Sunday 30 December 2012

Cetaphil Moisturising Lotion Review

I have genuinely the most awkward skin type. I am acne prone and sensitive skin, which means that many moisturisers with oil really break me out. To combat this in the past, I have tried oil free moisturizers, but I also have extremely dry patches in the wintertime and when I am on acne medication, so the oil free moisturisers weren't cutting it.

                                       
                                           

I first tried Cetaphil moisturiser about a year ago, when my dermatologist recommended it to me, and since then it has been my most used moisturiser. It's fragrance free and non comedogenic and so is suitable for sensitive skin. It definitely doesn't break me out and while this may sound ridiculous, it actually improves my skin when I break out. If I have a huge pimple on my face one day, I apply Cetaphil at night time and usually it has completely gone down in the morning. There's no acne medication in it and I'm not claiming its a cure to acne or anything, but often when you're using acne products the oils in your skin are so stripped away by chemicals that your skin starts producing extra oil to repair itself. If you use a moisturiser regularly, this should aid the process.

The only issue I have with Cetaphil is that when my skin gets to be really really dry, like during winter time while using an acne product, it doesn't quite fix the problem although it does aid it. So for those of you with extreme year long dryness, I would maybe suggest trying a different product first.

It's also cheap enough, compared to moisturisers I have tried before like Clinique, so even if you don't like the product having bought it, you're really not at too much of a loss.

Hope this helps some of you :)

XOXO,

B.

Friday 28 December 2012

Marc Jacobs Fragrance Fest



My love affair with Marc Jacobs fragrances started in the Duty Free in Dublin airport. As I was awaiting my delayed flight to the USA, I was browsing the aisles when I came across the most beautifully designed bottle of perfume I have ever seen, Marc Jacobs, Lola. It is a purple bottle with a giant multicoloured flower for the lid that looks phenomenal. I am a sucker for aesthetic appeal and so, immediately spritzed it all over my wrists. The smell was also divine. It is described, as below, on the Sephora website:

  This warm floral bouquet conveys the free spirit of today's sexy, modern girl - she is playful, cool, and flirtatious. The long-lasting, day-and-night scent opens with pink peppercorn, pear, and ruby red grapefruit. Blooming midnotes of rose, fuschia peony, and geranium make a feminine statement. Layers of vanilla, warm tonka bean, and creamy musk create a sensuous dry down.


I think this is a very accurate description. I can definitely smell the grapefruit and pear with a touch of spice from the peppercorn and musk with a warm undertone of vanilla. I can't however smell the peony or rose middle notes but maybe that's just because my sense of smell is not experienced enough. I think the scent is very sexy, yet still young as can be worn as a daytime or evening perfume, and can be a scent for all year round. This is my most worn scent ever and have even gone through a full bottle, which I have never done before. This will be my signature scent for years to come, I believe.






 The next Marc Jacobs scent I tried was Daisy Eau So Fresh. I wasn't a big fan of the original Daisy scent, as I found it a little bit sickly, but I found the Eau So Fresh version to be a lot lighter and fresher. Once again the bottle is beautiful. It is a replica for the original Daisy scent, only with some pink flowers included on the top as opposed to just white, and with a pink colored fragrance instead of yellow




 The Marc Jacobs website describes the fragrance as:

a bright, floral, fruity fragrance. It radiates a sunny and sparkling energy. A whimsical, yet elegant 
fragrance with playful notes of crisp raspberry, sensuous wild rose and deep and warm plum

The website says it has top notes of raspberry, grapefruit and pear, middle notes of wild rose, violet and apple blossom and base notes of plum, cedarwood and musk.

I agree that the scent is whimsical yet elegant. The first note I can smell is grapefruit and then I can smell rose and a touch of plum, with an undertone of musk. I can't, however, smell any of the other scents. I find the fragrance to be very light and summery, a perfect daytime scent for a sunny day.


The final Marc Jacobs scent I own is his newest fragrance, Dot. The bottle is immediately reminiscent of a ladybird and is one of the most elaborate fragrance designs I have seen.









 It is described as including top notes of red berries, dragon fruit and honeysuckle, middle notes of jasmine, coconut water and orange blossom, and base notes of vanilla, driftwood and musk.

The first word that comes to mind when I smell this scent is tropical. This is the first scent in which I can smell all of the notes described in it. However, the fragrance is mainly a scent of berries and dragon fruit with just a touch of all the other notes. While I can still smell the base notes, they are not very strong. This is a very light scent that I think would be the perfect daytime scent all year round. 

Overall, Marc Jacobs fragrances are definitely my cup of tea. I would be interested in trying the other fragrances such as Marc Jacobs Woman to see if the brand is as good at more mature scents as they are with younger ones.

Thursday 27 December 2012

Diaries of a Fair Lady- Makeup Forever Face and Body #38 Review (Holy Grail Product)

Being Irish and having not an ounce of tropical heritage makes me extremely pale. So pale that most drug store brands (and high end brands, generally) do not cater for my skin tone. And so began my struggle to find a foundation that did not make me look like an oompa loompa. I thought I may share my attempts to find a foundation that matches me in a series which I have called Diaries of Fair Lady. Hopefully it might give some insight for any of you who share my pasty complexion. Where will I begin? A famous nun once said the best place to start is at the very beginning, and so that is what I will do.

Makeup Forever Face and Body was the first foundation I ever tried out. I was 14 years old, and having relatively clear skin, I ventured into Makeup Forever on Clarendon Street in Dublin to spend a voucher I was given. The makeup artist there recommended face and body in #38 for me to try out. I immediately fell in love. At first, I was reluctant to try a foundation, fearing the notorious foundation line that many of the girls in my class had, but once the makeup artist applied F&B to my skin I knew this was different. It actually looked like my skin, but better.


(l-r: shade #20 for when I have fake tan on, my well loved shade #38 sadly gone)



F&B is described on the Makeup Forever website as 

"light, fresh and meltingly smooth. It evens out the complexion and leaves a thin layer of powder on the skin, for a very natural finish.
Its long-lasting and water-resistant formula is also suited to the body. Recommended for all skin types, its light texture makes it especially suitable for mature and problem skin". 

I would fully agree with this statement. It is a beautifully sheer foundation that suited my young teenage skin at the time, but it can be built up to a medium coverage with a couple of layers. I would say it would last for 8 hours with a light brush of loose powder over it. 

My skin has become acne prone since hitting the age of 16, and I am often on acne medication/topical treatments that dry out my skin, but I find this foundation never clings to dry patches. During summer time, my skin becomes slightly oiler but I haven't found that this affects the lasting power of the foundation. However, if you have extremely oily skin, I would recommend setting it would powder just to make sure it lasts all day. It is an oil free, water based foundation so really shouldn't be much of a problem anyway.

Speaking of being oil free, I find this to be one of its major selling points. Being acne prone and having EXTREMELY sensitive skin means that products with oil in them, particularly those with silicone are a  major no-no for me! This foundation has never broken me out and even when I do have breakouts, a couple of layers of this foundation with a bit of concealer over those really ugly stubborn spots makes my skin look so much healthier than any other foundation I've tried.

Now onto the shade. I am pale, extremely pale. So pale that it is nearly impossible to find a foundation that matches me. I have a neutral skin tone and while #38 has pink undertones in it, its sheerness allows this shade to blend seamlessly with my skin tone. I have yet to find a foundation that matches my skin 
as well as this does. Word of warning though, any Sephoras I have been to in the US don't stock this shade so bare that in mind if you are planning to purchase at Sephora. They do however stock it online.

    (on first application)

(blended in. Please note my arm is significantly paler than my face/neck)

Pricewise, its not the cheapest at approximately 36 euro, but the bottle is relatively big and lasts so long. For me, foundation is the one thing I think is worth spending that little bit extra on and so I don't find the price an issue.

Overall, this product definitely a 10/10 for me, and I'd recommend it to any of you pale chicas out there! 

XOXO, 

B.

Wednesday 26 December 2012

A Quick Introduction

Hi everyone and welcome to Bellissima Beauty!

I'm a college student living in Dublin, Ireland. While I'm not a makeup artist, I've had a huge interest in all things makeup and beauty from a young age and thought I could share my experiences of products with some of you.

I'm aware that in recent years there has been a flood of beauty blogs but I hope that I can bring something different to the table. Being an Irish girl, I am very pale and unfortunately also have very sensitive skin which makes finding products that work for me very difficult. I find there are few blogs out there with recommendations for products that would suit my skin type, and so, hopefully I can help a few of you unlucky souls like myself out.

I guess that's all I have to say about myself but if you have any questions or any queries or suggestions for products to try out, I'd be delighted to hear from you at bellissimabeauty18@gmail.com.

XOXO, 

B.