Bee Good Cleansing Water and Cream Cleanser Review*

I love trying new products, especially from brands I’ve never heard of before. When I received the Bee Good 2 in 1 cream cleanser in my goody bag from the Norwich Blogger Meet, I got straight onto trying it.

A couple of weeks later, I was offered the chance to try the Bee Good Cleansing Water, I couldn’t wait to see if it was as good as the Cream Cleanser.

 

The Bee Good Honey and Wild Water Mint 3-in-1 Cleansing Water is so convenient for me to use in the evenings. No water is required, simply apply the cleanser to your face and wipe off. I tend to use a cotton pad for this. The cleansing water removes make-up and everyday grime with ease in a single sweep and leaves my skin feeling so clean and smooth and I don’t even have to leave my bedroom. I love that the ingredients are all ethically sourced and bee-based. Bee Good also make sure a share of all profits goes to help support British bees, how lovely!

The Bee Good Honey and Propolis 2-in-1 Cream Cleanser is also a product I am really loving from the Bee Good range. This cleanser requires a bit more effort than the cleansing water, so is a great product to use when you have a bit more time. Massage this creamy cleanser into dry skin and rinse away with a muslin cloth. Repeat until your skin is clean. The smell of this product is amazing, it’s fresh and sweet with subtle hints of honey. You can really tell this product is bursting with fine ingredients, my skin has never been softer after adding this to my skincare regime.

 

Bee Good products are available online here. They have so many different skincare products from exfoliators to hand creams to lip products, you’re bound to find something you love.

*These Bee Good products were provided to me free of charge in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own and I was not influenced in any way. Please see my disclaimer for more information. 

September 2015 Glossybox

I was house-sitting this month so missed the arrival of my September Glossybox so opened it a bit later than usual! I had tried to avoid most spoilers so the box was still a surprise.

I wasn’t expecting a design on this month’s box, but I really like it. The colours are lovely! This box is a Style Edition box and contains five full sized products! Well done Glossybox, you’ve really impressed me this month! On to the products..

Maria Nila Luminous Colour Hair Masque - Full Size £18.95
I've never really tried a hair masque before, and for this price it isn't something I would pick up as a spur of the moment purchase. Maria Nila is a Swedish brand that I have never come across before. This is 100% vegan and free from parabens and sulphates and packed full of nourishing ingredients. I can't quite put my finger on what this smells like but it has a sweet scent. This masque left my hair feel so soft. I wouldn't use it every day, at this price I am going to save it for special occasions.

Invisibobble Traceless Hair Ring - Full Size £4
I have been wanting one of these Invisibobble’s since I first saw them and I am so pleased there was one in my box. It is basically a coiled plastic ring which claims to be traceless and doesn’t leave a knowing kink in your hair. This is perfect for the mornings when I want to tie my hair back to do my make-up. They don't cause any breakage or damage on your hair either. I can't see myself going back to normal hair bobbles after trying these.

Marsk Eyeshadow Brush Pro - Full Size £16.70
You can never have too many eyeshadow brushes! The bristles on this brush are firm but soft and allow you to create a precise colour blend on the eyelid. The design is simple yet sleek. I've never considered Marsk brushes before Glossybox, but it really does feel like a good quality long lasting brush.

B.Cosmetics B. Sculptured Contour Kit - Full Sized £10.49
I have heard of this brand before and seen it in Superdrug. I got the B. Primer from then Norwich Blogger Meet goody bag and have been loving that so I couldn't wait to try this contour kit. Another vegan and cruelty free product it's good to see Glossybox catering for all markets. I've been using the contour powder and really enjoying the matte finish. The highlight is a lovely colour and not too shimmery. I haven't wore this as much as I am rubbish at applying highlighters!

Bellápierre Shimmer Powder - Full Size £12.99
I received this shimmery eyeshadow in the colour Whesek which is a shiny dark silver colour. I would love to tell you how long lasting it is, or how well it applies but I couldn't get the lid off! I think you can just about see on the photo that the lid is misaligned and no matter how hard I tried, it was stuck! Glossybox have very kindly sent me a replacement but I haven't tried it yet.

Overall, I am impressed with this month's box containing ALL full sized items! How are they going to top that next month?

To sign up to Glossybox, visit them here.

A Week in Lincolnshire

I recently spent a week away in a small village called Wrangle, which is in the borough of Lincolnshire. I stayed in a lovely cottage with my boyfriend, my dad, step mum, brother and step brother and their two dogs.

I wasn't too sure what there was to do in Wrangle, but I knew it was a good base for the surrounding areas such as Skegness and Boston and not too far from Lincoln.

It was really nice to get away for a week and visit a new town. We stayed in a lovely house called Auraceria House which was out of the way from the hustle and bustle and very peaceful. As the cottage was in the middle of nowhere, it was very quiet especially at night (despite it apparently being haunted!). We had a games room, a huge garden area and our own double bedroom.

We used the cottage as a base for the surrounding areas and I will be doing blog posts on some of the places I visited during my week off.

On our first day we got settled in and I took a walk around the grounds which were really lovely.

 
Day 2 involved visiting Gibraltar nature reserve. We did a nice long 3.5 mile walk around the reserve and onto the beach. I got some lovely photos, I will do a separate post on my day here.

On day 3 it rained so we took a trip to the cinema in Boston and had a reasonably chilled out day.

Day 4 was much nicer in regards to the weather and we decided to head to Skegness for the day. We played mini golf, had chips at the seaside, had icecreams and went on an open top bus. It was fun.

On day 5, James and I took a trip to Lincoln for the day. We visited the Cathedral, Castle and had afternoon tea. I will probably do a blog post on Lincoln as I got some lovely photos.

On day 6 we went back to Boston for a walk round. I wasn't a huge fan of the area and James nearly got pick-pocketed right in front of me. I didn't really feel safe here!

Day 7 was our last day, we went to Parrot Zoo which was quite interesting to look round. There were also Tigers so it was a bit more exciting than we had originally imagined!

Stay tuned for more holiday related posts!

I daily vlogged my holiday if you would like to check it out over on my Youtube channel.

Book Review: Grey - E.L James

I don't often do book reviews on my blog, but the last one I did went down quite well. I often get most of my books on my kindle however I was recently buying the hard copy of a recipe book and needed to add some more things in my basket for free delivery so decided to get the hard copy of Grey by E.L James.

It's been a while since I read the original 50 Shades of Grey series so reading this brought back the story line for me. I actually love hearing the story again from a male perspective.

The book is witty. There are plenty of funny moments and little thoughts Christian Grey has that you'd never expect. Especially the peeled ginger root part, but you'll have to read it to find out more!

I won't give too much of the plot away just in case there is one or two people who haven't read 50 Shades of Grey yet (where have you been?!) but it obviously is very similar to the first book. I think a lot of people were expecting a new story but this is marketed as "Fifty Shades of Grey as told by Christian" so I don't see the problem with it being similar.

I read this book pretty quickly as I found it such an easy read, and knowing the story it was easy to skim over certain parts if I wanted to for example the contract which I couldn't be bothered to read again.

I would actually like to read the second 2 installments from Christian's point of view, I think they'd be a very interesting read.

Have you read any new books lately?

Vegetarian Lasagne Recipe

I love lasagne, the cheese sauce especially, so when I recently got a new vegetarian slimming world recipe book the lasagna was the first thing I wanted to try. Not having half of the ingredients I needed, I ended up making the recipe up a bit and not really following it at all. It turned out so good, I thought I would share it with you. Disclaimer: This is an adaptation on a slimming world recipe, but does not fall under part of the plan and will contain syns!

 

You will need:
Lasagne Sheets
Mushrooms
Onions
Passata
Mozzarella
Cottage Cheese
1 egg
Red Pepper
Garlic
(serves 4)

Firstly, fry the onions and mushrooms in a frying pan. I 'fry' mine in frylight for a healthier option. Then add the garlic and continue to cook for a few more minutes, then set aside.

For the 'cheese sauce' I whisked together one egg and one pot of natural fat free cottage cheese. Blend if a smooth consistency is desired.

Get your lasagne pan/dish and spray with frylight then layer the bottom with some passata. I used a garlic and onion flavoured one. The pop some lasagne sheets on top.

Layer half of your onion/mushroom mixture on with some red peppers, then add half of your cottage cheese mixture. Add more lasagne sheets and more passata, then repeat.

When you have added your top layer of lasagne sheets, top with passata and remaining cheese.

Pop in the oven at 200 degrees covered in foil for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes carefully remove the foil and continue to bake for another 15 minutes until the cheese has melted and the lasagna sheets are cooked.

Eat and enjoy! Let me know how you make your lasagne?

Urban Munch - Norwich

Working in the city has its perks such as LOADS of places to eat at lunch. If I had unlimited money I would eat somewhere different for lunch every week however as this isn't an option I always bring packed lunches and once a month have a payday lunch treat.

One of my favourite places to pop into for a quick lunch is Urban Munch, located opposite The Bell on Castle Meadow in Norwich. Formally known as Baguette Express, Urban Munch has a wide variety of baguettes ranging from chicken to sausage to hog roast. They also sell amazing roast dinners to go comprising of meat, roasties, gravy, stuffing, onions and if you go large a Yorkshire pudding.

I have been to Urban Munch quite a few times now and usually opt for a roast dinner. This time, I decided to go for the 'triple dog' - 3 succulent pork sausages, moist fried onions and all of the ketchup you can dream of in a crunchy white baguette. All this for just £3.

My colleagues went for the small pork roast dinners for £3.95 with crackling, and not a scrap of food was left. Whilst I was in there I noticed some new signage up advertising salads so you can even pop here for something healthy.

Where do you like to go for lunch?

L.A.B.2 Make-up Brush Review*

I love trying new make-up brushes but never want to spend loads of money on them in case I don’t get on with them. When I was offered the chance to try the L.A.B.2 Make-up Brushes, I couldn’t wait to see how they fared against my usual brands.

The strokes of genius set retails at £18.99 - set of 5 must have eye brushes, some of which can be bought separately.

Brow and Eyeliner Brush £5.99

Designed for precise application of all types of eyeliners and brow formulas this angled brush is great for perfecting that perfectly arched brow. The brush hairs are sturdy meaning you can get a great line with these. I use a powder for my brows and this brush picks up just the right amount of product and allows me to apply my brow powder with ease. This has replaced my usual brow brush and I love it.

Crease Brush
This brush is the perfect size and shape for my crease. The brush applies eyeshadow really well and when combined with the eyeshadow brush from the LAB2 range you can create the perfect smoky eye. The soft bristles blend colours together to soften any harsh lines and is a must have for your make-up bag.

Brow and Lash Groomer
This isn’t a brush I have ever reached for before but I really like having this as an addition to my make-up bag. I use this to brush through any clumps of mascara left in my eyelashes and the comb to brush through my eyebrows after filling them in with powder.

Eyeshadow Brush
This brush is very similar to a MAC 217 and is a fluffy but sturdy brush. I use this to apply eyeshadow over my lid and to blend the colour in with the crease colour. This distributes the colour evenly onto your eyelids, crease and brow bone and is a great all-rounder eye brush.

Pointed Eyeliner Brush £5.99
I was a bit nervous to try this with my gel eyeliner as it didn’t feel as stiff as my usual brush but once coated in the gel this worked really well. It reminds me of using a liquid eyeliner pen. The long handle makes this really easy to use and you can create that perfect cat eye flick with ease. The brush enables you to draw a firm even line across your lid and doesn’t drag across your eyelid.

Overall, I really like the look and feel of these brushes. Each brush has its name clearly labelled on the handle so you know what each one is for. The handles are soft and smooth and lovely and comfortable to hold. The brushes are soft and help you to achieve professional results every time. These brushes are made with FiberLuxe Technology, specially designed with the softest and highest quality filaments. 

Available from Superdrug, you can find tutorials on how to use these brushes here.

Please follow the brand on their social media accounts.

Twitter 

Facebook 

Pinterest 

Instagram  

For a tutorial on how to clean your make-up brushes, click here. 

*I received these brushes free of charge in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own and I was not influenced in any way. Please see my disclaimer for more information.