EVENING SKINCARE ROUTINE

When the evening begun and my eyes began to droop, the last thing I ever wanted to do was give myself a facial to remove the days wear, so more often than not I'd reach for the baby wipes and scrub my skin red and be done with it. But over the last few months my skincare collection has grown and improved, baby wipes out the window and the quest for healthy looking skin is in full force.

Let me just start by saying I have dehydrated, combination skin which is fairly sensitive and currently rather blemish prone. These products might not work for you, but I think they're all pretty fantastic.

If I'm wearing something heavy duty on the eyes, I don't hesitate to reach for my Estee Lauder Gentle Eye Makeup Remover which melts away any grime effortlessly and efficiently. On the more natural days my Bioderma works just fine, which I then use to remove the main bulk off of my face.
Next in the spotlight comes the REN Hydra-Calm Cleansing Milk - a new addition to the stash but I can see it lurking there for a long, long time. Removing any last traces of makeup and dirt it leaves my skin feeling clean, fresh and silky soft whilst being incredibly gentle. If my skin is a little more blemish-y and dry I'll go for my Lush Ultrabland balm cleanser, massage it into my skin and leave it for a few minutes before buffing it off with a flannel. I'll use a quick swipe of my Origins United States toner to balance my skin if it's having a good day, if it's a bit more oily I'll go for the Zero Oil version. I think it's so important to listen to your skin and change up products if you need too. Toners are a step that is yet to be perfected, Hirons, I'm coming for you!

I love using an oil to add a moisture boost however for me, less is definitely more and I've been using the Superdrug Vitamin E Oil for a while. I find it so easy to use too much which can leave my skin feeling incredibly heavy and like I need to cleanse again, which is the last thing you want. I'll warm a couple of drops between my palms and kind of press it onto my skin - I'm not sure why, but I saw it somewhere and I cannot stop doing it like this! Finally I'll warm some of my Simple Rich Moisturiser up in my palms and massage it into my face and neck and I'm ready for bed feeling clean, refreshed and totally relaxed...


What's your skincare routine like? Get the baby wipes thrown out, you don't need them ;). Send me links to your posts/videos!

You can find Hayley Loves on BLOGLOVIN' and TWITTER

The Recovery Facial - Hydration, Please!

IT'S MY BIRTHDAAAAYYY

Yep, that's right. Hit the big 1, 9 today.. Still the youngest of most of my friends, but don't worry guys, I'll keep up the youth ;). I went out last night, and of course I drank that little bit too much and now my skin is paying for it, big time. Looking dehydrated, dull and lacklustre, these products will be giving me that boost I need ever so desperately.

First up is my beloved Lush Ultrabland. Of course I slept in my make up, naughty me, but this bad boy has removed any traces of make up whilst giving my skin that little drink, and leaving a soft, supple base. The only negative is the smell, gip! 

I needed to get FEELING awake, as well as looking awake, so armed with a cup of coffee, I found myself sweeping a cotton ball of Origins United States toner across my skin. This non-drying tonic has the perfect minty, fresh scent for waking up my senses and leaving me clean and refreshed. 

As I'm going over to Mike's house later, I don't want to be putting too many heavy oils on my skin as I simply don't have the time, but my Simple Rich Moisturiser does a great job at adding the right amount of hydrating and banishing any dry/dehydrated patches. 

I won't be going over the Mike's empty handed, I'll be bringing out the big guns - my Origins Over Night hydration mask. This crazy rich formula will have my skin slurping and will be the icing on the cake.

I don't want to overload my skin today, hence the minimalist routine. Plush, I have much better things to do...

Are any of these products taking your fancy? Or are they your holy grail hydrating angels? Let me know in the comments below!

You can find Hayley Loves on BLOGLOVIN' and TWITTER

my current skincare routine, looking for your expert help!

Hi guys!
Today is my only day off this week and as I have a job interview tomorrow, I've been taking after my skin as I've really neglected it lately and this cold weather has really taken it's toll. Sadly, I use baby wipes to take my make up off, which many off you say is the biggest no, but it's just so much more efficient, I've never used a cleanser to remove my make up as I just can't understand how it works! I do use cleanser with cotton wool pads after I've used the wipes though, any better?

For affordable, semi-decent skincare, I don't think you can go wrong with these products, they last a fair amount of time, and do pretty much exactly what they say.
The Pore Minimising cleanser I'm pretty unsure of, I can't really see that they're working, I don't find it makes a difference in my routine, afterwards it feels a bit sticky, but I love the moisturiser! I've applied it plenty of times today to get some much needed moisture into my skin and this is beautiful. There's no particular scent to it, but it makes such a difference. I love wearing it under my make up, it creates such a smooth, soft base that my foundation (after primer) applies so well without clinging to any dry patches.

I did a review of the Soap and Glory T-Zone wipes here. I use these before applying make up to try and keep oil and large pores at bay, but read more there.

Very occasionally, like, once a week, I use a gel cleanser that I find is very strong and stripping, but I use it occasionally as I do feel it makes a difference to my skin, it removes any unwanted oils and it's "natural", but I might do a post on that soon. It's definitely aimed more to people with oily skin, rather than oily/combination as it recommends. If I do use this, I moisturise a lottttt afterwards.

I'm looking for new products, not too expensive, but I find my complexion to be slightly uneven sometimes, I have red patches on my cheeks and I just want nicer skin haha! I'm also looking for a mask, I'm not too sure what, I'm a mask virgin, I'm always scared I'll have a reaction if I change skincare.. weird haha.
But please, give me your suggestions, favourites, anything. I'd love to hear them and try them out soon!


Take care everyone, not long till Christmas!

my 5 empties #1

I wish I had a better camera so these images looked much better, but bare with me!

1. No7 Creme Touch Face Powder £8.50

2. Barry M Nail Paint £2.99

3. Maybelline The Falsies Black Drama Mascara

4. Simple Soothing Facial Toner £2.99

5. Rimmel Lasting Finish 25 Hour Foundation £6.99

1. This No7 was such a good buy! It applies really well with the aid of a large brush and smooths out my complexion. It lasts well and also keeps it's colour good. When I was getting to the end of this product, I started to use another powder and used this as a highlighter.. sort of! By flattening out the brush into a line, I'd put the end of it into the powder and apply it onto my cheekbone/above blusher/bronzer whilst still in the line. It looked really good as it was slightly paler than my other powder. 

I hope that made sense! 

2. Anyone that knows me will know I am a massive nail varnish fan! I love Barry M because it's affordable and has lovely colours. To me, it being long lasting doesn't matter so much as I tend to change ever few days. I love this shade, it's not one I would usually go for but I will definitely be buying it again when going for a more natural, nude look.

3. I love the whole range of mascaras by Maybelline, but this was probably the first one I bought and I loved it ever since. It creates both volume and length really well in only a few applications, but it also grabs every lash creating a much fuller look. 

4. To me, this Simple skin care range are the best, high street brand out at the moment, I use most of their items, but sadly not this anymore! This toner makes your skin feel smooth and clean as well as looking fresh and even. I'm currently using a Garnier toner at the moment, so let's see what this is like and whether I should return to this one.

5. After using this foundation for around 2 years, my skin started to work against it, and it just didn't sit properly on me, it didn't look right. I've used many more since then but no foundations have worked as well as this one. It's a perfect shade for me and gives the best coverage. It feels light and it smells gorgeous!

I'm sad to see these go, but what are your opinions on these? Do you have any good alternatives? Let me know!