I did have these pics all ready to go on 1st May, but life got in the way… better late than never and all that! I was rudely interrupted yesterday when I popped out on a 5 minute errand and a woman with blinkers on pulled out of a side street and drove into my car. No-one was hurt; my five year old was with me and got the biggest cuddle of his life afterwards. Driving would be so much more pleasant without other drivers.
Back to beauty…
I wandered around the house gathering up my favourite products, (yep, pretty much every surface houses a beauty product to my husband’s delight) thinking there weren’t that many - and somehow ended up with what looks like an awful lot – but these are the goodies I really enjoyed using throughout May. At least half of them made their way into my routine on a daily basis.
Make-up
Rimmel Scandal Eyes Bronze eye crayon – a brilliant budget find that I swooped on while waiting for a prescription in the chemist – sweep it on as liner, layer it up as the basis of a quick smokey eye or blend out with a finger for a subtle wash of colour. Need more colours, pronto!
Bourjois Cream Blush in Rose Tender 03 – I’ve raved about this before with a full post here. I’m still loving it, lots.
Rimmel Scandal Eyes Mascara – If you don’t mind a fat mascara wand and fancy big lashes on a small budget, this is worth a go as the results are impressive: long lasting volume with no fall out. I always end up with mascara on my lid, so clean-up with a drop of Bioderma on a cotton bud is essential, but if you’re less cack handed, go for it!
YSL Touche Éclat foundation – Another ongoing rave of mine and my current foundation of choice for medium coverage that doesn’t accentuate pores or fine lines and leaves a glowy, natural finish. I’m wearing it in this post.
Jurlique Rose Silk powder – All credit to one of my favourite MUAs, Kenneth Soh for this discovery – he has been raving to me about it for so long I just had to find out for myself! A fine, delicate powder that leaves an invisible veil, slight soft focus and sets my make-up with zero dry cakey-ness. I may give this an ode all of its own another day – it’s an absolute beauty. If you’d like to see it in action, check out this post on Kenneth’s blog – and do subscribe – he is such an inspiration and a gentleman in the true sense of the word.
Skincare
Vichy Normaderm Hyaluspot – I don’t know if it’s the hyaluronic acid, but I think this stuff has magical powers! It claims to reduce the appearance of spots in a couple of hours and got rid of a stubborn one that had been lingering on my face for a month (yes really!) almost overnight. Amazing stuff. Available here.
Stila Undercover Conditioning Toner & Moisture Prep – I only discovered recently that Stila do skincare and this is my first product from the range – brimming with more of my favourite hydrator, hyaluronic acid. It’s a toner that adds more than it takes away in my experience. The consistency is almost like a liquid gel and I prefer to use it by patting it onto skin then swiping off any excess with a cotton pad. Sometimes I just pat it on and leave it there (pre moisturiser) as it feels so good. It definitely makes my skin feel more hydrated and is beautifully soothing. Importantly, it’s alcohol free so won’t dry or tighten skin.
Apivita Natural Serum Lifting – can you see how little is left in this bottle? I have a confession. I rarely finish a skincare product, for one of two reasons – either I’ve (often reluctantly) moved on to trial a new product for my blog or I want to eek it out as I love it so much. This one, I could not get enough of. I practically wanted to inhale it. It’s an anti aging serum designed to improve firmness and elasticity and contains rose, sandalwood and myrrh essential oils as well as numerous (pure) ingredients with fancy names – and is free of all parabens and nasties. Apivita is a beautiful brand, well worth exploring if you haven’t already – love a little play every time I’m in M&S beauty hall, also online here!
VIchy Liftactiv Serum 10 here – this cooling serum is so soothing to use all around the eye area for an instantly lifted, illuminated look and nourished lashes. I’m not sure about the long term benefits but love using this in the morning before make-up as it feels so good has adds a subtle wash of light.
Hair & Body
Bumble and Bumble Curl Conscious Defining Creme – curl definition minus the sticky heavy feeling – gorgeous! Plus it comes in such a huge bottle I can imagine it lasting me for at least a year. Great for scrunching into hair on days when I leave it to dry naturally.
Organic Surge Citrus Mint Shower Gel – more minty than citrus, this is most definitely invigorating and an absolute godsend on mornings when I’m feeling a little foggy (that’ll be most days then!). It’s quite unisex and I suspect my husband may have been helping himself too!
GHD Straight & Tame Cream – this is one of the best styling creams I’ve tried and I’ve been using this on the days when I’ve had the time and inclination to blow dry my hair properly, which I do less in milder weather. It leaves a really sleek finish on both straight and wavy hair and smells like vanilla – yum! Find it here.
Aveda Damage Remedy Intensive Restructuring Treatment – designed to repair and smooth even the most damaged hair, I’ve been using this as a once weekly treatment. Deeply nourishing, it leaves my hair really soft and easy to style. During the week I use the matching shampoo and conditioner duo, also gorgeous, but love to use the intensive treatment after this little number…
Apivita Propoline Shampoo with Citrus & Honey – I have to admit the biggest selling point of this is the smell, which is out of this world gorgeous (so much so, I may have used it as a shower gel on occasion – it’s all natural so I figured it’s ok!). I just happened to try it in conjunction with the Aveda one day and it worked, so I stuck to it. After using this duo my hair behaves itself without any styling products, which is a small miracle.
Do you fancy trying any of these products?
samples inc
