An Accidental Perfumier

I can't think of anything in my beauty collection that is more important to me than my perfume. Fragrance comes to define us, with long-lost and much loved relatives materialising in an instant when we catch the passing scent of their favourite perfume. The scent of lavender and white flowers reminds me instantly of my grandmother, Rive Gauche of my glamorous Mum in the 80s, Boss of my Dad, Giorgio Armani of my boyfriend, Bulgari Black of my friend Becca and Jean Paul Gaultier for men on practically every man I've ever had a crush on! I come from a long line of signature scent-wearers, and there's definitely one that I consider mine. My collection consists of four fragrances, the most beloved of which is almost empty and can't be replaced. That perfume is Marc Jacobs Blush, and I was devastated to learn earlier this year that it had been discontinued.

I always got the impression that Blush wasn't especially popular, but for me, it was my perfect fragrance. Jasmine, bergamot, freesia, orange blossom, honeysuckle and sandalwood combined to produce a scent reminiscent of a balmy night in a beautiful white flower garden. My boyfriend calls it simply 'your smell' and my friend Nadia said the start of spring to her was marked when I switched from the heavy, sensual Chanel Allure back to Blush. Living on the rations of my final bottle really isn't fun, and I've spent a summer in Diptyque's Vetyverio, and as much as I love it, it doesn't feel quite 'me'.

But last night, I made a discovery that was as suprising as it was exciting. As I'm staying at my parents' house at the moment, I don't have all of my usual products with me, so when it came to adding a moisturiser on top of my Sanctuary body oil, I reached for an unopened jar of The Sanctuary Bidadari Shimmering Body Souffle. The cream itself is thick and golden, and imparts a subtle lustre to skin, and like all their creams, it's left my skin silky smooth. What I wasn't expecting was the fragrance that enveloped my body: it was Blush! The souffle contains jasmine and ylang ylang, while the oil contains bergamot, sandalwood, more jasmine and citrus oils. I spent 10 minutes sniffing my arm to make sure I hadn't imagined it and then went to see my Mum. "What can you smell?" I asked, offering my arm. "Blush", she replied. Granted it doesn't last as long as the perfume does, but for those of us with an empty space in our hearts for a fragrance long since departed, this will go some way to filling the gap.

Winter Beauty Part One: Moisture

Following on from last week's post on winter beauty essentials, it's no surprise to discover that we all reach for the same products when the cold sets in: moisturisers. Cold weather combined with an increased use of central heating conspire to dry our skin, leaving many of us with parched, dull and greying complexions. Not the route to a glamorous winter!

So what happens to our skin when the cold of winter sets in? A lack of moisture in the environment means that skin is more susceptible to the drying effects of cold weather, central heating and air conditioning, so the key to happy winter skin is to ensure that it is well moisturised. However, slathering on any old cream is not always enough to seal in that precious moisture.

Moisturisers fall into two categories: humectants and occlusives. Humectants draw moisture from the lower to the upper layers of skin - moisture derived from the water we drink. Occlusives act as a barrier to lock existing moisture into the skin, and form a layer of defence against further dehydration of the skin. Occlusive ingredients include oils and petrolatum - products that form a physical barrier on the skin - and humectants are found in more standard moisturisers.

First and foremost, it's as important as ever to make sure you drink 2 litres of water a day to ensure that your body is hydrated and your skin is healthy, so that your skin has a water supply to draw on. Secondly, most people will benefit from using a heavier moisturiser for day than normal, and dependant on your skin type, a combination of humectant and occlusive moisturisers will help. As I am prone to dryer skin on my body, my top tip is to use a body oil like The Sanctuary Spa Essential Massage and Body Oil first and then top with a standard moisturiser like Vaseline Intensive Rescue. This combination forms a barrier to lock in the moisture so that the skin is able to absorb everything it needs. It works AMAZINGLY!

This routine also works well for lips, and I use Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Cream topped with a coating of Vaseline on particularly cold, windy days. The Eight Hour Cream moisturises and the Vaseline locks it in: perfect!

Finally, for my face, I tend to use a slightly heavier cream than normal on my cheeks, but stick to the same products on my oilier t-zone. This year, I'll be switching up to Liz Earle's Skin Repair moisturiser combined with my beloved No. 7 Protect and Perfect serum.

Hopefully this will help you choose your winter moisture products. Do you have any moisturising tips?

Finally, if you haven't done so already, enter my Barry M giveaway here!

Image courtesy of nordiclandscapes.com

My Skincare Routine

I love great make up, but my real passion is skincare. I love that a great foundation can make my skin look flawless and glowing, but what I really want is the flawless and glowing skin without the product! Make up is there to enhance what we have, but when I've missed out on a few essential hours of sleep, I start to think of make up as the only thing that I have! Despite being a self-confessed make up junkie, I secretly dream of the day I can get away with a slick of lipgloss and mascara without feeling like I'll scare any passing children!

A quest for perfect skin requires a considerable beauty arsenal and here is mine: twice a day, every day! The numbers is brackets below indicate the products I use in the morning and the order in which the products are used:

From left to right:

Dermalogica Overnight Clearing Gel
The Sanctuary Rich Rejuvenating Day Cream SPF 15 (6)
Liz Earle Cleanse & Polish Cleanser (1)
Liz Earle Smoothing Line Serum (4 - used around the eyes)
Liz Earle Daily Eye Repair (5)
Boots Traditional Skin Care Glycerin and Rosewater Toner (2)
The Sanctuary Pro-Collagen Night Concentrate
Boots No 7 Protect & Perfect Intense serum (3)

Although I'm not quite there on the perfect skin front, I think this range of products is pretty close to a perfect routine for me. I'd been using the above routine without the toner for four weeks, and since reading Caroline's toner advice on Beauty Mouth last week, I have incorporated that with great results over the past seven days. If you're cleansing and not toning, I can't tell you how quickly you need to change that! Toner seems to be one of the most misunderstood products on the beauty market, and although I've always had a bottle of it lurking in the depths of my bathroom cabinet, I think I've always used it with an ineffective cleanser. Since using Cleanse & Polish, my skin has become clearer and brighter, but also more prone to a few scary looking spots. Since reintroducing the toner, these breakouts are disappearing, and I feel like my skin is finally more balanced. As with most things in life, balance is the key: if your cleanser is too harsh, your skin will compensate by producing more oil and subsequently, more spots, something which is prevented when a toner is used as it brings things back to normal.

The Sanctuary day and night creams are products that I've used on and off for years, and always seem to go back to. I like to alternate the products I use so that my skin doesn't get used to anything, but I have never found any creams that I consistently alternate The Sanctuary ones with. Following very impressive results with the Liz Earle range, I will be trying their toner and moisturisers when my current batch run out, but The Sanctuary's crown currently stands untested.
Protect & Perfect and Dermalogica Overnight Clearing Gel are my other hero products. The Clearing Gel works mini-miracles and magically manages to prevent breakouts (although I've stayed away from it for the past few weeks so I can get a real sense of whether C&P is working for my skin). If I'm tired, stressed, or approaching that time of the month, I slather this on and am always amazed at how clear it keeps my skin. Protect & Perfect is something I've already talked about at length, but if you don't own it already, it's my top recommendation. Boots have a £5 off No. 7 voucher at the moment so there really is no excuse!

The two Liz Earle products I'm using are sample sizes from the Eye Try-Me kit I received in July, and I will definitely buy the Daily Eye Repair when this one runs out. The serum is meant for older skin and I'm not sure how much of an effect it's had on my under eye skin, but I guess we'll see the difference if I decide not to invest in that one as well!

So, that's my routine: what about yours? I'd love to know what your daily routine is and whether there are any skincare products you can't live without.