Archive for the ‘Collection 2000’ Category
While we take a short break at Just Nice Things, I thought I’d share a list of personal favourite beauty products of 2012.
In no particular order, here are my most loved ones…
- Urban Decay Smoked palette
Super rich jewel colours and neutrals for the ultimate smoky eye palette. Urban Decay is second to none with their highly pigmented and easy-to-blemd eyeshadows. This is my most go-to palette at the moment.
http://www.just-nice-things.co.uk/2012/12/05/urban-decay-smoked-palette-2/ - Area H20 shampoo and conditioner
Now that I’ve discovered this I don’t think you will be able to drag me to another shampoo and conditioner. My hair is so sensitive to products laden with rich ingredients and Area H20 deals with this problem amazingly.
http://www.just-nice-things.co.uk/2012/11/28/area-h20/ - Bourjois’s Queen Attitude Kohl Kajal
No need to sharpen and easy to slip into my make-up purse, this beauty from Bourjois is a must-have.
http://www.just-nice-things.co.uk/2012/10/26/this-month-im-loving/ - Witch Anti-blemishing Skin Clearing Primer
Primers are mandatory if you value your make-up and Witch’s offering has 2 in 1 properties – preps the skin and keeps blemishes at bay.
http://www.just-nice-things.co.uk/2012/10/25/witch-anti-blemishing-skin-clearing-primer/ - Clarisonic Mia 2
An electric toothbrush for the face, this gadget has gently buffed my face for a clearer complexion and make-up blends and looks so much better. I wonder how I managed without it!
http://www.just-nice-things.co.uk/2012/10/23/clarisonic-mia-2/ - Balance Me Rose Otto hand cream
Made in Britain with organic ingredients, this hand cream has tended to my dry hands throughout winter, keeping them moisturised and conditioned for hours. I keep a tube of this on my desk at work.
http://www.just-nice-things.co.uk/2012/10/03/balance-me-rose-otto-hand-cream/ - Dr Lewinn’s Line Smoothing Complex S8 Super Hydrator
Does exactly what it says on the tin. My skin feels so smooth with a couple of drops of this.
http://www.just-nice-things.co.uk/2012/09/28/dr-lewinns-line-smoothing-complex-s8-super-hydrator/ - 17 Lacquer Liquid Liner
I hadn’t used a liquid liner since I first started wearing make-up and to be honest, I was nervous but this one from 17 is brilliant. So easy to use, gives a vinyl finish and even make-up artist Daniel Sandler was wowed by it.
http://www.just-nice-things.co.uk/2012/09/20/17-lacquer-liquid-liner/ - Clinique High Impact Volume Mascara
The BEST mascara! Big volume for luscious lashes.
http://www.just-nice-things.co.uk/2012/07/18/clinique-high-impact-extreme-volume-mascara/ - Collection Primed & Ready Smoothing Make-Up Primer
Another top primer and at a budget price – you don’t have to splash out for a decent primer.
http://www.just-nice-things.co.uk/2012/08/01/collection-primed-ready-smoothing-make-up-primer/ - Illamasqua’s Neutrals Palette
I used to think a neutral palette of eyeshadows had limitations but you can create a variety of looks for day and night with just a few colours, and you don’t have to spend hours of confusion deciding what shades to choose. Only four shades with Illamasqua’s offering and probably the tamest from them but sure to become a permanent fixture.
http://www.just-nice-things.co.uk/2012/05/01/eotd-with-illamasquas-neutral-palette/ - Bourjois Magic Nail Polish Remover
This pot of magic is brilliant for removing stubborn nail polish and conditioning your nails at the same time and you don’t have to deal with cotton pads clogging up your bin.
http://www.just-nice-things.co.uk/2012/03/27/bourjois-magic-nail-polish-remover/
Do any of these feature in your favourites of 2012? Perhaps you have discovered something else wonderful. If so, let us know by posting below.
It’s fair to say I am hooked on primers. I can’t imagine not using one after I’ve seen what a difference it makes to your make-up. I’ve tried from high-end primers to more affordable ones and this new offering from Collection (who recently dropped the ’2000′) falls into the latter but by no means is inferior.
I must admit when I squeezed the tube, I took one look at the product and thought of Smashbox. You know, that clear, silicon-like gel which felt, well, silicon on your skin? Collection’s primer looks identical in appearance and consistency. I did think Smashbox’s face primer was overrated and overpriced but at the time of its arrival, it was one of the first products on sale. Since then, many more have thankfully leapt onto the bandwagon and come up with far more superior goods.
But any way, back to Collection and I wasn’t feeling confident about using this product but it wouldn’t be fair to write it off without trying it. And I have been for many weeks. Yes, many weeks because I’ve been happily using it. Yes, it is a silicon based product but once you apply it and allow it to absorb into your skin, you’re left with a silky smooth surface to apply your foundation onto - not a silicon feeling surface. Clever, eh? The coverage feels light and I am pleased that it didn’t react with my foundation (I use Illamasqua’s Skin Base).
Coming in at just £5.99 for 100ml, it’s a perfect travel size kit but most importantly it performs extremely well. So it would seem appearances can be deceiving…and Collection have come up with trumps with a superb primer. Now you can’t make excuses for not incorporating one into your make-up routine. Honestly, it’s a steal at under £6!
*PR sample*
A little while ago these Collection 2000 Hot Looks polishes were all over the blogosphere, and true to form, it;s taken me a couple of years to get round to reviewing the one and only one that I have. Named after 80s cult classics such as Button Moon, Dynasty, Wham and Hoola Hoop, the most popular of the range (which I believe is still widely 
available) is this one, BMX Bandit.
I’ve never really tested out much in the way of Collection 2000′s offerings. I know their glitter gel liners are nice but I have to be honest, I generally stroll past the stand in Superdrug. I don’t even really know how this one came my way – I think I bought it when I was putting together some party
bags for a hen do I was organising and selfishly decided that this one was too pretty to give away.
BMX Bandit is a bright and pigmented lavender creme. For a cheap polish, I was really impressed at the coverage that I got from this. This is two coats and I think it looks lush and shiny and all the good things that you want a creme polish to be. It’s certainly bright and eyecatching.
The snob in me isn’t really a fan of the bottle. I don’t like the shape, the handle, the typeface. None of it really. It looks cheap, but then again it IS cheap (£1.79) so I don’t really know what I’m complaining about.
I had to take the photos with a flash on to ensure full colour accuracy. I You can see from the red streaking on the bottle here that this does lean towards the purple side of blue. Sadly, I also think it gives me a touch of the lobster hands. Pretty though, isn’t it?
Helen
