Spoil Yourself Sunday

Sunday.  The only day of the week that I have completely to myself; no work commitments, no nothing if I wanted to.  Today has been a bit of a busy one for me actually.  I got up earlier than normal, had my breakfast before going out to clean both mine and Liam's car, stocked up on logs for our log burner and stacked them in our shed, washed and dried three loads of washing and even did a bit of tidying up.  So as I sit here leisurely tapping away whilst Liam plays on his Xbox guilt free, I can't tell you how much I'm looking forward to my 'me time.'  I've been making time for this for quite a few Sunday's now, and at the moment it features these...

It's not often that I have the time during the week to sit and relax in the bath, so come Sunday I am all about bath time.  After cleansing my face and taking any make up off if I've even been bothered to put it on, I like to sit in the bath with my hair piled on top of my head with a face mask on.  The face mask I've been using recently is the Seaweed Ionic Clay Mask from The Body Shop, but in all honesty I'm not entirely sure if I love it - it can sometimes be quite uncomfortable on the skin, dries it out lots so I can't leave it on too long and  I always have to follow with a hydrating toner and an oil afterwards.  I definitely think there is a face mask out there which will be perfect for my Sunday routine...let me know in the comments what your favourite is!

I love to use my absolute favourite LUSH product which is The Comforter Bubble Bar.  I get lots of bubbles from just crumbling a quarter of the bar under the hot tap, and it turns my bath water purpley pink!  It also smells like Vimto; very berry scented and I just find the scent really relaxing!

After having my bath and going through my skincare routine, I like to sit downstairs in my comfortable pyjamas and paint my nails.  I have been using the OPI Nail Envy for Sensitive and Peeling Nails as my base coat recently, which I much prefer to the Nails Inc Kensington Caviar Base Coat.  I've been neglecting my nails for a few months now, and they need to get some strength and length back in them so Nail Envy has been ideal.  When this runs out though, I think I'll be opting for the Original version.

For colour, what better way to spoil myself  than cracking out my Christian Louboutin Rouge Nail Lacquer.  Liam surprised me with this for Christmas, and I absolutely love it.  The colour is just the perfect red, and it's so glossy!  Plus the packaging is just beautiful...  It's definitely the most luxury beauty product I own, so fits perfectly into my 'Spoil Yourself Sunday' routine!

What's do you do on a Sunday to spoil yourself?

LUSH Jason and the Argan Oil Shampoo Bar

When I got the Jason and the Argan Oil Shampoo Bar for Christmas, I really wasn't expecting that much.  I'd never heard of a shampoo bar before, and the closest I've been to trying one was when I went for a Turkish Bath whilst on holiday in Turkey where I got brutally scrubbed with a bar of Olive Oil soap all over my sunburnt scalp before being drenched with a bucket of cold water after being steaming away in a steam room.  Ah memories.

All this aside...this shampoo bar was actually amazing, and you really do get your moneys worth with this LUSH product - you supposedly get eighty uses from one bar!  I've used mine so many times now I've lost count, and the bar still seems to be in pretty decent shape and seems to have a lot of life left in it.  Jason (for short) smells like the Rose Jam shower gel, but I don't find that the scent lingers in my hair unfortunately.  Also, I really wasn't expecting it, but for a solid shampoo this gives off the most amazing lather ever.

I have quite fine hair which tends to be lacking in any body whatsoever without a big of help, and found that using this alongside a separate conditioner really weighed down my hair.  Used on its own though, my hair looks super shiny, really healthy and even had a natural bounce whilst still feeling pretty soft.  I did notice that it really brought out the red tones in my hair, which I also quite like!  When ever I manage to finish this one, I'll definitely repurchase another along with a little storage tin - I currently use the bag I got it in to keep it safe, but a tin would be much better and would be perfect for taking this little guy on trips away!

I've already got my eye on the next shampoo bar I'd like to try - Montalbano, which was recommended to me to help keep product build up at bay.  I'm a regular user of dry shampoo, so it's something I'm always worried will be sitting on my scalp.  In fact, all of the shampoo bars on the LUSH website look to have incredible reviews of all of the bars so I think your best bet if you want to try them is to nip in store and see which is the one for you!

Have you tried a LUSH Shampoo Bar?

Favourites: January 2015

As promised, I'm starting off the year as I mean to go on and am sharing with you today the bits I've been loving this month!  I haven't done a favourites post since...I think it was July 2013.  I don't tend to buy myself bits too often, so I've always worried that I'd just have the same favourites month in month out, but with my mission to clear through my ridiculous stash of bits, I think I should have something different to share with you every month!

Starting with my ultimate favourite for this month - The Body Shop's Almond Body Butter.  I've had this in my stock for a while now, but had been working my way through other body moisturisers.  I can't even begin to say how much I love this body butter - it's super moisturising, but this one smells incredible.  Even though it's just almond, I feel like it smells a smidge like a cherry bakewell because it's also a bit sweet!  But because of all that...I'm absolutely gutted that this seems to have been discontinued.  I can't see it online, and when I asked The Body Shop they told me to check outlet stores and the sale in April - please let me know if you spot it!

The lip balm that I've loved this month is LUSH's Lip Service.  I got it for Christmas from Liam's parents and spoke about it in my LUSH Christmas Haul - I've never tried a lip balm from LUSH before but I really like it!  It smells a bit orangey, but it's not a tangy citrus scent...more of a sweet orange scent.  It's really helped my lips this month - they were seriously dry when I was poorly with the flu!  Revlon's Matte Balm in Sultry has been my lip shade of choice this month.  I have already spoken about it here, so I won't bang on about it again, but it's definitely one that's worth checking out if you're into the whole 90's lip look.

I have a review of this coming up soon, but don't wait for it - you need the Jouer Long Wear Creme Mousse Eyeshadow in your life.  I have the shade Dusk and I hardly wear anything else.  I bought the Maybelline Color Tattoo in On and On Bronze this month to see what the fuss was on that - it's got nothing on Jouer.  I've already got my eye on the rest of the shades, particularly Galaxy and Twilight!

This month, I also picked up my first Illamasqua Cream Pigment in the shade Delirium.  It was in the sale already, but I got an extra 15% off with my birthday discount code!  It's been my contour of choice since I bought it, and I can't see myself switching to anything else anytime soon - it's really long lasting, and creates a beautiful natural shadow on the face because of the grey undertones.  I've been applying it with the Eco Tools Complexion Blending Brush as it's perfect for contouring.  It's paddle shaped which makes it ideal for slipping under the cheekbones, and because the bristles aren't super dense you can easily blend upwards!

What have been your favourites this month?

LUSH Snowman Shower Jelly

I've said it before, but I'll say it again - I don't go to LUSH too often.  Lately though my Instagram has been filled with photos of what I've got from LUSH, but everything was either a gift I was lucky enough to receive either for Christmas or for my birthday, which was on the 12th January!

One of the bits that you might have spotted in my Christmas LUSH haul was the Snowman Shower Jelly.  I've never tried a shower jelly from LUSH before so it was all pretty new territory for me.  I didn't even realise that inside the pot, the jelly was actually a snowman shape that stays self preserved on its own!  I've been using him most days since getting him, and there's still a smidge of him left that hasn't melted down.  I'm actually quite surprised at how long he has lasted!

The Snowman smells really nice as you'd expect from LUSH; it's a fruity blackcurrant smell with some warming citrus scents powering through.  It's quite an unusual festive scent and it's not at all overpowering, it's just the right balance of sweet and citrus.  My skin is always left with a slight hint of the scent, but it doesn't linger around for long and my skin is left nice and smooth thanks to the carrot, bergamot and buchu oils that the Snowman is made with.

Compared to other shower gels I use, the Snowman was pretty hard to get a decent lather out of.  I often full body washed with my usual shower gel and then finished off my skin with the light lather of the Snowman to give my skin an added boost of moisture, focussing on dryer areas such as my shins and elbows.  I spotted on the pot that the Snowman was meant to have "plenty of shimmer" but I didn't notice even a hint of sparkle, but maybe they were just referring to the glisten of the oils that might be left on your skin?

As nice as the Snowman was though, I don't think I'll be picking another one up if he returns this year at Christmas - he was just so damn slippery!  It turned what would have been a pretty quick shower into quite the ordeal in trying to keep hold of the shower jelly!  I did love the scent though and the condition it left my skin feeling - I'd pick up the Snowman again if he came in true shower gel form or even a bubble bar, but I'll admit it wouldn't be as much fun!  The Snowman is no longer available this year, but I'm sure he'll be back this Christmas!

Did you manage to try the Snowman this year?

The Sick Day Skin Care Routine

This week hasn't been a great one as I've been plagued with the dreaded flu that has been making the rounds.  I've spent two days in bed watching the world go by from my window whilst watching a ridiculous amount of Friends.  Ten hours yesterday to be exact.  That's actually a little sickening writing that out.  But y'know.  Ill times and all that.

You might be thinking that fitting in a skincare regime when you feel so crap is a bit OTT, but I found that looking after my skin really helped in making me feel better in myself.  Don't get me wrong, I have spent the last three days completely make up free, and wearing very minimal make up on the days I made it into work, but my skin is feeling pretty peachy.

After cleansing, I started my day of lazing by applying my favourite eye cream which is the Balance Me Wonder Eye Cream.  I've raved about it here before, but it checks all of my boxes; smoothing, hydrating and brightening - brightening being the key here when we're severely lacking in energy.  I've been using The Body Shop's Soothing Aloe Day Cream for quite a while now, so kept it in my routine.  It's thicker than your usual day cream, but once applied feels really light and super hydrating.  I topped off my skin with Bioderma's Atoderm Cream but only applied it to the really dry patches on my skin which was mainly around my nose.  It really helped take care of the skin which had gotten sore from too much nose blowing!  I topped off my morning skin care with a swift application of LUSH's Lip Service Lip Balm to my super dry lips, ensuring that I did this straight after washing my hands seeing as it's a finger dip lip balm, and I don't fancy swiping my flu germs back into the pot.

The evening routine was also a pretty quick one.  I started the evening how I do every evening by using the Yes To Blueberries Eye Cream.  I like using this one in the evening as it's a bit richer than the Balance Me one and really helps to hydrate the areas around the eyes.  I follow that with the Vitamin E Moisture Cream from The Body Shop.  I haven't had this miniature too long, but I've already repurchased the full size!  It's really hydrating, but so light I could use it morning or evening and it smells really nice!

Following the Vitamin E Moisture Cream, I've been alternating between these two; the Origins Drink Up Intensive Overnight Mask and the ESPA Optimal Skin Pro Serum.  The Origins Drink Up Intensive Overnight Mask smells incredible and will probably always be a staple in my skincare stash.  I absolutely love using it, and my dehydrated skin is always thankful by the morning.  The ESPA Pro Serum is one that I don't see getting spoken about too much, but is a product that is a real skin treat.  I'm going to link you straight to the ESPA website to read up on the benefits of the serum as there are so many skin loving oils in there that my post would be ridiculously long if I tried to list them all, but it brightens the skin, enhances radiance, moisturises, soothes and protects just to name a few.  It really is an amazing product and one that I'll definitely be repurchasing despite its £48 price tag...  Finally, I slapped on some more of the Bioderma cream where needed - I'd definitely recommend picking one of these up, it's been amazing at sorting out my extreme dry skin areas.

So there we have it.  I'm feeling so much better today and have even ventured out of the house!  I'm back to work tomorrow, and hopefully having carried out these routines I won't look too grey and lack lustre...hopefully much better than I did on Thursday anyway!

Do you have a sick day skin routine?

The Christmas Lush Haul

I feel like I might be the odd one out when I say that I rarely buy from Lush.  Don't get me wrong, I love browsing in there and could happily buy one of everything, but I just find some of it so expensive for what it is that I usually end up leaving with nothing.  I was very spoilt this year at Christmas and amongst all of my other bits and bobs, I ended up with a nice stash of Lush products!

I haven't had chance to try them yet, but I thought I'd show you what I've got!  The Lush sale is on at the moment, and if you are very lucky you might manage to grab something if it catches your eye!  I don't think I got too much of the limited edition stuff though, so that's handy if I decide I want to restock!

First up, I got a bottle of Rose Jam Shower Gel, and a bottle of Happy Hippy Shower Gel.  Rose Jam is one I've heard so much about but never ever tried before.  It is limited edition unfortunately, but you can still try the scent in their Rose Jam Bubbleroon!  I'm not really big on rose scents, but this one is actually really pleasant.  It smells like sweet rose with a sharp floral scent coming from the geranium oil - really nice!  Happy Hippy is also amazing - it's really zesty and it would be perfect for waking you up in the morning!

Snowman Shower Jelly is the cutest thing I've ever seen.  I didn't realise it at first, but in the pot is actually a jelly shaped snowman!  It smells similar to my favourite Lush product The Comforter, but nowhere near as intense.  It's got the blackcurrant the same as The Comforter, but also has lemon and carrot oil.  This one is definitely a seasonal edition, but you might be lucky in the sales!

Sandstone is the one that looks like a frozen chunk of chicken stew, but is actually an exfoliating soap - sorry, but it's all I can think when I look at it!  It's not the most attractive, but it smells insane.  I think it smells a bit like a Lemon Drizzle Cake - sugary, full of citrus scents and for some reason I can smell a kind of buttery scent!

The green dome is the Sugar Scrub Body Scrub.  I'm not sure this is a scent for everybody, but I really love it.  It has scents of ginger, fennel and lavender which I think smells a bit like liquorice or aniseed.  I'm definitely looking forward to trying this!

The pink circle is Jason and the Argan Oil.  It's a solid shampoo!  I've never had a shampoo bar before, so this is another exciting one I'm looking forward to trying.  It has the same scent as Rose Jam, and is said to balance the scalp as well as soften and strengthen hair.

You Snap The Whip is the black square.  It's a charcoal based in-shower body butter and it smells incredible.  Kind of like a sweet and fruity bubblegum!  I'm really trying to up my body moisturising game - this will be perfect for those days that I just want to get out the shower and get straight into bed.  It might even be good in preparation for tanning seeing as it is moisturising and exfoliating.

Did you get anything from Lush this year for Christmas or in the sales?  Have you tried any of these?

Hope you all had a lovely Christmas, and have an amazing New Year!