Birchbox #1

Yes i have totally jumped on the bandwagon after seeing reviews on this. Although to be honest you cant blame me, its just so good!
As i promised in my last post I'm really shaking up the blog, so as soon as this arrived today (delivered by a very surly looking woman may i add) i whipped out the camera and got my photos so i wasn't tempted to get my grubby paws on any of the items.

Birchbox has just arrived in the UK, having taken over from Joliebox. I had previously toyed with getting another beautybox but as i already get Glossybox i held off. Seeing this box on other blogs though, it dissolved my resolve faster than the cutest kitten melts my heart. I had to have it!

Here we go, (although I'm sure you've seen it already).
p.s I went a little crazy with the photos :)

Now when i first opened the outer packaging and saw the little cardboard box i was a little taken aback. It looked really cheap, and while i still think it does, ill admit that it has grown on me.  Although that may have a little something to do with whats inside the box. How cute is that drawstring bag! What i especially love about the wee bag is that its not a 90's kid school bag. It actually sits upright like a little make-up bag. (Ive been using it to store my powders in atm).

  

These are the products inside :)

Fresh Sugar Rose Lip Treatment

Not going to lie, this was what i was most excited about when i ordered it. everyone has heard so much about this little beauty and when i tried it i fell just as much in love. Colour payoff? Check. Smells awesome? Check. Hella Moisturizing? Check. And completely fantastically easy to use. It is formulated without 
- Parabens
- Sulfates
- Synthetic Dyes
- Petrochemicals
- Phthalates
- GMOs
- Triclosan
It is also free of petroleum, mineral oil, and lanolin. It includes Vitamins A,C and E amongst other oils and sugars. I cant find this for sale in UK online stores. It is $22.50 - (for one almost double this size) Available from Fresh USA online here.

 Reverence de Bastien Unguent for Nails and Cuticles

 This little baby is one of those products that i both love and hate. As someone who enjoys doing there nails and repaints  every day or two (so not happening with my illamasqa I'mperfection speckle polish) i need a truly moisturizing nail and cuticle clean, and this is definitely that. My gripe? Its so. god. damn. oily. and not amount of rubbing or waiting makes it sink it. It works wonders but still just sits there. I have to wash it off when i use it. It is formulated with Arnica, Argan oil, apricot oil, vitamin A and E. I cant find this for sale in UK online stores. This costs $34 for the same 15ml and is available from Amazon USA here.
 

KMS California Add Volume Body Build Detangler

I haven't had a chance to use this yet so wont comment on it but i have heard only good things about the brand so am excited to try it. It is a leave in conditioner and detangler meant to give up to 40% more volume. It costs £11.95 for the 150ml bottle (currently on sale at £9.92) and is available at Beautybay.com here.

Wei Royal Ming Firming and Hydrating Cream.

I first tried this brand when i got free samples of masks from them as my SpaceNK samples and i really liked them. and i think i would only get it free as its bloomin expensive. This has proven to be just as great. It was a lovely moisturiser... for the two uses i got out of it. Its teeney, its eye cream sample size. But i wont complain to much because this is lovely to use. My skin did feel hydrated more than usual but i cant comment on the firming as there wasn't enough to use it for long enough to see effects. It is more suitable for normal to dry  and mature skin. It also contains 18 herbs including Goji berry, White lotus, and Chestnut,  This is £74 for 50ml available from SpaceNK here.

Teapigs Super fruit Caffeine Free tea.

I detest tea. End off. Mr Beautyandkittens really loved this though :D though i cant give you a deep review from him though as he is a man so when i asked him to describe this i got "Its good. Tastes fruity" When asked to elaborate "its tea" So yes, its not like we expected a Fruit tea to be fruity and tea like, eh? haha These sell at about £4 for 20 and are available online from teapigs here. They sell all sorts from traditional everyday breakfast tea to Popcorn to peppermint to camomile to something called 'Rooibos crème caramel'

Did you enjoy your first Birchbox?


 

Tag: 25 Things about me

So this Tag has really been doing the rounds and i decided to give it a shot :) Some of the things i wasn't sure if i would include as they are very personal but i decided if would be disrespectful to my followers if i didn't be completely honest. Please don't leave mean comments.

25 things about me

1. I'm engaged to Mr. BeautyandKittens (doesn't be just love that name) otherwise known as Marcus. He's the only guy Ive ever dated and we've been together (however on and off at the start) since we were 15.

2. I live in Glasgow. Its a big city. I also live right in the middle of it. As much as i love visiting the beautiful Scottish country to walk/cycle/visit/climb i also love going home at the end of it. I don't deal well with prolonged periods no modern civilisation. Basically if you know Glasgow, i consider Bearsden / Milngavie to be the middle of nowhere. I was in a small village in wales a few weeks back and thought i was in the Walking Dead. (hope I'm not offending anyone.)

3. I have 7 tattoos. 4 small and 3 rather large. The longest sitting Ive had in one go was 5 hours.

4. I'm currently a second year student nurse and I'm loving it. Being on placement is the best and o cant wait to qualify. Getting an Adult Nursing degree in Scotland means its recognised almost world wide.

5. I have 12 piercings. Which means getting ready for the hospital in the mornings takes a while. (Taking them all out).

6. I (like many others) have serious anxiety issues. I went so long without seeking help that ended up with self harm issues, OCD related to the self harm (ocd isn't just cleaning and washing hands), no self confidence or self esteem, sometimes leaving the house can be a struggle. They are getting under control getter now as i went to see my doctor and have medication. This is something Ive never spoken about except to family and very close friends.

7. I'm obsessed with animals. Whenever I'm on holiday i always find a zoo/sanctuary/mature reserve to go to. In fact i drag poor Marcus to the Zoo and Aquarium whenever I'm in London.

8. In my entire life Ive only not had a cat for 2 years, and they were horrible. I love them so much and they calm me.

Sirius Being Mega Cute

9. I'm very shy, but becoming more outgoing. Once i know you well I'm very loud and a bit mental, but I'm very loyal to my friends.

10. I'm very good with my money and then randomly go on spending sprees and spend it all. So in fact i guess I'm kinda terrible with it.

11. Until last year i hated Chinese food. Now i really love it. Only the basic stuff though, noodles and chicken and the like. There is a noodle bar just next to Leicester Square that is my favourite. It comes in the paper box. You get noodles and your choice of toppings for £5/6. ...in fact the pizza slice place next to it is great too.

12. I'm very untidy, but hate dirt and grime. I keep my room clean, but its still a mess.

13. If i won the lottery i would set up two sanctuary for endangered/injured animals. One for exotic ones abroad and one for cats/dogs in Scotland.

14. Crab, Mango and Rum fried bananas are my most loved food items. Coconut i the only thing i don't eat for the taste.

15. I was a vegetarian for most of my life. These days i only eat chicken and sirloin steak for the energy and i was very lethargic.

16. My hair has been every colour under the rainbow except blue and green. (which I'm going to sort out this year).

17. I'm getting married next year on April 5th. Yayyyyyy :D

18. Ive never sucked my thumb, but i have a habit of biting the side of my fingers (not the actual nails) and the inside of my cheeks.

19. Makeup and good skin is an escape for me, i can put on a more confident front.

20. I am extraordinarily close with my mum. She's one of my best friends and we talk about everything. I don't know what i would do without her.

21. I love reading, especially thriller/crime books. Although i have a really soft stop for Harry Potter / Lord of The Rings / Twilight.

22. I love the moments when you sit back and think, 'yeah, everything is good just now'

23. I love Ceilidhs. Everyone at my school got taught compulsory dancing and I'm so glad we did, its such a great thing to know and i love it. It always surprises me how many Scottish people don't know how:s

24. My favourite holiday ever was to Cuba. The country where Havana Rum runs like water.

25. I have never had an Xbox or PlayStation or Game cube-y thingymajigs :) I really want a Wii though. 


Well there ya go. Hope you learned plenty and i didn't offend anyone :)

Leave your link if you did one of these:)

Lorna xxx


 

Save the animals - Stop Gumtree

STOP Gumtree selling animals!!! 
The free advertising site Gumtree is one of the few major websites that still allows people to post adverts for animals. Ebay banned such ads a long time ago with a few very limited exceptions, Facebook did the same last year and Freecycle doesn’t even allow people to re home their pets through its site. Gumtree is a different story. It has an entire section devoted to pets for sale, with a quick glance showing over 13,000 adverts, mostly for puppies but also for kittens, rabbits and exotic animals such as pythons. Allowing such adverts gives irresponsible amateur breeders and puppy mills a platform. With hundreds of thousands of animals languishing in animal sanctuaries, the last thing Gumtree should be doing is encouraging yet more breeding, not to mention that some of these breeders may be abusing their animals. Tell Gumtree to stop allowing adverts for pets. 

PLEASE SIGN THE PETITION THAT IS AT THE VERY TOP OF MY SIDE BAR AND GRAB THE WIDGET YOURSELF :D 

You may have heard of Harvey, the white kitten? He was picked up by a concerned woman after she saw him advertised on gumtree as 'his front two legs are broken but he runs around just fine' she took him to the cats protection and it turns out the poor kitten has no bones in his front lower legs and needs a big operation. 
Also a dog was recently advertised as 'we cant be bothered to walk him - will trade for iphone' Gumtree say they don't allow ads which are offering animals for breeding purposes. But a 7 month old English bull terrier puppy was being sold as: "Bella is female, has not been castrated so can be used for puppies." Shameful. 

Please sign the petition and bring this to a stop.

Lorna xxx

The Game Changers #1 Dermalogica Microfoliant

Another little product Ive been waiting patiently to rave about. Its not really a new found treasure but its awesome enough to deserve mentioning again.

What it is

This magical little tub of powder exfoliates, brightens and smooths skin in one easy and super gentle step. It is essentially (in very basic terms) a powder and you mix a few drops of water with to make a nice creamy paste and then rub on your face and it does all the work.

Dermalogica's number one exfoliant is a rice-based exfoliating powder which activates when mixed with water, releasing Papain, Salicylic Acid and Rice Enzymes that when massaged into the skin micro-exfoliate dead cells away leaving skin instantly smoother and brighter. This is also great for sensitive skin as its formulated without artificial fragrances and colours. It has only the tiniest hint of a scent at all and even that is just lightly creamy.

The Ingredients

Papain Enzyme 
Is derived from the papaya fruit which itself is known to have exfoliating properties. In-vivo studies have shown papain to give noticeably smoother skin after one use and more luminosity in skin after 21 used.

Salicylic Acid
It (and derivatives thereof) have been used for thousands of years, noticeably in Ancient Greece where it was obtained from willow bark and used to treat minor pain. It is present in many un-ripe fruits and vegetables, notably berries. Though out time it has been know to help break fever and reduce pain - it is a notable active component in aspirin. 
It works as a keratolytic (anti-excess skin), bacteriocide (anti-bacterial) and comedolytic (anti-blackhead) agent by causing the cells of the epidermis to shed more readily, opening clogged pores and neutralising bacteria within, preventing pores from clogging up again by constricting pore diameter, and allowing room for new cell growth.

Rice Enzymes
Ive heard that this had been used in Asian counties for thousand's of years. That when making Saka (an alcoholic drink produced from rice) the makers hands were dipped in it for long periods of time and came out soft and smooth. In turn Geisha noticed this and started using it to smooth their skin.
In all honesty I'm not sure just how it works so i wont give you too much detail here but they are extraordinarily gentle and smoothing.


How i use it

This is in all honestly one of the most pleasant easy to use exfoliators i have ever used. You simply cleanse your skin with your normal cleanser. Then pore a little of the powder onto your hand and mix with a little bit of water ( i tend to have kept my hands and face damp after cleansing so put it straight onto my damp hands) and mix into a paste. Then simply rub over the face in circular motions avoiding the eye area for approximately one minute. Then rinse off, which is so easy. My pet hate is using any facial product which is a nightmare to remove, this is gone with only a few splashes of water. Then pat dry and continue with your usual skin routine. For me that is toner, serum, moisturiser, eye moisturiser and if day time makeup.

The result

Baby smooth skin from the first use, (continued use is needed for it to stay this way). My skin looks healthier and brighter, less weighed down in a way. I always feel fresh after using this and have the urge to use lighter makeup than usual. It gives me the confidence to use that tinted moisturiser and give the foundation a miss.

What it changed

Before i used this i was firmly of the mind set that smooth/bright/unclogged skin would be had by scrubbing daily with facial scrubs with exfoliating particles or rough bits in them, Strong facial masks that quite frankly stung after using them, and left my face red. This little tub made me realise i wasn't actually doing my skin any good i was, for all intents and purposes, just scrubbing healthy skin off in a rough manner and quite frankly causing damage.  Skincare has always been on the back seat for me a bit with makeup my first love, i never thought about how i could make my skin healthier, only how i could cover it up and scrub it down. This was really a turning point for me, and my face is definitely thanking me.

Sprucing up the blog, new series and a little bit poorly

Ive decided i really need to get some more structure into my blog instead of just posting whenever i feel like it, so I'm going to introduce a few series into it that will be posted on a regular bases.

I'm going to introduce them slowly and one at a time though as so i don't get stressed, overwhelmed and it ends up a big mess :)

Permanent Posts to come
 

Weekly - a weekly instagram upload from my week. Which may be fairly boring :) but we will see. This will be uploaded on Fridays.

Bi-Weekly - starting next week i will be running a bi-weekly post 'Face slap' which is basically a what makeup have i been slapping on my face recently post. Day/time tbc.

Monthly - i will be reviewing the contents of both my Glossybox and Birchbox religiously! (As i do tend to be quite lax with them).

Series -  The first to come stall be starting this week will be 'The Game Changers'. This is basically products that really changed the way i thought about a certain aspect of beauty and how i treated it. This will run weekly for 10 weeks on a Thursday Morning to start and if it gets a a good response i will continue a bit, so please when you read them let me know what you think.


So basically BeautyandKittens shall be going from THIS...

 

...To THIS

This post very nearly wasn't coming to you today but im lying in bed typing very slowly and trying not to look at the screen to much (even with brightness at the lowest setting).
I had a little *episode* this morning that started with me getting up, getting washed, doing my hair and makeup and then starting to feel a little dizzy. Getting progressively dizzier until i fainted. (So not modern woman)
So needless to say i felt so shite when i came round i crawled my way back to bed and sleep fully clothed and makeup still on. Not my proudest moment (i hadn't even been drinking). 
But come 3pm Ive managed to get my pj's back on and half type this little waffle. 
...The makeups staying on though, Ill take it off later and let tomorrows healthy me deal with the tragic skin aftermath.

Lorna xxx

Pirates and Photos, savvy? Argh!!!

PARLEY!!!!

Ahoy me 'earties. How be you? How fares yer day?

Shivver me timbers! Ye better batten doon the hatches an' heave ho for on his here blog soon thar shall be photos o' a quality not seen here before, from a far land full o' loot an' doubloons. Arrrrrrrgh.

Okkkkay, so maybe Ive been watching a littttttle bit too much Pirates of the Caribbean, but you cant blame me... Johnny Depp....Orlando Bloom....

Anyhoo, if you aren't fluent in pirate (why not?) the above states that this blog will soon be having better photos. YES! I finally have a camera again and can stop just using m y phone. Its not a good one but anything will do at this stage, Ive got desperate. Hopefully this combined with some new software will improve quality.
Savvy???

Now if ye have the courage and fortitude to follow orders and stay true in the face of danger and almost certain death then away with ye, ye scurvy dogs. Make haste with intention to commandeer a ship, pick up a crew in Tortuga, raid, pillage, plunder and otherwise pilfer yer weasely black guts out.

...Or you know... Read some more beauty blogs?


By yer leave.

...drink up me 'earties, Yo, Ho.


*Many quotes here from pirates of the Caribbean. (I would list what i don't own but I'm sure you recognise them.)

Ginvera freen tea marvel whitening gel

Ginvera green tea whitening marvel gel
Zero blackheads in one step Blackheads remover 

This is a review that I've been waiting to do for what seems like an age, I've been to excited about it, but I kept my patience and I've waited till I really tried it out and got a feel for it. I've known from the first few times I tried it that it would be a re-purchaser so to speak.

I got this off cultbeauty.com a month ago now and it has had very good results. I'm not saying that this is a HG product but it's pretty damn good. 
The Ginvera Brand first came to my attention with the release and hype of BB creams and I  heard a lot of people saying it was one of the best (and original from Asia). Being pretty skint at the time (what's changed) I didn't get her ginvera BB Cream and tbh never really found one that worked well with my very oily skin, let's hope for the CC Creams. But back on topic when I was having a wee search of cultbeauty.com as I do often I stumbled soon is and just HAD to try if. I'm sure everyone gets that urge something when they just need a certain product in their life but unfortunately for me they usually turn out to be a tad crap. This was not.

Now the reason I had to have it was that it is specifically designed to help clear up blackheads.This is a claim that many products claim to do; 

different face scrubs, face washes, blackhead preventing toners, magic creams that simply whisk them off your face - they don't work. Well not for me at least, if tried so many. I have some of the worst blackheads I have ever came across on someone, they are not massive individually, but my nose, chin and part of my forehead are completely covered in them, and it's my own fault. ( when I was a young teen and first started wearing makeup I didn't take it off at night, slap me!!!! )

The claims it makes are 

1. Rubs away deep layers of dead skin cells
2. Rubs away blackheads painlessly
3. Contracts pores for refined skin ( as dead skin cells have been cleared from the pores)
4. Lightens blackspots, freckles and scars
5. Removes oil seeds
6. Regulates sebum secretion to prevent pimples
7. Brightens dull completion
8. Changes dark, rough skin to smooth skin
9. Whitens skin as it gives way to new born skin
10. Enhances quick absorption of skin are products 

Ginvera Green Tea Marvel Whitening Gel

It is also safe for daily use and around the eye area. While I have been using it daily, it's not going near my eyes, call me a skeptic but not a chance.

Hearing these amazing claims, I was not naive enough to assume it would cure me of my blackheads, I'm well aware nothing will ever do that, I've got these bad boys for life. (they are that extensive)

This is something a bit different though. It is an exfoliateor, but it has no rough grains or bits at all, it is infact a cooling smooth gel. It is used on dry skin after cleansing. You cleanse and dry skin and then put a little of this on effected areas and massage in for approximately one minute. After a minute it has mostly dried up and the residue can be either washed off or wiped off with a cotton pad soaked in cleanser/toner, whichever is your preference.

When massaging it is someone a little strange happens, sometimes it will just dry up and disappear, almost like a moisture mask. But other times it sort of roles into little clumps on my skin. You will have one of these results on your skin depending on what condition your skin is in at the time you use it, as the clumps are actually dead skin that is being melted away. It's a tad gross but frankly my dear I couldn't give a damn.

This has in no way cleared me of my blackheads but I can see a noticeable difference. before using this I would have a problem with my blackheads filling during the day and being tiny viable lumps through my makeup making my skin look so rough ( gross I know). As long as I've been using this that is a thing of the past and thank god I don't look like a scaley serpent by 2pm anymore. when my makeup if off my blackheads are still there and visible but I'm starting to see a decrease. Slowly but surely right?

My skin is also looking a lot brighter when i use this and i little less oily. Beware though, all effects are temporary and when you stop using the product your skin will return to the way it was originally. I really hope they continue to get better and maybe in time not be so prominent. 
Ginvera green tea blackhead remover is available from cultbeauty.com for £24 for 60ml.