The Relaxing Evening Pamper

I have mixed feelings about the upcoming move to Autumn but one of the things I will be looking forward to is cosy evenings in having a good pamper!

Bath Time

I start by running myself a nice warm bath. If I have a Lush bath bomb or fizz then I'll use that but at the moment I love the Body Shop Deep Sleep Comforting Milk Bath Float | £14. It's so gorgeously creamy and the fragrance is beautiful and relaxing. It bubbles up really nicely and they last a long time. I definitely need to pick up a few bits from the new Spa of the World collection, I think!

For a candle I stray away from my usual heavier scents and go for more of a spa fragrance. My favourite is the Rituals Sweet Sunrise Orange and Cedar Wood Candle | £19.50. It's nice and fruity but still very fresh, unimposing and relaxing.

Before I get in I'll apply my Antipodes Aura Manuka Honey Face Mask | £22.99 | post. This is my favourite all-rounder in terms of face masks as it just seems to improve my skin in every way! It's hydrating as well as helping blemishes. Also, it doesn't tingle or dry out the skin so feels more relaxing. The fact it has a runny consistency means it doesn't harden and you don't feel the need to cut your bath short to take it off.

There are two products I reach for when I'm in the bath; one as a body wash and one for shaving my legs at the end. I love the L'Occitaine Almond Shower Oil | £18 as it feels so much less stripping on my dry skin than a foaming body wash. The oil is super-hydrating and leaves my skin feeling really soft. I also love the subtle almond scent. For shaving my legs, instead of a shaving foam or gel, I much prefer the Soap & Glory Whipped Clean Shower Butter | £7. I love the thick, creamy texture of this and the brown sugar, sweet almond oil, cocoa butter and oat fragrance works beautifully with the L'Occitaine oil. It's really nourishing and makes shaving effortless.

Relaxation

After my bath I wash off my face mask then cover myself in the Mandara Spa Ylang Ylang and Coconut Body Butter* | £6 (also available in Sainsbury's stores). I really love the fragrance of this as it's not too sickly, again it has that refreshing, spa kind of scent. It's also not to thick; sometimes I feel like slathering on a really heavy body butter just sticks down the dry skin instead of hydrating it, however this is somewhere between a lotion and something like the Body Shop's butters. It leaves my skin so soft and hydrated without leaving excess oiliness on the surface, plus it's a bargain!

I'm a self-confessed excessive hand-washer so between my fingers gets really dry. Nothing hydrates them as well as the Body Shop Hemp Hand Protector | £11 (100ml). I find it too heavy for in the daytime but as an overnight treatment it's perfect. I take a small amount and make sure it's really rubbed in and my skin feels soft and supple instead of dry and tight.

I move my candle into my bedroom and settle down to paint my nails. Even when I'm relaxing, I'm impatient when it comes to wet nails! The Barry M Speedy Quick Dry range has been my saviour and my favourite shade is Pit Stop | £3.99, a gorgeous and work-appropriate 'greige'.

Whilst I paint my nails and let them dry I'll listen to a bit of music or watch something on Netflix. I'm not super into any TV shows at the moment but a couple of months back I would definitely have been watching Orange is the New Black! For music I go for something quite relaxing, like the little Summer Chill Playlist I made.

Before Bed

I try to turn off my laptop and TV at least half an hour before bed so I can full switch off. I might make myself a Camomile tea or some other caffeine-free bedtime infusion. I spend around about 20 minutes reading a book (I recommend Sali Hughes's Pretty Honest for a beauty read in bite-size chunks), my Kindle or a magazine (my favourites are Allure and Elle). 

I apply my Kiehl's Midnight Recovery Concentrate | £36 | post, as an overnight oil treatment as it really does work wonders for my skin. I won't go on about it too much as it's a very recent purchase but I'm really liking the Nuxe Reve de Miel Lip Balm | £9.50 as a nourishing overnight treatment. Lastly I'll blow out my candle and give my pillow a spritz with the This Works Deep Sleep Pillow Spray | £16. I don't know how this works but it does! Maybe it's a placebo effect but I always seem to drift off effortlessly into an uninterrupted sleep when I use this.

How do you like to relax in the evenings and what are your pampering essentials?

 

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