Revlon PhotoReady Skinlights

Hi all!

If you've read our blog before you might have seen us mention Revlon products before. We're big fans of their Colorstay foundation, PhotoReady primer, lip butters, nail varnish and many other products so it was only a matter of time before I got my hands on their Skinlights as well.

I bought these on a 3 for 2 deal with their primer (a review of which you can find here) and they're always on offer which is why I'm almost always picking something up from them.

I decided to get both the Bronze Light and Pink Light because well, why not!

So the packaging for this is quite sleek and can be hard to open, you almost have to 'snap' the lid when you twist it off which worried me the first time but I just had to get it open!

The Pink Light can be compared with Benefit's High Beam which has been on the market for a very long time.

You can see on my hand both of the products (clearly I have no fake tan on here, what a ghost!).

Both of which are quite creamy and feel quite thin, which usually means they blend well but that all depends on the quality...

When blended in you can see that the Pink Light has blended easily and leaves a shimmer that looks great in the light and could be mixed with moisturiser or foundation for a slight shimmer all over or applied directly to cheek bones and cupids bow for highlighting specific areas.

The Bronze Light looks significantly scarier compared to my pasty pallor, but I promise you this also blends so easily and looks great for defining cheek bones and again mixed with foundation/moisturiser.
I would never have picked up the Bronze Light before but now i know about contouring it's been great for the weekends and meals with friends.

The photo below shows me with both highlighters on, the Pink Lights on my upper cheek bones to highlight and the Bronze Lights in the hollows to define them.



It's not the best photo as it's on my phone taken at 6am....oops! But you can see how nicely it has blended with my foundation and also how they have both done the jobs they were designed for, I have a lovely contoured cheek bone that took seconds to create!

Have you tried Revlon Skinlights? Which is your favourite? Do you think it's a good dupe for High Beam?

I am so sure that these will have many other uses, including mixing with body moisturisers and contouring decolletage, legs etc.

L xxx

Indeed Laboratories: Hydraluron, Pepta Bright, Eysilix

Morning all! 

If you haven't heard of Indeed Laboratories, then you've probably been living under a rock....

They've hit the big time with fans such as Caroline Hirons singing their praises making them the hottest property on the skincare market for the past year or so.

With a 3 for 2 offer on in Boots, who was I to say no to purchasing some of the most raved about products!
So I picked up Hydraluron, Eysilix and Pepta Bright.

Nanoblur was their first product to be launched and lots of people were huge fans, myself not included in this however as I didn't like the texture on my skin and it didn't work well with my make up.

I did pick up their infamous Hydraluron though and I'm going to run through all the products I picked up as briefly as I can and tell you what I think after using them for the past few months.

Pepta Bright is a white cream that you put on your skin after cleansing and before moisturising.

It claims to be a brightening treatment and who doesn't need a bit of that in their life??

I like the packaging of the products with the different colours but generally similar style boxes and arrangement.
On the side of the box is a brief synopsis of the company which is helpful, I always like a general blurb on the company and what it stands for, which you can see above.

So Pepta Bright contains 7 ingredients targeting 7 biological factors. It claims to be a cream/serum which is a bit confusing as I'm pretty sure its just a white cream but it is easily absorbed.
This product is designed to improve the appearance of hyperpigmentation, age spots and uneven skin tone and restore general brightness and luminosity to the skin.

I LOVE that the box opens up like a book and you can see the full list of promises, what the product is free from, and helpfully all the other products in their range.
The 7 claims are quite detailed and sound pretty promising...

I applied this cream morning and night after cleansing and before my usual moisturiser.
It was easily absorbed into the skin and I felt a tingling after application.
My skin is sometimes sensitive and I think this product heightens it but I'm not sure which ingredient it is. It's not uncomfortable but i am aware of it and so i felt it was something to note.

Aside from that after continued usage my skin did look brighter and I do think some of my scars have lightened and so my general complexion has cleared up a bit.

I do like this product and I have seen some small results, I'm hoping over even more time my skin will get better. After an allergic reaction I had a few months ago I've been reluctant to carry on using this as my skin has been sensitive, but I will be carrying on with it again now after seeing improvements!

The next product was Eysilix, an eye cream that contains 10 peptides to target concerns around the eye area such as puffiness, dark circles and to eliminate signs of stress and fatigue.

Again the book feature of the box details the 5 actions from this product which are 100% what you'd look for in an eye cream.

I like the design of the packaging where you can control the product coming out of the tube and don't waste it which is great for saving the pennies!

I applied this white cream on my eye area morning and night and as with the Pepta Bright I unfortunately had some tingling. As this was around my eye area I was a bit worried about it and have at times taken it off because I was worried it was stinging too much.

Again there must be an active ingredient in it which is causing it and possibly may be reacting with my skin. It did feel moisturising and the skin around my eye felt more hydrated.

My eye area is something that I'm worried about as genetics tells me that my eyes will be the first area to show signs of ageing and i already have a few lines which come and go depending on how tired and dehydrated I am. I'm hoping with copious amounts of moisturising it will keep them at bay for as long as possible!

Hydraluron is my favourite of the three products. Firstly it comes in a bright pink box that you cannot fail to notice.
I was drawn to this because of the massive amount of good reviews it has received and the fact I need some serious hydration in my life.

The box for this product was somewhat different to the others, noticeably because it had French on it but also because it had a lot more detail about the product and its mechanisms.

Long story short Hydraluron contains hyaluronic acid, which holds 1000 times its own weight in water which when applied to the skin means its happy and hydrated.

In practical terms I applied this after cleansing and before moisturising in the morning and evening. It's a clear gel that feels a little like it melts when you apply it.
I can't say that i noticed a huge difference initially and admittedly I did think it was a fad that everyone was jumping on the back of. However it sunk into my skin quite easily and had no negatives effects at all so i persevered.

And I'm so glad i did! After a few weeks my skin did feel smoother and more hydrated, and as soon as I stopped using the tube there was a massive change in the hydration levels in my skin.
When I restarted using it I saw an improvement in my skin again.

It's a weird product as it's not a miracle worker and in fact doesn't really show any improvement for a while.
If you're going to purchase it just bare that in mind as it won't suddenly be the answer to your prayers, but over a few weeks it will definitely improve your skin hydration.

Out of the three products, i would 100% recommend Hydraluron as a staple product in your skincare wardrobe. I do have an issue with the size of it though, 30ml is a small tube for a £25 price tag.

It's currently on offer for £16.66 however as all of Indeed Laboratories products are 1/3 off at Boots right now.

I would also recommend Pepta Bright as it does provide some positive results in terms of brightening and fighting hyperpigmentation, though I'd be wary if you have sensitive skin.

Eysilix however was a bit of a disappointment for me and I'm afraid I can't give it any rave reviews because my skin found it too powerful to use consistently and so I didn't see any results.


Have you tried products from Indeed Laboratories? Which one is your favourites? Did you rave over Hydraluron too?


L xxx

Review: Area H2O

Hey lovelies

Thought I'd do a double post for you today as I've just got back from staying at my parents so I've had a chance to try out a product I was sent again.

Whenever I visit or stay at my parents house I find my shampoo and conditioner leave my hair feeling dry and not as clean. It always gets dirtier quicker too. When I saw some tweets about Area H2O I was instantly intrigued. Area H2O have looked into the minerals that are more abundant in the different types of water and how they effect the way shampoos and conditioners work with these minerals present. 

Area H2O have developed a range of shampoos suitable to the type of water you have. These shampoos have been formulated to remove the mineral deposits which are left in the hair from reactions between the shampoo and water.

The shampoos I use where I live is medium/soft and I've not had any problems with the shampoos and conditioner I use and my hair stays clean for 3-4 sometimes even 5 days. Where my parents live is a hard water area and I was noticing my hair was dirty the next day after washing it.

When I was contacted to ask if I wanted to try Area H2O I straight away said yes and selected the hard water and coloured hair type to try for when I was at my parents. At the beginning of the month I went home for a week so I could test it out properly. I had a really busy week at home and washed it 3 times. I was also home last weekend so used it again while I was there.

I was warned hair can feel dry after shampooing the first few times. Personally I didn't notice this. Having highlighted hair my hair always feels dry after shampooing then feels great again after conditioner.

I really liked the light texture of the shampoo and found it really lathered up to make my hair feel like it was getting a good clean. I also didn't notice loads of hair coming out which I keep noticing when I use cheap shampoo lately. All of the products are colour coded depending on the water type. This makes it easy if like me you spend time between two different types of water and can easily differentiate between the two.

The conditioner was even better than the shampoo in my opinion. It's a great thick conditioner which I love as I feel like my hair is getting the treatment and nourishment it needs. It didn't leave my hair greasy and washed out easily. I also like that the conditioner comes in a squeezy bottle so it's easy to get the product out. I find some tubes hard to get thicker conditioners out.

I love the concept of Area H2O and that it has been developed with the water type in mind. I've really enjoyed using the hard water variety and will continue to use it at my parents house. My hair stayed cleaner longer using it and that's what I really liked.

I really want to try the one for medium water next and will be ordering some when I run out of my current shampoo. It retails for £17.50 for the two which is less than I usually pay for shampoo. I usually pay £23. It comes in soft, medium and hard water types and for normal and coloured hair.

Do you notice a difference between different water types? Is Area H20 something you'd consider?

Love M

xxx

Review: MAC Pro Longwear Paint Pot in Mooncake

Hey all

Work is so much busier for me at the moment and adjusting to now living on my own is definitely making me more tired and more lazy with my make up. I was lucky and got this Paint Pot from my brother and his girlfriend for my birthday.

After reading so many good reviews about paint pots I actually picked one up for my brother's girlfriend for her birthday. Knowing she loves simple easy make up (my two niece's make it a battle for her to find time) I thought she'd love it and I know she loves MAC. She loved hers so much she decided to get me one for my birthday as a surprise.

As with most MAC products the paint pot comes boxed and in the usual simple and classic black and white packaging. The paint pots come in a glass pot with a screw on lid. So far mine is almost two months old and I've not experienced any drying or changing in texture.

I was given the shade mooncake which is a neutral warm champagne glitter shade. MAC Paint pots can be worn as an eyeshadow base or an eyeshadow on it's own. Some shades can also be worn as highlights.

I do find as this is a glitter shade it's not as soft as the non glitter shades. The glitter is quite chunky through this and I do wish it was more of a shimmer. That being said it does look pretty built up and patted onto the lid with just mascara for an easy simple look.

Here you can see the colour blended out and built up. I tend to blend it out if I'm using it as an eye shadow base. I'm very impressed with how these last. I have oily skin and this lasts all day on my eyelid without creasing. I'm talking it lasts from 8am till I take my make up off which is very impressive. Even though it's glittery I have added matte eye shadows over the top and the glitter is then disguised really well.

I really want more of these now and have some Debenhams beauty points to spend. Mooncake doesn't seem to be available online now and I think it was part of the baking beauties collection. I'm now trying to decide between Bare Study, Painterly and Constructivist.

Have you got any paint pots? What colour would you get next?

Love M

xxx