Cocoa Brown Gentle Bronze Gradual Tan

Is it me or does it feel like the wind and rain are somehow never ending? Thick black tights covering pasty skin seems to lose the novelty after Christmas. 

I've always loved the tanning mousse from Cocoa Brown so when I saw this gradual tanner, I was eager to try it.

The product is smooth lotion, which is tinted so you can see the application. It absorbed quickly and there was no greasy feeling after. There's a tropical scent to it but let's face it, every fake tan gives you the Eau De Biscuit smell at some point.

The glow after just one application is amazing. I've never had such a good colour payoff from a gradual tanner. My skin looks and feels amazing. 

Autograph Ultimate Wear Concealer

M&S Autograph Ultimate Wear Concealer • Light •£7

I wandered into my local M&S with the full intention of nabbing some Rosie H-W goodies only to be greeted by a "coming soon" banner over a stand... Grrrrrr.

 Not wanting to leave empty handed I thought I should see what the permanent Autograph stand had to offer me. And besides, I needed (ok, wanted) a new concealer.

Firstly, can we take a minute to appreciate the packaging. It feels so timeless and classic. So high end for a high street price. 

I bought the shade Light, but there is also a Medium shade. As you can see from the swatch, it is lighter than my tone but it's perfect as a brightener.

This concealer is so creamy that I actually did a little squeal of glee when I first swatched. It glides on so effortlessly. It blends like an absolute dream and it cost less than my lunch?! £7. Only seven English pounds. Amazing! 

February Round Up

I can't believe it's March next week - I still feel like Christmas was mere moments ago. 

Being the month of love, February held many for me. Braids are my new addiction. They're so easy, I've even slept in them and carried on the next day (shamefully covers face).

Birchbox pleasantly surprised me. Along with a lovely little Spectrum brush, I received a LOC eyeshadow stick which is literally life.

Valentine's swung by, for which we indulged in afternoon tea! Best of all it was gluten free so I could gorge on all the scones I wanted, YAY!! 

Primark Matte Lip Crayon in Nude

Matte Lip Crayon - Nude

I have to admit Primark isn't the first brand you think of when you think of make up but it might fall on to the radar after using this little lip crayon. 

The crayon itself has something quite MAC-esque about it, with the coloured end on black pencil. If I was going to be picky, I think it's a pain to have to sharpen lip colour in this day and age; I prefer retractable but for £2, I'll have to swallow my laziness.

The colour is called Nude - it's a your-lips-but-better shade. Very daytime, very wearable. The product is very creamy and surprisingly pigmented. The colour stays well but the pigment you get on first application fades a bit so you would need to reapply throughout the day.

All in all a very lovely product, I'll definitely keep an eye out for other colours!

**Hint: Look by the tills, this was hiding there** 

Kiko Milano Cream Radiance Highlighter

Kiko Milano has become ever increasingly prevelant throughout the beauty community recently - especially so in February for the heart shaped bullet of their lipsticks. 

I picked up this highlight a couple of months back and have pretty much worn it to death since. 

I really love that rather than a pink tone it's more golden which suits my skin better. The shimmer is really subtle too, meaning you get the glow without looking like you've just emerged from a toddler's glitter princess party.

The product is a cream but it feels almost like a really luxurious eyeshadow - really buttery and blendable. It's super pigmented as you can see from the swatch, so to tone it down apply between your foundation and powder. However, if like me, you want to look like a sunbeam you are then highlight after setting your concealer/contour.

This was my first product from Kiko but I think I'll be making future purchases from there soon! 

Barry M Natural Glow 2 Palette

Every brand and it's cat has duped the Naked palettes and Barry M is no exception. This palette holds six shadows (3 matte, 3 shimmer) as well as an eye primer.

Now, I mainly bought this for the first shade, it's almost my skin tone and I haven't found a single pan in quite this colour. I thought this would be great for cleaning up a cut crease or blending out for smokier colours. The other two matte shades are OK - they're pretty colours but the payoff is less than I'd have hoped for, but definitely buildable if you've got the time. 

On to the shimmers, I found myself wanting, again, for these to be slightly more pigmented but these would be great for a pop of shimmer to a halo eye look. I have found that the chamoagne shimmer is such a pretty highlighter though so I've pretty much been utilising that for an everyday glow.

I like the primer. I had read reviews saying it was greasy but I totally disagree. I thought it had a silky feel to it, and applied well. It definitely improved the longevity of the shadows too!

All in all, it's a nice enough palette with buildable colours but for £6, it will do the job!

Garnier Pure Active Micellar Cleansing Water

I'm a massive fan of Garnier's Micellar range so when I spied an oily formulation I literally almost died with excitement! 

Firstly, it's an absolute bargain! I think it retails at about  £4.99 but I always pick it up when the Boots skincare events are on so I paid £3.32 for this mahussive bottle. #winning.

So... this promises to remove makeup, dirt and excess sebum without rubbing, leaving the skin clean and purified. A pretty big promise to live up to but it delivers! I use two cotton pads to clean all the make up from my face and that's pretty impressive considering I wear alot of makeup. 

After removal, my face feels refreshed and soft as well as really clean; I've tried other micellar waters and I always feel some sort of residue after use but there is nothing like that with the Garnier range. 

I like to swipe this over my face in the morning's just to revive my skin after sleep. 

This is an absolute staple of my skincare and head over heels for this new formulation.