5 Summer Beauty Must-Haves

I flipping love Summer. It’s always warm, people are smiling, there’s ice cream vans on every corner and – Oh, wait, I live in Britain, so it’s cold, people frown at you and the only ice-cream vans you might see have run out of Mini Milks and are now only selling out-of-date cans of Coke.

But that doesn’t mean we can’t start experimenting with our makeup! Gone are smoky brown eyes and burgundy lips (who am I kidding, I wear that year-round), and here to stay are bright colours, shimmer and glitter. Yay!

Processed with VSCO with a5 preset

So here are some of my favourite Summer beauty products. Yes, there’s two primers in this list – without primer, my makeup literally just slides off my face. A good primer can really transform your makeup.

Soap and Glory Kick Ass Super-Blur  Imperfection Eraser

This handy little stick (which, due to my over-zealous ‘brightness & contrast’ photo editing routine is almost invisible on the pictures…) preps your skin and works like a primer to keep everything in place. Perfect to pop in your makeup bag for any emergency touch-ups – and to be honest, it’s like drawing on your face with a giant crayon, and that’s just fun.

Makeup Revolution Vivid Baked Blush in ‘One For Playing Games’

I’ve never really been a blusher girl, til I came across Makeup Revolution and their beautiful blushes. I have naturally rosy cheeks anyway, and this redness tends to spread to my jawline, so I stay away from bright pinks. This shimmery blended blush is a pretty lilac colour (which sounds dreadful, but just trust me – you’re going to look like a fairy princess) which makes a statement when it’s the focus of your Summery makeup look.

Processed with VSCO with a5 preset

Soap and Glory One Heck of a Blot Instant Perfecting Power Primer

Okay, so this has revolutionised my Summer makeup. Let this sink into your skin for a good five minutes before putting anything on top of it – it’ll minimise your pores, as well as mattifying any oils on your skin. A*, Soap and Glory!

I Heart Makeup Summer of Love Triple Baked Bronzer

I tend to be quite a pale person. Like, sometimes startlingly pale. On some people, that looks stunning – the whole “English rose” thing is really true for some girls. Not me, though. I like a bit of bronzer, especially with a tan, and this one from I Heart Makeup is like a beautiful mix of champagne highlighter and bronzer. Just slather it on, really.

Processed with VSCO with a5 preset

Makeup Revolution Scandalous Shade Lipstick in ‘Crime’

I re-purchased this lipstick after a particularly devastating incident where it fell out of my bag in the middle of the road and a car drove over it. Harrowing.
It wouldn’t be Summer without obnoxiously bright lipstick, would it? I’m a big fan of giant sunglasses and the brightest lip colour EVER obscuring your entire face. Perfect.

Have you tried any of my Summer beauty favourites? Do you have any staple products of your own? Let me know!

makeup revolution, must-haves, soap and glory, summer makeup 1 Comment

My Fake Tanning Routine & My Glam Tan Review

It’s June! It’s Summer! The sun is shining, the birds are chirping, and my legs are glowing ghostly white through the rips in my jeans and blinding passers-by. Unfortunate.

So, fake tan to the rescue! I’m not one to spend £30 on a bottle that will inevitably leak all over everything I love, so I keep it cheap (as usual) and usually settle for a good ol’ St Moriz from Home Bargs. That’s what my mum calls Home Bargains.

I was feeling particularly “spendy” one day (it’s dangerous – I spent £20 on liquid lipsticks from Amazon two months ago and they still haven’t arrived) and took a jaunty little trip to Primark.

I was actually looking for their PS Pro makeup range but unfortunately my local store  is overrun by 12 year olds who want the world to crash and burn and stick their fingers in all the makeup. It was nowhere to be seen. Sad face.

So, being the resourceful budget beauty blogger that I am, I hustled over to the next shelf where all the tanning accessories are. Bunged a new tanning mitt in my basket, and then picked up a particularly jazzy rose gold bottle of PS Love My Glam Tan mousse.

Okay – first of all, the tan is only £3. The bottle is prettier than I am. The bottle alone would be worth £3, if you were running some sort of fake-tan-bottle museum.

image (1)

Now you’ve heard all about my life (sorry), let’s get on with my tanning routine!

I start with a shower, and exfoliate my skin before shaving. I read somewhere that exfoliating before shaving is the proper way to do things, so it’s the way I do things. Do it the other way round, if you want. I won’t judge.

I use the St Tropez Tan Optimiser Body Polish to exfoliate. I picked this bottle up in TK Maxx for £3 (£3!!) and it gets the job done marvellously. Baby dolphin legs, here I come.

To shave, I use Lush’s D’Fluff Strawberry Shaving Soap, mainly because it’s pink and wonderful. It’s really moisturising and gentle on sensitive skin too.

Once I’ve got all squeaky clean and stroked my newly-smooth legs like a serial killer for a bit, I moisturise. I like a gel texture before I tan, as it absorbs quickly – so I still have the motivation to actually tan myself…

At the moment I’m using The Body Shop’s Virgin Mojito Body Sorbet – it smells like summer and happiness and mint leaves. It’s also really cooling, so its perfect if you’ve had the shower on a bit too hot and have turned into a lobster. I’m sure the lady in the Body Shop told me you can keep it in the fridge too – perfect for holidays!

Once I’m all moisturised (and I’ve tied up my hair, because I once tanned the ends of my hair and it was an unfortunate time for me), I get started with tanning.

image

The tan itself comes out that weird dark green colour, and when applied with a mitt (perfectly, I might add, without any streaks or anything) makes you look like you’re decomposing slightly. I like that guide colour though – I’m notoriously slapdash, so it’s nice to see where I’ve tanned and where I’ve missed (usually the tops of my arms, and the back of my legs).

Now, I feel like the fake-tan fumes might have gone to my head here, but when I looked at the bottle in the store, I swear it said it was scented with green apple. As I’m writing this however, with the cheeky lil bottle of tan keeping me company, it says it’s scented with strawberries. What’s good, tan?

Anyway – it smells lovely, not that cloying biscuity smell that I usually associate with fake tan. I start with my legs (and then use the leftover tan on the mitt for my feet) and move upwards, which is probably how every person on earth fake tans and you’re skipping past this paragraph because duh, of course that’s how you tan…

I let the tan sink in overnight (A* for me, changing my sheets literally hours before deciding to tan) and have a quick shower in the morning with a gentle shower gel (don’t use anything too citrusy as it can break down the tan quickly!).

And now I’m all glowy and I keep admiring my arms, which always look slimmer and generally nicer with a good tan! My Glam Tan is amazing – definitely my new go-to.
My skin feels soft and there’s been no streaking at all – and I’m on day 3 now!

I top up my tan with more moisturiser every evening before bed (because who can be bothered to sit around waiting for it to dry before you get dressed in the morning?).

Have you tried My Glam Tan? Or do you have any secret tanning tips you don’t mind sharing? Let me know!

Bathtime with Treacle Moon*

Warning – adorable brand alert.

Treacle Moon

Treacle Moon is a cruelty free, budget-friendly brand that makes a trip to Tesco a literal joy. Their products retail for around £3, which is actually insane. Their packaging, as you can see, is delightfully minimalist, with sweet little messages on the front of each bottle. My over-enthusiastic filtering on this picture doesn’t do it justice (soz, I’ve just discovered VSCO Cam. It’s a phase) but definitely have a little look the next time you’re waiting for your nana to complete her 5-hour trek round Tesco.

I don’t think I can accurately explain how amazing The Coconut Island smells. Like, it’s coconut, sure – but it’s so much more than that! When this beauty arrived in the post (I was kindly gifted one) me and my mum took it in turns to smell it for like, 3 days. It smells like a beach you’d see on Pinterest.

I’m flipping obsessed with the brand, and I think I’ve tried (or at least enthusiastically sniffed) every single product, so when they released their app, I immediately deleted Kim Kardashian Hollywood (sorry babe) to make room for it in my life.

Their app is quirky and cute, and you can design your own bottle to be entered into regular prize draws, for fun prizes like an inflatable doughnut. I was gutted when I didn’t win that one. It’s so nice that a brand actively seeks out feedback from its customers, so naturally I had a go and created a few bottles I’d like to see on the shelves!

Treacle Moon App

Come on, how amazing would a bubblegum-scented shower gel be?! I want to smell like a funfair. I also want to win an inflatable doughnut.

Have you tried Treacle Moon? What’s your favourite scent? Let me know!

(Although I was kindly gifted by Treacle Moon, all opinions are completely my own. I’ve been buying Treacle Moon products since I was about 16, and I really do love them!)

app, cruelty free, review, treaclemoon, vegan 3 Comments

Top 5 Lush Products

As we know, I spend the majority of my life in Lush with my nose in a pile of bubble bars. There’s something about Lush products – maybe that they’re cruelty free, maybe that they give you that princessy feeling, maybe that they’re just SO GOOD – whatever it is, I’m all about it.

I was looking through my stash this morning and settled on 5 products that are my ultimate favourites. I tried to keep my recommendations to all-year-round products but a sneaky little Christmas bath bomb somehow found its way into the pile. Sorry about that.

Top 5 Lush Products

It’s Raining Men Shower Gel
This is the most luxurious shower gel I’ve ever used. It’s packed full of honey and flowers, and has a gorgeous strong treacly scent. It also makes for a good bubblebath – and you can even wash your hair with it. I love a good multi-purpose product, and this ticks all my boxes!

D’Fluff Strawberry Shaving Soap
You know when you shave your legs in the bath and it ends up looking like a murder scene? Yeah, I feel you. D’Fluff is really smooth and moisturising, and it smells like a strawberry milkshake. Perfect for avoiding leaving forensic evidence all over your bathtub.

Honey I Washed My Hair Solid Shampoo Bar
I will always sing the praises of solid shampoo. This one shares its scent with Lush’s famous Honey I Washed The Kids soap and is absolutely dreamy. The shampoo bars tend to be a little drying (I’m looking at you, New) but this one packs a powerful moisture boost. Love. It.

Ro’s Argan Body Conditioner
Okay, this was a splurge. Like, a massive nearly-£17 splurge. I was rewarding myself for getting 80% in a uni assignment, okay? I’m allowed. This is the ultimate princess product: it smells richly of roses and flowers and honey and everything nice in the world. You apply it to damp skin in the bath for locked-in moisture throughout the day. The smell lingers and serves as a Rose Jam-esque perfume, too.

So White Bath Bomb
So White is possibly my ultimate favourite Lush scent… aaand they discontinued it. Fab. Never mind: I have this rosy ball of apple-y goodness to tide me over til I can find an overpriced bottle on eBay. It turns your bathwater a gorgeous pink and leaves you smelling like an apple orchard for the rest of the day.

So those are my favourites – what are yours? Let me know!