theBalm Balm Jovi Palette, well worth the splurge!

Recently, Feel Unique had a sale on theBalm palettes. Which reminded me how much I adore my theBalm Balm Jovi palette. Priced at £34 it is on the more expensive side, but you get a reasonable amount of make up for that, as well as a whole load of cute.

I often put my make up on whilst on the tube to work (terrible habit I know), and because of that I love to be able to whip out a palette that not only has everything in it, but is also light to carry and has a decent mirror.

 It's probably clear from the photos that I have had this palette for a few months now, and it's certainly seen some use. I have to admit that I rarely use the blush, highlighter, and lipsticks, but the eyeshadows are some of my favourites.

 

 Each of the shimmer shadows are named in parody of a rock band, and you have a good range, possibly all you need for a night down the indie club. Through the centre are the matte shadows and these are similarly musically named. The packaging gives you some ideas of which colours to pair together.

The lipsticks fold out of the base which is a clever little design meaning that you don't lean in the softest part of the palette whilst perfecting your smoky eye. The shades are designed to work on the lips and cheeks and to match in with the rest of the palette. I don't use these very often but if I'm in a rush they are perfect just to smear on my lips without needing too much precision.




I find that when I use a palette regularly, I have one or two standard looks that I use. With this one it is no different and my go to look uses four shadows. I wear Iron Maid In across the lid, rem above the crease and under the eye, Alice Copper in the outer corners, and The Stroke across the top lash line.

I prefer to wear with a fuschia lip, but if I'm on the run I'll finish with Milly, as you can see in the photo below:

Were you tempted by the Balm Jovi palette in the Feel Unique sale? Or did you already own it? If you haven't taken the splurge on this one then I am afraid I going to be an enabler for you and say that I highly recommend it!

If you love the smell of old churches... Demeter's Holy Water!

Being a history loving pagan, I absolutely adore old church buildings. I love the coolness of the building when you walk in, I love the decor, and I love the quietness and stillness in the air. Most of all though, I love the smell, which is quite unlike anything else, except perhaps the smell of abandoned castles.

Demeter Fragrance Library's Holy Water fragrance promises the embodiment of that dusty old church smell. If you've not experienced Demeter fragrances before, then I highly recommend seeking them out. They are light, subtle, easy wearing fragrances that are unusual (but mostly highly pleasing) subjects such as Thunderstorm, Crayon, Grass, and Sugar Cookie. They don't last long on the skin and many of the flavours are very similar to each other, but when you find a goodie... it's a goodie!

So what does Holy Water smell like according to Demeter Fragrance Library?

I am pleased to report that the overwhelming note is Lily, underpinned by a much more subtle clean freesia type smell. There is a very slight hint of muskiness, but it blends in well. It is a very pleasant and easy to wear fragrance and if I close my eyes I can imagine that cold stone smell and stillness in the air I so love in old church buildings.

Fangs for the Bubbles: Honeycatz Cosmetics, Blood Sudz

Honeycatz Cosmetics are a wonderful little brand with a spectacular repertoire of boudoir friendly, kitsch bath products. I think the brand itself is from the US, but this little bottle of goodness made it's way across to me from Canada as part of a mystery swap set up through an international beauty group.

I can't tell you how lucky I feel to have been sent this! Named 'Blood Sudz', this fabulously packaged shower gel is made from pomegranate and cassis and arrived in a luxorious coffin shaped box, complete with red velveteen lining and tiny pillow.

 (image taken from the Honeycatz website)

The shower gel itself smells amazing and it is perfect for lounging in a big hot bath as those Autumn days start rolling in. Compared to the very moisture rich shower gels I usually use, it is a little drying on the skin, however, an extra rich bath bomb full of shea and cocoa butter soon fixes that.

If, like me, you hadn't heard of Honeycatz Cosmetics before, I thoroughly recommend you have a little search through their website. You will soon have a wish list (mine starts with Rub my Tummy body butter)

Unfortunately, it doesn't look like they currently sell in bricks and mortar shops outside of the US and Canada, but a little search through their website shows that they are happy to ship worldwide. 

Stafa! Introducing Villimey, viking beauty charms!

It is no secret that I am a sucker for a gimmicky beauty product, and therefore I often get asked to review new arrivals on the scene. I am lucky to be a member of a facebook site The Beauty Crowd who actively sources recommendations and reviews before deciding on which brands to feature in their online store. As a member, I was sent this amazing little product to trial.

Villimey is a brand who use Icelandic herbs and traditional Icelandic recipes in order to create little charms. Among the charms available there is a muscle charm, a lip charm, a belly charm, and a baby bottom charm. The Beauty Crowd are currently trialling the Villimey Foot Charm, and here it is:

 As you can see it is a rather distinctive green colour, which comes from the leaves of the Calendula and Lady's Mantle used to make it. On an aesthetic level, it's none too attractive, but on an organic level, it's actually a really good sign because you know that the ingredients are truly natural and not messed around with to create a product that looks pretty. The charm itself is designed for cracked heels and fungal infections. It isn't going to pamper your toes, but it is going to fight those bacteria and fungal spores that cause discoloured skin, itchiness, and smelly feet. It can also be used to fight thrush. Having said that it won't pamper, it does have a nice fresh smell, and is a pleasant texture without too much greasiness.

I don't tend to suffer from cracked heels or athlete's foot, but I do have a habit of wearing inappropriate shoes, especially in the summer. Therefore, I do get a few blisters, as well as those parts of your feet that get rubbed raw by wearing shoes without socks. I decided to trial this little charm on those and it worked well... like a charm.

As someone who is very interested in folklore (especially that of medieaval Northern Europe) I would love to have more information about the original recipe, possibly a translation of the text, or a story about the sort of people that would have used it. Often, someone making or offering a salve like this would also offer a spoken charm. Within Britain this would often have been in Latin, as it was a language that the average person didn't speak. Today, we could perhaps use a charm in Old Norse! 

 The price of the Foot Charm is £18, which is considerably more expensive than similar natural products. However, it has considerably more product in the pot than similar natural products. For me, there isn't enough information about exactly which herbs are used, and how the recipe differs from the other charms available in the range. Lady's Mantle and Calendula are often used for grazes and inflamations and are fairly all purpose herbalist go-to cures. Once I experience some of the other charms, I will report back on whether one pot really would fit all needs.

Nails of the day! Glitzology

nails of the day!

Like many make up obsessives, I love painting my nails. Today I felt like adding a little sparkle. Usually, when I use a polish with big chunks of glitter in, I just add it to the very tips of my nails, partly because I like the way it looks across the tip, but mostly because glitter is a massive pain to take off of nails. Having glitter across the tips of your fingers can be a bit of a pain too however, what with it sticking in the laptop keys and all that. I also have a five month old baby so it just isn't terribly practical. Hence my slightly unusual choice of the glitter on the lower half of the nails!

The varnishes I used today were Neeka from Zoya (which came in a Boudoir Prive box awhile ago - Boudoir Prive becoming Joliebox becoming Birchbox!) 

and a gorgeous little glitter from Glitzology, 'Corset and Fishnets', which is available from their Etsy shop.

 I recommend a little peek through Glitzology's Etsy store. They have some really beautiful glitter polishes which aren't easily replicated elsewhere.

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April's UK Birchbox

April's UK Birchbox!

I hardly ever get my Birchbox first so I'm putting it straight on the internet! This is the third box since Joliebox/ Boudoir Prive changed to Birchbox. It's not a bad box, but it's not a great box either. 

So what did I get?

 The best item in the box is undoubtably the lipstick pencil. I've not used Mirenesse before so it's a first for me. It's quite a nice colour too, although nothing 'special'. I have to admit I won't be using it on the cheeks, but then I never have really enjoyed the whole two products in one thing. If it works on the cheeks it's too drying for the lips... if it works on the lips it's shiny on the cheeks..

So what did you get?
And what did you think of it? I'm now going to hunt the internet for spoilers and see if I got the 'good' box or the 'bad' box.

Viva La Diva? Viva La Summer Staple!

'Absolutely Fabulous Make Up' declares the Viva La Diva strapline, and I can't disagree with them, especially looking at the array of funky colours and on trend collections. I got this lovely little palette from a cosmetics swap I recently did with a wonderful Swedish person called Mimi. She sent me some stunning things, including Swedish favourites such as Idun and Bjork and Berries. Within the parcel was this fabulous little kit.

The eyeshadows as you see are mostly shimmery, and are a very well chosen selection of warm nudes but that suit the cooler skintones. Perfect for me! They apply well, and have good colour payoff but without fall out. I can get some good strong shades from them without a primer or with, but I can also blend lightly where needed. I have been using these shadows for about a month now, but chatting to Mimi I realised... another surprise! There is a drawer underneath that opens up to display powder and blush!

Now I think you will agree that the blush here works perfectly with the shadows for a nice summery look! Because I'm fairly pale at the moment, the powder makes a fabulous contour shade for me too. Double bonus! And this is what it looks like on:

 I can see this becoming a firm favourite of mine over the summer. The packaging is also a wonderful example of Scandinavian efficiency and is more than sturdy enough to throw in the bottom of my bag for using my tube travel time effectively.