Monthly Archives: June 2017

Sunday Tittle Tattle: A Dog, A Cat and a Kayak.

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holiday kinsterna hotel

1) Hurrah! The Sunday Tittle Tattle is back. I’m back. Part of me wishes that it was still in Greece, but it’s good to start the New Year feeling relaxed and healthy and positively brimming with Vitamin D. (“NEW YEAR?” I hear you screech, “what the hell is that woman on about?” And I get you; it’s September, not January. But does nobody else still think in terms of school years? I have never quite managed to kick the habit, fifteen years after leaving sixth form (oh God). I suppose I then did Uni for many years, on and off, and my Mum and brother both teach, so they think in school years… Tell me I’m not the only one that does this? I find September to be far more cathartic in terms of “new starts” than January could ever be. The revitalising effects of the summer, Christmas to look forward to.. Discuss, comment, tell me your thoughts.) Where was I? Brimming with Vitamin D! Yes. I have a few more holiday posts to go and then I’ll shut up about it.

incurably curious blog

2) I have been catching up on one of my favourite blogs, Incurably Curious. Have I told you about this blog before? It’s so bloody funny, I actually find myself blurting out weird shout-laughs if I read it on the train. If you ever need cheering up, click on over and read through the archives – the review of Fifty Shades of Grey is just spot-on.

cream british shorthair

3) So many of you have been chomping at the bit for pet pictures, so here they are: Mr Bear rolling on a rug (above) and Dexter wearing a cardigan. Kind of.

dexter cockapoo

4) Also, here’s me in a Kayak:

ruth crilly in a kayak

Mr AMR bought this earlier on in the year and said that he would use it every day to go up and down the river in front our house. So far he has been in it twice. So I am commandeering it and shall be learning how to kayak. Really, really fast. I did five minutes the other day and was knackered beyond belief so I’m guessing it’s pretty good exercise. If anyone has any kayaking tips, pray share. I’m all over the shop at the moment, zig-zagging around the river like some kind of demented Outward Bound instructor.

5) Sorry sorry sorry to the Max Factor lipstick winners; I forgot to post the prizes before I went on holidays! It’s at the top of my list for things to remember on Monday. Your lippies will be with you soon!

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The Marc Jacobs Beauty Airblush Duo Launch

 
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Sometimes an email lands in my inbox, and I squeal a little with excitement. This was definetly the case recently I was invited to L.A, California for the launch of the brand new Marc Jacobs Beauty Airblush Duo.
Set in the goreous Beverly Hills Hotel, the launch took place over brunch in the beautiful hotel gardens, and just oozed old Hollywood glamour.
Gilbert Soliz, head makeup artist for Marc Jacobs Beauty was on hand to give demonstrations using the Airduo Blush range (inspired by one of the first celebrity makeup Artists – Way Bandy) and it was incredible to hear about how Bandy and Jacobs were friends and club kids together back in their heyday.
Inspired by the creative vision and styles of Way Bandy, the range is all about beautifully draped cheeks, using a silky soft air whipped pressed powder. Available in 5 different shades and suitable for all skin tones, the blush contains a fusion of lighter and deeper shades with each palette being hand filled and inspired by vintage cigarette cases.
The Lines and Last Night Airblush Duo is my favourite of the bunch, with it’s gorgeous golden peachy tones, it’s incredibly flattering on fairer skin tones. Long lasting and buildable to truly sculpt your cheeks for that Way Bandy look, it has been a struggle to go a day without wearing this blush since it has come into my life.
Priced at £28.00 and available exclusively today at John Lewis and in-store on Oxford Street on 1st September in the UK.Also available in Sephora in the US, these blushes are worth checking out and welcoming into your makeup bag.
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Freshwater Cove

 
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M&S – Freshwater Cove

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My Summer Base, Sorted.

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Meet my latest face obsession: Tropic Skincare. 

I’ve been wearing the Tropic Pure Effects Beauty Booster paired with the Correcting Cream Concealer for a couple of months now, with the pair quickly becoming my go-to couple for work day makeup.

Since receiving my Beauty Booster, Tropic appear to have repackaged the serum foundation to come in a new squeezy tube, with more shades and a slightly tweaked formula. This makes it difficult for me to review, knowing you can’t go out and buy this exact product should my review win you over! Why do brands do this to us? 😉

I’ll keep my review of the Beauty Booster short and sweet, and if you haven’t tried anything from Tropic before, especially their makeup, I urge you to have a look at what they offer! I have quite a few things on my list after being so impressed with these. Everything is 100% vegan, too!

Swatched.. Top – Cream Concealer in Light. Bottom – Beauty Booster in Light.

(The colour is a little off here and my skin and the swatches are looking much more orange than they do in real life!)

The Beauty Booster is a serum foundation/BB cream that offered me a surprising amount of coverage. What really impressed me, however, was the lightweight feel and non-greasy finish. I’ve tried a lot of natural bases recently and have found it difficult to find a match that isn’t very heavily oil based, or thick and dry feeling. With aloe vera juice as the top ingredient, this acts more like a serum (as the name suggests) and sinks into the skin beautifully, covering redness and helping hide marks, spots and scars making them easier to conceal afterwards. Like I said above though, this exact formulation is no longer available, so maybe try and get a sample if you can!

Moving onto the Correcting Cream Concealer, which is actually my favourite! Long-time readers of the blog will know that once upon a time I used the RMS Un-Cover Up as my concealer of choice, and this reminds me of that. Except that it’s thicker, very creamy, has more coverage and is not based on coconut oil (!!!) so all around it’s better for me and my troublesome skin.


I have the shade light, which as you can see above is a very good match for me, it covers under eye circles like a dream and can be dabbed onto blemishes and blended in with a brush or your fingers to create a flawless finish. In this summer heat I do tend to set it with a quick dusting of powder, as it started to crease under my eyes in the heat – but that’s a small thing really. I would definitely buy this again when I run out (though I think it’s one of those products that might expire before I can use it all! it’s lasting really well even with daily use!).

What do you think of Tropic? Have you tried their products before?

(P.S. Sorry this review seems all over the place, I’m rusty!)

The Adult Acne Skincare Survival Kit

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The Adult Acne Skincare Survival Kit

A slightly dramatic title, I’ll give you that and I am by no means suggesting that I – nor anyone else – afflicted with acne or any other skin condition for that matter are a lesser person, but let’s face it, some days it does really grind you down. I’ve came to terms that I will never have textbook perfect skin and on the whole I am okay with that; then again there is nothing wrong with trying to improve your complexion should you wish. With that in mind, I do have some staple products that I use regularly – if not daily – that are suited to my often problematic skin needs (with not a hint of Clearasil in sight), no I am not a skincare expert but sometimes the best recommendations do come from those who are fighting the same battle.

The Adult Acne Skincare Survival Kit

Cleanse

I have two staple cleansers that are mostly reserved for when I have an acne flare up, they are both worthy of a space on any bathroom shelf but more so if you find you have blemishes more days, than not. For my morning (or A.M cleanse) I use Murad Time Release Blemish Cleanser as it is non-foaming, blemish specific cleanser that also boasts some anti-ageing properties – an area the beauty market in general seems to neglect, seemingly it seems we all outgrow blemished skin in our teens, which we all know to be wrong. Murad Time Release Blemish Cleanser contains Salicylic Acid to gradually help care, treat and prevent blemishes; to ensure that the complexion is not stripped of moisture, or ever uncomfortable, this cleanser has also been formulated with Amino Acids (anti-ageing) and Hyaluronic Acid (deeply hydrating).

I do frequently wear make-up and although I have no doubt that the Murad Time Release Blemish Cleanser would sufficiently remove even the heaviest of base products, I do prefer to call upon Pixi Glow Mud Cleanser for all my evening cleansing needs. Again this is non-foaming cleanser and as the name suggests, it is mud, which admittedly does take a little getting used to. The bonus is that mud is a natural deep cleanser and often the main competent in many a blemish busting treatment, so along with removing all traces of the day, Pixi Glow Mud Cleanser acts as a daily treatment for problem skin types – rather clever wouldn’t you agree? Cleansing is not all Pixi Glow Mud Cleanser offers, for those like myself who are a little heavy handed and perhaps not entirely comfortable with manual exfoliators (i.e facial scrubs), this daily face-wash-come-treatment contains no less than 5% Glycolic Acid and Avocado Oil (nourishing) for daily, yet gentle removal of dead skin cells. Blemishes or not, everyone needs to try Pixi Glow Mud Cleanser sooner or later