Category Archives: beauty look

Just a little vlog to end the week; I went to Paris with the beauty brand Nuxe and (for once) remembered to take some video footage. It’s all a bit random, but if you like weird hotel rooms and seeing what they serve up for dinner on the Eurostar then you’ll love it! Nuxe were launching a new skincare product, a lovely tinted moisturiser – “DD Cream” – with SPF and antioxidants. It’s not out yet, but I’ll tell you more about it nearer the time. I also discovered a lovely face cream – the Reve de Miel Ultra Comforting – that left my skin really very plump and soft and I’ll make sure I do a review on that as well.

But it’s all I can do this afternoon to just keep my eyes open – it’s been a totally manic week – and so I’m off to have a soak in the bath and then watch the last episode of Game of Thrones season 2. I might also treat myself to a bit of a takeaway, seeing as though it’s Friday and there’s only a bit of old broccoli in the fridge. (Also an egg, some feta and half a carton of orange juice. I can’t see me making culinary magic with that lot.)

Anyway, I have no idea how this post turned into a rambling diary entry – I thought I was saving those for my new blog, The Uphill! (Still not finished, but do feel free to take a look.) Here’s the vlog – try not to scream when I appear in just my hairnet….

The post Paris, Pregnancy Stripes and Eurostar Meals. appeared first on A Model Recommends.

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Pai Skincare have launched some brilliant beauty kits, the Anywhere Essentials Collections. I have always loved Pai for their gentle, soothing formulas; their Echium Eye Cream is my number one post-shoot eye treatment because it’s so great at calming down any soreness and their Rosehip BioRegenerate Oil is one of the best rejuvenating face oils out there. Potent, 99.8% organic and very reasonably priced at twenty pounds. Everything that Pai produces is tested extensively to make sure that it suits sensitive skin – and by sensitive, I mean skin that is really quite intolerant and reactive – and so it has become, over the years, the brand that I most recommend to friends, family and readers who are looking for clean, kind skincare solutions.

I’m really pleased that Pai have introduced the Anywhere Essentials Collections; they introduced mini sample packs a couple of years ago, which are good for people who want to try loads of different creams, but the Anywhere Essentials have more targeted products and in bigger quantities. It’s a full skincare routine with enough stuff to last at least a fortnight, each collection consisting of a cleanser (the gorgeous Camellia & Rose, complete with washcloth) an alcohol-free skin tonic and a specially chosen face moisturiser. There’s a kit for every skin worry, whether it’s wrinkles or breakouts or sore, stressed faces, and a sensitive kit that will suit absolutely everyone, too, which is a pretty safe bet!

This week, especially for A Model Recommends readers and regular Pai customers, the brand are offering a free Anywhere Essentials Collection with every order over £40 (€50/$70). The idea behind it is quite lovely; stock yourself up with your Pai essentials and get a free kit to give to your sister (or best friend, Mum, cousin, SELF, nobody will know) so that she can try the skincare routine for herself. Each collection comes beautifully packaged (I like the globetrotter theme) with a really sweet gift card to fill in and pop into the package.

I sent my sister Kate a kit in advance, to see just what she would make of it. This is a girl who is a dab-hand with the eyeliner pencil and will experiment with literally any shade of eyeshadow, yet refuses to establish a skincare routine. She’s thirty in September and had a baby just before Christmas (my baby sister, with a baby!) and told me that her skincare regimen consisted of splashing on some cold water from the tap if she got the chance. (I die.) Her skin had been quite sensitive and rough and so I was quite interested to see what she thought of the Pai products. She tends to be quite distracted these days, so I tried to call her at a time when Baby Edith might be napping…

Me: “Kate, I need to ask you about those Pai products…”

Kate: “Oh yes, I loved them – hold on, Edith is playing the keyboard mat with her feet!” (Crazy piano sounds in the background.) “I loved using the cloth, I’ve never used a cloth like that before. The cleanser made my face really smooth.”

Me: “You usually react to products, don’t you? Were these OK?”

Kate: “Yes, they were really lovely and gentle. Edith’s saying RaRa again! She’s almost saying Auntie Ruth! I liked the moisturiser, my skin feels much more comfortable.”

Me: “Does it look better?”

Kate:  “Does what?”

Me: “Your face?”

Kate: “Oh haha! Yes. Smoother. But my whole nose is brown from the sun and nothing else is brown and that is all I can see when I look at my face.”

As far as my sister is concerned, that’s about as glowing (and sensible) a reference as you’ll ever get. Skin calmer, smoother, more comfortable. She also said that it was wonderful to have a routine laid out for her; it forced her to make the time in the evening before she went to bed and has really started to enjoy the ritual. A success.

If you’d like to get your hands on an Anywhere Essentials Collection then all you need to do is make an order of £40 or more. Then decide which of the collections your sister (friend, Mum, neighbour, cousin, you) might like and add that to the basket. The checkout code for this promotion is SISTERSSHARE – once you add the code, the £20 value for the set will be deducted.

There are four kits to choose from; Instant Calm for very sensitive or redness-prone skin, Perfect Balance for oily, blemish-prone or combination skin, Pure Hydration for dry or dehydrated skin or Age Confidence for skin that’s showing signs of ageing. I’d probably go for the Instant Calm if I was picking it for myself, because I love to use the products after beauty shoots, but I’ve also tried the products in the oily/combi collection and they are good for placating red, angry skin. Any of the kits would be good to take travelling, too; the spritzer face tonic is handy for plane journeys and the moisturisers would all be good mid-flight or after trips to the beach.

You can find all of the Anywhere Essentials Collections here; if you need help choosing products for yourself, I’ve written reviews on loads of Pai stuff before.

Click here to open a list of posts in a new window. There’s free delivery included, both for UK and International orders and you can use the promo code until the end of Sunday 3rd August.

Pai Skincare

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I haven’t really gone on too much about my “pregnancy” skin; mostly because, if truth be known, all has been quite plain-sailing. Actually, I’d go one better than that and say that my skin throughout pregnancy (apart from a few dodgy months at the start) has been the best that it has ever been. Very clear, quite bouncy and fresh-looking and with an evenness of tone that has surprised me. (Thinking about that evenness of tone; I have been using the Olay Regenerist Luminous serum a lot since I did the sponsored trial at the end of last year, so it would be nice if that had something to do with it! You can read the posts here, the serum is online here.)

Two things I’ve noticed about my pregnancy skin, though: firstly it has been a little drier than usual, meaning that I’ve been slathering on all of the oils and rich, buttery moisturisers that I wouldn’t usually dare touch; secondly, it has been quite a bit more sensitive. As a total acid-exfoliator-addict, I was quite taken aback at how suddenly my skin did a U-turn on my favourite peels and masks. The Omorovicza Deep Cleansing Mask, one of my all-time favourite treatments for dull and congested skin, stayed on for five burning seconds before I had to quickly rinse it off again. Alpha-H’s Liquid Gold was too strong for me, many of the acid toners and treatments that previously I’d used almost daily had to be relegated to the back of the beauty cupboard.

More skincare posts…

So for quite a while, the skincare routine of choice was a good cleanse, followed by a bit of serum and then an oil (Neal’s Yard Remedies Argan Oil, more often than not) or a moisturiser. I did the odd bit of exfoliation (I got on well with the Microdelivery Peel from Philosophy, also the gentle version of Kate Somerville’s Exfolikate) but there was a big gap in my weekly routine: I was missing an effective, targeted face mask. Something that would instantly brighten and clarify my skin, make it feel as though it had been through a mini-facial, but that would also be gentle enough for my newly sensitive skin.

Read about my usual mini-facial face masks…

That “gentle-yet-effective” gap in the weekly beauty routine has been very adequately filled by the two new treatment masks from Pai Skincare. The recently launched Copaiba Deep Cleanse AHA Mask and Rosehip BioRegenerate Rapid Radiance Mask have been formulated for even the most sensitive of skins, yet they seem to do a very decent job of clarifying, brightening and plumping out. The Copaiba AHA contains fruit acids, lactic acid and clay to deep cleanse and exfoliate at the same time – if you’ve always loved the idea of the Glamglow range but worry that it would be too harsh for your skin then this is your perfect solution! (It’s also loads cheaper and beautifully formulated.) You can see a full ingredients list and buy online here.

Glamglow Super-Mud Clearing Treatment Review…

If the Copaiba AHA Mask satisfies the need to “instantly brighten and clarify”, the Rosehip Mask is bent more towards hydration and achieving a dewy, plumped-out glow. If Copaiba was my “red carpet overhaul” mask then the Rosehip would be my soothing, wind-down treatment. It’s far more suited to my current skin type than the Copaiba, but it’s definitely not quite as striking in terms of visible results. The glow and clarity from the AHA mask is instant and long-lasting, the effects of the Rosehip (£30 here) are more noticeable to the touch than to the naked eye. Soft and springy skin, whereas it’s more on the smooth and toned side after using the Copaiba AHA. Both, though, are absolutely brilliant additions to skincare routines that require a little more care and thought to avoid triggering sensitivities and flare-ups. For those who have been desperate for an effective deep-cleanse to treat spotty-but-sensitive skin, or a gentle mask to help with incredibly dry, dull skin, these should shoot up to the top of the skincare wishlist.

The new targeted treatment masks from Pai Skincare are £30 each – full details and ingredients lists are online here.

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Beauty Advent Calendars seem to be officially a “thing” now – and why not? I’ve always had a bit of a penchant for beauty miniatures, so opening doors to discovery gorgeous mystery items definitely floats my boat! And there is something rather exciting about getting a new product to try every day for the run-up to Christmas. I had to open all the doors on the calendars in this feature to be able to photograph them, but I’ve already tried four new things and that’s since last night! I tend to take minis with me on my travels so that I can have loads of options and variety without using up too much of my suitcase space.

The first one I want to show you is The Beauty Secret from LookFantastic.com and is an absolute WHOPPER of a calendar. It weighs a tonne and is crammed full of bits and pieces. If you don’t want to spoil the surprise then look away now – you can get the calendar online here, it’s £70 but is worth over £250, apparently, so a great way to try new brands and beauty products.

There’s a range of full-size and mini-sized beauty in this one and a great mix of tried-and-tested favourites alongside newer launches. Makeup, skincare, bodycare and some wonderful hair products with a nice lean towards things that will make you look ever-so-glam over the Christmas holidays. Jet-black mascara, false lashes, silky hair treatments and face masks to make your skin glow.

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