067 : Fudge Clean Blonde Shampoo

Fudge Clean Blonde Toning Shampoo - £12.55

I absolutely love being blonde, after years and years of being a brunette I went back to blonde about 5 years ago and it's been a constant struggle to keep yellow tones at bay. I've tried more violet and toning shampoos over the years than I can shake a stick at, but this might just be the best one yet.

Fudge Clean Blonde Violet Toning Shampoo claims to eradicate yellow tones from blonde hair and it does just that. I soak my hair and pop this on, its a really deep violet colour so looks a little daunting at first but it smells so beautiful. I wash mine straight off again and my hair is evenly toned with no yellow whatsoever. Sounds almost too good to be true right?! 

This shampoo can be left on for up to 5 minutes if you're after a gorgeous silver shade or a pale lilac, but if you're looking to just knock out the brasiness in your blonde, I'd wash it off fairly quickly because it doesn't take long at all for it to change!

The only qualm I've had with this is that it isn't quite nourishing enough for my hair, after years of having highlights and bleach put through my locks, its in fairly crap condition so I always use a really moisturising conditioner afterwards - other than that, I'd say its pretty perfect and I can't imagine replacing it with anything else just yet!

Have you guys tried any Fudge hair products?! 

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066 : Review - Clarins Blue Orchid Facial Oil

Clarins Blue Orchid Facial Oil - £32/30ml

I've really been getting into facial oils just lately, my skin has been really dehydrated, especially with the weather blowing hot and cold. I picked up the Clarins Blue Orchid Facial Oil after reading amazing reviews about it, and I haven't been left disappointed. The Blue Orchid Facial Oil claims to restore vitality, radiance and freshness to dehydrated skin. Containing essential oils of patchouli and blue orchid to tone and revitalise skin, along with hazelnut oil to deliver moisture. 

The bottle is really beautiful, a lovely clear glass with a little pipette to dispense as little or as much as you need. I love a clear bottle and being able to see how much product you have left - I found with the brown Estee Lauder bottles I could never see how much oil I had left and although they look luxurious, they just aren't practical. I've found that you only need a two-three drops of this little lovely to cover your entire face and it doesn't leave any residue or make your skin feel remotely tacky, it just sinks in so beautifully, I've been using it morning and evening after cleansing and my skin looks and feels so much healthier. It has a beautiful glow which I haven't had for a long time and it stays hydrated all day, as well as leaving my pores much less noticable. 

The scent is a bit of a love it or hate it. Personally, I love it. My boyfriend hates it! It has a really natural, almost woody scent. It's a difficult one to describe but its absolutely lovely.  Price wise, at £32 its really reasonable, 30ml doesn't sound like a massive amount but when you're only using a few drops a day you're bound to get a good few months use out of one bottle. I haven't bought any facial oils under £30 so I can't compare quality wise but this is definitely worth its price tag! 

Have you tried any of the Clarins Facial Oils?

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061 : February Birchbox Review

I don't think I've had a subscription to anything since Sabrina's Secrets when I was about 8 (90's kids remember this?!) - I've been toying with the idea of Beauty Boxes for a while and after doing some thorough research, I settled on Birchbox. I really like that Birchbox covers all areas in their boxes, from beauty, to body & lifestyle. The boxes are beautifully presented and the products come in a little cotton bag along with cute little postcards (does anyone else want to frame theirs?!) - on the back of them is information about each of the products you've recieved and a little tutorial.

The theme for this months Birchbox is 'Birchbox Loves' - tying with valentines and all things romantic. I absolutely loved the little card with the tickboxes titled 'Love Is...' - it's a really nice touch to an already lovely box. I recieved six products in my box, one full sized. There was a couple of brands that were totally new to me, which is one of the reasons why I signed up, I love discovering new brands and products and sample sizes are a great way to do it. Some of the products were slightly disappointing but there were others that I absolutely loved. I recieved - 

Eyeko Fatstick - Gilt

The Eyeko Fatstick was a new product to me, I've tried Eyeko eyeliners and didn't really get along with them. The Fatstick is a creamy eye crayon which can be used as a smokey eyeshadow, all along the lash line, or blended on the outer corners for a more demure look. I really liked the shade of this, its a gorgeous metallic brown and the consistency was really soft and creamy, which made it easy to blend, plus it was completely crease free and smudgeproof. My only qualm about the Fatstick is it was just too thick, it was hard to get a good amount on the crease of the eye just because it's so chunky. I think it'd work much better along the lash line. Otherwise, it was pretty impressive.

Caudalie Vinoperfect Radiance Serum - 10ml

I adore Caudalie, I absolutely love the Vinoperfect range and use the face mask on a regular basis so I was super happy to have recieved this little beauty in my Birchbox. This serum is designed to give you an even complexion and to eradicate any dark spots. I don't suffer with dark spots on my face so I can't comment on whether that worked or not, but my skin did feel really lovely and soft, plus it smells gorgeous. It's oil free and the consistency is very fluid. I really enjoyed the sample of this but I'm not sure if I'd buy the full size product, it does contain glycerin which is supposed to moisturise the skin, which I think would be great if you have a normal skin type but mines really dry so for me it just isn't moisturising enough. (My skin literally drinks this stuff!)

Electric Hair Electric Hydrate Shampoo - 30ml

Electric is a new brand to me, I'd never heard of their products before trying out the Hydrate Shampoo. I was over the moon to get this in my box, as someone who gets their hair highlighted every 6 weeks or so, it's in quite bad condition and it tends to get quite dry quite quickly. This shampoo was a lifesaver for me, the bottle says to use an almond sized amount but I had to use a fair bit more to get a good lather as my hairs quite thick and long. It smells so, so good and it really put some much needed moisture back into my locks. At £17.50 for a full sized bottle, it is quite pricey but I definitely think its worth its price tag. 

London Butterflies Winter Jasmine & Starflower with Sweet Almond Oil Whipped Body Cream - 30ml

London Butterflies is another new brand to me, I think they're a fairly new brand - born and bred in London. This was by far my favourite product in my Birchbox. I did end up buying the full size version, at £37 it's quite expensive but so worth the price tag. I absolutely adore it. It smells divine and my skin has never felt so soft, I usually use the Clarins Moisture Rich Body Lotion after my baths - designed for dry skin. But I think it's most definitely been replaced. It literally smells good enough to eat, even the boyfriend loves it! I really love the packaging too, a really simple glass jar with a cute butterfly on the top. I'd most definitely, definitely recommend this!

theBalm cosmetics Stainiac - Beauty Queen - 1.2ml

I've heard really amazing things about theBalm products, but I have to say I was massively disappointed with Stainiac. It's a lip/blush water based gel. You can use it on your lips for a glossy look or dab it on your cheeks and blend as a blush, neither of this techniques really worked for me and I didn't really like how it felt a little tacky on my lips. I dabbed it onto my cheeks and blended but it didn't really make much difference in terms of colour. Did anyone else recieve this product? What did you guys think of it?

Vita Coco Coconut Oil

Vita Coco is a brand I've dabbled with in the past, I've made delicious smoothies using their coconut water but haven't had a chance to use the Coconut Oil just yet so I was really happy to be able to give this a try. I love that it has so many uses, you can use it in the bath to soften skin, remove make-up (really!), as a natural energy boost when mixing it into coffee, softening hands and feet, a hair rescue treatment or for cooking. I think I'm going to try using it for cooking as a replacement for either vegetable oil or butter, and perhaps in my hair. I've heard really amazing things about coconut oil - plus its super healthy for you - can't really go wrong can you?!

So there's the lowdown on February's Birchbox - do any of you guys subscribe to Birchbox? What did you think of this months box?! - would love to hear from you!

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059 : Review - Lush Rub Rub Rub Shower Scrub

Lush Rub Rub Rub Shower Scrub - £8.75/300g

I absolutely love Lush. I adore all their products (Rose Jam Bubbleroon anyone?), the sweet scents and seeing my sons cooing over swirls of gorgeous colours and glitter in bowls of warm water. I recently picked up the Rub Rub Rub Shower Scrub on a bit of a whim, I actually went in for bath bombs but realised it's all I ever buy from there. I am besotted with this product, literally besotted. I've used a lot of different body scrubs over the years, I just love having super soft smooth skin and Rub Rub Rub definitely delivers. I use this on my legs before getting the bath, rubbing a generous amount of this sea salty goodness in and smoothing it all over. It's quite abrasive but once its washed off, my legs feel utterly divine and smell absolutely delicious. The only qualm I've ever had with body scrubs is that they don't keep you smooth and exfoliated for days afterwards. But this does. My skin has never been so beautifully soft, with no real need to moisturise afterwards. I'd buy this again, again and again. Plus, you can use it on your hair too. Multifuctional products are always a winner in my book! Whats your favourite Lush product?!

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057 Review : L'Oreal Color Riche / Blakes Pure Red

Ohh my goodness! Long time no see! I have been so utterly desperate to update Blush & Belle but my laptop decided to go to laptop heaven, fortunately I'm up and running again! I've missed blogging massively and have tons to fill you guys in on, but I'll save that for a later post. I've been super busy trying to get organised for Christmas, I've actually been pretty good and am all shopped and wrapped. I can't wait to spend the Christmas period surrounded by loved ones, definitely my favourite time of year.

So aside from doing all of my Christmas shopping, I picked up a few little things for myself. I never wear lipstick, I have a lot of it, but it's rare that I decide to put it on. I'm not sure why, partly morning rushing and partly because I've never found a shade that I've fallen utterly in love with. Until now. Meet Blakes Red..

I have to apologise for the awful picture quality, my DSLR is broken too so I'm having to use my iPhone for now! Anyway, I'm not sure why I was drawn to this lipstick, as red is a bit of a brave shade for me, but I figured it would be perfect for this time of year and its the most beautiful red against my Morticia Addams-esque skintone. Plus I have a massive girl crush on Blake Lively (please say I'm not the only one!)

I absolutely adore the packaging, I love L'oreals sleek, matte black casing and gold trims. They always look so much more expensive than they are! The thing that blew me away about this lipstick was the longevity of it, it literally lasted all day long, even after eating and drinking it didn't need reapplying and hadn't budged. Great for when you're working all day with minimal breaks too! Blake, I think I've met my match.

There are three other shades in the exclusive Reds collection; Eva's Pure Red, Julianne's Pure Red & Liya's Pure Red. Have any of you guys tried out the Reds collection? What did you think of it?

You can find  Blake's Pure Red in Boots, Superdrug and other good chemists.

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049 Review : House of Holland Sweet Tooth Nails

Hey lovelies! Hope you're all having a super weekend, despite the washout weather! I love having some time to relax when it gets to the end of the week, Sundays are always the perfect excuse to do absolutely nothing!

If you'd have asked me six months ago to wear false nails, I probably would have laughed and said absolutely not! I'm not sure why but in the past I've always really struggled with them, my natural nails are fairly sure and I tend to pick at them when I get stressed out. I could never get used to having a longer length nail and to be honest it still takes me about half an hour to write a text, but I'm definitely warming to them. The first false nails I tried were the Elegant Touch French Manicures, I really loved them and they looked so chic. Then I saw the House of Holland range in my local Boots and fell absolutely in love, from lego bricks, monopoly boards, cats, tie dye, natural nudes, tweed and of course ones that come with letters so you can customise them yourself. There are so many to choose from and they're all in designs you probably couldn't get done at a salon.

(House of Holland Sweet Tooth Nails - £9)

I opted for 'Sweet Tooth' - you can't go wrong with ice creams in the summer months! These £9 kits gets you 24 nails in five different colours, blue, pink, white, yellow and green. You also get a file and some glue to stick them on. I've currently had these on for five days and they're showing no signs of budging - usually my false nails ping off after a couple of days! They are fairly long, you can file them down to make them a little shorter if you're not keen on a longer length but I think it would distort the shape of the cone ever so slightly so I've left mine how they are. I am absolutely besotted with them, they're so utterly perfect for the summer. 

(on my toes - Tanya Burr, Be Bright, Be Happy, Be You!)

I did also pick up the Royal Explosion nails which are utterly gorgeous, the plain darker nails had glitter underneath which was an added bit of luxury!

Have you tried any of House of Holland nails?! Let me know what you think!

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048 Review : MUA Palettes

Hey Lovelies! Hope you all had a lovely weekend! I can't believe its July tomorrow, is it just me or is this year flying by?! Now, I'm not sure about you guys, but when it comes to buying make-up, skincare, bath products... well anything really.. I'm a bit of a massive snob. I'm not sure why, I've just always opted for higher end brands, I've always believed that you get what you pay for, and if you pay crap money, you get... well, crap. That was until quite recently, when I saw the MUA palettes floating around the blogosphere and people were raving & raving about them. I know I'm a little late to the party on these little beauties, but I love them so much, I couldn't not write about them.

MUA has been a brand I've known quite little about, its one of those brands that I tend to walk past in Superdrug, notice its there but never stop to get a good gander at their products. I've paid over £30 for high end brand palettes in the past, and at £4 each, you just can't say no to MUA. I was shocked at just how affordable they were and to be honest I wasn't expecting amazing quality, but have to admit, I was definitely far too close minded.

 (top left: Undress Me Too. top right: Heaven & Earth. bottom left: Undressed. bottom right: Starry Night)

As you can see, my Undressed palette has been really well used! The one thing I love about these palettes is that they blend so beautifully, the shades are all super wearable and the amount of looks you can create with them are almost endless. I always use a base on my lids before applying eyeshadow, I'm currently using a Mac Paint Pot in shade Bare Study, as a creamy, light champagne coloured base. I then build up the colour on my lids, starting with the inner corner, working out to the middle and onto the outer corners. 

 (MUA Undressed - £4)

This has to be my favourite of the MUA palettes that I've tried. It had me at hello, I'm a sucker for neutral shades and with this, you can create perfect smokey eyes. I love shades of gold and champagne and with twelve choices in this pretty little palette, I think its a definite staple and one that I would buy again and again.

 (MUA Undressed Me Too - £4)

A beautiful addition to the MUA Palette family, Undressed Me Too has 12 gorgeous, timeless shades. I prefer shimmer shadows over matte, but this palette has a really good combo of the two which blend together beautifully. I do prefer its little sister but I think its a nice addition to have!

  (MUA Heaven & Earth - £4)

 Heaven & Earth is a really lovely palette, I picked it up on a bit of a whim, after all, you can never have too many neutrals right?! I really fell in love with all the gorgeous shades and with the berries and deep golds, I think this is going to be my staple palette for winter, the lighter shade in the top left is great for highlighting the inner corner and under the brow bone but I definitely feel this is more of an autumn palette.

 (MUA Starry Night - £4)

Starry Night was another palette that I picked up on a bit of a whim, I don't often wear coloured eyeshadows but I really loved the colours in this palette. It has twelve beautiful shades of blues, pinks and greys which you can use to create endless amounts of looks. I think a lot of them would be perfect for nights out. I've used the purple shades quite a few times and didn't think I'd like them too much, I'm a little scared of having too much colour on my eyes and always feel I'd look a little clown-like - but these blend so gorgeously that they actually don't look overpowering when they're on the eye. I love that you can blend with them with the soft champagne from the Undressed Palette, or the silver in this one. I have to say, I'm an MUA convert. Utterly besotted!

Have you tried any of the MUA Palettes? What does everyone think?!

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