Goody Quikstyle paddle brush

My hair is really thick and takes quite a while to blow dry which isn't ideal when I wash my hair in the mornings before work so when I saw that Goody had brought out a paddle brush which contained micro fibre bristles I had to buy it to see if it was as good as I imagined it to be.

It is a typical paddle brush in shape and size but in between the bristle there are microfibre bristles and Goody claims that these help to reduce drying time by up to 30%.

I found that the brush did slightly reduce my drying time but it also helped to smooth out my hair so that it didn't take as long to straighten.

If you have long hair then this could be your saviour. I would like to see a slightly smaller brush with the microfibre bristles for people with shorter hair to use.

The Quikstyle is £12.49 and available from Boots.

Schwarzkopf Color Mask permanent hair dye

Schwarzkopf brought out the worlds first hair mask colorant earlier this year and it seemed to come out right when my hair needed dying so I bought a pack to try.

I bought it in shade 586 warm mahogany.

It was easy to use, you take the lid off the mask pot, add the colorant, shake vigorously 40 times and apply to dry, unwashed hair.

I found that one pack wasn't enough for my hair, I had to really use it sparingly but like all other hair dyes they do recommend more than one pack for thick or long hair.

There was a slight smell of ammonia but nothing too overpowering. 

I wasn't too keen on the end colour, I have used better.

This is £6.49 and available from most beauty outlets but personally I would give this one a miss, there are much better products on the market.

Bumble and Bumble Creme De Coco

About a year ago I found this in TK Maxx for £9.99 a bottle but as I being good I decided that I didn't need another shampoo and conditioner even though I really wanted to try it so I resisted and didn't buy it.

Almost immediately I regretted my decision and have trawled every TK Maxx I've come across since to try to find it again...with no luck :-(

So I finally decided to bite the bullet and buy these for full price from Boots: the shampoo was £18.50 and the conditioner £20.00. Yes they're pricey.

The scent is a light coconut and most importantly it doesn't smell artificial. For almost £40 for both I would have been seriously disappointed if they did.

I also decided that these were going to be for special hair days and not for everyday use as I simply can't afford £40 every month or so to replace but I have used these everytime I've washed my hair since I bought them.

From the first wash my hair felt and looked so much fresher, smoother and shinier. Sometimes my hair can look greasy straight after washing but with these I am going 3 days with out re-washing as my hair still feels fresh. My scalp feels slightly itchy but as long as my hair doesn't look greasy I can cope with this!  

I am really impressed with these products and have repurchased them already but I am gong to cut down on when I use them as I can't afford to use them as I am at the moment.

These can be bought at Boots or they are slightly cheaper on some online websites.

Review - MUA Every Lash Mascara

I picked up this mascara a while ago in Superdrug as it looked like a dupe for Revlon's Grow Luscious (amazing) mascara but for a fraction of the price.

The brush is a reasonable size which gives good definition and separates the lashes. I found it hard to build up the product and to volumise my lashes.

The mascara is a good black colour but I have to admit that it the best thing about this mascara.

During the day I do have a habit of picking my mascara off but when I started to attempt to pick this off it was like something I've never experienced before. It was like plastic. I did managed to get a bit off and it reminded me a bit of bin bag plastic. Then I tried to remove it properly and boy it didn't want to come off. I tried everything but it wouldn't budge. In the end I had to pick it off.

For £3.00 I wasn't expecting the world but I did expect more that what this actually was. I would not buy this again and wouldn't recommend it to anyone. It is probably one of the worst products I have ever tried, and I've tried a lot!

Nip & Fab Cherry Tarte Body Butter

I picked this up in Savers for a bargain price of £2.99. Did I need another body butter/lotion? Nope, but I couldn't resist this for such a bargain price, my mum even picked up the pistachio one too! I'm a bad influence!

The butter is lovely and thick and creamy and leaves your skin feeling silky soft. I personally prefer to use a butter in the winter months as it's much more moisturising and abit stickier than a lotion but as the scent was gorgeous fruity cherries I has to start using this straight away!

The scent is a cross between a cherry bakewell and juicy cherries, amazing!

This is priced at £7.95 from Boots but as I previously mentioned I picked this up for £2.99 in Savers so head down there fast as you won't be disappointed with this product.

Review - No7 Beautiful Skin Foam Cleanser

I rarely use the £5 off No7 vouchers you get given when shopping in Boots but sometimes I do and buy new products I haven't tried before. This time I bought the Beautiful Skin Foaming Cleanser for normal/oily skin.

I use this in the shower as it's quick and easy: simple pump and out comes the product. Perfect for use in the morning when I don't have much time.

The cleanser claims to gently remove make up and impurities whilst tightening pores leaving the skin feeling clean and refreshed.

I think this product is quite good, it did certainly make my skin feel clean and fresh but I haven't used it to remove make up as I use it in the morning opposed to at night. 

I can't remember when I started using this product, it must be a couple of months ago, but I still have some left so it lasts a good while.

This is priced at £9 for a 150ml bottle and is only available at Boots.

Review - L'Oreal gentle eye make-up remover

I find it hard to find a decent quality eye make up remover which isn't greasy or leaves residue so when L'Oreal brought out a new range of facial skincare products I really wanted to try their new eye make remover.

This is much more like a water than a solution and isn't greasy at all. I find that it removes my mascara really really well and doesn't leave any residue.

For £3.49 I think this is really affordable and as the quality is really good I have repurchased this already and would recommend it to anyone looking for a new eye make up remover product.

This is available from Boots, Superdrug and supermarkets.

Review - Yes to Cucumbers Colour Care Conditioner

This was a TK Maxx find and I'm really glad I came across it.

Yes To... do several different ranges including tomatoes, carrots, blueberries and this one cucumbers.

This conditioner is specifically for colour treated hair which is perfect for my un-natural red barnet. The bottle is a massive 500ml which even for me will last ages. 

The scent is quite fresh, no it doesn't smell like cucumbers, and it is really moisturising. A little of this goes quite a long way.

I don't really know if it prolonged my colour but I liked it that much I did repurchase it.

This was £3.99 and I bought it from TK Maxx.

Review - L'Oreal Preference Mousse Absolue Permanent Hair Colour

After using semi permanent hair dye for quite a while I decided I needed something that wouldn't fade quite as fast, as I am red this is quite hard to find as red fades so quick, so I decided maybe a permanent hair dye would solve my problem.

As my hair is long and thick one box of dye was struggling to give a good coverage on my hair so when I saw that L'Oreal had brought out a new reusable mousse dye I jumped at the chance to try it.  

I bought shade 465 which is dark burgundy red.

The dye is really easy to use. No mixing is required, you only have to clip the top on the dispenser, shake 20 times and off you go.

One thing I did notice was the strong smell of ammonia. In fact it was very strong but I always used to buy ammonia free dye so I'm not used to the smell.

I used one and a half boxes of the dye and as the dye can be saved to use for touch ups I think the rest will give me an ample amount to give a good root touch up when I get round to it.

The colour didn't come out as bright as it looks on the box, it was more brown with a hint of red but everyone seemed to comment on how nice the colour was so I guess it wasn't bad at all!

This dye is priced at £10.99 a box and is available from Boots, Superdrug and supermarkets.

Balance Me Pure Skin Face Wash

I think I got this with Glamour magazine last year as a freebie and I had been keeping it for when I went on holiday as it's a dinky travel sized product.

This is for normal to combination skin and has a skin balancing formulation.

As Balance Me is a natural brand it contains a lot of essential oils and floral scents. This face wash definitely had a strong floral scent. As I don't normally use floral scented products I found the scent a little overwhelming but I soon got used to it.

The product was quite thick and a little when a long way. I used this two to three times a day and really liked it. I even used it to remove my make up at the end of the day and after my skin felt really clean.

This 50ml tube was just enough for my weeks holiday and I really liked how it could be used as a make up remover too.

I would buy this again but in the full sized tube as it would last a long time.

A 50ml tube is £11.00 or the full sized 125ml tube is £16.00 and available from Balance Me.

Lush Mint Julips lip scrub

I'd never really seen the point of a lip scrub until we had all the snow and cold weather which left my skin a big dry flaky mess.

I went to Lush to get some other products for my dry skin and thought I'd give a lip scrub a try. There are a few different scents and I chose the mint one.

It smells really minty but not artificial and the scrub itself is quite coarse so a little goes a long way.

The first time I used this I put it on my toothbrush and scrubbed that way but it was a little too harsh and made my lips bleed. Now I just rub it on using my finger and find that does the job.

I think this would be good if you use a lip stain and have trouble removing it at the end of the day. I might have to try this out actually! I don't use this regularly, only when my skin is dry so this little tub will easily last me the rest of the year.

This is £5.25 and is only available from Lush.

Sanctuary Ultimate Facial Cleansing Oil

Cleansing oils are big news at the moment in the world of beauty but I'm a little slow on the uptake.

I've had Sanctuary's facial cleansing oil for a while now but I had been using up a couple of other cleansers and washes that I had open so this got pushed to the back of my cupboard. As these are now finished I have started using this little beauty.

I use two pumps of this which is a generous amount and it removes all my foundation and facial make up. I use an eye make up remover to remove my mascara as I have to be careful what I use on my eyes.

Once I have dispensed the oil into my hands I rub them together and then apply to my face. I massage it on to try to help remove my make up and then wipe it off with a damp cloth.

Generally I need to wipe twice to ensure all product and make up is removed but after my skin is left feeling clean and soft.

This is priced £13.00 at for a 150ml bottle and even though I like the product I'm not sure if I'd buy again as I simply love my Emma Hardie Moringa Balm which I can use as an eye make up remover too. Oh it is available from Boots!

Weleda Calendula and Chamomile shampoo

I had a flare up of eczema on my scalp and needed something to calm it down quickly as nothing that normally helped worked. I remember seeing on one of my trips to TK Maxx Weleda calendula and chamomile shampoo that was for sensitive scalps. As I was off to TK Maxx a couple of days later I hoped that it would still be in stock and I was lucky.

The shampoo is a dark yellow/light brown colour and is lightly scented. It doesn't foam up as well as normal shampoos but as it contains natural ingredients this is to be expected.

After using this just once my scalp felt alot less irritated and after a couple more washed it had completely calmed down.

I've used this everytime I've washed my hair since buying it and I'm really really impressed. Next time I go to TK Maxx I will buy a couple more bottles, if they still have it of course.

This was £4.99 for a 250ml bottle but the RRP is £8.95.

L'Oreal EverStrong and EverPure conditioners

As I ran out of conditioner I thought I would try L'Oreal's new Hair Expertise range. I got the EverStrong conditioner and the EverPure Intense Mask.

The range contains no sulphates but unfortunately it still contains parabens, I didn't realise this until after I started using the products.

I really liked both products, they both contain essential oils which smell lovely. My hair was left feeling lovely and soft and well conditioned. The mask was a little runnier than I normally like but it worked well.

I would buy these again but only if they were on offer as at £5.99 for the conditioner and £6.99 for the mask I find them slightly expensive for what they are. These are available from Boots and Superdrug.

Rimmel Lasting Finish 25 Hour Foundation

Well the photo says a lot about this product as it is half gone!

Yes I like this product and I like it alot!

It gives an amazing medium to full coverage and it lasts all day. I think this shade is slightly too dark for me but when blended properly you can't tell.

I mainly use this when I have a night out as I need a product that will last as I don't tend to touch up when I'm out or during the day when I'm having a bad skin day.

This is £6.99, comes in 6 different shades and is available from Boots and Superdrug.

Dr Bronner's Magic Soap

I first saw this on ASOS a while ago and liked the sound of it. One product that has 18 uses, must be good.

Instead of getting this from ASOS I found it in TK Maxx on a recent visit for £3.99! I got the peppermint fragrance but they also had citrus, rose and lavender.

Some of the 18 uses of the soap is shower gel, shampoo, toothpaste and household cleaning. For some uses it recommends that you dilute it in water.

I used this as shower gel and as a shampoo, so what did I think?

As a shower gel I really liked it, the scent was quite strong and in the morning really woke me up. As a shampoo it was horrible. My hair was left looking greasy, felt heavy and like straw. In fact my hair was that bad I had to wash it again.

As a shower gel this is a great product but for other uses I'm not so sure. Even with this is mind I would buy this again.

iWhite Instant Teeth Whitening Kit

Before Christmas I saw this little tooth whitening kit on ASOS but it quickly sold out leaving me feeling like I missed out. But when browsing their New In section on the beauty page in February I saw they had it back. It was the iWhite Instant Teeth Whitening Kit.

This is exclusive to ASOS and come with 10 pre-filled trays which you wear for a maximum of 20 minutes a day (the instructions are on the photo below, if you can enlarge you should be able to read them).  

I saved this to use a week before I went on holiday in the hope I would get lovely pearly white teeth!

When I started using it I found that the trays, which are pre-filled so no messy application of gel or moulding, sometimes were filled with gel in the wrong places, like a lot for the back teeth and not too much at the front. 

I used these every night for 5 days for the maximum of 20 minutes a time. After the 5 days was up I did notice a slight difference in the colour of my teeth but nothing major. I think for a more dramatic different you would have to buy more than one kit which is quite pricy as they are £25 a time.

Also as I have sensitive teeth I am a little wary about using tooth whitening kits but this one caused me no problems at all.

Overall, I don't think I would try this again, for the price of it I expected much more dramatic results and I think I prefer having to fill the trays yourself to you get gel in the right places. Maybe they could do a kit where you get the trays and all you have to do is put the gel in them yourself.

As I've already mentioned this is only available from ASOS and costs £25.00.

Review - Avon Glimmerstick Brow Definer

My brows are often neglected, I mean I pluck them but apart from that nothing else.

Occasionally, mainly when I go out, I will use a brow product on them and my favourite is Avon Glimmerstick Brow Definer.

I have this in dark brown which isn't too dark so perfect for my brows. I think it is really easy to buy the darkest colour possible which makes your brows look big and a bit fake, yes I'm taking about a scouse brow here.

The stick itself is a twist pencil so no sharpening is required. The product is really soft and goes onto the skin easy, no nasty dragging. It also lasts all day so any touch ups are rare which is great if you're busy.

The Glimmersticks are also available in eyeliners and lipliners but the brow definers are available in three shades and are £6.00 available only from Avon.

Review - MUA Matte Perfect Foundation

Remember when MUA had their half price sale on? Well this was one of my purchases. I have trouble finding foundations which give a matte finish so for a whole pound I thought I'd try this one.

It comes in three shades: fair, natural and almond and I got natural.

The shade is a really good match for me and the product itself I really like. It is quite a light coverage so is good for summer time daytime wear. I found that after wearing it all day my face did look a little shiny towards then end of the day so powder applications is essential but overall for the money you can't go wrong.

This is £2 and available from Superdrug or MUA Online.

Lush Superbalm Scalp Treatment

This is a new product from Lush and I was really excited to try it out on my scalp which can erupt in horrible flaky eczema.

Superbalm is really easy to use, you simply massage it onto your scalp before washing your hair and then wash it as normal.

As it's name suggests it is a balm and this little 45g tin will last ages as you need very little as you only use it on the bits of your scalp which need it.

It also removes product build up so if you've washed your hair in a rush and maybe haven't rinsed as well as you should have this will sort it out in no time.

Since buying this my scalp has, typically, been ok. I've used this two or three times and each time it has sorted my scalp out.

I think this is a good product to have in your cupboard as a back up just in case.

This 45g tin is priced at £12.00 and is only available from Lush.