Three things…that help fight shine

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If you're anything like me, fighting shine is a daily battle one must face.

During the summer, anyway.

Oh well. It's the price we all have to pay for amazing weather. Right?

WRONG!

I'm sick and tired of looking like a shiny round beacon in public. As such, I'm sharing three of my favourite ways to beat shine at its own game.

Three things…that help fight shine

If you're anything like me, fighting shine is a daily battle one must face.

During the summer, anyway.

Oh well. It's the price we all have to pay for amazing weather. Right?

WRONG!

I'm sick and tired of looking like a shiny round beacon in public. As such, I'm sharing three of my favourite ways to beat shine at its own game.

Summer swaps | Bases

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We're all about skin care here at AM to PM. In an ideal world, I'd get out of my house after slathering on some SPF and go about my day with amazing, luminous skin. Naturally.

Real talk: that's never going to happen unless I'm just going to exercise, run quick errands, am sequestered at home on the weekends or it's a really, really good skin day.

Summer swaps | Bases

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We're all about skin care here at AM to PM. In an ideal world, I'd get out of my house after slathering on some SPF and go about my day with amazing, luminous skin. Naturally.

Real talk: that's never going to happen unless I'm just going to exercise, run quick errands, am sequestered at home on the weekends or it's a really, really good skin day.

Empties | July

There's something incredibly wonderful about these sample entries. For me, anyway.

It always freaks me out how much I have and have yet to use. It's why I'm always incredibly excited every time I post a Sample Selection Saturday.

With empties, I'm always super excited to see those empty jars pile up. You have no idea how excited I am when I take all those empty bottles to the recycling bin.

Seriously. You have absolutely no idea.

1. Lush Herbalism: Gentle. Natural. Playful. Green. It was nice using a cleanser that was so much fun to use. The ground almonds were fine enough that they didn't tug, pull or nick at my skin and provided a coarse graininess that gently exfoliated my skin.

2. L'Oréal Ombrelle Face SPF 45: The absolute best chemical sunscreen that I've tried yet. It doesn't make me ashy, lasts a long time, doesn't irritate me and doesn't feel heavy on my skin. Best of all, it provides ample moisture. It's amazing.

3. Coconut oil. This is one of the few HGs I can own up to. This jar was pretty full when I first mentioned it, but I use it for so many things including cooking. On the beauty front, I use it for oil pulling when it's in its liquid form (whiter teeth is just one of the benefits), as a daily moisturizer, as a hair treatment and as a makeup remover.

Pro tip: Coconut oil has a multitude of uses, including helping to speed up healing from bites and minor irritations. This has been hit and miss with me and mosquito bites, but when it does work it's amazing!

Sample Selection Saturday empties

4. Weleda Wild Rose Body Lotion: My nose hurt so bad after wearing this. Not only that, but it left me feeling a bit dry. All around, total let down.

5. Lush Mask of Magniminty: Amazing! It kind of looks like mint chocolate ice cream. I love the mint smell and it left my skin a bit calmer when I used it. Strike that, markedly calmer. Don't think those were chocolate bits though, I think those were beans based on Lush's ingredient list.

6. The Face Shop's Intevia Emulsion: Ugh. I don't normally like slamming products, but this was all sorts of bad. Well, not really. But any good that this product was is eclipsed so totally by what's bad.

7. Innisfee Eco-Science Skin (toner): Unlike the previous sample selection, this is part of a line that you can still purchase. It took me forever to realize this sample was toner, as opposed to serum. It's runny, but a little thicker than toner. It smells refreshing and was gentle on my skin.

Sample Selection Saturday | Innisfree Eco Science Skin

The last of the July Sample Selections! Up this week is Innisfree's Eco Science Skin. Unlike last week, Innisfree still sells this line (see?!). Score!

This is pretty amazing, so it would have been a major shame if the line was discontinued.

what is it:

A toner, which took me forever to figure out and which I had to research before I was completely certain that's what it was. This line is an anti-aging line derived from ocean plants found near and in Jeju, a big island off the Korean mainland.

In brief: the Good and the Ugly

The good: 

Strictly talking about the sample, it has a couple days' worth of applications. Twice daily applications. You don't need a lot of product for the face and neck – about five or six drops.

Based on that, the full-sized bottle will go a long way. (As a full-sized product, this is pretty decently priced at 23,000W, which is roughly $23CDN.) I found the toner to be runny, but a little thicker like a serum.

Definitely a toner, though. I found it to be non-irritating, moisturizing and didn't leave a weird finish on my skin. Its scent is awesome, but a bit strong at first. It's fresh and perfect for summer since it smells like a beach day. It has a subtle sea smell.

A personal preference, I really like that this product is EcoCert certified. This "skin" is an "organic cosmetic" and has at least 95 per cent of its plant-based ingredients that come from organic farming. Doubly awesome for my skin!

The ugly: 

The scent is a little strong for my tastes, but it isn't unpleasant. It leaves a subtle scent, but it takes a while before it diffuses.

Would I purchase?

Yes.