Review: Elizabeth Arden Visible Difference Skin Balancing Lotion

Ahoy there, my lovelies! I am segueing back into the world of blogging after returning from my adventures overseas in the West Coast of the U-S-A, bringing back some exciting news with me as well as my usual stash of crunchy Cheetos - but that's another story for another time... 

Today's post is shining the spotlight on one of my new skincare must-haves:

The Elizabeth Arden Visible Difference Skin Balancing Lotion - Ta Dah! 

I received this sample when I attended the House of Fraser Christmas Press day, and I started using it pretty much the moment I got it in hand as I had been finding the moisturiser  I was using too heavy for my temperamental skin. Well, it was love at first swatch - from the delicious smell (like clementines) to only having to use a teensy amount to get the job done - two big plusses for a girl who spends at least 90% of her day thinking about food, and living on a beauty budget!

However, what made this attraction more than just a short lived infatuation can be noted in three points:
1) It's an oil-free lotion, resulting in keeping my combination skin well hydrated and super soft without making my face extra oily - no easy feat I can tell you (along with about 20 half empty moisturiser bottles)!
2) I love how simple it is to apply - it just glides on, soaks in, and poof! You are ready to apply make-up, no waiting around for it to soak all the way in.
3) I've saved a bit of money by being able to use this moisturiser as a 2in1 primer - It has kept my make up in place all day with minimal shininess breaking through.

This was my first try with Elizabeth Arden products, and I am impressed, so impressed I have ordered the rest of the Visible Difference for Combination Skin Starter Kit (£15 on look fantastic.com). Let's see if the rest of the products can live up to the lotion...

Love,

Stephie x

Summer Skin Regime #1 - Clinique Anti-Blemish Solutions.

Hello my lovelies! It's back to blogging again, and I wanted to write about the new skin regime I have started myself on. Now, I hate to admit this as a beauty blogger but I have not always been the best at looking after my skin. I know, I know its awful! But I just couldn't be bothered after work and took the lazy route of a quick wash with soap rather than a more cleansing routine. However, my skin started to rebel against this attitude and eventually I began trying new skincare products to solve the problem of a combination skin type that led to unwanted outbreaks, but none seemed to work. Until...

As a previous user of Clinique products, I felt quite confident in purchasing a small heap to kick my skin back into a healthy submission. I had used them a little during university , but stopped because it was becoming an expensive habit that I just couldn't afford to keep up. I was lured back recently, partly because I had some extra money to spoil myself with but more so  with the free gift offer that Clinique were running with various mini sets of skincare products to suit your particular skin needs. Out of the four kits they had on offer, I went for the 'Anti-Blemish Solutions' one which had a bar of Anti-Blemish Cleansing Bar, a 60ml bottle of Anti-Blemish Clarifying Lotion, and a 30ml Anti-Blemish Moisturizer. 

I have previously used the Anti-Blemish Solutions 'Clear Blemish Gel' and found that it worked brilliantly when attacking blemishes directly but isn't really a whole face product. Nevertheless, it made me feel confident that choosing this particular kit would be worth-while and after using it for over two weeks I can attest that it works pretty damn well. 



Considering these are only minis and are still being used twice a day, everyday, for coming up to three weeks now they have lasted remarkably well! I have literally just finished off the clarifying lotion, but the 30ml moisturizer is still going strong, along with the soap!  Along with their lasting power, I have felt that my skin is becoming significantly clearer but also feels deeply cleansed - especially by the clarifying lotion. I am still having little outbreaks, but I have noticed a definite difference in my complexion in that my pores are tighter, my skin is clearer and I am having fewer break-outs which proves that the products are keeping to their names. The moisturizer is a favourite simply because a little can go such a long way (making it worth its' money) as well as being a brilliant primer for make up - plus it's not oily which is a worry for me with moisturizer. 

I loved that this is in such a cute little pouch (perfect for travel), and that it was decent sized minis that have given me a chance to really test out these products. I am quite tempted that once I have finished my next set of Clinique products for a 'dry combination' skin type, that I may go back to the Anti-Blemish Solutions set. 

The full size product prices (as shown on Boots.co.uk) are:
- Anti-Blemish Solutions Cleansing Bar - £14
- Anti-Blemish Solutions Clarifying Lotion - £17
Anti-Blemish Solutions Clearing Moisturizer - £18.50


Next time, it will be the 'Dry Combination' Three Step Starter Kit. 


Are you a Clinique fan? Which products of theirs have you found the most effective?


Love,

That Touch of Mink Polka Dots.

Good evening lovelies. At this moment, I am tucked up under a blanket with a warm ribena trying to gain my voice back - this is the first day off since I returned to work after my operation and I'm so frustrated that I had to take it! Alas, trying to control kids at school with mime discipline would not go down quite as well as shouting 'Be quiet!' a hundred times a day, so I camped out at home and thinking what a perfect time to blog!

A little while ago I bought a gorgeous dress from H&M as a treat and although I have posted about it in  my Work Week Outfits in Instagram posts, it didn't quite express my sheer adulation for this dress. 

Dress: H&M
Tights: M&S
Pumps: Primark
Belt: New Look.

So what is it that I love so much about it? Well, being a woman on a budget my dresses generally need to be quite versatile so that I can wear them to give the illusion that I have more outfits in my wardrobe than I do. It is also the 'create a whole different look for the weekend' idea that makes it necessary for them to be versatile, because sadly my work & weekend wardrobe seem to be merging more and more at the moment.This dress has that. With the neutral mink colour and cream/white polka dots, it goes perfectly with browns, pinks, navy, cream cardigans & pumps. Perfect! 

It was also the whole design of the dress, going for the vintage feel with the cute mini dress style and full skirt, with the mix of polka dots and capped sleeves - pretty much combining everything I want in a dress into one adorable package. 

Price wise, I couldn't complain - it is made of quite thick material so it's not a thin summer dress and I will easily be able to wear this in winter with black tights (as shown in the picture), along with no tights in summer. For £19.99 it was quite the steal in my opinion as I have seen similar dresses in other stores that are charging at least £25.

However, the dress is not perfect (but it is preeeeetty close). The only thing for me where it could be improved would maybe be the length, to have it around half an inch longer, but its not a huge issue for me (as shown by buying it). What the good thing is about the skirt of the dress is that its longer in both the front and back, with it being a little shorter on the sides. The back of a dress is an issue with me as it tends to come up shorter making me paranoid everyone can see up my skirt - something Miss Manners would not approve of. 

Well that's it, my review for one of my top favourite dresses. I'm going to try and get a couple more posts done tonight as I should be away this weekend for my three year anniversary with the boyfriend, so want to get my blogging in now :)

Do you like to have dresses that work both for winter & spring, or do you like a whole seperate wardrobe?

Love,

Review: No7 Hot Cloth Cleanser

Hello my lovelies, the weekend has just zipped past hasn't it? I can't believe it is already Sunday! Hope you have all had a great weekend, and are enjoying the London Marathon in what appears to be sunshine... 

Anyway, onto the post! Recently, my skin has decided to go on a tirade against smooth skin and has instead gone for the bumpy look that is just oh so attractive. Now, I will admit, I have not been the best person when having an evening beauty regime - using Dove soap to just wash off the day's make up and be done with it. I'm lazy, and I have now realised that I'm probably not getting away with it as much as I did in my teen years. So on a trip to Westfield, I splurged and bought the No7 Hot Cloth Cleanser for £10 that I had been reading about on so many blogs:

(sorry for the not amazing photos, still at the boyfriend's house and this was the best place could get to take photos)

My first thought went to the sleek design of the box & product itself: it's a very simple, fresh sort of look which mirrors the product itself - to be honest, I am one of those people that love how things come in boxes, all pretty & packed - its sad, I know. 

But onto the actual using of the product: I have used it twice so far, and some may think that's not enough time to get an accurate feel of the product, but for me, generally if I feel like I can't get on with a product in the first few uses it is just going to end up being piled up in my wardrobe or bathroom cabinet. Luckily for me, this one has made it past the two-time test and I love it!

It has a thick consistency, a bit like lotion really, that has a fresh & natural smell to it that comes out in an even amount from just one pump (as shown above). I usually use two pumps to cover my whole face in a nice layer, and then massage it into dry skin as the instructions tell me to - no maverick here! After dousing the muslin cloth in hot water, I am enjoying the spa effect of having it open my pores before rubbing off the cleanser where you can really feel it working its magic on your skin. At first it stung a little which worried me, that even though it is hypo-allergic, my sensitive skin may still be allergic to it, but after talking to other bloggers who have used it they have the same effect so its really just showing its working. 

What I love about this cleanser apart from that I can feel it actually deep cleaning my pores and removing the dry skin, is that it leaves my skin incredibly soft! I may have looked a little crazy after I first used it because I just kept sitting in my boyfriend's living room stroking my face because I couldn't believe how soft it was, and that it had no oily feel to it. Even after two uses, my skin is definitely starting to feel a lot cleaner and less clogged up - which to me, is a huuuuge plus and is the product doing exactly as it says. 

The only thing that puts me off really is the £10 price tag, which as someone who has not had a real beauty regime, seems a bit steep to spend on a product I will be using daily and can see going down quite fast. But then again, with the regular £5 off vouchers that Boots give out, I can avoid the £10 cost most of the time (I hope) and it is cheaper than Liz Earle's at £14. 

In all, I would recommend this cleanser to all you beauty bloggers out there, that like me, may have not started a reeeal evening regime as this makes your skin feel great and really remove any traces of make up that are left after an initial soapy wash. I already have my eye on the Liz Earle Hot Cloth Cleanser to compare it with...

Have you used the No7 Hot Cloth Cleanser? What's your night-time beauty regime?

Love,

Review: Soap & Glory's Breakfast Scrub - A Heavenly Way to Start the Day!

Hello my lovelies, how are you all surviving with the return to work after the long weekend? I'm desperately trying to make the most out of my last little bit of half term which includes several trips to the cinema to bawl my eyes out at Titanic 3D & The Hunger Games, and having family come to visit from Belgium... Hopefully they will bring WeightWatcher friendly waffles! 

I was looking over my posts and noticed that recently I have been shoving alot of my face/outfits at you guys, and no-one wants to see too much of this mug! So its about time for another review and this is a product I use almost daily and love:

Soap & Glory's The Breakfast Scrub with Oat, Shea Butter, Sugar & Maple Scrub

I absolutely love, love, love this scrub! I got it as part of a birthday present in one of those huuuge Soap & Glory box sets that are filled with all sorts of goodies, and we have not been parted since. 

If you're not familiar with body scrubs, I would highly recommend giving one a try! I've used a few in my time, and what I love about scrubs is how they make my skin so incredibly soft and leave it with a healthy glow - so when I was given this one that smelt like a Crunchie bar it became a daily necessity.

For me, the Soap & Glory label already gave me the reassurance that it was going to be a good product before trying it as I haven't had a bad experience yet from them! This scrub was no let down, with all natural ingriedients such as bananas, almond & honey extracts and organic cupuacu scrubs which I love as always trying to avoid any extra chemicals, opting for more natural products now days. However, although the soft skin, glow and natural ingriedients are huge positives, its not my favourite part of this scrub... Do you want to know what is? It's the fragrance. Smelling like a Crunchie bar to start the day is honestly the best way to wake up in the mornings - yes, it does make me want to eat it out of the pot especially since joining Weightwatchers, I'm not going to lie, but it just helps my self-control further that I don't! I'll also let you into another secret... I have had this scrub for well over a year now, that's how long it has lasted me. I don't really need to use that much, as you can see from the picture, a couple of finger scrapes and it scrubs really well all over so it has lasted forever! 

If you don't believe this glowing (get it? ha ha ha) review, on the Boots website there are 53 5* reviews - one that is very aptly titled 'I want to eat myself'! For £9.50, you really don't want to give this product a miss for super soft skin and a sweet fragrance! 

P.S Only two days before these beauties are finished on eBay - a couple of dresses, a top and a skirt all looking for good homes! Click here.

Are you a scrub fan?

Love,