Savvy Awards 2010 - Best of the Rest


Best New Brand


Naked Bodycare, from Boots (instore and online) and Nakedbodycare.co.uk

I first heard about Naked back in March I think and just loved that there whole range was 97% natural and free from SLS and parabens and also NOT expensive like so many other organic brands.
Since then I have religious used a whole range of there products and seen them grow as a company - first getting there products into Boots and last month moving into Sainsbury's. Not to mention there exciting new facial skincare range!
Not only are there products chemical free but they are luxurious and smell beautiful! 
An amazing company doing amazing things - I really have my fingers crossed that there Naked products will be in Tesco by the end of 2011!  


 

Runner Up - Famous by Sue Moxley, available in Superdrug from £6.00

I'm actually not sure if the Sue Moxley range was new to 2010...but lets just say it was! From reviews are the beginning of the year the products seem to of been a let down...however there new Famous by Sue Moxley range is a huge improvement. 
New packaging, new products, cheaper pricing! 
There are some really amazing products in the range that are definitely worth a look - especially the lip and eye palettes and my new favourite baked highlighter in Miami (£6). 
I really hope the range goes from strength to strength in the new year!  



Best Hand Care Product


No7 Revitalising Hand Saviour, £11.00 

This is not just another thick, greasy hand cream, it's actually a hand exfoliator! 
You basically apply this grainy scrub to dry hands and rub in as if your washing them, then just rinse off with warm water to reveal beautifully soft hands. 
This really is like no other product I have seen on the highstreet and works better than any other hand cream I've used in 2010. 
A true hand saviour!  



Best Makeup Remover


Botanics Soothing Eye Make Up Remover, £2.99  

I'm sure this is a firm favourite for many people that love a bargain and also a product that does what it says! Which is definitely this. 
This will remove all eye makeup within 40 seconds without any scrubbing or redness. 
I also secretly use this as an oil cleanser when I'm being lazy to remove all of my makeup!
Does what it says and does it well!  


Best Lip Treatment 


Blistex Relief Cream, £2.19 

There isn't much to say about this, except it works. This give relief to dry, cracked, chapped lips. Great to smooth on in the comfort of your own home as an intensive treatment or to rub in when your out in the cold. 

Runner Up - Bepanthen Ointment, £2.59 

Yes, I realize this is actually a nappy cream and isn't meant for the lips but this truly works wonders for ugly cracked lips as a overnight lip treatment. 
This is the only thing I use when I need to restore my lips back to there normal state.
It has got a slightly creamy shade to it so it can't be used in public but it is tasteless and 100% safe on the lips.  


Best Miscellaneous Product 


Eucryl Freshmint Tooth Powder, £1.45

This is the cheapest yet most sensitive teeth whitening product I've found on the market - plus if doesn't involve any trays or nasty tasting gels. Just a mint flavoured powder that you dip your tooth brush in and use as you would any tooth paste. 
I use this up to 3 times a week and really have noticed a big even difference to mention the product!




Runner Up - Cosmopolitan Blend Perfection Sponge, £4.99 available in Superdrug

I recently reviewed this (here)as it's just the best foundation sponge I've ever tried. This creates a totally flawless effect within seconds. Also blends in concealer and cream blush. 
High quality and a must if you are looking to create that natural dewy look to the skin. 

 
Best Skincare Range


Avene 

There's just something about this brand that I trust and believe in - every Avene product I have so far tried has worked. I love there simple concept and there lack of any nasty chemicals (so perfect for sensitive skin). 
I use there Clearing gel and Thermal water almost daily.


 
Runner Up - Naked Bodycare 


From there gorgeously luxe feeling Coco de mer Body Butter to there cookie dough scented Jojoba exfoliating Face Wash to there amazing multi purpose Starflower Hand & Body Lotion, I love it all! 
Just an amazing range of products. 


Best Brand of 2010


N07 available in Boots 

I'm sure some of you may umm and arr about this choice - however I'm talking about the brand as a whole. There constant 'spend so much and receive a free gift worth over £23' campaign, not to mention there much loved £5 free vouchers that happened quite regularly in 2010! 
Aside from there offers they brought us amazing multi award winning skincare in there Protect & Perfect line and revolutionary products such as the Exceptional Definition Mascara that had three different sides too it. 
There sales staff are helpful and not pushy and there products are always of good quality. Not to mention the amazingly talented Lisa Eldridge is the brands Creative Director. 



Best Beauty Website


Asos Beauty and Boots.com

Asos has really been a great website in 2010 - with there Free Delivery and amazing sales. But what I love the most about the site is there Beauty section, always stocking the must have products and up coming brands like Yes To Tomatoes and Nail Rock. 

Boots has also been a much used and loved site this last year with there handy free delivery to store. There beauty products also just seem to grow and grow with new brands such as Burt's Bees, Neal's Yard and Good Things. Easy navigation and good pricing make this a website I will always rely on.  

Make sure to check out the Makeup Savvy Awards here if you already haven't and I will see you all in the New Year.

Hope you all have a fab New Years eve!  

  
SHARE:

Savvy Awards 2010 - Makeup


As we are reaching the end of the year I thought it would be a good time to announce the winners of the Savvy awards... now in my head these as prestigious clear cut prisms of crystal, etched with the winning product names. 

But sadly these are nothing more than my absolute favourites of 2010, however I still hope you enjoy the read! 

 
Best Mascara


No7 Exceptional Definition Mascara, £12.00

I think most of us want lengthened, defined, clump-free lashes and this is what you get with No7 Exceptional Definition Mascara. You can really get into the roots and them tiny little lashes with the end bristles and comb through with the other side of the wand to remove any clumps (which means you can apply multiple coats!). 
If you still don't believe me, make sure you read the 60 five star comments on the Boots website!

Runner Up - 17 Wild Curls Mascara, £6.29

For the price this is definitely one of the most affordable yet great mascaras out there. Again this doesn't clump or look thick and heavy, but creates quite a feline curled look to the lashes. A must if you are sick of paying £10 + for mascara. 


 Best Concealer 


No7 Quick Cover Blemish Stick, £8.00

I've purchased around 8 different concealers this year yet I always come back to this and use it daily. This really does give perfect coverage while being light and also oil absorbing. Covers under eye circles, spots and redness. I also find this lasts all day!


Best Makeup Brushes 

  
Eco Tools, from £4.99 (6 piece brush set - £14.99)

My first ever review on Makeup Savvy was on these very brushes - I loved them back then and still do! These are made out of 100% Taklon bristles with bamboo handles and are the softest of brushes that just don't shed. My favourite has to be the angled liner brush which I use for my eyebrows and lining my upper lashline or smudging out eyeliner. 
Great value for money and amazing quality!  


Best Eye Shadow


17 Solo Eye Shadow, £3.89 

These by far have to be the best affordable eyeshadows that are always available on the highstreet. The metallics in the range are fab, such a huge choice....perfect for foiling or using wet and really blendable! 
Just fantastic value for money and so pigmented. 


 

 Runner Up - Sleek Eyeshadow Palette, £5.99

I think these would of definitely 'won' Best Eyeshadow if there weren't sold out so much in Superdrug and online. That aside, all 8 (or is it 7?) palettes are amazing - with a mix of matte and shimmery shades they could be all the eyeshadows you need. These blend perfectly and are incredibly pigmented.


Best Bronzer 


Bourjois Delice de Poudre Bronzing Powder, £6.99

I must admit I haven't had this all that long however this became my favourite bronzer instantly! One of the only non - shimmery 'disco ball' bronzer out on the highstreet...this really does just lightly bronzer the skin without leaving any glitter or shimmer - which to me makes a true bronzer. Also the packaging with the magnetic close is lovely and the hint of chocolate scent to the powder is a nice touch. 
All in all a real winner of a product!  


   Best Foundation


Max Factor Second Skin Foundation, £12.99 

I think maybe foundation is the hardest thing to review as everyone seems to like something different. But if you want something that is light, glowy and flattering then you need Second Skin in your life! 
This is one of the only low cost foundation I've tried that doesn't look cakey or orange. 
The only down side is the limited colour range with only 5 shades, but the lightest shade 'Creamy Ivory' is personally a really good match to my own skin.  


Best Blusher 


Topshop Cream Blush, £6.00 

This was definitely a needed 'drugstore' product for 2010 which really stood out to me. These come in really lovely shades and the cream to powder formulation is just perfect. Favourites in the range have to be Neon Rose for a flush of colour and Butterscotch as a nice highlight. 
The whole of the Topshop range is worth a look though!  



Best Lipgloss


Barry M Lip Gloss Wands, £4.49 

Not too sticky or gloopy, perfectly scented and just lovely shades. These are definitely the best lipglosses of 2010 (with Revlon coming 2nd) just so glossy and just great. Strawberry Milkshake and Toffee are musts. 



Best Nail Polish Range 


Barry M Nail Paint, £2.99 each

So many shades to pick from and always so on trend and not to mention there great quality, you really cannot go wrong with this range.
Favourite shades so far have to be Mushroom, Dusky Mauve, Raspberry, Grey, Pink Flamingo....ok just all of them! 


 

Runner Up - George at Asda Nail Polish, £1.49 each

Again this would of 'won' if it was easily available or atleast sold online, but these are only sold in Asda stores! 
But for a supermarket brand these are amazing - the quality and range of shades is just fantastic (they even do matt finish polishes now)! 
Totally fantastic and worth £1.49 of any one's money. 


Watch out for part two of the SW's (that's the Savvy Awards, of course) with the best of the rest in skincare and favourite brands! 



SHARE:

Cosmopolitan Blend Perfection Sponge Review


With reviews for makeup brushes or sponges I always think an example of what the tool can actually achieve is so needed - so I thought I'd rave about the Cosmopolitan Blend Perfection Sponge and the type of effect you should get when using the sponge - plus actually show my face (which I don't do that often) so you can see what I'm talking about! 

 Now I love using sponges and actually never use a foundation or stippling brush anymore to apply my foundation, the reason being I like quite a light coverage and a sponge gives that airbrushed, dewy, light look to the skin. Plus I find using brushes can create an exfoliating effect on my skin, which leaves  me with quite flaky patches either side of my nose.
Not a good look. 


So sponges just seem like a good option - they give a flawless finish, make the skin look dewy, easy to clean/dry, perfect application within second and they never make foundation look cakey! 
However they do get grubby and it can give you too light of a coverage depending on the sponge...which is why I've tried so many to find the perfect one!

However my quest is over! 

I bought the Cosmopolitan Blend Perfection Sponge for £4.99 in Superdrug as it basically looked like the much talked about Beauty Blender and I liked that it was abit firmer than any other sponge I'd tried in the past - more like the feel of a stress ball than a latex sponge.

Feel free to click on the picture and have a really close up look at my face/foundation!

The idea behind the sponge is you actually bounce it off the face and use the different sides for different areas - the tip is really perfect for the sides of the nose and around the hairline. 
I really haven't got clear skin especially around my nose and chin and always have quite abit of redness - but as you can see the sponge really does give an even look to the skin. The foundation I used in all three photos is the Max Factor Second Skin Foundation in Creamy Ivory (which definitely doesn't look dewy when applied with a brush or the fingers). 

Even less coverage - blended out from the T-zone
But what I really love about this is you can build up the coverage in the areas you need it - for me this is to cover up blackheads around my nose and forehead. Simply by adding an extra dot of foundation to the areas and stippling it out to blend in with the rest of the face.

After I've used it too apply my foundation and it's a little less damp I use it to blend out the concealer I'm using and if I'm using a cream blush I use the base of the sponge to apply it. So it really can be used for more than just foundation application! 

Ofcourse after use it needs to be washed however I find I wash it daily as you need to dampen it before use anyway - so I just rinse it with abit of soap under hot water and it removes all the foundation and then it's ready for use again. 


All in all I can't see any down sides to the sponge other than you may find you need to use abit more foundation than you would if you were using a foundation brush or your fingers.
But what I love the most about this is it does give such an flawless look to the skin and it literally takes seconds! 

Definitely one of my best purchases of 2010! 


SHARE:

Christmas Gifts...



 I've had a really lovely Christmas...slightly chaotic, but still lovely none the less! 
As today is the first day I've not had to do anything I'm classing it as my Boxing Day (even though that was yesterday) and so I'm actually blogging from bed (I have actually got up today though...to eat chocolates)! 

So I thought I'd write a nice, simple rambly type of post about what I received! 
I wish I could include the presents I hated in here for comedy value or even just mention them, but I can't bare to think anyone I know may read this and spot there hideous gifts. 
But lets just say I got some rather slinky micro fibre trouser socks....

Anyway, onto what I got! As you can see I got quite a bit of perfume, all from my boyfriend! My favourite being Eau de Star by Thierry Mugler...some say it's a watered down version of Angel but I actually love it alot more than Angel. It's got strong notes of both Vanilla and  Patchouli...it's sweet and strong, which I love! 
I also got Guarlian Insolence...as I love the smell of parma violet sweets and a huge 100ml Eau de parfum sized Juicy Couture in a gift set! 


I also received such a lovely Guess watch from my boyfriend...that I didn't even mentioned I liked/wanted! So I was quite impressed. 
Toy watch style but abit more glitzy and fun for everyday.
 

I of course got quite afew beauty products - including alot of nail polish. I was abit awkward and asked for the Red Shimmers O.P.I Burlesque mini set...which isn't on any UK website to my knowledge unlike the Little Teaser set. So I was really pleased to receive it! 

I was also given a gorgeous lipstick crayon in Blush by Lord & Berry...which has left me wanting the whole range now, from my Grandad of all people! 
  

Clothing/accessories wise I didn't get too much - except for a lovely stag jumper dress that I wore on Christmas day and a huge Calvin Klein snood
Also some comfy Ugg slippers for the house and a nice new dressing gown to encourage more lounging about! 
 

Back to beauty! I also received a gift voucher for Debenhams (which I will have to spend in the sale I think!) Plus a lovely YSL Amazing Eyes gift set that included a thin Easy Liner in black and the iconic Faux Cils mascara that I more than love (clever boyfriend)! 

I also received some lovely O.P.I polishes from my sister that I don't already own.
 

As for books - I got Eat, Pray, Love and the huge new Nigella Lawson Kitchen book that I've had my eye on for awhile. There really are some amazing recipes in there...however I will be avoid anything that includes baking as I'm shockingly bad at making cakes or anything sweet and sticking to the savoury dishes. 


Last but not least I received some highstreet makeup  - A lovely highlighter from the Famous Sue Moxley range that I wanted and an eye palette. Plus two great hi-tech lip tints from Bourjois that are perfect as cheek stains. 

I could ramble on more but I think you may just be getting sick of seeing all my presents now! 
Would love to hear about what you all received or links to posts.  

Hope you all had a lovely Christmas. 

Fee x 


SHARE:

Giving Fragrance as a Gift


I guess this is a bit of an odd post for 2pm on Christmas Eve as there it's definitely no chance of buying any perfume this late, unless you are brave enough to go to Tesco of course.

So I guess it's just a bit of a ramble! 

You see it's always seems abit of a taboo (wrong word, maybe?) to buy a new fragrance for someone else - by that I mean something that they have never tried before. I'm guessing this is because fragrance is such a personal thing.

But I actually think perfume can make a really lovely present for Christmas and birthdays..that's if you try to match there personality or buy them a fragrance they already wear! 

For Her...

This Christmas I've actually bought perfume/perfume sets for 4 women in my family all totally different scents and I'm really hoping they will all like them! 

I would ramble abit more of what I bought for what people but I know afew family members do read my blog, so I can't! 
But I do think perfume sets are really great - especially the D&G perfume collection set that comes with 5 different 20ml perfumes, all of which you can buy 100ml versions of. 

Or even buying lots of little miniature perfumes online or from Superdrug and creating your own set as after all the pre-made sets from Boots cost around £25. 


For Him...

As for men...I can't decide whether or not they are hard to buy for when fragrance is concerned as most of the time as long as it's not Brut they will be happy as pie.

I think one of the best fragrance brands for men has to be Paul Smith then oddly Ted Baker. 
All Paul Smith scents seem to be different and almost trendy so great for anyone in there 20's or 30's - I love both 'Story' and 'London' also not overly expensive. 

As for the 'older' man i.e Dads... I always go for Gucci as they always seem to be quite deep scents or for something abit cooler - Issey Miyake. 
Then if we are talking Granddad's, it has to be Old spice all the way or anything that smells a bit herb like! 

I know this post really hasn't been helpful for anyone but tomorrow is Christmas Day so yes! It's allowed. 



I really hope you all have a very happy & merry Christmas! 

Fee xxx


SHARE:

Fashion Blogger Unwrapped - Fashion Foie Gras!


This is another lady that some how manages to post upto 8 posts a day AND hold down a full time job! 
But I'm not complaining as I love keeping up to date with the latest celebrity & fashion news with Fashion Foie Gras!

 How will you be spending Christmas?
I'll be home in the US with my family and friends.  And while there I'll be shopping like a mad woman. I am a big fan of the post-Christmas sales. I actually map out my route the morning after to hit all the best bits!

What do you want for Christmas this year?
Oh, there are so many items I'm wishing for this year. Let's hope I'm on Santa's nice list. If I unwrapped a Chanel 2.55 or a Yves Saint Laurent ring I wouldn't complain. I'm really hoping for a few Apple products (for blogging purposes) and a new SLR camera as well.  Although I think those are treats I'll be buying myself.  Anything cashmere from Ralph Lauren, Zadig & Voltaire or Stella McCartney would fill my heart with joy!

What is your best festive memory? 
Sitting with my three brothers the evening we all arrived after having flown home from London, Italy, Germany and California. We all sat around drinking by the fire and catching up on what we had all been doing to cause trouble in our home countries.  My mom and dad looked so happy seeing us all together again. You can't beat family on the holidays. For some it's the worst part, for me it means everything.

Who would you love to have as a Christmas-lunch guest(s)? 
Well, if you could arrange for Robert Redford (c.1970) to show up at my dinner table we wouldn't really need anyone else. In all honesty, I'll have exactly who I want at my Christmas lunch this year - my family.

What is your favourite gifts to give...And to receive?
Gift giving is so much better than receiving. I love giving personal gifts. I used to be really into putting together elaborate photo collages of magnificent memories captured on film. Now I love giving items that will help people capture their own memories- flip cameras, digital cameras or ipads with music that takes you back to a certain place or time.
 
 
                                        Any favouirte Christmas movies?
The Family Stone has become our family favourite. It is my family. It's scary how much so.
 
Where do you go last-minute gift shopping? 
Wherever is open. If it's last minute you don't usually have a lot of options. I've been known to do emergency runs to Walmart at 1am the morning of Christmas! 
 
                               Your favourite part of the festive season.
Christmas music (and I sometimes listen to it in the middle of June if I need a pick-me-up). 

And how will you relax when it's all over?
Leftovers!  

              
SHARE:

An Early Christmas Gift...


My boyfriend gave me this a few days ago now, as I wasn't feeling that festive (I'm glad to report I'm feeling alot better now though). 

This wasn't on my Christmas list, but I think I mentioned a bit ago that I liked the look of them...but at £10 I thought it was a bit steep for a little pot of lip balm.  
But now I have it, I think maybe it is worth it! 


This one is the Tokyo Milk Sweet Cream Bon Bon Lip Balm and literally smells/tastes like the filling in cake. I really do love the attention to detail with the product  - the little quote on the inside, the little leaflet in the box and the glittery cupcake on the side. 

The only thing I'd would of liked to of seen was a metal lid instead of a plastic one.


I do really like the little leaflet though... quirky and fun! 

I'm tempted to watch Sixteen Candles now...it sounds a bit like The Breakfast Club.  

All in all this is a lovely unique lip balm that has been welcomed into my already rather large collection. 


SHARE:
Blogger Template Created by pipdig