Face of the Week - Ellis Faas

This was a very simple, and exceedingly quick look I created in about three minutes flat this morning.  After applying foundation (Rimmel Stay Matte in 200 Soft Beige), I used E105 on the eyes, darker on the mobile lid, and sheered out with the fingers towards the brow-bone. Eyes were finished with Clarins Wonder Perfect.  Then I used S302 on the cheekbones - I love the subtle flush of sheerly shimmering colour you get with this! - and finished with L307 on the lips, which is a lovely, and surprisingly wearable, coral shade.

I won't lie, there is a learning curve to using the Ellis Faas products, the applicators can be temperamental until you get used to them (not helped by the fact that I think the nozzles on my blush are all blocked bar one) but they're worth it as the eye and cheek products barely budge during the day.  The hard part is actually not applying too much!  This look was a lot brighter and more glow-y in the flesh.  I loved it, as it was natural and not too much for a day in the office.

Do you have any Ellis Faas?  Is it a brand you'll be checking out when it arrives in Liberty next month?

Reader Request - Dry Skin Tips

 I get a couple of requests from readers now and again (Whoo! People actually read this!)  and I thought I would start answering the questions here if they're beauty-related enough.

I think everybody is suffering from dry skin to a greater or lesser degree at the moment, thanks to the dreadful weather, here's how I deal with mine.

Firstly:

Exfoliate! 

I've found, over the years, that the key to dealing with dry and flaky patches is to ensure you have an exfoliation routine.  There's no need to go overboard, but when you're cleaning your face in the morning, you'll find the addition of a muslin cloth, and some hot water (as detailed here) to your normal cleanser and using that to remove it will help you get rid of your flaky patches, and keep on top of them on a daily basis.  I get my muslin cloths from Mothercare and find that a dozen cut into quarters is more or less a year's supply!  Not bad for about £6.

then

Moisturise!

Please, try not to leave the house without moisurising the skin that's exposed to the elements, hands, lips, face and neck.  You can use a heavy moisturiser if you've found one that suits, or you can supplement your normal one with either a facial oil or serum underneath.  Currently I'm using Neal's Yard Frankincense cream, with Elemental Herbology cell food underneath, which I find have helped my skin not to dry out so much at all this winter, a result I'm happy with!  Also, it's not caused zits, which can happen if your moisturiser is too oily for your skin.


Don't Overcleanse!

Now, I know I said exfoliation was the key to getting rid of dry patches, but that doesn't mean that you should be using harsh cleansers as well!  Check the ingredients list of your cleanser and if it contains "foaming agents" such as sodium laureth (or lauryl) sulfate, then it could well be the product that you're using that's making your skin feel dry.  I find using a cleansing oil helps me avoid most foaming nasties, and also means I can avoid preservatives too.  I'm using Nude Cleansing oil at the moment, which, after a period of adjustment I now really love!

Use a balm!

And not just on your lips.  I find the more natural balms are great for using as night-creams, (Badger Balm in particular is great for this, and if Sisley weren't so expensive, I'd be splashing that around my face with a lot more abandon too), after cleansing.  During the day I also use them around my nose, on my lips, around my cuticles, anywhere where the skin is dry and/or exposed to the elements, particularly if it's cold and windy.

That's basically it - to be honest, my routine doesn't vary that much year round, I might swap to a lighter moisturiser (Organic Surge is pretty good) and cleansing oil (I swap to Origins minty and lovely Liquid Crystal, now sadly discontinued, but I have a stash that I'm eking out), in warmer times but it's essentially the same winter or summer - and this is just what I've found that works for me. If you have any other tips that might help, I'd love to hear them.

YouTubers for Haiti

I've had a few problems this week (ill-health, bad planning and terrible weather related) so there's no makeover. Instead, I'd like you all to go to this link here and give a little cash to DEC in order to help out the people in Haiti who have real problems at the moment.  If you'd prefer to help out Doctors Without Borders, you can click here  I'll be making my donation later today, it'd be wonderful if some of you gave too, if you haven't already.

Beauty blogging isn't at all important, but it's wonderful to see some of us doing good things.

Thank you.

Here is the nude ...

One thing I don't actually find as universally appealing as we're told is the "nude lip" look that's so popular these days.  I've noticed in my trawls around a lot of magazines, books and blogs that a lot of women appear to be scared of colour on their lips, and I'm wondering why that is?  Get your lip colour right, I always think and you don't actually need other makeup!

Don't get me wrong, when the concealer-lip look is done well, as above, I think it's superbly flattering, but get the colour slightly wrong and you can look like a zombie.  Or worse:

It's one of those looks that I, personally, think is easier to get wrong than it is to get right.  What do you think?

Nails - my new obsession!

If you follow me on Twitter I think you'll have noticed that my latest obsession is my nails!  And, I'm also obsessed with nail varnish at the moment too ... but not just any polish, I'm mainly obsessed with holographic ones ...

This is the collection I have of them so far.  I blame Mizzworthy, if she hadn't tied me down and forced me to buy  introduced me to the OPI Designer Series Celebration polish (2nd from the left there) then I wouldn't have this lemming for holographic polishes, because I wouldn't have known they existed!

My nails are currently painted with OPI Extravagance (3rd from the right) which is a gorgeous purple with red, yellow, orange and green holographic glitter:

 

Love the depth of colour in this polish, and also love that it's quite subtle from a distance:

I've tried China Glaze and OPI holo's so far, but I'm REALLY looking forward to Nubar releasing their holo-polishes at the end of January ... they'll be available from Beauty Shed, and I'll be picking up at least a couple ...I found the swatches here, and I can't wait!

Organic Wednesday - Voya

Q: Why is the beach wet?

A: Because the sea weed!

Look, it's the first Organic Wednesday since Christmas, that's my only excuse for the terrible joke, I think I accidentally memorised my nephew's 101 Terrible Jokes book over the break! Luckily, this week's products aren't terrible, and I just hope Voya - a family run Irish company who specialise in luxurious seaweed based products - will forgive me ...

Have three products to talk to you about, conditioner, shower gel and a body lotion, and I have a guest blogger again, but first, a little bit about the company:

About Voya

Based in Strandhill, Ireland, the company runs one of the few remaining seaweed spas in Ireland, and they have a great love of organics, they've spend a lot of time over the last ten years or so developing their product range, for example, it took them six years to figure out the process of drying seaweed in a manner that merely puts it into "stasis" rather than killing it off entirely, as they say:

"Seaweed (an algae) dries when the tide goes out, and to prevent it from dying and keep its cell structures intact, it has developed a natural defence against this: slowly reducing its water content and entering a period of stasis or dormancy. Because of our ability to replicate this, we don’t have to treat our seaweed with harmful preservatives, and so the full recuperative power of wild seaweed is brought to you in each product."

Their products are entirely organic, and the company's philosophy is this:

"Inspired by the breathtaking natural beauty around us and the long-standing traditions of the area, VOYA has adopted organic and sustainable ways of creating our products. We use only sustainable harvesting practices to ensure that we don’t damage the delicate coastal environment that provides us with our certified organic seaweed. We then combine this with the best organic ingredients from around the world to bring you a unique seaweed bath experience and a range of products that not only heal the body but leave the skin silky smooth."


The Products

Forget Me Knot hair conditioner 

Because of my recent keratin treatment, hair products aren't something I'm experimenting too much with at the moment, so I invited another blogger (and my lovely housemate)  McTofu to try this one out for me.

Voya say:

"Forget Me Knot uses an express delivery formula that includes our organic seaweed and both vitamin B5 and vitamin E to add moisture, shine and protect hair from environmental damage. An effective conditioner with essential oils and natural active ingredients to help repair, protect, de-tangle and replenish the hair. As our organic formulations don't use harsh chemicals, you can use this product daily."

McTofu says:

"One advantage of living with a beauty blogger is that quite often some lovely products come my way. One such product is Voya ‘Forget Me Knot’ organic conditioner. Made from hand harvested seaweed, I was expecting it to smell of the sea, but no, it had a pleasant spicy, woody smell. Now, I’m a gal that is used to sweet smelling hair products, so I was not overly impressed with the scent when I squeezed a 50p sized blob onto my hand.

It spread through my hair evenly enough and I left it on for my usual time of about 3mins. It rinsed through easily and when dry, my hair seemed to comb through well without too much trouble from tangles. Once dry, I didn't notice that my hair was any glossier or smoother as it promised on the pack, however the scent really grew on me throughout the day. Voya Forget Me Knot is a nice product but it is slightly out of my price range for an every day conditioner, I liked it but don’t think it is a product that I would buy for myself."

 Get Lippie says:

The instructions for this product say to leave the conditioner in place for 15 minutes, another housemate has tried this product too, and really liked it, and she also commented on the unusual and pleasant smell.  Both testers have coloured and porous hair, the conditioner (which I'd actually consider more of a mask than a daily use product, owing to the long time it's recommended to leave it in place) is very thick, rich and seems to be really suitable for dry, coloured and/or processed hair.

Now onto (reviewed together underneath images):

Squeaky Clean body wash

 Voya says: 

"...Infused with the natural purifying properties of wild organic seaweed, sourced from Ireland’s untamed Atlantic coastline. Squeaky Clean captures the energy of this coastal environment in an invigorating body wash that will stimulate both your skin and senses. Our mild but effective organic foaming body wash contains essential oils and naturally-derived cleansing and conditioning agents to help soften the skin and leave it feeling clean, fresh and revived. The active seaweed extracts help to relieve muscle stress and fatigue. Use while showering for a real organic indulgence that will leave your skin refreshed and gently cleansed..."

And:

Softly Does It body lotion

Voya says:

"When it comes to taking care of your skin, our silky blend of wild seaweed extracts and organic essential oils provides a completely natural, deep moisturising experience that can help prevent signs of ageing and cellulite as well as improve skin tone and elasticity. Blended with basil and lime, patchouli, clove, mandarin and lemon organic essential oils, Softly Does It is best when massaged into your skin after showering or bathing, and offers a real organic indulgence that will keep your skin moisturised and feeling luxuriously smooth."

Get Lippie says:

I tried these, and I really liked them.  The shower gel is a clear gel-product, it doesn't lather overmuch (due no doubt to the lack of SLS and other nasties) but leaves you feeling fresh and clean and delicately scented with the unusual, but very lovely, mixture of sweet basil and clove that the entire range has.  It doesn't appear to leave my skin dry, and I'm not flaky after using it.

The body lotion is a medium-weight cream that I found took a fair bit of rubbing to absorb, but it's not a chore to use.  The scent does last, but not in an overpowering kind of way, so I don't think you'd have too much trouble with clashing smells if you use this. The softening effect is lovely, and appears to last for a while.  They're definitely products I'll continue to use!

Voya products are available from http://www.voya.ie/default.aspx and start at around nine euro.  The range includes skincare, bodycare and haircare products as well as candles and teas ... Seaweed teas sound kind of interesting, don't you think?

The small print: The products were provided free for review purposes.  All reviews remain impartial regardless of the source.

Not, quite, beauty products ...

... but still beautiful.

I love candles, I was lucky enough to be made a gift recently of some from Jonathan Ward ones recently.  I have them in Nightingale's Jasmine, which is a delicious scent that makes the entire bedroom smell wonderful - whether you've lit them or not! They're paraffin-free, and made from an organic wax base.  There is a special offer on several of the candles at the moment where you can get two for the price of one!  If you like candles, you'll love these.

Another range of home-scents that I like is from Kenneth Turner who also makes body products.  I, in particular adore the scent of Blue Tangerine, which has to be one of the sexiest scents I've ever noticed in a candle.

Or a shower gel. Or body lotion.  Or air freshener.  Or hand cream ... I buy this stuff by the bucket load, the range isn't organic, and it doesn't promise anything amazing will happen if you use the products, but, the scent!  Oh, how I love it.  I have a tube of the handcream in my office, and I adore it. If the reed diffuser was in stock on the website, I'd have them all over the house! Even though reed diffusers strike me as the middle class alternative to Airwick these days ...  The range has an orangey-minty smell, but so much more that paltry description implies, deep, sexy and clean.

Finally, I had a chance to pop over to ARK Skincare on Kensington Church Street recently, and have a sniff of their "Loving" range of spa products, unlike many spa scents, this one is warm and spicy, and wonderfully cosy, it strikes me that it's a perfect scent for these wintry days.  This scent is available in everything from reed diffusers to a very luxurious-looking bath oil that I'm dying to try:

I'll be popping back to ARK soon, they have an offer on at their Kensington Church Street  store at the moment, where if you book a facial you get one free, the staff are super-friendly so I'm looking forward to trying their services out!  In the meantime, if anyone wants to get me anything for Valentines day (and before you all groan, there are Creme Eggs in the shops at the moment, and that's not till April!) I'll be happy with anything from this page here  hint, hint.

How do you keep your home smelling sweet?