Smelling gorgeous: Benefit, Crescent Row

Hi Girls,

For Christmas, I received a gorgeous set of miniature perfumes from Benefit! I had originally wanted to buy one the perfumes from the collection, so receiving a few to try out was amazing! I think these sort of sets make amazing presents, because perfume is often a hard thing to pick out for someone, because every one likes different scents. Benefit do so well as a company with their packaging, it really does draw people in (me included!) and the names of these perfumes are really interesting too, as are the scents themselves. So on with the, review, I guess you could call it that.

Benefit: Crescent Row

Benefit: Crescent Row 

Laugh With Me Lee Lee
This scent is great for the daytime and evening, Benefit say it is, "woody floral- a light blend of citrus, jasmine & lily blossoms, a naturally light scent with a classic feminine style." I definitely think this is a more traditional scent, very floral and fresh, but it also has some musky notes to it. I always chuck this perfume in my bag when I'm in a rush, it's a 'safe' perfume in the fact that you can't really go wrong with it. In fact, I think most girls would like this fragrance.
Top notes: cassis, melon, citrus
Middle notes: black violet, lily, jasmine.
Bottom notes: blonde wood, amber, santal.

My Place or Yours Gina
Well, where do I start with this, it's just all the sexiness in the world, in a bottle. In fact, Benefit says it is, " woody oriental- an alluring affair of pink pepper, wild raspberry & patchouli, a seductively provocative scent with a 'flaunt it if you've got it' attitude". Well, I think it's definitely right when they say 'provocative'. It's a really warm smell, not fresh, but quite musky and sweet. This is definitely a fragrance made for the evening, it's a bit too strong for the daytime, but on the whole, it's a delicious scent.
Top notes: pink pepper, bergamot, tangerine 
Middle notes: peony, wild raspberry, white lily 
Bottom notes: patchouli, tonka bean, vanilla bean

Garden of Good & Eva
I would say that this is probably the freshest of the perfumes in the set, it smells very natural, smelling of citrus fruits and flowers. The smell is great for the day time, Benefit describes it as, " citrus floral- crisp & fresh". I love these kind of smells because it's just really refreshing, and not too sickly or musky for the day time. I would say that it is really vibrant, in the fact that it stands out on your skin, but it is quite subtle and fresh too, which is something that I really like about this individual perfume. 
Top notes: pear, watermelon, ozone accords, muguet 
Middle notes: rosebud, jasmine petals, green violet leaves, freesia
Bottom notes: sandalwood, musk, cedarwood.

Ring My Bella
I think this has to be my favourite of the perfumes, I've been reaching for it almost every day, and just dabbing a bit of my neck. The scent lasts on your skin for a reasonable amount of time, considering they are only Eau De Toilette. In my opinion, this is a
great perfume to wear in the day, it's really light and sweet, but not too sweet. It sort of your traditional smelling perfume, smelling of roses and flowers, but it also smells a musky too. The small bottle is brilliant to put in your bag for top ups throughout the day, although I doubt you'll even need to. This perfume also works really well to wear in the evening, as it's quite musky and sexy scent. 
Top notes: pink rose petals, soft lily, summer daisy
Middle notes: Egyptian jasmine, creamy peony 
Bottom notes: white patchouli, vanilla tincture, white musk

This Benefit gift set is limited edition, they only bring it out for Christmas every year, at an RRP of £29.50, but all of the perfumes are available full size all year round, so go to the shops and pick out your favourite one. Each full size fragrance also has an RRP of £29.50. Overall, a great range of perfumes, and I'm definitely keen to try more!

Let me know if you've tried any of these perfumes! Which one is your favourite?!

Au revoir, Ellie x

My Skin Care Routine

Hi girls, (and guys if we're not being sexist)

I find it really interesting reading through people's blogs, and watching video's on Youtube on what they use in their skin care routine. My skin care routine isn't really that complicated, but I feel that a good skin care routine is vital  for your skin to be at its best. So, without further ado, here are my 5 favourite skincare products which I use, to keep my skin glowy and healthy!

I like to use face masks a couple of times a week, just to cleanse my skin and leave it feeling really soft. My favourite is the LUSH cupcake face mask. It smells so nice, like chocolate and cake, hence the name cupcake! I find that it works really well for spots, and clears them up really nicely. Although, this is marketed as a face mask for oily skin, I still find that it works for me, (normal to dry skin). Overall, an amazing product!

I also like to cleanse my face using a face wash. I use the Sanctuary fresh-faced purifying wash. I use this most days and really work it in to my skin, and use a muslin cloth to exfoliate my skin. I find that it leaves my skin feeling really energised, and gives a nice glow to the skin. My skin can sometimes be a bit sensitive, but this works amazingly!

 After I've used a facial wash I also like to use a toner. This is also by Sanctuary. It leaves my skin feeling really soft, and slightly tighter as well, which is good for preventing wrinkles! I find that it works really well in conjunction with the face wash too!

Everyone with every skin type should use a moisturiser to put moisture back into their skin, even people with oily skin! My favourite is the Simple Kind to Skin Hydrating Light Moisturiser. I find that the it rich enough to make my skin feel really moisturised. I use this every night before I go to bed, and before I put my make-up on in the mornings too!

This is my favourite product of all, it's the Liz Earle, Cleanse & Polish, Hot Cloth Cleanser. Really, I can't say enough good things about this product! I use it every night, and some mornings too. I find that it really helps to cleanse my skin, and the muslin cloth I use also helps to exfoliate my skin too. This just leaves my skin feeling so soft, and and clean. It just leaves my skin feeling really healthy, and I'm just in love with it really! It also works really well to take your makeup off as well, so you don't have to use two different products!For a more in depth review of this product, check out the video that I did on it. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JjYuebY59eI

Let me know what your favourite skin care products are to use!

Au revoir, Ellie x

Out With The Old And In With The New

I heard about an offer that was going on and was really excited to hear that you could get some free clinique products! Clinique are currently offering a promotion where you bring in any full size mascara (any brand) and they'll give you a free deluxe mascara sample! You can choose from either a thickening mascara, or a lengthening mascara, so you get a bit of choice too! I decided to get a lengthening mascara, and I'm really pleased with it. The offer only lasts until 1st February, so head down to the shops so that you don't miss this amazing promotion!

I received a Clinique high lengths mascara. I had heard a bit about this before, so was excited to give it a try!

The results are really good, the mascara is promoted as a lengthening mascara but I found that it did actually make my lashes quite thick and voluminous too.

lashes with no mascara

lashes after using Clinique mascara

As you can see, the mascara has made a huge difference to the appearance of my lashes. It gives them a lot more length, and also adds some volume too. The mascara also wears well throughout the day and keeps quite a good curl to my lashes.

 The wand is very interesting, and the brush has plastic bristles. The brush is curved, which is actually quite helpful because it works with the shape of your eye. The small spikes allow you to get into the corner lashes too.

Overall, this is a great mascara, and when I try it a few more times, I'll be able to see if I want to purchase it full size in the future! Don't miss out and go and get your free mascara!

Au revoir,
Ellie x

Only Time Will Tell

Hi girls!

Yeah, you guessed it, got another review (kind of) thing for you today. I recently purchased a mini gold casio watch which I had wanted for ages, so just going to share some of my thoughts with you. I think it's just a simple piece which really does add a little something to an outfit, I love it!

Just a quick pic of the packaging

So yeah, on with the actual watch itself, it cost me £30 from ASOS, but you can also buy them from Urban Outfitters for the same price, and they have them on their website. I think this watch is great quality for what you pay, it looks sleek and a bit 'old school' but that's what I love about it, it's not the usual watch nowadays. The watch is quite retro looking and it's just perfect to wear every day!

 Model:LA670WEGA-1EF

Mini Gold Casio Watch, isn't it amazing?!

So overall I think this watch deserves a round of applause, I think it's a classic piece that every girl needs in her collection. I bought mine with a black face because I thought it would be more suitable for every day wear and will go with any outfit, but a brighter option looks just as good!

Does any one else have a Casio or an amazing watch?


Link for watch from ASOS
 http://www.asos.com/Casio/Casio-Mini-Digital-Watch/Prod/pgeproduct.aspx?iid=1575164&SearchQuery=casio&sh=0&pge=0&pgesize=20&sort=-1&clr=Black

Au revoir, Ellie x

How LUSH!

So, I went to LUSH the other day and picked up a few things! As many of you may know they have a sale on all of their Christmas items at the moment, 50% off! I ended up buying 3 products, but could have easily spent a lot more!

Firstly, I bought another 100 grams of the best soap in the world, in my opinion! 'Honey I Washed The Kids' soap has a sweet smell and lathers up really well. "You can wash the kids in this if you want, but make sure you get your share of this honey toffee-secented addictive soap!" It's a really creamy soap and moisturises your skin really well. The top layer is also good for exfoliating your skin, and then using the other side you can moisturise, this leaves my skin feeling so smooth, as well as it smelling amazing! I think I'm actually hooked for life!

Next, I bought a Magic Wand Bubble Bar, "Swish this enchanted snow fairy scented wand around your bath again, again and again for lots of candy scented magic filled bath time bubbles!" This product smells so delicious, and it's so relaxing! Another good thing about this product is that it actually turns your water pink too, yes I know, it can look a bit weird but I think it's just another bonus. I'm actually a bit disappointed this isn't available all year round because it's lovely! This product has definitely worked its magic!

And last, but by no means least, I got Snow Fairy shower gel! There has always been such a hype around this product but I've never tried it before (don't actually know why) but I got my chance! I only paid about £1.60 for the small bottle because it was 50% off, what a bargain! But anyway, the product itself, it's a beautifully sweet scented shower gel, I find it moisturising and it lathers up really well. It has the same scent as rockstar soap (I think) and I really do love it! "Our winter temptress shower hair and body gel that's bursting with fruit fragrance and a sparkle of ice through it."

I must say, I'm very impressed with all of these products and will definitely be repurchasing them in the future! I haven't actually tried that much from LUSH, but from what I can tell, I think it's a great brand and I'm certainly keen to try more products!

Au revoir! Ellie x

What a beauty!

So, as a lot of you may know, the Chanel bronzer, 'Soleil Tan De Chanel' or 'Bronze Universel' was a much awaited product last year, but I couldn't get my hands on one in time! Due to a manufacture issue with the lids (I think) these little pots of goodness were sold out everywhere! But, I managed to get hold of one this time round, and I must say, I wish I had it sooner!

First of all, the packaging for this product is beautiful, just like all of the packaging throughout  the whole Chanel range, and the tub is actually pretty large, in which you get 30g of product, so you are getting a lot for your money!

The product itself is a cream bronzer, which glides on to the skin really smoothly, making you look like you have a natural glow. When it's swatched it can look a bit orange, but on the face and it actually looks like a real tan, which I'm a big fan of! I tend to dust this over my face to give me a glowy and healthy complexion, so the money spent was definitely worth it!

This product has an RRP of £29, which you can buy from any Chanel counter, it seems like quite a lot of money, but trust me, it's worth it! The bronzer only came back in stock a few days ago, so I would get one fast before they all sell out! Let me know if you've tried this product and what you think of it down below in the comments.