China Glaze Foie Gras & Luxe and Lush

Soooo China Glaze are releasing a polish collection based on the Hunger Games series and indeed the collection will be launched to coincide with the film in March. I can't confirm when these will hit the UK but I'll try to find out. China Glaze is stocked in Sallys.

I was sent two shades to show you, the first of which is Foie Gras. The name makes me shudder to be honest as there's nothing good about the idea of Foie Gras.

A dark taupe with a hint of purple, it's not very exciting but it is nice. It makes me think of truffles...mmmm. I must say I found the formula a bit hard to work with, it's hard to explain because it wasn't an especially thick polish but it performed as if it were! Two coats worked just fine but I notice my little finger is a little patchy. Nice polish though.

Then there's Luxe and Lush. It's a flaky, but certainly not as I know it. It's like little shards of plastic rather than  the thin wisps of flaky substance I'm used to. I've applied it over Foie Gras and I don't think it's the most complimentary combination but it's good enough to show you how pretty Luxe and Lush is. I've taken a few shots to show you it in a few different lights, to try and catch all the colours.

 It doesn't look like the flakes would lie flat but they do and it's pretty. I fancy this over a bright green and a bright orange so I'll definitely be having a play with this one as its got bags of potential.

Here's a little look at the whole collection. There are a few I have my eye on in particular Fast Track and Riveting.

 Any take your fancy? I've not yet read the books but I do have them all waiting on my bedside table ready to read next!

*Disclosure - PR Samples*

Estee Lauder Daywear B.B Anti Oxidant Beauty Benefit Creme

So the latest BB Creme to join my collection comes from Estee Lauder. I'm still relatively clueless as to what it is about BB Creams that is making them the must have product at the moment. These are truly beauty phenomenons that I remain largely ignorant about!

So it's with some trepidation I approached this one. This Estee Lauder offering promises and instant, even toned, healthy look, the most effective anti-oxidant  power ever (!), SPF 35, oil free hydration and oil control.

It's available in two shades and as with the Clinique BB Creme I don't think the shade range is adequate. Certainly not for the very palest or darkest.

The idea is that you use this as a last step in your skin care regimen and you can wear it alone or under your foundation depending on how your skin is, or what kind of coverage you like.

The cream itself is very thick and a little goes a long way so a 30ml tube should last a long time. Here's a little look at Shade 01.

 I think you can probably tell this a little orange on me. It's not too much of a problem for me for two reasons. The first is that when fully blended out it is fairly sheer so it's not so obviously wrong, and the second is that I am unlikely to wear this without foundation covering it in some part at least.

Here it is on my face with nothing else.

 So my observations are as follows. This would be great for anyone who is a little oily as this is very matte, not only is a very matte finish but it really does keep oil at bay for quite some time. I tend to not suffer with oily skin but can get a little shiny on my nose towards the end of the day, and found that this was very much kept at bay. I personally don't favour a matte finish so it's not ideal for me but I have found ways around that and in my case, because I frequently need greater coverage (I do suffer a lot of hormonal spots that seem to linger a long time) I find that I can use this BB creme all over my face and then use my foundation of choice to add greater coverage where needed, usually down the centre of my face, and it does seem to blend seamlessly with no problems.

So for me this product isn't perfect, I'd like a slightly paler shade but 01 isn't TOO bad, and I prefer to not have a matte finish, but I can add a bit of glow back to my skin with foundation or highlighters where necessary. I do think this would be a fantastic product for anyone who suffers with oily skin, because this looks matte and stays matte incredibly well. Very impressive.

It's not a cheap product at £32 but it's skincare built into your base and a little really does go a long way indeed so a tube should last a long time.

*Disclosure - PR Sample*

BuyaPowa's Bloggers Week

Oh this is exciting. This week sees the very first Buyapowa Bloggers week.  This week the co-buys have all been selected by bloggers and there are some fab things coming... think Nars, think Tom Ford, think Chanel, think my favourite product, the Too Faced Natural Radiance Palette, OPI and a whole host of fab products chosen by fab products. Yours truly included obviously!

For those unfamiliar with BuyaPowa, it's a site where the more people who purchase a product, the more the price drops and let me tell you there's been some fab things. I've had a lovely Nars Duo and my Clarisonic, as well as Chanel polish, all for fab prices. It's well worth a check in every day, or several times a day as the more popular Co-buys can sell out in minutes!

So in honour of Bloggers week you can now see a little badge over there you can click on to take you to the co-buys. Or you can head over to my Facebook Page and click the tab for the Buyapowa Blogger's co-buys, or you can keep referring back to this blog post because here is a clever little thingy that'll show you what's going on at all times and what's coming soon. You can of course just head over to .

If you saw my Too Faced Natural Radiance Palette review and were tempted, now's your chance. Keep your eyes peeled! (disgusting saying that).




I know what's coming up and have a feeling it's going to be an expensive week. That's all I'm going to say!

This isn't a sponsored post, I'm not being paid for this post, or compensated in any way for taking part in Bloggers week, I just think it's great!

Go take a look.

Poshe Nail Care

I'm excited to tell you about Poshe because it turns out they produce my holy grail top coat. Yes. My love affair with Seche Vite is now over and I'm all about the Poshe.

The ethos behind Poshe is to promote healthy nails without damaging chemicals. This winter has seen my nails suffer more than ever so healthy nails is something I'm desperately in need of!

I was sent a selection of products to try out and so I'm going to discuss them all a little now.

The Poshe Topcoat dries to the touch in one minute, gives a good shine and doesn't cause shrinking. You know how Chanel make great colours that don't tend to wear too well? With Poshe top coat I got 4 days without a single chip from my latest Chanel purchases. They may have gone on to last longer, I don't know, I had to remove to swatch other things, but it was super impressive. It comes as no surprise to me that this top coat has won awards. I won't use anything else.

I have mostly been using this in conjunction with the Poshe Strengthening Basecoat. The basecoat promises to promote harness and help flexibility, whilst conditioning and filling ridges. I don't know, it's hard to gauge the success of a base coat, all I can say is that in conjunction with the top coat, my manicures are lasting well. And that's all I really ask for.

I have also tried out the Fast Drying Basecoat. It sure does dry fast but then so does the Strengthening Basecoat. Both seem excellent, but because my nails are so weak at the moment, I'm sticking with the Strengthening version.

I am now swearing by the Poshe AHA Cuticle Care Cream. I use it every night and it can be used anywhere, but I am only using on my cuticles. Because it contains Alpha Hydroxy Acids it can (and does!) really help hang nails which is something I've always suffered from and I must say that I do appear to be suffering less of these right now.

I was also sent the Poshe Polish Reviver, which I've not yet had occasion to use.

So all in all I'm really impressed with these products, in particular the Top Coat, Nourishing Base Coat and AHA Cuticle Cream but buying in the UK doesn't look quite so simple. I'm told that the brand is available in Sallys, but it's not online and I've not been to a store to see if they have it in, but I've seen a few products on Amazon for very reasonable prices and I also managed to find this online stockist...but until I need to replace my products I can't vouch for this seller.

*Disclosure - PR Samples*

Clarins Enchanted Summer Collection 2012

I saw this collection over at British Beauty Blogger recently and much like the Spring Collection, I find myself wanting it pretty much all.

I've received the press release myself now so I just wanted to share some of the items with you.

The collection is inspired by the heart of India and the festival of colour. Think bronzed complexions, intense eye make up and lips highlighted with shimering shades.

First up is the Colour Quartet and Liner Palette £30.

Want!!! Beige, Bronze, Gold, Violet with a golden brown liner all in a beautiful compact.

Then there's the Kohl Kajal Long-Lasting Eyeliner £15.

This comes not only in the black version but also in violet which you can see on British Beauty Blogger. It's the violet one I want to go with the Colour Quartet!

There are four limited edition Instant Smooth Crystal Lip Balms, gloss, lipstick and balm all in one. £16.50

Shown above are Coral and Rose. There's are also violet and pink versions, Violet has my name all over it, as does rose!

 Then there are three new Bronzing Duo's. £26

Given my new found love for Clarins powders, this is on the list. I'm interested to know why two shades in one pan! There are two darker versions too, but it'll be the lightest one for me.

Then finally, Colour Quench Lip Balms £15. I do have an image for this product but alas Blogger won't let me upload it for some reason. Available in two shades, Pink Jaipur and Nude Delhi. Described as luscious balms offering subtle colour and shine, both shades appeal.

The collection isn't available until May. Booo. I can't wait!

My Night Out, Make up and Clothes!

So you'll know if you read my post yesterday that last weekend I went out for the evening with a friend. My first night out in many years (excluding my husband's work Christmas party) and I was so excited. I tried out the Halo clip in extensions which I loved but it was also an excuse to get properly dolled up. I don't do dressed up like lots of girls do dressed up, you won't find me in a Lipsy Dress or Fake Tan... it's just not my style (although I sometimes wish it were).

So, by my standards I got properly dolled up. I wore leopard print leggings, a black racer back vest and some killer heels that nearly crippled me! I don't have a good outfit picture, only a blurry one from when I was messing about with my husband! I also had a little leather (really not leather) jacket.

 And because I'll always be a rock girl at heart I accessorized with skulls of course!

 You've gotta love a bit of Butler & Wilson haven't you!

As for my make up. It just had to be the YSL Noir Terriblement palette didn't it? With lashings of Guerlain kohl and some Japonesque lashes.

 Oh and on my lips I've got one of those YSL Glossy Stain thingys, full post coming soon!

 So there we have it, how I dressed for my first night out in many years. Oh lordy did I get drunk too, but I had an amazing time. You know it's been a good time when you've lost your voice the following morning from all the singing and talking you did the night before.

Can't wait for my next night out but have no clue what I'll wear. It's hard when you're not really into dresses to know what to wear for a night out these days!

Halo Clip-in Hair Extensions

So excited to do this post. Prior to receiving my Halo Hair extensions, my only experience of hair extension was the Love Pop-On Ponytail. So I was really excited to be sent a of Clip-in extensions from Halo Hair Extensions. The set I received is the 16" Delux Clip-in Remy Human Hair set in Light Brown. The colour match is close but not exact, I was going to dye them but after consulting with my hair dresser we decided the match was probably close enough.

The first thing I must comment on is the colour matching service advertised on the website. If you're not sure what colour to buy, you can send over a photograph and receive a personal email back with suggestions as to what might be right for you. That's very handy!

The next thing that is comment worthy is that my parcel arrived really nicely packaged!

 I particularly loved the sequin stars in the bottom of the outer box.

Sooo then, what you get is 12 hair pieces, all 16". 3 x 8" wide with 3 clips, 3 x 6" wide with 2 clips and 6 x 2" wide with one clip.

 They are so silky smooth! Because they are human hair you can do everything with these that you can do with your own hair, wash it, curl, straighten it and dye it.

I've always wondered how the clips work on clip in extensions so here's a little look at them.
here is how they look open, followed by how they look closed.

 I can't begin to tell you how easy these are to put in! I'm a total novice but as soon as they arrived  I put them straight in just to see how they'd look. Not bad is the answer.

 But I knew I could make them look better. Because the colour is slightly different and because I thought they'd blend better I wanted to try them out curled and so for a recent night out I curled my own hair and all the extensions before putting them all in which was an absolute doddle and took me maybe half an hour to curl it all, and I have a lot of hair on my head!

And here's how they looked immediately after I put them in.

And here I am a few hours later and ready to go out!

 I have to say I felt amazing in them and had no problems with them at all. There was a bit of dancing and hair flinging and they all felt secure, in fact it's fair to say I nearly forgot they were there. I didn't completely forget though because I was compelled to stroke my locks absent mindedly throughout the evening.

I think I'll do a separate blog post about my clothes and make up so if you're interested, look out for those!

Absolutely love love love my new Halo extensions, I can't stop raving about them, so easy to use. Oh and I should add that I have since washed and dried them and they look as good as new. Super impressed.

This set is £74.99 and worth every single penny I think as they look incredible and are so comfortable I could have slept in them. If you are considering investing in hair extensions, then I urge you to have a look at the Halo clip ins, they are superb.

If you have any questions, or would like me to do a video putting them in, then let me know. It really is so easy though, if I can do it, anyone can!

Available from http://www.halohairextensions.com

*Disclosure - PR Samples*