Now that winter is in full swing and my skin has taken a good battering from the wind, rain and central heating, it has been a good time to assess which of my vast array of skin scrubs and cleansers are really working. When I want to use a nice, gentle cleanser I like the Monu one, which smells of calming lavender and is easy to carry around. This was supposed to be for my kit but I can't seem to leave it alone! The Antipodes Juliet cleanser has a gel consistency and smells really fruity. With manuka honey and kiwifruit amongst it's ingredients, it gives the skin a nice antioxidant boost and helps to brighten my complexion when it's tired and dull looking. There is also something really appealing about washing my face with what feels like grape juice. My most recent discovery is the Clinique redness solutions one which my gran ( an avid Clinique user and fan of the whole redness solutions range) recommended. The cream is silky feeling and gently swipes off makeup while helping to reduce any redness and inflammation. This is lasting me quite a while and will definitely be a long-term purchase- you only have to read the reviews on websites such as Boots to see what a mighty cleanser this stuff is! The Jason Apriot Scrubble is good if you're into your natural skincare and after something more abrasive to exfoliate any dry skin. Word of advice though, I tried using this with both a Clarisonic and Foreo cleanser and it didn't work too well, I recommend massaging it in with your hands and wiping off with a flannel. It's also nigh on impossible to remove with cotton pads; you will get through half a dozen and still find flecks of apricot kernals on your face, so yes, use a flannel! Finally in my face wash hall of fame is another Antipodes product, the Grace gentle cleanser. What can I say about this that I probably haven't said already, I just love the stuff, my friend loves the stuff and my mum loves the stuff. I reckon it's suitable for all skin types, it's just the most gentle, soothing, buttery cleanser ever. It isn't too perfumed and gently cleanses without stripping your face of natural oils. It's 100% natural and is packed with nutrient rich ingredients such as avocado oil which feel really nourishing. I love the process of massaging this into my face and leaving it on for a few minutes as a little face mask!
I have spent the past week trialling a nice selection of vegan makeup products from Pacifica, who have just released a whole new range of products to their existing one. There are a few stunning products which have become firm favourites, and as with any large range, some not so stand out ones too. The CC cream is a nice little fluid that is gentle and does a pretty good job of brightening my complexion. It didn't actually colour correct as such, but the coconut water infused ingredients and SPF17 certainly ensured that my skin didn't go any redder. The eyebrow gel has probably got the least reaction out of the lot because I'm not really excited by eyebrow gel, ha. It doesn't feel as if there is much gel in there so I won't be rushing to add this to my kit. How many people actually have eyebrow gel for everyday use anyway?! The concealers are where the range really shines, especially the under eye brightening one...magnifique! They are thick and creamy but blend out really nicely to give a fresh and very dewy luminosity, which I actually really like although if it looks to much you can tone it down with powder. The blue under my (very tired!) eyes are eradicated and I look noticeably more awake.
As for the glosses, they are all pretty good and have a nice amount of longevity. I have never been a gloss girl but if they are your thing then you'll probably like the variety of colours and non-stickiness. The eyeshadows come in palettes and little duos (a duo is seen below). Now I have a palette which I love but the colour pay off for the little duos isn't that great which is a real shame as the shades are lovely. You could wet it for a bit more intensity but I still found it needed reapplying after a few hours. In this same vein, I was a little disappointed with the golden lotus highlighting powder, which is a barely there gold. This is definitely something for those who have a fear of going overboard with sparkly, golden makeup for fear of looking like a disco ball- there is definitely no risk of that! Maybe it's the formula but it just felt a bit useless and rubbed off really quickly. Adding another welcomed surprise into the mix though are the impressive coconut multiples, which I have been using for a while but wanted to include. I really love how buildable these three colours are- they are so flattering on all skin tones. Also because they are vegan and natural you can safely use them all over and they look fab. They actually remind me of colour lip balms because they have the same look and feel, but the colour is obviously more buildable!
