Review: Sleek Blushes in Rose Gold and Flushed

Well hello there everyone,

I went shopping at the weekend as as my current obsession is blushes I picked up a few from Sleek! I have heard great things about Sleek blushes and initially wanted to get one of the blush palettes which contain three complementary blushes for £9.99. However, the Superdrug near me didn't have any of the palettes so I picked up a couple of the single blushes I instead. The singles are £4.49 each and are available to buy either at Superdrug or on Sleek's website. 

The first one I picked up is colour 926 Rose Gold. It's a lovely peachy toned blush with gold shimmer running through it. 

The other one I picked is 935 Flushed which is a lovely raspberry/cranberry colour. Which has a little shimmer but much more of a matte finish. 

 I have switched both of the colours with Flushed on top and Rose Gold underneath. 

I love both of these. The pigmentation is great and the packaging is great - both have mirrors in the kids so they are perfect for handbags! The Rose Gold colour is very shimmery which is great bunt means for me (oily skin) it's not something I could wear during the day or for a long night as shimmer plus oil equals a very I attractive look! I also think it works great as a highlighter. 

Loving both of these and will be investigating the Sleek stand more fairly soon!

What products have you been discovering this week?

Claire

Flushed: http://www.sleekmakeup.com/face/blusher/blush

Rose Gold:http://www.sleekmakeup.com/face/blusher/blush

Disclaimer: I purchased both these blushes with my own money and am not affiliated with the brand mentioned. Links are for reference only and I am not affiliated with any linked sites or companies. 

Review: OC Eight

Well hello there,

Up until now it seems all my reviews have been something I haven't been completely bowled over by but this product is the absolute exception!

OC Eight is a mattifying gel that you use before makeup in order to control oil though out the day. The idea is that the gel contains small particles which are able to absorb oil as it is produced throughout the day. The gel is meant to give 8 hours of shine free wear and it doesn't last that long for me but this is mainly due to my skin being far more oily than most!

I started using this product when I was 15 or 16 after tremendous amounts of research, at the time in America it was listed as a prescription product from dermatologists (though this isn't the case any more) and it was this that was the main reason for me trying it initially. I thought if it was strong enough to be available on prescription then it might stand a chance against my skin!

It is a creamy gel, thicker than a moisturiser and quite similar to a primer in texture. You smooth it onto your skin in small circles before applying your make up but after any moisturiser (or in my case La Roche-Posay Effaclar Duo) and wait for it to dry before applying any foundation and the rest of your make up as usual. It dries fairly quickly but if you are a bit too keen sometimes it can make your foundation go a bit patchy or cause white marks to appear. 

I must say I LOVE this product. It is the only product I have ever used that I will without fail always continue to repurchase. Since first buying it at 15/16 there has not been a day when I have applied make up without using this first. It is the only product that has ever really made a difference to my oily skin, although it might not seem a lot to most people having a product that keeps your skin vaguely matte for up to 4 or 5 hours depending on what foundation I am using as opposed to my make up looking a mess after 30-45 minutes without is a huge achievement in my book. I usually apply it around 8am in the morning and notice by around half one/half two my face is beginning to shine. As I said it doesn't seem a lot but considering then difference when I don't use it last until after lunch is pretty remarkable!

This product doesn't seem to be that we'll known in the beauty world (as far as I know) so I really wanted to say how much it has changed my skin! It's priced from between £8-£10 depending on where you get it though I find you can get it in multipacks of 3 tubes for about £22-£25 making it a little cheaper. There aren't that many places that seem to stock it - online pharmacies are usually the place I find it!

There we have it - a product I am pretty convinced I shall continue to use and repurchase as long as it's still available to buy!

What do you use to keep your make up looking fresh?

Claire

OC Eight: http://www.expresschemist.co.uk/category_1991_oceight.html

Disclaimer: I purchased this product with my own money and I am not affiliated with any brands mentioned. 

Links are for reference only and I am not affiliated with any companies linked or mentioned. 

Review: La Roche-Posay Effaclar Duo

Well hello there,

Today I just doing a quick review on one of the products I mentioned in my skin story post. AfterI have  cleansed and toned my skin in the morning La Roche-Posay Effaclar Duo is the first thing I put on my skin. I use it instead of a moisturiser in the morning as using any moisturiser on my oily skin makes it so much worse. 

This product is described as a corrective and unclogging product designed to reduce imperfections and purify your pores. It costs £13 in Boots though they usually have good offers and when I got mine it was two for £15 making it effectively £7.50. 

Lots of other bloggers have raved about this product and credit it with totally transforming their skin and all the great reviews were the reason i went out and bought it. Sadly this was not the case for me. The product is nice, is a lovely creamy formula, goes on really well and soaks in really quickly so it's perfect to use before make up. However, I didn't see that much difference in my skin, it did help slightly with my acne but I didn't notice any difference in my pores. I have quite large pores and was hoping that even a small change would make a big difference to my overall skin which just didn't happen. Still I do like this i think the main problem is that the only foundation that I have found helps control my oil also makes me break out so I think this product probably deserves a bit more credit than I am currently giving. 

The main point is that I probably will repurchase this however, I will wait until there is an offer on before I get it again. 

Anyone else tried this?

Claire

http://www.boots.com/en/La-Roche-Posay-Effaclar-Duo-40ml_1002787/

Disclaimer: I bought this product with my own money and am not affiliated with this brand.

 Links are for reference only and I am not affiliated with any companies linked. 

Review and how to: Nude nails Essie Eternal Optimist

Well hello everyone,

Today I thought that along with doing some reviews I would do a little how I do my nails demonstration!

First I remove my previous nail polish. I was wearing Essie Nice is Nice and removed it using a Sally Hanson nail varnish remover.

 I love Sally Hansen and all the nail varnish removers are great but today I am using the one for soft and brittle nails as although my nails aren't that bad, since they always have nail polish on them and get nail varnish remover on them quite regularly I feel using a strengthening nail varnish remover helps them stay in good condition.

Once the old polish is all gone I start with a base coat. Even though I am not using a dark or bright polish today I still use a base coat. Today I am using Rimmel 5 in 1 base and top coat. This works great as a base coat as it dries quick enough for you to paint over the top straight away without having to wait for each layer to dry.

The nude colour I have chosen is Essie Eternal Optimist, I love this colour, I love the name, it's all good things from me for this polish! For the first coat I paint over the nail leaving a gap between the cuticle and the polish to make sure the cuticle doesn't get painted with nail varnish. For the second coat I simply go over the lines I have already created, again making sure I stay away from the cuticle. I find that once I have done both hands with the first coat it's dry enough to go straight back over with the second coat.

Finally I do a quick layer of top coat, today I am using Essie Good To Go quick dry topcoat. This stuff is a lifesaver! I never have enough time to just sit and wait for my nails to dry and a quick dry topcoat is the perfect solution to this. The only thing I would say is that this topcoat has the tendency to make your nail varnish peel rather than chip.

Then I am good to go!

What are you wearing on your nails?

Claire

Essie Nice is Nice: http://www.lookfantastic.com/essie-nice-is-nice-nail-polish/10448761.html?ProdDetail=2
Sally Hansen nail varnish remover: http://www.boots.com/en/Sally-Hansen-Strengthening-Nail-Polish-Remover_1255886/
Rimmel 5 in 1 base and top coat: http://www.superdrug.com/rimmel-lycra-pro-nail-polish-5-in-1/invt/208756
Essie Eternal Optimist: http://www.superdrug.com/essie-nail-polish-eternal-optimist/invt/435652
Essie Good to Go: http://www.boots.com/en/Essie-Top-Coat-Good-To-Go-13-5ml_1255517/



Disclaimer: I bought all this products with my own money and am not affiliated with any of the brands mentioned. Links are for reference only and are not affiliate links.

My skin story

Well hello everyone,

I though I would give you a little background into myself and my skin as I feel this will shape a lot of the products I review and things I talk about and so giving you a little insight into what I am all about will help you much better understand where I am coming from.

The first thing to say is that although I have been into beauty and makeup for a long time it is only the past couple of years where I have really started experimenting and trying lots of new things. I tended to just buy the same things time and time again without giving much thought to what I was buying or how it would affect my skin. But a few years ago I really for the first time noticed just how bad my skin was and from there have been on a quest to try and find anything that would help

My skin type is oily, not just the run of the mill a little oil, but full on oil slick skin. When I am wearing no makeup in a matter of minutes my skin is covered with an oily sheen. Up until recently I was one of those strange cases where although I had really oily skin I didn't really suffer with acne, just the occasional spot or blackhead but through trying out all the different products to try and combat my oily skin I have actually made my skin worse and am still no closer to finding anything that can help.

For my skin I have done or gone through most of the phases and crazes to try and bring my oil to a more manageable level. I have tried everything from not putting anything on my skin so that it naturally balances itself out, to trying to strip away oils and everything in between and so far I have only found products that keep my oil at bay for an extra few hours (which is not great).

I find myself constantly checking in the mirror to make sure my make up hasn't slid off my face and would love to be able to go out for the day without the constant worry of what my makeup is up to.

I use a variety of products currently (all of which I will do full reviews on later), but to give you an idea of what I use of a daily basis: first La Roche-Posay Effaclar Duo, then OC Eight mattifying gel, MAC Pro Longwear Foundation in NC15, Urban Decay All Nighter makeup setting spray and then Rimmel Stay Matte Powder in 003 Peach Glow. This is just the basics and it still doesn't make a huge difference.

I will do a proper post on my skin care and make up routines another day but from this I hope you can get a feel of what sort of things I am looking for in my beauty and makeup purchases.

Phew this has been a bit of a long one but I hope it gives you some insight into what I am about and to all those girls who also struggle with their skin sometimes it's just nice to know you are not alone!

What's your skin type and how do you manage with those not so great skin days?

Catch up soon,
Claire

Review: Essie Nice Is Nice Nail Varnish

Well hello everyone,

I received my April Glossybox a few weeks ago and inside was an Essie nail varnish.

Firstly I must say I am a huge fan of Essie polishes. I love painting my nails and have a Sunday night ritual where they get painted once a week.

I find they stay on really well without too much chipping and have a great colour pay off. I finally got the chance to test out the new colour and although I was initially disappointed with the colour I received (after seeing others blog about their boxes) I actually really love it.

Nice is Nice is a soft pastel lilac with a hint of grey. Pastels are always huge over summer so it should be getting a lot of wear.

What will you be wearing on your nails this summer?


Claire




Disclaimer: I was sent this product in the April Glossybox which I purchased with my own money. I am not affiliated with any brands or products mentioned.

Where to find me

You can find me on my blog:

http://kerfuffleclaire.blogspot.co.uk

Twitter:

@kerfuffleclaire
https://twitter.com/kerfuffleclaire

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