Recent hauls!

Hey lovelies!

I've been on quite a few shopping trips recently, what with being back in loverly Derbados (Derby, if you're new) for uni and also having my student loan come through. 

This isn't everything I've bought- there's been a student lockdown and quite a few Topshop purchases since these, so those things might be up in a later post if I can get myself organised enough!

First off... I made a little trip to the Build-a-bear factory on a day out with my friends. This is Dutchess Lily Windor III, and she's so soft and fluffy! Definitely my favourite purchase, my mum's even knitting her a winter jumper because I wasn't entirely convinced by my outfit choice!

I've also stocked up on face wipes- I know these aren't overly interesting but I don't actually use them very regularly. I use the green pack for make up removal after nights out (not sure I can handle Liz Earle cleanse and polish when I'm still a little drunk) and the radience brightening pack to cleanse my skin after a make up free day.

Two of my favourite purchases! These leggins are from Primark for £6, I believe they're of the 'pleather' material?! I'm not 100%, but they're so much cosier to wear than they look! This hat is from River Island for £13, only I got it discounted because of last months ELLE. I've basically not been separated from it since I bought it, it's so cosy!

My beautiful new full length mirror from IKEA! I only wanted a basic one so I could actually see my full outfit in a mirror, and this was around £16.

A cute little vanilla candle I picked up from IKEA with my mirror- it was only 95p but smells so gorgeous! I totally recommend this if you're looking for a couple of cheap candles, I might have to go back just to get more of these!

I've been a little bath bomb crazy now I live in a house again and have a bath- I've not used all of these yet but I'll be posting reviews soon!

From spending so much time in Lush, the employees are starting to recognise me, so I've been getting freebies! I'm reviewing these three testers, which are part of a cleansing routine.

I hope you enjoyed seeing my recent hauls- you might have also noticed my new photo backdrop, the blanket on my bed! It's literally been a life saver, and was only £15 from Primark! If you're in need of a decent winter blanket, I've not been cold at all since I bought this a few weeks ago.

n xx

LUSH Eau Roma Water toner review!

Hey lovelies!

I'm doing a three part review on a Lush cleansing routine- if you missed the first post it's here, along with my skin type and what I was asked before I was given these particular products!

The products

Angels on Bare Skin cleanser

Eau Roma Water toner

Vanishing Cream moisturiser

Eau de Roma toner

Lush say;

"Kind aromatherapy water to cherish your face

Close your eyes tightly and spritz directly onto the face and leave to dry. Can be used for removing traces of cleansers and face products – but can also be used at any time of the day as a quick facial refresher or to cool the face."

Out of the three samples that I was given, I think this product was my favourite. To use after the cleanser, which is easy to miss completely washing off, this makes sure that you've washed your face totally. A simple toner, it didn't leave my skin feeling overly tight, instead leaving it feeling fresh and clean. The smell is only a light fragrance, adding to the feeling of your skin being refreshed.

I think this is the most likely product for me to repurchase in the future, as I think I'd like it more when used with another cleanser. I did, however, notice from a few days of using these two products in combination with each other that my skin was looking a lot healthier and more naturally glowing (without being shiny). I'm naturally a bit prone to blackheads, particularly around my nose, but the combination of these made them appear less noticeable and also reduced them slightly.

I have slightly sensitive skin, so this was the product I was most worried about using, but Lush have proved to my skin once again that their all natural products aren't ones that tend to make my skin flare up.

You can buy the full size in a small or large;

£3.95 for 100g

£7.50 for 250g

link here

I'll have the final review for the moisturiser up in another few days!

n xx

Sunday life #5

Hey lovelies!

I've had such a busy week! I'd tell you more about it but it's actually mostly been super boring uni work- second year is so much harder already and I've only been back a few weeks! Apart from uni work I've just been trying to keep on top of blogging and spending time with my friends. I've finally given in to caffeine- I gave up coffee for around 5 months, but vanilla lattes are very safely starting to be stock piled in my cupboard.

Yesterday I got to spend the day in Birmingham with my sister, and though I didn't buy enough to do a proper haul (I got a face scrub and halloween bath bomb) I'll put up reviews in a few weeks! I also had a look for some giveaway pieces that I'll be sharing more about for autumn!

Recently I also went shopping in Nottingham, made lemon cupcakes with buttercream icing, collected conkers, found a new love for muller yoghurt, found a phone case and went to a house party :)

Here's a few photos of what I've been up to, if you'd like to see more my instagram is nikkiyvonne_ :)

Happy sunday lovelies!

n xx

Herbal Essences- bee strong review!

Hey lovelies!

This is a review I've been meaning to post for absolutely ages! 

I saw all the adverts for the Herbal Essences bee strong range, and at the time my hair was so dry it felt like it was falling to pieces. I was looking for a deep conditioner to start helping it get back to a better condition, and I decided to pick up the strengthening intensive mask.

 I liked the look of this because mainly I was looking to strengthen my hair back up, as changing from soft water at uni to hard water at home was mostly to blame for the damage- when I first started using it I wasn't using any heat at all on it.

I also picked this one up because it sounded like a nice smell because of the 'honey & apricot extracts for damaged hair'.

I picked it up from Boots for £4.19 (link here)

I used it around once a week instead of my normal conditioner, leaving it in for a few minutes to do some magic. I could feel a difference from the first wash. Normally after washing out conditioner my hair still felt noticeably dry and unhealthy. 

After washing this out, my hair didn't feel 100% better, but it was clearly softer and not as coarse as it had started to sometimes feel. In the summer I was leaving my hair to dry naturally, and once it was dry the couple of days after using this my hair had a much healthier look; it was smoother, softer and glossier.

Since coming back to uni I've been using a lot more heat on my hair so I'm still using this, and I've noticed exactly the same qualities.

My hair is looking a hundred times healthier than it did a few months ago, and it more regularly looks healthy and softer than it did before using this. Plus, as I guessed it might be, the smell is amazing and I'm in love with it! I can always smell it on my hair after using it, which is so lovely!

I'll definitely be repurchasing this in the future when I run out, purely because I love what it's been doing to my hair! 

Have you tried this? What are your thoughts on the bee strong range?

n xx

LUSH Angels on Bare Skin review!

Hello lovelies!

The other week when I was out shopping with my sister, we made a sneaky trip to Lush. I picked up a special edition bath bomb (I'll have a review coming soon!) and one of the Lush employees, who has gotten to recognising me was lovely enough to give us both a four day sample of a morning skincare routine. 

He asked me questions about my skin (dry combination), if I have any sensitive, particularly red or problem areas (my nose is all of these, yay rudolph skin), and finally how I like my skin to feel after I've cleansed it first thing- dewey or matte (I went for matte because I can get shiny if I'm not careful).

This was the combination that he suggested I try! He gave my sister the same because we have the same skin, minus the rudolph nose.

The products

Angels on Bare Skin cleanser

Eau Roma Water toner

Vanishing Cream moisturiser

Angels on Bare Skin cleanser

Lush say;

"As gentle and beautiful as being kissed by angels

Sometimes the best ideas are the old ones. This cleanser is based on an age old formula that uses the best of ingredients to amazing effects. Angels on Bare Skin evens out skin tone, reduces redness and improves the health and appearance of your skin – giving a natural healthy glow. The ground almonds in this product release their goodness and turn to an almond milk on your hand when you add water."

My initial impression of this was that I really love it. It has exfoliating beads in it that activate as you work this into your skin, having made it a little damp first to form more of a paste. It felt nice on my skin without being to harsh, but wasn't light enough to leave my skin feeling like it hadn't been cleansed. I expected it to be a lot more bitty than it was, because of it's appearance in the pot. Texture-wise it was nice but as I was using it more I liked the smell a little less. I can't place exactly what the scent is (possibly something to do with the almonds?!), but it's not entirely my cup of tea!

A bonus of this was that the tiny sample pot has lasted forever- I was given a four day sample but also shown how much to use, and it's ended up lasting me 8-9 days. For a high street cleanser it's a little more expensive, but I would guess that the 250g pot could easily last 2 months, if not longer.

I'm not completely sure that I'd repurchase this, mostly because of my dislike of the smell, but it's certainly spiked my interest in Lush cleansers, so I might try and nab more samples!

Full size £15.87 for 250g

link here

I'm reviewing these one at a time so look out for my next post over the next couple of days!

n xx