Skincare Archives • Page 2 of 3 • A Love Affair Blog

Favorite skincare items and my routine.

October 27, 2016 36 Comments

I haven’t always been one to take specially good care of my skin. Genetically I have extremely amazing skin. I rarely get any breakouts. I don’t have any texture. And, the only thing that I really am dealing with is some minor redness. But, as I am becoming older. And since my interest in beauty has grown progressively. I’m now obsessed with skincare and really interested in not only using, but also learning about the benefits of using them. So, I have rounded up some of my absolute favorite skin care items. These are the ones that I am using the most at the moment. I always recommend you to pick up samples of all of these items. Firstly to try them out and also to make sure you won’t have any allergic reaction to the product. As usual, all the items talked about will be linked in this post. And at the bottom I will have a shop this post gallery.

Beauty, Skincare

Hawaiian Tropic Silk Hydration Weightless

June 30, 2016 1 Comment

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Hawaiian Tropic®. The opinions and texts are all mine.

A few weeks ago was Memorial Day, and as much I wish I could spend my day out in the sun, I was working that day. But, that doesn’t stop me from being prepared for all the festivities this summer. We are getting close to 4th of July already! I swinged by Walmart to pick up and try out the Hawaiian Tropic® Sunscreen Silk Hydration Weightless. The Silk Hydration Weightless is water-resistant for up to 80 minutes and have a really nice scent of the tropics, like the whole line of Hawaiian Tropic® products do. You can choose to buy an SPF 15 or an SPF 30. I always go for the higher but that is only my personal preference! The first thing I noticed was the packaging. The Hawaiian Tropic® Sunscreen Silk Hydration Weightless has a sleek round packaging with a pump which is very different from other Hawaiian Tropic® products I have used before. I really like it and it does’nt get as messy as when you only have a cap and press out the product. It also looks way nicer. I think that Hawaiian Tropic® is one of the most common brands I see among friends and family so it is definitely a favorite not only for me, but many others too. I am going back to Sweden for a wedding in just a few weeks, and to visit friends and family too, of course! Hopefully we will have the wonderful summer weather and that means a very strong sun as well. Staying protected from the sun and UV is extremely important. Especially for me now that I live in Los Angeles where it is sunny bsically every day year around. But I am still terrible at remembering to use it. I have tried, and I own a lot of different sunscreens but what I truly like about the Hawaiian Tropic® Sunscreen Silk Hydration Weightless is how weightless it is, and feels! The name lives up to it’s expectations and the sunscreen melts in really nicely into your skin. In comparison to many other sunscreens you can barely even feel that the Silk Hydration Weightless is on and it also leaves your skin hydrated and smooth without that heavy oily feeling which I often dislike. The reason for the weightless feeling is a unique formula of hydrating silk ribbons. So far I absolutely love this sunscreen mostly because of the weightless feeling and will definetley try to be better at wearing suncare!

Beauty, Skincare

Summer essentials With Clinique

June 3, 2016 7 Comments

About two weeks ago I went to a super fun poolside event with Clinique here in Beverly Hills. We got to sip on drinks, eat breakfast and make our own ice cream macaroons while looking at all the Clinique news for the summer. We also got make overs and touch ups by Clinique consultants while discussing skin and makeup products.I got a ton of fun new items with me and I am gonna share my absolute favorites from Clinique that you need this summer. I also got to do this super fun and cool underwater shoot which I will show some pictures of lastly in the post.

I am gonna start with skin products because for me a good healthy base makes everything for when you do apply your makeup. I have not used a lot of Clinique skin care products before. I have tried the eye treatment cream as well as the makeup remover (which is awesome). I have extremely dry skin during the winter, and less, but still dry, skin during the summers. So, after discussing my skin and my problems with the Clinique consultants I got the 3-step kit with me home that was suited for my skin and its needs. I got to try both the liquid and the foam cleanser, and personally, I prefer the liquid formula. I just feel like it cleans more than the foam formula does. The foam would probably be good for days when i feel like I need something more gentle or just haven’t worn makeup on my face. Number 2 is considered the exfoliator and comes in 6 different formulas. It does sting a lot if you have brakeouts on your skin so be prepared for that as it is super strong. I think that it is important for you to discuss your skin and problems with a Clinique consultant to make sure you get the right one for your skin. And lastly you use the moisturizer which I absolutely LOVE. The moisturizer is my favorite of the 3-step products.
Secondly as summer is around the corner I cant tell you enough how important it is to wear sunscreen. Not only to avoid being burnt, but to avoid skin cancer, wrinkles, sun spots and other problems that can be caused by UV lights. Clinique has released a new sunscreen product: The Mineral Sunscreen is a super light, easy blendable, sunscreen with Titanium Dioxide and Zinc Oxide which protects agains the UVB rays as well as UVA which are the lights that makes your skin age and get wrinkly. It comes in two sizes, one for body and one for face, and both are pretty sleek and good to-go and vacation sizes and it comes in SPF 30 or SPF 50.

Lastly lets talk some makeup. Because of the heat I like to stay as natural as possible. Because sweating happens to all of us and when its 40 degrees outside in LA, I don’t want to have a ton of makeup running over my face. I like to go all natural most of the times but sometime you want to put on some makeup too. Some of my favorite makeup products that I got to check out was definitely the Chubby In The Nude foundation stick (unfortunately I did not get it with me, but I have already ordered it for myself). It was so incredibly smooth, super light weight and gave a natural coverage without feeling heavy. Honestly. I didn’t feel it on my skin at all.

Okay, lets move on to the products that I actually got to bring with me home! The Pop Lip Colour + Primer Lipsticks definitely caught my eyes and I am so happy that I got to bring some of these babies with me home. The two favorite colors are Bare Pop and Cola Pop. Both very natural and not to bold – which is totally me! The lipsticks are highly pigmented, extremely smooth and super moisturizing. The finish has a nice sheen and the Bare Pop looks a lot like my own lip color so they are perfect for adding som moisture and just make it look like I have more of a gloss on my lips.

And lastly the Stay Matte Universal Blotting Powder. The Clinique consultants added this as a finish on my makeup and I just absolutely loved this as well. It gave me such a nice finish without creasing or patching skin.I love Clinique’s Blended Face Powder a lot but this one might knock it down on my favorites list.

And lastly, some photos from my Underwater Shoot!

This is a sponsored post in collaboration with Clinique. Some poducts shown or talked about in this post may have been given to me as a gift.

Beauty, Makeup, Skincare

Lancôme Beauty

May 14, 2016 9 Comments

Lancôme sent me this amazing package with beauty goodies. I literally died as I opened the box and a ton of beauty products were in there. I essentially got 6 different products but a lot of them cam e in a ton of different colors and shades. I have actually never tried any beauty products from Lancôme before si I was super excited about this package and to try some beauty products from them! All the products that I got focuses on the eyes so I received the Cils Booster XL which is a Mascara primer as well as the Hypnose Drama Mascara. For the eyelids I got the Color Design Eyeshadow Palette in the shade 108 Beige Brulée as well as the Drama-Liquid-Pencil and the Artliner. I also got the Bi-Facil eye makeup remover. All these products can be found at Sephora.

The packaging for all the items are overall really nice and feels very luxurious. The eyeshadow palette has a mirror inside as well.

The eyeshadow palette is really nice and soft, almost creamy, and gives a nice color payoff. I love the neutrals in this particular one and it is totally what I would wear for and everyday makeup look. It contains of 4 matte shadows and one shimmer. As for the mascara I do really like it. It gives you a normal length and some volume. The primer that I also got helps adding even more length before putting on the Mascara. But this is not my absolute favorite Mascara, that I have to say.

Now these eyeliner pencils have probably become my absolute favorite eyeliners, ever! One applied they stick and won’t smudge or come off unless you use some sort of liquid to remove it. Praise the lord because summer and heat is here and I can wear eyeliner without worrying about it now! The eyeliner pencil , also called Drama Liquid-Pencil comes in a ton of different colors and shades and of course my favorites are the black, brown and white ones. Most of them do have some shimmer in them, but it won’t be that noticeable unless you draw a thick line.

Now the Artliner is more of a liquid pen that draws much finer lines. Just like the pencil the colors have shimmer in them. I would say that the Artliner has more shimmer in them. I do like them both a lot but the Pencil is my personal preference and it also comes in a ton of different fun colors. As you can see the Artliner has much brighter colors to choose from and the eyeliner almost look metallic once dried. So does some of the eyeliner pencils but not all of them.

Beauty, Skincare

The New Secret Outlast Xtend

April 29, 2016 11 Comments

As a blogger who’s always on the move between work and play, it’s important to me to have a deodorant that keeps up with my everyday life. Secret recently launched a new line of deodorants called Secret Outlast Xtend that guarantees 48-hour odor protection, making it the perfect deodorant for the person-on-the-go who needs some extended protection throughout the day. I partnered up with Secret to review the both the Invisible Solid and Clear Gel Formulas from the Outlast Xtend collection to see which one I liked better!

Though I’m a lifelong fan of gel deodorants, I took both formulas to the test to see if they would really keep up with me for 48 hours. I used the Clear Gel formula under my right arm and the Invisible Solid formula under my left to really experience the differences during the same daily routine.

Application, look and smell

I applied both of the formulas in the afternoon after taking a shower.

First off, the Invisible Solid! This formula has a patented active enhancer which stops odor before it even starts, and within a minute or two after application, I could definitely feel the soft layer of protection against my skin. You can actually feel the deodorant working! I tried out the Active Fresh scent, which I really enjoyed.

The Clear Gel solution had a much smoother application, and also has an added a layer of active ingredients for longer lasting odor protection. I noticed that the Clear Gel formula did feel a little wetter than the Invisible Solid formula – but the good news: there was no residue left behind, so you definitely don’t have to worry about any white marks on clothing! I tried the Clean Lavender scent which was a little bit more noticeable than Active Fresh.

You can just about see the differences between the two formulas here. The gel is clearer while the solid formula has just a faint white layer to it.

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24 hours after application.

I’m not saying that I have the hardest job. But I do stand in a Market store and the temperature isn’t always the nicest. Some days we are lucky and it’s just nice, but some days it can either be freezing cold or so warm that you can’t stand it! On this particular day, the weather was warm but not so warm that my body was sweating. Right away after work, I got home and did a 40-minute workout: The workout left my body sweaty, but I didn’t feel like I smelled and my underarms were surprisingly much drier than the rest of my body!

Final thoughts

I was very pleased with the new Outlast Xtend collection. After trying both, I think I am now a bigger fan of the Invisible Solid formula since it kept me dry and feeling fresh throughout the day

Secret Outlast Xtend comes in quite a few scents, Active Fresh, Clean Lavender, Completely Clean, Protecting Powder, Sport and Unscented, ensuring there is a scent for everyone. Because it provides 48-hour odor protection, Outlast Xtend really is great for action-packed days. It really gives me a boost of confidence, knowing I never have to stop and worry about a potential deo fail.

You can try it for yourself! The suggested retail price is $4.29—but you can request one FREE sample here with the code PL76XS!

Sponsored post with Secret Deodorant and Bloglovin Activate.

Beauty, Home Decor, Skincare, Style, Subscription boxes

Popsugar Must Have Fall Special Edition Box

September 3, 2015 6 Comments

It is finally here, the Popsugar Must Have Fall Special Edition box! It was dropped off by my door today and I was super excited to open it as I didn’t even know what brands were in the box, or even products. I know that they had some good stuff last year so I hoped for the best when I ordered the box. This Special Edition Box comes in a special all black box, and unlike the other boxes this is actually not the shipping box! Now the packaging inside was not so appealing, most of the items were just wrapped in black tissue paper and that was all of it. I don’t really like dark so I would have preferred a higher or more fun color of the wrapping.

This is the whole content of the Special Edition Box. Personally, Im pretty happy about it. I love all cute home decor stuff so these will definitely come to use in some way! And as far as the beauty products go you can never have too much. It is six full sized products or objects andI will talk about each and everyone a little if you just continue to scroll down a bit.

The absolutely gorgeous tray is from Swing Design, and this is absolutely a item that you can not have to many off. There is always room for another tray to put small items in and this one will go either on my dest or on my headboard. I absolutely love the blue wooden inside of it and I did not at all expect that. The so called Aura Laquer Aquamarine Valet Tray is found at Bloomingdales for $60 and comes in three different colors.

I also have this lovely necklace from Deepa Gurnani. It is a really cool and good looking statement necklace. Its not too big for my taste either. The crystals on the necklace is embroiled onto a cotton woven with a cow hide backing, so wearing the necklace feels really nice and there are no sticky points or cold stones agains your skin. The necklace is handcrafted in India and the precision of the embroidery really shows off! The necklace retails for $90.

Now, it seems as this necklace already is sold out, probably because it was sent out in the boxes. But here and here are some similar options for you both from Deepa Gurnani. If you want some cheaper options here is one here from Panacea and another one from Shop LuLu.

Next up we have a product from Tatcha: Classic Rice Enzyme Powder. Now if I get this right, its a cleaning skin exfoliater in powder form. So when you use the powder you have to blend it out with some water in order to get a foam or a cream that you then massage onto your skin. The powder has a blend of Rice and Papaya Enzymes that works on your skin. Now from experience I love products that have Papaya enzymes because it works wonder on your skin! the powder is sold at Tatchas website and is retailed for $65 for 60g/2.1oz and you can choose the one that best suits your skin condition.

Next we have a super cute nail polish from Smith & Cult. And for once in my life I didn’t get a pink nail polish! Now I haven’t tried it on yet because I just did my nails the other day, but the nail polish has been featured in both Vogue and Elle so it should be good. And I just love the design of the bottle and the cap. Description of the nail polish says its high pigmented and long-lasting. The shade is named No Poem, but I can’t seem to find this one for sale anywhere, but don’t worry, both Neiman Marcus and Net-A-Porter have a bunch of beautiful shades retailed at $18.

Now these are not mirrors, it is actually coasters and if you have followed my Popsugar Must Have Box unpacking before there was actually one time where I got a little bowl from the same brand in the exactly same design, so now I have some matchy match items! The coasters do come in a set of four but I only used two of them while taking some photos! They are from Canvas Home which have a bunch of items in the same serie. The Dauville Coasters in Platinum are not only super stylish, but I also feel that they can be used for other thinks like small tray for jewelry or just decoration, thats how cute they are! The coasters are made of porcelain and are all hand painted and hand made. Retails at $46 right here.

Now last but absolutely not least is the Ombre Rouge Eye Palette from BECCA Cosmetics. This five shade eyeshadow palette comes in a sleek, luxurious feeling, case with a mirror on the full inside of the lid. Now the eyeshadows are fairly pigmented, I haven’t tried them on but I did swatch a few of them quickly on my hand. The eyeshadows also seem to be very easy bendable but still leaves a gorgeous pigmented color on the skin. There is absolutely no fragrance to the eyeshadows and they are Paraben, Sulfate and Phthalate free. The eyeshadow palette retails at $40 and are available online only at ULTA and Sephora.

Now sadly, it seems as the Special Edition Fall Box sold out pretty fast, in 36 hours. So it is no longer available to order. The regular Popsugar Must Have Box however is available to subscribe to where you monthly will get a box filled with home, fashion and beauty goodies. The box starts at $39.99 for month to month subscriptions and with the code REFER5 you get $5 off your first box! Doing a 3- or 6-month subscription will be cheaper in the long run.

Beauty, Other, Santa Monica College, Skincare, Sponsored, Style, Tips

Back to School: The ultimate guide

August 28, 2015 No Comments

The day that I go back to school is just around the corner! Monday is my day and I could not feel better about going back to school after having some time off. Now this is my third year in college, so I do have some experience about what to expect the first day. I would say that you can not prepare enough, especially if you are starting at a new school. Now lucky for me I am stil at the same school but that will probably change in the future, so I wanted to share some of my best back to school advices and how you can prepare for it.

What to wear

Remember that you should always be yourself! But as a first day I would say, wear something that makes you feel comfortable and confident! I usually lay out what Ive been thinking about wearing for my first day together with a few options of shoes. The pick of shoes are always different depending on what mood I have in the morning. Now personally I would go easy and safe and focus more or less on the school day and not think so much about how I look.

What to bring

You can never be too prepared, especially if you don’t know whats coming. I always make sure to have at least one block of paper to each subject and pens, lots of pens. Bringing my planner is also something I do on a regular basis just to write down any tests or deadlines in advance to make sure Im following the class. Getting back to school can be a good or a bad thing, but make sure that you are prepared in the best way to make this semester great.

How to prep at home

Oh man, I will probably spend every awaken hour at home on Sunday doing all of this above and the following. So for some weird reason I always care more the first day that I go back to school how I look. For example I can’t brush or floss my teeth too many times. I always makes face, and hair masks so that I will feel refreshed and moisturized. But most importantly, I make sure to shave every part of my body that I feel needs to be shaved. I honestly don’t know why shaving makes you feel so much better, its just hair, right? But feeling that your legs are silky smooth brings out some kind of confidence that I can’t explain. I have been using Schick Hydro Silk Disposable Razor for a while now and I absolutely love it. Not only does it work really well, it also helps moisturize your skin leaving it super smooth after shaving.

I can recommend having all your bath essentials in a shower caddy so you don’t forget anything.

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Schick®. The opinions and text are all mine.

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Beauty, Skincare, Sponsored

Back to school savings on beauty essentials with Schick

August 20, 2015 No Comments

It is almost time to get back to school, for me the fall semester starts in about one and a half week. Im starting to load up with every necessary thing that I need, mostly because I know that I will have absolutely no money to buy anything during the semester. I think you all students out there can relate. I went to Walmart (for the first time in my life) and along with all my beauty must have items, stocking up on some accessories like cotton tips and body lotion, I also picked up some razors from Schick. They currently have a Buy 1 get 1 for free offer saving you up to $7.99 on razors!

I picked the Schick Hydro silk Sensitive Care which has hypoallergenic serum that protects agains irritation and leaves your skin smooth and hydrated after shave. To be honest I have never tried Schick before but by the look of it they seemed to be very popular among customers. I am probably the worst person ever to come around and try my new stuff, so I haven’t tried out the razors yet. Update to come! The razor do however have 5 curve sensing blades which I think is great and it also includes an extra cartridge and a little hanger to put up on your bathroom wall for the razor.

I also wanna let you guys know about the Schick Selfie Sweeps where you basically snap a summer selfie using the hashtags in your caption. If you enter you can have a chance to win a $10.000 toward your tuition, a new computer and many more fun prizes!

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Schick®. The opinions and text are all mine.

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Beauty, Skincare, Sponsored

Carmex Moisture Plus Lip Balm Sticks and fall/winter sneak peak

August 4, 2015 6 Comments

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Carmex. All opinions are 100% mine.

Carmex has been manufacturing its original lip balm in an iconic yellow lidded jar since 1937, until now. A new, fancier style has been created to fit everyones stylish trends. Each design are inspired by Pantone’s official color and print forecast for the coming fashion runways and new design are available four times a year to match your style.

Carmex sent me four of their current stylish lip balms with SPF 15 to try out and review. The lip balm sticks all have different designs which are super cute and stylish! They create new designs each season and the four current spring/summer designs were Pink Zebra, Turquoise & White checkers, Japanese flowers and a Flower Lace design.

My favorite design out of these are the Flower Lace one or the Pink Zebra just to cheer up anything with a little pink touch. These are perfect for me as an everyday beauty item to use. I don’t think that I really understand how much the sun damages my skin, even my lips. With the SPF 15 in the lip balms it also makes it easier for me to be protected from the sun. A great lip and skin care tips for everyone out there being exposed to the sun

The stick is a regular, slim, round stick with a normal cap and a reversible stick. All of the balms are clear/transparent and have a very light flavor of vanilla, I could also taste some mint in there. The lipstick leaves a satiny shine on your lips after use and moistures your lips without it feeling like you have a bunch of moisturizer on. You can buy Carmex Moisture Plus at Walmart, Walgreens, and Dollar General for only $2.49.

Here is a little preview of the Fall/Winte line that will be sold soon in stores.

Carmex Twitter Handle: @Carmex | Carmex Instagram Handle: @mycarmex | Carmex Facebook: www.facebook.com/carmexlipbalm

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SHOP MY CURRENT FAVORITES

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Hawaiian Tropic®. The opinions and texts are all mine.

Application, look and smell

24 hours after application.

What to wear

What to bring

How to prep at home