Five years of favourites..

So today marks five years of blogging for me, which is bizarre to say the least. I've owned this blog since I had just left school at 16 and now I'm 21 and a fully fledged grown up (kinda of!).

I've reviewed and loved so many products over the years, so I thought it would be nice to share with you ten I thought were the best of the best and truly worth a try! So here are ten of my favourite products from other the years (I tried to do five for five but that was way too hard). If you want to learn more about a product just click the link to take you to the full review.

 1. Rimmel Stay matte Powder - If it wasnt for blogging I'd have no idea about the cult classic. This just gets the job done and makes my makeup last without that caked on look. I hate the packaging though, my lid is currently in around three pieces! 

2.Revlon Nearly Naked Foundation - Whenever I get asked for foundation recommendations I find myself coming back to this. I just love it on my skin and find that it looks so natural on. Although again on a side note I hate the packaging.. I need a pump in the morning!

3. Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer - Another product I discovered thanks to blogger. Why waste money on expensive brands when this beauty covers everything!

4. Soap and Glory Solar Powder - This is without doubt my favourite ever bronzer! Prior to this I found bronzer so scary, I have extremely pale skin so thought they'd make me look terrible, but this beauty just works for me. I would use this daily if it wasnt for the terrible packaging.. Serouisly the lid is no longer attached to the product! Although, I will point out that S&G have since changed the packaging, if only rimmel and Revelon could follow suit!

5. Topshop Cream Blush -  This was the first cream blush I ever tried, and the only one I'm always still reaching for, despite the scary looking shade this looks so so natural on!

6. Younique 3D Fiber Lashes - I feel like this is one of those products everyone rolls there eyes at because its so promoted on social media but it honestly works better than anything I've ever tried (just click the link and look at my results!)

7. Rimmel Kate matte Lipstick - Shade 103 will always be my go to shade, I've actually nearly used this up which is unheard of for me and my far too many products!

8. Maybelline Babylips - To clarify I don't think these are the best product ever, but they're so easy to wear and fun! It's because of this I end up wearing these most so I thought they deserved a mention. If you're less confident with lip colours these are well worth a try!

9. Real Techniques Buffing Brush - Real Techniques had to be mentioned in this post! I was new to brushes before my blog and now I have more then I care to count! This is my most reached for brush and does a lovely job!

10. Superdrug Hot Cloth Cleanser - I thought I should mention a skincare favourite and this has been one of my favourites over the years. I love this more than the Liz Earle alternative everyone raves about!

So there you have it, the best of the best products I've featured over these five years! What would your top ten be?!

Free Benefit in Elle magazine!

 I've had my eye on Benefit's Dew the Hoola (£22.50/30ml)  for a while now, so when I found out there was a mini in this months issue of Elle Magazine (£4.10) I went on a mission to try and find a copy! The magazine contains a 5ml mini, which is a lovely way to give this a try without committing to the price tag. 

This is quite possibly my favourite ever magazine freebie - and there have been a fair few other the years! What's been your favourite ever freebie?

Sleek Cream Contour Kit in Light

I've always been a huge fan of a cream contour, so when I saw that this Sleek Cream Contour Kit was on offer it fell straight into my basket!  Like the majority of Sleek products this comes in their classic black plastic casing and is complete with a huge black mirror which is extremely handy for on the go application.

Available in 3 different shades( light, medium and dark) each kit is filled with 6 different pans, all designed to do a different job. The handy guide pictured demonstrates this, to be completely honest I thought this was a lovely addition. As a beauty blogger its so easy to forget not everyone's aware of how to apply makeup trends, and there are people out there who would look at this kit without these instructions and want to run a mile.

Following the directions given using my Real Techniques Contour brush, I loved my overall look. I find that cream kits always make the application process a breeze and everything looks so natural! While I dont have time to do this routine on a daily basis I find that I can quickly contour my cheeks with the darkest shade for a quicker solution.  If unlike me, you are going to be using your fingers for the application process you almost have to warm the cream up to get it out of the pan,although once on the heat of the skin the cream moves and bends effortlessly.

I also find that the results last all day, so there's no need for this to be taking up space in your handbag.

At £10.99 for six shades this is a complete bargain. Although even more amazingly, This is currently in the 2 for £12 deal at Boots.

Loreal Nude Magique Cushion Foundation

If there's one foundation i've been loving lately it's this Loreal offering. I'm a huge fan of glowing skin, so when I saw that this Nude Magique Cushion Foundation promised a 'dewy glow' I knew I had to pop it into my basket. As far as I know, this is one of the only cushion style foundations on the UK market, and I for one am happy it can be found on the high street. Now, If we're being completely honest at £14.99, this isn't the cheapest foundation out there. However Loreal are one of those brands which you can always find on offer - and I bagged mine for under a tenner!

I adore the packaging of this! Having always favoured pump style foundations in the past, I wasn't sure how much I'd like this compact style one, however it's definitely grown on me. Firstly you have everything you need for application on the go in this small compact, including a generously sized mirror and sponge applicator. I also really appreciate the fact that the lid covering the foundation opens to the side, meaning you can still use the mirror as you apply!

With that said, I've never actually used the sponge supplied - I'm a little obsessed with keeping my make up in prime condition. I do however apply this with cheap sponges that you can find in Boots and Superdrug and find that they do a wonderful job. I also do this to keep things as hygienic as I can as you are repeatedly dipping this into the cushion.

I of course own the lightest shade porcelain, and find that it blends into the skin effortlessly. While I find that initially this gives a sheer finish, you can really build the coverage and easily take this from day to night! Regardless of the look you desire, I find the foundation lasts all day without feeling heavy on the skin - And what's more it has a SPF 29 - Perfect for the weather we've been having recently!

So there you have it, my review of one of the best foundations on the highstreet. This is currently £14.99(and on 3 for 2) at Boots and Superdrug or you can find it for £10.49 at ASOS.

Accessorize Summer Sale

I absolutely adore Accessorise, I would say the majority of my jewellery comes from the Accessorize sale which is always full of wonderful gems! Recently I visited my local store and really didn't hold back, as their 70% off sale was in full swing! Here's what I picked up!

I love a good bracelet! This daisy clasp bracelet (£2.40, was £8.00) really caught my eye, I love the mix of green and blue so had to pop it into my basket! I also loved the simplicity of this gold plated clap bracelet (£3.00, was £12.00).

There's something about this necklace (£3.60, was £12.00) that I love, I had my eye on it when it was full price, so when it had an incredible 70% off it had to be mine! I can see myself wearing this lots over the summer months!

The star of the show has to be this leather strap watch (£9.00 was £30.00), I really needed a watch for work and adore this one on! Finally I picked up this Prime time (£2.70, was £9.00) offering from Accessorize's makeup line, It looks amazing so I cant wait to give it ago!

I think we can both agree I got some fabulous bargains! What's been your favourite summer sale find?

My Love Me Beauty Experience

 While I don't really do the whole beauty box thing anymore, this month has been a massive exception, as there have been some wonderful offerings floating about! One of these would have to be this months 'Love Me Beauty' offering, which is slightly different from your average beauty box bundle. Rather than giving you a selection 'of products matched to you' - which lets face it, never really are, Love me beauty let you choose the products for you. For £10 a month, you get 60 credits to spend in their very own boutique, where prices range from 10-30 credits. While I love the idea that you can add to these credits if you wish by spending more money, I found this to be a little on the pricey side (£5 for 20 credits, £10 for 50 credits etc).

This month, I felt truly spoilt for choice between all of the Pixi and OPI offerings. Although in the end I went for two Pixi picks I hope will help hide my serious lack of sleep in the form of this Beauty Sleep Cream (worth £24) and this correction concentrate (worth £14). They were both 25 credits each, so popped these 'yes to blueberries' wipes (worth £1.99) in my basket to spend the remaining 10 credits. 

Overall I had a pretty good experience and love my new items, however was left disappointed at the state that my Pixi bits arrived in (the boxes were crushed!). I did take to twitter to demonstrate this although sadly no one got back to me. It didn't give me the best impression of Love Me Beauty as a whole. although I would consider ordering if a few items took my fancy.

Have you tried Love Me Beauty before?

Origins Mix & Mask Box

Apologises, but a few of you are about to experience some serious beauty box envy! When I picked this up I knew I had to feature a post on the amazing (and very much sold out) Origins Mix & Mask box, brought to you by Latest in Beauty and British Beauty Blogger.

 Despite being a budget girl, I have a huge soft spot for both Origins and their masks, so this £20 box made perfect sense to me! Not only does it feature products that I haven't had the chance to try before it was a huge bargain! Here's what could be found in each box;

 Vitazing Energy-Boosting Moisturiser (£29.00/50ml) - I love this stuff and was super happy to see a bottle featured in my box. This is just something I love wearing under foundation to give that added glow! On top of that, this is worth more than the cost of the whole box put together!

Maskimizer Skin Optimizing Mask Primer (£18.50/95ml) - To be honest I was surprised to see such a new launch featured in this box! This is essentially a primer for face masks and I'm really curious to see how this works!

By All Greens Foaming Deep Cleansing Mask (£11.42/25ml) - Before this box this product had completely escaped me, This claims to be a foaming mask so I cant wait to try!

Drink Up Intensive Overnight Mask (£6.90/30ml) - This is one of my favourite masks so I'm glad to have a travel sized version handy! It leaves the skin feeling lovely!

Ginzing Peel-Off Mask (£4.80/15ml) - This is again a product I have never tried so I cant wait to give it a go!

4 x Mask Pods (£2.50/10ml) - Last but by no means least were these 4 lovely mask pods containing old favourites Clear Improvement, Out of trouble and Drink up. There is also one of Original skin which I look forward to trying. These pods tend to be quite generous so I expect I'll get a few uses out of each!

Did you manage to grab one of these boxes before they vanished?