Snowglobe Bubble Bath

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Snowglobe Bubble Bath

Snowglobe Bubble Bath

You don’t need to tell me that this is a little bit early to be flagging, but bearing in mind that the company who supply M&S with these working snowglobes (shake and the glitter appears) are the only ones to be making them, they might end up in short supply.

There is not another snowglobe product (so far) that uses the bubble bath as the water part of the globe. I was looking the other day for a really cute tree decoration in M&S – it’s sold out!

I’m just thinking very cool stocking fillers or office presents in the spirit of seasonal sparkling things! The snowman snow globe is £6 but on the 3-for-2 HERE.

The post Snowglobe Bubble Bath appeared first on British Beauty Blogger.

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Chanel Empreinte Du Désert: Your Summer Eye Look Sorted

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CHANEL EMPREINTE DU DÉSERT QUADRA EYESHADOW PALETTE

If you’re looking for one luxe item to add life to your summer makeup bag then you could do worse than Chanel’s Empreinte Du Désert eyeshadow quad. I’ve been using it for the past month or so, almost on a daily basis, and it has the perfect trio of shimmery, simmering hot shades as well as the usual Chanel “wildcard” shade in a contrasting tone.

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And for once, I’m actually using the contrasting – or accent – tone, which in this case is a very pretty green. A sort of sparkling khaki – more vivid than khaki, actually, but not one of those acid-brights or near-neon colours that tend to pop up in summer palettes. This is wearable and flattering and blends beautifully with the shimmering gold, beige and chocolatey brown.

For a simple daytime look, I’ve been using the two lighter shades across the lid, moving towards the darker of the two as I reach the outer corners. Then a teeny bit of the darkest brown in a “v” shape along the top and bottom lash-line right at the edges.

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In the pictures here, I’ve ramped it up a bit more by smudging the deepest brown shade into the bottom lash-line until about halfway along towards the inner corner, using the khaki green in the inner corner and blending out. I also used the smokey eyeliner brush from Bobbi Brown to create a tiny “flick” at the outer corners with the dark brown, blending it out so that it was almost imperceptible. It’s barely noticeable, really, but it does elongate the eyes. Though it requires a little more practice than I demonstrate in these photos – I had the baby in my lap and I wasn’t giving it my full concentration!

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Chanel’s eye quads very often end up being my most-used makeup items in any given season – I think it’s because they are so compact and the shades so easy to blend together. There’s always one colour that works really well on its own to brighten up the lids and can be quickly swept across with a fluffy brush to create a polished look in no time at all. And it’s usually such a delectable little foursome of shades – I like that it’s all been pre-curated, a bit like a capsule wardrobe, and that the hassle of decision-making has been removed from the equation. It’s expensive, obviously, but the resulting looks are always top-notch and Empreinte Du Désert, with its smouldering tones, is no exception. It makes me yearn for a trip to somewhere exotic where I can float about in a black kaftan and wear chunky gold jewellery.

Keep on dreaming, Crilly.

You can find Chanel’s Empreinte Du Désert Quadra Eyeshadow Palette at Boots here – it’s £42.

If luxe is not an option this summer then I can also highly, highly recommend British Beauty Blogger’s Fortune Favours the Brave palette, which is packed full of gorgeous shimmers. At £9.99 has to be one of the best value shadow collections I’ve seen. Find it online here.

The post Chanel Empreinte Du Désert: Your Summer Eye Look Sorted appeared first on A Model Recommends.

© 2016 A Model Recommends®: all opinions are my own and any sponsored or paid posts will always be very clearly marked. I accept press samples and receive product and services to review as part of my job. Outward links to retailers will usually be affiliate links. Please see here for full “about” section and disclaimer.  A Model Recommends and Ruth Crilly are registered trademarks.

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Summer Holiday Skincare and Self Tan Favourites

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summer skincare essentials

Some holiday (or pre-holiday) skincare essentials. The VO5 Hot Oil is a bit of an anomaly because it’s for your hair and not for your face, but it was orange and summery and looked good in my photographs! Hot Oil is one of those beauty products that seems very old fashioned, now, because it’s been around for such a long time, but it’s actually an excellent idea. There are loads of pre-shampoo nourishing oils out there (you pop them on a few hours before washing your hair to give it an extra conditioning session) but they can be really expensive and I’m not sure that many of them are more speedily effective than the VO5 one. The Hot Oil is, as the name suggests, hot. (Or “very warm”, anyway – you don’t want to boil your scalp!) This helps the oils to get to work faster and it means that you only have to leave the oil on for a very short amount of time (one minute) before shampooing it off. It’s a good post-beach treatment, and I like that the oils come in four separate tubes so that you only have to take one small product on holiday. You can find the packs of Hot Oil at Boots.com here – £4.29.

DECLÉOR AROMESSENCE SOLAIRE TAN ACTIVATOR SERUM

And from one oil blend to another, this one rather more pricey but something of a summer skincare favourite for me. Decleor’s Solaire Tan Activator Serum is just brilliant if you know that you’re going to be getting lots of sun on your face and want to provide a little bit of extra protection. Often people think that these tan “enhancer” or “activator” products are bad news, promoting the idea of fast tanning or deeper tanning, but they’ve actually been designed (usually) to help the skin boost its own natural sun defences. The idea is that the antioxidants in the serum encourage the skin’s natural ability to deal with UV exposure and therefore tan more evenly. (Read more on antioxidants and their oft-cited benefits here.) There are loads of antioxidant-rich oil blends, but I do love Decleor’s – it’s soothing, nourishing and I’m pretty sure that the carrot oil in there helps to give me an excellent glow! I use a few drops massaged in before my sun protection, and if I’m feeling indulgent I add a drop to my SPF when I reapply, too! You can find Deceor’s Tan Activator Serum at LookFantastic.com here for £37.55. (RRP £44)

summer skincare essentials

Another serum that I tested out quite extensively earlier in the year; Kiehl’s Powerful-Strength Line-Reducing Concentrate. A Vitamin-C powerhouse, I find this one to be very brightening and it’s great for skin that’s dullish and needs a kick up the proverbial, but it’s also great for crepey, fine-liney skin around the eyes. I wouldn’t apply it too close to the eyes, because it’s quite warm and spicy when it goes on, but see how you get on! I’m erring on the side of caution because I don’t want thousands of people burning their eyes out, but I have tested it a lot with no particular eye trouble to report. You can find this serum  – which is more like a thick, dryish cream than the usual light-textured serum that you’d expect –  for £35 here. It’s usually £49.

sisley fake tan for face review

Other bits and pieces that you see in the pics above; La Roche-Posay’s Anthelios Ultra-Light which has been one of my hero SPFs of the year (read more about it here) and two self-tanners for the face. Now you really have to excuse me with the first one, which is by Sisley and insanely expensive. I was in two minds about whether to include it at all, but it is the one that I use most regularly and so, in a way, it would be unfair and also a bit odd not to mention it. Sisley’s Self Tanning Hydrating Facial Skin Care is the best I’ve tried, but I would stress that there are other beautiful and very lightweight formulas out there for a fraction of the price. You don’t need to spend sixty-odd quid on a face tanner! But I did, and I still love it more than any other one I’ve tried, so it’s in.

But feel free to ignore it completely, because there are nine other options in the video below that I filmed with Caroline Hirons. I am ordering the Clarins one that she mentions, it felt amazing, and I’ve already praised the Elemis gradual face tanner here on A Model Recommends. If you want to splash out on a luxurious-yet-lightweight gel-cream face moisturiser with added self tan then Sisley is just dreamy; if you need to be sensible about things then try the Clarins (here) the Elemis (here) or the James Read (here). Watch the video for a full rundown of our favourite fake tanners (mine are all gradual because I’m a tan-scaredy) and let me know which ones you’d recommend in the comments below. Summer is only just in full-swing, plenty of time for my tan-testing yet!

Caroline’s Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/dixierae25

Sorry to start with such a pricey tanner, but I do love it.

Sisley Self Tanning Hydrating Facial Gel: sorry, this IS ridiculous, but I love it. http://rstyle.me/n/en58vt6a6

Clarins Liquid Bronze Self Tanner: http://tidd.ly/484c1ce0

Elemis Gradual Tanner for Face: http://tidd.ly/41d245ab

and Body:

Clinique Body Tinted Lotion: http://tidd.ly/dc070062

Clinique Face Bronzing Gel: http://tidd.ly/e4d6f431

James Read Gradual Tanner for Face: http://tidd.ly/7aa72c55

Vichy Capital Soleil Auto Bronzant: http://tidd.ly/5e4e1053

Dove Gradual Tan Deeper Effect: http://tidd.ly/248e69bf

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