Sample Saturday - Luscious Lips - Estee Lauder Pure Color Envy Sculpting Lipstick - 420 Rebellious Rose*

Hey everyone, I hope you've all had a good week x I had planned to be a little bit more active on the blog this week but since it was my mam's 80th birthday on Tuesday instead I devoted the week to her, and to family time, so I hope that you'll forgive me. I've got a couple of post planned for next week so I'm going to do my best to try and get back on track.

Today I've really got a 2 for 1 for you, and today's post represents two of my regular features Sample Saturday, and my new Luscious Lips series. Today I'm sharing my thoughts with you on an an Estee Lauder lipstick that I got a few months ago now in a beauty bag from Feel Unique. They've replaced the beauty bag with a beauty box now but it's still a great way to try new things, or to stock up for holidays and nights out.

For as long as I can remember Estee Lauder has been a fixture in my life, I remember my Grandmas dressing table vividly, in it's ornate French style adorned beautiful collectable glass jars of Estee Lauder loose powder, and later on in life my mam's obsession with their Pink Parfait lip colour. Bar a few skincare bits, and the odd perfume (I'm a Beautiful girl ;) though I personally haven't tried that much from the brand. I guess I always associated it with the older women in my life, and whilst it was a reliable, classic heritage brand, maybe I thought it was just a bit boring, and instead I flocked to the bright colours and innovations of its brand mates like MAC, and Bobbi Brown.

For a brand to have been around since 1946 though they must be doing something right, so in an attempt to break down my beauty prejudices and expand my make up horizons, I thought I try one of their lipsticks. 

Estee Lauder have quite a few different lipstick ranges, but this particular one is from their Pure Color Envy Sculpting Lipstick range, and unusually for a sample size the packaging is almost identical to the full size, with the same dark blue, and gold colour way, and the same angular shape.

Every lipstick in this formulation contains multi faceted pigments that create definition, add shape, and fullness, as well as a unique Time Release Moisture Complex which is designed to seal in hydration and keep lips moisturised throughout the day, leading to creamy, smooth coverage, and an 8 hour wear time.

The shade that I got was a colour called Rebellious Rose, which is one of Estee Lauder's worldwide best sellers, described as part rose, part rebel it's a universally flattering, muted rosy coral, with warm undertones. 

As you can see from the swatch the pigmentation is excellent. With a slightly waxy, vanilla scent, it's lovely and smooth, and creamy, with out being too soft, or smooshy, meaning that you can achieve precise application direct from the all be it mini bullet!

It didn't feel drying on the lips at all, and whilst it didn't feel overtly moisturising, it left the lips feeling comfortable and sufficiently hydrated. The coverage was excellent and it had a lovely glossy sheen like finish.

The glossy finish meant that it did transfer a bit onto mugs, food and people, but once the initial sheen had faded, the almost stain like, colour underneath lasted for a good few hours, before fading away completely. I wouldn't say I got the full 8 hours that Estee Lauder claim, but I was still pretty impressed with the wear time, and how it left my lips afterwards.

Despite it being one of their most popular colours, up until a few years this shade would have been a real no no for me. I was super self conscious of the effect of my facial paralysis on my lip shape, and I used to stick to nudes, and unassuming colours to avoid drawing attention to their unevenness. As I say though things change, and I'm trying harder to love what I see in the mirror by embracing darker and brighter lips, and whilst this lipstick isn't crazily bright, it's a lovely universally wearable shade, and I can definitely see why it's one of Estee Lauder's best sellers. Apart from the colour, it felt super comfortable on the lips and the wear time was excellent - definitely a winner in my book!

Estee Lauder lipsticks aren't the cheapest but I definitely think it's a rare case of you get what you pay for, the packaging is classy, and the formulations are first class. Seeing as it's so popular the full size Estee Lauder Pure Color Envy Sculpting Lipstick in 420 Rebellious Rose comes in a variety of different limited edition packaging options, as well as in the traditional navy blue, and gold, and it is usually priced between £27 and £28.50. You can find it at your nearest Estee Lauder counter, as well as direct from Estee Lauder, Boots, House Of Fraser, John Lewis, and NEXT Beauty. Have you ever tried any make up from Estee Lauder? Let me know your recommendations in the comments x

*This Post Contains Added Automatic Affiliate, Added Affiliate And Non Affiliate Links

Sample Saturday - Kiehls Creme de Corps Soy Milk & Honey Whipped Body Butter*

I've had a little bit of a blogging break over the last week but I'm back today with the return of my Sample Saturday series. Like blogging at the moment this series has taken a bit of a back seat but from this week Sample Saturday will be a regular thing once again.

One of my favourite brands at the moment has to be Kiehls, after an fascinating skin analysis, and an amazing facial**, At last I think I've discovered both a brand and products that can really make a difference to my skin.

The facial was the best pre birthday treat that I could have had, my skin felt incredibly, smooth and revitalised, and like all good beauty therapists, Kate from the Kiehls counter in House Of Fraser, in Intu Metrocentre went just that little bit further and gave me a relaxing and hydrating hand and arm massage.

I've made a couple of Kiehls purchases since my facial (a large beauty haul post is coming soon) and with those purchases and my skin analysis, I was lucky enough to receive quite a few sachets and sample sized products to try. I received a couple of things from the skincare line which have already become firm favourites and I also received a couple of sachets of one of their most famous products - Creme de Corps.

Kiehls have been around since 1851 and they have an amazing history and pedigree when it comes to skincare but probably one of their most famous products is their body cream - Creme de Corps. The original formulation remains one of their most loved products and it's held in high regard by a wide range of therapists, make up artists, celebrities and even Victoria's Secret Models.

The original formulation which is crammed full of sesame oil and cocoa butter remains one of their best sellers, but never one to rest of their laurels and their history, Kiehls are a brand that like to move with the times, and as a result they've introduced several new variants of Creme de Corps, including the one that I tried, Kiehls Creme de Corps Soy Milk & Honey Whipped Body Butter.

This was the product that I was lucky enough to be massaged with during my facial, and just that small taste (and scent) of it left me wanting more. Designed to provide up to 24 hours of hydration, this body cream is packed to the brim full of good for you ingredients including shea butter, jojoba oil, beta carotene and Kiehls signature plant based ingredient squalane, and of course extracts of soy milk and honey. It also contains no parabens, glycols, or silicone's.

Unlike the original this product has an almost mousse like texture. It has a whipped, airy like appearance, yet it feels creamy and buttery on the skin. It's quite thick but it spreads easily onto the skin, and a little goes a long way.

Given the creaminess and buttery feel I was expecting this product to take an age to absorb but providing you don't use to much, it sinks in pretty much straight away, without any residue, or a sticky or tacky feel. I'm not sure whether or not the feeling lasted for the full 24 hours but immediately after application and for sometime afterwards my skin felt and looked smooth and hydrated, and smelled good enough to eat.

I have to be honest and say that the name originally put off this because I absolutely hate honey! I can't stand the taste of it and to me the smell is even worse! Thankfully though, this doesn't smell anything like honey. To me this smells like cake, it's a creamy vanilla, coconut scent that makes me think of coconut cake, smothered in creamy vanilla butter cream. Despite the creaminess and sweetness this isn't too sweet a scent, and despite the fact that I'm not the biggest coconut fan either I personally didn't find it either overpowering or sickly.

Although I've only used 2, 5ml sachets I can definitely say that I'm in love with this product. Despite it thickness it absorbs into the skin easily, and leaves the skin looking healthy and with an almost glowy appearance. Given the texture and the scent I think that this product would make the perfect summer body moisturiser and I also think that it would make a great after sun. Due to the insane amount of body creams and moisturisers that I already own, I can't see myself purchasing this at the moment, but I'd definitely consider buying the full size in the future. Kiehls Creme de Corps Soy Milk & Honey Whipped Body Butter comes in two sizes and retails at £36 for the 226g tub and at £45 for the 340g tub. It's available from Kiehls standalone stores and concessions nationwide and from their own website, and from various websites Debenhams, House Of Fraser and John Lewis. Have you tried Creme de Corps? Let me know in the comments x

*On Counter Sample
**Complimentary Skin Analysis And Facial

Molton Brown Festive Frankincense & Allspice Fine Liquid Hand Wash*

You know how it is, you spend ages waiting for something and then it just seems to sneak up on you at the last minute. A few weeks ago it seemed like ages till Christmas but now it's only 4 days away and I still have way too much to do - I have to blog, I have people to see, shopping to do, and presents to wrap, and I'm running out of time!

When it comes to blogging, life really is getting in the way at the moment, and instead of hunkering down and getting some posts up, on Saturday I ended up doing something else. I'm not going to worry about it though, there's enough stress around at the moment as it is, without throwing a bit of blogger guilt in as well - I'm just going to do my best to catch up and post as often as I can x  So here it is better late, than never, a little, belated Molton Brown review x 

Although I've fallen in and out of love with British brand Molton Brown more than once over the years, it's a brand that every now and then, I just keep coming back to. Over the years they've flirted with skincare and make up but now they're focusing on the products that made them famous - bath, shower and body care. They team high quality, natural ingredients, with simple, minimalist and often copied packaging, to produce an aspirational product, that brings a touch of luxury and sophistication into your home

Personally speaking I'd love anything from Molton Brown in my stocking, but something that I think makes a lovely gift at this time of year is a hand wash. Admittedly I'm slightly obsessed with hand washes and soaps but they make a really nice, non offensive present for anyone of any age, and unlike a lot of presents, you can pretty much guarantee that they will get used

Whilst Molton Brown Festive Frankincense & Allspice Fine Liquid Hands Wash, isn't aimed solely at men, I think that's it's the perfect pressie for a house proud young man, or a man that loves his smellies. 

A hand wash was probably one of the first Molton Brown product that I ever used, and I can still remember the fragrance and the mass of creamy bubbles that it produced. There are several permanent washes in the range but this one is specially for the festive season.

Crammed full of vetiver, frankincense, cedar wood and all spice, this hand wash, has a warm spicy scent, that combines all of those spicy festive scents that we know and love, with the warmth and deep woody notes of the frankincense and the vetiver.  Vetiver is an extract that used a lot in men's fragrance and that's exactly what this hand wash reminds me of - an expensive, wood, spicy, masculine scent. 

It does have a tendency to linger on the skin for quite a while, so this is definitely a hand wash to put in a main or maybe a guest bathroom. 

I think that this product would make a great gift for anyone that loves this type of fragrance. I personally think that it's a very male orientated scent, but fragrance is such a personal thing, and I'm sure a lot of women that I know would appreciate this one too x

The bottle I've got here is just a 30ml sample size  but the Molton Brown Festive Frankincense & Allspice Fine Liquid Hand Wash also comes in a 300ml bottle which retails at around £16 and in a special 75ml Hand Wash Bauble Bottle which retails at around £10. As well as their standalone stores and their website, you can also buy Molton Brown products in selected House Of Fraser, John Lewis and Boots, stores and online.

*Sample