Every time I go into M&S I spot more of my favourite beauty brands on the shelves; most recently Pixi Beauty, which I got more than a little excited about. No longer just a place I swing by to pick up my mum’s talc, I can happily while away an afternoon in the ever expanding beauty hall. Makeup artist to the stars, Mary Greenwell comes on board today as Beauty Ambassador, marking the addition of Bourjois, Barry M, Pixi, Studio 10 and T LeClerc as M&S continues to step things up.
After that little preamble, what I really want to share today is an impressive gift with purchase. To get your hands on it, just spend £25 on beauty products - and you’ll receive a FREE make-up bag filled with:
- Stila lip gloss
- Diego Dalla Palma mascara
- Lola lipliner
- Eyelure false lashes
- Pixi Beauty eye shadow palette
- M&S Autograph eye shadow palette.
By my calculations, that lot is worth at least £60!
In the unlikelihood that you’re not sure what to spend £25 on to get your mitts on this lot, here are my Top 5 M&S Beauty picks…
1. PIXI | Now that Pixi Beauty has landed at M&S, I no longer need to order my Glow Tonic via phone from its London store and wait for them to post my bottles out - hurrah (though I did love them a little bit for doing that). So I’m cheating a bit here with two Pixi recs - in addition to the iconic, skin-refining Pixi Glow Tonic, I’ve been impressed by the new Cat Eye Ink, which has a firm, slanted felt tip style nib that makes winged out cat-eye liner easy peasy.
2. STILA | I’ve been using Stila Eyes are the Window eyeshadow palette in Spirit a lot recently as it offers so many versatile looks, with pale gold, warm copper and chocolate tones in a mix of shimmer, satin and matte finishes. The shadows themselves are soft, blendable and very wearable, oh and that rose gold packaging and giant mirror… *swoon*. NB mine is the one labelled ‘Silver’ on M&S. You can see Mary Greenwell use a Stila palette to create a smokey eye look here… she makes it look so easy!
3. L’OCCITANE | L’Occitane’s almond range is one of my all time favourite body & hand ranges - and this Almond Discovery Collection of generous miniatures is a brilliant way to try it all… I can’t even begin to tell you how incredible every one of these smell. (If you really feel like treating yourself there’s a bigger Delicious Almond set here, which actually works out at better value.) You WILL be hooked… don’t say I didn’t warn you!
4. XEN TAN | I know it may seem odd to suggest a self tanner at this time of year, but I’ve been slathering this on after the horror of acknowledging my post-Summer blue toned limbs last week. I’m not ready to go there yet. A single application of this adds the perfect amount of gentle, golden colour (because who has time to tan daily?!) - just enough to make my skin look human again. Xen Tan Transform Luxe is my all time favourite gradual tan thanks to that delicious caramel scent and perfect colour… oh and it’s on offer at the moment!
5. REN | REN Rosa Centifolia Purity Cleansing Balm is a beautiful cleanser that leaves my skin completely clean, yet comfortable, even on sensitive days (I’m prone to rosacea). The rose scent and delicious texture make it a pleasure to use and the balm emulsifies when water is added, rinsing off easily… it’s one that I often come back to and a little goes a long way.
The M&S Beauty GWP is available online and in selected stores until 27 October / while stocks last. Add the code T234817G to redeem this offer and get your free makeup bag full of goodies. PS if you find yourself just shy of the £25 minimum spend, may I suggest this. Happy Shopping!
