FIRST IMPRESSION: RIMMEL JUST LET IT GO... GENTLE EYE MAKEUP REMOVER

I'm sure you will know by now I love trying out different makeup removers (cream, micellar water based, oil and water, oil form).  The quicker, effective and the cheaper they are able to remove makeup, the better; of course.

I wanted to recommend a product I absolutely loved, after just using it once.

Rimmel Just Let It Go Gentle Eye Makeup Remover is not your usual choice of makeup remover but I've heard Viviannadoesmakeup raved about it for a couple of times in the past so I was intrigued and decided to give it a try.

A few drops of this liquidy (micellar water form) makeup remover on each cotton pad, covered my eyes and gently wiggle and apply the mildest form of pressure onto the eyes for about 30 seconds, voila, I'd say at least 90% of my eye makeup (including smudge and waterproof mascara) had been removed.

I was really impressed - I've never really used a non-oil form of makeup remover that's able to remove so much eye makeup in such a short space of time.  The solution is so gentle, too.  It didn't cause any irritation to my eyeballs at all, and it feels like just water on my skin.

Oh Rimmel, how I love your products; you seldom let me down!  For £3.59, it is an absolutely fabulously purse friendly and effective makeup remover that you can ever wish for.

Have you tried this before?  Do you have other budget friendly makeup remover that you can recommend?

BOSCIA MAKEUP BREAKUP COOL CLEANSING OIL REVIEW

I'm constantly on the hunt for the most effective way to remove those lovely makeup that I wear almost on a daily basis.  My favourite and can't live without makeup products include: eyeliners (black or dark brown), mascara, a light smokey eye shadows combo.  So, a good makeup remover is absolutely my thing to remove them completely - I don't enjoy seeing pimples and spots creeping up as a result of dirt remained on my face!

Boscia Makeup Breakup Cool Cleansing Oil (£17/ USD$28) is the latest makeup remover I tried.  Although not readily available in shops in the UK, it can still be purchased easily from across the pond on the Sephora website.   Anyway, back to business...... As you can see I'm almost finishing the last bit of this cleansing oil, so what I thought about it?

I liked it and found it effective but it didn't blow me away completely.  For me, apart from my eye makeup, I almost always wear a foundation or bb cream, blusher, bronzer, fill in my brows, lip products; so a full face of makeup.  I needed a good 6 pumps of oil to remove my makeup to the fullest.  All you do is to dispense enough amount of oil (in my case at least 6 pumps) then massage it directly onto a dry face with circular motion.  I tend to spend more time on massaging my eyes, forehead, round my nose areas and chin.  After a face full of oil mixed with makeup melting away, just rinse face with warm tap water, continue massaging with circular motion to further breakdown any impurities and makeup.  The cleansing oil doesn't remove all the makeup completely.  I don't find it particularly strong at removing waterproof eyeliners and mascara like what I would expect.  However, even though this is a cleansing oil, I only found it hydrating but not greasy on my skin at all.  But a double-cleanse procedure is vital.  I always follow up using a cleansing balm for a deeper facial cleansing and usually that completes the whole cleansing procedure.

Would I repurchase again?  I don't think I would, purely based on the price, I have tried better products out there, such as Clarins Instant Eye Makeup Remover or Clinique Take The Day Off Makeup Remover which have both worked amazingly well in removing makeup without much effort needed.  Cheaper alternatives which I have tried and loved is The Body Shop Camomile Eye & Lip Makeup Remover, you can read a more in depth review here; or Bioderma Sensibio H20 which is loved by almost all makeup artists and bloggers but not necessary my cup of tea!

Is this something you have tried before?  What's your favourite makeup remover at all times?

#Bumpfest 2014

Did you have a lovely weekend?  What did you do?  Well, for Mr Holiday and I; we were kindly invited by Aldi (The only Sponsor of Bumpfest 2014) to attend the first ever Bumpfest 2014 organised by mumsnet which took place on 27 Sept.

It's a whole day event full of different talks and with various stalls to browse at.  We have enjoyed all the sessions that were arranged, such as Baby First Aid (British Red Cross), Building your babies brain: Masterclass with Dr Penelope Leach, etc.  It's such a good mixed of topic of talks that Mumsnet has arranged for all who attended the event.  It also offers a great chance to talk to other mom-to-be, and a safe environment to share your ideas and ask about things that you don't understand!  

A number of organisations also had their beautiful stalls set up which of course include Aldi, which they had brought along a number of their Award-Winning products such as mamia baby nappies and wipes, also baby food.  Aldi has also set up a Aldi Mamia Parent Club which is a totally cool concept  where you can check out all the latest for bumps and babas, as well as a forum for all parents to chit-chat!  Quite similar to the idea of Mumsnet, which I think it's a fantastic idea for moms to share and exchange their tips about pregnancy, and their babies, etc.

Honestly, I didn't know about Aldi offers such a wide range of baby's products with such smashing prices, so it was a real eye-opener!  I'm definitely going to check out Aldi from now on on a regular basis!

Before the day ended, we were all given a complimentary goody bag which contained loads of Aldi's goodies: food and baby's essentials, pampering products for babies and mom.  It's such a thoughtful mix of products for both mommy-to-be and babies.

Mr Holiday and I had such a fantastic day at the event, with lots of useful information (not overloaded!) and goodies taken home!  I feel like my baby is so lucky to benefit from all these, even he made his appearance to this world!

Well done everyone who was involved in making #Bumpfest 2014 such a great success!


*This attendance of the event was sponsored by Aldi, however all the opinions above are of my 100% honest views.

THE DAILY PAMPERING TRIO WHEN PREGNANT

When I'm pregnant I noticed that there is a lot of subtle changes occurred on my body.  My face and body both suffer from extra dryness.  Now I have something I can thank Cussons Mum & Me for their range of body pampering products!  

**Smooth & Glow Pregnancy Shampoo and **Conditioner are a great hair combination.  I remember the first time when I used it, as I was washing my hair I could already feel how soft both products made my hair.  The shampoo is a gel like texture product, and the conditioner is a thicker creamy texture.  It feels amazing especially if you use it during your third trimester as you tend to feel the heaviest and the most tired.

**Bump Hydrate & Nourish Shower Cream is a thick and creamy shower cream which any mom-to-be will definitely want to give it a try.  As your bump gets bigger, the skin stretches out so much that sometimes you feel itchy and dry; the last thing you want is something that's skin-stripping.  This shower cream hydrates and nourishes your bump, if it isn't too dry you can get away without having to apply any body moisturisers.

Are you tempted to give these products a go?  They are worth a while in my opinion.

**PR samples.  This post is not sponsored, nor am I paid to publish this post.  All opinions are of my own, they are honest and geniue. 

THREE DISAPPOINTING MASCARAS

Me and Mascaras go back a long way - I have tried so many in the past years and I am only happy with a handful: this hand, that hand, and my hand.  As my lashes are neither full or long, or curl; it's so difficult to find my Mr Right in the mascara department.

Last month, I was itching to try some new mascaras so I picked up three in one go.  It's about time I should report back how they'd go; although without having read up to this sentence, from the title of this blogpost, the answer has been given away....

The three mascaras in questions were:

Rimmel Wonderfull Mascara: I have liked a Rimmel mascara in the past, instead of repurchasing what worked; I ventured out into something new.  And this copper colour tube mascara is one of the latest to Rimmel's mascara collection.  I was interested in the 'Argan Oil' ingredient and thinking of whilst putting on makeup, I'm adding skincare benefits to my lashes - what a great idea.  This mascara is a plastic bristle wand which is flexible (bandy, shall we say?).  I found that this mascara has rather a 'weak formula' for someone whose lashes needs lots of drama even under the guidance of building and building it up with lots and lots of coats.  I found that the mascara is difficult go grip to my lashes, hence giving them volume.  The good thing though is that it doesn't budge.

Revlon PhotoReady 3D Volume:  As it says on the packaging this mascara is supposed to give '3D volume'.... I don't agree with it entirely but that's what it's drawn to me to give it a whirl at the first place.  Yet again the brush is a plastic bristle, but it's a lot firmer than its Rimmel counterpart.  I need at least 4-5 coats on each side of lashes to build up what I call 'volume', I can't say the result is 3D nor dramatic either so I'm a little bit disappointed by it.  Although it's not one that I would chuck away immediately, it definitely needed a patient lady to work on it.  I mean, needing 4-5 coats to build up some volume is quite a bit of effort, especially if you don't have much time to spend on applying make up.  However, despite the effort, the mascara doesn't go clumpy so I guess if you do have the time in the world, it would work for you.

Seventeen Doll'd up Mascara: I'm a complete newbie to any mascaras by Seventeen.  It's a brand I often overlook.  When I saw that this Doll'd up mascara has a moon creasent shaped plasticky wand, it totally reminded me of one of my favourite mascaras by Max Factor.  I was expecting curl, volume and lengths, just as how MF's mascara pleased me.  However, this turns out to do nothing to me, no matter how hard (how many coats) I tried to work with it.  Even when I have prepped my lashes well beforehand - curl it using an eyelash curler, applying a lash base coat; it just doesn't work.    I'm most disappointed with this mascara out of the other two that I've bought.  However, I would still want to try other mascaras by Seventeen as I've heard good reviews about other of their mascaras.

Have you tried any of the above mascaras before?  What's your staple mascara and what do you look for in a mascara?

TRIED & TESTED: CUSSONS MUM & ME STRETCH MARK CREAM REVIEW

Pregnant ladies like myself, especially first time mommy is most likely to be concerned with, aside from the healthy growth of their offsprings; is the appearance stretch marks on their daily growing and stretching bump throughout the pregnancy.  If you've missed my previous episodes on other stretch mark prevention products, you can catch up on here or here.  

This time I wanted to give you a little review on another stretch mark cream by Cussons Mum & Me, that I have tried.  Let me just make things clear first.  As I lather creams on my body at least twice daily, I go through them like there's no tomorrow, so a reasonably priced product is high in the priority list when it comes to a stretch mark product.  For £9.99 you get 125ml of the product which is pretty good and sits at the mid-range price points amongst all other maternity brands.

Luckily, I haven't noticed any new stretch marks developed throughout my pregnancy.  I am not sure whether this is due to the fact that I apply creams from week 13 (start of my 2nd trimester), or I have been lucky enough to escape from it this time round.  However, from previous weight changes, I do have some stretch marks around my belly and my lower back, which have become more visible as my pregnancy goes, and as my belly stretches out.

I have been using this cream for a good month or so (a 25ml sample was included in the Bounty pack for mum-to-be), now I'm happily sailing onto this bigger tub.  For convenience and practical reason, I apply a cream form products in the morning after a shower, and an oil in the evening.  It's just my personal preference but I'd much prefer to use oils all the way, purely because I have quite dry skin.  

First thing first, I quite like the packaging, it's modern, and clean, and I can easily scoop the product out from the packaging which saves a lot of time!  I found that this cream is fairly thick in texture which is quite similar to other creams that I have tried.  However it is absorbed by my skin really quickly so I don't feel greasy at all after application.  I'm normally quite generous with the amount I put on, my bump, my thighs, my breasts, and my lower back areas; and I feel that my skin is almost instantly hydrated and moisturised which is fantastic.  As I have heard from fellow mommy friends that sometimes they feel that they suffer from extra dry skin during pregnancy, so I think in that sense, this cream has ticked the box of providing moisture for the all important bump areas.

When I first applied it on my skin, I feel a slight 'minty' sensation which is rather nice, and refreshing especially I use this in the morning.  The 'minty' sensation isn't irritating either and hasn't caused any irritation to my skin which I'm thankful for, as I have sensitive skin all round (face and body).  Similar to the Stretch Mark Fader Serum I've tried, it shares a familiar scent - citrusy; I wondered if it's due to Tamanu oil, one of the key ingredients in this product.  It's not an overpowering scent which is great as I can be quite put off my the whole citrusy scented product.... but that's just me!

The only downside with this product is that the cream is not suitable to be used on breasts when breastfeeding.  As I'm already 37 weeks pregnant, I am not sure if I'm going to be able to use up the whole tub before the baby arrives, hence I won't be able to use it anymore as I'm planning to breastfeed.  I mean, I suppose I could still continue using it postpartum however I can't imagine myself having the time to 'avoid' my breasts area when applying this cream.  

I would recommend this product to you all pregnant ladies out there if you want to give this brand a try.  It's got my seal of approval on:

• price vs amount of product - a 125ml tub of cream can probably last you for a good 10 - 12 weeks 
• effectiveness - non-greasy and absorbed quickly by the skin
• skin-loving - no allergic reaction and is clinically proven and dermatologist approved
• accessible - available in most stores

What other stretch mark products have you tried?  Is this one you would go for?

Cussons Mum & Me Products are available in major supermarkets, Boots and Mothercare for £9.99 (125ml).

**PR Sample

NIP + FAB DEEP CLEANSING FIX REVIEW

If you are a regular here on Borb you would know my love for a good cleansing balm, it's soothing, clean and easy.  If you want to read a couple of my reviews, you can click here and here.

A few months ago, I completely ran out of all of my cleansing balm so I was in the market for a new one.  I was not in a spendy mood so I wanted something a little price-friendly on my wallet.  I stumbled across NIP + FAB Deep Cleansing Fix in Boots.  I've heard of good things about this brand so I thought let's give it a try.  I was also really attracted by how reasonably priced this was, for £7.95 you get 300ml products, it's a massive tub.  

I'm half way through the tub, and have been using it every night for the past few months; I think I have formed a better view on this.

As you can see from the picture above, it looks like quite a thick and creamy texture and it is.  It's one of the thickest texture cleansing balms I have tried.  I have to say the first time when I dug my fingers in I didn't like it because it's a little too thick, but as I use it more often, I am better at controlling how much product I need for my whole face.  I use this as part of my double facial cleanse process, I massage my face and neck with this, it doesn't irritate my eyes so it's great to cleanse off any remaining eye makeup that I have left on my face.  I like using a hot steamy flannel to wipe off all the products, then I'm left with a very clean face.  I wouldn't recommend this to oily skin girl as it does feel quite moisturising to my face, which I have dry skin.  Although it doesn't feel greasy at all and doesn't leave like an oil-film on my face after washing.  This survived through the hot summer that we had so that's quite a test on the product, and am sure this will be even more soothing and moisturising for the skin during the winter.  

If you don't have a big budget or not prepared to pay a lot of money on a cleansing balm, or someone who wants to give cleansing balm/cream a try, I would recommend this product to you.  To be honest though, I'm half way through this tub and feel a little tired of using up the rest.... perhaps I've used better ones in the past, so I might just keep this to one side and get something else instead.

Are you a cleansing balm kind of girl?  What have you tried and what do you recommend?