Beauty, Books, Fashion, and Stationery Haul

Over the last few weeks I've snapped up quite a few bargains in the January sales, so I thought it was time I put a fresh haul post together. You'll find a bit of beauty, a bit of fashion, a handful of books, some festive stationery, and more in today's haul.

My biggest splurge was definitely on Soap and Glory gift sets, which were all half price in Boots' sale earlier in the month. The deals were so good I decided to start my Christmas shopping early, and bought six sets to add to the present stash. Look at me being all organised ahead of time! Haha!

The Bright and Bubbly, and Once Up On A Lime sets were down to £5, the Crazy Sexy Kohl tins were £7, and The Wheel Deal body butter set was £8. I bought one using my Boots Advantage points, which was even better! The only set I bought for myself was The Perfect Ten eyeshadow palette, which I'd wanted for months. It took me a while hunt one down, but I eventually snagged one on sale for just £8! I haven't used it yet as in true blogger style, I need to take photos of it first, but it has some gorgeous shadows, and looks like a Naked dupe. 

I picked up these Imperial Leather shower creams in Boots for £1 each. Have you tried / smelt these yet? They smell exactly like Fruit Salad and Flumps marsh mallow sweets! Amazing!  I can't wait to try them.

I went to Swindon's outlet village with my sister last weekend, and bought these goodies from The Body Shop. I bought two sets of mini shower gels for the Christmas present stash. They were originally £8, down to £5.50, and with an extra 40% off on top, I got them for £3.30 each! Bargain! We also halved a four pack of Glazed Apple shower gels which was only £4.60 for the four! (Originally £4 each). If you want to snag some great Body Shop bargains, the shop in Swindon's outlet village is well worth a visit. I could've easily left with bags full of bargains but I behaved myself because I own waaay too many Body Shop beauty products already.

I also paid a visit to Paperchase in Swindon's outlet village, and came out with two small Christmas gift boxes for 90p each, a brussel sprouts gift bag for £1.50, and two sets of Christmas nail wraps for £1 each. They had stacks of Christmas decorations and gift wrapping supplies on sale for next to nothing if you're looking for some festive bargains.

On New Year's Eve, I tagged along to Bicester Village with Marie who was after a new Kate Spade purse. As usual, we popped in to Cath Kidston while we were there, and I came out with a few things to put away for next Christmas. I was stoked to find their cotton Merry Christmas banners from Christmas 2014 on sale for just £2.40 each (!!), so I bought two. They were originally £10 each, which I couldn't justify at the time, but £2.40 is a price I like. I also came out with some star print curling ribbons for £1 each and two rolls of Christmas stickers for £1.60 each, and a box of Christmas cards for £4. At the rate I'm going, I'm going to be all organised for Christmas by Easter! Haha!

I picked up a Star Wars glass, and money box in Sainsburys to put away for the brother-in-law's birthday. (The glass was on sale, the money box wasn't). He's a bit of a Star Wars geek so I know he's going to love them. 

I treated myself to a few new books as they were so cheap in Sainsburys. The new Stephen King hardback 'The Bazaar of Bad Dreams' was only £6.99, and the two paperbacks were just £3.99. I'm currently reading The Quality of Silence by Rosamund Lupton, and last week I read and finished Our Endless Numbered Days by Claire Fuller, which was so good I devoured it in a couple of sittings. Review coming soon!

And last but not least, I bought this cherry print Evelyn swing dress from Dolly and Dotty, although I haven't decided whether to keep it or send it back yet. I love the print, the shape, the quality of the fabric, and the sleeves, but I'm not sure whether it looks a little snug on me. or too matronly around the shoulders. What do you guys think? Honest opinions welcome!

What have you been buying lately?

My First Mac Nail Polish

A couple of weeks ago, I treated myself to my very first Mac nail polish.

I don't often spend more than £3 or £4 on a nail polish, but when I spotted this polish on sale at The Cosmetics Company Store outlet shop at Bicester Village, I couldn't resist.

Yes, I'm wearing Care Bear pyjamas!

I was drawn to the unusual colours of this nail polish from ten feet away and went in for a closer look. The polish is called Formidable and turned out to be a very dark purple with a sapphire blue shimmer. To me it looked like petrol, and reminded me of Models Own Beetle polishes. 

It was on sale for £7.75 down from the RRP of £11, and as the price wasn't too outrageous, I had to take it home with me. But was it worth the splurge?

And the answer is... no, it wasn't! Let me tell you why...

I didn't waste any time in painting my nails with my new polish, using it later that same day.

The long brush was easy to handle and the polish painted on smoothly. Each coat dried within a minute, which I was very impressed with. I applied three coats to each nail, and waited until my manicure was bone dry before I let my hands come in to contact with anything. All seemed great... and I thought I was on to a winner, but within a couple of hours, several nails had already chipped! My hands had barely come in to contact with anything, certainly nothing that should've left my nails looking like an eroding week-old manicure. It's not something I would expect from an £11 nail polish; for that price I would expect something a little more hard-wearing than the budget drug store brands. 

As for the colour, it's a little darker than it appears in the bottle, and it's a little bit different to anything I've tried before. The purple is so dark that I often think it looks more like a chocolate brown (which I kinda like), and the pale blue shimmer is pretty but subtle. It's a very unusual colour combination, but it's not the worst shade of polish I've ever worn.

Here are a couple of shots of me wearing it:

Untouched photo. (Above).

Photo which has had basic auto adjustments. The colours are accurate. (Above).

So, sadly, I wasn't impressed with my first Mac nail polish. It started out well, but ended in disaster. I am surprised that a nail polish which would usually retail for £11 chipped so quickly. I've used £1 drug store polishes which have been far superior, and I think I'll be sticking with my old faithful budget brands from now on. 

I am left wondering why Mac is so popular, because I've not been impressed with their powder eyeshadows, either. Sorry, Mac, I'm not sure that we're ever going to get along. It's not me, it's you.

What are your thoughts on Mac?