Getting the summer look right

With the glimmer of hope that summer is just around the corner i always feel the need to strip back a bit on make up to try to go more of a 'natural look' It is nice to feel fresh and bright. I always start to look around for new products to help me achieve a lighter, fresher look, i have been sampling and testing out some lovely products over the last few weeks and really love the whole fresh feel i get from them.

Nourishing facial mask from Natura Siberica

This face mask contains Calendula Marigold which detoxifies and rejuvenates, strengthening by improving resistance to environmental damage. Wild Daurian Rose deeply nourishes skin and protects it from dehydration. It intensively moisturises and smoothes your skin, making it brighter, firmer, and imparting a youthful glow.
This certainly gave a real fresh and clean feeling to my skin, and i did see a difference in tone and 'glow', the smell was lovely too. This is just one product from the Naturica Range who exclusively use Siberian Pine oil and Altai oblepikha oil as a unique base for their products to preserve natural beauty and health of your skin and hair.

Superdrug Naturally Radiant range

One of my all time cleansing and beauty product brands is Superdrugs naturally radiant range, I am including this range as a personal favourite and is not associated with review products. I have over time tried many more expensive brands but have never felt or looked the same after using them as i do this range, it is superb value for money (often products can be found in half price offers starting from as little as £2.95) and is one range i always come back to, for the last 12 months i have stuck to it as gave up trying to find a better range. 

Skin ENHANCING Daily Defense Care by IXXI - RPP£22

This tinted moisturiser is the perfect ally to your holidays as it can be used every day as skincare and light foundation (similar to a BB cream.) It comes in a light or medium shade.
It is the ultimate staple product: natural, anti-pollution, anti ageing…. And for every tree used, the brand replants another in its place, they also only source local ingredients. The ultimate eco brand! This has a real smooth and soft feel, it glides on easily and gives a lovely fresh look without the heaviness of make up, really nice when you have a bit of base colour or tan to your skin tone and really do not want to cover up that sun kissed look. 

As well as the tinted moisturiser i was generously sent the eye contour treatment, which smoothes and tones the eye contour, It smoothes away wrinkles and fine lines, reduces the appearance of bags and dark circles leaving the eyes radiant and bright. A real wake up product giving me the bright eyed look i usually lack in the mornings.

I also received the Milky Hydrating Lotion, you spray on to the face morning and evening and before skin care products, moisturising and preparing the skin for treatments and products, it instantly replenishes moisture to the skin and gives a feel of freshness. this definitely gave a real fresh feeling before using my moisturiser and eye treatment. I was really pleased with the natural freshness i had after applying these products, a great addition to my skin care range.

Baylis and Harding Hand Gel

With all the extra sweaty hands and sticky fingers from applying suncream and being out and about more in the summer months it is no surprise our hands pick up more bacteria, and that alone can be cause for a very unhappy holiday if you pick up bugs while on your annual family holiday, the kids are mixing more and we are eating out more so carrying a hand sanitizer can be a life saver for protecting us from all those bacteria lurking on almost everything we will touch. I highly recommend this handbag size hand gel from Baylis and harding, it kills 99.9% of bacteria as well as smelling amazing, it has subtle scents of Jasmine and Apple blossom so not only looks after yours and the families hands, it actually smells good too. The perfect companion for summer holidays, picnics, trips to the beach, days out or simply anywhere you want to freshen up and kill germs on the go.

Tangle Angel
So we have looked at the skin and make up but what about our tresses? As a sun, sea and pool lover in the summer months my hair soon gets sticky and knotty from sun cream, salty sea water or pool water, sand and of course those hot sweaty nights! so taking care of my hair takes up more time in the summer months, and not just me, the youngest has the curliest locks and is a real nightmare when it comes to hair care, we both have been using the Tangle angel, it detangles an brushes out the built up knots effortlessly, so after a day on the beach I know I have one less battle when it comes to bath time with the girl! The tangle angel comes in a variety of sizes so there is one that we can slip into our beach bag for wet or dry detangling on the go, they are a fun design any girl will love, and come in a variety of colours. Features of the brush include:
ANTIBACTERIAL
Specially developed antibacterial additives embedded in the plastic make your brush ultra-hygienic and safe to use.
ANTI STATIC
Anti static properties help to prevent flyaway hair leaving hair smooth and silky. Ideal for blow drying.
HEAT RESISTANT
Resistant up to 120 c, bristles retain their shape even when used with the high temperatures generated by some hairdryers.
WATER RESISITANT
Ideal for using in the shower, by the pool or at the beach.
INNOVATIVE DESIGN
Not only stunning to look at but also easy to use and highly functional. Tangle Angel can be held around the wings for greater control and feel, or by the handle for everyday combing and detangling.

Lipivir Gel

If your like me a week in the sun on holiday always seems to bring me out in a cold sore, so i was more than happy to be sent Lipivir gel to try , it is a gel that helps prevent the outbreak of cold sores. Lipivir is completely discreet as it’s applied as a transparent gel, which means that no one can see when it’s been used. The ingredients are skin and child-friendly, and there are no serious side effects when using the product, making it a hassle-free way of preventing cold sores. What’s more once lipivir has been applied in the morning there’s no problem with putting make up on including lipstick.
For best results and to prevent cold sores from occurring, apply just a drop of Lipivir twice a day, in the morning and evening. Placing Lipivir in your makeup bag or by your toothpaste will make it easy to remember to apply the product as part of your daily beauty routine, ensuring that your lips will always be smooth and cold sore free. This will definitely be in my make up bag as a daily product now. 

UltraDEX toothpaste and oral rinse
Life doesn’t get any better than when you have great weather, a tasty barbecue on the go and drinks with friends and family. This might be great for our sense of summer well-being but it plays havoc with our teeth and breath. A fresh faced look needs a fresh feel all round including our mouths.
The higher the temperature outside, the higher the sales of ice-cream and fizzy drinks but there is a nasty downside. It is well-known that sugary foods and drinks trigger bacteria in the month which results in unpleasant smelling breath that can impact on oral health and lead to tooth decay. BBQs are often packed with sugary sauce too, as well as odorous onion and garlic.
Adding these products with their advanced iQ+ ActiveOxi Technology to your daily routine is clinically proven to instantly eliminate bad breath compounds for 12 hours. Available at Boots, selected stores and online. These products really give a fresh feel and confidence to enjoy the summer treats without the impact on oral hygiene.

Glamming up for Mums night out

Nights out are few and far between these days with two kids and limited childcare options so when we do, it is nice to make the effort and feel like the person before the kids arrived. To wear something that's not stretchy or black or has a kids dinner (or worse) smeared up the sleeve. To style your hair, and if you really push the boat out shave your legs!

School runs, work and family can all take our time up so very little time is left to pamper ourselves, we rush thought the morning routine, quick dash through the shower, blast of the hairdryer, and think yourself lucky if you get matching eye make up! anything more is a luxury and there is just no time for that.

I do like to get dressed up and put a bit of effort into how i look when i get a night out or even better a weekend away!! I try to get a hair appointment or at least put a colour through it to cover the tell tale signs of stress and motherhood, grey is just not a good look. A spray tan is always an instant improvement, who doesn't look better (slimmer) with a bit of a golden glow?

I have always been one for make up, i can spend hours and pounds at the beauty counter if i have the opportunity, i just feel naked without my make up, especially my eyes.

My lashes are quite pathetic! fine, short and really not good with out mascara, so for a special occasion i love to get some false eyelashes on and really make a statement with my eye make up. With so many styles, lengths and even colours to choose from now it is hard to get it wrong. If you buy a good quality kit you can get lashes that look as good as salon ones but saving yourself a few pounds!

As they say a happy mum makes happy kids so we all need a break every now and again without feeling guilty and to just be ourselves, not mum, not wife, not employee, just ourselves, so go and spoil yourself, take the time to pamper yourself and have a few luxuries, your worth it.

Who was that?

Feeling lost? Changed? Wondering what happened to that person? That life? Do I still exist?

Many questions I ask and things i feel since kids, as much as I love them it's so different now, I am not that person, most times I am nothing more than 'mum' , no other identity or status, that is difficult, and I really do not mean that I am ungrateful for being a 'mum', i am so grateful for the two miracles in my life, but I want to be me sometimes, I want to have choices, be selfish, be impulsive, just have an empty head, no plans, no agenda, no routine, no organising everyone's day, just nothing!

Kids have stripped me and rebuilt me, to what they need and want, and that is hard to get used to, no longer is it important what i need, that i get a lie in, a day in front of TV when the outside world is just too hard to deal with, to get more than a 5 min bath/ shower is never happening, to have first choice of anything -no chance, right down to having time to have a relationship with dad, nope, not happening, we may as well be strangers. The carefree life has been replaced by anxiety and worry, all those things you just wouldn't think of cause you sleepless nights now, and as mum you just suck it up and get on with it, the person you were is gone.

We mould our lives to what is best, and often what is best isn't what is best for us, it's best for the family, the kids, even daddy, so where does mum fit in? Fill the gaps, plug the holes and don't ask for anything different or it may just fall down or sink. So what mum would let that happen? We just keep plugging, filling gaps to keep things going, yet become more invisible as a person with a life or needs, but would we have it any other way? We are -  Simply 'mum'