No!No! Skin | It’s a No!No! from me

I’ve been in constant battle with my skin since I was 14. Between eczema and acne it’s been a rough ride. It has also meant that I have been willing to try anything to calm my acne down. Sometimes I get bored of products if I don’t see an instant result and sometimes I like to ride it out and see what happens.

After being in the US for 6 months my acne flared up to the worst it has ever been. A combination of bad food, drinking, hormones and coming off antibiotics, which had kept the acne under control, is where I saw the root cause of this nasty flare up. So on the plane journey home, after weeks of crying and hiding my face, I saw the No!No! Skin advertised in the catalogue. I’d heard good things and thought it wouldn’t hurt to see how it goes.

First of all, the packaging and branding is very sleek and girly with the pink and silver detailing.  The device itself is also silver and quite lightweight which I (for some reason) was quite disappointed by because it was expensive (£129.95) and thought there would be a bit more weight to it.

There’s a quick guide included to get you started, you need to charge the No!No! for a couple of hours before you use it.

You then simply place the nossel on the spot or “pimple” and press the button, after 2 beeps you take the nossel away, wait 5 seconds and repeat on the sample spot.

The description of the product says “Safe, pain free and effective treatment for acne. Based on professional phototherapy technology, no!no! Skin destroys bacteria, soothes pain and reduces inflammation. Sending gentle pulses of light and heat energy deep into the pore. The ultimate emergency pimple care you can take anywhere”

It hurts. Way more than you think it is going to. It gets hot and a little unbearable, at one point my eyes started watering. I also didn’t see any improvement as an “emergency” resolution to having a spot. This might have been because my skin is quite bad and this is only a treatment for mild-moderate acne.

For now, it’s a No!No! from me for No!No! Skin.

I am currently taking Roaccutane under the supervision of a dermatologist to try and clear my acne up once and for all (look out for a post on that), so maybe I will revisit this device once it clears up to see if it helps with the off one or two spots.

An unglamorous solution for Stress-ema | Epaderm

Like most kids I suffered from eczema but as I got older it subsided and seemed to almost disappear.

However, when I started my GCSEs, progressed through to my A-Levels and started my first full time job, the eczema came back. Except this time it was on my face. More specifically, my eyelids. I referred to this type of eczema as “Stess-ema” due to its propensity to flare up in times of stress.

As you can imagine this was pretty nasty (and actually quite difficult to itch at times). My GP gave me steroid cream which helped but it can’t be used for long periods of time as it thins the skin, not something you want to happen on your eyelids. Over the years they prescribed and advised me to use the usual suspects; Double Base, Centraben, Diprobase, Ultra Base, E45, Oilatum and varying levels of Hydrocortisone creams. After several trips to the GP, crying in a pharmacy, cutting out wheat, dairy and even sugar for a (very) brief period of time, it still had not disappeared.

Eventually I was referred to a Dermatologist who prescribed something which I can only describe as a miracle cream and since starting to use this almost three years ago now, I haven’t had a Stress-ema flare up since.

It’s not pretty, it’s not glamorous and it definitely isn’t sexy, but boy does it work.

Epaderm 2 in1 Emollient Skin Cleanser

I use this as a wash to remove makeup and to cleanse my skin. Using a wet flannel I pump the cream on to the flannel and use circular motions to wipe my make up off. I then rinse my face and use the clean side of the flannel to remove any excess make up. I also use it every time I shower to cleanse my face.

If my legs and hands get particularly dry (mainly in the Winter) I also use this straight onto the skin as a moisturiser.

It comes in two sizes; 500g which will last about two months and 50g which is really handy for travelling and will last you about one to two weeks (depending on how much you use each time).

Considering the price point it is definitely worth trying if you have struggled with eczema and even acne. Since using this my acne has calmed down, it hasn’t disappeared, but I have seen an improvement.  

The best part about Epaderm is that you don’t have to have a prescription. You can buy it over the counter for £12.20 for the 500g tub and £3.49 for the 50g pump. However, with a prescription the prices may vary depending on what you usually pay/if you are under 16 in the UK.

There are several videos on YouTube which highlight the benefits of Epaderm, but I continue to use this purely based on my own personal experience and currently can’t go a day without it.

Scared and Tested | Chanel Soleil tan de Chanel

Chanel Soleil Tan de Chanel has been a popular item for bloggers and YouTubers to review and the results they were getting were making me green with envy, so I had to see what all the fuss was about and try to recreate some of the magic for myself.

When I first bought this I actually didn’t use it for a couple of days because I was, quite frankly, scared of it. In the pan it looks quite orange and creamy and it’s just not what I am used to (I think I genuinely asked the lady at the counter if it came in any other shades). I have been using the same matte Maybelline bronzer for the past five years and I feel like I have control over its intensity, so straying from the tried and trusted was a big step for me.

Once I built up the courage and intently watched several YouTube tutorials on how best to apply it, I genuinely fell in love, which is a relief considering its price point (£32.00). I was worried about how dark it would look but found that once I played around with it for a while it was actually quite buildable and you can create a nice glow without looking like you’ve caked on the bronzer. At the time I was on holiday so I actually think the base tan helped me to get the colouring right. I am quite fair so I will have to see how it goes as my tan begins to fade.

I’ve noticed that the general consensus for applying this has been to use a large kabuki style brush and apply it in circular motions around the areas of your face that catch the most sunlight and to apply it UNDER your foundation/skin make up. I am way too paranoid about my skin to rely on a bronzer to cover the redness etc. so I actually apply it on top of my foundation as bronzer/contour. I use the word contour lightly though; I haven’t quite mastered that one. Bobbi Brown was interviewed last year and she said "The contouring trend is so wrong because it tells women there’s something wrong with their face. There’s beauty in a full face, so I don’t like to paint in a cheekbone that doesn’t exist.” So I am holding off experimenting with this just yet.

I used the Real Techniques Expert Face brush which seems to work well for a more precise application as opposed to applying it all over your face. You could also use the Real Techniques Sculpting Brush but I found it was harder to blend it out and was a bit streakier for me, but that probably has more to do with my dry skin (*sobs*).

While it is worth every penny I would recommend you go to a Chanel counter and ask them to apply it to you first before you go for the splurge. They are really helpful when it comes to getting advice on the products (mainly because they want the sale) but it does give you a better idea of how well you will get on with it at home.

Overall, I really love this product and imagine it will be something I continue to re-purchase but also savour, purely because it is expensive.

If you’re looking for a bit of inspo on how to use Chanel Soleil Tan de Chanel, you should definitely check out some of these channels on YouTube:

• -        Chanel Makeup (With Lisa Eldridge) - Lisa Eldridge on How to do the Summer Bronze Base - CHANEL Makeup
• -        Chloe Morello - My Ultimate 'I'M NOT WEARING MAKEUP' Makeup!
• -        PixiWoo  - Cara Delevingne Makeup Tutorial