SheaMoisture Shampoo and Conditioner | Beauty

SheaMoisture is a brand I have never heard of before, I picked it up in the US as a freebie but you can get some SheaMoisture products from Boots I wanted to share with you my thoughts on the shampoo and conditioner from the Fruit Fusion range.

I always feel that it's so hard finding a good shampoo and conditioner for fine hair, because most products really cling to my hair weighing it down and just making it look super flat. Another thing that doesn't help my hair is that I was it too frequently which means I strip the natural oils from it making it very greasy even after one day, I can't bear to have dirty looking hair. The first thing I noticed about the SheaMoisture shampoo and conditioner was that it's for fine, wavy curly hair...like that's 3 different types of hair all needing different types of products, curly hair tends to be drier a needs deep conditioning, I would never be able to use the same products on my fine hair. This said, I was still super excited to give it a go. 

The thing that I really love about these SheaMoisture products is that they are so conscious to the planet, I mean look at the list of things these products don't have, no added nasties that we have just become used to having in all of our hair and skin products. Not only this, on the side of the bottles it's proudly listed that it's a family owned and operated company, that the ingredients that are used are fairtrade and sustainably sourced and points out again that they are cruelty free, I mean this company is seriously talking to the millennial in me, like who wouldn't want to try this out?

I was obsessed with the scent, because though it has coconut water in it and you know I bloody hate coconut scents, you really can't tell it. There are subtle undertones but the fruity and vibrant scent wins and I love it. I actually wash my hair backwards with conditioner first and then shampoo and with my conditioner I only put it on the ends, never on the scalp because it would never wash out of my hair, I learned this mistake long ago

When I first used it my hair looked and smelled incredible only after one use, I was so happy and telling people about it. However my excitement didn't last long. Every time since I have washed my hair which is probably about 20 times now my hair feels awful, the product doesn't properly wash out of my hair an leaves it looking so greasy. When I try to use less, it doesn't actually wash my hair so whilst I don't have any product left in it, it hasn't cleaned my hair properly so when I dry it, it still looks a bit dull and dirty. I just think that the shampoo doesn't work well with my hair and it's so disappointing. 

Moving onto the conditioner though, this is the real winner here, it is super thick and super creamy, it feels luxurious. This conditioner I can so get on board with and doesn't stay in my hair at all  it washes out perfectly and definitely leaves my ends feeling smooth. The scent is exactly the same as the shampoo and I love using it in the morning I just wish the shampoo worked with my hair. I would totally try more from this SheaMoisture as they have such a lovely history behind the brand. 

Have you used any SheaMoisture products before?

Papyrus Greeting Cards | Lifestyle

I'm sorry but let me start by saying that I am addicted to cards, I have always loved finding unique or different designs. One of my all time favourite brands for this stuff without a doubt is Papyrus. 

I was recently at an event of which they were sponsoring as well and got talking to the girls, I explained how much loved their quirky designs and that I have been purchasing from them for absolute years and so the girl gave me a whole bunch of cards. Of course they were for free, but she didn't know I had a blog so this post definitely isn't sponsored. I don't know what it is about giving people cards that I love so much. The thing is, I fully know you can sometimes pay a lot for something that is looked at for a week and then discarded in a draw to be forgotten so I get why people go to cheaper shops because the sentiment is still the same regardless of the price. But for my, nothing compares to someone opening up a card they expect to see something generic and get they get something bedazzled in jewels or smothered in glitter telling them that the are AMAZING and this is where Papyrus steps in. 

Papyrus is a brand that has been around for a long time now, but I still kind of feel it's a bit understated which is odd because the cards are so in your face how could you miss them. The thing is they aren't you stereotypical "Happy Birthday" type of cards, like hat killer heel boot is a birthday card telling the person to have a Fierce birthday, now that's my kinda card. It's got studs, it's got leather and is has a heel, what more could a gal want. My friends and family are anything but generic so why would I give them a boring card? It's this reason alone why Papyrus is my go to brand or even Moonpig depending on the person or occasion.  Fun fact about Papyrus they are actually an American brand, I had no idea and totally thought they were British or European. 

I feel like I don't tell people enough how much I bloody love 'em so I am definitely going to use some of these little cards to send back home to remind them! 

Do you still like sending cards or are you all about the gifts?

L'Oréal Superliner Eyeliner | Beauty

Anyone who knows me knows how much I love liquid eyeliner, in the last 10 years I have rarely gone a day without it! My favourite for many years has always been the L'Oréal Superliner, I have been buying just the standard version of this product for so long because it wears incredibly well and always looks good.

A big fat "HOWEVER" has to be said now as my fave was sold out, this is mainly because I live in Italy and the beauty shops I go in rarely restock the L'Oréal counters which is damn annoying! This meant that I had to try out a different Superliner which I thought couldn't be THAT bad, it's part of the same range so should just be fractionally different..oh boy was I wrong. I picked up the Superliner from the Black Lacquer range and it's waterproof.

Firstly, when I applied this liner I immediately felt it on my eyelids, it was uncomfortable it felt like every time I blinked it was tacky, I was just so conscious of it all the time. It was almost like there was no movement of the liner it was like I was wearing a sticker on my eyelid. The second and probably most important was that this product wears terribly! Considering it's water proof, I found it leaving weird marks on my eye socket from where my eyes are open! Like I don't have over oily eyelids, but this eyeliner transfers so badly to the point I would have to wipe my eyes several times during the day which is so rubbish.

I was so disappointed with this product, it was a massive waste of my money, I didn't even want to wear it because I didn't want to rub of my eye shadow and actually left the house a few times without the liquid eyeliner on which is a big deal to me.

Sorry L'Oreal, this eyeliner is bad...on every level.

What products have you been disappointed with?

Girl On The Train | Book

I haven't written about a book for a very long time and I know that Girl On The Train is a book that everyone has read but I have only just got around to it and I kinda wanted to share my thoughts not only on this novel but the hype that surrounds these types of books.

It took me a very long time to pick this up, in fact Girl On The Train I feel was released around the same kind of time as Gone Girl I think and I read Gone Girl, in fact I inhaled the damn thing and loved it! However when I saw Girl On A Train I just felt like it was too similar to the other one for me to be interested even though I know the plots are complete different, like I get that.

The problem is I waited far too long to read the book, everyone told me I should read it and then the film is soon to be released and my god there is just so much hype that I caved and bought it in an airport. I have been told how utterly amazing the book is, my expectations were high but it wasn't only it was that I knew a twist was coming and I knew it was supposed to be great. It was the latter point which ruined the novel for me because with every page I turned I kept thinking oh there's a twist but I know there will be another coming soon so I was literally awaiting for something amazing or shocking to happen.

Let me break it down a bit though, the book is written really bloody well, I simply adored the characters and their darkness. I also really liked that the novel was written from 3 different people's perspectives, I love multiple narratives! The book is good, with other a doubt but I hate it when it gets so over hyped that it takes all the mystery out of it for the reader! I love deep, complex books and in order for them to remain complex you need to keep an air of mystery about it. With Gone Girl I literally had no expectation that it would be that good and when the film came out I had to go an see it just to see the film makers adaptation of it. However I have no urge whatsoever to see Girl On The Train purely because I know what's coming and I believe it'll be filmed in a very similar way to Gone Girl and I just have no need to see it now.

Overall, fantastic book but if you're gonna read it just don't have your expectations too high, stop thinking about the twist and just focus on each page as and when it arrives!

What are your thoughts on cult books? Does the hype ruin or add to your enjoyment?

Yes To Tomatoes Detoxifying Charcoal Wipes | Beauty

Just a couple of points to note before we go too deep into this post, yes oh yes, this is a beauty post which means it's making a slight comeback to my blog as I try and increase my posts to twice a week! Second thing, before we all go crazy that I'm writing about a face wipe and they are the worst thing in the world in beauty land...we all use them, they're quick and easy so let's not pretend here guys!

So today I'm doing a little review on these Yes To Tomatoes Detoxifying Charcoal Facial Wipes, I was actually given these for free as they came in a goodie bag I received for sponsoring an event. I personally haven't tried any of the Yes To products but I know they have quite a wide range which include a variety of different facial wipes. Obviously the first thing I noticed was that the wipes are actually black, the little goth girl inside me squealed when I realised! It's quite a quirky idea especially because I don't think I have seen any facial wipe that is anything other than white.

We all know the amazing properties of charcoal on our skin, a lot of facial masks have this product included in them, charcoal really gets into your pours for a deep clean and almost extracts some of the toxins on your face. However Yes To has added it to their wipes, as well as the super veggie (or fruit) that is tomatoes, in fact 95% of these wipes are made with natural ingredients which is obviously gonna be way better than using a standard wipe.

The first time I used the wipe I tried to remove my eye make up, it was rubbish like these wipes are not designed to remove eye make up! I do wear a lot of mascara and liquid eyeliner but it would take a lot of rubbing to my eyes to remove all my eye make up so I would definitely recommend not using these on your eyes. But when I started using them on my face that's where things got interesting and a little grosse! Basically because the wipes are black you can actually see all the dead skins cells on the wipe which was disgustingly fascinating. There is no doubt about it my skin definitely felt very clean after using these wipes, more so than any other wipe I have used in the past which I think it really impressive. The scent of these wipes is a little unusual, it is pleasant but it's kinda earthy but not too powerful so it's nice.

The reality is you should never just rely on facial wipes to cleanse your face but adding these to your already good skincare routine I personally think isn't such a bad thing! I use them to take my facial make up after the day and then use my Liz Earle cleanser or put a face mask on.

Have you tried these facial wipes? What are your favourite Yes To products?