Free Jo Malone sample for UK Talisa talks beauty readers!

Hiya guys!

Jo Malone are releasing a new fragrance called "Peony and blush suede" and giving you guys a chance to test it before the official release!

All you have to do is design a peony pin (here) and send it to a friend. You are then given the option to receive a sample of "Peony and blush suede"; simples! Enjoy!

Best spot treatment- Panoxyl aquagel

After posting my review on Rimmel's Wake Me Up Foundation I received a lot of tweets asking me how I keep my skin so clear so I thought i'd share my little secret.

I find that a lot of the high street options are cheap but not effective and the effective ones tend to be priced at £20+ which, to me, is a little steep for a spot treatment. So when i discovered PanOxyl i was thrilled.

It's intended for use on acne but i've found it works a treat on little breakouts, painful red spots, pussy spots (yuck!) and even the tiny little ones.

You can get different strengths. For people who only really get little spots i would recommend 2.5, for people who get a mix of big and small spots get 5 and those who have regular breakouts get 10. As i don't have acne I use Aquagel 5. It's a lightweight formula that lies somewhere between a gel and a cream. As the product is essentially drying the spots out it can make your skin very dry if you overuse it. On a small spot put a tiny amount on and apply it as if you were applying a moisturiser. On big spots put a little dollop on top of the spot and don't rub it in, the first time you use it on that particular spot. Then start treating it as if it was a small spot. I advise you not to use it more than once a day as it is incredibly drying. After letting it sink in for a few hours I always apply cream to my face for little spots and with big spots I put moisturiser everywhere avoiding the big spot.

It retails for around £3 and lasted more than half a year for me. I've just found out this has been discontinued but i bought a new one the other day at the chemists. It's always worth asking your local chemist/boots/pharmacy if they sell this product because it works wonders. If they only sell panoxyl 10 then just apply it every other day for those who don't have acne/ regular breakouts.

NUXE Reve de Miel Baume Levres Ultra-Nourrissant Ultra-Nourishing Lip Balm

When i first purchased this  i didn't see why it was raved about so much. I pushed it to the side and completely forgot about it. When i ran out of lip balm i turned to it and boy, have my views changed! I slathered it on my cracked lips before i went to bed and woke up with... hydrated lips! I was flabbergasted to say the least. Ever since i haven't been able to stop using it, it's quite a thick balm so i put it on before bed to let it sink in. The photo online is quite deceptive, it makes it look like it would have a creamy/balmy texture but it has more of a classic lip balm feel. 

The packaging is quite luxurious. The tub is made out of heavy glass and the lid is made of sturdy plastic. It's one of the products you leave on your vanity when guests come over to make it look pretty.
It retails for £9.50, which is a little more pricy than most lip care products but it is worth every penny! Buy it (here)

Ciate Chalkboard Nails, hit or miss?

Something that has been floating around the bloggersphere a lot recently is Ciate's chalboard nail set. The set features a matte, black Ciaté Paint Pot and liquid Chalk Pens. The idea is that you put the matte paint pot on and then when it's dried you draw on them with the liquid chalk pens.

I really liked the idea of chalkboard nails. I am most definitely not an artist so found it particularly hard using the pens to draw a design or a pattern. Every time i tried a design it just looked tacky and messy. For me, this product was a total waste of money. Unless you are extremely talented at nail art I wouldn't recommend this. Hell, even if you're amazing at nail art i'm not sure you can work with this... If you do manage to get it to work for you feel free to tweet me at @Talisa_Lauren_T with a photo- i'd love to see your design!

It retails for £25, buy (here).

What are your thoughts on Chalkboard nails? Hit or miss?

Daniel wellington "Classy collection" in Bristol

I've noticed that my jewellery post (here) was rather well recieved so have decided to carry on posting jewellery.

Daniel wellington have recently released a new collection called "the classy collection". The watches are classic yet luxurious. I opted for Bristol and have been getting compliments all week for it, it adds a touch of glamour to any outfit whilst not being OTT. It is available from daniel wellington for £98 (here). I've managed to get my readers a little discount, if you enter "TALISA" at the checkout you get 15% off until July 20th! Enjoy!

Xen tan dark lotion

I love tanning, all of my body tans really well... apart from my legs. They are whiter than white when the rest of my body is golden; great! The only way i can avoid this is by using fake tan- easy, right? WRONG. Finding the right fake tan is a long and tiring process. Most of the tans i've tried have had something wrong with them whether it be that they make a certain part of my body look awful whilst the other look great (cough Palmers "gradual" tan cough) or streaky. I've been wanting to try Xen tan for a while so when i got sent a bottle i was delighted.

The product has a strong marzipan scent which personally I love but could be a problem for others. The product dried after 2 minutes and developed over 2 hours to create the natural tanned look that can be seen below:

Before

After

I used one pump for the bottom half of my leg and another for the top half, making this 2 pumps per leg. The bottle comes with a large amount of product so will last me a while. I found the product to be really hydrating and make my skin feel really soft.

I would advise you invest in a tanning mitt, i used (this) one, as the product stains your skin if you apply a dollop to a certain part of your body.

Make sure that you exfoliate before to make sure no tan gets stuck around/on the dry skin making it obvious you're wearing fake tan.

Xen tan dark lotion* retails for £23.95 (here). Tan land is my new favourite place to buy fake tan from, they sell high quality fake tan at a lower price than the RRP AND they have free delivery. Win win!

Palmers Cocoa Butter gradual tan

After reading a load of fabulous reviews on this product i decided to pick it up. I read over many blogs that it gives you "a nice subtle glow" so couldn't wait to have this for summer.

May i just start by saying this is the fastest gradual tan around and not at all subtle. I rubbed a small amount all over my body before i went to bed to test whether any of it would rub off on the sheets. None rubbed off on my sheets but i woke up orange. Partly my fault as i completely dismissed the "wash your hands after use" sign on the back of the tube, I figured "hey, this is gradual tan! How much harm can not washing it off my hands instantly?". So. Much. My hands were left a patchy dirty orange colour.

When i used the product on my legs it wasn't particularly streaky but a lot of the product got stuck in my pores which made it extremely obvious i was wearing fake tan. It made my legs so orange that you could even see the orange through my black opaque tights... delightful.

However, it was a completely different story when i used it on my upper body. I was left with a subtle golden glow, absolutely no streaks and no product sinking into my pores.

Overall, i'd avoid using this product on legs and i deeply recommend you wash your hands thoroughly after use. This is a great product to use on your upper body as it leaves a really natural tan whilst moisturising at the same time. The product smells a bit like nutella which i quite like but a few of my friends weren't a fan of the smell. Buy for £5.35 (here).