Monday 30 June 2014

*Book Review: Date Shark by DelSheree Gladden* 200th blog post!

Hello everyone! Today post is my 200th blog post! Yay! As always I hope you enjoy today's blog post.

 This week will be a book inspired week as I have plenty of reviews I want to share with you all of some fantastic reads! Recently I have upped my reading game. If you follow me on Goodreads here you will know that I am aiming to read 50 books this year. Fingers crossed that I get to that goal or anywhere near it! I was approached by the author DelSheree Gladden to read her book Date Shark. It sounded very interesting so of course I accepted!

Date Shark by DelSheree Gladden

Date Shark focuses on the dating life of Leila Sparrow and her quest to find out where her dating life is going wrong. Leila hires the help of Eli Walsh a date shark. Eli Walsh, as a side career to his therapy practice, helps women by going on practice dates and outlining the faults the women have during those dates. Don't we all wish someone could tell us the right way to bag the right one? Life would be so much simpler! 

Leila steals Eli's attention and focus in life. Eli is all of a sudden focussed on Leila and his growing infatuation for her. However further barriers come to light when Leila begins to date a guy called Luke. He wants to tell her of his growing feelings however will she feel the same way? Will his date shark business compromise Leila's feelings for him? More importantly who will Leila choose - Luke or Eli?

Firstly, I loved this book! I don't read a lot of romance novels however Date Shark really did appeal to me. I actually hadn't heard the term date shark before! The storyline is so engaging. I felt like I couldn't put this down. I read this within the space of 3 days before and after work. Whenever I had a free moment I would pick up where I left off! 

The characters are all characterised well. I felt like I knew about each character and their background which helped with the character development throughout the book. This is also helped by the use of changing points of view throughout the book between Eli and Leila. I loved this as I felt it helped me understand how Eli and Leila felt about each others choices and decisions throughout the book. It also gave a great insight into each characters growing feelings for one another. 

The story line was great. There are just enough twists and turns in the novel that keep the pages turning. I was very happy that the storyline, although romantic, was relativity clean. Sometimes romance books can become to heavy with over passionate chapters which leave you blushing however DelSheree handled this in a sensitive way which made me believe that the characters had a deeper love and connection that was developing rather than a relationship focused on passion.

Overall I loved this book! It has had a much different structure and storyline to the most recent romance novels I have read.

Have you read any books by DelSheree? What is your favourite romance novel/story? Let me know in the comments!


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*NOTE: The book Date Shark was sent to me to review however all thoughts and opinions expressed are entirely my own.*

Friday 27 June 2014

*Simple Skincare: Kind to City Skin Giveaway*

Hello everyone! If you have been following my blog for a while you will know that when I first started I reviewed a few Simple products. I am in love with the brand Simple. For someone like me that has such sensitive skin you can't go wrong with a brand like Simple. Their products leave the skin feeling nourished and smooth without being too harsh on the skin. 

*Pictures provided by Simple with their permission*

So with that being said I am here to let you guys know about Simple's new competition! Simple have launched a Kind to City Skin campaign to let us know the effects that urban/city life has on our skin. I'm sure you will all agree that alot happens to our skin on a day to day basis without us really thinking or seeing the damage until much later on! The elements such as pollution, stress, weather and artificial environments can cause redness, dryness and flakey skin which are all signs of sensitive skin. I myself have eczema and sensitive skin so I can hold my hand up and say yes I suffer from this too!

Having a good skin care touting is crucial in combating the elements and the effects of city life. Simple is the brand you can trust to be kind to your city skin. Simple, as sensitive skin experts, are definitely the ones to go to! The Simple range contains no artificial perfumes, colours or harsh chemicals that will damage or irritate the skin.

Alongside their #KindToCitySkin campaign I have been asked to let you guys know of a competition they are running! You have a chance of winning:
  • 1x Simple Kind To Skin Cleansing Facial Wipes
  • 1x Simple Kind To Skin Purifying Cleansing Lotion
  • 1x Simple Kind To Skin Soothing Facial Toner
  •  1x Simple Kind To Skin Hydrating Light Moisturiser
  •  1x Simple Kind To Skin Moisturising Facial Wash
  •  1x Simple Kind To Skin Illuminating Radiance Cream
Follow the rules below for a chance to win: a Rafflecopter giveaway


Please also follow my blog for any future blog posts on competitions I will be running! Thank you once again to Simple for giving me the opportunity to help host their competition!

Let me know in the comments your favourite Simple product!

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*Simple contacted me to post about this giveaway to my readers*

Product Empties #13


Product Empties #13

I swear product empties time comes around quicker each time! Usually by the time I come to write these I already have a new bag of empties growing (currently the count is at 3)! Anyway I hope you all enjoy the 13th product empties post that I have written! Unlucky for some? Hopefully not!

Hair


Yes the usual occurrence is back. I go through more of these that I care to admit. I'd hate to total up the cost of them! Batiste XXL dry shampoo is crucial for me. Since I have such thick hair it can get weighed down very easily. Especially when it is due a wash. This helps to liven my hair up and also adds a bit of body to it. It is also great for those of you, like me, that have a full fringe and need to get rid of those annoying gaps that always occur! 


This is actually my favourite heat protection spray currently. I am making my way through a TRESemme one which I reviewed at the moment however I have two of these waiting in my cupboard to begin re-using. If you are looking for my full thoughts you can check out my review here. All you need to know is that I love it!

Scents

Soft & Gentle Deodorant

Well you have to include the usual boring items don't you! Yes it is a deodorant. Yes it works. Yes I always use Soft & Gentle...NEXT!


I have reviewed this body spray from Soap & Glory here. I love this spray. It only lasts a few hours but it is perfect to re-apply throughout the day or for a nice light scent before you leave the house. It is also great to chuck in your overnight bag for a quick morning refresher. I always spray this amongst my hair and on my clothes to make the lovely feminine scent linger for even longer.


I should really explain why there are two of these! I have been meaning, for the longest time, to remember to put the first empty bottle of perfume in a product empties post. It just sat there on my bookshelf looking empty and sad. Then I finished ANOTHER bottle and thought I had to get rid of them! So here you go! I usually don't stick these in my little bag as I am afraid they will smash however I just had to remind myself! This is my everyday perfume and I absolutely love it. For those of you that find that perfumes give you headaches try this out! The Loverdose range have been the only perfumes which don't give me the worlds worst headache! You can check out my full review here.

Dolce & Gabanna perfume

I received a little sample of this and thought I would give it a go. It did give me a slight headache however nothing too severe. The scent was lovely, feminine and mature (can you tell I am horrible and describing scents?) I absolutely hated this sample packaging. The idea is that you pull up the little tab with the ^ arrow and then squeeze the card to apply the scent. 9/10 times it didn't really work and I had to strangle the packaging to actually apply any perfume! Not good!

Make-up


I have been debating with my OH for the longest time how long I could leave this eyebrow pencil before taking a photograph of it. Needless to say it became a challenge of how small I could get this eyebrow pencil before it disappeared. The pencil itself is actual smaller underneath the two lids and yes it is still going and in my make-up bag! However I thought I would include it in this product empties since it is almost done. You can check out my full thoughts here. I really love this eyebrow pencil. It creates the perfect natural eyebrow and the wax that is provided helps perfectly set your brow. I have already purchased another!

Boots Natural Collection Concealer in Light

I'm surprised I haven't reviewed this product yet for you guys! Note to self: must review! For those of you that live in the UK Boots have their own brand called Natural Collection. For years now I have used their concealer because it is £1.99 (or 3 for £5) and it does the job! I can't recommend this enough!

Skincare


I absolutely adore this product. You can read my full opinion on it here. As you can see I have pretty much dug the whole contents of the bottle out to use! I use this as a cleansing wash as well as a cleansing mask. This bottle I actually got in my Yule Monty Limited Edition set and I have only just finished it! I have already re-purchased another bottle and I plan on always buying this! I absolutely love it. It has really helped with oil control on my face. It also helps to clear up any spots or blemishes quickly.

Bits & Bobs

Cotton buds and pads

Yes once again. Good old cotton buds and cotton pads. Who doesn't go through these?

So there we have it! Another product empties post done and dusted! Have you tried any of these products? What were your thoughts? Do you write product empties posts? Let me know in the comments!

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Wednesday 25 June 2014

Makeup Revolution - Iconic 3 Eyeshadow Palette - Review

Hello everyone! Today I am finally reviewing a brand that has caused a stir amongst beauty bloggers and fanatics. Of course I am talking about the infamous Makeup Revolution! I thought I would start out with a product that has gained a lot of attention - the Iconic 3 palette. 

Makeup Revolution - Iconic 3 

Just taking a look at the palette you can see that the colour selection is just beautiful. Many have noted that the palette is a fantastic, affordable dupe for the Naked 3 palette. The packaging is very sleek considering its small price of £4. You can check out the Iconic 3 palette on the Makeup Revolution website here. Makeup Revolution are also available through Superdrug too!


Here is a close up of the shades you receive. For the price of the palette you receive a generous amount. I love the idea of each colour being in a bar type shape rather than the typical circle pan of product you usually get. It just makes the palette look that little bit better! In the palette there are 3 matte shades and 9 shimmery shades. The palette also comes with a double ended eyeshadow brush. With that being said lets take a look at swatches of the shadows!


The shadows themselves don't have names so I will simply go in order! The first four shades are definitely the more subtle of the bunch. I have actually been using these shades as subtle highlights and to add a subtle touch of sparkle on my lid for work days. The first shade makes a perfect highlight, particularly for under the eyebrow. The next two are lovely golden skin tone shades that add that pop of glamour. I often use these two as an inner lid highlight for that extra sparkle to the eye. The fourth colour is a lovely flush of pink. The first and fourth shade are both matte.


Moving on to the net four shades! The fifth shade is a lovely shimmery taupe/bronze colour. The sixth shade is the prettiest golden shimmer I have seen in a palette so affordable! The seventh shade is the next matte shade in the palette; a matte brown. The eight shade is a lovely shimmery brown which works fantastically with the previous matte brown. 


The last four shades are absolutely stunning and my personal favourite. The ninth shade in the palette is an even darker shimmery brown. Again this works perfectly with the previous two shades. The tenth shade is a darker golden shimmer with a hint of brown reflexes. Moving on to the eleventh shade we get a beautiful shimmery grey. Lastly we have the twelfth shade which is my favourite of the whole palette. The final shade is the most gorgeous shimmery black which has red shimmer added. Absolutely gorgeous.

So there you have it! I totally recommend this palette for any of you that may be umming and ahhhing about if you should join the hype and buy it. Have you tried the Iconic 3 palette? What are your favourite shades? Let me know in the comments!

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Monday 23 June 2014

Poundland Beauty: Argan Oil Hydrating Hair Mask Intensive Conditioning Treatment - Review

Today, once again, we will be exploring what poundland has to offer in its beauty range! This product is from an argan oil range that you make have spotted in the likes of poundworld/land before. Today's product is the Argan Oil Hydrating Hair Mask.

Argan Oil Hydrating Hair Mask Intensive Conditioning Treatment

As I have said this product is actually part of a range which offers shampoo, conditioner, this deep conditioner and an oil. I picked up this deep hair mask as I love a good hair masque! I also love having a nice little stash to try! If you have been a long time reader you will know I have very long and thick hair so products that look after and nourish my long locks are crucial.

This hydrating mask is a thick white conditioner which, much like other hair masks, you leave on your hair for the usual 5-10 minutes and rinse. I must admit I do like the smell of this range. It doesn't smell like argan oil which to be honest I am not shocked by. Looking at the ingredients there seems to be the bare minimum of argan oil in the mask. However the scent is very clean and fresh which I like as it lingers on the hair. The consistency of the conditioner is lovely. It is thick and luxurious and feels like a real treat to the hair. As for the results? Well I won't lie it isn't as intense as the usual weekly hair masques that I use however it is great to top up on your deep condition! 

I use a deep conditioner once a week. Sometimes when I am nearing the end of the week time-frame my hair is crying out for a deep condition. This is perfect to use and it adds life back to my hair without being as intense a normal hair masque. It definitely has more to offer than your usual conditioner but don't hold your breath for it being the most amazing hair masque you have ever tried!

Have you tried anything from the Poundland argan oil range? Are there any shampoos or conditioners you would recommend from there? Let me know in the comments!

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Friday 20 June 2014

Neutrogena Visibly Clear Pink Grapefruit Facial Wash - Review

Helle everyone! Today I thought it was best to take a look at all of the product reviews that I had let collect dust in my blogger drafts section! So you will have to forgive the return of the Iphone photography on the few posts I have left to clear out! Anyway! Today I will be reviewing a product that I bought over a month ago! The Neutrogena Visibly Clear Pink Grapefruit Facial Wash.

Neutrogena Visibly Clear Pink Grapefruit Facial Wash

I have been using Neutrogena face washes for years. I think they are a fantastic basic to have because you just can't go wrong with them. I always like to use a good facial wash in the bath/shower and the Neutrogena range delivers. They offer a fantastic range of facial washes that all, in one way or another, help to clear up and improve your skin. 

I decided to pick the pink grapefruit option as I hadn't tried it before! I thought I would try it out and yes, much like all the others that I have tried, I love how clean it gets me skin. If I ever have any traces of make-up on by the time I hit the shower it always gets those last few bits! The product also lathers up beautifully and easily on the face. The only negative I can comment on is that I'm not the biggest fan of the smell. Initially I hated it however now I am used to it. I would much prefer if it had a lovely, inviting and soapy smell however to me it smells like the synthetic smell that most bathroom cleaners have. Not pleasant at all. I think I will skip on repurchasing this in the future because of the smell however for its purpose it delivers!

Have you tried the Neutrogena Visibly Clear Pink Grapefruit facial wash? Have you tried anything you have loved from the Neutrogena range? Let me know in the comments!

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Monday 16 June 2014

Sally Hansen - Base & Top Coat - Review

Hi everyone! I hope you are all well as always! Today's review is of a product I have used over the last half term. One that my wonderful fiancé treated me to as he knows how obsessed I am with my nail varnish! As some of my avid readers and followers may know; I love doing my nails however I can only paint them when I am off from work. This is mostly due to not having the time! I really hate having to re-paint chipped nail polish so finding a good base and top coat is crucial. 

Sally Hansen - Base & Top Coat

Sally Hansen is a nail polish brand name that you can trust. I have yet to try a nail polish of theirs that I don't like. The formula is always fantastic, they don't chip quickly, the brush is fantastic... the list goes on and on! However this was my first time trying out one from their base/top coat range. I picked up this polish simply because it is a two in one product. Less fuss! The packaging is very sleek and you get a decent amount of product. 0.45 FL OZ to be exact!


The wand looks thin however when you apply it to the nail the bristles fan out leaving a lovely, even coat on the nail. Exactly what you want. So the real test... could I see a difference in how long my nail polish lasted? Yes! Recently I reviewed a Poundland magnetic nail polish - Filthy Gorgeous which you can check out here. Originally I applied that polish with a cheap £1 MUA clear coat polish. Needless to say the polish lasted a day... if that before literally coming completely off the nail. I repainted my nails again; only this time with the Sally Hansen Double Duty nail polish as my base and top coat. Seven days later the polish was still looking fantastic. By this time I had to take off the polish for work but it could have lasted tons longer! The shine is also beautiful from this polish!

Overall I love this base and top coat. I can't wait to try it more in the summer! Have you tried any Sally Hansen nail polishes? What is your favourite base or top coat? Let me know in the comments!

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Friday 13 June 2014

Book Review - Looking For Alaska by John Green

Hello everyone. I hope, as always, that you are all doing well. Today I am reviewing my second John Green book that I have absolutely loved! I must admit that in-between The Fault In Our Stars which I reviewed here and Looking For Alaska I did read An Abundance Of Katherines and it wasn't all that I was hoping for to be honest! Go check out my Goodreads for my review on there! Anyway! Today I will be reviewing Looking For Alaska which was all I was hoping for and more! 

Looking For Alaska by John Green

The story is centred around a guy called Miles and as you can imagine a girl called Alaska. Miles begins attending a boarding school and meets Alaska Young; a girl with a troubled past that doesn't get in her way.  The storyline focuses not only on these two characters developing relationship but also the developing relationships amongst their close friends. Miles has a fascination about famous last words which is constantly shown throughout the book alongside his longing to find 'a great perhaps'.

John Green takes the reader along with Miles, Alaska and their group of friends on an exiting journey of development, experiences and self growth with the characters. The usual teenage antics occur within the book which gives it a great element of light hearted reading at points. 

The structure of the book is fantastic. The book is structured in to a 'before' and 'after' countdown. As you can imagine the paragraphs 'before' lead up to a dramatic event in the book and 'after' is everything after that event! This structure really builds up tension!

I would describe this book as a coming of age novel. I won't spoil the ending for you (as I always try to provide spoiler free reviews) however let me tell you that the ending links back to reality and what growing up can bring. The realisation that anything can happen and that the fun times of youth are often short lived. 

Like many others have commented; John Green sticks to a formula with his books. He has a boy that is madly in love with a girl and the whole book is focussed on a journey. To be honest this formula works for him! I must admit I have tried to space out his books by reading them in between others or alongside bigger books as one after the other can make the structure of his stories seem repetitious. Overall though he develops them well. It is not like a 'copy and paste' of each story. Every character and storyline he creates is beautifully well devloped! Though I still don't care much for An Abundance of Katherines... Sorry!

Have you read Looking For Alaska by John Green or any of his other books? What are your thoughts? Let me know in the comments!

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Monday 9 June 2014

I don't know about you... BUT I'M FEELING 22! 22nd Birthday!

Hello everyone! So today is my birthday! I am 22 today! Since I am in work all day today I have been celebrating over the weekend with my family and fiancé. I must admit I am pretty overwhelmed since its not a 'big birthday' at how amazing this weekend has been. First lets get on to all the presents I have received! A massive thank you to everyone! I will also be posting presents, cards and thank yous on instagram so please keep checking back on there for more updates! (See the tab on the side.)

22nd birthday presents!

Here is everything that I have had the lovely pleasure of opening whilst celebrating this weekend. I am totally in love with what I have received. I am so blessed and thankful!

Makeup Revolution

Lets just talk about how awesome my fiancé is! Of course Gaz new I wanted make-up for my birthday however he didn't know what I wanted exactly. So being the amazing guy that he is he gave me a budget of £50 to treat myself with! I decided to spread this over two brands; Makeup Revolution and MAC. Two ends of the spectrum I know! I haven't tried Makeup Revolution yet and I have had my eye on a couple of MAC products so I knew what I wanted from both! From Makeup Revolution I picked up a clear mascara, two powder blushes, one cream blush, a matte foundation and the infamous Iconic 3 palette. I will of course be reviewing these all for you in the future! 

MAC Cosmetics

From MAC I chose their Studio Fix Powder Plus foundation, a powder blush in the colour Melba and I also received a sample of their Skin Base Visage. I actually received the same sample with my very first MAC order and it is still going! I haven't tried any of these products out yet as I am waiting till my birthday (today, tomorrow as I write this) to try them out! Expect reviews!

Nikon Coolpix S2800

This next present I am so over the moon with! I suppose you could call this my 'main present' from Gaz. He has known for a while that I have wanted a good camera. I not only wanted a better camera for my blog but I also wanted it for various days out and I have been making a commitment to document life much more than I used to with photos! He not only bought me the camera but he also picked up a case and a new memory card to go with it! He is a star! Ironically I had to photograph my new camera with my Iphone which I used to use so forgive the quality!

Gone & Hunger by Michael Grant

Gaz's dad, soon to be my father in law, picked me up two books from a series I have been meaning to try for a while! For those of you that don't know I am taking part in the Goodreads reading challenge this year so I have been reading a lot lately in my spare time or any time off I have. I can't wait to get stuck in to this series!

Avon Handbag and Purse

My auntie bought me this lovely new handbag and purse set. I absolutely love it! She actually has this exact set and I commented on how much it looks like a Louis Vuitton handbag which I thought it was! (Okay I'm no expert at designer labels but I was fooled!) Its actually a bag from Avon! I love it and I plan on using it a lot this summer!

Loverdose Tattoo

My mum knows how quickly I go through perfume so she bought me another bottle of Loverdose Tattoo which I love! I have reviewed it here if you'd like to check it out!

Ikea cabinet

Random present alert! I have been after a filing cabinet for my room for work and college for a while now. I am mad for organisation and I can't tell you how much this has helped even for the day I have had it! No more piles of paperwork all over my room! Yay! This particular cabinet is in the Erik series at Ikea. Everyone say hi to Erik!


Birthday Events!

Now lets move on to what I got up to this weekend! I can assure you that on my actual birthday I will be in work followed by relaxing in front of the telly watching corrie with the mother, father and fiancé however this weekend was a bit more eventful! The most exiting thing on the actual day will most probably be rice crispie cakes!

Chinese take-out food

On Saturday night we went and got a chinese which is my favourite take out to get! For those wondering this is chicken, bamboo shoots, mixed veg, rice and chips. After food we had a few drinks to celebrate!

Myself and Gaz before our dinner date!

On the Sunday Gaz decided to take me out for dinner as a treat! My birthday lands on a good date for us as it is also our half year anniversary! He booked our dinner at a local Italian place that we love! Pesto which you can check out here. They have a great deal where you can choose three small dishes for 7.95 per person.

Pesto - Spicy Meatballs

The first thing I ordered were these meat balls which were lovely. They were spicy and well seasoned and had a lovely sauce over them!

Pesto - Pizza

The next thing I ordered was a little 5" peperoni pizza. Again this was lovely. Usually I go for spicy flavoured pizzas however I thought my breath might be too overpowering with the meatballs being spicy too!

Pesto - Bolognese

Lastly I chose the bolognese which was also really lovely. I grew to regret this choice whilst I was tactically trying to eat pasta without slurping it up and looking a fool. Needles to say I failed!

Pesto - Dessert

Lastly we got some dessert. We each got these little desert dishes which myself and Gaz summarised as a 'Solero in a cup'. The top layer is frozen mango juice which sits on a layer of ice cream. Beneath this was a layer of frozen raspberry juice and then a layer of biscuit. After having it I had to change my description to 'heaven in a cup'. It is absolutely gorgeous! I wish I could but this and have it every day!


So that was pretty much my birthday! I had an amazing weekend and I am so lucky and so thankful for those around me. I am so happy that I am starting a new year of my life surrounded by the people I love! Who knows what being 22 will bring! All I can say is... I don't know about you... BUT I'M FEELING 22!

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Friday 6 June 2014

Fashion: Select, Dorothy Perkins and New Look Haul

Hello everyone! I hope you are all well! It is fast approaching my birthday - the 9th of June in case you were wondering! So whilst I was off work last week I was lucky enough to get treated to some new clothes! I'm a practical girl. I love clothes that I can dress down for at home and dress up for work. So I decided I would choose some versatile pieces!

Select - skater style floral dress with lace back - £14

In my local area a Select shop has opened. I have Select shops with bus/train distance away however it is lovely to have one so close now as I love the Select range. Pretty much all of my lace and floral dresses for work are Select dresses! The first think I grabbed is this lovely skater style dress with gorgeous lace detailing across the upper back area. I love the lace on the back as it means the dress itself is cool and airy however it is very modest and understated. The dress itself is flowy so it is very comfortable. Particularly in work.


Here is a close up of the pattern of the dress which I have done for all the dresses I have bought so you can see the detailing! The dress itself was £14 which is very affordable. I have fallen in love with this dress!

Select - skater style floral dress - £10 on sale from £12

Another Select dress! This one I actually spotted in the sale rack. As you can probably tell from this post (and my other clothes hauls) I really love floral and lace designed dresses. Skater style is also my favourite. So it was lovely to find another dress in the same style that I love!


Once again here is a close up of the material. I really love how the colours look dark close up but the dress from far away looks very pink and summery! As I said I picked this dress up in the sale and it was £10 marked down from £12.


Dorothy Perkins - open front, belted dress - On sale £19 from £28

Another bargain dress! This time this dress is from Dorothy Perkins and has an open slit in both the front and the back. This creates a little oval style slit on both the front and back. The dress itself is also belted meaning it provides great structure around the waist area. The dress also has a pleated front. It is a shame the beautiful detail really doesn't show up well on camera! 


Luckily I managed to also get this dress in the sale! Usually I don't like to pay over £20 for everyday dresses so seeing that this dress was on sale from around £28 to £19 meant that I had to get it! I just love the pink in this dress it is so vibrant. The dress is also very elegant and I can see myself dressing it up for the summer!


New Look - ankle boots - £12 on sale from around £24

Yes I am the type of girl who goes and buys boots when summer is around the corner (supposedly).Though in this instance I'm glad I am!  I do a lot of walking so it is important that I have good pairs of walking shoes that I can wear. New Look always have shoes from last season in little sale sections arranged by size which is fantastic. So I was quickly able to scan my shoe size and find these. I was a bit unsure at first as I am more of a combat boot wearer however I have really fallen for these. They are lined inside too which makes them super comfortable! As you can tell from above they were reduced from £24 to £12 which I am so happy about! Such a bargain!

Have you been to Select, Dorothy Perkins or New Look lately? What have you recently bought? Let me know in the comments!
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Monday 2 June 2014

Glad Hair Day - Shampoo and Conditioner - Review

Hello everyone! Today I am going to be looking at two products that I recently hauled in my most recent Boots haul here if you would like to take a look! The Soap & Glory shampoo here retails for £5.50 as does the Soap & Glory conditioner which you can check out here.

Soap & Glory Glad Hair Day - Shampoo and Conditioner

I have had my eye on trying these out for a while however I was a tad worried about trying them. I have seen a few negative reviews about how this shampoo and conditioner combo have left peoples hair feeling damaged and fried. Not the look I want to go for! 

I'm the type of person you will see walking round Boots, opening up products and smelling them. I always found myself drawn to the smell of the shampoo Soap & Glory have to offer however the conditioners were always out of stock! There are two conditioners available from Soap & Glory. One for thick hair and one for fine to normal hair. Despite having thick hair I thought I would try the fine to normal conditioner since the other conditioner was still not in stock!

So what are my thoughts on the two? Lets start of with the shampoo. The scent of this shampoo is so heavenly and sweet. I love using this shampoo because my hair smells sweet and fruity all day. This shampoo claims to leave your hair with a 'gloss' finish whilst appearing 'smooth' on top of aiming to 'repair' and 'strengthen' the hair! I think that this shampoo doesn't add gloss for me however the hair is left feeling smooth and is much easier to style. As for repair and strengthen? I am sceptical about any product claiming to repair the hair and after two weeks I haven't really noticed a change in the strength of my hair. One thing I love about this shampoo, since I have oily hair at times, is that it dries my hair a little so that my hair doesn't get as oily as quick! I tend to sweat through my hair because it is so quick (glamorous I know) so this is fantastic for prolonging a hair wash and making my hair look fresher for longer! However for those with damaged hair I would stay well clear!

So how about the conditioner? Well the conditioner, frankly, did absolutely nothing for me. Admittedly this isn't designed for my hair type so i would be intrigues to see if their conditioner designed for thicker hair would work any better. I used this conditioner in the way I would any other conditioner. I left it on my hair for a couple of minutes then rinsed it off. However rather than being left with soft, smooth hair it left my hair feeling stiff and almost fake. Not what I want at all. It would dry completely fine however the instant after shower feel wasn't too nice! I also tried this conditioner as a deep conditioner. I left it on my hair wrapped up for around 10-15 minutes and it worked a ton better then! It left my hair feeling smooth and smelling sweet. So I am glad I have found a use for it to use it up! This product claims to 'detangle' the hair whilst also leaving a 'gloss' finish to the hair and also claiming to 'protect' and 'strengthen' the hair like the shampoo. Unlike the shampoo the conditioner actually has left my hair looking glossy and does help to detangle my hair. However I am not too sure on the protect and strengthen aspect of this conditioner!

So my overall thoughts? I love the shampoo but I'm not a big fan of the conditioner! Personally I can see these drying out already damaged hair; so your hair needs to be really strong to pull off these shampoos and conditioners! Have you tried Soap & Glory's shampoo and conditioner? What are your thoughts? Let me know in the comments!

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