According To Gem

UPDATED: Bank Holiday Beauty Blog Sale

*UPDATED* as of 31/10/13 Being the cool kid I am I’ve spent the first half of the bank holiday weekend getting our house neat and tidy. I’ve even finally tackled the mess that was my make up stash which is great news for me as I can now find everything easily and even greater news … Continue reading →

Would you like to write a guest post for According to Gem?

Last night I joined the iFABBO and BlogTrends twitter chat on how to grow your blog readership. For upcoming bloggers I think events such as last night’s are crucial, not only for giving sound advice on blogging but also for networking with fellow bloggers. One of the key discussion points was guest blogging. Personally I … Continue reading →

PR 101: MUA and How Not To Use Social Media

It’s no secret that I am was a huge fan of MUA and their great quality products and cheap and cheerful prices but recently it’s begun looking like their products come with a much bigger cost. I kept relatively quiet during their 50% off sale despite being one of the many, many customers who had payment … Continue reading →

January/February Empties

Last month was crazy busy and as such my blogging took a bit of a battering. Thankfully things seem to have calmed down a bit now and the only things standing in the way of me and blogging is my newly formed keep fit routine and my addiction to Ni No Kuni (36 hours in … Continue reading →

Flat Iron, Soho – My New Favourite Lunching Haunt

Last week I had to head to London for a lunch meeting. Usually I leave it down to someone else to choose where but on this occasion there was no escaping making a decision. It was a tough call. Lucky Chip had just opened Lucky Fried Chicken and I seem to be the only person … Continue reading →

On Cloud Nine 1st Birthday

Behind an unassuming red door off the cobbled high street lives my sanctuary. A place where no matter how hellish my week has been I can sit back for an hour or so and literally feel the stresses and strains melt away. The place I talk of is On Cloud Nine, a luxurious beauty and … Continue reading →

Swatched – MAC Pink Pigeon & Party Parrot vs. MAC Girl About Town & Impassioned

Having sussed out my local MAC counter was one of the only ones left with all the Strength collection lipsticks in stock I hot footed it there for a spot of light swatching. I’d had my eye on Pink Pigeon and Party Parrot and fully expected they would be joining my already bursting collection of … Continue reading →

#FebruaryFitness – Wednesday Weigh In and 5 Fitness Tips

[from Pinterest] My love of alliteration has meant I’ve held off on posting up my current stats until a suitable W related title could be written, thus Wednesday Weigh In was born. *takes a deep breath* So my week 1 body stats are as follows: Weight: 70kg which is around about 11 stone! For years … Continue reading →

My Haircare Amnesty – My Shampoo & Conditioner Spending Ban

It wasn’t until I started having a bit of a clearout at the weekend that I realised just how many half used bottles of shampoo and conditioner I have. So I’ve put myself on a bit of spending ban when it comes to haircare. I mean just how many shampoos does one girl need? The … Continue reading →

Dove Compressed Deodorant* – Do all good things come in small packages?

I have to level with you and say I hardly ever buy aerosol sprays as I’m always conscious of their impact on the environment, but when Bzzagent offered me the chance to try out the new Dove Compressed deodorant for free I was happy to give it a try. At half the size of the standard Dove … Continue reading →

#FebruaryFitness

It’s February and ever the non-traditionalist I’ve decided to kick-start my fitness regime as of today. From this moment onwards, well maybe not right this second, but from today onwards I will be eating clean and hitting the gym more, sharing with you my progress (or lack of!), reviewing some awesome fitness products and writing … Continue reading →

Swatched – Laura Mercier Haul

So I thought it was about time I shared with you a few bits and pieces I got from Laura Mercier recently. The baked eye shadow and the kohl eye pencil were Christmas presents from Mike, which was great as I very nearly bought them whilst I was in San Francisco before Christmas. And the … Continue reading →

Wednesday Wishlist – The Cath Kidston Edition*

When it comes to style I like to think I’m an eclectic mix of retro and modern which is why I’m such a fan of Cath Kidston and her modern twist on classic designs. I am obsessed with retro prints and polka dots, and have been hugely inspired by Cath Kidston prints when designing my … Continue reading →

Swatched – Rimmel Apocalips Lip Lacquer in Stellar, Apocalyptic & Nova

I’m loving Rimmel Apocalips lip lacquer right now. So much so that I just couldn’t help myself from stocking up on another three colours in the Boots 3 for 2 offer. Unfortunately Nude Eclipse was still out of stock in the three Boots stores I looked in so I purchased Stellar, Apocalyptic and Nova instead. I had … Continue reading →

Duped – Nars Orgasm vs. Sleek Rose Gold Blush

Rummaging through my stash at the weekend it struck me how similar Nars Orgasm is to Sleek Rose Gold, in fact the only real difference I can find between the two is the price. Packaging wise they both come in matte black packaging with an internal mirror although the Nars packaging feels a lot more … Continue reading →

Sunday Brunch – Quick & Easy Baked Eggs with Spinach & Bacon

With the new year comes yet another new feature, Sunday Brunch, a weekly feature that’ll bring you what I hope will be great brunch ideas that’ll have you hopping out of bed and into the kitchen. This week it’s all about my favourite style of egg, baked eggs. These little pots of goodness are quick … Continue reading →

What to spend your Boots No7 Vouchers on

To be honest I’d totally forgotten I even had these bad boys until I spotted them this morning whilst tidying the kitchen. In fact if I’m totally honest they nearly ended up in the bin until I realised they’re actually valid until tomorrow. If you shop at Boots I’m almost certain you have some of … Continue reading →

Swatched – Rimmel Apocalips in Luna, Celestial & Big Bang

Yesterday the much hyped Apocalips lip lacquer from Rimmel finally hit the shops. I’d intended to hold off on buying them until Friday when I get paid, but when I spotted Boots were running a 3 for 2 offer on them I thought it’d be rude not to buy a couple of them on the … Continue reading →

Wednesday Wishlist – The Payday Edition

It’s Wednesday and only two more days until payday so I thought I’d show you what I’m planning to buy come Friday. 1. Blog Inc. by Joy Deangdeelert Cho – £9.98 from Amazon. I feel my blog is in a good place right now and want to make sure I keep it moving in the right … Continue reading →

Swatched – MUA Pro-Base Conceal & Brighten Kit in Porcelain

You can probably tell by now that I’m super rubbish when it comes to not spending money. I had every intention of popping into Superdrug purely to pick up some much needed Lemsip during the week. Instead I left with a few new goodies from MUA and a couple of my favourite Simple cleanser which happened … Continue reading →

Swatched – Louise Gray for Topshop Up in the Air Blush Duo & Eye Cream Duo in Wave Machine

So I may have had a sneaky second haul in Topshop. This time I picked up the Up in the Air blush duo and the eye cream duo in Wave Machine, both from the Louise Gray for Topshop collection. Up until now I haven’t been that interested in any of the make-up offerings from Topshop, but … Continue reading →

SportPursuit – My One-Stop Shop for all things Sporty

When it comes to sports I seem to be fairly seasonal, in Summer I love nothing more than to board a boat and sail away for a while, and in the Winter all I want to do is hit the slopes. Which is why when I discovered SportPursuit I thought all my prayers were answered … Continue reading →