L'Oreal Color Riche Polish-507 Riviera Lavender

 I made a little Fragrance Direct order lately and this was one of the polishes I got along with two others. For just £1.30 it is so good and a much better formula and brush than Essie I reckon! The Color Riche polishes apply like a dream- application may well be the best out of all the polishes I own. You can practically cover your nail in one sweep and, with this shade at least, you can get away with just one coat. I also love the amazingly shiny finish. I did use a fast drying topcoat but it really doesn't need it for the shine. The shade Riviera Lavender is just gorgeous- I'm such a sucker for this type of periwinkle colour, plus it's so easy to wear and flattering on my skin tone. As the title would suggest it is more purple than blue but the blueness definitively comes out more in the sunlight.
There are loads of colours available at the moment on Fragrance Direct. A lot haven't got swatches but it's nothing a quick Google search can't fix. Annoyingly though I'm going to have to send one of my polishes back (Milk Shake in LA- cute name!) as it arrived with the lid not screwed on properly so it has gone quite thick and gungey. Such a shame as it is a lovely pretty pink colour. The other one I got was from the Limited Edition Cannes 2013 collection. Now this was a bit puzzlingly as I ordered the shade 822 Bronze Parure but I think it is actually 823 Riviere Amethyst even though it says it's Bronze Parure on the bottle-the shades just don't match up to what I've seen online! Nevertheless it is still a great glittery polish that I think will be perfect come the festive season.

Have you tried Color Riche polishes? What are your thoughts?

Essence Colour & Go polish- 133 Oh My Glitter!

I was so excited to find an Essence stand whilst on holiday in Mallorca (along with a Catrice one) and I really wish I could have gotten more than just one polish, but I thought I would be good and refrain myself! I am a nail polish fiend though so it seemed the obvious choice out of everything available. I have a soft spot for purple nails so this sparkly one really caught my eye. I think I paid two euros something for it but I can't quite remember. Everything was very reasonably priced though.
Today I finally removed the remains of my old holiday polish and tried out this one ready for my birthday tomorrow. Application was a breeze as the brush is a really good shape and easily covers the nail in just a few strokes. I did find this shade to be a on the sheer side, taking 3 coats to reach opacity, however each coat dried quickly so all is forgiven for such a pretty end result. The shimmer in it is gorgeous, especially when it catches the light! I've used a quick drying topcoat and hopefully it will wear well and not chip too quickly.

Have you tried any Essence polishes?

Bargain Bits

I had a little mosey around my local retail park yesterday with friends and picked up a few bargains in Poundworld and Tesco. In the pound shop I found a Bourjouis 10 days anti-chip polish in shade 15- a bright fuschia pink. I've only got one other Bourjois polish at home so I thought I'd give it a go, plus you can't go wrong with a bright pink! The angled brush is different to any I've seen before so I'm looking forward to seeing how it applies. I'll show you how it looks in a NOTD soon- I really need to get back to doing more of those, I have enough polishes too after all!  I also got a NYC pack containing an Applelicious Glossy Lip balm in Applelicious Pink and a waterproof eyeliner pencil in Moody Blue. I was only really interested in the balm but after swatching the eyeliner it actually looks very pretty with a lovely metallic sheen. I've already got one of the lip balms in Big Apple Red which I love so I'm pleased to have the pink one now too. They smell really nice and are perfect for when you just want some low maintenance and easy to wear. They give a lovely wash of colour that is quite sheer initially but can be built up some more.

In Tesco I had a bit of a rummage in the sale racks and came across this little flower vest for a mere £2! They only had size 6's left so I thought it might be a little snug but having a boy chest comes in handy and it fits fine! I like how it has adjustable straps as well as the tie detail at the back. I think it'll it'll look great with jeans, which is really all I tend to wear as I'm not trendy in the slightest, but can also be smartened up a bit for an evening out or something.

To round off my bargainous afternoon I also picked up 2 almond croissants for 30p. Not very exciting but very yum, I'm such a pastry fiend! Just thought I'd share that, haha! 

Hot Weather Hair Saviours!

I decided not to take a hairdryer on holiday as I knew it would be very warm plus I was running out of room in our suitcase! On hot days drying my hair is unbearable as it's long and thick and takes quite a while to do- I really don't want to be getting a sweat on right after getting out the shower! My hair is naturally wavy when left to air dry but it also gets quite pouffy and wild so I needed to take some products with me to help the waves look more sleek and defined. The first one I got was a tube of Urban Therapy Twisted Sista Curl Activator, which I picked up from Bodycare for just 99p. It is described as a cream moisturiser to activate curls and eliminate frizz which delivers volume, bounce and curl definition to naturally curly, afro or permed hair. You can apply it to wet or dry hair from root to tip, however I mainly focused on the mid lengths to ends to avoid my hair being weighed down. It is quite a thick cream but once rubbed between my hands it was easy to distribute. Scent wise this smells fantastic! Just like melon! What's most important though is whether it works and, for me, this definitely helped calm my hair down and made my waves look less frizzy.
Apologies also for the less than sharp piccies!

Another product I got was a 100ml bottle of Trevor Sorbie Beautifully Moisturised Humidity Control Spray. This was a bit of an impulse buy as I wasn't planning on buying it but I found it on the clearance shelf at Boots for something like 80p- at that price I couldn't just leave it there! I also had high hopes for it as I've previously bought the mini Beautifully Moisturised shampoo on clearance and really liked it.  It is described as a final barrier for frizz prone hair and can be used on all hair types including colour treated hair. You can spray it on damp or dry hair but I spritzed it on whilst my hair was still damp. It says to spray it at arms length but I tended to spray it on my brush and apply it that way to really coat my hair with it. Again this was very effective and also had some hold. It worked well at keeping down frizzy bits when I tied my hair up. I think this is being discontinued as it seems the Trevor Sorbie range has had a makeover but if I see another bottle on clearance I may well pick it up  as well as any other travel sized ones that may crop up.

If you have curly/wavy hair what do you use to manage it? I'd love some recommendations on other products as I really like wearing my hair wavy- when I can make it behave that is!

Back from hols!

Hey! I got back from my holiday with my boyfriend yesterday and just thought I'd say hi and share with you some photos from our time there. We went to Ca'n Picafort in Mallorca and had a lovely time enjoying the sunshine and gorgeous sea- it was so clear and an amazing colour! Oh and cocktails come pretty high up on the list too, especially frozen strawberry daiquiris!

Our view from the balcony. The sea always looked so inviting!

Alcudia Port.

Me looking a bit dozy with my hair au naturel (with a little bit of help!)

Messing with my camera settings and capturing Stuart and his mahoosive beer!

Yummy bread and alioli.

Long Island Iced Tea. Complete with jazzy parrot.

Beach at Alcudia Port.

Other view from balcony.

On a beauty related note my hair went a bit wild in the heat with no hair dryer so my next post will be about what products I used to tame it a bit so I could wear it naturally without looking too much like dougal!

Hope you are all well! :-)