Current Skincare Routine

We all know that it's important to take care of our skin, but sometimes - actually most of the time, heading to the bathroom to have water going everywhere and sticky moisturiser get all over your hands is not very tempting. That's why I've now made my skincare routine as short, sweet and simple as possible, yet make sure it has everything my skin needs. 

First thing I do is remove my make up if I've got any on. I do that with my much loved MAC Cleanse Off Oil - the best make up remover I have found so far for easily removing my waterproof mascara. After doing that ans rinsing it off with water I start massaging my Pai Camellia and Rose Gentle Hydrating Cleanser all over my face, then gently remove it with a warm, damp cloth. I always splash some cold water in my face afterwards to close open pores and to give a little boost. 

On to moisturiser. It's been mentioned on here before and for good reason; Soap & Glory Puffy Eye Attack is my one true love when it comes to eye creams. Its cooling, light, hydrating and depuffs my often puffy eyes (lovely.). In the mornings I tend to just follow up with my Embryolisse Lait-Cremè Concentré which is the perfect moisturiser for anyone who needs a bit of extra hydration but want to avoid the oily, sticky ones for the daytime. At night though I have fallen head over heels for the Egyptian Magic. Best way to describe it is as a sort of hard oil - when you rub it between your fingers it melts into an oil like consistency that applies very easily to the face but takes a little while to absorb (hence why I use it at night).

Apart from the eye cream all these products are ones I only started using about a month back and I don't know which one it is (or if it is the combination of all three) but I have never had clearer, brighter or softer skin. I don't bother wearing much make up on a daily basis anymore simply because its not really needed, but when I do it applies like a dream. I want to say that the Egyptian Magic has most of the blame but I am not entirely sure. All I know is that if you do come across it and have slightly dull or dry skin - give it a try.

Hope youe enjoyed this post and that it might have given you some tips for what to look into getting next time you're on a skincare product hunt!

Love,

Em

The Skin Saver

I'm sorry - I've been completely MIA lately, and I don't even have a good excuse for it. I've had enough time, and I even have several posts all ready to go up - so I don't know what my problem has been.. Anyway, I shall try not to forget the fact that I have a blog to update from now on. Deal?

So over to today's post - You see I've had my mind blown away by yet another product. Although this time it was completely unexpected and unintentional. Usually I hear the rave and give in only to realise that yes, the product is good or that there must be something severely wrong with me for hating something that everyone else seems to love (Benefit's They're Real, I'm looking at you..) The story with this was different. I was at my local beauty department store picking up a few things I needed when I was given a few testers as I paid. The testers you may wonder, were of a new cleansing series from Kanebo Sensai. My initial thought when I saw the label was ' Ouch. Why did I have to fall in love with one of the world's most expensive cosmetics brands?' Luckily I came to my senses and realised that I was thinking about Shiseido and that that was the brand that would have killed me with its pries.The two products I have tried are actually priced fairly reasonable...if you compare them to other high end skincare products. 

Once my teeny tiny testers were about to run out (after over 2 weeks daily use - I was shocked by how long they lasted!) I decided to purchase the full size version of the cleanser at the duty free on my way back from Colombia. When I got the testers I received a make-up remover and a cleansing soap. Kanebo Sensai Silky Purifying Cleansing Milk and Kanebo Sensai Silky Purifying Creamy Soap. The latter has proven to be revolutionary good leaving me with better looking skin than I've had in ages. It feels and looks smooth, I haven't had any big break-outs since, only the occasional mini spots, but they've all disappeared in about a day or so. I feel like £34 was a well worth it price to pay for nice skin, and the more I think about it the more I want to get the make-up remover too.. whops.

If you ever come across these beauties at a counter or a shop, then do ask for a sample as they might blow your mind too :) And for reference I have normal to combination skin and the products are said to be for dry to combination skin.

Also just want to say thank you to everyone who has been following me lately - I really appreciate it! And if you don't follow me already you can click here to get to my Bloglovin' and you won't miss a post :)

Lots of Love,

Em

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10 Minute Miracle

A little while ago I mentioned a purchase of a trio of Origins face masks, including the Out Of Trouble   one. This bad boy is a real miracle worker! I have used it twice since I first got it and it is one of those masks where you feel and see the changes immediately!

It has a mud-like consistency although it is quite creamy at the same time, and it feels very smooth, so it slides on easily which is a blessing. We all hate those masks where you have to spend a thousand years just to get it evenly distributed and not leave it on in bulky patches. This is not one of those, thank god. 

If you are someone who is put off by the scent of products and do not like menthol then don't get this because you would be left either holding your breath for the 10 minutes its on or breathe only with your mouth. Neither is very appealing, nor relaxing. However if you don't mind it or actually like the menthol scent, like I do, then it may be hard to make yourself even take this beauty off! I love how refreshing and clean it smells and feels, and you can almost sense it working deep in the pores, removing all the bad stuff and replacing it with menthol-y cleanness. Mmm...

The outcome? After 10 minutes, use a warm and damp cloth to remove it, splash some water over your face and you are left with cheeks as soft as a baby's butt without having to scrub the life out of your fingers. Impurities and redness is reduced remarkably (at least it was on me) and the morning after I woke up with more even skin where my humps and bumps were smother, and less noticeable. A good face mask that can rescue bad skin days - Check! If your skin is prone to break-outs of impurities, or if you have oily to combination skin then if you ever stop by an Origins counter then you should take a look at this and maybe ask for a tester. It really is that good :) And as always with Origins, it has none of those bad ingredients, only natural goodness.

Price wise, I am afraid I do not know the exact one as I bought this in a set, but online it says that it retails for $23 (130 NOK /£ 15) which is not a bad price at all.

Let me know if you try it or if you have tried this or any other Origins mask already!


- Em

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Origins

I came across an incredible offer today when I went to pick up a few necessary bits and bobs for my shower (shampoo tends to run out very quickly around me...erhm). Anyway, I wasn't supposed to actually buy anything but that shampoo and nail polish remover but then I walked passed the Origins corner and noticed quite the deal. 3x75 ml face masks for £35. I mean, that is plain ridiculousness! Originally they would be over £55 so I saved quite a bit there, and these are quite decent sizes, so I bet they'll last me a year or maybe more! To top it all up and make the deal even better, one of the 3 face masks was the Origins Clear Improvement mask, which Anna has raved about quite a few times, so obviously I have been dying to try it (and so I did tonight - review coming in a week's time).

Along with the Clear Improvement charcoal mask you get the less intense version of the DrinkUp Intesive mask, which is called (no surprise here) DrinkUp.  It works in more or less the same way as the intensive mask does, and I have a review on that here if you want to check that out. The last mask in the set is the Out Of Trouble (love that name) which claims to "rescue problem skin"which I have to admit sounds pretty cool, so I might try that one out during the weekend!

I think that for the quality, the amount and the simple amazing-ness of these products this was quite a small prize to pay, in other words it was a bargain! I am thrilled about stocking up on some facial goodies for the spring so expect to see reviews on these soon :)

That's all from me today, but if you have tried any of the Origins face masks, let me know your thoughts on it in the comments, I would love to hear how others feel about these!

- Em

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Christmas party dresses you say?

After spending what feels like hours on looking at dresses online, I realized there was no point in dedicating a post to them when I didn't come across any that I really liked. Therefore this will be a post on something else. Duh.

I searched my brain for something to blog about and I thought - what better than to recommend a nice skincare product that can give your skin some thorough cleansing around these holiday times? So today I'm giving you the REN ClearCalm Clarity Restoring Mask! It is a thick mask with a consistency that is mud-like and very smooth to apply. The scent is unexplainable, because at the same time as it is fresh and clean it has an underlying smell that I'm not sure if I am particularly fond of... Scent aside - the results it gives are miraculous! If your skin is looking dull and is red in patches and maybe holds a few spots, then this will give some life back into those cheeks, even out the skin tone (bye-bye redness) and diminish the spots. A wonderworker ? Yes, indeed! And not to mention it is free of all sorts of nasty ingredients - so no parabens, petrochemicals etc... (look at the picture above for more of that) and that is very good indeed.

I highly recommend this to anyone who struggles with red patches on their skin, or has skin that is prone to breakouts. At a price of £30 you can get it with free shipping from lookfantastic.com, from the REN web store (also for £30) or at most drugstores/pharmacies! 

This is my favourite face-mask at the moment, it really is one of those feel-good products, and I recommend it to anyone who loves to splurge on a nice feeling skincare product.

- Em

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London Haul: Beauty Products

As a makeup addict, London with all its department stores and makeup shops is like a mekka, so I doubt it comes as a surprise that I picked up a few.. cough *a lot of* cough...  beauty products while I was there. However I know I am not the only one out there who enjoy to see what other people buy - especially when it comes to makeup and fashion- so I thought I'd share my new beauty bits and bobs with you. Now keep in mind that I do love makeup and that it is in a way my version of a "stamp collection". While others bid outrageous amounts of money on old stamps, I buy lipsticks and mascaras :) Ok, enough of the "justifying my deeds", let's get on with the pictures shall we?

Real Techniques brushes 

 From left: Powder Brush, Setting Brush, Contour Brush, Buffing Brush, Detailer Brush and Pointed Foundation Brush

From left: Bourjois // Bronzing Powder in shade 52, TopShop // Highlighter in Crescent Moon, and Rimmel // Stay Matte Pressed Powder in 001 Transparent

From Left: Sleek Makeup // Face Contour Kit in Medium, Sleek Makeup // Blush BY 3 in Pumpkin 363 (name of blushes inside: FL: P Pie, Squash and Lantern)

Eylure // Katy Perry Lashes - Sweetie Pie

From Left: Collection // Lasting Perfection Concealer in #2 Light, Rimmel // Wake Me Up Foundation in #103 True Ivory, Laura Mercier // Tinted Moisturizer spf 20 - Oil Free in Blush

From Left: MAC // Rebel lipstick, MAC // Costa Chic lipstick, Revlon // Candy Apple Lipbutter, 

MAC // Cherry lip pencil

From Left: Benefit // BrowZings in light, MAC // Customized Quad containing: Omega (top left), Espresso (top right), All That Glitters (bottom left) and Cranberry (bottom right)

From Top:Rimmel // Scandaleyes Mascara Waterproof, Too Faced // Lemon Drop Shadow Insurance, Rimmel // Exaggerate Waterproof Eye Definer in #261 Noir

From Left: The Body Shop // Tea Tree Oil, REN // Glycolactic Radiance Renewal Mask, REN // T-Zone Balancing Day Fluid, REN // ClearCalm 3 Clarifying Clay Cleanser

Soap & Glory // The Daily Smooth Body Butter, Soap & Glory // Flake Away Body polish (exfoliator), The Body Shop // Hemp Hand Protector (aaah-mazing hand cream!!)

From Left: Organix // Moroccan Argan Oil Shampoo and Conditioner, Hask // Argan Oil Hair Treatment, Batiste // Dry Shampoo (in Blush)

And that is it! I know it was quite a lot but oh well, it is not every day I go crazy shopping in London :) I can show you the clothes I bought too if you would like to see, or I can just take some pictures when I am wearing them and show them in future "My Style" posts. We'll see!

Now I have to work on a maths project, Whoop Whoop!

- Em

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