Retinol Body Cream from Naturewell

Posted on June 14, 2021 by Henna

Hands up if you sometimes put retinoids on your body.

I do, and the only thing preventing me from doing it more is that the tube of retinol is SO SMALL.

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Well, now there’s Retinol body cream from Naturewell Beauty and you can find it at Walmart. When I posted about this body cream on my Insta, everyone was excited about it – turns out that retinol on our bodies is the one thing that’s been missing from our routines, and we want to add it back in.  I’m glad I wasn’t the only one excited about this!

This cream actually has Retinol and Retinyl Palmitate in the ingredient list, and no, they’re not listed right at the bottom either (swipe to see). While these forms of retinol are not as strong as prescription, they’re still effective, they’re just more gentle and take more time to act on your skin.

The cream is creamy and moisturizing but not greasy. It absorbs fairly quickly. It is more of a lotion than a body butter. I love that this tub is so large and I believe it comes in a larger size as well. There is also a pump available but reviews suggest that it is not the most effective and getting lotion out of the jar.  Someone asked my if it made my skin the way that retinol on your face can, and I’d have to say that even after using it every day, I haven’t noticed that.  This is not very moisturizing, but it didn’t make my skin more dry than usual. If you have very dry skin or your skin is prone to dryness, then use an oil on top of this and see if it helps!

Have you used retinol on your body? Did it work?

Between $18-$20 and available at Walmart.

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Bumble and Bumble Save the Day Collection

Posted on June 11, 2021 by Henna

I’ve been using Bumble and Bumble Save the Day Daytime Protective Repair Fluid and the While You Sleep Mask. Both of them have silicone in them, but they also have oils that help moisturize your hair. They’re both super light and absorb into your hair pretty quickly without feeling greasy or weighing it down and I think that’s the whole point. You can put these in your hair to add a dose of moisture without worrying about getting your pillow dirty or greasy. ⠀⠀⠀⠀Text⠀⠀

I actually like using them during the day too, and they both make my hair super shiny. the Daytime Protective Repair Fluid is also great for protecting your hair from heat styling, although there’s no hold.

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Veronique Gabai Le Point G Perfume Review and Video

Posted on June 10, 2021 by Henna

Waiting for nights out so I can really enjoy Veronique Gabai Le Point G.  This scent is a gorgeous rich blend of rose and musk. It’s quite confident and warm without being sweet at all. The rose is mature and just hums, and the musk is interesting but not too clean. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀Text⠀⠀

This is a glam, full makeup, big hair, going out kind of scent. It’s an eau de parfum concentration, so it’s quite long-lasting and has good sillage. I found that I could smell this on my shirt even after I washed it, which only happens when I’m wearing the most concentrated of juices. I love that! ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

The bottle is refillable and gold-plated, and you can see how the sides are clear and see-through, so you can still tell how much perfume is in the bottle. The packaging is pretty unique and I haven’t come across anything like it. It definitely seems like a departure from the basic minimalist aesthetic we’ve been seeing in the past 15 years, and I think that’s over now. Give me packaging and perfume with some drama!

Watch my video review here:

https://www.instagram.com/tv/CPRLW1CB6As/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

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Can you use your day cream as your sunscreen?

Posted on June 9, 2021 by Henna

So many people ask if they can use their day cream as their sunscreen and the answer is that you ABSOLUTELY can! Just make sure you’re using enough of it, just like you would do with sunscreen. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

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I’m loving this Cerave Ultra-Light moisturizing lotion, and it’s a great option for people looking for a MATTE sunscreen. It feels moisturizing and like a lotion on contact but then settles as matte. The matte effect is pretty long-lasting too! I wear makeup on top (which I apply with a brush) and everything goes on smoothly and seems to stay put. And it’s a chemical sunscreen so it’s totally clear.

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Smartere Secrets

Posted on June 8, 2021 by Henna

I’ve been testing out @smarteresecretslondon concealer these past couple of weeks, so if my skin has looked extra snatched, that’s why.

TextThese are medium-full coverage concealers packed in generous brush-included tubes.

Available in 9 colours, the idea is that you could buy a bundle of 3 and use them to highlight, contour, and cover. They’re pretty blendable but a little goes a LONG way and the brush dispenses a LOT.

I found that most days I got too much on and had to take some off, and the brush was annoying to use. It was hard to see how much was coming out until it was too late. All that being said, this looked beautiful due to it being a satin finish and lasted ALL DAY, and I love that. I’ve searched the 3 colours I have – caramel is closest to my skin tone and I made it work.

If you like products with a lot of coverage, you might like these!

Available online.  $44 each or $126 for a bundle of 3.

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Strivectin Hyaluronic Acid Lip Mask

Posted on June 7, 2021 by Henna

Blackberry-flavoured Hyaluronic Acid lip mask from @strivectin . Hyaluronic acid is the hot ingredient of spring/summer 2021. It’s a great ingredient in anything that also has occlusives (think anything greasy) that will lock that moisture in.
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Tom Ford Eau de Soleil Blanc Review

Posted on June 4, 2021 by Henna

Tom Ford Eau de Soleil Blanc is my #sotd, and it’s a quintessentially summery scent that smells like beach… salt, sand, and artificial coconut, kind of like your favourite sunscreen or suntan lotion from when you were a kid. At least that’s what it is for the first hour. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀TextYou’ll get no judgement from me if you’re simply buying this as a beachy scent to have around. The dry down of this is where the real magic is. It has a beautiful white floral finish that’s worth sticking around for. The coconut is still there, and the faint saltiness, but everything is creamy and calming. This is a real delight to wear – pricy but a delight.

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Bumble and Bumble While You Sleep Mask

Posted on June 3, 2021 by Henna

TextHighly recommend simple self-care rituals if you’re finding yourself sick of it all. @bumbleandbumble While You Sleep Overnight Damage Repair Mask is exactly that, and if you swipe, you can read the instructions and the ingredients.

There’s real Camelia oil in this mask, and if you’re an OG Beauty blogger like me, you’ll remember that some of the @shuuemura_artofhair products had camelia oil in them too. This mask smells so good and it’s so nice to have it on.

I don’t leave it on overnight, but it’s light enough that it does absorb into your hair, so you could leave it on overnight.

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Skincare’s New Trend: Melting Cleansers

Posted on June 2, 2021 by Henna

By now, you’ve already heard about oil cleansers but my latest find is Melting Cleansers too.  Below, I’ve shown one by Roger and Gallet, and another by Algenist.  You can find melting cleansers by Ole Henrikson, Goop, Omorovicza, and even ELF.  
Both of the above are gel formulas that aren’t as drippy as oils.  You apply them on to dry skin where they melt into oils and emulsify into a milky consistency when you add water.  The oil phase dissolves all makeup and then they wash right off.

They’re good in theory, especially if they’re supposed to melt into oils, which are great at really liquifying makeup.  My issue is that these don’t really turn into oils.  Yes, they’re easy to spread on your skin, but not as easy as oils are!  Because they’re so stiff, I actually found it difficult to use these to take off any eye makeup, whereas I don’t have an issue with this when I use a cleansing oil.

The only time I use a melting cleanser is either in the morning, when there’s no makeup to take off, or if I’m going to go in with a separate makeup remover anyway.  Then I don’t even apply the melting cleanser around my eyes and just put it on the rest of my face.  But if I’m going to use something else anyway, then what’s the point?  I want all my cleansers to be good at removing makeup, because that’s really what I need them for!

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Fragrant Friday: Roger and Gallet Verveine Utopie

Posted on June 2, 2021 by Henna

Verveine Utopie is the perfect fragrance to wear when it’s hot outside. This is a British brand that has products that smell amazing.  You used to only be able to buy them overseas, and then in 2017 they came to Sephora, but now you can get them on Amazon!

Here are the notes of Verveine Utopie:

Top notes are: lemon, bergamot, sweet orange, and cardamom.

Middle notes: nutmeg, pink pepper, ginger, rosemary, basil and orange blossom.

Bottom notes: vetiver, fennel, cedar, wormwood.

As you can see, this scent is unlike most others.  It doesn’t really focus on floral or gourmand notes, and that in itself makes it quite different.  It’s also super fresh and clean, and most of the time, when I wear it, all I can smell is vetiver.  Beginning to end, vetiver is the strongest and most consistent note in there, and that’s ok with me.  It does start off quite lemony, and you get an intense whiff of lemon peel when you first spray it, but it’s tempered by the woodsy vetiver.  There are also times when the fennel and basil add an almost sweet touch.  It’s cooling from beginning to end.  It’s fresh, it’s almost savory, and it’s uplifting so I love that.  You can wear it during the day or at night, and it’s strong enough to be smelled by others around you, but is rarely offensive in any way because it doesn’t have any sweet notes in it.  Most of the time, people don’t know the smell of vetiver so it’s appreciated as something new.

Even though this is a cologne, it lasts a good 8 hours,

You can also find Roger and Gallet at The Hudson’s Bay, and this scent is just $40.

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