Friday 30 March 2012

Elemis pro intense eye and lip contour cream

Good evening and happy Friday!

Tonight I am going to tell you about the latest product I am testing in my fight to banish the wrinkles around my eyes - Elemis pro intense eye and lip contour cream.

Previously I have reviewed Liz Earle eye cream and Clinique  eye cream but am still to find my perfect eye cream!

So this month it's the turn of Elemis to take the spotlight!




This is a great pump action bottle, so no spillages. This bottle is 15 ml which normally retails for a whopping £58. You can buy the product from the time to spa website.


The cream is white and quite thick. It is very easy to apply and you don't need very much at all to cover the entire eye area. The product boasts 'firmer, plumper, redensified eye area'. So what did I think?

The product is as quality as the price tag may suggest. The easy application, and soaking in to the skin rivals any of the other less expensive creams I have tested. It also is extremely gentle, and there is no stinging of the eyes which I sometimes experience with high street brands.

The difference to my eye area after just a week of using this product is phenomenal. As the description of the product suggests a 'more remodelled and youthful look' it definitely delivers this and more. The eye area appears plumper, and wrinkles are temporally banished, I love this product!!

The negatives? It has to be the price tag. Although this little bottle would last a while, it is still a lot of money, however you do get what you pay for, and this is a quality product that actually delivers on its claims.

Score out of 10?

It's got to be 9.5. Elemis have done it a again, a product with natural ingredients but made with the cutting edge of science.

However, my quest does not end here...The price tag really makes this a product I would treat myself to once a year, rather than something I could afford to repeat purchase every month. So, can I find something that delivers these results, at a more wallet friendly price?? Watch this space...

Stay beautiful

Stace x

Tuesday 27 March 2012

Do blondes have more fun?

It's that time of the month again where we hand the blog over to Stace's sister Sam, where she talks about what's beautiful for her at the moment. Today it's all about hair!

Find out more about Sam here.


Before my birthday this year I decided to have a change of hair colour.... Now I have been thinking about this for quite a while (at least a couple of years but I don’t really like change).
I was spurred on by a Groupon voucher for my salon – a cut and colour for £24. Bargain! The salon I use is called Flaunt and it is a college salon with a difference; it runs like a commercial salon and the students are Level 3s or apprentices. I started going as I was involved with the launch when I worked at the Bournemouth and Poole College and was very pleased with the maturity of the students and their skill level that I have carried on going there.


Oli was the young lad that cut my hair previously so I booked in with him again. Prior to my appointment I did the usual thing; looked through some hair style magazines, asked some friend’s opinions and noticed that suddenly everyone’s hair was brown too! I found a colour I really liked on the front of a magazine that had some hints of blonde showing through the brunette, so I took this with me. 
We chose the colour from their chart based on this image – and using the highlights I currently had, they added an all over golden brown colour and then when it was being washed out they added a few more subtle lighter golden brown highlights.


Sam's new hair colour!


The outcome – as you can see a very golden shiny brown colour with subtle tones of golden blonde through it. I love my new hair colour and so does everyone else (well that’s what they tell me anyway!) Not sure if I will stay this colour as I think one day I will revert back to blonde (not because they have more fun though!)


To help maintain the colour my sister got me a pack for my birthday of John Frieda Brilliant Brunette Moisturising Chocolate Espresso shampoo and conditioner. 


John Frieda brilliant brunette


This has left my hair in great condition; it is really sleek getting rid of the bits of frizz that I have always had (hoorah). One downside is the design of the bottles – they are a screw lid which is really fiddly to use when you’re in the shower (and frustrating after dropping the lid a few times). I thought this was just the miniature versions but after looking in the shops it appears the large ones are this style too (although disappointed I have still bought the large versions as they were on offer). The usual price for each of the Shampoo and Conditioner is about £5.50. It works as a lightener so it has really accentuated the blonde highlights from underneath giving the brown a beautiful blonde sheer.
If you have been thinking about a change of hair colour I would definitely recommend it for the new season and keep an eye out on your local Groupon site as there seems to be lots of salon offers popping up!


Sam x


Thanks Sam! I fancy trying this shampoo collection myself now! Have you recently changed your hair colour? Or have you used this range from John Frieda? We love to read your comments so please let us know by commenting below!


Stace & Mags x

Thursday 22 March 2012

The Vitality Show 2012 – our beauty paradise!


Today we visited the ‘oh-so-awaited’ Vitality Show at Earls Court 2 and loved every bit of the day! This year’s show exceeded expectations and was so much better than the last one!!

On the door, we’ve received a show planner which comes with a coupon to get a free goody bag when you enter your details! That was a nice touch and there was plenty of ‘free bags’ offers with any magazine purchases. We bought Top Sante, Zest and Healthy. 


We were so excited that the bareMinerals were sponsoring this year’s Show and came with the focus to spend more time at their beauty pod, to learn a few make-up tricks. They were also offering some discounted products with a few exclusives:

Champagne Diamond collection by bareMinerals

I’ve got the Champagne Diamond collection, which I’ll review at a later date. The collection includes: Mineral Veil 3g, Champagne Diamond Radiance 0.85g, Rose Diamond blush, Smoky Diamond eye-liner, Flawless Diamond eyecolor, full size lipgloss in Brilliance and two brushes – all for £36. Stace has got three mini eye-liners, which she’ll review later on, and mascara duo which she’d already loved and reviewed!

The highlight of the day was to meet Sarah Jane Froom and Lee Etheridge from the bareMinerals:


We’ve also watched SJ give a makeunder to a blogger Zoe Griffin from the Live Like a VIP blog! SJ used the Champagne Diamond collection and it was so interesting to see how easy and effortless the products are applied and the final look was amazing!





The only slight disappointment was that there were no bareMinerals samples in the Vitality Show’s free goody bag. As a sponsor of the Show, we thought, it’d be great for any new customers to have a chance to try the products! However, there were plenty of occasions to have a free makeunder at the bareMinerals beauty pod and we hope lots of the new, and also the acquainted, customers took advantage of that!

Other than that, there are plenty of different stands to see. From the beauty products, to healthy foods and fitness. There are lots of different food stands, which we didn’t stray from and munched on some healthy snacks and samples! Lots of those!

We’ve also visited the lovely (but tiny so don’t miss it!) stand of the Juicy Lucy Designs! You can get a goody bag for £10 which is worth over £30! That’s what comes in the lovely canvas bag:


We’ve also came across some Elemis products and couldn’t just walk away, so ended up purchasing that amazing Little Superstar top-to-toe spa treats - all for £20! They’re perfect for those weekend trips away! And they come in that cute pink beauty bag:



Overall we’ve absolutely loved the Vitality Show today! Would definitely recommend you all going, if you can! It’s an amazing experience! It’s like heaven on earth for all the beauty lovers!

Stay beautiful!

Mags & Stace xx

Wednesday 21 March 2012

bareMinerals return to radiance

Evening all!
Tomorrow Mags and I are off to the Vitality show in Earls Court, one of my favourite beauty events of the year, and this year, bareMinerals are the lead sponsor! And tying in nicely with that, I have just received my bareMinerals package from QVC containing the TSV from the weekend 'Return to radiance'. Although Mags and I would like to review some of the items in more detail, I couldn't resist giving you all a quick sneak peek as to what was in there!

Pure transformation night treatment

The brand new Prime Time neutralising
foundation primer

Original SPF 15 foundation - this is a full size pot!
Fairly light to allow for a possible Summer tan

SPF concealer in bisque

Maximum coverage concealer brush and
 flawless application brush

Prime Time primer shadow

Natural lipgloss in starfruit

And if that wasn't enough, two sachet
samples of cleanser and moisturiser 
All this was such good value for £39.99 Plus p&p, and I can't wait to start trying all the products! Have you used any of these products before and what did you think?

We will be back at the end of the week letting you know what we thought of the Vitality Show, are you going this weekend? If you are enjoy!

Stay beautiful!

Stace x

Friday 16 March 2012

bareMinerals on QVC TSV!

If you stop over to our blog regularly you will know that we are both fans of:

a. bareMinerals
b. a good old bargain!

So we have both been waiting patiently for the much anticipated QVC bareMinerals TSV, which launches at midnight tonight. For those of you who aren't familiar with QVC, the TSV, or Today's Special Value is exactly that, a great brand at an amazing price. It is a great chance to try a new brand like bareMinerals for the first time as you get a few items from the range, for a great price.

The content of the TSV is rumoured to be as follows:

bareMinerals 6 piece Return to Radiance Collection with Brushes
  • Full size lip gloss
  • Full size eye primer (3ml)
  • Night treatment (2g)
  • Skin primer (30ml)
  • Full size foundation in a choice of colours
  • Small concealer
  • Full coverage face brush
  • Concealer brush
Phew! That's a lot, and if you added up what that would retail for separately it would be a lot more than the rumoured price of below £40 (excluding p&p). 

It is also worth noting that the skin primer is a new product which is available for the first time on QVC!

To find out full, exact details of this amazing offer, tune in to QVC from midnight (shows also run throughout Saturday). QVC is found on - Freeview 16, Sky 640, Virgin 740, Freesat 800.

We will definitely be purchasing these and will do full reviews of the products soon!

Stay Beautiful!

Stace & Mags x




Thursday 15 March 2012

Jessica nail polish

Good evening!
Hope your weeks are all going well, Friday tomorrow! A quick post from me tonight, following the theme of nail polish which seems to be a favourite at the moment for myself and Mags!
A few weeks ago a friend gave me a lovely, thoughtful 'thank you' gift, and she picked well as it was a nail polish in my favourite colour!
The make 'Jessica' I had not personally tried before, but seen it used at many salons, so I was really excited to try this!


The nail polish came in this pretty little gift box, making it feel ultra special!




The colour is 'Pretty in Purple'  
I really liked the nail polish application, really quick to dry and easy to apply, and the end result is a really glossy high end finish.


I also really like this colour! It is different and more striking to the pastels I keep finding myself wearing these days, and I think it would work well both night and day.


The end result:





I really like this make of nail polish and would love to try some more of their colours! You can find their website here: http://www.jessicacosmetics.com/

Have you tried Jessica nail polish before and what did you think? Please let us know!


Stay beautiful!


Stace x

Monday 12 March 2012

MUA in teal - Spring is calling!

With the gorgeous sunny weather we are having in the UK at the moment, it's hard not to get caught up in all these yummy pastels that are adorning the high street.


Tonight I thought I would share with you my latest purchase from one of my fave high street brands, Make Up Academy (MUA) available in most Superdrug stores.


At only a pound for each of these items, you really can't go wrong!


Eye dust from MUA in shade 3
The eye dust has a gorgeous, teal colour, reminding me of a Tiffany's bag! It really shimmers and catches the light, with quite a deep pigmentation, which is great considering the price!


This gorgeous teal colour of the nail polish is shade 5


The nail polish that MUA stock is a favourite of mine, easy to apply and long lasting, and at £1 each you can never have too many!! This colour is really subtle, it's not too bright, and perfect to match with aqua blues in the Spring wardrobe.

Look how well the two colours match!

I had a quick play with the eye dust and came up with the below look. I love how it frames my eye, and highlights my eye colour, yet isn't too bright! I can't wait to wear this out to enjoy bright Spring days!




I am still quite early on in my discovery of MUA, so please recommend any other products you think are worth trying as I will be sure to try them out!


Thanks for reading and stay beautiful!


Stace x

Friday 9 March 2012

Tangle Teezer - does it really work?

Happy Friday to you all!
After a great week of OPI collections from Mags, tonight I am going to turn my attentions to hair. I recently won a Tangle Teezer in a Twitter competition. I love Twitter competitions, so easy to enter and a great way for brands to interact with their customers. @tangleteezer asked their followers to describe their hair, my response:

'My hair is like an out of control, unruly teenager, it does what it wants and I spend half my life worrying about it.'

To truly test this product, there is no greater hair to put it through its paces than mine. Thick, long, salon coloured once every 8 weeks, actual hair cuts only two a year, hair dryer or straighteners used on it everyday. It's fair to say my hair is not in great condition...

And so enter, the Tangle Teezer...


The Tangle Teezer packaging


The Tangle Teezer is available in different colours from their website www.tangleteezer.com and retails for about £10. This to me seemed quite steep for what is essentially a piece of plastic, but I had an open mind as I had not paid for this one.

The hair guide which describes the hair care
The Tangle Teezer has some high claims to live up to it has to be said, delivering no more tangles, healthy hair and more shine?


I was fairly non-impressed when I first took the Tangle Teezer out of the packaging.



It really doesn't take a great photograph as it isn't the sexiest product out there!





It is small enough to be held by one hand and very light. There are fine bristles of different heights that make up the brush part. It's fair to say that I had low hopes for the product. But how did it perform?


If my hair is a nightmare to brush when it is dry, it's ten times worse when wet, so that is when I first used it. And impressed I was!! I normally spend ten minutes dragging a wide tooth comb through my knotted hair, reducing myself nearly to tears in the process. This brushed through the knots first time, 30 seconds, done. Yes there are sometimes trickier knots to get through, but this little beauty has proven an amazing time saver in the mornings.


So, let's check, claim one: no more tangles, tick.


Claim two, healthy hair. Now I don't know if my hair is healthier, but looking at the hair that breaks off into my Tangle Teezer, compared to my old brush, there is far less.


And claim three, more shine, this delivers every time. Now in the mornings I don't wash my hair, a quick go over with the Tangle Teezer, and I'm shined up and ready to go!


I am really in love with this product! Of course it won't work for every type of hair, and the cost seems expensive to start with, but now I know what I know, I would fork out the £10 to buy this product.


A product that saves time and produces beautiful results? That's a winning combination for me!


Have you tried the Tangle Teezer yet? What did you think? Or do you have another product that delivers results on abused hair? Please let us know by commenting!


Thanks for reading and stay beautiful!


Stace x

Wednesday 7 March 2012

Touring America with OPI collection


I used to live in the US and going back to visit friends again is on my list of things to do! However, before I go into the huge expense; pack my bags and get on with the trip, I’ve decided to go on the memory lane and quickly review the closest thing I can get to Touring America, which is the mini OPI Collection.



In this set you get four beautiful, full of colour nail lacquers; with the most groovy names on earth: My Address is ‘Hollywood’, French Quarter for Your Thoughts, A-taupe the Space Needle and Honk If You Love OPI!

From left to right: My Address is ‘Hollywood’, French Quarter for Your Thoughts, A-taupe the Space Needle and Honk If You Love OPI


Each of the colours is very deep and sumptuous! I usually use two coats on each nail to obtain the best result and to make sure that the product won’t chip in the next hour…or day! The OPI colours do last a few days, even without using the top coat!! Last even longer when the top coat is applied!

I’ve taken photos with and without a flash to show the closest representation of each colour:

My Address is ‘Hollywood’ – this pretty rose-pink colour is full of shimmer and looks very sophisticated on the nails! Perfect for a quick lunch with the girlies or a night out!

My Address is 'Hollywood' - photo taken with a flash


My Address is 'Hollywood' - photo taken without a flash


French Quarter for Your Thoughts – this sexy grey shade is fantastic for any occasion, from a shopping trip to an important dinner with the boss. As it’s a neutral colour it goes with a lot of things, too! 

French Quarter for Your Thoughts - photo taken with a flash


French Quarter for Your Thoughts - photo taken withou a flash


A-taupe the Space Needle – this creamy-rich taupe is great to wear for a dress down or dress up days! Remember, any occasion is great to have well-manicured and polished nails!

A-taupe the Space Needle - photo taken with a flash
A-taupe the Space Needle - photo taken without a flash

Honk If You Love OPI – this delicious dark grape colour will never go without a notice; so it’s  best for a party!

Honk If You Love OPI - photo taken with a flash
Honk If You Love OPI - photo taken without a flash

My favourite colour from the Touring America collection is the A-taupe the Space Needle! The colour looks so rich on the nails and it’s nothing I’ve used to wear before. What is your favourite colour from this collection or from the whole range of OPI nail colours? Let us know by leaving a comment or on twitter @beautyu.

Stay beautiful!

Mags xx