Beauty Update and Make-up Bag Rummage

 & #WowOnWednesday 

Dear friends.  Today I'm sharing the beauty products that I'm finding really good. And who doesn't like to peak into someone else's make-up bag?

Lately I find I'm only wearing 2 products on an average day: concealer and blusher. This hides the dark circles and pigmentation,  and gives me a healthy flush.

If I'm meeting friends or going somewhere,  I'll use foundation in the problem areas and add eyeliner, mascara and lipstick.

I save eyeshadow nowadays for girls' nights.  As you can see in the pic at the top, I wore eyeshadow on Saturday to meet some Kettlewell colour friends. I used a sparkly green and a purple, with a purple eye pencil (Eye of Horus) and black mascara. I like to break rules. Sparkly anything is supposed to be a no-go once you're over 50, but I like it. 

My Make-up Bag

When I was buying Christmas presents I noticed at John Lewis that you could get a Best of Clinique Beauty Gift Set with full-size Clinique products for just £75, worth £210.  

It was a good bargain because just two of the products, Even Better radical dark spots corrector, and  Moisture Surge moisturiser, cost more than that. The bag also contained an eye cream, mascara, serum, 7 Day Scrub Cream and a lipstick.  It's still available - £75 - if you hurry. The bag itself is stylish and roomy.

My skincare regime is currently:  dark spot corrector (above) followed by Dr Sister Younger You skin cream, Clinique All About Eyes and then Look Fabulous Forever Daily SPF 50+ Serum (gifted). Unlike most SPFs it gives a nice healthy sheen. There's no whiteness, as you get with mineral products. And more importantly, the four products work well together well with no pilling. This is when products start to crumble and flake off, caused by ingredients commonly found in primers and face creams. 

In the pic I'm wearing just skincare, no make-up. 

It's important to wear SPF in the winter months as well. The sun can be quite intense in the UK even in January.  

I had stopped using dedicated eye and neck creams, but noticed my eye circles were looking worse.  The Clinique eye cream gives an improvement and is highly moisturizing, helping to puff out wrinkles. 

In the evening I use on alternate nights the Dr Sister cream or the retinol product I mentioned a few weeks ago, Retinol Advanced Firming Hydrating, Anti-aging Cream, £18.89 from Amazon for 454g.  I use it on my hands and arms too, and it radically improved the skin on my hands.  

I'm also taking Dr Sister's Inner Beauty tablets, one before bed.  He is a well known aesthetic practitioner who has introduced over 10 ground-breaking treatments to the UK market, along with eight published books and many articles in international peer reviews medical journals and general press. 

Dr Sister has a theory that our skin starts ageing because of "zombie cells" which are not cleared away properly. Quercetin is his saviour ingredient, but to consume enough you would have to eat dozens of apples. A capsule once a day does the trick. 

I've been on the regime for two months.  It takes 90 days for skin to go through a complete cycle, so I will give a longer review in a month's time. I found his video entirely by accident and sat glued to it, even though it's 20 minutes long.  I'm buying the products myself, nothing gifted.

Make-up Products I'm Loving 

I'm very impressed with Clinique High Impact mascara, even though it's in black which is not my preferred shade.  It doesn't clump or give "panda eyes" after a few hours.  It defines the lashes and makes them look longer.

I've always been a huge fan of Code Beautiful's Lid Lift Enhance, which is a light coloured primer for eye lids. It takes the dark hue away from my skin and makes a great base for make-up.  I was thrilled when they recently gifted me a new one.

I've also been trying their Hydrate Tint Glow, for lips and cheeks, in Pink Quartz (gifted). 

These two products on their own are all I need for a very light make-up that makes me look fresh but not weighed down by products. Code Beautiful's products are vegan and cruelty-free.

Here's the finished look with just the two products from Code Beautiful. 

Hair Favourites

I recently discovered the US brand Virtue recently at Cult Beauty.  I love the Recovery Shampoo and Recovery Conditioner. The brand uses Alpha Keratin 60ku, a transformative protein that binds to the hair one strand at a time. 

It attaches to areas of damage and fills them without weighing strands down.  I will admit it's not cheap, but the difference it makes to my hair is extraordinary.  As it is coloured every 7 weeks, it can get dry and a bit like candy floss.  These products make it full of volume and easy to style.  I don't use it every time, which makes it go a bit further. 

How to Make Lipstick Last Longer 

One of the biggest problems with lipstick when we're over a certain age is that it creeps into the tiny lines around the mouth.  I've more or less stopped wearing reds because I find them too high maintenance. My tips for extending the wear of a lipstick:

• Use a primer. I have used Guerlain's Kiss Kiss Lip Lift for years. I apply it all over the mouth before then using lipstick
• The lipsticks which are sold as long lasting and extended wear are very drying, and give a weird stain when they wear off, in my humble opinion
• I try instead to wear very moisturizing lipsticks, which feel comfortable.  I discovered the organic brand Delilah recently and adore a  shade called Tango (below). I also love Lisa Eldridge's lipsticks. At a cheaper price point, Max Factor and Maybelline both do the job. Max Factor Bewitching Coral is my best colour
• Once I've applied lipstick, I blot it with a tissue and then apply it again, followed by a nude lipstick pencil around the outline of my mouth. 
• I also like Delilah's Lip Saviour, a colour enhancing lip oil. It adapts to our pH and gives the lips a delicate stain, plus feels wonderful on the lips.

Two I Didn't Like

I've been wanting to try Jones Road, the new brand from Bobbi Brown, for a while.They have a very active group on Facebook and the ladies all seem to look radiant.

I did the online quiz and chose the Miracle Balm in Miami Beach. This can be used as a blusher. It's full of great moisturizing ingredients.   Using it is a bit different. You break the surface of the balm with your finger, warm it between your hands and then tap it on. 

I'm afraid it disappeared very quickly on me. I was expecting a peachy colour but it was more terracotta. Initially it made my skin look very greasy. 

I wasn't impressed either with OPI Nail Repair. I always use OPI's products and expected this would be very good, but it seemed to make my nails drier and more prone to splitting.  How I improved my nails might be of interest  (they still need a lot of care and attention). 

That's my beauty update, hope you found one or two products interesting.  I don't use affiliate links or ads so the links I've given you take you to the relevant site without being monetized.  

Have you used any of these products, or do you have some recommendations of your own? Do share in the comments. Scroll down to the comments box, below the link-up. 

These are the fantastic sites I share my posts with. 

Wow on Wednesday Link-up

Now it's time for #WowOnWednesday, the weekly link-up where bloggers, YouTubers and IG'ers showcase their posts from around the world.

A big thanks to the bloggers who link up each week, and to you for reading their posts and leaving comments.  Blogging can be lonely and challenging, so your views and comments make it all worthwhile. 

Last Week's Favourites 

Don’t let Menopause and Body Image Issues affect how You see Yourself- Embrace your Ageing Body by Sue at Women Living Well After 50

What's Hot this Week from Kellyann at This Blonde's Shopping Bag

The best things I bought in 2023 by Cheryl at Cheryl Shops

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