So I would like to share with you which skincare products I like to use, these are a mix of high end products and regular drugstore buys. Over the years I have used so many different products and it always seems that whenever I find one I really like and decide to stick with it ends up getting discontinued! So I am forced to try lots of different ones until I find a new product I like and then just hope it doesn't get discontinued!
I am not really sure where to begin so I will try to go sort of from the start if you like.
Exfloiation
It is so important to exfoliate your skin and you look instantly better for doing so. I don't exfoliate every day or even every week sometimes as I don't feel my skin particularly needs it. But when I do start to notice a less then smooth texture the absolute best at home exfoliator i have found is the Boots No7 Microdermabrasion facial exfoliator. I was interested in purchasing a groupon for a Microdermabrasion treatment but had heard mixed reviews so I decided to try this product to see if it would be something for me. After using this exfoliator I now don't think I would have a professional microdermabrasion done simply because for my skin i feel the results from this are more then sufficient. However if you do have particularly problem skin then you may still find the salon treatment to be of more benefit. The product itself is a very fine exfoliator which you apply and rub in in circular motions on your face, the skin does become quite pink using this which to me is definitely a sign it is working. Then you simply rinse it off. My skin was noticeably smoother all over and it had improved the appearance of my pores and even some of the fine lines on my forehead. You have to be careful what your plans are for the next few days with this as you aren't allowed to have sun exposure (sunbed or sunbathing) for I think 3 days directly after as your skin is very sensitive. But I would definitely recommend this for anybody of all skin types and ages!
Moisturiser
The facial moisturiser is where I have changed my product the most frequently, I will write about the 2 current creams that I use, which are Palmers Daily Calming Facial Lotion and the Chanel Hydra Beauty Creme. The Palmers lotion I discovered in a sample pack I received when I was pregnant and I really really liked it. I have always been a user of the traditional Palmers Cocoa Butter body lotion so it was quite surprising that I hadn't tried to find a face cream of theirs before. I now mainly use this cream in the winter as I find it slightly thicker and more suited to winter skin especially when it gets dried out by the central heating! It is a really nice budget cream and not at all greasy even on the T zone.
The Chanel creme is more of a recent purchase as I was lucky enough to receive it as a Christmas present last year. I had read reviews on the creme before and had read that some people found it too heavily fragranced however for me this is not an issue in the slightest and I actually enjoy having a scented creme. It a very light textured creme so I will mainly be using it throughout the spring and summer however I will still give it a fair chance in the colder weather. The cream literally glides onto your skin and does give a radiance if you are going without makeup. It is not a cheap purchase but one that I think is worth the investment and it most definitely feels like a treat each time you use it!
Concealer
With Concealers I tend to be more loyal and can stick with one for well over a year before I feel the need to change. I was using the Benefit Boing concealer however I have found the Soap and Glory Kiss Ass concealer to be a cheaper alternative which is just as good so I now stick with that one. I only use concealer on the dark circles under my eyes, I have previously tried all sorts of different under eye creams and serums to reduce the dark circles but nothing has ever worked and I think that is mainly due to them not being sleep or stress related, it is purely down to my skin tone. The Soap and Glory Kiss Ass concealer has 3 compartments 2 cream concealers and one pale powder, I am not totally sure what the powder is for (possibly to seal the concealer) and I have never used it. the cream concealers are 2 different shades I believe one is for colour correcting and one is for covering spots and blemishes. As I said I only use this for under eye circles and I prefer the yellowy toned one but once that runs out I use the slightly pinkier tone up until I buy a new pot, this is probably not the conventional way to use this product and I am sure it serves it purpose when used for the specific target areas! Other than that it is a great purchase as an alternative to the Benefit Boing and also lasts a pretty long while.
Foundation
For years I have been using a Rimmel Match Perfection Foundation that has been the constant although I have tried others but tend to go back to that one as its an easy buy and I don't need to worry about finding the correct shade in a new brand and I do like how it applies to the face. I have been wanting to try a MAC foundation for a while but the MAC shop is always so busy and it seems like a brand for people that know what they are doing regarding makeup (I definitely do not!) but i braved it with a friend and chose a shade in the Studio Fix liquid foundation. I am glad I did, it is more of a heavy coverage so more suited to an evening look but I think I could play around and mix it with a couple of drops of tea tree oil to get a lighter base which I am yet to try. I am not really a foundation expert so it would be difficult for me to say which is potentially better as also foundation is quite an individual choice and depends on how much coverage you like.
Mascara
Mascara I know more about then foundation as I have really long eyelashes so have played around with a few different ones for the best effect. My favourite ever mascara is the Lancome Virtuose I
love love love this mascara and have no doubt I would of continued using only that mascara had they not decided to discontinue it early this year! I am devastated and the replacement product does not have the same curved brush which is one of the main things I loved about it! If anyone reading this knows if I can still purchase this somewhere please drop a comment and let me know! So since I have been forced to find a new mascara after trying some samples I know use Benefit They're Real. I am not in love with it but it is the best one I have found at the moment but when it is running low I will be on the search again to find my new Lance Virtuose replacement! Mascara is one product which I would definitely say is worth spending a bit more on as I found in the past if I tried a cheaper make product I would end up having to use more of it or would more new ones more frequently to find one I liked and in the end would have spent the equivalent or more then a premium mascara that I would of been guaranteed to like from the beginning!
I don't wear any other makeup apart from these and lips wise I like Carmex as a lip balm and lip colours I have just every brand going and use them all equally! I mentioned tea tree oil in the foundation section and I would like to touch upon that a bit. Tea tree oil is an amazing product I use it for everything I can, if I have a spot come up I dab the Tea Tree oil on it straight away and it pretty much vanishes and if I'm having a dull skin day i add a few drops of tea tree oil to my moisturiser and it really refreshes your skin I would highly recommend purchasing a bottle of tea tree oil to keep in the cupboard at home as it is wonderful for adding in baths and also to add in your shampoo from time to time! I will do a separate post about natural products and oils that I use / have used including the home made stretch mark cream I made. Until then take care everyone.
Love Kim xxx
I am not really sure where to begin so I will try to go sort of from the start if you like.
Exfloiation
It is so important to exfoliate your skin and you look instantly better for doing so. I don't exfoliate every day or even every week sometimes as I don't feel my skin particularly needs it. But when I do start to notice a less then smooth texture the absolute best at home exfoliator i have found is the Boots No7 Microdermabrasion facial exfoliator. I was interested in purchasing a groupon for a Microdermabrasion treatment but had heard mixed reviews so I decided to try this product to see if it would be something for me. After using this exfoliator I now don't think I would have a professional microdermabrasion done simply because for my skin i feel the results from this are more then sufficient. However if you do have particularly problem skin then you may still find the salon treatment to be of more benefit. The product itself is a very fine exfoliator which you apply and rub in in circular motions on your face, the skin does become quite pink using this which to me is definitely a sign it is working. Then you simply rinse it off. My skin was noticeably smoother all over and it had improved the appearance of my pores and even some of the fine lines on my forehead. You have to be careful what your plans are for the next few days with this as you aren't allowed to have sun exposure (sunbed or sunbathing) for I think 3 days directly after as your skin is very sensitive. But I would definitely recommend this for anybody of all skin types and ages!Moisturiser
The facial moisturiser is where I have changed my product the most frequently, I will write about the 2 current creams that I use, which are Palmers Daily Calming Facial Lotion and the Chanel Hydra Beauty Creme. The Palmers lotion I discovered in a sample pack I received when I was pregnant and I really really liked it. I have always been a user of the traditional Palmers Cocoa Butter body lotion so it was quite surprising that I hadn't tried to find a face cream of theirs before. I now mainly use this cream in the winter as I find it slightly thicker and more suited to winter skin especially when it gets dried out by the central heating! It is a really nice budget cream and not at all greasy even on the T zone.The Chanel creme is more of a recent purchase as I was lucky enough to receive it as a Christmas present last year. I had read reviews on the creme before and had read that some people found it too heavily fragranced however for me this is not an issue in the slightest and I actually enjoy having a scented creme. It a very light textured creme so I will mainly be using it throughout the spring and summer however I will still give it a fair chance in the colder weather. The cream literally glides onto your skin and does give a radiance if you are going without makeup. It is not a cheap purchase but one that I think is worth the investment and it most definitely feels like a treat each time you use it!
Concealer
With Concealers I tend to be more loyal and can stick with one for well over a year before I feel the need to change. I was using the Benefit Boing concealer however I have found the Soap and Glory Kiss Ass concealer to be a cheaper alternative which is just as good so I now stick with that one. I only use concealer on the dark circles under my eyes, I have previously tried all sorts of different under eye creams and serums to reduce the dark circles but nothing has ever worked and I think that is mainly due to them not being sleep or stress related, it is purely down to my skin tone. The Soap and Glory Kiss Ass concealer has 3 compartments 2 cream concealers and one pale powder, I am not totally sure what the powder is for (possibly to seal the concealer) and I have never used it. the cream concealers are 2 different shades I believe one is for colour correcting and one is for covering spots and blemishes. As I said I only use this for under eye circles and I prefer the yellowy toned one but once that runs out I use the slightly pinkier tone up until I buy a new pot, this is probably not the conventional way to use this product and I am sure it serves it purpose when used for the specific target areas! Other than that it is a great purchase as an alternative to the Benefit Boing and also lasts a pretty long while.Foundation
For years I have been using a Rimmel Match Perfection Foundation that has been the constant although I have tried others but tend to go back to that one as its an easy buy and I don't need to worry about finding the correct shade in a new brand and I do like how it applies to the face. I have been wanting to try a MAC foundation for a while but the MAC shop is always so busy and it seems like a brand for people that know what they are doing regarding makeup (I definitely do not!) but i braved it with a friend and chose a shade in the Studio Fix liquid foundation. I am glad I did, it is more of a heavy coverage so more suited to an evening look but I think I could play around and mix it with a couple of drops of tea tree oil to get a lighter base which I am yet to try. I am not really a foundation expert so it would be difficult for me to say which is potentially better as also foundation is quite an individual choice and depends on how much coverage you like.
Mascara
Mascara I know more about then foundation as I have really long eyelashes so have played around with a few different ones for the best effect. My favourite ever mascara is the Lancome Virtuose I
love love love this mascara and have no doubt I would of continued using only that mascara had they not decided to discontinue it early this year! I am devastated and the replacement product does not have the same curved brush which is one of the main things I loved about it! If anyone reading this knows if I can still purchase this somewhere please drop a comment and let me know! So since I have been forced to find a new mascara after trying some samples I know use Benefit They're Real. I am not in love with it but it is the best one I have found at the moment but when it is running low I will be on the search again to find my new Lance Virtuose replacement! Mascara is one product which I would definitely say is worth spending a bit more on as I found in the past if I tried a cheaper make product I would end up having to use more of it or would more new ones more frequently to find one I liked and in the end would have spent the equivalent or more then a premium mascara that I would of been guaranteed to like from the beginning!I don't wear any other makeup apart from these and lips wise I like Carmex as a lip balm and lip colours I have just every brand going and use them all equally! I mentioned tea tree oil in the foundation section and I would like to touch upon that a bit. Tea tree oil is an amazing product I use it for everything I can, if I have a spot come up I dab the Tea Tree oil on it straight away and it pretty much vanishes and if I'm having a dull skin day i add a few drops of tea tree oil to my moisturiser and it really refreshes your skin I would highly recommend purchasing a bottle of tea tree oil to keep in the cupboard at home as it is wonderful for adding in baths and also to add in your shampoo from time to time! I will do a separate post about natural products and oils that I use / have used including the home made stretch mark cream I made. Until then take care everyone.
Love Kim xxx
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