Tag Archives: beauty

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!

Sephora Melting Cleansing Balm Review

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hihi everyone, I hope all is well, Autumn has arrived in the UK after a very cold & brief summer lol

Today I’m talking about the melting cleansing balm from Sephora. This one promises to remove even waterproof stubborn makeup and oils and dirt from the skin.

Experience

oh gosh I havent used a bad cleansing balm in a while. This balm just isn’t it. Firstly it doesn’t spread easily across the face and it struggles against makeup, even just everyday simple makeup. Against mascara and waterproof mascara you need a few good rubs to remove them and even after that it doesn’t completely remove waterproof mascara. It does emulsify well I have to give it that but that’s just about it

Verdict

I’ve really tried to stick with it and to finish it but its a massive tub and I just cant anymore lool. Its not a good cleansing balm period, I’m going to have to throw this one away.

SupraFade Hyperpigmentation Review

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hihi everyone, I hope all is well. Today I have a full review of the Supradafe hyperpigmentation serum I finished last month

Suprafade is the first product from HUE, a black owned skincare brand based in the UK. The promise is “A serum formulated with 7 active ingredients and antioxidants working synergistically to target the signs and causes of hyperpigmentation, discolouration and dullness. Engineered to be gentle enough for nightly use, our formula starts working in as little as two weeks. To ensure maximum efficacy and results, we always use ingredients at their active level. “

Experience

I introduced this to my routine on 9/6 very slowly. In the first week I used it once then twice in the 2nd week- I do this to prevent any irritation when starting new products. I started using nightly from 23/6. I finished the product 20/8. I experienced no issues with the serum.

Suprafade has no noticeable scent and I didnt find it particularly hydrating. It layers well with other serums with no pilling and works well with retinol ( I use MEdik8’s r-Retinoate® Intense) and acids with no issue

The serum has really big claims, on the website they claim: In a consumer study, participants agreed that there was a dramatic improvement in hyperpigmentation within 6 weeks. 2 weeks- 80% agreed skin tone was more even. 4 weeks- dark spots were obviously reduced. 6 weeks- complexion was significantly more even

For me the experience was very different, by 4 week I couldn’t really tell if my dark spots were fading or not, infact by the time I finished the bottle I was still on the fence. June to Aug were bad skin months for me, I had a lot of texture and spots that led to new hyperpigmentation. I’m not sure if the serum helped deal with that. I had 2 old spots I really wanted to target with the serum and to me they dont look any better.

Mark 1 is an old hyperpigmentation spot Ive been trying to get rid of and it was what I wanted Hue to target. I can barely tell the difference by the 20th when I finished the serum. Mark 2 looks slightly better but 3 is also confusing, Im not sure if there was any improvement. Other areas of my face are also the same I can barely see a difference.

I do like the texture of the serum, its very lightweight and it pairs well with other products. Whilst its not the most hydrating serum out there it is ok. I also like the pump jar it came in.

Verdict

To be totally honest, I’m disappointed with the serum. I saw so many good reviews and improvements from other people but I really cant tell if the serum did anything for me. I did have bad skin this summer as I have new pigmentation spots to treat but I wanted the serum to target older spots I had. Side by side pictures tell me there was hardly any improvements. the newer pigmentation spots look slightly improved? Im not even sure

Will I repurchase? Honestly I did consider it because perhaps I needed more time with it? however after 8 weeks of daily use and not seeing major improvements, I didn’t want to spend another £52 on it plus shipping. I wont repurchase.

If you want to check out Suprafade, check the website here

The Best sunscreen for Dark skin

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Hi hi everyone, I hope all is well. Today I have a list of my fav sunscreens for you, these are across different price points and brands but the best thing about them are that they are all 100% invisible on dark skin! Check out Part 1 of this post with more suitable sunscreens here

Paula’s Choice RESIST Anti Aging Skin Restoring Moisturiser SPF 50 £39 – this is one of my top 5 sunscreens because its simply amazing! An SPF moisturiser with broad spectrum protecting and feels light on the skin with a dewy finish? Paula’s Choice did their thing with this

Garnier Ambre Solaire Ultra-Light Sensitive Sun Protection Face Fluid SPF50+ 40ml £13 – this is a dupe for La Roche Posay shaka fluid but the reason why I like the Garnier version more is because I don’t find it as matte. This is also frequently on sale and very accessible. This is a great option for oily skins. Its very watery and light weight

SuperGoop Play SPF 50 £22 – My first every SPF from Supergoop and I loved it! another SPF moisturiser that you don’t need to use a cream underneath. 100% invisible on the skin

BeautyPie Super Healthy Skin™Featherlight UVA/UVB SPF 50 Sunscreen + Primer £15 or £50 – If you are a BP member then you really should try this! This was one of my fav products from them when I was in the BP club. This isn’t for everyone though because it is very very dewy and does sting the eyes a little bit lol. I still loved it though and went through many bottles of this stuff. Its £15 for members or £50 for non members( it is not worth £50 though in my opinion)

I hope you found this helpful. I have a lot of sunscreen videos and reviews under my Dark skin sunscreen tab on the menu above

stay safe

Paula’s Choice Advanced Sun Protection Daily Moisturizer SPF50 Review

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hihi everyone, I hope all is well. Today I have another sunscreen review and try on for dark skin tones. I’m very passionate about encouraging black people to wear sunscreen more so I have to make sure to find suitable options for us. Please check out my Dark skin sunscreen menu for lots more options. I have videos on my insta too

I love Paula’s Choice as a brand and I have tried a few of their sunscreens too. This one is a new sunscreen that came out last year (I think). I got the travel size as a gift with purchase and Ive been using it for a while now.

This is SPF moisturiser which makes it very convenient as you don’t have to layer over a morning moisturiser. It promises high factor broad spectrum protection for normal & dry skins with a ultra sheer finish. This one has a high PA rating and added antioxidants

Experience

It’s a very lightweight lotion texture, that feels light and silky on the skin with no oily/greasy feel. I did not experience any irritation with the SPF and it did not sting my eyes. It leaves a dewy finish but nothing that is too shiny. I use the standard 2 fingers full to get the correct amount for my face and neck

Is it 100% invisible on dark skin– NO! Although it promises an ultra sheer finish, it does leave a slight white cast on my skin. Its not the worst cast I have experienced, but its still there and I wont be able to leave the house with this only without a bit of powder. Its pretty difficult to see in my pictures below but if you look on my neck, you can see piling and a cast on my skin.

So the other issue I have with this SPF is pilling. As you can see it piles and settles in the lines on my neck. It also sticks to the hairline.

Verdict

This is a no from me and I’m disappointed as PC is one of my fav brands. infact one of my fav ever sunscreens is from them! This one leaves a cast AND it piles! I can easily cover a white cast with makeup but the piling? makes applying makeup difficult! sigh. I do not like the sunscreen at all and if you can believe it, I still haven’t finished that 15ml travel size! I’ve switched to something else.

This is available on Amazon for £39