Five Among Friends

Welcome to a new feature, Five Among Friends, where myself & some of my closest blogging friends will be linking up for a a series of Q & A's once every month.

We'd love to see your answers to the questions too - Just post your Q & A on your blog and then put your link in the Linky below and we'll be sure to check them out! Don't forget to check out other peoples answers too!

This week's theme is Getting To Know You.....

This week's questions were written by Hayley at 
Sparkles & Stretchmarks....

The Questions

1) Describe yourself in 5 words

Sarcastic, friendly, Honest, Loving, girly

2) Why did you decide to start blogging?

Like many, I love to write and have always loved giving my opinions though started a blog was never something I thought I would do.  A chat with Hayley from Sparkles and Stretchmarks and some gentle encouragement gave me what I needed to start blogging.

3) How did you choose the name of your blog and why?

I have always been obsessed with beauty products whether it is something from Lush, a face cream, body cream, scrub or make-up I have always wanted to try everything and have always had wishlists of products to try. Now I am not much of a Princess but the word Queen came to me randomly and when I searched to see if it was in use, it wasn't and Beautyqueenuk was born.

4) Tell us something about yourself that you think might surprise us!

Like Hayley, I don't have a lot self confidence and really hate seeing photos of myself and hate being in front of the camera, so you will very rarely see photos of me because I am really self-critical.

5) What is your favourite and least favourite thing about blogging?

I have two favourite things.  The first is the comments that I get on my blog.  There is nothing better than knowing someone out there is reading your blog and thinks enough of you to leave a comment, it really makes my day when I go and have a look at the comments people have left.  as I love them so much, I do always leave comments on the blogs I read.  Comments have also led me to interact with other bloggers and some of them I have been lucky enough to meet and spend time with.

I also love the opportunity blogging gives to working with brands and being lucky enough to try new products that I otherwise might not have discovered.

My least favourite thing is the bitching.  A room full of girls is always going to cause havoc with all those hormones flying around, but some of the things I have seen and read truly saddens me.  In an ideal world, I would love for everyone to get along and support one another.

Don't forget to check out the other girls answers too....

Alex - Bump To Baby

Emily - London Mummy Of Two

Hayley - Sparkles & Stretchmarks

Jessica - Our Baby Blog

Kerry - Lived With Love

Lauren - Mrs Hippo & Me

Louise - Confessions Of A Secret Shopper

Rachel - BeautyQueen UK

Links of London Wish List

Would you like to win £1000?  Well Links of London are holding a competition which you can enter to win £1000 worth of their gorgeous jewellery and I mean gorgeous.  All you have to do is simply create a wishlist of your favourite pieces and write a blog post, like this, which also happens to be my entry.

As you can see I managed to choose just 6 pieces, it was really hard because there are just so many things that I like, but for me, these ones caught my attention the most.

1. Aurora Link Bracelet
Inject the wow factor into you party wardrobe. This Aurora link bracelet combines silver with rose and yellow gold vermeil. Strung on a sterling silver chain, this versatile piece has been designed to be lightweight to wear and features a textured finish which adds a touch of subtle sparkle. Costs £95.00

2. Celeste Rose Gold Wrap Ring
The mystic and celestial qualities of the traditional Native American Indian protective charm are bound up in this delightfully modern Celeste Wrap Ring in 18ct rose gold vermeil. The thinnest threads of diamond-cut glitter wire wrap around the Silver band to echo the web-like construction of the original pieces that were said to capture only the good dreams, while letting the bad ones go.  Costs £180.00

3. Dream Catcher Heart Rose Gold Earrings
With a base of sterling silver, these enchanting stiletto earrings each feature a heart that has been delicately wrapped within a subtle rose gold vermeil web. Featuring a unique glitter finish, these rose gold vermeil earrings will add a sparkle to any outfit. The inspiration behind this collection lies in the Native American dream catcher which protects against nightmares. Wear with other Dream Catcher pieces for double protection. Costs £150.00

4. Hope Rose Gold Plate Ivory Strap Watch
Fine detailing marks out this Hope Rose Gold Coloured Ivory Strap Watch as a modern classic. The traditional shape and form has been remodelled with overlapping asymmetric rings of rose gold coloured plate and a white mother-of-pearl dial. The chic satin effect ivory leather strap holds a watch face of subtle detailing, featuring rose gold coloured plate watch hands and a stylish crystal index at 12 o'clock. Water resistant to 3ATM, this is a must-have everyday accessory.  Costs £295.00

5. Dream Catcher Heart Rose Gold Pendant
This sterling silver heart pendant gets a modern interpretation with a fine web of rose gold vermeil glitter wire. A unique and interesting necklace, the Dream Catcher collection has been inspired by the Native American symbol to protect against nightmares. With a glittery finish, pair this piece with a bracelet and earrings from the same collection for maximum sparkle in your life. Costs £150.00

6. Effervescence Star XS Ring - Rose Gold & White Topaz
Everything is rosy with the Effervescence Star XS Ring in 18ct rose gold and pave white topaz. Each ring features small roundels of resplendent rose gold and white topaz stars. Giving you something different for your jewellery collection, team your new ring with different colours from across our collections to complete your look. This ring is also designed to be layered with others in the collection. Find your favourites and create your own look! Costs £130.00

I think all of these items are simply stunning and would be over the moon to receive any of them on Valentines day!

If you would like to enter this competition is open to the general public, but for more information follow this link http://blog.linksoflondon.com/2014/01/win-valentines-day-list/

Give it a go and remember to hashtag your entry #myvalentinewishlist you might just win yourself an amazing £1000.

What do you think to my choices? Do any of them stand out to you?

REN V-Cense!

REN skincare products are not something I have ever gone out of my way to try, even though many Bloggers rave about how brilliant they are.  A few weeks ago I was invited to attend a new product launch at the REN HQ here in London and I went along with the lovely Kimberley from Kimberleysbeautyblog to see what all the fuss was about.

Once inside REN HQ we got plenty of time to mingle with other bloggers and the lovely RN Staff as well as meet David Plenter who is the REN Global Brand Ambassador who then gave us a wonderful presentation into the world of REN and he spoke so passionately, it was hard not to want all of the products.

The reason for the event was to introduce to us the V-Cense collection which we got to test and try out as David was talking to use.  He was also very brave asking if anyone had any questions throughout his presentation, which with a room full of bloggers is no mean feat, but he handled everything wonderfully.   As David spoke to us all, we were able to test out some of the products mentioned which I found really helpfully, especially I was new to trying any REN product.

The V-Cense range is described as being an "innovative range of clean skincare designed to banish urban grey and combat fatigue".

Within this range there is the V-Cense Youth Vitality Day Cream which is described as being:  "A multi-active day moisturiser that prevents and minimizes the signs of premature ageing. Its complex of actives intensely hydrates, protects against free radical damage and smoothes fine lines and wrinkles while boosting skin energy and elasticity. Skin stays hydrated, protected and glowing."

Next comes the V-Cense Revitalising Night Cream which is said to "Hydrate and rejuvenate your skin overnight, waking to a radiant and healthy reflection. Frankincense Revitalising Night Cream contains bio-actives that moisturise, nourish and help combat the signs of premature ageing".

We also got to try out the REN Centifolia Hot Cloth Cleanser which is described as being"A rich and velvety lotion formulated to clean the skin from urban dirt and to remove make-up. Tannins from Centifolia rose petals soothes, tones and revives the skin while triglycerides from cocoa butter leaves it nourished and supple".  This product also comes with a Muslin cloth.

The final product we got to hear about is the REN V-Cense Flash Rinse 1 minute facial, yes you read that right.  This product is a gel-rinse that is designed to instantly revitalize and rejuvinate the skin after just 1 minute and last for 72 hours! It aims to neutralize ‘urban grey’ (especially good news for us living in London), remove blackheads, eliminate dead skin cells, reduce the signs of fatigue, diminish the signs of wrinkles and overall leave skin looking firm, toned and smoothed. Short term it is said to brighten your complexion, even skin tone and it also has an instant firming, toning and lifting effect.  To me, this all seems quite impressive and exciting for a product only being used for 1 minute and it is out in March 2014.

As soon as I saw all of these products and was lucky enough to try them, I wanted them as well as most of the products from the Moroccan Rose Range which smell absolutely amazing.  Amazingly, the wonderful people at REN had prepared an amazing goody bag ina lovely REN Tote bag for those of us who attended and here are the contents:

I was totally excited to see all of these products within my bag, especially two sachets of the 1 minute facial which I was itching to try having listened to David talk about it so passionately because it does sound simply amazing.

Have you tried any REN products? Do you have a favourite?

Diner Dogs Washbag plus Giveaway

Back in October I was given the opportunity from a company called Catseye London to review some of their products and was slightly excited because I love cats and I love stationary, so imagine my delight when I found the two had been combined, you can read about it HERE.

The company itself was launched back in 2004 with a collection of quirky prints on many fashion and beauty accessories such as home décor, Wash-bags Nailcare kits, Cushions, Mugs, Storage boxes, passport holders, travel card holders all of which allow you to stand out from the crowd and your friends and have something a little bit different and unique.

Today I am sharing with you a brand new product from the 2014 collection which I have right here in my hands and I am the only person lucky enough to have it. The Diner Dogs washbag is everything cute stands for and is a fantastic size measuring  H18 W31 D10 cm making it perfect for those weekends away because you can literally fit everything you will need into it. It is described as follows:

" If you love toy dogs and travel, the Diner Dogs Wash Bag is the perfect companion! Glossy and retro in bubblegum brights, it’s a gorgeous way to cart your overnight essentials. With two inner pockets and a sturdy pink zip, this wash bag will help you play Fetch with essentials. Perfect for an endless road trip".

Now if like me you think this is really cute and you want it, you can purchase it from the Catseye London website for £15 or you can enter my giveaway below to win one for yourself and as an extra treat, I am going to put some products and a few other things in the bag for the winner!

a Rafflecopter giveaway