Laura Mercier Secret Camouflage Concealer!!!

So if you've read my Nip+fab post then you'll know I've spent the last couple of months trying to fade some blemish marks on my cheeks, in the mean time I had to cover them up, and found none of the concealers in my stash upto the task. After hearing so much about secret camouflage I decided to take the plunge, at £26 it's not exactly cheap, but it definitely lives up to it's name.

 

I have the shade SC-7, second to the last darkest shade in the range, it contains two compartments one with a yellow based concealer to match your undertones. The smaller side is a more red based concealer, to match the depth of your skins tone, this enables you to customise your shade all year round. It's a very dry consistency, and I would beware of using it under your eyes, especially if you have dry skin, lots of fines etc. However one of the beauty consultants stated that she mixed in a little serum and it works fines, I have used it under my eyes and had no problems, but when my skin gets more dry in the colder months I may steer clear.

I dip my brush in both sides, using more of the yellow side to match my undertones and buff over the areas I want to cover, I then sometimes pat in further with my fingers to fully warm the concealer up on my skin.

Top pic; FlashBottom pic; daylight

 

I absolutely love this concealer, it has great longevity, and covers without looking heavy or cakey. Some days I use this, just a light powder like the chanel les beiges (Click for blogpost) and it looks great and natural, while offering great coverage.

No concealerSecret Camouflage

 

As you can see my blemishes are no longer as severe thanks to the Nip+Fab range, but it still covers what's lingering behind, and I have no other make-up on in this picture (other than brows).

Have you tried this concealer, what do you think?

Thank you for visiting the blog today

Alex

Nip+Fab Glycolic Fix Cleanser and Exfoliating Facial Pads!!!

So the early May bank holiday always brings celebrations for my besties birthday, this year we went up and had a great long weekend in Manchester, with family, friends and a few late nights. This meant I wasn't quite as diligent at properly removing my make-up before bed, note to self; baby wipes do not equal a thorough pre-bed cleanse, needless to say I promptly broke out all along my cheeks. The usual area that bears the brunt of my lazy ways, this time around however it seemed to take an eternity to fade these dark marks, so I searched the aisle of Boots for something to help my cause.

In comes Nip+Fab glycolic fix range, I purchased the cleanser and exfoliating pads, I'm pleased to say it has helped to significantly fade the marks, but it has not completely gotten rid of them. However for a drugstore purchase I'm very pleased with how it performed, at £12.99 for 60 pads and £7.95 for the cleanser it's a bargain, compared to other glycolic containing skin care. The cleanser contains 2% glycolic acid and the pads, I believe contain 4% glycolic, try to leave the cleanser on the skin for at least 2 minutes to give the glycolic acid time to work.

I mainly used the pads at night, but you can use them twice daily, however ensure you use SPF whenever using products with glycolic acid. I found the pads so hydrating I often wouldn't use a night cream with it, I mainly used the cleanser in the morning, it cleansed the skin without a tight feeling after.

I'm now interested to try some other products in the range, like the serum and the scrub, have you tried any products from the brand/range?

Thanks for visiting the blog today,

Alex

Chanel Les Beiges Healthy Glow Sheer Powder - No50!!!

I'm sure most of you have heard about the latest release from Chanel, the healthy glow sheer powder from the Les Beiges collection, inspired by freedom and light as air make-up. I had a £10 Debenhams voucher and decided to put it towards the purchase of this £38 powder, I'm getting a litle bored of my MAC mineralise skinfinish and with these new powders on the market claiming to prevent cakey over powdered application, while mattifying and giving the skin a glow all at the same time I had to see what it was all about. I have the hourglass ambient lighting powder (review here) and absolutely love it, but due to the universal shades it offers no extra coverage when setting make-up. My skin is a little crazy at the moment, I have some horrible blemishes on my cheeks that refuse to fade, so I need something that will work towards disguising them without having to wear a full coverage foundation. Saying that the powder is incredibly sheer, so coverage is minimal, which is great if your wear little make-up and/or have great skin. I use this powder to set my foundation and concealer, it also has SPF 15, which is personally a bit low for me in the summer months, but can help to top up your SPF throughout the day (better than nothing).

The packaging is gorgeous and chic, the powder feels soft and buttery to the the touch and it comes with a large mirror and brush for touch up's on the go. I have used the elf powder brush and real techniques buffing brush to apply this, but my favourite at the moment is the elf mineral powder brush. I love the feeling and finish of this powder, it never leaves me looking over powdered or cakey, it does have a strong scent, but I don't notice this once it's been applied to my skin. I got the shade No50, but think in the winter I would need No40, however the powders are incredibly sheer so I could probably get away with either shade. The powders can also be used as a bronzer if you purchase a shade or two darker than your skintone. The shade range goes upto No70, but I'm not sure how many of these shades are available in the UK, the darkest shade the counter I purchased mine from seemed to be the No60.

Heavily swatchedSlightly blended out

It looks light initially, but blends out beautifully to give a demi-matte, sort of satin smooth finish to the skin. I believe these powders will be realeased in the USA in August, I can't wait for the cream blushes that are already avalable as part of the fall collection in America to launch here in August.

The powder with Laura Mercier's secret camouflage concealer

Do you have any chanel make-up, have you tried this new powder? Share your thoughts and any questions below.

Thanks for visiting the blog today.

Alex