Good Things - Deep Pore Anti Blemish Cleanser

I have quite oily skin which is prone to blackheads and blemishes, and have been looking for a cleanser that could help. I came across Good Things Deep Pore Anti Blemish Cleanser in Boots and have been using it for a couple of weeks now. It has extracts of fig and wild strawberry giving it a light, fruits of the forest fragrance and you can really smell berries. It does leave my skin feeling clean and noticeably clearer, but my skin did start to feel tight a few minutes after so its a good idea to moisturiser quite quickly afterwards. When you pour the liquid onto a cotton pad,it foams slightly so you really don't need much at all, just 3 drops per application is enough. You get 200ml in a bottle so it will last for ages. Good Things have a wider product range that includes both face and body products which are pretty reasonably priced. I will definitely been exploring the rest of the range http://www.goodthingsbeauty.com/

Budget Beauty - Cocoa Skin Therapy Oil

I picked up this little treat on a whim on a visit to my local pound store and will definitely be buying it again. Its a body oil containing Vitamin E and Cocoa Butter which claims to improve the appearance of stretch marks, scars, dry skin and ageing. I have been using it for a couple of weeks and it makes a lovely moisturiser, for very dry skin. My knees, elbows and feet are problem areas for dry skin so this has been really handy. Sometimes Cocoa Butter products can smell a bit sickly but this one wasn't. It still has that slight whiff of chocolate smell but its not over bearing. It's great as a massage oil and it comes in a 50ml bottle so handy to travel with. Bargain!

Holiday Shopping

I am off to Ibiza in September and I absolutely cannot wait! This will be my first holiday in over 12 months and to say I am in need of break is an understatement to say the least. I am terrible at shopping for holidays. I tend to leave it all to the last minute and get more excited about buying miniature beauty products than beach wear. This time round I'm determined not to spend the weekend before my holiday running round Topshop looking like a deranged sweating animal, desperately hunting down swimwear that won't leave me looking like Peppa Pig. Oh no, this year I am going to be organised, and I have already started - yay me! After a few hours traipsing round my local shopping centre, I impressed myself by picking up a few bargains.

This dress/tunic from Primark left me baffled and bemused when I saw it on the hanger. There was a rail full of them on sale for £5 and I'm not surprised they weren't shifting. At first glance I just couldn't work it out. The hanger was placed in the middle of the loop, leaving it looking like a very asymmetric and impossible to wear dress. It didn't help that the hanger string (you know - that little loop of black thread on the inside of tops/dresses so you can hang them up properly - hanger string - that's what I'm calling it) was on the opposite side of the non-existent shoulder. Fail. After taking it off the hanger and rotating it several different ways, I realised it was actually a one shoulder top. I was wearing black leggings at the time which went quite well together. Just need to add some wedges for a sexy clubbing outfit - good to go.

I am in love with this beach wrap. Just £12 from Matalan! I can so see myself wearing this with a floppy beach hat and monster sized shades, strutting about like the diva my vodka self thinks I am. It nips in at the waist with a drawstring to hide any post burger bulge of which I'm sure there will be many.

Here is the material in close up

Weekend Manicure

Don't hate me - but sometimes I just love rainy days. Admittedly not when I am partying and have spent 2 hours blow drying and straightening my thick, stubborn frizz, but if I have no plans, and it is windy and raining outside, I love being snuggled up on my sofa in the cosy warm. Throw in a bit of thunder and lightening and I am in seventh heaven. Rather than continuing to moan about the miserable weather, with no plans for my Sunday afternoon, I decided to indulge in a home manicure. Here are my tools:

I started of by cutting and filing my nails. You can see from this pic just how dry and flaky they were.

  

I then used a base coat and you can see the difference this made

Next was this gorgeous polish by Essie which was a freebie from Lastminute.com who were giving out samples as part of their spa promotions on Friday. Oh how I love a freebie, and I just love this colour!

Next up was a top coat. I used Seche Vite which is a bit expensive but totally worth it. It makes your nails look uber glossy and colour lasts a lot longer. A quick spray of Elegant Touch Rapid Dry and voila! Here is the end result.

June Beauty Empties



Empties



These are all of the beauty products that I have got through this month:

Clockwise from left:

Mitcham Advanced Control Deodorant in Powder Fresh

Doo Gro - Grow Repair Conditioner

Imperial Leather Aqua Therapy Bath

L'Oreal Nutri Soft 24 Hour Velvet Body Lotion

Body Shop Coconut Body Scrub

Dove Shea Butter Soap

Dove Pro-Age Hand Cream

My favourite product has to be the L'Oreal Nutri Soft 24 Hour Velvet Body Lotion. It smells fresh and feels light but still does a good job of moisturising which makes it ideal for the nasty humid weather we are experiencing at the moment. I'm usually not very loyal to body lotion brands. I mostlychoose moisturiser based on the cheapest that smells nice and suits dry skin. This one ticks all my boxes so when I spotted it at half price in Superdrug, I bought it in bulk. I'm down to my last bottle so went on the hunt for some more but they were out of stock. Please don't let it be discontinued!

Budget Beauty

I really fancied treating myself to a few beauty treats but being near the end of the month, funds are lower than I'd like so I had a little mooch around Primark and wondered down the beauty isle. I was pleasantly surprised.

The zip on my make up bag broke the other week so I had been keeping my eye out for a new one and came across this one for just £3. Its a cute oval shape with a soft lining, and when it's opened up fully you can see that it can hold quite a lot.

I absolutely adore this very retro lip treat, Dr Pepper lib balm and gloss. Bargain at £2.50 for the pair! They have a slightly sweet taste and they smell gorgeous. Think opening a bag of Haribo and having a good sniff and your getting there

                                                  Dr Pepper Lip Balm                                     

Pepper Lip Balm plus Lip Gloss

These pack of 4 nail files were just £1, and they come with a case

This 2 in 1 foundation and concealer brush was also £1 and I just love the colour!

Concealer end

Foundation end

I also picked up a travel size bottle of Agran Oil for the bargain price of £2.50. The ends of my hair tend to get quite dry so this stuff helps to keep it super soft

Wish List

Here is a round up of the things I have seen this week that I would love to get my mitts on!

A - River Island, Seamless Bodycon Dress, £15

B - Linzi Shoes, Lainey in Pink Suede, £35

C - H&M, Double Finger Ring, £3.99

D - Not On The High Street, Biscuit Dunkability Mug £12

E - Love-Makeup, OCC Lip Tar, £9.50 each

I was particularly excited about the biscuit mug from Not On The High Street. It has quite a retro look about it and I just love dunking biscuits! Perfect for the office.

The Lip Tar range from OCC comes in 33 different shades so there is something for everyone. With names like Hoochie, Harlot and Strumpet, I knew this was a brand I could get along with!

Handbags at Dawn

Paul's Boutique. Love it? Hate it? Never heard of it? What's your view. Mine personally is that it is a mid quality, affordable brand with a cute range of bags. However, that's just me and I hadn't really had any reason to think anything else, until today that is. 


#banpaulsboutique was trending on twitter today and my first thought was "why". Dig a little deeper and I found that a considerable sized chunk of the blogging community loathe Paul's Boutique because of the brand association with teenage girls. I was surprised to see that a post by www.britishbeautyblogger.com  discussing the Maisie bag received a backlash including a comment that they were the most hated bags in the UK. Harsh, maybe. It got me thinking though. How many of us would boycott a brand we once loved because a market segment we didn't identify with stared using it?


Personally, if I like something, I'll wear it and not care who else might have the same thing because for me, it's a question of style. My handbag can be more than just an extension of my outfit. If you wear it as the focal point, you'll learn there is more than one way to rock a bag.
And while we're on the subject, I thought I'd share the contents of my bag with you...

My (in my opinion) Gorgeous, Sexy, Maisie

And here is everything I've managed to cram in it today

These are the bits from my make up bag

Moxie Tampon Tin

Ibuprofen

Sleek Concealer

Nail Files

Clean and Clear Oil Absorbing Sheets (essential for my shiny by 10:00am face!)

Carmex Lip Balm

Blusher Brush

Hand Sanitizer

Garnier Hand Cream

Sleek Blusher

4Head Headache Balm

Plasters

May Beauty Empties

Empties

These are all the products I have got through this month

Clockwise from left:

Mitcham Advanced Control Deodorant in Powder Fresh

Maybelline One by One Volum' Express Mascara

Clean & Clear Deep Action Cream Wash

Imperial Leather Hair and Body Wash in Kick Start

Profectiy Mega Growth Daily Anti-Breakage Strengthener

Sleek Foundation in Henna

Boots Brazil Nut & Vanilla Body Butter

Maybelline Eye Studio Lasting Drama Gel Liner

Clean & Clear Morning Energy Shine Control Daily Facial Moisturiser

My favourite has to be Maybelline Eye Studio Lasting Drama Gel Liner. That one little pot has lasted me just over a year and is great for creating a smoky eye look. It comes with an applicator wand which can get a bit clunky if like me you use it every day, so be sure to give the wand a clean every now and then.

Free Benefit Make Up!

Ladies, ladies! The July issue of Glamour magazine (out Thursday 31st July) comes with a choice of 1 of 3 Benefit make up goodies in travel size. Choose from 'The Porefessional' (pore minimiser), 'That Gal' (face primer) worth £15 and 'Bad Gal' (mascara). Hurry, they won't be there for long!

Fun in the Sun

It's funny how sunshine can instantly put you in holiday mode. I'd been ridiculously excited about the weekend all week long, and as soon as it reached 5:30pm on Friday I practically skipped out of the office, and headed to Covent Garden to meet two of my friends for dinner and drinks. Venue of choice was Sway who not only accept Tastecard which meant 50% of food, but they were also running a promotion for 50% off all drinks until 8:30pm - Result! We took full advantage of the half price cocktail menu and indulged in a Sharer cocktail called Gold Blush which is a delicious mix of vodka, archers, apple and cranberry juice topped with prosecco, served in a disco ball - love!

Golden Blush

The food was great but the service for drinks was slow. Sway is great for a cheap evening with friends but give it a miss if your planning a special evening or have a hot date.

Following a very merry Friday I got up early and jumped on a train to Southend. I haven't been to Southend in years, but in the 26 degree heat there really was no better place to be than by the seaside. 

"Oh I do like to be beside the seaside"

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Sale!!!

Vivien of Holloway are having a sale! Check out the 1950's halter circle dress in so many different colours and patterns. Pure gorgeousness www.vivienofholloway.com 

New Nail Colour

I usually go for pink nails but today I fancied a change. This one is by No7, Stay Perfect in Totally Teal. I'm not 100% convinced but it is growing on me

Wish List

Summer is finally here which can only mean one thing, Summer wardrobe! Here is my wish list of things I would like to see in my wardrobe please

Black Beauty

Trying to find beauty products that match my skin tone is always a challenge. Since blemish balms or BB creams as they are commonly known, came onto the UK beauty scene I have been on the hunt to find one suitable for dark skin to no avail. A few weeks ago Anita Bhagwandas @MissAnitaB wrote a compelling article for Stylist magazine highlighting the lack of beauty products for women of darker skin tones. If you haven't read it yet, then take a look at this link to view the article online

Beauty Tip - Mascara

This tip came from my sister and it's a great one so thought I would share. When you have run out of mascara, don't throw it out straight away. Let it soak in hot water for 20 minutes and the mascara that has dried and stuck to the inside of the barrel will have liquefied so you can get another weeks use out of it.

Hello

Hello and welcome to Miss Lady Glamour! My name is Jodie, I live in Essex and I have decided to set up a blog as a creative outlet for my musings, random thoughts and snippets about things that make me smile. I'm a girly girl with an eye for a bargain, and sparkly, shiny things make me happy.  I'm very lucky as I have a slightly unhinged but utterly wonderful family and fabulous friends. I love thunder storms, rainbows, jewellery, open fires, cuddles, swallows, wine, premonitions, make up, inappropriate giggling fits, the dark, bows, sleep, vintage, coffee, sunshine, rockabilly, chocolate, reading, pineapple, handbags and surprises.