Seasonal Favourites – Winter 2014-2015

Tags

Burberry, candle, Charlotte Tilbury, dior, Elemis, Escentric Molecules, eyeshadows, favourites, Laura Mercier, Omorovicza Queen of Hungary Mist, Penhaligon's Malabah, red lipstick, Smiling Shoes, stiletto shoes, tea, Tom Ford

Since I can finally say that I can see major signs of Spring after such a long Winter, I thought I’d do a Favourites post!

Now, I’m not the one to do these kind of posts on a regular basis, mainly because once I discover a product that I really love and I know it works for me, I totally stick to it for the longest time. So a monthly makeup favourites, or skincare favourites would be kind of repetitive and unnecessary. Plus to form a decent opinion on a new product, especially with skincare, it might take a lot more than one month.

But this past couple of months I’ve tested a good few new products that instantly stole my heart and made it to my Favourites…

Here you have my absolute Seasonal Favourites for the Winter of 2014-2015:

– festive red listick was THE thing for me this winter. I particularly loved these Tom Ford shades – Crimson Noir ( permanent ) and Alejandro, from the Lips&Boys Collection. I also loved the iconic Dior Rouge 999, the orange-reds Estée Lauder Pure Colour Envy in shade Impassioned and Wild Ginger also from the Tom Ford permanent line and the Burberry Lip Cover in #18 Ruby. Later on I’ve discovered the new, reformulated Chanel Rouge Coco in Arthur, which made me dig out it’s matte correspondent, the Tom Ford ( again! ) Flame.

– Tom Ford Lips&Boys Alejandro – Burberry Ruby – Chanel Arthur– Tom Ford Crimson Noir– Dior Rouge 999

– for skincare, I don’t change it too much, I’m only adjusting it to the needs of my sensitive skin. But the products I loved the most were the Elemis Pro-Collagen Cleansing Balm Anti-Ageing, the Elemis Gentle Rose Exfoliator, the First Aid Beauty Face Cleanser which I like to use combined with the Diptyque Radiance Boosting Powder for a deeper cleanse, my holy grail mask – the Oskia Rainessance Nutri-Active Brightening & Resurfacing Mask and the new addition, the Elemis Papaya Enzyme Peel Mask and of course, my beloved Omorovicza Queen of Hungary Mist. Mostly cleansing products now that I take a closer look! No wonder though! because I firmly believe that a clean skin is a good, healthy skin. And a flawless “canvas” also means an easier makeup application, with less products! I also have to mention my hands and lips saviours this Winter: the By Terry Baume de Rose and the Laura Mercier delicious gourmet hand creams.

– my favourite Winter home scent for the past two years has been this Byredo Bibliothèque Fragranced Candle. I can’t even tell you how much I love this candle and how many I have burnt down. This year I went for something different, something more smokey and warm, with comforting notes of patchouli, birch tar and guaiac wood – the Burberry Smokey Embers Fragranced Candle. It’s the perfect candle to “recreate the mood of an English fireside afternoon”, as they say on their website. Definitely give this one a sniff if you’re in a Burberry store.

– for fashion items I absolutely lived in my Smiling Shoes heels! You might think that I went bananas, especially if you know what winters are like in Continental Excessive Climates, but stay assured I still had boots on for walking outside, in the snow. But for work and going out, and winter parties these shoes never left my feet!

– for random favourites, I really got into tea which I think it warmed my body as well as my soul. I particularly loved the combination of strong, aromatic tea ( mostly from the Teapigs company ) and coconut milk.

Also my love for clementines went to another level of obsession, and I always found myself munching on them and these Milka cookies…

And I totally hated 50 Shades of Grey – simply because I can’t get excited about someone else’s sexual fantasies… No offense!

I hope you enjoyed my favourite things for the Winter months and please be kind and share yours!

Also, should I make this Seasonal Favourites a regular entry on my blog? What do you think?

See you soon, beautiful!

xx, Annie

PM Skincare routine…

Tags

Balance Me, Diptyque, Elemis, First Aid Beauty, Kielh's, L'Occitane, night time routine, Omorovicza, Oskia, skincare

This is my current nighttime skincare routine step by step!

STEP I:

– TIE HAIR UP – these might seem like a lot of hair ties and pins, but these go missing like crazy, so it’s always a good idea to keep a “few” in hand. Love these ones from Oysho.

STEP II:

– TAKE MAKEUP OFF – I’m a huge fan of cleansing. I firmly believe that a clean skin is a healthy skin… Therefore I double or triple-cleanse! 

Here is how a triple cleanse sounds like:

I’m starting with some L’Occitane Cleansing Milk on two large cotton pads to take off most of my makeup. Then I wash my face with an oil cleanser, my pick: the L’Occitane Cleansing Oil and to make sure that there’s no makeup residue whatsoever I also use a tiny bit of the First Aid Beauty Face Cleanser combined with the Diptyque Radiance Boosting Powder.

On days where I’m not wearing a full-face of makeup, I skip on the L’Occitane Cleansing Oil and go directly to the First Aid Beauty Face Cleanser + Diptyque Radiance Boosting Powder combination.

STEP III:

– USE A TONER/EXFOLIATING PADS – I spritz some of the Omorovicza Queen of Hungary Mist on a regular cotton pad, then gently, in circular motions I take it all-over my face. Every other day I replace the face mist with one of the First Aid Beauty Facial Radiance Pads. These are amazing for a gentle acid exfoliation and they also tone and brighten your complexion. More on these coming soon!

STEP IV:

– HYDRATION + MOISTURE – USE A FACE SERUM – the one I’m currently using and loving the effect it has on my skin, is this Kiehl’s Midnight Recovery Concentrate, of which I only use a few drops rubbed between the palm of my hands, then I press it into the skin. This is fast absorbing and doesn’t leave any greasy residue… I already wrote a review on it here!

                                         – USE AN EYE CREAM – I’m was testing for quite a while this Balance Me Wonder Eye Cream a lightweight, yet very hydrating eye cream Alina from Debenhams UK kindly enough to sent it over, along with the Kiehl’s Serum. The review is already up!

                                         – USE A MOISTURIZER – my moisturizer of choice has been lately the Elemis Hydra-Nourish Night Cream, an anti-oxidant, rich night cream. But for an extra boost of moisture and hydration I always reach for another First Aid Beauty product, the Ultra Repair Cream – a very, very rich cream that offers intense hydration for dry, parched skin.

                       – USE A LIP BALM – the lip balm I’m still loving at the moment is the Omorovicza Perfecting Lip Balm. I know, I kind of strayed away from my beloved By Terry Baume de Rose, but I felt that the Omorovicza one suited my needs better.

                       – USE A HAND CREAM – don’t forget about your hands! They also need to be moisturized regularly, especially at this time of the year. I still have left some of the Laura Mercier Fresh Fig Hand Cream, that I try to finish up. *Gosh, this smells delicious!* This would be the last hand cream in my stash then I will have to purchase a new one! Any good recommendations?

I would love to know what your PM Skincare Routine consists of, so please kindly share it in the Comments below!

Also keep in mind that this daily routine doesn’t include masks and other treatments I use! These will be featured in a separate post!

See you soon, beautiful!

xx, Annie

 

 

DISCLAIMER here.

Overview: ELEMIS anti-ageing, pro-collagen skincare

Tags

anti ageing, anti-oxidant, Elemis, Elemis Gentle Rose Exfoliator, Elemis Hydra-Nourish Night Cream, Elemis Papaya Enzyme Peel Anti- Ageing, Elemis Pro-Collagen Cleansing Balm Anti-Ageing, Elemis Pro-Radiance Illuminating Flash Balm Anti-Ageing, enzymatic peel, pro-collagen, review, skincare

Winner of Best British Brand at the 2014 CEW (UK) Beauty Awards, ELEMIS is the leading luxury British spa and skincare brand chosen by over 6.5 million spa-goers every year.

Their formulations are designed to dynamically treat the skin with powerful results. The successful combination of natural active ingredients with cutting-edge technology has enabled ELEMIS to bring some of the most influential anti-ageing products and professional spa-therapies the beauty industry has ever seen.

ELEMIS is now present in one of the most luxurious SPAs worldwide: Dubai, Hong Kong and Miami, to name a few locations…

Here you have a small selection of my favourite products:

Elemis Pro-Collagen Cleansing Balm Anti-Ageing

This powerful treatment cleansing balm dissolves make-up and daily grime. It’s a luxurious treatment balm is expertly formulated with a 100% active base of natural oils grown within the UK, to helped your skin feeling softened and soothed, nourished and effectively remove make-up. It’s a versatile product which can be used as a treatment mask also!

Elemis Gentle Rose Exfoliator – enriched with Hydrating Absolute of Moroccan Rose and smooth micro-spherical Jojoba beads this mild rose scented product gives you a very gentle exfoliation, leaving your skin silky soft to the touch without stripping off your natural face oils. Gentle enough to be used daily, the Elemis Gentle Rose Exfoliator is ideal for all complexions, including the most sensitive skins like mine. 

 

Elemis Pro-Radiance Illuminating Flash Balm Anti-Ageing Skin Radiance Flash Balm is a “hybrid moisturiser” whose instant skin-flattering qualities are as compelling as its ability to hydrate the skin. Formulated with a powerful vitamin complex that helps protect against moisture loss, whilst exquisite purple orchid, noni and acai help defend against the early signs of skin ageing.

I simply love lightweight skin perfectors like this one and my Omorovicza Complexion Corrector SPF 20 that make my skin look flawless and allow the smoothest makeup aplication.

Elemis Hydra-Nourish Night Cream Anti-Oxidant Rich Night Cream

This anti-oxidant rich night cream helps prevent moisture loss and works to nourish and de-stress tired skin. Persian silk tree extract helps reduce signs of fatigue, whilst hyaluronic acid provides regular hydration. As you sleep, the skin’s ability to absorb active ingredients peaks and skin cells go through a natural regeneration process to repair damage caused throughout the day.

The scent on this one is a bit more strong which might cause irritations for those with sensitive skins. I smells like Dior J’Adore if you know the perfume – an aromatic blend of geranium and ylang ylang meant to also calm and rebalance your skin. The scent fades in a matter of minutes and I, personally, had no reaction to it. But I just wanted to warn you about that aspect too!

Elemis Papaya Enzyme Peel Anti-Ageing Extreme Exfoliante Douceur is a prdoduct I wanted to try for so long! It is enriched with the natural fruit enzymes of exfoliating Papaya and calming Pineapple smooth and clarify the complexion. This rinse-off exfoliating cream contains nourishing Milk Protein, Anti-Oxidant rich Vitamin E and Marine Algae to Moisturise, repair, and Protect Skin. Perfect for complexions which are sensitive or mature. It smells divine and it is one of the best face masks I had the chance to try, right there with my Oskia Renaissance Mask Nutri-Active Brightening & Resurfacing Mask.

ELEMIS has played a fundamental part in the success and the phenomenal growth of professional spa-therapies in the beauty industry and has year on year brought to market new innovations to keep it ahead of the field. Their products are amazing and definitely deliver the results they promise.

Have you tried anything ELEMIS yet?

See you soon, beautiful!

xx, Annie

 

 

 

INTERESTING FACTS:

– When ELEMIS launched in 1989 in London, UK the professional spa industry was far from the sophisticated and skilled industry it is today. Linda Steiner, the founder had a dream to create a skincare range “as close to nature as possible”, regardless the expenses and for that she teamed up with several specialists and professional therapists.

– In 1991, ELEMIS launches into the professional spa environment and face and body treatments were developed to meet this need and during the development stage sturdy relationships were built with highstreet salons and SPAs, waiting for their national launch.

– Years went by and ELEMIS was chosen to be one of the main products and treatments on board of over 100 cruise line SPAs, a true challenge for the brand with worldwide customers using their products. The feedback was amazing!

– One of the highlights in the history of the brand was in 1996 when ELEMIS was acquired by the worlds largest spa service provider SteinerLeisure Group and rated on the NASDAQ stock exchange USA. Products were reformulated, logo was revamped and the packaging was also changed.

– And the rest is history! New product ranges were launched almost every year, new groundbreaking ingredients were discovered and used in new products with amazing results. New facial techniques influenced by practices used in Japan, India and Thailand were used to develop up to 24 new luxury spa-therapies for face and body treatments.

– And when the doors to the first ELEMIS SPA opened in Mayfair, London in 2001 they delivered a service beyond expectations with celebrities instantly adored and became a loyal clientele.