Summer Body Preparation| Hair Removal

 

With all this freezing cold weather we’ve been having I’m sure a few of you have ben thinking and planning your summer holidays. As amazing as summer is, girls seem to spend forever getting our bodies ready for it, and one of those preparations is hair removal. We all have it and we all want to get rid of it. Thankfully there are many different ways to rid ourselves of it, but which method is your favoured option? I am a massive softy so can only ever manage shaving or waxing, but after speaking to my friends and family it seems that many of them are considering laser hair removal. In fact a few of them have already tried it, my mum being one of them.

She had been considering laser hair removal for some time and decided to have the treatment in the run up to her wedding day. Like many she was unaware that laser hair removal is process and for the treatment to work there needs to be a series of sessions. This is because the laser that destroys the hair’s root causing it to fall out does not have immediate effect. The laser weakens the hair root and it falls out over time. This tends to happen after around 5-6 sessions, so it can be a costly process,

A large proportion of my friends get their eyebrows threaded and judging by my twitter it seems that this is the favoured hair removal technique amongst beauty bloggers. However I also see many statuses amount how painful it is and after seeing girls in the middle of Fenwicks and Debenhams crying with pain I don’t know if this would ever be an option for me.

What I want to know is if you have ever tried laser hair removal or threading? I am intrigued by them both but want to know if it really is as painful as I hear. Are they more or less painful than waxing?

*This is a sponsored post/ Image from We Heart It.

Why do you wear makeup? | Tag

*Combination of my own images and those from We Heart It*

I have seen this tag floating around on peoples blogs over the past few weeks and it seems to be spreading like wild fire. Now I’m not normally one for tags; I don’t know why, I just never found one that inspired me and if they did, they were quite lengthy. However this tag is short and sweet and gives a little insight into the blogger. So here goes my answers.

When did you begin to love makeup?

Like many others I have forever been a girly girl. When I was a little girl I was obsessed with princesses, pink, glitter, Barbie's and spent my time dressing up, putting on fashion shows and baking mud pies. With this girliness came the love of makeup. I remember I used to have a big pink makeup case at my Nanas house and would stand in front of her mirror applying glitter, stick-on tattoos, peel off nail varnish and sickly sweet perfumes. I have always been gifted numerous makeup palettes for birthdays and Christmas, and as I grew so did my make up case. Obviously as I got older the quality of the product improved.

I first started wearing “proper” makeup aged 12… yes it is a little early, however when I was a younger I wore glasses, which unfortunately made my eyes appear smaller than what they were. I was obviously very self conscious of this and used to (still do) layer on the mascara to make my eyes look bigger. I probably started wearing a full face of makeup when I was 14, again to mask my insecurities, which at the time was my bad skin. When I started wearing a full face my confidence with my makeup improved and so did my experimentation, cue lots of black eyeliner and bright eye shadow… baby pink was one of my favourites for a while. Thankfully my taste has changed and matured, but I still like to have fun with it.

How do you feel without makeup?

A bug! I have a bit of a complex whereby I think my eyes look very small when I’m not wearing mascara, I call them my little bug eyes! As a result I almost never leave the house without mascara, the only time I do is when I’m out running. I know they probably don’t but I just don’t feel very confident when not wearing mascara. I will quite gladly leave the house without other makeup; I choose not to though. When my skin is looking good I will happily just wear mascara and a bit of bronzer and blush, especially during the weekends.

What do you like about makeup?

Quite a difficult question I think as sometimes I love makeup (like 70% of the time) and other times I feel like its an evil necessity and more like war paint than makeup. The days when I love it are obviously days when I’m feeling on top of the world. I love that makeup allows me to look and feel more human. I like that it can help enhance anyone’s natural beauty, and draw out a persons individual and beautiful features that they may not have been aware of before. I also love how colourful and pretty makeup is, the colour combinations and collections are never ending… it’s always great finding a new favourite lippy.

The days when I don’t love makeup are obviously days when I’m not feeling quite my normally self, perhaps a little blue. On days such as this I tire of applying my makeup but I would never leave the house without it. Like I mentioned, I feel like it’s a necessary evil; war paint; a mask that myself and many others apply to hide behind. I wish there was a national day where us girl don’t wear our makeup and show and (try to) embrace our natural beauty, as no matter how much we fight it, we all have something unique and beautiful about out face.

Three “Holy Grail” Items:

Mascara- I’m not fussed on which brand, however I do love L'Oreal Telescopic False Lash Mascara and Maybelline Colossal Mascara

Urban Decay NAKED Palette- A god send for eyeshadow lovers! I use mine all the time, perfect for both day to day looks and for dramatic night out looks. The pigmentation is great and the colours all compliment each other perfectly.

Rimmel Blush Pink Rose- A bargain high street product, but one that is very pigmented, lasts forever and is a great match for my skin tone. Great at giving me some colour on these dull days and a daily wear for me.

I hope you enjoyed reading my answers and learnt a little more about me. I look forward to reading some of your answers, if you do write your own be sure to Tweet me or comment below so I can give them a read.

Soap and Glory| No Clogs Allowed Super Self Heating Deep Pore Detox Mask| Review

 

My regular readers and followers will know that I am a Soap and glory fiend! I love this brand, although I have not tried every single product in their range I have ambitions to do so. The newest products to my ever growing collection is the ‘No Clogs Allowed Detox Mask’, and the ‘Greatest Scrub of All’, both are products I have heard many good things about, and have been longing after for some time. I finally took the plunge last weekend and bought them both as Soap and Glory products were on offer for Buy One Get One Half Price, and never being one to pass on a bargain they soon appeared in my basket.

As the title suggest I am firstly going to review the ‘No Clogs Allowed Detox Mask’. I have used the mask three times now, and believe this is long enough to give you a summery of my thoughts on the product and its results.

Their opinion

Soap and Glory claim that the the mask is a an intensive-action pore-refining facial peel. Here is what they have to say about the product-

“A super self-heating 5 minute deep pore detox face mask with a free skin smoothing sponge. This is a deep cleansing treatment, ideal for greasy and blackhead prone skin.”

My opinion

The product has the consistency of a mud mask, but is not as thick as traditional ones. It comes out of the tube with ease, and when rubbed into my skin heats up with immediate effect. At first the mask feels a little grainy, but these grains soon rub out when you scrub the mask into your skin. It leaves a thin layer upon the surface of your skin and doesn’t take too long to dry. When drying the heating sensation soon levels off, and there is no tingly sensation that there is with some masks. When drying it doesn’t dry solid and crack like other mud masks.

For removal you are provided with a ‘skin smoothing sponge’. Although it is handy for removal I can’t say it leaves my skin anymore smooth than when I don’t use it. The mask cleans off easily, due to the fact only a thing layer is needed for application.

The end result is very good. My skin glows, looks very healthy and feels a lot smoother, and my blemishes and blackheads appearance are reduced. I feel like my skin is left completely clean with no dryness or sensitivity that I often suffer with after using mud masks. 

The only downsides to this product for myself are that firstly, I do not experience the blue Smurf face effect that is meant to happen when apply the mask. My face stayed white, as you can see from the pictures. Secondly, although I believe my pores appearance has reduced by using this mask, my blackheads have not reduced dramatically. This is one of the main reasons I bought this product, as I am always looking for a miracle product for reducing blackheads. I will continue to use this mask as I do love it regardless of this. I hope that in time my blackheads do disappear as it suggests on the tube, so watch this space as I will keep you updated with my progress.

Which Soap and Glory products are your favourite? Any you recommend for my collection? Or do you have any miracle cure for blackheads that you can recommend?

Body Scrub Review- Scrub Up Naked

I am obsessed with exfoliating! I love it, the whole process of getting rid of old skin and revealing lovely soft glowing skin.. amazing! (Obviously I don't over do it, as this does

 more harm than good.)

I often find with scrubs that they are not coarse enough for my liking, I actually like to feel the grains against my skin, not just for me to feel once and then for them to disintegrate like many do. 

I have my favourite facial scrub (Find out what it is here!) However I am yet to find a perfect body scrub. The best one I found was a one from Boots' Sanctuary range, it was a salt or sugar scrub.

I wanted to try a new one, so I looked up on Ebay and found a big giant tub of natural sea salt scrub for about £3.50... Bargain! It is made by the Natural Bodycare company, which is based in the UK. They use natural products and are against animal testing... great for such a cheap product! Now for the Review;

The Good

• It is coarse! Yeah, lots of grainy bits of salt to rub into your skin!
• This salt does not disintegrate quickly
• Meaning you you do not have to use much in one wash :D
• It leaves skin lovely and smooth (obviously this is the required result of a scrub but this scrub makes this smoothness obvious.)
• It's animal friendly and natural (always a plus)

The Bad

• The scrub leaves a waxy residue on the skin, this is obviously a result of the product being natural, but I do find it a little too waxy for my liking. (I suppose really the wax is keeping moisture in, but either way I don't like the feel of it.)

Overall I feel I am still looking out for a favourite body scrub, so will probably try something new next time.

Does anyone have a favourite body scrub they would recommend? 

Topshop Nail Varnish| NOTD

Look Perfect Despite Not Feeling It| How to Cure a Hangover

So its that time of year, when a lot of people burn the candle at both ends of the stick. Meaning some of us can end up becoming unwell and looking even worse. Due to myself working in hospitality I don't get much time off work, so I am guilty of not having much sleep, too much alcohol and energy drinks, and a poor diet. Here are a some tips that I follow or have heard of through the years.

Tired Puffy Eyes

We've all woken up with little piggy eyes, despite getting what we thought was enough sleep.

These puffy eyes, are actually caused by things such as dehydration from excessive alcohol consumption, or from sleeping in dry stuffy rooms. 

To reduce the symptoms try letting gravity do its work, so prop your head up while you sleep with an extra pillow. If this does not help, try gently tapping the eye area lightly with your finger tips, working from the inner eye by your nose, toward the temple. 

If this does still not work, use the good old trick of cupping each closed eye with a chilled stainless steel teaspoon for five minutes. 

Bloodshot eyes

Eyedrops! Eyedrops! Eyedrops! These work miracles, as often bloodshot eyes are the telltale of a tired or hungover person. For those who wear contact lenses, so cannot spend the day putting eye drops in many companies now have solutions that you can spray on your closed eyelid and they still have the same effect.

There also exists a homemade remedy, however I have not tried it, so do not know whether it works, but to me it sounds painful due to the witch hazel. Anyways you are to add a couple drops of witch hazel into an egg cup of mineral water, then place it snugly over the eye allowing it to wash the eye for around 10 seconds. 

Chapped lips and noses

Shiny, peeling noses are often around this time of year to the risk of colds and flu. The easiest way to get rod is of a slick of one per cent hydrocortison products such as Hc45 cream, which is available at chemists. 

Chapped lips need protected and healed from products such as Vaseline, use this especially at bedtime. 

Always avoid matte, pale, frosty lip colours of you do have chapped lips as this highly emphasized the flaky lips, instead use moisturizing lipstick with a sheer gloss or satin texture. 

Dry, Flaky skin

Due to low humidity, central heating and other dehydrating elements pf the colder months, our skin becomes dry, flaky and dull.

I am an avid believer in exfoliating, but it is needed even more so in the winter. We do not shed our skin unlike reptiles, so we need to give ourselves a helping hand. Exfoliating will rid the old dead skin cells, and reveal more fresh healthy cells. Always layer on the moisturiser afterwards though, otherwise you will see no benefit. Outdoor exercise will also help boost circulation and will improve the look of your skin. 

Dull complexion

Diet and exercise will always help your complexion, there is really nothing better. So despite the cold months and stodgy food, please still keep up your exercise regime. 

Boost your complexion even more so with the use of a good moisturiser, a radiance-enhancing one will work best. Really massage the lotion into your face, then let it absorb into your skin for five to ten minutes before applying your foundation. 

The dreaded hangover

You feel awful because of the alcohol leaving you dehydrated, which affects the blood vessels around the brain giving you an awful headache. 

- The things you can do to minimize the symptoms are lining your stomach before you go out with a good meal. This helps slow down the rate the alcohol is absorbed. 

- Drink water before, during and after drinking alcohol this is the best thing you can do as it slows down your drinking, and helps flush your body of the alcohol and stops dehydration. 

- Treat headaches with paracetamol rather than aspirin or ibuprofen painkillers as these can irritate your stomach.

- Eat protein rich meals (if you can keep it down) scrambled eggs, or a chicken wrap are ideal.

- If you are feeling sick, ginger helps as it has anti-nausea qualities. So have a smoothie with ginger included in it, also  a smoothie will help replenish your body with vitamins. 

- Eat yoghurt, better still live yoghurt. As the "friendly" probiotic bacteria in your gut can help to boost recovery from alcohol-induced liver damage. 

What are your go-to tips to ensure you look alive after a heavy few nights? What hangover cure do you use? 

Moving Moles Aka Beauty Spots| Fake Beauty Spots

My beauty spot above my right eye :)
(Please excuse the really old picture)

So thankfully I am blessed with a lovely mole on my face, which I call my beauty spot. I do not mind my little mole, it is in a discreet area, and I like it.

I share this information with you due to the fact that recently thanks to the lovely Miss Kelly Rowland, fake beauty spots are becoming more popular. She has been seen throughout X Factor UK with a fake beauty spot on her lovely face. It has been very obvious as she likes to move this beauty spots location, from her lip, to her cheek, to her other cheek, back to her lip.

I personally do not use the fake beauty spot, and my friends do not either. Although I have do know a couple of people who have cleverly disguised a spot as a beauty spot with the clever use of some eyeliner.

So I would like to hear from you lovely ladies on your opinions about this beauty trick. Is is something you have done before, if so what products did you use to ensure said spot did not end up as a smear at the end of the evening. Or if you think it is ridiculous?

Winter brings dark nights and dark eye bags

So as much as I love winter, I do not love eye bags, but according to anti-aging experts winter ages a woman's eyes by four years and eight months! Great, so we all look nearly 5 years older!

These science boffins discovered that due to the reduced sunlight hours,and the reduction in the time we spend outdoors during the winter months we have paler skin which emphasizes bags. We also feel more tired due to lower levels of vitamin D (generated by the body in sunlight).

Lacking vitamins D and K has considerable effect on the appearance of dark circles and puffy eyes. So not great news to us tired students who sleep very little at this time of year also.

A few ways to help us girls get rid of dark eye bags;

1. Sleep! Even if it is 15 minutes, it tricks your body into thinking you have slept for longer, and we all need our beauty sleep!
2. Using a cooling compress (wet cotton wool/cucumber slices) to help temporarily shrink the blood vessels, reducing puffiness.
3. Eye creams that contain vitamin K and retinol can also help.
4. Eat less salt (healthier diet) as it encourages fluid retention, thus puffiness.
5. If all else fails, hide it through makeup. Personally I use Rimmel Match Perfection 2 in 1 Concealer and Highlighter. It really is a great highlighter and the tube lasts a long time. 

What are your tips for reducing puffy, dark bags?

A Bad Diet Not Only Leads T o weight gain, but also body hair!

So this is one of the most unusual facts I found out the other day. I just love it when scientists discover things like this, it makes me wonder how they went about discovering such things.

Anyways, scientists have recently discovered that peoples body hair can be influenced by outside factors. Body and facial hair is a big worry to many women, so to find out what causes it gives all women so hope.

Obviously the most common cause of hair is through genes and race, some people are just hairier than others. The other more interesting factors are what follows;

1. Cakes and Biscuits- Eating large quantities of sugary refined carbs, like biscuits and cakes can trigger excess hair. The science behind this is that these carbs have a high glycaemic index, which means they release their energy quickly and can cause insulin resistance. Insulin is the hormone which controls blood sugar level and the resistance means the hormone becomes less effective meaning the blood sugar will lower. Because of this the body will increase its production of insulin which consequently causes the ovaries to produce too much testosterone which can lead to excess hair. P.S- Being overweight can also cause insulin resistance. 
2. Polycystic Ovaries- This condition is the main cause of excess hair in women. The most common symptoms is a high level of male hormones (androgens), which leads to hair growth. If excess hair is due to a hormone imbalance, it tends to occur in areas such as the chin, upper lip, sideburns, chest and inner thighs.
3. Eczema- Skin conditions such as eczema and psoriasis causes hair growth due to inflammation, which  causes increased blood flow to that part of the area, accelerating hair growth. 
4. Menopause- As oestrogen declines during menopause, again that pesky testosterone sneaks in and becomes more dominant, again causing excess hair growth. 

How to tackle it-
Obviously with everything prevention is the best cure. so making sure you are fit and healthy will help you avoid weight gain, and can reduce the chances of developing conditions that increase your chances of hair growth. If its a hormonal condition that causes the hair growth, you need to wait to finish your treatment as hair growth will still continue so results wont be permanent. It is also recommended to use a range of medical treatments available on the NHS, such as anti-androgens (which block male hormones), eflornithe cream (to slow hair growth) or the contraceptive pill.

To remove hair in general there is your shaving (quick and painless), waxing (painful but effective), bleaching (painless, but not always an option for darker skin), and laser treatment (permanent, effective, but expensive).

First Review| Rimmel Scandal Eyes Mascara

 My first review, is on my beauty must, at all times, mascara! Mascara is the one product I would not leave the house without, I feel like I'm naked without it. As a result I go through a lot of mascara, and I am quite picky and opinionated.

So this mascara is Rimmel Scandaleyes. It is one of their recent releases, and this is my second tube,

so as you can see I don't find it too bad. I will talk you through the pro's and con's.

Pro's

• Does not smudge or wear off during the day (I work in hospitality, so I am around a lot of heat, steam, moisture etc, and it rarely wears off and give me panda eyes.)
• Builds up very easily, so can apply many layer easily without it flaking.
• Gives the look of very long lashes.

Con's

• Very Very large brush, so can be a bit difficult to handle to begin with.
• Dries up quickly compared to other mascaras.

Overall I would give it a 7/ 10, mainly because it takes some getting used to the large brush. Have you ever tried this mascara? What do you think of it? 

The Princess and the Bee| Bee Venom Face Mask

I bet you are all wondering how the lovely Kate Middleton looks so great and what her facial routine is and how she is so wrinkle free! Or like me, you really haven't given a second thought about it. But anyways here is how she supposedly keeps her face line free, and it's a trick given to her by Duchess Camilla.

The big secret is a natural alternative to Botox, in the shape of a Bee Venom Mask. It is a product supplied by Heaven Skin Care by Deborah Mitchel. The science behind the product is that the cream contains one per cent bee venom. This venom tricks the skin's surface into thinking it had been stung, thus increasing the blood flow, collagen and elasticity. The Princess herself has private treatments at her home, as opposed to buying the product.

In my opinion I can see the sense in this, I understand how it works, and think it's a pretty innovative product. I would love to try it myself, but as I currently don't have many lines on my face I'm reluctant to folk out the £65 needed per pot.

If anyone has tried this product I would love to hear about it, and see what your experiences have been like.

Winter Trends| Glitter Glitter Everywhere

Nothing is making me more festive at the moment that all the wonderful, sparkly, glittery fashion. I absolutely adore it. I know normally metallic shades always pop up at this time of year, along with jewel colours and your classic black dresses. But the added glitter elements to accessories and clothes is something new, and if done correctly looks great. However if done incorrectly the look can be quite cheap and tacky looking. Try and stick to one glittery item per outfit.

So here's the inspiration from the designers;

Lela Rose £1360

Dolce & Gabbana £995

Givenchy £865

Anya Hindmarch £350

Kaufmanfranco £6880

Vivienne Westwood £2015

Herve Leger £2350

Rachel Gilbert £995

Now shop the High street:

Topshop £6

Miss Selfridge £75

French Connection $165

River Island £60

River Island £65

New Look £24.99

New Look £54.99

French Connection £65

For other items, look more in Topshop, River Island, New Look, French Connection and even Marks and Spencer. This look is pretty much in every shop, and will see you through all the Christmas parties, and through to New Year. For pieces that will still be in season in January and February, bags would be a good investment, as they will just spruce up an outfit and not be too Christmassy for the none Christmas season. If again this look it too over bearing for you, and you prefer something even more subtle, look for glittery nail polishes and eye-shadows, or even a hair piece/ hair band.

St Ives Apricot Scrub Review| Favourite Face Scrub

I believe it is absolutely essential to use a scrub 2 times a week, especially those who are prone to blackheads or milia (More on milia later), like me, as a scrub will definitely help reduce these blemishes, and even get rid of them is you use it regularly in your skin care regime. A scrub will exfoliate your face, and get rid of dead skin cells built up on your skin, which could cause blemishes.

My favourite face scrub is St Ives Apricot Scrub for Blemished Skin. Other variations of the same brand work just as well, I just use Blemished skin as it is most appropriate for my own. The price is very reasonable, at around £5, and it is available at most high street cosmetic stores, or supermarkets.

The scrub is quite thick, and very grainy, meaning only a little amount is required. Due to it's coarseness you do not need to scrub to hard on your skin for it to wok effectively. Straight after applying my face is instantly significantly smoother, and after apply a light moisturiser I am literally glowing!

A few pointers and warnings about facial scrubs and exfoliating.

1. Do not apply scrubs around your eyes. This area of skin is significantly thinner, and more delicate than the rest of your skin, so does not need to be scrubbed. If it is it increases signs of aging for sure, and no one wants that. 
2. Do not scrub too hard on your skin, you would think this would be better, but it is not, as you could end up taking off healthy skin cells, and consequently damage your skin. Your skin should not be red rare after this treatment.
3. Do not scrub your face every day, again it could take healthy skin cells off your face. 

The golden rule with exfoliation is, you can have too much of a good thing!! Less is more!