My Lipstick Collection

So I asked on Twitter if anyone wanted to see a post on my lipstick collection and I got a resounding YES to do it, so this is that post.  Before I entered into the world of blogging, I owned no lipsticks, it wasn’t anything I was bothered about because I had a lip balm addition instead.  Overtime I have read lord knows how many posts on lipsticks and have found myself hankering after one or two, okay lots of them and have purchased one or two myself, so here is my collection.

So far you can see from my photo, there are 8 lipsticks of which two are the same, it does happen to be my favourite lipstick and it was a bargain, but anyway, this is what they are

Miners Cosmetics - Dreamer. I got this as part of my February Glossbox 2013 and it is quite a dusky pink colour, not a shade I like that much, but with a bit of gloss it looks okay.  

Cargo Cosmetics - Bermuda.  I got this lipstick from the Debenhams Beauty Event I went too and it is described as being a nude pink, but I think it is more of a warm pink and it is really pigmented, not that you can see from the photo above.  

Oriflame 3D Lipstick - I got this from a blogger meetup last year and it is reviewed HERE on my blog.  Again, it is described as being a nude peach but with the way it is designed it is said to create an optical illusion effect giving you fuller lips. In one single swatch you can create the effect due to the contour, volume and colour.

Vivo Pink Sweetie - I never ever wear this shade because I find it too pink.  It does however glide onto your lips effortlessly and is quite moisturising, just a shame about the colour.

Rimmel Kate Moss No.8 - I picked this up a few weeks ago quite by accident and I love it.  Said to last for up to 8 hours and formulated with black diamonds.  Now it doesn't last for 8 hours, it lasts for 2-3 if you are lucky but I really like the shade and I would describe it as being a dusky pink.

Rimmel Moisture Renew - Latino 200. Now this little beauty has an SPF20 and vitamin A, C and E as well anti-oxidants to protect the lips. It also contains three Super Moisturisers - Collagen, Polypeptides and Hyaluronic Acid which help to keep your lips soft and smooth. Colourwise it is descirbed as being Mid Rose Pink and it looks fantastic on my lips.  I am a huge fan.

Oriflame Hollywood Red - Part of the Demi Moore range for Oriflame, I reviewed this product HERE and whilst it would not be my colour of choice, it is a super lipstick and is really pigmented.

Dior - Rouge Dior 649 - My favourite of all the lipsticks I have and it has been reviewed HERE. I first came across this lipstick at the Debenhams beauty event when I had a mini make-over at the Dior stand and this was the colour chosen for my lips and I loved it.  Then I happened to be in my local pharcmacy and found this lipstick on offer and decided I needed to have it, it was fate and bought two.  The colour is Mythical Pink and it is so lovely, lasts for hours, much longer than any of the others mentioned in this post and is one I would repurchase time and time again.

The one lipstick missing from the photo is my Revlon Colourburst Lip Butter in 005 which is called sugar Frosting which you can see reviewed HERE and this is one product that stays in my desk drawer at work as an emergency.  This lipstick gives a very subtle nudey pink colour to your lips and is described as being a 'sheen lipstick', which it most certainly is.

In the next week or so there will be a review on my lip crayon collection which is growing quite rapidly.

So there you have my collection.  Do you think I am missing a brand, should try a certain lipstick or have any recommendations for me?

Five Among Friends

Welcome to a new feature, Five Among Friends, where myself & some of my closest blogging friends will be linking up for a a series of Q & A's once every month.

We'd love to see your answers to the questions too - Just post your Q & A on your blog and then put your link in the Linky below and we'll be sure to check them out! Don't forget to check out other peoples answers too!

This week's theme is Getting To Know You.....

This week's questions were written by Hayley at 
Sparkles & Stretchmarks....

The Questions

1) Describe yourself in 5 words

Sarcastic, friendly, Honest, Loving, girly

2) Why did you decide to start blogging?

Like many, I love to write and have always loved giving my opinions though started a blog was never something I thought I would do.  A chat with Hayley from Sparkles and Stretchmarks and some gentle encouragement gave me what I needed to start blogging.

3) How did you choose the name of your blog and why?

I have always been obsessed with beauty products whether it is something from Lush, a face cream, body cream, scrub or make-up I have always wanted to try everything and have always had wishlists of products to try. Now I am not much of a Princess but the word Queen came to me randomly and when I searched to see if it was in use, it wasn't and Beautyqueenuk was born.

4) Tell us something about yourself that you think might surprise us!

Like Hayley, I don't have a lot self confidence and really hate seeing photos of myself and hate being in front of the camera, so you will very rarely see photos of me because I am really self-critical.

5) What is your favourite and least favourite thing about blogging?

I have two favourite things.  The first is the comments that I get on my blog.  There is nothing better than knowing someone out there is reading your blog and thinks enough of you to leave a comment, it really makes my day when I go and have a look at the comments people have left.  as I love them so much, I do always leave comments on the blogs I read.  Comments have also led me to interact with other bloggers and some of them I have been lucky enough to meet and spend time with.

I also love the opportunity blogging gives to working with brands and being lucky enough to try new products that I otherwise might not have discovered.

My least favourite thing is the bitching.  A room full of girls is always going to cause havoc with all those hormones flying around, but some of the things I have seen and read truly saddens me.  In an ideal world, I would love for everyone to get along and support one another.

Don't forget to check out the other girls answers too....

Alex - Bump To Baby

Emily - London Mummy Of Two

Hayley - Sparkles & Stretchmarks

Jessica - Our Baby Blog

Kerry - Lived With Love

Lauren - Mrs Hippo & Me

Louise - Confessions Of A Secret Shopper

Rachel - BeautyQueen UK

Links of London Wish List

Would you like to win £1000?  Well Links of London are holding a competition which you can enter to win £1000 worth of their gorgeous jewellery and I mean gorgeous.  All you have to do is simply create a wishlist of your favourite pieces and write a blog post, like this, which also happens to be my entry.

As you can see I managed to choose just 6 pieces, it was really hard because there are just so many things that I like, but for me, these ones caught my attention the most.

1. Aurora Link Bracelet
Inject the wow factor into you party wardrobe. This Aurora link bracelet combines silver with rose and yellow gold vermeil. Strung on a sterling silver chain, this versatile piece has been designed to be lightweight to wear and features a textured finish which adds a touch of subtle sparkle. Costs £95.00

2. Celeste Rose Gold Wrap Ring
The mystic and celestial qualities of the traditional Native American Indian protective charm are bound up in this delightfully modern Celeste Wrap Ring in 18ct rose gold vermeil. The thinnest threads of diamond-cut glitter wire wrap around the Silver band to echo the web-like construction of the original pieces that were said to capture only the good dreams, while letting the bad ones go.  Costs £180.00

3. Dream Catcher Heart Rose Gold Earrings
With a base of sterling silver, these enchanting stiletto earrings each feature a heart that has been delicately wrapped within a subtle rose gold vermeil web. Featuring a unique glitter finish, these rose gold vermeil earrings will add a sparkle to any outfit. The inspiration behind this collection lies in the Native American dream catcher which protects against nightmares. Wear with other Dream Catcher pieces for double protection. Costs £150.00

4. Hope Rose Gold Plate Ivory Strap Watch
Fine detailing marks out this Hope Rose Gold Coloured Ivory Strap Watch as a modern classic. The traditional shape and form has been remodelled with overlapping asymmetric rings of rose gold coloured plate and a white mother-of-pearl dial. The chic satin effect ivory leather strap holds a watch face of subtle detailing, featuring rose gold coloured plate watch hands and a stylish crystal index at 12 o'clock. Water resistant to 3ATM, this is a must-have everyday accessory.  Costs £295.00

5. Dream Catcher Heart Rose Gold Pendant
This sterling silver heart pendant gets a modern interpretation with a fine web of rose gold vermeil glitter wire. A unique and interesting necklace, the Dream Catcher collection has been inspired by the Native American symbol to protect against nightmares. With a glittery finish, pair this piece with a bracelet and earrings from the same collection for maximum sparkle in your life. Costs £150.00

6. Effervescence Star XS Ring - Rose Gold & White Topaz
Everything is rosy with the Effervescence Star XS Ring in 18ct rose gold and pave white topaz. Each ring features small roundels of resplendent rose gold and white topaz stars. Giving you something different for your jewellery collection, team your new ring with different colours from across our collections to complete your look. This ring is also designed to be layered with others in the collection. Find your favourites and create your own look! Costs £130.00

I think all of these items are simply stunning and would be over the moon to receive any of them on Valentines day!

If you would like to enter this competition is open to the general public, but for more information follow this link http://blog.linksoflondon.com/2014/01/win-valentines-day-list/

Give it a go and remember to hashtag your entry #myvalentinewishlist you might just win yourself an amazing £1000.

What do you think to my choices? Do any of them stand out to you?

REN V-Cense!

REN skincare products are not something I have ever gone out of my way to try, even though many Bloggers rave about how brilliant they are.  A few weeks ago I was invited to attend a new product launch at the REN HQ here in London and I went along with the lovely Kimberley from Kimberleysbeautyblog to see what all the fuss was about.

Once inside REN HQ we got plenty of time to mingle with other bloggers and the lovely RN Staff as well as meet David Plenter who is the REN Global Brand Ambassador who then gave us a wonderful presentation into the world of REN and he spoke so passionately, it was hard not to want all of the products.

The reason for the event was to introduce to us the V-Cense collection which we got to test and try out as David was talking to use.  He was also very brave asking if anyone had any questions throughout his presentation, which with a room full of bloggers is no mean feat, but he handled everything wonderfully.   As David spoke to us all, we were able to test out some of the products mentioned which I found really helpfully, especially I was new to trying any REN product.

The V-Cense range is described as being an "innovative range of clean skincare designed to banish urban grey and combat fatigue".

Within this range there is the V-Cense Youth Vitality Day Cream which is described as being:  "A multi-active day moisturiser that prevents and minimizes the signs of premature ageing. Its complex of actives intensely hydrates, protects against free radical damage and smoothes fine lines and wrinkles while boosting skin energy and elasticity. Skin stays hydrated, protected and glowing."

Next comes the V-Cense Revitalising Night Cream which is said to "Hydrate and rejuvenate your skin overnight, waking to a radiant and healthy reflection. Frankincense Revitalising Night Cream contains bio-actives that moisturise, nourish and help combat the signs of premature ageing".

We also got to try out the REN Centifolia Hot Cloth Cleanser which is described as being"A rich and velvety lotion formulated to clean the skin from urban dirt and to remove make-up. Tannins from Centifolia rose petals soothes, tones and revives the skin while triglycerides from cocoa butter leaves it nourished and supple".  This product also comes with a Muslin cloth.

The final product we got to hear about is the REN V-Cense Flash Rinse 1 minute facial, yes you read that right.  This product is a gel-rinse that is designed to instantly revitalize and rejuvinate the skin after just 1 minute and last for 72 hours! It aims to neutralize ‘urban grey’ (especially good news for us living in London), remove blackheads, eliminate dead skin cells, reduce the signs of fatigue, diminish the signs of wrinkles and overall leave skin looking firm, toned and smoothed. Short term it is said to brighten your complexion, even skin tone and it also has an instant firming, toning and lifting effect.  To me, this all seems quite impressive and exciting for a product only being used for 1 minute and it is out in March 2014.

As soon as I saw all of these products and was lucky enough to try them, I wanted them as well as most of the products from the Moroccan Rose Range which smell absolutely amazing.  Amazingly, the wonderful people at REN had prepared an amazing goody bag ina lovely REN Tote bag for those of us who attended and here are the contents:

I was totally excited to see all of these products within my bag, especially two sachets of the 1 minute facial which I was itching to try having listened to David talk about it so passionately because it does sound simply amazing.

Have you tried any REN products? Do you have a favourite?