Ren Ready Steady Glow Daily AHA Tonic

Hello beauties,

Another product from Ren today Ready Steady Glow Daily AHA Tonic. It’s an exfoliating toner which you can use daily if you want to.

I don’t acid tone every day, my skin can’t take it, I find a couple of times a week with a physical scrub once a week works for me. Ready Steady Glow is Lactic acid based with Willow Bark extract (BHA) so good for clearing pores. It’s easy to use, swipe it on a cotton pad and then follow on with your usual skincare, not forgetting to use SPF. There are essential oils also in this formula (which doesn’t bother me) but it’s not for sensitive folk.

What I really don’t like about this product is that it foams up on the skin and goes soapy. It’s very weird! It’s a shame because RSG does make your skin feel smoother and look brighter so it does work but the texture is so odd. I’ve used it a few times but it’s so strange I’m using it up on my feet (now that they are super smooth!) to help keep the hard skin at bay so I wouldn’t buy a full size of this. It’s £27.00 for 250ml so very good value, if it didn’t foam I would buy it again but this is a no from me.

Till next time,

Lucy xxx

Kind Natured Sea Salt and Bergamot Soothing Body Wash

Hi beauties,

Body care today with Kind Natured Sea Salt and Bergamot Body Wash. Kind Natured is a “natural” brand, and even though I don’t like that term, it means they use foaming agents from coconut oil instead SLS. I really like the brand, I’ve tried their haircare before and although I don’t use it now (I have found something that’s massively helped my psoriasis) I would definitely recommend.

On to the body wash, it’s a beautiful silky smooth texture. A small amount (10p size) on a body puff creates a gorgeous lather that’s enough so wash your whole body with. The scent is fabulous, soothing yet uplifting at the same time. Bergamot is a wonderfully fresh citrus note that I think is pretty unisex so this is a great one for everyone to use. It makes your skin feel so soft and smooth afterwards and the scent is delicate so it doesn’t hang around, it’s not going to clash with any fragrance you like to wear.

I love this body wash, it’s absolutely brilliant. Great for dry skin and a pleasure to use. The best bit? Also fabulously affordable! For a 250ml tube it’s £4.99, I got mine from Boots and there are other scents available.

Till next time,

Lucy xxx

Coverfx Mattifying Primer

Hello beautiful people,

I have a real love hate relationship with primers, my skin is so oily and I don’t overly like glow as it looks sweaty on me so I look for primers that will give me mattifying properties.

I was gifted this by a very good friend of mine who with lots of other products sent me a gift parcel, she knows me well so knows what kind of things I look out for! I’ve not tried Coverfx before but they do intrigue so I was pleased to see this in the package.

Mattifying Primer is silicone based which again I have a love/hate relationship with. Some feel beautiful, others feel slimy and horrible this one however is gel like and feels lovely. Also fabulous at helping to conceal redness that I suffer with around my nose. Where it falls down for me is that it isn’t quite as mattifying as I would like. It does last longer than a lot of matte primers I have tried before, perhaps I am expecting too much?? Maybe, I am quite demanding!! I don’t think I would buy a full size, at £29 I think it’s very expensive even though I do think it’s good. However if that’s your budget and you want to conceal redness and have a more matte finish to your complexion this is a good option. Available at Beauty Bay, Look Fantastic and Feel Unique.

Till next time,

Lucy xxx

Liz Earle Neroli Cleanse and Polish

Hi beauties,

One of the latest launches from Liz Earle and their recent TSV with QVC is the Neroli scented Cleanse and Polish. You probably already know what I am going to say, but I’ll say it anyway!

I ADORE this! It simply is THE BEST Cleanse and Polish that has ever been created. If I only had one cleanser to use for the rest of my life (although don’t make me! 😂) it would be this. It’s gorgeous! All the best bits of C&P, so gets all your makeup and SPF off as well as all the other usual grime we accumulate during the day. The scent smells exactly like the Superskin Moisturiser, so if you like that then you will love this.

The first day I got this home I did a complete Superskin routine using this as my cleanser, followed by Instant Boost Skin Tonic, Superskin Concentrate and Superskin moisturiser. My skin felt fantastic afterwards and was so relaxing to use. I wasn’t surprised to see the kit with this in sold by 11am, I’m hoping that as it was so popular Liz Earle will consider keeping it as a permanent part of the family and not just as a limited edition. Another thing to mention is that it’s also a massive 250ml which is the biggest size of C&P ever created. QVC were selling it at a feature price at the time of writing for £26.00 but it is worth £32.00. It’s completely stunning and an absolute joy to use.

Till next time,

Lucy xxx

Margaret Dabbs Pure Nail and Cuticle Treatment

Hi beauties,

Nail care from Margaret Dabbs with her Pure Nail and Cuticle Treatment. I went with the Pure range because most of her products (if not all) in the yellow packaging contain mineral oil.

The Pure product is Jojoba and Buriti oils with Manuka and Oregano extract. The scent of Oregano is incredibly strong, it’s actually quite off putting if I’m honest. It’s a light cream that you massage into your cuticles and nails to “help to repair dry, flaky, ridged, damaged and inflamed nails and cuticles”

It’s a pleasant product, but if I’m honest I didn’t notice any improvement in my nails that a regular hand cream wouldn’t provide. I think the if you don’t like oils than this is a good alternative than having a full size hand cream in your handbag, otherwise I think this isn’t really a necessary product. Also quite expensive at £12 for 15ml, I wouldn’t repurchase.

Till next time,

Lucy xxx

The Body Shop Silky Cleansing Oil

Hi beauties,

Another cleanser today with The Body Shop Camomile Silky Cleansing Oil. I love cleansing oils, especially emulsifying ones like this.

I have used this before when it used to be in the old packaging with the awful pump that would leak all the time. Thankfully The Body Shop have replaced the pump and it’s much easier to use. The oil is a soy, sunflower, sweet almond and sesame seed oil base. It contains camomile essential oil, which I really love. It’s amazing at removing makeup quickly and easily. You can use it in the standard hot cloth way or rinse off in the shower with no residue at all.

As it’s the Body Shop it’s brilliantly priced at £12.00 for a 200ml bottle, Camomile Silky Cleansing Oil would be good for all ages and skin types. Versatile as you can use it AM and PM it’s a great emulsifying formula without being stripping at all. I’m really enjoying using this at the moment, it’s a product that would be good to start teenagers off with to make sure they’re taking off all makeup properly. I would definitely buy this again as it’s a pleasure to use.

Till next time,

Lucy xxx

NYK1 Secrets Lash Force Serum

Hi beauties,

I have an epic product today NYK1 Secrets Lash Force Serum. This was sent to me by the gorgeous FiFi @fiona50slife with a beautiful card (she didn’t actually sign it but I recognised her handwriting!!) Fi knew I had been wanting to try this for so long after seeing her amazing results.

This is the first day of treatment

I always thought I had decent lashes, I don’t wear makeup every day, so they don’t get a lot of abuse! But my lashes do grow straight so you can’t really see them. Also I lose a lot of lashes, every day they shed, making their way into my eyes regularly which is very annoying!

What I noticed first of all were the length of my lower lashes, this took about a month so you do have to be patient. Once you start seeing results though it’s very gratifying!

As you can see the length of my lashes has improved, they look more fluttery. I can’t believe how long they have become! I couldn’t be more thrilled with this product, it’s one of the best things I’ver tried. For the first 8 weeks you apply the serum to your lashes top and bottom twice a day. After that you can use it once a day to maintain the results.

With mascara on my lashes look bloody amazing (in my humble opinion!!) also without mascara they do look darker than before too. What I do need to do is get them curled – I’m looking into home perming kits at the moment because they do look better with a lift.

For a 8ml tube of serum it costs £37.95 which I think is amazing value. Lash serums are usually double if not triple the price for much less product. For example one of the leading ones Revitalash is 3.6ml and for £125.00. I think you can see that the results are incredible, Lash Force Serum also works on eyebrows too I noticed that using it helped fill up a couple of gaps I had. A truly amazing product, you can get it direct at http://www.nyk1.com.

Till next time,

Lucy xxx

Rituals Ritual of Hammam Soul Warming Hand Balm

Hi beauties,

We’re all using tons of hand cream at the moment because of the hand washing and the use of sanitisers, one I have been really enjoying lately is Rituals The Ritual of Hammam Soul Warming Hand Balm.

Rituals is a Dutch brand, they do a wide range of skincare, bodycare and home fragrance. They are well known for their popular shower foams.

This is a thick Shea butter lotion that’s rich without being greasy, if your hands are greasy you’ve definitely used too much. You need a very small amount of this, it’s also very handy (pardon the pun!) being in a pump bottle, Hammam is lovely particularly in the kitchen. Scented with eucalyptus and rosemary it’s uplifting and soothing at the same time. It really is a beautiful fragrance, herby and warming its lovely to have a good smell of it when applying.

It’s a generous 175ml bottle so is lasting me a long time! I also (as I do with all hand creams) rub some into my cuticles, it’s brilliant at softening the skin. Good value too £9.90 for the pump bottle you can get it from Rituals direct and Amazon although at the time of writing it was more expensive there at £12.00. I want to try some of the other Rituals products, as I’ve used one shower oil and a body cream that I really loved.

Till next time,

Lucy xxx

Alex Steinherr Pore Balance Super Detox Clay Mask

Hi beauties,

I am sure most of you will have heard of Alessandra Steinherr the beauty editor for Glamour Magazine who created a skincare range for Primark. Unfortunately Oxford doesn’t stock the range so while I was in London last year I was able to pick up a couple of bits, the Pore Balance Super Detox Clay Face Mask being one of them.

This is a kaolin clay mask with niacinamide, charcoal and raspberry leaf extract, and it is one that sets on your skin but it doesn’t feel stripping. Definitely for the oily/combination types, if you have dry skin I don’t think this would be the best choice as it is designed to mop up excess oil. I love this mask, it makes my skin feel smooth and clear afterwards. It is one of the best clay masks that I’ve tried.

Also amazing value, just £5.00 for 100ml so certainly won’t break the bank. I would definitely repurchase this, it’s just such a shame that my local store doesn’t stock it and you can’t buy online either. I think Primark are missing a trick here to be honest, it’s annoying to get a great product that you can’t repurchase easily. I would rebuy it if I could get hold of it!

Till next time,

Lucy xxx

Dr Organic Lavender Body Wash

Hi beauties,

One of my favourite scents is lavender and in my opinion Dr Organic Lavender Body Wash is one of the nicest I’ve found.

SLS free the body wash is aloe Vera based so it’s a hydrating wash. Anything that helps my dry skin and means that I don’t have to moisturise my body every day is a winner for me! The fragrance is absolutely gorgeous and so soothing. Lovely at the end of a stressful day, you could also use this in the bath if you wanted to. A shower is my preference and I do use this in the morning too if I fancy it. It’s wonderfully calming and pairs so well with the lavender skin lotion too which is another of my Dr Organic favourites of mine.

Affordable too, it’s £6.49 for 250ml and Dr Organic regularly have promotions at Holland and Barrett, a lot of the time it’s buy one get one half price. I use a lot of Dr Organic products, they are fabulous quality at such great value prices. This will always be a part of my stash.

Till next time,

Lucy xxx