Pixi Skintreats Glow Mud Cleanser

I've been very impressed with the Pixi Skintreats that I've tried so far. It's a well-priced range of good, not too confusing basics, that perform well, and do what they are supposed to without patronising or bewildering the customers.  Glow Mud Cleanser is a great product from the line, being a clay cleanser that doesn't strip or dry out the skin.

It contains aloe, which gives the formulation plenty of slip when you're applying it, and it also contains glycolic acid, which has a slight exfoliating effect too, so this is  particularly good for oilier or congested skins, as it will help with clearing spots when it is used regularly.  My skin has been a bit hormonal recently, the changes in the weather and the advent of central heating becoming a necessity in the flat,  and my skin doesn't really know what to do with itself as a result. So it's pumping out oil like there's no tomorrow. It'll settle shortly (it does this as we head into winter every year), but I'm finding this great for clearing zits as they begin to appear.

You can also use this as a mask, just apply it as you normally would, and leave it for five or ten minutes or so, before rinsing it away. This allows the glycolic to stay in contact with the skin more, so it gives a deeper exfoliation effect if you leave it in contact with your skin than you would with a cleanser normally. You'll get the familiar "glycolic tingle" when you're using this, but if you have sensitive skin, I personally wouldn't follow it with any form of acidic toner (including Pixi Glow Tonic tbh), as this might lead to irritation and redness if you overdo it.  You'll need to use a sunscreen after, as you would with any glycolic acid product.

I don't use this every day - my skin is normally clear, and it is pretty sensitive most of the time, but for those days when I need something a little more ... powerful ... than a balm cleanser, then this one can't be beat.  Best of all, it's only £18, and you can find it at Pixi, at Cult Beauty, and Marks and Spencer!


The Fine Print: PR Sample


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#LipsNspritz of the week 11.10.15

Life would be dull indeed without lipstick and perfume, I've made it a mission this last month or so to document my entire lipstick and perfume "wardrobe".  The idea is to wear every perfume and lipstick that I own, and post my thoughts on each on Instagram every day.  I'm trying to do it without repeats, but I've decided to allow myself the occasional one (admittedly an exception made for my "parosmia perfume" Paradox, because there are days still where it's the only thing I can face smelling), but I won't do it too often.  This week I replenished my stores of the original Acqua di Parma, which is one of my all-time favourite fragrances of all-time, and I'm delighted that it's largely untouched by my disability.  It's the smell of a hot and soapy sportsman emerging from the shower, and I've missed it terribly since I ran out last year!  I wore it with Burberry Kisses Sheer balm in Hydrangea, and you'll see more of that later on this week.

Other lipstick and perfume combos of the week after the jump:

Skincare of the Week 11.10.15

No blog posts last week because I was unwell last Sunday and I simply couldn't face writing in the slightest.  I still kept up with my skincare routines though, because I do (occasionally) have standards ...  The routine above was a night-time one mid-week, from when I had a congested chin - complete with zit!  I haven't had a zit in a couple of years now!  Stupid hormones - I'll be reviewing the Pixi Skintreats Glow Mud Cleanser in full tomorrow, but I found that a mixture of the Overnight Glow Serum (a gel formula with 15% glycolic acid) on the congested areas and the Nourishing Sleep Mask (which contains lavender and hyaluronic acid) on everywhere else really, really helped.  The zit was only in place for a day or two, which was nice...

Another night-time routine later in the week had me trying these Elizabeth Arden Skin Illuminating Advanced Brightening Night Capsules, and I'm looking forward to using these a couple more times, as the texture of the formula is fabulous, and I was left with lovely velvety smooth skin in the morning.  Hopefully they'll be like that every time!

For more daytime routines, please join me after the jump.

Zelens Intense Defence Antioxidant Serum

 

I was chatting to a dermatologist recently, and she mentioned that the future of skincare lies in antioxidant products.  Now, as I was already trialling Zelens Intense Defense Antioxidant Serum, this pleased me somewhat, but left me realising that the only thing I really know about oxidisation is that it is what causes iron to rust, and, as I definitely don't want my face to rust, this has to be a good thing, right?

Joking aside, what Zelens Intense Defence is at heart is a protective serum, designed to save your skin from everyday pollutants in the air, and save your face from environmental stress. As someone who's face is almost always permanently red through sensitivity this recently released serum from Zelens - long one of my favourite skincare brands - interested me hugely. 

Pixi Skintreats Rose Oil Blend

 

There has been a lot of Pixi Skintreats love in the Lippie household recently, and the Rose Oil Blend is currently my favourite facial oil.  Based on a sweet almond oil base, with jojoba, dog-rosehip, geranium and damascene rose oils, it's a very light texture, so sinks into the skin easily, and doesn't make my combination-oily skin greasy.  It smells only gently of roses, and isn't perfumed artificially, it's great.

I find it really soothing, I've used it on skin that's been irritated by other products and it's helped a lot.  I find it really lovely to use it mixed in with a little foundation to give a glow to the skin.  I've also used it with ColorFX Custom Color Drops foundation (look out for a review of that soon), and it was very good, my favourite way to use it.  I also use it as a serum underneath my moisturiser

If you love oils as much as I do, you'll like this one a lot.   Best of all, Pixi Beauty are launching into Marks & Spencer, and their mid-price ranged skincare products are a real (cheapish) treat.  Pixi Skintreats Rose Oil Blend will cost you £26, and the rest of the range is priced similarly.  Look out for more Pixi Skintreats reviews soon.

The Fine Print: Gift.


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First Aid Beauty Facial Radiance Pads

If you've spent any time hanging around my instagram page, then you'll have seen these on my daily skincare routine posts a lot recently.  I do love a pre-soaked acid pad, they're usually thinner and more textured than a cotton wool pad, and so you get a good amount of toner on your skin, rather than soaked up by the cotton wool.

First Aid Beauty Facial Radiance Pads are a bargain compared to my usual preferred pads  of choice (Zelens  PHA+ Pads, for reference), costing around £22 for sixty, rather than £65, and they're good and tingly all the same.  Containing a blend of lactic and glycolic acids alongside licorice extract, hyaluronic acid and lemon peel oil, these offer a gentle daily exfoliation, and they're alcohol free.

To use them most effectively, you simply wipe them over freshly cleansed skin and this both helps remove any dead, flaky skin patches, and also helps prepare your skin for any serums or moisturisers that you apply afterwards.  Cleansers are generally alkaline, and washing your face strips away some of your natural acid mantle, so using an acid-based toner will help bring your skin back into balance and your skin will be more easily able to absorb the active ingredients in your skincare.  I love them for making my skin soft and smooth on a daily basis. These pads are quite wet, and I find that giving them a little squeeze before applying to the skin will stop them leaving your face soaking wet.

You must use a sunscreen on a daily basis when using any acidic skincare though, no ifs ands and buts about it.  The worst thing about First Aid Beauty Facial Radiance Pads is that they're a little difficult to get hold of, I had to get mine from Amazon.  Why aren't they in Boots and/or Superdrug?  I wish they were!


The Fine Print: Purchase


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Omorovicza Blue Diamond Eye Cream

  I have trouble with eyecreams, the area around my eyes is probably the most sensitive on my face, and many, many eyecreams sting as a result.  However, even if they don't sting, with most of them, I find little to no effect of using them, so I use them for a week or so then usually completely forget about using them at all.

However, I'm coming to the age now where the lines around my eyes are getting more and more noticeable, and less ignorable. Dehydration lines show up quickly, and leave slowly, and yes, I look a bit older than I used to as a result.  Now, I'm quite lucky in that I don't have particularly dark circles, and I don't have huge eye bags, but the lines themselves are beginning to become an issue for me, and I've definitely reached the point where I can't really ignore eye creams any more.  So I decided not to ignore this one, Blue Diamond Eye Cream, by Omorovicza when it arrived.