My Top Beauty Picks.

Oh Hi! Wow I have been seriously lacking in the blogging department. Lets blame that on having a full time job, moving house and general laziness shall we? I am back writing again and this time I want to keep at it. Think of it as a (very) late new years resolution. So anyways, the topic of todays blogpost is a round up of my favourite beauty products of the last while, shall we say. Clearly I have not kept up with monthly favourites *slaps wrist. 

1. Soap and Glory - Smoothie Star "The Breakfast Scrub"

This stuff is no joke when it comes to ridding your body of any rough skin. It contains a mixture of bananas, oats, shea, almond and honey extract and "cupuacu bio scrubs" which I have googled and still do not know what it means. I do know, however, that its brilliant for helping to get rid of those awful bumps on the back of your arms, and any where else you might be suffering from dry skin. I use this once or twice a week in the shower and I have really seen the difference in my skin. Its not too harsh either which is always a winner. It also smells like maple syrup in a tub. Mmmm...

2. Indeed Laboratories Facial Powdered Exfoliator

Sticking with the exfoliator theme, this next one has been doing the rounds of beauty blogs for the past few months. When a product gets so much hype built up around it, I am always a little sceptical as to whether or not it actually works. I should not have worried though as when I eventually did find it I was not let down. This is a new type of exfoliator, for me anyways. Its basically a powder that you apply to the palm of your hand (two shakes is recommended) and you then mix it with a little water. It turns into this white foam that you then apply to your face in circular motions, rinse and your done. It contains ingredients like rice bran powder, pineapple enzymes, hyaluronic acid and many more wonderful things to slough off dead skin cells. YAY.

3. Boots Botanics Hydrating Eye Cream

I will admit that before purchasing this product, I had stopped using eye creams. I had previously been using the Vitamin E one from The Body Shop, but I found that it used to make my eyes sting and I stopped using it. I hadn't really spotted any I wanted to try until this one. I love the Boots Botanics range anyways and I have mention a few items from them before, so when i spotted this eye cream I said "Feck it", I'll give it a go. This product is 80% organic (which is great). It also contains Rosehip which the seeds contain Omega oils which we all know are great for your skin. This cream is great day or night, its not too heavy for under makeup and sinks in great, leaving my eye area softer and fine line free *thumbs up.

4. Nuxe Reve De Miel Lip balm

Here we have a product that, again, has made its way through beauty blogs and Youtube videos alike. It would seem that this is where I find new products to try out, more than anywhere else. Who could blame me? Now lip balms would probably be my favourite kind of "skincare" product to try. I forever have dry lips whether its Winter or Summer. I have always been a Carmex girl until I spotted this in my local pharmacy and decided to give it a go. Wow. its filled with honey and oils and my god is it a great product. I use it day and night and everything in between. Its just fab. 

5. Lee Stafford Treatment to Repair, Build and fix hair

This is a relatively new product in my beauty drawer as I have had it just over a week, but even in that short amount of time, I can tell its amazing. Its basically a deep conditioner that you apply to damp hair all over (yes even roots). Once you rinse it out you can really feel the difference to your hair. My hair is a hot mess after washing. Its dry, its tangly and generally just not great. This stuff has changed that for me. I can actually brush my hair after washing (Hooray!) and my hair just feels so much healthier. It doesn't leave your hair greasy at all and its just one of those products I can see myself using for a very long time. 

6. Shiseido Urban Environment UV Protection Cream Plus SPF 50

Its a mouthful, I know. I picked this little gem up on FeelUnique.com as it was coming into summer and I needed a good SPF for my face. If you don't know already I am white as a ghost and need to wear SPF or I will burn. This product is quite light but yet moisturising which is nice to see. It looks nice under foundation and although I can't physically see if its protecting my skin, I still recommend you wear SPF, especially if you have fair Irish skin like myself. Skin Cancer is not a joke. 

7. XO Beauty Brushes

Ever since I bought these brushes (about two months ago) I have used them everyday. I will link my previous blogpost on these brushes below. I have even used them in my kit and I always get comments on how soft they are. Thank you Shannon for taking the time to make amazing affordable brushes. I now need them all in my life. My favourite of the ones I purchased has to be the little Kabuki brush. Its too cute! It applies my powder so lightly and buffs everything in nicely. Winner. 


8. The Body Shop Mango Body Sorbet

The reason I love this is simple, its light, its moisturising and it smells like mangoes. Lets just keep it real here. 

Ooh La Lou x

Previous XO Beauty Post:

http://oohlaloux.blogspot.ie/2014/05/xobeauty-makeup-brushes.html

My Winter Beauty Essentials | Sunday Blues

Grab yourself a cuppa, this is going to be a long one!

Winter is fast approaching and that means a change in the weather, which means wrapping up in warm scarves, cozy jumpers and breaking out the fluffy socks. I love it! Winter is one of my favourite months (nothing to do with christmas I swear...) I love when it snows, which is rare here, it tends to be sunny on Christmas Day oddly enough. I love when the fires are starting to be lit and you can just cozy up with a nice movie and a cup of tea. Along with all of that is my most favourite part. Winter beauty.

Skin care:

I will start first, by talking about winter skincare. Taking care of your skin in winter is hugely important. The colder weather means dryer skin and with people blasting the central heating you can be sure it will take a toll on your skin. To be perfectly honest not much changes in my winter skincare routine other than I like to moisturize like a crazy person. As I have combination skin I don't like to use heavy products in the summer as I would just be an oily mess, so I save them for winter when my skin can take it more. I have changed up my cleanser this year to The Body Shop Camomile Sumptuous Cleansing Butter and I love it. This is quite an oily product but it literally melts makeup off your face, reducing the amount of time you spend cleansing. I also try to use face masks that are brightening and moisturising. I love the REN Glycolactic Radiance Renewal Face-mask which smells if oranges and really makes your skin glow. Always a winner in my book.

Another product that I highly recommend using in winter is and exfoliator, especially if you have dry skin as it takes away all the dead skin cells that can make your skin look dull. Exfoliating also helps your moisturiser and any other products you apply to your skin, sink in better as it doesn't have to fight through dead skin and makes them work better. I have three I am currently using. My everyday one (which I don't use everyday but it is gentle enough if you want to use it daily) is the Boots Botanics All Bright Purifying Face Scrub and two REN exfoliator's the REN Micro Polish Cleanser and the REN Jojoba Microbead Purifying Facial Polish. These products are amazing at making my skin feel soft and smooth and I love them. I also think that treatments are very important for your skin in winter as the cold weather can really dry it out. I have been thinking recently in investing in the Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair Serum as it is meant to be the the bees knees and the spiders ankles (I hope people understood that...) It retails for about €80 - €100 making it pretty pricey, although very much worth it from the reviews I have read.

Body care:

As for winter body care, I will start by saying, do not have a super hot shower. This will dry out your skin. I know, I know, hot showers feel amazing when your freezing cold but do your skin a favour and just have a nice warm one instead. You can thank me later. As I have mentioned, central heating is your skins worst enemy come winter time, it completely dries it out. Make sure you are moisturizing well after each shower to keep your skin soft and looking fab. Body brushing is also your best friend this time of the year and you can read up on that in my most recent post here.

Make Up:

Next up lets talk about makeup. My favourite look in winter is neutral eyes and a deep berry plum colour on my lips. My favourite this year is the Rimmel London Kate Moss lipstick in 107 which is proving very popular this year from the likes of Suzanne Jackson of sosueme.ie and Zoella both rocking this colour. Another big trend this winter is orange lips which has been seen on the catwalk and in magazines. I think orange lips are a great change from the usual dark colour's but still keeps it in the winter colour palette. I still love a good smoky eye and a nude lip, Satin Taupe shadow from MAC being an all time favorite. Foundation wise, depending on your skin type, something more dewy/moisturizing would be appropriate for winter. Having combination skin myself, this is not always an option. So as I have mentioned before I like to apply a good moisturizer and then once that has sank in I will apply my primer to keep the never ending supply of oil at bay. I am currently using the 17 Miracle Matte Primer which is amazing for a Boots brand. It is affordable and works great, what more could you want? I will then apply my favorite foundation of the moment (right now its the Revlon Color Stay foundation) and Bobs your uncle.

Bronzer is another life changing product in winter. Who wants dull pasty looking skin? I don't that's for sure. I love bronzing up my face in both winter and summer, it makes you look more tan in summer and less dead in winter! YAY! :) I love love LOVE the Sleek Contour Kit in Light, yes its for contouring but the shade is so perfect it makes my skin look glowy and amazing. The highlighter shade is also a dream, not so shimmery that you become a disco ball, but just right so you have gorgeous glowing skin, just in time for all those Winter parties ;)

                                         A swatch of the Rimmel Kate Moss Lipstick 107
                                           

                                       A close up of Satin Taupe from MAC

Hair care:

Right, we all know what winter means for our hair.. it turns it into a dry and frizzy mess. Lovely. How do we combat this? Hair masks and lots of them. Pile them on people just pile them on. Your hair will love you I promise. Now what hair masks do I use I hear you ask? There are tonnes of them out there. I personally love pure coconut oil as it works well and is relatively cheap and easy to come by ( I am pretty sure Tesco's or a health food store would have this, you can use this for cooking too.) I warm it up in the microwave and apply to the ends of my hair, leave it for a half an hour, rinse and you are good to go. I am currently testing out the Organix Moroccan Argan Oil hair mask and I will be posting my review once I have tested it thoroughly. Hair serums and oils such as the ever popular Moroccan Oil (which, surprisingly, I do not own but have used) are also brilliant at keeping frizz at bay but keeping moisture in your hair. One big tip I have for combating frizz is to make sure your hair is completely dry before stepping outside. Any bit of moisture in your hair when the wind blows and POOF you look like Monica from Friends. Yes, I have been their.

Phew! Whoever manages to read this until the end give yourself a huge pat on the back, you are a trooper. I hope you enjoyed this post guys and I do hope it helps you in some way with any winter beauty problems you may have. If you have any more questions feel free to leave a comment down below or on my Twitter or Facebook pages, links are on my profile. :) Thanks for reading guys and a Happy Halloween! :D

Favorites | Beauty and random!

Hey guys! Long time no see! (Or write(?) in this case!) For the past few weeks I have lost my blogging mojo and have seriously lacked in ideas for new posts. I decided that the best thing to do would be to round up all of my favorites from the last month to show you guys! I have included beauty products and a few random bits and bobs as well! I hope you enjoy! Don't forget to give me a follow or leave me a comment down below telling me what you would like to see on here next! :) P.S This is going to be a long one so grab a cuppa!

First up are the beauty products. Some of these products you may have seen before as I have featured them on my blog. I'll get started by talking about two products that I have not mentioned but have adored. As you may or may not know, I despise doing my nails. I will either let them grow really long or hack them down to the skin (gross). Now I have heard of O.P.I Nail Envy before but had never picked it up, until I was in Myer in Australia and noticed they had an offer on for the Nail Envy and the Avoplex Cuticle Oil. These products are amazing! Especially together! I have never really been into talking care of my nails, but these products make a huge difference. My nails would always break and snag but after using this nail strengthener it really has helped! The cuticle oil is also great for softening your cuticles making it easier to push them back, it also hydrates the skin around your nails leaving them looking amazing! I usually like to file my nails into shape, apply two coats of the Nail Envy, once they are dry I will them rub a little of the oil over my nail and around the edges. Bomb.com! 

Next up is the Toni and Guy Cleanse Shampoo which I have previously done a post on so click here. I only use this shampoo if my hair is in real need of a good clean. It leaves my hair feeling soft and super duper clean! I feel that it actually gives my hair more volume too as it removes all product build up from the hair! Who doesn't want that?? As for skincare I have discovered two new products and one oldie but a goodie! First we have something I purchased at the start of the week to try out, the REN Radiance Perfection Serum. I have been hearing great things about REN skincare and really wanted to try out their products and seeing as garden.co.uk (they sell Bioderma!) had an offer on a bag of REN products to try out, I jumped at the chance! (I will have more on the other products later) This is basically like any other serum, you apply it under your moisturizer morning and night, but this is not heavy at all and it does not feel like silicone, it smells like oranges too! Yum! And it leaves my skin looking and feeling great! It works well under makeup too! I will most certainly be purchasing the full size of this!

Next up is the Botanics All Bright Purifying Face Scrub. I love a good scrub and this one is no different! The scrubbing particles are not too gritty so they don't irritate your face and you could most certainly use this on a daily basis. I keep mine in the shower and it really cleans your skin after a long nights sleep. It does not have a strong smell which I think people with sensitive skin would enjoy as well as it being gentle on their skin. Next is the Witch Naturally clear Blemish Stick. I love this stuff and I used to use it when I was a teenager. You can find it in most Boots pharmacies, and I would really recommend this to anyone suffering from blemishes, this stuff will completely clear them up. I use this on my "I hate my skin days" which I am sure everyone gets from time to time. Its kind of strange feeling in that its cold and it "melts" onto your face (trust me it works) Overall a great product!

I have always loved L'Oreal and clearly they make good eye makeup as I have two products in my favourites this month! First is the L'Oreal Telescopic Mascara which I have reviewed here. I love thin wand mascaras as I feel I have more control over them and I can also get to the root of my lashes much better than with a huge wand! This makes your lashes super lengthened and separated, a big thumbs up in my book! I am also a huge fan of winged liner and wear it on my eyes almost everyday, so I am always on the lookout for a great liquid liner. I have tried gels but I cant get them to last on me. The L'Oreal Super Liner is my go to liner for the perfect cat eye. The applicator is perfectly shaped, and thin enough to get an amazing wing, the only thing I will say is that I should get the waterproof one (I think they have one..) as my eyes water a lot and this tends to wash away. :/ 

So I personally love a great contour, something that makes your cheekbones standout and really adds to a look, and that's where the Sleek Contour Kit comes in. I love this! It has replaced my Mac Harmony blush which was my go to contour colour for years! Yes, it is that good. I bought it in light as obviously, I am paler than Morticia Adams. This colour is perfect for me and i can use it to bronze up my face a bit as it is not too orange in colour. The highlighter shade in this is beautiful, I have never really been a fan of highlighters as I have combination skin but this one is just too nice not to use! A blush favourite of mine, something I also never used to wear is the Essence Silky Touch Blush in number 10 Adorable. I love this colour! I am a huge fan of peachy pink tones and this is no exception. It apply's amazingly and really is a silky touch blush. It has the tiniest amount of shimmer in it which would usually irritate me but you really cant see it once applied to the skin. And lastly we have my favourite lip product of the month, my Burts Bees Replenishing Lipbalm with pomegranate oil. Just buy it, honestly it needs no review. Its great at keeping my lips hydrated throughout the day and keeping them from chapping. Woohoo!

Now for the random favourites! Who doesn't love Autumn? Personally it is my favorite season (after summer, but Ireland doesn't get those so..) I love how things start to get chillier, you have to light a fire in the evenings and of course the autumnal candle scents. :) In walks Yankee Candle in Blissful Autumn. Boy does this smell good! I love lighting this in my room at night and it makes it so warm and cosy. I hate spicy scents so thankfully this just smells of autumn fruits and clean air. Love it! As for food, I have been eating peanut butter by the bucket load! I love it with jam on brown bread or on crackers or on a spoon.... Don't judge. It has to be crunchy peanut butter though as I cannot stand smooth! Too sticky!

So those are my favourites for the past month! I hope you enjoyed reading this guys :) I enjoyed writing it! I will try and have another post up soon. If you have any requests don't be shy and leave a comment down below! I would also like to know if you have tried any of these products or if I have enticed you to buy anything? Thanks for reading guys :) 

Botanics Hydrating Night Cream: All Bright

This is the night cream that Jesus himself would have used. Its absolutely fantastic. I discovered this product a few months ago while having a rummage through Boots (again?? I never leave this place). Its packaging was what caught my eye first. The packaging from this range is gorgeous. White with either pink, blue, purple or green plants on it, depending on the range.

This night cream is from the All Bright brightening range from Botanics. There is also a mattifying range, a range for youthful skin, a calming range etc. So many to choose from. I decided to pick this one up as I really liked the idea of brightening my skin (and I ran out of my night cream..). Its a pink colored cream and you really only need the smallest amount. I have had this tub for months and only now can I see the bottom of it.

The consistency is thick but it sinks in super fast. The one thing I noticed about this night cream was that when you first apply it you don't get that really moisturized feeling, but when you wake up you will notice a massive difference in your skin. I don't personally notice that my skin is "brighter" but it does feel so soft its unbelievable. I really highly recommend this product, I'm not sure how this would work on sensitive skin though simply because of the brightening ingredients. This is not to say that the ingredients are harsh, just simply my opinion.

I have really been enjoying the Botanics range and I also have another product from them that I will be reviewing shortly so stay tuned. I think this range is reasonably priced as most items are around the €5 to €6 mark. I have also seen a range for your body from Botanics and I really want to try it out as my skin gets super dry in the winter months.

I highly recommend this product and I will most likely be purchasing many more products from them,(and stocking up for Canada :])

Botanics All Bright Night Cream