The Weekend Post #1: Bookworm

I wanted to start a new series of posts and as I was scribbling down some ideas I came across ViviannaDoesMakeup's blog and noticed she does a ' The Weekend Post' which is when she just writes about things shes been doing in the week, etc... so I thought I would do it too, as I've seen a few other blogs with the idea as well. So I hope you enjoy!

Over the past few weeks, I really have been enjoying a quiet night just sat reading. Which is unusual for me as I usually can't spend more than 10 minutes without some kind of electrical thing within my grasp, but one of my New Year's resolutions was to read more, so I've been giving it a go.


The Hunger Games are an amazing series of books, I began reading the first book in the sequel when it was first released and it took me about 5 months to read (yes, I did say I wasn't the best at sitting down and actually reading) but once I'd finished it I couldn't stop and just wanted to carry on.

The book I've been reading this week is A Perfect Death by Kate Ellis.  Kate Ellis is a murder mystery author and I have previously read one of her other books (Kissing The Demons) which was a fantastic story that had me on edge almost every second. I see a lot of people on Instagram posting pictures of their recent reads and I've managed to make a list of books I would like to read:

The perks of being a wallflower- Stephen Chbosky
The fault in our stars- John Green
Looking for Alaska- John Green
A cursed inheritance- Kate Ellis
Wreck this journal- Keri Smith

I know that wreck this journal isn't really a 'book' but I still want it nonetheless.

What books have you been enjoying lately?

xxx

The Notes: Instagram #1

Follow me on Instagram @Theperksofbeingamyy: Which to polish? | RND 2013 | Mini Eggs | About to start new book | Some sneaky purchases | A few old favourites | New blog post | Rimmel Apocalips | Moustache socks | Sisters top | Primark socks | Shopping stash

Gelly Nails | Barry M Gelly Hi-Shine Nail Paint | Review

Barry M have recently released a new selection of colours in their Gelly Hi-Shine Nail Paint range, their whole collection consists of muted down nudes, pastels and bright eye-popping shades. Since they released this collection, sleek, glossy, wet-look nails have the been incredibly popular. Me being me I picked up; prickly pear, a lovely lilac shade. I never actually owned a shade like this before (which is hard to believe considering the amount of nail polish I own).

Barry M Gelly Nail Paint (Prickly Pear) £3.99

They apply like a dream and all I need you need is two coats, or one if your pretty heavy handed like me sometimes. As far as longevity goes they are pretty good and don't tend to chip easily, so I don't usually bother with clear top coat, however I sometimes like to add a clear top coat (just in case). They are really cheap for only £3.99 each and fantastic for if you're on a budget! Overall I am really impressed with these polishes and would love to try some more their shades. Barry M are one of my favourite nail polish brands but I don't think anything would beat my love for Essie.

Do you own any shades from the Gelly Hi-Shine range? What do you think of them?

L'Oreal GlamShine Stain Splash | Review

I've been eyeing this beauty up since it first arrived in my local Boots and I've been putting it off for a little while now, but today I finally caved and ended up buying one.

I've heard these are a drugstore dupe for the YSL Glossy Stains (which I have still yet to try) and because I've been lusting after the YSL ones for ages now, so I thought these would be good to try to see if I'm a fan or not.

They feel quite watery but also creamy at the same time, and apply on your lips evenly too. Even with just one application they leave a subtle gloss that stains your lips at the same time, so even when the gloss has worn off, your lips still won't be bare. (And just to point out the gloss doesn't last long.)

These retail for £7.99 which I personally think is a little over priced considering they aren't incredibly pigmented, however their ability to stain is great. They have a slight berry scent which I find quite nice as opposed to the sickly plastic smell that some lip products acquire.

I think the packaging is quite elegant-looking and I think it looks a lot more expensive than it actually is. Overall, I really enjoy using this product and will most likely be buying more very soon...

What do you think of these? Will you be trying any soon?

xxx

Soap & Glory Sugar Crush Body Butter Cream | Review

Soap & Glory Sugar Crush Body Butter Cream £10.50 available from Boots

It's not long since everyone was raving about Soap & Glory's Sugar Crush Body Wash, which I have not yet tried but when this beauty was released I simply couldn't resist. This sweet-smelling body butter cream has a whipped cream-like consistency that feels luxurious when it's melting into your skin. But the best thing about this product is the scent, its a blend of kiwi fruit water, lime tree blossom extracts and coconut oil which all together smell heavenly. It's easy to apply and doesn't take for ever to sink into your skin, so it's the perfect thing to use after a long soak in the bath.

It also contains almond oil, shea butter and coconut butter which when combined together are the perfect combination for healthy, supple and glowing skin. I would definitely recommend getting your hands on this for Spring, as it's fresh and fruity fragrance is sure to brighten up any day!

The zesty lemon and lime fragrance with a brown sugar sweet twist lingers on your skin even once its been absorbed into your skin, it's the perfect Spring/Summer body butter cream to help keep your skin lovely and soft.

What do you think of the Soap & Glory Sugar Crush range?

xxx

The Wishlist | March

As most beauty-bloggers out there will know how dangerous these kind of blog post's can be, especially to your bank balance, but I have promised I am going to save my money up now for a big shopping spree. Anyway here's a selection of products I've been lusting over.


 
        


       

Topshop Burnout Tee

I am and always will be a lover of Topshop clothing, every time I go in I can never seem to resist the urge and usually end up leaving with a bag or two... But I'm trying to save more so unfortunately I had to resist and put this top back the other day. ARghh I want it soo much!

Zara Shopper With Braided Handles

Believe it or not, I actually don't own a handbag from Zara, in fact I haven't bought a new handbag since..well I really can't remember. So when I was flitting through their website I came across this lovely and at £39.99 I wouldn't say no.

Burts Bee's Almond Milk Hand Cream

I've had my eye on this ever since EssieButton mentioned it in one of her videos and it hasn't left my wishlist since then, the only thing thats been putting me off is the price, £10 for hand cream, I just can't seem to spend that much money just on hand cream, but it would be marvellous if someone bought it for me though..hint hint.

L'Oreal Rouge Caresse Lipstick

My lip product drawer is overfull as I speak but one can never have enough lipsticks..ever. Enough said.

Vera Wang Lovestruck Floral Rush Perfume

The original Lovestruck fragrance was never really my cup of tea, I went through stages of liking it but it never made it's way into my shopping basket somehow. The design of the bottle is really pretty, not very handbag-friendly but it would look nice on my dressing table. I really do prefer the scent of this one compared to the original though.

Maybelline Rocket Volume Express Mascara

I almost bought this at the weekend but whenever I get close to picking it up a voice in my head keeps saying 'no Amy, you have enough mascara already' so I end up re-placing it on the stand and walk away. And yes I do have too many mascara's on the go at the moment so once I've got some used up I may just buy this.

What products are you craving for?

xxx

New | Models Own Fruit Pastel Collection

Models Own are always on the ball with new new releases, and this collection is right up my street. You're probably thinking, 'well Models Own have plenty of pastel shades already' but these beauties are different. Each bottle has it's own little retro scratch 'n' sniff label and have fruity names too. Some may find this a bit of a gimmick but I'm very curious to see what these are actually like. I love a good pastel nail polish so I'll definitely be heading off to my local Boots to pick one or two of these beauties up when they hit the shelves.

The five nail polishes names are (in order L-R on the picture) Strawberry Tart, Apple Pie, Banana Split, Blueberry Muffin and Grape Juice.

This fantastic collection will be available from the Westfield Bottle shop on the 9th of March, online on the Models Own website from 20th of March and available in Boots stores from 22nd of March. Models Own have recently released the Neon Ice collection which consists of  a number of neon shades which maintain their boldness by being kept in the fridge! Yes their bottles are specially designed frosted bottles, I've never actually come across this before even though I own a huge amount of nail polish and as a matter of fact I surprisingly don't own any neon shades so I may be picking one or two of those up too! Head over to their website (found here) to keep up to date with their latest releases.

What do you think of these pastel nail polishes?

xxx