Beauty product of the year 2013 - Barry M Natural Glow Shadow & Blush Palette

Barry M Natural Glow Shadow & Blush Palette - £6.49







This buy came quite late in the year, November to be precise, but it has fast become my favourite product of the year! Who needs to fork out more than £40 on a neutral palette like the Naked3 when you can pay a fraction of the price for this?

In my previous review of the product I was a little disappointed with the size of the pans and I thought MUA's Naked dupe palettes were a lot better value for money, but looking back I was completely wrong. This palette just does it all for me. The size of the pans doesn't bother me in the slightest anymore, I love the packaging, the huge mirror and the little brushes included.

Each shadow has fantastic staying power and I really enjoy blending different shades together. It doesn't really matter that there's only six shades as I think this is all you really need, if not more than you really need. I've been using this religiously most days since I purchased it and now I won't look back. This, for me, is by far my best buy of the year and it just goes to prove how wrong first impressions can be. I absolutely love this palette and think it will see me well into 2014.

What's your product of the year?

2013 year in review

Happy New Year!! Hope everyone had a fab night. I spent it at Vince's family's house tucking into good food and watching the fireworks.

So I guess today is the day of brand new starts but I thought I'd look back on my 2013 first…

The year started off with Vince and I getting a brand new pet. Charlie! It's been almost a year now since he moved in and he's settled in really well. We're both so glad we got a cat but we sometimes wish we got one of his brothers or sisters too, just so he's not lonely/spoilt. Charlie has a real character and Vince absolutely adores him! It's nice to come home from work to a little meow and a cuddle too. You can read more about him in pet tag.



This year I toyed with the idea of getting a fringe. To fringe or not to fringe, that was the question. In the end I went for it and then later in the year I regretted it. I'm too lazy for the upkeep of a fringe so now I'm slowly growing it out again. I'm sure I'll get bored of my current style in a few months or so but someone will need to remind me just how annoying fringes are.



I can't believe it was this year as it feels so long ago but my friend Keely and I both took a trip to the Warner Bros Studios for The Making of Harry Potter. It was such a good, but absolutely freezing day. It was actually snowing on the day and although my toes were so frozen it did really add a little something special to the trip.



The weather this spring/summer wasn't too bad. Vince and I managed to cram in a couple of walks along the beach. My mum and dad's dog, Jasper, even came along one time. It's great living in a seaside town in the summer. The sunsets are always so pretty and it's nice to get some sea air every now and then.



I also enjoyed lovely picnics with my sister and my niece. I also visited London to see two of my Uni friends. It was unbelievably hot on the day I went, so hot infact that I wore a dress, which is really not like me. We all had a great time walking around London and doing a bit of sightseeing.



Also this year my blog had a bit of a makeover and I became an aunty again, this time to the lovely Oscar, who was born in September. He's already three months old and huge! I can't wait for him to start walking and talking, although that might be a little while yet as he's only just mastered holding his own head up.

In 2013 I turned the grand old age of 25, although I certainly don't feel any older or wiser. I was treated to lots of lovely gifts and Vince even took me out for a lovely dinner too. Vince and I certainly had our fair share of food this year. Each week in photos post seemed to feature some kind of food, whether Vince cooked it or it was a takeaway, but it was certainly very dominant. We haven't actually had a takeaway since before Christmas, who needs to when there's so much turkey left, so I wonder how long that will last…

Also on the blog this year, I reached 1,000 followers! I know lots of people say follower count doesn't matter but to me it does as at least I know someone out there is reading what I have to say! I really enjoy reading all your lovely comments too. I need to sit down and have a think about what I want to do with my blog in 2014. I feel as if it's not very personal so I'd like to inject a bit of life into the blog instead of it being review after review. As Vince got me a new remote for my camera there will definitely be more outfit photos and I am constantly working on my photography skills too, so hopefully they'll improve some what.

At the moment I don't really have anything planned for 2014 so I'll wait and see what the year brings me… what are you looking forward to in 2014?

Elemis Spa@Home Body Beautiful Duo

Elemis Spa@Home Body Beautiful Duo - £7.20


I wish I had featured these little products before Christmas as they make a really great stocking filler. Maybe you can stock up ready for next Christmas?

I bought this little duo at The Clothes Show Live for £7. This is a little cheaper than normal prices, when they're usually around £9 or so. Sales not included.

The two products come in a cute little drawstring bag and are a really great, reasonable size for the money. You only need a tiny bit of product on each use so you really do get your money's worth. The shower gel has a great, refreshing scent that really wakes you up in the mornings. The bath elixir is another gorgeous product that I love to use. It creates lots of lovely, relaxing bubbles but what I really love about this is the fact that when you submerge yourself in the water you can really feel the elixir working it's magic on your skin. It feels silky smooth and what's even better is that there's no work on your part, you simply dip yourself in the water and let it wash over you.

Have you tried this duo?