You Little Beauties – The Body Shop – Part Two

1.       Drops of Youth - £14 for 160ml

I was drawn to this product by the packaging to be honest.  Eye-catchingly simple; a vibrant green bottle with the words ‘Drops of Youth’.  Not that I want to be a 19 year old again but I wouldn’t mind my skin to be!  Discovering that it contained a powerful punch of unique ingredients, I couldn’t wait to try this little beauty.

Its boast is that it contains stem cells from three resilient plants known for their regenerating properties: Edelweiss, Criste Marine and Sea Holly.  Used daily, it’s said to activate healthy, plumped, hydrated, luminous skin and not to mention refining those pores (which is a big thing for me as mine are HUGE and I hate them).

So when would you use this essence?  If you’ve already read my blog on the ‘second step’ of skincare (‘Cleanse, WHAT and moisturise?  The Elusive 2nd Skincare Step!’ posted on 24/04/15), you will be aware that essences, softeners and lotions seem to have replaced the humble toner.  Most cleansers are now so gentle and effective, that that is no need to use a toner to get the pH of the skin back to normal.  However, these newbies are used after cleansing to prepare your skin for the next stage, whether it be serum and/or moisturiser and they tend to have specific ingredients for your particular concerns. 

So in my quest for my skin’s formative years, after cleansing, I shake four or five drops in the palm of my hands and then press the product into my skin.  You can massage it in of course but it’s a Clarins habit of pressing serums into the face that I haven’t grown out of.  It sinks in very quickly and I apply my eye product before popping on my serum and moisturiser. 

I really love this product; I’ve been using it for eleven days now and I think it’s given a luminosity to my skin as well as making my pores look more presentable.  It’s a huge bottle for the select few drops that you use - it will last me ages – therefore making it very good value for money indeed. 

 

2.        Honey Bronze Highlighting Dome - £8

I didn’t want to like this product!  Due to having shiny cheeks due to my HUGE pores, I tend to steer away from shimmer.  However, when I popped this pinky, coral shade on my cheeks, they really did pop (I have cool tones under a sallow skin).  Yes, it does have a gold shimmer to it but it’s so subtle, it really does look good.  I bought it to take on holiday with me – will look fab with a tan on the cheeks AND lips but because of that all-important ‘poppage’ I was talking about, I’ve been wearing it in the cloudy UK.   I’ve looked healthy (and alive).  You can glide it from the dome onto the apple of your cheeks and blend or apply with fingers from the dome.  Another plus is that it has a lovely honey fragrance to it as well.  It comes in three shades: golden, pink and bronze.