Ghosts of Beauty Products Past #2

It feels like I just wrote the original Ghosts of Beauty Products Past post, you'll probably see some repeat offenders that I just can't get enough of, I'll post them but won't go into too much detail so if you want to see what I really thought of them you can refer back to the original post!

Hair Care

It seems I've been finishing off a lot of products that have been on the go for a while now so I'm super stoked to share some of these gems with you guys! Everyone knows my love for Batiste dry shampoo so I won't go into that, BUT I've finally finished some of my favourites that I've been using for about a year now.

Difiaba Hydressence Conditioner:  I've been using this conditioner for over a year now and I adore it! It's super hydrating without leaving your hair feeling heavy, has the most amazing scent and is perfect for any heat junkie, styling addict or just general hair abuser that needs a little help getting those locks looking luscious again, this will definitely be a repurchase. You can find it here!

Difiaba Luminessence Hydrating Serum: This is an amazing treatment I use once a month, a combination of hair care and aromatherapy. I follow up my shampooing with a vial of the hibiscus scented hydrating serum, comb through and leave for five minutes before rinsing. For $36 here you get enough to last you a whole year! I've already placed an order for more.

Skin Care

MAC's Lightful Cleanser and Lightful Softening Lotion are staples in my skin care routine so clearly it's not a surprise to find them in another GofBPP post...

Delarom Revitality Cream: I used this cream for three months and when I first talked about it back in my What's My Age Again? post I thought I could never live without this cream but since finishing it off I'm not so sure I still feel so strongly about it. While I did notice a slight improvement in the fine lines on my forehead whilst using this product, I've found that since I've stopped using it my Keihl's Powerful Strength Line Reducing Treatment does just as good of a job at keeping the lines at bay, if not better and only for a fraction of the price! Needless to say I will not be repurchasing.

Omorovicza Thermal Cleansing Balm: This is a product I have yet to mention on the blog because I've been so on the fence about it and I still can't decide if I like it or not even after finishing the pot and here's why: the thermal mud is packed full of mineral rich goodness and because it's a cleansing balm it makes removing make up and cleansing the skin a piece of cake which is what everyone wants after a long day, is it not? So then you
may ask why aren't I head over heels in love? Well for starters it's £46.00 for a 50ml pot that barely lasts a month, which if it did amazing things for my skin would make it a little easier to justify but the fact is it just doesn't. I wanted to love this product, I've tried so hard to love this product, but in the end, I just can't. It's definitely worth a try (and if you're curious you can find it here) but it's not something I will be repurchasing. 

Body Care

Nuxe Huile de Prodigeuse: This is the third bottle of this glorious oil that I've finished off in the last six months and I've already cracked my fourth. For a full review of this product click here.

The Body Shop's Body Butter in Coconut and Chocomania: As far as I am concerned there is no other body butter in the world, or at least none that can compete with the Body Shops, I've already restocked my cupboards with four more of these bad boys!

Bath and Body Works Aromatherapy Body Lotion in Sleep:  I talked a little bit about this guy in my Night Routine post, and since finishing it I've realized two things about it; 1. It's not the most hydrating lotion and 2. The scent was way more relaxing than I had noticed, since finishing I've found my mind doesn't relax quite as quickly, hopefully my Aromatherapy Associates Relax Body and Massage Oil shows up soon so I can go back to sound sleeping!

Caudalie Divine Oil:  I first mentioned this in my recent post about beauty oils and when I wrote that I mentioned it was heavier than Nuxe's and almost sticky, but since switching it to an evening use only product, I've fallen in love. It hydrates scaly spots on my legs, tames parched hair and smells just heavenly. You can get your hands on a bottle of your own here.

Hand Care

Tokyo Milk's Tainted Love Hand Cream: While it smelled absolutely amazing it wasn't the most hydrating for my seriously dry hands, I think in the future I'll stick to the perfumes from Tokyo Milk because those never disappoint. 

Sanoflore Miel Nourricier Hand Cream:  I mentioned this in my January Favourites post after returning home from a romantic weekend in Paris with the boy. This was definitely a gem that I stumbled upon whilst ravaging the French pharmacies and am glad to have someone back in France to mail me some when it runs out because woah man is this stuff awesome! Smells amazing, super hydrating and calming if your hands are sensitive like mine and just all around amazing! There may be a tube of this sitting in my goodie box waiting for the next giveaway.... just sayin.

Holey Butt'r:  This product is designed for stretched earlobes, which is why I have it but it is good for so much more! It contains a blend of Karanji seed oil, Jojoba seed oil, Soy butter, soy wax, Candelila wax and Neem seed oil which are a potent blend of moisturisers and emollients to hydrate and heal dehydrated and stressed out skin. I like to put this on my elbows, knees, knuckles, heels and anywhere else feeling particularly crocodile like.

Make Up

L'Oreal Mega Volume Miss Manga Mascara:  I mentioned this in my February Favourites post as it was something I picked up from Boots on a whim whilst in Brighton back in January and I'm so sad I didn't pick up another because now that this one is done I can't seem to find it here back in Canada or anywhere online, we all know I'm queen of online shopping, and I'm struggling to replace it. There is a mascara shaped void in my life now...

MAC's Studio Fix Powder in NC15:  This has been a staple in my make up bag since I was about 13 but since my skin shifted more to the drier side I had been avoiding using it, now that I've got my skin back under control, a light dusting of Fix powder with a fluffy MAC 187 Duo Fibre Face Brush over top of my Jouer Matte Moisture Tint creates the perfect finish.

Bath and Shower

LUSH's Snow Fairy Shower Gel: I've ranted and raved about this stuff multiple times so if you want to see more about why I love it you can check that out here and here.

Soap and Glory's Sugar Crush Body Scrub: This stuff is amazeballs. Like seriously. I went into raptures here about my nostalgic love for this product and why I was so happy to see it back in Canada. If you're looking for a good scrub look no further!

Tokyo Milk's Tainted Love Shower Gel: This faired much better than it's hand cream partner I mentioned earlier in the post; it has that amazing combination of dark vanilla bean, orchid and sandalwood that lingers after the shower is over.

Pure Potent Wow Muscle Soak Bath Salts: If you lift heavy weights you're going to feel it the next day, and since I'm constantly lifting weights or running my muscles are always aching and sore and this stuff definitely helps me keep moving. I'm always trying out new bath salts so the chances of repurchasing this aren't very likely but if you're someone that enjoys a good bath on the regular these are a must try!

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The Process: My Morning Skin Care Routine

So a couple of weeks ago I had a request to share my skin care routine, I started off with my evening skin care routine which might seem a little odd but washing my face at the end of the day is one of my favourite things in life, I look forward to it as soon as I leave work. So today I thought I would bring you my morning routine!

The Process:

In the Shower...

Step 1: MAC's Lightful Cleanser I should seriously have stocks in this products or something for the amount I talk about it, but seriously this stuff is the bomb! Perfect for a nice refreshing morning cleanse and works wonderfully with my Clarisonic. You can read more about it here, here and here, told you I am kinda obsessed...

Step 1.5: Soap and Glory Smoothie Star Breakfast Scrub My boyfriend used to tease me that if you wanted to sell something to a Canadian all you had to do was make it smell/taste like Maple Syrup; clearly Soap and Glory caught on to this tactic because I AM HOOKED! I picked this up on offer at Boots back in January and while I've got a bazillion tubs/tubes/bottles/bars of shower stuff on the go this is one of my favourites. A nice thick scrub that smells just like maple syrup and leaves your skin soft and smooth.

Step 2: MAC's Lightful Softening Lotion Here's another old favourite you guys are probably used to hearing my rave on and on about. I love this particularly in the morning because when you splash some on a cotton pad and run it over your face it removes dry skin instantly making the texture of your skin softer and easier to apply make up to. You can read more about it on my blog here and here.

Step 3: Avène Thermal Spring Water Spray I absolutely adore using this spray before applying serums or moisturizers, I find it really opens up the pores and allows what you apply afterwards to really sink in. This is another one that has gotten quite a bit of publicity on my blog you may have seen it here, here and here. Clearly with that much love you might be surprised to hear that once I finish this can I am actually going to be trying a new spray, what blasphemy right?! I've finally given in and ordered the Omorovicza Queen of Hungary Mist that was on my Wishlist.

Step 4: Finally some new products you haven't heard me ramble on about yet!! In the palm of my hand I like to mix a little bit of the Kiehl's Powerful Strength Line- Reducing Serum (I've also added this into my evening skin care routine as well) with 2 drops of Fresh's Seaberry Moisturizing Face Oil and massage that into the face and neck, you want to let it sit for a couple minutes to really absorb before applying any moisturizer. 

Step 5: While my serum/oil concoction in sinking in I like to apply my eye cream, Caudalie's Vinosource S.O.S Morning Eye Rescue. I have super sensitive eyes; sensitive to eye creams, if I have a minor food allergy my eyes are the first thing to swell up, they're just a pain in the butt. Not only does this not irritate my eyes at all but it also helps bring down my puffy eyes after someone has fed me mushrooms when I told them I was allergic... but that's another story! This stuff is also hydrating without leaving a sticky residue that will interfere with eye make up.

Step 5.5: I like to prep my lips by applying a nice thick layer of NUXE Reve de Miel Baume Levres Ultra-Nourrissant Ultra-Nourishing Lip Balm so that they're soft and moisturized come time to apply lip products.

Step 6: While letting my face soak up all the good stuff I've just slathered it in I like to move onto moisturizing the rest of the skin on my body, right now I'm loving The Body Shop's Coconut Body Butter (It's on sale 50% in stores and online so now would be the perfect time to stock up on body butters!!) I've grown up using The Body Shop's Body Butters on and off since I was probably ten and I just keep coming back to them; amazing texture, wonderful fragrances and they really do hydrate all day long! I'm particularly obsessed with anything coconut right now because it reminds me of summer and well, I live in the land of endless winter, seriously - it's still snowing...

Step 7: I've usually got pretty good skin but around the same time every month a couple nasty little spots decide to creep up on my face, last week I went to Murale in search of an answer to my problems. Having dry, sensitive skin makes blemish spot treatments pretty tricky but she suggested Blemish Gel 5% by B.Kamins, this is the first thing I've tried from this Canadian skin care brand and I'm loving it! It dries up the blemish without drying out your skin and can even be worn under make up, every girl needs to have this on hand!

Step 8: This is usually the part of the morning where I would go stuff my face with delicious breakfast but for the sake of this post let's just skip on to the next bit. Moisturizers! I'm still using and still loving my Delarom Revitality Cream (I even dedicated a whole post to it here if you want to read about the vanishing forehead wrinkle) and considering I've been using it for three months now it makes the $107 price tag a little easier to swallow, but with the pile of creams I brought back from Paris I still have to work my way through it'll be a little while before I'm replacing this bad boy after it finally runs out.

Step 9: This is a more optional step but on the mornings I've got some extra time or I really feel like pampering myself I like to massage some Nuxe Huile de Prodigieuse into my appendages, it just feels so luxurious and smells fantastic. This is clearly another one of my favourites, you can read more about it on my blog here, here and here.

Not quite as extensive as my evening routine but pretty dang close! What are some of your guys' favourite products and is there something you think I would love? Let me know in the comments, clearly I love to try new things!

Monthly Favourites: February 2014

February; what an eventful month you've been! My boyfriend has moved to the States, which while not as close as I would like at least we're on the same continent now! I got a wee little promotion at work which is why my schedule has become easier to stick to the two a week posting schedule and my sister hosted the most badass DIY Harry Potter Birthday party for my nephew that turned 8; I helped out and was referred to as Mrs. Professor Snape all afternoon which I wasn't too upset by. You can see pictures of my sisters handiwork below. And yes, that is me teaching a spells class to a room full of kids...

Now on to the beauty!!

Skincare

February was a month of discovering new favourites and falling in love with old ones all over again!

Delarom Revitality Cream: This little wonder was one of the items I stockpiled during my trip to Paris, I've been using it for about six weeks now and it's amazing, let's just say NO MORE FOREHEAD WRINKLE! If you'd like to know more about why I love this product so much you can read my recent review of it here.

Etude House Missing U Handcream in Peach Panda: Ok, let's be real here, I only bought this hand cream because of how adorable the packaging is, but can you blame me?! Look at how cute it is!!! The cream itself was alright, great scent and doesn't leave your hands with a greasy residue but not nearly moisturizing enough if you have scaly dry hands like me. So why then did I love it so much? Because of the way the packaging is designed you can easily refill the panda when you've used up all the cream, so once I was out of the hand cream from Etude House I cleaned it out and refilled it with the Body Shop's Vineyard Peach Body Butter.

Clarisonic: I've had my Clarisonic Mia for about a year now and I love it. I know some people that use them daily whenever they cleanse their skin but my sensitive little skin just can't take that. When it was oilier and more acne prone that's exactly what I used to do and it worked wonders for me, but when my skin made the massive switch from oily and acne prone to dry and sensitive using it that much caused me to break out like crazy, so I stopped using. This month I reintroduced it to my skin care regime, only using it 2-3 times a week, when my skin was feeling dull or I had a lot of make up on and I just wanted to feel like my skin could breath again and I'm really happy I kept it around instead of giving into the urge to toss it when my face started to freak out; some times less really is more!

Hair Care

Charles Worthington Moisture Seal Overnight Ultimate Hair Healer: Fleur had mentioned this product in one of her favourites videos so when I was in London I had to pick it up and give it a go; it is truly worthy of the name Ultimate Hair Healer! The last night before my weekly shampoo I coat my hair in this and then throw it up into a bun; first let me point out that there is no messy residue left on your pillow from this which is awesome and after shampooing and conditioning as usual in the morning my hair was so unbelievably soft and shiny. When this runs out I'm going to have to get one of my friends in the UK to hit up Boots for me!

Charles Worthington Strength and Repair Pro-Heat Repair Milk: I picked this up at the same time as the overnight mask above because Boots had them on offer and I love this stuff! It works as a heat protectant for blow drying and straightening so you don't need to use two products- it leaves your hair super shiny and soft and I found it also gave a little added volume to my limp locks. I haven't been able to find anywhere online where I can get the Charles Worthington Spa at Home collection so if you know let me know in the comments below!

Difiaba Luminessence Shine Mist in Hibiscus Formula:  I bought a whole bunch of stuff from this collection online (ie. eBay) about a year ago and absolutely loved everything except for this, to me it was a let down, I felt like it left my hair looking greasy instead of shiny. After watching a YouTube video, can't remember who, about dry shampoo and shine sprays I tried spraying it into my brush and then running the brush through my hair as opposed to spraying it directly into my hair and what a world of difference that makes! I absolutely adore this now, its a combination of aromatherapy and hair care in one. The smell is incredible but not so strong as to be offensive, everything else in the collection also has this wonderful scent and my hair always looks so shiny and healthy when I use it. It pairs great with dry shampoo to bring back some shine instead of the "I didn't wash my hair this morning, or yesterday morning and coated it in powder instead" dull hair look I was previously sporting.

Beauty

L'Oreal's Mega Volume Miss Manga Mascara:  I picked this up in Boots back in January because the mascara I'd been using was finished and this one was new and on offer; it boasts uncontrollable volume and it does not leave you disappointed. The wand has a 360 degree flexible cone brush that makes it super easy to apply to even the teensiest lower lashes.

Skin Food Good Afternoon BB Cream in Peach Green Tea: When BB Creams first became popular in North America I steered clear because I had super oily acne prone skin and was busy applying full coverage mattifying foundation with a spackle, the thought of a more natural looking finish with a built in moisturizer was blasphemy to me. So when I started ordering Asian cosmetics and received billions of little samples of different BB Creams I figured maybe it was time to give them a try. I tried 12, yes 12, different samples and this one was my favourite; now that I have dry skin the moisturizing properties of a BB cream aren't up to par with what my skin needs so this one is nice in that the green tea provides oil control so I can layer over my normal cream without looking shiny and it gives great natural coverage.

MAC's Mineralize Skin Finish in Perfect Topping: I'm obsessed. Some days I feel like bathing in this and get a little carried away and suddenly what started out as a highlight has moved onto my collar bones and shoulders because I just can't be shimmery enough! This is a gorgeous rose gold colour that came out with the Fantasy of Flowers collection, I swatched it in a previous post that you can see here.

Random Bits and Bobs

Nigel the Dachshund Necklace from Cat-a-Cake Creations: I stumbled into a cute little boutique shop in Brighton and immediately fell in love with this necklace. I've previously owned two little dachshund and they're probably one of my favourite breeds and will always have a soft spot in my heart so when I saw this necklace I knew I needed it in my life, plus the cute little description that reads " Nigel is one cute little sausage dog looking for a loving home! He has 3 beautiful stars engraved on his back. He loves walks on the beach and dislikes Justin Beiber."stole my heart. While I was paying for the necklace I got a change to meet Nigel the cute little sausage the necklace was modeled after and I heard the heart warming story of how he was given as a 30th birthday gift to cheer up the designer who was a little upset about turning 30. You can find Nigel and many other cute designs here. That adorable little Jammie Dodgers necklace is next on my list!

Tea of the Month:  I was going to give it to Wanderlust Green Tea by Yumchaa Tea but since I already mentioned it in my What's in My Bag post I thought that I would give it to Choconut Oolong by David's Tea because it's like dessert in a cup and I've been indulging all month long!

Blog of the Month: She's quickly become one of my favourite blogger/vloggers, could it be that it's because she's a Canadian living in England with fantastic taste in beauty and skin care.... most likely. That or because she's freaking adorable. Check out Essiebutton here and on YouTube here.

Let me know what you guys were loving this month in the comments below!

What's My Age Again? Delarom Revitality Cream Review

I've been told all my life I seem quite mature for my age and I've always taken it as a compliment, until a couple of months ago I spotted it; this silent evil lurking in the dark behind foundation and under my moisturizer. It appeared in the shadows of the night one evening and installed itself on my forehead: yes, my very first wrinkle!! Ok, so maybe I'm being a little over dramatic, I'm not about to rush out and get botox - if that's your jam groovy but it's just not for me - and almost everyone I've asked says they have no idea what I'm talking about but I think they're just too nice to tell me I've been frowning too much lately - I blame my Kia of Death for that! I always thought crows feet or laugh lines were cute because they show you've spent your life smiling, but a giant forehead wrinkle at 22 was not my idea of aging gracefully.

Fast forward two months later to my romantic Paris getaway with the man, he's now standing patiently outside the pharmacy while I point at my forehead in despair to the girl behind the counter. She must get this a lot because she calmly held my hand, sat me down and got down to business. I should state I've always be wary of these creams that claim to cure wrinkles so I was a little anxious to invest some of my hard earned money into something I didn't totally believe in, but hey, if she said whatever crazy french voodoo in this bottle would work I wanted to believe her. After some discussion about my skin, my lifestyle and the end result I wanted we settled on Delarom Revitality Cream. It was more than I'd ever invested in any skin care item before but that forehead wrinkle had me in a "no fucks given" mood, pardon my french.

You may have noticed the funky new background in this photo, I got kinda bored of taking pictures on a white background, especially when the packaging is also white. So the painting in the background is by a talented local artist by the name of Bradley Gobeil, I chose it because this moisturizer totally makes me feel like fist pumping to infinity and beyond. If you like this picture check out the rest of his work on Instagram.

I was trying to figure out the best way to dish on this cream with out spending all day screaming "look at my forehead" to a bunch of people who can't see through a computer screen and since I didn't really think it would work I have no "before" photo to compare the two images for you guys, so let me give you a good ol' fashioned pro's and con's list and then leave it up to you guys to decide whether or not you want to take the plunge!

Con's:

• It is definitely a little bit more on the pricey side; I can't remember what I paid for it in Paris but this website has it listed for $107 which seems to be the average after a quick google search.
• Not super hydrating; this would be great if you had normal to oily skin but for someone like myself with dry skin I had to do some tweaking to make it work aka mix a little bit of my regular moisturizer with it on drier days. But now that we're out of the death grips of -30 weather I have been wearing it just on it's own for the last couple of weeks and it's been great!
• Not immediate results; clearly with any real "fix" it takes time to work it's voodoo but I'm a results driven person so it took some effort not to give up on it after a week of no noticeable change but around the 4 week mark is where I noticed drastic improvement.

Pro's:

• NO MORE FREAKING FOREHEAD WRINKLE!!!! And I mean none, unless I make that horrid frowny face that I'm sure gave me the wrinkles in the first place, I am back to looking like the fresh faced 21 year old I was before I bought a cursed death trap for a vehicle.
• It has an amazing smell; I can't place it but it's super light almost "clean" scent.
• The texture is great; not too runny or too thick and goopy. Not at all greasy and my make up applies wonderfully over top of it.
• Aside from the wrinkle disappearing, my skin looks great; it's tight and radiant, my pores are small, I haven't had more than a single spot for a "break out"

This is the first and so far only product I have tried from Delarom but I can see a bright future for our relationship if their other products are this wonderful!

Have you tried any Delarom Products before? What are your favourite "anti- aging" tricks and products? I'd love to hear in the comments below.