What. The. Hell. Is it April already? 🤯 Anyhoo, March was the month where I was battling all things moisture. My skin on my body, hair, and cuticles were dry as the Sahara, and my face was Congestion City; population me (shout out to masks).
So without further delay, here are my top nine things for March:
Neutrogena Body Oil Light Sesame
As I mentioned in the intro, I have been plagued with dry, itchy skin on my body; namely the tops of my arms and thighs. While I make sure I use nourishing body creams as soon as I come out of the shower, I wanted to amp up my moisture game, so I picked up the Neutrogena Body Oil Light Sesame Formula from Chemist Warehouse for $11.49. So you're supposed to use this oil after you shower/bathe and when you're still damp. However, listening to a Gloss Angeles podcast about Ayurvedic beauty practices, I instead slather my body with this oil BEFORE I shower. I can honestly say that I feel like the process of me oiling my skin before a shower has helped so much with the dryness. I still apply a moisturising cream after showering, but I no longer feel dry and itchy.
Maybelline Lash Sensational Sky High Mascara
So I am not on the TikToks, but I do know that this mascara went viral on it last year. I had bought it probably at the beginning of last year from Priceline for $24.95 but just chucked it in my "back-ups" draw and forgot all about it. But then, this year, I cracked this bad boy open and regretted that I didn't open this sooner. Usually, I HATE (yes, hate is a strong word, but it is true) plastic spooly brushes on a mascara wand. They're always so stabby, and I never like how they make my lashes look. I am always about that fat hourglass natural spooly for volume. However, this mascara, coupled with the ultra-flexible wand that helps get in the nooks and crannies, makes my lashes look great! Not to mention the fact that it doesn't smudge on my lower or upper lids 🙌🏼 . Bravo, Maybelline, you finally got me liking a plastic spooly.
Skin Control Pimple Patches - PM
What do you get when you add face masks, 35C+ (95F+) days, and sunscreen? You get a tonne of congestion and blind pimples along your chin and jaw! For those playing along at home, we never really had to wear masks until December 2021 as COVID finally kicked off where I live. So with the masks, sweat, and SPF come the pimples and the urge for me to pick at them, which makes things worse. So to try and help reduce the amount of time that the pesky pimples live on my face rent-free, I have been using these Skin Condition pimple patches that I picked up for $7 from Big W. I am a rebel, and I wear them during the day (either under my mask or on display when WFH) even though they say they are for PM use. It is incredibly satisfying to see the "white" stuff on the patch when you remove it. I can confirm that they help with pimples that have come to a head. Blind pimples... mmm, not so much.
The Body Shop Almond Nail and Cuticle Manicure Oil
If I am frank, I don't usually bother with cuticle oil, with the only time being when I am getting a manicure. I would find the whole process of oiling the ol' cuticles to be cumbersome; unscrewing the lid, then painting it on, then rubbing it in, leaving your fingertips greasy... just too much of an effort. So seeing that The Body Shop had a cuticle oil in a pen gadget for $12 AND it smells like almonds so I had to buy it. I love this thing! The oil isn't oil, rather a gel texture but it still is super dooper nourishing. Also, as it has a little brush tip, you don't need to get your fingers involved in spreading the oil all about. You let the pen do all the work. Say hello to hydrated and pretty cuticles and goodbye to messy, oily, smeary finger prints everywhere.
La Roche-Posay Cicaplast Baume B5
I follow Dr Shareene Idris (aka Pillowtalk Derm) on Instagram and YouTube and I love her. The advice she gives and the way she explains things make it so easy to understand. Of late my face has been incredibly dry but has a number of breakouts on my chin and jawline and just looked overall gross and dull. I already had this La Roche-Posay Cicaplast Baume B5 in my bathroom cabinet but never really knew how best to use it till I saw Dr Shareene (yes we're on first name basis 😉 ) talk about how she uses this to "reset" her skin on the weekends on one of her YouTube videos. Basically you apply a very generous layer of this thicker-than-usual-kinda-like-diaper-cream baume to your face. You then leave it on your face for like 20 minutes or so and your skin just soaks it all up. Your left with a white cast on your face and that is due to the zinc gluconate which helps with acne as it is antibacterial, it has healing properties, helps with sebum production and helps with wound healing. I have since been doing this once a week every Saturday morning for the last six weeks and I have noticed a massive difference. It is mind blowing how this one thing is making a noticeable change. I grabbed mine from Priceline for $19.99.
Revolution Makeup Eye Bright Illuminating Concealer
I won't lie, the packaging of this under eye concealer is why I bought it (love me some rose gold). It also looked very similar to the Maybelline Age Rewind which I deem to be one of my holy grail under eye concealers. This Revolution Makeup eye bright concealer set me back $16 at Priceline and I have the shade in Light. When you first use it, you need to do that winding action for a bit for the product to appear in the little fuzzy ball applicator and at first it is this oil type of liquid but persevere, what comes afterwards is ah-maz-ing 🙌🏼 I find its texture to be quite light weight, but it still has great coverage. It really does help to brighten the under eye area and reduce those dark circles. It is an awesome concealer for under the eyes when you are trying to be a little more natural but can also be used when you have a full face. It also doesn't crease on me (but I need to set it with powder). Watch out, this could be my new fave under eye brightening concealer 😉
Neutrogena Oil-Free Acne Wash
As I mentioned earlier, the congestion and pimples on my face has been worse than normal given that face masks have been mandatory everywhere. So when I was doing the weekly food shop at Woolworths, I grabbed the Neutrogena Oil-Free Acne Wash for $15 to try and help get rid of the bacteria and any germs that might be fueling my blemishes. I could have picked up any acne targeted fash wash, but I have a soft spot for Nuetrogena and I already use a number of their products. So the reason why this face wash gets a mention in my March favourites is because I have been using it and find that it is helping with the breakouts. It isn't super stripping either which is great.
Missguided Brow You Doin? Tinted Brow Marker - Super Dark
I never ever knew that Missguided had their own makeup line. Nor did I know that they were at Chemist Warehouse until last month. So when I had a little peruse through their stand of what they had, this eyebrown pen caught my eye. I already use (and love) the Stila Stay All Day Waterproof Brow Color pen in the shade 'Dark'. However that one sets me back $33 and can only be bought from Mecca and the closest one to me is an hour away. Whereas this Missguided brow pen is only $14.99 and I have a Chemist Warehouse less than 1km from me. I can honestly say that I am going to keep purchasing this eye brow pen as it is equally as good as the Stila one. The colour I got is a shade darker than the Stila one but I prefer that. The colour is a cool toned dark brown and it STAYS put. Missguided, I may not buy your clothes but I will now buy your makeup!
Olaplex No. 7 Bonding Oil
Again without sound like a broken record, I have been dry almost everywhere... including my hair (I am a poet). I've heard people rave about the Olaplex No. 7 Bonding Oil so I decided to bite the bullet and buy this from Mecca. I knew the bottle was small but I didn't realise how small it actually was till I got my mitts on it. Now if you're like me, you'll think you've been robbed as the small 30mL bottle costs a whopping $50. But trust me, it 👏🏻 is 👏🏻 worth👏🏻 it 👏🏻 . I use it about every second day on my dry hair and I have used probably $2 worth (so the smallest amount). It doesn't leave my hair greasy but gives it an amazing shine and feels more nourished and softer. It also has a scent that I love but isn't overpowering. I can now see why people rave about this hair oil and why they can charge the insane amount of $1.67 per mL.
So that is it, my top nine favourites for March. Have you tried any of the items above and if so do you like them as much as I do? What were you loving in March? Leave your comments below, as I would love to hear what you were digging too!
Toodles 💋
Jess
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