Pamper evening...

As part of my new years resolutions i promised myself that i would put aside one evening a week to have a full all over body/hair pamper.

Below are my essentials right now:

• Nivea double effect eye make up remover - link
• The sanctuary hot sugar scrub - link
• OPI Avoplex cuticle oil - link
• Lush bubble bar..this is the remainder of an old Christmas one :)
• Champneys skin softening body butter - link
• Decleor Aroma cleanse - link
• Elemis fruit active mask - link
• K-pak colour therapy conditioner - link
• Boots coconut oil

I trot off to the bathtub with this lovely lot in tow, give my hair a wash and then slap on lots of conditioner and then set about giving myself a mini facial whilst that's getting to work.

Whilst my face mask is on i use the sanctuary scrub all over- this usually acts as a prep for any tanning later on also. 

Once I'm all done in the tub i will then slather on the body butter and oil my cuticles and nails...I then use coconut oil on my extra dry areas such as feet, elbows etc...and that's it.  I could have gone overboard with the products...but i think this routine i can actually stick to.  

Any more and i fear it would have become a time drain and a chore..which will leave to me not keeping it up!!

Do you have pamper evenings- if so, what are your favourite products?

T xxx

Midweek ponder...Expectation vs Reality...

From a young age i remember having a very idealistic view on how a grown ups life should be.

I used to think of a 30 year old as...well old, with their head together and a fully fledged grown up.

The closer i get towards this momentous number...the more i realise little Tiffany was deluded, and very mislead.

Now ive had a fun, good life so far, which has involved lots of lovely holidays to my beloved USA...but on reflection i am nowhere near where i thought or even where id like to be at my ripe age of 28 (29 in two months time) and i wonder if you have ever felt the same.

I do not own property, i do not have a huge saving pot and im single with no children.  Im an old soul and truely believed that i would have all of these things in check by the time i was 30.  

I guess the aim of this post is to say- its ok- i think...I mean- like any normal person...some days i feel this is not ok and spend a day wallowing in self pity- but for the majority of the time i am at peace with this and believe something good, is and must be around the corner for me.

Settling down is a big deal for me as im a traditionalist- those of you that arent probably will see this post as not a big deal at all.  For me my main wish in life is to find my soul mate and enjoy making memories and a home with them. 

I've realised that a lot of my age group are in a similar situation- from chatting to blog friends etc. and that helps me to see that i shouldn't be so hard on myself- believe me ive treated myself as a failure for a while now.

So what have i done to help myself- the main change and help for me has been surrounding myself with amazing friends.  I value them more than anything in this world...saying this- its also helped me sieve out some not so good pals.  Ill talk more about this in my trimming the fat post scheduled for this month!

Ive literally packed out my diary- i try to do as much as i can to keep myself occupied and not sitting home and wallowing.  I have also been loving a good quote, here are some of my favourites:

If you live for peoples acceptance, you will die from their rejection

if someone breaks your heart, punch them, no seriously, punch them and go get ice cream

Life is too short for fake butter, cheese or people

If you dont design your own life plan, chances are yull fall into someone elses plan.  And guess what they have 

planned for you- not much.

Happiness is like a butterfly. The more you chase it, the more it will elude you. But the moment you turn your attention to other things; it will come and sit softly on your shoulder.

You were born with the ability to change someone's life. Don't waste it.

I hope you dont mind these posts as i find them theraputic to write and helpful to look back on- after all i do treat this as my online diary also.  I also hope that maybe it has helped if you are feeling in a similar position? When i was feeling crap i scowered the net for similar storied to relate to.

Anyway- let me know!

T xxx

The weekend roundup...

So this weeks been a little chilly to say the least...living in Cambridgeshire has meant i haven't seen any of the white stuff...and I'm not happy about it.

Because i was not weather restricted- i got out quite a bit this week and did you know, stuff :)

Friday night I went for a bella italia with my two best boy friends and then to the cinema to see American Sniper for the second time- i highly recommend!

Saturday we had a Mexican night at my beautiful friend Hollys house - this involved lots of melted cheese and naughtiness on the food front.  Holly and i are the lovers of trashy tv so i get to have a purely awesome evening eating and watching junk!!!

Sunday was a lazy day, i felt really irritated however so ended up gutting my bedroom and gelling my nails.  Then i found Theuglyfaceofbeauty's blog/youtube account- and well, yeah that's how the remainder of my day was spent- glued to the laptop.

So those were the highlights of my week...What did you get up to or were you housebound due to oodles of snow!?

T xxx

Pay day wishlist...

Lordy this has been a long month...Friday cannot come quick enough for me...i need dollar!  I have had a list of "needs" on the go for a while now and I thought id share what ill be bagging as soon as that pay packet hits my bank account.

1. Desperation pjs....Its going to be a lonely valentines...i need this
2. Truffles- I'm blaming my friend holly for getting me into these indulgent hazelnut balls of wonder!
3. Tigi tween- my current shampoo is making my head itch...so much for saving money...i need my usual shampoo/conditioner combo back- and quick!
4. Ren 1 minute facial- Ive been obsessed with the ugly face of beauty's blog this weekend- how have i only just found her blog?!!! Subsequently i now want to try anything she recommends.
5. Kawaii cloud pjs...hmmm another bed item...i need a pj overhaul after i realise i have no defined bed clothes- i basically look like a tramp come 8 oclock...this cant continue!

Anything on your list for the much anticipated January payday?

T xxx

Lush heart throb bubble bar...

Valentines is fast approaching...sigh.  

For the singletons amongst us...myself included, this does not conjour up images of romance...it conjours up images of scoffing, microwave meals for one, chocolate and bubble baths...alone lol!!!

Thank god for lush...for this year i will not be spending valentines alone- ill be spending it with this bad boy...

With scents of frangipan, vanilla and geranium its a very comforting and luxurious scent.  The bath turns a lovely scarlet red and there is oodles of glitter to go around.  This bubble bar is very moisturising as it contains a splat of shea butter in the middle- its like a little macaroon of love!

So, if you are alone this valentines i suggest you purchase this...lets mope together :)

T xxx

Mac Warm Soul Review...

I have owned this blush for well over a year now and its fair to say I haven't raved enough about it.  I use it almost every day alongside Mac Harmony under my cheekbones.  The reason it is a daily grab for me is due to the subtleness of the shade and finish.  It is a mineralise finish so naturally it is quite shimmery and whilst pigmented, even if you are heavy handed with the blush brush it doesn't leave you with dolly flushed cheeks.

Id say that the colour is only really noticeable in daylight- in fact I never find myself reaching for it upon an evening out as it is definitely more suited to daytime.

I feel this colour suits all skin tones and colourings as I've used it on nearly every bridesmaid I've ever made up (I am a bridal mua if you didn't know) and it photographs beautifully.

I would really recommend this blush as a make up bag staple and this beauty has lasted well over a year so its definitely good value for money.

Have you tried this shade?

T xxx

Too Faced Melted Liquid Lipstick - Coral...

I have never had such a love hate relationship with a lip product before.

I want to love this...I feel like I should love this because it packs such a hefty price tag in my opinion...but I just don't know!!

I first saw this product on Amrezy...she has a similar colouring to me and as she is stunning I naturally had to have this gorgeous lip colour. 

Now, I don know about you but I was shocked when I saw this priced at £19 via ASOS.  I feel the whole packaging and feel of the product does not suffice this...I pay a little more for my YSL Rouge volupte lipsticks which feel and look very luxurious to me...and so they should for that kind of price.  So already I felt a little underwhelmed.

Second dislike for me is the applicator...this fuzzy doe foot applicator does not do it for me at all.  Its messy and does not feel nice to apply as it doesn't allow the product to "glide" if you like across my lips.  I can imagine on a "dry lip day" this feeling would be even worse..yikes.

The third and final dislike for me is that this product is extremely drying...to the point where it kind of leaves patches of colour after its first applied.  Like my review on Revlons Audacious...which strangely is of a similar colour...the product tends to almost "ball" and leaves a very grainy texture behind...I hope I've done an ok-ish job in explaining it...but hey, im sure you know what im talking about!

Now- that said...I do love both the colour and pigmentation of this product.  The colour really suits me when I have a tan as it is an extremely bright colour.  The product also did last a good 5 hours on me.

All in all, would I rave about this product? No.  However im going to try and work out better ways to use it (popping a gloss over it or applying with a lip brush) as quite frankly for the price of it im going to make sure it doesn't lay dormant in my make up draw!!!

Have you tried this colour- or do you agree and find this rage to be drying/overpriced?

Link- if you fancy trying this for yourself...

T xxx

Kiko skin evolution concealer...used to contour

I love contour...and its crazy to think that before i saw THIS image i never knew about it and the chubby concealing wonders it could offer ;))

I have toyed with buying the Bobbi Brown foundation sticks for a while....the price tag stopped me however...who wants to spend £50 plus on contouring alone...not me!

So when i saw these beauty's in Kiko i got a wee bit excited...and then proceeded to purchase straight away! FYI these are in the shades 1 and 8.

The texture is easy to work with, full coverage and the colour pay off is true and not muddy...which makes for baddddd contour!  I scribble on the dark anywhere that i need sculpting- so, underneath my cheekbones, sides of my nose, sides of forehead and under my chin (ta,ta double chin) and then pop the lighter colour anywhere that i require brightness and highlight- so, length of the nose, apples of cheeks, base of chin and cupids bow.

I blend either with my beauty sponge or a stiff domed brush and then apply foundation.  To add to the contour i always hollow the cheeks out with MAC's Harmony blush which is the perfect contour colour.

Have you tried these?

T xxx

The Balm Meet Matt(e) nude eyeshadow palette...

9 different Matt(e)s...more than one for every day of the week- boy do i feel spoilt for choice!

I purchased this palette after christmas whilst stalking Hudabeauty's youtube...it was a long christmas break in single-town..ok?!!

I was mainly interested in one colour and that was Matt Abdul as it looked unique from many greys that i own- it has a mauve tinge to it which i think really suits brunettes such as myself.

The pigmentation of this palette is unreal- just goes to show how helpful reviews and vidoes are..as to be honest if id seen this palette in a shop i'd most probably walk past it.  It doesnt have the wow factor for me looks wise.  That's not to say the packaging isn't eye catching- i just tend to be drawn to more shimmery  eye shadows....magpie!!

The colours are far more exciting and impressive when swatched and as my first product by The Balm company- i have to say I'm impressed and will keep my eye out for more goodies from them.

My three favourites...L to R- Singh, Abdul and Hung.

Have you tried any products from The Balm that you can recommend?

T xxx

Origins Ginzing Moisturiser...

Following my first Origins purchase and being very impressed with the cleanser i decided to give the Ginzing moisturiser a whirl.

The product claims to instantly hydrate and rev up skins radiance and i can confirm that i found it does just that.

The product smells like ground up vitamin c tablets- not a bad thing my any means and it reassured me that there was tonnes of goodness inside this lovely little orange pot.

I have been using this alongside the cleanser for a few weeks now and the combination of the two is really suiting my skin so far.  

The cream has a gel like consistency and due to this is absorbs well into the skin.

Have you tried this or any of the Origins range?

T xxx

Origins Never A Dull Moment cleanser review...

Every so often i find myself wanting to try a new face product.  I get a little bored with the same old routine in any aspect of my life...and that also goes for my skincare regime.  

I was trawling the Boots website and came across Origins...strangely enough i have never used anything from this brand so after reading a few reviews i thought it about time that i gave it a go.

I chose Never a dull moment as i felt my skin needed a pick me up with all this nasty weather recently and it has not disappointed so far.

You only need a pea sized amount of product and it foams up luxuriously for a thoroughly deep cleanse.  The scent is fresh and fruity and most importantly for a foaming cleanser, it doesn't leave my skin feeling tight or stripped of oils in anyway.

Over the weeks my skin has improved significantly and the texture has become much smoother- I know this because my makeup has been applying much nicer :)

I would recommend this cleanser if you have dull skin that is lacking a little lustre at this time of year..go on, pop it on the Xmas list :)

T xxx

Oh I wish it could be christmas everyday GIVEAWAY!!!

No I'm not going mad....I'm just missing the festive period.  I was ill for the whole two weeks so i feel like I'm pining for it to be back again.

With more than just me having the Christmas blues I'm sure, i thought i would do a give away to take you back to that distant memory that is Christmas.

Here's what you'll get:

• Mini Lush snow fairy shower gel
• Lush Christmas eve bubble bar
• Bath and Body works Vanilla Bean Noel (featured in my blog post HERE)

I'm opening this up internationally, so enter away using the rafflecopter below :)

Good luck my little chickens!

T xxx

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Bath and body works festive body lotions...

My beautiful friend Daniela was kind enough to grab me some lovely goodies from my favourite place in teh whole wide world (well apart from Disney World)....Bath and Body works :)

I really wanted to try some of the festive releases and I was lucky enough to get to try the following:

• Vanilla Bean Noel- scents of vanilla (obviously lol), caramel, soft must and sugar cookie.
• Winter Candy Apple- Ten points for guessing the first scent....Apple, orange zest, maple and neroli.
• Sugar Plum Dream- Black cherry, pink lady apple, warm amber, jasmine petals and snowdrop flower. This one is my favourite scent.

The scent is long lasting..as you would expect from any of the Bath and Body Works products and i now believe they are down to just 3 dollars...link!....cry face!!! 

T xxx

Dior capture XP eye cream review...

I have had this product for a while...hence the old packaging.  Perhaps it was my way of not admitting that i actually needed an eye cream ;) regardless...i am nearing 30 and yep, i need it..prevention is better than cure right?

This was a little pricey but worth it...you only need the smallest amount which is hard for me as I'm heavy handed with most products!

I cant say i can see an improvement in wrinkles as touch wood i do not have crows feet yet...however i have noticed the area looking brighter and my make up sits much better....i don't know about you- but concealers can be hard to blend and chalky sometimes and this has fixed that!

Have you tried this- what are your thoughts?

T xxx

Wella sp luxe hair oil...

Hi- and happy new year!!!

I have been using this little gem for a few months now and thought it was about time i raved about it after giving it a thorough trial!

I originally discovered this product at my salon, I'm not ashamed to admit i was drawn to it due to the scent...as i am with most things.  

As I'm sure you are aware my hair is ridiculously long (it now touches my bellybutton yikes) and it is very dry on the ends....regardless of how many conditioning treatments, with my length its just inevitable!  So i definitely need plenty of oil!  I used to use coconut or Moroccan oil but since using this i have noticed a huge difference.

My hair is stronger, shinier and has thickened up which is what I've been needing in the lower lengths of my hair.

The oil contains keratin, argan, jojoba and almond oil and i use it in two ways...Whilst wet before styling and for an extra boost i apply to dry hair that needs washing, sleep with lots of it on and then wash my hair as normal in the morning.

I paid £26.00 for mine but you can get it here much cheaper!

Have you tried this oil?

T xxx