Boots Invigorating Foot Scrub Review and Summer Pedicure Polishes

With summer come sandals, so it's time to pay attention to the more neglected areas of our body: feet! So I have a Boots foot scrub review for you and my favourite pedicure shades to follow.

Boots Invigorating Foot Scrub contains mint, calendula and apricot seed. I bought this because I have eczema on my ankles and read on boots.com reviews that it was fine to use for eczema sufferers. It claims to stimulate circulation and soften rough dry feet.

Directions: Wash and dry area to be treated. Using fingertips gently rub in the cream until the surface flakes. Wash and dry the skin.

This has a fresh clean scent which I like, though it does smell a bit herbally, a scent which I generally don't like (think Neal's Yard.)  This is gentle and non-irritating and it did make my feet feel softer and smoother after use. The the creamy consistency was easy to spread, the granules are very concentrated but because they are fine/small the scrub is not abrasive or harsh. However I don't think it's abrasive enough to scrub away hardened callouses you will need a pumice stone or loofah for that. I didn't find much of the flaky effect either. I didn't think it stimulated circulation very much but I do have particularly bad circulation.This is dermatologically tested but does contain parabens (Methylparaben and Ethylparaben.)

The packaging is fairly basic being Boots own brand but I like the fact that the tube is transparent so you can see the product inside. The flip open tube is also hygienic and it closes properly.

While Boots invigorating foot scrub did smooth and soften my feet it could benefit from bigger granules. I appreciated that it was gentle and did not  aggravate my skin and does seem to be suitable for all skin types as it claims. However it didn't deliver on the promise of stimulating circulation.  I would say this is an adequate basic foot scrub that smooths and softens feet but doesn't do anything extra. On the whole this is  not the best nor the worst,  I would give this a rating 3 out of 5. Boots invigorating foot scrub is £3.49 for 100ml at Boots.

You will like this if...

• You have sensitive skin /expect this to be gentle and non-irritating 
• You find it budget friendly
• Like the transparent and hygienic packaging
• You just want a scrub to make your feet soft.

You may not like this if

• You expect to scrub away callouses
• You want improved circulation

Summer Pedicure Polishes: My picks

As a base coat I've been using Bourjois So perfect base coat to prevent any polish staining nails.

I like bright colours for summer so my current colour choices would be Bourjois So Laque Ultra Shine in Fuchsia Hype: feminine but because it's bright stands out from pastel or barbie pink or Corals such as Nails Inc Copacabana Coral (Exclusive to Instyle magazine but available on Ebay) or alternatively Barry M Gelly Nails in Passion Fruit would look good with tanned feet.

Festival Hair Accessories

Ah...June is here at last and maybe the UK will get some sun fingers crossed! With two of the biggest festivals taking place in June- the Isle of Wight and Glastonbury, not to mention all the smaller festivals up and down the country- here are my favourite festival hair accessories.

Top Row (L-R)
1. ASOS Draping Faux Pearl Hair Crown £12 ASOS
2. Limited Edition Petal Headband £8 ASOS
3. River Island Over sized Chain and Coin Crown £12 ASOS

Bottom Row (L-R)
4. Limited Edition Rope Headband £8 ASOS
5. Short Brim Felt Fedora Hat £18 ASOS
6. ASOS Mixed Flower Blooming Hair Garland £12 ASOS

Top 12 Best Lipstick Packaging

We can all agree that beauty packaging needs to be fit for purpose but I think it definately helps a sale when it's beautiful too! I've put together the lipsticks that I thought were the prettiest and most unusal.

I chose YSL's Rouge Volupt shine lipsticks as the distinctive packaging feels opulent and somehow reminds me of the French palace of Louis X1V: luxurious, gilded & a touch excessive.  The pink and gold Entoinette collecton from Korean brand Etude House is influenced by French Royalty specifically Marie Antionette and the gold logo plaque looks very pretty. My overall favourite is the one from Peripera it has a very ethereal, feminine feel to it. The Dior's Addict lipsticks are a similar design just simpler and more classic. Estee Lauder's lipstick has a very classic vintage vibe to it. Besame was created by designer and cosmetics historian Gabriela Hernanez to replicate the vintage 
lipsticks her grandmother wore. Each lipsticks come in a red velvet bag. My best friend lipstick also have that vintage feel with the intricate bejewelled pewter case which looks like it could be from the Victorian era.

Paul and Joe are famed for their pretty and retro packaging mainly featuring animals and flowers.  They adopted recyclable cardboard lipstick tubes early on and while buying the packaging separately can be annoying it does encourage people to reuse the tubes and not watse more resources. I really love Kat Von D's asthetic- dark florals with a rock and roll vibe, we don't have access to the brand in the UK so it will always be you love what you can't have situation! I loved the ribbon on the Givenchy lipstick tube so I had to include it.Guerlain G lipsticks are in a sleek, futuristic packaging with a double mirror that shields the lipstick looks really convenient for applying lipstick on the go. It makes it look more expensive, I've only seen lip glosses with a mirror on one side of a lipgloss but the Guerlain one looks more elegant. Finally I had to add Smashbox's lipstick ring! How cool is it? It looks like it would be so handy to touch up! It looks like a magical ring with powers that could transport you to another world or give you extraordinary powers!


1) YSL Rouge Volupte Shine Lipstick £25 YSL Beauty £30
2) Peripera My Color Lips £12.90 Yes Style
3) Estee Lauder Double Wear Stay In Place Lipstick £20 Currently £18 House Of Fraser
4) Etude House Princess Etoinette Crystal Shine Lipstick  £16.90 Yes Style

5) Guerlain Rouge G Le Brillant Lipstick £31.50 Feel Unique £26
6) Your Best Friend Royalty Collectible Pewter Lipstick $28.80 ybf beauty

7) Kat Von Dee Painted Love Lipstick $19 Sephora

8) Dior Addict Lipstick £19 Look Incredible

9) Besame Lipsticks £20 Beseme

10) Givenchy Rouge Interdit Lipstick £19.90 Look Incredible

The added ribbon makes it look extra special.

11) Paul and Joe Lipstick £7 Beauty Bay

12) Smashbox Santigolden Age Be Legendary Ring £39 Smashbox

TRESemme Split Remedy Conditioners Review

Both of these Split Remedy conditioners promise 'to repair split ends by up to 80% after just three uses.' So armed with 10ml samples I tested this claim. I used TRESemme Split Remedy Conditioner four times over two weeks. A month later I used the TRESemme Split Remedy Leave -In- Treatment four times over two weeks. My hair is straight, long (almost down to my elbow) and thick. At the moment I wash my hair and blow dry about 2-3 times a week, don't use any other products or heat on my hair and I haven't had a cut for about 5 months..whoops!

I was very impressed with TRESemme Split Remedy Conditioner, (white bottle) this did what my usual conditioner does but more; there seemed a big reduction in split ends, I would say about about 70% -75% less, this was noticeable even after the first use! I usually only apply conditioner to the ends of my hair because I have hair that gets greasy at the roots but dry at the ends. Since this targets split ends, I applied to the middle to end of my hair. This is a lightweight conditioner than felt no different than my normal conditioner (Patene Classic Care.) After using my hair was softer, smoother, nourished and looking healthy without any frizz. This also smells absolutely divine! From reading reviews on Boots and MakeupAlley this product is like Marmite you either love it or hate it! From what I've read this doesn't perform as well on curly hair and continued use can cause build up and heaviness from the silcones ingredients (Dimethicone and Amodmethicone) so I'd recommend using this as an occasional treatment (maybe once a week or every other week) and rotating it with more 'standard' conditioners.

Does it really repair split ends? Well both conditioners contain PEC Technology (PolyElectrolyte Complex*) so instead of just coating the outside of the hair like standard conditioners do,  the PCT molecules can go into the split ends of the hair and create bridges across the open end of the split. When your hair dries, water evaporates and the contraction pulls the split ends back together Once the PCTs are dry they bind the split end closed-easy! So they do repair split ends, but to get rid of 100% of split ends permanently a trim is probably needed. Apparently PECs are heat activated so you will get the best results by blow drying.

I was less impressed with the results from TRESemme Split Remedy leave in treatment.  This is the first time I've used a leave-in conditioner treatment (which has a more subtle smell.) which I applied and combed through the mid length and ends of hair. I used this with a hair drier and without leaving my hair to air dry, and got the same results.  I found it good at good at dangling and smoothing my hair. However it left the ends of my hair feeling very dry, so I won't be purchasing  this.

*PCT Complexs has a negatively charged ion (PVM/MA copolymer) and a positively charged ion (Polyquaternium -28) Both positive and negative charges together produce a single complex with the special ability to stick to damaged hairs and to itself.

Garnier Oil Beauty Lotion Review

Garnier Oil Beauty Body Lotion contains four oils: Argan, Macadamia, Almond and Rose as well as Shea butter. It is marketed as a lotion that 'nourishes like an oil and absorbs like a cream' which explains the texture -very soft slightly melted butter in a pastel yellow colour. It combines the rich hydration of oils but without the mess or heaviness of oils, but with the ability to absorb quickly and easily into the skin.

Garnier claims this lotion will 'prevent skin feeling dry. Your skin will feel softer and silky smooth.. and more visibly radiant.'  According to their study, clinical scoring found after a week dryness was decreased by 53% in 41 people. A consumer test on 41 people reported that after one week 95% agreed that their skin was noticeably smooth. Out of the 41 people 78% noticed a visible difference to their skin which Garnier uses to support the lotion's claim of a radiant finish. Skin radiance seems to me very subjective and just skin care jargon, do they mean healthy? Glowing? Better? How?

Anyway using a sample I tested this lotion for a week, applying every day on both my arms.   

At the end of 7 days my skin definitively feels softer and smoother and it has made a difference to my super dry elbows, they are still a little dry but the lotion has made a difference in the 7 days which hasn't happened with other lotions I've tried previously. 

Its other claims are 'fast absorbing, non-greasy, non-sticky and dermatology tested.'After applying my hands weren't very greasy and any lotion left over was quickly absorbed, it didn't feel like I had to wash it off my hands immediately. The lotion is definitely non sticky which is more comfortable to apply and wear. It has a subtle fragrance, which to me smells like sweet cocoa butter (not chocolate)  but personally I don't like, however it is very subtle so you can wear other fragrances and it wouldn't interfere. However it does contain mineral oil/petroleum which may be a problem for some people but is paraben free.

I feel that this lotion brings the best of oils and lotions together and is a great product that is also fairly good value for money, currently it's on offer in Boots for £3.33. If you want a hydrating rich moisturiser that's also light this is it! 

6 Ways to make your eye make up last longer

1) Use an eye shadow primer
These provide a base for the eye shadow to grip onto and not wipe and fade away. They keep your eye shadow locked down as just as good as when you first applied your make up. Some can make eyes shadow colours appear more vibrant. I use  Too Faced Eye Primer. Other popular ones are Urban Decay's Primer Potion and  ELF eye Primer.             

2) Use waterproof liner so that it won't smudge or budge.
I recommend Make Up Atelier Paris Gel eye liners for high end because they do not budge at all, I mean nada. I've also heard Make Up For Ever Aqua liners are brilliant too (image from Sephora.)  For low end I recommend Maybelline Gel liners and Soap and Glory Smoulder Kohl pencil (it's waterproof and has a nifty pencil sharpener in the lid.)

3) Go over eye liner with eye shadow (in the same colour) to set the liner. 
Use an angled brush to do this or a flat edged eye liner brush e.g.Mac 212 or 266. (This principle is similar to using setting powder to set your foundation) This has the added bonus of enhancing and correcting the original liner. 

4) Heat up your eyelash curler.
For metal lash curlers only- gently warm up the metal head of the lash curler with a hair dryer. Be sure to test the temperature against your arm or back of your hand before using it. Place on your lash line and hold for 20 seconds. If you are serious about curling lases there are also heated ones available

5) Use gel liner to anchor the base of the eyelashes in a lift position and keep the curl for longer.
Get hold of an eyeslash curler. Run gel liner across the rubber pad. Leave for 20 seconds to become tacky. Finally curl your lashes right at the base of the lash, hold for 20-50 seconds.( It is recommended to start with 20 seconds first and see what effect you get (to prevent pulling your eyelashes out.) This is a tip from Goss Make Up artist. I've explained this technique as best as I can but you can also see Goss 's Tutorial HERE

6) Use a waterproof mascara because it will hold lash curl.

Spring Flower Hair Accessories

Nothing says spring quite like flowers do, adding a floral hair accessory gives that fresh, flirty feminine vibe. Here are my favourite picks from ASOS.

1) Asos Limited Edition Garland £8  2) Asos Lace flower headband £8  3) Asos Flower Hair Clips £8

4) JohnnyLovesRosie headband £16  5)Asos Vintage Flower £4  6) New Look Rose Garland £5.99