Summer holiday favourites - 1/4 | Ayesha

Instead of doing month-by-month favourites posts, I'm going to do seasonal ones. I don't often try a new beauty product every month, and particularly for my skin and hair, I have some tried and tested products that work for me and I don't like to change them up too often. I find that some products work better for me in warmer weather than colder and vice versa, and other products are great all year round. 

So, to kick off this 4-part series, I'm going to tell you of my current summer beauty favourites. 

Annoyingly, I wanted to include John Frieda Frizz Ease serum in this picture too but it completely slipped my mind! It's something I use every time I wash my hair and everything. Oh well. 

1. I guess I'll start with the Frizz Ease then. My hair is naturally curly and since moving to London, my hair has not got used to the water here. It's slightly more hard which means I have to use a lot more conditioner to make my hair manageable and soft. Because the humidity in London is worse because of the pollution, my hair really suffers with frizz. A couple of pumps of this serum on wet and dry hair though, it's amazing stuff! 

[Clockwise from left]

2. L'oreal TXT volume spray.  Zahra got me into this actually. I had bought the Charles Worthington Volume spray (the one everyone talks about), but it really doesn't do anything for my hair. It makes it feel so cakey and unmanageable. This one is a lot finer and helps my hair stay put as well as giving it a bit of volume, my hair being quite thin!

3. Chanel Vitalumiere foundation. Ooh this is a new one for me and I have been loving it. I don't get on with foundation, it makes my skin look REALLY cakey and is worst when applied with a brush. The only time I have enjoyed having foundation on my skin was on my wedding day. This, however, is a liquid foundation and when applied with fingers just looks like second skin; really natural. With a primer it also stays put all day and I feel like my skin can breathe when wearing it. 

4. Urban Decay BB cream. I wear this on a day-to-day basis. I have tried a few BB creams but this one works really well for me. I don't believe that BB creams are anything more special than a tinted moisturiser, but with this one in particular I can apply it at 7am, no primer or powder to set it, and by 6pm when I arrive home I have very little shine on my face. I normally get an oily t-zone made worse in the heat but this was a saviour. Amazing stuff! 

5. NARS - Madly (blusher). I tried this in the spring pre-tan, and it looked nice but I feel this product works really well with a bit of a tan, so for me, would be a summer-only product. It makes my skin look really healthy. It doesn't look amazing in the pan, but it's one of those things you have to try for yourself to see its appeal. 

6. Nail polishes - Chanel "Rose Insolent" (pink), Barry M "Sugar Apple" (pastel mint), Barry M "Coconut" (off-white/beige) and Essie "Chubby Cheeks" (bright terracotta orange). All 4 of these are my go-to summer shades when my hands pick up way more of a tan than any other part of my body. 

I'm a walking skin-bow (like a rainbow...)

7. Chance by Chanel. I received a couple of perfume samples after I purchased the Chanel foundation mentioned previously. I LOVE this smell. Its floral but not too girly-girly. 

8. Glow by Topshop - "Gleam". Topshop makeup is a hidden gem in the make-up world. The products are surprisingly good quality. Check Zahra's posts for her lipstick reviews; some of them are comparable in colour and quality to MAC. Anyway, this Glow pot is a highlighter and this particular one is a golden shimmer one. However, when you apply it to skin, you don't experience the kind of glitter that makes you look like a Christmas tree - it's very subtle and gives a good amount of sheen and glow. I love this one. 

9. Yves Saint Laurent Rouge Volupte Shine lipstick in shade 16 (the gold packaging), Soap and Glory gloss stick in Fuschia Rustic (it looks neon orange, but is actually a lovely wearable pink), and MAC See Sheer lipstick (your lips but better). Not much more to say except they are my 3 go-to shades this summer.

So that's all, and expect the next installment of this series in November!