Friday Favourites - Products

Friday Favourites: Products

Today’s favourites post is dedicated to the products that I use that not only help me to look good (in an “I’m a presentable human being” kind of way) but also help me feel good. You won’t find anything majorly expensive (the most expensive item was about £15) but they do the job.  I also feel like I need to put in a disclosure here that states that I am not getting paid to promote these items; I just really like them and wanted to share this part of my self-care routine with you.

Most of these products have also been key in helping me to relax enough to be able to sleep at night/get through the day without feeling too wound up. Here are the items that do so:

Nourishing Shower Crème – Dove. This shower crème is ridiculously creamy (as the name suggests) and leaves my skin feeling silky smooth. I love to apply it; it goes on like a dream. I especially like to apply it after I’ve shaved my legs; it makes me feel better about myself in the “I like something about my body for once” way.

Shampoo – Dove Daily Moisture & Garnier Fructis Colour Last. Both of these products work wonders on my hair. As I dye my hair quite frequently, I need to take care of it and make sure that it doesn’t become brittle. They both leave it feeling really soft and luxurious which is something a lot of shampoos lack. A lot also lack in moisture but these two make my hair look and feel like I have just been to salon. These and conditioner are the only things I put on my hair as I swear by them. By making my hair look and feel good they make me look presentable and feel good about myself.

Conditioner – Dove Daily Moisture & Garnier Fructus Colour Last. These are great for making my hair look and feel super soft and shiny. Like with their corresponding shampoos, they leave my hair feeling moisturised which for me is a must have as, due to my depression, there are a lot of times when I don’t take care of myself as well as I should. Even when I put my hair into a messy bun because I’m feeling like crap, knowing that these products take care of my hair (even after just one wash) when I put very little effort into doing so really helps.

Face scrub – Nuage Skin & T-Zone. When I’m feeling like my skin is in a bad way, I reach for these two products. The T-Zone Gel Facial Wash is the first treatment I tried for reoccurring spots and I have to say that it works like a charm and has been my favourite since. I like to apply it before I shower and then wash it off after shampooing my hair but before washing it out.
The Nuage Skin face scrub is a grit-based face wash. I like to apply this one when I’m in the shower and really scrub at my face to get rid of dirt that has accumulated throughout the day (or days if I don’t have time). It’s excellent at really getting in there and cleaning out your pores. It is a go-to when I’m in need of looking after myself as it makes me feel more presentable.

Pore Strips - Skin Benefits. These plain white pore strips are amazing. They really get in there and do exactly what they are supposed to. I’ve tried other pore strips before but I keep coming back to these ones as they are the only ones that I’ve seen really good results with. I did try a charcoal brand a few times but between them not drying and having zero flexibility around the nostrils, I wasn’t impressed. These Skin Benefits pore strips are flexible and give a great coverage over pesky nose blackheads.

Hand Cream/Moisturiser – Dove & Inecto. For whatever reason, when I get really anxious, the skin on the back of my hands gets cracked and the skin on my hands peels easily. I like to rotate between a small pot of Dove moisturiser and a Coconut Scented one by Inecto. I love that they are really lightweight and don’t feel greasy.

Foundation – I know I don’t talk about make-up or even about going out but when I do wear it; the only foundation that I like using is the No.7 Beautifully Matte foundation. It has an “all day velvet matte perfection” look, is oil free and contains SPF 15. It’s lightweight and doesn’t end up “cakey”. I use the shade “calico”; my local Boots were happy to do a colour match for me and found the perfect shade – when I put it on you can’t tell that I’m wearing it.

Lipstick – dark colours, matte. It might come as a surprise to some but New Look’s matte lipsticks are my current favourite lipstick brand. I especially love their rich, dark colours from last year’s collection; they really compliment the matte finish.

Schwarzkopt Hair Dye – I have been dying my hair since I was about 11. It started out with just getting highlights as that was the “in” thing at the time and I wanted a more mature look for starting high school. Anytime I have had my hair bleached or had anything done to lighten my hair I have gone to the hairdressers or they have come to me. When I have felt the need for a colour change-up, though, I always use Schwarzkoft products, particularly their “Live” range and have someone help me get to the hard-to-reach places as my hair is so long and thick. I’m currently a dark brown (natural hair colour) but you can still see the red from one of their dyes when my hair catches the light.  

Nail Polish – matte. You might see a bit of a theme appearing and you would be right; I’m really into the matte look. Surprisingly enough, a matte top coat that works wonders is one that I picked up by Makeup Gallery – the line that Poundland carries. It’s quick-drying and you can see results instantly.

Apologies for not including any pictures, I’m still figuring out the whole photo-editing process and learning to take pictures that don’t like they were taken on a potato and I don’t want to use pictures from other sources as knowing my luck I’ll end up forgetting to credit them.

Anxiously,
Me

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