Essie Spring Collection Mini Cube

I'm not usually Essie's biggest fan, as they are just too expensive for me. I do own a couple and haven't been too impressed with the quality either. If they were amazing then I could maybe have justified the price but I can't say that they were. I decided to give them another go though, when I saw them on the Buyapower website. I like the idea of putting four shades from each collection into a mini cube so you can try out small versions of the new shades, and if you are like myself and have a small nail polish obsession, then a small bottle is better as I never use a full one.

The Spring 2013 collection mini cube contains four lovely pastel shades, Avenue Maintain, a bright sky blue, Madison Ave-Hue, a pink with silver shimmer, Bond With Whomever, a lilac and Go Ginza, a very pale lilac with a pink tone. I love pastel shades so the Spring collections tend to be my favourites and this one has some lovely shades. I really like that they have included a shimmery shade as well as normal colours, just to mix it up a little.

I wanted to try as many colours as I could so I went for a bit of a mimed up design. I used Bond With Whomever with Avenue Maintain for the accent nails and Go Ginza for the dots. These colours go together really well and I love the shades. I wasn't too keen on Go Ginza to start with but it does look lovely against the blue. 

I think I may have been converted to Essie a little more with this cube and I would definitely consider buying more of the mini cubes rather than the full size polishes as you get more for your money. I ended up paying £8.95 for the cube which is a bargain when you think a full size single polish is £7.99. I did find that these lasted really well too and didn't start to chip for 3-4 days. 

Have you tried the mini cubes from Essie? I think more brands should go for mini polishes, I do feel like I waste a lot by only using most polishes a couple of times.

April Glossybox

I had a sneak peek at a few early reviews of this months box (I know half the fun is the surprise but I just can't help myself!) and was seriously looking forward to getting mine. I think this is the best box I've had yet! There were a couple of other bits I'd spotted which I would have liked to have got too, but I'm really happy with everything in my box! Anyway, onto the un-boxing (de-boxing? I don't know!).

First off, how gorgeous is the box? The design was created by Pearl Lowe, who is also featured in an interview in the free booklet. I use my Glossyboxes for storage so this will make a lovely addition to my growing collection. The theme for this months box is Spring Fever, products to get you ready for Spring. I think this is a really nice idea with the weather just starting to pick up! The total value of this months box came to about £27. 

My sample products, 3 full size and a nice mix of make-up, body products and a cute little fragrance sample.

Surprisingly, the Essie polish (Full size, £7.99) was the sample I was most excited to see in my box! I had seen a few colours in other bloggers boxes and was hoping for the lilac but to be honest I have lots of purples and nothing like Rosebowl so this will make a nice addition to my collection.

I was also really excited to see a Sleek blusher (full size, £4.49), I hadn't seen these in anyone else's box but I have seen plenty of good reviews on different blogs and never tried one myself so this was a lovely surprise. I received Suede, a gorgeous natural pinky brown. I love the colour and this will be perfect for a natural look. I always tend to go for pinky blushes so this is a nice change. Plus how lovely is the compact? I'm really impressed with this one!

I had seen a few boxes with the pistachio version of this, but I love fruity fragrances so I was so happy to try the mango version! Nip + Fab Mango Smoothie Body Butter (50ml, full size 200ml £9.95). I tried this out straight away and it smells amazing! The tiny amount on the picture has made my hands feel so soft. This will definitely be getting used!

This is something I had not heard of before, A-Derma Intense Repair Lip Balm (full size, £7.95). It contains Rhealba Oat Milk (seriously? I think they make these things up :/) to soften and protect your lips. I have loads of lip balms as I do suffer badly with dry lips, so I'm always on the look out for something amazing and  my first impression of this is good! I have it on at the moment, so I'll see how well it works!

 Finally, a nice touch as I hadn't had any fragrance samples before, a sample size Yves Rocher So Elixir Purple (5ml, full size 50ml £44). The box it comes in is so pretty! I wasn't expecting much as I am quite picky with the perfumes I like but surprisingly I actually like this one! Its a little strong but quite fruity and really lovely.

I really loved last months box but this one has topped it!. £27 worth of products is really good value and it will all get used! I have been really impressed with my Glossyboxes so far and I know a lot of people have had bad experiences, but I am quite happy to keep getting them, I love the little surprise treats every month! I have been saving my Glossydots too, meaning after next months box I can have a freebie!
Have you had this months box? Were you as happy as I am?

Essie It's Genius

Another NOTD post for you, this is one I have had for a while but haven't gotten around to using yet. I haven't used many Essie polishes as they are a little on the pricey side for someone who has over 100 polishes, probably uses each one twice and keeps buying more! I fancied trying something different though, so I picked up It's Genius as it is such an unusual colour. Its kind of a browny, purpley pink with a gold shimmer in the light. I used three coats as it seems a little on the thin side, then a top coat to give more shine. I was surprised by how quickly it dried though, it was almost instant!

I love this colour, it really is a beautiful shade. I am definitely an Essie convert! They have some gorgeous polishes and the coverage and colour they give are better than cheaper polishes. The big test for me will be how long they last without chipping though.

I would recommend them if you are wanting to treat yourself, I mean, I don't think I will be buying a load of them, I do love my bargains too much but I think I will invest for special occasions or for the odd must have shade though. 

What about you? Do you prefer a bargain or do you think its worth splashing out for a better brand?

Midweek Shopping Treats

Once again I should be writing an essay but have gotten distracted and decided to post something a little different. I love seeing other peoples posts around shopping trips or wish-lists, so thought I would share my own purchases from a little shopping spree today. I decided to treat myself seen as I still had some birthday money left over. I have been looking for a nice bag for spring/summer that wasn't black as I have tooooo many black bags, so perfect timing from Marc B as their new collection has just launched today. Add that to the offer they have on until Valentines Day for 25% off and how was I supposed to resist??

If you haven't heard of Marc B I wouldn't be surprised, they have only recently started to become popular, but I have been obsessed with their gorgeous bags for about five years now and must have about 10/12 different ones. Their new collection is available here. I went for the Cheryl in Camel, a perfect colour for spring. I can't wait for it to arrive!

I also love a couple of the other new bags though and was stuck between this and the Millie in Tan. All in all it came to £39.70, which is a bargain due to the quality of the bags, they won't fall apart after a few uses, they will last for years. I have never been unhappy with any of their bags.

I also picked up a couple of bits of jewellery. I LOVE this necklace. I don't usually like chunky jewellery and tend to go for smaller pieces, but I couldn't resist this. I have a little thing for studs at the moment, and I know, so does everyone else and they are really being overdone, but I love the subtle edge they give to this. £5 from New Look.

I couldn't resist this bracelet either, its so cute. I love the mismatch of colours on the hearts. A bargain for £3 in River Island. They have some really lovely stuff in there at the moment.

Lastly, the obvious nail polishes I have acquired this week. The nail art kit really surprised me. I found it in River Island for £3.50 and it has all sorts of different bits including silver and gold square and circle studs. I have been wanting some silver ones but they all I have seen seemed to be gold. There are also little caviar beads and pearl studs. They had a second wheel which had brightly coloured bits but I resisted getting both.

Nail polishes l-r: Essie It's Genius a gorgeous pinky purple with gold shimmer, I can't wait to try it out. MUA in Moody Mink and Maybelline Colour Show in Lavender Lies and Noite De Gal. I love MUA at the moment for their amazing value for money and quality. I also posted recently about the Colour Show and was really impressed with them so couldn't resist a couple more shades.

So that was my little shopping spree, now back to work unfortunately :(