Sex and the City 2

I simply cannot wait to see this! I know it isn't everyone's cup of tea and some think the storyline of the last one wasn't very strong, some of the reviews for this one aren't that fantastic blah blah blah. But come on, it is mainly about the event isn't it? The meeting up with girlfriends/loved ones/partners (even taking a well deserved break for a couple of hours and going on your own!) and going for lunch/dinner/drinks/shopping and to the cinema for pure escapism.

For me a lot of it is about the fashion and about seeing the fabulous locations it is filmed in. The storyline will matter but as a sucker for a happy ending, as long as nothing terrible happens, I'm not hard to please on that front.

I do have some serious concerns though:

a) I am not seeing the film until Saturday so I am scared someone will spoil what are potentially my favourite parts on me before then and

b) What on earth should I wear to the cinema? Husband is taking me for lunch and to the cinema to see it (honestly he looked crushed when he thought I would be going with my mum and sister to see it first) with some shopping possibly thrown in for good measure.

Do I go for casual comfort and slouch comfortably into my seat for the duration of the film or do I dust off my beloved Manolo Blahnik "Something Blue" Hangisi (seen in the first film) and make a bit of an effort?

Or something in between? Maybe wear a summery dress with some flats for shopping and bring out the heels for lunch/cinema time?

Gosh I haven't even considered what the weather situation will be...

I need to lie down!


Anyway, while I worry about all this important stuff - tell me your plans ladies......

LoubouLush x

Jewellery Haul!

My tastes in jewellery have changed quite a lot lately. I wear jewellery much more often than I used to (well I wear my wedding/engagement ring a lot!) and I am much more open to jewellery that isn't silver or white gold.

I like quirky jewellery and stuff that is quite cute as well as some vintage pieces.

Over the weekend I got some new goodies and I love every single one of them!!

Green Enamel Apple Ring £18 - www.galibardy.co.uk

Green Miniature Apple Necklace £12 - www.galibardy.co.uk

Cupcake necklace £6 - Accessorize

Crystal Feather Earrings £10 - http://www.galibardy.co.uk/

I also got a gorgeous art deco style hair comb which just arrived today so I will try to get some photos up of it!

What styles of jewellery will you be wearing this summer? Where are the best places to find cute and quirky pieces??

LoubouLush x

NOTD - Barry M + OPI

I've had these nails since the end of last week. I've had quite a lot of comments on them and have enjoyed them bringing a bit of a smile to people's faces. The pale pink is the Barry M "pale pink" reviewed previously and OPI La Paz-itively Hot which is which a rich bright pink and veteran of my nail polish collection. Both polishes apply and last really well -what's not to love?! I love both colours and think they make quite a cute combo :)

So... am I the only madwomen rocking multi coloured nails?

LoubouLush x

Beauty on a Budget

I am a real bargain lover. I'm a sucker for anything with a "reduced" price tag, well within reason. I don't discriminate in my tastes for anything. From Prada to Primark - it's all good to me. So I thought I'd give a quick list of some of my favourite budget products at the moment.

1. Aqueous Cream

I picked up this huge (500ml/g) tub of aqueous cream in B&M Bargains for about 99p. I have been reliably informed this sort of stuff is widely available in other budget shops and pharmacies and the likes of Semi-Chem. this stuff can be used as both a moisturiser and cleanser and can be used on adults and children.

Ingredients: Aqua, Cetostearyl Alcohol, Petrolatum, Paraffinum Liquidum, Phenoxyethanol, Sodium Lauryl Sulfate.

I use it as a moisturiser to help prevent moisture escaping and it soaks in well and without odour. It can also be used for cleaning and I believe it is a good alternative for soap in the more delicate areas of the body (externally only). It lasts for ages as well and is a great multi purpose must have. Although the tub is a bit clumsy, it can easily be transferred into smaller containers for ease of use.

2. Vaseline

A bit like the above this is a multi purpose product. It can be used for all sorts of things. Personally I use it:

on my lips like a balm
on dry skin patches like elbows/feet especially for use overnight
in my hair sometimes as a smoothing balm (being careful to use sparingly)
on the corners of eyes to stop them watering especially in winter
on my hairline when dying my hair to prevent staining

It's widely available and no doubt Google or Bing will provide you with 1,000,001 other uses but again it is a bargainous pot of wonder.

3. Old Mascara Wands

They come on all shapes and sizes but I have found that washing and keeping the ones I like most is great for use not only with other mascaras but as brushes for tidying my eyebrows. They tend to have a great texture and shape for it. And best of all they are practically FREE!

4. Tesco Value Face Wipes

These bad boys are an unbelievable 27p for a packet of 25. They are mildly perfumed and nicely sized. I often find face wipes leave my skin with an annoying residue but find these leave my skin feeling much fresher. sometimes I will use two to clean a full face of make up but on the upside, they are so cheap it's no big deal. The resealable flap works well and the no frills packaging doesn't bother me at all. They are simple - cheap and cheerful. A must for my handbag, make up bag, car... for 27p I can have a packet in every room!

5. Savlon

I always have a tube of Savlon knocking around my house. It used to be there solely for use in the event of a scratch or cut. Recently after a particularly nasty spot outbreak I used it with cotton wool as a cleanser and as a topical cream on the spots and I found it really good. Gentle but effective. It has a bit of a clinical smell but it is something I would only use before going to bed so that doesn't bother me. Another useful multi purpose product for the skin!

As with any product please research it and be careful of allergies etc before buying/applying.

So what are your favourite bargains at the minute? Do you use other random household products to keep yourself beautiful??

LoubouLush x

NOTD - Miss Sporty Quick Dry Clubbing Colours

I picked up a couple of Miss Sporty nail polishes in Superdrug a week or so ago for £1.99 each (they might have been on an offer - dodgy memory so not sure). I got a nice purple and a minty green. I wasn't expecting much for the price, if anything I would have been happy enough with a nice bit of colour to pop on my toe nails to get me out of my grey/black cycle.


Given my relative disappointment at the Illamasqua polish, I applied the green in the middle of last week. The bottle is pretty small but is a nice enough shape. The white lid doesn't make for a anything special in terms of looks in my opinion but I'm not wearing the bottle am I?

The brush is quite big and flat which meant applying in general was pretty quick in itself though I found the polish formula a little thick so painting close to the cuticle was a little messy. A couple of speedy coats and I was done. It did what it says on the label and dried super quickly. The colour is nice and solid and has a lovely pearlescent finish (hard to pick up with a camera though!). I applied a coat of clear polish to the top and it has lasted extremely well! I'm still wearing it today and apart from a couple of small chips and a bit of nail growth, the polish looks great.

Pros

• Nice bright colour
• Dries very quickly
• Beautiful pearlescent finish
• Very reasonably priced
• Hardwearing

Cons

• Quite thick formula plus brush = application a bit messy
• Small bottle so won't last long if you want it to

All in all I'm really pleased with this but am now wondering why on earth I seem to have such good luck with "budget" nail polishes and less so with high end? Am I expecting too much? Is it just me??


LoubouLush x

NOTD - Illamasqua "Snap"

As mentioned in an earlier post I bought "Snap" which I had been looking forward to trying. "Glory" had got off to a promising start in getting Illamasqua nail polish into my good books so with much trepidation I picked Snap as my nail polish of choice for the bank holiday weekend.

It too got off to a promising start. I'm all for giving my nails as many coats as it take to build up a solid colour but with one coat of this stuff it looked like the one would be enough! Alas this unheard of event wasn't to be and I went for a second coat (better safe than sorry and all that). I didn't have time to apply a final coat of clear straight away so went for a day or so without. The colour of Snap isn't bad on, though looks darker than the bottle. There is a subtle metallic shimmer from it but it doesn't catch the light as much as the in bottle sheen would suggest. As earlier attempts with Illamasqua polish would suggest, it didn't hold up particularly well without the clear topcoat. It chipped pretty badly and wore noticeably at the edges. A clear top coat didn't help much if I'm honest. This photo was taken about 3 days in so I suppose it isn't terrible but it isn't great either.

The colour itself is... nice. But nice isn't spectacular. And in my opinion it isn't really worth spending £13 on. I found it difficult to capture the shimmer on camera as it requires the light to hit it a certain way and you need to look pretty close to see the full effect. I will definitely use it again (well I have it now, and wear a lot of grey in general) but I doubt if I'd buy it again. Surprisingly I prefer Glory and can't help feeling a bit let down by Snap.

What are your experiences of Illamasqua nail polish? Do you find them as hit and miss as me?