My Skincare Routine

I have very sensitive, oily, acne-prone skin and these are the facial products I use on a daily/weekly basis:

As you can see, all the products I use are available from drugstores. Personally, I don't think there's anything spectacular about high-end branded skin care apart from the price tag. I don't see anything wrong with drugstore products and I think they work just as well as high-end products at a fraction of the price!

• Face wash: Clean & Clear deep action cream wash - Sensitive Skin £3.52

I use this to wash my face in the morning and night. Out of all the face washes I've used in my life (there have been many!) this has worked the best for my skin. An I love the tingly feeling it leaves on my skin after using it!

• Exfoliating scrub: St. Ives Apricot Scrub - Invigorating £4.38

I use this scrub to exfoliate my skin twice a week. It's not good to exfoliate too often as it can be really harsh on the skin. I love St. Ives scrub, especially as it's gentle on the skin as it's made from a lot of natural ingredients (contains more than 90% naturally derived ingredients). I prefer the "Invigorating" formula as opposed to the "Sensitive" one because the particles are rougher so I can really feel it removing the dead skin.

• Eye Make-up Remover: Simple Kind To Eyes Eye Make-up Remover £1.23

I use this product on a cotton pad to remove my eye make-up when I'm not wearing foundation. It's not harsh  and it doesn't sting the skin around my eyes. And it generally removes my eye-make up well. I don't use this product very much as I usually do have make-up on the rest of my face, which brings me to the next product.

• Face Make-up Remover: Simple Kind To Skin Cleansing Facial Wipes £3.01

They're the best make-up wipes I've used so I tend to stock up on them when they're on promotion. They remove a full face of make-up with one sheet and again, they aren't harsh on my skin, they don't make the skin around my eyes sting, and they are nice and gentle. I've used other brands such as St. Ives and Johnson & Johnson wipes, but they've been really harsh and stung the skin around my eyes so I tend to avoid wipes that are perfumed and contain alcohol.

• SPF Moisturiser: Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Dry-Touch Sunblock SPF 85+ £8.00-9.00

This SPF moisturiser is nice because it is lightweight and it's easy to blend into the skin unlike usual SPF creams. I tend to use this more during spring/summer, and yes I know I should use it all year round but it does tend to make my skin a little oiler than usual so I try to use it when I really need to. Even so, this is the best sunblock I've come across so far.

• Facial Moisturiser: Simple Spotless Skin Anti-blemish Moisturiser £4.07

I use this product twice a day after washing my face with my Clean & Clear cream wash. Again, it's by Simple so it's nice and gentle on the skin. It doesn't break me out in a rash or spots, and it is oil free but it still moisturises my skin well which some oil free moisturisers neglect.

• Eye Serum: The Body Shop Vitamin C Eye Reviver £9.00

I don't use this as often as I should but when I do when I can be bothered/remember to. (I know, very bad!) It's a light serum I use around my eyes as the skin there is very thin and can get easily damaged with all the make-up usage and lack of sleep! I don't know if it works, but it makes me feel better to use something now and again!

That's about it! I don't use tonnes of products because I don't feel the need to attack my skin with unnecessary chemicals. As you can see I do use a lot of Simple products just because they work well with my sensitive skin, and they do not contain perfume/colour/oil and no unnecessary or harsh chemicals.

 Let me know if you've used any of these products and how they've worked for you!

xoxo

Beauty Tip: Lemon = Nail Whitening!

Constant wearing of nail polish can give you seriously discoloured nails. I got to the point where I just felt embarrassed to have bare nails because they were stained yellow, so I kept them constantly painted. I decided today that enough was enough and that I needed to deal with this problem and this simple technique really worked for me!

All you need is:
Half a lemon
Small bowl

Remove any nail polish on your nails using thoroughly and wash hands. Lightly use a buffer on your nails if you have one to remove the top layer of your stained nails.

Squeeze the lemon juice into the bowl and soak your fingernails in it for around 15 minutes. If the juice is too harsh for your skin, you can water it down.

Take the lemon half and rub it onto your nails for around 20mins. Alternatively, you can use a nail/tooth brush dipped in lemon juice. Adjust the time depending on how badly stained your nails are. Then rinse with soap and warm water. As long as you're patient you should see immediate results after rinsing your hands. (Remember that nails aren't naturally as white as paper so don't expect magic french tips!)

Tips to avoid staining your nails in the future:

• Remember to moisturise your hands and nails consistently, use cuticle oil and always use a good clear base coat when painting your nails any colour!

• Try to give your nails a break from nail polish now and again.  

This really worked for me so give it a shot!

xoxo

What's in my bag?

A specially requested blog post!

Bag: h&m

I bought this bag about a week ago. It's a reasonably sized taupe coloured bag, with silver studded detailing, made from imitation leather, with 2 short handle/straps and one long adjustable one. Now, what's inside?

Apologies about the bad lighting and picture quality!

Firstly, my aubergine coloured beret and black leather gloves (as it's winter and freezing in London!) are essentials for this time of the year for me. Because I live in London, there is always an umbrella in my bag. Always. Then I've got my wallet (from accessorize), my work locker keys, a mirror, a bar of Kit Kat, a couple of pens, a cute little box of Moxie sanitary towels, a hair clip, a strawberry chapstick, 2 lipsticks and a little zippy cosmetics bag. Those are the usual and essential bits I have in my bag (plus my phone and keys ofcourse!).

Then I have the random bits! A gold draw-string pouch with an Indian sweet and a piece of coconut inside and a religious book lol (both things were given to me the other day from a religious event and I'd forgotten I'd put them in my bag!). I also pulled out a couple of old food receipts, a sweet wrapper, Starbucks tissues and cinema vouchers!

Inside the little zippy bag (from h&m): Sweet Snuggles hand cream (superdrug), Compeed Anti-Blister Stick, Carex hand sanitiser, a sanitary towel, 2 hair grips, paracetamol tablets, Blistex Intensive Moisturiser, Kleenex tissues, e.l.f. oil blotting sheets, MAC select sheer pressed powder and an e.l.f. kabuki brush. These are the general cosmetic essentials I keep with me.

Hope you enjoyed the "What's in my bag" blog!

xoxo

Film Review: Black Swan

SPOILER ALERT!

A psychological thriller starring Natalie Portman, Mila Kunis, Vincent Cassel. The film is based on ambitious ballerina Nina (Natalie Portman) who wins the lead role in "Swan Lake". She's the perfect white swan, but not daring and sensual enough for the role of the black swan. She feels the pressure to play the role of both swans perfectly from sleazy director Thomas (Vincent Cassel), and also from herself as she becomes increasingly worried that her rival Lily (Mila Kunis) is after her lead role, being the perfect candidate for the black swan. She tries her hardest to be more like the black swan but slowly, she loses her mind in doing so. Throughout the film, Nina and Lily form a twisted friendship until the end when Nina accidentally stabs herself whilst hallucinating, thinking she was stopping Lily from stealing her role. She dances the black swan perfectly, before she falls to her "death" and is found by the cast, Lily and Thomas wounded and possibly dying.

Natalie Portman plays the role of Nina faultlessly. She appears in pretty much every scene, and every second of it is intense and captivating.

Definately worth watching (for women more than men) but be warned, many disturbing scenes that'll make you "eek" and cringe and jump at times!

xoxo

Product Review: Batiste Dry Shampoo

We all have those days where our hair needs a bit of refreshing, but when you reallyy can't be bothered to spend so much precious time in the morning washing it (that extra 30mins sleep is a lifesaver)! So what's the answer? Dry Shampoo!

I've tried a couple of brands over the last 3 years, Samy Salon Systems Dry Shampoo and Batiste Dry Shampoo. Samy's was okay, it did the job but it was very white in colour which made my naturally dark hair look really dusty at times, regardless of how much I combed it out/rubbed it into my hair. It also made my scalp quite itchy, which was really uncomfortable.

Then I went on to try out Batiste coloured Dry Shampoo in Black which was fab! It sprayed out in a slightly darker colour so that it didn't look like white dust in my hair. It smelt good, blended into my hair well and didn't cause my scalp to itch. After finishing that bottle, I purchased Batiste's dry shampoo in "Boho", which is just the same as the previous Batiste dry shampoo but without the darker coloured shampoo formula and with a different scent.

So far, I prefer the Boho dry shampoo because in my opinion, it smells nicer and essentially does the same thing as the coloured one but for a slightly lower cost.

Batiste Coloured Dry Shampoo: £3.05
Batiste Dry Shampoo Boho: £2.35 (Boots) / £2.13 (Superdrug)

This is definately one of my holy grail hair products! I would recommend it to anyone who has a fringe that gets greasy easily, anyone who is trying to cut down the amount that they wash their hair or just anyone who likes to freshen their hair up and give it a bit of volume on the second or third day after washing it.

Have a good hair day!
xoxo

Andy Gray SACKED!

Today it was announced that football co-commentator Andy Gray has been sacked by Sky Sports for his off-air sexist comments about assistant referee Sian Massey. Gray made comments to Richard Keys regarding female officials, claiming that they are "hopeless" and that they "don't know the offside rule", not knowing that the microphones were still on. His comments have been deemed as "unacceptable and offensive behaviour" by Sky Sports.

This is what was said:

“Somebody better get down there and explain offside to her,” said Keys.

“Can you believe that? A female linesman. Women don’t know the offside rule,” said Gray.

Keys replied “Course they don’t. I can guarantee you there will be a big one today. Kenny (Dalglish) will go potty. This isn’t the first time, is it? Didn’t we have one before?” And then he added “The game’s gone mad. Did you hear charming [West Ham vice-chairwoman] Karren Brady this morning complaining about sexism? Do me a favour, love.”

These off-air comments between Gray and Keys have caused major controversy in the media for the last few days, but let's get to the point here.

Was it wrong for Gray and Keys to make such sexist comments? Yes. Regardless of how "old" the joke is about women not being able to understand the off-side rule, sexism is in my books just as serious and bad as racism. It's unacceptable and is definately something that needs to change, especially in regards to football.

Should Gray have got sacked for his remarks? On one hand, No. Although I agree that his comments were totally unacceptable, I do not believe that they were meant maliciously. To end his career over a bad mistake is a bit harsh. On the other hand, if no serious action was taken, would sexist men ever learn? So Yes.

Should Gray and Keys make a public apology to Sian Massey? No. I don't think it's necessary to drag her into the spotlight any more than she already has been. Massey is believed to have received a private apology from Keys which was accepted. Mike Riley, the general manager for PGMO said, "Sian is an excellent professional who has unwittingly found herself in the middle of a story that has nothing to do with her competence as a match official. Sian only wants to be notable for her performance as an assistant referee and is keen for things to get back to normal so she can return to officiating as soon as possible."

These are my opinions, but what are yours?

Three cheers for England captain Rio Ferdinand, who responded to the sexist comments as "prehistoric". The message has been broadcasted loud and clear:

SEXISM WILL NOT BE TOLERATED! (Here here!)

With Peace, Love & Equality

Miss S.

xoxo

My Favourite Nail Polish Colour

 

(Apologies about the poor picture quality- I had lighting problems!)

I am LOVING this colour on my nails and you'd never guess who it's by... H&M! Who'd have thought?! It's a tiny little 3.2ml bottle of nail polish that I picked up near the till as an impulse buy and I'm so glad I did because it's a gorgeous colour. It's called Grey Sky and it's a lovely taupe/dirty light mauve colour. I've found that it goes with anything I'm wearing which is always a problem I have when I'm wearing brighter colours on my nails.

The colour payoff is true to what it looks like in the bottle and in the pictures above I only have one coat of it on showing that it's nice and opaque and not one of those annoying nail polishes that you need five coats of to get the right shade. It's also not streaky, which is fantastic taking into account it's from H&M! I really am impressed with the quality of it. Usually I'd put on two coats of it just to even it out and so that it would last as longer on my nails but unfortunately my bottle has nearly run out so I couldn't! :( I only hope H&M are still stocking this colour because I did buy it about 4 months ago so fingers crossed. If not I'm going to have to find a dupe so any recommendations are welcome!

:) xoxo