April Favourites 2012

Wowee! I cant believe how fast this year is going. We're nearly halfway through 2012! As April is drawing to a close I thought I'd do my April favourites. So lets begin..

First up is my Vaseline Coco Butter lip balm. I swear by Vaseline and I always have at least one tin in my bag at all times for those little emergencies. This one is my favourite Vaseline (it smells soooo good!), it does a great job of moisturising my lips and making them all soft and nice. And for less than £2 you cant go wrong!  

Next is my Rimmel London Stay Matte Pressed Powder in 003 Peach Glow. I brought this earlier on in the month after hearing such good things about it. It does a great job of keeping my face matte without caking on my skin.  

My favourite foundation this month has been my Maybelline Dream Satin Liquid in the shade #10. As my skin has been very dry this month I decided to switch to this as it doesn't highlight any dry patches. Its a great coverage for any spots/red marks you might have too. 

Now onto the Lush Bubblegum Lip Scrub! These are amazing. I picked one up on my recent trip shopping and OMG I love it. You can read my full review of this here. 

Now onto my favourite moisturiser. I brought this about two weeks ago (just as I started to get the dry skin) and oh my gosh I love it. It does a great job of moisturising all over my face and it doesn't take too long to sink in so I'm not waiting for ages to apply my makeup! Great buy. 

 

Next is my 17 Mirror Shine lipstick in Beehive. For the price, You can't go wrong with this product. It gives a nice everyday colour which has a ok staying power. I love it.

My final favourite is from Collection 2000 and its one of their Hot Looks nail polishes in 48 Candy floss. This is a very nice everyday pink colour and for £1.79 you cant go wrong with the quality.

What are your favourites this month? 

Issy xoxo

RAVE; Lip Smacker!

I've never done a 'Rave' post before, But I want to make it a weekly segment on my blog! Lets see how it turns out..

If you've never heard of the brand 'lip smackers' than you're missing out! They are the most affordable and best (also smell amazing!) lip balms on the market. You may have seen this around your local Primark stores  - where they tend to sell them around the paying area. They can retail from £1 up to around £4. Primark have theirs super cheap at just £1!

All of mine are from Primark (excluding my Dr Pepper one) and I can honestly say I use at least one of these everyday. 

The smell is just amazing. They are lipbalms which are named after famous fizzy drinks (Sprite, Fanta, Cola etc) and they all smell like the drink! They don't leave a highly-visible colour on your lips and they make them feel (and taste) super soft afterwards! For £1 you cant go wrong.  

Also whilst on my most recent Topshop trip I found this beauty. Its a Lip Smacker, but in a pan form! It tastes and smells just like the Fanta Orange Lip Smacker in the balm form too. This one was £3 though. 

Thats my rave post over with! I couldn't recommend these more to anyone who hasn't tried them. Also if you see them for a £1 then pick one up! 

I've seen this in Primark, Topshop and Claires but I'm sure there are plenty of other shops which sell these beauties! 

Have you tried Lip Smackers?

Issy xoxo

REVIEW: Maybelline Great Lash Mascara

After my previous mascara (Rimmel London's Scandal Eyes) ran out, I was on the hunt for a new mascara which I'd never tried before. I had heard some positive things about Maybelline's 'Great lash' mascara. So I decided to give it a whirl. I'm starting to regret spending my £5 on this and I wish I'd brought a different mascara. 

You can buy this mascara from boots here for £4.99.

What Maybelline says;

"Conditions as it thickens. No clubs, no globs"

The packaging;

The packaging is nothing special in my opinion. Its not very eye catching so it wouldn't catch your eye whilst looking for a mascara. I do like how its compact and doesn't take up a lot of space in your makeup bag, So its easy to travel with. 

The wand; 

As you can tell from the image above, this mascara doesn't have a big wand. If you're looking for a mascara that gives you a dramatic, long - full lashes this isn't the one for you. The wand doesn't cover every lash in one stroke so I often find myself going over my lashes with the wand a lot so everyone gets covered. 

The finish; 

This mascara gives a everyday, not too dramatic look. Its a very natural looking mascara so if you're looking for something like this I highly recommend it. It does a very good job of separating your lashes making them look a little longer, but not fuller. You can see the finish below;

(L-R) The wand close up, After the mascara's been applied.

Pros and cons; 

Pros;

- Gives a nice, everyday, natural look. 

- The packaging is a nice and compact. 

Cons;

- The wand is very small. 

- Costs too much for what it actually does. 

Final opinion;

I highly recommend this mascara to someone who is new to makeup and is looking for their first/second mascara to use. Its great for things like school/work as it doesn't look too over the top, but widens your eyes and nicely separates your lashes, giving them a nice black look.  Call me tight with my money but I feel that this mascara's price tag is too high for what it actually does. I think it should be lowed in price to around £3.99. There are many cheaper mascaras on the market what does the same/better job!

 Issy xoxo

Candy Floss

This nail polish is the first one I've brought from Collection 2000's Hot Looks range. This nail polish retails for a mere £1.79 which is amazing for what you're getting. This is the perfect baby pink. Also, its not too bright which means I can get away with it for things like school! But as it was so cheap, it doesn't last all too long. I got about 2 days out of it before it was too chipped to keep on my nails any longer. But for less than £2, I wont complain.

Have you tried something from Collection 2000's Hot Looks range? If so what did you think?

Issy xoxo

Buy this nail polish from Boots here.

Lush Bubblegum Lip Scrub Review!

On my latest shopping trip to Lush I decided to buy a item from their 'Lip Scrub' range. Lush currently offer three different flavours of the lipscrub. Sweet Lips, Mint Julips and Bubblegum. Each of them having a different taste and vary in colour. Today I will be reviewing their 'Bubblegum' scrub. 

You can buy this product from Lush's website here for £4.95.

What Lush says;

"Clears dead skin and flakiness from lips, leaving them moisturised and smooth. Keeps lips in tip top condition, for kissing, pouting, talking or anything else you wish to do with them!"

How to use;

"Scrub and buff your lips to softness, lick off the excess then apply your favourite Lush lip balm".

My opinion on the product; 

The Lush Bubble Gum Lip scrub smells and tastes absolutely amazing. Its a girly hot pink colour in the tub but once applied to your lips the colour doesn't show. It has a gritty consistency (the sugar) which is used to buff into your lips to remove all dead skin and to exfoliate your lips. The product doesn't leave a sticky feel on your lips after application, but leaves them smooth and soft! Perfect for applying any lip product on afterwards. You don't want to use this everyday, as its a exfoliator it will damage your lips if you overuse it. I use it every two days. 

Pros & Cons;

Pros;

- Smells and tastes great!

- Does a great job at exfoliating.

- Nice little pot so it doesn't take up to much space in your storage.

Cons;

- Its a glass jar so if you were to drop it, it would probably break. 

Final Conclusion;

It does everything you'd expect from a lip scub, plus the added bonus of it being completely edible! Also Lush is against animal testing so you don't have to worry about that! I highly recommend you get this, even though the price tag is a little to high for my liking for how much you get. (£4.95).

I give this product a 9/10!

Do you own a lip scrub from Lush's range? If not will you every try one?

Issy xoxo

New MAC Lipstick!

Sorry for not posting in so long! I've just been busy. But I've got a bunch of posts lined up! Anyway, Last Thursday I went to the Trafford Centre, and there they have a MAC Counter! Every time I go to the Trafford Centre I pick up a new MAC product as its easier than ordering online. This time I picked up a new lipstick in Angel. 

This is a highly raved about lipstick and I can now see why! Its such a gorgeous everyday pink colour.  This is a Frost finish lipstick. 

This colour will suite any skin tone. I myself am very pale and this doesn't wash me out at all! Its very pigmented and it lasted around 2 hours on my lips without a primer! 

The left in natural lighting and the right image with my camera flash.

You can buy this lipstick for £13.50 on the MAC website here.

Issy xoxo

March Favourites

March has just flown by! I can't believe we are already into the fourth month of 2012! This years already going pretty fast. Well anyway, Today I'm here to present you with my March Favourites of 2012. Sorry its a little late but here we go..

  

MAC Lipstick in 'Innocence Beware' - £13.50

First up is this MAC lipstick in the shade 'Innocence Beware'. I picked this up around 8 weeks ago now and I have just found a love for it again!

It's a cremsheen lipstick which means it's not matte and goes on more like a gloss. I love this shade its a soft natural baby pink colour. You can wear this lipstick for many occasions, I wear it so school everyday as its a nude so doesn't stand out too much, you can wear it on a night out if you wish or just if you're going shopping. 

Soap & Glory Hand Food - £5.00

Next is the Soap & Glory hand food. I received this for my birthday in January and I haven't stopped using it. On the bottle it says; 

'Non greasy hydrating hand cream with shea butter, macadamia oil & marshmallow' 

 It is very hydrating for your hands and it easily sinks in so you aren't waiting around for ages for it to absorb into you skin. After just one use I found that my hands were super soft!

Rimmel London Scandal Eyes Mascara - £6.99

Now onto my favourite mascara; Rimmel London's Scandal Eyes. This has been my everyday mascara for awhile now and I haven't stopped loving it. It makes my lashes seem so thick, full and long. It can get a little clumpy sometimes but you can easily fix that later. 

MUA Lipstick in Shade 5 - £1

To end my March favourites, I am including another lipstick but this time by MUA. I love this lipstick. When I'm not wearing my MAC one, I am wearing this. Its a really nice pink colour which would suite any skin tone. And for a pound, You can't really go wrong! 

It glides on so well over your lips leaving you with a nice pink hint of colour. 

Well that's my March favourites over. What are yours?

Issy xox

Updating prices of products later. 

HAUL: Boots!

Today I just popped into my local Boots store to pick up a few vital items I need in my makeup bag! So here is what I brought; 

Boots have been doing their £5 off No7 vouchers again and I had a spare so I used it to pick up these No7 Beautiful Skin makeup wipes. They are normally £7 but with the voucher I got them for £2. I wouldn't of brought these wipes for their normal price but for £2, they're amazing!

Next I got the item I went into boots to look for. Maybeline's dream satin liquid foundation in #10 Ivory. I've been wanting to try this for some time now, and seeing as I am running low on my Dream Matte Moose foundation I thought I would give this a try! 

And finally I picked up Boot's health & beauty magazine. This is the first copy I have picked up of this magazine and I wasn't that impressed with this months issue. There wasn't a lot to do with makeup and more to do with remedies for colds. But I will keep trying to see if I like it!

And also as I am a Advantage card holder, I managed to get it for free! 

So that's my haul over. Have you brought anything over this weekend?

Issy xox

Welcome!

Welcome to A Box Of Beauty! This is my beauty blog and the place where I will be posting reviews, hauls and just general girly chit-chat from time to time! 

Well a bit about me; I'm Issy, I am 15 and I'm from the UK. Even though I'm still quite young I love to try out different make-up techniques and I defiantly love to shop! 

Well if you see this please follow as there are many great posts to come!

Issy xox