2012 Favourites - Hair and Skincare

Hello!

Thought I would jump on the bandwagon and do my favourites of 2012, sorry it's so late!

I will do a makeup version soon.

Just a quick warning - this is going to be pretty long, and pretty picture heavy :)

Hair Products:

Superdrug Dry Shampoo -

This dry shampoo is brilliant. Really cheap (usually on a buy one, get two free offer!), and does everything that the more expensive versions do. Refreshes the hair, gives it a bit of volume, and means I can go an extra day without washing my hair ;) 

L'oreal Paris Feria in 74 Mango- 

I have used this hairdye throughout 2012, it's quick and easy to use, and is my perfect colour. I can't imagine switching colour any time soon. 

Superdrug Shampoo and Conditioner - 

I really do love a Superdrug own brand product! The entire shampoo and conditioner range is amazing. They all smell amazing, and leave my hair feeling clean and soft and lovely.

Makeup Removers:

Garnier Soft Essentials Cleansing Wipes (Dry Skin)- 

These are really saturated, so they never tug or drag at your skin. They have the most beautiful rose scent, and take off every last scrap of makeup, including waterproof mascara!

Garnier Simply Essentials Soothing 2 in 1 Makeup Remover- 

I have rabbited on about this product for most of the year, so I'll keep this short! Basically, this takes off eye makeup quick as a flash and doesn't sting at all.

No7 Beautiful Skin Quick Thinking Wipes -

Thought I'd include these as I did love them at the start of the year. These also don't drag, and take off all makeup really easily, but are more expensive than the Garnier ones, and don't leave my skin feeling as moisturised. 

Face Washing Products:

Elizabeth Arden Visible Difference Oil Free Cleanser -

This is the most luxurious cleanser I have ever used! Smells amazing, lathers up really well, and leaves my skin feeling really soft and cleansed. 

Super Facialist by Una Brennan Tea Flower Cleansing Wash -

I alternate between this and the Elizabeth Arden cleanser. This one also lathers well, and also has salicylic acid to help keep spots at bay, but doesn't leave my skin feeling tight. 

Soap and Glory Greatest Scrub Of All -

The only scrub I have ever repurchased, this is nice and gritty, but never rough.

Moisturiser/Mask:

M&S Formula Nourishing Night Cream (discontinued) -

Again, I've banged on about this a lot! This has been discontinued (sob!), but it's my favourite moisturiser of all time. Nicely scented but not over powering, really moisturising but it doesn't break me out, and a little goes a long way.

Soap and Glory Fab Pore Facial Peel -  

This is a face mask that doesn't dry on the skin, so it never leaves my skin feeling dry or tight. Although I don't particularly notice that this does much for my pores, what it does do is reduce the redness of my spots, and make my skin look alot more clear. 

Bath Product/Hand Cream:

The Little Bubble Co Bath and Shower Gel - 

The entire range of these bath and showers gel are absolutely beautiful. They come in delicious scents such as vanilla, mint candy, gingerbread, and fruity scents like strawberry and coconut. They're equally as great as bubble bath and shower gel, and are really cheap for the 500ml bottle. 

Garnier 7 Days Mango Hand Milk -

This hand cream may actually be my favourite product of 2012. It smells amazing, sinks it super quickly, and leaves my hands feeling so, so soft for ages. Highly recommend to everyone! 

So those are my hair and skincare favourites of 2012! What were your favourites?

Thanks for reading! :)

Review - Elizabeth Arden 8 Hour Cream Skin Protectant

Hello! 

Just a quick review today :)

Recently I've been really enjoying Elizabeth Arden as a brand. I've been using their cleanser, face spf and also lusting after a foundation, and their tinted lip balms. 

If you say 'Elizabeth Arden' to someone, chances are, they will think of the other product I have been loving, the 8 Hour Cream.

This cream is a favourite amongst youtubers/bloggers and celebrities, and rightly so.

This cream is a rusty orange colour, with a very distinctive smell. Some people love the smell, some hate it, I'm not really fussed either way. It's quite a medicinal, clinical smell, but EA have recently brought out a fragrance free version if it does bother you.

A multi purpose product, 8 hour cream can be used on cuticles, dry skin, minor abrasions/scrapes/burns, eyebrows, split ends, spots and lips. I use this the most on lips, it's non sticky formula gives a slight shine, and is the most moisturising product I have used on them.  So, for any other matte lipstick lovers out there, this would be perfect!

Another way that I love to use this, is on my nose! Sounds weird, but hear me out haha!

I seem to be very susceptible to colds, and have really bad hayfever as well, which leads to nose blowing, which leads to a sore, dry nose! 

This is the only product that I can use on my nose in that state, which doesn't sting at all :)

I absolutely love this product, and would recommend it to everyone, even if you only end up using it as  a (admittedly very expensive!) lip balm. This is £25 for 50ml from Boots.com, which I know seems crazy but I really do think it's the worth the price.

Has anyone tried this? Or have any EA recommendations? Thanks for reading! :)

P.S The picture is of a 15ml sample size which I got handed in Debenhams, so definitely ask for a sample if you want to try before you buy! :)

Shopping My Stash #1- Skincare

Evening! 

A few days ago, I did my first Shopping my Stash video, which you can see here.

I've done a post on the makeup bits I mentioned, which you can read here, so I though I would do a seperate post on the skincare bits I am trying to use at the moment! 

Excuse the terrible picture- this is what happens when your brain tells you it's a good idea to take a picture at 9.30 in the evening!

• Body Shop Tea Tree Skin Clearing Facial Wash- I did a post on how much I hated this product, but my skin has changed alot recently, so I'm hoping it will be second time lucky, and that this will miraculously clear up my skin! :)
• Elizabeth Arden 2 in 1 Cleanser- This is supposed to be a cleanser and a toner. I have no idea why I stopped using this, it's such a beautiful product! Smells amazing, lathers up really nicely and leaves your skin feeling so, so soft and smooth.
• Soap and Glory No Clogs Allowed face mask- This is one of those self heating masks, which I'm not a huge fan of.  I stopped using this when I discovered S&G The Fab Pore face mask, but that has run out, so I'm back onto this one! My skin is terrible at the moment, so hopefully this will help keep it under control!
• De Vere Aloe Vera Skin Care Gel- I think originally I bought this to put on sunburn, but when I found this lurking at the bottom of my drawer, I did a bit of research, and Aloe Vera gel has so many uses and benefits! I am going to be using this as a spot gel, and a hand cream :)
• Steamcream- I bought this a while ago, used it for a bit, and then totally forgot about it. It's a multi purpose cream, I am going to be using it mainly as a moisturiser, and possibly as a hand cream if the Aloe Vera gel doesn't work out!

So these are the products that I have been neglecting, but am going to start using more! Feel free to link me to your post if you've done a Shopping my Stash type thaang! Thanks for reading :)

Hand Cream Collection

Hey Guys :)

My skin tends to be pretty dry, especially on my face and my hands. I moisturise my face every day, (usually twice a  day!), but often I forget to do the same with my hands. So, this winter I decided I'd start using hand creams before they got really dry and sore, and I've built up quite a collection!

Only just realised that the L'Occitane one is upside down! oops!

Teeny tiny haul and surpise product rave!

Hey everyone, would just like to say thankyou to anyone who has taken the time to comment my posts or subscribe, this blogging lark is so much fun!

So anyway, to the point of this post :)

If, like me, you are someone who wears lipstick alot, you've probably already experienced the delights of Lipcote, and just how amazing it is! If not, you're missing out! This stuff will keep any lipstick on your mouth for hours (and I mean hours!), whilst also making it kiss proof, rain proof, and food and drink proof! Amazing!

I wear this every single day that I wear lipstick, unless I'm wearing Ruby Woo, that stuff doesn't budge anyway!

So today I thought I would pop into boots and grab another Lipcote, as I'm rapidly reaching the end of mine, and I was shocked to see they've changed the packaging! I've been buying this little wonder for about a year, and in that time the packaging hasn't changed once. It's the same shape and size bottle, but the lid is now a smooth gold, instead of rough red texture. It actually looks a lot more swish now, it's surprising the difference these small changes make! This also has a 'new vanilla fragrance' to replace the usual scent of applying neat vodka to your lips! This still feels (and smells), a little bit like nail warnish when you apply it, but the scent doesn't linger for aslong, and when it's dried, it does have a very nice vanilla scent! Thumbs up from me.

Spanking new packaging!

On my way to the tills, I spotted some very cute retro packaged products on a random, lonesome stand. I am always drawn to cute, kitsch, retro packaging, and these were gorgeous! Coca cola have launched lip products! 

My lovely new lip products

They've brought out three balms, and three glosses, all in delicious coke flavours. I'm not sure if these are limited edition or not, but they certainly are lovely! One sniff, and you are hooked! This is the first lip gloss I have bought in about 6 years, I tend to hate glosses, but It's actually very nice, and not sticky at all.  It also has a nice feeling on the lips, It's not tingly in the way of a plumping gloss, but It definitely has a cooling sensation. The three flavour options are classic coke (a red), cherry coke (a pinky), and vanilla coke (a clear.) I was seriously tempted to buy all three, but seeing as I never wear lipglosses, it seemed excessive! The balms are £6 for 15ml, and the glosses are £7 for 10ml, and can be bought from the Boots website. These would make really cute christmas presents, or stocking fillers :)

Excuse the shoddy pics!

Shown with flash..can be worn sheer, or layered for more colour

Last, but not least, I would like to rave about a product I received free the other day. I was buying the Elizabeth Arden Advanced Eye Fix Primer (amazing primer, best I've ever tried. Not cheap at £19 for 7.5ml, but you need the teeeniest amount so it lasts ages!), and the lovely sales assistant gave me a freebie. 

My new love!

She gave me the 2 in 1 cleanser, which is supposed to be a cleanser and toner. I'm always a bit dubious with 2 in 1 products, as I don't see how it can do both things as well as an individual product with one purpose, so I didn't think I'd use this much. Still, a freebie's a freebie!

One day when I got home late from work, and just wanted to collapse into my bed straight away, I decided I couldn't be bothered to use my Soap and Glory hot cloth cleanser, and found myself reaching for the EA 2 in 1 cleanser. I am so glad I did! Not only is it quick and simple, just rub into wet skin and rinse off, it removes all makeup (except eye), and leaves the skin feeling gorgeous! It lathers up really well, and smells lovely. It's not got the typical 8 hour skin protectant scent, It's alot fresher and cooler, although it still has a slightly 'mature' feel to it, it reminds me of my Gran! :)

I find myself reaching for this more often than my beloved collection of hot cloth cleansers, if I feel like I want more of an exfoliation, I just mix some face scrub with this cleanser and lather it up together. It seriously is a beautiful product! At £19 for 150ml, again It's not cheap, but I'll be buying it when my tester runs out. 

Thankyou for reading, hope everyone is well! :)