April Favourites ’20

Can you believe that it’s May already? Damn where is 2020 going, apart from down the pan due to Coronavirus… Sorry for the negativity at the start of my post, but come on… I’m sure you’ll all agree? 😛

How are you all doing during the lock down, both in the UK, as well as where you’re from? Personally whilst I’m enjoying being and working from home, it’s starting to get to me a little. I miss seeing my family and friends, as well as going out for leisure without a care in the world. It sucks feeling anxious whilst going out to buy milk and bread.

However, there are some plus sides to this. I’m getting to spend a little bit more time with Dane, I’m saving money but most of all I am starting to do things with my friends (especially my best friend) and that makes me happy. 🙂 Every cloud has a silver lining.

Image taken from The Latest Kate

Before I start this months favourites post, I just want to say that I’m her for you, as a friend if you need to talk. Right now we are living in uncertain and scary times and my own mental health is being affected right now. I don’t wish to think people are suffering alone in silence. Remember, my email is always open, as well as my DM’s via Twitter and Instagram. We will get through this, we will. 🙂

Anyhoo, on with this months favourites! I’m not going to lie… I kind of struggled. 😛

• Imperial Leather Shake Your Bambootay Shower Gel.

I’m sorry I have another Imperial Leather shower gel up this month, but I bought quite a few before the lock down, okay? 😛 I much prefer this one to the unicorn one I spoke about in my favourites last month, purely for the scent. This has a fruity and fresh scent, which I’ve really been loving using in the mornings before I start work as I find it wakes me up and gets me ready for the day. Plus both me and Dane have found this really moisturising on the skin, which has been really nice. I’m glad I bought a couple of bottles of this now, as I really do like it. 🙂

• Boots Eye Drops for Dry & Irritated Eyes.

I’ve owned these eye drops since my trip to Japan and I still have loads of product left in the bottle. I love using eye drops everyday before I start work/the day in general as I feel it really wakes me up and refreshes my eyes. These have been so essential during the lock down, as I find it just makes me feel that little bit more ready for the day… Especially as I’m working from home. I honestly recommend eye drops to everyone, especially if your eyes feel tired when you wake up in the morning. I find a couple of drops make a huge difference.

• L’Oreal Paris Hydra Genius Aloe Moisturiser for Combination Skin (review).

I honestly love this moisturiser so much and I’m hesitant to change from this to something else, as I feel like I’ve found something that works so good for my skin. My morning skincare routine has changed during the lock down and I have gone from doing a full routine, to under half of it. I’m only really using my moisturiser, and occasionally my serum and eye gel if I feel I need them. I don’t see the point in using all my products up everyday… This moisturiser has really helped my skin out lately, as my face has felt so tight and dry. I’ve actually had to buy another bottle of this, as I’m really close to this one running out now. I’ve linked back to my review of this from back in 2017. Yes, I have been using this product for 3 years now and I have zero regrets.

• Peacci Nail Varnish in Ophelia.

I couldn’t not mention this nail varnish this month as I have loved it so much. I actually get my nails painted with gel by my lovely nail tech, but obviously due to the lock down, this hasn’t been an option for me… I get my nails painted with The Gel Bottle, who also have a sister company called Peacci. Peacci created the same gorgeous colours that The Gel Bottle do BUT in a nail varnish formula. I can’t get my nails done by my nail tech, so I’m doing myself with the nail varnish alternative for the time being. I picked up two colours, Valentina and Ophelia. Valentina is a pink holographic shade, whilst Ophelia is a dark nude pink colour. I’ve worn these two shades together in their gel form and it’s probably my favourite nail manicure I’ve had to date, hence why I bought their nail varnish versions. I’m currently wearing Ophelia and it’s gorgeous. It’s lasted ages and compliments my skin tone. I’m hoping to do a review of these and Peacci in the future. Would you like to see it? If not on a blog post, maybe an IGTV video?

• Childs Farm Baby Moisturiser.

I’ve mentioned this baby moisturiser before on my blog and here I am again, sharing it with you all and why it’s amazing. I have said many a time on my blog, I have eczema on my hands and it would seem that the older I get, the worse it has gotten. It got to a really bad point before my trip to Japan in late 2019 when I had a massive rough patch on my right hand. I ended up going to the doctors as peoples comments on it were upsetting me. It turned out to be dermatitis and I still need to go to a special doctor for more tests in case there is more to it. Although this patch has cleared up at the moment, it was around at the start of April. The Body Shop hand lotion I was using wasn’t enough and I started using my Childs Farm moisturiser again. This has really helped my hands and at the time of writing this, they’re lovely and soft. 🙂 I honestly cannot recommend this enough! It isn’t just for hands either, it can be used all over the body.

So now my beauty favourites are done, time to talk about the miscellaneous favourites of the month!

Favourite TV Show – Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness.

Not going to lie. Tiger King was something I had to watch twice and I’m glad I did. Everyone and their cat (ha!) has watched Tiger King and discussed it in full. It’s a Netflix series all about the breeding of tigers in America and some crime that happened during that time revolving around Joe Exotic. I watched it once and I was very much “What the fuck did I just watch? I don’t actually understand what happened.” A week later, I watched it again and understood (kind of…) what had happened. I was surprised though. I have to say here, I am pissed off at anyone who is making merchandise from this and selling. Don’t sell shit based on animal cruelty, potential murder and all around crime. It’s not cool.

Image taken from GIPHY

Favourite Movie – The Cat Returns.

As we all know, all the Studio Ghibli films are now on Netflix, which is amazing! Me and Dane own them all on DVD anyway, but it’s nice to have them on Netflix to watch as and when we fancy watching them. We recently put on The Cat Returns to watch together, as this is one of Dane’s favourites. I always forget how much I love Natoru (in the gif), as well as many other characters. I was surprised there wasn’t more merch in Japan to do with The Cat Returns.

Image taken from GIPHY

Favourite Book – Urgh. I don’t read anymore haha.

Nope. I didn’t read again this month. Honestly guys, I’m just not finding the time between working, playing games, chilling on video chats with friends and more. 😦

Favourite Song – “Gimme a Minute” – PVRIS.

PVRIS released a new single from their upcoming album this month and I haven’t stopped listening to it to be honest with you. I love everything about it, including the lyrics and the electropop/alternative rock sound that I adore. I only discovered PVRIS a year ago and I have really fallen in love with them. I honestly can’t wait for their new album to come out in July. It was meant to be out today but that was pushed back due to coronavirus… 😦

I honestly love Bones so much 🙂 #AnimalCrossing #ACNH #NintendoSwitch pic.twitter.com/6bhAMN4bml

— Nat 🐱 (@MayBeeCoffee) April 27, 2020

Favourite Game – Still Animal Crossing: New Horizons.

Of course this is going to be here for another month… I mean, why wouldn’t it? It’s officially been a month since the new Animal Crossing game came out and I am still playing it everyday. I have all my villagers on my island now, as well as 4 I moved in thanks to amiibo cards. I have started to terraform my island now and I’m starting to get into the swing of things. I really do love this game and I especially love playing with my friends. 🙂

So, those are my favourites from April! Again, I can’t believe we are already into May. It’s crazy how quick the past month has flown by, but I’m honestly going to blame coronavirus for that. I don’t mind how quick it’s going. The sooner things can go back to normal, the better.

What were your favourites from April? Also, how are you all doing during this time? What are you doing to keep yourself sane? Make sure to let me know in the comments.

Until next time all, take care and stay safe!

L’Oreal Paris Hydra Genius Liquid Care – Review

I don’t feel like I’ve written a review for aggggges, which of course sucks! Probably due to lip issues again as my lips appear to not be 100% healed, sadly. BUT I recently bought a product that NEEDS to be reviewed as soon as possible. 😛

I couldn’t remember when this came out in the UK but it feels like AGGGGGGGES ago! From what I could find on their Instagram page it said March 5th 2017 that it was first being spoken about… But I’m unsure if this applies to America, or Europe… I know it’s been  out at least a month because my friend Claire has been using it that long, PLUS I’m sure I eyed it up that long ago in Boots!

ANYWAY I finally decided to pick it up on a trip to Boots and I’ve used it for about a week now and I can safely say I love it and it needed to be reviewed.

First of all I’ll talk about the product itself.

Hydra genius is a liquid care moisturiser which you use on a daily basis in the morning and/or evening. I picked up the normal to combination skin as I have the latter, an oily t-zone and dry cheeks and chin.

I’ll type up what it says on the packaging as it’ll explain the product itself  better than I will. 😛

The Liquid Care; Fresh as water hydrating as a cream. Locks in Moisture for 72hrs. Enriched with Aloe Water & Hyaluronic Acid. Instantly Refreshes. For Normal to Combination Skin. Inspired by Asian skincare, L’Oréal Paris Laboratories introduces THE LIQUID CARE. It delivers pure moisture that penetrates quickly, deeply and continuously – without overloading the skin.

INSTANTLY REFRESHES. Immediately absorbed, the water-like texture rehydrates and reinvigorates the skin.

INSTANTLY LOCKS IN MOISTURE. The forumla penetrates deelpy for a healthy-looking glow.

72HR RECHARGE It releases continuous hydration and drenches the skin with moisture for up to 72 hours.

How to use: Every morning and evening, alone or after your serum, apply one pump to the face and neck. Massage in circular motions for better absorption. Use instead of your daily moisturiser.

You get 70ml of product in the tube and I’ve found a little bit goes a long way! I’ve seen people on Instagram using three pumps but I’ve found one to two is enough for me! Three is a bit overkill I find.

I’ve been applying this when the weather has been really warm in the mornings before work and in the evenings after using a face mask, both sheet and clay. I’ve found it’s given my skin a real treat more so in the evenings as part of my pampering routine, which feels lovely!

This doesn’t have a heavy scent to it which is great but it smells so refreshing and that alone I am in love with! It smells of aloe vera of course due to the aloe water ingredient. I can’t stop smelling the back of my hand after taking the pictures for this post. 😛 It reminds me of holidays in Fuerteventura.

As we all know in the UK it’s been REALLY HOT this past fortnight so our skin has been in need for cooling down, especially the face for myself. Alongside the hydra genius I’ve been using my twin-ball facial massager from The Body Shop loads lately and it works so damn good with hydra genius! The metal balls feel cooling on the skin and that mixed with the cooling sensation this moisturiser leaves too it just feels amazing. I highly recommend that facial massager, I’ll leave a link to it here.

I did notice a change in my skin after a week though to be honest. Not in the sense of moisturisation but in the sense of how it has helped with my oily t-zone. I’ve found that it doesn’t look as shiny and like I’ve dipped that entire section near a fat fryer. To be honest my t-zone isn’t bad, I mean it could be worse but when it’s warm it’s just not as good as it could be. You know? xD

I know it sounds really daft but even the packaging itself pleases me and reminds me of a Korean beauty product, which is what inspired L’Oreal to create this in the first place. I just love how to it a gorgeous and summery turquoise colour and it kind of reflects the ingredient aloe vera really. Well I think so anyway. 😛

Hydra genius does remind me of something from years before that I used to use, but to honest I prefer the hydra genius, which I’ll explain. The product I’m talking about is another product by The Body Shop, it’s the Vitamin E Aqua Boots Sorbet. It costs £14.00 for a 100ml jar and a little bit of it goes a long way. It’s definitely like a sorbet but is of a gel and lightweight consistency. This being said it’s thicker than hydra genius and does feel like you need to put a little bit more work in to make it sink into the skin. I wouldn’t fault it though, it’s a great product to use if you need to feel cooled down. I reviewed it when it first came out back in 2014, which you can read here.

This is the perfect product to use during the summer when the weather is hot and also an awesome product to take away to hot climates for holidays. I know I’ll be picking one up for when I go to Fuerteventura, but this being said they probably already have it for sale over there.

So what are my overall thoughts about this product? It’s pretty damn amazing to be perfectly honest with you! I didn’t actually think it would be as great as it is, but it’s wonderful. It might be a light weight moisturiser but it really does do what it states it will, all whilst being cooling and comfortable on the skin.

Although I would use this in the colder months, it’s been invented for summer really and it will definitely work best when there’s a heatwave.

Although I picked this up in normal to combination skin, you can also get it in normal to dry skin and sensitive skin. I was stuck for choice on which one to pick up, but I’m glad I went for the one I did now as it really has helped my combination skin!

Although this is usually £9.99, Boots have an offer on where you can pick it up for £6.66. I had a look to check the prices in Superdrug but it doesn’t look as if they stock it, which is a surprise!

I would say if you like the look of it, pick it up ASAP as I’m sure that discounted offer won’t last forever, sadly. I’m going to pick up a couple more bottles when I get paid next. I hope the offer is still on then.

Will you be picking up hydra genius? If so which version will you get? Do you already own it? If so what do you think? Make sure to let me know in the comments!

Until next time all, take care and I hope you all have a lovely weekend.

The Body Shop Body Sorbet in Strawberry – Review

After nearly three weeks without a decent post in sight, I am finally bringing you a blog post, a review at that. Oh aren’t you lucky!

Last week I bought this sorbet after hearing about the them two months ago from various bloggers. They sounded delicious, cooling and best of all, hydrating and exactly what my skin needed for this warm weather.

So when I popped into town to do a little shopping, I decided to pop into The Body Shop and take a look at the body sorbets, as well as their new Vitamin E Aqua Boost Sorbet (which I shall also be reviewing soon). I fell in love with them both, so of course I did the naughty thing and bought them!

I get incredibly warm and clammy during the summer and often neglect moisturising due to it but with the sorbets, my skin is thanking me so much.

I have to add, I am so SO excited to write this review as this is already one of my 10 favourites products of 2014.

So onto the review!

This is  described as a light and fruity body moisturiser, and that’s damn well correct. A light, gel moisturiser which is perfect for the summer season, and The Body Shop couldn’t bring this out a better time. In the UK we’re having a heat wave at the moment so we’re all sweating our pasty selves away.

This is the Strawberry body sorbet and it contains cold-pressed strawberry seed oil, which gives it its amazing strawberry scent, as well as moisturising properties. I can only assume this contains aloe vera, which gives it that lovely cool gel sensation texture when you apply this to the skin.

I’ve used this quite a few times over the past week and I can safely say I am in love with it. The gel consistency is definitely something different, which sinks into the skin as soon as you apply and due to that it absorbs fast too and doesn’t leave you feeling sticky. This really does go a long way and you don’t need much to feel moisturised afterwards.

I noticed that I still felt moisturised the day after applying, but as well as that it also smelt gorgeous still, a faint smell of strawberries.

This comes in five different scents (including Strawberry), which also include Mango, Pink Grapefruit, Moringa, and Satsuma. I would love to give Satsuma a go as well as Pink Grapefruit for mornings to wake me up!

I won’t just be using this stuff during the warmer days and months, but I know I’ll be using this in the colder months too as it’s just so quick and easy to apply and really does leave me feeling soft and smooth!

Strawberry Body Sorbet comes in one size 200ml, and costs £8, which I think is a bargain for how much you get, as a little bit goes a  very long way. Plus if you have a Love Body card, you’ll get some money knocked off of this baby.

Well done to The Body Shop for bringing this out, as it’s amazing and one of my favourite products since their Raspberry shower gel!

Will you be trying this out? If so, which fragrance? Hey, do you own it already, let me know which one you own and what you think of it!

Until next time, take care all and I hope you’re having a good week. Hell it’s good to be back!

September Empties

Another month that has passed us by means another empties post is written up and published on my blog.

I didn’t use up a great deal in September, although it feels like I used a lot more… Odd…

On with the empties post!

• Sanex Sensitive Skin Shower Cream.

This was bought for me by my Mom when she noticed the skin on the tops of my arms was looking a little dry and unloved. I wouldn’t say this shower cream was the most amazing I’ve tried but it’s really nice to use on the skin when you want to get your skin back to how it should be naturally. It contains “dermo active 3” which adds protection, moisturisation and rebalance. This did leave my skin feeling soft and smooth but was only something I used if I was quickly going to work, as this  has no scent to it, and I like getting out of my shower with a slight smell in the air, if you know what I mean? This foams up REALLY well though and it feels lovely due to it, but eventually I used this up in my bath and even though it was meant to be a cream for the shower, it worked lovely as a bath cream too.

• Colgate Plax Complete Care Sensitive Mouthwash.

This mouthwash has been mentioned in two separate empties posts (here and here) as well as in a favourites post. I really like using this mouthwash as it does the job, helps out my sensitive teeth and doesn’t break the bank either! I always buy this, only not buying it if I’m in the need for mouthwash and can’t find this one, or if I’m not able to afford it, which has been the case at the moment as I am very poor. If you wish to know more about this mouthwash go and check out my previous posts linked above, as everything you will need to know about it, is there.

• Liz Earle Botanical Shine Conditioner For Fine Or Oily Hair.

My Mom bought me this a while ago to try and encourage me to condition my hair, as since I was a teenager all conditioning my hair has done is make it greasy and limp, however this isn’t the case with this conditioner. I don’t apply this to the top of my head, just the ends and above, the top of my head doesn’t need conditioning to be perfectly honest. This conditioner is light weight, smells of oranges and lemons and rinses off easily by just keeping my head under the shower for a maximum of 5 or so minutes. I really like this conditioner and whilst is isn’t the cheapest it lasts ages and does a better job than anything Boots could sell you. I’ve already started to use my second tube of this and I’m getting ready to buy myself some more, just so I’m ready when I run out on this tube.

• Garnier Moisture Match Revitalising Moisturising Gel in Wake me Up.

This was mentioned back in my June Favourites, which is when I first bought this moisturiser. I really liked using this and I’m sad it’s all gone now. I bought this to try after my Clinique Moisturising Gel ran out and I have to say, it was a nice little replacement for the meantime. I would re purchase this but I do really want to get back into using my Clinique 3 Step, so my Moisturising Gel will be my next purchase me thinks. This gel was lovely and light on the skin and did indeed make my skin look and appear brighter, which I really liked. This is something that would be ideal for the cold autumn and winter months when you skin looks a little dry and dull, but that being said this is also great for the hot spring and summer months as this being a gel really does cool your skin down. It smells really nice too. I probably will re purchase this actually, but only to use when I go traveling as whilst the tube is small, it clearly lasts ages, or in my case nearly 4 months.

• Bath & Body Works Pocketbac Anti-Bacterial Hand Gel in Fresh Picked Strawberries.

I’m sad to see this all used up, but at the same time I’m rather glad. At first I didn’t get on with the smell of this at all as it was really strong and often gave me headaches. I used to use it in my old job in the mornings and I got a mixture of complaints from staff of how strong it was ad compliments from customers how lovely it smelt, some even asking where I bought it from. In the end I kept this next to my bed to pop on before I went to sleep and the strawberry scent was somewhat relaxing after a while. I’m going to keep the little bottle to put normal hand sanitizer in so I can pop this in my apron pocket at work. I wrote a review for this back in April which you check out here. 🙂

• Montagne Jeunesse Tea Tree Face Spa Face Mask.

I love Montagne Jeunesse’s face masks and as I’ve recently discovered the sheet masks, I’ve been using them quite a bit lately. The Tea Tree one is amazing and left my skin lovely and soft, as well as blemish free for a couple of days after use. When I opened the packet I was expecting a really strong tea tree smell but I was greeted with a pleasant light scent of tea tree, which I really liked. I popped the mask on, left it for 15 minutes (even though the packet says 5-10 minutes) and when I took it off my skin looked fresh and felt tingly and clean. It also felt cooling, which I thought was odd but all the same a very nice feeling. I’m going to be stocking up on these face masks and I hope to find more versions of them too, as two isn’t enough for my liking. I’ll be writing up reviews for these in the very near future!

So those were my empties from September, it wasn’t a whole lot but never mind!

What did you use up during September? Let me know in the comments down below.

Until next time, take care all and I hope your October if going off to a good start already.