Morgan's Skin Journal
the tenth journal
Hello, hi there and a very warm welcome to the tenth edition of the journal! Thank you for coming back, we have some super fun beauty talk ahead of us.
For today’s special issue (number ten!) we have a bumper amount ahead of us including a brand spotlight on my favourite acids brand, trying a viral blush moment and the makeup I can’t get enough of.
We also look at a new mascara I tried this week that promises to deliver on length and definition whilst also providing serum benefits and of course my big three!
Enough chit chat; let’s talk beauty!
Brand Spotlight: Alpha-H
When it comes to exfoliating acids, you can’t have a conversation without Alpha-H. They’ve been around for more then 20 years and the Liquid Gold formula is a true icon and cult favourite. With a few recent updates to packaging and exciting new formulas I thought it was fine time we have a little chat about the brand that helped bring chemical exfoliation into the light.
So whilst you may know them for their exfoliating treatments, the brand has an expansive skincare offering, from cleansers to treatments to SPF and cater to a broad range of skin concerns. Some of their more recent releases include the Golden Haze face oil, an SPF50 serum, the new varieties of the Melting Moment cleansing balm and now a foray into haircare with the Healthy Scalp exfoliating treatment.
I thoroughly enjoy the way they approach their social media and the opportunity to educate and properly explain how each product or formula fits into a routine, as well as how certain ingredients work and why they may or may not be suited to you.
They’re an Australian brand with a fantastic team and I’m excited to see what they keep bringing out. I really enjoy that whilst there’s always something new in the works, it never feels unnecessary or developed for the sake of needing a new product, its place always makes sense for the brand and for your routine.
If you’re looking for a recommendation, I have many! I have narrowed it down
This is a luxurious feeling facial oil, absolutely packed with everything dry, rough skin needs. It is an oil blend, rather than a single oil and that helps it offer a range of benefits beyond simple hydration. The inclusion of Camellia Seed and Jojoba Oils make it a great option even if you are prone to oiliness or breakouts. They recently suggested it for use as a hair oil too and I cannot wait to try that out as well.
Generation Glow Daily Resurfacing Essence
If you want to try chemical exfoliation but feel scared, this is a great product to start with. You don’t have to use it daily, you can just start slow and it is a blend of AHAs that not only help to exfoliate but also hydrate and soothe (yes, acids can do that too). This has been my exfoliating treatment of choice for a while now and it works so well for my skin.
This is such a lush cleansing formula and absolutely melts away makeup, helping to condition the skin in the process. I am especially partial to the newest limited edition scent, Sage and Spicy Pear, which is so relaxing and comforting at the end of the day.
A water-based formula that feels lightweight on the skin but still leaves the skin more hydrated and bouncy than before. It also contains lovely antioxidants and is a great option if you deal with dehydration rather than constant dryness.
Vitamin E Serum with 1% Ceramide Complex
The first word that comes to mind for this serum is ‘comfort’. It’s like a comforting light cream formula, with ceramides and vitamin-rich oils that sinks into the skin and is particularly useful for sensitised skin. I’ve been through two of these before and luckily another one arrived on my doorstep recently.
I would love to know if you’ve tried anything from the brand and what you think of it! Also, if you’re at all interested in purchasing from the brand, you can use the code MORGAN20 for savings on your order.
The 5 Minute Makeup I Can’t Stop Doing
The last few weeks have been a bit emotional and low on sleep, which keeps showing up on my face - no thanks. My daily makeup routine or look has been much the same each time because it’s just been so effective at bringing some life and glow to the skin and wears so well throughout the day.
Here it is in action:
Product breakdown:
SPF first always! I have been reaching for either the Beauti-fltr Featherlight SPF 50 or Supreme Screen from Ultra Violette.
My beloved Holme Beauty Primer, now in my winter shade of Bling, which helps to hydrate the skin, bring glow and a little tint to help even out my redness and dark spots.
For coverage, sometimes a little of the Summer Fridays Sheer Skin Tint, otherwise just the Tower28 Serum Concealer in the spots I need it most.
Benefit Goof Proof through my brows, filled in a bit and brushed through, sometimes with a spot of brow gel to keep things brushed up in place.
A vibrant creamy blush to bring colour back to my cheeks, recently I can’t stop reaching for a Nudestix formula, in shades like Rosy Posy or Picante. Applied liberally across the cheeks and nose, even up high towards the hairline.
Holme Beauty Setting Spray over everything before mascara and for mascara either the Loyal Lash from Holme Beauty (again, I know but it’s just all so good) or my fave Tower28 MakeWaves formula.
My go to lip combo is just a simple liner, either the Makeup Forever Artist Colour Pencil in Wherever Walnut or the Holme Beauty Alignment Lip Liner in Elly with a gloss or balm over the top.
There it is! Revolutionary? No. Quick to do and gives me dependable, glowy results? Absolutely!
Something I Tried This Week
I know we all love a new mascara, so this week I tried an interesting formula from Rimmel, the Wonder’bond Bonding Serum Mascara. It essentially incorporates a lash serum into a mascara, with a biotin bonding complex that’s designed to help protect the lashes and leave them stronger. As a mascara it promises to give longer lashes with considerable volume.
First of all, I am a big fan of including nourishing or supportive ingredients into makeup. As long as it doesn’t inhibit performance, I say why not!
I was sent both the black and black brown shades as a pr sample, but it was the black brown I gravitated towards trying first. The difference in the two shades is subtle, but just enough that the brown helps to soften it (I like this against my pale skin and dark hair). The applicator is a synthetic brush that’s tapered, which I found made it easy to apply the product evenly and coat even the shortest lashes.
Here’s a little look at it in action:
The verdict? I absolutely see myself trying this out more and more in the coming weeks. The initial effect of how it looks and wears impressed me - good volume and definition and length to the lashes, no fallout or crumbling throughout the day. It didn’t feel like it dried out or irritated my eyes and the removal using my regular oil cleanser was straightforward.
I can be quite fussy with mascaras, so I’ll see what happens as I wear it more, but initial thoughts are that this is another stellar release from Rimmel. You can shop it here.
The Giveaway
I hinted at this in my sign off in the last edition of the journal, but here we are at the tenth journal and to celebrate I decided a giveaway with some of my favourite beauty products was in order! A nice big bundle including products from previous editions of the journal as well as long standing faves from brands such as Summer Fridays, Ultra Violette and Go-To. All you have to do to enter:
Be subscribed to the newsletter
Share it with a link to either your Instagram stories or just to a friend who you think may like it and send me a screenshot (@morgansskinjournal). I’ve popped a share button below to make it nice and easy.
It will be open to Australia/New Zealand residents only
That’s it! Think of it as a little thank you from me for the support I have been shown so far, but I would also love your help in growing this community of beauty lovers. This newsletter is truly a passion project of mine and I would love to bring bigger and better content to you.
Sunset Blush
This has got to be one of the prettiest and easiest to recreate makeup trends I have seen in quite a while. The idea of sunset blush is taking blush in the colours of a vibrant sunset (orange, bright pink, even a little purple) and blending together for an ombre effect on the cheek. You could obviously even add in your own details like a particularly golden highlight or leaning towards a more pastel palette.
I, of course had to try it myself and it gives me a good reason to reach for some shades that can feel quite intimidating by themselves.
My picks were 3 from Nudestix - Picante for the orange, Magenta Magic for that pop of pink and then Moodie Blu as the finishing purple. I love this formula because it’s so creamy and easy to blend, which is super important when you’re dealing with bolder colours. I simply did a little of each and used a stippling cheek brush to blend from the orange outwards, then lifting the brush and going from the middle out. Going back and forth can drag that deeper colour through the whole look and destroy that ombre effect.
Here’s how it turned out for me! I’m obsessed with how pretty this is, how the deeper colour helps draw the eye upwards and give lift to the cheeks. I kept my makeup fairly standard underneath, but could definitely see how this could look pretty with quite a bronzed up look or a heavier hand with the highlighter.
Let me know if you give it a go! I would love to see if you give it a go and what blush shades you reach for.
What’s Up Wednesday…on a Friday
If you’ve never seen one of my What’s Up Wednesday videos, they’re a regular occurrence on my page and provide a space for sharing beauty knowledge, answering FAQs, ingredient explainers or even myth busting. This week we explored what slugging is and whether it could be a good fit for your skin in the cold weather.
What is slugging?
Slugging is the process of adding a very thick or occlusive balm as the final layer in your evening skincare routine. It works as an almost physical barrier to keep all your lovely skincare sealed in and keep the dry air out, preventing it from causing moisture loss within the skin.
Why should I give it a try?
It’s a bit of a gross name but a cool little skincare trick that can help you to combat the dehydration and roughness that comes with the changing weather. This past week in Queensland has certainly felt like winter is no longer coming, but firmly here and I have been adding slugging into my skincare routine to help stop it showing up on my face. The best thing is that it’s very easy to try and something you can include or exclude each night as you see necessary.
It’s also something you don’t actually have to do across your entire face; you can do your usual routine and just add the balm or ointment in places of real need.
Are there any skin types or concerns it isn’t suitable for?
Not really! Especially since it’s something you can add in as needed and only in the spots you need. If you have skin or certain areas that are more prone to breakouts or that ‘clogged’ feeling, just skip using the balm in that area. Alternatively, oiliness in the skin throughout the day can be a sign of dehydration, with the oil being produced by the skin to try and counteract that. Additional moisturisation and nourishment of the skin overnight could help with that.
Or if you try it and it doesn’t work for you, don’t worry about doing it again!
What products do I use?
So, the good news is this is a very accessible technique and you probably have something on your skincare shelf that would work quite well. A few of my go to formulas include the CeraVe Advanced Repair Balm, Lano Golden Dry Skin Miracle Salve and of course the incredibly popular La Roche Posay Cicaplast Baume B5. All of these can be picked up for under $25 and also double as a great ‘in case of emergency’ product for reactive skin.
Now, you could of course also use a rich moisturiser or face oil and apply it quite liberally or even a few thick layers. It’s not something that absolutely requires a new or even specific product.
TL;DR? Just watch it instead:
The Big Three
Ok, you know how you have your big three in astrology? This is just the beauty product version of that, and yes I think I’m pretty clever thank you very much. The Sun will be something that’s going on my face on the daily, Moon is for the nighttime routine heroes and Rising is for the newcomer or rising favourite of the week.
SUN: ULTRA VIOLETTE SUPREME SCREEN
Truth be told, I’ve been purchasing and using this sunscreen since it first launched and it continues to be a firm favourite for a number of reasons; it sinks into the skin easily, helps to smooth and hydrate, has never been irritating, sits supremely well under makeup and I like that it’s straightforward to know how much to apply (5 pumps). I also got my mum using it everyday, so yeah it’s good.
I continue to reach for it because I know I can always rely on it and it just feels so good on the skin. Whilst SPF is a year round relationship, if you’re looking for something maybe more nourishing for winter, I recommend giving this one a try.
Shop it here.
MOON: CERAVE ADVANCED REPAIR BALM
Ok I already love CeraVe and their ceramide focused skincare, but this balm is next level. I have a little tube that’s been living on my desk the past week to help with a small eczema flare up around my eyes and a bigger tube in the bathroom to slug with overnight.
Whilst it’s great to use regularly, it’s also great as a ‘have on hand’ product for the next time you have an awful reaction or go too hard on the actives and cause your barrier to give up. Like all other CeraVe products we have the 3 essential ceramides, alongside hyaluronic acid and petrolatum, which acts as an incredible occlusive agent. It’s somehow think and balmy like an ointment but not suffocating or too sticky on the skin. Plus, you can pick it up for under $15 at Chemist Warehouse.
Shop it here.
RISING: MAYBELLINE LIFTER PLUMP GLOSS IN BLUSH BLAZE
I think this may be the first ever plumping lip product I have tried and I was not disappointed - in both the tingling effect and the result. This one relies on both actual Chili Pepper and something called Maxi-Lip to give you that fuller, more plump lip look. It can take a second for the tingling to set in, but it’s really quite mild once it does, so nothing to worry about.
The overall effect is the combination of that plumping effect with what is already a great lip gloss formula. I am already a fan of the original Lifter Gloss, how it gives a shiny and ultra glossy look without being too thin or too sticky. My shade of choice is Blush Blaze, which rather suits my natural lip colour and therefore works well in whatever combo I’m using it. The pigment payoff is less opaque than you might expect for this shade, but I quite like it. It also comes in a red that is really quite lovely and can liven up a look without having to commit to a super bold shade.
Shop it here.
And with that, we’ve reached the end of the tenth edition of Morgan’s Skin Journal! If you’ve made it this far, I hope it means you’ve enjoyed it and would consider sharing with a friend who might like it. There’s so much beauty goodness to come in 2024 and I hope you join me for it.
I’ll play myself out with my song of the week and see you all for the next journal 🩵
Love, Morgan