SUNDAY READS #1

Here's a photo I took from a disposable camera at T in the Park last month, appropriate today as I'm recovering from my busy weekend of dancing and singing at another festival! After packing up my tent this morning and heading home for a well-earned shower, I just want to relax all day and catch up on some blog posts. Here are a couple of posts from this week that I've loved!

1. Apartment Therapy - 9 Easy Ways to Add Texture to a Bedroom
Being totally honest, I can't pick a favourite post from this blog this week, considering they churn out around 18 posts a day - featuring beautiful house tours, quick tips, advice on cleaning, renting, decorating, you name it! It's all very budget-friendly and just brilliant for inspiration - exactly what I need as I get my new flat keys on WEDNESDAY! I especially love their before and after features where old furniture pieces are completely transformed - maybe I'll try myself at some DIY?

2. LLYMLRS - Summer in the City
I've been following Lily's blog for such a long time now but for the past 6 months or so her content has been incredible! Particularly over summer as she's really thrown herself into the festival scene (a girl after my own heart!) and has come back with some amazing photo diaries. I really love this outfit post, the Missguided dress is beautifully bohemian with lovely embroidered detail, and I'm a sucker for a bit of monochrome!

3. From Roses - Gym Observations
I loved seeing this little gem of a post from Rebecca this week, it's exactly what it says on the tin, a few interesting observations that she's made during her workout sessions. I wish my gym was this interesting, it might spur me to go more!

Hope you've had a great week!

Vicki x

REVIEW: AVENE CLEANANCE MASK

I struggle a bit with my skin, it's not awful but I take on-board all skincare advice that I get. I decided to pick this up a few months back after reading a post on Nouvelle Daily, I'd only ever tried some really cheap face masks (the kind you use for fun with your friends when you're 15 and probably do more harm for your skin than good!) and a couple from Lush which didn't seem to make much of a difference.

The main reason this mask stood out for me is because I have oily/combination skin and, as it is clay-based, it absorbs excess oils and regulates your oil production for a while after use, ultimately reducing blemishes. It also contains Avene's thermal spring water, which is found in most of their products and is the reason why this product is great for oily/combination skin, the thermal water hydrates the skin to keep the moisture in (oily skin needs moisture, too!), so it isn't drying like a lot of masks can be. This ingredient also reduces inflammation which calms angry spots and soothes sensitive skin - sounds like a miracle!

You apply it all over your face (like I need to tell you that) and you only need to leave it on for 5 minutes before it works it's magic, I normally put it on before a shower and then wash it off when I get in. When you go to rinse, Avene recommends you just wet your fingertips and massage the mask into your skin, letting the exfoliating particles smooth out your skin and slough away any dead skin cells before you wash it all away! This product leaves my skin looking mattified but also bright, soft and so so clean!

At £15 for 50ml, this is about the average price for a good quality face mask, and it certainly demonstrates good value for money. The bottle looks tiny but I still have loads left and I've found I've got quite a bit of use out of it! I would definitely recommend this for someone who has oily/combination skin like me, or if you have sensitive or dry skin I imagine that Avene's other thermal water products may be helpful for you. I would certainly repurchase this, however I have my sights set on another face mask to try out first! Watch this space!

Vicki x

AN APOLOGY TO FACEWIPES

Last year was really the year for skincare in the blogging/youtube world, and ever since then most of us have ditched the trusty cleansing wipe for more complicated routines and consequentially they have become a bit of an outcast. Don't get me wrong, using a proper cleanser that's suited to your skin type can work wonders and is usually much more effective for removing makeup and dirt than wipes alone ever was, but does this really mean that we should ditch the wipes all together?

Recently I bought these Simple Cleansing Facial Wipes for the first time in what feels like forever, and I don't regret it one bit! One part of my evening routine I really hated was fussing around with water and cloths to remove the makeup that I'd just smeared all over my face using my cleanser. I'd have to clean up after myself when I'd soaked half the bathroom, I'd have to rinse out the cloth (impossible) and switch it every 2 days or so to keep up the hygiene and to be honest, when it's late at night, I'm tired, and a cup of tea and a movie are already waiting for me, I just can't be bothered!

My new routine doesn't require water at all! The cleanser is an oil and can go straight onto my face, it does it's thing and then I use one of these wipes which removes everything! There's no rinsing involved, everything stays clean for the next night, and it's easy enough to give my face a wipe in the mornings if I don't feel I need to full-on cleanse it again - because who has time for that? On those really lazy/tired/drunk evenings where I would otherwise not bother to take my makeup off at all, the wipes are there to save the day even if I'm falling asleep in the process. This method is also pretty easy on-the-go, I've even been able to cleanse and remove my makeup properly at festivals, where using a clear, colourless liquid from a plastic bottle can be a real hit-or-miss situation.

I went for the Simple wipes because I really didn't need anything fancy to go along with the rest of my routine, but there are some really good make-up removing wipes out there which don't get much recognition. Examples including ones from The Body Shop from their popular Vitamin E range, Yes to Cucumbers which are all-natural, made from superfoods and also biodegradable, and from Soap and Glory which apparently smell minty and can help prevent spots and lightly exfoliate your skin as they go.

I may give some of these other wipes a go (Soap and Glory ones are on offer in Boots!) and I'll let you know how I get on! Give me a shout if you still swear by cleansing wipes and if you have any recommendations.

Vicki x