The Skincare || Looking After the Décolletage

One of my New Year’s resolutions was to take more care of my body skin, particularly my décolletage area. Whilst I am religious about applying sunscreen to my face, my neck and chest are often forgotten which leaves me with quite a red, sensitive and damaged neck area. I've been trying to repair this damage by firstly applying sunscreen every morning. I'm trying to use up the Olay Daily Face SPF30+ on my neck because I don't like the feel of this sunscreen on my face and I suspect it breaks me out a bit. Yet as I type this I forgot to apply it this morning. Oops.

In the evenings, I'm taking a number of steps to undo the damage done. Firstly I'm cleansing the area with the Jurlique Purifying Foaming Cleanser (please don't shoot me for using this, I'm trying to use it all up). I've been using a sample of the Trilogy Nutrient Plus Firming Serum, which is ok. I have to say I won't be repurchasing this, I find it doesn't mix well with certain moisturisers. It works perfectly with the Trilogy Line Smoothing Day Cream however, which I've been applying day and night. A fairly simple routine, but so far I'm happy with the results. My neck seems to be less sensitive, red, and the fine wrinkles which were appearing have seemed to lessen.

Do you take much care of your décolletage?

X Suzy 

The Weekend Pamper || The Game Changers

This weekend's post is all about those products which I just love. Each of these have changed the beauty game for me. A number of skincare bits, tools and some makeup all make the cut.

Something I've been using since I had hair is the Mason & Pearson 100% Bristle Hairbrush. Incredibly pricey for a hairbrush, but worth every penny. I've only had to replace it once, after about 10 years of everyday use. This hairbrush leaves my hair tangle free, static free and shiny without pulling of tugging. Provided you’re not someone who loses hairbrushes often, the Mason & Pearson is a fantastic investment to make.

Quite a few skincare products make the list. There's no surprises here, you've heard me ramble on about these products a number of times no doubt. Bioderma is the most recent addition, but I've already used one whole bottle. The Jurlique Purifying Mask and the Herbal Recovery Advanced Serum are also on my game changers list because each of them make such a difference to my skin. Finally, the Grown Organic Alchemist's Matte Moisturiser deserves a mention for being the only moisturiser to actually moisturise and to keep my skin matte thought the day.

A few makeup loves include the first "high end" makeup product I brought, the MAC Studio Finish Concealer. This concealer is the answer to all skin problems, masking all imperfections. Two other complexion enhancers include the BareMinerals Original Foundation and the Jurlique Citrus Silk Finishing Powder. I'm sure this isn't the first time you've heard me mention these, together they create the most perfect base, without being too perfect. My favourite mascara in the form of Maybelline's Full N'Soft has earns its self a place on this list but my eyes wouldn't be complete without a squeeze from the Shu Uemura Eyelash Curlers.

What are products make your game changers list?

X Suzy   

The Weekend Pamper || Empties #1

Empties, while not the most unique post idea, are one of my favourite blog posts to read. I love to hear what products my favourite bloggers have used up, I feel like it’s a good indication of a good product. I've kept all these products for a number of reasons, firstly I'm a bit of a recycler. DIY toners and pillow sprays all require a little sprayer bottle. Secondly, Jurlique do an awesome return program where if you return your empty tubes or bottles, they give you 10% off the same product. Finally, I've kept all these products in hope of writing one of these posts. I've got some body bits and some skincare, but no makeup. Does anyone else find makeup impossible to use up?

Starting off with the body bits, I've finished up the Jurlique Jasmine Shower Gel and Body Care Lotion. A lovely sent and a lovely product. Both of these lasted me a whole year before I needed to replace them. I'll eventually repurchase these but I'm currently working my way through the Citrus versions.

A couple of toners were next to go, the Jurlique Herbal Recovery Mist and the Trilogy Hydrating Mist Toner. Both of these were OK, I am holding off a repurchase of both of these, I'm looking into trying the new Jurlique Calendula Redness Rescue Calming Mist next.

Bioderma reigns as the favourite makeup remover and a repurchase is about to happen. Makeup and sunscreen glides off like no other with a cotton wipe drenched in this cleansing water. Although Priceline now stocks Bioderma, it’s near impossible to get a bottle because it’s always out of stock. If I'm out of luck I'll have to resort to ordering it online.

I've also used up the Jurlique Herbal Recovery Eye Cream and repurchased another in a Christmas box set. A lovely product which keeps dryness at bay whilst also preventing fine lines from developing.

Two spot treatments have also been used up, the Aesop Control Gel and the Origins Super Spot Remover. The Aesop worked fantastically with my skin, quickly removing all spots. I suspect that it’s the Niacinamide because I had such good results with the Jurlique Herbal Recovery Advanced Serum which also uses Niacinamide. The Origins however I found a bit useless. I'll repurchase the Aesop soon, but not the Origins.

Finally, some moisturising bits. The first to go was the Jurlique Herbal Recovery Advanced Serum, which I've sung praises to here. I've since repurchased in the 100ml bottle, it’s that good. My favourite daily moisturiser, the GrownOrganics Matte Moisturiser was also finished off recently. The perfect product for me, moisturising yet mattifying and smoothing to provide a perfect canvas for makeup.

What products have you finished off recently?

X Suzy  

The Skincare || How Much is my Face Worth in Skincare?

Coming to you this week is a couple of posts featuring the "How much is my face worth?" tag. I've seen this post around on a couple of blogs and I've always been interested in writing a post myself. As skincare is such a love of mine, it's only appropriate for me to do two of these posts, one featuring my skincare, and another featuring my makeup. As you've probably guessed by the title, this post is focussed on my skincare. Without further delay, here is the total cost of my daily skincare, prepare you're self for a big shock. 

Firstly, in the morning I cleanse my face with the Jurlique Balancing Cleansing Lotion ($45), tone with the Jurlique Herbal Recovery Mist ($32), tap on the Herbal Recovery Eye Cream ($52) and follow with the Herbal Recovery Advanced Serum ($75). I'm not obsessed with the Herbal Recovery range at all. If there are any spots present, that means everyday, I dab on a bit of the Aesop Control Gel ($23). I finish of the morning with a pea sized amount of the Grown Alchemists Matte Moisturiser ($60). So mornings come to a grand total of $287. Ouch. 

In the evenings I start by taking a cotton pad loaded in Bioderma ($30) all over my face. The Jurlique Balancing Cleansing Lotion ($45) from the morning is used again. It's followed up by the REN Clarifying Toning Lotion ($40) and the Herbal Recovery Mist ($32) from the morning. The eye cream ($52) and the serum ($75) used in the morning are also used again followed with the Jurlique Calendula Cream ($85) and the Aesop Control Gel ($23). This brings my evening total to: $383. Ok, so that's a lot more than what I thought it would be. And so the grand total of my daily skincare routine comes too $443 (I subtracted the products which I use twice). Mega ouch. Let's not calculate the added costs of my bi-weekly at home facials. I'm hoping to redeem myself with a relatively small daily makeup cost, check in on Friday for that.  

How much do you think your skincare costs you?

X Suzy 

The Skincare || Evening Skincare Routine #1

Naming this post proved to be a difficult one. I always do my skin for the evening as soon as I get home from whatever I've been doing that day. So it’s not necessarily in the evening. But a “Midday skincare routine” wouldn't be quite the same, right? It’s taken me a while to sit down and write this post, the reason being is that I wasn't quite happy with my routine. Actually, my routine is still missing one element: an exfoliating toner. Hello REN ClarifyingToning Lotion (its number one on my wish list). So without further delay, here is my (almost complete) evening skincare routine.

First point of call is to remove all my makeup. Starting off with on cotton wipe soaked in Bioderma, I sweep it all over my eyes. I take another Bioderma-soaked-cotton-wipe and wipe it all over my face. Next up is cleansing, where the Jurlique Purifying Foaming Cleanser comes into play. I take half a pump and slosh it all over my face. A wet flannel is then taken and rubbed all over my face for a bit of subtle exfoliation. I repeat this step again with a smaller amount of cleanser. Every third night or so I will give my skin some more thorough exfoliation. This comes in the form of the Aesop TeaTree Leaf Exfoliator. This one is quite an unusual exfoliator, it comes as a powder which you add to a gel or cream cleanser. This works fabulously to get rid of all the grime which is blocking my pores. You can also alter the amount of exfoliation you want but altering how much you use.

Post cleansing and exfoliating is my 'treatment' section. Here I apply a range of blemish creams to my various skin conditions. I'm planning to put a separate post up about my treatments, (there are so many) so look out for that!

Moving on to toning, I have two options here, including the Jurlique Calendula Lotion and the Trilogy Hydrating Mist Toner. I'm going off then Calendula Lotion, as it has a lot of alcohol in it. I'm not using it as regularly as before, and I haven't noticed a big difference in my skin. Once I finish this bottle, I won't be repurchasing. The Trilogy however, is a nice alcohol free alternative - but nothing special.

The final step in my routine is to moisturise my skin. Firstly I use a pea sized amount of the Jurlique Herbal Recovery Eye Cream around my eye area. Next up is one pump of the Jurlique Herbal RecoveryAdvanced Serum (as raved about here)which is followed by a dollop of the Calendula Cream from Jurlique. When applying my Calendula cream I do a bit of a Caroline Hirons inspired facial massage, with a few moves of my own thrown in there. Finally, I use 2-3 drops of the Sukin Rose Hip Oil just before I go to bed.

All up this takes me about 10-15 mins to do. And I love it, my skin is looking so amazing at the moment. My routine is at a point where I'm really happy with it and I'm looking forward to adding an exfoliating toner to my routine. I hope you found this useful I'm some way!

X Suzy

The Makeup || Evening Base

Yesterday at Uni I was writing an evening makeup post (shhhhh, don’t tell!).  When I hit the second page of a word document, I knew that no one wanted to read a makeup essay. So I have decided to break it up into two sections: base, and eyes and lips. Today I bring you the base component of my evening makeup ritual.

I start off with a clean face. Next I smother on some of the Nude by Nature Undercover Airbrush Primer. This is my primer of choice because it’s natural and non-toxic. My theory behind it is that this will provide a barrier for my skin and all the nasties in my makeup won’t be absorbed. Well I hope so.

Contouring follows, and I like to use the MAC Select Cover-Up Concealer in NW40 for this. I take a flat foundation brush and draw two lines down the hollows of my cheeks. Two lines are also drawn either side of my nose for a bit of slimming. Then I take the L’Oreal Magique Lumi highlighting pen and draw a line down the centre of my nose, in-between the two contouring lines. The brow bone, cupids bow and the tops of the cheek bones are also highlighted. At this point, I have some pretty scary looking lines drawn all over my face.

In order to blend these contouring lines out, I need my base. At the moment, I am currently using my “customisable” tinted moisturiser.  I take a dollop of the Grown Organic Alchemist Matte Moisturiser and a dollop of the MAC Select Cover-Up Concealer in NW20. I usually use about half as much of the concealer, but that of course depends on the condition of my skin. I then take a big buffing brush and buff the tinted moisturiser into my skin and blend out the contouring. Start where there is the least amount of contouring, as the brush will get a bit dirty from buffing out the contouring – you don’t want NW40 ending up on your NW20 forehead.

We’re almost done, I promise. Next I take my Studio Finish Concealer in NW20 and conceal any pimples. I also might need some extra concealing under the eyes, which I use the Magique Lumi to conceal. I then take some of the MAC Mineralise Skinfinish in Soft and Gentle and apply this shimmery highlighter on the tops of my cheekbones. Finally, I dust some of the Jurlique Citrus Silk Finishing Powder through my T-Zone to set it all.

Phew! For a girl who likes her makeup to look natural, that is one extensive base routine. Stay tuned for my evening eye and lip makeup coming soon!

X Suzy

The Skincare || Morning Skincare Routine #1

Skincare is my current obsession. That and tea, durrr. I wanted to write a post about my skincare bits and bobs, but that post would be a mile long. Instead I have broken it down into four categories, morning skincare, evening skincare, weekend skincare and miscellaneous skincare. Yes, I have so much skincare that I need a miscellaneous category, that's normal isn't it? And so, I bring you my morning skincare routine, drum roll please. 

I start my day by cleansing with my all time favourite cleanser, the Jurlique Purifying Foaming Cleanser. This one is full of lovely ingredients such as green tea extract, witch hazel extract, and calendula. It foams up quite nicely not too foamy, just perfect.

Next I spot treat my skin with what ever product my skin needs, mostly a blemish cream. My morning blemish cream (yes, I have an evening spot cream) is the Origins Super Spot Remover. I like this one because it sits rather nicely under makeup.

Following the pimple busting, I apply an eye cream, namely the Jurlique Herbal Recovery Eye Cream. This is a favourite for me, I'm on to my second tube of this. It has really helped with the fine lines but then again, ageing isn't my main concern so I don't know how powerful it really is.

Moving on to to moisturising, I use a combination of two products, the Trilogy Hydrating Mist Toner and the Grown Alchemist Matte Balancing Moisturiser. The moisturiser is a recent find for me, and I love it. At first it dries quite tacky, but then it smoothes out to create the nicest, even surface ever. It's so lovely I don't bother with a primer after this!

And that concludes my morning skincare routine, but you may be wondering were my SPF is. Currently, it's Spring and therefore the sun isn't that strong so I can get away with wearing an SPF 35 BB cream for everyday activities(e.g. going to uni, shopping). However, if I was to go outside for a walk or to the beach, I would defs put a proper sunscreen on.

I hope you liked the fist instalment of my skincare series and maybe picked up a few tips along the way. Keep an eye out for the next post in the series, Evening Skincare Routine #1!

Suzy x