The Menu - Monthly Favourties - July 2013

This month has been a hodge podge of great hot sunny weather and drab rainy dull days. So my favourites this month are all really bright summer colours and happy products. Hope you agree.

I have many favourites this month, which was a surprise because I thought it was going to be a slow month. With regard to makeup, I haven't really worn a lot of makeup as it's been so hot and sticky lately. But when I have worn some makeup, it has been a lot of bright summery shades.

The Balm Instain Blush ($22) - The Balm's Instain Blushes are unique and amazing. They are a powder blush that stains your cheeks. The one I have featured this month is called Lace and is a hot pink which looks wonderful against tan skin tones such as mine but also work for light skin tones when applied lightly. You can read my review and see my swatches of the entire Instain blushes range here.

Chance by Chanel ($68 for 50 ml) - My go to perfume for this month has been one that my husband gave me last year and it's the fantastic Chance by Chanel. It's a gorgeous floral scent that's sensual that lingers on me all day even in hot weather.

Garnier Gel Moisturiser ($6.99 for 50 ml) - Moisturising my normal to combination skin in the Summer is a bit of a pain as you don't want something too heavy and greasy so I was really keen to try a gel moisturiser, as I figured it would be more on the light side. I was right, the gel is absorbed quickly into my skin and you really only need a very tiny amount. I think this jar will last me an entire year!! I think it's fabulously good value too.

The Body Shop Tea Tree Oil Face Wash ($11.50 for 250 ml) - Tea Tree Oil is universally known as a great skin clearing ingredient. I always figured clearing equaled to drying and I was afraid to try anything with tea tree oil in it, until now. I have been binging on chocolate for the last few weeks, not sure how but we have had a string of birthdays and farewell cakes in our office and most celebrations include chocolate. Not good for my skin and my waistline but hey ho. What's done is done and I have been paying in the form of a little spot every week or so when The Body Shop sent me an email with a buy 1 get 1 free offer, I decided to get the Body Shop Tea Tree Oil Face Wash and I must say I am super happy with it.

I love Toners. Melvita is a company that is known for it's organic ingredients and use of holistic recipes. I really want to try their Orange Blossom Water which has been raved about in the beauty blogger circles, but it was not available so I decided to pick Bio Excellence Micellar Water up for ($23 for 200 ml). Bio Excellence Micellar Water ingredients include cassis, rose and neroli water. What first attracted me to this lovely toner was the amazing smell. It smells like Reve De Miel on steroids. Perfect. I think the toner is great for oily or combination skin tones but might be a little too dry for dry skin tones.

Nuxe Reve de Miel ($15.50 for 15 ml) - Who hasn't heard of this lip balm, it's so hyped by some of the most well known beauty bloggers. I had my chance to try this balm this month and I am really impressed.

I have included two blushes in this month's favourites. One is a cream product and one is powder.

Stila Lillium is part of the Stila Convertible Colour ($25) range and is a very soft pink nude. It packs a punch in terms of hydration when applied to the cheek however on my skintone the colour is more of a soft hint. The reason for including this Convertible Colour in this month's favourites is because I absolutely adore the texture and have used it non-stop. The NYX Blush ($5) in Cocoa is my perfect contour shade. Simply great value and the colour lasts all day. (Mine is smashed, as you can see in the pictures).

T to B - Stila Convertible Colour in Lillium, NYX Blush in Cocoa, Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in Rendezvous Rendezvous and The Balm Instain Blush in Lace (no flash)

I have included two favourites the E.L.F Mineral Infused Primer ($6.00 for 15 ml) and the Skindinavia Makeup Setting Spray ($19 for 60 ml) and you can read my detailed review on these here and here respectively. Great products.

Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stains ($6.50) - Lastly we have a Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in the colour Rendezvous Rendezvous. It's my perfect orange that is glossy and extremely long lasting. My only advise is to keep a clear gloss at hand when the shine wears off, as you can just top off the colour with the gloss to return the shine to the look.

So chuffed to be blogging again. Hope to write more regularly. Do you fancy any of the above products? Talk to me :)