The Birchtree by Bloom and Wild x Birchbox

Birchbox Bloom and Wild Christmas Box

Birchbox Bloom and Wild Christmas Box

Bloom and Wild Christmas Birchbox

What could be more perfect for the festive season? The UK’s number 1 beauty box, Birchbox have teamed up with Bloom & Wild, the fab letterbox flower delivery company to bring you a great limited edition Christmas offering …… The BirchTree by Birchbox and Bloom & Wild* It is so adorable.

Bloom & Wild have thought of everything and this all comes delivered in a flat box which is perfectly sized to fit through your letterbox, talk about convenient! Inside you get a mini evergreen birch tree (a real one) which smells super festive and 5 amazing luxe beauty products to get your skin ready for and also see you through the party season.

I think this is such a fun collaboration and it has got me well and truly in the Festive Spirit.

Christmas 2016 Birchbox with Bloom and Wild

The Birchtree by Bloom and Wild Birchbox

Inside this letterbox friendly package, you will receive,

  • The BirchTree: A small, cute and perfectly formed festive evergreen tree
  • Caudalie Instant Detox Mask: A 10-minute weekly detox mask that is perfect for revitalising tired, lacklustre completions. This is a great mask for keeping your skin looking its best over the party season.
  • Rituals The Ritual of Sakura Body Cream: A gorgeous soothing body cream which smells so good. Its a blend of rice milk and sweet cherry blossom that will nourish your skin from top to toe
  • Benefit the POREfessional: This is such a cult beauty favourite. It’s an oil-free primer that will help diffuse pores and fine lines and ensure your makeup looks flawless and stays in place all night long.
  • Lord & Berry Red Lipstick: Could this be the perfect Holiday red? Its a mini pillar box red lipstick which will fit in any clutch bag this party season so you can reapply on the go.
  • Givenchy Live Irrésistible Eau de Parfum: I had to test this out right away and I don’t think I have ever owned a Givenchy fragrance but this one is beautiful. It is a very feminine scent and I could smell it hours after I first applied it. It has notes of pineapple and spicy rose to give you a mix of zesty fruit and floral. I urge you to test this out and let me know if you like it as much as I do.

Christmas Birchtree Birchbox by Bloom and Wild

Your 5 Birchbox samples come with pretty red ribbons all ready to hang on your birch tree. It was quite fun to get creative and decorate my tree although I don’t think I’ll be able to resist not using my products so they won’t be on the tree too long. I will, however, be replacing the beauty products with some festive baubles and putting it in my hallway, you must remember to care for your tree and water it every week so it stays lush and green right up until Christmas.

The Christmas BirchTree by Birchbox and Bloom and Wild

Christmas Birchbox UK 2016

This is such a fun take on your standard beauty box, not only do you get 5 lovely products to try out but also this lovely Christmas Tree is going to make your home feel extra festive. Its the perfect gift for friends and family or a great Christmas treat for you

Be quick if you want to snap this up, it is limited edition and once they’re gone that’s it.

The BirchTree by Birchbox and Bloom & Wild*

*PR Sample

Five Favourites from January 2015

I was glad to see the back of January, its such a long month & this year it was cold, wet & a little miserable so I’m saying HELLO February & looking forward to a happier more fun filled month. Me & my lovely husband are celebrating 15 years together & fingers crossed we will be finding a new place to call home too. So it is all go this month & I can’t wait.

Five favourite products

NYC Quattro in South Street Seaport – This is a great budget friendly eyeshadow palette, the shadows are pretty and neutral. Ideal for my everyday look, the top three shades have a slight shimmer to them but are not overly glittery where as the lightest shade is almost matte. You will need a primer under these eyeshadows, just so the colour payoff is better & they last longer. I like to use all the colours to create a neutral smokey eye. I bought this in Superdrug & think I will go back & get a few more products from NYC.

Benefit Stay Don’t Stray Primer (sample) – This is a dual action eye primer so not only will it keep your eyeshadow in place but you can use it under the eye to keep your concealer put all day long and it works a treat. It gives my eyelids an even colour & is the perfect base on which to apply eyeshadow. Its love. I need the full size ASAP.

Primark PS Love Lip Crayon  This is a gorgeous everyday colour, Its really nicely packaged and is a twist up so no sharpening needed. I would say its a caramel nude, its quite a glossy finish and applied nicely & evenly to my lips. The colour pay off is good, it looks nice & natural on the lips. I wouldn’t say this lasts a great amount of time but these lip crayons are really easy & effortless to reapply. Perfect for throwing in your handbag. Thats where mine has been living.

Benefit Boiing Concealer – This is my favourite heavy duty full coverage concealer, it works best to cover blemishes. Just take your time to blend it & it will stay put all day. I have had this pot for ages & it has so much product left. It is good value and I always go back to it, its dependable and just works.

Dr Paw Paw Original Balm*– I’ve been using this mostly as a lip treatment (as my lips are so dry this Winter) but I also like to massage it into my cuticles at night to help keep them soft. The formula is non greasy and easily absorbed. It has quickly become a staple in my routine now & sits on my bed side table. I love a multi use product & this is a product I’ve found myself reaching for a lot.

Let me know what you have been loving so far in 2015. Have you rediscovered some old favourites or bought some new products?

Favourite Makeup of 2014

Favourite Makeup of 2014

I have been really strict with my 2014 makeup favourites & only included the cream of the crop in this post. So without further ado these are my favourite makeup products from 2014.

Clinique Chubby Stick Intense in Roundest Raspberry* – this is an intense raspberry shade which for a lip crayon has great staying power. Its quite glossy but not slippery on the lips and looks beautiful and bright. Its a shade I wear all year round and love how easy it is to apply this on the go. I need to try a few more Chubby Sticks this year.

Rimmel Apocalips in Galaxy – which again is a deep berry shade. I have 3 of these but this colour is by far my favourite, it glides on the lips and is vibrant and feels nice and hydrating. The other colours I have are a little patchy but this gives a nice even colour. You do need to wipe off the excess product before you apply this as a little goes a long way and can get quite messy.

Clarins Instant Light Complexion Base – I like to wear this either under my foundation to perk my skin up or I mix it in with my foundation for an extra reflective boost. This gives me a healthy glow without being shimmery, it evens out my skin tone and hides imperfections. I have the shade Champagne 02 & its also good at dulling the redness in my skin. I find it to be lightweight & doesn’t feel greasy on the skin at all, it just gives you a lovely fresh healthy finish. It makes a really nice base to apply your foundation & just keeps your complexion looking fresh & bright.

Barbara Daly Long Wear Eyeshadows in Shell –  This is a light pink cream shadow with a gorgeous champagne tone which is pretty worn all over the lid or as an inner corner highlight. This colour really adds brightness to the eye & opens it up. This long wear shadow stick is incredible quality and the packaging is sleek and looks a lot more expensive than £3. They do start to crease a little on me after about 5 hours of wear but I do have quite crinkly eyelids & I just blend it out with my finger & that does the trick.

2014 Makeup Favourites

L’Oreal True Match Foundation in the shade Vanilla – this is the first ever L’Oreal Foundation I’ve tried, this is a light to medium coverage, you can still see all my (hundreds) of freckles which I like. It looks natural and wears really well. It doesn’t oxidise on me and my oily skin seems to only start looking shiny after about 6 hours wear & then I lightly dust some powder on and its good for a few more hours.

Benefit Stay Don’t Stray – This is a dual action eye primer so not only will it keep your eyeshadow in place but you can use it under the eye to keep your concealer put all day long and it works a treat! It gives my eyelids an even colour & is the perfect base on which to apply eyeshadow. Its love & I am going to use some vouchers I got for Christmas to get the full size.

Soap & Glory Solar Powder – This has been my daily bronzer since I bought it back in May. In the pan it doesn’t look like much but once on the skin its just beautiful. The lighter shade has a little sheen to it whilst the slightly darker brown is matte. I tend to mix the two shades together to give a subtle sun kissed effect. I sweep it over the top of my forehead & down on to my cheeks. This isn’t going to give you a deep colour its more for paler skin tones. It just adds such a natural warm glow to the skin and makes me look healthy. The only downside to this is the cardboard packaging it looks tatty after a while and it’s not very travel friendly.

Miss Sporty Cat’s Eyes Palette – Mineral Earth. This has been a handy quad for my many trips up to Scotland. You get four good quality shadows and they’re ideal for achieving neutral smoky eye, or most of the four colours can worn alone all over the lid which Is how I wear them mostly. All 4 colours have a slight frosting to them, nothing sparkly or overly shimmery but they do have a pretty light reflecting quality to them. Its a bargain of a quad & I use it all the time. Like I said its handy and small for travel, its not the most robust packaging but its still going strong after a lot of use.

Sharon Osbourne Duchess Eyeshadow Quad – All four shades are pigmented and very blendable, I think they work well together & unlike a lot of palettes / quads there really isn’t one dud shade, they’re all beautiful. Three of the four have a pretty shimmer frosted finish, I wouldn’t  say they’re overly frosted or shimmery but just enough to add some iridescence, glow and brightness to your look. This is the only Mac purchase I’ve made for the longest time as I tend not to shop there but I couldn’t be happier with this quad & I have used it so much.

2014 Makeup Favourites

L’Oreal Super Liner Carbon Gloss – This eyeliner lasts so well on me and the colour is such a deep black. I like to use this eyeliner for making a really thin line and the nib is precise and easy to use. It doesn’t transfer at all and once it dries it won’t smudge. It also doesn’t dry out in the tube, I find a lot of liquid liners do & its so annoying. These last me at least 3 months and thats using it daily.

Seventeen Stay Time 18 Hour Concealer – This is great for both under eye area & blemishes. I do powder over the top to ensure it stays put all day. Its a great affordable concealer and I’m thrilled with it. Although not too sure about the 18 hour claims, nothing a quick touch up won’t solve. I like to apply this with my finger and find that gives me the best even coverage.

Origins GinZing Brightening MascaraThis mascara is great at separating your lashes & it keeps a curl like no other! I like my lashes to look fluttery and this works well at achieving that. You can build it up on your lashes so they look thick without being crispy. I also like the chunky packaging & I’ve grown to love the big oversized wand. Its a very good all round mascara & I think its quite an unsung hero.

Let me know if you love any of the products I’ve included or if you have any other recomendations.

Products that are marked with an * have either been sent to me for my consideration or I’ve received at events. I’m under no obligation to review them on my blog. However if I do, the reviews are 100% my own.

 

This Weeks Happy #4

Making Me Happy 4Making Me Happy Week 4

Benefit Cheeky Sweet Spot – This cheek set is just adorable & I have used it more than I thought I would. It comes in a festive sweet shop style tin & comes with 6 of their popular box o’ powders inside and also the highlighter Watt’s Up. I’ve only tried two of the Benefit Boxed Powders & they’re Dallas & 10 both of which I use all the time. I was pleased that neither are in this palette so I get to try 5 more blushes, a bronzer and a gorgeous highlighter. This is a Limited Edition Christmas release so if you want it you best snap it up quick.

Notebook – I am completely and utterly obsessed with stationery and own so many notebooks, how could I resist this floral one? I am trying to be more organised and write down my ideas instead of storing them all in my over crowded mind where I eventually forget them & they never come to fruition. So this is the notebook I am currently carrying around with me, its quite plain inside and has standard ruled lines but the cover is so pretty & reminds me that Spring isn’t far away.

North Pole Postcard – I saw this & thought it would be a cute idea to write it & send it to my little niece as if it’s from Father Christmas. So thats what I have done, I will be calling her later in the week to find out if she has had any important & exciting mail. So watch this space. She is beyond excited for Christmas so this might just send her over the edge, a hand written card from Santa himself.

Red Nail Polish – Just the perfect colour for this time of year & these are my current favourite duo. Essie Toggle to the top and American Apparel in Lipstick. Both are beautiful reds. The Essie polish is fun and glittery where as the American Apparel is more vibrant and bold.

Dr Stuarts Detox Te– I love this brand of teas & this is my latest obsession. Its packed with the pure natural flavours of dandelion and burdock, sage, ginger, peppermint and spearmint. This tea will help to refresh your system from the inside, giving you the kick-start you need. Its also naturally caffeine free. I have been really enjoying it & its a great tea to warm you up on this chilly wintery mornings.

Cinnamon Nutmeg & Candle – This is from Clas Ohlsen & it smells so festive, I have stocked up on quite a few so I can burn them without fear of running out. I love my home to smell of cloves & spices at this time of year & the scent from this little candle fills the room. Its so nice.

What have you been loving this week?