Bleurgh - Winter is here

What is your summer to winter beauty regime? Do most of us even have one? I highly doubt it. But this time of year, ladies, is a rough time for our skin. It's adapting from the hot summery days, giving it a beautiful sun kissed glow and allowing for the drab, windy and cold months ahead. Not sure if you can tell, but I'm not winter's biggest fan. The three D's of winter skin: dry, dehydrated and dull. Obviously we still want to be looking fabulous all winter long, but we can't just rely on our faux fur to keep us looking glam, our skin needs to be s**t hot too! To get your skin ready for winter I've compiled a list of top tips and products for you to use to get your skin from drab to fab this winter! This first one is on the pricey side, but man will you see a difference in your skin! Clarisonic Mia Sonic Cleansing System is a bit of a mouthful, but you don't need to worry about that. All you need to know is that this thing works. The way it works is it has a round brush head that you can use to cleanse your face by a gentle vibrating motion. You move it around your face in the shower and it buffs away at the skins surface, removing impurities and dead skin cells. In winter, I tend to get really dry patches on my skin that even Elizabeth Arden 8 hour cream can't budge, but one use of Clarisonic buffs that right off. It's expensive at around £125, but 100% worth the price tag. I'm totally evangelical about this gadget. I'm also pretty enthusiastic about this next tip… drink lots of water. Water is one of the very few beauty products that is free and still does an amazing job, so take advantage! Aim for around 8 pints a day to keep your skin in tip top condition all through winter. I don't want to seem all goody-two-shoes about this though, I struggle to drink this amount as much as the next person. My tip to keep yourself hydrated is to buy a pretty bottle that you will want to keep refilling and taking it to meetings! Paperchase have cute bottles, including this cupcake one for £6: http://www.paperchase.co.uk/invt/00504495/. Bargain! Other products that I cannot live without during winter include my Eau Thermale Avene Moisture Mask, you can soak your skin in this cream and it will instantly look refreshed and hydrated. Carmex lip balm is a cheap item, but essential one in my book; berry lipstick does not look hot on flaky lips. Clarins Liquid Self Tanner for Face is another 'can't live without' to keep your skin looking radiant. At least you'll be looking glowing, when all you can really think about is squirreling yourself away for the rest of winter. It's ridiculously easy to apply and can be done with one sweep of a cotton pad et voila, a sun kissed you. I can't lie to you and say that's all I use during winter. I am a skincare hoarder and constantly change my routine, but these are my staples that I buy again and again. I'd love to hear what products you can't live without during the cold, cold winter months.

Desk Saviours

Today I wanted to share with you my desk saviours, all my beauty favourites that accompany me to work each day. I used to have a ton of products that sat pride of place on my desk at work, but now I'm hot desking (don't have a permanent desk to anyone who doesn’t know what that means), and so my beauty products have had to be slashed to only the bare essentials.

I have a real thing about dry hands, if my hands feel even the tiniest bit dry I get a bit freaked out! Slightly dramatic I know but I've heard that everyone has someone slightly OCD about them, and I think this is my thing. So because of my weird thing about dry hands, I always have on my desk a hand cream. One that I've been loving for almost a year now is my Dr Organic Virgin Olive Oil Hand & Nail Cream. It's a really intensive moisturiser with a blend of natural and organic ingredients; it's great for dry, rough skin and leaves my hands feeling really nourished all day. My most absolute favourite thing about Dr Organic is that all the products are so affordable; I think this hand cream is about £6.19 and it is AMAZING! You can pick this up at most Holland & Barrett stores, if I were you I'd pick up a few things from Dr Organic while you're there. It's one of my favourite skincare brands simply because you get quality products but you're not paying extreme amounts of money for them. Brill!

Something I couldn't live without in my dry, air-conditioned office is my lip balm. The one that takes first place for me is By Terry Baume De Rose SPF15. I've blogged about this beauty before so apologies, but it really is lovely. The texture is very light but you know that it's doing an amazing job of keeping those lips looking juicy. It leaves a really sheer pearlescenty type of look on the lips, but trust me it doesn't look like I've been transported back to the 90s, it looks pretty. This is quite pricey but I definitely think it's worth it - I've had mine for well over a year and haven't hit the bottom yet.

I've saved the best till last, something that I think everyone should have at their deskside - in fact I'll even go as far as to say that it should be the law that companies provide all employees with this wonder! It's the Eau Thermale Avène Water Spray! At only £6.50 you really need to go and grab this from Boots on your lunch break. It's a spray of 'perfection' that keeps your skin hydrated throughout the day. Your skin will look dewy and healthy just from one spritz. I find it really chills me out as well, so when I'm having a tough day I just keep spritzing till 5pm! I have one of these sprays everywhere, including my car, my handbag, bedside table and desk side!

I used to be terrible and have beauty products all over the place, so these are the few that made the cut. Hope you enjoyed reading, I'd love to hear what you deem good enough to have on your desk at work.

Having A Fling With Spring

It was Spring Equinox last week and I'm in the mood for a fling with spring colours! I'm so fed up with the dullness of winter, everything is dark and grey so the slightest hint of spring gets me extremely excited.

Flicking through the pages of my YOU Magazine and a sea of pretty pastels consumes me, the sight literally makes me want to squeal with delight! And so to celebrate I wanted to share my spring must-haves to achieve the perfect look to welcome spring.

My favourite for a bright complexion is my Estee Lauder DayWear Sheer Tint Release. I've have had this for some time now, after lusting after it for way too long and I'm happy to say I'm still impressed each time it glides onto my skin.

I prefer a dewy glow for my skin because it has a tendency to be very dry, so I try to avoid a heavy base. This tinted moisturiser creates a lovely dewy glow, it is clever because the tint releases upon contact with the skin and gives your skin an injection of radiance, making it appear even-toned and healthy. Plus it delivers all the advanced protection benefits of DayWear, defending against and diminishing the appearance of signs of premature ageing. It also has a lovely crisp cucumber scent which is a great pick-me-up for spring!

Next for my spring must-haves is my YSL Rouge Pur Couture in 17 Rose Dahlia. I have been looking for a while for a lipstick that has brilliant colour but can be worn daily and finally found what I've been looking for. I love this because it has a lovely grapefruit smell which reminds me of summer, so I'm in a good mood whenever I put it on. The texture is sheer matt, if that means anything - it's the only way I could think to describe it. Basically what I mean by that is that it has a matt finish, in the sense that it is long-lasting and full in colour but it is quite sheer at the same time so it doesn’t feel heavy or like you're wearing too much. I'm pretty sure that none of that makes any sense but just know this - It's amazing.

My last thing for spring is my new Laura Mercier Eye Caviar Stick. I won't say too much on this one as I'm going to dedicate a whole post to this lovely product, but I will say that it has some beautiful colours in this range. Perfect for spring, it creates a shimmery look on the eye, or if you're going for subtle you could blend some in the corner of your eye to open them up slightly. These sticks are like eye crayons, easy to use and great for creating some fun summery looks.

And there you have it, my favourites for spring. Let me know what your faves are…  

Osman LFW AW13

Every LFW I love seeing the clothes, but it's the beauty trends that I love to watch emerge. This year I was inspired by the Osman show, where Nick Irwin, CATWALK by TIGI's Global Creative Director, created simple yet beautiful hair to suit Osman's Narnia inspired show.

Using all TIGI products he created an elegant, and what seems like easy style to apply at home. So here goes, firstly take a deep side parting. *HINT* Everyone's nose slightly points to one side more than the other, whichever side your nose points to put your side parting on the other side.

Apply CATWALK by TIGI curlesque strong mousse from about shoulder length and down to the ends and then dry your hair using a diffuser to give the hair some movement. Next, take a curling wand and put a few kinks and bends in the hair and pin the hair in place to give it a few more natural kinks through the ends.

When you're ready take out the pins and tuck your hair behind your ears, hold it all in place with CATWALK by TIGI Look-lock hairspray. Aim to keep your roots free from any product so that the style looks as natural and as product-free as possible. Et voila, a catwalk worthy hair do that is perfect for any occasion. I'll be pulling this bad boy out in Ibiza this summer! 

Channel your inner Angelina with Dior

I'm quite lucky to have a boyfriend who appreciates my love for all things beauty, so much so that he always attempts to buy me something in that category for every Christmas or birthday. This year I was extremely lucky and got my beloved Liz Earle cleanse and polish and the Dior Addict lip maximizer.

Having never tried the lip maximizer I was intrigued and it claims to pretty much change your life. It has a unique collagen enriched formula that supposedly gives you luscious lips that are transformed in just 15 days, leaving them feeling hydrated and restructured with the lip contour being redefined. I have to say I was dubious because not many lip products that claim to plump actually work on my lips.

I have been pleasently surprised by this product and my lips have actually 'transformed', ok so maybe that's a tad dramatic but they're looking plumper and more juicy and yes that is a technical term. The gloss leaves a lovely pink sheen on your lips and doesn't sting like other lip plumpers. I highly recommend this product to all the ladies out there who desire the Angelina pout, it's actually achievable with this great product

The boy did good, yet again. Can't wait for my birthday in May!

Secret Gem!

With Christmas approaching I have tried to reduce my excessive spending so I can actually buy someone else something for once. With this in mind I had to cut back on my beauty buys this month, and so found myself searching high and low for cheap alternatives to my fancy faves.

Whilst searching for these bargain treats I have come across something very special indeed... A Liz Earle Cleanse & Polish dupe for £2.99!!! Not even kidding, it's amazing. I have inspected the ingredients list and it's pretty much the same thing and leaves your skin with the same radiant glow as good ol' Liz.

Ok so do you want to know what it is?? It's Superdrug's Naturally Radiant Brightening Hot Cloth Cleanser. It's the stuff dreams are made of - cheap to buy but has the same effects as a cult classic. I have been very careful not to rave about this too soon, I have taken my time testing it out religiously day and night for two weeks and it's fair to say it is SHAmazing, in the words of the Scherzinger.

For £2.99 you really can't go wrong, it leaves the skin feeling gently buffed and cleansed and ready for the day. My skin looks brighter after using it and I've noticed my acne I seem to have recently is slowly disappearing. It even removes waterproof mascara!

The only negative I can possibly think is the cloth you get with it is quite scratchy on the skin, but I just use my Liz Earle ones instead. So ladies get down to Superdrug now because the price is going up soon. Only to £6.99, mind, still hella cheap!

Have you tried anything from Superdrug's own range?

I'm Penny And I'm A Lip Balmaholic

You know when you have so much of something it borders on ridiculous, well that's me and my hoard of lip balms. I just can't seem to help myself, these little lip treats just continuously call my name.

I only realised I had a problem today, when I rustled in my bag for a lip balm and realised I had a choice of six. SIX in one small bag.

I wanted to share with you why I love these little lifesavers and my faves at the moment, starting with my all time favourite Creme de rose from Dior. It is amazingly moisturising and gives your lips a nice subtle plump. It's the perfect base for lipstick and ensures that you can go all winter long without chapped lips. It's slightly on the pricey side, but it's a gem that I buy again and again.

Baume de rose from By Terry is also lovely, again on the pricey side but you get what you pay for. This balm feels very luxurious when you apply it and coats your lips in a rose smelling, almost glossy seal. It keeps your lips really nourished and healthy and is my desk side essential.

I also love a good Chapstick, they smell so good, look really pretty and are incredibly cheap so it doesn't matter how many times you lose it, you can pick up another.

I've also spotted another one I want to try in Holland & Barrett today, it was coconut flavour which instantly sold it to me and promised to nourish and protect the lips. Hello new lip balm, it's payday tomorrow!

Do you have a beauty addiction?