January Favourites!

Hello blog, you seem a little dusty and cob-webby... I'm sorry I neglected you. However, combining work with lack of actual buying of makeup equals not much to blog about! I say that but I have about 50 products that need reviewing, still... shhh. 

I digress.

As the title suggests, these are my January favourites; not many of them are makeup, in fact most aren't. I've been focusing more on skin care/ hair, but less on the latter. 

Hands

Hands have been a priority for me like never before due to my constant washing of my hands at work. They are dry, so awfully dry and it makes me cry (that rhymed!). But it's becoming quite a problem, since we're not allowed to use gloves at work, which is just a bit... yeah. Ahava Deadsea Mineral Water Hand Cream is probably something you've never heard before seeing as it is from the dead sea and hence an Israeli brand. However, they do have a fully functioning UK website (which is brilliant because I love this stuff) so you can check it out here. I was never a fan of hand creams because of the greasiness, but this gem... it smells like powdered angels in cream form. Without sounding creepy. The formula is a little thick for me but it works. I just love it. I do. Would definitely recommend! 

Another hand cream I am fond of is the Norwegian Formula Hand & Nail Cream. I use the word 'fond' liberally because I had high hopes for this cream restoring my brittle, poor nails but it hasn't really done much apart from the usual cream moisturizing action. This is nothing special but I use it daily when my Ahava cream is out of reach. 

My Carex Protect Plus Hand Gel is my essential buddy wherever I go. It smells divine and dries in an instant, taking the smell of work (temporarily) and germs off my hands.

Hair 

Hair is something I've been trying to preserve lately, i.e. not blow dry the F out of it. I've finally succumbed to the hype and splashed out on Macademia Natural Oil Deep Treatment Masque. Honestly? I didn't expect it to do much. I have long lost faith in hair masques or just any "miracle" hair treatments. I don't know what magic hairdressers do, but with the exactly same product, I can never get the same result. I wonder if they use liquid diamonds. Ho-hum. And in reality, too, this yet hasn't shown to be a miracle product. Does it make my hair softer? Well, yes, like most conditioners do, I don't need a 24 quid per tub 'masque' to do that. Masque. What a pretentious word. I love the smell, love the texture, love the tub itself, don't love the price, not to fussed about the results. Would I recommend? Well, no, because honestly it's nothing special for me, unfortunately. This makes me wonder why it's in my January 'favourites'... don't ask me that. Probably because I am still trialling in and I bought in in January.

Batiste Dry Shampoo in Paisley is another story. I looooove this. Love. It smells gorgeous. This is by far my favourite Batiste fragance. Unless I'm forgetting some. The formula is  the same, but it's the best one for smell, I believe. I use this almost daily (sadly) and would definitely recommend.  

Face

Oh goody! My face has been literally make up free for a month (shudder) so I've been focusing on mattifying with creams rather than makeup and just trying to keep it healthy generally. My favourite moisturizer right now is Simple Oil Balancing Moisturiser. I was pleasantly surprised to find that it does control shine, like it promises to. When I don't wear make up over it, it feels light and refreshing and does keep my silly oily forhead at bay for most of the day. I like everything about this product, and would definitelly recommend to people with combination skin. I wouldn't quite go for this if I had oily skin because it's just that short of being absorbent enough I'm afraid.   

I've been using my Rimmel Stay Matte Pressed Powder quite a bit for when I know my skin is awfully red and I need to cover up, I wear it over my usual Lancome foundation and it does the trick. 

I've finally discovered what makes St Ives Invigorating Apricot Scrub so amazing. It just is. The first time I put it on my face and washed it off, my skin felt like cuddly babies. I was never a fan of scrubs because they were always 'medical' and usually blue with scary promises to eliminate blackheads and fight breakouts. I don't have either (touchwood!!) so I wasn't too keen on the overwhelming spearmint smell and blue gel with white particles consistency. St Ives lives up to the hype 100%. It smells gorgeous, and doesn't dry my skin out at all. The particles take away the dirt and all the dry skin that the usual face washes won't take off simply because unless you're using a face scrubber (is that what they're called? no idea, me no speaky english), the skin isn't going to come off with you rubbing your fingers on it. A beautiful product, and I am very very pleased with how it makes my skin feel and look. Would recommend feverishly. 

Eyes

I've dug out my Simple Soothing Eye Balm which I've had for about 2 years now (disgusting, I know, but it's cream, and it was sealed!). I don't like putting creams and moisturisers on my eyes because, well theyre not meant to go there. This little balm refreshes my eyes (not so much visually as physically) and generally makes them feel happier after waking up and definitely after coming out of the shower. I find that this is a rare product that does help soothe puffiness, but only a little, so it's enough for me. Would recommend.

Boots Natural Collection Lash Care Mascara in Clear is a cheap clear mascara that I use to tame my eyebrows. If I am honest, it doesn't actually do a very good  job because the 'gel', i.e. the mascara isn't tacky or sticky enough so it doesn't hodl the hair in place. Oops. I still carry on using it every day because... why not. Until I can find a cheapish brow gel, I shall carry on with this. I wouldn't recommend this, really. 

Body & Misc

My favourite ever and only shower cream brand I use is Imperial Leather. My current cream is Oriental Calm. You cannot resist the bubbles. You cannot resist the pink. You cannot resist the smell. A beautiful shower cream all around, cleanses and leaves the skin soft and supple. I have about 3 more in my bathroom because I buy them when they're 93p (which happens more often than not. Would deffo recommend. 

I've decided to brighten up my teeth a little, so I went for Pearl Drops Transform - Hollywood Smile Toothpaste. I am still trialing this, but I am so far pleased with the results, and my teeth are about 1 shade lighter, which is more than I expected. Will carry on using this to see how it goes.    

This is it for my Janurary Favourites, I wanted to ad more pictures but it wouldn't really make any difference because none of these require swatches... I am happy with these products and consider them great buys, even though I may sound unhappy in the reviews above^. Forgive an old cynic, won't ya?

Toodles

 :) 

x