Clinique 'Secret Seven' Day 5!

This week Clinique have been offering treats with purchases made online now we're in the month of December and it is Christmas (ish) - I'm still not feeling Christmassy, maybe because I still have so much to do before I'm even starting to get ready.

Today is day 5, and with that comes a free 4ml Happy Fragrance with every order! Whilst this isn't as wowing as previous days offers, it is still a lovely fragrance, and a nice little treat if you had your eye on something, but weren't planning on spending too much online.

Apologies for the lack of normal posting at the moment, my laptop keyboard is actually being a pain in my backside as a couple of keys have come off that are making typing a total nightmare. I got them back on last time it happened, but this time they're not doing so, so I'm taking it on Monday to have somebody with the correct tools do it for me.

In the mean time, happy shopping. x

This post originated at www.thebeautyscoop.co.uk

Clinique 'Secret Seven' Day 4!

This week Clinique have been offering treats with purchases made online, I'm a bit behind times with this due to net connection issues and email woes, which has meant that I haven't been getting through my emails as quickly as I'd like due to a massive backlog, so have only posted today and yesterday;s.

Today is day 4 and with that comes a free 'All I Want For Christmas' gift, worth over £26 with an online purchase of £30 or over (today only)! This is the perfect time to buy that product that you've had your eye on, or restock products that are running low.

I think the gift looks absolutely lovely today, but I'd actually be tempted to use the gift set as a mini stocking filler gift, if I couldn't find much use for it myself, yet still needed to stock up on my Clinique favourites. It's almost guilt free spending, as it means you're also tackling the Christmas gift shopping list too. ;-)

This post originated at www.thebeautyscoop.co.uk

Clinique 'Secret Seven' Day 3!

This week Clinique have been offering treats with purchases made online, I'm a bit behind times with this due to net connection issues and email woes, which has meant that I haven't been getting through my emails as quickly as I'd like due to a massive backlog, so have only noticed this promotion from today.

Today is day 3 and with that comes 'Five Gold Treats', which gives you the option to select 5 mini products with your online purchase (today only)! This is the perfect time to buy that product that you've had your eye on, or restock products that are running low.

I'd actually be tempted to use the 5 free gifts as a mini stocking filler gift by putting them in fancy packaging. It's almost guilt free spending, if you're also tackling the Christmas gift shopping list too. ;-)

"TODAY receive Five Gold Treats Free* with every online order

Choose from:

High Impact Mascara 4g
Moisture Surge Overnight Mask Mini
All About Eyes 5ml
7 Day Scrub Rinse Off Formula 7ml
Almost Lipstick Black Honey 1.2g
NEW Repairwear Uplifting Firming Cream 7ml
Moisture Surge Intense Mini
M-Gel Lotion 15ml

*One per client. While stocks last."

Take me to the booty!

This post originated at www.thebeautyscoop.co.uk

It's Breast Cancer Awareness Month - Fabulous Products for a Worthy Cause!

October is not only known for the start of the cold weather, and the run up to Christmas, but also for being Breast Cancer Awareness Month, a month dedicated to raising both money, and awareness for breast cancer charities.

Breast cancer affects so many lives, with almost 50,000 people being diagnosed every year in the UK alone, which equates to 1 person every 10 minutes. Just over 12,000 of those people die from the disease. Thankfully, survival rates are improving, thanks to early detection and improved treatment; but we’re not there yet, and a lot more research needs to be done, to further improve survival rates, and also to look into ways of preventing breast cancer developing in the first place.

This is why it’s so important to carry on raising money and awareness, and why I always like to blog about the fantastic products available throughout October that are donating money to the cause. As a consumer, it’s a win-win since not only do you get something to wear/use/keep; you’re also donating to a worthy cause at the same time. Guilt-free spending.

So without further ado, here are some of the goodies that you can get your hands on, right now!

1. Ciaté Duo Nail Varnish Set, RRP £18.00 - 20% donation to Breakthrough Breast Cancer

Available from Ciate.co.uk, Selfridges.com and Qvcuk.com

2. Debenhams Pink Sequins Giftcard - Any amount can be put on. Part of Debenhams’ Think Pink range with a 10% charity donation, which will be split 45% to Breakthrough Breast Cancer, 45% to Breast Cancer Campaign and 10% to Pink Ribbon Foundation

Available in Debenhams stores nationwide and online at www.debenhams.com

3. ghd Pink Cherry Blossom Limited Edition Styler, RRP £129.00 - £10 donation to Breakthrough Breast Cancer.

Available in the selected salons nationwide and at www.ghdhair.com

4. ghd Pink Cherry Blossom Limited Edition air Hairdryer, RRP £99.00 - £10 donation to Breakthrough Breast Cancer.

Available in selected salons nationwide and at www.ghdhair.com

5. Elemis Think Pink Beauty Kit, £32.50 (includes £70.50 worth of Elemis products) - Designed exclusively for Breast Cancer Awareness month this October, Elemis continues its support of Breast Cancer Care by creating the Think Pink Beauty Kit and pledging £10,000 to help continue their incredible work that offers support and information to anyone who is affected by breast cancer.

Available from Time To Spa

6. Fake Bake Breast Cancer Awareness Gift Set, RRP £26.95 - £1 from each sale will go to Breakthrough Breast Cancer. 3 Fake Bake products: Flawless self-tan, tinted body glow, lip gloss, application mitt and application gloves

Available at www.fakebake.co.uk

7. Clinique Pink with a Purpose Set (including chubby stick in limited edition shade ‘plumped up pink’), RRP £16 – £2 will go to THE BREAST CANCER RESEARCH FOUNDATION® (£1 from Clinique and £1 Boots/ Selfridges) from every purchase of this limited edition set sold in the UK. €4 will go to THE CANCER CLINICAL RESEARCH TRUST (€2 from Clinique and €2 from Boots / Brown Thomas) from every purchase of this limited edition set sold in the Republic of Ireland.

Donation during October 2012 from Clinique counters at Selfridges, Brown Thomas and Boots nationwide and www.clinique.co.uk while stocks last

8. Avon 2012 Magenta pin, RRP £1.50 - 100% donation to Breakthrough Breast Cancer

Available from your local Independent Avon Representative or online at www.avonshop.co.uk

9. Avon Nail File, RRP £1.50 - 25% donation to Breakthrough Breast Cancer

Available from your local Independent Avon Representative or online at www.avonshop.co.uk

1. Marks & Spencer Limited Collection Bow Satin Wrap, RRP £17.50 - 10% donation to Breakthrough Breast Cancer.

Available at Marks & Spencer stores nationwide and www.marksandspencer.com
Stockist Information 0845 609 0200

2. Marks & Spencer Limited Collection Pink and Black Bra, Padded RRP £17.50/DD+ not padded RRP £17.50/Post surgery RRP £17.50- 10% donation to Breakthrough Breast Cancer.

Available at Marks & Spencer stores nationwide and www.marksandspencer.com
Stockist Information 0845 609 0200

Marks & Spencer Limited Collection Pink and Black Brief, RRP £7.50 - 10% donation to Breakthrough Breast Cancer.

Available at Marks & Spencer stores nationwide and www.marksandspencer.com
Stockist Information 0845 609 0200

Marks & Spencer Limited Collection Pink and Black Thong, RRP £7.50 - 10% donation to Breakthrough Breast Cancer.

Available at Marks & Spencer stores nationwide and www.marksandspencer.com
Stockist Information 0845 609 0200

3. Marks & Spencer Woman High Impact Zip Fronted Bra, RRP £22.50 - 10% donation to Breakthrough Breast Cancer.

Available at Marks & Spencer stores nationwide and www.marksandspencer.com
Stockist Information 0845 609 0200

4. Evans Bed Socks – 2 pairs, RRP £6.00 - 10% donation to Breakthrough Breast Cancer.

Available at Evans stores

5. adidas Pink Ribbon Fleece - pink, RRP £40.00 - 10% donation to Breakthrough Breast Cancer.

Available in JJB and Littlewoods stores and online at www.jjbsports.com, www.littlewoods.com, www.very.co.uk, www.sweatshop.co.uk

6. adidas Pink Ribbon Women’s Track Pants, RRP £40.00 - 10% donation to Breakthrough Breast Cancer.

Available in JJB and Littlewoods stores and online at www.jjbsports.com, www.littlewoods.com, www.very.co.uk, www.sweatshop.co.uk

7. Marks & Spencer Breast Cancer Awareness Bracelet, RRP £19.50 - 10% donation to Breakthrough Breast Cancer.

Available at Marks & Spencer stores nationwide and www.marksandspencer.com
Stockist Information 0845 609 0200

8. Stella & Dot Hope bracelet in rose gold, RRP £25.00 - Net proceeds from the sale of this Hope bracelet will go to Breakthrough Breast Cancer.

For more information please see www.stelladot.co.uk or speak to a Stella & Dot stylist

9. Stella & Dot Luna wrap bracelet in rose gold, RRP £95.00 - Net proceeds from the sale of this Luna wrap bracelet will go to Breakthrough Breast Cancer.

For more information please see www.stelladot.co.uk or speak to a Stella & Dot stylist

10. PANDORA Murano glass pink ribbon charm, RRP £30.00 - 20% donation up to £100,000.

Available in all PANDORA stores

11. Debenhams Red Herring Curly Rose Fur Mittens, RRP £12.00 - Part of Debenhams’ Think Pink range with a 10% charity donation, which will be split 45% to Breakthrough Breast Cancer, 45% to Breast Cancer Campaign and 10% to Pink Ribbon Foundation.

Available in Debenhams stores nationwide and online at www.debenhams.com

12. Debenhams Red Herring Curly Rose Fur Cossack, RRP £18.00 - Part of Debenhams’ Think Pink range with a 10% charity donation, which will be split 45% to Breakthrough Breast Cancer, 45% to Breast Cancer Campaign and 10% to Pink Ribbon Foundation.

Available in Debenhams stores nationwide and online at www.debenhams.com

13. Debenhams Red Herring Curly Rose Fur Earmuff, RRP £10.00 - Part of Debenhams’ Think Pink range with a 10% charity donation, which will be split 45% to Breakthrough Breast Cancer, 45% to Breast Cancer Campaign and 10% to Pink Ribbon Foundation.

Available in Debenhams stores nationwide and online at www.debenhams.com

14. Coast Siara dress, RRP £135.00 - 10% donation to Breakthrough Breast Cancer.

Available from all Coast stores.

Annnnnd, if you're not into any of the beauty/fashion offerings, you can always eat/drink your donation to the cause:

Left - PROPERCORN Fiery Worcester Sauce & Sun Dried Tomato (other flavours available), RRP 95p - 10% donation to Breakthrough Breast Cancer.

Available at all good food stores, including Waitrose, Whole Foods Market and Harvey Nichols

Right - bottlepink Pomegranate & Elderflower cordial, RRP £3.15 - 10% donation to Breakthrough Breast Cancer.

Available in food and drink stores nationwide.


Finally, whilst the campaign is heavily signified by the colour pink, we should not forget that breast cancer also affects men, although rare (approximately 300+ men per year), so I'm going to be actively encouraging Mr Beauty Scoop to get involved in the cause... by buying me a few of the goodies available. ;-)

This post originated at www.thebeautyscoop.co.uk

Clinique Summer Skincare Offer!

Hello my lovelies, long time no blog. Apologies for the lack of posts, our internet has been majorly broken; it still is, actually - but I'm trying to get by on my mobile internet connection at the moment, which isn't great but at least I am online... just about!

Anyway, an email in my inbox caught my eye just now (which is lucky, since it is currently bulging at the seams due to the lack of access I've had lately) about this lovely little offer from Clinique!

Basically, the offer is that with any 2 purchases (online or in store at a counter), you can get your hands on a cute little skincare set that will allow you to trial a few Clinique products designed to help combat a specific skin complaint. There are 5 'concern kits' available to choose from including:

Concern Kit - DE-AGING
Enter Offer Code DEAGE at checkout on www.clinique.co.uk
Contents:
Repairwear Intensive Eye, 5ml
Repairwear Laser Focus Wrinkle & UV Damage Corrector, 7ml
Repairwear Uplifting Firming Cream, 15ml

Concern Kit - UNEVEN SKIN TONE
Enter Offer Code UNEVEN at checkout on www.clinique.co.uk
Contents:
All About Eyes, 5ml
Even Better Skin Tone Correcting Lotion SPF 20, 15ml
7 Day Scrub Cream Rinse-off Formula, 30ml

Concern Kit - ANTI-BLEMISH
Enter Offer Code BLEMISH at checkout on www.clinique.co.uk
Contents:
Anti-Blemish Solutions Cleansing Bar, 50g
Anti-Blemish Solutions Clearing Moisturizer, 15ml
Anti-Blemish Solutions Clarifying Lotion, 60ml

Concern Kit - RADIANCE
Enter Offer Code RADIANCE at checkout on www.clinique.co.uk
Contents:
Turnaround Instant Facial, 15ml
Turnaround Overnight Moisturizer, 15ml
Turnaround Concentrate Radiance Renewer, 7ml

Concern Kit -PORES
Enter Offer Code PORES at checkout on www.clinique.co.uk

Contents:
Pore Refining Solutions Correcting Serum, 10ml Pump
Pore Refining Solutions Instant Perfector in Invisible Bright, 7ml
Pore Refining Solutions Stay-Matte Hydrator, 15ml

This is a great way to try out products without having to commit to buying a full sized, full priced one and risk wasting your money if you find it doesn't agree with your skin - especially if you were already planning on purchasing products from Clinique.

It's also a great way to get travel sized versions of your favourite products to take away with you, if you're lucky enough to be off on your jollies soon!

Available at clinique.co.uk and Clinique counters right now, and the offer runs until August 2nd 2012.

One per client, whilst stocks last.

This post originated at www.thebeautyscoop.co.uk

Clinique Mascara Trade In Is BACK!

It's back, the fabulous Clinique mascara trade in is coming again. It's available exclusively at Debenhams (nationwide) from 14th until 20th May 2012 and all you need to do to take part in this offer, is take an old mascara in (any brand), and ask to swap it for a deluxe sample tube of either Clinique High Impact Mascara or High Lengths Mascara.

I love these 'try before you buy' offers, especially when you can get decent sample sizes, just for trading in an older and possibly mankier (?) product that you'd have otherwise thrown in the bin. It's a bit like a mascara amnesty, if you will, haha.

This is a great offer, especially if you've already been dying to try out any of these mascaras - but even if you haven't, it's a good way to try them and see if they work for you, without having to spend the full RRP on them.

I must admit, I've never been disappointed with a Clinique mascara, but products work differently from person to person, and I absolutely love that Clinique have the confidence in their products to do this - it's an offer not to be missed.

As to be expected, terms and conditions do apply:

1 per customer, subject to availability and no purchase is necessary!

Not available with any other offer.

This post originated at www.thebeautyscoop.co.uk

Clinique Happy In Bloom Perfume for 2012!

Every year, Clinique's Happy In Bloom fragrance gets a new look, and this year sees a bold, bright floral pattern adorning the glass bottle that looks lovely. Nothing says spring quite like the reintroduction of bright colours, and the hint of fresh flowers; and Clinique's newly designed packaging for Happy In Bloom 2012 is a fabulous mix of both.

The fragrance is described as a 'fresh, frosty floral fragrance that opens up with notes of yellow plum, a cocktail of frozen fruit, and watery green notes for a crisp introduction. Notes of lily of the valley, white freesia and a mimosa accord from the original Happy, lend a tactile nuance of petals. Transparent amber and white wood provide depth with a natural feminine softness.', and the Limited Edition 30ml spray will be available at Clinique counters from February 1st, priced at £25.

Clinique Quickliner For Eyes Intense - Swatched!

A good eyeliner can make a huge difference in how your eyes look, and in turn how your whole face look too, and these Quickliner Intense eyeliners from Clinique are great. They apply brilliantly, no dragging and no repeat swiping to get the colour to show - the swatches below show just one fairly light swipe across my skin (I did it this way as I wouldn't use a heavy hand around the eye area).

Once on, they stay put, even on the waterline so you don't have to worry about panda eyes mid-way through the night (if panda eyes came in different colours) and I found there was no reapplication needed either - win win.

The bottom swatch is the shade 'Intense Midnight' (if I remember correctly) a beautiful blue with just a hint of dazzle, and the top colour, I'm afraid I can't even partially remember the shade name, this is because I left some of my make-up that I had been wearing over Christmas at a relatives so I can't check it out at the moment, but I'll be sure to update once the post delivers it back to me. Anyway it's a gorgeous green with a sprinkly of sparkle that really enhances eyes, but can still be done in a subtle way if you're not a big fan of bold eyes.

Another plus point to these liners is that they come in twist up packaging, meaning no pencil sharpener is requiredonce you've worn it down - I much prefer my lining products to come like this as I can generally never find my pencil sharpener, and also you end up playing the risky game of sharpener roulette, 'will it sharpen or will it ruin your pencil?' - a game that quite frankly, I am rubbish at. I lose track of the amount of pencils I have in my drawer that I can't face trying to resharpen, or that have already fallen foul of my sharpening errors.

I really love these, and will definitely be repurchasing once I've used these up - they're a complete bargain at £13.50 each too, well worth every penny.

http://www.selfridges.com


PR Samples -  Views are my own!

Kiss It Better With Clinique & Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity

Clinique are again joining forces with Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity for the 5th year running to raise money to fund research and into the causes and treatment of childhood cancer.

This year, Clinique have created the limited edition Kissable Lip Set, which will be sold exclusively in House of Fraser stores (nationwide) and online throughout the month of February, for £25, with a mega 50% of the RRP (which is incredible - £6.50 from Clinique and £6 from House of Fraser) going to the charity.

The set contains:

Chubby Stick Moisturizing Lip Colour Balm in Woppin’ Watermelon
Vitamin C Lip Smoothie Antioxidant Lip Colour in Pink Me Up,
Superbalm Moisturizing Gloss in Raspberry, and
Long Last Glosswear SPF15 in Mystic.

This special set is housed in a chic silver purse with specially designed KISS IT BETTER heart key ring that finishes off the set beautifully. 

I really think that this is SUCH a fantastic cause and that the set looks bloody brilliant too - plus, it's my favourite way of spending... GUILT FREE as you're grabbing great products whilst doing your bit for a worthwhile charity cause to boot.

Will you be buying one next month?

Clinique 'Week of Beauty Treats' - Monday 5th to Friday 9th December 2011!

From Monday 5th December until Friday 9th, Clinique will be giving you a surprise treat with each online purchase on www.clinique.co.uk. The offer will change each day, and will be a secret until its unveiling on the day, however(!) I have a few little teasers to get you going!

Monday  - A treat to make the eyes flutter during the party season!
Tuesday - A treat full of girly glamour.
Wednesday - Banish the winter blues.
Thursday - Treats all round!
Friday - Hurry! Get it... whenever you choose!

I really like this idea, it's a perfect way to get a little bit extra for your money when spending on gifts for Christmas, or just treating yourself!

Clinique's 'Service As You Like It' Concept!

I love this idea from Clinique, it completely appeals to my eternal shopping dilemma of either being ignored at counters, or being overly pestered when all I want to do is browse and swatch at my own leisure!

"The latest must-have shopping accessory: The colourful, convenient and innovative new Clinique Service As You Like It wrist bands offer consumers a shopping experience that’s on their agenda. Each complimentary coloured band represents a style of shopping; whether you have time to talk, are in a rush or would just like to browse. Choosing and wearing one of these three coloured wrist bands signifies to the Consultants how the consumer would like to shop."

• Green – I have time. Let’s talk
• White – Time is of the essence
• Pink – Browsing and happy

These bands would make it very clear to any assistants whether you need help, would like to browse at your own leisure or be left alone completely. Of course, your feelings may change whilst at the counter, if you see a product that you want to know more about but I'm sure if this were to be the case, that you could change your band quickly, or approach a member of staff about your query regardless.

Clinique Service As You Like It complimentary wrist bands are available on counter now in Selfridges Oxford Street, House of Fraser Meadowhall, House of Fraser Glasgow, Debenhams Leeds and Fenwick Newcastle. Unfortunately not in Manchester, yet but I'm hoping that it will roll out at all counters in the very near future!

Have you used these yet? If so, did you find them useful?

Clinique Chubby Sticks

I’m a big lover of lip balm, especially since I feel like I constantly have to battle chapped/dry lips; what I'm not a lover of however, is having to sacrifice colour on my lips for the care of my lips so I have been quite excited to find out that Clinique are bringing out ‘Chubby Sticks’, moisturising lip colour balms.

They’re said to be packed full of good-for-you ingredients such as Shea Butter, Mango Seed Butter and Jojoba Seed Oil that will keep your lips lusciously moisturised whilst still giving them a hint of colour and bit of a sheen, which sounds great to me – hopefully they’ll live up to my high expectations.

These sticks also seem perfect for using throughout the day when you may not necessarily want a strong lip colour, and they look like they’ve been designed with ease of use in mind. I much prefer this type of twist up pencil to one that needs a manual sharpening; firstly because it means that you don’t need to carry a sharpener with you, and secondly it means that you don’t run the risk of ruining your product because your sharpener isn’t up to scratch or whatever.

At least 4 colours have really taken my fancy from the pictures I’ve seen (shown below) and those are:

L-R: Chunky Cherry, Whoppin Watermelon, Richer Raisin and Super Strawberry!

Also available in the range: L-R Mega Melon, Graped Up, Fuller Fig and Wholelotta Honey.

They’ll be available at Clinique Counters nationwide from 15th April, priced £13.50 for 1.5ml of product.

Clinique Mascara Trade In Offer - Exclusive To Debenhams, Plus Other Debenhams Beauty Offers!

I noticed that Clinique and Debenhams were partnering up to offer a similar version of the successful mascara trade in that Clinique had with Boots last year and thought that those of you who missed out for whatever reason may like to know so that you could take advantage of the offer this time around. The offer runs from today until 30th January and the following details apply.

“Trade in your current mascara (any brand) for your choice of deluxe mascara (choose between High Impact & High Lengths Mascara) for FREE, plus enjoy a FREE eye makeover. 

Exclusively at Debenhams.
No purchase necessary.
Not available with any other Clinique offer.
One per customer, while stocks last.”


Whilst browsing the site I noticed a few other offers that looked well worth checking out, so I’m just pasting in the details for your perusal. All the offers below end on the 30th January 2011.

Estée Lauder

“Discover NEW DayWear SPF 15, the most important thing you'll put on today. Plus, with any DayWear purchase, enjoy a FREE eye makeover and a FREE* Lash Primer deluxe sample, exclusively at Debenhams.

*One per customer, while stocks last."

DIOR

"Bring your current foundation to most Dior beauty counters for a colour match and leave with a complimentary 3 day trial* of your perfect Dior foundation.

*One per customer, while stocks last."

Lancôme

"As the Official Beauty Partner to the BAFTA's, Lancôme are offering a BAFTA inspired Spring make-over, come in store and have a play. Plus, get a FREE* sample of the New Genifique Nutrics Dry Skin Moisturiser available until 30 January.

*One per customer, while stocks last."

Elizabeth Arden


"Celebrate the launch of Elizabeth Arden's PREVAGE® Eye Ultra Protection Anti-Aging Moisturizer SPF15 and PREVAGE® Eye Advanced Anti-aging Serum with a FREE skincare consultation and receive a complimentary PREVAGE Eye sample*.

*One per customer, while stocks last."

Clarins


"It's the new year and the perfect time for a new skin care routine. Head to Clarins for a personalised skin care consultation and when you buy any product from the cleansing range you'll get aFREE* Clarins headband and one recommended Day and Night cream sample. Available until 30 January.

*Offer available from 4 January until 30 January. Not to be used in conjunction with any other Clarins offer. One per customer, while stocks last."


Also, one final treat from Debenhams for Beauty Club members:

"Get 500 bonus points* when you spend £25 or more on beauty and fragrance.


*Bonus points are limited to one set per customer, per day. Min spend of £25 in one transaction applies and will be automatically applied when paying in store or online"

All information and images were found here!

Clinique & House of Fraser 'Kiss It Better' In Feb For Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity!

Pucker up this Valentine’s Day with a Clinique lipstick or gloss from House of Fraser, and not only will you look fabulous, you’ll also be giving money to a very worthy cause; as for the fourth year running Clinique will be partnering Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity for their KISS IT BETTER appeal. This appeal will raise money to fund much needed research into the causes and treatment of childhood cancer.

Clinique have created a special LE Smoothie Kisses Lip Gloss Set (£22.50 shown above), a bright pink bag containing 4 Vitamin C Lip Smoothie Glosses, in Pink Me Up, Goodness Grapecious, Nude-tricious and Mango-thon. Each kit that is sold (exclusively at House of Fraser) during the month of February will give the appeal £4 (£2 from Clinique and £2 from House of Fraser) which I think is fantastic – I do love that beauty companies do charity so well!

“Vitamin C Lip Smoothie Antioxidant Lip Colour is Clinique’s first lip product to incorporate this one-of-a-kind ingredient into its formula. And, together with Vitamin C and Pomegranate – Açaí Berry helps protect against oxidative stress, which causes premature ageing. With continued use, this powerful potion can help reduce the appearance of lip lines caused by ageing, while delivering gorgeous colour.”

If the Lip Smoothie’s aren’t your thing but you would still like to do your bit for charity then you still have an opportunity to do so, as for every lipstick or lip gloss (RRP £13.00 - 15.00) that is sold, a £2 donation will also be made to the appeal (£1 Clinique, £1 House of Fraser).

“Donation during February 2011 at Clinique counters exclusively at House of Fraser nationwide (excluding Ireland) and houseoffraser.co.uk.
Also available at Clinique.co.uk”

Clinique 2011 Limited Edition Happy In Bloom - Out Soon!

If you like Clinique’s Happy Fragrance then you might want to get your hands on their new, limited edition Happy in Bloom fragrance for 2011, due out just in time for spring.It hardly seems like spring should be just around the corner, does anybody else agree? Before we know it, it will be Christmas again - eek!

They say:

“Limited edition Happy in Bloom is a fresh, frosty floral that opens up with notes of yellow plum, a cocktail of frozen fruit, and watery green notes for a crisp introduction. Notes of lily of the valley, white freesia and a mimosa accord from the original Happy, lend a tactile nuance of petals. Transparent amber and white wood provide depth with a natural feminine softness.”

It’s available from February 1st from Clinique counters nationwide (RRP £23 for 30ml spray).

The Beauty Scoop Christmas Gift Guide 2010 - Part 1!

I don’t know about you, but I sometimes find myself at a loss as to what to buy my loved ones for Christmas. Now I know it’s the thought that counts, but I like buying gifts that are loved and actually used by the person I buy them for; not just given a polite acknowledgement and then stuffed to the back of the cupboard, waiting to be recycled into a present for somebody else because they secretly hate it!

I’ve decided to give a little run down of items, to suit all budgets that I think anybody would love to receive over Christmas; from stocking fillers to main presents I hope to give you a little inspiration from both the products that I have been using and loving and those that I would still love to receive in my present pile this Christmas!

Aveda have some utterly fabulous gifts available, and if you (or your intended recipient) haven’t had chance to try Aveda products then now is a great time to do so! Their Ritual of Repair gift set (£49) comes complete with Damage Remedy Shampoo, Conditioner, Intensive Treatment, Daily Hair Repair and Tagua Hair Band – it also has a £28 saving on the individual retail prices of the products included.

Burts Bees – Get lovely lips for kissing under the mistletoe with this fantastic Burt’s Bees ‘Lip Balm Tin Ornament’ (£9.99) that has 3 of their fabulous lip balms (Beeswax Lip Balm, Replenishing Lip Balm in Pomegranate and Honey Lip Balm) packaged in a metal tin that can be reused – so it’s also great for the environment too.

Clinique have a selection of gifts available, from candles to skincare, they’ve got it all. Two gifts of note (ie that I would love to receive) are:

Laser Focus Repair Gift Set (£50, shown above), a silver travel bag containing Repairwear Laser Focus Wrinkle & UV Damage Corrector (30ml), Youth Surge SPF 15 Age Decelerating Moisturiser (in dry/combination) 15ml and Repairwear Intensive Eye Cream 7ml.

Pretty Day Into Night Looks Gift Set (£38), a gorgeous pink bag containing a Round Compact with 4 Eyeshadows & 2 Powder Blush Shades, High Impact Mascara 4g in Black, Double-Ended Lipstick in Different Grape 1.3g/Long Last Glosswear SPF15 in Bamboo Pink 4.5ml, Cream Shaper For Eyes in Starry Plum 1.1g and All About Eyes 15ml.

Dermalogica products would be a lovely gift for anybody who likes to look after their skin as Dermalogica, in my opinion are still one of the best skin care brands around (I thoroughly recommend that you try their PreCleanse if nothing else as it's suitable for all skin types, review coming soon to the blog). You may not be able to keep this one a secret as a skin mapping session is always recommended to find out the best products for your skin but you could actually make that part of the present if you were to pay for a facial too.

A Denman Brush (approximately £7) – If you want to give a gift that will just keep on giving then one of these bad boys would be great, they look fab and are built to last. There’s an assortment of great designs available (I’ve shown just a few of them here) and you just know they’ll be used as everybody brushes their hair, right?!

Elemis have a fabulous range of gift sets available, many of them offering a saving off the RRP of the individual products which is a winner to me. I especially like the Exotic Spa Secrets gift box (£49.50), which contains 3 full sized products including: Skin Nourishing Milk Bath, Exotic Frangipani Monoi Bath & Shower Cream and Exotic Frangipani Monoi Moisture Melt and offers a £38 saving from the usual retail price of each item. Other Elemis gift sets that are worth considering are: Elemis Skin Brilliance, Elemis Perfect Pro-Collagen and Elemis Timeless Radiance.

Front Cover Cosmetics have a selection of gift sets available but the one that stands right out for me is their Moonlit Metals set (£16, swatched here), as I think that the colours contained in it would suit most people -plus it also offers such fantastic value, is on trend and generally just looks like a nice present to give/receive (and is easy to wrap too)!

Molton Browns’ gifts are to die for. Their Treasure Island (£65) and Colour Purple (£42, shown above) gifts immediately caught my eye. The Treasure Island gift includes Heavenly Gingerlily Moisture Bath & Shower Gel, Body Cream, Shimmer Fragrance and Airlight. I haven’t had the pleasure of smelling this set but it sounds beautiful. The Colour Purple set contains Relaxing Yuan Zhi Bath & Shower Gel, Body Cream and Airlight - and might I add, smells divine.

No7 have some beautiful gifts and palettes available right now, I've recently swatched their Precious Metals Mini Nail Polish set (£8) here, and their Limited Edition MirrorBall Eye Palette (£12.50) here but there are so many other gorgeous gifts and fantastic products available (to suit all budgets) that I really do think that it's worth looking to the brand for both stocking fillers and main presents alike.

OPI's Burlesque range is causing quite a stir because it includes a great range of polishes, that all have a Christmassy feel (in my opinion) and I feel would be well received by most people as a gift for Christmas. If you didn’t want to buy them individually, there are gift sets available such as their Little Teasers Mini Lacquers Gift Set (available for around £12.15 online).

Better still QVC have a brilliant set available (shown above). For just £34.10 plus postage (this is an introductory price and could end anytime and go back to the usual price of £37.50) you can get a super gift box which includes: Original Nail Envy (15ml), Avoplex High Intensity Hand & Nail Cream (50ml), OPI Crystal Nail File, Bring on the Bling Lacquer (15ml), Tease-y Does It Lacquer (15ml), Let Me Entertain You Lacquer (15ml) and a mini cuticle stick. Bear in mind that the polishes alone usually retail for £9.95 each and you can see what good value this gift set is – and the person you’re buying for will think you’ve spent even more on them!

Perfumes or perfume gift sets are a safe bet for most people, I’m currently loving Paco Rabanne; in particular their ‘Lady Million’ and ‘Black XS’ fragrances. Other perfumes worth checking out are Viktor & Rolf’s ‘Flowerbomb’, Armani ‘Code’, Marc Jacobs ‘Daisy’ and/or ‘Lola’ and Nina Ricci’s ‘Nina’.

Talking of perfume, Penhaligon's have some beautiful gifts available (as well as some stunning standalone perfumes) a few gifts of note are: the Crystal ‘Bullet’ Atomiser (in Amethyst £120), the Ladies Fragrance collection (£32) which includes 5 miniature 5ml bottles in a lovely bow-topped gift box, and their Votive Candle Collection (£45) which includes 4 miniature (70g) scented glass candles.

Sisley has a fantastic new autumn/winter makeup collection that may just hold a few potential gifts within it. Shown above, the collection contains 10 pieces – all of which I’d be happy to own. If the makeup collection doesn’t grab you then maybe a piece of their award winning skincare range may be more to your taste? After all, who doesn’t want to take care of their skin?!

Sleek palettes (£5.99 each) are cheap in price but fantastic in quality, there’s also a decent amount of palettes for you to choose from so you can be sure there’ll be something there to suit anybody you’re buying for. They’re currently on 3 for 2 at Superdrug, making them even cheaper – in fact if you have a secret santa present to buy then this could be a perfect purchase – much better than socks anyway!

Urban Decay’s Naked Palette (around £27) is bound to be a hit, you can’t really go wrong with neutrals as they suit everybody and this palette is currently one of the best to be had.

Anyway, this rounds up my first gift guide - I hope you've found it useful and maybe solved a few gift dilemmas too!