Wonder Pots!

I bought some fab new cream blush's a couple of weeks ago and I absolutley love them! Maybelline's Dream Touch blush comes in four shades (that I could see in Boots) and I bought the Berry, Peach and Apricot ones (see aforementioned addictive Three for Two offer, I am a marketers dream I know!). Peach and Apricot are much of a muchness but the Apricot one also makes a fab highlighter on the brow bone and cheek bone and I have also used the Peach on the eyelids. They are lovely and soft and while maybe not as long lasting as you might need say for bridal, they are a lovely addition to add glow and great for a more natural look. Used them recently in a photoshoot and they looked fab!

Phantom of the opera mask!

Well its not pretty, in fact you are pretty much guaranteed to scare small children with it on, but the Olay Total Effects is really really good (worth looking like a nutter for 15 minutes per week!)

I love that it comes in seven individual packages and the mask is literally a mask with slits for the eyes and nose that you spread over your face and stretch into shape. So no messing around with products, just slap it on and go about your day for about 15 minutes, although I left it on around 30 minutes.

When you take it off you are left with a film of the product which you massage into your skin and let dry before finishing off with your usual moisturiser (you might be able to skip this step if you have an oilier skin). A tip is to squeeze out the mask before you bin it, theres lots of product left on it and I used it as an overnight hand treatment.

So here's what Olay says it will do and my findings as to if it really delivered...

• Line Minimization: Reduces the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles

Yep, would have to agree with this claim - it definitely helped with lines around the eyes.

• Nourishing Moisturisation: Intensively hydrates the skin

Skin feels lovely and soft after the treatment and well into the next day.

• Tone enhancement: Balances colour and reduces appearance of age spots

Not sure on this one, I think you might need to use it regularly before you see this effect.

• Gentle exfoliation: Smoothes and evens skin texture

Hmmm not sure on this one, I exfoliated before I put it on.

• Pore Refinement: Minimises the appearance of pores

Yep!

• Brightening: For a radiant, healthy glow.

Yep!

• Spot minimisation: Reduces the appearance of age spots

I'm not too sure how this is different to the earlier point above but again, would need to use it for a bit longer to see if this is true.

All in all a good purchase and works well with a decent exfoliation before hand.

Retro moments in makeup and beauty products

Two major flashbacks this week while strolling through Boots - first up was a trawl through the Rimmel counter to see whats new (great brand, often overlooked but has some good products worth looking into, more to follow!). I was checking out the lipstick shades when my eye was firmly drawn to what looked very much to me like HEATHER SHIMMER! Now those of you in your thirties and above will remember Heather Shimmer very well - in the 90's it was a makeup mainstay, along with panstick, dark lipliner a la Pamela Anderson in the Baywatch days and blue eyeliner inside the eye and without Rimmel and the Body Shop we would have had no makeup at all (BT's being way out of our league and frankly a waste of good vodka money). Well, it isn't called Heather Shimmer this time round and its not exactly the same but it is a really nice nude/pink shade and its very long lasting without being drying so gets the thumbs up from me - Rimmel Lasting Finish in 077 Asia.

Ahh the classic 90's lipline!

The second came in the hair aisle - hands up who remembers Sun In? And who hasn't had a DISASTER with it? Sun In first came to my attention on my very first holiday to Torremolinos! I was armed with Sun In, a tanning oil I bought in a sunbed shop (it was before we became SPF aware!) and some lemons for good measure. If it killed me, my perm and I were coming home from that holiday blonde! And that I did - frizzy, yellow, brassy but definitely blonde! Shortly after, I discovered that highlights were a much safer option. And everyone I know has a similar Sun In story! So I was very surprised to see that John Frieda has brought it back! Well granted he has called it Go Blonder Controlled Lightening Spray Exclusively For Blondes (phew, what a mouthful) but it basically seems to work on the same premise. You spray it in all over or on small sections, and then whack on the heat and bobs your uncle. So yes, a bottle of it went into the basket, just for the purpose of the blog! I will let you know how it goes!

Before!

After!

I'm off to get a bottle of Fuzzy Peach perfume! I heart the 90's!

Golden and Gorgeous!

This weeks product review is the summer offering from Bare Escentuals (Bare Minerals) which is at most BT or Debenhams throughout the country.

Up to queit recently I regulary ignored the Bare Escentuals counter enroute to MAC but I included some in my kit for any sensitive skins. From there I became slightly addicted to their eye colours - its a lovely range, not too expensive, and they have loads of fab natural shades which are very long lasting, perfect for weddings.

Last week I stopped by to pick up their primer, one of my new favourites (Prime Time, can't recommend it enough!) and also picked up their summer kit, Golden and Gorgeous. Its great value at 30.00 as you get a really nice brush (great for defining the crease and contouring),  Honey Eyecolour, a really nice base colour with a golden glow (lovely for bringing out blue eye colour), Copper High Shine Eyecolour which is a really nice burnished gold glitter (although with an annoying applicator) and an eyeliner in bronze.

As is often the way with eyeliner pencils, I found the pigment not strong enough, but its a nice soft pencil for day wear.

Its a great way to try the products and very good value for money.

Best product find ever for problem skin!

This blog post really comes from my sister - she's been on a lot of medication lately and its had a major impact on her skin. When I looked at it, it was very similar to the type of angry, under the skin lumps you get during hormonal outbreaks or allergic reactions and she found them to be very sore. We tried the usual treatments - those for oily skin, high end skin brands, masks and exfoliants, and while it helped a little it really wasnt addressing the issue as well as we would like.

We went for a weekend away then a few weeks back to Edinburgh and came across a market just off Princes Street (it was raining, I spied a pie stand :)) and found a stall for organic soaps, called The Caurnie Soap Company. They had a feature on the stand on Nettle soap and how it helps with excema and other skin problems. We both have a touch of excema, my sisters on her arms, mine on my neck and stomach, so we figured for a fiver how could we go wrong.

Initially she tried it on her arms and found the results were brilliant and so fast! The only thing that ever came close to it before was the Bliss body scrub but even then it didnt come any where near the results from the nettle soap (and at over €30 a pop, not cheap!)

Meanwhile, she was getting pretty frustrated with the skin on her face and the breakouts from the medication so chanced using the soap one day to see if it would help. I have to say, I hadnt seen her since Edinburgh and the results were absolutley brilliant. Its almost completley clear (even her boyfriend noticed so it must be good!) and all the redness has gone and she says it doesnt leave her skin tight or dry at all, as regular soap can.

The only concern was how to get more of it, apparently the Body Shop used to stock it but happily you can order it online, it quiet large quantities, and its very reasonable.

So if you are suffering with breakouts, spots or acne, its well worth a try. I'm going to test it on the excema over the next couple of weeks as I've got a pretty bad breakout so will update you with the outcome soon.

http://www.caurnie.com/

0044 141 7761218

Horse Shampoo...the secret to longer locks?

Well now maybe Im a bit slow off the mark on the latest hair product fads but I was sitting in the hairdressers a couple of weeks ago, whinging about my sticky out growing out like Florence Henderson hair and wondering if it was ever going to grow when my colourist told me that I needed to get myself a bottle of horse shampoo. Eyebrow raised quizically I asked for more info and was assured that if I used said horse shampoo my hair would grow quicker. Now, as a grown adult, I am aware that there probably isnt any one product out there that can make my hair grow any quicker and yet I found myself in a chemist/animal perscription place, behind a man actually buying horse antibiotics, clutching a bottle or three of Mane & Tail.

So its been a week and maybe its all in my head (!) but my hair feels stronger...and maybe a fraction longer? I'll give it another three weeks and then be back with a full report. That is if my husband stops neighing at me when I come out of the shower.

DIY Wedding Flowers....would you?

Well I have to say, its something I wouldnt have thought was even remotely possible. The world of flower arranging and in particular wedding floristry is a mystery to me - the closest I have ever come to arranging flowers is getting two bunches of the flower of the week from Aldi and mixing them together! But for a recent wedding, I was asked to do the bride and bridesmaids bouqet. First stop was the Dublin Corportation Flower Market, bright and early as it opens at 6am. I was a little daunted initially and spotted a friendly face at Dave Byrne Flowers (I had novice written all over my face). Armed with a theme from the bride (wild flowers) I strolled up and down the aisles of flowers, pointing at ones I liked to look of, while the very helpful lady advised on what would work and what might be a better alternative. The selection was very extensive and I found everything I wanted. They took the order and advised they would be ready for collection on the morning of the wedding. They also gave some good tips on how to put them together (stand in front of a mirror and see what it looks like from the front rather than looking down at the bouquet).
On the morning of the wedding, myself and the bridesmaid ran in to collect them, they were all boxed up nicely, and we headed back to the house to put them together. Once the two bouquets were done, we had enough left for two big displays for the reception room also.
Picture is of the final results!

So for any brides thinking of DIYing it for flowers, it can be done! Its very reasonable and if you could rope in a few mates the day before, you could even do the table arrangements and church flowers too. I reckon €200/€250 would give you amazing flowers for the entire wedding.

Dave Byrne Flowers are on 01 873 4025 or you will find them in the market.