Tuesday 30 November 2010

Reminder - Enter my Christmas Party Giveaway - Ending at Midnight Tonight!

Just a reminder to enter my Christmas Party Giveaway, which ends at midnight tonight!  Quick, get in there!

You can enter it here.  The prizes are Barry M Dusky Mauve, Accessorize blusher, Scholl Party Feet, Nicola Party Lashes and Barry M Dazzle Dust.





My Makeup Storage - Filling My Dressing Table

Morning all, on this freezing, snowy morning!  I'm supposed to be going to Bath to meet my Mum at lunch time - I think I'll get there OK, but I'm not sure if her train from London will be running.  Hopefully she'll make it without too many problems and get home this evening OK as well.



Anyway, after the excitement about my dressing table yesterday, I've now filled it with makeup!  It looks great, and all my makeup fits in!






Underneath the flip-down mirror I have my eyeshadows, my lipsticks, lip glosses, mascaras and pencils and blushers.  There's just one blusher that won't fit in the blush section, but everything else fits in well.  Doesn't it look pretty?



In the little drawer to the side I've put things like false lashes and products that haven't been opened yet.  There's still plenty of space in this drawer, so I can fill it up!


In the cupboard area I've got all my polishes in a box at the back, my Urban Decay BOS III and Coastal Scents palettes, a box with all my samples in, some perfumes and my brushes.

The only thing I've not stored here are my primers, concealers and foundations.  This is because I don't do a bare face, ever, and I always do my face base as soon as I'm out of the shower and my moisturiser has set.  It makes sense for me to continue to do this in the bathroom, and I've got plenty of space in there for these products now the rest of them are in my dressing table.  You may spy some boxes underneath the dressing table in my photos - well they are now empty.

I'm so happy that I bought this dressing table - it's absolutely gorgeous and everything is so neat and organised!  Welsh Beauty Blog commented on my last post that it is like a Tardis, and I completely agree - there's still lots of room for more stuff!

Thanks for reading!  xx

Monday 29 November 2010

Barry M Dusky Mauve vs Chanel Paradoxal = Totally Dupe-tastic

Hello all.  I know you've probably seen this in a million posts, but I thought I'd add my take on Barry M Dusky Mauve, and how much of a dupe it is to Chanel's Paradoxal.  In my opinion, it's about 99% of a dupe.


L-R Dusky Mauve, Paradoxal, DM, Paradoxal

L-R Paradoxal, DM, Paradoxal

You can even see the hidden sparkle here

L-R DM, Paradoxal, DM, Paradoxal, DM

L-R Paradoxal, DM, Paradoxal

The colour of both polishes is exactly the same, and Dusky Mauve has the same hidden shimmer as Paradoxal, only visible in certain lights.  I think that the shimmer is a red colour, but others have described it as mauve - it's up to you to decide.  If anything, there's slightly more shimmer in the Barry M than Paradoxal, but only the teeniest bit.  One of the things that I love about Paradoxal is that it gives my nails a certain look - it's very hard to describe, but the finish of Paradoxal is like no other.  Although it's glossy, it has the feel of a matte polish, and somehow manages to make my nails look longer than they actually are.  Anyway, I was dubious whether Barry M would be able to replicate this intangible quality that Chanel manages to capture in the finish, but you know what - they've cracked it.  I really can't tell the difference between the finish of the two polishes.

Where Barry M actually scores higher than Chanel is in application.  It's definitely easier to apply than Paradoxal - I've not yet managed to do a 'perfect' manicure with Paradoxal, without some degree of bubbling.  But Dusky Mauve didn't bubble. 

So, I think this is an excellent dupe, and definitely a lot more wallet friendly than Paradoxal.  I've also seen it in quite a few Superdrugs over the past week, so they must be manufacturing some more as quickly as it's flying off the shelves.  If you haven't managed to get your hands on it yet, you can enter my giveaway here for Dusky Mauve and some other bits to see you through the Christmas Party season.

Thanks for reading!  xx

Beauty Bloggers Christmas Weight Loss Challenge - Week 7

Hello ladies - well it's the penultimate Beauty Bloggers Christmas Weight Loss Challenge.  Just one week to go!  I must admit, I didn't update last week's results, and I've got a bit muddled up.  Can you point out if I've got your losses wrong and I'll correct it?! 


I lost 1lb this week, so I've hit the 7lb target! Woohoo!  I've not been that good though, I have had a bit of a tummy bug which has probably helped a bit!  Oh well, I'll take the loss, and just need to maintain it for next week - I must be super-good.

The Bristol Beauty Blog -1lb, -3lb, -0lb, +2lb, -2lb -2lb, -1lb = -7lb
Fudge Smoothies -1lb -lb = -2lb
Who is She??? -4lb, -4lb, -3lb, week off, -3lb, week off = -14lb!!!  (Extra Gold Star for you!)
Behind the Shoes -1lb, - 2lb, -0.5, -0.5lb, sts, -2lb, -0.5lb  = -6.5lb (and 1 bmi point)
Real Girls Beauty -0.5lb, -1lb, -2lb, -2lb = -5.5lb
Stacey @ The HQ of Beauty -0.5lb, -1.5lb, -0.5, -0lb, -1lb, sts = -3.5lb
Leanne @ Obsessive Cosmetics Disorder -3.5lb, - 3lb, -1lb, -1.5lb, +.5lb, -1lb = -9.5lb (Silver Star for you!)
Sweet Like Jelly - sts, - 2lb, -2lb  = -4lb
Lucy Duckett -1lb, - 2lb, -3lb, -1lb = -7lb

Let me know your results this week ladies!

xx

My Current Makeup Storeage and My New Dressing Table

Happy Monday Morning everyone.  I'm so thankful to have a week off this week, so rather than venture out into the cold first thing, I'm still tucked up in bed!  Anyway, yesterday my boyfriend and I went to the MidCentury Show at the Paintworks in Bristol.  It was basically a market in their event space for dealers and shops specialising in 1940s-1970s furniture.  We both love this style of furniture, and there were some excellent items, fabrics, ceramics, art and even some jewellery.  Some of the things I remember my parents having when I was a child - it's a shame most of it went in a skip, when the dealers were charging mega bucks yesterday!

When we moved into our flat from our previously rented house, we only had a few bits of decent furniture, so other than these choice items, we furnished the flat from scratch from Ikea.  This was mainly because we had little money and needed to get it done quickly.  However, after seeing so many lovely and well made items yesterday, I'm itching to give the whole flat a makeover - or even better, to move to a little house and furnish it from scratch.  Especially as using second hand items would avoid our flat looking like every other flat in the world!  I once saw an episode of Relocation, where a couple's living room in Poland had EXACTLY the same furniture AND accessories as ours.  I want to be a bit more individual.


Anyway, after my ramble, this  post is about something that I did buy yesterday, a dressing table.  I've never owned a dressing table before - I store my makeup in a bag in the bathroom with overspill boxes under my bed, and do my makeup standing up in the bathroom or in the kitchen.  In previous houses I've used a mantlepiece, a trolley, a desk and the floor to store my makeup, so it was about time I got this sorted, especially as it no longer fits into a small makeup bag.

Shamefully, this is how I currently store my makeup - in a bulging bag, and with other, dusty boxes filled with stuff. It's hidden away, but it's such a mess - I hate it!  I'm quite an organised person really, so I like everything to be really neat. I know that I don't have a huge makeup collection, but it's ever growing and it's far too big to continue to store it this way.









Enter my new dressing table, vintage from the 1960s.  It's small, but I think it's perfectly formed.  It is a delicate looking table, but is also quite sturdy.  There's a flip-up mirror (that needs a bit of a clean), with compartments for makeup underneath, a drawer to the side and a flip-down cupboard area.  Although it is small, it's actually quite spaceous and will easily fit my makeup, as well as nail polishes and perfumes.  It will also stop me buying too much more, as I really want to fit all my makeup into the dresser.





Yes, that's me in my dressing gown, and one of my cats your can see


I've had this lining paper for ages - yay, I can use it finally!


I'm really looking forward to sorting out all my makeup into it later today, and will do a post on how it looks like!

I have a vintage stool that I thought might look good with the dressing table, but unfortunately it's too big and won't fit underneath it, so I'm going to be on the lookout for a new stool over the next few weeks.  I also need a lamp, as the lighting is not good where it is located.  Unfortunately, this was the only place it would fit, and involved us rearranging the furniture in two rooms to fit it in.  There is a problem, which is the nearest plug socket is 10m from the table.  Once I've found my perfect lamp, I'm going to have to run a long cable behind cupboards and wardrobes to get power to the table.

This was quite an expensive piece of furniture - I think only my sofas and the bed cost more than it. It was £250 after haggling, and as I'm rubbish at haggling, I reckon I could've got it for £200 if I'd tried a bit harder. I'm loath to part with lots of money on one item, but I completely fell in love with it.  I did go away for a coffee, discuss it with my boyfriend and weigh up whether I could afford it and where it would go before buying it, so it's not so much an impulse purchase.  We also decided that he would give me some money towards it as part of my Christmas  present, which makes it much more affordable.

What do you think?  I know it's probably not to everyone's tastes, but for me, I love that it's individual and different, and extremely functional.  I'm going to feel like Joan Holloway when I apply my makeup!

Thanks for reading

Saturday 27 November 2010

Mavala Nail Polishes Haul - Carousel Collection

Hi lovelies!  Sorry I've not posted for ages.  The good news is, I'm off work for a week, so I'll be able to catch up a bit on blogging over the next few days - yippie!  I've also had a new hair cut and colour today, and I love it.  As soon as I can take some pictures in good light, I'll show you all.

Anyway, I had a bit of a splurge last weekend and ended up spending far too much money on clothes and cosmetics.  I've already posted about my clothes haul, but I wanted to show you the fab Mavala nail polishes I bought from Debenhams. 

I'm a big fan of Mavala polishes.  I love the fact that they are small sized, so you stand a decent chance of using them up before they run dry or get gloopy and at £3.95, they're an affordable little treat.  They also have a nice brush, are generally true to the colour in the bottle and are relatively long lasting and easy to apply.

I picked up four colours I found tucked away in a very chaotic Debenhams last week.  The stand of colours was underneath a table, underneath an escalator - I very nearly missed them.  I'm glad I did spot them though, as they are beautiful colours.


New York is a blueish grey, and is a beautiful and very 'now' colour.  I was wearing it to the hair salon today and I had two compliments from the girls working there, so I'm not the only one who loves it!  The other colours, Daring Pink, Bronze Green and Smoky Blue are all from the Carousel Collection.  I haven't found much information on this collection online, but they had some fab colours in the store.  Although you can't see it very well in my pictures, the polishes are all shot through with a subtle irredescent shimmer that really lifts the colours.  I can feel a few nail of the days coming on with these colours...infact, I might just go and do one right now!

Thanks for reading! xx

Wednesday 24 November 2010

Beauty Bloggers Christmas Weight Loss Challenge - Week 6

I'm a couple of days late with this weeks Beauty Bloggers Christmas Weight Loss Challenge already?.  Our aim is to lose 7lb by 6th December. It's weigh in #6 already!


I lost 2lb this week!  Get me, back on track!  Just 1lb to go, and two weeks to do it in! 

The Bristol Beauty Blog -1lb, -3lb, -0lb, +2lb, -2lb = -6lb
Fudge Smoothies -1lb -lb = -2lb
Who is She??? -4lb, -4lb, -3lb, week off, -3lb, week off = -14lb!!!  (Extra Gold Star for you!)
Behind the Shoes -1lb, - 2lb, -0.5, -0.5lb, -2lb sts = -6lb
Real Girls Beauty -0.5lb, -1lb, -2lb, -2lb = -5.5lb
Stacey @ The HQ of Beauty -0.5lb, -1.5lb, -0.5, -0lb, -1lb = -3.5lb
Leanne @ Obsessive Cosmetics Disorder -3.5lb, - 3lb, -1lb, -1.5lb, +.5lb, -1lb = -9.5lb (Silver Star for you!)
Sweet Like Jelly - sts, - 2lb, -2lb  = -4lb
Lucy Duckett -1lb, - 2lb, -3lb = -6lb

I've updated my result, as well as Rachelle's, Leanne's and Ray's. Let me know your results this week ladies!

xx

Tuesday 23 November 2010

Dr SpaFish - Garra Rufa Fish Pedicure

On Saturday I treated myself to a Garra Rufa Fish Pedicure at the new Dr SpaFish at the Mall, Bristol (or the Galleries as it used to be called).  At £10 for 15 minutes, and with a walk-in, no appointment system, it's tempting Christmas shoppers in Bristol at the moment.

I rocked up at the shop on Saturday afternoon at about quarter to four.  The shop was manic, with customers waiting and loads of shoppers just passing by and looking in.  With a very open shopfront, and the fish tanks separated from the shop by just a low barrier, anyone passing could just pop in and have a look at the fish and gawp at those people having a pedicure.  The front of house staff seemed very flustered, as if they weren't expecting so many people there, and having difficulty controlling the random public who were just wandering in around the waiting area.  However, the staff were very sweet, and I think that their fluster was mainly due to the bad design of the shop, and the random people who were milling around, rather than the fault of the staff.


They only have 8 fish tanks, arranged in 2 groups of 4, so you have to wait until one is free.  I had to wait about half an hour, which wasn't too bad.  As I was on my own, they managed to squeeze me in more quickly than the larger groups and families who were there.  Once I'd been led behind the barrier, it was considerably less manic and chaotic than at the front of the shop.  I was asked to remove my shoes and socks, roll up my jeans and given a bowl to soak my feet in for two minutes.  I was then led to the tank, where a friendly attendant told me to put my feet together and slowly lower them into the tank.

The fish immediately swam up and attached themselves to my feet.  There were a lot of them, and it was at first a tickling feeling.  It wasn't unpleasant though, just very odd!  For some reason, my right foot was more popular than my left, and my right ankle in particular.  Some of fish started eating my cuticles and others were eating my toes!  Bizarrely, they ignored the areas of my worst hard skin on the soles of my feet - I'd have thought that would be their favourite, but maybe they weren't that hungry!


Two ladies next to me couldn't stop giggling, but I got used to the tickling quite quickly.  I think I could have done with a half and hour session, rather than 15 minutes, as I was quite enjoying it!  It was actually very relaxing, and the fish were fascinating.  Anyway, all too soon, it came to an end, and I had to take my feet out of the tank, dry them off, and get them sprayed with disinfectant. 

So what was the end result?  Were my feet silky smooth with no hard skin?  Well no, there is a difference with some softer areas, and my cuticles are tidier, but there is still far too much hard skin!  Perhaps a longer session in the tank would have made a bigger difference, but I would have had a better result using a pumice stone for a couple of minutes.

For a novelty, it's quite fun, especially after a hard days shopping.  I'd get it done again, because it feels quite pleasant and relaxing, but not because it works that well!  I should also add that the cheap price, the very open nature of the shop, which makes you feel you are in a goldfish bowl (literally) and the garish colours, logo and very cheap and cheerful shop fit do not make this a luxury experience.  It's fun, but it's not a special treat or a 'spa'.

Have you had a fish pedicure yet?  It seems like they are springing up everywhere at the moment!

Thanks for reading! xx

Monday 22 November 2010

A Big Haul Part 1 - Fashion

Well I fell off the wagon on my beauty diet big time.  Not only did I buy beauty products, but I bought lots of new clothes as well, thinking of the festival I'm going to in a few weeks time.  Debenhams had a 20% offer on this weekend, so I took advantage of it, as all the concessions were also on offer.  This post is about the clothes I bought, I'm sorry about the terrible quality photos - I  just can't get good pictures of my clothes!


First of all I got these corduroy Red Herring leggings/jeggings, which cost £14 after discount.  They're definitely leggings which look much better on than on the hanger.  I can see me wearing them all through the winter, as they're warm and snuggly.  And best of all - they're a size 12 and they fit perfectly!!!



I'm not normally one for animal prints, but I saw this Oasis tunic/dress and knew it was for me.  It's a lovely jersey material and not too over the top.  It's also camel, and as you know, I'm loving the camel trend this season.  It's perfect for a winter festival - warm and snuggly, but rock chick as well!  I'm also going to wear this around Christmas - it's just a little bit festive!  It was £40 with the 20% discount.


I loved this dress/tunic from Dorothy Perkins, with an unusual print, and a muted greige/ gruple colour.  I know I've got loads of nail polish that will go with it!  At £32 before the discount, it was a steal, and it will work in the summer as well.  Definitely one of my festival tops.



I spotted this top at Oasis which is basically a standard grey jumper, but with a detachable snood!  It was quite pricy, but I love it!



I've been looking for some new cardies for work, as I'm so bored with the ones I have at the moment.  This jewel green cardie with black lace detailing is lovely and quite unusual.  This was on offer at £25 from Oasis (£10 off), and had another £5 off with the discount.


This printed cardie was £20 from Oasis.  I thought it had a lovely pattern and I'm looking forward to wearing it to work!

If you've not seen it, don't forget to check out my Christmas Party Giveaway here.  I've got together all the essentials for you to shimmer and shine at party time!

Thanks for reading! xx

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