Drugstore Haul of Fame

I just thought I will so a quick post to show you guys some of the things that I bought in past couple of weeks... I had been lusting after most of these things for such a long time...Finally I decided to give in.

There were some very good offers last week. First one being the Boots 3 for 2 across all make -up and other one being  buy any 3 for £10 across quite a few hair-care products.

Barry M Jelly Hi-Shine Nail Paints in Lychee, BlueBerry and Pomegranate. These babies have been proving very popular in the bloggerville and I finally surrendered to the call of these small shiny bottles..I have treid Lychee and Blueberry on so-far and I loved them both. My only gripe is that since these are thicker nail polishes, the thin brush makes it difficult to apply.. Let me know if you want a detailed review with swatches.. These are available at boots or Superdrug and are priced at 3.99. I got it when they were on buy 2 get £1 off. I also picked up Barry M Foil effect Gold as I love the silver one that I have for Konad stamping.

Revlon Nearly Naked Make-up : Again another very popular product. I had to get this as I prefer the light to medium coverage foundations and this sounded just right for me. I got it in shade True Beige. I tried it as soon as I got it home and I love the finish. It is really very light and will be perfect for summer.

Real Techniques Brushes : I didn't have a stippling brush and was happy using a foundation brush for foundations.I had 2 brush sets from Real Techniques and was very happy with them, and because of the 3 for 2 offer, I decided to add these to my collection. I am so glad I did. The stippling brush is just amazingly soft. These were roughly  £12 each...

OPI Euro Centrale Minis set : I had 2 favourites from this collection that I wanted to buy. You are such a Budapest and Polka.com. however when I saw the minis set, I thought I would buy this and then buy Polka.com separately. Will post reviews with swatches later..

John Freida 3-day straight spray and Dream Curls styling spray : I don't have curly hair so I probably shouldn't have got the 3 day straight spray. But it works like a charm and my hair was definitely straight even on the 3rd day. I am yet to try the Dream Curls styling spray. These both are i region of  £6-7 . However, because of the offer in Asda, I got it for approx 3.33 which was not a bad deal at all... (The third thing I bought was an Aussie shampoo)

Tangle Teezer. I have been trying to grow my hair long for some time now. Since I have got fine hair, I find it difficult to detangle without a lot of it ending up in the comb. There were so many good reviews of this , that it had to end up in my shopping basket...

Other Bits: Maybelline 24-hour colour tattoo eye-shadow in Pink Gold, Rimmel Stay Matte Powder in True Beige and Rimmel Scandal Eyes Eyeliner in Purple. 

I will do individual posts and reviews of some of these things...so if you would like to know how I get on with something in particular, please drop me a note or mention in the comment.

My new boots and Ootd

Spring has officially started, but for some reason the weather just does not want to acknowledge that...The temperatures are colder than winter. So no matter how much we all want to give our spring clothes an outing,  it is not going to happen for atleast another week...

But I had something to cheer me up. My new boots arrived last week...I saw them in a Shoon and since they did not have them in my size, I ordered in store for them to be home delivered. They arrived in a couple of days and were very nicely packed. These boots were originally for £135, but in sale they were for £95. I thought that was a very good price as these boots are from Timberland and look really sturdy and well made. Also, these fit me perfectly in spite of my narrow calves. as I have mentioned in this post before, I find it extremely difficult to find boots that fit perfectly. The fact that these were lace-ups sealed the deal for me as I was looking for something exactly like this... 

Since I got these boots I have been looking for excuses to wear them... Here is one of them...

Skirt : H&M

Jumper : H&M

Tights : H&M

Plain Long Sleeves T-Shirt : Gap

Boots : Timberland (here)

Review : Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish Hot Cloth Cleaser

Hello everyone! Hope you had a lovely weekend... I am back and this time it is with a review of a cult product, Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish Hot Cloth Cleanser.

 Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish Hot Cloth Cleanser - 100 ml starter kit  £14.75 here

This has to be one of the most blogged about products and now I can understand why. It really is like magic in the bottle. My skin does feel clearer and smoother..just like it says on the tin. Even my husband.(who is usually oblivious to these things) has been commenting on how "cleaner and brighter" my skin looks.

I bought the started kit for £14.75. This includes 100 ml bottle of cleanser and 2 muslin clothes in a nice pouch. I initially thought this was pricey, but decided to get it anyway...and I am so glad I got it. It is definitely worth it. 

This Cleanser has a 2 phase action. Hence the name 'Cleanse and Polish' :). First I take about a pump and a bit of product into my hands and then gently work it into my skin like any cream. You don't need to remove your make up before hand and this is very effective at removing eye make-up without stinging. The next step is polishing. I soak the muslin cloth that comes with it in hot water and then applying just a tad pressure with my finger, I start polishing off the cleanser. Cleaning with cloth like this acts as ex-foliation for skin.

There is no tight feeling at all after using this nor does it feel harsh... It just leaves your skin feeling soft, wonderfully fresh, clean and pampered. I just wish I was more regular and used this twice a day rather than just once...

Have you tried any other hot cloth cleanser? What do you think of those?

NOTD : Konad Stamping

A Nail Art post today as I am quite happy with how both these turned out and I got a lot of compliments at work for these nails...

Zebra Print Nail Art Using Kiko 316 and Konad m57 plate

I guess I love this nail art so much is because I love all the individual items that have been used in this.

First, the absolutely gorgeous plum shade that Kiko 316 Red Violet ... If you haven't tried any Kiko nail polishes yet, then you must absolutely try one. I picked this up from their Westfield store and I think it was on offer at that time...I remember it being ridiculously cheap. However, they are always available on Kiko website here for £3.90. I am currently lusting after their 389-Mint Milk shade and new Limited Edition Colours of the World collection.

Formula on this polish is amazing, applies very easily, is highly pigmented and is opaque in 2 coats. I applied three though. The brush is good too.. wide enough for nice coverage... It is long lasting with just one/two minor chips on the 6th day...

Secondly, one of the most popular Konad plate ever..m57.   This plate has got 3 full nail designs, 2 lacy borders and one with 3 separate flowers.I used Konad special polish in black. I am yet to find any other black polish which can be used for stamping. If you guys know of any, please leave a comment.

There are lots of video tutorials on you tube to help with stamping. It is delightfully easy to use and you can create some very complicated nail art and enjoy compliments ;). 

My tips for Konad stamping : 
1) Make sure while scraping, you don't scrape too hard. I used to get a little carried away first couple of times.
2) Similarly, while picking up the stamp , don't stamp too hard. The softly you do it, the better it will pick up.
3) You will have to work quickly from the point of scraping onwards, otherwise the stamp will not transfer.

This above design is another one of my favourites to do. Both Stamps are from the same plate as you can see. I used one of the Miss Sporty shades as base ( I think it is called Fall in Lasting colour range) and stamped the fish net design first followed by the flowers stamp...

Let me know what you think... :)

Gap Boyfriend Shirts

If you like boyfriend shirts; or casual & slightly loose fitting clothes in general, then you should definitely check out Gap's latest collection of boyfriend shirts..

My friend and I were in Kingston high street the other day and we just popped into Gap. Now, normally I am not a big fan of Gap clothes. And I struggle with sizes there too... However, we were drawn to this rack of their boyfriend shirts and we both loved these...

They have got spring ready colours...lovely prints and the fabric seems very nice. I picked up one white shirt with pink polka dots and one white shirt with neon pink cat print. I loved the ladybug print and the tea -cup print (the ones in the pictures above) too... but since they were 29.95 each...I decided to just get 2.

These are available in Shrunken boyfriend  and fitted boyfriend styles. I personally prefer the fit of shrunken boyfriend.

I also fell in love with their new jeans style called 'The Skimmer' (but decided to wait till the next shopping trip to buy those). Its skinny denims which skim your ankles... These are bang on trend as they are available in lots of prints and in neon colours...

Mother's day Gift Ideas

Hi all,

I have seen quite a few Mother's day gift ideas posts on bloggerville in the past few days....This got me thinking as to what would I like to receive for mother's day.
No....I am not using this post to drop any hints for anyone...My 3.5 yr old son, smart as he is, doesn't read my blog yet...

Lush -  A mother's day in paradise gift set  (£30.95)-  here

This set has got 3 mother's day themed limited edition products .....

 a Mumkin bubble bar, Madame Butterfly re-usable bubble bar and Mum’s very own Secret Garden bath ballistic!
........and three of their normal range......
Happy Happy Joy Joy to softly scent the hair, Dream Cream to calm and moisturise and Sultana of Soap to wash away those cares.

Ellie Saab Eau De Parfum  set 50 ml (£56.00) - here

This in my opinion is a lovely fragrance for summer with it having a lovely combination of citrusy and floral notes....It is feminine, fresh and elegant...

L'Occitane Shower Gel Collection (£20.80)- here

Because we can never have too many shower gels....plus...isn't the packaging adorable?

This is described as : A must-have collection of six irresistible shower gels created with some of the most cherished ingredients from Provence.

It contains : Cherry Blossom Bath & Shower Gel 75ml, Pivoine Flora Shower Gel 75ml, Lavender Shower Gel 75ml, Almond Shower Oil 75ml, Rose Bath & Shower Gel 75ml, Shea Butter Ultra Rich Shower Cream 75ml

Estée Lauder Sensuous Nude Delicate Duet (£25.34) - here

This is my current favourite fragrance. This doesn't seem to be loved by everyone....as it has got strong woody notes...but I think it does grow on you...Though if this doesn't float your boat, there always is Estee Lauder Pleasures....

A Spa Day for 2 (£94.00)- here

A lovely way to make moms feel special and pampered, while getting some love yourselves and spending some quality time with her...
This particular deal is valid at a Bannatyne spa..There are over 30 locations across UK where this can be used...It includes 3 treatments each, plus use of health club facilities for the day...

There are lots of other options out there for spa days...I am sure you will be able to find things on Groupon, Living Social deals etc. in your area....

Have you bought your Mother's day gifts yet? Did you like any of the ideas above?

India Shopping Haul

Hello all!!! 

Did you all get to enjoy the lovely weather that we had today? I thoroughly enjoyed it with a friend roaming Kingston high street...but more about that later. For now, I thought I would share with you guys what I bought when I was in India... In spite of being there for 4 weeks, I just had a day for shopping :( So I tried to make to best of it...Now, most of the things that I bought there were traditional Indian clothes...So I have not included pics of everything...but I did buy a couple of tops, a skirt and a dress.

All of the above were bought from Globus. They do all kinds of clothes, ranging from traditional Indian to fusion to western clothes.... I was just spoilt for choice in terms of colours and best part of any stores in India  is that more often than not they will do minor alterations in a day or 2 free of charge...

The top left picture shows almost all the things that I got from there...The purple and teal dress is lovely in my opinion and can't wait to wear it....

The top right picture is a nice sleeveless top made with mixed printed cotton fabrics. I love the colours and fit of this one. This was roughly around £24. (The denim skirt is an old one of mine...)

The bottom left picture is of a short purple brocade-ish embroidered skirt. And a nice aqua/sea green strappy vest top with gold print.... I don't remember how much I paid for the skirt, however the top was a steal at less than £8.


And, lastly...the blue silk dress. I noticed this on my way out and quickly grabbed it and tried it on. It fit perfectly and while this is not extra ordinary, I could not say no to it at £18, especially when they had a buy 2 get 1 free offer. So we got a similar one for my sister and another one for my cousin....