How to Have the Perfect Pamper Evening

When I was growing up I was definitely the kind of girl who opted for a shower over a bath every time! The thought of having to wait for the bath to fill and then sit in it, just felt like such a waste of time.  However, these days, I can think of nothing better than having an evening where I completely pamper myself, and that always begins with a nice long bath. I thought I would talk you through my typical pamper evening routine and share some of my favourite pamper products with you…….

Bath Time

I know it’s not good for my skin, but I LOVE when the water is extra hot in my bath and I have to brace myself to get into it, lowering myself in one inch at a time lol.  For me, the best part of having a bath is what I put into it.  Personally, I am not actually a fan of bubble baths but prefer using bath oils or the odd Lush Bath Bomb.  I just love how nourishing and moisturising bath oils are and they make my skin feel nice and soft.  One of my absolute favourites is the Jo Malone Lime Basil and Mandarin Bath Oil.  It makes my whole bathroom smell amazing and I can always smell it off my skin once I get out of the bath.  It is made with a base of almond, avocado and jojoba seed oils, so it really is very nourishing on my skin. This one is quite expensive so I use it very sparingly, but you really don’t need a lot.  There are also so many other brands which now do bath oil at a much more affordable price (Burts Bees, Rituals, Dr. Hauschka, L’Occitane to name a few).

Candles

What is a bath without a candle?! I just don’t see the point lol.  I absolutely love candles around my home and I feel like there is no better excuse to light a candle than when I am having a bath.  It just makes me feel so much more relaxed when a bath is candlelit.  Not only that, but it also adds an amazing smell to the bathroom.  I try to choose a candle with a scent that is complementary to whichever oil I have used in the bath.  Not to sound like a crazy fan, but some of my favourites are again from Jo Malone and Bath and Body Works.

Masks Masks Masks

I am a massive fan of beauty masks, and I mean ALL masks! Hair, face, lips, hands, feet, you name it – I use them all and there is no better a time to do this than on a pamper evening.  Here are my thoughts on them:

Hair Masks

My friends and family will be able to tell you about the hate relationship I have with my hair.  In fact, I’m not even sure it deserves to be called hair.  It is more like a little piece of fluff that sits on the top of my head and has a mind of its own.  It’s TERRIBLE!  Ok, to be fair to it, it has had its share of abuse over the years with constant highlights and numerous types of hair extensions applied, so these days I do try and look after it a bit better.  I feel like no matter which products I use (regardless of whether they are really expensive or super cheap) nothing really works and this has made me very critical of haircare products, so I am really hard to please when it comes to this category of pampering.  However, there is one (and I literally mean one) product which I do think helps my hair, and that’s the Olaplex No.3 Hair Perfector.  I was first introduced to Olaplex when I was having my highlights done in a salon in Abu Dhabi last year.  It is a three-step treatment which works towards rebuilding damaged hair.

Step 1 (Bond Multiplier) takes place in the salon.  The solution is mixed with your colour / lightener and applied to the hair.

Step 2 (Bond Perfector) is applied once the colour has rinsed from the hair and left to work for about 20 minutes.

Step 3 (Hair Perfector) is the take home solution, which is to be used once a week to help strengthen hair.  The way I like to use this, is to apply it to damp hair and leave it overnight.  I wash it out the next morning and it leaves my hair feeling very silky and soft.  It can also be used as a quick treatment too so if you prefer you can wash it out after 10 minutes, but I like to get the most out of it and keep it in overnight!

I like to apply my hair mask before I get into the bath because I feel like the steam of the bath helps my hair follicles to open up, helping the mask to work faster.

Face Masks

I absolutely love face masks! These days there are so many different types of face masks on the market, targeting different skin types or problems.  I generally go between about three to four different types of face masks (sheet mask, detoxifying mask, capsule mask, overnight mask) depending on what I feel my skin needs on the day.  My current favourites are mostly from Glam Glow (mud masks, for when I feel like I need a deep exfoliating treatment which will leave my skin glowing), Sephora and Innisfree (sheet masks and overnight masks, for when I want an instant boost of hydration), and Caudalìe (moisturising masks, for when need some serious nourishment and moisturisation).  As with the hair mask, I like to apply my face mask before I get into the bath as I feel that the same rule applies with the pores on my face, in that they open up with the steam and the mask works better.

Ps.  I recently started using a face mask spatula brush to apply pot masks to my face.  This makes it so much easier to apply and its way more hygienic because it prevents me from dipping my fingers back into the pot.  I also feel like I don’t waste as much product when I use the applicator.

I intend to do a more in depth blog post on face masks in the future.  Let me know if this is something you would like to see or if you have any recommendations for face masks I should try.

Hand Masks

These are kind of re-discovery for me.  I tried a pair of hand masks a couple of years ago, but at the time didn’t really think much of it.  However, they seem to be absolutely everywhere these days and after trying them again, I am now fully addicted.  I have tried a few different ones, mainly from Boots and Sephora.  They are basically a pair of gloves saturated in a hydrating serum, which you wear on your hands for about 20 minutes.  Obviously, they are not very convenient given that you can do absolutely nothing when they are on your hands, but they really do feel amazing.  They are very cooling and soothing while they are on my hands and when I take them off, my hands feel very soft and moisturised.  I like to use the hand mask just before I go to bed so it can continue to soak in overnight.

Lip Masks

I have quite dry lips so I am completely obsessed with any type of lip product that aims to keep my lips moisturised and soft.  When I discovered lip masks in The Face Shop in Bangkok last year, I was immediately drawn to them! I’m talking about the ones that work like a sheet mask expect they are for your lips! It basically has two little strips inside the packet (one for your top lip and one for your bottom) which are saturated in a moisturising serum.  You are supposed to leave them on your lips for 15 minutes and then remove them and dab in the excess serum.  These are a good for giving my lips an immediate hydration boots but I don’t feel like the results are very long lasting.  This type of lip mask is becoming increasingly popular and a lot of brands are now producing them.  I have recently purchased a few new ones from Sephora. I like to apply my lip mask at the same time as my face mask.  Yes, I look absolutely crazy lol but it’s worth it!

Music /Audible/Youtube

As much as I do love having a bath, I definitely find it a bit boring, so I love having some form of entertainment while I am in the bath.  I’m not really a book kind of girl, but recently I have been loving listening to Amazon Audible Books.  It is basically an app you can get for your phone or iPad and you can use it to download books and listen to them instead of reading them yourself.  I LOVE it! It is so much more convenient than buying the hard copy and sitting down to read it.  With audible books, I can listen to them wherever I am and I just love the fact that I can do something else while I listen.  It also stops me from dropping a book into the bath which I am very likely to do!

If I am not listening to an audible book in the bath, then I will be watching some sort of YouTube video on my iPad or listening to music.

Body Oil

Once I get out of the bath, I like to slather myself in some form of moisturising product.  At night time I absolutely love to use a body oil as opposed to a cream or lotion.  I just find that a dry body oil soaks into the skin so much better than other moisturising products.  I cannot bare the sticky feeling of creams and lotions when I am in bed.  The one that is am currently using is from the H&M Conscious range and I am so impressed with it!!  It is a hydrating oil for the bath, body and hair.  I mostly use this for my body, but I have also used it as my bath oil before and it works really really well.  In fact it smells VERY similar to the Jo Malone oil which I mentioned above but is waaaayyyy more affordable!  Mine is almost empty!

Nails

I really don’t feel fully pampered until I have my nails painted.  My favourite kind of treatment is definitely a shellac manicure and pedicure, but I leave that to the professionals!  In between treatments I just give myself a quick little tidy up and a dab of polish.  I don’t really have a favourite brand of nail polish – I like a lot of them (Essie, Nails Inc, China Glaze, are all great options.  I also love Barry M and Rimmel).

Tea & TV

Like most evenings, a pamper evening is not complete without a cup of tea in front of the telly.  I am a tea-acholic.  I like all kinds of tea, but on a pamper evening I usually go for a green, peppermint or chamomile (because I feel like I have to lol).   I know that I am like 13 years behind but …… I have ONLY JUST started watching Grey’s Anatomy….. disgraceful, I know! I am already hooked and because I have a lot of catching up to do, it makes for the perfect binge watch to end my pamper evenings.

Let me know how you like to pamper yourself and what products you like to use. 🙂

 

 

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