Good Reads Reading Challenge 2015.

I consider myself to be 'a reader' but at the end of last year I was surprised to find that I had read less than I thought. 

I subscribe to Goodreads and receive their news letters, so when I saw they had a yearly reading challenge I decided to sign up for it as a way of monitoring and keeping a record of what I read.

Initially I decided to read 50 books but then upped it to 52, figuring that a book a week wasn't too much of a stretch and it seemed more logical ( to me anyway!)

I wanted to set a challenge that wasn't too challenging - too many books and I may find myself choosing shorter or easier books just to meet my quota - but I wanted something that would make me put the Candy Crush down and do something a little more cerebral!

...

Halfway through the year, I'm ahead of schedule. I've read 31 books so far - that's 60% of my total and I'm 7 books ahead of schedule according to Goodreads. (The nerdy part of me just loves that they give you these breakdowns!)

So far I'm really happy with my progress. I've definitely made more of an effort to read rather than, say, watching TV or messing around online. I'm keeping on top of my 'want to read' list and I haven't deviated from the type of books that I usually read. There's a good mix of light reading, essays and biographies, and I've taken to reading psychological thrillers which is a new genre for me.

 As usual there have been a few things that I started and couldn't get into that got cast aside and aren't pictured above. Equally, there are a couple of books pictured that I should have cast aside!

I'm going to continue with the Challenge until the end of the year and plan to do another next year. I'll check in with a final report at the end of the year - I'm pretty confident I will complete 52 books.

Wish me luck!

How to be a Husband.

Tim Dowling's How to be a Husband isn't, as the title may seem to suggest, a self help book, instead it's a collection of very funny essays.

Dowling is an American married to an Englishwoman. He lives in London with her and their sons and writes a regular column about family life for The Guardian newspaper. This book appears to be an edited compendium of those columns.  

The book begins with Tim meeting his wife for the first time and goes on to describe their courtship and subsequent life as a married couple and parents of three boys.

It's well written and easy to read. The humour in it is very self depreciating but it is a seriously funny book - it's not often that I laugh out loud whilst reading but this made me do so more than once. However there's an emotional side to the writing as well and some astute observations are made. 

All in all it's a  hilariously funny read that I greatly enjoyed. 

Walmart Beauty Box Summer 2015

Empties posts seem to roll around very rapidly and even more scarily so do these quarterly posts about the Walmart Beauty Box. It's hard for me to believe that this is the fourth Walmart box that I have received and as always I had pretty much forgotten about it until I received the shipping notice.

(The box itself is free, you pay $5.00 for it's shipping and each box contains a selection of make up, hair care and body care items in a mix of full sizes, minis and samples along with a selection of money off coupons.)

Now guaranteed it's not the most exciting beauty box in the world but it's super cheap (well, technically it's free) and there's always something useful in it. Plus who doesn't like to come home to a little box of goodies waiting to be opened? 

I'd seen a some reviews of this months box online and people were generally disappointed as they were somewhat smaller than usual, many didn't have any make up items and a lot were made up almost exclusively of repeat products from previous boxes so I didn't get too excited for this... However, I think I must have got lucky as I received a pretty good selection of stuff in mine.

The 'big ticket' item in this box was a full sized NYC Liquid Lipshine Lip Gloss. I received shade 579 -  'Fashion Avenue Fuchsia'. Now the packaging and the doe foot aren't luxe, for sure, but although the colour in the package looks very bright, it's actually a very wearable blue toned pink that's flattering by itself or over a nude lip base. In fact it's not a million miles away in color from Chantecaille Luminous Gloss in 'Framboise'. It feels a little greasy on but it's not sticky and has a pleasant fruity scent to it that's not too strong.

My 'repeat product' was Dove Go Fresh Body Wash in 'Mandarin and Fiore Flower' - but I'm perfectly happy to get another of these as small body washes always come in handy and this is a zingy fruity floral number that's perfect for Summer

.

Another handy item is the small pot of Nivea Cream - how old school is that? Obviously, I'm not going to use it on my face but it's a great cream for knees, elbows etc and personally I love it's classic old lady scent!

I'm pretty fussy when it comes to sunscreen but Neutrogena is one of my favored brands so this mini CoolDry Sport Sunscreen SPF 70 is another hit for me. I really like these mini sun lotions that you can slip in your bag and use for top ups when you are out and about all day.

Although, thankfully, I don't have dandruff I will use the Clear Complete Care Shampoo as I have been impressed with the other Clear shampoos that I have used. They generally leave my hair soft and shiny and this one will be good for giving my scalp a really good clean and getting rid of any product build up there.

The big bust for me in this box was the St Ives Apricot Scrub. I won't use this as it can tear the delicate skin on your face. I could repurpose this as a body or foot scrub but I know there are plenty of people who love this so I will pass it along.

Sample wise this month there's One Direction You & I EDT. It's way too sweet, fruity and generic for me to wear but I'm sure my fourteen year old self would have loved it!

There's also a three day sample of  Jergens Natural Glow that I will use. Although I'm not a 'fake tanner' I don't mind the Jergens ones as they are natural looking with a gradual build up, really, who doesn't love Jergens?

My box wasn't rich in coupons this month... I was excited when I saw there was a coupon for $2.00 off Real Techniques but unfortunately you have to use it in Walmart and we don't have them in NYC.

Overall, I think my Walmart Summer Box is a hit, with a nice range of products. For me it's $5.00 well spent!

Hausfrau.

Anna Benz, an American living with her Swiss husband and their family in Zurich is the Hausfrau in question in Jill Alexander Essenbaum's first novel.

The Benz family appear to lead a comfortable conventional lifestyle but we soon discover that Anna is isolated and emotionally vulnerable. Bored and frustrated by her lifestyle and the rigors of Swiss family life and society Anna seeks solace in a variety of extra marital affairs, entering into sordid sexual situations with men who she increasingly doesn't even like.

Anna is losing control and when the unimaginable happens she discovers that she is truly lost and there is no going back.

Hausfrau is a really good book but it's not an easy or comfortable read. It's quite disturbing yet very clever. It's about love and loss and will leave you questioning many things. (And that cover - it's just gorgeous. Cover of the year so far for me...)

  

Sephora $100 Gift Card.

I tend to pay for pretty much everything by credit card so as to take advantage of it's rewards system. (I should point out that I pay it off in full each month so that I don't incur any charges - my bank must hate me!).

I always opt for a gift card and until recently it's always been for either Amazon, CVS or Target. Imagine my delight when I cashed in my most recent points and saw that they had Sephora gift cards... Who knew?... Of course I had to have one!

I split my spending into two orders to maximize the samples available. 

Order #1 was a make up treat. 

I love the Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powder and had been eyeing up their Ambient Blush for a while. I like a powder blush in the summer as it lasts so much better. I wanted a summery shade and chose Dim Infusion, a peachy color, long lasting, easy to apply and blend and it looks very natural. I'm very pleased with this and can see my Ambient Blush collection expanding at some point!

I needed a brush to replace my Real Techniques Buffing Brush - I've used mine to death and can only find it as part of a set here - so I bought Sephora's Multitasker Complexion Brush #45. It's a nice soft brush and I use it all over my face to blend everything in when I've finished my make up. Whilst I don't love it quite as much as the RT Buffer it is a very good brush that I am pleased with.

Order #2 was more skincare orientated. As I'd used up my huge box of Dennis Gross Alpha Beta Pads I decided to give F.A.B. Facial Radiance Pads a whirl. I've only used them for a few days but I'm impressed so far! There's a bit of a tingle there but they are gentle enough for everyday use (I'm using them just at night). They are a no frills product that is very economical and live up to all the hype they have received. I've yet to try Nude Radiant Day Moisturiser which I grabbed as it was on sale. I'm always on the lookout for a simple, basic moisturizer that I can layer on top of serums and oils and this fitted the bill.

Deluxe weekly sample specials that I picked up were Sunday Riley Good Genes  (I can never have too much of this) it's my night serum of choice and as it's a pricey one I always choose samples of this whenever I see them - and another chemical exfoliator, Alenist Genius Bi Phase Peel, which will be good for travel. 

Smaller samples included two perfumes - Chloe and Replica Beach Walk, a sachet of Living Proof Style Extender hair treatment, and skincare sachets from Sephora, Dr Brant and Estee Lauder.

All in all I think that's a pretty good range of freebies and my bank account and manager are happy with my purchases!

The Master Bedroom.

After enjoying Clever Girl so much I decided to pick up some of Tessa Hadley's older books. 

The Master Bedroom tells the story of Kate Flynne who returns to her childhood home to care for her aging Mother after a successful career in London as a college lecturer.

Once home Kate spends her time reading and playing her violin. She runs into David, the younger brother of a childhood friend at a classical music recital and finds herself attracted to him. David's marriage is foundering and he is drawn to Kate. Kate then meets David's seventeen year old son and starts having a sexual relationship with him...

 It's all a rather improbable plot that really doesn't progress. The ending ties up all the loose ends - Kate breaks up with the son, her Mother dies, David and his wife restore their marriage, Kate sells her childhood home and that's the end of the book.

 

I didn't dislike reading this book, Tessa Hadley, as ever, delivers elegant flowing prose and it shows great useage and command of the English language, but in addition to the plot being rather unbelievable so were the characters, in particular Kate and her Mother, Billie. Whilst 'Clever Girl' resonated with me because of it's credible characters and situations I really don't think that people live the 'Kate Flynne Lifestyle' in this day and age and I found the ending to be disappointing.

Overall, I didn't hate The Master Bedroom but the far fetched plot and unrealistic characters irritated me so it wasn't a great read for me.

Meeting the English

Meeting the English tells the story of Struan Robertson, an orphaned and unworldly Scot who spends his gap year in London caring for Phillip Prys, a famous playwright who has been paralyzed by a stroke. Set in 1989 this book received outstanding reviews in England and is the first novel by the Scottish poet Kate Clanchy.

Sad to say I really did not enjoy this book. It failed to resonate with me and I just could not connect to it or it's characters. 

It's not a long book but it took me over a week to get through it - I really should have abandoned it. I did think that I would be able to polish it off quickly but I would read a page or two and set it aside... I did wonder if this was because I had hit a wall with my reading or because I have read such great books recently but, ultimately I think that it just wasn't my kind of book. 

Product Love - Crabtree and Evelyn Mini Hand Creams.

My hands take a fair old battering on an almost daily basis and a good hand cream is one of my 'must-haves'. A good hand cream that comes in a handbag sized tube - even better.

Crabtree & Evelyn Mini Hand Creams tick both of these boxes and a few more besides!

The formula. They are soothing and nourishing without being greasy and they absorb really well.

The scents. These creams smell seriously good, yet they aren't overpowering and don't linger.

The packaging. I've had issues with the packaging in the past but since then they have been redesigned and come in a metal tube that's coated with a plastic so they don't split. And did you ever see such pretty tubes? The colors, the designs -  they are just adorable!

The price. Sure C&E isn't exactly cheap but it's not super expensive and they run great promotions and have good sales. Plus if you are eagle eyed you can often pick these up in TJ Maxx.

If you are looking for a good hand cream why not give these a try? (They also make lovely gifts).

Spring* Clean.

Although I do purchase a lot of beauty bits n bobs it's not often I buy things on a whim. 

I'm also pretty good at repurposing things if needed. Add in an almost manic compulsion for finishing things up and there aren't very many beauty products that fall by the wayside.

I did, however, recently have a bit of a tidy up/ spring clean and did get rid of a few odds and ends that I am just never going to use.

The John Frieda Full Repair Styling Spray has been sitting unopened under my sink for the longest time and I have a similar Redken product. Rahua Hair Wax is too heavy for my hair as are the Bumble and Bumble Texture tubes. Oh, and that little brown packet is a hair dressing product, it's been hanging around for ages but I've never had a use for it and now can't even recall what it is!

I don't use tanning products at all so I'm letting go these Nivea, Lorac and Kate Somerville ones. The ByTerry Bronzer sample is way too dark for me so that goes as well.

I found the Biore Pore Strips to be too painful to use -- luckily I don't suffer with blackheads on my nose! The Dickinson's Witch Hazel Towelettes are just something that I don't have a use for.  And

I really should have read the packaging on the NIP+FAB Glycolic Pads before I purchased them as they contain ingredients I don't get along with.

Finally I would have loved to try the Kevyn Aucoin Eye Pencil Primatif but it's a bright navy blue that just won't be flattering to my eye color.

The majority of these were freebies - GWP or in Beauty Boxes etc (the only ones I bought were the Glycolic Pads and the Pore Strips) so I don't feel that I'm being too wasteful and am sure someone will take advantage of most of these when I pass then on!

*I know it's not Spring but 'Summer Clean' didn't have quite the same ring to it!   

Warm Weather Cleansers.

Suddenly it's Summer - or humid hot weather at least - and my cleansing products have changed dramatically from what I was using in February when I posted about my 'Cold Weather Cleansers'.

Although I still want to nourish my skin whilst getting it as clean as possible, I want to feel something that's fresh rather than creamy on my face now that the weather is warmer.

Now TBH the Scalisi Cleanser and Exfoliator that I received in a recent Glossybox isn't  something that I would have chosen for myself but I do rather like it. 'Scrubby bits' are suspended in a clear non foaming gel that rinses away easily and leaves my skin feeling clean and soft. It's quick and easy to use and although I wouldn't use this daily as they suggest I've been picking it up a couple of times a week when I feel the need for a gentle exfoliator.

I recently repurchased Sunday Riley Ceramic Slip and I am so pleased that I did, I'd forgotten how darn good it is! I love the earthy scent and it's a joy to use. It feels very cooling and makes my skin feel clean and balanced. There's just so much good stuff in here, it makes my skin look and feel great. So good - to the extent that since I cracked this open last week it's pretty much all I have been reaching for...

I'm still loving Mario Badescu Enzyme Cleansing Gel. Like the Ceramic Slip it feels refreshing and stops my skin from becoming congested without drying it, as a bonus it has a fruity summery scent. I'm almost done with this bottle but will def be restocking this immediately - not only is it lovely to use it's very reasonably priced.

I've been using Caudalie Gentle Cleansing Milk  for both washing my face and removing make up. It has a lotion like consistency, smells delicately fresh and does a great job of dissolving make up whilst leaving my skin nice and soft. I believe that this is intended to be 'tissued off' but I wash it off with a flannel as 'tissueing' just makes me shudder - kind of nasty right?

Finally I've been using Boot's Botanics Hot Cloth Cleansing Balm to remove make up. It has a slight citrus like scent and doesn't feel heavy as you only need to use a small amount of it. It rinses well and is great as a first cleanse at night. Oh and it's another economically priced one.

I'm really enjoying using all of these and it's really nice to be able to swap up my skincare seasonally.

The Sex Life Of Siamese Twins.

The Sex Life of Siamese Twins is the first novel by Irvine Welsh to be set in America featuring a cast of American characters, and although he has voiced strong female characters before, this is the first of his books in which the central characters are female.

Set in South Beach Miami, it tells the story of Lucy Brennan and Lena Sorenson who are thrown together when they witness a shooting.

Lucy is a tough personal trainer. Lena is a wildly successful yet emotionally vulnerable artist.

As usual with Irvine Welsh there's plenty of darkness and frankly bizarre (verging on disturbing!) behavior here, yet the ending is sweet and uplifting.

Entertaining throughout, I thought that Irvine Welsh did a great job of drawing two strong female characters. Lucy is a hard assed, hard hearted woman who in spite of everything is immensely likable. As the tale progresses Lena draws from Lucy's strength as Lucy's abrasive personality softens in the company of Lena. 

It really is a cleverly plotted book and before I finish let's take a moment to recognize the mind-boggling brilliance of the title...

Recommended.

Empties May 2015.

Once again I managed to finish up a whole load of products -15 full sized, 28 samples and a set of 4 mini body lotions!

Purely by coincidence there were quite a few rose scented products with rose face treatments from By Terry and Chantecaille, a rose scented Rituals Shower Gel and even a rosy Herbal Essence Hair Conditioner.

I finished up a huge box of Dr Dennis Gross Alpha Beta Peel Extra Strength. So good, these are one of my favorite skincare items. They are easy to use, their packaging makes them great for travel and they really do make a difference to my face. 

I have a few other gycolic products that I need to use up  but when I need more I will definitely be getting another huge box of these.

Sarah Chapman Overnight Facial was another wonderful product that I emptied - this facial treatment oil is a real glow giver, it firms and plumps and smells divine.

I also really liked the sample of Radical Extreme Repair, soothing and hydrating this was a very luxe moisturiser.

I managed to finish up a couple of Chantecaille Lip Glosses. They are one of my favorite brands of gloss, the formula, the colors and the packaging are all great.

I loved Givenchy Noir Coutour  Mascara, it's probably my favorite product of the month and one of the best mascaras I have used to date. It worked well wet, it worked well dry, it gave length and volume without clumping and the lid even did a little 'click' when you closed it (I know, I know it's the simple things...)

Hair and body wise what did I like this month? 

I've raved about Bumble and Bumble Surf Creme Rinse so many times before that of course I have to single it out. I also really enjoyed the Rituals Yogi Flow Shower Gel and the large Body Lotion from Smith and Chang which was rich and creamy without being cloying or greasy.

TBH there wasn't much that I disliked this month, in fact the only thing I didn't love was the Sachajuan Hair Repair Mask. It had a strong chemical type smell to it that I didn't find appealing and didn't really seem to do a lot for my hair. 

All in all May's products were pretty much the bomb!