Scented Candle Library

Library, yes library. I am swimming in scented candles and am at the stage where I should catalogue them in categories depending on the needs of my different moods. What started as a little obsession with Diptyque which was allowed to develop due to the downright reasonable prices of them here in London compared to Sydney, has now expanded to a love of candles from a multitude of brands. Let me talk you through them.

The Big One - Fornasetti Scented Candle

More a work of art than just a candle. Just look at it. The packaging of this is just sublime. I almost can't wait for the candle to be finished so I can use the canister to store things in. This one doesn't come cheap at £99.00, but as I said before, it really is a work of art.

The Wee One - Diptyque mini candle in Rose (£20.00). Diptyque will always win the prize for strength of fragrance in my opinion. Even these little ones have scents that permeate your home. I have tried many of the different fragrances, and my favourites include Rose, Gardenia and Mimosa. The small size means if you like variety you can mix it up more often and once finished, they make adorable storage pots.

The Relaxer - This Works, Lavender and Vetivert candle. I picked this up at my local TK Maxx in the pre-Christmas sales for a very reasonable £15.00. The lavender and vertivert soothes and relaxes to help you slow down and unwind. Perfect for a night time burn. This no longer seems to be available, but you can view the other candles in the range here.

The Newbie - Sanctuary Spa Unwind Candle.  I picked this up at the Sanctuary Spa last week so it is brand new and hasn't yet been burned. I have been so pleased with the products I bought there so I have high hopes for this one. It cost £12.25 and was part of a 3 for 2 deal. 

Facial Mists - Function or Frivolity?

I've gone a little crazy spritzing myself lately. In the Sydney heat, on the plane flying home, you name it, i've been surrounded in a cloud of mist. I started wondering whether these floral waters actually do anything? 

They claim have a myriad of uses: as a gentle toner, as a refreshing pick me up, to fix your makeup, to refresh your makeup, to hydrate, to calm and soothe. But are anything of these things achieved? 

My latest addition to this ever growing collection is the Queen of Hungary Mist by Omorovicza. This is a product that came out of my Liberty Beauty Bag (which I blogged about here), so it is a nice small bottle which made it excellent to take on the plane. It contains rose and neroli and it smells amazing. It was the perfect mid-air pick-me-up and I will miss it when it is gone. At £46 for the full sized product, it is not cheap and i'm not sure it does enough to warrant a re-purchase at that price. 

A more budget friendly product is the Clinique Moisture Surge Face Spray. This is great for hydrating and refreshing as it contains active aloe, but it lacks the beautiful fragrance of the Omorovicza one. Priced at £20.00 / $45.00 it is a good basic hydrating product. My tip is to store it in the fridge if you live in a warm climate. When spritzed as a midday refresh it is divine!

If you want to go for a seriously budget friendly option, the Body Shop's Vitamin E Face Mist is a good basic mist with a rose scent for £8.00 / $23.95. 

For those who prefer to keep things organic, Balm Balm make the lovely Rose Floral Water which I sometimes use in place of a toner if my skin feels dry. It is 100% organic and should be stored out of direct sunlight. It has a short lifespan of only 6 months once opened so you need to keep spritzing on a regular basis! £11.00

I think if you like the sensation of a refreshing face mist then they are worth having. They do calm, sooth and hydrate. I personally don't find them beneficial in terms of fixing my makeup as I suffer from an oily t-zone so I prefer to keep my makeup in place with a setting powder. If you embarking on any long-haul flying I would thoroughly recommend taking one on board with you.

New Work - Cosmo Body (UK)

Recently I did a fun shoot for Cosmopolitan Body UK which is the fitness and health bookazine published by Cosmo UK. It was the first time I have seen my work in print which was very exciting. Hopefully I will have more opportunities like this in the not too distant future! 

The lovely features writer Lorna Gray getting ready to fight her gymtimidation.

Luxe versus Less, Cleansing Waters

The infamous Bioderma Sensibio H2O cleansing water has been reviewed by beauty bloggers the world over, and it is good. Very good. It is however a little pricey, especially if you have to clean makeup off a thousand faces which is what I found myself doing recently when I assisted on a photo shoot. While going through my precious bottle at an alarming rate, I decided to do a little research to see what else was available.

Recently I purchased the much more affordable L'Oreal version and I was interested to see what the differences were. 

The Bioderma Sensibio H2O (250ml) version retails online for £9.99 / $29.99. The L'Oreal Paris Skin Perfection 3 in 1 Purifying Micellar Solution (200ml) retails online for £3.33 (currently on sale from £4.99). This doesn't seem to be available in Australia presently, but given the popularity of cleansing waters, I am sure it will be very soon.

Packing-wise, the slimline L'Oreal bottle is easier to fit into a makeup kit however, both the Bioderma and L'Oreal bottles don't have fantastic seals so I tend to wrap mine in a zip lock bag when transporting it to be on the safe side. 

Both products remove all traces of makeup, including mascara with ease. For waterproof mascara you would need to use something stronger to prevent tugging at the skin. Neither product seems to dry out my skin. They are both non-fragrant and recommended for sensitive skin. While traveling recently I used the L'Oreal one for a month straight and had no problems with it on my combination skin.

I honestly can't find  a large enough difference to justify the difference in price and the L'Oreal cleanser will be a makeup kit staple for me in the future.

Tip: If you are going to France, it is worthwhile picking up the Bioderma there as they often have special deals when you buy 2 x 500ml bottles. I found this deal here which is only £18.81  for 1 litre of the product as opposed to the price above, £9.99 for 250ml ....

Transitioning from Sydney to London, Summer to Winter

Last Friday I flew back to London after my month long holiday in Sydney. These are the ways I transition my makeup from the highest high's of Summer to the deepest depths of Winter, so if you are Sydney based and planning a trip far north - i've got you covered!

It's amazing how everything changes as soon as you step off the plane. The first thing that is noticeably different is the light. The light in Sydney is just so damn bright. London in Winter has a certain, may I say bleakness to it. This means that colours read differently and even something as simple as the shade of foundation you wear may need a rethink as you travel between the hemispheres. After totally living in tinted moisturiser, I am now reaching for something with more coverage, and i'm switching for a more dewy finish to something a little more matt.

Chantecaille Just Skin Tinted Moisturiser - £57.00 / $94

By Terry Terrybly Densiliss  Wrinkle Control Serum Foundation - £75.00 

After spending the past month using a nude lipstick shade, this suddenly looks way too insipid and I find myself reaching for berry shades to give my face some life. 

Paul and Joe Lipstick on Shade 207 - £19.50 (similar shades here)

Kiko Velvet Matt Lipstick in Cherry Red (609) - £6.90

I also tend to shelve the moral coral and neutral blush shades and go for something rosie.

Bourjois Cream Blush in 02 - £7.99

Bobbi Brown Pot Rouge in Rose - £19.00 / $44.00

While you may feel like a goose wearing eyeliner and mascara on the beach, in London it is definitely the way to go so i'm going to go crazy. Lately I have switched it up and have been using a dark brown eyeliner rather than a black which still defines the eye nicely, but looks a little less severe. I am also upping the intensity, moving from a light wash of colour over the lid to something with a little more punch.

Clinique Chubby Stick for Shadown Tint for eyes in Lavish Lilac - £17.00 / $35.00

By Terry Ombre Blackstar in Velvet Orchid - £28.00 / $62.00

There are a few things that stay the same no matter my location. I always use a broad spectrum sunscreen, even when it's 4 degrees and raining. My trusty black mascara is also a key product that I am never without. 

The Last of the Beauty Sales ….

I banned myself from from buying any makeup while holidaying in Sydney and that ban extended to the Boxing Day sales online. Oh how it hurt when I saw all the email notifications from Space NK, Beauty Bay, Adore Beauty and beyond. I'm proud to say I stayed strong and haven't bought a thing, however I have done a little round-up of what I think are the best savings still online now - AND they all ship free INTERNATIONALLY!

Beauty Bay 

Beauty Bay have a great range of brands. I have blogged about them before here. They are UK based however they ship internationally for free with no minimum spend. At the moment they have 50% off all Bellapierre. The foundation colours are running low, however they still have loads of their shimmer stacks, eye shadows and blushes here. 

ASOS

ASOS have some good bargains on Pixi Beauty left, notably the Pixi Flawless Beauty Primer here and the Pixi Eye Alchemy Set here. I have been so impressed with all the products I have bought from Pixi Beauty this past year and i'm tempted … (currently sitting on my credit card chanting 'NO')

Adore Beauty

At 20% off, the Adore Beauty won't set any world records but any discount is better than no discount and if you prefer to shop local and support an Australian company, then this is your best beauty bet. My pick of the small selection of sale goods remaining, is the Alpha-H Liquid Gold Discovery Collection. This is a brand I have long been wanting to try. It has received rave reviews in the UK and a set like this containing 5 trial-sized products would be a great introduction. You can see this here. 

I must apologise for the lack of quality images in my posts lately. I have very limited resources working from my parent's house. I will be back in London by the weekend so you can expect my images to be back to their usual quality by next week.

Happy shopping. I am with you in spirit.