Wherever you are...

Please stay safe. Tonight seems to be quiet around my area, but two blocks away, our local shops are in ruins and many lives have been destroyed. If there are clean up operations in your area, please consider giving your time.

Review: Johnson's Daily Essentials Gentle Eye Make-Up Removal Pads

I've been on the hunt for an inexpensive eye makeup remover that doesn't sting my eyes or give that uncomfortable cloudy feeling that needs a good rinse and several hundred blinks to get rid of. I ventured into Simple products, great for the no stinging but I still got cloudy peepers. Until I found these, I stuck with good old fashioned baby wipes but didn't like that sometimes, when I'd been particularly heavy handed with the eyeliner I'd have to scrub and it would mean sore, raw patches in the corners of my eyes. Not ideal when you're trying (ok, half trying) to look fresh faced and awake for work, especially as concealer refused to stay on!

I nipped into Tescos one evening to buy some broccoli *cough doublechocolatefudgeicecream* and saw a load of Johnson's skincare products were on offer at 2 for £4 so I picked up a tub of these and some face wash for the fella (he's got very picky skin, but I like to use him to test products) and whilst the face wash only mildly impressed (great for everyday, mild exfoliation for combo/dry skin - does nothing if you've got problem or oily skin) these pads were an absolute gem.



You get 30 pads in a tub and one is easily enough to remove even the heaviest makeup on both eyes, though it does say to use one for each, I just turn it over. I gently swipe downwards, open my eyes and gently swipe side to side and it loosens and removes all my eye makeup. It does require a quick going over with a baby wipe or a quick rinse as it does smudge very heavy product but it gets it all off with no irritation whatsoever.

The fragrance is minimal and is pleasant and while the moisture it gives the eyes is in my opinion insufficient, it's nice not to feel like your lashline is sticking to the hood of your eye halfway through your cleansing routine. Absolutely keep using an eye cream. I've noticed my lashes are shinier (?) too.

I highly recommend these pads and I've already repurchased while they're still on offer. I've tried a dozen eye makeup removers from Lancome to Superdrug's own brand and this kicks them all off my bathroom shelf.

Review: MUFE HD Foundation

I believed in the hype, I shelled out and received the hype in my grubby little hands and smeared the hype all over my face. I liked it!





The foundation's consistency is not runny, but certainly fluid enough to move quickly. It does not dry particularly fast so it is not necessary to work quickly.

MUFE HD foundation claims to be an undetectable, oil free medium to full coverage foundation with easy application. I initially used my fingers to apply the foundation and found that even with the sheer layer, I got decent coverage and did not need to use my usual amount of concealer. When applied with my (NBF) Beauty Blender, I got full but natural coverage without the weighty mask feeling. I used concealer sparingly on particularly difficult blemishes, if at all. I did not find this foundation broke down or oxidised on my skin, however I did notice some oils peeping through at around 6pm (I usually slap-up at 8am, de-slap at 9pm) so this was still impressive. With some great oil control powder, it lasted my whole 13 hour day. If I know I won't be wearing makeup for more than 6 hours, I will not set with a powder and topped with some gel bronzer and cream blush, I really love the dewy finish us oily skinned girls sometimes long for, but mostly can't risk! It's a fantastic foundation and I would absolutely repurchase.

My one and only gripe is the packaging. I do not like. You can't tell when you're about to run out, the pump has very little control so I find myself wasting half a pump (at least) each time I use the product and my usual thrifty (ok...CHEAP) self cannot open the bottle up to scoop out the last of the product.

All in all, the product itself is fantastic. If there was a way to transfer it to another container, it would certainly be my go-to foundation.

Have you tried HD? What are your thoughts?

What I've Been Using: June

Shampoo: Soap & Glory Glad Hair Day
Conditioner: Schwarzkopf Bonacure Colour Therapy
Styling Products: None!
Shower Gel: Lush Happy Hippy
Body Moisturiser : Body Shop Mango body butter
Deodorant: Cheapo cotton fresh anti perspirant
Face Wash: Mario Badescu Glycolic Cleanser
Exfoliator: None.
Primer: None.
Foundation Brush: Beauty Blender sponge
Foundation: MUFE HD
Concealer: MAC Pro Longwear
Powder: Boots 17 Shine Control Pressed Powder
Blusher: MAC Blonde MSF
Bronzer: Stila gel bronzer
Highlighter: Nars Luxor
Eyeshadow Base: Urban Decay Primer Potion
Eyeshadows: SLEEK!
Eyeliner: elf duo shadow/liners
Mascara: Fiberwig
Lipstick: None
Lipgloss: Lord & Berry
Nail Colour: Barry M 296 Coral

Collective Haul: April - June

Looking at the products laid out in front of me, I've not been buying a great deal over the past few months. It felt like I had but a lot of what I purchased were replacement products. I've also been investing more in clothes after havihttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifng a mad eBay clear out. I bought the most lovely Nicole Farhi silk top (I used it as a fabric background in this post) which I think I'll wear to death this summer. Also picked up a handful of maxi dresses which I tend to live in during the "warmer" months - whatever that means in the UK . Mostly, I've been saving. Mostly...



A few bits from Space NK. I haven't tried the new cleanser yet, I'm finishing up my Mario Badescu products (which I'll be honest, are not amazing. Stand out products are the buffering lotion and whitening mask. I didn't like the moisturiser at all and the cleansers were alright but quite drying)I also picked up a Nars blush in Deep Throat, Sheer Glow foundation and Shu Uemura Nobara foundation. Both are great and give good coverage while remaining light on the skin. Sheer Glow's coverage really surprised me! If I need to build it up, I use a Beauty Blender sponge (another I-love product) to stipple it on. Perfect.



A handful of things to try from BeautyBay.com. I'm excited about adding a toner to my skincare routine again. I haven't used a toner since Lush's Tea Tree Water and miss the squeaky clean feeling you get afterwards.



After scouring blogs and eBay, I'm 1 (Oh So Special - I didn't include the new Curacao palette as I just bought that today) palette away from completing my Sleek collection. If interested, I'll do a large review/swatch catalogue of all the Sleek palettes past and present.



I broke my nail polish ban and went a little nuts...the two Illamasqua nail polishes were STUNNING and I bought two of each to send to a couple of my friends. Perfect for a vampy night out. The Barry M colours are beautiful summer brights - the coral is by far my favourite. Seche Vite is hands down, amazing. Ah-may-zing. My nail colour lasts a good week without any major chips despite me working with my hands a lot.



I bought a few Soap & Glory products, one of which was the boddy butter seen and the other was a facial scrub and shower gel. LOVE the shower gel, LOVE the body butter, a little unsure about the scrub. It kind of burns my skin when it's meant to give a tingly sensation. The boy loves it so as far as I'm concerned he can have it! I'm giving one of these body butters away soon :)

Check out the adorable mini High Beam and Posie Tints free with Glamour magazine! Didn't get Benetint as I've got the full size, but aw, so cute!

I purchased (IMPULSE) a couple of MAC shadows - Vellum and Beauty Marked. Beauty Marked really stands out to me, it's dark but really brightens up the eyes. Vellum is a fab highlighter on the cheeks and cupids bow.

I'm also giving away a couple of Lord & Berry glosses that I bought a while back. I loved it so much I went back and picked up two. The perfect shade for any skintone, lovely texture and I actually like the smell of them. They're not MAC vanilla scented, but they're not plastic/playdough scented either! The lipstick I am less crazy about (weird considering I'm not much of a gloss girl) The New CID products, I've yet to try out yet but I'm excited about them. I've dangerously fallen in love with Illamasqua eyeshadows. They're dense, apply very well and stay vibrant until you take them off. I recently bought this matte purple called Fallen.





Recently, the fella and I went down to Brighton for a couple of days. We stayed in a beautiful hotel by the beach front and whilst pebble beaches aren't my favourite, I had a wonderful time. While having breakfast on the beach, we had a little debate on whether pebble or sand beaches are better. My argument was that you could build sandcastles on sand beaches...so John made a stone castle which he said was "more realistic" so better. I'd still rather get sand up my butt any day. Pebble beaches hurt right?!



I made some divine (if I may say so myself) lavender and lavender and lemon cupcakes (with my own recipe for lemon curd). So light you don't feel too guilty for eating more than one!

I've got reviews planned: MUFE HD foundation, Mario Badescu (the week-by-week thing didn't work out because honestly...I wasn't getting the results I'd hoped for but there are some great produts within the range) and a new foundation routine. I'm hoping to start pre-writing posts during the weekend as I'm so busy during the week. Though lately my weekends have been pretty crazy too! We'll see...but I miss blogging a lot! Thanks so much for reading!

e.l.f. Winner

Is Mai - please email me at chrissydee1011@hotmail.co.uk or DM me with your address on Twitter and I'll send your liners out first thing tomorrow!

I hope to have a collective haul post up later today but the weather is SO lovely right now, I'm heading out to do some gardening (I know, I'm like...85 right?) Plus, it's been so damn long since I posted and I've bought so many things I want to write about it's hard to figure out where to begin. My own fault really.

I hope Mai enjoys the e.l.f. liners as much as I do and I hope everyone had/is having an amazing weekend.

A wonderful surprise & a very small giveaway

This afternoon, I got home from work in a foul mood. It was raining, some crazy woman kissed her teeth because I'd had the nerve to say "don't worry it's not like I need my spine" when her umbrella poked me in the back and she'd failed to even make a half-assed apology....and I'd stepped in a dog turd wearing new shoes...BUT...I walked through the door and ripped open a neat little package from my first ever swap buddy! Stoked. Seriously. This woman knows me and what I like.



She bought me some beautiful things, and things I'd never choose for myself. I don't think I'd ever pick out neon nail colours for myself because I'm so pale...you know what? They work. I'm IN LOVE with the matte bright purple. It looks gorgeous matte and glossy with a top coat.



Tried the bright red lip (again, something I'd never choose for myself) and I love it! Wet n Wild lippies have a great texture. I'm not sure how well they wear but they apply well and easily straight from the bullet. Got a couple of back ups of some Wet n Wild single shadows which I'm so pleased about because one in particular (Nutty) - is nearing pan territory. M - thank you SO much for everything, it was the sweetest thing and a wonderful surprise to come home to. I can't wait to send you a few things and to set up another swap! It's time huh?



I'm also back with a small giveaway. Recently e.l.f. had an offer on their Studio Eyeliner & Shadow sticks so I snapped up two of each and I'm giving the other set away. They're great on-the-go products and have excellent staying power. If you're in it to win it, just comment (say anything other then I WANNA WIN) and the winner will be chosen at random on Saturday 25th June 11.59PM GMT+1.

I hope everyone is enjoying the start to their Summers/Winters. We've had nothing but rain and the possibility of rain. When the sun comes out, it rains 3 minutes later and sh*ts all over all chance of tanning/hanging your laundry out/GOING ANYWHERE! But it's London...and I love it. Mostly.



Plus, the messed up weather meant we got a buttload of fruit early this year! Yummy, home grown raspberrys. Incredible.



Remember the cute, tiny little kitten we got? Well...she's still tiny...but she's a cheeky little bugger. She's taken to jumping in my bag before I leave for work.



In a load of bee hive frames. Don't worry, we didn't leave her in there. Plus she jumped in on her own when we were stacking them.



All cuddles........



....no....I'm totes not trying to eat the cat...