Emma Hardie Moringa Cleansing Balm Review

After reading a lot of reviews of the Emma Hardie Moringa Cleansing Balm I was sold and wanted to purchase it so badly! However I already had a cleansing balm by Balance Me which I was using and the Emma Hardie Balm is quite pricey at £34 (especially on a student budget). However a few weeks ago the cleanser was on sale on FeelUnique.com for only £19.80! I had to buy it and try it out for myself.

My First impressions of the product were good. It has nice simple packaging and the cleanser also comes with an Emma Hardie face cloth that has a muslin side and a side that is similar to a usual face cloth. Also you get 100ml in the tub which is quite a decent size. Then when I tried the product out I certainly wasn't disappointed! The balm has such a luxurious (but not overpowering) smell that reminds me of spa products. The balm also has a nice texture to it that isn't too thick or oily. You only need a small amount to cleanse all of your face. I usually use a small scoop of it in my palm and then add some warm water so it turns to a milky thinner liquid consistency. Then I massage all over the face, paying special attention to my eyes to make sure all the mascara and eyeliner is removed (this balm is really gentle on the eyes too). Then I rinse of with warm water and use both sides of the cloth to make sure all my makeup has been removed properly.

This cleansing balm is so good! I've fallen in love with it after only using it for a few weeks. It melts makeup away and leaves skin feeling fresh, clean and moisturized. I've noticed a definite improvement in my skin already. It's great for my oily skin and isn't harsh or dehydrating like most cleansers targeted towards oily skin. The only downside to this cleanser is the price however if you can find a good deal like I did then definitely buy it! I have a feeling I will re-buy this product if it continues to impress me like it has so far.

Have you tried the Emma Hardie Cleansing Balm or thinking of trying it? Comment below to tell me your thoughts on this cult cleasner. 

My Skin Saviour - Origins Drink Up Intensive Overnight Mask Review

You can probably tell from the title of this post that this is going to be a positive review; over the last few months it has done amazing things to my skin so I though it was time for a little mini review...

This face mask is a cream that you apply a thick layer to your face as the very last step in your skincare routine just before bed, overnight it serves as an intense moisture mask that quenches skins thirst and dehydration. The bottle recommends using around twice a week however to be honest my skin is so dehydrated I tend to use it four or five times a week. In the morning my skin feels hydrated and dewy with no pesky flaky dry patches and looks plump and healthy; what more could you ever want from a hydrating face mask?

I was worried it would break my out as I was apply thick creams onto my face most nights of the week but there has been no sign of that what so ever, it also works wonders on long haul flights and at soothing and hydrating sunburn if you are lucky enough to be jetting off on holiday this summer. It is around £20 for 100ml which I think is great value for such a high-quality product; the smell is also delicious and fruity!

If you have dry skin or just need to give it a bit of a hydration boost, I would 100% recommend this. 

Nars Hearts New York Set Review

Although this palette has actually been around for some time now (since last May), I only came across it a few months ago but discovered it was only sold in America (unfortunately, especially since I was there over summer) so I forgot about it but always secretly wanted it. Then I was looking for it again recently and came across the set on Ebay for £60. The product was actually being sold in America for $75 which works out at about £45 here so after a bit of haggling I got it down to £52, which is still good value in my eyes due to it's limited availability and it was the only one I have found that I can buy. And this set is definitely worth the money! Included in the cute little box is a palette with a Blusher in the colour Amour, a bronzer in Laguna and 4 eyeshadow shades in Biarritz, Nepal, New York and Galapagos as well as a Lipgloss in Dolce Vita and a Nail Varnish in China Town. The set is actually worth $107 and the lipgloss and nail varnish are full sized and the blusher and bronzer are actually slightly larger than the regular full size ones.

New York Palette

I love the eyeshadow colours in this palette. Biarritz is great for a highlighting shade for underneath the eyebrow or as an all over the lid base colour. Nepal is a gorgeous light neutral shimmery colour that is great for an everyday eyeshadow shade. New York is a beautiful and unique plum brown colour that I can't get enough of. Galapagos is a dark brown shimmery colour. The four colours work so well together when applied too. Although New York seems quite intimidating in the palette for a neutral eyeshadow lover like me, it looks amazing when applied and is a lot less scary than it seems. I also love the fact that you get slightly larger than full sized blusher and bronzer in this palette. The blush colour is Amour which is a pretty pink shade, perfect for spring and summer and it can be used subtly or can be built up for a bolder look. I'm so happy that this palette came with Laguna in it as well. Laguna is the cult Nars bronzer that every girl should try and now I finally have it. Overall I love this palette and I can tell I will get a lot of use out of it. I think this palette was really worth the money. Most similar palettes are sold for £45 but with this one you also got a full sized lipgloss and nail varnish for only £7 more, which would usually cost £14.50 and £18.50. 

Nail Varnish in China Town

I was pleasantly surprised by this Nail Varnish when I first tried it. I'd never tried a Nars Nail Varnish before and I'd never really heard anyone talk about them or review them before so trying one had never really crossed my mind but now I'm so glad I did. I love the dark red colour of the varnish and it lasts for a long time without chipping. The only downside I would say about this Nail Varnish is that if you were to buy it separately it would cost £14.50 which is almost double my favourite brand of Nail Varnish, Essie. Luckily though I got it in this set so didn't have to spend too much.

Lip Gloss in Dolce Vita

I actually really love this lip gloss too. I have never tried a Nars lip gloss before so this was my first and I was so impressed. The colour is a great dusty-rose pink shade that is close to the natural shade of my lips but better. I imagine if I had gone to the Nars counter just for a lip gloss I probably would have bought this one. The formula isn't too sticky and a little goes a long way. The only issue I have with this lip gloss is the scent is like plastic and although it isn't overpowering or unbearable, it would be so much more appealing with a nicer taste/scent to it. 

I'm so happy with my impulse purchase. If you are in America or going there soon the set is still available on the Nars website so get it while you can!

Tanya Burr Lips and Nails Review

YouTuber Tanya Burr recently released a Lip Gloss and Nail Varnish Line exclusively to Feel Unique. The products are now available in Superdrug too. I was so excited when I heard this news as I love Tanya Burr and her YouTube channel. The collection contains 12 gorgeous lip gloss shades and 10 covetable nail varnish shades. It was so difficult for me to decide on which shades to choose from and I limited myself to buying one lip gloss and one nail varnish from the collection. In the end, after much deliberation, I decided on the lip gloss shade 'Afternoon Tea' and the nail varnish colour 'New York Night'.

Lip Gloss in Afternoon Tea

I chose the colour Afternoon Tea because it seemed like the perfect every day shade of lip gloss that could be worn on its own or over a lipstick. I love the smell of this lip gloss, it's sweet and smells delicious without being sickly. The applicator of this lip gloss is also great allowing full coverage. Also the lip gloss is the perfect texture as it feels really moisturising on the lips yet it isn't sticky. Although I do love this colour, I feel like there would be better colours in the collection that would suit me. This lip gloss is perfect for a natural look as it only has a slight sparkle but for more of a pop I would buy a different shade. However this is great for a natural everyday look and I'm sure I'll get plenty of use out of it. I can't wait to try Aurora and I also have my eye on Champagne Toast and Chic too.

Nail Varnish in New York Night

One of the reasons I chose this nail varnish colour was because of the name. As you can probably tell from our blog name we love everything New York related at Makeup Manhattan and Marc. Also the deep purple shade looked gorgeous and appealed to me the most out of all the colours. I loved the colour on my nails too, it is quite a dark shade, darker than I expected it to be but still a really nice colour, that looks almost black after a few coats. This nail varnish lasts quite a long time on the nails with only a few chips after week of wearing it with no clear coat over the top. Now I want to try out some different colours from the collection too. 

Have you tried any of the Tanya Burr Lips and Nails Collection? Which product would you love to own?

Charlotte Tilbury Makeup Haul/Review

Ever since Charlotte Tilbury launched her own makeup collection I have obsessed over all of the products! I was too scared to purchase them because I had never seen them in real life, only on her website www.CharlotteTilbury.com . Then Jess got the Eyeshadow Palette in Vintage Vamp for Christmas and I fell in love. So I decided to be brave and order a few things for myself from the range. I ordered one of the 6 Shades of Love sets that were released just before Valentines Day because it included a K.I.S.S.I.N.G Lipstick and a Cheek to Chic Blusher for £49. I also decided to get an eyeshadow palette for myself but I went for the Dolce Vita palette instead. All the products arrived in a gorgeous custom Charlotte Tilbury box full of burgundy tissue paper. 

The Dolce Vita Eyeshadow Palette

This is one of the most beautiful eyeshadow palettes I have ever owned. I love all the shades and the idea of having a prime, enhance, smoke and pop shade in each palette is so unique. All of Charlotte's products seem designed for ease of use and to help with makeup application as much as possible. Charlotte has also posted videos on her website to give tips on how to apply her products best which is useful for everyone! The shadows are so soft and blendable and all 4 shades go so well together. The prime shade is a light shimmery beige/gold colour, the enhance shade is a reddy brown, the smoke shade is a darker chocolatey brown and the pop shade is a gorgeous glittery bronze colour. 

6 Shades of Love Sex on Fire Gift Set

Cheek to Chic Blusher in Sex on Fire

This is another product from the collection that is designed to help you with your makeup. The blush contains 2 shades, a 'swish' shade on the outside and a 'pop' shade in the middle. The swish shade is designed to be swept all over the cheek and blended outwards and the pop shade is designed to be placed on the apple of the cheeks. I absolutely love these colours, I think they would suit a lot of skin types and they are build-able so you can have a natural look or a bolder look. I also love the packaging of this blusher. Most of the products come in burgundy and gold designed packaging inspired by the 1920s and I love how unique this is compared to most makeup brand packaging. 

K.I.S.S.I.N.G Lipstick in So Marilyn

This lipstick is the perfect red shade that seems like it would suit everyone. It has been named in homage to the iconic Marilyn Monroe and it certainly lives up to its name. The names and thought behind Charlotte's collection is what I also love about her products. She has taken inspiration from beauty icons such Audrey Hepburn, Grace Kelly, Brooke Shields and Bridgette Bardot. This is another product that comes in beautiful packaging (like most of the products in the collection) in a gold tube that is so unique and different to any lipstick packaging I own. Something else I love about these lipsticks is the delicious vanilla smell unlike any other lipstick scent I've come across before. It makes the product seem even more luxurious. The colour lasts a long time too and is quite moisturising. I can't wait to try out some different shades!

I absolutely love all three of these products and can't wait to try out more. They definitely deserve a place in my Charlotte Tilbury Makeup Bag. 

Have you tried anything from the Charlotte Tilbury collection?  Which product would you most like to buy?

Travel Review: Santorini, Greece

 200km southeast of mainland Greece lies the beautiful volcanic island of Santorini, its capital Thira hosts some of the most idyllic hotels in the world and is often a hotspot for the rich and famous (the Kardashians visited Santorini earlier this year as part of their annual family holiday).  This summer I was lucky enough to visit the picturesque island and here is my review.

To give you a little bit of a background and to cut a long story short, the island was formed by many large volcanos 1000s of years ago. It consists of three small islands arranged in a circle around the flooded caldera and one of its main unique characteristics are the magnificent rock faces around the island with towns and villages built into the sharp slopes. 

The town of Thira at dusk built into the cliffs overlooking the caldera.

I visited the island at the end of July 2013 for one week with my family, the flight time was a very bearable 3 ½ hours with wonderful views of the Aegean sea and Greek islands on the descent down into Santorini. Quite often on these tiny islands the airports are small, unorganised and busy and Santorini was no exception – a lot of patience is required! The weather was brilliant- around 25⁰C to 30⁰C- and mostly sunny. We stayed in a town called Kamari which is situated on the opposite side of the island to Thira and was only a ten minute transfer from the airport. Our hotel was built into the cliff overlooking the town and sea, it was a small, family run and reasonably priced 4 star hotel. The rooms were basic but comfortable, big and very clean; ours also had a small kitchen and dining area. My only criticism about the hotel would be that the location meant it was quite exposed to strong winds and could sometimes make it a little chilly around the pool area.

We had quite an active week and tried to fit as much into the 7 days as we could. If I explained everything we did this post would be far too long so I will choose my highlights. Probably my favourite day of the holiday was when we took a boat trip across the caldera and went onto the active volcano, we walked around the volcano and learnt the whole history of the island. You could see the smoke from the volcano and feel the heat coming up from the ground; the views were also quite amazing. 

Picture taken from the volcano overlooking the caldera, towards mainland Santorini.

Another highlight was when we went to the far end of Thira as we were told you can see the most beautiful sunset every night. We went to a lovely wine bar high up in the cliffs hanging over the sea and watched the most stunning sunset I have ever seen. We then waked back down into Thira and ate dinner at a very pleasant Greek tavern.

Sunset fromThira

The sunset from Thira with a cheeky glass of vino.

My final highlight was our last night, which also happened to be my birthday. We spent the day relaxing on the beach then in the evening we got dressed up and went out for a few cocktails then ate at a really nice restaurant called Elia. The food was delicious and the atmosphere was perfect. 

Product Review: Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer

A few months ago, at the Selfridges Autumn Beauty event (see the blog post for more info!) I picked up the Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer which was launched earlier this year. I decided to purchase this particular concealer as I felt it was time to leave the concealer comfort zone of my Benefit Boi-ing and I am so glad I did! I have also read really good reviews on many other beauty blogs so decided to try it out for myself.  

The formula of this concealer is really rich, creamy and alcohol free which is always a plus. It creates a flawless finish and is slightly luminous, the coverage is full and disguises blemishes like magic. Even though the product is really rich it still manages to stay really hydrating and long-wearing. The colour range is also great; my colour is 'Vanilla'. Nars claim the concealer is crease-proof however, I do disagree with this statement as it does tend to crease under my eyes. Whilst we are on negative points, my only other criticism is the doe-foot applicator; I find these really unhygienic and hate using them, I always put it on the back to my hand first then use my finger instead of straight onto the blemish.  I mainly use it for blemishes and occasionally when I have really dark under eye circles, and gently pat it onto the desired area with my finger. 

This product is definitely at the luxury end of the market at £21 for 6ml, however a little goes a long way. Many other beauty bloggers have suggested that Collections Lasting Perfection concealer is a much cheaper alternative, however I've not tried it so couldn't tell you.

Overall I think this concealer is amazing - a little on the pricey side, but in my opinion worth it. It has definitely knocked Boi-ing off my concealer top-spot!