Review: La Roche-Posay Effaclar Duo

I did it, I jumped on the bandwagon. With all the hype surrounding this product, I just couldn't help myself! As someone who struggles with blemish-prone problematic skin I had to see if this product really was the miracle product many bloggers claim it to be. 

La Roche-Posay Effaclar Duo - £13.00 - can be found here

It claims to reduce the appearance of imperfections and unclog blocked pores after applying it morning and/or evening to the whole face. I've been using this over the past few weeks as a replacement to my normal moisturiser. I can't say I've noticed any remarkable changes after using this product. I have had less active breakouts (which is quite unknown - every nasty spot and his best friend has taken up residence on my face of late!) and I've gotta put that down to this. I also think that this product has helped calm any breakouts that I have had, but I just don't know whether it quite lives up the the hype. I am hopeful though, as my skin has definitely calmed down lately and I've had muuuch less breakouts.. and when I think about it, this is the only new thing that I've  introduced to my skin care routine. I'll update you in a few more weeks after more use!

Have you tried the effaclar duo? Has it lived up to the hype for you?

I've been nominated for a liebster award!

Eek! I have been nominated for ‘the liebster award’ by the laaavly lady Katie!

The rules of the award are as follows.. 

- List 11 random facts about yourself

- Answer the 11 questions which are given to you by your nominator

- Ask 11 questions for all the bloggers that you nominate to win the award

- Nominate 9 bloggers with less than 200 followers to win the award

- Go to each of the nominees' pages to inform them about their nomination

- Thank the blogger who nominated you by mentioning them and linking their blog in your post

11 random facts about me!

• I’m in my third year of studying Educational Psychology (finish in two weeks!)
• I've been really excited to move back home but I’m also terrified about where I’ll end up after uni.
• I seriously wish I could dress and act the way the characters in rock of ages do!
• One of my favourite songs of all time is Mr Brownstone by Guns n’ Roses.
• I’m going to download festival this year for the first time ever – EXCITED!
• I've recently had to start wearing glasses (at the age of 20!).
• I turn 21 in August and I’d rather spend the day at the spa with my girlies than go out on the razz (does that make me boring?)
• I used to have a rabbit called Marvin that would respond to my voice – he was soo cute.
• I watched war horse for the first time ever last night and bawled my eyes out on numerous occasions.
• The flat I live in is the oldest building in the town and is literally falling down – we are gonna be its last tenants before a refurb!
• My two year old nephew has me wrapped around his little finger – and he knows it. Cutest boy ever.

Q’s asked..

• If you were a Disney character, who would you be and why? Alice from Alice in Wonderland.. I just LOVE the story and it would be pretty cool to meet the mad hatter haha. 
• When you were little, what did you want to be when you grew up? When I was really little I used to tell people that I wanted to be my ‘daddy’s little girl’ and live with him forever,  haha!
• What’s your favourite book? The Perks of Being A Wallflower... absolutely love it! Still haven’t watched the movie though – I’m afraid they will of ruined it.
• If you could live in another time/decade when would you live and why? Definitely the 80’s – when rock was at its best! I bloody love classic rock music (I wish I was 20 back in the days when Guns n’ Roses were in full swing).
• What’s your favourite quote? 'There comes a time in life when you have to let go of all the pointless drama & the people who create it. Surround yourself with people who make you laugh so hard that you forget the bad and focus solely on the good. Afterall, life is too short to be anything but happy.’ I don’t know who said this, but it is a good quote to live by.
• Do you like your steak medium/rare/well done? I don’t eat steak so I can’t really comment!
• How would you sum up your blog in three words? (This is a hard one!) Beauty, music and.. reviews.
• What’s your favourite beauty product? Can I cheat and list two? It’s a cross between foundation & concealer. I couldn’t live without them!
• If a song had to be played to sum you up, what would it be? I was struggling to answer this one so I asked my boyfriend - he said Gnarls Barkley - Crazy (what a charmer). He then went on to say 'I Need a Doctor - Dr. Dre & Eminem' which makes much more sense cus' I seem to think I am a rapper when it comes out and rhyme out all the words. 
• Who would be at your dream dinner party? Ooh this one is a goodie! Chris Hemsworth goes without saying, he is just BEAUTIFUL. We’d need some cool music to listen to, so Ben Howard that’s you! & good company also... Emma Stone would be cool!
• What does your blog mean to you? I've been reading blogs for soo long and I find writing one myself relaxing. It’s something I enjoy doing – sorta like a hobby! I think the community of bloggers is a really cool thing too.

So here goes – my 11 questions for the laavly nominees! 

•       When did you start your blog?
•       If you could live in another time/decade when would it be and why? (stole this one off Katie cus’ I think it’s a gem!)
•       What is your favourite film?
•       If you won a million pounds tomorrow what would you do with it?
•       If you could have any accent in the world what would it be?
•       What’s your favourite food?
•       What item could you not live without in your makeup bag?
•       Heels vs. Flats – which is better?
•       Which would you rather be - really hot or cold?
•       Who is your favourite band/musician?
•       What would your dream job be?

I nominate these lavly bloggers! (I know it says 9 but I was struggling so I've listed 5 cool blogs you should check out instead)

     Bex

     Anna (on the dressing table)

     Jenny

     Lauren

     Anna (the dusty attic)

Bobbi Brown Corrector + Tinted Eye Brightener

I briefly mentioned in one of my older posts that I needed to repurchase Bobbi Brown's corrector (I take the shade porcelain bisque). Well, I finally got round to it a few weeks back and being such a big fan of the corrector, I couldn't help but add the tinted eye brightener into my basket. I hadn't heard much about this product until I watched one of Anna's videos.

Bobbi Brown Tinted Eye Brightener - £19.50 - can be found here

Bobbi Brown Corrector - £18.00 - can be found here

 

This is the second time I've purchased the corrector and if I'm honest I think I always will (please never discontinue it!). I have a serious hang up about my dark circles and this is the only thing that I've seen an noticeable difference from using. I use concealer after applying this (as it is just works to neutralise the discolouration) and it helps me look so much more awake and healthy. It does tend to crease a little but its not a huge problem (it is under the eye after all, its bound to crease a little bit!).

I opted to purchase the tinted eye brightener too (as I've mentioned I have a huge hang up about my under eye circles) as it's described as a mix between the corrector and brightening concealer - it sounded like my dream product. It has a much more lightweight feeling which makes it really easy to blend. I would say this provides a relatively light/medium coverage but it does a really nice job of correcting and concealing, I do however feel like I have to use this in conjunction with the corrector. By no means is it a replacement product (in my case anyway). 

Have you tried either of these products? What are your thoughts?