whole month for the next one can be so tedious! Latest in Beauty offer two different types of box that offer some much needed “ooooh a shiny box” in between Glossybox and Birchbox deliveries.

Firstly are their LIB collections, themed sets of pre-determined products where you can see exactly what you are going to get before ordering. The collections are usually somewhere between £7-£20 depending on the nature of the theme, but often sell out very quickly! Amie got her hands on the Glamour Beauty Edit which you can read about here.

Second is the package than popped through my letterbox this morning, the Little Beauty Box.

The Little Beauty Box consists of three small samples, and as with the LIB collections you get to see what you will receive in advance, in fact you get to pick which products you want before committing to the box. There is no recurring subscription as payment is taken via a premium text message for £1.50.

Here’s what I chose.

Liz Earle Superskin Concentrate

With an ingredient list that is almost entirely natural essential oils I had to give this a shot. The concentrate is a aromatic oil intended for use as part of the evening skincare routine, and proclaims to clear toxins, reduce puffiness, boost circulation, encourage cell renewal and aid lymphatic drainage.

It smells gorgeous and is a generous 2ml vial of sample, so enough for a few nights at least.

Lavera Liposome Intensive Cream

Again, it was the organic, natural ingredients that drew me towards picking a wrinkle cream that I don’t really need. I received three 1ml sachets, yet somehow they aren’t nearly as exciting as the lovely packaging from Liz Earle.

Curiosity made me open one straight away and the rose scent is just gorgeous, it did feel a little too greasy for my skin, however I will be donating these to Amie’s somewhat dryer skin where I think they will find a happier home!

Aveda Invati Exfoliating Shampoo & Thickening Conditioner

You can opt for one of your samples to be a surprise, and with nothing in the third option making me particularly excited that’s what I went for.

These cute little 10ml tubes smell absolutely amazing, and if my hair takes a liking to them I just might have to go for a full sized based on that alone!

You can order a LIB little beauty box here for £1.50.

Totally hellbent for smelling like a herb garden thanks to my organic picks!

– Gem

Beauty Boxes, Festivals, Hair, Make-up, Nails

July 2013 Glossybox

July 13, 2013

Glossybox day is always the most exciting day of the month!

I’ve been doubly excited about the July box since I saw the gorgeous turquoise print a few days ago as part of the “ready for summer” theme, and I’m glad to say the contents were just as exciting!

After a long day in the sun at work organising a performance for some pupils at my music school, I was filled with glee at my lovely blue box. Despite my hot, sweaty, impatient demeanour I took my time drawing that lovely blue ribbon to reveal the treasures inside.

I am happy to say I will use everything inside the box, in fact I’d used the first item within seconds of spotting it!

Anatomiocals spray misty for me facial spritz

Anatomicals is not a brand I’ve heard of before but I rushed to cover my face in this cooling lavender and peppermint spray the moment I realized what it was. I was still wearing a full face of make-up at the time and it cooled me down and made my face feel refreshed without budging my war paint even a bit!

Alterna Haircare bamboo style boho waves tousled texture mist

I love the wavy just-come-from-the-beach-or-alternatively-from-a-vicious-headbanging-session look so I’m sure I’ll get lots of use out of this. It has a very light summery scent so I’m sure I’ll enjoy that regardless of how good it is at giving me big blue summery waves.

Pukka Ayurveda radiance serum

I’ve become slightly less excited about skincare items in my Glossybox as I find I never really get a chance to properly try them out. I have so many skincare samples and minis I fear I’ll never get around to really giving them a go, but the tripple whammy of Wacken > Bloodstock > Sunkfest next month means I should have plenty of reasons to pack my skincare minis and leave my full sized staples at home!

Ciate paint pot in “Pocket Money”

I’ve been meaning to try a Ciante polish for a long time, but begrudge £9.00 for something I will use one or two times then relegate to the back of my nail varnish drawer, so this was a nice surprise.

I love the warm neutral shade, and the packaging is very pretty however my boyfriend broke the trademark bow within two seconds of seeing it proclaiming “I want to eat it, it looks like dessert”…..

Coola Organic Suncare Collection mineral face SPF 20 rose essence tint

I hate hate hate the feeling of oily sun lotion on my face and sadly stick to foundations with SPF rather than a dedicated cream, reluctantly using a light spray sun protection in the hottest of weather. This however looks like it might be my new favourite product!

The full size product is a tad on the pricey side at £29.99 got 50ml as you have to throw away suncare products every year, but if it protects my face and keeps my skin from looking like an oil slick I might be swayed.

Overall verdict

Although I prefer a mix of more make-up products I’m really happy and impressed with this box, and I think I will get a lot of use out of it on my adventures next month!

You can order a Glossybox here for £10 (+ P&P) per monthly box.

Totally hellbent at almost being set for adventures thanks to my new miniatures!

– Gem