January Favourites

The miserable weather as of late has meant one thing, more hot baths to soothe dry winter skin and cold toes! Here are some of the products I've been loving this month.

The Boots Extracts range has been a brilliant discovery I've been using the Cocoa Butter Sugar Scrub (full review here) and Body Butter (full review here) non stop since I got them, in fact I'm already nearly halfway through both! The Scrub has a really tightly packed consistency that really gives skin a good scrub leaving it feeling super smooth. The body butter somehow manages to be really thick and creamy but still sinks in really quickly leaving skin feeling supple and nourished.

I've been burning my Milk Bath Remedy Candle in Coconut Milk constantly in the evenings, it fills the room with a lovely relaxing scent and it a cozy ambience. Full review here.

Boots Coconut Body Oil has been an absolute life saver this month with my skin being in the condition it's in. My eyelids have been dry and sore and my skin has been feeling super sensitive. I've been using this to remove makeup, as a facial oil, a hair treatment and adding a scoop into the bath! I wrote a post all about different ways to use it here.

I fallen back in love with my favourite lipgloss lately, it's the Chanel Rouge Allure Extrait De Gloss in 56 Imaginaire. It's just the easies colour to wear, I even apply it without a mirror. A flatters all warm toned peachy pink. 

Botanics Facial Oil 100% Organic Review

Usually I'd wait at least 6 weeks before reviewing a skincare product, that usually gives it enough time to prove itself. With the Botanics 100% Organic Facial Oil I had to make an exception, I just couldn't resist! I've been using it a mere 3 weeks and I'm already seeing such amazing results that I felt them just too good not to share! 

First of all, let me just mention the price, with most high end facial oils costing from 35 upwards and most high street/drugstore versions being laden with mineral oil and therefore not worth the effort. This one seems to contain ingredients good enough to rival the most expensive of facial oils but for a mere 9.99, and as if that's not good enough it's currently on half price at just 4.99! 

So what's in it? Sweet Almond Oil, Argan Oil, Rosehip Oil and Bergamot Fruit Oil as well as lots of other skin loving ingredients. Rosehip oil is particularly good for fading hyper-pigmentation so if you have old spot scars, sun damage or any uneven skin tone this would work very well for you. 

The instructions say to work a couple of drops into the skin morning and night but I find the finish to be a bit too dewy for me in the day time, perhaps that should be reserved for just those with very dry skin. I tend to skip the day dose and double up on the night one, 4 drops massaged into the face and neck until it has completely sunk in, leave it a few minutes (while I brush my teeth), then follow with my usual night time moisturiser. 

In just the 3 weeks that I've been using it, I've noticed an incredible improvement in moisture levels and skin texture, my skin gets very dehydrated during the cold winter months and even has a tendency to turn into eczema if left unattended. This has managed to keep that completely at bay, with not a single dry patch in sight. It has also left my skin feeling incredibly soft and smooth come morning. It has also noticeably faded some relatively new spot scars and I'm hoping with continued use it will start to make an effect on the older ones too. 

All in all it is an incredible product that I would recommend to absolutely everyone! I just can't rave about it enough!  

My Top 10 Under £10

A lot of Beauty Bloggers have recently be revealing their top 10 under £10 ($15), so I thought, why not jump on the bandwagon? When I first decided to do it I thought I'd really struggle to come up with 10, but when I started jotting things down I realised it was going to be quite the opposite! It's been pretty tough trying to narrow it down from my original 20+ products, but here's what made the cut!

Coconut oil, standard, if I had a penny for every time I went on about this stuff! It's a brilliant hair treatment, moisturiser, makeup remover and cleanser, plus it's cheap as chips! (find out all the ways to use it here)

Caudalie Gentle Cleansing Milk is a recent discovery but a definite favourite. The 100ml size is under a tenner and they also do a 200ml and 400ml size. It's super gentle, removes every last scrap of makeup and grime and leaves skin feeling really clean and baby soft. I'd recomend this to anyone but especially those with sensitive skins, (full review here).

Schwartzkopf Got2be Oil-licious Argan Oil Styling Oil is a pretty strong contender against it's much more expensive alternatives. A rich oily serum which glides into the hair easily leaving it soft and shiny while giving it a boost of moisture. Just don't forget a little goes a long way! (full review here)

When it came to compiling this list, the Sleek Face Contour Kit  in light was the first product that came to mind. A bronzer/contour, a highlighter and a peachy pink blusher all housed in a single slim no frills compact with a full size mirror. The shades are flattering on everyone and it's brilliant for travelling, everyone I know who's tried this loves it. (full review here)

Soap & Glory's Flake Away body scrub is not only my favourite body scrub under a tenner, but my favourite hands down. Its packed full of different sized particles which leave your skin feeling super smooth, the butters and oils leave it feeling really soft and for an added bonus it smells like Miss Dior! 

Like pretty much everyone with a beauty blog these days, I love the Revlon ColourBurst Lip Butters, they are most definitely worth the hype! Soft, creamy formulas, buildable colour and an amazing shade range, there's at least one for everyone. Did I mention they're currently on buy one get one half price at Boots? 

Essie are by far the best nail varnish brand in my opinion, their formulas are really long lasting, the brushes are wide and flat making application fool proof and they have every colour you could ever want.   

Real Techniques do an amazing range of brushes, you might as well just forget about more expensive makeup brushes because these do everything you need. Most of then are under 10.00 and some come in sets that are brilliant value. My favourites are the Buffing Brush and Pointed Foundation Brush, both from the core collection kit.  


I have an extensive collection of Avon SuperShock Gel Eyeliners (review here), they're a brilliant budget buy. The gel formula means they'll never drag on your eyelids, they just glide along smoothly and once they set they just don't budge. 


Lastly it's the Rimmel Scandaleyes Mascara, another recent discovery, this completely blew my previous favourite Dior Diorshow Blackout out of the water. The wide, closely packed bristle brush gives volume, separation and length in a few quick sweeps, saving time and money. 


I hope you liked my picks, what are your favourites under a tenner?

Evening Skincare Routine

So yesterday I did a post all about my morning skincare routine, and today is all about my evening skincare routine. 

Cleanse

To start with I use my trusty coconut oil, I massage one pump into the skin and it completely breaks down all makeup. I then wipe it all away with a warm, damp flannel. (I did a full post on  the uses of coconut oil which you can see here)

I then go in for a second cleanse with Caudalie Gentle Cleansing Milk (full review here) to get my skin feeling really clean and soft. I use it in the same way as the coconut oil, massage on, warm flannel off.


Tone

I then spray the Sephora Softening Facial Mist over my face. It's barely scented at all so it's nice and relaxing last thing at night. It also gives skin a bit of a moisture boost and it means that my Caudalie Beauty Elixir lasts a bit longer!

  

Serum

As a serum I've been trying out Kiehl's Midnight Recovery Concentrate, which I got a few very generous samples of when I bought my Ultra Facial Moisturiser Sunscreen. So far I absolutely love it! It's a runny oil consistency and it smells amazing as it contains lavender oil, a few tiny drops massaged into skin at night means I wake up to soft plumped  up skin come morning. The great thing about this is you need so little that it lasts such a long time. 

Eyes

As an eye cream I've been using Clarins 'Special' Eye Contour Balm for a while now and I absolutely love it. Again, you only need the tiniest amount so this tube will last me forever, I got it almost a year ago and I've barely made a dent in it! It's super moisturising which is great for me as I can sometimes get dry skin around the eye area, particularly in the colder months. If my eyes are feeling particularly dry then I use it in the daytime as well.

Moisturise

As a night cream I've been using Clarins HydraQuench Cream for Normal to Dry Skin, it isn't specifically a night cream but it's been working really well for me. It's a medium formula (not too light, not too rich) and sinks into the skin fairly quickly. I got it as a gift with purchase but I'll definitely be purchasing it when it's finished, possibly to use as a day cream! 

What do use in your evening skincare routine?

The Many Uses of Coconut Oil

Oils may be relatively new in the beauty industry over here, but in India women have been using good old fashioned coconut oil in their beauty routines for centuries. If you have really sensitive, reactive skin coconut oil is a really great alternative to products laden with chemicals. As well as that it's a great alternative if you're on a budget as a lot of cheaper brands are full of nasties like mineral oil. 

Hair

I thought I'd start with hair as that's what most people use it for. It's great as a treatment, massage a generous amount into the scalp and through the hair section by section and leave it in as long as you can, overnight if possible. Then wash it out in the morning, you may need to shampoo twice depending on your shampoo but I can guarantee it's definitely worth it. I try to do it as often as possible, almost every time I wash it as my hair is currently in a terrible state from dying, blowdrying and straightening! I really moisturises dry hair and strengthens weak, brittle hair that's prone to breaking. 

Face 

Want to try one of those expensive oil cleansers but can't bare to part with the cash? Coconut oil is your answer, it works amazingly well and costs hardly anything. Massage a 10p sized blob into your dry, fully made up face and the oil completely breaks down all makeup and grime, including waterproof mascara! Then run a flannel under hot water, wring it out and wipe it all off. It leaves your skin feeling amazingly soft and is so much better for your skin than anything that foams. A couple of drops massaged into skin last thing at night works well as an overnight facial oil treatment. You wake up to super plumped up, soft skin in the morning.

Body

In terms of body, it's a great multi use product. Put it onto any dry skin or dry patches but just remember that a little goes a long way, you don't want to be sliding all over the place! 

I put my coconut oil into a bottle with a pump and leave it by the sink, that way it stays liquid from the warmth and it makes it really convenient to use and saves lots of time. I even sometimes add in a few drops of essential oil like lavender to scent it. 

You can get regular coconut oil here, or if you fancy a special treat you can get organic coconut oil here!

Are there any other uses that you can think of?