Sunday 20 July 2014

Boots Time Delay Toning Water

So, I'm really into my skin care regime at the moment... and when I say I'm into my skin care regime I mean I cleanse, tone and moisturise every night. So, yeah I'm really into my skincare regime! I recently bought a Boots own brand brightening toning water, mainly because it was half price... I do love a bargain! This was also a time delay product, so I of course had to buy it, I don't want to get old. It was only €3.34 so I didn't mind paying for it, but if it was €6.68, full price, then there would be no chance.
The product itself doesn't smell really harsh, which is good, but then again it doesn't really smell like anything. It just pores out as apposed to most liquid skin care products which squeeze out, so the majority of this ended up on my bedroom floor. On the back of the bottle it states that it contains antioxidants that help protect the skin against signs of aging, it evens skin tone and even tightens pore leaving "skin looking healthy". So the tightening pores part; it didn't tighten my pores and more so blocked them. After about a week of using this product every night I realised how spotty my skin had become. I wanted to reduce the signs of aging, not go back in time and become a 14 year old. I thought maybe this was the products way of getting the bad stuff out of my skin... wishful thinking right? But I continued to use it, until my skin became really itchy all the time and the spots never cleared. This was a clear sign that it didn't suit me and I had to stop using it.
One thing that sort of freaked me out at first was that on the back of the bottle it says that it contains alpha hydroxy acid or AHA which can increase your skins sensitivity in the sun and that if you are using this product be sure to limit sun exposure. Now it was mid-March when I bought it so I thought nothing of it, Ireland only gets sun one week a year and I'm indoors the majority of the time anyway. This AHA thing might not freak other people out but it does freak me out. Being very fair anyway the slightest bit of sun and I become some sort of lobster creature so I like to keep my skin protected. That and the fact my mam recently had to get a sun damaged spot on her chest removed by laser, also freaks me out. The fact that Boots have a product that can increase damage to your skin from the sun irritates me. Especially a product which would be aimed towards older ladies. I may be taking this the complete wrong way but it still annoys me!
Overall the spots and the possibility of sun damage didn't really suit me, but that was just my opinion. I realistically won't be buying any more products from the Boots "Time Delay" range... sorry Boots.

Have you used any Time Delay products? What was your opinion?
Dawn 


Thursday 17 July 2014

Vaseline "Spray and Go"

Years ago if you would have said to me that I'd be using a body lotion everyday, I'd say you're crazy. I have... or had fairly good skin back in my day. It's like I hit 22 and my skin became dried out, itchy and flaky, especially on my upper arms. I'm a huge Vaseline lover...like HUGE! I use it on my lips everyday to prevent them getting chapped, I put it on my fingernails and around my hairline when applying tan and I've even use it to help get piercings back in! It's so cheap you really can't go wrong. Vaseline, as a brand, have really made an impact on the beauty market. Think back to your childhood... Vaseline... what do you think? Me? I think of that huge tub that was found in the bathroom, but I never really knew what it was for, and I always presumed it was sort of like sudocream. How wrong I was! When Vaseline released their "Spray and Go" moisturiser I knew I needed it. At this point I already had a pot of Vaseline in every handbag I owned, was using a Vaseline deodorant and had tried their moisturiser. I'm one of these people that the more convenient it is the better. I tend to run late when meeting friends so I needed something like this product, but the price kept putting me off. But one day I bit the bullet and purchased my first can... And I haven't looked back since!
A spray and go.... how perfect! I was so excited to use this, so excited that I basically jumped in the shower when I got home to test it out! As I sprayed I realised it wasn't really a spray and go product. You need to rub it in, as it can disperse a bit too much moisturiser. I was disappointed with this, but when I realised that once you rub it in you can literally get dressed my opinion changed. It doesn't make you feel slimy for the next 24 hours, but you know you have moisturised. I love the smell of cocoa butter too, I always think it's so refreshing and this scent is no different. It's a continuous spray too which means your not trying to squeeze it out of bottle with slippy hands. Honestly, since using this my skin feels so much smoother and my time-keeping has seriously improved! I'm on to my third bottle since my first purchase in May... which is pretty good considering it's 190ml and I'm using it everyday. For just over €6 it's well worth a purchase.
It comes containing three different main ingredients; aloe, cocoa and oat extract. Perfect for everyone out there.

Have you used any of the Vaseline lotion range? What was your opinion?

Tuesday 15 July 2014

Hello Summer Tan...

I'm Back!

I've been really busy lately with work and other commitments but I'm back now, and I've really missed blogging!

During summer months I hate being pale... I hate being pale any time of the year. I haven't put tan on in over three weeks so I'm ridiculously pale, well at least I was up until yesterday! A few months ago I purchased St Tropez gradual tan, it was on special offer so I'm pretty sure it only cost around €8.00. I love using gradual tans during the summer because it feels like its a natural tan build up, as opposed to looking like Casper the friendly ghost one day and then Nicole Scherzinger the next day. I applied this tan last night before I went to bed and it seemed so easy to apply and dries in really quickly. It's not really a tan you would sleep in and more so one that you would apply during the day and it develops as you work away! It doesn't smell overwhelming so no one would even know your wearing tan. As its an aerosol a few sweeps and your done basically, well that's what I thought anyway. I sprayed this over my chest and arms last night and thought that I got everywhere, but obviously not. I woke up this morning with patches all over my arms. For a gradual tan I thought it would appear more even. It's a bit dark for a gradual tan to be honest, which sometimes isn't a bad thing! It was easy to fix my mistakes this morning with a few more sweeps over the parts that I missed and a bit of blending.
After one application and some careful blending


Overall, as a gradual tan it's up there with one of the best that I've used. Compared to using body lotion with a gradual tan in them this seemed to suit me better. It contains aloe which helps to keep your skin smooth and it has a refreshing smell, as refreshing as a self tanner can be! From now on when I'm using it I'll be using a mitt to ensure its well blended, that way I can avoid looking like a brown zebra. I'm going to keep using this during the week for a natural looking tan... Goodbye Casper the Friendly Ghost!

Have you ever used any St Tropez products? What did you think of them?
Dawn