I’m developing an aversion to washing my face over the sink. I think it’s because that (for the past few months) the sink has never been my sink, and I’m a bit tired of not being in my own house. It just never feels like the luxurious, relaxing experience that I want it to be. I’ve also been too squeamish about my C-section scar to have a bath (I have an illogical fear that the water will melt my scar and make it split open!) and I usually do my full cleansing ritual during my nightly soak so proper face-washing has taken something of a hit. I’ve reverted, for some of the time, and probably for the first time in over ten years, to a good old cleansing cream. Removed with warm, dampened cotton wool pads, so I don’t know why I can’t just go a step further and use a bloody flannel, but there we go!

The creamy cleansing lotion that’s won me over: Collagen Boost Restore and Replenish from Balance Me. Brand new and promises great things; softening, plumping, anti-ageing, uplifting and soothing. The soothing one we can tick straight away – this is gorgeously calming and gentle and in terms of a “sensory experience” it feels and smells beautiful. The plumping and “prevents the signs of ageing” part is more difficult, because I’m always slightly wary of cleanser claims when they stay on the skin for so little time, but it’s nice when a product is well-formulated with the right stuff – better to have it in there than not, I suppose! The new Collagen Boost range (there’s a face cream too, though I haven’t got that) includes a natural peptide complex to support cells and give collagen production a little kick up the arse, then there are essential oils to variously uplift and plump. Nice.

Browse all cleanser recommendations…

This is a sumptuous type of creamy cleanser, so not one of those wishy-washy lotions – you can get a good massage in before removing with cotton wool and (because it’s after wipe-offs that I always use some kind of water or tonic) sweeping with a toner. Or you can use as a flannel-off/Clarisonic-off/rinse-off cream – it’s easily robust enough and “gives good slip”, which makes it a nice multi-purpose cleanser if you’re looking for something flexible to pack in your holiday toiletries bag. Or, if you move house about seventy times a month, like me, it’s a good one to cart about with you so that you don’t need loads of different product. My skin has been on the dry side throughout pregnancy (it’s starting to get a little oilier now) and this felt comfortable where a few other cleansers left things a little taut, so a nice cleanser for dry skin or faces that are feeling a little fraught.

Find it on Balance Me’s website here – it’s £18.

The post NEW: Balance Me Restore and Replenish Cream Cleanser appeared first on A Model Recommends.

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Well this is just extraordinary. It has to be the most un-seasonal seasonal beauty release I’ve ever happened upon: a winter launch of a fragrance product that is so summery, so reminiscent of tropical islands and hot holidays and steamy evenings, it’s virtually growing legs and wandering off to find a warm cupboard to hibernate in.

Tom Ford’s Soleil Blanc couldn’t be any more exotic – it’s coconuts and heady florals, it’s warm amber and sexy ylang ylang. It’s a lithe-limbed boho babe reclining in a rope hammock, eyeliner smudged and hair tousled and skin all golden and glowing. It is summer in a bottle. IT IS NOT CHRISTMAS IN A BOTTLE! Yet here it is, the summery Soleil Blanc fragrance, making an appearance in the slightly more muted “dry oil” form as part of the Tom Ford Winter Soleil collection.

See what they did there? Added the word “winter” to the description. Add the word “winter” and it shall be so. And who am I to complain? This dry oil has been giving a much-needed boost to my flagging autumnal spirits, recently, tricking my mind into thinking that soon I’ll be going on a lovely beach holiday.

Fat chance of that! I’d be lucky to squeeze my egg-shaped torso into an aeroplane seat, and that would only be if I could summon up enough of my pregnancy-depleted energy reserves to get to an airport. For now, I’m dry-oiling and day-dreaming.

I should add, for those of you who find dry oils a faff, that this one comes in a spray-can and can be applied in approximately eight seconds flat, rather than one of those spritzes that starts to become a total bore even before you’ve done your left arm.

If you’re already a Soleil Blanc fan, you’ll love this addition to your bodycare line-up. If you lust after a bit of TF luxury but can’t/won’t stretch to a Private Blend perfume then the dry oil spray comes in at a fraction of the price…

You can find the fragrance online here and the dry oil here – the dry oil is limited edition and part of the utterly gorgeous Winter Soleil collection, which includes foil-finish lipsticks and amazing Continue reading →

It’s time for me to don my Beauty Judge Hat again (or should it be a Beauty Judge wig?) and help to sift out the best products that the industry has to offer. Work-wise, beauty judging is one of my favourite things to do. I really enjoy testing out loads of different products and comparing them, rating them, noting down their strengths and their failings. Not only does it bring me great joy to find something truly superb, it means that I have a wealth of information stored in the back of my mind about the kind of things that are being launched and how they perform. And so when it comes to reviewing makeup and skincare and fragrance for A Model Recommends, I have this whole mental database of what else is out there – it provides an extremely useful bit of context.

Anyway, I digress. It’s the Debenhams Beauty Club Awards* and although I’ll be sitting at the High Table as a big bad judge, it’s your votes that count. If you’re sick of seeing the same old products win, or you have strong opinions on what’s brilliant and what’s a load of old tat, then get voting! Five lucky people will win EVERYTHING that they’ve voted for in the awards, so it’s well worth spending a few minutes to make your thoughts known. You can vote online here or you can tweet your votes to Debenhams’ Beauty Club using the hashtag #BeautyClubAwards. You can also share your choices on Pinterest using the same hashtag or on Instagram copying in @DebenhamsBeauty.

I’ve just been through to the online voting pages and it’s actually quite a therapeutic process – kind of like a quiz, but one that you can’t get wrong. Though I must say that there are so many products that I rate very highly – judging day will not be easy!

Vote in the Debenhams Beauty Club Awards 2015

*this is an advertorial for the Debenhams Beauty Club Awards 2015.

The post Debenhams Beauty Club Awards 2015 – Vote Now! appeared first on A Model Recommends.

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