My Make Up Declutter

I appreciate it's the height of 'first world problems' and a rather nice problem to have but one of the 'downsides' as a beauty blogger is quite simply the sheer abundance of products that we own. Over recent months I've tried to take a step back from making unnecessary purchases, accepting press samples I do not need and instead focus on working my way through my collection using what I have or decluttering things I do not love or have need for. I've rather enjoyed the process and enjoyed using products to their end rather than constant chopping and changing, reigniting my love for products once forgotten and finding I'm able to gather more thoughts on the products I do or not like. Today's post is sharing some of those products that haven't quite made the cut this month. 

First is L'Oreal Paris Infalliable Total Cover Foundation which despite my claims that I am not making any unnecessary purchases shows I am still prone to be swept up by some new releases because I have no need for more foundation. As is often the case this was first released in the US and unclear whether it would indeed hit UK shores I was able to ask a friend to pick it up for me. This was way back in December yet it's only recent months I've been reaching it for and I do not like it at all. Having such love for L'Oreal Infalliable Pro-Matte Foundation I expected that it would be a case of loving what I presumed what just be a fuller coverage version. Yes it is fuller coverage but far too much for my skin which felt suffocated whilst wearing. It did nothing for my mature skin and instead highlighted every line on my face so it's certainly not something I would reach for. I actually felt like I was wearing a mask that would crack and was literally itching at my face wanting to remove it.

An old favourite is Vivienne Westwood Boudoir Perfume that was my holy grail scent of old. In recent years I do not wear very often because it is a strong and heavy scent not suitable for day, or certainly work. As such the bottle has languished on my vanity unused and as part of my declutter I reached for it and realised that either the scent is perhaps too strong for me or quite simply I left it unloved too long and it's gone off. It was sad to part with a scent that brings back so many memories - good and bad - and I can remember when my mum purchased for me when it was only available exclusively in Harrods many years ago. 

Dr Lipp's Nipple Balm for Lips - yes that is its name - was one of the products I first purchased having moved into beauty blogging and saw appearing on various other blogs and YouTube channels. I was never particularly enamoured but what for me is simply a thick balm. Designed as one of those versatile products, original as the name suggested for the nipples of breastfeeding women but not is hailed to tackle any irritation from dry cuticles to lips and even babies bottoms. Interestingly I'm currently using a pot of Carmex that I prefer in the tube yet in this instance the tube was troublesome due to being such a thick formula. I actually had some success for Dr Lipp having left on the windowsill by accident one particularly sunny day so it had melted and dispensed with ease. That said life is too short to be fighting with a product I don't particularly enjoy using.

I purchased Make Up Revolution Vivid Baked Highlighter in Pink Lights over 2 years ago and I've rarely reached for it if at all. I prefer either a pigmented pink that works as a blush or at champagne or gold highlighter. This is just too cool toned and a bit 'out there' for me as beautiful as it is. Time to pass it on.

Like many other bloggers I loved the Sephora Lip Creams when they were first released and wore often but there is no denying that if wearing on a long day they are very drying and reapplication does bode for a clean lip look. I was always conscious of this so in latter months found myself reaching for it less and less, even when I was working through my lip collection. Finally taking the plunge I didn't make it 5 minutes from leaving home before noticing any moisture being sucked from lips and decided it was time to move on to other products such as the L'Oreal Lip Paints which are a far creamier and less drying. 

OPI Face and Body Shimmer is a product I'm once again ashamed to admit the age of and it's clearly only had sporadic use over the years. This is a very glittery product but not in an offensive way, but does mean choosing the appropriate occasion is key. I took this to St Lucia with me on holiday and love a dusting on the shoulders but decided that was where it should stay and instead I can use one of the many highlighters in my collection.

The final product in today's post is the Real Techniques Buffing Brush a long term favourite of mine and well used. Recently I've been enjoying Beauty Blenders and Oval Brushes for foundation application and seeing my Real Techniques brush looking wearing from such use and cleaning I decided to throw it out and purchase myself a new one in the future. 

I'm really enjoying relieving myself of the excess products in my collection and hope to keep continuing to do so. Are you a beauty hoarder or have you joined the current craze for decluttering your stash?

*this post contains press samples and/or affiliate links

Monthly Beauty Favourites | July 2016

Each month I refer to the list I’ve made over the weeks or take a look around my bathroom at what products I’ve enjoyed and will make ‘the favourites post’. July was easy and I’d go so far to say that most of the products are not simply ‘favourites’ they are ones I am loving and still using well into August. In fact I'm so late posting this by the unwritten blogger rules for monthly favourites I could've renamed this 'August Favourites' and it would have happily applied.

First up has to be Estee LauderBronze Goddess perfume which I picked up in my last trip through Duty Free. Yes it’s all the clichés, ‘Summer in a bottle’ and oh so basic but I’m ok with that because I’ve been spraying this with abandon and enjoying every second. My only concern at this point is that I won’t be able to justify packing such a weighty bottle when I travel to Italy at the end of the month. Once again I make the plea that next Summer they’ll release a travel friendly purse spray.

The next item I’m expressing my love for is the Lorac Pro Palette 3 which I realise I’m not quite sharing with you beyond its outer packaging. The Lorac Pro Palettes are much coveted for their buttery eyeshadows and inability to get hold of them in the UK. Even if you're lucky to visit the USA their locations are not found in the usual tourist destinations or in shopping malls so they can be rather coveted. Luckily for me I have a friend living in the US who was able to place the order for me and send it over when it went on early release at Ulta. In short this is the expected Lorac Pro Palette formula of eight shimmers and eight mattes that are pigmented and a joy to apply. Whilst on first appearance I was left thinking this was a little boring and bland compared to Palettes 2 and 3 I’ve been using this frequently and loving what I come up with. The shades are fabulous for the time of year and I’m keen to take on holiday and view in the sunshine. Shades of brown and rose golds make for a pleasing neutral eyeshadow look that you can deepen as you see fit. I am often overwhelmed when I open eyeshadow palettes and unsure where to start but this offering inspires confidence rather fear.

Paired with my Lorac Pro Palette has been Benefits Air Patrol which is a sample size I think I received through the post during one of their promotions. We all know that Benefit are renowned for their press packages bloggers receive but I have to say I'm more impressed that whenever new products are launched there are an abundance of samples available to try whether from counters, applying online or as freebies with magazines.

I'm picky with my eye primers and usually find I'm let down, but not by Benefit Air Patrol Eye Primer I'm pleased to say. Whilst I expect Lorac eyeshadows to stick around longer than most I have tried this with others in my collection and it's done it's job well. I'll be popping this small tube aside so it can accompany me on holiday next month. 

Without sounding like I’m hard to please and despite being a fan of La Roche Posay when their infamous Serozinc* finally launched into the UK I was bemused at what made fans practically swim the channel to get hold of a can. Essentially a facial mist toner, yet featuring Zinc Sulphate (the key ingredient) I found it didn’t do anything particularly amazing for me and it fell to the back of the drawer. As I work through my stash I pulled it out to show it a little love and it has ticked a box quite nicely.

Serozinc is part of the Effaclar range and is designed to target oily, blemish prone skin of which I don’t really have so is perhaps why it never set of any sparks for me. But one of its other qualities is that it can be used either as a toner or to mattify skin. This element is what has been working for me. I always claim my skin becomes oily in warmer months and that is true but it would seem the skincare I’m using at the moment is making it less so, Serozinc being one of those products.  

Whilst talking skincare it seems appropriate to mention another aimed at oily skin, Caudalie VinosourceMoisturising Sorbet*. Unlike Bronze Goddess this moisturiser is travel friendly in its pretty pink tube and I’ve been reaching for it daily. Whilst I like a lighter moisturiser in the Summer to avoid additional oiliness I still need to ensure my skin is hydrated and this is a moisturiser that ticks both boxes. 

Caudalie have a whole Vinosource range 'powered by the grape' and you'll see some sample tubes of the serum popping up in my empties post this month. Caudalie say that this cream will turn into a patch of water on contact with the skin and soothes, moisturises and strengthens. I'm not sure about the 'patch of water' claims but I can agree with the later. It is a gel-cream formula which is light enough at this time of year without compromising hydration. Skin looks fresh and dewy and I've found my foundations sit nicely on top and I look than I might feel.

I'm having a 'can't be bothered' with my nails moment since discovering a new nail salon had opened locally. Instead of giving myself at home manicures I've been enjoying the luxury of letting the professionals do their work. Unfortunately those professionals ticked me off about the state of my cuticles and how dry they are, which considering how much hand cream I apply throughout the day means I needed to give them some extra attention. Buried deep in a draw somewhere was OPI Avoplex Cuticle Oil to save the day. Luckily I had a couple of bottles so one sits in my bedside draw and another in my 'sofa beauty draw' so that I can tick the job off my list at least once a day. I really must find another to leave on my desk at work.

Finally the Beauty Blender, a product I've been scared of for so long but now I've finally faced my fear and used mine there is no going back. During multiple trips to the US I'd always bypassed the Beauty Blender. Despite the rave reviews I didn't think it was for me, wasn't sure how to use it and still had the voice in the back of my head telling me to 'put that cosmetic sponge down'.

Of course this beauty sponge is very different to the ones I remember and it applies foundation fabulously. As I put make up on in my bedroom I was concerned about the dampening element but I've been using my Pixi Hydration Mist for the job and it works perfectly. I feel somewhere between silly and a MUA pro as I bounce foundation into my skin but it's worth the effort. I was concerned that applying my foundation would take longer with the Beauty Blender, and admittedly it does take a little longer and not something I reach for if I'm in a rush but it's a matter of an extra couple of minutes.

Whilst I love the flawless finish of my foundation, concealer too blenders so nicely with the Beauty Blender. The only area I'm finding fiddly and I was to resort to blending rather than bouncing is around the jawline and down the neck as it feels unnatural but practice makes perfect. I've already talked to friends about how they must get one a Beauty Blender and if you've not tried one yet I think you should too!

What have you been enjoying recently?

*this post contains press samples and affiliate links

World Duty Free | #jetsetbeauty

Whilst talking about our holidays we will say it was the sun, great food and company that we enjoyed most I think secretly a lot of us beauty lovers are really thinking 'Duty Free Shopping'. There's something about airports that sees me taking leave of my senses and suddenly budgets don't apply and spending any of amount of money seems justifiable. And that's before you take into account the discounts.

I admit usually when shopping in Duty Free I tend to pick up products I'm familiar with. Last year for example I took the opportunity to replace my Chanel Les Beiges Healthy Glow Powder. Prior to that my Duty Free staples used to be Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Lip Protectant and the YSL Make Up Kit containing Touche Eclat and their mascara and a new perfume.

Following an event World Duty Free hosted last year I think it's time I start looking at their beauty exclusives a little more carefully. I was lucky enough to go home with two, the OPI Hawaii Mini Collection* and a YSL Lipstick Selction*.

OPI's Hawaii Mini Collection contains six perfectly sized bottles for travelling and the price, £16.35 is amazing value.  Each shade would compliment your tan with the blue shimmer, 'This Colours Making Waves' adding to any mermaid fantasies.

As for the YSL Lipsticks. Wow. They are admittedly my favourite. Two reds, one true one of the orange size and a bright pink we could easily rename this 'Victoria's Perfect Colour Match'. Each has accompanied me to Dubai and they are possibly the creamiest texture I have ever used not to mentioned the ultra luxe gold packaging.

Last weekends Duty Free shopping as I embarked for Dubai was rather rushed from a beauty perspective as priority was ensuring we arrived ready to stock up our mini bar but I did make a couple of quick purchases which I will share soon but I low when I have browsing time these exclusive collections will be what I'm looking out for.

Do you have a regular Duty Free purchases or are you a browser?