My top 10 of 2011 by "M"

As all the new year antics have now passed, I thought I'd share with you my top 10 beauty products from the past year.
All these products I have used again and again since purchasing them

1: NYX BLACK LABEL LIPSTICK IN "SAND"

I bought this during one of nyx's discount weekends and have not stopped wearing it. it is a beautiful natural brown and is the perfect "I'm in a rush" lipstick which is a must for the school run.
Available from www.nyxcosmetics.co.uk


2: NYX BLACK LABEL LIPSTICK IN "TRIBUTE TO MARILYN"

I'll be honest with you, I only bought it for the name as I LOVE Marilyn Monroe and it turns out that this red totally suits me, it looks a lot more orange in the photo than it really is, but really it is rather nice.
Avalible from www.nyxcosmetics.co.uk


3: MAYBELLINE FALSIES WATERPROOF MASCARA

My summer must have!!! especially with a rainy British summer always on the cards!!! gave me the false lash effect I wanted.
Available from www.boots.com or in store and www.superdrug.com or in store.


4: COLLECTION 2000 EXTREME 24 HOUR FELT TIP LINER

An absolute gem of an eyeliner, all of the colours look good but if I had to choose two then it would be the purple and the teal.
S done a review on them back in November, take a look for all the info on where to get it
www.sm-beauty.blogspot.com/2011/11/collection-2000-extreme-24-hour-felt.html?spref=tw

5: OPI ORIGINAL NAIL ENVY

After removing my gel nail warps last year this was an essential on getting them back to a healthy state, I don't really use this as a treatment anymore has my nails are now quite strong but I do use it as a base coat whenever I paint my nails and they have never been stronger.
You can get nail envy from quite a few places but I recommend you get it from www.qvcuk.com they do a great value duo set for under £20.

6: RIMMEL SCANDAL EYES MASCARA

I have to admit I was a bit sceptical about trying this until I read S's review on it. I now use it at least twice a week. Take a look at the review and details where to get it here:
www.sm-beauty.blogspot.com/2011/11/rimmel-scandal-eyes-mascara-new.html?spref=tw

7: MAC LIP PENCIL IN "MAGENTA"

On a vist to Westfield White City during the summer with S, we visited MAC and one of the sales assistant was wearing this and it looked stunning,  a week later I brought it.
It's a deep hot Pink with purple tones, which of course can be worn with lipstick but it looks unbelievable on its own which is how I choose to wear it.
You can get it from www.maccosmetics.co.uk or one of their many store or concessions for £10.50

8: MALLY VOLUMIZING MASCARA

I only just recently got this but S has been clued up on this for a while, take a look at the review here:

www.sm-beauty.blogspot.com/2011/07/mally-volumizing-mascara.html?spref=tw

9: "DALLAS" BY BENEFIT

This is amazing, it's the perfect blush for my skin and gives a nice dewy natural effect.

Not only do I use this on my cheeks but if I'm having a day when I don't want to wear foundation this over my concealer works perfectly.

You can get Dallas from www.benefitcosmetics.co.uk for £23.50

10: BARE MINERALS ORIGNAL SPF 15 FOUNDATION IN "MEDIUM DARK"

I only staring using this around a month or so ago. I was getting tired of the foundation I was using as I felt that it wasn't giving me enough coverage. S had spare and gave it to me to try and I honestly don't know what I would do without it now, it is AMAZING!!! it gives great coverage without having that "caked on" feeling, the brush that comes with it is great too, this is one I would buy again and again.

You can get this foundation from www.bareminerals.co.uk for £23.

And there you have it, my top 10 of 2011.

I'm really looking forward to trying lots of new products to review for all of you in 2012.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!

Mx

New year Party Nails

Hello there!!! hope you all had a very merry Christmas and got lots of lovely gifts.

This is just a quick post on my nails which I done last night, I was so impressed with them I thought I would share with you how I done it.

Very sparkly!!!!

Firstly I used OPI's nail envy for my base coat - applying a thin layer - there are so many places you can get this from but I recommend getting it from www.qvcuk.com as they do a great value duo set for under £20.

Then once it had dried I applied my colour.
I went for a black colour from collection 2000, now I did buy it around 2 years ago from the Maxiflex range. I'm not sure if they still do this range or how much it is, if they still do it the colour is 87 in ebony.

This is where it gets fun, once you have applied the second coat of colour you squeeze the glitter tube and it puffs some glitter on to your nail, to get in to the tricky bits at the nail edge you just hold the tube at an angle and squeeze.

The gold glitter i used came from this little set by i found in superdrug just before Christmas.

It's the Gold finger red hot glitz set by Andrea Fulerton nail boutique.
I got it for £2.99 down from £5.99 but don't quote me on that, as I was full of flu when I brought it!!
You can get the Andrea Fulerton range from superdrug and you can find out information on all of Andrea Fulerton's nail boutique range at www.andreafulerton.com 

Once you have applied the desired amount of glitter, gently tap your nail on a hard surface to get rid of any excess glitter, then proceed straight away with applying the top coat.
For this I used models own 3 in 1 base coat / top coat & gloss.

Apply a thick layer from the tip down to the base, dragging the glitter as you go, make sure you wipe off the brush before putting it back in the bottle or you will end up with bits of glitter floating about in the bottle and possibly ruining a future manicure!!
You can get this top coat from either boots in store or at www.boots.com or from www.modelsownit.com for £5.

Once it has dried apply a cuticle oil. and there you have it!!! super sparkly new year party nails!!

Now as a little experiment I decided to make a short video showing how I did it (no words, just music, just showing each product)
It was  done on a whim so please be kind, and if enough people like it we will do more videos in the new year.

I hope you all have a great new year whatever you get up to, bring on 2012!!!

M x

Collection 2000 Hot Looks nail polish in "All that Jazz"

Back in July I done a review on a stunning summer purple called "Teeny Bikini" from their summer collection, now they have brought out their Autumn / Winter colours and I have fallen in love with them all!!!

The first colour I tried was "All that Jazz" is a fabulous metallic gunmetal grey with flashes of silver running through it.

(Sorry for the bad quality of photo, camera is playing up!!)

The coverage again is fantastic, only 2 coats are needed, and again it dries very quickly.

One little tip, if you really want it to bang you can use one on the many glitter topcoats that have come out recently.

Still an unbelievable £1.79, you'd be silly not to x

You can get collection 2000 at boots in store or online www.boots.com or superdrugs in store or online www.superdrug.com

At the moment superdrug are doing 3 for 2 across all cosmetics in store and online, which is a great excuse to get a few different things for less!!

Mx

Collection 2000 Hot Looks nail polish in "Teeny Bikini"

Recently a few make up companies have been bring out smaller bottles of colours, i'm assuming that this is because of money being tight for everybody nowadays, with them being cheaper than a normal size bottle of polish it means that you wont have a reason not to splash out on a new bottle.

I came across this range from collection 2000 last year, I noticed that a lot of their colours are bang on trend, which is always good in my book.

This summer they have brought out a range of colours that "so now" and I have to admit I now own quite a few, so you can expect a few reviews on this range.

The colour "teeny bikini" is a beautiful not too dark purple.
The consistency of the polish is good, as it is a dark colour you wont need more than 2 coats to get good coverage.
On the bottle it claims that it is fast dry and to be honest it is, by the time I had finished my right hand my left hand was touch dry.

Its long lasting too, I painted my nails last Sunday (a Sunday night tradition!!!) and as you can see in the photos they still look really good, just a bit of wear and tear on the tips due to me typing all the time!!!

So all in all I love this colour, if you love your dark colours in the winter then this is a perfect alternative for the summer.

Other companies are doing a similar colour, Rimmel's is called "perfect plum" from the I love lasting finish range and Barry M's nail paint in "bright purple" number "np303".

The best thing about the hot looks collection is the price £1.79!!! a perfect guilt free treat!!

5 out of 5 stars ★★★★★

You can get the Hot Looks range from Boots in store or on line at www.boots.com or Superdrug in store.
You can find out more about the range and the colours at www.collection2000.co.uk

M x

Liz Earle's Cleanse & Polish and Superdrugs Vitamin E, Hot Cloth Cleanser

Here are today's reviews done by S, enjoy!!!

Liz Earle's Cleanse & Polish

LIZ EARLE'S cleanse & polish  I have been using on and off for the past 5-6mths..and at £11.75 for 100ml, it is not cheap! with added ingredients such as chamomile, eucalyptus, cocoa butter, this is worth every single penny!

Directions:-  massage onto dry skin, over your eyes face and neck..rinse the muslin cloth in hand held hot water, wring out, then polish off the cream, after splash your face with cold water.

What Liz Earle states

"this cleanse & polish removes all traces of grime and make-up, even stuburn mascara"

MY Experience

Hmmm, when I first heard of this, the price was off putting straight away... i mean £11.75 for 100ml, I wasnt impressed. I saw an offer on QVC so decided to give it a try..( and  with there 30day money back guarntee, why not!)

Well, one word to describe this product is "ahh-ma-zing" . The first time i used it, my skin felt great, after the first week, I noticed a huge difference, needless to say i was plesently surprised..and put it this way, i have three extra back ups in my storage cuboard!. This product didnt leave my face feeling dry or tight, just smooth and soft..great for removing make-up. would i recomend it..ofcourse! give it a try..atwww.lizearle.com

PRO's

• smells amazing
• nice packaging
• removes all traces of make-up!
• removes stuburn mascara! woooo hoooo!

CON's

• expensive
• the strong smell is not for everyone

Sorry for the sideways shot, can not get it to rotate for love nor money!!!!

Superdrugs Vitamin E, Hot cloth cleanser

Firstly, let me tell you that i was shocked, so shocked! when i saw that superdrug had come out with a " hot cloth cleanser"  the price alone almost bought me to tears! lol! so, after calling the wife  screaming down the phone, in distress might i add (all i could hear was laughing by the way, yeah laugh-ing) i inhaled, then exhaled, and bought the " hot cloth cleanser". After all with a price tag of £3.99  for 200ml, you can not go wrong!

Directions    

Directions are pretty straight forward, you massage the cleanser onto your face and neck, rinse the muslin cloth ( which is also provided!) in hand held hot water before polishing off the cleanser, then splash your face with cold water. Then follow on with your toner, day cream, if you use one,which, i hope you do!

My experience 

The cleanser for me was ok, nothing amazing, it smelt creamy, and when applyed to my face it was, nice. The muslin cloth provided, was a little bit on the rough side, but at £3.99 its not a big issue, i just had to take extra care around the eye area. After spalshing my face with cold water, my face felt smooth, ohh so smooth, but a tad bit on the dry side. My verdict, it is a good product, if you are on a tight budget this is a good purchase! so get down to superdrugs and try it!

PRO's
 

• Budget friendly
• smells nice
• alright packaging
• comes with muslin cloth
• creamy

Don't forget to tell us what you think, you can place your comments in the box below, like us on Facebook (Sm beauty reviews) and if your up for more beauty goodness follow us on twitter (@smbeauty16) x 

Rimmel Day 2 Night Mascara

Now I tend to have a love/hate relationship with Rimmel products, they tend to be a bit hit and miss.

When I first saw the ad for this mascara, my first thought was "oh great another gimmicky mascara"  especially when the budget end is full of them at the moment.

However I thought the Lash accelerator that they brought out last year was ace, it really worked well (for me at least anyway!!!)

As it was a couple of quid cheaper everywhere the first few weeks it was out, I decided to give it a try.

Rimmel says:

"Mutil - tasking, 2 in 1 defined length / intense volume mascara - top cap: Exceptionally defined and ultra lengthened lashes - bottom cap: Thickens lashes with voluptuous, oversized volume - No clumps"  

It comes in a "magic" tube which as both brushes in the cap, the top cap brings out the brush for "day" and the bottom cap brings out the "night" brush.

The "day" brush promises a lengthen toned downed day look, so I thought i'd try that one first. 

It went on my lashes very nicely and had a gorgeous consistency, it made my lashes look long and defined. It reminded me a lot of the Lash accelerator. After a couple of coats I was very impressed its great for a daytime look for work or the school run and more importantly I had no clumps whatsoever.

So on a rare night out I decided to try the "night" brush and WOWWEE!!!!  it is absolutely amazing it made my eyes pop and look seductive at the same time.

The brush is bigger than the "day" and gives a lot more volume to your lashes. I tend to put on way more than two coats if i'm going on a night out but with this two coats was more than enough and again no clumps!!!!

Also if you already have applied it with the "day" brush the "night" brush builds up the lashes perfectly with out feeling heavy so there is no need to take off what you have on already especially if your in a rush.

so to summarise this mascara is a must buy!!! it is perfect to keep in your handbag for the office to the bar and if your a busy mum and you are only going to have one mascara for the next 3-6 months then I highly recommend you get your hands on this one.   

4 stars out of 5 (if they release it in waterproof then it will be 5 stars!!!) ★★★★

You can get it from either Boots or Superdrugs from around £7.99 but do check for offers as both stores tend to do offers such as 3 for 2 - it is available in black and brown ☺

Photos below show the tube, the "day" brush and the "night" brush

M x