Kiehl’s

Delving In To My Sample Stash #3

- Vicki 8 Comments

Makeup Samples

ESPA ProSerum – I have been spending quite a few weeks in Scotland since Summer & I always like to have my favourite serum with me, this ESPA one ticks all the boxes. Its hydrating, calming and helps even skin tone. I love the scent too, it smells like a high end spa. This is ideal for this time of year when my skin gets dry & looks a little dull. Its a staple in my travel makeup bag.

Ginvera Green Tea Nude Cover BB Cream* This is a popular Asian skincare brand & I’ve read so many great reviews of this BB Cream. I’ve always wanted to try it. I’ve been using this over the past couple of weeks & really like it. I like my base to give a light coverage and provide a touch of colour so my complexion looks bright & even. This BB Cream gives me exactly that, its a lovely creamy consistency which I found very easy to blend, I did lightly powder it but I don’t think thats 100% necessary. This BB Cream covers all bases it provides a SPF30, protects against free radicals, conceals imperfections & contains hyluronic acid for all day hydration. So you’re getting a lovely BB Cream with the added skincare benefits which Asian brands are renowned for.

Benefit Stay Don’t Stray – This is a dual action eye primer so not only will it keep your eyeshadow in place but you can use it under the eye to keep your concealer put all day long and it works a treat! I love it that much I will be purchasing the full size & can’t believe I have never heard of this until now. It gives my eyelids an even colour & is the perfect base on which to apply eyeshadow. Its love.

Burt’s Bees Hand Salve – Not a massive fan of this I have to say, I did initially like it but the more I use it the less I like it & that pains me to write because Burt’s Bees is normally very reliable. I much prefer a hand cream & find the easier to use when I’m on the go. I will use it up & have been using it on my cuticles at night to stop them drying out in the cold weather. Let me know if you like this hand salve & how you make it work for you.

Makeup & Skincare Samples

Stay Flawless 15 Hour Primer – I’ve not used this an awful lot & struggle to find a primer which doesn’t make my skin greasy after a couple hours of use. I like the cute spotty packaging, I will use this a few more times & then let you know if it worked well for me. 15 hours is a bold claim & I doubt very much that my makeup would stay looking flawless for 15 hours. Have you tried this? let me know if your makeup looked fresh & flawless for 15 hours.

REN BB Cream – This featured in my last Sample Stash post, I’m still using it & loving it. It gives me a healthy dewy finish and it wears well without oxidising. Its not my favourite BB Cream but I do like the finish and although I wouldn’t purchase the full size I have enjoyed trying it out.

Origins Super Spot Remover – This isn’t a sample size but it fits so well on my dish & its so dinky. I really rate this as a spot treatment, it starts working right away. Its so quick and easy to apply to your blemishes. It’s instantly cooling, and can sting a little but that only lasts a few seconds, this is a targeted treatment so you only need to put it on the area where you feel a blemish coming or if you have a blemish thats already erupted. It stops blemishes from becoming too sore & angry and helps them clear up much faster too. Its a wonder gel in a tiny bottle. If you haven’t already you need to add this to your skincare arsenal.

Kiehl’s Actively Correcting & Beautifying BB Cream – OMG this is the BB Cream of my dreams, It gives my skin an even coverage and It gives you Broad Spectrum SPF50 protection which makes me very happy. If you like a light to medium coverage that looks natural and radiant with excellent sun protection then you will love this BB Cream. Its simple but its all I need in a base and I am a massive fan.

Lancome Rouge In Love Lipstick – This is a gorgeous mini lipstick, I haven’t tried many Lancome products but this lipstick feels comfortable and hydrating on the lips & its the softest peachy pink. Not the most Autumnal colour but I have been enjoying wearing it.

NARS Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturiser – This is another product that was in a previous Sample Stash post, I’ve used it a couple of times & I’m not 100% in love, I’m not exactly sure what I don’t like about it. It might be that its quite thick compared to other tinted moisturisers & BB Creams. It looks really nice just after I apply it but I don’t think it wears well on my oily skin. I much prefer the Ginvera & the Kiehl’s BB Creams.

Sample Stash

Products that are marked with an * have either been sent to me for my consideration or I’ve received at events. I’m under no obligation to review them on my blog. However if I do, the reviews are 100% my own.

Skincare Favourites

- Vicki 6 Comments

Skin Care

I do have quite a few favourite skincare products and I like to change up what I use quite often depending on how my skin feels & what it needs, but these are a few products that I really like using.

L’Oreal Skin Perection 3 in 1 Purifying Micellar Solution 4.99

I have tried quite a few Micellar Waters and although I don’t use them to cleanse my face I do like to use one to remove the majority of my makeup before washing my face. This L’Oreal one is very good and gentle and It is the only Micellar Water I have repurchased. It doesn’t dry my skin out and a bottle lasts me well over a month and thats using it every evening. It is normally on offer at Boots or Superdrug and I have seen is in Asda at the moment for £2.

Garnier Simply Essential 2 in 1 Soothing Make Up Remover £2.99

This is a good budget friendly eye makeup remover and I have repurchased this over and over again. You have to mix the solutions and it is slightly greasy but not in a bad way, it helps breakdown my mascara and it even removes my beloved Covergirl Lash blast 24 hour mascara, that stuff is heavy duty.

Merumaya Melting Cleansing Balm* £14.50

My love for this is no secret and I’ve even converted my mum. She tried mine whilst staying with me and has asked for one for Christmas. It is a lovely Balm Cleanser and just (as the name suggests) melts away all my makeup leaving my skin so very soft, hydrated and smooth. For the price I just can’t get over how good this stuff is. If you’re looking to buy a Cleansing Balm then I can’t recommend this one from Merumaya enough.

balance Me Pure Skin Face Wash* £16

I use this in the shower in the morning and it helps keep my skin blemish free and is good for my redness. It is so very gentle and creamy that is works wonders to calm skin but keeps it clean too without drying it out. With all balance Me products they contain no Mineral Oils, Parabens, Sulpahtes, Petroleum, silicons or artificial colours or fragrances! So that is your skin taken good care of.

Kiehls Centella Skin-Calming Facial Cleanser £26.50

This is a very good Cleanser for people who have vey very sensitive skin. It contains Aloe Vera, Camomile and Tiger Herb (Centella Asiatica) which is good for healing. It is quite a thin consistency and doesn’t foam up. It feels like a light gel. I like to use it in the winter when my skin is dry and when I have been out in the cold alot, as it is hydrating and calming. This 200ml bottle has lasted me over a year and that is using it at least twice a week. It doesn’t look like much in the bottle but believe me it is a lovely cleanser.

Tropic Skincare Vitamin Toner* £12

I use this when sat at my desk, it gives my skin a boost of moisture and it smells lovely. It is packed full of lovely natural ingredients,

Pure Aloe Vera soothes & refreshes

Vitamins A, E & C boost skin vitality, Cucumber & Camomile reduce redness and cool the skin

Specially formulated to promote optimum skin pH & moisture for naturally refined & glowing skin.

I work from home so tend not to wear makeup during the day so I like to use this on my face to keep my skin hydrated and give it a boost of all those lovely ingredients. I like facial sprays but many of them don’t have any added skincare benefits but this one from Tropic Skincare is jam packed with so many benefits for your face. For £12 you get 120ml

Have you tried any of the products I’ve mentioned, or something else from these brands?

Products that are marked with an * have either been sent to me for my consideration or I’ve received at events. I’m under no obligation to review them on my blog. However if I do, the reviews are 100% my own.

Combating Blemishes

- Vicki 10 Comments

I suffer from the odd blemish and like everyone I try to stop them appearing and getting too red and angry. So I have a few products which help me keep my skin clean and keep the blemishes at bay.

Skincare Routine

Skincare Routine

Pixi Glow Tonic

Pixi Glow Tonic

This is a great chemical exfoliator with Glycolic Acid, which helps keep the skin very clean and reduces the dark marks left by old blemishes. This product breaks down and removes the dead skin to keep your skin looking bright and radiant. It is alcohol free which means it doesn’t dry your skin out. I use this everyday in the morning and love it.

Origins Clear Improvement Mask

This is a charcoal mask is also great if you have oily skin. It is really good at cleaning out your pores & removing any bacteria build up. It dries quite tight on your skin but doesn’t dry it out. My skin gets a little congested around my chin and find this mask is good to help clear that up. It’s a good mask to use once a week to give your skin a deep clean and draw out all the impurities.

Clarins Lotus Face Treatment Oil

This is good for Oily & Blemish prone skin as the oil helps calm skin, tighten pores and locks in moisture. I find this oil very calming on my skin and it keeps my hormonal breakouts to a minimum, my blemishes tend not to be as sore. I use this oil at least 3 times a week at night and two drops are all I need. I massage the oil all over my face and find it takes about 5 minutes to absorb into my skin. Since using this my skin is more radiant and my old blemish scars are reduced. I love the scent of this too its botanical and really relaxing.

Murad Clarifying Cleanser

This helps my skin go back to basics, it gives my face a really clean feel with out drying it out. It is a gel cleanser which gives your skin a very deep clean. It removes dead skin and bacteria build up and unclogs your pores. It smells a little medicated but I still find it gentle enough on my skin. I like to use this if I’ve been wearing my makeup up for a long time. This cleanser also has  salicylic acid in and so helps to reduce blemishes. This is well worth adding to your routine if you suffer from breakouts.

Kiehl’s Skin Rescuer*

This is aimed at people whose skin is experiencing the signs of stress (I know mine is). It is also geared towards skin that’s showing signs of fatigue and that is becoming dull. This is my skin in a nutshell, I’m stressed and that makes my skin stressed and I get more breakouts.

This moisturiser works well to calm redness and improve uneven skin tone, I find using this helps keep my skin look fresh and gives it a good boost of hydration too. This contains Rosa Gallica which helps calm inflammation and also Chamomile which is very gentle and soothing.  This Skin Rescuer can be used day or night which is good and I really think its helping reduce my redness and keep my skin looking more radiant.

Bath & Body Works Island Nectar Pocket Bac

Before I put any skincare or make up on my face I always use a hand sanitiser as I hate the thought of transferring any dirt or bacteria on to my skin, which can lead to breakouts. So this is a step I never miss, it is so important to keep our hands clean. It is a simple step but one so many people forget. I find these B&BW ones smell amazing and are a little more enjoyable to use.

So these are a few of the products I use to keep my skin clean and reduce the amount of breakouts I get. Are there any products you rely on to keep your skin blemish free?

Products that are marked with an * have either been sent to me for my consideration or I’ve received at events. I’m under no obligation to review them on my blog. However if I do, the reviews are 100% my own.

July Favourites

- Vicki 6 Comments

 

I’ve not had a minute to do this post over the past week, I thought I’d best post it now otherwise it would soon be time to do my August faves. That’s how fast this year is going. I’ve been keeping my favourite products in a little basket so I could find them. I seem to have a habit of misplacing things at the moment.

These are my July favourites,

Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturiser

SPF 20 in the shade nude – this is a really lovely lightweight tinted moisturiser. It feels so nice on the skin, it’s quite a sheer coverage but that’s perfect for days when you’re not wanting to apply a full face of makeup. It really has some staying power too. It applies smoothly on the face and gives you such a fresh-faced look and I love it.

Burt’s Bees’ Milk and Honey Body Lotion

I received this in a Glossybox and have been using it on my legs as they are so dry. This lotion smells amazing. It’s really moisturising and the good thing is it’s not too heavy and doesn’t leave the skin feeling tacky. I will be purchasing the full size when this tube runs out

Kiehl’s Ultra Facial Moisturiser SPF15

This is a really hydrating moisturiser and I’ve had it for about 5 months and used it almost every day Its lasted ages. My skin just drinks this up and it leaves it feeling so soft.

Aesop Parsley Seed Serum

I use this at night EVERY night and I would say it’s my favourite product of the whole year. I couldn’t imagine my skincare routine without this in it. It’s amazing and I’m excited to try more from the range.

5. Revlon Just Bitten Kissable lip stain in Cherish – all i need to say on these is I LOVE THEM. They’re so smooth on the lips and they last for ages.

6. bareMinerals Buxom Lips in Bambi – this lip gloss is so nice its quite long-lasting and the colours is lovely for summer I always have it in my handbag

7. Mac Eyeshadow in Naked Lunch – love wearing this colour all over the lid for a simple eye look. It’s just a pretty colour.

8. MUA trio in Innocence – a great trio and perfect for a smokey eye. These shadows are such  great quality.

9. Kleenex Shine Sheets – having an oily t zone these are a god send. I will do a proper review on these but i don;t leave home without them now.

10. Avon Supershock eyeliner in golden fawn – this is great for a subtle brown with a hint of shimmer. It just glides on effortlessly.

11. Avon Glimmerstick in black ice – another really great eyeliner just easy to wear and long-lasting. These are really good to smoke out and blend.

What are your favourite products from July?