Yeah, it's been a while ... Turns out I like not blogging almost as much as I do actual blogging, who knew?! Anyway, for today at least, I'm back slaving away at a keyboard. I would have been back last week, but stuff happened, and I'm still wearing the bandage on the middle finger of my left hand, let's put it that way.
Anyhoo, skincare. This week was mainly about trialling the new Burts Bees Cleansing Oil (literally just released in the UK, and costs £16.99 a bottle from their website). I like it a lot, but I'm a bit upset it's a fragranced oil, I can't see any reason why it needs to be. It's a light, smooth oil that spreads over the skin nicely, and removes makeup thoroughly but gently. The label indicates its for dryer skins than mine, but my sensitive combination-oily skin tolerates it nicely. It doesn't quite emulsify when you come to rinse, just becomes a bit looser, and it easily wipes off with a warm flannel. I like it.
Everything else I've been using this week is an old (or an almost-old) favourite, I'm still mostly in love with Tata Harper skincare, and I'm nearing the end of this bottle of the Tata Harper Rejuvenating Serum, and I totally intend to finish it off. I recently finished my much-beloved bottle of Zelens Intense Defence Serum, which has left a gaping hole in my routine, to be honest, I'm still casting about to find the perfect replacement, the Tata is good, and does what it is supposed to, but I just don't love it as much as the Zelens for some reason. It does work really well with the Rebuilding moisturiser though.
How has your week in skincare been?
The Fine Print: PR samples and purchases
This post: Skincare of the Week 8th July 2016 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
I've been on a blog-hiatus. It wasn't intended, but it just sort of happened, and, I have to admit, I've rather enjoyed it. I'm just now entering my eighth year of blogging (you read that right), so that's seven years of Sunday afternoons that I've spent at my computer,which equates to nearly a solid YEAR of taking pictures, editing pictures (always the worst part, tbh), actually doing the writing and doesn't even slightly take into account the hours I spend getting to events, reading press releases, testing products and the thinking (oh my god, the THINKING) about blog posts even before I sit down to write them!
So, because I've been enjoying NOT blogging for a couple of months, its crossed my mind that maybe I should retire. Year end was super-busy at work this year, and we just moved house, and I've been tired - so very, very tired - and the thought of adding blogging back into that particular mix has just been ... depressing. Another thing to worry about, and another obligation. That said, I've been loving Instagram very much lately, pop on over!
Retiring from blogging at Get Lippie completely has been a tempting option under the circumstances, like the thought of going on a lovely, looooooooong, holiday. Blogging, particularly beauty blogging, is both a bit of a rat-race and a popularity contest these days, and I'm never going to be Zoella or Pixiwoos. Hell, I'm barely even Get Lippie these days! Luckily, I don't rely on my blog to make my living - there's no sponsorship or endorsement deals here - but, now I'm out of work-madness time, and we've practically got the new flat sorted, I'm going to give a couple of Sundays* back up to the blogging muse, and see what occurs.
So, yeah, skincare is what we're meant to be talking about, apparently, not my existential crisis, so here's some skincare chat:
I'm attempting to use up my much-beloved Zelens Intense Defence Serum, because it's nearly at the end, and that will make it the only serum I've used up in several years! I love this stuff, on my picky, overly sensitive, prone-to-redness skin, this acts like a bandage, protecting it from all kinds of pollutants and cushioning it from the effects of overly harsh weather, or unsuitable skincare products. I've been boosting it with Zelens Power D Drops in recent weeks, and I'll be giving a full review of those soon.
Clinique sent me a bumper pack of their Moisture Surge products the other week, and, whilst I've had trouble with gel-formula moisturisers in the past (they tend to be heavy on the silicones and irritate my skin by not letting it breathe too well), I'm really enjoying using Clinique Moisture Surge Extended Thirst Relief. The stress of the last couple of months, combined with spending a lot of hours really staring at a computer - seriously, when you're getting 40 incomprehensible emails a day from a government department, you'd be screwing your face up too - have left me craving hydration, and I find this feels super-hydrating at first application and leaves my skin feeling velvety and wonderful, without the little angry bumps I can get from too many silicones.
Something else new that I'm trying right now is the Silke London silk hair wrap. I've been toying with wrapping my hair for a while now, having found that sleeping on a silk pillow case makes a huge difference to my hair, but couldn't find a 100% silk wrap that I liked. Then Silke London launched, and I had to have one, so treated myself to an Isla, which is the green and blue version. It's essentially a silk turban, and looks impossibly glamorous on the right person. I am not the right person, and look like Hilda Ogden after a minor lottery win in mine, so there will be no selfies wearing it, but I'll keep you posted ...
How's your week been? I've not retired. Yet.
*But not next Sunday. Ironically, I'm going on holiday ... ;)
The Fine Print: PR samples and purchases
This post: Skincare of the Week 12 June 2016 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
Last week was a really stressful one, with deadlines and auditors galore, I'm still recovering! Hopefully now both the house move and the audit are over, I'll have a little more time free to do some blogging and cataloguing my collection of ... stuff. I've had a few new releases recently too, and I'll get around to photographing them soon. Anyhoo, skincare-wise, I've been a bit all over the place, and I'm just now getting back into a routine after a recent bout of sensitivity, which caused me to have to omit a few things. I'm slowly adding some bits back, and so Zelens Skincare Power D Drops are re-appearing in my routines.
Notable newness I've added this week includes Dermalogica Pre Cleanse, a thin and light lavender-scented oil which is perfect for a morning cleanse when you don't need any makeup removal. It's rather scented though, but very lovely. I've also invested in a bottle of Santa Maria Novelli Rose Water to help soothe my stressed skin. I love to splash this on all over first thing in the morning and it smells delicious.
What's the latest on your face?
The Fine Print: PR samples and purchases
This post: Skincare of the Week 15th May 2016 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
I didn't really have a theme for skincare this week, except "get back on track", because, after a week away and a weekend in Paris my normal routines have gone a little to pot, I have to admit.
On Monday I trialled used May Lindstrom's Honey Mud in the shower, as a protective mask against the shower water (I do find that water irritates my skin hugely), and it worked well, I think. This might be the best way (for me, at least) to use it, because I find it very confusing as a "proper" cleanser. It smells of chocolate though, and, if you do happen to get any in your mouth, it's possibly the nicest tasting cleanser on the planet.
I have also added in the new Vichy Liftactiv Serum 10 Supreme, which I find myself really liking, so you can expect a fuller review of this coming up - I'm a big fan of the Liftactiv range generally tbh, and, as it's one of the <ahem> more affordable ranges I like, it's high praise! I'm also trialling the New Omorovicza Omoressence, which is another very likeable product, and again, more about that soon.
The rest of the week was me just re-acquainting myself with my favourites old and new, and re-introducing Alpha H Liquid Laser Cleansing Oil, which I had pipped into my stash basket for some reason. It's well and truly out and with the everyday essentials now though!
What's been on your face this week? I'm so happy to be back into a routine - even though I'm moving house soon, and god knows what's going to happen then ...
The Fine Print: PR samples and purchases
This post: Skincare of the Week 6th March 2016 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
A mixed bag skincare-wise this week, I started the week with a Zelens-heavy routine (have I mentioned how much I love Zelens? It's true, I do), and, I still love a full routine from them - in particular the Z Recovery Intensive Repair Balm, which is a lifesaver. A non-greasy balm that sinks in, heals and nourishes stressed skin, I've used it after operations, during illness, after allergic reactions, on burnt skin, and occasionally - just once in a while, mind - I use it as a particularly hydrating moisturiser too. I'm near the end of this jar, and need to stock up, now I come to think of it.
The rest of the week has seen Tata Harper products settling in to become regular choices in my usual routine (instead of me being merely obsessed with them), and I've rotated some ByTerry choices from the Cellularose range into my routine too. The Cellularose range smells absolutely divine, but the oil only emulsifies partially, which is a bit odd, but I still like using it, regardless.
I'm trialling a new foundation at the moment, so I've been using a variety of moisturisers and oils in order to give it a range of bases to work on. I'm nice like that. Moisturisers this week have included Kate Somerville Goat Cream (an eternal favourite), Laura Mercier Flawless Skin (a new addition after it turned up at Christmas) Indeed Labs Hydraluron Moisturising Jelly (love this stuff for hydrating without greasiness) Tata Harper Rebuilding Moisturiser (which I love an unreasonable amount) and, of course, the aforementioned Z Recovery, which is aces.
This week was all about the lipstick though, and more about that later. What's been on your face?
The Fine Print: PR samples and purchases
This post: Skincare of the Week 7th February 2016 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
A short and sweet Skincare of the Week this week because I was ill, and hanging around a cold bathroom taking pictures of my skincare (like you do) took a deserving backseat to me being wrapped up in the duvet, and slathering myself in Pommade Divine, frankly. Nothing better for a sore nose than Pommade Divine, if you ask me.
Anyhoo, yes, I'm still a bit obsessed with Tata Harper, but I'm finally swapping things around a bit, they're still great products, but I do need to keep mixing things up a bit. I was in the mood for something rosy on Monday, so I pulled out my bits from the ByTerry Cellularose range, including the cleansing oil, and the Hydra Toner both of which are softly scented with rose, and leave the skin soft and clean without stripping. I followed those up with Pixibeauty H20 Serum and Glowtion Day Dew after prepping with their rose oil blend. I have to say, the H20/Glowtion combo is quickly becoming a firm favourite, adds hydration and glow without greasiness, and no matter how little sleep you've had, always leaves you looking well rested - a great base for foundation, too.
A new brand I trialled this week was Eloquence Beauty, which is based in Chester (my old home town!), and their Eloquence Beauty Nourishing Treatment Oil made it into my routine this week when I realised I needed a little more oomph than Tata Harper Rebuilding Moisturiser alone could provide. Eloquence specialise in mid-price beauty products (the 50ml oil costs £29.99 and is the most expensive product in the range) containing Sacha-Inchi oil, which is high in fatty acids and proteins, and is similar in effect to argan oil. It absorbs quickly, and I've enjoyed using it, but I'll be trialling a few more bits from the range in the coming weeks.and I'll be sure to let you know how I get along.
But mostly, this week is dedicated to Pommade Divine. And Kleenex. And duvets.
The Fine Print: PR Samples and purchases
This post: Skincare of the Week 31 January 2016 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
I'm not generally a massive fan of cream cleansers, but this, the Refreshing Cleanser by Tata Harper has slipped in under my radar, and made me its willing slave.
I first tried the Tata Harper range, as so many people did, as a result of the serum which was included in the Caroline Hirons Cult Beauty Box last year (which I mostly bought for a back up of the May Lindstrom Blue Cocoon Balm and the Zelens PHA pads, both of which I already adore, and the whole box cost the same as just those two products, so why not?) and I liked it well enough to want to investigate the rest of the range. But, and I'll be honest here, I found the range difficult to navigate, particularly when you're looking at it from a sensitive-skinned point of view. As Tata Harper is most definitely a luxury-priced range (the cleanser is £60 at Content Beauty, where I bought this from) these weren't decisions to go into blindly.
However, I finally decided on the Refreshing Cleanser, as it was the one described as most suitable for sensitive skin, but the description saying it contained salicylic acid, and enzymes to cleanse the skin gave me slight pause (salicylic acid can be drying, and sometimes the fruit acids used to give a chemical peel in some cleansers can cause irritation on my skin), but the formula also contains pink clay and neroli, both of which are soothing, so I pressed buy with some trepidation.
A grapefruit-scented peachy cream, you apply Refreshing Cleanser to dry skin, and massage it in to allow the enzymes to dissolve the dead skin cells, then you remove it with a hot damp cloth as you would with a normal cleanser. Once removed, you are left with soft, smooth, clean skin. It definitely delivers on the cleansing side of things, and it also - I've found - provides a gentle exfoliation effect which means that you can effectively stop using acid toners quite so often. If you have sensitive skin, over-exfoliation can lead to redness and irritation very easily, and I've definitely found recently that exfoliating less often (two or three times a week maximum as opposed to every day) definitely leads to happier, less pink, skin.
It's not great for makeup removal, and I definitely wouldn't use it around the eyes, but it is a fabulous second cleanse, and I use it as my morning cleanser most days. You can't use it for a massage in the same way you can with a balm, or an oil-based cleanser because it's clay-based and it dries on the skin quite quickly as a result, plus you don't have the same "slip" you do with a greasier formula. I find any "rough patches" of skin I have on my face, such as on my forehead or nose, are dealt with just with this cleanser, instead of having to resort to acid toners, which is a good thing for my redness-prone skin. My skin loves this stuff, it's tough enough to soften, and gentle enough to do that without irritating.
I'm getting through it rather fast though, and at £60 a bottle, it's definitely an investment purchase, but it's the only cleanser I've wanted to use since it turned up, which is both a blessing and a curse ...
The Fine Print: Purchase
This post: Tata Harper Refreshing Cleanser 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
This week was another Tata Harper-heavy week, I've totally fallen in love with one of the products, and I *like* the others, but for me, the Refreshing Cleanser really is the outstanding product of the range so far. There's a full review of just why I like it so much coming up later this week. I also went for a Tata Harper facial, at the always-excellent Content Beauty and Wellbeing in Marylebone this week, and you can look out for a full review of that later this week too.
It has been a very cold week this week, and I've found that the Tata Harper Rebuilding Moisturiser, whilst being otherwise excellent, hasn't given quite enough protection from the weather as I would like, so I've been using the wonderful (again, a full review upcoming this week!) Omorovicza Miracle Oil as a base for my foundation, which adds just a tiny extra boost of hydration, and weather protection, without adding an extra layer of skincare. I'm still formulating my thoughts on the Dr Dennis Gross Ferrulic + Glycolic Eye Cream, but thoughts are mostly positive so far.
Even though I've mostly dropped acids from my routine this week, skin has been quiet and smooth and less red. Result! Just a short roundup this week, because I'm doing a few in-depth reviews to supplement in the coming days. How's your skin been?
The Fine Print: PR Samples and purchases.
This post: Skincare of the Week 24 January 2016 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
Well, as if you can't tell, I spent this week acclimatising myself to the Tata Harper products I treated myself to over Christmas! Inital thoughts are positive so far, extremely positive in fact, but I need a little more time with them before I review them in full.
I wasn't too sure about the Tata Harper Refreshing Cleanser at first, it's a little outside my cleansing comfort zone, if such a thing could be said to exist! It's a lightly grapefruit-scented cream cleanser, which utilises enzymes and clay to cleanse your face, and it's the one said to be most suitable for sensitive skin. It's an unusual texture - completely unlike my usual (beloved) balms and oils - but it genuinely does clean the face, and I think it has a slight exfoliating effect, which hasn't - so far - caused any irritation. I wouldn't use it for removing makeup though, I prefer oils for that, but for a morning cleanse, or a second cleanse in the evening, I really like it. Now.
I was cautious about adding the Tata Harper Hydrating Floral Essence and the Rebuilding Moisturiser, because the essence contains essential oils (something my skin always has a bit of trouble with), and because moisturisers are always my troublesome area, so I added them into my routine on separate days, seemingly with few ill-effects. Overall, the introduction to a "proper" Tata Harper routine has gone pretty well! I'm heading off to Content Beauty this week for a Tata Harper facial, and I can't wait! I will, of course, report back.
On Saturday, I trialled May Lindstrom Honey Mud on Saturday, and again, my experience was a mixed one, It's quite sticky (and smells of chocolate, which I can't bear at the moment), and I found my skin was a little "tight" after, but I suspect this was down to user-error than anything else. It needs, for example, wetter skin that I am used to. May herself was kind enough to comment on the Instagram post I put up with some suggestions, and I'm looking forward to using the Honey Mud again, with some more specific ways to use it.
What's been on your face this week?
The Fine Print: Mixture of PR samples and purchases.
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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.
This post: Skincare of the Week 10 January 2016 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
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.
This post: Skincare of the Week - 13 December 2015 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
