First Mac Purchase!

Hey.

Recently I found that I was running out of my Benefit Coralista . After reading so many rave reviews about Mac products I decided to take the leap. I've used Benefit makeup for years ! It was the first high brand makeup that I was interested in. Mainly as many of my friends were using it, I loved the packaging and I found it to be the least daunting experience to approach. Many of the other counters are quite intimidating when your younger. I love all their products and I still use many every day. But it's always good to have a change!

Off I went to my nearest Mac store. We're quite lucky in Dubai as they seem to be every where here. I knew that I wanted a pink colour as I was using a M&S coral blusher and needed a pink tone. ( I quite like the M&S make up range as it lasts, has a nice colour pay off and is very reasonable . I don't like wearing my more expensive make up to work.) I picked up Stay Pretty and oh my goodness! You really don't need much of this bad boy on your cheeks. At first I gave my blusher brush a swirl in this and swiped it on and soon was looking like a reject from Dynasty. You needed the smallest amount as the colour is so vibrant. For me this is a real plus as it means I use less and the colour stays all day. Even with the high heat and then the blowing cold AC. So far I have been quite impressed. I have used a Mac mascara once before but found that it was too wet. Oh er. I found it didn't dry and the mascara would be all over my eyelids and elsewhere.

I shall carry on with trying out different MAC products but I am trying to spend more money on my wardrobe as there is  a definate lack of new clothes going on!!

What else have people tried at MAC?

Avene skin recovery cream

Well before anyone says I am well aware that I haven't written a post in months! Variety of reasons including not feeling inspired, not having the time and general ahhhhhhhh should I or not?

Anyway, I felt the need to write today, regardless of how many people may read it or not.

So recently I've found that my skin has got really red and feels really uneven when I don't have any make up on. I am quite luckily in the fact that I rarely have many break outs and that my skin is pretty even but recently I feel it is rebelling. I'm not enjoying this current phase my skin has decided to go through. I hate having  red skin especially as I am so pale it does show up soooo much.

The other day I was getting my nails done and I thought I would pop into the nearest boots and have a wander around. In Dubai the Boots don't sell all the same products as the UK and sells mainly boots brands. Saying that I did find the Avene skin recovery cream. Now I was pretty sure that I had seen some good reviews on some of the products. http://www.aveneusa.com/


I have only used it for a few days but I am hoping that it will settle my skin down quickly. The products are made from simple ingredients and based on thermal spring water which is meant to be good for looking after skin. I'm still using Liz Earle cleanse and polish at night to take off my make up as I find it really is gentle on the skin and then using Bioderma to remove my eye make up. I did use to be a bit of a negative person about the bioderma but being stuck without it one day and not having any face wipes I realised just how good it is for my skin and I do find that it takes away any extra grime or make up. 


Has anyone else found a good product for sudden redness? Let me know if you have!!!

bye for now

Product review- Benefit they're real

So I have used most of the Benefit range and had decided to try out the new mascara, they're real. 
I had heard good reviews of this product so thought it would be worth a shot. So at first glance I had seen that it was meant to make your lashes look much longer. So I have a go and my first reaction is that I don't like the wand, the feel of it on my lashes and eyes is quite rough as it is just plastic. Also I have found that the mascara transfers quite a bit onto my upper eyelid in the humidity of Dubai.  On the positive side though it does definitely make your eyelashes although not always thicker. I will persevere further with this one as I hate only part using a product.

I'm also really keen to try the Caudalie products as I have heard such great reviews of all the different products so think that will be the next purchase for me

Oh no broken hair dryer!

So just before moving to Dubai I invested in a professional hair dryer which I got from a professional salon and beauty outlet in Essex as I had been getting fed up with cheaper hair dryers that just weren't cutting the mustard. So I bought this brilliant hair dryer that was bright pink and had lasted me quite well untill dum dum dum ... I dropped it on the floor for the 100th time and that was it , boom no more . I keep knocking it off my chest of drawers and catching the wires, you would have thought I'd learnt my lesson but no. Doh.

So I had to quickly go out and find a decent hair dryer as quick as poss. In Dubai the boots store which would have been my first port of call in England is crap to be honest. They have limited stock and its mainly Boots brand products so off I trotted to the supermarket where I was bombarded with sales women asking me if I need help. 'Yes, I need the most powerful hair dryer please', follwed by lots of umming and ahhing. As I have such long hair now I can't be dealing with a hairdryer that takes forever to dry, also I start work at 7 and I'm so unwilling to get up any earlier then necessary.

I've purchased a philips hair dryer that had lots of buttons.....oooh buttons!
Its 2300 watts which seems to be the most powerful I can get here....is there more powerful??? not sure. http://www.philips.co.uk/c/hair-dryer/21315/cat/#filterState0=HAIR_DRYERS_SU_GB_CONSUMER%3Dtrue


So far it does the job well and I like the fact it has the option of a cold dry as when I dry my fringe I find that it gets a bit too hot!
So I will carry on with trying out and see if its worth it. It cost 180dhs which is about £30 which I thought wasnt too bad. Sometimes I really miss living in England and just being able to shop in places you know you can find all the things in one place. How I miss a big boots store! Its always the first place I go into when I m home


Anyway , any other hair dryers that I worth a look??

Travelling cosmetics and beauty things

So recently I have been on my travels again! Back to England for an evening before jetting off to Paris for four days, lucky I know! So when I travel back to England I usually take big sizes of the things that I need as I go back for 2 weeks or more at a time and I try to keep a stash of things that I need there so I don't have to end up humping all my stuff round the world.

So I knew that I needed some more Liz Earle cleanse and polish as my first bottle that I purchased at Christmas was coming to an end so I tried to be all organised and ordered more from her website knowing it would be awaiting my arrival and I could take new clean muslin clothes with me to paris, but what did I forget when repacking my case, yep my face wash! I hadn't realised till I was in France and I was pretty annoyed at myself especially as I had two bottles I could have chosen from , but I thought I'd let myself off as I had only had half an hour to repack after getting home from the flight before I had to get to bed ready for my train the next day. But still no face wash for 3 more days :( bad times people. My friend who I was travelling with seemed to only have had facewipes with her which I also had but more for removing mascara . I felt lost without my usual face potions that I use and I hate just using face wipes as I feel that they don't really clean my face properly and I get a build up after a few days. I also only took face wipes on my other trips that I have been on over the last year but have certainly realised that for me its just not sufficient enough and I really need to scrub down deep into those pores.

So I have decided to be a bit more organised with my packing and to defo think I have got to the age where I can just get by for a few days with just face wipes as my skin is just not coping as well and also I want my skin to look at its best.

At the moment I am using a face scrub in the morning.This is my current face wash but I'm not its number one fan. I much prefer St Ives face wash as I feel it is much grittier and I feel it cleans my pores more. Then I follow with moisturiser and I have used the same one for quite a while now as it has SPF in it.   Occasionally if I have bags under my eyes I use a roll on eye cream aswell. I have seen lush has some good face scrubs that I'd like to try.

In the evenings I use my cleanse and polish from Liz Earle, which I forgot in Paris :( oh no! I've recently seen that they have really good travel accessories from Liz Earle which I think I will be purchasing to save me the hassle of worrying about what I have forgotten.For £28.50 I think this is quite good value!
So I don't have too many face wash products but these are my essentials for cleaning my face and I usually have something to help wipe away and excess mascara too. But still lots of things to remember and I need to get better and thinking what I really need!
God I wish for the days when I could travel lightly but I feel that these days have passed and I have now got to carry more beauty items. Oh well! All worth it for nicer skin though.

Bikram Yoga

I know, I know. I have been incredibly bad at writing blogs. Works been crazy busy for what seems like a month and also I haven't really purchased that much recently. What I have been going crazy for for the last 2 weeks is Bikram Yoga. I've wanted to try it for months but for one reason and another I just haven't had a chance to get round to it. So the other week I finally mustered up the courage to go find the local yoga studio and oh my god! I have never sweated so much in my life.

Bikram yoga is 26 poses in a 45 degree heated room. Which basically means a sweat fest! The idea is that the heat allows you to be more supple and also burn more calories. I have been really enjoying it although I am finding it incredibly hard to make sure that I am drinking enough water to make sure I don't suffer from headaches and water retention. I think it takes your body a little while to adjust to the temperature and the stretches. I am determined to keep it up as I would love to lose the 10lbs that have gradually crept up in the past year or so. I know its not the cheapest form of exercise at around £10 per session but I think most studios do offer deals to make it more affordable. The place I have been going to offers 10 days of as many sessions as you wish for £20 and tomorrow will be my 5th session so I have definitely got my moneys worth. Once I return from England in April I think I will pay for unlimited classes as I do like to try and go as much as possible. It is actually quite relaxing ....after a while!

 

Bioderma Purchase

Whilst wondering around one of the malls out here with a friend who was searching for some cream for post tattoo soreness I spotted a sign sporting Bioderma. I have seen a few reviews raving about how amazing the products are.So I picked up this make-up remover. 
So far....not sure. It was 68dhs for a 500ml bottle as it was half price. It has one of those push down applicator things on the top (hightech chat there!)

It does take make-up off well. I like using babywipes and then wash my face after to make sure everything has gone. Ive been using Liz Earle cleanse and polish since Christmas (which Im also undecided on). But I did want something for my mascara as panda look really doesnt suit me. So last night I tried it to take off my mascara, got up and didnt look like a panda but post shower....OMG Panda had reappeared. Im not sure if its because I hadnt taken it off properly but I think this will take time for me to judge, especially for the money. Was a big bottle mind and I know its quite expensive to try and get in the uk. I will jog on with this new product. I do like trying new bottles and especially after suggestions as its nice to try things that you might not have automatically tried.

Im also a MASSIVE fan of facial scrubs. I use one everyday and I find when I dont use it I really notice how my skin feels .......unclean! I liked St Ives and think I have repurchased this a few times, but recently I ran out and my local supermarket didnt have any so Im trying . So far Im not enjoying this as much. Its really running so when you squeeze the tube loads come out and also I dont find the beads are big enough to do the job so I think I might go back to the St Ives if I cant find another product to try. I find that the only problem with using scrubs so much is that they make my pores feel bigger and more visible.

Onwards with the hunt for perfect skin