Travel Mini Me

   

As the weather heats up, we embrace the spring.

Throwing off the layers of winter, our wander lust kicks in. Long weekends, mini breaks, city breaks, girlie holidays, the travel chatter begins. With  many people (like myself) opting to travel light i.e no checked luggage. Finding suitably sized products to keep you looking, as fabulous as you  would at home can take the joy of of preparing for a holiday/vacation. 

 Here enters the travel mini. 

One unlikely source of travel minis is your local chemist. 

There are many items sold in our  everyday high street (Boots / Superdrug)  which do not require agonizing over which items are best suited for us to use our 3 for 2 offer. 

This Astral cream is lightweight and very suited for the super hot temperatures. It is also 100ml and falls within the airport liquid requirements for flights. Any 30ml fragrance (with a sensible cover) is suitable travel mini in my book. Avene thermal water 50ml perfect for a spritz, to refresh your makeup or a cool down. A bar of soap like this Dove bar is a great way to save liquid space (weight in your handbag), pop in your carry on, zip and go.

Spf, should have a top spot in all summer travel kits and so should an effective remover. Soap and Glory Ultimelt (recommended to me by the skincare goddess Caroline Hirons) and Botanics Hot cloth cleanser are two travel (sized)  products you can find in your nearest Boots. 

  which are always suitable for travel. 



Christmas gift sets are an overlooked  source of great travel  minis.
The Boots Extracts mini body butters set, (the Soap & Glory body butter wheel gift) and the Ren Mini Travel set are great Christmas buys which make great travel minis. 




If you follow my blog, dropped in here and there, said hello occasionally, you know that I am a lover of a magazine freebie. Now I love a magazine (3 cheers for the revamped Cosmopolitan UK, it was long over due, doing very well so far). However I like a magazine with free stuff especially if it  is a magazine that I read all the time. The photo below shows the travel minis, I have collected from magazines over the last 6 months.  

 The last source of unlikely travel minis are samples. Do not over look a sample. Those little tubes of toothpaste at the dentist, The 5ml of foundation sample. The free hair shine / moisturizer/ hair gel in the relaxer kits. Even the little sample sprays from the fragrance counter. Samples are a great addition to your travel mini beauty kits.

Safe travels my lovelies.
xx

Whats In My Bag: Flight Edition

I am off on vacation on Saturday guys and gals.

 Throw your hands in the air one time for sum sum summer. It has been a while since I had a vacay which entailed leaving the country.

 Last year I had two mini breaks, one to Centre Parcs for 4 days and another one over the August Bank  Holiday. However there is just something about laying about on a beach, with a straw hat and a cold drink. On this trip I can look forward to hanging with my chicas, going to the beach, good food and yeah going to the beach. 

Of course traveling out of the country means I have to make some adjustments when it comes to the beauty products I cart along, decisions, decisions. These are the items I have pretty much decided to will take with me to the airport/ on the flight. 

Face

I will taking along my trusty Garnier Cleansing wipes in absence of my Garnier Micellar water (Garnier needs to make this in a 100ml size. Even if it is only sold in airports.) The 3oz rule, +  no aerosols means I wont be able to carry my trusty Avene Thermal water spray, but no worries I have  my Simple Hydrating Face Mist (GREAT DUPE for the MAC Travel Sized  Fix + Spray) to keep my skin hydrated during the flight along with my Korres Pomegranate Cream Gel/Body Shop Serum in Oil. 

Body

Sometimes my hands feel a bit grimey and travelling/being on the go there might not be an available sink with running water and hand soap readily available. My hand bag packet of Wet Ones will keep my hands feeling fresh and not sticky. My trusty Kleenex tissues are on hand to wipe up any spills or drips that might occur (dab the ob bit of foundation/the end of a mascara wand.) Hand sanitizer is my truth my light and my way (plus it will in handy for cleaning my hand before applying my makeup. This little mini tub of Nivea Creme is going to  come in very handy for moisturizing my arms and legs/feet. L'Occitane Hand cream (full tube) self explanatory. 

Fragrance

Davidoff Cool Water edt, Ralph Lauren Romance edp, Marc Jacobs LoLa edp I love a good scent and I love having a choice. The Marc Jacobs Lola is a gorgeous scent, is sold as a 20ml purse spray, the other 2 fragrances are 30ml sizes so they aren't too heavy. 

Breath

I am very suspicious of those mini tubes of tooth pate they give out on flights. There isn't enough toothpaste to get a good scrub on (my dentists recommends brushing for 2 minutes long) and the texture is just weird. This is a mini 19ml tube of Colgate Total. I got it as a free sample from my dentists office. In the event I eat a hot curry or something really garlicky, I have some Extra chewing gum & mints to keep me going until I can brush my teeth. 

Food

I have some Go Ahead cereal bars, and some Oat cakes to keep me going. I usually buy these as my work snacks, but they will keep me going, if I am feeling peckish and a packet of crisps are not to hand (or the stewardess is being stingy with the snacks. 

Miscellaneous

Shilling oil I cannot really explain what this is for, it covered a multitude of sins. Ipod mini this is for listening to music on the way to the airport and in the departure lounge. Revlon Colour Burst lipglosses to keep my lips moisturized with a bit of colour. 

Yayyyyyyyy. I'm going on holiday.

Shimmy shimmy cocoa puff. 

xx

Magazine Freebies - ELLE UK December 2013

I had seen the ELLE magazine on the shelves but felt meh about it, £4 and the product is not full sized. However last Friday the Metro had a voucher which allowed purchase of the ELLE UK Magazine for the price of £1. I spent £2 saved £6 and received two of the 3 free lip glosses. 

If you can get your hands on the Metro magazine the voucher is still valid until the 30th of November. 

Overall the Benefit lipglosses are a lovely smooth texture

 and they fit in my clutch bag very well. 

Facial Sunscreen - Avene Sun Care Very High Protection Sun Emulsion SPF50+ 50ml

Sunscreen Cheat Sheet

1. If you are exposed to the sun for more than 15 minutes a day, even if the weather is cloudy or over cast you need to apply sunscreen.

2. Always look for a suncare product that displays the UVA symbol in a circle or clearly states that it’s a Broad Spectrum formula. This will give your delicate skin protection from both UVA and UVB rays (ones that age and ones that burn) reducing your skin cancer risk and also preventing lasting, ageing sun damage.

3. No!!!!!! you cannot rely on the Spf in your foundation. Ideally for your entire face, neck and de-collate  you should be using a teaspoon amount every time you apply.

**if you are suffering with hyperpigmentation, you should be applying a higher factor spf every single day.**

                                                                  

Hypersensitive, light, and very fair skin needs some extra help in the sun. Avène Eau

Thermale Emulsion SPF 50+ provides just that, and makes sure skin is well protected when exposed to the sun.

The very high protection provided by this silky emulsion covers a very broad spectrum, and utilises an exclusive grouping of active ingredients. The name of this coalescence is Sunsitive®, a product of the Pierre Fabre Research facility. Skin is protected against UVB and also short and long UVA rays.

The matte formulation includes vitamin E based pre-trocopheryl, a potent antioxidant that shields the skin from damaging free radicals. As with all Avène products, the emulsion is rich in skin loving Thermal Spring Water with its soothing and calming capabilities. 

Available at Escenutal.com & Boots . RRP £16.00

Unil the next time my lovelies

xx

Style File - Jack Wills Ludford Makeup Bag

For my beauty gals who like to keep an eye on things,  these see through makeup bags are just the item you need to snap up in the Jack Wills sale.  Larger than the Fairhaven makeup bags, the Ludford bags allow you to more space to carry things which you deem makeup bag essentials ie 30ml L'occitane hand cream, inhaler, hand sanitizer etc etc

Jack Wills: our much-loved make-up bag in four bright summer colours,( and the airplane essential) the Ludford is a girl's best friend. It's transparent, making it easy to grab the products you need and the wipe clean design is great for splashes and spillages. Ideal for travelling.

100 PVC

BRILL PINK 

AZURE - The colour of the waters of the Caribbean Sea

POPPY

CLEAR 

NEON CERIS

Did I mention these beauties are only £6 each, 

the Ludford makeup bag is definitely the item

 I will be counting my sheckles for. 

Happy Shopping, 

my lovelies.

Review - Avene Thermal Water Spray

     What Avene says:

According to legend the curative powers of Avene Thermal Spring water were discovered more than 250 years ago by chance. (as these things always happen) Due to a terrible skin complaint a horse belonging to the Marquis de Rocozels was turned loose to wander the slopes of the black mountains in the Southwest of France. The horse found a thermal spring near the small village of Avene. After drinking from the Spring and rolling around in its waters the horses coat became shiny again and soon it was completely cured. 

As the tale of  this marvellous cure spread, local doctors advised patients to treat their skin problems with water from the spring, now named - the spring of Sainte Odile. The Marquis de Rocozels recognizing his springs potential built Avene's first baths in 1743. (yep the French have been hip to the skincare game a long time)  In 1826 scientific leaders in dermatology such as Professor Jean-Louis Alibert endorsed taking baths in the spring waters of Avene. 

Later. the Marquis' baths were acquired by Victor Descays, who established a hydro therapy centre That combined not only treatment but accommodation for the patients. By 1860 the descendants of Victor Descays  were welcoming more than 500 patients a year to visit the springs. 

The waters fame spread far beyond Avene to physicians across France and as far as  America, where the water was exported to treat burn victims after the great Chicago fire of 1871. The spring was declared to be of public interest in 1874 by the President of the Republic of France and officially approved as a dermatological Hydrotherapy centre.

The soothing effects of the Avene Thermal water has been tested on over 500 people with sensitive skin. Its unique and constant composition gives it a soothing effect and anti irritating properties have been proven by numerous scientific studies. 

(source Avene)

MAC Fix + An aqua spritz of vitamins and minerals, infused with a calm the skin blend of green tea, chamomile, cucumber and topped off with a fresh natural energizing scent of Sugi. adds radiance, finishes make-up. Spray it on, skin drinks it up. 

(source MAC)

     What I say:

Cult favourite MAC Fix + has a dupe. The Avene Eau Thermal Thermal spring water. The Avene Spring water comes in 3 sizes the small (handbag) sized 50ml £3.15, compared to the MAC fix + travel size 30ml which costs £7. MAC only recently introduced the travel size fix +.  The second size up of the Avene Thermal water comes in a 150ml sized can, which is the same amount as the regular Sized MAC Fix +, the Avene Water is £6.50 and the MAC Fix + costs £12.50 for the same amount of product. The largest Size of the Avene Thermal Water comes in a 300ml can and costs £10.50, now many personal might say 300ml --------> that is huge. However if you are a budding makeup artist, makeup enthusiast, makeup lover, skincare junkie  the large bottle of Avene Thermal water is cost effective and useful in the long run. 

The Avene Thermal Water is a very versatile and useful product, especially for those who have sensitive, hypersensitive, allergic, and irritated skin. It can be used for diaper rash, various irritations, razor burns(we love products that are guy friendly), after hair removal, to set makeup, sooth sunburns, facial redness, after exercise, during the hot summer months and during travel (to refresh the skin and keep it moisturised). Thermal water is a lifestyle product unlike the Fix + which has a select and limited use, the Thermal water has you covered on all fronts, and also your baby and/or husband. It is a heavy hitter not only is it an all round product, it comes in various sizes and it is also recession proof. 

Check out the Avene Thermal water here Eau Thermal Avene Thermal Water Spray

Miss Mai

xx

Review - Olay daily facials express soothing wet cleansing wipes: sensitive skin

    In my February beauty buys I had mentioned that I would be writing some reviews on the  packets of face wipes I had purchased. In the grand scheme of beauty, hair and makeup, face wipes/makeup remover wipes don't come ranked highly on the scale of exciting things to review. However I do believe that face wipes are great, and do serve a purpose. They are useful for removing makeup, refreshing the skin and even for travelling, since they remove the need for packing bottles of face products. At the end of a long day of work whether you have worn makeup or not, I recommend a quick once over with w face wipe, just to cleanse the skin and get rid of the grime of the day. Plus they are guy friendly, excellent for throwing in the gym bag to freshen up. 

What Olay says: 

Olay daily facials express soothing wet cleansing wipes Go beyond effective cleansing to help soothe and nourish sensitive skin.

Olay's velvety smooth wipes have a lift and lock technology to gently sweep away dirt , makeup, and waterproof mascara.

At the same time Olay's conditioners help to enhance your skin's natural moisture.

What I say: Skin Type -Oily, Cleansing Routine - Twice daily. 

    These face wipes worked well enough. They removed my makeup, but not to the point where I would feel comfortable going to sleep without washing my face. The wipes have little bubbled bits which remind me of quilted tissues, I did like the texture. In my opinion the texture, gave a little friction against the skin and aided the makeup removal process.  They left a film on my face which I gather is from the glycerin (the second ingredient). Glycerin is widely used as a moisturizing agent, since I have oily skin, it did my no harm but did me no favours. They do say that all you need is one wiped to cleanse your face/neck/eye area. however most of the times I used these face wipes I was wearing full makeup, I used 2 wipes usually and then washed my face, or but there were times when I used 3 wipes. I do like the fact that they were gentle on my skin and left my skin feeling semi clean but no stripped like some face wipes do. They were not abrasive nor did I have to scrub at my face to get my makeup off. 

These wipes retail for £2.96, 20 wipes come in each packet. All in all they are relatively cheap compared to others on the market, however you do get less product. 

-Would I repurchase?  Yes if it was on sale and all the other face wipes were full priced. 

-Would I ever purchase at full price?  No. 

-Would I recommend?  Yes, for the purpose of makeup removal ONLY.

xoxo

Miss Mai