Little Lottie: March 2015

Friday 27 March 2015

Lush Product Reviews

After getting sick with the flu for a week and not wearing make up or hardly even getting out of bed to wash my face my skin improved somewhat, it was clearer and my pores were smaller but with going back to work comes looking presentable and wearing makeup and with wearing makeup comes removing it and therefore I was quickly back to my skincare routine.

It would be nice to not bother with makeup and face washing but unfortunately I enjoy those things so I decided to search for even more natural products that would mean using minimal ingredients on my face. I turned to lush for this, they have increased their makeup range and have some really lovely new products.

Light Yellow Colour Supplement

I'm already a fan of Jackie Oates and use it under my eyes and on my brow bone for a natural highlight so I picked up a sample of the colour supplement in Light Yellow to see if it was the right shade for me. When I first used it I was in love, the coverage is phenomenal considering it is a natural product. The colour was my concern as I'm pale and every foundation seems to look orange on me so I wore it out and about and it looked great in different lights, artificial and natural. After a few days of wearing it daily I noticed small bumps forming all over my cheeks and t-zone, the only thing I had changed was adding the Lush makeup and I knew that must be it so I stopped using it and the bumps went within a couple of days. I do recommend the Lush colour supplements but unfortunately this didn't agree.

Charisma Skin Tint

I was torn between getting the cream highlighter called Feeling Younger and the bronzer called Charisma but went for the bronzer as again it didn't look orange on my skin. I'm desperate to define my non-existent cheek bones and think liquid products make a quick and easy contour to dab on quickly. It was very easy to blend out to the point you couldn't see it much and it definitely needs to go over the foundation you wear in order to show up. It's great for pale skin tones because it's so blendable and I think it would also be a good product to put all over the face under foundation to warm things up, a bit like the Chanel bronze base but the budget version.

Angels on Bare Skin Cleanser

My favourite item of my Lush collection is definitely my new cleanser which is a Lush classic. Angels on Bare Skin is an exfoliating cleanser with lavender and crushed almonds. I wanted an exfoliating product to wake up my skin in the mornings and create a smooth base for makeup. First of all it's not your average sort of face wash, you grab a small clump of the clay like product and rub it in your hands with some water until it all melts into a nice scrub. It smells amazing and the lavender scent is so refreshing. It really helped clear the small bumps that Light Yellow left behind and never fails to remove my makeup and leave my skin feeling super smooth.

Celestial Moisturiser

Another product to help with silky smooth skin is Celestial. This moisturiser is also made with almonds and has quite a thick consistency that feels amazing. I didn't find it made me oily however my skin is dry at the moment and I think this would be too heavy for every day use on oily skin types. As it doesn't contain nasty ingredients I feel comfortable wearing this overnight and under makeup. Celestial makes a really smooth base for foundations and I have been using it after a rose water toner with mineral makeup on top.

I've been loving Lush recently and hope the reviews helped you decide on your next purchase.

What's your favourite Lush product?

Little Lottie

Saturday 21 March 2015

That more feeling...

Little Lottie is my corner of the internet that I usually fill with beauty posts and all things girly but my post today I hope can be related to by more people than usual.

I wanted to talk about the more feeling, which creeps up on me a lot, often I feel like I'm alone in this 'need to accomplish more' state of mind and my anxiety and career mindedness doesn't help. As humans we strive for perfection and appreciation and often when that is achieved we want to top it or 'impress' more. For those of you who don't know, blogging isn't my profession, although I would love that I actually work in an office full time. Through Monday - Friday I work in marketing for a media company who make newspapers and magazines around the country.

I love my job and get to help organise and attend many events as well as talk to a lot of businesses and receive a lot of freebies/samples to boost the sale of our products. Sort of like blogging I suppose. However sometimes working the 9-5 makes me feel too normal. Not that it's a bad thing, I'm working daily to save money, buy a house one day and see the world. I think we can all admit we would like to do a bit more, break out of the 'cage' of normal life and earn more money, having more fun doing it.

I'll tell you now I'm no Beyonce, so getting rich and famous through talent is a far away dream. I'm definitely no Kardashian so getting rich through being gorgeous and on TV is out of the question too. I'm just your regular small town girl with big dreams. There is a constant void I feel the need to fill and strive to do amazing things but those dreams come with a lot of hard work and precious time, my free time goes on blogging and being with family and sometimes I realise that's enough for me.

The news that my sister gave me in November excited me to further make me realise I am rich in every way I need to be. I will be an Auntie in June and a new little woman will be joining our family of strong independents. Experiences, being loved and giving love is the best success I could ask for and I think that 'more' feeling has diminished.

My gorgeous mother and sister

Nick and I

Do you get the 'more' feeling?

Little Lottie XO

Friday 13 March 2015

ChocoLottie Treats

(Warning: This post contains many photos that are likely to cause dribbling and cupcake craving.)

My lovely and very talented friend Charlotte from ChocoLottie Cakes was kind enough to send me some of her gorgeous cupcakes to try.

They looked far too beautiful to eat, gorgeously decorated in buttercream, roses, hearts and even marshmallows!

I made the most of the rare Cornish sunshine and took the cupcakes out for a garden picnic.

Each one was topped with different and dainty designs that added a delicious flavour to the vanilla sponge underneath.

The thing I actually enjoy most about desserts is sponges, there is something so satisfying about that filling, sweet and fluffy goodness. Charlotte really does sponges well, they are always moist, fluffy and gorgeously flavoured.

I had my eyes on the flower-like white cupcake which had petals made from marshmallows, that's right, MARSHMALLOWS! As you can see I munched my way through that one with ease. I really enjoyed the marshmallow flavour with the vanilla sponge and Charlotte's creativity was appreciated by my sweet tooth.

Cakes are a worldwide favourite and can send so many messages, whether it be for Mothers Day this Sunday, a thank you for a friend, a get well soon or the famous Birthday and Wedding cakes. I highly recommend ChocoLottie Cakes if you are from Cornwall and even if you're not take a look at her website for some jaw dropping, beautifully designed cakes and show her some love on Facebook. From bespoke designs to classic favourites Charlotte can create pretty much anything which never fails to taste heavenly.

I hope you enjoyed a different style of post today and I definitely enjoyed photographing a new kind of product.

Little Lottie

Friday 6 March 2015

DIY Foundation

As most of you know I don't wear foundation, it's just the feeling of having an unnatural layer over my skin that I don't like and I haven't yet found a foundation that I'm in love with, so, I made my own.

It's hard to find a foundation free of nasty chemicals that's also in a pale shade for an "English Rose" like me. Parabens are one chemical that is now banned in several countries but works as a preservative for liquids cosmetics to stop them growing bacteria. A natural alternative would be lavender oil but the beauty industry hasn't caught on yet.

Using mineral makeup means that the products don't need to contain preservatives as they are mostly dry. A lot of people therefore use mineral makeup and it is great however doesn't always provide very full coverage and often clings to dry patches so the alternative is to mix it!

Combining a natural/organic moisturiser that doesn't contain a load of unnecessary rubbish with a mineral powder/concealer makes a lovely foundation!

All you need is a little pot to mix it and store it in, like these. You can pick these up online and in most drugstores.

To make the mix I used my favourite moisturiser by Faith in Nature with a bit of Lily Lolo concealer in Blondie. This was a little too pale for me so I added some Bare Minerals Multi Tasking Concealer in Bisque to warm it up. The beauty of making your own foundation is that you can keep going until you reach your perfect shade! None of the tester rubbish needed.