Thursday 11 November 2010

Beauty booty

Hi guys and gals,

As I mentioned in my Elizabeth Arden post, I'm always on the hunt for skincare products that might help resolve my many skin woes. When I'm trying something new I prefer it if it's been recommended before I chance smuthering it all over my skin and this week I've started using two new skincare products that have both come highly recommended.
I'll probably do a proper review on each product at a later date once I've used them for longer than a couple of days but I just wanted to report my initial reaction to see if it changes in a month or two of using them and if I would consider permanently adding them to my skincare routine.
First up is Burt's Bees Citrus Facial Scrub. I've always liked the idea of exfoliating. Buffing away dead skin to give you a clearer, fresher complexion but I've yet to find one that doesn't completely suck the life out of my skin. In the past I've gone for big brands with a big price tag to match thinking that they'd be the best on the market but none have suited me.
I did my research and read reviews on about 100 exfoliating products (no joke, I was reading through them all one very sleepless night!) and Burt's Bees Citrus Facial Scrub had the best review by far and came highly recommended by everybody that had used it.
All products in the Burt's Bees range are natural and this sulfate-free facial scrub contains finely ground almonds, oats, pecans and rose petals to gently exfoliate your skin.



The texture is slightly moist and crumbly and once you scoop a small amount out and mix it in your palm with a bit of water it becomes more like a paste which you then exfoliate your face and neck with. I've not been using it for long, just the last couple of days but  my skin felt incredibly soft and fresh after use. It didn't make my skin feel tight or make my sensitive areas flare up which is always a good start. I really like this product and have been impressed by the difference it's made to my complexion after only a couple of days. If it continues to exfoliate my skin without causing any irritation or breakouts then I'll be a very happy bunny and will definitely be repurchasing this product again.
It was £9.99 for a 55g pot which is very reasonable and alot cheaper than other exfoliating products I've purchased in the past. I ordered it online from Look Fantastic but I think larger Boots stores also stock Burt's Bees products.
Click here to visit the Burt's Bees website and check out their full skincare range.

My next beauty buy is the Egyptian Magic Cream. I've heard this cream mentioned on a number of blogs but it was watching Gems Maquillage review of the product on her YouTube channel that swayed it for me, click here if you'd like to watch her review.
It has quite a hefty price tag at around £25-£30 on most websites. I bought it for £24.95 on BeautyBay.com which seemed to be the cheapest deal I could find and the postage and packaging was reasonable and didn't bump up the total too much.
The impression I got from reading the product reviews was that this cream is abit of a beauty secret although there's quite a buzz about it in the beauty blogging community. Even on the packaging it's branded as 'The Ancient Kamitians secret magical cream!'
This product has no synthetic preservatives or fragrances added and lists it's ingredients as olive oil, beeswax, honey, pollen, royal jelly and propolis extract and can be used on a huge number of skin complaints. To put it bluntly, it does exactly what it says on the tub! It's a magic moisturiser with healing qualities. You can even use it on your hair!!
If you'd like to know more about this product click here to visit the Egyptian Magic Cream website.



The texture is very similar to Vaseline and comes in a pretty decent size tub (4oz./118ml.) It smells alot like Vaseline too and has that petroleum jelly scent to it which some people might not like but I don't mind it.
A little goes along way with this balm and if you scoop a bit out with your finger, rub it in your hands the texture turns more oily and then you can apply it to wherever you choose. I  used it last night and during the day and it made my skin feel really lovely, softer than it's felt in ages and it's already completely rehydrated the dry patches around my eyes.
Like my Lizzie Arden eight hour cream I'd only use this on a day off or at night to rejuvenate and protect my skin as it's quite heavy duty with an oily texture and probably wouldn't sit well under a full face of slap.

And my final splurge went on something I've been ogling since it's release and that's Models Own nail polish in Grace Green. Although I'm trying to reign in my addiction and ween myself off buying so many nail polishes I'll admit I relapsed this week and treated myself to it.
I'm going through a bit of a green phase at the moment and have purchased a number of gorgeous green items over the last couple of weeks. A lovely knitted snood in a soft khaki shade from River Island, a mint green jumper from Topshop that I wrote about in my previous post and now this gorgeous green nail polish.

Here's a picture of the shade on.


That's my little spree for the week and I'm really pleased with all my purchases. What beauty buys have you bought this week? Any new additions to your beauty regime?

Hope you're all wrapping up warm this week.

xxx

7 comments:

  1. I LOVE grace green. It's my latest fave. I'm obsessed with buying Models Own polishes, it's not good! x

    http://sweetmondayblog.blogspot.com

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  2. Me too! I'm not usually a fan of green nail polishes but I really love this shade. Next on the list is Vintage Pink and I quite like the look of Mushroom too! x

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  3. Cute nail polish colour! I've heard of the Bees products but my skin literally reacts with anything so I find using nothing is best!

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  4. oh no, what skin woes do you have? your skin looks very clear to me! i'm so rubbish with cleansing etc - i do love cocoa butter though x

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  5. @Cherry Pullinger I do wonder whether the amount of product I use only irritates my skin further! I did try the soap and water approach once but never again! I've never used Burt's bees before either but I love this facial scrub and would highly recommend it to someone who has very sensitive skin like me. Been using both products for a week now and I'm amazed at how lovely and soft my skin feels and I have NO spots! This is a first!!! xxx

    @danniekate don't be fooled by a full face of MAC stuido fix foundation! It's industrial strength full coverage!:D I have the usual skin woes. Breakouts, dry skin, oily T zone along with very stroppy skin that reacts badly to everything I put on it.
    I could eat Cocoa butter, it smells delicious but I always found that it made my skin really dry when I used it. xxx

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  6. I'll be interested to hear how you like these products after you use them for a little while! I'm always scared to buy new products because i'm spent so much money on products in the past I have ended up not liking.
    Good for you for doing research! I'm too impatient for that.
    Melissa

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  7. Well it's been about a month and i've just ordered my second pot of the burts bee's exfoliator. It really is great. Gentle enough but still does it's job. It's perfect it's definitley been added to my regular beauty favourites.
    And I can't recommend the Egyptian Magic cream enough. I'm trying to be sparing with it but I do tend to use too much instead of too little. I've had so many comments on how clear and healthy my skin looks, i'm literally recommending it to everyone who will listen to me. I've even used it on my baby nephew who has eczema patches and it was gentle enough and it cleared up within a week so my sister has also ordered a tub!:)

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