NUXE

The Nose Knows: Some Things That Smell Good

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I love a good summertime scent – it’s the fragrant version of the summertime song {for me, this year it’s Christine and the Queens’ Tilted} {listening right now: j’adore!}

NUXE BODYIn terms of perfume, why have one fave if you can have several, including one that’s a body cream — and one that’ll transition you into autumn? I ask you.

This is pure perfection if you feel like spritzing even the lightest EDT is too much. NUXE BODY Relaxing Fragrant Water {€30} is a typically delicious offering from the French brand. It relies on notes like Coconut Sorbet, White Flowers and Wild Vanilla, but to me it smells very much akin to their beloved Huile Prodigieuse. That has a host of natural ingredients as well, with the Sweet Almond leading the way. Gorgeous and light, you can spray your whole self without fear of overwhelming yourself or anyone else; the bottle is quite heavy so I doubt you’ll be carting it round for top ups, sadly.

Did I say almond? ULITMATE BLENDS delicate oatI clearly have a grá for it. GARNIER‘s Ultimate Blends Body line is, well, in line with its haircare regime, so fragrance-layering lovers will be delirious with the possibilities. Delicate Oat is comprised of oat milk and white almond cream, and the 250ml version of the Soothing Hydrating Lotion will only set you back €4.14 at Boots. The feel is total luxury, I-spent-a-bomb-on-body-lotion-am-I-crazy, and the scent lasts most of the day. If it’s that hot out, I do tend to skimp on the lotioning as it feels icky, but luckily we live in Ireland so it is not often that much of an issue. There’s an amazingly rich Multi-purpose Soothing Balm in the same flavour that I’ll be hitting up in the winter.

The line also features Honey Treasures, Mythic Olive and Marvellous Oils {Argan & Camellia} if you’re not an almond enthusiast.

MICHAEL KORS coralJust looking at this makes me feel like I’m about to go fora swan along the Riviera. MICHAEL KORS Coral {€109/100mls} presents all light and fruity and festive, with just enough musk on the base to keep me interested. I don’t go crazy for girly-girly scents usually, but the grapefruit note has just enough bite, and it complements a sexy sandalwood dry down. I adore the bottle, which is kind of masculine, all square and formidable, and I keep it out on my dresser, which I almost never do. I just love looking at it. Staying power is only okay and this size isn’t exactly portable, either; I’d go for the handbag-friendly 30 ml for €55, tbh.

JML Basil & Neroli Campaign Shoot 1
Nothing like a JO MALONE launch to get the heart racing. There’s so much going on with the new Basil & Neroli, yet is so beautifully blended you’ll come away from it merely thinking ‘lovvvvvve’. The basil, of course, reminds us of the iconic Lime Basil & Mandarin, but whereas that is pure springtime joy, this is a more complicated light/dark concoction that lends itself to be ambiseasonal {I coined that at the launch and immediately tweeted that shiz}. It is also pansexual — not just for gals/gal indentifiers. It is glorious for everyone, with the neroli adding its signature bitter oranginess, and some vetiver in the base to give it heft.

The campaign is a nostalgic 60s black and white affair, but the scent is anything but. Plus! There’s a body creme and a candle, your whole life can be layered in this gorgeousness. The prices are as usual, 30ml is €54, 100ml is €109, Body Crème goes for €65 and the Home Candle is €52. The scent launches in September — too late for summer, you cry? Eh, not so much, given we’ll be getting a last blast of heat about mid-month {fingers crossed!}

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Wind-ter Getting You Down? Moisturise at Night!

/ MANY BRAVE FOOLS / Leave a comment

I don’t know about you, but the gale force winds are wrecking my head, espesh with being out on the horses in it. I haven’t minded the noise at night, though, and I’m doing my best work in the dreamtime to keep my skin from getting wrecked, never mind my head.

Lashings of cream at night is my only man these blowy days. I’m a big fan of sleeping through the hard stuff, and by deeply moisturising at least three times a week, at bedtime, I feel that I’m keeping my complexion in good nick.

Here are three of my favourites.

GREEN ANGEL
Yeah, I know it says ‘daily’ on it, but GREEN ANGEL Seaweed Daily Moisture Face Cream with Jasmine, Neroli & Vitamin E {€24.95} is well able for double duty at night. Anything with seaweed in it is going to be alright by me — add in those oils, and this is bliss in a jar.

NUXE
NUXE have a new addition in their Merveillance Expert Rich Correcting Cream {€40}, and it’s a good one. I’m happy to use this as directed in the morning, but have been finding it to be great at night, too. Actually? Rather better, as the consistency of the cream is rich and thick. While it does absorb nicely, I’m finding its thickness and richness to be better at the end of the day as opposed to the beginning of it.

ORIGINS
Oh, hello, darling. I love, love, love ORIGINS High Potency Night-A-Mins Renewal Cream {€45}, and wish they would make a version that was for the entire body. I hoard this, TBH, because it is like a miraculous new-face-in-a-jar. It never fails to make my skin glow the morning after the night before; the only thing I’ll say against it is that it smells so good, sometimes I keeping myself awake breathing it in. Just me…?

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I had long wondered about the day cream v night cream debate — as in, what’s the difference? — and posted about it here…

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Okay, Okay, I Absolutely Have a Problem When It Comes to Lip Cosmetics

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ALL THE LIPPYs
Okay???! I get it. A normal human female probably wouldn’t have — oh, God, must I count them? — eighteen varieties of cosmetics-for-the-lips, on the go, right? This is not counting the ones that are lurking in pockets and rolling around in my handbags. Gah.

But, but, but — okay. Since I routinely take two of these along with me on a given day, because the whole day could change and require a different hue or texture, then it’s like there’s really nine. Nine lip combinations.

{…}

I don’t buy that either. Although I will argue that giving yourself the option to change up during the day makes total sense. Like, the Pür Minerals or the No7 — or the Benefit Ultra Plush Lip Gloss? Theses are perfect for sitting-at-the-desk wear, but you might like to give your look a wee pop in the evening, with the Smashbox Limitless Lip Stain, or the Clinique Chubby. Or that Essence red, in between the Chubby and the Pür? It is the perfect summer red I’ve yet to come across.

So, you know, options.

Nevertheless, I felt a cull was in order:

FEWER LIPPYsOnly because I need to make room for more…

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Sorry, they just look so ronrey.

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Sweet Sixteen Minus Six: Nuxe Huile Prodigieuse

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I keep losing track of — hang on — right, okay, this is number 3 of 10, and it is all I can do, on a daily basis, to not lash a bottle of this in my handbag so that I can re-apply it with the same regularity as I do with lip balm. This is delicious, and also so great for me pelt. And I absolutely can spell prodigieuse without looking.

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I am sensing a trend.

I really like things that smell nice.

Here’s another extraordinarily lovely-smelling thing, and it is also a thing that comes in another version with sparkle in it. Can it be more perfect?

I love it so much, I can actually spell Nuxe Huile Prodigieuse without looking it up.

NUXE-06This is a multi-use dry oil, which means it is not greasy, which means you can use it all over your entire self without worry> Hmm, yes, well. I used it once in my hair because there was a Nuxe shampoo that didn’t have an accompanying conditioner; it was recommended that I use this, and the result was not happy. I may try it again as an intensive scalp treatment yokie bob, because what else do I have to do with my time — but I also like to give things their fair dues.

Otherwise, using this everywhere else is highly recommended. The scent is delicious, and I suppose it is the result of the perfect alchemy of its ingredients: Borage, St Johnswort, Sweet Almond, Camellia, Hazelnut, Macadamia Plant Oils. Now, I wouldn’t know what borage smelled like if it crawled up my nose, but I do know the smell of almond as used in product, and suspect that the Huile errs on the side of this natural element.

Does it? I don’t know. It doesn’t matter. This stuff is great first thing in the morning, as applied on damp, shower-fresh skin and massaged in deeply; all the way to last thing at night after you’ve cleansed and toned.

As if that’s not enough, there’s a Huile Prodigieuse Or that is a summertime essential. This is the one that brings the golden sparkle; I’ve decided not to wait for June, and will be dousing myself in this, liberally, to beat the January* blues.

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For 100mls: €30/£33/$45

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*Or the March blues, as apparently yees are up to your oxters in the horrible, cold white stuff.

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It’s Just a Twist to the Left! NUXE Nuxellence Jeunesse

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Rocky Horror Picture Show? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?

I don’t know if I am excessively klutzy or not, but my heart sang at the sight of the design of Nuxe‘s imminent {February} launch of their new skincare product, Nuxellence Jeunesse. I may just be a packaging nerd. Probs a bit of both?

Look!

JEUNESSE LIDIt’s so clever and handy! There’s no cap to slip through your fingers and bounce onto the floor! It is great! Except there is some gap in the neural network in my brain that retains ‘which way to turn the top to open this’, or whatever, so now I will sing that song in my head all day, because it has become my mnemonic.

Speaking of Time Warps!

This is Youth and Radiance Revealing Fluid, and is designed to counteract the damage done by UV and pollution. It works by giving your mitochondria the will to live — or at least rejuvenate them for as long as mitochondria live. I mean, cells, they come and go, right? Can you tell I spend all my time drawing pretty pictures of the epidermis in biology, and no time a’tall actually listening?NUXELLENCE B&B

Anyway: all the natural ingredients that Nuxe have gathered together — passion flower, anchusa and poppy, hyaluronic acid, maca root and olive leaves — combine to repair 43% of damaged cells.

As always with Nuxe: the fragrance is spot on: fresh, clean, natural, healthy, and not overpowering.

I am using this like a serum, in that I top up with moisturiser after I let it sink in. It may just be my skin in this crap, crap weather, but my face felt really tight after application.  This is a good sign of youth, the tightness, but it wasn’t comfortable. But hey: any excuse to use lashings of the Crème Fraîche de Beauté collection, also from Nuxe.

How’s that earworm working for ya?

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Nuxellence Jeunesse retails for €49.

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But it’s the pelvic thru-u-u-st/That really drives you insay-ay-ay-ay-yayne…

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Top Twelve of 2012: Minding Me Pelt

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BODDDDAlso file under: Hoarding. I love both of these so much, I ration my uses of them. Which is too bad really, to not use something that I like, but on the other hand, I know how to make special occasions even more special.

I fell for Dermalogica’s Hydro-active Mineral Salts immediately. Itcombines the excellence of salt-based therapeutic bath salt, with minerals and tonnes of essential oils. It smells rather… organic, which some may find off-putting. I feel medium about the scent, personally, but the effect of the sea salt and sandalwood, lavender, orange, clary sage, lemon, and tea tree — among others! — is pretty spectac.

Oh, Nuxe Huile Prodigieuse, how do I love thee? Countless ways! I have tried other oils, and liked them muchly, but not completely and utterly muchly — no where near as muchly as I adore this. The scent! The coverage! The suppleness of my skin! This year saw a special anniversary addition that came in a spray bottle! There is a version that has glittery sparkle in it! Still waiting, like many of this product’s fans, for the perfume version. Hint, hint, Nuxe!

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Here’s the original post about the Dermalogica salts; here are the words about the prodigious oil.

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A Scent is Worth A Thousand Words: Nuxe Crème Fraîche de Beauté

/ MANY BRAVE FOOLS / 3 Comments

Sometimes, my approach to testing products is less than scientific. When my long-suffering postman handed over a package of the new Crème Fraîche de Beauté collection from Nuxe {he’s got to be dying to ask me what is up with all these parcels}, I opened it, had a quick look, and put it to the side. It had to join the queue, and to be honest, some of the packaging out of France is way overdone. Why all these words, French package designers?

Exhibit A. This is the inside of the box. The inside of the box! Plus there’s the usual foldy-uppy-multi-lingual palaver wrapped around the container. The outside of the box is pure carnage. And ultimately? There is nothing to tell me why this stuff smells so gorgeously fantastic. Because it does, it smells like the freshest, most invigorating line of beauty products I have ever smelled.

Back to my less-than-laboratory environment. I was sitting here the other day, stumped for a word or phrase, so I reached into the Nuxe package and came up with the Masque Crème Fraîche de Beauté. Ah, sure, thought I, let’s just lash some of this on, why not? Why not, indeed. Might be a good idea, oh, I don’t know, to cleanse and/or tone before applying a mask {or masque.} I tend to think, well, if it’s gonna work, it best be workin’ on skin that is in rag order, right? So, I liberated the tube from its tomb of text, peeled off the annoying but sanitary little foil protective thingie, slapped some on —

And was immediately transported into a sunlit meadow, its grasses freshly cut. The scent of flora is everywhere: not just flowers, but trees as well, and I swear I can smell the cool water of a bubbling brook. All I wanted to do was to lie down and breathe and breathe and breathe —

Cut to me lying on the floor of my sitting room. Nah, just kidding! But I felt inspired to forgive the brand its unnecessary packaging verbiage — well, almost. What is in this?!!? Not that I reckon I can reproduce this myself. I tried to do that once! With a base cream from Atlantic Aromatics! I gathered together my lime, basil, and mandarin essential oils, keen to make up my own Jo Malone scent, except it came out smelling like broccoli.

I’ve learned my lesson there. I’m only curious, is all. I looked it up, of course, and came up with Lupin, Pea, Green Tea, Acacia, Almond, Coconut, Oat, and non GM Soya. Yeah, no. What is acacia, even? {A flowering shrub/tree.} So maybe acacia and lupin are the cornerstones of this evocative fragrance. Soya? Please.

In further bad practice, I’ve just now slathered on some of the Crème Fraîche de Beauté Enrichie, which is for Dry to Very Dry Sensitive Skin {see what I did there, French copypersons?} on skin that has not been properly prepared to receive it. I don’t care. It feels good, cooling and soothing — just like it says there on the label.

As to the 24 hour thing: these products are meant to continually moisturize for a full day/night cycle. I’m not completely certain how that works, and will ask around. I don’t know that I believe it, frankly. I do believe that the brand continue to do what they say they will, in a lovely and uncharacteristically simple portmanteau-ish way: Nature and Luxe = Nuxe. I can certainly vouch for that working well — sure, it’s as plain as the nose on my face.

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Nuxe’s Crème Fraîche de Beauté collection ranges from €20 to €32, and is available in chemists nationwide.

Lip Balm-a-holic

/ brightandbeautyfull / 1 Comment

Why mince words? I am addicted to lip balm. When I went away Down the Country for Easter, I had a mild panic attack on the train when I realised that I was using my new rucksack, into which I had failed to put a balm of some description.

Of what description? Any description: stick, gel, liquid, scrub, in a tube or a pot. You name it, I’ve tried it, and there is nothing I love more than discovering a new one to love.

DARPHIN Age-Defying Lip Balm’s little flat pot it very sexy, so stylish and sophisticated. But can we judge a lip balm by its cover? Up to a point. It goes on smooth and smells lovely, but it seems to require rather more frequent application than one would like. I’ve found it is really useful to use underneath lipstick. I tend to keep this one in my ‘leather’ jacket pocket, to use on an evening out: a quick swipe of this, and then a reapplication of whatever lippy or gloss I chose, and it is real treat after you’ve worn out yer mouth talkin’ and drinkin’, or you know, whatever. €32.63

I do love me some NUXE Lip Balm with Honey and Precious Oils because the honey and precious oils are glorious. Unfortch, it’s simply not portable as it comes packaged in a heavy glass jar. Now, this is the kind of glass jar that inspires me to day dream about having a vanity table with all manner of beautiful glass jars strewn across its surface — but this is not an on-the-spot sort of touchy-uppy balm. It has, however, been to hand as my pre-sleep lip treat, and it has almost run out. Sadness. €12.50

As packaging goes, a tin is my least favourite, and the ones from THE HANDMADE SOAP CO. seem extra difficult to open. Their Choco-Mint Lip Balm makes it all worth it in the end, because A) chocolate and B) mint. And also because the product is silky and deeply moisturising. The brand is Irish-based, so even more impetus to support them. Because I find the tin so fiddly, I keep this one on my desk. €4.50

EAU THERMALE AVÉNE Cold Cream Lip Cream first came to my attention in stick form, and I wasn’t so crazy about it. It was okay, but not great. I think that the tube applicator, however, is great. I was also a bit freaked by the notion of putting cold cream on my mouth, because: ick, but it’s not like your granny’s old-fashioned stuff. I like to use this one after horseriding or swimming: it softens and soothes on the spot. €10

Speaking of chocolate, THE BODY SHOP Chocomania Lip Butter says very clearly on the back that it is ‘unfit for consumption’. This is a useful warning, because this stuff is so chocolately, and so buttery, you may be tempted to spread some on your morning brioche. On first contact it is excellent, and the texture is luxurious, but I didn’t feel like it really sank in and did the job. Nevertheless, the scent is a real pick-me-up. I’m not sure where I’ll keep this yet, although I’m thinking it may be the new bedside balm. €7.50

Two things: this is the tip of the lip care iceberg, and I intend further posts on the balms I have known. And! I am not alone in this obsession! When out with a couple of friends for a Christmas meal last year, we all started passing around our balms after we ate, like a strange version of after-dinner brandies. What followed was an in-depth discussion of the pros and cons of the balm currently in service, and then an inventory of all the other ones we had on the go. Between us, we had roughly seventeen lip care items in active service. For real. If you are of the same persuasion, it looks like we have the makings of a support group…

Sweet Sixteen: Nuxe Huile Prodigieuse Multi-Use Body Oil

/ brightandbeautyfull / 1 Comment

I am sensing a trend.

I really like things that smell nice.

I don’t know, maybe there are people out there who don’t care about how things smell? Or disagree with me as regards what constitutes a pleasant fragrance? I can understand the latter, but the former? No way.

Anyway, here’s another extraordinarily lovely-smelling thing, and it is also a thing that comes in another version with sparkle in it. Can it be more perfect?

I love it so much, I can actually spell Nuxe Huile Prodigieuse without looking it up. Continue reading →