21.5.13

8 Skinetica

"A unique new solution that clears unsightly breakouts with visible improvements in 2-3 days"


You've probably already seen the posts where I was moaning about a lot of breakouts (post dissertation stress) and it was around this time that I was asked if I'd like to try out Skinetica*, an anti-blemish treatment intended to soothe, calm and clear your skin of blemishes. My skin has been subject to hormonal and stress related breakouts over the past few weeks, especially around my chin and cheeks, so it was the perfect time to give this spot clearing treatment a try! I'm not one who has suffered from bad acne or anything like that so I can't say how this product would work for acne prone skin, but this is how it has worked for my dry and occasionally spot-prone skin. At 21 I thought my breakouts would have calmed down as I no longer have the dreaded teenage skin, but nope, they're not showing any signs of leaving unfortunately.

All you need to do is add a little of the liquid solution onto a cotton pad and apply it to any affected areas, making sure to have your skin free of makeup or moisturiser as these will just get in the way of the spot treatment. The bottle advises that you use this solution every 12 hours so I tend to apply it in the morning before I put on my makeup and then in the evening before I go to bed so that my skin is getting plenty of breathing space during the treatment! The first thing that I noticed about Skinetica was its fairly strong chemical smell which you soon get used to so it's really not much of an issue, but I thought I'd just mention it anyway. You'd expect there to be some harsh chemicals in there because of the smell but surprisingly there are none to be found, and the formula is also non-greasy which makes it great for oily skin too.You get 80ml of product and so far there's still a lot more than half the bottle left after a few weeks of constant use so this bottle should last you quite a while.

Now on to the results.. I'm happy to say that Skinetica has made a difference to my spots. Hooray for that! 2 blasts of the product each day has dried up my spots and reduced their size which is always good to see, especially when this happens overnight and you wake up to much nicer looking skin. I've found that this treatment has also been great for reducing the marks left behind after breakouts as my chin is usually covered in little red marks for quite a while, so my skin is left looking a lot more calm and clear. As I've already said, I can't comment on how Skinetica would work for bad acne prone skin as my spots are a lot less severe but after reading great reviews from other people it looks like the product really works for people with bigger skin issues than mine. The appearance of spots has really been tackled by this product but I'm not entirely sure how well it has worked at preventing future breakouts as nothing really seems to stop my hormonal breakouts from happening. You can buy an 80ml bottle of Skinetica from their website (here) for £9.99.

20.5.13

14 Lipstick wishlist


Last night's #bbloggers chat was without a doubt my favourite as it was dedicated to lipstick, and boy did we all get excited when we chatted about our favourites! So many shade recommendations were given by you lovely lot and afterwards I really felt like I wanted to put together a wishlist of some of the shades I'm now lusting over. It ended up being a mix of drugstore and higher end lippies, with the beautiful YSL shade being added incase I ever feel the need to go on a massive splurge. All of the shades are very much summer orientated as we come into the warmer months (can you believe we had 22 degrees and gorgeous sunshine in Glasgow today?!), with a nice mix of pink, red and peach in there.

MAC Lipstick in Chatterbox (£14) - This looks like such a pretty bright bubblegum pink and one that would be perfect for the summer months when your skin is a bit more tanned. I've really found myself loving MAC lipsticks recently and fancy treating myself to another one soon so this may be the shade I go for! Any other shade recommendations would be greatly appreciated as I've really been converted to MAC lippies.

YSL Rouge Volupte in Faubourg Peach (£24.50) - Once I've finally stopped drooling over the beautiful packaging I can tell you why I love this shade. Faubourg Peach is just the perfect peach shade in my eyes and one that could be worn as a pretty every-day colour, especially in the spring and summer when peach shades are very much on trend. Of course this is a lot of money for a lipstick but it just screams luxury at me and is on the wishlist incase I ever fancy giving myself a nice big treat.

Revlon Lip Butter in Wild Watermelon (£7.99) - It's no secret that I'm in love with the Revlon Lip Butters and although I love the pink and peach shades already in my collection, the red shade of Wild Watermelon has just drawn me in as I've always shied away from red lips. This red has a slight hint of pink which is probably why I'm no longer scared to wear it, and the glossy finish makes it perfect for summer. 

Topshop Lipstick in Ohh La La (£8) - Ohh La La is such a gorgeous pink toned coral shade which looks nice and bright without being too in your face, especially good when you have paler skin like mine as brighter shades can look a bit scary sometimes. I've been really impressed with the formula of Topshop lipsticks as they are creamy and pigmented and the gorgeous range of shades is a big plus.

Rimmel Kate Lasting Finish Lipstick in #05 (£5.49) - This is yet another pink choice from me as I just can't seem to stay away from them lately. The Rimmel Kate lipsticks were getting a lot of love during the #bbloggers chat and as I'd never tried one, I swiftly went online to check out swatches and this brighter pink caught my eye straight away. A quick tip is that most of the shades from this range are now available on Fragrance Direct for just £1.99!

19.5.13

10 Nivea Daily Essentials Refreshing Toner



I know I've recently posted about the L'Oreal 3 in 1 Micellar Solution which cleanses and tones the skin in 1 easy step, but this toner is what I've been reaching for when I want to spend a little more time on my skin. Micellar waters will never replace my cream/liquid cleansers as I've really gotten into the habit of double cleansing my skin at night to make sure all of the makeup and gunk has been removed from my skin, so a toner is still needed as a finishing step in my skincare routine. The Nivea Daily Essentials Refreshing Toner has been my toner of choice lately and for good reason too as I've really felt like it has made a difference to my skin after cleansing. My skin is left feeling squeaky clean, especially when it comes to the larger pores around my nose which can get clogged easily. Another thing I've been absolutely loving is the scent of this toner as it takes me right back to the Nivea products that I used when I was a teenager. Much like the Dove scent which I was gushing about a few weeks ago, this fresh smell really is the quintessential Nivea scent which I've come to adore. A quick swipe of this on a cotton pad is all you need to make sure your skin is free of any residue or remaining dirt after cleansing and the addition of Vitamin E is great for leaving your skin feeling very refreshed. You can find the Nivea Daily Essentials Refreshing Toner in Boots and Superdrug, with Superdrug currently offering it at just £2.09 (normal price is £3.59).

18.5.13

2 Advertising with Behind These Closed Eyes

It’s about time that I got myself organised but I’m happy to say that you now have the opportunity to advertise with Behind These Closed Eyes! I’m offering 3 different advertising packages and the features of each are listed below, with a small, medium and large advertising package being available to you all. Advertising slots will start on the 1st of each month and will be visible in my sidebar for the rest of the month, with the possibility of additional advertising such as Twitter and blog post mentions being listed below.


Large package: £7
♡ 2 slots available each month
♡ The first 2 slots that appear in the sidebar
♡ 200 x 200 banner spaces
♡ Included in a "Meet my advertisers" post which will go live at the beginning of each advertising month. Each advertiser will be linked (as well as any social media links provided) and given a little introductory paragraph which you can provide via email.
♡ Mentioned in individual Follow Friday (#FF) tweets on each Friday which falls within the month.

Medium package: £5
♡ 5 slots available each month
♡ Slots 3-7 that appear in the sidebar (allocated on a first come first served basis)
♡ 200 x 150 banner spaces 
♡ Included in a "Meet my advertisers" post which will go live at the beginning of each advertising month. Each advertiser will be linked (as well as any social media links provided) and given a little introductory paragraph which you can provide via email.  
♡ Mentioned in group Follow Friday (#FF) tweets on each Friday which falls within the month.

Small package: £3
♡ 5 slots available each month
♡ Slots 8-12 that appear in the sidebar (allocated on a first come first served basis)
♡ 200 x 100 banner spaces


Why advertise with BTCE? Blog stats (as of 18/5/13):
GFC followers: 1,031
Bloglovin’ followers: 494
Twitter followers: 482
Total page views: 166,458
Page views last month (April): 17,455

If you’re interested in advertising with Behind These Closed Eyes then all you need to do is email me at behindtheseclosedeyes@gmail.com and let me know which advertising package you’d like. If there are no spots left for the package that you’re after then I’ll let you know and see what can be done instead! Payments will be made through Paypal and any additional info that I may need can be sorted via email.

0 A post from a proud big sister

Today's post is a bit different and something that is closer to home as I wanted to share this short film with you. My brother is in his final year of college studying Television Production and has just put together his first non-factual short film as part of his graded unit. To say I'm proud is an understatement as I have watched this production come together since day one of script-writing, and now here it is after the final touches of editing and it really has turned out better than I could ever have imagined. The basic premise of the short film is that 2 students kill a motorcyclist in a hit and run, with the cyclist later coming back to life to get his revenge on the killers. I'm certainly not a fan of horror films but I can make an exception for this one as he has done so well in putting it all together. If any of you have a spare 15 minutes and fancy giving his short film a watch then it really would mean the world to both of us. A big well done to Calum for the great writing, directing and editing!