Free With 2 Skincare Products in Superdrug...!

Until the 7th of March when you buy 2 skincare products in Superdrug you get a

5ml Versace Fragrance for free! I just had to share it with you all because it always seems to be only the high end beauty counters that do freebies but Superdrug is really upping their game lately. If, like me, your a penchant for Simple skincare, Garnier Micellar water or even Superdrug's own brand Vitamin E range, now is the time to stock up. 

September Haul

I have convinced myself that since I'm going back to uni soon, and (ahem) won't have time to spend money, I should spend my summer earnings now. Anyway, I need lots of new outfits for going back. I'll go to any lengths to justify spending.  Jeans are always a tricky item to buy. Usually either they don't get past my thighs or they are massive at the waist so when I find a style I like, I always buy multiple pairs. I've always wanted a pair of Topshop jeans but when I tried on a pair of Jonis a few years ago they were disastrous. I hadn't even considered that other styles would be a totally different story. I'm now in love with the Leigh and Jamie jeans. I struggle to get my size in store or online so when I seen 2 pairs I just went ahead and bought them both (with a slight tear in my eye at the till). I also really love the Zara basic range. For simple tshirts, you don't pay much more than Primark and you get better material, fit and quality. 
I saw the Barry M lipliners recommended on a Youtube video a couple of weeks ago and since I'm pretty obsessed with brown lip products at the moment, I picked one up for £2.99. While I was in Superdrug, I stocked up on my favourite Simple skincare products as they were on special offer and came with a free Vaseline. I also bought MUA's Pixel Perfect bronzer. I've used their Mosaic Bronzer for years and love it but it seems to have been discontinued (cry) so I've decided to embrace its replacement. Finally, I had a voucher for a No7 Match Made lipstick from the bonus-time summer box. The woman at the counter done a skin tone analysis and gave me a little information card with the shades that best suit me. I've already mentioned my love for brown lipsticks at the moment so I used my voucher to get 'Spiced Latte' worth £9.95! 
All in all, it was actually a pretty sensible shopping trip as I see myself getting plenty of use out of all of this.
What have you bought lately? 

Makeup Revolution Iconic 2 Palette

I can't quite believe that I'm typing this but I think my MUA eyeshadow palettes have finally been knocked off their podium of my most unbeatable and most used eyeshadows. Elf couldn't do it, Accessorize couldn't do it, even the Naked Palette couldn't. Who is the new kid on the block you might ask? Well, it probably won't be new to many of you because I was very behind when it came to jumping on the Makeup Revolution bandwagon. 

For £4 in the Makeup Revolution Iconic 2 palette you get 12 gorgeous neutral colours: a mix of matte and shimmer. It ranges from pearly nudes to classic shimmery browns to golds to muted grey. This palette is my only go to at the moment where previously I would use 2/3 at once. The colours are so pigmented but there is very little fall down during application. They blend out really well and harmonise with each other really nicely. You can achieve so many different looks with this from simple daytime to dramatic smoky for night. I find this palette to work best over the top of Maybelline's Color Tattoo in On and On Bronze to lock the shades in place. 

I can't believe how long it took me to buy one of these palettes considering the storm they've caused in the blogging world. The amount of comments on blogs I've written saying 'I've still to try this' or 'I must give this a go'! For £4 it is definitely worth it- even if like me you already have eyeshadow palettes coming out of your ears. My MUA palettes aren't completely forgotten about and will no doubt make a return when the initial infatuation with MakeupRev dulls, but even then, this palette is a strong contender for HG and will definitely be a repurchase. 

Collective Haul

First off- apologies for the shoddy picture quality. This is what happens when you haven't blogged properly in months and good habits are forgotten (don't even get me started on the amount of new products I've forgotten to take pictures of before I've used them)!
I came across this picture on my phone and thought I'd give a little run down of what I bought on a recent (ish) shopping trip. The top, skirt and necklace were what I wore on my birthday night out and I absolutely love them. A-line skirts are an absolute favourite right now. I think they're a really good shape on me; so much so that I've since bought this  same skirt in khaki. It was actually my mum who pointed out this necklace in Primark after me going on about how much I needed statement necklaces (after watching so much Gossip Girl). Compared to the ones I had been looking at in H&M which were all well over £10, this was a bargain and its really pretty. I always fear that Primark jewellery will break within one wear but this necklace has held up well as I've now worn it a few times. 
I also picked up some holiday bits. You can't go wrong with the sunglasses in Primark for £1 or £2: I buy a few pairs each year; they're cute and it doesn't matter if they break. These sandals were only around £4 and I wore them every single night on holiday- well worth it. As for beauty things from Superdrug I bought nail polish remover as a means of preventing myself biting polish off, Vitamin E Superbalm for cuticles and lips and Eyelure 101's- my favourite going out lashes. 

Superdrug Skincare Picks

When I first started blogging, I used to be amazed when I read other people writing 'I liked the look of this so I thought I'd buy it and give it a try'. I was a lot younger then and with my pocket money I could only buy the odd hyped product now and again after much careful consideration. Its been almost 2 years since I started my part time job and it means that every now and again I can treat myself to the bits and bobs in Superdrug that I just like the look of. 
I was always a Boots loyal when it came to feeding my beauty product addiction but over the past year I feel like Superdrug has really upped its game. There always seems to be promotions on and however sad it may sound, I think its so fun to go in and fill my basket. 
Today I'd like to mention a few skincare gems I've been using from Superdrug, all really reasonably priced and they all land top marks in my book.

Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water

You can find my full review here in which I absolutely raved about this product and said that I actually preferred it to the original micellar water Bioderma. The only issues I raised were its impracticability for travelling and that you couldn't remove the cap. Well, they've only went and fixed exactly those problems! The new 400ml design has a easily removable cap and the mini size is the cutest thing I ever did see. I always buy a few of the big bottles at once when they're 1/3 off in Superdrug as its the only makeup remover I use.

Bio-Oil I thought I'd throw this in as I was recommended it and decided to pick it up in the hope it'd improve the appearance of my scars. I have noticed a slight improvement to scars on my leg with sporadic use but I think for it to really work you need to use it consistently and for a good few months. Have any of you tried it and has it worked well for you?
Vitamin E Eye Cream I think Superdrug's Vitamin E brand is underrated. They have lots of different skincare items in their range (wipes, masks, body oil) and since its 'own brand' is is very reasonably priced. The skin around my eyes became really dry during winter and I needed a simple eye cream that would moisturise the skin without irritating my sensitive eyes. This worked wonders. It feels light, refreshing and absorbs really quickly. I also have the SuperBalm from the Vitamin E range and I've really been enjoying that too.
Simple Kind to Skin Light Moisturiser This is a classic that I've been using for years. I go between this and the Rich Moisturiser, sometimes mixing the two at once. This is excellent for sensitive skin and absorbs really quickly. I really like the fresh smell of Simple products (I also use their cleanser and toner). I buy this when its on 3 for 2 and always forget that I have like 6 bottles in my cupboard!
Superdrug's Own Brand 'Destressing' and 'Refreshing' Face Masks I vaguely remember reading a review of one of these ages ago and when I saw that they were 2 for £3.50 I thought I'd pick them up for pamper nights. I've never used a peel-off mask before and its been quite an usual experience. The first time when I was taking it off I felt like a creature out of Doctor Who taking off my flesh (although I didn't really of course) and the next time I didn't put enough on so it came off in tiny bits. The mud mask is more of what I'm used to- put the mask on, leave it for 10 minutes and then wash off to a refreshed complexion. I think for the amount of product you get these are really good value and are all I'm really looking for from a face mask. Word to the wise though- be sure to stick to the directed time- I left one of these on for more than half an hour and came downstairs to horrified looks from my family: 'wtf happened to your face?!' 'why's it so red and blotchy?' thankfully it went back to normal quickly. 

The best thing about all these products is that they are all very affordable, keep problem skin at bay and don't irritate it (with the exception of the face mask faux pas which was entirely my own fault). 
What are your top Superdrug skincare picks?

Autumn Fashion & Makeup Haul

I'll admit it: the prospect of starting uni as well as my excitement for autumn and poring over high street shops' websites for hours finally got to me and I went on a bit of a blow out. You might look at this and think 'you were quite restrained' or, you might be on the 'omg you got all this on one shopping trip?!' camp. For me, this is way more than I'd usually haul but in my opinion, its justified by the above reasons and by the fact it was mostly paid for by the tips I'd been saving for months. 

Apologies for the less-than-great picture quality. I thought it was better to hang what I could up so you could see it better. My camera also decided to run out of charge so today's snaps are 50% camera, 50% iPhone- eugh.

Superdrug: Sleek Palette £9.99 / MUA Palette £4 Boots: Natural Collection 2 for £3.50 New Look: Coat £44.99 (£49.99 without student discount) Primark: Pink Jumper £8 / Grey Charcoal Cardigan £12 / Grey Charcoal Shoes £4 / Grey Gold Scarf £4 / Black Chiffon Blouse £8 / Super High Waist Skinny Jeans £10
Its safe to say that I am so excited to wear all of this and be all cosy for the approaching season. I had an absolute rush of happiness the other day when I first noticed the leaves on the ground (probably also fuelled by the shopping buzz).
I should probably get off to sleep now and try and rid myself of what I think is freshers flu. In all honesty I thought it was a myth/ I would definitely be immune since I'm living at home but general tiredness and a throat which feels sliced have gotten the better of me. 
If you'd like to see any Freshers/ starting uni themed posts be sure to let me know. I currently have a stationery one in the pipeline. Also leave a comment telling me what you've been hauling lately.

Haul | MUA @ Superdrug

Hi Everyone!

Its 3 for 2 in Superdrug at the moment so I couldn't help myself having a little haul. I think I was pretty responsible; I dragged myself away from Revlon Lip Butters and L'Oreal Mascaras and headed for the MUA stand:

Ah how pretty do these look? Lipsticks are one of my favourite items from the whole MUA line- they are so creamy, long lasting and can easily be mistaken for much higher end products. The shades I bought are 8,11, 13 and 7- I'm not sure which is which as they look different on the website and I think I got the tops and bottoms mixed up. But the photo shows them pretty true to colour. I love the bright red- its really daring and bold, I think I'll need to be feeling particularly brave to wear this out. The pink and brown are lovely day colours, very muted and neutral but enhance the colour of my lips. Finally the dark, glittery red is a gorgeous dark red and is actually a repurchase since I liked my last one so much!

Me wearing shade 13 :)

I also picked up this gorgeous eye shadow trio in pink sorbet. I use the two lighter shades as a highlighter and the darkest on my top lid and surprisingly its pink tones work amazingly well with my eye colour and made its green tones really stand out.

I also picked up this matt brown eye shadow in shade 19. It is super pigmented, so I think it'll last forever. I was planning on using this to fill in my eyebrows- but it went a bit wrong and I ended up looking like I had two slugs on my forehead- so any advice on how to make this work would be much appreciated.

So that is everything! I am so pleased with what I bought and the whole lot came to only £5.50- and that's what I call getting your moneys worth! 

Hope you all have a fab day and enjoy the Jubilee celebrations! I for one am having a lazy day in front of the tv- reading magazines and blogging- heaven!