Favourite things of April '13

A little early considering April hasn't actually finished yet, but I love reading favourite posts from other bloggers, so I thought I would jump on the bandwagon and share some of the things I have been loving in the past month. And seeing as my blog as started in the middle of a month, and it is almost a month old now, I thought my first favourites should come along. Anyway, enough of the waffling on, here are the things I've been loving....

I have previously shown my love for Moroccanoil in this post, so I won't blab for too long, but this is just incredible, it had to be here. Another hair product in the form of Neal and Wolf's heat protection spray, I had never heard of this brand, until I asked my hairdresser what would be the best heat protection spray for my hair, as most of them have left my hair feeling limp, lifeless and the product just sits horribly on my hair. (I'm sure anyone that's tried Tresemme's attempt will understand this?!) She told me to give this a go, and they sold it in the salon, so at £9.00 a bottle, I thought I may as well try it, and I absolutely adore it. It smells so good that they should really consider making the scent into a perfume. COME ON... NEAL AND WOLF... PERFUME? Find it here

I've been really enjoying using Revlon's Colorstay Nail polishes, which I find really hard to get hold of for some reason. I bought two using my advantage card points on Boots.com and this shade is "Pale Cashmere" a sheer pink, which I have a LOT of, after Essie's Ballet Slippers, this is my favourite sheer pink polish. Another thing I struggled to get hold of was a brow serum, I ended up getting this Eye Candy XLR8 serum whilst it was a little cheaper on Amazon, I think it has worked quite well, but hasn't made a significant change in my brows. It has made them look fuller, however, so I will be continuing to use this.

Clarins have amazing self tans, their Delicious self tanning cream creates a gorgeous sun kissed look on my body, whilst the highly raved about face tanner adds a healthy glow and tint to my face. Until summer comes along, I think these will be getting used quite a lot. Before applying the face tanner, I use Origins Drink Up Intensive, an overnight mask which injects a lot of hydration in my skin, and makes it look glowy prior to the extra tanning.

I'd heard a lot of the Laura Mercier's Silk Creme foundation on the blogosphere, and when the lovely Gemma over at MissMakeupMagpie was selling a pale colour over on Twitter, I jumped in to get it straight away, I have a darker shade, which is currently a tad too dark, so mixing the two gives me an ideal shade, and makes my skin look incredible! I understand why it is so highly raved about. Its just ah-mazing! I'd also heard about Sure's Maximum Protection deodorant, which I caved and bought, as I've never particularly found a deodorant that just worked for me. This one does, its like a roll on, but its more of a cream, that soaks in immediately and leaves you with that lovely clean and fresh scent that lasts for ages! Its a really good investment, and its definitely one for women on the go, thanks to how quick and easy it is to apply.

A few non-beauty related favourites here in the form of TV programmes and DVD's:

Anyone who knows me will know that I have an obsession for buying TV Series' on DVD, I just love owning them, and being able to watch them as long as I want, and when I want. I simply don't have enough patience to wait for a new episode every week. Anyway, Prison Break, I absolutely love, not to mention my HUGE crush on Wentworth Miller and Dominic Purcell. I know its a few years old now, but I was recommended this by a friend, and once I started watching it I was hooked, I actually went and bought the DVD's after finishing all four seasons (and crying like a baby at the last one.) I've introduced my Aunty to them, and she is now as hooked as I was. We watch a lot of TV together, and another thing we've been loving is Hart of Dixie, as well as a lot of re-watching of old Buffy the Vampire Slayer episodes 

I've also been hooked on a website called BTVGuide, and watching Supernatural. I watch a lot of TV online, and on my iPad, and one of my newest addictions is definitely in the form of Supernatural. I've just started season 2, and I love the supernatural fighting brothers, Dean, a lot more... he's such a dude.

Multi-use mascara?

An essential to all make-up artist kits is the disposable mascara wand, used by them in the place of the wand in the mascara tube, as it would be seriously unhygienic to use the same wand on every client. However, I am NOT a make-up artist and have a large pack of these wands handy all the time. My reason for this? They have so many more uses than just applying mascara... So, I thought I'd share some of my useful tips and tricks using disposable mascara wands.

Dry lips? When combined with a coat of Vaseline, these little wands make an amazing scrubbing tool to remove any dry/flaky skin from lips.

Clumpy mascara? Use a dry wand to separate lashes.

Removing eye makeup? I have a bottle of Liz Earle's Cleanse and Polish, which does remove eye makeup, but its quite difficult to use on lashes without getting it in your eye, so use a tiny bit (take serious caution and care) and use a wand to run it through, and make sure all your lashes are coated to dissolve left over mascara.

Too much eyebrow powder?  To make eyebrows look much more natural after filling in with powder, run a wand in the direction of the hair growth to work the powder into the brows, and make those drawn on brows look more Cara, and less Crayola.

Pale eyebrows? I personally have quite blonde brows, so I usually dye them with one of the at-home kits, as the maintenance and cost of getting them done at a salon is too excessive. But anyway, the application tool which comes in these kits is dreadful, one of these wands will coat each hair, and from my experience, makes the dye last a little longer.

Short, stumpy lashes? I know a lot of people complain about short eye lashes, so using one of these wands and again, Vaseline, (I've heard good things about Castor oil too, but don't hold me to it) too add a thin coat to your lashes before bed, and in the morning, they should be pretty soft and silky, and after a while, it should promote lash growth thanks to the extra moisture.

Dry cuticles? In the depths of winter, hand creams and cuticle oil become a necessity, and once a week I treat my hands to a pamper. On very dry cuticles, I apply whatever cuticle oil I have handy and lightly brush a dry wand over to get rid of any ickiness (excuse my scientifically correct term...)

I personally bought mine from eBay, prices vary depending on how many you want, but they usually cost a few pound, this seller has 50 for £3.90

Hope this has given you a few little tips and tricks using a super cheap product. Some things need to be done cheaply, right?

The beauty game changers...

These game changers are a few products I have gathered over the past months, and have changed my routine, and my opinions on all other products (that is until I find some new beauty loves...)

Hydraluron- £24.99  

I bet you're all sick of hearing of this aren't you? I sure am, so I'll keep it short and sweet. Its a under-moisturiser serum which basically pushes your moisturiser to work harder, and fully hydrate your skin. I didn't think I particularly needed it in any months but winter, but I have been still using it for extra hydration, and it keeps my skin looking healthy and refreshed. One of my favourite serums, and a definite repurchase.

GlamGlow Super Mud Clearing Treatment- £39.99

Despite the daunting price tag, I think this is the only skincare product I have purchased and loved immediately. It has a list as long as my legs (I know that isn't the saying, but I have VERY long legs, so this is much more over-exaggerated) of ingredients, and uses, it will treat pores, uneven skin tone, ingrown hairs etc. I think the thing that makes this so special is the fact that you can see the dirt it is extracting out your face, and for myself, being able to see the results of the product I am using just proves how amazing it is. My main use for this is to deep clean my nose area every week before applying a brightening mask like REN's Glycolic Radiance mask. I apply it with a cheap foundation brush over my nose and remove with a Liz Earle sponge, which I have found to be the best technique to use with this mask. 

L'occitane Shea Butter Hand Cream- £8.00

I have tried dozens of hand creams, and too many of them don't sink in quick enough, or actually hydrate your hands, meaning as soon as you go to do something, you leave a greasy mess on everything you touch. This L'Occitane one, however couldn't be further from this, it soaks in immediately and leaves your hands feeling silky soft, and hydrated for days. Although the scent is a little bizarre, and reminds me of baby nappy wipes, this product is incredible, and much like the GlamGlow is 110% worth the steep price tag. I don't think I'll ever find another hand cream I enjoy using as much as this...

Maybelline Baby Lips in Cherry Me- £2.99 + £3.99p+p

The Baby Lips I personally have is the USA version, as I have heard some of the ones from other countries aren't as good, and upon hearing rumours that BL is coming to the UK, we should all keep our fingers crossed we get the same formula at the USA ones! Anyway, I have quite big lips, so keeping them in good condition is very important to me, but I struggle to find a lip balm I actually like as I'm pretty fussy when it comes to my lips! I hate balms that smell too strong, ones that take too long to soak in, heavy/cakey textures, and the ones you can actually taste if you go to have a drink. (EWW!) So after hearing things about these I thought I'd give it ago, and I haven't been disappointed, it does everything I want it to do, has a slight scent of cherries, which is very pleasant, and also a pink tint which makes my lips look very healthy and full. I'm almost to the end of the tube, which is a first for me, and I have already purchased the other scents and I'm waiting patiently for them to arrive.

Tweezerman Slant Tweezer in Pink- £20.00

I personally do not understand what it is that makes Tweezerman's tweezers so special, but they really are incredible. They pull out hairs without ease, and make plucking a much simpler task. According to the book that comes with them, if you send these to Tweezerman, they will resharpen the little metal parts for free as long as it is wear from regular usage, which is quite impressive, meaning they will last you a lifetime! I have personally never done this, as I don't pluck my eyebrows a lot and have only had mine for about a year and a half. I advise anyone looking for a good pair of tweezers to give these a try, you won't be disappointed.

Boots Cosmetic Buds- £1.40

I'd never heard of these until I went for a stroll around my local Boots (never a good idea) and I saw these, and thought they seemed pretty interesting, so I picked up a box, you have nothing to lost for £1.40, do you? The thing that makes these different to regular cotton buds, is the two different ends (a pointed end, and a flat, round shape end) that make clearing any small make up mistakes a dream, as you get much more precision than with a normal cotton bud. These may seem like a little bit of not needed silliness, but I promise, anyone who wears, eyeshadow, eyeliner, lipstick, or mascara will find these a Godsend.

What do you all think? Do you have any products which have changed you're beauty routines? I'd love to hear from you, so I can try out some more.

Pourriez-vous m'indiquer la pharmacie, s'il vous plaît?

Okay, slight disclaimer, although I know some very basic French, I did use Google Translate for the title, so anyone French reading this and seeing a mistake... I'm sorry! It should translate to "Could you point me to the pharmacy, please?" (fingers crossed...)

Anyway, onto the skincare... I have recently got my hands on some of the most talked about items of French skincare items, typically found in French pharmacies. I bought the La Roche Posay products from Boots, and the Bioderma and Embryolisse from eBay, so I shall link these at the bottom of the post.

I wouldn't say I have particularly sensitive skin, but I do like to use products that I know are going to be gentle, especially when it comes to facial skincare. Since the whole micellar water craze came to be, I've found myself intrigued by the concept of a water, which removes your makeup? Anyone else wondering exactly how this is possible? Well, a micellar water is dubbed from the term "micelle" which means particles suspended in liquid, these in particular, are oil particles in water (that explains the "how the hell does water remove my makeup so easily?" question.)

So, the difference between the two? Not much actually. Although, I feel like I prefer the La Roche Posay water, I think its the strong peach scent, it just reminds me of summer and feels like an instant pick me up, but if I wanted something unscented, the Bioderma does the job. Although it is reportedly in the UK now, I won't be repurchasing the Bioderma at the eBay prices, considering that the La Roche Posay is very often on offer at Boots, and plus, I gain advantage card points. SCORE.

The Effaclar Duo is a cult product, I think Tanya Burr raving about it definetly gave it star status, and to be honest I had been very curious. I used to suffer from little bumps under the skin on my cheeks, but I've never been one for spots, so with the promise of it decongesting skin, I thought it would be good on my nose, and on my cheeks, while I've had a few spots from hormones. Anyway, despite everyone loving this product, I just didn't. I think it disagreed with my skin, gave me more spots than I previously had (I've heard of the purging stage, but this wasn't the prettiest) and the scent put me off also, as the only way I could describe it is dirty, if anyone gets me? You know, that just nasty smell that reminds you of dirt? No? Okay.. I'll shush.

Onto the Embryolisse Lait-Creme Concentre, it is dubbed as a skin-care hybrid and I know it is a strong favourite of many models, which is one thing that convinced me to buy it. I mean, come on... who doesn't want model skin? But in all honesty, it didn't live up to the hype, it is a fantastic product, to be used as both moisturiser and primer, but I have used better, and I just prefer to apply my moisturiser and primer seperately.

Embryolisse Lait-Creme Concentre (75ml) £14.50 + £3.00 p+p

La Roche Posay Effaclar Duo (40ml) £13.00

La Roche Posay Micellar Water (200ml) £11.50

Bioderma Sensibio Micellar Water- (2x250ml) £12.45 + £2.95 p+p

Although not all of these products had worked for me as well as I had wanted them too, skincare is very personal, and what works for one doesn't always work for another. Does anyone have any other French beauty brand recommendations? I'm now officially hooked! 

Au revoir!

Moroccan oil- The Holy Grail of all Holy Grails

You know when people ask the question "If you were stranded on a desert island what would you take with you?" what WOULD you take with you?! My answer would be Moroccanoil. This little bottle is literally a hair miracle, and my ultimate holy grail product. It has changed my hair completely, and I don't think I could imagine what my life would be like without it. All of this high praise seems a little crazy, but for good reason.

Moroccanoil Treatment for All Hair Types (100ml)

This time last year, I had healthy hair, but it didn't want to grow. Since cutting it into a bob at the age of 10, it never really grew out of the whole long-bob style, then I used clip-in hair extensions for two years, and despite absolutely loving them it started to become a bit of a chore, especially when I died my hair caramel blonde. So I decided to get a bottle of this after hearing about it on the blogosphere, and my hair has grown so much I cannot believe it. Its now almost at long as my 18" extensions made it.

Despite the high price tag, it is very much worth it. I use two pumps after blow drying my naturally tight-curled hair to take away frizz, and add more moisture, and after an hour its soaked in completely and my hair looks glossy, healthy and smells incredible!

I personally bought mine from the local Toni and Guy salon for £31.00 (100ml) but its available on Feelunique for £30.45 (100ml)

I really want to branch out and try some other products by this brand now, I'm considering the Intense Hydrating Mask... Anyone got any Moroccanoil products they can recommend?