Good customer service/bad customer service

The good... Lush

I love visiting the Lush store in Leeds. The last time I visited was a couple of weeks ago, and there was a chap handing out free samples outside the store. I got my hands on a little pot of moisturiser which I was really pleased about.

Once inside I fancied having a browse and didn't really need any help. I was approached almost immediately and promptly left alone when I said I was just having a browse.

I fancied trying out one of the facial soap bars and decided I did need some help after all! I looked around and there were at least 3 free people so I asked the nearest lady to help me.

She was so helpful and informative. She asked me lots of questions about my skin and then advised me on the best product. She had tried this particular product herself and told me what she thought of it, and she knew nearly every single ingredient off by heart and what each ingredient could do for my skin. I was very impressed.

I said I wasn't sure how my skin would react so she offered to give me a small slice of the soap to try for free. That way I could purchase it if it worked well for me.

She told me to pop back in and let them know how it worked for me.

I didn't buy anything but I was still made to feel like a valued customer and I left feeling very happy with my 2 samples, which of course I would purchase if I liked them.

The bad... MAC

I visited the MAC counter in Harvey Nichols in Leeds a couple of days ago as I wanted to pick out a couple of lipsticks to put on my Christmas list.

I tried a couple out on my hand and decided I really really liked one of the colours on my hand.. but I couldn't remember the name of the lipstick!

I spent the next 10 minutes swatching every single lipstick again that I thought it could be but none matched. I should point out by this point not one single person had approached me to ask if I needed help or even to say 'hi'.

I tried to catch someones eye but no, they were either with a customer or wandering about trying to look busy.

I decided to have another go at trying to figure it out for myself, as I really wanted this lipstick and I had convinced myself I was going to buy it there and then. All I needed was a member of staff to help me!

I had one last go at standing by the lipstick stand and looking at every staff member to indicate that I needed some help.

Nope.. nothing..

So I left, empty handed.

This isn't the first time I have tried to buy something at MAC and not been given the time of day.

This is the reason why I only own one MAC item.

What are your experiences with both of these brands?

xxx
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Lola plots her escape

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Lee Stafford: Matt Fat powder

I am always on the look out for hair products that I haven't tried before. When I saw Hele produce a little pink pot from her handbag recently I was intrigued and it turned out it was this! Lee Stafford's Matt Fat powder.

It was £8.99 which seems quite a lot for this tiny little pot but I really wanted to try it. I must also point out that when I got home I realised it was only half full, so I went back to Boots to swap it but it turns out the other 10 on the shelf were all the same! It is meant to be half full! Quite disappointing.

It is a powder designed to give more volume to the root and can also absorb excess oil too. All you have to do is shake a little bit of powder into your roots, salt shaker style, and use your fingers to create the desired effect.

The first time I used this, I used a lot. And when I touched my roots I nearly died. It felt reeeeally dry! When I tried to achieve some volume I ended up with a birds nest at the top and sleek hair the rest of the way. I don't think that look is going to catch on :)

Since then I have got used to how much I need and how to get the desired effect. This product is great for giving me a little bit of lift at the root, as I don't like to have too much volume.

I have yet to find a dry shampoo that I like so this product will also be good for when my roots feel a tad greasy.

Have you tried this or anything similar?

xxx
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Photo of the day & George nail varnish

This was me before work this morning. I tied my hair up and twisted a section down the front to keep my fringe out of my eyes. I like having my hair tied up and out of my face but sometimes it can feel a bit boring. I would love to do a french plait down the front but unfortunately I am not so skilled in the french plait department!

I went for simple makeup: Estee Lauder Double Wear foundation, a tiny bit of Maybelline Pure Cover mineral concealer under my eyes, a little bit of Benefit Thrrrob, and a coat of Maybelline Lash Stiletto mascara. Simples! I usually don't wear a lot of makeup for work, mainly due to lack of time in the morning!

I picked up a couple of nail polishes in Asda last night as I was doing the weekly shop. At £1.50 I thought I would give them a try plus they had a great range of shades! Today I wore number 36 which is 'Smog'.

I have wanted a colour like this for ages and it is perfect! Cheap price, great consistency, it glides on a treat, and even without a base coat or a top coat today (lazy nail painter) it didn't chip or peel away.

The other colour I got was a lilac colour which I will show you soon. Have you ever popped a couple of these in your trolley?

xxx
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Share the Love!

Lipstick and Lollipops is definitely one of the prettiest blogs that I follow. It is jam packed full of girlie stuff and product reviews. It is clear and easy to read which I think is very important.

Cheryl is gorgeous and her photos/swatches are really good!

A really girly blog with a mix of posts. Also, how cute is the blog header! :)

Hayley is stunning and I love her blog. She only has 15 followers which is an outrage so go check it out!

Ella's blog is lovely. There is a mix of shopping trips, FOTDs and reviews. Plus she is gorgeous too!

Lovely, girly blog with detailed posts, and she has the cutest dog!

Before I discovered the world of beauty blogs I regularly read a couple of fashion blogs and they deserve a mention. You may already follow them but if you don't, go subscribe!

Audrey's outfits inspire me a hell of a lot, although I could never look as stylish as she does! She has a gorgeous figure, looks amazing in everything and manages to find so many charity shop bargains. She is the sort of girl I would like to go shopping with!

Frances is a very funny girl. She manages to make a jumpsuit look stylish as opposed to me who looks like a bag of spuds in one! Great outfits and again, she finds a lot of vintage bargains!

Thanks for reading.

xxx
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Holiday favourites

During my stay in Gibraltar I had to use my sisters toiletries as we only took hand luggage so we couldn't carry big liquids. I must say it was great not waiting by the carousel wondering whether my suitcase had made it too!

I used 3 products which I loved and wanted to share with you.

First up is Loreal De-maq expert- Elixir Concentrate Ultra Make-up Remover. Wow, that is a mouthful! This stuff is FANTASTIC for removing makeup, even my Double Wear foundation which is usually a pain to shift. It can be used on the eyes and lips too so it is really good for removing mascara and lipstick.


The next thing I used was a Molton Brown bodywash - re-charge black pepper. This stuff smells divine and is for men and women which is pretty cool. It is a tad pricey at £16.00 but I might just have to treat myself to some. I love Molton Brown products!

When styling my hair I would use a generous dollop of Tigi Catwalk - Fashionista which I distributed evenly through my wet hair. This stuff was great at giving me smooth and sleek hair and made blow drying really easy.


Do you use any of these products?
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Disclaimer

Last week my Mum received one of those random email 'forwards', you all know the ones I mean. They usually have a funny story and some cute photos. Well, on this particularly email amongst the cute photos of some animals were 2 photos of my dogs!

I was very confused.

I don't for one second think any of my subscribes have been nicking my photos. It is most likely from a google image search. So for that reason I will be writing my blog name on all future photos.

If for any reason you would like to use one of my photos, that is absolutely fine, as long as you ask me first.

Lots of love,

xxx
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Bon voyage!

I was lucky enough to be invited to the Maybelline event tomorrow, which means I won't get back until late tomorrow evening. Then on Friday (at 6am!) I fly off to visit my Sister - who is living in Gibralter for 6 months. I will be there for 4 days so things will be a little quiet on the blogging front until I get back on Monday.

If I can stay awake long enough tomorrow night I will do a quick post about the event, but if not I will post about it (and my holiday) when I get back.

Lots of love,

xxx
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Pixie Lott

I love her style. Blazers, hot pants, bangles, stripes, crazy sunglasses, lots of blonde hair, plaits and head scarves...

 
All photos found through a Google image search
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Garnier Pure Active moisturiser & The Body Shop Seaweed range

As I blogged about here, I was sent some products from the Garnier Pure Active range and I tried them all out.

The range worked really well for my skin for quite a while and my skin was relatively blemish free and generally looked/felt really good.

But.. my skin gradually started to go back to its usual ways and the routine stopped being as effective.

After attending the event for The Body Shop I decided to try out the Seaweed range which I was given and I have been using it all (cleanser, toner, face wash and face mask) apart from the moisturiser which I tried a couple of times and didn't really like.

After 2 weeks of using the Garnier Pure Active moisturiser day and night, alongside my routine with the Seaweed range from The Body Shop, I am seeing and feeling really good results! I love the way the moisturiser sinks right into my skin and it is fine to use on a morning before makeup. It has really improved the appearance of my skin.

I particularly like the Seaweed mask which scared me the first time I used it because it made my face tingle and sting like crazy, but it leaves my skin feeling really smooth and clean after I use it.

I am going to continue using the Seaweed range and the Garnier moisturiser and I will report back in a few weeks time!


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Ready for my close up



xxx
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Outfit of the day: Illamasqua event

This is moi before the Illamasqua event on Friday. My hair looked ok before I got drenched in the rain! I wore The Body Shop 'neon pink' lipstick again, it's my fave :)


I wore my Barbara Hulinicki top, which I blogged about here, with a little black vest underneath, Topshop jeans and my tall chestnut Ugg boots.


And then I threw on a cardigan and was good to go!

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Illamasqua event - Manchester

As some of you know, Illamasqua held two events this week; one in London and one in Manchester. I was invited to the Manchester event which took place yesterday evening. The events were both centered around the new Dystopia collection which you can read all about on the Illamasqua website.

I headed over to Manchester with Hele and Holly and before the event we had time to do a bit of shopping and makeup browsing! I picked up a lovely tshirt from Zara which I will blog about seperately.

The relaxing afternoon took a turn for the worst when I witnessed a man stealing a woman's handbag while we were having a drink in Starbucks. I shot out of my seat as soon as I realised what had happened but by this point the 'tea-leaf' had looked round, noticed we had all noticed and started to run away!

Next thing I know, me, Hele and Holly are running after him into Next! We even blocked the exits so he couldn't escape!

Kind of like this....

He must have legged it out of the back entrance of the store as we couldn't find him, and the poor lady didn't get her handbag back. But we did our best for her! :(

The event itself was really good and I had such an enjoyable evening!

The venue, Ithaca, was gorgeous and on our arrival we got an interesting looking cocktail which went down a treat after our hectic crime-fighting antics! There were makeup samples on the tables for us to look at. I particularly liked the bright pink lipstick. Also the food was SO yummy and there was plenty of it. Lots of sushi and oriental -style food, and lots more alcohol!

Alex Box and Jen aka MizzWorthy after having her makeup done

Alex spoke to us about the new Dystopia range which is a "futuristic vision of a fractured and dark society. A world of broken shadows and stark light. A distorted, nightmarish, mad reality". To read a little bit more about Alex, click here.

The lovely Kelly

There were also 2 ladies who spoke to us about The Sophie Lancaster Foundation, one of which was Sophie's mum, and it was very moving to hear. You can read all about the foundation if you click here. Please do! Sophie was brutally attacked and killed just for looking "different". The foundation has been set up to stamp out hatred and also to make people more tolerant and accepting, and not to judge on appearance.

Finishing the evening off with huge ice cream sundaes at Hard Rock Cafe :)

Thanks to the Illamasqua team for a great event! I love the concept of the brand and the staff were a really friendly and welcoming team.

xxx
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This and that..

I was tagged by Makeup and Madness to do this tag, so here I go!

Galaxy or Dairy Milk??

Dairy Milk, preferably the Turkish Delight one :)

Coke or Pepsi??

Either, as long as it is diet

Tesco or Asda??

I honestly have no preference! I will shop anywhere that happens to be the most convenient, Tesco, Asda, Morrisons, even Aldi! :O

Mascara or Lipgloss??

Mascara

Cat or Dog??

Dog of course! Although I love cats too and my parents have 3 cute cats. Take a look at Tufty. He is the man!!

He obviously can't read the sign :)

Twilight or True Blood??

Twilight. Never seen True Blood. EEK!

Summer or Winter??

Winter. I love winter clothes as opposed to summery ones, and I love Christmas!

Edward or Jacob??

Team Edward! haha

TV or Films??

Films. I much prefer going to the cinema and I don't watch much tv.

Texts or Phone Calls??

Texts. If I can avoid a phone conversation I will.

Twitter or Facebook??

Twitter. I used to love Facebook but lately I have thought about deleting it. 90% of the people on my friends list are people I don't want to speak to/they don't want to speak to me! Seems a bit silly.

Beach or City??

Beach. For definite! My idea of a fab holiday is sitting on a beach for 2 weeks, reading, sunbathing and paddling in the sea. No sightseeing for me! lol.

I tag anyone!

xxx
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Love etc


I LOVE this! It smells divine. I urge you to go have a spritz when it is available at The Body Shop.

I would never normally think of TBS when buying a new fragrance and I normally tend to stick to what I know.. Vera Wang Princess mainly.. but this is a definite contender for my daily scent. The 30ml is perfect to pop in my handbag!

Depending on price, I would repurchase this and it would also make a great gift I think! I like the whole 'love' concept and the packaging is really cute too.

EDIT: You guys might be interested to hear that the Love etc fragrance is released next week! And if you would like to register for a money off voucher you can do so at:- www.releasetheforceoflove.com

Get clicking!
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Share the love!

I stumbled upon this blog the other day and I instantly loved it because... I spotted Pugs!! :)

But that isn't the only reason I 'followed'. The blog is weight loss related and I am majorly into weight loss blogs and videos at the moment. I find it really interesting to hear about peoples progress and see what methods people use to lose weight and get fit.

This particular blog, by Sarah aka MissSarahLou, is one of my new favourites. The progress in the sidebar is so interesting and informative, and I love the pedicure reward idea. Genius!

Go check it out!

xxx
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