Anastasia Beverly Hills Dipbrow Pomade

before, after

I used a powder to fill in my brows for years, and was happy with the results. Then I kept hearing about the Anastasia Beverly Hills Dipbrow Pomade, which was unlike anything on the highstreet, and how amazing it was. I held off buying it for months because I couldn't decide on a shade, but finally settled on Soft Brown, a medium brown with subtle warm tones.

It's difficult to draw on the skin with a powder, so you can really only fill in places where there's already hair. The Dipbrow Pomade, on the other hand, allows you to create a new shape, if you wish. I also like that there's no fallout, which was one problem I had with powder. The formula is a lot more pigmented than other eyebrow products, so it was difficult to get used to at first, but I know how light of a hand I need to use now. I've also found starting in the middle of the brow and blending towards the edges a better way to create a natural look, which is what I aim for. Once set, it lasts all day, but then I've never had a problem with my eyebrows lasting anyway.

For reference, I've placed the Illasmasqua Precision Brow Gel in Strike next to Soft Brown. From swatches, Strike is similar to Anastasia's shade Medium, so you can see how much of a difference there is. I'd like to apologise for the quality of the last photos, and say that everything was slightly darker in real life. I was also going for a natural look when they were taken to show you that you can achieve this with the Dipbrow Pomade, but I sometimes wear them a little darker. 

At £15, it can't be labelled as affordable, but I don't regret buying it at all. The pot is going to last an absolute age. I bought mine from Beauty Bay because they offer free delivery on orders over £10, but it's also available at Cult Beauty and Net-a-Porter.

Nip + Fab Haul

Ever since trying, and being impressed with, the Nip + Fab Glycolic Instant Fix Mask, I've wanted to try more from the brand. I wanted to buy the Glycolic Fix Pads a couple months back, but just missed the half price offer and didn't want to pay full price. They're now back on offer in Boots, so thought it was a good time to dip my toe into the Nip + Fab water.

I bought the Glycolic Fix Pads (£6.49 down from £12.99) before the other products, and have been using them for about a week and a half now. I didn't know where their place would be in my routine, but I've been using them after I shower, and this seems to be working well. I really like them, and will be reviewing soon.

Because the other Glycolic Fix products work well for me, I wanted to try the Serum (£7.47 down from £14.95). I've yet to use it, but will be doing so from tonight.

The Dragon's Blood Fix Plumping Serum (£9.97 down from £19.95) is another I've read many positive reviews on. I used it last night, it wasn't greasy in the slightest, and it absorbed quickly. I thought it'd be more moisturising than it was, but it did seem to make my skin feel more plump.

The Dragon's Blood Fix Plumping Mask (£7.47 down from £14.95) is another I haven't used yet, but am looking forward to giving it a go. I'm not expecting it to be as good as the Origins Drink Up Intensive Overnight Mask, but we'll see.

Which Nip + Fab products would you recommend?

Blog Sale

• UK only
• P&P is £3
• Leave me a comment with the items you would like, I'll tell you if they're still available and the total, and you can send the money through PayPal's friends and family option to avoid any fees. My PayPal email address is Louise.Wilton@hotmail.com. You can also email (Louise.Wilton@hotmail.com) and tweet (@FreckledElle) me.
• I bought these items with my own money. I actually have my own versions of most of these and bought doubles for presents, but have ended up with a wardrobe full and not enough people to give them to!

Zoeva 227 Luxe Soft Definer SOLD and 231 Luxe Petit Crease Brushes from the Rose Golden Collection. Brand new (I don't wear eyeshadow, so thought I'd sell them on to someone who'll use them!). £6 each.

EOS Sweet Mint Lip Balm. Brand new. £3. SOLD

Pacifica Island Vanilla Lip Balm and Body Butter. Brand new. £3 for both.

No7 Instant Radiance Highlighter. Brand new. £4. SOLD

Bourjois Volume 1 Seconde Mascara in Black. Brand new. £4. SOLD

Soap & Glory Sexy Mother Pucker Gloss Stick in Fuchsia Ristic. Brand new. £4.

(RRP £18 each)

Pacifica Indian Coconut Nectar Gift Set. Brand new. £5.

Pacifica Island Vanilla Gift Set. Brand new. £5.

Pacifica Tuscan Blood Orange Gift Set. Brand new. £5.

The Body Shop Frosted Cranberry Shower Gel 250ml, Body Butter 50ml, and Body Polish 75ml. Brand new. £6.

The Body Shop Mango Hand Cream and Lip Butter Gift Set. Brand new. £4.

Ciate Big Beauty Bus Gift Set. Brand new. £5.

No7  Set for Summer Gift Set. Brand new. £3.

Busy Bee Candles Soy Wax Tart Melts. Brand new. £6 for the lot (I paid £11.25).

Burberry Body Tender 85ml. Only sprayed a couple times. £20 (RRP £62). I'll buy plenty of bubble wrap for this one! SOLD

New Look Socks. £2 for all three pairs. SOLD

Marshmallow Blends Wax Melt Haul

A week after placing my first order with Marshmallow Blends (haul and review here), I placed another consisting of 10 ParaSoy Melts, which are £1.50 each. Because I spent over £10, Nicoletta threw in a Mystery Melt. I don't think she's doing this offer now, but it's worth joining her Facebook pages (here and here) to keep up to date.

I was impressed by how naural and long lasting my other ones were, so when I saw a load of new scents on the website, I had to buy some more. I decided on:

Strawberry Seduce - Sweet strawberry/watermelon

Blood Orange - Straight up orange, not artificial in the slightest, which I was surprised about. I thought it'd smell darker than it does because of the 'blood' factor, but it's just a sunny orange.

Lemon Washer Woman - Lemony, clean, almost like Fairy.

Cucumber & Melon - Smells exactly like cucumber and melon. Very fresh and natural.

Mystery Melt - The Mystery Melt I received smells clean, like washing softener.

Blackberry Jam - I had to buy another one of these. Smells like berry sweets.

Snowy F - This is sweet, and similar to the likes of Lush's Rockstar, Godmother, and Comforter products.

Sugar Plum Fairy - A Marshmallow Blends exclusive. This smells like Drumstick lollies with a sprinkle of cinnamon. I'd personally prefer it without the warmth, but it's still an incredible scent.

Rhubarb & Custard - Smells like the hard boiled sweets - Delicious.

Pink Lemonade - Almost smells like sweet grapefruit. Very fresh and uplifting.

Creamy Coconut - Vanilla and coconut. 

I wasn't expecting them to smell as authentic as they do. I was expecting some of them to have that artificially sweetness behind them (especially Blood Orange and Cucumber & Melon), but they don't. My first Blackberry Jam one is almost done now, after 10/11 hours, so I'm very impressed. I'm a Yankee Candle Wax Tart fan, and after trying another small brand's offerings and being disappointed, I wasn't expecting to like these as much as I do. I weighed each of them, and most of them were 30g or over. I had one at 28g, and the biggest at 36g. Yankee Candle's offerings are 22g, so that gives you an idea of how big they are!

If you've tried any of Marshmallow Blends' wax melts, let me know your favourite scents.

Lifestyle Favourites

I've done many favourites posts over the years, but don't recall ever doing a lifestyle one before. I'm looking forward to talking about products which aren't beauty related!

I love plants, and up until last week, my windowsill was filled with all kinds (mostly cacti) in brightly coloured pots. I fancied a more minimal, clean look, though, so started looking out for some succulents. The garden centres I went to were a let down, not having many to offer, and the ones available being quite expensive. I then went to Wilkinson, and to my delight, saw a shelf filled with assorted succulents for £2 each. £2! I bought four, including the two above. I was going to show you them in the copper pots I ordered off eBay, but the seller messed up and I won't be getting those until the end of the month.

I also bought the Life's a Peach handled mason jar from Wilkinson for £2, along with the glass jug for £1.25. It's only 1L, but that's still about four glasses worth, so I can't complain for the price. I bought it because I've been enjoying iced tea recently, which leads me on to my next favourites.

The Lidl Knightsbridge Raspberry & Peach Tea is the one I've been liking the most. I think it's 89p for 40 tea bags, and I like it more than my Twinings ones. To bring the iced into iced tea, I've been loving my Primark re-usable ice cubes. They're in the shapes of raspberries, strawberries, lemons/limes, and another fruit (possibly apples or peaches). They keep your drink cool without watering it down, and they were only £1. I also have some old ones from Poundland, but these are prettier.

I used to love Pringles, but not so much in recent years. I'd heard people talking about the new Tortilla Chips range, though, so thought I'd try the Sour Cream ones. All I can say is, they're addictive. I ate two tubes over the course of a few days, and that was me being restrained. I'm going to need to stock up while they're on offer.

I've had my Yankee Candle Electric Tart Warmer for a while now, but it's still one of my favourite things. I'm not allowed to have naked flames in the house, but love home fragrance products, so this is the perfect alternative. I'm currently melting Marshmallow Blends' Blackberry Jam, which is delicious.

I recently upgraded my phone, which seems to eat at the battery life a lot quicker than my old one. I asked on Twitter which portable chargers were the best, and people replied with various ones from the brand Anker. I decided to go with the Astro E1 5200mAh for £9.99 on Amazon (now £11.99). Although it only has enough power to charge a phone two full times, that's all I need, and it's compact. So far, I've managed to charge my phone 50-100%, 40-100%, and 30-100%, with a bar of power still left. I'm hoping it continues to be this effective, but if it isn't, I'll update you.

I used to use a Ped Egg for the hard skin on my feet, but no longer like it because it's so harsh. It basically grates your foot, and if you catch some soft skin, you'll know about it. The Micro Pedi was on offer at Lloyd's, and my sister had discount on top, so I couldn't refuse. I've been really impressed so far. It's effective, yet gentle. I've heard that the files don't last too long, so I bought a pack of four generic ones from eBay for around £10, and they've been working a treat.

My Kindle Paperwhite is another product I've had since the start of the year, but I really do love it. More so recently, where I've been reading at lunch and before bed every day. I've been particularly enjoying the Belle series by Lesley Pearse, so think I'm going to download some of her other books.

I'd love to know your current lifestyle favourites - it'll make a refreshing change! 

Recently Purchased | Zoeva, Anastasia Beverly Hills, Stila, Milani, L'Oreal

There's a few new brands for me in this haul, which is exciting!

I'd been looking at the Anastasia Beverly Hills Dipbrow Pomade for months because there isn't anything like it on the highstreet. I couldn't decide on a shade, though. Most are them either looked too dark, or too red. I have auburn hair and medium brown eyebrows, so while I can get away with warmer toned eyebrow products, the shade Auburn looked too warm. After looking at countless swatches and reading, what feels like, every review there is on the product, I decided on Soft Brown, which is a light-medium, slightly warm brown. Thankfully, it's a perfect match. I'll go more into how I'm finding it and the technique I'm using when I review it in the next couple of weeks. I bought this from Beauty Bay for £15, by the way.

I then placed a second order with Beauty Bay for the Zoeva products, which I'm so excited about! I've been lusting over the Rose Golden and Rose Golden Vol. 2 Luxury Brush Sets, but every time I go to buy them, I remember that I only want them because they look pretty. The original, black sets never tempted me, so I shouldn't splash the cash now just because of the beautiful rose gold detailing and nude handles... we'll see! I started looking at what else the brand has to offer, and came across the Cream Eye Liner in After Hours for £6.95. I haven't been brave enough to dip my brush into the untouched product yet, but the shade looks absolutely beautiful. The rich teal shade will be a nice alternative to black, and will compliment my brown eyes and auburn hair.

The only eyeliner brush I get on with is the one which comes with the Maybelline gel liner, so wanted to try another. Zoeva has a few different eyeliner brushes, but I decided on the 312 Detail Liner (£5.95) because of how precise it is. I also wanted to try the 322 Brow Line (£5.95) because it's different to my stand ELF Studio Small Angled ones, and I think it'll work better for me. Both brushes came in individual pouches, which seriously impressed me. They feel high end, but they were so affordable.

I've been wanting to try a Stila Convertible Colour, but the £16 price tag put me off, especially because I felt like my NYX ones were probably just as good. Sweet Pea was half price on their website with free P&P, but I prefer warmer shades, so left it. I checked back a few days later and found Hibiscus for £8 too, which is described as a coral red, so ordered it straight away. I actually don't have a shade like it in my collection. I have raspberry reds and coral pinks, but nothing in between. First impressions are good. It has a harder consistency than my NYX ones, but it's just as pigmented and easy to work with.

Everyone raves about the Milani Luminoso Baked Blush, so when I saw it on Amazon for £4.49, I thought I'd try it for myself. It's more powdery and orange than I was expecting, but it gives a nice glow. I'll have to use it a little more to make up my mind, I think.

I picked up a couple things from L'Oreal last month, and they were the Le Lip Liner Magique (£3.99) and Infallible Mega Gloss in 407 Smoke Me Up (Matte) (£6.99). The 'gloss' is insanely pigmented and hangs around, but can (understandably) be slightly drying without a lip balm. There was an online promotion where I could have bought three shades for a really good deal, but this was the only one I really liked. I've used the lip liner a couple times, but still don't know how much of a difference it makes. I'm going to do an experiment and wear it on half my lips under a bright lipstick, so will be able to let you know after this.

What other products from these brands would you recommend? Zoeva and Milani in particular!

Small Businesses | Marshmallow Blends

Marshmallow Blends is a business run by blogger Nicoletta. It consists of bath, body, and home fragrance products, all hand made by Nicoletta herself. I remember reading Nicoletta's blog back in the early days of blogging, and had been meaning to place an order for a while, so finally did so late last month. I ordered on the 26th May, and was enjoying the products on the 29th. I wasn't expecting to receive them so quickly, so this was a nice surprise.

The first product I bought was the Rhubarb & Custard Shower Fluff (£5). It's smaller than I expected, but the consistency is harder than it looks, so it's going to last a decent amount of time. I just scoop some up and massage it into my body puff. It creates a nice lather and leaves my skin feeling more moisturised than a standard shower gel. As for the scent, it was more tart than I was expecting on first sniff, but once lathered, it smells exactly like the sweets. Although it's only 100g, I don't regret paying the price because it's such a unique product and scent. The only thing I'm not a fan of is the paper label; paper and showers don't mix!

I was most excited for the wax melts. The ParaSoy ones were £1.50 each, while the heart ones (Iced Lemon Cake, pack of 6) were £3.50. The ParaSoy Melts are bigger than Yankee Candle ones, which is great. My Pink Sugar one is slightly smaller than the other two, but it's still a good size. The scents are very accurate and strong, and the burning times have impressed me. I've been burning Blackberry Jam for 8 hours (on and off) so far, and it's still going strong. Blackberry Jam is actually my favourite out of all of them.

If you're looking to treat yourself to some unique, handmade bath and body products, I'd recommend checking out what Marshmallow Blends has to offer. I think they'd also make great presents. I've just placed another order consisting of 10 ParaSoy Melts because a load of new scents have just been released. I'll show you the ones I've chosen when they arrive!