Tuesday 5 January 2016

Favourite Discoveries of 2015.

So it's a new year and 2015 went within a blink of an eye but along the way I did discover some products, accessories and tools that have fast become my favourite things to use or wear. Now I will admit most of the products/items in this post are PR samples and I am in no way bragging about them but if I hadn't received these lovely products in the post then I wouldn't have discovered them otherwise and so I am very grateful to all the brands and PRs that have kindly sent me products that I have tested and absolutely love.
 
Tools
 

So the first discovery tools wise that I discovered was the Real Techniques Core Collection. Now I know these are nothing new to anyone else as these brushes were so popular before I even decided to buy them and they are still very popular today but I'd been so indecisive about these brushes but I finally gave in to the 'hype' and bought some and I've never looked back since. They are such good quality and they are so soft on the skin. My base make up looks flawless when I use them and I couldn't recommend them more. These retail at £21.99 - so although not the cheapest of brushes, if you want to treat yourself to a new set of brushes, these are the ones I definitely would.

 
The next discovery tools wise, I was a little bit sceptical to try. When Derma V10 contacted me and asked me if I would like to try their *make-off mitt, I was a bit like 'it's obviously not going to work' but I decided that I would like to try it anyway because somethings pleasantly surprise you and this product definitely did that for me. It is so soft and gentle on the skin and all you have to do is add water. It even removed my mascara and I just thought it was brilliant to be honest. I would happily repurchase this product again and again. The price tag for this very simple product is only £1 and I think it's a bargain to say it removes your make up in a matter of minutes. All you need is the mitt and some luke warm water and you're good to go. I even went over my skin with a cotton pad and micellar water and there were literally no traces left. I was completed surprised with this product but it makes make up removal so much easier and it's perfect for if you are on the go. After I'd used this product I simply cleaned it with my Clinique cleanser and it's good to go for the next make up removal session.
Products
 
 
Now I'm really not one for haircare, I wash my hair and condition my hair but I don't really look after my hair as well as I probably should. However Media Hubb kindly sent me the *DGJ Organics Argan Oil and it's literally changed my hairs life or should I say the ends of my hair. I now have short hair but when I had shoulder length hair my ends were really dry and this product was my haircare saviour. I have to admit the formula is a little sticky and so it might not be to everyone taste but once it's in your hair and you blow dry it out, it feels so soft and it's like all your dry, damaged ends are gone. Now there are a few ways you can apply this product in your hair but my personal preference is to put it in the ends to the mid-length of my hair while it is wet once I have just washed it and then I blow dry my hair and that is all I do. It kept my hair feeling soft and not dry for at least 2 weeks and that was after only using it once. It's really good and I will definitely be repurchasing this in the future although you don't need a lot so I think this will last me a long time. I'm normally not a fan of hair oils especially because my hair is greasy but this is lovely and it smells good too. It's £7.99 which I think is also a very reasonable price.
 

The next product is for your bath and it's a bath oil by Beatitude and it's literally my favourite bath oil that I've ever used to date. I usually have to be careful with bath oils because my skin seems to hate oils and normally breaks out into a rash but I've been lucky with this bath oil because it hasn't broke me out into any rash and it has such a beautiful scent. Beatitude Luxury Aromatherapy Bath Oils are 100% natural and have been developed by British aromatherapist Rebecca O'Connor. This beautiful bath oil disperses in the water and avoids any greasy feeling and leaves your skin feeling silky and nourished. The Patience bath oil  is to invigorate and warm, this rejuvenating herbal and therapeutic aroma soothes away lingering muscular fatigue and untangles everyday aches and pains. The body is also detoxed with essential oils of Rosemary, Lavender, Ginger and Juniper Berry while skin is nurtured with the oils of Oat, Camellia and Peach Kernel. To use this oil, I simply pour 5ml (1 tsp) into running water and I'm good to go. I was kindly sent the *Patience Bath Oil which is the 50ml version which means I can enjoy 10 baths with it and so far I've enjoyed 8 baths out of it. When I use this bath oil I can smell it around the house for at least 6 hours after I've used it and I absolutely love it. It's a little on the pricey side at £25 for 50ml or £40 for 100ml but if you're looking for a luxurious bath treat for yourself or someone else, I really don't think you'll regret it.


The next products are by Ruth Romano I absolutely love them. In 2015 I discovered the company Ruth Romano and she kindly sent me her  *Lemongrass mini handcrafted natural soap and her *lime natural lip balm. So firstly I tried the *Lemongrass mini handcrafted natural soap which is a natural olive oil and shea butter based soap with the fragrance of lemongrass. Now I have to be honest lemongrass isn't my favourite scent and so it didn't really appeal to me in that sense but the quality of the soap was good. As the soap has shea butter in it, it has a very soft and almost milky texture but it was a nice little addition to my bathroom. I know a soap is a soap but this one was just a little more nourishing for my skin. The soap is £1.50 which may be a little expensive for some people but I think it's totally worth it as it lasted at least 2 months. Then the next product that really impressed me was the *lime natural lip balm and this is such a lovely consistency. Yes you have to put your finger in the pot which I know doesn't appeal to everyone but I really liked how it nourished my lips without feeling sticky or felt like I had too much on. I love how it's natural and I would definitely repurchase this. This lip balm is £3.95 so it's certainly not the cheapest of lip balms but again it's natural and I really love how I can fit it into my bag and I've used this product lots and there's still so much product left.

 
 
Now the next 3 products aren't cosmetics but they are still products but these just happen to be edible. Now I first mentioned these in my College Staples post which you can read here and I said that I would do a full review but after consuming all 3 products from Peppersmith, I decided that I would just feature them in this post instead because there are only a certain amount of things you can say about mints and chewing gum. So Peppersmith kindly sent me their *100% xylitol Peppermint mints, *100% xylitol Sicilian Lemon and Peppermint mints and *100% xylitol Peppermint chewing gum. Now I have to admit, I love how travel friendly they are and I love how they are meant to reduce plague and freshen breath but after using all of the products, I have to say, not all of them are my favourite. The *Sicilian Lemon and Peppermint mints were a little odd tasting and I have to admit were my least favourite and the *Peppermint mints were so strong but if you like strong mints then these could be for you. My favourite product out of the lot was the *Peppermint chewing gum and I would repurchase this in the future. Although the mints weren't a hit with me personally, I did really like the chewing gum, it's sugar free and it's meant to have a few benefits that maybe other chewing gums don't have and the chewing gum is travel friendly and the packaging is great and that is why I have featured them in this post because although I didn't like the mints, I did find something that I kept reaching for.


Now in summer I was kindly sent a selection of MaskerAide face masks and wow they didn't disappoint. In the past I've had bad experiences with sheet masks as they have broken me out or they've burned my skin and so I was a little wary of these to say the least. I kindly got sent the *All Nighter, *Beauty Restore, *Pre Party Prep, *I don't wanna grow up, *Weather Warrior and *Detox Diva masks. They all have different purposes and different ingredients in them and they have different benefits but not one of them failed to disappoint. Now I must warn you, I definitely think these masks are an 'in the bath' mask, they are absolutely soaked in product and so I definitely think it's easier to be in the bath. Some sheet masks are only soaked in the product but not very well and so you find them to be quite drying but not these. Each and every one of them left my skin with an amazing result and I couldn't recommend these more. Now I have to admit you're not going to look the best while wearing these but they are so worth it. You can buy these masks for £5.00 each so they definitely aren't the cheapest sheet masks on the market but they are such good quality and as a pamper treat even just once a month, I think they would be ideal. If you want to know about the individual benefits of each mask you can click on the links above. Overall all the masks are cooling and are the best sheet masks I've used and are definitely one of my favourite discoveries of 2015.

Accessories
 
 
Then my final favourite discovery of 2015 was my *Daniel Wellington Classy Sheffield (34mm) Rose Gold Watch. It is absolutely beautiful and this is my favourite photo of it. Now I won't go on about this watch too much as I did a full review here. But it is just absolutely amazing, I love wearing it and it's one of my favourite accessories that I own and I love it so much. I mean what girl doesn't love a rose gold watch? Daniel Wellington watches are honestly such good quality and I couldn't recommend this company enough.
 
So they are all my favourite discoveries of 2015, I'd love to know in the comments what your favourite discoveries of 2015 are.
 
 
*DISCLAIMER: This post contains PR samples but they were sent for review purposes only. All PR samples have been marked with an (*). All opinions and views are my own and are 100% honest.

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