Confessions by Beauty Boulevard

Beauty Boulevard is a brand you might now have come across until I mention 'Glitter Lips' that came from nowhere and ended up everywhere proving to be such a success in Topshop here in London, that it sold out within a matter of days. Well alongside Glitter Lips comes a whole host of other products and the ones I have tried and tested come in the form of a Tri-Colour Lipstick and a Lip Mask.

The hydra-gel lip mask is designed to plump and smooth dry and damaged lips. A lip mask isn't something new, there are quite a few of them around if you look, but this is the first time I have tried anything like this and I absolutely loved it plus it is a lot of fun. My lips are usually in fairly good condition as I am a lip balm addict but whenever I have a cold, no matter what I use, I always end up with dehydrated feeling lips, so these masks have been a god send.

The lip masks have three main aims - to plump, add moisture and contour. To do this, they use the natural elements from red seaweed plant, exfoliating properties derived from sugar beets and ingredients which occur naturally in green tea. Hyaluronic Acid boosts hydration with Amino Acids helping the skin to stretch and bounce back into place.. Anti-Oxidant rich Red Wine extract and Collagen components help to plump and smooth lips for an overall more youthful appearance.

To use you first need to ensure that your lips are clean and that any makeup and surface dirt and grime is removed and then once you have carefully opened the foil package, gently remove the gel mask and apply it to the lips. Once on the lips there is an instant cooling feeling which is really quite nice. After 10-15 minutes, remove the mask and what I noticed after using them was how soft my lips felt and gone was the dry skin to the side of my mouth. At £7.50 for two masks, an absolute bargain.

Next is the Tri Colour Lip Tints which are designed to add a sheer drop of colour to your lips but to also condition and hydrate. Each Tri Colour Lip Tint contains naturally nourishing Coconut Oil, Jojoba and Beeswax for intense lip hydration and provides a slight touch of colour with a silky smooth, glossy finish. This is shade Envy which brings together three bright and bold shades with orange, purple and pink and far from being as bold on the lips, the shade is really subtle.

On the lips, the tints glide across your lips without the dragging feeling and are really lightweight, moisturising and do leave your lips with that 'just applied lip balm' feel to them. The formula isn't stick or tacky to the touch and once applied you can leave it for a good few hours before you need to re-apply.  Perfect for using on their own or with your lipstick you can find these for £8.50 with three shades to choose from.

Have you ever used any products from Beauty Boulevard?

*this post contains PR samples unless indicated otherwise

Project Renegades

The creative duo behind Escentric Molecules, Geza Schoen and Paul White, have teamed up with rebel perfumers Bertrand Duchaufour and Mark Buxton to launch new fragrance brand Project Renegades. They all worked for large fragrance houses contributing to many classic scents for brands which you will be familiar with - Escentric Molecules, Comme des Garçons, Penhaligons and Acqua de Parma to name but a few. 

I was not only lucky enough to be present for the launch of the brand, but I got to sit, listen and ask questions of each of them which was, just the ultimate experience and an absolute honour.  

Deciding to take the fragrance world by storm, give it a kick and have some fun, each perfumer created a fragrance of their own, with no limitations of a tight brief or restrictions on materials. In fact they could come up with what they wanted and that is exactly what they did. The end result was three very unique scents, three crazy avatars and three incredibly eye-catching bottles which are not only distinctive but come with a fridge magnet of each avatar.

Geza Schoen’s Renegades fragrance is constructed around pink pepper, creating a portrait of the whole tree - berries, bark and leaves. I loved this scent immediately which might come as no surprise to those of you who know how much I adore Escentic Molecules. 

So with top notes of pink pepper, lemon, bergamot, cassis and lime; middle notes of osmanthus, iris, fir, juniper, hedione and mate and base notes of the well known iso e super, cedar, sandalwood, labdanum, incense, myrrh, castoreum and ambrette (musk mallow) what you get is the most amazing woody spicy fragrance which is suitable for men and women.

Bertrand Duchaufour’s Renegades fragrance opens with pink pepper and ends with a sea breeze. This time there is top notes of pink pepper, bergamot, cardamom, gin, cassis and galbanum. The middle notes are red berries, olibanum and hinoki wood and the base notes are balsam fir, driftwood and amber. 

This is again a woody spicy scent which is suitable for both men and women and I hadn't expected to like the scent, I'm not usually a fan of perfumes with amber in them, but this one is just beautiful and again is unlike anything else I have ever smelt or come across.

Mark Buxton’s Renegades fragrance is woody and spicy, revolving around a smoky leather rose. This time we have top notes which are basil, lentisque, black pepper, cassis-flower and galbanum; middle notes of leather rose and bay and base notes which are labdanum, guaiac wood, vetiver and amber.  

Again we have a Woody Spicy scent which has the added extra of being a smoky scent owing to the leather rose.  For both men and women, I actually think this one will be much better suited to the mister of my house than it will be to me, but I am prepared to give it a go because once again it is quite striking, it is divine and is like nothing else I have ever come across.

I know most people will be wanting to know whether or not I have a favourite amongst the three fragrances and truth me told they are all amazing in their own way, they all make you think and they are all just totally different to each other and anything else you are likely to find in any department store or on any fragrance counter.  That said, the one which appeals to me the most is from Geza, I love the freshness of the scent, I love how it smells on my skin and I love that it lasts for most of the day once applied.

If these fragrances have managed to capture your attention, then you will find the brand in Harvey Nichols and each one retails at £155.

*this post contains PR samples unless indicated otherwise

Free Beauty Box with Marks and Spencer

So with Mothers Day on the horizon (26th March for the UK followers), Marks and Spencers are giving you a free Beauty Box worth £80 when you spend £30 and with all the amazing brands now stocked in Marks and Spencers, spending £30 is not hard to do.

So the box is called Little Beauty Luxuries (here) and it has nine products in it which are:

Image Credit - Marks and Spencer

• Studio 10 Age Reverse Perfecting Lipliner 1.38g, 
• Neal's Yard Remedies Wild Rose Beauty Balm 15g, 
• Balance Me Radiance Face Oil 10ml, 
• Nature's Ingredients Lemon Verbena OR Aloe Vera Foam Bath 60ml, 
• Aqua Rose Eau de Toilette 25ml, 
• Heyland & Whittle Luxurious Rose Soap 95g, 
• L'Occitane En Provance Shea Butter Intensive Hand Balm OR Shea Hand Cream 10ml, 
• Ren Moroccan Rose Otto Body Wash 50ml, 
• Nails Inc. Gel One Coat Nail Polish Portobello Court 10ml.

So quite a cute little box that contains a really lovely variety of products and to ensure you get the box all you need to do is add it to your bag, spend £30 and then when you check out the box becomes free, pretty much like all M&S Gift With Purchases work. Available now - here!

What do you think to the box?

*this post contains PR samples/AF links unless indicated otherwise

L’Occitane Terre de Lumiere

One thing L'Occitane do very well are fragrances and I have yet to come across one that I haven't loved immediately. The release of Terre De Lumiere, which translates to mean 'Land of Light' is quite simply Summer in a bottle it as been inspired by the light of Provence. The description "capturing the intense sensoriality of a walk through the fields of Provence at the golden hour" quite literally has you imagining that perfect French sunset.

Terre de Lumière is the first Gourmand Aromatic fragrance by L'OCCITANE. In that sense, it means a perfume which consists primarily of synthetic edible (gourmand) which in this case includes ingredients such as honey and almond.  The bottle is an interesting shape and with it comes an interesting description.  The cap is described as being 'aglow with light, as if it had soaked up the smouldering colours of the sky' and the bottle which has this rounded almost unusual shape was designed to express all the power of Provence, simply elegant and iconic, it is said to 'showcase the vibrant golden hues of the land with its unique light'. For me, the bottle fits perfectly in my hand when I come to use it and with a handy flat bottom, it makes it ideal for standing on my bedside table. 

I love this scent. I wasn't expecting too when I saw some of the notes, in fact, I expected to really dislike it, so for me to not only like but love it, even now still shocks me.  With top notes are bergamot, ambrette seed, and pink pepper you get a bold zesty aromatic opening which I just loved immediately. The Bergamot most definitely noticeable for me. Then as the heart note of Lavender Honey comes to life, said to be reminiscent of the fields of Provence, the perfume develops to bring a floral side to the zesty scent. Finally, the base notes of Acacia Flower, Bitter Almond Essence, Tonka Bean and White Musk really add a whole new dimension to this for me. It is soft, warm and incredibly fresh scented, the musk sitting in the background. 

As this is a gourmand scent, less is definitely more.  One spritz on your pulse points is more than enough and this scent once applied lasts for hours and hours.  You apply it in the morning and you can still catch a whiff on your way home some 7 hours later, admittedly not as strong but it is still there.

Available in both a 50ml and 90ml bottle, they are priced at £58 and £78 respectively and they are available right here alongside a Gentle Shower Gel and Beautifying Body Lotion from the same range.

*this post contains PR samples unless indicated otherwise