Living Nature Nourishing Hand Cream - A Review For My Pure

I'm probably the worlds hugest hand cream lover, at least a couple of times a day, I cover my hands in a cool luxurious cream in my never ending quest for super strokeable hands. I wouldn't say I had particularly dry hands but my cuticles are prone to dryness and I occasionally get flaky patches on my fingers. I have a few firm favourite hand creams which I continually repurchase but I am always looking to try out new ones, so for one of this months My Pure products I chose the Living Nature Nourishing Hand Cream.

Packaged in quite a chunky tactile bottle, the product dispenses via a flip cap from the base of the bottle, I have to say I did find it a little stiff at first, and when Mummy Lou tried she couldn't work out how to get the cream out at all lol

As you probably already know if you've read my previous Living Nature reviews ( click here and here if you haven't ;), Living Nature is a New Zealand based brand that prides itself on the purity of their ingredients and this hand cream is no different, it even claims to be 100% natural with the preservatives, fragrance and ingredients all coming from natural and plant sources.

When you look at the ingredients listings this certainly seems to be the case. The key ingredients are active manuka honey, known for its anti-bacterial properties, and larch tree extract to prevent moisture loss. It also contains many other plant based ingredients such as olive, coconut and jojoba oils for moisture.

The cream itself has quite a creamy texture but it spreads out easily and absorbs a lot quicker than what you would expect. The skin is left matte and feeling super smooth, a feeling that actually lasts and doesn't disappear in an hour or so.

I have to say this is one of the nicest hand creams I have ever used I have had no dry patches at all in the month I have been using this. My one issue is the smell, other reviewers have sad the smell is quite mild but sorry I don't think that, it has quite a strong, distinct smell which is quite hard to place Mummy Lou said it reminded her a bit of aniseed and I think she's right there is definitely a hint of aniseed or liquorice in their somewhere, personally the smell is a bit much for me but the hand cream is so good I think I can ignore it :) The Living Nature Nourishing Hand Cream 100ml retails at £12.49 from My Pure.

(The Living Nature Nourishing Hand Cream 100ml Was Provided By My Pure For Review Purposes )v

Collective Hauling

Hi Guys
Just for a change it's time for a haul :) I have to say despite the initial wobbles at the start of the month I've actually managed to reign myself in a bit , still I have made a few purchases over the last two weeks so I thought I'd show you some of them :)

First up an ebay bargain :) I love the Dove Summer Glow Facial Moisturiser but when I went to try and repurchase it recently I was told it had been discontinued - boo :( It give a really nice gradual tan and it had a gorgeous smell so I headed to ebay where I found and absolute bargain - 5 full sized bottles for just £4.00 - result !

I also ventured into new territory for me and purchased a BB cream

I love the idea of these and really wanted to try them, so after reading a post from the lovely Charlotte from Lipglossiping I bought the Missha M Perfect Cover BB Cream in No 21

This is actually a pretty good match for my skin normally but as I'm faux glowing at the minute it's a bit light

I can't wait for the winter months to try this out properly but in the time I might pick up the new Garnier BB cream in the medium shade, we'll see how the budget goes ;)

Yesterday me and my mum went for a drive and ended up in Barnard Castle, we recently visited The Bowes Museum (see my post here) and we ended up buying 6 monthly memberships so we could go anytime wanted so yesterday we went to see the new Egyptian exhibit, and we had a lovely drive back through Weardale, Teesdale and Hamsterly Forest - one of the reasons I love living where I do is that within 20 - 30 minutes we can been in the middle of gorgeous moorland and open space or on beautiful beaches. Anyways enough of the rambling I ended up buying a few bits first of all in Superdrug.

I bought three lip colours from the Collection 2000 Cream Puff range. These have a super soft velvety feel on the lips and are actually matte lip creams as opposed to an actual lipgloss. From left to right Powder Puff 2, Cotton Candy 1, and Fairy Cake 3

I also bought another Collection 2000 lip product, yes I bought 4 lip products on one day, in my defence there was an offer where you could buy any 2, £2.99 Collection 2000 products for £4.00, so it would have been wrong not to ;) So I also picked up one of the Lock N Hold Lipglosses in Body Pop 1, a gorgeous candy pink

I also got a couple of nail polishes MUA No 16 a gorgeous bright pink

and the Beauty UK Gold shatter polish :)

I also picked a few other things including some nail polish remover pads, and the St Moriz Tanning Lotion

So that was a bit of hauling over the last week and a bit bad girl that I am, still I am going to try and recoup some of my hauling with some more ebay listings, I am being so strong it's untrue I have some fab stuff to list including some Marc by Marc Jacobs, some Miu Miu and more - keep checking my sidebar for updates. Any questions please ask xx

Nails Of The Day Featuring Joe Fresh

It's nails of the day, well nails of the week time again :) You think of summer and bright colours automatically spring to mind but to me nothing screams summer more than a pretty ice cream pastel to show off tanned skin. OK my skin isn't particularly tanned at the moment bar a bit of gradual tan and some faded St Moriz but I still think this looks gorgeous.

I got this Joe Fresh varnish in Faded Violet in a swap with the lovely Michelle. It's just the kind of pale creamy lilac that I love, my bedroom walls are even the same colour!

As far as I'm aware Joe Fresh isn't available in the UK but it's similar to OPI Done Out In Deco. Do you like lilac nails? I do :)

Reflections and Positivity

Well I can safely say it's been an awful week on the little planet we call the earth, so many lives, all lost needlessly, in Norway, China and of course in Camden. All lives are precious no matter who, or how someone has lived their life, everybody is someones son or daughter, brother, sister or friend, and I don't think we should forget that x
Anyways looking forward with love and positivity, things are looking brighter in LouLouLand, I've had a bad few weeks if I'm honest, feel less than motivated, irritable and sometimes as if I'm wasting my time even bothering to blog. I don't know what triggered it but I've fell a little out of love with social media, and I've started to feel some of the pressures and irritations that it brings. So again, and yes I sound like a broken record I am going to focus on the positives, you may notice a slightly reduced twitter presence but I need to distance myself from some of the negative stuff that keeps occurring, when your not in a good place you need to keep yourself as happy as possible, so that's what I'm going to do x
Thankfully I'm feeling more positive about my blog now already I may not have as many followers as some people but the ones I have are super loyal and I really appreciate everyone of you x This week on LouLouLand you can expect to see quite a few posts including this months My Pure reviews, a NOTD, and hopefully the next installment in my Budget Beauty Series - I know I promised this one last week but I didn't anticipate the sheer amount of pictures that I had, lol I will probably end up splitting the post into two, I am nothing if not through lol
Anyways I am sorry if this post feels like a bit of a vest but sometimes you just need to let it out x Thanks for reading and above all thanks for following xx

Wet Ones - A Beauty Bloggers Must Have?

A little while ago I was sent a press release about Wet Ones we wipes, in the vague depths of my memory I remember specifically Wet Ones being specifically for little people. Yes they still make lines such as Wet Ones Little Bottoms RRP £1.99 and Wet Ones Sticky Fingers RRP £1.19 but more interestingly for me they have also moved into the Antibacterial market.

I was very kindly sent two packets of Wet Ones Antibacterial Wipes to try out. Wet Ones claim that these wipes kill 99.9% of all germ causing bacteria whilst at the same time keeping the hands and body moisturised. I have to say I am a bit of an obsessive with the anti bacterial hand gels, and sprays but more often then not they can leave your skin feeling quite dry, and even a bit irritated. I was keen to try out the wipes and see how they compared.

I was sent two variants of the wipes, first of all I was sent a pack of 12 Wet Ones Be Gentle Sensitive Antibacterial Wipes.

These are unsurprisingly the most gentle of the Wet Ones antibacterial wipes. Containing Vitamin E and Aloe Vera you can even use them on your face.

The pretty much look as you would expect them with a light woven texture

These wipes are unfragranced but there is a slight chemically smell there. I have to say I tried these wipes on both my hands and my face and there was absolutely no tightness or irritation on my skin, my skin was just left feeling clean and fresh


I was also sent a pack of 12 Wet Ones Be Cute Delicate Antibacterial Wipes

Although you can't use these ones on your face, they also claim to be for delicate skin. As you would expect these wipes are probably aimed towards the female market. As well as the pink packaging, they also have a delicate fruity / floral rose fragrance which I have to say I really liked. Again I noticed no dryness or irritation just clean skin :)

I have to say I think wipes are super useful, whilst I can't comment on the germ killing abilities they are great for keeping your hand fresh and clean, whether your travelling, just before eating, or just out and about - the 12 packs are great for your handbag and because they aren't a liquid they are safe to take on the plane - just make sure you close the packet properly to stop them drying out. I have to say though as well as all the more general uses as a beauty blogger these wipes have proved invaluable, not just for removing swatches from the backs of my hands but also for keeping my make up kit clean.

Come on admit you have a pot or tube somewhere in your collection that looks a bit like this. no matter how careful we are in our make up kits something always spills, or we end up with foundation covered finger prints all over out compacts. I have to say I do make a habit of giving my make up a wipe over every now and then, usually with a face wipe to keep it clean, but I decided to try the Wet Ones  because of th4e antibacterial properties and I was super happy with the results, one clean, sanitised foundation pot :)

All in all I can't think of anyone beauty blogger or mere mortal who wouldn't find a use for these wipes, I will definitely be picking up a packet every now and then for my handbag. Wet Ones travel packs of 12 antibacterial wipes are available in 4 variant, Be Zingy, Be Gentle, Be Cute and Be Fresh and retail at around £1.19. Be Fresh Wipes are also available in a 40 pack for around £2.29. For more information and stockists check out the Wet Ones website

( Wet Ones Be Cute Delicate 12 Antibacterial Wipes and Wet Ones Be Gentle Sensitive 12 Antibacterial Wipes Were Provided By PR For Review Purposes)

Nails Of The Day - Milani 3D Holographic Nail Lacquer 514 Hi-Res

Yes, it's time for another nails of the the day post, and surprise, surprise it's one of the Milani polishes that I received last week from Cherry Culture.

The lure of the sparkle was just too much and on Friday I painted my nails with Milani 3D Holographic Nail Lacquer in 514 Hi-Res. I love these polishes so much they apply really nicely, they dry super quickly and they last pretty well too. Hi-Res is a gorgeous purple sparkly holograph, these pics show two coats taken with the flash so you can really see the sparkles

Sparkly or what ? yet another Milani purchase that has made me happy :) What do you think, do you like sparkly polishes?

ELF Goodies Courtesy Of Momma Lou - Swatches and a Mini Review

Hi Guys
I'm always a bit of a sucker for a discount code and over the weekend the fabulous people at ELF had a free shipping code when you purchased £10 or more worth of goodies. Disaster though I am really watching my spends this month after a lot of splurges last month and at the beginning of this month, so I really don't have any dosh at the moment, step forward my usual knight in shining armour, well a top, skirt and a cardi - Mummy Lou. She kindly lent me her little piece of lovely plastic to purchase a few treats so long as I stuck to pretty much the £10 limit. Well the eventual bill came to just £10.50 so I did ok I think. I noticed a lot of new studio products on the site so I ordered 3 things.

First up I ordered the the Studio SPF 20 Tinted Moisturiser - I'd wanted this since it came out but it never seemed to be in stock, so when I saw it was in stock I got it

It comes in a very similar tube to the Revlon Mineral Mousse black with just a clear section so you can see the product. The colour I went for was Nude which seems to be a pretty good match for my skin - it actually gives pretty good coverage for a tinted moisturiser - I'm pretty impressed so far I have to say apart from the smell which is pretty chemically but for £3.50 you can't really argue

Next up I ordered a cream eyeshadow, as you know I love my cream eyeshadows for quickness and for using as bases, I like the normal elf duo cream eyeshadows so I thought I'd try one. The first thing you notice about these shadows is the size of the pot, it is huge, here a pic of it with my Blackberry so you can get an idea of the size!

The shade I went for was the most neutral Candlelight - a slightly shimmery ivory

Its has quite a dense texture that remind me a bit of MAC Paintpots, or Benefit Creaseless Cream Shadows, a little swipe is all you need for super pigmented creamy colour - Momma Lou is a big fan of this and has already borrowed it - I guess she's allowed since she paid for it ;)

The final item I got was another one of the new introductions, the Matte Lip Color

These are twist up lip colours in a pen style applicator the colour I went for is Natural - a nice neutral pink shade

It seems quite smooth and it's really well pigmented, my one minor complaint is the taste which is a bit plasticy, never mind it's a pretty colour and I am sure the taste can be remedied with a bit of yum tasting lipgloss or balm

At just £3.50 per item I am pretty pleased with these three items, yet again ELF shows itself to be a brand where the quality defies the price. The cream shadows are probably my pick and I can definitely see myself  picking up a few more colours. If you have any questions or ELF recommendations please let me know xx

Welcome To Another Week

Hi Guys
It doesn't seem two minutes since I was writing the first post of last week but here we are again at the start of another week. Last week was a bit of a fail on the blogging front I had some reviews planned but for some reason it never happened, I went out with my mum, sat in the sun, listed on ebay, took lots of photos, watched QVC Beauty Day,  did some housework, and ultimately watched the rain and listened to the thunder but I didn't really blog. I lost a few followers last week and I really hope this isn't why As much as I enjoy blogging I do have an illness and a life contend with so I hope you all understand if I don't post everyday or do everything I've promised - I'm like the tortoise and the hare really, I take my time but I get there in the end x

Anyways another week, another new start, not only in the blogging sense but also in the diet sense, my diet seems to have gone down the drain a bit which culminated in my making the above cookies the other night when my sweet food cravings got too much! so today I am restarting the diet and this time I mean business - healthy eating, a tiny bit of exercise, and above all no snacking is the way forward!

On the blogging front I am raring to go this week, I have a few posts in draft ready to go, and a few others planned for the rest of the week including a couple of reviews, a nails of the day post and maybe towards the end of this week or the beginning of next, the second post in my Budget Beauty Series featuring the original Make Up Academy  - MUA line. So there I've done first post off the week is done thanks to a little help as per usual from We Heart It, and from my own fair hand. Hope you all had a fabulous weekend and here's hoping your Monday wasn't so bad x

Nails Of The Day - Goldfinger Do Do Do, The Girl With The Midas Touch and An Update x

Happy Monday my sweets I hope you all had a lovely weekend - mine was pretty up and down but very productive I took lots of blog photos and edited them all up, and I also took a pile of pics taken for ebay (check out the ebay link in the sidebar I am selling some genuine Gucci shoes!!!). On Sunday I posted my first post in the Budget Beauty Series, as yet it's had no love which is a shame but hey ho, I don't always have time to post comments and I know other people are often the same. I also made some lovely gluten free cheese scones (that's them above) - I really enjoy baking in fact the only reason I don't do more of it is that I have to eat the fruits of my labour lol, which reminds me I put a pound on the week which doesn't really surprise me as I ate like a piggy last week but I'm vowing to try harder now. I don't really have any specific post plans this week, maybe a tag, and a review, but I'm starting off with a nails of the day x

Apologies in advance for the cheeysy title but I have to say I love my glittery, metallic and holographic nail polishes so I was delighted to recieve this gorgeous glittery gold  Culford Gardens in my recent Nails Inc special haul . At first glance I thought this was almost identical to Nails Inc Westminster Abbey which I picked up in the special Royal Collection, but on the nails it looks a little darker and dare I say even more glittery - apologies for the bad paint job, the gross burn on my finger, and a bit of a self tan disaster, but I hope you can see the sparkle

Any questions please ask x kiss kiss xx