Wednesday 28 November 2012

Christmas Gifts For Her Under £10!



 I really, really want this for myself! Contains a cute Snowman Bubble Bar & Ponche Shower Gel, which has a shot of Tequila in, oo-er! This is a lovely gift for a sibling or best friend!

Again, I would love to see this under my Christmas tree! Packed with sweet treat scented goodies, perfectly suiting siblings, daughters or even adventurous mums!

What Christmas is Christmas without a Yankee Candle?! For just under a tenner, you will receive a regular tumbler candle. Yankee Candles are one of the very best on the market - worth every penny!

I thought I would include some sparkly jewellery as a gift idea, as its always nice to receive something setimental. I'm happy with my find on this. H Samuel is a respectable company, of which I have been a returning customer, so I knew that no matter what the price, you will receive something utterly beautiful. For again, just under £10, this is such a lovely gift idea!

Finally, we have a Christmassy Body Shop giftset. I love The Body Shop and almost always receive some products for birthdays, etc. This is such a cute little set for any body product lover!


Have you started your Christmas shopping? Seen anything you like?

LuceeLovesBeautyBox.

xxx

Saturday 24 November 2012

More Magazine Models Own Freebie Nail Polishes!

Just a quick little memo to you lovely lot! This weeks edition of More magazine, are giving away Models Own products. Two nail polishes and two lip glosses, to be precise!
Unaware of the exact shade names of the two lip glosses - the two polishes I picked up were Raspberry Crush & Nude Beige. These are in fact the first Models Own polishes I have ever owned, so I am hoping to see some wonderful results with these!
I initially thought about just picking up the one nail polish. I already have a few reds in my collection, and my Barry M Mushroom polish is starting to gloop, I thought I would just pick up the Nude Beige. But at a lovely £1.50 per magazine, I really couldn't resist picking up both for £3 - considering they are £5 each!

As for the glosses, I'm sure they are a lovely product, but I barely manage to be bothered to apply a lip balm, never mind something as high maintenance as a gloss that will just be licked away!
I hope you have read this in time to grab yourself some bargains! 

LuceeLovesBeautyBox.

xxx

Tuesday 20 November 2012

Christmas Gifts For Him Under £5!

If you have read my Christmas Gifts For Her Under £5, you will be aware I have started to post Christmas Gift Guides. Today, I am going to share with you my gift ideas for the men in your life, for under five British pounds!


For the men? Pfft! I think I would have more fun with this game! This is a steering wheel, with a maze in the centre. I love these types of addictive games, so I am sure any man will be quite content with concentration!

Again, I have always wanted one of these, so I would quite happily steal this myself! For the novelty factor, this is a nice little gift to fill up his stocking.

3. LUSH Bubblebeard Bubble Bar £4.95
Well, this 'For Him' manly post is starting to turn quite feminine..
I think this is such a cool idea. A moustache bubble bar wand. My other half likes a good old LUSH bath bomb & bubble bar, so to make it feel a little more masculine, it comes in the form of a moustache!

For any man that likes to take care of their body & face, this is a nice little gift. Full with goodies & a wash bag, makes it quite a practical gift, for the mister in your life to try some products. As us beauty bloggers are obsessed with beauty products, lets see how the men can cope!

5. Thorntons Milk Chocolate Santa £2.99
What men/boys can not say no to a bit of chocolate. I, myself could quite happily live on it! As a stocking filler, this is quite a unisex gift to place under the tree. As well as being perfect for any age!

That was my Christmas Gift Guide For Him. I'm not the best shopper for men, I will probably get my other half some socks & boxers, but this is to show how not every Christmas gift will upset your purse!

LuceeLovesBeautyBox.

xxx

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Sunday 18 November 2012

Christmas Gifts For Her Under £5!

So, its time to acknowledge the fact that Christmas is in fact here. I love every aspect about Christmas, the weather, the lights & Christmas tree, Starbucks Gingerbread Lattes & Mince Pies. The one thing I do not like, is parting with my cash, on ridiculously expensive gifts.

I have decided to post some Christmas Gift Guides. I will be posting these over the next few weeks, which range from prices, to gift types. If you would like to see a gift guide solely on budget beauty products, let me know below! Today, I am going to be sharing with you my picks for Her, under £5! 

There is so many more I could have added to this selection, but believe it or not, there is quite a few gifts to be found, for under £5. Boots is also a great place to Christmas shop, as most items are 3 for 2!



1. The Body Shop Chocomania Cupcake Gift £5.00
This is such a cute little gift, for practically any age. The packaging is so sweet, with the contents of Chocomania Mini Heart Soap, Shower Cream & Ultra Fine Orange Bath Lily. I myself already own the soap. This smells divine. Unusual to find chocolate scented bath products, but they are pleasantly lovely!

2. LUSH Christmas Pudding Knot-Wrap £2.50
For £2.50, you will receive this very sweet pudding knot wrap. I think this is a perfect idea, if the person you are wanting to send a gift to, isn't particularly fond of the Christmas themed products, you can still wrap the ordinary LUSH products, in a Christmas themed knot wrap!

3. Babylis and Harding Large Gingerbread Shower Wash £4.00
This is one of the gifts I would really love to treat myself to, or hopefully find under the Christmas tree *hint, hint!*. I adore anything Gingerbread scented/flavoured, so I can imagine this little beauty will be heavenly to drench yourself in, on Christmas night!

4. The Garden Collection Candle Trio £5.00
This would be lovely for candle fanatics, or even your Mum. Very delicately packaged, you will receive three different scented candles. Again, this would suit many ages, so is quite a versatile gift to pick up!

5. Throntons White Chocolate Snowman £2.99
Lastly, how could you not pick this up for £2.99. Hardly going to break the bank, but will be much appreciated by the loved one who will receive it!

So, those are my quick Christmas gift picks for under £5. There is so many little gifts that are on the market. Even more on online shops, if you're willing to wait in for the Postie!

If you would like to see any more gift guides, aimed at children, different ages, themed gifts, etc, please let me know below!

LuceeLovesBeautyBox.

xxx

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Sunday 11 November 2012

Michel Mercier Detangling Brush for Fine Hair

Michel Mercier is a French hair stylist & product developer, with over 32 years experience within the hairdressing industry. Owner of the exclusive Michel Mercier salon group in Israel, Michel has created a de-tangling hairbrush, after acknowledging the trouble women & men go through, to brush our hair gently. After his 12 year old daughter would show visible discomfort during the hair brushing process, Michel set about creating a brush that would make daily brushing a more pleasant experience & less damaging to hair.
 For many months now, my hair has suffered from difficult hair brushing. I have quite fine, short hair. Trying to get my Denman brush through wet hair, results in a sore head & loss of hair. The only resolution I have came up with, is to apply a generous amount of conditioner, to soften the tats. Although, as I am prone to grease throughout the day, adding more product to my hair, is something I am trying to steer away from.

I have been tempted to purchase the infamous Tangle Teezer. After reading many reviews & seeking advice on Twitter, there have been advantages & disadvantages  The aspect I didn't particularly warm to, is the designed shape of there brush, which was essentially hand held.

Michel has created a large brush, to cover a larger surface area of your hair, effectively allowing you to brush your hair quicker. There is also a handle, that is blended into the shape of the brush head. This allows you to easily hold the brush, without fighting to keep it in your hands!
The brush has a range of different lengths & heights of 'bristles'. 428 in fact. With a unique geometric distribution, the brush helps disperse the pressure placed on your hair during brushing, resulting in easer detangling, reduced hair loss & breakage. The brush is available in three colour coded models, to suit different hair types; fine, normal & thick. This is a great bonus, as there is a brush for everyone, specifically designed for your hair type. The brush works effortlessly with all hair types, from dry colour damaged hair, to thick European, Afro & Asian hair textures. This brush is designed to brush sleekly through wet or dry hair, curly or straight, as well as being gently enough to tackle extensions & real or synthetic wigs!

I wanted to firtsly use this brush on wet hair, as this is the area within my hair, I find I have the most problems with. I found that with first use, the brush itself was quite strange to use. I have been previously using a Denman Paddle Brush for the past 5 years (repurchased!), so I am aware of how the brush feels upon my scalp.
This brush has a tougher brush head, due to the several plastic bristles, at different heights.  As these bristles are considerably shorter than my usual hair brush, i found I had to brush through layers of my hair - which I should be doing anyway! Once I had gotten used to a different way of taming my mane, I did find this had an advantage to my hair. I didn't have to pull at my hair, or fight knots. I believe my hair will be very thankful of this new addition!
I found this brush to make a huge difference to detangling my hair.
The process has been a much more enjoyable one. Once I had gotten used to the sensation of a different hair brush, this became a dream!
I hope to update you all on my hair, & whether it has improved the quality of my hair!

You can purchase this brush, I have the one for Fine hair, from Michel Mericer's site here (link), which retails for £14.95. There is also sets, as well as brushes, designed for children.

LuceeLovesBeautyBox.

xxx

Friday 9 November 2012

Graze

Graze is a company that sends out healthy nibbles for you to snack on, by post. Lets start with the best bits!
The boxed packaging that you will receive your Graze goodies in, fits perfectly through your letterbox, so there is no need to worry about missing the Postman. You can also get your box delivered to any address, Nationwide. Even at your work place! Perfectly in time for those 11.00am snack cravings before lunch time. Delivery charge? Absolutely free! If you are someone like most of us, that aren't quite prepared to dedicate ourselves to a subscription that we may not like, you will like this. Graze offers a subscription service, if you so wish to use it. This enables you to continually receive your boxes, on whatever days you like, how often you like. If this isn't for you, you can also order one off boxes. Brilliant!
Graze offers two types of boxes: A Nutrition Box & Nibble Box. The nutrition box contain the healthiest foods, rich in micronutrients, designed by their nutrients team.

The nibble box is perfect for if you want maximum variety. From flapjacks, nuts, dried fruits, seeds, chocolate coated nibbles, to freshly baked bread. Yum!

You will also receive four punnets of foods. Upon signing up, you will be able to rate the food that are available. This is quick & simple. Either rate: Try, Like, Love & Bin. This will determine which foods you will receive  Naturally, if you have rated Bin on certain foods, they will never arrive on your doorstep. If you are allergic or hate a specific ingredient, such as Coconut - you can search for the ingredient & bin the entirety of all the foods this is included. Foods you  are wishing to try may arrive, foods you like may occasionally turn up & lastly, foods you love will most likely turn up!
Now that all of the know how is out of the way, I can tell you about what I received  I love to rate Try on all the foods I like, so I can get a spontaneous surprise, each time I receive my Graze box. This also gives me the opportunity to try different things, I wouldn't necessarily pick up in a supermarket/health store. Here is what I received:

 Bakewell Tart: This punnet includes Cherry infused Sultanas, Cranberries & Almonds. They also contain manganese & copper - two antioxidant minerals. A good source of minerals & vitamins, as well as a good source of fibre.

Crunchini Basilico: This punnet included Basil infused Oil with Crunchini. Only contains 80 Calories!

Mississippi BBQ Pistachios: Says it on the tin! Also good source of fibre.

Honeycomb Flapjack: This punnet is also a good source of fibre, as the oats are packed full of healthy fibre. There is also a little drizzle of chocolate on top.

Each punnet is securely closed, with a cellophane lid. This makes it perfect for taking to work with you & travelling. Just pop in your handbag! There is also a handy napkin hidden away in the bottom of the tray. How caring of Graze!
These are the four foods I received. I enjoyed three out of four, which isn't bad going! I really didn't enjoy the Crunchini Basilico. I just found the Basil (I am assuming. I don't often eat Basil!) quite overpowering & strong. Some people may love this aspect, but for me, I did not. I liked the texture & crunch to the bread sticks(?). I also felt quite uncomfortable associating food with oil. I'm quite anti oil as it is!

My favourite had to be the Honeycomb Flapjack! This is the only punnet my other half was willing to delve into! This is packed with oats & topped with a drizzle of chocolate. This felt very comforting to eat, but knowing it was a healthier alternative to others, made it all the more delicious!

Thirdly, Mississippi BBQ Pistachios. Yum! I love eating nuts, although this has only became apparent recently. I always thought they were gross, but after some dedication to them, I have made a U turn! These a packed full of BBQ flavour which is a pleasant change to just Roasted, which I usually eat!

Finally, we have Bakewell Tart. I demolished this little punnet! Juicy Cranberries & Cherry infused Sultanas worked lovely in combination with the Almonds. Very enjoyable to eat. Rate: Love!
So, that is my Graze box review. I really enjoy the element of surprise the receiving these boxes, although that element can be removed for yourself, if you so wish. The concept of this box is great. There have been many healthy foods I have been introduced to, such as Vanilla Seeds. Usually, I would never have dreamed of pick them up, now I am on the hunt for some!

If you have enjoyed this post & are curious to try for yourself, you can enter this code on their site: 9QKPKF5D. This will guarantee your fist box FREE! This is how I became introduced to Graze. If you don't enjoy the box, or wish to discontinue receiving them, you can easily cancel any further deliveries!

Sign up at: www.graze.com.

I hope this has helped anyone that has been intrigued about Graze boxes or for anyone that has been curious to try. I absolutely love receiving these & tasting new foods!

Let me know if you sign yourself up! I would love to hear your thoughts!

LuceeLovesBeautyBox.

xxx

Wednesday 7 November 2012

Soap & Glory Small Wonders Mini Hat Box Christmas Giftset

I thought I would share with you, a little gift set I received  from my other half. As Christmas is well & truly just around the corner, this is the perfect opportunity to share with you this gift idea. 

I was first introduced officially to Soap & Glory, after said other half surprised me with some of their minis, to cheer me up. How sweet! I had heard so many lovely things about this brand, so it was lovely to give them a try at last! Again, he did very well, for picking this up spontaneously for me. What a good egg!
I already have my eye on a lot of their gift sets. They look amazing. My eyes would lit up if I were to see pink peeking through the wrapping paper! 

This box is quite rightly named; Small Wonders Mini Hat Box. This is full of S&G minis, as well as a poofy loofah. Included, you will find: Shower Puff, Clean On Me Shower Gel, The Scrub Of Your Life Body Scrub, The Righteous Butter Body Butter & Hand Food Hand Cream.
The packaging of the hat box, is so pretty. I have yet to decide what to store in here, but I am sure I will think of something. Nail Polishes would be a great idea! The box is covered in various S & G's, ranging from pinks, silver & white, with a cute embossed pink lid. This box itself is very sturdy, perfect for recycling into storage or organisation for your other products!

I think this is a lovely little gift for someone who is new to beauty, bath & body care, or someone who has yet to try Soap & Glory. This giftset includes some of the most popular products S&G cater, which is a great way to introduce someone to the products. I was pleasantly surprised to see a big, fluffy Shower Puff at the top, hiding all of the products below!
This Small Wonders Mini Hat Box retails at £10.00. You will receive 4 mini products, a shower puff, as well as a beautifully presented box, for you to store your new products in. You can purchase this from Boots here (link), or pick up in store. This gift set is also included in the 3 for 2 deal, throughout all of the Christmas gifts. Perfect excuse to treat yourself?

Have you already hidden this away, to treat someone?

LuceeLovesBeautyBox.

xx

Monday 5 November 2012

Accessorize Lipstick in Passionate

We are already into November! Where did the time go?! As Winter is setting in, wearing dark, warm colours is perfectly acceptable. Unfortunately for me, I'm still too timid to wear anything darker than a nude lippie. Never the less, I'm going to review a lipstick I was sent a couple of months ago for you. This seems the perfect time to show you!
I believe this is the first Accessorize make up product I own. For the store itself, I love it. I love all of the little bits & bobs, from key rings, handbags, scarves & gloves, to trusty umbrellas  Of course, their make up packaging is thoroughly decked out. I wouldn't expect anything less!

Packaging wise, I only recently became aware of a sneeky little section to this lipstick. At the end of the tube, you can see a swatch of the colour. This itself is a great aspect, especially if you store your lipsticks in an organised fashion, you will instantly know what shade to pick. As well as this nifty idea, you can also remove the 'swatch', to reveal its actually a little pot of the lipstick. This is great for touch ups on your lips, without a mirror, after you've eaten or had a drink!

The shade itself is named 'Passionate'. A very deep purple. This looks amazing against pale skin, like myself. If only I had the confidence to wear this lipstick in public, boy I would! Its the perfect deep, winter shade, that would pair beautifully with simple eye make up, or even just a slick of liquid/gel liner.

The formulation is very matte. When I say matte, I mean this is going nowhere once applied! Because of the consistency of the finish, you almost have to drag the product across your lips. Be warned, be careful applying the colour where you want it to actually go. As this is such a pigmented, deep colour, smudging will just spoil the whole look!
I think this is a lovely product for the braver women out there, but I would be very interested in looking into some of their other shades! 

I have been looking left, right & centre for a link for the product, although I just can't seem to find one! I'm sure you will be able to pick one up from the Accessorize store, or Superdrug stocks their products!

Have you tried any of Accessorize's Lipsticks or other make up products?
What are your thoughts?

LuceeLovesBeautyBox.

xxx


Saturday 3 November 2012

Glamour Magazine December 2012 Free Nails Inc. Nail Polishes!

May I start with this image, to start the post..
I am fairly sure every girl & their mother out there has either heard about, or picked up December's issue of Glamour. This edition, includes a free Nails Inc. nail polish, worth £11. As the magazine is only a purse friendly £2, you are saving yourself a few bob!
There is four shades of polishes to collect. From left to right, there is: Elizabeth Street, Glamour Glitter, Motcomb Street & St James.

Elizabeth Street is a very sheer pale pink. his would pair beautifully with white tips, for a French manicure look, or if you are unable to wear nail polish to school/work, but would like to make your nails look healthy.

Glamour Glitter is a light formulation of glitter. From the bottle, you would assume this is packed. Don't be fooled! This will look lovely as a top coat, to add definition to a simple base colour.

Motcomb Street is a very deep & dark blue. Nigh on verging into a black shade. Within the right lighting, you will be able to distinguish different tones of colour. This would look gorgeous for the festive season & New Year, with the Glamour Glitter on top, to had a touch of.. Well, glamour!

Finally, there is St James. This is the shade I wanted the most, purely for Christmas time. You cannot go wrong with a bit of red! I imagined the Glamour Glitter as a gradient tip, would suit this nail look, amazingly! As the red is quite a blue toned shade, this is quite versatile for this time of year!
Just thought I would include a little side note into the palavar I had to find one of these polishes. This may not be an issue for yourself, but boy, I'm glad I got there in the end. Pfft!

I picked up the pink, red & blue polishes at my local newsagent, no bother. I walked away extremely happy with my £6 purchase. Unfortunately, they did not have the Glamour Glitter polish in the shop. As I was going through town later that day, I decided to just pick it up somewhere else. Well.. somewhere else I did look! I honestly cannot remember the amount of stores, shops & newsagents I looked into, to find this one polish! I popped into M&S, Fenwicks, WHSmiths, x2 Tesco, Co-op.. Just to name a few!

Finally, as I were about to give up & go home, I popped into a little newsagents in a side alley. To my absolute delight, my partner immediately grabbed it for me as soon as he noticed it (bless him, after I dragged him left, right & centre!).

Basically, that was the torment I gone through, just to find this one nail polish. I'm sure I'm not the first or last to go to the moon & back, to complete a collection!

I will have some real swatches on my nails up soon, as well as making sure to Instagram them (if you're interested, my username is @Luceeloves), as that's where most nail images go, before blogging!

I'm really happy I have picked up these polishes. For the price, you really cannot complain!

Have you picked yours up yet?

LuceeLovesBeautyBox.

xxx

Thursday 1 November 2012

Current Empties #4!

Hello!

I don't have a particularly large empties post to show you, today. When slowly collecting my rubbish for this post, I thought I had a lot more, but I did run out of the majority of the Soap & Glory products in one go. Devastating, I know. I'm hoping Santa will surprise me with some more products!

As this is my fourth edition to my Current Empties posts, I have finally succeeded in using up the vast majority of products in my bathroom. Unfortunately  I still have countless tubs of The Body Shop Body Butters that need to be used up! The quest continues!
 
 Face
I think every girl & their mother has used this once upon a time. I know I started using this, after my Mam did. I was quite sad to see this go. I liked to use this pretty much daily. I found it was gentle enough to do so. I also liked to use this, if I felt my skin needed a deeper clean to just using a cleanser & muslin cloth.

I received the Mud Clay Spa Masks a while ago, but I kept one in my bathroom cabinet, for when I am in dire need of a face mask, but want one that is quick & will do the job! I love the concept of these particular masks. They come in the form of a face shaped cloth, that is essentially soaked in the clay mask product. Just un-peel the mask, apply to face, remove & massage in remaining product. Splash with water!

Body
To begin my extensive empty Soap & Glory products, I finally used up this huge bottle of shower bath wash. I never thought I would see the end of this, but when I did, I was quite sad to see it go. This was the perfect product to just grab & pump. It felt so moisturising to use, which would be great for people with dry skin. For the size, this lasts so long. I liked to use about 3 pumps, too, onto a poofy loofah thingy, or just my hands!

I received this for my 21st from my lovely Mam. I wasn't aware that S&G provided Bubble Bath products, so I was quite excited to use this! As far as Bubble Bath products go, I like to pour out quite generously. Love bubbly bubble baths! This did last for quite a while, though. Even with a little amount poured into running water, created a sufficient amount of bubbles for an obsessed S&G girl! This would be a definite repurchase!

This is the only S&G product I have found difficult to get along with, which is quite sad. As its a creamy wash, it was recommended to apply this onto damp skin. When I am in the tub, I submerge myself throughout. I found that I would have to dry myself off slightly, or sit up for a little while, before I could use this, so I would see the advantages of it against damp skin. This was a tad annoying for me, personally  I like to use a poofy thing & drench myself in the wash! 
However, I would be prepared to try this again & persevere with it, until I found a way I enjoyed using it. Am I the only one with these thoughts?

This is the second S&G Scrub I have tried. I enjoyed using this as a scrub, it did the job perfectly. The scent is as gorgeous as ever, too. I do have a favourite - in the form of Scrub 'Em & Leave 'Em. 
I would really, really like to try the Breakfast Scrub! Recommendations?

Hair
This is something I tend to always pick up, straight after getting my hair dyed. I never really see a difference in the vibrancy of my hair colour after using these, but its nice to think they are doing something remotely positive for your hair, apart from keeping it clean! This was a nice product to use. It did the job!

I could drench my hair in this for days on end! I believe I got 2-3 uses of this, out of one sachet. I have shoulder length, short hair. So I didn't find the need to use & waste the whole packet on one use. I like to apply any heavy conditioning product to the ends of my hair & up to my ears, just to prevent my hair from being weighed down. This made my hair feel a dream. So smooth & sleek, as well as smelling soo good!

So, that is my little Current Empties #4 post! Quite short, but sweet! Hopefully, my next Empties post will include some empty Body Butters or moisturisers. I will get there!

Do you have any favourites from the above products?

LuceeLovesBeautyBox.

xxx