Category Archives: SKIN TALK

Collab with HaruHaru Wonder!

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hihi everyone, I hope all is well, today’s post is very exciting!

I’m really happy to announce I’m working with HaruHaru Wonder on a 30 day skincare challenge!

Last year, I got back into k beauty big time and one of the products I loved was the HaruHaru Wonder black rice toner! Yep the hype is well deserved and real! I’ve been wanting to try more of their products so when they got in touch, naturally I said yes

Find out what I will be doing below

The challenge

For the next 30 days my routine will consist mostly of HaruHaru products for both AM&PM routines. My skintype is normal to combo with hyperpigmentation as my main concern. At the end of 30 days I will bring you guys my review & honest opinions and my top 3 products from their collection. I will also be doing full reviews of the products as I finish them later on. I will be starting my challenge on 1st Feb!

In my next post, I will detail what my new skincare routines will look like and show some baseline pictures. This is what I am hoping to achieve at the end of the 30 days:

  • increased radiance
  • fading of dark spots
  • maintaining barrier function
  • hydrated skin
  • smoother skin
  • overall health improvement

I will also be doing a separate post on the sunscreen I got, you know we love a good SPF over here!

The ethos of the brand is 100% plant-powered natural, active ingredients that provide clinically proven benefits that is gentle for everyone. Whilst reading more about the brand, I saw that they have braille on the outer packaging for the partially sighted/blind. I don’t think I’ve ever come across a brand that does this and I think this is amazing!

Follow me along this journey on my insta and I’m so grateful to HaruHaru Wonder for partnering with me for my first ever collab with a kbeauty brand!

Next up skincare routines!

catch you later

The Best Cleansing Balms

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Hihi, I hope all is well and good with you. Today I’m sharing some of the best cleansing balms and oils I have used. I am a huge fan of double cleansing( sometimes triple even!) because of the many benefits of the process. Double cleansing is essential washing your face twice: 1st with a oil based cleanser then a gel/foam cleanser. Can you just use your gel/foam cleanser twice? Sure however the benefits of double cleansing really lie in the oil based first cleanse. Oil will attract oil so this allows the balm/oil cleanser to effectively remove makeup/SPF/excess oils from the skin.

There are a lot of cleansing oils and balm on the market, from luxury high end brands to budget friendly drugstore products. Take your pick! A balm is essentially a solidified oil, I like both but I tend to prefer balms over oils just because its less messier lol. I have tried a lot, over all price points and these are the best 5 cleansers I have used. Btw, all of these have mini sizes you can try out before investing in the full sized pricer product.

Farmacy Green Clean £34– it was really love at first scoop with this. I got a giftset that included a mini green clean and the rest is history. The solid balm melts into a lightweight oil effortlessly and it works so well at removing makeup and SPF. This really impressed me whilst I was on holiday removing all traces of sunscreen without leaving my skin dry. There are many versions of green clean like scents etc but I find the original version to be the best

Tatcha The Camellia Cleansing Oil £48– this is such an impressive cleansing oil and very effective against waterproof makeup! I got a travel size version in a Tatcha gift set I got for Christmas 23 and fell in love. (PS that set is excellent value for money, read my review on it here) Will I purchase the full sized product honestly? yes, its pricey but what are discount codes for lol but I will 100% repurchase the giftset to get the mini size again. It lasted much longer than I thought. The oil itself is so lightweight, emulsifies well and removes makeup effectively

BeautyPie Japan Fusion Pure Transforming Cleanser £10 for members, £25 non members– a long time ago when I was a BP member this cleanser was my go to! It is ridiculously lightweight and works so well at removing makeup! BP in general have great cleansers however this one is one of their best. My thoughts on BP as a whole can be found here

Elemis Pro Collagen Cleansing Balm £29 – this is such a cult favorite and I was so lucky to get trial sizes of this at a bloggers event which lead me to getting a gift set for Christmas. This is one of the ‘heavier’ balms I have used so I find it slightly heavier on the skin HOWEVER it does so so well at removing SPF, makeup and oils. it emulsifies so well( turns milky with water) and it doesn’t leave any heavy residue on the skin.

Eve Lom Cleansing Oils Capsules £25– I was looking for travel friendly oil/balm cleansers and I came across Eve Lom, at the time I had only heard good stuff but never used anything from them so it was a huge leap of faith! and it paid off because these oil capsules are so great for travel and work so well at removing sunscreen & makeup! I absolutely love the scent of these- they smell like a fancy spa. They are a lightweight oil that rinses off clean, the capsule sizes are big enough, 1 is good for makeup & SPF( medium makeup) but I like to use 2 capsules if I have a lot of makeup or lots of SPF on. Well worth the money

I have noticed most of these are higher premium/luxury brands but these are the ones that really have stood out. I have used a lot of drugstore ones but nothing really that stands out or is worth recommending. I have my eyes on some drugstore ones and even k beauty balms too which I have heard only great things about. If you have a fav drugstore balm PLEASE let me know

catch you later!

Face washes for all skintypes

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hey hey everyone, I hope all is well! Today I want to speak about a few of my fav facewashes that are suitable for all skintypes. I’ve used a lot of face washes but these are my top 4

Garnier Deep Hydrating Cleanser £9.99

I love Garnier and their cleansers are one of the best in the budget range. Whilst this one is slightly higher than the rest of the cleansers, the massive 250ml size will last you a long time, mine lasted at least 6 months! This one is great for all skintypes and good for the maintaining the skin barrier

Tatcha Rice Wash £18

Tatcha, Tatcha, Tatcha! I really fell in love with the brand earlier this year and I haven’t looked back! In particular this rice wash is 100% worth the hype. It’s hydrating, leaves the skin soft and smooth and clean without stripping it. This cleanser really changed my stance on using ‘expensive’ cleansers, £18 is pricey but its worth it. I love the creamy texture of the cleanser too. If £18 is too high, the travel size lasts really long too. Tatcha have great gift sets at great prices and good for testing the brand before fully investing in it

Elemis Dynamic Resurfacing Facewash £8.50

I think this was the first item I tried from Elemis that put this brand on my radar! This is great for smoothing the skin leaving it more radiant. A great and gentle way to add chemical exfoliation to your routine.

Cerave Smoothing face wash £14.50

Cerave have a lot of fans in the community so it was only right I added a facewash from them. I think this is only the one I have used from them. I’m not sure of the BHA conc in here but I dont think its too high. Still it gets the job done and leaves the skin smoother and pores/texture reduced.

Acid Toners for Combination skintypes

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Hihi everyone, I hope all is well with you where ever you are! Last week I shared a few of my fav hydrating toners and promised to do a follow up post on acid based toners!

Acid based toners are simply toners with either a single acid e.g. glycolic acid only or a combo of acids e.g. BHA and PHA. They all aim to offer mild exfoliation depending on the acid concentration in them.

There was a point at the beginning of my skincare journey where I was obsessed with acid toners and I tried a LOT of them! I’m still a massive fan of them but these days I tend to get my exfoliation elsewhere

  • An easy way to intro chemical exfoliation in your routine. If you are used to physical exfoliation e.g. from scrubs, then you will know this is an extra step you do at the sink and it can be a bit long and messy. Using a acid based toner is much quicker
  • Choose the acid based on your skintypes/concern. Although all acids can be used for most skintypes, I found that using an acid targeted to your skin type gives much better results. For instance, I started my journey loving glycolic acid however as I learnt more of my skin type and realized I had more of a combo oily skin type, I switched to BHA which works much better for oily skins than glycolic acid. PHA is better for sensitive skin and will be less irritating for it than glycolic acid
  • IMPORTANT- if you are going to add acid to your routine, you MUST use sunscreen during the day and use it properly. Acids make your skin more sensitive to the sun because you are ‘removing’ the layer of dead cells.

Always start acid toner use slow, especially for new users. Start with once a week in the first week, twice in the next week and so on. You can always layer hydrating mists/toners on top of this

IMPORTANT- there is no reason to also use another acid based product in the same routine as an acid based toner. Overexfoilation will damage your skin barrier and will not lead to smoother skin!

Ok, now lets talk about my fav acid toners!

  • Pixi Glow Tonic– cant talk about AHA toners without the OG glow tonic. at 5% its well tolerated with most skintypes without irritation. There is a travel size version for trying before getting the full sized product.
  • Ren AHA Tonic– this is a combo acid toner with lactic acid(AHA) and BHA. this toner is suitable for everyday use but I don’t recommend that , a few times a week is all that’s needed.
  • Paula’s Choice 2% BHA toner– the OG of BHA toners. I LOVEEE this toner with a passion lol. if you have oily skin you simply must try this toner. I’ve used other BHA toners but this one is a winner!
  • Glow Recipe Watermelon BHA PHA toner– one of the best acid based hydrating toners in my opinion. this is a combo toner with PHA for gentle exfoilation and BHA for pore reduction. highly recommended
  • Murad Multi acid peel– this is a strong combo acid toner. I love this but be careful with using it with other actives. I had a case of barrier impair as I have detailed here. My full review is here
  • The Ordinary 7% Glycolic acid toner– this list will be incomplete without TO glycolic acid toner. 7% is strong so be very sensible with this toner. It leaves the skin feeling smoother and brighter and at that price point you really cant go wrong

There’s so many acid based products on the market but I think acid toners are one of the easiest ways to introduce acids in your skincare routine. I’ve used my fair share and I absolutely love them! I hope you enjoy these recommendations!

catch you later

Hydrating toners for Combination Skin

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Hihi everyone, I hope all is well. Today we are talking toners! If you are looking for a new toner to try, I hope you find this post helpful

Toners/waters/essences are they really necessary? Afterall, if serums are most important and you have cleansed properly, do you really need this step? The answer is NO. Toners, essences etc are completely optional but its a great way to layer your skincare and build hydration for all skin types

There’s so many types of toners available but in this post I’m talking about hydrating toners only. There are no acids in here( another post). These types of toners can be paired with any ingredients and great for all skintypes and concerns. These are my fav hydrating toners I have used and love

Garnier Rose Toner This is a great budget friendly toner from Boots and did you know its an exact dupe for the Pixi Rose Tonic? Ive used both, love both and they both work the same. They are very gentle and soothing on the skin and doesn’t dry it out.

Artistry Skin Nutrition™ Hydrating Smoothing Toner this was a surprising toner for me. my SIL bought this for me to try and I really liked it. It’s packed with hydrating, soothing ingredients and even some fermented ingredients. It helps to hydrate and repair the skin and also pairs well with other actives.

CosRX Full Propolis Toner– I got this off Stylevana because I was looking to try a range of k beauty toners. This is a really popular one and I can see why its loved. Its a nice hydrating toner and its ‘thick’ enough to dispense into the palms and pat into the skin. I had no irritation with it

Fresh Antioxdiant Black Tea Essence – this baby right here is worth the pounds! She’s not cheap that’s why I also have a k-beauty dupe for you! The Kaine kombu balancing ampoule toner is very similar to the Fresh one! Its not as hydrating nor does it leave my skin as glowy BUT I really like it too. both of these toners are packed with antioxidants, hydrating and repair ingredients to help heal & nourish the skin

Next I will do a round up of my fav acid based toners! I used to LOVE these and tried a lot of them!

If you think you need a little bit more hydration in your routine, try adding a hydrating toner layer before your serum, day & night and see if that helps! I have normal to combo skin which turns more oily in the warm weather and using a hydrating toner is a good way of ensuring my skin stays hydrated through the day/night. These can also be layered on top of acid based toners( acid first) and its a great way to ease yourself into acid toners too actually

I hope this helps and catch you later in my next post!

adidos!