REVIEW || KERASTASE ELIXIR ULTIMATE OLEO-COMPLEXE 6 SHAMPOO & BALM

Kerastase is one of those brands who not a lot people speak about as they are on the pricey side of hair care products, but I can never resist buying new products to try out and see whether they are actually worth their high price tag. Now, these two retail between £20-£30 which seems ridiculous for a shampoo and an oil balm, as I usually go for products like VO5 which only cost around a quid and do a great job.

The balm has a weird consistency, it's like the Elizabeth Arden 8 Hour Cream but dry? It makes my hair feel matted, but at least I get to wash out the product soon after applying it. I have used it several times but I'm not the biggest fan of it. The texture is odd and I don't think it does anything for my hair -I have definitely tried better products. I also don't see the point in using a hair treatment on dry hair? Not sure if it's just me, but isn't a treatment supposed to be used on clean hair?

The shampoo, on the other hand, is quite nice and smells great. I wouldn't say it's the best I have tried before but it does make my hair super shiny and soft - something that most shampoos can achieve.
Overall, as you can see I don't have much to say about these products as I don't think they're very good. You can find much better alternatives from other brands like Aveda or Matrix.

What was the most you have ever spent on hair products? Would you say it was worth your money?

Lots of love,

Maya xo

REVIEW || PIXI BY PETRA EYE REFLECTIONS EYESHADOW PALETTES & EYE BRUSHES - REFLEX LIGHT AND NATURAL BEAUTY EYESHADOW PALETTES REVIEW

When I came home after a long day last week, my partner told me that I had a parcel delivered earlier that day and I couldn't believe my eyes and screamed when I saw a giant light green box with the label 'Pixi' written across it. Pixi is definitely a brand I love and have wanted to work with for years now! My dear friend Sophie from Life of Little Things introduced me to Pixi's Glow Tonic and I absolutely loved it - I can't wait to get my hands on the other ones, especially the milky lotion.

In the giant box that was delivered, I received two of the new eyeshadow palettes - Reflex Light & Natural Beauty - alongside 3 eyeshadow brushes in a very handy travel case. I have used the two palettes quite a few times since receiving them so have enough knowledge of the products for a full review.

Reflex Light Eyeshadow Palette £24:

This palette is definitely something I would pick up if I was browsing for some new makeup. The shades are gorgeous and very wearable, especially when paired with thick eyeliner, false lashes and a nude glossy lip. The shades swatched beautifully, and I know that a lot of the time an eyeshadow might swatch nicely but look patchy on the eye so I put this palette to a proper test.

My favourite shades have to be 3D Peach, Auburn Blaze, Vintage Gold and Antique Bronze. I found that these eyeshadows applied very easily with a flat shadow brush (I used MAC 248) or if you don’t own a flat brush then I’d suggest using your finger to apply for best results.

One thing this palette is definitely missing are matte shades for blending and transitioning the metallic colours. I do think that the shades will be great for cut creases as the pigmentation is very strong with a lot of shimmer. 

Natural Beauty Eyeshadow Palette £24:

This palette is definitely a great choice for those who prefer a natural eye look. It’ll make a great gift for Mother’s Day along with the brush set. I particularly love the shades Metal Mauve and Rose Clay and use only those two shadows for a natural smokey-eye look for work.

I found that the matte shades in this palette were a little bit powdery and had some fall out so I would recommend either applying the shadows before the base or tap off any excess before blending. The pigmentation is very good, especially in metallic shades. I do think that this palette would be slightly better if it had a neutral transition shade to make blending a little bit easier, but I don’t mind too much as I use MAC’s Brule as a base for all my eyeshadows.

I highly recommend buying this palette if you’re only starting out with makeup and want a bit of everything from your palette. This one has a mixture of mattes, satins and shimmers with one metallic shade so it’s perfect for anyone wanting to learn new looks.

Unfortunately, the brush set isn’t available for sale and I don’t think you can buy the brushes separately at the moment either. I’m hoping that Pixi will bring this set out as I really like the pencil brush (E03) and the fluffy brush (E02) is amazing for applying highlighter. The small eyeshadow brush (E01) is great at applying eyeshadow to the bottom lash line but I find it a little bit too firm to use on my actual eyelid.

Overall, I have been really enjoying wearing these eyeshadows and know for a fact that I'll get much more wear out of them than some of my other palettes (e.g. Urban Decay Naked 2). I hope you've enjoyed my mini review - if you have any questions about these palettes then pop them in the comments section below & I'll get back to you as soon as I can!

*This post includes gifted items and affiliate links.

Have you tried any Pixi makeup products before? Do you have any recommendations?

Lots of love,

Maya xo

GIVEAWAY || DRY JANUARY & VEGANUARY GIVEAWAY - WIN A MAC LIPSTICK AND LIP LINER OF YOUR OWN CHOICE

As a massive thank you to those who have participated in either dry January or Veganuary (or both) and give you a chance to win a Mac lipstick and lipliner of your choice. I have cut alcohol from my diet for over a year now and I couldn't feel better. I'm also trying to eat a lot less meat and dairy and when I eat a plant-based meal I feel 10 times better, so my main goal is to become vegan by the end of this year!

The rules of the giveaway are as follows:
- you must over the age of 16 or have parental consent to enter.
- if you unfollow/undo an action you will lose your entry.
- you must use a valid email address for me to contact you if you're a winner.
- if you show any negativity/hate towards myself or anyone participating you will be disqualified.
- Have fun! This giveaway is open to everyone & is international.

THIS GIVEAWAY HAS NOW ENDED.

Good luck to everyone! I wish you all the best! ❤️

*This giveaway is not associated with MAC and the prize will be funded with my own money.

Lots of love,

Maya xo

2019 || JANUARY FAVOURITES

Origins Night-a-mins £32:

This is hands down my new favourite night cream. I used to really enjoy wearing Decleor Neroli Oil or Night Balm but I’ve been completely diverted. Night-a-mins has recently had its formula changed to fruit-derived acids to make it more effective as a treatment and more environmentally friendly. The cream consists of grape, apple and beetroot acids which help resurface the skin as well as peel the dead skin cells off overnight. It took me a couple of weeks to get used to this product as I found it a bit tightening at first which gave away an uncomfortable sensation on my cheeks, but now I use it daily and can’t imagine myself going back to anything else.

MAC 217s blending brush £21:

I don’t know what I did before I got this brush. It has honestly changed the way I apply my eyeshadow, making it so easy to blend any harsh lines or shadows together. I bought this brush exactly a year ago for my 22nd birthday and I got another for Christmas last year which will make my life much easier because I won’t have to wash the brush as often if I’m in a hurry (I try to wash my brushes at least once a week). Even though this brush is very expensive, it really is worth every penny. Especially now that the bristles are synthetic instead of real hair (much more environmentally friendly) it makes it a lot easier to blend all sorts of eyeshadows and it doesn’t shed at all. I think this is definitely a great brush to add to your collection and a staple in my daily routine.

Papier Disney dotted notebook £12.99:

I first came across this brand after seeing it on the Tribe app and once I saw that Papier sells Disney themed notebooks I had to get one. They offer quite a big variety of different styles and types of notebooks and diaries but for my first one, I picked this Alice in Wonderland one. I’ve been wanting to start a proper bullet journal for months now so when’s the best time for one if not now? I started filling this one out in the last week of December last year and I can’t seem to put it down. I also use another dated diary for everyday use but I enjoy the fact that I can customise my bullet journal to my needs. You can get £10 off your first order when using this link.

Heather Morris’ The Tattooist of Auschwitz £4:

I bought this book back in October and attempted to read it twice but couldn’t really bring myself to sitting down and focusing on a book due to some personal issues I was going through. Now that I have finally made time for myself I managed to finish this book in a couple of weeks time and wow, it is bloody brilliant. The writing is phenomenal and the way that Heather described Lale’s story is so personal and made me feel all the emotions in the world! If you haven’t read this already, please do - you won’t regret it.

Soap & Glory The Scrub of Your Life £7:
This is a gem that I re-discovered at Christmas when I received a large Soap & Glory set from my partner. I forgot just how good this smells and makes my skin feel after cleansing. Thankfully, the brand has stopped using microbeads in their products in 2014 (according to their Twitter account) which is why I was happy to start using this product again. I find that the product works well on its own, however, I prefer to use it with exfoliating gloves for a super smooth effect on my skin. If you haven't already tried this scrub then I suggest you do as it smells great and will make your skin feel brand new!

What have you loved this January?

*This post includes affiliate links.

Lots of love,

Maya xo

FOOD || CURIOUS MANOR AFTERNOON TEA IN NOTTINGHAM

Earlier this year I had the pleasure of trying out a boozy afternoon tea at Curious Manor in Nottingham, thanks to the lovely team at Gemini. This was a part of a very fun day out which included a mini flashmob style fashion show (which was bloody amazing).

I've been wanting to go to Curious Manor for a while but the price has put me off (it was around £20 pp), so you can imagine how excited I was to finally try it out with some fellow blogging gals. 

We started off with a glass of prosecco each (I don't drink alcohol so I passed mine on) and then we were asked for any dietary requirements. At the time I did not have any special requirements so I was given the standard afternoon tea to share with another blogger. 

My platter included: cream cheese and salmon or cucumber sandwiches, and egg mayo sandwiches. There were also a couple of different savoury pastries but I'm not the biggest fan of pastry so I didn't give it a try. Obviously, there were scones (do you say sconnes or scohnes?) which were very yummy, alongside macaroons, red velvet cake, pain au chocolate and a coffee & walnut cake. I believe that all platters had different sandwiches and cakes because we all had different dietary requirements, but there was something there for everyone including vegans, celiacs and lactose-intolerant people.

Of course me being me, I had about 5 cups of tea with my food hehe. I find that tea outside of home always tastes better, would you agree? Now I really want to get myself a cute set of teacups and saucers to serve when I have some friends around. I’d love to host my own little afternoon tea party! I’d feel like such an adult 😂

The décor inside was absolutely beautiful. It was so different from anything I have seen before and gave me proper inspo for when I have my own house!

*I have since found out that sadly, Curious Manor does not offer afternoon tea anymore. This post is not sponsored and all opinions are my own, however, I was treated to the afternoon free of charge by Gemini PR & Marketing.

Lots of love,

Maya xo