USA nail polish swatches - Sally Hansen and Milani

As requested by the lovely Annabella who brought these back from America for me here are the swatches for the Sally Hansen and Milani polishes from my USA haul post.

Sorry that the photo above is a bit crappy, light wasn't on my side that day!

On all photos the middle two fingers have coloured polish underneath and the top and bottom nails are just the glitter polish.

Sally Hansen shades: Lady Luck and Razzle Dazzler.

Milani shade: Gems.

Out of all three polishes I think my favourite is the Milani polish, I just love the chunky glitter effect.

Are there any USA polishes that you love? I'd love to hear what you'd recommend.

Hauling!

Ok I know I said that I wasn't going to do any hauling for a while but as I need some work clothes for my new job I have been shopping!

New Look

Skinny jeans - £12 (was £19.99)

Jeggings - £12.99

Black trousers - £13 (was £22.99)

Cardigan - £7 (was £9.99)

Bird print top - £7 (was £16.99)

White vest - £1 (was £4)

Bird print skirt - £7 (was £14.99)

Black vest top - £5 (was £8.99)

All this for £64.99 instead of £110.93! Bargain!

Boots

Botanics Organic Rosewater Toner Spritz - £3.33 (was £4.99)

Soap & Glory Fab Pore Mask - £8

Finger nail clippers - £1.75

Rimmel lasting finish foundation - £6.99 (2 for £10)

Rimmel wake me up concealer - £5.99 (2 for £10)

Rimmel I Love Lasting Finish nail polish - £2.49 (2 for £4)

Remington Pearl Wand - £24.99

L'Oreal Lumi Magique concealer - £8.49 (buy 1 get 1 half price)

L'Oreal Glam Shine lip gloss - £7.69 (was £3.84 half price)

Home Bargains

The Beauty Parlour mattifying moisturiser - 99p

The Beauty Parlour mattifying papers - 99p

These both should have been about £4 each and are also sold in Superdrug

Ren

T-Zone balancing day fluid - £23.40 (was £26, I got 10% my first order)

Six of the Best - free (was £20)

Four mini samples - free!

Primark

Peep toe shoes - £8

Cotton wool pads - £1 per pack

Baby wipes - £1 for two packs

I have another haul coming soon as I shopped the Next sale but I haven't received everything yet so will post it when everything arrives.

Like always link me to your haul posts :-)

Face wipes: The best and the worst

I first wrote a face wipes comparison post way back in October so thought it was about time that I wrote another. So what's it all about? I buy and test out a selection of face wipes and rate them out of 10 depending on value, thickness, wetness, ingredients and how well they remove my make up. 

Morrisons Complexion Face Wipes - £1.28 for 25 wipes (Morrisons)

These wipes for pretty much what I expected for the money. They weren't very thick, they were quite dry but for just over a quid I couldn't really complain. I wouldn't buy these again as I've used much better for a similar price. 

My overall impression: 5/10.

Johnson's Daily Essentials Oil Balancing Facial Cleansing Wipes - £3.29 for 25 wipes (Boots)

Johnsons are probably one of the most popular face wipes on the market and I can kind of see why. They smelt fresh and were thick and wet all the way through the pack. They claim to remove waterproof mascara which I didn't try but they did remover the remainder of my mascara that I hadn't removed properly. These are 13p per wipe.

My overall impression: 8/10.

Good Things Total Wipe Out Cleansing Wipes - £3.49 for 25 wipes (Boots)

These wipes were thick and strong and one wipe removed all traces of make up. They smelt nice and are good value for money at just under 14p per wipe. They also contain no nasty ingredients like parabens or SLS.

My overall impression: 10/10!

Lacura 3 in 1 Facial Cleansing Wipes - 89p for 30 wipes (Aldi)

I was seriously impressed with these wipes. They were really moist all the way through the pack, thick, removed make up well, even mascara and they were nicely lightly scented. But they did contain parabens but for the price, just under 3p per wipe, you can't complain.

My overall verdict: 9/10.

Neutrogena Multi-Defence Gentle Purifying Wipes - £3.99 for 25 wipes (Boots)

These had quite a strong scent which I didn't really like but they were slightly thicker than regular wipes and were quite thick. They removed most make up but sometimes I had to use two wipes. These worked out at 13p a wipe and they don't contain parabens or SLS.

Overall verdict: 7/10.

Yes to Cucumbers Soothing Natural Glow Facial Towelettes - £4.99 for a pack of 30 (ASOS)

These were the thickest wipes I think I've ever used, were really moist and removed all traces of make up. They did have quite a strong scent which I wasn't too keen on. They are quite pricey for a pack of wipes, works out at 16p a wipe. These don't contain parabens of SLS.

Overall verdict: 8/10.

So out of the six packs of wipes I tried my favourite were the Good Things Total Wipe Out Cleansing Wipes which got an amazing 10/10! And take my word for it avoid the Morrisons Complexion Wipes at all costs as they are toss.

Which face wipes do you love? They could be featured in my next face wipes comparison post!

Superdrug Simply Pure Gentle Eye Make-Up Remover

I have to admit I don't go into Superdrug all that much but when I do it's not often I come out empty handed. Whilst browsing the skincare section I stumbled upon the Simply Pure range.

I looked a little more deeply at the products as on the front it says they don't contain parabens and I like products that don't contain these! As well as being paraben free they are also fragrance free, hypoallergenic and dermatologically approved.

I don't tend to try different make up removers as I know which one works for me but I took a risk and got this to try.

This does have a slight scent, I'm not sure what it is but it is nice and it's not greasy. It's clear in colour and removed my mascara well. It did take a little longer to remove than with my normal product but it didn't need any rubbing which can make your eyes sore.

I really quite like this product and I think I'd buy it again. This is £2.59 for a 150ml bottle and is only available from Superdrug.

REN Pore Minimising Detox Mask / Invisible Pores Detox Mask

I haven't tried many REN products but the ones I have tried I've liked.

A while ago I bought a little starter kit which had 4 mini products in and one of them was this pore minimising detox mask.

This product was thick. Really thick. It felt like I was plastering my face! This little 15ml tube was enough for one quite generous application. I left this on my face for about 15 minutes until it felt like it had adequately dried.

Once washed off my skin was left feeling soft but I wouldn't say my pores were minimised. I suppose with a few uses it might start to have an effect but there simply wasn't enough product in this tube for more than one application.

As I said I've had my sample for quite a while and I now think this has changed name to the invisible pores detox mask and a 50ml tube is priced at £18 and available from REN online.

GHD Scarlet collection

I've had my current GHD's for quite a few years and whilst they still work fine, they were looking a little tired. OK it's nothing a bit of a clean wouldn't fix but still the allure of brand new spangly GHD's kept enticing me.

A couple of months ago I was off work with a crippling migraine and whilst I was feeling sorry for myself for being stuck in bed when it was the hottest few days of the year I saw a tweet from GHD saying that their Scarlet collection had £60 off making it only £89!

Bargain! I don't know if it was all the drugs I was on but I caved and bought them! The next day they arrived and I was sooooo excited!

Inside the box you get a red keepsake box to store everything in and inside that you get a little red heat protection bag to store the straighteners in.

You get the straighteners with red plates, two sectioning clips and a rather funky contraption to keep the plates together.

The plates are quite snazzy I think you'll agree!

As well as the straighteners you also get a hair dryer. Yes for £89 I got new straighteners and a new hairdryer!

As the GHD Air dryer had been getting rave reviews I had high hopes for this little beauty. I quite liked how it had a foldy handle which makes it perfect for travelling and for storage.

The dryer has two speeds and a cool setting.

So onto the reviews......

The straighteners are great as always. GHD will never do a bad pair of straighteners. End of. I really like the little contraption you put over the plates, such a great idea. As for the dryer, it dries my hair quickly and is really quiet. If you're looking for a dryer that you can use in the mornings whilst everyone else is asleep then this is for you.

Oh I forgot to mention, even though I got these at the end of May I bought them as a birthday present for myself but my birthday wasn't until the end of June so I had to sit looking at them for a month before I allowed myself to use them!

Currently I'm using the cardboard box to store these in and I use the big red box to store my nail polishes in as they were bursting out of their bag.

I'm really happy I bought these and I can see us having many happy years together!

Review - Purity facial skincare

This is the second of my reviews of Purity skincare. This time I am focusing on cleansing products.

Facial Wash - £4.99

I normally use face wash in the shower in the mornings as it's quick and easy. This face wash has a slight scent which I believe is almond but it's really soothing. The wash itself is a little watery but a little goes a long way. I do like this product but one thing that could be improved is the bottle. I would much prefer a pump bottle so I can control how much I use, I like measured amounts!

Conditioning Cleansing Lotion - £4.99

The consistency of this is rather like most cleansers, not too runny or too thick. I put some of this on my hands and then rubbed onto my face before wiping away with a sponge. All traces of my foundation were removed and my skin looked and felt really clean. 

Facial Exfoliator - £5.99

When I first used this I didn't expect it to have a quite thin consistency so when I squeezed some out I ended up with a big dollop which was plenty for my face! There's lots of little grains into to exfoliate but it is really gentle. I rubbed this on my face using my fingers at first and then used a little facial scrubber to get a proper deep exfoliation. I used this straight on my skin without removing my foundation first and it did remove most of it. Afterwards my skin did feel really clean.

Overall I liked all three of these products but I wouldn't repurchase the cleansing lotion. For me I've used other products of the same quality and price and prefer those. If you have sensitive skin then I would without a doubt recommend these products and you can find out more information about them and where to buy here. 

It's About Prime....Soap & Glory

I bought It's About Prime from the Soap & Glory cosmetics range because my Benefit Stay Don't Stray was running out and I didn't really want to fork out over £20 on a new bottle. This at a mere £8 seemed a more more affordable option.

Unlike Benefit's product, which is in a pump bottle, this is in a tube with a sponge applicator. I do prefer this as if you're a little too heavy handed with the Benefit primer you end up with a massive dollop which you end up wasting. With Soap & Glory's you can have a good scrape around the tube with the applicator so less waste all round.

The colour is slightly lighter but this does brighten your skin. I use this all around my eye: as a primer for my eyeshadow and as a brightener over my under eye dark circles.

It took some getting used to but I do like this product. I find it easier to put the product on my finger and then apply around my eyes but you only need a little. 

My eyeshadow does stay on a long time but I use this mainly as a brightening product.

I would repurchase this and it does come in a smoky colour too if you're wearing darker eyeshadows. As I've already said this is £8 and is available from Boots.

Wednesday Wishlist - 18 Haircare

Baylis & Harding

1. Great Hair Moroccan Argan Oil Shampoo - £6

2. Great Hair Moroccan Argan Oil Conditioner - £6

ASOS

3. Anatomicals Peachy Head Conditioning Shampoo - £2.50

4. Percy & Reed Trend Pack - £20.00

Look Fantastic

5. Bumble & Bumble Creme De Coco Shine Duo - £29.60

My Pure

6. Lovea Bio Tahitian Monoi Moisturising Conditioner - £5.49

QVC

7. Ojon 4 Piece SWA+ Collection - £50.00

♥♥ Love & Toast ♥♥

Does anyone remember the Soap & Glory hat box that was on offer a couple of christmas's ago at Boots? Well I use it to store all of my luxury goodies in but of course as I don't go in it that often things get forgotten about and get left in there for ages. This was the case for these Love & Toast products.

I remember buying these from ASOS about a year and a half ago. They were a bit of an impulse buy as they were in the sale and I added them onto an order that was only meant to be for my friends birthday present.

I got the Sweet Grapefruit handcream and the Cherry Lemonade lip balm.

I normally hate lip balms that are in pots but I got pulled in by the cute packaging. I have to admit I love this product. It's really moisturising and the scent is amazing! It's sweet and refreshing and I find myself licking most of this off my lips!

I'm a bit funny with handcreams, I love L'Occitane handcreams and don't tend to stray away from them.  Again I got duped into buying this with the cute packaging and as I don't actually like grapefruit this could have been a wasted product.

The cream itself is thick and moisturising. It sinks into my hands really quickly and leaves them lovely and soft. I've been using this at night but as it absorbs quickly I would use this throughout the day. As for the fragrance I love it! It smells clean but with a sweet twist.

Love & Toast isn't available at ASOS anymore but I have found it online at Mooch.