A Makeup & Beauty Blog – Lipglossiping

For someone who can’t be bothered to find the time to moisturise… I’m doing an awful lot of moisturising recently.

My skin is DRY DRY DRY… and nothing is making it better.  Not even tried and tested solutions that have kept my skin in good condition over the years.  Infact, not even my trusty body oils are providing long-term relief.

I re-discovered this Lula Bloom Body Butter in the parcel that housed the GOSH smoky eyes palette I was sent by Superdrug PR.  I was in two minds about it, remember?  I hope this fares better.  I have a bit of a backlog I need to work through…

I wasn’t gonna crack it open, ‘cos it looks like one of those all style-no substance products doesn’t it?  Plus I wasn’t sure if it was aimed at teenage skin… it just has that look…  I was gonna give it to a younger family member, except I forgot.

After having a quick look at the ingredients and noticing that one of my favourite moisturising bases (Cocoa Butter) is right up there near the top of the list, I decided that I’d give it a go.

Lula Bloom Body Butter (stupid name) is housed in a satisfyingly heavy glass jar.  This won’t appeal to half of you, but I’m not wanting to carry it about anywhere other than to and from my bathroom shelf so I’m not bothered.  I like it.  I’ve already mentioned that the artwork on the packaging gives me the impression that this is aimed at a younger audience, but the price tag doesn’t really match those impressions.

£6.99 for 250ml.  That’s quite pricey.  I know as a teenager I wouldn’t have been able to afford something like this.  I had more important things like 20 Lambert & Butler and 3 litres of White Lightning to spend my pocket money on.

Ignoring my misspent youth for a moment, I was truly surprised by how creamy and smooth the texture proved to be.  The consistency is very thick and a small amount spreads a long way.  I can see a pot of this easily lasting me at least a month of daily use.  Yet, despite being thick, it feels quite light once it’s on the skin.  A winning combination.

The scent is overpowering… it’s nice, but it’s too “in your face” for me.  Again, it makes me think that the product is aimed at a younger audience.  It’s fruity, tropical… everything that a 14yr old girl would want to saturate herself with.  It reminds me of my younger self stood at The BodyShop’s perfume oil carousel display.  God, I’d come out of that store with a dewberry/fuzzy peach induced headache.

Overall, I really like the product… but it suffers from some kind of Body Butter schizophrenia.  It’s a top quality moisturisier, leaving my skin soft and conditioned for many hours… but it’s as if some prat in the development team (probably a bloke) has come along and ruined the delicate balance by chucking half a ton of tropical pot pourri in the mixing vat.  What gives Lula Bloom?

It needs to either ditch the overpowering smell and horrible artwork…. or shave about £3 off the price.  Have you tried this?  Am I too harsh?

I’ll tell you what though… if you happen to know a 12-17yr old you fancy treating… *points at the body butter* you wouldn’t go wrong with this.

Superdrug has a whole Lula Bloom range going (the body scrub is decent too! Lurid pink packaging though…).  Check out the range on the website here

Thinking it would be a great space-saving idea to pack a couple of dresses and woollen tights for London means that I’m more than over winter now.  Move along, make some room for Spring please.

With this in mind, I’m thinking warmth.  I’m channeling sunshine, balmy evenings and cloudless days.  And nothing evokes warm sub-tropical feelings better than the sweet scent of Frangipani.  Discovering the Hei Poa Monoi Beauty Oil whilst browsing Zuneta, has left me in a “I must have this immediately” frame of mind.  Oh, you know the one!  Yeah you do….

It’s a multi-use product.  I like those, I have so much crap variety of products in my bathroom, that I’m in dire need of a bit of space-saving.  You can use the Hei Poa Monoi Beauty Oil on your hair or your skin.  I’ve never really had a great relationship with hair oils (hello greasies!) but my skin drinks body oils up like my Nan in a Guiness factory.

Produced in Tahiti and priced at £9, Hei Poa beauty oils are completely natural, containing no preservatives or colourants.  They promise to leave skin and hair delicately scented and nourished. Yes Please!

Hei Poa products can be purchsed from Zuneta, I’m off to check out what else I feel like being tempted by on this miserable Tuesday afternoon!

With my love for cleansing oils fairly well documented, I was keen to try another in my (quite possibly) never-ending quest for the ‘perfect’ cleansing oil.

I want my oil to do 3 things…

1). Cleanse my skin (like, duh!)

2). Rinse clean leaving no oily residue.

3). Not dry my skin out.

There’s other stuff too like “smell nice”, “not break the bank”, “easy to dispense”, “look pretty in my bathroom”… but they’re secondary to my 3 Commandments of Cleansing Oils.

I was sent a bottle of Nude Cleansing Facial Oil for potential review and immediately liked it’s sleek, minimalistic exterior.  I am a sucker for packaging, and this ticks all the boxes for me.

Detergent free? So that’s SLS and the like which are well known culprits for stripping skin of moisture… good stuff!

The ingredients are listed as:

INGREDIENTS: glycine soja (soybean) oil, polyglyceryl-4-oleate (vegetable oil), squalene (olive oil), tocopherol acetate (plant sources), natural fragrance (parfum), benzyl benzoate (essential oil), linalool (essential oil), eugenol (essential oil)

The first thing I noticed was the quality of the ingredients… At £28 a bottle, this stuff isn’t cheap.  But if I think back to my SK-II, (which came in at a hefty £32) it’s central ingredient was mineral oil.  I commented then on how mineral oil is one of the cheapest substances on Earth and I’m delighted to see that Nude Skincare have stayed true to their Organic ethos by keeping their ingredients as natural and pure as possible.

On their website, Nude assert that…

Up to 70% of what we put onto our skin is absorbed into the blood stream. Our remarkable products work with the skin, using active ingredients that face and body can understand and use without harm.

I can get on board with that..

Packaging is 40% recycled plastic apparently and I have no quality issues to report.  The bottle is great for travel… I carted this up to the North East with me and didn’t experience any spillages.

The blurb says to dispense 1 or 2 pumps.. I don’t wear huge amount of makeup, but I don’t find 1 pump to be enough.  It’s quite a thick oil and doesn’t spread *that* easily.  2 pumps makes it easier to guide over my face, and if I’m wearing a smoky eye… then it needs to be 3, which is quite a lot compared to other oils.

When using this, I actually feel like I’m experiencing a ‘treatment’ rather than simply cleansing my face.  One of the reasons is the scent.  Quite strong and pungent, it’s inescapable.  If you’re not a fan of strong scents in your skincare products, then I’d think really carefully before purchasing this cleansing oil.  I’m a huge fan of the smell… it reminds me of something quite specific which you’d probably all laugh at, but which turns the whole experience into something a little more special than simply washing my makeup off.

I can’t really say that without telling you what it makes me think of can I?

OK… it reminds me of being a teenager at my parent’s home in France.  It reminds me of Autumn and of damp horse chestnuts scattered over the lanes… It reminds me of woodburners and the wood from those horse chestnut trees spitting as the resin gets caught by the flames.

Silly and very personal to me but I can only review on my experiences.  What’s useful for you to take away from that is the fact that scent-wise, I think you’d either love it or hate it.  Have a sniff of it next time you’re in Space NK and let me know what you think!

Because the oil is of a thicker, more viscous consistency, I find myself massaging it into my skin in little circles.  I do this without any real thought – it’s almost a subconscious action, and one that probably benefits my skin more than I appreciate.

What about cleansing though? Does it budge mascara, foundation, eye liners?  Yes… apart from when I use a particularly hard to budge eyeliner, I have no problems removing my makeup with this cleansing oil and my eyes suffer no sensitivity from wiping this over my eyelids.

It doesn’t emulsify as completely as I would like.  I’m finding this to be my main annoyance with most of the cleansing oils I’ve tried.  It (like many others) leaves a slightly oily feeling on my hands and face.  I don’t think it leaves a proper ‘residue’ per se, but my skin doesn’t have that squeaky clean feeling after rinsing off.  I need to second cleanse with another product when using this cleansing oil.

A huge plus point in it’s favour is that I’m not noticing this oil drying my skin out at all.  Compared to all the others I’ve tried and reviewed (DHC, Shiseido, SK-II, Smashbox) – this one leaves my skin feeling as soft and supple as promised.  I’m putting that down to those carefully selected ingredients.

So, Nude Cleansing Oil… are you my Holy Grail?  You *are* lovely and I have thoroughly enjoyed using you…. I love the feelings your scent invokes and the way you’ve quite unexpectedly turned my cleansing routine into a mini spa.  I just wish that you emulsified completely and were a little more affordable.

Pros: Beautifully Scented, Removes makeup well, Quality Ingredients, Great Packaging, Non-Drying & Luxurious to use

Cons: Doesn’t emulsify completely, Expensive

ON the 15th January, Garnier released the long-awaited update to their original Eye Roll-on which has accumulated fans across the globe.

Garnier 2in1 Tinted Eye Roll-On.

I don’t count myself a fan of the original non-tinted version. Despite finding it refreshing and a pleasing object to use, I just didn’t notice enough difference to justify a £10 price tag.  I was sent the new tinted version last week and have been excited at the prospect of a comparison!

I don’t have a particular problem with eye-bags, but dark circles are pesky nuisances that appear frequently thanks to late nights and early starts and concealer in that delicate area is something tricky to get right – especially on-the-go.  I’ve used many products and am currently favouring Bobbi Brown’s Creamy Concealer Kit (kindly gifted to me by LondonMakeupGirl) – it’s a fantastic product, but it’s not something I could use to touch-up with during the day.  I’m also not a fan of YSL’s Touche Eclat, I hate how it photographs and think it’s a particularly overrated product.

Like it’s counterpart, Garnier’s 2in1 Tinted Eye Roll On, comes in a purse-friendly tube, ergonomically shaped to fit comfortably in the palm of your hand.  It promises two things:

1. Immediate Coverage

2. Reduce the look of fatigue

Well, does it deliver?

Yes and Yes-ish…

It has the same roll-on application system as the original.  That roller ball is a joy to use, it’s smooth… never drags and is cooling to the touch.  Innovation at it’s absolute best.

It delivers a steady stream of product and in my (limited) experience, hasn’t blocked or clogged on me.  I put the original version in the fridge in the Summer for an extra-cooling experience, but I’m not sure how that would translate now that it contains coloured pigments.

Available in 2 shades: Fair and Medium, I received it in Fair.

As you can see, it’s a little darker than my (very pale) skin tone and a bit warmer aswell.  It claims to be able to “perfectly adapt to your skin tone”… I was unconvinced upon swatching.

Once rolled onto the eye area, it looks a better fit.  It blends easily and smoothly.  I use my ring finger to blend gently, I want to blend it with my skin… not rub it away!

Once blended, I’m pretty happy with the effect.  I don’t think it will replace my Bobbi Brown Creamy Concealer Kit (which is more heavy duty) – but I’ll definitely be carrying this in my makeup bag for touch-ups throughout the day.  It needs precise blending on me thanks to being a little too warm for my skintone, so I wouldn’t dare use it without a mirror… but I’m always gazing at my reflection in various shiny objects, so I’m sure I’ll be ok 😉

Oh, also! Very important and hugely positive.  No creasing!  I even layered it for more coverage and didn’t notice it seeping into the fine lines at all.  It has the same cooling effect as the original, but I still don’t notice any significant hydration of the area or anything that would suggest I’ve had 14hrs sleep… maybe I just need 14hrs sleep?

This is currently a Boots exclusive in the UK. Get it online here, priced at £9.99

Love it or hate it, Rose-scented products tend to polarise opinion… I’m in the love-it camp, I find it a comforting smell in a Granny kinda way.

I’m talking Granny in a cool Lily of the Valley sense.  NOT Granny in a mint imperials wrapped in tissue discovered in the bottom of a musty-smelling handbag sense.  I hope we’re clear on that?

Weleda Wild Rose Body Oil promises to protect skin from free-radicals whilst moisturising and promoting inner balance and harmony.

Inner balance? Harmony? Please excuse my whilst I attempt to mainline about 5 litres of the stuff directly into my veins… I’m on the final day of my inlaws visit.  I love them really… but… well, yano…

Oils are my thang, I’m a lazy git when it comes to body moisturising… and oils just seem easier to me than creams.  I apply them after turning off the shower taps whilst my skin is still damp.

Doing it this way, means I can be quick and messy and get the chore over with.  I also like to screw with Mr. L and leave an oily residue in the bath.  It’s like banana skins x700 billion.  *claps hands with glee*

I also find them to be great value for money.  Body Oils are generally more expensive than creams and lotions, but a little goes a very long way and a single bottle will easily last me 6 months of daily use.

I especially like the sound of this one ‘cos you can slather it on your face too… god I’m such a sloth.  I’m sussing myself out as I type this…  I want an all-over oil that I can apply in about 5 secs flat from top to toe without moving from the warmth of the bathroom don’t I?  Well.. step forward Weleda!

And this… ladies and um ladies, is why I’m announcing Weleda Wild Rose Body Oil a bonafide January Essential (for lazy flakey-skinned bitches).

Weleda Wild Rose Body Oil is available from LoveLula.com and priced at £18.95 for 100ml

Are you a body oil fan?

…if you had any to begin with.

So, Proctor & Gamble endured a wrist slap recently with their Olay Definity Eye Illuminator advert catching the attention of the Advertising Standards Agency in the UK.

The advert features the iconic Twiggy, now in her 60s…

It contained a testimonial from Twiggy stating: “Olay is my secret to brighter-looking eyes”.

Proctor & Gamble had already withdrawn the ad before it came under scrutiny, stating that they’d reviewed the post-production techniques that had been used in the creation of the ad and had found the “minor retouching” around the model’s eyes to be inconsistent with their policies which led them to replace the original ad.

I do hope the digital artist got bitch slapped by P&G, I mean seriously… that’s not even good retouching.  If you’re gonna exagerrate the effectiveness of your product, fine… but at least stay within some realms of reality.

Olay Definity’s latest Anti-Aging Night Cream Ad…

Wait!  There’s too much character in that face, back to the graphics tablet retoucher man and erase those wrinkles, pores… infact, remove all skin texture completely while you’re at it! *whip crack*

On the whole, I don’t have a problem with digital retouching. I feel that I’m enlightened enough to appreciate that a retouched image represents a distorted reality and I don’t mind looking at idealised photographs appreciating society’s desire for aesthetics.  I mean, let’s face it… Twiggy (as beautiful as she is) in her natural state is gonna sell as many eye-brightening products as I am diet pills – she’s 60 years old for chrissakes.  I don’t feel conned by a little airbrushing… but where’s the god-damn subtlety gone?

Just because we’re all used to seeing these altered images, ain’t no reason for you to get all complacent about it Mr. Digital Artist…

Use it to make models/celebrities look their best, not to transform them into freakish parodies of the media’s eternal quest for unattainable cartoonish perfection.

Ahhh… the lovely Demi, looking younger than Leila.

Hahhhahahaa!  Dude, Digital Retouching for Dummies… a book with your name on it.

As an advertising tool, I dig it… but 2009 saw it getting kinda out of control and almost self-referential in it’s absurdness.

What are your thoughts on airbrushing? Against it? A necessary evil?

Do you have any SUPER budget items that you enjoy using?

Waitrose sent me a few items from their newly extended “Essentials” range and I’ve been enjoying using their goodies.  One of my favs are the new 3in1 facial cleansing wipes.  They’re soft, nicely fragranced and do a good job at removing makeup in a rush.

Unlike other wipes I’ve tried, these also feel quite moisturising on my skin without leaving that tacky, sticky feeling behind – and all this for £1.45!

The “Essentials” range also includes hand wash, bath foam. bath crème, shower gel, soap bars, shampoo and conditioner.  Most products are priced at 99p.

My inner bargainista has been satisfied with this find!

You can pick these up in your local Waitrose or online.

Want it!

My cuticles are a mess… I’ve lost my little v-shaped trimmer thing that I normally use every couple of weeks to tidy up the edges before moisturising and my lemony flutter doesn’t seem to be making the difference it once did.

Yu-Be is the #1 selling medicated skin cream in Japan and contains the following skin-loving ingredients:

• Glycerin – Natural “Humectant” attracts and retains moisture in the skin, making it softer.
• Vitamin E – Natural anti-oxidant and skin protector.
• Vitamin B2 – Helps to smooth rough or damaged skin – also gives Yu-Be it’s yellow color.
• Camphor – Helps soothe minor skin irritations – mild scent fades in minutes leaving skin feeling healthy.

It contains no: Sulfates, Synthetic Fragrances, Synthetic Dyes, Petrochemicals or Phthalates

Available from Zuneta, priced at £11.74

The lovely VexintheCity got me lemming this cream just over a month ago when she nonchalantly tweeted that it was time to repurchase for the winter.  Repurchase?!  That’s a word I rarely hear in the beauty community and so it was that my interest was piqued!

When I was in London at the beginning of December I headed to The Garden Pharmacy on Long Acre to check out the Art Deco they stock there, but it wasn’t long before my attention was diverted when I saw the Dr. Hauschka display on the shelves nearby.

Dropping the Art Deco like a hot potato (such is the fickle nature of makeup shopping) I made a beeline for the Dr. Hauschka display and started rummaging amongst the plain-looking boxes to find what I was looking for:

It’s a thick, silky-feeling cream which as the name would suggest… is rose scented.  I don’t find the scent too overpowering, but then, I do like rose-scented things.

You get 30ml of product for a £20 price tag.  Yes, it’s expensive and I balked at the price.

I suffer every winter from dry patches on my face.  My skin doesn’t seem to be au fait with THE RULES.  It’s supposed to know to be oily on the nose and dry on the cheeks… such is the bane of typical combination skin.  My skin SCOFFS at THE RULES.   Crusty and flaky down the sides of the nose and on the chin/top lip line with a great big pimple on the cheek.

It dispenses easily out of the tube, thankfully at £20 a pop it doesn’t pour out too much product when you squeeze the tube.  As you can see from the following picture it spreads itself quite thinly too, so you really only need a small amount of product to get a great amount of coverage.

It has an impressive list of ingredients which (if interested) you can find here.

So how did I find it? Will I be repurchasing?

I loved it.

I’ve tried many ‘thick’ creams in the winter to combat the flaky bits that make foundation look horrific about 20secs after applying and I’ve tried many creamier foundations in an attempt to stave off that crusty, dry, clumpy effect I get over the dry patches.  Nothing worked until I picked up a tube of Dr. Hauschka’s Rose Day Cream.

I was wary about slathering it on my nose… It *is* thick and heavy feeling and I was concerned that my makeup would slide right off, but it sinks in nicely in about 3 minutes.

The singular reason why I will be repurchasing next winter is this…

It’s an instant cure.  I don’t have to apply this a couple of times a day to see the effect a few days down the line (hello Eucerin) – I simply slap a bit of this on and the dryness is gone.  A gentle rub with a dry flannel to exfoliate and remove any dead skin flakes and they’re not coming back for the day once this has sunk in.  And that’s what I want.  I have cuticles like cactus spikes because I’m not hugely dedicated to the cause of massaging cuticle butter into them 5 times a day.  Ooooh I’m gonna try this on my nails too, that was an instant brainwave right there… you’re watching genius as it happens people!

Anyway, I’m really happy with it.  I’m still gonna shriek at the numbers that pop up on the till next November, but when I think of all the money I’ve spent on rich day creams and foundations in an attempt to battle winter skin problems.  For me, it’s completely worth it.

You can find Dr. Hauschka’s Rose Day Cream online on their website where you can even purchase a sample size (although £3.50 p&p charges may make this seem less tempting).

I’m struggling! I need your help!

My lips are getting drier by the day and I’m at a loss as to how to restore them.

I’ve tried all the products you see in the picture below, I’ve applied religiously and thickly.  So thickly infact, I swear down I’ve put on 3lbs thanks to my newly formed lipbalm-licking habits.

So, aside from volumising my waist line… this little lot has done nothing to improve the state of my lips.

I’m thinking that maybe it’s more about the routine than the product?

Should I be exfoliating? Should I be wearing balms with lipstick ontop? Should I buy a scarf to wrap around my mouth if it’s windy? (Dont’ think I can’t hear you muttering Mr. L…) Perhaps I need to apply a winning combo before bed?

They’re not so bad that they’re flaky or even sore.. but my lipsticks are looking like shit on me because of it – and that ladies and errr ladies, just won’t do.

Tell me, what can I do?

I’m my own worst enemy.. I suffer from dry skin, particularly in the winter and one of the worst places for this are my hands.

Despite this, I hate hand creams.  I avoid them like the plague.  I am yet to find one that doesn’t leave a greasy, sticky or at best slightly clammy feeling (and I’ve tried a lot!).

The only thing for it, is to minimise anything that dries my hands out.  This was never a problem for me before I had Leila, but now she’s 6 months old and I’m dreading this winter.  My hands are constantly in contact with baby wipes, which seem to suck all moisture from them (yet they’re fine for her bottom – go figure?).

I was offered a Surya Hand Sanitizer to trial and I was pleased to do so as it’s a product I use often when out and about with the babs in tow.

The Surya Hand Sanitizer carries a little tagline which I didn’t notice in the press release and only discovered after a couple of days use: Moisturizing (yes, spelt the American way).

Surely that’s an oxymoron?  Since when are hand sanitizers (mostly composed of alcohol) anything other than incredibly unmoisturising?

Well… I actually do find this to be pretty good compared to my usual brand of sanitizer (Carex if you’re interested).

I wouldn’t go so far as to call it moisturising, but my hands don’t seem to dry out so much after use and I don’t get a tingling sensation like I do with other brands.

The scent is a little overpowering – an odd combination of mint and lavender, both seem to vye for my attention in an altogether slightly too heady manner, but thankfully the scent it leaves on my hands is a lot more understated than on initial use.

Perhaps most importantly, it dries quickly without leaving any kind of residue.  If you’re in the kind of profession where you need to use these products often – I’d really recommend this as a gentler alternative to many other brands on the market.

Surya Moisturizing Hand Sanitizer is available in two sizes: a 60ml handbag size (£7.00) ideal for busy (who am I kidding?) Mums like me, and a 200ml (£10.00) “desktop” size.

Available to buy from Liberty and online from their website.

…then I could do with some extra brownie points.

Post-Sproglette, I’ve become a consummate hand-washer.  Not that I’m suggesting I was a slutty slut pre-child… it’s just that I took all this hygiene stuff for granted.  I didn’t pay much attention to products designed for chores as mundane as laundry, dish-washing, hair-brushing or hand-washing.

Nowadays, things are a bit different…  not only are my hands regularly red raw from scrubbing “Eau de Baby Pooh” off them, but you will often find me lurking infront of the soaps, bubble baths, handwashes and shaving oils at TK Maxx coo-ing over the various scents and colours.  It’s a sad fact that even shaving one’s legs becomes a luxury post-bébé if it means you get to spend time alone in the bathroom.

I was therefore pleased (and secretly excited) to be sent a new hand wash to have a sniff of.

Method are a brand that pride themselves on non-toxic, environmentally friendly homecare products.  And this hand wash is no exception.  It comes in 3 varieties:

L-R: Sweet Water, French Lavender & Pink Grapefruit

They say:

Our hand washes are made with naturally-derived, biodegradeable ingredients, contain vitamin E and aloe and have never been tested on animals.  Served up in bottles made from 100% recycled plastic.

I got French Lavender which I immediately thought I’d dislike.  I’m not a huge fan of lavender (French or otherwise), I associate it with those scented drawer sachets that old ladies are so fond of… but this isn’t too overpowering at all.  It’s subtle and leaves only a mild trace of the scent on your skin after washing.

The product foams nicely and most importantly rinses clean quickly.  I hate soaps that leave residue on your skin don’t you?

Perhaps most importantly, I’ve been using this all day today and yesterday and I haven’t noticed it drying my skin out at all.

I love the smell of my Simple Peppermint & Mandarin hand wash (yes I have a favourite… sad) but it dries my skin terribly… to the point where my hands have been cracking thanks to it’s harsh anti-bac ingredients.

Perhaps the best move would be to leave all the nappy changes to Mr. Lipglossiping.  That way, I could go back to concentrating wholly on fabulous things and leave the hand-washing (and laundry) to him.

It’s a nice thought, but whilst I wait patiently for hell to freeze over I’ll content myself with a new-found hand wash that does exactly what it says on the (biodegradeable) bottle.

And even better…. until the 3rd November, you can get a 1/3rd off Method hand washes at Boots, currently priced at £2.15 each.

——————————————–

Before I go, I was also pleased to discover that Method do a nice line in baby products, look:

Squeaky Green Nappy Cream… Rice Milk and Mallow… yum! Can I eat it?

Leila has the ECO-est bum in the whole of England!