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Month: October 2017

Lush Pumpkin Bath Bomb Review

Bath & Body, Bath Bombs, General, Reviews

Lush Pumpkin Bath Bomb Review

Happy Halloween to you all! 👻🍬☺

I hope you all have a lovely and safe Halloween. Like most of us, I’ve outgrown Halloween and frankly, with my work schedule and commitments I don’t really have the time for it. At the beginning of this month I did write a makeup post for those that are celebrating Halloween, Cruelty-free Halloween makeup, and today I want to dedicate this post to those of you that would like to have a relaxed evening for Halloween (or don’t really celebrate).

This is my first post on a bath bomb and it’s also been a while since I’ve used a bath bomb, so I’m generally quite excited to review this product. Just so you know Lush have a whole collection of Halloween themed bath bombs, if you’d like to try out some of the other ones.

Who are Lush?

Most people I know are familiar with the brand, but just in case you don’t know – Lush are an all-round ethical company that are commited to being cruelty-free, vegan and sustainable as possible. The products that they sell are all handmade and smell amazing! With over 100 stores across the U.K, Lush is easily one of the most prominent organic beauty brands.

Pumpkin Bath Bomb

The Lush Pumkin Bath Bomb is of course made with Pumkin Pie perfume with exotic Pimento, Cinnamon Bark Oil and Vanilla. The combination of the oils in the bath bomb give off a soothing sweet and spicy smell – perfect for getting into the Halloween or autumnal spirit.

I bought the bath bomb for £4.25 from the Oxford Street, London Lush store.

Review

Before putting the bath bomb in the tub, I could really smell pumkin more than anything, it smelt more like a pumpkin candy when in solid form. After fizzing out, the combination of the cinnamon and vanilla became more prominent – strangely enough it looked a lot like orange soda/fanta to me.

Once I got into the tub, I was a little overwhelmed with the smells, but after a minute or so it became quite relaxing. I was actually quite surprised at how quickly the oils from the bath bomb started working into my skin, within 10 minutes I could physically see and feel my skin softening up. The bath bomb has a very soothing blend of sweet & spicy smells that work gently on the skin.

I actually forgot about the amount of time that I spent in the tub, if I had to guess then I would say somewhere between 45 minutes to an hour, which I is good sign as it meant that the bath bomb worked well in being relaxing. Surprisingly, the bath bomb didn’t stain my skin or tub, but I did have a quick shower afterwards just in case, after drying down my skin was still just as soft as it was in the tub. This bath bomb is definitely perfect for people that don’t get a lot of time to themselves, it’s great way to unwind and forget about time – loved it! I hope you all enjoyed my Lush Pumpkin Bath Bomb Review. 🙂

Click here to buy Lush’s Halloween range.

Read more bath bomb reviews here. 

10 Vegan Indian Restaurants in London

General, London

Hello everyone!

Happy Diwali & Bandi Chhor Diwas to you all. 🎆🎇✨

One of my favourite things about celebrating Diwali has always been the amazing food and of course spending time with my family.

It’s interesting because India is known as having one of the largest vegetarian populations in the world, as there are such a diverse natural ingredients that are easily available across the nation. And yet, ironically, here in Britian the most famous Indian dishes are non-vegetarian. Each Indian sub-culture has a unique and distinct style of cooking each with their own specialities and of course there are plenty of vegetarian and vegan options – from street food, thalis and main dishes!

There are many Indian restaurants here in London, unfortunately they are not exclusively vegan, but they do cater to vegans. So here’s a list of vegan Indian restaurants in London to help you all celebrate Diwali the vegan way. 😉

10 Vegan Indian Restaurants in London 🍛🇮🇳🇬🇧

1 | Woodlands Restaurants Ⓥ – Are a vegetarian restaurant that mainly serve South Indian dishes, as well as some diverse pan-Indian vegetarian dishes. They cater to vegetarian, vegan, gluten free and Jain (no onion or garlic) diets and have restaurants in Marylebone, Piccadilly, and Hampstead. 

 

2 | Rani Restaurant Ⓥ – Are an authentic vegetarian Gujrati restaurant that cater to vegans and have clearly marked their menu to show dishes that contain dairy, sugar, peanuts, wheat, onions and garlic. Rani Restaurant are based in Finchley. 

 


3 | Dishoom – Although this Bombay Café is not exclusively vegetarian, they have a vegan menu, gluten-free and diary free menu, serving Bombay style cuisine as well as some famous regional dishes from India. Dishoom is has restaurants in Kensington, Shoreditch, King’s Cross, Carnaby and Covent Garden. 

 

 

4 | Sakonis Ⓥ – Are an exclusively vegetarian restaurant specialising in vegetarian dishes from across India with loads of vegan and gluten-free options on their menus. They currently have two restaurants in Wembley and Hatch End. 

 

5 | Sagar Ⓥ – Specialise in cooking traditional South Indian vegetarian food and label which dishes are suitable for vegans and which foods are onion & garlic free on all of their menu’s. Sagar have branches in Covent Garden, Hammersmith, West End and Harrow. 

 

 

6 | Shayona Ⓥ – Are an authentic all-round Indian vegetarian restaurant based in Neasden. It’s not clear from their website, but I’m sure that they are able to make adjustments for vegans.

 

7 | Rangrez – Offer Punjabi cuisine, although they are not a vegetarian restaurant, they offer dishes suitable for vegetarians, vegans and customers requiring gluten-free diet. Rangrez have restaurants in both Hammersmith and Ealing.

 

8 | Kricket – Combine British ingredients with Indian spices to create a modern blend. Kricket is based in Soho, they aren’t exclusively vegetarian or vegan, but they do make adjustments for vegetarians and vegans. On their menu they make it clear which foods are vegetarian and gluten-free.

 

9 | Jashan Ⓥ – Are a vegetarian restaurant based in Wembley, that specialise in South Indian cuisine. Their food does not contain meat or eggs and you can ask about having diary-free dishes to make it vegan.

 

10 | Rasa – Inspired by the traditional cuisine of Northern Kerela, Rasa has two restaurants, one of which serves only vegetarian food (in Stoke Newington) and one that serves meat dishes (in Mayfair).

I hope you all enjoyed my ’10 Vegan Indian Restaurants in London’ post. ☺

Plum Goodness Grape Seed Face Mask Review

Beauty, General, Reviews, Skincare

Today I wanted to share with you all the first review of a series of reviews on some products that I ordered from Plum Goodness.

Who are Plum Goodness?

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Plum Goddness is an online-cosmetic brand, based in India, that was founded by Shankar Prasad in July 2014. The brand is one of the first 100% vegan brands in India that are completely committed to ensuring that their products are ‘safe and good’ – not only are the products cruelty-free but they are also free of parabens, phthalates and SLS. The products are renowned for being both high-quality and affordable.

One of my favourite things that I like about the Plum Goodness brand is that they do not promote any skin whitening products, something that is unfortunately rife in India’s cosmetic industry, and they also keep all aspects of their line as ‘good’ as possible. The products all feature the ‘1% For The Planet’ logo, meaning that Plum Goodness give 1% of their sales to non-profit organizations that are dedicated to protecting the environment.

The Grape Seed & Sea Buckthorn Renaissance Face Mask

The mask is made of kaolin and bentonite clays for a natural cleansing and exfoliation of the skin. The grape seed oil is rich in polyphenols (anti-oxidants), Vitamins D, C, E, flavonoids and essential fatty acids, while the sea buckthorn oil heals skin damage naturally without skin irritation.

The face mask is priced at Rs. 450.00 (Indian rupees) for 75g, which is approximately £5.25 – please do bear in mind that the exchange rate does fluctuate but it shouldn’t make too much of a difference in the price for someone purchasing from abroad.

Review

The first thing that I noticed about the Grape Seed & Sea Buckthorn Renaissance Face Mask was how easy it was to apply. The texture of the face mask is very smooth and slightly creamy, it generally smells very clean and the colour is a natural looking nude peach.

When I applied the face mask I did feel a bit of a tingling sensation, I do have sensitive skin so that is quite a normal reaction for me. After a few moments, the mask felt and smelt quite gentle, I could smell the grape seed oil more than anything else but I must admit that the smell was not overbearing. As mentioned before the recommended time to leave the mask on for is 30 minutes, but surprisingly the mask dried within 10 minutes of application. I left it on for the recommended amount of time, my skin did feel tight once it dried.

After washing off the mask, my skin visibly looked softer and brighter – I felt like I was glowing. Not only had the face mask manage to fade some of my dark blemishes but it also made my skin feel firmer than normal.

So far, I am extremely impressed with the high quality of this face mask, it’s the perfect mask to use to keep your skin looking fresh throughout the autumn weather – I cannot wait to share my review of the other products by Plum Goodness. 😄👌🏽💆🏽‍♀️✨

If you are from India, then you can order directly from the Plum Goodness website. If you live outside of India, then you can order the products by emailing hello@plumgoodness.com

I hope you all enjoyed my Plum Goodness Grape Seed Face Mask review.

 

For more skincare reviews click here. 

Cruelty-free Halloween makeup

Beauty, General, Makeup

Hello everyone,

How are you all?

It’s October so it can only mean one thing – Halloween! 🎃👻

Growing up I used to love Halloween, I guess I’ve outgrown the most of the excitement for it, but seeing all these cruelty-free Halloween makeup collections have definitely got me feeling festive! Some of the things that I still love about Halloween are the Halloween films and all the insanely creative makeup ideas that makeup artists post on instagram – it puts my winged liner skills to shame.

From Makeup Revolution’s amazing collection, NYX’s metallic liquid lipsticks to Barry M’s body glitter there are plenty of looks that you can create with the right kind of makeup, so scroll down and check out my guide to cruelty-free Halloween makeup. ☺

(All of these Halloween makeup products are under £10 each!)

Eyes 👀

1 | Makeup Revolution Midnight Unicorn Palette – £6 – Has 16 eyeshadow shades with a mix of smoky night time shimmer shades as well more bold shimmer shades to create a variety of colourful looks from unicorns, mermaids or even a sugar skull look.

2 | Makeup Revolution Dark Reign Palette – £6 – Has 16 eyeshadow shades, 8 shimmer shades and 8 matte shades to create an intense evil queen look.

3 | Ardell Fright Dragon Lady Halloween Fake Lashes – £5.99 – These extra thick double layered lashes will make a statement in any costume – click on the link to check out the other lashes from Ardell’s Halloween collection.

4 | Sleek Makeup i-Art Precision Liquid Eye Colour – £6.99 – The metallic liquid eye colour is available in 12 shades with a tapered precision tip to create a variety of looks, including the perfect cut crease and is waterproof!

5 | Eylure Enchanted Lashes Mermaids are cool – £5.95 – The thick wispy lashes are perfact to get a dreamy mermaid look or any other look really, they’re quite versatile!

6 | NYX Professional Makeup Vivid Brights Eyeliner – £5.50 – Give your eye makeup a bright pop with the highly pigmented Vivid Brights Liners – they’re available in 9 shades and can be used to pull off any kind of look you’re going for.

Face 💆🏽‍♀️👩🏽

1 | Barry M Fine Glitter Dust Gold Iridescent – £4.59 – Is perfect to use all over; on the eyes, cheeks, lips and even body, you know if you’re really planning to commit to being a unicorn or a glitter ball haha. There are 6 shades of glitter to play around with and have fun with.

2 | Barry M Glitter Rush Body Glitter Snow Globe – £4.59 – Comes in two different shades, Snow Globe and Desert Bronze.

3 | Makeup Revolution Halloween Ghost White Foundation Whitener – £3.00 – Can be used to build coverage to create a ghostly, skeleton or even a zombie look.

 

4 | Makeup Revolution Halloween Special Effects Spectre Palette – £6.00 – The Spectre SFX palette has 8 highly pigmented face paint shades with everything you need to create cuts, scars, bruises, decay and much more.

5 | Makeup Revolution Ghost Sculpt – £4.00 – You can use this duo powder set to create some bold contour looks. You can even get a Makeup Revolution Ghost Face Powder on it’s own if you’re not planning on contouring.

6 | Makeup Revolution Ghost Lights Highlighter – £3.00 – And of course no contour will be complete without a little highlighter!

7 | Lottie London Mermaid Glow – £5.95 – The rainbow highlighter is perfect to add a colourful glow to your unicorn and mermaid looks.

 

Lips 💄💋

1 | Makeup Revolution Vamp Matte Collection – £6.00 – This collection has lipstick shades that you can wear all year round; Beyond Vamp – deep berry red, Give them Darkness – bold dark grey and Ultra Vamp – deep dark purple.

2 | NYX Cosmic Metals Lip Cream – £7.00 – This new lip cream range by NYX is exclusive to Boots and comes in 20 metallic shades, so there are plenty of colours to be creative with!

Hair 💇🏽‍♀️

1 | Pixie Lott Paint Wash Out Hair Colour Sorbet – £5.99 – Pixie Lott’s Hair colour collection is so gorgeous and comes in six pastel colours.

2 | Pixie Lott Paint Wash Out Hair Colouring Pen Pack of 4 – £5.99 – The hair colouring pen pack are great to use for a semi-permanent look that you can wash away.

3 | Superdrug Spray Hair Chalk Purple – £2.59 – Can instantly spray on the hair chalk if you don’t have enough time to use hair dye or hair pens. The hair chalk comes in 5 colours.

Nails 💅🏽

1 | Girls With Attitude False Nails – £3.99-£5.50 – There are plenty of cruelty-free false nails to choose from to complete your halloween looks, from dark berry vamp style nails to holographic and metallic nails.

Extra ✨

Of course no Halloween look is complete without some gory scars and blood

1 | Makeup Revolution Halloween SFX Scar Liquid Latex – £2.00 – Create your own scars, cuts, warts, burns with this SFX Liquid Latex.

2 | Makeup Revolution Halloween SFX Realistic Fake Blood – £2.00 – Can be used on its own or paired with the SFX Scar Liquid Latex to create realistic (and gory) cuts, scars and burns.

I hope you all liked my post on Cruelty-free Halloween makeup – don’t forget to share this post! ☺♥

 

 

 

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