Haul: Aveda, Laura Mercier, OPI

My husband didn't change his mind, of course, so I had to return his shirts today. Got that money back - and headed straight for the beauty department. Here is what I got - and I'm keeping everything.

Aveda

I got bath salts called Soothing Aqua Therapy. It's supposed to refresh, hydrate and relax. I've never tried any bath products from Aveda before so this will be interesting. I also got samples (yay!) of their smooth infusion shampoo and conditioner. 

OPI

I got their nail and cuticle replenishing oil. I've been using this on and off for years. Apply to cuticles at night before you go to bed and you will wake up with nicer looking nails. Mine look absolutely terrible at the moment. 

Laura Mercier

I think Laura Mercier does great powders so I picked up a couple of those and a brow definer. 

First, the brow definer. It is a wax/gel in a pot, applied with a brush, that keeps hairs in place. It comes in three colours and I got it in Fair, the lightest colour.

It's not as dark as it looks in the first photo. Here's another pic, taken outside. 

Now for the swatch.  

After taking the picture on the left (below), I thought I was done so I started to rub it off. Then I noticed that I couldn't get it off. It had virtually stained my skin and it only came off with soap. Great for summer. 

The secret brightening powder is a very light powder made specifically to set concealer. This is an incredible powder, it's light, doesn't crease and is supposed to lighten the eye area with its tiny flecks of shimmer. In her book "Make-up Masterclass" (review coming soon) make-up artist Jemma Kidd lists her favourite loose powder as being this one.

It comes in two colours and I actually use #2, an off-white. But I wasn't concentrating (too busy looking at other products) and ended up with #1, which is very white. I can still use this so I won't bother returning it but don't you hate it when that happens? 

Anyway, the white one reminds me of MAC's Prep and Prime transparent finishing powder, except the MAC one is matte and Laura Mercier's is not. 

Secret brightening powder 2 and 1

What else... I got two mineral finishing powders. I won't go into that now. I tested it and wrote about it here.

There will be a separate post on the mineral illuminating powders because they are so amazing. 

Have you tried any of these products? 

Update on t-zone oiliness: Laura Mercier powders

I'm trying to say good-bye to a shiny forehead so I've been testing two Laura Mercier powders that I got at the beginning of the month: the mineral finishing powder 1 and the loose setting powder in translucent.

I've tested two skincare+makeup combinations:

1.

Estée Lauder's Resilience Lift Extreme for dry skin

MAC's Studio Sculpt foundation

Laura Mercier's mineral finishing powder

2. 

Clinique's dramatically different moisturising gel only on the t-zone 

Resilience cream applied to rest of the face

MAC's Studio Sculpt foundation 

Laura Mercier's loose setting powder 

The results have been similar. And very positive. With #1 the shine on the forehead at lunchtime (4-5 hours after initial application) is controlled, I would say. It's definitely not matte, the way I like to have it, but it looks fine. Therefore if I used the oil-free gel and this mineral powder, I would get even better results.

One sunny day last week I was busy all day - doctor's appointment, lunch appointment, shopping - and didn't bother with touch-ups. Eight hours after first applying everything as per #2, I just used an oil-absorbing sheet on my forehead... and didn't even (need to) re-apply powder.

Conclusion

Basically, if I'm going to use a rich face cream all over, I need the mineral finishing powder because this controls sebum production. 

If I use two different skincare products - an oil-free product on the t-zone and a richer cream on the cheeks - then I can stick to the loose setting powder... but the mineral powder will be even more effective.

I like both powders but am undecided as to which one I should get a back-up of (!). You get a lot more for your money with the loose setting powder (29g vs 12g for the mineral powder!) so I am tempted to stick to this one. But the mineral finishing powder is so incredibly silky and fine, it's a dream!

Have you tried either of these powders?

Mini haul: Laura Mercier and Clinique

I would describe my skin type as normal most of the time; not particularly sensitive, nor too dry or too oily. I have relatively good skin - I get spots only on rare occasions. My t-zone tends to get a bit shiny but if I use skincare for combination skin, it's usually not enough and my skin feels tight.

Lately I have really been struggling with oiliness on my forehead, though. To be honest I have always regarded skincare and make-up rather separately, and not really considered: skincare + makeup = effect?

Well, I think it's time to change that. Since my day cream ran out, I've been using one moisturiser for day and night: Resilience Lift Extreme for dry skin from Estée Lauder. This is my first jar of the stuff and I like it. It smells wonderful (passion fruit) and is anti-ageing, which is reassuring. It has SPF 15, which is important for during the day. It's fine to use at night as well because the sun protection isn't activated unless you go out.

But I think it's too rich as a day cream, for me at least. It doesn't matter which foundation or powder I use, my forehead starts to shine after just two hours!

So I went out and got Clinique's Dramatically Different Moisturizing Gel. I'm planning on using this oil-free gel only on my forehead.

I'm still looking for the perfect loose powder, as well, so I got two. Both are from Laura Mercier: Mineral Finishing Powder in #1 and Loose Setting Powder in Translucent.

I used to have the loose setting powder and liked it so this is a repeat purchase. I'm going to give it another try.

The mineral finishing powder is new to me and there are so many positive reviews out there, I had to get it!

As any effective experiment should be conducted, I will only test one variable at a time! So I shall be starting with the mineral powder first.