Review | L'Oreal Skin Perfection Correction Day Moisturiser

Today's the second instalment of my L'Oreal Skin Perfection review(s). Today I'm sharing my thoughts on the Correction Day Moisturiser.

Information

Brand | L'Oreal Paris
Product | Skin Perfection Correcting Day Moisturiser
Size | 50ml
Price | £14.99 (but I paid £9.99 on offer)
Purchased from | Boots
Made in | Germany
Would I re-purchase | No

Ingredients |

AQUA / WATER, DIMETHICONE, GLYCERIN, ISOPROPYL ISOSTEARATE, PENTAERYTHRITYL TETRAETHYLHEXANOATE, OCTYLDODECANOL, CETYL, ALCOHOL, SILICA, BEHENYL ALCOHOL, TALC, PTFE, POLYETHYLENE, EPERUA FALCATA BARK EXTRACT, PEG-100 STEARATE, STEARIC ACID, STEARYL ALCOHOL, CARBOMER, ARACHIDYL ALCOHOL, DIMETHICONE/VINYL DIMETHICONE CROSSPOLYMER, CETEARYL ALCOHOL, CETEARYL, GLUCOSIDE, SODIUM HYALURONATE, SODIUM HYDROXIDE, PALMITIC ACID, ADENOSINE, POLOXAMER 338 AMMONIUM, POLYACRYLDIMETHYLTAURAMIDE / AMMONIUM, POLYACRYLOYLDIMETHYL TAURATE, DISODIUM EDTA, CAPRYLOYL SALICYLIC ACID, CAPRYLYL GLYCOL, LENS ESCULENTA SEED EXTRACT / LENTIL SEED EXTRACT, DEXTRIN, PHENOXYETHANOL, CI 16035 / RED 40, CI 17200 / RED 33, LINALOOL, ALPHA-ISOMETHYL IONONE, LIMONENE, CITRAL, CITRONELLOL, PARFUM / FRAGRANCE

'In your 20's and 30's your skin is still young but not always perfect.

Stress, fatigue and an unbalanced lifestyle can affect skin quality causing irregularities to appear: imperfections, enlarged pores and an uneven skin texture.

New Skin Perfection Day Moisturiser helps transform the appearance of skin quality, as if perfected.Pores look virtually undetectable, tone looks more even, skin texture feels silky-soft.The silky-smooth cream locks in moisture for up to 24 hours of hydration.'

The moisturiser itself comes in a pretty hefty glass tub with the same ombre effect glass colouring as the serum and a metallic pink screw top lid. The product is tinted a pale pink colour with a soft perfumey fragrance and has a relatively thick consistency. It absorbs nicely into the skin leaving it with the same cool feeling as the Skin Perfection Serum, skins left soft and smooth to the touch. Although it has a thicker consistency it doesn't feel heavey on the skin or greasy, and has an ever so slight mattifying effect, which doesn't last overly long. 
Hydration wise this leaves my skin feeling pretty happy all day long and I haven't found it to really add to my oily skin problems.
I feel like in using this and the serum has helped reduce the appearance of my pores, and makes a nice makeup base. 
Although I've had good results with both products I won't be re-purchasing them. Now I'm over my traumatic rebellion from my no-poo experiment, I feel I want to re-discover more natural products again. I feel like I've been bit of a yo-yo in my skincare/haircare interest and morals for the last god know's how long, so I do appologise for the mental whiplash! But I do hope you've enjoyed the review and stay tuned for my next post!

Jeni xo

Review | L'Oreal Skin Perfection Advanced Correcting Serum

Hey everybody today I bring to you the first half of the L'Oreal Skin Perfection review. I picked this serum up back in January with my Boots Advantage points along with the correlating moisturiser and thought I'd do two separate reviews on each, starting with the serum.

Information |

Brand | L'Oreal Paris
Product | Skin Perfection Advanced Correcting Serum
Size | 30ml
Price | £16.99 (but I think I paid £11 with points)
Purchased from | Boots
Made in | Germany
Would I repurchase | undecided

Ingredients |

ALCOHOL DENAT., AQUA / WATER, PARFUM / FRAGRANCE, BENZYL SALICYLATE, BENZYL ALCOHOL, LINALOOL, ETHYLHEXYL METHOXYCINNAMATE, DROMETRIZOLE TRISILOXANE, BUTYL METHOXYDIBENZOYLMETHANE, ETHYLHEXYL SALICYLATE, BHT, COUMARIN, BENZYL BENZOATE, GERANIOL, CITRONELLOL, LIMONENE, CI 17200 / RED 33, CI 19140 / YELLOW 5

'Refines skin texture, tightens pores, evens and brightens skin tone'

'LR 2412 + Perline-P'

This particular serum is targeted at women aged in their 20's and 30's, when our skin is still young but not as perfect and elastic as it was in our teens. Its meant to help relieve the signs of stress, fatigue and an unbalanced lifestyle. (I contest to all of these things!)

The serum comes in a glass bottle with a pink obre glass effect and a hot pink plastic pump dispenser and plastic cap. It only has a very faint scent that is barely there, its a subtle perfumey scent. The serum itself is white in colour with a faint iridescent shimmer. It has quite a slippery texture and smooths in to the skin leaving behind a nice cooling effect. Since I've been using this, day and night, I have to say I have actually seen results and I'm pleasantly surprised. I'm always dubious about anything with big claims. The overall look and quality of my skin has improved. Although pores do not tighten I've found they look less noticeable and I'm some who has very large pores.

Although this has work really rather well for me I'm unsure if I would repurchase another one, as this is 100%  a chemical cocktail. I bought this right after I quit no-poo and was having a bit of a crisis (am I the only one like that?), I would like to get back on track with my natural skincare but that will have to wait till I've used this all up, along with the moisturiser.

But in a nutshell I have enjoyed using it and I'm glad that I can give it a positive review! Hope you have found this helpful!

Jeni xo

Battle of the Brands| Save-VS-Splurge Mascara Edition

Ever wondered whether its worth buying a mascara that's worth a bit more money over one that's just a couple of quid? Well I decided to take 2 of my mascara's and have them battle in out to see what one was better.

Our Contenders

Save
Brand| Natural Collection Lash Length
Price| £1.99
Colour| Black
Purchased at| Boots

Splurge
Brand| L'Oreal Volume Million Lashes
Price| £10.99
Colour| Extra Black
Purchased at| Superdrug

So between the two there is a £9 difference, and I know that £10.99 isn't a massive splurge but I think of L'Oreal as one of the 'premium' drug store brands, and to some people it is kind of a splurge.

So to make my test fair I curled my lashes twice before application using the same lash curler and applied my mascara in the same way - wiggles and rolls and sweeps - and applied the same number of coats - 2.

The lash curler I use is a super cheapo £1 jobby from ASDA and its amazing.

The brushes are very different. The Lash Length spoolie is tapered and what I think of as the more traditional brush type, and the Volume Million Lashes spoolie is a bit fatter and made with plastic brush bristles, great for combing through lashes.

For such a cheap budget mascara I think the Natural Collection Lash Length is AMAZING. It gives my lashes great curl, length and volume, and does a real good job of separating them, although the end result isn't necessarily smooth looking. 

I made sure that after 8 hours of wear to check back with both mascaras to see if they had kept their curl by taking a little photo and comparing, and I'm pleased to report there was no drooping or loss of curl or volume for 8+ hours with this mascara. (sorry I don't have the photo's)

The L'Oreal Volume Million Lashes, again has great curl, length and volume with nice lash separation. The mascara is a little darker and a finer quality, not having any little clumps or fuzziness on the lashes creating a nice smooth lash finish. When you compare the 2 images you may see what I mean. But I'd say over all they a near on par, sort of, and again this mascara lasted 8+ hours without wilting. 

Granted I have done my little experiment in the cooler months and the out come may be different if it was much warmer and humid, so maybe we should take that in to account.

At the end of this experiment/battle-of-brands I think I'm far more likely to re-purchase the Natural Collection mascara simply for the fact I can buy 5 of them for the price of 1 of the Volume Million Lashes and the overall end result is its a pretty similar and in general life no one stops to really stare at your eye lashes. 

Give this little experiment ago if you can because you may find your presently surprised, that sometimes you could be paying more for something that essentially something cheaper can do the same! But then again it could be a flop!

Hope this helped!

Jeni x

Simple Valentines Day Look

With Valentines Day lurking around the corner I thought it would be kinda nice to do a little hair and make-up look for the day. So far I think my boyfriend's plan for the day is to go out in the stormy, windy, rainy weather that's creating all kinds of devastation across the south-east of England at the moment, and I quote, 'test our waterproofs out'. Super romantic, I know. But its time spent together, plus I get a Domino's pizza at the end of the day!

The make-up look is super easy and very natural looking perfect if your like me and don't like anything too over the top and the hair is cute and girly.

So lets start with the list of make-up I used to achieve the look:

For starters I primed my face with my MUA Matte Perfect Primer to give an even complexion. Then I used my Avon Ideal Flawless Foundation, all over my face. For a cheeky burst of colour I applied my MUA blusher in Bubble Gum to the apples of my cheeks, then swept a little highlighter across the top of my cheeks, I used the MUA Undress Your Skin Shimmer Highlighter. (I bought a few new MUA products so I've been trying them out!) Using my Maybelline New York Brow Pencil and Brow Drama Brow Mascara I filled in my brows to help frame my face. Next up is the eyes....

MUA Glamour Days Eye Shadow Pallette

Click the photo to enlarge for a better image.

Taking shadow 1 a pale gold colour, I applied this all over my lid just using my ring finger(1). Next up I used shadow 2 a slightly darker gold colour, I applied this from the center of my eye, out (2) Again just using my finger. Final shadow 3, a pretty pink colour, I applied this to the outer corner of the eye (3). All 3 of these colours are fairly shimmery so they make the eye appear bright. After applying my shadows I used my MUA Waterproof Liquid Liner to draw a thin-ish line along my eye with a gentle flick at the end(4). Then a quick slick of L'Oreal's Lash Millions Mascara in Ultra Black(5) and I'm almost done! The Finishing touch is highlighting my brow. With such shimmery shadows my brows needed a little lift and to do this I used my NXY Jumbo Eye Pencil in Cottage Cheese to draw a line under my brow and over(6), then blend it out with my ring finger (7).

Lastly I used a combination of Revlon Colour Burst Lip Butter in Strawberry Shortcake and L'Oreal Caresse in Rose Mademoiselle to create a subdued pink pout.

My hair style is simple but effective looking. Start by dividing hair into a deep side part and continue it down to the nape of the neck so you have 2 sections. Clip the biggest section to the side out the way. Then dutch braid in a diagonal line towards the back of your head and tie off. To create some girly dimension to my hair I used my Babyliss Curling wand to create some deep curls to the hair that I had left. Sweeping all hair to one side (the side we curled) pull the braid through so it rest next to your neck. Pull out the hair elastic and get a grip on your 3 strands of braid. Add a little section of hair (from the curled hair) to the strand furthest from your face, then braid once. Then add another little section of hair, to the same side and braid again. Continue this till you are almost fully down your hair, then braid normally and tie off. So we only added hair to one side of the braid, this is called a lace braid. I'll do a post of different braids in the future so you'll get to know what I'm taking about in my hair posts. So if these instructions were confusing, (which I assume they were!) click HERE to see the video where I learnt how to do this :) 

The completed look. Natural looking and girly. And yes I burnt my neck with my wand.

I hope you enjoyed this post, let me know if you try the look out! And remember you don't have to have a partner to feel special on Valentines Day. Have a day to pamper yourself and relax. Self Love is the most important Love of all :)

Jeni x

Review | L'Oreal Triple Active Anti Shine Day Cream

Happy Happy Monday!

Today I'm going to share my thoughts on the L'Oreal Triple Active Anti-shine Day Cream

Information

Brand| L'Oreal Paris

Price| £6.49

Size| 50ml glass jar

Purchased at| Superdrug

Would I re-purchase| Yes

 The product has lasted me about 3 months and probably has at least another 2 weeks worth of product left, which isn't bad. I find face cream last me a long time in general. 

It says to use both morning and evening but at night I'm not worried about keeping my skin matte so I only use this in the morning, though perhaps using it both morning and evening would produce better results.

I don't overly love that you have to dip your fingers in the product to use it, its not overly sanitary and I find I end up with horrid bits of fluff hiding out in my cream, which I then have to pluck out. But on the plus side you do get use use up 100% of the product. 

It is a very light cream, with a citrusy fresh scent that I find appealing. On first application skin is appears mattified and looks oil free. The cream contains Perlite - which is amorphous volcanic glass? Say what?! And Salicylic Acid - which is used in lots of skin care but can be a bit hit and miss for some as it can clog pores.

Now I have pretty oily skin so when I picked this up I was hoping it would really work. I've tried several different mattifying moisturisers over the years, including a Clinique one which I was very disappointed with. However the Triple Active has worked pretty well. 

It keeps my cheeks fairly matte all day long, but on the flip side, my forehead is still incredibly oily. 

Another thing that I have noticed is that it doesn't form a barrier from the additional oils/moisture from my foundation (depending on what one I use). So dependenet on which foundation I use will dertermin how matte my skin will stay throughout the day. For example when I use my B. Naked foundation my oiliness is kept mostly at bay, but if I wear my Avon Flawless foundation, because its a very dewy formula my oil levels are, well oily. (Review still to come)

It really is an experimental game when looking for a moisturiser that will keep the skin matte.

Overall I do really like this moisturiser and will purchase it again in the future. And if your skin is like mine its definatley worth a go, but take in to consideration what foundation your using.

Hope this was helpful!

Jeni x

Autumn Favourites

Hi Guys!

As its now officially winter..I think, I thought it time to do a Autumn Favourites post.

Autumns such a pretty time of year the leaves turn such a lovely colour and we get to wrap up toasty warm in our winter wooleys and drink copious amounts of tea and hot chocolate.

Anyway on to my favourite items/products of the season.

 

First up is my favourite Autumn/Winter perfume Armani Code.

I have been wearing this for years. Ever since I smelt it in a magazine and fell in love.

Then purchased it on a boat coming home from a school trip visiting the Somme I believe.

To me its such a warm and intense scent perfect for the cooler weather.

Next up is my Real Techniques Miracle Complexion Sponge and my Avon Ideal Flawless Foundation.

I have a review post of the foundation in the pipe line, but lets just say I'm loving it!

I'm a total book worm and these 2 have been instant favourites.

Stephen King's Carrie - Just OMG was amazing!I really hope I get to see the new film!

&

Kiera Cass's The Elite - Which is the second book in The Selection series. Its a dystopian fantasy which I love.

Collection's Gothic Glam Lipstick in no.3 Revenge.

A great dark burgundy colour which I have been loving.

L'Oreal Caress Lipstick in no.202 Impulsive Fuchsia.

This has been my go to lip colour all season. Its bright and fun! Great for when I'm not feeling the dark lip!

Quick swatch of the 2.

Samantha Rose Flutter Ear-rings.

I bought these at the Desire Jewellery & Silver Smithing show back at the beginning of November and I love them so much!

And Sam just happens to be a friend!

She's very talented!

CLICK! CLICK! CLICK!

And Finally..

L'Oreal's Age Perfect Refeshing Toner.

My skin was looking really horrid and tired with the cold weather change so I picked up the toner hoping it may refresh my skin and make it happy. It really is a great toner, it has quite a fresh almost citrus scent and makes my skin feel so soft, moisturised and happy.

 It maybe For Mature Skin but who cares.

Palmer's Cocoa Butter Night Renewal Cream.

Such a lovely thick cream and feels so nice and cool to put on. My skin always feels soft in the morning.

I'm not crazy about the scent though.

So these are my Autumn Favourites.

I hope you enjoyed.

Tell me what have been your favourite things of the past season? 

& 

A quick note, I got myself a Twitter account a few weeks ago, so if your interested come follow me!

@ElfsBeauty

Jeni x

A Lovely Surprise!

Hello Happy Bunnies!

Yesterday I got a lovely surprise! 

One of the very lovely ladies at work bought in a bag of left over/extra un-opened/un-used makeup testers. (Her husband supplies them to shops & so on, & they quite often get lots left over to take home!)

And so said very lovely lady said to me:

 "Hey Jeni, you like make up would you like to take some of these home with you!"

Well my little face lit up and I was a bit "OMG really!" 

Anywho...I picked out 2 lip glosses & 2 lipsticks all by L'Oreal a brand I haven't actually used before Shock/Horror!

I genuinely could not stop saying thank you, and she kept telling me I could take more! If I hadn't controlled myself the bag would have come home with me! 

So here are the amazing lippie's that I picked out :)

They are sooo pretty :)

I have 2 of the L'Oreal Rough Caresse Lipsticks worth £7.99

And...

2 of the Glam Shine 6hr wear Lipglosses worth £8.69

I have never had such beautiful looking lipsticks or lipglosses. I love the packaging - so classy :)

All 4 colours are beautiful! I wore the lipstick 202 Impulsive Fuchsia today such a pretty bright colour! Oh my gosh! 

Time for a quick review!

Lipsticks

Both colours are really pretty on, and glide on smoothly and feel like a lip-balm. I would say I had about 45min-1hr's wear before I felt my lips beginning to dry and a need of lip-balm to moisten. The colour lasts a long time even through eating and drinking although your left with more of a tinted-stain than a full blown lip colour - which is still really nice. Given a chance to buy these I totally would!

202 Impulsive Fuchsia 

4 Rose Mademoiselle

The colours in the flesh are a tad more punchy and vibrant.

Lipgloss

Again both colours are beautiful! I love the heart shaped soft applicator that bends gently as you gloss up. The colours are a bit more muted than the lipsticks. And as with all lip gloss they are a little sticky but not as much as some of the cheaper brands. Last night I wore 118 Fresh Cassis out to the cinema with my boyfriend and it lasted well through popcorn, coke & kisses (aww-hehe). Once the gloss wore away I was left with a very subtle tint. Again I love these lip-glosses and would totally buy them!

118 Fresh Cassis

102 Always Pink

 Both colours a bit my alive in the flesh!

 camera + bright sun light = colour bleaching!

So I feel like a very lucky girl to of been given the chance to pick out and try some new goodies!

& 

A really big thank you again to the very lovely lady at work who let me and the other girls pick out some pretty treats!

I hope you enjoyed!

Have a lovely day|evening|night where ever you are!

I'm off to get ready for bed!

Jeni x