What I got for my Birthday

I love seeing posts where people show you what presents they received for their birthday or for Christmas, I just turned 21 and got lots of lovely presents, and I thought some of you might be interested to see what I got!

I went to see the Lion King as part of my birthday present the day before at the Lyceum theatre in London. It was A-M-A-Z-I-N-G. I've never been to a show before and this one completely blew me away. The cast were amazing, the costumes were so well created, the music was brilliant and the effects were incredible. I would absolutely recommend going to see this and asap as this is the last year they are showing it in London! 

I got some lovely clothing from Lipsy and Topshop, my mum has very good taste! I always find that Lipsy clothing is of such good quality, and their clothes are all so pretty.

Lipsy Floral Print Dress- here
Lipsy Peplum Top- here
Topshop Lace Dress- here
Lipsy Gold Cami Dress- here

I got some lovely beauty bits, including a YSL Babydoll Mascara, Next Cashmere Perfume Set, a Milani Eyeshadow, and some other lovely things.

I got lots of Pandora jewellery (thank you everyone), and some gorgeous Next earrings. (How cute is the bunny charm though?)

I received some gorgeous decorative bits for my room. 21 glasses, candles, plaque's and a lantern. 

Other things I received was a Spa Break voucher, an Afternoon Tea voucher, books, a dvd, a 21st photo album, and other lovely things.

I also received these lovely presents from some of my friends I saw after my birthday. How stunning is this River Island handbag?! 

I received so many nice presents for my 21st and I'm so grateful for them all :-) Want to relive my birthday all over again!

Amber xx

A Little Drugstore Haul

Over a few trips to Boots I've gathered a few bits to share with you guys. Boots haul's are my fave, I have £24 saved on my Boots card now, which makes me super happy!

L'Oreal is one of my favourite drugstore brands. Their products never disappoint and feel more expensive than they are. I have been in need of a new eyeliner since my trusty Soap and Glory Supercat eyeliner has been on it's way out. I picked the L'Oreal Super Liner Perfect Slim here up after hearing Fleur De Force mention it a couple of times. It's actually a really good product. The end gives such a precise line and flick. It's one of the easiest pen liner's I have used. It comes out jet black, dries quickly and lasts all day.

Another L'Oreal product I picked up is the L'Oreal Paris Infallible Matte Max Lipstick here. I have the shade 01- Silencio. It's a light nude pink shade. These lipsticks are pretty fascinating. One end of the stick has the coloured powder in and the other has the sponge applicator. This applies really well and precisely thanks to the pointed sponge, and the colour is very pigmented. It looks lovely and matte. Due to the formula being a powder the colour doesn't last all day,but it does last a good few hours before a top up is needed. I would definitely purchase more of these as I love the concept.

The last L'Oreal product I picked up was the True Match Foundation here. After hearing Freddy My Love rave about this product I had to try it. The colour range of this foundation is so vast I had to find my trusty Rimmel Match perfect shade in the store and find the closest one in the L'Oreal range. Golden Ivory was the shade I chose. This foundation is pretty good. It gives a lovely luminous glow and blends really nicely. I do find that it sometimes can look a bit drying on my forehead and I seriously have to moisturise that area before using this foundation. It lasts all day and even though it's glowy it doesn't make you look greasy. 

T-B= L'Oreal True Match Foundation, L'Oreal Matte Max Lipstick in 01, L'Oreal Super Liner in Black.

T-B= NYX Illuminator in Sunbeam, Nyx Soft Matte Lip Cream in Copenhagen, Nyx Liquid Suede Lipstick in Tea and Cookies.

The next lot of products I picked up were from the new NYX stand. I was so excited when my local boots finally got one of these stands as it makes it so much easier to decide on shades rather than struggling by ordering them offline!

I picked up another Soft Matte Lip Cream in the shade Copenhagen here. Copenhagen is a deep berry colour. After loving other shades in this range I had to pick up another. They are so pigmented and the colour lasts such a long time. They don't feel drying and dry matte within a few minutes. The only problem I find is that it's quite hard to apply this precisely with the wand applicator but that's something I'll have to improve for myself.

Another lip product from NYX is the NYX Liquid Suede Cream Lipstick here. I picked it up in the shade Tea and Cookies. It's a gorgeous light pink with brown undertones. The only difference between this line and the Soft Matte Cream line is that they dry to a slightly different texture. These ones almost look like velvet on your lips. I find this one is slightly more pigmented that the Soft Matte Lip Cream too. 

The Last product from NYX I picked up was the Born To Glow Liquid Illuminator here. I picked up the shade Sunbeam. This is a lovely light pink highlight. One thing I will say about this is that it is VERY shimmery, and almost glittery. I'm not sure if I like it yet or not. I find it a little difficult to blend in as nicely as a powder. However it does look gorgeous straight out the tube.

I picked up one of the Rimmel London Sculpting Palette in the 002 shade. Here. This is such a handy palette to have for on-the-go makeup. The pigmentation of the products is just right. I hate a really strongly pigmented blush and this one is just right. The blush is a lovely coral shade, which is lovely for the summer. The bronzer is slightly too light for me as I like a slightly darker bronzer, but it's still lovely and blends really nicely. The highlight is also really lovely and quite similar to  The Balm Mary Lou-Manizer.

The last product I have recently picked up from Boots is the Barry M Mani Mask in the shade Bashful. You can find it here. This is a nail treatment to camouflage, colour and condition. I've only used this once but the colour is very sheer. Not very pigmented at all and is almost clear. I'm not sure this product made much difference to my nails but I will give it another go!

Amber xx

May Glossybox

This is the 3rd Glossybox I have received. After the last one being quite disappointing I had high hopes for this one. Each box has one of 4 city designs on them as the products in the box are based on travel. I thought this was such a nice touch and that the box looked lovely when it arrived!

The box contained a nice 5 goodies this time, with 3 full size products and 2 miniature ones.

The star of the box was the Revlon Super Length Mascara. Revlon recently released 5 new mascaras that all give a different look. This one came with a big brush applicator. After really working it through my lashes it did provide length and defined them quite well too. The mascara wasn't clumpy at all and one coat was enough. I probably wouldn't have chosen a lengthening mascara as my lashes are already pretty long, but it's nice to have one in my collection!

Another product in the box was the BEE Good Plump and Firm Moisturiser. I'm always up for testing out new moisturisers at the moment as I seem to be going through a dry skin phase. After testing this one out for a few days it feels really hydrating on the skin and it sinks in reasonably quick. It has a slight fruity smell to it and has a nice slightly silicone texture. A really nice moisturiser :)

The next product is the Hawaiian Tropic Protective Dry Oil. This product has an SPF of 15. I've never used a dry oil as an SPF before but this is a really lovely product. When applied it doesn't make the skin look oily at all. It gives it a nice glow. This would come in handy when dipping in and out of shops on a sunny day or if you are sightseeing. I probably wouldn't advise wearing it on a hot day at the beach or pool as it isn't waterproof and is only SPF 15. The only disadvantage is that the product has quite a strong over powering coconut smell which puts me off a little!

The last make-up product is the Absolute New York Velvet Lippie. This is a pinky coral shade which is perfect for the summer. It applies nicely and dries really quickly into a matte texture. This is such a similar product to the NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream's, and this shade is an EXACT match to the Buenos Aires NYX one. They even smell really similar with their vanilla scent!

I also received the Hairon Zero Crease Hair Ties in pink. I love this type of hair band to put my hair in a bun. As I have it like that almost every day at the moment being a student nurse,it's really nice to have a band that doesn't pull on your hair and make it feel tight. I already use these but it's nice to have some more to add to my collection!

This box was a 8.5/10 this month! Some really lovely products.

New Favourite Treatments- Clarins & Kiehl's

Recently I have been getting sore eyes and sore lips from being on the go so much and not taking time out to look after my skin. I did a bit of research and purchased a couple of treatment products with the best reviews to try them out!

My eyes have been getting really sore lately due to me rubbing them so much from being tired and from hayfever. My other eye creams weren't doing the job to keep them soothed and moisturised so I decided to get another. The Kiehl's Creamy Eye Treatment with Avocado has been around for a long time, so there are plenty of reviews on this product. I am so in love with this eye cream! It's so creamy and moisturising. You only need a pea sized amount between both eyes, so this little tub will last me a long time. The product comes out like a thick cream and when dabbed in to the eye area it turns into a lovely oil. This is definitely more of a night time eye cream as it does take quite a while to sink into the skin as it's so thick. You can get it here.

Another treatment product I have been loving is the Clarins Instant Light Lip Comfort Oil here. This is a moisturising treatment for lips which is made with lots of plant oils to help soothe sore lips. These were released at the end of last year and come in two different shades and colours. I chose the the Honey coloured one. It smells AMAZING. When applied to my lips it does feel slightly sticky but leaves a lovely glossy effect. It also lasts a really long time on the lips, providing moisture for hours, The applicator is really lovely and big with a curve for better application. Highly rate this product!

Aldi Lacura Beauty

Recently I was in Aldi grabbing a few bits for dinner with my mum. The Aldi near me has a bargain aisle, and the producs in the aisle change every week. Sometimes you can get some really good deals!
This week they had some beauty products, so I picked up a few bits to see if they were any good.

I picked up a Lacura Thermal Spring Eye Cream. This was £1.99. I've been using this for a week and I really like it. I've been suffering with really sore eyes at the moment where I constantly rub them. This eye cream has helped to soothe them a bit and give them some moisture. The cream sinks in pretty quick, and is unscented. I would probably compare it to the Simple Kind to Eyes Balm. Pretty impressed with this product and I wish I had purchased a few other of their skin care items to try.

I chose one of their Lacura Glossy Lip Balm's to try in a pinky peach shade. The pigmentation of this balm is pretty good and looks like a lovely summer colour! It feels really creamy and moisturising, and is unscented.  However, due to being a balm it doesn't have the best staying power. But overall I was pretty impressed with it as it only cost £1.99!

The last product I picked up was a Lacura Long Lashes Mascara. They had a few mascaras with different wands, but I always prefer a plastic wand as opposed to a brush wand as I find they're better for giving definition. This is actually a really good mascara and I have found myself reaching for it a lot in the past weeks. I would probably compare it to the Maybelline Lash Sensational Mascara, apart from it doesn't have the angled wand. It provides really good definition, length and volume, and it was only £2.39! Amazing!