Review: Clinique Smart Custom Repair Serum

Clinique Smart Custom Repair Serum 30mls £48 50mls £68 100mls £110

Hey guys, I love trying out new skincare and I've been using this for about 2 months now so think it's time for a review. 

What they say: 

Clinique Smart Custom Serum.

 A serum that can change your skin’s future. Now there’s a custom serum smart enough to understand your skin’s past and change its appearance in the future. - Addresses the appearance of uneven skin tone, lines and wrinkles, firming, or radiance - For all ages, all ethnicity - Five years of research. Patented technology

What I say:

I used this not expecting much to be honest as aging isn't one of my main concerns but thought 'hey I'll just it as 'insurance' for my skin' if you like. After about a week of using this (on a night generally) I actually forgot to put foundation on - it wasn't till I finished my make up I realised I hadn't applied any base (VERY unlike me) I couldn't believe it my skin actually looked good enough to go foundation less! It must have been doing something. Then to top it off a few nights later after taking my make up off before bed and doing the whole skincare routine, I went to get into bed and my boyfriend said are you not taking your make up off before you go to bed!!?? What!! Now let me start by explaining first that he's very much your typical bloke and doesn't even notice when I change hair colour never mind not removing my make up before bed. I asked if he was joking and told him I'd just washed my face. He then said 'wow your skin looks really nice like make up' (very blokey thing to say). Well that comment alone sold this product to me and I will 100% be repurchasing after this runs out only I'll be going for the large size next time!  

This serum would be suitable for a lot of skin types. In particular I think this would be a fab starter serum for someone who doesn't know where to start in the world of serums as it targets each different personal skin concern. It 'knows' your skin and targets problem areas that you're not even aware of yet hence why this is a 'SMART' serum. I would work well under your usual moisturiser therefore it just slots right into your routine easily. I love the fact it targets a range of skin problems, it just makes it a multi tasker in it's own right.

The consistency is almost gel like and it instantly absorbs into the skin, I never notice a residue left on my skin which is perfect as I'm more on the oilier side, it does leave a nice velvety finish on the skin and would be suitable for all skin types. A very oily skin may want to skip using this on the mornings and just save for evenings but personally I've worn it under moisturiser and make up and it sat beautifully.

All in all I really recommend this serum and feel most skins would benefit from using this, if you have a few concerns you want to target and don't want to buy separate products then this is the serum for you, I also think this is just perfect for a persons first serum and it targets the majority of skin complaints.

There's no doubt that I'll be using this serum in for a long time and will certainly be stocking up. 

What do you guys think? Have you tried it?

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Skincare: Night routine

After a rest from blogging after having Sienna I have decided to come back into it, I was umming and ahhing whether to start it back up but in all honesty I really missed blogging for just blogging, you know what I mean? So here goes I thought my first post back should be a beauty one and since sleep has recently become so important to me I feel this post is quite relevant :)

We all know we should take our make up off at night and slap on some moisturiser and get some shut eye, right? Now, I know there will be loads of people out there that give their faces and swift wipe of a baby wipe and call it a night for their nightly routine - I'm here to try and convince you to stop doing that. Please. 

So here's my routine and what I'm using at the moment - if you want individual reviews of anything in particular let me know. 

Step One: Take that make up off - I'm using The Body Shop Chamomile Silky Cleansing Oil £10.00 at the moment. Even if you do nothing else, always remove your make up or sunscreen. If you just wash your face without  previously taking your make up off then it's just like getting in the shower with your clothes on - pointless. Take it off so you can actually cleanse your skin. You don't have to use anything fancy to remove it either. One of my favourite make up removers is Lush ultrabland cleanser used with a (clean) muslin or flannel - it's cheap and effective.  

Step Two: Cleanse - So yeah that's pretty much self explanatory really. After step one I cleanse my face. I'm not particularly loyal to any cleansing product (yet!) at the moment I'm using an origins cleanser which is really lovely actually - foams up nicely which I personally like although I know some people prefer cream cleanser which is fine. I like to use a muslin or flannel to wash my face at this point although sometimes I use it at step one instead - just to switch things up- I'm all about the spice of life. Origins Never A Dull Moment £18.50

Step Three: Exfoliate (sometimes) - Now I say sometimes as I don't always use a manual exfoliant but when I do this is the point in which I do it. By using a muslin or flannel in the previous steps you will be gently exfoliating every day bear in mind. Once a week/fortnight/whenever I can I will also do a face mask at this point. The two exfoliants I'm using at the moment are Dermalogica Daily Microfoliant £41.30 (although you can find it cheaper on sites like lookfantasic.com when they have offers so shop around) and Origins Modern Friction £33 pricey but so worth it. Another favourite is the Clinique Exfoliating Scrub £17

Step Four: Tone (sometimes) - Here I go with the sometimes again!.. I say sometimes because I generally don't tone if I've exfoliated manually as it's made my skin sensitive in the past so I'm wary of it now. I switch between toners and toning lotion type products where I feel necessary. At the moment I'm using Origins United State £18.50 at the moment but before that I was using Origins A Perfect World which was more of a lotion type product and it was gorgeous - I would have used this product after exfoliating as it was so gentle. I also love the Boots Botanics rose water toner, it's gorgeous - in fact I haven't used that in forever so I'm hoping it hasn't been discontinued.

Step Five: Serum/Oil/Treatment - Choose your poison and go for it. I'm a big fan of Estée Lauder Advanced Night Repair so usually have a bottle of this one the go. Currently though I'm testing out the new Clinique serum and so far so good (watch this space for a review) if you're on treatment from the doctors or dermatologist here is where I'd apply it. 

Step Six: Eye cream - I like to plonk on eye cream after my treatment, I feel like the treatment might creep towards my eye area and give me some added boost lol. Am I the only one? I personally like to use eye cream as I wear contacts and I'm constantly touching my eye area so I'm convinced I'm going to have really bad wrinkles soon. I'm using the Bobbi Brown Hydrating Eye Cream £32 at the moment - I will be doing a review on this soon as I've been using it for a while now. 

Step Seven: Moisturise - Wow Seven!? I didn't realise I did so much, although two of the steps are usually missed out at times. Does that make it any less long? Lol no? Ok. So, moisturising, this is  for me so important to get right for your skin. It's amazing how much difference a good moisturiser make  can do for your skin. I like to switch up the moisturiser and use different brands/formula's depending on what's going on with my skin. I've been using Khiels Skin Rescuer Moisturiser £29.50 and Neal's Yard Power Berry £23.75. I have used the Neal's Yard moisturiser for about 5-6 years now and it definitely my most repurchased cream, the Khiels cream is one that I bought in January and I alternate between the two. It's almost run out now after all this time so I would say its value for money too. 

Step Eight: Sleep! Oh yes sleep, sleep and sleep - get your monies worth out of those products and let them get to work. Eight hours of shut eye if you can please - easier said than done or what? 

So there you have my night time routine - it looks so long up here but it honestly takes me 5-10 mins max depending on what I'm doing, obviously a face mask takes longer.

What's your night time skin are routine? What are your must have products? 

Thanks for reading :)

Siobhan xxx

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Lifestyle update: I'm expecting :)

This is just a quick little post to say I'm Pregnant! If you follow me on Twitter or Instagram you might be already aware that me and my Mr are expecting out first offspring who will be due in December. Which makes me 14 weeks pregnant... It's so weird saying that! Lol...

I don't plan on doing pregnancy posts on here as of yet but I might have the odd thing here and there along the way, but only if its relevant. My current blog will stay the same as that's just the way I want to keep it, goodness knows if I'll merge the two one day but for now this blog will stay the same! :)

 I am however setting up a pregnancy blog. I wanted to have something that I can look back on over the years and maybe even show him/her in years to come.. Awww! 

The link to my Pregnancy blog is www.couturemummy.blogspot.co.uk 

So if your interested in pregnancy then feel free to follow my pregnancy blog and don't be shy! Any advice will not be fallen on deaf ears I promise! 

Anyway back to business! Beauty blogging won't happen itself ;) 

Siobhan xxx

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