April Favourites

How can April already be over? So much has been going on for me this month and these products have helped me get through this month in their own way.

Cath Kidston Mug // This was a birthday present from my Sister-in-law, who obviously knows me well as I love both Cath Kidston designs and hot drinks. Apart from the beautiful floral design, I really love the size of this mug. It is not so small that I feel like I need another brew immediately after finishing the first, but not so large that I never finish it. Who do I think I am.. Goldilocks?

The *TeaShed Teabags // This also came as a bonus present for me along with my mug. I adore Earl Grey tea. I know a lot of people find the fragrant taste a little overpowering, but I really think it's one of my favourite types of tea. The packaging of this is lovely with, "Probably Definitely The Best Cup Of Tea" emblazoned on the side, which makes me smile every time I look at it. And, you know, I would actually have to agree. It really is perfect, especially when accompanied with a cheeky biscuit (or three).

Sweet Freedom // A few years ago I stopped taking sugar in my tea and changed to a sweetener. I found it helped with my sweet tooth, but helped me decrease my sugar intake. I know that there are many health concerns with regard to a regular usage of sweeteners so I have been looking out for another alternative that could become the new replacement. Well my friends, I think I have found it in the form of Sweet Freedom. In the bottle it looks like golden syrup, but it is actually made 100% from natural fruit extracts. It also has 25% fewer calories than sugar, which is always a good thing. It's in a squirty bottle so it is clean and simple to squirt into your tea, baking or cereal etc.

Papaya Body Butter // I picked this up in one of The Body Shop's many clearance sales. They also do many promotions on their website, so if you are a TBS fan then get yourself on there! I paid £5 for this and it was certainly money well spent. Having quite dry skin, I really benefit from a more nourishing body moisturiser. I have no problems in putting this on after my shower and getting dressed pretty much straight away. There is no stickiness and my skin drinks it up beautifully. It literally smells so summery and fruity that I can't stop smelling my arm on my way to work. Standard.

Hand Dream // I featured this hand cream in my Soap & Glory Haul and I have not been disappointed. I work in a cold environment at work, which makes my hands incredibly dry in between my fingers. This not only smells delicious, but soaks in quickly and doesn't leave my hands feeling greasy. That is my one pet hate. It is actually quite a large bottle so I've been keeping this at the side of my bed to put on when needed.

Palmer's Swivel Stick // This is one of my favourite lip balms ever. It is pretty huge and people do make fun of me at work when I pull it out of my bag. Most people think I'm putting Pritt Stick on my lips, well they probably wish I was with me being a little chatterbox. It is a cocoa butter based lip balm, which feels smooth when applied on the lips and really helps to nourish my lips when they are feeling sore. I do use it under lipsticks sometimes, but it can make things a little slippery if applied straight after. Give it 5 minutes and it will sink in nicely. Because of the size, it can be used for dry skin patches and elbows but mine never makes it past my lips.

Wax Lyrical Colony Candle // I was actually doing a very middle aged thing where myself and Chris went to the supermarket and popped into the adjoining Dobbies store. If you've not heard of Dobbies it is a bit like a garden centre crossed with The Range. I get lost in the homeware sections every time, much to Chris' annoyance. I was on the lookout for a new candle and spotted this amongst the Yankee Candles. I liked that the company is based in Cumbria and their products are made in the UK. I spent ages sniffing them all and finally chose Mandarin & Peach. It really does manage to throw it's scent around the room. It doesn't burn as evenly as more expensive candles, but it isn't terrible by any means. I have it on the table next to me in the living room and love getting the occasional whiff of fruit. Perfect for Spring.

Whiskas Dentabits // No, this is not my mid-afternoon snack after my daily cat nap. (geddit!) These are for Alfie the cat. If he could he would eat cat treats instead of his food. He may need to go to rehab for his addiction. What I've tried to do is meet him in the middle and get him cat treats which have additional benefits. These treats are quite knobbly in shape, which are supposed to help clean Alfie's teeth. Whether it works, I'm not sure, but he enjoys eating them anyway.

Pedometer // Now this is not anything crazy expensive, It was just a cheap bargain from EBay. I actually purchased 3, as myself and my friends at work wanted to see how many steps we were taking at work. I do a 5 hour shift and am averaging around 4000 steps. Not bad eh! It does resemble a plastic toy and has been prone to fly off my trousers when bending down, but for 99p, I'm really not going to complain.

So there we have it, these are my April favourites. What have you been loving this month?

All products featured were purchased by myself or were presents from my family.

Birthday Jewellery

Well hello there guys! Sorry about the gap in blog posts. The husband has now left the country and I have just been adjusting my routine accordingly. Well, Alfie the cat and my good self haven't changed things around too much, but I am finding myself going to bed a lot earlier, having more full blown conversations with Alfie and there's a lot more dancing around and singing at the top of my voice. Standard.

So anyway, let's take it back to April Fool's Day. My birthday! On a side note, how am I now 29 years old? I don't feel it but I'm sure this is how most people feel. Let's be honest here though, age is just a number and I am not at all scared at getting older.  I had booked the day off work so I managed to get breakfast in bed and was presented with my cards and presents. I didn't really ask for anything, as there's nothing that I desperately needed. I did get some lovely gift cards, pretty mugs, tea, socks etc.

Something that was different this year was that I actually got jewellery. This is completely out of the ordinary and I was actually really touched. The first present that I opened was from my brother-in-law and his girlfriend. This was the Lotus Bud Necklace from Tatty Devine. My brother-in-law's girlfriend actually works at Tatty Devine and she picked this out for me. The neon green and pink is perfect for the Spring and Summer. I think this necklace was actually from their SS2013 season, and unfortunately is no longer available on their site.

 

The next present I opened was from my parents. Now this ring is something I've had for probably 6 or 7 years. It was originally a holiday present from the parents, brought back from Tenerife. The ring is silver and has 3 stones that are made from local volcanic rocks. It was something I would wear every day on my middle finger and one day (two years ago) one of the stones came out. Very sad times *sobs*. My mum told me to hand it over and she promised to get it fixed. Fast forward two years and we both finally remembered that she still had it and now I have been reunited with said ring, YAY!

The final present I opened was from my husband Chris. This was a complete surprise. He had only gone and got me a Pandora bracelet! Wowsers!! He was feeling pretty smug as I fell in love with it instantly and proudly told me that he chose it himself (he may have rung his Sister for some guidance). This bracelet is part of their Essence collection. You buy the necklace by itself and then you can add Essence Charms to it. Each charm has a different meaning which I think helps to make it really personal. The charms that Chris chose all had specific meanings for us. Firstly Love was pretty self explanatory! Secondly Trust was to help me remember to trust that he will be safe and fine whilst he is away. Strictly no worrying allowed! Finally Positivity was to remind me to keep my sunny disposition whilst he was away, instead of being sad and morose. My Mother-in-law also got me one last Essence Charm which was Wellness. Again, Chris helped to choose this whilst she was on the phone but this was mainly based on how ornate it looked, but she obviously wants me to stay well!

Quick disclaimer - I am in no way suggesting you rush out to buy these or am trying to show off. I just thought you would like to see some pretty pieces of jewellery that mean so much and are now all close to my heart.

Soap & Glory Haul

                         

Oh hi there! I hope you have all had a brilliant week. I know I have. I've had that buzz of excitement that you get when it is a couple of weeks until your birthday. I don't care that I will be turning 29, I absolutely love my birthday. Cake, a nice meal out, presents, spending time with loved ones, did I mention cake? Well, it's now just over a week to go...so... sorry husband, it's only going to get worse!

Anyway I best get onto the haul. So, I may have popped into Boots to do a little "3 for 2" shopping. I did buy some make up too, but I thought I would just focus on the loveliness that is Soap & Glory. I'm not sure I have ever purchased any S & G product that I have not adored. I love the sweet smelling fragrances, not to mention the feminine and retro packaging that all of their products seem to encompass. Righteo, onto the haul...

Clean, Girls Body Wash // This is a 500ml sized bottle that includes a pump dispenser, which is so handy when you are in the shower and have a "wet hands and an awkward opening bottle lid" situation going on. I chose this one as it says it is a creamy, skin softening body wash. I have quite sensitive skin on my arms, which are prone to itchy and dry patches. These types of body washes are what I will typically opt for, so as not to exacerbate the problem. Scent wise, this contains natural vanilla, orchid and fruit extracts. If you are a fan of the Mist You Madly body mist then this has the same fragrance.

Hand Dream Super Cream // I suffer from dry skin in between my fingers and across my knuckles, mainly from working in a cold environment. In the winter they can become really sore and chapped, so I thought I would give this a go. It claims on the bottle to have a fast absorbing formula, which is what everyone wants... who likes greasy hands? Not me! The scent seems similar to Hand Food containing grapeseed, macademia and shea butter, YUM!

Heel Genius // Now I'm not going to go into too much detail, but coming into Spring we all want soft and pretty feet. Confession time... I have maybe neglected them a little bit over the Winter months. Sorry feet. Seeing a foot mask on the shelves seemed to be everything I needed to bring my feet back to normality. YAY! A layer of Heel Genius massaged into the feet in the evening followed by some cotton socks and TA-DAH, wake up to soft feet.. sounds perfect! This contains a host of ingredients such as glycerin, allantoin, macademia, bilberry and fruit acid smoothers. Take it from me, it smells great!

Sugar Crush Body Wash // The only way to describe the sugar crush scent is a mojito in a body wash disguise. It is another 500ml size bottle with the ingenious dispensing pump. Sweet limes and lemons combined with vanilla musk and coconut oil make it so invigorating. For me this is an ideal morning shower scent. Really wakes me up. It isn't as nourishing on my arms as other body washes, but I am in love with this scent.

The Breakfast Scrub // For the past few months I did get out of the habit of using a body scrub. Getting myself back onto the body scrub wagon was easy when I had a sniff of this one. It has a gorgeous maple syrup scent. The scrub contains oats, shea butter and sugar and after having used it a few times on my damp skin, it really works a treat.

So that's my S & G haul. Until the next trip to Boots....

Are there any S & G products you think I should try? Let me know in the comments, as I'm always willing to be enabled!

50 Random Facts About Me

Hi Guys, I hope you had a spiffing weekend. Mine wasn't too bad, thanks for asking! Saturday started with work, but it went quickly enough which meant I could get home quickly to see the husband! He only had a few hours released from his pre-deployment training, which soon whizzed by. The rest of the weekend was spent being lazy, mainly watching Modern Family. If you haven't watched this, then you need to. Seriously, the funniest sitcom I've seen in a long time.

Anyway, I digress, today I thought I'd do the 50 Random Things About Me Tag that I've mainly seen people do on You Tube. I thought it was a more fun way of you guys getting to know the weird and wonderful things that make up me. So here goes.....

1. I was born in Nottingham but grew up in Boston, Lincolnshire from the age of 3.
2. I got married last year to the love of my life, Chris on Saturday 14th September.
3. I have a cat called Alfie, who will be 2 this July, and I'm completely obsessed with the ginger kitty. Like, really obsessed. Seriously! Ask my friends!!
4. I will put onion in most main dishes that I cook, but I wont eat raw onion. Bleurgh!
5. I went to Liverpool John Moores University and got myself a 2:1 Honours degree in Childhood and Adolescence Studies.
6. My favourite colour is green.
7. I've never dyed my hair, ever!
8. I love baking cakes and biscuits and force feeding them to Chris, impatiently waiting for him to tell me how delicious they are.
9. I watch a lot of TV. I do have Sky, so I record my favourite programmes (Criminal Minds, The Walking Dead and Emmerdale to name a few) and fast forward through the adverts.
10. I will pretty much order the same things when we have a Chinese or Indian. (Beef in Black Bean Sauce and Chicken Bhuna... come to Mama.)
11. I take a size 5 shoe.
12. I support Liverpool FC and Boston United. If I didn't, I'm not sure Chris would have married me.
13. I love countryside walks and bird watching.
14. I am a member of the RSPB and The National Trust.
15. I really struggle to eat a normal portion of rice or pasta... they are so filling!
16. If I could live in Pyjamas, I would.
17. I spent my Honeymoon in Kephalonia. I want to go back there already.
18. I have 2 older siblings. Rachael is 4 years older than me and Simon is 7 years older.
19. I am an Auntie to 2 gorgeous nieces and 1 handsome nephew.
20. My favourite pizza toppings are chicken, sweetcorn, mushrooms and olives.
21. I'm 5ft 4in (and a half, it makes all the difference!).
22. I rarely wear heels these days, unless you count a chunky boot heel.
23. I'm an April Fool! Thanks mum, you couldn't have held me in a day longer?
24. I only had 1 Ken Doll as a child, so I would cut the hair off one of my Barbies and dress it in boyish clothing and give it a boys name.
25. Because I work with fresh food, I can't wear nail polish on my fingers, so I just do my toes.
26. I currently live in Norfolk, but Chris is in the RAF, so we could be posted elsewhere every 3 years. (Fingers crossed for Cyprus!)
27. I love Galaxy chocolate with a huge passion.
28. I absolutely love to get lost in a book. Mainly fiction and I love Jane Austen novels.
29. I was born in 1985.
30. Up until the age of 25, I had only really played on hand-held games consoles like GameBoy and DS Lite. XBOX consoles and Playstation consoles scared me as they looked too complex.
31. I really like online shopping as going out to shop for fashion annoys me with all the queues and they NEVER have my size.
32. I am addicted to mangoes. (mmmmm my mouth is watering)
33. I have quite small sized hands. My niece now has bigger hands than me. Tch.
34. I've had a crush on Paul Rudd since I first ever watched the film Clueless.
35. I've got my driving licence, but haven't driven since I passed. I passed 10 years ago.
36. I am a tea and coffee lover, but if I had to pick one, it's got to be tea.
37. In the summer I get freckles across my nose and on my cheeks. On my arms, however, my freckles look like tiny red pin-pricks. You can only see them if my arm is literally 2 inches from your face and yes I do find them to be very odd.
38. I still get ridiculously excited about my Birthday, Christmas and Easter.
39. I am very clumsy. My co-ordination is really bad, so much so, that I frequently trip over my own foot whilst walking.
40. I am rubbish at remembering birthdays! If it's not on the calendar, it will be a belated card.
41. I have an unhealthy addiction to watching 24 and seeing Jack Bauer save the world. His acting may be hilarious but he is amazing all the same!
42. I am not the best of singers, yet I still belt out the songs all day at work, in the shower and in the car. (The shower is best for acoustics)
43. I bruise like a peach. This is linked to Fact 39, but I will have at least 2 or 3 bruises on my body each week.
44. I love candles as they are pretty and smell nice but I always feel a bit sad when lighting one, as I know it will be all gone in the near future.
45. My Iphone photo album is mainly filled with photos of Alfie the cat. He's very photogenic!
46. Chris proposed to me on the beach at RSPB Titchwell Marsh. It was unexpected and lovely and I'll never forget it.
47. If I'm at home I always have slippers on. I am always cold, so these are a necessity.
48. I am the washer up-er in our household. Chris dries up.
49. I don't drink much alcohol these days but in the summer I love a fruit cider and in the winter I love mulled wine.
50. I can nap anywhere and at anytime. The sofa, plane and car are typical places that you'll find me napping.

So that's it! I hope you enjoyed this blog post and please comment below if you want to add your own facts or let me know that I'm not as weird as I sometimes feel I am.

Catch Up: Sickness, Movies and Burgers.

Hi guys, now I owe you a huge, mahoosive, ginormous apology. I have been a bit M.I.A for the past month. After having a brilliant Valentines day, I managed to get myself a stonking cold. Not a sniffle, but the one where you feel like it is the flu, that your life is ending as you have known it, that you feel like you need a nose transplant. You get the picture.

After I had recovered, the husband managed to get some a few days on leave from his pre deployment training so we made the most of it. Well if making the most of it involves me finishing work at 11am, getting into my baggy sobbing out gear and us watching 24 and drinking endless cups of tea, then that's what we did. Chris will be away for probably around six months, so when he gets time to come home he has my undivided attention.

We did manage to leave the house on my day off to drive to the cinema. Living in a tiny town means you have to travel to get to any decent shops or amenities, the cinema being one of them. We normally opt for the Odeon in Norwich, as there are plenty of restaurants for us to grab a bite to eat. I really wanted to embrace my inner child and go watch The Lego Movie 3D. Lego was one of my favourite things to play with when I was younger and I wouldn't even mind playing with some now! Well the film was brilliant, a great storyline with plenty of laughs for both children and grown ups. We are both Will Ferrell fans so if you are too then you probably will enjoy it as much as we did. My favourite characters had to be the 80's spaceman as we had that character when we were young, and of course Unikitty. 

Image sourced from johnlewis.com, priced £7.99

I found this key light on the John Lewis website, which technically I don't really need, but it's so adorable that I NEED it. Fingers crossed I'll get it for my birthday. We actually headed to TGI Fridays prior to the film for a bite to eat. We both got burgers. It had to be done. Mine was the Swiss Dip which was covered with caramelised onions and Swiss cheese. I upgraded my fries to sweet potato ones as I am literally obsessed. It also came with a teeny, tiny jug of gravy for dipping. I was all over this, but I suppose it wouldn't be to everyone's taste.

Sorry about the cheesy photo (geddit!) I was sending it to my friend and I can't send a serious photo to her. Also, the awful camera angle I can blame on Chris! So all in all, our day out was brilliant.

Apart from working I have nothing else to really catch you up on. I had a few blog posts lined up for that period, but I feel the moment has passed. Never mind, onwards and upwards, as the saying goes. 

I'm thinking of doing a few "Tags" for you all to get to know a little more about me. I also need to do a haul post, which I may split up into a few parts. 

What have you been doing recently? Are there any films you think I should go see?

#100HAPPYDAYS Challenge

[Source]

Last weekend, one of my friends shared a link to the #100HAPPYDAYS challenge, via Facebook. I had never heard of this before, and I was most definitely intrigued, so I clicked on the link.

The challenge sounds simple enough... Every day, for 100 days, you need to submit a photo of what has made you happy that day. It can literally be anything. A photo of a pet, family member, food, a lovely view .. you get the idea! What I find surprising is that 71% of people fail to complete this challenge, due to lack of time. This seems slightly strange to me when a majority of my friends are sharing a photo on various social networking sites throughout the day.

Anyway, on the website there is a simple form to fill in which took me all of one minute to complete, and this is where you choose which platform you are going to use to submit your daily photo. The choices are Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr, or via Email if you want to be completely private. You then simply include the hashtag #100HAPPYDAYS and share your daily photo.

I would like to say that I'm not the type of person who spends my days moping around and I generally try to see the glass half full, although I'm fully aware that I can have my moments of petulance, self pity and complaining. (in fact, my husband could probably pinpoint the exact time of the month on the calendar when these moments flare up!)

So, the main reason that I really decided to take this challenge on was when we found out the date of my husband's next tour of duty. Chris is in the RAF and will be sent to Afghanistan for the third time and spend 6 months there. The last time he was away on tour was in 2011. I was living with flatmates at the time and working full-time, which definitely helped fill the void, but it was a lot harder in the evenings and when I had days off as this was when the loneliness would set in and I would feel a bit like Eeyore... gloomy for the sake of being gloomy!

Since then, we have been posted to Norfolk, got married and now live together in Norfolk. The big difference is that I know what to expect this time around and have a great set of friends, not to forget my biggest rock of all... Alfie the cat. Combined with this challenge, which will finish when the husband has already gone away, I hope this will keep me in a positive frame of mind and remember to appreciate the simple things in life that really make a difference to my day. (truthfully... mainly food and Alfie!)

Now, the website does mention that you can get a book of your 100 photos if you complete the challenge, but I have no idea how this works or if it costs anything. Perhaps I will find out WHEN I complete the 100 days. If I do I will let you know in the comments below.

If you feel up to the challenge then head over to the website and sign up. If you do, then feel free to leave a comment below with a link to your platform you are using, I'd love to see what makes you happy! If you want to check out my #100HAPPYDAYS challenge then you can follow me on Instagram.

Happy Snapping Guys!!!

Magnitone Pulsar Cleansing System: 7 Day Review

This week I am currently reviewing the Magnitone Pulsar cleansing system. Here. A couple of weeks ago I volunteered to test and review the Magnitone Pulsar in conjunction with Jane from British Beauty Blogger. The terms were to use it each morning and evening for 7 days and to give honest feedback.

This had come at the perfect time, as I'd been thinking of investing in something similar to the Clarisonic, to help sort out my pesky oily/combination skin, but on a cheaper budget. I had been eyeing up the Boots No7 Cleansing Brush (here) at £24.95 and the Olay Regenerist 3 Point Super Cleansing System (here) at £26.66. Without this opportunity, Magnitone's hefty price tag of RRP £129.99 would have meant saving my pennies for quite a few months!

A week later, I then got a lovely little parcel from Magnitone, containing the Pulsar Cleansing System for me to test out. This is quite an in-depth review, so make yourself a cuppa and get yourself comfy...

The Benefits

The Magnitone Pulsar uses " Active Electromagnetic Technology, to effectively cleanse, refresh and stimulate your skin", helping to "achieve visibly softer, smoother and clearer looking skin in just 7 days".

It provides the user with 4 different cleansing modes which benefit your face and body in different ways. Combined with over 15, 000 rotational oscillations per minute it ensures that "skin all over the body receives a deeper exfoliation". 

Cleansing Modes

Magnitone have given the user a choice of four different cleansing modes:

Sensitive - Ideal for people with sensitive skin, it uses a more gentle action which should still energise the face and body but not upset delicate or irritated skin.

PulseLift Massage - This is ideal for people whose skin is starting to show signs of ageing. It uses a faster and more of a pulsed massage motion that should stimulate skin and improve the blood circulation.

Exfoliate - This is to be used on the body e.g. legs and arms, to aid in the removal of stubborn dry and dead skin cells. The Body Cleanse Brush Head should be used on this mode.

Deep Clean - this mode should help improve results in comparison to your typical cleansing routine. When used along with your normal skincare routine it should help to "achieve softer, tighter and more purified skin whilst also helping to diminish the appearance of enlarged pores and wrinkles".

One of the more interesting claims from Magnitone is that if used regularly, the Magnitone Pulsar "will help to noticeably increase blood circulation, which can provide skin cells with oxygen and vital nutrients for skin metabolism and natural collagen turnover". (Wow! Is there anything this cannot do?!)

In The Box

The Magnitone Pulsar Cleansing System consists of the cleansing brush itself, a charging cradle (mains adaptor supplied), a warranty card, the instruction manual and two types of brush heads. The first brush head is the one that I think most people would mainly use. This is the Active Clean Brush Head. This is what you would mainly use for cleansing your face on a daily basis. In comparison to the Body Cleanse Brush Head, I found it to be softer and the bristles to be more close-set, with a smaller surface area.

The second brush head that was included was the Body Cleanse Brush Head. The larger surface area and wider-set bristles definitely made it ideal for whizzing around my body quickly and effectively.

The Magnitone Pulsar itself is waterproof and the clever people at Magnitone designed it with a rubberised texture. This gives more grip, which is handy if you plan to use in the shower or bath. 

For people who have sensitive skin, fear not! A Sensitive Brush Head can be purchased separately (here). The lovely people at Magnitone sent me the sensitive brush heads as well, but as of yet I have not needed to use these.

How To Use

Facial Cleansing

• Rinse skin with warm water.
• Wet brush head with warm water.
• Apply your cleanser to your skin or active clean brush head.
• Turn the brush on and use the mode selector button to choose your desired setting.
• Without applying any pressure, move the brush in a slow gentle circular motion over your forehead and centre of eyebrows for 20 seconds.
• Repeat this for 10 seconds on each cheek moving from ear to lip and around the neck and ear area.
• Repeat this for 20 seconds on nose, chin and around the mouth.

Body Cleansing

• Change the brush head to the body cleanse brush head.
• Using the same method as before, rinse lower or upper legs or arms with water and lather up.
• Turn the brush onto desired setting.
• Using the same technique, use for 20 seconds on each area.
• If using on dried or harder patches of skin (e.g. knees and elbows), select the Exfoliate mode and use the same technique for 30 seconds on each area.

Hair Removal

• Change the brush head back to the active clean brush head.
• Rinse armpits or bikini line with warm water and lather up.
• Turn the brush onto Sensitive or Deep Clean mode and using the same technique, use for 15 seconds under each armpit and 10 seconds on bikini lines.

Product Maintenance

After using, the brush head needs to be removed from the Magnitone Pulsar and rinsed with warm water. This must be left to dry before replacing the brush head protection cap.

It takes 24 hours for the Pulsar to fully charge, but you can do a quick charge for 75 minutes.

The brush heads should be replaced every 3 months. This is to prevent any skin abrasion which could happen when the bristles have started to splay.

My 7 Day Experience

The first thing I did when I received the Pulsar was open the box and turn it on.... It didn't switch on. It is supposed to come part charged so you can start using straight away. This didn't bother me in the slightest, as I wasn't going to start using it until the next day anyway.

When charging, don't forget to place the Pulsar into it's holder with the brush head side facing (backwards)away from you. It is my automatic response to put the Pulsar into it's holder similar to an electric toothbrush, with the bristles facing (forwards) towards you. By all means do that, if you want to use the charging holder to display your Pulsar when not in use, but you won't get very far if you plug it in to charge!

The next thing I did was to read the leaflet and instructions. Both of these were informative and concise. Once you've got your head around which button is for which mode and how long to use on each area of your face or body, then you can pretty much get started.

I use Liz Earle Cleanse & Polish lotion (here) for cleansing everyday, so I stuck to this, replacing the muslin cloth with the Pulsar. I normally cleanse in my sink, but I decided it may be easier for me to use this in the shower. The main reason for this was simply because it would be easier to clean up in the shower if there was a lot of splatter. Using the Pulsar in the shower was brilliant and didn't slip out of my wet hand at all. This didn't take any longer than my normal cleansing routine, if anything it was quicker.

In the evenings, I cleanse before brushing my teeth, so I carried on in the same way. This time, I was using the Pulsar at the sink but found there to be no real splatter. This may depend on what cleanser you use but with a cream cleanser, and for the amount I use, there is never a vast quantity of foam to actually splatter. I did find that after rinsing the brush head and switching on to start my cleanse, the water that comes out of the brush head drips down my forehead and into my eyes. This is something that I would expect to happen, so I did have the sense to close my eyes!

It does state that in the first few days of use, your skin may purge. Mine certainly brought underlying imperfections to the surface, but I haven't noticed any further spots appear in the 6th and 7th day of testing. I have quite oily skin in my t-zone and this is where I quite often get the dreaded blackheads making an appearance. Since using the Pulsar I haven't noticed any new blackheads popping up on my chin or forehead.

Using the Body Cleanse Brush Head was brilliant. I suffer from dry patches of skin on my upper arms and have been prescribed cream from my Doctor for it in the past. I do love using body scrubs, my torso and legs love them, but my arms certainly do not. The exfoliating particles are way too abrasive for my arms and end up making them red and sore. Using the Pulsar, with my current shower gel (NSpa coconut), on the Exfoliate mode was so soft on my arms that I actually thought it wasn't doing anything. How wrong I was! After putting on my body butter (S&G Sugar Crush) my arms felt smoother and less inflamed, in comparison to how they feel after using a body scrub. My husband will also like the fact that there is less mess left in the bottom of the shower compared to the aftermath of me using a body scrub. *Looks sheepish*.  I've only used the Pulsar on my body twice, so far, but I'll be happy if I still get a continuation of these results.

I didn't use the Pulsar on my armpits but I did use it on the edges of my bikini line. I don't frequently get razor rash on my skin or ingrown hairs in this particular area, but there have been occasions when I have. When using the Pulsar in this area it didn't feel abrasive and so far I've not had a rash or any ingrown hairs.

End Results

The easiest way for me to see how effective my 7 day challenge was, will be to compare my results to the 10 amazing benefits they claim the Magnitone Pulsar can show after 7 days of use...

1. More effective deep cleansing and removal of impurities.I feel this has given me a deeper cleanse, and my purge feels like evidence to the removal of impurities.
2. Can help increase collagen in skin.I'm not really sure if this has increased collagen or how I would notice a definite increase.
3. Softer, smoother and clearer looking skin tone.My skin does feel a lot softer and is beginning to look clearer after my purge. My husband even commented on the softness!
4. Firmer, tighter feeling skin texture.I'm only 28 and have pretty good skin that isn't saggy so this doesn't really apply to me.
5. Can help diminish the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles.Again, not really applicable as I'm lucky to have not really got any wrinkles yet.
6. Noticeable increase in blood circulation to the skin.This is hard to know for sure, but my skin feels invigorated after cleansing, and I look slightly flushed after cleansing, which could be to do with blood circulation, but I don't know for certain.
7. Helps reduce appearance of visible pores.I didn't have exceptionally large pores to begin with, and I haven't noticed a change in this really.
8. Gentle exfoliation of dry skin for silkier arms and legs.I definitely found the Pulsar to exfoliate in a less abrasive manner, which is definitely helping the dry skin on my arms.
9. Helps reduce razor rash and irritation after hair removal.So far, I've had no rash or imperfections appear, so fingers crossed this is working.
10. Enhanced moisture and nutrient absorption of your regular skin products.I can't say for definite if it's because of the Pulsar, or if my face is just dehydrated at the moment from the season and central heating, but my skin is really drinking in my serum and moisturiser.

Although I can't say I saw a difference in all of the 10 benefits, I think I will definitely continue to use the Pulsar on a daily basis. I still need to remove my eye make up separately and feel better using a micellar water (here) to remove a majority of my make up before I use the Pulsar. I think I will find myself using it every evening, and using my muslin cloth in the morning. This is mainly so I can get rid of any possible remnants of eye make up in the quickest way. I wouldn't say it will solve everybody's skin problems nor can it be used as a complete cleansing system for the face. What I can say is that it has really been a godsend for softening and clearing my skin on both my face and body. 

Have you used the Magnitone Pulsar? Have you felt the benefits of using a facial cleansing brush? I'd love to hear your opinions!

All products mentioned in this blog were purchased by myself apart from the Magnitone Pulsar which was sent to me for review.

Make Up Storage

                        

A couple of years ago I purchased a second hand white dressing table from eBay. It was everything I was looking for in a dressing table... It was not too deep (small bedroom = lack of space), it had the shabby chic style I had lusted over in so many magazines, not to mention two extra drawers to over fill with cosmetics and all manner of things that I can never seem to throw away. (is that just me?)

Fast forward 2 years later and I realise that having my make up rolling around everywhere each time I opened those darned drawers was becoming tiresome, to say the least! "Enough is enough", I told my cat, who was sat on my bed at the time. He glanced over at me with a look of boredom. On a side note, I'm not sure he is bothered in the slightest about my drawer nightmare, he only really cares about being fed, chasing cats and getting treats. Some would say that is a selfish way to live your cat life. So, the search for a new way of storing my main make up was started in earnest. 

During one of my days of catching up on a bit of beauty blog reading, for research of course, I saw the Muji stacking wide drawers time and time again. They seemed the ideal solution. Not only could they make my make up so much more visibly appealing, but I could add more drawers as my make up collection increased. After eyeing up a 10% off code (MUJIBEAUTY - valid until 13th February) on Lily Pebbles' blog I decided this was the perfect time to get me a Muji fix. I opted for the two sets of the Acrylic 2 Drawers Wide and one Acrylic 2 Drawers Wide with Flip Top Lid. They arrived 4 or 5 days later and were really well packaged. Seriously, I mean really, really well! They must have used a whole roll of bubble wrap on my single delivery. 

Oh, I may have accidentally ordered their log fire candle at the same time. This wasn't planned, but after reading VDM's comments on it being a dupe for Diptyque's Feu de Bois, and with it being a mere £3.50, I just couldn't resist. I figured my husband Chris would probably not mind another candle purchase, what with it being a much more masculine smell compared to my usual candle scents.

After the friendly delivery driver handed me my parcel, I raced upstairs (OK, I first spent 20 minutes popping the bubble wrap) and it was Operation Clear Out Messy Drawers. I actually ended up throwing out quite a lot of make up. I figured if I couldn't remember when I had actually bought it, and if it was looking a bit BLEUGH then it was probably time to say goodbye. 

Half an hour later I then had a work of modern art on my chest of drawers and two empty dressing table drawers. WINNER! By the way, apologies for the photo quality.. My camera battery died so I used my iPhone. So it's probably about time that I go and buy more stuff to put in them right? I can sense a haul blog post appearing in the near future. How do you store your make up?

My own money was used to purchase these products in this blog post.

Test blog

<a href="http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/11614683/?claim=3q4cdby8wsj">Follow my blog with Bloglovin</a>