Clarins Gentle Peeling Review

A couple of weeks a go I was browsing the MAC counter in Selfridges and looked over I thought to myself that I'd never tried anything from Clarins before. So I went over to the counter after making a cheeky purchase and had a look around. The girl on the counter was lovely and I had asked her to show me all the exfoliants that she would recommend. She came back with 3 to show me. A creamy one, one that kind of to me looked like a mask, and  a liquid one. I should have got the liquid one, it smelled exactly like Gatineau's Floracil. 

When the girl on the counter was going through all the products with me, this one out of all caught my eye. It sounded and looked amazing when she showed me. It also very mildly smells like lilies which I love!

This is what it actually looks like. It comes out quite thick with a silver colour. That colour didn't put me off whatsoever, and when I tried it in the store I thought it was nice. Until I got home. I cleansed my face and was ready to use it. I got a five pence piece size amount and put a thin layer over my face, and let in sit and sink in for a few seconds. Then the 'fun' started. You're suppose to rub the exfoliant off, so it basically peels the dead skin off with it.

I started to rub gently not to pull on my skin but after doing one cheek I found that my face was started to hurt from it being so irritated by the product. I carried on to my chin and it was the same, red and irritated. I was not happy. I went and cleansed it off straight away. I was so happy that I was cheeky enough to ask for a sample and didn't buy it straight away. Sometimes it's better to be cheeky and save the money then go and buy something straight away and regret it.

Have you tried this product? What do you think?

High End vs. High Street: Cleansing Water

I love cleansing water, I think it's one of the best things ever invented and I don't think I can live without it! I love how easy it is to use, and how quick it is. Soak a cotton round, wipe, and you're basically done. I first tried a cleansing water when I had a No'7 £5 off skincare voucher. I picked it up for £4 with the voucher and never looked back. I find that my skin has become a lot clearer with it and brighter too. I thought, if this is a cheaper one, surely a more expensive one could work miracles!

My mum has been a fan of Gatineau since I can remember, it's always been in the bathroom. She said to try the Micellar Water, so I did. Come on, who doesn't listen to their mum's. Mum's know best after all! 

'No'7 Beautiful Skin Cleansing Water'
This has got to be one of my all time favourites, it's amazing. It helps my face feel cleansed without it feeling striped. It removes every last bit of  make up that's on my face and leaves me with an even blank canvas for me to then go and apply my moisturiser and eye cream. It's the ultimate perfection and laziness in a bottle. A bottle of this will usually last me 3 weeks, maybe a bit longer. All in all this is a great product and I recommend it to everyone!
(RRP: £9.00 in Boots)

'Gatineau Gentle Micellar Water'
I liked this cleansing water, I didn't love it though and it's not something I would go out of my way to buy again. For more mature skin I think it would be great, it's gentle and takes off all your make up, but not as quick as the No'7 one does. I feel like I need to cleanse again after using this as well because my skin doesn't feel that 100% clean. I found that I used a lot more of this to try and get off all my make up, and because of that it was basically gone before I knew it. I think it's a nice present to give to someone like your mum but I wasn't that overly impressed.
(RRP: £35.00 on Feelunique.com)

So in this battle of high end vs. high street I think that the high street has won hands down on the quality and the price.

What do you think about cleansing water? And what's your favourite?

Marie Claire's February Freebies!

This is going to be a really quick post just to let you know about some freebies this month in Marie Claire. If you didn't know, they are giving away Shiseido skin care. There are 4 all together; Day Moisture Protection, Night Moisture Recharge, Hydro-Nourishing Softener Lotion and a Facial Exfoliant.

Each magazine costs £2 and you get a sample in each one. I picked up 3 copies, I would have gotten all 4 but there was no copies with the exfoliant in.

Here are what the samples actually look like, and they are adorable. I'm a sucker for minis! They are all in glass bottles as well except for the Hydro-Nourishing Softener Lotion, which is in a plastic one. I personally love it when magazines come out with freebies like this, you get a decent size to try out and and then you can decide if you like the product without forking out!

What do you think of magazine samples?

Empties #1

I've never done an empties blog post before. I've always had the intention of doing them, and then the OCD side of me tells me off for keeping rubbish and  I bin/recycle them. It's terrible I know. But I've managed to keep enough this time to do one which I'm kind of excited about because I absolutely love reading/watching empties. I have 8 beauty related products and a candle to talk about.

'Pantene Volume and Body Hairspay, Ultra Hold'
This has been one of my favourite hairspray's for years, and I'm talking 4/5 years now. I's holds all day, it makes your hair look healthy and shiny without it looking greasy, it's a cheap and cheerful hairspray that does exactly what it say. I would carry on repurchasing this. (I can't find it on boots.com :(.) 

'Batiste Dry Shampoo in Floral and Flirty Blush'
I like this dry shampoo, not too keep my hair clean but the give it a bit more volume. I'm not the biggest dry shampoo fan out there but it's nice. The smell can be a little overwhelming for me, and others can even smell in lingering on me throughout the day. I would repurchase, but try others first.
(£2.99 in Boots)

'Maybelline Dream Fresh BB Cream in Light'
I am in love with this BB cream. I think it's amazing. I have now gone 6+ months without wearing foundation and everyone compliments me on my skin. It's a buildable coverage which is great and really easy to blend into the skin. It lasted me about 4 months of day to day use in one tube which I think is great value for money! I would recommend this to everyone! I've already bought my next tube!
(£7.99 in Boots)

'Collection Fix Me Up Long Lasting Make-Up Fixer'
I'm not going to rave about this product, I found it did absolutely nothing for my make up, I even took in on holiday with me to try out in a hotter climate, and still nothing. It was refreshing but that was about it. I also found that it has a very artificial scent to it which I didn't like either. I wouldn't repurchase it.
(£5.99 in Boots)

'Olay Essentials wet cleansing wipes'
All in all for cheap wet wipes these actually surprised me. I did like them. They were cheap and actually did the job quite well. I don't think I need to recommend people wipes but if you're a bit low on cash but want to try something new, see if you like these. There are 20 in a pack which is a bit less then average but ah well.
(£2.49 in Boots)

'Montagne Jeunesse Spa Facial Face Tonic'
I don't even want to talk about this product. It was awful. I was literally burnt after using it. I had it on for about 20-30 seconds and I had to take it off. My skin was peeling and felt like it was burning. I just say don't buy it! :(.
(89p in Bodycare)

'Decleor Aroma Night Face Cream'
I was actually given this by my mum because I had nothing and no money to go out and get something. Fair enough it's for older skin, but I did notice a slight difference. My face felt more plump in the morning when I woke up. It was nice, the only thing I didn't like was the smell. It's kind of like a heavy floral smell for older ladies. I would actually buy this, but maybe in a few more years!
(£29.35 on Feelunique)

'Lancome Hypnose Star Mascara in Noir Midnight'
This is my all time favourite mascara! I love the wand, the formula and the packaging, you can't fault it. And it lasts you ages! It doesn't dry up fast and it stays on all day! You can build it up without in going clumpy or wear a little for a natural look. I tell everyone about it! If you like intense mascaras go and try this one out! I have bought the full size and still use it everyday!
(£22.00 in Boots)

'Jelly Belly Sizzling Cinnamon Candle'
I love burning candles, as I'm writing this I'm burning a bubblegum Jelly Belly one. This candle smells like the fireball sweets you get as a kid. It burns quick to smell up the whole room but doesn't run out fast. I burn my candles everyday and this candle lasted me about a week and a half. I loved it and so did  my boyfriend. I would recommend these range of candles to everyone to try.
(On offer in Tesco at the moment usually £4-£5, or 2 for £6)

Do you like any of these products? 

Korres Haul!

I'm a very big fan of Korres products in general. I love there lip butters, extended wear lipsticks, eye shadows and facial exfoliators so when I popped into my local T K Maxx yesterday and saw that they had a load of Korres products in I was over the moon. I quickly grabbed everything I could see in sight and piled them high in my arms and my dad's arms. (He thought I was having some form of crazy meltdown or something!) I then went to a quiet corner of the beauty department and sorted through them all and decided what the get and what to put back. I'm going to be honest I didn't want to put anything back, but I had to, I couldn't let myself spend that much in one go. 

Here are the things I did get, and I love every single one of them. They all smell so good and I can't wait to dive right in! 

'Best of Korres' Box
This box has a Guava body butter, Vanilla Cinnamon shower gel (mini), Basil Lemon shower gel (mini), Wild Rose 24 hour moisturiser and an Evening Primrose eye cream. 

This is everything that I bought, the citrus shower gel smells absolutely amazing which kinda makes me want to eat it for some reason. I've already snook some of the hand cream and I've got to say so far it's on the same par as L'Occitane for me.

I paid £17.96 for all of the products which I think is a steal. The added up RRP price for it all came to £48.00, which means I saved £30.04.

 If you have a T K Maxx near you I recommend going to have a cheeky look if you're interested in Korres products!

Update + What I got for Christmas!

So here's the thing, I don't think I've actually blogged since August, which is terrible. And it's not like I have an excuse that I've been busy with work and family and friends, well because I haven't. I've been sat at home all this time going to and from physio feeling sorry for myself. 2012 was a pretty rubbish for the last 6 months of it, but I can say there is nowhere else but up from now on. I'm back and I wanted to start off again with a little bang! So I know it's a bit late and that everyone else has done there's but I thought better late then never. I first of all want to say that I'm extremely extremely grateful for what I was given over Christmas and in no way whatsoever am I bragging. I just love being nosy at what other people got so here's another for some of you too look at :}. Some of the stuff I was given like chocolates have sweeties have been demolished already and things like socks are already in the wash, things have also been taken out of the packaging because I got too excited and wanted to play with everything.

I love all my presents to bits and can easily say I was a very spoilt lady this year. The Jeffrey Campbell's I was given are the 'Madame's' in black and the Creepers are the black suede creeper wedge which I'm in love with. I hope everyone has had a very merry festive time over the holidays and had a safe new year! 

xoxo 

A Few Old Photo's

I was just having a little clear out on my laptop, deleting things and just moving things into the right folder as you do, and I found some of my old college portfolio work. I thought I'd share a few photos with you, I love some of these photo's and they have some amazing memories for me. I know, the make up and art on them are not perfect and that I could do a lot better now but I love knowing I can look back at them and see how much I've improved. Please let me know what you think? :).

All of the above photo's were taken during my training and learning to become a make up artist. 

The last photo is a little patriotic because the Olympic closing ceremony is on right now!
Well Done Team GB!