Ambre Solaire Fake Tan Review - Let down product

Purchase at Boots here
£11.69

So disaster struck when I went to purchase my favourite fake tan last week.  They had sold out in Boots, I knew of no where else that stocks it and I had pretty much already over-run on my lunch break.  Oh and I needed to fake tan that night before Southport Weekender (which was amazing by the way.  Link to website here for those of you that like soul, RnB, or house music).

For the most part, none of the competitors were available either.  I must say - TIME TO STOCK UP BOOTS MANCHESTER! 

Anyway, I picked up a No7 once and then thought actually I will get Ambre Solaire - I used to use a tan by them back in the day, surely it will have improved by now anyway.  I purchased the dark version and hoped for the best. It wouldn't be the first time I had wasted money on a fake tan and in reality you tend to get what you pay for I have found in my experience. 

So off I trotted to the till and purchased. 

Mistake.  Unfortunately, it was what I can only describe as a massive let down.  I really don't like saying that either.  I hate product bashing - but I have to be honest. 

I exfoliated, moisturised my knees, elbows and ankles and applied as instructed.  I allowed it to develop over night and woke up… PALE and gutted. 

The moral of the story is don't leave your tanning to the last minute!  It will result in pale skin and wasted money. 

Needless to say I do not recommend this product at all.  Unfortunately, it didn't work at all on me. 

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NOTD - Grey, Pink and Mint Green Nail Art (DIY Gel Manicure)

No Flash - indoors

Sorry for the super long heading - I couldn't think of anything imaginative.  My brain is fried from all the nail art I have been pinning on Pinterest!

Decided to put some of it into practice - very basic I know, but I found some nail art tools I purchased from ebay around 5 years ago and finally opened the package!  I used the dotting tool only and found there was even a knack to that!

Looking forward to perfecting some other skills.

With Flash - indoors

I really struggled to find colours that I could use to copy so many of the pretty looks I'd found.  Moral of the story - I need to purchase fewer dark colours and increase my collection of gold, silver and pastel gel polishes!  Such a difficult task for a girl!

Can't wait!

Anyway, The colours used are Mint Shellac - St Petersburg as the base (I've got to be honest, this chips really easily so I am not holding out much hope of it lasting), Gelish - You're So Sweet You Give Me Toothache as the light pink dots on my thumb nail, Red Carpet Manicure - Parisian Chic and Mint Shellac - San Diego.

Love a good manicure.  Here's hoping that it will last!

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Nails - You're So Sweet You Give Me Tooth Ache (Gelish)

I love looking at nail colours/art/styles and always mean to share whatever gel polish I am wearing, but somehow always forget to picture my nails other than on my phone.  Therefore the quality is usually a bit poor and unblog-worthy.

I will make more of an effort I promise.

However, here is one that I did manage to photograph, although it must have been a while ago!  I always go back to this shade though - it's so pretty and I love the name of it!

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YANKEE CANDLE - Tried and Tested Scents

Yankee Candle - Large Jar £19.99
link here

Ahhh Yankee Candle.  I do not know of anyone who does not appreciate this brand of candle.  That likes candles that is.

My obsession with this brand started not long after we had moved into our city centre flat and wanted to relax in our home and get rid of any open plan cooking smells.

Luckily for us also, we live relatively close to the Lowry Outlet Mall which means they can be purchased at a slightly cheaper price.

So, firstly Garden Sweet Pea is an absolute must for any of you that love the smell of Hollister.  It literally smells the same as their stores!  Obsessed and always have around 3 of these in at once!

The other two scents were new ones to try.  The Midnight Oasis is a favourite for a lot of people I think but it's not as nice as Garden Sweet Pea for me and I don't intend on re-purchasing.  In all honesty, to me it smells like male shower gel and is confusing to my brain - I feel like I should be in a bathroom whenever it's lit!

The Chapmaca Blossom is lovely to smell in the glass jar, but again not as nice as Garden Sweet Pea.  It's a light and subtle scent so it is probably good if you don't want something too powerful, but for me the beauty of Yankee Candles is that you can usually smell them the whole time they are on, unlike some candles, which you seem to get used to as they burn.

All in all though, I would say you cannot go wrong with Yankee Candles.  There are so many lovely scents and they burn for hours and hours and hours and are totally worth the cost in my view!

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FOTD - Wedding Guest Face

Attended an absolutely amazing wedding recently.  Good food, company and beautiful venue (West Tower in Aughton if you're interested).

I made the error of bringing an un-charged camera!  Was gutted but it's always such a busy lead up to weekend events isn't it!

So all the photos I got were using my trusty iPhone.  I was aiming for a natural(ish) look.  And one that I did not have to refresh too much.

- Foundation - Estee Lauder Double Wear in Fresco and Shell Beige mixed
- Blush - Nars Orgasm
- Eyeshadow - Urban Decay Naked 2 Palette in Various
- Eyeliner - Lancome
- Lipstain - Maybelline New York Super Stay 24 Hour Lip Colour in Plum Seduction (which is amazing)
- Highlighter - MAC Cream Colour Base in Shell
- Brows - Benefit Brow Zings
- Mascara - Revlon Fabulash

It was a bit of an action shot - hence the seatbelt!

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OOTN - shiny disco pants

I literally live in my disco pants.  I don't even know if people think that they are still ok to wear or whether that fashion has died a death.  I also don't care because I love mine.  They are just so versatile and make me feel like I am from another era! An era when everyone did crazy disco dancing to Donna Summers music.

Anyway, I digress.

So it was a friend's 30th this weekend and they are always the kind of events that you don't want to be the most over dressed in the room so I opted for the disco pants again.  With a cami and blazer.  Perfecto!

Disco Pants - River Island
Cami - New Look (massive bargain)
Blazer - Jane Norman
Clutch Bag - House of Fraser
Shoes - Red Herring at Debenhams
Large Pearl Ring - Gift
Bracelets - Pandora and Ernest Jones - Gifts
Earrings - Mosaic-Creativity
Necklace - Claires Accessories (old)

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Guest Post - Review: Lush Soak and Float, Veganese and Sweetie Pie hair and body products

I was guilt tripped by the BBC's Orangutan Diaries recently. I couldn't cope with seeing baby Orangutans losing their habitat because of unsustainable palm oil plantations, then Michaela Strachan proceeding to lecture about how we buy far too many products containing palm oil produced from these plantations. I was already aware of the problem before watching Orangutan Diaries but my busy life saw me consuming whatever was convenient. This time, I decided to do something about it. 

One of my new year resolutions was to be more conscious in my decision making. That's not only things I buy, but in life in general. Even if it's something small. I don't profess to be able to change the world and be the perfect human being. But if I can make a slight change for the better with my actions, it's good enough for me. I thought beauty products would be a good place to start so I took some time to look into brands which are palm oil conscious. Lush came up high on the list (http://www.rainforestfoundationuk.org/Hair_Products). Most people usually talk about how nice the bath bombs are from Lush and that's about it. So I was pleasantly surprised to find they offer a whole range of beauty products.

Changing my hair routine is a big deal. My natural curls, which I definitely don't have time to straighten day in, day out, require moisture and lots of it. As long as there's a good cut going on, products are my focus. So, that's: shampoo, conditioner, an intensive condition once in a while, serum to de frizz, styling cream to boost and styling spray to set. Complicated, potentially expensive and long-winded, yes. But pretty much essential when it comes to keeping my curls, well, curly. Looking for something which was going to be able to do this was an important factor when considering using more ethically-sound products. Here is my verdict. 

Soak and Float shampoo

My requirements: Hair needs to be squeaky clean and keeps those pesky flakes away. My dark hair makes them much more noticeable, you see.

Name: It sounds a bit wrong. Or is that just me?

Appearance: Round soap bar with a beige vibe. Even more natural than natural.

Smell: Wow. And this isn't a good wow. It's the cade oil, which has a "strong smoky, woodsy aroma", apparently.Hmm. Cade oil is also known as juniper tar, which according to Lush has antiseptic, antimicrobial and fungicidal properties. 

Feel on hands: A good amount of lather but not over the top.

Feel on head: The lather continues to stay normal and is straight to the point. .

Rinse: Rinses out quickly and easy.

Result: After over 3 weeks of using it, so far, so good. For me, I have to use it twice. It may smell strong but an affordable product that's natural and can meet my requirements wins hands down over the chemical alternative. Plus the smell doesn't linger in your hair after you rinse it out. 

Ingredients: Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Water, Cade Oil, Lavender Oil, Marigold Petals, Rose Petals, *Limonene, *Linalool, Perfume

*occurs naturally in essential oils

Veganese conditioner

My requirements: MOISTURE.

Name: You don't have to be vegan to use it but it's a good indicator for those who are dedicated to that lifestyle. For this, I will give it at least a point for function.

Appearance: Creamy with very faint pistachio tint.

Smell: Sweet, sweet lemon.

Feel on hands: Slightly runny, which didn't fill me with too much joy. However, my quest for moisture meant that in the past I was going for thick conditioners that weighed my fine hair down. The feel is something I'll have to get used to. 

Feel on head: Soaks in very quickly.

Rinse: Again, rinses out quickly and easily.

Result: Love it. My hair is manageable, smooth, shiny plus it had a really pleasant, long-lasting lemony smell. It's quite pricey (but value for money when considering how long a big bottle will last), so I went for the smallest size, just to test. I'll be purchasing the largest bottle possible of the Veganese once pay day comes around because it really does the trick. My favourite purchase out of the 3.

Ingredients: Lavender Flower Infusion, Fresh Rosemary Infusion, Agar Agar Gel, Cetearyl Alcohol, Propylene Glycol, Cetearyl Alcohol and Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Cetrimonium Bromide, Lemon Oil, Benzoin Resinoid, Fresh Organic Lemon Juice, *Citral, *Limonene, Perfume, Methylparaben

*occurs naturally in essential oils

Sweetie Pie shower jelly

My requirements: Clean me.

Name: This is cute and it encouraged me to pick it up on a whim. 

Appearance: Purple, wobbly jelly. It's supposed be sparkly but I couldn't see the sparkles. Upsetting. 

Smell: Cherry.

Feel on hands: Wobbly, stretchy and very difficult to get out of the pot.

Feel on body: It just stays the same. Where's the lather?

Rinse: After some hard work, the lather appears. It rinses off quickly.

Result: A fun idea but it doesn't translate into an effective shower gel in my eyes. I should have known what I was getting, seen as the packaging clearly describes it as shower jelly. Unfortunately the novelty wore off after the fact it wasn't easy to use. 

Ingredients: Glycerine, Cherry Infusion, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Coconut Infusion, Propylene Glycol, Carrageenan Extract, Perfume, Bergamot Oil, Cassis Absolute, Cypress Oil, *Limonene, *Linalool, Snowflake Lustre, Colour 17200, Colour 42090, Methylparaben, Propylparaben

*occurs naturally in essential oils

Overall verdict

When it comes to shopping at Lush, I'd honestly suggest browsing the engaging website and buying on line after a trip to the Arndale shop. Staff were a bit pushy plus you only have to walk by the entrance to be overawed by the combination of flowery, powdery aromas coming from inside.

Their products are what makes the experience in my opinion. On top of their palm oil policy, they don't test on animals plus it's an easily accessible brand. The shampoo and conditioner gets a big thumbs up from me. Guilt free, effective and similarly priced to to higher-end chemical-based products; I've been converted.   

https://www.lush.co.uk/

     

About me: My name is Karolyn, I'm a writer and I've been friends with Dani for 5 or 6 years. I also blog like Dani but my Wordpress site Gone Out is focussed on events, culture and occasional rants.Check it out at www.goneout.wordpress.com or follow me on Twitter: @karolynsgoneout.

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