bloomzy /

New Season: elf Cosmetics

 A selection of new products from e.l.f cosmetics*
A couple of weeks ago the lovely people from e.l.f sent me some of their new products to try. I was so excited when I opened the package and found a very Christmas-y gift bag loaded with items. It feels as though e.l.f know me personally and the items that would be perfectly matched to me.
e.l.f are an American cosmetic company who launched in the UK back in 2007. They are an affordable alternative to high street retailers, with items starting for as little as £1.50. Unfortunately they are on only available online in the UK but you can easily purchase items through their site.
What did they send me?
– Mysterious Nail Polish Set –
– 3-in-1 Mascara –
– 100 Piece Marble Eyeshadow Palette –
– Angled Blush Brush –
– Mascara & Shadow Shield –
The nail polish set isn’t up on the site yet, but hopefully it will be added soon as the colours are amazing! As for the rest of the items, well I can’t wait to try them out, especially the blush brush and marble eyeshadows. I also got quite excited when I saw the mascara shield as I’m always trying so hard not to smudge my mascara. This is only a sneak peek but I plan to do reviews of some of the products after I’ve tried them out. I’ve never tried the brand myself so I’m excited to give them a go with these products!
bloomzy /

Discuss: Would you rent a nail polish?


Most nail polish addicts will have a favourite designer brand. However most of these brands are expensive, even if the quality is good. So what if someone told you, you could have designer nail polishes but without the price tag? Well that’s exactly what US brand Lacquerous are planning to offer.

The concept behind the brand is simple; You pay $18 a month and they send you 3 designer nail polishes (of your choice). The catch? You’re only renting them. Yep, at the end of the month you send the polishes back. You then pay another $18 and are sent another 3 polishes, and so on. They’re the “Netflix for Nail Polish”.

This all sounds great, especially if you don’t use a polish more than once a week, and switch often. However the small print is where it starts to sound a little less likeable – you can only use each polish up to 3 times. Now for me, that’s a big no no. If I was going to pay £12 a month (the equivalent to $18) for 3 polishes a month I would want to get my moneys worth, designer or not. Sure most people probably won’t even use them more than 3 times, but what if you happen to dislike the other colours you choose, or you really fall for one or two in particular?

At the moment the company is invite-only to American citizens, with no talk of taking the venture overseas. They say they have over 2,500 people on their waiting list, however when you think about the size of America…well that’s not much at all, is it? I guess only time will tell as to how popular the idea and company will be.

Would you rent a nail polish? What do you think of the idea behind Lacquerous?

Source; 1, 2

bloomzy /

Event: Birchbox Champagne Afternoon Tea

Birchbox – Joliebox Champagne Afternoon Tea event

As soon as my plus-one and I walked through the doors we were giddy. I’d invited her to the Birchbox event as we both share a love for champagne and afternoon tea. It was held at The Soho Hotel, which is fashionably fancy, as is the drawing room which we were directed to. The tables were lined with cakes, sandwiches, biscuits and scones – with jam and cream, of course!

We arrived early and were greeted by the lovely team behind Birchbox and Joliebox. We were shown samples of October’s Joliebox, whilst waiters offered us salmon sandwiches and champagne. I loved the effort that the team went towards to greet and have a proper talk with everyone, not just a 5min chat. I knew quite a bit about Joliebox but I was really interested in finding out more about Birchbox, an American monthly beauty sample box company which are now moving into the European market, hence the event.

We even got to meet Katia Beauchamp, one of Birchbox’s co-founders – an incredibly funny, intelligent and gorgeous lady – definitely a power woman if I did ever meet one. I thought having some of the American team there was a really great edition to the event and showed just how passionate they are about making it here in Europe. Although I won’t lie, the highlight of the event were the ornately decorated (and incredibly yummy) biscuits! I think we can all expect big things from Birchbox once it’s launched in the UK – I can’t wait!

Birchbox UK will be launching in January 2013.
Joliebox will now be merging with Birchbox and becoming Birchbox UK.

bloomzy /

Event: Avène & Klorane Bloggers Breakfast

Avène and Klorane Bloggers Breakfast

When I was invited to the Avène and Klorane Bloggers Breakfast I was so excited. I fell in love with Klorane’s dry shampoo earlier this year, and I am a big fan of pretty much all of Avène’s products. The breakfast was held at the gorgeous Delaunay Grand European Cafe Restaurant, in Aldwych – by Covent Garden. The breakfast itself was delicious and there were plenty of yummy treats to choose between, although the mini-pastries were my favourite – I think Sascha of Beauty Geek UK agreed with me on that too. However, the stars of the show were of course, the array of products by Klorane and Avène.

I was introduced to Klorane’s shampoo and conditioners, as well as being given some advice on which product would be best suited for my hair/needs. For me it was Pomegranate (for coloured hair). Also on show were 3 shampoos that will be released early next year into John Lewis stores – more on that at a later date. If you haven’t come across Klorane’s shampoo & conditioners before, they have them for every kind of hair type, and they all smell gorgeous!

I like to think I know my Avène products, just because I’m such a fan…and because I’ve bought so many. I was wrong though, which was actually a nice surprise as I was introduced to some new products I didn’t know about. In particular the Antirougeurs range caught my eye as it offers a variety of products to help combat skin redness. I hadn’t heard of the range, or seen it in any French pharmacies so I was very interested in finding out more. I’m hoping I can get my hands on some soon to review for you all!

You can find my previous posts on Klorane here, and Avène here.

bloomzy /

Tutorial: Velvet Nail Manicure

How to create an on-trend velvet nail manicure

The last nail tutorial I posted seemed quite successful so I thought I would do another. This time I picked this season’s on-trend velvet nail manicure – made popular on the catwalk. Once again I’m going for the accent nail as I didn’t want to over do it. So here is a simple and easy tutorial for a velvet manicure.

You will need…
1 x Brush
1 x Tweezers
1 x Base Coat (optional)
1 x Nail Polish (in your choice of colour)
1 x Pot of  ‘Velvet’ Powder (in your choice of colour)

How to create the look:
1. If you’ve chosen to use a base coat, apply it to your nails.
2. Take your chosen nail polish and apply a coat to your nails – wait til dry.
3. Take the ‘velvet’ powder and use the tweezers to mix and separate the powder.
4. Apply another coat of polish on your chosen nails and then shake the powder onto the nails.
4. Leave the powder to set and the polish to dry, then use the brush to brush off any excess powder.
5. A top coat is not needed as it would ruin the effect, and the powder will stay on without it.

And that’s it! As always these are just simple, easy steps that you can use as a guideline when creating this effect. You can always mix it up a bit – maybe do all your nails or even try and create a design with the powder. I would recommend laying down some paper to catch the excess powder – it also makes it easier to put back after. Don’t worry if you get it wet, it may look soggy and ruined but after a quick dry it’s back to normal. This is a very subtle type of nail art, especially in such a dark colour, but I really like it.

The nail polish I am wearing is Natural Collection’s ‘Cosmic Crush’, and the Velvet Flocking Powder* was provided by Born Pretty Store – the tweezers and brush are included with all sales of the (separate) powder.

You can buy the nail polish in Boots and the Powder here (use code: BLOOMZYK31 for 10% discount).

bloomzy /

Japanese Nail Art | Nail Week

Japanese Nail ArtA selection of Japanese nail art

‘Nail Week’ has just begun and we’re diving into the deep end. Today’s post is all about nail art, of the Japanese variety. Why? Well nail art was one of the first things I fell in love with in the Japanese beauty industry, and with nail art becoming more popular in British fashion and beauty (Company magazine can’t get enough right now) I thought it was quite fitting for me to honour the reigning country of nail art. Fashion magazines in Japan constantly feature nail art in their beauty pages, whilst whole magazines are dedicated to it, such as: Nail Up, Nail Venus and Nail Max. Young girls and Women alike are obsessed with expressing themselves through their nails, and in Japan there are no limits to what you can do with your nails.

Some are simple, feminine and short:
Japanese Nail Art

Whilst others can be intricately decorated, edgy and insanely long:
Japanese Nail Art

Japanese nail art is well known worldwide for its creation of mini 3D artworks, use of various adornments and delicate designs. Nail salons have popped up all over the world trying to re-create the popularity and stylish nails seen on the streets of Japan – London-based Sohotrightnail can offer you some more detailed and embellished designs, whilst WAH NAILS can easily feed your simpler design needs. Of course the originals don’t come cheap. Prices usually start at around 10,000円 for a basic set, that’s about £80! It may seem expensive but when you see the work that goes into them, and the time that it takes, you can forgive them for charging so much. Getting your nails done in Japan is definitely an experience, and the end result is worth the money spent – but if you don’t have the money to spare then you can always make a stop at Donki for some of their press-on nails (photo here), which are just as amazing, for around £15.

Mitsu is a good friend of mine who not only dresses fabulously but styles her nails to match.
You can check out the various Japanese nail art she has had done here.

Source; 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

bloomzy /

Glossybox Natural Box April 2012

Glossybox Natural April 2012 Box

This month’s Glossybox was slightly different to previous ones. It came in a brown (they’re usually pink) biodegradable box, filled with ethical products. I was very excited when I opened it up as it looked & felt natural, and you know I love natural beauty products!

I received:
+ Caudalie Vionsource SOS Thirst-Quenching Serum
+ Inika Cosmetics Certified Organic Eyeliner – Black Caviar
+ Ayuuri Natural Body Wash – Sandalwood
+ Figs & Rouge Lip Balm – Rambling Rose
+ Kai Perfume Oil – Signature scent

If the natural theme wasn’t enough to win me over, Glossybox sent us some amazing items this month. A full sized Ayuuri body wash, Figs & Rouge rose lip balm (always a favourite of mine) and Kai perfume oil!
I plan to sell the Caudalie Vionsource & Inika eyeliner as I already use alternative products, and wouldn’t get any use out of them. So instead of wasting them, I shall be putting them up in the shop (the link is at the top of my blog). Even though I won’t be using a couple of the products, I think it’s safe to say that this month’s box was certainly worth the money!

You can subscribe to Glossybox here.
For those in the States, Glossybox is coming to you soon too – click here.