17 COSMETICS REVIEW

Hi all! First of all I wanted to let you all know that I am back up and running with a new computer, so blogging will resume as normal as soon as I have all the programmes I need installed. For now though I have enough to do a few pots this week and hopefully get back into the swing of things having gone a few weeks without my usual 'schedule'. 

This post is a little random, but I've been buying quite a lot of make up from the 17 cosmetics line in Boots lately and wanted to share my thoughts on some of the items I've picked up. This is in no way a sponsored post of any sort. I bought all these with my own money over the past couple of weeks, and simply wanted to talk about them on here. I think the thing with 17 is that it's affordable, and is quite 'on trend' at the minute what with it's colour selections etc. I started going there for nail polishes as an alternative to Barry M as I seem to already own all the colours my local one stocks and I have a bit of a nail polish habit. Now I always take a look when I need any other make up items, and in the past few days have picked up a mascara, eye liner and lip stain.

Clockwise from top left: Chaperone, Mint Choc Chip, Sweet Kisses, Orange Soda, Forever. £2.99 each at Boots.

The nail polishes I have are all from the Lasting Fix line, designed to be chip resistant and, well, last. The formula of these is very similar to that of Barry M; creamy in consistency, good colour pay off after 2 coats and easy to work with. As you can see I'm starting to build up a little collection, and will probably go to these more than my Barry M ones! I think there is currently an offer on these where you get two for £4, so if you're thinking of trying them, now's the time! I'm currently wearing Sweet Kisses, a gorgeous lilac toned pink, and it has lasted almost 4 days with only a tiny amount of chipping, which is good in my books!

Left to right: Berry Crush Lip Stain in Cherry Berry - £4.99, Va Va Voom Volume Mascara in Black - £4.00, Liquid Liner in Black - £3.99

My latest venture to Boots was to buy some make up to compliment my new hair colour. As the colour I have gone is a little strawberry toned (I'm working on this with purple shampoo by John Frieda, thanks for all the recommendations! Will post an updated hair care routine in the next week or so!), pink lip colours and blushes don't look quite right, and I wanted to define my eyes more too. I saw that the new Va Va Voom mascara was on offer, so went for that, and a new liquid liner after being less than impressed with Barry M's felt tip 'In A Wink' version.

I've always been one to delve in and out of experimenting with winged eyeliner, but never really stuck to it when I started. I think that with my hair colour being so light, I need to define my eyes a lot more rather than other areas such as my face or lips so I'm getting back into wearing liquid liner. I used to be a huge fan of Rimmel's Glam Eyes Liner, but when I saw how fine the brush of this one was I snapped it up. I struggle doing a winged out flick, and this applicator means I get it right (almost) every time. I can start with a faint line and build it up where need be, plus the colour is really strong. I've had this on all day and it hasn't budged, so for £3.99 this is a great product at a great price.

I'm not really that into mascaras. I know some people like to splurge on the more expensive ones for better results, but I'm more of a lipstick fan when it comes to pricier products. Mascara for me is something I buy when I start to run out, and I pick up something that is maybe new or on offer. Rarely do I re-purchase a mascara, purely because I personally feel they all do pretty much the same thing. I saw this one on an introductory offer at £4 and took a look at the brush. I love fat brushes like this one as they remind me of Benefit's Bad Gal that I used to love but never got round to re-buying. I've had this for about a week now and I'm really enjoying using this. It has been through a lot in a week including tears and very heavy rain, and has stayed put through all, and this isn't even the waterproof version! I'm very impressed, and this may just be the first mascara I actually stick to and continue to use. Oh, and I love the packaging! I think they should re brand the rest of their products in this style as it really catches your eye at the make up stands.

Lastly I picked up one of the Lips Stains in a deep raspberry red called Cherry Berry. This is my first foray into lip stains and after hearing good things about this one i decided to give it a go. The colour I went for is quite deep, and not quite right with my current hair shade, but once I get lighter I think this will perfect for a pop of colour. This is double ended, one with a clear lip balm to moisturise your lips before application, and the other is the felt tip applicator. I've only tried this out for a few minutes and haven't worn it for any period of time as of yet, but so far I'm really happy with this. It's easy to apply, has a really nice finish and is really lightweight on the lips. I love the colour but think I will try a lighter shade for day to day wear as this is more suited for night.

Phew! Sorry for rambling on for so long, but I really wanted to share with you how nice all these products were and at such great prices. I often disregarded 17 when cosmetic shopping, but with all the new products and great colour ranges, I'll definitely be taking a closer look and trying out more of the items.

Have you bought anything from 17 recently? What are your thoughts on the products?