Treat Yourself Or Someone Else - Too Faced Best Year Ever 2018 Make Up Set*

I know it doesn't always look like based on the amount of hauls that I post but in 2017 I really tried to cut down my spending, and in particular I've tried to cut down the amount of money that I spend on make up. Even with regularly trimming my stash, and passing on products to friends and family, my make up stash is starting to become a little bit unmanageable, I'm starting to forget what I have, and I'm eventually coming to the rather obvious conclusion that I have way too much make up for just one face.

Sometimes though you see something and as shallow as it sounds you can't imagine your life without it! Get a grip Louise I hear you cry, and yes you're probably right there are much more important things in life than make up, sometimes though you have to indulge in that whim, throw sense out of the window and buy something that you know will make you happy even if it's just for a few moments in time.

I know a lot of bloggers feel the need to justify what they buy, and most of the time I'm not one of them, but this is one of those purchases that I guess I had to justify to myself. The reason why I took the plunge and bought this item was quite a simple one, well as well as looking gorgeous that it, I just don't own a lot of Too Faced make up, and I really don't know why. Like Benefit and Urban Decay it appeals to my quirky side but for too long it gone largely unowned and unloved in LouLouLand. Don't get me wrong I regularly lust after their Chocolate Bar palettes and their cheek colours, and I've received the odd thing in beauty boxes and as gifts but I've never been tempted enough to make a purchase, however a few weeks ago all of that changed.

I must admit that it was love at first sight when I saw their 2017 Holiday releases, I loved everything but I was ultimately torn between two sets, the Pretty Little Planner Make Up Gift Set which was slightly cheaper at £34 and the set that I eventually went for The Best Year Ever 2018 Make Up Set which was slightly more expensive at £46.

Before I talk about the kit itself though lets talk about the box, okay if you haven't done your Christmas shopping yet I either think you're very strange, or incredibly brave, I am not a last minute shopper but if you are this would make a lovely gift, the outer box is gorgeous and very festive. In a gorgeous metallic gold it features stamps or maybe advent calendar doors all with cute little festive cartoon images on them, including puppies in antlers! If you think the box is cute though then wait till you see what is inside!

Open up the box and you're greeted by a beautiful metallic gold make up bag, which fastens with a gold tasselled zip. Printed on the front of the bag which is rather ironic, given the first paragraph of this post, are the words "I have way more makeup at home"and the Too Faced heart logo. The reverse of the bag is in a pink and gold diagonal design, and the diagonal design is also carried through to the bag lining which is in a black and white fabric. This bag certainly isn't an after thought, it's good quality it's a good size, and it would make a nice gift in it's own right.

As beautiful, useful and giftable as the bag is though,  it is really about what's inside and there is lot to look at.

The first thing thing that you can see in the picture is a little piece of paper, The Too Faced Best Year Ever How To Glamour Guide, which shows you 4 festive looks that you can create from the products within the kit and it also gives you a little bit of information about the product that you can see below

This kit contains a deluxe, 4.8g size of the famous Too Faced Better Than Sex Mascara. Despite already having a mini waterproof version in my unused mascara stash, I haven't actually tried this yet, but it's definitely something that I'll be talking about on the the blog in the new year. I've heard some good things about this mascara and I'm really looking forward to trying it.

The Best Year Ever is described as a make up set and that's exactly what it is. Inside the bag you get three magnetic fastening, sturdy cardboard make up palettes, each one contains a 1 x 5.39g face colour, and a combination of 6 metallic, shimmery or matte eye shadows, each weighing in at 1.14g. All of the shades in all of the palettes work together so if you wanted to treat yourself or give away the whole set to one person then they will have a lot of make up to play with, with a mascara, 18 eye shadows and 3 cheek colours,  however if you're counting the pennies you could very easily give each of the palettes away separately without even wrapping them up as each one features a To and From section printed on the back

All of the palettes are themed, and to the best of my knowledge all of the shades inside are limited editions as they all have holiday, Christmas, party and winter themed names.

The first palette is the pink palette which is covered in hearts, is unsurprisingly named "I Believe In Pink" and contains 6 neutral toned eye shadows and one blusher.

The eyeshadow shades from left to right are Snowgirl, Mink Pink, Pink Rink, Pink Christmas, Spoiled Rotten and Wish For It.

The blusher Pink Poinsettia looks like quite a bright pink in the palette, and whilst it's bright it's still very wearable and it blends down nicely and gives you that perfect I've been out in the fresh air colour.

The next palette "Natural Beauty" is pale blue in colour and features a cute cloud, rainbow and unicorn design.

Like the previous palette the shadows are in mainly neutral tones, with a couple of metallics and shimmers thrown in for good measure. Instead of the blusher though in the palette you get a bronzing powder.

The shadows from left to right are Angelic, 5 Golden Rings, Oh, Deer! Pretty Pecan, Sleigh My Name, and BAETHOVEN.

This palette comes with a bronzer, and it's nice one, it's called Warm My Heart and it's a slightly shimmery, copper toned, bronze.

The final palette is black and features a metallic champagne bottle, champagne glass and bubbles design.

Although this palette is definitely geared towards a more party look, it still contains a similar combination of neutral toned matte, metallic, and shimmery shadows, and the cheek colour in this case is a highlighter shade.

The eyeshadow shades from left to right are Lucky Star, Cozy Cashmere, Tipsy, Oh What Fun, Sleighhh Girl and No Peeking.

The highlighter in this palette Dashing Through The Glow, is a gorgeous pale golden, champagne colour, with lots of shimmer, and sheen.

I'm not going to lie I haven't managed to use all of the products on my face yet but I have to say I have been pretty impressed by the ones that I have used. All of the shadows are soft, and have an almost creamy feel, and as you see from the pictures the pigmentation is superb. Some of the matte shades, especially the paler ones are a little chalky, but they feel velvety soft and the pigmentation is still decent. My favourites shades so far are Tipsy, Sleighhh Girl, and  Sleigh My Name - I love a bit of shimmer! and I'm also loving wearing the two cheek shades, Pink Poinsettia and Dashing Through The Glow together, you get a bit of in idea of what they look like in the picture below and I'm also loving using Dashing Through The Glow as under brow highlight.

Christmas gift sets from make up brands are nothing new but they can vary dramatically in quality. On a lot of occasions even the highest and most prestige brands can release Christmas gifts and sets that don't live up to their usual high standards but congratulations Too Faced this one is a winner! There is not a single duff item in the set, the make up bag is perfect, the mascara is one of their best sellers, and the neutral, and super wearable shadows are smooth, pigmented and blendable, you honestly couldn't ask for anything else from a make up gift set, except for maybe a lippy, a mirror and a brush but that would just be greedy, this isn't the cheapest of kits but in my opinion it's worth it either as a Merry Christmas to yourself or as a super last minute gift or 5. The Too Faced Best Year Ever Make Up Set retails at £46 from selected Debenhams stores and if you can wait till after Christmas it's still available online, and who knows it might even be reduced in a day or so x The set has definitely ignited a bit of a Too Faced love in so if you have any Too Faced recommendations other than the KVD x Too Faced Better Together Cheek And Lip Set, which I already have then I'd love to hear them.

*Paid For In Part By An Intu Gift Card 

My Little Box UK January 2016 Edition- My Little Wish Box And A Giveaway

I've got a special treat for you guys today, a subscription box, unboxing post. I normally post unboxing videos on my You Tube channel but because my face is still a bit puffy and my skin looks like rubbish, I'm posting it on here instead. Today then I'm showing you what's in the January 2016 UK Edition of My Little Box.

Every My Little Box is themed and this months box is entitled My Little Wish Box. All of the boxes are beautifully illustrated and this one is no exception, I always try and use my empty boxes and these ones are probably my favourites to reuse. They're nice to keep on show, and they're perfect for tidying away bits of stationery, crafty bits, and of course all those bits of make up, and nail polish, that you never seem to have any room for.

The first thing I normally do when I open the box is have a look through the bits of paper, My Little Box usually includes a couple of information cards on the products in the box, a quote card, and a mini magazine. I was never a fan of the fold out poster so I'm really pleased to see the return of the magazine but for me the paper stand out in this box is the quote card. It's one of my favourite quotes (although I have seen slightly different wording on occasions) and it's from Walt Disney  "All our dreams can come true, if you have the courage to pursue them" Definitely something to bear in mind when you're having a bad day.

My Little Box is very much a beauty and lifestyle box, so in each box you normally get a few lifestyle products, be it a piece of jewellery, stationery or even clothing. The stand out lifestyle product in this months box was this lovely, hard backed 2016 diary.

I'm not sure how well it's coming across here but it's in a beautiful duck blue, mint colour and it features the words "Dear Year, I Like You (Love Me) in metallic, rose gold, embossing on the front. It's a really nice quality diary and it features a week to two pages, so it's perfect for organising your schedule and keeping track of appointments

I really love it but why oh why wasn't this in say the December box. I already have two 2016 diaries, one handbag sized one that I got for Christmas, and a pretty, sparkly desk one that I bought myself so I can't justify keeping this one no matter how nice I think it is. I've asked around and all my friends and family already have their diaries and planners so I've decided to give this one away to one of you guys. So if you haven't got yourself a 2016 diary yet just fill in the Rafflecopter form below and I'll pick one lucky winner in a weeks time x This giveaway is open worldwide but the diary is in English but if you want it get entering x

a Rafflecopter giveaway


Next up another lifestyle item, the Petits Riens Bracelet Card, which is a jewellery item, come gift, come inspirational quotes, all rolled into one.

You get 4 tear off cards, each of which comes with a sentiment printed ribbon, and another card which has a curved metal charm, friendship bracelet on a mint / duck egg blue cord, with a Chinese / love knot style fastening.

I like the idea of this and the idea of giving your friends the sentiment that most suits them but what exactly do you do with the ribbons? I've seen some pictures with people wearing them as bracelets but for me they are nowhere near long enough to wrap around my wrist. I think I'll end up using mine for card making or scrapbooking, but since I love friendship bracelets, and things that you can stack I'll definitely be keeping the bracelet.

Now the bit you've all been waiting for the beauty items - first up a shout out to the little bags that you get, that usually contain the beauty products. Unlike the Birchbox bags these ones are a nice, size, they're made of a good fabric, the designs are cute, and you can reuse them. They are brilliant for popping things in, in your handbag, and they're great for packing things like cotton buds when you go on holiday.

The first item inside the bag is from My Little Box own brand, My Little Beauty, and it's the My Little Beauty Make A Wish Vanilla Scented Lip Balm in a 1.5g size. As useful as lip balms are I can't help but think they're a bit of a filler in beauty boxes and particularly when they're own branded ones like this. They do appear in an awful lot of boxes but it's something that I will probably use. I always have quite a few lip balms on the go at once so I hardly ever seem to use them up but they're always useful.

Next up something a little bit more interesting, a 50ml bottle REN Rosa Centifolia 3 In 1 Cleansing Water.

I'm slightly obsessed with cleansing waters, and I love all in ones and micellar waters for speed and convenience, so I can't wait to give this a proper go. It recommend for all skin types including the most sensitive and it's crammed full of rose otto, to calm and soothe the skin, a must have at this time of year. I'll probably do a Sample Saturday post on this when I've had a chance to try it.

The final product in the box is a make up item, and it's something that I've been wanting to try for a little while now. Too Faced Melted Liquified Long Wear Lipsticks, have the pigmentation and staying power, of a lipstick but with the convenience and ease of application of a gloss.

Packaged in a squeezy tube, it comes with a velour tipped, applicator tip, give it a squeeze and out comes oodles and oodles of thick, luscious liquid lipstick. I've tried a few different liquid lipsticks but this one seems to be in a different class, it tastes lovely, it feels nice on the lips, it's moisturising, and the pigmentation and wear time is worth writing about.

The colour I received is Melted Fuchsia, which is a pretty hot pink. You can apply it with a light hand for a gentler finish, but I can see myself saving this one for the summer months when I've got a bit more colour. This is only a 5ml size compared to the 12ml full size, but this is a great size for trying a pricier product and I can definitely see myself maybe picking up 1 or 2 more shades after trying this one x

Overall I don't think that this was a bad box, I've seen a couple of different variations and I definitely prefer the one that I got. I love the lipstick formulation and I'm really looking forward to trying the cleansing water, My lifestyle highlight is definitely the diary, I just with it had been sent a month or two sooner.

I was feeling a bit mehhh about My Little Box towards the end of last year, but I've really liked the last two boxes so I'm sticking with them for another month. You can find out more about My Little Box here x Do you subscribe to My Little Box? Did you get the same as me? Let me know x

A Review Of The Make Up Revolution I♥MAKEUP I Heart Chocolate Palette

Although I'm sad that the weather has cooled down, it's meant that I've been able to start wearing make up again. Every cloud as they say has a silver lining, and the silver lining in this case is that I've had a chance to have a proper play with my Make Up Revolution I♥ MAKEUP I Heart Chocolate palette.

This is another one of their products that it inspired by high end brand Too Faced. I've lusted after one of their Chocolate Bar eyeshadow palettes for the longest time but at £45 they were just way out of my price range.

The packaging isn't identical but in both cases it reminds you of a bar of yummy chocolate. The packaging of I Heart Chocolate is made of a very strong shiny plastic and looks like a melting bar of the finest milk and dark chocolate.

Although the outer packaging is slightly different the colours and shadows inside the palettes look almost identical. Inside you get 16 shadows, in a combination of shimmers and mattes. I've taken these pictures with the flash so you can get an idea of the shimmer. The palette features a combination of browns, nudes, coppers and golds as well a green, a pink and a purple / blue. All the shadows are the same size bar two highlighting shades which are about twice the size. You get one matte creamy, yellow shade and one slightly shimmery, very pale pink. The shadows are all named, and the palette also features a full sized mirror and a double ended sponge applicator.

As you can see from these pictures the pigmentation is superb. The tiniest touch loads your brush with soft, pigmented shadow. I'm not really a fan of matte eye shadows as I've been disappointed too many times in the past but like every other matte shadow I've tried from this brand, the ones in this palette, are soft, creamy and pigmented. The shades blend perfectly into each other and the wear time was pretty decent on my slightly oily lids. I did get a tiny bit of fall out on some of the shimmery shades but to be honest that's only to be expected, and it's nothing that a cotton bub or fan brush can't solve.

I don't own the Too Faced Chocolate Bar palette so I can't really compare bar what I've seen online but the colours seem to be spot on and the pigmentation seems to be about on par. One of the biggest draws of the Too Faced Chocolate Bar palette is that it contains real, antioxidant cocoa in the shadows, which also smell of chocolate. Alas the I♥MAKEUP version doesn't smell of chocolate, but to be honest who really goes around smelling peoples eyelids! If you like the idea of the Too Faced palettes and you can't afford to shell out the £45 it would take, this one is a really good alternative for a bargain price of just £7.99. Even if you've never lusted after a Chocolate Bar palette, this eyeshadow selection is well worth picking up. It has a good range of natural shades, as well as a few other shades and some smokey tones and metallics, making it a good all round day to night palette. Although the packaging won't be for everyone I think it's fun and it really expands this palettes gift potential, making it a nice little alternative to real chocolate :) With every product I try I'm falling more and more in love with this line, they proved that you really don't have to spend a fortune to get decent make up. Are you a fan of I♥MAKEUP and Make Up Revolution? Leave me a comment and let me and of course let me know if your have any questions xx Thanks for reading xx