Morning magic

Everyone knows if you apply make up too soon after moisturiser, that by your 10am bathroom call your makeup has slid from your face and is now covering your knee caps. These products sink into the skin so fast due to their liquid texture so that you're ready to apply the rest of your face in a heartbeat. 

I consider myself a "normal people" ambassador for the brand, but they aren't actually aware of me yet; but they're missing out big time by not hiring me to be their only spokesperson! Howdy Ho! (Not sure if that's actually a saying or not?) 

Anyway to the glittery stuff.. Literally. Lancôme has a new skin care line out called "Energie De Vie" and it's based around your morning routine - i.e. it sinks in super quick, gives your skin an energy boost, makes you look fresher and more awake as well as being hydrating. I've only been using these for the past few days but I already agree with all of them!  

The "smoothing and plumping pearly lotion" Is a product that you apply before the moisturiser (cleanse & tone as usual) to give an extra boost of hydration. It's not necessary to have this product but it works super well with the moisturiser especially if your skin is on the drier side. It's a clear liquid when it comes out (although the glittery bottle is misleading - I thought it may at least contain 98% fairydust) and is best applied with a cotton pad. As soon as it touches your skin you feel cooler and fresher, as well as taking in the beautiful fresh scent. As said a million times, it absorbs in super quick so you don't have to wait more than a few seconds before you can apply the moisturiser! 

The moisturiser "energie de vie liquid care" seems very misleading - people think because it's a liquid it's not as hydrating, but this isn't true! I found it works just as well on my skin as my usual hydra zen does, and it leaves my skin feeling a lot cleaner and fresher than the heaviness of the hydra zen. (However I don't mind heavier creams as long as they do their job!) if you have dry skin you may want to apply slightly more than usual for extra hydration.

Instantly you feel as though you've had cold water chucked over you and you're ready to trot on with the rest of your day! It's a beautiful feeling they give you - I personally don't think you can beat the feeling of cleanliness and freshness and these are top of their game! These products work great on all skin types as they're not too moisturising that they can't be used on oily skin due to their light liquid complex and they're hydrating enough to be used with dry skin, so they really are an all round product!

There is also a night mask in this range "energie de vie nuit sleeping mask" - I have tried samples but I haven't truly applied it enough to give an accurate review but from what I have used it seems to compliment the other products well. You can apply it thickly and leave on for 10/15 minutes and wipe off once a week, or you can apply it like a usual night cream 2/3 times a week for an extra hydration boost whilst you sleep. I personally think you can really tell once you've used this product at night and then use the other two in the morning! My skin has never felt better although I fully understand it takes a while for your skin to adjust. So far, so VERY good! 

Lotions and potions...

Lancôme & Clinique

Welcome back! I truly hope you enjoyed my first blog post, and that you've been glorious and golden ever since. My second blog post is going to be all about my skin care routine in as much detail as I can give. Enjoy! 

I am a huge Lancôme fan. I try every product and use them religiously which is why it makes up 100% of my skin care routine on a normal day. Usually, my skin is combination which means I have oily parts and dry parts or that they bounce between the both. When my skin isn't dry it's super oily and make up slides completely off my face and I also develop blemishes - this is when I bring out the big guns, my 'Clinique blemish solutions' range to help get back to normal.  

When my skin is dry: 

To begin with, I'll remove my make up with a face wipe but leave my eyes alone. I'm really not bothered which, I tend to buy baby wipes as they're cheaper and I find they work just as well on my skin been as I cleanse anyway but I prefer simple baby wipes as they're a lot less rough and have more moisture than some other brands. Then, I'll use either a small cotton pad or a baby wipe and put on a few drops of my Lancôme Bifacil eye make up remover as this stuff literally melts makeup. Either works well, but sometimes my eyes are super sensitive and I find using it on a baby wipe is a lot gentler on my eyes. 

Then I'll use the foaming cleanser "Creme mousse confort" by rubbing a small amount on to wet skin and running around until it's all foamy (can you tell I'm not a professional?!). Pat my skin dry, then apply Lancôme "tonique confort" toner and allow it to dry before applying my moisturiser. The moisturiser I use is Lancôme "Hydra Zen" for normal skin. I use this rather than dry skin because I don't want to put too much moisture into my skin because it's not overly dry, just in parts and it helps to balance out my skin. I don't use this around my eyes - I did before and cried for about 30 minutes from the stinging! For my eye area I use "Hydra Zen" eye cream and use my ring finger to gently pat this below and above my eye (underneath eyebrow) but don't get too close to your eye with this either - the skin by your eyes is really thin so the product spreads around. I then let this all dry, and then go ahead to apply my primer/garnier lotion in my last post. At night, I do the same routine but I apply Lancôme "hydra zen neurocalm night cream". I tend to use the dry skin products even though I have combination skin because my skin is very very sensitive and they're more gentle. 

When my skin is super oily: 

When my skin is super oily it will usually last around a week but it's really manageable with the right products. I find that my skin gets oily and I'll develop blemishes when I'm run down or not well, but I very very rarely get spots. I have 3 products I live by during this time as I don't like applying too many products, I like to keep it simple and fresh to help with the oiliness. 

Clinique "anti blemish solutions" is my go-to range. I bought a mini set of all 3 products and they're great sizes considering I don't have to use them too much and it was around £25 which is a great price! I use the same products as above to remove my eye make up and a baby wipe to cleanse before hand. I then use Clinique "anti blemish foaming wash" and pat my skin dry. Then apply Clinique "anti blemish clarifying lotion" to my skin using a cotton pad. Once dry, I apply the Clinique "all over clearing treatment" which is the moisturiser in the set. After using all 3 my skin feels so fresh and clean and stays this way until I cleanse again at night time. I try not to wear makeup during this time to reduce the amount of products going onto my skin. It usually goes back to normal after a few days and my blemishes disappear so quickly after using this, but it can tend to really dry your skin out in some places so you have to be careful. 

Extra tips: 

When my skin is its normal self, I use "Lancôme exfoliance clarte" twice a week after my face wash to keep my skin exfoliated and remove dead cells. It really keeps my skin looking fresh! Also, depending how dry my skin is I will use "Lancôme hydra intense mask" to pump the moisture back into my skin, usually once or twice a week. The mask has to be left on for a few minutes and then wipe off the excess with a cotton pad, however, my skin usually sucks it all in before I get the chance! My skin glows after using the gel mask. 

When I have blemishes I still stick to the Clinique range. I'll use the Clinique "Anti blemish clinical clearing gel" and apply a dab to wherever it's required before I apply my moisturiser, then let it dry and apply the moisturiser. I'll also use the Clinique "oil control clearing mask" for an all over treatment to keep the oils at bay. 

When my skin is good it's perfect, when it's bad it can be very very bad. I use all Lancôme skin care and make up usually as I love their products and the way they make my skin feel, but I choose to use Clinique when my skin is oily because I personally think that Lancôme doesn't do anything powerful enough to help oily skin as I find all products, even the ones for combination skin are very moisture rich, but that's just me! I do have a range of Lancôme skin care products that I use rarely if i have no Clinique available that are more suited to oily skin, but these rarely come out. 

Just for the record- I don't switch and swap every week as that's really bad for your skin to pump moisture in and then wanting it stripped out. It's every few months I use the Clinique, as said when I get unwell or run down because it gets super oily. Usually, I stick with the Lancôme products. As said in my last post I'm no expert, I've just been using these products for years and I know they work for my skin.

*shoutout to my local Lancôme lady for always hooking me up!*

Any questions on my routine, or have anything you'd like to know/want advice?

P.s. In the image below the eye cream and night cream are tester sizes- I don't like opening my big ones until I've used up little ones!:)

Lots of love! X

Tan, tan, tan!

Hello, beauties!

Firstly, I am no beauty expert. I have no beauty qualifications or anything to mean that you should really pay attention to what I tell you. However, I am a complete beauty addict who has tried hundreds of products over the years. 

It was so hard to decide what I should write about first. I have a huge Lancôme addiction and could write about any one of their products in depth. I've got more makeup than I have space for it and nothing makes me feel better than an all year golden tan. 

It was, however, the latter that has stolen the limelight. 

Without tan I am a ghostly white shade. It's not a good look on me whatsoever. I've tried fake tan, gradual lotions and even had a few goes on the sunbeds (naughty I know) but there's two new products that have me religiously buying them. 

Technically it is a gradual tanner, but not like the creams that you're used to. I've used gradual tanning lotions for a good few years and they've never once left me patchy or a funny shade of orange (lucky me!) but I really didn't like the feel of them. I found that I always felt "wet" for a good few hours after applying them. They didn't soak in as well as I would like and I always felt like I was walking around somewhat damp, but they did the job, so I used them! 

This new product I decided to try on a whim, that if it was any good, it would be amazing. And I loved it. 

It's a Rimmel Sun Shimmer 1 minute express in-shower gradual tanner, that you use after shower gel, rub all over whilst you're wet (it's a colourless lotion), leave for 1 minute and then rise off and dab dry. Once you're dry it does feel a little waxy on your skin (I didn't mind this, as it was better than dry skin), but after around 30 minutes it's fully dry and you just feel moisturised. 

After a few hours or the next morning, you have a beautiful golden glow. It's a lovely shade. Even after one use I felt like I had been kissed by the sun and I felt 10000% better in myself. If you want to go darker, you can apply daily until you've reached your desired colour or you can apply every few days to maintain the glow. Depending on my mood and whether I'm going out this weekend, depends which option I choose. I've applied for days at a time and it goes a very nice deep colour without looking fake. I found that it didn't gather around my wrists or hands and it generally looked like a real tan. It keeps your skin feeling moisturised for hours and doesn't leave you feeling wet all day. 

I worried slightly about my ability to rub it all over, but I honestly don't think you have to do it amazingly well, just cover everywhere with a tiny amount and the job is done - albeit I had to use my hands in funny positions to get the mid parts of my back! 

You just rub it all over, enjoy your music for a minute (or like me count down from 60!) and then rinse off and pat dry. It really is so easy to be able to tan in the shower and it's amazingly quick! The price varies from £6.00 up to £10.00 depending if it's on offer and I've seen it so far in Boots and Superdrug.

The second product I love is Garnier Ambre Solaire 1 Week Glow self-tan cream. I don't use the above product on my face as I'm very fussy with what I use, but again I decided to give this a shot as I had used products similar before. This cream is tinted, to give you a nice instant glow, and also promises a one week long glow after 3 uses. It does act as a self tan, the more you apply it the darker the tan develops but only up to a certain point - it doesn't go 'normal' fake tan dark. 

It makes your face appear radiant. It does produce quite a shiny glow upon application, so it's not ideal if you prefer a matte look, but I love a nice dewy finish and I even wear this as a replacement for foundation on good skin days! Even after cleansing thoroughly the glow is still there and keeps me looking youthful. 

Although it's a self tan face cream, for me personally, it doesn't offer enough hydration so I tend to use it on top of my normal moisturiser as I found my skin dried out pretty quick when I used it alone. It also has a beautiful apricot smell! 

I love these products for a healthy all year round glow. I don't know about you, but I feel so much better in myself when I have a nice tan! I feel like my makeup applies better and looks better, and really, it keeps me looking alive!

I hope you all loved my first blog. I didn't actually realise how long it is as I could write for England, so I truly hope I didn't bore you.

Feel free to leave comments regarding what you would like to read about in my next post and any questions! 

Thank you, 

lots of love. 

Mollie xox