Clicking with Clinique

One of the first premium brands I ever used when my passion for beauty things started many moons ago was Clinique, more specifically their 3-step skin care system and their mascaras. Unfortunately the skin care products didn't seem to do anything for my skin at the time, and I soon found other mascara favorites so except for fragrances it's been a loooong time since I bought anything from Clinique - that is at least up until a few weeks ago. This season Clinique has launched some beautiful makeup which is why I found myself a sunny morning at the Clinique counter in Boots planning on treating myself to one of their gorgeous Cheek Pop Blushes, but you know what they say about best laid plans so instead I ended up trying (and buying... how did THAT happen?!) a few other products and here's a sneak peak at what I bought - more detailed reviews will follow.

I was never really interested in BB Creams but I'm much more curious about CCs and DDs - feel as if I'm talking about bra sizes here.., so when the extremely helpful assistant suggested that I try the Clinique Moisture Surge CC Cream Colour Corrector (£28) I jumped at the chance. The CC cream is intended to increase radiance while it also adds intense hydration, the color correction evens out your skin tone and it has a built in SPF30, which is always an extra bonus. The cream feels very light on the skin and so far I'm very impressed with the color it gives and the wear.

Another product I had wanted to try ever since it was released is the Clinique Bottom Lash Mascara (£12) and since at the moment I have quite a few volumising mascaras with monster brushes that work fine for the upper lashes but almost always make a mess when I apply on the bottom lashes I have a great excuse for getting it. I haven't tried the mascara yet but I'm very excited to see if it lives up to its excellent reputation. I quite unexpectedly ended up with a couple of chubby sticks as well; to all beauty junkies joy there are so many lovely lip crayons in all price ranges and colors available on the high street to choose from, and I have tried quite a lot of them but never the original Clinique Chubby Stick Lip Balm (£17) which of course is a gap in my chubby stick knowledge that I had to fix, so when I saw the beautiful shade Mighty Mimosa I just had to get it even though it is a bit more expensive than other great lip crayons. The formula seems lovely and nourishing and the color Mighty Mimosa is a beautiful sheer light peachy pink, just perfect for a natural summer look (a color swatch is available here on my Instagram). It's not just pretty colors that are sure to draw me in, anything that's slightly unusual automatically catches my eyes which is what happened with the Clinique Chubby Stick Shadow Tint for Eyes (£17) in Whopping Willow. I've tried this formula before and know that it's easy to work with and wears very well throughout the day, but even if I hadn't tried it before I would have bought it anyway because of the unusual color. Whopping Willow is a light golden straw green (have a look at a swatch on my Instagram) and since I've got a bit of a tan at the moment it is perfect for highlighting my eyes. I didn't get the Cheek Pop Blush that I originally was after, but instead I've rediscovered Clinique and since we've definitely clicked there will be many other opportunities to get that!

100 000 Pageviews - Sephora giveaway

When I started blogging last July I wasn't really sure where it was going to take me and although I didn't exactly set myself any targets I had some very modest hopes about getting a few followers and pageviews. I never in a million years expected that a day would come when I would be thrilled to announce that I've reached more than 100 000 pageviews, which for me is a massive milestone. I couldn't have done any of this without the amazing support from YOU. As cheesy as it sounds I can't thank you enough for every visit, comment, tweet or e-mail from you and I'm so genuinely and deeply grateful for all the fantastic encouragement that you always give me. To celebrate I've got a giveaway of Sephora products for one lucky winner. The giveaway is open for international entries, and will close at midnight on March 29, and I'll notify the winner via e-mail within 24 hrs after the giveaway has closed.

Let's have a look at what's included in the prize. First up is a Sephora shadow-and-liner palette, called Miami Vibes No 11 which contains 4 long lasting eye shadows and a matte eyeliner. The colors of the eye shadows are called Golden Beige, Turqoise Blue, Hawaiian Beach and Deep Blue and the eyeliner is Dark Brown. This is one of those painting by numbers palettes and at the back are instructions on how to create two different looks - one natural, and one intense using these shades. It's a lovely warm and range of colors which will look lovely for spring and summer.

Next up is a matte long lasting blusher with moisturising ingredients that not only defines the cheeks and gives a lovely healthy glow, but also helps to make your skin look fresh and hydrated. This is in the shade Romantic Rose No 10, and it's a lovely golden peachy pink that would work with most skin tones. The last product is an nice and creamy ultra vinyl lipstick pencil for a glossy look, in the shade Miami Pink No 05 which is a juicy genuine romantic pink with a bit of a shimmer and it feels lovely and moisturising on the lips.

Again a big thank you to everyone for all the amazing support and for every comment that you leave that brightens my day. Good luck to everyone who enters and have a wonderful weekend!

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