Dermalogica Skin Saver

Now i have never had the best skin in the world, i always used to get jealous of those girls that had the best skin and wouldn't need to wear make up. I started trying out different products around about 3 years ago when my skin was quite bad for me, however i never want to say i have had the worst skin because there are a lot of people out there in the world who have severe acne. I say people because the people with the worst acne are actually men, i had a lot of guy friends that would have severe acne on there face, arms and back. Remember that your skin will get better and if it is truly bad seek guidance from your doctor.

My boyfriend got given a 13g sample of the Dermalogica Daily Microfoliant from a friend. We use this daily as this has worked so well for our skin types. I have said in a previous blog post that i have combination skin as i get oily in my t-zone but dry on my cheeks.

The product comes out as a powder then turns into a scrub when you add water. Please be wary NOT to put this product in the shower as my boyfriend got water inside the bottle and it completely ruined the product.   I great weekly exfoliate is the Lush Ocean Salt as its natural and really does make my skins overall complexion better.

Overall 

Brand: Dermalogica
Price: £41
Amount of product: 75g
Pro's: It has completely transformed my skin as well as my boyfriends skin. In the past year my cheeks have been the worst area's for acne however since using this my skin has smoothed out and my spots have all gone on my cheeks.
Con's: The product costs around £41 a bottle now that is quite expensive however i believe it is a great investment but i am sure there are some good products out there for cheaper.
Overall rating : 4*

Please comment with any recommended products that you think are skin savers, as i would love to try new products for my skin.

Jess
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Birthday Weekend in London

Saturday !!!!!!!!

We first went to Camden Market, now one thing I have to say is at first I thought is this it but we kept walking and finally arrived at the lock which was full of food stands of every culture. It was AMAZING!! If you are visiting London this should be on your list.

While we had our lunch we noticed this fish spa that had a great deal and I had never tried it before. I always try and do things that I have never done before on my birthday so its an adventure. It was quite early and we were the first customer's so she actually gave us 10 extra minutes for free which was very sweet. The Garra Rufa fish feed on the dead skin on your feet making them very soft afterwards. It was nice to just relax in there while outside was manic.


After the fish spa we explored Camden and found some weird and wonderful places. Then headed to Lion King at the Lyceum Theater which was spectacular and at one point the women actually brought me to tears as her voice was so perfect and the lyrics were so beautiful. If you ever come to London, I recommend The Lion King so highly especially if you want to treat a partner, family member or kids. I would also recommend that you bring food and drink with you into the theatre as the drinks were about triple the price they are normally.

After the theatre production we actually went round Covent Garden for about an hour which at that time they had a small food market selling Deserts, Duck Wrap, Pull Pork wraps and organic fruit. The food wasn't expensive for the amount you got and the views at pretty amazing while you have a snack.

Something that I had never done before is climb a landmark and i saw there was an offer for Up at the 02 which is where you climb up the 02 to a platform that has a 360 degree views of London.

There are different times you can choose from and we actually went up at 7:15 which meant we got the end of the sunset. It was breath taking and we really had an amazing time. It's something that you will only do once and I would recommend the summer time because it can get very windy at the top.

Sunday !!!!!!!!!

The next day was my 19th Birthday and we travelled to Harry Potter World. An absolute must for Harry Potter fans. Extremely detailed, exciting and interesting. The whole experience tells of all the love and passion everyone involved in the films invested in making them. One thing that I was suggested to do by a friend was to take our time around the tour as there was so much to see. We spend around 4-5 hours in the actual park and I am sure we didn't see everything. I would also recommend that you get the package that comes with the digital guide and paperback souvenir as they were definitely worth the extra money.

You see that everything in the movie has such detail, they spend a lot of time and money on little objects that in the background of even things that are probably not even seen such as there is a crest in the fireplace that was made but never actually seen on camera. There are secrets to the movie that come out in the tours that you have ever of guested. It has now inspired me to re-read the Harry Potter Books to gain a different perspective.

I had to say that is was one of the best birthday weekends that I have ever had. I wanted to share it with you all as it might help a few of you on idea's for a day in London or a birthday. I hope you all loved an insight into what I did on my 19th.

Jess
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The Fault in our stars.....

I know this isn't a beauty review but this is something that is close to my heart. Even though I am not big on reading books this is a book that just tore me up and i couldn't stop reading it. I know most people think the books just predictable and cliché however to me at the end it showed the true darkness of cancer. This is one to read before you watch the movie and I promise you won't be disappointed. In one of the scene's she said ' I'm a Grenade and at some point I’m going to blow up and I would like to minimize the casualties'. Just that sentence brought back all my memories as in 2006 my Nan lost her battle with cancer. 

This book truly got me thinking about my Nan and the importance of living life to the full. I wanted to share a bit about my Nan as I have always struggle actually talking about her. Let me just start with saying she was one of a kind, she helped out at play ground with the children, she baked cakes for charities and she would help out anyone that would ask. A week before she died she even drove elderly people to their hospital appointments so they didn’t need to get the bus. Those of a few things that my Nan did. 

She had fought cancer over nearly 10 years where she was in and out remission. It started of as breast cancer which then went to her liver, heart, and lungs. She was the most wonderful person that you would have ever met and I will never forgot her. The day she died my parents had arranged for us to go see a theatre production in London. They didn't want to spoil the day so they waited until the next morning to tell us. I remember them waking me up and sitting us down in their room. My mum burst into tears and I remember thinking please don't be Nan, please don’t be nan, anything but her. She was like my mum, she looked after me most of my life but I didn't know how sick she really was. I couldn’t catch my breath and all my emotions seem to crash down on me.  

Cancer is one of the worst, ugliest and scariest thing I have come across in my life. I live near a huge hospital where they test all these new drugs to cure cancer. My Nan was basically their guinea pig, she tried these drugs years before anyone knew about them. However none of them worked. The chemotherapy soon started to actually make my Nan mad. At one point when my mum visited my Nan, she started trying to call my mum even though she was sat right next to her.

Her funeral was all a blur but I remember a few things such as that everyone was asked to wear colour and that I wore a pink fluffy dress. The church was so full people were standing at the back and outside. She was loved by everyone. Instead of people giving flowers we asked people to donate to the hospital to get more equipment for the patients. I remember it rained at the burial ground and my mum said ‘the heavens are crying’.

It tore my family apart but made us stronger in the long run. Sorry about the rant but there are a lot of things that I can never speak about but instead I can write about. This book brought all my emotions back while I was on holiday and I believe it is a great book for people to understand the effects of cancer. I don’t want to give anything away but I recommend it very highly.

Please feel free to comment.

Jess
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BareMinerals Haul

This is a company that i hadn't really tried before however when i went to LA for work i saw the amazing deals and i had to pick up some of the products. The girls were so amazing with my mum and actually did a full face of make up on her. They tried out which colours were best for her and showed her how to use them. I have to say they have one of the best customer service in the world. We eventually came up with a couple of sets.

Get Started Complexion Kit 

As my mum isn't the best with make up and hasn't got many products she got the started kit which she was very impressed with. I found this set would be amazing for people just starting off with make up or just trying out mineral make up. The colour match was perfect and the set made my mums fine lines fade and make her skin look flawless. In England the set is around £50 in various stores however i believe my mum got it for around £30 in an outlet.

Collection includes:

bareMinerals Original SPF 15 Foundation in Medium and Medium Beige, size: 2g each

Original Mineral Veil, size: 2g

Warmth All-Over Face Color, size: 1.5g

Full Flawless Face Brush

Flawless Application Face Brush

Maximum Coverage Concealer Brush

Prime Time Foundation Primer, size: 15ml"

I could not find my sets online however i took at couple pictures to show you. I was very impressed by the products.

BareMinerals Eyeshadow in Smolder and Panache, BareMinerals Ready Blush in 'The Whisper', Flawless Application Face Brush, Tapered Blush and Shadow Brush, Eye shadows in Shoulder and Panache, Marvelous Moxie lip gloss in rule breaker, bareMinerals lip gloss in Cherry Bomb.

BareMinerals Eyeshadow in Smolder (Left) and Panache (Right)

The First set i got was the bareMinerals Ready Blush in 'The Whisper' which i use as my bronzer as its the perfect colour for my pale skin. This came with a face brush which i believe is called the flawless application face brush. The brush bristles are very soft and give a very natural bronze to the face. 

The Second set i brought included the Tapered Blush and Shadow brush which is perfect to have in a travel make up bag as you can do basically your whole face. I use the blush side for blush, bronzer, and foundation powder. I then go in with the shadow side for my eye make up. I have included a closer picture to show the shadows. The grey shimmer eye shadow is in the colour ' smolder' and then the pink shimmer eye shadow is in the colour ' panache'. This creates the perfect everyday or use more of the smolder colour to create a smoky eye. However, i will say that a little goes a long way with these shadows. Then i brought two different lip glosses which are both very different. The nude lip gloss is the Marvelous Moxie lip gloss in the shade ' rule breaker' which is a bit to nude for my skin unless i put it over a lipstick. The pink lip gloss is BareMinerals Cherry Bomb which is one of the best lip glosses i own as its not sticky and its pretty on its own or with a lipstick to give a glossy finish. 

I was very impressed with the products from bareMinerals, i will want to try more in the future as i believe the products are well worth the investment. 

Please comment to share your thoughts on the products and if you have any recommendations. 

Jess 

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Plum/Burgundy Lipstick Collection

Plum/Burgundy Lipsticks must be my favorite colour due to my pale skin in the winter time, the colours really stand out. I do generally wear these colours in the winter time but some can be used all year round. They look all very similar however they all have different lasting powers, and finishes. I could not live without some of them, the price range is very different however i find that some drugstore lipsticks compare nearly exactly with the high end. Below is my favorite picks from my lipsticks:

Left to Right: Make up Forever #10 , MAC Party Line, MAC Craving , Wet n Wild Sugar Plum Fairy, Revlon Rich Raisin Frost, Rimmel #107 , Maybelline Berry Ready , Revlon Raspberry Pie.

Make up Forever #10
Colour: Dark Burgundy 
Price: £24.00
Lasting Power: Once it has dried to a matte finish it does last up to 6-8 hours.
Overall Comment: The only down fall about this product it that it is very hard to get off and when it does wear down it turns into little flakes.

MAC Party Line
Colour: Burgundy 
Price: £15.50
Lasting Power: Lasts around 3-4 hours
Overall Comment: This is a beautiful colour and it always seems to look seamless when i wear it.

MAC Craving
Colour: Light Plum Colour
Price: £15.50
Lasting Power: Lasts around 4-6 hours
Overall Comment: Beautiful colour, its one that i generally get comments on all the time and it last better than the party line. 

Wet n Wild Sugar Plum Fairy
Colour: Dark Plum
Price: £4.99
Lasting Power: 4-6 hours
Overall Comment: The lipstick is a perfect colour for winter, the only negative about this lipstick is that it is very drying and matte. When i apply it to my lips it is very dry and stiff. However, this is a bargain you can't miss out for the lasting power.

Revlon Rich Raisin Frost
Colour: Berry with gold shimmer
Price: £7.49
Lasting Power: 2 hours
Overall Comment: This is actually quite sheer however that means it doesn't last long on the lips so i do have to reapply.

Rimmel #107
Colour: Dark plum/red 
Price: £5.49
Lasting Power: 4 hours
Overall Comment: I am not to fond of the smell of the lipstick, however the colour looks gorgeous on my pale skin in the winter. 

Maybelline Berry Ready
Colour: Berry/ Raspberry 
Price: £8.00
Lasting Power: 2 hours
Overall Comment: This is almost the exact colour as the Revlon Raspberry pie however it is a bit lighter. I do love the sleek packaging as its very thin so you can throw it in your bag for the day. This colour is a little most sheerer than the Revlon Raspberry pie.

Revlon Raspberry Pie
Colour: Rasberry 
Price: £7.99
Lasting Power: 2 hours
Overall Comment: This colour is very pretty and can be worn around the year. You can layer in the winter and sheer out in the summer. Its one of the most prettiest berry colours i have.

Please comment with any criticism's or if you just want a chat.

Jess 

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