Benefit They're Real Push-Up Liner

Benefit's 'They're Real' mascara is very popular and probably my all time favourite mascara- If you haven't tried it then I recommend you do. So I was very excited to see that they have also recently released a push up liner. The interesting thing about this is that it's a gel liner in the form of a pen. I've used a gel liner once before and love the texture and look, but didn't get on well applying it with a brush. 

I've been using this liner for about month now in order to give an honest review because, I wasn't a big fan to start with. I think this is because of it's dry consistency. The key to getting along with this liner is practice, practice, practice. Once you overcome the strange push up technique, it actually becomes a pretty easy and effective liner to use. It drys very quickly, but once it's dry it does not budge or transfer onto your eyelids and has such amazing lasting power. The gel liner is activated when the base is twisted and I learnt pretty quickly that you only need one click to release a small amount of liner which goes a long way. When I was in the States in September I bought the 'Real Steal' set which contains a smaller version of the liner, full sized mascara and a sample of the remover for $24. Such a bargain...especially as it's a great way to try the liner for the first time. Although the liner is a miniature version, it is still substantial and easy to hold (see photo above for size comparison to the mascara).

I can understand why Benefit have made a remover to go with this push up liner as it does take a lot of scrubbing to get rid of. However, a full sized bottle is £14.50 which is very pricey considering a good (cheaper) make up remover can do the same job. 

If you enjoy using gel liner then I would recommend this product. I do feel that $18.50 is over priced, but if you already love the mascara then I would suggest getting it as part of this set.  It's available in Boots in the UK and is only £19.50, meaning that you are in fact getting the eyeliner for free. 

Have you tried this liner before? Did you find it easy or difficult to use?

The Olive Branch Shower Gel | Review

I was delighted to discover 'The Olive Branch' shower gel in a gorgeous Lush gift set I received for my birthday last month. I absolutely love anything with bergamot as an ingredient, so I couldn't wait to hop in the shower and cover myself in this heavenly scent.
This shower gel contains fair trade olive oil. I have only ever used olive oil as a cooking ingredient, i've never thought of covering my body in it. But this stuff really works. It leaves your skin feeling silky smooth and smelling delicious. A friend of mine (who used to work in Lush) advised me to shake before use in order to mix in the oil. Thanks for the heads up Sid! The consistency of this shower gel is very strange because it's not 'gel' like at all...it's actually very runny. However, this doesn't stop you from lathering it up. I would suggest only pouring a small amount onto your hand though so that you don't waste any, as it tends to run all over the place.

Overall, this has quickly become one of my favourite scents from Lush and I would definitely recommend it if you want smooth, Mediterranean smelling skin...or hair!

What's your favourite Lush product to use during the summer? 

Teapigs Matcha Tea | Review & Giveaway

I'm a big tea drinker. I mean, I'm the kind of person who has to start every day with a cup of tea. However recently, I have swapped the English Breakfast for a strange bright green powder called 'matcha'. I'm guessing most of you will have heard of matcha by now, but just in case you haven't here's how teapigs describe it...

"Matcha is 100% natural, organic ground green tea leaves- essentially a concentrated green tea."

"Matcha contains a very special amino acid called L-theanine. This works to slowly release matcha's natural caffeine to give our bodies a gentle and sustained energy boot lasting 4-6 hours."

I was extremely excited when I was given the chance to try out the teapigs matcha powder as it's something that I've been very intrigued about for a while. I won't lie, I was a little sceptical when I opened the box and read that 'A 1g serving of teapigs matcha is equivalent to 15 cups of green tea'. I literally thought that as soon as I started adding this stuff to my food and drink that I would be bouncing off the walls. But as teapigs mention, the point is that it releases the energy slowly. Two more very interesting and positive sounding things about this powder are that it's extremely high in antioxidants and that it boosts metabolism. It seems to do so much! 

The really great thing about the powder is that you can add to anything you want! I even saw a matcha cocktail on a drinks menu when I was on holiday the other week. You could also try sprinkling it on top of food instead of adding it to drinks. You can buy it as part of a kit, which comes with everything you need to mix it up as a drink. On day one I added it to hot water and used the electric whisk that teapigs provide in their starter kit to whizz up the concoction. I love the taste of green tea but this powder is extremely strong and I really didn't enjoy the taste of it with just water. On the second day I decided to use the shot glass and mix the powder with orange juice. Now this...I like! But be careful not to fill the shot glass to the top like I did or you'll end up with green worktops when you start whisking! I guess it depends on how much of a fan you are of the strong green tea flavour, but I really enjoy the taste of it mixed with orange juice. I've been drinking it every morning at 8.30am before I go to work. I did go on holiday for two weeks between using the matcha so it gave me a chance to see if it was making a difference. I haven't noticed the matcha massively affecting my energy levels. But now that I'm back on it I think it will be something that I will drink every morning. 

If you'd like to order anything from teapigs (I highly recommend their delicious range of teas) then you can use the code blab to get 10% off (this excludes cheeky, bulk buys, pick & mix and matcha kits) until the end of June.  If you'd like to sign up for any extra discounts, there's a newsletter on the teapigs homepage. 

I am also giving away one of their modern matcha kits so if you would like to be in with the chance to try one out then please enter by logging into the Rafflecopter below. This giveaway is open to UK residents only and will close on Thursday 12th June so get entering while you can! 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

All Used Up #3 | Empty Products

I've written about products I've used up a couple of times before and always have so much to say about each one. So here's another post in the form of a video- on my newer channel. I talk about what I thought of each one and whether I would repurchase them.

I really enjoy making videos so please let me know if you enjoy watching them and subscribe or give the video a thumbs up if you do!

L'Oreal Lumi Magique Concealer | Review

A product that I've been enjoying recently is the L'Oreal Lumi Magique concealer so here's a quick review for you.

I was using the Maybelline Dream Lumi Touch but when it ran out I decided to go for the L'Oreal one. I think it was probably the gorgeous packaging that drew me to it more than anything else...so pretty! The only downside of the packaging compared to the Maybelline concealer is that you can't see how much you have left so don't know when you are close to running out. The way that you rotate the bottom of the packaging is the same however. It makes a clicking sound and the product is dispensed through a brush at the end. I use the brush to sweep the concealer under and around my eyes and then I use a Real Techniques Foundation Brush to really blend the product in. 

I have been using the shade medium, which is perfect. I think this product literally only comes in the shades Light or Medium, but I guess it doesn't need to as it's only being used for under the eyes. It doesn't have very thick coverage either meaning it doesn't cover up those dark circles, but it's just enough to brighten up your eyes in a subtle way. I love to use it as part of my every day make up routine and I think I'll purchase it again when this one runs out. I also want to try the Primer from this range, has anyone tried it?

Cambridge Satchel Review & What's in My Bag Video

I've had a Cambridge Satchel for almost nine months now so thought it was time to do a proper review. When I was looking into purchasing one I found watching videos and reading blog posts really helpful, especially as the bag comes in all sorts of colours and sizes. I recently filmed a blog post for the first time and thought I would film this one too so that I could really tell you guys about the bag. I hope it's helpful!

Thank you so much to the people who gave me such lovely feedback on the first video, please subscribe if you like this one. I'd also love to see any videos you've made too, so please leave me any links.

Ghd Eclipse | Review

When my Mum introduced me to ghd hair straighteners about ten years ago I immediately became one of those people who relies on using them on a daily basis. Sad I know. But when I discovered that I could actually get my hair to stay straight for more than ten minutes there was no turning back. 

I have the original ghds and will only replace them when they are on their last legs. So when my mum told me that she had replaced hers with their newest model 'eclipse' I was so excited to borrow them. 

The ghd eclipse is lighter in weight than the original and I think the plastic actually feels quite cheap. To be honest, I'm not a fan of the design in general but that's just my opinion and it doesn't effect the performance of the straighteners so I won't focus on that too much. 

One thing that I do like about them is that they make a noise when you turn them on and off as well as lighting up. I just thought was a really cool feature (so easily amused). The brilliant thing about these straighteners compared to the originals is that they are much easier to hold as the outside of them doesn't get too hot. Ghd have used 'breakthrough patented tri-zone technology' which means that there are three heat sensors on each plate maintaining a constant heat of 185 degrees C. This is incredibly clever and means the straighteners are a lot kinder to your hair. I've definitely ruined my hair by constantly straightening it on an extremely high heat for years on end. 

What I didn't like about these straighteners is that I needed to really take my time straightening each section of hair. They claim that there is a 'one stroke texture taming for all hair types' but I found myself having to run them over the same section of hair a few times. Now this may be down to the way that I was using them or the fact that they don't heat up to the temperature that I'm used to. But I found that even when I took my time and took smaller sections of hair I still had this problem. My mum said that she also found this. She also said that she didn't like the fact that the eclipse doesn't clamp all the way down onto the hair, which may be another reason we were finding it difficult to straighten the sections of hair in one stroke. 

These straighteners are great and I did find that my hair stayed straighter for longer which meant that I didn't feel the need to keep using them (well...use them five times a day like I usually do). In the long run it would hopefully mean that you would straighten your hair less, making it less damaged. 

Have you tried these straighteners? What do you think? 

On My Nails : Maybelline Color Show Pow Green

I have loved everything green recently, including nail polish. This weeks shade is Pow Green from the Maybelline Color Show range. This green is on the yellow side which is what I love about it and it’s brightness makes it a fantastic spring shade. I have applied two coats here but one would probably be enough and with a good top coat it doesn’t chip for a good 4-5 days. I now have three shades from the Color Show range and with a price tag of £2.99 I would definitely recommend picking one up if you can. 

Disclosure: The views expressed are based on my own experience.