April 2016 Skin Care Routine...

I absolutely love having clean, fresh and clear skin. So today I'll be running through my skin care routine which is what I do before I go to bed and also what I do when I wake up in the morning. All of these products I've found work my skin wonders and I thought I'd share them with you!!

So this all starts when I'm in the shower. Firstly, I go in with my Clean & Clear Exfoliating Daily Wash. This is just to get rid of any dead, dry skin to make it really soft and smooth. All I do is wet my face and apply this on my forehead, nose and chin and leave for about 2 minutes, then just wash it off. I then apply the Clean & Clear Blackhead Clearing Daily Scrub onto my already wet face. This effectively unclogs pores and gets rid of blackheads (if you use everyday) and any dirt that may be on your face, leaving you with clean skin. I do the same routine as the exfoliating wash but leave it on for about 3-4 minutes. This can start to sting but I tend to persevere with it because it actually feels like its doing my skin some good.

Next, when I get out of the shower, I dry my face and moisturise. The writing on the front is in Spanish because I got it from Spain but I'll try and translate it as best I can. It's from a brand called Deliplus and it says 'Por sus propiedades hidratantes, calmantes y reparadoras, protege y evita le sequedad cutanea dejando la piel suave' which translates to 'For its moisturizing, soothing and restorative properties, it protects and prevents skin from dryness leaving the skin soft.' Which I 100000% agree with!! 1) It smells AMAZING, like Aloe Vera and 2) It makes my skin feel so fresh and clean, it is absorbs into the skin so quickly too so you don't have to wait around for ages with sticky skin. I've also found that my makeup lasts longer while using this and I think its down to the Glycerin because it binds products to the skin. I apply this on my face every night and morning; it keeps my skin healthy and moisturised like a dream!

I then use 2 Clinique products. Firstly, the Clinique Repairwear Sculpting Night Cream which I find leaves my skin feeling so hydrated and fresh when I wake up. Then I go in with my Clinique Repairwear Anti-Gravity Eye Cream. I apply this underneath my eyes before I go to bed and, since using this, I've noticed that my under eyes seem much more awake and brightened in the morning!

Just to hydrate my lips, I use my Vaseline lip treatment in Aloe Vera which is the green one. This is because I get really chapped lips (especially in winter) so lip treatments are basically my bestfriend.

So...there it is! I hope you enjoyed reading about how I take care of my skin. Follow my blog to keep updated! Also, to get e-mail updates of when I post, type your e-mail into the bar at the top of my page. Hope you have a lovely day form wherever you are in the world!

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Disappointing products

Hello! I'm going to be talking to you about make-up, beauty and skincare products that have disappointed me and I, personally, wouldn't recommend. I'm not saying that these products 100% wouldn't work for anybody else, it's just they that I didn't get on with them or that they ran out quickly. All of these products are drugstore/high street as I haven't found anything high end that I would class as disappointing (yet)!

Garnier Simply Essentials make-up remover  ★★☆☆☆

Even though (as you can see) I have used almost all of this, it's because I had ran out of make-up remover and needed to take my make-up off. On the back, it says there is an oil (the blue) which sits on top of a clear cleansing water which you have to shake up to combine. As I have quite oily skin in my T-zone, this remover just makes it 10x more oily and I've found myself having to literally scrub off the excess oil that this product has put on my face! I don't know how this would work on dry skin but I would not recommend this for people with combination-oily skin.

Maybelline Lasting Drama Gel Eyeliner ★★☆☆☆

I absolutely loved this product!!!! It glided onto my eyes really smoothly, didn't tug and the staying power was quite good too. I really loved this product and thought it would be my new favourite eyeliner. However.... I could only use it for about a month before it completely dried out. I can no longer use it because it is really hard, dry and bitty. This has also happened to my friend after using it for about a month too so it's not just a one off. I'm truly disappointed with this because I loved it and all of a sudden couldn't use it anymore!

Maybelline Baby Skin Instant Pore Eraser Primer ★☆☆☆☆

As I mentioned before, I have oily skin and this primer is literally like oil in a tube! I brought it because I'd read many good reviews for it but it just doesn't work for me. Maybe it would work for more dry skin so don't 100% take my word for it, this may be an amazing primer for dry skin! I also found that, because my skin was now more oily than before, it didn't keep my makeup on for very long at all.

Pro Formula Radiance Micellar Water ☆☆☆☆☆

My experience with this micellar water was a living nightmare!! I used it to take my makeup off on Christmas Eve 2014 and I woke up on Christmas day with massive patches of dry, irritated and rashed skin. This was worst on my eyelids, which made it really hard to open my eyes and blink without being in pain, this lasted about 4 days. I wouldn't recommend this to anybody because it caused me serious problems.

Rimmel Exaggerate Lipliner - Eastend Snob ★★★☆☆

I loved this lipliner because it was so cheap (about £3) and the staying power was amazing! But it only lasted about 1-2 weeks which I think was because there wasn't much product inside it. I have repurchased it 3-4 times now because I love it so much but I thought it was getting ridiculous that i was having to buy a new one every week or so.

I hope my experiences and opinions of these products have helped you decide whether to get them or not... Thankyou for reading!! x

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Top 10 Tips for Revision!

Exam season is right round the corner and people (including me) are really starting to feel the pressure. If your like me, you would grasp hold of any chance to make revision any less painful, drawn out and lets face it - boring. I have some tips that might brighten up your revision and make it a bit easier to deal with, even if it's just a little bit.

1. Dedicate time

After a long, hard 6 hour day of school, I know the last thing you'll want to be doing is more work. So what I suggest is having about an hour a night doing what YOU want to do whether that is watching your favourite programme, going out with friends or even going to the gym. That way you are balancing out your revision with your free time activities because let's face it; if you revise for 5 hours straight per night, nothing will stay in your brain. I would also advise making a revision timetable (this has saved my life!) because I know what subject I'm doing every night, when I can take breaks and finish revising for the day to have a little relax. 

2) Taking breaks

Revising in small doses really works - like I said before, if you're studying for 5 hours straight without taking any breaks then you're not being productive. I would suggest working for about 30-40 minutes then take a 10 minute break, this way your giving your brain time to process the information making it's more likely to stay in your brain. My teachers have been telling me to do this for ages and I've only started taking regular breaks recently but it works!

3) Change it up!

When I revise the same subject all night, I get very bored and my attention just goes onto everything other than my work. If you put on your revision timetable to do 2 hours of Geography (with breaks of course) then change to Science, do that! Stick to your timetable, change subject when you need to and when you notice your focus going on other things. It will make your revision a whole lot easier, believe me!

4) Guides

Buying all the relevant revision guides will make your life 10x easier, they contain all the information you need in one place. They are usually given away for free from your school or if not, are very cheap!

5) Revision tools

Revision cards, posters and mindmaps are an amazing way of making sure all of your revision is in one place and all together. I would advise making or buying colourful revision cards to be able to colour code your subjects and make it all understandable. Also, with revision cue cards, your condensing your work onto a smaller piece of paper which means you only have all the relevant information for your exams.

6) Colours!

I don't know about you, but if my work is written in pretty and vibrant pens it makes me remember it more and actually makes me want to revise! I mean, revision is boring if your just using the same black pen on white paper all the time. Also make sure you try to include diagrams and pictures to liven up your revision and make it more memorable.

7) Memorable places
I would strongly recommend putting all of your revision cards with your colourful handwriting on places that you go a lot, For example, I have them dotted around my room, on the fridge, by my mirror and on my wardrobe. This means you'll be looking at them and reading them whilst going about your daily life and it will (hopefully) make you remember it more.

8) Past papers

Past papers are (I think) the best way to do active revision because your doing exam practice questions of what could potentially come up in your real exam. I'd suggest trying to get the newest exam papers and mark schemes as they are most up to date and are going to be similar to the questions in the real thing.

9) DO NOT PROCRASTINATE
It is best to start revision early and please don't put it off. Don't be that person that had a quick glance at their notes before the exam and on results day, come out with a load of U's because you'll just think to yourself: 'I wish I'd revised'.

10) Don't stress
Just remember, everyone's in the same boat and you should feel pressure but not feel stressed. If you're feeling like this, speak to somebody like a teacher or a parent. They might be able to organise for you to have extra help and revision sessions.

I really hope this helped and I wish you all the best of luck in any upcoming exams!
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Make-up Favourites

For my first blog post, I was pondering on what to write about. So, whilst twiddling my thumbs and racking through all of the thoughts in my brain, an idea came in to my head! I thought what would be more suitable than a make-up favourites? Considering that is what my blog will be partly about. All opinions are completely honest. I'll start with higher end products then finish off with affordable drugstore items. So here it is, my favourite makeup products of all time...

Lipstick and Lip liner: MAC 'Velvet Teddy' and MAC 'Whirl'

This is the typical 'Kylie Jenner' lip look, this pairing is absolutely perfect and complement each other really nicely. The lipstick in 'Velvet Teddy' is the matte formulation and is a very dusky pink colour which I think is the perfect pinky nude for all year round. The lip liner 'Whirl' is a little darker than the lipstick but they are an amazing pairing.

Eye Shadow: Urban Decay Naked 3 Palette

I think a few of the most loved eye shadow palettes are probably the Naked palettes, which is completely understandable. The Naked 3 is very pinky toned which is perfect for Spring time but also has some darker colours if you want to opt for a more smokey look. My favourite shades which I usually go to for an everyday look are probably 'Nooner' for the crease which is a matte pink-brown and 'Trick' which is a sparkly rose gold copper shade for the lid. For a dark, party look I would go for 'Blackheart' in the crease which is a black with a hint of red shimmer in with 'Trick' again on the lid.

Primer: Nivea Men Sensitive Post-Shave Balm

I know what some of you may be thinking...Post-Shave?! But seriously, it works! Although a shaving balm may not seem like the norm for a primer, it is the best one I've used so far. The consistency is very runny and liquidy (I don't think that's a word but let's roll with it) but a little goes a long way. As it is for sensitive skin, it is very gentle and probably wont break you out with nasty spots, at least it hasn't for me yet and I've been using it for about 6 months. All you have to do is pour a small amount onto the back of your hand and rub it into your face until it becomes tacky/kind of sticky then apply your makeup over the top like a normal primer. I've noticed my makeup lasting a heck of a lot longer since using this and I would definitely say its my new holy grail primer.

Concealer: Maybelline Anti-Age Eraser Eye.

Recently I heard a lot of people raving about this product and decided to jump on the band wagon; I'm so glad I did! This concealer really brightens up my under eye area as well as any other areas of my face that I apply it (forehead, nose etc). Honestly, the only bad thing I can say about this is that the sponge on the top can get a bit gross after a while but overall, an amazing concealer.

Eyebrows: Sleek Brow Kit in Light

A few months ago I thought I'd try something different on my brows considering I'd been using my trusty brow pencil from NYX for ageeees, so I picked up this. I can honestly say this is my new favourite (which is why it's in my favourites) and I've been reaching for it every day since. There are two sections: a gel/pomade side which is what i use to sculpt my brows and a lighter powder to set it all into place. As you can see from the photo, I've been using the pomade side a lot because it is so easy to work with.

Eye base/primer: Maybelline Colour Tattoo in Creme de Rose

This eye base is part of the relatively new 'Creamy Mattes' collection in Maybelline so I thought I would try a couple out. Out of the two that I brought, I preferred Creme de Rose which is a muted dusky pink colour compared to Creme de Nude which is just nude skin colour. These glide on so well and make my eye makeup stay on longer which is a definite plus side!

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