My skincare routine - revisited.

Hello everyone, 

I've not posted in over a week, but it feels like so much longer for some reason! I just thought I'd take a little break rather than forcing myself to blog, I'm a strong believer in keeping things enjoyable, and I think it really shows when someone wants to be writing and when they are simply doing because they feel they have to. 

But anyway, it's been an absolute age since I last shared my skincare routine and it has change quite a bit since I did a whole post on it. I have struggled with blemish prone skin since becoming a teenager, but I these products definitely help and I am happy super with my routine right now! 

-Eye makeup remover-

To be honest, I'm not that faithful to any eye makeup remover, but this Simple one and the L'oreal Micellar water are my favourites. I just soak a cotton pad with which ever one I'm using at sweep it over each eye until all the mascara, eyeshadow and liner is gone! 

-Face washes-

I like to use this Nivea Cleansing mousse if I want to take of all my makeup without using the above, sometimes it's just nicer to use a wash, it means I can take off all of my base makeup at the same time too. This one has a lovely foamy texture and is perfect to use in the morning when I'm in the shower. I'm always a little wary of trying new products, but this one didn't break me out at all. 

This La Roche-Posay Foaming gel cleanser has got holy grail status for me , I absolutely love it! It has a lovely gel texture which feels balm like in a way, and is just the best thing after a long day. I like to use this in the morning (again in the shower) or at night. I have noticed a huge difference in the number of breakouts and general appearance of my skin since I have been using this (I'm on my second bottle) and I am going to repurchase it for a long time to come!

-Toner-

I have used this toner since I first got into skincare, it does the job perfectly, leaving my skin feeling smooth and extra clean, I always tone before I apply my makeup because I feel like it gets rid of any excess oil so the overall finish is far better. 

-Moisturizer-

A good moisturizer is a must in anyone's routine, and this one suits my skin perfectly. It is rich without being heavy and absorbs really fast. Also how cute is the tub! 

-Blemish treatments-

I have tried lots of product to try to clear my breakouts, but this is by far the best, I have done a full review here so I wont go on too much about it, but what you really need to know is how fast and effectively it works. I apply this to a spot before I got to sleep, an by the morning it will be smaller, less sore and less red, and if not that then totally gone. So much love for this product! 

-Facemasks-

My current favorite face mask and what I have been reaching for most for a while is Lush's Love Lettuce one. It is meant to brighten, soothe and exfoliate and it does what it says! It leaves my skin feeling so soft and smooth and really makes a difference to how clear it looks. 

-Lip balm-

Finally, not technically a skincare item, but I always apply a lip balm last thing before I jump into bed, this one is amazing, it feels really luxurious and smells divine. 

So that's my routine, I don' use as many products as some people, but often keeping things simple is best! I mainly focus on making sure all of my makeup is off and that my skin is as clean as possible.

What do you think of my routine? What products do you use?  

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April 2014 favourites.

Hello everyone, it's April favourites time!

I've discovered lots of gems this month, plus somethings that I've been loving for a while are finally making an appearance.

-Nivea Refreshingly soft moisturising cream-

This moisturiser has been a skin savoir of mine lately. It's pretty thick, so you only need a small amount for the whole of your face, meaning this pot is going to last me quite sometime! It's super creamy and feels really luxurious (not at all oily or sticky) despite only being  few pounds. Nivea is a fab skincare brand and I would recommend this to anyone. Oh ,and how sweet is the packaging? Of course I chose this one over the plain version!

-Nivea cleansing mousse for dry and sensitive skin-

Another Nivea product I've been crushing on is this cleanser. I've been using it to take my makeup off in the evening because it feels so lovely. I just rub it all over my face (not quite onto my eyes but really close under the lash line!) and pretty much everything is removed. It works particularly well if I've used my favorite L'Oreal micellar water beforehand. Although I don't have sensitive skin, I often buy that option just because it is generally gentler and less likely to irritate my skin (and lead to a dreaded breakout...)

 -La Roche-Posay purifying foaming gel -

Another cleanser I've been obsessed with for a little while now is this La Roche Posay one. Lots of people have gone crazy for this brand (we've all read reviews of the Effaclar Duo + right?) and I for one have been loving using this cleaner at night. It's like a gel and feels so lovely a apply and I honestly look forward to using this at the end of the day! I can tell that this had improved my skin lots (along with the other skincare products I've mentioned) and have already repurchased another bottle.

-Rimmel Fix & perfect pro primer- 

I recently ran out of my last primer (Nivea Express hydration FYI) and have found that I will never look back from this one. I can't tell you how well this improves the wear time of my makeup, before when it had looked pretty patchy by the end of the day, it's still going strong; take now for instance, I have had my makeup on since about eight in the morning, and at half seven it still looks decent!  It has that lovely velvety feel and being white in colour it makes it easy to make sure you have blended it all in. 

-Real Techniques powder brush-

As ever, I have a RT brush to rave about! This makes it easy as pie to dust on the perfect amount of powder (Rimmel stay matte is my personal fave) and it never looks cakey or obvious. As with all of these brushes, washing it is effortless and I can see this lasting forever.

-MAC mineralize skinfinish Soft and Gentle-

I've recently really been getting into highlighters, so when I was gifted this for my birthday, I was over the moon! I have to say that Soft and Gentle is most definitely worth the hype, it gives the priestess gold sheen to the face, defiantly a spring summer staple in my makeup bag, I have used it everyday since I got it.

-Bourjois Bronzing primer-

This is another product I've had my eyes on for ages; I love it as much as I hoped I would. Despite being crazy pale, this leaves no harsh orange line and creates the loveliest natural contour. It smells absolutely divine as well!

I was lucky enough to win this in Stephanie's giveaway a few moths ago, we all know that I love eyeliner, and this one is one of the best I've tried! It gives a really deep black line that doesn't budge, essential when you are a cat eye lover like me. It's really easy to use because of the tapered nib, perfect if you are just getting into eyeliner.

I also won this mascara; at first I thought it was just a gimmick because of the shape of the wand, but I have to say I was wrong! It gives a really fluttery effect and never goes clumpy, and doesn't smudge under my eyes (an issue I seem to face a lot) Defo give this a whirl next time you're at a Rimmel stand.

Guess whose Apocalips addiction is back...  I have been reaching for Luna and Stellar lately, both stunning shades, perfect for the transition into spring. Luna is such a pretty peachy nude, and stellar is a really punchy pink red. 

-MAC palette with the eye shadows Amber lights and Fig -

I promise to stop going on about my baby soon! But I simply couldn't do my April favourites without mentioning my MAC palette. Both the shadows I have are such lovely shades, and I have used them lot already. They really are the wonderful quality everyone says they are, the question is, what shades should I pick up next?  

What's been in you April favorites? What do you think of mine? 

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Empties #3.

Hello my loves, long time no empties post. 

These bottles and jars have been slowly piling up over the months, so I finally bit the bullet and photographed everything!

-Bath and body-

First up is the infamous Lush Snow fairy shower gel, I blummin' love this stuff! I'm sure a lot of you will have tried this, or at least have heard of it, but if not, this is a shower gel that Lush bring out every year for a limited time at Christmas, and I was chuffed when I received this in a gift set. It has the yummiest candyfloss scent and pink colour, with a little bit of shimmer. This has little bottle has lasted me from Christmas, so it's done well! I will certainly be picking this up again next year, I love it. 

The next product is technically my Mums, but I can't deny that I had the odd spray of this L'occiatine Cherry perfume every now and then! I urge you to pop into a store and give this a sniff, it is heavenly. It would make a lovely gift and I would be super happy to receive a bottle myself  Finally is a Soap and Glory Girlingo spray, this has lasted me forever and it is such a quick easy product; you just spray it on, rub it in and silky smooth skin is yours!

-Hair-

As you can see, I get through rather a lot of dry shampoo. Its just a quick, cheap and easy way to get an extra day out of my hair (I was it every other day fyi) and Batiste is always my go to brand. This giant can lasted me an age, and the littler one faired pretty well too. I like both of these scents, but I found the cherry one a tad too sweet, and just for the record, my all time favorite smell they do is the fresh one. It's pretty darn good. I will always repurchase a can of this dry shampoo, although I would like to try Doves offering, I've heard wonderful things about it.

The other empty is a Vo5 heat protect spray, I love the scent of this range (it's the same as Lee Stafford stuff I swear) and it always left my hair feeling really soft after using it. Although I do like this product, I found it would leave my arms all sticky if my spraying had got a bit too enthusiastic, also, I like trying out new hair products, so I won't be repurchasing this immediately.  

-Skincare-

Yeah um, I guess I've got through a lot of skincare stuff! First, lets talk about all that L'Oreal micellar water. I love it, (as you may or way not have guessed) and as someone who often wears heavy eye makeup, I find this makes removal at the end of the day a breeze. I would definitely recommend this, and will continue to repurchase for some time. I've not used face wipes in the longest time *pats self on back*, these simple ones were finished ages ago now, but I do like them as wipes go, not stingy or stripping, they actually feel pretty nourishing, but I much prefer using a makeup remover and cleanser now.

 The two little pots are of Nivea Express hydration primers which I have featured in favourites posts more than once. The are the perfect product to quicky pop on in the mornign before applying your makeup, they are super affordable too. I'm actually using a Rimmel primer at the moment, but I'm sure I will buy one of these again.

 I find this simple moisturiser used to work for me, however lately me skin has been craving some thing a lot thicker that really soothes and smooths over everything (all will be revealed in my April favorites!) I find this one good if time is against me, but I seem to have just grown out of it I suppose.

These two Witch products work really well together and my skin gets along with the natural ingredients, defo on the re-buy list. Finally is Vichy's amazing Normaderm Hyaluspot read my review here, you'll get the gist of why I love it so!

-Makeup-

I've got through two concealers since my last empties; the blogger favorite Collection lasting perfection and a surprisingly good Miss Sporty offering. I won't bang on about number one, I'm sure your sick of hearing just how good it is (don't get me wrong, I'm firmly on that band wagon too!) but this Miss Sport liquid concealer is just amazing for the price (I'm pretty sure it's around the £3 mark) when I repurchase I will do a proper review, but it has a really lovely non cakey, medium coverage finish and is perfect under the eyes. 

Next up, the Rimmel Scandaleyes Show off mascara, this was nice enough but I didn't love it enough to repurchase. A product that will always hold a place in my heart though is this Collection cream puff, I talked about the formula here, and this shade is so flattering on all skin tones- so get yourself to boots pronto! Finally is a Natural Collection loose powder, this does the job nicely, not terribly exciting but I know it works for me and would totally recommend it if you're on a budget.

Phew, sorry this turned into such a wordy post, I hope it was still enjoyable! I hope you all have a lovely Easter Friday, I will be in Oxford so look out for a post of snippets (seen as you enjoyed my London one) and an outfit of the day!

What have you finished lately? Have you tried any of these products?

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Mini Primark and skincare haul.

Howdy everyone,

 Now I don't know about you *but I'm feeling 22* but I always end up finishing skin care things all at once. Lets just say, I freak out, wonder how my skin is going to cope, and then accompany my Mum on our weekly Tesco shop ;)

I have literally three things from Primark, two of them being crazy boring, so we'll start off with them, and then I I'll give you a mini review of all of the skincare bits because I've had them for a little while now, sound good?

We'll start off with possibly the most exciting thing ever to be featured on my blog, cotton pads *tumbleweed* 

I also picked up some new hair bands because I swear there is a little gremlin in my house who takes them, you know the one who also nicks your socks and hair grips. 

Lastly from primark is this little cropped jumper;

I have another one like this in bright pink (ootd) and I absolutely love them! They're so cosy and slightly oversized so really comfy.  I adore the dusty blue colour of this one, with little flecks of pink and purple, so cute! 

Now onto skincare, I've been wanting to try this since it was released because I've heard its a fab dupe for the blogger favourite bioderma but at a fraction of the price; 

Ah I love this stuff! I haven't actually tried Bioderma so I can't compare it, but even if it's nothing like it it's great! I use it too take of all of my make up (including face and lips) and it leaves my skin feeling really clean and smooth. It's a breeze for removing eye makeup because it doesn't drag at all and actually dissolves it. I can highly recommend this, infact I've almost finished this bottle already!

Next up are a few repurchases, the first being the Nivea Express Hydration primer;

I've have raved about this so much (see here and here!) and for good reason, I use this everyday without fail before applying all of my make up, and it makes my base last so much longer. It also  moisturises as well as priming, so saves me some time in the morning as well. 

I always have a bottle of this handy because it my favourite makeup remover. Me and my sister get through it at an alarming rate because it's so good! it takes a little more effort than the L'oreal skin perfector, but it's cheap as chips so I can deal with it!

This is another staple in my routine. I like to sweep it all over my face an neck before applying moisturiser. I tightens the face really nicely and leaves it SO soft.

Another simple product, sensing a pattern ;) I haven't tried this before, but Simple was on three for two so I thought I'd give it ago. I've been a pretty lazy with this, usually I just want to jump into bed after my skincare routine, but on the nights that I have used this, I have noticed a real difference in the smoothness of my eye area in the morning, and it feels like it really nourishes the skin.

If you would like to see my skincare routine, I did a post on it a little while ago now here, it's changed slightly , but not tonnes, so check it out if your interested! 

What have you been buying lately? What are your favourite skincare products?