Summertime Haul

Hi everyone!

This week I'm going back to basics with a little beauty haul for you all (I love doing these! wahoo!).

Now instead of doing monthly hauls I thought it would be nice to show you what goodies that have caught my attention. These products I have bought either on the high street or online over the past couple of months in preparation for Summertime.

So... here is what I've bought:

Loreal Paris Studio Line Hot and Big Hair Spray

Elemis Pro Radiance Illuminating Flash Balm

Revolution Matte Eyeshadow Palette

Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvet in Peach Club

Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvet in Hot Pepper

Yves Saint Laurent Rouge Volupté Shine Lipstick in Pink in Paris

Loreal Mega Volume Manga Mascara

Collection Eyebrow Kit in Dark

Bourjois Maxi Delight Bronzer in Number 2

Loreal Elvive Extraordinary Oil Mist for Fine Hair

Yves Saint Laurent Rouge Volupté Lipstick in Peach Passion

I'm excited to try these products out. A few of them were 'researched' before I purchased but others were just complete impulse buys.

It should be interesting to see how I get on with all of these as it's too often I just impulse buy something now.

I will come back with a review soon on how I get on with all of these.

What did you guys treat yourself to for the Summer?

Thanks for reading!
Jess xox

My Essie Nail Polish Collection

Hi and welcome back to my blog!

I'm on a bit of a roll at the moment with my blog posts as I'm trying to keep myself organised for you all.

This week something a little different, my Essie nail polish collection!

I'll be honest, before collecting them all together I was expecting a lot but it looks like I have a lot more Barry M than I do Essie (probably something to do with the price tag!), anyhoo here we go anyway! :)

My shades of choice are:

Pure Pearlfection - A clear coat of sparkles and shimmer - a great top coat.
Time For Me Time - This is a gorgeous shimmery pink nude. I love this shade all year round.
Sunday Funday - This is one of my go-to Summer shades. It's a gorgeous orange/red shade and has a little shimmer running throughout too.
Mint Candy Apple - This is a wonderful shade for Springtime. It's just the perfect mint colour and reminds me of Tiffany's!
Eternal Optimist - A gorgeous purple/pink shade with a little shimmer. Great for Summer by the beach!
After Sex - This is a clear Winter and Xmas shade! It's just a gorgeous deep red that is very sexy too (probably why they picked that name!).
Madison Ave-Hue - This is a beautiful dirty pink shade. It's just a rebelise pink and I love that about this shade!
Pink Diamond - This is a frosty pink shade and is great in the Spring and Summertime to show off your tan. I just how pigmented this shade is too.
Figi - To finish a huge Essie fan favourite, Figi! This is one for everyone's collection. A good pinky nude all year round and is just stunning! If you haven't got it make sure you go and buy one - it's just beautiful!

Thanks for reading guys! :)
Jess xox

5 Beauty Must Have's for a Busy Mom!

Hello and welcome back my lovelies!

This week I thought I would do something a little different and share with you some of my favourite beauty favourites as a Mom.

Now as you can imagine time is something I cherish more than ever and to make sure that I can keep up with our little guy I rely on a few amazing little products.

1. Bourjois Nail Polish Remover - This stuff is a godsend. Honestly I would be lost without this and I always have a backup ready! This is a magical little pot that you stick your finger into swirl it around once or twice and then once it's taken out it takes off all your nail polish! No more embarrassing chipped nails - I can just take it off. Or if one nail has chipped take off the polish on the one without ruining the rest. It's just amazing!!!
2. Barry M Corbalmy Lipbalm - I've spoken about this stuff before and I know it can seem a little boring but I reach for this most of the time when I'm out with my little guy. It's just quick, easy and adds a nice touch of colour!
3. Tangle Teaser Hairbrush - I have two of these, one for the house and one on the go. I use both everyday! Firstly, if I'm unable to dry my hair as I'm in a rush, this can be used on wet hair and doesn't snag or pull on your hair! I tend to do this at least once a week so this is a must have for me!
4. Hairband/Clip - Whichever I can find I use. I'm sure many other Mom's can relate to this one but my hair is ALWAYS up now! My little guy thinks it's a toy otherwise and man it sure does hurt when he grabs it!
5. Liz Earle Hand Repair Hand Cream - Finally a decent hand cream is a must. I use a few but have featured my favourite because it smells devine! All those nappy changes, cleaning up food, making food, etc means my hands get washed a lot and so can dry out. My Liz Earle hand cream helps my hands stay hydrated and soft through all this.

I hope you enjoyed this week's blog post! Thanks for reading!

Jess xox

Maggs London Makeup Bags

Hi guys!

Wow what a month for blog posts! I've gotten myself very organised and drafted a load of posts for you guys so I'm ready to fire them out for you. This week I'm sharing my thoughts on the new Hannah Maggs makeup bags. These two are a part of her new range available over at Maggs London here. Anyway without further delay, here we go...!

Maggs London Makeup Bag in 'The Benevolent' (pictured on the left) - I love this design. It's very me as I love all things black but also girly; so it's a good mix of the two. The print is a gorgeous Liberty London print and so is really high quality. The bag itself is a great size for all your everyday makeup bits and pieces and as it's lined on the inside its easy to clean should you have any leakages. My favourite thing on both of these bags is the hidden zip too - it just allows the design of the bag to really show without any nasty zips showing. Beautiful!

Maggs London Makeup Bag in 'Cherish' (pictured on the right) - Obviously this is similar to the previous bag. It has the hidden zip, same size and lining but this time in a gorgeous pink/red print. This bag was a gift from my husband for my birthday and it's just gorgeous. I love how girly and vibrant the print is (again from Liberty London). I use this bag in my handbag as I just love the pop of colour it brings when I look inside my bag. 

All in all these bags are just stunning and worth every penny! If you're able to grab one make sure you do as you won't regret it! I can see myself wanting to buy more but I just don't need to as yet (dammit!). I would also like to say that the packaging they come in is also so pretty! If you would like a sneaky peak follow me on Instagram here so you can have a look :)

Anyhoo, thanks for reading guys!
Jess xox

My Favourite Summer Nail Polishes

Hello again,

This week I have a requested blog post for you - this time it's my Summer Nail Polish favourites!

Now I love my nail polishes... I have too many to count but I have managed to narrow it down to these few for my Summertime favourite shades. I hope you enjoy! :)

Essie in Figi - This is a gorgeous pinky nude. One of my favourites as it goes with everything!
Essie in Time For Me Time - This is similar to the one above but has a little shimmer in it and is more sheer so very chic.
Barry M Daylight Curing in Like a Nude - Another fab nude for this time of year. Show off your tans with this gorgeous shade!
Essie in Sunday Funday - I love this shade; it's a orangey/red with shimmer so catches the light well.
Barry M Gelly Hi-Shine in Passion Fruit - An almost red but as it's not quite red it's perfect for Summertime. This is for the brave! ;)
Rimmel 60 Seconds in Shocker - Another bold shade here but so gorgeous! It's a deep pink from Rimmel but with hints of purple running through too. Perfect for holidays.
Barry M in Socialite - I had to have an all glitter polish in this and I chose this gorgeous shade from Barry M.
Barry M Daylight Curing in I've Been Pinkin - This is another from their new Daylight Curing range. Just a good all round pink that will be sure to go with your swimsuit!
Models Own in Grape Juice - Finally a lovely pastel from Model's Own. The best bit is that this has a Grape scent too. Having scented nail polish reminds me of being a kid so I love that about this too!

I hope you enjoyed this weeks post. Do you have any requested posts that you would like me to feature?

Thanks for reading!
Jess xox

Pixi Glow Tonic Review

Hello again!!

I hope you have all had a wonderful week and enjoyed this glorious sunshine! I have been trialling a load of new products this past month to try and get my own opinion on whether they deserve the hype they've been given.

One of the products I was trialling is the Pixi Glow Tonic. This has been recommended to me over and over and is a massive blogger and youtuber favourite. I became very keen to see what the fuss was all about so I bought one myself to try and see how I got on.

So... this is how I got on and what I thought... :)

First of all I love the mint green packaging, it's really cute and blends in nicely with the rest of my skincare routine.

The scent is also quite nice. It's subtle, but has a nice fresh and clean scent to it - lovely!

Now if you're new to this product it's known to have micro beads in it. This means it's able to tone and also exfoliate your skin. It's very gentle so it just helps get off the daily grime and wipe away any nasty dead skin cells. This is really handy to really make your skin feel that extra clean and soft. Although doesn't replace the need of a regular weekly exfoliater.

My final verdict... Now I know toners don't really do a lot. They were designed to get off any left over cleanser on your face. The fact that this is a toner I'm not sure what I was expecting but after all the hype of others getting gorgeous skin after using this I just had to try it. For me though I just don't think it lives up to the hype. I do enjoy using it as it's a nice little extra in my routine, but as a busy Mom I need products to wow me to want me to repurchase them. This unfortunatly didn't wow me as much as I'd originally hoped. I'm gutted, but I'm glad I gave it a go anyway!

Have you guys got this toner? If so, what were your thoughts? Did it work wonders on you, or are you also wondering what the hype is all about?

Thanks for reading guys!!
Jess xox

5 Home Truths About Being a Mom...

Hi guys,

This week I wanted to do a little lifestyle blog for you all. Now some of you may know... I'm a new Mom, and so I'm sure this list will continue to grow longer and longer, but in truth being a Mom is tough. No matter of age, your support network, your finances.. it's tough no matter what. I knew it would be a life changing experience but I did find that other Mom's would cover up a lot of truths on parenting. So I thought I would shed some light on the subject (we gotta start somewhere!). So here it is.. in black and white, clear as day with no filters... You've been warned! ;)

1. Your 'me' time has disappeared... for life! Sure you can have a bath, go and get your haircut or go shopping for an afternoon but your little one is always and I mean always on your mind. I'm planning his next feed, buying new toys, wondering how his naps are going, going on netmums to check what that weird nights sleep was about, checking his leap development schedule... the list is endless!
2. As soon as your meal has arrived/cooked/put on your plate you can guarantee your little one will wake up. They just know!
3. You need the loo most of the time because they come first and you forget that you need to go. He just started feeding, I'll go after... oh he's being really cute.. 5 more minutes... I better just get his bottle ready and then oh, he needs a change... Yep.
4. You're tired all the time. Now I didn't get this before having our little guy. I understood that it would be a little while before he would sleep through, but sleeping through isn't always sleeping through. There is teething, nightmares, cuddles... and even when he does sleep through you never really have that deep sleep or god forbid; lie-in's as you did when you were child free!
5. They're worth every moment. Every exhausted, crazy and messy moment! Yes, there will be days when you have wondered why you chose to have kids - there I said it! But there is so much to enjoy! Having our baby boy was the best thing I've ever done. It's so rewarding and it challenges me everyday. I'm more selfless now than ever and to see my son smile and enjoy learning and growing is everything to me. I love him more than I can explain and he has helped me become a better person. We grow together each day and I feel so blessed to have this amazing little guy in our lives! A friend on mine once said "Having a child is like having a gift that keeps on giving." and it is, it really is!

I hope you enjoyed my blog post for this week you guys. I'm so glad I managed to do something a little different for you all.

Jess xox