Wednesday 25 May 2016

My Clarins Love

Hello Butterflies!
Today it's time for my first beauty post! The honor is given to two beauty products from Clarins. One skin care and one make up, for a balance :)
I must admit that I'm a big fan of this brand. I find their products in most cases working really well and the price of these luxury products is in the lower range.

Clarins Iluminate Skin Foundation and Face Oil


So, starting with the right order let's talk about skin care first! You know the rule - first take care of your face then improve with make up :)

Clarins Santal and Blue Orchid Face Oils



Clarins Santal Face treatment OilI just bought a bottle of the Santal Oil a few weeks ago This one is made for dry skin. I picked this for a change to the Blue Orchid oil I had before and I'm not disappointed at all! I've got my Blue Orchid (which is designed for dehydrated skin, there is also Lotus Oil for oily skin type) a couple years ago. I was happy with the product and it convinced me to facial oils. Later I tried others oils, usually cheaper ones but with good ingredients, even organic but the quality was questionable and definitely usage wasn't a pleasure. So what's special about these oils?
After using Clarins oils my face the next morning is very soft and smooth. Sometimes I find it also brighter.  I didn't experienced this with other oils I tried plus Clarins oils don't leave oily, greasy skin which actually looks more dull and tired!

How do I use them?

Let's say if first - we all have different skin and needs so one product cannot satisfy everyone. But! The way you apply a facial oil might totally change your satisfaction from it. Most of us want creams to adsorb quickly so we can put face on the pillow or simply we just don't like feeling of fat covering our face ;) Facial oil brings immediately an image of fat leaking from your face but wait, there is a way!
First important thing is to apply oil on a damp face. I do it after shower almost skipping drying my face with a towel or (even better) way I spray my face with kind of toner. It can be rose water, moisturizing toner or micellar water (somehow I got many of them as gratis and this is one of not so many uses I could find for them because taking off make up is the last thing they can do!). Second hack is to mix a few drops of the oil with hyaluronic acid or a serum based on it. Why? Hyaluronic acid works as an emulsifier and helps the oil to be adsorbed into the skin. And the last, also important step is to massage it into your face. Yes, I know it takes time but you will  thank yourself in 20 years :) Plus it's actually a pleasure of taking care of yourself and honestly, we should learn more about skin cake from Asian culture! They practice face massage almost like religion! However I'm far from going nuts with it ;)
With the right application I found this oils to be even suitable under make up! Just don't use too much and let it adsorb well before applying foundation :)

Pros & Cons

Pros is definitely the effect it gives on the skin. The bottle also lasts for long time since you need a few drops for each application. As a person which pays attention to details I like the bottle itself too, it looks good on a shelf :)
Smell can be a plus or minus depending on a person. It has very specific, strong herbal smell which might be unpleasant. Personally, I didn't like it at the beginning but I got used to it and in Santal I even recognize lavender :) But surely you should try before you invest money into this product.
The biggest minus would be price I guess. Even in the luxury range it is not expensive however it's still a bit pricey.


Skin Illusion Natural Radiance Foundation


This one is my the most loved foundation so far. I'm coming to the end of the third bottle and I like to always have it in my cosmetic stock :) What I love about it? Again, (obviously) the effect it gives! It gives radiance to the skin and makes it look fresh and young. I use sheer setting powder on top of it to not take away the glow I get from the foundation. I find it looking great on photos too!

Clarins skin ilusion foundation
More technical details - it supposed to be for all skin types and has medium coverage. I'm not sure how it would behave on oily skin during a hot day. I wouldn't probably use it for such an occasion. But for cold days with translucent, mattifying powder I guess it might be working well too. The coverage isn't full so don't expect Estee Lauder Double Wear effect. However it's not a sheer one either. I have a feeling that the mica particles work well reflecting light so we actually see an illusion of perfect skin.
I recommend to give a try to this foundation. Don't expect it to be the longest lasting and most covering foundation you have tried but for regular days might turn to be perfect. Personally I enjoy glam and radiance my face gets when I wear it.

If I think about minuses of it I would say smell, I don't like it but it's not too strong. Another bigger disadvantage is that the lightest color available in practice - 105 Nude (in theory there is at least one lighter but I haven't found it reality) seems to be a bit to dark or too yellowish for me but I'm very pale person. Another minus could be the price.

My face with both products in day light
That would be all I want to say about these two products. I don't think it's a proper review rather my impressions from using them for some time. I think they are worth attention but rather overlooked in the internet beauty world ;)

Thank you for stopping here! I would be happy to hear your opinion about the products and/or about the blog :)

xoxo
Natalia

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