Clarins HydraQuench Cream and Mask

I've spoken about these products before in my Carmine column, the range is fabulous when your skin is suffering from the elements hence why I want to mention them as the UK is freezing right now. The HydraQuench range is suited for dehydrated skin that needs a nourishing moisture boost, these two products in particular really help transform your skin and fast. I've been using the range for a while now when my skin starts to get dry and irritated, it is perfect for soothing irritated skin too as the products all have a lovely cooling effect. 

HydraQuench Cream Mask 

Clarins describe this as 'An oasis of comfort for dehydrated skin' and I totally agree, the soothing and moisture rich formulation helps to restore your skins moisture barrier and bring your skin back into it's natural balance. Like I said above it is also a great treat if your skin is irritated or inflamed, right now I'm suffering from breakouts again so I've been using this to help sooth and cool my skin. If you suffer from lack of radiance you might find that all your missing is a healthy moisture levels, so introducing a mask like this a couple of times a week will really help to improve skins texture and appearance. 

Retails for £31.00 from Clarins counters or on-line

Left to right

Creame Mask; Cream Moisturiser

HydraQuench Cream

This is such a treat to apply and my skin is soaking it up right now, the freezing weather we are experiencing in the UK right now is playing havoc with my skin. It's a cream gel texture that feels really light on the skin and is quickly absorbed, with no residue left afterwards. My skin feels hydrated and refreshed after using this, again it feelings cooling on my skin  leaving it smoother and plump. 

Retails for £33.00 from Clarins counters or on-line

Good Things Deep Pore Cleanser

When I heard Good Things were introducing their Deep Pore Cleanser I was excited, I had hoped they would bring one out. 'Superfruits for super skin' I am in love with this deep pore despite the fact I have only been using it for a couple of weeks, the thin formula is like water and really does take all my makeup off, leaving my face feeling clean. It's aimed for breakout and oily prone skin types, which is me all over right not, lots of medications and illness has caused my skin to freak out again - not a pretty sight. So this came at the right time, the two-in-one cleanser/toner formula  digs deep to clear pores and reduce sebum without being too harsh on skin. One of the things I love about Good Things is how hard the products work without stripping your skin and being too harsh for it. The strawberry extract helps to create a radiant complexion, while willow bark and licorice extract will help get rid of any nasty spot causing bacteria.

Overall I've been impressed, this certainly helped clear my skin up and help me on my way to getting my skin back to normal. I have a soft spot for Good Things, and recommend the brand highly.

Origins GinZing Eye Cream ♥

For at least two years I stuck true to my Clinique eye cream, but recently I have been searching to see if I could find something I liked more. Enter Origins GinZing, an eye cream aimed at brightening and depuffing your peepers to keep you looking bright eyed and breezy.

Whether you have had a late night, or spent the day traveling, or work has just knocked it out of you, chances are you still need to look your best. I have been loving this eye cream for giving my eyes some instant light. 

I apply this in the morning as you would, and then I mix a little with my Laura Mercier Secret Cover concealer to make it easier to blend and also to add some luminosity to an otherwise rather blah concealer.  Any help at brightening my eye area is fully welcomed. 

Origins have worked hard to produce an eye cream that helps to really reduce the look of dark circles under your eyes, and helping to get rid of bags/puffiness. Thanks to the caffeine, panax ginseng, magnolia extract and natural optic brighteners the formula helps to restore the balance to any tired feeling (and looking in my case) eyes.   

I tried to take a picture of brightening aspect, which I guess you can see, it is more of a pearly finish but brightens none the less. 

This is definitely my eye cream of the moment, and  will certainly repurchase this little gem. Eye creams are a big part of my skin care routine, next up will be an age defense cream to warn of any pesky wrinkles. 

RR £21.00 You can buy this from any Origins counter or HERE

PLUS right now Origins are offering customers the chance to

choose 3 samples from their top 10 product line up

with the purchase of any skincare item. You

can choose from a selection of essential skincare

needs from cleansing to exfoliating, as well as best

loved moisturisers serums and eye creams.

Go check out your local Origins

counter to choose your 3 free favourite products

from the selection above. That gives you

three good reasons to experience Origin! This offer

starts on the 9th September and will finish on the

30th September 2011.

Eucerin Replenishing Night Cream ♥

I've developed a little love for Eucerin lately and the replenishing face cream - night - has been dropping a lot of moisture into my dehydrated skin. With my skin being so in between I often find it difficult to find a cream that has the right formulation and that actually works. So I am delighted that this works for me, at night my skin often becomes drier, not sure why but for the last month my skin has been soft and moisturized.

Caudalie Purifying Mask

This past fornight has been horrible in terms of my skin, just as I got it looking pretty darn good one foundation managed to ruin it. Enter Caudalie Purifying mask in my bid to rescue my skin, the mask promotes cleansing of the skin, eliminating sebum, all those nasty impurites (hello spots!) and any dead skin cells in order to give you a clearer and more radiant complexion.

Like I said I had been suffering from some breakouts, quite painful, so I did worry that putting on a deep cleansing mask would cause more discomfort - they can get pretty tight. The Caudalie mask however was not what I expected, very comfortable and not 'drying'.

The box does say to expect results after the first application and it does exactly that, the little problems on my forehead had swiftly cleared by the next moring and after a second session using the mask yesterday my skin was finally on its way to being normal again - yipee!

I was impressed with the high concentration of plant oils, grape seed, kaolin and bentonite clays, cypress, sage, lavender, camomile, sandlewood, zinc, linseeds... boy does the list of goodness go on and on! All these lovely ingredients certainly made the mask a treat to apply and relax with as the lovely aromas take away any stress.

Over all I am really impressed and this little Caudalie gem has made it's way into the VIP section of my bathroom, any breakouts be warned this will get you going.

Has anyone tried anything from Caudalie that they really think is worth checking out? Let me know...

I'm in Bliss ♥

Hey guys so I have 3 skin care for you in the next week, I have been a busy bee trying new products and want to share my thoughts I will try break it up a little for you don't worry. First up is Bliss, a brand I have wrote about a few times they do some amazing body products and treatments!

Bliss Steep Clean Pore Purifying Mask


This is a fabulous mask, I've nearly used the last of it up which hardly happens with me. It really helps to decongest my pores, clearly them of all that nasty stuff and it has been a savior when I've had any breakouts. I always grab this when I see a spot starting to appear to help get rid of it faster! The mask also exfoliates leaving your skin soft and radiant. 

There is two sides to the mask that you pump onto your hand mix together and apply to your face, leave it on for 15 minutes then I wash it off with a muslin cloth. My skin always look amazing after using this, bright clear and regulated, it helps to get my oily tzone in check.


Bliss Steep Clean Mattifying Moisturizer


I have a terrible tzone, it seems to produce oil like there is no tomorrow so any moisturizer that claims it is going to help combat this, I'm sold! Bliss have a gem here it controls oil without drying the skin with the surplus sebum-seeking smartsponge™ technology that allows the moisturizer to soak up any oil in your skin. It is great for hotter weather as it keeps my skin feeling very cooled, meaning this has really been put to the test with the sun we have had in the UK recently. With added antioxidants Vitamin E, C it helps to protect the skin too, I just wish it had an SPF in it as well.

So overall I am very impressed, if you suffer from oil breakout prone skin then I highly recommend Bliss' Steep Clean products hopefully you will see the great results these products give you too. 


You can buy Bliss products on-line www.blissworld.co.uk

Lizzie ♥

I thought I'd share some more products that I have been using to keep my skin looking tip top for summer. These three come from the wonderful Liz Earle, a brand I think we all love greatly!

♥Liz Earle Sheer Gold Shimmer


This is a fabulous little product for sunny summer days, it's very light and cooling on the skin. You apply it to where ever you want a subtle gold highlight, along your legs, collarbones or your cheekbones. I love this on my face and applied onto my legs if I'm wearing something that means getting my legs out I find it helps to illuminate my tan more, giving a golden sheen.


Packed with Naturally active ingredients include organic aloe vera, natural source vitamin E and 10 essential oils, it smells very herbal like other Liz Earle products. 


Priced at £8.95 for 50ml on-line HERE


♥Liz Earle Gentle Skin Exfoliator 


I've spoken about this before, but it deserves another mention it is the only facial exfoliator I have used in a long time. If you summer from blocked pore, black heads or a dull complexion then I'd happily recommend this to you it will buff away any impurities on your skin and clear away any dead skin cells with the help of purifying eucalyptus, softening cocoa butter and fine jojoba beads.


Priced at £12.50 for 70ml on-line HERE


♥Liz Earle Smoothing Line Serum


I've been using this for about 2 months now and having come to the end of it's little life I wanted to share this product with you as it's a real gem. Now I don't have major lines around my eyes but with a lot of make-up removal my eyes are as fresh as I'd want them to be this helps them to be plump and hydrated. It also makes my concealer goes on nicer and smoother.


You can also use this product around your lips, forehead anywhere you notice fine lines appearing.


Priced at £13.25 for 10ml on-line HERE


So there you go 3 speed reviews on products I'm loving as part of my skin routine right now.

Do you have lovely lips? ♥

Elemis launched a new skin care range target for us young guys and gals, who fall in between skin care 'brackets' teens to 20s. I will be reviewing each of the products but I wanted to start with the Lovely Lips Quenching lip balm.

After a cold winter my lips and skin have both taken a hit, I have been struggling to find something to fix my sore and chapped lips. Some lip balms may be great but the taste/smell often puts me off. Enriched with passionflower oil, sweet almond oil, peppermint oil and vitamin E, this packed full of goodies to soften, condition and thoroughly hydrate your pout. With the yummy scent of peppermint, and I finish that is glossy, I have found myself reaching for this at every moment to keep my lips looking tip top.

It is a little pricey for a lip balm at £8.00, but I've spent a lot more than that on lip balms here and there that turn out to be no good and a waste of money, this works which is why I would buy this again.

You can buy it on-line here

http://www.timetospa.co.uk/elemis/freshskin-for-teens-to-twenties/Elemis-FreshSkin-Loving-Lips-Quenching-Lip-Balm/

Skin care loves ♥

I haven't sat down and written about products that I have been using as part of my routine, I post reviews about products I've tried but it's been a while since I've told you want is actually part of my daily routine. So in this post I'm going to show you 3 products and then next week I will post about another post about 3 other products.

So this post will be about my current cleanser, toner and face mask of choice, with a mini review on each and that way I shouldn't ramble on too much!

♥ Trilogy Cream Cleanser ♥

I really like this cream cleanser because it is really light weight, but is efficient at removing all my make up including my 358179 layers of mascara. It leaves my skin very soft and moisturised, with rosehip and evening primrose oil it leaves your skin nourished. This is my make up remover, I still cleanse my skin again with a facial wash. However you could use this alone if you wear very little or no make up. It has lasted me a surprisingly long time I'm going on 7 weeks of use and I'm not even half way down the bottle. 

http://www.trilogyproducts.com/store/products/Cream_Cleanser

♥Trilogy Hydrating Mist Toner ♥

I'm quite funny with toners, they either do wonders for my skin or they do nothing for my skin. This isn't the best toner I've ever used but it is the most soothing and calming, especially since I've had quite irritated breakouts recently, I would wear no make up most days and whenever I felt itchy or my face was getting hot a quick spray of this and my skin felt immediately better. If you have dry skin this would be a great toner, I have combo skin and I feel if did more for my pores I'd be head over heels. But it has been my go to toner simply because it nourishes and relieves my skin so well.

http://www.trilogyproducts.com/store/products/Hydrating_Mist_Toner

♥ Dirty Works Belle of the Ball Face Mask ♥

I like how quick and easy this face mask is, it really is detoxifying and quick at pull out any  nasty stuff from your pores. Be warned do not use this before a big night out, as it really does detox the skin and force it out via some spots. However if you can bare a day of minor breakouts, then you will be rewarded with brighter clearer skin after. The biggest plus for me is the price £4.99 from Sainsbury's, you can beat that price for this gem.

A Rose For A Rose ♥

♥ Elemis Gentle Rose Exfoliator ♥

"Hydrating Absolute of Moroccan Rose and smooth micro-spherical Jojoba beads very gently exfoliate, leaving skin silky soft to the touch. Gentle enough to be used daily, Elemis Gentle Rose Exfoliator is a subtly fragranced gel exfoliator, ideal for all complexions, including the most sensitive."

Elemis is a fab brand, I've only tried a couple of products I'm still learning about the brand and their products. But so far it has been great. Their Gentle Rose Exfoliator is a nifty little scrub, depending on how my skin is feeling I either go for quite an abrasive scrub or something very creamy and gentle. I have been reaching for this scrub a lot over the last two weeks, I haven't picked up another brand. In the morning I've also been rather lazy and used this as a face wash, because it is so gentle you don't have to worry about over exfoliating your skin. 

I like this because my skin really does feel squeaky clean but with out the tightness that some products can give you. My skin has turned around after a recent bout of breakouts they have cleared up and this has been great to keep my pores clean. If you suffer from bad congestion or have particularly oily skin I wouldn't say this would be a product for you.

You can buy it online at TimeToSpa.co.uk for £26.50

Love for Liz ♥

Expect some lovely Liz Earle reviews in the coming weeks, I have done loads of reviews from Liz Earle as it is a fabulous skin care range. If you are tempted to try anything I would say go for it, my two picks would be there Cleanse & Polish and their face masks.

I need a Steep Clean asap! ♥

Bliss do a fabulous range of products and I'm loving the Steep Clean range. From the line of products this face mask has really stood out for me, it is truly a star if you suffer from congestion in the skin. I get quite bad clogged pores around my mouth and chin which is a big problem for me, over the last week or so this has been the product I've stuck with treatment wise in order to battle the horrid things deeo within the depths of my skin.

In just 15 minutes it digs deep and removes anything nasty stuff from right down in the pores, all whilst exfoliating the skin and battling any excess oil on the skin. I get a little excess oil on my tzone something a lot of us get, and this is a good treatment to help balance that. I specifically noticed a difference the next day when I applied my make-up it went on so much better and lasted a lot longer. I didn't feel the need to use a primer under my make-up and I was right, my face looked great.

I like that it has the two sections that you mix together, you pump out equal amounts of the blue and yellow then miss them between your fingers until it has turned green. Then massage it in circular motions on the skin, I pay extra attention to the areas I get the congestion by spending an extra minute massaging it in.

Then just sit back put your feet up with a lovely cup of tea for 15 minutes whilst this does wonders for you. 

Then wash it off like you would any other mask, I use a facial sponge just to ensure I get all the product off my skin and it it thoroughly cleaned. It really does give your skin a Steep Clean, and leaves you with detoxed and smooth skin.

So I will continue to use this for another month, and lets see if this will be the product to finally shift the nasty congestion on my chin. Look out for review part 2!

Bliss steep clean pore purifying mask £35.80