Orly Color Fix

Orly

Orly

There’s a new range coming from Orly in May (you’ll find it in Boots). Color Blast is a diffusion range (think Nicole from OPI) with 72 shades. I seem to have been sent the two most outrageously bright colours, Coral Pink Neon and Fruity Pink Neon which my camera is struggling to tell apart shade-wise but needless to say they’re pretty neon and actually not that far apart in shades.

What I noticed about the colours when applying them to the wheel is that they’re on the thin side – I needed to apply three coats to get the full impact, but it’s impossible to say whether that’s just the neon formula or whether it’s something that carries on throughout the range.

Orly uses a gripper cap and it really does make a difference when you hold the lip to apply the polish; definitely an asset to those who find grip tricky. There are some stellar shades in the new line-up, from baby pinks all the way though to super neons and they’ll cost £9.50 each. The range is built to be bold so expect high impact!

Orly are also introducing the handiest mani-rescue ever in the form of Smudge Fixer! I’m going to put it to the test (although it’s going to go against every bone in my body to deliberately smudge a mani) and blog about it on Monday.

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Magical Masks.

You can never have too many face masks.

Feeling stressed? Face mask.
Want to indulge? Face mask.
Dry skin, spotty skin, dull skin? Face mask.
I’ve used countless, I’ve loved loads, and yet I know there will always be more to try. I suppose that’s one small benefit of having problem skin, you know when you’re using a really good mask because the results are extra visible.
I’ve been using the two masks pictured in a rotation for a couple of months now, and finally, have the time to document my thoughts.

Kimberly Sayer Deep Cleaning French Green Clay Mask.

I feel like Kimberly Sayer is a bit of a secretive cult brand. There’s not a lot of talk about them online. They have a very clinical and professional sort of look and for quite some time this put me off trying the brand as, typical me, I’m drawn to pretty packaging.
This clay mask sounds like it should be incredibly harsh and drying, but that couldn’t be farther from the truth if you catch a glimpse of the ingredients list.
Safflower seed oil, aloe vera leaf juice, vegetable glycerin, lavender water, oat beta glucan… It reads more like a creamy moisturising mask. And it does feel creamy to apply, it doesn’t make your skin feel tight of painful as it slowly dries, honestly, I forget I even have it on sometimes.

All of this sounds dreamy, and you wouldn’t think it would pack such a punch after all of that, but it really lives up to the term deep cleansing as this always brings any gunk to the surface and clears up my skin.

£19.80 for 60ml here.

Isla Apothecary Refine + Radiate Beautifying Face Mask.
With just three luxurious ingredients, the Refine + Radiate mask has been created to “soothe, restore moisture, and nurture even the most sensitive skin types to greater resiliency.” It does this with coconut milk powder, turmeric and sandalwood powder, and as you can see from the incredible orange shade, it looks pretty potent.
I was initially drawn to this mask because of the sandalwood powder, said to be wonderful for oily skin it has antiseptic and antibacterial properties to combat breakouts. It’s not an ingredient I had come across before and I was keen to try it out!

Because of the coconut milk powder, I reach for this mask whenever my skin is irritated or dry. It really does soothe and leave my skin soft, bright and calm. And maybe a little yellow tinted. You can remove the staining with a cotton pad and some toner but I try to leave the residue on overnight and just apply some moisturiser, as I’m sure I read once that the benefits of the Tumeric can work their magic better if you leave it.

This is my favourite mask of the two for sure, I love the benefits, I love mixing my own mask up with some water and I love the way my skin looks the day after!

£22.00 for 120g here.

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Until next time, xo

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Acessory Wednesday: Sonny Angel Laduree

Sonny Angel Laduree

Sonny Angel Laduree

I know.. it’s not really an accessory but I can’t help myself. If you don’t know the Sonny Angel story, it’s been ten years of Kew Pie kitsch, cute collectables and irrisitible stuff you don’t really need. Sonny is a *thing* in Japan and Asia, and also in the US, but hasn’t really yet made so much impact in the UK. But, just as Hello Kitty comes with her own little story, so does Sonny Angel and here it is:

Sonny Angel is a cute boy with headgear. He doesn’t talk to you, but Sonny Angel makes you smile, makes you happy, makes your daily life bit more delightful. As your tiny friend, Sonny Angel is always by your side, to protect you, give you comfort, and make you smile… that is Sonny Angel’s mission.”

sonny angel

sonny angel

The news is that Sonny Angel has a collaboration going on with Laduree, so each figure comes with a different signature Laduree cake. We have three Ladurees in London, so that’s your best chance of getting hold of them, however, a key point with Sonny Angel is that they all come in ‘blind’ boxes, so you don’t know what you’re getting until you’ve bought it.

Sonny Angel Cakes

Sonny Angel Cakes

Seriously, it’s only a matter of time before my house is swamped with Sonny Angels. If you want to find Sonny Angels in the UK, try HERE.

It’s only a matter of time before Sonny goes stellar with his own perfume… if the Smurfs can do it….

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Marni Rose: The Dolly Purse Spray

marni rose doll purse spray perfume

Oh, oh, OH! This little purse spray came through the letterbox and I couldn’t believe how cute it was with its dolly bottle and cool packaging and then, as if things could get any better, I caught a whiff of the fragrance and it was MARNI ROSE! One of my favourite fragrances of the year; beautifully delicate and old fashioned but at the same time slightly masculine and dangerous. You know, if you read regularly, that I love a “dangerous rose” fragrance – that fruitiness and spiciness that you get when you mix warm, woody and musky notes with true, fresh rose. It can be exotic and heady or surprisingly feminine, but it’s always interesting.

War of the Roses: Marni vs Jo Malone… 

marni rose doll purse spray perfume

You can read more about my thoughts on Marni’s Rose eau de parfum if you click here, but I do think that it’s a winner if you love a fruity, full-bodied rose. This has raspberry and cassis as well as the Rose Absolute and Bulgarian Rose, and there’s a gorgeous musky undertone with a sexy hint of cedarwood and patchouli. This little purse spray version would make a wonderful Christmas present with its Bambolina doll styling and cardboard outer tubes – there’s something rather playful and childlike about it and it’s very different to most of the usual Christmas offerings. I’m not sure how long this version is going to be about for, but it has 10% off at Escentual.com until tomorrow, making it £22.50 instead of £25, with free delivery. Full details here – use the code ESCENTUAL10 to claim the discount.

More fragrance posts…

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Supersonic Face Masks

anti-ageing face mask

Kicking off the new week with some brilliant, powerful face masks. These are the kind of masks that you can rely on to give your skin a proper overhaul in a very short amount of time; brightening, smoothing and plumping, brilliant for erasing signs of fatigue or over-indulgence. (Basically, what I am getting at here, without being too direct, is that they are all GREAT if you have a hangover and need to look normal.)

So, my Supersonic face Masks from left to right:

The Meso Mask from Filorga, £38 at Marks and Spencer. I discovered this last year and it instantly became one of my favourite skin treatments – I am on pot number 3 already. It feels incredibly gentle and soothing, but it somehow leaves the skin looking as though it’s been very thoroughly exfoliated. You don’t have to worry about leaving it on for too long – I fell asleep with it on and woke up two hours later to baby soft skin and not a patch of redness. I really rate Filorga products; I have quite a few different treatments (including the amazing overnight exfoliant, Sleep and Peel) and nothing has ever disappointed me.

The 3 Minute Facial from SUPER has unfortunately been discontinued. In fact I can’t find anything from SUPER, which was Perricone’s more affordable skincare line, so I’m assuming that it folded in its entirety? A shame, as there were a couple of products that I really enjoyed using. The 3 Minute Facial was one of them – it was a great moisturising mask. Probably not amazing enough to be in my “Supersonic” line-up, if I’m being completely honest, but I liked the way it said SUPER on the label and the retro mustard-yellow styling really floated my boat.

Read more face mask reviews….

The Transformer mask from Zelens is something of a miracle worker; it exfoliates, lifts, tightens, plumps, brightens and pretty much anything else you can think of, providing a one-stop solution to most beauty woes. It’s also very expensive – at £95 a pot it’s not the kind of product you’d want to make a mistake with – but I’ve had absolutely shocking facials that have cost more than that. So I’d rather have multiple applications of a brilliant mask at home than some useless namby-pambying about in a salon that’s playing whale music. I reckon that you would get around ten very generous applications from one pot – many, many more if you spread it on in a frugal manner. (Question: does it make a difference if you apply things in a “thick layer”? Or is that just marketing to make you use up your masks faster? I wonder if there’s ever a good reason to apply something thickly… I shall have to research!) You can find Transformer at Cult Beauty – they currently have a stepped discount going on. If you spend £40 you get £5 off (use code CHOOSE5), £60 and you get £10 off (CHOOSE10) and if you hit the £100 mark it’s £20 off (CHOOSE20).

Ah, my old friend Liquid Gold. The ultimate exfoliant and one that has a special place in my beauty cabinet. (Read about it here.) The original exfoliant is a liquid containing glycolic acid that you sweep over your skin and leave overnight; the Liquid Gold Smoothing and Perfecting Mask needs to be left on for just ten minutes to get brighter, tighter skin. If you’re feeling battered and rough, this gets your skin back into shape in the shortest amount of time possible. It’s great for clarifying if your skin feels clogged up and greasy, but it also works wonders on dry, dull skin too. Just an all-round superhero. You get a whopping 100ml for £46 (Cult Beauty) making it one of the best value masks on the market if you’re looking for something incredibly effective and fast-working.

What’s your favourite face mask? Do you tend to opt for a moisturising mask, a deep cleansing one? Overnight masks seem to be the new “thing”, but I haven’t really used any that have blown my socks off… Let me know, I always like to add things to my research list!

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