eos lipbalms

EOS lipbalms are something that I was very eager to give a try but lusted after from afar due to their near impossibility to get hold of in England. As a result I had to wait until I ventured over the pond to pick some up and that's exactly what I did when I went to New York (in 2012... a very very long time ago!). There were a variety of flavours to choose from each with their own set of promises and properties but I chose these three - summer fruit (the red one), 'medicated' tangerine (orange) and strawberry sorbet (pink).

From what I gathered when looking for these, they are very similar to Vaseline in that you can pick them up in your local supermarket and they're relatively cheap. However, the packaging is so much more interesting and as usual when it comes to beauty products, it was the packaging that I was drawn to! They're super easy to use and much more fun to whip out than your average stick lip balm. It's also good that you can just pucker up and coat both lips with one swipe. The shape is very functional and super unique!

Unfortunately the scent of them is actually quite synthetic and there isn't even that much of a scent that resembles their supposed 'flavour'. When I first smelt them I was quite put off as it is very artificial. However, when actually put onto the lips the real taste and scent is revealed and as use goes on, the scent comes out more and more. Tangerine and strawberry sorbet have a relatively nice taste and something I quite enjoy applying but summer fruit isn't as enjoyable and probably something I'll have to get used to.

After first application, my lips felt like they had a 'layer' on them and it took a while for the product to actually sink in. But once it was all sunk in, my lips felt super moisturised. I do think they have the same sort of effect as your normal drugstore lip balm and not like your more expensive lip balms that offer more intense moisture. I felt that my lips were smooth and soft once I used them and there was a slight improvement to the overall condition of my lips but they did very quickly go back to being dry. However, I think this is very much down to my lips generally, because they are beyond dry normally, so when used on non-dry lips, I'm sure they would be great. I also think they'd be super handy for just popping into your bag or putting on your desk for a quick top up of moisture.

I also mentioned that each one comes with it's own claims and properties. Summer fruits came without a packet so I'm not sure what that one was for but I assume it provides what a typical lip balm provides and the packet for strawberry sorbet didn't claim to have any outstanding promises. Tangerine, however, is labelled as medicated with ingredients that immediately soothe the lip and protect from any anti-bacteria. It also helps relieve symptoms of cold sores and defend against bacterial contamination. Overall, though, I think each provides general moisture and protection from the everyday conditions that we put our lips through.

So as I mentioned I wouldn't necessarily recommend these for those with super dry lips unless you used a scrub type product with it as other balms/treatments would be better, but these would be nice for when lips are in a good condition and just need a little smoothing.

Here is the link to the lip balms on the EOS website but I don't think it ships to the UK, unfortunately. However, there is a variety of ebay sellers that also sell them and most for very reasonable prices!

As I'm writing this post my cat is pushing the lip balms around so whilst they're great for us girls (and guys!) to use to moisturise our lips, they're great toys for pets as well - something for all the family!

prada candy perfume

So this post has been a long time coming. Mostly because I just haven't gotten round to blogging about it (read: lazy) and also because it's taken a while for me to really test out this perfume. Since purchasing it, I've just not been that drawn to it and I very much think it's down to the fact that I buy perfumes based on their appearance rather than their actual fragrance and that is exactly what happened with this one. I just popped it straight into my basket at duty free without so much as a whiff of it so it's my own fault for not being as into it as some of my other perfumes. However, when I made the move to university I thought I'd take it with me to try and give it another chance and I'm actually enjoying using it so I feel that I can now give it a justified review...

Prada Candy Perfume (£39.50 (30ml) @ the perfume shop)

Apologies for the battered box, it didn't travel too well...

So as I mentioned, this was definitely a perfume I bought because of its packaging and the advertising that went with it. This is partly a good thing because that's what the company's aim is to do and I very much fell for their tricks. But it's bad because I bought it without smelling it. I also said that I got this in duty free which is where I get most of my perfumes from and I also end up going on a whim spending spree whenever I'm in duty free because I like to think that whatever I buy in there doesn't really count (who doesn't justify in this way?!). So again, I didn't really think through this purchase in the most logical of ways.

I initially thought it'd be really sweet and fruity and a great summer fragrance. Oh how wrong I was! It's actually super strong and I continually get wafts of it throughout the day no matter how busy I've been. I personally think it's better for an autumn/winter day perfume as it's not too deep as to just be saved for the evening/night but it's definitely not a light, fresh scent. It is very feminine and slightly seductive, but not so much that it can't be worn during the day. As I've started to wear it more it has very much grown on me. My flatmate has even commented on it a couple of times when I've worn it and he's a typical 'lad' so that's really saying something!

I'm absolutely rubbish with describing scents so I've had a little look on some websites and it says that "magnified by white musks, noble benzoin comes together with a modern caramel accord to give the fragrance a truly unique signature" - this was taken from the Debenhams website where you can also get it for £41.50 (30ml).

It isn't my favourite ever scent but when I do make the effort to wear it, I actually really like it and it makes me feel very sophisticated as it's such a strong scented perfume. I do usually prefer lighter scents so I'll be interested to see what the newer L'Eau release is like (this time i'll definitely give it a spritz before i buy it!).

Overall I do think I'd recommend this for those that do like a heavier perfume that'll last all day and gain you some compliments along the way but if you do prefer something lightweight, fresh and girly I'd probably steer clear.

2014 is a brand new start

So most people's main resolution as the new year comes in is to make a fresh start of things and to do all that stuff that they've been putting off for so long or that they've wanted to do for a while. And every year I succumb to this tradition and take part in trying to kid myself that I will become a better person. Most years I fail and fall into a vicious circle of self loathing that I haven't done what I wanted to do or that I've not been the nicest I could. However, 2014 has been pretty different...

Unfortunately my year has started out with my first ever set of university exams which were probably the most stressful and the most fear inducing I have ever undertaken. But I really worked my ass off for them and I'm proud to say that I feel quite confident about them. I'm yet to see the results but they're the first exams that I have ever come out of feeling happy, and I very much think that's down to the amount of revision I have done. Therefore I have managed to stick to my resolution of working harder. But due to this huge amount of work and revision I've had to put everything else aside and as per, my blog has been neglected. However, with the new year, I've had a rethink and a bit of a revamp of my blog.

As you will see there's a new name - Beth's Bias. I decided to change because I felt that 'The English Girl' was just a little old and a little too young for me and I wanted something more personal and grown up. So I've chosen something that has my own name in it and something a bit more catchy. I also chose the word 'bias' because it's another word for opinion and that is essentially what my blog is - a pace to voice my opinion about all sorts of things. With this new name I'm hoping to sort of start my blog again. Obviously all my old posts will remain but I'm hoping to just make things a bit better. I've actually had my blog for about 2 and a bit years but it hasn't really gone anywhere and I think it's because I slack a lot when blogging. But I'm hoping that this change in name will give me a little boost to blog regularly, even if it's a just a couple of times a week (it's definitely a blogging resolution!).

But as there's been a change in name, most of my social media platforms have also changed names! My twitter name is now '@bethsbias' and my e-mail is 'bethsbias@outlook.com' - feel free to contact me through either of these ways. Also I've had to claim a different blog on Bloglovin' and as a result I've lost all of my followers on there which is a shame! So please go over and refollow me! You can use the button to the left side of my blog if you scroll down slightly or just go over to the website/app and type in 'beths bias' into the search bar and it's the top one!

So anyway, apart from all the changes to do with the blog, not much has been happening with my life. I finished my exams on Friday and spent the night just relaxing with friends and having a few drinks which was nice. I had the best lie in yesterday as it was the first time I hadn't set an alarm in a long day! I spent the day not doing much, just doing my washing, watching films and pampering myself which was very long overdue! And today, I decided to make a very impromptu surprise trip home to see my parents! Luckily I don't go to university far from where I live so it was very easy for me to get home. Safe to say my parents were very shocked and I've had the loveliest evening just being with them (and getting very frustrated with my new blog header - cue lots of googling and altering of the picture!).

I thought I'd also do a little round up of all the Instagram snaps I've taken since christmas time/the new year started :)

chocolate christmas yumminess /// krispy kreme goodies /// chocolate reindeer /// manchester christmas markets /// tapas lunch /// charity tree decorations /// naughty pencil case /// cath kidston christmas phone case /// christmas care package from my mum /// beautiful sunset /// new shoez /// tackiest christmas jumper going /// christmas necessities /// wagamama lunch /// my presents to my parents and cat /// new beautiful vagabonds /// my very own moomin toy (!!!) /// adorable new bunny phone case /// favourite ring /// freshly painted nails

So that's what I've been getting up to lately which isn't all that much. I really need to start taking more photos and putting more on Instagram I think. I'm hopefully going to keep up with these updates, maybe not weekly because I'm not sure I take enough for that, maybe monthly? One thing I am going to try and do for a weekly update though is something called a 'Sunday Reading'. Another of my resolutions is to read more books! I'm such a bookworm but never take the time to just sit down and curl up with a good story. So this year I'm going try and read a book a week and by doing a Sunday round up based on which book I've read that week should be good motivation. If you want to keep up with which books I've read, I'm reading or want to read, you should check me out on Goodreads. It's a great website for all book worms so feel free to go over and follow me on there - my display name is Beth Sutton.

That's all from me I think... I don't have much else to update on I don't think. Bit of a rambly post but I hope you got this far! Hopefully tomorrow will be more interesting! 

:)