Health | Review : Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred Workout DVD

Hello everyone!!!

During the summer/ Holidays it can be had to keep up your normal Workout or fitness routines!! This is something I struggle with every year but this year I seemed to have adapted quite well!

My Usual Workout Routine Usually consists of The Gym 3/4 times a week and on top of that i walk around 4 miles most days (in and out of town) My Gym workouts consists of Cardio Training on the treadmill and Cross trainer as well as circuit training! This is Perfect when living i'm in the city as my Gym is a 25min walk away (perfect for that warm up and warm down you need!!) But in returning home There is no Gym in sight and it rains a lot!!!

Source

So I have decided to take the plunge and purchase a fitness DVD!! Over the years... on my constant struggle for that washboard stomach I have tried lots of dance workout DVDs, and although they are a lot of fun I have never really found them challenging for my fitness level and never loose any weight or gain any muscle until now!!! In a passing trip to Tesco I saw on sale Jillian Michaels '30 Day Shread' workout DVD! Jillian Michaels in on the US version of Biggest Looser ( a programme i am obsessed with and cry along with the contestants ever week :p) so i thought what the hell... i'll give it a go!!

The DVD contain three 20min workouts, each increasing in intensity! With someone who gyms 3 times a week I thought Level 1 would be easy.... and I was VERY wrong!! After 20 mins of the Level 1 one I was sweating, my muscles were burning and it was a tough mental struggle but I felt great!!! Only after one week of working out 20mins every day I feel more toned than I have done in a long time ! I Cant wait to see what the other two levels have in store for me and I love the challenge! 

To keep up my Cardio i still run for 20mins, 3 times a week! as well as doing this video 5 days a week! Its important to have two 'rest' days!! 

I cannot recommend this workout more!!! If you keep it up you WILL see results!!! If you don't want to splash out on the DVD (It only cost me £5) the Workouts are available on YouTube for free!!! What more could you possible want!!!

Have any of you Tried out this workout? Or have any great workout DVD's you would recommend??

Thats all for now

sxx

Beauty | Small ELF Haul

Hello Every one!!!

Hope everyone has been enjoying this lovely week of weather... i almost forgot what the sun looked like!!

To brighten up my day even more, after moving back home, i had a lovely little package from ELF waiting for me!!

Look... the sun was actually shining!!

I placed my First ELF order a few weeks ago when if you spent £30 or more you received 50% off your online order!!! well with an offer like that I could hardly resist!! I took this opportunity to stock up on some new brushes and try out some new products that I have had my eye on for some time!!

Check out my Haul video here (coming soon) to see all the bargains I got!!! 

now i'm off to play with all my new make up!!!

Thats all for now

Sxx

Review | MUA Make-up Range Pt. 2

Hey Guys!!

Time for part 2 of my MUA range Make- up review!!

For thoughts on Eyeshadows and Pressed powder check out Pt. 1

Like the Eye Shadows, another consistent favourite of mine is the MUA lipsticks! The Colour range covers the basics (from deep red, Bright pinks and nudes-a-plenty!!) and the staying power and opacity is commendable... who knew that £1 Lipstick would be so good that I have found myself repurchasing several colours from the range! MUA should be very proud of this product and it does make you think the profit margin on some other lipsticks that are of similar quality and charge 5x as much?! This product gets a well deserved 4.5/5!!

The Next three Products I have tried from the range were a Blush, Mascara and Eyeliner.

The colour range for blushes I found a little childish, with lots of bright and baby pinks with heavy glitter content. One colour I did love was this Peachy pink colour. This is certainly a usable product but has to be blended well and you need to build up the product quite substantially to see it on the face! I also found the (compared to other products) the amount of product was less than hoped, especially when you need to use so much this product get a 2/5!!

The most disappointing product had to be the mascara, the wand was rather scratchy, my eyes often hurt a little at the lash line after application and the lashes had very little, to no curl to them. This Mascara does give them a decent amount of volume and MUA do have some fun colours to play with in the range that might be perfect for a fancy dress night out! This product gets 1/5!! 

And last but not least is the range of Intense colour liner pencils!! Good colour range, and a lovely creamy consistency when applied! The Pencil also comes with a sharpener in the lid...something that I LOVE!! This product is pretty much useless on the lower lash line as is melted away within an hour but lasted around 3hours on my upper lash line! This product is defiantly worth the £1... even if it it juts for emergencies in you bag or the sharpener that comes with it!! I would rate this product a 3/5!!

I Hope you enjoyed this review.... If any of you have tried some of the New MUA products I would love to hear your thoughts and opinions!!! 

Thats all for now

Sxx

Review | MUA Make-up Range Pt. 1

hello everybody!!! 

Today I have a review of some cosmetics in the bargain make-up collection MUA (Make-Up Academy). For those of you in the UK you may have seen their £1 make-up stands in Superdrug for just over 2 years now. MUA mantra is that great make-up doesn't have to cost the earth and their range can be a guilt free indulgence!

When This line was first introduced, all products were £1. They had a bright range of eyeshadows, lipsticks and glossed as well as basic staples like pressed powder, mascara and liners! The have recently introduced new and exciting new products to the line such as BB creams, Eye shadow pallets and bronzers and nail art nail polishes. All products are under £4 and all the basics that they introduces in their first line are still only £1.... but can £1 make-up actually be any good?!

Since the Brand first launched I have purchased several items form the range so thought I would share with you the true winners (that i would happily pay ALOT more for) and some bargain make-up products that you could properly do without!

MUA Eye Shadow in Shade 2 & 9 in Pearl finish

The First product From the line I purchased was some of their eyeshadows. They have a range of colours in shimmer and matte shades and each shadow contains 2g of product.
These eyeshadows have (surprisingly) amazing pigmentation, they also blend well and lasted all day with a primer applied underneath! These are certainly one of the Stars of the Collection and the range and get a rating of 4/5!!

MUA Pressed Powder in Shades 1, 2 & 3 

Swatch | Pressed Powder in shades 3, 2 &1

Compared to the eyeshadows the Pressed Powder are slightly more disappointing. The three lightest shades are all very orange toned and not one of them matched my skin. The were also a rather a chalky consistency and left the face looking a little too 'cakey' for my liking. However if you are looking for something with a good coverage and you are one of the lucky ones who skin type matches these shades then you certainly get a lot of product (5.7g) for your pound. I think they are great to throw into your handbag in case of emergency and they just need a little work to blend. My rating for these is 2/5!!


Check out Part two of this review to see my Thought on their Lipsticks, Blush, Mascara & Liners
Thats all for now 
Sxx

Beauty | 40 Questions on All Things Beauty

Since I am fairly new to the online beauty community I thought this would be the perfect time to answer some beauty questions for you all....

The make up that I'm going to leave behind next year! *sob*

I originally saw these questions on beautyisasmilexo.blogspot.co.uk and thought i would give it a go myself!! hope you enjoy!!!

1. How many times do you wash your face daily?
- Well depending on if I am wearing make up or not or going to the gym i would say 2-3 times a day!

2. What skin type do you have? (Oily, Dry, Combination)
- I would say I have combination to dry skin, i get dry patches on my chin and around my nose!

3. What is your current facial wash?
- I use No. 7 Skin beautiful cleansing water to remove my make up and good old Liz Earl cleanse and Polish to really cleanse my face!

4. Do you exfoliate?
- Yep, roughly 2-3 times a week.

5. What Brand do you use?
- To exfoliate I use Soap and Glory "Scrub Your Nose in it" and a Superdrug own brand exfoliating face mask in raspberry.

6. What Moisturiser do you use?
- Currently I use Olay Touch of Sun shade light in the morning and dark in the evening!

7.  Do you have freckles?
- yep... i am a ginger Scot after all :p

8. Do you use eye cream?
- yes, a cream not a gel works better for my bags. Currently using a lovely one from the body shop!

9. Do you, or did you, ever have acne prone skin?
- I have always been bothered by the odd break out since the age of 14 and I still get them now but this is usually due to me eating unhealthy, drinking too much and not taking off my make up

10. What foundation do you use?
- currently my skin has been pretty clear so I have just been mixing some mac pro-long wear concealer in with my face primer. i'm also a big fan of GOSH foundations when i need a little more coverage!

11. How about concealer?
- Couldn't live without it. I use Benefit erase paste for under my eyes and GOSH liquid concealer for high-lighting and covering any redness or blemishes.

12. Do you know your undertone colour?
- My colourings are very cool, with a touch of pink rose rather than orange or yellow based.

13. What do you think of false eyelashes?
- Great on a night out or special occasion but i don't have the time or patients to put them on. They aways make the eyes look amazing in photos though!!

14. Did you know you are supposed to change your mascara every 3 months?
- yes i did... i only agree with this rule for everyday mascara that is being opened and used lots as there will be bacteria build up, for others i think they last a bit longer!!

15. What brand of Mascara do you currently use?
- I have re-found my love of No. 7 mascaras, perfect for day!!

16. Sephora or MAC?
- Got to be MAC at the moment as I live in the UK, I'm moving to Canada in August so watch this space.

17. Do you have a mac pro card?
- Nope!!

18. Do you use a make-up base/primer for the eyes?
- I don't really wear a lot of eye shadow so never felt the need to buy a proper primer!!

19. For the face?
- Yes, I currently use GOSH velvet touch face primer, its almost finished but I have an ELF primer on its way in the post to try out!

20. What is your favourite eyeshadow?
- Pistol by Urban Decay, great for a smokey eye!

21. Do you use pencil or liquid liner? I use a black shadow with liquid liner on top

22. Do you use mineral Make up?
- No

23. What is your favourite lipstick?
- Owww, thats a hard one!! Right now it is NYC Blue Rose

24. What about lip gloss?
- I'm a big fan of any Bourjois lip glosses!!

25. What is your faviourte blush to use?
- Coralista by Benefit

26. Do you buy your makeup on e bay?
- No! i'm alway a bit wary or e bay... unless you have been recommended the seller

27. What makeup tools do you use in makeup application?
- hands (for foundation) brushes for blush and eyeshadow/liner.

28. How often do you poke your eyes with an eyeliner pencil?
- not really at all now, I used to a lot when I was starting out with makeup

29. What do you think of pigment eyeshadows?
- lovely to look at... a lot of hard work (and mess) to apply!

30. Do you like drugstore makeup?
- yep! i would say my make up bag is around 50% drug store / high st.

31. Did you ever consider taking makeup classes?
- I used to work as a 'Beauty Spesalist' in Superdrug so got some training then, now its just a bit of fun/obsession of mine!!

32. Are you clumsy in putting on make up?
- still a disaster at attempting winged eyeliner.... i have no idea how people mange to not get eye lines all over the place!!

33. Name a makeup crime that you hate?
- Foundation that is not the correct skin colour or badly blended!! I love most make up looks, they might not work for me but that doesn't mean others can't rock it!!

34. Do you like colourful shades of makeup or neutral ones?
- Give me a bright lip any day over neutral

35. Which celebrity always has great makeup?
- Blake lively, some times its so effortless but she looks amazing all Glam as well.

36. If you could leave the house using just ONE makeup item, what would it be?
- Mascara

37.  Could you ever leave the house without makeup on?
- Yes! I would never wear makeup to the gym so lots of people have seen me bare faced... I don't think they always recognise me though :p

38. Do you think you look good without any makeup on?
- I have been told by some that I do but i'm yet to be fully convinced

39. In your opinion, what is the best makeup line?
- Has to be mac, for high end its not painfully expensive, the quality is amazing and the line is always new and exciting!!

40. What do you think of makeup?
- I love it!! for me I love the way you can change your face, your mood, or even the way people around you perceive you! Make up is an indulgence, a mood booster... its not about vanity at all! putting on a Bright lip can being you confidence and colour to your day!!!

phew.... that took a while to type! If you made it to the end i congratulate you!!

Thats all for now

Sxx

Health | Mealtime Teatime: Tuna Stake and Kale Salad

Hello everyone!!

As a part of my Health page I thought I would add my favourite cheap (I'm still a student) and easy meals to maybe help inspire some of you to whip up something new this evening for dinner!!

One of my Favourite quick, healthy meals is this Tuna Stake and Kale Salad. It is low in Carbs (perfect for an evening meal as you need less energy in the evening) and is high in Protein and fish oils. Kale is also a great alternative for lettuce in a Salad. Kale is Low in Calories, High in Fibre and has Zero Fat!! It's packed full of Vitamins ( K, A & C) and Antioxidants so get muching guys!!!

I added bread with soy butter as I needed carbs for my evening workout

I buy my (frozen) Tuna Stakes from Aldi in a pack, for 4-5 small stake it costs £3. I Usually start defrosting the Stakes in the morning so they just need to be cooked by dinner time. I lightly fry the stakes using fry light ( a low calorie cooking spray) with some garlic and rosemary. while my stakes are cooking I take my Prepare my kale (roughly chopped) Radishes (sliced) Carrots (uses vegetable peeler to get thin strips) and tomatoes and add a small amount of a low calorie salad dressing of your choice!

If you are not a Tuna Fan you could always swap the fish for Chicken or any other lean protein!!

I hope you enjoyed this recipe

Thats all for now

Sxx

Beauty | Spotty Pastel Nail Tutorial

Why hello there.... 

 This lovely british Summer weather getting you down, for what feels like the millionth month in a row now it is still pouring down with rain here in the UK so to brighten up this miserable day I have a Bright, Pastel spotted nail polish tutorial!!

This Nail look is perfect for those who have short nails and no artistic talent.... like myself, but will look even better is you are gifted on the nail art front!!

All the Nail Polishes Used in this tutorial are super cheap and easy to get hold of!!!

NYC | Mint Macaroon 253 - £1.49 - Superdrug

Barry M | Coral 296 - £2.99 - Superdrug/Boots

Collection 2000 | Base Coat - 99p - Cosmetic Fairy

Now lets keep our newly summer manicured fingers crossed for some SUN this summer!!!! :)

Thats all for now

Sxx

Health | Dairy Vs. Soya?!

I have been A vegetarian for around 10 years now and even though my love of chocolate and cakes runs very deep I have been tempted to try a more vegan - or dairy free-  diet! With no meat it is very important for me to get lots of protein into my diet (especially if i'm working out and trying to tone up) My usual source of protein comes from meat substitutes (Quorn being my 'meat free' substitute of choice) as well as beans, cheese and milk.

I have recently been researching more and more into the benefits of cutting out Dairy in your diet;

* Clearer skin

* Less skin irritations

* More Energy

*Alternatives are often lower in Calories and sweeter

 As well as some claimed longterm benefits such as reducing the risk of certain cancers!!! 

There are several arguments for and against so I thought I might give it a go for a month and see for myself if all the benefits pay off!!

My Main Dairy free food swap is from:

 Flora light (margarine spread) to Pure Dairy Free Soya Spread

(source)

So far I am loving this spread, I think i may even prefer it to my old family favourite Flora! For butter lovers this would be a much harder switch but i find it slightly sweeter and creamer than my Flora light spread so it feel quite indulgent!!

And Semi-Skimmed milk to Tesco's Organic Unsweetened Soya Milk

(Source)

This milk seems to go off very quickly once opened, much faster than regular milk! I Don't notice much difference when added to my porridge in the morning but the taste isn't quite to my liking so much yet that I would enjoy tucking into a glass of it, although it is really yummy in....

Starbucks Vanilla Soy latte!!
I think I have found a new firm favourite!!

I'll keep you guys updated to see if i notice any benefits!

Thats all for now

Sxx