My Favourite Products of 2012

Hi Everyone! So I realise I'm a little bit late jumping on this bandwagon as it's now the 6th of January but I've been so busy that I haven't had time to take photos of my 2012 favourites.   Like most beauty bloggers out there, I've been excited to sit down and share my top products of the past year. To be honest, it was a hard choice as I've tried SO many great products but a few were obvious and easy choices. I've reviewed the majority of these products individually in previous blog posts so if you want to have a read of them I will link them in the title of each product underneath. Just click and it will take you there, yey!

So without further ado, here are my star products of twenty twelve!

Rimmel Wake Me Up Foundation

This has to be the most hyped drugstore foundation of 2012 and I can 100% see why. It gives great coverage, brightens and 'wakes' my skin up in the morning and it also smells delicious. I have gone through a few of these bottles since I discovered it at the start of last year and its still a firm favourite to this day. At only £6.99 too, I have no complaints.

Topshop Lipsticks

Oh Topshop, thank you for creating such beautifully pigmented and moisturising lipsticks. In 2012 I went a bit Topshop crazy, buying everything from their lipsticks, nail polishes and highlighters. Although I love all the products they have to offer, the lipsticks are a stand out favourite. I currently own seven of them (yes I know, extreme!) but I think they are worth every penny. At £8.00 a pop they are more affordable then MAC and in my opinion, are just as good. If you haven't tried these, get to your local Topshop NOW!

Real Techniques Brushes

Okay, need I say much about these? I'm sure every blogger out there owns these brushes as they are so god damn amazing. Not only are the ridiculously soft and apply makeup like a dream but they are also some of the most affordable brushes I own. I began my collection at the start of 2012 with the 'Core Collection' which retails for only £20.99. That's just over £5.00 per brush and they are that lovely I'd probably be willing to pay double that. I've since added the powder and blush brush to my collection and hope to expand it even further in 2013.

Rimmel Stay Matte Powder

As far as powders go, this is one of the best I've tried. After hearing so many reviews about it, I decided to give it a go and at only £3.99, what did I have to lose? Since buying it a few months ago, I havne't used another powder. Its perfect for dusting over my face after I've applied foundation to control any shine and the staying powder is pretty decent too. The only thing I don't like is the packaging but for less that four pounds, I can't expect too much.

Joico Moisture Recovery Leave-In Moisturizer

I bought this product on a whim while out in Australia last summer and it has since become one of my favourite hair products, EVER. It smells amazing and leaves my hair super soft. As it's in a spray bottle its so convenient to spritz on whenever my hair is feeling a bit dry and I also love that I can apply it to both wet or dry hair so I can make the most of it even on those days I don't wash my hair. The bottle is huge too so it has lasted ages, a great investment.

St.Moriz Tan

I just had to include this as every single year, this is the tan I turn to most often. I've dabbled in other tans and enjoyed them but for the £2.99 price tag, St.Moriz is a clear winner. I love the mousse formula as its so quick and easy to apply and it instantly gives me a deep tan. I've also found it fades lovely too leaving no hideous 'snakeskin' type patches as it wares off.

Caudalie Cleansing Water

This product is an absolute dream. I use this every morning and night to remove my makeup and I'm in love with it. Its refreshing, gentle on my sensitive skin, smells amazing and does its job - removes every last bit of my makeup (including eye makeup). I've tried Bioderma to see how it compares and although I liked it to begin with, I found it burnt my skin and left it feeling sore, not good. Caudalie however does the complete opposite and leaves my skin feeling soothed, clean and soft. If you haven't tried it, you must. I've even got my boyfriend hooked on it.

Benefit Brow Zings

Since discovering this handy little kit of powder and wax, I haven't used another product on my brows. I love that this product comes with everything I need to keep my brows looking their best and it looks much more natural than eyebrow pencils. When I look back at photos of myself when I used a pencil I think 'what was I thinking?'. It is also so quick and easy to use and although I use it every single day, I have barely made a dint in it. Its definitely worth its high price tag.

Revlon Grow Luscious Mascara

While I was in Australia I had a bit of what I like to call, 'eyelash drama'. Basically, I got some eyelash extensions, hated them, attempted to pull them off and ended up pulling out and snapping the majority of my real eyelashes. I know it was my own fault but the extensions looked ridiculous and were irritating my eyes. I was completely mortified at how ridiculous my eyelashes looked so I attempted to find a quick fix. Most websites told me it would take weeks, even months for my lashes to grow back but as soon as I started using this mascara, I noticed a difference in the length and thickness of my lashes. Not only does it make them appear longer and thicker but it actually does help them to grow. My little stumpy lashes were back to being long and full within two weeks which was pretty incredible considering they were so damaged. I've been using this mascara ever since I bought it and it's one of the best I have ever tried.

Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Top Coat

I discovered this while over in Australia too and I have to say, it's a miracle-worker. Before I bought it I never thought it would actually dry my nails instantly as often companies make 'claims' that a product works wonders and it rarely does. However, this does exactly what it says on the bottle; it dries my nails almost instantly after applying it. Okay it might not be 'instant' but within a couple of minutes, I'm good to go. One thing I used to hate about painting my nails was waiting for what seemed like a decade for them to dry and STILL managing to smudge them. This little gem of a product has solved all those problems for me and it also makes my nails super shiny too, bonus!

Soap & Glory Sugar Crush Body Scrub

This is the best exfoliator I have tried to date. Firstly, I love the cute pink packaging and secondly, this stuff smells of brown sugar and lime, ah-maz-ing. This has to be the best scented product I own and I could sit and sniff it all day. It also removes dry skin, leaves my skin soft and prepares my skin for applying false tan.

Revlon Lip Butters

Another product that was massively hyped in 2012 is the Revlon Lip Butters. I currently own four of them and they are one of my favourite go-to lip products. They are soft, creamy, moisturising and exceptionally pigmented. They are great for day or night time wear and I love the cute quilted packaging. My favourite shade is 'Lollipop' and I wear it all the time, day or night. I'm hoping to add a few more shades to my collection in 2013.

Babyliss Pro Argan Oil

I bought this product from the duty free service on the plane on my way to Australia. I bought it after hair oils became popular in 2012 and since using it, the condition of my hair has drastically improved. When I was in Oz I embarked on a bit of a 'no heat' mission where I barely used heat for the whole five months I was there. That combined with this hair oil made the perfect combination for getting my hair into tip top condition. It doesn't leave any greasy residue on my hair and it smells amazing too. Big thumbs up!

NARS Laguna Bronzer

Okay, this is my ultimate Holy Grail product. This is my favourite product of 2012 by a country mile and I would be very surprised if I ever find a bronzer I prefer to this one. Its the perfect natural tan colour, not too shimmery but not matte and amazing for contouring. I use this every day and have gone through about five or six of them. Yes its an expensive product at £25.00 a pop but my goodness, its so worth it.

So there we have it, my most loved and used products of the past year. I hope you enjoyed reading and potentially discovered some new products to try out.

What are your 2012 favourites?

Lots of Love,

Babyliss Pro Argan Oil Review

Following on from my last post all about haircare, I thought I would tell you about a hair product I have been loving lately. Now I'm pretty sure you have all heard of hair oils and since Morroccan oil came on the scene they have taken the beauty and blogging world by storm. I actually wanted to get my hands on the Loreal Mythic Oil as it sounded like a cheaper alternative to the pricey Moroccan Oil but whilst I was travelling to Australia, I spotted this product in the duty free magazine whilst on my flight to Singapore. When the air hostesses came round to ask if we wanted to buy anything, I decided I would snap it up. The product I am talking about, if you haven't already guessed from the pictures is 'Babyliss Pro Argan Oil'. To be honest, I had never heard of this product before but it stood out to me right away after reading the magazine summary. It sounded very similar to every other oil I've heard about so I thought why not give it a whirl? I'm always on the look out for miracle hair products so this sounded right up my street.  

I have been over in Australia for around a month now and I have been using this on my hair 2 or 3 times a week. As you all probably know, I have bleached blonde hair meaning it is prone to dryness and breakage. When using this product I apply a coin sized amount on my hands, rub my hands together and then run them through towel dried hair, particularly concentrating on the ends. As this is an oil, I try not applying too much to the top of my hair to avoid greasy roots. If I use the right amount this works wonders and leaves my hair feeling light, soft and silky. If you apply too much it will make your hair look greasy but that is inevitable when applying any oil based product to the hair. I have found that the condition of my hair has improved dramatically since I began using this product. It makes my hair feel smooth, silky and shiny and as well as improving the look and feel, I have also noticed a difference to the ends as well. It seems my dry and damaged split ends are now a thing of the past. It gives me great joy running my fingers through silky soft hair, yet! Also, I must add that this also smells lovely. I'm not sure how I would describe it but it is lovely.

I paid $30.00 for this, which works out at around £17.00 for 100ml of product. Although you may think this is expensive for a hair product, it will last such a long time that I think the price is justified. As this product is mainly found in Australia, I have struggled finding a seller in the UK. However, after doing some thorough online research (what a dedicated blogger haha!) I have managed to find it on Ebay and Amazon. I have noticed the label is slightly different in the UK but the bottle itself and size is exactly the same. The cheapest price I found was £13.14 from a seller on Ebay. They post Worldwide and delivery only costs £1.44 meaning you can get the product plus delivery for £14.58. This is even cheaper than I paid at duty free and compared with the £30.00 price tag of Moroccan Oil, I think it is fairly reasonable. If you want to check out the Ebay seller I am talking about, you can do so here. Overall, I love this product and am so glad I have found it. I will certainly be repurchasing when I eventually run out. My hair feels amazing and I really don't have any complaints about this product. Moroccan who?

Have you ever tried this hair oil or the infamous Moroccan Oil?

I hope you are all having a lovely weekend!

Lots of Love,