NEW & EXCLUSIVE to thepromakeupshop.com

As a busy working mother of 2 young children I am a big fan of anything ‘relaxing’! I was delighted when asked by Antonia Hawke of The Pro Make Up Shop to review the latest soothing and cooling high tech eye gels from South Africa otherwise known as Eye Slices. ‘Encapsulated in a patented Cryogel technology’ this new product claims to deliver ‘natural, yet effective ingredients to the skin around the eye which promises revitalising results within 5 minutes’. Eye Slices also aim to reduce puffiness, dark circles, redness, wrinkles and tired eyes. Just what I needed after a very busy weekend of working, networking, socialising and lack of sleep!

The packaging is very appealing and has every bit of information you need to know about Eye Slices including the fact that one pair can be used up to 10 times, they don’t need to be kept in the fridge and they need to be used within 2 weeks of opening. The set came with a plastic container which reminds me of an over-sized contact lens case – this is where you store your Eye Slices when not in use.

Before use I cleansed and dried my skin taking care to remove all traces of eye make-up. The Eye Slices are initially packaged in a foil backed clear fronted container which is ideal for keeping the moisture and ingredients locked into the slices. The product itself is green in colour with no distinct smell. The slices are very flexible and felt quite durable. Once removed from the packaging I placed a slice over each eye. I did need to press the slice quite firmly onto the closed eye so that it moulded to the contours of my eye and held it in place. The slice needs to be comfortable and be able to stay on the eye area when sitting up.

You can keep the Eye Slices on for 5-20 minutes so seeing as I was having some ‘me’ time they stayed on for the whole 20 minutes! I found them very relaxing and gentle on the eye area. They didn’t sting my eyes nor did the product feel drying.

My main areas of concern around the eye area are fine lines and dark circles so I was very pleased to find upon removal of the Eye Slices that my whole eye area was smooth, tight, less tired and above all there were less shadows under my eyes. For a first application I was very impressed with the results and will definitely be recommending these to my clients for use after a late night or early morning, plane journey or for that ‘pick me up’ when you want to look fresh and awake!

A big thumbs up from me!

Priced at £9.99 and £14.99 you can read more about these at http://www.promakeupshop.com/

Kelly Hollands

www.kellyhollands.co.uk

When I started looking at skincare as the basis of good, clean makeup, I was surprised at just how much I learned.  I’m not skincare trained, but I do know the basics, and understand that every skin is different and every skin needs different products in different combinations.

I asked the question, is it possible to reteach a generation of women who’ve grown up using soap and water, and does skincare need to be quite as complicated as it seems?

I came to the conclusion that yes, we can reteach women, and no, it doesn’t need to be overcomplicated.

I was also fortunate enough to try out the new skincare consultation bar at Clinique’s counter in Selfridges in London where those fabulous/horrific consultation mirrors point out every part of your skin that needs work!

Clinique has been around for many years, in fact, generations, and their philosophy has always been simple, 3 small steps.  In fact, they have a range called 3-step, comprising of a cleansing product, exfoliating product and a moisturising product.

This is their basic skincare plan, after that you ‘bolt on’ the additional treatment products that you need for your personal skincare plan.  A bit like buying a mobile phone, you buy the basics and add on the call/text plan that is specific to your needs!

But is it really that simple?   Well yes! You choose the 3 step plan according to your skin type, and in my case, I don’t like bar soap, so chose the facial wash instead, the clarifying lotion in number 2, and everyone has the dramatically different moisturising lotion, regardless of skin type.

After that, I felt, at 35, that I needed to be looking at age sign prevention, so I then added on the super rescue day cream, night cream and eye cream.  All of them are layered over the top of the 3 step.  Had I been older or had blemishes, I’d have chosen the appropriate products for those issues.

I also have the odd dry day here and there, so we decided that I ought to have the Moisture Surge Extended Thirst Relief, and I have to say, it does a wonderful job of flooding my skin with extra moisture on those days when I need it.

See, simple, start with the base skincare, then add on the bits you need to treat certain areas!

Over the last 2 months, I’ve been using these products and I have to say, that my skin is looking much better.  The lines around my eyes are never going to disappear, unless I’m prepared to go under the knife, but that’s actually okay, I laugh a lot, and am happy to show that!

What I have noticed is that my skin is considerably smoother and I get less dry patches.

I’ve always maintained that for someone who doesn’t know much about makeup or skincare, then they should head for clinique, and I certainly reinforce that now.  The makeup is easy and well thought out with great quality behind it, and the skincare system is simple.

Sam Donald

www.SamDonald.com

An electric brush for the face and body, by the makers of the Sonicare toothbrush.  Clarisonic Plus Skincare System RRP £170

I was really excited to try this new product and have been using the brush daily for about 4 weeks now. I can honestly say that I have not had one spot on my face during this time! I am not usually prone to a huge amount of spots, but I always have at least one or two around the chin once a month. But not this time.
The brush – which comes with a charging cradle – has a very ergonomic design. It is totally waterproof, so can be used in the shower or bath, and has interchangeable brush heads for face or body.

It has 3 different speeds for the face depending on your preference, and it also has a timer of 1 or 2 minutes. I found that 1 minute was not quite long enough to cleanse my face and neck, so opted for 2.
The brush feels gentle on the face, not at all abrasive. It is very easy to use, just glide the brush in circular motion over the face, starting on the forehead. It is a little tricky around the nose area, as the brush is fairly big and doesn’t move well in small areas. My skin didn’t look red or scrubbed when I’d finished, but felt really smooth and clean.

I have also been using the body brush on just the left side of my body, so that I could see the difference, but disappointingly, I haven’t noticed much change at all. The back of my left leg still has little bumps under the skin and generally the left side feels much the same as the right. I will still continue to use it though, as I think it may just need more time before changes are noticeable.

I have definitely noticed an improvement in my complexion. It appears to be brighter and less tired looking.
It’s well worth a try.

Amanda Roberts

Sam Donald

www.SamDonald.com

Drawing on over 17 years experience and many years of research, Caroline Clapperton, Owner and MD of Planet Skincare has created 2 products that are currently rocking the beauty world and shaking us all in our boots.

An Instant Firming Serum with Pepha-Tight, which instantly tightens the skin and fine lines and wrinnkles, no need to wait a month to see any effects, but over time, it does work on our natural collagen, making skin smoother and tighter and look so much firmer.

Interestingly, despite my own ‘good’ regime, and the thought that I had pretty good smooth skin, applying this each day was an eye opening experience.  As you smooth it onto freshly cleansed and exfoliated skin, it sinks in and refreshes instantly.  However, if you’ve been a little slack at exfoliating, you can really feel it.  to the normal fingertip touch, your skin might feel smooth and ‘normal’ but having this serum on your fingers seems to magnify when you need to up the ante on the skincare treatment.

Put it this way, my skin’s looked better than it has in a long time!

Combined with this is the Anti Ageing Daily Moisturiser, for both night and day, with Syn-ake.  A product that has been proven to reduce wrinkles by up to 52%.  This moisturiser has been dubbed all over the world as the infamous ‘botox alternative in a jar’, and I’d like to agree with Tatler, the LA Times, Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire and the New York Times…

But what is the reason for this mini miracle in a jar?  Luck?  Good facial massage action? That snake stuff?  Well actually yes, that snake stuff!  you see Syn-ake is a manmade mimmick of snake venom which paralyses, and having your face paralysed in botox form can give us that permanent surprised look, but this is a little different.

Okay, so that sounds too scientific – we’ve all heard the buzz words on the TV adverts, but in simple terms, the ingredients in this moisturiser stop the neurotransmitters which make our facial muscles tense, which in turn creates wrinkles.  It turns off that switch and therefore, the wrinkles are visibly reduced.

So good is this product that the deep wrinkles that I have under the corners of my eyes, (a hereditary groove, that my poor 4 year old son also has!) are being rapidly shrunk as the weeks go on.

Am I pleased with the results?  Yes!

Will I recommend the range?  Yes!

Is it worth the money?  at £75 for the serum and £60 for the moisturiser, it sounds like a whole lot of money, but in the last 3 weeks that I’ve been testing these products, you really do use a very small amount.  I’d guess these are 6 month products and for £5.50 a week, or £22 a month, that’s a lot less than the £40 non-product facial (don’t even ask!) that my local salon offers…