Hair Woes November 12, 2010

My hair has been in a desperate state lately-the ends were really dry, the roots were very oily, my hair was particularly knotty and I had a bit of hair breakage, when I brushed it. Now, I not a person who uses hair straigheners, as I have naturally straight hair, and I rarely use a hair dryer, as I prefer to leave it dry naturally. So, it safe to say that heat damage can be ruled out.

I decided that I would take myself off my hair dresser to get her advice, as it was in need of a trim anyway. The first thing that she asked me was what shampoo I was using.  Well, you should have seen the look of horror on her face when I told her! I was quite embarrassed given her reaction, as it had come highly recommended by a friend of mine. When I asked her what would be a good  supermarket brand of shampoo to use, she recommended Pantene, especially Pantene’s new Aqua Light shampoo and conditioner.

The next question she asked me was how many times I shampoo my hair. I was a little baffled about this question, and thought she referred to how many times I washed my hair a week. What she meant though was how many times I shampooed my hair when I washed it. I replied that I shampooed it once, but rinsed twice (thinking that I had been doing the right thing). “No, no, no” she said, “You should be shampooing your hair at least two times each time you wash your hair, given that it is naturally oily!”. Que me hanging my head in shame

Apparently the reason behind this is that if your hair is oily or if you have oily roots, that one

The Style Show Cork November 7, 2010

Hello lovelies,

I hope everyone has had a lovely weekend. I was at Brendan Courtney’s, The Style Show today in Cork.  I had a lovely day, although at the start I wasn’t all that impressed. Let me explain….

When we arrived at the hotel, we were offered a complimentary glass of wine or a free cup of tea or coffee, which was a lovely touch I thought. Then we spent ten minutes walking through three small rooms/areas, in search for the main exhibition hall, only to find that we had seen it all!!! There weren’t that many stands to be honest, which was disappointing.  Benefit had a stand with a great range of products to buy and test, as was skincare brand Avéne. I was really interested in the Avéne products, but unfortunately none of them were on sale at the show. They had a few pots and tubes of products that you could squirt and test out, but had no sachets  for interested customers to try out. They did however, tell you what stores in Cork you could buy their products (which I will definitely be going into, for a more in-depth look!).

In terms of fashion, there were three of four jewellery/accessory stands and a few clothing boutiques who had clothes on sale, with 10-20% discount off of the stock on display. I spotted a lovely chunky, glossy black chronograph watch that I was tempted to buy, at one of the stands. It was 25 euro, which is pretty reasonable I think. In the end, the Sis ended up buying if for me for Christmas, which is brill!! The only thing is I have to wait another few weeks yet, until I can wear it

Perfectil nails were offering a free mini manicure to show goers but the appointment slots were booked up so quick. I visited the stand at 12.30 (the doors opened at 12), and the next available appointment was at 4.15!!!! Benefit also had a stand where you could get your brows done for something like 17 euro. I didn’t bother with this though, as the queue was a mile long, and I wanted to get a good seat at the fashion show.

So the exhibition part of the show was okay overall. The fashion show on the other hand was ah-ma-zing!!!!!

November Nail Freebies!! November 5, 2010

First off, I have to apologise for my lack of blogging lately!! I have been really sick, and was out for two weeks until the tablets kicked in and started to work. I’m blaming this miserable weather that we are having of late!!!

Anyway, onto nicer things. I was shopping in Tesco this morning, and what did I spy? Well, free Nails Inc nail varnish with this month’s Glamour magazine, thats what!!! Glamour is great for the free goodies, and usually has Nails Inc freebies twice a year. Normally though you only get a choice of three, but with this months magazine, you can choose from a choice of four varnishes;

• Saville Row(deep plum)
• Warwick Avenue (pale pink )
• Jermyn Street ( taupe )
• Hampstead Heath (burnt red)

I didn’t indulge, as I am broke at the moment, as I have started my christmas shopping. I have also bought myself a few treats along the way, to make myself feel better about being out of action for so long, and my poor credit card is burnt out from all the use!!!

There were a lot of copies left this morning, with some of each colour, but from my experience, the magazines go quick. So, high tail it to your local shop as soon as possible, if you want to get your mitts on them

Ode to TK-Maxx October 13, 2010

 

 

Oh, TK-Maxx, how I love thee! You entice me into your store with the promise of large discounts…..I am drawn to your heavily discounted beauty products after a good rummage through your well-stocked shelves and don’t blink an eye lid when I willing hand over my laser card, after rushing to your tills with my beauty bargains. May you continue to facilitate the woman of Ireland to empty their purses’ in the name of beauty.

So, you probably guessed from my little poem above that I am a massive fan of TK-Maxx.  I went in there recently for a browse, without any specific agenda and you can probably guess what happened……

I spotted a well stocked, albeit messy beauty section that instantly caught my eye. Oh the bargains!!!! I swear, I really had to rein myself in (seeing as my finances are too good), and forced myself to put back the lovely Nails Inc nail varnish sets (5 current season nail varnishes for 19.99euro!!!) and Calvin Klein make-up sets.

What I did end up buying was Natuderm Botanics Ginkgo and Sallow Thorn facial care oil for complex skin. I wasn’t familiar with this German brand but I liked that it contained lots of plant oils (jojoba, apricot  kernels, sunflower, sallow thorn and ginkgo oils to name some), some of which were organically grown.

Here’s a little more information on the Natuderm brand:

Natuderm botanics:

• Controlled natural cosmetics in accordance with BDIH guidelines
• Raw ingredients originate preferably from controlled organic cultivation
• No mineral oil-based ingredients
• No synthetic scents and dyes
• Exclusive use of natural and nature-identical preservatives
• Skin compatibility of all products has been dermatologically confirmed

This set me back 6.99 euro, which I happily handed over, given that it normally retails at 12.50euro and my Trilogy

Cheeks Pop with Benefit’s Pop! Palette October 4, 2010

Prior to purchasing Benefit’s Pop! Palette, I hadn’t tried any of the brand’s blushers and bronzers (though I coveted them from afar for a long time). I picked up the Pop palette over a year ago in a cosmetic sale on CD Wow (Yes the title of the website is deceiving-they do much more than CD’s) for 5euro!!! It was a complete bargain, so  decided to go for it.

This really has everything you need for cheeks, as it contains Dandelion-a soft and shimmery pink blusher, Hoola-a really wearable bronzer, Dallas-a rosey bronze colour packed with shimmer, and a tiny scratchy brush (which I never use ). Dandelion is great for all over the cheeks to add a subtle hint of colour, while Hoola can be used on the cheeks as a bronzer or as a contour shade. Personally, I find Dallas too dark to use all over my pale cheeks, given that it is so shimmery and strongly pigmented-I once heard of the shade being likened to sun burn and thought that it was aptly named  I didn’t use it much before however, I have started using it as a contour shade for night-time looks by applying it with a very light hand. If you do this, then the effect is quite nice.

The blushers and bronzers in this palette aren’t full-sized but I don’t mind if I’m honest. I like that I get a bit of variety in the same box. Would definitely purchase it again!!!

Have your tried the Pop palette? Do you like Benefit blushers and bronzers?

Beach Babe Hair in Winter??? October 4, 2010

I have naturally straight hair and consequently have never needed a hair straightener. No don’t get me wrong, I like my straight hair. It’s just that given that my hair is so straight, curls or waves do not stay in my hair, no matter how much hair spray I spray on my hair. This can be a bit annoying when I want to mix it up a bit and have a different hair do for a night out, an event, etc.

I had pretty much given up using products that supposedly create a wave in your hair until I began using Lee Stafford’s Beach Babe Sea Salt spray. I first say it over on Arlene’s blog, and bought it to create a beachy look. However, I never thought that is would actually help create waves in my hair! If you have poker straight hair-this stuff is great. I simply spray some of the sea salt spray all over my hair (wet or dry), and then plait my hair or put it up in a bun before bed and voila-in the morning I’m left with lovely, natural-looking wavy hair that lasts the whole day and  my hair doesn’t feel crunchy like it would if I had used hairspray.

Like any sea salt spray,this does tend to have a mattifying effect on your hair. However, this is quickly solved (if you don’t want it to mattify your hair) by running a wide-tooth comb through your hair. The other lovely thing about this sea salt spray is that is smells gorgeous. I swear, if it was in perfume form I would buy it-not something I would say about all hair products.

Like to read what the Lee Stafford site says about the product-read on:

With its ProMineral™ complex of Dead Sea salts and 26 minerals your hair will still feel soft to touch but with added bounce, definition and body to die for. Added sunflower extract helps to give moisture and shine to your hair and will also help to protect and repair against free radicals.

The thing that I take issue with are the instructions on the bottle, which tells you spray your hair with the product approx. 50 times to achieved a tousled, textured look. Now, come on-if I sprayed my hair 50 times with the product, I would probably only get 3 uses out of the 150ml bottle before it would be used up. You would want to be Rapunzel to need to spray your hair 50 times!!!! I usually spray my hair 5-7 times with this, and it achieves the desired look just fine for my mid-length hair.

I think that this cost me something around the 9euro mark in Boots. I would highly recommend it and will definitely be going back for a second bottle when mine runs out

Are you a fan of sea salt sprays?Have you tried any thing from the Lee Stafford line before?

My Stop GAP Fragrance September 29, 2010

I was in the GAP the other day when I spied their line of fragrances. Intrigued, and also in need of a new perfume to tied my over, as I have nearly finished my Burberry Touch perfume, I went testing.

While not too keen on some of their other perfume, one being Grass (which actually smells like grass!!!!!!), I loved the So Pink fragrance. According to the net, this is what is smells like:

“A blend of citrus and flowers. It’s so fresh, so bright, so pink. Top notes: sparkling pink grapefruit, juicy orange, and a watery accord. Middle notes: muguet, fresh lily, sweet pea, sunny flower. Bottom notes: fresh jasmine, soft musk.”

The main ingredient that I smell is grapefruit, which is a really nice change from overly citrus-y perfumes. It is a lovely light perfume for day time that will appeal to most.

How much will it set you back?

My Go To For Eyeliner’s-Smashbox Best of Cream Eyeliner Palette September 29, 2010

If I had to pick one eye product that I couldn’t live without, it wouldn’t be mascara, it would be eyeliner. I love eyeliners-pencil, cream, gel, take your pick. Smashbox’s Best of Cream Eyeliner palette has been a make-up bag staple of mine for a while. It goes pretty much everywhere with me, especially that it is so compact.

I have had this for over a year now, and used it countless times. I thought it was time that I showed it off a bit before it gets relegated back to my make-up bag…..

As you have probably guessed from the name of the product, the palette contains cream eyeliners-10 to be precise.

Inside the palette...

This palette typically retails at $32 (not sure of the euro price, but I would imagine it would be around the 30euro mark), however I bought mine on eBay for $10. I think with shipping it cost me about 15euro, if memory serves me