I don't know about you but I love reading all the beauty award winners in magazines. However, sometimes I find that the winning products are a surprise and, upon using them, a letdown.
1. Burt's Bees' Brightening Even-Tone Moisurising CreamWinner: Self Healthy Beauty Awards, for Best Tone Corrector
The smell alone won me over to this product. It smells like oranges. Every morning I sit sniffing it...and then I'm late for work! Weird? Probably!
This moisturiser claims to visibly even skin tone and create a brighter, more luminous complexion. The texture is thick and fairly sticky, but it definitely does what it claims to do. My skin certainly looks brighter, and more radiant. As a result I've been wearing much less foundation than normal. In fact sometimes I skip it completely, which is unheard of!
2. Make It Stay Zero Fuss Hair Primer
Winner: Star Beauty Awards, for Best Primer
I never knew I needed a hair primer, but after using this product I will never go back! It claims to extend your style twice as long, and let me tell you, it absolutely does!I have very fine, long, straight hair, but lots of it. My oily roots cannot be left loose for longer than a day, and dry shampoo is the only way I can avoid not washing it daily. This product has changed that. Not only can I now extend my hair to 3 days between washing if I need to (tied up). I can also occasionally wear it down on the second day, and my blow-dry holds its shape a lot longer.
This product has also helped tame my frizz on days when I just want to wash and go. Until I used Make It Stay I would never have left the house without fully drying and styling my hair, but now I feel comfortable pulling it back in a plait or ponytail and letting it dry naturally.
3. Laura Geller GlamLASH Dramatic Volumising Mascara
Winner: Star Beauty Awards, for Best Mascara
I have not switched up my mascara for years. I've dabbled with products that other Bloggers have raved about, but have never found anything I like as much as MAC's Opulash. Until now.
GlamLASH is a thickening and lengthening mascara, designed to give your lashes 'the glamour of Old Hollywood'. The formula is great; really thick and a very dark, opaque black. The brush has plastic bristles, in order to establish full contact with lashes. I'm not crazy about the brush, but that's just because my personal preference is for a thicker wand. However I'm very happy with the effect. My lashes are already long, but this product makes them extremely fluttery and thick without being clumpy. 
4. Jergens BB Body Perfecting Skin CreamWinner: Star Beauty Awards, for Best BB Cream for Body
Jergens BB Body is the only reason I've got my legs out this summer! The slightly tinted moisturiser is so creamy it's a dream to apply. The coverage isn't heavy but it's enough to give skin a softened look, blurring any imperfections. Bye bye turkey legs! I was worried that there would be some colour transfer because the product is tinted, but I've worn it with both light and dark outfits, and haven't noticed any ungainly marks on my clothes.
Overall I'm very happy with this, and will definitely be purchasing another one when I run out. Which will be soon...
Oh black can of magic, how I love you. This product is INSANE! It claims to build volume, act as a dry shampoo and a finishing spray. Sounds too good to be true right? That's what I thought too. I've tried a lot of these 'miracle sprays' that do everything but dry the hair for you. In my experience, a lot of them offer 5 minutes of glory and then fall flat.
Enter Sally Hershberger...
This product holds my hair all day, and then some! I spray a little on my roots, sectioning my hair as I go, then spray from the ends of my hair, angled at my scalp so I get even bounce. I love the effect, and find as things start to fall a little throughout the day, one quick ruffle of my roots pumps my style right back up.
The product is VERY drying and a little sticky, so you really don't need much. If you prefer the feel of product-free hair this isn't for you. But if you can handle hair that feels a little loaded then give this a go.
6. Rimmel Stay Blushed Liquid Cheek Tint
Winner: Redbook Most Valuable Products
I adore this product, and not just because it's from a London brand ;0)
I love a lot of Rimmel's make-up but this is at the top of my list. The colours are perfect and the texture is a really nice cream. In terms of finish, the only way I can describe it is a watercolour effect. My cheeks look sheer, healthy and pretty without looking like I'm wearing blusher. It's genius!
The Pop of Pink colour has been my go-to blush this summer, and I've even foregone bronzer a few times because I've been happy to just have healthy looking cheeks.
Recently I've been keeping things simple with CC cream, a pale eye shadow, and dark lashes, then sweeping Stay Blushed onto my cheeks and lips. I'm eager to try some of the richer colours in the Autumn.
7. Caress Emerald Rush Shower GelWinner: Self Healthy Beauty Awards, for Best Body Wash
I never go for a 'gel' shower gel. I always opt for a creamy body wash because I have very dry skin and find them to be more moisturising. As a result this product sat on my shelf for a while and was reluctantly used when I'd run out of everything else!
I was shocked to find that I actually really like it. It smells divine, lathers well and doesn't leave my skin feeling scaly. I'm not totally converted to non-creamy shower gels, but I'll definitely buy this one again.
8. Almay Smart Shade CC CreamFinalist: CEW Beauty Awards, in 'Face Product Mass' category
This one didn't win an award but I'm sneaking it in here because it was a finalist for the prestigious CEW awards, and after receiving it in a goody-bag I tried it and fell in love.
I have quite combination skin so normally avoid BBs/CCs/tinted moisturisers because they aren't matte enough and I develop the dreaded shine as the day goes on. However, after a weekend at the beach my skin felt a little dry and burnt, so I thought I'd give this a go.
I really like the texture of this CC cream, because unlike others I've tried it's quite matte. The coverage is pretty good and the colour adapts to my skin tone quite well. I don't use it all the time, but it's great for weekends and 'no make-up days'. I'm wearing it right now in fact!
Winner: Star Beauty Awards, for Best Lip Gloss
I've always heard such good things about Jouer but it isn't a readily available brand in the UK so I've never tried any of their products. I was delighted when I opened my Star Awards bag and found this inside.
The colour of this lip gloss suites everyone. Star's Beauty Editor actually sited that as one of the reasons it had won the award. As a result I've been wearing it over a range of lipsticks, from pale pink to berry red. It's adds shine, moisture and polish every time. It's become a handbag staple. Winner: Self Healthy Beauty Awards, for Best Cleansing Wipes
I'm normally the first to shy away from face wipes in favour of a cleansing oil or lotion, but I have to admit it's nice to have some wipes on standby for lazy days.
These wipes are packed full of lovely ingredients, are 96% natural and contain vitamin E so they don't dry the skin out. Overall these are the nicest wipes I've tried. They remove make-up well and I don't need to rub my eyes excessively to remove mascara etc. I do still need 2 wipes to get my face completely clean, but I prefer using separate wipes one my face and eyes anyway, so that doesn't bother me.
I won't use these every day but I no longer feel guilty when I reach for my face wipes rather than my cleansing oil!
There are many more award winning products that I've been loving but these are my favourites for now. If you use any award winners let me know which ones, and I'll check them out.
A x
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