Cucumber and Eucalyptus

I did enjoy this Freeman Cucumber Peel-Off Mask, even though I don’t like peel-off masks! Freeman facial peel-off cucumber mask is a refreshing facial mask that gently peels away impurities, while cucumber, melon and ginseng extracts leave your skin silky smooth. It is made with natural, botanical ingredients to help you look and feel your best. Clarifies and Renews Skin. I must admit I wasn’t really looking forward to using it as I thought the smell of cucumber might be too much, but actually it was very subtle and fresh, which was great. The only problem I had is that I used half of it and then stored it away in a plastic bag to use the other half later, but I didn’t keep it upright and it’s very fluid, LOL! So yes, I lost the rest of the pack which was a shame, but I would probably buy the full product at some point. You can get it at Amazon for £3.13 for 150ml

I picked up this Superdrug DD Anti-Ageing Cream in Light a while back as I was curious as to what it was like – I’m a user of BB Creams and CC Creams, but this was my first DD cream. Superdrug Anti-Ageing SPF20 DD Cream provides sheer illuminating coverage, which immediately conceals discolouration and imperfections, while helping to neutralise and protect the skin from daily aggressions, preserving skin’s youthfulness. With UV protection to help defend against premature skin ageing. The 7-in-1 formula also provides all day moisturisation and helps to strengthen the skin’s barrier whilst Glycolic Acid gently dissolves surface skin cells helping to diminish the appearance of pores, hyperpigmentation and fine lines over time. Benefits: Promotes Skin Detoxification; Protects and Strengthens Skin; Effectively Conceals Imperfections; Resurfaces and Refines Skin and Pores; Diminishes Discoloration, Fine lines and Wrinkles; Provides All Day Moisturisation; SPF21. I wasn’t really that impressed with this one, I’m afraid – not enough coverage and no staying power. I used it up only when I knew I was staying in for the night, LOL! You can get this at Superdrug for £4.95 for 50ml – which is their half-price offer at the moment, but I’d advise spending your cash elsewhere …

I use Dentyl Active Plaque Fighter Smooth Mint Mouthwash every evening and I love it. It’s alcohol-free which is hugely important to me. Effective alcohol-free mouthwash with active ingredients to keep your mouth clean and healthy; unique formula that powerfully pulls bacteria and debris that can cause bad breath, plaque and gum disease; kills up to 99.9% of oral bacteria in lab tests; soes not sting, tastes great and gives you long-lasting fresh breath. You need to shake it up first to make sure the two parts of it blend properly before you use it, but that’s no problem. I’ve already restocked this one. You can get it for £3.85 for 500ml at Amazon.

I love Sanex Dermo Sensitive Shower Cream. It’s brilliant for my sensitive skin on the back, neck and chest areas and I use it every day. There’s no scent and it makes my skin much better. I’m never without a bottle of this one! You can get it at Boots for £3.25 for 500ml and it’s a real bargain.

I picked up this tube of Creightons Squeeky Clean Saint or Shimmer Lotion as part of a bargain at Poundland and it’s really nice. Get glam with a glorious glow with Squeeky Clean saint or shimmer lotion. Packed with skin friendlies, vitamin E, coconut oil and sweet almond oil, this divine shimmer lotion gives an instant all over healthy looking glow and leaves skin feeling irresistibly soft and smooth. This has got everything I love in a body lotion – Vitamin E, Coconut Oil and Sweet Almond Oil – hurrah! The scent is very comforting and it’s not too coconut-focused at all. It makes you feel far more glamorous and elegant than the price would have you believe! Yes, there’s a slight shimmer but it’s very subtle so nothing to get concerned about. Next time I’m in Poundland, I shall look for it again. It costs – you guessed it! – £1.00 for 100ml and I recommend it.

I’m nothing without my Vicks Vaporub! Contains: menthol and camphor to calm a cough; eucalyptus and menthol to relieve nose congestion; eucalyptus to relieve catarrh. I use it every morning on my neck before I go to work, and then every night on my neck, chest and back before I go to bed. I don’t do the steaming suggestion as I just find it too much – I’m very delicate, you know! It’s wonderful for my catarrh and helps keep everything under control. I’ve already got a back-up. You can pick this up at Boots for £4.36 for 100g, and it’s a little miracle.

Have a great weekend and welcome to April!

Anne Brooke Books

 

Dove, Dentyl and Figs

Products I Will Buy Again

I do so love the SebaMed Clear Face Care Gel, as I’ve said before. I use it as a spot cream at night on my face where needed, and also on my back and chest whenever I’ve had a flare up. It really calms everything down and I now won’t be without it. It costs £5.55 for 50ml at Amazon and I have already restocked it.

The Dentyl Active Smooth Mint Alcohol-Free Mouthwash is the only one I use – once a day, at night only. The taste is great and it certainly gets rid of the plaque. I also really appreciate that it’s alcohol-free, as I just refuse to use mouthwashes with alcohol in them. You can buy this at Superdrug for £4.39 for 500ml, so really good value.

I really like the 7th Heaven Montagne Jeunesse Aloe Vera Blemish Mud – it’s very soothing and doesn’t irritate my skin at all. Our special blend of aloe vera, willow, evening primrose and witch hazel in our face mask naturally target your problem areas for a clean complexion. It costs £1.98 at Amazon for a pack, and I get 2 uses out of it, so it’s incredibly good value. I have a supply of these in my bathroom cabinet, hurrah!

My favourite product of this week is definitely the Pixi Glow Tonic Exfoliating Toner. This best selling, cult favourite exfoliating toner perfects skin tone and texture, resulting in a healthy glow. Aloe vera, ginseng and botanical extracts work together to soothe and treat skin while 5% glycolic acid accelerates cell renewal. Alcohol-free and gentle on all skin types. I was a bit uncertain at first as I don’t like a whole lot of exfoliation going on, as my face is sensitive enough without rubbing it to death! However, this is not at all harsh, and feels both soothing and cleansing which is great. I have stocked up on this one. You can buy it at Marks & Spencer for £18 for £250ml.

Now that I’ve got seriously into painting my nails – even people at work are noticing, well gosh! – I wouldn’t be without my Pretty Nail Drying Spray, which cuts the waiting time down to a mere minute. It’s great stuff. You can buy this one at Amazon for £1.10 for 150ml, though postage will apply. Definitely recommended.

I also love my Dove Invisible Dry Anti-Perspirant Deodorant – it keeps me dry and doesn’t rub off with any nasty white marks on my clothes, result! Dove Invisible Dry Anti-Perspirant Roll On gives 24 hour protection without leaving any white marks on clothing. It contains 0% alcohol so is gentle on skin whilst being an effective deodorant. And the fact it’s alcohol-free is a bonus, as deodorants with alcohol give me rashes. It’s on offer at Boots at the moment as a 2 for £3 on Dove products offer, and it costs £1.75 for 50ml.

Products I Won’t Buy Again

I’ve used the Clarins Eye Revive Beauty Flash for quite a while, but I’m not sure it really does anything important for me these days. A fresh, comfortable microgel which melts into the skin and acts like an invisible “radiance patch”: it gently decongests, eliminating dark circles, puffiness and fine lines while hydrating and protecting the fragile skin of the eye contour. To be honest, I don’t notice any difference and though I will use up the tube I have left, I won’t restock it, as there are other eye products I prefer out there. Plus, for £29 for 20ml at Boots, I’m saving myself a fortune!

The Omorovicza Rejuvenating Night Cream sample was okay, but it didn’t wow me. The phrase ‘Beauty Sleep’ is no accident. While you slumber you secrete growth hormones for cell turnover and fortify the proteins in your skin like collagen. This night cream is like a wheatgrass shot for the skin, with Apple Pectin to hydrate and retain moisture, Plum Almond oil to protect against free radical aggressors attacking and ageing the cells, Wild Carrot rich in pro-vitamin A to boost collagen and Hazelnut Peptide to firm and lift so you wake up toned, nourished and glowing. Heavens above, that blurb!! All of your 5-a-day veggies in one night cream. I think it might be too rich for me and it didn’t settle well into my skin. If you want to give it a go, it costs an enormous £110(!!!) for 50ml at Cult Beauty, but really you’d have to be made of money, LOL!

Actually, I grew to quite like the Roger & Gallet Fig Bud Body Lotion, as it’s such a lovely consistency, but the smell isn’t quite me, I don’t think. I’m not that sophisticated! The fresh and indulgent scent of Eau Fraiche Fleur de Figuier radiates light and opulence. A melting formula, infused with fig pulp, the main active ingredient is extracted from the buds of the plant, known for their softening properties and effect on suppleness. It’s on offer at Marks & Spencer at the moment at £10.50 for 200ml.

Finally in this section, a couple of samples I received recently – at least I understood what they both were this time and could look them up on the web, hurrah! The Etude House Collagen Essence was hardly worth it as there was nothing but a few drops of the stuff in the packet, groan. But it seemed very thin to me and I don’t think my skin liked it much. You can get it at Amazon for £10.95 for 180ml, but I’m giving it a miss.

The TonyMoly Black Tea London Classic Serum looked quite promising really, but it felt tingly when I put it on my face, and I really don’t like that feeling. I don’t trust it … Then again, I’m not a huge fan of tea, so I should have been warned. This anti-aging and moisturizing serum infused with 56% of black tea ingredients fills skin energy to improve skin elasticity and provide rich nutrients. You can buy this one at Amazon for £27.27 for 55ml, if you’d like to give it a go.

Have a great Sunday!

Anne Brooke Books

 

 

Salt, Sanex and Scent

Products I Love:

I’ve got a fair amount of stuff I’ve loved this week (hurrah!). The Sanex Shower Cream for Sensitive Skin is something I’ve used for years, but then went off it for a while as I preferred something with a bit of scent in the bath – and shower. Recently I’ve been using this on my more sensitive neck, chest and upper back areas and then using whatever scented cleanser I have everywhere else – thus getting the best of both worlds. The Sanex really does work wonders on the skin and keeps spots and redness at bay. I’ve already restocked it. You can currently get it half price at Boots for only £1.64 for 500ml.

HSL Epsom Salts are brilliant for the bath – good for cleansing and relaxing so I put a couple of handfuls in automatically now. I used to get these at the garden centre (it’s the same product so don’t worry!) but I prefer this box as it’s easier to keep in the bathroom and comes with a very handy scoop. Yes, I know epsom salts are something your granny used to swear by but she was right! You can get them for £9.89 for 3KG at Amazon which I think is a pretty good bargain.

Regular readers of this blog will know how obsessed I am with teeth (totally, I tell you!!) and I wouldn’t be who I am at all without my Dentyl Active Smooth Mint mouthwash. It’s alcohol-free which is a key factor for why I buy this one, as I don’t trust alcohol-based mouthwashes, and it totally does the trick. You’ll be amazed at what ends up in the basin as you rinse out, LOL!! It’s a definite plaque-fighter! You can get it at Amazon for £3.95 for 500ml, but it’s also available at chemists/supermarkets etc and there are other flavours.

A new try-out for me has been the Dove Invisible Dry Anti-Perspirant roll-on which I love as a top-up during the day and for the evenings. It works very well and – total bliss – doesn’t stain clothing. I have already stocked up and will be using this one from now on. You can get it at Boots for £1.75 for 50ml.

I picked up the Body Shop Japanese Cherry Blossom scent just to add something to my online basket to get free delivery and because I do love cherry blossom. I wasn’t expecting a great deal as I don’t set great store by Body Shop perfumes, but this one is absolutely lovely. Fresh and floral and oh-so-summery, it lifts the mood at once, and puts a spring into my step. Okay, it’s light so doesn’t last long, but it’s great for topping up and giving me an extra boost in the evenings. I must admit I don’t like the bottle shape – it’s a dome – because I find it hard to hold steady. However, the good news is that when I restocked it, the bottle shape had been changed (temporarily, I think, sadly …) to a longer and thinner one which is far easier to handle. It costs £15 for 50ml so not cheap, but I like it.

I’ve LOVED Rimmel Match Perfection Silky Loose Face Powder in Transparent for absolutely ages and always have at least two spares in stock. It’s so easy, it really smooths the skin and it keeps the shine at bay. I do love the feel of a loose face powder. Basically, it does what it says on the tin with no extra fuss, which is exactly what I want in any product. It’s £6.99 for 10g at Boots, but they’re currently running a 3-for-2 Rimmel offer, so it’s a good time to buy!

I’ve talked about it before, but I do rather like the Roger & Gallet Beauty Vinegar, and have a full-size bottle to use too, as well as this sample size which I’ve just finished. It might be a tad too scented, but it feels good on my face and wakes me up nicely in the mornings. You can pick it up for £15 for 200ml at the Feel Unique website, so maybe a little treat for your Christmas! It’s also stocked at Marks & Spencer, I believe.

Products I Don’t Like:

Oh dear me, I was so VERY hopeful when I picked up this pot of the Twist & Out Instant Nail Varnish Remover. I thought my days of struggling with those cotton pads were over, but alas no! This pot was okay for the first couple of times I used it, though it did sting my skin in a way that other varnish removers haven’t. Then it simply got too loose in the pot so no matter how often I waggled my fingers about, nothing happened sigh. It’s £3.79 for 55ml at Amazon, and that’s four quid I won’t get back, isn’t it …

Keeping to the nail polish theme for a moment, I bought a set of ‘London’ themed nail polishes at Nails Inc recently as part of my Black Friday splurge (well, it happens to us all, doesn’t it!) They’re not great polishes, I have to say, though the London street names are nice. The one I’ve singled out above is Kensington Gore and is honestly the most disgusting shade of dog-poo brown I’ve ever seen in my life! It’s also the sort of shade that makes you think that maybe the dog isn’t very healthy either, LOL! It’s making me feel quite ill even as I type this (yes, I have it on to give it a go – how brave am I!!!) and I can’t wait to take it off. You can get it for £6.99 at eBay, but really, why would you?

I’ve used the Super Facialist Rose Hydrate Facial Oil by Una Brennan as a make-up pre-cleanser a few times and used to like it, but now I think it’s a bit too strong for me – and I have other more suitable pre-cleansers now. So I’ve taken it from my Likes to my Dislikes list for that reason, though other people will be fine with it, I’m sure. It’s now £9.99 for 30m at Boots and is part of a one-third off superfacialist offer. The rose smell is lovely, anyway.

I’ve used up a Dermalogica Ultracalming Serum Concentrate sample this week, and wasn’t very impressed. It did nothing at all for me and so I’m not rushing out to buy a full bottle. At £45 for 40ml, I have therefore saved myself an absolute fortune!

The same can be said about my Roger & Gallet Double Extract sample, which felt a bit slimy to be honest and once more did nothing for me. So I have saved myself another £40 for 35ml at the Feel Unique site. All money which I can happily spend elsewhere on products I like, hurrah!

Have a lovely Sunday!

Anne Brooke

A Hair & Teeth Week

Products I Don’t Like

This week I’m afraid I’ve taken against the Innisfree Bija Mask – as though it’s nice enough, sheet masks are still a bit of a faff all round – I’m happier with normal masks so I won’t be restocking on this one after all. It is good for sensitive or congested skin so if you like sheet masks, then this is one to consider. You can get it from eBay for £1.89, postage free.

I started off really liking the Alberto Balsam Tea Tree Tingle Conditioner but I soon got a bit bored with the scent and struggled to finish it. My verdict is it’s okay but I have other more interesting hair conditioners. It’s available at Boots for £1.00 only so a real bargain.

I don’t have anything drastic against the No 7 Instant Illusions Airbrush Away primer as it does the trick but not as well as other primers. Its main and unsurmountable problem is that it costs £16.50(!!) for only 30ml at Boots – so way overpriced to my mind. Then again, it’s currently part of a 3-for-2 offer so you could get it free if you can find anything you want in Boots that is more expensive. Good luck with that, LOL. There are other alternatives out there, girls!

Products I Like

Teeth! Teeth are my bugbear at the moment (no, don’t ask!…) but I would NEVER be without my trusty Dentyl Active mouthwash – a lovely minty taste and it’s alcohol-free, which is very important to me. If I’m going to put alcohol down my gullet, then I want it be the Real Thing, not a health product with it added. It costs £1.30 at Boots – though currently out of stock online – and it really does the trick. Watch that plaque go!

I started off not liking the Olay Anti-Wrinkle Booster and Firming Serum – now I can’t live without it, so thank you very much to ever-lovely Mrs Strawberry Blonde for tipping me off on this one! I use it on my face in the evening and it just smooths out my skin ready for the evening make-up touch-up. Bliss! More than that, it’s now HALF-PRICE at Boots at only £4.99 so grab your bottle now!

I’ve used Rimmel’s Hide The Blemish Concealer (Ivory) for years now and it’s a pretty decent standby – these days, I’ve got other better concealers I totally rely on and which do a wonderful job, but this one is like an old friend I can’t quite let go. I’ll always love it and it’s well worth a try-out, but I suspect I won’t be restocking it once my supply has run out, sob! It will cost you £3.99 at Boots.

A new discovery for me is L’Oreal Perfect Match Foundation in Ivory Rose (1R1C) – I picked up a sample size very cheaply at eBay and have enjoyed using this one – it blends into the skin superbly well, covering all my imperfections (hey, let’s not list those then, LOL!!) and stays on pretty decently too. I’ve now bought a full-sized bottle, also from eBay as it’s cheaper than at Boots (£9.99 for 30ml, though there is a 3-for-2 deal on L’Oreal products at Boots …), and will look forward to getting that soon. I am indeed a TOTAL Foundation Tart!

Anne Brooke Books