My Beauty Essential Picks for the Marathon/Update #3

The Mini Marathon is tomorrow and of course I'm starting to get really nervous which was to be expected. I hope all the hard work and determination in training has paid off. I know once I cross that finish line it will have been all worth it. I wanted to do a post sharing some products that I feel are essentials for the Mini Marathon. Besides beauty products of course water and good footwear are the two biggies. The joys with these products is that they will come in handy over the Summer too!

Suncare/Moisturiser

This is such a big one, even if the sun isn't shining on the day doesn't mean that it's non existence. La Roche Posay and Vichy have a brilliant range of suncare products to choose from. I'm not a million percent sure if I'm going to be wearing makeup on the day but if I was, Vichy's Mattifying Face Fluid* is exactly what I'd reach for. It does exactly what it says on the tin, it doesn't leave a greasy residue and would be perfect under makeup. Did I mention it also has SPF50? Another great sunscreen is La Roche Posay's Anthelios XL Extreme Fluid*, I've used this a couple of times on holidays but I don't know how well it would far under makeup. That's why Vichy's Mattifying Face Fluid is a winner for me and I reach for it all the time. Anthelios XL Invisible Nutritive Oil* is a new addition to La Roche Posay's suncare range and I love this product, it has a really nice light scent. I'll be using this on my arms and legs tomorrow for sure. Unlike most oils this won't leave your skin feeling oily. Again this offers high protection which I think is a must all year round especially in the Summer months. I hope they bring it out in a travel version too for holidays! The most important thing for me on Marathon Day is to keep my skin moisturised, hydrated and protected from the sun.

Lip Balm
Everyone I know that is doing the Marathon tomorrow is bringing along one of these, with the sun pumping down it's inevitable dry lips will occur. I'm big into my lip balm as I get dry lips a lot plus I don't want them to be sore on Tuesday from getting sunburned. The Body Shop's Vitamin D Lip Balm* is not only moisturising but it also contains an SPF15 and has a lovely light Vanilla scent. Another lip balm I love is Nivea's Vanilla & Macadamia lip butter, there's other scents to choose from in the range but this one is my favourite by far. This lip butter is super moisturing and smells amazing like Kinder Eggs. They ring in at under €3 too which is a steal! As you can see from my own looking a mess it's very loved indeed. As it comes in a tube I think The Body Shops offering is practical for the Marathon so I'll definitely have this on me tomorrow.

Facial Sprays
I can't put into words how much I love facial mists. Mini Marathon or not, I use these all year round. Vichy's Thermal Spa Water* is a soothing mist that also leaves my skin refreshed and especially hydrated. This bottle will last for ages, I use mine all the time and still have loads left. This also comes in a nifty little travel size which would be perfect for your handbag. Another facial spray I've been reaching for a lot after training is the Vitamin C Energising Face Spritz*. I haven't tried too much from The Body Shop's skincare line to day, you'll usually find me stocking up on their gorgeous body butters so I didn't know what to expect from this product. My verdict, I've really enjoyed using their Vitamin C Facial Spritz, it comes out as a light mist, rest assured this stuff won't drown your face plus it smells like oranges. I've been using this for a while now and I can't fault it, my skin literally drinks it up. It's jam packed with Amazonian Camu Camu and Community Trade Aloe Vera which leaves my skin looking brighter and refreshed. After trying this product I definitely want to pick up some more bits from the Vitamin C range in the future.

Post Marathon Pampering
Yay for a bit of pampering when you finish the Marathon. Of course Post Marathon I'm going to want nothing more than a relaxing shower. At this stage I'm seriously envious of people that have baths. After the marathon, everyone will want to chill out and unwind after a long day. You can't really go wrong with these two shower products from Soap & Glory and Radox. Both brands offer a huge variety of lovely shower and bath products, you'll certainly find something that will tickle your fancy. I'll be finishing everything off with Roger & Gallet's Fleur d'Osmanthus Beauty Oil*. This product can be used for the hair and body, I mostly use mine on the latter. I love Roger & Gallet products, it's a brand that I discovered when I first started blogging over two years ago. Fleur d'Osmanthus Beauty Oil contains a number of precious plant oils, perfect for relaxing. It sinks into the skin super quick too, leaving it nourished and soft. Safe to say I'll definitely be using this after I finish the Marathon.

Before I head off for some much needed sleep before the Marathon I just want to thank you guys for all your support in the lead up to the big day. I'm definitely going to tweet when I cross the finish line so keep an eye out for that. I'll have a post up on Tuesday/Wednesday giving you the lowdown on how I got on at the Marathon and my experience of the day.

Laura<3

Summer Must Haves/Essentials #2 - Makeup products

 Sadly I've been delayed doing follow up posts in this series, I've just been unbelieveably busy lately what with Manchester and everything. If my scheduled posts work you should be reading this while I'm enroute to the airport tomorrow. I'm going to try and pop up some posts while I'm there but I don't know if it will be possible yet. I may turn this series into products I've been loving during the Summer it would probably make more sense that way. Lately I've been reaching for alot of the same makeup products as some are old favourites and I know there reliable.

 For primer I've been using Too Faced's Primed & Poreless, I find this to be alot like Benefit's POREfessional maybe even better. I got it in a gift set a while ago and I loved it so much I bought the full sized tube. From what I can recall it wasn't as pricey as Benefit's offering so I'd recommend giving this a go. I ran out of my favourite foundation Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua which I need to repurchase possibly in the airport. In it's place I've been using two foundations, Vichy Dermablend Corrective foundation (Nude) and the Bourjois 123 Perfect  (Vanilla). Both wouldn't have the lightest coverage but I haven't had the best skin this Summer, for me their necessary. I've been using 123 Perfect all over my face, whilst sticking some Dermablend on problem areas, I find it does the trick without looking like I'm wearing too much makeup. For my undereye area I've been using  the Bobbi Brown Corrector which I love. I can't remember what I was using before this. I got it as a birthday gift from the some of the girls in work in February. I've only hit pan on it now but I'll be repurchasing it when I run out. I've been rotating between two powders during the Summer months, MAC's Mineralize Skinfinish Natural in Light Plus and Rimmel's Stay Matte powder in Transparent. I've been using the latter the most as the price point is certainly more affordable. The Mineralize Skinfinish has been making appearance when I'm going somewhere fancy. When my skin has been looking somewhat decent, I've been using Garnier's BB Cream Miracle Skin Perfector for Combination/Oily skin*. This has been nice when I want a minimal makeup look with no hassle. I've done a full review on it here. With this product I've been using the same powders that I use with my foundations. I've had a new found love of blush lately I've been using one in particular alot over the last few months. Smashbox's Blush Rush in Pose is a gorgeous matte rose pink shade, great for everyday. I bought this on sale ages ago and it's become a permanent product in my daily makeup routine.

For my eyes I've been going for a quite natural look, alot of brown eyeshadows have been using which is nothing new for me. One palette that I've been grabbing for alot over the Summer is my Too Faced Natural Eye palette. This was a gift from my Mom's trip to New York. I think I got sucked into the hype surrounding the Naked palette so I forgot about it for a while. It contains nine neutral eyeshadows which takes me from day to night so I really only need this in my bag to create a gorgeous eye look. I haven't been using any eyeliner at all lately since I ran out of Loreal's Carbon Gloss liquid liner. Someone has to remind me to pick that up when I'm in Mancheser. I miss it in my life. For mascara I've been using No7's Fanomenal Lashes which is the best mascara I've tried in along time. I know alot of products from this brand can be a bit hit and miss but this is definitely a product I'd recommend buying. It gives you the nicest fluttery lashes without clumping which is a major pet hate of mine. I know alot of people use waterproof mascara over the Summer but unfortunately they just don't seem to work for me.

Now on to my favourite part, LIPS. I've been surprised this Summer as I haven't experimented with as many lip products as I usually do. Five have stood out for me during the last few months so I guess I'll talk about them. I have a tonne of MAC lipsticks but I've only been reaching for one in particular. Syrup is a gorgeous everyday shade which I don't feel is talked about enough. It's a sheer but buildable dark pink shade, not usually what I'd go for but I like it. Next I have two Maybelline products, the Colorsensational Popsticks* and SuperStay Tint Gloss*. I've start off with the latter, if your looking for a lip colour that long wearing this is your man. Once you put this on it does not budge for a good few hours, I don't find it to drying either. If your like me and you don't pull off bold vibrant lips too well, I find applying a bit to the centre of my lips and dabbing it on helps. It gives you a much more wearable shade in my opinion. If a hint of colour is your idea of a perfect lip, I'd try the Colorsensational Popsticks. There's alot of shades to choose from, I've been loving Pink Lollipop in particular. I know these don't have the best colour payoff but I think there great for the Summer and they smell delicious. I've been loving the last two products I'm going to mention for an age now. I always make sure I have them tooked away in my bag. Nuxe's Reve de Miel lipbalm and Korres lip butters are equally moisturising and life savers when your having a dry lip moment which I tend to get alot over the Summer months. If I'm just having a lazing day I'll use Reve de Miel and if I'm going out Korres Jasmine lip butter which is my  favourite one at the minute. I've tried a couple of other shades which you can see a review on here. Without a doubt I'd call Jasmine my "my lips but better" shade.

What makeup products have you been using throughout the Summer? I'd love to hear your favourites?


Laura<3

Summer Must Haves/Essentials #1 - Travel Kits

As we're nearing the end of June I thought it was about time I started my Summer blog series, better late than never eh? Each post will feature products and bits that I think are a must for the months ahead. For this post I'm going to touch on travel kits/sets I use them alot and I think there a necessity during the Summer. When travelling or staying in a friends house I doubt anyone would want to lug all there full sized skincare products with them (I know I wouldn't) so they are perfect.

I find skincare sets come in handy on holidays with the liquid restrictions on planes it's impossible to go over a 100mls so it's definitely worth the money to invest in travel sets. Most of them will come with your everyday cleaner, toner and moisturiser and to the best of my knowledge the majority of brands do them. It's only a matter of checking their websites, they usually have them all there with stockists. If not, you can always make up your own with mini products from Boots or decant some of your favourite skincare products into travel pots.

I'm not going to lie I bought the Caudalie travel kit after hearing all the blogger hype surrounding their products. I opted to get this as I wanted to see what their products were like, not for travelling purposes. I could see this work for weekends away as it contains five products that fit very nicely into this gorgeous see through bag. My favourites out of the bunch are the cleansing water and the body lotion, I could certainly see myself buying the full sizes of both of these when I run out. I just hope there not too pricey like the beauty elixir. When your finished with all these products, you also have the lovely see through bag which would be perfect for holding makeup as you can everything.  This set is the cheapest of the bunch at €15 which is great for what you get in it don't you think? I got mine in Harvey Nichols but from what I can see it's the same price online too.

Next is two Liz Earle Travel Kits, the Overnight Travel Kit* (€33.75) and Sun Try Me Kit* (€19). I love this brand so I think it's great how they have such an amazing range of travel sets. I actually brought the Overnight Travel Kit with me on my trip to Barcelona last year and it was handy to have. All that was missing was my haircare products which were easily bought in Boots. The bag everything comes in is the perfect size for your hand luggage as it's so neat and tidy. Again it can be used again as a makeup bag or you can also buy product refills on Liz Earle's website. I did a full review on it which you can check out here. The Sun Try Me Kit isn't a travel set as such but contains some mini Liz Earle suncare products. I think this would be great to pop in your beach bag on holidays as it's an ideal size. I love their Instant Boost Skin Tonic Spritzer so it's great to have one small enough for my handbag. Liz Earle's mineral sun protection has a different texture to any other suncreams I've used in the past. I wasn't too gone on it at first but I've grown to like it. It sinks into the skin super quick and didn't leave my skin feeling stick. After trying their sun protection and aftersun I may invest in full sized bottles.

The expensive option is the Elemis  Revitalising Skincare set (€63). My Mom actually got me this for my upcoming trip to Manchester (can't wait for it!). I wouldn't necessarily call this a travel set as it contains 3 full sized products and a miniature, like me if you haven't tried the brand yet this may be a good set to consider getting. I know €63 is expensive but the products individually would cost up to €120. Having never tried anything from Elemis before I'm really looking forward to trying these products. I've heard nothing but good things about them. The Apricot Toner included smells amazing, I'm looking forward to trying this the most. I'd recommend this if you were travelling over the Summer for a long period of time as it's easy to run out of travel sizes sometimes. The products come nicely wrapped in a gorgeous big bag which you can see above, all my makeup and brushes for Manchester will without a doubt fit in here. There you have it my first Summer Must Haves/ Essentials post, I hope you enjoyed it.


Do you bring travel kits on holidays?


Laura<3

What's in my Travel Makeup Bag??

As I'm going away to Barcelona tomorrow I wanted to do this post for you girlies. I love reading other bloggers 'What's in my Bag?' posts cause I find them pretty informative and I admit I'm a little nosey!

As I'm not checking in a bag it leaves me pretty restricted in what I can bring on the plane. There's also the fact I'm going for five days so I doubt I'll be wearing that much makeup. I'll be too busy seeing all the sights that Barcelona has to offer.

I got this bag in Debenhams at the start of the Summer. It was €18 but it was greatly reduced to €9 so course I had to pick it up. I didn't know I was going on holidays but I'm glad I picked it up now.

It opens to show two compartments, one is see through. I really like that feature as it's easier to find things which means I don't have to go pulling everything out. I keep my makeup brushes in the other compartment.

Face


Too Faced Primed & Poreless Primer (sample)
Garenier 2 in 1 Tinted Eye Roll-on

Korres Wild Rose Foundation SPF 20 in WRF1

Smashbox Blush Rush in Everlasting

The Body Shop Honey Bronze Bronzer in 03 Medium Matte
Sonia Kashuk Concealer Palette

Eyes


MAC Paintpot in Painterly
MAC Double Feature Duo in 5
Revlon Custom Eyes Palette in Naturally Glamorous
Urban Decay 24/7 Glide on Eye Pencil Duo in Whiskey & Zero (Naked Palette)
Lancome Hypnose Drama Mascara (sample) in Excessive Black

Lips


'Lasting Finish By Kate' Lipstick in 03
MAC Lustre Lipstick in Quiet Please
EOS Lipbalm in Honeysuckle Honeydew (not pictured)

Brushes
Sigma F80
Make Up Store 357
Make Up Store 340
MAC 129SE
MAC 239
MAC 217

Looking through the stuff that I'm bringing it doesn't seem like too much. This is mostly makeup that I would use on a regular basis. I like how I still have extra space in this bag, knowing me I'll be making a few purchases when I'm away.

I hope you enjoyed this post. Talk to you girlies when I get back from my holiday.

Laura<3