Beak & Claws: New Year, New Lipstick

I shan’t be venturing out on NYE, but if I was I would be wearing either, or both, of these purse friendly gorgeous lip products. The are both made by Essence cosmetics and are under £3 each.

The Colour Boost Mad About Matte liquid lipstick is £2.80 at Wilkos and £2.54 at Parfumdreams.co.uk. I got mine in shade 5 Dangerously Yours which is dark pink with purplish undertones. It has a doe foot applicator which hugs the contours of the lips, leaving a crisp finish. This liquid lipstick dries down quite quickly to a powdery matte finish. The colour is vibrant and not at all patchy. It doesn’t feel drying and didn’t give me “butt hole” lips.  It feels very lightweight and didn’t crack as it dries. It didn’t transfer and It remained a vibrant pink throughout the day. I only needed one layer for an opaque finish.

The Melted Chrome Liquid Lipstick is also £2.80 at Wilkos.  This liquid lipstick has a foil like, metallic matte finish. I chose shade 04 Iron Heart which is a vibrant red  shade as I though it complimented the liquid lipstick. It is water and transfer proof. I didn’t find this liquid lipstick to be as light weight as the traditional one that I tried. I was more aware that it was on my lips and it didn’t feel particularly lightweight. I like the colour as it is more of a foil than a full on traditional metallic shade so didn’t cling and highlight the cracks in my lips. It has a doe foot applicator which fits nicely in to the contours of the lips, sling the Cupid’s bow easy to define.  It was long wearing and didn’t fade. It applied smoothly, no patchiness and one swipe gave an opaque finish.

I combined the two lipsticks for this look. I thought that it gave my lips more dimension and made them look fuller. I used Dangerously as the base lipstick and applied it all over my lips, waited until it was fully dry and then applied Iron Heart to the centre of the lips.





I purchased these items myself and the views expressed in this blog are my own.

Book Review: A Marriage Deal With The Viscount by Bronwyn Scott

A Marriage Deal With The Viscount is written by Bronwyn Scott and is the first in her Mills & Boon Historical mini series - Allied at the Altar.   Set in the 1850s Sofia Northcott,  Marchesa Di Cremona is only recently divorced which is seen as scandalous in itself and is living in London. Little does anyone know that she divorced her husband, II Marchese Giancarlo Di Cremona in order to escape a busy marriage and now she is on the run, as he wants her back as the King of Piedmont (where he lives,  does not approve of divorce) and wants Giancarlo to reclaim his wife and thus regain the favour of the Royal court. Sofia knows that if Giancarlo finds her he will drag her back to Italy by force and then inflict acts of extreme cruelty upon her. He has already branded his initial on her a punishment for trying to run away.   Conall Everard has just been as invested as the Ciscount of Taunton. He is looking for financial backers for his alpaca farm. Sofia is desperate to escape London before she can be found and is intrigued about the alpaca venture which Conall has already established must not use child labour or exploit their workers. Sofia feels that escaping down to Somerset will be a great hiding place for a few weeks and the farm is a great investment opportunity for her.  

She is determined not to marry ever again but is enjoying a relationship with Conall when she realises Gianfranco is actively looking for her. Conall and Sofia enter into a marriage of convenience- he needs financial backing for his farm whilst if she is remarried Giancarlo cannot reclaim her and force her back to Piedmont. Unfortunately Giancarlo finds them, holds both Sofia, Conall and his family at gun point and drags her back to Bristol where they will catch a boat back to Italy. Will Conall find her in tome?

I enjoyed this book immensely. There seemed to be something almost humorous and incongruous - the heroine is escaping an abusive marriage whist the hero is establishing an alpaca farm. The author touches on issues that would have been seen as scandalous during the Victorian period - divorce meant you were shunned in bhigh society whilst abuse within marriage would never be mentioned. I read this book in one sitting and look forward to reading the rest in the series. 

I received this book via Netgalley and Mills and Boon in exchange for a honest review. I am a #MillsAndBoonInsider #netgalley

Available from:
Amazon UK

Mills & Boon

Her Brooding Scottish Heir by Ella Hayes

Ella Hayes won the 2017 Prima Loves to Write Competition run in conjunction with Mills and Boon. The book,  Her Brooding Scottish Heir, is published today, 27 December 2018. The novel is published as part of the True Love series.

Her Brooding Scottish Heir is set in the Scottish Highlands in the grounds of Calcarron House. Camilla O’Brian is a struggling student artist who has just split with Dan, her fiancé. She needs to finish her final degree portfolio and her tutor suggests an isolated artists retreat in the grounds of Calcarron House.  Unfortunately for her as she makes her way there her car gets a puncture and she encounters the grumpy, brooding Cormac Buchanan. He has just left the military and is struggling to come to terms with the loss of his childhood friend as he couldn’t save him when they were out in Afghanistan.

Neither of them find Calcarron House to be the peaceful sanctuary that they need. Cormac’s sister, Rosie, is holding her high society wedding there and left face it if you have just broken up with your fiancé you don’t want to be in the midst of someone else’s wedding whilst Cirmac cannot find the peace and quiet that he needs to come to terms with his friend’s  death. Despite the conflict that arose during their original meeting, there is chemistry and attraction between the pair that develops into a relationship. Will they be able to overcome there pasts and have there HEA?


I can see why she won the competition: she is a wedding photographer with an eye and understanding of romance and how to translates it into a a photograph or in this case a novel. Ella lives in Scotland and you can tell from reading the detailed describe scenes that she knows and loves the Scottish countryside, they aren’t merely cut and paste that descriptive scenes  generic descriptions.  It is a lighthearted, enjoyable read.  It isn’t as polished as some f the more established M&B authors but that comes with Rome and practice.  The plot could have been paced more evenly: the end appeared rushed and resolved within a few pages and character development was lacking. The author linked them through romance but didn’t build upon hopes, aspirations and their respective back stories.  The style of writing was contemporary and enjoyable to read. Overall I enjoyed the book and look forward to seeing how this author develops her writing style etc.

I received this book via Netgalley and Mills and Boon in exchange for a honest review. I am a #MillsAndBoonInsider #netgalley. 

Available from: 
Amazon UK 

Mills & Boon

A Nurse To Heal His Heart by Louise George (M&B Medical).

A Nurse to Heal His Heart is written by Louise George and published by Mills & Boon Medical.  This book combines drama, romance, angst, a little girl, secrets, love and heartache in this will they/ won’t they storyline.  Dr Joe Thompson is a grumpy GP in Oakdale, a village in the Lake District. He is nursing a broken heart after his wife died unexpectedly 5 years ago. He is bringing up his little daughter, Katie, alone and doesn’t feel as though he will ever love again. Rose McIntyre is a locum nurse who has travelled up to the Lake District to fill in at his practice for a few weeks. She is trying to break away from her overbearing mother who has hovered over her since her heart transplant 5 years ago and to recover from a breakup with her first love. Despite all this emotional baggage and a will they or won’t they storyline they slowly develop a loving relationship.  This embryonic relationship, however, may be destroyed forever by revelations about what happened 5 years ago.

I find sometimes medical romances can become disjointed or cluttered by trying to combine romance and medical drama. This book combines the two perfectly so neither overpowers or takes away from the the other element. Both sides seamlessly work together to create an enjoyable read.

I received this book via Netgalley and Mills and Boon in exchange for a honest review. I am a #MillsAndBoonInsider #netgalley

Available: 
Amazon UK

Mills & Boon

Book Review: The Spaniard’s Untouched Bride by Maisey Yates.

The spaniard’s Untouched by Maisey Yates is the first in the Innocent Brides mini series. Camilla Alvarez is determined to stay with her beloved horses when Matias Navarro acquires her families renowned rancho. Mattias does not employ women, so Camilla disguises herself as a boy to get a job as a stable hand. Her plan works until she is thrown from a horse and her ruse is discovered. To her surprise Mattias offers her a new job as his wife! Mattias needs a wife ASAP to fulfil the terms of his father’s will or his brother will. 

I enjoyed this book. Maisey Yates always manages to combine humour and romance whilst creating a  strong well fought out storyline.  There is clearly chemistry between the two main characters. Both of them are determined individuals so sparks fly. I enjoyed the epilogue featuring their two children. 

I received this book via Netgalley and Mills and Boon in exchange for a honest review. I am a #MillsAndBoonInsider #netgalley. 

Paul & Joe Advent Part 2

I couldn’t add any more photos to my Paul & Joe Advent  Part 1 blog post so this is part 2.

Day 11: a cute little flowery patterned credit card holder. Has three slots, the Paul & Joe tag and metal logo. Useful and adorable. 

Day 13: LE 002 face powder. This is a cool tone brown shade perfect for eyes, contouring or bronzing. The little eyeshadow disc has a cat stamped into the shadow. The disc will be great for travel as it is multi use and is completely flat so will fit anywhere. 

Day 16: mini LE lip gloss (6.4ml) in 006. A clear glittery gloss. Would look good as a lip topper or used on its own. Cute packaging. 

Day 19: Limited Edition hand cream (14ml). Cute packaging, travel friendly and a fresh subtle scent. Non greasy formula. Great size for travel. 

Day 21: face colour in LE 004 which is a sparkly silver shade. The eyeshadow is printed onto the card and a cat is stamped on to it. Just like the other two face colour cards it is travel friendly and it is a multi use powder.

Day 23: pale blue/ cat print refillable lipstick case. I already have a P&J hankie in the same print so very pleased with this!

Day 24: sadly the last door is now open and it’s a LE lippie in 004. This is a great Christmassy/ holiday time reddish orange colour with a satin finish that will suit everyone. It will look great popped in the refillable case I got yesterday.

I loved opening this advent and trying out the items behind each door. I loved the cat artwork and will get the calendar framed to go with the one I purchased 2 years ago. I do think, however, as this advent celebrated the 12 days of Christmas there should have just been 12 numbers/ doors as it was a little disappointing to have fake doors. Overall though the items made up for this and it was well worth the money.

This is the final look I did using as many of the items as possible. The only item I didn’t use was the lip gloss but that could be used as a lip topper over the lipstick. 

Anna Sui: Treatment Coffret Peacock Collection

The Anna Sui Cosmetics Treatment Coffret Peacock Collection (£24) consists of three item. A gorgeous peacock embossed tin which contains a lip balm and hand cream with the same motif.



The tin measures 15(H)x14(W)cm.   I intend to use mine to store minis and freebies and keep it in pride of place on my dressing table.


 The hand cream (40g) has a slight tea rose scent, moisturises and brightens the skin, preventing dark spots. It contains a vitamin C derivative which brightens skin whilst preventing  freckles and dark spots.    I love the way it dispenses the hand cream in the shape of little icing sugar flowers. I decorated my hand with them before rubbing it in!



 The lip balm(5g) also has a subtle tea rose scent, In the pot the balm looks like it is a lovely sheer deep red that would add just a hint of colour to the lips whilst also ensuring that they remain moisturised.  I did find it very moisturising but only got a slight colour payoff.  The balm just made my lips very glossy rather than the reddish gloss that I was expecting.






This is a lovely set. I will probably give the hand cream away as I just do not use it. I will use the tin and lip balm as they are both lovely items.


I purchased this item myself and the views expressed in this blog are my own.
The bauble is a clear turquoise peacock glass Christmas bauble by Gisela Graham (£6.75) here.