Aveda skin care – cruelty free

Hi everyone

I’ve been making some changes to my face care recently, my boyfriend brought me an Aveda gift set which had full size products in which is amazing and I love the products. I go to a hair salon that uses Aveda products and they have such a lovely smell and are natural products but I had never used there skin care before.

The products in my gift set are the Botanical Kinetics range, I have the purifying gel cleanser, the toning face mist and the hydrating creme and they really complement each other. The gel cleanser is the first thing I used, it is a very smooth cleanser and you only need a tiny bit to lather up enough for the whole face. I use this to remove my make up firstly and then a second time to cleanse my face. It’s very calming, a lot of cleansers I use make my face red and any blemishes a bit aggravated but I haven’t found that with this one. It also smells amazing!
The toning face mist is very refreshing, I’m not sure that it tones my face as it says it does but maybe I’ve not used it enough. I think this would be nice to use on holiday maybe in the fridge when you are really hot but I’m not sure I would repurchase this once I finish this bottle. I prefer toners that you put on a cotton pad as with the mist I feel could end up missing patches.

Last but certainly not least is the hydrating moisturiser, this is a day and night moisturiser but I think most of the time I will be using it as a night time moisturiser. It is quite thick so make up may not sit properly on it, I also feel that to really appreciate the moisturer it needs time to sink in and restore the skin over night.

I have never really used a set range for my skin care but I am starting to think that I may do this going forward as it links all the benefits of the range. It also smells so lovely that it’s a pleasure to keep applying Aveda products to my skin.

I would love to hear what skincare range you use, do you have any good reccomendations for a whole range.

Thanks for reading
AKL

Vegan pizza

Hi everyone

Pizza is one of the things that I have recently been craving but not just any pizza it has to be one with plenty of cheese and plenty of flavour. While there are vegan pizzas out there mainly of the non cheesy variety and that just doesn’t cut it for me. So I decided to make my own and you can too.

Here is what you need:

Wraps – the same type you would use for fajitas

Tomatoes paste or BBQ sauce

Vegan cheese

Pepper

Toppings – for me this was olives, sweet peppers, sweat corn but it can be whatever you wish (vegan of course)

Here is how you make it:

Take one wrap and spread to motor paste followed by a bit of cheese, place another wrap on top to create a thick enough base. On the second wrap spread tomatoes paste and sprinkle cheese. Then place your topping as many or as few as you would like and sprinkle more cheese and then add pepper to taste. Place in the oven for ten minutes and then devour.

Here is my finished product, it was yummy!

Thank you for reading

AKL

My new Kiko make up

Hi everyone

Over the years I’m pretty sure I’ve tried 100’s of foundations promising to give me flawless matte long lasting make up. Some better than others but generally by the end of the day particularly around my T Zone I end up in a cakey oily mess. I think that actually might have just changed.

There is a new (ish) Kiko shop in the shopping centre where I live and it’s so appealing bright lights, rows of make up and amazing colours. I’ve not been in as I normally head straight for Superdrug or Boots to buy my cruelty free make up but after a bit of googling I found Kikos animal testing policy so I took a look in the store.

KIKO does not carry out or order testing on animals, pursuant to the relative European laws. KIKO decided as its own specific policy on the matter, not to register with private entities and therefore not to pay the corresponding annual fees for registration and certification. So that the company’s main focus is, in terms of resources and investments, on research and development of innovative products safe for human health, as well as not tested on animals. We’d also like to point out that KIKO, while developing new products, does not carry out safety tests on animals, but realizes all appropriate checks.

So I picked up the Kiko oil free foundation and the Kiko unmeasurable length water proof mascara.

I have never tried a specific oil free foundation before I know that seems strange as someone who constantly moans about being oily but I’ve always gone for foundations stating matte, long wear those kind of buzz words. 

I love this foundation and I mean love, it is the best foundation I’ve tried in a long time maybe ever. I picked up the Ivory shade which is the lightest and while this is maybe slightly too light for me it is a better match than the next one up. It is a moose and feels like pearls going on my skin, so smooth in texture.

There are a few negatives in terms of how quickly it drys so once you have squeezed it out of the tube you need to get it on the skin and pressed in a quick as you can otherwise it it difficult to move around the face. Another negative is that it offers little to no coverage for blemishes, it makes the skin appear smoother and pores blurred but you will need to add in a concealer if you have blemishes.
However the small negatives are far out wayed but the positives, this foundation keeps my skin matte for just about the entire day at work. Normally I would have oil on my forehead and nose by about mid morning with this it’s about 3pm. I would reccomend this foundation to anyone who has oily, blemish prone skin, if you have dry skin already then massively stay clear, the price range on this is so cheap as well for £13.50. I love it!

Next I got the unmeasurable length waterproof mascara in black and it’s really 2 for 2 for Kiko as this is just as impressive as the foundation. I was really unsure when I opened the tube as it has a bit of a weird brush but turns out weird is good. 

The bristles have long and very short parts but it turns out this is the key to long lashes. More to the point though I can go nearly a full day at work will very little smudging under my eyes with this mascara. I hate smudging as it makes me look old and tired, I want my eyes brighter not darker. I would reccomend this mascara to anyone who has oily skin also but also contact lenses wearer and those with watery or sensitive eyes.

So that is my small but heading towards perfect Kiko haul, I will be going there again and I will be telling you all about it.

Thanks for reading

AKL

Primark candle haul

Hi everyone

So I went into Primark to have a quick wonder around with no intention of buying anything, as per usual I came out with a fair proportion of the shop. However it was not clothes or accessories which is my usual guilty pleasure, this time it was candles.

I had a couple of ideas for the purpose of these candles, the first being to freshen up the living room. We are about to put down laminate flooring and the candles we have in there have been there too long. So I purchase 2 large candles in pots with the cutest little black bow in the scent Madagascan Vanilla. Vanilla is my favourite fragrance, it’s not too sweet but smells very fresh. To complement these I brought two stack candles in the same fragrance, they are a good size and again smell so lovely. 

The next purpose I got candles for is my little beauty room, my boyfriend has an office in our house and so the third room is all mine. It’s so tiny and has a wardrobe and a chest of draws all crammed in but to me it’s perfect. I can put all my things where I want them and it’s my own little space. So I wanted to get some candles to make that space prettier and smell nice and sweet when I’m getting ready.

I got little jam jar candles in Cotton Linen fragrance and then one in Watermelon Papaya. They are the prettiest colours and so cute. They have little cream bows around the top of the jar and little tiny labels to tell you which fragrance they are. They are perfect of my little space.

So that’s my little haul, they are changing all the colours to spring colours so I would reccomend getting yourself to Primark if you want to Spring up your room or house on a budget.
Thank you for reading
AKL

ELF haul – cruelty free

Hi everyone

I recently had a weak moment and decided to visit the ELF website and purchased a number of items so thought I would do a haul. So here is what I got…

Firstly let’s start with the Studio HD mattifying balm, I had seen a few reviews on this on YouTube and really liked the look of it. It says that it can sit on top of your make up or underneath it, most of the reviews I watched by beauty bloggers said on top of the make up was a no go and that the best way was under make up.

The balm is a clear balm with the texture a bit like a lip balm but not greasy, the pot shows it as white but it is clear when it is on your skin. I put this on underneath my foundation over the top of my primer. I have oily skin particularly around my T Zone so anything that is going to mattify is a bonus.

I do think that I noticed a difference on the days that I used this balm, normally when I’m at work I would be needing to add some more powder by about 11 o clock, with this balm I feel like it was early afternoon before I needed to reapply. I did try and add it on top of my make up one when I got home purely as a test but this was awful it was like adding lip balm on top of lip gloss, a no go.

Next I got the hydrating undereye primer, I’ve had eye primers before but not under eye ones. I liked the idea of adding extra hydration to my undereye on top of my moisturiser. I love this, it sinks in well, feels really creamy and my make up sits so well on top.

To go with this I got an eyelid primer, this is much thicker than the under eye primer and had a slight nude colouring. I do like this product and it does the job, the only negative is that I’ve used it a couple of times and it is already starting to run out and get dryer.

Keeping with my eyes I’ve got the clear brow and mascara stick. I haven’t used the brow stick yet but I have had this product before and used the brow stick to death. I always like to keep a clear mascara to use on its own or on top of a black mascara to stop it smudging.

Next I got a make up lock and seal, this is a little pot with the seal in and you add this to eyeshadow, eye liner, brows and the idea is that it will lock in the make up so it doesn’t smudge or move. I’ve used this with my brows and I liked it although it gave them Avery fixed look which is slightly fake so I could only get away with this if I had a full face of make up not for everyday. I’m going to try it on my eyeliner next as my eyes water a lot. The only negative is it smells very chemically and a bit like nail varnish but this does go away quickly.

Finally I have the wrinkle filler, I brought this on a bit of a whim. The idea is that sits on to of the wrinkle and fills the gap then your foundation sits on top to form a smooth base. Now I am lucky enough to say that I don’t have many wrinkles but I thought it’s never too early to be prepared. It’s a gel texture and feels like a primer going on but then it drys and forms like a barrier. It’s a very nice texture but I’m not sure it made my wrinkles looks any smoother unfortunately.

So that’s my ELF haul, I love ELF generally so I’m sure there will be many more hauls to follow.
Thanks for reading
AKL

My new hair are products

Hi everyone

So over recent months I have been using the Palmers shampoo and conditioner and I do really like them but I am always on the look out for new cruelty free hair and beauty products. I recently discovered the Shea Moisturiser range and they have made my hair feel so lovely I thought I would share this with you.

I picked out the Shea Moisturiser extra moisture retention shampoo and the restorative conditioner and they seeemd to be the closest to my needs at the time. My hair has been many colours over the years from red to bleach blonde and now brunette if you add in to that years of straightening and curling then you can imagine I put myself in the dry, damaged category. So I do need quite a lot from my hair care to keep my hair in good condition.

Firstly I really like the packaging it really pretty and I like that the conditioner has a pump so I can build up how much I put on as I am guilty for tipping too much out the bottle and wasting product. This product also really smell nice it is of course shea butter so that smells lovely and I found the smell really lasted on my hair. I do like my hair to smell nice, it’s so close to my nose it’s nice to catch a whiff of your shampoo and conditioner occasionally when you move your head (is that weird).

In terms of usage this is perfect for me, one of the things it sells is that it improves elasticity in the hair and it really does. I have been using packet hair dyes until recently when I moved to Henna (post to follow) so the hairdresser kept telling me how springy my hair is because it’s so weak and this is how hair can break easily and become damaged. My hair felt much stronger after using these products. I left the conditioner in for a bit longer a couple of times and this really helped. I felt my hair styled nicely and those frizzy fly away bits were smoother.

I was a bit concerned  that the bottles were smaller than the Palmers and may not last very long but so far it is lasting about the same time. I go through proberley just under 2 bottles of shampoo a month and I think this would be the same for this range.

I will be repurchasing and I would reccomend the products. It is currently on offer 342 in Superdrug so I would reccomend getting this sooner rather then later. The next product I want to buy is the really intensive treatment conditioner from the range called Shea Moisture Raw Shea Butter Deep Treatment Masque. Let me know if you have ever tried this.

So all in all I’m very impressed, have you got any good hair care recommendations?

Thanks for reading.

AKL

Lush haul

Hi everyone 

I back with another Lush haul, I kind of feel that these speak for themselves. The more I use Lush the more impressed I am and I just feel so much better using natural. So I’m just going to dive straight into the products.

Firstly I picked up the Sleepy hand cream, this is bright purple which I love and it is just packed full of lavender. Lavender really  agrees with me as an ingredient. I love on my face to calm and in moisturisers and also to sleep and calm at night in spray form so this hand cream is perfect. The body restores itself over night and my hand get so dry at work that it’s such a good time to use moisturiser and get the full benefit but also this fragrance is so soothing and calming it really does make me sleepy.

Moving onto body moisturisers I’ve got the Karma Kreme. It’s an all over body moisturiser and it’s very light weight, it soaks in instantly which is really good when I’m rushing before work to get much clothes on and get out of the door. It contains almond butters so really good for the skin and orange to add a lovely fresh feel. I don’t think this one will last as long as I am very guilty of using a lot of product.

For my hair I got RnB hair moisturiser and Roots, I’ve had RnB before but not Roots. RnB is a hair moisturiser which means you can put it on wet or dry hair as almost a leave in conditioner. It is very very very moisturising so beware, I use the tinyist bit ever and I have to really careful that I don’t get that greasy product build up in my hair. When I do get it right it leave my hair feeling so lovely and soft and it smells amazing. I always use it on wet hair not dry as it would be greasy mess on my hair dry. I love the extra moisture it give my hair and it lasts me forever.

Roots is a scalp treatment as you proberley guessed and it is designed to restore balance to the scalp and stimulate the hair follicles. I have quite a lot of hair but it’s quite thin and it can lay quite flat on my head so I make sure to massage this in and it is so minty it makes my scalp tingle and it really makes a difference when I blow dry my hair. I would reccomend this product so much if you have thin hair, fine hair or you want to add bounce to your roots.

The last product is one I’ve never tried before and it’s a cleanser. It’s is the weirdest, smellyist but most amazing cleanser. I get blemishes all the time particularly around my jaw and this is really helping. I get a little bit in my hand and put on my face and rub it in and it really drys my skins out in a good way. I use this in the evening to really get rid of the day to day grime and make up.

So that’s it for my lush haul. I’m sure I’ll be doing another one very soon.

Thanks for reading

AKL

The Spring Tag

Hi everyone

It’s been a long time since I did a tag on my blog but it’s also been a fair while since I posted on my blog it’s been so busy. So I thought this might be a good way for me to start blogging again. I love spring, it’s my birthday in April and I love seeing baby animals about, something about Spring fills me with hope. So here goes with The Spring Tag.

1.) Favourite spring nail polish? I got a sensationail kit for Christmas this year so normally I would be going for pastel pinks but this year I’m going bright pink. I’ve put the link here. I love this colour it’s so vibrant and the sensationail kit means it also for weeks.

https://www.sensationail.co.uk/precious-peony-bright-pink.html 

2.) What is your must-have lip colour this spring? I love Revolution lip glosses. I got them in a pack for Christmas and actually the photo doesn’t do the justice they are much more pinky than they appear. My favourite is the darkest one which was a surprise to me actually but it just makes a look.

3.) What is your favourite spring dress? I literally just brought a new spring dress and I love it. It’s a really good transition dress as it can still be worn with tights but has short sleeves and is bright and floral. Floral are a big trend this spring. It’s from New Look, I love them for dresses.

4.) What’s your favourite flower? My favourite flowers are roses, I love them. I forget how much I like them until I see them. My boyfriend gave me a huge bunch for Valentine’s Day. Admittedly they are not very Spring like but I still love them.

5.) Favourite spring scarf or accessory? I have 2, the first being when I am hanging around the house I love this cute headband, it’s so pretty and it’s also really good for my hair as it’s soft and doesnt drag or break the hair. The next is the beautiful hair grips. I can’t believe that they are only from Primark they are so cute and add something a bit special to any hair do.

6.) What spring trends are you most excited about this year? (Makeup, fashion or both!) I am most excited about florals, I know I mentioned this previously but I do love florals? The other thing I really like for this seasons trends is all white, creams and nudes but unfortunately I’m too messey to go too far into this trend.

7.) Favourite spring candle? I love vanilla, I have some of the vanilla Yankee candles and they smell beautiful. It’s quite classic but hay ho if it’s not broken.

8.) Favourite body spray or perfume for spring? I love Stella Mcartney pop and the best thing is it’s not tested in animals.

9.) What is spring like where you live? It’s bright but cold most of the time with quite a few days when you wake up and think it’s still winter. It’s been nice and sunny and bright today though so I shouldn’t complain.

So that’s the Spring Tag for me. Thanks for reading

AKL