No 7 Beautiful Skin Day + Night Cream

I spotted these on a 3 for 2 offer in Boots, and picked up the day cream, night cream, and BB cream (review to come soon!). I find that my skin is definitely on the dry side and although there was an option for normal-dry, I thought I'd play it safe and go for the dry-very dry, a little more moisture couldn't hurt right?

I'll start with the No7 Beautiful Skin Day Cream, I actually quite like this. I'll use it on a morning after quickly washing my face with water and spritzing on my Lush Eau Roma Water. It's not extremely heavy on the skin, but I do find I need to leave it on for that extra five minutes before putting on any makeup. Moisture-wise, it did last throughout the day and I didn't notice any tightness later in the evening. One thing I do like is the SPF 15 factor. It's maybe a little on the low side, but anythings better than nothing! The day cream is branded as 'hypo-allergenic', which is just a made up term that cosmetic companies use to sound better. No, really. My skin wasn't sore after using this, but it did increase redness on my cheeks and nose.

The No7 Beautiful Night Cream on the other hand, was awful. It did moisturise my skin as I'd expect it to, but it stung so badly each time that I've had to stop using it. Literally above my eyes and across my cheek bones would burn up every time I used this. Even my boyfriend tried some and said the same was happening to him. I find it pretty weird how a company can call it's products 'hypo-allergenic' when there are no official tests or standards it must go through. It's like a food company calling there food meat free, when in fact there could be meat in their products, but there are no regulations. I just feel pretty let down, and I wished I'd picked up something else in that 3 for 2 offer. And for £13.50, there really shouldn't be anything in a cream that could cause a reaction.

I don't think I'll be repurchasing these products. I really wanted to like them, and although the day cream is nice, it's not amazing enough to warrant a holy grail status. And the night cream, well.

Available in store and online, Day Cream RRP £12.50 and Night Cream RRP £13.50

This Week #2

I haven't written a 'this week' post in ages! I've been pretty busy in between exams, probably not the best idea when I should have been revising but it's better than being stressed out!

Trying to shift a few lbs / Kiss Nail Wraps / The Valleys (my little guilty pleasure!) / Ed's American Diner at the Metro Centre / Mrs Beetons Book of Household Management (1901!) / Mad Men / Alice in Wonderland ring / The Great Gatsby, amaaaazziiing / Graphic Eyeliner Tutorial 

Budget Beauty: Pretty Perfect Twist and Out Nail Polish Remover

I have a little naughty habit of browsing poundland whenever I can, I mean, I don't specifically travel into town just to go to poundland but if I'm in town for other things, I have to look in. I just love the thought of picking up a good beauty bargain, and when I saw this Pretty Perfect Twist and Out it went straight in the basket. It instantly reminded me of the Bourjois Magic Nail Polish Remover. I've never tried that so I can't compare the two, but I will give you my opinion on this.

I really like this, it just simplifies the process of removing nail varnish and means that even if I run out of cotton wool I can still take off my nail polish. To use I simply stick my nail in and with the other hand twist it around a couple of times. It removes 90% of nail polish, occasionally leaving some near the cuticle or some stains (which is probably my own fault for not using a base coat). The smell isn't overpowering, and I've chucked it in an overnight bag a few times with no leakage afterwards. 

My only bugbear with this product is that my nails and fingers feel quite dry after using it. Because you stick your whole finger in, the liquid does get absorbed by your skin a little. But this is the version with acetone; there are others available online that are acetone free so I'd expect the dryness to disappear. My usual routine with this is to remove any polish, wash and moisturise my hands, and then reapply a coat of nail hardener to diminish any chances of nail breakage. For £1, I can't really complain. To put things into perspective, I could buy 5 of these for the equivalent of 1 Bourjois Magic Nail Polish Remover. I think that's pretty good value!

Available from some Poundland stores, on SkintasticBeauty for £1 or Amazon from £1.99

Exam Stress Haul

I get quite stressed around exam time, in the past I've had panic attacks and made myself quite ill over it all. This is my first year at uni, and it's been a little easier as my exams have been more spread out but I still harbor loads of worries at the back of my mind. One thing that does cheer me up (until I look at my bank balance anyway!) is going shopping and treating myself to some odd bits here and there. These are some recent purchases I've made. I can't wait to review them, I'm already in love with a few!

Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum / Lush Eau Roma (repurchase, read my review here!) / No 7 Day and Night creams / No 7 BB Cream / Real Techniques Powder Brush / Body Shop Highlighter / Poundland Purchases: Nail Drying Spray + Nail Polish Remover / Body Shop ColourGlide Lipstick / Barry M TMLP Lipstick / Frizz Ease Hair Serum / Lipcote / Lipstick Queen 'Hello Sailor' 

MAC Select Cover Up Concealer

I went into MAC with the intention of buying the pro longwear concealer, but ended up coming out with this instead. This was my first MAC skin purchase, and I got matched with NW20. I was hoping this product would cover any redness before or after I put my foundation on. It certainly does that, but I have one issue with it.

I love the formula, and a little goes quite far (which is a plus considering the price!). It does dry quickly so you have to blend it in, it works amazingly with my Real Techniques Expert Face Brush but I think it would be just as good blended with your fingers. I like how it dries quite matte and feels weightless on the skin.

But my bugbear is how the colour changes. For me anyway, I'd apply it in the morning and it would match my jawline and the rest of my face. Then by mid afternoon I'd notice it had oxidised and my cheeks looked muddy/orangey. For the price and the company behind this product, that is something I would not expect. I've worn it a good few times with different combinations of primers, foundations and powders, and the same thing keeps happening. If anyone could give me tips on how to reduce this, I'd be very thankful. I don't fancy wasting a nearly full tube! Elsewise, I don't think I'll be repurchasing, or if I did reconsider, I'd ask for a sample in a lighter colour!

Available online and in store for £14.50

Graphic Eyeliner

I've been saying I want to try more tutorial posts, rather than posting reviews all the time, but I've been really busy with exams at uni. However, I found the time the other morning to try something a little different.

I've never done graphic eyeliner before, ever! I usually stick with a cat flick or something simple, so for my first attempt I'm really pleased! I saw this floating around on pinterest and this looked the easiest to recreate. It was really easy to do the first eye, but trying to match the second one was a little more difficult. I know they're not exactly symmetrical but if I was doing this look for a night out, I'm sure no one would notice anyway!

How I Created This Look

I started with a freshly washed face and applied my base: MAC Select Cover-Up on my nose, cheeks and blended onto my eyelids. I then applied Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum lightly all over my face. I filled out my eyebrows with the Seventeen Brow Sculpting Pencil.

Now onto the eyes. The only product I used for this look was my trusty Rimmel Exaggerate Liquid Eyeliner. I started by dotting the points of my eye where the gap would be, then extending the line to each corner. I then took those initial points and drew a line straight up from them (as straight as I could!). The inner part was a pretty simple shape to draw, but the cat flick was slightly harder. I'd recommend having plenty of cotton buds or makeup wipes on hand to correct any mistakes! I chose not to wear any mascara for this look so that the gap where my eyelid showed through would be even more contrasted with the black eyeliner; but you can choose to do anything!

Finally I used Benefit Dallas to contour cheeks and around my forehead.

Voila! 

Have you created any graphic eyeliner looks? Would you like to see more from me in the future? Comment below!

Stylfile S Nail File Review

I apologise for how used the file looks, I've been testing out this nail file since the #northmeetup and only got round to taking photos of it the other week! Like I mentioned in my Kiss Nail Wraps review I used to be terrible for biting my nails. I used to play the violin so they had to be short and I still to this day hate using clippers on my fingernails, it just sends shivers down my spine! 

Anyway back to the Stylfile S Nail File. Initially I thought: 'how the hell are you supposed to use this?' I understood the curve giving you a better shape but it looks so fiddly! Well it was easier than I thought. In fact it was so easy that I threw my straight files out. Let me say this now, I don't think this is the nail file for you if you like square shape nails. But I've always liked a natural curve, and this gave me that with minimal effort. 

I always found it really difficult to shape the corners of my nails with straight files, but because this is already in an S shape it just happens without needing any particular focus. There is a coarser side for filing excess away and then a smooth side that's perfect for fine tuning the shape. It's made everything so much easier, and I know I'll definitely pick up another when this one wears down! 

Available on Amazon for £2.99 or Boots for £4.49