Category Archives: beauty

Rose Quartz Brightening and Lifting Serum from SkinChemists (and whopping discount!)

01st February 2017
If you read my blog in the run up to Christmas (which now feels like a lifetime ago) then you’ll recall how impressed I was with the luxury skincare I reviewed from skinChemists. The three products I was sent then have become daily staples so I was delighted when the brand got back in touch asking if I’d like to work with them again.

This time I was sent the Rose Quartz Brightening and Lifting Serum* which promises to lift, smooth and illuminate your skin- the three things my face is in dire need of right now! With Rose Quartz as the active ingredient to buff away dead skin cells and unveil the fresh- and hopefully still youthful skin underneath, it also contains Vitamin C to stimulate collagen production and skin tightener ST (a blend of marine and plant ingredients associated with having an instant lifting effect).

It’s certainly a very pretty product- it literally shimmers in it’s sleek looking pump dispenser. As far as serums go this has a very light formulation and doesn’t smell overly rose-y which is fantastic for me as I do find the scent can be quite overpowering. I’ve been using this daily before popping on my makeup and by the second day my skin already looked a lot brighter and a week or so on and the difference is noticeable not just to me. It’s so nice to have a bit of a natural glow about me which never happens during the winter months as central heating just sucks the life out of my already dry skin. I’m noticing my fine lines less and less as well and all round I’m just much happier with how I’m looking minus my usual war paint.

This isn’t a cheap serum- it is in fact incredibly expensive at £109 for 30ml which is way out of my usual price range. I wouldn’t usually feature such an expensive beauty product on the blog, I like to keep things realistic around here BUT…

For the month of February skinChemists have reduced the price of this product (and all of the Rose Quartz range in the name of valentines and romance) to a much more affordable £29.99. If this wasn’t enough then you can also get an additional 20% off of this already generous reduction (making each product £24) if you use my code DAISYBLOG when you check out.

If you’re looking for a real boost for your skin then I really cannot recommend this enough. I know I was sent the product for blog consideration but I was under no obligation to give it anything but a passing mention and if it hadn’t have genuinely impressed me I wouldn’t have wasted my time writing the last 400-odd words about it.

Let me know if you do decide to treat yourself- it would also make the perfect valentines alternative to a bunch of roses…probably cheaper than a dozen red ones and it’ll last longer too!

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Posted in beauty, review, shopping, skincare

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Nail SOS with Essence

25th January 2017
My nails aren’t one of my strongest features. I’ve always envied anyone that can grow their nails or who have nails that hold their shape once filed. Mine seem to last less than a day after a manicure and break once they get to a certain length. They also are generally dry and ridged and if I had it my way I’d have a constant shellac manicure to cover them up!

My high-street hero makeup brand Essence have launched a range of products to care for and repair your natural nails- from hardeners and strengtheners to nourishing cuticle oils…and nothing costs more than £2!

They kindly sent over a selection of the products for me to try out and I had high hopes having yet to be failed by any Essence product…could they live up to the hype once more?
The first product I tried was the SOS Nail Detox* (£2) which is a water based polished/base coat infused with algae extract and vitamin B5. It actually has quite an aquatic scent to it and with regular use I can definitely see and feel an improvement in the hydration of my nails. It also gives natural nails a lovely glossy shine when worn as a clear polish so I’m planning on stocking up.

The second product was one of the colour & care strengthening nail polishes* in the shade “I care for you” which is a gorgeous pastel pink. These polishes come in 5 pretty shades (£2 each) and are enriched with natural ingredients to do good whilst looking good.

My nails are feeling so much stronger from using these products and at these prices I really do recommend hot footing it down to your local Wilko if you’re in need of a bit of a nail detox after the festive season. I’m also really liking the 4 in 1 nail file* (£2) which is perfect for essential maintenance on the go.

Have you tried any of these products? Or do you have any nail care top tips to share? Leave them in the comments below…

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Posted in beauty, brands I love, nails, review

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Detoxing my skin with Sukin Super Greens

19th January 2017
Detox is a bit of a buzz word for January. With people everywhere looking to undo the indulgences of the festive season it’s hard to avoid the mention of super-foods, giving up alcohol/sugar/fun and getting up at the crack of dawn to go to the gym.

None of that’s for me though, I’d sooner eat a bag of kale straight up than down a green juice and telling myself I’m doing “dry January” would only leave me wanting to neck a bottle of gin every night. Nope, the only detoxing I’m doing this month is for my skin thanks to a range of products from natural skin care brand Sukin– hopefully getting rid of the evidence of sleeping in my makeup, not getting enough day light and neglecting to stay hydrated during the month of December.

I was sent a couple of products from the range- the super greens detoxifying clay masque* (£11.95 for 100ml) which contains kale, spirulina, chlorella, parsley and baobab and promises to restore a glowing complexion. I’m not the biggest lover of face masks, generally I find them a bit claustrophobic and time consuming but lured in by the promise of glowing skin I’ve slapped this on a couple of times now and I’ll admit it’s almost enough to convert me to regular mask application. After 15 minutes and removal with warm water (bonus points for being really easy to remove) my skin certainly felt cleaner and dare I say more radiant? I think overall it’s too soon to tell if my radiance is restored as I’ve only used this twice but regardless of whether it is or not this is a lovely product and will feature regularly in my new found enjoyment of self-care and pamper time.

The second product I was sent was the nourishing chia seed oil* (£14.95 for 25ml). Chia seeds are one thing I actively avoid in my diet, the texture sends a shiver down my spine although I wish I did like them as the health benefits are well reputed. As well as the chia seeds this oil contains hemp seed oil and baobab oil which with daily use supplies your skin with a good dose of those essential omega fatty acids that chia seeds are so well known and loved for. This oil does have a slight hemp smell about it which in my eyes isn’t a bad thing as I quite like it. I’ve been using it every day at night after taking my makeup off and whilst I’m still not overly sold on the concept of oil as skincare again I have to admit it works and my skin feels amazingly soft and my fine lines are definitely less noticeable (oh the joys of approaching 30!) I’m not a fan of the feeling of oil on my skin and I never have been but with modest use and application of this product I’ve found a level I can tolerate and it’s now an established part of my daily routine.

You can buy Sukin products from lookfantastic.com, FeelUnique and Holland & Barrett among other retailers and there are several more products in the super greens range including a scrub that I plan on treating myself to soon- if anything is going to get my glow back it’ll be exfoliating with a blend of super green ingredients!

How do you repair the excesses of Christmas? Have you tried any of the Sukin products?

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Posted in beauty, review

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Time to #GetReadyWithRimmel

23rd December 2016
The other day another really exciting surprise package arrived from Rimmel London containing a selection of products to create a festive face of makeup. My party nights have been and gone and I have no plans for New Years Eve so I thought I’d pop together a super simple “home for Christmas” face of makeup to go along side some little product reviews.
All of the products in the package were ones I’ve been meaning to try for a while so I was really excited to get stuck in. The Wonderfull Mascara* promises full volume without the clumps and despite feeling incredibly “not there” thanks to it’s Argan Oil formulation it really does deliver on the volume front. It perhaps doesn’t add as much length as I would like but for a natural daytime look I’m a fan and my lashes feel pretty good for it!

The Kate Sculpting Palette* is something I’ve been meaning to pick up for a while now. I’m yet to dip my toe in to the contouring trend and to be honest I probably won’t but using this palette I did manage to get a bit more definition on my cheekbones and gave a lovely glow to boot. At £6.99 I think this is really good value too as you essentially get three cheek products in one.

We all know I’m pretty obsessed with lipstick at the moment and the Kate 15 Year Lipstick* in this beautiful nude shade is a welcome addition. Inspired by Kate Moss’ favourite reds and nudes this is a long lasting lipstick that applies like a dream. Perfect for looking like you’ve made a bit of an effort when actually you’re over full, in need of a nap and tired of watching crap TV over the festive season.

Probably my favourite product is the Magnifeyes Eye Contouring Palette*. Jam packed with a gorgeous array of neutral colours blend seamlessly to sculpt, shade and define the eye. There’s an easy to follow guide on the back of the palette to help you get your perfect look and there are endless combinations possible.

I’ve not been wearing eyeliner as much as I used to, I’m not sure why (other than my tendency to stab my eyeball which may have put me off) but it’s about time it returned. I’m really fussy about what liquid eyeliners I use and I’m always skeptical about trying a new one but the bold Liquid Liner* has impressed me. The ball tip to this liner looked scary but actually made application a breeze with no snagging. It’s waterproof and holds it’s promised shine well- without me ending it smeared around my face by lunch time.

Let me know what Rimmel products you’re loving right now- I’d say a good quarter of my makeup collection is made up of their stuff at the moment!

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Products sent for blog consideration by Rimmel. Post contains affiliate links.

Posted in beauty, brands I love, make up, review

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Shadow Switch- Dry Brush Cleaner review

19th December 2016
I’m not one of those people with a huge collection of makeup brushes and more often than I care to admit to I end up spoiling my makeup by trying to apply a neutral base eyeshadow with the same brush that carries the remnants of last night’s smokey eye- or even more frequently than I care to admit to dip my brush in to the wrong shade shadow when using a palette (I can’t be the only person who forgets which one they’ve just used right?). So when I heard about a brand new product called Shadow Switch, a dry brush cleaner designed to remove makeup from your brushes quickly and effectively meaning no more getting your shades mixed up or applying some strange hybrid colour you never knew existed I was more than a little bit excited to get the chance to try it out*!
Shadow Switch is a compact little tin (although once released properly the packaging will look different) containing a black sponge. To remove makeup from your brush you simply roll it over the Shadow Switch sponge in a circular motion until all the colour has disappeared. It sounds too good to be true, right? That’s what I thought at first, but since it’s arrival I’ve been using this every time I do my makeup either during the process if I’m using the same brush for more than one colour or before I pack my brushes away to ensure I have a clean slate for next time and it’s a game changer. I’ve gone from often having to take my eye makeup off and start over to getting it all done in one go (mostly, I am prone to the odd sneeze whilst doing my eye liner or prodding myself with my mascara wand) and it adds barely any time to my routine at all.
At £5.99 this has definitely become a welcome addition to my makeup box and with good maintenance in the form of cleaning the sponge with warm water and fragrance free soap each Shadow Switch sponge should last you two months before it needs replacing.

Beauty Essentials, the brand behind Shadow Switch are new to the UK and this is the first product they’ve released. Based on how impressed I’ve been by this one I can’t wait to see what else they have up their sleeves.

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Product sent to me for blog consideration, all thoughts are my own.

Posted in beauty, make up, review

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