My latest must haves.

For the last couple of weeks I've started paying much more attention to some of the beauty products that I use and been trying out a few more products that I normally don't use. For example I've always been using an anti-wrinkle moisturiser, usually one from Olay or Garnier, but lately I've been also been using a firming serum and an anti wrinkle eye cream, which hopefully will give some good results for my approaching-my-30's wrinkles(which aren't too bad yet FIY) If they're any good I will review the products here later on.

I've also discovered couple of great make up tools, which I never used before. For me, the tool to put on my foundation was always one of those normal, triangle shaped foam sponges, which I happily chucked in the trash after a couple of weeks and took a new one out of the packet. They did the job well but I was never fully happy. A while ago I bought the Real Techniques Miracle Complexion Sponge and I'm loving it! The texture of the sponge is very nice, the result on the skin is smooth and even and it blends the foundation easily, and the different angles of the sponge are good for different areas of your face. It's about £5.99 so not even expensive. I wash mine regularly to keep it hygienic and as long as you do it gently, the sponge should keep quite well. 

Real Techniques seems to have a good range of brushes too, which I'm still yet to discover but will definitely have a go later on. I've also been using a foundation brush to apply my make up, it gives a slightly thicker coverage on my skin, so I tend not to use that every day as I don't need a lot of foundation every single day, but for an evening make up, I love using a foundation brush. The one I use for the moment is just a cheap one, as I just wanted to trial it out but I will definitely purchase a decent one, maybe from Real Techniques. 

I've been a devoted lover of TREsemme hair products and often use their shampoo, conditioner and hair spray. Recently, in addition to those old favourites, I've started using a couple of their other products too and I'm loving them.

They have a great, variable range of products for different hair types, I tend to use the ones for coloured hair or the Keratin Smooth range. I blow dry my hair a lot and curl and straighten it regularly and I've noticed it really damages my hair(to the point that last time I went to get my ends trimmed, even the hairdresser said that "yeah..the ends are quite bad..." and gave a little sigh)

So I've been using a heat protection spray from the Keratin Smooth range, which seems to be doing a good job and it's easy to spray in every time I've washed my hair.  But my absolute favourite from TREsemme are the hair masks that come in tubs! They're amazing! They've got a whole different range of them, I've used the one dry hair and the Keratin one, and have loved them both. You can use it as once or couple of times a week treatment, or like me, use it every time you wash your hair instead of normal conditioner. It's not very pricey and it leaves your hair light and fresh, unlike some heavy masks that leave the hair quite heavy. I used a normal conditioner the other day and noticed a difference in my hair straight away - the mask makes it much, much smoother and leaves it in better condition. This is definitely a product to try if you're like me and your hair gets damaged easily.

And since there's not really a sign on sunshine in the sky in the middle of December, and like me you're not lucky enough to have family living in a hot and sunny country who to visit for the holiday season, you need a little helping hand from a bottle to give you a little bit of colour since the tan from last summer is only a memory by now.

 I'm not a fan of self tan products as they tend to make a mess and you end up smelling like sickly sweet cookie dough, but I've got a couple of trusted products that I use regularly. For the body I use Dove's Summer Glow moisturiser, which says it gives you a 'gradual tan'. I use the darker shade and even one application now in the winter is enough to change the colour of my pasty white legs to a healthy glow. Just be careful not to buy the one that says "Soft Shimmer" on it as you'll start glittering like a Christmas baubble. Not sure whose idea it was so add shimmer into the lotion, but it does not give a nice result.. Trust me on this one, I've made the mistake more than just once. 

I'm very cautious of self tanning creams when it comes to your face, as if you make a mistake it will be much harder to hide the unwanted result. I remember once when I was younger I used one quite regularly until one day my mom said she "thinks I've used enough of that cream now". I found one from Olay, called Every day sunshine, which is a gradual tanner as well and works as a moisturiser too. The result is not too dark or too drastic, so you can use it without the fear of waking up with a deep glowing tan on your face in the middle of the winter, and the smell of it isn't too bad either. It's quite hard to get a decent tan on the face anyway if you use make up regularly, so this one is a great way to have a bit of colour on your face if you don't like looking pale. 

That's all for now! Have you got any similar products you've discovered recently or maybe you've been a long time lover of them?

Next time will hopefully be posting something with a bit of Christmas spirit in it, as the holidays are almost here now!