My thoughts on the Company #BBlogger awards. I don’t agree with much!

Apparently the “top beauty bloggers” came up with a shortlist which included the below items and the readers then made the final choice.  There are some nice products below but I don’t agree with their awards at all -here are my thoughts.  There was NO category for anti-aging which leads me to believe Company readers and beauty bloggers have much in common, they are 18-24 girls and have no interest in anti-aging/first signs of aging.

Cleanser: Clarins Gentle Foaming Cleanser

Cleanser for WHAT type skin?  Foaming cleansers aren’t great for dry or mature skins.  This category was a little pointless and should have  been broken into skin type to make the winner worthwhile.  For dry skin I like Elemis Balancing Lime Blossom Cleanser, for normal to combination I love Murad’s Essential C Cleanser and oiler/breakout prone skin will love Bravura’s Rejuvenating Cleansing Milk with 10% Glycolic acid to gently exfoliate without scrubbing.  And finally best all round as suitable for all skin types (including taking off eye makeup) – Bioderma Micellaire Water.

Face Mask: Liz Earle Deep Cleansing Mask

Again, masks for what type of skin and performing what function (moisturising, cleansing, radiance)?  I do love Liz Earle products but there are some gorgeous masks out there that probably weren’t considered such as the ground breaking new Clayspray (pure clay in a spray bottle) and the lovely Elemis Exotic Cream Moisturising Mask.

There also didn’t appear to be a category for facial exfoliators – Murad’s AHA/BHA Exfoliator is our clear winner – it is so gentle you could use every day but subtly exfoliates the skin with teeny microbeads to leave it soft and glowing!

Shampoo & Conditioner: Herbal Essences Bee Strong

Herbal Essences shampoos are good but I’ve favoured other brands for certain hair types.  Percy and Reed or Ojon’s Volumising Shampoo/Conditioner are great for adding thickness. Sebastian’s Trilliance gives hair a gorgeous shine without weight and the 3 More Inches products from Micheal Van Clarke has had so much development and love go into it – it’s definitely worth a mention.  For a standard, off  the shelf Shampoo/Conditioner, Herbal Essences ‘aint bad but I like the Tousled version.

Body Moisturiser: Garnier Intensive 7 Days Daily Body Lotion

Body moisturisers are ten a penny nowadays, everyone has a stash that they either don’t use or got as a gift.  The new Vaseline Spray and Go is just AMAZING, the Simply Woman team love it for the softness it gives and the ease of use/drying in time.

Home Hair Colour: L’Oréal Paris Preference Mousse Absolue

It’s true, mousse is definitely easier to use than liquid colourant so I’ll let them have this one 😉

Hairspray: L’Oréal Paris Elnett Satin Hairspray

I do love Elnett.  It’s timeless and iconic and does exactly what is says on the tin!

Body Scrub: The Body Shop Coconut Body Scrub

There are so many amazing scrubs out there, far better than the Body Shop ones – I like very tiny microbeads in mine – Fake Bake body polish smells amazing and scrubs like a dream – skin is super soft. Yves Rocher Slimming scrub smells of melons and is a joy to use.  I HATE scrubs in tubs they are a pain to use in the shower so my marks always go to a scrub in a tube that is still effective and I tend to favour scrubs without an oil base.

Hair Serum: TRESemmé Smooth Serum

I don’t like TRESemme products at all – I find them cheap and ineffective.  The best serum I’ve used is Phytolisse Ultra Glossing Finishing Serum.

Luxury Day Cream: Clinique Moisture Surge Extended Thirst Relief

How annoying they haven’t considered skin type or age.  Bioderma Sebium range for oily skin, for combination Liz Earle Light Day Cream, for dry and/or mature skin – NUXE Creme Fraiche

Mass Day Cream: Simple Kind to Skin Hydrating Light Moisturiser

Which is great for skin requiring LIGHT moisturisation! For skins looking for deeper hydration some of the Nivea products are good such as Q10

Dry Shampoo: Batiste Dry Shampoo

I have never liked this dry shampoo, it shows up badly in my hair and the brunette coloured one is a bit crap.  I actually don’t enjoy using these so when I find a good one I will let you know about it!!

Styling Tool: ghd Eclipse

Any GHD straightners are amazing but the Babyliss Pro Wand we loved for big bouncy curls that lasted all day with no product to set them.  Amazing.

Fragrance: Daisy Marc Jacobs

Another generic Marc Jacobs bandwagon everyone has jumped on.  Be a bit more unique and try Coco Noir, unbelievably elegant and ladylike, Rituals Violet and White Lilly for pure femininity and Dolce & Gabbana Light Blue for pure summer freshness.

Eye Cream: Origins GinZing Refreshing Eye Cream

This eye cream is okay but didn’t set my world on fire.  Currently I’m favouring Radical’s Refreshing Eye Cream.

Mass Foundation: Bourjois Healthy Mix Foundation

By Mass do they mean cheap? Or just easy to get a hold of?  I tend not to use Superdrug bought foundations so I will go with the readers on this one and maybe give it a try myself!

Luxury Foundation: Illamasqua Skin Base

I’ve heard this is good but the one that always has the beauty world a chatter is Giorgio Armani’s Maestro Fusion Makeup – even by those bloggers involved so obviously it’s something the readers don’t have the chance to try.  It’s my first choice for a beautiful base.

Concealer: Bare Minerals Stroke of Light Eye Brightener.

It may be a good EYE brightener but what about dark spots and blemishes, eye bags and ugly red zits?.  Facial concealers and eye brighteners aren’t the same thing.    Illamasqua’s under eye concealer is excellent  as it is super smooth and easy to apply.  I think the best concealer on the market is Makeup Atelier Corrector Concealer Palette.  It covers all skin tones, contains colour correctors for redness as well as skin toned concealers and there’s a variety of shades so if you want to hide under eye bags you use the shade lighter.  It is £25 but there’s loads of product and you only need a tiny bit as it’s professional quality and will conceal everything on your face.

Nail Polish: Revlon Nail Enamel

I’d go for Essie or OPI personally, the colour range is far more fashionable and they are very covetable each season.  Top of the range Rococo also deserves a mention for their fabulous boxes and elegant colours.

Mass Mascara: Max Factor False Lash Effect Mascara

We actually like Maybelline The Colossal Volume Express Cat Eyes Mascara.  Apparently our administrator will go into every shop till she finds it and swears by it.

Luxury Mascara: Dior Diorshow Overcurl Mascara

Givenchy Phenomeneyes with the ball shaped applicator is the most innovative as well as being amazing but Dior do make good mascaras (sometimes they smudge a bit though).  Wish I was in a position to try them all out one day.

Eye Make-up Remover: Simple Kind to Eyes Eye Makeup Remover

MAC Gently Off Makeup Remover.  I won’t use anything else – most others have me rubbing to get mascara off – MAC gently lifts and I hear the Pro Makeup Remover is even more awesome.  But for day to day non waterproof eye makeup I use Bioderma Micellaire Water!

Makeup Primer: Smashbox Photo Finish Foundation Primer

Nothing can beat Benefit’s Porefessional – it is hands down our best primer for the face – slightly tinted and amazing pore coverage.  The best eye primer is Mac Paint Pot in Painterly – it gets top marks from international Make Up Artists.

Highlighter: Bobbi Brown Shimmer Brick

Benefit’s High Beam is much better with less annoying shimmer and dabbing it on as a liquid is easier to control that swiping on with a brush.  Illamasqua’s Aurora is a creamy application and highlights brilliantly.

Body Wash: Soap and Glory Clean Girls Body Wash

Rituals Foaming Cleanser is just AMAZING.  Happy Buddha is my favourite scent from the range and I consider it a “MUST BUY” Honourable mentions to Palmolive Mediterranean Range (Strawberry & Apricot Cream) and Radox.

Lip Colour: Rimmel London Apocalips Lip Lacquer

By all accounts, what I have read about this product it is universally hated.  Not sure which readers are liking it but every comment I’ve read has been negative about this sticky, smelly product.  I wouldn’t touch it with a bargepole.  Best lip colour has to be MAC hands down, followed by Chanel lippies

Spot Treatment: Origins Super Spot Remover Blemish Treatment

I rarely get spots but when I do I use Bioderma’s Sebium Micellaire Water (green cap) and it sorts them right out without drying the skin around it.

Lipgloss: MAC Clear Lipglass

A nice lipgloss but  I’d give the award to Benefit and in particular Life on the A list.

Self Tan: St Tropez Dark Bronzing Mousse

Xen Tan as a brand I feel is generally better for tanning and tailoring your colour.  A wide variety of application types which go on very nicely and we love the Xen-Tan colourless but sparkly gel self tan.  Definitely worth a purchase!

Eyeliner: Chanel Stylo Yeux

My top eyeliner is by Rituals (Intense Colour Eye Pencil) – the purple is just amazing.  I also highly, highly recommend the Urban Decay 24/7 liners, some of the colours are just stunning and the pencil is super-duper soft and neat.

Eyeshadow: Maybelline New York Eye Studio Color Tattoo 24Hr Cream Gel Shadow

NARS for me wins the eyshadow game, utterly beautiful, highly pigmented and amazing range of colours.   Their nude and light shades are as effective and pigmented as the deeply dark shades.  Top picks are Lhasa (a perfect taupe) Cordura Duo (Shimmering warm rich brown / Shimmering sooty dark brown) Brousse Duo (Sable/Black Violet) and Night Breed (Black with glitter)

Bronzer: Benefit Cosmetics Hoola

I do like Hoola colour wise but it loses big points from me because you can’t get a big thick chunky bronzing brush in the little square box!  I very much love MAC’s Matte Bronzer – it gives me the exact look I’m after.  HD Brows have just released a great matte bronzer which is pretty fab too.

Blusher: YSL Crème de Blush

No doubt a great product.  But MAC’s blushes are a clear winner with their rich pigment, amazing range for a range of skintones, large quantity of product and beautiful application – I’d probably not shop anywhere else now.  If you are looking value for money try the Makeup Atelier HD Blush.  You need the tiniest amount and at £14 the bottle should last YEARS.

Our Anti-Aging Awards;

Best Anti-Aging Brand – This has to be a toss up between Murad, Filgora and NUXE.  All are outstanding, cutting edge brands for the specific concerns faced by maturing skin or slowing down the first signs of aging.

Best eye cream – Origins Plantsciption Anti-Aging Eye Cream

Day Cream – NUXE Creme Fraiche. 24 hour hydrating cream.

Night Cream – Generally I prefer to use a serum before bed and not a cream as I don’t have that dry skin yet.  However if you want a good night cream try Murad’s Perfecting Night Cream.

Face Mask – The Lift masks, 10 individual packets of swift face lift that last a couple of days.

Specific Issue – Wrinkles – Murad Time Release Retinol Concentrate for Deep Wrinkles

Innovation Award – Filgora for their anti aging mist/serum and their ~Lip Structure double ended lip treatment