Kiko Haulin'

Top, eyeshadow in 130, middle, Ultra Glossy Lipstick in Pink Flamingo, bottom, Kiss Balm in Blackberry

 I've spent many an hour swatching away in the giant Kiko store in Westfield, but I've never bit the bullet and actually bought anything. Last week, I spent five days in Italy, and whilst perusing duty free before my flight home, I spotted a Kiko store tucked into a corner of the airport, and what ensued was a half hour of time wasting, which finally ended in a few purchases.

The first thing I picked up was the eyeshadow, (shade 130, in Italy anyway!) as it reminded me of Stila's Kitten which I've just run out of. It's really similar, a shimmery peachy nude, and the quality is great, it's so soft! For 1.90, I really can't find fault with it! It's a great base colour. 

I then headed over to the lipsticks, where I settled for two (at three euro each I didn't feel too bad about it!). The first one is from the Kiss Balm range, a selection of lip balms with colour, much like the Maybelline Baby Lips, YSL Sheer Candys, Revlon Lip Butters and every other tinted lip balm on the market. The shade I went for is Blackberry, the 'darkest' shade from the range, which was the only one to tint my lips slightly darker than their natural colour. It's a sheer wash of a little darker than nude colour, which looks super natural.

The other lipstick I went for was from the Ultra Glossy range, in 803 Pink Flamingo, which is a slightly dulled down bright pink, that applies slightly sheer and glossy. I love this colour, it's such a me kind of colour, and this lipstick has SPF 15 too. 

There weren't really any nail polishes that caught my eye, since my collection is pretty extensive, but I did end up picking up this nail base which does a pretty damn good job at creating a smoother base for colour, since my nails are pretty damaged!

 The last purchase was a bit of a gamble, since I've never heard much about Kiko skincare, but I've been after a good peeling mask for a while, and it was on offer for 5€, so if it wasn't all that great it wouldn't have mattered, but I actually quite like this. I've only used it once but my skin felt and looked plumper, and more radiant than before. I'll keep you posted but this could be a winner.

Kiko products are fairly cheap anyway, but they are a lot cheaper in Milan, a difference of 1.90€ for an eyeshadow to £4.90, still cheap but more than double the Italian prices! Despite this, if I see anything I like in there in the future, I won't hesitate to buy it, since I really like everything I've bought so far!

Have you tried anything from Kiko? Do you have any recommendations?

The Wishlist #3

Chanel Creme Blush in Affinité £27 // Urban Decay Revolution Lipstick in Jilted and Turn On £15 each // Bobbi Brown Rich Chocolate Eye Palette £39.50 // Giorgio Armani Si Eau De Parfum £43.50 // All Star Burgandy Converse £45 // Topshop Nail Paint in Twilight Tease £6 // 

There's always something on my wishlist, but with a recent barrage of new releases, and new discoveries, my wishlist is getting pretty extensive at the moment.

High up on the list is Chanel's Creme blusher, isn't it pretty? I've been swatching it every shift at work and I've now decided it will be mine. As for that Bobbi Brown palette, who could resist those colours? The Urban Decay Lipsticks have been up there for a while now, but I can't decide between these two shades for first purchase. I desperately need some new Converse as I had to bid farewell to my last pair due to unfortunate circumstances, and I love these burgandy ones! I've been after a rose gold nail paint for a while now, and recently discovered Topshop's Twilight Tease which fits the bill nicely. And lastly, the new Giorgio Armani fragrance was sniffed and sprayed at work last week, and I can't stop thinking about it. It's a really refreshing, fruity fragrance, quite unlike anything I've smelt before.

What products are on your lust list?

Samplin'

 Whilst packing for my impromptu trip to Italy (where I'm restricted to hand luggage only...big exasperated sigh) I decided that the best thing to do would be to rummage around in my sample box, and substitute as many of my skincare and makeup products as humanly possible for sample sizes.

Samples are a lot easier to come buy than most people seem to think, most beauty counters have a stash hidden even if they are a little reluctant to hand them out. Places like Lush and Body Shop however are pretty free with their sample dispensing, so I always pick up a few if I know I'm going anywhere!

I have actually already purchased a full size of Lush's Grease Lightening spot treatment, but I still had a little sample pot of it so I topped that up and that's definitely coming with me. I got a sample of YSL's Manifesto a few months back before I started working there when had a bit of a splurge, it's a super fruity and sweet perfume so nice for holidays. You guys have heard me rave about Laura Mercier's Foundation Radiance Primer a thousand times already, so that was a given, and I'm quite fond of the Shu Uemera Cleansing Oil for shifting waterproof mascara so that got thrown in too.

Have you used any of these products before? What did you think?

August Favourites

 Another month has been and gone, and I'm starting to feel old. Where is my life going?!

I haven't done much this month as I've basically been working the entire time. But I still managed to rustle up a few favourites to share with you.

First up was a purchase I made back in July, the Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish. I used this years ago and decided to buy another one since everyone seems to rave about it. Anyway, it's definitely worth the hype, it's super creamy, feels lovely on your skin and gets makeup off a treat. 

I also finally bit the bullet and bought Grease Lightening, after picking up sample after sample and still being on the fence about it. I've come to the decision that I do really like it, it's a great spot treatment, it dries them out and gets rid of them super fast. Winner in my book.

The last skincare item is the Origins Ginzing Moisturiser. I'm not gonna say too much about this since I'll be doing a full review of this Wednesday, so come back then to see that! 

Two bases made the cut this month, the Diorskin Nude BB Creme for days when I want a little less coverage, and Max Factor Facefinity when I was at work or going out. I'm obsessed with the Dior BB Creme, it's the best BB Creme I've ever tried by far, with decent coverage but natural looking. Facefinity is my favourite high coverage foundation, it stays put all day and gives a gorgeous, flawless matte finish.

Two lip products that I bought this month and have been obsessed with, are the Baby Lips in Cherry Me and the Bourjois Colour Boost in Red Sunrise. I just love these!

Since I bought my NARS And God Created the Woman palette, my Isolde Duo has been neglected, but I've been loving wearing this a lot this month, paired with a flick of gel black eyeliner. 

Last up, on my nails has been Essie's Watermelon. I love the colour but I think there's something wrong with the formula since it's always really gritty. Strange.

What products have you been loving this month?

The Weekly Round Up #21

Wet
things! // Being spoilt by the girls at work // Planning posts with a
cider // Being a good girlfriend and bringing Starbucks home // Saying
goodbye to my old flat, and the gorgeous view of central London // Wet
dogs ready for swimming! // My favourite thing about coming home, Jelly
Tot Milkshakes! // Cocktails! // Selfie time

Highlight of the week: The meetup I went to yesterday! I'll tell you more about that next week! 

Lowlight of the week: Running out of my beloved Rimmel Wake Me Up Concealer :(

Skincare Rotation: May I always have Vichy's  Purete
Thermale Cleanser in my life! Also, I've been trying out Estée Lauder's
Advanced Night Repair 2, which smells like biscuits but is super
hydrating.

In the Beauty Bag:
I haven't been wearing tons of makeup, but I've been trying out
Revlon's Lash Potion which I quite like so far, and I've been giving a
lot of love to my Dior BB Creme too.

Added to the wishlist: One (or four) of those gorgeous new Urban Decay Lipsticks, that beautiful new Bobbi Brown Palette and a new pair of Converse

Hope you've all had a great week! What have you been loving this week?