Free Birthday Beauty Goodies 2018.

I have to admit to being rather negligent of C&C of late. I've been exceptionally busy and somewhat stressed due to aforementioned busyness which all added up to not having the time to blog. If I did have any free time I found that I wasn't in the mood to witter on about books and beauty things, either because I had pressing things that I should be doing (laundry, errands etc), or I needed to totally relax and simply sit and watch tv/play candycrush/flip through a magazine etc.

However, during my birthday month (August) I did manage to find a little time for myself and gather up a few beauty related freebies.

Ulta offer members of its Ultamate rewards program a different birthday gift each quarter. No purchase is needed to reclaim your birthday gift from Ulta but you do need to pick it up in a store as they won't add it to an online order. Summer's gift was a mini It Cosmetics Superhero Mascara. I must be one of the few people who hasn't tried the CC Cream from this brand, but I do have an eyeshadow palette from them that I love so I have high hopes for this mascara. I love mini mascaras! Not only are they a great way to try out new mascaras, they are such a handy size to pop in your bag or take on a trip. I'm always excited to get a mini such as this and get them from goody bags and GWP's so frequently that I rarely need to actually buy a full sized mascara!

Sephora offer members of it's Beauty Insider program a choice of birthday gifts. This year the choice was either Glamglow or Bite Beauty. There's something about Glamglow that I find off-putting for some reason - perhaps it's their glittery masks or their cartoon tie-ins? I don't really know - but it was easy for me to choose the gift from Bite which contained a sample of their amazing Agave Lip Balm along with a mini Amuse Bouche Lipstick and a mini Matte Cream Lip Crayon.

Space NK has upped their birthday gift game and now offer members of their NDulge program a little gift bag with three minis of their best selling products. You can add this birthday treat to an online order or collect it in store (I'm not sure if you need to make a purchase or not to reclaim in store, you do need to to do so online). I feel like I lucked out as my bag had a handbag sized Oribe Dry Texturising Spray which is always a great freebie to receive, a generous 10ml sample spray of Diptyque Philosykos EDP which is my favourite summertime scent, and a 15ml jar of Rodial Bee Venom Moisturizer which alone is worth a whopping $60.00!

Kiehl's offer their 'Kiehl's Family' members a #1 Lip Balm free with any purchase during your birthday month. I know that it's better than nothing but I do feel that this offering from Kiehl's, who were once known for their generous samples and promotions, is a little lame. Every year it is a #1 Lip Balm (which I don't even find to be all that great, its basically a petroleum jelly bal with a very small amount of sunscreen), you need to make a purchase to claim what is a low-value item, plus you can't combine it with any other offer. I actually didn't even claim mine this year as I didn't feel the need to buy something I didn't really need just in order to get a lip balm I don't even like all that much!

Anyhow enough of my complaining...

Diptyque is my favourite perfume house so I was thrilled when I found out that if you subscribe to their emails in the U.S. they will send you a birthday email that you can use in any of their standalone stores to claim either a mini candle or a 10ml EDP spray, no purchase necessary. I opted for the perfume spray and chose the fragrance Tempo which I believe is a Limited Edition of theirs. The Sales Assistants are always so nice at Diptyque and they also gave me a couple of their regular perfume samples which was a kind touch.

CVS recently overhauled their Beauty Rewards program and it now offers a free birthday gift to pick up instore, no purchase necessary. This year it was a Poparazzi Nail Polish and I picked out a wearable nude/greige.

In addition to my mini birthday haul pictured above, I also received a coupon code for 15% off orders during my birthday month from Cult Beauty and Caudalie added 30 points to my MyCaudalie Rewards account. 

I'm very happy with my birthday freebie this year, there are some nice treats here and the best thing is that they didn't cost me anything! Let me know if there are any birthday beauty treats I have missed out.

These offers are available in mainland USA. Other countries may have different gifts and conditions. Gifts and conditions may change and are subject to company policies and rules. 

Next New Space NK Event NYC 2018.

If you have seen my beauty related posts you will know that I love a good GWP and that I like to attend beauty events whenever I can. I'm fortunate to be living in NYC and there are often events to attend and some of my favourite events here are those hosted by Space NK as not only are they very informative they frequently include generous gifts and/offers.

Last month I attended one of their Next New events, a ticketed event that occurs once a year (I believe last year's, which I missed, was the first). The event was held in NYC's West Village one evening and ticket holders got to meet and chat with founders and representatives from thirty-four brands whose products are stocked at Space NK. Not only were the reps interesting, friendly and informative about their brand's newest releases, each brand had gifts for attendees which ranged from selections of samples to full-sized products. There were also mini makeovers and hairstyling available on site. And I mustn't forget to mention free drinks and nibbles!

It was a bit of a last minute decision by me to attend this year's event but I am so glad that I did as it was a truly amazing evening! A pre-purchased $25.00 ticket was exchanged at the entrance for a $30.00 gift card to use either on the night or at a later date and guests were given a tote bag to fill with their purchases and gifts.

Everybody I met at the event was lovely but I particularly enjoyed talking to fellow Brits from Votary and Windle and Moodie. The Votary girls were beyond generous with their gift as were Artis, Oribe and Rossano Ferretti. I also had a lovely chat With Francesco Clark from Clark's Botanicals who is as inspiring as he is nice.

I could not believe how many gifts I walked away with (and I didn't even stop by the Lipstick Queen, ByTerry or Ilia stands!) over $600.00 worth of product plus three cosmetic bags and the Space NK tote bag! I'm going to use everything from the event.

I'm so happy that I got to experience this wonderful evening and hope that I can visit it again next year. A big thank you goes out to Space NK for organising such a great night and also to all the participating brands.
us.spacenk.com

Space NK Holiday Preview Goody Bag.

On Thursday night after work I hot footed it to the Space NK Holiday Preview to have a peek at their holiday gift sets and seasonal items. There was a wide selection of gifts and limited edition items any of which I would be happy to give or receive!

The Space NK team did a fantastic job of creating a warm festive atmosphere in spite of it being an unseasonably balmy November evening. The holiday items were beautifully displayed in a gorgeous hotel suite: 'The Thompson Suite' at The Beekman Hotel in Lower Manhattan (thebeekmanhotel.com). 

Drinks and canapes were available and there was a pretty amazing gift bag that I received as I left. I love a good gift bag and this one is quite exceptional! 

Here's a look inside...

Skincare and Make up.

There are some lovely skin treats in this gift bag. 

For cleansing, a sample of Omorovicza Thermal Cleansing Balm which is a beautifully indulgent cleanser - I'm always happy to get samples of this as it's one of the most expensive cleansers out there! It's no secret that I'm not a huge fan of Eve Lom but I'm actually quite excited to try out the new Gel Balm Cleanser which is formulated with Shea Butter and Grape Seed Oil rather than the mineral oils previously found in Eve Lom products.

 There are also samples of Kat Burki Bio Correcting Cream, 111Skin Space Defence Bright Eye Lift Gel, and ByTerry Baume de Rose, all of which are luxury skincare items that I'm always happy to be given! 

The bag also contains a half sized Smith and Cult Lip Gloss in the shade 'Flesh Riot', a pinky nude shot through with a festive gold shimmer.  

Haircare.

There are six haircare items in the bag and they are all generous samples or full sized items. 

From R+Co a full sized Death Valley Dry Shampoo and a sample of High Dive which is a leave in conditioning cream. I already love Death Valley, it has the most wonderful fig fragrance and it adds a nice amount of grit to my hair that adds texture. I have got along with all of the R+Co products that I have tried so far so I'm happy to try out High Dive (I like to use a daily conditioning cream on my hair while it is damp).

There are generous sized samples of Oribe Gold Lust Dry Shampoo and OUAI Wave Spray. I have quite a stash of dry shampoos (this one is very much a shampoo rather than a texturiser) and salt like sprays but I do use both fairly frequently. These are both good products and I will certainly get around to using them.

I can never have enough shampoos to try out so I'm looking forward to using Miriam Quevedo White Caviar Shampoo, sulphate free, this will be perfect to use on my coloured hair. 

The final hair product is Christophe Robin Cleansing Purifying Scrub with Sea Salt. I have seen this innovative shampoo and scalp cleanser all over the place and I'm looking forward to testing this out very much! This is a full sized 75ml pot as well so I expect to get quite a few uses out of it.

Perfume and Body Care. 

Diptyque is possibly my favourite perfume house so I'm always thrilled with any samples I get from them. I'm especially happy whenever it's a 10ml sample of one of their newly formulated Eau de Parfums. 'Do Son' is a tuberose based scent with notes of neroli and rose and a touch of musk to 'dirty it up' and stop it from being overtly floral, it is a very wearable everyday scent for me.

The bag also contains a sample of Aromatherapy Associates Lavender and Peppermint Bath and Shower Oil which is a very aromatic and relaxing addition to any bath. 

I'm so happy with my unexpected gift bag (which is worth over $250.00!) and although I will use everything in it I am particularly looking forward to trying out the Eve Lom Gel Cleansing Balm, the Christophe Robin Sea Salt Scrub and wearing Diptyque Do Son.

It's never too early to start consider your holiday shopping and Space NK have some great gift ideas. www.spacenk.com/us