Before Bed Skin Prep | Bedtime Routine

The past week or so I've really got into quite a routine at night: 1. to try help me fall asleep quicker and 2. To try make my skin feel and look better. For me personally bed time is just the burden of my life. I 99% of the time can't fall asleep before 3 in the morning or my puppy goes mental meaning I just generally can't get to sleep.

The absolute first thing I do now when I'm getting ready for bed now is to light a candle - preferably a non-scented one. I've been burning Avon's Sleep Serenity one recently just to see if it can actually help me drift off better. But I just like have a candle burning as I get into my pj's and fix my face and what not. I'll also spray my pillow with a pillow mist, the one I use is also from Avon - anything to help me drift off. I do quite like this one, and while I was still going to classes this really did help me fall asleep a lot quicker and when I did drift off I slept a billion times better.

The next thing I'd do is to moisturise my face, so just now that means the La Roche Possay Duo followed by Hydraluron and finishing off with a cheap Garnier moisturiser that I've been trying to use up. After my skins all lovely and soft its only fair to give my lips a little attention - so on goes Reve De Miel. Perfect little pot of sherbety lemony buttery goodness.

My body does need a little bit of loving as well, more so my feet. I've been making sure that they get a good slobber of cream on them each night. I'll quickly buff over my feet with my pedegg, I'm not high class enough to have an electric foot buffer, and then cover my feet in a thick layer of cream and wear socks over night.
For the rest of my body I apply some of the Body Shops Pink Grapefruit lotion to any overly dry bits on le bod. The smell of this is heavenly.

What do you do before you go to bed?

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Pay Day Haul | Urban Decay, Origins, Boots

I've been pumping out a lot of hauls recently, I think I've missed a few on my blog but if you watch my YouTube then you'll know that basically all of my recent videos have been hauls. Is that bad? It probably is, but y'know I probably won't have another haul any time soon ( my bank balance begs me no more). But this last haul was 1. due to me getting my last pay through and 2. because I had vouchers and coupons.
So after university I went to Boots, had a stroll. Bought two things.

The first being a Maybelline Colour Tattoo in Metallic Pomegranate. I've been wanting to get into eye shadow recently - so I've been gathering more and more eye shadows recently. £4.99 for a brilliant long lasting beautifully coloured shadow.

The second thing I got from Boots was the Philosophy Microdelivery Exfoliating Cleanser - I had a little voucher to get 1000 (£10) bonus points on my card. How could I say no to that?! This is something that I saw about a month ago when it was released and wanted instantly to try some of the products from the range, this was the cheapest thing from the range, but even then at £22 wasn't exactly cheap. But I justified it by my getting £10 worth of points back on it. I can't wait to try it out - if anyone has a review please let me know.

Next up I went to Debenhams. Now I went there in mind with getting the Urban Decay Naked palette - either one or two - surprisingly they had all 3 in. In the end I went for the original - people I had spoken to about it said to go with the first one for your first palette. I used the vouchers I had to buy this, I had a £5 Debenhams voucher and some love to shop ones - in the end I only ended up only paying £15 cash for it! Brilliant. I can't wait to start playing around with it and make some pretty looks with it.

The final thing I purchased was Origins GinZing moisturiser. I have been eyeing this for awhile, and since I only had one moisturiser left I decided now was the time to pick it up. It was £23 and came in a box with 4 sample sizes of the Clear Improvements Charcoal Face Mask. It smells like chocolate oranges and I can't wait to start using it.

Have you picked up anything special recently? 

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Soap and Glory Serum and Night Cream

Todays post is slightly different from what I usually do. Recently ( not really now this post has gone up) my mum bought herself a couple of soap and glory face products, they seemed really pretty so I thought I would do a little post on them. My mum tkaes pretty good care of her skin, always has and probably always will. She has tried so many facial creams that claim to show results and so far has only found one that she feels has made a difference to her skin. The other day we spotted a Soap and Gory stand, everything on it had been reduced - I got one thing and my mum got two.
The two items she got were Wish Upon A Jar night cream and Make Yourself Youthful 2 Super Serum. I don' think my mum has ever used a serum before, so this is a new step in her routine. She bought the night cream since the one she currently uses - No7 Lift and Luminate - is almost finished. The packaging looks really lovely, box and product.

Look how beautiful Wish Upon A Jar looks!! The night cream claims to help reduce the appearance of wrinkles, increases elasticity, firms and smooths skin. This is £16 full price in Boots. On the Boots website they say "A potent anti-aging mix of tetrapeptides, essential fatty acids, antioxidants, and oxygen boosters... it brightens, lifts, smooths away wrinkles, and leaves your face looking radiant."" My mum has been using this for 3 or 4 days and I have to say my mums skin looks more even, brighter and more radiant  than usual. Even if all it does is leave your skin looking lovely and healthy I think it would be worth it.

She also picked up Make Yourself Youthful Super Serum. There was another serum there, but this one was a Super Serum so y'know best to go for the super one. This serum claims to smooth the appearance of fine lines & wrinkles, rehydrate, firm and tone, boost collagen, increase skin elasticity, re-energize tired-skin, battle free radicals and correct uneven skin tone. That is a heck of a lot of things! From what I remember in Chemistry class, free radicals are really harmful to the skin and speed up the ageing process. Antioxidants are needed in any skincare routine and in the diet. This probably is contributing to my mums lovely looking skin - even after only 4 or so days. Apparently after 30 days her skin should be lovely firmer and generally just better looking. The Serum is £20 full price - I think we got it for £13. 

Both products are very lightly scented, they smell fresh and a little sweet. The night cream is quite thick, so you only need a little of it, so it should last quite a while. 

My mum does really like this and does think that her skin looks better since using it, the words younger, fresh and healthy came up in her description of it. 

I think my mum is planning on buying some more of Soap and Glorys skin care ( she has repurchsed the Serum, it seemed to run out rather quickly...)

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Starting Off: Skincare

I came in a bit late to the Starting Off series, so I'm now starting back at the start to try and finish the entire series. The first one was meant to be Skincare, so that is what I'll do now. I love skincare, and I'm really just beginning to get really into it. Of course everyone has a different skin type, and most of the time what works for one person may not work for another. And obviously you have got to take into account your age, at different ages your skin needs different things - I'm no expert on the different stages of ageing skin, but I think when you get to your mid 20's you have to start treating your skin a bit kinder.
Obviously it is essential to take your make-up off at the end of the day, and I do this every time without fail. If I have been drinking I wont do it as deeply, but I still make sure I take it off before I go to bed. I like knowing that my face is semi clean.
Depending on who you speak to, really will depend on what they say is a really good skin care regime. For me a really solid skincare regime is cleanse - possibly twice, spot treatment and then a really good moisturiser. There are other things you can throw in if you like, things such as toner, serums and other lotions and potions. But for me as a basis, cleanser, spot treatment and moisturiser is what I've got down.

So for the first step, cleanser. I love a good double cleanse, I never thought I would say that, but I am now that type of gal. I like spending time on my skin, and as I have a very oily skin type I really do think I need to spend that extra time on making sure my skin doesn't get any worse than it already is. If you can't be bothered with a double cleanse then thats fine - sometimes I can' be bothered either. On days when I don't want a double cleanse I'll use a facial wash first, then wipe over my face with some toner/micellar water to get any residue. There is many different types of cleansers as well, and I don't think there are specific type for specific skin types. Try things out and see what works for you, just because one type of cleanser is meant for a different skin type to what you have doesn't mean it won't work for you. By this is mean that some people say that cream, gel, foaming, balm ect cleansers are all meant for specific skin types, I think I've tried at least one of all these types. I would say, just don't use a body soap. It's not meant for your face, and it could really dry your skin out. Over the last fw months I've been using up loads of facial washes, Garnier ones, Elemis ones, and now Soap and Glory's peaches and clean. I think soon I'm going to open up my Origins Checks and Balances face wash. The Soap and Glory one is amazing, its so lovely and creamy. And if you skin doesn't agree with foaming cleansers then that one would be perfect for you. Unfortunately facial cleansers are just a case of trial and error to try and find what works for you.

Next for me is spot treatment, I have typical teenage skin so y'know a spot treatment is sort of a must have. I've not yet found the mother of all spot treatments, and just now I've only tried a couple. One I go back to, and I am almost out of it, is the Freederm gel treatment. I have another treatment by nip + fab so I don't think I'll rush out to get the Freederm one when it runs out. Do you have any spot treatments that you would recommend, I'm on the hunt for a new one.

The final daily step is to moisturise. I never used to moisturise, I mean why would I need to my skin is oily?! After a lot of online research I decided to go ahead and buy one - this was quite a few years ago and I've gone through quite a few. Moisturiser is a must have as it makes sure your skin has the proper amount of moisture. You do need to try and find one specifically for your skin type as, if for example I was to go for one designed for dry skin then I would have waaay to moisture and I would look really oily. One way to ensure you get a moisturiser for your skin type is to do some research, bloggers have a huge amount of wisdom to give about stuff like this, you could also go straight to a beauty counter and get some help there. They know - at least they should - all about their products and should be able to find something designed for your skin type, or something that would work with you - even if its not specifically for your skin type. Origins recommended I get GinZing even though its not specifically for oily skin, it is oil free and I really want it so heres hoping it works.
Those are the things I do on a daily basis, both morning and night. You should notice your skin looks better, if after a few weeks something isn't working for you, try something else and see how that goes. You can of course add in other things like face masks and facial scrubs to use once or twice a week.

What do you use in your skin care regime?

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Johnson's Baby Light Oil Spray

A few weeks ago I was reading cosmopolitan, and I stopped to read an article title "Love Your Skin". My skin needs little loving so I thought I would read it. I even pulled the page out so I could keep the wisdom it contained.
My skin is ridiculously dry and the hot, dry weather has made it worse. The article was basically just saying that Johnson's Baby oil Spray is the thing you need to make your skin heavenly.
I agree 100% with this. My skin has never felt better than it does now. 3 squirts on each limb and tah dah you are done. Soft as a baby.
My biggest worry was that this would be greasy when it dried. But no! When it dried, it soaked right in to your skin. And it didn't take very long to dry in. This is a complete no fuss way to moisturise. Hip Hip Hurray.
I hate moisturising. But I love this. This gets top marks in my books.

Have you tried this? How did you find it? 

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Elemis Fresh Skin Kit

Recently I won a give away that Mia, Teenage Beauty Blog, was having. I never win anything, so I was so happy when she contacted me. What I won was a lovely Fresh skin kit by Elemis. I'd never tried anything by Elemis before, but had always wanted to so this kit was perfect. Thank you so much Mia :)

The kit contained a face wash, moisturiser and a face mask sachet.

The Peachy Perfect gentle face wash is one of the nicest face washes I have used for awhile. For one it is peach scented, I really like adore peach scented things. Peach tea. Peach anything. Its a hydrating face wash, which is something I wouldn't usually have gone for since my skin is insanely oily. But I do think that my skin is looking and feeling better, which makes me think my skin is maybe dehydrated - along with being oily. I've used my No7 face washer to use this and I've also done it manually. I find that this leaves your skin feeling really clean - but not tight. Skin feels really really soft after using it. I haven't broken out from using it and that makes me really happy, I've not had much luck recently with new skin care. I enjoy using this with my hands most though, it feels soft and silky when you massage it on your face. I feel I should mention again that the smell is heavenly.

The sachet of face mask is only big enough for one use, but I think one use was all I needed to be left wanting more. The mask is a thick, like greek yogurt, cream and when you apply it to your face it slowly sinks in. It feels soft and relaxing, and after 10 minutes your left with a face that is as soft as a babies bottom. I didn't really notice the smell of it, which personally I like. I hate having a face mask that all you can smell for the time you have it on is the mask next to your nose. It sticks with you even when you remove it - no thank you. I really want to get my little hands on some more of the mask - its amazing.

This moisturiser smells lovely, just like a lavender plant. Lavender is probably one of my favourite scents. Its relaxing and calming, and if I'm honest makes me feel sleepy. I have trouble sleeping and have done for a couple of years, and using this at night time helps me get to sleep a lot quicker. Or at least that's what I think it does. I probably wouldn't use this during the day, as I might find myself dozing off. Probably not the best. Along with the fact I don't think this would control my crazy oily skin, if your skin wasn't so oily this might be OK for you though. But for a night time moisturiser this is perfect. It feels soft and silky on the skin, and leaves your skin feeling softer than a baby.

I highly recommend this to anyone that wants to try something new or is looking for a gift. Do you have any kits that you would recommend? 

★

Nivea In Shower Body Moisturiser

I've had really dry skin for quite awhile. My legs are the worst though, they flake - kind of like a lizard shedding its skin. Gross. But no matter how much I tell myself that I need to apply moisturiser, I never EVER stick to it. I'm just too lazy. So when I saw people on YouTube talking about Nivea's in shower body moisturiser I thought I could give it a go.
It is so simple and easy to use, its fragrance free which is good since you obviously wash with soap in the shower and don't want to be a bundle of scents. It claims that you don't need to wait for it to soak in, like other moisturisers.
I don't quite agree with this, if I were to dry myself off then straight away get dressed my skin would feel sticky and like a was all sweaty. So I do think there is drying time needed for it to fully soak into my skin, but I do think it is so much easier than applying moisturiser all over after showering. I have the one for dry skin, since my little legs are so very very flaky. I'm not sure if the stickiness would go away if I used the one for normal skin.
I would say if you have moisturisers in your house not to bother going out and buying this since its probably just as good to moisturise when your dry.

★

Nip+Fab Oily Skin Fix Review

I've been looking for something to help my skin, as it is extremely oily, and for awhile I thought I was never going to find something that was affordable. Finally I found something that does the job, Nip+Fab are now my new best friends.

The Oily Skin Fix set is heavenly, if my skin wasn't quite so oily I'm pretty sure this would have been the single best thing to ever happen to me.
The kit contains 3 things; a facial cleansing wash, a moisturiser and a spot gel.
Clean Fix Gel is described as "a deep cleansing and purifying foaming formula for super clean skin." This makes my skin feel really clean, I've used lots of facial washes before and most make my skin feel very tight or don't give a good enough clean - so my skin ends up pretty drap and quite a wee bit unhealthy (by unhealthy I mean oily, blackheads and spots). Since using this my skin hasn't been nearly as spotty and my skin goes longer without becoming oiler than a frying pan.

To help with this the Shine Fix helps keep my oily skin at bay. I even apply this later in the day over my make-up if my face is getting overly oily. Nip+Fab say this =has "microsponges" in it that "target and prevent shine". This is also meant to be a black head buster, but I can't say I've noticed my blackheads disappearing. For an affordable moisturiser it works wonders, and I was overly impressed with it. Since I hadn't yet found an affordable/ drug store this was a little god send. I would say that since it is a tiny tube I will still be on the hunt for something bigger, maybe even on the pricier side, but in the mean time I will definitely re-purchase Shine Fix.

The final part of the kit is the Spot Fix, I haven't yet tried this out since I'm in love with my Freede

rm spot gel. But if the rest of the kit is anything to go by then this spot gel will be amazing. It contains salicylic acid which is brilliant for tackling spots. And I think I will be switching from Freederm to this as, Freederm, as far as I am aware, does not contain salicylic acid. 

  Nip+Fab were certainly right when they say this is a 'cult classic' I will certainly be picking another one of these sets up, at £15.95 full price or £7.50 from ASOS. I highly recommend this set to anyone that has oily skin. 

 ★

Garnier Moisture Match Shine Be Gone Mattifying Cream

I saw this awhile back and thought, this sounds like a nice wee idea, so naturally I picked one up. I bought the one named 'Shine Be Gone' for oily skin.

I got this for £3.99, this was an introductory price and is normally £5.99.
This moisturiser claims to be "Perfect for combination to oily skin" and is "enriched with Green Tea extract". It also claims to keep skin shine free all day, I cant say that my skin is shine free all day, I would say I'm shine free for around 6 hours.
For the price I wasn't expecting a miracle. I think this works just as well as the moisturiser I use from Morrison's which costs around £2. The only plus side to the Garnier moisturiser is the amazing smell, it just smells so fresh and sweet, lovely when you put it on in the morning. It may just not have been right for my skin since my skin is overly oily, if you have slightly oily skin this may be appropriate for you.
For the price its not a bad moisturiser but I'm in the market for something to battle my seriously oily skin.

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