Battling Breakouts | La Roche-Posay Effaclar Duo

Today's post is something a little different. I'll be focusing on a skincare product that sadly didn't work for me despite lots of positive reviews I encountered.
During my exams a couple of months ago my skin started to breakout pretty badly (more than likely due to stress, lack of sleep & a rather rushed, unhealthy diet). Once I had all of my exams over & done with, I decided to do something about my skin and so went to my local pharmacy. I intended on purchasing some benzoyl peroxide gel or cream but instead, I was recommended La Roche-Posay Effaclar Duo by the pharmacist. I never really tried 'La Roche-Posay' before, but I always considered it to be a 'high end' brand with a price tag to match. This tube cost £13.00, which to be honest gave me high hopes as I assumed it would have to be brilliant!

The consistency is really strange, it's like a really watery gel. I kind of feel like it's confused as to whether or not it's a liquid or a gel.  However, it does smell lovely and fresh - like lemon!

The bottle states that this can be applied morning & night and that it works as an excellent make-up base.
I used this morning and night for 6 days (probably not the best idea) & experienced a stinging sensation on the areas it was applied to, as well as this, it dried my skin up completely leaving it looking rough and flaky no matter how much moisturizer I applied, ughh. Taking all of this into account, I saw absolutely no improvements & so it was an absolute waste of time for me. Oh, and if you're wondering it took roughly 4-5 days for my skin to restore it's moisture again! This is just my experience with this product, obviously it will work differently for others but I feel that it's not as great as it is made out to be!

Have you tried this product? Or any other products by La Roche-Posay?

Bold In Gold

I've really been loving gold lately; gold necklaces, gold rings & now gold eyeshadow. I never really bother with eyeshadow, but when I do I like to keep it subtle & I find that this gold shade by Barry M does the job perfectly! As you can probably tell from my previous posts I am a huge fan of Barry M products - I just think they're great quality and super affordable (everything I want in a brand!). As far as I can remember I bought this shadow in Boots for in and around £4.50 (which I think is reasonable enough). It's in the shade 09 & think it's called 'Tan', but I'm not sure. What I do know however, is that it is reallyyy shimmery & is quite heavily pigmented - brilliant! 

I've had this for roughly 10 months and have used it sparingly (because a little goes a long way) & I haven't even created the slightest dent - great! I also love love love the packaging! It's super sturdy and doesn't feel like it's going to crack or break any time soon & so does a great job of protecting the eye shadow (great if your clumsy like me!). 

Have you tried this product?

Rimmel | Lasting Finish Kate Moss Lipstick

I haven't posted in a while (a little while too long) & so thought I'd do a little post on a product I've been loving at the minute - Rimmel's Lasting Finish Kate Moss Lipstick in 08. I've never been one for wearing lipsticks or tints, I've always been a Vaseline or Chapstick kinda gal and so I was curious to see what lip colours would suit my complexion (plus I kind of wanted to brighten up my makeup routine!). I rummaged through all of the Rimmel lipsticks before choosing this one & I mean they have a fantastic range of different shades and formulas for fantastic prices! 

Shade 08 can only be described as a blue-toned pink shade and personally I think it looks quite berry-ish on the lips. I bought this thinking it wasn't going to be very pigmented, but I was surprised by the quality of it and discovered that a little goes a long way - amazing! On me this colour looks very natural - it happens to be a tiny bit darker than my natural lip colour and so just emphasises my lips a little. The finish is quite shimmery & dewy, it reflects light making the lips appear fuller and  it just generally adds a pop of brightness to my everyday makeup look during the summer.

The packaging of the product is sleek and durable allowing it to withstand the many obstacles & objects that are kept in your handbag. My only issue with this product is the fact that the shades aren't given names - a cute name would be much more memorable than a number & would make it easier to find a shade if it was recommended to you! For £5.49 I think this lipstick is brilliant (a real bargain!) & I will definitely be repurchasing this shade and some of the others in the future - I would definitely recommend this product!

Have you tried this product before?

Summer Scent | Benefit 'Laugh with me LeeLee'

June has arrived and the sun has arrived along with it (which has sparked this little post). I thought I'd write about my favourite perfume for Spring/Summer. I received Benefit's perfume 'Laugh with me LeeLee' as a gift last year and I haven't stopped loving it! It has a lovely light, fresh smell making it perfect for those hot sunny days when stronger perfumes can be too overpowering.

I use this perfume regularly and don't carry the bottle around with me but it does happen to keep it's smell all day (so there is no need for constant topping up!- well, unless you like your perfume to linger!). I prefer to have a light perfume as sometimes I find that strong perfumes can become sickening throughout the day, this perfume is great for people similar to me as it does not change over time and the scent remains the same from the very first spritz (woo!)! Benefit products are always presented beautifully and the packaging of this perfume does not disappoint. It just looks so cute and looks really pretty just sitting in my room (and will continue to even when it's all gone!!).