Favourite Products for Eczema & Dry Skin

I have suffered from eczema for as long as I can remember (I even re-call being made to wear gloves in bed so I didn’t itch and ruin my legs whilst I slept).  For the most part, I have just accepted it as an annoyance that makes my skin really unattractive but I’m still always on the look out for products that ease the itching and soothe my skin.

I mostly get eczema on my shoulders, tops of my arms and legs and I find that it flares up when I’m stressed, sad or when the weather changes (I have it quite badly at the moment because the sun has come out and I have lots of work on).  It’s a constant battle as sometimes I hardly even notice myself itching and the dry patches it leaves on my skin aren’t pretty and do make me a little self conscious!

I decided to put together a little collection of creams that I find work really well for my eczema for all those out there that are also suffering!

Kiehls Creme de Corps – This stuff is pricey but with regular use it is perfect for eczema.  This is the body lotion I use when I get out of the bath/shower daily – I give myself a full body moisturize using this and I feel fabulous afterwards.  This can be known to stain white clothes and bedsheets (and tints them a hint of yellow) but I haven’t experienced this.

La Roche-Posay Cicaplast Baum – My workmate Lucy gave this to me as she knows I suffer with eczema and I adore it.  This is a super thick and creamy lotion which does leave you greasy but has ingredients known to soothe and repair the skin.  I do find that I need to let this sink in properly before I get dressed because it is super greasy at first, but it’s an absolute treat to use.

E45 Intense Recovery Lotion – I have tried countless body creams from the highstreet in my years, many from E45, non of which have ever worked.  This is one of their new lotions however which is specifically aimed at extremely dry skin.  This is perfume free and helps to lock in moisture.  It this leaves my skin feeling moisturized but not overly sticky.

Yu-Be Moisturizing Cream – Yu-Be is a hidden gem in the beauty world.  It’s a bright yellow cream (kind of vaseline consistency but without the mineral oils so it doesn’t block pores) which smells like camphor which I quite like.  Once applied to the skin the smell and colour fade and you are left perfectly moisturized.  This is a fab multiuse product, I have used it on lips, elbows, eczema patches as well as to help heal a new tattoo.  I really like this!

Kiehls Creme de Corps Soy Milk and Honey Whipped Body Butter -  This is pretty much identical to Creme de Corps above except it has a delicious smell (the other is un-fragranced) and is almost a thick version of a body butter.  As this is ‘whipped’, it has a gorgeous fluffy texture which sinks beautifully into the skin, leaving you feeling soft and smelling great.  Normally products with fragrance tend to irritate my eczema more but this hasn’t so it’s a thumbs up from me.

Coconut Oil (not pictured) – Pure coconut oil is one of the greatest multi-purpose products out there (it can even be used to cook with) but I’ve been using it a lot on my dry patches recently and it does a sublime job.  This oil is hard but melts in your hand so you are left with the most gorgeous smelling silky oil which sinks in perfectly.  I will write a full blog post on this and all of its uses very soon (once I purchase some more – I’m running low)!

Bepanthen (not pictured) – I recently started getting eczema an really terribly dry skin on my face for the first time and it freaked me out! I had to go eye makeup-less for a few days until it calmed down, but I found the only thing that helped my face was Bepanthen.  Originally a nappy rash cream, this thick cream can be used for many purposes.  All the other face creams I tried on the flare-up around my eyes stung incredibly, but this didn’t!  It’s affordable and a beauty of a product!

There we have it – my top picks to help conquer eczema!  I really hope that this post has helped at least one person suffering!  I do find that when it is particularly difficult to get rid off when I’m stressed, regardless of the creams I’m using, but they definitely help to lessen the problem.

What’s your favourite cream for dry skin?

xxxx

June 2013 Glossybox Contents and Review!

I had a little realisation the other day that I hadn’t reviewed a Glossybox in absolutely ages!  But when this box landed on my doorstep I knew I wanted to share it with you as I think it’s a good’un, containing multiple products which are perfect for the summer months ahead!

Helen E Shimmer Eye Powder in #16 – This looks like quite a boring product to me, personally at first glance but it is actually pretty gorgeous!  This is a loose shimmer pigment which contains the most stunning tiny shimmers.  The white shade I received is incredible because you can use it for so many purposes – eye shadow, highlighter (on cheeks and brow bones) and you could even sprinkle a little into your body moisturizer for a gorgeous dewy look (think glowing legs and little denim shorts!). 

Figs and Rouge Lip Balm in Coco Rose – A girl can never have too many lip balms and this is an adorable little one.  It says it’s a tinted lip balm but this leaves no colour on my lips.  The rose scent is light, sweet and beautiful and it does a good job of leaving my lips soft and silky, but not tacky and greasy.  This is also petroleum free – perfect!

Nuxe Huile Prodigieuse Multi-purpose Dry Oil – This was the product I was most excited about in the box, I’m a big fan of Nuxe but haven’t yet tried this!  This is identical to their other dry body oil, but this is with added shimmer which looks beautiful even on even my ghastly pale skin!  My skin looks really healthy and naturally glowing when I use this - I can see it being a staple in my summer routine and will probably pick up a full size bottle soon!

Me Me Me Long Lasting Gloss Polish in #92 Alluring – If I had gone to a Me Me Me stand, this is the EXACT kind of shade I would have picked up for myself.  I definitely have a thing for nude, mannequin looking nails and this pale greyish beige ticks all the boxes for me!

Monu First Defence Hydrating Moisturizer SPF 15- I’m really not a fan of skincare in beauty boxes but I really like that this day cream has an SPF (SPF should be worn everyday, after all).  This has a strong floral fragrance which I don’t like (I prefer to use un-fragranced products on my face because I’m very acne prone) so I’ll probs pass this on to someone else!

All in all this is a pretty good selection of products by Glossybox and full of lovely products for the summer! 

Are you a Glossybox subscriber?  Which product are you most looking forward to receiving?

xxxx

Sleek Candy Collection Review and Swatches!

As a girl who is addicted to sweets and regularly pops out to the sweet shop in my lunchtime at work (SugarSin in Covent Garden if anyone is wondering, is just fabulous!) then I’m partial to a bit of bright candy themed makeup too!

Sleek are hitting us with a gorgeous limited edition range for 2013’s spring/summer and I thought I’d give you the low down!

 

Sleek i-Divine Palette in I Candy – The Sleek Candy palette contains a plethora of sweet, candy like shades (with amazing names, might I add!).  As usual, there are a variety of shimmer and matte shades (the shimmers tending to be more striking and pigmented) which can be used to create many stunning bright looks, perfect for spring/summer!  My favourites are – Parma Violet (which I think would make a lovely smoky eye as an alternative black) as well as Apple Sour, Cream Soda and Aniseed. This retails for £7.99 – bargain for 12 gorgeous shadows.

Blush by 3 Palette in Sweet Cheeks – Last year Sleek bought out their Blush By 3 Products which I fell in love with and there is a new one  in this collection.  This palette of three blushers contains one cream and two powder blushers, all in bright pink shades.  Candy Floss is a cream pink blush which leaves your skin really dewy with a hint of colour.  Dolly Mix is a pale, blue-toned baby pink blush and Cupcake (my personal favourite) is a stunning shimmery golden pink! This retails at £9.99

Pout Paint in Lol-Lip-Pop – I ADORE Sleek’s Pout Paints, they are a cheaper alternative to my much loved OCC lip tars and I cherish them (you can read my post about Sleek’s other Pout Paints here).  A blue based candy pink has been released with this range and it is the perfect Barbie pink to wear all throughout summer.  This retails at £4.99

There we have it!  The Sleek Candy collection.  These are out in Superdrug stores right now.  I’d love to hear which of these you will be picking up!

Which product are you eyeing up from the range?  Do you like to wear bright eye shadows?

xxxx

What’s in my Handbag!

I decided to re-film an updated ‘What’s in my Handbag’ video as it was one of the very first YouTube videos I did about three years ago now, and obviously a lot has changed since!

The bag I use almost every single day is from Zara (I think I got it last October and have used it daily since) for around £25.  I ADORE this bag – it’s super spacious, the perfect size and fits all of my essentials. 

What’s in my bag!

Inside I carry -

My work phone (iPhone5)
My personal phone (Blackberry)
Acer Iconia A1 Tablet
Mujjo Ipad Mini Sleeve (for the Iconia tablet)
Makeup Bag from The Body Shop
Bobbi Brown Foundation
Avon Supershock Eyeliner in Black
Rimmel Scandaleyes Micro Eyeliner
The Body Shop All in One Face Base
Rimmel Brow Definer -
Sleek’s Barely There Lipstick
Estee Lauder Crystal Baby Lipstick
Clinique Chubby Stick Intense in Curviest Caramel
Sunglasses from Accesorize
HD Brows Kit
Keys (with Balmi lipbalm)
Pink Headphones
Oyster Card Holder
Carex Hand Santizer
So…Lovely Mini Dry Shampoo

Watch the video above for a little more reasoning on why I carry these bits around with me and to hear what book I’m reading at the moment!

What are your handbag essentials?

xxxx

Macadamia Hair Range–Review!

I am a big, big fan of the Macadamia Hair range, so much so that I decided to write this post telling you how much and why I adore it all!

Macadamia Deep Repair Masque – This is my favourite hair mask of all time and that is a big statement coming from me as I adore hair masks.  I don’t know how this manages it, but it always leave my dry, bleached locks super soft and manageable.  I normally have the hardest time combing my hair through after washing, but combing my hair through with this in works a treat.  This also smells delicious and I’ve had this tub for a few months and it’s still going strong.  I really can’t recommend this enough – it makes a difference after just one use.

Macadamia Flawless – Ever heard of a product that cleanses and conditions all in one?  Well ladies, let me introduce you to this nifty bottle!  This is a mousse type product which you spread all through dry hair, leave on for 5 minutes and then wash off.  The first two times I used this I wasn’t sure that I was doing it right so I rinsed this off and then applied shampoo and conditioner which made my hair extremely soft!  But it’s actually designed to be used alone for a quick and easy wash.  When I use this it takes me two mins to wash my hair (opposed to the usual 15 minutes when I use shampoo and conditioner).  I wouldn’t wash my hair with this every day, but once a week for a quick wash which leaves my hair silky soft is ideal!

Macadamia Healing Oil Treatment – Now this is nothing too special if I’m being totally honest (I prefer my Morroccan Oil as it smells nicer and seems to leave my hair silkier). But this is still a  nice little oil (perfect for travelling) and does the job of leaving ends less frizzy.

I think there are a few more products in the range that I haven’t tried yet so I’ll definitely have to get my hands on them to try out as well!  I get my Macadamia Oil products from Gorgeous Shop (here) which also have some nice little discounts!

Have you tried Macadamia Oil products?  What’s your favourite hair range?

xxx

May 2013 Favourites!

I had quite a few comments on last month’s favourites video and post, asking me to talk about my non-beauty favs as well as my beauty based favourites!  I thought this was a great idea as I’ve always got lots of new obsessions and interests each month, ranging from books to songs to activities.  So, without further ado, roll of May’s Favs!

May Favourites

Diptyqye eau Duelle – Y’all know I’m a huge perfume fanatic and in early May I spent a couple of hours in their store for the launch of their new floral scent, Eau Moheli.  Well, naturally I went around and sprayed and sniffed every other perfume they had to offer and fell in love with this one so much that I parted my cash for a bottle.  Eau Duelle is the most gorgeous vanilla perfume.   I have a full blog post coming soon about this because I am pretty much obsessed with it!

Zoeva Brushess – I’ve heard a lot about the Zoeva makeup range recently and so I got my hands on some of their products and I’ve fallen in love.  Their stand out products are definitely the brush range which are definite MAC dupes, but for half the price.  They are all of high quality, I’ve experienced no hair fall out since getting them and can tell they will last a really long rime.  I can’t wait to get more.

Illamasqua Cream Pigment in Hollow – I have been eyeing this product up for a very long time now and I finally made the purchase this month.  Hollow is a neutral greyish, brown cream pigment which makes the perfect contour for my face.  My cheek bones look amazing in this (check this instagram picture of mine for proof).  I also picked up a peachy pink shade named Androgen which I also adore – full blog post on both coming soon.

Kiehls Ultra Facial Cleanser – I’ve had a bit of trouble with my skin throughout ay as I started developing eczema around my eyes and on my cheeks.  I’ve suffered with eczema pretty much my whole life but never on my face before so as you can imagine, it came as quite a shock.  I had to strip right back to the basics and only used products I knew wouldn’t irritate me further.  I stopped using all makeup removers apart from this Kiehls Cleanser and a Cetaphil cleanser.  I use this cleanser to take all of my daily (heavy) eye makeup off and it does a wonderful job without irritating my eyes!

Non beauty Favourites!

Ghost Written by David Mitchell – This has been my favourite book of the month which I just couldn’t put down!  Each chapter in this book is a completely different story to the last, but they all connect an weave in small ways. This was a joy to read and spot all the connections. 

Dark Chocolate – This month I found out that dark chocolate and pure cocoa powder has the same amount of antioxidants than green tea.  I’ve really taken advantage of this because, let’s face it, a hot chocolate before bed is much more appealing.  I’ve also been treating myself to a square or two of dark chocolate which is a lovely little treat!

Favourite songs – I have two songs which I’ve been obsessed with other the past month.

This Life by Josef Salvat

This Life by Josef Salvat

I’ve been thinking a lot about life recently and what it is etc, and this is such a powerful song which almost mimics how I feel at the moment, with lyrics like “there must be more to this life”.  Josef has been hailed as the male version of Lana Del Rey, so check it out if you love a bit of Lana.

Ingenue by Atoms For Peace

Ingenue– Atoms For Peace

I heard this first at the Secret Cinema earlier in the month and fell in love with it.  It’s incredibly beautiful and calming and I could listen to it on repeat all day.  I’m also obsessed with the music video, it’s just stunning.  Watch it!

There we have it – all of my favs throughout May!  I hope you like this post, sorry it’s so wordy and be sure to let me know where you would like to see more non-beauty favs in the future.

What have been your favourite things in May?  Would you like to see more non beauty favourites?

xxx

Favourites: Spring/Summer Perfumes!

I’ve still been a little obsessed with perfumes recently and so I decided to pick out a few of my favourites for spring/summer, telling you just why I love them!

Jo Malone Elderflower & Gooseberry – This LE perfume holds a special place in my collection as it smells identical to one of my Grandmas lipsticks (which I cherish and sniff occasionally as it reminds me of her – anyone else sentimental like this?).  This smells just divine, super summery, powdery and sweet.  I hope this stays around for a little longer because it’s just beautiful – sniff it if you can!

Miss Dior Cherie – I think this is my third bottle of this and it has been one of my favourite perfumes since I was 18.  I started wearing this after a friend bought it on holiday (a girly trip to Lanzarote) and ever since then it has been a smell that reminds me of holidays abroad!  This is such a beautiful, easy scent to wear and has fruity, sweet and woody notes! 

Kiehls Orange & Lychee – I have a little bit of an obsession with this perfume and can’t get enough of it. From the simple, almost clinical packaging to it’s sweet scent, I adore it.  This smells like summer in a bottle to me, with notes of honey, orange flower, lychees and rose.  This is another really powdery scent which I seem to love. 

Jo Loves Mango Nectar – I have reviewed this previously (here) and it is just the ideal spring/summer scent because it literally smells like freshly squeezed mango; it makes my mouth water!  You can’t go wrong with fruit in the summer months and I know this will go down a storm!

Now, I wrote this post out and then discovered another spring/summer fragrance will has headed straight into my top 5, which is Diptyque’s new floral fragrance – Eau Moheli which contains pink pepper (one of my person favs), ginger, incense, vetier and ylang-ylang; this smells nice in the bottle but really comes alive once sprayed on the skin.  Full review coming soon!

I’d absolutely love to hear what your favourite spring/summer perfumes are!  Please do leave a comment with your favourite and I’ll hunt then down and have a whiff!

What’re your fav spring/summer perfumes? 

xxx

Rimmel Kate Moss Latex Nail Polish Swatches!

I was super lucky earlier in the week when these babies landed on my doorstep… I was pretty chuffed to say the least.  Rimmel have just launched 10 new salon Pro Lycra Nail Polishes, created by Kate Moss boasting a super shiny finish and an easy dry.

I couldn’t wait to swatch these all for you and put them to the test!

Top Row: Reggae Splash, Soul Sessions, New Romantic,  Jazz Funk,  Hip Hop,
Bottom Row: Rock N’Roll, Disco Fever, Rhythm & Blues, Punk Rock, Britpop.


L-R Britpop, Punk Rock, Rhythm & Blues, Disco Fever, Rock N’ Roll, Hip Hop, Jazz Funk, New Romantic, Soul Sessions, Reggae Splash.

My first thoughts upon seeing the range was that there is a lovely selection of shades available, ranging from dark blues and greys for autumn/winter, to peaches and pinks for the summer.  I was instantly drawn to Reggae Splash (peach), Soul Sessions (the nude, which I have been sporting on my nails for the past week), and Punk Rock (the dark grey). 

These polishes are super pigmented and a few of them looked perfect with just one coat, but I gave them all two coats in the swatches above for good luck.  I also have to praise the lasting time of these polishes; I’ve been wearing the nude for about 5 days and have minimal chipping without a top coat which really impresses me as I seem to normally chip my nails within an hour of applying.  The finish is also nice and glossy looking.

These 10 lovely shades are available right now in Boots and Superdrug stores and for £4.49 each!

Which is your favourite of the bunch? Will you be picking some up?

xxxx