Bean's mum's blog

After my flying leap on Wednesday I have been feeling pretty down and medicating with food so I was extremely relieved when my hubby went to get me my parcel that I missed yesterday and thankfully it wasn't something edible.  It was even better than chocolates, anyone who knows me knows that is an unusual thing for me to say, especially as I am unwell and generally a comfort eater! Enclosed in my parcel  was my Xenca perfection lipstick in cherry and I am totally in love. I received another one of these lipsticks in my first souksouk box in the colour 'spice', more info on this can be found here , and I immediately fell in love with the creamy texture and intense colour of that lipstick and the colour on this lipstick is no different. It is as highly pigmented as spice although it is less neutral and more of a 'statement red' colour. These two lipsticks are from their organic lipstick line and these are made in Italy and they contain sweet almond o...

Well, I managed to injure myself quite badly yesterday after I fell over something my toddler left on the floor so I needed to pamper myself. I decided to do the second mask from this month's glossybox and it is the Peel Off Passion mask by Montague that contains pomegranate and Passion flower. It takes a while to dry but I love love love the smell. To me it smells like tropical fruit and I really love the smell. It smelled really nice and there was more than enough for my whole face. Apologise for my hair but with my current injury I am in bed most of the time as it hurts so much. When applied it looks very red and a bit like you have a nasty illness, which is fitting at the moment as I am ill.  It came off quite easily once it started to be pulled off but when it was removed it left my skin feeling clean and refreshed. In my opinion for £1.09 it was excellent value and I would definitely buy it again. Hope you having a good day. If you enjoyed ...

Anyone who has read my glossybox review from this month will have seen that I got a faulty puffy the eye bag slayer and I was going to contact them. Well I did and in reply they apologised and said they would send me a replacement and today I received my replacement product. They also sent me a little sorry card and a Murad clarifying mask. I received one the last time I had a faulty product and I am ever so happy to have another as I really like it. I also get two more chances to try the eye bag slayers and see if they can make any difference the other two times. Thank you glossybox for your prompt treatment and I am really happy with the response and speed of postage. x-J-x

I woke yesterday feeling like I had been slapped. I had very little sleep the night before as my insomnia hit and being an inspiring author I have my characters in my head and that night one of them wanted me to write.  It has been a while since NANOWRIMO in November and since then I have had minor burnout but last night the brother of the main characters in the first book wanted out. Sorry, I sound crazy and I regress. Back to my skin. The following day my skin felt very angry and the spot on my nose seemed to be gathering supporters in the 'make Jane's skin feel like it has been attacked by sandpaper' camp. My skin felt worse than it has in years. So I went about my normal business, using a new cleanser in the morning and evening last night but otherwise my skin routine was as normal. So, I woke this morning, expecting to be mistaken as sand paper again but instead my skin feels softer than it has in years. The spot on my nose has finally stopped tryi...

My second degustabox has arrived today and I am extremely excited. I really loved my December box and I hope this ones as exciting as the last one. As before the box has brown paper in it and thankful no polystyrene bullets or paper 'worms' that Edward can spread all over my house as he does with my beauty boxes. So what is in my box? The first item is two packets of Goody Good Stuff sweeties. I have had these before in other food boxes and really like them. These sweets are gelatin free, fat free, dairy free, gluten free and have all natural colours and flavours. I got them in Tropical fruit and sour mix and match. I really look forward to eating these and one packet was opened when they arrived and sadly Edward, mr savoury generally, likes them too as might have to hide them when he isn't looking. These are worth £3 for the two packs. The second item is the Zico coconut water chocolate. I really love coconut water and drank it a ...

I can't believe that January is almost already gone. Last year flew by and it looks like this will be the same if January is any indication. Sometimes I worry about that. My son is so little at the moment but he is growing ever so fast and every day he gets more language or learns new skill.  Anyway, off I drift off again. I apologise for lapses of attention but my momma head is on at the moment. It's January 2014 (wow 2014) empties. The first of my empties this month is a product the company has discontinued as it was limited edition and this has made me very sad. This is the Yves Rocher Collection cacao Cocoa & raspberry perfumed shower gel.  Both scents are equally represented, with the chocolate being a definite undertone to me. This makes me hungry for chocolate, potentially dangerous if, like me, you are trying to lose weight. I have been using this for Edward's baths and one of the best ways to get him into the bath, if he is be...

Greenland sent me some products to review this week and I am very happy to write this review as the products they sent me are incredible.  Free or purchased for cash by myself, I will always offer my honest opinion, bad or good, and like to be able to recommend with a clear conscience. Greenland are a company that are dedicated to producing bath and body products that are based on natural and organic ingredients. For me this gives me extra assurance as both me and my son do seem to get mild allergies to some chemicals in products and as well as that both Paul and I suffering from mild eczema.  I knew very little about this brand prior to receiving the products and doing this review so that the products could 'talk for themselves'. The first product I received was the Pure & White certified organic BODYlotion VITALIZING lime & vanilla. First thing I noticed with this product, obviously, is the packaging and the way it is applied. It is a pump applicat...

Take one scary, tired mom. Add a product I got in this months glossybox by anatomicals. Add product to scary eye bags for half an hour, then take another picture... Cheeeese. ... And poof. Thirty minutes of YouTube watching later.. I see no real difference. Don't know whether it is only me it hasn't worked for but my eye bags are still nasty and the slayer makes my eyes feel a little more refreshed but that is all.  I love the anatomicals no bags allowed cream as it is very soothing but I don't think I would buy these patches again as £2 is a lot per use and I would expect more. Sorry mr anatomicals but that is my view. Maybe they can tell me if I did them wrong and someone can point out where it went wrong. Maybe I am a cheapskate for two pounds and no effect but things are as they are. Thanks for reading. I hope you are having a lovely day. x-J-x

People always ask me which box I recommend and I always answer honestly but to be honest it is hard to answer as every person wants something different from beauty boxes as we are all, thankfully, different.  So, instead, this month I have decided to give quick round up pictures and basic descriptions of the five boxes. Also included links to the review of the box.  First is my least expensive at £6.95 and this is the youbeautydiscovery box. I didn't get a total for this box but it was probably worth at least double the box cost. It tends to be really good value every month, although this has been my least favourite month so far. Also included this month was a foil sample and a sample of pop chips. You Beauty jan link Next is my glossybox box. Not included in this pic is one eye bag slayer, that burst, and 50ml of balanceMe super toning body wash. Contents worth around £16. Glossybox Jan link This is my Souksouk box. It was my first box by th...

At the beginning of the week I ordered some chocolates from Hotel Chocolat and the following day they arrived. They had a 70% off sale on at that point so they were substantial less than normal and I also found a code for free delivery on the money saving expert forum so it was double saving. I only ordered three items but they were in a beautiful box and for only £10.65.  On the left is a packet of eight tiddly reindeers in 40% milk chocolate! these have a best before date of July so they will probably be regifted to Paul for his 43rd birthday in April. In the middle is the Classic Christmas Selection that contains twenty six chocolates and this item is for me instead of my quarterly fortified selection next month as this was a fraction of the price as it was heavily discounted. The final item, on the right, is a a mince pies & milk selection pack. This has 80g of pralines with salted caramel and white chocolate truffles. These are likely to be...

I am my mothers child... Hardly a surprising fact but one none the less. When I grew up my mother loved a bargain and I am exactly the same. Auntie Bitty says my grandma was the same. For me the words 'sale', 'bargain' or 'free' are beacons, but if you have read my blog a bit you can tell that. Something for nothing is even better. I have recently signed up to be a bzzagent again and a few days ago I was offered my first campaign. I will be sent two free compressed deodorants and I am really excited as bzz campaigns used to be lots of fun when I did them years ago. Can't wait. If you want to join too more info can be found Here  and as it is free to join and potentially you get free stuff for only giving your truthful opinion on free stuff and doing surveys. A great thing if you like a bargain like me. x-J-x

My dotcomgiftshop sale order came yesterday but I missed it, as I was at the in laws, so Paul ran off to collect it this morning, while Edward stayed behind and mugged my poor teddy bears.  I got some jewellery from this online site as it was 90% off the rrp and I wanted some fashion jewellery to wear day to day to cheer me up and I love a bargain so I thought why not.  So what did I get, how much did it cost and what was it like? The first order I received was the Montana cluster necklace for £2.29. When worn it dips down into the bust line with a pronounced V of beads. It is really funky with an assortment of beads in an assortment of colours. A real statement piece and a great bargain for the price. I particularly love the rose beads away from the main beads as they are so feminine and delicate.  I would definitely purchase again and have wore this today and really love it. The next item I ordered was the pink mini crystals necklace for £1....