January Beauty Favourites

This month has seen me trialling a lot of new products (the fruits of Christmas and sales shopping) as well as tackling the effects of winter upon my skin and hair. As a result there were a lot of contenders for a spot in my five favourite products for the month, so these truly are the creme de la creme.

The Body Shop Satsuma shower gel - £4

Regular readers will be surprised to see a citrus flavoured product featured in my favourites post, and I have to admit I'm still quite surprised myself! I'm usually averse to all things orange/lemon/lime and would never have bought this myself, but as it was all that was on offer in my mum's shower cabinet and I'd forgotten to bring my beloved Snow Fairy, I was forced into use. However, if there's one thing that The Body Shop does well, it's shower gel. They're a perfect consistency, lather well, and I really don't think £4 is at all bad for a good quality, ethical product. Its scent wise that these products come out top though. The shower gels always smell exactly like the fruit. Eg. I hate anything that has that nasty synthetic strawberry smell, but The Body Shop's strawberry shower gel smells like real strawberries and I love it. Likewise with this satsuma shower gel. Using it bought back a wash of nostalgia/deja vu, and I instantly remembered being given a Body Shop satsuma gift set when I was little and loving it. I haven't stopped using this since.

Origins Drink-up Intensive Overnight Mask - £11/£22

I've read so many reviews of this mask and it's been on my wish list for some time. As well as suffering from breakouts, my skin has seen some cold-weather induced dryness over the past few weeks, and is in need of a general boost. This mask is ideal for brightening up and refreshing skin, as it aims to replenish moisture and prevent future dehydration. It has a delicious, fresh summery scent, like peaches and apricots. Just smelling it makes you feel like your skin is going to be instantly rejuvenated. I've been using this every other night in place of a moisturiser. Two pea-sized amounts are enough to cover my face, I don't like to layer it on too thick as it's designed to work all through the night so doesn't sink in straight away, and if you apply too much it will just come off on your pillow. My skin always looks noticeably brighter and plumper the morning after I've used this and my makeup applies beautifully. It also hasn't aggravated my spots, and if anything is helping reduce redness. For some reason the 50ml version isn't available via Origins or Boots, I prefer to buy mine on eBay, as its more economical for me to part with £11 in a month than £20, and I can always repurchase a few months down the line.

Topshop nail polish in Easy Peasy - £5

I fell in love with this gorgeous grey/green shade upon first sight, and instantly added it to my Christmas list. This subtle colour is perfect for all seasons and goes well with glitter embellishments (see it in action here). It's a little more green than appears in these pictures but is unfortunately no longer available on Topshop's website to link to (although the matte version is). This is the first Topshop nail polish I've used and I'm really impressed with the application and last, it's barely been off my nails this month.

Macadamia Deep Repair Masque - £7.45

A beauty blogger's favourite, this mask works wonders on dry, damaged hair, leaving it soft and nourished. Whilst my hair isn't uber damaged, I do have my fair share of split ends, so I like to use this mask once a week as I find it really makes a difference to the appearance and feel of my hair. The formula is enriched with argan oil, tea tree, chamomile, and aloe vera which all help to nourish and deeply condition hair. I use a good sized amount of this (I have a lot of hair) massaging then combing through my hair after washing. I then leave it for a 10-15 minutes before rinsing it out and drying as normal. It leaves my hair beautifully soft and shiny, reduces the appearance of my split ends, and smells delicious. I was a little worried about it leaving buildup in my hair but despite applying this all over (I don't normally condition my roots), it washed out really easily, and didn't leave my hair feeling at all weighed down. It also works wonders at getting through tangles and calming frizz.

Liz Earle Cleanse & Polish Hot Cloth cleanser - £14.75

I'm extremely late to the party on this one, in fact I've probably missed the boat altogether as I've seen a few bloggers become a little disillusioned with this much hyped product and shun it altogether. Personally I really like it, it reminds me of my beloved (and much cheaper) Soap & Glory hot cloth cleanser, as its pretty much the exact same product when it comes to the texture, application, and results. I'd say the only major difference is the smell, the Liz Earle cleanser is a lot richer and more herbal. Its the perfect double cleanse product, I use it after Bioderma to banish the last traces of makeup, and it leaves my skin feeling clean and soft. I'm not sure that I'd repurchase this one straight away as there are so many brilliant dupes out there, but it pips the post quality wise, and feels really gentle on the skin.

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