How to deal with oily skin

For as long as I can remember, I have suffered from oily skin and I know I am not the only one. It can be annoying trying to deal with greasy skin everyday, especially when you are a makeup fanatic. Though I am still looking to find a product that can stop my pores from producing an unfortunate amount of oil forever, I have instead learnt many different ways that can help reduce an oily look which many of us dread.

Have a good and effective night routine -
Don't just use facial wipes, instead make sure your routine includes scrubs, cleansers, and toners. Scrubs are a brilliant way of getting rid of any dirt and dead skin cells, whilst cleansers get rid of the bacteria on your skin and in your pores. The toners will help to close your pores which is where the culprit of your oily skin is created. So by closing your pores will hopefully help tone down the oil. I would recommend to stay away from alcohol products as they strip the skin which can be unkind. Instead try and go for a micellar water or a gel cleaner.

Use an oil free moisturiser -
After your scrub, cleanser, and toner routine, use a moisturiser. Even though you may think that your skin is hydrated enough with all the oils leaving your pores, you should still moisturise morning and nighttime as even oily skin needs to be hydrated. But make sure your moisturiser is oil and alcohol free.

Use a makeup primer -
Using primer before applying your makeup will help keep your makeup at bay throughout the whole day, which is exactly what us oily skin people need. For my oily skin I personally prefer to use a silicone based primer as I think it creates better and longer results to help make my makeup look less greasy. It is great to use all over the face, but do make sure to focus on applying it to your oily zones.

Use oil free makeup -
This may seem obvious to many of you, but some people who have oily skin do not realise that it is down to the fact that it is because their makeup has oil in it, especially their foundations and concealers. So if you avoid makeup with oil in then you may find that this could be your main culprit.

Use colourless powder -
I'm sure we are all familiar with the quote "powder my nose", well this is indeed a good way to help reduce the appearance of an oily nose. By applying a powder to your skin with mop up the oil allowing a less greasy look. However, if you are doing this then please stay away from tinted powder. I know tinted powder matches your skin tone perfectly, but by using this it will just create a cakey look. Instead, go for a powder that appears colourless. This will get rid of the oil whilst also keeping your makeup looking natural. Rimmel sells a good powder called 'Stay matte pressed powder' which can be bought here.

Blotting paper - 
For a quick fix the best thing to do is just blot the oil away with some blotting paper or tissue. This will immediately get rid of the oil but it is likely to come back a few hours later. So make sure to keep a packet handy in your bag, or if you're desperate just lightly dab some tissue paper.

Facial masks -
Try and use a facial mask once or twice a week as they are a great to tighten the pores. As said up above, if you can tighten the pores then it is likely less oil will be produced. To get the best results then I would recommend using a clay mask.

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Heal dry and peeling lips!

For as long as I can remember I have suffered from dry, chapped, and peeling lips. Everyday I would wake up to a new layer of dry and hard skin on my lips, and by the end of the day that new layer of skin would be peeled off by myself to reveal red, cut, sore, and inflamed lips. It was not attractive at all.

It became such an annoyance to my life that I ended up going to the doctor to see if anything could be done to help. Unfortunately, that doctor's visit was pointless. They mentioned how it was likely that I had a mild form of  'exfoliative cheilitis' which actually had no cure or any product to help, so I left the doctors surgery with nothing. Since this diagnosis I have googled the condition and I have to stress to you that I must have had a VERY mild form of it because some of the pictures I saw during my search were vile and much worse than what my lips looked like. But still, the condition did seem to outline my problems.

Since this diagnosis, I have tried and tested plenty of natural and chemical products to see if anything would help. And hallelujah, I think I have finally found my cure. I understand that this routine may not work for everyone, but I thought I better blog about the products I used just incase someone wants to try it out.

First off, this may be obvious to some but you must stop licking your lips. I found out when I started this search just how much I unconsciously licked my lips to make them more hydrated. But in fact, by licking your lips you are instead dehydrating them. To avoid myself from licking my lips I made sure to always carry my trusty ol' Vaseline lip balm around with me. If I ever felt the need to lick my lips, I would instead apply Vaseline. I have got to admit, this was surprisingly very hard for me to get use to during the first couple of days. But on day three, I became much more conscious of my lip licking and the use of Vaseline.

The second thing you must do, or should I say you must not do is to peel the dry skin on your lips. Do not touch them! By peeling the skin off is like picking off a scab..... you are not allowing your lips to heal. You may find that over a couple of days the skin will naturally fall off, but this is absolutely fine. I should also mention now that it would be best to start this routine during a period when you haven't got much planned, because having obvious dry skin hanging off your lips is not a great look.

The third and final thing I do is apply castor oil and Vaseline petroleum jelly onto my lips every night to create a lip mask that will help hydrate my lips throughout the night. Castor oil is basically just a vegetable oil that has been claimed to help hair growth, help skin infections, help acne, and help hydrate the skin. And this last point is exactly why I thought it would maybe work well for my lips. Each night I get a cotton bud and dip it into my castor oil bottle and then apply a generous amount to my lips. Fortunately, this oil is odour free, but sometimes you will get a taste of vegetables in your mouth if you accidentally digest a bit. After the oil has been on my lips for about ten minutes I will then add a bit of petroleum and massage it onto my lips with the amount of oil that remains on my lips. Try and do this just before you go to bed so that it hydrates through your sleep. Sometimes, I will even apply a small amount of castor oil onto my lips in the morning as it is a clear substance so it will look like you have just applied some clear lip gloss.

And there we have it, this is my routine to help heal peely lips. It took me about a week to actually start seeing some results, but do persevere because it is totally worth it. I now have smoother lips and I can now even wear matte lipstick for the first time in my life!

x x

Haul : Beauty products

I went shopping recently and went on a bit of a beauty binge. Let's face it, we have all been there. Aiming to go into a shop to buy one thing, and then come out with a bag full. And it definitely did not help my situation when I realised that Boots had their amazing 3 for 2 deal on.

Maybelline Fit me foundation stick - I should not have bought this! I know that sounds odd, but when I was in the store trying it out on my hand I thought it was a concealer. I have been after a concealer stick for ages and when I tried this out I really liked how it wasn't oily, and felt quite smooth and chalky. But now that I've read the packaging properly I can clearly see that it is a foundation. Silly me!

Collection lasting perfection concealer - I have heard nothing but good reviews on this concealer over the year, so this is why I decided to finally give in and buy one for myself. Fingers crossed it lives up to expectations.

Real techniques expert face brush - I am really into applying my foundation and concealer with a brush recently. I always used to use my fingers just because I always thought it was the easiest way...boy was I wrong. But since, I have applied my foundation with a QVS flat brush, and I have now bought this Real Techniques brush for my concealer. If I like the results, no doubt I'll buy another one for my foundation.

Champneys 6 way nail file - Annoyingly, my nails always seem to grow with a few vertical ridges on them, which means I am constantly maintaining them with a nail buffer to smooth them down. My last nail buffer was a cheapy from Superdrug so it did it's job but didn't last long. This is why I decided it was best to buy this more sturdy one in hope that it will last longer.



Simple pore minimising toning cleanser - You may know already that I suffer from huge and oily pores, which is why I had to buy this to see if it helps minimises them at all.

Garnier BB cream skin perfected - This is my first BB cream that I have bought, and I am surprised I haven't bought one sooner. I like the idea that it replaces your primer, moisturiser and foundation, so it will be perfect to apply on a day when I'm feeling a bit lazy, or just popping into town for a quick visit.

Dove deodorant in 'Pomegranate' and 'Cucumber' - I bought these because they were on sale. I normally go for a Nivea spray but I am so glad I decided to pick these up. They smell so good and they don't even cause those annoying white and flaky marks.

BarryM black nail varnish - I always seem to lose my black nail varnishes and it happened again very recently, so this was the main reason why I entered Boots the other day. I could have picked up any brand of black nail varnish but decided to go for BarryM as they are cheap and cheerful. Plus, I know I will most probably lose it again over a friends house, so I won't be wasting too much money.

Topshop nail varnish in 'Disclosed' and a matte 'Double Denim' - I am really into my blue nail varnishes recently, so when I saw these in Topshop I just had to buy them straight away.

x x