Lottie London 'Cherry Pie' Balm Ball

This past weekend I popped into Superdrug with the sole intention of buying the new Lottie London brush cleanser, but while I was browsing the counter I came across a collection of cute little lip balm balls. As I had a look through the range of scents I came across one called 'Cherry Pie'. I pointed it out to my boyfriend as it's the same name as my blog and he said I absolutely had to buy it and feature it, so here we are!

I am a sucker for a lip balm. You should see the bottom of my handbag...it's absolutely overflowing with the things. My current go-to lip balm is an unscented Chapstick because the brand seems to have discontinued the medicated Chapstick I was using previously, but that's a rant for another day.

After using this Lottie London balm, I am beginning to think spherical shaped lipbalms are the future. They're much better than the awful twist up ones I'm used to and which always, always break and eventually stop twisting. They're very cute and very handy for popping in your bag too. The 'Cherry Pie' scented balm is super sweet, which I personally love. It doesn't leave my lips dryer than the desert after about five minutes like most other scented balms do. The Lottie London Balm Balls really moisturise the lips, leaving them really soft and smooth. It also leaves them looking super shiny so no need for a lip gloss!

I found the £4.99 price tag a tad steep personally. It may be because I'm used to buying Chapsticks, which are only around £1, but I guess with these you pay a bit more for the novelty packaging and shape. I'm glad I did pick it up because I'm always looking for new lip balms and this one has been a big hit, so I'd definitely recommend.

Have you tried the Lottie London Balm Balls? Let me know what you thought in the comments.

PS. I did buy the brush cleanser and will be featuring it soon!

Dirty Works Super Hydrating Lip Balm Collection

Now we're into November and the Coca Cola advert has played, I think it's safe to start thinking about Christmas presents. I've actually nearly finished my shopping, can you believe it? I've so far ordered everything online as I don't want to end up being that person in the shopping centre a week before Christmas stressing out and wondering what to buy people.

Lots of brands are releasing their Christmas ranges and I was recently sent the Dirty Works Lip Balm tin, which is a really cute, super cheap (£5) little stocking filler or gift.

Now I wouldn't necessarily buy it for the mega beauty lover but it's a great gift if you've got a Secret Santa and don't know what to buy the person or a niece/friend's daughter/cousin etc. The tin contains four good sized lipbalms in Strawberry, Coconut Cream, Juicy Watermelon and Luscious Cherry - all of them are super scented and give just a hint of colour. They're perfect for your dressing table or for popping in your handbag and they do leave your lips feeling lovely and moisturised after use.

For £5 this is a cute, fun little set for all ages. What do you think? Would you like to see this under your Christmas tree this year?

*This post contains a PR sample.

Makeup Revolution Unicorns Unite Lipsticks

From left to right: Horn of Magic, Legend, Magical, Throne and Pink Myth



What a magical little collection from Makeup Revolution, just in time for Halloween too. This reminds me a lot of the Atomic Lipstick Collection, which came out around this time last year, but version 2.0 is much more sparkly, metallic and Unicorn-esque, hence the name.

The red shade is definitely the most wearable on every day occasions and great for a vampy look this Hallows Eve but the others are extremely fun colours, perfect for any 'out there' Halloween looks you might be doing. Legend and Throne are very similar, shimmery purple shades, while Magical is a deep blue shimmer. Horn of Magic is by far my favourite. It is a gorgeous turquoise/green and probably the most Unicorn-esque of the lot in my opinion - it would be great for any witchy Halloween looks but it also has an almost icey look to it after application, so perfect for any 'Frozen' fans.

I really don't usually like swatch photos on hands or arms but I'm not able to post pictures of these on my lips as my lips are incredibly dry and cracked/bleeding at the moment so no-one wants to see that. I have given them a good go though and once on the lips their shimmer factor doubles and the pigmentation is great. They do need a little building to fully cover the lip and re-application throughout the time you're wearing them but overall a really great range.

As I mentioned the red is the most wearable shade but the others are perfect for picking up if you're putting a Halloween look together this year. What's even better is that they're only £1 each, so a real bargain.

What do you think of the Unicorns Unite range? Let me know in the comments.

*This post contains press samples.

Freedom Makeup Pro Bare Lipstick Collection

I've mentioned several times on this blog that I'm not a lipstick person. I'm not even a lipgloss person. The furthest I go when it comes to lip products is an unscented, non-coloured balm, but that was until I discovered nude lipsticks.

I've featured a couple on the blog this year and I was recently sent some lipsticks from the Freedom Makeup Pro Bare collection* so thought I'd chat about them today.

Freedom is a relatively new brand, created off the back of Makeup Revolution, which is one of my favourites! The intention is to provide professional quality makeup for budget prices. Each lipstick from the Pro Bare collection is £1. Yes, just one little pound. I'm not joking.

I rather love the nude shades in this collection and they range from pretty peach to beige, perfect for someone like me who has rather pale skin and is a bit nervous of dark and bright red shades. On application the lipsticks are a little thin and not hugely pigmented but a few coats does seem to fix this. I opted for a pink shade in the pic above and as you can see, it's ideal for creating a 'barely there' make-up look.

Overall I really like the whole collection, there's a nice little range of neutral shades, which are right up my street. This is definitely the type of collection you should pick up if you want to ease yourself into wearing lipstick more often. A great starter kit.

Have you tried the Freedom Makeup Pro Bare collection? Let me know your thoughts in the comments.

*I was sent these lovely lipsticks as PR samples.

Lip Smacker Walls Mini Milk Lip Balms - Good enough to eat

Lip Smacker Walls Mini Milk Lip Balms - £5.99*


Lets take a trip down memory lane shall we? To those hot summer days when you enjoyed a simple mini milk... What was your favourite flavour? Mine was strawberry!

I was recently sent this trio by Lip Smacker and I was so intrigued when they dropped through the letter box. I know they're a total novelty but my inner child loves them, from the pretty packaging to the milky sweet scent.

As you can see the trio includes strawberry, chocolate and vanilla and each one smells exactly like you have a mini milk in hand ready to devour! While they are heavily scented, they aren't heavily pigmented and so apply sheer. Once applied, the urge to lick them straight off is pretty strong, but if you can resist it the lip balms keep the lips moisturised for an hour or so before needing reapplying. I know they're not the latest in lip moisturising technology but they're super sweet and fun. My sister already wants to get her hands on the chocolate one and I expect my niece would like to try one too…

Have you tried the Lip Smacker Walls Mini Milk Lip Balms? Let me know your thoughts in the comments.

*This post contains PR samples.

Introducing: Make-up from Crownbrush UK

2015 is the year of make-up for Crownbrush UK. Initially the company was well-known for its professional brushes but is now not only providing the tools for make-up application, but also a new range of great make-up aswell.

I was very lucky to receive a couple of new products from the range, including the new Matte Bronzer, which I was pleasantly surprised with as it's not a scary looking, dark bronzer, but actually one especially for fair skin, to just add a little hint of colour. Great for the summer months.

I also received a Chubby Eye Pencil in Dark Chocolate, Eyeliner/Eyebrow pencil in Dark Chocolate, a Chubby Lip Pencil in Vegas Nights and a Lip Liner Pencil in Cappacino.

All of the products are available now and are really reasonably priced. The chubby eye and lip pencils come out at £3.99 and the normal eye/lip pencils are just £2.99. The bronzer palette is £6.99 so you're really not going to break the bank with this stuff, which is great!

As you can see, the dark chocolate shades of eyeshadow and eyeliner/eyebrow pencil I've been sent are super rich and chocolatey and just my style I have to say. Perfect for a dark, smokey eye and beautifully soft to apply too.

The lip and lip liner pencils are gorgeous natural looking shades, and the chubby pencil has just a hint of shimmer in it. These are perfect for people like me who aren't keen on bold lip colours so prefer something more nude and barely-there looking.

On first impressions I'm super impressed with the products, the pricing and the packaging. The range is definitely big competition to highstreet brands and I can see myself really growing to love this brand. There's still lots to look forward to as well with trio eyeshadows, glitter eyeliners, gel eyeliners and mascaras are still to come…

Have you tried Crownbrush UK make-up yet, let me know your thoughts in the comments.

*This post contains PR samples.

Makeup Revolution Salvation Intense Lip Lacquers

Makeup Revolution Salvation Intense Lip Lacquers - £3 each*



Yet another great product from Makeup Revolution. I am a HUGE, huge fan of the brands eyeshadow palettes but I was recently sent the new shades of the Salvation Intense Lip Lacquers and thought I'd give them a whirl.

I think 2015 is the year I embrace more colour on my lips. I'm not usually one for wearing any colour at all and am usually just happy slicking on some lip balm but I'm starting to appreciate how good a bit of colour can make you look and feel.

The new shades in the range include the deep, pink Rebel, bold purple Depravity, the barbie pink Paparazzi and the nude Barely There, which has got to be my fave. The coloured lip lacquers are really bold and intense and they apply really smoothly too. They're are a cross between a gloss and a lipstick but they're completely non-sticky and last a good couple of hours before needing re-application.

Barely There is possibly my favourite shade from the new releases. It feels very safe for me to wear and is perfect for every day looks. I've decided to host a little giveaway for the rest of the shades so someone a little bit more daring with colour can appreciate them. Read on lippy lovers...

a Rafflecopter giveaway

What are your thoughts on the Makeup Revolution Lip Lacquers? Let me know in the comments.

*This post contains PR samples.

Clarins Garden Escape Spring Collection Joli Rouge Brilliant Sheer Shine Lipsticks

Recently I tried out the new Instant Light Lipbalm Perfectors* from the new Clarin's Garden Escape range and I totally fell in love with them. They converted me from being a colour free lipbalm wearer to someone who doesn't mind a hint of colour. I've been using them since featuring on the blog and have found them to be really moisturising and they've left my lips feeling great.

As well as the lipbalms, Clarins has launched a couple of new Sheer Shine Lipsticks and I was very kindly sent the shades Rose Petal and Coral Dahlia. The lipsticks themselves are both really gorgeous colours. Rose Petal is a lovely pink/nude shade that is extremely natural looking and leaves just a hint of colour and shimmer on my lips.

Coral Dahlia is a tad more red with a hint of gold shimmer, which, on first look scared me a little, but as I found with the red lipbalm, it was a lot paler on application and actually looked really pretty and natural. Perfect for someone like me who is wary of too much colour on the lips.

Much like the lipbalms, these lipsticks are really moisturising and leave lips looking fuller and shiny. At £19 they're a tad on the higher price spectrum but I really would invest in these if you're looking for something wearable from day to day (Rose Petal) or something to add a bit of glamour to an outfit for a night out (Coral Dahlia).

Have you tried the new Sheer Shine Lipsticks from Clains? Let me know your thoughts in the comments.

*This post contains PR samples.

Clarins Garden Escape Spring Collection Instant Light Lipbalm Perfectors

Clarins Garden Escape Spring Collection Instant Light Lipbalm Perfectors in Coral, Rose, Red - £18 each*
Available January 12, 2015




As someone who suffers a lot with dry, cracked lips, I steer very clear of lipsticks and even lipbalms with any hint of colour, but the Instant Light Lipbalm Perfectors from Clarins' new Garden Escape Spring Collection have really changed my mind.

The new Garden Escape collection is absolutely gorgeous and I was very kindly sent these lipbalms for consideration. As soon as I opened the boxes I knew I had to dedicate a blog post to these beauties. There's six shades in the range in total and I received 01 Rose, 02 Coral and 05 Red. The rose and coral shades are beautiful pinky/peachy shades that are perfect for all of the English Rose types out there. The red shade is pretty bold in its packaging but when I applied it, it's actually not as bright as it looks (pictured above - excuse the no make-up!). It's a lovely, natural red colour and even I would wear this and I would NEVER usually wear anything like this. As someone who never wears a hint of colour on her lips, this is really big news.

The lipbalms themselves are really soft and velvety on application and they don't feel at all greasy like a lot of other lipbalms do. Thanks to the nourishing mango and shea ingredients, they leave your lips feeling super soft for a good couple of hours. They also contain Vitamin E as well as a natural peptide to help encourage the synthesis of hyaluronic acid, making lips stay ultra hydrated and leaving them looking fuller.

Unfortunately I wasn't able to try it, but the collection also contains a balm called My Pink in which the pigments react with the PH Levels of your lips, creating a bespoke pink colour to suit your tone. Pretty much science in a lipbalm if you ask me.

These lipbalms are perfect for every day wear and I'm really looking forward to mixing them up with my normal chapstick. I'm fully converted to wearing a hint of colour on my lips now, thank you Clarins.

What do you think of the new Clarins Garden Escape collection? Let me know in the comments.

*This post contains PR samples.

Makeup Revolution Atomic Lipsticks

I have to be honest with you. I'm not keen on lipsticks. I never wear them. I don't know what colours suit me and I don't really know how to apply them properly. It took me a good few attempts to get the finished looks above after I kept smudging them all over the place and ended up looking like a clown quite a few times.

I was hoping to swatch all of the shades but when it came around to the red one I just couldn't get it right and threw a bit of a strop, so two swatches was the best I could do. Although, the green is swatched in a post coming this week so keep a look out for that one.

While I don't usually wear lipsticks I wanted to give these a try as Makeup Revolution had very kindly sent them to me. I also wanted to see if I could pull any of them off because they're quite out there colours for me. They're actually perfect for Halloween, which is why I've waited until this week to feature them. I think you can create some pretty great looks with the darker shades and even the red too.

The sparkly purple is actually really pretty and although I'm not 100% sure it really suits me, I do quite like it. I'm by no means a lipstick expert but I found each one a tiny bit thin on application. It took me a few times to get a fully covered lip. I've not read about this problem in any other reviews though so I am not sure if this is just me? It might be an idea to apply them with a lip brush as you can work the colour in a bit better.

For £1 these are real bargains and even if you do pick them up just to create a Halloween look it's totally worth it. I'm really pleased I gave these a chance and while not every colour is really for me, it's been really interesting to play with them and get myself used to applying and wearing something on my lips for a change.

Have you tried any of the shades from the new Atomic range?


*These items were gifted to me by the brand and I have given an honest review.

Bee Good Vanilla & Honey Lip Balm

Bee Good Vanilla & Honey Lip Balm - £4.75

A little while ago I reviewed Bee Good's Honey & Propolis 2-in-1 Cream Cleanser and I have been using it every single day ever since as part of my morning routine.

I recently saw on Twitter that the range is now being stocked in various Waitrose stores, which I was excited to hear but I didn't think for a single moment that the Weston-super-Mare branch of Waitrose would be on the stockists list…however, it was, so off I went to have a little nosey. Admittedly there wasn't much from the range on offer but there were a few bits. I wanted to get myself a moisturiser but I was horrified at the £19.50 price tag so opted for the slightly purse friendlier Vanilla & Honey Lip Balm, which was £4.75. Even that's a bit on the expensive side if I'm honest…it's really tiny but I didn't want a wasted journey so I popped it in my basket.

I've been on the hunt for a new lip balm that repairs cracked and chapped lips ever since the medicated chapstick I would buy regularly seemed to be discontinued.

I'm a big fan of honey/bee products so this lip balm was pretty interesting to me. I've seen the benefits beeswax/honey have on my skin so wondered if they'd have the same effects on my lips, which unfortunately are always dry thanks to the never ending lip balm cycle.

Unlike many others, this lip balm isn't horribly sticky when you apply it and I personally can't smell/taste it at all so I'm not constantly licking it off. It contains vitamin E, British borage oil and echium oil, all of which work together to keep lips feeling super moisturised. I have to say I'm really liking it so far.

Let me know your thoughts on this in the comments if you've tried it.

New from Collection: Mardi Gras

Collection Mardi Gras - £1.99 each

I've been trying to get my hands on this range for a while now. I spotted a couple of bloggers writing about the new products and I wanted them straight away but I'd heard they weren't available in stores until June 11, however I went into a store on Saturday and there they were, calling my name.

The colours are lovely, bright and fun and the range has been inspired by Brazilian carnivals and possibly by some little football tournament that's coming up soon too…

It's quite a small range, only three polishes and three lip balms in total, but at £1.99 each it means you could buy every single product! I wish I did to be honest, but I chose to leave the white nail polish and the two other lip balms, big mistake!

I picked up the 'Canary Yellow' and 'Green with Envy' polishes, which are extremely fun colours and can be worn individually or even together for a bit of a Brazilian feel! I also picked up the 'Green Apple' lip balm, which smells amazing and is lovely and moisturising. Another new release that looks like the Maybelline Baby Lips, interesting…

I'll be writing full reviews of these products on the blog very soon, but just wanted to give you a little taster!

Let me know what you think of the new range.

Barry M Cor Balmy in 'Adam & Eve'

Barry M Cor Balmy lip balm in 'Adam & Eve' - £3.49

So, you had a quick sneaky peek of this in my post earlier in the week but here is a full post dedicated to the delight that is Barry M's new Cor Balmy!

First off lets just appreciate the name of this fab product shall we. Ok now on with the review!

It's inevitable that this is going to be compared to the Maybelline Baby Lips products as lets face it, they're pretty similar with the bright colours and funky packaging. I have tried the Baby Lips but I stuck with the non-tinted one as I'm not usually someone who goes for tinted products. I am always, always using lip balm so to continually be applying a tinted one would be a no-no, but that was until I found the Cor Balmy in Adam & Eve. The balm is the palest shade of them all, the tint is so very, very subtle and barely there - perfect for me. I often have dry lips that do loose their colour a lot due to my asthma/being cold so the Cor Balmy gives them a little helping hand in getting their flush back.

Now, not only is this a tinted balm but it has a moisturising core running through it, which means it keeps your lips lovely and soft at the same time. £3.49 isn't too pricey for a tinted lip balm in my opinion - this is perfect for me and I'm really pleased I gave it a try, I'm a tinted lip balm convert!

Have you tried the Barry M Cor Balmy yet?

Maybelline Baby Lips Intense Care

Maybelline Baby Lips Intense Care - £2.99

I've been using the same medicated Chapstick lip balm for absolutely ages. Once you start using lip balm it's all downhill from there. My lips have got so used to lipbalms that if I don't use them they get really sore, which means I need to use a lip balm. It's all a big, vicious lipbalm circle but when I saw the Maybelline Baby Lips I kind of wanted to try them.

It's been great to have a change of a lip balm. I chose the Intense Care balm as I had a good feeling it wouldn't be coloured and it really has intensely cared for my lips. It's not scented either and it just leaves a nice sheen to the lips. It's not sticky or flavoured so I don't end up licking it all off and it lasts quite a while on the lips, leaving them nice and soft.

The packaging is a little childish and I don't really like the name either, Baby Lips sounds a bit weird to be honest but for £2.99 it really is a great little lip balm and I'd love to try a couple of the other versions.

Have you tried the Maybelline Baby Lips yet?

Clarins Instant Smooth Crystal Lip Balms

Clarins Instant Smooth Crystal Lip Balms in Crystal Rose and Crystal Gold - £17*

I was recently sent these two gorgeous lip balms along with the eyeshadow palette from the Clarins Summer 2013 range and I was really impressed! I'm more of a lip balm than a lipstick kind of girl but these are like two in one. Perfect for someone like me.

It's exactly like a regular lipstick but when I opened Crystal Gold I was really surprised to see a green shade surrounding the pigmented lipstick core. Luckily the outer shades are the moisturising balm areas so you don't end up with green lips. The shades running through the middle are lovely and soft and highly pigmented.

Crystal Rose and Crystal Gold are gorgeous red and pink shades, very subtle and not too overpowering. The balms are really soft and moisturising and feel lovely to apply.

These lip balms are not only interesting to look at but they're absolutely lovely to wear and the packaging is insanely gorgeous to look at. For £17 they would be something of a special treat if I were to purchase them myself but there are some things that are just too amazing too pass up.

This post contains PR samples