12·10·15

Is it weird to be excited about soap? I've recently seen a lot of people using Dr. Bronner's soaps for cleaning their makeup brushes, and I thought I'd try it because I've only been using washing up liquid to clean mine. It's been a bit of a hassle...

Dr. Bronner's soaps are Fairtrade certified, organic, 100% vegan and cruelty free. They come in liquid or bar form and many different scents. I bought the Eucalyptus Bar Soap.

I literally just swivelled my brushes around on the soap, and lathered it up in my hand, and it was done. No nasty rubbing and scrubbing of the poor brushes, just some swirling. And did I mention is smells amazing minty eucalyptusy?

After this major success I'm quite curious to try more of Dr. Bronner's products aswell. We'll see. :)

11·09·15

And my journey to cruelty free beauty products begins with this - a nail polish remover! I found Zoya when I was researching alternative nail polish brands that are cruelty free, and the Zoya products are also non toxic and vegan!

This particular nail polish remover I had actually hear of before, when Nicole from "Young Wild and Polished" on YouTube mentioned it and gave it very good reviews in this video. I never thought I'd be buying it, because I never heard of the brand before, and buying from an American website (almost) always gets pricey...

But after a bit of research I found a UK website called Nail Polish Direct that stocks Zoya products. So when I ran out of my old nail polish remover, I decided to take the plunge and buy it.

It's kinda pricey for a nail polish remover, but after using it, I think it's worth every penny. I paid £9.95 for it, but it's a pretty big bottle (237 ml), and it comes with a very handy pump, where you just put your cotton pad and press down to soak in nail polish remover. It means you don't have to tip your bottle upside down to get too much out and waste lots of product.

The nail polish remover is also used as a prep for nail polish, and on the bottle it says "extended polish wear guaranteed". The nails definitely feels clean after using the remover, and it doesn't leave a strange stain.

Another plus is that it smells nice too! At least that's my opinion. :P I will definitely keep this nail polish remover in my collection. It's an amazing product, and you get such a good feeling using a beauty product you know is completely cruelty free!

08·03·15

Origins GinZing Energy-Boosting Moisturizer Part I

One of my current beauty projects is to find a moisturiser that I love. I was saying previously that I like the Lush moisturisers, but I'm not sure about the value because they cost a chunk and doesn't last very long.

My mum was then amazing and got me Origins GinZing Energy-Boosting Moisturizer as an early birthday present! I read a lot of good reviews about this moisturiser, and my mum swears by a night cream by Origins, and she said it's lasted her for an eternity. So I ended up picking this moisturiser to try.

I used it for a few days, although I still had some left of my old Lush Enzymion Moisturiser. I just couldn't wait until it ran out, excited as I am about stuff like this.
The smell is delicious and fresh, and the texture is perfect. You don't need a lot, and it glides onto your face and disappears in seconds leaving your face moisturised without leaving it oily or dry.

But then, I noticed spots.

I haven't had any breakouts for ages, but something upset my skin. It might have been something else, or it might have been this moisturiser. And I really hope it isn't, because I love it. :(

Anyway, I kept using it for a while, but my skin didn't get better, so I stopped using the moisturiser and decided to use my Enzymion up first, and to see if that would clear my skin a little.

Enzymion is now gone, and my spots are too. This morning I started using the GinZing moisturiser again, with no spots on my face.
If I end up getting spots this time around I know for sure it's the moisturiser that breaks me out, because I haven't changed anything else in my skincare routine, and I'm not using any new products.

Keep your fingers crossed that it was just a one time thing!

To be continued...

17·02·15

My Favourite Lush Products

I don't even know how many years I've been searching for skincare products that I like and want to stick with. The things I'm mainly talking about is a good facial cleanser and a moisturiser. Those two things are as important to me as a deodorant or toothpaste!

I've always bought different products every single time I run out, because I haven't found something that I really like. They are either leaving my face too greasy, too dry or they're breaking me out. I suppose that's one of the issues you get with sensitive-ish combination skin?

Until I recently discovered Lush and their facial care products! I've not even thought about the fact that Lush has got products like this until I went into the local store just before Christmas. I thought they were just about bath bombs and stuff. But no, they do a lot of skincare,shampoos and stuff like that. Everything natural, preservative free and cruelty free. Loooove.

The two products from Lush I now can't live without is their Herbalism cleanser, and the Eau Roma Toner Water.

I've not really been using a toner on a regular basis before, but the Eau Roma Water is really lovely. I spray it straight onto my face in the morning after cleansing, and at night I spray it on a cotton pad to remove every trace of makeup after cleansing. It smells lovely and is refreshing and makes my skin feel extra moisturised.

The cleanser is amazing too. To some people the routine of using a Lush cleanser might feel awkward. Because it doesn't contain any preservatives, you need to mix it into a paste in your hand yourself with a little water before you can rub it on your face. Personally, I like this. It's like a little routine for me every time I wash my face.
The Herbalism cleanser is bright green and smells (to me) fresh like...herbs and nature? I read some reviews that people don't like the smell, but I do.
It's slightly gritty and exfoliating, which is great, because I don't feel the need to separately exfoliate too.

Before Herbalism I tried the Angels on Bare Skin cleanser. I loved the smell of it, but I felt like it was a little too gritty, because of some lavender flower pieces in it, so I went for Herbalism instead.

I also have been trying some of the Lush moisturisers. I purchased Enzymion after trying it out with a sample. I found that some of the other ones left my skin a little greasy, but Enzymion was matte yet moisturising.
The reason I don't want to re-purchase Enzymion is that after using it for a while, I think I experienced my cheeks getting a bit dry. My awkward face. And a great downfall is that it's expensive! It lasted me probably four weeks with me using is every morning and night, and for £14.50 I don't feel like that's sustainable. Just being honest!

I will definitely buy more Lush products in the future! I've got a long wish list, haha... I'm actually also thinking about getting a more rich Lush moisturiser to use only as a night cream. I think they would be great for that!

05·02·15

Primer Review & My Mission to Find the Perfect Primer

Recently I've been on the hunt for a makeup primer. I've never really used a primer before, because I don't really need it. But as I've started wearing more makeup and experimenting with contouring etc, I think using a primer will make a difference - making my makeup looking better, lasting longer and make blending easier. At least a good primer...

I'm sure you can get a good primer for a reasonable price somewhere. I just haven't found one yet. I've not tried that many to be honest, but the ones I have tried I didn't like.

I got a sample from a Boots' No7 primer (can't remember which one), and it just felt a bit too...siliconey? And it didn't really improve the look or durability of my makeup. I'm sure some people would like this super silky feeling, but it's not my cup of tea. I'd love to try all of the No7 ones though, because they have more than one kind.

I bought the new Drops Of Youth Wonderblur from The Body Shop, and it didn't work for me at all. The product sounded really good, and it felt nice when I swatched it, but it made my makeup cake up in places on my skin, and it didn't seem to do any blurring either. It is probably much nicer without makeup on. It's also got a really nice scent to it, and is moisturising.
I gave it to a friend, and she says she liked it. So maybe it just wasn't for me.

My friend gave me a primer from MUA Professional. I liked the feel of it, as it was more of a cream texture than silicone, and it felt very light and moisturising. I wore it for two days, but I instantly got breakouts. I think I had like three spots in two days. And that's a lot for me! That's a shame, because I like it. And although I didn't really notice any reduced pore appearance, it did make my makeup glide on very nicely.

My next "trial" is kind of a high end one. I tried not to go there, because I don't fancy spending that amount of money on a primer, or anything else for that matter. But I got a sample, and who can say no to samples. xD
It's Benefit's POREfessional Primer. And it's great. It glides on without feeling too siliconey (my new favourite word), reduces the appearance of pores, smells nice, makes a lovely base for makeup and makes the makeup look "fresh" for much longer. I've used it for two days in a row (got a huge sample!), and still haven't had any spots from it.
This can either be good new or bad depending on how you look at it. Good news that it's so good, but bad new because I might have to purchase it when my sample runs out. Bye bye money...

There are obviously plenty more primers out there, but trying them all might become an expensive task, and for a few cheaper ones that I don't like, I could just as well buy one that I know works for the same price. We'll see what happens!