11/24/2014

BLOG SALE!

Hey everyone,

I hope your all have a fab day, I recently had a birthday and somehow ended up with a bunch of items I already own, and a few fragrances that are not my personal taste but are brand new and very popular options for so many of you, so I thought I would give you the chance to treat yourself!

Blog sale rules:


  • First come, first served.
  • Please leave me your Paypal address in the comments and pay within 24 hours. 
  • Please send payment to thesparkleicious@gmail.com on paypal, and be sure to mark the payment as a gift so to avoid those Paypal charges. 
  • Postage is £2.50 for small items & an additional 50p per extra item.
  • UK only.
  • Please search for swatches before buying, I will not be held responsible if something does look the same on you.
  • All items will be shipped next week.
*Please note, I know there are people who don't enjoy blog sales & find them tacky and have issues with them, and while I respect that, this is not the place for rude comments. Please let others enjoy what's on offer. I have got lots of fab products from blog sales and find it a great way of trying new products.


Daisy by Marc Jacobs- Brand new still in box £24 *SOLD*


ANGEL by thierry mugler glamorama edition £40 brand new


Loreal true match foundation in shade W3 golden beige £6.99 (used 4 times)
Loreal lumi magique foundation in DW5 (too dark for me) £5.99 (used once)




Rimmel match perfection foundation in 303 true nude £4.99 (used 3 times)


Lancome CC cream £22 shade 03 (too dark for me) brand new



Benefit they're real liner, brand new £14 



Happy shopping!

5/27/2014

Lancome City Miracle CC Cream Review!

BB, CC......it seems we get a new product per letter these days! but while this may be a CC cream, it scores a pure A for me.

The coverage with this is very light yet somehow it manages to out my very uneven skin tone. The shades available are rather dark so I would suggest going a shade lighter than you usually would, but due to the light texture and coverage it's still workable. I apply this with my hands as you would with a moisturizer, but you could you a brush if you wanted too, but I feel like applying it with your hands does provide you with a more natural application. The scent of this CC cream is absolutely amazing, really light & fresh which makes it a dream to apply every morning, and i'm thinking this will be a gem on holiday as it provides you with a very natural "no makeup makeup look" and also has the added  benefit of  an SPF of 30 which is amazing!

Watch my mini review video here:






Available here


-Thesparkleicious-

5/19/2014

Spring Has Sprung For Foodies

It’s one of my favourite times of the year and it should be yours too. Not only 
have the spring flowers come up to see the sunshine, but the wonderful food 
festivals of the UK have also started springing up for some guilt-free food 
appreciation time. Anything revolving around eating food is a winner in my eyes, 
so what better way to spend a day out than visiting some of the best foodie 
festivals on offer this year. 

Let’s take a look at those wonderful 2014 UK food fests we recommend you pay a visit to… who knows, you might even make a short break out of it just remember to make it a Superbreak.

The Colchester Food and Drink Festival 
28th & 29th June 2014 

Forget about the Sugar Hut, Essex’s Food and Drink Festival in Colchester is 
where it’s at this year. Set within the beautiful Lower Castle Park on the last 
weekend of June, you’ll find an abundance of tasty treats to satisfy even the 
pickiest of food connoisseurs. With free celebrity chef kitchen demonstrations on all day, visitors can easily pick up a few tips and tricks for homemade foodie goodness all year round. 

There’ll be plenty of grub going round with many stalls offering FREE tastings 
before you buy – if only restaurants operated this way? And for those who like to wet their whistle, head to The Pikestaff Inn for local real ale, artisan ciders and local and international wines. With music to enjoy throughout the event as well as free parking (we love a convenient food fest), the Colchester Food and Drink Festival is up there with the best. 

Why not make a weekend of it? You’re just over an hour away from the Capital in Colchester – the perfect excuse for an overnight stay in London with a fancy dinner and theatre show thrown in! 
http://www.colchesterfoodanddrinkfestival.co.uk/ 

3rd Annual North Leeds Charity Beer Festival 
30th & 31st
 May 2014 

At no time have the words charity, beer and festival ever sounded so good. 
Brought together for this exciting annual event in Leeds, it’s the perfect 
opportunity to sample locally brewed ales with live music from a variety of 
bands performing throughout the weekend. This year’s event will also celebrate the Tour de France coming to Yorkshire with 17 specially brewed beers to try. 

Taking place at St Aidan’s Community Hall you can come along, get merry with 28 truly Yorkshire ales, enjoy brilliant live music and the best bit…do it all for charity.




*Sponsored post

3/25/2014

Pro The Beauty Choice

I have been thinking about this subject more often lately, mostly  due to the no makeup selfie that has been going around on social media sites lately, but if i'm being totally honest, the wrong perception of what people think about you if you are, how shall I put it? in to beauty in a major way is something I often stumble across, both online and off.

If i'm being totally blunt, I often feel like people will always assume you are an air-headed bimbo if you love lipstick and would rather spend your time painting your nails than playing candy crush. This is not an entirely hard to understand assumption, but I can't help but also feel it's a rather shallow one. Just because you love beauty does not mean you are stupid, or shallow or even vain for that matter, it means you are just passionate about something pretty.

I will confess i'm the biggest beauty addict I know in my everyday life, and often come across sly, little comments from both men & women who just don't understand it. I don't go around talking about what products i'm obsessed with atm to people in my everyday life (I have YouTube for that!) but even the smallest mention can cause people to sadly assume one thing: you are a shallow, vain person. Now of course there is a certain element to loving makeup for example that yes, is vain, But what so many people don't seem to understand is it's not always about vanity. Sometimes, it's more to do with a form of self-respect.

I'm not saying that if you leave the house without a full face of makeup you don't respect yourself, of course not. What I am saying is that for me at least, wearing makeup, doing my nails and just general grooming  is about enjoying it. It's not a chore for me, it's something that's like second nature to me and something that gives me great joy. There is something very old-Hollywood about being well-put together even if you are just going to tesco's and it's something that to me, just means enjoying being a woman. Think about how empowering a good red lip and a pair of heels can be when your feeling low, men don't have that option and it's something I think we should enjoy without being judged for it.

I'm not the most glamorous girl in the world, in fact, i'm currently sat here with my hair in a bun and hardly any makeup on at all (I am testing out a new BB cream so I am wearing a little something something, but still) but I would never leave the house like this, and no, it's not because i'm insecure or vain. It's because I think one should always feel good, and making the best of yourself does make you feel like the best version of yourself and I want to be that version all the time, everyday.  I love reading (books, not just fashion mags), I can do DIY jobs round the house without worrying about my nails, I love serious movies and I watch the news, do these things automatically make me be perceived as smart?  no. So why should a love of beauty make me seem shallow? I don't think every woman needs to wear makeup to look & feel beautiful, but I do think if you choose too, it should have nothing to do with how smart people assume you are. After all, beauty really is only skin deep but who's to say you shouldn't make sure that skin is looking the best it can?