empties!

long time no speak - sorry i'm such an awful blogger. i'm not even going to pretend i've been doing anything interesting. just working, hating working and wishing i wasn't working. you know the drill.

moving on, i've had a pile of empty products growing in a bag in the corner of my room and thought it was time gave them all a mini review and said whether i'd repurchase. hope you enjoy...

first up my trusty olay beauty fluid for normal/combination skin. nothing new here - just a moisturiser that does everything i need it to! really nourishing and easily absorbed, i've already purchased a new bottle!

next is the rimmel wake me up foundation. i featured this in a haul a LONG time ago now and its taken me a while to finish it. i blame this mainly on the fact that i cannot be parted with my drugstore foundation of choice - revlon photoready. the wake me up formula contains SPF which is handy during the summer but i found it a bit shiny on my skin. it has medium coverage and was a really good colour match for my skin tone (i am 103 true ivory). all in all i definitely wouldnt rule out buying this foundation again as it is essentially a very good foundation at a very reasonable price. i, however, think the revlon photoready works best for me.

no surprises here, its my holy grail bioderma. by far the best product i've ever bought and i cant see a day when i wont repurchase this badboy. its notoriously hard to get rid of as it is a french brand and not sold here in the UK. i buy mine on ebay but a little birdie told me that they may begin stocking this angel in harrods very soon so keep your eyes peeled!

another product i featured a while ago was the estee lauder advanced night repair. this little 50ml bottle has been like the gift that just keeps giving. i use this without a doubt every evening before i go to bed and it's taken months to finish. with a price tag of £57 i can safely say i've got my moneys worth! i was skeptical at first because of how small the bottle is but it has lasted an extremely reasonable amount of time. i will definitely be repurchasing this mini bottle of radiance and repair. it does exactly what it says on the bottle - repairs your skin. no spots, no scars, no redness - its amazing.

murad blemish spot treatment - a HERO product in my eyes. this little baby zaps blemishes off your face within hours. forget sudocream, witch hazel and old wives tales. this stuff is, pardon my french, the dogs bollocks. anyone with breakouts and blemishes can use this and be confident that the little blighters will be significantly reduced in hours. i have used this in conjunction with the murad blemish control cleanser which no doubt has helped my acne prone skin to clear up. cant recommend this enough - already repurchased.

last but not least - the caudilie beauty elixir. i had previously owned the 30ml bottle but this time had to buy the 100ml. i use this product as a toner but in all honesty i have no idea what it's supposed to do. over the past few months it has added that extra something to my skin. its glowing, smooth and radiant. the smell is beautiful - i am usually opposed to using highly fragrant products on my face as i am prone to breakouts but this doesn't anger my skin at all. will definitely repurchase but perhaps try to use more sparingly next time!

so thats that! see you in another few months... just kidding, i HAVE to get back into blogging more regularly.

what products have you guys been loving this month? any empties?

emma xo

evening skincare routine!

this post is all about my current evening skincare regime. i have become a skincare obsessive over the past few months and feel myself wearing less and less makeup! this is very unlike me as i have spent most of my life caking on makeup to cover blemishes or scarring, however after using the following products, my skin has had a new lease of life! dont get me wrong i still get the occasional breakout, but in general my skin is in a much better condition these days!

to remove makeup and cleanse, i simply use my bioderma crealine h2o on 3 or 4 cotton pads and wipe them all over my face. i also use a face wash 2/3 times a week (murad blemish control clarifying cleanser) however i don't tend to use it every evening as it dries out my skin. to tone i use my caudalie beauty elixir which i ADORE. its a spray bottle, i tend to just spray a few pumps into my hands and gently pat it into my skin. the smell is gorgeous and it can also be used as a makeup refresher throughout the day. i then use my estee lauder advanced night repair serum. i spoke about this in my last post and cannot recommend it enough - its also great if youre suffering from breakouts and/or problem skin - it just tends to clear everything up and generally improve the quality of your skin! over the more dry areas of my face (around the edges and occasionally my nose) i use the h2o+ hydrating treatment which is an odd but beautiful product. it is essentially a deep moisturiser and hydration booster which works incredibly well over dry skins. i avoid my t-zone with this gel as i find it makes me more oily throughout the day. i then apply my olay beauty fluid, which is actually a day fluid, all over my face and neck. this is my go-to moisturiser and one i always reach for when i just want to take my skin back to basics. i have the normal/dry/combination version but they also sell a sensitive version. eye cream-wise i use skyn iceland's icelandic relief eye cream which i pay gently around my optical bone. i find that this really reduces puffiness around my eyes and gives a cooling sensation - great for after a sleepless night. and finally we move onto lip care - i use the leighton denny cuti-lips balm which is an amazing 2-in-1 gel for cuticle removal and lip nourishing. i find it has quite a greasy texture which i love for my evening routine but i don't tend to use it so much during the day!


so, where can you get your hands on these goodies? well, olay and estee lauder ANR are available in boots for around £6 and £54. i purchase my bioderma on ebay from an amazing seller who i will link here, for around £13. i purchase my caudalie beauty elixir from feel unique for £9.90. this product is pretty dear and i will admit, doesn't last as long as i'd like, but its definitely worth the money! finally we have the h20+, skyn iceland eye cream and leighton denny's cuti-lips which you can either pick up online or in the brand new marks and spencer beauty department ! they retail at £27.50, £38 and £7 (in the order i previously mentioned). the m&s beauty department is very hard to get hold of at the moment, with only high street kensington having launched. stratford city is next on the 14th of june though so be sure to check it out whether you live in london, go shopping in the area OR you're coming to the olympics this summer! stratford westfields is right next door to the olympic park so pop into m&s to check out the beautiful products they've brought in.


have a lovely jubilee weekend everyone,
emma xo