Beauty Rehab

Hello there!

I'm back with another beauty rehab post today, I've been churning my way through my stash and although there is seemingly no avail to the end of my products I am somewhat working my way through as I haven't bought any more products so it must be decreasing right???

I have to say that i really enjoy writing these posts, it's a great way to show progress through your stash, revisit products you may have forgotten about and remember if you wanted to repurchase them or not.

I also think it's great to have a nosy at what other people have been using up too!

Simple Soothing Shower Gel - this was bought for me at Christmas and it took me a while to get round to it but it's a lovely 'simple' product. I'd repurchase if I ever run out of shower gel!

Aussie 3 Min Miracle Conditioner Luscious Long Hair - I don't think the variations in the 3 Min Miracle range make any difference but the different conditioner types do vary in smell and consistency so I think it's just a matter of working out which one you prefer. I will always repurchase these especially as they're always on offer somewhere!

Vita Liberata Tinted Self Tan Gel - Love this, worth every penny though I try to buy during the 1/3 off promotions (£15 then!) really lovely even tan in a believable colour. Already repurchased!

Batiste - I do not need to say anything about this product! Already have 3 more cans in the sidelines!

Benefit It's Potent Eye Cream - Love how thick this product is and was a lovely surprise how good the skincare range from Benefit was. I have a mini of this to keep me going for now!

Origins Ginzing Face Cream - WONDERFUL smell and amazing results, just cannot go wrong with Origins for my skin, it drinks it up! Will repurchase when I've worked through some more.

Revlon PhotoReady Perfecting Primer - love this product and is my favourite primer for the price. Will surely repurchase though there are a few i want to try in the mean time

Clarins HydraQuench Cream Mask - given to me and I loved it, wouldn't repurchase as I'm an Origins lover and have lots of Drink Up mask to use but it is a lovely product that has made me want to try a lot more from Clarins in the future.

Barefoot Orgasmic Body Lotion - this was really nice but seems to have gone a funny smell! Wouldn't repurchase.

Balance Me Cleans and Smooth Face Balm - this came in a beauty box so it was great to try it out. I've always enjoyed every Balance Me products that I've tried and am definitely interested in trying out more in future.

St Tropez Tan Optimiser - love this really fine scrub but I don't think the price is reflected in the effects from the product and I'd personally prefer a Soap and Glory one for a better smell!

Garnier Ambre Solaire spray tan - Great tan that's super easy to use, dries quickly and doesn't produce an orange or streaky colour. Always my back up tan!

S&G Greatest Scrub of All - lovely small grained face scrub that would be a great alternative to more expensive scrubs especially when they're in the 3 for 2 deal. You cannot lose with Soap and Glory!

L'Oreal Micellar Water - a lot of these micellar waters are very similar but I did like this one and I would repurchase.

S&G Peaches and Clean Face Wash - used to love this and still do like it but I'm not sure that my skin still does as it did break out a little towards the end of the bottle. I will be sticking to my Origins one for now.

Boots Extracts Cocoa Butter Sugar Scrub - I don't think an expensive scrub is worth the pennies and any kind of scrub is fine by me! This one had the typical cocoa butter smell but it wasn't too overpowering. Wouldn't repurchase as I'd prefer a different scent.

Macadamia Deep Repair Masque - there is NOTHING better than this hair mask and I really need to save up for the pot and save my hair from its dry and nasty existence it's currently living! NEED.

Coral blush - if I could find where this blush came from I'd be over the moon, it's a perfect dupe for Coralista (my all time fave) but unfortunately it's so old I have no idea where it came from!

Rimmel Stay Matte Powder - always the best, always repurchased.

Skin Life Serum - another beauty box product, very nice thin moisturiser that my skin constantly drank up. Was lovely but i believe it was expensive!

Rimmel Scandaleyes Flex Mascara - I always think Rimmel mascaras are great value for money but this one unfortunately seemed to go very thick very quickly and my lashes looked quite clumpy so I wouldn't repurchase this one.

Benefit They're Real mascara - love this mascara as the brush is really good at getting every lash. I was lucky enough to win some minis in various make up events so have a few to keep me going but I'm not sure if I'd spend over £20 on it as I'm a germ phobe and throw my mascaras out after a max of 3 months! So I can't really justify it at the moment.

Bioderma SPF 50 sample - Bioderma are one of the best at what they do and having tried this product I can't disagree. Easily absorbed and hasn't irritated my skin at all. Would repurchase if i was going abroad.


So what do you think of the products I've used? Are any of them your favourites?

Hopefully I can work my way through even more next time. I've just had a super clear out in my room of books, uni work and other crap that I've accumulated. It would be great to have some additional space in my room rather than fighting for it all the time!

Are you any good at keeping control of what you're using?


L xxx

10 Things I would Repurchase: Part 2

I loved the tag M did the other day (here) so decided to my own as well.

I'd never really thought about it before so was an interesting tag!
Here's my ten:

1) As an every day foundation I use a combo of Revlon Colorstay/Rimmel Wake Me Up in the same colours as M. I love that Colorstay actually stays on my face all day but I love the glow that Wake Me Up gives me, so I combine the two for the ultimate look and LOVE it.

2) The infamous Naked palette definitely rates highly in my book though I would love to try Naked 2 to see the difference as I do sometimes miss lighter colours.
However the colour range, quality and staying power of these means I'd always buy it!

3) I'm sure most of you will agree that Real techniques brushes are pretty good value for money and the core collection is a favourite of mine, along with the stippling brush and blush brush.
I'd love the get the powder brush too as I seem to be missing it from my collection!

 

4) As far as fake tan goes, you can do no wrong with Vita Liberata.
I've written a post on this before but can't rave about it enough, my bottle is running low and has lasted me a massive amount of full body applications that no other tan has. I'm sure I've got AT LEAST 8 full body apps plus a few extra coats on my legs and I'm still counting, I've never got that with any other tan I've tried!

5) Liz Earle Hot Cloth Cleanser, needs no more said about it really!
(I get annoyed as it seems to run out so fast though ha)

6) My beloved Jean Paul Gaultier Madame will never ever leave my side!
It's the perfect mix of strong fruity scent but isn't overly overpowering as I get headaches from strong scents.
I love it so much I'm on my 6th bottle and everyone knows it's my smell!

7) I absolutely love Origins so it was hard to narrow down products but their eye creams are the best and were the first things I bought so I chose these. Ginzing is my go to cream for the morning and Eye Doctor is the one I use at night, both have helped my sensitive eyes so much I can't rave enough!

8) I love defining my brows as most people do nowadays but as mine are almost black it was hard to find a product that was the right colour without looking like permanent marker!
I also have tiny gaps in my brows that look bigger because of the pale skin/dark hair combo, but this Mac eyebrow pencil/crayon is amaze! Gives a perfect shape and blends so easy.

9) My lips are always really dry of late so applying lip balm is a constant task! I do really like Vaseline which I know is a love hate product for some people but recently after my trip overseas I have been loving the Eos sphere balms which work a treat and are such a delight to use.
They smell gorgeous and contain no nasties, awesome!

10) Lastly is Soap and Glory's Righteous Butter. I love the scent, how thick and luxurious the butter is and how soft my skin feels afterwards.
My only bug bear is the fact it takes a little while to sink in, but mostly I don't care as it's just far too nice!
I struggle to get my skinny jeans on after applying this but it's so worth it haha.

What are your top 10 repurchases??
I found it really interesting to do this tag as I was surprised that other products didn't feature.

I have recently been using Alpha H's Liquid Gold and also the Antipodes Divine Face Oil which I have an inkling would probably make it onto this list if I completed it again in a few months.

I know you're supposed to tag people but as M has already tagged a lot of you I tag anyone else reading this post!

I loved reading other people's so link back to us if you've completed it as I'd love to see what you chose.

Happy Friday!!!!!

L xxx

Review: Vita Liberata

As a pale girl living in Wales where the sun rarely shines but the rain empties down rather regularly, fake tan is a very prominent member of my product collection.

I tend to go through rather a lot of Dove's summer glow body lotion with a hint of fake tan just to keep myself looking a more human colour!

I've tried many tans before but this one was new on the market, and on offer, hurrah!

I bought this Vita Liberata Self Tan Gel from Boots whilst it was reduced to a much more purse friendly £14.99 from its original price of £22.49

The packaging states:

If you have very pale, hard-to-tan skin then this is your product. Organic extracts have been specially formulated to turn you golden brown in an instant and last for days (even after showering).

I fully believe this person is me! I was a bit nervous at the thought of using a product titled 'Extra Rich Silken Chocolate' as although I wanted to be tanned, I didn't want to be orange or even worse, mahogany!

Let's get the details out the way...the reason I bought this tan (aside from the discount) was the fact that this tan is:

Paraben Free

Perfume Free

Not tested on Animals

and lastly...Organic!

I was tempted by the mousse as I always am, I find them much easier to use than sprays and I've never really tried a lotion.

But decided it was time to try one, particularly as I worked out that the mousse was so much more expensive per 100ml than the lotion.

For once, being thrifty paid off!

This Vita Liberata tan went on an absolute dream!

I'd been scrubbing and exfoliating and moisturising for a good few days before I applied this product, meaning that I had a good base to start with.

After reading the instructions again since my applications I am a little concerned...it says to use 2-3 pumps of product per limb and I most definitely used at least 6 ha, and that was on my arms!

The packaging btw is beautiful, showing a wonderfully bronzed body on the side that to be honest is probably very true to the colour that I turned out to be!

I also like the packaging of the tan itself, brown so wont get covered in mucky hand prints from tanning but shimmery and quite simple in design.

The nozzle was so easy to use, and whilst the tiniest bit comes out for each pump i would much rather this than too much and then waste the product.

As you can see from the product on my hand, 1 pump is a tiny amount!

Maybe my pump is working incorrectly if you are meant to use 2-3 pumps as I'm sure that wouldn't cover most peoples arms surely?!

It's quite a dark colour but blends easily and evenly, giving you a tanned colour instantly and meaning it's very easy to see any missed parts.

I did take photos of my limbs after using this product but unfortunately they've disappeared off blogger :S

But you can just about see in the picture above where the tan had started to develop into a beautiful even colour that looks really natural.

I would say I was worried I'd look like an extra off the Simpsons, it's quite yellow toned which I've never noticed before with a self tan so maybe bear that in mind if you use it!

I definitely didn't turn out that way though, the colour was absolutely beautiful and true to their word did take a good few days to fade.

It even comes with detailed instructions on what to do and not to do, for example with this tan you shouldn't moisturise before application, which is something I've always done with other tans to help it sink in evenly and most of them suggest you do this particularly around knees, elbows etc

Overall I was really impressed with this tan, I love St Tropez but it's expensive and this was a welcome break for my purse.

After 3 different full body applications I can safely say there is plenty left in the bottle and am not even half way through, whereas with the St Tropez mousse the bottle would be near empty by now.

Have you used this brand of tanning products before?

M has had a spray tan done with their products and absolutely loved it too.

I will certainly be checking out the other products they have available...as soon as I get some money rolling into my account again!

What other tanning brands do you use and recommend?

L xxx