The September 2017 Cohorted Beauty Box Edit

So today, the Cohorted Beauty Box is back on my blog and with a bang as this month's box is really exciting! For only £35 a month you receive over double the price of that and it's all luxury goodies, and who wouldn't want a box of luxury goodies delivered straight to your door.

The Contents 

Cargo Cosmetics Around The World Eyeshadow Palette | £32.00

Starting with this absolute beauty, is a full sized eyeshadow palette. Like, what? I have never seen an eyeshadow palette in a beauty subscription box before (well I mean, this has probably happened but I feel like it's a rarity). This palette is so so cute as all the shades are named after places to take you around the world and guess what, they're... neutral shades *drops mic*. Not only does this make them perfect for literally everyone and anyone just starting out with eyeshadow. The palette includes 6 matte and 6 shimmer shades and they're set out in the palette as three quads and six duos (the lighter shade at the top coordinates with the darker shade directly beneath e.g. Rome and Shanghai) so you don't have to worry about marrying up shades together. I have never heard of Cargo Cosmetics before but this palette is such a winner in my eyes. And also, the price of this palette is basically the price of the box itself.

Lica Cole The Good Vibe Discovery Kit | £23.00 

Firstly, the packaging of this is so adorable. The kit contains an Organic Cleansing Smoothie, an Organic Polishing Paste and an Organic Whipped Butter. Essentially it's a little kit of pampering goodness for your body, you begin with the cleansing smoothie to wash away dirt and bacteria, the Polishing Paste turns into a creamy exfoliant buffing away dead skin and finally, the Whipped Butter helps to keep your skin hydrated. I think this is such a lovely idea and it's all organic and filled with antioxidants so I can't wait to get using these!

Figs & Rouge Smart Nutrient Vital Moisture Day Cream | £28.00

This next product is a smart moisturiser (although I'm not quite sure what makes it smart) - to me it's just a moisturiser. I'm not sure if this one is for me as my skin is oily so I'll probably be passing this over to my mum because my skin is so prone to breaking out when I apply something it doesn't like!

Benefit Roller Lash Mascara Travel Size | £10.00

I have wanted to try this mascara for the longest time now. I've seen rave reviews about it and to be honest I think it's pretty good but not as thickening as I wanted it to be. It makes my lashes very long and spidery so I think it's amazing as a day time mascara but not as thick as I would have wanted it to be for evening wear. I know that I'm definitely going to get some good use out of this and it's perfectly sized to pop into your handbag for convenient touch ups.

Smith & Cult The Shining Lip Lacquer - No Warning | £21.00 

Can we just take a moment to appreciate the beautiful colour and packaging?! It is stunning. I've seen this brand a lot in Space NK but I had no idea they did anything other than nail polishes, so this is a pleasant surprise. I'd definitely say this is more of a festive colour - complete with subtle glittery reflects - so I'm looking forward to trying this out as we approach Christmas (exciting!) but I am more of a nude lipstick gal so we'll see how this measures up!

So that's it for the September beauty box which had such a nice mixture of beauty and pamper bits. There are definitely some amazing products which I know I'm going to get so much use out of and you literally get so much for £35! So that's a wrap, I hope you've enjoyed reading this post!

P.s. if you wanted to pick up one of these lush boxes up for yourself you can use the code 'COHORTEDGIFTME' for a free Laura Mercier Crème Smooth Lip Colour (in the shade 'Maya') with all new subscriptions.

Til next time xxx

*contains pr samples but all thoughts and opinions are 100% my own*

An October To Do List

I cannot believe it's now October, but also thank god because everything becomes more magical as the leaves change colour and the nights grow colder. I've never been one for writing up to do lists on my blog but I thought this month would be a good place to start and it's so nice to see progress. 

No.1 Prep for Halloween

I'm currently in my third year of uni and halloween is sacred for us students. It marks the final halloween with all my huns in the same boat and there's something really sad but exciting about that - I also want an A** costume. It's freakin' bats, it's always halloween in my soul. 

No.2 Continue working on my fitness 

I have a newly found love for the gym and I can't wait to see how much my strength & stamina will progress with continued usage and commitment. Cmon baby arms, grow, grow.

No.3 Strike a balance 

It can be a little manic when you're trying to write content for your blog and read all the essential and recommended readings for your seminars and assignments, have a social life, go to the gym etc etc. I'm hoping to strike a balance between all of these so I can stay motivated throughout this month and the foreseeable future. 

No.4 Start a Youtube channel 

I have wanted to do this for the longest time, but I feel like I'm a little bit awkward in front of the camera and the editing process is very long. I have actually put up a video before but obviously uploads need to be consistent.. Maybe this can tie in with number three. 

No.5 Pick up some new A/W scents

Nothing says cosy like some new candles and seeing as it has got so much colder this is the perfect time to make an investment. I have my heart set on some of the upmarket ones but also the Yankee candle in Sugared Pumpkin Swirl, I mean how nice does that sound? I also want to pick up a new A/W fragrance, so any suggestions are more than welcome! I'm thinking maybe something fruity from Jo Malone? 

Til next time xxx

NYX Professional Makeup at Debenhams

As well as loving luxury beauty products I'm also a fan of drugstore products and NYX Professional Makeup always delivers. To celebrate the launch of NYX Professional Makeup in Debenhams they very kindly sent me some of their best selling products which includes a palette exclusive to Debenhams - the Contour Initiative Palette. So, I'm going to give you a little run down of the products they sent me.

So first, let's start with the lip products. The Soft Matte Lip Creams are already a winner in my eyes and this shade in Budapest is the perfect transition/Autumnal shade. The formula of these are incredible, they're more like a mousse so they're not drying at all (and they smell like vanilla goodness) but it does mean that they have limited staying power. Having said that, they're so comfortable to wear and for only £6 you can't really go wrong! My other favourite shades are Sydney and Cairo.

Speaking of Autumnal shades, the Lip Lingerie in 'Exotic', a muted orange toned nudey red, is Autumn in a tube. This is definitely more drying than the soft matte lip formula but it does mean it lasts for way longer. Now for a shade I wouldn't normally go for, the Liquid Suede in 'Downtown' Beauty, is a deep chocolatey brown which I'm excited to try and pull off now that we've hit Autumn/Winter (but I don't know if I'll be able to). 

Oh and this little gem, the Butter Gloss in 'Strawberry Parfait', is my fav of the bunch. If you know me, you know how much I love a pink shade. The butter glosses are divine and I already have my eye on some of the other nudey shades as well (because you can never have too many right?). This shade gives a lovely little sweep of colour which isn't too overpowering and it's seriously stunning. My other fav is in the shade 'Fortune Cookie', which is beautiful nude (surprise surprise). 

Now onto palettes *drools*. Firstly, let's start with the Contour Initiative palette in 'Jewel Queen' which is exclusive to Debenhams and holds two highlighters, a blush and six eyeshadows. I feel like this palette has some shades that I wouldn't necessarily use on an every day basis because they are hella bright and I'm more of a neutral person, but there are still some really lovely shades in here (like that champagney gold shade *swoons*). I also feel like the blush is more of a bronzer on my skin tone but it actually makes a really lovely eyeshadow. The palette also comes in another shade, 'Warm Zone', which looks perfect for A/W. 

Oh how I love a neutral eyeshadow palette. This is the Ultimate Cool Neutrals Eyeshadow Palette which contains 16 eyeshadows and oh my, look how beautiful they are *inserts all the heart eye emojis*. There's a mixture of shimmers and matte shades and I know this is going to be one of those palettes I'm going to reach for every day. I mean, look at those dusty pinks and champagnes. I have to say, the Ultimate Warm Neutrals Eyeshadow Palette looks like the perfect everyday Autumnal palette so I'll definitely be adding it to my basket at some point soon!

Onto the dreamiest highlighting palette, this is the Strobe of Genius Illuminating Palette which contains seven highlighting shades. From a lavender to a golden bronze, this palette has it all. My favs are the more neutral champagney shades because they suit my skin tone but oh this is such a beautiful palette. As well as using this on the face, I also like to use this on my eyes. Yes, that beautiful bronze highlight shade looks  b e a u t  on the lid - ah so majestic! 

If you read my blog you know that I have oily skin so the Shine Killer and Pore Filler are literally made for me. These are both amazing for prolonging the longevity of my makeup and reduce the appearance of (you guessed it) pores and shininess. I think I'd probably compare the texture of them to the Ordinary Silicone Primer which I love, but the Pore Filler makes my skin look amazing and evens out the texture of my skin/fills in my XXL pores, such a winner!

So there you have it, I hope you've enjoyed reading about these picks from NYX Professional Makeup which is now available from Debenhams!

Til next time xxx

*This post is in collaboration with Debenhams but all opinions are 100% my own*