Lush Catastrophe Cosmetic' Fresh Face Mask' (and make your own face masks!)

Hello everyone!!

I have gone a little bit 'Lush' crazy recently. I have always been crazy about their bubble bars but had never really tried anything else until I went a bit mental in the Boxing Day sale last year and now I'm obsessed and just want to buy and try everything!!

So today for the first time ever I tried a Lush fresh face mask. I received it about a couple of weeks ago and popped it straight in the fridge as per the instructions and thought today, when I saw my horrible complexion in the mirror, that today was the day to crack it open!

The 'Catastrophe Cosmetic' face mask is meant to be a calming and moisturizing fresh face mask containing blueberries, calamine, chamomile, rose and almond oils and Irish moss gel (so lots of lovely, natural, fresh products). The pot costs £6.50 for 75g which seems a bit pricey and when I received what appeared to be a very small pot through in the post I thought that I won't get much out of this! But after using it today I realised I will actually get a lot of use from this.

When I opened the tub today, there seemed to be a layer of water on the top and I wasn't sure whether I was meant to just mix that in or not, so I just poured half of it out and mixed the other half in with my fingers before applying onto my face (excluding eye area!)

Firstly, it smells lovely, it's quite difficult to describe the exact smell , but to me it reminded me of earthiness , natural scent with a hint of sweetness from the blueberries which I really liked. It applied fairly easily and evenly and I left it on for ten minutes.

I love the feeling of a face mask when it starts to dry and your skin feels like your having a face lift and like it's being tightened but once it has dried don't make the mistake I made of trying to smile for the camera because as soon as I changed my facial expression a lot of the facemask cracked and loads of little bits just fell off and onto the floor (hence my non-expression in the picture!!).

To take the facemask off, I ran a small sink-full of warm water and applied to my face with my hands rubbing my face in circular motions to try and get any last benefit I could out of it by 'rubbing it in' whilst rubbing it off. After I had taken the majority of the mask off I then used fresh warm water and dipped my Liz Earle muslin cloth and wiped any remaining mask off of my face before splashing my face with cold water to close my pores.

My skin felt really nice after, it felt tighter and really soft so I was very happy with it. I'm not sure what it will do for my spots (Since I started a new medication last year I developed acne on my chin and of both sides of my forehead) as it was my first time using it but I'm hoping if I use it on a more regular basis that they will disappear (one can pray!!!). I also have developed sensitive skin in the last few years and this did not irritate it whatsoever.

I would definitely recommend this product as even though it appears a tad pricey you will get a fair amount of face masks from this pot, I reckon about 5 , maybe more, and you are paying for natural fresh ingredients and surely it's worth paying that little bit extra to treat your skin! Obviously as I've only used it once, I can't tell you if it worked on my spots/acne but it really did make my skin look/feel great and 'glowy' afterwards so it must be doing some good! Maybe I will start using it once a week and edit this post to let you guys know how it works on spots!! (But if anyone has any great tips for getting rid of acne/scars please do let me know in the comments below!!!)


If you really can't afford to treat yourself with a lovely Lush mask then here are some great ideas for 'homemade face masks, which are simple , cheap and effective to do yourself.

1. Honey and Lemon

You will need one tablespoon of honey, half a squeezed lemon and 1 tabelspoon of brown sugar. Mix together, massage into your face for 30 seconds to a minute and leave on for 5-10 minutes eh voila!

2. Banana and Oats!

You will need one banana, 2 tablespoons of oats (porridge oats should work!), 1 tablespoon of yogurt and 1 tablespoon of honey. Mash the banana then mix all of the other ingredients in. Again, massage into face and leave for 10 minutes,


Hope you enjoyed this post! Is anyone else as much as a Lush addict as me? Let me know!

Adios!!

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UK Glossybox April 2015

Hello everyone, I just realised I have not posted a blog in 2 years!! How terrible am I!

I think it's because of lack of time and I've been dealing with a few health problems but I've decided to make more of an effort again and have also started up a Youtube channel

Today I am going to talk about what I received in this months 'Glossybox'


If you don't know what Glossybox is, Glossybox is a monthly beauty subscription service with a bespoke box of 5-6 luxury-sized cosmetic and wellness samples hand-picked by our beauty experts and mailed directly to your door. It costs £10 a month plus p&p which I think is an additional £2.95, but it does work out cheaper if you subscribe to a 3,6 or 12 month plan.

If you just want to see what I received with no opinions then check out my 'YouTube video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L7x0_OKUB38

So this months theme was 'Hollywood Iconic Edition' which I think got everyone very excited, including me.

Firstly the box is soooo pretty! I have no idea what I am going to use it for or put in it but I will find something! My box has Marilyn Monroe on the front , and the bottom half of the box is a very pretty baby blue colour. So the box in itself got me super excited and I was expecting GREAT things! But I'm not sure if great is what I got........



To be honest I was a bit 'meh' when I saw the products


'Lord & Berry' Lipstick Pencil in 'Kiss':
 So this is probably the best product in my box and I think it fits the theme well. It is a Hollywood matte red colour and lipstick pencils have a good staying power. To be honest it's not for me because my lips are super dry, a pencil just dries them out more and emphasises every chapped bit on my lip and also I have super tiny lips, and reds just make them look even smaller (I'm a pink girl!) but I think this will make a nice gift for someone and if I didn't have such horrible lips I would definitely wear this. Glossybox says this is worth £10 but I have found it online at ASOS for £8.

Astral Original Face and Body Moisturiser
..............not much so say about this I am SOOOO disappointed with this. Firstly it's a sample size of 50ml, and although I think it does the job well and is an ok everyday cream (although I'm not keen on the smell) I wouldn't exactly call this a luxury beauty sample. Glossybox says a pot of 200ml costs £3.89 but you can actually get it in Poundland for £1 (obviously!) and someone has posted saying they have found the full size product in Home Bargains for 38p!!! So for me that is a bit of a rip off and a bit insulting putting this in the box if we wanted cheap products we would be going to Poundland not be paying £12.95 a month to Glossybox!

POP Beauty Kajal Eyeliner Pen: 
So this is a sooty black kohl pencil with a smudger on the other end (I love smudgers!). Firstly I don't think you can have enough black eyeliners, they will always get some use but really I am an Urban Decay girl. As I am a dance teacher I need an eyeliner that won't budge with sweat and Urban Decay eyeliners seem to be the only ones that work for me so I don't end up looking like a panda at the end of classes! But overall an ok product that will get used. It does look quite cheap though, but Glossybox reckons it's worth £6.50, I can't find it online apart from on American websites but I have found similar on Amazon for about £3.

Color Club Barely There Nail Polish

Hmmmmm another cheap nail polish, in a horrible colour!!! (Sorry to anyone who likes the colour) but this just does not suit my skin tone whatsoever! I think it will just make me look like I have corpse hands. I know nudes are all in but I think you have to have the right skin tone to pull it off and unfortunately that is not me. Glossybox says it is worth £4.10, but again like the eye liner above you can only get it from America. I feel like Glossybox is trying to fob us off with American products that we won't have heard the name of but they are just like an American Bargain Basement lines!



And last but not least , possibly the WORST product................


IDC body lotion in 'WARM LAVENDER'
Yer because I am about 80 years old? Again another really cheap brand in a horrible scent that I don't even know if I would give it to either of my Nans! So this is a full size product supposedly worth £3.59 for the 100ml we were sent. It is like something out of the really cheap, tacky unwanted Christmas presents that you can get, again I can't even find it online so I don't know what Glossybox or thinking of where they are getting these products from! I have found one similar product, an IDC body lotion in vanilla, on a European website but for 780ml it only costs about £3 so I doubt our 100ml is worth £3.59, more like 50p if that!



I know some people got a lot better products in their boxes (eg a luxury face cream and bath pearls) so some people were very happy with their box this month, but we all pay the same price so I'm not sure why some people ended up with luxury brands and others, like myself, ended up with the Poundland version :-/ Overall I reckon my box was probably worth about £10 in total if that really....

What's going on Glossybox?? I hate to moan and I feel bad having a Glossybox rant but I have been subscribing to Glossybox for about 9 months and this is by far the worse box, and actually made me hugely tempted to unsubscribe but I have enough Glossydots for a free box so I will give them one more chance!

Anyways I will post another unboxing next month so I will let you know if it improves....I have had a lot of great Glossyboxes to be fair but recently they've been putting in a lot of full size products (which sounds good!) but they have been really cheap brands so it's a full size product worth about £2 that I would never ever have purchased normally or use. I know they have had a lot of complaints about this month's Glossybox and usually when that happens the next month is great! So to make the most of that, if you would like to subscribe to Glossybox  click the link below and it will take you through to the subscription page.............

http://www.glossybox.co.uk/referal?CI=MTc0OTA1

Anyways sorry about the moany first blog post back! I promise I will have some more positive fabulous things to tell you about soon :-D

Comment below to let me know what you thought of your Glossybox this month and what products you received and am I wrong about any of the products I got?? Are any of the ones I weren't so keen on, actually amazing????

Adios!

John Frieda Smooth Start Frizz Ease Review

Hi everyone , so I am a 'Bzzagent' which means every now and then I get sent products for free to test out to give my completely honest review on so this is what I am going to do here for you!

Now I have extremely thick hair, quite long and it is uncontrollable, it tangles so easily and it frizzes up like a lions mane and in the picture below is what my hair is like after having a hair wash and leaving it to dry naturally (which is what I do because I either can't be bothered , or I just don't have the time to sit down and blow dry my hair!)

As you can see it is ridiculously frizzy and horrible , so I usually just tie it back most of the time so I don't have to deal with it because it's such a mission to do anything with, so when I was told I was going to be sent the John Frieda Frizz Ease range, I was hoping this was the dream product that would end all my hair dramas but I was quite dubious as usually I try every frizz preventing shampoo/conditioner from other brands anyway which has zero effect whatsoever! But I though hey, what have I got to lose!

I was sent Frizz Ease^® Smooth Start^® Hydrating Shampoo, Conditioner, Original 6 Effects Serum and the Secret Agent^® Perfecting Crème.

Now this is what each one claims to do:

Cleanse and condition with Frizz Ease^® Smooth Start^® Hydrating Shampoo & Conditioner

·         Nourishes each strand of hair to replenish lost moisture and restore hair’s natural defence against frizz

·         Contains Frizz-Mending complex and natural olive oil

·         Leaves parched tresses silky, shiny and highly manageable — all without residue

Treat your wet hair with Frizz Ease^® Original 6 Effects Serum

·         Instantly transforms dry, frizzy, or chemically-treated hair into incredibly smooth, glossy hair thanks to an exceptional blend of silicones

·         Provides 6 essential benefits: eliminates frizz, protects from humidity, protects from heat damage, smoothes, hydrates and tames

Style your dry tresses with Frizz Ease^® Secret Agent^® Perfecting Crème

·         Replaces natural oils lost to blow-drying and daily styling stress

·         Works instantly on dry hair to camouflage imperfections by smoothing away dullness, puffiness and frayed split ends

·         Creates ultra-glossy, supple hair with an incredibly healthy-looking finish

And thus began my new hair regime!

Shampoo and conditioner use as normal (obviously) they don't really smell of anything, just clean and fresh really which is obviously what everyone wants but I am one of those people who love the extra scented shampoos that makes you walk round smelling like a big coconut, but lack of coconut with lemongrass or something else was something I could live with if it means I lose the frizz. Although it’s a smaller tube than a lot of other brands sell it does go a long way and I managed to get the same amount of washes from this than I would with a larger bottle from a different brand (about 6 washes with the shampoo and about 3 and a bit with the conditioner).

Anyway, once you’re out of the shower, whilst your hair is still wet, is when you use the original 6 effects serum. You squeeze about 2 pumps into your fingertips and work it into your hair concentrating on the ends of your hair (don’t work it into your roots or you will have greasy hair!), again easy to use, not much effort required = great! This also is good value for money because this lasts for ages! As you only have to use such a tiny amount each time, 

And lastly once your hair is dry (I left my hair to dry naturally as usual!), is when you use the Secret Agent Perfecting Crème. Sounds random but smells like a salon! That gorgeous smell of when you’ve just had a wash and blow dry at a salon is the smell I would use to sum this up. Again just work a little bit into the ends of your hair just to finish the regime off. It is perfect to finish off your hair ready for a night out, and again is very easy to use with minimal effort! This made my hair feel extra silky and smooth, and after using this, when subjecting my hair to the elements, it really protected it and prevented it from frizzing up!

So I completed the regime and voila from the picture to the side you can see the massive difference, my hair actually looks sleek and smooth and normal! And I can actually wear it down! This was after a whole day or being out and about, in the drizzle and wind and it didn’t frizz up whatsoever!

The only thing I am not 100% keen on from the range is the serum as I felt it made my hair feel a little bit greasy and usually I only have to wash my hair once or twice a week but I had to wash if after about 2 days after putting it on. When I next used the regime , I left it out and my hair didn’t feel remotely greasy at all for about 4 days after! But this may be because of my hair type, or maybe I put too much in, it might well be a godsend to someone else. Everything else in the regime I absolutely love!

It’s available pretty much everywhere (well everywhere they sell shampoo and conditioner!) and at the moment as it’s new out, there are a lot of deals going on so get them now as with no deal they are quite expensive per item (and if you are poor like me unfortunately you can’t prioritise hair products) but on offer, I would grab 50!

I would 100% recommend this range if you have any frizz dramas whatsoever , because it may seem like it’s a hopeless battle but John Frieda Frizz Ease range means we can win the war on our battle with the frizz! Yay!

John Frieda I salute you!

My favourite winter warmer recipe

It's so horrible and cold outside so I thought I would write about my favourite winter warmer recipe
Now as you will know from my oreo cheesecake blog that I am not a fan of over complicated recipes, because I am too lazy to bother with them and this is no different, this is going to be an easy peasy but super tasty warming recipe!

AKA Kirsty's fabulous beef in red wine sauce
Now I do this recipe in a slow cooker (best invention ever for lazy cookers like myself) but you can always pop it in a casserole dish

Ingredients
Brisket of beef
Cheapest bottle of red wine available
3 garlic cloves
beef stock
red onion


How to do :
Chop red onion and garlic up then throw all the ingredients into a slow cooker for about 6/8 hours eh voila done! The beef will literally melt in your mouth! And I hate red wine but I LOVVEEEEE this recipe so if your not a red wine fan either do not be put off!
Shortest recipe in the world? But one of the tastiest, if you want your sauce to be a bit thicker you can always add a couple of cheeky gravy granules into the mix. I usually serve with a serving of sweet potato mash (yummy),honey glazed parsnips and a few of Aunt Bessie's yorkshires- Lovely!

The THIRSTY watch

Hi everyone haven't blogged in a while, life has been crazy busy and I've had lots of dance competitions to prepare my students for but now I have a couple of weeks off! Yay!

I wanted to blog about this new watch I got from Burns Jewellers (http://www.burnsjewellersgroup.com/) and I loved this watch so much I wanted to tell you guys about it.

Firstly I just want to big up Burns Jewellers, really good customer service, item arrived very quickly in excellent condition and they seem a friendly bunch of people = exactly what you want from a company

So this watch is called a 'Thirsty' watch (http://www.burnsjewellersgroup.com/search/thirsty#:page1 ) and costs £57.50 and comes in 17 different colours so I was very spoilt for choice but eventually settled on the 'Thirsty Dragon Red Strap Watch' (which actually is more fuchsia pink) and it is also unisex (my boyfriend is desperate for an orange or yellow one now he's seen mine!) .

So the watch arrived and I have to say I loveeeee the 'drink bottle' style packaging, it's so cool with the lid and bottom matching the colour of the watch you have chosen and such a good idea and once you've taken the watch out it has a slot at the back so you can use it as a money box after = very good idea. On the back it says 'Thirsty watches are designed in Paris by professional watch manufacturers. Such fundamental values as quality, comfort and aestheticism are part of their DNA'

It is made from plastic and silicone but it feels really soft and it has that kind of feel where you can't stop touching it because it feels so nice! (Or maybe that's just me :-/ lol) and like the packaging says it is a very comfortable watch to wear and it doesn't feel bulky and I love that the strap isn't bulky either. It has everything you need in a watch- The time (Obviously!) and the date and for this colour Thirsty watch the winder to adjust the time/date has a cute little star on (Ps excuse the 2nd photo , a bit blurry it is sooo difficult to take a photo with my left hand without shaking!! )

A lot of people think it is a similar style to a certain other watch on the market mentioning no names but I can compare because my boyfriend owns one of 'those' and he thinks in comparison Thirsty watches are much better quality and seem a lot more durable. Mines been great so far think I've had it a month or 2 now and it's kept the right time and date perfectly (always good!!)

It also comes with a 2 year warrantee so it's always good to have that peace of mind so check them out I'm sure someone in your life could do with one of the new Thirsty watches :-) - maybe Christmas present idea??

Adios!

Kirsty's TOP makeup tip- you will thank me forever!

My top makeup tip is BLUE EYELINER!

Many people in the world believe that white eyeliner on your waterline is what is needed to make the whites of your eyes whiter and to pop but they are WRONG!

 The whites of your eyes aren't pure white so by using a white eyeliner you are highlighting the IMPERFECTIONS of your eyes and making the whites of your eyes look yellowish = not good!! You will make your eyes look old and horrible

BUT by using a light baby BLUE eyeliner you are accentuating the white of your eye and make them look beautiful and look bright and awake = WORLD'S PROBLEMS SOLVED!

You can all thank me later ;-)