top irish beauty blogMay I start out by saying myself and the Dermalogica brand don’t always get along. When I trained as a beauty therapist many moons ago, I was taught that it was the be all and end all of skincare brands. Then, as a beauty blogger, I’ve been very lucky to test a lot of their products along the way. The products generally just didn’t seem to do much for my skin. I never got break outs or anything like that, but I never really spoke too much about them, because I didn’t have a lot to say. Up until the release of the their new Dermalogica Pre Cleanse Balm.

I actually featured the Dermalogica Pre Cleanse Balm in my favourites here last month.

Dermalogica Pre Cleanse Balmirish beauty blog

I was sent it when it was first released and have used it every night religiously since. It comes in a standard Dermalogica tube and then you get silicone cleansing mitt with it as well. The mitt is supposed to help gently exfoliate. I can’t say it does that. But, it does make application less messy and helps work the balm into the skin.

Dermalogica Pre Cleanse Balm

There is already a Pre Cleanse on the market that comes in a pump and has more of a cleanser consistency. This new version is a balm to oil consistency and for me, is a much nicer way to cleanse. It works in the same way though. You apply a small amount to dry skin and massage it in with the mitt. As you work it in it turns into an oil and that’s why a little goes such a long way. You use it as your first cleanse. For me it dissolves waterproof mascara, lipstick the works and you can see it melt them away. It doesn’t irritate my eyes either. Add water to emulsify it further, then rinse it away and use your normal cleanser for your second cleanse. My skin does be squeaky clean, but not tight or overly dry.irish beauty bloggerThink of the same as washing your hair twice (like your hairstylist does). You clean once to get off the heavy grime and oil off, then go in again to make sure everything is gone.beauty blog ireland

I mentioned this in my favourites too, but having a cleanser that goes on dry skin initially, makes me so much more inclined to reach for it over eye makeup remover or micellar water. I sound so lazy I know, but it’s just the initial thoughts of having to go in and rinse your face in the evening seems so daunting. Once you have cleanser on though you have no choice 🙂beauty blogger ireland

According to Dermalogica it is “Powered by Apricot Kernel Oil and a Natural Biolipid Complex”. They say it’s best for dryer skin types with the original version more suited to oilier skin like mine. But I much prefer this version. It’s much easier to control.

Overall, I am a big fan of the Dermalogica Pre Cleanse Balm. Coming in at over 50 quid in most places for 90mls of product is fairly steep, but a little goes a long way with it. You can find it online here if you fancy checking it out.

xxx

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I get asked every year to do a beauty advent calendar post, and I’ve always not ended up doing one. I generally always like to be able to use and give a physical opinion on products when it comes to the blog. I’ve been doing this four years now and that’s what kind of feels natural to me. To talk about products I have road tested and used. But sure there’s always exceptions and I’ve realised that now.

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I’m a little blogger fish in a big pond and I can’t buy or get sent all of the fancy beauty advent calendars every year. So, I thought I would just compile the ones that are really taking my fancy in the run to Christmas for 2017 🙂

The first one is the one I am really considering buying for myself, although I have yet to justify it. This is the Beauty In Wonderland from Look Fantastic

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This is retailing from their website here for €98. They say it contains product worth up to £300.

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It’s a mixture of all different brands and all different types of beauty products. Also the packaging is pretty gorgeous. i blame Sharon Leavy from Behind Green Eyes for making me lust after this so much 🙂

Feel Unique do their own version too here. This costs €42 which is a little more palatable, I know.

beauty advent calendars 2017

They also give you a list of the products enclosed if you don’t want to wait until the Christmas countdown.

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Clarins always do a really lovely beauty advent calendar and this year is no exception.

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This is what would be deemed the more feminine version but there is a male offering too. This will set you back £52.50 here. This has been the cheapest I’ve found it online. It contains 12 minis including one of their Instant Light Natural Lip Perfectors, one of my personal faves.

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Lancôme have a ridiculously lovely one this year with a 25 day countdown.

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This costs €130 from Boots here, but you do get 25 mini products, ranging from skincare to fragrance.

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If you want exclusively skincare, L’Occitane have a beautiful 25 day calendar chock full of it.

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I actually think this is a really good deal at €59 from Debenhams here.

If Charlotte Tilbury is your go to brand, you’re in luck! She has released a Naughty & Nice Magic Box for this year.

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It contains 12 makeup and skincare goodies. This is the most expensive one of the bunch coming in at €180 here.

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If lipstick is your thing, Nyx have released their Kiss & Tell Advent Calendar again this year.

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This is €67.57 from Asos here. Although if you buy in pounds it generally works out cheaper.

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It contains 24 lip colours to suit any mood.

I know these are all pretty pricey, so if you are looking for a more budget friendly beauty advent calendar, hopefully I can cover you here.

The Tanya Burr 12 Sweet Days Beauty Calendar contains 12 products including nail polish and glitter liners.

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I included this because you can still get your beauty hit with it, and it’s on sale from Feel Unique at the moment here. They also have it on 3 for 2 if you’re shopping for anyone else.

 

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Asos have a budget friendly option too here from Mad Beauty.

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This is a range of hair, skin and nail products and will only set you back €14.85.

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My last choice is this years Makeup Revolution Calendar. This contains 25 full sized products.

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It is on sale at the moment from Superdrug here. It was £50 and now it’s £30.

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And there you have my beauty advent calendar countdown. Any take your fancy? Have you already bought one? Let me know 🙂

 

Lush The Man In The MoonDon’t be jealous, but last week I popped into Lush in Grafton Street to have a look at some of the new Christmas stock. Yes it’s not even Halloween yet and I’m talking about Christmas. This is the way of the retail world 🙂 I got to hang out, play with some bubbles and even got to make my own Butter Bear! I also very generously got to take home a goodie bag with me. Mine contained the new Lush The Man In The Moon Christmas Tin. Do you want to see what’s inside?

Lush Dublin

Lush The Man In The Moon comes in a really cool Christmas Tin. When I first saw it I was saying if you wrapped it up and gave it to someone, they would just assume it was a box of Roses or Quality Street. The theme of the tin is very much night time relaxing and helping you to drift off to sleep.Lush ChristmasLush Christmas 2017

 

It comes with eight products within. Two bubble bars, one sparkle jar, three bath bombs, a shower gel and a body lotion. You can have a look at it in full on the UK Lush website here.

Lush The Man In The Moon

First up we have the gift’s namesake, the Man In The Moon Bubble Bar.

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It’s very sweet and limey, but it has an underlying muskiness too. It will turn your bath green. Neroli and lime are the main components of the scent so that makes sense completely.

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The Magic Of Christmas reusable bubble bar in the other bubble maker in the tin. I’ve actually had this before. I got it a couple of Christmases ago in the Lush Wonderland set here.

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Cinnamon is definitely the main component for the Magic Of Christmas, which I’m sure isn’t surprising it all. The star is on top of a cinnamon stick 🙂

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Almond is another scent front runner here as it contains almond oil. It’s very much Christmas in bath form. I am not usually a cinnamon fan, but I actually really enjoy this. And it looks so pretty too!

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There are three Twilight related products within the Lush The Man In The Moon tin. If you like lavender, you will love these.

First up is the Twilight Sparkle Jar.

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This is a massage bar, so you use it to moisturise your skin. Your body heat allows it to melt and then you can massage in the product. It contains lavender oil, cocoa butter, tonka and chamomile. It also leaves behind a gold sparkle, so probably not for everyday use. But nice for a special occasion over the festive season. You can press something pointy into the dimples of the crescent to get even more sparkle.

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Next is the Twilight Shower Gel. You get a 100 gram bottle.

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This again has lavender and tonka within. It also has Ylang Ylang oil.

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Lush Cosmetics

The last Twilight offering is their well known bath bomb.

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This contains all the main ingredients that the shower gel has with added benzoin resinoid. This is an anti inflammatory. This is one of my favourite bath bombs.

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Next up we have the Sleepy Body Lotion. You get a mini 50 gram tub of this.

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It has all the lovely ingredients of the Twilight shower gel & bubble bar with added oatmeal. It’s made specifically with sleep in mind.

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The last two products are bath bombs. We have Shoot For The Stars.

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This is honey scented with orange oil, bergamot and coconut cream. It turns your bath blue with golden glitter from the bath melt stars.

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Last but not least is the Rocket Science bath bomb.

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Mine got a bit of a bashing in transit, but he’s still lovely.

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This is a slow fizzer so it’ll give you something to focus on in the bath 🙂 It has bergamot and lemon oil in it and turns your bath blue.

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And there we have the Lush The Man In The Moon Christmas Gift Tin. I am a huge fan of Lush, so cannot wait to get stuck in. If I were more fancy, I would have shown you them all in action, but I didn’t want to waste anything 🙂 I’ve linked all of the goodies individually so you can see what they are priced at alone. What’s your favourite Lush product?

xxx

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Elf Magnetic Mask

The Elf Magnetic Mask is one of the coolest products I have ever tried. Does it work? I’m not sure yet I’ve only used it twice so far. I couldn’t resist putting in a video though to show you how you use it.

This concept of the Elf Magnetic Mask isn’t new to the market necessarily. There has been a few out before it. But, this is hands down the most affordable one at the moment. Unfortunately it hasn’t made it to our shores yet.

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I was lucky enough to get one as a press sample. It is on their website here though and they do international shipping, if you fancy taking the plunge. For some reason the euro price is much more expensive. Hopefully if it does come over here, it won’t be as bad.

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I can say my skin felt really nice both times I’ve used it. And I do feel like it drew some clogged pores to the surface. I definitely had a bit of a breakout after the first time. But in a good way, if that makes sense? 🙂

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So in the video I give you a demo of the Elf Magnetic Mask. It’s so much fun to use. You apply the mask and then use the magnetized applicator to literally pull it off your skin. Sounds scary, but you can hardly feel it. There’s iron in it so that’s what makes it magnetic.

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I’ve never been happier using a face mask…look at me like!

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Within the video, I also gave a quick rundown on what I’ve been using to cleanse and then my bedtime moisturising concoction too.

I used:

  • Bioderma to take my eye makeup off. It’s in a limited edition pump bottle. If you can get your hands on it. Do! It’s on the Cloud10Beauty website here.
  • Nia Cleansing Balm. It’s on their website here.
  • Clarins Double Serum. (Review here).
  • Clarins Total V Contouring Serum.
  • Neostrata Bionic Eye Cream Plus. I found it on the Meaghers Pharmacy website here.
  • The Ordinary Retinoid 2%. More info on this here.
  • Botanics Facial Oil. It’s on the Boots website here.
  • Catrice Volumizing Lip Balm.

This is my current night time routine although I do alternate serums and I don’t always use an oil. I have oily skin, so it really just depends on whether I feel I need it or not.

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Elf Magnetic Mask

As always you can click on the video above to watch the magic happen or you can go directly to my YouTube channel here. 🙂

Let me know what you think.

Gemma

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Affordable Beauty Favourites CurrentlyI’m back with some affordable beauty favourites.

I have here six products that are currently in heavy rotation in both my makeup and skincare routines. And they all fall under the affordable beauty umbrella. My last version of this post is here if you fancy seeing what made the cut.

Affordable Beauty Favourites Currently

All the makeup products are reasonably new to me. The skincare, I’ve been using for quite a while.

First up we have the new product to me in the bunch the Elf Shimmer Highlighting Powder in Pearl Glow.

Elf Highlighter

Elf can definitely be a hit or miss brand for me. Well let’s face it, most brands can be hit or miss. But I’ve owned Elf products in the past that I’ve adored and some that made their was straight to the bin. This highlighter falls into the adore category. I’ve been wearing it everyday since I got it. It’s a really soft blendable powder with a pearly gold shimmer.

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Really nice for pale gals like myself 🙂 Elf is now available in Superdrug, certain Penneys stores and an abundance of pharmacies here in Ireland. You can also buy from their UK website here.

My second current affordable beauty favourite is the L’Oréal Paradise Extatic Mascara. L'Oréal Paradise mascaraThis is a weird one for me because if I didn’t have my lashes lifted, this mascara wouldn’t have really gotten a look in from me.

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Generally my straight lashes need a waterproof formula. But as they are currently chemically curled, this has been my jam! The brush is huge and it does clump a little. But, it also gives really nice length and volume. If you have semi decent lashes naturally, this is a really nice mascara.

You can find it on the Boots website here.

Thirdly, we have the Catrice Ultimate Matt Lipstick in From Rose With Love. catrice makeup irelandVisually these lippies are so cool. The bullet is completely matte!
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They have a really nice smooth long lasting formula as well though. I am not just digging them for the bullet 🙂 This colour is just me in a lipstick. I am a mauve whore and this feeds my habit completely. I have been gravitating towards this so much since I got it.

Number four is a makeup brush. I picked up what I could find of the new Primark/Penneys PS Pro makeup brush range. This particular one came in a pack of two that cost €4.

Penneys Makeup Brushespenneys ps pro brushes

It’s called the 236. It’s a dome shaped blending brush. It is small but soft and fluffy. I love it for applying colour softly in the crease. I am super impressed with these brushes so far.

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primark ps pro makeup brushes

My last faves come as a combo for me. The Ordinary Hyaluronic Acid 2% and the Advanced Retinoid 2%.

the ordinary retinoidI feel like I can’t review them singularly because I alternate between the two.

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At 32 now, I am doing some major ageing prevention in skincare form at least. Retinol is the way to go if you are looking to do this. I use this every second night in my skincare routine and my skin has been really enjoying it. Also, it’s only €9.80 from the Deciem website here.

When I don’t use the retinol, I use The Ordinary Hyaluronic 2% + B5.

the ordinary hyaluronic acid

Hyaluronic Acid can apparently attract 1000 times its weight in water. It’s great for hydration and helping in plumping the skin.

irish beauty siteWhat I love about this is that it doesn’t feel heavy, but still feels like it’s moisturising the skin. I generally use it conjunction with an night moisturiser or a face oil. This is again available from their website here.

And… I’ll stop waffling.

xxx

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Clarins Double Serum

Let me start by saying, I’ve never used the Clarins Double Serum up until this year. It was created in 1985 and has be reformulated a fair few times over the years. I believe it has won many awards too and many people think of it as their holy grail. I am no skincare guru, but I know people like the awesome Caroline Hirons haven’t been too complimentary about the previous formulas. They contained mineral oil.

Fast forward to 2017 and another reformulation of the Clarins Double Serum. They took heed, and it now doesn’t contain mineral oil.

So a quick synopsis of what it is as of today. The 2017 Clarins Double Serum is as the name would suggest, two serums in separate chambers within one bottle. This means that they only come into contact when you are applying them to your skin. Clarins say this helps the effectiveness and means they can have more good ingredients, technically within one bottle. It contains 20 plant extracts with one extra ingredient, turmeric. Turmeric is noted for it’s anti ageing properties. It’s meant to work for all skin types, including sensitive skin. And according to Clarins, meant to ‘address all signs of ageing’.

Obviously, I can only tell you my experience with it. I have been using it religiously for over a month now. I went to the launch and very generously received a sample. First off after doing my research, I have realised I am using way too much of it! And this stuff ain’t cheap! You only need one pump, and pat it into cleansed skin. I have been using two, the shame! Although saying that, you can twist the nozzle for a small application or a larger one.

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As you know if you’ve been around these parts before, I have oily skin. But I am also getting older (boohoo). I still get oily, but the dehydration in my skin is becoming more apparent. This has been a great go between for both of these instances. I’ve been using it most mornings on it’s own with just eye cream, and then in the night. Sometimes on it’s own, or with an oil over top for added hydration. It soaks into the skin super fast and doesn’t leave behind any residue. This is great for makeup application particularly. I personally love the fragrance, It’s quite clean and fresh. But if fragranced skincare isn’t your thing, I suggest giving it a sniff before purchase.

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What I have found since using Double Serum is that my skin looks brighter and more alive. Even the mammy has commented on it, which isn’t a usual occurrence 🙂 It feels more supple too which is brilliant!

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Now, don’t get me wrong, I don’t expect miracles from skincare, or from any beauty products really. Most hype is just hype a lot of the time. But, I can hand on heart say I’ve noticed a difference in my skin since using it. Anti-ageing? I guess only time will tell, and I think you have to continuously use products to reap those benefits. Skin plumping and tightening are generally (in my humble opinion), temporary.

Overall though, I am bloody loving this facet of the Clarins Double Serum. It is pricey at around €90 a pop for 50ml. But, if you don’t over use it, like me, you should get a good amount of time out of a bottle. You can buy it from Brown Thomas here.

Have you tried Double Serum?

xxx

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