The Best Hand Cream... EVER!

I absolutely adore L'Occitane's Shea Butter hand cream and get quite panicky whenever I run out.  It's the only hand cream I have found that deep moisturises your hands without leaving a greasy/sticky residue that then transfers itself to your clothes, phone, keyboard etc.

Plus the travel tube is the perfect size for even the smallest purse.

Buy from StrawberryNET for AUD $16.50.

Serious Skincare

My Beauticians (Nicholas and Stephen at The Beauty Room) are my heroes. I'll do a big story on them another time, but for now let me say that whatever they say, I do.

So when they recommended this Skinstitut cleanser, I bought it and was very impressed with the results.  This cleanser stimulates cell turnover with the active ingredient of 12% glycolic acid.  

Seriously, I get out of the shower and look 5 years younger.  Oh and it gets rid of blemishes too - AMAZING!  Visit the website.

Frederic Fekkai Salon Glaze

I tried this product today as I needed my hair to be particularly manageable (job interview) and I was pleasantly surprised. 

My hair has the tendency to go oily at the drop of a hat, but this product is exactly as it is described - lightweight.  It left my hair super silky and shiny and really manageable.  

The only downside it's yet another element to add to your shower routine.

Buy from Sephora for US$28 or if you're in Australia, at Mecca Cosmetica.

Have a Multiple Orgasm

I absolutely and without hesitation ADORE this product.  Funny story - I had it on my birthday list and somehow it ended up on my dad's shopping list.  He must have been so embarrassed walking into Mecca and asking for a Multiple Orgasm.  Poor Dad!

I'm a bit clueless when it comes to doing my makeup.  Anything more complicated that simply smearing or brushing something onto my face and things start to go very, very wrong. So this cream blush is fantastic as it has a foolproof consistency - just smear a little bit onto your cheeks and blend in with your finger for a gorgeous, flushed look.

You can also use these sticks on your eyes, lips or anywhere that you would like to highlight. 

The only thing that I am a bit upset about is that now I have started using a mineral foundation, it doesn't really work as well.  It seems to go on much better when I use a regular foundation.  

Buy from Mecca Cosmetica for $89.

An oldie but a goodie...

Some beauty uses for Vaseline (one of my all time fave products):

1. As a lip gloss

2. Maintains perfume scent longer when applied at perfume points before spritzing the perfume.

3. Mix with sea salts to make a scrub!

4. Apply under eye shadow to create a shiny effect

5. Applied on cheeks for a dewy look

6. Use with your lipstick to create a cream blusher for your cheeks

7. Tames unruly eyebrows

8. Defines eyelashes and leaves them with a glossy and waterproof look

Full uses at http://www.christinaloves.com/2008/09/13/50-uses-for-vaseline/

NV Perricone Face Firming Activator

The arrival of my first grey hair at 29 spawned all sorts of age-related insecurities.  One manifestation of this was daily close inspections of sun damage and minor wrinkles in the mirror every morning.  My b/f, who is a bit older than me, found this absolutely hilarious at first.  Around this time I also became obsessed with knowing peoples' age.

I decided that I needed an anti ageing serum and ended up with this one from NV Perricone.  The sales person assured me it would reduce the appearance of fine lines, wrinkles, and enlarged pores, and reveal a radiant and healthy complexion.  How does it do this?  Through and I quote "salmon technology". Uh huh.  Apparently whatever makes salmon scales lay flat has been put into this formula in order to make our cells lay flat and close together.  

Yeah, so, it makes you look a bit healthier and relaxed, but so does 8hrs sleep.  Plus it has a really weird fishy smell (probably from the salmon technology).

It's US$120 so even if you are having a massive life crisis like I was, think twice.  A good night's sleep and lots of water will probably have the same effect.  Oh - and your face won't smell like fish.

Prime Target

"Not to prime is a crime" - Napoleon.

Hopefully we are all on the same page when I say this quote is from makeup legend Napoleon Perdis and not tyrannical emperor Napoleon Bonaparte. Although, the men do both kind of wear a lot of makeup.  Anyway...

Despite all that, I've tried the Auto Pilot Pre Foundation Primer and it really does help makeup stay on for longer.  When I'm rushing around, I usually need to top up at least once a day, but when I use this primer, my makeup lasts well into the night.  Cool, huh?

Another great  use for this product is in summer, mix it with a little foundation or bronzer and rub a little into your face.  It'll look really natural while giving you some SPF and colour coverage.

Buy through Napoleon for $49.50.

 

A Prescription for Mediocre Lashes

Forget tacky falsies, Prescriptives False Lash Mascara will give you lashes you never thought possible.  To be honest, my lashes are already relatively long and black (my theory is I used to pull them out when I was a child and they grew back really thick. Kind of like when you shave your legs...) but when a makeup artist put this on me before my birthday bash, I was astounded. It literally looked like I had false lashes on.

The product has won all sorts of beauty awards and in general, the Prescriptives brand is just brilliant. Buy online from Mecca for just $48.

Kiehl's Gently Exfoliating Body Scrub

I remember when I was about 13 or 14 years old and my friend and I had just learned from Dolly Magazine about exfoliating.  So whenever when went to the beach, we'd grab handfuls of sand and furiously rub our skin with it while exclaiming, "we're exfoliating!".  Weird, hey?  

Anyway, 15 years on, I've finally found a proper way to exfoliate my body. This product from Kiehl's is the ultimate body scrub and has been in my shower consistently for the last couple of years.  It's chunky enough to feel like you are actually sloughing off skin cells, but milky and creamy enough to know that you're not going to dry out your skin. Buy from Kiehl's for US$25.

Dermalogica Daily Resurfacer

As part of the war against acne, I've been getting regular microdermabrasions.  I plan to do a big post on this later on, but between treatments it's really important to keep up with the exfoliation. This Dermalogica product is a great alternative to thick scrubs, which can irritate my skin.  It helps with premature ageing, reduces pigmentation and exfoliates - a triple whammy.  

If you buy through Fountain Cosmetics for $98, you can start earning reward points.

The War Against Acne - Time for the Big Guns

When I was going through a really bad time with my skin, I bought a whole suite of products from the MD Skincare range and MD Skincare Correct & Perfect Spot Treatment would have to be the best.

I've tried a lot of spot treatments in my time, most overly dry the area and leave flakes of skin, while not really fixing the problem.  

While this product doesn't prevent blemishes, when you have one, this is what you want on your bathroom shelf.  It contains sulphur (which stinks by the way, like eggs) which is like the a-bomb in the war against acne arsenal, as well as a bunch of other medical-grade ingredients.

Look, it won't magically fix a pimple, but it will minimise the impact by smoothing out the area and drawing out the infection.

One word of advice. Even though the colour of this might look like it is meant to be used as a concealer, it dries as a really pale white (like calamine lotion) so don't even  think about using this in the day or you will look like a leprosy victim.

Buy from Sephora for US$28 or from Mecca Cosmetica.

Nude Cleansing Facial Oil

Apparently, the Japanese have been using oil to clean their skin for centuries.  Perhaps this is why most Japanese women have the most exquisitely soft and perfect skin.

Despite my initial reluctance to smear oil on my face, I found this to be a fantastic product, especially for winter.  It is applied as an oil, but when mixed with a little bit of warm water turns into a milky cleanser. After my shower my skin felt amazingly soft and supple.  

Not only that, but it makes light work of waterproof mascara and lip gloss.

Newby Hands (Beauty Director for Harper's Bazaar UK) said about the product "Quite simply the best cleanser I've used."  Yes. That is her real name.

Best thing about this product?  It's green!  From the biodegradable packaging to the natural ingredients, this is one responsible product.

The only downside is that when you are using it near your hairline, it can make your fringe quite oily.  Buy through Nude.

Attack of the Hair Powder

The way I figure it, Bumble and Bumble owe me $160.  That's how much I paid for the silk top I was wearing when I first used the product.  

Let me set the scene for you.... I was running late for work and my hair was super-greasy. I figured I would just spray some on my hair, give it a quick brush and then be on my merry way. Not. To. Be.  

FYI Bumble and Bumble - what comes out of this bottle is not exactly a 'powder' now is it?  It's almost like a wet hair dye which dries into a sort of crust that you brush through your hair, isn't it?  And there's nothing on the bottle that warns you that instead of a fine, innocuous powder, what actually comes out is a pink silk top's worst nightmare.

Needless to say, I was very late for work and inexplicably covered in brown freckle-like spots. Except they were everywhere.  Not just my nose.  The silk top?  Sadly it never made it home from the dry cleaners.

Despite the absolute destruction caused by this product, it actually does work as a dry shampoo and colour refresher.  Just make sure you drape your walls in plastic before using.

Buy from Bumble and Bumble for US$35.

Kit Body Lotion: Fresh Pear, Crisp Apple and Vanilla - Deliciousness in a Bottle

When my sister gave me this for a birthday present I have to admit I kind of let it sit in the bathroom cabinet for a month or so. This is partly because of the packaging.  But when I ran out of my other moisturiser I picked it up and had a closer look.  

One of the things I love about this product is the name - it mentions my three favourite smells right there on the bottle.  The best part is - it smells exactly as the name suggests.  I was more than a little tempted to eat a bit, just to see if it tasted as good as it smelled (it doesn't).

As a moisturiser goes, it's not the best I've ever tried (and not the worst either) - but you just can't go past that smell.  It's unlike any perfume on the market.  Whenever I use it, people ask what perfume I'm wearing. 

Buy the deliciousness from Kit Cosmetics for $29.95.

Darphin Baume Purifiant - THIS WORKS!

Okay, so I don't know about you guys, but whenever I get a break-out, I literally run to my local Mecca store and spend ludicrous amounts of money on whatever the sales people suggest. It's mental, I know.  Normally I end up with a ridiculous amount of products that do not work at all, but this time, I've stumbled onto a winner.

Despite my initial reluctance to rub pure oil into a break-out, after a few days of using this, my troublesome skin entirely cleared up. For me, this was akin to seeing a religious miracle performed in my bathroom.  

Made of 12 essential oils including hazelnut, lavender and ylang ylang, the Baume Purifiant oxygenates and rebalances skin. The product itself comes with a little spoon that you use to scoop out a pearl sized gob which you then warm in the palm of your hand and spread over problem areas (or in my case, my whole face). I actually use it after a scrub in place of a moisturiser at night during break outs.

Buy from Mecca for $110. Worth every penny.