Lush Skin-care Favourites!

Hey guys! 

So while working at Lush, I couldn't help but try parts of the store that I feel has not been spoken about enough. People tend to just focus on bath bombs and not anything else Lush has to offer so I have taken it upon myself to discover the hidden gems Lush has to offer (which is practically everything in store). Below are a few products which I would honestly and fully recommend and I know I will repurchase again and again.

Dark Angels Facial Cleanser (£6.75/100g)

So Dark Angels is one of the cleansers that Lush has to offer and it is phenomenal. I use this as a cleanser for my face and body as it also acts as an exfoliant. The exfoliant in the product is actually powdered charcoal which is good at detoxifying the skin and also for cleaning deeply in the pores. What I like most about the product is that although it is supposed to be quite harsh (as the charcoal is quite abrasive which I personally prefer), it is actually quite moisturising as it contains organic cold pressed Avocado Oil. What you are left with is a slight residue on your skin which is perfect as your skin doesn't feel stripped yet it feels clean. The texture of this product is quite bitty which means there is a lot of fallout, however if you leave the product closed in your shower for 2-3 days then the texture becomes more of a paste which is way easier to apply with practically no fall-out.

Full of Grace Serum Bar (£8.25/20g)

This product is so cool and strange that I had to give it a go to see if it actually did something or if it was just a gimmick. So around a year ago I went on the serum bandwagon and it's amazing to see how much they actually improve the skin and I can say that this product is no exception from that. I love that it contains two ingredients which contain Rose as it soothes the skin but also helps to even the colour out. I can honestly say this product is something that anyone can benefit from, I know most people use it as a night serum and totally load it up on their face. I also load it up at night (and then apply my Kiehl's Midnight Recovery) and I actually wear some of this in the morning too, but just a tiny amount and it sits well under make-up. The way to apply this is to either heat it up in your hands and then to apply it on to your face or you can just apply it to your face directly. Both ways work well, and the result can be seen overnight - you wake up with soft, moisterised skin with impurities looking less noticeable and it's just great. 

Ultrabland Facial Cleanser (£7.95/45g)

I really like this facial cleanser. I like it because it cleans a lot deeper than anything else I own but it does not strip the skin. I think everyone knows that my favourite make-up remover is The Body Shops Silky Camomile Cleanser but I like how this is a more rich version of that. Ultrabland is quite thick and so is harder to apply but that being said you do get a deeper clean and more of a massage when you come to take it off. For me, it does things that The Body Shops Cleanser doesn't do and thats why I like it. I would recommend this to anyone who likes oil cleansers as I feel this is the next step towards a better clean, it would also be good for people wanting to try a balm cleanser. If I use this product everyday I don't just use it alone - I will combine it with The Body Shop's so I get the best of both worlds: A deep yet quick clean. However there are days which I would just use this and it does work awesomely well. To use it you massage it into your face and to take it off you can either remove it with cotton wool or a flannel - I usually attempt to take it off with water but then carry on with my skin-care routine.

Charity Pot Hand and Body Lotion  (£1.00/10g)

Best hand and body lotion I have ever used is this one. I love that it has a gel like texture which means it is packed with hydration yet doesn't feel heavy. It is infused with Jojoba, Moringa, and Ylang Ylang oil which makes it super moisturising and so you know that it is good enough to deal with parts of the body that are really dry (namely elbows and knees for me). I love that they do a trial size, which I think is a perfect handbag size but I need to go and grab the full size tub because this lotion does really last. The smell of it is also so nice - it's a very light and subtle floral scent which doesn't interfere with perfumes you may already have or feel overpowering. 

Cupcake Fresh Face Mask (£6.50/75g)

Any oily skinned people out there? This is the mask for you. It has Cocoa Powder to absorb the oils on your face but also Fair Trade Organic Cocoa Butter to moisturise and protect the skin. When I tell people that this mask moisturises the skin they get a little crazy, but the thing they have to understand is that you cannot just strip the skin of its natural oils because then your face goes into overdrive and starts to produce more. This is why I like the products Lush has to offer because they are about balancing the skin but they still do the job. So if you leave this on your skin for 10-15 minutes and then rinse it off you get soft but matte skin which feels amazing. Also with any masks make sure you never leave them to dry fully, most people think that the longer you keep it on the more benefits you will get. However what happens is the mask drains the moisture off your skin when the mask is completely dry so beware and don't let it dry!

I hope you have enjoyed reading what my favourite products are from Lush and I hope it gives you guys some recommendations on what I think are some first class products :0
Thanks for reading,
Anjna

Beauty Swap with Sakura!

Hey guys,
So I guess Christmas has come a couple of days early for me because I recently received a parcel from Sakura, a Japanese beauty blogger. This is what she sent me:

I told her that I was mostly interested in eye products because I know that Asian countries have mastered them well. She sent me a bunch of mascaras, which are all different: two are dual ended, one has a primer and mascara and the other adds fibres to thicken your lashes and then the actual mascara on the other end. I also received another mascara with a different design (it has a ball on the end of the wand, which is so cool). She sent me two eyeliners, one liquid and one gel which I can't wait to try. The most thoughtful gift she sent me was some Shu Uemura eyelash curlers (which I have had my eyes on for agesss), she send me not only one but two! The second one is a smaller sized one which will definitely come in handy when I travel! The last thing she sent me was a mini hand sanitiser from Bath and Body Works which smells like candy canes and is super festive so I should probably use that up ASAP haha :)

I can promise that you will hear reviews soon enough!
I want to say a huge thank you to Sakura, who approached me to do this beauty swap and I am so glad I did :) If you want to check out what I got her check this link here. My favourite posts from her was definitely her Halloween make-up ideas :)

Thanks again Sakura, this is more than I was hoping for :) and I won't have to buy mascara for another year haha!
Thanks for reading,
Anjna

COLAB Dry Shampoo - A Model Recommends Review

Hey guys! 

So since my major personal discovery of Batiste dry shampoo (read review here), I have been very reluctant to try anything else which is not...well Batiste. But when Ruth Crilly, author of the blog 'A Model Recommends', released her own range named 'COLAB Dry Shampoo' I was definitely intrigued and had to give it a try. I used the 'Paris' fragrance. 

What I liked: 

1) Smell: This totally doesn't smell like a dry shampoo. It is a very light floral scent which isn't too overpowering but nice enough that you wouldn't mind putting it in your hair. I really like this. 

2) Price: This massive bottle comes in for around £3.49/200ml, which I think is awesome, I like how Ruth isn't cashing in on her subscribers and I think it is a fair price that anyone could pay.

3) Application: So this is one of my favourite things about this product - it comes out as a fine mist *round of applause to Ruth*. This makes application so much better because you can effectively control the amount of product that comes out and it won't come out in massive clumps of powder.

4) Feel: Another thing this product has going for it is that it feels so lightweight in the hair - you don't feel grimy at all. This means that you could probably use this product as a texturising spray and not feel weighed down by having too much product in your hair. 

5) Invisibility: So this product is invisible if it is used correctly, but if you do spray too much on then you still do get a tiny but of white residue so beware. But for the most part it is invisible :)

What I didn't like:

1) Performance: Okay so this may just be me, but this didn't actually work that great for me - my hair is really really oily so the amount I need to use is probably more than anyone else. So for me although it's nice and lightweight, I do need something heavy duty. So if you don't suffer with extremely oily hair then this may just be the perfect product for you because it really does tick all the boxes, but for me more power and performance is needed to get rid of the excess oil in my hair. 

So I hope that you guys liked my review of this product, I would recommend it for people who don't actually need to do a lot of damage control on their hair. Personally, I am glad I tried it but it's just not for my hair type. I totally see the craze though, so if it does suit your hair then be sure to purchase it. 

Thank you for reading :) 

Anjna 

Review: The Body Shop Camomile Waterproof Eye & Lip Make-Up Remover

Hey guys,

So I'm sure I have bored you to death about my love of The Body Shops Silky Camomile Cleanser (Read here), so seeing as I love that product so much I was drawn to trying other things from the range. I decided to go for the Camomile Waterproof Eye & Lip Make-up Remover (£8.00/150ml).

There are three major categories that I wanted to touch base with and they are:

Quality: This product does work but I find that that the Clinique one I used before (read here) was more effective than this one. I think this is because the Clinique one was slightly more oiler (which  also means you don't need to use as much) and therefore removed my waterproof make-up better compared to this one which is quite watery. To use this I saturate my cotton round and then press it onto my eyelids and then wipe once the product had been sitting on my eyes for a few seconds. I would follow the same steps for lips.

Quantity: I like how much product you get, it's 150ml which is a nice amount to keep by your sink. It also means that you shouldn't have to repurchase it for a few months. However it's waaay too big to be travel friendly which sucks because I still need something to take with me when I travel since I don't use wipes at all.

Packaging: So this product pours through a little hole, although this is also a good thing (since lots does not come out), I feel like I am wasting the product because I have to squeeze the bottle to completely saturate my cotton round. A good thing about the packaging is that the lid is very secure so if it falls on the floor (happens all the time!) nothing will be leaking - in this case it would be travel friendly but it's still way too big to take. 

Honestly, this products falls into the category of 'I can use it but I won't repurchase it'. It's not a waste of money by any means but it's not exactly my holy grail item either. I think it works nice in conjunction with the cleansing oil which is good but with other lighter cleansers I'm not sure I would like to use this - I would need something that really did the job.

I hope you have enjoyed this post! Comment below telling me what you use to take off your eye/lip make-up :) 

Thanks for reading, 

Anjna x

Winter Nails: Sally Hansen 'Diamond Jubilee'

Hey guys :)
So today I want to share my new favourite nail polish. I actually bought this when I bought my Bourjois eyeshadow (see that review here) so that shopping trip was very successful because I have found some firm favourites that I can't stop using!
The product I am reviewing today is Sally Hansen 'Diamond Jubilee' (£6.99/14.7ml) which is a lovely silver glitter nail polish  and it is absolutely perfect for the coming holiday season. This is why you should have it:

Base Colour: Sephora Formula X in
'Brain Power'

Use: I like how product can vamp up any nail polish you currently own so it's amazing for utilizing those colours that have been neglected in your nail collection. So far I have used it with four colours: a nude,a blue, a  dark green and a pink. Also you could use this by itself for a nice silver sparkly look! This kinda doubles up as a top coat in my opinion so no more waiting around for a bazillion layers to dry!

 Drying time: this is a really quick drying product which is awesome if you are in a rush, I love that if you do mess it up then you can just press down to reapply the glitter and it won't leave that annoying fingerprint mark or you could just add more :)

Base Colour: Essie 'Hide & Go Chic'

Application: The application of this product is exactly like I thought: the first coat is a sheer glitter but the second coat is more opaque glitter. I love to either apply one coat to the entire nail for a slightly sparkly look or to do an ombre effect where I would just apply a second layer to the lower third of my nail. 

Longevity: This product stays on quite well, I like to apply my base colour two days before applying the silver because it helps the colour stay on even longer. For me, this lasts around 5-6 days so I am super pleased with it. It's also easy to do a quick fix because it's glitter and not a actual nail colour so it won't ever look piled on. 

Price: I think that this is a good price for a product that will work with whatever you have on, I certainly don't regret buying it! 

The only thing I don't like about this product is that taking it off is a nightmare which most glitter products are guilty of, so I would recommend soaking a cotton ball/pad completely and then pressing it onto the nail for a few seconds before rubbing to help it come off easier and quicker.

I hope you have enjoyed reading this review - I honest do love this product :) I think it's perfect for Christmas and just for any occasion. 

Thanks for reading, 

Anjna x