Monthly Archives: September 2015

Here we are with the December Dog and Beauty Favourites. I’m being silly with the dog part, of course; I only have one dog and so of course he is always the favourite. But as many of you will know, he was very ill throughout December and having him fit and well again for Christmas was just the best present ever. So he’s in my favourites along with hairbrushes and dry shampoo and whatnot.

More on the dry shampoo very shortly – my High Street Spies tell me that they have seen it in Superdrug, so I’ll do a full post asap. It’s the new addition to the Colab range; a dry shampoo that targets root volume to banish flatness and that lank, bleugh kind of look that tends to creep in when hair hasn’t been washed for a day or so. Watch this space – I’ll tell you more just as soon as I’ve had confirmation that it’s on the shelves!

Other December favourites of note include the Chanel Velvet foundation, which I have used more than anything else for the past few months, and the Wet Brush hairbrush for detangling wet hair, which is just the best thing since sliced bread. I’m also very partial to the new Lips and Boys lipsticks from Tom Ford, despite them costing about five and a half billion pounds each, but I’ll be doing a more in-depth post on those later this week. You can find the links to everything mentioned in the video at the bottom of this page.

Right: on with the show. I must get back to watching Elementary (see the Sunday Tittle Tattle post) – we’re on the ninth episode of the day and there’s still time for two more before bed…

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I wrote about the Ultra Repair Hydrating Serum a little while ago for my post on dehydrated skin, but I’ve tested it far more extensively since then and it most definitely deserves its own write-up. It’s made by First Aid Beauty, a US skincare brand who make very effective, yet easily tolerated products that are nicely priced. If ever I want something to target a specific skin concern – red, flaky patches, for example, or really tight and dry skin – then I find that this brand usually has something to suit.

Skincare: do I really need to use a serum? 

I’m a serum fan and have been for quite some time, now. Read the post linked above if you need some convincing, but in a nutshell, I feel that serums usually provide a good, concentrated hit of active ingredients in a lightweight, suit-all formula. They are the shot of espresso in a big cup of milky, frothy coffee (forgive me if this analogy is wrong, I’ve never drunk a coffee in my life but it seems like a good comparison!) or the vodka in the – er – vodka cocktail. More often than not they are of a liquid, watery consistency, but sometimes face oil blends are called serums too.

The Ultra Repair Hydrating Serum is a great, relatively inexpensive serum for those who want to start using a serum but don’t really know where to begin. It’s a water-based, almost weightless gel that slides on easily beneath your moisturiser and – though it doesn’t promise any ridiculous, overblown anti-ageing miracles – it takes brilliant care of the skincare basics. It tackles hydration (the serum contains hyaluronic acid and collagen), soothes irritation (colloidal oatmeal and allantoin) and helps to protect the skin from the daily onslaught of what the beauty industry has snazzily labelled “environmental aggressors” (pollution, cigarette smoke, etc).

The fact that this serum is non-oily, hydrating and soothing makes this a great all-rounder; acne-prone skin that’s raw and irritated, dehydrated skin that’s on the oily side, skin that tends towards redness. You can’t really go far wrong. My own face is relatively “normal” at the moment – very slightly oily in the t-zone, sometimes tight and dry elsewhere – and the Ultra Repair works perfectly. It juices things up nicely, boosting moisture levels without adding a layer of “gunk” to my face, if I feel as though I want to keep things fresh and simple. If you hate having to wear layers and layers of product in the daytime then this serum works very well directly beneath foundation, if it’s a relatively nourishing one, or BB cream or tinted moisturiser.

A brilliant “starter” serum, then, but this actually stands up to products that are multiple times the price, and I’ve found myself repeatedly reaching for it when I want something gentle and soothing to apply before moisturiser. Great for sensitive skin, oily skin, dehydrated skin and spot-prone skin that’s also all of the above, you can find it online (with full ingredients list) at LookFantastic here – it’s £26.

A very quick and easy nude makeup tutorial – perfect if you want something smart and polished for the daytime but at the same time like to keep things pretty understated. It’s a touch more makeup than I’d usually wear in the day, but I just fancied a change this week – a more grown-up look.

This tutorial features the new Chanel Le Volume de Chanel mascara from the Rouge Noir Christmas collection. What a beauty! Lash-volumising, flake-free and with a gorgeous reddish-purple hue that looks so much softer than jet black. (Though I do also have a borderline obsession with Chanel’s Ultra Noir, which gives the most ridiculously long and full lashes but takes about five years to remove.) I got into a bit of a muddle with the Rouge Noir, thinking that there were loads of negative reviews online – which I just couldn’t understand. I thought that maybe theirs had been from a bad batch, or that I had landed one from a good batch, but either way I was really worried in case a load of people went and bought it to find that it wasn’t up to scratch… Then I looked at the reviews again and they were from five years ago when Chanel did a Rouge Noir version of their Inimitable mascara. Different product. Oops. Panic over.

So yes: a quick and easy nude makeup look with a softly defined eyes, perfectly finished skin and posh, sheeny lips. The lipstick is YSL’s Le Nu in the collector’s edition “Kiss and Love” packaging – you can find that online here. The Rouge Noir mascara, if you like the sound of it, is at Boots here – worth splurging your advantage card points on, for sure, or if you want something safer then plump for the Ultra Noir.

Read more mascara reviews…

Right – on with the show. You’ll probably spot Mr Bear in the background, as well as Dexter, Baby AMR and even a silhouette of Mr AMR if you have your wits about you. It was all going on that day… Product links are below the video pane, should you wish to get a bit more info.

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