The £1.50 Boots Moisturiser

Hello, and a belated Happy New Year! For my first post of 2018, I thought I'd do a quick review of the Boots Essentials Fragrance Free Moisturising Cream, which, as you can see in the title, is only £1.50. You get 100ml, which is a very generous amount and should last a while.

Some people might be a bit sceptical of how good a £1.50 moisturiser is going to be - you get what you pay for right? In this case, though, I've been really pleasantly surprised by this moisturiser. I've been using it for a few months and noticed a big, instant improvement in dryness on my chin as a result of the cold this winter.

As you can see on the packaging, this is intended for all skin types, which is probably true unless your skin is very oily. It's quite rich, so I tend to reach for a different moisturiser if I'm having breakouts, just to discourage any new spots from coming through. I think this would be a good moisturiser for those of you with dry and/or sensitive skin, as it's fragrance free.

It works quite well under makeup, sinking in relatively fast and giving you a great smooth base for applying foundation. It does everything it says on the tin, making your skin lovely and soft, which kind of makes me want to touch it - which probably isn't a good idea!

Overall, this moisturiser is an absolute bargain, and I'd highly recommend checking it out next time you need a new moisturiser! I'll certainly be repurchasing when mine runs out.

Have you tried this product? What's your moisturiser of choice at the moment? 

I'm back with a Boots Haul!

*sorry about the bad photo, it was taken at night time

Hello everyone, so I'm back after many months...many people won't be bothered but if you do want to read my excuse explanation then I'll leave it at the bottom of the page, otherwise read on! 

So, the other day I went to Boots, and stuff happened. I was actually going in there intending on buying the famous YSL Touche Eclat - despite being on a budget. I justify this because ever since my MAC Prep and Prime highlighter ran out I've missed using a pinky brightening pen under my eyes and wanted to see what all the fuss was about with Touche Eclat (I actually did buy it once ages ago from Cheap Smells, now called All Beauty, as it is slightly cheaper on there, but I barely recall if I liked it or not because it ran out suspiciously quickly. I should really have chased them up about it at the time because it makes me wonder if I had a dud).

My other excuse is that I've not bought myself new makeup in ages (basically just mascara and concealer late last year when both of the old ones were running out) and so when you think about it that £22.50 (it was on offer at 10% off) was probably what I would have spent on random stuff anyway if I hadn't decided to stop buying more makeup items I don't need, because I wasn't running out of those things at all (lipsticks, eye shadows, blushes etc). Plus, you've got to treat yo self once in a while, right...?

Fun fact: this video was posted on my birthday.

Anyway yes - the lady at the counter didn't need to sell this to me much at all. One odd thing was that she told me it was a concealer but I'm not sure this is true - I mean, as I understand it, you use it under your eyes to brighten, not conceal. I fully wasn't expecting this to cover up my dark circles, just to really help cancel out the darkness under my eyes and help make me look like I've had my eight hours (when really I've been writing blog posts at half midnight).  

Another thing that was tempting me was that I had these vouchers from boots to boost my points - these are great as they're easy to redeem and you can get loads of points quickly. So when I did this haul I gained about £9.50 worth in points! Another way I boost my points is through the offers on the app, which are sometimes better than the coupons they send in the post. For example, I have a coupon left to get 200 points when I spend £20 or more before 15th March, but another one on the app gives me 400 points if I spend £20+. So obviously I'll go with that one, and before 15th March I'll head back to Boots to get some more things, mainly essentials as like I said I don't really need any more bits of makeup! The app can be a bit glitchy but if you don't have it you can still access the same offers under your advantage card account page on Boots.com.

But yeah, YSL Touche Eclat is one of the most iconic makeup products of all time and sometimes it's just nice to own a beautifully packaged, top quality luxury beauty product. So I don't feel too bad about buying this, but if I repurchase it, it will probably be using my points!

I've used it a few times and really like it so far, I get terrible dark circles so anything that makes me look more awake is a winner. I might do a full review in the future, so let me know if that's something you'd be interested in! 

The next thing I bought was a Soap and Glory Foam Call Bath and Shower Wash. These body washes always smell amazing and are a nice treat (not that they're expensive at £6.50, but this is a fair amount to pay for a shower gel) and I got 200 points for buying a soap and glory product. I haven't tried this particular one before but I'm pretty sure I'm going to enjoy it, these are great products.

My Garnier Micellar Water was running low so I decided to try out Nivea's offering in the micellar water trend - the Daily Essentials Sensitive 3in1 Micellar Cleansing Water, which I've also heard good things about. It's currently half price at £1.84, but I wouldn't really buy it full price as it's not as good value for money as the Garnier one, which gives you twice as much product for not much more money (it's also on offer quite often).

Staying on skincare and another points offer was to buy a Boots Skin Clear product - they do a lot of offers around this range and in taking advantage of them I've ended up with so many spot sticks! I decided to try out their Deep Clean Daily Face Wash, which was only £2.99. Reading reviews before I bought it I could have sworn some people said it had beads in it, which I wasn't too keen on - I wouldn't really want to use an exfoliating wash once or twice a day, it's too harsh. But it doesn't have any beads - I don't know if they might have reformulated it since these reviews were written? But anyway so far I'm liking this. I've heard that foam washes aren't that great for the skin as they can dry it out but to be honest I like using them, they give you more of a feeling of having a squeaky clean face than milky/lotion type cleansers like Soap and Glory Peaches and Clean do (don't get me wrong I like that cleanser a lot, but it doesn't make your skin feel as clean as foam washes do). 

In case you wanted to have a looksie inside

And another skincare item I bought, again from Boots' own brand range, is their Boots Essentials Cucumber Moisturising Cream. To be honest when I picked this up at Euston station a while before I bought this other stuff I just needed a new moisturiser and couldn't be bothered to look up loads of reviews, but the ones for this seemed promising. It's aimed at all skin types, so I knew it wasn't going to do anything special, but I'm really enjoying it - it's refreshing to use, not too heavy, and makes my skin feel nice and soft. The only thing I don't like is that it takes ages to sink in to my skin, so if I'm getting ready in the morning and want to do my foundation it's a little annoying if the moisturiser hasn't finished sinking in. But yeah, I wasn't expecting anything too fancy from this but I quite like it, and you can't go wrong really at £1.50. I think quite a lot of people have tried the eye cream in Boots' cucumber skincare range, but I'd recommend this too if you're looking for a good, cheap, basic moisturiser. 

My excuse for being a bad blogger:
I'm not sure if I've mentioned it before, but I have a bit of an obsessive personality. Not that I get hooked on drugs or anything like that haha, but I get periodically obsessed with things like songs, chocolate/sweets/snack types, and makeup. When I stopped blogging it wasn't just because I'd slightly run out of ideas and couldn't afford to keep buying new products all the time (this is another thing - there shouldn't be too many hauls, because I really want a holiday and living in London now is expensive!) it was also because I just wasn't all that bothered about makeup anymore. And if I'm not interested in or passionate about it, I don't think it would make for a good reading experience for you (and writing experience for me) if I forced blog posts just for the sake of it. Besides, moving to London was quite a big change last year, so I had so much on my mind with my new job and everything that blogging and makeup and beauty just sort of got sidelined. So apologies if anyone has missed my blog (doubtful, but thanks very much if you like my blog that much!). I don't know how often I'll blog from now on, but I have a few posts in mind, and I'm getting a bit back into beauty, so we shall see. ;)

Hope you enjoyed this post! Have you tried any of these products? 

Sabrina xx

Review: Boots Skin Clear Oil-Free Mattifying Lotion

Hello! Today I have a review for a product that I've actually repurchased about three times, usually when it's on offer (although it's still quite cheap when it's not on offer!) This product has cleared up my skin really well in the past, and although I have been using an Avene moisturiser recently I still use this one when I have more breakouts than usual as the salicylic acid in the formula helps to get rid of them.

I don't find this all that moisturising but it definitely does what it says and mattifies the skin. It has a non-greasy formula so it effectively soaks up any oil on your face, just like it promises:

However this lotion does have one downside that is fairly annoying and does limit its use: it doesn't really leave a good base for makeup. You have to be careful how much you use as it can leave little white flakes on the skin, which especially annoying when you're trying to apply foundation! This is quite a shame really as it limits when you can use it.

Overall though this is still a great buy and it's definitely worth picking up if you suffer from breakouts/oily skin! If you have combination skin you may only want to apply this to your T-zone or wherever you're oily as you might find it a little drying otherwise. This is usually £2.99 but seems to be on offer a lot and is currently £2 available here.

Hope you enjoyed this review. If you're new and like my blog, please follow me here on Bloglovin, and it would also be lovely if you'd like to nominate me for the Bloggers Blog Awards! :)

Sabrina xx

Review: No7 Beautifully Matte Foundation

Hey everyone! I thought I'd share my thoughts on No7's Beautifully Matte Foundation, which I bought at the beginning of April. This post is probably going to be quite long but I'm aiming to make it as thorough as I can!

This foundation doesn't get an awful lot of hype in the beauty world - but neither do many of No7's products. I do think No7 is a bit overpriced, but they do have some great products. It does get mostly positive reviews on Makeupalley and Boots.com though.

The No7 sales assistant used the Foundation Match Service device to match me to Calico, the lightest shade (big surprise) which matches me quite well but would be too dark if you're extremely pale. There are 14 shades to choose from which I think is pretty good.

Other things to mention:

• It's hypo-allergic
• It has an SPF of 15
• It has medium to full coverage
• It has a matte finish, as the name suggests!

I don't like to look or feel caked in makeup so I don't usually go for full coverage foundations, however this one usually feels light on the skin.

 I like how this foundation is less likely to aggravate any breakouts as No7 say "salicylic acid had been included in the formula to help unblock pores and improve the condition of the skin throughout wear." I also own the Maybelline Dream Pure BB Cream which contains 2% salicylic acid. The only thing with this is it means you can't apply either of these products very close to your eyes, or it may sting. 

Calico swatched.

It claims to keep you shine free for up to 14 hours (or 12 hours according to the website) which is quite tame considering there's a 25 Hour Foundation (by Rimmel) and the L'oreal Foundation I almost bought, Infallible Matte, promises a matte result for up to 24 hours. I don't know who wears their makeup that long but I think the staying power's quite good. I wouldn't say my skin is extremely oily and this foundation wears well for around 7 or 8 hours before I start to feel a bit shiny on my forehead.

I like to apply it over the Beautiful Skin Day Cream for Normal/Oily Skin (reviewed here) and use the Real Techniques Buffing Brush (from the Core Collection) to apply and blend. For testing it for this review I used no primer or powder. Although this has fairly high coverage I definitely still needed some concealer for those dark circles and blemishes...

Before, so no makeup:

After (just foundation):

Here's a comparison how my 'problem area' (i.e. where I always seem to break out) looked before and after applying this foundation, so you can have a closer look at the coverage it gives. That's right, I lost my mind and put pictures of my spots on the internet (my skin is quite rubbish at the moment.) Oh well!

^ As you can see it hasn't done much when it comes to covering the three active spots near my jawline, but it has done quite well at covering red marks which are healing old spots.

Here's how the foundation looks along with the rest of my makeup:

It might just be the lighting but if I wasn't avoiding powder for the purposes of this review I would definitely have powdered my T-zone with MAC's Blot Powder as I feel like my nose and forehead look a bit shiny.

In case you're wondering, the rest of the makeup I'm wearing is:

Maybelline Lash Sensational Mascara (reviewed here) applied over Seventeen Falsifye HD Mascara
NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer in Vanilla under the eyes (reviewed here)
Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer in Fair for spots
MAC Prep and Prime Highlighter in Radiant Rose under the eyes and on the brow bone
MAC Satin Taupe eyeshadow with a bit of Patina at the crease
L'oreal Brow Artist Plumper in Dark Brunette
NARS Gaiety blush
NYC Smooth Skin Bronzing Powder Sunny (I never use bronzer but I thought I'd give this a go - not sure if you can tell I'm wearing it?!)
Seventeen Mirror Shine Lipstick in Belle (I've raved about this lipstick before but I don't think I've actually shown how it looks on the lips until now!)

Overall, I quite like this foundation, though I don't think it's 'holy grail' at the same time. The coverage is good, but what I think I like most about it is how natural it looks, as it doesn't feel heavy or cakey at all.

You can buy this foundation only at Boots for £13.50, but look out for the £3 off No7 Makeup vouchers! There is currently a free gift offer when you buy two No7 products. There's also a 'Save £5 when you spend £35 on selected fragrance, No7 & premium beauty' offer which is only online.

Have you tried this foundation? What's your favourite foundation?

Sabrina xx

Mini Boots Haul

I swear it's practically impossible for a beauty-obsessed person such as myself to go into Boots intending to buy an essential such as toothpaste, without ending up with that and some other items that were...well, slightly less essential. That's what happened with this haul. To be fair, I didn't get that much - I really wanted to pick up a Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvet Lipstick as they all look gorgeous and are getting a lot of hype right now in the beauty world, but I resisted. (I know, go me! Haha.)

I've pictured the Nivea Daily Essentials Night Cream, £2.24, which I actually bought the previous week and mentioned in my last post. So far I'm really liking this product, it calms my skin down overnight when it's being a bit temperamental. The other night I was breaking out, used this product anyway (which I thought was a bit risky as it's quite a thick lotion) and obviously it didn't make the spot go away, but it did definitely help with redness and made my skin a bit happier. It's also very cheap especially as it's still half price at Boots so I'd definitely recommend trying it!

I also repurchased the Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer in Fair which is one I've repurchased a lot. I've raved about this so much on my blog before so I won't go on about it except to say that it's absolutely worth the hype if you ask me! I am still using the NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer on dark circles and this one is for using on spots and blemishes. I did a post reviewing the Nars concealer and comparing it to Collection here.

I had my hair done on the same day I bought these items and I decided to try a new hair treatment seeing as though the ends of my hair get very dry. I've also just had it coloured again so it's now definitely in need of some TLC. I deliberated between the Aussie 3 Minute Miracle Colour Deep Treatment (I've tried the normal version and loved it, it smells so good) or the Garnier Ultimate Blends Colour Illuminator 1-Minute Treatment but got the latter because it was cheaper on offer for £2.99. I have the shampoo version of it as well which I quite like, especially for the smell (Argon Oil and Cranberry). I rarely use hair treatments because my hair gets greasy quite quickly but I'm excited to try this!

The last thing I got was Soap and Glory's Peaches and Clean Cleansing Milk which was also on offer for £6 instead of £8 and was the main impulse buy of the bunch seeing as though I might not have noticed it at all if it hadn't been on offer. However I'm looking forward to giving this a go, I was on the lookout for a new cleanser and this one gets very positive reviews on both Boots.com and Makeupalley. Also Khila (Miss Budget Beauty) raves about it a lot!

I just hope my sensitive skin gets on with this as it contains active ingredients/'glycols' (I know - blank face) and interestingly although Soap and Glory describe it as gentle and able to remove waterproof mascara, they also say not to use it on the eye area. I've used it a few times and so far, so good. It tingles a bit but other than that there are no signs of it irritating my skin. It had a very unusual minty yet peachy smell which I'm not sure what to make of yet. Also as usual with Soap and Glory the packaging is gorgeous.

Do you have any thoughts on these products? Have you made any drugstore purchases lately? :)

PS: This is obviously very unrelated to the rest of this post, but I saw this kimono over on Heather at Of Beauty & Nothingness' Summer Clothing Wish List and wanted to mention it as I'm in love with it as well as the whole outfit below...which adds up to £133! (Not including the necklace or sandals! I don't own a single kimono in my wardrobe as it's just not an item I would usually wear but I think this one is so beautiful:

Sabrina xx

High Street Haul: Boots, New Look and Superdrug!

Hi everyone, hope you all had a great Easter! Today I have a haul post to share, because I went to Boots, New Look and Superdrug, and stuff just happened...

I actually only got a few things from Superdrug so I'll start with those. I got two Barry M nail polishes from Superdrug as the £3.99 ones are currently on offer for 2 for £6 and I wanted to get a more expensive product for free when I took advantage of the 3 for 2 offer in Boots.

As I've said before, I do have too many nail polishes - but in my defence these two are both very unique in my collection, as I don't think I had any yellows at all before I bought this one!

I picked up one of the new Quick Dry polishes in Stop the Clock, which is a really pretty and summery pastel yellow. I'm not sure if this will go that well with my skin tone but I love the colour so it's worth the risk. I'm also looking forward to seeing if it does dry quickly as it promises!

The other colour I got was Almond in the 'Gelly Hi-shine' range which Anna from Vivianna Does Makeup said was an amazing dupe for Nails Inc's Porchester Square in this blog post. I don't normally go for this kind of taupe shade but I thought this would be a great work-appropriate neutral which is something a bit different from the light, natural pinks I usually go for when I think of more formal nail looks. I've tried a few shades from the Gelly range and they've all been great, and I love Barry M polishes in general!

Moving on to Boots, I went in knowing I was going to get the L'oreal Brow Artist Plumper, as Renata from Speaking Beauty wrote that it was a great dupe for Benefit's Gimme Brow, which I've tried at a Benefit counter - it looked great, but it's too overpriced for me at £18.50. L'oreal's offering is £5.99, but I got it free with the 3 for 2 offer and it's the first eyebrow product I've ever bought! They had no tester for the darker shade but I tested the lighter one and knew it would be too light so I got the darker one - I have dark blonde hair so I just hope my eyebrows don't clash too much with my hair colour.

'Dark Brunette' swatched

I quite like it so far! It's a welcome new addition to my everyday makeup as it definitely makes my eyebrows look more polished. I had a look at the even cheaper (£3.99) Rimmel version of the eyebrow mascara type product (Brow This Way) but the brush was shorter and larger so I wasn't sure about it. I like the brush of the L'oreal one, it's quite long yet small and it makes me feel like I know what I'm doing when I do my brows haha.

Before and After

But seriously, this kind of brow product did seem best for me as an eyebrow product beginner because I just don't know how to fill in my brows with products like Benefit's Brow Zings and the mascara-like brush does it all in one go so it's pretty effortless. I also wasn't sure if my eyebrows even need much filling in as they're quite thick already!

I also went in thinking I was probably going to buy the No7 Beautifully Matte Foundation - I had a sample of it and quite liked it, but I also noticed that L'oreal had a new foundation aimed at oily skin - Infallible Matte Foundation, which at the time of posting is on offer for £6.99.
It looked intriguing - it promises to stay on for 24 hours which is a slightly pointless claim considering that no one keeps their foundation on for 24 hours! In the end I went for the No7 Foundation as it has SPF which is great for daytime wear (I can use my Bourjois Healthy Mix Foundation for night time wear to avoid flashback in any flash photography) and looking on Makeupalley on my phone I could see that the No7 foundation had a higher rating/more positive reviews than the L'oreal one. I would still love to try that L'oreal foundation sometime though! I have never tried a foundation from either L'oreal or No7.

Side note: am I the only one who checks the overall rating of a product on Boots.com and Makeupalley whilst browsing in Boots or Superdrug?! I just don't want to take the risk of blindly buying a product without checking any reviews or ratings first, and I might even return a product unused if I did buy it blindly and then find that it has extremely negative reviews!

The final product I got in the 3 for 2 was the Maybelline Lash Sensational Mascara, £7.99, which I've heard great things about on blogs. I've used it a few times now and I like it so far apart from that it's a little clumpy, but I'll let you know how I get on and probably do a full review soon!

I went to New Look just to see if they had any nice work appropriate pieces other than the usual white shirts and black trousers. I bought this dress with a contrast collar. It is a little short (I'm 5'9) so I'd probably wear it with tights. The only size 8 they had in this had foundation marks around the collar so I got 10% off and it's non-returnable. It is £19.99 normally and looking online it's currently on offer for £14.99 which is slightly annoying, but nevermind.

They also had a black version but no size 8s, I tried on the 6 and it was way too tight, so that made the decision for me on which colour to get!

Lastly I didn't intend to buy a bag and I haven't bought a new one in ages, but I fell in love with this one - it is such a classic style but in a gorgeous, unique colour, which I couldn't help but notice is very similar to the nail polish I bought earlier that day, Barry M's Almond.

The rose quilted design is very pretty and it's a good size - not too large or small, and I really like the adjustable strap. It was also very reasonably priced at £12.99!  I'm not sure if it goes that well with my new grey dress, but it doesn't clash either. Overall, everything about this bag is gorgeous, and I think it's suitable for finishing off both formal and casual outfits.

Thanks for reading!
Sabrina xx

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My Everyday Makeup!

Hi again! So I thought I'd share my everyday makeup look, although technically I don't wear makeup every day - but you get what I mean ;) I usually like to change a few things round each time I wear makeup though (blush, lip colour) and I rarely wear eyeliner during the day.

I'm also trying out a couple of new products at the moment - I got a sample of the No7 Beautifully Matte Foundation at a counter as I don't own any matte foundations, which can be tricky when my skin is being particularly oily, so I thought I'd try this one out. At £13.50 though I think I'd probably like to wait for the next £5 off No7 vouchers to come out if I decide to buy it! 

I have only used it a few times but so far I quite like it, it mattifies and gives decent coverage without looking cakey. The lightest shade, Calico, is just about light enough for me. I've been trying it out without using a primer or a powder as I like to see how long it can last on its own - and so far it's been pretty good (No7 say that it stays on for up to 12 hours - I haven't worn it that long to say so far but it has lasted a good 8 hours or so.) I also like how it has an SPF of 15 and is hypo-allergenic. I might do a proper review of this sometime, especially as so far I'm definitely considering buying it :)

I think foundation with SPF is great for the daytime so before I started trying this one I was typically using Rimmel's Match Perfection Foundation which I have in the lightest shade again (Porcelain) - it is super pale so a good winter foundation.

I'm also trying out the Seventeen Perk and Paint Eyeliner Duo which I bought along with the Seventeen Falsifeye HD Mascara in a 'buy one get one half price' offer on Seventeen products. I also had a voucher to get 300 Advantage Card points for buying any 17 product (am I the only one who likes to build up their points using the points boosting vouchers they send in the post about every couple of months?)

17 Perk and Paint Eyeliner Duo Swatched

I haven't seen much talk about this on blogs but it seems good so far! Like I said I don't normally wear eyeliner during the day but I like that I have a black liner on the other end of the brightening pencil as it's handy for if I do decide to wear eyeliner. I'm definitely more intrigued by the 'eye brightener' side though as it seems like it could be a great dupe for Benefit's Eye Bright (which I don't own but have heard good things about) In the makeup picture below I just wore the brighening pencil on my waterlines - it's a great choice for if you tend to have reddish waterlines when you're tired!

Here I am makeup free:

I like to keep my everyday makeup quite natural, as you can see: 

Products used:

MUA Clear Mascara for my eyebrows

Seventeen Falsifye HD Mascara - sometimes I like to apply loads of this

Seventeen Perk and Paint Eyeliner Duo

NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer

Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer

Clinique Chubby Stick in Wopping Watermelon (sample size I got free with a magazine)

Sleek Rose Gold Blush

No7 Beautifully Matte Foundation

I also applied my foundation with the Real Techniques Buffing Brush and my blush was applied with the Real Techniques Blush Brush.

Just a random thought: recently it's occurred to me that I might be a bit of an unusual beauty blogger in terms of how I don't really use anything on my eyebrows. I tend to just pluck my brows to keep their shape every week or so and then occasionally use a clear mascara from MUA (which only cost me a pound from Superdrug) to brush through them if I think they look a bit unkempt but other than that I leave them au natural. In some photos I think my eyebrows look fine just as they are but in others I feel like they need filling in or tidying, in fact my friend Emily has filled them in for me a couple of times for nights out but I usually think they look a little strange (even though they are tidier and she does a good job!) probably because I'm not used to them looking like that! 

Anyway I'm thinking about buying an eyebrow product such as the Sleek Eyebrow Stylist, I'm not completely sure how to use brow products though and I don't want my brows to look weird. If you have any recommendations or tips on doing your brows then please let me know! (Or I could just google it of course, haha)

Thanks for reading!

Sabrina xx