UK Beauty & Lifestyle Blog

Makeup Revolution // Flawless Palette Review

an image of makeup revolution flawless palette
an image of makeup revolution flawless palette
an image of makeup revolution flawless palette
an image of makeup revolution flawless palette swatched
an image of makeup revolution flawless palette swatched
an image of makeup revolution flawless palette swatched
an image of makeup revolution flawless palette swatched
R-L - Row 1 | Paper (yellow toned base shadow), Soft Glow (inner/brow highlight), Buff (taupe shimmer), Highlite(like the name suggests), Angel (pale yellow shimmer), Unlimited (deep taupe shimmer), Brew (bronze) & Silver Smoke (dark-grey shimmer)
R-L - Row 2 | Almost There (matte light brown), Uncover (light warm taupe), Barely Pink (matte highlight), Lowlite (warm pink shimmer), Golden Night (gold), Gold Digger(bronze gold), Cheer Less (orange bronze shimmer)& Blue Stars (blue grey with silver glitter)
R-L - Row 3 | Smudge(warm brown), Shimmer Heart(oyster pink shimmer), Universal(red toned brown shimmer), Copper Shimmer (as name suggests), Medal(golden), Darkest Shimmer(deep dark brown), Tarnish(brown black) & Black Tie(black with blue glitter)
R-L - Row 4 | Pure Chocolate(chocolate brown matte), Raw(grey taupe matte), Red Night(dark pink shimmer), Molten Chocolate(deep brown), Burgundy(deep burgundy, golden shimmer, Green Stars(green/brown shimmer), Cafe Noir(grey brown matte)& Night(light black)

If you haven't already heard of Makeup Revolution, where the hell have you been!? The latest budget beauty brand on the scene have been causing quite the storm online with their weekly launches of yet more wonderful gems. This weekend sees the launch of two brand new 32 eyeshadow palettes, Flawless and Eyes Like Angels. I had the pleasure of Flawless landing on my doormat this morning, a collection of shimmering and matte nudes compared to the more experimental and daring shades that Eyes Like Angels consist of. Both palettes retail for just £8, with a total weight of 16g for the palette making the eye shadows 0.5g each.

Usually budget beauty brands stick to cheap and flimsy packaging, the lids snap off and you're greeted with cheap applicators gathering shadow dust. Each Makeup Revolution palette is encased in a pretty classy black casing with gold stamping. Once you've flipped the secure catch you're not only greeted with glistening shadows but a large, full size mirror - something everyone I've shown the palettes to have all commented about straight away. Flawless comes in a rose gold box, a little Naked 3-esq don't you think?

Now, not only do I not know how the folks at Makeup Revolution keep whipping up all these new products...but how an earth are they coming up with all the names for shadows alone. Until receiving Flawless today, my favourite of their palettes had been What you waiting for, due to the witty names (suiting the weekend antics) that accompanied the fantastic shade range. Flawless may not be as witty but the shade names fit each shadow perfectly.

Out of the two palettes launching today, I'm ecstatic to have Flawless in my collection, every nude shadow lover needs one in their stash. With 32 shadows to play around with this weekend I'll be rocking this palette come day and night and reporting back on their fall out and staying powder. From swatching alone these gems are so rich, creamy and pretty dreamy to blend but like all there will be a few shadows that disappoint slightly such Silver Smoke, Blue stars, Black Tie and due to their hard, grainy textures. Tip - use a wet brush and transform them! What do you guys think? Will you be picking up your Flawless palette? My personal favourites from the 32 are  Soft Glow, Buff, Highlite, Smudge, Shimmer Heart, Universal & Copper Shimmer. Lucy xx
Disclaimer: press sample, for review consideration only, no payment received. see disclaimer page for more.

lucyyblends // banana & oat smoothie

Following on from last weeks green tea & blueberry slush, I wanted to share the smoothie I've been making the most. I've surprised myself with how much I've enjoyed drinking this breakfast smoothie as I've never been a fan of bananas due to their nauseating texture - who's with me? This recipe is especially perfect if you're someone who has porridge every morning but finding it harder to enjoy as the warmer weather sticks around. 

Again, this recipe has been taken from my recent app find Whole Living Smoothies. All you'll need; one banana, half a cup of plain fat free yogurt, half a cup of skimmed milk, a quarter cup of oats, 1 teaspoon of honey and 1 cup of ice. Chuck it all into the blender and blitz until smooth. If you're to follow the recipe exactly it calls for a humongous tablespoon of honey which personally I think is WAY too much. It also calls for 2 teaspoons of flaxseed which are full of omega-3s, fibre and phytoestrogens. I don't have any in the cupboard and need to place an order. It doesn't effect the taste with or without and is still incredibly good for us. 

At only 212 calories per serving it's a great breakfast choice, low in fat and by including oats keeps me going until lunch. I'd imagined the smoothie to be too thick to pass through a straw due to the thickening of oats but it's not the case at all. I've also made this smoothie with a mango in place of the banana. As delicious as it was it's just too sweet and high in sugars to have as often as I do the banana and oat. Lucy xx

home touches // with Melody Maison

an image of a white metal jug with home sweet home on
an image of a white lace cake stand jewellery holder
an image of a white wooden post rack
an image of melody maisons wooden love blocks
an image of love is in the air wooden sign
A few weeks ago (how time flies by so fast!?) I had a rather exciting and special delivery from my most loved interior company around. My bedroom could be questioned as a second showroom I've spent that much over the last few years. Switching rooms and redecorating called for a few finishing touches, gaps to be filled and items to be replaced with prettier editions. I spent the weekend rearranging countless times before getting snap happy with my slice of Melody Maison heaven.

White Home Sweet Home Metal Jug - £11.95
Delving into the box I first pulled out this beautiful jug. I've been hunting for a french flower jug for months and this one turned out to be everything I'd imagined. The jug is made of metal and therefore very light (also Lucy proof) and perfect for both inside and out though it'll be strictly staying on my dressing table. If you've read previous room tour posts you'll know that I have two special pieces of furniture that feature hand painted birds and sweet quotes on. I absolutely love finding small items to carry on the theme with this jug doing just so. And as much as I love having fresh flowers, my eyes can't take any more irritation so I've used my pink flower posy again from MM which is as old as LW.

Two Tier Mini Cake Stand Jewellery Stand - £8.95
Second to follow was this adorable lace inspired, miniature cupcake stand. Last summer I featured my way of storing Lush products with a much larger cream stand. I eventually grew tired of cleaning up the mesh and it looking bulky on my shelf. I'm over the moon to have this little gem in its place where instead of containing my bath bombs and bubble bars, it's holding little black pots of goodness and my holy grail origins masks. Each layer's base is covered in rather than the open mesh design of my previous. If I do eventually cut down on my bubble bars then I'll revert back to the old storage idea. This stand looks great for nail polishes to, fitting A LOT of OPI polish bottles perfectly. Sold as jewellery but incredibly versatile along with being a complete bargain at only £8.95, plus free shipping.

Love Is In The Air wooden hanging love plaque - WAS £7.95 NOW £3.45
The next item is a complete bargain and will most certainly be a hit with the shabby chic fans amongst us. This wooden, hand painted sign and light grey text fits perfectly with my theme. It's replaced the old sign that was way too yellow toned to begin with. Despite being larger than my previous the sign balances well on my curtain rail pole and looks great when my rather plain curtains are drawn.

Floral Wooden Love Blocks - £8.95
Usually I only come across the standard, wooden cut out lettering's/words in home decor stores. It's a nice change to see darker, high quality wooden blocks with contrasting pastel cut outs. Each block varies in height, whether you have them tightly packed together or spaced out, they look great. There was no questions where to put the floral blocks. They immediately went to fill up my tallboy dresser top where my TV stands, as the top of the unit is black and bare compared to the rest of my white and cream pieces not to mention.

White Wooden Post Rack - WAS £8 - NOW £5.95
The last item to unwrap was this sweet, white wooden 'post' rack which I've decided not to use for letters but as part of my vanity set up that I'll be featuring fully in my next interior post. I adore the font style chosen and despite being quite petite this rack will hold A LOT of post, even heavier items without tumbling over. Again, already affordable but it's also been reduced as part of the summer sale. Lucy didn't you have a similar rack? The older rack now has a home in the spare room holding magazines, it was always too big and bulky for my set up. Lucy xx
Disclaimer: press sample, for review consideration only, no payment received. see disclaimer page for more.

review // Granny Takes a Dip | Lush

When placing yet another Lush order I couldn't help but slip a few of Lush's latest additions into the basket. Lush really have been kicking out new products for summer, along with replacing the Retro side of the site with limited edition delights, freshly whipped up in the all new Lush Kitchen. Rather than taking the usual bath bomb form, Granny Takes a Dip £3.25 follows in the suits of Happy Pill by taking on the flat pill form...only this time made up of four psychedelic circles.

Although retailing slightly more than most of the Lush bath bombs, Granny Takes a Dip turns out to be great value for money. The different shape of bomb now means it's easier to break up. You won't be chipping any bath tubs or floor tiles when it comes to trying to make the most of your bath time treats. Ordering three, I used the first whole while only half per bath with my other two. Each time the entire upstairs has been left smelling pretty wonderful while the waters just as colourful and a deep purple. Some bath bombs fizz away in a matter of seconds, Granny Takes a Dip takes its time. Bright neon shades disperse around for a good 15 minutes, frothing and fizzing before yet another colour expands into the bath. By now you'll be wondering what an earth is the fragrance? To me personally it reminds me of the chocolate and lime sweets - anyone else agree? Though is really fragranced with lemon oil, black pepper oil, ginger oil and gardenia extract to create the ultimate uplifting and energising pamper you'll ever have. I hope this bath bomb is around to stay for a very, very long time. Lucy x

lucyyblends // green tea + blueberry slush

an image of green tea and blueberry slush recipe
Recently I've been getting into making my own juices, smoothies and slush like drinks. With the weather warming up I do struggle to have an appetite some days, along with increasingly feeling a little insecure with my body post winter. When watching Daisy's recent favourite video she mentioned the app Whole Living by Martha Stewart and is full of healthy smoothie recipes. I downloaded immediately and the next day I was blitzing away, with a green tea + blueberry 'slush' top of the list. Depending on what I have in the house then I'll adapt most of the recipes from the app, I thought it'd be a great addition to the Lucyy Bakes series here on LW.

The green tea and blueberry slush is the perfect drink for a lazy mid-afternoon through to the summer evenings and serves two. A single serving is only 50 calories while full of benefits for our skin and bodies, blueberries and green tea are the perfect duo. If blueberries aren't for you, I've also made this drink with raspberries.

It couldn't be any easier to make your green tea & blueberry slush. You'll need half a cup of blueberries & two cups of green tea at room temperature. Simply sort your blueberries into compartments of an ice cube tray. Then fill with green tea before freezing. Once frozen, puree in a blender with you're remaining green tea and blueberries. If you follow the app it calls for a tablespoon of agave nectar, I personally didn't want to include this, nor did I have it in the cupboard. I've read too many conflicting articles about this ingredient to believe it has any nutritional benefit. There's no need to sweeten. With measures for the ingredients being in cups on the app it was great to pull out my Matryoshka Doll measuring cups.

Would these be posts you'd like to see on LW? I am in no way partnered with this app, Daisy simply mentioned it and I absolutely love it. There's endless recipes to try out all in different sections such as - immunity boosting, essential, meal in a glass, allergen free, detox and weight-loss. You can adjust the text size, share, add notes and save your favourites for quickness. Pretty impressive right? It also shows you all the nutritional facts, dietary needs and explains in detail why the ingredients are so great for us. Lucy xx

Love Me Beauty // June Menu One


an image of love me beauty menu one june
an image of love me beauty menu one june
an image of love me beauty menu one june
an image of model co shine ultra lip gloss in fairy floss
an image of nyx cosmetics advanced salon formula nail polish in winter
an image of montagne jeunesse brazilian mud fabric masque
an image of beauty uk eyeshadow palette in earth child
an image of beauty uk earth child swatched
an image of beauty uk earth child swatched
an image of urban veda purifying day cream
Its time for our monthly dose of Love Me Beauty excitement, the beauty box storming the market due to the unique option of choosing from three different menus. June marks their first birthday, with an exciting contents featuring four full size products out of the five along with another little extra. I eventually decided on menu one which turned out to contain quite a few gems! I'd love to hear if you've subscribed to Love Me Beauty recently, which menu did you go for?

Model Co - Shine Ultra Lip Gloss in Fairy Floss - RRP £12
Having only tested a Model Co Mascara previously I was intrigued to try their lip glosses. I'm not overly into my glosses, though when summer hits they're definitely pulled out of my collection. Their Shine Ultra Lip Glosses aren't overly sticky, are long lasting and pack a fair bit of colour to the lip. Fairy Floss has been reached for every day and reapplied throughout the day due to the packaging hosting a small mirror. Despite this pink gloss carrying a subtle lilac shimmer it's been pairing beautifully over Julianne's Nude by L'oreal. I'll certainly look into purchasing more from the brand.

NYX Cosmetics - Nail Polish in Winter - RRP £3 - Next
Menu one features various 'pink' shades from NYX Cosmetics Advanced Salon Formula line. I've tried a few products from NYX and so far I can't fault them. I'm sure you'll agree that a polish named 'winter' isn't all that fitting when we're entering summer. This being said the shade itself being a peachy, pink shimmer will work over most polishes whether on all nails or just an accent.

Montagne Jeunesse - Brazilian Mud Fabric Masque - RRP £1
I seem to be going through a bad patch with my skin at the moment, I'm getting more breakouts than I would usually and my skins so dry. I wouldn't go as far to say I've switched skin types to combinations, my breakouts seem to be more hormonal. Glad to see a face masque from one of my old favourite brands I couldn't wait to apply it. Fabric masques are so convenient, they require less time and don't crumble off when it comes to removing them. Brazilian Mud Fabric has specially sourced clays infused into the bamboo fabric, deep cleansing and refreshing your skin - everything I needed, heck I even felt confident to go makeup-less the next day.

Beauty UK - Eye Shadow Palette in Earth Child - RRP £3.99 - Superdrug
I've used Beauty UK products in the past and find the brand to be a hit or miss. This palette is exactly that, not all the shades are great. A few shades have quite a chalky formula, though some do pack a lot of pigment. For £3.99 I wouldn't have expected much if it wasn't for other budget brands launching and upping the game. The packaging is pretty naff, it wouldn't last long in your makeup bag and the mirror under the applicator is useless. The shadows aren't terrible, I'm just too used and loyal to my long time lover Urban Decay.

Urban Veda - Purifying Day Cream 10ml - RRP £14.99
The only sample in the box turned out to be a great addition to the selection. As mentioned I've experienced a fair amount of breakouts, with this moisturiser aimed at oil prone skin. This light formula contains cold-pressed neem oil, healing witch hazel and refreshing spearmint to tighten pores and support healthy cell renewal. My tiny tube is still going and I'm considering the full size due to the minty fragrance and refreshing tingle.
Disclaimer: press sample, for review consideration only, no payment received. see disclaimer page for more.

home touches // the closet

Following on from my recent room snippets I have my wardrobe and the odd tip to maximise the space. Maybe these individual posts are tedious, though when it came to searching the wardrobe I eventually ordered I struggled to find anywhere online that had an almost review. My Daybed however had a fair bit just not so much for the age group I fit in.

Until switching over rooms I didn't realise how lucky I was to have such a huge built in wardrobe. Built in wardrobes always seem to be a hassle, with most knocking them out. Mine couldn't be knocked out due to it being above a section of the stairs and how important it would become for the days I hoarded fashion. It earned the name of Narnia, once the perfect home to boxes & boxes of Barbies and Polly Pockets, I'd managed to fill it to the brim with clothes, shoes and accessories. A late night search on Ikea to mimic what I'd been used to found my new wardrobe and oh my, it is huge. 

The wardrobe that I ordered was the Ikea Trysil in white which turned out to have grey detailing that matches my flooring perfectly. Not bad for another item I hadn't checked out in person before ordering. The Trysil wardrobe is available in two colour options and features sliding doors, hanging rail, two movable shelves and four drawers. It may not be the prettiest of wardrobes, I did think I'd settle on the matching Hemnes sliding wardrobe option, only to find it out of stock everywhere in the UK and online. 

Since I'm so short I decided to put the shelves low down in the wardrobe, one per section. Out of the four drawers I've filled two to the brim with most of my underwear while the other two house my excessive amount of Topshop Leigh Jeans & Gap Legging Jeans and tops that don't need to hang. On the shelves are boxes of shoes, baskets of shoes, a box of handbags and excess beauty products that need to be reviewed or put away. I also kept a few of my old Dunelm postcard print boxes for paperwork, tights and candle storage - Neom, Yankee & Kringle. Still keeping to the velvet hangers that maximise your hanging space, the left side houses my tops, blouses etc and light jumpers while the right has heavier knitwear, blazers, dresses and skirts. Overall it's a great piece of furniture that's easily customised and an absolute bargain of £170?! Be sure to keep up with the Home Touches tag each week. * own purchases. not sponsored

Adventures with Harry // Happy 1st Birthday Harry

Today little Harry turns one, meaning it's the perfect time for a little update on his adventures if you don't so happen to follow my social media accounts. In two months time we've had him for a year and boy does the time seem to have flown by. It doesn't seem long ago that I was almost sick with excitement on the drive out to his breeders, or the week later bringing him home after his snazzy collar fitting at Pets At Home. I'm well aware I'm a crazy dog lady, it's okay. Finally getting my little Harry has had such a huge impact on me and lets face it, dogs are much better company than most humans. So for those who loved his 'adventure' posts, here's snippets of my little chap since the last time he checked in on LW. There's been the usual groomer visits, beaches, plenty of shopping....surviving the chop & adorable old ladies running out with biscuits each day.
© Lucyy Writes

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