This is just a short post about some beautiful jewellery I purchased lately.
These pieces are from an etsy store called Untamed Menagerie (click here!) which sells handmade silhouette jewellery.

'Through The Looking Glass'

'Stranger To Affection'

I was extremely satisfied by the service of the store and the quality of the products once they arrived. As you can see these were packaged beautifully, especially since I am a sucker for the creepy Alice In Wonderland vibe this packaging is going for. I particularly enjoy the butterfly silhouette necklace as I have been wanting something similar for a long time. These are both necklaces but there are a variety of other types of jewellery available and all and extremely reasonable prices - i'm going to go back for more when I have a few more spare pennies!

My only issue with my order was unexpected customs charges! These weren't forseen but are obviously not the fault of the Untamed Menagerie Etsy store. I just wanted to warn those from the UK that you will be required to pay customs charges! (Mine were around £18 for 2 necklaces). Delivery took around 5-6 weeks from the US.

xxxx

I have been a bit MIA this week for two reasons, one pictured above and the other was a general bout of illness. I purchased this moisturiser/night cream online a few days ago and decided to slap some on one night when I was watching TV. After about ten minutes my whole face began to burn and became very irritated so I immediately washed my face to remove the cream, sadly much of the cream had already absorbed and so I continued to have the rash for a few more days. I wasn't sure whether this was a faulty batch or not so I took to google to find the answer.

I found online (on the Olay site actually) a full list of ingredients in the product and discovered that it contains a few parabens (Ethylparaben, Methylparaben, Propylparaben) and Benzyl alcohols (Benzyl Benzoate, Benzyl Cinnamate, Benzyl Salicylate). As I have sensitive skin, I can often have bad reactions to products containing Benzyl. As for the parabens, I am still iffy on this issue as I have found many articles (like this one: http://www.live-naturally.co.uk/article/Parabens-and-their-effects) which detail the research surrounding the negative effects of parabens.

I'm not sure what caused the reaction in my skin, but I do know I won't be trying this product again! I encourage you all to be wary of the products you are putting onto your skin as you can end up with bigger problems than a rash! -mummy moment over-

Have any of you used this product? How did you find it?

x

Revlon Colourburst Lipsticks

Whilst in boots this week I spotted these lipsticks at the Revlon stand in boots and having a few extra pennies, I decided to treat myself to two colours - a pink shade and a red shade. I had already heard a lot about these lipsticks online and through some friends and had heard they were good for basic daywear for those days where you would like a semi-formal make-up look as they are supposed to be very moisturising while still being pigmented like a normal lipstick!

Here's the official mumbo jumbo:

Revlon ColorBurst Lipstick uses Elasticolor™ technology to distribute rich colour pigments evenly over lips and allows the formula to move comfortably with lips – like a second skin!

Revlon ColorBurst Lipstick is also infused with moisturizers and antioxidants such as Sweet Almond Oil to improve lip texture and prevent drying.

Key Benefits:

• Innovative pigments provide immediate, high-pigment colour release on lips to give rich colour in just one swipe.
  
• Unique Elasticolor technology hugs lips with an explosion of colour that feels virtually weightless• Contains film-forming polymers for longer wear and skin conditioning properties
  
• Moisturizers and anti-oxidants, including Sweet Almond Oil, improve lip texture
  
• Beautiful packaging, with premium bullet lipstick case and embossed Revlon logo

(via www.boots.com)

(L-R) Baby Pink, Raspberry

In Baby Pink

And in Raspberry

I think this stays pretty true to what it promises, it's creamy and easy to apply and remains moisturising for as long as it stays on. My main issue with these products is that the staying power is incredibly short, I ended up reapplying at least 4 or 5 times throughout the day (it must be mentioned that I did not wear lip liner). I think I would still put up with it for this product though as it is a great everday wearable product. My favourite of the two is the raspberry shade but the baby pink is a perfect everyday wear lipstick like a sheerer version of viva glam gaga 01!

These lipsticks retail for £7.99 in Boots!

Have any of you tried these lipsticks? How did you like them?

x

Sleek Storm Palette

Hello! Long time no see!

I recently made a quick trip into superdrug and decided to pick up a sleek storm palette after my first failed attempt (almost the entire palette was shattered when I got it home)

These are quite popular across the UK community yet none of my friends appeared to have heard of or tried the brand. I can say the palette was a pleasant surprise - retailing at £6.49 for 12 shadows. The colours in this palette are a range of neutrals perfect for both a daytime neutral eye and a nighttime smoky eye! I would say this palette would be perfect for those days where you have to go from work/uni/school to a nighttime engagement and need a few shadows to ease the makeup transition!

The shadows themselves are soft with a velvety feel but my only complaint would be that in being so soft they have a tendency to fly around the palette making it hard to keep it tidy. A primer would definitely be necessary with these shadows as they are so soft that they will almost certainly crease. I wore a neutral eye with urban decay primer potion as a base and it lasted all day.

All in all, a nice purchase which will most certainly be well loved within my collection!

Have any of you tried the Sleek products?

xx

Reflect.

Today I took up the offer of going on a drive with a friend and we drove to a small town around 40 miles away. I'm glad this opportunity came up because it was nice to take a break from the norm and see some of the scenery. It is days like this which make me appreciate the area I live in.

I spent today doing nothing, just watching the scenery and this evening I took some time to appreciate one of the new spring nights - crisp and clear and perfect for looking at the stars. All in all today has been very relaxing and has bred a new motivation for moving forward.

xx

Easy like a Sunday morning.

These are Sundays nails, since the university term started again I haven't had much time to write or be online or have free time in general. I took Sunday as an opportunity to catch up on silly things such as painting my nails and scrapbooking. This combination is just Barry M nail paint in "Pink Flamingo" and a Stanick-esque 'glitternail' in NYC "Starry Silver Glitter".

I made a small dent in my ever growing stack of newspapers to scrapbook, I really need to get a move on! :)

What do you like to do with your spare time?

xx

Peacocky Paradise

When I first spied this collection showing up on my favourite bloggers' sites, I can honestly say I wasn't very interested. When the collection hit the stores, clearly my mind was changed drastically! I picked up 5 eyeshadows and a very strange Kissable Lip Colour.

Mega Metal Shadow in "Odalisque"

Teal blue with shimmer.

These shadows are larger than normal

shadows at 3.4g.

Mega Metal Shadow in "Ego"

Deep green with shimmer.

Normal eyeshadows usually weigh in at 1.5g and so you are getting more than double the product with these.

Mega Metal Shadow in "Dandizette"

Purple based Navy with shimmer.

The Mega Metal Shadows feel very velvety and smooth and so are very easy to apply.

Mega Metal Shadow in "Spectacle Of Yourself"

Copper toned brown with shimmer.

Each of these shadows have a shimmery or frosty finish which isn't too obvious on the eyes and therefore means they can be worn for daytime and nighttime.

Mega Metal Shadow in "Noir Plum"

Deep purple with shimmer.

(Top-Bottom) Noir Plum, Spectacle of Yourself, Dandizette, Ego, Odalisque

Kissable Lip Colour in "Peacocky". This may seem like a crazy colour but thanks to the advice of my friend I purchased it to wear over "Magenta" lip pencil which makes a beautiful fuschia colour.

Overall i'm really impressed with this collection and might pick up a few more things before they're gone! They are all very bright 'out there' shades but they'll be great for more artistic looks and also for going out at night-time.

Did you pick up anything from the peacocky collection? How are you liking the products?

xx