January Empties

I haven’t made a bad attempt at finishing things off this month and there have even been a couple of full sized products finished for a change!

Label.m Resurrection Style Dust – review here

I love this and was upset to run out as I probably use it a couple of times a week when I am planning to be out all day or if I’m going out after work.  I have decided to try another similar product – the Tigi Sugar Dust so I will see how that works for me as it is a little cheaper.

No 7 Quick Thinking 4 in 1 Wipes

Not much to say about these, just standard wipes that I use if I am feeling too lazy after a late night (I know, tut tut!)

DP London Body Lotion - quick review here

I liked this but it wasn’t particularly remarkable and I certainly wouldn’t pay full price for it.

Clarins Multi-Active Day Early Action Wrinkle Correction Cream – quick review here

This was a decent day cream that went on quite thick but seemed to moisturise well without leaving me too oily.  I would perhaps consider purchasing a full-sized version or another product from the range.

YSL Belle d’Opium

Didn’t like this at all.  Heady and very powerful, it was not to my taste, and was used instead as a room spray!

Clinique Mild Liquid Facial Soap

This was a sample that I think I probably received as part of Clinique Bonus time which I always seem to get sucked into!  I wouldn’t say it was particularly mild and I certainly wouldn’t use this on a  daily basis, but it was good to use after I had been for a run and really left my skin feeling clean.  I would suggest following up with a good moisturiser though.

Body Shop Sweet Lemon Shower Gel

I love the scent of this and always buy a bottle of it if I am going on holiday.  I adore pretty much any citrus scents as they are so fresh and light and certainly very summery.  I have a body butter in this scent too that I have yet to try  - I really must make an effort to get through my body lotion stash!

Dr Organic Bioactive Skincare Organic Rose Otto Skin Lotion - quick review here

This was a decent body lotion and it would certainly be suited for those who love rose scents.  However, it was not really to my liking as it was a little strong for me, and I have rather a lot of other body lotions to work my way through first!

January Favourites

I seem to have quite a few favourites this month, I guess because some of these were Christmas or Post Christmas purchases and they all still seem very shiny and new!

Neutrogena Pink Grapefruit Facial Wash

I haven’t managed to review this yet but I am finding it great for my oily / combination skin as it cleans without stripping away oils and really makes my skin feel very clean.  I’m not sure how good it would be for drier skins though.

Tom Ford Violet Blonde

A Christmas present from my lovely hubby!  This is more of a weekend scent for me, reminding me of holidays and trips away.  I won’t embarrass myself by trying to describe the notes, but needless to say it is gorgeous!

Top Shop Cream Blush in Neon Rose – I reviewed this here as part of my cream blush post and was reminded of it when The Sunday Girl posted about it recently.  I love the way that it is not a traditional cream blush formulation, as it changes from a cream to a powder on the skin and lasts all day.  Only the tiniest amount is needed!

Laura Mercier Full Blown Volume Mascara – review here

This is my current favourite mascara (and boy do I have a lot of mascara!).  A great natural look, no flaking or smudging and the most important thing-  no CRISPY LASHES!

Mac Matchmaster in 3.0 - review here I have been wearing this foundation a lot recently and although I did find it a little too dark initially, I have been wearing it with a little of the Nars Orgasm Illuminator to tone it down a little and give a more radiant look.

Kiehl's Eye Alert – review here

I really enjoyed using this eye cream which I bought on a  whim from a blog sale.  I’m almost finished it and currently deciding whether to repurchase at full price or to finish off my Liz Earle eye cream which I wasn’t as enamoured with.

Laura Mercier Lip Gloss in Mauve 

This is my first Laura Mercier gloss and I very much like it.  A great my-lips- but-better shade, it has a gorgeous cocoa butter scent and is a great shade to go with lots of looks.  This was a limited edition product I think with the Space NK gift set, but based on the quality of this gloss, I will be investigating others from her line.

Chanel Illusion d’ Ombre in Emerveille - review here

This has been included in my monthly favourites previously and I am still enjoying the ease at which I can smooth this on with my fingers, add some mascara and I have an easy eye look in less than a minute, with no complex blending of several different shades. 

What were your favourites this month?  See anything above that catches your eye?

Make-up Haul!

Rubbish pic, sorry!

This will be the last make-up haul I do for a while, although in my defence I didn’t pay full price for any of these products and some of them were won in giveaways and competitions. I will be reviewing most of these over the coming weeks. Let me know if there are any you would particularly like to see reviewed

Lipsticks / Lipgloss

Chanel Rouge Allure Velvet in 33 La Distinguee – my first Rouge Allure Velvet, I adore the packaging for this, it just feels so luxurious and I can’t help but keep clicking it open and shut as it is so satisfying!

Mac Chatterbox – I picked this up in a blog sale from the lovely Rachel (Life of a Sweetaholic). I had been after this for a while so was pleased to pick it up.

YSL Rouge Volupte Rose Paris – This is SO bright but I do really like it. Another I picked up from Rachel’s blogsale.

Mac Lipglass in Madcap – I bought this around the same time as I purchased Pink Clash and I don’t think I will be purchasing any more lipglasses. It is a fairly nude, unremarkable shade, although I think it will go well with a smoky eye.

Mascara

Bobbi Brown Extreme Party Mascara – Another BuyaPowa purchase. I haven’t tried this yet though as I’ve got a couple of other mascaras to finish first

Barbara Daly Lash Boost Mascara – I won this for doing a Tesco Beauty Survey. Again I haven’t tried it yet due to my mascara mountain!

Others

Mac Humid Eyeshadow – I had been looking for a well-pigmented green eyeshadow and Humid fitted the bill. Initial impressions are that it is very smooth, buttery and easy to blend.

Rhianna Perfume Reb’l Fleur – this is quite fruity and not nearly as sickly sweet as I thought it might be!  I’m not generally a celeb fragrance fan but I won it from a competition on The Perfume Shop’s website, and although it doesn’t linger for long, it is perfectly acceptable.  I also received a rollerball of the fragrance (handy for keeping in my bag for reapplying), a body lotion and shower gel too.

Glitter Tattoo Set – This was also a win from the fantastic Emma (Computergirl). I haven’t had a chance to try this out yet but I do have a friend’s hen night coming up next month so it may get an outing then. You can never have too much glitter on a hen night!!

Let me know if there are any reviews you would like to see or if you have tried any of these products.

Victoria

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My Life in Perfume

Perfume is such a personal thing and one which instantly evokes memories and emotions.   I have always used perfume daily, and although I have chopped and changed over the years, there are some that stand out for me and that I still associate with certain periods of my life whenever I smell them.  Some I still wear to this day, others I have moved on from, but they still hold a special place in my heart.

My perfume wearing started at an early age, when I was around 9 or 10 years old.  I vividly remember my Mum’s heady scent of YSL Opium when I was growing up and always associated perfume with heavy sensual notes of amber and patchouli or strong floral and rose scents.  It was therefore a revelation to me when I discovered The Body Shop’s , easy-to-wear fruity and musky perfumes.

http://thevintageperfumevault.blogspot.com

Amongst my favourites were white musk and fuzzy peach.  Both very simple scents but for a 9 year old, that was exactly what I wanted, just so I could play at dress up like my Mum!  I don’t think these are sold by The Body Shop any more.   Still, they fulfilled a purpose and instigated my interest in perfumes for the coming years.

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My teenage years were a mixture of the 1990s CKone which everyone had to have, and Tommy Girl.  CKone’s memorable Kate Moss advert, along with being one of the first, if not the first, mainstream scent to appeal to both men and women, was what made it a must buy for the teenage me.  These days, I don't wear it but I think I still do have a bottle somewhere at the back of the cupboard for when I am feeling retro!   

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 Around this time, another clean, fresh fragrance appeared – Tommy Hilfiger’s Tommy Girl.  The 90s were the time for clean minimalism and these perfumes evoked the mood and feel of the time perfectly.

perfumeshop.co.uk

University was the time when I left home and discovered more about who I was, when I was meeting new people and having new experiences in a strange city.  This was the time that I discovered Gucci Rush and its sweet, almost cloying, scent which I remember my Dad used to say smelt like I had dowsed myself in a fruit cocktail!  This was primarily an evening scent, for mad Uni nights out, and I wore it more of less continuously for the 4 years of my degree.  It was my signature scent of the time, and some of my friends have  said that they still think of me if they catch a sniff of it on someone else!  It is not a sophisticated  fragrance by any means and one I would never wear for work as I  associate it with fun and parties and don’t think it is particularly a formal fragrance which one can wear for a meeting and be taken seriously at, for example.   

I do still own Gucci Rush and wear it, although much less frequently and probably only a few times a month as my mad nights out are few and far between these days!  I would say that it sticks around for quite a while but I’m not sure whether that is because it has good lasting power or because I spray on so much of it – probably the latter!

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When I got married during the summer, I wanted a scent that I would remember and would forever associate with my wedding day.  I didn’t want to go with something like Gucci Rush but rather for something that tied in with my identity and to avoid something overpowering.  After toying with various Jo Malone’s, I eventually plumped for Viktor & Rolf’s Flowerbomb, a popular scent that is very distinctive, but when used sparingly, is not overpowering.  My photographer took a lovely photo of the perfume bottle on my wedding day along with my Mum’s pearls.  Since I wore this for our wedding, my hubby says that every time I wear it, it reminds him of that day, as well as how relieved he was to see me after I turned up half an hour late, ooops!

Now, several months on from that day, I still wear Flowerbomb but have recently become more interested in different, more unusual fragrances.  Current favourites are Prada Candy, which although sweet, I think smells more of burnt sugar than cocktails; Jo Malone Pomegranate Noir, which I think is probably a love it or hate it scent and one I often wear for work if I have an important meeting; and my new love which is on my wishlist for Christmas, Tom Ford Violet Blonde.

Do you associate any particular perfumes with specific moments in your life? 

What are your essential everyday fragrances at the moment and what do you have on your Christmas list?