Summer Skin

Ah, sun. You elude us for pretty much 11 months out of the year but when you do show up it's always worth the wait. Glorious warmth, happy faces everywhere and a fine old stretch in the evenings. Lovely. With this newfound meditteranean style weather I generally try and shake up my skincare/make-up routine accordingly.

Nothing says Summer to me more than the smell of coconut- just a whiff reminds me of sun lotion, sand between my toes and a great big 99....complete with a flake, obviously. The Body Shop coconut body butter contains fair trade organic virgin coconut oil to provide hydration for dry skin over 24 hours. These body butters are one of my holy grail products- they smell amazing with the scent lasting ages on the skin and clear up any dry patches super fast. The beautifying oil for body, face and hair is a new product for me- the lovely Marissa Carter of Cocoa Brown tan fame recently suggested on Twitter that when you want to gradually remove fake tan that a body oil such as coconut oil is a great option as it helps break down the tan on the skin gently, rather than just scrubbing it all off in one go, which will only serve to make you look all blotchy! By contrast- avoid oil based moisturisers when trying to maintain a fake tan, I usually use my coconut body butter when preparing my skin for tanning- dry patches are the kiss of death for an even tan! It's worth keeping an eye in-store as they always have good deals on. 

Speaking of Cocoa Brown, the latest sunless tanning product from Marissa Carter is Night & Day Tan Mousse* and is officially my new favourite tan, following closely on the heels of the original Cocoa Brown 1 hour Tan. The idea with Night & Day is that you apply it with your tanning mitt, and are immediately tanned- no need to leave it to develop or to wash it off, you can get dressed and head straight out the door- perfect for when you want a nice deep tan for a night out. Up you get early the next morning (optimistic) for brunch but at that stage you probably want to look more sun kissed than bronzed, so you hop into the shower and are left with a light glow that'll then last for up to five days! You could be forgiven for thinking this is some sort of fancy witchcraft but you'd be wrong. It's just that someone has finally developed tanning products that work and are actually convenient also, something I know I've been waiting for since I was a teenager (way back in the year 19-dickety-2). All the better is the fact that Cocoa Brown is an Irish brand, available in Penney's and lots of pharmacies around the country for the bargainous price of 7.99. 

If I'm telling you about sunless tanning then it should be obvious I'm not a big sun worshipper- don't get me wrong, I love the beautiful weather and no one rocks an ice pop (tangle twisters are my favourite, in case you're interested) and a sun chair quite like I do but I burn, not tan and that's not a good look. So I coat myself in the above- Boots own brand Soltan, a moisturising facial suncare cream with the highest UVA and UVB rating and SPF 30. It smells lovely and sinks into the skin quickly and easily- I wear it under foundations that don't have an SPF (I'm looking at you Bourjois Healthy mix serum) or on it's own if I'm just popping out for a walk and not only have I never burnt but it also leaves my dry skin nice and soft. Yay! For lips, I use my Eos lip sphere in lemon, which has an SPF of 15. There's a full review of it HERE.

Lastly, sun care wise is this embarrassing looking bottle of Nivea for kids- there's genuinely no reason as to why I have this but I found it in the house and think himself must have bought it. Either way, it has factor 30 with UVA and UVB protection and is water resistant. It also tickles us both that the liquid is in fact bright blue- a feature that is clearly for children but amuses us nonetheless.

Lastly, I've been loving this Green Tea BB cream from Singapore-based brand Ginvera. It contains SPF 30 and suits all skin tones- it brightens and evens out the complexion and although it looks dark when first out of the tube, once applied it seems to alter according to your skin tone. I'm quite pale and I find this suits me really well. It's also easy to apply, looks beautiful on and is perfect for those off-duty days when you can't be bothered to make any sort of an effort, which lets face it is pretty much any sunny day. Luckily this is only the second BB cream I've tried and I love it so the search is over. Huzzah! You can find this on Ginvera's website HERE.

Let me know below if you have any hot tips (see what I did there?!) for Summer skin care!

XX

*pr sample

Stila Convertible Colour Palette

Stilas Convertible Colour Trio contains 3 versatile shades for cheeks and lips- two of their classic colours (peony and lillium) and a new limited edition shade (cherry blossom). This is the cool edition, there's also a warm version but I felt the cool version would be more suitable for my skin tone. The compact is thin and light with a handy mirror for on-the-go touch ups. I tend to use my Real Techniques stippling brush to apply the blush to my cheeks but you can use your fingers to blend it out too. Peony is my favourite for both cheeks and lips, adding a bright pop of pink that really brightens the face. The other two shades are beautifully natural and are especially nice worn as contour or as a blush when wearing tan. Cherry blossom in particular gives the cheeks a nice sun kissed glow. 

Peony, Lillium, Cherry Blossom

Peony on the cheeks

Lillium on the cheeks

Cherry Blossom on the cheeks

Peony, Lillium & Cherry Blossom swatched.

Stila Convertible colours also come as individual compacts (except for the limited edition shade in the trios), if you're new to cream blush, these are well worth trying. Highly pigmented, creamy in texture and easy to apply, these are great quality. The trio will set you back £23, while an individual convertible colour is £16, so this is very good value as you get three different blushers in the palette. 

Have you tried any of Stilas Convertible Colours? If so, what did you think?

XX

Dublin in a Week Part 4: Afternoon Tea at the Conrad Hotel

In Part 1, 2 & 3 I showed you Trinity College, Guinness Storehouse and The Japanese Gardens and no week of fun touristy things would be complete without going for Afternoon Tea somewhere. Seriously, it's just one of my favourite things to do ever. Maybe it's the combination of tiny sandwiches and champagne or perhaps it's briefly getting to act like a fancy-schmansy lady..who knows?! We went to the Conrad Hotel on Earlsford Terrace, across from the National Concert Hall. The staff were very friendly and attentive and it was a lovely experience overall.

Anyway, prepare to salivate:

Champagne! We also had Earl Grey & Mint Tea

The Layers of deliciousness!

Mini Cupcakes, Chocolate & Pistachio dipped Straberries, Berry Macaroons, Yummy Sandwiches, Scones.

Scones with strawberry jam, clotted cream and fresh strawberries (and the sign of a good afternoon tea- scones with and more importantly, without raisins. Raisins, the work of the devil), pretty tower of macaroons.

Om nom nom nom.

XX

June Wishlist

Here's what I've been adding to that mental list of "things I'd quite like to own":

1) Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer, HERE but not to be found in my shade anywhere, apparently. The nice lady at the Nars counter informs me that this is sold out across Europe, such is the greatness of the product. I've swatched this and have been matched to it so I can testify to the fact that it is an amazing concealer and may be the one to finally cover up my under eye bags, which have by now reached the critical stage that people will soon be asking me if I am in fact on crystal-meth. Hopefully Nars will lash out a few more before that day comes.

2) The Babyliss Pro Perfect Curl, HERE. This looks amazing but is crazily expensive so until I find a cheap version on eBay I'll be trying to master the perfect curl using my GHD. 

3)Caudalie Vinosource Serum SOS. I like French brand Caudalie, I've been using a sample of their eye cream (for aforementioned horrendous eye bags) and really like it so I'm quite tempted by this serum for dry, dehydrated skin which just looks so comforting. You can find it HERE.

4) Oh Stila. My love for you grows stronger by the day. These are the brands new Summer eyeshadow range, the Countless colour pigments. They come in all sorts of beautiful colour combinations that allow you to use the individual colours alone or swirl them together to create your own shade. Gorgeous and can be found HERE.

5) I love a good stripe and this pencil skirt from Oasis (HERE) is no exception. 

6) Zara have been producing some fantastic coats (HERE) lately. This two tone number would be so perfect for Summer. 

7) I love statement necklaces and am crazy about this super bright floral and Rhinestone collar HERE, from Topshop, which may well have to come to live with me very soon. Pretty.

8) Lastly and perhaps the most random item- this HERE mug from Hairy Baby. I love everything the Irish company sell as they have the perfect mix of witty slogans and classic Irish-isms, that always have me in stitches. For no discernible reason, I find myself drawn to this Lent mug, which is completely irrelevant to my life, considering I haven't given anything up for lent since Mary Robinson was President (note-those two things are unrelated). Good times.

Turquoise Bauble Necklace

I stumbled across this little beauty on Ever Ours and fell for it straight away, as it reminded me of a Kate Spade necklace that is pretty much exactly like this, except for the price obviously. This being £8 and the Kate Spade being a few hundred dollars. Huzzah!

This colour and style is perfect for Summer and I've been wearing it non-stop as it goes with so many different things.

You can find the same one HERE along with many other lovely pieces.

XX