Beauty Box Buys #1

The idea for this post was suggested to me by one of my friends (Thanks Kat!) via the blogs Facebook page, and I instantly loved it! This is going to be a new feature once a month, in which I will mention the items I have received in beauty boxes that I would most recommend! 

Birchbox

This month's Birchbox was a good one. The standout item for me was the TheBalm blush palette, How 'bout Them Apples? I loved it so much I bought the full size palette with my Birchbox points! The palette is available from TheBalm's website, but it'll have to be shipped from the US. A better bet is Cloud10Beauty, they have the palette listed for £24.50 which is £1.50 cheaper than in the Birchbox shop, and you won't be running the risk of customs fees. 

Alternatively, you could enter my giveaway HERE and win yourself one!
 

This month's Birchbox also featured the Yes to...Cucumbers face wipes. These are great at removing make up and super refreshing. I know face wipes aren't everyone's thing, but I find them really helpful for removing mascara and clearing off any bits of make up I've missed with a cleanser. You can find the full-size packs of these here for £3.74.

Love Me Beauty    

Love Me Beauty had some great products this month, but my absolute favourite was this shampoo from Neal and Wolf. It smells amazing, and my hair feels so soft after using it! It is a bit pricey for an everyday shampoo, so I'm not sure if it's something I'll be repurchasing, but I'd definitely recommend it! Especially if flyaway hair is a problem you suffer with. My hair is quite fine so it does occasionally get quite irritating, but since using this I've not had any problems. It's available here for £11.50 for 250ml.

You've all heard me raving about the Betty Hula Secret Wonder Oil this month. I've mainly been using it for stretchmarks, but this can also be used for scarring, dry/sensitive and aging skin, combination skin, oily skin and for soothing sun burn. It is also recommended for eye wrinkles. The travel size rollerball is £6.25 and is available here along with Betty's other lovely goodies!

You Beauty Discovery   

This month's You Beauty box was fantastic. I loved both of the products I received, but my favourite was the Essential Care Creamy Coconut Cleanser. I picked this for my box on a bit of a whim, but I really love it. It removes all of my make up incredibly easily, and even removes mascara to a point. My skin feels clean and refreshed after I've used it, and I just think it's a great product! You can get it here for £14.50 (150ml) or £6 (30ml).

I also love the Clayspray from this month's box. This is probably going to be slightly out of budget for most people, but if you're feeling flush then I'd recommend giving it a try. These are literally cans that contain a clay mask. These dry to quite a solid mask and I found that it could be quite tricky to remove, but your skin feels amazing afterwards, so definitely worth the hassle. Don't get it in your hair though, I got a couple of stray strands in by accident and spent ages trying to get it out! Feelunique have the smaller 30ml sizes which might be better if you just want to get a feel for the product, which you can find here for £15, or you can get the larger 125ml cans here for £44.50 each. Feelunique also offer sets of clayspray masks with a spring water spray which is what Clayspray recommends you prep your skin with before applying the mask. I personally don't think it would make that much difference, but if you're interested, you can find those here for £35 each.

What do you think of my favourite beauty box picks from April? Would you buy any of these products?

 

April Favourites

 Compared to last month, I've spent a bit more on beauty products, but not an awful lot. I've been quite lucky this month with beauty boxes that have provided me with the majority of my favourites, and I was hoping to have my How 'bout Them Apples? palette to add to this post but it didn't arrive in time!

First up had to be the Iconic 3 palette from Make Up Revolution. I have been absolutely loving this palette all month. I really wanted to get my hands on Naked 3 by Urban Decay when it first came out, but just couldn't bring myself to splash the cash! For £4 this is a fantastic dupe and I've been loving the looks I've been able to create with it. Now I just have to stop myself from picking up all the others in this range!

Love Me Beauty has been good to me this month, by introducing me to two of my favourites! This Neal and Wolf shampoo smells absolutely divine and has left my hair feeling silky and looking super shiny. I've also been loving the Betty Hula Wonder Oil. In preparation for my holiday I've been using this regularly, and I have definitely seen a difference in my stretchmarks. They are gradually fading, but I'm not sure I have enough in this sample to get them fully gone. I might have to break out the Bio-Oil! 

My final favourite for April is the Rimmel mattifying BB cream. I received this sample in the March You Beauty Discovery box and I've been wearing it to work pretty much every day this month. It provides a really nice lightweight cover, and lasts all day. On hotter days I've been applying a powder over the top to just give it a little bit of help, but I don't think it really needed it. This is a great product, and for only £6.99 it's a bargain. My sample tube is probably going to last me ages as I only need a tiny amount at a time!

Have you tried any of this month's favourites? Have you got any suggestions for me to try out for next month?

Love Me Beauty Box - April 2014

I can't lie, initially I was quite disappointed when I saw the menu for this month's Love Me Beauty box. There were only four products instead of the usual six! However, since looking into it a bit more and deciding which box I wanted, and receiving the box, I've talked myself around.

What really made my decision for option three this month was this full-size shampoo from Neal and Wolf.  The other options included a blow dry balm or a super shine spray, and being someone who doesn't like to spend too long on their hair, I decided that the shampoo would be the best option! I've never tried this brand before, but this shampoo smells amazing, I can't wait to use it! 

Option three also included this full-size Models Own polish in the shade 'Fuzzy Peach'. This is a great spring/summer shade, and who doesn't love a Models Own polish? I only have one of their polishes, but it's one of my favourites so I was happy to add another to my collection. I might wear this when I go on holiday next month, it definitely strikes me as a holiday polish! 

Betty Hula is another brand I've not heard of, but this Secret Wonder Oil rollerball is exactly the kind of thing I am interested in! I have a few stretchmarks from quickly gaining and then losing a bunch of weight (through diet), so receiving this now is perfect timing! I'll use it before I go on holiday and report back to see whether it has made any difference. I've always sworn by Bio-Oil, but it is incredibly greasy and doesn't have a handy rollerball application! 

We also received this sample of Redken's conditioner for coloured hair. My hair isn't coloured, but I think I'll probably use this anyway as it smells really nice! It has a very similar scent to shampoos that have been used on me when I've visited the hairdressers, so I'm sure it'll give me that 'just visited the hairdressers' feeling!

As additional extras, we received a £25 voucher for HelloFresh, a company that delivers recipes with the exact ingredients to your door, and an extra sample. Some people have received Weleda stretchmark cream sachets, but I've received this sample of Melvita rosewater. I think this is meant to be used before cleansing, but the rose scent is very overpowering. It's not really my kind of thing at all so this might end up in the up for grabs album! 

Overall, I liked this box a lot more than I thought I was going to. I think I'd have preferred it more if the voucher had been for something beauty based, or if it had been another product to try in the box, but I still think that this is an improvement on last month and Love Me Beauty is still my favourite out of all the beauty boxes. Glossybox, Birchbox and You Beauty don't put anywhere near as many full-size samples in their boxes, so here's hoping that the May box is going to really wow me!