Skincare Wonders!

Last week I indulged in a selection of new skincare products I wanted to try out. My eczema drives me up the wall at the best of times due to the dry patches I get on my face leaving it feeling itchy and red. I've tried covering up the red blotches with concealers and cover up-sticks but they only dry my skin out more! The key for me has to be soothing the skin.

Last week a friend of mine introduced me to Forever Living - she had signed up to be a distributor and was raving about the amazing business opportunity they offered. I was instantly interested and once I laid my eyes on the aloe vera based products I was hooked! Aloe vera has soothing and healing qualities making it great for people prone to eczema, psoriasis and scars - um, hi!

For a week now I have been using the following, and the difference they are making is crazy.

Aloe Vera Gelly

I have been putting this on every night just before bed, after I've washed my face. It's been keeping my skin hydrated and protected over night, and I wake up in the morning with skin smooth as a baby's bum! Dry patches remain but soothed and softened. Due to its healing properties this can also be used to calm sunburnt skin, on scars and to soothe skin after electrolysis. My friend even uses this on her pets!

Aloe Moisturizing Lotion

I use this in the morning as a make-up base. After applying I leave it to sink in for about 5-10 minutes then apply my make-up which goes on smoothly and dry patches are significantly reduced. I hate moisturisers that sting when you apply them, this one doesn't, and is designed to counteract the effects of pollution and the environment. It feels silky smooth and best of all it isn't too oily!

Aloe Propolis Creme

I thought the gelly was my favourite but this is doing me wonders! Whenever a patch of eczema flares up, usually on my arms or face, I just apply this crème to moisturise. It isn't as soothing as the gelly but excellent for calming my eczema and dramatically improve any areas of dry skin! Never has anything worked as well for my eczema. This contains aloe vera, bee propolis, camomile and vitamins A and E.

Benefit's Total Moisture Facial Cream

Before I tell you about this moisturiser, know that I have areas of really dry skin - like so dry it cracks. This is mostly down to my eczema, and some areas of my face (like my chin) do stay oily and are prone to the odd spot, however my eczema really bothers me, especially in winter as it worsens, so I'm always on the lookout for new hydrating products (as you may be aware if you read some of my previous skin care posts). 

I came across this moisturising cream by chance, after being approached by a Benefit sales assistant who wanted to show me their new eyeliner (it really doesn't budge once you've put it on, which many people love about it but I hate). She then started encouraging me to try lots of the other Benefit products, at which point I panicked slightly - I'm not made of money! These included the Hello Flawless Oxygen Wow foundation (love) and the Total Moisture Facial Cream. 

When the sales assistant began applying the moisturiser the first thing I noticed about it was how refreshing it felt on my skin, then there was the smell. Something smelt lovely, fresh and fruity in a such a soft, subtle way. I spent a good five minutes trying to figure out if what I could smell was the facial cream or a perfume the lady was wearing on her wrists! I didn't know what it was but I loved it, and was about to ask her what perfume she was wearing when she mentioned that the ingredients included mango seed butter. Mmm mango.

Not only does the cream feel great and smell fabulous (I've never had a moisturiser that smells so fresh!) it works amazingly too. Most moisturisers keep my skin hydrated for the good part of an hour, then my skin goes dry and flaky. This one however lasts a lot longer. Due to the consistency of the cream I usually apply it to my face then leave it for about 10 minutes to let it sink in properly before putting on my make-up - otherwise it sits on the surface of my skin and leaves my foundation looking shiny and feeling moist, which isn't fun.

As with all Benefit products, this cream aint cheap. Despite this you do get a lot of cream in this one little jar (and how gorgeous is the jar may I just add?) and it works wonders so you are definitely getting what you pay for. I highly recommend this cream to anyone with problematic dry skin, if you want to try it head over to the Benefit counter and ask; they are usually happy to let you try the products there and then, and will sometimes give you a free sample too. 

I don't usually like to pay a lot for skincare, however I think it's worth investing in a product if it does you good. I couldn't quite justify purchasing the foundation to go with it however! 

Natural Goats Milk Soap!

Natural soap from The New Forest and its key ingredient: Goats milk.

So many of us are a sucker for a soap with a gorgeous scent (myself included), and are often won over by the smell of the product rather than its qualities. Although some products smell great and claim to do wonders for your skin, they can contain harsh chemicals and fragrances which irritate sensitive skin or evoke allergies with their overpowering scent.

These soaps were actually a gift from my mother who is always on the look out for natural products I can use on my overly sensitive, eczema-prone skin! Goats milk and donkey milk are known for being delicate ingredients that are suitable for people with eczema and dry skin so we are always looking for products that make use of them! The soaps are handmade in The New Forest in Hampshire and have only a handful of ingredients in each soap. I was given a simple bar of unfragranced soap, made using only FIVE ingredients (see image below) which I was pretty impressed with. 

Although this soap is unfragranced it definitely has a soft, pleasant aroma (you have to give it a good sniff) which is so refreshing from all the overpowering scents you usually get with soaps these days. 

The second soap I was given was the Honey, Oats & Goats! bar. While this one has seven ingredients, the two extra are in fact just honey and oats. Brill! Like the unfragranced soap, this one has a very faint  but pleasant scent which I really like about it. Both soaps work really well. I have been using them in the shower however I find that I can quite easily use them on my face without irritating my skin which is wonderful.

To find out more and have a look at their full range of products check out the website here!

I hope you enjoyed this post - I always love reading about products that aren't in high-street shops but definitely need trying for their amazing qualities! Are there any products you have tried and found to be surprisingly wonderful? Let me know!

Clinique

Back in February I visited London for a few days to celebrate my birthday with my boyfriend. While I was there I met my lovely friend Jenny (who lives close by) and we went for a wander around Selfridges! Whilst sauntering through the make-up department I told Jenny about how I always feel so jealous seeing all the beautiful nail polishes displayed, because sadly I'm allergic to something in most nail polishes.

Jenny told me about how Clinique do a nail polish that is allergy tested. How had I not known about this before?! We sought out the Clinique counter and I asked the sales assistant which of their products were allergy tested. It turns out that ALL their nail polishes are allergy tested and are designed for people with sensitive skin (yay!) Whats more I was told that if I found that I was remotely allergic to it in any way I could bring it back and get it refunded. At £12 it's expensive, but it was my birthday after all.

I bought a polish in the colour 'Hi sweetie' (bright pink) and because it was the week of Valentine's Day I was also given a free 'Chubby Stick intense' (a coloured lip balm) in a similar colour 'plushest punch'. At first I didn't expect to end up using the chubby stick, however once back in my hotel room I tried it on and absolutely loved it!

Me (wearing my favorite new lippy!) and Simon at King's Cross

I've worn the nail polish a few times and so far I don't seem to have had any reaction to it! Thaaanks Clinique :D