Kiehl's Midnight Recovery Concentrate - The Review

I'm sure a few of you notice that Space NK had £10 off when you spend £60 with them online this week, so as a beauty lover with a love for a bargain, I ordered myself a few things that had been on my beauty hit-list for a while, one of them being the Kiehl's Midnight Recovery Complex.

So it took me a few goes to work out how to use this product. It say's nothing on the bottle nor the box! "Apply to a freshly cleansed face", what good is that? So not knowing where to use it in my routine I tried it first in place of a serum which worked nicely, very hydrating when paired with a moisturiser and provides a little bit of slip for the cream products. But then I saw that the front of the bottle mentioned the oil content and used it as an oil step, on top of a hydrating serum without a moisturiser and it's lovely. I personally think it works as one of those serum-in-oil formulas where you can just cleanse, tone, this and be done, and who doesn't like a does-it-all product? And the smell is like a less intense MV Organics Rose Plus Booster, rose-y and sweet.

And so another oil makes it to the skincare hall of fame. I would do an updated favourite oils post, but my collection is no where near complete yet and so it would only need updating again in a few months time.

SFP For Dummies

As a fully-fledged member of the paley-and-proud club, it might be unsurprising to hear that I am an absolute SFP fanatic. My sun-worshipping mother seems to question where she went wrong with me every summer when she finds me in the garden, reading a book, under a towel... Sorry mum! But the good thing about being an SPF freak? Getting to know what formula's you really get on with, and since the weather in the UK is looking pretty nice lately, I figured I'd dedicate a post to my not-so-secret obsession. Here's 3 of my must-have SPF formulations.

The first SPF I apply on a summers morning is my facial SPF. My current favourite facial SPF is the Kiehl's Ultra Light Daily UV Defense SPF 50 PA+++ UVA (long name there) which, despite the name, does provide the user with UVA and UVB broad-spectrum protection against the suns rays. It's a super light formula that you can use alone or on top of a regular moisturiser and it doesn't have any weird smells/colours to it. Being the super pale girl I am (seriously, the back of my hand is essentially the same colour as the white tube the product comes in) I can't really comment on whether any of these products leave a white cast as a white cast never shows up on my skin, but with the light feeling of this product, I can't imagine it would. If the Kiehl's is out of your budget, try the Piz Buin Allergy Face Cream, it's SPF 50+ (so, again, very high protection) and while it's a little heavier and greasier on the skin than the Kiehl's, it's at least half the price and still sits well under makeup.

For my body I like to double up on the SPF. When I'm getting ready to leave the house, I'll apply a generous amount of Riemann P20 Once A Day Sun Protection to all of the parts of my body that may be exposed to the sun during the day. It's a watery oil-y texture that can feel a little film-y on the skin when first applied and does take a good few minutes to sink in (so i'd apply this, do my skincare while it dries and then get dressed) and it's waterproof, sweatproof etc and will stay on all day. You can get it in a whole load of factors so I usually get a low-medium 20 and then a high-very high 50 to cover my bases and switch out depending on the levels of sun exposure. I like this because it's waterproof, so on holidays if I'm in the pool or whatever I still have some protection at all times. Although I'd never rely on a "Once a day" formula completely.

The thing with SPF is that it multiples the time that you can spend in the sun without getting burnt naturally by the factor you're using. This means that if you get burnt in 10 minutes, an SPF of 20 would mean it would take 200 minutes, so 3 hours and 20 minutes of sun-time. This in mind I like to take something to reapply throughout the day with me so I don't end up looking like a beetroot. For my on-the-go SPF I love dry oils like the Calypso Dry Oil Clear Protection, they're easy to apply and because they're a clear oil, they never leave a white cast on the skin, meaning you can layer them up without worrying. The Calypso one smells lovely too (like coconuts and holidays) and it's super cheap in most places too.

The Back-To-Basics Morning Skincare Routine

So last week I woke up with every skincare lovers worst nightmare: a massive, painful, under-the-skin spot on my forehead. It was obvious to see and painful to touch, and the sight of it drove me to look around my stash accusingly. In reaction to this, I've dropped my skincare routine down to the bare bones, the products that I love and that just work for me. For mornings, it's looking a lot like this:

When I went traveling for a month last year I took 1 cleanser with me and didn't suffer a single breakout on the whole trip. So while my skin is misbehaving I cracked out that old gem: the Clean and Clear Deep Action Oil-Free Cream Wash. It's a creamy cleanser that has a slightly minty tingle to it. You can either splash it off with water or remove with a warm, damp flannel (my preferred method, unless I'm cleansing somewhere other than my own home).

Normally step two is an acid toner for mild exfoliation, however I think this set of break-outs may have been a result of over exfoliating (using flannels to remove a glycolic-based cleanser and then going in with an exfoliating mask? Oops). So I'm skipping acids and exfoliators for a few days while my skin calms down.

Now I need to apologise to a product here, because when I first tried the Caudalie Beauty Elixir, I really didn't get the hype. It was minty and fresh and unlike other hydrating mists I'd used that were more floral or spa-like in scent. Now I've gotten to know it a little better I think it's great, but I would only use it for an AM spritz. The minty scent is lovely for waking your skin up in the morning and the bottle produces a nice fine mist that allows for an even layer of moisture.

I then go in with a cooling eye-cream, I'm currently using the Yes To Cucumbers Soothing Eye Gel. It's an okay, basic morning eye cream but I wouldn't quite call it holy grail, I'm definitely in the market for a better one. But my skin doesn't react to this so it can stay for now. I just find that my eyes are a bit puffy in the morning unless I use something soothing or cooling around the area.

And finally, I top it off with a light moisturiser, and the one I can trust is the Kiehl's Ultra Facial Moisturiser. I'm still working my way through the mini I got from Space NK in my "The Mother of all Goodie Bags" post, but I'm itching to get a full-size as I can't imagine a week without it. Not overly fragrant or greasy on the skin, but adds in all the moisture my Oily/Dehydrated skin needs.

I have an evening companion post to this going up on Wednesday - check back for more info!

The Mother of All Goodie Bags

So I thought I'd introduce you to the mother of all goodie bags. I was one of the lucky souls that managed to bag a ticket to Anna and Lily's Beauty Chat Live at the Manchester Space NK. The girls were lovely (and much more photogenic than I - see photo opposite for proof) and the Q&A session was really nice, but the goodie bag just sealed the deal. The £15 entry fee was redeemable against any purchases made on the night and on top of that everyone who made a £50 purchase (and lets face it, in Space NK, that's a very easy ask) received a Space NK tote-bag that when emptied, created the picture seen above. So with my haul from Monday in mind, I left with a big black bag full of goodies. From what I can tell the bag contained 25 products (3 full sized and 22 minis) as well as one of the full sized Tangle Teezer brushes, and while it ranged from make-up and skincare to hair and body products, it was rather heavy on the skincare (which I personally enjoyed). While in the week since the event I haven't quite had time to test out everything included, I have managed to test out a few and so I thought it would be a nice way to throw in a few first-impressions and mini reviews.

Now I hate to be a Negative Nancy, especially when things are free, but so we can end on a high note I thought I'd get the dud's out of the way. My biggest disappointment of the bag was that two of the full sized products were things I didn't see myself using all that much if at all. I've since passed the He-Shi Face & Body Tanning Gel on to my mother, I'm really not a tan-lover (case in point above), I'm just that awkward shade of pale that makes tanning products difficult, so the "medium" shade tanner definitely didn't float my boat. The Color Wow One-Minute Transformation Styling Cream also seemed like something I wouldn't use much. That being said I think an apology is necessary since I gave it a try and it's lovely. I think I may even be a hair product convert since I use this at least every time I wash my hair. I use a tiny dot of the creamy product and work it into the ends of blow-dried hair to achieve that "lived-in" look to the hair.

My only other quibble was that the Laura Mercier Eye Basics looked like something that I'd love, a liquid-y eyeshadow base that neutralises your skin tone and prolongs your eye-shadow wear time? All over it. But again the shade ("Tawny") was just so off for me. I have used it a few times and the formula is nice, a light, almost whipped texture that is easily applied using the doe foot applicator, the shade isn't too dark but it definitely leaves an orange-y tone to my lids (although under a cool toned shadow this can actually look lovely). Overall a nice product but if I was to repurchase I'd definitely pick up a lighter shade.

After trying the Sunday Riley Start Over Active Eye Cream I've found that the applicator on the sample is lovely, but the formula isn't my favourite. I like a good moisturising/nourishing eye cream as my early 20's skin just wants something preventative under the eyes, however I think for a more mature skin it might show results. Annoyingly, the applicator that I love so much doesn't actually seem to be present on the full size, but after a quick browse I've find a few alternatives that do like the First Aid Beauty Eye Duty Triple Remedy and the new Benefit Puff Off Eye Cream so I might try one of those next time.

The bag contained a lot of face masks but the one I was most excited about trying was the Oskia Renaissance Mask and it really lived up to my expectations. It doesn't tingle or sting but it leaves the skin incredibly soft and smooth (and the smell, need I say more?). Will definitely be repurchasing. Keeping with the rose-scented theme I have also really been enjoying the Jurlique Rosewater Balancing Mist, while it is a bit of a princess product I find it hydrating and calming on the skin and it has quickly become a staple in my skincare routine.

I found two oils in the bag and being a lover of facial oils I hopped straight into trying both. The NUDE  ProGenius Treatment Oil was nice on the skin, it sank in quickly and made my face feel lovely and silky smooth the morning after use, but the smell is a bit herbal for me. With the NUDE being a bit on the smelly side I can say that I much prefer the Caudalie Premier Cru L'Elixir which was also in the bag, sinks in just as quickly and feels amazing. It's an serum and oil in one product and so it really looks after your skin. In fact I think it may even make it into my weekly rotation. Now I still love my Sarah Chapman Morning Facial and my MV Organics Rose Plus Booster but this is really good stuff too. It definitely wont replace any of the oils in my collection but it has definitely earned a place along side some of my other favourites in my current skincare stash.

I have also been using the sample size of the Kiehl's Ultra Facial Moisturiser and it's been working really nicely for me. I have a lot of skincare categories where I have products that I love and can't be without, but I've never really found a moisturiser (day or night) that wows me. At £24 for 125ml or just £34 for the big 250ml bottle it's a super affordable, does the job day cream that I can see myself trying a bigger size of when i've finished the mini. Athough I would say I'm still in the market for a "Holy-Grail" moisturiser to add to my collection.

With all that being said for the other products, the star of the show has to be the Mio Workout Wonder. I started an intense workout class a couple of weeks ago and after my first class I was sore. On week  two I was still aching from the first class, so when I got home I slapped some of this on after my post-gym shower and I'm convinced that it may even be magic. It feels cold and slightly tingly on the skin (think walking in the wind and rain - that cold tingly feeling) which wasn't the nicest feeling ever but the results were amazing. I woke up feeling fine the next day and didn't suffer an ache all week. Amazing.