The Ultimate Hen Weekend

Two of my friends have hen nights coming up over the next few months and there has been a flurry of activity on Whats'app and Facebook to decide what to do for them both. Both sets of friends like completely different things which is great because it means I won't be doing the same thing twice!

Living in London there are so many things you can do and that has been most of the problem, making that final decision without the Hen finding out what is being planned. Thankfully neither read my blog, so this is a pretty safe place to share some of those ideas just incase you are planning a hen night.

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Dreamboys - Themed as being the UK most famous girls night out, there are some amazing packages available in Gold, Silver and Bronze and all priced really reasonably depending on the number of people within your group and what you want to get out of it - free cocktails, free food, poppers, goody bags or just a front row seat!

Spa Day - There are so many spa's in London which cater for hen nights, days, full on weekends or even just for one or two treatments. Some offer a glass of champagne or a meal within the price depending again on your budget and how many people are in your party.

Gaming Night - This is one we have also seriously considered because again the West End here in London is not short of a Casino and to feel the whole atmosphere rather than using online casino sites, there is a huge difference and there is also a chance to be taught how to ply Blackjack or Poker. The one reason this is high up on the list is because my friend is going off to Vegas to get married and this will be just a taster of what it is really like as I too go married in Vegas.

Thames Cruise with Disco - One of my favourite options I have to admit. An evening aboard a disco boat with an informal buffet meal from the captain's deck is not only something a little bit different, but it is something that would suit most people no matter how introvert or extrovert they might be.

The final idea that was suggested was a mixture of events with go karting in the morning near Greenwich, followed by an afternoon at the Spa and then out for the evening for dinner, some drinks and either a trip to a club. This would allow people to come along for some, part or all of the day with a range of activities that some will like, love and want to do.

I am doing one of these but am not revealing which for now.  Can you guess which one?

What did you do on your hen night?

*sp

Beautiful Bronze Highlighter - A Boots No.7 Dupe?

I am a huge fan of the Boots No.7 Instant Radiance Highlighter and have reviewed it HERE. It costs just £9.95 and has an amazing formula which dried incredibly quickly and creates an amazing highlighting effect.

I love highlighters in general and have a growing collection of them, so whilst in Primark, I came across the Beautiful Bronze range by Sunkissed, which looks amazing. The one product which caught my eye from the range was the Glow Stick Highlighter which is paraben and alcohol free and contains Vitamin E and costs just £3, so it quickly went into my basket.

It looks absolutely stunning and when I swatched it, I was shocked to find it is the perfect dupe for my favourite Boots No.7 highlighter. Infact it isn't just the colour which is a perfect dupe, but the formula is also very very similar which you can see below.

I am absolutely delighted to have found a dupe for my beloved highlighter and at a saving of almost £7 I am definitely going to check out the rest of the range.

Have you tried anything from this range?

Nip + Fab Skin Glycolic Fix Exfoliating Facial Pads

When a product that you are sent is so good, you go out and stock up on them so you never run out obviously means not only is it an amazing product but everyone needs to be using it right? Well I am a fan of the Nip + Fab range which has featured on this blog before and today I have another amazing product to share and it is one I wasn't expecting to like, infact when I realised they were infact exfoliating pads, my whole teenager years flashed by my eyes and the horror that was those Oxy pads - eurgh!

The Nip + Fab Skin Glycolic Fix Exfoliating Facial Pads (whew) are amazing and each tub contains 60 of these pads which means you either get one or two months supply depending on how often you use them. I prefer to use them once a day in an evening as part of my cleansing routine because I feel that is most effective.

Each pad is soaked in exfoliating glycolic acid which my skin reacts to really well. There is also Witch Hazel which helps to tone the skin plus hyaluronic acid which again my skin absolutely loves and finally blue daisy which soothes and calms the skin.

The pads are really well soaked with the glycolic acid and the screw-top lid is really easy to open and close, plus if you screw it on properly it prevents the pads from drying out. If you do find them drying out, simply store the pot upside down, ensuring the lid is tightly screwed on, then all the glycol ice acid from the bottom few pads will soak those at the top - same trick for face wipes! 

The pads themselves have a textured side which is used for a gentle scrub and a smooth side which I used after the textured side to remove anything which has been brought to the surface of my skin . The pads themselves as you can see are a really good size, not much smaller than my cotton wool pads and when I use them, they absorb and contain enough of the product to coat my entire face, neck and décolletage.  They are not overly abrasive and do feel cooling in the skin. After using them your skin feels so clean as though you have just had a facial, it is amazing.

The Nip + Fab Skin Glycolic Fix Exfoliating Facial Pads retail for around £12.95 but if you look out for them in Boots they are half price!

Have you ever tried these pads?

bagsy - Meet your handbag's new best friends!

Today I am introducing bagsy to you, a new beauty collection of multi-tasking must-haves for the handbag. If you are anything like me then the make-up bag you carry around is probably full to the point of seam ripping because you need and want so many products with you on the go. Well bagsy is a British born collection of easy to use beauty essentials which let you be prepared for any event with their new collection.

The one thing that stands out to me with bagsy is the packaging, yes really. I was lucky enough to to go a preview event to see the collection for myself and it is stunning. Someone has clearly put a lot of thought and effort into making these items look aesthetically delightful, making you want them before you even know what it is. Created by a team of people who have for years worked alongside some of the worlds biggest brands, they have come together to launch their own collection, using their expert knowledge of formulas, shapes, shades, colours and popular selling products and this is what they have:

Wonder Wand - I absolutely loved this product from the first swatch. It is one pencil which doubles up to be a highlighting and concealing crayon (how clever is that!). This little 2-in-1 product is great for highlighting and concealing on the go, so whether it is blemishes or undereye circles - voila, toodle pip Wonder Wand has it dealt with. (£18).

Pretty Cheeks - The little blush is dome shaped and has a formula that looks like a cream, feels like a cream but it isn't a cream, it acts like a powder. The dome shape allows you to use it on those cheeks bones and then effortlessly blend it in, using your fingers or a brush with no effort at all. It is available in two shades - Velvet Rose and Velvet Coral and even I loved the look of Coral on my swatch. (£16)

Ray on Sunshine - This matte-finish bronzer is delightful. The packaging is slim rather than bulky and it has a mirror. It is engraved with "Sunshine is my favourite accessory" to make it even more amazing and it is sold in two shades - Light medium and Medium Dark which sounds a tad daunting, but the light medium works really well with my skin tone because again it is an effortless blender. (£18)

There are three types of lip products which are called Lip Velvet, Wow Lips and Lip Cocoon and all three are again items I feel like I need in my life.

Lip Velvet is a matte liquid lipstick which is lightweight, soft, hydrating and amazingly pigmented. Once applied it lasts for a good 4-5 hours before you need to re-apply it but as it does fade, it leave behind a lovely tint on the lips, which can be brightened with a bit of clear gloss. 

It is available in four different shades - No Frills, Spilling Plates, Rush Hour and Living the Dream. What I love about these is the packaging, some people on Instagram have compared them to the Opaque Rogue sticks from Hourglass, but you can judge for yourself what you think. The shade swatched below is Spilling Plates (£12)

Lip Cocoon - This is another product I loved as soon as I saw it. It is a lip balm but not just any lip balm, it is one of the prettiest designed lip balms I have come across. 

Available in Lemon and Raspberry, they are scented and smell like fresh Lemons and Raspberries and give a very subtle hint of colour. They glide onto the lips and are super hydrating. (£7)

Wow Lips is a chubby stick, something most people love, have and use. There are four different shades available - Killer Heels, Happy Days, Ready to Wear and Cocktail Hour and they are not only glossy but also again very pigmented. (£12)

The final piece of make-up is for the eyes and is called Beautiful Eyes. This lightweight eyeshader is easily blended and the feathery texture stays put throughout the day no matter what’s thrown at you. Available in Pearly Bird, Caffeine Fix, The Big Smoke and Take The Plunge.  The shade swatched below is Caffeine Switch.

Hair Wonder - (£5.00) An instant refresh for hair, this subtly scented dry shampoo mist volumises roots and absorbs oil with a blend of rice and tapioca. It smells absolutely amazing and in my view, you can never ever have too much dry shampoo at home because you never know when you might need it!

Heavenly Hands - (£6.00) Made with a blend of natural essential minerals of zinc, magnesium, iron and silicon, this soft-whipped cream leaves hands silky soft but never greasy.  Again, this is another definite handbag must for me and the cream for this is divine.

Make Up Bag - (£15.00) For all your bagsy treats, this amazing Flamingo designed pouch is roomy, it looks amazing, it is very cute and it looks amazing in any handbag.

So there you have it, bagsy!  A range which is beautifully packaged and one that has excited me enough to want to know what they have planned next!

The bagsy collection is launching on Monday 15th June on Feelunique.

What are your impressions of bagsy?