Remember, remember....

This past Wednesday, as you may or may not know, was Bonfire Night!

Seeing as I only moved to Scotland last year - and lived in Greece before that - this was the second time I got to experience the great fireworks display that goes on in celebration of the day. In Glasgow, the "show" takes place at Glasgow Green, a huuuuuge park close to the city centre.

And my, oh my, were the fireworks lovely!

I do love a good firework display as much as any other person, but these events are on such a grander scale than our little New Year's fireworks back in Heraklion! They just seem to go on for ages. I am pretty sure there were constantly fireworks been fired for a solid 25 minutes!

Needless to say, I thoroughly enjoyed it! It was a nightmare getting there and back (I live in the West End of Glasgow and the Subway was absolutely packed!), but definitely worth it! I forgot to take my camera with me and only had my phone to take some photos, so they are not the best quality. I think I quite like the ones that are a little out of focus, though, so all is well!

So, just these few photos to get me back into the blogging mentality and I do hope this time I will stick to it. The reason I stopped was because things started to get far too hectic with my PhD and found myself completely swamped. Hopefully, that stage is now over. I feel it is and that I am getting everything into order.

See you soon!
xx

Empties #1

It's time for my first empties post!! I must make a confession here and state that empties posts and videos are my favourite as I feel they are the most honest posts out there! Obviously the products that are being talked about in them have been used up completely and I think that's when someone is much more likely to tell you in all honesty whether they loved a product or hated it, whether it started off good but somewhere halfway through something changed or whether they would buy it again or go on to try something different.

So let's get started!

Avon Foot Works Beautiful Exfoliating Scrub - £3.50

I bought this as part of a huge Avon order I placed around November last year. It lasted me for a good couple of months and I was probably using nearly every time I had a bath or shower! It probably isn't the best foot scrub you can find out there, but it definitely does the job, plus it smells lovely!

The link for this one is for the actual one I bought, but I can't seem to find the papaya one... Weird. Does anyone know if Avon stop selling products based on the time of the year or something??

L'Oréal 3-in-1 Skin Perfection 3-in-1 Purifying Micellar Solution - £4.99

This is actually the first micellar solution I've used. I saw it in Boots on offer and decided to try it out! I really liked the formula (even though a lot of people seem not to like it very much), but the main thing I found irritating about this was the packaging! The white top is probably the stupidest top ever concerning how to get the product out of the bottle. Though that's not a reason for me not to buy it again!

Cutex Acetone-Free Nail Polish Remover for False and Acrylic Nails - £1.60

I bought this just before Christmas when I decided to try acrylic nails out. I was a bit of a neccessary purchase, as I didn't really like the amount of white that was visible from the acrylic nail (it took up half my nail) and I decided that painting my (now longer) nails was the way to go! It did a good enough job then, but when I tried using it on my own nails, I found that it took the nail polish off my nails just to stain the skin around my nails each and every time I used it. Definitely glad this one is finally finished!

Radox Brazilian Fusion Bath Soak - £2.00

I just loved the smell of this one! It was actually amazing as both a shower gel and a bubble bath and always made the bathroom smell divine! I am trying to finish off some of the other bath products I have lying around the flat, but this one is definitely one I would go for again!

No7 Soft & Soothed Gentle Toner - £8.00

I absolutely loved this toner! It was just as the name describes: soft and soothing. There is no alcohol in it and it just left my skin feeling all soft and lovely and I was always left with the feeling that it was replenishing any of the moisture that left my skin as a result of cleansing. Would definitely buy this one again!

Le Petit Marseillais Shower Gel with Argan Oil and Orange Flower - £4.79

This is one I brought over from Greece when I moved during last summer. I just loved the way it smelled, it was so, so luxurious! It also created some serious bubbles! Definitely one I would repurchase! Come to think of it, I would probably repurchase anything I have bought from this brand. They really are amazing! (And this shower gel definitely did not cost £4.79 in Greece......)

Rimmel Just Let It Go...  Gentle Eye MakeUp Remover - ???

This one I am a bit so and so about. I didn't particularly like using it at the time, as I felt is was just a pretty basic eye makeup remover. However, after this one finished and I started using another one, I realised that it was actually quite good! So, in conclusion, it does the job and it's better at it than other ones I have used. I would buy it again, but it wouldn't be my first choice.

Lush Love Lettuce Fresh Mask - £5.95

I got this one because I was curious about Lush's fresh face masks. It was quite good, if a little bit on the abrasive side. It did leave my skin feeling rather refreshed, though, so it gets a thumbs up from me! I did get a fair number of uses out of this tub, too! That being said, I am not sure I would buy a Lush face mask again too soon, as I like switching them up from one week to another and these ones have a use-by date... 

So, that concludes my first empties post! I thought about doing it in video format, as I think I write way too much on posts like this (same as with my two favourites posts). Do you think I should do it?

Have you used any of these products I've mentioned? What did you think of them? 

On Moisturising

There is one thing I have always been awful at... Moisturising... And I don't mean awful in the sense that I can't do it properly. Just that I can never be bothered to do it after I come out of the shower or bath.

To begin with, I had huge issues with moisturising in general. Hands, face, body, feet... You name it. Things slowly started to "shape up" (and yes, I am being sarcastic), when I started to get very bad eczema on my hands (which necessitated the use of hand creams), as well as when I went on a cystic acne treatment for 6 months (which completely dried out my skin and I had to use super duper moisturising creams just to cope with the tightness and the pain). Yeah... Nice days... I know...

Regardless of how I got into the habit of moisturising my hands and face, it is something I stuck to and I have seen a huge difference because of it. My eczema has cleared up (with only minor flares when it gets very cold) and my face has gone back to normal since the treatment ended. Using moisturising creams has essentially alleviated that "tight skin" feeling I always used to get whenever I washed my face or hands.

As for the rest of my body... Weeeell, that's a completely different matter!

It probably has to do with the fact that I don't get the "tight skin" feeling, but I just find it nearly impossible to make myself put on body lotion after coming out of the shower. The only thing I want to do after I'm dry is get into some comfortable clothes and get warm! However, I am trying to force myself to take a little longer after each shower and properly moisturise my skin. I have managed to do it for three showers in a row and I can already see a difference in how my skin feels! Much, much softer and, dare I say, more nourished!

Please let me know if you liked this post! It was something a little different and more chatty!  I don't want this blog to be completely inundated with reviews, but sometimes they are the easiest thing to write! 

What are your thoughts on moisturising? Are you the same as me??

Rimmel 60 Seconds Nail Polish in Rose Libertine

Rimmel 60 Seconds Nail Polish in Rose Libertine - £3.69

Just recently, I had this overwhelming feeling that I wanted to buy a pink nail polish. Even though my nail polish collection is perfectly adequate (despite half my collection having been left behind in Greece), I didn't actually own anything that was more rose-y hued... So, I decided to take advantage of the 3 for 2 on everything Boots have going on right now and out I came with three lovely new nail polishes!

In the photo, I am wearing the Rimmel 60 Second version of nail polish in the shade "Rose Libertine", along with a coat of the Rimmel 60 Second Nail Polish in "Clear" as a top coat. As soon as I saw this one on the Rimmel stand, I knew I had to get it! It is just a perfect, happy and fun shade of pink, with coral undertones and it's definitely one of the prettiest colours I have ever worn on my nails!

Two things I love about this Rimmel nail polish are the formula and the brush! The actual polish has a lovely consistency and goes on really easily. I think I would have been okay with just one coat on my nails, but decided to go with two, just to get a neater effect. As for the brush, it is probably one of the best brushes I've ever used. It's wider than normal brushes, meaning that the process of completely coating one of your nails takes no more than two swipes. Easy peasy!

I know I am definitely going to get a lot of use out of this colour!  I feel it is perfect for this kind of weather - where it's starting to get warmer, but it's not quite there yet -, but it will also be perfect in spring and summer!

Well, this has quickly turned into an overenthusiastic post... Oh well! 

Have you bought any new nail polishes that you love recently?

A Little FeelUnique Haul

This post should have gone up last week, so you should have seen it before the February Favourites post, but let's not dwell on that one, shall we?? (winky face)

As all the beauty blogging world knows, the end of January marked the launch of Tanya Burr's Lips and Nails Collection. I just happened to be on FeelUnique on the 30th of January and up popped Tanya's face, letting us know that her collection was available to order on the website! So, I thought, "Yay!". I ended up getting a few other bits and bobs, so let's get started!

Kneipp Deep Sleep Mineral Bath Salt with Valerian and Hops - £7.95

I mentioned the reason I bought them in my February Favourites, but essentially, I just wanted a cheaper alternative to Lush Bath Bombs! I've used this twice already and I am currently thinking about which other versions to try out! (Definitely leaning towards the Lavender scented one...)

Tanya Burr Lip Gloss in "Afternoon Tea - £6.99

I wanted a relatively neutral colour, so that I could wear it more easily and that is definitely what I got! Afternoon Tea is a lovely, shiny but not shimmery, coral pink colour. It has an amazing texture and smell and it is just a joy to apply! It also feels quite moisturising, which is always a bonus! The applicator actually has a small groove, which fits perfectly with the shape of my lips!

Tanya Burr Nail Polish in "Midnight Sparkles" and "Little Duck" - £5.99 each

I thought long and hard about which shades of nail polish to go for and in the end decided on the slightly shimmery dark purple one ("Midnight Sparkles") and the mint green one ("Little Duck"). I just love all the names Tanya has given to her products! So cute and lovely! I quickly tried them out on the day they arrived just to see the colours on my nails, but I haven't worn them properly yet... When I do, there will definitely be a post on them!

Rimmel Scandaleyes Waterproof Khol Kajal Eye Liner in "Nude" and "Taupe" - £3.99 each 

I had been on the lookout for a brown eye pencil for quite some time now. For some reason, my makeup stash seems to only include black eye pencils as well as one white one.... Weird.... Anyway. I decided to try the "Taupe" one to satisfy my need of a brown eye pencil and, on a whim, decided to also get the "Nude" one. I have heard so many bloggers and vloggers talk about this colour and how good it is when used along the waterline to cancel out any redness and make your eyes brighter, I just knew I had to test it and see if all the testimonies were true! I will let you know as soon as I have tried it!

Have you tried any of these products?