Balance Me - face mask review

I've been feeling a little out of sorts and totally drained for a while, so tonight I decided to give myself a mini pamper session.
So off I toddle upstairs, I start my cleanse routine of L'Oréal 15 second miracle oil, and decide to apply my new balance Me radiance face mask while I take a shower.
Now this stuff smells just gorg, (I'm no good at describing scents, so I won't confuse you) but I like it! 

So I massage with circular motions *as per instructions* all over my face, and the exfoliant (walnut shells) get to work, I hop in the shower, which lasts about 20 minutes (the instructions say to leave for 5) as I'm doing a full body scrub using my absolute fave 'Soap & Glory' scrub, *heaven*  but I always like to leave things a little longer, once finished I set to washing the face mask off,  once fully rinsed off I gently pat dry and finish off my cleanse with REN clarifying toner, then apply Rana Argan Oil.
I feel smoother, soft & plump, theres a lovely scent lingering ever so slightly, me and my face feel a lot happier, a little less stressed and down in the dumps!!

Its so important to make time for yourself, even half an hour can do wonders.

Treat yourselves

I love this pproduct, I will definitely be making it part of my weekly routine! 

Thank you balance Me

Get your;

balance Me - radiant face mask here 

L'Oréal 15 second miracle oil here
REN clarifying toner here
Rana - Argan Oil here

CJ xo

2 Glossy Boxes arrived!! :)

So I took advantage of Glossy Box's promotion to receive 2 boxes for 12.00
the boxes were the 'Glossy Box turns 2' & 'July 2013's Seaside Splash'

Here is what was inside ;

Glossy Box turns 2!!-

Awapuhi Wild Ginger - shine spray (here)
Collection - fast stroke eyeliner (here)
Jelly Pong Pong -  fairy lashes mascara (here)
HeadLine Colors - poolside party nail polish in 'gunmetal' (here)

Beautiful Movements Cosmetics - prime & create mixing medium (here)

And very kindly as extra 'birthday gifts' the Glossy Box team included a bar of Green and Black's Organic Dark Chocolate (here) and a handy pack of their own emery boards!!! :) Thank you x

Seaside Splash July 2013 -

Alterna HairCare - bamboo style boho waves tousled texture mist (here)

Coola Organic Suncare Collection - coola mineral face spf20 unscented (here)
Inecto Pure Coconut - refreshing dry shampoo (here)
Ila Spa - face oil for glowing radiance (here)
Ciate London - paint pot in 'island hopping' (here)

Cant wait to try out all my new goodies, check back in soon to see what i thought of them all! :)

Thank you Glossy Box once again! :)

Why not visit Glossy Box to see their latest deals and promotions!!

Happy shopping guys

CJ xo

Barry M - Confetti Gel Paints

I recently received a package of 'Confetti nail paints' from the Barry M collection, such a cute collection it is too! :)

My 10yo daughter was only too happy to "trial" them for me and insisted on me doing her nails in each colour straight away! *cheeky madam*

         So we set to and this is the result ; 

Do you like?!

 We decided on a clear base, but I think these would look great as a top layer over any other colour

Colour description left to right:

Marshmallow

Liquorice

Dolly mixture

Bubblegum

Sour apple

Her favourite is 'Sour Apple'! Whats yours? 

Check out Barry M's full range here

Thank you Barry M

You've made a (demanding) 10 year old very happy! Ha

Happy painting

CJ xo

*this package was received by me, as a competition winner on twitter! :) 

Ren Skincare Product Review

So I've just finished my long weekend of using just Ren Skincare products!

Before I get to my conclusion of what I thought of the brand i'll lay out my routine

Morning Cleanse & Moisturise;

• MayBlossom TZone  Control Cleansing Gel
• Clarifying Toning Lotion
• Active7 Radiant Eye Gel
• Tzone Balalncing Day Fluid

Evening Cleanse & Moisturise;

• MayBlossom TZone Control Cleansing Gel   ( I used my No7 face brush at this stage)
• Invisible Pores Cleansing Mask
• Clarifying Toning Lotion
• Frankincense Revitalising Night Cream

I stuck rigidly to this routine from Friday evening to Monday evening

I loved the Ren products, my skin felt almost like new, thoroughly cleansed with out being dry, moisturised to an excellent level without the feeling of overdoing it. I love the smell of the Frankincense Night Cream, it was a lovely scent to go to bed with, I however was not overly keen on the smells of the other products but I can let that slide as Ren provide quality products that do the job! :) The Clarifying mask was a dream, sufficient tightening on the mask drying, my face was left feeling firmer, fresher and supple!! :)

I would 100% recommend RenSkincare to anyone that asks, I used the combination kit, and definitely felt it was well suited for the market it was aimed at.

Excellent buy, will be ordering more very soon

Thank you Ren

You can order Ren Skincare products here 

To see the full list of products ordered by me and prices see my previous post here

Happy Shopping Guys

CJ xo 

No7 face brush review

I've been using my new Boots No7 face brush on a once daily basis for just under a week now and I have definitely noticed a difference in the look and feel of my skin, I have oily/combination skin and get quite bad dry patches on my cheeks.

How I use it;
I perform my 1st cleanse - L'Oréal 15 second miracle oil cleanser
Wash off with warm water and a flannel,
I then apply my second cleanser - nspa melting gel cleanser onto dry skin and use the face brush (on setting 1) all over my face and neck allowing the gel to work in fully, I then wash off with warm water and a flannel.

My skin has been feeling cleaner, firmer, softer and may I say 'healthier'
I have also been told it looks more radiant and clear and feels soft to touch.

Loving this accessory and will definitely be keeping it in my daily cleansing bag as a go to peice!
Every girl (and guy) should have one of these beauties

Happy cleansing

CJ xo

Eve Lom Face Mask

Last night I decided I'd try out my Eve Lom face mask
I suffer with very oily/combination skin  and  after using this product I definitely felt matte, firmer & tighter while my skin still felt soft to touch and smooth rather than stripped and dry like I've experienced before with other clay masks
I would 100% recommend this product to others, Eve Lom delivers on product and promises!

A very happy blogger here

CJ xo

Product Review- Rana Argan Oil

I purchaed a small bottle of Rana Argan Oil a couple of weeks ago, and wanted to use it for a while before I wrote about what I thought of it.

I'd heard and read so much about the wonderful properties and benefit of the Miracle Oil of Morocco, a wonder oil that does everything!

Blurb; Argan oil is a plant oil produced from the kernels of the argan tree (Argania spinosa L.), endemic to Morocco, that is valued for its nutritive, cosmetic and numerous medicinal properties.

Properties; Argan oil contains tocopherols (vitamin E), phenols, carotenes, squalene, and fatty acids, (80% unsaturated fatty acids) The main natural phenols in argan oil are caffeic acid, oleuropein, vanillic acid, tyrosol, catechol, resorcinol, epicatechin and catechin.

Uses; 

Face Moisturizer - After cleansing morning and/or night, massage a few drops of argan oil directly onto your face and neck. Since argan is considered a dry oil, it absorbs quickly and is not greasy. If you want to use it as a serum, apply your night cream after the oil absorbs into the skin.

Hydrating Toner – Add a few drops of argan oil to your favorite facial toner to hydrate and tone simultaneously. You can make your own toner by adding a few drops of argan oil to Rose or Orange Blossom water.
Rejuvenating & Brightening Face Mask – Add a few drops of argan oil to your store-bought mask. Alternatively, make your own mask by mixing 1 tablespoon of lemon juice, 3 teaspoons of Greek-style yogurt, 1 tablespoon of honey and 3 drops of argan oil in a bowl. Apply on a clean, dry face and leave on for 10 minutes. Rinse off with warm water.
Exfoliating Lip Scrub and Moisturizer – To smooth and moisturize your lips, add a few drops of argan oil and vanilla extract to fine brown sugar. Lightly massage into lips using circular motion and rinse off.
Face Glow – Add a drop or two of argan oil to your foundation, bronzer or tinted moisturizer for a dewy, luminous glow.
Leave-on Conditioner – After the shower, while your hair is still wet, add a few drops of argan oil to your hair, ends and scalp to hydrate and moisturize. It’s especially nourishing if your hair is dry from daily use of a blow dryer, straight-iron or curling iron.
Hair Styling Shine – When your hair is dry, use as a styling product by adding a few drops of argan oil to the palms of your hand. Rub your hands together and run your fingers through your hair to create shine and tame frizz. You only need a small amount. It lasts a long time.
Overnight Hair Treatment – Massage a generous amount of argan oil into your hair, ends and scalp. Wrap your hair and leave it on while you sleep. In the morning, wash your hair and you’ll have luminous, soft locks.
 Cuticle and Heel Softener – Massage a few drops of argan oil into your cuticles to soften, moisturize and encourage nail growth. Use as an overnight treatment to nourish cracked heels by working a good amount into your feet and toes. Cover with socks and wake up to supple feet.
Body and Bath Oil – Add a few drops of argan oil directly onto your skin, into the bath or body lotion. It’s safe to use on a baby and to help minimize stretch marks on a pregnant belly too.

I purchased my 30 ml bottle (9.00) from the lovely Rana Team, see here for full product listings.

The oil itself smells at first very nutty and woody, which soon fades once the product is worked in, only a little bit is needed as it goes a long way, so there is no wasted product.

I used my Argan Oil in some of the ways listed above:

My Face; it absorbed nicely into the skin, leaving it feeling soft, supple and hydrated, without a greasy film left behind. / I used it as a base layer before applying my daily moisturiser / and a serum for overnight hydration.

My Hair; thanked me for it when i used it as a leave in conditioner/treatment after using a seperate treatment that didn't suit my hair left it dry and brittle feeling. see post here / I used it a shine serum before styling.

MyHands; this was applied every evening before bed to my hands and massaged into cuticles, they definitely felt softer in the mornings

I have to say it really is a miracle oil!! :)

Happy Skin

CJ xo

Todays Purchases - Skincare

I decided I needed (wanted) a sonic facial cleansing brush, the obvious choice would have been the Clarisonic, but they seemed a little out of my price range for a gadget I wanted to test!

examples;
Clarisonic Classic Pink @ FeelUnique.com being 155.00
Clarisonic Plus Carnival @ Clarisonic.co.uk being 179.00 I decided I'd look around for a cheaper but just as good alternative.

So today I visited my local friendly Boots, with the aim of ticking off a few more items from my SkinCare Wish list
After much online product reviews and umming & aahing, I decided I'd give this a go;

Boots No7 -Beautiful Skin
No7 Cleansing Brush at 24.95 and the chance to collect Advantage points, it seemed the best option to me, and my purse (the boys wallet) also agreed! :)









I was also able to cross off 2 more items from my wish list, being;

Una Brennan - Superfacialist -Rose Hydrate  

• Calming Creamy Cleanser  7.99//5.33 after discount
• Intense Moisture Mask 8.99//5.99 after discount

Full Superfacialist range here, Boots are currently running a promotion with 1/3 off on selected Superfacialist items!!  Make the most of it :)

While in there I decided it was only fair of me to insist the boy has at least a minimal skin care routine. With just a little persuasion I got him to agree to a very simple routine of cleanse and moisturise (with dedicated facial cleanser and moisturisers and not just whats readily available to grab in the shower) Yay :)
so I decided I'd ease him in gently and picked up

Loreal Men Expert - Hydra Energetic see full range here

• Anti-fatigue Moisturiser (24hr hydration) 7.13
• Ice Cool Face Wash (with Cryo-tonic) 4.03

Not too bad for a quick pop into town, I'll let you know how I get on with my new products and of course how the boy gets on with his new routine!!

Happy Shopping, Happy Cleansing 

CJ xo

New Latest in Beauty order/ 15% discount Flash Sale!!! Hurry

Since I love the idea of 'try before you buy' i thought i'd take advantage and make some more purchases from the lovely people at Latest in Beauty... well why not? ;)

I received an email informing me they were hold a flash sale of 15% off all collections and luxury samples for 48hrs!! Just simply enter FLASH15 at checkout
So of course i had to take a look, here is what i ordered;

• Perricone MD - No Foundation foundation /4.00
• BullDog - Original Shave Gel (for him) /3.00
• LP SKin Therapy - Overnight Replensih Cream /6.00
• Balance Me - Radiance Face Mask /2.50
• L'Occitane - Shea Butter hand Cream /1.50
• Aromatherapy Associates - Revive Morning Bath & Shower Oil /1.50

Happy Shopping guys

CJ xo

REN skin care / Offers and freebies Plus my purchases!! :)

• So i was trawling the REN website to make a list of products to add to my skin care wish list and couldnt help but to take advantage of their great offers: 
• Earn points every time you purchase 
• 
• 10% off your favourite product for life! (changeable every 6 months)
• 
• Free Delivery on orders over 30.00
• 
  
• 
• Free Moroccan Rose Trio
• 
• 
  
• Plus;
• Sign up and receive an automatic 10% discount
• Choose 2 Free samples with your order
• 
  
• I purchased:

•   
• 
  
•                            
• Clarifying Toning Lotion £18.00 
•                                       
• 
  
• 
• Kit for Combination Skin £12.00 which includes;
• Mayblossom T-Zone Control Cleansing Gel(25ml) 
• T-Zone Balancing Fluid (15ml) 
• Invisible Pores Detox Mask (15ml)
• 
  
• 
  
• 
  
• 
  
• 
  
• I also took advantage of the '2 free samples' offer obviously!! and chose:
• Frankincense Revitalising Night Cream
• (32.00 for 50ml)
• Active7 Radiant Eye Gel (20.00 15ml)
• 
  
• 
  
• 
  
• Great offers, Thank you Ren
• CJ xo

Hand Care

In my line of work(s) - Dental nurse & Masseuse I tend to get very dry, sore hands so i'm always on the look out for good hand creams/emollients

I recently picked up 2 new samples, which are going to stay in my work bag so I can make the use of them while at work and see if they actually make a difference

They are;
Nivea- Hand Cream Smooth Nourishing (anti dryness) with Macadamia Nut oil

Mellor & Russell - Macadamia Oil Repairing Hand & Nail Cream for dry skin

If anyone knows of any good hand/nail creams/emollients please let me know!

CJ xo

A Day at Home, Skin & Hair Care

As i am spending all of today at home, and have no visitors due to arrive, I thought, what better time than now to do some hair and skin care treats!!

Perfect timing as my Latest in Beauty box arrived this morning and my Glossy Box just 2 days ago!

So I set to preparing for a morning of lotion and potion testing *rubs hands with glee*

  Hair 

Wash:  Aussie Miracle Moist Shampoo -  my old trusted favourite, smells amazing and always leaves my hair feeling great

Condition 1; Alberto Balsam intensive conditioning treatment with honey & almond extracts - does exactly what it says on the blurb "hair smells as good as it feels"

Condition 2; ShinyHappyHair/ Andrew Barton S.O.S Help Me! - this product claims to be the "superstar of hair treatments for when hair needs SOS care. Gorgeous Shea butter helps to gently mend all the crack, smoothes the hair cuticles & adds supercharged shine"   I followed the instructions as to "massage evry last drop of the sachet into the hair ends and work almost to the roots. Leave for 3 minutes, comb through and rinse thoroughly ."  Upon rinsing my hair felt worse off than it had before I applied this product, unhappily this SOS product was not quite the superstar for me! :(

So I slathered my hair in Argan Oil and worked it into a high messy bun to help it recover.

( I always try to double condition my hair as it is very dry, coarse and frizzy, and I have found that to not do so leaves it and me very unhappy)

Face

As i doubled cleansed last night and am staying firmly inside the house today, I only felt the need to do a single cleanse this morning, so again what better timing than to trial one of my recently received goodies? :)

Cleanse; nspa - Melting Cleansing Milk- "luxurious gel that turns into a cleansing milk with Grapeseed Oil & Essential Oil of Neroli"  this smells simply divine

Sure enough this product is lovely to use, turned from a gel to a milk with the addition of water to the fingertips, this did not cause me any issues while using, no stinging eyes, tight skin and so forth, after using my flannel to remove all trace of product my skin felt clean, firm and ready to go with no dryness or tightness.

Moisturize; I chose to only use my Natural 100% Coconut Oil today, which I absolutely love, which makes my skin feel nourished, looked after and happy! 

Happy Face, Happy Hair :)

CJ xo

Latest in Beauty - Arrival of the box!!

I received my box from Latest in Beauty this morning, a much anticipated arrival it was too!! 

Inside the box was 5 items pre-selected by the Latest in Beauty team, and 1 item I purchased separately;

nspa - Melting Cleansing Gel - Cleanse 1

                   this is for the MR.

Groomed - Texture Sculpting Wax, Natural hold

nspa - Exotically Creamy Coconut Shower & Bath Gel 

Andrew Barton / ShinyHappyHair- S.O.S Help Me!- twice a week conditioning
The Frizz Tamer - tame it mask power dose

Eve Lom - Rescue Mask
(this was my seperate purchase 6. pounds)


I'm going to be making sure I trial some of these bits very soon, will let  you know how I get on!
Thank you to the Latest in Beauty Team

Happy Pampering guys

CJ xo

FOTD

Today's face from cleanse to make up;

Today I decided I'd blog about my daily face routine, see what my lovely readers think, if anybody is interested?! :/
Let me know please

So here goes;

Cleanse routine a.m;

                                                           After showering I used :
                                             L'Oréal 15 second miracle cleansing oil and
                                               L'Oreal  3in1 purifying micellar solution

then i used my Rana Argan Oil

For make up i decided on a minimal look for today, which consisted of:

Sleek's Conceal and Highlight Pallette

MUA Pro Base Conceal & Brighten Kit

Bare Minerals - Warmth

Benefits - Hoola 

Mary Kay - Lash Love Mascara

All brushes are Bare Minerals

And finally, I know it isn't make up or even a face option,but I love it, so I thought I'd include it! I spritzed with 

Clarins  - Eau Dynamisante

My evening cleanse will consist of:

1st Cleanse: Simple - Vital Vitamin Foaming Cleanser

2nd Cleanse - L'Oréal 15 second miracle Cleansing Oil

Let me know what you think :)

CJ xo

A foodie post

After recently making my boyf a homemade strawberry cheesecake  (which went down very well) and choc chip cookies (not as well, but went down all the same) cos im just that lovely ;p we decided to concoct a little snack out of the leftover ingredients, we now have a new found favourite snack!

Marscapone digestive slices layered with fresh strawberries!! Yummy :)

Happy snacking guys

CJ xo

Bags for Breasts by Cutey

Bags for Breasts by Cutey

I came across this page via Twitter, Cutey are a start up charity who are donating 10% of first year profits to Breast Cancer UK charity.

They have launched a new brand of luxury leather handbags, the owners having had personally been affected by the illness in the family are passionate about raising awareness and much needed funds for the charity.

Have a full read of the charity webpage. 

Please all help support this wonderful cause, go grab yourself a new bag and help fight cancer.

Happy shopping and Fund raising guys

CJ xo

The Glossy Box arrival

Hello

So today I received my very first Glossy Box, the package arrived in a pretty box emblazoned with the Glossy Box logo
On opening I found a second pretty box nestled securely inside with a leaflet on top;

I eagerly removed the leaflet (which is full of info on each product within the box) and found a pink ribbon tied around some black paper and a seal protecting the goodies inside! 

Carefully I peeled back the seal, untied the ribbon and folded back the paper to reveal my new treats

Which consisted of;

 Emite Makeup Eyelash Curlers

Urban Veda Purifying day cream

Jelly Pong Pong 2in1 eyeliner & shadow

TRESemme Keratin Smooth 60second treatment shot

Oceane Femme Make up remover pen

I'm excited to start using my new products,

Thank you to Glossy Box for what I say is a great box!!

Happy testing guys

Cj xo