My Top Five: Winter Skin Essentials

Whilst I love being able to wear cosy scarves and jumpers during the cold winter months, I don't appreciate it when the climate wreaks havoc with my skin. Right now my beauty routine is limited to say the least but there are five products I find myself reaching for regularly to combat dry skin, hands and chapped lips.

Clarins Hand & Nails Treatment Cream

£19

This is my all-time favourite hand cream because it does exactly what it claims to; it moisturises my hands when the skin is feeling a bit dry and 'tight'. I love the light, slightly fruity scent and I appreciate the fact this sinks into the skin fairly quickly. I've only got a little bit left in this tube so I've been using it at night before bed. This is definitely going to be on my Christmas list. 

Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Cream Skin Protectant

£21.25

I posted about this wonder product recently; I'm convinced everyone needs to own a tube of this funny smelling orange balm. During the winter months I'll use it as an all over face mask before bed to keep my skin looking and feeling soft. It also works well as a lip balm or on any dry patches of skin. A little goes a very long way with this product so whilst £20+ might seem a bit steep initially, it's an investment!

The Body Shop Body Butter

£13

The body butter in the photo is from last year's Christmas collection but any scent will do; there are loads to choose from. I'd recommend going for one of the dry skin formulas because I find I need to use less product for each application. I'd fallen out of love with my body butters during the summer months but now that the cold weather has set in, the love affair has been rekindled. You can usually find selected scents on sale - I've never paid full price for a tub.

Clarins Extra-Firming Lip & Contour Gentle Exfoliator

£19

This is one of those little products that deserves more attention, I think. It's expensive for a lip scrub but it's the best one I've tried because it's so gentle but still very effective. I work a small amount into my lips before wiping it off with a tissue. I do this a couple of times a week and that, in conjunction with the next product I'm going to talk about, keeps my lips smooth and prepped for whichever lip product I fancy wearing.

NUXE Reve de Meil Lip Balm

£9.50

My first impressions of this lip balm weren't great but I've really warmed to it recently. The matte texture is a bit weird at first but I'm used to it now and I've yet to find a lip balm which stays on my lips as well as this. I put some on before going outside and it helps protect my lips from the cold weather. I also pop some on before bed. This has surprisingly become my lip balm of choice!

What are your winter skin essentials?

Stace xx

Worth The Hype? NUXE Reve de Miel Lip Balm

A couple of months ago everyone seemed to be raving about this product. The NUXE Reve de Miel lip balm subsequently went to the top of my wish list and I finally purchased it last month.

The balm is priced at £9.50 on feelunique.com which I think is pretty reasonable as I've tried other balms which were more expensive but contained less product. I also think the packaging is really nice even if the heavy glass jar isn't particularly travel friendly. 

Aside from the packaging the first thing I noticed about the Reve de Miel balm was its scent. It smells delicious. Some reviews I've read say it smells like Terry's Chocolate Orange and it kind of does but with a bit more orange and a bit less chocolate. I expected it to smell like honey (which I don't particularly like) so I was a little surprised. 

I couldn't wait to try it so I popped some on my lips immediately and I have to say I was a tad disappointed. It felt so...chalky. I can't compare the texture to anything else I've tried because it's so different. I was expecting it to feel creamy and luxurious. That being said, once the product reacts with the heat of my lips it feels a bit less uncomfortable and the matte texture does work well under lipsticks. Because the Reve de Miel balm isn't slippery it lasts for a long time on the lips so it's a nice one to use at night time. I think a lot of men would also like this product because it's not glossy at all. 

So, is the NUXE Reve de Miel balm worth the hype?

I'm in two minds about this one. I think it's a nice product and it's something I will use but for some reason I'm struggling to love it due to the texture. I don't think it necessarily deserves all of the hype it's received but it's still worth a try if you're a lip balm fiend like me.

Have you tried this product? Do you think it lives up to the hype?

Stace xx

August Haul

I had every intention of not buying anything this month and failed miserably! I'm consoling myself with the fact that most of the items weren't too expensive and the priciest item was a birthday present.

Botanics Cleansing Face Wipes

These were under £3 in Boots when I bought them so I thought it was worth giving them a go. I used them when I went back home this month and I've got a review of these coming up soon.

Boots Baby Extra Large Cotton Wool Pads

These were recommended by Zoe from Zoella and they're great! I used to use about eight small cotton pads to remove my make up but I only need two of these.

Boots Baby Shampoo

I use baby shampoo to wash my brushes and I sometimes use it to wash my hair if my scalp's feeling a bit irritated. 

NARS Bronzer in Laguna

This is the first high end bronzer I've ever purchased! It was a bit of a birthday present to myself. 

Elie Saab Le Parfum

This was part of my birthday present from Boyfriend. It smells gorgeous :)

Clean & Clear Dual Action Moisturiser x 2

This is one of my favourite moisturisers and I like it especially if and when I get break outs. I've purchased so many tubes of this in the past, I've lost count! They were in a 2 for £5 offer in Boots.

Botanics Microdermabrasion Polish

My favourite scrub, The Body Shop's Vitamin C Microdermabrasion, is running low so I decided to replace it with this cheaper alternative to see how well it compares.

Garnier Body Tonic Sugar Scrub

This is another repurchased product, it's probably my fifth or sixth tube of this scrub!

Cuticura Passion Flower & Mango Anti Bacterial Hand Gel

I love my little Bath & Body Works Pocket Bacs but I'm running low on those so I picked this up to replace those.

L'Oreal True Match Foundation

I've been on the hunt for a nice drugstore foundation which doesn't break me out so I decided to give this one a try.

L'Oreal Color Infallible Shadow in Goldmine

This was a total impulse buy because I knew if I spent more than £15 I'd get a little gift set for free. It's very glittery!

L'Oreal Color Riche Polishes in Dating Coral & Femme Fatale 

These were emergency airport purchases because I didn't like the manicure I'd planned to keep on for a week. I'm addicted to these little bottles of polish.

Max Factor 2000 Calorie Mascara in Brown/Black

My mum used to use this. In fact, she probably still does! It was on offer so I picked it up to see what it's like. I've never tried a Max Factor mascara before. I went for the brown/black shade because it looks a bit softer and more natural.

17 Blemish BB Balm in Medium

I don't know what possessed me to buy this because I know I don't like western BB creams but I always want to try new ones just in case they're not rubbish! I've tried this a few times already and I don't hate it, which is a good sign. I'll probably be reviewing this in a few weeks.

MAC Select Moisture Cover Concealer in NC20

I picked this up on a blog sale for around a fiver. It's a couple of shades lighter than my skintone but I'm planning to use it on my under eye area.

I had a coupon for £5 off a Feel Unique so I made a little order!

Weleda Almond Soothing Facial Lotion

I needed a new moisturiser to use when I don't need to use the Clean & Clear Dual Action so I picked this up on a whim. I was a bit disappointed when it arrived as it's only 30ml rather than the 50ml I expected; I should have read the description more carefully!

Sally Hansen Insta Dri Top Coat

I needed a new bottle of this and it was under £5 on Feel Unique so I popped it in my basket. 

NUXE Reve de Miel Lip Balm

I'm a lip balm junkie so I knew I'd have to get around to trying this at some point. I'll be posting a review of this soon!

Yes To Cucumbers Soothing Body Lotion

When I buy clothes from ASOS I always end up with at least one beauty item in my basket and this body lotion is what made it into my most recent order.

Boots Nail Polish Remover

This was another product repurchase!

Essie Fiji

I've been wanting this colour for such a long time and Boots were running a points event where you would receive 10 points per £1 if you spent over £15 so I added this to my basket in order to take advantage of the extra points. At least, that's what I'm telling myself!

LUSH BB Seaweed & Brazened Honey Fresh Face Masks

I was after a new face mask but after looking in Boots several times, nothing took my fancy so I popped into LUSH and picked up a couple of their fresh face masks. I've tried Brazened Honey before and it wasn't my favourite mask but I was given it by accident instead of Love Lettuce this time so I'm interested to see if my opinion has changed. Expect to see reviews of these quite soon. I should also mention that Rachel, the girl who helped me in store was absolutely lovely. All the staff in LUSH on Buchanan Street in Glasgow are great so if you're in the area I'd highly recommend popping in!

If you'd like to see reviews of anything I purchased please let me know in the comments. 

Did you buy anything nice this month? If you have a haul post or video, leave me a link!

Stace xx

Wishlist Wednesday: Lip Products

YSL Glossy Stain in Shade 9 Rouge Laque

Since trying (and loving) my first Glossy Stain, this one is the next shade on my hit list. 

Chanel Rouge Coco Shine in Sari Dore

I tried to pick this up a few weeks ago only to be told it was being discontinued! It's a bright orange shade and I need it. Really, I do!

MAC Lipstick in Lady Danger

Another orange/red shade on my wishlist. There's a theme here! I've been meaning to pick this up for ages and I have some empties to Back 2 MAC so this might be what I end up going for.

Nuxe Reve de Miel Lip Balm

How could I not include this?! I've been wanting to try it ever since it was first mentioned because it sounds great. FeelUnique had 10% or 15% off skincare a while back and I went to order it but it was out of stock...until the offer was over. Suspicious!

Revlon Lip Butter in Red Velvet

This is a lip butter shade that Revlon decided not to bring to the UK. I'm not entirely sure why because this was one of the most popular shades in the US when these launched. I also want Creamsicle and another Fig Jam (which I'm almost out of). Revlon, please bring the full range to the UK!

Do you have any lip products on your wish list?

Stace xx