Skincare Diaries #2

Origins Drink Up Intensive Overnight mask,  Boots Botanics Super Balm. Origins A Perfect World Moisturiser

You may have remembered from this post I said that I was going to keep a diary of all the skincare products I have been using and my skincare routine. Basically I've been trying to get into a skincare routine for ages now and I usually start well but within a couple of days I am demotivated and can usually find hundreds of things I should be doing rather than washing my face and applying various lotions and potions.

Previously I was using Olay's Beauty Fluid for my daily moisturiser, but unfortunately it had to retire to my skincare basket as it wasn't providing my skin with the moisture it needed. I decided to bring in the moisturiser heavy weights. These three work in perfect harmony, leaving my skin plump and soft, even if we are facing a bitterly cold winter. 

001: Origins Drink Up Intensive Overnight mask. I'm not overly fussy about most face masks, especially those that claim to remove impurities from the skin, brighten it or unclog pores. I never really feel as though they actually do anything and my skin looked much the same after using them. However I feel this one actually does something to my skin. It's really rich and although I wouldn't say it takes all night to be absorbed, it definitely takes a good few hours! In the morning my skin feels nourished and soft without a dry patch in sight. 

002: Boots Botanics Super Balm: This is a thick balm that kind of reminds me of a cross between Vaseline and Emma Hardie Amazing Face Cleansing Balm. If you can get over the texture and how it makes your face feel for a few seconds once applied (a little oily), this is such a nourishing product. I apply it to the dry areas of my face, leave for a few minutes and then remove it with a muslin cloth. You can find the product here. At first I found it difficult to find any information about it online. The linked article displays some incorrect information about it which even contradicts the picture they have displayed next to it. I can confirm that my pot shows the same information as the pot that is pictured next to the article.

003: Origins A Perfect World Antioxidant Moisturizer: I bought this in the summer and at the time I didn't like it at all. My skin was a little oilier in the summer and this moisturiser made it feel greasy. A few months later, my skin is drier and this is the moisturiser I reach for most. I also really like the scent, it smells like tea and a little fruity!

Are you stepping up your winter skincare?

 

Hair Saviours

Tresemme Split Remedy Masque, Bumble and Bumble Leave In (Rinse Out) Conditioner

I'll admit it, I'm not very good when it comes to haircare. For years and years all I did with my hair was shampoo it every other day and use conditioner afterwards — no masks, no hair oils, no treatments, nothing. I didn't even pay any attention to what hair type I had and it was an effort to go to the hairdressers (cue mother finally forcing me to go when my fringe had grown so long it rendered me visually impaired).  However over the past year the condition of my hair has suddenly taken a turn for the worse with one of the main problems being tangles.

Honestly, I thought tangles were a thing of the past. I look back on my childhood and am haunted by recollections of my mum attacking my hair with a hairbrush and me feeling as though my scalp was going to be ripped off. By my teenage years my hair was relatively easy to manage and tidy looking (aside from waking up with parts of my fringe sticking upright and that time I chopped off a hair braid). But at the tender age of twenty two, tangles decided to make a come back and now I can easily spend 30+ minutes combing my hair to get rid of the tangles and by the end of the day my hair is like a massive bird's nest again, even if I've recently had my hair cut.

I have thick strands of hair and a lot of it. The ends are dry and I find the hair near the nape of my neck to be quite coarse. I find a lot of conditioners don't really nourish my hair or make it any easier to brush. So recently I researched some Bumble and Bumble products and settled on the Leave In (Rinse Out) Conditioner. I apply this straight after I've had a shower and I leave it in. I find it doesn't weigh my hair down, the ends of my hair are softer and it's easier to comb. To repair the damage to the ends of my hair, in between hairdresser visits I use the Tresemme Split Remedy Masque once a week. Since using this I've noticed a decrease in the amount of split ends I have, my hair feels nourished after use and brushing my hair after I've used it is a dream. For £5.69 you can't really go wrong. From using these two products I've seen a dramatic change in my hair's appearance. It's softer, more nourished and easier to manage. My hair still gets a little tangled but nothing like before and I'm convinced with further use tangles won't be an issue.

Do you have any hair products you swear by?

 

My top winter blushers

     Top picture: Top L-R  Stila Convertible Colour in Peony, Nars Sin.

          Bottom L-R Illamasqua Seduce, Nars Douceur.

Bottom right picture: L-R Illamasqua Seduce, Stila Peony, Nars Douceur, Nars Sin.

I'll admit it, I am a complete blush fiend. I like lipstick too but I could happily forgo the pleasure of wearing lipstick, and as long as I leave the house with a swipe of blusher on my cheeks I am a happy bunny. This time last year I didn't quite have the enthusiasm for blusher that I possess now and I only owned a few various shades of pink so choosing the perfect winter colour was not so much of an issue. However over the past year my blusher collection has grown in size and I find myself dithering over so many different shades. So here I've whittled it down to four blushers I most enjoy wearing in the winter time.

Illamasqua Seduce: This one is a raspberry/berry/rose shade with a slight red tone that looks completely scary in the pan but when applied to the cheeks gives them what I like to call 'The Snow White Effect'. The cream formula is also perfect to wear in the winter when skin is a little drier.

Stila Convertible Colour in Peony: I saw the newest addition to my blusher collection advertised on eBay. The colour was described as "terracotta rose", which I completely agree with when it is in the pan, but when applied to the cheeks it mostly loses the orange tone and transforms into a peachy pink with a hint of brown. It's very understated and perfect for when I want to play up a bold lip (which in the winter I often do). 

Nars Douceur: This is probably one of my most loved blushers and it is one I wear all year round, but I most enjoy wearing it in winter. In the pan you could easily be mistaken into thinking that Douceur and Peony are the same colour (and indeed, I didn't realise how similar they were until photographing them next to each other), but when swatched Peony leans slightly pinker and more peachy whereas Douceur has no peach tones and is more of a rosy brown. However the difference, when applied to the cheeks, is minimal.  In my opinion, the real difference between them is the formulation - Peony is a cream blush and Douceur is a powder.

Nars Sin: This looks painfully unwearable in the swatch and in the pan; in fact when I bought it my friend looked at me as if I were crazy and whispered, "Isn't that a little too dark for your skin tone?" Nars Sin is a berry tone with gold shimmer, and fortunately when applied is not as intimidating as it looks in the pan. With a light hand this transforms into the most wonderful winter-time blush and becomes more of a pink-berry than a bruise-berry. Beware of applying this with a heavy hand though, or you will look like you've had a couple of rounds in the boxing ring...

Do you have any blushes you enjoy wearing in the winter?

Caudalie Beauty Elixir Review

Caudalie Beauty Elixir 30ml £9.90 

I've had this in my handbag for some time now so I thought it was due a review, not least because it was pictured in my first Skincare Diaries post. I own the 100ml bottle too but I paid over £30 for it so it rarely ventures out of my bedroom.

Caudalie Beauty Elixir is basically a beauty water, toner and make up refresher all rolled into one. It claims to tighten pores and revitalize the skin, making it appear brighter and more awake. I usually spritz it after cleansing, and throughout the day if I'm feeling a bit tired or run down and sometimes I just use it simply because it's sitting next to me! Caudalie Beauty Elixir smells very minty and although the smell is refreshing I find it to be very pungent. It also lingers for a while so if you're sensitive to smells that might be worth bearing in mind. Admittedly at first the scent bothered me to the point that it sat at the back of my skincare drawer, but slowly I've started to get used to it although I still don't particularly like it. 

I don't really feel as though this product has made much of a difference to my pores, but when I use it my face feels much fresher and I think it's improved the overall tone of my skin. It also diffuses nicely, unlike some sprays (Avene Thermal Spring Water - I'm looking at you) which disperse a large amount water in one concentrated area, causing shock and possibly smudged eye make up. Having said that, it is very expensive for what it actually does. It is also really easy to use up a 30ml bottle in a few weeks with regular use, and in my opinion there are toners out there that do the same job for a fraction of the price.  For example, I much prefer L'Occitane Angelica Face Toner (and it smells much better too). I also think it's important to note that one of the main ingredients in this product is alcohol, so anyone with dry skin (me in winter) will probably want to use this with caution, or give it a miss.

In conclusion, I do like this product, and I have seen some benefits from using it, but I think the main factor which stops me from repurchasing is the price. For what I paid I expected the bottle to have lasted longer or to have seen more skincare benefits.

Have you tried the Caudalie Beauty Elixir? What do you think?

Skincare Diaries Week 1

Clockwise from top-left, they are: Olay Beauty Fluid, Hydraluron, Emma Hardie Amazing Face Natural Lift and Sculpt Moringa Cleansing Balm, Caudalie Beauty Elixir, Caudalie Divine Oil, and Clarisonic Mia.

Welcome to my new feature! I've been thinking of doing this for a good while, but with my hiatus I never got round to it. I've started investing more time, effort and money into my skincare regime since the summer, mostly because I wanted to start feeling more confident about my skin, but also because I figured that it's all well and good to cover every imperfection with concealer and foundation, but wouldn't it be nice if my skin was ok to begin with?

Not only do I hope that this series will be helpful with reviews and updates, but I also have to admit that there is a self-interest element to it! I've never been properly motivated into keeping up with a regular skincare routine and as a result my skin sometimes suffers. I tend to look after it really well when it's going through a rough patch but when it's ok again I almost forget about it and find it a complete chore to even take my make up off, let alone tone, add serum, exfoliate, apply masks, facial oils and day fluids.

Anyway, the whole aim of this series is to regularly update with how my skin is doing, the products I'm using, and I might throw in a couple of reviews here and there, too. For reference, my skin type is Combination, which in my opinion translates as the worst of both worlds as my skin gets quite dry in the winter yet in the summer my skin gets all kinds of oily to the extent that even Estee Lauder's Double Wear can't keep it at bay. On the plus side it's not particularly sensitive; except I have a feeling there is one thing in my newly acquired skincare stash which is irritating my skin something chronic.

Do you have a regular skincare routine?