Review: Herbal Essences Soft Waves Intensive Mask

So, today I had my first exam and it surprisingly went alright. Not great but not a total disaster. One down, two to go!

Last night I had a shower to calm my nerves so I would get a good night's sleep before my exam and I used up the last of this Herbal Essences Tousle Me Softly Soft Waves Intensive Mask so I thought I would do a review on it.
As with all the Herbal Essences products it smells absolutley amazing. So fruity and fresh and afterwards you definately get whiffs of this off your hair throughout the day. Does it do what it says though? I have naturally curly, wavy hair which has a tendency to be quite dry and frizzy so I need something quite moisturising to keep my hair soft and smooth down my flyaway frizz. I don't know if this mask would give you wavy, tousled hair if your hair was naturally straight, probably not, but it definately makes my hair really soft and feeling refreshed which is exactly what I need. I would recommend this product if you're looking for something to keep your hair soft and manageable. Plus, Boots is doing a 2 for £5 offer on selected Herbal Essences so it would be a good time to try some of their products.

What are your favourite hair treatments? Any recommendations for a new hair treatment for me to try?

Review: Lush Snow Fairy

So, last week I told you that I had finished my bottle of Snow Fairy shower gel, now I'm going to do my review!

I first smelled the Snow Fairy scent when my little sister bought the lipbalm and it just smelled amazing. It has a really sweet sugary scent (which could be a little sugary for some) with a light floral undertone. This shower gel lathers really well into big soft fluffy bubbles and makes your skin feel smooth and soft. Also the scent lingers on the skin all day and also makes the bathroom smell really nice.

Unfortunately, this product is only on sale at Christmas time but I've tried the Rock Star soap and I would say it smells quite similar to Snow Fairy, really sweet and sugary.

Review: Soap and Glory Flake Away Body Scrub

So today I am going to review the Soap and Glory Flake Away Body Scrub, which I got aaages ago! I got this as part of Soap and Glory's huge bag/laundry hamper gift set that I got last year for my birthday and I've still not got even half way through the products! This is probably because all the products I received in this set are either full size or super sized. All these products are part of my "Hitting-pan" challenge so I probably won't have to buy any shower gel, body butter etc until Christmas!

Anyway, onto what this product is actually like! I absolutely loved this scrub. I generally use a scrub every time I'm in the shower because I have bumpy skin on the sides of my arms and on the back of my legs so I like to use a scrub to keep my skin smooth and soft. This is quite a heavy-duty scrub as it is salt based with fruit seeds in it to buff away dead skin cells to reveal clean, revitalised skin. It also has almond oil in it to rehydrate the skin after scrubbing. It smells absolutely delicious, it has the signature Soap and Glory scent except possibly a bit fruitier. This scrub works really well and rinses well, not leaving any scrubby bits on your skin and doesn't leave your slin feeling all dry and tight. In fact, it actually leaves a slight residue on your skin which locks in moisture and makes your skin feel lovely and smooth.

I would totally buy this product again because although it's a bit pricey at £6.64, it is a huge tub of product and you don't have to use too much to get good results so it'll probably last a long time.

Until next time, adios!

New Skincare: Boots Tea Tree + Witch Hazel Review

I have been using the same skincare for about a year until recently when my day moisturiser was making my skin really greasy and shiney, not cute. So I decided that it was time for a change.

I went into Boots not really knowing what I was looking for (have you noticed that unless you are prone to spots/acne or you are trying to reduce the signs of ageing, there isn't really that much for us folk in their early 20s) but I seen that there was a 3 for 2 offer on Boots' own Tea Tree + Witch Hazel range. The first product I chose was the Exfoliating Face Scrub which I use twice a week (I stopped using a daily facial wash/scrub round about my exams because they were only making my skin worse by taking away any oils on my skin, not just the bad ones!). This is quite an abrasive scrub so it's good for making your skin feel smooth and squeaky clean! The next product I chose was the cleansing and toning lotion which I use to take off my face make up. This feels really refreshing and light on the skin and after a few swipes all traces of make up are gone! But because it contains tea tree and witch hazel it closes the pores and helps to prevent any other blemishes. The last product I chose was the Shine Control Day Moisturiser. This really works well because it's not heavy and just sinks into the skin without leaving a greasy residue. I can put this on in the morning and by lunch time my skin still isn't that horrible shiney way. The last product featured in this post is Boots' Cucumber Eye Gel. I've had this for a while but didn't really think I needed it and just slapped on extra concealer! But in the last week I have been using this after my day/night moisturiser and it really is a treat for the eyes! The gel is light and coolly refreshes the eye area so that puffiness and dark circles are reduced. And it also feels really nice and relaxing to put on before bed!

That's all for now folks! See you soon x x x

Hotties At Hollister!

Me with the 2 lifeguards (models) who greeted everyone going in the store. Cool pic, no? :p

WOW! Glasgow just opened its first Hollister store on Tuesday and it has taken the city by storm. I know that there are other Hollister stores in the UK but this is the first one that is anywhere near where I live so I'm pretty excited. The only other one in Scotland is in Aberdeen which is like 3 hours away by car. The store has opened in Glasgow's central shopping centre, Buchannan Galleries which is host to loads of my favourite shops: H+M, Miss Selfridge and River Island. But these stores look sort of boring compared to Hollister. Even the store front is exciting, designed to look like a sort of beach front property, the store has a tiled roof and where windows should be, shutters that are open just a little to give you a sneaky peek inside.

I've heard loads of people saying that its hard to navigate the store because of its dark interior and loud music but I think it actually added to the experience. I think it was a welcome change from being under the unflattering glare of overhead beam lights in most of the other shops on the high street and the music while it was loud I liked the music because it was fun and made me reflect on the fact that Primark doesn't really play music, but maybe that would add to the chaos lol.

Since it was so busy (like nearly couldn't move for the amount of people!) I didn't get a good chance to really look at any of the clothes, hopefully the hype will die down in the next few weeks and I'll get a good long look. Also I'm trying to save for Christmas shopping so I bought these body lotions which are £8 each but they are currently doing a deal, 2 hand creams, body lotions or body spritzes for £12. So me and my mum got 2 of the body lotions.

I opted for the Solana Beach scented one which is quite fruity and sweet. I tried it out yesterday after a shower and it sinks into the skin beautifully. Also unlike other body lotions the scent stays for quite a while. All last night I kept smelling the back of my hand and I would get this lovely burst of citrusy fragrance, lovely!

My mum chose the Laguna Beach scented lotion which smells more citrusy than mine but not as sweet. Still smells lovely and by the look of the bottle (there's quite a gap at the top) my mum quite likes it!

Haha, just thought I'd give you a look at what their carrier bags look like. What girl won't want to shop there if thats what their bags look like?!

So, what do you think? Should we have more "themed" stores? Do think it adds to the experience or does it annoy you?

Avon Solutions Complete Balance Skincare Review

So, two weeks ago I ordered an entirely new skincare regime from Avon after deciding my mix and match method may not be giving my skin all the care it needs. It seems to make sense to use products that are designed to work together to make your skin look and feel its best. Over the past few weeks I have been putting my new products to the test, taking note of the difference they have made to my skin and whether or not they were a good purchase.

First up, is the Avon Solutions Complete Balance Cleanser. Now I'm used to cleansers being in a sort of fluid milk-like form which you put on a cotton wool pad and use to wipe your make up off. This one is used in the same way as a facial wash, you wet your face, use a small amount of the product and massage over your face, rinsing with warm water. You use this step both morning and night but at night I add in a small step before this.

The warm water is supposed to help loosen any make up you have on but I don't like mascara streaming down my face and staining my skin. So what I do is take off any make up with a make up removing wipe then use the cleanser to remove any foundation or powder.

So, does it work? When applying it to your face there is a certain amount of tingling and it smells a bt like liquorice which was strange at first but after using it a couple of times my skin felt cleaner and frsher. I wouldn't recommend this for sensitive or allery prone skin as the tingling may irritate the skin.

Next is the Avon Solutions Plus Complete Balance Mattifying Toner. Up until now I hadn't really used a toner, not really knowing what benefit it gave to skin. Now I see that it has made such a difference! This step is supposed to be used after cleansing both morning and night.

You soak a cotton wool pad in the toner which has a slightly sharp smell, but don't let that put you off, and you sweep it over your face. I know by this point we've already cleansed but it is amazing how much dirt is still missed!

I didn't see results from the toner immediately after using it but a couple of days later one morning after washing my face I looked in the mirror and I wasn't my usual scrubbed-clean, pasty self. I was clean but my skin was revitalised, I no longer looked tired and my skin had a nice glow. So for me this product is a winner.

And now we go in two different directions as we come to the day and night creams. First up is the day cream. This comes in a little pot which will most likely last me forever because a little seriously goes a long way! This moisturiser is quite a lot heavier than the light fluid moisturisers I'm used to so my first mistake was to put too much on. Let me say if you have very oily skin this is not for you. I put on a little bit extra than was needed and it was like an oil spill! I have learned my lesson and now only use the tiniest amount. It is extremely moisturising which is good because we are heading into the cold, harsh winter which makes my skin so dry and tight.

Although this is a bit too heavy for summer, it does have an SPF 15 for keeping those anti-ageing rays at bay. Overall, I think this is a good product but a little too heavy for oil skin and the warmer weather.

And lastly, is the night cream. Before I bought these products I had only used the one cream for both day and night so I was interested to see what the difference was. Instead of being a normal cream formula, the night cream is more of a gel consistency but I suppose this is because it's like an extra concentrated serum meant to help repair your skin while you sleep. Overall I like the cooling feeling of the cream which can be quite relaxing just before bed. I would recommend this skincare for combination skin as it can be both drying and very moisturising. There are different skincare regimes in the Avon Solutions range for other skin types, just click here for a full list of their products.

Do you have a failsafe skincare regime? Do you have any tips for clear and bright skin?

O.P.I. Summer Flutter Minis Review

Okay so I know summer is nearly over but I just bought this cute little O.P.I. set last week and wanted to do a review on it since it is my first O.PI. product.

I found this set whilst browsing the O.P.I. section in my local Sally's trying to decide which shade I wanted (there are sooo many!) when I spotted it. The colours were so bright and the packaging so cute that I took it to the counter right away. Not only that but I thought it was a bargain because although they are mini sizes, you're getting 4 shades for £12 when a single large bottle costs around £10.

The first on the left is a shimmery pink colour called Flower-to-Flower, the second is an extremely bright matte orange going by the name of Flit A Bit, third is a cerise pink with lots of glitter through it called Wing It! and last but certainly not least is my favourite, a deep turquoisey blue with swirls of glitter called Catch Me In Your Net.

I've only tried Flit A Bit so far which is just as bright in person as in the photos. Although the brushes are mini sized, I found the application easy as I have quite slim fingers and nails. The colour did not disappoint which is sometimes the case with some nail polishes, that they end up being more sheer on the nails than the bright colour they are in the bottle. It lasted quite well because after 2 days without a top coat it had not chipped. This venture has not converted me to solely buying high end brand nail polishes because although the quality is sometimes better, I find that you can usually get the same results using cheaper nail polishes. This was a lovely treat though!

What are your favourite nail polishes? What brands do you think work best?