Living Nature Blush In Cool Winter

Living Nature Blush In Cool Winter*

Today I am writing about a lovely blusher from Living Nature. The shade I have is 'Cool Winter', which is a quite peachy toned light brown. The blush looks very natural and healthy when applied to the skin. It gives a little flush of colour to the cheeks. There is also another shade available in 'Warm Summer'. The blush is suitable for vegans and vegetarians; is a certified natural organic product, and has not been tested on animals. 

Packaging, Price and Information

The packaging of the blush is sleek and is cased in a black compact. There is also a rope wrapped around the compact which ensures the product doesn't open. The compact arrived in a cardboard box, which I always like so that my products are kept tidy. Inside the compact houses the blush and also a small, sturdy blush brush. The RRP of the blush is £22, and is currently reduced at MyPure for £19.80. The blush contains 4g/0.14oz of product. The ingredients include: Talc, Mica, Squalane, Zea Mays Starch, Titanium Dioxide, Magnesium Stearate, Iron Oxides, Hydrated Silica, Manganese Violet, Iron Oxides, Sorbic Acid and Simmondsia Chinensis Seed Oil. 

What I Thought

I really like this blush. The colour is perfect for my pale skin. I have used a few blushers which have caused irritation to my skin due to particular ingredients inside them, but this Living Nature blush has caused me no skin irritations or problems at all. I love that it is a natural and synthetic product as I know it is good for my skin. The blush is pigmented and suits my very pale skin, which is something I struggle with when using blush. The product is long - lasting and has now become a product I reach for on a daily basis. 'Cool Winter' is a buildable colour that blends really easily.

 Living Nature Products and Other Natural and Organic Products

The brand 'Living Nature' is a natural cosmetic brand which use 100% of natural ingredients, preservatives and fragrances. I found this gorgeous blush, along with many other natural and organic beauty products at MyPure. Mypure is a fantastic online website that stock body care, skin care, fragrance, hair and cosmetic products that have only the most natural and organic ingredients; which ensures the products we use on our bodies are less likely to cause any problems for our skin. Their delivery is very fast and the products arrive very well packaged. 

Favourite Base Products

Over the past few years I have swapped and switched the base products I use day to day. After a lot of searching, I have finally found a routine I am content with. I don't feel like I have to wear foundation every day, but when I do, I .like a medium coverage. I have a lot of red blemishes which I like to cover, but I also have freckles on my cheeks; they particularly like to show up in the warmer Months, which I don't mind showing off. I find Mac's Mineralize Foundation a perfect coverage for Summer, as it covers and evens out my complexion without looking too cake-y. For the rest of the year I opt for Rimmel's Match Perfection Foundation, which is a medium coverage liquid foundation that is a perfect colour match for my very pale skin. It blends really well, doesn't wear off quickly, and gives my face that healthy glow. The main brush I use to apply both of these foundations to the skin is the Real Techniques Buffing Brush. I like it how applies both cream and liquid foundation so evenly and gives a flawless finish.
I usually apply concealer both before and after applying foundation, and the two I reach for most are Maybelline's Fit Me Concealer and Mac's Mineralize Concealer. They both work well at covering red blemishes and indents to the skin. I have used both in attempt to hide my dark circles and they do an adequate job. I tend to apply these concealers straight from the wand, and blending into the skin lightly using my fingers. I can't quite pull off a dewy finish, so tend to pop on a little pressed powder, like this Collection Pressed Powder on top of my base to help it hold and give a more matte finish, using the Real Techniques Powder Brush. The brush is thick and large, making it easy to quickly press powder onto the foundation. The powder is very affordable and lasts a good few hours.

What products do you reach for most for a flawless base?

Garnier Roll On Anti Dark Circles

Dark circles are the bane of life, aren't they?

No matter how much sleep I have, or how well I look after my face during my skin care routine, I still have huge dark circles under my eyes. I am forever reapplying concealer to my under eyes to hide them away. My sister picked up the Garnier Roll On Anti - Dark Circles for me a few weeks ago; I had never really delved into trying many Garnier products so I was interested to see how well this worked. 

This product has a roller ball appliance to apply the product to under the eye. This is great as it doesn't pull on the delicate skin, and is super easy to use. It feels very cold which is quite a nice cooling sensation too. To apply, you simply roll in a circular motion under the eyes, then gently blend it into the skin with your fingers. 

I feel that it refreshes under the eyes making me look less tired and a little more awake. The product itself really helps to cover the dark circles. 

This product is available instore or online at Boots 

Hair and Beauty Wishlist

W7 Double Act Face Powder 

Emporio Armani Diamonds Rose EDT 

Macadamia Rejuvenating Shampoo 

GHD IV Styler 

Rimmel Colour Rush Balm Rita Ora Make Me Blush 

I have really loved reading wishlist posts lately. There are a few hair and beauty things I have had my eye on this week, particularly some Macadamia hair products. I have tried a handful of their products before but really want to give the shampoo a try, I found it for a super low price online at Hairtrade for under £5. Talking of hair things, my straighteners could do with updating as they are a few years old now, these GHD's look like they would be a great addition to my hair routine. I have also been loving Rimmel's new beauty collaboration with Rita Ora, particular the colour rush balms. I love the look of the w7 blush as I love their products as they are so affordable; and the perfume is literally just a 'want' as I smelt it instore a few weks ago and loved it!

What are you loving this week?

The #BloggersDoItBetter Challenge

This is an introductory post to share with you a challenge I will be taking part in!

Gemma from Touch Of Belle has come up with a great idea - a challenge for all bloggers to take part in that gets us chatting about lots of different topics.

Each fortnight on a Monday we will be writing about a different subject on our own blogs - it could be about anything. 

The story behind the name of the challenge is that we will be discussing different subjects that Gem has seen, heard or read and thinks Bloggers Do It Better! 

More information can be found on the lovely Gemma's blog here.

If you would like to join us and take part in the challenge, send an email over to Gemma at touchofbelle@gmail.com and include your name, blog URL, and email address.

The Exante Diet

The Exante Diet*

Exante Diet Plans are something I have heard a little about through the grapevine. I have heard that using these diet plans can bring fantastic results. I am hoping that this year will be the year I lose a little weight and become more healthy and confident in my body, so when I was offered to take part in trialing the diet, I jumped at the chance.

Please Note: I am no expert at diets or healthy living. I highly recommend that you do your research beforehand to starting a diet plan like this one to ensure you are eligible to partake in a low calorie diet. I would also suggest contacting your GP beforehand to see if this kind of diet is suitable for you. You can find lots of information on Exante's website to see how it works and who it is suitable for. The website also includes a forum, recipe page and blog which are great to have a read through to gain more information. This blog post is simply a review of my own personal experience of using the Exante products and following one of their diet plans for one week. 

How The Exante Diet Plans Work

To briefly introduce you to the diet, Exante VLCD Diet Plans are a very low calorie meal replacement diet where you replace three meals a day with their snacks, shakes or meals. The Exante VLCD Diet Plans are called VLCD (this means they are Very Low Calorie Diets), and by consuming three of their products a day, that they will give you 100% of your recommended daily allowance of vitamins and minerals. Exante explain that the Diet Plans work well because your body will consume less calories than your body usually requires on a daily basis, which causes a calorie deficit. After a few days of following the diet, your body will enter a normal metabolic state called Ketosis where your body will use its fat stores to produce energy.

There are four different diet plans available with Exante. The Total Solution Plan allows you to eat only three Exante meals per day. If you partake in the Total Solution Diet Plan you must take a break after at least three weeks by adding atleast 201 calories to your diet per day. The Total Plus Solution Plan requires you to eat three Exante products per day, and also allows up to 100 calories of low carbohydrate foods from a restricted list (the list is mostly vegetables). This plan can be used up to 12 weeks before having to take a break from the plan for at least a week. The Working Solution Plan requires you to eat three Exante products a day, plus a 400 calorie meal or snack. The Simple Solution Plan also requires you to eat three Exante products per day, as well as a 600 calorie meal or snack.
All four diet plans require you to drink at-least 2 Litres of water per day; which is the recommended amount of water to drink daily anyway.

The Exante Diet Products

All of the four different diet plans require you to consume three of their products per day. I was kindly sent 21 products which ensured I could take part in the diet for a whole 7 days. 

The Exante Diet products range from shakes, soups, ready meals and bars. I received a few different flavours of their shakes, soups and ready meals, which I will go into a little more depth below.

 Shakes

There is a wide variety of shakes to choose from. I was provided with a few of their flavours.

I wasn't keen on the Banana shake, it just wasn't to my taste. The Chocolate shake was probably my favourite as it tastes really thick and filling, I was glad I had two of these! The Chocolate Mint shake was also delicious and really reminded me of a cold mint hot chocolate! This one is very thick and filling. 

Vanilla is quite refreshing. It tastes quite plain with not a lot of flavour, which I like about vanilla products anyway. The Toffee Caramel shake is sweet and tastes very nice, and the 

Strawberry is very thick and creamy and tastes just like a milkshake.

Soups

There are five different soups to choose from, I was provided with three of them. 

The Thai Chicken Soup was tasty and filling. and The Mushroom Soup was edible and filling. 

I was also provided with two of the Tomato and Basil Soups. The taste reminded me a little of the pasta sauce sachets you can buy from super markets. It wasn't as thick as soups I usually eat, but it was again, very filling.  

Ready Meals

Exante have a large variety of different flavoured ready meals. I will give a small description of each meal that I tried, and what I thought of each one.
The Spaghetti Bolognaise tasted a little like spicy noodles. There was quite a lot of flavour in the meal, so it was edible. The Porridge Oats were delicious and I would definitely recommend them. It tasted exactly like the normal porridge oats I eat. Curry was the one meal I least wanted to try. I personally didn't like the taste of it - I am not a huge fan of vegetable curry anyway, but it did the job and filled me up. 

The Apple and Cinnamon Porridge meal was full of flavour and tasted absolutely delicious. I definitely recommend this and would give it 5 stars if I had to rate it by taste. The cinnamon is so strong and smells lovely too.  I received two packets of Shephards Pie Meals, it tasted just like beef and I could taste vegetables, it was very thick and quite filling. Red Bean Chilli was the one meal I was most excited to try. I found that it was really enjoyable to eat. It had the aroma of chilli con carne as soon as I took it out of packaging. It tasted pleasant and was full of flavour. I would recommend this to anyone that likes their food simple but with a little spice. The Mushroom Risotto was probably my least favourite meal. The texture and the sight of the meal put me off instantly, and, being a person that detests mushroom flavoured food I knew I wasn't going to enjoy the meal. Pasta Carbonara was edible. I am not the biggest fan of cheese (I am quite fussy with food!) but the pasta was nice and it filled me up for a good few hours. 

What I thought of the Diet Plan

I have to admit I did struggle. Even after the first day of the plan, I felt completely exhausted and fell asleep at 8 PM! I wasn't really sure which plan to follow. The first two days of my diet I stuck to the Total Solution Plan; which is where you only consume three Exante products and nothing else. On the third and fourth day I did eat home cooked meals (400 calories) as I wasn't at home, but the rest of my diet I followed the Total Solution Plan again. I would suggest the Working Solution Plan or the Simple Solution Plan if you work a lot or are on the go all of the time, as it is challenging to stick to the Total Solution Plan when you are out.
I think I stayed committed to the diet and I am pleased I didn't break the diet to eat junk food or fizzy drinks.

The meals were edible and most of them were quite tasty with a lot of flavour to them, my personal favourite was the porridge oats. I found all of the products very filling - which left me feeling satisfied, not bloated. They are very easy to prepare as you only have to add water and use a microwave, so they are suitable if you don't have the time to make a low calorie meal from scratch.


Results 

Previous to me starting the Exante Diet, my Diet consisted of  lots of junk food, missing out on meals and boredom eating late at night. I was also drinking a lot of coffee and fizzy drinks.
I think that because I had such an unhealthy diet before starting Exante, that it has really helped me to get back on track with eating better. I no longer want to eat junk food, I really fancy eating a lot more fresh vegetables in my meals. I really hope I keep up my progress with my weight loss. I am going to purchase my favourite meals from Exante online to help me stay on track.
I weighed myself the Monday I started Exante (9th March) and weighed myself the following Monday (16th  March).
In one week I lost 4lbs. 
Regrettably I didn't measure myself before starting the diet plan, but I can tell I have lost an inch or so on my waist and hips as I can fit back into some of my old clothes that haven't fitted in a few Months.

Would I recommend?

Simply - yes! It works well and the majority of the food is tasty. It requires good will power, but once you get into the routine of the plan it is quite straight - forward and very easy to follow. I would personally recommend The Working Solution Plan or The Simple Solution Plan as I found it quite difficult to live off just the three Exante products a day with nothing else, and also found it hard to fit in eating these meals around my schedule.

To find out more check out the Exante Website. Prices start from £3.87 per day.

w7 Showing Out Mascara

w7 Showing Out Mascara in Blackest Black

I am a big w7 fan, but I do find it difficult to get hold of their products. I found a few reviews from bloggers who had discovered the website Xtras that stocked a lot of w7's products, so I ordered this mascara. It cost only £2.80 which I think is a great bargain for a mascara.

As you can see, the wand is quite thick and the brush is quite fat. The top of the brush has a little dome shape, which is great for getting into the corners and applying to the bottom lashes. 

This mascara helps to achieve very voluminous, long and thick lashes. It can get a little messy as it is a large brush, but if you are light handed application is very easy.

Have you found any bargain beauty websites thanks to reading blogs?

Bomb Cosmetics Candle in Very Berry

I have tried only a few Bomb Cosmetics candles but I will happily praise my love for their beautiful scented and long lasting candles. I love having a candle burning in my room on an evening as there is nothing I love more than chilling out after a long day with a nice candle burning, getting cosy in my pajamas watching a film. 

This particular scent is perfect for a relaxed night in. It smells beautifully of raspberries. It is not overpowering but lingers with a very sweet and fruity scent. The candle burns equally, so there is no waste. It is a very sweet and fruity scent which lasts a long time.

A great thing about Bomb Cosmetics candles is that there is barely any waste and it burns even.
You can check out all of their candles over at there website here!

MUA Eye Brow Pencil in Brunette

MUA Eye Brow Pencil in Brunette

I really enjoy trying out different brow products, as I am a huge brow fiend and am constantly filling my brows in. I decided to give MUA's Eye Brow Pencil a whirl, as it costs only a single British pound I thought it was worth a go. I usually use a powder to fill my brows with, and a pencil isn't usually something I would use. I filled in my brows with the pencil as you can see from the photograph above (gosh aren't they a state! Please excuse my wiry brows!), and I just didn't like it being used for this job. It looked a little bit 'drawn on' when I filled my entire brow using the pencil. I tried using the pencil after using a powder which works much better, as it defines the brow a little. 

I probably wouldn't reach for this product every day, nor would I use it alone to fill my eye brows with. I think it is a good tool if you like perfectly outlined brows. The colour was also a little too light for my eye brows too. 

What are your thoughts on eye brow pencils? Would you use them alone without a powder?

Helen E Cosmetics Skin Smoother

Helen E Cosmetics Skin Smoother

Skin Smoother, Helen E Cosmetics RRP £13.50 

Helen E Cosmetics is a brand which I have heard quite a lot about but have never purchased anything from before. Helen E Cosmetics is a privately run company which was founded in 1999 by Helen Elowe. 

I picked up a little beauty set from a Helen E stand while I was at the Clothes Show Live in December; included was the skin smoother, which one of the sales assistants had told me about. She explained that there are no shades for this product as the one colour suits most skin tones. She added that it helps to even out your complexion and is a long - lasting base which is easy to use. I was intrigued to try this, as the colour of the product looks far too dark to match my skin tone. I also pondered on the coverage of this product and how I would get on with it, as I wasn't particularly sure whether I could use it alone as a foundation base. 

The packaging is white plastic with a small mirror, it is quite basic and sleek. 

The skin smoother simply adapts to your skin tone - Although it looks far too dark for my pale pasty skin, it didn't look orange or patchy like I thought it would. I used a Real Techniques buffing brush to apply this product onto the face, which helped to even it out. 

Now, I did really like this product as it left my face looking soft and even. It lasts well all - day and I am quite impressed with it. I use it underneath a liquid foundation, because for me it just doesn't give the coverage I need in a base product. I actually use this as more of a primer product, I know that the product can be used as a foundation, concealer and primer but for me it is used best as a primer before foundation. I would recommend to anyone after a base product which is light coverage. 

Edit: I have since been advised to use make up sponges rather than a buffing brush to apply this product onto the face, which works much better!

Have you tried any Helen E Cosmetics products?

Juicy Couture Viva La Juicy

Juicy Couture is a brand I have always been quite familiar with. I have often lusted after their fragrances when looking around Debenhams. I really wanted to own one for myself, and after must consideration, I picked the popular choice Viva La Juicy.I haven't owned many 'expensive perfumes' in my time, but this has got to be my favourite 'higher end' fragrance to date! 

The top notes in the perfume are Mandarin and Berries, which is the scent that hits you when you first spritz this on. When you first spray this perfume, it essential smells very sweet, floral and a little fruity. The base notes are Caramel, Vanilla, Amber, Sandalwood and Praline. Once worn a little while, the scent smells a little more mature and not quite as sweet. Perhaps this is the base notes coming through, it smells beautiful. Other notes in the fragrance are Jasmine, Gardenia and Honeysuckle. 

The presentation of the perfume is simply stunning, looking gorgeous on any ladies dressing table. I want to try more fragrances by Juicy Couture now.

Have you any suggestions?