What 2013 has taught me...

Hi it's Kate here. In 2012 I wasn't really into beauty and make up to me was sort of a chore. I didn't take care for myself as much as I have this year. I think it's because I was in constant pain and making an effort just seemed silly as people wouldn't even notice it and notice my limp even more.

In February I had a Total Hip Replacement which meant 18 weeks off work and a lot of time twiddling my thumbs as I wasn't allowed to leave the house on my own. 

Me in my Hospital Room after Surgery.

In March this year when More's Beauty Hot 100 was disbanded, a few of us decided to create this blog, which you're currently reading, in this little group of girls I have made some lovely friends, who are now a big part of my life who are so considerate and they have encouraged me to write about something I really love which is hair care and from this giving me more of a reason to start making more of an effort with my look. I then started to branch out into skincare and make-up and experimenting with new techniques of how to style your hair. My favourite has been hair chalking using old/broken eyeshadows (which I do have a lot of).

I think my favourite type of product that I've tried on here has been the multitude of mascaras. From Collection to W7 to Soap & Glory. I've loved them all for their different positives and I'm pretty much decided on S&G's Thick & Fast HD as being my favourite in this post.

I also found a new love in a new make-up range. Soap & Glory is now a firm favourite in my make up bag as the quality is lovely! 

I also admitted my novice status when it came to make up application and promised our readers that I would make more of an effort with make up application, which when I went to Vegas I did. 

I then went on a mission because I fancied a little change with my hair and you helped me decide on a look which I loved! I went from Shapeless and Thick to a little bit sassier! 

And to finish the year off I did a daring look on a New Disney Film: Frozen. I showed off my skills and by the comments I received I think I did pretty well.

I've tried so many wonderful things this year and we've been really fortunate to have been able to review some amazing products and have some amazing girls writing on here to do the products justice. Below are just a few of my favourite products, followed by a small End of Year Beauty Blog Tag, which anyone is welcome to use and we would appreciate it if you commented with your link so we can see yours :) 

End of Year Blog Tag

Favourite Product of the Year: Soap and Glory HD*

Favourite Hair Product: Milk_shake Conditioning Whipped Cream

Favourite Surprise Make-Up Item: Soap & Glory Archery Eyebrow Crayon

Beauty Bargain of the Year: Steamcream, it was really luxurious but only £12.95

Best Beauty Tool of the Year: The Wet Brush, never thought anything could get through my tatty head so easily.

Final thoughts on Beauty and Hair for 2014: Can't wait to see what products 2014 will bring to us and we are hopefully planning on some exciting new things for our readers to enjoy and looking forward to networking with new bbloggers. Hopefully pass on some lovely advice we received from established bloggers when we started up. 

Happy New Year and all the Best for 2014

Thanks for reading and for more of the latest news and reviews from the Beauty Hot Squad please follow us on Blog Lovin' 

ecoTOOLS Tapered Blush Brush

If you didn't already know, I'm a little bit obsessed with make-up brushes (check out my last post on brushes here where I talked about my favourite brushes for applying foundation). However, despite always lusting over them in shops I had never actually tried any ecoTOOLS brushes, so when I was offered one to review I literally jumped at the chance.

The brush I received was this Tapered Blush brush which is packaged beautifully in a little pouch which would be ideal for keeping your brushes clean while travelling.

The brushes are made really well and you can genuinely feel the quality as soon as you hold it. The bristles are also incredibly soft which I absolutely love!

But obviously the most important question is: How well does it apply make-up?

I find that this brush applies products lightly, so the blush looks quite sheer and natural. It doesn't really pack on the colour, but it is build-able if you're after a bolder look. I find this really easy to work with as I do like a natural flush of colour on the cheeks and this achieves this effortlessly. It's also really useful for applying highlighter to cheekbones for the same reasons; you don't need to worry about going overboard. The brush feels sooooo lovely and soft against my skin and it washes really well. A very welcome addiction to my brush collection :)

You can purchase this brush and the rest of the ecoTOOLS range at boots with prices starting at just £4.99

Have you tried any ecoTOOLS brushes? Which ones would you recommend? 
Let me know in the comments below...

Linda x

P.S. You won't be hearing from me again before Christmas so I'd like to take this opportunity to wish all our readers a very Merry Christmas! Enjoy the festivities with the people you love and stay safe xxx

Eye of Horus Goddess Mascara

I was very excited to get this beautiful box delivered to me recently! And even more excited that inside it was the very posh Eye of Horus Goddess Mascara, which retails at around £20-£30. So what's this mascara all about? Is it worth the price tag? I find out...

According to the leaflet (pictured above) Eye of Horus Goddess Mascara is made with natural waxes and the revered Moringa Oil, found in Tutankhamen’s tomb. Moringa Oil is a rare and precious oil containing vitamins A, B, C, and E, fatty acids and 1700 antioxidants. It conditions and strengthens lash structure, assisting in growth. There are also loads of other really good qualities about this mascara:

• Natural based formula won't clump, run or smudge.
• Paraben Free
• Not tested on animals
• Doesn't irritate eyes or sting
• Suitable for contact lens wearers  (Yay - I wear them at least 4 times a week)

My honest opinion

I have used this mascara several times now and I'm definitely impressed. It really defines my lashes and makes them look longer. It doesn't smudge AT ALL during the day, and you don't get any little bits breaking off like you do with some other mascaras. When you apply the mascara you need to paint on a good few coats to get the full effect, and you need to do this quickly so that it doesn't clump. If you try and paint on another coat after it has dried it may go a bit clumpy (as with most mascaras), so paint as many coats as you like while it's still wet on your lashes and they will be big and beautiful!

This mascara is quite hard to remove at the end of the day, so I would suggest using a good eye makeup remover. (It says that it is easily removable with warm water, but I'm too lazy to do this most days and just use a face wipe.) I think because this mascara won't smudge (or budge!) from your lashes it is inevitably harder to take off, but in my opinion it is worth it to have the peace of mind that you won't have black smudges under your eyes all day. It's great for me at work because I'm so busy and don't have time to check my makeup much. It's also brilliant in this way for a big night out (we all know how hot it can get in some nightclubs and how our makeup can sweat off!)

Regarding the claim that this mascara is meant to condition/strengthen/grow your lashes… I haven't noticed a huge difference yet but what I have noticed is that one or two of my lashes often used to fall out, but since I've used this mascara I haven't lost a single eyelash (that I know of!)

Anyway, decide for yourself if this mascara is any good with these before and after pics!


Before...

After….

and then with mascara on my bottom lashes too….

Let me know what you think, and you can read more about this mascara here.

Ingrid x

Festive Treasures - Glossy Box December 2013

This month Glossy Box have put together a 'Festive Treasures' box...

 

I love it for 3 reasons:

1. I love the name 'Festive Treasures'
2. I love the design on the box - A Christmas tree made of beauty products? YES PLEASE
3. The products....

Wilkinson Sword Intuition Naturals Razor - The largest item in the box and something very practical. I know this brand are good so I'll happily put this to use and I actually think its a great product to include in a beauty box... but I am curious to know who would actually consider a razor a festive treasure? Let me know in the comments below. This retails at £6.49

Lipsy London Glam Fragrance - This smells lovely, but I was annoyed to see it in my Glossy Box because the exact same sample was in this months Birchbox 

Beautiful Movements Cosmetics Nude Lip Gloss - I love the colour of this lip gloss and what makes it even better is that it has a non-sticky formula. It has already found a home in my everyday make-up bag :) A full size retails for £12

Maybelline Color Tattoo 24hr eye-shadow - I love these eye-shadows and I have 4 of them already, so I was really pleased that not only was this a lovely colour, but also one I did not currently own. Well done Glossy Box :) These retail for £4.99

Seche Nail Lacquer - This shade 'audacious' is a really pretty hot pink colour and I've heard really good things about this brand so I was pleased to see this - these retail for £9.95

I'm super happy with this box and love every product inside! I'm really pleased to see more make-up items included :) I know I moaned about the fragrance being doubled up from the Birchbox but it does smell lovely so it could be worse! It also came with a 10% discount code so it's now even more tempting to buy a full size! 

What do you think of this months box? Let me know in the comments below...

Linda x

Make Up Look Inspired By Disney's Frozen

For those that know me will know Disney is my passion and I usually become obsessed with new Disney Princesses. I am currently in love with Disney's newest princesses (and queen) Elsa and Anna from Frozen (Which Soundtrack is currently on repeat whilst I write this post) Elsa is voiced by one of my favourite theatrical singers Idina Menzel and Elsa is the muse for this look. 

 The thing about this look is that there is not much in the way of base or face make-up. Disney are reknowned for their dramatic large eyes, which is what I've tried to do with my eyes with most of the work going on there.

Time taken to complete this make up look: 20mins
Equipment used: 

• Foundation Brush
• Blush Brush
• Eyeshadow Soft Brush
• Eye Liner Brush

Base: 

Soap and Glory Show Good Face Foundation and Primer

Soap and Glory Kick Ass Concealer

Benefit Porefessional

Then it's time just to add a little bit of colour to my cheeks and do some highlighting under my eyebrows. 

Face Colour:

Nars Blush in Orgasm

Soap and Glory Love at First Blush

Benefit High Beam

Benefit That Gal

Love at First blush was only used lightly all over my face. I use the That Gal on my cheeks to give them a little bit of a pearly prime before I used my love Nars Blush!! The High Beam was used under my eyebrows and on my cheeks to emphasise the pink from the blush. 

Brows and Lashes: 

Too Faced Nylon Lash System

Soap and Glory Archery Eyebrow Crayon and Tint

Anastasia Beverly Hills Clear Brow Gel

The Nylon Lash System is really good, I probably got the best results out of this one that I have seen other people get out of similar products. The brows are filled in with the Archery Crayon and then gone over with the gel to give them a nice shape. 

Eyeliner: 

Collection Little Mix Jade's Rock It Liner

Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-On Liner in Flipside

I used the UD liner then went over it with the glitter liner. This is important, the glitter liner is integral in making the eyes just POP.  

Lips: 

Nars Lipstick in Dolce Vita

This is just to add a little subtle colour to the lips, it's not super pigmented so it's just right for this look. 

Now for the best part. The eye make up which I really enjoyed doing! 

Eyes: 

Soap and Glory Base Shadow

Urban Decay Haight, Money and Uzi Shadow (From the NY Book of Shadows)

I used the base all over my lid and then where I got all technical, in the inner corner I used Haight which is a blue with silver tones and on the outer I used money which is a silvery teal. I then used Uzi on my brow bone and then blended. I then wet my liner brush and made a little wintery pattern (for lack of better word) to add to the theatricality of it. 

The look isn't over the top and would look great for over the party season! 

So there you go, my Frozen inspired face! I hope you have enjoyed reading and Frozen is in Cinema's now and is for all the Princesses out there who adore Disney! 

Happy Christmas from all of us at: 

Thanks for reading and for more of the latest news and reviews from the Beauty Hot Squad please follow us on Blog Lovin'