To be honest, sometimes I prefer an autobiography to a fiction book - as long as it's well written that is! I picked up Cheryl's book a couple of years ago when it was on offer in WHSmith and I've only just got around to reading it, which is kind of embarrassing! I'm not 100% sure what it was that made me procrastinate so much - but then again, I'm not entirely sure what made me buy it in the first place, apart from the fact that I like a bargain!
Well, yesterday was officially the first day of Spring!
This winter seems to have flown by and we didn't even get one single flake of snow where I live. (Don't worry though, I still got to experience a snow machine in Rochester high street - although it literally went everywhere, including in the cup of hot chocolate that I was carrying!).
When I reflect on this last quarter, I actually did quite a lot! Since September, I've seen Fall Out Boy, Alan Carr and Jason Derulo... I visited the Clothes Show and the Cosmopolitan cocktail party... I've been to numerous Christmas Fairs... I had a Christmas Quiz party with some friends and had a wonderful Christmas day, closely followed by a 21st Birthday and a 30th Birthday in January... I visited Canterbury for the week to enrol in my final year at Uni... oh, and I GOT ENGAGED!!!
So what's next for this season? Well I've already kickstarted the quarter with a Christening and I've got a birthday next weekend and a 70th birthday celebration next month. I'm also looking forward to seeing Busted and Sarah Millican perform, as well as a performance of The Mousetrap (an Agatha Christie play).
I'm literally so happy right now. My Mac's Viva Glam Ariana lipstick has arrived!! I must admit it was a bit of an indulgence for me, since I rarely wear deep shades, but I figured I would try it, and I'm so pleased I did!
Oh my gosh, what I would do for summer to hurry on up already! I've literally been looking forward to the end of term, planning what I'm going to do and where I'm going to be going. My friends are finally coming back from a 7-month backpacking trip around Asia and I can't wait to celebrate a mid-year Christmas with them and make up for all the Birthdays that we've missed. We're supposed to be going to Norfolk together in the summer and thinking about it has really put me in the mood for a weekend break somewhere. We travelled to Bath last summer for a weekend and that was beautiful; historical and serene, and we ventured to York for 4 nights in the Autumn, which was very similar, so perhaps somewhere similar to those? Maybe Oxford, or Cambridge?
Any suggestions?
February's Birchbox theme is 'Shine Bright Like a Diamond' - which falls in line with Valentine's day - and also introduces Birchbox's new line, 'Love Of Colour' (aka, LOC). This month's box contains:
- 'Patagonia' Body Butter by AYRES
- One and Done Eyeshadow stick by LOC in the shade 'Champagne Problems'
- Spectrum Collection's tapered finishing brush
- theBalm cosmetics' 'Frat Boy' blush
- a vial of 'Style de Paris' eau de parfum by Catherine Malandrino
and
- Firming collagen day cream by Eslor
As usual, the box is finished with a handy 'what's inside' leaflet, giving all the relevant information and instructions.
This is probably my most used product in this month's box as the smell is so fresh and clean! It's a day cream that I've started wearing under my make up and gives a really radiant, dewy look that brightens your skin. I've not really noticed any firming action going on though!
My only complaint with this sample is the size. It's tiny! So small in fact that the only brush I can get to fit in the powder is an eye-shadow brush! I have to say though, that the pigmentation of this product is really strong, so in that respect it's great.
This is the first product from Birchbox's Love of Colour range. To be honest, this hasn't really got much use as of yet as I find that eye pencils are quite oily and often fade away or disappear into the crease of my eye, giving me a not-so-attractive brown line on my eyelid. Perhaps I'll think differently if I try an eye lid primer first...
This is a lovely product that smells SO good! It's not greasy like some body butters are, and I don't feel the irritating need to wipe it off after I use it, which is great!
I have mixed feelings about this brush. It's so pretty and colourful and soft, but I don't feel like the bristles pick up very much of the product!
The last product in the box is the CM eau de parfum. I have to say I'm not really a fan of this particular product as I think the smell is quite sickly and sweet. Definitely not what I was expecting!
PLEASE NOTE: Before anyone gets uppity about how weight loss pills are bad for you, etc. let me just say now that these are NOT weight loss pills. They are NOT a food replacement tablet or anything crazy like that - believe me I love my food way too much for that! They are vitamin tablets that ensure you're still getting the right vitamins while your body is changing due to weightloss.
I've long wanted to try the BOOTEA detox tea but in all honesty I just detest tea. Seriously, I've tried all the fruity ones, herbal ones and natural ones, hoping that a different flavour might tempt my taste buds but I just cannot bear it. I'm dieting normally by eating healthily instead (I'm using the Weight Watchers diet, which is the only one recommended by the NHS, so it's very safe!) but in order to sustain my vitamin levels and make sure I'm not depleting myself of anything, I thought I'd try the herbal Multi Vits by BOOTEA. They cost £11.99 on the BOOTEA website but they're only £9.99 in Holland and Barrett, so that's where I went. (Unfortunately this product isn't included in the penny sale!)
The tablets are large, white capsules - perhaps a little larger than I'd like them to be - but they're generally quite easy to swallow with a drink, but the smell is quite strong; so strong in fact that after you've touched the capsule, your fingers will indeed still smell herbal for quite some time.
So how did I feel? Well, I felt good - not necessarily any different, but I didn't feel like taking these had had any adverse reactions. The label does state that one possible side effect is a tingly feeling in your fingertips, which is due to an overdose of vitamin B6, which can be dangerous if sustained, but I personally didn't encounter this problem.
The only problem I personally had, was that the taste repeated on me quite a lot during the day and gave me quite strong, herbal halitoses.
