Mask Mumbles

Today I am having a lazy day, which consists of lounging around watching youtube, reading blogs and writing blogs! I thought I would make some use of my lazing by putting on a mask. I chose to use the Queene Helene Mint Julip Mask as it's the only one I currently own! I enjoy the smell of this mask, I am such a fan of mint scented things.

Sorry for the dreary witch face! This mask is designed to help dry up pimples and clear blackheads. I quite like it (probably mostly the smell). However I have my eye on either a Jurlique or Aesop mask to try next time, as they are more readily available in Australia. I am undecided on which one to try yet.

This is the mask and a little handy hint about how I apply it. I have an old Napoleon Perdis foundation brush that cost me an arm and a leg back in the day of painting your foundation on, as I no longer find this the best way to apply foundation and I certainly wasn't going to throw this old love away I have been using it to 'paint' my face mask on. It works a treat, you have less wastage and it applies the mask where you want it, not in your hair or down your neck. It's also much cleaner and quicker to apply the mask. To remove I just use a muslin cloth soaked in warm water, which works nicely and with less splashing water everywhere. 

Excuse me whilst I continue lazing about!

Meghan

Xx

Oh La Spoilt!

My very lovely brother and his girlfriend just returned from Europe and me being a lucky baby sister I got well spoilt with presents!

The first thing in the picture is not beauty related but food related, it's an olive oil infused with chilli, rosemary and peppercorns... Yum! Brother tells me it will be divine drizzled over some homemade pizza and I cannot wait to try it! I might just pop down to the supermarket and get some ingredients and dinner for tonight is sorted! He picked up this lovely bottle from Italy. It also looks nice and posh sitting on the kitchen bench.

I am so excited about the next two things! Bioderma Crealine H2O! Yay! i have wanted this for a long time and as luck would have it I just ran out of my Boscia make up break up cleansing oil, so I was in need of a new makeup remover. I have tried this for the last couple of days and so far I love it, love it, love it. It's so easy to just swipe your makeup of with a cotton pad, feels super refreshing and doesn't leave an oily residue, I think I get on better with this than the cleansing oil. It is a micellar solution which combines oil and water molecules which makes for an effective yet gentle makeup remover. It feels lovely and cooling on the skin and doesn't sting my super sensitive eyes, I think I may be converted but I will have to continue using to confirm my love, lucky brother got me a 500ml bottle so it should last a little while.

The last thing I was spoilt with was the Caudalie eau de beaute (beauty elixir). Which I guess is like a spray on toner. I have been using it as a bit of a face refresher/ pick me up/ I feel ill and need something to calm my tummy! For those of you that do not like strong smelling, herbally type things this is not for you. It has strong smells of mint, rosemary and I'm terrible at describing scents! It's smelly and I like it! I  have been on night shift this week and this makes me feel ill and sleepy and I have been enjoying spraying this on my face to wake me up and settle me! I am also a big sufferer of motion sickness so I can see this being well used on long car trips! Oh I should mention that it also feels lovely on the face, tightens pores and revitalizes the complexion. 

So there you have it some wonderful French skincare spoils for me!

Let me know if you have tried these and what you think of them!

Meghan

Xx 

Lip Love

Terrible photo but I just could not get nice lighting anywhere! The idea is look at my red lips. I wore this to my cousin's 21st the other week and I have been enjoying these lips ever since, so I thought I would share it with you.

Revlon Lip Butter in Candy Apple and NYX Lip Liner in Hot Red.

Whoops! (The photo is blurry please don't go and get your eyes tested!) From left Lip Liner and Lip Butter.

Meghan

Xx

Finishers and Project 10 Pan update.

Here's a few products that I have used up since I have been AWOL from blogging, some are from my project 10 pan and then there is a few other products in there too!

Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Cream Sun Defense For Face SPF 50,  Sunscreen I mostly use this sort of sunscreen in Summer and when I'm on holidays. I don't have a lot to say about it its a sun cream and I guess it does what it says. I probably won't buy this one again as it was quite expensive and not that wonderful, also if you read my last blog I have gone Australia mad and this is made in the U.S.A. 

Umberto Giannini Morning After Dry Shampoo,  Dry shampoo is a great love of mine! I am currently growing out my blonde in an effort to have healthier hair and this means I am having major issues with oily roots, dry ends - enter dry shampoo my saviour! This particular one is alright it is made in Australia , bonus points! At the moment I am using the UK branded Batiste dry shampoo as it's what i had lying around and I think the batiste one is probably better as far as it's dry shampooing abilities are concerned.

Garnier Miracle Skin Perfector B.B. Cream, This B.B. cream in my opinion is a glorified tinted moisturiser. It's light on the skin and adds a bit of a tint I quite like it, and would wear it to work. As far as being a miracle skin perfector I'm not convinced. I have seen better results skin wise with other B.B creams, but this is nice and easily found in supermarkets and priceline, and at abut $15 it doesn't break the bank.

Joico K-Pak Intense Hydrator, I'm not going to bang on about this to much as I have spoken about it before it's nice, smells great and makes hair feel lovely... WINNER!

Looky, looky who used up 4 more products from project 10 pan!

All of these products have reviews/ spiels about them in my project 10 pan post so enough said!

I should mention that the Napoleon Perdis foundation stick from the project 10 pan I threw out when I was exploring expired make-up as I had just owned it for way longer than is acceptable! 

Only 3 products to go!

Meghan 

Xx

I'm Back with some products from 'Down Under'

First of all I should start with an explanation as to why I haven't posted for a while (with my sincerest apologies) I have been having a lot of trouble with the internet connection at my house, it has been running very slow and sometimes not at all which has made it too hard to use.

Thankfully it has started working a bit better (fingers crossed it stays this way!) 

Anyways I'm back with a post about products/ brands that are close to my heart, being that  they are mostly Australian made/ owned. I am aware that some of you reading are not from Australia and therefore  the following may not hold much meaning to you and I'm sorry for this however maybe it will inspire you to find and use some products made in your home country.

For as long as I can remember my dad has always encouraged me to buy Australian and support our economy and this makes sense to me however sometimes it is hard to do given that the options are not always available and sometimes it's just so much cheaper to buy things elsewhere. In saying this recently I have been trying to bulk up the amount of products in my collection that are 'Aussie.' I am not saying that I have thrown out everything that is made elsewhere as some of my 'foreign' products I absolutely love and could never part with, but what I have been doing is as products run out and are used up I have been trying to replace them with Australian products. 

I am not going to do a full review on all the products, some are new, some I have been using for years, mostly I just wanted to share with you my new philosophy on my beauty products, and some examples of Australian brands. (sorry about the terrible photos)

Some great skin care brands include; Skinstitut, Jurlique, Rationale and Kosmea. I have recently given my whole skin care a bit of a shake up and have been absolutely loving threeFIX which is a three step skin care line for acne prone skin. To describe it in one word I would choose WOW! My skin is so much smoother and clearer that I feel more comfortable in it.
 I am also keen to try some of the Kora organics by Miranda Kerr line have any of you tried any products from this line?

I am a huge fan of DIY (do it yourself) and I love to save a buck where I can which brings me to a great waxing brand from Oz Waxaway which is owned by Caron Laboratories the brand behind the amazing award winning bump eraiser a superb ingrown hair treatment! There are so many great products out there that make at home waxing so easy and comfortable, my absolute favourite is the precision wax wand which make taming my (and my boys) eyebrows a breeze. I also dye my eyelashes at home too!
Does anyone have any DIY tips and suggestions for me?

Onto some everyday essentials my favourite whitening toothpaste is white glo it tastes yummy and is very foamy. A nightly routine that I have had for years is to rub some cuticle oil into my nails before bed and a staple in my routine is Dr Lewinn's Revitaoil.

Makeup; I am still hunting for some more Australian Makeup brands but I love Nude by nature and Rationale both of which don't irritate my skin and leave it looking fresh.
Next time I am out and about shopping I am probably going to try out some products from Bloom... Any suggestions?

Through my lust have it monthly subscription I have been introduced to a fantastic Australian hair care brand called davroe their products smell fantastic and are so beautiful on my hair, I am in love and can't wait to test out some more products from the range. I currently have an argan oil, heat protectant spray and a detangling spray.

Lastly some awesome body products Sugar Baby suntanned sweeties bronze radiance cream, this I have been using since I was in high school its fantastic to slather on before a night out, it gives you a beautiful bronze glow that washes off in the shower but lasts all night! For something that lasts a bit longer I have recently tried Rationale self tanner which gives a marvellous colour and doesn't have a horrid smell. Another new discovery of mine is Swisse body cream which is a new product on the market and I love it, it smells like oranges and bergamot (a couple of my favourite scents!) it absorbs really well and of course is Australian Made!

Thanks so much for reading I hope you enjoyed my rambling

I am very open to suggestions of brands/ products that are Australian made or Owned

Meghan
Xx

Expired Makeup

Today I was sifting though my makeup and nail polish collection and I noticed some products that have been there for a loooong time! This got me thinking about how long products actually last for?

So I did some research and here are the recommended time you should keep makeup once opened...

Liquid Foundation: This lasts about 12 months, after that it may be harboring some unfriendly bacteria that may not agree with your skin!

Powder Foundation and Eye Shadow: These you can use for 2 years after that consider throwing them away :-(

Mascara: 3 months! this is the one that expires the quickest... makes sense, with the wand near your eye you don't want to introduce harmful bacteria and get nasty eye infections.

Lipstick: 1-2 years 

Lipgloss: 18 months another product that has a bacteria loving wand, tube lip glosses may last a bit longer as they are more hygienic.

Concealer: About 18 months, try to always use a brush and not your finger be aware that concealer is used to cover blemishes which may have some bacteria in them to start with and if you dip back into the concealer you could be introducing them to the pot!

Nail Polish: This is a controversial one nail polishes have a little picture on them with a number it that is an indication of their shelf life, this is a requirement by law that this be on here. It is a number (in months) that the product can be safely used by the consumer without harm coming to them. However nail polishes contain chemicals in which bacteria can often not survive which means they should last longer than recommended.

Some tips for keeping your makeup "bug-free".

Wash makeup brushes weekly to stop the growth of bacteria.

Throw out makeup sponges monthly and wash regularly.

Close the lids of products tightly.

Keep products out of the sun.

Sharpen eye liners and lip liners regularly.

Don't use eye makeup if you have an eye infection and if you do throw it out!

If the smell of makeup changes or the colour/ consistency, throw it out!

How do I know how long the makeup has been sitting around before I bought it?

Check out this website which tells you when your product was manufactured and how long it is recommended to last for.

http://checkcosmetic.net/

I am not telling you to go out and throw away your precious makeup this is just a post to get your mind thinking and maybe help you decide whether or not to keep using that 2 year old mascara!

Meghan

Xx

On a mission: Hair

I am a woman on a mission! 

The mission to have healthier, shinier, luscious hair!

Hair I must admit is not my strong point, I'm not amazing at hair styles and I'm terribly slack at getting my hair done/dyed. As you may be aware I am a blonde and blonder hair requires effort! So here I go making an effort to have fabulous hair!

I am not going to go crazy with the dying so I have ridiculous re-growth at the moment and luckily my natural hair colour is a dark blonde so its not the hideous black roots white hair look but its still not great... 

But, my hair is going frizzy and dry and unmanageable at the moment and I have it in my head that I am 'growing it out'. I'm not sure how long I will be able to continue with this craziness but I am determined in an effort to make it healthier I am off the hair dye...

Which brings me to the hydrating and strengthening products I am using at the moment.

About once a week or fortnight I like to smother my hair with Lush Marilyn which is a pre-wash conditioning treatment. It's a gloopy weird smelling creamy formula that you put on your hair before you wash and leave on for about 20 mins (I tend to leave it on a bit longer). The idea of it is to add softness, brightness and shine to blonde hair and i do enjoy the way my hair looks and feels after I use this, people comment on how soft my hair looks. It is supposed to have some sort of lightening effect also but I can't say I have noticed that one at all! 

On the recommendation of a friend of mine I have also recently ventured into the world of Matrix Biolage. I bought the hydratherapie set of shampoo and conditioning balm. Which are a hydrating shampoo and conditioner for dry stressed hair (my hair exactly!). They both smell really nice, not strong and overpowering at all. So far I am loving these beauties which are supposedly based on a Rainforest's ever replenishing moisture cycle, meaning they provide continuous hydration to help stop the dehydration cycle. I will continue using this shampoo and conditioning balm (it really is a thick balm not a cream) for a while as I am happy with the results I am getting out of them.

Once a week I alternate between after shampooing treatment masks. The two I have at the moment are Matrix Biolage Fortetherapie Intensive strengthening mask and Redken extreme strength builder plus.

The matrix mask is designed to strengthen weak hair that has been damaged or chemically treated. It also a deep conditioning treatment. Smells great very fresh and natural and seems to help strengthen my hair where it is splitting. I really like this mask and it has become a staple in my routine for a while now.

the Redken mask is designed for quite similar use its a fortifying mask for highly stressed hair, it is a protein mask. Blue cream in colour and smells nice too. It is a really effective strengthening mask and I have noticed less hair breakage whilst using this product. I would definitely recommend this mask to someone with hair prone to dryness and snapping!

Between the two masks I use (it is not necessary to use both I just happen to have both) I prefer the Matrix mask probably only because I have been using it longer I think they are both fantastic strengthening masks.

Lastly a leave in conditioner, I have the KMS color vitality blonde leave in cream, which is just what it says it is a leave in cream that is meant to create a smooth conditioned finish. This is a light lavender coloured cream which I think is meant to enhance blonde (I guess similar to a purple shampoo). I like it for it's detangling powers otherwise I'm not overly fussed on this leave in treatment. I will keep using it and maybe one day I will fall in love!

So this is my mission, so far I am going ok at it although the un-dyed roots are starting to get to me! 

Let me know if you have any suggestions for great hair changing products that might help me!

Meghan

Xx