Murad Balance and Protect Travel Kit*

Hey All

It's been a while since we've posted on Sunday. It's fair to say life is pretty busy for L and I at the moment. We've got lots of stuff we are both loving and want to share with you.

We went to Glastonbury this year and we both had an amazing time at our first festival. Dancing, drinking and generally having an amazing 5 days! We had heat waves, rain and thunder and lightening but it didn't make any difference what the weather was!

Something we were both concerned about was skincare. We are both careful to properly care for our skin and have full skincare routines in place which just wouldn't have been possible to keep up at Glastonbury where a shower was exchanged for baby wipes in the tent.

When Murad offered us these kits to try we jumped at the chance. Mini's that are perfect to test out and great to take to such events. We were definitely excited to try the clarifying wipes to our faces were getting more of a proper clean.

The kit comes with 5 clarifying wipes, Oil control Mattifier and Skin perfecting Primer for £10.

I'm oily skinned and couldn't wait to try out the mattifier. I decided to skip on foundation. I took it with me but didn't wear it when I was there. I've been embracing foundation free skin spots and all at the moment so a mattifying cream is brilliant. Foundation free skin is good, shiny greaseball skin is not something I like. You apply the mattifier after moisturiser. What I love about this is texture. It's creamy and silky on the skin and mattifies in a natural way. I find some creams like this feel dry on the skin. This leaves my skin still feeling moisturised and has become a part of my everyday routine. The bottle is still going strong too. A little goes a long way! The SPF is always welcome in a cream too!



I did find the wipes have a strong chemical smell to them. I'm not sure if with prolonged use they would dry my skin out. For short term they leave my skin feeling super clean and fresh and helped control breakouts. I think these are perfect for holidays where skin is probably more oily then normal due to extra oil use.

The primer was another product I loved. It is a skin tone product but blends into the skin invisibly. It leaves skin feeling smooth but not silicone coated for make up. My make up applies more smoothly using this and it doesn't block my pores. At Glastonbury I used a combination of all three of these and no foundation. My skin looked clear and healthy.

I'm totally sold on the mattifier and will definitely be repurchasing. I'm pretty tempted by the primer too and for holidays I think the wipes would be a great investment. I think more companies should do the travel sized kits as it's a great way to try out products without having to by full size.

Love M
xxx

Hi all!

Hope you've had a fabulous weekend! This Murad kit was a lovely surprise for us to recieve, we absolutely love Murad products and kits like this allow you to try so many different products for a reduced price so you can tell easily what you really love. There are also 2 other kits available for the £10 price tag; Age Reform Travel Kit and Resurgence Travel Kit. I've found these on the M&S website so you should snap them up asap! 

The three products could not have been more perfectly selected for us. Although were getting older now and god forbid the wrinkles might be coming through already but we do still get an oily t-zone. Combined with Glastonbury and festival life meaning that there wasn't any proper running water meant it was definitely going to turn into an oil slick!

The combination of the Oil Mattifier, Skin Perfecting Primer and the Clarifying Wipes meant that my skin was nowhere near as bad as it should have got!

The wipes did smell strongly of alcohol, I almost felt like I was getting drunk off the smell! But this definitely helped to keep any breakouts at bay by cleansing my skin as thoroughly as possible. Long term use may strip your skin of natural oils but for the 5 day festival or a long weekend you will be perfectly fine.

The oil mattifier was great and as M has mentioned there is still loads left even though I've been using mine most days since the festival too.

The skin perfecting primer was a lovely product that really helped to even out skin tone and sort of blur any imperfections. You can see the colours of the products on my hand in the image above, the white oil mattifier blended out to a clear product on application.

The kit is a perfect opportunity to try out some new products that you are unsure will work for your skin and also perfect to take away with you on holidays and long weekends. I also took mine on a hen weekend to Edinburgh as we only had hand luggage and had to take all products in the clear plastic bags with us!

Using these products I was also confident enough to only wear concealer to cover my under eye bags during the festival which is a pretty big deal for me, I never go without a full on face of foundation! Whilst i do choose a light base currently (UD's Naked Skin) I can't quite go make up free so this was a big plus for me! (the under eye bags courtesy of festival drinking and late nights could not be avoided though!)

Have you tried these fab little kits from Murad? Which one would you try out?

I've never met a product I didn't like from Murad but I'm going to be picking up the other 2 kits to try out things I haven't tried before and keep them for future trips away!

L xxx

Review: Origins Zero Oil Toner

Morning sweet cheeks!

What a cringe way to start a post eh? Ha i couldn't resist, it's the festive spirit taking over.

Are you a fan of toners? I used to be until i read that most contain too much alcohol (when I was about 15) and so I stopped using them. Over the past few years though I still seem to buy them and in all honesty i was a bit baffled, why was I buying them and not using them?!

I picked up the Origins Zero Oil toner when my skin was super oily, which seemingly changed overnight and ever since my skin has had it's oily t-zone but been too dehydrated and temperamental for me to even think about using this toner and so it was confined to the back of my desk drawers.

Recently though my skin has stopped being so sensitive and I still have that oily t-zone so I decided it was time to get it out and give it a go or donate it to someone who could actually use it.

Origins Zero Oil Pore Purifying Toner contains saw palmetto and mint to combat oil production, salicylic acid to aid exfoliation and blocked pores, aloe leaf juice and glycerin to help with redness and a whole load of essential oils.

I apply this in the mornings with a cotton wool pad and concentrate on my t-zone with a quick swipe over the rest of my face.

It feels really cool and refreshing and definitely helps to mattify my skin ready for moisturiser. It doesn't feel like it has stripped my skin like other strong toners have done in the past and I was generally surprised how much I have liked using it and have actually been getting through it rather quickly!

I love that it contains salicylic acid, it's one of my favourite products for skincare because it has never reacted badly with my skin and has so many good effects especially in terms of exfoliation.

I've been surprised at how well this toner has worked and it's changed my opinions on them, maybe some of them really do work!

Which is your favourite toner? Do you use any of the Origins toners?

The Zero Oil toner can be bought online or in store for £18 for 150ml.

L xxx

Rimmel Match Perfection Silky Loose Face Powder

Hello lovelies!

I'm sure most of you use a powder every morning to set your base, and possibly even throughout the day when reapplying or touching up your make up.

I've always been a pressed powder fan, but M is a fan of loose powder. Seeing the Rimmel Match Perfection on one of the many offers in Boots I couldn't help but snap it up!

Rimmel are obviously a UK beauty fan favourite. Not only do they have a massive range of products to cater to everyone's needs, they're well priced, have a fun advertisement campaign and are almost always on offer so you can maximise your money. What more could you want?!

The Match Perfection range has many fans, myself included. About a year ago when both me and M were looking for products w could use to contour our super pale faces with we ended up picking up the lightest and darkest Match Perfection foundations to help us to do the job, and as you can imagine they were great and still get used today.

I knew I needed to pick up powder so in a 3 for 2 deal I picked up my usual Stay Matte Pressed Powder and then this one as my 'freebie' so I could try it out.

This loose powder comes with a little puff thing, which looks cute but isn't any use for me. I wouldn't be transporting this with me anywhere as I don't generally touch up my make up throughout the day so this has been donated to my younger cousins who have loved having some make up!

The inside of the pot is like any other loose powder product, it has a plastic covering with holes in to allow only a certain amount of product to be accessed at one time. I'm sure shaking it everywhere would defy this but generally that's not something you do...

Having tipped a little out and applied to my hand I was a little worried at first, it looks very light even on the back of my super pale hand!
The colour I picked up was Translucent, so I was hoping this would blend in nice and easy.

However I was glad to be wrong and it blended in beautifully and didn't leave any white residue marks as I thought it might when a flash was used:

To apply the loose powder in the mornings I used my Real Techniques Powder brush and Setting Brush.

The powder brush I swirl in the pan and then in the lid to ensure an even and uniform coverage on the brush which then hopefully translates to my face, I then use the setting brush for applying powder under my eyes on the delicate skin and around my nose to combat shine. Here are the results:



The powder applies really well and I don't find that I lose too much of it and find more on my top than my face. It sets my make up really well without being too cakey or powdery and doesn't make my skin too matte looking either.

It seems to withstand the hot/cold air con in my lab pretty well and hasn't been disappointing in keeping shine at bay as many other expensive powders I have tried before.

Here's a close up so you can see how natural and not powdery/cakey the effect is:

I've been quite impressed with this loose powder in comparison to its pressed powder counterpart, I'd definitely not be put off buying them in future like I previously have been.

Rimmel just seem to know what they're doing and for the price this will not disappoint whatsoever!


What's your favourite; pressed or loose powder? Are you a big Rimmel fan?


L xxx

Vichy Normaderm Pro Mat

Hi all!

Today I'm going to waffle on about another Vichy product. I'm a bit of a fan of theirs and am yet to dislike a product that I've bought from them, they always seem to deliver and my skin does seem to appreciate it.

I picked this up quite a while ago, but when my skin went from being oily to dehydrated and sensitive to almost everything it was placed in a drawer and forgotten about.

I've recently found it and now that my skin is back in some kind of order, it's made its way back into my daily regime.

Vichy's Normaderm range is very popular for those with imperfection and acne prone skin and fights the 6 main signs; blemishes, pores, shine, oily skin, marks and uneven complexion.

I've previously raved about their Normaderm day and night moisturisers and this was a product I snapped up because of that.

Their Nomaderm Pro Mat is for 'Non Stop Matte Effect Hydrating Care'.

Initially I was confused what on earth this was.
Is it a moisturiser? Is it a serum? A spot cream?

It's actually more of a primer.

I apply this after my moisturiser has sunk in and before make up, it's actually replaced my primer for the time being as I wanted to test its effects.
I apply this just like moisturiser to my entire face and my face has definitely been less shiny and oily and therefore my make up has stayed on longer than with some primers I've tried in the past.

On the back of my hand you can see that it's a weird green kind of colour but this doesn't show on the face at all, and if anything would probably help with colour correction!

And then it disappears to nothing leaving only a slight sheen where the product is on my skin.

Having lost the box I've done a quick search to get the facts for you. From their American site I can tell you that this is oil free and also contains SPF15 which is great.
However I cannot find it on UK sites which is odd as I definitely bought it in Boots in the UK! There is a similar product called Total Mat which I'm wondering if it is the same thing just marketed differently.

Anyway, if you're looking for a primer/moisturiser type product then I would definitely recommend this. It has hydrated my skin whilst keeping oil under control and prolonging my make up from sliding down my face....winner.
I've also been using this daily for a couple of weeks and still have plenty left in the tube, the thin nozzle allows you to control exactly how much product you want to come out and this way there is minimal waste!


Have you tried this product before? Have you tried Total Mat and noticed if its the same?

It's really frustrating when they do this as I would possibly like to repurchase and aren't sure if i would get the same effects!

L xxx

   

Save, Spend, Splurge Day Creams featuring Avon, Origins and Clinique

I've been meaning to write this post for a while after I got quite a few positive response on the one I did on eye make up removers (found here) I always wonder whether it really is worth paying more for things. I plan on doing posts on night creams and hot cloth cleansers too. Would you be interested in seeing posts like this on beauty products as well?

Anyway today's post is day creams. Let's start off with my skin type. I'm an oily combination skin type. While I used to sway away from moisturiser as I was oily skinned I used to not bother as I thought it was unnecessary to add more to my skin. How wrong was I. Since realising this I've been trying different ranges of skin care to find what's perfect for me.

In a day cream I like something that's light and sinks into my skin easily so I can apply my make up on a nice base and not have something heavy on my face as it doesn't need it.

SAVE

The first one I started using was the Avon Solutions Complete Balance Day Cream. This is an absolutely brilliant moisturiser for anyone with oily combination skin. It's a mattifier day cream which just leaves the face with a nice shine free finish. It's oil free which is always good and has SPF15 which is what I like day creams to have so I don't have to worry if my foundation doesn't. The cream has a great consistency which leaves my skin feeling suitably moisturised without being oily. It sinks in easily too which means you can apply your make up onto a nice base. The RRP for this is £7.50 for 50ml which in itself is a great price but you can usually get it on offers and in deals. It's currently £5.00 here or you can get a travel set with a mask, day cream, night cream and cleanser here which is also £5.00 and is a great way to try them out. I got this one for £3 when it was on offer.

Apologises for the tatty pot. I like the pot it's similar to the Clinique one and means you can get all the product out easily. It does mean if you have long nails you do get some product under your nails. This cream has a nice fresh fragrance that is very subtle and possibly a little floral.

SPEND

For if you want to spend a little more I have the Origins Balanced Diet Moisturiser.\This is also an oil free moisturiser. It uses Japanese seaweed and sodium hyaluronate which is apparently what makes it great for oily/combination skin types as these give moisturiser without weighing down the skin. This lotion blends easily into the skin and feels very light weight. It has an almost minty fresh fragrance. I find it pleasant. This one cost £23.00 for 50ml so is significantly more than the Avon one. You can find out more about the ingredients and how they work here. I like the brand Origins and a lot of their products. But this isn't a cream I'd repurchase and I prefer the Avon one over this. Mainly because they are very similar but the Avon one also has SPF.

I do prefer the packaging of the Origins though.

SPLURGE

Onto the Splurge. The Clinique Superdefense age Defense Moisturise SPF 25 for Combination oily to oily skin (with Clinique you can get the same moisturiser but for different skin types). I have previously done a full review on this day cream here. This moisturiser is brilliant. It's perfect for oily skin as it's lightweight and sinks into the skin easily. It feels fresh on the skin and sinks in well and has the highest SPF value of the three creams. I love that this cream is not only aimed at oily skin but is also Anti Ageing and while I'm only 23 I'm a firm believer of prevention is better than cure and it's best to start young. I find it hard to find anti ageing products that aren't heavy on this skin and this is brilliant. But it comes at a price. £37 for 50ml unfortunately. While it's pricey I really think it's worth every penny and would definitely repurchase. The product lasts a long time though. You can purchase here.

The packaging looks and feels luxurious and classic and is plastic which is handy if you are travelling. No one wants to spend £37 then drop it and it smash.

So overall this time for me SPLURGE wins. It's such a great all round cream to prevent anti ageing, sun damage and control oil. I love this. But when I'm skint I turn to my SAVE option as I think it's as good as SPLURGE so it's not worth spending the extra.

Have you tried any of these? What's your go to day cream? Are you happy to spend on day creams?

Love M

xxx

Review: Origins Zero Oil Moisturise Lotion

On one of my recent Origins splurges I picked up the Zero Oil moisture lotion as my skin is generally quite oily and I'm always trying to beat the shine.

However my skin being the fickle thing that it is decided to dry out so although I have started using it on my whole face, I now only use it on my T-zone as everywhere else needs a little more hydration.

First off as its oil free its a great moisturiser for those who want to beat the shine and it moisturises without leaving any excess on the skin and quite frankly it disappears!

It also leaves quite a nice base as it mattifies the skin too.

As you can see on the packaging it has Saw Palmetto and Mint which gives it a really nice clean smell and makes you believe that it won't be breaking you out, which it doesn't. 

I also love that its non pore blocking (non-comedogenic) and non-acnegenic so you're almost guaranteed to see great results if you purchase and use this moisturiser on your oily skin.

My skin on my t-zone definitely feel hydrated enough when I use this and I love that in the morning it gives you a matt effect which helps with oiliness for a good few hours for sure.

Unfortunately for me my skin has done a complete 360 on me at the moment and is currently in need of extra moisturisation which is totally unlike it so I've got myself a sample of the Make a Difference treatment (oil free though!) to see if it helps.

The ladies are always lovely on the Origins counters I've been to and are so helpful and always give out a sample of the product you are lusting after if you're not sure about buying it.

I always find it a pleasure to go back which is obviously what they want, but it never feels like they're trying to take your money which other counters should take note of!

I will be continuing to use this as I have for the past few weeks as it works perfectly on my T-zone and I have to admit that maybe my pores are even shrinking which would be an epic bonus!

Look out for tomorrows post with another of my Origins purchases which is a HG product for some people, including me!

Do you have a favourite Origins product? Have you bought any recently or are lusting after anything in particular?

I'm an Origins junkie for sure!

L xxx

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