La Roche Posay Efficlar Duo Review

It seems as though every blogger has been talking about the Effaclar Duo range, so I thought I'd throw my opinion into the mix. My sister actually bought this for herself but it didn't suit her skin type as her skin was going through a very dry and this is suited for oily skin. My skin was going through a pretty bad stage with lots of spots and so I thought I'd give it a go as it's had so many rave reviews.

The set costs £32.50 from Boots, and consists of the Purifying Foaming Gel, Clarifying Toner and Corrective Unclogging Ant-imperfection cream. The foaming gel is soap free, and is designed to 'reduce excess sebum and leave skin feeling clean and fresh'. To use this I got my hands wet, squeezed out a small amount (you don't need much) and worked it into a lather before massaging it all over my face. I like using foaming cleansers because they make my face feel so much cleaner. although I have heard that foaming cleansers are actually bad for your skin-something to do with turning it alkaline? This says its pH is 5.5, which is on the acidic end of the scale (from what I can remember of my chemistry lessons) so I think that means its fine. Let me know if you have a better understanding of all of this and can explain it.

I  like the toner-it smells good and dos leave my face feeling tighter, but not stripped of moisture like some toners do. This is also non-comedogenic. Comedogenic means something that will block pores, potentially causing blackheads. All sounds good to me. I  suffer from blackheads on my nose and whilst using this did notice that they reduced. I think the cream is my favourite part of the set though. I used this all over my face in replacement of my moisturiser. I think the US version has slightly different ingredients however and is more potent so if you're in America just use it more as a targeted spot treatment. This calmed angry red spots and also worked well under my makeup.

I used these three products solely for around  2 and a half months. Did I see an improvement in my skin? Well, it's quite hard to say because I think the reason my skin was so bad was hormonal, so as soon as that time passed it cleared up anyway. That being said, I do think this helped. I had lots of horrible big under the skin spots, a few of which came to the surface and looked even worse and using the Effaclar Duo dried them up well. It also claims to fade marks, and I'd say this is what I was most impressed by. Big red marks healed well and within a couple of days had faded lots and weren't nearly as noticeable. However, I don't think it prevented new spots from forming, and so I've now changed my skin care routine a little, which I'll do a post on soon.


Has anyone else tried these products? What did you think?

Helen x

Moisturiser for lazy people (me)

Okay, confession time. I am so lazy when it comes to moisturising. Like, really bad. Before Christmas  my arms had got to the scaly stage and were just so itchy, so my sister gave me a not so subtle hint in the shape of some Scottish Soap Company body lotion. It smells lovely and I did use it religiously every night (promise) for a while but, like I said, I'm lazy and also forgetful so after a while just used it every couple of nights. Then just when I remembered. Which wasn't often. Yes, I know this is bad. After all, it only takes a couple of minutes to slather some lotion on and wait for it to dry. But (add to the list) I'm impatient too and just wanted to put my pjs on and go to bed. So my arms and legs reverted to the horrible scaly look.

Then my mum (again, a not so subtle hint) bought me this. It's the Vaseline spray and go body moisturiser and is, quite frankly, genius. It works in the same way as a spray on sun lotion, but without the horrible greasy feel afterwards. Just spray on, rub in and wait a few seconds for it to sink in, and you're ready to go. Brilliant. I actually enjoy using it, perhaps just due to the novelty factor and so I've been using it morning and night. Is this a new me? My arms are certainly hoping so.

(It's also reduced at Boots at the moment-even better. No excuses!)

Is anyone else lazy when it comes to beauty? 

Helen x

What I'm Currently Loving

Porridge

I'm normally in such a rush in the mornings I barely have time to shove some toast in my mouth whilst applying concealer, packing my bag, and finding matching socks. When I have a little extra time however I like to make some porridge. I make mine with half milk, half water, and simply microwave it till thick (I like mine pretty solid…yum)  My favourite toppings are banana, brown sugar, red berries and granola.

Suits

Not the clothing, the programme. I've been re-watching this series about an American law firm over the holidays, and I'm completely gripped. It's so good! I really love the central characters and how they're constantly evolving as the plot develops.


Writing letters

I know it seems a bit out of date, what with facebook and twitter etc making it so easy to keep in touch, but there's nothing quite like writing letters (or receiving them-it makes a nice change from bank statements). At the moment I'm using this letter set from Paperchase which always makes me smile, it's so bright and cheerful. 

Helen x

Beauty Bargain Of The Month

I never tried anything from the Skincare brand Witch before, but recently picked up this Blemish stick.

As the name suggests, it contains Witch hazel which is a natural ingredient that soothes and tones the skin. It also has alcohol, to target and prevent blemishes, as well as Glycerin which calms the skin. It claims to break down excess oil and prevent the recurrence of pesky spots. Although its a slightly alarming colour, it applies clear and isn't sticky at all, so could probably be worn under makeup. 

I've only been using this for a week or so, but can already see an improvement in my skin.

Fragrance Direct

Today I thought I'd do a review on a makeup and beauty website. I'm going to review Fragrance Direct, which I'm sure some of you have heard of. Fragrance direct have up to 70% off  makeup, beauty and fragrance. At first I didn't think it was real because it's so cheap! There's lots of different brands, some more well known than others, but they are all reduced. 

They have a huge range of makeup and fragrance, but they also have skin care, hair products, and little gift sets too, all of which are reduced. 

I've bought lots from Fragrance Direct in the past. I've heard some people say that their order hasn't been packaged properly so the products have been damaged, but I've never had that problem. Sometimes however the thing that I've ordered isn't the thing that turns up! It's only happened a few times but obviously it's a bit annoying! I once ordered a Une mascara and a Bourjois mascara turned up. I wasn't paticularly bothered but it's not great. However, when you're paying so little for stuff I guess a few little mistakes are more forgivable! 

The delivery is pretty quick too- I usually go for the cheaper option at £1.99  and it arrives within a week on the whole, or there is a slightly more expensive option at £2.99 which promises to arrive within 2-4 working days. Lots of shops (I'm looking at you Topshop!) charge quite a lot for their standard delivery so I think Fragrance Direct is very cheap.

I would definitely recommend it to anyone who doesn't mind buying makeup online and likes a good deal!

Let me know your experiences with Fragrace Direct, or if you can recommend any other good websites to buy makeup!

Here are some of the things I've bought from Fragrance Direct in the past.

Helen x

The Liebster Award

I was lucky enough to be nominated for the Liebster Blog Award by the lovely Mina of anibblebit-http://anibblebit.blogspot.co.uk/.
I was also nominated by Holly of  http://littlemisswheely.blogspot.co.uk/

I was really surprised that I'd been nominated, so thank you very much Mina and Holly!

If you're not sure what the Liebster award is, it's an award given to bloggers by other bloggers. The word 'Liebster' is German and means sweetest, kindest, nicest, dearest, beloved, lovely,  kind, pleasant, valued, cute, endearing and welcome.  The award can only be given to blogs with under 200 followers, so it's a good way to get to know smaller blogs. I think it's a great idea and I'm really happy to be nominated.

As part of the 'rules' you have to answer 11 questions set by the blogger that nominated you, and then nominate 11 blogs of your choice and set them 11 questions to answer. 

I thought I'd be here a while if I answered 22 questions, so I'll just answer some of each set, if that makes sense! 

1. What inspired you to start blogging?

I've always been interested in makeup, and love to read, and always liked to read blogs, so it seemed like a fun idea to start my own. I also used to write a lot of poems and stories, but I haven't for ages; however I wanted to carry on writing in some way, so blogging seemed ideal!

2. What is your favorite genre of music, and artist of that genre?

I'm not really sure how I'd describe my music tastes, but I guess it's probably alternative, or kind of folksy.  I like Avalanche City, Noah and the Whale, Young the Giant, Lucy Rose, Missy Higgins and The Lumineers. 

3. What would be the first thing you did if you won the lottery?

hmmm....tricky. Probably go out and buy lots of clothes books and makeup, then persuade my parents to let me get a horse, then put the rest in the bank!

4. What was the first make up product you ever bought?

Mascara, when I was in year 9, when I was about 13.

5.Who is your favourite youtuber?

Sammie, of Beautycrush

6. What do you like to do in your free time?
In my spare time I like to blog, obviously! I also go horse-riding on weekends and I like to read, listen to music and play my tenor horn. 

7. Favorite vacation destination?
This is tricky! I love Scotland, but we went to Iceland last year and it was AMAZING so I guess I'd have to say that.

8. If you could be any profession you wanted, what would you be, and why?
I have no idea what I want to work as, but a dream job would definitely be designing playmobil as I loved playing with them when I was younger and it would be great to design my own.

9. In three words, describe yourself in three words?

Weird, Sarcastic, Kind

10.What is your fashion staple?

Jeans 

11.What is/was your favourite subject at school?

I love Art and English.

I'd like to nominate these people for the award:

Ruby- redrubyross.blogspot.com
Connie- connielovesbeauty.blogspot.co.uk
Laura- lauraann-xo.blogspot.co.uk
Nicola- ncolesnotes.blogspot.co.uk
Millie- millierosemake-up.blogspot.co.uk
Zoe- nuggetstumpblog.wordpress.com
Beth- bethht.blogspot.com
Andrea- andreaolarte.blogspot.com
Sophie- misssophierose.blogspot.com
Stephie- dearstephiiie.blogspot.ca
Ayesha- definingayesha.blogspot.in

And the questions I'd like to ask you all are:

If you could only use one makeup item (i.e.mascara) for the rest of your life, what would it be?
Would you like to move to a different country at some point in the future? If so, which?
What is/what your favourite subject at school?
What's your favourite food?
When did you start wearing makeup?
Do you have any pets?
What do you do to relax?
What is your favourite makeup brand?
Favourite band?
Favourite film?
Favourite book?

Thankyou again Mina and Holly :)


Helen x
P.S sorry it's taken me so long to do this!