Archives For November 30, 1999

One of our favourite beauty blogs is We Were Raised By Wolves, so we were delighted to be able to write a guest post whilst Evelyn is away. We hope you like it…..take a look at the blog here.

As most of us have probably noticed, it’s getting a lot darker, wetter and colder outside now we’re getting closer to December. We don’t know about you, but the change in temperature and biting British winds plays havoc with our skin, and we often end up with red and sore faces as this time of year.

We’ve put together our pick of our favourite winter skin wonders that we can’t live without, and thought we’d share them with you!

Preparation is key….

Temple Spa

Using the right cleanser is essential in winter. Using an astringent, drying cleanser at this time of year is asking for sore skin. Our favourite product is In the Beginning Deep Cleansing Melt by Temple Spa. This waxy cleanser literally melts on the skin, removing all traces of makeup and grime and gives a super strong injection of moisturiser without being greasy. Lavender and Vitamin E helps to soothe and relieve any tightness.

natiomaskGo the extra mile….

To give your skin a boost when the usual cleanse, tone and moisturise isn’t enough, we love Natio Ageless Hydrating mask. It is like an intensive conditioner for your face! Containing organic rosehip and sesame oils, as well as papaya and aloe vera, this mask really helps brighten and refresh your skin with intensive moisturisation. When applied it feels like double cream, and gives instant relief to skin battered by the elements!

nurtureWhen the going gets tough….

If you’re really suffering, for example with chapped or cracked skin around the nose, lips and eyelids which often happens to us during winter time, we recommend turning to Nurture’s Nourishing Rescue Balm. This extra softening balm is great on those areas which need some real TLC. It reminds us of Elizabeth Arden’s Eight Hour Cream but with a much smaller price tag. And we find the lavender scent really soothing and relaxing which is an added bonus.

primerPrimetime for Primer…

We’re always extolling the benefits of primers here at thebeautyobsession, but it’s even more important during the winter months. As well as providing a nice base for makeup, they offer an extra barrier between your skin and the elements. Our favourite primer is Avon’s Magix Skin Perfector.

benefit-cosmetics-perk-up-artist-kit-1339516941Cover it up….

Once you’ve full prepped and pampered your skin, if you’re still suffering from redness, don’t panic! The constant changing temperatures brought about by central heating and then stepping outside into the cold, mean that even those of us with usually flawless skin can suffer from some serious flushing! You can disguise the redness by using yellow or green toned concealers and foundations. We like Benefit’s Perk Up Artist for evening out skin tones.

clinique-introduces-chubby-stick-lip-balmsbalmiLove your lips…

The most common part of your face to suffer during winter are your poor lips! We can’t stress enough how important it is to protect and moisturise – chapped lips really aren’t a good look! We don’t leave the house without our Balmi lipbalm attached to our keyring, and if we need some colour, we use one of our Clinique Chubby Sticks. They moisturise and have great colour!

What are your winter skin saviours? Have you tried any of our favourites?

 

November TBO Awards!

December 2, 2012 — 2 Comments

November is over and we’re already in the final month of the year! Who can believe it?

Here are thebeautyobsession’s Top 10 products out of everything we tried and tested in November…..

No. 10

anatomicals

In first at number 10, it’s anatomicals Java Lava Coffee Buzz Body Cleanser, we can’t wake up in the morning without this, and we love how the scent stays with us all day! 

No. 9

balmi

Up next it’s our new favourite lipbalm. Balmi is attached to our keyring and follows us everywhere! 

No. 8

Lady Million

We love this gorgeous scent from Paco Rabanne and we’re wearing it day and night! 

No. 7Magnetic Attraction

If you’re looking for nails that attract attention, you should take a look at our three favourite magnetic polishes.

No. 6

D3AnarKitty_display

At No. 6, it’s the AnarKitty Denman D3 brush. Not only do we love the Limited Edition design, we love how well the brush allows us to style our hair and keep it smooth and sleek. 

Our Top 5 were really difficult to choose between as we love all of them, but here it goes….

No. 5

guykremer

We have to credit the Guy Kremer Hydro Rescue Shampoo & Conditioner with improving the condition of our dry, damaged hair. Not only is it shinier, smoother and stronger – it smells lovely! 

No. 4

Temple Spa

Our fourth favourite product this month goes to Temple Spa In the Beginning Deep Cleansing Melt. We can’t live without this, especially at this time of year. Our skin thanks the guys & girls at Temple Spa unreservedly! 

No. 3

MUA Brows

In at No. 3, it’s a product we use every single day – MUA Cosmetics Brow Kit! We love the mix of colours and the wax that makes it stay put all day. We also really love the price – £3.50!

No. 2

chanel-vitalumiere-aqua-foundation1

Second place goes to the best foundation we’ve ever used! Chanel Vitalumiere gives a flawless finish and feels lovely on the skin. 

So, which product makes it to the No. 1 spot for November?

No. 1 – Winner!

RTbrush-collection

We’ve been blown away by how good the Real Techniques brushes are. They make all makeup appear so much more flawless, they’re excellently priced and they don’t shed. We also love the video tutorials by the brush creator Samantha Chapman, there’s one for every brush! 

Which products would make your Top 10? Have you tried any of the ones we’ve featured?

Going balmy for Balmi!

November 13, 2012 — Leave a comment

Sometimes you see a product and just know it’s going to be popular. That’s how we feel about Balmi*. This little lip balm is really appealing for a number of reasons, which is unfortunate because we have too many lip balms already!

Remember when you were a child and there was the latest must have toy or collectable? Well, let’s not pretend we all grow out of that stage. Some of us are still enticed by beautiful packaging or innovative containers. How many times have you spent rather too much on a non-essential like lipstick or nail varnish, because the packaging has sucked you in?

The Balmi makes us think of this phenomena and really appeals to our sense of fun and thankfully being priced at £4.99 it won’t break the bank either. Encased in a silicone sphere, you can apply it without having to use your fingers and spread bacteria. It also has a cord meaning you can attach it to your handbag or purse; we’ve attached ours to our keys so it’s always with us!

In terms of actual performance the Balmi provides a moisturising sheen which can be used on its own or on top of lipstick to give it some gloss. It won’t work so well under lipstick as it will make it slide so be mindful of that. We’ve tried the Raspberry scent and love it, it’s not overpowering and doesn’t smell really synthetic like some scents can. There are four other “flavours” to chose from; Mint, Coconut, Blackcurrant and Strawberry. All of them have SPF 15 and contain Vitamin E, soothing Shea Butter and Jojoba Oil. Balmi don’t test on animals and they’re suitable for sensitive skins.

There have been questions about how similar they are to the EOS balm, which comes in a similar shape. We think they’re both great, and the EOS is brilliant for using under lipstick and it doesn’t slide off. In our opinion the packaging of the Balmi is more appealing and practical; being able to take it everywhere is a bonus. The Balmi is 10.5g compared to the 7g EOS and all the Balmi flavours contain SPF whereas only the Lemon Drop flavoured EOS does.

You can buy Balmi online or in-store at Boots or Mountain Warehouse and you can find out more about them. EOS isn’t stocked in stores in the UK but can be bought online too.

**Balmi is currently 3 for 2 at Boots.com**

Have you got a Balmi? Which is your favourite flavour?

Thanks for reading.

tbo

xxx