Review: Kiko White French Manicure Pen

With all the bright nail varnishes around lately I've forgotten about the humble (and classic) French manicure. I was reminded when I walked into Kiko and looking at their nail varnishes I found their White French Manicure Pen. I bought one a few years ago when I was in Paris and thought it was great then but sadly lost it. So, picking one up I remembered how good it was and thought I'd do a review on it. 

I love a French manicure it just makes my nails look so fresh and I'll definitely be carrying on throughout the winter to go with the ladylike trend for A/W13. Whilst you can go to a salon to get it done properly it's easier than you think (and a lot cheaper!) to do it yourself.

So to create my manicure I did two base layers of O.P.I Nail Envy, a single layer of Nails Inc. Soho Silk, used the Kiko pen for the tips and a top coat of Nail Envy
.

Soho Silk is actually supposed to be a base coat but it has a nice creamy colour, not too pinky or peachy which makes it look really natural (I don't like to see ridiculously fake looking French manicured nails). 

The Kiko pen makes it so easy and quick to do the tips of your nails. I used to use the Bourjois French manicure white tip polish which was good but required a very steady hand and seemed to dry out quickly, going gooey and thick, and hard to apply. With the Kiko pen you simply click the top of the pen a couple of times and then draw onto your tips. My hands aren't that steady so I went kind of slow but being able to see exactly where I was drawing helped me to be neat with my nails.

I've found that without a top coat the pen can last around 3 days and with a (good) top coat up to 5 days, very respectable! 


The pen is £8.90 in store (in the UK only at Westfield Stratford and White City). Alternatively you can buy on the Kiko website for a discounted price of £6.70.

Lanolips Lip Ointment Review

So I've been using this Lanolips Lip Ointment in Apple on and off for about two months now and I can honestly say this is one of the best things to happen to my lips! 

It's a thick, rich ointment that you need to apply with a finger. Surprisingly its not too sticky and goes on really nicely. According to the Lanolips website its a derived from Lanolin, a natural substance from sheep's wool. The medical grade lanolin used is a natural moisturiser and is hypoallergenic for those with sensitive skin. 

The red Apple shade is a great colour, unlike similar gloss products it's not too transparent and gives the lips a really nice red shade without having to apply too much - great for in the day or evening. The apple shade is the deepest of the colours available, the others are more natural and it won't be long before I try them too. 

Get Ahead of the Game

With the summer sales just around the corner you need to be prepared. To get the best bargains you need to be early, you need to know when the sales start before everyone else. How do you do this? With Sales Gossip. You can sign up for free, choose which shop's sales you're interested in and they'll notify when their sales are going to start! How easy is that?!

Have you been using sales gossip? Which sales are you looking forward to?

What's In My Handbag?

I love looking at other blogger’s ‘What’s in my handbag’ posts so thought I’d give it a go:

In my handbag this week I've got:

      • My trusty Michael Kors purse (room for everything, mostly receipts)

      • Little note papers and a pen

      • An assortment of hair grips and bobbles and the all important comb

      • An assortment of lipstick, balm and vaseline - covers all bases

      • Clinique powder - keeps my make up looking fresh all day

      • Starburst - you can always guarantee I'll be carrying something sweet to snack on!

What are you carrying around?

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Top Ten Beauty Don’ts

You may have seen my Top Ten Fashion Don'ts so I thought I’d do a list for beauty don’ts.

Here are the make up fails I don’t like to see:

1)      A face caked in a thick layer of foundation, leave the plastering to professionals.

2)      Foundation too light/dark for your actual skin, it should blend into your neck. It looks terrible 

        and everyone can notice.

3)      A concealer which is too pale - people will notice something ‘off’ with your face, even if they  

        can’t pinpoint exactly what.

4)      Dry, flaky skin. Find a moisturiser that works.

5)      Fake/clumpy eyelashes, it looks ridiculous especially in daylight.

6)      Unblended blusher/bronzer. Looks very fake.

7)      Fluorescent blusher/bronzer. I’m not quite sure what people are trying to achieve with these.

8)      Obvious lip liner. Dated.

9)      Wrong colours: eyeshadows and lipsticks. Can make or ruin your look, make the effort to get it 

        right.

10)   Bad eyebrows: untamed, too tamed, too light or too dark. Getting your eyebrows right can 

        make a massive difference to your face. So important.

What do you think? Do you agree with me? Is there anything you hate to see? Leave a  comment and let me know!

Website Review - e.l.f – eyes lips face

http://eyeslipsface.co.uk/

Price: Items start from £1.50

Quality: Good value for money

Delivery: Standard delivery is £2.95 – very reasonable. If you do spend over £30 then delivery is free

Returns: At your own cost

This make up brand originally started in the US but has found its way over to the UK, providing 

cheap, good quality make up.

I’ve only ordered from e.l.f a few times but haven’t had any problems with them. The make up and brushes I’ve had are all great quality for a really good price. I always tend to think that you get what you pay for and to be honest, I definitely think you get your money’s worth here. The brushes are great, especially for the price, I really would recommend you try them. The price really is great if you’re unfamiliar with different types of brushes and what to use them for.

One negative is that quite a lot of things I’ve wanted to order have been out of stock but they do offer an ‘email me when back in stock option’ which is helpful. Their twitter account is regularly updated and they usually say when they’re expecting their next delivery.

With make up, for me, its always important that things are packaged well, you don’t want anything getting damaged in the post. They have a quick turn-around time from ordering to despatching items so you shouldn’t be waiting too long before your new items reach you.  I’ve never had to return anything but their website states that you can do so within 14 working days of delivery. For me the prices are worth just keeping items and trying them out, if they’re no good you haven’t lost much.

Keep an eye out for my reviews of make up I’ve bought from e.l.f!