Taylor Swift Wonderstruck Enchanted.

After my latest foray into the world of celebrity perfume, it's sparked a bit of a roll. The latest addition to my no holds barred collection is none other than everyone's favourite teen pop country princess, Taylor Swift with Wonderstruck Enchanted.

First things first, the bottle has far more dressing table appeal than my previous subject and has a pretty, almost middle eastern feel to it. It would fit right in at a Moroccan bazaar, if Moroccan bazaar's did celebrity perfume...the dinky charms hanging from the bottle set it off a treat. 

Let's get down to the good stuff, how does it score in the scent department? 

Before I throw this out there, I acknowledge I'm sailing close to the wind but it had to be done. Everybody knows Janis Ian is the law.

Some may agree, but I don't care. After initially thinking it's too sweet, gourmand and sickly for my usual more unisex taste, I let it settle on my skin and I actually think it's a corker. The seal of approval came this morning when I put my scarf back on after spraying myself last night and forgetting about it. I was met with a fruity vanilla fragrance that was warm and inviting, yet not overpowering. It provides a light feminine relief to the peppery ginger scents I usually favour. 

So Taylor, like your incessantly catchy tunes,Wonderstuck Enchanted is a definite grower that will win you over. It's a definite winner if you're looking for a gift for a teen girl but it can also hold its own if you're slightly older but still want to smell fruity and fresh. 

Thumbs Up Taylor, This is like my sordid love affair with Britter's Fantasy all over again.  

xx

*provided for consideration, although my own thoughts entirely, swear guv'nor. 

Pearl Lowe for Glossybox.

Before I launch head first into product breakdown and first impressions, I must first begin with how what we have before us is the pure unadulterated joy of monthly sample box service. It's a gamble, and I love that gamble.When they get it wrong, or just so-so you can usually find something in there that isn't all that bad. But, when they get it right, you can be like a kid at Christmas  actually letting out an audible "oo" when you open up your box. 

This month is the latter. There were "oo's" all around. 

Pearl Lowe has teamed up with Glossybox to create a limited edition April Glossybox, not only filled with some of the best products I've seen rolled out for a good while but packing a floral delight of a punch with the box itself. 

In my Glossybox: 

Nip + Fab Mango Smoothie Dry Skin Fix Body Butter (Full Size 200ml: £9.95) 

Richard Ward Couture Hair Opitimiser Style Reviver (Full Size 150ml: £19.00)

Yves Rocher Nutritive Vegetal 24H Comfort Nourishing Cream (Full Size: 50ml £13.50)

Essie Nail Laquer in Sugar Daddy (Full Size: 13.5ml for £7.99) 

Balance Me Radiance Face Mask (Full Size: 75ml for £18) 

 First Impressions

Essie? Wahooooo! As a total Essie weirdo, It's as if Glossybox read my mind. I've had a milky pink shade on my list for a while. Sugar Daddy is just the ticket, good job! I'm also pleased to find some Yves Rocher in my box. I often browse the site and I'm in love with the Sexy Pulp mascara, so hopefully only good things will come of this. 

In all honesty, another body butter is not what I need. I've not previously been acquainted with Nip + Fab before, but I'm willing to give a whirl after I shower tonight, it might do wondrous things. 

Balance Me is another brand that I know and love. A face mask is just what I need right now and if it's natural, it's a bonus in my book. 

Finally, I love a good wild card in a Glossybox. The whole point of these boxes is to sample new brands that you wouldn't necessarily discover of your own accord and Richard Ward has won this accolade this month. I'll be honest, I'm still working out how to use it, but I'll give it a go and report back. 

What did you get in your Glossybox this month? 

xx

*provided for consideration.

Rimmel Stay Matte.

For many it's tried and true. For me it's a new discovery. To cut a long and tedious story short, my MAC MSF Natural finally bit the dust, I baulked at the price (Why is MAC sky-rocketing up the price at such an alarming rate?) and decided to give Rimmel Stay Matte Powder a go. I don't rely on powder enough to justify spending lots of hard earned pennies on it so if I can downgrade and still achieve the result I want, why not? 

The only slight issue I had was choosing the right shade. As I only lightly sweep powder over my face to set my make up I knew I wasn't going to pack it on, but I still wanted to avoid a ghost face/orange face drama. I eventually settled on 001 Transparent, which suited my depressingly pale tones. 

So, does it do anything the MAC MSF Natural doesn't do? Nope. It's a quick sweep of powder that keeps me from looking shiny late on into the day. Does it fall short in any way? Perhaps. If I was being ridiculously  picky i'd say the finish isn't quite as soft as the MSF and you can definitely see it on the skin once you've applied it. Light hand required. Does it bother me? Nope. I use powder so little that a light hand is all I require. My last MSF Natural lasted my nearly 2 YEARS. You may get an idea of my usage from that. 

For £3.99, I'll stick to the Rimmel. 

Thumbs Up. 

xx

The Spring Update.

For the first time this week - hold your breath - I went without the usual trillion and went a bit wild. I braved it in just a jumper and a gilet. Hold me back. In my book that means spring has finally arrived in some shape or form. No snow & a splash of sunshine? Spring time. 

In order to motivate myself to add an extra spring to my step (sorry), I've enlisted the help of some rather beautiful little additions. 

The Nail Update. 

Like most of the universe, I've got a serious mint fetish at the moment. If it's mint, I'm there. I took this a step further recently and popped Models Own Apple Pie Nail Polish into my basket. Whilst I'm not overly sold on the 'smell my fingers' aspect of the polish, it's the perfect milky mint shade. It doesn't take a serious amount of work to get an even finish and it lasts pretty well. The scent is rather pleasant too, if a tad bizarre. 

The Phone Update. 

I've been living with the same mock croc leather case for about a year now (girl, you classy.) but spring called for a fresh new look. I need to drag the ol' iPhone into the sunshine with me. Enter this candy cane Kate Spade* wonder. It's a little bulkier than I'm used to, but my phone already feel snug as a bug in it's new silicone and acrylic rug. It's light, fresh and oh so spring/summer. 

The Accessory Update. 

I hit up Forever 21 at the Trafford Centre a couple of weeks ago and as per made a beeline for the shiny things. I came away with a big pack of stacker rings but I mainly bought it for the gold square beauty and it's silver cousin. Simplicity is key my friend. I couldn't leave behind the amazing if slightly fang-like earrings. They just spoke to me, ok? 

What are you updating for Spring? 

xx

*Phone case kindly provided for consideration, the rest is all on me! 

A Lengthy Issue.

As long as I can remember (excluding an ill advised wedged bob forced upon a 12 year old version of myself - I had extremely tight curls at the time) I've always been in the long swishy swish hair gang. 

Enter shameless self portrait with aforementioned hair. 

I'm fairly sure I had this same hairstyle for about 5 years, no layering/fringes/movement. Just long hair. Snooze. 

More importantly than hair boredom was the fact it was looking so damaged and thin at the ends, it even had me questioning whether I was going bald (I'm not: wipes brow). I took the plunge and booked in to the hairdressers and simply asked her to give it a damn good cut, add a few layers in and make it generally presentable. The result is a lovely shoulder length style that is effortlessly chic and so easy to manage. Here was me thinking that shorter hair just means a world of maintenance...so wrong, so so wrong. For the first time in years I can wake up, run a brush through my hair and deem it acceptable. Having some length off has given it back it's volume and I finally have a bit of body back in the ol' barnet. Hurrah. 

The end result isn't too dramatic, it's just a comfortable, easy going do. My favourite. 

So you get the jist. It's healthy, more body and just a little bit more fun. I like. 

In terms of products i've been using, it's all stayed a much of a muchness. I'm using a lighter formula shampoo & conditioner just to aid the bounce factor & I'm tending to do a day 1 straight day 2 curl it loosely with a conical wand rotation, I'm that wild. 

The only question I keep asking myself, is why on earth didn't I do it sooner? 

xx