Skincare Sundays... The First Post!

I've decided to start a new regular feature on this blog... Skincare Sundays! Here's the first official post and I think this may become my favourite feature. 

I own so many beauty products; nail varnishes, make up, skin products, hair and body products. I have a mild addiction to buying and trying new things so I thought I would share my new findings with you all. 

NB - most of these reviews / posts will be for products I've chosen to buy. If any lovely companies gift me their products, I will state that and will always provide an honest review. 

This week I've tried some new facial cleansing products and a new foundation. 

First I tried these products from the Olay essentials range. They're currently on offer in Boots so I thought I'd give them a try. I'm looking for a new, complete, Skincare regime to attempt to clear my skin and have it last a lifetime. 

I bought the "daily facial cloths" as I find that normal face wipes don't remove all my makeup. I use a normal face wipe first and then run one of the Olay cloths under a tap to kick start the foaming and scrub my face with it. The textured clothes gives you a nice gentle exfoliation and you can see the remnants of your makeup on the cloth! The product foams nicely and isn't drying for your skin, leaving it feeling fresh after you've rinsed your face. 

I usually use those before I go into the gym so that when I get hot in the gym and my pores open, they don't absorb all the makeup and dirt sitting on top. 

In the morning - and after my gym sessions - I use the "refreshing face wash". I'm not as fond of this as I am of the cloths. Despite the lovely, gentle fragrance and the non-drying aspect of the wash, it's too foamy! Even using the smallest amount creates enough bubbles to fill a bath and I end up blowing bubbles through my nose for half the shower! Slight overshare? Sorry. 

I've been on the hunt for a new every day foundation and decided to try a company whose products I've never used before; Max Factor. 

I got this MaxFactor FaceFinity All Day Flawless 3 in 1 Foundation in Warm Almond. 














I'm admittedly a little lazy with my every day morning makeup routine so having one product that acts as a primer, concealer and foundation is perfect for me.

Having bought the product on Friday lunch time for £8.99 in Superdrug, I couldn't wait to use it so decided to try it out when I went out for dinner with my mum on Friday. The photo below has been edited to add a filter but you can see that the finished face is definitely photo worthy! (I added a pressed powder over the top as my skin can get quite oily).













Please forgive my slightly blinded eyes below but I decided to show you a picture I took with just half of my face covered with the foundation (the left side on the picture). Although this isn't the best picture, you can see that the side I used the product on has no blemishes, the colour is even and corrected and the puffy eyes are well concealed! 











 

On Saturday morning, I applied my makeup around 9 am. When I got home around 6pm it had mostly come off but I think that's due to the oily nature of my skin. 

Overall, I would recommend this product. The price is an absolute bargain - the combination of products inside would cost around £20 at least separately so the 3 in 1 aspect definitely makes it purse-friendly. 
It took a couple of squirts to cover my giant face and may not have lasted for 10 hours but I did like the finish and the look. This is a happy new addition to my makeup bag!

Saturday review... Cocoa brown tan

I recently discovered a new Irish brand of self tan called Cocoa Brown. Created by the beautiful Marissa, it's Ireland's most successful selling brand of self tan. 

The lovely ladies on the Emerald Isle sent me some of their goodies to test out so I thought I'd write a review. 

Firstly, I love tha packaging. Even the jiffy envelope was hot pink, my favourite colour! I not only received the One Hour Tan but also the tanning mitt - every bronzed goddess' best friend. 

The can comes with brilliant directions (such as where to moisturise etc) which is  vital knowledge for those new to tanning and so often missed. I also checked out the website www.cocoabrown.ie for additional hints & tips and stumbled across a lot of positive reviews from other bloggers, always a good sign! 

I chose Friday night for my tanning session and used my delicious Gok Wan shower scrub in my post-workout shower to make sure my skin was nice and exfoliated and ready to receive the glow. 

I stripped down to my knickers (I like to have a tan line for my first time trying a new product to check the reality of the colour), moisturised those pesky dry areas with Palmer's Cocoa Butter (fitting) and gt my Cocoa Brown gear ready to go. 

Armed with my mitt, I squirted a large dollop of mousse onto it and got to work. I know many people prefer lotions but I prefer mousses for tanning. I like the way they slide on and absorb quickly and this is also true of this product. 

I don't know what magic they put in these bottles but the tropically floral scent of the mousse is divine! Not the usual smell of biscuits with cucumbers, always a bonus. 

I'd have preferred if the mitt was a bit bigger as I have a tendency to get messy and end up with very dark wrists but that's my problem, not a fault with the product. 

The guide colour of the mousse makes it easy to see where you've already applied and helps prevent streaks. 

Once I was covered,

It was time to sit back & let the colour develop. The directions recommend different times for different depths of colour so I chose to wait 90 minutes on the hopes of having a medium brown glowing result. 

I have to say I'm impressed with the result. I've got a couple of white patches but that's because I was too hasty in m application as usual. 

I don't look like I've been living in the Caribbean but I do have a nice colour that's more suitable for winter! 

Here's my tan line on my hip!

Overall, I'd give this 4 out of 5 stars. Easy application, lovely packaging, a nice scent and a decent colour.