Bit of a Garnier Obsession

Today I'm back with a bang (metaphorically of course). Recently I've uncovered a new love for Garnier and have bought and tried using these three products.

• Garnier intensive 7 days hydrating lotion with L-Bifidus, for normal skin
• Garnier moisture match for combination to oily skin
• Garnier BB cream, miracle skin perfector 

So I thought I'd have a little chat to you about these little treasures and give three mini reviews of them.

So first of all is the intensive 7 days hydrating lotion with L-Bifidus (didn't have a clue what this was before today, it's a bacteria that acts as a moisture shield). This new garnier product claims to leave skin feeling hydrated for up to 7 days. I have to say, so far I really agree with this statement! I applied this a few days ago after exfoliating my legs and they still feel incredibly soft. Also, it has aloe vera in it, which is one of the main reasons I bought it. I was looking for some after sun but they seem to be quite a bit more expensive, and since aloe vera is cooling and an ingredient in after sun anyway, I thought I'd give this a go. I'll update you on whether this works as after sun when I get back from my holiday. I have fairly normal skin when it comes to my body (not my face) and this is really well tailored to my skin and gives the perfect amount of moisture without leaving skin greasy. Finally, it claims to be fast absorbing and I also agree with this claim- it leaves that feeling of hydration yet isn't sticky which is a problem I have with body creams from brands like soap and glory.

The next garnier product is the garnier moisture match for combination to oily skin. I apply this in the morning after cleansing and toning, before my make up, and also after taking my make up off at night before bed. Most moisturisers are usually advised to be used just once a day, but using this twice daily really works for me. I'm one of those unlucky people who have quite an oily t-zone but fortunately the rest of my skin is fairly normal. I'm so pleased with this moisturiser as it gives my face the moisture it needs to still look and feel healthy but it mattifies the oiliness which is especially appreciated in these warmer days we're having at the moment. It's a very light but at the same time creamy texture and really feels like it cools my skin and doesn't leave it feeling weighed down and clogged up. So I'd definitely recommend this product for people with oily- combination skin.

The third and final garnier product I want to talk about is one I've bought rather recently. I bought this last Monday when I found out that the warmth was set to continue here for a while. I didn't want to have that heavy foundation feeling all the time when it was humid and sweaty (yum). I'd read a lot about BB creams and took the plunge with this one, mainly because it was on offer in boots for around £2/ £3 off and I had some points to spend on my advantage card. I bought it in the shade 'light' and it matches my skin brilliantly. It claims to be '1 product' with '5 solutions', saying that it 'evens skin tone and boosts glow, blurs imperfections, smooths fine lines, 24hr hydration and SPF 15.' I buff it into my skin with my real techniques expert face brush and it really does even my skin tone but doesn't cake my face in make up, meaning I still feel confident that my face looks more presentable but my skin can breathe more in the warmth. I wouldn't say that it boosts glow very noticeably, but it doesn't mattify your skin as much as a regular foundation. I like that it has SPF as my skin is easily damaged by the sun and it saves me having to put suncream on my face (I hate the stickiness of suncream). I wouldn' be able to say that it gives 24hr hydration either, as I don't tend to keep my make up on for 24 hours (and I hope nobody does!). It definitely does blur the imperfections that I have slightly, but concealer is still needed to just provide that extra bit of coverage so that I fee comfortable enough! 

The BB cream on my skin yesterday.. a very warm day indeed!

Ok.. so those reviews weren't as short as I thought they'd be! Apologies if it was a bit too rambly for you, but I hope somebody has found something in this helpful. Garnier now feels like a brand I trust and I'll definitely be having a nose around some more of their products soon.

Thanks for reading and have a lovely day whatever you're up to :)

Charlie x

My Foundation Routine

Hello there fellow humans! Today's post is being written while sitting outside on a lovely cool evening. I'm snuggled up in a hoodie, watching my Grandparents play a card game with my Dad and feel very refreshed and relaxed. I thought I'd share my foundation routine with you today- basically an insight into how I apply my foundation, what I use and maybe opinions of the things I use.. I'll see where it goes. Word of warning.. I pull odd faces in 'selfies'.

Here are the products I use: Rimmel match perfection foundation in 'true ivory', Real Techniques expert face brush and Collection lasting perfection concealer in 'fair.'

So first I take my fringe off my face with a trusty primark hairband and look unimpressed about how my face looks without make up on. Yum!

 I put two pumps of my foundation onto the back of my hand and dot it around my face. I don't really put much on my forehead because of my fringe.

 I use the expert face brush (review to come on this) and use circular motions to blend the foundation into my skin. The circular motions ensure that they're aren't any brush marks left, but the brush is brilliant quality anyway so I doubt it would cause this anyway.
In the picture on the right, I have half of my face blended and half not, just so you could see what this foundation actually does for my skin. I'd say it's medium converage, as it takes away redness and evens out my skin tone but doesn't cake my face in foundation and still shows some of my freckles. Saying that, it's definitely buildable and I don't think I use very much anyway.

On the left is a photo of the foundation all blended in. I then put my lasting perfection concealer under my eyes, around my nose and on any blemishes (I have a few of them at the moment). I then use the expert face brush again to blend in the concealer. I lightly dab it into the skin with the brush and then use circular motions again to make sure it's evenly covering all the areas I've put it on. I sometimes use a finger to blend it in under my eyes as well, especially for right in the corners.

So there you have it!
I had to return into the house halfway through writing this as it got a bit chilly... damn english weather.
The picture at the start shows my finished foundation/ base on my face (rhyming entertains me so easily).

Thanks for reading and have a lovely day whatever you're up to :)

Charlie x

Review- Barry M Gelly Polish

Since I've missed a couple of days in putting up blog posts, I thought since this was already pretty much written I would finish writing it and put it up now. It's help minimise my guilt in myself for missing a couple of days!

 

Recently, I've heard so much praise and hype surrounding the Barry M Gelly Hi-Shine nail polishes. I decided to buy one about a month ago and thought I'd share my views with you now.

First Impressions

The colour I decided to buy was 'Greenberry' which is a very vibrant, quite neon, green turquoise colour. This bright colour really grabbed my attention as I hadn't seen a colour quite like it before and I thought would be perfect for summer, particularly as there seems to be a popular neon trend at the moment.

Despite how silly it might sound, I really like the bottle. The mirrored lid makes it stand out from the other Barry M nail paints and looks quite classy.

'Hi- Shine' Claim

So Barry M claim that this range of nail polishes have a 'hi-shine' and gelly finish. In my opinion, this isn't the case. By itself, it gave pretty much the same shine as a regular Barry M nail paint- it wasn't dull, but there wasn't a noticeable difference in the amount of shine it gave compared to the standard Barry M polishes. When I applied a topcoat (there is a topcoat on in the picture on the right) I saw the amount of shine I was expecting to get from just the gelly polish alone. So this claim really disappointed me.

How did it last?

When I took this picture, it had been around 5 days of having the polish on and to be honest, it had just started to chip at the edges of the nails on the hand that wasn't show in the picture. This didn't seen too irregular for me for a Barry M nail polish, but I wish it would've lasted a bit longer as it may have redeemed itself in my opinions of it.

The Price

At £3.99, a pound more expensive than the regular Barry M nail paints, I don't think the extra pound is worth it to be frank. It doesn't live up to it's claim so I don't see why I would want to spend an extra pound on something that it doesn't actually do.

Overall, I'm not a happy bunny. I don't think I'll be buying anymore of these anytime soon. I'll probably come back to them at some point in the future to try them again to see if my opinion has changed but for now I'm rather disappointed. Barry M, I am not impressed!

Sorry this is such a negative post, but I thought my honest opinion may be helpful to some people who are on the fence about whether to buy this or not. Of course this is just based on my experiences of using it so others' opinions will definitely vary.

Thanks for reading and have a lovely day whatever you're up to :)

Charlie x

(Disclaimer: all reviews are my personal opinion)

Everyday Makeup Products

Today fellow humans I thought I would share with you the products I use pretty much everyday, meaning they're also the products I love and trust. These products give me a very relaxed, natural look which is usually what I prefer to look like unless I'm going somewhere particularly special.

Foundation

After cleansing and toning, I moisturise my face and neck. I've just started trying the Garnier moisture match for combination to oily skin (I may do a review of this once I've used it a bit more as I know I was quite indecisive about getting this).

I then put about two pumps of my Rimmel match perfection foundation (I'm in the shade 'true ivory') onto the back of my hand, dot it around my face and then blend in with the Real techniques expert face brush (I'm also going to review this, particularly for my friend Ellie as we have such long discussions about real techniques!).

Concealer and Blusher

Next, I use collection's lasting perfection concealer under my eyes, around my nose and on any blemishes. I'm sure this has to be the most popular concealer with bloggers and youtubers and rightly so; it convers spots brilliantly and really reduces the bit of darkness under my eyes. I also find it quite mattifying which I like as I have quite oily skin.

I then use my Laura Geller baked powder brush (I'd never heard of this brand until my Grandma gave me this brush) and I dust some Rimmel match perfection blusher (mine's in the shade medium) onto the apples of my cheeks and up my cheekbones. I love this blusher as you can blend the three shades in the pan to get a colour that suits you best.

Powder

To make sure my make up stays for as long as possible, I use Rimmel's stay matte powder in the shade 'transparent' (can you tell I rather love rimmel!). This powder is perfect as it doesn't look cakey, it just gets rid of shine and holds my make up in place.To apply my powder I use the elf powder brush. To be honest, this brush isn't much to write home about. It's not especially soft and doesn't wash very well but it does the job. I'm only using this still because I'm hoping to buy the real techniques powder brush soon.

Eyes

I often change my mascara as I can never seem to find one that volumises and lengthens my lashes. But a number of youtubers recommended the Maybelline rocket volume mascara and it has to be the best mascara I've found so far. I find it's quite verstaile and buildable, so I don't have to have a separate mascara for when I want a more dramatic eye more the evening. The eyeliner I use is the rimmel scandal eyes waterproof kohl pencil in black. I run this across about half way across my water line to just give my eyes a bit more definition but not close them up completely with loads of eyeliner!

Lips

This is the most simple stage for me in my everyday routine. I put on a bit of Nivea lip butter to soften my lips and then a bit of rose and almond oil vaseline to add a bit of colour, as the lip butter is rather pale and makes me look a bit ill if I wear it by itself.

I do apologise because I never know what to do with my face for pictures! I love knowing what everyone uses on a day to day basis so always read blog posts like this.

Thanks for reading and have a lovely day whatever you're up to :)

Charlie x