June Favourites

Hi guys! I am really happy to be back and blogging after a few days off. Today's post is my June Favourites - I know every blogger says this but seriously, it's the end of June? What happened?! Time is flying by this summer and soon it will be August and moving time (I have equal amounts of sadness and excitement about the move at the moment!) More about that later...

This month has been quite low-key for me in terms of beauty products. I haven't really bought anything exciting and have been sticking to what I know. Although it's summer in the UK the weather hasn't been that great so I haven't been using as many 'summer themed' products as I usually would in June, hopefully that will change in July!

First up is hands-down my number one product of the month - the Botanics Soothing Eye Make Up Remover. You might recognise this from my Kensington High Street haul post HERE. My old No7 eye make up remover ran out a week or so ago which meant I could crack open this bad boy, and from the first use I was seriously impressed. It's quite an oily formula but it is so good at removing make up I don't care! I will post a full review of this soon (it definitely deserves one), but in the meantime you can get this from Boots for £3.99 online HERE or instore.

Soap and Glory Glow All Out Lumizing Face Powder featured in my 2012 favourites post, so it may not surprise you that it's back again for June! For pale gals like me it's just the perfect subtle, peachy colour to wear in the summer but it's also a beautiful highlighter that lasts all day. For some reason in warmer weather I don't like to wear as many product on my face, so to have a blush and highlighter in one is a winner! You can read my full review of this HERE. Soap and Glory Glow All Out is £11 from Boots online HERE or instore.

June has been a busy month for me - between viewing houses and family birthdays I have been travelling up to Leeds quite a lot. The MUA Artiste Palette is fantastic for travelling as it has eyeshadow, blusher, bronzer and highlighter all in one so it really saves on space. Obviously you're quite limited in the looks you can create but for a weekend in Leeds with my family this is just what I needed. You can read my full review HERE. The MUA Artiste Collection Palette is £6 available online direct from MUA HERE, from Superdrug online HERE or in your local store.

If you're a long time reader of Bee's Knees, you'll know that I am a Marc Jacobs fragrance girl through and through. But when I happened upon the Chloe fragrance with 20% off on the Debenhams website, I just couldn't resist! Chloe is a fragrance I've been lusting after for years, it's the perfect subtle, old fashioned girly scent and the bottle is beautiful. This was a new-job present to myself, otherwise I would have never spent so much on myself! I'll do a full post on this soon but you can pick it up from Debenhams (or other perfume shops) for £52 HERE.

June has seen me getting back into reading in a big way, primarily because of all those bloody train journeys! My favourite book of the month has to be Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn. I'm not usually a fan of 'thriller' type novels but this one stands out from the rest. It's excellently written and really draws you in, with a few twists and turns in the plot to keep you guessing. I really recommend this if you're looking for a book to take away on holiday with you. £3.85 from Amazon HERE.

Finally, my 'random' favourite of the month has to be eBay. As you know I'm moving house in August, from a tiny London one bedroom flat to a huge three bedroom house! This means we need to buy new furniture, which could work out to be really expensive. I'm sure you know I'm a bit of a bargain hunter and have been trying to source as much of our furniture second hand from eBay to save pennies - and it's worked out quite well so far! Furniture costs so much money, especially if you buy it new! The bonus of eBay is often the furniture you get is a bit more special and quirkier than the usual stuff you can get from IKEA. Obviously I'm only human and we will be making an IKEA trip but we're trying to get as much as we can second hand first.

PHEW. So there are my June favourites! What do you think of my picks? What have you been loving this month?

xx

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Soap & Glory Glow All Out Highlighting Powder

After suffering a few break outs when using my usual highlighter, the No7 Skin Illuminator, I decided it was time for a change. I had a look around the blogosphere and settled on the offering from Soap & Glory, as I'm obviously a massive fan and have gotten on well with their cosmetics in the past. 

As I use a mineral powder foundation and finishing powder, I decided to try a pressed powder highlighter. I'd read lots of good reviews of Glow All Out and once I'd made up my mind rushed out to buy it from Boots.

As always, I was impressed with the packaging. Glow All Out comes in a cardboard compact, which sounds cheap but it actually is very nicely and securely packaged, with the trademark S&G retro pink style that we know and love. The compact also comes with a mirror which is handy if you plan on travelling with this product, or keeping it in your handbag. It closes magnetically. keeping the powder secure and safe in transit.

I love the S&G motif pressed into the powder - again, it makes this feel like a high end product. As this retails for £11, I expected it to feel more substantial than other cheaper products I've tried and I wasn't disappointed. I think in general S&G have done very well with the packaging on their cosmetics.

I have been using the highlighter on top of my usual foundation, applied with my kabuki brush prior to using blush. I lightly brush it over my cheekbones, nose and forehead, paying most attention to my cheekbones. I find this gives a really subtle, healthy glow to my face which is ideal for winter when my skin perhaps isn't looking its best. I have very pale/porcelain skin and so it's important for me to add colour and glow to my face to avoid looking like a corpse! This is where this product performs better than perhaps more translucent highlighters.

After applying this at half past 7 in the morning, I can still see it on my face 12-13 hours later, which is very good longevity by any measure. It's so subtle that I don't feel it's obvious I'm wearing it (unlike other highlighters I've used) as it just adds extra depth and definition to my face and bone structure. It's not so glittery that you can't wear it for work, but equally I imagine you could build up a good amount of shimmer with repeat applications for a high impact look if you're going out.

Overall I am very happy with my purchase, and recommend trying this highlighter if you're looking for something that feels light and soft on your skin but still gives you that fresh healthy glow that many of us need in the winter months!

xx