35mm Beauty

This serum is a recommendation of Nadine Baggott’s, she advocates layering a milky hydrating serum on top of a more liquidy hyaluronic acid serum instead of a moisturiser. I prefer to use HA (The Inkey List) with this on top, followed by the Clinique Moisture Surge moisturiser. The central heating at work require multiple layers of hydration.

This serum is affordable and straight-forward. It contains hyaluronic acid and niacinamide (of which I am a big fan – I use it every night). Both ingredients serving to improve water retention in the skin, the HA through plumping the skin with its humectant qualities, and the niacinamide by strengthening the skin’s barrier. Additionally, niacinamide also helps shrink pores by improving elasticity in the skin, fade red, angry spots and gives the skin a more even look.

I’ve used this with and without my other intensely hydrating serums and products, and without, it does that job well on its own. With the other products, I can’t exactly pinpoint which product is hydrating the ol’ skin, but it definitely makes it feel more comfortable, plumped and soft when I do use it. The perfect antidote to aggressive central heating in winter.

This is very affordable for a good serum, £16.99 for 30ml, but can be copped for cheaper on Asos or Boots.

The High Impact Extreme Volume Mascara from Clinique was actually given to me by a friend of mine, and I’m very grateful for it. Although it is certainly one of those mascaras where in the first few weeks of use things can get a tad messy, due to its large rubber brush and densely packed bristles, but it is so worth bruting through to hit the sweet spot.

After that point it becomes extraordinarily defining and simultaneously voluminous, in such a manner that I’ve only ever experienced with the Dior Pump n Volume previously. I find it useful to apply initially with the much shorter bristles on one side of the brush, to lay on the mascara thickly for volume, and then use the side with the longer bristles to define, lengthen and ensure a curl stays.

Mascaras don’t really smudge on me, so on that front it’s fine. It also holds its shape extremely well, so by the end of the day my naturally straight and fine lashes don’t look like their natural selves, rather the bigger, better versions. The tube lasted me a good while, as well.

At £22, I don’t think this is too bad if you’re in the market for a high-end mascara. A whole fiver less than the Dior option. Boots and all the usual online retailers will do deals as well.

I bought this to replace my beloved BareMinerals Invisible Bronze in Fair, two of which I had used up in a row. I did fancy a change, although was anxious I’d invest in something that didn’t live up to the BareMinerals.

This promised a natural, sunkissed glow without any of the powdery orange-ness. The fairest shade is a soft, golden beige, and it is perfect for my skintone. You can, of course, go overboard, but generally a wash of this on a big fluffy brush does the trick. I like gently brushing it across my nose, and using it as eyeshadow or a transition shade.

The formula is also smooth, silky and doesn’t go patchy upon application. For 7.1g, this retails at £27, but it is possible to get it on offer at Cult Beauty or Asos, so well worth the money. It has also lasted me months and months, and is sure to go one. For the fair-skinned among us, you don’t need too much. If you do, however, want to go ham, it is possible to really enhance any tan you have and build up some depth.

https://www.cultbeauty.co.uk/nudestix-nudies-bloom.html?variant_id=22100

This cream blush stick is a fairly new offering from Nudestix, and the counterpart to the Nudies Matte Blush & Bronze, except this one is dewy. I have the shade Sweet Peach Peony, and it is a beautiful, fairly deep pinky peach. It looks a bit like skin caught in the sun, but fresher and more lively thanks to the peach.

I had never bought anything from Nudestix before, and am thoroughly impressed. It’s fairly balm-like, and sticky in a good way. There’s enough play time with it to blend it out well, but you can feel it setting slightly as well.

I apply this either by dabbing it on my fingers and patting it on my cheeks, or applying directly. The former is easier, however. I also use my Real Techniques contour brush to blend it out, too. I love popping a bit on my nose, and beneath my eyebrows. It adds to that no make-up make-up, sunkissed look (in my head at least…!)

I am pale, but this colour I still love on me. It would also look divine on sunkissed skin, and lovely on darker tones as well, as the colour is quite rich. The one drawback is the price, given the quantity – 7g for £30. I did manage to get it with 15% off on Cult Beauty, so it was still an investment, if also a real treat.

The Pureology Hydrate Shampoo and Conditioner due promise to soften, tame and hydrate bleached and coloured hair. My hair has been highly frazzled since I’ve started getting highlights, so the Garnier stuff I was using was no longer cutting the mustard.

I needed something that would detangle and moisturise my usually straight and easy to manage hair, which had turned rather frizzy since being bleached. Normally, I would resent investing in products which don’t last long – shampoo, body wash etc. – but my mind has been changed with this Pureology set. I absolutely think it is worth spending the money if your hair is in shoddy nick following colour treatments. Sulphate free shampoo is also important.

It does well at softening and detangling, leaving my hair in far better condition generally, and aiding the pre- and post-shower hair brushing. The smell, I’m not mad on, but it is nice and fresh and minty/herbal.

I snagged this for a massive discount on Look Fantastic (always the arbiter of a good deal), and I think it cost me around the £22 mark for both of them, instead of the RRP £37. You only need to use a small amount, too. I heard that you should only use the same size as the logo on the bottle for each wash, which I would say is more or less true. These have lasted me a good few months.

https://www.lookfantastic.com/pureology-hydrate-shampoo-and-conditioner-duo-250ml-x-2/11448252.html

This is one pink tube of bottled magic. YSL mascaras are known to be some of the best on the market, and I had already been fairly impressed by their The Shock mascara, which is on the lower end of the YSL mascara price range.

This offering promises to lengthen, curl and life. I can confirm that it most certainly did. It seriously separates and curls your lashes, making them so lengthened that mine brushed the part of my eyelid below my eyebrows.

Most importantly, however, this mascara maintains the curl throughout the day so well. Normally, the curl mascara gives to my lashes drops out straight after I apply (save for the Dior Pump N Volume), whereas the curler keeps them in tip top curled condition for hours and hours.

This is volumising in a really pretty way, nothing too crazy, just enough thickness to give serious definition to your eyes, without looking over the top or clumpy. I’m dying to try the primer along with this, as Lizzy Hadfield (Shot From The Street) did in one of her blogs – the result looks amazing.

Mascara never tends to run or smudge on me, so I can’t say how it fares on that account unfortunately. I would say with reasonable certainty that this isn’t a smudger, as it seems to be at the good dried out point that mascaras get to after a while even when it’s first opened.

The Curler costs £26 (yikes) but I got it with around 20% off on Look Fantastic.

The quantity of product you get in Milk cream sticks is insane – 28g for £20.50. I’ll literally never run out of this. You need so little product, especially when you’re fair-skinned, as this runs fairly dark.

There are two shades, and I can’t really get away with this shade. Anyone darker than the two palest shades of foundation would be fine with it, and there’s an even darker shade as well.

While I love the value, the packaging, and Milk Makeup as a brand (they’re vegan and try to be really inclusive), I don’t reach for this so much. I find the cream formula more of a task to buff in than just dusting over some powder bronzer, especially as it’s a bit too orange on me, so requires extra fastidious buffing. Being oily, the cream also isn’t the ideal formula for me in the first place.

For anyone with drier skin, and an un-ghost like complexion, definitely check this out!

Now, the jury is sort of out on this one as to whether it’s classed as a serum or moisturizer. Nadine Baggott recommended it in one of her videos as a serum, while Ruth Crilly, A Model Recommends, said it was a super lightweight moisturizer.

Personally, I use it as I would a Hyaluronic Acid serum, i.e. after I had applied an anti-oxidant and before moisturizer or SPF. It’s a very lightweight gel texture, which sinks into the skin instantly but leaves a lasting whack of hydration.

I am also a big fan of the Moisture Surge gel moisturizer, I find that to be deeply satisfying to apply, and suitable for my greasy skin.

With the supercharged concentrate, I could in fact use it as I would a moisturizer, as make-up goes on well on top of this. But in summer, I would use SPF on top anyway, and in winter, I don’t find it to be enough of a comfort base under my makeup, given it is so light and jelly-like.

This is how Clinique describe it:

More than just a hydrator – just like the rest of the Moisture Surge family – this multitasking formula can be used in a variety of ways:
Moisture Primer: Apply after your serum and before your moisturiser to lock-in all the other moisturisers applied on top.
Moisture Sealer: Apply as the final step in your treatment routine (before SPF) to effectively seal in everything you’ve applied.
Acts as a bond between skin and makeup in order to keep a fresh and dewy look during application.
Moisture-Eye-ser: This concentrate isn’t just for the face. Use it in the eye area to boost the hydration levels of your favourite eye cream.

I would say those descriptions are true, although why anyone would use this as a sealer, I don’t know. For me, it’s a great hydrator, but I wouldn’t spend £37 on 48ml for something to ‘seal’ in additional products. Just use this as a serum or moisturiser depending on your skin type.

The little bubbles are meant to contain anti-oxidants, but I would use a separate Vitamin C regardless.

I have actually been through 2 of these, I really really like it. I might try a different Hyaluronic Acid next, but this is a great, readily available choice, which won’t break the bank if bought cleverly (I managed to get my second bottle when Clinique were offering £10 off moisturizers in Boots, and then used my student discount on top !).

I will have mentioned before that I have all the natural warmth of Casper the Ghost. So, a fake tanning product is in order. I bought this ahead of my graduation ball, and tested it beforehand, just in case. The advantages and disadvantages of this product are quite extreme, I must say.

The plus sides are that it doesn’t stink of manky, sweaty biscuits, an issue that plagues all fake-tanners among us, it gives a lovely warm, natural golden tan (the closest I’ve got with a fake tan to the colour I go when I do actually tan in summer) and it is incredibly quick and easy to apply.

Before I went to bed, I just sprayed this all over, rubbed in with a mitt and washed my hands thoroughly. No need to shower, just flop into bed. Alternatively, you can apply it in the morning and get dressed on top, and it will develop over the day. In fact, it smells rather tropically and nice when you apply it.

It’s also vegan which is always a nice plus. The bottle will last me ages, as each application lasts a few days and I don’t do it all that often. It’s by far the most pleasant tanning I’ve done.

HOWEVER… the streaks. Beware. Of. The Streaks. Because it’s water, and invisible, you actually haven’t got a dicky bird where you’re applying it. Hence the very real threat of streaks. It’s taken me a little while to get more used to applying, and more dexterous, but you need to act fast and rub thoroughly with broad strokes.

It’s also a good idea to be exfoliated before (but who actually bothers doing that), but I didn’t find this clung to dry patches too bad. I did apply body lotion to elbows, wrists, hands, ankles, and knees and feet, though.

Overall, I do think this is really rather good. Jules von Hep (the creator) has done damn well. It retails for £18.99, but I got it with a third off in Boots.

I have to say that this might be my allll-time fave lip product. I cannot get enough of it, which is why the price tag is all the more traumatising.

I am a massive fan (nay – addict) of balmy, easy to apply, super moisturising lip products. In fact, I can’t bear the feeling of traditional lipstick, even a satin finish, on my lips. They feel instantly tight and irritated, and that’s not for lack of lip balm. The lines in my lips (unfortunately enough I have abnormally lined lips) are exaggerated, I actually just end up rubbing or biting it off soon after applying.

Enough of my 1st world lip issues – basically, the Dior Lip Glow is juicy, sheeny (not gloopy), balmy, glowy pink goodness. It lasts on the lips surprisingly well and deeply hydrates them. I love the pretty shade of pink it turns (I’m not entirely convinced by this idea that the pH level adapts to each wearer’s lips, but anyhow) and it really brightens my complexion.

£28 for this is quite staggering. As it’s quite juicy, the product I’m sure won’t last for ages, but I did get this as a present last Christmas (before Dior hiked the price up) and my sister managed to get it for me with at least 10% off.

For all my sins, I will be repurchasing, simply because I haven’t found any other lip product I like as much as this one. Be warned, though, there is a slight sweet minty taste which I can just about deal with, but it’s not for the mint-haters among us.