Thursday 25 September 2014

Maybelline Colour Sensational Lip Elixir ~ A Review

Hello Lovelies,

The 'Lip Laquer' type lip product has been all over the drugstore/high street for the last few months, with lots of brands all releasing their take on the lip gloss / lipstick hybrid or liquid lipstick. So far I have tried 3 drugstore versions of a liquid lipstick,  Rimmel, L'oreal and Bourjois but I haven't found a formula I love as yet, I found the L'oreal to go patchy, the Bourjois bled like a mofo and the Rimmel just wasn't for me at all and the smell of them is awful. Out of the high end offerings I have tried the MAC Kissable Lip Colours, Chanel Rouge Allure Laque and OCC Lip Tars all of which have been amazing, I loved the kissable lip colours by MAC and wish they would re promote them but so far I haven't been wowed by any of the drugstore options I have tried. So when I was out shopping with Simon and a new product caught my eye I was intrigued.

As I said I was shopping with Simon when I noticed Superdrug were selling the new Maybelline Colour Sensational Lip Elixirs, we had been into Boots already and they didn't have them on sale there (they do now) and since I love the colour sensational vivid lipsticks by Maybelline I thought I'd give these a go.


The colours I chose were Signature Scarlet (on the left) and Petal Plush (right) I always seem to go for reds, bright pinks and corals when choosing a lip colour but I decided not to go for the bright pink this time and chose the Petal Plush, a soft pink an almost nude/pink and then as always I opted for the red colour.


Petal Plush

Signature Scarlet 

Swatches Left Signature Scarlet, Right Petal Plush

As I said I love the Maybelline colour sensational vivid lipsticks and was so excited to try the colour elixirs too, when I swatched them they had good pigmentation although the Petal Plush did have a touch of sparkle, something I'm personally not too keen on. 

My Thoughts ~

Firstly I thought I'd share with you what Maybelline have to say about their colour sensational elixirs: 

Fall under the spell of the elixir effect
Hyper-saturated color, ultra cushiony feel
The new hypnotic lip sensation

Why You'll Love It

  • A trio of concentrates delivers the color of a lipstick, the cushiony care of a balm, and the glass shine of a gloss
  • Our exclusive smoothing angora brush delivers a polished , even application and smoothing sensation to lips

For Best Results

Apply lipcolor with applicator wand starting in the center of your upper lip. Work from the center to the outer edges of your lip, following the contours of your mouth. Then glide across the entire bottom lip.
I applied the colour elixir in the way it stated on the Maybelline website I tried the Petal Plush first, it was a very pale pink/nude and does have a touch of sparkle, it isn't too obvious so it didn't bother me too much despite sparkly lip products not really being my thing. I found the colour a little too pale, I thought it might be similar to Angel by MAC but it was paler than that and to be honest not very visible, I did photograph it on my lips but you couldn't really see it. I had a drink when wearing the petal plush and chatted to Cole, Lissy and Simon, but I didn't have anything to eat.
Next I tried Signature Scarlet, I love a red lip and was very excited to try this shade, I applied it in the same was as Petal Plush, the pigmentation was really good and it gave a lovely red glossy finish, one I thought that would look great for an evening out. 

It's not the best photograph but you can see how pigmented the product is and the glossy shine it gave. As with the petal plush I made sure I had something to drink to give a true reflection of wear time with the elixirs, I didn't have anything to eat and this time I was home alone so didn't chat to anyone, I was happily editing videos and writing blog posts whilst testing out signature scarlet. I checked in the mirror after an hour and was very disappointed at what I saw, the elixir had bled/feathered badly and looked awful.

1 hour later

As you can see from the photograph the bleeding around the bottom lip is awful and it had started to bleed around the top lip too and the colour was a little patchy too. 

30 mins later (1.5 hours of wear time)

After another 30 minutes the colour had faded even more and the bleeding was getting worse. 

I was extremely disappointed in the colour elixirs to be honest, at first when I tried the signature scarlet I thought it was going to be fabulous because of the pigmentation and colour pay off but as you can see from the photographs it didn't wear well at all, I wouldn't agree with Maybellines description either, in my opinion the colour is not that of a lipstick, non of my lipsticks look so patchy and bleed so much, as I said I love the vivids by Maybelline and thought that since these were also 'colour sensational' products that they might be the same but they're so different and are poles apart in pigmentation and wear time. I feel like I have wasted £10 on these products, there is no way I can use the signature scarlet and the petal plush is barely visible so theres not much point in applying it. 

I didn't think these were too sticky but they are a little tacky, and definitely have that lipgloss feel to them, when having a drink they left lots of product on the glass. I did like the packaging of the elixirs though and the wand was easy to use but those are the only 2 redeeming features I can find I'm afraid. 

Overall I was very disappointed, this is the first Maybelline product I have tried and hated and it is such a shame, I love the brand and won't let it put me off but I won't be buying any more of the colour sensational elixirs thats for sure! 

If you would like to try them, you can find them here for £6.19 each and they are currently on 3 for 2. 

Have you tried the elixirs? Did you like them or did they bleed and go patchy on you? Let me know in the comments. 

Thank you for reading, much love as always, 

Zoe x



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Saturday 20 September 2014

An Amazing Skin Care Brand ~ Melvita

Hello Lovelies,

As you may already know, I am a bit of a skin care junkie/geek and love finding new products to try whether it be something I am kindly sent or something I have purchased myself and I am often asked questions or my opinion on certain skin care items. I recently decided I was going to make an 'affordable skin care routine' video for my You Tube Channel and started to research lots of different products with that video in mind and I came across the brand Melvita. One of the first things I read was the about us section on their website and it was a pleasure to read, I have to share it with you so here's what it says -

OUR STORY

Bernard Chevilliat, founder of Melvita, moved with his brother to the Ardèche in 1977 after studying Biology. They set up a small farm after being attracted to the area by the vast unspoilt landscapes and open countryside. As they worked the land they became interested in migrantbeekeeping, particularly the valuable role bees play in nature as a whole, and soon built up over five hundred hives.
Nûriël, Bernard’s wife, then joined the farm. They founded Melvita in 1983 developing their own natural and organic beauty products designed for people to use everyday without the need for harsh chemicals. Their first product was the iconic hexagonal soap made with honey from their hives. Delicate moisturisers and lotions, shampoos and bath products soon followed and the company, which started out with just 4 employees, grew to over 250 people.
MELVITA was quietly formulating natural beauty products before the trend for natural and organic cosmetics took hold, and was one of the first to gain the ECOCERT certificate for organic products in 2002.
Today Bernard Chevilliat continues to lead the technical team creating innovative products at the forefront of organic formulation and expertise still based in the open countryside of the Ardèche.

I also really like their philosophy, which is -

Our philosophy

■ Our products meet the criteria of the strict ECOCERT Ecological and Organic Cosmetics standards and of the Cosmébio label.
■ We use the finest ingredients that are organically and responsibly sourced, with respest of nature being our priority.
■ We actively protest against the pointlessness and cruelty of tests on animals.
■ We ensure that our packaging materials are totally recyclable.
■ We are involved in a pro-active approach that encompasses sustainable development and the preservation of beauty, biodiversity and environmental balance.
■ We develop long-standing, ethical relationships with our growers from our local area and in underprivileged areas of the world.
■ Formulated to be pure and gentle, our beauty range is incredibly effective bringing with it all the pleasure of nature.
ecocert and cosmebio logos

I browsed their website for what seemed like ages and found lots of lovely products I'd like to try but one product that stood out more than any other was the plumping radiance duo, this is a bi phase product and is made up of rose water and rose oil and is said to firm and plump skin and give an amazing radiant glow. I decided to purchase the plumping radiance duo and something I thought was a really nice touch was that I got to choose 3 free samples at the checkout, so I chose the Extraordinary Rose Water, the Moisture Replenishing Night Nectar and the Fresh Eye Contour Gel.

When my parcel arrived a few days later I was very pleasantly surprised at how lovely the packaging was, I received a lovely floral patterned box lined with white tissue paper with my products in.

The box containing my products

My products in the box

I was really excited to try the products and was very pleased that the Extraordinary Water was quite a decent sized sample at 25ml and considering a full size bottle is 100ml I thought receiving a quarter of the size was a generous sample size.


My first thoughts on the Plumping Radiance Duo or should I say Pulpe De Rose plumping radiance duo were that I wasn't keen on the packaging being glass, this is only because I can be extremely clumsy but so far so good it is still in tact and aside from that I had no other concerns on first impressions.

The product as I said comes in a glass bottle with a pump on top and there is 50ml of product, the product retails at £25 which does sound expensive but considering this can be used as 2 of your skin care steps I didn't think it was too bad and this is why I bought it with my more affordable skin care video in mind, because it is basically saving on a product. I use this after cleansing and using my acid toner and in place of my hydrating toner and a facial oil. Because this is a bi phase product and contains both the oil and water I only need this product so it does save money as I would usually use Serozinc and a facial oil which would be more expensive to buy than the Melvita, so as you see there is a method in my madness!

I absolutely love this product, it is really nice and it applies well, I use 2 pumps and spray it onto my hand then apply it to my face, you could spray it directly onto your face if you wanted to, and I have tried both methods but my preferred method is to spray onto my hand first then apply to my face. The product sinks into my skin effortlessly and I am not waiting around for ages for it to dry before I can apply my moisturiser. My skin feels so soft and plumped up after I've used this, it does do exactly what it says on the tin or bottle as the case is, if I am wearing make up I find my skin has a lovely glow to it when I've used this and I have received a lot of compliments on my skin since I started using it. I would say although this is £25 it is good value for money as a little goes a very long way, I've been using 2 pumps of this and theres hardly a dent in the bottle, I would imagine a bottle of this will last a very long time.

Overall I love the pulpe de rose, plumping radiance duo it is a beautiful product, it smells amazing too, it applies well, sinks in to my skin nicely and leaves my skin looking lovely, whats not to love? I would highly recommend it and will definitely be re purchasing when I run out.

Extraordinary Rose Water

I couldn't write this post without mentioning the sample of Extraordinary Water I received with my order, as I said I was pleased with the size of the sample but not only that this is an amazing product, it isn't the cheapest of products at £17 for 100ml bottle but if you are in the market for a luxurious facial toner this is the one for you, it is fabulous!

It smells amazing, usually I hate rose scented products but this is lovely and not overpowering or old ladyish at all, the consistency is a little strange and it is almost like a gel/water hybrid, it is thicker than your average water consistency toner but that certainly didn't put me off. My skin feels amazing when I use this product, it is lovely. There are 3 different extraordinary waters to choose from, the rose one, orange blossom and narcissus, I haven't tried either of the other 2 but if they are like the rose they will be amazing too. The water contains hyaluronic acid so is very hydrating, according to the Melvita website the orange blossom is for dry skin but this has worked brilliantly for me, saying that I would love to try the orange blossom one next. I cannot speak highly enough of this product and although it is expensive it is worth it, and as with the plumping radiance duo, a little goes a long way, I have used my sample a heck of a lot and I still have half left, I am trying to savour it though as it is such a gorgeous product. As I said if you are in the market for a luxurious toner I would highly recommend you try this or one of the other extraordinary waters, you will not be disappointed I promise you. 

I also love the eye contour gel and night cream that I received however they were tiny samples and I didn't have enough uses to say how they performed and if they made a difference to my skin at all. 

But overall I am so so pleased I discovered the brand Melvita and have a wish list on a loo roll of all the amazing products they have, they are a fantastic company with a brilliant ethos and I am extremely glad I found them and I can't wait to try more of their wonderful products. 

If you would like to check out the Melvita website you can find it by clicking this link, you can also find Melvita at Feel Unique and Look Fantastic

Have you tried Melvita? Whats your favourite product?

Thank you for reading, much love as always, 

Zoe x

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Thursday 11 September 2014

L'oreal Infallible Nail Polish

Hello Lovelies,

As you are probably already aware, I love nail polish, and out of all the beauty products I own, my nail polish collection is my biggest collection and despite owning much more nail polish than I need, I still find myself buying more and more.

Recently a polish that caught my eye was the L'oreal Infallible Nail polish, a 2 step product that claims to give a gel like or UV finish and also 12 days wear time.

L'oreal Infallible polish in Fuchsia For Life

In the past I had gel nails applied quite frequently and always loved the way they looked and also the longevity of the colour and shine and since many brands have released their take on the "gel polish" I have been on the hunt for the perfect high street brand of polish that delivers that gel finish for a fraction of the price of a salon manicure. 

When I read L'oreals description of the infallible polishes I was impressed and thought I'd give it a go, I've always loved Essie polishes and L'oreal own Essie so I thought I had nothing to lose. I picked up the colour Fuchsia for Life, in the bottle it looks like a nice corally pink colour, a colour I am always drawn to. There are currently 12 shades in the range which will be extended to 21 shades over time. 



As you can see from the photographs above, the polish comes in 2 stages, the polish and then a top coat. 

Here's what L'oreal said about the product. 

Introducing L’Oréal Paris Infallible Nail Polish. A sleekly designed two-step process that delivers on-trend shades, hard as nails toughness and magnifying shine.
A stunning, show-stopping hybrid gel-lacquer result, which defies a UV manicure.
UNIQUE TWO-STEP SYSTEM
STEP 1: High-intensity, super-fine pigments deliver an outstanding opaque colour. Containing a new generation of resin, Flex-ResinTM, hailed for its second to none flexibility and adhesive properties. Slicked across the nail it creates an indestructible supple mesh that moves with the nails to resist chipping.
STEP 2: Smart magnifying agents crystallise the mesh, effectively curing the colour to a rock-solid surface. The gel formula contains crystal polymers that rise to the polish surface amplifying colour, magnifying shine and plumping nail volume.
ZERO COMPROMISE. COLOUR IS SHINIER AND DEEPER... NAILS ARE PLUMPER FOR UP TO 12 DAYS.
My Thoughts ~

My very first thoughts when applying the polish were "its red" and it is, the polish is not fuchsia at all or the corally pink it looks in the bottle, it is red a definite red, but that didn't put me off as I do like red nails, I would just have preferred the colour I thought I'd bought.

I loved how the polish applied the brush is nice and wide and the polish applies really well and with ease, I used 2 coats of the polish which dried quite fast in between coats and then I applied 1 coat of the top coat. I didn't use a separate base and top coat as I wanted to test the polish on its own.





I was really impressed with the finish of the polish, it is super glossy as you may be able to tell from the photographs, it is red and not fuchsia for life but hey ho. I would say this is the first out of all the polishes I've tried that claim to have a gel like finish that actually does have a gel like finish, my nails were super glossy and opaque and looked lovely.

The only thing I wasn't happy with though was the wear time, I only got a couple of days wear out of the polish and within 48 hours my nails were chipped, I've tried the polish a couple of times and the second time I wore it I got more wear time from it but an Essie polish can last me a week and this didn't last anywhere near a week, so I was very disappointed in the wear time. That said I would try more colours in the range purely because of the finish, I really liked the glossy finish I got from the polish and it was really easy to apply so I won't let the wear time put me off I shall just bare it in mind when painting my nails, if I need a polish to last me a few days I shall choose a different polish.

Overall despite being disappointed in the wear time I was impressed with the polish, it applied well, the colour was lovely despite not being what I expected it was still a beautiful shade, and the shine was amazing and a definite gel finish, so I will be buying more of this range, I just hope next time I get the colour I think I'm getting!

I thought I'd include a comparison photograph of actual gel nails with the polish to show how like gel the finish is.

Left pics are a Gelish manicure and Right is the L'oreal Infallible polish

The finish is very similar to a gel manicure and as I said so far the most gel like I've found, I am going to try some more brands 'gel polishes' so watch this space for more reviews.

If you would like to try the L'oreal Infallible polishes, you can get them here for £7.99.

JANUARY 2015 UPDATE ~ Since writing the post in September, I noticed all the infallible polishes I owned (3) had gone sticky and gloopy and I had to throw them in the bin, this was at the end of November 2014, I had only had 1 of the polishes for 5 weeks. I loved the finish of the polishes and did buy more of them but since they dried up and went gloopy I wanted to update this post. I don't think they are worth the price tag, yes the finish is amazing but the chipping and the way the polishes ended up isn't worth it, I am going to contact L'oreal about it so watch this space.

If you have any comments or questions please leave them below as I always reply to all my comments and questions.

Thank you for reading, much love as always,

Zoe x




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