Project 100 Pan (part 2)

06: True Blue Spa Shea Cashmere Hand Cream – I loved the way this hand cream made my skin feel but the smell became way too overpowering for me about half way through the tube. I won’t be repurchasing this.

07: The Face Shop Real Nature Rice Mask – This was quite a soothing sheet mask and I really liked the way it made my skin feel. I don’t know that I would actively source this particular mask out again in the future, but I did enjoy using it.

08: Burt’s Bees Herbal Blemish Stick – I loathe the smell of licorice so this was a real burden to apply to my face at night as the smell really lingered. As much as I love this product for what it does, I don’t think I’ll repurchase it because of my issues with the scent.

09: The Face Shop Herb Day Cotton Face Wipes – God this packet of wipes lasted a LIFETIME. I don’t like using scented wipes in general because I feel like they aggravate my skin, and these ones in particular seemed to break me out quite a bit. I think I used about half of this packet for removing swatches from my hands/arms because I was too afraid to use them on my face.

10: OP Therapy Summer Glow Pineapple & Papaya Sea Salt Scrub – I hated this product. I thought it would smell nice and fruity because of the product name but it had a really odd, stale scent to it. I didn’t find it easy to use in the shower because the oil in the product seemed to cling to my skin and was impossible to rinse off. I definitely won’t be buying this again.

Urban Rituelle Pamper Party

Do you have friends? If yes, good for you! Urban Rituelle are giving you the change to win 1 of 5 pamper parties for you and five of your best friends, worth over $1100. Each winner will receive a deluxe hamper full of indulgent goodies for a pamper party event for friends; including Urban Rituelle products, gourmet drinks, and nibbles. To be in the running, simply upload a 30-60 second video to YouTube telling Urban Rituelle why you would love to be showered in the very latest Urban Rituelle products. Register your entry via the Pamper Party Competition tab on the Urban Rituelle Facebook page and the 5 videos that display the most creativity, fun and passion will be crowned the winners. The competition will run from September 26th to midnight on October 23rd, and is open to Australian residents only. For terms and conditions please see here. To invite me to your party if you win, click here.

Product Review: Bloom Sheer Colour Cream in Coy

I spotted this blush about a year ago in the Bloom section of my local David Jones store and it was love at first sight. For some reason I didn’t get around to purchasing it until earlier this year, but I dug it out of my collection a couple of weeks ago and I’ve been using it every day since. First things first: this product smells like lavender. Once you apply it to your skin the smell goes away, but for those that aren’t a fan of lavender scented things I thought I’d better mention that up front. This is probably one of the most user-friendly cream blushes I’ve ever tried, it’s not too heavily pigmented and the cream itself is lightweight making it a breeze to blend into the skin. The shade Coy works wonderfully on fair skin, I’ve been wearing this layered under MAC’s Instant Chic powder blush during the week or just on it’s own over some tinted foundation for a low-key fresh faced look on the weekends. The Bloom Sheer Colour Cream retails for $24 AUD and can be purchased online from the Bloom website.

Current Skin Care Routine

My face has finally settled down after it’s typical ‘oh god a new season, time to freak out!’ episode, and I’m really happy with my skin care routine at the moment so I thought it would be a good time to share it with you all.

Cetaphil Gentle Cream Cleanser – I slather this over my face and wipe it off it with cotton pads to remove my makeup before hopping in the shower at night and properly cleansing with the Dermalogica Special Cleansing Gel.

Dermalogica Special Cleansing Gel – I’ve mentioned this quite a few times before, and it’s really the only cleanser that I use. I now buy the giant pump top bottles because they last a longer than the smaller bottles (obviously) and the packaging makes it so much easier to use when I’m in the shower. I only ever cleanse my face at night, so I use this in my shower in the evening.

Dermalogica Daily Microfoliant – I’ve really cut back on the amount that I exfoliate my face and my skin seems to be thanking me for it. This is my holy grail facial exfoliant and I use it once or twice a week in the morning or evening – depending on when I feel that I need it most.

Echolife Lavender Face Mist – This is such a gentle and soothing face spray, I think I’m going to cry real tears when I run out of it. I use this every time I get out of the shower before putting on my serum/moisturiser.

Kiehl’s Ultra Facial Moisturiser SPF 15 – This is my favourite warm weather daily face moisturiser and I wear it every day.

Weleda Almond Soothing Facial Oil – I use this at night after I’ve spritzed my face with the Echolife Lavender Mist. I pat a couple of drops of the oil into my skin and let it sit for a couple of minutes before applying my moisturiser.

Kiehl’s Ultra Facial Creme – I use this as a day time moisturiser in the cooler months of the year, but when it gets too hot to have anything heavy on my face I stick to using it as a night cream only. I layer this over the Weleda Almond Oil in the evening and I swear to god it is the most soothing and nourishing combination that I’ve ever come across.

Benefit It’s Potent Eye Cream – I really like this eye cream and I use it every morning and night, but I think that when I run out of this little deluxe sample jar I’m going to switch to the Kiehl’s Creamy Avocado eye cream instead.

The Body Shop Tea Tree Blemish Stick – Why do all spot treatments have to smell so flipping bad? I like this product, it does the job pretty well. I don’t break out that often so to be honest I’m not really that phased on what spot treatment I use.

Spring Book Haul

Yves St Laurent Touché Éclat & Le Teint Touché Éclat

Years ago when I first started to get interested in beauty products, YSL’s Touché Éclat was the very first high end makeup item that I purchased. Since then, I honestly can’t recall a time that I was without this little miracle in a tube. Apparently I’m not alone in my love for the Touché Éclat it as one tube is sold somewhere in the world every 10 seconds. I’ve kind of always known that I’m not alone in my adoration though, judging by the fact that my girlfriends fight over who gets to use it first when I dig it out of my bag for touch ups in the bathroom when we’re out on the town. It’s clearly a product that has well and truly earned it’s cult status

For me it is the perfect highlighter and I use it most often where I feel that I need it most – under my eyes. This is my personal preference for how to use it, but it is designed to be multi-purpose, and is also great for contouring the face, creating undertones on the skin and helping to disguise signs of fatigue. “The go-anywhere complexion highlighter adds an alluring halo-effect to contour volumes, highlight shadowy areas, create luminosity and achieve flawless perfection. Applied to the sides of the nose, corners of the mouth, along the middle forehead, bridge of the nose and upper cheekbones, Radiant Touch conceals the signs of fatigue and imbues instant radiance. Eyes are instantly refreshed with just a few touches to the eyelid, eyebrow arch and inner corner of the eye. With every brushstroke, the face is transformed with the power of light.”

Yves St Laurent have taken their Touché Éclat technology one step further in the form of their new foundation release ‘Le Teint Touché Éclat’. If you suffer from chronic dull face, or just prefer the look of a lightweight glowy foundation (like me) this could be the product for you. “The luxuriously unique formula targets shadowy areas and defines contours. Free of opaque powders that can create a ‘masked’ effect, Le Teint Touché Éclat is formulated with a soft focus gel to smooth away imperfections and accentuate natural facial features. Utlising the latest generation of fluid light concentrate, Le Teint Touché Éclat also forms a reflective film like an infinity of mirrors to maximise the potential power of light. The result? The complexion never looks artificial, shine is diffused, irregularities are concealed and skin imparts a natural-looking, sophisticated glow.” As I mentioned in a recent post, my game plan for summer this year is to ’embrace the glow’ rather than fight it, which means I am on the hunt for a foundation that will give the right amount of overage without being too heavy or too greasy. The Le Teint Touché Éclat ticks all the right boxes and comes with the added benefit of having the typical fresh YSL foundation smell that brings back many a good memory for me.

Yves St Laurent’s Le Teint Touché Éclat foundation retails for $78 AUD and is available in 10 shades in Australia, and is available for purchase from MYER, David Jones and Mecca Maxima. If you would like the chance to win yourself a bottle of Le Teint Touché Éclat and a tube of Touché Éclat, head on over here and enter! You can also click here to download a voucher for a free sample. (note: products were provided for consideration for review)