My favourite products of 2013 - Part one!

It has taken me quite a long time to do this post, sorting products out into groups and categories hasn't been easy, but I have done it and these are my products of 2013, though they have been split into categories to make the posts a little shorter.

Lip care

Lips are an important part of my beauty regime and I am always trying to ensure they are in good condition and don't look dry, flaking and chapped because for me there is nothing worse.  Your lips are such an important feature and you do so much with them whether it is eating food, having a drink, kissing someone or even talking, your lips are one of your main features and should be as cared for as every other part of your body.

I have a bit of an obsession with lip products as you can see HERE and I am never without a lip balm, lip cream or lip something and these are my all time favourite lip products.  Starting with:

Dr Lipp - I got this product in a Glossybox and wrote a post about it which you can read HERE.  Quite a few people have compared it to the Elizabeth Arden 8 hour cream and I disagree, I cannot stand the 8 hour cream at all.  Dr Lipp is brilliant and I use when my lips are really dry and put it on before I go to bed and I wear it during the daytime especially if the weather is really cold.

Lush Bubblegum Lip Scrub - One of the first items I wrote about on my blog which you can see HERE, this product is an absolute lifesaver and the best lip scrub I have ever used.  For those of you who are fans of Snow Fairy (like me) this scrub smells exactly like the shower gel.  So what is the point of it?  Well like any piece of skin on your body, it gets old and tired, dries out a bit and falls off, so Bubblegum is an exfoliator for your lips which, with a gentle massaging action, helps to remove that dead skin leaving your lips feeling soft and smooth.

Bach Rescue Balm - This is another one of my go to lip products when they are particularly when my lips look like they are dry and chapped and this is another product I usually slather my lips in over night and it works wonders.  It smells of lemons and is both Paraben and lanolin free and can also be used on your temples for relaxation purposes - something I am yet to try.

Korres Lip Butter - I am a huge fan of the Korres range, whether it is a shower gel, a lip balm or a lip butter, I love them and this particular lip butter, Guava is my favourite from the range and I posted about it HERE.  As a lip butter it is really lovely to apply and it smells divine, really moisturising and long lasting once on your lips.

So there you have it.  My first favourites of 2013 post and there are 4 more to come in my little series of posts - Hair and Body, Make-up and Perfume are to follow.

Do you have a favourite lip product? 

Would or do any of my favourites feature in your favourites?

What I got in the Lush Sale!

Christmas isn't Christmas without a trip to Lush is it? As soon as I am notified Snow Fairy is available I am in the shop as soon as possible to stock up for the following year as I love the product.

This year I got a lovely Lush voucher for Christmas and decided to go and see what was on offer in the sales as I had my eye on one or two bits and this is what I bought with my voucher:

The first thing I picked up was the gift set - Lush Stardust which contains 6 items, all of which I had intended to purchase separately but when reduced from £25 down to £12, I liked the box rather a lot, being pink and glittery, I bought it.

Inside Stardust was a 100g bottle of Snow Fairy, Candy Mountain Bubble Bar, Rock Star Soap, Snow Fairy Sparkle, Star Light Star Bright Bath Melt and Space Girl Bath Ballistic.

Then I bought a few other little bits because they were also on offer with 50% off - Snow Fairy Sparkle which I gave as a present to a friend, Godmother Soap which smells the same as Snow Fairy, Snowman Bath Ballistic, So White Bath Ballistic and finally Wiccy Magic Muscle Massage Bar which wasn't on offer but I am a huge fan of this and the fact it is a massage bar.

To date, this is my one and only sales haul, so I am feeling quite impressed with myself.

Have you had a big post-Christmas sales shop?  

Inhibitif Hair Free Deodorant

One thing I hate is hairy armpits, I make no apology for that, I absolutely hate them, on girls and ladies I mean, and I will shave mine every day, even if there is the slightest bit of hair on show.

Then once again I am introduced to Inhibitif, a product that is as part of my life as moisturising cream.  If you haven't read my blog before then you won't have seen any of my reviews on Inhibitif before so you can find a series of blog posts here, here, and the final results you can find HERE.  I have also been using the Face Serum which you can find HERE.

Today, I have the deodorant product to introduce to you.  I am really excited about using this and cannot wait to see the results.  As with the Leg and Face Serum you are advised to use it daily under your arms 8 weeks whereupon which hair growth, density and thickness are visibly reduced, that doesn't mean the hair won't grow back, it simply means it will but at a much slower rate.  Before I used Inhibitif on my legs, I would shave them almost every day, especially in the summer months if I yanked to wear a skirt, now I shave them once every 8-9 days unless I am really paranoid, so for me there has been a dramatic difference, all of which you can read about in the above links.

You are advised not to use this product on peeling or irritated skin and to avoid eye and lip contact.

The deodorant comes in with either a mint fragrance which is the one I have and it smells just like the leg serum or there is a fragrance free option.  I have been using this for a week now and the mint fragrance is actually lovely and as a deodorant I find it keeps me dry and fresh all day long.  You can buy this in Boots or via the official website for £8.99

As for a reduction in hair growth, that I will report back on once the 8 weeks are up.

Have you tried this product or anything like it?  Do you use any products from the Inhibitif range?

Lush Rudolph Face Mask

I am a huge fan of Lush products, yes I am a Lushaholic and I love the Christmas Range. As soon as I know Snow Fairy has been released for those precious few weeks, I stock up.  I did a mini Lush Haul which I wrote about HERE and one of the products from that haul is the Rudolph Face mask.

Soothe and nourish your skin, with fresh cucumber, oatmeal and tofu. Scented with organic lavender oil, this calming mask will reduce redness and restore nutrients to your skin

Is the description for this face-mask.  Called Rudolph it has been designed to give your face and neck a little TLC which I am sure most people need, especially with this constant change in weather, my skin is not a fan of the cold weather and in order to make sure I don't end up looking like Freddie Kruger, I ensure my skin gets a little extra TLC as and when I can.  This face-mask sounded ideal when I came across it in the Lush store, especially as it promises to soothe, nourish, and calm skin, as well as reducing redness and restore balance. 

The main ingredients, which as you will know from Lush are endless and natural, are cucumber, oatmeal, tofu, and lavender.  Then we have tea tree, Calamine Powder and witch hazel which help to keep those blemishes at bay. I was quite surprised to see tofu included, mainly because I can't stand the horrible taste or texture whenever I have tried to eat it, but if it does give my skin a little TLC, I might be much nicer to it.   Now all of those ingredients aside and many more that haven't been mentioned but can be found online. I am sure you are wondering what the red blob is right?  Well it is of course Rudolph’s red nose, which is made from a bright red rounded piece of jelly to stick upon your own nose once you have applied the mask.

Being handmade and full of completely natural ingredients, Lush face masks can be quite thick and lumpy and this one is no exception.  Resembling porridge in texture and looks this facemask actually smells much better than it looks and they do say you shouldn't judge a book by its cover.

The mask is because described as porridge and the overly done stuff that literally clings to the pan and no amount of milk is going to make it any easier to eat.  Yes simply put, this mask is a fairly thick texture and when you apply it to your face it can be quite tricky, I found it easier to apply my mixing it with a tiny bit of water.  As I always apply as mask before getting in the bath or if I am just laying on the sofa, I tend to have some water in the sink anyway to wash my hands after I have finished applying any mask.  Once applied to your face, simply lay back and relax.

I left the mask on for around half an hour before I rinsed it off. Removing the mask was much easier than applying it and I used some damp muslin cloth to remove most of it before using a mirror to make sure I hadn't left anything lurking in and around my hairline or my eyebrows (it happens) and then once everything had been removed, I patted my skin dry and was surprised to find how lovely my skin felt.  When the mask is on your face, or any mask for that matter, I am never too sure whether anything is actually happening because if it doesn't harden for peeling off or wiping off, but stays as it was when you applied it, then what has it done?  Well this one did a lot.  my skin was soft and smooth to the touch, I had a lovely rosy glow and best of all, my skin felt so hydrated and moisturised that I didn't feel the need to instantly grab a moisturising cream and cover my face in it, because unlike some other masks I have used, I didn't feel that this one had stripped my skin of everything and left my skin feeling really dry.

Overall this is a fantastic face-mask and one I have really enjoyed using it.  It retails at £5.50 for 60g and it comes in one of those lovely black tubs which you can keep, take back and once you have 5, get another face-mask for free.