The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath // Book Review ♡

Hello there readers of my blog, how are you on this fine fine Wednesday? I'm feeling pretty lousy, the weather is gross, and exams are coming up which is also gross however one of the things that has been getting me through at the moment is reading, and after re-reading all the Harry Potter books at the beginning of the year, I read the Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath and I finished it last night, so I thought I would do a review on this modern classic.

Book Description (taken from Amazon):

"Esther Greenwood is at college and is fighting two battles, one against her own desire for perfection in all things - grades, boyfriend, looks, career - and the other against remorseless mental illness. As her depression deepens she finds herself encased in it, bell-jarred away from the rest of the world. This is the story of her journey back into reality. Highly readable, witty and disturbing, The Bell Jar is Sylvia Plath's only novel and was originally published under a pseudonym in 1963. What it has to say about what women expect of themselves, and what society expects of women, is as sharply relevant today as it has always been."

Review:

I'm going to start off by just saying I really enjoyed this, it's short as it's only 20 chapters and it's written beautifully. I would compare the writing style to the likes of F. Scott Fitzgerald but it is maybe not quite as detailed as that, but it is word pornography. The story itself is very intriguing especially if you're interested in mental illness anyway, which I am. I'm going to say right now, if you're easily triggered be careful whilst reading it because I picked up on some subtle pro-mia and self inflicted harm, so if you are feeling triggered at any time put the book down and walk away. I found Esther's character really interesting because she's very sensitive and has always had good grades but her life takes a bit hit when she has to return back home, and that's when she really sinks into a deep pit of depression. She has some bad experiences with doctors but the ending shows that perhaps she has moved past this, and is ready to move on. I don't want to spoil the ending but I found the character Joan really interesting because she is very much like Esther but I believe she shows what would happen to Esther if she took a different path in her life, they had the same boyfriend and a similar lifestyle so they are very similar characters. 

Rating out of 5:

On goodreads I rated this book as 4/5, I rate books very highly in general but I feel this truly was a great book. It was recommended to me and I've always felt I should read it because it's a modern classic. I also went and looked up Sylvia Plath during my reading of this book because apparently a lot of the events mimic her life, and now I've become very interested in her life too which is good (her life was not good though haha). Overall, I would definitely give this a read if you're interested in mental illness and like descriptive writing because it fulfils both of those areas. I very much wanted to watch the film adaptation of it but the reviews of it make it seem terrible so I might wait until it's very cheap before buying it!!

Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed it! I quite like the idea of doing book reviews, at least for the next few months whilst I have exams and can't really go out and do things - thoughts?

♡

February Empties ♡

Hello there! So I've used up some products over the space of about 6 - 8 weeks, so these products aren't just from February but I thought I would show you what I've used up because I like reading empties posts as they provide a good insight on what a product is like after using it for a long time.

1. SPAtopia Argan Oil Body Butter

I don't know where this product is from as I was given it for my birthday in November so it has lasted me since then and I still have a tiny bit left, but I really love this product. It's a really thick and creamy texture, just like butter haha, and I like the smell of argan oil and it makes my pyjamas smell of argan oil which is lovely. I use a lot of this because I love it so much, I'm not sure if I'll buy it again because I don't think it's cheap but if it wasn't too expensive I would definitely buy this :)

2. Love Hearts Strawberry Cream Perfume

Another product given to me for my birthday, I really love this perfume and it was quite cheap too as I know where it was from. It was from the Perfume shop for £3.99 and it comes with a body lotion too, I'm not sure if it's still in stock though. Anyway, I really like this perfume because it smells really sweet like artificially sweet but not disgustingly artificially sweet if you understand what I'm saying. I don't think it's for everybody but whenever I wear it I get complimented by someone about it so it can't be too bad :)

3. Garnier Cleansing Lotion

I think I bought this from Savers so it wasn't expensive, I generally like Garnier products, I think they're basic and affordable and that's exactly what this product was. Nothing special but it did the job and I think I got my money worth as I believe it was under £3, not sure if I'd buy it again but if it was the same price I probably would just because it does the job.

4. Garnier Synergie Pure Deep Pore Wash

I'm not sure if this product is still being made because my Mum gave it to me years ago when my skin was too sensitive for it and it used to make my face go all red, then I started using it again this year because I've gotten into face masks but I haven't got any face masks and this exfoliates and makes my skin feel like I've had a face mask on so it's pretty close. It has little microbeads in which is good however I wish it had bigger ones in to exfoliate the skin better, it doesn't smell of anything but it does the job quite well. I use this product 2 -3 times per week. I would repurchase it if I couldn't get my hands on some face masks because as I said before Garnier isn't too expensive and it does the job.

5. Boots Cucumber Skin Freshener (toner)

I think I've used all of the Boots Cucumber skin care and honestly I like them all, I am not sure about the price as I usually buy it off my Mum if she's gone out and bought it on sale so it saves me going out but I have used the cleanser, the moisturiser and this and all the products make my skin feel lovely and fresh, I don't know if it's the actual product or the cucumber sort of scent but something is working and I quite like it so I would repurchase it.

Thanks for reading, hope you enjoyed it :)

November Empties ♡

Hello there fellow bloggers, I haven't done an empties post since the Summer so I thought I would do one as it's nearly the end of November and I've got a few empties. You may have seen these products before in hauls or whatever but now I've used them and give an honest review.

1. Johnson's Refreshing Cleansing Lotion 

I'll be honest, I only really bought this product because it was reduced at Savers, but I also expected it to be really good for sensitive skin and I didn't think it was anything special. Also it has a peculiar smell, (I did a full review here where I said the same thing) which put me off. It would have to be a very good product for me to get past the smell but I like my facial cleansers to smell nice, I use toner afterwards so I guess I don't have to put up with the smell for too long but yes that's all. Also if you squeeze out a bit much and it stays around the rim it goes chunky and horrible which I don't like, I've never had that problem with other facial cleansers so this isn't good. Overall, I probably wouldn't repurchase this unless it was reduced even more.





2. Superdrug Dry Shampoo 'Away with the Fairies'

My Mum gave me this to get me to stop teasing my hair in order to get more volume but I now use this everyday or every other day so I'm not sure if that's better.. but I really enjoy this product. My Mum had 2 other Superdrug Dry Shampoos and I went with this because it had fairies in the name and I like fairies so.. it doesn't really have much of a smell and it makes my throat feel a bit scratchy but it does the job and my hair is more voluminous after using it.









3. Spatopia Argan Oil Body Wash

If you saw my birthday haul you may remember this, and you may be wondering how I finished it all in 2 weeks. I'll be honest.. I'm wondering about that too. I've used it a few times and either there was barely any in there to start with, it's all leaked out or someone in my family has been using it. Anyway I used it enough times to say some things about it. It's definitely not a bad product, I like the smell of Argan oil and my pyjamas constantly smell of it now because I use this then the body butter that came with it. I don't think it's anything special but I did enjoy using it so I suppose if I saw it again I might repurchase (although it was a gift so I don't think it would be too cheap..). Honestly I usually just use baby bath and baby oil because I love that and I love using the bubbles to clean myself but this is a more grown up option so..




4. Garnier Toner

I don't remember how I acquired this but I have used this a few times before even starting this blog because I think Garnier is a nice brand, I've never really had a problem with their products. This toner doesn't have a scent which is a bit annoying because I like to feel like if someone chooses to smell my face they will like it (hey.. it happens..). It did exactly what I hoped a toner would do which is basically remove impurities from your skin that the cleanser didn't get. I would definitely repurchase this because it's not that expensive.








5. Constance Carroll Liquid Eyeliner

I've had this product for quite a few years because I bought it, then I stopped using it because I was a makeup noob and usually ended up looking really dodgy (I was terrified of putting the liquid near my waterline because I'd usually poke myself and make my eye go all black.. nice) and my Mum would make me take it off most of the time because it looked so terrible. So I used pencil instead, but this year I've started using it more and now I wear it everyday so it's finally coming to the end. It's not quite finished yet but it's really close. Constance Carroll is basically a cheap brand but it does what's it's supposed to. It drys really quickly and it's a nice thick black. My only problem is that it's not long lasting so it's fine for a day of school but if I was going out again in the evening I'd have to put more on. Overall, I think I would repurchase this because liquid eyeliners are pretty hit and miss so once you have a good one I think it's best to stick with it.

Thanks for reading! I have a few posts lined up until Christmas, including a Harry Potter Studios post featuring Isabella, Antoinette and Lizzie!!! (If you couldn't tell I'm really excited)

♡

Review | Primark Eyeliners

Hello there, I'm actually doing a beauty related post after what seems like far too many tags - I do apologise but I really enjoy doing them.. Ok, so I bought an eyeliner pen and two eyeliner pencils from Primark about a month ago and I have been using them all this week so I figure it's time to give you all the breakdown.

As you can see, the eyeliner pen was £1.50, they actually only charged me £1 at the counter though so I'm not sure whether it was a technical goof or the price was reduced but the sticker wasn't changed. The eyeliner pencils (which also came with a sharpener - ooh excitement!) were £1 which is really good value. I wasn't expecting any sort of good quality from these items but I was pleasantly surprised!

 I was so surprised from this eyeliner, I honestly think it'll be a repeat purchase. It stays on basically all day, that's during school right up until late evening which is great because I wanted to find a long lasting eyeliner so that when I go to Thorpe Park with school (next week) for fright night I can be sure my makeup will stay on. I'm not going to lie it smudges a bit the longer you wear it but seriously for £1 can you really complain? It's a felt tip type of eyeliner and I've never actually seen these types before but from looking at other blogs I know they exist I'm probably just not looking for it when I go out or I'm just an idiot but I really like that because it makes winged/cat eye eyeliner come out much better. Obviously it still doesn't come out even because cat eye eyeliner can't ever come out evenly, it's just the rule. This is why I have to have a side parting, it's to cover up the dodgy eye..

The eyeliner pencil I used for the first time today, I would compare it to Rimmel eyeliner pencils. You know the £2.99 ones, I used to use those all the time but considering I got 2 for £1 (should've been £1.50 haha..) I think I'll change to this. I don't use a lot of pencil eyeliner anymore but it's nice to have a tiny bit to touch up your eyes I think. This does smudge a bit but no more than the Rimmel ones, that being said this didn't smudge too much and you get a nice strong black colour which is nice. Again, I'm pleasantly surprised.








Well Primark, I'm sorry I judged you before when it came to makeup. I always thought Primark makeup would have be come out in red patches and burning skin but no I have been pleasantly surprised. So to you snobby people out there who refuse to buy anything from Primark because you're too high and mighty for it, think again next time you walk past.
Thanks for reading :)

Review | Johnson's Face Care Refreshing Cleansing Lotion

So I bought this product because I was out of cleanser, and I'm not faithful to any brand. I buy what's low priced but looks good for my skin, and my skin is extremely sensitive so I thought this cleanser looked appropriate. It was £2.49 from Savers, but on the website it says that its RRP is £3.05.

The bottle is 200ml, and it's for normal skin. I didn't even see a bottle for dry skin but according to the website they have it.  I used it with cotton wool, I took a blob and applied a thin layer around my face, you can do a bit more if you want but I use toner as well (Garnier) in case I miss anywhere, and then I left it on for about 30 seconds and wiped it off with cotton wool. I used to apply cleanser, then brush my teeth for 3 minutes, then wash off the cleanser but I'm not sure whether it made much of a difference but if you want to do that then go right ahead. I applied it after make up remover, and then finished with toner so whether it is as effective without that I couldn't be 100% sure.

Pros:  

• leaves my skin feeling soft
• good value for money
• basically does the job
• not a cheap looking bottle

Cons: 

• weird smell (this could just be me, it wasn't as pleasant as my old cleanser but it wasn't exactly unpleasant)
• not the cheapest, good quality cleanser out there

So overall this is a decent product, there are cheaper cleansers out there that also do the job but I don't feel this was a waste of money. It's not harsh which I like, I've had cleansers in the past that have been harsh and felt like they were burning my skin so I immediately washed them off and shunned them to the corner.. of my bathroom.. sorry to ramble, you get the idea.

My questions to you:

1. What cleanser do you use? 
2. What is your cleansing regime?
3. Are you loyal to any  brand?

Thanks for reading, leave a comment below answering the questions or whatever, and leave a link to your blog because I am always looking for new reading material and more blogs to follow because my dashboard is pretty dead, so bye :-)