Beauty Box Subscriptions!

Before I started to learn about all this here beauty stuff I knew nothing about these great little subscriptions which showcase new or existing products by sending a small batch of sample (or full-sized!!) products to your door each month.

Wow what a great idea!  So I subscribed to two Australian ones.

Bellabox and Lust Have It.

November was when I received my first boxes.  LHI managed to squeak in on the 28th November and Bellabox got to me on I think the 3rd December.  Anyway here's what I got!

Bellabox

So BB came in a blue outer box (I threw it out before these pics) and inside had the items in a yellow pillow style box.   The packaging was kind of flimsy and feedback on their Facebook page indicated a lot of people had missing items as they fell out of the packaging (or the packaging was ripped open easily).  Fortunately my package arrived unscathed and in good condition.

I put a picture of the insert card above for you all to have a read.  So far I have only used the eye makeup mistake eraser pen from this box, it works SO well.  I will use the other items and feedback as I go along.

This box is AU$15 per month including postage and handling.  I think it was a reasonable effort for products, I never would have bought any of the included items on my own.

Lust Have It

So the LHI box came in a plastic Australia Post satchel.  The box itself is beautiful.  Reusable with magnetic closure and thick cardboard construction.  Very nice!

When I opened it there was black tissue paper wrapping!  Nice touch!  The box was stacked FULL of items.  A lot of them from Mary Kay, they must have been the main contributor this month.  The Toiletry/Makeup bag is pretty.  There also was a pumice stone/scrub brush for feet, mascara, perfume samples etc etc.  You can read the card.   :)  I haven't used any of these items yet but will feedback when I do.  This box is AU$25 per month including postage and handling.

I think that I will get use out of all of these items, and for a first box I am happy with what I received.  Do you subscribe to beauty boxes?  How does LHI and BB compare to yours?

Nutrimetics Haul

Nutrimetics Haul

Howdy doody readers!

I finally crumbled and have jumped on the Nutrimetics Bandwagon and ordered some items :)

I ordered 3 items, which came in a silver tote bag complete with big red bow and the brand name on it.  Very festive!

Here is a group photo of all the items!

#1  Ultracare+ Microdermabrasion Kit

AU$85.00

I had read really good reviews about this product from independent sites so I thought I would give it a go.  The kit contains a Resurfacer in a toothpaste-like tube (60mL).  The Resurfacer contains quartz crystals and lavender flower extract.  The Resurfacer  is a white paste with little grey flecks in it (quartz particles).  It has a very faint lavender fragrance which is rather pleasant.

The box contains instructions on how to rub it on your face.  It feels very gritty and ex-foliates really well.  You do have to be careful you don't rub too hard or in one spot for too long as you will injure your skin!

The second bottle is a pump (yay) canister of the Rehydrator SPF25 (40mL).  This is nice and soothing and is highly recommended as the skin will be sensitive to sunlight after your treatment.

Recommended treatment is once or twice a week.  This kit is NOT recommended for sensitive skin types.

I found it did a good job ex-foliating my skin and I had a lovely tingly feeling for a short while after my treatment.  I think it does a good job, but for the price tag of $85 I won't be repurchasing when I can get cheaper ex-foliators which do the same job.

Ultracare+ Moisturising System Duo

AU$59.00

Nutrimetics Blurb says "This light oil-free serum provides continuous hydration to the skin, and locks it in to prevent moisture loss, smoothing the appearance of skin and keeping it looking fresh and soft. Buy one and get one free."

So this serum came in two boxes tied together with a red chiffon ribbon for the festive season.

The bottles are silver with red writing on them.  They have a giant dropper to draw up the serum which I found awkward and clumsy to use.

The serum is clear and of a thin gel consistency which spreads really easily.  It is quickly absorbed and dries leaving a very thin layer on the skin, hard to describe, it's not an unpleasant feeling by any means.

However, I find that when I use my Nivea Pure & Natural Day Cream or my Avon Anew Reversalist Night cream (I use the serum twice a day after cleansing) the creams I put on top seem to flake and ball up a bit.  This is really disappointing as I was hoping it would perform better.  I recently finished off my Avon A-F33 serum which was pricey (AU$65) but did a great job of moisturising and didn't make my creams flake and ball-up.

I will persist with this for another few days.  However I'm not really impressed by this item at all so far.

nc Sheer Tint Make-Up SPF 15  (On special AU$13.90 - usual RRP $20)

This item I bought thinking it would be like a BB cream.  It appears to be on paper.  But when they said sheer they weren't lying.  It's sheer alright, so sheer its literally like putting an un-tinted moisturiser on.  As you can see from the swatch on my hand above - I did spread it on my skin on the left of the photo, and it disappeared!!!!!  Another dud.  On the plus side, it does feel nice on my skin and makes it feel soft.

So in summary, 2 items aren't good. One product is good - but over-priced for what it does.  I really expected more than this from Nutrimetics!  Have you used Nutrimetics products?  I hope your experience was better than mine!  Comment below!

Models Prefer Magnifying Mirror

Models Prefer Magnifying Mirror

I bought this mirror last week as I needed a magnifying mirror with lighting as well.

I bought it at Priceline for AU$30.  It runs on a 9V battery.

The mirror itself feels nice and sturdy with a decent amount of weight in the base so it doesn't feel like it will fall over easily.  It has 2 mirrors, you just flip the bezel to which side you want - normal or magnified.

The light is OK, it could be brighter.  I will keep it for a little while longer and see how I go.  

The other Vanity mirrors I have seen that are similar but run on mains power cost AU$30-50 more than this one.  

It magnifies 3x which isn't a huge amount but I have good eyesight, so I just want the magnification for makeup touch-ups not to actually see to apply the makeup, which I know is an issue for some people.

The ones I looked at in other shops had 10x magnification.  Just so you know, brace yourself if you look in a 10x mirror, I nearly died of fright seeing my pores like that!!!

If you are curious about magnifying mirror reviews there is a very good one on YouTube by Angie of HotandFlashy.  She goes all out to give in depth reviews of products she likes and dislikes.

All up I like this mirror for the AU$30 price tag.  It does the job and looks quite nice sitting on my table!

Do you use magnifying vanity mirrors?  What do you think of them?

Clarisonic Mia 2 Review

Clarisonic Mia 2 Review

I bought this nifty little device on Ebay a few weeks ago, it cost me AU$94.00 + AU$15 postage.

The unit came with an Australian adapter for the US plug which was good; as I wondered if I would have to buy one separately myself.  I'm glad I waited until I received the item before buying one.

I also bought 2 replacement heads in the "Deep Pore Cleansing" type from a different seller on Ebay, they cost me AU$13.95 + AU$7.95 postage.  The Clarisonic unit itself came with a Sensitive brush head.  I have been using the Sensitive brush head.

The unit took about 20 hours to charge up initially.  It has a nifty little magnetic charger which sticks to the charging point on the unit.  

The unit itself is compact and fairly light.  It is a sealed unit with rubber buttons on the handle.  One button switches the unit on/off.  The other button toggles the speed - allegedly, I pressed it and haven't noticed a difference?  

Around the buttons are indicator lights.  They illuminate when charging and when the unit is running.

I have been using this twice a day with the Beauty Essentials Clean Creamy Cleanser which I talked about here.  My skin on the whole has been looking and feeling a lot cleaner and softer, and a bit brighter.

I have also noticed when I use it after cleaning my face with either wipes or washing by hand I still get makeup coming off onto the Clarisonic Brush, amazing!

You don't need to press hard with this product, just run it over your face in small circular motions to clean your skin.

For unit care I just dry it off with a towel, remove the brush head and dry underneath and then lay the unit and the brush head on my table separately so they can dry out.  The brush heads are supposed to be replaced every 3 months.

My verdict is this product is a hit, but pricey.  I can't see AU$100+ value in it, but it does what it does really well!

Have you got a Clarisonic or other similar device, what do you think about it?

Arbonne for Face Review

Arbonne Sample Pack for Face Review

I picked up a couple of sample packs 2 weekends ago at at local school fete.  There was various stalls there including a Nutrimetics stall and Arbonne.

I had heard of Arbonne but never had an opportunity to try their products so I bought 2 sample packs for face to see what the products were like.  The lady running the stall was the Arbonne rep for this area.  Her name is Kendall and she was very enthusiastic and friendly.

The sample packs were AU$5 each and contained 7 products.

The packs were nicely presented in a fold out card with little slots to hold the sample tubes of product.

Another great thing about these packs was there were instructions for each product and what order to use them in.

I will review them in the order of the leaflet!

Smoothing Facial Cleanser

This is a runny whitish creamy fluid with a rather pungent citrus smell which I wasn't keen on.  I found it did an ok job with the cleansing and didn't dry my skin right out.  I would not buy this product, the smell wasn't that great.

Regenerating Toner

Only received a small sample of this but it seemed to go a long way.  Watery and clear with a pleasant scent.  I'm not sure what toners are meant to do, I can't say I felt better or worse for using it.  But it smelled nice.  Would not buy a full size version.

Intensive Renewal Serum

Pale yellow creamy serum, spread well, sank into the skin quickly.  Left a sort of sticky residue for a short while then was completely absorbed within a minute or so.  Very slight clean scent.  I like it.  Depending on the price, would buy a full size version of this.

Corrective Eye Crème

I was told not to use this on the eyelid itself, rather underneath the eye and on the brow bone.  I haven't really bothered with this, I don't tend to put product around my eyes specifically, I find they seem to get in my eyes and make them itch or my vision gets blurry from oils etc going in my eyes :)  Would not buy a full size of this.

Restorative Day Crème & Extra Moisture Restorative Day Crème

These contain SPF 15.  I found they left an oily or greasy feel to my skin and never truly absorbed.  Makeup slid off or balled up, big no from me.  Not sure if it was the SPF or my skin type?

Summary

Overall I am glad I had the opportunity to try these products out for AU$5 per sample pack, I think that the products were average, I don't know the full price for the items and I doubt I would specifically seek out the rep and buy them.  

Also I found it slightly disturbing that the company touted their products as "Pure, Safe, Beneficial" but the ingredient list inside the card showed a truckload of synthetic and artificial ingredients.   Pure?  Safe?  Hmmm.

Have any of you heard of or tried Arbonne Products before?  What did you think?  Comment below!

Jan x

Face Mask Trial #1

I thought I'd give this "ready made" face mask a go last weekend. They cost like $8 from Priceline. I found it was extremely wet and slimy and my skin felt weird and tacky afterwards, definitely a no from me!

OOTD

2nd November 2013

• Floral top from Damart $20 I think
• 7/8 Denim Pants (Emerson Brand) Big W $15 I think

Makeup today:

• Base Magique Transforming Smoothing Primer by L'oreal
• Rimmel BB Cream 9-in-1 Skin Perfecting Super Makeup SPF 25
• Tried a new powder today CoverGirl Advanced Radieance Pressed powder shade 110 Creamy Natural.  This powder feels great on my skin but the BB Cream and the powder do nothing  to even out my complexion.  :(  Back to the drawing board methinks!

I bought the CoverGirl powder because they marketed it towards "aging skin", I think I need a better foundation.  Will continue to check into it!

OOTD

1st November 2013

• Paisley Dress from Rockmans $69.99
• Navy Shrug also Rockmans around $20-30 I think?
• Wedge slides from Big W. $20
• Red Leather Bag from Damart, has a detachable shoulder strap! $50

My make-up was kinda crappy, but I am trying out different things.  Today I wore:

• Base Magique Transforming Smoothing Primer by L'Oreal $29.95 from Priceline
• Rimmel BB Cream 9-in-1 Skin Perfecting Super Makeup SPF 25 in Light shade - can't remember how much I paid for it, also from Priceline
• Avon Smooth Minerals Foundation Loose Powder SPF 15 in Shell shade
• Avon Glimmersticks Lip Liner in Pink Bouquet
• Avon Smooth Minerals Lipgloss in Crystal Coral

Although it doesn't show up much here, my makeup looked AWFUL after an hour. Oily/shiny... plus it made every pore and line in my skin look HUGE, not sure what the culprit is here either.

Could be the BB cream maybe (just started using it) or the Smooth Minerals powder which does end up looking bad after a while on me.  I think I might need a stronger foundation or better powder...?  I also find the Primer isn't really doing that much for me, I pile it into my forehead creases and they look just the same as if I didn't put anything on them...?

... in the beginning

Hi there!

Welcome to my little corner of the interwebs.

I created this blog as I hope to have something worth sharing with others out there about fashion, personal care, skin care, cosmetics and perhaps other random thoughts and ideas that spring to mind.

Some of this will be me having a whinge and a rant, however I will try and be constructive about my whinging and ranting :)

About me, well I am a health professional employed full-time at the moment.  I am divorced, have one child (a girl) who is turning 14 soon (YIKES), I also have a mortgage, 2 poodles and my dad lives with me since my mum passed away almost 2 years ago.

The last 5 years have been particularly hard for me.  I separated from my ex-husband, had a brief dalliance with alcohol abuse and generally fell into a hole.  I smoked cigarettes heavily on and off for years too.

A couple of months ago I kind of looked in the mirror and thought "God you look OLD".  I'm 38 years old and I think I look 50.  I have deep horizontal lines running across my forehead, those lines running from my nose to my mouth and the lovely little "11" lines between my eyebrows.

"Oh" I thought, "I'm just being too hard on myself".... Then a co-worker made a comment about my "wisdom lines" and I felt so upset, she didn't mean to make me feel bad but by crikey I felt awful.

I have been Googling and You-tubing like crazy ever since, researching everything from Botox to BB Creams trying to get a feel for fixing my face.

I hope to share procedures, products and gimmicks I have tried and hopefully had success with on here and perhaps get a dialogue happening with my readers!

So, that's why I started this.  Join me on my journey, share your thoughts and pages with me, we can learn so much from each other!