Trend Alert: Fab Floppy Hats!

I'm in love with this trend! Floppy hats look so glamorous and paired with the right sunglasses you can feel like a celeb, even if you are just picking up nappies in Tesco :)

And let's face it, whatever's good enough for Kim K is good enough for me!

This is a great trend as it's timeless, practical for protecting your face from the sun and really versatile. You could wear yours with jeans and a simple tee for a super casual look, or pair it with a floaty maxi dress, tassle bag and sandals for a more boho feel. It's a trend that can even be carried through to winter paired with jeans, fierce boots and a faux fur gilet.

I know the celebrity versions are probably a bit above most of our budgets but I came across a company on twitter a few months ago called Fab Floppy Hats who do exactly what they say on the tin... They sell fab floppy hats! There's a variety of colours to choose from and most importantly they're a bargain at £15 plus p&p per hat. They often have offers running for discounts when you purchase more than one so do check them out!

Follow on twitter @FABfloppyHATx
And shop for the gorgeous hats on ebay HERE

I bought mine recently in chocolate brown with a cute leopard scarf and I have to say I love it. I'm just waiting patiently for the sun to come out so I can rock it on the streets of LA! Oh hang on... I mean Cornwall :)

Fab Floppy Hats will soon be changing their company name to Noughts and Kisses as they start offering a variety of products including handbags and winter hats so keep an eye out.

Even Milan's trying the trend!

Review: TanOrganic 100% Natural Self Tan

As you may or may not know, I'm reasonably pale and by reasonably I mean ill-looking... So fake tan is pretty much a necessity in my life. As a busy mum who no can no longer spend the whole morning applying lotions and potions, it's essential for me to use products that firstly give me instant results and secondly don't cost the earth. Something else that has become increasingly more important to me are natural products. As I'm getting older *sigh* I'm much more careful about what I'm putting on my skin and how much damage it could be causing in the long run (hence my obsession with anti-ageing products), so when TanOrganic very kindly sent me their fake tan in a very smart glass bottle to review, I was extremely excited because it seemed to tick all the boxes!

TanOrganic are an Irish company who pride themselves on using 100% natural ingredients in their products and they don't test on animals. They say -

"Carefully formulated with the inclusion of wonder herb Aloe Vera (certified Organic), TanOrganic fills a niche in the market for an anti-ageing, professional tanning system, which hydrates the skin as well as developing a natural looking sunkissed glow.
A 100% natural formulation, containing certified Organic DHA, Vitamin B-5, Hyuloronic Acid and developed with no synthetic colours and no parabens."

The tan claims to be odourless and transfer resistant so no stains on your favourite dress or your bed sheets (hurrah!) This also makes it a fab option for brides who want a gorgeous glow on their big day but without the tan marks on their wedding dress.
Another great point is that due to containing 100% natural ingredients it's totally safe to use whilst pregnant. I can relate to being wary of using certain products during pregnancy, but with TanOrganic you can still look bronzed and beautiful and not stress about putting dodgy chemicals on your skin.

Consistency/Colour - It's applied as a spray which I much prefer to a lotion as it's easier to apply and control. It has quite a watery consistency and is a dark, muddy colour like most fake tans.

Application - Due to being a spray it's easily applied and blended into the skin, leaving no streaks or uneven patches. I applied one layer in the evening after exfoliating and moisturising, then slept in it and showered the next morning as advised in the instructions. It's also worth mentioning that the tan dries instantly, so there's no annoying, sticky feeling for 10 minutes after. I'd say it was dry within a few seconds.
*I've included photos from a test I did on my hand before applying it all over my body.

A couple of seconds after application

Left hand - no tan applied, right hand - TanOrganic 3 hours after application 

Smell - I wouldn't say this tan is completely odourless. It doesn't have the usual biscuit smell that alot of fake tans have, but I could definately smell the aloe vera which I personally don't have a problem with.

Result - A subtle bronze colour was achieved after one layer which is perfect for day to day wear due to my fair complexion. I would probably apply two layers for the evening. My skin looked a shade darker instantly so it could be used just before leaving the house, but to achieve the best results I let it develop overnight which did make it slightly darker.

Staying power - I applied the tan 2 days ago and after showering, moisturising etc it's still the same colour. I think moisturising is definately important when trying to prolong your tan and TanOrganic also sell a tanning oil on their website which acts as a moisturiser to enhance and prolong the colour.

So it's safe to say that Ireland can add fake tan to their list of awesome exports :) I'm really pleased with the result of this tan and I'd definately give it a go if like me, you're always on the lookout for the perfect fake tan. The fact that it's 100% natural means it's guilt-free and in my opinion a huge selling point.

Get your hands on TanOrganic here 100ml for £19.95.

Revamped Blog!

Hi chicas :) Just a short but sweet post to let you know I've had a new blog design! I absolutely love it and would love to hear what you think of it...

The very friendly and professional people at http://www.designerblogs.com/ did it all for me, if you're thinking about revamping your blog then I'd definately recommend them, they have some lovely pre-made designs or you can join the waiting list and have yours custom made :)

Glossybox June 2012

Another month, another Glossybox...

It seemed like a lot of customers were reasonably unhappy with last month's box (or so I gathered from the comments on Facebook) but to be honest I really liked it! Granted there hasn't been many cosmetic products in the last couple of boxes but Glossybox have clearly taken that feedback on board and outdone themselves this month :) The box has a summer theme which would be great if it didn't seem like winter at the moment!

I was delighted to see I'd been given a HD Brows product this month, I missed out on the HD Brows product in the last box which left me a tad disappointed so this made up for it. I received the precision tweezers which I'll definitely be using and they retail at £19.95 so already I've got double my money's worth :)

I was also equally pleased with the Caudalie perfume sample. I know in the past I've said I don't particularly like getting perfume in beauty boxes, mainly because I think perfume is such a personal thing and what one person might think smells like heaven, another may hate. But I really love Caudalie as a brand, they're products are so natural and the perfume has a gorgeous fresh, summer scent. It's very light and slightly floral but not overbearing at all, definitely something I'll wear... Plus it's a 10ml sample which is a really generous amount. This retails at £26 for 50ml and to be honest, I'd definitely consider purchasing the full size.

The third product gets another thumbs up from me, BM Beauty's summer warmth bronzer. This is just gorgeous. It's a soft golden brown shade with a subtle shimmer that blends so easily and I'd imagine it suiting most skin tones. With my fair skin I only need a very small amount but it can be built up to your required look :) It retails at £8 for 4g.

The final 2 products are a Vichy camouflage concealer stick and a Glossybox blush brush. Not going to say much about the brush as it isn't very soft and I have my trusty Real Techniques brushes which I use all the time so I probably won't use this very much. The Vichy concealer claims to cover minor to severe skin flaws so I'm interested to try this and see how well it covers my dark circles :) I recieved 6 shades which I think is great as it means I can get a good match to my skin tone.

All in all I'm really pleased with this month's box! I'll be using most of the products and I'm impressed with the value for money this month. If you'd like to subscribe visit www.glossybox.co.uk it's £12.95 per month which includes postage and you can cancel at any time.

If you're already a Glossybox subscriber I'd love to hear what was in your box and what you thought of your products :)

P.S. Sorry about the rubbish photos, I use my iphone which doesn't do the greatest job :(

x Daniella Beauty Junkie x

Giveaway Time!

Now that I've reached 25 followers I can finally do my giveaway, yay :)

I put the names of my lovely followers in a bowl and my little boy Milan stuck his hand in to choose the winner of an MUA pastel eyeshadow palette and a Revlon lip butter in 'Macaroon'...

*drum roll*

Rachel at http://racheltbeauty.blogspot.com

Email your address to me hun and I'll get your goodies in the post :)

Thank you to everyone who follows my blog, I really appreciate your comments and I have lots of exciting posts in the pipeline!

x Daniella Beauty Junkie x

OPI Save Me by Nicki Minaj

Nicki Minaj has collaborated with OPI which I'm super excited about :) I love nail polish, I'm constantly changing the shade on my nails depending on my mood and the weather (needless to say I've been reaching for darker polishes lately thanks to the miserable rain and wind...) but I recently picked up Save Me by OPI which is a flashy, holographic silver and I really like it.

OPI is by far my favourite nail polish brand, I love so many of their shades, they're excellent quality and I love the names they come up with :) I applied 3 coats of Save Me as an accent nail alongside Nails Inc Peach Sorbet and it's such a cute look for summer! At least ice cream coloured nails with a splash of bling can make me feel summery even if the weather isn't cooperating...

I'll be getting my hands on the other shades in the Nicki Minaj range too as there's a gorgeous bright teal and fondant pink amongst others.

x Daniella Beauty Junkie x

May Favourites - Chanel, Liz Earle, Garnier, Lush & Revlon

Soleil Tan De Chanel - Bronzing Make Up Base

I actually bought this very recently but I've been using it everyday and I love it! I've wanted it for a few months but it's quite pricey so I waited until I could justify spending £30 :) but it's so worth the money, it's a cream bronzer that suits all skin tones and I apply it with a contour brush. It blends so easily and creates a really natural, sun kissed look. I have very fair skin so it's hard to apply bronzer and achieve a natural finish, but this creates a gorgeous glow and will last me ages. It's a definate investment buy.

Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish

I know every beauty blogger and their dog love Liz Earle products and everywhere you turn there's excellent reviews so I won't overdo it, but I recently rediscovered this cleanser and now I'm not sure why I left it behind in the first place... It smells fresh and makes my skin super soft. One pump of this will remove all traces of make up (I use a seperate eye make up remover but I'm guessing you may need a tiny bit more for stubborn mascara), it's extremely gentle on my skin and it gives me just the right balance of moisture whilst not tightening my skin (I find some cleansers really dry my skin out and even though I have quite oily skin I like to keep some moisture there). I don't use the hot cloth with this, I just use it as a regular cleanser, wetting my face first, using one pump of the cleanser and applying it to my face and neck then washing it off and patting dry :)

Garnier Deep Clean Foam Wash

I use this face wash in the morning before putting on my moisturiser and it's perfect for my oily skin. It has zinc in it which helps to fight breakouts, I'm prone to breakouts in the most oily areas on my face and so far this has helped to keep my skin clear. It has a tingly effect when I apply it but I quite like that as it tells me it's working at killing bacteria, giving my face a deep clean. It does tighten my skin but I'm not too bothered by that as I apply my moisturiser straight after. I wouldn't recommend this if you have dry or sensitive skin as it'll probably dry you out too much and I wouldn't say it's gentle enough for sensitive skin.

Lush - Enzymion Moisturiser

Another great product for combination to oily skin. It doesn't really have any scent but I hate fragranced moisturisers so it suits me perfectly, for £13.50 it's quite a small tub (45g) but a little bit goes a long way so I can see it lasting for a few months. It contains alpha hydroxy acids (found in certain fresh fruits) which help to soak up excess sebum (oily skin is just excess sebum being produced) and so far I love this product. It dries my skin but still adds the right amount of moisture keeping my skin soft and creating a lovely base for my make up. Lush is definitely one of my favourite shops at the moment, they have something for everyone!

Revlon Lip butters

I'll be doing a full review on some of these in a few days but they have definitely made it to my favourites! I wear one pretty much every day (I'm lucky enough to have the whole range thanks to a twitter competition) but they're a must have product for summer.

L-R Tutti Frutti, Sugar Frosting, Creme Brulee, Peach Parfait