Autumn Beauty Favourites

The last couple of blog posts I’ve written have been super raw and heavy, so to soften the mood, I will get back into the swing of things by bringing back the seasonal beauty favourites posts.

If you know me extremely well, you will know that Autumn is my absolute favourite season. It’s the season where I tend to come alive. The season where I’m at my most reflective and I’m at my most inspired. My birthday is fast approaching too, we are well and truly in Scorpio season and I’m edging nearer and nearer towards the mid thirties mark.

I have an array of pumpkins and Autumnal bouquets dotted all around my house. Candles have been lit all day, every day and I’m in my cosy oversized knitwear. What a time to be alive!

Any who, let’s get into my beauty favourites shall we. Starting with hair care.

Kérastase Elixir Ultime L’Original Oil

This hair oil is amazing! I haven’t tried much from this brand, however, their products have been on my wish-list forever. I also see Kérastase in my local hair salons, so it must be good, right?

Anyway, I run out of my trusty hair oil that I received in a Liberty Beauty Drop box a few months back and decided to purchase this one. It adds that extra rich scent to my hair, which is glorious, as well as repairing my hair and leaves my locks so silky soft and smooth.

I want to try some of Kérastase’ shampoos and conditioners at some point. I feel a bit overwhelmed with the amount of options they have though. But from what I’ve tried so far, I really rave this hair oil, it’s a goodun.

VEGAMOUR GRO Hair Serum

Another hair product I’ve been loving is the GRO Hair Serum from Vegamour. I was kindly gifted a few bottles of the GRO serum a while back. I’m still making my way through the first bottle as I only wash my hair once or twice a week! Anyway, Vegamour are a brand who promise 100% clean vegan ingredients. They have a holistic approach to hair wellness that incorporates clinically tested plant-based ingredients that work in tandem to promote healthy, beautiful hair naturally, without the use of harmful chemicals or short-term ‘fixes’ that can lead to long-term problems.

The serum has been really great so far! I did lose a lot of hair a few years back, however, I’m not having any problems with hair loss at the moment. I have noticed my roots are a bit thicker since using this serum, which is a huge bonus.

I wrote a review on some other Vegamour products earlier on this year. Have a read if you fancy.

I will most likely do a full review on the GRO Hair Serum once I’ve made my way through all three bottles. However, I might trial this serum on Joe (my husband), as he has lost a bit of thickness on his hair towards the front.

Jo Malone Pomegranate Noir Cologne

Jo Malone is one of my favourite fragrance brands. I wrote about my collection a little while ago. You can have a little read here if you’re interested.

I have a few more Jo Malone fragrances on my birthday and Christmas wish-lists.

One of my favourite Autumn/Winter scents is Pomegranate Noir. It reminds me of dark autumn and wintery nights, the warmth of the fireplace, and has a rich, almost ‘manly’ scent. I usually wear this if I want to feel ‘sexy’. However, I have been reaching for this a lot more than I usually do.

Cowshed Sleepy Calming Pillow Mist

I really struggle with my sleep, I sadly have severe insomnia. So, I will try anything and everything to ensure I have a good night’s sleep.

I have a few different pillow sprays by my bedside table which I alternate. I really like the NEOM ones, Sunday Riley one, LUSH sleepy spray, and a few others.
Recently I have been reaching for the Cowshead pillow mist. It has a blend of Melissa and Lemon Myrtle essential oils which can help relieve tension and stress.

It does help me sleep really well, providing that I’ve exhausted myself with tons of exercise and hit well above 10k steps, then relaxed for an hour before bed with an indulgent skincare routine, a steamy hot bath with sleepy salts, oils and bubbles and maybe a bit of night-time yoga as well.

I tend to find all of the pillow sprays and mists help me get at least 6 hours of sleep if I do stick to that routine I mentioned above. All of them are super calming too, which helps me relieve any tension in my head, which is amazing.

ESPA

Weirdly, I’ve had only tried the ESPA anti-bacterial spray that I got in a beauty box during Covid times, which I adored. Other than that, I’ve had a few ESPA facials locally, which are dreamy and I would highly recommend.

I decided to purchase the nourishing cleansing balm and the refining skin polish a fair few months back.

Oh my, why has it taken me SO long to purchase their skincare, because their products are incredible!

ESPA is often used in spas and salons. However, I have been religiously using Sunday Riley as well as testing a few others (PAI is another brand I have tried recently). I just wanted to mix up my skincare products a little bit while I was undergoing another complicated round of IVF during the Summer.

Anyway, the nourishing cleansing balm is truly amazing. It’s perfect for very dry to combination skin. I have been using this every evening for two to three months and no complaints fro me. Highly highly recommend giving a go if you have dry skin.

The other stand-out product for me is the refining skin polish, which I tend to use twice a week.
I have nothing but great things to say. It’s a joy to use, my skin looks and feels amazing afterwards.

I avoided using any skin serums with harsh chemicals in during the Summer and Autumn. So, my skin was looking amazing because of those two products hence why they are in my Autumn favourites. Of course I have to give credit to Sunday Riley’s ICE moisturiser as well, because my skin looked and felt it’s best with that included in my skincare routine.

Sunday Riley ICE Moisturiser

On that note… let’s talk about this wonderful moisturiser.

As some OG readers will know, Sunday Riley has been my favourite beauty skincare brand for a few years now.

I honestly haven’t tried a single bad product from them and I purchase all their products, have not been gifted anything. I do wish they would work with me one day, as my bank account always looks sad when I need to top up on a serum or moisturiser. But, a girl can dream!

The ICE moisturiser is one of my faves. I do love the Vitamin C moisturiser that they sell as well, however, I tend to use that during Spring and Summer. Then I switch to this one in the colder months as it’s a thicker moisturiser and it is better for my dry skin during that time.

I’ve written a lot of reviews of Sunday Riley on my blog. So, I will leave this link here and you can browse the blog posts and have a little read if any interest you.

Olay Retinol Night Eye Cream 24 MAX

I have really really neglected my eye area my entire life. To be honest I never added into my skin-care routine, it’s just something I forgot to do, which is so silly as I have around five different eye creams in my bedroom.

Anyway, I noticed some wrinkles under my eyes the other day and it made me a little sad, however, as always, I had some conflicting thoughts because I am pro-aging. Ageing is a wonderful and beautiful experience. I won’t ramble on about why.

So, I purchased Olay’s Retinol Night Eye Cream 24 MAX after doing quite a bit of research online for the best affordable eye cream.
Plus, I needed a retinol back in my life, and this has been SO good. Reasonably affordable too, around the twenty pound mark. There is usually a ton of offers on this particular eye cream, so have a browse around on the interwebs if you want to try it.

LANEIGE Lip Sleeping Mask & Lip Glowy Balm

LANEIGE is a brand that was on my forever growing beauty wish-list.

They are a Korean skincare and make up brand with innovative, water-based formulas that deliver swift and noticeable results. LANEIGE is known for all things H2O, with the brand having spent over 25 years on unlocking the secrets to hydrated and healthy skin.

I was intrigued by their lip products and have been using the sleeping mask and lip glowy balm solidly for around five months. I went for the berry ones.

The sleeping lip mask is incredible, better than what I was expecting. It’s so luxurious and super moisturising. It’s great for using before tucking into bed, or at any moment during the day where your lips feel like they need some extra TLC. Another great buy and I would love to try some more Korean skincare in the future.

Last but by no means least, I will discuss my final two beauty faves.

I don’t actually wear a lot of makeup these days. I think since the pandemic happened, I didn’t feel the need to put makeup on. Plus, I’m very lucky to have reasonably clear skin, so I’m quite confident in popping out without any makeup on.

Having said that, I will put on some makeup if I’m attending an event, or heading out for a special occasion. Realistically and the majority of the time, I have no makeup on my face.

Chanel Rouge Coco ‘402 Adrienne‘ Lipstick

Chanel’s Rouge Coco ‘402 Adrienne‘ will always have a special place in my heart as it was my wedding lipstick choice.

I haven’t been able to get my hands on it since 2016 when I first purchased it. Luckily I popped into a Chanel store in Battersea in London back in August and I asked them if they had it back in stock as I couldn’t see it on the shelves and I haven’t been able to get online since then. To my luck, they had it in store!

It’s the most gorgeous nude with a teeny bit of shimmer, which gives your lips dimension. So so thrilled to have this back in my life.

I cannot tell you how much I LOVE it, it’s one of my favourite nude lip colours. This and Charlotte Tilbury’s ‘Bitch Perfect‘ are my go to nude lippys. It makes me feel more put together and reminds me of my wedding day.

Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk Foundation

Another makeup product I hadn’t purchased since 2016 or 2017 was the Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk foundation.

Why did I stop buying this?! It’s incredible, it’s one of the most beautiful finishes! Again, I wore this on my wedding day and I felt like I looked a million dollars, ha. Review of the foundation and wedding selfie here.

My favourite foundation. Well on par with Estee Lauder’s double wear.

We made it to the end, hurrah!

That was a beast of a blog post. It took me hours to edit the photos and write in the end. So, I’m going to put my feet up for thirty minutes and then I need to get ready as I’m heading out for an early birthday meal with my little family. Super excited!

Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend ahead or have a lovely day or night depending on when you’re reading this.

Have you spotted any faves? What beauty products are you loving now that the weather has turned a bit colder?