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It's all about the base...

As someone who has word make-up her whole life for multiple reasons I'm always hunting for the perfect base as the first step in my daily makeup routine. Like most, my skin is far from perfect with a few freckles, imperfections and I'm English pale but not the rosey glow kind so I need to attempt to create that flawless fin ish everyone is looking for be it matt, dewy or natural. There are now so many types of primer on the market it can be daunting, do you need BB or CC Cream, a mattifying primer or a tinted one?   As usual I always go to the experts for advice and try the products together which should work together. In any review there's always and best and worst, so I'm starting here with the worst and building up to the grand finale:  The Not So Good  Clarins SOS Primer -in Universal Light  & Ever Lasting Youth Fluid Foundation in 107 Beige  Clarins has always been a go to line when my skin has been most sensitive.  Their SOS

New Year New Skin Care

There's something about a New Year that makes you feel like you're starting over, things can be fresh and new again.  You feel adventurous, confident and full of the promise a clean slate brings.  I always make a list of intentions for my new year, things I hope to achieve. One of my focuses this year is to improve my overall health and wellbeing, starting with my skin care. With the impact of the winter climate, changes in my skin's sensitivity and changes in my lifestyle it's time to try something new. Having stuck predominately to a traditional cleanse, tone and moisturise routine most of my life, I've decided it's time to try a new routine. Sometimes it's good to break out of a cycle it challenges you to try new things and in that you can make interesting and productive discoveries.   There's been a lot of talk and interest building over the last few years around Korean lifestyle, food, clothes, music, drama and of course skin care

New Skin Care Products - Trilogy Review

If you've read my blog before you'll remember I have very sensitive skin.  I'm very careful about what I use as the wrong product for my skin type can cause allergic reactions and psoriasis.  A few months ago I had a pretty bad flare up, I'm not sure what caused it but as a result I cut out all SLS and Paraban products to give my skin time to heal.  I also wanted to avoid the medicated products that I have previously used as I don't want my skin to become to used to them and render them ineffective when I really need them.  So, I was doing some research on line and came back to Trilogy Skin Care.  I had considered trying trilogy a few years ago but Clarins was working well on my skin and I decided not to rock the boat.  This time however I decided to give it ago.  I ordered a Rosehip Oil serum  (20ml £19.99) and Vital Moisturising Cream (60ml £24.50).  I always find it best to patch test each item before use so I started with the  Rosehip oil and as I had no r

What's My Signature Style?

If you're like me, it may have taken you a while to figure out your signature style with a few missteps along the way.    When I was a child I didn't really go in too much clothes, make up on the other hand was a staple from a young age a tool to hide behind.   In a way make up is still a mask for me, but not in the sense of hiding myself any longer I use make up to find the best version of myself. The same goes for my clothes, it took a long time for me to become comfortable in my own skin and therefore comfortable in the clothes I wanted to wear and to become comfortable with what suits me.  I'm now thirty something, so the experimental  clothing of my early twenties is over.  I've changed my look several times over from the colour and style of my hair I've been brunette, red head and blond.  I've adjusted my makeup from the influence of my youth the colours of the 80's when I was first learning to put on make up - I remember a lot of blue eyeshadow

Sales Shopping

Everybody loves a good sale, there's some kind of chemical reaction that gives you pleasure when you find a bargain.    Sales are starting earlier nowadays, you no longer have to wait with bated breath for 26 December to dawn and go rushing out at silly o'clock in the morning to be first in line to grab your deals.  Believe me having worked a couple of Boxing Day sales and having seen people queue from 2am on Boxing Day until stores would open at 5am, I am never surprised by peoples interest in grabbing a bargain. However, this year I would say I have been a selective sale shopper.  I haven't purchased any clothes mainly because I did buy a few bits in pre Christmas sales and so didn't need anything.  I also made a promise to myself to be more careful with my pennies in 2017.   That being said I have purchased a couple of items;  Jewellery  My style when it comes to Jewellery is more classic and sparkly.  I can be a bit of a jewellery magpie I'm attr

Elemis - Skin Care

My last post explained where I sit when it comes to brand loyalty.  I'm in the middle. I like to know what I'm using works for my skin be it make up, skin care, or nail varnish.  It's hard for me to find products that work with my sensitivity, so I tend to find a brand and stick with it if it works.  I also however need a back up plan and sometimes I just need to change a product as it's not giving me the results I want.  Right now, I'm experimenting, now this can prove costly unless you know who to ask.  For me I learned a long time ago to try before you buy if at all possible.   I don't want to be left with a product that's cost a fortune but sits on my shelf because it doesn't suit my skin.  There are a number of brands who will take things back - I had such an experience last year with Bobbi Brown, they were great after I suffered a reaction in refunding my purchase but I had to prove my reaction to them before I could get my money back w

Is there such a thing as Brand Loyalty and what creates it?

When I watch beauty Vlogs on YouTube or read a beauty blog I am always surprised by how many people brand hop.  When I first started wearing make-up as a child it was about what colour you liked - it was the 80's and I was around seven so blue eyeshadow made sense.   Once I hit my teens and my skin started breaking out and becoming more sensitive I tended to go for the products aimed at my age and skin type - Clearasil anyone? But then as I left school and all that baggage behind me I moved on to more luxury brands that matched my skin. I remember experimenting with brands including Clinque and Dior which just didn't work for me, before settling on Lancome, which I used for around ten years.  Ten years is a long time to be loyal to a product and it wasn't just one product either. I used the whole range, from skin car through makeup everything I had was Lancome - why?  Well at the time I started using it, being brand loyal was a bonus. Your skin care and makeup were tail

Summer Favourites

Okay, I know right now it hardly feels like summer - I'm still wearing jumpers and a coat!  But I do have some summer make up loves that I wanted to share. My first is the Clarins Lip Oil, this has been out for a while but there is a new flavour out now called Red Berry which I'm loving.  I leaves my lips with a light reddish tint, feel gloriously rich when putting it on and last ages.   My lips which can sometimes feel dry especially at the moment as the temperature is all over the place feel moisturised and soft when using this.  one bottle (0.23 fl oz) is lasting me around three months.  At £19 this may seem a bit excessive for a lip balm but it does go a long long, gives a great summer shine and tastes lovely.  The sponge applicator is soft and swipes the product on evenly and doesn't leave a sticky residue. My second Clarins product is the Summer bronzing compact.  I've been using this for the last two months to give a subtle glow, partly to convince my very

The Art of Cleaning Make Up Brushes

I love makeup.  I have worn it everyday since I was about 8 or 9 years old.  I've tried hundreds of ways of applying my make up, experimented with colours and changed my look from heavy to light to somewhere in between over the years. The one thing that's always remained a constant though is on a regular basis cleaning my tools.  My grandfather always said you can tell a good workman by the way they treat their tools.  I'm careful with my make up brushes and renew them every few years as they start to loose hair and shape. Currently I have two sets which I use combined, this also allows me to have one set cleaned and using a second set while they dry.  I have sensitive skin and I can always tell if I've left it too long between cleansing sessions.  Usually I try to wash my brushes once a week, usually they are okay for two weeks, longer than that I start to notice my make up isn't as smooth as I like and my skin may start showing signs of breakouts. To clean m

Do Blondes have more fun?

The evolution of my hair, well there's a story; When I was born, my mam always reminds me, I went missing in the hospital for a while because the nurses were amazed at my thick jet black hair and decided to show me off as my mam slept.  I'm sure if that happened now there's be some major case review and heads would roll!  Anyway, the point is I was born with a lot of rich dark hair and while the thickness has never changed, the colour well..... Before The Cut  As I grew my hair grew long and dark changing from jet black to a deep brown/black with a hint of red. I think at one point it was waist length that was until I found a pair of scissors and thought I'd make a great hairdresser - the results horrified my mam and I ended up with my first ever bob. This should have been a life lesson and I should never have let another pair of scissors near my hair again, only well as I came in to my teens I decided to cut my hair off and have a pixie style only

Get Ready With Me - Pamper Routine

Life is hectic, stressful and chaotic, it can play havoc with your skin, your health and your general wellbeing.  Sometimes you just have to say stop and take a little time for yourself to give your body a treat and recharge your batteries for the days/weeks ahead. After going through periods of stress and anxiety I found that taking some time to have a mini pamper session could lift my mood, help my skin and lower my stress levels.  I try at least once a week to give myself a mini pamper session to relax and refocus my mind. This is currently my pamper routine; As we move in to Spring I'm exfoliating my skin with Calcot Manor Body salts, this is refreshing my skin and leaving it feeling smooth after months of being hidden under long sleeves and jumpers. I apply to damp skin using a circular motion starting at the feet and working my way up. CALCOT MANOR SCRUB I then shower off the salts which do leave a bit of oil on the skin, I tend to follow up with Treacle Moon

Spring Beauty - Make Up Testing and Routine

The clocks have gone forward, the mornings are nights are growing lighter and the weather is supposed to improve - maybe!  To prepare for the change in season I paid a visit to my local Clarins counter.  I love the Clarins team at House of Fraser, they have been amazing with me since I went in for advice last summer.   I have really sensitive skin, I can be fine with a product for a few days and then suddenly my skin reacts to it or I can try something and within seconds my skin reacts.  It can be a bit of a nightmare, I would love to be someone who can pick up any product and use it without a second thought but that's just not the way my skin is.   It's refreshing to find a brand that takes your concerns on board and isn't always looking for the sale which is why Clarins is my go to range of the moment.  Having been in earlier in the year I called my adviser Katherine and booked an appointment to test out foundation and concealer colours.   I attended for my