Review: Liz Earle Prince's Trust Limited Edition Rose and Lavender Cleanse & Polish

When I first heard about this product, I was beyond excited!! I adore the Liz Earle Cleanse & Polish and I LOVE rose beauty products so this is a match made in heaven for me!

Liz Earle have brought out this Special Edition cleanser in conjunction with their current work with The Prince's Trust. This product has been created through a collaboration between Liz Earle and her Prince's Trust mentee, Rebeca Taylor, for the Tomorrow Campaign. The Tomorrow Campaign was created to inspire the next generation and paired six Trust-supported young people with iconic mentors to create a product that will be retailed nationwide to raise funds for The Prince’s Trust. The outcome is an exceptional product, giving a floral twist to a much-loved beauty essential. Furthermore it's all in the name of charity, Liz Earle are donating £2 from each purchase towards The Prince's Trust.

If you are not familiar with the original Cleanse & Polish, it is a cream based cleanser that is applied to a dry face in circular motions and removed with a hot muslin cloth. It easily wipes away daily grime and removes all make up, including eye make up. The skin is left smooth, soft and exceptionally clean. It is suited to all skin types and is simply a beautiful, beautiful product.

This updated Special Edition cleanser comes in a simple white pump bottle with a pretty pink and purple design, which distinguishes it from the original blue tube. The product still has the same ingredients that has made this an award-winning cleanser, including skin softening cocoa butter and rosemary and chamomile to tone and smooth. However this new cleanser includes rose and lavender essential oils, making it perfect for night time use. Liz says, "a unique blend of rose and lavender essential oils to calm and relax your senses, ideal for use to ensure a good night’s sleep. Perfect partners; use our original Cleanse & Polish in the morning and our Special Edition in the evenings."

This product is currently retailing at £19.75 for a 150ml tube
It is available from Liz Earle Stores, the Customer Centre on 01983 813913, lizearle.com, John Lewis, and on QVC

Have you tried this Special Edition cleanser? How do you think it compares to the original?

Duty Free Shopping!!

One of the things I look forward to most about going on holiday, apart from the sun tan, cocktails and beachy hair, is duty free!! This year was no different and I picked up a few sneaky purchases on the way through departures.

The first place I stopped off was the MAC counter and picked up a few products I had my eye on for a while and one cheeky impulse buy! The first was MAC Charcoal Brown eyeshadow which is a matte light brown shade that I use to fill in my eyebrows. This eyeshadow has been recommended by numerous beauty gurus with similar colouring to myself and so far I've been very content with my purchase. Nothing to write home about but it does the job well!

Next up I got MAC Sable which is a lovely plummy brown shade! It often wear this to work with MAC All That Glitters as a nudey duo for daytime. Alternatively put it with MAC Joy and Laughter (review below) for a glammed up evening look. This eye shadow is a frost finish, with amazing pigmentation and glides smoothly onto the lid meaning it is super easy to apply. I think this is one of those must-have MAC shades that everyone needs in their make up bag!

The final eye shadow I got was MAC Joy and Laughter. This shadow is a Mineralise Duo eyeshadow which came out this year in the permanent collection. Joy and Laughter contains a cool-toned shimmery lilac shade paired with a softer grey-mauve shimmery shade. You can use this as a duo with the cool-toned shade over the whole lid and they grey-mauve shade in the crease or you can swirl a brush round and swipe it all over the lid and put Sable in the crease. On the swatch the mixture is on the left, the darker shade in the middle and the lighter on the right. I don't usually go for purple shades but I absolutely fell for this! The pigmentation is incredible, you only need to lightly dust your brush in the product to pick up the perfect amount. The shadow is super soft and silky and is a dream to apply. I really liked Love Connection as well, but they didn't have any in stock so I'm definitely going to pick that up on my next MAC trip!

My final MAC purchase was the Painterly paint pot. This is my first paint pot purchase (try saying that out loud!) I own a few of the Maybelline Colour Tatoos and love them but they don't do a good nude shade so I decided to indulge. So far I have been more than happy with my purchase and have been wearing it almost every day for work! It is a flesh-tone shade with a matte formula. The product comes in a glass jar, making it unsuitable for travel but it does give it a hint of luxury! FYI I have heard these can dry out very easily if you leave the lid off. I have very oily eyelids so a base is essential to ensure my eyeshadows stay put all day. If I'm tired my eyelids also become quite dark and this completely disguises this. This is another product that I think you NEED in your make up bag!

I then ventured over to the skincare area and after some serious self-restraint only picked up this Clinique Anti-Blemish Clearing Moisturiser. I am now onto my fourth repurchase of this product, and really enjoy using it. I have quite problematic skin on my T-zone and if I use a heavy moisturiser here my skin will break out, guaranteed! This product is oil-free and very lightweight so useless for those dry skinned bunnies out there, but perfect for those of us with oilier skin. I'm unsure whether this treats existing blemishes but it definitely prevents further breakouts. I put this on in the morning before my make up, as anything heavier will mean by make up slides straight off. However in the evening i use a more heavy-duty moisturiser/serum! The only downside with this product is it doesn't contain SPF but I have factor 30 in my BB cream so not a problem for me.

The finale of this shopping trip was Victor and Rolf Flowerbomb perfume! This was actually a gift from my lovely brother for my birthday. I have wanted this ever since I sniffed my best friend (not as weird as it sounds!) at a party last Christmas and fell in love! This perfume is utterly DELICIOUS, there is not other word to describe it! Well maybe there is, and as I am pretty hopeless at describing scents this is what the website says "Full-bodied and opulent, the Eau de Parfum explodes in a bouquet of sensations with its addictive floral notes which leave their trail, like a whirlwind that is distinctly couture. A millefleurs around the freesia, Centifolia rose, osmanthus and Sambac jasmine, supported by a background of patchouli." If that description doesn't make you want to go try it out I don't know what will! The bottle is cut like a multi-faceted diamond, it is gorgeous, simple and classic. So please I implore you to go to your nearest fragrance counter and try this out, you can thank me later!

Please comment below with what products have you picked up in duty free this Summer?

In-Flight Beauty Routine

I'm on holiday right now, yaaaaay for me! Now enough of my smugness and on to the important stuff! Everyone loves going on holiday somewhere exotic but long haul flights come at a price! And not just on your wallet! Dehydrated skin, puffy eyes and frizzy, dried-out hair are not ideal when you want to step off the plane a la Victoria Beckham. After avidly watching Lisa Eldridge's YouTube video on her in flight beauty routine with pen and paper, I devised my own!

I picked up this clear travel bag from Primark for a few pounds complete with 3 100ml bottles and 3 small pots. Much cheaper than the Muji option! (I'm using hotel Wifi on an iPad at the moment and my picture won't upload!)  Here's a run down of what I took with me: Macademia Healing oil, hair tie, No7 cleansing water for oily skin, Origins drink up intensive mask, Lancôme hydra zen eye contour gel cream, Elizabeth Arden eight hour cream, Elizabeth Arden eight hour hand treatment, No7 day cream for oily skin, Boots nail remover pads, Topshop clear base and top coat, Essie lovie dovie nail varnish  and a couple of cotton pads. And yes all that fits in this little bag, just call me Mary Poppins! 

Hair

First thing I do when I get on the plane is to brush my hair and then run a small amount of macadamia oil through my hair! I mainly focus on the ends as these are driest and use sparingly in my roots. I wouldn't usually use a hair oil on dry hair as I have quite oily hair but I don't mind it looking a bit greasy on the plane and I'll have a shower as soon as I get to my hotel. This will stop the dry cabin air turning it into frizz central and drying it out too much.  I then tie it up for the duration of the flight. This stops it tangling and rubbing up against the seats causing static. 

Face

To prep my skin for the flight I run a cotton pad with No7 cleansing water over my face. I don't tend to wear make up to the airport, as.. well.. I can't really be bothered! So this step is just to freshen up and remove any excess oil etc. I then massage a small amount of my Origins drink up mask into my skin, once I've done this I wait five minutes for it to sink in and then repeat again till I've built up three layers of product. This mask sinks into the skin easily so it is necessary to repeat this process to build up a thick layer of coverage. This mask seriously hydrates the skin and provides a barrier against the dry cabin air, leaving your skin plump and glowing. I then leave this on for the duration of the flight, reapplying every 3-4 hours. The mask is clear once you massage it in so you don't look ridiculous don't worry!

I then pat my Lancôme hydra zen eye cream below my eye, reapplying alongside the mask. This eye cream helps with puffiness and fatigue so it should disguise and signs of early morning flights and dehydration. Before landing I remove any traces of the mask with my cleansing water and moisturise with my No7 day cream. This moisturiser also contains  SPF to protect my skin from the sun as soon as I step off the plane. I use my Elizabeth Arden eight hour cream on my lips constantly throughout the flight to top the air con drying them out.

 

Nails

As well as giving myself a mini facial mid flight I also take the opportunity to give myself a manicure. So yes, much to my family's embarrassment I practically turn the plane into a spa! Next step and I'll be putting a foot spa in my hand luggage! Pahh! Anyways, I use my Elizabeth Arden eight hour hand cream a bazillion times throughout the flight, mainly due to boredom. I also massage my eight hour cream into my nails, to soften my cuticles and nourish the skin around my nails! I use Topshop base/top coat and I've chosen to wear Essie's Lovie Dovie this holiday, one of my favourite varnishes this summer!  I've also packed nail varnish remover pads in case of any mishaps!

So that's it! This routine seems to have worked so I shall be going through the whole palaver on the journey home. At least it keeps me entertained :) Also remember to drink LOADS of water as you need to hydrate the body from the inside out too!

Please comment below with any inflight beauty tips you have!