Primark beauty haul: Hair, tan and storage!

'Primark' and 'beauty' isn't really a combination that instantly fills me with excitement to be honest. Bargain bikinis and ballet shoes, yes. But beauty products? Hmm...

However, having noticed Hask's range of Argan Oil and Macadamia Oil products on my last few shopping trips, and having heard good things about them from fellow bloggers, I thought I'd put my Primark prejudice aside and give them a go. Of course, as soon as I started browsing the beauty shelves I found lots of other goodies I wanted to try, hence one hair mask turning into a Primark beauty haul. Oops! Here are the bits and bobs I picked up. 

Hask hair treatment masks, £2 each 

Macadamia hot oil treatment £2, Argan oil £2.50

I went in looking for Hask products and found the Argan Oil and Macadamia Nut masks, plus a Macadamia Nut hot oil treatment and Argan Oil shine oil to use on wet and dry hair. I used the Macadamia Nut mask this morning and I was extremely impressed; expect a review over the next few days. 

Hair Essentials with Argan oil shampoo and conditioner, £2.50 each 

This Argan oil shampoo and conditioner duo is actually made especially for Primark, unlike Hask which is a division of an American hair care company. I'm intrigued to see what these are like. The bottles are reminiscent of the infamous Moroccan Oil range, although I'm sort of doubting the quality will be quite as good. I'll be testing these this week and will report back with my verdict.

Anti-Imperfection face mask 90p

Who didn't love these Montagne Jeunesse face masks during their teen years?! I'm still a fan, especially as they come in a range of wonderful colours with hilarious images on the front of each sachet. Where can I get me some leaves like that?! This one contains aloe vera and willow which I thought sounded very soothing, and since I've been making an effort to use a mask once or twice a week to encourage clearer pores I figured this 90p (!) classic might help. 

Sunkissed Gradual Tan £2.90

My nickname when I was younger and holidaying in Italy with my Stepmum's Italian family was 'mozzarella'. Which just about sums up how pale I am and how stubborn my skin is when it comes to tanning. OK, so I actually hate sunbathing and would rather stick pins in my eyes than lie out on a beach towel for hours at a time (I don't cope very well in extreme heat!) But still, my legs don't even pick up a 'walking around being a tourist' tan. I rely on gradual tan to see me through the summer months, because as much as I try go by the pale and interesting tag my legs are more translucent than white. I usually use Palmer's Cocoa Butter gradual tan but thought I'd give this a go as it makes a cheaper alternative. The packaging looks sleek and the initial smell is quite cocoa buttery. It's not made specifically for Primark as far as I can tell, but is part of a wider range of tanning products made a company Sunkissed. I slapped some on my pins this morning after my bath, so I'll be judging the results this evening before bed. Fingers crossed!

Large 'Ditzy' wash bag £3 and small 'Ditzy' make-up bag £2

Last but not least, I couldn't resist picking up a few make-up bags. The larger one was only £3 and the smaller one was £2, and I love the floral design. I seem to have hundreds of make-up bags but really needed a bigger one to dump my everyday items into, rather than having three of four small bags spilling everywhere on the bathroom floor. The smaller bag is perfect for holding handbag essentials, so I'll be bringing it everywhere with me. If I'm being honest I seem to get a kick out of collecting make-up bags and these were just too cute to resist!

Have you tried any beauty products from Primark? I'd love to hear your thoughts! 

So what could I afford if not luxuries? Essentials! Weekend haul!

Perhaps I was a little too harsh on Primark in my previous post. If there's anything Primark excels at, it's the three P's: pants, pyjamas and pumps. I can't get enough of them and I always find myself grabbing random 'P' items as I go through the store. The best part is, they're cheap! It doesn't matter if a PJ top isn't that strong material-wise because you only wear it to sleep in. And it doesn't matter if a pair of pumps suffer a little wear and tear after a few weeks because they're the kind of thing you might want to change regularly anyway, for colour-coordination/British weather purposes. 


And so, although I couldn't quite justify spending money on the fabulous outfit featured in my last post, I could justify picking up some 'essentials' this weekend; things I know I'll wear regularly, for work and play. Here they are!


Primark's finest:p a cute set of flowery pyjamas perfect for the upcoming summer weather:

Primark PJs

How sweet do the little blue flowers look? £3 top and £3 pants, I couldn't resist. 

PJ print

I also picked up some nude pumps for work/everyday wear, as I LOVE nude pumps and wear them throughout spring/summer until it gets too cold to go out with partially naked tootsies. 

£4 Primark pumps 

One last purchase from Primark: a pink scarf to liven up my usual array of white tank tops and black cardigans for work, particularly useful for fooling the kids at school into thinking I don't wear the same outfit every day (the shame of being told that I do has yet to fade). 

£3 scarf with tassels! 

Oh wait, that's a lie, one more thing made it's way into my arms, but it's an actual NECESSITY: a little black shoulder strap bag to use on nights out, as I can't keep lugging around my huge handbag! 

£4(?! I think!) Primark bag 

Moving on from Primark, I picked up a few bits of jewellery in H&M:

Bracelet £2.99, gold leaf design ring £3.99, set of three gem rings £3.99 

I love cheap jewellery as you can mix it up and chop and change whenever suits (although I wouldn't mind some real diamonds, if anyone has any to spare?!) Just a few items to jazz up my outfits. 


Next up was a quick trip to New Look, where I snapped up a new wallet and a pair of dangly earrings. I'm usually a studs kind of gal but I thought this pair in particular weren't too dangly and I like the mix of pink and gold:

£3.99 New Look earrings 

£6.99 wallet- I love a neutral! 

Finally, a shopping spree wouldn't be complete without a trip to Boots and Superdrug to check out any special offers etc... Lucky I did, because Boots 17 has a 3 for 2 promotion running and I decided to indulge, before heading to Superdrug to pick up L'Oreal's new Lumi Magique foundation and L'Oreal Triple Active day and night creams:

L'Oreal and 17 selection 

Oh, and you see that cute little pink-tipped blusher brush? That's from Primark too. So I actually seem to have gone a little Primark crazy this weekend. Who would have thought?! 

'Pink Grapefruit' and 'Glisten'

L'Oreal Triple Active Day and Night 

Swatches and reviews to follow! 


Of course, it has occurred to me that for the cost of all of the above I could probably have made a real crack at getting my hands on the River Island/New Look evening outfit I'm lusting after (see previous post). But sometimes in life you have to bag the essentials and lust after the luxuries a little longer. 


OK, so perhaps none of the above qualify as real 'essentials'... But when you have thirteen year olds asking 'Miss, why do you always wear the same clothes?' and your reply 'why do you always wear a school uniform?' doesn't quite cut the mustard, the pressure is on to at least fool them into thinking you're wearing something different each day. Which is where essentials such as scarves and pumps play their part!