Chemical Reaction….

Here at thebeautyobsession, we use and trial products from a wide range of brands, which means our skin comes into contact with all sorts of different ingredients. Some of us are very cautious about putting certain chemicals on our skin, whilst others don’t really mind what it is, as long as it makes us look good!

We wanted to look at some of the ingredients regularly found in cosmetics and break down the long and confusing sounding names. Once you know what they are, you can make your own mind up about what you let near your skin…..

Alpha Hydroxy Acids

The most common AHA’s are citric acid, glycolic acid and lactic acid, which are normally used in anti-aging products. Although the term acid can sound quite harsh, they naturally help skin removal by exfoliating the top layer of your skin away, which not only helps it look better, but also helps other products be absorbed more easily. 

Ceramides

Ceramides are a type of fat molecule often used in hair and skin products. You do naturally produce ceramides, but as we age, our natural ceramide production slows, which is one of the causes of drier, wrinklier skin. When ceramides are used in cosmetics, it is usual to give a smoother, shinier appearance. 

Cyclopentasiloxane

This rather difficult to pronounce and slightly scary sounding ingredient, is one of a group of ingredients called silicones. Despite it’s name,  Cyclopentasiloxane doesn’t appear to have many adverse side effects. However, there are a number of concerns about how it and other silicones impact on the environment. Silicones are very often used in things like conditioner and primer, as they give a silky, soft “filling” effect when applied. 

                                                                                                                       

 

Formaldehyde 

Now this is a chemical nasty that most of us have heard of and probably wouldn’t expect to find in our makeup bag. However, you might be surprised to know that formaldehyde is still regularly used as a preservative in lots of cosmetics, from shampoo and nail varnish to mouthwash and deodrant. You’ll only find it in very small doses, however it is thought by many to be a carcinogen (cancer causing), so you might want to steer clear wherever possible.

GBL (Gamma Butyrolactone)

If you’ve been keeping up with the news, you might of heard of GBL becoming the party drug of choice for a generation of youngsters, and in 2009 it was classified as a Class C drug. However, GBL is actually certified as safe for use in cosmetics such as nail varnish remover and perfumes. When the new legislation was introduced, the cosmetic industry worked with the government to ensure their products couldn’t be abused and used as a drug. We’re not sure who in their right mind would think ingesting varnish remover is the sign of a good night, but hopefully people will just stick to using it to help them look pretty! 

Lanolin 

Lanolin is an ingredient you see all the time in cosmetics. It is actually a naturally derived product, although it does come from animals, so people who try to use products free from animal derivatives may want to avoid it. Lanolin is basically grease from the wool of animals. So if you think of a sheep that hasn’t had a wash for a very long time, and definitely hasn’t used any Batiste spray, you can probably imagine the oil that builds up. This is actually a good thing for our unwashed sheep, as it builds a barrier to protect them from the elements and keep their skin soft. When the lanolin is removed from the wool, it is a wax-like substance that is then used in things like lipsticks and lipbalms! Not necessarily the yummiest thought, but it definitely serves a purpose…

Octinoxate

Octinoxate is a chemical compound that is derived from petroleum by-products, then added to many makeup products, lotions and potions. It is most commonly used for its sun-protection benefits and can normally be found in anything that boasts an SPF. There are some people who are allergic to Octinoxate, so if you find yourself reacting to a sunscreen or product that contains it, you might want to look for an Octinoxate free product. 

Parabens

Parabens! We hear about them all the time don’t we, and there are normally two sides of the camp – those who refuse to use products that contain them, and those who believe they’re a necessary evil as it were. Parabens are normally used to stop bacteria and nasties causing your cosmetics to go off, and as such they do help products last much longer before spoiling. That said there are more and more brands that offer paraben free ranges and use natural alternatives, so if you’re trying to reduce the amount of chemicals you come into contact with, this might be a good place to start!

Sodium Chloride 

Quite simply, sodium chloride is salt. Plain, old table salt! So you might be surprised to know that it does regularly make an appearance in cosmetic ingredients lists such as toothpaste, shampoo and makeup, due to its thickening qualities. Although considered safe, it can cause reactions if the quantities used are too high. 

Sodium Laureate Sulphate

Sodium Laureate Sulphate is what makes things foam and lather! So your shampoo, face wash and body wash will normally contain SLS. SLS is often vilified by those who prefer chemical-free products and it has been blamed for causing everything from allergic reactions to cancer. That said, it has been tested again and again by multiple regulatory bodies and there has been no evidence found to support these claims. It is generally agreed that if you make sure your skin only has limited contact with SLS and is thoroughly rinsed after use, you should avoid an adverse reaction. Everyone reacts differently though, and there are numerous SLS-free products out there for those with sensitive skins or who are just trying to avoid SLS in general. 

So now you know what all of these ingredients actually are, you can choose whether to use them or not. Check your makeup bag and bathroom cabinet and we bet you’ll be surprised to see how often these feature! Let us know what you think, are you a chemical-free zone or are you happy as long as a product does what it is supposed to?

Tweet us @thebeautyobsess and let us know! 

#QuickReview – Diorshow Mascara

We love a little luxury here at thebeautyobsession, and whilst we know there are many, many budget brands that offer fabulous products at great prices, sometime we just can’t help ourselves from going a little high end! 

Diorshow is one of the many mascaras we have on the go at any one time, but it’s also one of the few that we’ve repurchased time and time again.

To start with, it’s Dior! Like we’ve said, there’s something very indulgent about trawling the makeup counters at your nearest department store and knowing that you can buy with confidence. Not only are there some knowledgeable assistants on hand to help, department stores are normally very good at accepting exchanges if you don’t like a product – we’ve done it a number of times. Plus it’s nice every now and again to feel like you’re treating yourself! 

Diorshow comes with a large thick brush, which at first look does seem a little too big. However, it picks up just the right amount of product and is great for creating a dramatic effect. The mascara isn’t too wet, but is easy to apply across the top lashes. If you’re worried about the brush, it does take a little getting use to so that you don’t get any product on the lid, but placing a finger behind the lashes does help with this. 

It is a little harder to use this one on the bottom lashes, due to the size of the brush. Then again we normally use a different waterproof mascara on the bottom lashes anyway.

The pigment in Diorshow is fantastic, it really is the blackest black and the formula helps create real volume in the lashes. We think they look instantly thicker, and wouldn’t be without this for our nights out or days when we want to make a big impression! 

We have also tried the newer version; Diorshow Blackout, which is supposed to give your lashes even more volume. However, we found the formula far too wet and quite difficult to apply. It left our lashes quite clumpy, so we promptly returned it and exchanged it for the original. We have yet to try the rotating version so would be really interested to hear any feedback or reviews.

Have you ever tried Diorshow, if so what did you think? Have you got a favourite product where the newer version hasn’t been as good in your opinion? 

Diorshow lowest prices – £19.55 from escentuals, £17.95 from ClickFragrance

Barry M Wink Black Marker Pen for Eyes

Don’t tell anyone, but it’s taken us years to master the art of applying eyeliner! We’ve tried so many pencils, gels and liquids over the years and we think we’ve finally just about got the knack (thank you youtube videos!). That said, we welcome anything that makes getting the right line and flick easier, so have been pleased to see lots of eyeliner pens arriving on the market lately.

Barry M’s Wink, a black marker pen for eyes caught our eye on our last Superdrug trip. We like the bright yet simple packaging, and as always with Barry M, we like the price!

It literally is a felt tip for your eyes, the pointed nib means you can draw a really fine line, or you can tilt it slightly to get a more dramatic, thicker line. We love how easy it is to use, no messing about with a brush and pot of gel, or one of those little pots with the fiddly applicator brush, you just use it as you would a pencil, but get a liquid liner effect.

It dries very quickly and doesn’t smudge easily once it’s on. Always good things on a night out!

We think the colour could be slightly darker, it isn’t quite as dramatic as we’d like, especially when applied over eyeshadows. With a bit more pigment and/or a slightly thicker formula, this would be our go to product, however for now we’ll be using it when we’re in a hurry and can’t be faffing with our usual gel liner. It’ll also be a clutch bag staple for touch ups on nights out!

You can buy Barry M Wink for £4.59 here.

Have you used a pen style liner? What did you think? Let us know your favourites!

COLLECTION Cover & Go!

One of our New Years Resolutions is to scale down our makeup bag. The suitcase full of slap we cart around most days is just excessive, so we’re planning to invest in some multipurpose products and palettes. So we quite like the look of this new foundation and concealer in one from COLLECTION (formally Collection 2000).

The foundation comes in a screw top bottle and there is a matching concealer and mirror contained within the lid. We’ve not tried many products from COLLECTION, but we think this is a really simple but ingenious idea. We’ve got a bottle of this winging its way to us at the moment, so we’ll bring you a full review soon and let you know whether the product itself is as good as the packaging.

If you’ve got a great multipurpose product then let us know, we’d love to hear!

COLLECTION Cover & Go Foundation and Concealer Duo will be available in 6 shades: Vanilla, Ivory, Biscuit, Natural Beige, Honey and Golden for £5.99. It hits Boots stores nationwide from 23rd January 2013 and Superdrug from 6 February 2013.

Velvetines from Limecrime

Sometimes we can’t help but get really excited over beauty products. Yes, we know it’s only a lipstick and not a cure for world poverty, but we’ve seen and heard such great things about Velvetines from Lime Crime, that we almost squealed when our parcel arrived from across the pond! You can read our article from when they launched back in November, to see why we were so keen to get our mitts on them. Lets be honest though, seeing the picture above, who wouldn’t want a matt lipstick that finishes to perfection?

It’s all very well looking at pictures, but we all know how kind modern technology can be. We know that the only real test is to try it for ourselves and see if it lives up to all the hype! 

Firstly, we love the Lime Crime brand, their packaging and branding is spot on and really appeals to our sense of fun. We love the lux purples and reds that often feature and the almost magical theme, which is what we think makeup should often be about! 

When you’ve been really looking forward to trying something, you also know how disappointing it will be if it doesn’t live up to your expectations, so it was almost with some trepidation that we opened the box (drama queens, us? never!). The lipstick itself comes in liquid form so the bottle and applicator are the same as a traditional lip gloss. 

The colour, Red Velvet is gorgeous. It’s a really bright red with some blue tones, which would suit most complexions. The consistency is of a thin paint, it’s not sticky or gloopy in any way like gloss, you literally feel like you’re painting it onto your lips. Once its on, it takes a second or two to dry to the matt/velvet finish and it is absolutely stunning! The formula feels so lightweight you don’t even notice you’re wearing anything. Unlike other lip stains or matt finishes, you don’t feel like all the moisture is being sucked from your lips, you could just forget you are wearing it. The colour dries slightly darker than it appears when wet but only by a shade so it still stays really vibrant. We didn’t use a liner and were pleased to see that we don’t need to as it didn’t bleed or feather at all. 

We decided to put it to the test and see how it lasted when it was faced with eating, drinking, licking of the lips and all those other lipstick pitfalls. We’re pleased and slightly amazed to say that it passed the test with flying colours. It was still perfectly in place after dinner, drinks and lots of talking. Which is great as patchy red lips are a real no no! 

It was easily removed with a cotton pad and our usual makeup remover so there was no trace of it by bedtime. Our one tip would be to ensure you have super smooth lips before applying, as the matt formula will highlight every tiny bit of dry skin if you haven’t buffed it away beforehand. 

This is without a doubt our newest favourite lipstick, and we are going to be wearing it at every party from now until summer! We just hope that Lime Crime work on releasing some more shades in the meantime! 

You Velvetines can buy from the Lime Crime site for $16.99 (just over £10) but there is international delivery to pay for too, which means the total comes to around £17. Well worth it in our opinion though!

Shine Your Light

We love Temple Spa for their luxurious skincare but we’d not tried their cosmetics range before. We thought the gorgeous Shine Your Light set would be a good place to start, containing two nail treats and two cream eyeshadows in complementary colours, we thought they’d be perfect for the Christmas party season. As with all the Temple Spa sets, it comes presented in a lovely gift box, so it would make a great Christmas present, but we’re not giving it away!

Browns are a great colour for autumn/winter, so we thought we’d start with the Terra twighlight nail treat.

As you can see, three coats give a sumptuous, shimmering colour, and it lasted well for 4/5 days without chipping.

Ice/frost colours are also particularly apt for the cold weather we’re having at the moment, so the Azzuro silver/blue nail treat is great for adding some on trend sparkle. 

We like it with one coat alone, it gives a lovely pearlescent shimmer, which would make a great alternative for when you normally quickly pop on a coat of clear varnish.

With two coats the colour really comes into its own, and would be ideal for Christmas parties!

The two eyeshadows come in very similar shades to the nail treats; Imbrunire and Oceano. They’re cream shadows with sponge applicators and we love them! The colours are beautiful, and the cream formula is easy to apply and very easy to blend. It’s not quite a cream to powder formula, as it doesn’t dry to a matt, powdery finish, but once set they stay put for hours and there is no creasing. We used Oceano in the inner corners of the eye, with the darker Imbrunire in a V shape on the outer corners of the lid – gorgeous! 

Shine Your Light is available from Temple Spa for £25 and your can buy online here, or through one of their Spa to Go consultants at a Temple Spa skin class.