I love it when a parcel arrives that I wasn’t expecting. Obviously it’s best when it’s a surprise from someone else. However, one of the few plus points of brain fog is I sometimes I forget what I’ve bought. Which means I end up sending myself mystery gifts.

When this Boots parcel turned up on my door it was exactly that kind of puzzle. I opened it to discover some colourful beauty treats. I can’t recall exactly when I ordered these things, but I must have been in a bright mood because the package was bursting with vivid colour. I must also have been feeling pretty cocky because this Nyx palette is not for the faint hearted.

I have been admiring super bright eye looks on insta beauty accounts for a while now. I’ve also been lusting after this particular palette for a month or two. Truth be told, now that I have it I’m not sure my skills can do it justice. The blues, greens & purples I can handle. It was the yellow shades that grabbed my attention and after much messing around I’m still not sure I can conjure any magic with them. I suppose I’ll just have to keep practising.

The shadows themselves are a dream. The blend nicely and the pigment is strong with one exception. The lilac is for some reason a completely different consistency than all the other shades & to be frank, is utterly useless. That aside, their staying power is if anything too good, I struggled to completely remove the colour at the end of the day.

I wasn’t surprised to find nail polish in my haul. I can never look at make up without straying to the nail section. This Barry M gel polish in Flamingo is a great shade to counteract the winter blues.

This is my first go at the coconut infused range, so can’t comment on the hydrating claims. I think I probably change my nails too to often to reap any benefits anyway. Application is very smooth, though and the gel finish is lovely.

Keeping with the pinkish tones is another Barry M (can you tell they’re my fav?) product. I love the Matte Me Up lip kits. The liquid lippie sets with a silky finish that does not budge. You can get through a whole day of eating, drinking & living with only a minimal top up required. I’m a fan of an exact match lip liner, the definition makes my lips pow!

Matte me up in Pose

My least favourite from my unexpected haul was this illuminating & setting spray. I had envisaged it giving a slight glow whilst holding my face in place. In reality it has a bronzey sparkle finish which is way to too deep for my skin tone & make up style. I might be able to repurpose it as a highlighter, but definitely can’t imagine spraying all over my face.