5 Different Lip Balms

Yes, I do keep my lip balms in a sugar bowl.

Finding a good lip balm is a bit of science because of the many demands one have to one; it must have practical packaging, not too expensive, make your lips soft, repair your dry lips, etc.. I have collected five of my lip balms for a little overview and judged them based on their ability as well as their price.

The lip balms have been put in order from worst to best in the first picutre and later on in the second picture, from cheapest to most expensive (note: from left to right). 

Labello is the classical lip balm to use, especially in Denmark, as it can be bought almost everywhere. It makes your lips really soft immeditately, but in the long run it honestly do nothing for your lips. If you have a sore, then don't expect it to help with that. I always have one in my jacket pocket as a quick fix until I find one of the others.
It is the second cheapest of the five. 

Avène is the pharmacy's recommendation... at least in my hometown. It honestly works really welll and helps those dry lips to become soft again. It is a cold cream, so it doesn't sink it as quickly as the others. Instead it works over a longer period of time. Personally, I don't mind that though I know my mother has a problem with that. I prefer to put it on for when I sleep and let it work overnight.
It is the second most expensive of the five (Danish pharmacy price).

Lypsyl is also one of the classics in Denmark, and the one my mother swears to. It does work very well, though doesn't make your lips immediately soft the way Labello does. However, it does work in the long run and will offer improvement to your lips if your lips are in an okay-semi decent state. If you have a sore, then I don't find it to work much. The packaging is its weakness as it quickly gets dirty and just doesn't seem so practical.
It is the cheapest of the five.

Kielh's is their own recommendation, though it isn't a surprise they recommend their own product. It is a very basic lip balm in a pot, which have the resemble vaseline though only in appearence. It is a decent lip balm that heals your lips unless you have a sore; a sore is a bit too hard a task for it. I have placed it below Lypsyl, and that is due to its price compared to its effect. It is just as good as Lypsyl. Some mind using a finger to get and apply a lip balm, but I don't mind at all.
It is the third cheapest of the five.

Sard Kopenhagen is another pharmacy recommendation, though can also be found in the Magasin department stores. It does every thing you want a lip balm to do - softens and heals the lips, but can also handle a sore really well. The packaging is very chic looking. Both are what you'd expect from an expensive lip balm, and it really doesn't disappoint in my opinion. I would gladly definitely recommend this to anybody.
It is the most expensive of the five.

Do you have many different lip balms? What is your favouirte lip balm? 

Until next time,

Mia ♥ 

Midweek Post: Skincare & Make-up Remover

So, my package from eChemist finally arrived and thus I decided to make a blog post about it, even though it is Wednesday and not Thursday, meaning I am deviating slightly from my original schedule. But not to worry (I say this mainly to myself), I promise there will be a blog post up tomorrow – a DIY! I actually shouldn’t make this sound exciting as there is the possibility of people being disappointed with it… aw man!

Moving on with what I actually purchased at eChemist! First and most importantly, but also the reason I actually made an order, I bought my daily cream from Avène. I am really low on my old jar and honestly feared the worst, so the postman had the best timing by delivering the package today. The Rich Compensating Cream is perfect for my dry skin, and it has in general worked wonders by also improving my skin dramatically to the better. I love it, basically. I purchase the cream at eChemist instead of the local pharmacy because it is so much cheaper – I bought the cream when it wasn’t on offer, but I still saved 100 DKK (approx. 10 GBP) compared to the standard price in Denmark!  

Also, I decided to try the make-up remover from Bioderma as everybody seems to be raving about it. I am slightly skeptic because I don’t really like make-up removers as they make my skin feel either dry or oily. Yucky! But I will try to forget my bad experiences and give this a decent test-run seeing it is from the sensitive series. I believe I purchased the 100 ml bottle for 40 DKK (approx. 4 GBP)… I don’t know if this is considered cheap for the amount, but you can’t purchase Bioderma in Denmark yet. It is apparently coming to Denmark, but I don’t know when or at what price.

I promise I will do a review on both products, especially Bioderma as I have high expectations to it after all the reviews I have read on it.

What products do you use to take care of your skin? And what products to remove your make-up?

Until next time,

Mia ♥

Review: Avene Soothing Moisture Mask

I shall make a confession from the beginning: I hadn’t planned to write (and publish) this kind of post today. Actually, I had something else planned, but as the postwoman delivered this I had to surrender. Please forgive me!

Anyways, I am a massive fan and user of Avène’s products as they honestly helped my skin from looking extremely dry and flaky to healthy and moist. If you don’t know the brand Avène, then I shall quote their own description from their website, “EAU THERMALE Avène is a unique French dermo-cosmetic brand dedicated to each level of skin sensitivity; from sensitive, intolerant to allergic.” That sounds like magic to my ears as I have very sensitive and slightly allergic skin, which makes it a bit difficult to find good and effective products. I like products that work instantly, where I can see improvement right away because I really don’t have the patience to give every product the benefit of the doubt. Avène products generally do that for me… and this one didn’t disappoint.

The other day I was looking through the samples I have received over time and found the Avene Soothing Moisture Mask sample (see above picture). I didn’t think much of it, but nevertheless thought I would give this a try – I need to clear through my samples at some point. I found the application instructions online, which are as following, “Apply the Soothing Moisture Mask in thick layers to the face and neck. Leave on for 10 to 15 minutes then carefully remove the excess product with a cotton pad.” Easy enough to understand, right? I thought so too and did exactly that. Just 5 minutes(!) after my skin had absorbed it all. My skin suddenly looked moist and really healthy with a slight glow to it. That is what I call effective! It had apparently been in need after the ever-changing Danish weather and medication had done their damage.

As I really liked what the product had done for my skin (and quickly had used up the sample), I decided to purchase it in 50 ml myself.

You can normally buy this and Avène products in general at most Danish pharmacies. However, the price of 144,50 DKK (approx. 15 GBP) is just… well, your wallet won’t be too pleased with such a purchase, especially if you don’t have that much money to yourself. I don’t have a lot of money either, so instead I purchase it through the English website echemist.co.uk. eChemist is so much cheaper and they often have offers on different products and brands. I bought mine on offer for 85 DKK (approx. 8.5 GBP), though 102 DKK (approx. 10.2 GBP) as listed today. The shipping is completely free unless you purchase for over 2 kg… And they ship worldwide, apparently! 

Have you tried the Soothing Moisture Mask? Or any of the other Avène products?

Until next time,

Mia ♥