LUSH - The Christmas Hedgehog

Firstly, I felt really bad as I squished this little guy under running water, I mean look at those hollow eyes of love and trust.

I would love to say he melted with dignity, in a cloud of bubbles, but no, sadly he did not. He melted slowly, like one of those comical melting snow men. Poor thing.

That aside, this bubble bar is positively lovely! It turned the bath water into the softest feeling bath ever, my skin felt amazing afterwards. It contains organic Shea Butter, which makes your skin SO soft. During the Autumn/Winter my skin complains a lot, especially about shower gels and bubble baths, but this made it feel loads better and really hydrated... I think this is a win for sensitive skin too. I am definitely bookmarking this guy for when I next need to unwind.

It smells subtly floral, there's lavender, ylang-ylang, orange and rose in there, but it's not a heavy overpowering scent and they all blend together really well. Apparently it has the same scent as the Noriko soap they do. If you're not in the mood for one of their really sweet smelling bubble bars, this is definitely a lovely little alternative!

It doesn't turn the bath water a dramatic shade of blue, it's more of a stormy blue/grey colour, and I found mine didn't produce a lot of bubbles compared to The Comforter or Mr Brightside, even though I used the whole hedgehog because I thought it was a bath melt and not a bubble bar. I found that a bit disappointing as I do love a good bubble mountain, but I do wonder if it was because my hedgehog had been exposed to bathroom moisture for a couple of days before use?

In the shop it had hedgehog like spikes, but between the shop and my bathroom they've gotten a little squashed somehow. Which leads me to the issue with its texture, it's prone to 'melting' if you handle it too much. It leaves a little white residue on surfaces, a bit like butter-cream icing, and I think this combined with the heat of the bathroom has caused his spikes to wilt. I'm also not sure what his nose was made from, but it disappeared in the bath before I could investigate!

Have any of you tried the Christmas Hedgehog yet? :-)

Strange Made Me on Facebook!

Hello!!!
I have had a facebook account for Strange Made Me for a few months now, but I've been terrified of people I know reading my blog, even though 175 strangers have subscribed... apparently this doesn't bother me. Go figure. I really should just learn to not give two hoots about what people think.

The link to it is HERE!!! if anyone would like to hop on over and take a like! 

I do have twitter too, which you can find linked in the side bar :0)

<3 Spread the love lil' bloggers <3

Thank you all for just being, you know, so amazing and lovely and for keeping me sane with all your lovely blogs and comments!

*soppy moment*

Alice x

Pumpkin Eyes

Halloween is on Friday! Eeeeek!

Anyway, in the spirit of things, here are my pumpkin eyes. I did these this morning, because everyone was out the house and you know, that's always a good time to sing, dance and dress crazy etc. Although I did hide from the post man as he knocked on the door mid application. *doh*

There's also my lame attempt at some pumpkin lips. I've decided that lip painting is just impractical and a pain in the butt. Although loads of designs I've seen look really awesome, I know I'd smudge them so easily. *sigh*. On the plus side, I actually found a use for the Bellapier lipstick Glossybox sent me a few months ago (you can read about that stuff here! if you like). ;-)

[caption id="attachment_2342" align="aligncenter" width="232"] Excuse my face...[/caption]

Eyes: Collection 2000 Poptastic Pallet  (Yellow [top left], Glitter Green [bottom left] and pink [left middle] for blending) and Warpaint False Lash Effect Mascara.

Lips: Bellapier Lipstick in 'Mandarina' which is basically a perfect pumpkin orange. I also used Rimmel London Soft Khol in 'Jet Black' for the detail, although there are probably loads of better alternatives to use, that was all I had. Painting it on with black eye shadow was too fiddly!

Have you guys been out for Halloween yet? Did you dress up? :-)

If any of you have done some Halloween looks on your blogs, link me below and I will take a look... I'm getting a bit obsessed this year! :-D

Updated Leibster Award! <3

Eeek! This is the third time I have been nominated for the Leibster Award! This time around it was by the LOVELY Imogen at Little Awkward Fox, I absolutely love reading her gorgeous blog (and I know you will too, so go give it a look!)

For those of you who are knew to the whole Leibster Shabister, here are the rules:

1. Display the Liebster Award logo on your blog
2. Thank and link back to the person who has nominated you
3. List 11 facts about yourself
4. Answer the 11 questions they have posted
5. Create 11 questions to ask
6. Choose your own nominations

The 11 facts:

1. I still build things with LEGO.

2. I got my first lipstick aged 6, I swapped my friend a Beanie Baby for it. The lipstick was from a Top of the Pops magazine, silver and glittery.

3. I panic about the silliest of things, but I'm usually pretty calm if the shit hits the fan (Go figure...)

4. I liked cars, LEGO, trains and basically 'boys' toys as a kid, but I did have a special Barbie Anastacia who I still have somewhere. I think I ventured into the realm of Betty Spaghetty too, but somehow never got on with Barbies.

5. I've been writing a 'book' since I was 15. It's turned into 5 and I keep switching between stories, all slightly incomplete. I hope they make sense once day.

6. I hate mint. Toothpaste is the bane of my life.

7. I once touched Captain Maggots bum at a concert. Still haven't washed that hand. *mad laugh*

8. I love World of Warcraft, The Sims(2,3...) and Clash of Clans a little tooooo much.

9. The only school play I've ever played a 'main part' in I sat all the way through picking my nose. I was 4, but even so, I never got a main part again!!!

10. I hate the feeling of wet hair, it makes me feel sick. I usually keep it in a towel too long and then end up with an epic fail quiff.

11. I jumped off the third deck of a boat in Greece and back flopped the sea (one of the most painful experiences ever, I thought I'd broken my neck as I went numb all over). Everyone clapped and thought it was great... I'm now admitting I wasn't being 'cool' I merely stood on the railing to 'judge the situation' and fell. Ah well. B-)

Questions:

1. What do you like to blog about? Probably a little bit of everything. I was very hard in the start to 'stick to a theme' as such. I've managed to keep it beauty themed somehow, although I occasionally get sidetracked and blog other things!

2. What’s the story behind your blog? I got sick and tired of being the clumsy, non-girly girl. I started a job in a warehouse and felt smothered by the atmosphere, I couldn't be me, even on my days off I, so it was like an 'up yours' to that part of my life haha. I've always liked make-up and being creative with it,I've just hidden behind other things.

3. Where are you from? Born 'n' bred in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, UK. I lived in a village called Clipstone which is next door to Sherwood Forest, which is in NOTTINGHAMSHIRE not Nottingham... Just for the record. ;-)

4. What’s your No 1 place to visit? I don't know. I like being by the sea, I'm not really a specific place person, usually I'll go anywhere so long as I'm with people I like. :-)

5. Who inspires you? Again, I have no idea. There are so many, and it depends on my mood as to who I 'go to', although I am obsessed with Helena Bonham Carter, her style, attitude, argh she is amazing. Keith Lemon, for being an offensive and overly daring person and getting away with it. Zoella, for letting me cry over her anxiety vidoes on more than one occasion. Brian Blessed for just being an all over legend... and Jamie Oliver, for adding cheese to everything, my kind of man!

6. What is the one goal you are working towards? World domination, mainly. Ha. If I could be the next J.K. Rowling/ Terry Pratchett Hybrid I would be pretty happy, realistically, I'll just go with a job I like, money to blow and a Mini Cooper.

7. What is your dream bag? Hermione's beaded bag in Harry Potter, the one that fits everything in it. Although saying that, I'd lose my car keys more and that lipstick would be rolling around in the bottom for the rest of eternity.

8. What is your all time favourite book? I've read all of the Edgeworld Chronicles, I think my favourite is The Curse of the Gloamglozer. Apparently I liked Steampunk before I knew it had an official name. *fistpump* so proud of my 11 year old self.

9. Can you speak more than one language? Nope. C'est la Vie! Is all I can manage really.

10. What is currently your favourite song? Lee Brice, 'I don't dance'. But only if I'm in a bla mood. It's my equivalent of a Rom Com. Usually I can listen to most things. SIA, 'Chandelier' has been replayed more times than is healthy this month, for example.

11.  If you could meet anyone in the world who would it be? I have this fear, that if I want to meet someone really badly, they'll either think I'm a crack pot and hate me, or they'll turn out to be jerks and then I wont like them anymore. :-( So I don't know really...

I'm nominating:

<3 Clare's Beauty <3

<3 Mimi's Beauty <3

<3 Sophie Deaks <3

Little LUSH Haul

I was going to say this was a big LUSH haul, but then I got curious and though hmm, what counts as a little, big or huge LUSH haul now days? Apparently, the £22 I spent in LUSH on Friday fits the little category. Seeing how many things some of you guys buy for hauls makes my eyes want to pop out. I mean, ouch on the purse front. (And I was feeling ouch with a £22 splurge).

I was on the hoping there would be the Pumpkin bubble bar, as I fell in love with it last year. But no, sadly it's not around this year! I hope they bring it back next year. :-(

So, these little beauties are what I bought:

Granny Takes A Dip: I've seen a couple of reviews floating around on the internet, so when I saw it was only £3.35 I knew it had to come home with me. It smells like citrus, I'm not the biggest citrus fan but somehow this appeals to my nose. I cannot wait to use this!

The Comforter: This is one of my LUSH staples. If I was only allowed one LUSH thing for the rest of my life, I think this would be it. It's £4.75 but you can easily get 6 uses out of it if you break it up evenly. It smells quite fruity and I know that it produces a lot of bubbles.

The Christmas Hedgehog: Although it's not even November yet, I saw this little guy and I fell in love. He was a bit icky to handle, hold him too long and he starts to melt in your hand, I think his spikes (and that of his fellow hedgehog comrades) had all started to wilt and smush in the heat of the LUSH shop. He smells divine, kind of a floral sweet smell.

Shoot For The Stars: This smells like sweets, but in a really pleasant way. There is a hint of glitter, which I didn't notice until I got home, but I have been assured there will be no incident like the Phoenix Rising bath bomb (which was enough to give me a glitter phobia!) It cost £3.50, which isn't too expensive. It's supposed to last for ages, or so the reviews on LUSH have been saying!

Drummers Drumming: I will admit I only bought this because it looked cool! I mean, who could resist those bells!? It it pink on one side and a garish yellow on the other, kind of reminds me of those refresher sweets in a way. It smells like strawberries and cream and is priced at £5.50. If you twizzle it in your hands it's like one of those noisy toys you used to get in party bags (only with bells)... the ones your parents would confiscate because apparently, repetitive banging is annoying, ha. Not sure what I'll do with the bells after, but I'm really excited to use this!

<3 Thanks for reading! <3

What are you guys loving from LUSH at the moment? Miss anything from last year? :(

Horror Movie Essentials

Today's post is going to be a little different, because the lovely Alex over at Man Crates Gifts for Men has asked if I would do a post on what I would like in a Horror Movie Survival Crate. Man Crates are like a bigger burlier version of Glossybox, Birchbox, Geekbox... you get the idea. They're packed full of awesome 'manly' themed stuff, so if you're in the US/Canada area, go check them out! :-)

I must admit this sounded really easy, until I actually sat down and tried to pull it all together... What do you mean it needs to fit in a crate!? The list I have needs to go into a cargo container!!!

Oh well... I've sat and narrowed it down to these. The list seemed to lean towards mass zombie invasion, but I've tried to make each one appeal to other horror themes.

1. The shoes, Daaaaarling!

No high heels, not even pretty ballet pumps. Going to go all out here and go with Lara Croft style boots. They'll need steel toe caps too, and perhaps a zip rather than damn laces (who even has time for those in today's world!?). Don't want to trip over them bad boys when I'm trying to outrun the zombies or escape the demon possessed house either.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="239" class=" "] Although these do look useful... and fashionable...[/caption]

Plus if all else fails I'm sure the smell of my boots after several days of non stop wear will drive away any suspecting axe murderer or zombie.

2. Herbs, Spices and Garlic!

I figured a whole rack of these would be good for summoning things and warding off the odd vampire or two. Plus the thought of facing bland and boring roadkill after we've been driven out into the middle of nowhere (not a McDonalds in sight!) is rather unappealing.

3. Someone Who Can Use a Sword (and also has a sword!). 

If anyone has seen the Walking Dead, then I'm thinking Michonne, the really cool lady who has attitude and wields a katana against hordes of zombies. I'd like them to be a bit less withdrawn and grumpy though, a cheerful upbeat attitude goes a long way in a horror film, unless it's the kind that is going to get on my nerves and make me want to shove them out the door as zombie bait.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="144"] Ninjas Wanted - Apply Within[/caption]

I came to the conclusion long ago that guns may be good for dealing with things from a distance, but they have too many opportunities to jam, run out of ammo and deal with things quietly.

4. A dynamo torch.

I've been torn between a battery torch and a dynamo torch. On one hand the batteries will run out one day, so go dynamo! On the other hand the only dynamo torches I have ever come across are all quite noisy... not good if I'm in stealth mode...

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="160" class=" "] Fun way to die no. 32: Torch quacks with every squeeze. Making attracting zombies and mass murderers 10x more fun! Quack Quack.[/caption]

5. An Armoured Vehicle.

I guess you can't really cram a huge car into a Man Crate, but perhaps a tiny model one instead? I want a huge armoured car of some sort that I can use to ram down zombies, murderers and monsters without them getting caught in the wheels or smashing through windows. It needs a sunroof too! So Michonne can lean out and chop zombies with her sword. ;-)

6. (Bonus Item) A Clean Pair of Undearwear.

I figured that personal hygiene is an issue in horror films. They never seem to wash (or even go to the loo for that matter...) and so a clean pair of underwear wouldn't go amiss. Especially if you're likely to have an accident at the thought of being munched on, chopped up or possessed.

If you guys were dumped in the middle of a horror film scenario, what things would you want to hand? (I would also love to know why!)

Is there anything you would have added to my list? :-)

<3 Thanks for Reading <3

October Glossybox 2014

Apologies for the photo heavy post but, look what the posty brought me!!! I almost missed it sat underneath a pile of letters. The fact that the postage packaging is decorated and not just the Glossybox got my hopes up. I mean look how COOL that looks. I wont lie, I was hoping that with it being Halloween this month and all, we'd get a spooky themed box, you know, smokey eye shadows, darker colours... nope, BAM in your face pop art. Each to their own I guess...

[caption id="attachment_2296" align="aligncenter" width="300"] I bet the post man felt silly carrying this down the street. Subtle? I think not! :D[/caption]

I have received the yellow Andy Warhol box, there are three other colours out there I believe (let me know which ones you got in the comments!), and it now sits proudly in my saved glossybox box pile. (I have all the special edition ones and use them to organise random things). I actually paid attention this time to the card in the box that gives you a random offer ('Win a Spa Break to Paris') and tells you one item from next months box. Actually looking forward to the Lollypop liner, it looks pretty.



[caption id="attachment_2297" align="aligncenter" width="228"] There's a Lollypop Paris eyeliner in next months box. Interesting...[/caption]

However, here is where I started to bash my head against the wall. Firstly, the box was missing the card thing that tells you what everything is, so ARGH! Secondly, the paper shredding inside was minimal, as in so minimal it offered no protection. I've read of this happening before and people having broken nail varnishes etc, luckily my box and it's contents has survived. This is the first time I've had an issue with poor packaging, so I guess I can let them off. :)

From l-r: Nuxe Paris 24 Hour Hydrating Mask, Ciate Paint Pot in the shade 'Skinny Jeans', Etre Belle Liplift Peel, Yves Rocher Fragrance 'Quelques Notes d'Amour' and my arch enemy Rimmel London BB Cream in Matte 'Light'. There is also a So Susan 'Flutter' mascara, but I somehow missed it out of the group selfie. Doh.

The Nuxe face mask looks good, I'm actually looking forward to using this as my face is a little worse for wear thanks to the central heating. It smells okay and says it's for all skin types, so only time will tell.

This scent really isn't my thing, or at least it will take some time to grow on me... it almost smells a bit spicy and my first thought was that it reminded me of an aftershave my dad used to wear, only a little more fruity and feminine. I dabbed it on my wrist and I keep getting wiffs of it as I type. The longer I wear it the more it changes. This is so weird. Now it smells almost heavy and sweet. I really don't know how I feel about this.

I thought these bottles were supposed to have little bows on them!? I don't know why this makes me so sad, I've been wanting to get my hands on some Ciate polish for ages, but now I'm missing the bow I feel cheated, ha. (There's a Ciate advent calendar too, on a completely different note...) It's a lovely shade of blue, and the title 'Skinny Jeans' sums it up pretty much! I have a feeling I'm going to love this.

Don't shoot me if you love this stuff, but Rimmel London's BB cream is my arch enemy. I can never find a shade to match my skin, and after purchasing two full sized BB creams a while ago, they both seperated after 2 weeks and had that orange tint. I've vowed to steer clear ever since, and then I saw this little guy. I don't know why he's in my box, is it new? Eh. Maybe we'll give it another go, I'm going to sit here and glare at it for the rest of the night, out of the corner of my eye.

Look who turned up late for the group photo. So Susan. I'm not a fan of their concealer quad I received a few Glossyb's ago, so I'm regarding this with caution. It feels quite light weight and 'cheap', just like the quad did. The brush doesn't look special either. It's the brush like bristles and it's just your average wand, no fancy pants technology here. Considering the So Susan concealer quad was pretty expensive for the amount you got, I'm hoping this isn't as dear. *Googles* Hmm, it says $17, what that is in GB£'s I don't know, it can't be far off. Still wouldn't pay that much for mascara. Watch this space though, it could be the next best thing since sliced bread, and waffles of course...

I also got some weird lip peel from Etre Belle (lip PEEL!?). The word peel has made me pretty cautious, going to be doing some extensive Googling before this thing comes anywhere near my lips!

What did you guys get in your Glossybox this month? Was it worth the hype?

Dissappointed with anything? Think I'm being silly for not being so hyped up about this months?

Thanks for reading, this post seems massive haha.  :-) x