This Week's Beauty Buys

Happy Sunday guys!

This is a pretty straightforward post, just items that I've purchased or that have been finally been delivered this week!

Boots/Superdrug

So today I found myself in the town center for lunch with my boyfriend and it was of course inevitable that I would have a little browse in the beauty departments. 

Revlon Colorburst Lacquer Balm in 105 Demure and Revlon Colorburst Balm in 225 Sultry - £7.99 each
I've been back and forth with these 'balm crayons' for so long that I finally had to bite the bullet and pick some up. I went for a lacquer and a matte so that I could really try them out and find out which one would suit me best as I really couldn't decide in store. The lacquer crayon that i got is a beautiful pale pink nude shade with a lovely sheen to it, while the matte one is a darker, almost plum like shade and will most likely be used as an evening lip color. I've heard really great things about these lip crayons and hope that I enjoy them as much as others already do! 

Maybelline Colorsensational Lipstick in 728 Honey Beige £6.99
I don't know what happened to me this week, but i seemed to have a thing for lip products, which i usually am not so bothered about. However, I just had to get this beautiful lipstick! Maybelline have just launched a new 'Nude' collection of both lip colors and nail varnishes. The lipsticks in this range seem to be the same formulation as the rest of the 'colorsensational' lipsticks and feel very nourishing on the lips. The color i chose is a warm, light brown color and seemed to have been the most popular as this was the shade that had sold the most. If you know me, you know that it is extremely rare to ever see me wearing a lipstick that isn't nude, so this is a welcome addition to my collection!

Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer in 3 Warm Medium £4.19
Recently, no matter whose blog I'm reading, or whose vlog I'm watching everyone seems to be in love with this concealer and being the nosy parker that I am, i just had to see what all the fuss was about. From swatching i can see that this is a really creamy, buttery concealer and the price tag is very welcoming. I picked this up in the warm medium, as although i love a brighter under eye, the fair was just way too bright for me. I'm looking forward to getting round to using this concealer and seeing if it can up my makeup game! 

Collection Illuminating Touch Brightening Concealer in 3 Glow £4.99
Whilst looking at the Collection range I came across this little love. I have recently discovered the L'Oreal Lumi Magique Concealer which is my dupe for the YSL Touche Eclat and have been loving using it, but i have already gone through three of those. And even though they are much, much more affordable than the YSL version they're still nearly £10.00 a tube. Enter the collection illuminating touch brightening concealer! This is almost identical to the L'Oreal one, the only difference that i can see is in the packaging and the price tag. I will of course update you on how well this product performs but i have a really strong feeling i may have discovered a dupe of a dupe!

Herbal Essences Bee Strong Strengthening Intensive Hair Mask £1.97 (Half price in Superdrug)
As you may know from reading my previous post on the condition of my hair here, I'm always on the look out for 'wonder products' to really heal my hair and help the condition of it. I've never truly been a fan of Herbal Essences, but at £1.97 can you complain? I have really been struggling to find a hair mask on the high street recently and so I thought I'd give it a go. Its a very generous sized tub, holding 200ml of product which smells divine. I'm hoping to do a bit of a hair pamper this evening so we shall see if this helps to manage my frizzy & distressed hair!

John Frieda Frizz-Ease Miraculous Recovery Intensive Masque £1.99
This is a repurchase for me, as i tend to use one of these every week. Its a really indulgent mask that leave hair smooth, easily manageable and sleek. I only got one from boots as i can usually find these quite a bit cheaper, but had to get one because i was feeling lazy and couldn't be bothered going all the way to the supermarket!

Dove Hair Therapy Intensive Repair Self Warming Hair Mask £3.49
After reading Miss Emma Charlotte's post on this hair mask here, I was on a quest to pick one up and see if it was possible that i could have the same results! I found it online on the boots website a few days ago but it said sold out, so i had to wait. However, I'm really happy that i managed to pick it up today. The packaging, although quite simple is very nice, and i feel that it would travel quite well. I'm going to save this hair mask for in the middle of the week when I'm usually rushing around and see if it can help me with both the condition of my hair and the manageability.

Online Purchases; Esscentual, Boots, Fragrance Direct.

 Soap and Glory Hocus Pocus Instant Illuminator £11.00
Working two jobs and putting in 20 hour days on average is definitely taking its toll on my skin and so i have been looking for an illuminator to help brighten up my tired skin. Basically i've been looking for an 8 hour sleep in a bottle. Even though I feel dead, I don't want to look it! This product by Soap & Glory promises to instantly soften visible flaws and illuminate the skin. It can be used alone, under foundation or mixed in with foundation. I think this is a really purse friendly alternative to say, the Le Blanc De Chanel Sheer Illuminating Base which comes in at £27.00.

Vichy Laboratoires DermaBlend Foundation £14.45

When I first read about this foundation, I will admit that I was a bit dubious. This product professed to do everything. But upon using it, I have to say that I am literally in love with the product. It does everything and more that i could ask of a foundation. It has the most amazing coverage I have ever come across yet doesn't cake in the slightest. You only need the tiniest amount for a full base as it blends out so easily, lasts all day and cleanses off like a dream. I have been using this for the last few days and have not broken out at all, in fact the few blemishes that i did have on my forehead have gone altogether. I will definitely be ordering more of this in the next couple of weeks as i don't to ever run out! The only downside, if you could call it that would be the design of the packaging, as it doesn't really appeal to me and isn't very pretty, but it does the job.

W7 Camera Ready Primer Magic £3.75

I bought this primer because i have been told that it is a really good dupe for the smash box photo finish primer, but obviously at a fraction of the price. I haven't gotten around to using this one yet, however, my boyfriends sister swears by it and it's on my list to try this week. The packaging reminds me of NYX's photoready primer review here, and is not exactly attractive. Its a little dull and boring but luckily for W7 its the product that we're interested in, not the bottle!

Feel Unique

Feel Unique have a special offer on every day throughout the month of may. Some of these special offers haven't interested me at all, however, the 50 products for £5.00 certainly enticed me, and although I wasn't quick enough to get everything that I had spotted, i got a few good little bargains!

Cocoa Brown 1 Hour Tan Mousse and Mitt Gift Bag £5.00 (Usually £9.99)

I'm a fake tan junkie. But before you judge me, I do not naturally tan, at all, nu'huh, not one little bit. I am as white as an emulsion-ed wall, once in the sun i will go to a lovely, highly attractive lobster shade and after a day or two i will return to my ghostly-self. I have been using fake tan since i was about fourteen, so of course this one interested me. It promises to be a non-sticky, accelerated tanning mousse and the fact that it came with a mitt was just a huge bonus seen as my dog likes to eat mine!

Blanx White Shock Toothpaste with LED Light £5.00 (Usually £7.49)

I have some slight staining on one of my front teeth from my brace days, its not anything that is very noticable and it doesnt bother me all that much, but this toothpaste promises to act instantly and remove any visable pigmentation on the teeth, and for only five pounds i thought i might as well give it ago. I don't know how much i believe that the led light has a massive effect of the tooth paste, as it just seems like a massive gimmick to me but we will see! I haven't started using this toothpaste yet as i'm finish my tube of sensodyne gentle whitening toothpaste but i will be sure to let you know if i notice any changes!

Kardashian Beauty Light Stroke in Fantasy £5.00 (Usually £11.95)

The Kardashian's beauty brand isn't something that has really grabbed my interest in the past, but recently i have been looking for a stick-type highlighter that i can use underneath my brow bone as a finishing touch. This product is actually double ended, on one end is the golden highlighting stick and the other contains a roll-on type shimmery powder. The packaging is simple, yet very nice and feels sturdy enough to pop it into your handbag if you want to. I was quite pleasantly surprised when this product arrived. The only downside being that you only get a teeny amount of the highlighting stick. Not something that bothers me so much now, but could do after a couple of weeks of use. And I'm not so sure that i would repurchase at almost twelve pounds. Its a nice product to have in your collection, but not necessarily a must have.

Ebay Buys

 Quite a few buys from ebay recently. I just find it really easy to shop from and you can find some real bargains!

Individual False Eyelashes £1,99 a pack, Eyelure Lift Off £3.49, Salon Systems Semi-Permanent Glue in Black & Dotty Elephant Tweezers £2.99

In the summer months i like to be able to get ready in a rush, I'm talking tinted moisturizer and out the door. So it makes sense for me to apply individual, semi-permanent eyelashes to help my quick morning routine. I find it much simpler and cheaper to apply me own instead of going to a salon. This way i can take my time, apply them how i want and am always happy with the end product. I picked up the eyelure lift off to help me remove any stubborn eyelashes that don't want to come off, but really any oil based product will remove them, and i picked up some new tweezers for the purpose of applying the individual eyelashes. I found these dotty elephant ones and fell in love with them, they're so cute!

Beauty Sponge £2.75

I know what you're thinking, 'she cheaped out on the beauty blender'. Well, I've had both the Beauty Blender and the Real Techniques Miracle Complexion Sponge but my puppy doesn't understand that they are not a toy. One, i found in bits all over the stairs and the second i found half buried in a flower bed in the back garden. So yes, I cheaped out. I only use this to blend concealer so didn't feel like spending a small fortune. 

Set of 4 makeup brushes 3.38 and Pump dispenser £0.99

I recently read a blog post here and instantly wanted everything mentioned in that post. I settled for the two that interested me the most. They were both sent from china, but arrived within ten days which i thought was super quick and they both had free postage. I'm using the pump bottle to hold my micellar fluid and it is so simple to use come bed time. The brushes, i am yet to use but already have them ear marked for specific jobs. Bargains galore!

So there you have it, a whole lot of beauty buys this week! I don't know how I've managed to accumulate so much, and now i feel quite guilty! There will be a Body Shop haul post around Tuesday/Wednesday, I'm just waiting for the huge package to arrive! 

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