Evening Skincare Regime for Combination and Sensitive Skin

Hello my darlings!

Summer is just around the corner and I am trying to ensure that my skin is ready and rearing to go. When it comes to skincare I try to keep it simple and fresh, and generally stay clear of fragranced products.

I have incredibly sensitive skin – almost anything and everything seems to irritate it – and if that wasn’t bad enough, I also have the annoyance of a combination skin-type. So, as you may expect, I struggle to find the perfect skin-care products. It can really difficult to find the perfect products because you need to maintain moisture but at the same time you need to ensure that you don’t cause your skin to become too oily.

So, this is my current evening skin-care regime. I start with the Clinique Take the Day off Cleansing Balm (here) to remove all of my make-up. This is one of my favourite products and has well and truly converted me to cleansing balms. Read my full review of this product here. I then use the B. Pure Micellar Water (here) to further cleanse and to leave my skin feeling refreshed due to the cucumber extract. This product  is perfect for sensitive skin as it is incredibly gentle.

After I have removed all traces of my make-up and my skin is thoroughly cleansed, I move onto my toner. I am currently using the Clarins Toning Lotion with Iris (here) which ticks all of my boxes. It is ultra sensitive so it doesn’t irritate my skin and the touch of iris leaves your skin feeling amazingly refreshed and rejuvenated. It is also tailored for combination skin types – perfect – so leaves my skin toned but not dry, nor does it leave any residue that makes the skin seem oily.

My final step is to reach for the Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion + (here) I cannot swear by this product enough – I absolutely love it. This moisturiser is wonderfully light and feels cooling on the skin, leaving it moisturized until morning – a dream to use. Clinique products are perfect for those of us who suffer from sensitive skin, offering effective but incredibly gentle products, packed full of moisture but that never leave your skin looking greasy so are perfect for combination skin types.

Have you tried any of these products? What is your evening skin-care routine? 

Lots of Love,

Hannah xx

Friday Favourites // #4

Happy Friday my darlings!

So here we are again, another week done and dusted (that means over by the way – my friend read this post before I posted it and had no-idea what that meant- oops!). As always here is my weekly favourites of the things that I have been loving this week. It is a slightly mismatched selection today but – hey – you can’t help what you like!

New Clinique Cheek Pop // £16.50

The New Clinique Cheek Pop comes in four colours; Ginger Pop, Plum Pop, Peach Pop & Berry Pop – all of which look amazing! I think what drew me to these Cheek Pops is the flower design but I also read many favourable reviews, so they are not just unbelievably pretty but a beautiful natural-looking blush. I haven’t decided which colour it is I want yet – I may just have to get them all!

MAC 188 Small Duo Fibre Face Brush // £27.00

MAC 116 Blush Brush // £27.00

MAC 193 Angled Foundation Brush // £27.00

Real Techniques Foundation Brush // £7.99

Real Techniques Stippling Brush // £9.99

Real Techniques Blush Brush // £7.99

I have had a major dilemma lately! All of my make-up brushes seem to have decided to fall apart at the same time – thanks for that guys! I have been looking into replacing them and I am seriously torn. I was all set to purchase these three MAC brushes as MAC never disappoints, but then the sensible side of my brain kicked in. I am trying lately to not spend so much as my recent transaction history is a tad over the top. So, I paid a visit to All Beauty because they over a wide range of brands at discounted prices which keeps a few pennies in your purse. They had quite a lot of make-up brushes to choose from but I have settled on the ones from Real Techniques. Although they are probably not as good as those from MAC, all three only come in at a grand total of £25.97 (less than what one brush costs at MAC) compared to the total of the three MAC brushes which comes to £81! So … I am torn between quality and price!

Hope you enjoyed my weekly favourites even though has turned into my endless mutterings about my brush choices. I think I will have to do a brush review soon as I want to see if the more expensive a make-up brush is the more effective, or whether there are more budget ones out there that can do the job just as well.

Hope you all enjoy the rest of your weekend!

Lots of Love,

Hannah xx

Clinique // take the day off cleansing balm

Take the Day Off Cleansing Balm // £21.00 (buy here from Clinique)

‘Lightweight cleansing balm quickly dissolves stubborn eye and face makeups, including those with sunscreen. Transforms from a solid balm to a silky, fluid oil upon application. Cleans thoroughly, rinses off completely. Cleans thoroughly, rinses off completely. Non-greasy. Non-drying. For all skin types.’

Hello my darlings!

I have been really lazy lately when it comes to skin-care and I am now suffering as a result. Too many nights falling asleep slumped over my laptop still wearing a full face of make-up has not done me any favours. So, this weekend I gave myself a little shake and decided to sort myself out. Now that it is March I am suddenly aware that Spring/Summer will soon be descending upon us, and as I like to scale back on the make-up for Springtime I realised I needed to stop being so lazy! So I took myself down to my local Boots and treated little-old-me to some well needed beauty products.

I was so excited when I wandered over to the Clinique counter and saw the Take the day off cleansing balm. This stuff is like gold dust! I have been trying to get my hands on it ever since I heard how good it is. I have been searching the Clinique counter’s in Boots in both Leeds and Liverpool and, until yesterday, to no avail. I was so excited when I saw it beaming at me from the shelf I was, according to the counter assistant, really lucky to find some as they had only gotten in that morning. It sells out so quickly but due to its popularity major stockists (I got mine from Boots) will continue to re-stock it, so keep looking!

I have never used a cleansing balm before and I wasn’t 100% sure what to expect. I was expecting it to be more like the texture of a Vaseline lip balm (slightly soft) but when I removed the lid it actually had the consistency of a hard-lard-like substance (I know that sounds strange but don’t be put off). It reminds me of a body butter and  it feels amazing when you massage it into your skin, as  the solidified oil turns into a liquid when rubbed between your fingers or directly onto the skin. 

The balm doesn’t have a scent (which I love!) which is why I usually opt for Clinique products. They are perfect for sensitive skin, because they are fragrance-free, moisturizing and soothing rather than being overly harsh on your skin. I used this product in combination with Clinique Liquid Facial Soap, Superfacialist Vitamin C+ Brighten: Skin Renew Cleansing Oil from Una Brennan and the New Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion+ from Clinique  (I will be uploading a post about these products soon which I will link to here). You can also use the balm as an alternative to a cleansing oil which saves time and is a lot less messy, but I prefer to use both products to ensure that my face is fully cleansed.

I find that a lot of cleansing products leave my skin slightly sore and red as they are just too harsh, but I loved how my skin felt after using this cleansing balm. It left my skin feeling so clean and soft as the balm breaks down your make-up to ensure it is completely removed. It even removed my stubborn mascara and eyeliner, and it was safe to use around the eye-area and on the lids as it is such a gentle product. I also found that my skin felt softer for longer, leaving me with a just moisturized feeling all day.

I would highly recommend this product and I can safely say it is now one of my favourite skincare products – there is no going back, I am a cleansing balm convert.

Have you tried Take the day off cleansing balm from Clinique? What is your favourite cleansing balm?

Lots of Love,

Hannah xx