FNUG Skinny Jeans Nail Polish

It isn't often I talk about nails or nail varnish or anything nail related on my blog. I like wearing nail varnish but I have always had the bad habit of biting my nails - gross I know. I've tried to stop this awful habit in recent Months which has meant I have taken a lot more interest in nail varnishes. I have found I really like nudes, greys and lilac colours. I think they are very classic and underated colours for nails. I'm not quite brave enough to sport bright nails just yet so this is a perfect shade for me.

You will have to excuse my nails in the photograph - this picture was taken a few Weeks ago now, and I haven't yet had chance to take another picture due to memory card problems!

FNUG are a natural beauty brand which sell a range of nail polishes which contain strengthening silica and vitamins and caviar. The polishes are designed to condition the nails as well as look great. I chose the shade Skinny Jeans as it looked a really wearable colour which would be suitable for work.


I think the polish is very pigmented. With just one layer of product, it gives a good colour pay off just like the bottle. When I have been wearing this polish I have been using two coats of nail polish and a top coat, and it lasts really well with no chipping for around 6 Days. The brush is a good size and distrbutes the polish evenly. I love the colour of this nail varnish, it is described as a 'plum brown' colour which I think is accurate to the shade.
Overall I am quite impressed with the nail polish - the polish lasts on the nails - and if it is beneficial to the condition of the nails I am all for it.

You can buy this nail polish online here at Mypure for the price of £12.

*PR sample*

Skin Care Saviours

I like to keep my skin care routine pretty simple and tend to stick to the basics. I use a cleanser, toner, a day cream, moisturiser and an eye-cream and that is pretty much it for me. I am usually quite fussy when it comes to choosing skin care as my skin is sensitive, so when I find products which work well for me and don't cause me to break out in a rash, I kind-of want to shout it from the rooftops. I've been trying out a few new products recently and have discovered two skin care saviours that I really can't praise enough.

Pharma Nord's Q 10 Revitalizing Day Cream*
The Q 10 Revitalizing Day Cream is a natural and paraben free product, which is made from ingredients which protect the skin and promotes natural skin repair. The cream contains vegetable oil rather than mineral oil, which ensures the cream is absorbed by your skin and doesn't clog pores. Although this product is aimed at mature skin, I do feel it works well for me and I would recommend it to anyone my age as well as people with mature skin. I have been using this day cream for a few Weeks now and I really like it. It doesn't cause any irritation to my skin and my face feels really soft and clear after application. The cream isn't greasy and melts into the skin really well.

Elemis Pro - Radiance Cream Cleanser*
This cleanser melts make - up away brilliantly and you are left with squeaky clean, soft, smooth and radiant skin. I like that a little product goes a long way, it makes cleaning your face such a quick task when you don't have to keep reapplying more product! I absolutely love this. It is a lot more pricey than I would normally spend on a cleanser, but I think I may have to push the boat out and buy the full size product it really is that great.

What products would you say are your skin care saviours? Have you tried these products before?

*PR samples*

September Favourites

The Body Shop Satsuma Hand Cleanse Gel
I love a good hand sanitzer and always have one on the go, but I prefer fruit scented ones. I love The Body Shop Satsuma Collection but I hadn't realised they had a hand gel in the scent too! It smells so fresh and is perfect popped in my handbag.

Botanicals Mineral Bath Soak*
I've recently been enjoying having relaxing baths on an evening more than a quick shower on a Morning, and have been using a load of new bath products to pamper myself with. The Botanicals Mineral Bath Soak is a lovely product that I add a scoop into my bath and I find it super relaxing and floral scents are just beautiful. The product is 100% natural and has recently won a Green Parent Natural Beauty Award - well deserved I think.

Sunkissed Rapid Tan*
Sunkissed are my all time favourite tanning brand so it is no surprise to see them appear in a Monthly Favourites post of mine. Their Rapid Tan is a brilliant mousse tan which isn't streaky and looks so natural. I love it!

Dermocare WWF Safari Plasters*
This is something a little different that I wanted to include in my favourites post this Month compared to my usual beauty products. I am that clumsy person who is constantly tripping up and knocking into things - so plasters are something I use a lot. Who wants boring plasters? These Dermocare WWF plasters are awesome and I love having funky safari print plasters - even better that the brand supports WWF.

*Includes PR samples*

Lush Intergalactic Bath Bomb

It has been a while since I have used a Lush Bath Bomb, I haven't been into a Lush store for a while and I have missed them, so it was a really lovely surprise to receive one in a goody bag from a blogger meet up I went to recently. I have never tried this bath bomb before so I was eager to try it out.

Using the Intergalactic Bath Bomb gives a beautiful display as it crumbles and drifts off in the water; it looks very 'out of this world' with lots of colours swirling away and you are left with a 'galaxy' of blue and lots of swirls and pops of colour - and popping candy. With a peppermint scent, this one is perfect if you love a long soak in the bath but you are not keen on floral or fruity scents. I think this would be suitable for a lot of people as the scent isn't over-powering. My skin felt super soft after using this, so it is definitely being added to my basket the next time I pop into Lush.

*Gifted Item*

West Midlands Blogger Meet September 2015

Photo belongs to Adele 

Last Saturday I headed into Birmingham to attend the West Midlands Blogger Meet, arranged by the lovely hosts Adele and Kirsty. I was really looking forward to the meet as I knew how much hard work the girls had put into organising it all, but I was a little nervous going alone and not really knowing anyone there. Rest assured - everyone was lovely! The event was held at the Rainbow Pub in Digbeth, Birmingham. It was a great venue and I will definitely be heading there again; I loved the decor and the vibe of the place.
The meet was great! The girls thought of everything.

The brilliant Elizabeth from Rosalilium gave a speech about Pinterest which was really helpful and informative. Lovely blogger Chelsea also gave a talk about bloggers and brands working together and gave us some great tips too.
The girls had organised for some great brand reps to be at the meet up, who were sharing their products and it was really nice to talk to them and really get a feel of the brands and what they do. Brands that were at the event included Early Bird, Get You Seen PR and Skin Sincere.
As well as the brands, there was also a lady at the event representing the charity Coppafeel - a cause which is close to my heart. I would like to talk about it on my blog in the future in some way, so watch this space.
There was also a raffle to raise money for Mind (another amazing charity!) which was great and I was lucky enough to win a prize - a lovely gift set from Nourish. There was also a quiz questionnaire and the classic 'guess how many' in a jar - so lots of fun to get involved with.

We were able to munch on lots of tasty treats and drinks while we were at the event too and we were very well looked after. We were all lucky enough to receive a very generous goody bag too when we left - thank you to all of the brands involved; I am super appreciative and cant wait to start trying all of the lovely items! I am hoping to get some posts up on the blog of the lovely bits we were gifted soon.

A huge thank you to Kirsty and Adele for the fantastic afternoon you organised! It was a lot of fun and I can't wait for the next one!

Recent Empties

It has been a while since I shared on my blog some of the products I have used up. I thought it was about time I did. What have you finished off recently?

Grace Cole Moments Body Lotion

This body lotion seemed to take a long time for me to finish. It was an average product, it was quite nice and light but didn't moisturize as well as I would have liked.

Argania Desert Defence Shampoo*

I really liked this shampoo, this is my second bottle. It really helps to cleanse my hair and removes all of the product out of my hair really well, and it smells great too.

Sanctuary Spa Gentle Polish Body Scrub

This is my all - time favourite body scrub, I always repurchase. The beads really work into the skin - it isn't too gritty but you do feel like you are getting a good scrub out of the product, if that makes sense! 

Balance Me Hand and Body Wash*

I have been using this mainly as a hand wash because it smells amazing, but it also doubles up as a really great body wash. It lasted us a while.

Soap and Glory The Righteous Butter

This is one of those cult pamper products, am I right? I think everyone and their mum has tried this. I really do like it as it is so thick and very moisturising. I do think it takes a long time to finish a tub off though!

Radox Shower Gel in Coconut Kiss

I usually love Radox products but I just didn't like the scent of this, the coconut smelt way too synthetic for me. It lathered a lot and cleansed well, I just didn't like the scent.

Gas Safety Week

My blog has grown from initially being a beauty-focused blog, to a blog which focuses on lots of other topics too, mainly lifestyle. Safety in the home is so important, so when I was informed Gas Safety Week was coming up (September 14th - 20th) - and also the fact that the cold weather is upon us and it is time for many of us to turn on our boilers, I thought it would be useful to share some facts and information on the importance of gas safety in the home.

Every Year in the UK, more than 200 people go to hospital with suspected carbon monoxide poisoning, and around 40 people die. Small children and the elderly are most at risk. CORGI Home Plan is campaigning for every home to get a carbon monoxide detector, so that they can keep their family safe. As carbon monoxide is a colourless and odourless toxic flammable gas, we are unable to detect it well ourselves. Carbon Monoxide can be inhaled easily which can be fatal or cause long-term health problems. Corgi Home Plan state that "The most common cause of a carbon monoxide leak is from incorrectly installed or poorly maintained household appliances – such as cookers, heaters and central heating boilers. A blocked flue or chimney can also cause carbon monoxide levels to rise to lethal concentrations in an enclosed space." Our health is so important, so I feel carbon monoxide detectors are extremely important and useful to have in the home. 

There are several warning signs in your home that could mean you have a carbon monoxide issue:

• The flame on your cooker should be crisp and blue. Yellow or orange flames mean you need to get your cooker checked
• Dark staining around or on appliances
• Sooty marks on the walls around boilers, stoves or the cover of gas fires
• Pilot lights that frequently go out
• Increased condensation inside windows

Corgi Home Plan have kindly sent me a carbon monoxide alarm, they are available to buy online at Amazon and plenty of other places. Corgi Home Plan have recently posted a useful guide on their blog on how to keep your home safe, which you can read here.

*Collaborative post*

Battle of the Palettes: Naked 2 and In The Buff

           W7 in the Buff                                                   Urban Decay Naked 2

I love a beauty dupe, who wants to spend a fortune for an item when you can have something similar for a fraction of the price? I heard that the w7 In The Buff Eye Shadow Palette was said to be a very similar dupe to the Urban Decay Naked 2 Palette. You can see from my photographs that they are extremely similar in the design of the palette, and the selection of shades they both have. With the w7 palette costing around £4.99-£9.99 (depending on retailer) and the Naked 2 palette a sky-high £38, I wanted to see how much difference the shadows had in quality, colour pay - off, and how long they last. 

I think the Urban Decay Naked 2 shadows are much more shimmery and feel creamy and are very pigmented. The W7 in the Buff shadows are similar in colour to the Urban Decay shadows, but apply much more matte than they appear to be. They aren't quite as creamy or easy to apply as they aren't as pigmented as the Urban Decay shadows. The darker colours in the w7 palette are pigmented but the lighter colours you really have to work at to get any colour pay off from them.  Similarly to the w7 shadows, Urban Decays shadows; particularly the darker shades are very pigmented. In fact, all of the Naked 2 shadows are highly pigmented apart from the lightest shade; Foxy. The w7 palette has some gorgeous shades. I think the shadows blend well together and they last a few hours before fading but I have to be honest and this time, the more expensive product does work better for me, as the Naked 2 palette shadows last around 7 hours.

I think the shadows are similar in colour and design, but I do think the Urban Decay palette has better quality shadows as the W7 palette shadows do not match the quality. I do think the W7 shadows are great and just need a lot more persistence - I would recommend them still for a budget friendly alternative, but Urban Decay wins this battle for me.

Degustabox August 2015

It has become a regular blog post that I write every Month, and I really enjoy sharing with you the contents of the box. If you are unfamiliar with Degustabox,  it is basically a Monthly subscription service where you receive around 9-14 surprise food and drink products which are often new to the market or products you might not normally buy in the Supermarket. The box costs £12.99 per Month, which is a fraction of the price of the products inside the box if you bought them individually. I also have a £3 off discount code GUBN9 which you can apply at the checkout to make the box just £9.99.

Williamson Tea in Ginger Grove 
I like flavoured tea and I really enjoyed this ginger tea! It was more strong than I expected but not overpowering. I'm interested in trying more flavours from this brand, mint garden sounds amazing!

Scheckters Organic Energy Lite 
This sparkling energy drink was quite refreshing and woke me up on an early morning. I really like trying different energy drinks so I was glad to see this in the box this Month.

 Ryvita
I am a big Ryvita fan and actually have a few of these packets in the cupboard already! We received the black pepper flavour and the sesame flavour. Sesame is my particular favourite, great to eat with cheese spread!

Fru Snax
We received these in a previous box and really liked them!  They were an extra in this box because last Months box arrived damaged, which is so nice of Degustabox! They are fruit pieces covered in yoghurt, really tasty snacks. This peach flavour tastes so sweet and full of flavour, and is probably my favourite that I have tried from the brand so far.

Delicious Alchemy Gluten Free Oaty Cookie Mix
This is the only item in the box we haven't tried yet, but I am eager to. It is brilliant that a gluten free product has been included in the box. I love cookie mixture and am looking forward to try this.

Dr Oetker Mug Cake
We received a selection of flavours, which were rich chocolate, lemon and chocolate chip. I was so impressed how easy it was to make these! We ate them straight out our mugs of-course!

Little Miracles
I have mentioned before that we are big fans of this brand in this house, thanks to Degustabox, so it is always a good response when they are included in Degustabox. My Sister loves them, they are a really refreshing drink.This is another extra in this box because last Months box arrived damaged.

 Bahlsen Choco Lebriz White
These are so moreish and delicious! My other half loves white chocolate so I didn't get much of a look in with these, but they are really sweet and yummy. I like the other flavours of these too!

Bahlsen Pick Up! Dark Chocolate
These sandwich chocolate biscuits are a big hit in our house, the dark chocolate flavour is very rich and sweet. I love these as they are good for picnics, a truly delicious chocolate biscuit treat.

 Walkers Biscuits
I love love love shortbread biscuits in particular so these didn't last long! The individual packets makes them ideal for picnics and to put in a lunch box. 

 Barilla Pasta and Sauce
We received Barilla Penne Rigate Pasta and the Arrabbiata Pasta Sauce. I loved the sauce, it was a tomato and chilli flavour which had a really great kick to it. It was nice to be able to try both the pasta and sauce together, I had never tried from this brand before but I thought it was great that Degustabox included both so we had a full meal out of it! 

 Life Tonics
The Life Tonics drink was a very refreshing and light drink. The flavour we received was the elderberry and juniper. I'm not usually the biggest fan of coconut water if I am honest, but this was a really nice way to drink it with the added flavours.




I have to say this is my ultimate, favourite box ever! I adore pasta and sweet treats, tea and crispbread, so this box has literally ticked every box for me! There is nothing I do not like!
Have you tried Degustabox before?

*Includes PR sample*

What Are Food Supplements?

Always seek guidance from your GP/Doctor before using supplements*

What are Food Supplements?

Food supplements contain nutritients, and often food supplements have more nutrients than a lot of food. Supplements include vitamins, minerals, fiber, fatty acids, or amino acids. 

These Super Raspberry Ketone Food Supplements (which are available here online) are made from a blend of Natural Raspberry Ketones, Acai Berry Extract, African Mango and pure Caffeine. They claim to reduce appetite by assisting in lipolysis and fatty acid oxidation. I trialed them out for a few Weeks while maintaining a healthy diet. I did lose a few pounds during my time using these, while eating healthily and exercising too. In all honesty, I did notice a slight difference after using the supplements. My appetite did decrease very slightly while using these. I definitely would advise keeping to a healthy and balanced diet and exercise over using food supplements. It is good to know supplements are available if you want to ensure you are getting all of the nutrients you need in your diet, although I wouldn't recommend using supplements unless you have discussed this with your doctor.

*Post includes PR Sample*

Sunkissed New Double Sided Tanning Mitt and First Thoughts

I am a huge fan of Sunkissed - I have used their make-up products since I was a teenager, and adore their reasonably priced and really good quality tanning products. When I heard they were bringing out a double sided tanning mitt, I knew I had to give it a go! I always say that a double sided tanning mitt* would be so useful, so it is great that one of my favourite tanning brands have released one.

A double sided tanning mitt is great because you can get to those hard to reach places yourself - for example, you can tan your back without having to switch your arm around (tanners you know what I mean!). This means applying tan is much easier and quicker to do on your own. There has been no leaking or damage with this mitt - it really is good quality. This mitt has lasted me really well and washes great too. I use my Sunkissed Self - Tan Mousse and the mitt together and it gives me a very even and natural looking finish, with no streaks to be seen at all.
As the mitt is double sided, this means it lasts twice as long too as you have both sides to use.

The Sunkissed Double Sided Tanning Mitt is available to buy online on their website here for £4.99, and is also available at Primark.

*Includes some PR samples*