Nuxe Reve de Miel Hand and Nail Cream

I've recently found myself obsessing over hand creams a little more than usual and since being introduced to Nuxe Reve de Miel Hand and Nail Cream* in particular, I have found myself reaching deep into my handbag very frequently throughout the day for a little application.

Nuxe Reve de Meil is a product that I have been keen to try since my boyfriend, yes my boyfriend, purchased the Lip Balm in Paris and I fell in love. It's a subtle, beautifully scented product that is made up of Honey, Sunflower, Oils and Vitamin E and leaves my hands feeling pleasantly smooth, soft and extremely moisturised. 

I don't suffer with overly dry hands but for me, working on an aeroplane, the conditions are pretty drying and so anything that works to protect and nourish dry or damaged skin, usually works a treat for me.

In the past, I've often been put off by hand products that leave my skin feeling greasy to the touch and if I can't get on with daily tasks afterwards because of the product on my hands, I'm not a happy girl, but fortunately this Reve de Miel is really very lovely formula and sinks into my hands and nail area nice and quickly.

With compliments on the product from myself and the majority of my colleagues who often pinch a bit, I highly recommend this product if your hands are after a little bit of TLC.

Paraben-free and made with 89% natural ingredients, this Nuxe Reve de Miel Hand and Nail Cream costs £10 for 75ml and is available to buy online as well as Space NK, Escentual, Feel Unique and most French pharmacies.

Have you tried this Nuxe hand cream? What's your go to handbag hand product? 

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Selexir Instant Serenity Treatment Peace Balm

Back in November I posted about a product that my mum and I had found on our search to improve and heal the dry and irritated hands that my mum unfortunately suffers with and up until about a month ago, it had worked an absolute dream. Although it continued to do a great job at healing and soothing my mums poor hands, I'm not sure if the root of the problem may have got a little worse somewhere along the line and eventually it wasn't helping as much as it seemed to when she first started using it.

Having tried every doctor prescribed product going and being really careful when it comes to ingredients in products, we are both continually trying to find a product that will stop the irritation and work to heal her hands, which at times can be really super painful.

When I was introduced to this Selexir Instant Serenity Treatment Peace Balm* the ingredients list which is free from Parabens, Paraffin, Silicones and Petroleum really stood out to me and even more so did Selexirs description of the product- a "Rich balm for intensive care of extremely dry and/or irritated skin". I let my mum have a read and with the description completely fitting the bill on paper, she decided to give it a go.

Selexir Peace balm is quite a rich, thick, naturally sweet scented balm which is made up of 21 highly concentrated natural ingredients including Honey, Mango Seed Butter, Beeswax and Blackcurrant Seed Oil that all work to alleviate the discomfort that extremely dry and irritated skin can bring, and having applied a small amount of balm around three times a day for the past couple of weeks, my mum has seen a drastic improvement and she's absolutely over the moon. Her hands both appear and feel a lot less dry and the Red, cracked and irritated areas have become a lot less severe. She loves that it acts as a great barrier cream too, although isn't so keen that with it being so rich, it does take a fair while to sink into the skin.

Although my mum only uses this on her hands, this balm can be used all over the body in any sensitised areas including the face, ears, neck and elbows and is said to be really great for minor cuts and grazes, inflamed spots, flaky cuticles, as an after shave/wax balm, sunburn, nappy rash, cracked heels and lips and light to medium eczema too.   

Available online and exclusive to the Urban Retreat in Harrods, costing £20 for the 15ml travel size, £39 for 30ml and £99 for the 75ml tube, this product doesn't come cheap, but it does seem to work absolute wonders and if you're suffering with your skin and like my mum seem to have tried everything, I really would recommend it.

Selexir have very kindly provided me with a discount code to share with my readers and running from the 22nd April-5th May 2013, you can receive 15% off at selexir.com with the promotion code 'BELLE'.

I would absolutely love to know your thoughts on Selexir Peace Balm if you have tried it or whether you think you'll be treating your dry skin and giving it a go.

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MD Formulations Peel Pads

Over the past six months or so, I've really been getting into skincare and when it comes to to polishing my skin into perfection, I've really tried to up my game slightly. 

Last year I noticed quite the little spurt in everyones attention to ingredients within skincare and products that contained Glycolic Acid and/or Salicylic Acid suddenly became ever so popular. I didn't jump too much on the bandwagon then, but more recently have tried quite a fair few products containing the said ingredients, including these MD Formulations Daily Peel Pads* which I was given the opportunity to try by Bellezo; a reasonably new online store that stocks some really fabulous brands and offers pretty speedy and free delivery. 

These md formulations Peel Pads contain both Glycolic and Salicylic Acid which along with the other ingredients work to refine pores and exfoliate away damaged and dead skin cells. After using them daily, even after the first week I started to notice really great results and noticed how clear my skin was beginning to look and how smooth it felt to the touch. The instructions do recommend to sweep each pad over the face avoiding the eyes, lips and nostrils and if you decide to try these, I would definitely make sure you do stick to their instructions- I got a little lazy and swept it over my nostril area one evening and noticed a fair bit of sensitivity in the area for a few days after which wasn't very pleasant. In terms of the tingling that is mentioned, it is normal but I only experienced it ever so slightly on the first use.

I did stop using these for a couple of weeks, purely because I wanted to give a couple of other products a go, but have since gone back to these and am now unfortunately nearing my last pads. This product contains 40 cotton wool sized pads and although I really do want to repurchase them, I am in two minds as I'm now also considering giving the Power Peel Pads a go.

MD Formulations Peel Pads cost £33.30 for 40 pads and are available on Bellezo. 

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Bioderma UK Launch

Back in January I posted about my love for Bioderma cleansing water and mentioned that I had heard through the grapevine of a UK Launch and I'm pleased to confirm that thankfully, that wasn't a rumour and it has indeed landed and now launched in the UK.

I must admit, to begin with I was only really interested in the Sensibo H20 Micellar Solution being available here, but now I'm more pleased that they have launched the whole Bioderma range including the Bioderma Pore Refiner, which sounds right up my street and I can't wait to try it.

Pictured above are the 100ml bottles of the Sensibo and Sebium H20 Micellar Solutions*, that are aimed towards sensitive (Sensibo) and combination/oily skins (Sebium) and are fab sizes to either give the products a go if you haven't yet or for on the go, travel sized options. 

When I first heard of Bioderma coming to the UK, I was a little concerned and did comment on the fact that I didn't think the price points were going to be too appealing, as more often than not, products that aren't widely available that eventually do get launched into the UK carrying a huge hype, come with a rather hefty price tag and priced at £9.99 for the 250ml bottles, I must admit I am left a little disappointed, as normally I pay around the €18 mark for two 500ml bottles from France, but for ease of availability and my love for the product, I have found a way to justify it a little and will no doubt end up downsizing to the 250ml bottles. 

The Bioderma range is available now to buy online at Escentual.com and in leading pharmacies including Boots and John Bell & Croyden.

Are you a fan of Bioderma or will you be giving it a go now it's available here in the UK?

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La Roche Posay Effaclar Duo

If you're an avid blog reader like myself, then I'm sure you've read enough reviews on La Roche Posay Effaclar Duo* to last a lifetime, but just incase you're not, here is my two cents on this blemish busting delight.

When this product first started being raved about, I was quite lucky in the sense that I didn't need to try it; my skin was clear of any blemishes and although I always tend to have pore issues, they weren't going through a very bad nor clogged up stage. However, I would say that over the last six weeks or so, my skin has been playing up a little and areas that I have never really had any complaints about, seem to have unfortunately been a little blemish prone and angry. After a couple of weeks of complaining and not really knowing what would work to get my skin back under control, I decided to put this Effaclar Duo to the test and see if it really was worth all the hype I had read.

It's a light cream-gel texture that works to unclog the pores by eliminating the cells causing the blockage and includes ingredients that help to eliminate any imperfections and fight against bacteria. I followed the instructions and applied this to my whole face, day and night, which at first seemed to work well and I was pleased how it sat underneath my make up, however, I did start to notice that some areas, particularly my nose were becoming quite dry. 

Not wanting to over do it on my skin and potentially cause further problems, I decided to change the routine and use a smaller amount only as a part of my evening regime and since then it has begun to work perfectly and has certainly helped to revert my skin back to its "normal" state.

This didn't zap any of my spots as such, but it definitely calmed down my blemish troubled areas and has helped put a stop to my areas of reoccurring issues as well as hormonal breakouts which is great. After using this continuously, my skin begun to look a lot clearer again and I, like most people, am really impressed.

The only problem with it was that I found it to it quite deceiving in that it doesn't look particularly drying or harsh, but with my nose area becoming substantially drier, I would personally advice that you go easy with it at first and use minimal amount of product, which is all that's necesary anyway.

La Roche Posay Effaclar Duo costs £13 for 40ml and is available to buy in Boots.

Have you tried this product? I would love to know your thoughts.

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REN Sensitive Skincare

Although I'm in no way an expert when it comes to skincare, I have grown very fond of it and love nothing better than to try new products on the market and recommend them to both you and my friends and family. It can sometimes be a little tricky though as of course, we all have different skin conditions and so what is good for me may not necessarily be great for you. Quite a few of my friends and family suffer with sensitive skin and although I tend to opt for quite gentle products anyway, sensitivity isn't really something I suffer with and although I've managed to find some products that have worked great, I haven't ever come across a whole range that I have felt confident enough to highly recommend to them. 

When I was introduced to the REN Sensitive Skin range I was pretty impressed with the line and what the products offered and since, have pointed many of my friends in the direction of the six products.

REN created the sensitive range with one thing in mind, to create products that were free of skin-unfriendly ingredients that would work towards their 'Three P' motto- performance, purity and pleasure; improving the condition of sensitive skin for all ages and training it to be less sensitive, soothed, calm and hydrated. 

One in three people suffer with sensitive skin and I know from those close to me, that they often find it hard to find products that they feel confident to use and with the average lady using around 200 different ingredients in their skin regime per day, it's important that the right products are picked. 

 Free from parabens, sulphates, mineral oil, petrolatum, silicones and synthetic fragrance and colours, I think the ingredients that REN uses are pretty impressive and if you do suffer with sensitive skin, I think they're worth a look.

The range consists of

REN Hydra-Calm Cleansing Milk- 150ml £18

REN Hydra-Calm Cleansing Gel-150ml £17

REN Hydra-Calm Global Protection Day Cream-50ml £27 

REN Hydra-Calm Youth Defence Serum-30ml £38 

REN F10 Smooth and Renew Mask-50ml £20

REN Joboba Microbead Purifying Facial Polish-150ml £18 

REN products are available to buy online and in Selfridges, Liberty, Space NK and John Lewis. 

Do you suffer with sensitive skin? Have you tried any of these products?

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Waitrose Cinnamon Cakes and Ginger & Clementine Bath Crémes

I'm pretty sure I posted about these two products a couple of years ago, but evidence of that seems to have disappeared which is a shame because for the past few years, these two Waitrose Bath Crémes have been my favourite bath time bargains that I have continually repurchased.

Both Cinnamon Cakes and Ginger & Clementine are an absolute dream and smell just as you can imagine. Though Cinnamon Cakes is perfect for a sweet treat and probably my favourite of the two, I do find it a little harder to get hold of and so tend to use Ginger & Clementine more, which is just as lovely. It's super refreshing and they both fill the bathroom with the most amazing scent.

They're not super beneficial for the skin but they add that element of a super bubbly luxurious bath at an incredible price. Each bottle contains a massive 750ml of product, for the superb price of £1.49 and honestly, I can't tell any difference between them and high end bath cremes that I have been known to pay ten times the amount for.

Cinnamon Cakes and Ginger & Clementine are available to buy in Waitrose stores and online.

Have you tried either of these products? Will you be popping into Waitrose next time you fancy a beautiful bubble bath?

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Sisley Gentle Make Up Remover for Face and Eyes

When it comes to removing my make up, a product that comes high up the list in terms of convenience and quick removal, whilst also being gentle on my skin is always going to be a winner for me. I like to use a product that does a brilliant job at removing my make up quickly, without compromising my skin and a product that has been working beautifully well for me over the past few months is this Sisley Gentle Make Up Remover for Face and Eyes*.

Though it is easily the most expensive make up remover I have ever tried and probably ever will try, it is a really nice product to use and the feature that first caught my attention is the pump which I find super convenient and wish more products would use. I know picking up a bottle and squeezing a little product out is far from difficult but I'm all for a gimmick and love that after a couple of simple hassle free pushes of my cotton pad, I am left with the perfect amount of product.

I find this works beautifully at removing my make up and leaves my skin feeling so great and looking clean and matte afterwards, but I do find it doesn't work as great at removing my eye make up as other removers I have tried, which is a shame. As well as that factor, I have sadly found that once or twice it has led my eyes to sting a little, which isn't so great, even though it is said to be safe to use on sensitive eyes. Though that put me off for a couple of days, it hasn't stopped me from using it in the long run as I rarely wear a heavy eye and my pros vastly outweigh the cons.

I find the natural fragrance of the product is quite strong which isn't perfect for my personal taste, but it is said to work for all skin types including sensitive.

This handy pump bottle of Sisley Gentle Make Up Remover for Face and Eyes is quite pricey and like I said probably the most expensive make up remover I'll ever use at £69 but if you fancy a treat it is available to buy at Sisley counters in Selfridges, Space NK and Liberty.

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Kiehl's Nashi Blossom & Pink Grapefruit Skin Softening Body Lotion

As much as I love a beauty product and seem to have an extensive collection of lotions, I'm going to be completely honest and admit that I have always been pretty rubbish when it comes to daily body moisturising, especially in the Winter months when the majority of my skin is covered up. It's not that I don't need to, although I don't really suffer with super dry skin anyway, it just comes down to being a little bit lazy. When I jump out of the shower of a morning or a bath in the evening, I just want to get dressed or jump into my pyjamas and although it's good to, lotioning up my body is something I frequently skip.

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Sisley Express Flower Gel

I first became aware of this face mask when researching into products that would be great for my skin and would sit underneath my make up well, for flights at work. Lisa Eldridge mentioned it in her Long Haul Beauty Regime video last year and since hearing of it then, it seems to have popped up on my radar quite often.

This Sisley Express Flower Gel* is essentially a gel-like face mask that works to hydrate, tone and firm skin pretty beautifully in an extremely quick time. Applied before my make up, it absorbs into my skin within just a couple of minutes, leaving a perfectly firm, soft and hydrated base to work on.

It really does settle into my skin in a super speedy time and although in the directions it does say to blot to absorb any excess product after three minutes, I personally don't find I am left with much at all, if any by that time.

It's said to be a favourite amongst make up artists throughout Fashion Week, as it's a great quick prep to use on their models skin before make up application and I can believe it. I've been applying this to my skin on days when my skin needs that little bit of a boost and it does a great job at hydrating my skin and leaves it feeling super soft on days both with and without make up.

When I go back to flying everyday in the Summer months, I already know that this is going to be an essential for me, because on days where I am waking up at possibly 3am, I really don't want to be faffing about with a timely skincare regime. Absorbing so quickly and giving my skin the essential hydrating qualities it needs for a long flight, even underneath my make up, it will be a dream and with the Flower Gel working to get rid of any signs of fatigue and stress, it will see me perfectly for an average day in the sky.

At £74.50 for this 60ml bottle, this Sisley Face Mask isn't the most affordable product on the market, but I am completely sold on it. However, as much as I want to reach for it all the time at the moment, I may pop it to the back of my stash for now, until I go back to work. 

This Sisley Express Flower Gel is available at Space NK, Selfridges, Liberty and John Lewis.

Does this quick absorbing, hydrating face mask appeal to you? 

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Embryolisse Lait-Créme Concentré

Embryolisse was another of the products on my Paris shopping list and with it previously being recommended to me by the very lovely Pixiwoo girls for my skin, I decided that I must have it and I have been using it on and off since November time.

As you can see, I started using it before I got the chance to take a photo of it, which is the ultimate beauty blogger fail for me. I was super annoyed at myself and even contemplated not blogging about it because of this, but for those of you that may be interested in this moisturiser, I thought I would share my two cents on what was described to me by the French Phamacist, "the cream of the stars".

I think I was expecting some kind of moisturising miracle when I popped on my french accent to buy this behind the counter moisturiser, but unfortunately I'm really not completely sold on it. It is nice to use and applied on make up free days or in the evening it sinks in beautifully and leaves my skin feeling super moisturised and soft but I just don't love it as an everyday moisturiser, which is what I was primarily hoping I would benefit from. Underneath my make up, granted it does leave a very smooth base to work on but although it is quite a light consistency that sinks in nicely, but I tend to find I can still feel it and it almost makes my make up feel a little tacky? Despite its light appearance, Embryolisse is a rich nourishing cream which is made up of Emollient Oil, Shea Butter,  Beeswax and Aloe Vera.

I'm not sure this would be on my must have French pharmacy list again and although it is very nice plastered on of an evening for a nourishing treat, I'm not sure it was worth my frantic rush to find it and the €18 price tag.

Embryolisse is a massively raved about product in the beauty industry and although I'm not the biggest fan, I would absolutely love to know your thoughts on it?

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Origins GinZing Eye Cream

Many of you are lucky that you don't have to reach for an eye cream aimed towards brightening and de-puffing unless you've had a heavy or sleepless night, but I personally feel it necessary to brighten, de-puff, refresh and pretty much do anything else that is going to make my eye area look and feel more awake day to day and after trying out quite a few different creams recently, this Origins GinZing Eye Cream* has been the one that I reach for most often and actually lives in my make up bag.

It isn't a miracle worker and certainly hasn't banished my dark circles and bags for good (I'm pretty sure they are a permanent feature) but it does work beautifully to make them appear lighter whilst brightening up the area, leaving them feel more refreshed and look less tired.
It has Salmon- like metallic colouring with reflective particles running through it which I'm assuming is what makes the area look brighter. The colouring taps out and blends clear so don't panic that you will have a shimmery reflective coating around your eyes, as it's pretty much invisible.

This eye cream actually has a caffeine ingredient from Coffee Bean, Panax Ginseng and Magnolia Extract and although this isn't going to wake you up like a cup of coffee might, it does help to awaken the area by restoring brightness and radiance.

I apply this with my ring finger under my eye, inwards towards my tear duct being careful not to get too close to the water line and then outwards on the top of my eye lid and down my brow bone, in a tapping motion being careful not to drag any areas.

The eye area is extremely sensitive and I'm always a little weary about what I use, but this has been a pleasure and a great factor is that it is also suitable for all skin types.

This 15ml tub costs £21 which does seem a lot, but minimal product is needed for each application and so I don't see why it shouldn't last its recommended shelf life of six months.

Origins is available online and at Origins counters in House of Fraser, John Lewis and Selfridges.


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Elemis Quiet Mind Relaxing Bath Elixir

This Elemis Quiet Mind Relaxing Bath Elixir* is a relaxing bath product that has been an absolute go-to for me for those long, cold and tiresome days over the last month. 

Until today, when I unfortunately used the very last desperate squeeze of product it really has been such a delight to use and if you're into bath products then I thoroughly recommend it. 

It's a very rich product, full of oils that help you to relax which after a long day, run under hot water into a bath is an essential.  

I actually assumed it had some Lavender in it as the scent it really quite similar to Lavender bath products I have tried before, but it doesn't seem that there is. Instead, there is a blend of Patchouli, Ho Wood and Eucalyptus to relax you and your body entirely and Cocoa Butter which isn't such an obvious ingredient to help to condition the skin.

The smell is quite aromatic and isn't really something I would opt for out of a bath product, but it's completely suitable and really is perfect for a long soak.

I absolutely love a relaxing Bubble Bath and this has been an absolute delight for cold evenings and for the end of busy days. It doesn't bubble up as much as I wish, but to be honest nothing will bubble up quite as much as my over the top childhood dreamy bubble baths that I'm probably comparing it to. 

Completely skin kind and free from nasties this Elemis Bath Elixir is a pleasure to pamper yourself in.

I got this as a part of the QVC Winter Secrets Collection* but singly a 300ml bottle costs £19, although I have found it for £15.20 on Look Fantastic.

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Wild About Beauty Rose Water Illuminating Serum

Wild About Beauty is Louise Redknapps beauty brand, which focuses around essential products that are easy to use, offer quality without compromising on ingredients that all include nourishing and beneficial properties to help and care for your skin whilst being paraben free. 

I have a few Wild About Beauty products in my make up bag at the moment, but this Rose Water Illuminating Serum* has been something that over the last couple of weeks I have reached for quite frequently.

Inside this pump tube is a super reflective serum that works to hydrate skin whilst boosting radiance to the skin through the brightening, reflective pearl pigments that it contains. 

It can be used on its own but I prefer to use it either underneath my make up a for a fresher look or on top of my foundation, if I find it needs to be made a little more dewy. I don't like to go overboard with it and just like to apply a small amount (one to two pumps) and dab in ever so gently with my fingers.  

As you may be able to see from the photos above, on first application this is a very pearlised White serum but when blended out it becomes almost a florescent Lilac shade that blends out clear. All through the process the pearl pigments are incredibly illuminating but when it is blended and clear, the skin is illuminated perfectly and a lot more subtle.

The Rose Water and Caigua Extract that this contains are both rich in anti-aging properties which is great for the skin but along with them benefits, they also work to help regenerate and revitalise the skin.

This serum feels really nice on the skin and dries at a steady speed which is perfect if you're wearing it alone or with make up.

I'm not sure whether it's a make up essential for me, but it certainly helps on days where my skin is dull and needs a little life put back into it.

This 30ml pump tube costs £22 and is available on Wild About Beauty online, Debenhams and House of Fraser.   

Have you tried any Wild About Beauty products? Does this Rose Water Illuminating Serum appeal to you?

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