Things that I am loving - Clarins Pure Melt Cleansing Gel

Continuing with my catch up!  I have been using a Lancome cleanser, Baume Eclat, reviewed here, since May.  I bought it because I wanted an oil based cleanser and it was accessible and affordable.  I loved the pretty opalescent gel/cream and the transitioning from gel to oil and to milk with the addition of water.  It was fragranced and I liked that too, the only thing I disliked was that if it made contact with my eyes I thought they were going to fall out, it stings mercilessly and for ages.

I have always loved Clarins skin care and when I was using up the last of the Lancome Baume Eclat I thought I might go back to using the Clarins cleansing balm I had enjoyed in the past, although I was loathe to switch back to a non oily cleanser.  As always prior to my shopping trip I trawled the internet and was really pleased to find that Clarins have their own gel/oil/milk cleanser.

I am loving this stuff.  It has no real fragrance, great if that's an issue for you, and feels really comforting to use.  I have, as an experiment, used this to remove my eye make up remover and whilst I wouldn't recommend it  it didn't cause me any problems so I think I'll stick to using my Simple eye make up remover pre-cleanse but then wont by shy of swishing some of this round my eyes when I am cleansing my face.  Because the Baume Eclat stang so badly when it got into my eyes I tended not to bother with the adding water to turn it to a milk stage and went straight from oil to applying a hot, wet flannel and wiping it off .  With this I can happily apply a splash of warm water to take it to the milk stage without fear and I do think it helps to really lift the make up away before going in with the flannel.  My skin feels clean, soft and supple with no tightness at all after using this.

I bought mine in Boots for £19 and I'd recommend it happily.
 

Champneys Super Rich Cleansing Balm

One of my treats when I used to shop in Sainsbury's, before the recession, was to pick up a Champneys shower gel or hand cream to sneak in along with the family shop!  Once I started shopping in Asda I missed my Champneys treats and so was delighted to spot the range now being stocked in Boots.

Regular readers will know that I have mature dry skin that tends to be sensitive.  I have been using Avene cleanser for quite a while but was really fancying something that utilised a muslin cloth - I actually want the Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish but as am on a spending ban an online purchase is out of the question so I have to wait to splash my secret stash next time I am in Leeds or Manchester!  I decided to have a look in Boots to see what I could find and whilst I was tempted by the No 7 hot cloth cleanser I wanted to wait to try the Liz Earle version first.  I have used the Botanics balm cleanser and really liked it so the idea of a Champneys cleansing balm really appealed, especially one that was billed as "super rich".

They say:

This super rich cleansing balm with avocado, jojoba and natural floral oils lift away every trace of make-up and impurities to renew your skin deeply cleansing, toning and exfoliating in one indulgent treatment.

How to Use

Champneys therapists recommend...

...using weekly as part of your evening routine.

Warm the balm in your hands until it feels smooth, inhale the therapeutic aromas and massage in your face and neck using small circular movements.

Soak the muslin cloth in warm water, squeeze out any excess and hold over your face and neck for a few seconds before lightly polishing off.

Rinse with cold water.

I loved the idea of "theraputic aromas" I'm Taurean, we like our stuff to smell good!  And I also liked the inclusion of oils, my dry skin mops them up.

The balm comes in a nice heavy weight plastic jar (so its not so heavy you cant take it on holiday!) and has a muslin cloth packaged with it.  It has a very oily, slightly gritty feel to it.  I suspect that it might only be useful for oily skins working on that oil attracts oil basis and then only used infrequently - if you have dry skin you should try this.  I know they say use once a week, I have been using this every evening and most mornings for the last 3 weeks and have seen no ill effect, in fact my skin is looking pretty fab, apart from the appalling damage I did when I got sun burnt on holiday, more of that later.

I use a small amount of the balm and every other evening massage is straight onto my dry skin, the gritty texture lasts until you add warm water and the oil starts to emulsfy so every other night used dry to exfoliate and then the other nights melted with some hot water for a smoother clean.  I give my face a good old massage with this and then clean it off with the muslin, dunked in warm water and wrung out.  If I have lagged myself in slap I might do a second cleanse.  I particularly like that you can rub this right into your lash line to remove mascara and eyel liner without trashing your eyes and then use the cloth to really make sure all the eye make up is gone.

After using this I am now spritzing with Avene Eau Thermal Water spray (£6.50 from Boots or online here) and then whilst my face is still damp with the spray massaging in a couple of drops of facial oil.  I have used all of my Sanctuary Therapists Secret Facial oil (£17.50 from Boots, online here) and really really need to buy another asap.  Putting the oil on top of the water seems to help trap the moisture into my skin and also helps my skin to absorb the oil. 

The balm is £13 in Boots and you can buy it online here.

Botanics -

Having been blown away by the fabulty of the Botanics Cleansing Balm and cleansing brush I decided to give some of the other skin care products in the range a whirl.  Most of my skin care concentrates on moisturisation, hydration and dealing with the needs of my sensitive, redness prone general freak out of a face, the aging issue is overlooked.  And that worries me. Gawd knows the aging is an issue!

Deluded or what? "First signs of aging" having your bus pass is not a first sign of aging love ok - women in their mid 40's are slightly beyond that stage, but it was all they had in the anti wrinkle serum front on the display so it had to do.  I do like this, although I think its better suited to an oily skin perhaps, it is very mattifying and leaves your skin with a sort of velvety but not moist feel, making sense?  Whilst I dont actually believe that anything in a tube can erase existing lines I am ever hopeful that it can help delay the appearance of new ones!

I also don't really have a night time regime, apart from the usual cleanse and apply Organic Surge night cream so I thought perhaps adding something to help with radiance would be a good idea - ok AND it was 3 for 2 so I needed something else in my basket!  I like how this applies, it feels very comfortable, it has the effect of sort of sloughing off the dead skin cells on the surface of your skin, I apply it and then the night cream and I get that "peely" balled up stuff appearing as I rub in the night cream, presumably thats my inner radiance being revealed!

This however is the star of the show, I am loving it.  It is a really nice cooling gel that I am using morning and night and I have to say I think the skin around my eye is looking much fresher and plumper - I get very dry, papery skin round my eyes and this combined with the Avene Rich Eye cream has really helped.  I had wanted the eye and lip serum, they are still on my wish list, but as they weren't around I thought I'd give this a whirl and I am really glad I did.

 This is the anti wrinkle serum, top, the radiance serum, middle and eye gel, bottom.
The Botanics Ultimate Lift Eye Gel for mature skin is £6.12.  The First Signs of Aging Intensive wrinkle reduction serum isn't on the Boots website but was £9, or there abouts and the Radiance Night Renewal Serum is £9.18.  I have used all 3 of these for over a week now and none of them have caused any problems with my rosacea or skin sensitivity so I think they would probably be ok for people with similar skin to mine.

Have you used anything from the Botanics range that you think is overlooked and that more people should try, or anything that similarly isn't getting the love you think it should from any other range?  If so, share! 

Botanics Facial Cleansing brush

Was intrigued by this when it appeared in Makeup Savvys Best of Jan post and decided to give it a whirl. At just over£6 it wasn't going to be breaking the bank if my skin wasn't loving it.

I have been using it for a month now with my Avene cleanser and my skin has never looked better.  I get the brush wet in warm water, apply a squirt of the Avene and swoosh it around, its a really really soft brush, so much so that any pressure compresses the bristles so its much better to apply no pressure and just swoosh a bit more often.  It feels lovely, like a million tiny fingers massaging your skin and it cleans and lifts away make up and grime and leaves my skin feeling really soft and totally unstressed.  Which is great, as my skin is really re-active.  Have had no issues with this at all and am thrilled by how much better my skin is looking. Redness is at an all time low, although think thats more to do with retiring the Elemis pro-collagen products and using only Avene than the brush, but I do have large pores in my chin that get very congested and they are visibly shrinking and my nose, which was often bumpy, red and prone to spots is really smooth and blemish free.  Overall my skin tone is really improved and I think cleansing with the brush which is mildly exfoliant is also helping my moisturisers (Avene rich compensating cream, Avene Rich anti redness cream and Avene Rich skin recovery cream) to work their magic. The only downside is a slightly funky smell, only apparent when swooshing it round my nose but it was a tad off putting at first, although I do have a very sensitive sense of smell so it might just be me, not enough to put me off using my brush though.

If you dont have redness issues and are looking for a lovely balm cleanser Welsh Beauty Blog has posted about the Botanics cleansing balm today, which sounds lush.  As Botanics are currently doing 3 for 2 on Botanics you could get the brush and the balm and pick up something else for free - result!