March Favourites

It only feels like yesterday that I was putting together my February favourites and yet here we are again, another month gone. Where does the time go? Anyway, here are a few things I've been obsessing over recently.

I raved about the La Roche-Posay Effaclar A.I. Targeted Breakout Corrector recently, which as well as being an every day staple in my skincare routine also takes the award for longest product name ever, but I also picked up the Effaclar Duo+ and am equally impressed. This blogger fave is working wonders on my old acne scars and combined with the targeted corrector is helping to prevent current blemishes leaving new marks. Just like the targeted corrector it has a lovely fresh scent, is easily absorbed and wearable under makeup. I use this more as a treatment with a separate moisturiser on top as it's not enough for my combo/dry skin but it isn't overly drying in itself and would probably be fine alone on oilier skins.

There's been a huge stir about the new Revlon ColourBurst Balms and that was a bandwagon I was quite happy to jump onto! I prefer the glossier lacquer balms as I think the colours are just a bit more flattering on me, especially with my new found love of a bold lip, and my absolute favourites are Provocateur (bright reddish pink) and Enticing (darker red with a hint of brown). Staying power is reasonable, especially Provocateur which fades to a pretty stain, and they have a delicate minty fresh scent.

I'm actually on my second bottle of Lush Tea Tree Water and that in itself is a sign of approval as I'm not generally one for the repurchasing unless I really like something. This is light, refreshing and offers the antibacterial benefits of tea tree without being drying or stinky. I like to spritz it onto a cotton pad and gently wipe across my face, focussing on any pesky blemishes. It's also nice to hold the pad against any particularly irritated blemishes for a minute or two to help take the heat out of them.

I have to confess I'd never tried a fixing spray before but I saw Sineadycady use the MUA Pro Base Fixing Mist on a video a while back and figured it was worth a try for only a fiver. I've used it for a couple of weeks now to try and give me makeup some extra sticking power at the office and it's done a pretty good job. My foundation and concealer stay looking fresher for longer and my blush doesn't disappear quite so rapidly. A fiver well spent me thinks!

And a few other things I love but I've already bored you enough singing their praises:
Bourjois 123 Perfect CC is my current go to base giving me even skin, decent coverage and just a hint of the glowies.
S&G Endless Glove has officially taken over from Hand Food as my favourite hand cream.
Percy & Reed Perfectly Perfecting Wonder Balm is doing something fab for my hair and I like it!

What's got your beauty senses tingling this month?

Bourjois 123 Perfect CC

The whole double letter cream thing pretty much passed me by. I tried the Garnier oil free BB version and hated it (rubbish coverage, too dark, left me looking greasy) so pretty much avoided anything similar, but I was tempted to try the new Bourjois 123 Perfect Colour Correcting Cream as it promised to be something a little different.

Containing three coloured pigments to battle multiple skin woes (white for dark spots, apricot for fatigue and green for redness) and offering SPF 15 and 24hr hydration in an oil free base this sounds like a pretty impressive offering, and it is.

Although coverage is medium at best it's not meant to conceal everything (that's what concealer is for, duh!). The coloured pigments do even out my various skin tone issues, mainly redness and purplish scarring, rather well and leave my skin looking more awake and just the right side of glowing to be luminous without looking greasy. The formula is lovely and hydrating, which my dry skin appreciates, but also light weight so it shouldn't sit too heavily on oily skins. Staying power is also pretty respectable lasting pretty much all day with only one blot around lunchtime.

This is definitely one to apply with the makeup brushes God gave you (i.e. your fingers) as I found my Real Techniques expert face brush absorbed some of the product making application look a little patchy. My one complaint is that the shade range is pretty poor with only 4 to choose from. As always I went for the lightest (31 Ivory) and it's still ever so slightly dark for my pale winter complexion but this is a problem I have with all Bourjois bases and to be fair as it's not heavy or full coverage it's still perfectly wearable.

A quick word should also go to the accompanying 123 Perfect CC Eye Concealer. This is a hydrating(ish) and highlighting offering which comes in a clicky tube with a nice hygienic plastic applicator. A little goes a long way with this and it does brighten nicely but it's quite sheer so I tend to use it either as a second concealer or apply a second coat on the darkest areas of my eyes (usually the inner corner). Sadly I do find it settles into my lines a little, although at the moment my undereyes are so dry and dehydrated I suspect even the most hydrating concealer in the world probably would!

There is a third 123 Perfect product, a proper foundation, which I'm rather tempted to try...

Have you tried any of Bourjois' 123 Perfect products? Any recommendations for a super hydrating eye cream?!

February Favourites

Gosh, another month gone already? I know February's the short one but it seems to have just flown by! Thankfully that means spring is getting that wee bit closer (yippee!) but until it lands here are a few of my favourite things from the last four weeks.

My skin is having a little mini freak out at the moment. It's dehydrated, irritated and dear lord the blemishes! Fortunately I rediscovered an old favourite in the Clinique Anti Blemish Solutions Clear Blemish Gel and put it straight back into service to try and tackle the worst eruptions. Applied at night it forms a little seal over the spot, dries it up and draws all the yucky stuff out (gross) so irritation is calmed and the spot heals quicker. I have to admit it stings a bit and can leave a bit of a dry patch while it's doing its thing but it most definitely helps, especially when teamed with tea tree oil.

Something else saving my skin at the moment, or at least the foundation on it, is Soap & Glory's One Heck of a Blot. My office has horrible air quality when it's busy which dries my skin out, and it in turn retaliates by becoming oily so that by the afternoon I've got more than my fair share of forehead "glow" going on. However, gently dabbing this across it restores my preferred matte look without emphasising either my pores or my expression lines. It's my first foray into S&G makeup but I doubt it'll be my last.

Now that my hair is shorter it seems to look dirtier quicker than when I had epic lengths to hide the third day grit but washing too often leaves it dull and dry so I've been dipping my toe in the world of dry shampoos. I hate the smell of pretty much all the Batiste offerings and the Superdrug one I tried was totally ineffective but having seen the hype for Dove Style+Care Dry Shampoo I figured it was worth a try, and I'm happy to report that the hype was well deserved. It feels like it actually cleans rather than just masking the mucky bits, it doesn't leave white residue all over my black hair (not a good look) and it smells fresh but not overpowering. It even adds a nice dose of volume. Lovely!

On a totally random note one of my favourite finds this month is a simple anti-perspirant. One of my pet peeves is how difficult it is to find a truly fragrance free spray to keep me feeling fresh - many claim to be but there's always a hint of something lurking in there! I love the perfumes I wear so I don't want my deodorant interfering with them and fortunately this Sure Pure Protection genuinely doesn't have any scent whatsoever. Nor does it have any alcohol, parabens or colourants. Plus it's genuinely effective and the dinky compressed version is perfectly handbag sized for top ups on a long day. Sometimes it's the simple things in life, dontcha think?

My final favourite isn't a product as such but I've been enjoying it so much I had to share. I've been using Trilogy Organic Rosehip Oil every night for the last couple of months but recently I've started taking the time to do a good five minutes of facial massage rather than just slapping it on. The idea is to help with drainage to try and stop those pesky groups of spots forming in the lower areas of the face. I think it actually does help because despite my skin's little hissy fit recently my chin and most of my jawline, usually prime blemish real estate, have remained reasonably clear. It's also really relaxing so it's the perfect little extra step to help me chill out before bedtime.

February is traditionally miserable but what's been making your month that little bit brighter?

Learning to Love Liner

My eyes are my favourite facial feature and I probably spend proportionately more time making them up than the rest of my face. Although my makeup collection is rather modest by beauty blogger standards I must admit the majority of it is eye based and although I'm always looking for new tips on how to do different looks I'm generally happy with my day to day look. However, there was one product I'd always wanted to master but never seemed to get right - liquid liner. Well, the time has come to woman up and learn!

I have two felt tip liners - the Kiko Ultimate Pen Long Wear Eyeliner, which has quite a fine tip tapering to a very fine point, and the No7 Stay Precise Felt Tip Liner, which is slightly thicker but more tapered. Both are very black and last for ages but I think the Kiko one slightly has the longevity edge. Both are very simple to use with good ink flow and being slim are well suited the liner novice like myself. Like all felt tip liners they're best stored cap down to prevent them drying out.

I'm still no expert but now at least I'm confident I can manage a reasonable line along my lashes. So here are the tips that really helped me get to grips with it:

• If shaky hands are an issue (they certainly are for me) then try resting your elbow on a hard surface so you're not trying to support the weight of your arm while drawing your line.
• Don't try and draw your line in one go unless you're super confident. Go from the inner corner to the middle then from the middle to the outer corner so you end up with the thickest part of the line on the outer corner.
• I often find my lashes, which are quite long, get in the way so I simply hold them out of the way with my other hand leaving a clear canvas to draw on. 
• If you're not sure where to place a flick then stick a post-it note along the line between the outer corner of your eye and the tip of your brow.  
• Get yourself on YouTube and check out some tutorials to see exactly how its done. There are loads of good ones out there, including some which will show you the best line to suit your eye shape.
• As the saying goes, practice makes perfect and that's certainly true here. I got into the habit of trying out my line before I took my makeup off each night for a fortnight and I improved really quickly. Just keep trying tit out and eventually you'll find a way of doing it that works for you.   

Applying liquid liner is definitely a skill but it's not impossible!

Are you a liquid liner expert or a novice like me?