Benefit Pin Up Lashes

I'm not normally one for fake lashes. Since spending hours in my earlier years trying to fix them equally across my lash lines without looking half-cut before I've even left the house, to ripping them off complete with half my natural lashes still affixed at the end of the night, it's safe to say I'm not the biggest lash fan.
I have dabbled with the Eyelures, the Girls Alouds (we've all bought the Cheryls right?!) and the Laurens Ways all with varying levels of success. I've tried all styles, from wispies to glamourous, to double-layered-drag-appearance. You see all too often the girls who think 'bigger is better' and for some, yes perhaps, for others...not so much :/
It's a minefield of fiddly applicators, ridiculously finicky glass bottles of glue, cutting to size, dropping them down the back of the dresser, trying to figure out how to make them stay on the inner corners (dammit, why don't they stick?!?), just ridiculous.

However...

I think I may have stumbled across the holy grail of false lashes. For those, like me, who fear individual semi permanents leaving lasting damage and stick to the occasional special occasion strip lash, I may well have the answer to end your Saturday night lash-dramas!

Let me introduce you to Benefit's Pin Up lashes.

Benefit Pin Up Lashes. £11.50

These. Are. Incredible!

Benefit do a whole range of lashes, but for me these are the best. They are dark brown, rather than black, so give all the drama of long, fluttery lashes without the drag-queen effect. They are double layered, for a wispy but full appearance, and they really open up your eyes. They are more curved than most other brands so sit more naturally along your lash line. The plastic strip is thinner and more flexible than others so is easier to manipulate into the curve of your eye and stick into those tricky inner corners!!

Below are two pictures, the first of my evening make-up before applying the lashes and the second after I have added the lashes.


Neutral smoky make-up before adding Benefit Pin Up lashes.

Neutral smoky make-up with Benefit Pin Up lashes.

 

In each picture, the smaller top right photo shows just how much difference these lashes make to your eyes, they really widen them and compliment that smoky evening look.

 

Benefit Pin Up lashes are available from Boots, Debenhams and Benefit direct. I normally get mine online from Debenhams as they have free delivery for beauty card holders and frequently run promos (there is 10% off at the minute!!). They cost £11.50 full price, which a little more pricey than other strip lashes, but I have used mine over and over again and they just keep going!
It's worth mentioning that these don't come with glue, but most of us have a vial or two knocking around. I did buy the Benefit Lash Glue (£7.50) with the lashes too and have to say it's worth investing in. You get lots for your money, it comes in a squeezy, resealable tube rather than a ridiculous small glass bottle (with a lid which never comes off easily!) and again there is currently 10% off this little beauty at the moment at Debenhams too!
So there you have it, Saturday night lash dramas are a thing of the past!

xxx

Beautifully bronzed - Xen Tan Moroccantan

As all of my friends will tell you, I am a total tan addict! If there is a tanning product out there, chances are there is a half-used bottle sat in my bathroom cabinet!
I am a huge Xen Tan fan, their products smell delicious - like chocolate rather than fake tan - they are paraben free (very important) and the colour lasts for daaaaays!!! I've been using their Deep Bronze Luxe once a week self tan for months now and I absolutely adore it!

Xen Tan Deep Bronze Luxe

 

As a devoted fan, I recently noticed that Xen Tan were running a Twitter competition recently where you could win a bottle of their fab new Moroccantan, containing Moroccan Oil. I had wanted to try this for the longest time so I entered and was thrilled when I won!!

Xen Tan Morrocantan

The Moroccantan is a fair bit darker than the deep bronze luxe, with a noticeably darker guide colour. It smells delicious, like coconut, so instantly triggers memories of sunkissed skin and sun lotion!

When applying my normal Deep Bronze Luxe I find it is fine to apply using my bare hands and wash them afterwards (with whitening toothpaste for my nails of course!) whereas the deep guide colour of the Moroccantan means that a mitt is a must!
On the morning after application, the depth of the guide colour can look a little scary! But once you shower it off, it leaves you with a gorgeous, smooth, deep brown tan. It's a really natural looking colour, but quite dark, so I'd recommend it for girls who prefer a deeper colour, for summer months or pre-holiday bronzing.

Prices are very reasonable, I normally buy my Xen Tan through feel unique who have speedy delivery and also regularly run promotional money-off offers.

Xen Tan Deep Bronze Luxe weekly tan sells for £21.50 with free delivery.
Xen Tan Moroccantan sells for £19.99 with free delivery.

Follow Xen Tan on Twitter here!

I hope you love them as much as I do! xx



Day after using Xen Tan Deep Luxe.
(Apologies for the odd shot in the Eden Project loos, I forgot to take a pic before taking the kiddies out for the day!!)



Xen Tan Moroccan Tan after application - tan line to show the contrast.

Flip flops and friendship bracelets

Yippee, it's finally here!! Summer has arrived, and with it comes the pretty pedicured toes and floaty, sleeveless outfits.

I've been trying to find the perfect shade of nail varnish to grace my tootsies now that the flip flops are firmly back on my feet for the sunny weather. At the moment, coral is one of my absolute favourite shades. It compliments virtually every skin tone, looks gorgeous against a tan and can be used as a bright colour pop against a neutral or black outfit in equal measure.

I recently bought Rimmel's 60 second nail polish in shade 415 'Instyle Coral'. It's a gorgeous, lacquer-esque polish with a professional finish, plus it's 3-free so all good for everyday wear. This looks fab for summer, it makes your toes look so tasty!

To match the coral nails I also bought Boots number 17 Supreme Shine lipstick in 'Hot Flash'. It's a beautiful pinky-coral colour which flatters a tanned complexion, also perfect for summer!




Lips - Boots '17'  Supreme Shine lipstick in 'Hot Flash'
Nails - Rimmel 60 Second nail polish in '415 Instyle Coral'

Last week I was also lucky enough to win a Twitter competition run by Little Birdie London, a company I came across when I saw a post by fellow southern-girl blogger Liza Prideaux of GlamBeautys.

I won this gorgeous green friendship bracelet, which looks so understated and pretty. As they sell for only £6 each I think I am going to have to buy some more candy colours to stack for the summer, I just love it! At first I thought it was a material bracelet, but it is actually made of metal (alloy) and painted this gorgeous colour. It's fab!

Little Birdie London green friendship bracelet

Check out Little Bird London here and follow them on Twitter here.

They sell some beautiful pieces, favourites of mine being their two skull skinny cuff and their candy bunting necklace...

I hope that you enjoyed your sunny bank holiday Monday! xx