NOVEMBER FAVOURITES

It really is that time again ladies! Not a whole lot to chat about this month but firstly I've been very impressed by the Skin Wisdom Youth Protect range of products from Tesco. I've just used up the Brightening Serum literally last night and I am happily wading through the Facial Wipes. Both products smell gorgeous and they really are a pleasure to use. The serum makes my skin so wonderfully soft and smooth and the wipes are very effective at removing mascara and both are so reasonably priced. I'll definitely be repurchasing them.

I told you it wasn't a very interesting month didn't I? Well this next item may or may not interest you but this is my make-up bag, it has all the products I use daily on my face and it comes along with me in my handbag. This may not be unusual for some but to have all my products in one make-up bag that's travel friendly is quite some achievement for me! If you'd like to know what's inside let me know and I'll happily share! I suppose you could say that I've been enjoying a more simplified make-up look this month.

I'm sure this next one is self-explanatory...! She's only 2 days old but she is by far my favourite thing of the month and a early birthday present to myself (I'm 26 years young tomorrow!). Let me know if you know of any nice cases for her, I have my eye on a spotty Kate Spade one but have ordered her a little white leather quilted pouch to keep her scratch free for the time being :)

What have been your favourites this month?

AVEDA HAIRCARE

Aveda is a brand that I've dabbled in for years. I've tried their skincare and love their haircare. My favourite hair tool is my Aveda paddle brush and I'm an avid fan of their colour hair line.

When I had brown hair I used their Clove line but now I'm back blonde I use their Blue Malva and Camomile lines. At the moment I've been using their shampoos only (I've used the corresponding conditioners in the past and adore them too) in the 1 litre sizes, which I believe is now the only size in these that they do, they last a LIFETIME though so worth the £24.00 each.
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Blue Malva adds silvery brightness to grey hair, and neutralises brassiness in chemically-treated hair and all shades. Blended with blue malva that's wild-crafted—sustainably gathered by hand in its natural habitat—to balance hair and scalp, plus coneflower, known for its ability to intensify colour.
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Camomile brightens highlights and illuminates blonde and lighter shades of hair. This gentle formula contains organically grown camomile, a pure and calming natural cleansing ingredient, and organically grown calendula, known for its soothing, nourishing properties.

I like to interchange both to customise the results. Both smell gorgeous, like cherry almond, and lather up like a dream, leaving my hair squeaky clean and shiny.

What's your favourite shampoo?

WHAT I BOUGHT THIS WEEKEND

Eylure Naturalites False Eyelashes - Glamour (116) £5.25 from Boots | Duo Adhesive £10.00 from MAC | Freedom at Topshop Linked Oval Stud earrings £8.50 from Topshop | Pink Poodle Lipglass £12.50 from MAC.

What did you buy this weekend?

SKINCARE JUNKIE

I am such a sucker for skincare. I love anything that promises me perfect skin. On a jaunt to Tesco (no more of these between now and Christmas - it was murder in there!) I was killing time in the beauty section while waiting for the queues to go down at the till (they never did!) I was drawn to their Skin Wisdom Youth Protect range of skincare. Primarily for the pink packaging, but also for the price, they were half price!

I am in love with my current skincare routine but I always like to slot new things into it, and so I picked up the Skin Wisdom Youth Protect Facial Wipes (£1.50) for when my Johnsons ones run out, the Youth Protect Brightening Serum (£3.50) and Youth Protect Eye Cream (£2.50) which I thought I'd use in the morning. The serum will fit into my routine before my day and night creams.

They smell AMAZING and I really really like the serum so far. Such an affordable range too. I'll keep you all posted on how I like them all.

LIZ EARLE CLEANSE & POLISH REVIEW

Liz Earle Cleanse & Polish* has become pretty iconic over the time it's been in production (since 1995 to be precise!) and it hasn't changed. It's suitable for all skin types, which is a very unusual quality for a cleanser to possess. It's used in conjunction with a muslin cloth to remove all traces of makeup, daily grime and to gently exfoliate. One pump over a full face of makeup, including mascara and it will take it all away for you in one sweep of a muslin cloth!

What Liz Earle say:-

We only make one cleanser because this formulation is the ultimate in concentrated yet gentle cleansing power and works on every age and skin type.

Our plant based cleanser has a two-phase action, phase one is the cleansing. Free from mineral oil, it has a rich and creamy texture and swiftly removes all traces of face and eye make up, even stubborn mascara.

Phase two is the polishing. Polish off the cream using the pure muslin cloth to gently dislodge dead skin cells and help reveal clean, soft and radiant skin.

Naturally active ingredients include eucalyptus and cocoa butter for smoother, clearer skin.

Beautiful packaging - feels like you're opening a Christmas present!

Ingredients:-

Aqua (water), Caprylic/capric triglyceride, Theobroma cacao (cocoa) seed butter, Cetearyl alcohol, Cetyl esters, Sorbitan stearate, Polysorbate 60, Glycerin, Cera alba (beeswax), Propylene glycol, Humulus lupulus (hops) extract, Panthenol, Rosmarinus officinalis (rosemary) extract, Anthemis nobilis (chamomile) extract, Eucalyptus globulus (eucalyptus) oil, Limonene, Citric acid, Sodium hydroxide, Phenoxyethanol, Benzoic acid, Ethylhexylglycerin, Dehydroacetic acid, Polyaminopropyl biguanide.

Inside the gorgeous tissue paper is your very own zippy bag of cleansing heaven.

Your zippy bag contents...

These are just some of the awards Cleanse & Polish has won:-

My thoughts:-

I've always liked a one-step cleanser like this (Philosophy Purity for one) it's quick and easy to use. Cleanse & Polish has, on top of this, great ingredients which make my skin so clear, even and soft the thought of using something else doesn't bear thinking about. It smells DIVINE in a "feels like it's benefiting your skin" kind of way. It doesn't sting my sensitive contact-lens-wearing eyes, the pump is convenient and hygienic, the packaging also matches my bathroom colour scheme! When I pat my face dry after using this with a towel my skin doesn't scream for my moisturiser quite as much as it used to, which can only be down to this cleanser as I haven't changed anything else in my routine. All in all an absolute essential for me.

I have the 100ml pump starter kit which retails for £13.75, in which you will receive the wonderous Cleanse & Polish, one muslin cloth, instructions and a gorgeous light green zip bag in which to house your cleansing routine. It's perfect if you're new to Liz Earle as it's got everything you could possibly need to embark on your new cleansing regime. 

However if you check the website you can find Cleanse & Polish in a variety of sizes to try, small sample sizes for those newbies or huge tubes of the stuff for Liz Earle aficionados.

You can buy directly from the Liz Earle website, selected John Lewis stores and also some boutiques around the UK. Liz Earle will post worldwide and you can check the delivery charges here. Or of course if you're lucky enough to pop into one of the standalone stores in London, Leeds or the Isle of Wight you wont have to pay P&P but will be surely tempted by all the other luscious products Liz has to offer!

I will be putting the special Christmas edition Cleanse & Polish on my Christmas list - isn't it pretty! I hope you're reading this Santa! 

* PR sample.

OCTOBER FAVOURITES

I'm a day late...eeek! Let's begin with the makeup products. First up is MAC Coygirl blusher. This was the first MAC blusher I bought, ooh a good few years ago now. It was colour matched to a Stila one I had in a palette which was unnamed *sob* so I was never able to repurchase and every Stila one I chose to replace it wasn't quite right. Anyway I digress, this was a pretty good replacement and you can see from having hit pan that it's a rediscovered favourite. 

Next is L'Oreal Superliner Carbon Black Liner. I began using this again when there was just something missing in my makeup routine. Since the weather has turned and I've got paler I need more makeup to look presentable and lining my top lashline is a definite step in the mornings. Going along with this I've been using MAC Satin Taupe eyeshadow for a more defined everyday look. Some might find it too much for daytime but as I say I look so washed out without a decent amount of eye makeup on these days! Ive been pairing my smokey daytime eyes with YSL lipstick in 148 Tea Rose I bought completely because Lorraine Stanick said she loved it and I too love it.

The last makeup item is to combat those dark circles under my eyes it's MAC Prolongwear concealer in the shade NW20. I switched to a NW shade to disguise the bluey purpley undereye shadows that I suffer from and it works a treat and doesn't budge. 

Moving on to haircare and bodycare I've been finding my usual shampoo hasn't been rinsing away build-up so well so I bought Pantene Clarifying shampoo which I have used before and it's amazing, doesn't dry my hair out but it rids it of the horrid dry shampoo and hairspray build-up that my normal shampoo doesn't. To go alongside this I've been using Dove Nourishing Oil Care Express Treatment Conditioner which I only bought a couple of weeks ago and have used 5 times but already I can tell its going to become a firm favourite. It's cheating a little bit seeing as I haven't had it for that long but I hope you'll forgive me because it's so fabulous!

Finally at the beginning of the month I picked up Asda bubble bath Regenerating & Indulgent because it was 84p. I didn't expect much from it but it has become my go-to bathing favourite. Not only do I love the price but the scent is gorgeous, all I can say is it's autumn in a bottle and it foams up so well by using just 2 capfuls. I've been using it in conjunction with Palmolive Body Wash in the Shea Butter scent also from Asda. They seem to do the best Palmolive scents in Asda, it's not where I usually do my food shop but I do have one very close to where I work so it's handy to pick bits up in my lunch hour. It's the only place I can find the coconut version of the Palmolive body wash which I LOVE and now this new scent. I don't use anything other than Palmolive when I bath or shower. They're rich, creamy, lather up well and smell gorgeous and the scent lasts on your skin. Best thing about it is that they are usually on 3 for £3 in Asda so I tend to stock up.