The green edition

Out of all the colors in the spectrum green is the one most closely associated with nature - fertility, growth and ultimately life. But green is also supposed to have a calming, relaxing effect and to symbolise balance. I know that autumn is more or less here, but the trees haven't quite shifted to gold and red yet so there's still a memory of green summer left so a great time for me to share some of my favourite green products that help me feeling balanced and harmonious.

We all try to live life a little greener, and one of the best beauty brands founded on 100% natural ingredients and with a strong commitment to the environment is Caudalie. If you have read some of my earlier posts you'll know that I use quite a lot of products from the Caudalie range and also reward myself with the occasional treatment. It was during one such pampering session that I was introduced to the Caudalie's Fleur De Vigne Shower Gel. It's a lovely, gentle and soap free shower gel that cleans well without stripping your skin back or making it feel dry, but what I REALLY like about it is the scent (surprise, surprise) that stays on your skin for quite a long time afterwards. It's an unexpected delicate mix of subtle florals like rose with fresh melon and leafy vines. It's a very green but aquatic scent that helps you to unwind after a tough day - to me it's pure bliss!

I liked the shower gel so much that I went straight to buy the matching fragrance Fleur De Vigne Eaux Fraiches. Of course it has the same mild scent combination as the shower gel, but it also has an extra touch of a very noticeable citrus air from grapefruit and tangerine together with woody cedar. This makes the fragrance very sparkly and exhilarating but also grassy and modern. To sum it up: it has got to be the greenest scent I've ever tried, and if you're looking for a balancing and harmonious scent - you should definitely try this one.

Since I have long hair and work out a lot, I go through bottle loads of shampoos. And because I use so much, I usually don't want to spend too much money on hair products and tend to go for more affordable products, but I will occasionally invest in the odd high end product as a treatment for my hair. This is exactly what I did a good few months ago when my hair felt very dehydrated and damaged and I wanted something to boost my hair, so I invested in the Kérastase Bain Force Architecte Reconstructing Shampoo. This shampoo is supposed to be used daily, but instead I actually limited my hair washes to no more than 3 times/week (thank goodness for Batiste Dry Shampoo) and also only used this shampoo, no other. You only need a little dollop of it to get a really nice lather and it cleans your hair in a very gentle way, with a lovely fruity salon scent that lingers. I know that this has a higher price point, but for me this shampoo really worked - my hair felt stronger and I didn't notice as many brittle strands as I had before. Since you don't need much the bottle actually lasted me well over 2 months, which is probably unheard of for me when it comes to shampoo. You can of course get this in salons all around the country, or why not check out the fabulous Feelunique.com, and get yourself another little something since you're there anyway. 

I've mentioned before that I've mainly been using coral and bronzed eye makeup this summer, but often added a stronger color on my lower waterline for effect, and one of my most used eyeliner shades has been the Rimmel Exaggerate Eyeliner Emerald Green. It's a beautiful, intense and  smooth emerald green with blue undertones that I've really enjoyed wearing and that's worked well with my blue eyes. The formula is so pleasant to wear and work with since it goes on so easily, it's waterproof and it lasts a long time - so it's been perfect for summer wear. There are other wonderful shades available in this formula as well e.g. plum and black, and I've already decided to get the plum one for the A/W makeup.

Emerald Green

Being a polish-aholic I obviously wanted to include a nice green polish in this post and despite having quite a few nice greens in my collection I knew straight away which one I wanted to show. When the Revlon Moon Candy nail polishes were released I was completely taken in by the idea - you probably all know it: first you use the dark base shade and then you add the lustrous top coat for a great 3D look. I've tried many of them, but the shade I was instantly drawn to was Meteor which for me is perfect for this time of year. It combines the summery, lush, dark forest green with autumn golden and coral speckles and I really love the finish of it.

Meteor

I usually apply 2 coats of both the base and the top coat since I quite like having an even spread of the little opalescent fragments across the nail. On me the finished look lasts 3-4 days before it starts to chip away, which is pretty good. I wish I could say that it's easy to remove this polish, but it is unfortunately a little trickier than normal ones, but to make it a little easier I would recommend using 3 coats of the base color to thicken it up since it won't effect the final finish. This particular product may not be new anymore, but my fascination for different effect top coats and formulas stays on, and although I've already picked up some of the A/W releases, I know I'll continue to sport my Moon Candy look every now and then.

This collection of product definitely makes it easy being green!