Boots No7 Match Made Concealer Review

Concealer is a product that I haven't ever been a big lover of. I've never found one that has a good balance of colour match and coverage that doesn't look cakey for feel like I've coated myself in a thick layer of war paint so this is a product that I've become pretty damn excited about.

A few weeks ago I was invited to a blogging event at the Bath Boots store and part of the evening was a makeover from the No7 ladies which is where my love affair began.
Match Made is a new concealer to the No7 collection and is designed to be a good all round product, able to be used all over the face to conceal blemishes, even out redness and mask dark circles. All of that as well as also being the exact same colour as the newest range of foundations given the same namesake.
A pretty big ask, I was a little sceptical to begin with however I just cannot fault this product.

I haaaate this photo with a passion but it does show the fabness of this little concealer stick. As you can probably guess, I'm bare faced on the left hand side and on the right side I've applied the Match Made concealer (mine is shade Calico). Whilst it doesn't leave me looking flawless, it does reduce shine, even out the skin tone and give a lovely smooth base for me to apply foundation.
Ive been wearing this every day for around a month now and have found it amazing. I do find that it can become a tiny bit clingy on the drier skin around my nose piercing if I apply too much but that's my only slight niggle and in all honesty, that's more my fault for not taking the stud out to exfoliate meaning the skin gets a little duller.
You can pick up the Match Made concealer for £7.50 at No7 counters or online *here*
Annie xx

October Favourites

I love reading about what people have been enjoying using each month so thought I'd start writing my own favourites posts. If this is something you'd like me to keep writing every month then let me know :)

1. A newish love of mine, the Nuxe Eau Demaquillante Micellaire is a cleansing water that is lovely and soft on the skin yet melt makeup away on contact with the skin. The beautiful soft scent is nice and relaxing and the cleanser removes everything effortlessly. I've found myself reaching for this every day, morning and night.
2. A palette that I keep coming and going with, the MUA Undress Me palette I bought a few months ago to see how good a dupe it is for the Urban Decay Naked palette. This month I've found myself reaching for it quite a few times, especially for the more golden tones which I've loved wearing with bright red lips for a warm, autumn look.
3. Everyone knows I love the Ginvera BB cream and as the weather is getting colder I've found that where my skin is getting drier this has been perfect for giving good coverage as well as keeping my skin health and hydrated. Definitely one of my favourite beauty products of all time.
4. A newish product to my kit, the No7 Match Made concealer has been a real staple product for me since purchasing. I use it every day without fail to balance out excess redness, hide dark circles and provide a nice even base for my foundation. I have a full review of this coming up later this week complete with before and after shot (eek!) so keep an eye out.
5. I had wanted Watts Up for so long I can't remember so when I got made a supervisor I bought it as a little present to myself and oh goodness I love it. Another product I reach for daily! The soft golden glow looks beautiful in the autumn sunshine when worn along the cheek bones and on the brow bone. Looking forward to getting lots of use from it in the summer too :)

Those are my most reached for beauty bits this month. What have you found yourself enjoying most during October?

Annie xx

No 7 Instant Radiance Foundation Review

Finally I've pulled myself together and uploaded the photos for this review.
I bought the No 7 Instant Radiance Foundation at the end of June when I got paid and have been loving it since.

This foundation is marketed as being a medium coverage foundation that will provides a "radiant boost for tired, stressed skin" and after testing it out for the last two weeks I'd definitely be happy to agree with that claim. Whilst I try not to look as the long list of fake ingredients piled into makeup, this foundation includes a small amount of ginger root extract which is an ingredient I love for its energising and blood flow stimulating properties. The effect of this in a foundation is to brighten skin and keep it looking away and perky.

The packaging is nicely designed and made using clear, lightweight plastic. The clear plastic makes it easy to know when you need to buy a new tube and is a lot lighter than the glass alternative would be. There is also a built in pump thankfully (big pet peeve of mine if there isn't one!) But one of the best things about the foundation from formula and packaging alone would have to be the inclusion of SPF which means that I can head out for the day knowing I have that protection on my face.

As you can see from the photo above the coverage is nice and even with a lovely dewy finish without looking oily. I'm prone to dark circles under my eyes because I'm fairly pale skinned but this foundation does a good job to cover them and I've had compliments on how my skin looks whilst I've been out which is always a good endorsement!
So what's the damage? A tube costs £12.50 which I think is pretty reasonable for a good coverage, nice finish foundation and in terms of wear I don't need to reapply during the day and still look fairly flawless at the end of the day. And being from No 7 they use their funky colour match system to make sure you get a shade as near as possible to your natural skin tone so you don't have to do the hard work of finding the right shade yourself! Yay!

Have you tried this foundation? Or any other No 7 that you've really liked?
Annie xx

FOTD- Fresh Faced and Wide Eyed

I think I may have found it! I mean my perfect non-designer foundation!
You may remember that the other day I blogged about some cheeky payday buys. One of those was the Instant Radiance Foundation by No 7 which I picked up for £12.50, well it turns out that its really great!

I admit that usually I'm a bit of a foundation snob because I think that there's no point in using high end paint on a cheapo canvas so I usually spend quite a bit to get the best base possible for my makeup but I've not liked a foundation this much since accidentally falling for the Dior BB cream so I'm more than happy...along with my bank balance! I won't say too much now because I have a full review coming up tomorrow, but for now I'll just say that the finish is light, dewy and fresh; just what I like for summer.

So whats on my mug?
Face:

• No 7 Instant Radiance Foundation in cool vanilla
• Nars Orgasm Blusher
• Lush Emotional Brilliance Sheer Powder
• Illamasqua Gleam in Aurora
• Lush Feeling Younger Highlighter

Eyes:

• Bobbi Brown Mahogany powder on brows
• MAC Painterly paint pot
• MAC Eclair paint pot
• Soap and Glory Thick and Fast mascara

Lips:

• Lush Strong lipstick
• Lush Vibrance lipstick

It always amazes me when I write down how many different products I use without realising. I swear it doesn't feel like it at the time. Do you find that too?

Have you tried any of the No 7 foundations? What do you think?

Annie xx

The Great Sample Survival Experiment Week Three

Hello,
I have had a pretty rubbish day today so its lovely to get home, sip on a large glass of wine, light a scented candle and just relax.
I'm still going strong with my Sample Survival Experiment and I'm really enjoying it. I've discovered some really nice products and found myself loving a few that I never thought I would.
This week I have been working my way through 6 different new samples as well as finishing off my Benefit Facial Emulsion which has kept me going for nearly two weeks now with daily use!

This week's samples:

Palmers Olive Butter Formula

Sisley Ecological Compound Day and Night

No 7 Body Polish

Charles Worthington Brilliant Shine Shampoo

Charles Worthington Brilliant Shine Conditioner

Comfort Zone Tranquility Cream

So we have a bit of a mixed bag this week but I think it has been the first week where I have really liked everything I've tried.

The Reviews:

Palmers Olive Butter Formula: I wasn't expecting to be keen on this sample because over all, Palmers isn't a make I'm all that fussed about, but this has been my favourite product by them by far. Much like the Cocoa Formula that I reviewed in week one *here* you need to use a reasonable amount of the cream to cover your body, but I think this is because it honestly does provide instant hydration. I find that my skin just drinks up Palmers creams. The Olive Butter Formula rubs in to skin with little effort and does not leave skin feeling at all greasy unlike the Cocoa equivalent. The smell is also very nice. It reminds me of holidays to Mallorca although I can't quite put my finger on why. Daniel says it smells like sun cream so that may be it. Over all, I rate this 4.5/5

Sisley Ecological Compound Day and Night: I am unsure about this product. Maybe I'm naive and just don't fully understand what it does, but to me, it seems to just be a face cream which you apply morning and night to keep skin looking young, well rested and revitalized. I didn't feel any sort of instant wow factor with this product and lost interest fairly quickly, partly due to not liking the smell, which was weirdly herbal. Although, that said, you need a very tiny amount to cover your face and when you have, the skin feels amazingly soft almost instantly. Over all, I rate this 3.5/5

No 7 Body Polish: My usual body scrub is Soap and Glory's Scrub Actually which has a rather abrasive formula so the softer feel of this scrub was a new sensation. The little scrubby particles are a lot smaller and more sparse than I am used to and the gel that they're contained in is nice and soothing which makes buffing comfortable and gentle. The smell is wonderful and even though the scrub is gentle, skin is left nice and soft. Rated 4/5

CharlesWorthington Brilliant Shine Shampoo: Another lovely sample. The Charles Worthington shampoo had a lovely smell that isn't dissimilar to Tresemme products. The shampoo lathered up quickly and easily in a way that some shampoos fail to do and left my hair feeling very soft as well as beautifully shiny. My only complaint is that I find the shape of the bottle rather annoying because I think it would be troublesome to get the last bit out of. Rated 4/5

Charles Worthington Brilliant Shine Conditioner: I have little to add to this that wasn't said about the shampoo. I find I usually need a large amount of conditioner on my rather large mane but I didn't need to use  all that much of this conditioner which was a nice bonus. I have the same issue with the bottle shape, but other than that, I adored this product. Rated 4.5/5

Comfort Zone Tranquility Cream: This is another sample from the Comfort Zone set that came with this month's She Said Beauty box. This set has really made me fall in love with Comfort Zone. The Tranquility Cream is an indulgent body cream that can be used all over the body. The formula applies as a cream but turns milky as you massage it in which feels ultra indulgent. The smell is a little strong but it is a relaxing, sweet scent that isn't unpleasant. Because the formula is milky, you don't need much product each time so the sachet is lasting me a nice long time. Rated 4/5

So, as you can see, a week of positive reviews and some lovely products. I feel like my posts are a little samey when I am enjoying all of the products, but I guess thats more important than whether I'm sounding a bit like a broken record in my weekly round up.

Have you tried any of these products? What have you been using up this week?

Annie x

I've Been Shopping!...Again

Hello,
As I mentioned, yesterday mum and I went for a wander around town. The weather was lovely, Bath is so pretty in the sunshine :)
Of course, despite trying to save money, I couldn't resist picking up a few bargains.

Boots are currently running an offer on their Number 17 products where if you buy two, you get the third free. Who am I to reject this offer?! I grabbed one of the limited edition spring eye pallets, one of their new Blush and Glow blushers and one of the supreme shine lipsticks. Because I haven't really had the chance to test them properly yet, I'll do a proper review in a couple of days when I have some time off.
Whilst in Boots I also used my last £5 off No7 voucher to buy a little tube of their fabulous Nail and Cuticle Care Cream (reviewed below) because due to the nature of my job I have terrible trouble with the condition of my cuticles. I have been able to put this product through its paces sooo well today.
Finally, when I saw a copy of this month's Marie Claire in Sainsburys I grabbed it. I don't usually buy it but I NEEDED the Neals Yard Rehydrating Rose Daily Moisture. This free gift usually retails at £12 so it is more than worth the £3.70 magazine price (and with my 10% discount it only cost me £3.33! Even better!) Seriously, go get this while it's still on the shelves!

Anyway, onto the review :)

No7 Nail and Cuticle Care Cream:

I work in a supermarket. It isn't glamourous, it isn't easy, and it is DAMN hard on the nails, but it pays well for now and I work with some great people. On mondays I work a nine hour shift stocking the shelves on the chilled food department and when I get home, my nails, cuticles, and tbh, hands in general, are completely wrecked.
Today I decided to do a little experiment with my new cuticle cream so before work, and then again in each break I applied a tiny amount (thats all you need) just to my right hand, the left hand I didn't apply any cream to so that I could see the difference between the two.

Please please please excuse the dirty nails, I snapped these as soon as I got home before washing and scrubbing my hands to show you the full effect. This is my left hand which I didn't apply any cream to and, as you can see, those cuticles are looking pretty rough and sore after a long day of playing with cardboard boxes.

This is my right hand which had a tiny amount of the No 7 nail and cuticle cream applied to each nail 3 times during the course of the day. As you can see, while there is still a little bit of damage, they look so much better than the nails on my left hand. They're no where near as dry, there has been minimal splitting and there was no bleeding (yay!)

This cream is a God send for those of us who have very active jobs. The tube is small (only 10ml) but you only need a very small amount; a small dot on each cuticle. It is a smooth, creamy consistency and sinks in nice and quickly with little effort needed. It also has a very faint, sweet smell that is fairly pleasant. Uusally, this tube retails for £7 but with my £5 off voucher I paid just £2 so it was a complete bargain. I would definitely re-purchase at the full price.

Have you ever tried this cuticle cream? Do you have any other tips for keeping your nails and cuticles in good shape? How about any of these other products, have you tried these?

Annie x