Sampar Sea Scrub....wanted to love this but I don't :(

In my nearest Debenhams, there is a small stand selling this skincare brand Sampar, which i had never heard of.  A few months ago, the saleslady was talking to me about this French brand, telling me how popular it was in Europe. That day, I bought the cleansing lotion which I really liked, but the saleslady showed me this amazing scrub, which I thought looked amazing, and the scent it has is so incredible, it smells just like a luxurious spa. I asked how much it costs...and nearly passed out when she told me £50.00..

Anyway, fast forward a couple of months to Christmas and I had some money and vouchers to spend. My first stop was Debenhams, where I bought a lot of make up and goodies that I had my eye on for ages but couldn't normally afford. I never forgot the scent of the Sampar Sea Scrub though, so I took the plunge and bought it

There is no doubt that it is an incredibly luxurious product, and it is a very generous sized tub so it will last a while. But I cannot help but be disappointed. I used this in the shower when my skin was wet, as directed. I scooped out a bit of the sea scrub, and the texture of it is so strange. It is very light and almost spongy! You can't get a good scrub out of it like Cocoa Brown Tough Stuff or something. The sea salt actually melted away before I could get a good scrub out of it. It is not the most grittiest of scrubs.

Using it on dry skin is just impossible as you can feel it dragging and it is so unpleasant, and doesn't achieve anything anyway. I do use this occasionally on my face, first wetting my face using a facecloth and using a bit of this scrub. It does work quite nicely, but using it as a body scrub I thought was an epic fail for me!

This is by far the most I have ever spent on a skincare product, and it will definitely be the last! I still love the scent though, I could smell it all day but in terms of effectiveness I would have to say that this product is definitely NOT worth the money!

Face of the Day! Featuring Mac, Chanel, Lancome & more!

This is my very first "face of the day" post, please let me know if you like these sort of things and I will try and do it more often!

So on Saturdays I wear a lot more makeup, basically because I have plenty of time to apply it! On weekdays when I am at work, I am lucky if I have time for a quick flick of mascara and a bit of blush.

So here are the products that I used...

I just realised there are a lot of high end stuff here.... I used to be such a lover of budget beauty but now I tend to buy just one "luxury" thing at a time, and I got quite a lot of this stuff for Christmas.

First I applied my Chanel Bronze Universal all over my face. I love this so much, I am not much into bronzers but since I got this I have worn it very frequently. I then used some MAC Face and Body over it. I used the YSL Touche Eclat under my eyes. I don't want to sound overly dramatic, but this little product has changed my life! At last my undereye area looks fairly decent and more like a 25 year old instead of a 70 year old!

For my eyes I used my trusty ArtDeco Eyeshadow Base, my new MAC Veluxe palette (applied using damp brush) and my favourite ArtDeco liquid eyeliner. My favourite mascara of all time is Lancome Hypnose, it works brilliantly for me. And I filled in my brows with the Essence eyebrow pencil.

I used only the beautiful shimmery coral blush out of this Lancome Blush Subtil palette, and finished it off with the Lancome Rouge in Love lipstick!

I just headed into town for some lunch, and now I am in my sister's house for some dinner and a bit of craic! It has been a really awful day, pouring rain all day! Roll on Spring!

Hope everyone has a good weekend!

NOTD : OPI Call Me Gwen-Ever

This polish is from the Amazing Spider-Man collection, I spotted it while browsing on Amazon one night and I couldn't resist.
I have had this nail polish in my collection for a few months now. I love anything orange and the colour of this polish did not disappoint me. Yes it is orange but there is almost a peach tone to it. What I mean to say is that it is not a harsh orange shade.
This is a lovely creme shade and it quite nice to apply, but you have got to be careful because it can look streaky. I used 3 light coats here. I got a good 3 days wear out of this before it started to chip like crazy :( stupid work! Ruins my nails!

Lancome Rouge in Love Lipstick - "Midnight Rose"

I got this lovely lipstick for Christmas and I am so happy with it. When I was younger, I used to wear red lipsticks all the time but now something has changed...the idea of wearing a bold lip now terrifies me and there are so many beautiful lipsticks out there. I really want to change my ways and get back into wearing beautiful lip colours rather than just plain glosses.

I think over the last few months, Lancome has become my favourite brand and I am certainly not disappointed with this lipstick. I think the packaging is too cute. The tube is so petite, and I think looks very unusual. After reading a few reviews of the Rouge in Love lipsticks, I notice a few people saying that the packaging is disappointing and not really a luxurious style for Lancome. I personally think it is fun and stylish.

This shade "Midnight Rose" is a beautiful, deep pink. I think it almost has purplish tones. Now that I have red hair, I didn't want to choose a red lipstick for fear they would clash! I thought this would be a lovely shade and one that could be worn daytime or nighttime.

 The above swatch was just one swipe of the lipstick! This lipstick glides on beautifully. It is not a silky, glossy lipstick which I feel move around the lips a lot and before you know it all traces of colour are gone. This is a fairly matte lipstick but the texture is quite creamy. It's definitely not drying on the lips.

Lancome boast that these lipsticks have a 6-hour wear time. Normally I would brush off these claims, because I know it is kind of difficult (and a pain) to maintain a bold lip colour throughout the day, especially if you are eating or drinking. But let me tell you, this little beauty surprised me! I don't know about 6 solid hours, I had to touch up a little after eating/drinking. But amazingly, this lipstick stays on and does not fade in a crazy way. There was always colour on my lips. None of the dreaded "liner effect"! This lipstick has I think industrial strength staying power!

These lipsticks are kind of expensive (£21.00). I don't really think it is a "must-have" item but it is an exceptionally good lipstick, probably the best I have ever owned. I feel really glamorous when I am wearing it! Now if only I could look like Emma Watson too! That would be great!

Give these a little swatch next time you are at a Lancome counter. They have an incredible range of shades, but for me it was the lasting power for which I was most impressed.

Clinique Party Tips - Nail Polish Trio Gift Set

I received this lovely box as a Christmas present. I have never used Clinique polishes before but even the presentation and the packaging of this box is just very fancy!

Inside the box is this cute little bag, with the three nail polishes inside. The nail polishes are petite 5ml bottles, they are absolutely adorable and the shades are second to none.

L-R - Black Honey, Strappy Sandals, Polished Amethyst

This is Black Honey. I absolutely adore this colour.... it is the most beautiful, deep, aubergine colour. Application is just like a dream. The polish is a cream texture and feels so smooth on your nails. I have used three light coats here. I haven't worn dark nail polishes for years and years. This one has really taken me by surprise and I love it. I think this is my favourite colour of the trio!

And here is Polished Amethyst with Strappy Sandals as an accent nail. Polished Amethyst is the most beautiful, fuchsia pink nail polish ever. It is almost iridescent. It's not really shimmery, but it has a glossy kind of metallic sheen. That is probably the worst description ever! But I really do love this colour. It was a dream to apply too, it is almost a one-coater but I applied two coats to give the colour a bit of extra depth.

Strappy Sandals is an incredibly shimmery, metallic silver. This one would have a frost finish. It could apply in quite a streaky fashion if you aren't careful. The consistency of the polish is very lightweight and a bit runnier compared to the others. Again I used two coats here. This polish is the most long-wearing of the trio!

I am very impressed with Clinique polishes. Apparently they are designed for sensitive skin. I can't vouch for this as I don't have sensitive skin and can wear anything on my nails. But colour wise, and texture wise, they are absolutely brilliant! As for wear, I got a good three or four days out of them before they started chipping. These colours are absolutely gorgeous, especially for this time of year. The standout in this collection for me is Black Honey.

What do you think of these nail polishes?

MAC Treats - Veluxe Pearlfusion Pinkluxe and Face and Body

I am really not familiar with MAC stuff at all. I only have a couple of eyeshadows, and I used the Prep & Prime protection over the summer and really loved it.

I spent the day in Dublin yesterday and while wandering around Brown Thomas I just decided feck it, I'm going to treat myself to a couple of MAC bits. Perfect cure for the January blues!

I definitely wanted a new foundation. I currently use IsaDora Wake Up Makeup most days and my Lancome Teint Idole when I want to be more "done up". I don't like BB creams but wanted a very lightweight, sheer foundation. So, Face and Body seems like it fits the bill!

MAC shades confuse me. This is the shade N1. It suits me fine. Out of interest I tested the other shades and was surprised at how either yellow toned or pink toned they were. 

The consistency is very fluid like. It is really kind of watery. The blob that I put on my hand for this photo was way too much! A tiny bit will go a long way. It gives a lovely, luminous effect to your skin and I think it makes me look really healthy! (Today I feel like death, thanks to this nobody would know!)

The only thing I really dislike is the smell! It is horrid! I can't even describe what it is like, but it's not a nice perfumey scent, it's more like...glue or something!

After reading about these lovely palettes on many blogs, and lusting after them for many months, I really couldn't resist picking one up for myself. I chose Pinkluxe because I really felt it suited me the best. The blue one and the green one were so beautiful and striking, but I would definitely get more wear out of this palette. And the shades are really remarkable. Pinky eyeshadows are my favourite, but I have never seen shades like these before, ever.

My absolute favourite is the second from the bottom. It is just incredible!

So far I have only used these shadows dry. Apparently when applied with a wet brush they transform into pure shimmery, metallic shades. I would definitely apply them this way for an evening look, but for day to day I love the sheer, shimmery colours. They are just perfect! 

Texture wise, I haven't used anything like them. They aren't powder, but they are more like a very light cream shadow. They are actually quite easy to blend out and to apply. After wearing them today I can see that they don't have the best longevity, despite me using my beloved ArtDeco eyeshadow base which I swear by.

I am really happy with both my purchases! I am quite impressed with MAC. Are there any other must have items that I should consider buying? 

Katy Perry "Killer Queen" Eau de Parfum

This was my favourite bargain that I picked up in the sales. This gorgeous gift set was reduced to £15.00 in my local chemist. I had tested this perfume before and quite liked it, so thought I might as well buy it!

I am not a Katy Perry fan at all, but I do quite like her perfumes. I have the original Purr in the absolutely incredible cat bottle, but that scent it definitely not as pleasing to me as this one.

I love the gorgeous bottle. It looks so regal and is so unusual in it's design. I love the little designs on the lid, especially the cat logo!

Anyway, on to the actual scent. Normally I am attracted to very sweet and fruity perfumes. This is a little bit different for me and it totally an Autumn/Winter scent in my mind.

Heart Notes - Red velvet flower, Rainbow Plumeria, Natural jasmine sambac

Top notes - Dark plum, Wild berry, Bergamot

Base notes - Cashmeran, Natural patchouli heart, Liquid praline


To me, this perfume has an incredibly deep, woody scent. It is definitely a floral type fragrance. This scent is just so glamorous, to me it smells quite expensive, not very "teenagery" like a lot of celebrity perfumes.

The only problem is it fades very quickly. I sprayed this on my neck and wrists earlier today, and right now I can barely detect a trace. But it was so cheap for me that I do not mind spraying it a lot!

I also have to say that the body lotion in this set is simply divine! It is quite strongly scented and seriously lasts all day. So it is worth layering up the scents!