Glossybox July | Hello Summer

I'm really enjoying Glossybox as a brand lately, and they keep knocking it out of the bag. The July Edit boasts Hello Summer on the box which sums up the contents pretty damn well. It includes travel-friendly sized products, makeup that can stand the heat and summer problem solvers. The box is the first of the summer collector's edition boxes with a sneaky hint towards next month's Girls Just Wanna Have Sun box. Inside this box are 5 summery products ranging from £4.99 to £25, all for £10.

I'll talk about the most expensive item in the box first, and that is the BellaPierre Cosmetics Banana Setting Powder (£25). I love using yellow-toned items under the eyes and hit pan on my ABH Contour Kit and I'm quickly making my way through the Nip + Fab Contour Palette, so this has come at such perfect timing. The baking makeup trend to set different areas of makeup helped products like this rise up in the beauty world, and this banana setting powder has a yellow hue to counteract discolouration, dark circles and to highlight the area. I'm in love with this product and is more travel-friendly than taking a whole palette on a trip. I'm just glad it doesn't smell like bananas too.

The second most expensive item in the box is the MONUspa Soothing After Sun Lotion (£19.95) which is obviously a great item for summer holidays. It has the most active form of soothing aloe vera along with Vitamin E and shea butter to hydrate, cool and help calm 'sunned-out' skin. You can use it on both your body and face after sun exposure and will even be useful on the short amount of days that the UK has sun. Another hydrating product is the CuteBalms Macaroon Tint Balm in Crushed Berry (£5.99). Firstly, it's adorable and definitely justifies the brand name 'cutebalms'. The colour is stunning and I don't mind having this out on my makeup desk compared to boring lip balms. It is a multi-use product and can be used on the cheeks for a little tint or on the lips for a rosy glow.

The accessories in this box really stud out to me! The Papanga Spiral Hairbands (£4.99) come in a pack of two and I have pink and blue ones which are both my favourite colours. Hair can fray and become damaged when you use a traditional elastic hair bobble so with these they hold the hair in place whilst preventing split ends and breakage. They're also fun but I would enjoy clear versions too. The last product in the box is the Spectrum Collections Small Fan A10 Brush (£4.99). Aside from the fact it instantly draws you in by the bright bristles, it's a great brush for applying highlighter. I've used a few differently highlighting brushes, from Indy Luxe to Real Techniques and this brush is a great balance of being packed together well with them not being too thick at the ends.

I really enjoyed this July Box, with no products that I'm disappointed in. I would prefer the Spiral Headbands to be a bit more neutral but that's just me! If you join Glossybox now, you get your first box for £5 which is an absolute bargain given that the contents are valued at £60.92! By using this offer you're basically only paying for the Spectrum Small Fan brush and a penny towards another item.

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10 Tips for Travelling Home for Christmas

Hey Guys, I'm travelling from Newcastle where I stay during Uni, to Liverpool (my home town). If you're getting a train, I follow my little checklist to make sure I'm travelling stress-free, especially during the festive season. Follow these tips and you can too!

1. Pack your bags well When travelling home for Christmas, everyone will be rushing and throwing as many things into a bag as possible. Pack wisely with only the things you need, it won't be as heavy to carry!
2. Choose your bags wisely So many people will take a large suitcase with them and try to cram them all into the luggage compartment on the train. Why not choose 2 small holdalls instead of one large one. You can fit them into the overhead storage without taking too much space.
3. Book tickets in advance There's nothing worse than getting to the train station on time and seeing a huge queue for the ticket machines. If you book your ticket in advance, you can get tickets posted home, print them out yourself or pick them up from a machine a few hours after you've bought them. If you happen to be near your train station days before your trip, you can pick them up then, meaning less of a rush on the day.
4. Get cheaper tickets If you book in advance online, you can see the prices of the tickets. This means you can pick the cheapest tickets available to your suitability. Sometimes it is cheaper to buy 2 singles than a return, so buying in advance is a huge life saver. Don't forget, if you have a railcard you can use it to book tickets online, saving about 1/3 of the price too.
5. Get a reservation Booking as early as possible (usually about 12 weeks in advance) means you can get first picks of the seats. You can choose a normal seat or table seat, and aisle or window seat. I personally always go for a table seat at the window as I do uni work whilst I travel. Having your own reservation means that no matter what, that specific seat is yours for the journey. It means less rush during busy Christmas travelling times as you don't have to scramble to find a free seat, and you don't sit in someone else's reserved seat. I can't got on a train journey without a reservation!
6. Arrive 15-20 minutes early You're at the station and need to find your platform with 2 minutes until the train leaves. You have to go through the ticket barrier and then onto the platform, which could be a few minutes away. There are loads of people looking to find their train. Then you miss it. Arriving about 20 minutes before my train means that I can grab any drinks/snacks before I leave, and I'm ready to board the train as soon as the doors are open. Christmas time is usually incredibly busy, so allowing yourself as much time as possible to get to your platform is a ticket to stress-free travel.
7. Don't forget to pack your presents You can't arrive home without the presents you've carefully wrapped and added a sparkly bow to can you? If you have a lot, try to make sure any fragile gifts are in between your warm jumper in your bag to keep them protected. If you plan on taking gift bags home, flat pack them in your luggage and re-pack them into their gift bags at home. You don't want them to be creased on Christmas Day.
8. Grab a hot drink and some food In most train stations there are usually a variety of little shops like Costa, Starbucks, Pumpkin etc that you can buy a hot drink and some food from. Some trains don't have food trolleys to buy things from, as they don't always have a huge selection. You can get your festive food and hot chocolates from stores in the station and carry them onto the train with you. Just remember to put the rubbish in the bins located on the trains or in the station when you're done.
9. Add Christmas songs to your phone/iPod The train is loud and you want a peaceful journey back home, ready to see your family and friends. Why not make a playlist filled with your favourite Christmas songs to listen to on the way back. Just don't forget your headphones!
10. Get the National Rail App No matter where you're travelling, you can track your train journey with this handy app. If there is a delay, you can see even when you're mid way through your journey, how long the delay may be. This is handy if someone is picking you up from the end point station as you can update them with what time to arrive there to greet you. It also sometimes tells you which platform you will get off at, so if you know the train station well, you'll know how long it will take you to get from the platform to the exit. Particularly handy in Liverpool Lime Street Station as there are 3 different sets of platforms (Wirral line, Plat 1-6 enclosed and Plat 7-9 near some shops and the exit).    I hope you enjoy these tips! I'll be travelling via First Transpennine Express* this Christmas, where you can find cheaper tickets online. On the home page, you can find their 'best fares' and their student offers which are quite handy. Their destinations include Newcastle, Liverpool, Manchester, Leeds, Edinburgh, Sheffield, York and many more. This means that you can visit the Manchester Christmas Market with a cheap ticket too!

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