Budget buy foundation.....Bourjois Healthy Mix

Bourjois Healthy Mix Radiance Reveal

 

Works well with Real Techniques Brush

If you are anything like me, you will forever be searching for the perfect foundation. I think I have most definitely found it in the YSL Touch Éclat Foundation, it is just amazing, and ticks every single box. Every one, except the price. At £30.50 and a bottle only lasting me around two months, for everyday use, I have been searching the shelves of Boots for a cheaper alternative.

I've read tons of reviews on how good Bourjois foundations are, but never actually tried one. So when I spotted this one on offer in Boots, having read how great it was, I thought I would pick it up and give it a go. I'm so glad I did, it's the Bourjois Healthy Mix - Radiance Reveal Foundation. I've been using it for a couple of months now, and I absolutely love it. It's available in around eight different shades, but I picked up the shade 53 - Beige Clair (Light Beige) which seems to be a pretty good match for my skin tone.

A swatch of Shade 53 - Beige Clair

 

How it looks when blended in to the skin

 

The consistency is quite thick, but you only need one pump of this to completely cover the face, and I would say you get a medium to full coverage. It covers my blemishes and scars well, leaving the skin with a lovely slightly dewy/glowy finish. Its perfect for every day wear and could definitely be built up for a night out. I use my favourite Real Techniques Buffing Brush to apply it, but you can apply with your fingers if you fancy a much lighter, more natural finish - for those no make-up make-up days!

 

How Health Mix looks on the face

 

One of the things I love about the Health Mix is the gorgeous smell. It contains fruit extracts that claim to help against fatigue (definitely need that!) and has a fresh almost apple type smell. I also love the pump dispenser, much more hygienic and you don't end up wasting loads of the product, plus it wont leak all over your make-up bag! The price is fantastic at £9.99 (although more often than not its on 3 for 2) a third of the price of YSL. It claims to give a radiant look, but thankfully doesn't have that glittery finish that some radiance boosting foundations give, which I absolutely hate.

 

It lasts really well throughout the day, and although it claims to last 16 hours, I can't say if this is true or not as I don't tend to wear my make-up for that long, but I do agree that its got great staying power, with or without a primer underneath. I wear it for the gym, and it still looks ok afterwards (I think!)

 

Overall, I do still prefer my beloved YSL, but try to save it for weekends/nights out, and use Bourjois through the week. Its a fantastic everyday foundation and definitely worth giving a try.

 

 

 



Happy hands.....The Body Shop Hemp Hand Protector

Well used (and obviously well loved) Hemp Hand Protector.

I officially have the driest hands EVER this winter. The combination of constant hand washing, (any mama's with small children will be with me on that one) the cold weather outside followed by the warm central heating inside, does my hands no favours at all. They were dry, itchy and cracked. I have tried every hand cream going, and nothing has worked.....until now.....

Step forward, good old Body Shop. I was walking past The Body Shop and saw a stand near the door advertising their range of hand creams and protectors, which also happened to be half price due to a Christmas promotion. I tested them all, and decided to go for The Hemp Hand Protector. This promises to soften and protect your hands, restore moisture and relieve dry skin. It provides a barrier for your hands, rather than just a cream to soften them when they feel a bit dry.

Super thick consistency of the cream.

It contains hemp seed oil, and does have quite a strong scent, that I did find a little strange at first, but now that I'm used to it, I absolutely love that fresh, leafy type smell! The consistency of the hand protector is really thick, but it does sink nicely into the skin pretty quickly and doesn't feel tacky like lots of other hand creams I've tried.

If anyone has a similar problem to me and gets extremely dry hands, I would definitely recommend this, and if the smell is a bit off-putting for some, they also do and Absinthe, Almond, and also Wild Rose, so lots to choose from. They do two sizes in the creams, 30ml or 100ml. I've had the 100ml for a couple of months, and still have just under half of it left. Plus The Body Shop always seem to have loads of special offers on the their skin care products, so definitely worth a look! They also have other products in the Hemp range, such as body butter and hand wash, so obviously I will be giving them a go as well.....only for research purposes! 

All about eyes.....Kiehl's Creamy Eye Treatment With Avacado

Being honest, I've only started to use eye creams over the last couple of years. Having never really felt that I needed to use them, as I still like to believe in my mind that I am only 21, rather than 31 (reality check needed!) I also, preferred spending my cash on other beauty essentials such as lip glosses, but once you hit your 30's, it's a must have.

The skin around my eyes gets quite dry, especially in the winter. The combination of cold weather and central heating blasting constantly doesn't help. I had been searching for the right eye treatment for ages, and I think I might just have found it.....

 

I haven't tried any Kiehl's products before now, but after noticing a couple of reviews of this 'creamy eye treatment' on various blogs, I decided to order it. It's not the most purse friendly purchase, but it does come in two sizes, 14ml and 28ml. So I though I would go for the smaller size first, to see if I liked it. The jar size isn't actually as small as I thought it would be, and will definitely last me for absolutely ages. The consistency is exactly as you would expect, extremely thick, the colour of avacado, reminding me of guacamole! It doesn't have any particular scent and even though it is super thick and very rich, a little goes a very long way.

I've been using this product for around four weeks now, and although it advises you to use twice daily, I only use it on an evening, as it can take a while to sink into the skin completely, so not really that practical for a busy morning when you want to slap your make-up on and get going. But to be fair, it's that good, using it only once daily seems to be all that is needed. I just pat it gently around the eye area and the skin is left feeling super soft and I even noticed on first use, that the skin around my eyes, (especially the inner corners) is noticeable less dry.

 

This product has definitely got me interested in trying more Kiehl's skin care..... I've got my eye on the Creme de Corps body lotion (hint hint if hubby is reading this.....)