Garnier Micellar Cleansing Gel Wash Review

I just picked up the Garnier Micellar Cleansing Gel wash in Boots this week after being an avid user of their water formula. I am so impressed by how quickly it removed my makeup including stubborn eye makeup. The product is a all-in-one rinse-off gel wash not only cleanses but also soothes and removes make-up, even on eyes and lips.



There is a very slight smell but not anything unpleasant just a clean scent. I follow this up with my usual toner and moisturiser which varies between the Origins Ginzing Energy-Boosting Moistiser or Charlotte Tilbury Magic Cream. It has such a soft texture that really feels like its doing its job just as quick as the Micealer Water however I feel this was a deeper cleanse. I picked this up in boots but I have found it hard to find recently I assume because it so popular!

Bigger and Bolder Brows by Benefit Cosmetics

I have my brows done by the lovely ladies in Benefit Cosmetics and I'm in love with their brow products! So when they brought these kits out I had to get my hands on one. I purchased the Bigger and Bolder Brows Kit in shade 3 (Medium)

The kit contains ka-Brow which is a eyebrow cream-gel colour which is perfect for filling in your brows with the little angle brush contained in the lid of the product. You can use this quite subtly or you can go full bold brows with it depending how you apply in.

You also get High Brow which is a eyebrow highlighter, I love this product; it blends so nicely and really makes a difference to the shape of your eye area by lifting it with the brightness it gives.

The third product in the kit is ready, set, BROW, this is a clear brow gel that will keep you brows in place all day.

You also get an eyebrow mapping tool in the kit with two styles one is more angled and the other is a soften angle to the end of the brow. you simply hold it below your brows and follow it with ka-Brow.

What I got for Christmas

Just thought I'd pop a little post up about some of the brilliant beauty things I received this Christmas.

The first thing I received was some Charlotte Tilbury goodies. I got the Legendary Party Eyes Kit which has a mini Rock 'N' Kohl in Bedroom Black and a mini Legendary Mascara. I've been trying out the mascara this week and just one coat makes such a difference. I also got a Colour Chameleon in Champagne Diamonds. I wanted this shade to go along with my other on in Bronzed Garnet as a highlight shade.

 

The second thing I got was the Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit - Surreal Light. First of the packaging is stunning and has a really great mirror. I've used this a few times now and it such a natural collection of powders and just adds a glow to your skin. None of these colours are available separately and its a limited edition palette.



The third thing I got was some Pixi Beauty products; Pixi Glow Tonic, Multibalm and Fairy Dust Favourites. I've been wanting to try out the Glow Tonic for a while now and finally have my hands on it. I also got a Multibalm which is for lips and cheeks and the Matte Fairy Dust Favourites.



And finally I was very lucky to have gotten an Olivia Burton watch! I'm so happy with the colour and design with the bee. Over the last year I really got into wearing a watch after being frustrated on checking the time on my phone constantly so I decided to get a watch that was a statement and I think this one fits the bill!

FeelUnique Haul

I had a little splurge on FeelUnique after getting a £200 voucher from the Glitter Squad with my makeover so I thought I'd show you some of the things I picked out along with the samples from my order.

First up I ordered a Sigma Spa® Express Brush Cleaning Mat. I had been using the B. Makeup Brush Cleanser but I did find that deeper in the bristles on more compact brushes just weren't getting cleaned properly so I decided for a more substantial clean I would invest in the mat. I used it with some Johnsons baby shampoo and it certainly was quick at cleaning the brushes and didn't flair them at all. If you have a lot of brushes I would really recommend this.

  

The second thing I picked up was Benefit Cosmetics Stay Don't Stray Stay-Put Primer, I had this used with my FeelUnique Makeover and I fell in love with the pigmentation and the lightweight feeling of this product. It works as a primer for both concealers and eyeshadows but I've found with the pigmentation I have managed to use it as a concealer without having to put further product on top of it. It blends super easily and I really recommend you give this a shot.



The third thing I bought was the Origins Original Skin and GinZing Set. I had a Origins Facial in the new store in Cambridge and she used all the products on my skin and I loved how soft and glowing my skin was so I had to pick up the set. The price was £32 which covers the cost of the serum so you effectively got the other three products free! It also came with a little bag to store them in which was a nice touch.



 The fourth item I bought was the Estée Lauder Colour Portfolio gift set. I thought seeing as I have never tried the products out it would be a good way of experimenting. It has 28 Best-Selling EyeShadows, 6 Pure Colour Envy Blushes, 9 Pure Colour Envy Lip Colours, 1 Pure Colour Envy Gloss, 2 Smoky Kohl Eyeliners.

The two samples I got to choose was a Burberry Lips Lip Velvet in Military Red and a Vichy Normaderm Anti Blemish Care sample.  The Burberry lipstick is just a thing of beauty and I haven't yet brought myself to use it because the pattern is so beautiful.

The Unique Beauty Gift that came with my order with it being over £100 was a huge haul of goodies:



Feelunique Vanity Case

Benefit Cosmetics The Porefessional Mask

Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Cream

Caudalie Makeup Removing Oil

Ren Flash Hydro Boost

Bed Head Recovery Shampoo

Bed Head Recovery Conditioner

Bed Head Hardhead Hairspray

Phytokératine Mask

Emma Hardy Brilliance Facial Oil

Balance Me Replenish Cream

La Roche Posay Redermic C10

Decleor Orexcellence Cream

Fleur de Force Lipgloss - Exclusive

Tanya Burr Mini Marshmallows Nail Polish

So far I've tried the Bed Head Shampoo and Conditioner and the Caudalie make-up remover and I'm pretty impressed.

ESPA Lip Oil Christmas Crackers

Just thought I'd show you my favourite little beauty cracker from 2016. I picked up the ESPA Nourishing Lip Oil cracker from Liberty during my quick trip after working with the products previously I decided to splash out! I think these would look really sophisticated on your dining room table at Christmas.

 

For just the cost of the one original lip oil being £19 to get three oils for £29 was a steal! The two other oils are red and pink. The colours are nice and festive and good if you are looking for hydration in the cold winter months.



I think this would be lovely for people of any age, it even says that it helps minimise the appearance of fine lines and keeps lips supple, perfect for those mistletoe moments! It contains Omega Oils, collagen-boosting Indian Gentian Leaves, plumping Hyaluronic Acid and Konjac Root to deeply condition lips.

Christmassy Baking - Mince Pies and Gingerbread House

To get myself into the festive sprit I deicide to whip up some quick Mince Pies, why by a box when you can make them in a couple of minutes! I simply took some shop bought short crust pastry and filled it with Waitrose ready made mincemeat and to make them look a bit special I cut the tops of the pies into little stars. I did follow a BBC good food recipe for the temperatures and timings which is here.




A Voila!




No one would ever know that you didn't make them from scratch!


I also decided to make a gingerbread house from scratch.... I did not feel this was worthy of a full blog post as Pinterest had raised my expectations over my gingerbread skills! So I just thought I'd add it to this post in case you wanted to try and also make your own gingerbread house! The recipe I used was also from BBC Good Food which can be found here.

FeelUnique Benefit Cosmetics Glitter Squad Visit!

Last Friday I had won the amazing opportunity for the Benefit Glitter Squad in cooperation with FeelUnique to come to my house and give me a Magical Makeover! The competition revolved around FeelUnique's new Makeup Live app that lets you try out makeup live using your front camera on your phone from the comfort of your own home. You can also make purchases through the app when you find the perfect combination of eye makeup and lip products.

The Glitter Squad came in a glammed up van with two makeup vanities in the back and glittery walls which I was jealous I couldn't have in my house. We were greeted by Jordan with Ferraro Roche which is always a good start!

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I had the lovely Lauren from Benefit doing my makeup and my friend Billie had Laurretta. With there just being the two of us we got VIP treatment and had full makeovers. We went out after the makeovers so they glammed us up ready for it. I got a lot of makeup envy from their kits and just wish I could have that amount of different makeup!




I loved the burgundy smokey eye with a brown nude lip that Lauren gave me, I learnt so much from her along the way with how to contour and highlight for my face shape. We also got Benefit Cosmetics goodie bags to take with us with a full size 3D Browtones and sample sizes of a few other products.





Overall I just had such a great time with the Benefit girls and a massive thank you to them and FeelUnique. I would really reccomened shopping with FeelUnique because the shipping is a great price and comes really quickly whenever I've ordered from them. They also have great prices and variety of stock so go check them out!