Category Archives: beauty news

Brain like a sieve: I forgot to put the budget face masks in the Affordable Skincare Routine post and also, more importantly, I completely omitted to tell you that I had made a video to go alongside it!

If you read the main post, you’ll see that I’m doing a huge clearout in my beauty room, ready for house renovations to begin (*weeps*) and I am trying to film little videos along the way. There are boxes with notes taped to them dated from 2013, 2012 – even 2011! – with video ideas and lists of products to be included. Shameful. Some of the stuff (especially the more natural and organic) had mould growing inside. Some stuff smelt of old wee. I have chucked those things, obviously, but where they received a glowing report on my list, I have made an effort to replenish stocks so that I can finally get the filming done. So, plenty more vids to come, and not just skincare.

So here are the masks that I picked out from my box of budget beauty finds. If the photo above looks familiar, it’s because I did an almost identical post last year and have only just realised. At least I’m consistent! Here’s the older post:

Affordable Face Masks for Deep Cleansing Your Skin. 

Oh dear. Rather than repeat myself, I think it’s best if you click the link above to read about the Visibly Clear 2-in-1, the 5 Minute Thermal Detox and the Liz Earle mask, but I do have a new addition to the mix, which is the Bioderma Hydrabio Moisturising Mask (£14.50 here). It’s a gentle, creamy mask that feels soothing and gives a bit of an extra moisture boost. I’ve been applying it in quite a thick layer, and then tissuing it off after about half an hour. Which is probably against all of the rules on the box, but I didn’t read the instructions and then the dog ate the packaging! I must say that I find it difficult to gauge results with moisturising masks; with a deep cleanse or renewing mask you can see a visible difference and feel a new smoothness or freshness but with hydration it’s hard to tell whether or not you’re any better off than just slathering on a good moisturiser! I must do more research on them, now that my skin seems to be getting drier and drier (hello new phase of pregnancy skin!) – there’s a new one from Suqqu that’s absolutely bloody AMAZING, but definitely not in the affordable category. Watch this space.

*Update: I almost forgot to put the video in, AGAIN! Here it is – for all of the product details, remember to click back to the main Affordable Skin Care post.

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Those who have mastered the application of false eyelashes need not read on; they will find this post faintly ridiculous. Those who would rather rewire all of the electrics in their house wearing a blindfold and oven gloves than attempt to spread rubbery glue along the edge of a flimsy band with an approximate thickness of 0.00001mm and try to stick it on their eyelids without gluing their lids together, their lashes together or scratching their retina: I have a treat for you.

Ardell’s Press On Lash with self-adhesive. “Just Press & Go!” it says on the packet. And that, my fellow lash-hating friends, is exactly what you do. The edges of the lashes are pre-sticky and you just position them with the soft-flex applicator before pressing them to the lid. I actually found that they didn’t come away from the applicator very easily and did better without, but each to their own. This has revolutionised my makeup world: Barbie-esque eyes are now within my everyday reach. (You still have to position them, which is trickier than you’d imagine if you’ve never tried it before – like attempting to wrestle a small live centipede, but at least you’re not wrestling a small live centipede who’s leaking adhesive from the length of his torso.)

Let’s ignore the fact, for a minute, that I am in no way a lover of overdone lashes; they look absurd, especially when the wearer lowers their eyes and you see the full scale of the untruth. A block of black, wispy fibres perched unnaturally on the edge of the lid like a plastic eye-pelmet. But do I want the option to be able to wear overdone lashes? Yes! Yes I do! And not all lashes look overdone: I chose style 101, and they were quite – how can I put this? – enthusiastic, but I’ve spotted some called Wispies and shall have to now try those, too.

I do very much like the way that they transform the eyes with little in the way of effort. Here’s my before and after:

I mean, it’s definitely a “look” and not one I’d wear to nip down to Tesco, but for drawing attention to the eyes, opening them and making them look brighter and more awake? Marvellous.

The best thing about this discovery is that I feel slightly more confident about applying lashes with glue. I haven’t gone there just yet (my last attempt ended in disaster a few years ago and I am still haunted by all of the occupational-hazard-horrors that frequently used to happen to me in the makeup chair) but I’m working up to it. In the meantime, I’m sticking (geddit?) to Ardell.

You can find the Ardell lashes online here for £7.45 – in the course of looking for prices I have found other pre-glued lashes (I honestly had no idea they existed, I’m obviously late to the party!) so shall make it my mission to try them all and report back. The only downside I see is the fact that they can only feasibly be stuck on once – after that, surely the adhesive is used up and you have to apply them the traditional way? No getting around that, I suppose, but it’s something to think about on a cost-per-wear level…

The post For False EyeLash Fools: Just Press & Go appeared first on A Model Recommends.

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l’Occitane have launched their winter fragrance, Arlésienne, and I have to tell you that I know more backstory on this fragrance than on pretty much any other beauty product I’ve ever tried. (Apart from CoLab, of course.) Earlier in the year I visited Arles in the South of France to learn about the mysterious Woman of Arles, or Arlésienne, the inspiration behind the new perfume and body range, and it was a real eye-opener to discover just how much of an important figure she was – and still is – in the region. The Arlésienne has inspired artists (Picasso, Van Gough, Bizet) and is held as a kind of mythical feminine ideal – mysterious, beautiful, strong, fiery, independent and graceful all at the same time.

The Arlésienne fragrance was inspired by the many facets of this mysterious woman and, as a result, it’s actually quite a surprising and unusual scent. It’s certainly not what you’d expect from a winter perfume release – there’s no heaviness or spicy, woody undertone, it’s all quite light and floral. There’s a bit of an edge with the addition of saffron into the mix, but otherwise it’s a feminine blend of rose and violet. There’s a little warmth from the sandalwood and tonka bean, but mostly I get floral, with perhaps something a bit peachy to start with – maybe that’s the mandarin?

More fragrance reviews….

I do very much like the story behind this range – everything from the colourful prints on the box (swirling printed skirts of the Arles women) to the scent itself has been inspired by Arles and its myths and traditions. I’m not sure how much of this backstory the typical harassed Christmas shopper will pick up on, but if you’re looking for some relief from the usual spiced-cloves-and-cinnamon “festive” fragrances, stop by and give Arlésienne a sniff. I’m wearing it now and feeling very uplifted! My pick from the range would actually be the candle – the scent works very well diffused gently throughout a room and – again – something a little lighter and fresher than the traditional Christmas scents.

You can find the whole range online here – prices start at £4.50 for the little hand soap, the candle is £24.

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September marks the first birthday of the Lookfantastic #LFBeautyBox, so they’ve created a special box to mark the occasion – and what a box it is! The Lookfantastic Beauty Box is only £15, and their box is unique to other beauty boxes as there are no subscription contracts involved; you simply buy the boxes as and when you want them, which is such a good idea as you can wait to see what treats are inside before parting with your money, so you know what you’re getting. If you like the element of surprise with your beauty box, you can order the box as soon as it launches on the 1st of the month so you still have a surprise…

The first item in the box is a 30ml bottle of the Bliss Fabulous Foaming Face Wash (worth £3.50) which is a 2 in 1 rinse-off cleanser and exfoliator for all skin types. It is suitable for all skin types and effectively removes dirt and makeup, whilst gently exfoliating the skin. I’m not a fan of foaming facial skincare products as they’re quite drying, but I’m definitely going to give this one a try as it contains skin softening ingredients which I hope would minimise any dryness. This is a nice and generous size that I imagine would give a fair few applications. Continue reading →