got milk?

in the week before mother's day, the only word i could thing of to describe my skin was "stressed." not because of mother's day, that would be a bit dramatic, but it was just playing up really bad. enter korres milk soap for stressed skin. as soon as i saw the words "stressed" and "skin" i pounced haha.

korres say:

Milk has been used as a cosmetic since antiquity for its moisturising, purifying and nourishing properties. It is still considered an invaluable skincare ingredient due to its rich composition and skin compatibility. Thanks to their excellent absorption and water-binding ability, milk proteins have excellent moisturising properties, offering more than 40% essential amino acids that cannot be synthesised by human cells. They play a vital role in the maintenance of collagen, elastin and keratin. They have a high affinity with the skin’s natural components and are acknowledged to be true epidermomimetic substances, remarkably biocompatible, and therefore perfectly well

tolerated.

you get two bars of soap in a handy little container; i've been using it daily (sometimes twice daily) since mother's day and it's made a definite improvement. it's really mild, so suitable for the most sensitive skin i think. it leaves my skin squeaky clean after and i kind of like that; it makes me feel like something's going right. since i've been using it, my pores have gone smaller and my skin in general looks a lot more calm. it only costs £4 and i'm only just half way through my first bar! also, i've always had really problematic skin on my neck; not spots or anything, but really dry and i tend to have a permanent red patch on my neck. nothing gets rid of it other than steroid cream, which you're not supposed to use long term. but since using this soap, it's actually cleared it up! i definitely recommend trying this :)

who loves korres? shanice loves korres!

sorry for the ridiculously cheesy title, but i didn't want to just name the product like i normally do ha! i braved the streets of cardiff alone today, and i have to admit..i loved it! no-one standing around huffing and puffing whilst i take my time, no-one making me huff and puff whilst they take their time, no debate over where to go for food and no visits to new look! (i hate new look, with a passion, but that's a whole different story for a whole different blog-post).

i managed to find my local korres all by myself today. this is quite an achievement because i usually just stumble across it when i'm supposed to be in another shop, but this time i actually found it! (if you shop at cardiff and want to know where it is, you go through the big boots in queen street, into the arcade, then it's to the left of the fragrance/perfume shop..i can't remember which haha, but its really close to boots!). literally every time i've been in there, there hasn't been anyone else in the shop. this is a definite plus because the sales assistants give me their full attention and there's no hustle and bustle. also..the buy one get one free on everything in store is still going! amazing! today, one of the things i picked up was a lip butter.

i find the little pots so cute and handy :) doesn't the actual lip butter look quite vampy? that picture was before i stuck my fingers in and messed it all up, it doesn't look so perfect now :(. i suppose i'm slightly bias since i'm in love with korres, but really, this is the best lip butter/balm i've ever tried! you know the little pictures of pots on cosmetics that tell you how long they last? e.g. 3 months, 6 months etc? this one has 24 months! i suppose it'd be a little bit unhygienic to have it that long, but who cares?

korres say: "A buttery lip balm that melts on the lips and offers a shiny, tinted finish. The combination of Shea butter and Rice wax offers deep hydration and softness. Ideal for chapped lips." and i completely agree! it costs £6 so hardly breaks the bank and i can imagine the pot lasting ages. can definitely see this becoming a holy grain product.

please ignore any hideous spots you might see in the pictures above, my skin and i aren't getting on lately. skin issues aside, isn't the lip butter great?! it's just tinted enough to make a difference :) try as i might, i can't work out what shade i have or remember what other shades there are, sorry!

korres wild rose mask

my local(ish) korres shop in cardiff always has some sort of offer on. the last time i went there it was buy one get one free on all cosmetics, this time..it was buy one get one free on everything in store! i picked up the wild rose "instant brightening & illuminating" face mask. it cost me either £16 or £16.50 (well not really, it was my free purchase :)) and for that, you get 40ml of product. korres recommend using it once or twice a week.

the images above (sorry about the size difference) show the packaging :) every single bit of the packaging is recyclable, yet another thing i love about korres. the picture below shows the inside of the pot.

korres say:

A pure white mask for a clear and radiant complexion, suitable for all skin types. An instant brightening effect is immediately visible from the first application. Wild Rose oil is a natural source of vitamin C, which demonstrates significant repairing activity to fine lines and skin marks. At the same time, a complex of herbal extracts targets skin discolorations, adding brightness and radiance to the skin. An instant brightening effect is immediately visible from the first application of the mask.

i have to be honest..i agree with every word of that. i used it after a night of alcohol, not much sleep, an unusually bad cold, and a lot of crying and it honestly worked wonders! i have extremely sensitive skin and there was no irritation at all :) i'll definitely be repurchasing this, even with the £16 price tag.

korres guava lipstick

i seem to be falling in love with this brand. i love how they seem to be more about enhancing your natural beauty, rather than masking it all up; and the fact that korres uses a lot of natural ingredients is definitely a plus! i've browsed the website a couple of times, but never really appreciated how good their products are until i went into the shop. it was amazing. it's only a little shop, but there's so much crammed into it, without it looking cluttered! it's just really sleek and nice :). i picked up the guava lipstick in natural pink, it's gorgeous!

that's with two light coats, applied straight from the lipstick. it's really one of those i'm-not-wearing-any-lipstick lipsticks. it looks a little bit pinker in real life, but still nice and neutral. you don't need to wear lipliner with it, and you don't even have to look in the mirror :) on the pack, it says "moisturising/intense colour." normally you have to choose between the two, but with guava lipsticks you seem to be able to have them both. they last for ages and don't feel drying or tacky on the lips. i really like the packaging too btw, really can't fault korres on anything! definitely be popping into the shop next time i'm in cardiff :)

korres cherry lipgloss

just curious, does anyone actually know how to pronounce "korres"? i'm torn between "cores", as in apple cores, or "core-ez". anyway, i LOVE korres' cherry lipglosses, they smell delicious! like cherry, obviously.. the smell is really strong when you first put it on, but it wears off after a while and then you just get a whiff of it every now and then. it smells so strong because there's cherry oil in there, which "hydrates the lips", i think it really works. there's also vitamins C and E for "antioxidant protection." it feels like a pretty lipbalm, not a lipgloss.

that's "beige pink" ignore the shape of my lips, they look quite disfigured haha). i wore it to school today and it didn't dry out my lips or anything. it's been a really windy day but the lipgloss seems to repel my hair instead of sticking to it. i'm trying to think of something bad to say but there really isn't anything i can think of! unless you don't like the smell of cherries haha, that's probably not something you'd want. you can buy them on the korres website, i got mine in the actual korres shop for £15, so it should be about the same amount on the website :)