Monthly Favourites | April

So.. It's the 4th May? (May the Fourth be with you ..haha) But seriously, how the hell did that happen? It felt like literally a week ago I was writing up my March favourites and this month flew around so fast I barely even had time to catch my breath! It's a bit of a mixed bag for this month's favourites, but I hope you all enjoy it and read on to see what I'd been loving in April...

Barry M 'Gelly Hi Shine' Nail Paint - Lychee

Barry M's newly reformulated nail paints to give a 'gel nail' finish are well worth the hype that they're receiving. Having just released a new line of colours for the summer I'm eager to stock up on some more shades! Lychee made the cut as this month's favourite as it's the perfect classic nude shade that you can't go wrong with and I've been wearing it a lot recently. It gives a polished manicured look with a thick, high shine finish and lasts for close to a week without chipping - All for £3.99 too!

Redken Color Extend 'Radiant-10' Treatment Spray

I wrote a full post all about this product, and it was also part of my 'Happy, Healthy Hair' post too because it's been a little bit of a lifesaver (/hairsaver) recently. It comes at quite a high price, but it's well worth it and I'd recommend it to anybody looking for a good quality lightweight detangling spray and leave in conditioner that comes with a whole multitude of additional benefits such as adding shine and prolonging the vibrancy of hair colour.

 

Origins 'Modern Friction' Exfoliator

My first Origins purchase, and I wasn't disappointed! A persuasive saleswoman talked me into buying this one as she said that good exfoliation is one of the key stages in skincare to reducing blemishes (I don't really want to talk about excess dead skin cells clogging pores and causing a build up.. but yeah..) and after she demonstrated this product on me during a 'mini facial' I knew that it was love! I'm going to do a full review on this in the coming weeks, but basically it's a very fine and gentle exfoliator that is a real indulgent treat to use. It contains 'rice starch cushioned in cream' which makes it feel a little bit like you're rubbing rice pudding or porridge on your face, but it gives such a thorough polish to the surface of the skin and makes everything look that little bit more refined and fresh.

 

Clinique 'Even Better' Foundation

I have a full post written up on this amazing foundation, that I dubbed as my 'holy grail' base for my make up. Having problematic skin leaves me with wanting no less than a full coverage and long lasting foundation that will stand the test of oil-prone skin. 'Even Better' ticks all of those boxes! One of the highest coverages I've ever used, smooths over enlarged pores, covers blemishes, flawless application and lasts all day. It's my favourite foundation to date and if what I've listed above is something you're looking for then this is one to try!

The Body Shop Vitamin E 'Sink In Moisture Mask'

The Body Shop and their crazy bargains in the sales left me paying no more than £5.00 for this tub, when it's full retail price is £13.00 - I love bargains like that! A naughty product (suspicions lying with Effaclair Duo) left me with skin that was dry, flakey and very unsightly. Dry skin is not the norm for me and I needed something to sort it out pronto! I looked to the Origins 'Drink Up' Mask, but couldn't justify the price tag at the time, however worth it it might have been.. and I found this potential dupe in The Body Shop. It's a fast working 10 minute 'Moisture Mask' that you apply in a thick layer all over and it seems like a normal moisturiser, but after the time is up it has only partially sunk in and there's a residue left on the surface of the skin that can be gently removed with a cotton pad. It leaves the skin looking instantly plumper, like it's had a good 'drink', hydrated and reduces flakey patches. A few uses of this and my dry skin had returned to normal - this saved the day!

Garnier Summer Body Moisturising Lotion

When I wrote a full post about this gradual tanning lotion it received lots of comments from other people saying that they were huge fans of this tan too! I'd recommend clicking here to read my full review on it as I gush in depth about my love for it. Literally the most perfect gradual tanner I've ever used; there's no tell-tale tan smell, it smells fresh and fruity, it actually comes up gradually and is easy to build upon day by day so that there's no waking up and being overly fake and orange if that's not what you're looking for, and the colour is a nice touch of brown, lovely and natural like you've spent a day sitting out in the sun.

 

Urban Decay Super Saturated High Gloss Lip Color - Theodora

Being a lucky little lady, I managed to win one of The Sunday Girl's giveaways and landed myself with one of Urban Decay's limited edition palettes for the release of the film The Great and Powerful Oz. Out of the two versions of the palette (Glinda and Theodora), I won the Theodora palette, represented in the film by the ever so gorgeous Mila Kunis - deserved winner of FHM's Sexiest Women in the World! Enough about my girl crush.. The Theodora Palette came with one of UD's 'Super Saturated' lip colours and the shade is just named 'Theodora' but it's a beautifully bright and glossy red shade that is so simple to apply with the creamy formula and the crayon applicator. I've not been one for red lips much in the past but this one just seems to work for me and the high gloss lasts for hours and hours too. I might have to look into more of these lip pens from Urban Decay because they're such amazing quality! My eye is on 'Love Child' and you can see it here.

So, that's my April favourites! I hope you enjoyed!

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Review: Garnier Summer Body Gradual Tanning Lotion

In the not too distant past I reviewed another gradual tanning lotion that I said that I adored; Palmers Cocoa Butter Natural Bronze (post), but I'm happy to say that said tan has now been pushed to the back of the drawer and there's a new favourite in town. Ladies and Gentlemen, say hello to Garnier Summer Body Moisturising Lotion Sun-Kissed Look. (..Why do things like this need to have such a long name?!). This, my friends, is where it's at. This is.. the one. Irreplaceable. (Maybe). 

Picked up in Asda during a food shop for a small cost of £2.50 (Regular price: £5.00), this has been one of my most reached for products recently. We're all familiar with the process of gradual tanners; it looks and feels like a moisturiser, applies like a moisturiser, and moisturises like a moisturiser.. with the added bonus that you wake up in the morning with a freshly golden tan ..for the most part. There are the times when you wake up looking far too orange and like you've walked straight off the set of TOWIE, occasionally with patches and streaks of white splashed around (getting my shoulders just right is my biggest challenge), and the worst aspect is that you have to walk around smelling like a giant digestive biscuit. Yuck! But at least your skin is soft, right?

So, while we all love a long lasting and beautiful golden tan (I feel so much better when I'm not stark white, everything just looks and feels healthier and more toned!), it can be difficult to get everything perfect. Enter Garnier:

- Price point? Perfect. (Approx £5 for 250ml, £7 for 400ml)

- Availability? Wide: supermarkets, Boots/Superdrug, etc.

- Packaging? Good, no complaints.

- Moisturises the skin? Yes.

- Easy to apply? Yes.

- Nasty biscuit smell? No!! One of the winning aspects of this for me is that it smells like fruit and actually smells nice!

- Now.. The colour and the tan? 

I often have the fear of applying a gradual tan in the morning and then gradually watching my arms as the day goes on turning darker and darker in colour, and by the time it gets to the end of the day I look like I've spent a week in the Caribbean and return home looking like a different person. Even worse if you apply it in the evening so that you've spent all day Monday at work/uni looking like Casper's long lost sister, and then roll up on the Tuesday looking like you've fallen asleep next to the Sun. When a tanning lotion is like that, it's hard to call it 'gradual' as you're 'English Rose' to '3 weeks spent in Egypt' in about 8 hours. Although this can be nice, it's not very realistic and it can be overly fake. I prefer the look of 'yes, I have been spending my afternoons outside in the sun relaxing with a book and catching some rays, look how sun-kissed I am', as opposed to 'yeah this fake tan is so good'. You get me? 

I loved this tan ever since the first time that I used it. I applied it in the evening after I'd had a bath and before I was going to bed. The first good point I noted was that I didn't have to hop about waiting for it to dry before I could put my PJs on and hop under the duvet; it sank in quickly and was touch-dry in a little over 5 minutes. When I woke up there was no unusual smell and the tell-tale 'tan smell' was nowhere to be seen and when I looked in the mirror I got a little bit of a shock to see that I wasn't tanned. I was happy because all that it had done after one application was that it has taken the edge off my shocking pale skin and added a touch more 'warmth' to me. Nothing dramatic. After applying this every day since and I am now on my 7th day in a row of using this, I could happily pass for somebody who spent their Easter abroad, but that was from my own choice of using this for 7 days in a row and building it up gradually, day by day making it more intense. It didn't all come at once.

This makes it much easier to control the tan and you can create the intensity of the colour that you're looking for without going over the top too quickly. You could apply it every day, every two days, or even once a week and have a different level of tan. 

I don't think that I can quite get across in words how much I reaaally like this; I keep catching myself in the mirror, or rolling up sleeves slightly and thinking to myself 'wow you look like you've just got back from a nice long holiday', instead of 'yeah this fake tan is good'! You look brown, not orange. And natural, not fake. It's a winner!

I managed to find a larger sized (400ml) bottle on the Boots website, also for half price of £3.57 - link, and there is a 'dark' version as well, as this the 'light sun-kissed look' version of the tan. So if you're interested then head to Asda or Boots and get yourself a bottle for half price while you still can!

Life's better with a tan.

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Review: Palmers Cocoa Butter Natural Bronze Body Lotion

Everyone feels better with a tan don't they? Life just seems a little bit brighter when your skin looks like you've been hanging in the Bahamas for the past week instead of the reality of sitting in the office or your classroom. I'll always love having a tan but have found the process a bit of a faff to keep up regularly (I'm super lazy), so always stuck to instant for nights out (good old St Moriz) and then spend the rest of the week looking like Casper's little sister.

When it comes to gradual tanning lotions I have memories stapled in my mind of school days where the girls (myself included) used to coat their bodies in Dove Summer Glow and more often than not make a total hack job of it and be walking around with bright orange streaks down their legs getting progressively more prominent as the week went on - not a great look to be sporting really! 

I gave gradual tanners another chance when I picked up Palmer's Natural Bronze lotion while it was in a half price sale after Christmas (usual RRP is £5.35 from Boots: link). I love the Palmers regular cocoa butter body butter; it's the most nourishing and beautiful smelling product I've ever put on my body, so I was hoping that this would be the same except it would leave me looking golden and beautifully tanned. It does still smooth and nourish the skin and doesn't leave any tacky residue behind which I love, and also it comes with a pump dispenser - something that I'll always be a fan of (small things). The main difference though is that it most definitely does not smell beautiful. It is as far from sweet cocoa butter as you can possibly imagine! A lot of fake tans have that biscuit/beef crisps lingering kind of smell and this one is no different. I don't mind it and can happily live with it, but it's not a scent that my boyfriend can put up with! Oh dear. Looks like this is just one to use when he's not around then. So, if anyone knows of any good fragrance free tanners just like this one then let me know!

With the tan itself I have never had any problems with it being streaky/stripey/patchy/blotchy and it has always come out lovely and even all over and although it is pretty dark which shocked me for a 'gradual' tan, it still looks a natural shade and isn't orange. The lotion comes out of the bottle white and looks like any other moisturiser so it can be hard to tell where you have or haven't applied it yet but as long as you're careful with how you apply and make sure to rub it in well and blend it in carefully at your hands and feet (often my downfall is failing to blend at my hands), then you shouldn't have a problem. The tan takes a couple of hours to develop and fades away gradually and evenly with each shower. You can reapply every day or every other day to build this up to a deeper and darker tan, or because it comes out so dark with one use you could use it the night before a special occasion and be prepared to be asked where you've been on holiday!

Cheap and cheerful at just over a fiver and doubling up as both an everyday moisturiser and a natural tanner this is an amazing product that I'm sure I'll repurchase, providing I can get my boyfriend to put up with the smell!

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