Clinique Bloggers Event Cardiff

I recently got invited to a bloggers event hosted by Clinique. The event was earlier on today and was in Boots, Cardiff. I really love going to blogger events as you get to meet some fantastic people as well as checking out some awesome products. Clinique is one of those brands where I have tried one or two products but haven't really looked at the entire range. This event was a great opportunity to try a lot of new stuff.

The event was held off the shop floor in a room that was fantastically decorated for this event. Once we were all checked in we were all shown to a room that had quite a lot of products to try as well as loads of brushes and applicators. I just love these beauty events where you get to sit down and experiment with all the colors. It really does let you get a feel for the range.

After a quick introduction about Clinique we were told about all of the products and the best way to use them. Apart from a big range of makeup, Clinique is well known for it's range of skincare, suited to all different skin types.

I once tried Clinique's 3 step skincare programme a few years back. My skin really didn't take to it and the clarifying lotion I was recommended was completely the wrong one for my skin type and even hurt to use. It stung so bad it felt like acid and I had to wash it off. Fortunately I decided to give Clinique another try and this event was a perfect opportunity to see the full range on offer. I was told that 3 step isn't for everyone (I happen to be one of those people) and that there was a more suitable range for my skin type that is much gentler and without alcohol. 

The skin products I tried on my skin earlier on did feel much better than the ones I had tried a few years back and I will be going back to the Clinique counter for a skin consultation.

After skincare it was time to check out the makeup. Clinique offer a full range of foundation along with a good range of color. Even for people like me who love something a little less ordinary there was plenty of colors for me to choose from.

Using all of the products on offer I was able to create a makeup look for myself. I was really impressed with their Beyond Perfection Foundation And Concealer. It gave me full coverage and blended into the skin nicely. I also liked using their new Foundation Buff Brush which felt awesome to apply foundation with and gave my skin that nice glow.

Products I used

My look

At the event we were all given a fantastic goody bag with some smaller sized products as well as some samples. One of the products was the primer I had used earlier on. I loved the feel of it and i'm very happy there was one in the goody bag.

I really enjoyed the event and thought it was fantastic. It was a great introduction for me to Clinque and a great opportunity to try new products. Thanks Clinique. 

Gold Eyes With Dior

If you love metallic colors for the eyes then Dior's Addict Fluid Eyeshadow is right up your street. A few weeks ago when having a makeover at Dior I was shown this fantastic gold colored eyeshadow. I love anything metallic and it looked awesome on which is why I had to get myself one of these.

It's a liquid eyeshadow and comes in packaging very similar to Dior Addict Lipglosses. There are quite a few colors to choose from and the one I went for was called Phenix. For the fan of anything gold, this is a color you must own.

Creams and liquid eyeshadows can take some getting used to and they do tend to have quite a bad reputation for creasing and coming off. This is why it is very important to use a good quality eye primer. The best two I have tried are Urban Decay's Primer Potion and NARS Smudge Proof Shadow Base. Out of the two my must have is the NARS one. Without a primer there is a high chance of the eyeshadow creasing, especially cream and liquid products. Without a primer this one will definitely crease even if it is a high end brand. I wore it with and without a primer and you will notice the difference.

I wore it again with a primer and found it is the only way to wear this product. It has a nice light texture to it and doesn't feel too runny or too thick. The consistency is just right. The best way to apply it is to dab to color onto the eyes using the applicator and then using a eyeshadow brush to blend it on and set it in place. The pigment is amazing too and I didn't really need to use more than two coats on my eyes to get them to glow. As this is a liquid eyeshadow you do have to sort of keep your eyes closed for around a minute to make sure the color has dried. There is nothing worse than opening your eyes too quickly before it has had time to dry.

There was virtuallly no creasing when I had my eyeshadow primer on underneath. I applied it in the morning and it was still looking good later on in the day. Metallics are an amazing color choice and this gold is no exception. I'm really happy with the product and wouldn't mind getting more colors from this range.

I decided to pair the color with a nude lip and wore Charlotte Tilbury's Very Victoria. Both colors went great together.

Yankee Candle Beach Holiday

Beach Holiday is one of those scents from Yankee Candle that are unfortunately discontinued. I'd been looking for this candle for a while and I managed to get it when I went to the Yankee store in McArthur Glen. I decided to get it in a small jar candle and is one of those scents that are perfect for Spring and Summer. 

Described as "Like a vacation by the shore anytime." This scent is a great one to get you feeling all summery. Once the scent started to appear this one immediately took me to long warm days at the beach and going into the ocean. It's a really nice clean, fresh scent and a great one to have.

It's a shame this one is discontinued as it is such a wonderful scent. This summer Yankee should be bringing out even more fantastic scents. 

Gray Lips With Smashbox

If you read my blog you will know that I am a fan of unusual colored lipsticks. Earlier on I reviewed two of NYX's Macaron Lipsticks so now I'm going to tell you about this really awesome lipstick I got from Smashbox.

It's from their matte lipstick collection and is called Punked. It's a gray color and a very unusual one. I haven't seen many gray lipsticks around, even though I've seen many other unusual colors from all different brands. I've seen a lot of blacks, greens and blues but hardly ever gray. The last time I managed to get a lipgloss in this color was quite a few years ago from Illamasqua.

My friend who works at Smashbox first told me about this color. She wears it extremely well and when I tried it on I loved it right away. Unfortunately they didn't have any left in Newport, so when I was shopping in Cardiff last week I stopped by at the Smashbox counter there. They had quite a few left so I grabbed myself one.

The pigment is amazing and even though it is a matte it doesnt feel at all dry on the lips. It glides on smoothly too and gives plenty of intense color. I'm really loving the gray lips too, it is such an amazing color and one I will definately keep wearing. If you are a bit unsure of whether gray will look good on you I definitely recommend going to a Smashbox counter and trying some on.

It didn't really need reapplying throughout the day either and once on it stayed on.

I do like a good lip liner too and unfortunately Smashbox don't have a matching one to go with this color. The woman on the counter did recommend me their Always Sharp Waterproof Eyeliner in gray as it matches the lipstick. Even though it is an eyeliner it can also be used on the lips too.

To use just twist the lid and you're good to go. It's one of those self sharpening ones too so whenever you replace the lid the color gets sharpened for you. It had a nice creamy texture to it and kept my lipstick in place all day.

NYX Macaron Lipsticks - Lavender and Key Lime

If any of you are familiar with NYX you will know that they do a fantastic range of lipsticks in many different colors. One particular color collection I'm really liking is their Macaron Lippies. They are basically a collection of lipsticks in pastel sort of shades along with some really funky colors like blue and purple. I have a few of these already and I was eager to add some more to my collection. I'm also a fan of really unusual colored lipsticks and the Macaron range has plenty to choose from.

I got on E Bay two colors from the collection - Lavender and Key Lime. Lavender is your sort of lavender purple while Key Lime is a bright green color. Both colors are great for Spring and Summer and not for the faint hearted. Although the Lavender is more of a conventional color out of the two.

Lavender
This one is a really pretty color and is more pastelly toned. It does come out quite intense and out in the sunlight it does show up nice and bright. If you love your purple tones, this is definitely a color for you. The Macaron lippies do have a nice creamy texture to them, although they will need building up if you like your color really intense. It didn't take long for me to build this one up and once on it stayed on for quite some time before I did need to reapply.

Key Lime
Don't go for Key Lime unless you like experimenting with color. This one is this really awesome green color and is not one for those afraid of color. If like me you like unusual colors, this one is perfect. I paired this one with a green look on this eyes and it looked awesome. Like Lavender this one also had a creamy texture and did need building up. I did find throughout the day I did need to reapply it as some of it had come off. For some reason it didn't last as long on the lips as Lavender. It is still a great color and one I am proud to have in my collection.

The NYX Macaron range is fantastic and also great if you are on a budget as it isn't expensive either. My favorite out of the two had to be Lavender, because I love my pinks and purples. I really liked Key Lime too as it is a fantastic unusual color. The best way to buy NYX is online on their website, although I'm not sure if they still have these lipsticks in stock. E Bay is another good choice as I have bought Macaron lipsticks before on there.

Yankee Candle Orange Dreamsicle

The other month I stopped by the Yankee Candle store at McArthur Glen in Bridgend. I'm really loving my scented candles, especially those from Yankee. The store there had many different scents and some really hard to find ones from collections gone by. One of the candles that really caught my eye was Orange Dreamsicle. It's one of those large jar candles and is apparently scented like orange ice lollies. It seemed like a very interesting scent which is why I had to put one in my basket.

The large jar candles from Yankee give an incredibly long burn time with up to 150 hours. The scent started to appear in around 20 - 30 minutes and gave off hints of orange. The longer I left it burn the scent did get stronger and is definitely a great one for the summer. It was so refreshing and immediately reminded me of days at the beach cooling down on a nice ice lolly. It wasn't extremely orangey but had a scent similar to Orange Crush soda. 

This scent is a little gem and unfortunately quite hard to find now. Some Yankee stores, especially those at outlets may have this one left. I'm really glad I got this one when I did.

Miss Patisserie Easter Egg Bath Bombs

Easter has now gone and although most of us may have eaten all our wonderful chocolate eggs, Miss Patisserie was one beauty/skincare brand that offered non chocolate Easter Eggs. Along with Lush, Miss P brought out a range of egg bath bombs. For those not wanting chocolate, these non chocolate eggs are great.

The eggs came in two different versions - a pale pink one and a darker pink. Compared to other Miss P bath bombs these ones definitely look a bit smaller, but are really unique as they look just like easter eggs. You use them in exactly the same way as their regular ones, just drop into a nice warm bath.

Both eggs look amazing, and you can tell just by looking at them that they will probably make a very colorful bath.

Out of the two I don't really have a favorite as both bath bombs gave amazing color. Once dropped into the bath they started to fizz quite fast before all different shades of pink started to swirl around. The darker egg did bring out some really bright shades in the bath and looked amazing. Some of Miss P's bath bombs can take a while to completely fizz. These ones are some of their faster working ones and take around a minute to completely fizz.

Light Pink

Dark Pink

Fun Spring Bathtime with Lush

This Spring Lush released some fantastic bath time products that really do look unique. Spring and Easter really start to see new products with some reappearing from last year. Two of their products that I thought did look quite novel are bubble bars but not in your standard bubble bar format. From the Spring collection - Flowering Tea. Easter - Bunch Of Carrots. I've never seen Flowering Tea before but I do remember the Bunch Of Carrots from last year's Easter collection. The only difference with the carrots is, instead of being all orange, there is a mixture of color.

So now onto these wonderful Spring goodies.

Flowering Tea
Who would have thought you could get a tea bag for the bath. I wouldn't normally think it was possible either, but it is Lush and they are known to bring out some weird and wonderful products, not many other brands would even consider. Flowering Tea is just one of those products and is a bubble bar shaped just like a tea bag. To make it look even more like a tea bag it comes complete with a label and string, allowing you to dunk it into the bath. This brand of tea happens to be called Bath Dunk. Very appropriate for a bath full of tea. You use it just like a tea bag, swish and dunk it, its really up to you. It gives a good amount of bubbles too and leaves the water a cloudy white. The best bit - it's reusable too so you can have another bath with it. It's got a really nice floral scent to it, perfect for Spring.

Bunch Of Carrots
If you saw last year's Easter collection you will remember Bunch Of Carrots. They are basically a bunch of three carrots, and to use them you swish them around running water and wait for loads of bubbles to appear. Instead of being all orange like last year, you get a mix of colors. You get one orange, purple and pink. I'm not sure if I prefer them this color or all orange. Either way they do look nice and colorful and can be reused for more baths. Unfortunately now unavailable as they were limited edition for Easter.

Miss Patisserie Daisy Chain Body Scrub

Anyone who gets dry skin really understands the benefits of using a good scrub to get the skin feeling really nice and soft. Many brands offer different scrubs and last year Miss Patisserie opened a store in Cardiff. 

They offer sugar scrubs and coffee scrubs. I've never really tried a coffee scrub, although I really would like to try them. When I was shopping in store I decided to check out their range of sugar scrubs. They do them in a range of different scents and in the store they actually have a sink where you can put your hands under and try the products on your skin. This is great as trying before you buy is really important. More and more skincare brands are putting sinks or access to water in their shops including Lush, Basin, Body Shop and this brand too.

After trying a few of the scents, the one I liked best was Daisy Chain. It comes in a nice see through tub with a lid you can actually flip open. To use just flip the sides up and there you have your product. I once bought a scrub from Basin that had exactly the same packaging. When Body Shop had their Africa Spa Body Butter the packaging was the same too. Sadly that product is now long gone. I really like the design as it is really easy to use and looks great too.

I did notice that the scrubs do share their names with some of the bath bombs that are in store too. They also offer body butters in the same scent to go with the scrub if you want one to go with it.

Daisy Chain is a nice purple color (don't worry the scrub won't stain your hands). The scent is really nice and floral, perfect for Spring and Summer. I found you don't have to use a lot as a small amount goes quite a long way. The scrub isn't too rough on the skin unlike some scrubs I have tried. After using it, it really does leave your skin feeling nice and soft. This is probably because of the vitamin e, sweet almond and jojoba oil that comes in it.

These scrubs really do have a bonus too. Moisturising after isn't needed. This must be the only scrub I have used where it isn't necessary to use a moisturizer after. It sort of gives your skin all the moisture it needs even after rinsing with water.

Rainbow River by Miss Patisserie

If you read my blog a lot you will know that I'm a big fan of bath bombs. Lush are one of my favorites for bath bombs and I really like using other brands too. Another brand I know that does a good range is Miss Patisserie. You use them just like any other bath bomb and they do have differences to the Lush ones - color, scent etc.

Miss Patisserie have released some new ones to their collection and one I really liked the look of was Rainbow River. For someone who loves a colorful bath this looked just up my street. It's a blue color with pink and yellow mixed in too. It sort of reminds me of Lush's Intergalactic bath bomb.

I absolutely love this bath bomb, once dropped into the water it creates something truly beautiful. It could be described as bath art (is there such a thing?). Described by Miss Patisserie as 'taking you back to the 70s with a psychedelic bath filled with peace and serenity,' this one is scented with lavender to calm along with a bit of shimmer.

Some of Miss Patisserie's bath bombs do take quite some time to fizz. This one on the other hand works quite fast and once dissolved turns your water a nice blue color.

My favorite part is of course the moment it gets dropped into the water. It fizzes quite fast and makes loads of really nice colorful patterns in the bath. You never know which pattern will appear next and there is no end to the amazing colors.

I do find that the lavender is extremely calming, especially if you are having a bath late at night and want something to get you ready for sleep. It's great also if you have had a really long day and just want to unwind.

I really do hope this bath bomb is a permanent one at Miss Patisserie and I can definitely see myself getting another one of these.