Background: I have genetic dark under eye bags coupled with dry and sometimes flakey skin in that area. So I've been dealt quite a crappy hand when it comes to the eye area.
Overview: For me, this is the BEST under eye cream I've tried. It does nothing in terms of my dark circles but it does de-puff them in the morning times (I generally wake up with eyes not dissimilar to those of a new born hamster) and makes concealer application a piece of cake.
Consistency: Almost gel like, very rich and extremely moisturising
Application: I use the tiniest amount on my ring finger, rub said fingers together to warm it up and gently tap under my eyes. It sinks in fairly quickly, leaves no residue to cause makeup to slide but keeps area really hydrated
Packaging: It's a small glass jar; which I prefer because I can easily scrape out the dregs compared to a squeezy tube
Price: £24 for 15ml; a pot will last me about 5-6 months with daily use. I have never ever paid for this with cash, it lasts the exact amount of time it takes me to save up £24 worth of Boots Advantage Card points. However, I'd definitely fork out the cash as I think its totally worth it
Summary: I use this over top of an SPF 50 as insurance against eye wrinkles. I can't say whether it prevents them or not, I'm not a scientist but I love it as a preventative method of my concealer flaking and drying.
To compare All About Eyes to All About Eyes Rich, I've had a sample of the latter and I don't think it's anywhere near as rich or moisturising as the original PLUS it makes my concealer move around and settle.
Top
Twelve Tips for Combating Acne: How to Get Rid of Spots
*Disclamer* I'm not a dermatologist or an expert, these are merely the tips and tricks I learnt during my fight against spots and acne. These hints may be obvious, or useless! For me, the only thing that helped was a prescribed topical. However, these tips certainly help for healthier skin and a healthier body and may well help you.
Before
After
Drink lots of water!
Don't go overboard, obviously. I used to drink a pink of water every other hour during office hours PLUS tea and coffee and evening drinks. I must have been consuming more than a gallon a day. I pretty much constantly needed a piss.
Eight glasses a day is really vague, not everyone has the same size glasses scientist dummy! I would say 2 litres a day is plenty. Stay away from sugary drinks and alcohol (I should take that advice I'm such a ginner), not just because they dehydrate your skin but also because they're pretty bad for your body as a whole.
Get Eight Hours Sleep
Body needs its rest. Will also help with stress levels. Stress can often be a contributor to skin problems, if you're well rested you're less likely to sweat the small stuff.
Change your pillows and sheets
At least every fortnight, better still every week. I used to have major grumpines with my partner about his laundry habits. Now I just take clean pillow cases round when I stay over. Pillows can harbour lots of germs so wash them occasionally too
Clean your phones
Where does your mobile go? Pocket, bottom of bag, tables, the floor...? And you press that thing against your face?! It's disgusting when you think about what grime must be on your phone... Just use a wet wipe to give it a clean every now and then. That goes for land lines as well.
Don't touch your face
And if you have to, wash your hands first. Think about where your hands have been, handling money (that's been handled by god knows how many people first), stroking your pet (my dog rolled in fox shit last week but that's a whole nother absolutely traumatising story), opening a public bathroom door...
Now I don't want to go Harold Hughes on you but if you're having problems with your skin, it's probably a bit sensitive so I'd advise treating your skin very delicately.
Also... DON'T pick your skin. That includes squeezing. No matter how tempting it might be, it will almost always look worse afterwards. It will just spread the bacteria and make your skin inflamed. Don't do it. I'm serious.
Eat six a day
Try to make sure they're mainly vegetables; fruit contains a lot of sugar which is bad for your teeth. Spinach is great for iron, tomatoes for antioxidents, broccoli is f*cking delicious... If you want to look great on the outside a good start is to enrich your body from the inside.
Get outdoors
My mum was actually prescribed a UV face lamp for her acne in her 20s. I'm not sure what the science is behind that but vitamin D levels are generally quite low; people spend so much time in doors and wear very high SPFs when they are outside. Vitamin D tablets are a good substitute but I find that being outdoors adds to my well being which in turn can reduce stress.
Keep active Again, keeping healthy inside and out aren't exactly going to go against you when trying to get your skin clear
Cleansing is a separate step from removing makeup I am CONSTANTLY chastising my friends and sister for this. I definitely used to be an offender; I'd use a soap to clean my face and that's it. What I discovered that when I started using a toner following washing my face, there would always be a grimy makeupy dirty residue on the cotton wool pad showing that I wasn't cleaning my face effectively. So, even if you just use something cheap olive oil or baby oil, use a separate makeup remover BEFORE cleansing your face; it's a much more fail safe way of getting all the days grime off your face.
THROW AWAY YOUR MAKEUP WIPES!
THEY HAVE NO PLACE IN YOUR FACIAL ROUTINE (in my humble opinion... I get a bit capslock happy when it comes to skin care). They don't do a good enough job on cleansing your precious skin and they are pften much more abrasive than your hands or a cotton pad and when your skin is sensitive, you don't want to be aggravating it.
Clean your make up brushes
I used to never clean my brushes AND chuck them in my purse/handbag amongst all my other crap. How very naughty of me. Depending on your usage, I'd recommend cleaning your brushes every two weeks, and if you're taking them around in your bag, put them in a clean brush roll or cosmetic bag.
Be patient Something that my dermatologist told me is that skin is on a six week cycle. If you start doing something to treat your skin, you won't see the effects for up to six weeks. If you do anything to your skin, hang in there for the six weeks to find out if its effective or not. This is definitely the case with my skin and Epiduo... It just takes patience and staying positive, you will find the thing to help your skin eventually. In the mean time, deep breaths and keep smiling.
*Other than the photos of myself, the other images are from multiple sources via google
Clinique
Anti Blemish / Acne Solutions Foundation Liquid Makeup Review
I bought this foundation when I started getting acne; I wanted make up that would cover my existing spots without causing new break outs. As you can see from my photo, I repurchased... but in a different colour. I now mix the two together in varying quantities depending on my level of face tannage.
Before - no make up
After - one thin layer of Clinique Acne Solutions Foundation
Coverage: High medium to full coverage.
Finish: Very matte. Almost a powder finish.
Application: Buildable, easy to blend. It's not as fast drying as other full coverage foundations such as Revlon Colourstay so you can take your time a little more with the application.
Durability: This lasts definitely around 8-9 hours. I've never worn it any longer than that but I have a feeling that with a good setting powder/spray it would last 10-12. With lighter foundations (Bourjouis Healthy Mix and BB creams)
they tend to start to slide and become patchy after around 6-7 hours of wear.
Ingredients: This contains 0.5% salicylic acid - the active ingredient which helps combat acne
Colour Range: I am not a big fan of the range, they certainly don't have a colour that matches me exactly hence having to mix two colours. I have it in 001 Fresh Alabaster and 004 Fresh Vanilla
Packaging: The bottle is plastic which I find a little bit disappointing for a HE foundation (usually they are in glass bottles which to me are a little more luxurious), it has a squeezy nozzle which makes it very easy to control the amount you use. As always from Clinque, the box it came in was gorgeous but alas, I never keep them or I'd end up hoarding a heap of useless boxes.
Price: Boots RRP is £22 for 30ml. It's not the cheapest foundation but a little goes a long way so it's likely to last longer.
mixing two shades to match my skin tone
Over all thoughts...
I would definitely recommend this for someone with oily skin... However, if you have skin that is on the dry side or are using a treatment such as Benzyl Peroxide or any other topical treatment that dries the skin out, this foundation may not be great for those areas. When I first started using Epiduo, my skin was dry and red raw, this foundation was flaking away like crazy paving. It was great for my t-zone and cheeks, but on my chin it looked terrible.
Now my skin is back to normal (for me that is still oily T-zone but no spots at the moment), I think this is fantastic coverage, it doesn't break me out at all, application is very easy and buildable. Highly recommended.
Elizabeth
Arden Eight Hour Cream Skin Protectant Review
I had to review this stuff, it's absolute HG (holy grail) material for me.
I first came across this when my mum recommended it to me during my acne hell; my skin was so sore and chapped from the treatments and I needed something to soothe my ruined face
She bought a set in duty free including the tube of protectant, the lip balm and some face cream. I used up the latter two but haven't repurchased...
My god have I repurchased the Eight Hour Cream tubes... I have one in my handbag, one in my bedside table, one in my dresser and two more still packaged ready for emergencies...
Background information: I really suffer with dry lips, if I'm caught without a balm, I'll just repurchase some... No matter how many Vaseline tins I have elsewhere. I have been known to hide balms at friends' houses to avoid the dry lip hell that leads to licking.. more dryness and a never ending circle of licking and hellishness.
I'll sum up in a tidy list
Moisturises lips like nothing else - as a dry lip sufferer, this baby has gotten me through two winters with smooth lips.
A little goes a long way - I still haven't used up my first tub that I got two years ago
Smells medicinal and good - lots of people don't like the smell but I hate overpowering sweet scents. This smells luxurious and herbal to me
Multifaceted - I use this on my lips, on my elbows, to tame fly away hairs, as an intensive under eye treatment, for dry nose after a cold... dry knees. Anything that's dry, this is the answer
An all purpose make up trick - on the tops of cheek bones as a highlighter, as a moisturising lip gloss, to tame eyebrows, as a clear mascara
As an intensive facial moisturiser on long haul flights, or mixed with normal moisturiser for a daily night cream
To add shine down the fronts of shins if you're wearing an outfit that bears your legs
As the ingredients list 'Ricinus Communis Seed Oil' (Castor Oil) and caster oil is known for its uses in hair growth, I did start using 8 hour cream as a growth serum on my eyelashes and eyebrows. Alas, no results there...
The active ingredient is Petrolium (like Vaseline), but it also has Lanolin (moisturising) and Salicylic Acid. Salicylic Acid is used for combating acne. It's an ingredient in many topical solutions and Clinique's Anti Blemish Foundation.
When I first heard about this I assumed it would be a cream... But it's more of a serum like gel. It's orange in colour but goes on clear.
Absolutely highly recommended product! This retails at £25 in Boots. Whilst I think it's worth the price with all its uses and longevity, I have never paid that amount for it. I've always bought it duty free or during a 10% discount at Debenhams event (which they have about every quarter)
Do you have a HG product? Let me know what yours are, I'm always looking to try new things!
When I was trying to find my solution to my bad skin, I read a whole lot about holistic remedies; including a variety of toner recipes. I fiddled around with all the information I found and came up with this. I've been using it for nearly two years; my acne scars are nearly all gone so I think it's pretty good. I make it for my friends too.
Basically, after cleansing I shake up my toner and tip it three times onto a cotton wool pad. I swipe it over my face and moisturise afterwards.
My face smells like a salad dressing afterwards. Fit.
Recipe
¾ Rooibos Tea (three
tea bags in boiling water, steeped until cool)
¼ Apple Cider Vinegar
¼ Lemon Juice (squeezed
fresh from a lemon)
½ tsp ascorbic acid
(vitamin C powder)
10 drops of Tea Tree Oil
Nutritional Information
Rooibos Tea
Rooibos, or Red Bush
tea is hypoallergenic and antibacterial. It has a high level of flavonoids.
Flavonoids help to encourage the body to destroy unwanted pathogens. Rooibos is
also reach in the enzyme Superoxide Dismutase which is an excellent anti aging
substance.
I used green tea; make sure you steep until cool. First time I poured nearly boiling tea into a bottle and the bottle contorted like cirque du soleil
Fill any empty clean container half way with the tea
Apple Cider Vinegar
Every time you wash
your face, you are disrupting your skin’s natural acid mantle. Apple Cider
Vinegar (ACV) restores the skin’s PH levels warding off bacteria. As well as
being antibacterial, ACV also evens skin tone, smoothes texture, reduces
breakouts, gives skin a “radient glow”
Then I fill the remaining space half way with ACV
(Sainsburys)
Lemon Juice
The citric acid in
lemon juice speeds up the process of dead cell shedding. This gives the
surrounding cells feedback to reproduce more quickly, giving the skin a
brighter appearance. Citric Acid is high in Alpha Hydroxy Acids (AHA), commonly
used in anti wrinkle products. AHA helps to increase collagen production and
decrease melatonin production (skin discoloration, freckles and sun spots).
I fill the container nearly to the top with lemon juice. I think freshly squeezed lemon juice would be better but I used all the lemons in my gin. Can't have gin without lemons.
(Sainsburys)
Ascorbic Acid
Vitamin C Powder or
Ascorbic Acid is an antioxidant that slows the rate of free radical damage
(which cause fine lines and wrinkles). It also protects skil cells, improves
the appearance of sun damage, reduces inflammation, promotes collagen
production and lessens hyper pigmentation.
DON'T use too much of this! I did once and it stung my face like crazy.
(Holland and Barrets)
Tea Tree Oil
A topical antiseptic
and antibiotic. Helps to dry up spots and control sebum production.
I also use tea tree oil as a spot treatment for pimples
(Boots)
And that's it! I would say that this only costs me £1 a bottle; I use little bottles which last me a month, keeping it longer may make it less effective.
I used to use Clinique toners and found they dried my skin out so much and actually made my skin produce more oil as a result. If you don't want to make a toner like this but have problem skin I'd advise staying away from toners which have alcohol in.
Please share if you have any home made concoctions beauty secrets! I'd love to hear from you.
And here's a photo of me doing a duck face. Since I'm blogging I feel its a rite of passage. Quack
