My holiday make-up bag essentials...

So it’s that time of year again….my need for sunshine and warm temperatures has grown too strong and I have finally managed to convince my boyfriend in to booking a holiday. Now as it is fast approaching and we leave in 8 days (WOOOP), I have been thinking a lot about my holiday make up essentials.

 I like to keep make-up minimal when I am out in the sun so these will be my absolute essentials that will be coming along with me on holiday next week

 The first thing I have to mention is the OH SO CUTE make-up bag which was a recent pay day treat. I love the Ted Baker purses and make-up bags and this one with its cute bow, rose gold hardware and perfect size was love at first sight…even better as I got it at a bargain price in a recent House of Fraser promotion days.

 

 

 

Now I usually like to get a shellac manicure before I go away on holiday but with pennies needed to be saved this year, I decided to go down the cheaper route and picked up a couple of summer shades to take along with me for some pool side pampering! I opted for the Gelly Hi-Shine polish in Papaya by Barry M as well So Laque glossy polish in shade 04 Amande defile by Bourjois.

I do like to try and keep my base make-up minimal on holiday so will be taking with me my Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua in shade 20 Beige. This product offers fantastic coverage without being too heavy and doesn’t leave my skin looking cakey or overdone. Perfect for those warm evenings when I want to make a bit more of an effort.

The aim of the holiday will of course to come back with a sun kissed glow (I can but hope) but I will need a bit of help in the first instance. I will be taking my trusty Rimmel Sun shimmer Bronzer which offers a lovely buildable colour and it doesn’t leave me looking like a tangerine.

 

My eyes will be well looked after by my much loved Naked 2 palette. This is my go to eye palette with its easy neutral colours perfect for day or night. This is a fail safe product and is something I can not be without. On the mascara side of things I have been experimenting recently to try and find a new favourite and have opted to take with me my Rimmel Lash Accelerator Endless and my Seventeen Doll’d Up mascara. This is a combination that I have stumbled across but has been a favourite of mine for the last month or so.

For lips I want to be sure to take products that will moisturise my lips so I will be sure to take my Carmex lip balm with SPF 15 as well as my much loved Soap & Glory Mighty Mouth moisturising lip gloss.

 

Moisturiser is a must have for me as I do suffer for dry skin so I will be taking my fabulous steam cream with me to ensure my skin is super hydrated throughout the day. I was introduced to Steam cream a couple of months ago by a fabulous make-up artist on my local Chanel counter and it has fast become my staple moisturiser. It’s all natural ingredients and light yet ultra-moisturising texture makes it perfect after a day in the sun.

Finally I will be sure to have my much loved Organix Moroccan Argan Oil with me to protect from the sun, sea and chlorine. This will not only strengthen my hair but will also give it some much needed moisturise and ensure my hair stays in tip top condition. My haire care post offering a more in depth review of this product can be found Here

What are your holiday make-up essentials?

Would you be interested in a post on my hand luggage essentials?

xxMillieMagpiexx

 

Revlon Nail Polish...Where have you been all my life????

 

Anyone that follows me on Instagram (MillieMagpie) will know I have a big love for nail polishes and regularly experiment with new brands and colours on my nails. I was recently on the hunt for a new base and top coat and when Boots had their 3 for 2 offer on all make-up, I thought this was the perfect time to branch out and try something new.

 

 I have always heard good things about Revlon as a make-up brand and I do already have a few of their lip products in my collection however Revlon nail polishes was completely new territory for me!

 

From left to right Girly,Quick Dry Top Coat, Charming, Quick Dry Base Coat & Sparkling

 

 Now I opted to pick up the Quick Dry base (995) and top coat (960)  at £6.49 each and for my free product picked up an amazing pink glitter nail polish called Sparkling (261).

 

 I of course got home and tried the top and base coat out straight away and was amazed when 5 days later there was no sign of any chips. The staying power of these nail polishes for me has been pretty unbelievable and the base and top coats dry so super quickly that they are never a hassle to add into your nail painting routine.

 

Obviously once I saw how good these nail polishes were I had to expand my collection and I recently acquired the beautiful lilac colour called Charming (211) and a really cute glitter polish called Girly (260)...perfect for the impending spring/summer season.

  

I would really recommend trying these polishes out if you haven't already. The colours on offer are fantastic, they stay on for ages and at £6.49 they really are a more affordable brand to experiment with.

 

Have you tried Revlon Nail Polishes before? What are your favourite colours?

 

xxMillieMagpiexx

My Day to Day Hair Care Routine!!!

 

 

My day to day Hair Care routine products!
 

So this blog post offers a little insight into my day to day hair care routine and as you will see its plain, simple and super easy!!!

 

My hair is naturally fair but for the last 10 years or so, (oh god that makes me feel old) I have been having blonde highlights to brighten and lighten my hair whilst keeping it looking natural. With regards to my hair type I have fine hair but lots of it, and it can be a tad prone to greasiness. To avoid too much product build up I do try to wash my hair every 2-3 days...maybe even 4 days if I can get away with it and have a good dry shampoo on stand by!

 

Moisturising Shampoo and Conditioner from the Sheer Blonde collection by John Frieda
 

 I have been using the same brand of shampoo and conditioner now for about 6 months, and that is the Moisturising Shampoo and Conditioner from the Sheer Blonde Collection by John Frieda. Everyone knows it's important to look after and protect coloured hair, and these products have been great at keeping my blonde hair nice and bright as well as moisturised...what more could you want??

 

Conditioning Treatment from the Sheer Blonde collection by John Frieda
 

Once a week I like to use a more intensive conditioning treatment and have been using the Sheer Blonde Collection conditioning treatment for years. I tend to use this at the weekend when I am having a full on pamper session, and like to leave the conditioning mask on for a good 15 - 20 minutes so it can work its magic. It leaves my hair gorgeously soft and shiny and feels like a real treat for my hair... I love it!

 

Pro Voke Touch Of Silver Purple Shampoo
 

Coloured blonde hair does have a tendency to go brassy if its not well looked after and to avoid this I use a purple shampoo once a week to keep my colour looking bright. At the moment I have been trying out the Pro Voke Touch of Silver shampoo that I picked up on offer in Boots a couple of months ago. The smell of this product isn't the nicest but it really does neutralise any brassiness and leaves my blonde locks bright and shiny. This product should only be used once or twice a week (in my case once) and shouldn't be left in any longer than 4  - 5 minutes as it can leave a purpley/blue tinge to the hair if left on for too long.

 

Organix Moroccan Argan Oil

 

Now once my hair is all washed and conditioned I like to apply a couple of drops of my Organix Moroccan Argan Oil onto towel dried hair. This gives my hair a strengthening boost and also helps ease any nasty tangles.

 

Tresemme Heat Protecting Styling Spray
 

Finally I like to spray the Tresemme Heat Defence Styling Spray all over my hair before drying. With all of the heated styling products we use nowadays it's important to remember this step.

 

I do tend to add additional products depending on what I am doing with my hair. As I have fine hair I often like to use volumising products and would add these before or after my heat protecting spray.

 

What are your day to day hair routines? What hair care products would you recommend?

 

xxMillieMagpiexx

February BirchBox Review!

I have tried quite a few different monthly subscription beauty boxes over the last year or so but never stuck it out for longer than a couple of months. I decided to buck this trend for 2013 and after a fantastic recommendation from a very good friend I decided to subscribe to the BirchBox. I bought a 3 month subscription which saves you a couple of pounds and gives you a good idea of what to expect in the quality of the products.

For those of you that don’t know about the Birch Box, it offers you 4 -5 luxury samples from a range of beauty brands….some you will no doubt of heard of and some yet to be discovered. Boxes are   £10 a month + postage and packaging however you do get a couple of pounds deduction on the longer subscription you sign up for.



This pink pouch and pretty boxes are fantastic for storing your beauty bits and bobs in

Now I love any type of post but when this beautiful bright pink box arrived for me at work in mid-February I literally could not wait to get it open. I decided to give myself a good couple of weeks to try out the different products so I could tell all of you what goodies I had and what I thought.

The Birch Box has the CUTEST packaging I have ever seen from a monthly beauty box subscription and will be keeping the boxes and handy pink pouches to store make up and my collection of random bits. Not only was the packaging amazing the products inside really impressed.

Now the first thing I received was the Vichy Thermal Spa Water. This is described as a mineral-rich spritz that you can use to refresh and tone your skin or just use to perk up your complexion. Now I have to admit I was a bit dubious about this product when I first saw it however over the last couple of weeks I have constantly reached for this product for a mid-afternoon refresh or when my skin is in need of a moisture surge. It really leaves the skin refreshed and cooled and this would be heavenly when travelling or on holiday.

The second item was a “life style” product and was the EBOOST Natural Energy Booster drink. This is a bit like a posh Berocca and not being a fan of these I gave it to my rather poorly boyfriend to try…he was definitely in need of a vitamin boost last week ! Now there is only so much information I could get from my him to review this sachet but he did say it was strong in flavour, quite nice and he would have it again especially in the winter when bugs are flying round.

My third item was a bonus product from the lovely people at BirchBox and was a nice and simple eye lash curler. The product is pretty standard and does the job but was an excellent product for me as I was in need of replacing my old and worn out curlers.

The fourth item is something I literally am in love with and that is the Korres Guava Shower Gel. It smells AMAZING and would repurchase it for this alone. Although I can’t say it reminds me of a Guava (not really sure what they smell like?!?!) but it does smell of holidays. It is fresh and fragrant and really scrummy and lathers up a dream when using it in the shower. This is probably the stand out product for me from the whole box and has got me very interested in Korres as a brand.

The fifth product was again a really pleasant surprise and this is the Gerda Spillmann Bi Fond Cream Foundation. I have to admit this is not a brand that I have heard of before but the product is really nice. It is a light creamy foundation which offers fantastic coverage on application and apparently its used on all the movie sets at the moment.I have to say it had great staying power throughout the day and is a perfect size for keeping in my handbag. And as an added extra this product comes with a little mirror in the lid and a sponge applicator in the base….perfect!

The final product was the Nick Chavez Beverly Hills Plump N’ Thick leave-In Thickening Mist. Now I am constantly on the lookout for a good volumising product as I have a lot of very fine hair that needs a bit of oomph. This did give visible results but you do have to be careful with how much you apply.  On first use I did get a bit too excited and applied too much leaving my hair greasy and heavy.

Now I have to admit my second Birch box arrived today and the products are just as good! The review will be on its way soon but do you subscribe to a monthly subscription beauty box? What do you think of Birch Box?

xxMillieMagpiexx

Product Review - Organix Morrocan Argan Oil Shampoo, Conditioner and Penetrating Oil

 

Hair oil is the latest must have for any beauty fanatic's hair care routine and Moroccan Oil has had rave reviews in recent months.

 

 

 

 

I am sucker for any new product and I was excited to try this out for myself. Having looked into it in a bit more detail the original Moroccan oil was a tad on the expensive side so I decided to invest in the more purse friendly Organix range from Boots (Also can be found in supermarkets and other high street beauty stores). As always Boots had a deal on so I opted to pick up the Shampoo, Conditioner and Moroccan hair oil to properly give this hair oil craze a go. The Shampoo and Conditioner were on a buy one get one free offer however they retail normally for about £6.99. The oil was £6.99 but its obvious from using this that a little goes a long way!

 

I have to say I was very excited to use the shampoo and conditioner and with promises of restored shine and softness whilst strengthening the hair I was hoping for great things. Unfortunately  that wasn't the case and these products sadly didn't live up to the hype.

 

When using the shampoo I imagined a luxurious product but this felt very harsh on my hair and felt as if it was stripping it of moisturise rather than leaving it nourished and soft. The conditioner didn't fair much better with an odd smell and consistency it wasn't a pleasant experience to use this! Not wanting to give up too quickly I carried on with the products for a good couple of weeks but I just didn't get on with these.

 

The oil however is a completely different story and is something that has become a regular feature in my haircare routine. I run one to two drops of this oil through towel dried hair and have already noticed how shiny and strong my hair looks. You do have to be careful with how much oil you use as too much can make your hair feel heavy and appear greasy...definitely not the desired effect! After a bit of trial and error I have found a couple of drops run through the bottom of my hair is perfect but this could of course differ with other hair types.

 

Its safe to say I won't be using the shampoo and conditioner again and think it will be finding a new home with friends or relatives soon.  The oil however is here to stay and I am looking forward to working my way through this cute little  bottle.

 

Have any of you used these before? If so what did you think?

 

xxMillieMagpiexx

Elf Haul!!!

Elf Haul

ELF (www.eyeslipsface.co.uk) was first created in New York by a key creator of the hard candy make up range and promised to offer quality beauty products at low prices...and that it truly does! I was introduced to this brand back in 2006 whilst at university when I was in need of a beauty fix that fit in with my student budget.

I have continued to repurcashe Elf's products ever since and a couple of weeks ago when I was looking to stock up on one of their fantastic all over colour sticks I came across an offer that was too good to turn down...40% off all of their products and free delivery...COUNT ME IN!

After trawling their site and picking up some necessary and not so necessary products, I had an impressive haul on my hands and just had to share it with you all. As you will see from the photos I went a bit OTT but to save this post becoming a bit of an essay I will let you know about some of the products that have really stood out to me and have integrated themselves into my daily beauty routine.

 

Elf Studio Stipple Brush - £3.75

 For the price that I paid for this brush I am really impressed with the results. I have been using this on a daily basis to apply my foundation and love the flawless finish that it gives me. The brush isn't as good as my Real Technques Stippling brush but for a cheap alternative this ticks all the boxes.





Flawless Finish Foundation (Porcelain) - £6.75

Buying a foundation online can always be a bit of a risk but the risk paid off with this foundation. I have been using it nearly everyday along with the stippling brush and my skin has been looking fantastic. The colour Porcelain is a fantastic match for my skin and offers medium to full coverage (especially good as I have been suffering from a horrible break out on my chin this week).



Beauty Book (Neutral) - £3

This beauty book was a bit of an impulse purchase from their sale section but I am so glad that I ordered it now. The book comes with 6 nuetral shades as well as an eyelid primer and a small double ended eyeshadow applicator. This was a abosulute bargain for £3 and I have been using these shadows to create a soft smokey eye to wear to work. The shadows are slightly loose so they can be a bit messy when applying but for the price I really can not complain about this product.

Have you ever heard of ELF before? Leave a comment and let me know what products you are loving from their site!

XX MillieMagpie XX

 

Yankee Candle - My Candle Obssession

 

 

So this is one of my recent MillieMagpie purchases that has somehow manged to wriggle its way into my "beauty blog". Although this is more of a home or lifestyle product I couldn't not post about my recent Yankee Candle Wax Burner purchase that I have become seriously obssessed with.

 

Yankee Candle Wax Tartlet Burner...Heaven!

I was bought one of the classic jar candles at christmas in the scent christmas cupcake (a gorgeous subtle sweet smelling scent that reminds me of the likes of hummingbird bakery) I burnt through it in record time and I had to repurchase this  as my boyfriend and I were loving buning this candle during the recent cold and snowy evenings. I decided to take a trip to my local Yankee Candle Supplier (a local department store in my town although you can always find these in card shops and garden centres as well).

 

When I was there I noticed the Yankee Candle Wax Tarts; a product that I hadn't taken much time to look into before. These wax tarts have a burning time of 8 hours and retail for a very reasonable £1.25 each...most definitely a cheaper option for all the Yankee candle lovers out there. The wax tarts are available in all of the Yankee candle scents however my beady magpie eyes immediately spied the christmas scents reduced to a bargain 63p!!!

 

 

From Back Left Honey & Spice, Red Velvet & Chrismas Cupcake
 

 

By this point I literally could not contain my excitement and picked up a couple of each of the christmas scents available; Red Velvet Cupcake, Christmas Cupcake and Honey & Spice. Now in order to burn these tarts you will need to invest in the Yankee Candle Wax Tartlet Burner which allows you to safely burn the tart above a tea light style candle. The ones in store were a bit on the pricey side ranging from £15 to £25 (although still a bit cheaper than the largest candles Yankee do have in their range). I decided to take the tarts and have a look on the internet to try and find a cheaper model. There was a huge range on offer but eventually settled on this I plain white ceramic burner for £7.99 that I thought looked simple and pretty but would fit easily in any room in the house.

 

  

Melted Wax Tart warmed by a maxi Tea Light

 

A couple of weeks later and the love for this Yankee Candle Wax Tart Burner continues to grow. I am now on my second wax tart (and this is with me burning this most evenings...not too bad at all). The scent that comes off this is amazing and fills the room easily without being over powering. They are definitely the best way for me to enjoy Yankee candles without breaking the bank and I already have my eye on the newest scents being released for Spring and Summer.

 

Have any of you tried this burner? What's your favourite Yankee Candle scent?

 

XX MillieMagpie XX