Beauty Favourites of 2011 - Part Two

Hey Dolls,

Here is the second half of my 2011 beauty favourites, in which I focus on skincare, body care and haircare.

Origins is by far my favourite skincare brand - you can read my original rave post here. In the morning, I still love checks and balances as it leaves my skin feeling really awake and refreshed. Alongside this, I use a newer product not originally featured in that post - the Perfect World White Tea Skin Guardian. Honestly, this serum is amazing - it contains white tea, mimosa, orange and bergamot which leaves the serum smelling beautiful. It leaves my skin so soft and plumped up, helping my base make up apply much more smoothly. I also team this with my beloved Bobbi Brown hydrating eye cream which you can read a full review of here.

At night, to remove my make up I use Shu Uemura's Balancing Cleansing Oil. I absolutely love this, and while it may be pricey, this bottle has lasted me since April which I think is amazing! You literally need the tiniest amount to remove a whole face of make up - definitely try and get a hold of a sample if you can! I then use another new favourite Origins product - the Perfect World Deep Cleanser which is much gentler and more moisturising than Checks and Balances, making it perfect for night time. My routine is completed by the Perfect World eye cream and the Balanced Diet lotion which I blogged about above.

I haven't actually blogged about many of my body care favourites this year so I'll give you a quick run down of each. The Sanctuary's body scrub buffs skin with quite fine, natural pumice which, while being exfoliating, isn't overly abrasive. It smells beautiful, containing patchouli and orange oil. To me, this scrub feels much more luxurious and expensive than it is, and has been particularly effective this winter at keeping my false tan in tip top condition!

The St. Tropez bronzing mousse is my favourite tan of all time and I've tried a ridiculous amount. What I love the most is the speed at which it sinks into the skin, avoiding any awkward tan drying poses. There is a colour guide meaning it's easy to see any streaks, and I really don't find much of a scent after showering the guide colour off.

I feel a little hypocritical including The Body Shop's Coconut body butter into my favourites as midway through the year I proclaimed my hatred for body butters. However, the body shop butters, though being really thick, sink in much easier than others I have tried and don't sit on the skin. Also, I'm a sucker for anything coconut scented. Another staple when fake tanning (which for me is all year round!).

Honey I Washed the kids - my absolute favourite - Read why here.

Some may be surprised that there isn't a shampoo in my annual favourites, but honestly I tend to buy what is on offer (cheapskate!). You can read my full review of Bumble and Bumble's Creme De Coco Masque and Thickening Hairspray here. I never really see much written about Lush's American Cream but it is one of my favourite conditioners - I tend to mix it with a tiny bit of hair mask to make it really moisturising. Honestly, I use it for the smell, throughout the day I (and others around me) get whiffs of vanilla -amazing!! I have reviewed Argan Secret here. It has definitely been my most used hair serum of the month (and yet another vanilla scented product).

Finally, my best haircare discovery of the whole year (and cheapest) is Velcro rollers. I cannot believe the amount of volume Velcro rollers can give my hair. They are also perfect for adding shape to hair styles that are beginning to grow out and have also reduced the amount of backcombing and volumising products I use in my hair. Here is a link to a post where I demonstrated how I achieve volume in my hair, however, it has been requested quite a lot I do an updated hair care post - I'll get on it!!

As always, thanks for reading and commenting dolls, I've really enjoyed catching up with everyone and their blogs! Let me know any favourites of yours that you think I might like!

Lots of Love

Nic

xx