My Tan Testing Thursday - Xen-Tan bronze | fake tan | holiday skin | natural | review | self tanner | skin | skin care | tan | tanned | when flowersfall | whenflowersfall | xen tan | xentan

This is the first of two self tanner reviews, the other will be posted tomorrow! :)

On Thursday I went swimming with my girls and I figured it would be the perfect night to try out a couple of new self tanners. 

We had been given a couple of samples from Xen-tan last Saturday at #leedsbloggermeetup2012.

Tomorrows review will be of a self tanner from Make Believe, again of which we received last Saturday.

During my little swimming sesh I snuck into the sauna to give my skin a bit of a treat. When I got home, I jumped in the bath and exfoliated like crazy. My skin felt amazing. 

I then proceeded to smother myself in various lotions and potions to try and achieve a cracking glow for this bank holiday weekend. 

Xen-Tan

I applied the Xen-Tan dark lotion to my arms and décolletage, this is the product I had most faith in. 

Before I did so, I made sure to moisturise my elbows, this is the one area most prone to psoriasis and I wanted to make sure that the product didn't cling to any dry skin that I may have missed. 

The self tanner is very dark in colour. It looks really scary. When applied to the skin the colour isn't as crazy, it gives you a slight colour guide and this really helps with applying the product as smoothly as possible. This way you can avoid any kind of streaking.
The thing that you notice straight away is the very strong scent of marzipan. Personally I love it, but it might not be for all. It does definitely beat the smell of biscuits though.

The self tanner dries very quickly, which I loved, and you are able to put clothes on without them sticking to you. It is advised to steer clear of any light colour clothing though. 

As you can see from the photos above the product starting to develop nicely within the next hour, but I decided to sleep in it and wash it off in the morning. 

In the morning my arms looked amazing. In the above photo it looks rather orange, but I can promise you it was not. The photo was taken before my shower, so afterwards the colour was slightly less in your face. I really did look like I had been lying in the sun for the past week. Another bonus was that my elbows were not dark at all! 

Xen-Tan is a little pricey, this lotion in particular is currently on sale on the Xen-Tan website for £21.74, but I honestly feel it's one of the best tans I have ever tried. It gives the most natural colour, I had no streaks of patches and it is wearing so well. 

I'm trying really hard to make the sample I have last as long as I can, but I would most definitely re-purchase this product. 

You can find out more about Xen-Tan here.

Check back tomorrow for the review on Make Believe tan, which I tried out on my legs, (my harder to tan area.)

My 'Only In My Dreams' Wishlist fashion | jeffrey campbell | minkpink | only in my dreams | unif | wants | wardrobe | when flowersfall | whenflowersfall | wishlist

UNIF - The Wish U Top

UNIF - The Hail No Muscle Tee

UNIF - Turquoise Hellbounds

UNIF - The Shrrom Cloud Face Tee

UNIF - The Bare Shoulders Button Up Top

MINKPINK - Magic Dragon Ribbon Jumper

JEFFREY CAMPBELL  - Damsel Floral Wedge

SOMEDAYS LOVIN - Innocent Days Cape

JEFFREY CAMPBELL - The Studded Homg Sneaker

UNIF - Hellraisers

Hi guys! 

This post is exactly what the title says it is!

This is a wishlist of a few of the items I can only dream of ever owning. A lot of Unif, Jeffs and a couple of other brands!

I've focused on items from two of my favourite sites to browse, Karmaloop and Wasteland, these are also items that I usually go back to, time after time. 

If you could have all of the money in the world, what would be your first wardrobe buys?

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO ENTER MY 100 FOLLOWERS GIVE AWAY CLICK HERE

Speachless Sunday - My Recent Purchases Edition blush | bold lips | clutch palette | cosmetics | elf | eye shadow | eyeslipsface | lips | lipstick | lush | make up | make up academy | make-up | MUA | pink lips | red lips | when flowers fall | when flowersfall | whenflowersfall

Green with Envy. barry m | elf | glitter | green | manicure | nail paint | nail polish | nails | ring finger | when flowers fall | when flowersfall | whenflowersfall

I've been seeing lots of manicures recently consisting of two colours, one being purely on the ring finger. I wanted to give it a go, but thought I'd add a little twist and use glitter for on ring finger instead. 

Here's a step by step photo tutorial for anyone who would like to give it a go. 

 - Paint a colour similar to your glitter onto your ring finger.

 - Use a damp cotton bud to dab on the glitter, do this before the nail polish dries.

 - Paint a coat of clear nail polish on top and repeat step 2. Wait til dry, then apply your top coat.

 - Paint the rest of your fingers in your second choice of colour. 

 Easy peazy!

I used a green fine glitter, ELF nail polish in mint cream and a Barry M Glitter Top Coat.

If you do give this a go, remember to comment and link me to a picture! 

Monday Make-up eyebrows | eyeliner | eyes | eyeslipsface | face | make-up | makeup | morning | pink lips | when flowers fall | when flowersfall | whenflowersfall | winged eyeliner

Winged Eyeliner...

Classy, simple and elegant!

ELF Haul. elf | eyes | eyeslipsface | face | haul | lips | products | review | when flowersfall | whenflowersfall

Hi Lovelies!
     So if any of you follow me on tumblr, you would have seen that I did this haul about a month ago, but I totally forgot to share it on here! The only bonus to doing this late is that I can now do proper reviews of the products I bought too.
     I got these products when ELF had 40% off any orders over £20, which made me even more impressed with the quality. After the discount had been taken off and postage added, I only paid £16.45 for this little lot.  I had never tried ELF before but after all the reviews I had read and watched on Youtube I figured why not!

 The prices listed will be the price I paid after the 40% had been taken off.

 Clarifying Pressed Powder - Light Beige 90p

I quite like this powder, I find it gives good coverage on its own so is perfect for when you don't want to wear any heavy foundation. The powder is smooth and goes on really nicely, I find it is easily to control coverage more with a brush, rather than the cheapy pad that's supplied with it. Colour wise, I find it maybe a little too dark for my skin tone, but is perfect when I have tanned the day before. 

Natural Radiance Blush - Coy 90p

This blush gives a sheer but buildable colour. I find the packaging a little disappointing, as the slide mechanism comes apart really easily and I have dropped it quite a few times. The blush itself blends easily and is the perfect colour for someone who wants just a slight pink cheek. 

 Plumping Lip Glaze - Ruby Kiss 90p

I love this, I don't know what else I can say about it. You can feel the plumping coat working as it makes you lips tingle and feel slightly cold. The red isn't very pigmented, but is a nice deep red colour for a classic look that isn't too bold. 

 Lengthening and Volumising Mascara - Black £2.10

I purchased this because I had just run out of my Maybeline One by One Volume Express, and I have to say I am quite impressed. The brush is quite small and I find it doesn't grip my lashes very well, but if you are patient and work at it, the liquidy formula gives quite good coverage. I think the mascara lengthens more than volumises but I have quite full eyelashes, so that doesn't bother me too much.

 Shimmer Eyeliner Pencil - Blissful Blush 90p

I bought this because I like to have a light colour on the inside corners of my eyes. The colour is really pretty and the pencil itself it really soft, the one thing I hate is a super hard eyeliner, but this goes on so softly, it doesn't feel like you're scratching at your eye.

Waterproof Eyeliner Pen - Black 90p

This is the one product I am not impressed with at all. Initially I loved it, it went on easily, you can control the thickness of the line and the colour was really strong. BUT, it's dried out so quickly! I have used it maybe ten times, if that, and it's now like using a felt tip pen that's had its top left off for a day. The nib of the pen has squished and it's now not so easy to control. I really wouldn't recommend this eyeliner. 

 Studio Matte Lip Colour - Natural £2.10

I love this lip colour. The shade is the perfect natural pink and the matte look is really in trend at the minute. If you prefer a glossy look, you could put a clear lip gloss over the top. This is probably something I use everyday at the moment. 

 Concealer - Beige £2.10

I like the colour and coverage of this concealer, but I find it rather hard to blend. The pen form makes it easy to place where you really want it, but the formula is quite solid. 

 Nail Polish - Dark Navy 90p

I love this colour. I am a black nails in the winter kind of girl, so this makes a nice change. It has a slight shimmer also.

 Nail Polish - Mint Cream 90p

This is the perfect minty green colour. A couple of coats make the best opaque coverage.

Matte Finisher Clear Nail Polish - 90p

If you don't want to buy matte nail colours, this is ideal. It dries quickly and gives the perfect matte top coat.  The only downside I have found to this, is that after a little wear and tear the matte-ness goes away and the shine from the polish underneath comes through.

    So I hope you find this helpful when buying your next ELF order. If you can recommend any other products of theirs, please just comment below!