Diary Of A Skincare Loser #3

Hello everyone!

Last post was me hoping to organise my dressing table and routine! I certainly have done that, be proud!! So lets see how I get on with that and whilst I am trying to stick to it I am also learning about the routine, what does each step mean and why is it important? Here are my honest answers, and answers experts would give.

What did cleansing mean to me?

So first things first cleanser, I used to think cleanser was what you used to take off your makeup, it took most off and if I wanted I could do it twice to ensure all of my makeup was completely gone. I admit I have used baby wipes or 3 in 1 cleanser wipes as a quick go to. In my eyes as long as my makeup was off I thought I was doing a good job.

What would the experts say?

cleansing  present participle of cleanse (Verb)

Verb Make (something, esp. the skin) thoroughly clean: "this preparation will cleanse and tighten the skin"; "a cleansing cream". Taken from Google. Cleansing gets rid of all the dead skin and dirt that can gather on our skin after a days work or play. Our skin needs rejuvenating, a chance to "breath", it needs to be cleansed to reduce clogging up of pores, reducing fine lines and for your skin to appear healthy and bright. It also helps boost blood circulation around the face. What did toning mean to me? This was something I rarely did, it was just another form of cleansing, which seemed to tighten my skin and get rid of any dirt or makeup left on my skin. What would the experts say? Toning helps to get rid of any dirt or cleanser left on the face. It helps restore the natural PH of the skin allowing the skin to be hydrated, which is important in reducing the appearance of fine lines. What is eye cream? Something my mama would always use religiously, that she applied gently under and around her eye that had a pretty smell. I started to use this now and again. What experts would say? Eye cream is a type of moisturiser for the eye area that helps reduce and prevent fine lines, some can reduce puffiness and discolouration. What is moisturiser? A cream that helps my skin feel softer and helps if certain areas are dry. Never used night cream until recently, though day cream was a regular used item. What would the experts say? A cream helps boost collagen that the body struggles to produce the older we get. It helps reduce the appearance of fine lines. Moisturisers help to keep skin hydrated, nourished, softer and calm. This is a must for helping to give a youthful appearance.

So as you all know, I am not a skin expert, so the answers may not be exactly what an expert would say, but its my interpretation of how I have understood what they all mean and therefore how I see what an expert would say to me.

 

Any tips?

 

Axx

Diary Of A Skincare Loser! #2

Hello Loveys!

Hope you are all well. I can imagine you are hoping I have learnt some lessons in the world of skincare,  I'm afraid I am still not down with the kids! Sigh! So here's the latest.

I have been so tired lately with the family being ill and me playing nurse, sleepless nights and little time. So there is my reason for this dreadful confession, drum roll......I have been using, wait for it, BABY WIPES!!!!! my skin is screaming at me, I am face palming like you wouldnt believe. I owe my skin an apology, big time, so I need to make some urgent changes.

I met the lovely Sasha from Beauty Bird blog, check her blog out! We had a great chat, she is knowledgeable when it comes to skincare so out came the notepad and pen to get her advice. I have a combination skin type, with the oily t-zone. I have been using baby wipes to take off my eye makeup and base then my Alpha H Liquid Gold every other night with lip balm. So thats no eye cream, serum, moisturiser or cleanser, oh dear. I asked Sasha for the order of skincare, the order we looked at is the following. Cleanser, toner, serum or face oil then moisturiser, eye cream and lip balm morning and evening. My face must of said seriously morning and evening and all that!!! Oh no! But the little voice in head cried at last, lets do this. I was ever so excited to get home and sort my skincare but I arrived home to find plenty of tidying and cleaning! Tonight I am going to use a cleanser, toner, moisturiser and eye cream. My skin hasnt been great lately and quite oily, I am wondering whether the moisturiser I have been using in the morning is too heavy? So I am going to go back to my trusty Aldi moisturiser. I am going to look into the products I have and try to look at organising my bedside table so that I dont forget. Step one to help make changes!

Any tips to help loveys?

Image from Google

Shearer Candles Review

Hello Loveys,

Hope you are all well! Most people I know love candles and I am one of them, and here is a candle company that is now a favourite of mine! It rivals Yankee Candle! Shearer Candles are a scottish company founded in 1897, that sell a great selection of candles, whether you want a large or small candle, in a tin or glass holder they supply it all. They are reasonably priced starting from £4.00 and supply a great selection of scents.

http://www.shearer-candles.com/

Amber and Rose candle

Today I am reviewing the Amber&Rose scented candle which is a sweet fresh scent that has literally become a favourite of mine and my mama! We love them! The candle lasts hours, 20 hours to be precise, and the scent fills the room, I hate it when candles smell great until they start to burn then you dont smell anything! But not these! They smell during burning and after. They use the purest ingredients which are better for you and the environment. The candle is a one wick candle in a tin and costs only £4.00, I am excited to purchase other scents and types of candles that are available from the range, here is my wishlist!

 

£5.00

£9.00

£15.00

Have you tried these candles?

A xx

30 Ways To Save £1

Hi Loveys!

Money Supermarket are celebrating the very English pound coin! Can you believe it is 30 years old!!As part of the celebration http://www.moneysupermarket.com/ are asking bloggers to write a post with 30 ways to save £1 or more. For each £1 saver you earn £1! So I have decided give you lovely readers the 30 ways I use to save me and my family £1 or more!

Hope you find some money saving tips! I would love to see what you also use to save money! 

1. I tweeted this within a bblogger chat which proved popular! I have a money saving jar that I use to put in odd change which I then use at the end of the month on my beauty essentials! Never throw that change to the bottom of your bag, save it!

2. Make your own butter! Its simple and cheap to do! Literally use any left over double cream, put it in a jar and shake vigorously, watcht the cream turn to butter!

3. Make your own pizza rather then getting a takeaway, it just needs flour, water and yeast and presto you have a scrumptious pizza base!

4. Have a shower rather then a bath.

5. Look at blogs and youtube videos to find a cheaper dupe for your much loved high end makeup.

6. Grow your own veg!

7. When you cook a roast use leftovers to make a chicken and tomato pasta sauce! Two meals in one!

8. Dont throw away your old clothes, cut into pieces of cloth to use for cleaning around the house.

9. Washing your makeup brushes helps them to last longer meaning you dont have to buy so many!

10. Customise old clothes rather then buying new, that way you feel like you have a new item of clothing! Look at youtube videos for inspiration and step by step how to!

11. Go to the charity shop for some gorgeous vintage clothing, after all vintage is a fashion must have! And its cheap!

12. Sell anything you like on ebay, you will be surprised what people buy!

13. Sell on Gumtree!

14. If you can walk to work!

15. Instead of an expensive skin treatment mix 2 tablespoons of mayonnaise and 1 teaspoon of baby oil to moisturise. Leave on for around half an hour and rinse.

16. Instead of buying a spot treatment, use a dab of toothpaste or sudocrem!

17. Make your own face mask. Mash up an avocado, apply to your face, leave on for a little while and wash off! Smooth skin!

18. Instead of buying an expensive dry shampoo, use talc powder!

19. No need to buy the latest toy for your child! A cardboard box makes a great den! Search for safe child friendly items such as a washing up bowl, plastic whisk and jug to encourage imagination! Children love them!

20. Dont worry about going on and spending money on eating out. Make a picnic and enjoy the english countryside.

21. Entertain your children without spending money! Go to the park or have an adventure walk!

22. Dont worry about buying books for you or the family, instead join the library! Its free and stacked with books for all the family! Just make sure you return them within the stated time.

23. Save money on grease cleaner for your kitchen, use lemon juice instead.

24. Use newspaper and vinegar to clean your windows. No need to pay for a window cleaner now.

25. Shop around for mobile deals, or consider going pay as you go on a budget.

26. Let your hair dry naturally every other wash so that you save using electricity with hairdryers, straighteners and tongs!

27. Do a car boot.

28. Check online for voucher codes before you buy.

29. Go to your local second hand shop or car boot for fantastic furniture, after all retro/vintage is the new modern.

30. Consider buying supermarket own branded food.

So there you have it my 30 tips on saving a £1 or more!

Hope you enjoy the post and find saving money that little bit easier.

A xx



Soak Yourself Bath Ritual Recipe Kit Review

Hello!!

As some of you may know It was my birthday on the 19th March, and on twitter (@lil_alessia) I was tweeted by a lovely company who offered to send my a kit as a birthday present! How kind! I had a choice and decided on the "Broken Heart Soak" no relevance to me but the scents were oh so me! I was super excited to recieve the kit as they looked amazing.

My kit arrived and I certainly wasnt disapointed, a gorgeous sturdy yellow box filled with delights. The packaging looked expensive and made it feel luxurious. I opened the box the find tissue paper and ribbon, with some blue shredded card to keep the goodies safe with a "ticket" stating "One hour to yourself, or longer, should you so require" This made me smile and feel like I was in Charlie and the chocolate factory with a golden ticket!

Inside was the following

4 Jasmie Teabags

1 Candle

1 Candle holder

1 Hibiscus rose soap

1 bottle of rose essential oil

1 bottle of sandalwood essential oil

1 bottle of lavender essential oil

1 muslin bag of fizzing and foaming bath powders and salts

A lot right! Also included is an information leaflet on the ingredients, which are organic, a ritual on how to have the best soak with whats included and finally a section om what its all about. To make you feel even better 50p from each sale goes to charities in need of support. This company not only are ethical but they make you feel valued as a customer and truely give you an experience that is needed in this stressful world we live in.

The other boxes available are

The Love Soak

Muscle Soak

Remedy Soak

Blanche The Blues Soak

Full Moon Soak

Feeling Groovy Soak

Each box is £40.00 which I feel is value for money.

I followed the instructions and added 4 drops of roil, fifteen of sandlewood and nine of lavender, the oils are stunning, they made me feel relaxed, and my tension floated away. I had a gorgeous cup of jasmine tea and lit my candle. I truely have never had a bathing experience like this and felt like I wanted to stay there all night! I rarely have baths due to no time at all, but this certainly made me want an experience like this more often! I felt like I had a homemade spa! The soap is gorgeous on the skin and leaves my skin feeling beautiful. The bath fizz fizzed away and left my bathroom smelling like I walked into a spa treatment room! I love the fact that this kit will last me a good few goes and I certainly will want to repurchase another box of delights, also this would be a perfect present for anyone!

http://www.soakyourself.co.uk/

A x

MAC Swiss Chocolate Eyeshadow Review/Swatch

Hi Loveys,

Sorry for the lack of posts, I am back at work now and with trying to juggle a lot all at once. Here is my review of the gorgeous MAC eyeshadow in Swiss Chocolate, as you all may know I am a MAC fan and particularly love the selection of eyeshadows available.

MAC Swiss Chocolate is a matte eyeshadow in a scrumptious chocolate brown. This eyeshadow would look stunning on anyone, a warm toned brown which would look perfect teamed with tones of gold, bronze, green and purple!

MAC Swiss Chocolate Eyeshadow

MAC Swatch

As you can see from the swatch the colour is a soft brown exactly like swiss chocolate!! It doesnt crease easily and lasts all day. It is fab to use with a smokey eye.

I would definately recommend this shade!

Have you tried this shade?

A xx

Diary Of A Skincare Loser!

Hey Loveys,

Here is a little series for you lovely readers! A diary of a skincare loser is about my struggles to stick to a routine, struggle to understand and carry out skincare!! Hope you enjoy this series! If you have any tips for me I would appreciate it!!

Image from Google

Day 1.

So my skincare, what does it consist of?! Urm, lets be honest not much!! I wrote a post about my struggles with skincare but my determination to keep going and set myself a routine to stick by, heres the link http://www.whispersfromangels.blogspot.co.uk/2012/12/my-skincare-routine.html

So did I achieve this? Well....not really!

I have always been good at taking my makeup off but never good at cleansing, toning, moisturising at night, eyecream, masks, scrubs the list goes on! I never ever have had a morning routine! Should I feel embarrassed? I put day cream on, that good enough? I hear you all screaming at the screen right now! Sorry guys, what a fail I know. So currently here is my night time routine. I use either Bioderma or my Loreal Micellar Solution, then depending on whether I remember or can be bothered I will use Alpha H Liquid Gold every other day. My eye cream- nope not using that anymore which is a shame as I loved it, I just feel like I want to get to sleep quick so to the quickest possible. I know eyecream would take seconds, but thats how Im rolling at the moment. I am using hand cream every night and lipbalm. Am proud of those! Pathetic compared to most of you I know. Then there is my morning routine, urm right what routine? I use a day cream before applying my foundation. Shocking?

Image from Google

So, beauty lovers out there I am crying out for all to advise me and suggest things for me to use and do day or night, I am a working mummy on a mission to change the way I approach skincare, I am 28 with combination skin needing a boast, and encouragment to give me a kick up the backside. Now do I talk on behalf on others or am I one of the few who are basically crap?

HELP!

A xx