ahampshirelife, Author at A Hampshire Life

ahampshirelife / November 30, 2018

Ultimate Christmas Gift Guide (Part 1)

Have you started your Christmas shopping yet? I absolutely love shopping for gifts for my loved ones this time of year, and there’s nothing like a good Christmas Gift Guide to get the inspiration flowing. I love reading these types of blog posts so here’s my version for 2018, grab your gingerbread latte and have a browse….

For the ladies

Molton Brown Muddled Plum Body Wash £24

Accessorize Rainbow Stripe Blanket Scarf £20

Diptyque Sapin de Lumiere Scented Candle £30-£53

Hush Printed Pyjama Shirt £59

Hush Printed Pyjama Bottoms £55

Next Faux Fur Tartan Slippers £16

For the Beauty Lover

Bobbi Brown Party Glow Eye and Lip Palette

Elemis Skin Radiance Christmas Collection

Pixi Glow Skintreats Besties £28

Bobbi Brown Party Glow Eye & Lip Palette £26

Elemis Skin Radiance Christmas Collection £59

Spacemasks £15

Liberty London The Sleep Kit £59.50

Urban Decay Naked Cherry Palette £42

For the Personal Touch

Next Alphabet Mug £5

M&S Alphabet Cushion £12

Oliver Bonas Alphabet Embroidered Wash Bag £24

Sophia Victoria Joy Best Friend Print £48

Anthropologie Monogram Stocking £36

Stanley and Maud Rose Gold Mini Necklace £35

I hope that’s given you some ideas and inspiration, Part 2 will be coming in the next couple of days so keep a look out for that if you’re struggling what to buy the man or kids in your life…

ahampshirelife / November 19, 2018

Best Of The Beauty Advent Calendars 2018

Love it or hate it, Christmas is almost here. I’m not embarrassed one bit to say I go completely Christmas crazy this time of year, and have been watching all the calendars being released with eagle eyes.

I’m not sure I could bring myself to spend hundreds on a calendar, but if anyone wants to buy me one I certainly wouldn’t complain. However I do love them and have put together a list of my top 5 favourite ones this year.

The Space NK Advent Calendar – £250

This one is hands down my favourite one this year. I love that there are a variety of brands in there, often a lot of these products aren’t usually available in mini sizes so its the perfect one if you fancy trying lots of different products. With brands such as Nars, Drunk Elephant, Sunday Riley, Dr Dennis Gross plus so many more, it’s a skincare lovers dream. Granted it is a little pricey at £250, however if you add up the cost of the products it comes to £600.

Charlotte Tilbury Beauty Advent Calendar – £150

This one is one of the most beautifully designed Calendars, a gorgeous treat to open one of the doors every morning. However its worth noting that this is for 12 days and not 24. But none the less a gorgeous treat for the 12 day countdown to Christmas.

John Lewis Advent Calendar – £165

A luxurious option from John Lewis featuring some new and iconic beauty brands. With 25 full and trial size products from the likes of Clarins, Charlotte Tilbury, Aveda, Elemis, this is a lovely treat every day in the festive season. In addition to the products, several brands have included invites to receive a complimentary treat or service at one of their John Lewis in store counters.

L’Occitane Advent Calendar – £49

This is definitely one of the calendars at the lower end of the budget, but still with 24 bestselling L’Occitane products to look forward to and with a luxuriously bright design. With the products worth £85, this one is well worth the pre Christmas treat.

Marks and Spencer Beauty and Make Up Advent Calendar – £35 (if you spend £35 in store)

Marks and Spencer always impress me with their offers and this one did not disappoint. With over £280 worth of iconic products inside, you can pick this up for the bargain price of £35, as long as you are spending £35 in store. 24 doors of luxury treats to open in the count down to Christmas for that price, I might just convince myself to buy one… This one is sold out online but I have seen it still available in store.

ahampshirelife / November 16, 2018

Budget Beauty – Nivea Q10 Plus C Day Cream and Skin Sleep Cream

You don’t always need to spend the big bucks when it comes to skincare. There are plenty of options out there that won’t make you wince when you hand over your credit card. Personally I love trying out new skincare, I’m a self confessed skincare addict so I was really excited to try out the Nivea Q10 plus C range.

I’ve tried Nivea creams lots of times over the years, I remember being a little girl and seeing the iconic blue Nivea tub on my mums dressing table.

The main thing that tempted me to buy these was not only the price, but the fact it advertised for ‘tired skin’. I’ll give anything a go that says it can fix my tired skin. I picked these two up in Boots when they were on offer for 2 for £14 a couple of months ago, so considering they are usually £12.99 each I thought that was a pretty good deal.

NIVEA Q10 plus Vitamin C Anti-Wrinkle + Energy Face Cream SPF 15

This day cream promotes to visibly reduce signs of fatigue by alleviating first wrinkles and fine lines, and to give fresh and energised looking skin. Now I’m probably well past the ‘first signs of fine lines’ stage in my life so I didn’t expect miracles with that side of things, but it certainly is a nice cream to apply. My make up went on well and it has a pleasant smell to it, which I think is important within a product. It also has an SPF15 which is adequate for me this time of year, I’ve mentioned this before but I tend not to use a face cream if there isn’t any SPF in it.

NIVEA Q10 plus Vitamin C Sleep Face Cream, Anti-Wrinkle + Energy

I loved the packaging on this one, I know it shouldn’t matter but I’m a sucker to a product when I like how it looks! This one promised to awaken the skin, and boy do I need that (thanks kids!). I also like that it has Vitamin C in which is a great antioxidant for boosting Collagen and brightening skin.

Overall both nice smelling products, didn’t mess with my skin or cause breakouts, plus with both products under £15 in Boots you can’t really go wrong.

ahampshirelife / October 19, 2018

In Love With Leopard

It doesn’t matter where you look or which shop you walk into at the moment, leopard print is everywhere. It’s a bit like marmite isn’t it, you either love it or hate it. Personally I love it….if it’s not too in your face, I even have a whole Pinterest board dedicated to it! Over the years it’s become a bit of a fashion staple… up there with the Breton stripe.

With my birthday coming up soon I’d be over the moon if the Russell & Bromley Big Star Sneakers turned up…. a bit pricey but I can imagine wearing these for years to come. I’ve also found a slightly more reasonably priced pair from Dune here.

It’s the perfect print to jazz up an autumn outfit, and with so much of it around I’ve put together a little guide to my favourite items out there… enjoy!

ahampshirelife / October 8, 2018

Skincare Review – Pixi Glow Tonic & Retinol Tonic

Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock these past few years you will probably have heard the hype around Pixi’s amazing Glow Tonic. It retails at £18 for 250ml, (you can pick up a smaller 100ml travel size bottle for £10) and has won numerous awards earning it cult status in the beauty world.

I first picked this up around 2 years ago to add into my skincare routine instead of my usual toner. Now I had previously used other exfoliating toner products, so my skin was used to a bit of glycolic acid but I needn’t have worried as this really is a gentle product, suitable for most skin types. I love the fact that this is alcohol free too.

Glow tonic has a 5% acid formula which helps to exfoliate and purify the skin, meaning healthy new skin cells can come to the forefront. The ginseng improves circulation within the skin and then Aloe Vera to help soothe any irritation and hydrate.

I’ve been using this for a long time now, both morning and evening after cleansing. It’s such an easy way of performing an affordable at home treatment for skin resurfacing, gentle enough to use everyday. Simply apply on a cotton pad and sweep across your face area and down onto your décolletage, avoiding the eye area.

A glycolic acid really does make a difference to your skincare routine, I notice it more so when I’m not using it. My skin just doesn’t feel as ‘clean’ or ‘new’. Something I have been really keen on trying alongside this is Pixi’s new Retinol Tonic. It retails at the same price as the Glow Tonic and contains a unique time release Retinol. I have only used this for a few weeks in my evening routine so it’s still early days, but already I can tell I love it.

As with the glow tonic, it’s a really gentle formula but still packing a punch with powerful ingredients to help rejuvenate the skin and smooth the complexion, this time with jasmine flower to help heal and balance.

I’ve always been a fan of Pixi and my skin reacts well to any products I tend to try from them, I’m a big fan of the double cleanse and I think next on the list to try will be masks. What’s your favourite Pixi product? Let me know in the comments.