Skincare of the Week 10 January 2016

 I took a couple of weeks off blogging over Christmas, which was fabulous, but I still kept at the "cleaning my face" thing.  It being a new year, I thought trying out some new products would be a good idea, but I think I tried too much new far too quickly, and my skin fairly quickly let me know it wasn't entirely happy with the idea.

Top left, Monday, I tired the Murad Correcting Moisturiser, which has a slight green tint to help neutralise redness. It's a nice moisturiser, and I'm looking forward to trying it again properly in a couple of weeks time.  On Tuesday/Wednesday I introduced some Kiehls skincare to my routine, beginning with Kiehl's Calendula Herbal Extract Toner, and Kiehl's Ultra Facial Cream. Now, I have to say, I absolutely loved using these products - the moisturiser in particular made my skin feel velvety, rather than oily, and left a semi-matte finish that was a great base for makeup.  However, the effect of trialling three new products in three days (not something I'd normally do, but I got a bit excitable!) made it's mark on my skin a little bit - bumpy bits around the edges of my cheeks and temples - and so I pre-emptively swapped to my SOS skincare kit to head off any breakouts or irritation.  I've written about my SOS Sensitive Skin kit before, and you can read that if you click the link. 

The second half of the week was spent trying to soothe irritation, and (as I took delivery of a massive skincare order from Being Content last week too) being desperate to try MORE new products!  I'm my own worst enemy sometimes, I really am.  Nonetheless, Thursday found me trying a new cleanser from Tata Harper - one designed for sensitive skin, natch - the Tata Harper Refreshing Cleanser.  I haven't come to any firm conclusions about it yet, it's a cream cleanser, and I'm always somewhat ambivalent about cream formulas, but it hasn't cause any irritation, so hoorah for that!

So, what's been on your face this last week?  

The Fine Print: PR Samples and personal purchases, as always.


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Skincare of the Week - 13 December 2015

Not a hugely exciting week skincare-wise, admittedly - I'm still ill and still look like death warmed up (if death was into the fourth week of a cough that makes them puke at regular intervals, that is) - but I did get my Caroline Hirons Skincare box this week, so from Tuesday onwards you can see the Tata Harper Rejuvenating Serum, and the Dr Dennis Gross Retinol Eye Cream have been added to my regular rotation.   I can't judge their results yet - indeed, it would be unfair to do so, seeing how grotty I look generally at the moment, to be honest - but they're a nice addition to my routine and I'm looking forward to seeing how they work generally once I recover.  The box was a good one though, especially as I got back ups of some longtime faves, the May Lindstrom Blue Cocoon Balm, alongside the Zelens PHA+ Bio Peel Resurfacing Pads, in the box too.  But more about those products in particular later this week.

I also added some Hydraluron back into my routine, both in the serum and the moisturising jelly formulation. I do like a bit of hyaluronic acid in my routine, and I like Hydraluron very much - I especially like the moisturising jelly as a great hydrating moisturiser for oily/combination skin that doesn't need an oily cream over the top as well.  They were on offer at Boots recently, £30 for the serum, the jelly and a box of sheet masks for £30, which is a humongous bargain!  I may have bought a couple of them!

I think my dreadful cough is on the wane now, hopefully I'll be back to looking like a human by Christmas ...



The Fine Print: Stuff and things from my cupboard and that.


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Skincare of the Week 15th November 2015

This was a week of two halves, pre-facial (Monday and Tuesday) and post-facial (Weds-Friday).  Monday and Tuesday were pretty normal routines for me, I'd had a bit of an itchy face over the weekend, so broke out some bits and pieces from my "SOS" kit - and more about my sensitive skin routine in detail soon, btw - from Darphin and Clarins to soothe, but it was only a temporary itch once I'd discovered the culprit, which was a night cream I've been testing.  Dropping that for a few days really helped cure the itchy cycle!

I've introduced a new eye product, which is the Murad Renewing Eye Cream, which is a slightly thick cream that promises to diminish wrinkles and deal with dark circles and bags.  After a week of use, I can say it's good, but that I haven't seen any spectacular results so far!  I'll keep you posted. Post-facial, I've introduced some Biologique Recherche products, specifically BR Lait U - a nut-milk based cleanser designed for oil-combination skins, and Sérum Extraits Tissulaires, which is designed to help strengthen and moisturise stressed skin.  I can't recommend a Biologique Recherche facial highly enough at the moment, I had mine at EF Medispa in Kensington, and I loved it.  So thorough, and with excellent - visible - results for several days afterwards.  I was also recommended the cult product Lotion P50W, (which is the sensitive skin version) but sadly they were out of stock on the day. I can tell that I do still need some kind of daily exfoliating product, however, hence the re-appearance of Clarins Gentle Exfoliator on the Friday routine.

In other news, I'm trying to use cooler water to cleanse with - whilst steam is fabulous for skin, I am beginning to wonder if using hot water on my face so much is exacerbating my redness problems.  I'll let you know how this experiment goes!  The idea of cold water on my face on winter mornings doesn't fill me with joy, I have to admit ...



The Fine Print: PR Sample


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Skincare of the Week 8th November 2015

A bit of a mixed bag this week, skincare wise.  Looking at the pictures all in one place kind of makes it clear that I have certain patterns in product usage - Pixi Glow Tonic, for example, I tend to use for two days then swap to Clarins Gentle Exfoliating Toner.  The one product I've used consistently this week has been Medik8 Red Alert Serum, which I'm liking more and more the more often I use it.  I find it gentle and soothing, and my redness, particularly in the mornings is much reduced.  Doesn't make any difference to my redness when I drink booze though ... oops.  I really like the Skinceuticals moisturiser too.  It's quite a lightweight texture, but it is still plenty hydrating on my combination-oily skin, without leaving a greasy residue.  I'll write more in detail about both these products soon, and there's a full review of the gorgeous Votary Cleansing Oil upcoming too.

I've picked up some more of the Pixi Skintreats range this week, as I've been incredibly impressed with what I've tried from the range so far and I was intrigued to try more - you can see the Milky Hydrating Mist and Glowtion Day Dew in Thursday's picture, but I also have the Glow Pads and a couple of other bits as well. And I'm trialling some new things from Dermalogica and Murad over the next two weeks, it's all go on the skincare front, but I'm looking forward to trying them out!  Have a few more Christmas-themed posts coming up this week first though ...

 The Fine Print: PR samples and purchases


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Skincare of the Week: 17.10.2015

 

I've been beauty blogging a long time, well over six years now, and in that time my interests have changed. From basically wanting to catalogue my lipstick collection (where the name came from), to learning to love (and grow) my fingernails, then COLOURS, COLOURS, COLOURS, and finally to where I am now, which is obsessed with skincare.  Mostly I'm too lazy to spend hours every day applying my face - though I do wear a different lipstick every day still - so my skin needs to be tip-top at all times, hence the obsession.

My skin is combination-oily, prone to redness and sensitivity, and it is full of pores.  I suffered horrendously from adult on-set acne in my late twenties too - which I mainly cured through getting my skincare right. I'm in the "mature" skin category these days, but a lot of anti-ageing creams are too heavy for my oiliness, so I'm constantly on a quest to deal with my redness rather than my wrinkles (of which at the moment I have thankfully few, but the ones I do have grow slightly more entrenched every day - I'm learning to love them).  These Skincare of the Week posts are my way of diarising what I'm trialling, what I really love, what works - and if you see it disappear after just one use or two - what doesn't work at all.  So read on to find out what's been on my ugly mush this week.

Skincare of the Week 20.09.15

Or, welcome to another week of what I plaster onto my ugly mug ;)  I'm still trialling Omorovicza Blue Diamond Eye Cream, and Zelens Intense Defence Antioxidant Serum, though I was thwarted a bit in testing this week through circumstances, as we'll see.  This was Monday's face, and I forgot to photograph the moisturiser ... :sigh: I wasn't made for Mondays.

Tuesday arrived, and I thought I'd try my L'Occitane Immortelle Precious Mist in place of my Bioderma Crealine/Serozinc sprays, and I'll be using this  a couple more times before I form a real opinion.  Aside from that, this was a pretty standard routine for me.  Oil cleanse, acid tone, moisture tone, serum, eye cream and moisturise.

On Wednesday, I "shopped my stash",  and brought out some autumn favourites, the Aesop Parsley Seed Facial Cleansing Oil, and  B & Tea Balancing Toner,  I do like to change my skincare around with the seasons, and as I have combination-oily skin with sensitivity issues, this is a good combo for my skin with my usual favourites around them.

Then on Wednesday evening a MUA in Harvey Nichols burnt my face with a cleansing foam, and I had to go back into crisis-mode ...

Wedding Preparation - My Current Skincare Regime

Spending a lot of time worrying about a) my skin, b) breaking my nails, and c) my wedding perfume at the moment.  The wedding is eleven days away now (seriously, where the hell has the year since we got engaged gone?), and I thought I'd share some of my routines with you. Nails and perfume will come later, but for today, I'm focusing on skincare.

All I want on the day is clear, soft, glowing skin, no spots, no irritated reddened patches, and no rashes.  So, alongside some cast-iron tried and trusted favourites that can't be beaten, and that I know give results without irritation, I've taken a few actives out of my routine, and swapped them for gentler formulations.  Above you can see my AM and PM routine, which I'll take you through product by product:

Aromatherapy Associates Soothing Cleansing Balm:  My skin can get a little irritated when there are too many essential oils in  my routine, but this is an absolute delight to use, not too scented, it has excellent slip, and I do indeed find it very soothing.  I use this as my PM cleanser, as a tiny pea-sized dollop from the tube (and how much do I love that it has a tube dispenser?  A LOT, is the answer) allows me to both get rid of even the most heavy-duty makeup, and give myself a good facial massage at the same time.  My skin is left calm and glowing after I use this, with no redness.  Result!

Elemental Herbology Delicate Cleanse: I use this gently rose-scented cleansing milk in the mornings, alongside one of my beloved Washi Cloths. It's gentle, and not too bracing, which is just what you want in the mornings.  Unlike many cream-cleansers,  I don't find this drying in the least, and when I want a less-oily cleanse these days, this is the cleanser I increasingly reach for.

Clarins Gentle Exfoliator: I am of the age where I do need some actives in my routine, but at the moment, I am a bit scared of over-stimulating my skin, which can lead to increased redness, and scaly patches when I've overdone something in my routine.  The Clarins Gentle Exfoliator contains glycolic acid, an ingredient I love, but find extremely easy to overdose on, particularly when using it in products containing a higher amount of the acid.  Lactic, and malic acids actually suit my skin better, but this watery fluid has "buffered" the glycolic with other ingredients such as glycerin, which means you still get a light exfoliation effect, but without any drying. I find it suits my crazy-sensitive skin very well, and is non-irritating. I use this every morning, and then immediately follow it with a spray of

Balance Me Skin Bright Hydrating Face Mist: Chock-full of hyaluronic acid, this gently-scented spray soothes away any tingles left behind by the exfoliating toner, and gives my skin an immediate hydration boost.  It's nice to use during the day too, and makes an excellent setting spray for makeup, owing to the, quite frankly, excellent spray nozzle which sprays s l o w l y over a wide area, meaning it's not a rude awakening to spray yourself in the face!  I use this both AM and PM.

Darphin Camomile Oil: I'm very rarely without a bottle of this. For my reddened and easily sensitised skin, it is a super-healing miracle in a bottle.  I use it as a serum both night and day, no matter what other products I'm wearing, and I find it healing, soothing, and also moisturising.  This is a great choice of oil for anyone with troubled skin, and I recommend it to people left, right and centre. This is my third bottle, and I find a bottle lasts for at least a year (I tend to only use it once a day in summer), so, whilst initially spendy, on a cost per wear basis, it's cheap as chips.  I have a backup too, from Decleor, as I tend to flip-flop between the two brands for my essential oil requirements.

Kate Somerville Goat Milk Cream: This turns up  in every skincare routine I do.  Why? It works.  This is my fourth jar, and I am madder than a wet hen that Kate Somerville has been withdrawn from the UK.  Once this jar goes though, I've sworn to try something else, any suggestions?  I have my eye on the "Gentle" range from Clarins at the moment, but I'm open to ideas!

And because wedding preparation isn't limited to merely the bride, here's some products I've forced suggested MrLippie starts to use too:

 
Here we have Facial Radiance Pads from First Aid Beauty, which are great acidic pads (mixture of gycolic and lactic, with lemon and licorice too) perfect for his slightly troubled yet less sensitive skin than mine, which is helping to both even out his skintone and deal with his (occasional) breakouts gently, and Melvita Argan Oil, as his moisturiser after peeling, which again is perfect for his less sensitive skin, and also comes in a nice big bottle which favours his rather heavy-handed application style! 

Hopefully we'll both be glowing on the big day!
        
The Fine Print: Mixture of purchases and samples.

This post:Wedding Preparation - My Current Skincare Regime originated at: Get Lippie on 6th February 2013 at 6am GMT.  All rights reserved. If you are not reading this post at Get Lippie, then this content has been stolen by a scraper

Current Skincare - Night & Day

I've been ill recently, necessitating a more than a couple of hospital trips, and it means I need a small procedure later on in the year. It's nothing too serious, but the feeling of being more rundown than usual has been showing in my skin, and as a result I've had to break out some of the big guns in my skincare arsenal.  Far from being a pain, I've found myself really enjoying taking care of my skin recently, mainly thanks to these somewhat ... er, luxurious* products.  I have two routines, evening and morning, and I'll take you through them both.

Evening:

  
In the evening, I like to give myself a really thorough cleanse, using a lot of massage techniques.  Le Belle Oil Cleanser (£28) is a fairly thick oil-based cleanser which doesn't really emulsify, so is perfect for a really thorough cleanse when you've got a full-face of makeup on.  And even if you don't, it's still great for a really deep cleanse. I rinse using one of my gazillion washi cloths and some hot water, then I give my face a good going over with a Zelens PHA Bio-Peel Resurfacing Face Pad (£65) These are a recent discovery for me, and I LOVE them.

Based on a combination of AHAs and BHAs, alongside PHAs, and with a combination of acids (including salicylic, lactic, citric and polyhydroxy)  these are a gentler alternative to my beloved Alpha-H Liquid Gold.  They help to resurface, and rehydrate your skin overnight.  When my skin is feeling sensitive, it's easier to use these then the Alpha H, and I can really tell the difference.  I follow with a spritz of toner (see morning), then add two drops of Sjal Saphir Concentrate Oil (£125) An anti-ageing oil suffused with sapphire, this stuff is amazing, plumping and firming, it's a pleasure to use. I use it as a serum rather than a moisturiser, as it's rather light, so I finish with a tiny dab of Zelens Z Recovery Intensive Repair Balm (£140).  Again, on the pricey side, this is the one product on this list that I'd go without shoes to re-purchase.  A thick, slightly gummy "balm", it leaves the skin plump and hydrated, plus it soothes and repairs any dry patches or irritated skin.  It's light and non-greasy, and after applying, I always look forward to seeing how great my skin looks the morning after, if I could marry a product, this would be The One.

Morning:

 I do another oil cleanse, this time with Nude Cleansing Facial Oil (£28) it is lighter than the Le Belle, and emulsifies easily in water.  This is my default cleanser - I may dabble with others, but Nude is the one I return to again and again and again, even in this, my fourth (eep!) year as a beauty blogger. 

After rinsing with a washi, I spritz again with toner, this time with Sjal Mineral Kalla Energy Tonic (£50), which is hydrating and calming, and sets your skin up for serums and moisturiser nicely. For daytime use, I like Darphin Camomile Aromatic Care (£41), as I find it it both soothing, and protective for my "prone to redness and sensitivity" skin.  Finally, I apply a layer of Kate Somerville Goat Milk Cream ($55), which contains both goat milk (good for a lactic acid dose), and aloe vera for soothing, plus avocado and jojoba oils for hydration.  Sadly, SpaceNK have dropped the Kate Somerville line, so I beg everyone I know who has a trip to the US planned to pick some up for me, and this is my fourth jar.

I realise that this is an expensive routine in anyone's book, but what price skin?


*  Expensive.  Yes, I KNOW.

The Fine Print: I sold my soul to PRs, various relatives, and several online retailers for some of these products, which are a combination of samples, gifts and (in a surprisingly large proportion) purchases.  You don't even want to know what the MiL wanted in return for the Goat Milk Cream ...

Oh, all links in this post are for informational purposes only, and are NOT affiliate links.
 
This post: Current Skincare - Night & Day originated at: Get Lippie All rights reserved. If you are not reading this post at Get Lippie, then this content has been stolen by a scraper

Current Skincare Routine

Well, it's two routines really, one for morning and one for evening!  Winter, even a mild winter such as the one we've just had can be hard on my temperamental combination oil-dehydrated skin, so the main thing I add to my routines (AM and PM) is to add an oil.

So, in the evenings, I'll do a deep cleanse with Nude Cleansing Oil, lots of massage, and removal with a muslin cloth and hot water, then I'll tone with Darphin Intral Toner, two - maybe three, depending - drops of Neals Yard Frankincense Facial Oil, then I'll follow this with Neals Yard Frankincense Hydrating Cream.  I'll be honest, I mainly use the Frankincense products for the wonderful heady and intense fragrance, but I've found that they do wonderful things for your skin too.  These are all old favourites and they're the products I come back to every winter without fail.

In the morning my routine is the same, but, different:

  
Because I do a thorough cleanse in the evenings with my nude oil, I just need a tiny wipe over with a touch of Bioderma Crealine in the morning, followed, again, by Darphin Intral Toner (both of which I'm going to have to replace soon, VERY soon), then an oil, and in the mornings I'm using Clarins Santal Facial Oil, which is one of the most beautifully scented facial products on the planet.  Redolent of sandalwood and cardamom, it's a perfect pick me up in the morning, and does a great job of both rehydrating and protecting your skin during the day. Then I'll use a good old dollop of Kate Somerville Goat Milk cream, which I've been using all winter and still love.

My skin survived the winter surprisingly well - in spite of the lack of actives in my skin care - how did you do? 

The Fine Print - mixture of purchases and PR samples,  many of these, however are repurchases.
 
This post originated at: http://getlippie.com All rights reserved.

Darphin Intral Skincare - Serum and Redness Relief Cream

Having a reddened face is one of the banes of my existence at the moment, and dealing with my flushed skin has been one of my top priorities this year. I've found that a lot of the skincare I've been using that is full of actives has been exacerbating the situation somewhat, and so have had to dial back on using some much loved old favourites.

When I last wrote about my skincare routine, I'd cut out actives altogether, and was using very basic, but effective products.  Now, having fallen in love with the Darphin Intral toner (which I'm still using), I decided to add in a couple more products from the range, both specifically formulated to deal with reddened and sensitive skin.

Please welcome Intral Serum and Intral redness relief recovery cream:

Both contain Darphin's "Calm Complex" which is a proprietory blend of chamomile, hawthorn and peony extracts. I used the serum on my red patches after eyebrow threading on Friday, and was astounded at how cooling it was, and how very quickly it took the inflammation down.

It's a very thin, watery serum, which doesn't really smell of much, but a little of this goes a very long way, one pump is more than enough for my whole face and onto my neck.

The redness relief recovery cream has a slight green tinge - very, very, slight - which helps diffuse the appearance of redness, whilst cooling and calming at the same time.  It's a very light moisturiser designed for normal to combination skin, but there are two other varieties of this cream, which will help if your skin is drier than mine.

I don't normally do swatches of skin care, they're dull - and are they helpful?  I'm not sure they are, to be honest.  But, I thought it would be useful to see that this isn't a bright green cream!

So far, I've found these products cooling, calming and soothing, it's been great.  But I'm not sure I've seen a massive reduction in my redness.  Maybe I should give it another couple of weeks.

So far, the only sure-fire "cure" I've seen for red skin is a tan.  Next week, I'll show you my favourite facial tanner.  I say favourite, it's the only one I've ever used, I'm terrified of accidentally turning orange instead of red ...

How do you deal with a red face?


The Fine Print: I bought these.  The Garden Pharmacy in Covent Garden saw me coming and mugged me.

This post originated at: http://getlippie.com All rights reserved.

My Current Skincare Routine - Reactive Skin

In almost two years of beauty blogging (seriously, how the hell did that happen?) I've been incredibly blessed in that my sometimes sensitive skin hasn't broken out in boils, blotches and mysterious rashes.  Until recently, that is.  Something I've been using near my eyes has caused a hot, red, itchy rash, and, to put it mildly, I'm not happy!


I've narrowed down the possible offenders to three potentials, one an eyecream, one a moisturiser, and one  ... er ... something else.  I forget which now.  Most likely a cleanser.  Yes, I tried a new cleanser recently.  Must have been that. Oh, and there's a fourth thing it might have been, but I really, really can't remember what that was.  Anyway. 

So, in order to try and get my skin back into some semblance of normality, I've pared my skincare routine right back, and I'm using just three products until my skin calms down enough for me to start re-introducing items in order for me to weed out the irritant.

These products are: Nude Cleansing Facial Oil, Darphin Intral Toner and Avene Extremely Rich Compensating Cream.  I've completely removed any skincare with more "active" ingredients from my routine to stop my skin flaring up further and that means "bye-bye" to my beloved Alpha H for a couple of weeks!  Here's how I've been getting on with my new routine.

Nude Cleansing Facial Oil


An old standby, and very much an old favourite, this is gentle, effective and luxurious to use.  I never used to really like the smell, but I've grown used to it over the years (this is one of the first things I ever bought to blog about, and I've never been without a bottle since), and now I love it.  Thick, rich, and feels intensely nourishing, which, when your skin is as red and reactive as mine is at the moment, is just what the doctor ordered.  Mine cost £24 from Space NK, which reminds me, I'm running low - very low - right now, and it might be time to re-invest in a bottle.  Did I mention it's organic?  It's organic.  And it's very nice indeed.  If you're not sure you like oil cleansers, this is a good one to start off with, it'll kind of spoil you for the rest.

Darphin Intral Toner


I'm not much of a one for toners.  Some people think I'm wrong, but hey, it's MY skin, and I like what I like, thank you very much.  And, it turns out I like this particular toner very much indeed.  Formulated specifically for sensitive skins, this alcohol-free (the only time you'll ever see me approve of this phrase is when it comes to my skincare, btw) delicately flower-scented pink liquid is something I've been using every day recently to soothe and cool my inflamed temples.  It is moisturising, and calming, and I think I might just keep it in daily rotation once the current skin-crisis is over.  I'm trying to think of toners as the beginning of my moisturising routine, and not as the end of my cleansing one, I wonder if that will help me keep them in my routine?


Anyway, this is a nice toner, and I like using it.  So there.  I'm thinking of decanting a little of it, and keeping it by me at all times over the summer for a more moisturising spriz than usual. My bottle cost £27, again, from Space NK.

Finally, I've been using Avene Extremely Rich Compensating Cream, which, on first look I thought was just going to be far too heavy for my skin.  I was assured otherwise by a certain Mrs Hirons who assured me, when she handed the pot over, that, as well as being irritated, I - sorry, my skin - was also dehydrated.  Turns out she was right.  I hate that.  Anyway, this is a fairly heavyweight little pot of soothing, calming and rehydrating goodness.  Yes, it is a little heavier than my normal moisturiser of choice, but it has worked wonders on my perpetually re-occuring patch of dry skin on my forehead, and for that alone, I have to love it.  It does, also, I have to say, seem to be soothing my irritated (and irritating) skin.  I can't use this one all over my face, but applied just to my dryer areas: forehead, temples and cheeks, mainly, I can definitely see that this is about the most hydrating thing I've ever applied to my face, and that has to be a good thing.

You can buy this for £16.50 from Boots, but my pot (the design of which I detest, by the way), came from Caroline's Magic Beauty Cupboard, which I'm hoping one day to get her to blog about ...


So, my skin is now not at all hot, flaky or burning any more, which is wonderful. And it's less red, which is great. I'm just waiting for the bumps to subside now, and all will be well.  Then I can start using more sexy products again ... that said, I've been so impressed by the Darphin and Avene products I've tried as a result of the flare-up that I'm sure I'll be investigating more of their ranges, so for a beauty addict like myself, there has been a bright side!


The Fine Print: I bought half of this, and the moisturiser was a present.  Kind of.  More a bribe to stop me whining, I suspect, but hey ho, it worked, anyway.

This post originated at: http://getlippie.com All rights reserved.