Review: Sanctuary Spa 'Deep Cleanse Facial' Routine - Cleanser, Toner and Moisturiser

Hi! So today I'm going to share my thoughts on three skincare products in the 'Deep Cleanse Facial' range by Sanctuary Spa, aimed at oily skin. I actually tried this routine a while ago but I now only really use the cleanser for reasons I'll explain in this post!

As you can see, all three products come in simple blue packaging which is quite practical - the cleanser comes in a squeezy tube, the toner sprays out and the moisturiser has a pump. You can't really see how much you have left in any of the products but just going by their weight I know I've used up a fair amount of the 50ml moisturiser despite not liking it and I still have a lot left of the 150ml toner.

Firstly the Fresh Faced Purifying Wash promises to 'melt away even stubborn mascara while also leaving skin feeling conditioned, smooth and soft.'

I really like this cleanser, it foams up well and does the job of cleansing my oily skin nicely. It can sometimes leave my skin feeling a bit dry though and it hasn't really done anything when it comes to spots - although I can't really expect it to! It smells a bit strange but I neither like or dislike it.  I'd probably give this cleanser 7 out of 10.

I've actually repurchased this twice despite not really loving it if that makes sense - once simply because my first one ran out and I simply had no time to look at loads of reviews to find the right new cleanser, so I went with this one again because I know it works quite well for me. Then I recently repurchased it again in the travel size to take when I went to stay with my boyfriend. But after this one runs out I will probably try a new cleanser, so if anyone has any recommendations that would be great!

Secondly the Pore Refining Toner is just okay - it doesn't seem to do anything positive or negative. It can be quite refreshing to use but I honestly can't tell if it's doing anything whatsoever when I use it.

It promises to 'help to balance skin’s pH levels and minimises the appearance of open pores without stripping or drying skin.' but I haven't noticed any changes in the size of my pores.

I used it again today for the first time in ages and it did seem to make my moisturiser sink in a bit better but other than that it did nothing much! I don't know, maybe it is balancing my skin's pH level after using the cleanser and I just can't tell? I'd give this 4.5 out of 10.

Nail Polish of the Week, and Some New Purchases!

Hello! So firstly - sorry for my absence. I've been pretty busy, having a work experience placement and then visiting my boyfriend. To make up for it, this post is practically two posts in one!

I wanted to share with you all the nail polish I've had on for the past week while I was at my boyfriend's. I don't think I've expressed my love for nail polish yet, but basically I own way too many (though thankfully I've been able to restrain myself from buying more for a while now.)

I wanted to share what I think is probably my all time favourite nail polish - Oh Cabana Boy by Orly.

This is the first and only polish I've tried from Orly but I'm in love with it.

I first heard about this when Fleur de Force raved about it on her blog here back in January 2012, and I bought it shortly after. So I've had this polish for three years now and have used it maybe five or six times, so I doubt I'll ever use up this huge bottle!

In fact, has anyone ever used up a nail polish? I feel like it's pretty unlikely, unless you love it and it's not too big! At 18ml, mine is a bit too big really, hence I've linked to the 5ml one!

Unfortunately, the little lid symbol with the number in (if you don't know what I'm talking about, check the packaging of your beauty products, they should have a lid symbol telling you how long it's good for, so mascara for example is good for 6 months and then you should chuck it) tells me this product stays good for 36 months, or three years. When I applied it I didn't notice that it had gone gloopy at all, and I hope it stays good for as long as possible!

Anyway, I absolutely love this colour. It is a bit like MAC Show Orchid Lipstick in nail polish form, as both are bright blue-toned fuchsia pinks, but I think Show Orchid is darker. It's unashamedly bright, definitely quite a 'night out' polish, and probably not ideal for work or school unfortunately.

This polish is slightly sheer in the first coat so 2-3 coats are needed to make it opaque. It applies nicely as the brush is fairly large and good for applying quickly.

It began to chip around the tips of my nails after 3 days of wear, so I topped it up but it then chipped more on day 5 or 6, so it's not the longest lasting polish, but it wasn't too bad either.

Also, this is a bit random but I do like the 'award winning' gripper cap. It feels safer and nicer than ordinary nail polish caps.

Moving on to new purchases, and I spotted Superdrug's own brand 'Simply Pure' range, aimed at sensitive skin, which basically contains none of the usual culprits that are considered harsh or irritating for the skin.

My Everyday Makeup!

Hi again! So I thought I'd share my everyday makeup look, although technically I don't wear makeup every day - but you get what I mean ;) I usually like to change a few things round each time I wear makeup though (blush, lip colour) and I rarely wear eyeliner during the day.

I'm also trying out a couple of new products at the moment - I got a sample of the No7 Beautifully Matte Foundation at a counter as I don't own any matte foundations, which can be tricky when my skin is being particularly oily, so I thought I'd try this one out. At £13.50 though I think I'd probably like to wait for the next £5 off No7 vouchers to come out if I decide to buy it! 

I have only used it a few times but so far I quite like it, it mattifies and gives decent coverage without looking cakey. The lightest shade, Calico, is just about light enough for me. I've been trying it out without using a primer or a powder as I like to see how long it can last on its own - and so far it's been pretty good (No7 say that it stays on for up to 12 hours - I haven't worn it that long to say so far but it has lasted a good 8 hours or so.) I also like how it has an SPF of 15 and is hypo-allergenic. I might do a proper review of this sometime, especially as so far I'm definitely considering buying it :)

I think foundation with SPF is great for the daytime so before I started trying this one I was typically using Rimmel's Match Perfection Foundation which I have in the lightest shade again (Porcelain) - it is super pale so a good winter foundation.

I'm also trying out the Seventeen Perk and Paint Eyeliner Duo which I bought along with the Seventeen Falsifeye HD Mascara in a 'buy one get one half price' offer on Seventeen products. I also had a voucher to get 300 Advantage Card points for buying any 17 product (am I the only one who likes to build up their points using the points boosting vouchers they send in the post about every couple of months?)

17 Perk and Paint Eyeliner Duo Swatched

I haven't seen much talk about this on blogs but it seems good so far! Like I said I don't normally wear eyeliner during the day but I like that I have a black liner on the other end of the brightening pencil as it's handy for if I do decide to wear eyeliner. I'm definitely more intrigued by the 'eye brightener' side though as it seems like it could be a great dupe for Benefit's Eye Bright (which I don't own but have heard good things about) In the makeup picture below I just wore the brighening pencil on my waterlines - it's a great choice for if you tend to have reddish waterlines when you're tired!

Here I am makeup free:

I like to keep my everyday makeup quite natural, as you can see: 

Products used:

MUA Clear Mascara for my eyebrows

Seventeen Falsifye HD Mascara - sometimes I like to apply loads of this

Seventeen Perk and Paint Eyeliner Duo

NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer

Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer

Clinique Chubby Stick in Wopping Watermelon (sample size I got free with a magazine)

Sleek Rose Gold Blush

No7 Beautifully Matte Foundation

I also applied my foundation with the Real Techniques Buffing Brush and my blush was applied with the Real Techniques Blush Brush.

Just a random thought: recently it's occurred to me that I might be a bit of an unusual beauty blogger in terms of how I don't really use anything on my eyebrows. I tend to just pluck my brows to keep their shape every week or so and then occasionally use a clear mascara from MUA (which only cost me a pound from Superdrug) to brush through them if I think they look a bit unkempt but other than that I leave them au natural. In some photos I think my eyebrows look fine just as they are but in others I feel like they need filling in or tidying, in fact my friend Emily has filled them in for me a couple of times for nights out but I usually think they look a little strange (even though they are tidier and she does a good job!) probably because I'm not used to them looking like that! 

Anyway I'm thinking about buying an eyebrow product such as the Sleek Eyebrow Stylist, I'm not completely sure how to use brow products though and I don't want my brows to look weird. If you have any recommendations or tips on doing your brows then please let me know! (Or I could just google it of course, haha)

Thanks for reading!

Sabrina xx

Review: NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer

Hi! So as promised, here's my review of the NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer. I know this product has been reviewed a million times now on blogs, but I thought I'd express my thoughts on it anyway as I expected amazing things from it! Also, I'll compare it with the Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer which I raved about before on the blog here.

First things first, I know packaging doesn't really matter but the packaging of the NARS concealer is definitely nicer, being in a glass tube with a rubberised lid (this rubberised packaging NARS products have is stylish and all, but attracts dirt quickly!) while the Collection one is pretty simple. Both have a sponge applicator which I like.

The text on the Collection concealer always rubs off quite quickly but that doesn't bother me, the only slight issue I've had with its packaging is that sometimes if you put the applicator back in while it's still got a lot of product on, some product can come out and clog in-between the lid and the concealer colour part of the packaging, which means that it gets dirty and wastes a little bit of product, but it's not a huge issue.

Shade wise the Collection's lightest shade (Fair) is perfect for me and on swatching, I thought the NARS shade 'Vanilla' might be a little too dark, but it looks fine when applied on my face. In this swatch on my hand you can see that the NARS one definitely has a pink undertone while the Collection concealer is quite neutral:

Top: Collection. Below: NARS.

I've applied different concealers under each eye so I can compare them on coverage. I think it's pretty close! (I know I've applied quite a lot, but that's because my dark circles are pretty bad!)

In the first picture I'm not wearing any makeup but have cleansed and moisturised. I also had some redness going on in-between my eyebrows that I concealed - some of it is actually just a very faint v-shaped birthmark that I have. I also applied the Seventeen Falsifye HD Mascara which I repurchased recently!

When I'm in a rush and don't have time to apply a full face of makeup I always like to wear at least concealer and mascara, it makes me look so much more awake!

Overall, I love both as they both give me great coverage but I think the NARS one is ever so slightly better - it has a more radiant and therefore brightening finish and is less drying under the eyes that the Collection one. So I'll probably be using the Collection one for concealing spots and the NARS one for concealing my dark circles (adding radiance to spots doesn't sound like too much of a good idea!)

Although this concealer is great, I don't think there's necessarily any need to splash out £22 on it. I've heard about a few other concealers from the high street being really good - both by Maybelline (Fit Me and The Eraser concealers) so I'd be interested to know if any of you have tried one of those or have any other favourite concealer? 

If you have any other thoughts on this post, please feel free to comment :)

NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer is available here for £22 and Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer is available here for £4.19.

Thanks for reading!

 Sabrina xx