The Body Shop's Drops Of Youth WonderBlur | Review

I have never really used a primer, mostly because I'm too lazy to add another step in my already busy skin/make-up routine.

However I have recently switched over to mineral make up, which always works best with a primer. I have used it without a primer and it just doesn't look as flawless or last very long at all. 

Whenever I'm looking for a new product I always look first in The Body Shop, because most of their products are brilliant, and stumbled across wonder blur. 

Priced at £16 it claims to smooth skin texture by reducing the appearance or large pores and fine lines. For me, it does all these things. The first thing I noticed when applying this product is how soft my skin was. When I tried it on my hand in the shop the area I applied it to was so soft and it does the same on my face. I have a lot acne scars some of which have dipped so I need a primer that smooths skin texture, I have to tell you know that it's not a miracle worker but it does stop my foundation sinking into my pores and fines lines I have around my chin and also prevents laughter lines! It really does increase the longevity of my foundation. Also it's non-comedogenic so suitable for sensitive/acne prone skin. 

This paired with my bareMinerals original foundation is my new favourite make up routine that leaves me with natural, 'my skin but better' foundation that lasts all day.

Which primers do you like? Have you tried Wonderblur? 

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bareMinerals Original Foundation SPF 15 | Review

I've always been intrigued by bareMinerals and its promises of flawless, natural foundation and skin improving ingredients, it sounds like another false advertising campaign, right?

So after watching lots and lots of YouTube videos I decided to bit the bullet and give this foundation a try and I think it's fair to say I have not been left disappointed *get ready for an excitable rant*

Oh wow do I love this foundation. It leaves my skin looking so natural whilst still covering all my acne scars. I am not used to using powder foundations and do think this takes a little bit of practise but once you find a way to make it work for you it looks amazing. I like to use my Real Techniques Expert Face Brush and to really buff it in. Bareminerals NEEDS to be buffed, in a way it sort of activates it, the more you buff the more coverage you get. Its coverage can be anything from light-full as its very buildable, applying it in thin layers is the best way to build up the coverage. Once applying a powder, just to set it, I then take a flat concealer brush and tap on the foundation over any blemishes/scars that it hasn't already covered and this helps to achieve a real flawless look.
Another thing I really love about this foundation is that it lasts all day, in fact it looks better throughout the day! I don't know how it does it but unlike other foundations which can loose their coverage throughout the day bareminerals seems to look even more flawless as the day goes on. For example, the other day I applied the foundation around 10 AM and spent the day out in the cold walking around a gorgeous reservoir, I then went straight out for dinner (without any touch ups) and by the time I got home at 10 PM the make up looked pretty much the same as it did when I put it on, maybe a little shiny but no where near as bad as other foundations would have looked. It also doesn't sink in to my laughter lines like other foundations do, keeping my face looking natural and not patchy.
The main thing I love about this foundation is the way it makes my skin look and feel. I love the 'no make up/my skin but better look' and this foundation gives me that. It's so light weight that it feels like you aren't wearing any make up at all and at the end of the day once removing my make up with my Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish my skin doesn't look read and sensitive as it does when using a foundation with lots of chemicals in it. I truly believe that (slowly but surely) this foundation is improving the condition of my skin and being someone that has suffered from acne breaking/scarring for a very long time now I really am grateful for that.

Have you tried it?

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Soap and Glory's Sexy Mother Pucker Gloss Stick | Review

I love glossy lips and these lip crayon's by Soap and Glory have become my go to every day lip products, I love them!
What's good about them? They are a quick easy way to get a sweep of colour, shine and slightly fuller lips. These gloss crayons contain Soap and Glory's famous lip plumping formula without the uncomfortable tingling feeling that you get with the other Sexy Mother Pucker products.
The colours are lovely, not a huge range of colours but 5 staple colours. My favourite every day shade is Nudist. It's a lovely nude colour with slightly brown undertones that gives you a 'my lips but better look'. Also the gloss lasts a lot longer than some of my other lip glosses so that's an added bonus! They are also super moisturising so great for use in the colder months where chapped lips can make your lip stick look awful.
Despite all these good traits of them I do have a favourite...the smell!! Oh wow, they smell gorgeous, like Cadbury's mini eggs, yummy, making them quite addictive to apply.
These lip crayons are a bargain at only £8 and in my opinion totally worth the money.

Have you tried them?

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10 Places I'd Love To Visit

Travelling is a BIG to do on my bucket list and something that I've not yet done a lot off. The world we live in is an amazing place with some stunning landmarks. Here are my top 10 places that I'd like to travel too...

1. Ireland

Ever since I saw P.S. I Love You I've always wanted to visit Ireland. It's a beautiful country with breathtaking country side views a gorgeous little beach coves. Plus the Irish accent is b-e-a-utiful!

2. Thailand

Thailand's an amazing country so full of culture and so different to England. My main reason for wanting to go to Thailand is my love of Elephants, I'd love to go to an elephant sanctuary and see Asian Elephants!

3. Canada

The landscape in Canada looks breathtaking. I'd love to see a mountain range and the Rocky Mountains would be a pretty cool one to see.

4. Paris

Paris is a beautiful city with so many famous landmarks. I have actually been to Paris before on a school trip but it was years ago and I didn't get to see all I wanted to see. I'd love to see the Eiffel Tower at night, the love lock bridge but more importantly Disneyland Paris!!

5. Australia

My main reason for wanting to visit Australia is because I have family living out there that I hardly ever get too see. But it would also be an amazing place to visit because of the beaches and the wildlife. I'd love to go to The Great Barrier Reef and see all the little fishies! 

6. Greece

I don't have a lot of reasoning as to why I want to visit Greece except that it looks like a beautiful country, would be a lovely place to visit with my family as a summer holiday.

7. Scotland

Scotland for me is only a train ride away and is home to rolling hills of country side, ancient castle ruins and running streams. I love the country side so for me Scotland is a must.

8. The Maldives

For obvious reasons? Imagine lying on a sun lounger, a cocktail in hand with this as your view? Yes please!

9.  Alaska

Similarly to Canada Alaska has some breathtaking views and somewhere where not a lot of people think to visit, I'd love to stand on the edge of that reservoir breathing in the fresh air looking at the incredible view.

10. America

Road trip anyone? Me and my sister have always dreamed about road-triping around America, there's so many amazing cities to visit, its hard to choose just one to mention!

Where would you most like to visit?

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You Are What You Eat? | The Acne Diaries

Whilst suffering with acne and having no luck with any acne-fighting products, I decided to do some research into the route cause of acne and ways to fight it starting from the inside out. Whilst there have been no actually proven studies that there is a link between what you eat and acne I can't help but thinking that it is - if all you eat is greasy fatty food then surely that's going to reflect in your skin?

Eating healthy has many benefits to your body and this reflects in your skin. I have made a few alterations to my diet and have seen great results!

Firstly cutting out dairy. This wasn't difficult for me as I don't eat a lot of dairy except for milk in tea and on cereal and yoghurt but after reading about the effects dairy can have on your body and your skin it made sense to cut dairy out of my diet. In a nutshell milk and dairy products contain growth hormones and inflammatory substances that can clog your pores and cause acne. There are some great dairy alternatives to milk out there, I now use Alpro Unsweetened Almond Milk which as well as containing no dairy has lots of healthy plant based ingredients and in my opinion tastes better too! 

Cutting down on sugar and salt - the reasons for this is obvious and although we all hate to hear it, does make a difference. Although having a sugary treat every often won't do to much damage!

Eating more fruits and vegetables - again the reasons for this is obvious but trying to eat the recommended 5 day is important to getting vital vitamins and minerals that will benefit your health and show in your skin. Smoothies are a great way at getting lots of fruit portions all at once however its best to make your own as some supermarket bought smoothies have added sugar in.

Taking fish oil supplements also help reduce acne. I have been taking them for a few months now and have seen the benefits. This is because it increases your omega-3 in take which, again in a nut shell, reduces inflammation, helps balance hormone production and and slows down skin cell over production keeping your pores clear! 
One of my new years resolutions this year has been to drink more water and since doing this I have noticed a big difference! During our busy lives we often forget to keep ourselves hydrated and its not till you make a concious effort to drink more water that you realise what a difference it makes.My breakouts have reduced and my acne scars seem to be slowly fading. I also love drinking green tea as it's got other health benefits too.
These are just a few dietary changes that I have made and have seen great results in my skin. This is just a brief explanation of foods that can effect your acne for more information check out Clear Skin Forever's blog. This is were I read up on how to get rid of my acne by getting to the route of the cause. Obviously eating healthy has a heap load of other benefits and once you start its kind of addictive, there's loads of tasty healthy options out there!

Hope this helps!

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A Healthy Little Treat

I'm trying to be a lot healthier, but am missing the sweet treats that I used to love. So I have been trying to make unhealthy snacks into healthy treats! After having a very green salad for lunch I fancied something sweet so decided to make some yummy pancakes using plain flour, 1 egg and almond milk (when making pancakes I tend to guess with measurements until it looks like pancake mix). Once cooked I topped it with Nutella (which is still a tiny bit naughty but is a lot healthier than melted chocolate as its mainly just hazelnuts) and blueberries, yum!

Eating healthy is important but it shouldn't be a chore! Making simple little changes like using almond milk instead of cows milk and Nutella instead of milk chocolate. Accompanied with some green tea in my favourite mug and this was the perfect afternoon treat!

What healthy snacks do you enjoy?

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