L'oreal Glam Shine 6H Volumizer Lip Gloss in 404 Everlasting Melon

404 Everlasting Melon

Price: £7.99 (TESCO has 404 Everlasting Melon on sale for £3.99)

Packaging: Clear tube, silver and plastic lid, heart-shape applicator

My Thoughts: 

• Slight plastic smell, not very noticable
• No taste
• Boots offers 6 shades online
• Very slight tingling sensation
• Very pigmented
• Medium coverage
• All shades have shimmer and/or glitter
• Not gritty
• Very sticky
• A coral-orange with golden shimmer
• Drying
• Long lasting (3 hours max)
• When it fades it becomes very tacky and bits of glitter is all that is left
• Low/medium shine, more like a liquid lipstick

Before and After

I wouldn't buy this again due to the drying/very sticky formula :( will be looking out for a dupe though as I love the colour!

Love, Vee :)

MAC PLUSHGLASS in Nice Buzz

Nice Buzz

Price: £14.50

Packaging: Black matte lid, clear tube and doe-foor applicator

My Thoughts:

• Smells like cupcakes or cake batter!
• No taste
• MAC offers 13 shades online
• A shimmery light pink-gold with gold shimmer
• Coverage is sheer
• High shimmer pigmentation
• Very slightly gritty
• Sticky, thick texture
• Long wearing
• High shine
• Not moisturising 

Before and After

Love, Vee :)

MAC LUSTREGLASS in Flusterose

Flusterose

Price: £12.00

Packaging: Black lid, clear tube and brush applicator

My Thoughts:

• Has a vaguely sweet smell
• No taste
• MAC offers 16 shades online
• A rose-pink with slightly blue-purple shimmer 
• Coverage is light/sheer
• Very high shimmer pigmentation
• Slightly gritty due to shimmer
• Slightly sticky, thick texture
• Long wearing
• High shine

Before and After

(If you click the image you can see the blue-purple shimmer particles more clearly!)

Love, Vee :)

17 Ultimate Volume Lip Gloss Review in Fuzzy Yellow Petal Flutter

Fuzzy Yellow Petal Flutter (what an absolutely redonkulous name!)

Price: £3.49

Packaging: Clear tube, matte black lid, sticker on lid with shade written on it, doe-foot applicator

My Thoughts:

• No smell
• No taste
• Boots offer 10 shades online (+2 others from the Candy Collection)
• Most shades have shimmer or slight glitter in them 
• Coverage is medium
• Pigmentation is very good
• Very smooth application
• Silky, not thick texture
• Not sticky at all
• Very moisturising
• Long wearing (2+ hours!)
• Doesn't settle into fine lines
• Very high shine

Before and After

Fuzzy Yellow Petal Flutter - Slightly shimmery dark red-brown

I am definitely going to be buying many more of these, the texture is like heaven!

Love, Vee :)

2True Colour Drench Lip Glosses Review

 Shades 1 and 2 (left 2, right 1)

Price: £1.95 each or 3 for £5

Packaging: Transparent tube with a black lid and a doe-foot applicator, look quite sleek! Only complaint is the shade number is on a sticker on the top of the lid so is likely to fall off after a while.

My thoughts: 

• Smell delicious, like cake batter!
• No taste
• The pigmentation is medium to high
• High gloss finish
• Stays on for about an hour at most
• Superdrug offers 9 shades, most have no shimmer
• Drying 
• Not sticky

Before and After

Shade 1 - No shimmer, medium coverage brown-pink

Shade 2 - Hot artificial pink with shimmer, medium coverage

*Ignore any difference in skin colour as the flash is needed to show the true colour of the lip gloss but my natural lip colour is shown best without a flash! 

Love, Vee :)

2True Plumptuous Lip Glosses Review

Shades 9, 18, 16 (in order)

Price: £1.95 or 3 for £5

Packaging: Clear tube with matte black lid and silver rim, pink metallic writing and doe-foot applicator

My Thoughts:

• Smell faintly of cookies
• No taste
• Most of the shades in the range have shimmer or some glitter in them
• 2True offer 24 shades online (find them in Superdrug)
• Coverage is medium 
• Quite thick consistency 
• Not sticky at all
• Stay on for about an hour or two 
• Great pigmentation! 
• Applies evenly and doesn't settle into fine lines at all 
• Moisturising
• Medium shine
• Plumping - almost unnoticeable tingly sensation when first applied

Before and After

Shade 9 with flash - sheer, very very glittery (not gritty on lips)

Shade 9 without flash

Shade 18 - Shimmery red-orange

Shade 16 - shimmery plum

I absolutely love these, and what a bargain!

Love, Vee :)

Hair Care: Washing and drying your hair for optimum results

Washing Hair

Finding the correct shampoo and conditioner for your hair type: Tried and tested reccomendations/warnings:

• Fine oily hair - Avoid L'oreal and Pantene. They can drag your hair down with a waxy coating and cause build up over several weeks, while this can tame coarse hair it will not work for fine greasy hair as build up will create more oils and you may have to buy a clarifying shampoo to use once every week. Instead opt for Aussie Volume or Aussie Mega Shampoo and Conditioner which are both light weight and will not cause build up over time.
• Thick or coarse hair - Again I would suggest Aussie Mega, Aussie Frizz Miracle or Aussie Miracle Moist Shampoo and Conditioner. While L'oreal and Pantene can temporarily tame frizz by coating it in a thin waxy layer, it can eventually build up and cause even dry hair to become greasy at the scalp. Also, by coating hair in the thin waxy layer it gives a false impression of healthier hair. Whilst Aussie does not always have immediate effects, in the long run it helps to tame frizz by preventing breakage and dryness. 

Tip: If you have wavy or curly hair, you can tell when a shampoo or conditioner is coating your hair in wax (this is not good for your hair despite that it may feel smoother to the touch) when after a shower your hair dries straighter than it normally does. This is due to the heavy, waxy layer dragging hair downwards.

Shampooing: When shampooing hair, flip your head upside down. This allows your fingers to massage the entire scalp without tangling hair and drying out your ends. Rinse out. This will also add more volume to the crown area.

Conditioning: Only condition the middle-ends of your hair, but don't forget the front part as that is most prone to drying out from heat styling bangs/fringes.

Drying Hair:


Towel Drying: Do not rub hair between the towel! This causes very, very bad breakage as hair is at its weakest when wet! Instead gentle grasp the hair with the towel and squeeze with your hands from top to bottom without pulling on hair, this will also help smooth down frizz.


Air Drying: Try to avoid pulling hair back into a ponytail or bun when it is wet as this can cause breakage. Instead wrap hair in towel until dry (this also makes hair wavy) or simply wear it down.


Blow Drying: Always use a heat protectant! Sprays are the easiest to use and Tresemme is a good option. Don't blow dry closer than a foot away from your hair and try not to focus too much on the crown area as it causes breakage which can result in a frizz halo. Afterwards it is always good to use a leave-in conditioner, I reccomend Aussie, because many girls use hairspray after blow drying hair and are not aware that it can dry out hair very badly.

Love, Vee :)

My secrets to soft kissable lips

Nivea Essential Care, VS Beauty Rush Soothing Lip Balm, The Body Shop Born Lippy in Pink Guava and Watermelon, Carmex (in order of greatness)

Prices in order: £1.35, $7.00, £2.00 each, £2.49

These are my absolute favorite lip balms and chapsticks!

Nivea Essential Care:

• Very smooth and creamy texture
• Clear and very shiny finish 
• BEST moisturiser ever. Gets me through every winter with soft & smooth lips. 
• No scent
• No taste
• Quite a thick consistency for a chapstick and makes lips feel really smooth and plump!

VS Beauty Rush Soothing Lip Balm

• Pretty packaging!
• Tints lips with a gorgeous, healthy looking pink shade
• Has shimmer but hardly shows and is not gritty at all
• Smells like mint
• Tastes a bit like mint
• Very moisturising
• Warning: Tin can be hard to open
• Gooey consistency but not sticky at all and melts into lips

Body Shop Born Lippy in Pink Guava and Watermelon

• Cheap!
• Smell delicious
• No taste
• Moisturising
• Sightly tints lips pale pink (Watermelon)
• Very glossy looking
• Smooth texture

Carmex

• Great for severely chapped lips
• Not good for people who have sensitive skin around the lips (may cause breakouts)
• Very moisturising
• Has a waxy smell to it but if you don't like it there is a cherry flavoured one
• No taste
• Very smooth, somewhat waxy consistency
• Very glossy looking

Tip: For dry lips, exfoliate lips with an old toothbrush 3 times a week and apply a good chapstick afterwards. This also makes lips look fuller for about an hour.

Enjoy your newly revived lips!

Love, Vee :)

My secrets for clear & soft skin

Olive Oil as a make up remover and face cleanser

I put Extra Virgin Olive Oil in a jam jar (could use a cup or bowl, just cover it in cling film) and keep it in my bathroom for when I remove my make up. I've used it to remove my make up and clean my face for 7 months now and I can't imagine going back to the millions of other things I've tried!

Why you need to try it:

• Cheap
• Chemical Free
• Moisturising
• Despite concerns it does not irritate the eyes at all (I'm prone to irritation and I haven't had any issues since I've changed to using olive oil, yay!)
• Non-comedogenic (won't clog pores)
• Removes make up much more effectively than the usual make up removers (you may not be aware of the residue that make up removers leave on your skin!)
• Cleans pores and helps to prevent AND get rid of blackheads! Really works.

My regime:

• Pour olive oil onto a make up remover pad, use enough to cover the pad but don't soak it or else you'll be blinded by the oil in your eyes!
• Rub the pad over your eyes until make up is removed completely and flip the pad over to remove any face make up you may have on
• No need to use face wash after, simply rinse of the olive oil withwarm water and wipe the excess off with a face cloth
• You'll feel a thin film ( if it feels too oily, rinse and dry again, this shouldn't be an issue once you get used to it) of olive oil on your face and I usually leave that on over night as it is great for moisturising my skin. 
• I've hardly been getting any breakouts since changing to this regime and I think it would benefit any skin type, especially those prone to dry skin in winter.

Hand Sanitizer as a spot treatment 

Came across this on a trip to Morocco where I ran out of my usual spot cream and had this on hand! And ever since it's been my best friend.

Why you need to try it:

• It doesn't dry out the skin around the spot
• You can wear it ontop of make up if you need to go out as this skin absorbs it
• It is completely safe to use on all spots (it says don't use on broken skin, but I promise it does no harm whatsoever)
• It dries and kills the spot before the bacteria can multiply 
• Even works on the under-the-skin spots 
• It is THE most effective spot treatment I have ever tried. If my skin breaks out I put this on straight away and it's gone within two days everytime
• It's cheap!

I put a pea sized amount on the effected (yucky) areas at night time and in the morning or if I'm at home all day I'll put it on more often as it speeds up the process. 

Try these out and tell me what you think!

Love, Vee :)

Soap and Glory Sexy Mother Pucker Lip Gloss Review Perfect Peach

Perfect Peach

Price: £8.00

Packaging: I love this packaging, soap and glory have such cute ideas! Sparkley plastic lid, clear matte tube with doe-foot applicator

My Thoughts:

• Smells slightly of cake batter but not overpowering at all
• No taste
• Tingles on the lips for the first 10 minutes as it's plumping lip gloss
• Very sticky but this allows it to stay on for long periods
• Lasts about 2 hours on its own
• Coverage is a very sheer, almost clear 
• Has a glassy finish
• Not drying

Before and After

Love, Vee :)

H&M Rich Lip Glosses Review

Pale is beautiful, Berrisimo, Rumba red, Color me cute (in order)

Price: £2.99 (I think!)

Packaging: Clear plastic tubes with black lids, quick chic and don't feel as cheap as they are! Doe-foot applicator.

My Thoughts

• Have a vaguely sweet vanilla smell to them
• No taste
• All have a glassy finish and Rumba Red is the only one with shimmer in it
• Coverage is sheer to medium 
• Thin, liquidy consistency so they don't stay on for long
• Settle into fine lines 
• Doesn't provide even coverage
• Not sticky
• Not drying

Before and After

Pale is beautiful Very light baby pink, sheer

Berrisimo Dark Plummy-Red, sheer

Rumba red Bright red with gold shimmer, sheer

Color me cute Bubblegum pink, sheer

Love, Vee :)

Rimmel Lasting Finish Lipstick Review 077 ASIA

77 ASIA

Price: £4.49

Packaging: 

A dark aubergine plastic tube with the Rimmel crown on the lid, has held up fine for a good 3 months so far but its quite cheap looking packaging. 

My Thoughts:

• Has a floral scent to it, not overpowering and actually quite nice
• Slight lipsticky taste but hardly noticeable 
• Opaque coverage, muave pink-brown
• Stays on for a minimum of 2 hours on its own but lasts about 7 if you do the powder/blot trick
• Boots offer 15 shades online
• They are semi-creamy but sometimes cling to dryness
• When applied it has quite a shiny finish but not OTT

Before and After

Love, Vee :)