No7 Lift and Luminate Triple Action Serum*

Last Wednesday No7 launched a brand new product to their every expanding range of anti-ageing serums. Before it was even announced what the product was, eager lovers of skincare were signing up on the Boots website to hear first hand all about it. This serum is part of the Lift and Luminate range and clinically proven to reduce the appearance of wrinkles, leaving skin with the feeling of being firm and evening out skin tone. The age guide is 45-60, but any age can use it. Like with the Protect and Perfect Intense Advanced serum which I talked about here, the new launch contains No7's breakthrough ingredient of Matrixyl 3000 Plus. This is crucial in supporting the skin's elastic fibres to help give it a more youthful 'bounce'. Hyaluronic Acid and Hibiscus Extract help to improve and support collagen to maintain your skin's firmness with Vitamin C to combat uneven pigmentation.
Ok, that's the leaflet and No7 advisor details, but what is it actually like? Well firstly it smells quite pleasant. A light fragrance that does fade once rubbed in, so not a lingering scent which I prefer. It's a light consistency and absorbs really quickly into the skin. I do tend to let it 'set' by then cleaning my teeth prior to applying my moisturiser, but that's just me. Practicality with my everyday make up, I haven't had a problem with it. In fact, I feel my foundation sits better than with the Protect and Perfect Intense Advanced, and my skin did feel smoother, which it claims to do after the first application.
Results are supposed to be noticed after 2 weeks of continual use, both day and night. It comes in two sizes 30ml (£27) and 50ml (£34.95) and is available right now on a 3 for 2. It's worth noting that if you spend more that £4 in Boots you get given a £5 voucher to spend on any the serums.
I will continue to use this, and I'm most looking forward to this time next year when it will be interesting to see what the long term results are.

Rachel xx

*PR Product - All opinions are my own

Essence | Express Dry Spray

You've just painted your nails, you're ready to go out, but bloody hell, you've just caught a nail and the polish has smudged. Pain in the arse right? Best thing I use to avoid this is Express Dry Spray by Essence. To be honest, it's the only spray I've ever tried and I've actually repurchased it 3 times. For me it works well, it's cheap (£2.50) and it smells nice.
You use it by simply waiting 30 seconds for your polish to dry and hold the can roughly about 30cm from your fingers and spray. I tend to hold the nozzle down and move from side to side over the nails. It works by basically accelerating the drying time of the polish (and glue if using nail art) to the nail bed while also providing extra shine.
And that's it really...a short and sweet post about a super quick product that I've come to love. It's available from Wilkos on the highstreet at £2.50 for 50ml.
Any alternatives you've tried?

Rachel xx

No7 Protect and Perfect Intense Advanced Serum*

Anti-ageing is big business. There isn't a month that goes by where there isn't a new miracle cream or treatment that has come onto the market. It's hard to find the right one that works and actually suits your skin type. One that I keep going back to is the Intense Advanced Serum from the Protect and Perfect line by No7 at Boots. The serum is the UK's first to be clinically proven to deliver anti-wrinkle results that improve over time, when used regularly. This was relaunched last May with a big campaign and a lot of coverage in the media. The serum has been around for the past decade but has now extended its formulation for the ages of 30-45. The consistency is very light and absorbs quickly into the skin. It tackles the 3 main problems of ageing; fine lines, deep lines and crows feet with target ingredients such as Matrixyl 3000 Plus that helps restore the skins' youthful appearance. Trials were conducted over 12 months on 182 women with positive results. I actually ran out a few months ago and didn't repurchase for a while and noticed the difference. I soon went back to it. 

Sizes come in 30ml (£24.95) and 50ml (£32.95) and is currently on offer with a 3 for 2.

The serum is also available for the 20-35 age group called Protect and Perfect Advanced.

Rachel xx

*PR sample

Back To Blogging and Update

Hello everyone. I have been absent from my little corner of the internet for quite some time; 9 months in fact. Although I wasn't posting any content myself, I've still been reading my favourite blogs and keeping up to date on YouTube. I just felt that I had somehow lost my spark for it and I didn't want to just write posts for the sake of getting content up.

Also in my personal life I had just finished my Specialist Practitioner Qualification in district nursing and although that had been over the course of 2 years, I felt like I never wanted to go near a computer again! It was just nice to enjoy coming home from work and not having to think about picking up a book or nursing journal to use for an assignment. I enjoyed the summer, with my family in the evening and on my days off, and then came the autumn with winter quickly after it. Time just escaped me and before I knew it the new year was here and I hadn't felt like blogging. Until now...

I have decided that I'm just going to post content when I feel like it. I really admire the bloggers who have set days where they post, but I just can't commit to that. I'm a mother to a 5 1/2 year old girl, I'm a wife, I work full time and I have a house to run. I also don't have an overflowing bank account that allows me to buy lots of new products on the market to write about. So I'll just go with flow for now and blog whenever I get the urge!

I'm still quite active on Instagram (heartoceansecrets) and I'd love you to come say hi. I'm just getting back into Twitter (rachel80jones) so bear with me on that! Thanks to my followers who have stayed with me with the occasional tweet/email/insta asking how I am.

See you all real soon

Rachel xx

image from stocksnap