My blog is old enough now to have an 'empties' post, yay! I can't believe it's the end of March already, summer will be here again before we know it!
I wanted to get back to you on certain products that I only had my first impressions of. Now that these are all used, let's see how they performed and will they be worth re-purchasing.
Let's start with Pixi's Double Cleanse by Caroline Hirons. My first impressions were great on this and I still love it. This is a brillant high performance cleanser. I was a bit skeptical first about the packaging and the size of the compartments. I thought I would use one side quicker than the other, but no, I pretty much finished them at the same time and it lasted 1 month and 3 weeks with everyday use which sounds pretty good to me.
What it is: High performance, heavy duty cleanser; a balm and a cream in one pot.
Is it worth the money? Cleansing is incredibly important to me, so I think this is great value for money.
Will I re-purchase? Absolutely yes!
Pixi's Double Cleanse is availabe for £24.00 at Pixi Online and Cult Beauty.
The Ordinary Vitamin C Suspention 23%
As the beauty world is going bananas over Vitamin C and new products containing the wondrous antiageing ingredient is popping up every day (lately Clinique, No7 on the highstreet)I will stick to The Ordinary Vitamin C Suspention 23%. It's a high dose anything over 20% is good for me), which is very effective in brightening the skin and getting rid of pigmentation, old sun damage, etc. I need that strength. A good word of warning: it stings when you apply it, which I personally don't mind, at least I can feel the product working but if you have sensitive skin, opt for a lower dose and a more diluted formulation.
What it is: an antiageing, high dosage Vitamin C serum to be used in the evenings.
Is it worth the money? Effective antiageing for under a fiver? That's a no-brainer to me!
Will I re-puchase? Absolutely yes!
The Ordinary Vitamin C 23% Suspention is available for £4.90 at Victoria's Health.
Hylamide Low-Molecular HA Multi-Depth Rehydration Booster
I bought this back in July. It lasted so long because I've been using so many things in rotation. I reviewed this back then (read it here) and I still stick to my word, this is a great hydrator in combination with a good moisturizer. Note that if you live in a dry climate HA boosters, serums could dry your skin since they draw moist from the environment and if the climate is too dry, it will do the opposite of hydration.
What it is: The Hylamide Low Molecular HA Booster that uses five different forms of HA molecules that penetrate different layers of the skin, and mixing it in with your usual moisturizer, it will make sure that every last bit of moisture is captured and delivered deeper into the skin.
Is it worth the money? Here's the thing: The Ordinary appeared on the market and started to get a real buzz after I bought this. While £18 is well worth paying for such a good product I will definitely will go for The Ordinary's Hyaluronic Acid 2% + B5 serum next time for £5.90. At the end of the day, both companies are owned by Deciem, so my money will go to the same place ;)
Will I re-purchase? Probably not for now for all the above reasons.
Hylamide Low-Molecular HA Multi-Depth Rehydration Booster is available for £18.00 at Boots.
La Roche Pose Anthelios AC Matte Fluid SPF30
I bought this back in the summer and as you can see I haven't used it as much as I thougt I would. I've found myself reaching for my Bobby Brown Tinted Moisturizer SPF35 or the Bare Minerals Complexion Enhancer SPF30. Using an SPF cream under makeup that contains SPF doesn't make sense, so my boyfriend used it up in the end. I think I will stick to the routine of getting my facial sun protection from my makeup and use one of those Garnier SPF sprays to re-apply if needed. That doesn't mean this is not a great product' It's not for my present routine, that's all.
What it is: a lightweight sun protection lotion with a matte finish for oily skin.
Is it worth the money? Yes, a good sun lotion from a French Pharmacy brand is always worth the price.
Will I re-puchase? No, purely because it doesn't fit my beauty regime.
La Roche Pose Anthelios AC Matte Fluid SPF30 is available for £16.00 at Boots.
Oh, K! Cucumber Sheet Mask
It is nice, it's soft, it does what is says on the packaging: a cooling and hydrating mask on a budget price and most of all, it's pure skin care fun!
What it is: a hydration boosting cooling mask.
Is it worth the money? Absolutely yes!
Will I re-purchase? Absolutely and I will try their avocado moisturizing mask too.
Oh, K! Sheet Masks are available for £3.00 from Boots.
Anastasia Bevery Hills Brow Wiz
Everyone is raving about it and quite rightly so, Anastasia Bevery Hills still is one of the best companies to go to for brow products. I was looking for a replacement for my very old (now discontinued) Taupe pencil form Mac and this one is a perfect colour match. I had only one reservation: I somehow can't warm up to these retractaple, super thin crayons. I still prefer the old-fashioned pencil format, so when I discovered Kiko's brow pencils for third of the price? I swiched to using them instead.
What it is: a retractable eye brow pencil.
Is it worth the money? It's a high qualit, great product, but now I prefer another one for third of the price. So to me it doesn't worth it anymore.
Will I re-purchase? Not for now because the Kiko ones are more suitable for me.
Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz is available for £15.50 at Cult Beauty.
A lot of brands are jumping on the sheet mask bandwagon lately spoiling us with quick and easy treatments on a budget price. Originating from South Korea (the home of K-beauty) sheet masks are taking the Western World by storm and suddenly everyone is doing it. Luckily the high street is catching up too and it seems Origins couldn't stay away from the trend either. Last week they launched 6 individual masks targeting different concerns, all arranged around a floral theme: Rose for Hydrating, Jasmine for softening, Orange flower for brightening, Violate for nourishing, Raspberry to refresh and Lavender for soothing. They all contain flower extracts and essential oils that benefit the skin in different ways. I have to say I could use all of those as we are slowly leaving winter behind and my skin needs all the treats possible, but I went for the three I needed most: Rose, Violet, and Orange flower. I used them all up in quick succession on three mornings before I started my makeup routine.
Orange Flower for brightening
Dull and boring skin? Here's your rescue remedy. I think this one has to be my favourite out of the three, I was positively glowing after using it in the morning. My skin turned a little bit pink right after taking it off ( I had it on a bit longer than advised) but I didn't mind, my skin does that when using brightening masks. I diligently massaged the remaining product into my skin and in about 10 minutes I had an amazing cooling, refreshing sensation all over my skin that I really enjoyed together with the uplifting scent.
Next up: Violate for nourishing
I've found this the richest out of the three, it could work brilliantly on dry, tired, 'needy' skin beaten by winter weather, air con or one too many drinks and takeaways. I felt this left a tad bit more product on the face when taking it off, but I guess you can leave it on longer than 15 minutes to let it sink in more. It took a good while to massage the leftover product into the skin but it was worth it, I looked glowing and fresh all day even though I was wearing a full coverage matte foundation.
Last but not least: Rose for hydrating
I am all about hydration at the moment and while all of these masks do hydrate, this one will give you an extra dosage if you feel in need. It had a really nice cooling effect while on and my skin felt bouncy and fresh all day.
The packaging is eco-friendly and the masks are made up from 100% natural bamboo that makes them really soft. The cut and shape of each one feels reasonable and comfortable to wear.
They each contain a generous amount of product (but not dripping), stick to the face firmly, so you can even walk around in them. They are only lightly scented, which I'm glad about because I don't like strong floral fragranced products.
Trying these 3 masks makes me want to buy the other 3 too, take them over to my sister's and have a good giggle over how much we look like a bit of tit in them. This is and excellent, inexpensive (£5.00 each) way of getting a good treatment and have fun with skin care - a feel-good experience that could also serve as a Mother's Day treat together with your usual bouquet of flowers.
The Origins Flower Fusion sheet masks are available at Boots, John Lewis and www.feeluniuque.com
Garnier has just added some new goodies to their moisture boosting range extending their well-respected skin care portfolio. I've never really used Garnier skin care, but the first thing that caught my attention was the hydrating spray with SPF because I loved the Bioderma one that came out last year. Now, you know I am a sucker for anything that boosts the skin's hydration level, just because I got to an age where I really need it. If I can get it at a budget price? Bring it on!
Let's start with the very thing that caught my eyes, the SkinActive Moisture Boost Protect spray with SPF 30. Applying SPF and re-applying it during the day is a tricky thing, but it's one of the the best ways of anti-ageing if you get it right. This little thing is a perfect answer to re-applying during the day when you are out and about, let it be a day out in town, popping out for lunch from the office or if you're working outside. Obviously this is not for prolonged sun exposure so when on holiday in the sun, go for something else.
The spray spreads the product really well, it is light in texture, not sticky at all so it is perfect for over makeup too. My boyfriend took it with him to work (he is driving all day) even he liked it because sometimes he's been caught by the sun quite a bit even just sitting in the car. From both of us, the Moisture Boost Protect Spray gets a big thumbs up.
Next up? The SkinActive Antioxidant Water-Cream Day Moisturiser. Personally I am not too fussed about my moisturisers, I am always more interested what happens after cleansing and before moisturising. You can use so many exciting things there like acids, retinols, serums, etc., but I thought I give this a try anyway. The product itself has a gel-like light texture which is easy to apply, so many people will like it if they can't stand heavy creams on their skin. The smell is quite fresh, nothing too overpowering. It contains antioxidants like amla (Indian Gooseberry) and pomegranate to protect the skin from environmental damage and hyaluronic acid which is known as one of the best hydrators.
The instructions advise to use a pea sized amount, I needed more than that but even then I felt this won't be enough for me on a regular basis, BUT I could definitely see myself using this in the summer, on hot days, when I don't want much on my skin. I think this could also work really well on a younger or oily skin. I like to use this, but I've only just got it recently, let's see what happens if I use it long term. I will get back to you on that.
I was really impressed on the other hand with the sheet mask! Another K-Beauty concept that is hitting the British highstreet - will it live up to the hype, though? I mainly bought it for fun, didn't expect much at all and I am happy to say this felt amazing to use. It is loaded with product yet not too messy, the size, shape and cut of the mask is suitable even for smaller faces like mine. It is cooling, calming, refreshing and most of all super-hydrating.
According to the instruction you have to leave it on for 15 minutes, but I left it on at least for half an hour to get the most out of it - they say it contains a week worth of hydrating serum after all. My skin felt bouncy, refreshed and calm after that and for £0.99? It's an absolute bargain!
The SkinActive Moisture Bomb range is available at Boots, Superdrug, lookfantastic.com
The awards season has officially ended with the Oscars last week and gosh, did we have some jaw dropping beauty moments on the red carpet this year! While the fashion weeks were also in full swing at the same time, dramatic cut creases, glossy eyelids and neon colours were put on a backburner for a few nights to see what the world's best beauty make-up artists have got for us in store. I think red carpet looks always come handy when you're looking for makeup inspiration for a night out, so I always keep my eyes open for the beauty trends there. While the SAG, BAFTA and Golden Globes are more relaxed when it comes to beauty looks, I'm going to have a look at the Oscar's, the biggest red carpet that gets the most attention!
Looking at most of the red carpet pictures, three looks were in majority. The classic red lip was incredibly popular this year:
We had a good few smokey eyes:
Ladies who wore a soft, neutral look:
There were a few flicks and bright colour on the eyes too:
There was not too much variety there, the ladies of Hollywood played it quite safe, but that's okay, the Oscar red carpet is not necessarily for showing off avant-garde runway trends but luxurious beauty makeup that brings out the best in the person wearing it.
I picked my favourites from the night, the ones where not just the makeup was brilliantly executed but the whole look came together beautifully.
One of the big beauty winners of the night for me is Olivia Culpo. With that lavender wash of colour all over the eyes, she looked unique and fun. I love how Sir John, her make-up artist, toned down everything else, which makes the colour pop and turns the whole look really modern.
Emma Stone: the glossed old Hollywood waves paired with crimson lips is a fabulous, classic choice for the Oscars. Rachel Goodwin, Stone's make-up artist had two months to prep the look and she was inspired by a 19th-century painter Gabriel Rossetti because he always painted redheads. Her look has added elements from the 1930s, 1940s too which resulted in a wonderful fusion of styles. Didn't she look perfection?
Chrissy Teigen was wearing a beautiful neutral contoured look courtesy of Mary Phillips that went perfectly with her sparky jewellery and dress. Toning down the makeup was a great decision, it made the look young and relevant.
Here's how to impress with not too much makeup at all: Viola Davis' low-key black liner, neutral lip and glowing, healthy skin complemented her new statement crop. She was oozing cool and style on the red carpet wearing an off-the-shoulder red gown.
Emma Roberts looked beautiful wearing sparkling warm gold tones paired with Matte Revolution lipstick in Red Carpet with Kiss 'N' Tell Lip Cheat both from her make-up artist for the day Charlotte Tilbury. This classic, seductive look turned the young actress into a real Hollywood classic beauty and got her onto the 'best of' lists of all beauty magazines.
Patrick Ta prepared an effortless, glam look for Sofia Carson with sparkly light gold eyelids finished with a bold lip using Lorac Cosmetics. The Alter Ego Matte Lipstick in Pin Up complemented Sofia's skin tone and beautiful hair style perfectly.
After 6 years of her last appearance at the Oscars, Hailee Steinfeld returned with one of the best looks on the night courtesy of Mary Phillips. The young actress looked stunning with a strong smokey eye that almost reached her brushed up brows and a pale lip.
Taraji P. Henson's make-up artist Ashunta Sheriff loves colour, shine and drama and I think that reflects in the actress' look really well without being overpowering. Inspired by the '80s tv show Dynasty, adding modern elements Taraji looked lush wearing cool tones and a blue/ silver combination around her eyes. She was definitely the queen of the red carpet that night.
Debuting in a perfect white art deco inspired Rubin Singer dress and fresh-faced Auli'i Cravalho looked magical at the Oscars. Make-up artist Kelly Shew let the 16-year-old Hawaiian's beauty shine through with a youthful, soft look.
Priyanka Chopra departed from her usual deep berry lip and Pati Dubroff created a really sultry sophisticated look with muted colours for the star. The soft smokey eye paired with a soft natural lip looked sleek with her straight hair deeply parted on the side.
Kirsten Dunst was bringing some rock 'n' roll to the red carpet with her cool black smokey eye, strong blush, red lip and effortless wavy hair breaking the pattern of all the Old Hollywood glam looks. Jillian Dempsey used a lipstick called Cerise from Chantecaille which I definitely will try, it looks so amazing on her!
Last but not least, one of my style crushes, Nicole Kidman who, turns out, is the new global ambassador of Neutrogena. No surprise that make-up artist Jeanine Lobell (the founder of Stila) used mostly Neutrogena products on her for a fresh, dewy look. Only the lipstick was a bit of luxury: Armani red in #402.
Finally, just a quick mention of the two looks that didn't do anything for me at all and didn't do any justice to the ladies who wore them.
Dakota Johnson and Alicia Vikander are gorgeous looking women but somehow they both wore a bit unflattering and slightly aging looks. Surely, they will do better next time.
That concludes my overview of the beauty looks of the Oscars. I am looking forward to see what the next season has in store for us. Until then there is plenty of inspiration on this season's red carpets if we are stuck in a make-up rut.
If I had to pick a charity beauty product it would be a Viva Glam lipstick from Mac, the simple reason being that 100% of the sales goes to the Mac AIDS Fund was started to provide help for the communities living with HIV and AIDS. Since the charity was founded in 1994 by Frank Angelo and Frank Toskan (the two owners of Mac Cosmetics) the company has contributed to this great cause with hundreds of millions of dollars and I am more than happy to support that.
To this day Viva Glam is an integral part of what Mac is as a brand is and they've always found a diverse, influential, inspiring people to face their campaigns like Boy George, Ru Paul, Lil' Kim, Mary J Blige, Fergie, Lady Gaga, Nicky Minaj, Cindy Lauper, Ricky Martin, Rihanna, just to name a few. The new year brought us acclaimed actress Taraji P. Henson paired with her Empire co-star Jussie Smollett, actor, singer, photographer. Taraji has already released a capsule collection with Mac earlier and now she's returned and to face the Viva Glam campaign.
Viva Glam Taraji is a fabulous universally flattering, bright fuchsia shade that will definitely get you noticed. The formulation of the lipstick is matte, creamy, super long wearing and comfortable to wear. The colour of the bullet is not for me but what I really need is what's in it, so it's not something that would put me off from buying it.
I like a good pencil when wearing strong shades like this and I never thought I will find one in my kit, but magically there was one suitable, it's called Process Magenta Chromagraphic Pencil, also from Mac.
This is how it looks against fair skin in natural light:
I am very pleased to own this gorgeous shade, it will definitely be a favourite when I want to impress and who doesn't want to look fabulous and be charitable at the same time?
Check out this fun short promo video with Taraji and Jussie here
Viva Glam Taraji P. Henson is available at all Mac stores and online for £16.50. The collection also contains a shimmery fuchsia lipglass for £15.00.
