COLLECTION launch Mardi Gras Summer range | Review

COLLECTION is a Highstreet makeup brand I've been a fan of for years. Their cult Lasting Perfection Concealer will alway be a repurchase for me and I'm currently loving their Creme Puff lip products.

This summer sees the launch of their new Mardi Gras collection. The range is inspired by the spirit of Rio and the tropics of the Amazon. As you can see by the vibrant colours, the range is very tropical themed which ties in nicely with the World Cup and is bang on trend this summer. The collection consits of six pieces set to bring a bit of carnival spirit to your summer.

The three nail polish shades include White Out, Canary Yellow and Green with Envy. Each colour is perfect for summer and all look great with a tan. The white shade can be a bit streaky with one coat but looks great with 2-3 coats. The yellow is a little darker then I'm used to and I don't usually wear green varnish but these shades are really wearable.

Lip balms aren't usually a product you accosiate with COLLECTION. These scented lip balms are super hydrating and come in three different flavours including strawberry, orange and green apple. For just �1.99 these are a bargain. The fun and colourful packaging makes these easier to find in my handbag too!

The Mardi Gras range* from Collection is available from June in Superdrug stores and online. Everything featured above is �1.99.

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#GUESSTHEPOLISH Mystery Nail Polish Giveaway CLOSED

Want to win some nail polish? Well, I have an unusual giveaway for you lovely lot today. I've been sent a un-branded gel nail polish to test out and giveaway. All you have to do to be in a chance of winning the above polish is simply guess what brand it is!

Prize

I'll be giving away the new gel nail polish featured above, don't worry not that exact one! This creamy, classic red nail polish has a gel formula which is extremely long lasting. After 8 days wear I only had minor chips on a few nails - very impressive as I didn't use a top coat! I wouldn't giveaway a product I didn't love and I'm seriously over-whelmed with how good this gel nail polish is.

Rules

You can enter by commenting on the post below, tweeting me on twitter or leave a comment on my Instagram. You can enter a maximum of 3 times a day and the giveaway will end on June 9 at Midnight. Open to UK residents only. Winner will be picked at random from the correct entries and will be notified on Tuesday 10 June.

Clues

I'll be posting 3 clues about what brand this is so make sure you're following me on twitter and Instagram for a a better chance of winning! The first clue is: This nail polish is a British beauty brand. Clue #2 will be posted on my Twitter on Wednesday and clue #3 will be posted on my Instagram on Friday.

Good luck guessing everyone :) 

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Butterflies & Roses - Born Pretty Store Water Decal Review

*Some products were sent to me for testing and review, completely complimentary, from Born Pretty Store. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

When given the chance to try some products free from the Born Pretty Store I jumped at the chance. The first product I chose were these gorgeous gold butterfly water decals. I knew exactly what I wanted to do with them!

A quick note: these butterfly decals are on sale right now!! Originally priced $2.86 you can now buy them for only $1.72. And even better - I have a discount code for you! Just use the code SBN10K31 at checkout for 10% off your order.

I already had the rose decals from a previous purchase. You may remember them from my Valentine's Day nail art. And my initial thought of how perfect they would go together was spot on!

The Born Pretty Store water decals are so easy to use. You start with a base color on your nails and let them dry completely. Cut out the decal you want to use - these packs come with a variety of different butterflies and roses so choose what you like best. Remove the protective plastic film and dunk the design into some room temperature water for about 10-20 seconds ... just long enough to let the decal become completely saturated and the design slides off easily at your touch. I then lightly wet a piece of paper towel and swipe it across my nails to wet them, laying the design over and positioning it into place. You can blot at the design once it's where you want it with a dry paper towel, lightly pressing to get out any air bubbles and to shape it around your nail. Once it's settled and dry, top it with a top coat and you're ready to go with some beautiful nail art and none of the hassle!!

I started these nails with Airy Berry, a lovely baby blue creme from my upcoming The Lights creme collection. This is 2 coats.

I chose various roses from the set and arranged them around my nails first. The butterflies were then positioned over and around them. It was so quick and easy to get such an elegant and summery design. I got so many compliments on these nails.

Stick around because I have another product from Born Pretty Store to review just as great as this one!

Until next time,

Ashley

*Some products were sent to me for testing and review, completely complimentary, from Born Pretty Store. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

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#WhatIsPretty to you? #beautydebate

Oh Beyonc� I didn't think I could love you any more but then you go and do this.

Beyonce recently asked on Instagram to her army of followers to share photo's of what their perception of beauty is using the #WhatIsPretty hashtag. The campaign created a social media storm with nearly 40,000 people posting their photos. There is now a website full of inspirational images and videos. There are some really beautiful images on there, take a look for yourself here. The overall theme very much seems to be about love but after all isn't love, family, friendship beautiful? It's so refreshing to see these moving images, the #WhatIsPretty hashtag is an instant pick me up! Although this campaign may have been created to help promote her new single 'Pretty Hurts' I'm all for influential women in the media expressing the truth. Good on you B! I don't think beauty should define us. Beauty does not bring you happiness, discovering who you are does.

How do you define pretty? What does it mean to you?  

Next Sunday's #BeautyDebate | Are Expensive Beauty Products Worth It?

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Maybelline SuperStay Better Skin Foundation | Review

Maybelline foundation and I have had a on/off relationship for years. When I first discovered make up, Dream Matte Mousse was one of the first foundations I tried. At the time I loved it but looking back at it now the colour was way to orange and the texture was weird and often looked cakey. However, will Maybelline's newest foundation launch change my opinion of the brand?

Better Skin claims to improve your skin tone in just 3 weeks. It's designed to transform dull, uneven skin leaving you with hydrated, flawless, glowing skin with it's vitamin enriched formula.

The foundation comes in 8 shades, so not a great range of colours. I've been using 'Nude 021' which is the second lightest and is a little too dark for me. I've been applying this with my Real Techniques Expert face brush which seems to be the best way to use it. I'm impressed with the overall coverage of this. It helps to even out my skin tone and conceals small blemishes. It's doesn't do a great deal for dark circles and I still need to use concealer. When applying it you can definitely feel it's an hydrating foundation, I think this would be best for those with normal/dry skin. It's difficult to say if it has cleared my skin up. My skin has been good lately but that may be as a result of some new skincare products I've been using.

Not a bad highstreet foundation. This blends really nicely and has good coverage. I'm always sceptical about foundation claims and I'm still on the fence about the 'better skin' claim. Like most highstreet foundations, the shade range is poor. I love that it has spf 20 so i'll be using this in the summer. It's vitamin enriched formula does appeal to me and might be good for you if you find foundations tend to break you out. 

Maybelline SuperStay Better Skin Foundation �8.99 30ml available at Superdrug/Boots 

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How to Wear 1 lipstick 3 different Ways

Until about two years ago I didn't really own any lipstick. I thought it was old fashioned and too grown up for me. Fast forward a few years and beauty blogging has turned me into a crazy lipstick lady. I've had to reinforce my lipstick storage as I ran out of room. I find lipstick everywhere now; in my car, at the bottom of handbags, coat pockets, my fridge (no really) I just can't stop buying lipstick! Today I'm going to show you 3 ways to wear 1 lipstick. For this I'm using a Collection Deluxe lipstick in 01.

Tinted Balm
This is a really natural way to wear lipstick, great if your a lipstick newbie. I started of by gently patting the lipstick onto my lips. I then rubbed that in with my fingers to achieve a subtle hint of colour. Next I layered on top a clear lip balm from Nivea. Ta-da a tinted balm! You could also use a coloured balm for a deeper colour.
Velvet Effect
This look is more intense but still really easy to re-create. All you need is translucent powder, tissue and a brush. Apply the lipstick to your lips. You can do this directly from the bullet or use a lip brush if you prefer. Now take the tissue and hold it up to your lips. Using the powder and a brush, gently pat it over the tissue. This technique will transform any lipstick into a velvet finish.
Super Glossy
This look is designed to create an impact and looks amazing paired with natural makeup. After applying your lipstick of choice and a layer of clear gloss for super shiny lips. You can also mix it up and use a lip gloss in a lighter or darker shade to change the colour of your lipstick. Lip glosses with a hint of shimmer also look great on this look.

I hope this post was helpful :) Hands up who's going to play with lipstick today? 

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Memorial Day Round-up

Memorial Day is tomorrow. It seems like time just flies by anymore. I blink and a week has passed. I planned to do this post early but life got busy. Half the time I figure if I get a chance to do it at all I'm ahead! Do you have your nail art ready for the holiday? If not take a look at some of these past designs (and the one I did especially for this post) that could be perfect for your nails. :)

The first is my Patriotic Drip nails. These are still, to this day, one of my favorite nail art designs. And honestly, they are so easy to do! I even have a tutorial to walk you through it!! (The original post for the Patriotic Drips)

Easy, right? It's okay if you're not up to using a nail art brush though because I have one even simpler for you! All it takes is red, white, and blue polish and some saran wrap!

This mani is not only easy, but it's fast too! I started with just one coat of China Glaze First Mate. Let this dry completely before moving on, and it is really the only part you have to wait for. Next put a drop or two of white polish on a piece of paper and dip a bit of crumpled saran wrap into it. Dab the saran wrap around the paper until you start to see a design that is more than just blobs of nail polish and then dab the saran wrap around your nails. Repeat with the red polish. I went back and forth between red, white, and blue until I got a design I liked. There is really no way to do this wrong so have fun! I topped the design with Seche Vite and then did a quick clean up with a q-tip dipped in nail polish remover.

My helpful tip of the day: Using top coat before you clean is perfect for those of you who have a tendency to over clean and ruin your hard work as it will protect the design - you'll need to clean through a layer of top coat before you erase any of the design. :)

Still not what you're looking for? Try one of my older designs. I think I am nearing the end of new and different when it comes to patriotic nail art because I've done so much of it already!

The original post for the Stars and Stripes nails.

The original post for the Patriotic Splatter nails.

The original post for the Memorial Day 2012 nails.

And while this may be a design I did for the Olympics of 2012 this red, white, and blue gradient would be perfect alone or used as an accent. (The original post for the Olympic nails.)

Whether you choose one of these designs or already have an idea in mind ... what will be on your nails for Memorial Day?

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Bath Vs Shower | #BeautyDebate

Soaking in an indulgent bubble bath with a new magazine in a candle lit bathroom; relaxing all your senses in preparation for some serious me-time. Or maybe a steaming shower spent singing along to Radio 1 is your idea of pamper perfection? Do you like to stew in a bath or do you prefer to jump in the shower?

I have to say I'm more of a shower person. It's quicker, uses less water and I love using refreshing shower gels. That's not to say I don't like the occasional bath. When I want a proper pamper I'll spend an hour in the bath until my fingers look like cocktail sausages and I have the whole family banging on the bathroom door (sorry guys).

I asked on twitter which you prefer, here's what some of you said! Thank you all for your tweets!

So, are you a bath or a shower person? 

#BeautyDebate it a fancy new feature i'll be posting about every Sunday. It's a place where we can chat about a beauty topic each week, some weeks will be controversial topics and others will be light-hearted like this one! Let me know if there is a particular topic you would like to see discussed. :) 

Next Sunday's #BeautyDebate | What Is Pretty To You?

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FREE Beauty Product Samples | #3

It's been a while since I shared with you what free beauty product samples you can get you hands on, sorry! But I discovered some really amazing ones this month that I just had to tell you about. A few favourites include a free 50ml bottle of Cleanse and Polish from Liz Earle and and free Roo Beauty Nail Polish Storage Roll! Who doesn't love a freebie?

Liz Earle Cleanse & Polish 50ml 
Roo Beauty Nail Polish Roll 
New Ghost Eclipse Fragrance
Viktor & Rolf FlowerBomb Fragrance sample
Manuka Doctor Mini Skincare Kit
Pantene Expert Age Defy Shampoo
Rimmel Matte BB Cream 
Nivea Daily Essentials Sensitive Range

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New Purely Pampering Range From Dove | Review

I'm all for more me-time. I like to dedicate Sunday evenings to some indulgent pampering. I spend the evening with my hair covered in conditioner, a cuppa tea and catch up on all the posts/Youtube videos from the week. Dove have recently launched a new Purely Pampering range which allows you to experience those me-time moments every single day.

The new good-enough-to-eat range consists of two delicious scents. Pistachio Cream with Magnolia; a sweet scent with a delicate hint of Magnolia. Definitely one for pistachio fans! The second is Coconut Milk and Jasmine Petals; another gorgeous scent that isn't over-powering.

Like with all Dove beauty products, not only is your skin wrapped is a delicious scent but skin is left nourished and feeling silky soft. Dove's unique DeepCare Complex is in each product. It's an infusion of skin-natural nutrients and rich essential oil for deep down nourishment. The whole range is a joy to use and they smell amazing. I strongly urge you give these a sniff next time you're in Boots.

The body lotions* retail for �3.99 and the body washes* are �2.99 each. I'm surprised these luxourious products are so affordable.Whether you're a morning or evening shower person, these products guarantee to add a bit of luxury to your routine!

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