Welcome Relief for Hands - La Roche Posay Cicaplast Mains

La Roche Posay is one of those no nonsense French pharmacy brands that seems to do exactly what they say on the pack. One of their newer product offerings, the Cicaplast Mains cream is no exception and my forever dry hands could not be more grateful! I've encountered some quite lovely, fragrant hand creams that are generally okay but many do not seem to hold up well and require frequent reapplication. LRP truly functions as a does-all saviour as it's light, non-greasy, and has no discernible fragrance.

As you can see it's a kind of clear-ish balmy cream texture that sinks in quickly without a trace.

The formula is hardworking as this has 30% concentration of glycerine to give a more lasting soothing effect. It also includes 4% Niacinamide which provides an antihistamine effect and helps to reduce inflammation and cracking.

Ingredients:
Aqua/Water, Glycerin, Butylene Glycol, Cetearyl Glycol, Niacinamide, Glyceryl Stearate, Butyrospermum Parkii Butter/Shea Butter, Dimethicone, PEG/PPG-18/18 Dimethicone, Glyceryl Stearate SE, Sodium Polyacrylate, Caprylyl Glycol.

Overall super effective and a snip at £6.50 for 50ml as only a little is needed due to the concentrated formula.

I bought this from Escentual where they currently have up to a third off French pharmacy brands throughout March.

www.escentual.com

NARS Sheer Glow in Barcelona

My first post back is a review of a much loved product - NARS Sheer Glow foundation. This initially came onto my radar years ago when Lollipop26 (now Buy Now Blog Later) raved about it on her blog/youtube channel.

I have been using this for a while now (I've just finished my bottle) and have to say that for me this foundation has definitely lived up to the hype.

I had this applied on counter - Sheer Glow on one side and Sheer Matte on other and went away to see how they both looked later on that day. At first I preferred how Sheer Matte looked, but it was actually the Sheer Glow that wore better as the day progressed so a while later I purchased this in Barcelona.

I find Barcelona to be a perfect shade as it's got a good yellow tone that's really great for evening out the skin and toning down any redness (which I have from old acne marks).

The texture is a runny liquid, so for a me a foundation brush is the best method of applying; my favourite brushes to use with this are Lancome's foundation brush, Ruby and Millie foundation brush, Louise Young LY34 and the MAC 159 (a fab brush for a more airbrushed look).

Application is smooth, and blends into a natural finish that's not matte but has a very tiny amount of radiance. The coverage is medium (not sheer as the name may suggest) and buildable which I like as I prefer better coverage. Even though it's not quite full coverage (as some of my darker marks show through a little), it's one of those bases where I don't feel the need to use a concealer afterwards, so often I skip it, and sometimes I skip the powder too.

Another thing I like is that the better coverage doesn't make the finish look flat; if you've used something like Makeup Forever HD or Laura Mercier Silk Creme (both of which I quite liked), they do not enliven the skin as much so I compensate by using more radiance powders and bronzers to lift the finish.

Bare-faced on the left (just moisturiser), Sheer Glow applied on the right.

This definitely is my go-to when I want a more flawless look that doesn't oxidise (I hate it when bases turn orange) and I've worn it day-to-day, going out and is my default base for special occasions.

Overall a great, fail-safe option, which I'm now missing since finishing about a week ago.

narscosmetics.co.uk

Back to Blogging

I have been absent from blogging for almost a year (how time flies!), a small break turning into a much longer absence. I had not intended to neglect my blog for so long and I have certainly missed posting so am attempting to restart things and have had a little layout refresh (which I don't think I'm done tweaking with just yet).

In my blog silence I've used up quite a few products that I will be reviewing in the weeks to come and have plenty of newness to share so I'm hoping to get those posts up as well.