Hello to all my lovely readers. May I take this opportunity to apologise for my blogging hiatus. Christmas is now well and truly gone, we’re settled back into our daily routine and it’s a brand-new year. It’s a perfect time to start a fresh with some New Year’s resolutions and establishing some healthy new routines.

If you don’t already have a skin care routine, now is the time to start. Whether you’re in your early twenties or late fifties there are products out there for you. Taking care of your skin is so, SO important. I can’t emphasise that enough. I would spend my money on skin care before venturing anywhere near the make-up aisles. What’s the point in splashing out on a designer foundation if your base has been neglected? Invest in your skin first and foremost.

My skin care routine has perhaps been my most highly requested blog. I have tried and loved so many brands and products and, of course, my evening skin care routine is very different from my morning routine. Therefore, I’m going to separate them into two posts starting with my morning routine.

I’ve said this before, I’m not a skin care expert by any means. No-one can educate you on the importance of skin care like Caroline Hirons. She is an absolute genius and her wealth of knowledge alongside her vibrant personality and dry sense of humour is addictive. I love her blog, Instagram and her YouTube channel. Your skin will thank you for heeding her advice with a lot of laughs along the way!

Now for me, I have extremely dry skin. I suffered very badly as a child with Eczema and despite growing out of this largely, I still suffer with tight, uncomfortable skin if I don’t pay attention to it. It’s like a needy child, always there, demanding attention, but it can be kept at bay and behave if it’s given love and attention.

Before I go on, as always the products underlined are linked straight to reputable and trusted websites if you wish to buy. These products are pretty affordable!

So, let’s start with the first step of my morning routine. I cleanse my skin. I have obviously cleansed my skin thoroughly before bed the night before, but it’s still important to cleanse your skin in the morning to rid of any dirt, sweat or product that’s lingering on your skin. The products you layer on top need a clean, fresh base to absorb and do their job! My favourite cleanser is the Clinique take the day off cleansing balm (LINK). It’s wonderful for sensitive skin, its fragrance free and melts into your skin like a dream. It comes in the form of a balm but as soon as your rub it into the skin it turns into a silky oil and breaks down make up and dirt effortlessly. I then get a clean flannel, rinse it under warm water, drain the excess and wipe all over my face until it is clean. Using a flannel not only gives your face a good clean, it also gives a gentle daily exfoliation. Use a fresh one every day and night. I keep a little basket beside my sink and pop them in after use. You can buy packs of five from Primark for a pound so there’s no excuse! I wash them without fabric softener which keeps them fluffy and plump and I pop them in the dryer which also helps maintain their bounciness! I love to stack them all up neatly beside my sink ready to use again.

Now if there is any remaining make-up I take a cotton pad. My favourite ones are the cotton pads (LINK) from boots, they’re so soft. I soak the cotton pad in a micellar water. There is a plethora of these available, but you cannot beat the Garnier micellar water (LINK) both by performance and price point. Micellar water is made up of tiny balls of cleansing oil molecules suspended in soft water. Applying this to the skin on a cotton pad looks and feels just like water. It’s very gentle yet effective at removing make up. I particularly love to remove heavy eye makeup with this.

 

Now my face is clean and ready for product. My next step is eye cream. I never skip this step. I start off by applying Caffeine Solution 5% from The Ordinary (LINK). This is an insanely cheap oil which works wonders and is frequently sold out due to its popularity. It tightens the under-eye area and provides a healthy dose of caffeine which helps reduce puffiness and dark circles. I then go over the top of this and apply my moisturising eye cream to keep the area hydrated. My favourite for the morning is the Kiehl’s creamy eye treatment with avocado (LINK) It’s as creamy and rich as the name suggests and is a great base for applying concealer on top.

Next, I apply my serum. This next one is life changing. Okay, that may be a slight exaggeration but it’s one of those products that once you try it, it’s in your routine for good. It’s a very hyped product in the beauty industry, but it deserves every morsel of that hype! The serum in question is the Indeed Laboratories Hydraluron Serum (LINK). This clever, affordable little product is packed with hyaluronic acid. It’s basically a moisture magnet. This acid is found in the body and maintains a reservoir of water in the top layers of skin. As we age, our ability to produce this decreases dramatically. This serum contains the purest hyaluronic acid which can hold up to 1000 times its own weight in water, meaning that any moisturiser you apply on top is more powerful and effective as it stays there and doesn’t evaporate from the skin. There’s no point in using this serum on its own, its designed to suck up the moisture layered on top, into the skin. It’s like having a big glass of water for the skin in the morning. Don’t use an oil on top, use a rich moisturiser. Look out for the 3 for 2 offers in boots and stock up!

I then layer on my moisturiser. I love the whole Avene extremely rich range. I use a lighter cream in the morning, but I still want a rich, buttery texture. I love the Avene skin rich recovery cream (LINK). It leaves my skin feeling plump and comfortable for the rest of the day, whilst still providing a good base for makeup.

I always apply SPF daily. The sun is the single most ageing thing for your skin. UV rays are the primary cause for wrinkles, sun spots, pigmentation and loss of elasticity. In the summer I wear factor 50 and in the winter, I opt for something a bit less like 25. Yes, I wear SPF all year round. You can still get UV damage in the winter! I once read that the one part of your body that doesn’t tend to wrinkle is your bottom, because it is never exposed to sunlight. Unless you like to do that on holiday of course! No judgement …..just use SPF! You can do this in the form of a cream or spray. I recommend the Body Shop Multi-Protection essence in SPF50 (LINK). You simply won’t believe the high protection factor when you try this. It’s so lightweight and invisible on the skin. It’s a MUST for holiday. Keep your face out of the sun and fake the glow instead! Pixi have come up with an innovative product in their Sun Mist (LINK). It’s a sheer, light spray of SPF which can be worn under or over make up. Absolute genius! So, you can reapply your SPF throughout the day on holiday without disturbing your make up!

Now I tend to go about making breakfast, making the beds, preparing the children’s schoolbags etc after my routine and before I put my make up on. So when it is time to get ready, I apply an oil to my skin. I absolutely LOVE the Kiehl’s daily reviving oil (LINK). Because I have dry skin, this product allows my foundation to sit beautifully on top. It also strengthens the skin’s defences against daily aggressors and keeps it radiant all day. It also smells like oranges, Jaffa Cakes in particular. Yum.

Now you may feel a bit overwhelmed reading this and think that you simply don’t have the time for so many skin care steps, but once you’re in the routine it takes just a couple of minutes from your day. Nor am I telling you that you need to use every single one of these products, this is just what works for me. My routine keeps my skin looking and feeling great and that’s very important to me after an entire childhood of hating my skin and how it looked.

Keep your eyes peeled for my evening skin care routine which is coming soon! I’d love to know what your favourite products are and remember….

‘I regret taking such good care of my skin’ – Said no-one ever.

Love

 

 

Whenever I appear on a story on my Instagram page (LINK) I get questions about my hair. This has come somewhat as a surprise to me as I’m rarely happy with my hair and I’m always faffing around with it! I long for thick hair and although it’s quite fine, hairdressers are always telling me ‘You’ve got loads of it’. I have to work quite hard to make my hair look presentable. I love it to have lots of volume at the root, but be sleek at the ends.

I’m going to try and answer some of my frequently asked questions and recommend my favourite products. Just click the link to buy, I’ve done all the hard work for you!

Firstly, my hair is coloured at the salon. I’ve been asked so many time which colour I use but I’m afraid I haven’t coloured my own hair since I was a teenager! Blondes have to be careful with DIY colouring kits. It’s so easy to get it wrong. I don’t have ashy tones in my hair. I like it to be a warm, golden blonde. But a warm toned blonde can easily become brassy, therefore I don’t colour it myself. My hair colour inspiration is Holly Willoughby!

Being a blonde isn’t easy. It’s a whole lot of maintenance. I have my tint done every 6 weeks which sounds like a real pain however when you’re a busy mum, a couple of hours in the salon is no longer a chore, in fact, it’s a rare treat to sit with a cuppa and a magazine and get some peace and quiet for a couple of hours! I have it trimmed every second visit and the ends become dry very quickly and this helps it keep a healthy look.

I must confess, I don’t spend a lot of money on shampoo and conditioner. I go through so much of this stuff that I feel like I’d be washing my money down the drain. Literally. I prefer to spend my money on quality oils and treatments so I tend to buy my shampoo and conditioner from the drug store. My favourite is John Frieda Miraculous Recovery range (LINK). Both the shampoos and conditioners leave my hair beautifully soft and conditioned. My best tip is one that I heard years ago and have never forgotten. Always shampoo your hair twice. The first shampoo is generally lifting oil, product and dirt. That’s why you never get a good lather on that first time. The second should be worked into the hair in a rich lather to allow it to do its job, whether that be to volumize, soften or strengthen. Once per week I also use a silver shampoo to stop any brassy tones developing. Just don’t leave it on longer that it suggests as your hair will turn purple!

If you haven’t yet tried a wet brush then boy you’re in for a treat. Gone are the days of tangle teezers. They aren’t a patch on these! Wet brushes (LINK), as the name suggests, are designed to glide through wet hair, without a tug in sight. I cringe when I’m at the hairdressers and they use a comb on my wet hair! Not only does it take forever, it’s also painful! It’s not the 90’s anymore. Move forward Mr Wet brush. It doesn’t matter how coarse and knotty your hair is, I challenge you to try this brush and not love it. I also use it on dry hair. I don’t own any other brushes because I don’t need to. One of the best things about this brush is that it makes post bath time, hair washing time much more tolerable for my daughter. I’ve always used these on her hair, so much so, that I don’t think she knows what a ‘tug’ is! They’re also relatively cheap, so I have them everywhere. In my handbag, work, car, you name it! Best. Brush. Ever.

If you have colour treated hair, or indeed you expose it to heated tools, you’ll know that the ends of your hair will suffer. It can become dry, brittle and full of split ends. It’s imperative that you use a treatment on your over exposed, fragile locks at least once per week. I love the Phillip Kingsley Elasticiser (LINK). Unlike most treatments, this should be used prior to washing your hair. The most effective way to use this is to slather it on your hair before jumping in the bath for a long soak. I like to wrap my hair up in cling film and allow the heat from the bath to work its magic. The longer the better. You can even sleep in this if you’re intending to wash your hair the following morning. The results? Moisturised, silky, luscious locks! Just read the rave reviews online. It’s a cult product and I hear they have a new coconut scent. It’s on my Christmas list!

After every wash I use an oil through the damp ends of my hair prior to blow drying. I also finish off my hair with a tiny amount to keep it sleek and prevent flyaways. I’ve recently fallen in love with Macadamia oil (LINK) It does exactly as it says on the tin.

It’s difficult to get volume at the root if your hair isn’t particularly thick. I’ve tried so many ‘volumizing’ products that just do nothing. You want the root to have some product, something for the brush to grip to and work with. The absolute best for this is the Oribe Maximista Thickening Spray (LINK) It’s worth the price tag because not only does it beef up my locks, it lasts an age and smells gorgeous. When my hair is dry I then like to spray some Batiste heavenly volume (LINK) in the root before back combing, but for special occasions I bring out the Oribe dry texture thickening spray (LINK). My god does this make your hair look good. It gives that feel of just leaving the salon. But it’s pricey. Definitely one to keep reserved in your vanity for a special event. Another alternative is the Show Beauty texturizing spray (LINK). It also smells beautiful, provides loads of texture and volume and looks downright fabulous on my dressing table!

 

I simply couldn’t live without my BaByliss big hair (LINK). It’s so tricky and downright painful on the arms to try and achieve a bouncy blow yourself. This ingenious product combines a rotating brush and hair dryer all in one, meaning you can achieve that bouncy look with one hand! Make sure that your hair is 80% dry, section it off with a clip and you’re ready to go. It’s completely fool proof and provides such a beautiful bouncy finish in no time. Unfortunately, it’s not very robust and they tend to only last a year or so, so keep your receipt for when it dies on you without warning! But for the price and the result, it’s well worth investing!

My straightener of choice are GHDs (LINK), of course. Nothing else compares in my eyes. I use them religiously (with heat protection) and they never fail. They heat up in seconds and last forever. Who remembers when the very first hair straightener came out? Mine was a white and blue BaByliss set gifted by my Aunt Jackie. They had a little compartment to add water and once the water was hot enough (14 hours later) you were good to go! It had little teeth that clamped down on the hair like an over excitable puppy. But still I thought they were the bee’s knees, as prior to their invention I was using an iron, yes, an actual iron. Don’t judge me, we all did it back in the day! I was so skilled at this that I even used it to straighten my fringe. I would use a towel to stop it from burning my hand and run it down the length on my long hair. I still have a scar on my leg to prove it. Yes, that’s right, on my leg. Go figure.

I love to curl my hair into loose waves when I go out. The only wand which holds a curl in my fine hair is my beloved enrapture curlers (LINK) They are unique in the sense that there’s a dial to choose the intensity of the curl – 1 being loose, 2 medium and 3 tight curls. Or you can mix it up going for a 1,2,3 combination meaning that your curls start of light any wavy and end in a defined curl. They heat up in no time and hold like a dream. I love them and just find them so easy to use. I couldn’t recommend them enough.

I would love to hear recommendations of your favourite products as I’m always on the look out!

Happy hair styling!

Love

I confess, I’m a beauty product addict. Ever since I bought my first Rimmel lipstick at aged 13, I was hooked. It was a dashing frosty number and I proudly kept the shiny purple plastic bullet in my handbag. I felt very grown up indeed. Luckily over the years, I’ve become better with my application technique and I no longer choose those frosty pink hues! And it’s not just make-up; hair products, tanning, body creams, skincare…. I’m like a child on Christmas Eve in the beauty aisles (Or maybe I should be honest and say I’m like ME on Christmas Eve).
However, since becoming a mum, I no longer have the time and endless funds to splurge  on the latest Mac collection. I don’t tend to experiment with colours either as I know what suits me. These days, I only buy products that I know I’m going to use and love. I try not to get swept up by the latest trend that will likely sit gathering dust in my drawer. I have some beloved products that make my life that little bit easier. Products that help me look healthier, groomed and that speed up the getting ready process. And my fellow mummies out there will know how valuable that is!
I’ll never forget opening the door to my health visitor after the birth of my son. (His birth was easy and I recovered well. Unlike the birth of my daughter but that’s another story!) She looked at me in a surprised manner and said ‘I can’t remember the last time I saw a new mum wearing make-up!’ Granted, it was just a bit on concealer and brows but without that I’d feel totally naked! I may as well walk through Piccadilly circus in my underwear!

However, you should never feel that you need to stick to a beauty regime or apply make-up. Do whatever makes you happy. You may be someone who already has naturally beautiful brows and how I envy you! I’m just sharing my own experiences and thoughts and for me, it makes me feel happy and confident.
You, of course, don’t have to be a mum to use these products. These would suit anyone, but they are products for me that I have found to be invaluable when I’m in a rush and I need reliable products that offer consistent results.

I’ve tried to narrow my beauty essentials to my top ten. It wasn’t easy but here’s what made the shortlist!

 

Concealer

You don’t need me to tell you why you need this! Who remembers those carefree, lazy weekends lie ins to make up for the hectic week, before our little cherubs became human alarm clocks? And whist I’m on this subject, is it only my children who I frequently must coax out of bed with sweet treats during the week when we’re in a rush, but at the weekend they’re ready to party at 6am? What is that about? Anyway, you get my point. Lack of sleep, stress, it all takes its toll and can result in eye bags to rival a Tesco bag for life. Concealer is your best friend. My favourite is Clarins instant concealer (Link) It’s creamy, moisturising and provides a great coverage. It should be noted that using concealer is almost pointless without using corrector as a base, that is, if you’re using it under your eyes. My corrector of choice is Pixi correction concentrate in brightening peach (Link). Think about it: your under-eye shadows tend to be a blueish-purple tone. If you apply a cream colour on top, it will make that colour take an ashy tone. However, if you apply an orange-peach colour on top of that blue tone it will counteract it (orange and blue are opposites on the colour wheel), effectively blocking that colour out before applying concealer. You’ll look like you’ve had a full night’s uninterrupted sleep. You’re welcome.

Bronzer

When you’re feeling tired and drained it shows in your skin. If you’re living in the UK, like me, your natural skin tone is probably on the pale side! Adding bronzer to the high points of the face, making it looked sun kissed, can really lift your features. My favourite bronzer is Chanel bronze universal (Link). It’s a cream bronzer which blends in effortlessly and looks natural. I use a fluffy kabuki brush to apply it. I’m often asked which eye shadow I wear for every day and the truth is I use this on my lids and I blend a darker, powder bronzer in my crease. So, for me, its multi-purpose and quick!

Dry Shampoo

I don’t know what I ever did before dry shampoo! It is possibly the best invention ever. I didn’t even use dry shampoo on my wedding day. What even was life? Yes, I use dry shampoo for the purpose it was intended – to keep my hair fresh in between washes. But I mainly use it to get texture and volume. I spray it through my hair after it has just been blow dried to get it to look bouncy and fuller. My favourite is good old batiste (Link). I use the cherry scent, it smells gorgeously fresh and fruity. I use the volumizing (Link) version in my roots to give it some extra va-va voom! Not only do I get to wash my hair less, it also allows me to extend the time in between colour touch ups, as the light residue masks those pesky roots (I’m blonde). Result!

Body moisturiser

I mentioned in my last post about my battle with eczema and dry skin. I discovered the most intense body moisturiser last year after watching a Pixiwoo video on YouTube. They recommended Eucirin Intensive Lotion (Link) and I’ve probably been through one bottle per month ever since. This lotion isn’t anything fancy. It comes in a rather clinical looking clunky bottle and there is no scent whatsoever. But this lotion is really something special. It is SO nourishing, the most moisturising body product I have ever used. It keeps my skin incredibly soft. It was a god send on holiday, being in and out of the water and sunshine. It leaves a silky film on the skin, making it look just as good as it feels. It gives that sheen to the legs that you see on celebrities on the red carpet, but without the shimmer. If you have dry skin, you’re really going to love this.

Body wash

Despite what you may think if you follow me on Instagram, I don’t get the time to go for baths very often. I love to have an invigorating shower in the morning to wake me up. I don’t get very long before I have a stampede of children (actually 2 but it sounds like 10) outside the door calling on me to pour them some Cheerios – so I need to be quick! I have recently fallen completely in love with Radox feel lively scent touch body wash in wild peony and lychee (Link). Its tender freshness and fruitiness wakes me up and leaves me smelling beautiful for hours after. You could easily skip body fragrance. It’s cheap and I buy in bulk when it’s on offer.

Hair

I’m often asked how I style my hair. I have used my beloved BaByliss big hair (Link) to style my hair for years. This is basically a brush and hairdryer in one and it makes achieving a sleek, bouncy, blow dry that you can only usually get from the salon easy peasy. Anyone can use it; the tool does all the hard work for you. The key is to blast your hair with a hairdryer first and leave it a little damp. This does not work on wet hair! I dry my hair so it’s around 70% dry. Then I section my hair off with a clip and dry the rest in layers using this. I simply don’t have the time to be drying my hair for hours on end and this makes a somewhat tiresome job quick and effective.

Deodorant

Rushing around in the morning to get the children ready can often feel like the hardest part of the day. It’s without a doubt my most stressful time, no matter how organised I am. I’ll spend ages getting Sofia’s hair into a sleek bun that’s going to last the full day at school and then five minutes later Leo’s on top of her play fighting in a heap of hair grips. When I only have one child, it’s a walk in the park, but together? Its mayhem! My point is, stress and rushing around is a sweaty business. I use Mitchem Ultimate 48 hour protection in pure fresh (Link). It leaves me feeling very fresh and smelling of lemon drops all day. It’s the best.

Lip balm

If I was going into the Jungle, lip balm would be my one luxury item. I cannot bear the feeling of tight/dry lips, it’s like torture. I am totally addicted to the stuff and my sister jests that I leave a trail of it wherever I go. I have one in my handbag, in my car, beside the sofa, by my bed and I have back-ups. Even my back-ups have backs ups. The best lip balm of all time is Lanolips banana balm (Link). It is intensely moisturising and tastes gorgeous. I love that I still have residue on my lips in the morning after applying a generous layer before bed. Apply a lush lip scrub (my favourite is popcorn) and then whack this over the top and your lips will be soft and kissable for days!

 

Eye cream

There is no better feeling than removing your make up at the end of a long day and applying a rich cream under your tired eyes. I have used Kiehl’s creamy eye treatment in avocado (Link) for years. It takes a bit of warming up to blend it in but it feels wonderful to apply and works as a good base for applying concealer on top (corrector first! *thumbs up emoji* for those who were concentrating above!)

Facial tan

Applying a little colour to my face works wonders for my complexion. I really don’t rock the pale look and I don’t think I have tried since 2003. It really makes me look healthier and more awake. I apply a dark tan to my face once a week such as Xen-Tan Dark lotion absolute lux (Link) and I top it up every second or third night with a subtler colour such as L’Oréal overnight tanning elixir serum (Link). If you’re not a confident tanner choose the latter. It’s very easy to apply and gives a light, but noticeable colour and can be applied after your skin care regime. I like to apply it with a brush. Real techniques have some fabulous tools. My favourite for tanning is this one. The body beauty blender (Link) from real techniques also gives a flawless application.

Pop your recommendations below if you think there’s an undiscovered gem out there just waiting to be popped into my basket. Let’s help each other out. Share your secrets and give yourself a pat on the back. You’re doing great Mama.

Love

I really didn’t think I would be writing about this so soon after setting up my brand-new blog. However, since building up enough confidence to show you my face on my daily insta stories, I’ve been asked so many questions about my skin and make up.
I am by no means a skin care expert. I have simply invested time in reading skin care blogs and watching beauty gurus on YouTube in my quest for smooth skin. As a child, I suffered terribly with eczema and spent a large part of my childhood hiding my skin and hated people looking at me. Thankfully, I grew out of my eczema in my early teenage years and although I still use steroid creams from time to time to keep it at bay, I have been left with very dry skin.
I am constantly looking for hydrating serums, creams and oils for both the face and body, in the hope that I can make my skin plump and quenched. Within your beauty regime, I’m a firm believer that you should invest your money in quality skin care and good foundation. Everything else can be scrimped upon. That expensive Tom Ford lipstick you bought won’t look good if your foundation just isn’t sitting right! If you have a good canvas, everything that you choose to decorate it with has the potential to look wonderful! I plan to write a much more in-depth blog about my skincare routine soon, but the purpose of this is talk about The Glow. As a dry skin sufferer, matte skin is not for me. Anything that makes my thirsty skin look like it’s had a good drink is for me! Follow my key steps and no matter what your skin type, your skin will be glowing for days!
Firstly, you need to know where you want the glow. You want the high points of your face to shine, such as cheekbones (all the way up the orbital bone), the bridge of your nose and if you’re really going all out, you can also dab some highlight onto the top of the shoulders and collar bone. The key is blending. Let there be no obvious end to the glow, fade it out so that it becomes part of your skin, not sitting on top. A beauty blender is your best friend for this job. You may want to matte down the shine on the forehead, between the brows and nose with a powder such as Rimmel Stay Matte.

EXFOLIATE
If you are on a quest to achieve that radiant glow from your skin, you must exfoliate. No matter what expensive products you layer on top of your face, if the skin beneath is dull or dry, nothing will look good. When old skin cells build on the surface, it can leave it looking rough. These cells will clog your pores and cause blemishes and can result in excess oil being produced. Oily skin is not glowy skin. It is completely futile to moisturise your flaky skin if you have skipped this essential step. The moisturiser will simply glide over those loose flaps of skin, pushing them down temporarily. Exfoliating will rid these pesky flaps! Aim to exfoliate twice a week to leave your skin fresh and healthy. There is a plethora of products on the market for this. These will generally be physical exfoliators – the ones full of tiny beads which buff at the skin or chemical exfoliators. Chemical exfoliators are not as scary as they sound. These work by using chemicals to aid cell turnover such as fruit enzymes. I use both. I use the lush cup o’ coffee twice a week. If you’re a coffee lover, you’ll be in Starbucks scented HEAVEN. It invigorates the skin with its rich aroma and is packed full of finely milled ground coffee beans which gently buff the skin into silky perfection. I also use Pixi glow tonic every other night. This has been made famous by Caroline Hirons. She is the skincare queen. If she recommends a product, you know its good. The tonic is an exfoliating toner that firms the skin. It contains glycolic acid which helps to brighten skin and remove dead cells leaving the skin radiant.

MOISTURISE
Now that you’ve exfoliated and removed all that dead skin, it’s time to moisturise. Choose a hydrating moisturiser. As I have dry skin, I want my skin to feel plumped and intensely nourished. I use different products in the morning and more intense products for night time. I love nothing more that slathering on rich oils before bedtime and I like to still feel some product on my face in the morning. I can’t bear to wake up with my skin feeling tight and uncomfortable. My recommendations are my daytime creams that provide a nourished base for make-up. I’m going to include recommendations here for both high end and low end. I bought a decadent golden tub of Estee lauder revitalising supreme + at Christmas and I’ve never looked back. It makes my skin feel like velvet. So beautifully nourishing. This cream is GORGEOUS. Much kinder on the purse strings is my belovedAvene skin recovery cream. This is specially formulated for those with very dry skin. It literally melts into the skin and leaves it so soft and smooth and it works fantastically under make up

PRIME
There are so many options when it comes to primer and it completely depends on your skin type. If you’re oily you’re going to opt for something mattifying for your make up to cling to. Smash box photo finish is an all-round good one. Smoothing out the skin and filling in your pores allowing foundation to sit beautifully on top. I prefer to use a pearlescent product to give my skin that extra hydration boost! Mac strobe cream was the first one I discovered. It really packs a punch, providing the dullest of skins with a glow as it enhances the effect of light on the skin with its pearlescent particles. However, L’Oreal have a dupe for this in the form of their Magic lumi light infusing liquid facial primer. I just wish it came in a larger bottle as I go through a lot of this iridescent goodness. But it helps build up the Boots Advantage points and boy do I go to town on those!

FOUNDATION
Choosing the correct foundation is so important. Dependent on your skin type, formulations that work well on one, may not sit so well with the other. If your foundation doesn’t look good then nothing else will. I have lots of different foundations I like and narrowing it down to my favourites is somewhat challenging as I have quite a stash! Let’s focus on what you can get for your hard earned cash. My absolute favourite foundation of all time is Laura Mercier silk crème. It gives a flawless coverage and really makes your skin look incredible. I reach for this on special occasions and nights out. Or if I’m having a bad skin day as it hides a multitude of sins! It’s the perfect hangover foundation. For every day, I absolutely love Bourjois 123 perfect CC cream. It called a CC cream, but to me it’s a foundation. It just makes the skin look healthy. Don’t forget that Chanel own Bourjois and a lot of their products are very similar, just very different price points!

CREAM BLUSH
Blusher is the one make-up step you should never skip! It can take your skin from looking lacklustre and flat to perky and healthy at the sweep of a brush! My face needs blush. I’d never look complete without it! Powder blushes do have a place in my life. I love Benefit Coralista and Mac Warm Soul (both give a stunning warm sheen) but Stilla convertible colour blushis a game changer! It’s cream blush and therefore looks more natural and dewy. It’s like magic in a pot. It gives the skin a tint of colour on the cheeks that really makes them pop and appear hydrated. My colour is gerbera. It gives a dose of peachy pink goodness to the cheeks making the skin look lit from within. I adore it. I wouldn’t like to count how many I’ve been through!

HIGHLIGHT
Now for the biggie. Highlighter. Oh, how I adore a highlighted cheekbone. I have a drawer full of them. But the dust is gathering on my unused stash and I have two firm favourites which I rarely cheat on. I have dabbled, purely due to curiosity, but I know where my bread is buttered and I always return to these gems. Firstly, I’ll start with powder highlight. I feel that powder highlight looks best in photography. If I’m going out in the evening I will pretty much always opt for this option. The Balm Mary Lou-manizer is perfection. The champagne glow is so intense and will make you cheek bones pop like nothing else. You can put it on lightly with a small brush if you don’t want to look too done, but there’s no denying that this highlight packs a punch. Here is a photo of me wearing it recently at a wedding:

I saved the best for last. Are you ready for this? This product is as close to life changing as any cosmetic possibly can be. I’ve only had this product in my life for about six months, but those six months have been richer for it! The Iconic London illuminator is contained in a little glass bottle that comes with a pipette. I’ve maybe used it 100 times and the amount inside the bottle has barely been dented as you need so little of the product. This stuff has the ability to make you glow like a little angel on the dance floor. It’s just as gorgeous in day time as it is in the evening. It comes in three colours, I use original, which gives a golden glow. If you’re paler skinned, go for shine. I believe glow would be used to give a bronzed glow to the body or your face if your dark skinned. You can also mix it in with your foundation to make the formula more dewy.

Just look at that glow. I didn’t use a flash here so just imagine how it could look in photos. It’s like liquid metal. The photo below shows that it doesn’t have to look over intense either. Excuse the resting bitch face pose but it was necessary to catch the angle I wanted!

I hope that’s answered some of your questions and feel free to pop your comments below. I would love to know what your favourite products are to get that glow factor.

Good luck and get glowing!

 

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