Steam Cream Collaborates With Top Make Up Artists

Steam Cream the natural all in one mosturiser for face, body and hands are well renowned for their gorgeously illustrated tins and this September, to celebrate London Fashion Week, have teamed up with three top make up artists to create a bespoke collection.

Jemma Kidd

This tin features a portrait of Jemma against a backdrop of daisies and the words 'My all-in-one backstage kit essential'.

Ruby Hammer

Ruby's tin is a deep shade that echoes her name and features a paisley print. On her tin is written 'A tiny slick keeps eyebrows in shape'

Wendy Rowe

Wendy's tin comes in a gorgeous blue shade and features the words 'A great pre makeup base'

SteamCream is a lightly whipped cream infused with steam with a subtle lavender scent that provides long lasting hydration.

SteamCream limited edition Make Up Artist Tins £12.95 are out now and available from www.steamcream.co.uk Selfridges, Liberty and John Lewis.

Scent Of The Med With Di Palomo Orange Blossom Body Wash & Hand Cream

With the countdown to my holiday in full swing I have been getting in the mood with these two gorgeously Mediterranean scented items.

Di Palomo Orange Blossom with Wild Honey and Olive Moisturising Body Wash £9 for 250ml 

Di Palomo say

A rich, luxuriant Body Wash formulated using the finest ingredients. Contains natural extracts of orange blossom, honey & olive, known for their soothing & nourishing properties, plus added moisturisers including Pro-Vitamin B5 to help keep your skin smooth & supple.

My thoughts

This feels really luxurious, thick and creamy in texture. It is heavily scented so steer clear if strong scents are not your thing. When I use this in the bath I feel like I am sat in a big tub in the med, it is just gorgeous and leaves my skin incredibly soft and smooth, while the sweet scent of orange blossom delights my senses. The scent also lasts a long time after bathing but is not overpowering.

Di Palomo Orange Blossom with Wild Honey and Olive Enriching Hand & Nail Cream £7 for 75ml 

Di Palomo say

An enriching and luxurious Hand and Nail Cream blended with olive oil, honey and orange blossom extract which are known for their soothing and nourishing properties. Also rich in Grapeseed Oil to leave your hands soft, smooth and nourished.

My thoughts 

This has the same delicious scent as the body wash, it is a nice lotion consistency, absorbs fast and is non greasy. Leaves my hands feeling beautifully soft. Pretty packaging too.

For more details and their other ranges check out the website - Di Palomo

*PR Samples

Good Things Face The Day Moisturiser SPF15 - Review

I came across Good Things skincare when I was looking for a new face mask and purchased the 5 minute facial mask, the review of which you can read here. As I mentioned then, the range is designed for young skin so not technically for me..!

However, I was recently sent the new Face The Day Moisturiser SPF15 and before I got a chance to give it to someone more suitable to try, found I had run short of my own moisturiser and thought there was no harm in giving it a go.

Face The Day Moisturiser SPF15 contains superfruit extracts, Goji Berry and Papaya.

Good Things say

This light, hydrating lotion is easily absorbed and has SPF 15 to help protect the skin from damaging UVB rays. Anti-oxidant goji berry extract helps to soothe skin while papaya improves skin radiance.

My thoughts

I like the young, fresh looking designed packaging. It looks great in the bathroom and the flip top lid makes it easy to dispense.

The product is seriously berry fruity scented, I found this a little off putting at first and whilst I liked it for my face mask wasn't sure I was going to like it as a facial moisturiser. It doesn't last which for me personally is a good thing!

The moisturiser is of a runny lotion consistency which can mean that sometimes I have a tendency to squeeze out a little too much for my needs. Once applied it dries quickly but it does feel sticky and tightens my face as it dries. Just 5-10 mins later and the sticky feeling disappears and I am left with super soft feeling skin which remains all day.

This is a really nice budget moisturiser which leaves my skin feeling super soft and hydrated until my night cream and it has the bonus of having an SPF15. It comes in a generous 100ml tube which will last a decent amount of time.

If you are looking for a budget moisturiser with no nasties, this is definitely worth taking a look at.

The Good Things range is free from parabens, sodium laureth sulphate and mineral oil.

Good Things Face The Day Moisturiser SPF15 costs £7.99 for 100ml

Five Facial Washes Speed Reviewed! Clean & Clear,Witch,Neutrogena & Dead Sea Spa Magik

For this post on facial washes I am handing over to my guest reviewer, my good friend Victoria. I am not a huge fan of facial washes and having found myself awash with the items I thought I would pass them on to someone who does use them.

I use facial washes every day as I find they’re not as harsh as soap and water plus they usually have better scents! For reference my skin type is sensitive and can be dry.

Neutrogena Visibly Clear Pink Grapefruit Daily Scrub £4.49 for 150ml -  With powerful MicroClear technology, exfoliating micro-beads and refreshing pink grapefruit.

I loved the colour of this scrub, I do like products that look good on the bathroom shelf. I really liked the smell of this facial scrub and it gently exfoliated, leaving my skin feeling very fresh afterwards.

Clean & Clear’s Morning Energy Skin Brightening Daily Facial Scrub £3.99 for 150ml -  with bursting beads and lemon & papaya extracts.

Another good colour for my bathroom! This smelt very summery and fruity, a bit like an ice lolly! It felt refreshing on my skin.

Clean & Clear Morning Energy Skin Energising Daily Facial Wash £3.99 for 150ml - with bursting beads and vitamin C & ginseng.

Once again, I liked the bright and cheery colour and it felt invigorating and refreshing with a pleasant kind of zingy smell.

Witch Naturally Clear Gentle Exfoliating Wash £3.99 for 150ml - Contains Witch hazel extract, Rice powder: natural exfoliating particles to deep cleanse pores, Willow bark extract. Product is SLS and SLES free.

The Witch was ok, but didn't have much of a scent; I'm always drawn to strong fruity smells. It lathered quite well and exfoliated gently. Think it was perhaps a little too harsh for my skin though.

I could tell that this was not a favourite for Victoria due to the initial feedback I received. This is designed for combination/oily skin so unsurprisingly was not a good match for her skin type.

Dead Sea Spa Magik Gentle Cleansing Facial Wash £8.80 for 150ml - Suitable for all skin types. Contains a special blend of natural ingredients to penetrate deep seated impurities.

This was my husband’s favourite. He was really impressed with how it got rid of the oiliness of his skin. I found it quite invigorating, but didn’t like the smell too much. I did like the creamy texture though.

As for my favourite, I really couldn’t choose between any of the first three – Neutrogena and the two from Clean & Clear. All of them were fairly similar in scent, texture and how they left my skin feeling. I’d buy all of these facial washes and scrubs again

Thanks so much Victoria for the reviews.. I am wondering have you tried other types of cleansers, in particular cream ones? They may be better if your skin has a tendency to dryness.

Do you have similar skin to Victoria? What cleansers work for you?

Paralympic Opening Ceremony (Enlightenment) London 2012 - I was there!

Last night with less than 2 hours to go I suddenly found myself in possession of a ticket for the Paralympic Opening Ceremony.  Cue a crazy mad dash across London and back in rush hour to collect my son from my mother in law's and enlistment of no less than 3 other babysitter's (don't ask!) and a run to the tube station and we were on our way!

Once at Stratford the madness continued as we ran from the station to collect our tickets from a store (again, don't ask!) and then onto the Olympic Stadium. We made our seats with literally a second to spare and I have honestly no idea how we managed to get there in time...but we did.

The Opening Ceremony was entitled Enlightenment "a journey of discovery inspired by the wonder of science and its power to transform perceptions."  For the next 3 and a half  hours (and a bit more!) we were entertained, enthralled, moved, dazzled and inspired at the sights before us in this thought provoking spectacular.

The opening with Rihanna's Umbrella

We were treated to a show featuring Sir Ian Mckellen, Professor Stephen Hawking and a young actress playing Miranda, Shakespeare's heroine who discovers a brave new world.

The athletes coming out - 164 countries are taking part in the Games

Brazil

Iran

Team GB

The biggest cheer of the night was reserved for the home team - Great Britain - who came out to rapturous applause, a standing ovation and the booming sound of David Bowie's apt Heroes pumping through the stadium.

Once the athletes were in place blind soprano Denise Leigh sang 'Spirit in Motion' a tribute to the athletes

After inspirational and rousing speeches from Lord Sebastian Coe and the President of the International Paralympic Committee Sir Philip Craven, the Queen declared the Games open and fireworks exploded from the top of the Stadium.

Continuing with Miranda's journey

Globe opening

Six Paralympians bathed in gold take to the sky on wires; This is just stunning.

Golden Stadium

Sea of Blue and the Whale

From a stadium bathed in gold to a captivating seascape the parlaympixels are used to incredible effect.

A young singer called Birdy plays the piano and sings Bird Gerhl. This is just beautiful. She has an amazing voice that transfixes everyone in the stadium. The imagery complements and enchants.

This is followed by the Apple crunching moment as a giant golden apple arrives and Miranda bites into her apple. A stadium full of people crunching an apple :-) Well not me as I am allergic to them!

A giant reproduction of sculpture Alison Lapper pregnant appears to take centre stage and then the Royal Marine Joe Townsend zip wires down with the Paralympic Flame, handing over to blind five-a-side footballer David Clarke. Incredibly it was then handed over to Margaret Maughan, Britain's first ever Paralympic gold medal winner! I found this so touching and the crowd went wild and once again we stood up as the cauldron was lit. Magical.

The night and ceremony ended with one of my favourite singers and quite possibly my favourite moment of the evening - Beverly Knight singing a moving and soulful version of 'I am what I am'. I believe this should be everyone's motto in life.

A spectacular firework display concluded the event with Beverly still singing.

This was a night to truly remember and treasure forever. As Lord Coe said "A new Games is about to begin and new role models and stories of heroism will emerge."

Good luck to all those taking part in the Paralympics London 2012. 

Paris Glam V Jungle Chic

September's Issue of iN Magazine is out now - pop over now and take a look at my feature on Autumn beauty trends. Paris Glam V Jungle Chic -  Which one will you be this Autumn?

You can read the beauty feature by clicking this link - http://issuu.com/in-magazine.com/docs/inmagazinesept2012digi/29

Happy reading and let me know what you think :-) 

My Hair Loves - L'Oreal Paris Hair Expertise EverSleek Absolute Smooth Intense Mask

This is the second of the My Hair Loves series of posts. You can read the first one here.

I was recently sent the 3 hair masks in the L'Oreal Hair Expertise range of hair care. The range is sulfate free and features natural origin botanical oils and extracts.

Colouring and styling have taken a toll on my hair leaving it dry and frizzy so I need to treat my hair regularly with deep treatments and have really got into the habit of using masks. I am always on the look out for affordable treatments and this fits the bill nicely.

There are three programmes in the Hair Expertise range - EverPure for coloured hair, EverSleek for frizzy hair and EverStrong for fragile, brittle hair.

I have been using the EverSleek Mask as I felt my hair has been wild, frizzy and just harder to style. However, as I have just had my hair highlighted I am going to be switching to the EverPure one next.

EverSleek Absolute Smooth Intense Mask

L'Oreal says

For frizzy, overworked hair. Respects hair fibre. Controls Fizz. No Silicone. Smoothing and Nourishing. Contains Botanical Extract Sunflower.

My thoughts 

The mask comes in screw top tub and scent wise is pleasant but reasonably strong.

To use - Apply a walnut sized amount to wet hair (concentrating on the ends) after shampooing, leave on for 3-5 mins and rinse off.

This feels rather luxurious to use, the consistency of the mask is thick like a body butter. Once I rinse it off my hair feels smooth and silky.It is easier to comb through and tangle free. After drying and styling it leaves my hair looking smooth, sleek and wonderfully shiny. Exactly how I like it.

This is one of my favourite hair masks as it restores life to my otherwise lifeless looking hair.

L'Oreal Hair Expertise EverSleek Absolute Smooth Intense Mask costs £6.99 for 200ml