Pre-holiday prep to get Bikini Body Ready - Face

Now everyone is bikini body ready, you have a body and stick a bikini on it, so don't worry, this post is not about fad diets, waist trainers or weeks of starvation, just a few things I will be doing to make myself feel a little more confident when I want to strip down (to my bikini) on the beach. Being 30+ post child there's no doubt that that I'm feeling a little hesitant about donning a bikini on my pending summer holiday, yes I know I should be brimming with confidence and have a 'no care' attitude, but here is what I'll be doing to help that attitude along a little bit. I'll have a series of posts on pre, during and post holiday preparation/reparation, for my face, body and hair as I will be going to Greece next month to be Matron of Honour at my best friends wedding, we (husband & son) decided to extend our stay a little and make it our family summer holiday. 










This post will focus on what I'm doing to prepare for the holiday, with regards to my Face;

TheFoundationDirectory; an example of a nights skincare routine

Since my summer holiday has a slight twist to it (#matronofhonourduties) I want to ensure my skin is in tip top condition, so I will ensure I stick to my skin care routine, my combination skin quickly lets me know when I've been slacking. To start with I need to ensure thorough cleansing every night, to remove makeup, spf etc, I love a balm or an oil for this and my current one is the Mahogany Naturals Soothing Cleansing Oil. This organic cleansing oil has a combination of natural oils that break down dirt, sebum and makeup, I apply it to my dry face and remove with a hot wet face cloth. It contains oils like Grape Seed, Olive, Tea Tree and Jasmine Flower to name a few. I also love using facial oils at night, even on my combination skin, it's important to ensure my skin is hydrated and nourished, as I spend the day trying to combat oil and focus on mattifying products. I love the Mahogany Naturals hydrating repair oil, packed full of antioxidants and rejuvenators like Evening Primrose, vitamin E, Rosehip and Tea Tree to name a few, these plump, repair hydrate and soften the skin.

TheFoundationDirectory; DHC Superhero Eye Rescue

Exfoliation is also a big part of my skincare routine, I prefer to acid exfoliate in the evenings, my new current love is the soon to be replaced Clinique clarifying lotion in Mild. It will now be replaced with Clarifying lotion 1.0, which will still be alcohol free, so that's good to know. I enjoy using face masks, and try to do them weekly, my all time favourites are the Avene Cleanance Mask and the Omorovicza Deep Cleansing Mask, but most face masks cannot be used around the eye area so I will be incorporating the new DHC Superhero Eye Rescue Masks, which encircles the entire eye area so work above and below the eye area. This is great news for me as my eyelid area is actually more of a problem for me than my under eye area, which is where most eye products usually just focus on.

At home face masks are all well and good, but cannot compare to getting a professional facial, I will endeavour to get one prior to going away, my favourite is the Environ Facial, which I reviewed here last year, done at the excellent Beauty and Melody Salon. I really did notice a huge improvement in my skin following this, and my skincare just performed so much more effectively. Or my more recent experience of the heaven skincare facial, I had done by the fabulous founder Deborah Mitchell, read all about it here.


I also have an appointment to get the Heaven skincare London Lash and Brow Treatment done tomorrow, (I will link back to the post once it's up) so there'll be no need for me to worry about filling in brows or wearing mascara, which will be great when I go for a dip in the pool or sea.




TheFoundationDirectory.blogspot.co.uk

I won't be waiting until I get to Greece to slap on that SPF either, pigmentation is one of my biggest skin care woes, there's no point doing all of the above if I am not protecting my face from the sun's harmful UV rays. My old time favourite is here, but a new found love is the Dermalogica Solar Defence Booster SPF50, which can be used alone for the full SPF50 or added to your moisturiser or foundation for an added touch of SPF. How genius is that!!!
 



Let me know what your pre-holiday prep consists of? Do you have any tips for me?








Thanks for visiting the blog today.

Dermalogica's HydraBlur Primer

When this cute little package landed on my doorstep in December I was surprised and fell in love instantly, I mean look at that gorgeous personalised makeup bag, and everyone knows I love a good selfie. So I couldn't wait to open and see what would aid my pursuit of the perfect selfie lol!!! Obviously the contents of the selfie prep pack are more important than the packaging, and I'm pleased to report it didn't let me down.




TheFoundationDirectory; Dermalogica's HydraBlur Primer

So what is this HydraBlur Primer? HydraBlur is a skincare primer hybrid, Dermalogica wanted to create a primer that would not only benefit makeup application, but also skin health, and who better to do that really?! So what did they come up with? A lightweight, mattifying, blurring primer, that leaves skin with a silky smooth finish. The good thing is that mattifying doesn't mean drying, HydraBlur offers intense moisturisation, natural coverage, blurs fine lines and wrinkles and refines pores for all skin conditions especially dry and dehydrated. It contains H2ORelease Complex of Hyaluronic acid, Algin and Trehalose to optimise hydration levels throughout the day. Abyssinian Seed Oil also helps maintain moisture levels, but also smooth's skin texture and tone. Wu-Zhu-Yu fruit extract enhances skin's radiance by boosting microcirculation, micro-encapsulated tint releases upon application to provide natural coverage and mattifiers reduce shine, disguise fine lines and create a soft-focused blurred effect.


Now two things in makeup raise my eyebrow instantly (think quizzical look), that's things that claim to blur and one shade does it all tinted products. But this actually does gives a minimal blurring effect to the skin and does not leave my brown skin ashy or grey looking, in addition it instantly mattifies, but my combination skin is not left dry or dehydrated in the current cold climate.


I honestly have to say I didn't think I would like this primer this much (see raised eyebrow comment above), but I have fallen for it, what more can you want; hydration, blurring, mattification (not sure that's a word), increased makeup longevity.... Oh, I'm sure you're waiting for the catch, well here it is....it cost £38! But if you want that hybrid between makeup prep and skincare then I would definitely check this out, it's just launched and is available here, and comes in a nice squeezy tube so you can get every last bit of your product out.


Thanks for visiting the blog today


Alex

 

Sodastream and Dermalogica; To hydrate the nation from the inside out (SparklingSkin Kit)!!!

Last month I attended a beauty blogger event between collaborating brands Sodastream and Dermalogica, on the face of it you might think, what do these two brands have in common? Hydration, which makes perfect sense. It probably won't surprise you that the average Brit drinks less than the recommended daily amount of water, and for every cup of coffee you drink you should be drinking two cups of water to undo the dehydrating damage caffeine can have.



Dermalogica and Sodastream; SparklingSkin Kit #hydrationstation

Dermalogica Power Bright TRx Range

2 weeks ago I attended a blogger event for the launch of the new Dermalogica Power Bright TRx range, my interest is immediately piqued when I hear anything that is designed to target hyperpigmentation, but I am usually also skeptical. Dermalogica have created a trio of brightening products designed to target pigmentation and dark spots caused by age, hormones, stress and UV damage.

Dermalogica Power Bright TRx

This intensive range provides a well rounded approach to achieving healthy luminous skin by combining active ingredients; this includes Oligopeptides that reduce melanin formation, while algae extracts, phytic acid and niacinimide to name a few prevent pigment transfer. Of course it contains Hyaluronic acid (need I say more), what doesn't these days, this ingredient isn't going anywhere. Alongside this is Raspberry Seed Oil, Cranberry Seed Oil and Tocopherol enhance barrier protection to smooth skin for a radiant finish. Built-in exfoliation removes existing pigmentation and brightens with Pumpkin Fruit and Moth Bean Seed Extract to promote skin renewal.

Dermalogica Power Bright TRx; C-12 Serum, Pure Light SPF50 & Pure Night

The range consists of 3 products, this includes C-12 Pure Bright Serum, that addresses pigmentation imbalance with the aforementioned peptides, to fight melanin formation. You apply this twice daily, it's a light weight serum that absorbs quickly, you wait a minute and follow with one of the next steps below.

Pure Light SPF50 daytime treatment moisturiser has Oleosome technology that provides elevated daily UV protection for all skin conditions, allowing improved moisturisation and hydration benefits. This SPF moisturiser is great, lightweight, but still moisturising, with no white cast.

In the evening I use Pure Night, this is a rich overnight cream, that isn't greasy. This restores skin luminosity, with the addition of vitamin C, as well as reducing fine dehydration lines.

I have really enjoyed using these products, I think this is boosted by the fact that I had a Environ Facial prior to using these products, which have allowed them to penetrate deep into the skin. My skin is definitely more glowy, radiant and even. I have continued using an oil serum after the C-12 serum at night, to aid with further hydration and partially out of habit. I'm sure you're thinking what's the catch, well that would be the price, although not as pricey as some other pigment fighting products on the market. If you are going to buy one item from this range, I would suggest the serum, which can be used as a targeted treatment on pigmented areasonly so it lasts longer.

You can find the Power Bright Range here, the serum is £79.80, Pure Light is £55 and Pure Night is £66.50 all are 50ml. You can also get the Treatment Kit at £33.70 to try all 3 before investing further.

Have you tried or will you be trying anything from this range?

Thanks for visiting the blog today

Alex