Forgoing Foundation

Over the past few days I've been attempting to ditch the foundation. I realised that it had just become habit, and now my skin has recovered from a dissertation induced breakout, I thought I'd give my usual face base the boot. Last summer I did the same, and thinking about it now my skin was probably the best it had been in a long time. Coincidence? I don't think so. Armed with my trusty Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer, I've been braving it without my foundation safety blanket, and I like it!

After my usual skin care prep I've been using the L'Oreal Lumi Magique Primer for a bit of a radiance boost, and despite having oily skin I'm left looking glowy rather than greasy. I then move onto tackling the dark circles with Bobbi Brown Corrector in Light Bisque followed by a dotting of Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer in Fair buffed in with the Real Techniques Contour Brush. Still using the Collection concealer, I apply it wherever I have any scarring, redness or large pores (aka. the majority of my face) and again buff it in with the Real Techniques Contour Brush (which FYI is the best for giving concealer a flawless finish).

Once all those nasties are covered, I pat Mac Cream Colour Base in Pearl across the tops of the cheekbones for a bit of extra glow before contouring/bronzing with the Bourjois Delice de Poudre Bronzing Powder to help accentuate my pale gurl freckles. I've been loving Natural Collection's Peach Melba blush when wearing bronzer, as I find the two compliment each other really well so I pop a bit of that on the cheekbones and blend the excess across the apples (a great technique for chubby cheeked gals as pointed out by Kate from gh0stparties). 

At the end of a long day, my face looks so much better than it does when I wear foundation. My make-up hasn't separated, caked or oxidised and just looks really natural and seamless. I love it, for now, but let's see how long it takes before I run back to the full coverage security that only a foundation can offer.

Spot Busting: Skin Saviour Favourites

Over the past month or so my skin has REALLY not been behaving. I'm putting it down to being cooped up in the library writing my dissertation and coming off Dianette for a few weeks. Basically, my skin produced lots and lots of lovely spots around my chin and mouth area... just what I wanted!

Dealing with big outbreaks of angry spots has thankfully not been an issue for me for the past year or so, and I was a little bewildered when rummaging through my skin care looking for a solution. I decided to bring out Panoxyl, a benzoyl peroxide based cream that causes the top layer of the skin to shed (nice), killing off bacteria and drying out the spot. During my teenage acne years, my doctor used to prescribe me this, and I always have a tube to had for when a big, bad boy spot makes an appearance. After cleansing as normal on an evening, I put a tiny amount of this on a cotton bud and apply it to the spot and the spot only - if you spread it around too much it completely dries the skin out and make-up looks awful for a good week or so after (I wish someone had told me that at age 13 when I thought it was a great idea to smother a Natural Collection concealer stick over my crazily dry acne).

Once I'd treated the individual spots, I let the Panoxyl dry before applying La Roche Posay Effaclar Duo over my whole face. My skin was really oily at the time and this helps prevent sebum from clogging the pores, so it was perfect and didn't dry out my skin (however if your skin isn't too oily I can imagine it might).

I then followed with my usual daily moisturiser, as even if your skin is oily and spotty it still needs moisture! Every third night I swapped Effaclar Duo and my moisturiser for Alpha H Liquid Gold* aka. a miracle in a bottle. I can't even describe how amazing this stuff is. It contains Glycolic Acid which acts as a gentle chemical exfoliant, and combined with Panoxyl, it completes a spot busting match made in heaven. A swipe of Liquid Gold over Panoxyl smothered spots results in less angry, less juicy, and generally less horrible spots in the morning. 

Over the course of about two weeks this evening routine completely rescued my skin. I'm a big believer that your hormones will always override any skin care you use, but finding things to help reduce outbreaks and heal them is definitely possible. Now I've gone back on Dianette my skin is much better, which I think proves that point, but these little saviours most definitely helped me deal with the rocky patch!

Elissa x

*PR sample

A Girly Day at Titanic Spa

Last week my mum and I headed up into the Yorkshire countryside for an early 21st birthday pamper session at Titanic Spa near Huddersfield. After a very scenic drive through quaint little villages we arrived at the spa, which turned out to be an old converted textile mill that was built in 1911, the same year as the actual Titanic (hence the name, clever ey.) 

The staff at reception were really lovely and we were shown around the spa so that we knew where everything was before we started our day. We both had facials booked (more on that later) and were allocated a time slot for these as well as for our lunch.

Swimwear, robes and slippers on, we headed to the 'Heat and Ice Experience' area which was a series of rooms where the body is heated up and cooled down with the aim of relaxation. We swiftly agreed to avoid both the plunge pool and the ice bucket areas and instead opted to spend an hour or so in the sauna, aromatherapy room, steam room and foot baths. All of these were filled with gorgeous smelling oils but the Herbal Infusion Room was my favourite; it was scented with lavender and eucalyptus (which I love) and had sloped seats so you could really get comfortable and relax. We followed this with a short but sweet stint in the ice room where we wrapped crushed ice in towels and pressed it against our skin to cool off.

After all that lazing around we decided to go for a dip in the pool and swim a few lengths. The pool felt less spa-like than the rest of the areas we had walked through, but that's presumably because both the pool and the gym are open to members who come and use them on a regular basis. Still, it was nice to have a proper swim followed by the jacuzzi and we lazed around on the loungers reading for an hour or so after (which for my mum equated to nap time!)

At 1pm we went for our buffet lunch in the lovely little bistro. I wasn't expecting much to be honest, maybe a few salad bits and a sandwich or two, but lunch was really, really good. We had cous cous and pasta salad with warm ciabatta and a jacket potato, and then there was the option for veggie thai green curry or a tomato chicken dish, both of which were so nice. We followed lunch with what was quite possibly the best dessert I've ever eaten: a salted caramel and roasted almond cheesecake with clotted cream.

 After that we were suitably stuffed so decided to kill an hour or so in the relaxation lounge which was basically a room full of squishy things to lay on and read a book or have a nap. We had a read and a bit of a snigger at several people in there 'shhh-ing' a few women to be quiet and then went off for our facials. 

I was taken off into a lovely little treatment room where I had a Decleor Aroma Expert Facial. I'd never used Decleor products before but everything that the facialist used smelled absolutely amazing. The Tonifying Lotion was probably my favourite, and is something I may just have to treat myself to with my birthday money. The Ylang Ylang Balm was also lovely, and turned into an oil upon contact with the skin (another one I may just have to splurge on). My skin was left feeling plumped, hydrated and balanced and surprisingly was very calm to say I'd just had a good 20 minutes worth of facial massage! The effects lasted a good couple of days too, so I was impressed.

We had such a lovely day and if Yorkshire is your neck of the woods I would really recommend a trip to Titanic Spa for a luxurious pamper sesh on a special occasion  They also had some lovely little apartments, meaning you can even make a weekend of it if you wanted.

*Our day at Titanic Spa, including expenses, was provided free of charge for my consideration. This doesn't affect my opinion; we really did enjoy it :)

Pretty Jewellery, a Puppy and Dissertation Hell

Considering this blog has been left unloved for over a month thanks to my dissertation, I thought it was about time for an update on what I've been getting up to. 

Last week I went home for a few days to see my boyfriend and his new puppy (the puppy being the main reason for my visit, obviously!) We had a really lovely chilled couple of days taking little Bob on his first ever walk, introducing him to my dog (which resulted in him peeing himself, literally, with shock/excitement) and lots and lots of TV (primarily a morbid but great serial killer cult series called The Following - go watch it, you'll be hooked.)

A few months ago, Lucy contacted me asking if I'd like to try out a few items from her online jewellery shop Luce's Lustful Lucidity. She had some lovely pieces and I picked these gorgeous blue stone earrings and a mid-length necklace with some little binoculars on the end. Neither items are like anything I've seen in high-street stores, which is one of the reasons I really like buying from online boutiques like Lucy's. Everything she sells is really affordable and the pieces I have are of a really nice quality. I love the earrings, they're perfect for days when I just want to shove my hair up and wear a boring, plain outfit as they jazz things up a bit without looking too over the top.

And the thing that is currently taking over my life and the reason I have zero time to blog lately: the dissertation. I'm currently in the process of writing 10,000 words on The Hunger Games series. I love children's literature and really wanted to work on this series for my dissertation as I loved the books but found a lot the critiques Suzanne Collins makes to be quite problematic, so that's what I'm writing on (in very simple terms, pretty sure you don't want to hear the full extent of it!)

Finally, the craziest/most exciting/life changing thing has happened to me this month that I'm just too excited about to leave out of this post considering it's by far been the highlight of this month, if not my whole life. Whilst I was at home visiting my boyfriend my lovely Dad and Step-mum surprised me with a very early 21st birthday present: a car! I still can't quite believe it's mine and could not be more thrilled. I pretty much live in the middle of nowhere when I'm back home from uni and moving back there after I graduate was going to be a big struggle for me, both job wise and lifestyle wise. Now I can apply for jobs anywhere knowing I can get myself there and can pop to visit my friends, family and boyfriend (who all live quite far away) whenever I like!

So despite being bogged down with dissertation work and forcing myself to stay at uni for the first half of the Easter holidays I've actually had a pretty exciting time since I last sat down to write up a blog post. Hopefully things will resume back to normal once my dissertation is done, dusted and handed in on the 29th April (eek).

Estée Lauder Illuminating Powder Gelée Blush in 'Tease'

This has got to be the most beautiful blush I've ever seen, so when I'd finally saved up £30 on my Boots Advantage Card, I snapped it up as a post results day treat to myself. It's part of Estée Lauder's Pretty Naughty Spring 2013 collection, but I've heard on the grape vine that they're going to be making it permanent.

As lovely as it is, I did find it difficult to work with at first. My usual fluffy blush brush just didn't pick the product up very well, and I've actually managed to find use for the little applicator that comes with it. I use it to pick up the product from the pan and dab it onto my cheekbones before blending it in with a fluffy brush.

Application issues aside, this has quickly become my favourite blush and I've been using it every day. It's a lovely cool-toned pink shade that really suits my pale skin, but I think it's one of those shades that would probably be universally flattering. The shimmer in it is really glowy and not at all glittery, which is just what I like in a blush. The packaging is also amazing; the heavy gold casing makes it feel really luxurious, but so it should for £30!

There's no doubt about it that this is expensive, and I would never ever usually spend so much money on a blush (I'd much rather have a new dress or a pair of shoes), but buying it with my Boots points made it guilt free. I might actually be a high-end blush convert considering how impressed I've been with this and Nars is next on my list of expensive blushes to try!

Toni & Guy Reverse Conical Wand Review

Toni & Guy Reverse Conical Wand* - £30

For me, the perfect hair consists of big, loose waves that give massive amounts of volume. Since I was around 14 I have curled my hair with my trusty GHDs, never contemplating using anything else. Recently I had my hair cut, and after telling the hair dresser that I like loose, voluminous waves, she whipped out some curling tongs and gave me just that. Why I had never considered using something actually designed to curl hair is beyond me!

I've since branched out to having a play around with my step-sister's conical wand, which was ok, but it gave a much tighter curl than I was after. I find curling tongs to be far too fiddly, so back to my GHDs I went. Then I was contacted by Toni & Guy, who offered me the chance to try their Reverse Conical Wand, and I've not reached for my GHDs since! 

The Reverse Conical Wand isn't like anything I've ever seen before. It's narrow at the bottom and wider at the top, meaning the curls get bigger towards the ends of your hair. Rather than being uniformly curled, my hair is left looking really nicely 'undone', and as the waves drop slightly after a few hours, my hair actually looks better towards the end of the day, which is pretty unheard of for me! I like how every time I use this the results are different, it has a much more natural effect than my GHDs give. If I want a more textured finish, I spritz on Joico's Texture Spray, but if I want a more soft, shiny look I just run a few pumps of my Proclere Argan Oil through the ends.

The wand comes with a little heat proof glove to prevent you burning your hands on the exposed ceramic barrel. Naturally I still managed to burn my arm instead, but as long as you use it with care (unlike me) then that shouldn't happen. But I really like the inclusion of the glove, I can imagine that without it my hands would be burnt to a crisp when I'm rushing to get ready on a morning.

I've also really been liking this when I'm wearing my hair up. A few loose curls added to a ponytail stops it looking limp and lifeless, and it takes literally 5 minutes! By no means will I be ditching my GHDs forever, but for every day use to create a more casual wave I really like the Reverse Conical Wand.

*PR sample

Chanel Rouge Allure Velvet in 'La Favorite'

Chanel's spring collection is amazing this year, and the Rouge Allure Velvet lipsticks immediately caught my eye, along with the illuminating powder which is absolutely beautiful, but eye-wateringly expensive. At £46 I don't think I'll be splashing out on that any time soon, but I did treat myself to a lipstick after getting my semester one results that day. I was feeling reckless and before we knew it, my friend and I had convinced each other that we absolutely needed a Chanel lipstick and were soon smugly walking out of Boots and back to Uni with mini Chanel carrier bags at our side.

I'm happy to confirm I have no regrets, everything about this lipstick is beautiful. The colour is the perfect coral pink and really brightens up my face without looking too garish (there's a really true to life swatch here.) The texture is exactly as described: velvety, soft and weightless. It's matte without being too dry and doesn't leave my lips feeling too dehydrated. I absolutely love the packaging too. To release the lipstick from the black casing you just click down the gold top and it pops out meaning you don't end up with the lid falling off leaving your lippie to get covered in the grime lurking at the bottom of your bag. At £25 they're not cheap, but if you're thinking of treating yourself I say go for it!