Preparing for Valentines Day| Passion Peel Off Mask

 

Well I don’t know what your plans for Valentines Day tomorrow but mine are very low key. As I’m in a long distance relationship I won’t be seeing my boyfriend tomorrow. Instead I’m off to my friends for pizza, wine and trashy television. So as my valentines Day will be at the weekend I took the opportunity to pamper myself tonight. Thankfully Montagne Jeunesse recently sent me this lovely face mask to try as an early Valentine present.

I was gifted the Montagne Jeunesse Passion Peel Off face mask*, which is jam packed full of pomegranate, passion-fruit, raspberry, grape and cranberry, even better it is suitable for vegetarians and full of natural ingredients. It smells divine and I love the striking red colour; really gets me in the mood for Valentines Day.  Their facemasks are available from Asda, other leading retailers and their website- www.montagnejeunesse.com

Montagne Jeunesse say-

“ Gently peel away dead skin with our amazing Passion Peel Off deep cleansing masque. Our Pomegranate and Passion Flower formula cleans, purifies and protects leaving your skin feeling fresh and radiant, perfect to get up close and personal!”

I say-

“ The mix of the red ingredients and the amazing fruity smell really made  in the mood for Valentines Day. The texture is fairly gloopy and very thick, however it spreads onto your face quite easily. There was enough in the packet to cover my whole face and neck. The mask took about 10-15 minute to set so gave me enough time to soak in the bath and paint my nails. Once dry it peeled off my face very easily and left it smooth, clean, fresh and with minimised pores.”

I also took the chance to paint my nails a gorgeous deep red, scrub and moisturise my body with the help of Soap and Glory and repaired my hair with an Aussie 3 Minute Mask. So overall I have spent the evening beautifying myself and preparing myself for a perfect Valentines Weekend. I plan to look amazing for my boyfriend and find that spending some time pampering myself always helps to boost my confidence and make me feel sexier.

Have you tired this mask from Montagne Jeunesse? What have you done to prepare yourself for Valentines day? Have you been pampering yourself?

Soap & Glory Archery Review| My First YouTube Video

So this post both excites me and terrifies me! This contains my first YouTube video… you can actually see me and hear me and Oh My God do I actually sounds like that! So yeah! The video is a review if you hadn’t guessed by the title of this post. It is a review of another Soap and Glory product, the Archery Brow Tint and Precision pencil*.

Soap and Glory say;

“Distinctly “no-brow”? (Or could do with a fullness boost?) Brush-on-brows and fill in any gaps with the all-day, long-wearing precision-point stain, then use the crayon to give your brows the perfect shape.”

I say;

“ I love this product! I admit I don’t have many to compare it too as am fairly new to the whole looking after your eyebrows thing. However I wouldn’t purchase any other brow pencils now as this one works wonders. It really gives great definition and it lasts all day! What more could you possibly want.”

I decided to do a video on this product as I don’t think the photos you can see above do the product any justification at all. I do have quite thick eyebrows in the first place but I thought a video would be able to show you how to use the product and the results it actually gives. I will apologise for the quality of the video, I don’t think  my lighting was too great and at times it goes a little out of focus, but it is my first video so please be kind!

I hope you enjoyed my first YouTube Video. Please let me know what you think, and leave me any tips if you have any! Have you ever tried this eyebrow pencil before? Are there any others on the market that you think could rival this one?

P.S. Apparently I don’t actually sound like that, and I am in fact using my posh telephone voice… I will work on toning this down in my next video.

My First Ever MAC Lipstick| MAC Sweetie

 

If you read my blog regularly you will know that I have never before owned a MAC product… that is until now! I have tried MAC products, but never really had the desire or funds to spurge on MAC, but thought I might as well try a product to see what the hype it about. To be honest whenever I have ventured into MAC it has always been too busy and chaotic and I’ve found some of the staff to put a bit off putting and unhelpful, so I always walked away empty handed.

Despite all this when I did my sale shopping I thought why not buy a lipstick seems I am loving my lipsticks at the moment, plus they do some amazing shades! So I spent about an hour comparing lipstick swatches online to see which one I should buy, and decided that since I was splurging £14 on a lipstick that I would pick a shade that I would use quite regularly so I went for a more subtle shade than the bold ones I have been buying recently.

I was not disappointed with my MAC lipstick, it has such a creamy consistency and applies like a dream even when I have dry lips. It lasts for a good few hours… not as long as I had hoped but the pigmentation is great so for the hours that it does last it looks amazing. Because it is so pigmented you don't have to apply too many layers so I image it is going to last me quite a while which makes me feel better about the £14 I spent. This lipstick has a shimmer to it unlike all the others I have bought, I’m still unsure as to whether I like the shimmer as I normally stick to matte shades. I was not disappointed with my MAC lipstick but I do like other brands just as much. The main selling point for me is the wide range colours that MAC have… there are so many more that I want!

What do you think of MAC lipsticks, are they worth the money and hype? Which shade is your favourite and would recommend for my next purchase?

Soap & Glory Breakfast Scrub| Review| We have a winner

 

If you are a regular reader of my blog you will know that I am forever on the search for the perfect scrub, be it face or body, and until recently for my search had been unsuccessful… until now! I was recently given a selection of Soap and Glory goodies to try and the multi award winning Soap and Glory The Breakfast Scrub was one of the products I received. To say I am in love with this product is a bit of an understatement, so before I start rambling here’s my review for you.

One of the standout factors of this product is the smell, it is very sweet smelling, it basically smells like a bottle of maple syrup. So if like me you have a massive sweet tooth, you are in for a treat… I love it so much I actually find myself wanting to nibble on it as it smells delicious! If you don’t have a sweet tooth the smell may be a little overpowering for you. Hopefully the fact that the product works will let you oversee this.

You can see from the pictures it is a very thick and creamy scrub. It is a proper sugar scrub jam packed full of tiny little particles that you can really work into your skin. I mostly enjoyed this scrub because the little particles are very resistant and do not break up when rubbing them into your skin, therefor you can give yourself a good scrub to reveal gorgeous smooth skin. Even though the scrub is quite abrasive  the Shea butter in it means that it still provides moistures. however it is not a scrub to use everyday, I would say use it twice a week.

I have used this scrub quite a few times, as has my mum but you can see from the picture that it barely looks touched. I think it will last me a good couple for months which means the £9.50 price tag is very reasonable!

Have you tried this scrub before? What do you think of the maple syrup smell? Are there any other body scrub you would recommend; which one’s are your favourite?

Fruity Face Masks| A Montagne Jeunesse Review

 

A face mask always brightens up my day. I don’t know about you but as soon as I put a face mask on I am instantly relaxed, it may be because you can’t really move around too much while you are wearing one. Whether it is or it isn’t, those ten minute when my skin is being cleaned and nourished are special to me. So whenever Montagne Jeunesee contact me to ask whether I would like to trial their new face masks I always say yes. Plus a nice soothing or refreshing facemask is perfect for rejuvenating your skin after those late nights and too many glasses of champagne you’ve probably consumed over the past week!

Montagne Jeunesse kindly sent me three masks to try from their new Exotic Fruits Range, one mud mask and two peel off masks. I am sure you have heard of Montagne Jeunesse before, many of you, like me will have grown up using their face masks with your mum or with your friends during sleep overs. If you haven’t I will give you a little information. They are an animal friendly company based in the UK which makes a range of natural skin care products. Their products are all suitable for vegetables and  use natural ingredients. I think they are very reasonably priced at around £1, this range above are sold for £1.29 from Boots, Asda and their website- www.motagnejeunesse.com. I was really surprised to learn that they sell 30,000 face mask every day in the UK! Now that’s impressive!

Anyways onto the products and review. Their Exotic Fruit collection is is made from a range of unusual natural skin care ingredients, which makes them all very fruity! 

Paw Paw Peel Off Mask

They say- “Picked from the tropics of South America the PawPaw aka Papaya (known as “ Fruit of Angels”) and Noni Fruit naturally help protect. This duo work harmoniously, revealing clean sensational skin, sent from the Heavens.”

I say- “This mask was very very sticky when applying, so it went on quite thick. Despite how thick it went on it dried in a good amount of time (around 10 minutes) and when drying there was no discomfort like there is sometimes. The mask came off very easily, almost in one piece, and I was left with amazingly soft skin!! I tried to take a picture of how glowing it was, but the picture did no justice to how great my skin looked. It definitely took away my dead pores and left with with pretty good pores!”

Dragon Fruit Sauna Mask

They say-“For a flaming good clean, ablaze with freshly crushed Dragon Fruit from the depths of central America and pulped Kiwi Fruit, this warming wonder reaches into pores removing trapped oil and dirt… a fiery feast for smooth, clean skin.”

I say-“Again this mask was very very sticky, and very fruity smelling, but the smell was amazing! This mask definitely warmed up! It heated to a noticeable yet comfortable temperature and dried in good time. Again I was left with soft, clean and glowing skin. However I don’t think this is my favourite sauna mask, there are others in the Montagne Jeunesse range I prefer, such as the Red Hot Earth Sauna Masque.”

 Prickly Pear Peel Off Mask

They say-“Native to the Western Hemisphere, Prickly Pear helps protect skin from the Earth’s daily assaults whilst Mangosteen has powerful free scavengers (antioxidants)- How’s that for a boost?”

I say-“Again this mask is super sticky! But the results are amazing, very similar to the Paw Paw Peel Off mask, my skin was left very smooth, soft and clean. I used it after my night out in Manchester, and it definitely brightened up my dull, hungover skin, and I went to work on Monday looking fresh (just a little tired!)”

Overall, as always, I was very impressed with the results. My skin looked amazing after each mask and the product did as it said it would! The only downside and negative comment I can make is that the Exotic Fruits range as fruity as it is, isn’t very festive. It would of been great to see a new range released that reflexed my favourite season. Something rich, chocolaty and warming!

What do you think of Montagne Jeunesse products? Are you a fan? Have you seen or tried any great Christmassy face masks that are fitting for the season?

Luscious Locks| Lee Stafford Hair Growth| Review

A few months ago I was the victim of a scissor happy hair dresser, this resulted in having hair that was much shorter than the couple of inches trim I had asked for. Not enjoying my new short bob I decided that this was the time to invest in Lee Stafford Hair Growth products. My best friend used these products before her graduation and enjoyed them, and after seeing many other bloggers both rave and slate this product, I decided to give it a go myself and form my own opinion.

Lee Stafford claim that this product range contains a pro-Growth complex formula for strength within. This protein based complex will fertilize your follicles, and create a healthy environment on your scalp helping your hair grow faster and reach its maximum potential length.

I purchased the shampoo and conditioner from Boots, each cost £6.99, but they are often on three for two, so you can make a saving. For me £6.99 is quite pricey for a shampoo so I did have high hopes for this product.

I have used this product for for around 2 months now, so feel I have tried it enough to give a fair and true opinion.

Firstly this product made my hair amazingly soft and shiny, it is possibly the shiniest it has ever been. I also noticed that when using this product my hair became a lot stronger. I am a girl who seems to loose my entire head of hair while showering, I literally malt everywhere; my family and boyfriend hate it. However I noticed when using this product my hair did not malt as much as previously.

More importantly, did it make my hair grow? Well judging by the picture above of my awful roots I would say it does make it grow quicker. Obviously the only accurate way of measuring this would be to measure my hair growth rate both with and without this product then compare the results; however I am not that scientific so will just give you my opinion. My roots in the picture above are around 2/3 inches and based on own hair, this is a pretty good hair growth rate. Even after only a month of usage I was much happier with the length of my hair, as it was nearing the length it was prior to it being cut.

Overall I am very happy with this shampoo, I am one of those on the side of the fence that says this product does make your hair grow. But above all that it has left my hair in a beautiful condition; strong, soft, sleek and shiny.

Have you ever tried this product before? Are you sceptical as I was prior to using it? What is you favourite shampoo and conditioner for soft shiny hair?

Soap and Glory| No Clogs Allowed Super Self Heating Deep Pore Detox Mask| Review

 

My regular readers and followers will know that I am a Soap and glory fiend! I love this brand, although I have not tried every single product in their range I have ambitions to do so. The newest products to my ever growing collection is the ‘No Clogs Allowed Detox Mask’, and the ‘Greatest Scrub of All’, both are products I have heard many good things about, and have been longing after for some time. I finally took the plunge last weekend and bought them both as Soap and Glory products were on offer for Buy One Get One Half Price, and never being one to pass on a bargain they soon appeared in my basket.

As the title suggest I am firstly going to review the ‘No Clogs Allowed Detox Mask’. I have used the mask three times now, and believe this is long enough to give you a summery of my thoughts on the product and its results.

Their opinion

Soap and Glory claim that the the mask is a an intensive-action pore-refining facial peel. Here is what they have to say about the product-

“A super self-heating 5 minute deep pore detox face mask with a free skin smoothing sponge. This is a deep cleansing treatment, ideal for greasy and blackhead prone skin.”

My opinion

The product has the consistency of a mud mask, but is not as thick as traditional ones. It comes out of the tube with ease, and when rubbed into my skin heats up with immediate effect. At first the mask feels a little grainy, but these grains soon rub out when you scrub the mask into your skin. It leaves a thin layer upon the surface of your skin and doesn’t take too long to dry. When drying the heating sensation soon levels off, and there is no tingly sensation that there is with some masks. When drying it doesn’t dry solid and crack like other mud masks.

For removal you are provided with a ‘skin smoothing sponge’. Although it is handy for removal I can’t say it leaves my skin anymore smooth than when I don’t use it. The mask cleans off easily, due to the fact only a thing layer is needed for application.

The end result is very good. My skin glows, looks very healthy and feels a lot smoother, and my blemishes and blackheads appearance are reduced. I feel like my skin is left completely clean with no dryness or sensitivity that I often suffer with after using mud masks. 

The only downsides to this product for myself are that firstly, I do not experience the blue Smurf face effect that is meant to happen when apply the mask. My face stayed white, as you can see from the pictures. Secondly, although I believe my pores appearance has reduced by using this mask, my blackheads have not reduced dramatically. This is one of the main reasons I bought this product, as I am always looking for a miracle product for reducing blackheads. I will continue to use this mask as I do love it regardless of this. I hope that in time my blackheads do disappear as it suggests on the tube, so watch this space as I will keep you updated with my progress.

Which Soap and Glory products are your favourite? Any you recommend for my collection? Or do you have any miracle cure for blackheads that you can recommend?

Pamper Night| Montagne Jeunesse Smoothie Face mask review

Using an entire sachet- lots of product!

Last night, I took my usual late night trip to Asda to get my tea, and was very excited to see they currently have a load of beauty and toiletry items on special offer.  I didn't get too much, but did buy a special bumper pack of face-masks, which I haven't seen been sold like this anywhere else. 

It was a bumper pack of Montagne Jeunesse sachets, there were two boxes on offer. A box filled with 5 sachets of chocolate treatments, for face, hair and body, and the pack I chose, a 5 pack of face-masks.The boxes are normally sold at £5 ish, however they were on offer for I think £3.

So last night I decided have a mini pamper and chose the Crushed Raspberry Fruit Smoothie, Deep Pore Cleaning face-mask. The product is described as; 

"Our delicious nutritious smoothie mix of raspberries, peach, mango, apricot and pomegranate isn't a drink but it is bound to leave you in a smiley mood- with fresher, cleansed  and softer skin' 

The Good

• Left my skin incredibly smooth.
• Loads of product, so enough for two treatments.
• Animal friendly. Quote- "We're vegetarian and animals are our friends-that's why we don't bash bunnies or add bits of animal!"
• A cheap product
• The product had a rich and creamy texture.

The Bad

• Nothing really, I suppose the fact that there is too much product can be wasteful.

Over all- 5/5- Its a super product and I have to agree with everything the product claims to be. It smelt absolutely gorgeous, good enough to eat (but don't.) I have used these products over the years, but  I'm still looking forward to using the other four products.