Thursday 1 August 2013

Monthly Favourites | July


It was quite a difficult task to pick out a bunch of favourites for the month of July, and I even considered not doing a favourites post this month because it was so hard to rack my brains and think of particular things that I've been enjoying using. In general I've been feeling very unmotivated, uninspired and everything in my life seems to be a little lackluster at the moment - yuck! Hopefully the dull grey cloud will lift from over my head asap and I can get back to normal again. (I suspect that it's the 'all work and no play' routine I've got into that has triggered this feeling).

I didn't want to break the tradition and miss out one of my favourite types of posts 
..so here is my July Favourites:


Original Source Shower Gel - Pink Grapefruit
Obviously not a life changing product - a shower gel. But I really wanted to mention this new seasonal edition from Original Source, mainly because of the heavenly scent! These can be found nationwide in the likes of Asda and Wilkinsons for just £1 each! (They're the two stores I've seen them for that price, there may be more places). They're a pretty standard formula as far as shower gels go and lather up to a nice mountain of bubbles to leave you feeling fresh, but I just adore the zingy and sugary fruity scent of this one. Why have I never known how good pink grapefruit smells before? It's really invigorating and for just £1 it's well worth sprucing up your shower with some yummy fruitiness.

Tresemme Keratin Smooth Deep Conditioning Mask
I have to say I'm not a fan of the matching shampoo and conditioner from this Keratin Smooth range, but the Deep Conditioning Mask is a little something special. It's a fantastic budget intensive treatment for the hair and while the results may not be permanent or long lasting, it offers an instant boost of smoothness to unruly hair. I use this around once a week in addition to a regular conditioner, wrap my hair up and leave this on for about 10 minutes and then rinse it out and find that my hair is instantly much more manageable, softer and smoother. This offers really reliable results if you're after a quick fix for your hair!



Clarins Gentle Exfoliator Brightening Toner*
This skincare gem has ranked highly over the past fortnight and following the nightmare of my Liquid Gold and Radiance Renewal running out at the same time (!!) my skin has been flagging and crying out for some AHAs and chemical exfoliation back in it's life. The effects of this toner are by no means as immediate or as intense as those with Alpha H Liquid Gold, but it is a more gentle formula and is suitable to use twice daily, which I have been doing and have loved how much perkier and bright my complexion has been looking following a regular mild exfoliation with this lotion. 

N Spa Melting Gel Cleanser*
I briefly touched upon how much I like this cleanser in my post on the N Spa Beauty & Bathing Rituals, but it definitely deserves more of a mention. This is a super cheap cleanser (£6.00 for the full size, this is a mini) and it feels like you're giving yourself a luxurious spa treatment when using it. It sets off as a thick and oily gel that you rub onto dry skin and it dissolves away all traces of make-up, dirt etc from the skin and then body temperature melts the product down into a thick oil consistency that really helps the skin feel supple and hydrated. When rinsed with water the oil emulsifies to form a milk and washes away to reveal fresh and clean skin. 


Yves Saint Laurent Touche Eclat
Gotta love a rediscovery of an old favourite! This coveted little gold pen stays in it's box most of the time and in a prized position in my make up collection, saved for 'special occasions' - so much so that it hardly ever gets used. I've been pulling it out more frequently over the past few weeks and loving the under eye highlight and general illumination of the face that can be achieved by using this. It really does deserve it's 'holy grail' status. 


Ciate Nail Varnish - Speed Dial and Big Yellow Taxi
What would my monthly favourites be without a mention of nail varnish?! Cosmetic Crave has gone into nail loving overload during July with two Fragrance Direct nail varnish hauls (OPI and Essie, and just Essie), an OPI nails post, a 'nail of the day' with Speed Dial, and a comparison of Big Yellow Taxi with Luis Lemon - Phew! So many nail posts! The two Ciate polishes that I've really been gravitating towards recently are two that I've done posts on recently: Speed Dial and Big Yellow Taxi. They're lovely and bright colours suitable for summer nails and the quality is absolutely faultless.

Seche Vite Top Coat
With nail varnish obsession must come a suitable quick drying high gloss top coat and Seche Vite fits the bill for that. The cream of the crop in top coats, this clear gloss adds an almost gel like finish to any quality of nail varnish with a high shine gloss, it dries completely in a matter of minutes and can last up to a week with no major chips and only tip wear. It's fantastic!

Sorry for the lack of enthusiasm at the very start of this post - I promise I'll cheer up soon!
Thanks for reading anyway.

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*PR Samples

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21 comments:

  1. Speed Dial and Yellow Taxi are just gorgeous colours for summer! I still really need to try Seche Vite, I've heard so much about it being the HG of top coats but just never seemed to pick one up.

    - Rhi | Beauty Bucket List

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  2. I really like the Tresemme Keratin Smooth Deep Conditioning Mask too, it's affordable as well :)

    Annie | www.raspberphobia.com

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  3. The cleansing gel sounds so interesting, and so cheap too! Definitely going to try it out!xx

    ZoeyInWonderland

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  4. I love Tresemme Keratin Smooth Deep Conditioning Mask too ;)

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  5. I'm loving those nail polishes! I've already raved my love to you about Big Yellow Taxi but I'm going to say it again, that yellow is amazing! xx

    Daphne | Peanut Butter and Chocolate Life | bloglovin

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  6. I quite like Seche Vite and use it quite regularly xx

    Beautyqueenuk

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  7. You picked such beautiful pretty colours in the nail polishes!
    Sophie
    x

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  8. I really want to try the Keratin smooth mask, sounds great!x

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  9. I end up bulk buying Original Source when it is on offer. The chocolate mint one is divine!

    Belle x
    Mascara & Maltesers

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  10. I've been wanting to try the Keratin Smooth mask, glad to know it's good :)

    Hayley
    Water Painted Dreams
    xxx

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  11. I'm in love with Seche Vite! I never thought that it would dry as fast as everyone said. Definitely a must have :) xx

    haley-wood.blogspot.com

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  12. Hi,

    Found your blog via twitter - #bbloggers

    glad i did!

    new follower!

    come check out mine if you'd like to :)

    http://zaras-bowsandpearls.blogspot.co.uk

    Zara :)

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  13. I loved the Tresemme hair mask when I used it a few months back but I never put a towel around my head for that extra deep intensive treatment - fab idea, I am deffo going to do that next time.

    Salli
    xxx
    www.embracingtheenchanted.blogspot.com

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  14. I have rediscovered my Touche Eclait recently after watching Goss Make Up's video about how it's actually supposed to be used and am back in love with it!

    Victoria
    FlorenceandMary.com

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  15. Touche Éclat is so lovely to use, the nail varnish looks really pretty!

    Love you're blog too!

    Holly
    www.alongcamehollyblog.blogspot.co.uk

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  16. That melting gel cleanser sounds wonderful! I've been buying a few new skincare bits and bobs recently since the weather changed my skin was having a bit of a 'mare. I'm definitely going to try that cleanser once I've used my current ones up though!
    xxx

    www.sarah-nunn.blogspot.co.uk

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  17. i think i might try the treseme deep reparing mask
    im new at blogging and would appreciate if people were to read it and tell me what they think beth-stocker.blogspot.com

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  18. HOW did I not know they did original source in pink grapefruit?! I swear I own them all. x

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  19. I love Original Source shower gels! I haven't tried that one though :)

    Sarah
    morethanadored.blogspot.com

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Thank you all so much for visiting Cosmetic Crave, and thank you for taking the time to read and leave a comment. I read and appreciate every single comment that is left and I do try my best to reply to comments (I'll admit I'm not the best for keeping on top of this). If you leave a comment with a direct and specific question I will often use Twitter to respond to you so I know you see it.
Thanks!

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