clinique chubby stick in TWO TON TOMATO

I've always wanted to hop on the chubby stick bandwagon but it's taken me a while to do so. I first saw the Clinique chubby sticks in a magazine way before I started blogging and have wanted to try one ever since. Therefore it was safe to say I was very excited to give them a go when I finally picked one up for myself. I chose the colour Two Ton Tomato which is a very bright and classic red and I'm really happy I did as it's such a beautiful colour!

clinique chubby sticks: £17 CLINQUE

As a sufferer from extremely dry lips I was very enticed by the offer of moisturising properties along with pigmentation. Two Ton Tomato is a slightly orange based red but shows up as very true red when put on the lips. The product gives a subtle but build-able colour which I very much liked. It meant that I could just have a slight hint of colour for a laid back look but add more layers to give a more noticeable pop of colour. One swipe gives more of a stain effect but when wiped a few times over the lip it looks a lot like the above swatch picture - a gorgeous red. There's also a juicy look to the lips which is very appealing and gives the face a fresh sort of look.

It's very moisturising and when I use it, it feels a lot like a coloured lip balm (which it did actually set out to be). Unfortunately, if you haven't prepped your lips before use, it does highlight any dry patches you may have and sits in the creases but as you continue to use it, the dryness of your lips starts to deteriorate and I found that it acted very much like your normal high end lip balm. My lips felt much smoother during/after use and a lot less dry so not only would I recommend this on pigmentation properties but also the moisturising promises that come with it!

It really is a gorgeous, gorgeous colour and it's not too bright so perfect for day time wear. I've worn this on a number of occasions during the day and I definitely don't feel like I was 'overdone' in any way. I think these chubby sticks would be great for topping up on the go, especially the lighter colours but maybe for the darker colours, such as this one, a mirror would be handy just to make sure you don't end up with any smudges. The wear time isn't too good, I found, but I do tend to rub my lips together a lot. Even so, I don't think it really matters as there is always a slight red stain left behind and they are so super easy to keep applying!

I felt that this was a great product for those starting out on bold/red lip colours or those who may be afraid to try a bold/red colour. They're also perfect for those who want a more subtle lip colour to use during the day that isn't a light pink or nude. For night time I would, personally, pick something else as the longevity isn't too brill but I really do recommend these Clinique chubby sticks anyway!

radox shower gels

I bought these shower gels a very long time ago but due to having a whole host of other shower beauty bits to try out it's taken me a while to get round to giving these a go. I have very much enjoyed using these too and can assure you that this is going to be a very positive post that I hope will persuade you to give at least one of them a go!

radox shower gels: £1.98 each BOOTS

So there are three scents/flavours: Berry Burst, Cherry Blast and Coconut Kiss. I picked them because they stood out a bit more than your average shower gel and were a lot brighter. They also appeared slightly 'juicy' (if that makes any sense at all) and just overall very appealing! They smell really amazing even from just opening the lid which is very promising. The berry and cherry ones were super fruity and the coconut one gave off a sort of soothing and relaxing feel. All three gels contain oils/milk which makes them sound like they'll be nice and nourishing which is great for someone like me who does suffer from dry patches but can never be bothered to do the extra step of moisturising after they get out of the shower!

I found that each of them is quite hard to get lathered up (even with exfoliating gloves) but once they are lathered they are a dream to work with. The scent hits you instantly which is lovely and lingers on the skin afterwards but nothing overpowering so you could still use a perfume over the top. The smell also lingered in my shower which meant my whole room smelt lovely afterwards too. They are quite runny so you could pour out more than you intended to but there is nothing wrong with using too much shower gel to be honest. Plus at that price, it doesn't really matter if you run out quickly as they're super cheap to stock up on! After use my skin gelt so so smooth and soft meaning they all have wonderful moisturising properties. My skin felt really clean too which is great when you need a refreshing shower.

I felt that the fruity ones would be great for the morning as they left my skin feeling really clean which is perfect for when you need a quick, refreshing shower. The coconut one also left me feeling clean but gave off more of a luxurious, relaxing feel and may be good for evening showers or just before you go out for the night.

Overall I would say that these shower gels are just so lovely to use. Obviously you don't need to buy all of them but if I was to recommend one it would be Berry Burst. It's my favourite, is super fruity, has the best scent and the smell lingers the longest afterwards.

little manchester haul

So my exams finished a couple of weeks ago and I still had a week or so until my new term starts so I decided to go home for a bit. I did it as a surprise and it's safe to say that my mum and dad were very very shocked. It was super nice to make them happy and I'm very much enjoying just relaxing at home - I've mostly been watching This Morning and having a Harry Potter marathon...

But on one of the days I decided I'd make a trip into Manchester. I haven't actually had a good shopping spree/bought something lovely for myself for a while and I was really in the mood. I still had some money/gift cards left from my birthday last year and some from Christmas, along with a bit from my student loan that I've got saved up so I figured a trip to Manchester would be the perfect chance to use some of it!

I also thought this would be a great opportunity to do a haul style post to show you what I bought!

grey dress: £22 TOPSHOP

checked dress: £32 TOPSHOP

t-shirt: £20 TOPSHOP

bomber: £50 TOPSHOP

I don't regularly go clothes shopping unless I need a particular basic or if it's for an event so I thought I'd pop into Topshop to see what they were offering at the moment. I loved these two dresses and figured they'd be great to wear just casually to uni or if I'm off out with friends during the day. I fell in love with this top as soon as I saw it. I'm a huge cat lover and thought it was quite a quirky top that I knew I would just love wearing! Now I don't usually go for wacky jackets and I was a bit wary of buying this one as it was quite pricy and I didn't know whether I would get away with wearing it but as soon as I tried it on I fell in love!

I was also looking into buying some new makeup and thought I'd pop into the huuugggeee Selfridges in Manchester to just have a little browse. I naturally ended up gravitating towards the MAC counter and as usual one of the sales assistants asked if I needed any help. However, instead of saying I was fine, like I normally do, and carrying on just looking, I actually asked for her help with looking at some base products and the basics that she recommended. It ended up with me having a slight make over and getting to grips with using brushes (which i was an absolute flop at before then!) before spending an awful lot of money, but I'm justifying it with the fact that a) the sales assistant was so so lovely and b) I do need actually need all of it... But one moral of the story is that from now on I will always ask for help/the opinion of the assistants as most of the time they do actually know what they are talking about and most of them are genuinely nice people!

studio fix fluid: £21.50 MAC

foundation pump: £4.00 MAC

prep + prime highlighter (in radiant rose): £18 MAC

prep + prime transparent finishing powder: £20 MAC

powder blush (in fleur power): £18 MAC

I also popped into Boots to pick up my most wanted beauty tools. Ever since these brushes exploded onto the blogging scene with an abundance of positive reviews I knew I had to get my hands on them. I have some Bobbi Brown brushes and whilst I love them, they're getting old now and I definitely don't have as many as this! After my mini make over at the MAC counter I was more eager to get some brushes as they really do change the finish to your whole look. So I sort of went for a big splurge and got all the sets on offer. I cannot wait to try these out and I'll definitely be giving my thoughts on what they're like some time in the future!

the core collection: £21.99 BOOTS

the starter set: £21.99 BOOTS

the limited edition duo-fiber collection: £23.99 BOOTS

So there is my little haul from Manchester! I definitely spent too much money but I very much enjoyed doing so and definitely felt like I deserved too after my exams and not really spending that much on myself for a few months!

I'm super excited to start using the make up and brushes so I'm sure individual reviews will be coming soon!