Vichy Idealia Smoothing and Illuminating Cream

Vichy Idealia Smoothing and Illuminating Cream - RRP. £22.00

I received this little Vichy sample in the Glossy Box September box, which I reviewed here. Admittedly Vichy was a brand that I had never heard of, and to be honest I hadn't even seen it around a lot in the blogging world. As I usually do, I got straight onto the internet and did a little research on this new little beauty... but to be honest I didn't actually find a lot about it. I decided just to try it out for myself without any background information and just see how I got in from scratch, and I was extremely impressed!

The cream is quite thick, which normally would totally put me off, but when applied to your skin it actually doesn't feel too horrible at all. I usually hate thick creams but it rubs in really easily and it doesn't even feel like there's anything on your skin. It leaves your skin feeling instantly soft and smooth, which I absolutely loved! The smell is really good too, which is always a bonus for me, and it almost felt like my skin felt a plumper. I've been using it for about two weeks now and I can honestly say that I absolutely love it, it is definitely a favourite product of mine.

Overall my skin feels amazingly soft, and in some ways I do think it has made it feel a lot healthier. I've also found that my make-up tends to look a lot better throughout the day too, which is always a plus in my books. I only use it in a morning after I've cleansed and done my usual skin care routine because the pot is so tiny, but I think it would be really good to use at night too. I'll definitely be purchasing a new pot when I've ran out of this. You can order a 50ml pot online from Boots for £22.00, which to be honest I really wouldn't mind paying because I really do like it.

Have you used this or any Vichy products before? How have you found them?

Rodial Glamoxy Snake Serum

Glamoxy Snake Serum - Glossy Box Sample

This is another Glossy Box sample review, I'm afraid, but maybe not as good a one as I hoped. When this little sachet appeared in my Glossy Box I was instantly drawn to it, mainly because I had absolutely no idea what it was. For starters 'Snake Serum' sounds kind of bizarre and a little scary to me, so my instant reaction was "I really want to try that!" Well really my first reaction was to research, research, research... and I was actually quite surprised with what I found.

For starters, a full-sized 25ml bottle is £127! No seriously, that's the price tag on this baby. Glamoxy Snake Serum is said to reduce the appearance of frown lines and wrinkles, while improving the overall condition of your skin. This effect is supposed to be noticeable instantly, and it is supposed to bring a 3D plumping effect to skin. Now for the interesting part... the serum is said to freeze the muscle and mimic the effect of a viper's venom... I actually kid you not! It's even inherited the tag line of 'Botox in a bottle', it is absolutely crazy what they can do for beauty now. Obviously the serum is completely safe to use and was completely sold out in the UK when it hit the shops.

Now onto the actual product itself. Glossy Box spared me two little sachets of the serum to try, and try I did. I've used it morning and night for a week now, and I can honestly say that my skin is absolutely no different. In fact I think it may be worse as I seem to have had a huge breakout, but I'm not entirely sure what has caused this, so no blaming just yet. One sachet has lasted me a week but I have had to use it very sparingly. As for the instant effect, I really didn't notice any. I know obviously I don't have lots of wrinkles and I hope I don't need botox, but I didn't even feel like my skin was plump or smooth at all.

I'm quite gutted about this product as from all the research I did, I was actually so excited about trying it. I actually think that the serum wasn't probably aimed at me as a target audience, so maybe other people have had different experiences with it?

Have you tried Glamoxy Snake Serum? What are your thoughts?

Sample Storage #1 - Glossy Box

I know I've recently cancelled my Glossy Box subscription, and moved on to another well-known beauty box, but I thought I'd do a little post just to show you how I store all my samples. I've had six months worth of Glossy Boxes, so that's a lot of samples and you'd think I'd need a lot of room for them... right? Well surprisingly I keep them all in one Glossy Box. Obviously I've used a few products over these past six months but I was a little shocked when I realised that the rest of my samples fitted into that box.

The boxes that the Glossy Box samples come in are the perfect things for storage! They're just the right size for literally anything... I use two for my samples, then the others have seemed to take their way around the house. I actually think my mum has two of my boxes to keep her own make-up and beauty products in, she so stole my idea. I think it's quite important to keep all your samples together in one place, just for the fact that when you need something, you know exactly where to go to find it. I also think it helps when you're wanting to blog about a certain something. I know that when I'm looking through my boxes I always find a little inspiration when I'm struggling for an idea.

How do you store your samples?

Maghrabian Hair Oil

Maghrabian Hair Oil - Glossy Box Sample

This was one of the five samples I received in my September Glossy Box - you can see the full range in my previous post here. At the minute I'm a massive hair oil fan and I find myself reading so many reviews about all different brands and kinds of the stuff. I did a previous post on Argania Hair Oil and was so impressed with the results, so when I received this little bottle I was excited to try another brand.

Hair oils are massive at the minute and are a thing I've always used, but never really experimented with different makes. I loved VO5's hot oil treatments before but I could never get my hands on them, so I decided it was time to try something new. A huge proportion of the hair oils at the minute include something called Argan oil, which contains loads of Vitamin E which is essential for skin, hair and nail growth. It is a really good moisturiser and is supposed to make your hair super soft, as well as leaving it shiny and smooth.

I can honestly say that, yet again, this hair oil does all that it says on the tin (or bottle in our case.) You can either apply it to damp or dry hair after shampooing and then leave it a few minutes to absorb into the hair. You literally only need a few drops, so this product would definitely last agers if you used it correctly. A little goes a long way when using hair oils and I find that if you use too much, it can leave your hair really greasy. I applied it to my hair when it was damp, then blow-dried and styled in the usual way, and even after using my GHD's my hair was so soft.

The full sized 100ml bottle is around £25.00, which is a tad pricey in my opinion compared to some of the other hair oils at the minute. I've said this in previous posts but I'm seriously thinking about investing in a full-sized bottle of hair oil when my samples have run out, just because I love how my hair feels after using it. I do think it has changed the overall condition of my hair and my spilt ends seem to have nearly disappeared! There really are some amazing products around at the minute, so I'd advise anyone to invest in a bottle of this little beauty!

What is your favourite hair oil? Have you been converted by my posts?

Glossy Box - Maggie Li September Edition.

September Glossy Box - Maggie Li Edition - £10.00 (plus p+p)

You'll have all probably seen my annoying tweets about how long it took me to receive this month's Glossy Box, which has actually resulted in my cancelling my subscription. I won't bore you with why etc etc, but I was getting less impressed with the products I was getting sent and wanted to try something different. So this will actually be my last Glossy Box review for a while.

September's box was designed by London-based illustrator Maggie Li, and it looks super super cute. All the products in this month's box came from up and coming stars across the industry, and hopefully will become very popular from Glossy Box. I'd only ever heard of the Lady GaGa perfume to be honest, but was still looking forward to trying the different products.

While on the subject of Lady GaGa, her new perfume 'Fame Fragrance - Black Fluid' is absolutely amazing. When I first saw this advertised I couldn't help but think that it would just be another celebrity's perfume launched to us, that didn't really smell of anything new, but I have to say Black Fluid is nothing like this. It's really floral and sweet, and it isn't too musky or heavy too. It has hints of apricot and saffron, which actually work really well together. I'll be lucky if this little tester lasts me more than a week, as I've already popped it in my work bag.

The next set of samples that I received were the Rodial Glamoxy Snake Serum and 5 Minute Facial sachets. Another product that I'd never heard of, and initially thought was very strange. The Snake Serum is supposed to reduce the appearance of frown lines and wrinkles, which can apparently be seen instantly, and generally help the condition of your skin. I actually don't have any frown lines or wrinkles at the minute, funnily enough, but I'm sure I'll get round to trying this. The 5 Minute Facial is a clay mask that you apply to your face and leave for five minutes, as the name suggests. I'm quite into face masks at the minute, so this one will definitely get tried and tested soon.

Another eye cream... I seem to have a box full of these kinds of things at the minute. The Balance Me Wonder Eye Cream is designed to soothe tired eyes while smoothing dark circles and reducing the appearance of fine lines. Again, I'm always up for trying eye creams or anything that will reduce my dark circles, so this seems good to me. It is also made of 99% natural products, which again is something I'm always interested in trying.

The next sample was quite a big one in my opinion and will definitely be one that I'll use. I've been researching day and night creams for a while now, so it's quite handy to have been sent Vichy's Idealia Day Care Cream. It is said to smooth your skin's texture and improve complexion, which I think is a must-have when it's coming up to winter. My complexion seems to be in awful condition at the minute, so this little pot has already taken its place in my skin care routine.

The last product that I received in my Glossy Box was Maghrabian Hair Oil. At the minute I'm all about hair oils because my hair is super dry, so this is the perfect thing for me. It gives hair extra nutrition and helps to condition and help bring shine back to your hair.

To say this will be my last Glossy Box for a bit, I do quite like a few of the products and will definitely get my money's worth from using them. Expect a few reviews of some of the products in the next few weeks.

What did you think of the September Glossy Box? What was your favourite sample?

Alessandro Pro White Nail Polish

Alessandro Pro White Nail Polish - £7.85*

When I first saw August's International Glossy Box I was actually a bit unsure whether I would both like and use any of the products, just for the fact that I'd never heard of them before. This product is one of those that I was wondering about, but I decided to do a bit of research before I tried it.

Alessandro International is a German website that offers a wide range of nail polishes and products, as well as things for hand and nail care and nail art. While looking round their website I found a section on UV nail and gel nail products, which was really good. It's safe to say I was actually really impressed with the products they had to offer. They have an absolutely huge range of nail polishes in some amazing colours, it was quite hard to look without wanting to order any.

Anyway, moving onto the Pro White. This nail polish is supposed to brighten up your nails and cover up any yellowing that you may have on them. To be honest my nails have never ever had a yellow tint to them, and if they did it wouldn't matter because 99% of the time I have them painted anyway. It isn't often that I have plain nails but at the minute I can't seem to find a colour I like, so I took this opportunity to try Pro White.

I cleaned up my nails with some nail polish remover and quickly tidied them up, then applied a coat of Pro White onto them. It was really quick to dry, which is always good in my books, so I applied another coat to see if it amplified the results. I did one hand first to compare to my natural nails, and to be honest I wasn't overly impressed. I expected the results to be really good, but the painted nails looked more purple and blue than gleaming white. The polish actually has a slightly purple tint when it's in the bottle, so I'm guessing this is a factor towards it, but overall I was slightly disappointed.

I painted them yesterday and looking at them this morning they do look very clean and shiny, but there is still a slight blue colouring to them. I'm thinking that maybe it may take a few days to see the effects overall? Anyway everything about the polish was really impressive and the brush is the perfect size to spread over the nail in one application. There's nothing I hate more than the brush being too big and it spreading polish onto the sides of your fingers. I think I'm going to give my nails a few days to be able to gleam, then maybe think about painting them if I don't see results.

Have you tried Pro White before? What do you think of it?

Dermablend Corrective Cosmetics - Review

Dermablend Corrective Cosmetics Starter Kit - June Glossy Box 

Another June Glossy Box sample that I've only just got round to trying and reviewing - I should really keep up to my schedule of blog posts. I have been looking forward to trying this product out for a while now, for the pure fact that it sounds amazing. This dermatologically approved foundation stick is specially made for minor to severe skin flaws such as blemishes, redness, dark circles, eye bags and irregular pigmentation. Usually I'd exaggerate and say that I have all of these, but after looking at the examples on the sample I've come to realise that my skin really isn't as bad as I make out.

In the sample you get six different shades of the correction foundation, which range from shades for fair to dark skin, so there's bound to be a shade that's right for you. I decided to try shade 12 - Opal, which from first glance looked like the perfect shade for my skin tone. It came out a lot lighter than expected on my skin so as a hint to anyone wanting to try this, I'd say go for one shade darker than you usually would. I still decided to go ahead and try this shade, primarily to see how it felt on my skin more than anything.

To say it's a foundation it is extremely thick and feels more like a concealer when its on your fingers, but I am guessing that's because its in stick formation? A tip from Dermablend is to warm the foundation between your fingers before applying, and even after doing this it still felt very thick.

On the back of the sample it gives you very clear instructions on how to apply the foundation to the different imperfections, which I think is a really nice and helpful idea. I applied it to a small blemish scar I have on my chin, and although it did cover quite well I found there was a sort of residue still left on my skin. I made sure I had blended in the foundation correctly, but it was still extremely lumpy and viable on my skin.

Overall I really wasn't very impressed with this product at all. After reading about it I was really excited to try it, and to be honest maybe I expected too much? I don't know, but the results really weren't what I was hoping for. 

Skincare Sunday - Dermalogica Clean Start Review

Dermalogica Clean Start 3-Step Kit (Glossy Box June 2012)

For some reason I've only just got round to trying this, and I'm really kicking myself for not using it quicker. Usually I hate trying out new skin care products because my skin is quite sensitive to change, and there's nothing I hate more than having breakouts. I find that certain products disagree with my skin instantly, and this really puts me off trying new things, so I tend to stick to the same few products.

In this pack there's a facial wash, a purifying spritz toner and a matte SPF15 moisturiser, which are your three steps. It says to use the wash and toner both morning and night, then just the moisturiser in the morning before applying any make-up. I always always wash moisturise as much as I can, but I never usually use any kinds of toner on my skin - just for the pure fact that I've never found one that I like. The third picture is of the moisturiser, and the fourth of the facial wash.

Dermalogica say that "A little AM/PM attention with the products inside means skin gets better and better with every use." I have been using these products for about a week now and I'm really starting to see a change in my all over skin condition. With in a few days I could see a massive difference and all my imperfections just literally disappeared! Amazing! All three products work so well together and now my skin if so soft and in such good condition. I'd even go as far as saying my make-up goes on better and even looks different.

Another massive bonus is that the products smell so nice, and actually leave your skin smelling like this for hours too. They're really fresh and have a kind of sweet, citrus smell to them, which is lovely. The toner spritz is my absolute favourite. The full mini kit is £12 according to Glossy Box, and I am so tempted to invest. This is one of few kits that has actually worked well for me and I don't think I could cope with not having my skin in this amazing condition. You can find the full range of products here and when you order with them, they also throw in an Ultra Calming sample back and a backpack for FREE!

Have you tried this kit? What results did you find?

Glossy Box Lipstick Review

Glossy Box Lipstick - Glossy Pink

This was one of the little Glossy Box beauties that was included in the August 'International Superstars' box. I'm a huge lover of lipsticks so getting one in pink was a massive bonus, I couldn't wait to try it out. I really like the black tube with the little Glossy Box emblem on the top, it makes it look really stylish and quite sophisticated - if that's the right word? First impressions are really important for me and I do like a lipstick that has nice packaging.

Glossy Box says that it's a 'Professional beauty lipstick for soft and glamorous lips with a luminous, long-lasting colour.' Well, I could not agree more with this statement. The lipstick feels amazing as soon as you put it on, and it doesn't dry and have a huge loss of colour like some I have tried. It holds moisture really well and this makes your lips feel soft and moisturised. I've worn this lipstick a few times throughout the day and I find I only have to touch it up if the shine fades - which again was nearly half way through the day. The colour is lovely, not too dark or light, just the perfect pinky colour that seems to go with everything. I'm so happy this was included in the August Glossy Box, as it retails at £9.50 and to be honest I don't think I would actually buy it if I had the choice. Much better as a nice little freebie!

Did you get the lipstick in your Glossy Box? What do you think of it?

Glossy Box - August 2012

Glossy Box - August 2012: The International Superstars Box.

You've done it again, Glossy Box, yet again I'm more than impressed with the range of samples you've had to offer this month. The theme of the August Glossy Box is 'International Superstars', and it showcases different products from around the world. I only recognised the British Lipcote when I opened the box, but instantly there wasn't a product that I didn't want to try.

So in this month's box there are five products from different countries, as well as a little lipstick treat from Glossy Box themselves. The products featured this month are: Alessandro Pro White, DHC Deep Cleansing Oil, All From Eve Eve's Balm, Vera Valenti Eyeshadow Palette and Lipcote Lipstick Sealer. On first impressions I love all the samples and I'll definitely be trying them all. As soon as I saw the lipstick I had to have a try, and the colour is lovely. I can't help but think the pink is a tad too dark for my liking, as I usually go for quite light colours, but it is a lovely colour none the less.

Another product that caught my eye straight away was the All For Eve Balm. The little bot comes with a mirror inside too, which is so handy, and I'm a sucker for anything that I can use of my lips. It says the recovery balm nourishes dry, chapped skin, so I'm sure it will come in handy around winter time too.

As usual there'll no doubt be some reviews of these products coming your way soon, so watch this space. What does everyone think of this month's Glossy Box? What samples did you get in your box?

Glossy Box - July 2012

Glossy Box 2012 - July Festival Edition 

It is that time again bloggers... Glossy Box day. I never reviewed the June box as I was super busy with various holidays and work commitments, therefore I didn't really give much thought into this box either. I saw that people have started to receive theirs, so I made sure I didn't peek at any ones blog posts or pictures. This box is by far one of the best in my opinion, because I literally just love all of the products. This month's theme is Festival Beauty, which I think is a brilliant idea and these minis would be perfect to pack away if anyone is going to a festival this summer. 

Okay, so down to the products. There are a couple of different Glossy Box's around and all the products look really good, but I was so excited about the HD Brows Eye and Brow Palette - I literally blogged about it about an hour ago in my Daily Want #2. I said that I wanted the 'Vamp' palette, but from seeing the 'Foxy' palette I got sent I think it is definitely the right colour for me.

There are also some nice Elizabeth Arden goodies, which are from the Skin Balancing Skincare range. I got the combination skin samples, which are the Skin Balancing Lotion and three little sachets of Clenser, Skin Serum and another Skin Balancing Lotion. I've heard very good things about skincare products by Elizabeth Arden, and seeing as my skin is quite bad at the minute I'm looking forward to trying these out.

I received something that I already love too, which is always a bonus in my eyes, and thats the Jelly Pong Pong Lip Frosting. At the Clothes Show Live I got a gift bag full of their goodies, and to be honest I had never heard of them so I wasn't too bothered. When I got home I used a few of the products and I absolutely loved them. I intend to do a post on the items I got, but this little handbag-sized lip frosting will be perfect to slot in my bag or my car.

I am looking forward to trying out the Monu Golden Glow Bronzer. Glossy Box says that this will give you a safe, natural-looking tan in 3-5 hours, and it smells really good, so I'm definitely going to get some use out of that. The moisturiser is also a yellow colour too, which I first found really bizarre and I think it made me want to try it more!

The last product in the box is Cyncol Enrich Colour Shampoo. Again, I have never heard of this product so I am looking forward to trying it out. My hair has recently been dyed too, so this is the perfect product for me at the moment as my hair will soon be starting to fade.

Overall, from first glances this month's Glossy Box is extremely good in my eyes. There isn't a product that I don't love the idea of and don't want to try, so well done for that! I will no doubt be reviewing all of these products in the next few weeks, so I will let you know how I get on.

What did you get in your Glossy Box this month? Have you tried any of the products featured?