January Favourites

I'm so excited (& probably a little too eager!) to type up this post today, not only because it's the first monthly favourites of 2015 but because it contains products I've lusted after for so long that I finally got my hands on over Christmas which well & truly live up to the hype around them!  Lets start from the top of the photo, the first item being the Rose Gold Zoeva 102 Silk Finish brush (which is slightly out of focus, apologies but I'm still getting to grips with my shiny new camera!) I am completely obsessed with using this brush to apply my foundation. It's quite dense with a rounded head which makes blending & buffing a complete dream. It makes my foundation appear seamless & I just love it so much! In fact the whole set is amazing, so keep an eye out for a full review soon! Next is a skincare item from Soap & Glory, my favourite drugstore brand when it comes to both skincare & bath products. I picked the Fab Pore 2-in-1 Facial Pore Purifying Mask & Peel on a complete whim when I was feeling really fed up of my skin & in desperate need of a 'quick fix'. I haven't read any reviews on this but I think it deserves so much more recognition! Soap & Glory state that this is going to be your new favourite mask & it's true, it's definitely mine! I've been using it once a week to shrink my pores & improve the general appearance of my skin. It gives my skin a new lease of life, it feels a million times better, my pores are virtually invisible & my blemishes seem a lot calmer. Its £10 a pot but theres always offers on S&G stuff so I got it for about £8, it's well worth it! NARS Sheer Glow Foundation is a base product that I have wanted to try out for SO long, but I was always put off by the price tag so when my Mum offered to get it me for Christmas I jumped at the chance. Honestly, I wish I hadn't waited so long to try it! I've had so many compliments when I've been wearing it & it's completely rekindled my love with applying makeup. You know when you have those 'meh' days because your skin is looking blah & you can just tell your makeup isn't going to sit right? Well this completely transforms my skin, it's a miracle in a bottle & is definitely up there with my other fave foundation, YSL Le Teint Touche Eclat. I'm always so nervous to splurge on high end makeup incase I don't like it, but sometimes it's worth the risk!  Another product from Soap & Glory has made it's way into my January Favourites, this time something from their makeup range. I feel like I've been waiting forever to buy the Archery 2-in-1 Brow Filling Pencil & Brush, literally every time I went into my local Boots it was always out of stock... I even sneakily opened the drawer underneath the stand to see if any were hidden but to my disappointment there wasn't! Last week I ended up going over to Liverpool where I got drawn in to the huge Boots & to my delight the S&G stand was fully stocked so I grabbed the archery pencil in the shade 'Hot Chocolate' & trotted of to pay for it without even thinking twice! Even though this has only been in my life for a short while it's changed my eyebrow routine for the better, quick short strokes, a brush through with the spoolie & my brows are filled within a minute or so. The colour is a perfect match too & my brows don't seem to disintegrate throughout the day either! My most-loved fragrance of the month is Daisy Dream by Marc Jacobs. I have a couple of MJ perfumes plus some mini handbag versions so when Daisy Dream was released I knew it would eventually end up in my collection. Everything from the bottle adorned with daisies & the light, fruity, floral scent is lovely & right up my street. I've been spritzing it ever since Doms parents kindly surprised it with me (love that my "in laws" know me so well!) & I can't get enough of it! It's such a Spring/Summer kinda scent, as are most of the MJ fragrances, so it's nice to spray this when the days are dull & be reminded of the warm Summer days that are ahead of us, hopefully! I always have what seems like a 101 lip balms on the go at once & usually just grab whatever is closest to me but this month I've been choosing the Burts Bees Peppermint Beeswax Lip Balm more often than not. I find Burts Bees to be one of the most nourishing lip balms, they're filled with natural ingredients such as Coconut & Sunflower oils plus lots of vitamins & essential fatty acids to condition, soften & hydrate. The Peppermint flavour is really refreshing & tingles a little bit, which to me is a sign it's working! Tigi Catwalk Oatmeal & Honey Nourishing Shampoo* & Conditioner* have been my hair washing products of choice this month. If you've read my blog for a while you'll probably be fed up of me mentioning how dry my hair can be but seriously it's getting to the stage that it now forms dreadlocks if I don't brush it straight away after washing!! I'm forever soaking it in Moroccan Oil & using various other products that lock in moisture, whilst I still love all of the previous products I've used it's good to switch up your haircare routine every now & again! It's a nice change to have a shampoo/conditioner that doesn't have a fruity scent, the Honey & Oatmeal provide a comforting kinda smell, think breakfast & porridge & you're on the right tracks and the best thing is that the scent lingers around, I love it when you get wafts of a scent all day long! It definitely helps to tame my hair as it always feels silky soft during & after I've washed it, I hate shampoos that make your hair have that weird squeaky clean feeling whilst you're rinsing out the product. The gift pack is currently only £14.50 which is pretty good considering individually they would normally retail between £24-£30. What are your January Favourites? L x

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soap & glory smoothie star breakfast scrub

Soap & Glory Smoothie Star Breakfast Scrub - £8.00 When it comes to shower/bath/pamper products Soap & Glory are always my number one choice. I love everything about S&G products, from the cutesy packaging to the range of delicious scents. The Smoothie Star range is my absolute favourite though, the smell of these products is delicious, I literally want to eat the stuff it smells so good! Filled with oats, sugar, banana, almond & honey it creates a breakfasty porridge/maple syrup fragrance that I can't resist, I often just sit with the tub in my hand unscrewing the lid every few seconds to enjoy the smell haha! 
I take a scoop of the scrub & rub it in my hands before applying it to my damp skin in circular motions. The golden sugar scrub particles & the gentle oatmeal grains exfoliate my skin without being harsh at all. What I really like is that the scrub doesn't feel overly gritty, the grains are small but the right size to have a good scrub with. It also doesn't get messy like some scrubs I've used where I end up dropping blobs of it all over the bathtub, this formula seems to stick together well which means I waste less product too! Now that the weather is perking up a little I've been baring my legs more when wearing dresses/skirts so I've been trying to improve the condition of my skin as it can quite be dry & flakey. The Breakfast Scrub is definitely helping to make my legs appear smooth & they feel a lot softer. Afterwards I use the Smoothie Star Deep Moisture Body Milk which has a really similar scent, although slightly more of a cocoa butter smell rather than a breakfast pancake kinda smell it's still super yummy & I love how the scent lingers all day! I read on the Boots website that the Breakfast Scrub could be used as a lip scrub too, however I just tried this & although my lips do feel smoother, the taste is so so strange! 
I always look forward to exfoliating now because it's one of those scrubs you can see the results with, plus I get to enjoy the smell & it really pleases me that the scrub doesn't drop everywhere, it's hardly any hassle at all to exfoliate now! I know that I will be using this loads over Summer & I'm going to invest in a few more Smoothie Star treats whilst Boots have their 3 for 2 offer on!
Have you tried anything from the Smoothie Star range? What is your favourite Soap & Glory product?
L x

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soap & glory smoothie star deep moisture body milk

Soap & Glory Smoothie Star Body Milk - £10

Smoothie Star has got to be my favourite from the Best of All gift set I received at Christmas. It's probably the scent that completely wins me over, as I'm a true lover of anything cocoa buttery! Although it is a sweet smelling moisturiser I don't find it overpowering or too sickly.  The body milk is filled with almond, cocoa, yogurt, oat & honey, all good stuff for your skin, especially the oats & honey. It features the waterlock moisture trapping matrix allowing me to keep my skin hydrated and soft. I use this everyday after a shower as it's quick to apply due to its light formula meaning it doesn't take ages to soak in, but my skin is still left feeling dewy. I think this is the perfect lazy girl moisturiser, a few pumps slathered all over and you're ready to go, so much easier than faffing around with a thick body butter! 

Have you tried Smoothie Star body milk?

L x

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