My July Love Me Beauty Box

I'm a completely newbie to subscription boxes. I've looked at a few different ones over the past year or so, but never made the decision to sign up to them. When I came across Love Me Beauty's deal on living social (3 boxes for £14.95 + P&P), I decided it was time to give subscription boxes a go and ordered my first box.

I was really pleased when the postman rang my flat buzzer on Saturday morning. Not only had I forgotten my box was on it's way, but it also meant that my buzzer system had been fixed whilst I was in France!

I like Love Me Beauty as you get to pick what you want in your box. They give you 6 credits to spend, and then allocate a number of points to different products. You can either spend just your 6 points, or if you want more then you can pay extra to get the additional products. I went for 3 things I knew I'd use; hairspray, nail varnish and eye shadow.

The hair spray is a full size product by Neal & Wolf and is worth £9.50 on it's own! I've never heard of Neal & Wolf, but they had a few different products available on Love Me Beauty to pick between. I went for the hairspray as the one I'm currently using is feeling very thick and heavy on my hair. I'm very interested in trying this out.

There were a very different nail varnish colours from the NailsInc Gel Effect range to choose from. I went for Colville Mews as it's a very neutral shade and will be suitable for work. The product is again full size, worth £15. I've already given this product a go, and I love it. Application was super easy, the  colour is gorgeous, and the finish is perfect! Very impressed.

The final product is a mineral eyeshadow by Bellapierre (£12.99). It's not a brand I've heard of before, and it's only recently I've started trying mineral make up, but I've been impressed with Bare Minerals products so thought I'd give this alternative a try. Again I went for a neutral colour, Champagne, as I don't like my makeup to be too bright. As it's a shimmer powder, it probably won't be something I use daily for work, but I'll definitely be giving it a go on my next night out.

Overall I'm rather pleased with the products I've picked, the fact that they're full size, and how much money I've saved. Just on this one box, I've saved £17.49. I'm excited to try out all the products and to receive my next beauty box in August.

Sarah x

Book Review - The Girls Wearing Black Series by Spencer Baum

I got the first book in this series when it was on offer on Amazon. It was free (on one of their daily deals), and although I'd never heard of it, I figured it had Vampires in and I tend to enjoy vampire stuff so thought I'd give it a go. I finally got round to reading it whilst I was away, and I am so glad that Amazon gave away this book. I doubt I'd have read it otherwise. The first book had me hooked, and I rushed to buy the other 3 in the series as soon as I'd finished the first one.

This series isn't the typical vampire romance stories you see a lot of at the moment. There's no mortal falling in love with a vampire, and a story dedicated to how they're going to live their lives together and enjoy their forbidden love. This is different.

In this series, the Immortals (aka vampires) are in charge. While the Politicians and the rich may think they have power, the ultimate control lies with the Immortals. Becoming an Immortal in this world isn't easy. To be turned you have to bond with a vampire. Unless you're a girl in the senior class at Thorndike Academy.

Senior girls at Thorndike get the chance of a lifetime. They get the opportunity to be turned by Sergio, a vampire who doesn't bond. Giving them more power, control and respect than they could ever dream of. All you have to do is turn up to Homecoming in a black dress, and you enter the contest. But entering the contest comes at a price. You enter a contract with the Immortals. A contract that states if you win you become an Immortal, but if you come last you become the new Immortal's first meal.

This series follows one year of the coronation contest where preparations had been made for years to ensure that one girl won and became immortal. That was until the surprise entry of Nicky Bloom. Supported by her friends, Nicky launches a campaign to win the contest to achieve the ultimate prize and she soon catches the attention of the Immortals. But as the contest progresses, it's clear that Nicky and Kim both underestimated each other.

All of the characters are portrayed well. They each have their own unique personalities, their own backgrounds, and develop in their own ways. At some point in the series, you will route for each and every one of them. Even the Immortals.

My favourite is Jill. One of the key characters from the offset, she's a teenager doing her best to support Nikki and achieve the ultimate aim. By the end of the series, she's grown into someone wiser than her aged. Forced to face the truth about her Father's past activities, and the truth about her Mother's need to work, Jill learns to fight for herself, her own course, and becomes a key player in the coronation contest.

I loved the way this series is written. Each book is focused around one key event in the coronation contest, but Spencer Baum manages to bring in all the stories, past and present, of the key characters in with ease. They flow well, and keep you intrigued as to what is coming next.

A brilliant read, and something different to the more popular vampire series. I look forward to reading more of Spencer Baum's work in the future

Rating: 9/10

Sarah x

Product Review: Amphora Aromatics Skincare Seaweed & Aloe Refreshing Eye Gel

I'll admit, Amphora Aromatics is a brand I'd never heard of until they asked me if I'd be interested in reviewing their Seaweed & Aloe Refreshing Eye Gel. After reading their press release on the product I was intrigued and decided to give it a go.

"AA Skincare Essential's multi-purpose Seaweed & Aloe Refreshing Eye Gel helps rehydrate and restore delicate skin around the eyes, gently and effectively removes make up and can help cool skin after a spell in the sun" (Amphora Aromatics Press Release)

When the product arrived I was very impressed. The packaging has a very high end appearance, and is made of good quality. The colours are very natural which reflects the brand's image very well.

My skin can be quite sensitive, so I'm nervous about trying new skin products in case I have a reaction. Amphora Aromatics products are all made from natural ingredients which is good as, for me anyway, there's less chance of a reaction. I'm pleased to say that after using this for a month, I've had no side effects or reactions!

As the name implies, this product is a gel consistency and a little bit can go a long way. I've been using one pump at a time, and that will cover both my eyes. After using twice a day, I still seem to have a lot of the product left in the bottle. This is a product that will last a long time.

I've used the eye gel twice daily since I got it about a month ago. It's great on tired eyes, and for covering up dark circles, and the cooling sensation was great to relax my eyes after they'd been in the sun all day on holiday.

The best benefit I've found from using the eye gel is the improvement in my milla. I have milla under my left eye, and when I got this product, it was flaring up quite bad and I could really see the white bumps. Which didn't look good at all!

After a couple of days of using the eye gel, I could definitely see their visibility reducing. I've been using the product for about a month now, and they are practicably invisible. I'm really pleased with how this product has combatted this problem.

At a bargain price of £6.96 this is a product that is good value for money, high quality, and works! I will be definitely purchasing again in the future.

Sarah x

Disclaimer: Whilst this product was sent to me for free by Amphora Aromatics, all reviews and opinions expressed in this post are my own honest views.

My Beginner's Pointe Experience

Credit to: balleradance

Going en pointe is something a lot of dancers aspire to achieve. It's something I've always wanted to do, but never thought I'd have the chance. I didn't start ballet until I was 19 years old, and even then I wasn't training full time so I thought pointe would only ever be a dream for me. Until this year.

When I signed up to my new dance course in April, they teacher told me they had a beginners pointe workshop coming up in June and I signed up as soon as I could. I was really excited.

I've spent a lot of time reading up on pointe, and watching YouTube videos about how best to prepare for pointe, what to expect at your first pointe shoe fitting and in your first pointe class. The info I read was brilliant at keeping me calm and helping me to understand what to expect throughout the process.

So today, I'd like to share with you my first experience of pointe and some to tips for those who aspire to go en pointe.

Pointe Shoe Fitting

It's important when buying a pair of pointe shoes that you get them properly fitted, don't buy them over the internet. There are so many different brands, designs, style, sizes, widths to consider, you need to get yourself properly fitted so that you don't injure yourself. Find a qualified pointe shoe fitter with a good reputation to make sure the fit you get is right. Your teacher, or other dancers at your school, may be able to recommend one.

I went to Tip Toes Dance Supplies in Morpeth after reading some really good reviews on line, and was in the store for a good forty five minutes trying to find the perfect shoes for me.

My fitter, Heather, was lovely and really supportive throughout it all. She's a pointe dancer herself which was really helpful, she encouraged me to be really vocal with here, and there was no pressure at all for me to buy from her if I didn't think the shoes were right for me. She talked me through all the different options of padding to put inside my shoes, the different types of shoes I could get, how they should fit, what I should or shouldn't be feeling, and the benefits of wearing elastics and ribbons on my shoes.

I went to my pointe shoe fitting wearing clothes similar to what I'd dance in, i.e. a pair of tights. You don't have to turn up in a leotard, but if you wear tights in the studio, wear them to your fitting so you know the shoes will fit you properly.

It also helped when we came to doing some pliées and going onto pointe (while holding onto things) during the fitting. If I'd turned up in jeans, it would have made moving and bending a lot harder and I wouldn't have been able to see how good the shoes actually were.

In the end I opted for some ouch pouches to protect my toes, elastics and ribbons to my shoes and went for a pair of Bloch Serenade pointe shoes. They were the second style shoe I'd tried on but we went through a few different sizes before we found the right pair. They're perfect!

Sewing Ribbons and Elastics

I must admit, I'm a complete newbie to sewing. My Mum has always stitched my clothes if they needed it, and sewed my elastics onto my soft ballet shoes in the past. This part of the process I was not looking forward to.

It's really important to make sure the ribbons and elastics are on right so as not to damage your foot. I took to YouTube to watch some videos on how to do it and found there's loads of really good advice out there.  So I came in from work one night, set myself up at the kitchen table with everything I'd need, YouTube video ready and began to sew.

2 and a half hours later I finished.

It's such a fiddly process. You have to measure where on the shoes you need your ribbons to be and mark them. Measure how long you need you ribbons to be to be able to tie them. My ribbons had elastics built into them to protect my tendons so I had to make sure they were in the right place. You then had to cut the ribbons and seal the ends so they don't fray. Then do the same with the elastics. Make sure that your stitches don't stop the elastic string from doing their job.

It took ages, but it actually felt quite relaxing. Something to do and focus on for a few hours. It's definitely a good challenge.

My First Class

I had my first pointe class the other day, and it was just so much fun. It was only an hour long, and we only spent about 20 minutes of that actually in pointe shoes, but it was more than enough.

Pointe is a lot harder than dancing in soft ballet shoes. Your feet and toes are very restricted, you're putting a lot more strain on your ankles, and you have to re-learn pretty much everything you already knew.

I underestimated how hard pointe was going to be. I was sweating and aching by the end of the class.

Our focus of the class was on strength. We started off dancing strength exercises for our feet and ankles in soft ballet shoes, before we switched into our pointe shoes. When we put on our pointes we never left the barre, and the exercises again were focused on strength, breaking in our shoes and getting used to going over our toes.

Whilst I didn't get to do anything fancy en pointe, and it'll be a long time before I'm doing an entire routine en pointe, my first class was great fun and I can't wait to give it another go.

My Top Tips for Pointe

• Find a qualified and reputable pointe shoe fitter
• Be vocal during your fitting
• Don't be afraid to walk away without purchasing anything if the shoes aren't right for you
• Check with your teacher that your shoes are ok before you stitch anything
• Listen to the advice your teacher gives - they know what's best
• Even if you can do 10 pirouettes perfectly in a row, don't expect to be doing them en pointe on day 1 - you need to learn the basics again
• Listen to your teacher and your body - if something hurts, stop. You don't want to injure yourself
• Stitching takes a long time - make sure you're not doing it in a rush and have no distractions
• Build up your strength at home
• Enjoy every moment of it

Sarah x

Disclaimer: I am not a ballet teacher, or a professional dancer, nor do I hold any dance/ballet qualifications. The opinions/views expressed in this post are entirely from my own experiences. Before going en pointe speak to your teacher to make sure you are ready and listen to their advice.