Well, I’ve finally made a start with some illustration using my first Artful Box subscription kit. I followed their first tutorial which showed me how to use fountain pen ink, bleach and a chinagraph pencil. The tutorial should be made available to non-subscribers in about three month’s time.
Here is a larger image:
An inky night sky
You can see my unboxing of the December 2020 – February 2021 Artful Box here:
ARTFUL BOX UNBOXING | December 2020 – February 2021 | Ink | Art Supplies | Rhubarb & Burble | 📦🎨🖋🖌
What do you think? Please comment below.
Louisa
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JANUARY SALES: I Heart Revolution Milk Chocolate Holiday Collection £20 BARGAIN! | SWATCHES
January Sales: I Heart Revolution Milk Chocolate Holiday Collection
I bought this collection at Superdrug for £20 in the sales after Christmas. It was originally £60. The Chocoholic Shadow Palette (the big one), the Champagne Truffle Highlighter Palette and the Hot Chocolate Contour Palette will be going into a future GIVEAWAY!
At the time of writing, the collection is no longer on the Superdrug website, although I saw some left in my local store today. It is currently available on the Revolution website, but for £24 —————————————————– CONTENTS: 🎁
JANUARY SALES: I Heart Revolution and Chill Holiday Collection £20 BARGAIN! | Close-up | SWATCHES
January Sales: I Heart Revolution and Chill Holiday Collection ❤️
I bought this collection at Superdrug for £20 in the sales after Christmas. It was originally £40. The Chocolate Ice Highlight & Contour Palette will be going into a future GIVEAWAY as it is too dark for me.
Most of my craft supplies are stored in a lovely walnut sideboard I inherited from my Mum, which was previously my Nanny Kiki’s. (She bought it after the Second World War.) It is pretty organised, but the one drawer which was beginning to frustrate me was the ribbon drawer. The ribbons were organised by colour, but they were not visually attractive being stored in plastic food bags. The only advantage was that a lot could be squashed in.
The ribbon drawer before
I wanted to still be able to see the colours of the ribbons, but I just wanted a more visually appealing result. I hunted in my cupboards and found a couple of sets of plastic storage containers I had picked up in IKEA. They are the Pruta food containers. They are just £3.50 for a set of 17 in various sizes. They have green lids, but inverted they are transparent. This allows me to still be able to pick ribbons in the colour I need relatively easily. I did find that I couldn’t have as many colour variants as the boxes would not all fit in the drawer. This led me to combine the pinks and purples with the reds and the greens with the blues.
I also fished out all of the ribbon reels and put them together on one side of the drawer. About 99% of the ribbons in the tubs are scraps of less than one metre. I also cut out and retain all the thin ribbons from my tops. (It presses my OCD button when I see ribbons flopping out of people’s tops – I just want to go and tuck them in, or even better, cut them off!)
So as you can see below, this is the final result. I am sure there are better solutions, but I will stick with this for now and see how it goes.
The ribbon drawer after
What do you think? Have you created good ribbon storage? I would love to see your pictures.
Louisa
This article is NOT sponsored.
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NEW TO ME ❣ SERIES | ICONIC LONDON | Day to Slay Eyeshadow Palette PART 2 | Swatches!
New To Me ❣ Series: Iconic London, Day to Slay Eyeshadow Palette, Part 2 —————————————————– I received this palette in my Glossybox Advent Calendar this Christmas. Launched around three years ago, it currently costs £45.00.
Close-ups of the palette are available in our PART 1 blog post, or from the video here:
NEW TO ME ❣ SERIES | ICONIC LONDON | Day to Slay Eyeshadow Palette PART 1 | Slow mo | Close-up
I decided today was the day to sort out a small coat rack which I use for my younger son’s coats and hoodies. It is also used during the week to hang the coats of the children I look after. My son’s baseball caps are hung there and there’s also a small bag which contains his sunglasses. Additionally, it is a space where I hang umbrellas and my walking stick. So it has become a bit of a catch-all.
You can tell by this first photo that the coat rack is a bit overcrowded!
The coat rack before
Canadian YouTuber Kristen McGowan, is a consistent source of inspiration for me. I watch pretty much every video she posts. She focuses mainly on room makeovers and storage solutions as well as IKEA hauls and room decor. Please take a moment to check out, and subscribe to, her channel.
In a recent video 10 AFFORDABLE IKEA HOME ORGANIZATION IDEAS | NEW PRODUCTS 2020 , she recommended a one-handled basket from IKEA as a storage solution for use on an entryway coat rack to contain items like hats, gloves and small accessories. It is called Lustigkurre and it is a slim basket made of seagrass with natural tones, an interesting woven design and bohemian vibes.
I checked the IKEA website, but the basket was out of stock at my nearest branch and when I checked further, it was out of stock in pretty much every store in Britain!
Lying in bed last night, I wondered what else I could use instead. My eyes were drawn to a ‘jelly basket’ that I had, stored on top of my wardrobe.
Those of you who were born in the seventies may remember the craze in the mid-eighties for jelly sandals and jelly baskets! Almost every girl at my secondary school had one and they were popular in all colours of the rainbow. I was the proud owner of a black one. Sad to say, I have no idea what happened to it. Around six years ago, jelly sandals and baskets had a bit of a revival, so I decided to purchase myself a basket as it had brought back that nostalgia! I purchased it from a company called Sun Jellies. I am pleased to see that they are still in business selling retro shoes, bags and accessories and here is a link to the ‘Retro Baskets‘ which are available in small and large. My basket is in the large size. I had instagrammed it when I received it and this is the photo I took. (I subsequently purchased one in yellow as a couple of the local groups I am involved with have yellow branding.)
My Retro Basket purchased in summer 2014
Back to the coat rack. I decluttered the rack by removing of a couple of small bags and three hoodies which my son had outgrown. I placed the hats and accessories into the jelly basket. The basket is slim and flexible and I was relieved to discover that the width of the hooks allowed me to be able to hang the basket over two of them, giving it more stability.
I am really pleased with how this turned out and that I have found a use for my basket which also compliments the black hooks of the coat rack.
Additionally, my son’s sunglasses are now simply hanging from the basket which means he will see them if he is going out and will be able to easily choose which pair to wear without having to dig around in a bag.
The coat rack after
What do you think? Have you created good entryway storage solutions? I would love to see your pictures.
Louisa
This article is NOT sponsored.
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NEW TO ME ❣ SERIES | ICONIC LONDON | Day to Slay Eyeshadow Palette PART 1 | Slow mo | Close-up
New To Me ❣ Series: Iconic London, Day to Slay Eyeshadow Palette, Part 1 —————————————————– I received this palette in my Glossybox Advent Calendar this Christmas. Launched around three years ago, it currently costs £45.00.
I hope you like the montage I created for this video – it’s a bit wobbly in some places, but I enjoyed editing it! Swatches of all the shades are available in PART 2, or from the video here:
NEW TO ME ❣ SERIES| ICONIC LONDON | Day to Slay Eyeshadow Palette PART 2 | Swatches!
I hope you had an enjoyable Christmas Day. I hope those observing local lockdowns/restrictions managed to fill their day with festive cheer. I thought I would conclude this GLOSSYBOX ADVENT-URES series with my final thoughts, along with some stats, now that the daily excitement is over.
What did I receive?
Day 1: Brushworks HD Complexion and Contouring Kit
Day 2: Illamasqua Liquid Eyeliner in the shade ‘Black/Noir’
Day 3: Filorga NCEF-REVERSE Supreme Multi-Correction Cream
Day 4: Pixi Glow Mist
Day 5: Lime Crime Mini Velvetines Liquid Lipstick in the shade ‘Red Velvet’
Day 6: Lee Stafford Hair Apology 10-in-1 Leave-in Treatment Spray
Day 7: Glossybox Skincare 3-in-1 Moisturiser
Day 8: Bubble T Cosmetics Winter Berries Bath Bomb Fizzer
Day 9: MUA Makeup Academy Brow Define Eyebrow Pencil in the shade ‘Mid Brown’
Day 10: Zoeva Screen Queen Highlighting Powder Palette
Day 11: Frank Body Original Coffee Scrub
Day 12: Glow Recipe Watermelon Glow Sleeping Mask
Day 13: Sunday Riley Good Genes Glycolic Acid Treatment
Day 14: Ecooking Hand Cream / Håndcreme
Day 15: Fenty Beauty Match Stix Shimmer Skinstick in the shade ‘Trippin’
Day 16: bareMinerals Prime Time Original Foundation Primer
Day 17: The Body Shop Himalayan Charcoal Purifying Glow Mask
Day 18: Sleek MakeUP Loose Pigment in shade ‘Trance’
Day 19: The Vintage Cosmetic Company Polly Bow Makeup Headband
Day 20: Huda Beauty Power Bullet Matte Lipstick in the shade ‘Wedding Day’
Day 21: Avant Skincare 3-1 Hyaluron-Filler Collagen Eye Formula
Day 22: Dermalogica Daily Microfoliant
Day 23: KVD Vegan Beauty Go Big Or Go Home Mascara in the shasde ‘Trooper Black’
Day 24: NAILS.INC Nail Polish in the shade ‘Victoria’
Day 25: Iconic London Day To Slay Eyeshadow Palette
The complete contents of the Glossybox Advent Calendar 2020
My personal favourites were the Iconic London eyeshadow palette, the Huda Beauty Power Bullet Lipstick and the Fenty Beauty shimmer skinstick. However, I have also enjoyed receiving items from the smaller brands such as the Frank Body Coffee Scrub and the Glow Recipe sleeping mask.
It’s fair to say that the Glossybox Advent Calendar continues to be one of the best beauty Advent calendars on the market. This is my third, and it does not disappoint. This year I ended up paying the full subscriber price of £80. In previous years I cashed in the ‘Glossy Credits’ I accrued by reviewing the monthly subscription boxes. This year, I didn’t really get around to reviewing much. My bad! But, even at £80, the calendar is incredible value as the contents are worth around £390. The packaging this year is better thought out. The individual boxes arrive in a set of four drawers. Post Christmas, I will recycle the cardboard boxes and will use the calendar and drawers for makeup storage (I can’t seem to get enough!). If you have read my individual daily posts, you will know that I suspect that the price of at least one of the skincare products is inflated which increases the value of the calendar, but with that said, I can’t deny that it is still good value for money. When researching the products to link on my blog posts, there were one or two items which weren’t currently available. Indeed some were released over two years ago, so clearly weren’t new to the market. I like it when we receive newly launched items. If they have potentially appeared in TK Maxx for example, for me, that devalues them. Below, I have added a table so you can see whether items were makeup, skincare or ‘other’; full sized or deluxe minis; and whether they are items I would keep for myself or pass on in a future giveaway.
Skincare
Makeup
Other
Full Size
Deluxe Mini
Keep
Giveaway
Value
Day 1
✔
✔
✔
£11.99
Day 2
✔
✔
✔
£21.00
Day 3
✔
✔
✔
£10.78
Day 4
✔
✔
✔
£16.00
Day 5
✔
✔
✔
£10.00
Day 6
✔
✔
✔
£11.99
Day 7
✔
✔
✔
£18.00
Day 8
✔
✔
✔
£5.99
Day 9
✔
✔
✔
£1.50
Day 10
✔
✔
✔
£15.00
Day 11
✔
✔
✔
£1.40
Day 12
✔
✔
✔
£3.93
Day 13
✔
✔
✔
£11.84
Day 14
✔
✔
✔
£7.50
Day 15
✔
✔
✔
£21.00
Day 16
✔
✔
✔
£6.00
Day 17
✔
✔
✔
£6.00
Day 18
✔
✔
✔
£5.49
Day 19
✔
✔
✔
£6.99
Day 20
✔
✔
✔
£22.00
Day 21
✔
✔
✔
£99.00
Day 22
✔
✔
✔
£13.50
Day 23
✔
✔
✔
£5.00
Day 24
✔
✔
✔
£15.00
Day 25
✔
✔
✔
£45.00
Total
£391.90
Product Breakdown Table
Breakdown:
The average cost of each item was £3.20 per day but was worth £15.68 per day
I will continue to subscribe to the monthly boxes and buy the Advent calendar. I may, or may not, try to buy limited edition boxes. I have experienced the stress and observed other subscribers’ rants on social media about the problems in grabbing one when they sell out in a couple of minutes after allowing bulk purchasing. I also see the frustrations people have in getting responses from customer services.
I can conclude that Glossybox appear to be victims of their own success. Subscription boxes really are a ‘thing’ now, and meeting everyone’s expectations at such volumes must be a constant headache.
So thank you Glossybox, for another industry-leading product. I look forward to sampling next year’s!
Louisa
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Watch our Spotlight Stationery unboxing video! 🔥 December 2020 —————————————————— BOXES 📦🖋🖊✏📖💌 Spotlight Stationery is a monthly stationery subscription box for £27 inc. shipping (within the UK). ——————————————————- Indulge your passion for stationery! Every month they curate a selection of contemporary stationery, based on a theme. They choose only premium brands and artisan products, including items you won’t commonly find on the high street. 📮🖇🖍📔 ——————————————————– https://www.spotlightstationery.co.uk 🔗 ——————————————————— Items Included:
Let me know what you think of this boxes in the comments below. Have you subscribed to Spotlight Stationery? Are there any other stationery boxes you would like to see me unbox?
Louisa
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Rhubarb & Burble 