Favourite Skincare

3 Morning Must Have Products

- Vicki 8 Comments
My Morning Must Have Products

My Morning Must Have Products

The Body Shop Vitamin E Toner 

I like using a toner and it is a skincare step I rarely miss. I find using a toner helps hydrate my skin and just ensures you’ve removed every trace of dirt after cleansing. The Vitamin E range from The Body Shop is one of my favourites & one that I have used for years on and off. It’s a range that refreshes the skin and keeps it hydrated. The Toner lasts for ages and I use it morning and night, it never leaves my skin feeling tight or stripped but makes it feel smooth, clean and soft.

Batiste Strength & Shine Dry Shampoo

I use this on 3rd-day hair so I can stretch out for another day & this absorbs the oil and leaves my hair looking clean and feeling lightweight and fresh. It can leave a white cast but I do blow dry my hair after I use it so that tends to get rid of the powder residue. I need hardly any of this & a bottle lasts me at least 5 weeks. I’m not sure this adds shine to my hair but it stops it looking greasy & that’s good enough for me. I love my hair to look a little lived in (my mum would say scruffy) and dry shampoo creates that textured messy look & it also helps add volume too. Let me know what your favourite dry shampoo is.

Origins No Puffery Cooling Roll on for Puffy Eyes*

Oh, this is a godsend for those early mornings, I love applying this to my tired eyes. It feels refreshing, cooling and hydrating and helps you look more awake by de-puffing and soothing your under eye bags. It has a handy metal roller ball applicator that helps the gel glide on & if you keep this in the fridge the metal is cold against your skin. It helps cool and massages your under eyes, getting the blood flowing to get rid of those pesky bags. I apply this before my eye cream & let is work its magic for a couple of minutes and it leaves the area smooth and looking fresh. I’m not the only fan of this as it recently won Best Eye De-Puffer at the Instyle Best Beauty Buys 2015.

Let me know what products you can’t live without in the morning.

Products that are marked with a * have either been sent to me for my consideration or I’ve received at events. I’m under no obligation to review them on my blog. However, if I do, the reviews are 100% my own.

MONU Brightening Boost Serum

- Vicki 6 Comments
MONU Brightening Serum

MONU Skincare

MONU Skincare

This MONU Brightening Boost Serum* has been a staple in my summer skincare routine, I have been road testing it for about 3 months now and my skin loves it. It is a lightweight serum designed for more Mature Skin or those that have Sun Damage but I think it can be used by people of all ages and It’s an ideal product for people with a dull complexion as it leaves your skin instantly smooth and looking radiant.

I find it to be very hydrating and lightweight, I massage two pumps worth into my face and neck and that is quickly absorbed leaving my skin looking smooth, bright and feeling soft. I have been using it on the backs of my hands too as I do have a couple of age spots appearing & it seems to be helping them look lighter. I will keep applying it until I’ve run out & let you know if there are significant changes to them.

MONU Brightening Serum

So this serum promises to,

  • Lighten & Brighten Complexion
  • Improve Radiance
  • Reduce Hyperpigmentation
  • Even Skin Tone
  • Reduce Sun Damage
  • Plump skin & reduce the signs of wrinkles

That’s a lot of promises but I will say that you see almost instantly a brightening and smoothing of the skin which helps your complexion look radiant and healthy. I don’t have hyperpigmentation so can’t comment on that but my skin tone is looking even and a few dark spots around my eyes are looking less visible. I’m not too sure I have a huge amount of visible sun damage but I guess it can do no harm in keeping the effects of sun damage at bay.

This serum contains Vitamin C which helps combat free radicals and helps even skin tone. Also, Hyaluronic Microspheres which hydrate and plump the skin helping to reduce the visibility of wrinkles. Which is something I really need help with, I have quite a few wrinkles around my eyes & a few appearing on my forehead, so anything I can do to keep them as small and not notable. The packaging is also sleek and in a frosted bottle, it looks and feels expensive. It takes up no room as all in my skincare box & is a great size if you travel often, the bottle is so slim and has a very handy pump.

MONU Vitamin C Skin Brightening Serum

MONU Brightening Serum

I like the hydrating feel to this serum and how easily it absorbs into the skin. Its gives me radiant healthy looking complexion but its always hard to say definitively if a product is helping you look younger & diminish signs of sun damage. I’m naturally freckly and have quite fair skin so this serum can be doing no harm in helping fight the signs of ageing & sun damage. As I’ve said  in many posts I’m very much in to SPF and wearing it all year round but there are times when we are exposed to the sun & this serum seems like an effective way of giving your skin a boost to keep some of the first signs of ageing at bay and help you improve skin tone.

Its been a welcomed addition to my skincare routine & if asked I would recommend it to people that are concerned with dull skin & that want to give their skin a boost of Vitamin C to give them radiance and even out their skin tone. I also think this wears well under my makeup and helps my skin look radiant all day long. I think my mum would really like this serum.

Let me know what skincare products you are using to help give your skin radiance & let me know if you have tried anything from MONU and have any other recommendations of product that I should try from them.

MONU Brightening Boost Serum £22.50 

Products that are marked with a * have either been sent to me for my consideration or I’ve received at events. I’m under no obligation to review them on my blog. However, if I do, the reviews are 100% my own

Avene Skincare

- Vicki 21 Comments
Avene Hydrating Serum

Avene

Avene Soothing Hydrating Serum

I like using a serum and enjoy this step in my skincare routine, I use one morning and night after cleansing but before moisturising, I think being in my mid thirties it is a step my skin really benefits from. I’ve used quite a few over the years and have a few favourites I call upon when needed. This Avene one came at the right time for me as I was told about 6 weeks ago that my skin was quite dehydrated, so I have been using products this past month or so to try and hydrate my skin. It has worked a treat. I was excited to try this Avene Soothing Hydrating Serum* as I have heard lots of positive reviews of this brand and also of French Skincare in general.

Avene use their Thermal Spring Water in each product which is clinically proven to be naturally soothing and have a calming effect on the skin so with this added benefit this serum is perfect for sensitive skin as it is gentle, calming and protects the skin. I used it in the morning before applying the rest of my skincare, The serum is very lightweight and it felt cooling on my skin. I would apply it before my moisturiser and let is absorb in to the skin for a good few minutes, then apply the rest of my lotions & potions.

‘The thermal water is carried by lipsomes in a patented system to ensure an optimum long lasting diffusion of moisture  in the upper layer of the skin. The glycerine improves the skin hydration, suppleness and comfort. Thanks to the delicate formula of the Soothing Hydrating Serum the skin is silky smooth and rebalanced.’

I found after a few weeks my skin looked brighter, smoother and generally healthier. I do suffer from quite noticeable redness, from some broken capillaries so this wouldn’t stop that but I will say that it helped calm redness around a few angry blemishes I had and helped my skin heal a little quicker after the blemish had gone.

Avene Serum

I like to layer up my skincare but I don’t like to feel that I have applied anything to heavy or greasy, and this Avene Serum slotted into my routine well, as I said its lightweight, almost gel like in texture and non greasy so once absorbed it left my skin feeling instantly smooth and ready for my moisturiser. I have dehydrated skin but suffer from a terribly oily t zone and this serum worked well for me. I had no problems with excess oil and it really helped give my skin a boost of hydration and helped make it look plump and less dull.

This serum comes in a nice glass bottle with a good sturdy pump dispenser, this is so handy and hygienic. It dispenses just the right amount of product in two pumps for my face and neck. Only using 2 small pumps a day this bottle will last a fair amount of time. Which is always great, I hate it when skincare lasts all of a month. It never feels like good value for money.

If you’re looking for a serum to hydrate, calm and protect your skin then this Avene Soothing Hydrating Serum would be a good fit for you. Have you tried any French Skincare? Let me know what your must haves are.

Avene Soothing Hydrating Serum 30ml £17.00 available from www.escentual.com 

Products that are marked with an * have either been sent to me for my consideration or I’ve received at events. I’m under no obligation to review them on my blog. However if I do, the reviews are 100% my own.

Melvita Skincare Additions

- Vicki 6 Comments

Melvita Skincare

Melvita Narcissus Extraordinary Water*

This has been a lovely addition to my Winter skincare regime. It is a Toner aimed at Brightening your complexion and locking in moisture, this is just what my dehydrated skin needed. It has a lovely blend of Narcissus, Papaya, Lemon and Olive leaf and lemon extract, designed to brighten, cool and sooth your skin.

I just splash a few drops on to a cotton pad (it has a thin/light consistency) I then wipe it all over my face and breath in the scent, it’s lovely and makes my skin feel smooth and is a step I find refreshing.

This also contains Hyaluronic Acid and Organic Glycerin to help lock in moisture and keep your skin hydrated. I’ve been using this in the morning as it leaves a nice smooth base to apply my serum and moisturiser. I would say my skin is noticeably brighter since using this, it is looking healthy and stayed hydrated over winter so that’s a plus.

Melvita Extraordinary Water comes in 3 varieties each £17 for 100ml and all aimed at a different skin concern:

Rose Melvita Extraordinary Water for Anti Ageing & Moisturising

Orange Blossom Melvita Extraordinary Water for Soothing & Softening

Narcissus Melvita Extraordinary Water for Skin Radiance

Melvita Exfoliating Cleansing Cream

Melvita Exfoliating Cleansing Cream*

This is a gentle cream exfoliator using Musk Rose Seed Powder and protective prebiotic, it gently eliminates dead skin and keeps skin looking bright. I like to use this once a week in the evening as part of my weekly pamper session. It smells floral and uplifting. It combines Rose Floral Water, Orange Blossom which keeps skin soft and Naracissus Extract which is cleaning and brightening. It is a great way of keeping my skin looking fresh and feeling clean.

Its a lovely gentle cleanser with brightening properties and it suits my skin down to the ground. This 50ml tube will last me a while.

Out of the two products I’ve been trying the Narcissus Melvita Extraordinary Water is my favourite and I really enjoy using it. Have you any product recommendations from Melvita?

Products that are marked with an * have either been sent to me for my consideration or I’ve received at events. I’m under no obligation to review them on my blog. However if I do, the reviews are 100% my own.