Illamasqua Cream Blusher and Concealer

In need of a new blusher and concealer and a regular 20% professional discount at my disposal I decided it was time to finally give Illamasqua a try especially since my housemate and co blogger Liz had raved about the brand with their sweet smelling blushers. Luckily on Easter Sunday the brand was offering extra off products so instead of paying £33 for the two products I paid £23. Bargain!

The under eye concealer I am still debating over but I think it's because I am very critical when it comes to dark circles under my eyes. However the product sits wonderfully on my skin and a gorgeous texture.

The second product I purchased I have fallen in LOVE with. I didn't get the color I hoped due to it being out of stock but I wasn't going to miss out on this discount opportunity! So I purchased a color I wouldn't usually wear but have been meaning to experiment with. The Blusher is a lot more orange than you see in the pictures and it seemed a little daunting when I first applied it but the color was gorgeous. Not too heavy but pigmented enough to last the day. I have always been against cream blusher because I have always wrongly assumed they would feel heavy on the skin and cause breakouts. I have had no problems with this product in regards to my skin and I forget i'm wearing it more often than I did with powder blushers. I will definitely be repurchasing this in the future! :)

April Glossybox- The natural Box

After a long impatient wait for this months Glossybox it finally arrived! Yay :) I got a call from a very excited mum wanting to Skype and show me all the goodies she got that morning. Looking at the companies facebook page many people are being very fussy and complaining. Considering the effort the ladies at Glossybox go to to create the many boxes I reckon they do a very good job especially since the box is worth a lot more than you pay. I received 3 full sized products this month. AMAZING!

A majority of the complaints seem to be that some don't like the products they are receiving or bored of getting the same type of product. In which case I recommend you alter your beauty profile which is something I plan on trying if I ever find myself getting bored of the type of products. Failing that many budding young beauties are always looking for a swap.

This months box was natural themed which i loved, the products look so much nicer on beige shredded paper rather than the harsh black. It just looked so beautiful and elegant rather than fake and artificial. I was anxious to open the box since i already knew what my mum had in her box so I wanted something different, plus the Harrods box was so brilliant I was wondering how they could ever follow it. SUCCESS! I fell in love. I've recently run low on shower gel and eyeliner so perfect timing to find Inka organic eyeliner and Ayuuri body wash that smells heavenly.  The Figs and Rogue lip balm is a miracle working, I opened it and took it to work with me straight away.

The two remaining products were Caudalie  Thirst serum, and a fragrance named Kai Life. I do think Glossybox made a mistake by putting 10ml of the Caudalie product in a 30ml tube. It is very misleading and left many customers unhappy. I admit the fragrance is a tiny sample but it's not cheap either! I suggest dabbing a small drop on your pulse points for a little lift throughout the day. Excited for the next box. If this is what happens when Carmine and Glossybox combine let's see what Glossybox has in store for it's year anniversary. What did you guys think? 

M.A.C Pro Palette

I recently purchased this beauty which i have been longing for years now. Only problem is there are so many beautiful eyeshadows to choose from! :O Being a brown eyed girl I want to stick to natural colors for my first palette so i can use it everyday, with a few purple and pink hues too. Anybody have any suggestions? What is your favorite M.A.C eyeshadow?

Korres Fluid Gel Cleanser- White Tea

So i have heard many great things about the Korres brand and with a large celebrity clientele thought i would give the products a go. Zunetta always feature Korres in there sales so getting a good deal wasn't too difficult and who could say no to £9.10 for a popular cleanser? Once it arrived Jenny told me that white tea is really good for the skin so i was hoping for good results. Korres products are all natural which was another added bonus! I have now used all of this product which lasted a good 3 months. At the start this product was amazing, leaving my skin so soft but then i think my skin got too used to the product. Fair enough this cleanser has kept my skin at bay but at the same time hasn't made it look amazing which was a little disappointing considering the hype around it. For the price however i would definitely buy it again it is such a bargain, my skin sometimes did feel a little dry after some use but that's what moisturizer is for! Even though it claims it is suitable for all skin types i wouldn't recommend it if you already have naturally dry skin. The white tea I feel can be quiet strong. Have any of you guys tried it and what did you think of it?

March- Harrods GlossyBox

Okay I know it's a bit late, but while i'm still anxiously waiting for my April box to arrive i thought i would get up to date. Better late than ever. The Harrods box was my first glossybox and i had been eyeing them up for a while but being a student on a budget was yet to be sold on the beauty boxes. Now i am obsessed with Harrods, if i could i would live there...but that would make me spend far too much! So as soon as i saw this limited edition beauty i had to have it.

Sorry for the poor camera quality. The box came beautifully presented and I was so excited, like a kid at Christmas! Needless to say I love all the products in the box especially the Bliss body butter which smells divine, and I have always been a fan of Leighton Denny nail varnish, the cover is amazing and such a gorgeous colour. Can't wait for my next box :)

SPRING: Ice cream colours

Is the hype about Clinique worth it?

Often when I hear a brand is good I expect great things to only be disappointed. I find it hard to find a general review on brands and for me personally I like to know how trusted the brand is before I commit to buying especially since a few brands can be a bit expensive. 

I have had a long battle with my skin regarding texture and breakouts but that doesn't stop me trying new ranges! However whatever product I try out I will always return and stay faithful to the miracle I consider Clinique. I started with the anti-blemish solutions set as for years I had not found a cure to my acne problem and after 6 months found my skin had fully recovered and suffered rarely from the odd breakout here and there. 

So then it was time to change my range and the wonderful thing about Clinique that they have four different daily routine sets, each suited to a different skin type so you can be sure to be getting the best for your skin. I discovered I was best suited to their type two range and altogether cost £45 for 3 items. This may seem a lot but for the quality it is well worth the price and lasts about 3 months so essentially you are paying £15 a month for gorgeous skin! I have tried around 8 Clinique products and never been disappointed with the results. I'm a particular fan of their lipglosses. 

So why not go in for a free consultation? And word to the wise, Clinique are very generous with their free samples. The first time i purchased Clinique i received 3 goodies of a decent sizer in a mini make-up bag and fell in love with their youth surge moisturizer. 

Gemma

April is Nail month!

April is going to be all about nails here on Face and Fabric. 

We are going to be testing out creams, strengtheners, polishes

 and loads of funky how to tutorials! Like our facebook page

 and keep an eye out for our cool nail looks and we would 

LOVE to see some of your ideas! :)

False but Fabulous!

I admit, I wear a lot of false eyelashes. So when Gem suggested buying the 'Mister Mascara' day/night lashes from Zunetta, I was excited to try them out. When they arrived, they were packaged in a huge cardboard box, stuffed with purple tissue paper, and black shredded paper - which was a nice touch. The compact box in which the eyelashes came in were beautifully set out - one side day, and the one side night. It also came with a small pair of red tweezers and some lash glue. I bought these for £6 on offer (and free postage!) so this was more than what I expected.
The lashes themselves were lovely. I was planning a big weekend so I tried the thick night lashes out. The glue was quite clumpy and took a while to tack out but worked well eventually, and stayed on the whole night. The day lashes were considerably lighter than the night ones. I loved wearing these in the daytime as I didn't feel like I was wearing falsies at all, and it saved me from having to put much mascara on.
Sadly these were on offer, but Zunetta have a wide range of lashes - I know where I'll be buying my next pair!
Liz

Powder Highlighters. DO OR DON'T?

Being blessed with prominent cheekbones means i'm a massive fan of highlighters! However some come with a heavy price tag. Over the past few years there has been a boom in highlighters and dramatic growth in drugstore brands launching their own versions of these beauty treasures.

My first highlighter experience was at the ripe young age of 13, walking  through Harrods when a benefit cosmetics beautician approached me. I left the store beaming a huge smile framed by their wonder potion High Beam, and my newly purchased bottle of the product from mother, hoping it would encourage a positive love for make-up and how it did! My older sister later bought the product and still uses it to this day whereas i have experimented a little more. Since that first experience i have tried 2 more of benefits primer's which double up nicely as highlighters, YSL touch eclat, to something more affordable Miss Sporty. After trialing the next highlighter i received a sample of i realised that sometimes when you apply the highlighter on top of your make-up it can strip the base, but when you apply less to avoid this it doesn't have as strong an effect. Anybody else notice this? So now i'm considering giving powder highlighters a go but a bit weary of whether they will be pearly enough and how long they will last before it slides off the base like blusher. I think i should start the search for my first purchase.
Gemma

Cleansing water vs Toner

I thought it was wise to do a post on the difference between toner and cleansing water as a few weeks ago I didn't actually know myself. I've always accepted toner as part of my 3 step skincare routine and never actually known what it is for. Being a massive fan of Clinique £45 for all my skincare was strating to make a hefty dent in my poor student bank account, so in a bid to reduce cost I wondered what toner was for and whether it was entirely necessary. I'd always assumed it was to clear away any missed make-up or left over facial wash, preparing the skin for moisturiser like many other people i had spoken to or had written reviews online but oh how so WRONG we all were!

Toner is supposed to restore the natural PH balance of our skin after  the cleanser has stripped it. Although with some toners I have previously used I find are heavy with alcohol leading to my skin feeling tight and later dry. So what does cleansing water do? When washing off a facial wash or cleanser we don't actaully know what is in the tap water and whether our skin is reacting to the minerals in it so the whole cleansing process becomes useless. Cleansing water is supposed to be a clean substance to wash away your cleanser without any worry of inpurity's or about the source. Some cleansing waters contain flower and fruit extracts to make your skin soft and bright. But is this essentually flavoured water in a fancy bottle with a fake promise? After being impressed by NUDE skincare company i found a bottle of their Clarifying Water for half price at just £6 and it is on it's way to me as i type for testing! Only time will tell whether the hype surrounding cleansing water is something to get excited about or whether it is all a myth?
Gemma

Rahua voluminous shampoo and conditioner

I've seen this product advertised and talked about everywhere so was expecting great things from this product. With the product being £27 a bottle too i was really looking foward to testing it out and having glossy hair.

When applying the product there was no smell which usually helps sell a product so i found it a bit strange that there was nothing to fragrance the hair. On occassion i can feel the conditioner softening my hair and untangling whereas with this product while applying my hair seemed to become more tangled if anything. I shrugged it off thinking it was just because it was different but after drying my hair i was very disappointed. The shampoo and conditioner hadn't made much difference at all and for £27 a bottle i would rather stick to super market shampoos which give a similar effect for a cheaper price. My Hair was it's usual form but unfortunately no voluminous affects which is what the product claimed to do!

 Perhaps their hair masks and intensive treatments would have more of an affect and be more worth while but for a daily Shampoo and Conditioner i honestly felt Rahua is not worth the price.


By Gemma

Sjal pearl enzyme exfoliating mask

I recently recieved a sample for this face exfoliater and having never heard of the brand before had no idea what to expect. I'm a big fan of face masks, especially exfoliating ones so was very excited to try it. When i first opened up the product and emptied the contents onto my hand the texture was gorgeous, light and had a sweet subtle smell unlike any other face mask i had tried before. The pearl extratcs were clear to see and when applying to my face I could feel them gently exfoliating which was promising since some exfoliaters or masks i've tried have a very weak scrub effect.

After 15 minuets this product proves that it really is a miracle worker. My skin was instantly softer, brighter and had a slightly more even skin tone after just one use! The next morning my skin was even softer and glowing. Excited by this product i looked online to check out of the cost and to my disappointment it was a bit out of my price range but the hefty price tag is understandable. For £128 it's not really the best for somebody on a student budget but i'm determined to find a product with similar effects.

When looking at the ingredients the possibilty of finding a product with similar effects is looking very slim. With ground pearls for gentle polishing, pearl extract for brightening, sapphire, tourmaline, ruby, diamond, amethyst and citrine for vibrational healing, balance and clarity it's no wonder this product comes attached with the £128 bill. Sjal seem to have created a unique exfoliator that i am dying to get my hands on...perhaps if i ever win the lottery? A girl can dream.

By Gemma

WELCOME!

Finally! The blog is up and running. Welcome to our blog about all things fashion and beauty. We are three students passing on our knowledge and putting our bargain hunting radar's to good use to help other fellow students get the best quality on a budget. Thank you for taking the time to take a look. The blog is still in progress please excuse the mess! :)