Votary Super Seed Cleansing Oil

I have been using this for nearly a month. Put simply I love it. End of review. 

The thing is that I am a serial cleanser of my face, I delight in cleansing, it soothes and satisfies me. It reacquaints me with my face.

Thus I enjoy many different cleansers, balms, oils and creams. This is a lovely lovely cleansing oil.

I have used the first Votary Cleansing Oil - see my thoughts here it is also a lovely lovely cleansing oil, it is quite a light textured oil and does sink somewhat into my skin when I apply - not something that I mind, but something that I am aware of.

This is a thicker textured oil to my mind, it is denser, it sits in the palm of my hand. 

The premise of this oil is "Anti-irritation, anti-inflammation, deeply nourishing and anti-ageing". 

It contains 21 plant oils: Vitis Vinifera (Grapeseed) Oil Prunus Armeniaca (Apricot) Kernel Oil Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil Curcubita Pepo (Pumpkin) Seed Oil Vaccinium Macrocarpon (Cranberry) Seed Oil Limanthes Alba (Meadowfoam) Seed Oil Salvia Hispanica (Chia) Seed Oil Camellia Oleifera (Camellia) Seed Oil Cannabis Sativa (Hemp) Seed Oil Fragaria Ananassa (Strawberry) Seed Oil Nigella Sativa (Black Seed) Oil Papaver Somniferum (Poppy) Seed Oil Linum Usitatissimum (Linseed) Oil Punica Granatum (Pomegranate) Seed Oil Vaccinium Corymbosum (Blueberry) Seed Oil Tocopherol Borago Officinalis (Borage) Seed Oil Brassica Oleracea Italica (Brocoli) Seed Oil Citrullus Lanatus (Melon) Seed Oil Prunus Cerasus (Cherry) Seed Oil Rosa Canina (Rosehip) Fruit Oil Rubus Idaeus (Raspberry) Seed Oil Carum Petroselinum (Parsley) Seed Oil Lavandula Angustifolia (Lavender) Herb Oil Calendula Officinalis (Calendula) Flower Extract Daucus Carota Sativa (Carrot) Seed Oil Limonene+ Linalool+ +Naturally occurs in Essential Oils  

It works in the same way as the original, wet hands lightly, apply 4-5 pumps of the oil (which sprays out very easily) massage in and remove with the cloth. For me, this cleansing oil is like Votary Cleaning Oil + it has that bit extra, extra richness, extra calmness, extra soothingness. It smells very faintly of lavender.

With my order came a 2mls sample of the accompanying Super Seed Facial Oil.

This is sublime, I want the full size. It lasted me a good 10 days and my skin felt cared for in a way that it hasn't been for a long time. This contains the same 21 oils but with no added lavender.

The Super Seed Cleansing Oil is £55 for 100mls and the Super Seed Facial Oil is £70 for 50mls. Is it too early for Christmas present lists?

Petit Pai - Apple & Mallow Hair and Body Wash and Face & Body Cream

I don't have any babies, mine are 23, 21 and 20 respectively. I don't know any babies. But I do know Pai skincare having used their products on and off since their inception and my skin is being a bit fussy at the moment so I thought that I would try their new "petit" range.

So £8 got me an albeit small samples of the hair and body wash and the face and body cream plus a Konjac bath sponge.

And these really are very lovely. They are unscented, or at least any scent is of their constituent parts, so a slightly natural oils scent with the Face and Body Cream, and nothing with the Hair and Body Wash.

The Hair and Body Wash is thin textured and does lather, but not excessively so I would say. I did not try it on my hair, but I did try it on my face as an am wash and it was great, my skin felt clean and calm and a little bit moisturised.

The Face and Body Cream is thick without wishing it was pot housed rather than tube housed, it is really soothing and comforting and I am very tempted to purchase the full size. 

All in all this is a good little kit to try the range - Pai does not charge for p&p unless one wants next day delivery and their attention to detail over ingredients and product information is exemplary.

More information on Pai website.

Omorovicza Blue Diamond Eye Cream

Okay I make no bones about this being an expensive product. It is £165 for 15mls. I haven't purchased it, I don't have that amount of spare cash, but I have secured 4mls worth of samples decanted into a little pot, see below.

And my little pot has lasted me the best part of six weeks, am and pm use.

The eye cream is designed to tackle dark circles, puffiness, wrinkles and upper eyelid sagging.

Now I don't have dark circles particularly, I can get a bit puffy first thing, and any eye wrinkles I have are not particularly bothersome. What I have is eyelid sagging. I have said before that I have awnings for eyelids - you know the pencil test for boobs? Well I could fit a pencil case under my eyelids, I can fold them over several times, and it is as it is, I can't afford surgery, so I make the best of it, ie no eyeshadow ever.

But but but, my month's use of this eye product has made a smidge, an imperceptible (except to me) shift in the space time continuum - I can see a tightening in my upper eyelid.

Now of course I should have taken before and after photos, but I didn't. I have secured another couple of sample sachets via a couple of orders from Omorovicza and I will start again but you know what? I am saving up because this product has worked for me and that is phenomenal.

The ingredients are: Aqua (Hungarian Thermal Water), Glycerin, Aqua (Water), Ethylhexyldodecanol, Squalane, Methylsilanol Mannuronate, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea Butter), Stearyl Heptanoate, Cetearyl Alcohol, Cetyl Phosphate, Arginine, Saccharomyces (Hungarian Thermal Water) Ferment Extract, Phenoxyethanol, Albizia Julibrissin Bark Extract, Pullulan, Carbomer, Sodium Hyaluronate, Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid, Prunus Domestica Seed Extract, Ethylhexylglycerin, Ascorbyl Tetraisopalmitate, Methyl Glucoside Phosphate Proline Lysine Copper Complex, Tocopherol, Disodium EDTA, Tropaeolum Majus Flower/Leaf/Stem Extract, Parfum (Fragrance), Xanthan Gum, Copper Gluconate, Phospholipids, Sorbic Acid, Sodium Benzoate, Darutoside, Acetyl Pentapeptide, Diamond, Silica, Linalool, Limonene, Geraniol.

Aesop Parsley Seed Antioxidant Serum

Sometimes I just want to stop all the madness and step off the roundabout of new products and in particular potions which brighten and smooth and exfoliate and slough off, in short I want some rest and relaxation for my mind, my wallet, and my skin.

I have been using Aesop Parsley Seed Antioxidant Serum for about a month, with time off for using up a couple of trial vials of Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair, more of that at a later date, and it is like a refreshing shower of calmfulness for my thin old skin.

For suddenly my skin is feeling all of its fifty years, it is cranky and unpredictable, spots appear and do not go, and leave a red mark, blackheads continue relentlessly, open pores march unremittingly across my cheeks and the thread veins which I have resolutely been ignoring are breaking through even the most tenacious of concealers.

This really is a very calming and cooling serum, it feels instantly hydrating on my skin. The ingredients are somewhat benign for my skin as I have no reaction other than a relaxing sigh post application.

Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, PEG-60 Almond Glycerides Water (Aqua), Sorbitol, PEF-150 Distearate, Benzyl Alcohol, Phenoxyethanol, Polysorbate 20, Lavendula Angustifolia (Lavender) Oil, Panthenol, Disodium EDTA, Citric Acid, Sodium Citrate, Vilis Vinfera (Grape) Seed Extract, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Dehydroacetic Acid, Ormenis Multicaulis Oil, Carum Petroselinum (Parsley) Seed Oil, Linalool, d-Limonene.

And for £45 I get a whopping 100mls. The downside is that that bottle is somewhat narrow-necked and the dropper is difficult to replace back inside without escape of product down the outside - irksome in the extreme.

I bought mine from SpaceNK.

Lipstick Queen Eden

I love a good lipstick, and I love a good Lipstick Queen lipstick, and this new offering from Lipstick Queen is right up my street.

Eden is inspired by the garden of Eden. The Lipstick Queen website states;

 "Inspired by the mystical garden of the same name, Lipstick Queen brings you Eden, the most luscious and tempting lipstick on earth! The color is a vibrant and juicy, semi-sheer red that makes you look like you’ve taken a bite from the most beautiful apple in the world. This easy-to-wear shade flatters every complexion from fair to dark, bringing out a rosy blush in the cheek and a twinkle in the eye."

To my mind it is a sheer bright watermelon, it is very sheer on my lips although I have swished it very lightly for the photo, it does layer to the brighter hue as swatched above.

Lipstick Queen lipsticks are my favourite, hands down. No scent and no taste, I find that there is a great mix of wearable neutrals (Saint Pink for example), quirky but not gimmicky (Hello Sailor, Frog Prince) and plenty of reds (Saint Red, Sinner Red, Saint Eden)

Eden is £22

Space NK Best of Beauty Gift

I received mine and was really impressed with the size of the bag and the contents. I do like a good beauty bag and prefer to save my money up and purchase either a Space NK or a Cult Beauty offer a couple of times a year - sad sap that I am the bag often swings it for me.

Lately the Space NK offers have been unobtainable or unremarkable for me, but with a 50th birthday and an interesting selection of products to try, it was a given.

In order to receive, one had to be an Ndulge member and spend £150  - I spent forever trying to decide what to buy but in the end decided to go for  Zelens Age Control Foundation and Sunday Riley Good Genes.

The Zelens is a long time want, I have Zelens Youth Glow Foundation but wanted to try Age Control, and the Sunday Riley Good Genes is a repurchase.

The contents of this bag is heavily skin care, and that was the motivation for me, although never having tried NARS Orgasm or BECCA Moonstone I am more than happy.

A few empties

These are the empties which I have used up over the last few months. 

Elemis Pro-Collagen Cleansing Balm - I have posted about this previously and this is my second 200mls pot. I like this as a makeup remover, it is a soft gel in the pot which needs to be scooped out, it is not so soft that it melts into an oil like say Emma Hardie Moringa Balm, but neither is it as as solid to get out of the pot as say Sunday Riley Blue Moon Tranquility Balm. It massages into the skin and when water is added it becomes a thicker cream. To my nose the scent of geranium is quite strong and that is probably my only slight criticism. It does the job effectively but it does sting my eyes - not the fault of the product, but the fault of me who can't be bothered to use a separate cleaner for the eye area. Whilst I am unlikely to repurchase again soon, I will repurchase again at some point because of its effectiveness.

Zelens PHA+ Bio-Peel Resurfacing Facial Pads - I have tried many facial exfoliating lotions as can be seen here

And they have all been and indeed are effective, but at the moment my skin needs something gentler but with a bit more ooomph than Clinique Mild Clarifying Lotion. The Zelens Pads are of a gentler weave all together and I think that that allows my general heavy-handedness to not result in sometimes worked over feeling skin, and post use my skin feels comfortable without the immediate need for moisture. I have already re-purchased.

Sunday Riley Bionic Cream - Bloody hell £90 for a moisturiser, but a bit of careful use of codes and Ndulge points reduced the initial outlay somewhat. I bought this because of the reviews on the SpaceNK website, I wanted a nighttime moisturiser and this was what I chose. It has a sweet almost bubblegum scent which is a little over powering for me. The texture is, well bouncy for want of a better word, there really is an elasticity to the texture. It is very moisturising and my skin feels a bit sticky post application but I like that, I don't want my nighttime moisturiser to sink without a trace. As I have said before, I have a bit of a thang for Sunday Riley products and I enjoyed using this very much, it suited my skin through this last winter with occasional supplementation of oil or serum and was a pleasure to use. I have too many other moisturisers waiting in the wings to re-purchase this again in the near future, but it remains on the radar.

MV Organic Skincare Gentle Cleansing Cream - Lovely lovely lovely. This is not a bog standard cream cleanser but a richly textured gently scented comfortable comforting cleanser. The cream is thick, it does emulsify with water, but again throughout the winter it cossetted my skin like nothing else. Am/pm, any time, I absolutely indulged in this cleanser. I have repurchased and am using currently.

MV Organic Skincare Rose Soothing and Protective Moisturiser - I found this perfect for over the winter. It is thick in texture and has an almost mattifying effect on my skin which I did not like to start with and coupled with a rose texture was almost ready to give up, but the texture sinks in gently and it really makes my skin feel comfortable and calm. I used it day and night and it worked equally well whatever time of the day. I am missing it already.

Charlotte Tilbury Magic Eye Rescue Cream - I enjoyed using this eye cream very much. The texture is a light cream, perfect for around my eyes. There is no scent that I can smell and there is enough of a texture to feel that it is doing something. Sadly for my eyes the rot has set a long time ago, and my eye woes are too far gone for creams I fear, but this one left my eyes feeling moisturised and looking a bit less crepy than before applying and I can't ask for more than that. I have too many eye creams to go through to currently buy again, but it is certainly one that I would repurchase in the future.