my week #121

This week, I was working for six of the seven days, but they were only single shifts so weren't too tiring. On Monday evening, I caught up with one of my closest friends and it was nice to see him as during term time, I'd see him five days a week and now that it's the holidays, I've barely seen him at all!

How has your week been?

compiling a travel journal of memories

So, you know that feeling where you've got a brand new, blank notebook in front of you but you have no idea what to do with it for the fear of doing something 'wrong' and then messing up a notebook that had the potential to be neat and organised? Yeah, that's the feeling I had with my Paper Republic notebooks. When I first posted about these notebooks, I didn't mention the quality of the paper but now that I've cracked open one of them and put it into use, I thought it was a good time to re-visit them. 

I had two to choose from: a blue one with gold dots or an orange and gold striped one. I opted for the latter - it is just so cheerful and was perfect to remind me of the awesome time I had in Hong Kong over Christmas and New Year earlier this year.

The unstructured nature of plain paper in this notebook makes it perfect for journalling.

In this travel journal, I stuck things in using washi tape instead of glue. For each day of the holiday, I wrote a bit about what I did and whatever else I wanted to remember. When I was in Hong Kong, I kept a mini-journal in note form of what I did each day so I guess that helped me make this journal as complete as possible.

I printed off photos taken on my phone (my printer isn't great but it does the job) and stuck those into the journal.

I added in a few stickers - some sensical (the snowman to denote how cold it was even though it wasn't snowing in Hong Kong) and some non-sensical (the bunny). I included the above picture of the Christmas tree as I haven't been to Hong Kong during Christmas since I was about six years old so naturally, Christmas trees and other festive decorations had me excited (quite a few double page spreads were dedicated to decorations I had seen whilst on holiday!).

There were also a lot of pages dedicated to food and my particular favourite double page spread has to be the one referring to the time I tried out a Triple O's White Spot burger. I even included a sticker of a girl in a pig suit as that was definitely how I felt after that meal...

The final few pages were about the return journey home so there were pictures of Hong Kong airport, airplanes while at the airport and also my return ticket. I was really sad to leave as Hong Kong is a place that has a special place in my heart - it is where my heritage is, where the majority of my family are and, let's not forget the amazing shopping opportunities there too.

In my opinion, the only thing missing from this notebook is gilt-edged paper. That would have been a nice touch for a notebook that has the potential to be luxurious but has fallen one step short. I used my Kuretake Cocoiro brush-tipped pen Muji gels, Papermate Flair felt tips and also Muji Erasables in this journal. There was a tiny bit of feathering with the Kuretake Cocoiro (very little but noticeable if you look closely), Muji gels didn't write as smoothly on this paper and the Erasables and Papermate Flair pens were ok. Showthrough was pretty much non-existent with all four pens.

Hope you've enjoyed this peek into my travel journal - I finally got round to making this journal after exams ended and I had a lot of fun doing it!

hot cloth cleanser cleanse-off

Recently, I've gotten into the trend of hot cloth cleansing. This is by no means a new method and it is actually quite a popular trend - you'll see it featured on many beauty blogs. Having managed to blag a free sample of Liz Earle's infamous Cleanse and Polish, I thought I'd give it a go. The reason why I am blogging about hot cloth cleansing is because Liz Earle's offering didn't give me the positive results that most blogs out there say they've experienced. I've also purchased Ren's version and so I thought I'd also compare these two while I'm at it.

The first difference between the two is the cloth used - Liz Earle's comes with a muslin cloth whereas Ren's version comes with a cotton flannel. Personally, having used a flannel to clean my face with all my life, this method was by no means a new thing to me. I prefer to use a cotton flannel as it felt softer on my skin but the muslin cloths did feel more exfoliating and rougher in nature so I use it once a week for a deeper cleanse.

The infamous Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish Hot Cloth Cleanser - a staple in many bathrooms across the country and world. 

Let's begin with Liz Earle's Cleanse and Polish Hot Cloth Cleanser. Countless of people have said that it has brightened up their skin, cleared up their acne or just generally done a world of good to their skin. I used this for a week and during this time, my skin did look clearer and smoother... At least, half of my face did. The right hand side of my face was perfect and clear but the left hand side... Well, on day two, I felt two lumps come up on my right forehead. Because I had exams at the time, I thought it was purely due to stress but then another lump appeared on the bridge of my nose on day four. And another bump on my left cheek on day five. This was too much of a coincidence.

These bumps weren't normal spots - they were cystic in nature and they hurt. The slightest pressure caused an extraordinary amount of pain. Usually, during stressful times, I'll get one or two spots but nothing cystic in nature. As soon as I ceased using this cleanser and reverted back to my previous one, my skin cleared up and no more cystic bumps appeared.

This cleanser did a good job of getting rid of all the built up dirt as when I toned afterwards, I checked the cotton wool pad and there was little/no dirt.

Apart from that, I found the smell ok (I know others have commented on not being a fan of the smell), the consistency was decent and one pump worked on my whole face. I used the cleanser once daily before bed and like I said before, it did make half of my face look brighter and clearer. The price is on the higher end for a cleanser so I do recommend trying to get hold of a free sample before committing to a purchase. I was offered my sample through an email direct from Liz Earle (I was previously signed up to their newsletter).

Ren Rosa Centifolia Hot Cloth Cleanser - each pump bottle comes with a new cotton flannel.

So now, onto the Ren Rosa Centifolia Hot Cloth Cleanser. I much preferred the smell of this cleanser - there is something herbal about the Liz Earle one but this one smells more feminine and just sweeter. Again, one pump is enough for the whole face and I prefer to use a cotton flannel as it holds the heat of warm water better and just feels kinder on my face. Cost-wise, it is slightly better value than Liz Earle's offering (£16 for 150ml, each bottle comes with a cotton flannel).

Now, what effect did Ren's offering have on my skin? Again, I used it once in the evening for a week before passing judgement and I found that it was just as effective as Liz Earle's version in removing dirt and dead skin. It made my skin look brighter and no cystic spots developed - hurrah! I also like how with Ren's hot cloth cleanser, they recommend putting a warm cloth over your face for a minute or so to open your pores. This made it feel like I was pampering myself every evening before bed and overall, I have no bad words to say about this cleanser.

My verdict? Ren's version has won me over. They were both effective in cleansing my skin but the fact that Ren's didn't cause me to breakout wins; plus, the price is every so slightly in its favour too. Having had blemish-prone skin since I was 16, I'm prepared to pay a bit more for skincare that works and in this case, Ren's Rosa Centifolia Hot Cloth Cleanser really works for me.

It's important to note that with skincare, one thing that might work for you might not work for someone else. I think the perfect example is Liz Earle's Cleanse and Polish which gave me huge, red, terrifying bumps on my face whereas many others have sung its praises.

Have you tried hot cloth cleansing? If so, what's your verdict? If not, are you tempted to try?

my week #120

I've been putting in many hours at work this week and so, it has felt like a ridiculously busy week. However, I can't complain as it's a good way to prepare myself for the long hours I will need to put in on the wards in the future, if all goes to plan.

This week, I added in a printable that I found on Google Images a few months ago - it's of a girl being led by a kite that is in the form of a bird. I feel like I need to be a bit more like her in that I need to be more spontaneous and allow myself to be 'blown around by the wind'.

How has your week been?