A few weeks ago I shared this app that tells you how toxic or not your cosmetics, toiletries and kids toiletries are simply by typing in the name on the label. I have been addicted to the app ever since and as a result have decided to switch quite a few of my products including the kids products I use on Anya.
One of the first things I ditched was my deodorant because even the one I was using was considered relatively toxic. But of course I needed a replacement quickly! I searched around and I liked the sound of the 100% healthy Lavanila’s pure vanilla deodorant. Naturally I checked it out on my app and it got a score of 0 which means no nasties whatsoever.
As the weather starts turning colder, I always find my skin getting dryer. Especially the skin in those already dry places like heels, elbows and knees. So a few weeks ago, I went looking for something that could help and I came across this organic skin saviour which I liked the sound of. I bought it and haven’t stopped using it since the day i got it. Whenever I come across a beauty product that I love, I share it here and this one is too good not to share.
This One Love Organics Skin Savior is the best smelling skin balm that I’ve tried – so natural and divine smelling yet the smell is very mild and gentle. But more than the smell, I love it because I was so pleased to discover that this one little jar does so much:
1. Its a great cleanser to remove make-up and dirt and doesn’t leave your skin feeling dried out. For a really good face cleanse I’ve started using this with my other favourite cleanser, the konjac sponge that I wrote about a while ago and still swear by.
2. Beyond your face, it works so well on those areas that always need extra moisture, especially in winter – think heels, elbows, knees and wherever else your body is needing a bit of tlc. You can also use as an all over body moisturiser although it may prove a bit expensive.
3. This One Love Organics Skin Savior is a fab lip balm too. You just need to use the tiniest bit and your lips feel softer and moisturised.
4. We’ve just returned from a beach holiday and while there I decided to use this skin saviour on my eyebrows and it worked a treat in making them look neat and tamed. On holiday, especially in the sunshine, I prefer a much more natural make-up look and so experimented with this jar even putting a little on my eyelashes instead of mascara. The result was gently glistening lashes that looked natural and perfect for a no make-up look.
5. I used it as a hair tamer too, to control those flyaways. Again just a tiny amount was all that was needed to smoothen out my straight hair and make it look neater. I’ve read that it’s a great conditioner for hair too but so far I’ve only tried it to groom my hair.
As mentioned, we’ve just returned from a fab holiday to Thailand and this little jar of One Love Organics Skin Savior was just the thing for a trip away – acting as a moisturiser, cleanser, conditioner and beauty aid – I don’t know how I managed without it before. Hot weather or cold, this skin savior has so many uses and it’s all natural too so no nasty chemicals. It’s definitely a product that is going to be a permanent fixture in my beauty bag for home and away. I’ve only had it for a few weeks so I haven’t fully experimented with it but I suspect I’ll be finding even more uses for it.
P.S. This isn’t a featured post, just something I bought and loved and think you will too.
While I do love a bit of a beauty splurge, there are some high-street skincare products that I cannot live without. I’ve always envied the Americans because they have such a great range of drugstore skincare and beauty products that don’t cost the earth. We may not have quite the same variety here but we do have some gems that I swear by. I’m not normally brand loyal when it comes to skincare but I can definitely say that these five products have been a part of my life for years and will be for many more years to come. You may have come across some of them but I thought I would still share them here and tell you what I love each one most for:
1. Soap & Glory Hand Dream – If you can overlook the bright pink packaging then this is the best hand cream I have used. I have tried many, many, many and most have been far more expensive. I have found that most hand creams are either too greasy or the non-greasy ones don’t moisturise effectively enough. But this Hand Dream cream does both – moisturises really well and you have none of that greasy film on your hands after.
2. Carmex moisture-plus lip balm – This lip balm is a lip balm with a hint of colour. You can get sheer peach, sheer pink or berry. This lives in my handbag as it’s not only a great little lip moisturiser but it also adds that hint of colour to your lips when you don’t want to wear full on lipstick. It’s my go to subtle lip colour especially for the school run. Also, I prefer lip balms like this one that you apply like lipstick – no sticky fingers!
3. Bio Oil – I’m sure bio oil isn’t new to many of you but I still wanted to include it because I think it’s such a useful oil for so many reasons. A friend recommended bio oil to me when I was pregnant and I used it religiously on my tummy – I didn’t get a single stretch mark. It could be luck but I swear by it. I also love it for any really dry patches of skin especially in the Winter months and it even makes a great face moisturiser, again when the weather is particularly dry and harsh.
4. Tea tree oil – tea tree oil is a great natural anti-septic with so many uses. What I love it most for though is acne. While I don’t suffer from adult acne, I do get the odd spot. As soon as I can feel it coming, I put a little tea tree oil on it a few times a day and before I know it the spot goes away and never really appears. I’ve also heard that it’s great for naturally preventing lice in kids – all you have to do is add a couple of drops to the shampoo and then shampoo as normal. We’ve only recently started doing this and no lice so far. (Always remember to buy 100% pure tea tree oil.)
5. Vaseline lip therapy – for the best lip balm that works, nothing beats these little tins of vaseline. But I especially love it as a base for my lipstick. It just makes my lipstick go on smoother and it looks better applied and I also find it makes my lipstick last longer. These tins come in five flavours – cocoa butter, aloe vera, rose, original and they also have a sun protection lip balm. The cocoa butter one is my favourite.
All of these skincare products cost less than a tenner but they really deliver great results. I couldn’t live without them! Do you have some high-street skin care favourites? Please do share.
Last weekend I treated myself to a new make-up remover and cleanser in one. I decided to try something new as I wasn’t crazy about the one I was using. With my old one I had to clean my face about 3-4 times to get all the traces of make-up off and another couple of times to ensure that all eye make-up was gone too. One of the last things I do at night is remove my make-up – I force myself to do this even though the temptation is to just go to bed especially knowing that that school day alarm will go off, no matter, what at 6:30am. With my last makeup remover this annoying end to the day was taking so long that occasionally I wouldn’t bother to completely remove my make-up. I’d have a quick swipe and leave it at that. Not a good idea so I decided that I needed to try something different that would hopefully be a lot quicker and easier to use.
I’ve used Ren products before and have liked them so decided to try their express all-in-one makeup remover. I think I’ve found what I was looking for. This creamy cleanser removes make-up so well and quickly. I did have to cleanse a couple of times to remove all traces of my mascara and eye-liner but that was it – no going back several times. I love the feel of this cleanser too – it’s really smooth and silky and made my skin feel soft and clean after using it. And Ren use mostly natural products in their skin care range so there are no nasties like parabens, sulphates and other harsh chemicals. I also love that Ren feels like a luxury brand but doesn’t cost the earth. Anything that makes my beauty routine easier and quicker without compromising on my skin makes me happy and this Ren express make-up remover does just that. So if you’re looking for quick make-up removal then this could be the answer for you too.
I should add that this isn’t a sponsored post – I bought the product and liked it so I thought you might enjoy hearing about it too.
Who has time to curl their lashes everyday before getting out the door? I know I certainly don’t. I can barely make it to the school gates on time as it is, so adding steps to my beauty routine in the mornings just isn’t an option. I’ve often said I like time-saving make-up and beauty products that still work well and do exactly what they promise. And if I find any goodies, I will share them here.
I’ve long been a fan of Benefits ‘they’re real!’ mascara as it is probably the best mascara I’ve used in ages. So last week when mine ran out, I headed back to the Benefit counter to get another one. When I got there something that I hadn’t seen before caught my eye – a new curling mascara. So I asked a few questions and then tried it for myself. The new mascara from Benefit is called roller lash and it’s all about curling and lifting your lashes without needing to use a curler beforehand. I snapped it up and I’m really pleased with it. It definitely curls and lifts and makes your eyes look wider and more open. And it cuts out the need for curling your lashes first so saves time too. In truth, I hardly ever curled my lashes beforehand as I am somehow always doing my make-up in a hurry, no matter what time of day. But I have straight lashes so always had the best intentions of doing a bit of curling. Now I don’t need to and that makes me very happy! I think I may have found the best curling mascara for me.
Benefit’s roller lash will probably be even more effective if used with ‘they’re real’ mascara but for me, I’m quite happy to stick to one for the time being. It lengthens a fair amount and curls well so I’m pretty happy with the results. If you look especially on the left eye in the pic above you can see what I mean. I am already a Benefit cosmetics fan as they are one of the brands that I’ve found that really do what their make-up claims to do and also products like this curling mascara that save me time are always welcome in my beauty bag. What’s the best curling mascara you have tried? Any recommendations?
I should add that this isn’t a sponsored post – in fact none of my beauty posts are sponsored. I buy things I like the sound of, I try and if I like them, I share them with you.
With the recent sunny spell we’ve been enjoying, it’s time to think sun screens and sun creams. I recently came across Kiehl’s Ultra Light Daily UV Defense cream and I love it so much that I thought I would share it here. I’ve always said that while I’m no beauty product junkie, if I come across something fab, time saving or useful for us mums then I would let you know about it.
We all know that sunscreens shouldn’t only be used on sunny days but should be used everyday of the year, at least on our faces. They are the best thing you can do to protect your skin from the elements and protect against premature aging but I have to say that I have been guilty of using it only in the warmer months even though I know otherwise. The only reason was that all the face sunscreens I had previously used were heavy, greasy and so, so sticky. Also they always left white streaks and I ended up with sticky hands too after applying it. And with this heavy, sticky texture it wasn’t the ideal base for make-up. But now that I’ve discovered this Kiehl’s ultra light cream all those problems are no more. This cream is indeed very light but amazingly still has a very high SPF of 50, it is not even slightly sticky or greasy and there is not a white streak in sight. It literally glides on to your skin and it lightly moisturises while protecting from sun damage. And putting on make-up over it is no problem either. It’s not the cheapest cream around but a little goes a long way and I have not found anything else that comes close in texture with such a high SPF too. So I will happily say that this is the best sunscreen for the face that I have ever come across.
This Kiehl’s sunscreen is suitable for all skin types including sensitive skin so anybody can use it. Now that I’ve discovered it, I can’t do without it – a quick application of this cream followed by some light make-up and I’m ready to face the day. And I know with this cream I will use it to protect my face everyday – come rain or shine! Do you have a favourite face sunscreen? Do let me know in the comments.
I promise you, I don’t normally take pictures of sponges! But today there’s a good reason. As I’ve mentioned before, if I come across any quick, effective and useful beauty buys I would share them on here. Especially ones for mums on the run who don’t have hours each morning for an involved skin or make-up routine, like me. I recently came across this Japanese face sponge which sounded really quick and easy to use for cleansing your face so I ordered it without much thought as it was really reasonable too.
Ever since the first time I used it I loved it. It made my skin feel clean, soft and fresh. These Konjac Sponges come with different ingredients to suit different skin types but all are 100% natural. I bought the green clay one for normal to oily skin. All you do is wet the sponge and massage your face with it – really easy and fast – and the sponge cleanses, gently exfoliates and even removes water based make-up. I now use it every morning before the school run and it doesn’t eat in to my limited time at all. With the best will in the world, I always plan to exfoliate my face every weekend but it never happens. But now using this konjac sponge morning and evening I don’t really have to worry about exfoliating. Natural beauty products like this that make your life easier without much effort are always winners for me.
P.S. This is not a sponsored post. I bought the product because I liked the sound of it and I’m really happy with it so I thought I would share it with you.
A few weeks ago, I went for a make-up consultation with Fre-ya Barker at Fenwicks Bond St. I wanted to try a few new beauty products so rather than go from counter to counter at a department store, I thought it would be so much easier to go to one place where you are not restricted to any one brand. Fre-ya is an independent make-up artist who is not tied to any brand and so she uses a very broad range. She creates a look for you based on what you’re looking for and her entire fee (£50) is redeemable against products.
I got to try a whole lot of make-up some of which was fantastic but the stand-out product of the day for me was this Stila 10-in-1 illuminating beauty balm. Applied over clean , moisturised skin, the second I had it on I noticed a very visible difference in my skin. My skin tone was more even, my skin looked brighter and fresher and overall I was very impressed. Even though the balm is coloured, it doesn’t have any colour once applied to the skin. It can be used on its own or under foundation/tinted moisturiser. This is my new go to product for when I need a very quick fix and don’t have time to layer on loads of make-up.
As I mentioned a while ago, I’m not heavily in to make-up on a daily basis but I do love a product that really works, saves me time and makes me look and feel good. In the mornings, especially during school time, like every other mum I’m busy getting life organised so I don’t have bags of time to spend on make-up. Now I see myself applying this each morning with a dash of blush and spot of lip gloss for the school run. All done in under three minutes. This Stila illuminating beauty balm is just the thing for me and any mum who needs a quick skin brightner especially when time is of the essence.
Everybody needs a bit of pink in their lives especially for Summer. From pale pink to bright pink, there is a shade of pink out there for everyone. Here are a few pink things I’m currently loving for mamas and babies:
The word ‘blush’ is such a pretty way to describe this beautiful pale peachy-pink colour which I’m loving for Spring. So soft and feminine, this is a colour I want to see more of in my home and wardrobe. So I went looking for blush things for mamas and kids and here are my favourtie finds:
Ebabee Likes is a style guide for babies, kids, teens and their mamas. It’s all about inspiration, ideas and indulging yourself and your brood. It’s written by me ~ Nomita ~ a style loving girl from Mumbai who now live’s in London. Read More...
