Vichy Cleansing and my daily routine!

Vichy recently launched some new cleansers into their Purete Thermale range which are Purete Thermale Fresh cleansing gel and the rather intriguing sounding Beautifying Cleansing micellar oil. What I have found with Vichy over the last year is that they do seem to have a skincare range for almost every skin type which is amazing and as my skin is classed as oily/combination plus a touch on the dehydrated side then these cleanser should work exceptionally well.

These cleansers have been designed to work on the most sensitive of skins and provide optimum skin comfort. As always with any Vichy skincare these are made with Vichy thermal spa water and is hypo-allergenic, paraben-free and dermatologically tested.

The Fresh Cleansing Gel (RRP £12) is the perfect for that morning shower face wash. It's so light and re-freshing and cleansing the skin very gently to remove any excess sebum production and grime that may have gathered on the skin as you slept. Described as being "The perfect partner for city living, this lightweight gel cleanses deeply and protects cells against pollutants. The foam feels so fresh on the skin, leaving it pampered, clarified and extremely soft". 

The ingredients used are the expert anti-pollution complex Purisoft, which is composed of Amilite Technology to soften the effect of hard water, Glycerin to moisturise, and Moringa to cleanse dust, excess sebum and pollution from the skin. So, when it is used, it does foam lightly as you massage it on the skin and it has a really clean fresh scent which isn't too overpowering. After showering my skin feels really clean, soft and smooth.

For the evening, I have been using The Beautifying Cleansing Micellar Oil (RRP £13.75) as the first part of my double cleansing routine. This is described as being a "Lightweight, effective and non-greasy, this luxurious oil ensures pleasurable make-up removal. Both oily and dry skin types will benefit from its clarifying care as it won’t overload the skin, instead transforming from an oil to a milk on contact with water". 

Within the formula there are 'Micelles' which help to gently remove waterproof make-up, impurities, sebum excess and dead cells with no need for rubbing for the skin. Once the oil comes into contact with water, it turns to a milky formula which you then wash off. I always apply this onto my dry skin and wash off using a warm cloth. The use of Camelia Oil helps to moisturise and smooth skin, while Vitamin E provides antioxidant protection.

I adore both of these products from Vichy and considering I am not a fan of Micellar waters generally, the oil is so nice to use and leaves my skin feeling lovely and soft.

What do you use as your morning and evening cleansers at the moment?

Brand New Products from Vichy

Vichy is quite a phenomenal brand with products cleverly created for every skin issue you can think of. Last week I was really lucky to be invited along to see some new products in action, have a play with some existing products and ask as many questions as I could possibly think of to the experts, which was simply brilliant.

Most of you will have heard of (and love) the Idealia range. Well those clever people at Vichy have now created Skin Sleep which has been described as being a recovery night gel-balm. Following on from a lot of research, Skin Sleep is the first night product clinically proven to stimulate all the skins deep sleep mechanisms, to ensure that no matter how many hours sleep you have, the skins nightly functions will remain at their optimum. 

Skin Sleep is a Gel like balm which feels quite an odd to the touch at first, but you get used to it. It smells divine and the tub within which it sits has a really funky design making it quite easy to grab hold of. Once applied to cleansed skin, it is quite cooling and almost instantly absorbs itself.  Since using it, I have found that my skin loves this product, it leaves my skin feeling moisturised and hydrated.

Dermablend Fluid Corrective Foundation is now available in three new shades, giving a total of 8. Shade 05 Porcelain, 65 Coffee and 85 Espresso have been added to the range to try and give more colour options. I was matched with Shade 05 which is the lightest shade and it has an impressive SPF35 and is said to last on the skin for around 16 hours. 

The Dermablend Corrective Fluid Foundation offers a range of camouflage coverage product for irregular skin tone, redness, minor acne scars, enlarged pores, dark circles and pigmentation disorders.  Having been matched to the new shade 05, I was really looking forward to giving it a try.

I am told you can use this with fingers or a brush, but as someone who likes my brushes, i've been using my foundation brush to apply and I think it is fabulous. It is lightweight on the skin, it covers redness and conceals dark circles really well and it blends magnificently with little or no effort required. If, like me, you like to look as though there is a minimal amount of coverage on your face, this Dermablend Corrective Fluid might well be something to look into.

Have you tried any Vichy products?

You Beauty Discovery Box - July Edition

It's that time of the month for another You Beauty Discovery Box and if you read my blog regularly, you will know that I am a huge fan of this box and think it is one of the best out there. For July, the box is centered about Travel and giving some new products a chance.

This month we have three extra treats which I always look forward to, even though I always know what they will be. July's treats are extra amazing with a 50ml St Tropez Gradual Tan In Shower which has been everywhere at the moment and having tried it for the last week (you can read my review HERE), it is brilliant and I am chuffed to have another tube. You also receive a £2 off voucher for this tan from Boots. 

I also got a sample of the Emma Hardie Protect & Prime SPF 30 which is a skin protecting cream with added primer for a soft focus luminous complexion. I am quite looking forward to giving this a try as I am yet to try any products from the Emma Hardie range and so many people rave about them.

The final treat in the box was a packet of Muesli Breaks Oatcakes by Nairns which ive eaten and quite liked, they are great for on the go when you have forgotten to have breakfast or prefer ten more minutes in bed.

The hardest part of this box is choosing two items to try and I always attempt to try something I have either never tried, want to try or have tried and loved. So the two duo's that I have chosen are the Vichy Purete Thermale 3 in 1 & Idealia Life Serum Duo. I have previously tried some Vichy Skincare and really liked them, so I decided to give these ones a try. had to pick these items. 

The Vichy Thermale 3 in 1 cleanses, tones & removes eye makeup all in one! You then, once cleansed, apply the Idealia Life Serum to help improve dull looking skin and give an instantly glowing and fresh looking complexion.

The final items in my box are a duo from Philip Kinglsey, whom most will recognise from the Elasticizer. Well this time, I have the Moisture Balancing Shampoo and Conditioner. They are said to gently cleanse and balance the different needs of the hair, providing more moisture at drier ends, without weighing down the roots. Together they transform dry and damaged hair into super smooth, shiny locks, leaving hair healthy and beautiful.

So there you have it, my £6.95 box of goodies for July from You Beauty Discovery. What do you think to my contents?

Karen Millen September Glossybox

As soon as I saw a spoiler for this months Glossybox, I wanted it, just for the box alone.  For me it is the best designed Glossybox that I have ever had, it is simply stunning.

Aside from the fabulous box, there was a few spoilers as to what we might find inside and ive seen a few posts from other Bloggers who all have the one item I hoped for, but didn't get... that said, this is what I got!

ModelCo More Brows fibre Gel -  I got light medium which I might get away with, we will see. This is a full sized item and it does have an RRP £14.95 for 3.5ml.  The enclosed card states that this innovative brush-on gel gives the appearance of fuller, thicker brows instantly.

L'Oreal Professional Mythic Masque - This masque is designed to intensely nourish and replenish the hair, for an effortlessly glossy-looking result.  This masque is to be applied to towel dried hair and left for 3 minutes before rinising.  A full sized 200ml tub has an RRP £15.50, this tub is 75ml.

Nails Inc Westminster Bridge Matte Top Coat - This matte effect top coat gives you two very different looks for everyone of your nail polishes.  This is a full sized 10ml bottle and has an RRP £12

Vichy Normaderm Night Detox & Hydrating Care 3ml samples are said to help target adult blemishes, leave your complexion radiant and balance excess sebum.  NOw I am a big fan of Vichy and I am looking forward to trying both samples.

The final product within this box are three sachets.  Skinpep Brightening Enzyme and Acid Peel which uses pineapple and papaya extracts to gently exfoliate, soft and bright skin.  A 3.5ml sachet which I have two of has an RRP £3.05.  Then there is the SkinPep Dark Circle Eraser and boy am I in need of this right now, I look like a walking zombie!  said to use anti-oxident ingredients to boost collagen in the delicate undereye area.  What shocked me is this 2ml sachet has an RRP £6.49 - wow!  I cannot wait to try it.

Also in the box was a gift card to save £25 on any spend of £150 in store during September.  If anyone is and wants my card, please let me know.

Now I like the box this month, I will use every product within the box, which is not something I often say.  That said, I had hoped to get the Origins Plantscription Serum as I have been wanting to try it since I read about it.

What do you think to this box? Anything that grabs your attention?

Vichy Idealia Smoothing and Illuminating Cream!

Vichy is not a company whose products I had used many of, infact until I got my hands on this Idealia Smoothing and Illuminating Cream it is fair to say they were not a brand on my radar, since then I've been been to a Blogger Event which introduced me to Dermablend, but that's a whole new post.

The Idealia cream came into my life via the BBBBox which I was lucky enough to get my hands on and then I have had quite a few samples from a Glossybox which you can see HERE.  What I love about this particular product is the cuteness of the tub, it is so small and dinky, yet perfect for travelling and having in your bag should you want too.

What Vichy say: "Vichy Idealia Smoothing & Illuminating Cream visibly smoothes the appearance of wrinkles, and leaves skin's texture refined, and softer. It re-awakens the skin's natural radiance for a fresh, and even complexion".

First things first, this cream smells amazing, infact it is more like a soufflé than a cream because it is just so soft to the touch not mention that it is pink, is there anything else you want from a cream? As soon as you apply it to your skin it most definitely does leave your skin feeling so much smoother and it does instantly brighten the skin, giving that a fresh faced glow look. It also illuminates the skin and I tend to apply it underneath my foundation because it not only makes for a much easier and smoother application, but you can also the glow comes through giving an instant sheen in the skin.

This is my second 15ml pot and it really does last a good 4-6 weeks of using it everyday and it is most definitely one that I would consider purchasing once I have used up my current cream and I would quite happily make my way through the rest of the range, knowing how good this cream is.

Vichy Idealia is available for dry skin and normal/combination skin, it contains fortifying Vichy Thermal Spa Water. It is Paraben-free and suitable for sensitive skin and it costs between £14-£22 online.

Have you tried anything from this range? Is there anything you would really recommend?

BBBBox 2 - What Was In My Box?

I was unlucky not to get my hands on the first BBBox which Jane, the lovely lady behing the British Beauty Blogger Blog put together and when I saw how fantastic it was, I was slighty gutted.  I was therefore delighted that there was going to be a second BBBox and there was no chance I was going to miss out on it.  It cost just £22 with P&P very reasonably priced at £5.95 and for your money there was a box packed full of lovely products to get excited about, all of which Jane herself picked and chose.

In my box was the following:

• Alterna Bamboo Range 48 Hour Sustainable Volume Spray
• Bourjois Eyeliner
• CND Vinylux Nail Polish & Top Coat
• Indeed Labs Hydraluron
• L'Occitane Angelica Cleansing Gel
• L'Occitane Angelica Face Toner
• L'Occitane Cherry Blossom Hand Cream
• La Roche-Possay Redermic Dermatological Anti-Wrinkle Treatment
• Mandara Spa Tropical Blooms Softening Bath Milk
• Maybelline Rocket Mascara
• Rituals Car Fragrance
• REN Glycolactic Radiance Renewal Mask and Invisable Pores Detox Mask
• Rouge Bunny Lip Gloss Gleaming Temptation in Uncaged Tigress
• Urban Decay Moondust Eye Shadow in Zodiac
• Roger & Gallet Bois d'Orange Huile Sublime
• Vichy Idealia Smoothing and Illuminating Cream
• Washi Hot Cloth 

And a lovely little Union Jack stocking which can be used to house some of your products, perhaps to give them as a gift to someone (you will not get that from me).

I was really excited to find the Indeed Labs Hydraluron and Washi Hot Cloth, both of which are nestled quite nicely on my 'Want To Try' list and I was also chuffed to see the two REN products and La Roche-Posay which also feature on the 'Want To Try List'.

Did you get your hands on this box? 

Does this box contain any product that you would love to try?