Contouring Made Easy: B. Sculpted


I know I said I was holding off on using highlighting products through the winter but I came across this product on instagram and I was really intrigued by it. I think B. is an incredibly underrated high street brand. They do great lipsticks and blushers and their nail polishes are lovely too, so I feel pretty safe when trying their new products. The B. Sculpted 2 in 1 Blush & Highlight stick looks like a simple, easy to use product and I thought it would only feed my highlighter obsession. But I didn't love this product as much as I thought I would.

I love the idea of this product in theory. It seems foolproof, right? One sweep across the cheek and you have perfect highlight/blush contour that just needs a little bit of blending out. I like the colour. It's a lovely coral/peach tone. The highlighter is pretty neutral too so I think it'd probably suit most skin tones. I can't fault the packaging either. First of all, the colour. I'm loving all things gold/rose gold/copper coloured lately (seriously, you should see my pinterest). Secondly, the wheel at the bottom allows for easy control over how much product you push up, which hopefully means no product wastage!

Unfortunately I just can't get this product to work for me. I tried it over the top on my foundation and it just scraped the foundation away. Then when I tried it blend it with a brush, it made it even worse (tip: as it's a cream blusher, using your fingers to blend out the product works best!) Wearing it under my foundation didn't work too well either as you couldn't really see the effects of the highlighter. I can imagine this will be a better product for the summer when I'll be wearing less face make up or just a tinted moisturiser. 

If you want to try this product for yourself, it's exclusive to superdrug and can be found for £10.99 on the website. It comes in three shades; light, medium and dark so you should be able to find a shade most suited to your skin tone. 

Skin Pampering: Origins Active Charcoal Face Mask


I've recently switched up my skincare routine and my skin looks and feels a thousand times better than it has done in quite a few months. I've been trying different cleansers and moisturisers and I seem to have found a product selection that is working for my skin. One of my new skincare loves is this face mask from Origins - the Clear Improvement Active Charcoal Mask. These dark, cold evenings are perfect for a bit of a pamper and there's nothing like pulling out your favourite face mask and grabbing a good read to relax for a while. 

I bought this after my birthday when I went a bit mad on the Origins website. It came as a gift set which included three other masks - the Ginzing Refreshing face mask, Drink Up Intensive overnight mask and the Out of Trouble 10 Minute mask. The Active Charcoal mask was the first I tried because I'd read such good things about it online, it seems to be one of the Origins products that every blogger raves about. 

It's not often I'm impressed by a face mask. More often than not they don't seem to really do anything and don't seem worth using. This is a completely different story. After I used this for the first time my skin felt really clean and refreshed. I try to use it at least once a week, usually towards the end of the week when late nights/early mornings are making my skin look tired. It just gives it the little pick-me-up it seems to need. Plus, my skin looks clearer than it has done in a while. Bonus!

I'd definitely recommend this face mask to anyone who likes to spend a little bit more on their skin care. You can buy the full size for £23 from the Origins website

The Body Shop Shimmer Lip Balm



My lips are dry at the best of times. Throughout winter I have to make an extra effort to keep from them from becoming too dry and chapped (I've given up on them ever being normal) so I always keep a couple of lip balms in my bag and coat pockets. I bought the Shimmer Lip Balm from The Body Shop a few months ago but haven't used it much. When I was last clearing out my makeup drawers, I found it still packaged in the depths of all my other lip products. I decided it was time to give it a full test run. I have to say, I'm in two minds about it. But then again, I always am with The Body Shop lip balms. I want to love them but for some reason they always fall short.

For those of us that don't always like to wear a bold lip, a lip balm with a little extra something is the perfect substitute. I love the colour of this one from The Body Shop because it has a hint of natural colour and just the right amount of shimmer. Nothing is ever perfect though and this balm doesn't last very long. If it's the only lip product I have on me I'm forever taking it out of my bag to top it up. It's not particularly moisturising either so it's not often I opt for this over a Carmex or Vaseline.

I couldn't just let it lay in my makeup drawer though. I liked the colour enough to start wearing on top of other lip colours. I generally wear it with nude colour because it matches well with a more subdued look. But as much as I love the colour, for £6 I wouldn't say it was worth it. You can have a nosey at it on The Body Shop website here but I'd definitely say that there are much better lip balms out there (for a better price too!)