Chester shopping haul

After my Birthday a few weeks ago we went for a girly shopping day to Chester; we haven't got the best selection of shops near us so we do prefer to venture over the border and spend the whole day getting some retail therapy.

I had a few items on my shopping list that day (I have my best friend Elin and blogger Carline Hirons to thank for that) but I'm really pleased with what I got.

Clinique Clarifying Lotion

I didn't really see the point in acid toning, it sounded a bit harsh to me but Elin had told me that she'd recently introduced the step to her daily/ nightly routine so I thought I'd give it a try. We had both previously been massive fans of a certain face scrub which includes crushed up apricot kernels but have now shunned it in favour of acid toners which act as a chemical exfoliant. I have oily skin and tend to get all my spots (tmi - I
apologise) along my t-zone, but I've been a good girl and have left them alone these past few weeks, most of them haven't even come to the surface and I honestly think that it's because I've been using this.

The Body Shop

A couple of days before we went shopping Elin sent me a picture of her skincare shelf at home, these were some of the products that she was using and recommended I tried. I was actually stood in The Body Shop using her pictures as a shopping list and bought these three to try. 

I use the cleanser as my 1st cleanse (to remove make-up) and I love the texture. I massage it into dry skin and it's a little bit stiff to begin with but the more I work it in it seems to change consistency and ends up being like an oil. 

I use the Aloe Calming Toner after my acid toner (Clinique) to help restore my skin's pH. I've no idea if it's actually doing anything but it smells nice and feels refreshing on the skin.

I use the Aloe Protective Serum at night time before my moisturiser (yes it takes me almost half an hour to get ready for bed) It's really light and non greasy so I don't feel like I'm layering a ton of heavy product on my face.

MAC 219 Pencil Brush

I love creating a dramatic eye look, not on a day-to-day basis but for work and for nights out I always emphasise my eyes (I hate my teeth and try to detract attention from them) I didn't have a brush which was small enough to blend out the eyeliner/ eyeshadow under my eyes so thought I'd better invest in one. It's great - it does the job my oh em gee the bristles are so scratchy! It's exactly like the 217. But you know what they say - No Pain No Gain!

Boots

This isn't all the stuff I got from Boots but I didn't think you'd want to see shampoo and conditioner and other little bits, I can't go in to a Boots and spend less than £50. Soooo...

I'd seen the girls over at Pixiwoo rave about the Clarins Instant Concealer - so of course I had to try it. I let the lady behind the counter do a demo on me so that I was sure I was buying it in the right shade. You get 30ml in a tube and you need very little as it's quite thick, but to be honest I'm not a fan. I have oily skin and even this is drying and looks cakey after a couple of hours. I'm going to give it another try as I bought the new L'Oreal Infallible Stay Matte Primer the other day and I hope that the Clarins concealer will sit nicer on top of it. 

The L'Oreal True Match concealer is a whole other story though; I dot it under my eyes and then blend it in using a damp Miracle Complexion Sponge from Real Techniques then I set it with my Rimmel Stay Matte pressed powder - stays in place all day and doesn't crease.

All of my fave YouTube'rs go on about the Hourglass Ambient Lighting Blush, they've also said how much the new MaxFactor baked blushes are a dupe for them - so of course I added it to my shopping list. I bought it in the shade Nude Mauve and use it as a daily blush/ highlight / bronzer. So far I really love it.

I did also buy myself a new MAC lipstick in the shade "Patisserie" and if you follow me on Instagram you will know that today my darling daughters took it out of my bag and now it is no more. They really went to town on it and there wasn't a thing left in the bullet. So now their Daddy is having to buy me a new one. I loved it though and it was a great nude shade perfect for every day.

I have another haul post to share with you in a couple of weeks. Let me know if you find these interesting or not guys, but to be honest - I love writing them.

GM

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