MINIMALIST BLUSH

When it comes to the spring, I either go to the bright blushes (which I already posted about here), or the natural looking, barely there shades that I can sweep on in a matter of seconds, and those are what I'll be sharing today, featuring an old favourite and a new addition.

The golden oldie is the Dainty Doll Cream Blush in Paper Roses, a pale pink with a hint of silver shimmer, and whenever I slap this one on my cheeks (read: gently tap on and blend with a brush), I always seem to get compliments and questions on my cheek colour, which makes this one an instant winner.

The new love is the Rimmel Mono Blush in Santa Rose, which is slightly more peachy so is less noticeable on the cheeks. This is a firm blogger favourite, and I can tell why. Its slightly shimmery, natural toned, and adds a light flush to the cheeks, and using the contour brush to just focus is on certain areas of the cheeks is my way to go about using this one.

2 blushes, 2 brushes, and the perfect no frills cheeks...

TWO BUDGET CLEANSERS

Being a teenager, I have a lower budget than most of the beauty bloggers out there, so the majority of the products in my collection are budget based (and I don't think there is anything wrong with that personally), because there are so many gems in high street/drugstore, and by the looks of it, that's no different for when it comes to cleansers.

The first of the duo is one I have mentioned a few times now, and as I had a new bottle sitting in my drawer (my third bottle of the stuff) I feel like it deserves to be in this post. The Superdrug Naturally Radiant Hot Cloth Cleanser is a thick, cream/hot cloth cleanser which does a good job at removing makeup in the first cleanse, or fully cleansing as the second cleanse. I also really like this one in the morning, and it doesn't leave any kind of a tight feeling on the skin.

A recent discovery for me is the No7 Melting Cleansing Gel which I got when I had the ever so famous £5 off voucher. Don't be fooled, this is called a gel, and at first it is a balm-like gel. Once you start massaging it into your face though, as it warms up it turns into an oil texture, and then upon rinsing, washes off more like a milk. I prefer this for the second cleanse, and although it does remove the majority of makeup, I had a little eye-stinging action with this when trying to get of the remains of my waterproof mascara - so keep that in mind.

If you know of any budget oil-cleansers out there, do let me know as that is what's next on my skincare wishlist.

SCENTS FOR SPRING

I'm not really a perfume girl, and I tend to get a perfume and stick to it until it's gone, which is why the perfumes I have been rocking for Spring will most likely also be the perfumes I will be sporting for Summer. So, if you have any scents that aren't too expensive, let me know in the comments to help me grow a love for perfumes.

My favourite perfume at the moment has to be Victoria's Secret Sheer Love, which Megan gifted me after a spree in the duty free when she went on holiday back in October, and I am savouring every spritz of this. Picture the perfect balance of a sweet, fruity and slightly floral scent and you have this. I knew a perfume description post was going to be a bad idea...

Then I have three from the Ted Baker Woman collection, which I got in a set at Christmas time from relatives, and I really like them. First point, they smell great, second, they have rose gold caps. What more could you want?
The first of the trio I have been loving is Pink. Okay, imagine the typical Soap & Glory scent, intensified, made into a liquid and put into a bottle - that is the only way to describe this one, and I freaking love it.
Nude is more of a musky floral which I have been putting on my wrists pretty regularly recently, and it may be taking over my love for Pink, but we'll see how it goes. It might sound weird, but somehow I think the name of this one reflects how it smells...
Orange is the least used out of the bunch, but I still really like the scent of it. It's a stronger one out of the bunch, and seems to be pretty similar to the old Next Just Pink fragrance, just toned down and less headache-inducing.

After visiting Megan's house (and sniffing her wrists every day at school), I have a few more added to my list, and I might actually buy myself a perfume, which is something very unusual for me...

A LOVE FOR LIP PRODUCTS BY L'OREAL

L'Oreal was a brand that I never really delved into until a recent lucky moment at a clearance bin in my local Tesco. I managed to stock up on their lip products which came in at £2 each and I can't get enough of them.

The first is probably the one product I am most excited about, in the form of the Caresse Glam Shine Stain Splash in Romy. Looking at the packaging, this seemed really glittery, but once I put it on there was a barely noticeable shimmer among the gorgeous muted pink colour. What I like about this is the texture - think of a buildable jelly formula, which is slightly sticky but it makes me want to apply it every 2 minutes because it is divine.

The other three products are the Caresse Rouge Lipsticks, in the shades Lovely Rose - which is a pretty pale pink, Aphrodite Scarlet - a sightly coral toned medium pink, and Impulsive Fuchsia - which is a brighter blue-pink colour, all of which are lovely. They come out sheerer than a lipstick, so can either be worn that way, or built up to give something more eye-catching.

I think one of the things that makes me love these is the packaging -  a luxe gold colour and  matching coloured lids to the colour in the bullet (although mine are missing out on this feature, which may be why they were in the clearance to begin with), but nonetheless, it feels really luxurious.

I feel like I may have to go back to Tesco to revisit the clearance section to see if I can snap up any more colours, because I really am obsessed...

LA ROCHE POSAY EFFACLAR DUO[+]

Quite a while ago, you may have read my rave-review about the La Roche Posay Effaclar Duo, and when the time came to repurchase, I thought it would be a good idea to give the reformed and improved Effaclar Duo+ a whirl.

The new product costs a little more, coming in at £15.50 rather than the £13 for the original, but it includes some new ingredients which are supposed help reduce and diminish scarring - something I have an issue with along with blemishes. Since using this, I have noticed a small difference in my skin and everything seems too have faded a little and reduced in size.

I use this day and night (not every day) either underneath my moisturiser or alone if I have a lot to clear up. It is a gel texture, but isn't drying - it's actually fairly moisturising and doesn't fee uncomfortable alone. To be fair, texture wise there aren't all that many differences apart from the fact that I feel more open to applying this all over the skin rather than with the original, I would tend to take it just down the T-Zone and affected areas.

Have you tried any reformulated products and really liked them?