L'oreal Volume Million Lashes 'So Couture' Mascara Review

As my beloved Maybelline Falsies mascara has almost all but dried up, I thought it was (foolishly) time to pick up a new mascara. Wandering into Boots the display for this mascara hit me straight in the face and I was swayed by the lovely lady filling the stand. Into the basket it went...

I've had this for about a week now and although I wanted to hold off a bit longer, 1 - I'm going on holiday on Saturday so can't really write a post then, and 2 - I was just so let down by it that I wanted to write about it now. Seriously! Remembering back to the first version of the Million Lashes mascara, this doesn't compare at all. I fondly remember being at school wearing it and my friend Jack asking why I wore fake lashes to school? When it was just the genius mascara!

I really like the sleek packaging of this mascara - it's a refreshing change to the neon plastic tubes you see a lot of now. I do have to say though the 'So Couture' bit annoys me - nothing makes classy looking things look cheap than actually stating 'hey, this mascara is couture!'. The wand is quite compact and hard - the bristles are short and plastic rather than the softer bristles you find with most mascaras that claim to be volume enhancing! This isn't a problem as you can get quite close to the root of your lashes without being poked in the eye by a stray frond. The formula seems nice too, quite wet but dries quickly so you don't get the awful bits of wet mascara floating around in your eyeball. The only qualm with the formula is that it seems to be scented?! Who needs scented mascara?! It's an alright scent, I'll give them that, but it's very odd and every time I apply it I'm just bewildered by it.

However no matter how nice all these things are separately - all together they just amount to nothing. It's not terrible by a long shot, but it's just not very good either. It annoys me that I always do this - stray from my beloved falsies to try something new only to be let down! Sob!

Have you tried any new products lately? Mascara is always the one holy grail product I'm looking for!

Real Techniques Expert Face Brush Review

A little bit late to the party, I finally bought a Real Techniques brush last month. Famous for it's excellent pricing that doesn't skimp on quality, I've been road testing this for the past few weeks before I wrote a review.

I admit it: I hated it the first few times I used it. I just really didn't get along with it and I was instantly disappointed that this brand - that everyone seems to love - had let me down. But I persevered, used it every day, and slowly began to fall in love with it. The bristles are super soft but packed tight so they don't just annoyingly splay out everywhere when you're trying to buff in foundation. The head is small enough that you can use it to blend under eye concealer. And without sounding weird - the handle is a bit thicker than brushes by MAC per say - which makes it very comfortable to hold.

I've been using this so far for concealer and foundation but I know some people really enjoy using this as a powder brush which I'll definitely try out! One of the best things about Real Technique brushes is supposedly that you can really use them for all sorts of things - I know a lot of brush brands such as MAC or Sigma tend to have a brush for literally everything you can think of! Real Techniques having a smaller range means that you don't have to spend as much money but still get the good quality you're after. You can buy this brush here for £8.99 - though I do recommend keeping an eye out in Boots and Superdrug as they run 3 for 2 offers on these literally all the time.

Have you tried any of these brushes? Are there any you can recommend?

Under £5 Stocking Fillers - A Gift Guide

Now that it's halfway through November I think it's about the right time to talk about Christmas. (Anyway who thinks otherwise come back and read this post in December). Unless you are super organised, you always end up rushing around the buy presents in December, with no money left, trying to find bargains that aren't on anymore because shops know you'll pay full price by then! So I want to create a little guide alongside my other regular posts so that (hopefully) we're all a bit more prepared this year. To start with: stocking fillers!

Under £5 Xmas Gifts by erinjainex 

What's in my bag?

As tempting as it is to start this post with 'I'm baaaack!' I shall refrain. I really want to start by apologising for being a bad blogger and not posting. The move to Manchester was a lot more difficult than ever anticipated and I didn't have any time for myself let alone to blog. However I'm in my new house, I'm settled, and I finally have five minutes to breath and tap out a post!

Elizabeth Arden Exceptional Lipstick Review

I feel like all I've been blogging about lately is lipstick! It's safe to say that whenever I see a colour that catches my eye I just cannot resist taking it home. Especially when its Elizabeth Arden and just £5.00 in TK Maxx!

Jo Malone Peony & Blush Suede Perfume Review

A month or so ago I saw that you could request a sample of the new Jo Malone fragrance, Peony and Blush Suede. Not really thinking I would get one as they were limited stock, imagine my surprise when one popped through my letterbox last week!

Seventeen Phwoarr Paint (Heavy Duty Concealer) Review!

Being the easily influenced person I am, after I saw one person blog about the new Seventeen concealer and compare it to Benefit Erase Paste - I went out and bought it. This is a new heavy duty under eye concealer that promises some pretty amazing things from a lower end drug store brand.

MUA/One Direction 'Kiss Me' Lipstick Review

Let me start off by saying no, I am not a One Direction fan. When I first heard about this collection all I wanted to do was stay the hell away! Then the reviews started trickling in and I had to admit to myself that the lipsticks actually looked pretty darn good.

MAC Rebel - best winter lipstick ever?

After I said a teary farewell to Girl About Town the other day, I thought it was about time to invest in a winter lipstick that would be worn and loved for the next few months. Enter MAC Rebel. It's a lipstick that has been raved about repeatedly, blogged about, etc - but I just never picked up as it looked too scary in the tube. On Saturday though, I bit the bullet!

Revlon Lash Potion - no magic here!

Being a loyal YSL Shocking mascara buyer, when I ran out earlier this month I was devastated - there was no way I could afford that spend this month! If you've read my NOTD post about Revlon Nail Enamel in 'Rich' then you will know that instead, I ended up buying the Revlon Lash Potion.

I got this because I had seen a few of my favourite bloggers/vloggers get it and have such wonderful experiences with it. But me? Not so much. The brush is so much bigger than I anticipated, and actually reminds me a lot of a Collection 2000 mascara (big fat something?!) where the wand and brush are just too big to actually use properly.

The result is above. Just very average and you can even see tiny black specks where the mascara has still managed to get onto my eyelid after being very careful! I think I just expected so much more than it delivered, and for £9.99 it's just not very good - I'd rather buy the excellent Falsies instead at £7.99!

I sadly think this is a case of pretty packaging from a usually great brand, without the great product to match. I'll be trying to use this one up and then I'll be moving on!

PS - there just might be a giveaway starting on Friday so follow me on Bloglovin' to see what it is! ;)