ELF 50% Off Sale - Haul Time

When I spotted Elf were having an extremely generous 50% off sale across their whole website as a thank you for hitting 20,000 twitter followers, I knew it wouldn't be long until my online basket had a few treats sitting in it. I clearly know myself well because as soon as the discount code was released, I headed straight over to the elf website and began browsing their huge range of products. To be honest, I didn't really need anything but as a beauty blogger and someone obsessed with trying new makeup, not needing anything isn't going to stop me. There's a difference between need and want after all and I imagine no matter how much makeup I have, I'll always want more. We all have our weaknesses in life and I guess buying makeup is mine - it could be worse.

So after having a browse, I popped a selection of products I liked the sound/look of into my basket. The choice was totally random as there wasn't any specific products I was looking for but on reflection there was actually so much I wanted to try! However, I think I was pretty well restrained and only ended up buying six products. I realise that still sounds like quite a lot but due to the 50% discount, I only spent around £13.00. Such a bargain! Since receiving the products I haven't actually had chance to try them all yet so this post is going to be more of a first impressions post than actual reviews so do let me know if you'd like in-depth reviews on any of these products when I've had chance to give them a thorough test.

Complete Coverage Concealer Kit | Light | £3.75 | Link

I've been on the hunt for a good under-eye concealer for such a long time now and although I've tried various products that claim to cover dark circles, I've been left pretty disappointed with them all. With this being said, I decided I'd try this cute little kit from elf. I went for the 'light' kit from the three options available (light, medium and dark) and am pretty pleased with the range of shades - they all match my skin tone and can be used for different purposes. The two light shades (left) are great for brightening the under eye area while the salmon toned shade (second from the right) works well at counteracting dark circles. The darkest shade on the far right works well at covering blemishes. Overall I'm seriously impressed with this little kit - the concealers are creamy, very pigmented and cover dark circles and blemishes effortlessly.

Powder Blush | Twinkle Pink | £3.75 | Link

To be honest, I have no idea why I bought this product as I never really wear pink on my cheeks. I think I was having a brave 'why not step out of my comfort zone' kind of moment and this shade of pink is quite subtle so I'm hoping it will look nice against my pale skin in the winter months and give me a nice natural flush of colour. I haven't tried it yet but the colour is very pretty when swatched - I'm just slightly concerned that its too glittery for my liking but we'll see.

Mineral Glow | Shimmer | £7.00 | Link

Again, another random purchase but the description of this product on the elf website sucked me in and I couldn't leave without purchasing. This mineral powder is available in two shades (bronzer and shimmer) and is said to add a glow to your skin. I went for the shade 'Shimmer' as I wanted something fairly natural that would give my skin some radiance but on first impressions, I'm just not sure about this. I haven't tried it on my face yet so I can't judge it fairly yet but when swatched on my hand there is quite noticeable chunks of glitter within it which is a big no-no if I'm going to be dusting this all over my face. Disco ball face is not a good look. I'm hoping this will prove me wrong once I've tried it properly thought so I'll keep you posted. Also, apologies that there's no swatch of this product - it didn't show up when I tried to photograph it!

All Over Colour Stick | Spotlight | £1.50 | Link

When I spotted this product, it instantly reminded me of a NARS multiple which is a high end product I've had my eye on for quite some time now. I hear the multiples are great for giving the skin a radiant glow but before I splurge on one of those, I thought I'd try this little elf dupe to see if I enjoy the 'stick' style application. I also love a good multi-use product so the fact this can be used on the cheeks, lips or eyes gets a big thumbs up from me. I went for the shade Spotlight which I believe is the lightest of the shades as the main way I intend to use it is along the top of my cheekbones and potentially under my brow bone and in the inner corners of my eyes. I can't seen this product working well on my lips due to it being so light but I'm not too bothered about that. On first impressions it isn't as creamy as I'd hoped but the champagne shade is very pretty and I think it'll work well at adding a subtle radiance to my face.

Studio Matte Lip Colour | Rich Red | £3.75 | Link

When it comes to makeup, my ultimate weakness is all things lip related  so I clearly couldn't leave the elf website without treating myself to some lip goodness. I've already tried a couple of elf's mineral lipsticks which are absolutely lovely so I decided to try one of their Matte Lip Colours as a bit of a change from a standard lipstick. I've been looking for a deep red lip colour as I think that's a beautiful shade to wear in the winter months and 'Rich Red' looked like a the perfect deep red shade on the elf website. However, in reality this is actually more pink than red so that's a bit disappointing. Don't get me wrong I'll still use it as its still a lovely colour and the formula is great but its always a bit annoying when something isn't what you expected it to be.

Eye Shadow Brush | £1.50 | Link

Makeup brushes are something I use to apply my makeup every single day so one more can't hurt, can it? I've heard good things about elf brushes so I decided it was about time I tried one for myself. I opted for this eye shadow brush as I though it looked like a good all-rounder for packing on eyeshadow, blending in the crease or applying shadow underneath the waterline. On first impressions it isn't as soft as the other eye brushes I'm used to using but considering I only paid 75 pence with the 50% discount code, I'm not expecting miracles.

Overall I've got mixed opinions on this bunch of products. On first impressions I'm highly impressed with the concealer kit and matte lip colour but I'm going to have to give the others a proper try before deciding if they're a hit or a miss.

Did you treat yourself to something from elf's 50% sale? Have you tried any of these products? 

Lots of Love,

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Haul // Boots Beauty

From time to time (okay I lied - ALL the time) I find myself drawn to the Boots website and all their wonderful beauty offers. I don't think I've ever come away from that website without popping something in my online shopping basket. Recently I was having one of those "I fancy treating myself to some new beauty bits" moments and of course my first port of call was Boots. I didn't know what I wanted to buy and I definitely didn't need anything but I hadn't bought any new beauty products for almost a month and I was getting withdrawals. Yes, send me to beauty bloggers anonymous!

Before I tell you about all the lovely beauty bits that wormed their way into my Boots basket, I just want to point out that this post was supposed to go up before my monthly favourites so I apologise that you've already seen the Bourjois lipstick and Loreal Micellar solution. I don't want to bore you with the same products discussed in my previous post but I did buy them recently so I hope you don't mind a Bourjois and Loreal double whammy. Also, I bought the Loreal micellar water from duty free and not Boots but if I were to buy it again, I'd buy it from Boots so I thought I'd pop it in this haul anyway. I won't go into any detail about them here as you can find out what I think of them both in my previous post.

Wow, disclaimer central. Now that ramble is out of the way, let me tell you about the things I've been buying. As I said earlier, I didn't have anything in particular in mind that I wanted to buy but Boots and their beauty offers are bad for my bank balance and I soon spotted bargains all over the place. The first bargain I spotted was Hydraluron. Now, if you're a beauty blogger and haven't heard of this product yet, where have you been hiding? I've heard nothing but rave reviews about this little beauty so when I spotted that the whole Indeed Labs range (the brand behind Hydraluron) had a third off their normal price, I gave into the hype and popped it into my basket. If you don't know what Hydraluron is, its essentially a 'pre-moisturiser' product that contains hyraluronic acid and helps to seal moisture from your regular moisturiser into your skin. Definitely not an essential product but a nice little luxury and I can't wait to see how it helps my dry skin in the winter months.

Next up are two Soap and Glory products which were also bought thanks to an offer too good to resist. Boots were offering 2 for £15 on any Soap and Glory products which in my opinion is a fabulous little deal, especially if you choose more expensive products. I know, how cunning of me ;). The two 'expensive' products I picked were both for the S&G makeup range and both products I've been eyeing up for a while now - the 'Glow All Out' illuminating powder and Lid Stuff 'What's Nude' eyeshadow quad. Considering the face powder costs £11 on its own - I couldn't say no to the eyeshadow palette for only £4 instead of £10. Bargain! I haven't tried the eyeshadows yet but the illuminating powder is beautiful. Keep and eye out for full reviews on both.

Now I'm blaming all you other beauty bloggers out there for influencing these next two purchases - Vaseline 'Aloe Fresh' Spray & Go body moisturiser and 'Cherry Me' baby lips lip balm. Both of these products have been hot on the blogging scene lately and although I've read mixed reviews of both, they're both cheap as chips so I had to snap them up to see what I think for myself. I won't say too much as again, I'll be reviewing these products in full soon but I'm totally in love with one of them.

Lastly, I spotted this Garnier Moisture Match 'Protect and Glow' moisturiser on special offer in my local Boots store whilst buying my mum some last minute birthday presents. It was reduced to only £4.99 and after falling in love with all the cute squeezy bottles and various fragrances (there's a whole range of the moisture match moisturisers designed for various skin needs), I couldn't walk away without taking one with me. I loved the look of them all to be honest but I decided on the 'illuminate' version in the end as I'm always willing to try a product that claims to give my skin that infamous glow. It also helps that it smells absolutely incredible. Seriously, I could sniff this stuff all day. I've been loving this product ever since I got it so expect a rave review soon.

Have you been shopping at Boots lately? Have you tried any of these products?

Lots of Love,

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