Fun fact – after my empties posts, these
are my favourite to write up but always receive the least engagement haha so if
you are reading or commenting, thank you! Coming up to Christmas, my spending
was in full force and it resulted in a few repurchases of products I had either
run out of or wanted to replace!
First up, The Balm Down Boy and my
original version of this is the oldest blush in my collection at this point! It’s
very well loved (although no pan :() and has been on
countless trips with me because as well as being in very sturdy packaging even
though it’s only cardboard, the baby pink matte shade is super flattering, not
too pigmented and lasts all day on my normally oily skin! It is also very
reasonably priced at £13 (I got mine from Look Fantastic where there is always
a discount as well!) I never hear The Balm talked about much anymore and this
shade was out of stock on a few other websites so I just bit the bullet and
repurchased as knowing my luck it will be discontinued or something!
Next up is another replacement in the
form of Essie Bahama Mama! I got rid of a lot of nail polishes in my
collection a couple of years ago as apart from two, I never wore them and they
were just sitting there. Bahama Mama was one of the two and I thought it was
finally time to treat myself to a new bottle as mine again was very well loved
and the formula was getting a bit gloopy with whatever was left. This is the
most perfect plum, burgundy shade and it’s opaque in two coats. I also wanted
to replace Essie Midnight Cami aswell but unfortunately this seems to be discontinued
which I am gutted about!
The Becca Backlight Priming Filter
has been a constant in my makeup collection for the last few years albeit in
mini form as I kept getting them in GWP’s from Cult Beauty then Sephora. I
picked up the value set at Christmas as I love having it in my routine! I don’t
use this to make my makeup last longer but I do use it to add glow (not glitter)
and blur imperfections. It’s a pearlescent cream that adds luminosity and as a
matte foundation and powder lover, this gives my makeup the little somethin’
somethin’ that it can sometimes be missing. I also used to love their liquid
shimmering skin perfector and I would mix that into foundation but it seems
like it’s been discontinued!
A couple of skincare items next and I
repurchased the Cerave Eye Repair Cream before I had even finished my first
one! It’s the perfect, simple eye cream and works well to hydrate round my eyes!
It contains ceramides and hyaluronic acid and targets dark circles and
puffiness too! I find my fine lines aren’t as noticeable and while my circles aren’t
that dark it helps to decrease my puffiness! It also sinks in quickly and sits
well under my makeup as well as feeling hydrating enough overnight too!
Finally, the Pyunkang Yul Essence Toner which at this point features in every other post on my blog so I won’t
harp on about it for too long! Basically this is the best hydrating toner I have
tried and even though I have a couple other hydrating toners on the go and didn’t
necessarily “need” this one right away I ordered it when there was a discount
so it’s ready to go! It contains seven ingredients in a gel like formula and it
is just perfect for my sensitive skin right now! It’s go gentle, cooling and hydrating
and I totally get the hype surrounding it!
So that’s a roundup of my latest forever repurchased
products! Do you own any of these? What’s one beauty product you always
repurchase?
Danielle
xx
If
you want to keep up to date with my posts, don’t forget to follow me on
After last week’s look at my favourite skin and body care discoveries of 2020, this week is all about makeup and haircare! Again, a lot of this stuff wasn’t actually released specifically in 2020 but it was the year I finally got around to trying it!
Starting with makeup, I lusted after the Charlotte Tilbury Airbrush Bronzer in Medium 2(full review) for ages before finally picking it up when Space NK did their £15 off a £60 spend and let me tell you – it was worth the wait! Aside from the fact it is absolutely massive, this is a beautiful, finely milled powder that is easy to build up without ever becoming cakey! It adds a lovely warmth to my face, it very smooth to apply (no harsh lines here!) and blends super easily! It is a matte bronzer but the finish is just gorgeous, it never looks flat! Expensive but worth it but I would always recommend waiting for a sale!
Next up, my only real lipstick purchase this year was the Fenty Beauty Slip Shine Sheer Shiny Lipstick in 06 Retro Rose(full review) which is a lipstick/balm hybrid! Retro Rose is a dusty pink shade which is very my lips but better on me. It’s creamy to apply, very comfortable on the lips as it’s so moisturising and though it’s sheer it’s buildable to a deeper shade. It also lasts a good amount of time on my lips despite being a sheer/nourishing lipstick and made a recent post on my favourite mask proof lip balms!
Something a bit more budget now and the Collection Primed and Ready Invisible Setting Powder blew me away earlier in the year and I have finally got round to repurchasing! I originally bought it as I hate wasting my Laura Mercier loose powder if I’m not going anywhere or if I have a mask on and you can’t see my makeup but I still wanted a powder I could trust to mattify my skin and not make me look cakey and I found it with this! It’s a very finely milled mattifying powder that doesn’t cling to dry patches and does a very good job of keeping my oils at bay! And it’s under £4! I’ve only used it a couple of times since I started Roaccutane but again I haven’t noticed any caking with my drier than normal skin!
I wasn’t sure whether to put this with skincare or makeup but here we are! The Sol de Janeiro Brazilian Kiss Lip Butterwas my favourite lip balm discovery of last year! It’s jumbo sized, leaves a gorgeous hydrating sheen behind and it lasts so long between top ups! It contains cupuaçu, acai and coconut oil and makes my lips feel so soft. I know the bum bum cream from the same brand is love or hate but the scent of the lip butter is not overpowering at all and once it’s on you can barely smell it! I recently finished this and couldn’t believe how much was left in the casing! Thank God I was at home and able to dig it out with a cotton bud lol.
The NARS Soft Matte Complete Concealer in Light 2 Vanilla is the most recent addition to my collection from the ones I am mentioning today but I couldn’t leave it out! I resisted this for the longest time because the packaging reminded me of an old NYX pot concealer I had and hated – it was cakey, felt sticky and was not enjoyable to use! I can safely say this is the complete opposite! It’s matte but not drying and it has great coverage! I don’t experience any flaking with this and the colour match is great!
I am a huge fan of Anastasia Beverly Hills brow products and the Brow Powder Duo in Dark Brownhas been my go to since I got it for myself for Christmas 2019! It has the perfect shades for my, you guessed it, dark brown hair and it’s got great pigmentation too – not too much or too little! It doesn’t fade or move throughout the day and it’s so dinky and sturdy it will be great for travel when its allowed again!
Moving onto hair, around May last year I was going through Olaplex way too quickly for my bank balance so I decided to pick up the Phyto Joba Moisturising Mask to use in between my weekly Olaplex sessions and it’s love! This is so hydrating so perfect for my damaged, dry ends and it gives such a beautiful shine to my hair while making it more manageable! I found it a bit harder to find a link so I’m paranoid it’s discontinued but I would be so disappointed if it was!
I got a Cult Beauty GWP in the middle of the year after buying some hair products and found some absolute gems in there! One of the hair products I bought to get the GWP was the NatureLab Tokyo Perfect Shine Clarifying Scalp Scrub(US affiliate link here, 10% off with Danielle10), which I had previously tried a mini of and knew after one use I would need the full size. It’s sulphate free yet gives a good lather, the scrub actually reaches my scalp leaving it refreshed and it really does clarify it while making my hair so shiny after use! I think if you had a flaky scalp this would work wonders too!
In the actual Cult Beauty GWP was the Color Wow Dream Cocktail - Kale Infused for Breakage and I am in love with this! Like I said, I have very damaged ends due to straightening and I get breakage too. This is a leave in conditioning treatment that doesn’t weigh my hair down at all, it strengthens brittle hair and leaves it feeling soft and healthy! I feel like my hair is in really great condition at the minute though I did get a haircut early December too but this and Olaplex No.3 in particular are amazing!
Finally, another item I was introduced to through the GWP and one I repurchased after using as I knew I needed more, the Slip Skinny Scrunchie! I am a huge fan of my silk pillowcase so love the benefits for my hair and this scrunchie is the perfect thickness and so soft while minimising breakage to my hair when using! They are expensive but I know I will get so much use out of them!
Welcome back everyone! I hope you were able to have a nice break over the holidays! I’ve been keeping a little list over the last couple of weeks of what my favourite skin and body care products have been this year and that’s what I’m going to share today! Ideally, I would have had hair and makeup favourites in this too but as always there are just too many to mention so I’ll get that up next week! I don’t think any of these are new releases for this year but they were new to me either at the very end of 2019 when it was too early for me to know how much I loved it or has been purchased this year!
Starting with body products, the Bioderma Atoderm Ultra-Nourishing Anti-Irritation Shower Oil(full review) which quickly became a favourite when I picked it up to help with my drier skin due to going on Roaccutane(this will be a theme throughout this post lol). It’s so soothing, hydrating and not greasy at all! I have a full review here but I cannot recommend this enough especially if you find you get dry patches or drier skin in the winter! I’ve recently got sent some more bits from their Atoderm body range which I have been enjoying too but too soon to say they are my best discoveries of the year :P
Sticking with bodycare, the Bali Body Self-Tanning Mousse*(full review) is the only fake tan I have used this year! It has a guide colour so is fool proof and it leaves a beautiful medium darkness natural tan when left overnight to develop! I can get a good 4-5 days out of this when I moisturise well and even when it starts to wear of it’s so even I don’t notice! Finally, in the bodycare category, I have to mention the OUAI Melrose Place Eau de Parfum(full review). I have worn this nearly every day since I got it earlier this year! It’s the perfect subtle, rose scent and I will be so upset if they ever discontinue it (which happens to all my favourite perfumes)!
Moving onto skincare now and I’m going to try and go through these quickly as I feel like they get featured a lot on my blog already so I don’t want to bore you! Starting with cleansers, I finally picked up two very hyped budget cleansers this year and loved them both! The Cerave Hydrating Cleanser is just perfect at the minute for my morning cleanse, it’s a very simple cleanser packed full of ceramides and hyaluronic acid that doesn’t foam up too much and leaves my skin feeling clean and hydrated as you would expect from the name! Similarly, The Ordinary Squalane Cleanser is another hydrating product that can be used as a first or second cleanse and I am kicking myself for not getting on this hype train sooner! It feels beautiful, breaks down makeup easily and leaves my skin feeling soft and hydrated! Will definitely be getting the big size next!
Next up, I have fallen in love with quite a few toners this year so this was a hard one for me but the Pyunkang Yul Essence Toner(full review) is one I have fully used up, loved and repurchased! It’s gel like, cooling and most importantly for my skin at the minute - hydrating! In terms of treatments, the Paula’s Choice 2% BHA Liquid Exfoliant(full review) was a game changer for me at the start of the year. It works amazingly on congested, oily skin and my skin always looks so much clearer and brighter the morning after use!
Moving onto hyaluronic acid and the Hada Labo Tokyo Lotion No1 Super Hydrator has impressed me so much – it contains 3 different types of hyaluronic acid and really helps keep moisture locked in all day for me. I was so worried going on Roaccutane about the skin dryness but I have been shocked at how well my skin is coping and this is one of the products I have been using every day! It’s also very reasonably priced for such a huge bottle!
This year I have really gotten into K Beauty and I have started incorporating steps I wouldn’t normally such as using as essence and my weapon of choice is the I’m From Mugwort Essence(full review). It’s 100% mugwort and perfect for irritated skin, it absorbs quickly, adds an extra layer of hydration for me and keeps my skin feeling smooth too!
The Vichy Mineral 89 Daily Booster has been my serum of choice over the last few months now and I’ll confess I have had this before a few years ago when I wasn’t blogging as much so I am cheating a bit but it has really come into its own for me this year! I was previously a fan of the Vichy Aqualia Thermal but with alcohol denat quite high up on the list in that one I made the switch to this and haven’t looked back! It’s a really cooling gel serum that hydrates my skin and makes it plump!
Cerave Eye Repair Cream is another one I think I let fly under the radar. It’s a very simple lightweight cream, great for puffiness and dark circles and sits under makeup very well too, this is my backup as I repurchased straight away after finishing the first one I had!
Finally, I have a couple of facemasks to share! First up, the Dermalogica Hydro Masque Exfoliant*(full review)which delivers in bucketloads on hydration and gentle exfoliation. It contains snow mushroom for hydration and bamboo to exfoliate as well as cucumber extract (which it smells like) to soothe and it’s so effective! It only needs to be left on for 5 minutes and my face feels instantly refreshed, hydrated and exfoliated! And even better, it’s fine on my currently sensitive skin! I also want to give the Huxley Secret of Sahara Sleep Mask: Good Night a mention as it’s been in constant use since I got it! It contains Pricky pear seed oil, hyaluronic acid and centella asiatica and though it’s an overnight mask it is very lightweight and absorbs quickly but somehow my skin doesn’t dry out overnight. I wake up with hydrated, smooth and plump skin so this is a winner for me! It’s also very cooling and soothing!
And that’s my round up of my favourite skin and bodycare discoveries this year! I think the Dermalogica mask is the only product that was actually released this year haha! I would love to know if we share any of the same favourite’s or what some of yours were! Let me know in the comments!
Wow, last post of the year! I hope you were all able to have a nice Christmas! I feel like this isn’t as many empties as I normally have and if I’m honest I’ve slacked off the last couple of months and been trying out new products so it’s been difficult for me to finish a lot! But anyway, I wanted to end the year rounding up then binning my trash so here it is!
I actually got this on prescription from my dermatologist just before I started Roaccutane and I’ve really been enjoying it! It’s been keeping my skin nicely hydrated and I like how it’s got a pump and there is a lot of product in there too which is great considering how much moisturiser I go through - it sinks in quickly too which is great! The only downside is that it’s unscented which yes is a good thing for sensitive skin, but I do generally like my moisturiser to be scented but it’s a small price to pay and I already have a backup of this!
This is an old favourite of mine and one I have repurchased countless times! I only use it on my legs and it is amazing if you ever get itchy legs or dry patches! It doesn’t spread as easily as the Aveeno and is also unscented so I don’t use it on my top half. I spoke more about it in my French Pharmacy Favourites post and I will repurchase once I use a few other moisturisers up!
Rituals Ritual of Sakura body cream
This is more like what I use on my top half! Hydrating and smells good! I laughed while reading one of Siobhan’s posts lately as she mentioned using nice smelling body creams on her top half and cheaper/more bog standard stuff on her bottom half and I do exactly the same thing! I picked up a Sakura gift set recently so I do have a bigger size to use up now! I find the body cream can be a little sickening but I do love the body foam as it’s a much more subtle scent!
Haircare
Bardot Dry Shampoo
I talked about this more in my Dry Shampoo Showdown post but I really enjoyed it! It worked well on my greasy hair to give me an extra day out of it! I found the scent a little too floral for me but I got this on offer for about £2.50 so would repurchase at that price!
The newest addition to Olaplex’s wonderful line up and this is a primer for my long term fave No.3. You saturate your hair with this, wait 10 minutes then apply No.3 and in conjunction they work to repair damaged hair! I got about 4 uses out of this as my hair is quite long and I actually got my hair cut at the beginning of December so it’s not as damaged as normal but after use if certainly feels healthier. I don’t have a lot of breakage yet but I have already repurchased as I love and trust Olaplex No.3 and want to keep my hair in the best possible condition!
Obsessed with this and I spoke more about it in this Haircare Essentials post too but I have been using this for years now and can’t see myself without it! Breakage is dramatically reduced and hair feels much stronger and healthier! Have already repurchased!
I feel like this was a cult favourite a good few years ago and I finally got round to trying it! I liked it, it definitely added a little volume through my hair but the results were short lived I would say so not a repurchase for me!
This is the second time I’ve had this and it’s great for heat protection and smoothing hair, I do prefer the OUAI Leave In Conditioner though so it won’t be a repurchase for me straight away!
I love this and spoke more about it in this post but in short it’s a very simple, gentle, hydrating gel like toner and my skin drinks this up! I have already repurchased the bigger size!
Another simple, hydrating, calming product and another one my skin loved! I reviewed it here and will repurchase this in the future once I finish a few other mists up!
This is one of those products that is billed as a “miracle product” for acne and while it is a nice moisturiser and works well as a primer under makeup, unfortunately, it worked no miracle on my acne haha. I liked it as a daily moisturiser but I wouldn’t be in a rush to repurchase as I have others I prefer!
Another cult favourite and my first time trying! This is a nice formulation of a gel to oil and removed makeup with ease. The full size isn’t as expensive as I thought it was originally but I don’t love the scent so this won’t be a repurchase!
A really lovely little spritz that was perfect for keeping in my handbag to top up my face during the day! Super affordable too, this was only £2.50! Will repurchase in the future!
I find the Inkey list very love/hate but thankfully this was one that I loved! A really simple, antioxidant full hydrating serum perfect for fine lines! Will repurchase this again soon!
A lovely creamy, hydrating and soothing wash off mask! I have been using this regularly in the mornings to calm my redness down before makeup. Would repurchase in the future but using a lot of other masks right now!
I use this as a primer hence why I slotted it in my makeup category! It’s beautifully illuminating but never looks greasy and gives a really nice lit from within look! Love it but have just repurchased the Becca Backlight Priming filter which I find very similar so this will have to wait for a repurchase!
This is huge and leaves a gorgeous hydrating sheen behind and it lasts so long between top ups! It contains cupuaçu, acai and coconut oil and makes my lips feel so soft and the scent is not overpowering at all! I can’t believe how much was left in the packaging once I finished the bullet, I got about another months use out of it by digging it out with a cotton bud! Full review here! Will repurchase in the future!
Really luxe little lipbalm, not as longlasting on the lips as I would have liked and the full size is too expensive for what it is so not a repurchase for me but I really recommend the little mini set when on sale!
MAC Fix+ Magic Radiance
Not very much in this tiny sample but enough to know I liked it and would like to try again! Hydrating and brightening and I would repurchase if on offer!
I know CBD works for a lot of people but unfortunately it doesn’t for me! I was as stressed and wound up as ever in the lead up to some recent interviews! Tried it on my skin only a couple of times so can’t really review that but I personally prefer other oils for topical use. Expensive as well so not a repurchase for me!
Carex Moisture Hand Gel
Love this - smells fresh, doesn’t dry out my hands and sinks in quickly without leaving any tacky feeling! Always out of stock but will pick up when I see it again!
Tossing
When I mentioned that I have a love/hate relationship with the Inkey List earlier, this is what I meant! Their Alpha Arbutin and Niacinamide just don’t do it for me and aren’t a patch on the Ordinary’s versions which I love. The shelf life is also 6 months compared to the Ordinary’s 12 months so I didn’t even get to finish these but I would not repurchase!
And that is my last empties of 2020 and my eighth of the year! Hopefully there will be even more next year! Thank you for all your support with reading and commenting this year, I really appreciate it! See you in 2021!
Danielle xx
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