Lockdown Skincare Saviours!

Hello Guys,

Todays post is a little different as I think I am yet to do a beauty post. As you all know the world has gone into turmoil, with the case of the invisible virus.. The coronavirus has effected us all. Even though its had devastating effects and will continue to do so, as a world when this is all over hopefully we will unite and get through it.

So with that being said my skin and by the looks of it from social media, plenty of others too has gone and had a little bit of a breakdown since being in isolation and lockdown. I suffer with acne and I have the worst oily skin.. But you know what they say, if you have oily skin you'll age slower. That's a perk!

Since we are stuck indoors, I hopped online to Look Fantastic and Beauty Bay and done a small little order to see if I can keep my skin under control. I thought I'd tell you what I brought, what I currently use and a few of the things I am hoping to get to prevent my skin from flaring up.

Because is it just me that feels like once one breakout goes another one pops up? Its a constant cycle👎

What I brought...

Pixi Glow Tonic - In the run up to me purchasing this I kept on seeing it pop up on influencers Instagrams, YouTube vids ect. So I thought I'd give it a go by purchasing the smaller bottle from Look Fantastic. Turns out I agree, I really like this product it gives you a little 'glow', it seemed to have calmed not just my breakouts but also a little bit of my scarring. It contains glycolic acid in which I think is perfect for acne prone skin.

Mario Badescu Facial Spray - I have used this little beauty for years and had to repurchase! This makes your skin so dewy, so its perfect for going under or on top of your make up. Because I have oily skin, I tend to just use this on its own after I wash my face at night or during the day if I am not going anywhere, I just spritz this on so it settles into my skin. I have recently started to use this on my back and chest as I am starting to get little breakouts there too and so far it's seemed to have soothed it.

Mario Badescu drying lotion - This product is a hit and miss in the beauty industry. Kylie Jenner used to use it but some say it dry's out their skin. For me I am not entirely sure on the product, you're meant to leave it on overnight and let it work its magic.. I put it on and wake up with nothing left on my face, considering I am meant to be able to wash it off in the morning it's obviously not staying put on my skin. I have been trying to leave it on for a couple of hours during the day whilst on lockdown but I still don't notice much of a difference and as one of the most expensive products.. I don't think I'd purchase again.

Mario Badescu items purchased from Beauty Bay. 

Neutrogena Oil Balancing in-shower mask - Although I have two products in this picture I recently purchased this mask as I love face masks. This sounded brilliant as again it has glycolic acid in it. You're meant to place it on to a wet face and then go in the shower and wait for the steam to make the product work (where I am assuming its meant to go hard). I have used this 3 times now and I don't see a difference, its more like an exfoliator than a mask. It doesn't harden or feel like its working into my skin in the shower. I tried to put it on and steam my face but still didn't make a difference.

Cetaphil gentle skin cleanser - Has been my go-to cleanser for years! I am a fan, its a runny but creamy consistency and I find it applies better when I have a dry face and just wet my hands before I spread it on my face. It defiantly is gentle and doesn't make me break out!

Here are some of the other skincare products I use.. Including Niacinamide from The Ordinary, great product but I think my skin has gotten used to it now and isn't working as it should, so considering changing it for another serum. The Ordinary Glycolic Toner, I started using this because I saw Huda Beauty recommend it so I wanted to try, great alternative for the Pixi Glow Toner.

From Primark I purchased their blemish patches but I haven't seen them in their since but these do seem to work really well! I also purchased their vitamin c pads which again, I loved but I have heard that you shouldn't mix vitamin c with acids.. So I have stopped using these for a while but anything with Vitamin C seems to work well for any skin. 

Face masks - I buy a variety of face masks from sheet ones from Garnier to Sephora to Lush's mask of magnaminity.

I also love Garnier's micellar water, so gentle and takes off all my make up before I go in with my normal cleanser! Love it!

These are some of the products I want to get my hands on next:

Garnier active charcoal peel off mask

Bye bye blemish drying lotion - a cheaper solution to Mario Badescu drying lotion

Cerave hydrating cleanser 

Cerave facial moisturising lotion spf 25 - for an everyday spf

Tea tree skin cleansing body wash - for back acne 

The Ordinary Alpha Arbutin - for dark spot scars

I'd like to keep exploring my skincare routine until I get it just right for my acne prone/oily skin type and constantly looking for recommendations, so if you have any feel free to leave a comment! Hope you enjoyed my first ever beauty blog post.. For more on me check out my socials:

Leannesfash - Instagram

Leanneswardrobe - Twitter

Speak to you guys soon!xx

Paris - Drapers trip!

So this post is going to be a little different, grab a cup of tea as it's going to be a long read.

As I went to Paris!! I never thought in a million years would I get the opportunity to head to the city of love and a fashion capital!

My university won a grant from Drapers which contributed to taking a group of students away and as a BA Fashion Marketing and Journalism student, I was one of the lucky few to be chosen.

We started off by heading to St Pancras at 5:30am to get the Eurostar for 7am (early I know but I coped!) - I am one of those that needs a minimum of 6 hours+ to be able to function.. So I was a little worried. We grabbed Pret to keep us going then headed in to check in for the journey ahead.

The Eurostar was quick, highly recommend it took around 2 hours and was a smooth journey. Once we got to Paris, me and my friends decided to hop on a bus to the TimHotel Berthier 17, our home for the next 4 days. It was an eventful bus journey to say the least..

So we settled in for a while and decided to head to Le Valle Village, a designer outlet. The transport systems are a little hard to get used to so finding the RER Trains to get to the outlet was a little difficult and took us a while, around 2 hours later we arrived at Le Valle, you enter a shopping centre, Val d'Europe which leads to the outlet. It has over 115 shops including Gucci, Burberry and UGG.

After a long days shopping we had McDonalds to me it tasted better than the UK. Am I the only one that thinks this? They had potato wedges as well as chips and the cold drinks come in paper coffee cups (very sustainable.. Well done McDonalds, France). Then took the long journey back.

The next day we took the train (which was a double decker!! London you need to up your game) to Palace Versailles, where we had a guided tour. On the way there I had a glance of the Eiffel Tower for the first time, now I really felt like I was in Paris! It was beautiful!

As we approached the palace you could see it from miles away, it was embellished in gold and the palace grounds were enormous. It really made me appreciate what Paris was really about!

 After our guided tour we had free reign of the city, so we headed to the Eiffel Tower to see it up close and personal. It was breath taking, approaching such an iconic sight and seeing it in the flesh was a memory I'd never forget. We decided to go up the Eiffel Tower, which only cost us around 8 euros if you are under 24.

It took us a while to get in but it was worth every second, the views were like no other. Getting the chance to be on top of the Eiffel, looking up to see the twinkling lights going off was an unforgettable moment, I'll be forever grateful for... I'll let the pictures speak for themselves..

The next day our next Parisian spot to check out was the Champs Elysee and Arc Du Tromph. The rain was pouring but it was still worth every second as we stopped off in Sephora, Zara and many other hotspots along the way. We then made our way to a Musee des Arts Decoratifs, which is where we spotted the Lourve but by this time it had started snowing so we only had a quick glimpse. Although we were there for a shoe exhibition, which didn't take long to get around so we dashed over to Galleries Lafeyette to see the beautiful department store in real life.

Highly recommend checking out Galleries Lafeyette, on the top floor they have an open top viewing space where you can see Paris, free of charge (picture above).

From there me and the girls decided to have a much needed beverage at a little bar down the road, which had two for one cocktails.. Always a must after a long day spent shopping!

On the last day and only a few hours left to see the city, we thought we'd get as much done as possible. Our first stop was to see the Notre Dame, which burnt down a few months ago. To this day it is all boarded up and had cranes and building work going on around it, which was very sad. We took a trip down Le Marais, the shopping district and stopped off for a bite to eat.

We found vintage shops, high street shops and another department store. The streets near the Notre Dame were beautiful, full of great little spots to eat, drink and shop. 

From then on we were on a mission to see the rest of Paris, we hopped on the metro to see the Arc de Tromph up close and then headed to the Sacre Coeur. As a spot I'd never heard of I wasn't sure I wanted to go but I am so glad I did. If you climb to the top of the stairs you see another breath taking view of France. Its incredible, as the sun went down and we only had an hour to meet the others until they were heading to the train station to go home we decided to go into the Sarce Coeur church. With tall ceilings and stain glass windows, it was the most peaceful end to our time in Paris. 

Paris it's been a pleasure! Hope you all enjoyed my post. 

Alexander McQueen oversized sneaker trainers review!

Hello guys,

It's been a few years since I have posted. Although, I have no excuses I have been very busy. The last time you heard from me I was studying Fashion and Clothing at college and since then I have gone on to study Visual Merchandising and now Fashion Marketing and Journalism at university. I started this blog at 17 and now I am 22, so I have a lot more experience and knowledge now than I did back then and I cannot wait to share it with you!

For my first post back (in years) I thought I'd review about something I have lusted over for a long time! Back in September I purchased my first big purchase - Alexander McQueen trainers!

For a while they were on my wishlist, I'd seen pictures on my Instagram all the time, I even saw them on Love Island 2019 (my favourite show, been hooked since season 1) and then I went to see them in person in Harvey Nichols and Selfridges and fell in love even more!

I went down to Selfridges tried them on and had the best experience, being somewhere so high-end you think you might feel a bit looked down upon but I wasn't at all. There were a few other girls trying them on around me too, which put me at ease and that persuaded me I was making the right decision! The guy that served me suggested I go down a size or two. As a size 4 I tried on a 3.5 and a 3, funnily enough they both felt them same. So I thought to be on the safe side I'll go with the 3.5.

I went on home with my purchase and took them out the box to take a snap and here they are..

I went with the white and black suede at the back. As I knew they'd go with everything in my wardrobe. 

To this day I love them, get so many compliments and get them out only when it's not raining! I haven't had to clean them yet but I must admit, they are still a little big for me. I have since put an insole in but I'm still having trouble. So I'd recommend to go down 2 sizes at least or get padded insoles or the stickered heel inserts that goes around the rim of the trainer to make it more comfortable.

I love the fact they come with spare laces, a pretty little box and a bag to put the shoes in! 

Highly recommend them as they go with everything and can't wait to rock them in the summer. So far I have only had the chance to wear them with jeans but coming up to SS20, I'll pop them on with a little leather jacket (faux) and 'mom' shorts or a cute little summer dress.

I do need tips on cleaning them though, so if you have any feel free to leave a comment below!

Hope you guys enjoyed my first post after a long time off.. Looking forward to writing  more in the future!