Skin glorious skin…

The one question I am asked all the time “what do I use on my skin?”

And to be honest this is great to hear because make up will only go so far. Make up is an easy quick fix to cover acne, blemish breakouts and dull skin but unless someone has a regular and healthy skin care routine it’s all for nothing. I’ve had a few situations at the moment where people have been asking about products for their skin, especially young girls and with prom season looming… There’s no better time to give you some handy hints.

First of all lets get technical… Skin naturally produces oil, it doesn’t produce water. Hence why we are urged to drink lots of water and use lotions and potions on our skin. When a skin has an excess of oil 9 times out of 10 it’s due to skin being dehydrated. In our climate of cold weather and central heating it’s no surprise! So ask yourself these questions..

1. Do I have an oily t zone or do I shine all over?
2. Does my skin feel tight without moisturiser ?

If a skin has blemishes and shines were made to think we have an oily skin… If we have flaky, sore skin we have dry skin. What if we have a blemish proned, shiny, dry skin? What if we have both? Well apparently that’s combination… a word I thoroughly hate. A combination skin is basically a dehydrated skin and is so common. Because we can not naturally produce water in the skin it goes in to overdrive. Producing excess oil to comfort the skin which causes excess oil and blemish breakouts. Skin can change so quickly especially for a women… Time of the month am I right?? So no matter whether your skin is oily or dry it is always a good idea to keep up its hydration and balance.

1. Cleaning….

Clean skin is where it all starts. If you’re skin is not clear from the daily dirt and oil that settles on the surface nothing else will make an impact. Make sure you use a cleanser that works with your skin type. There are loads of cream cleansers out there that come with cloths which make a massive difference. The exfoliating cloth gives an extra deep cleanse, opening and unclogging pores. Using water to cleanse the skin can actually have a dehydrating effect so make sure you use a cleanser that will replace this hydration. A lot of spot prone cleaners (I won’t name names but you know who you are) work by drying out excess oil causing break outs on the skin. In the long run these strip the skin leaving it totally dehydrated and dry. It’s a vicious circle, drier skin, more oil, more blemishes…. Making sense now?
Now you know I all rave about the Liz Earle hot cloth cleanser and I think for the price it’s value for money. However there are so many out there. Let’s budget….

5. Chanel Sublimage Comfort cleanser £69
4. Elemis pro-collagen cleansing balm £39.50
3. Clarinet pure melt cleansing gel £20
2. Liz Earle Hot cloth cleanser £15.50
1. Peaches and clean wash off deep puryfing cleanser £8

No these don’t go in range of most expensive is better but it just shows what a range of cleanser there are no matter what your budget!

Balancing…

There are a lot of items out there that can help balance the ph in your skin, oil levels and dryness. Masks, toners, exfoliations night oils LOADS!! Puts knowing what you need. If you have oily (and I mean oily not dehydrated 😉) these little beauties are rescue remedies…

5. Chanel tonique for oily skin £27
4. Origins spot remover £15
3. Lush Magnaminty face mask/exfoliator £9.75
2. Good things deep clean blackhead exfoliator £4.99
1. Bowl of hot water, tea tree oil, towel… See where I’m going?? £0

And for those dry skin saviours…

5. Chanel sublimage masque £145
4. Elements pro collagen marine cream £99
3. Clarins Blue Orchid oil £33
2. Garnier moisturise match for dry skin £4.99
1. Good things manuka honey scrub £4.99

To BB or not to BB? That is the question.

Hi folks. It is soooo nice outside and I have so much paperwork to do! So I’m using my blog as an excuse to sit outside and do some kind of work 😊

Today’s blog does actually link quite nicely with the weather as it is all about BB creams. I had some lovely little ladies in the studio this week and because their gorgeous young skin doesn’t need a huge amount of covering up, I used it as an excuse to go BB cream shopping.

I purchased 3 of the leading brands that weren’t going to break the bank (all being under £10) as it wasn’t something I personally used but have always been intrigued to try.

First up to the chopping block was the Maybelline. On first application it had a great texture, likeable smell but I didn’t like the colour it left my skin. It seemed to wash me out and for those of you that know how pale I am, that’s saying something! However, after I had applied the rest of my make up it warmed on me. And then it all changed… It lasted really well and after a couple of hours of wearing it my skin had the most lovely glossiness (without looking like a grease slick) and all around radiance which my skin never has!! My skin hugely lacks colour and everything tends to go shiny on me. I really liked it and it has since gone missing and been found in my personal make up bag….

The second one up for the trying was the L’oreal. Now this one was the COMPLETE opposite. This tinted moisturiser had bags of colour, so much so that for my fair skin at the moment it was too much and it was the lightest shade. However the texture was very similar to Estée Lauder Day Wear sheer tint which is one of my must have holiday items! It didn’t really give any coverage, which is not unusual for a BB cream, which is why for me when I have a tan and I just want a bit of colour it’s perfect but for day to day it wouldn’t suit my skin.

And last but not least was the Garnier. I must admit I like Garnier as a brand and I tend to use quite a lot of their skin care items and their BB cream was like greeting an old friend. It had a great texture, great colour on application and it even covered a little too. I will say however that because it had the most texture of the three it was a little bit more work to blend in, but hey who said beauty was easy!? I did also feel a little shiny after a while but I am a self confessed bit of a powder freak and like being matte. Also… we had five 13 year old girls in a small room… Who wouldn’t break out in a little sweat after 5 hours!!

So.. All in all I think I could be a convert. I do like not wearing foundation in the spring, summer. Even more so when I’m on holiday. I hope this helps to all of you out there who are in the dark about BB creams. Remember, what works for one skin might not necessarily work for another which is why I haven’t told you which one to go and buy… I’ve given you the facts and what I thought now you can work out what will be best for you. However, here are some top tips when using a BB cream which will work for everyone!

1. Some BB creams say that they can be used as a moisturiser and while this may be true I urge you to continue to use your regular moisturiser underneath. If your skin is naturally on the drier side the moisture might not be enough for you and the colour will stick in drier areas.

2. BB creams don’t tend to come in a lot of shades, I found with the ones I purchased it was either light or dark. So be honest with yourself! You can always warm with bronzer, there isn’t much that will lighten if it’s too dark!

3. You need to work hard to get the perfect finish! Because of the high moisture content in BB creams, in my experience, I’ve found if I haven’t worked it into my skin thoroughly (especially if the colour is too dark) it can leave visible streaks. Combine it with your morning arm work out.. Two birds… One stone… Just saying 😉

4. Use a good concealer along with it. As I said it will not cover blemishes, dark circles etc so I use a concealer for all my pesky areas… Estée Lauder disappear concealer has always been in my kit as has the bourjois healt glow if your not looking to break the bank.

And lastly…

5. Treat it as you would your normal foundation. I think a lot of people panic that it’s completely different and it’s not. Use blusher, bronzer etc. I even had quite a dramatic eye with the first one and it was fine.

If you guys do buy any please please please let me know! I love to know if you guys find this stuff useful, makes me feel like I’m not just waffling.

Cioa. S.x

Get glowing ( without the pregnancy) …

It has been suuuuuper nice in the uk at the moment, even more so in Scotland which doesn’t happen very often! Long may it continue I say… Even though for the last week we’ve had torrential down pours we are ever optimistic!

For the first time in my life I have a tan and I love taking advantage of this to wear minimal make up, which I have and I’ve had so many compliments and comments on my skin (even better is the reaction when I tell them I have no foundation on!) I thought I would write a wee blog on what I’ve been using.

So first I moisturise with garnier radiance moisturiser, this has lovely tiny light catching particles to brighten my skin and has an SPF 15 which is much needed in the sun. I then prep my skin with Estée Lauder day wear tint. This stuff is the shiz! It goes on clear and builds colour to your skin tone. It gives a real fresh sun kissed look, I use it as a base to give me a bit of colour but you could use it purely on its own if you were hitting the beach! Now if I were going to the beach I would probably miss out this next step but I’m not so what the hell. I love to contour so I use a concealer 2 shades lighter than my skin tone (I like to use different ones depending what mood I’m in and right now I’m LOVING bourjois healthy mix but its too light for me so I mix in a bit of disappear by Estée Lauder in shade 3) and I block contour my cheek bones, under eye, brow bone, forehead and chin. I then take my soleil de tan by Chanel on a stippling brush and I buff this into my shade areas mixing it with the lighter contour colour to blend everything together. This stuff is great and quite unique, its a cream form of pure pigment which dries beautifully matte but not flat. Because of its texture it’s incredibly build able for any skin tone or ability. I then quite heavily powder my skin with Clinique loose powder. This is a personal choice cause I like matte, but it will give your make up that bit better a lasting time in the heat. Finally I use Clinique sun kissed bronzer, anywhere I would take a tan naturally to give me that healthy glow rather than dark full on bronzed tan and Bobbi Brown shimmer brick in plum over the tops of my cheek bones. This gives a real nice subtle highlight and because it has colour through it rather than just highlight it gives a bit of warmth to the cheeks rather than adding on a heavy blusher.

Apologies I didn’t take a selfie but my hair needs died and is not fit for public! I have a lot more free time in August so I’m hoping to do another tutorial where I will explain the steps and take pictures!

I know this still seems like a lot of products for minimal make up but it’s light layers that make a bigger Impact and look MUCH more flattering in the sun. As they say natural light never lies so less make up is easier to get right! This would be the perfect holiday makeup bag essentials and I never go jet setting without them… 69 days till my next hope across the pond to Malaysia!

Happy sun soaking and holidays to everyone!