Choosing a Good Eyecream

Most people tend to ignore their eyes when it comes to moisturising. Your eyes actually need more moisture than your skin because they get dehydrated more easily (that's why tiredness shows there) and eye wrinkles are notoriously difficult to get rid off cosmetically. That's why eyecreams were created.

Eye cream is really important when it comes to make-up. A lot of mature women don't wear make-up because they are worried it will set and accentuate fine lines. Actually this may be because the skin is dehydrated and when you put on make-up, it 'drinks' up the moisture in the make up and dries it out. A good eye cream will not only hydrate the area and reduce this, but it can also serve as an eye base for your make-up too.

Of course there are many out there which all claim to do weird and wonderful thing. Some are designed to brighten up the eyes because of the reflectiveness. Some claim to make the skin look smoother,  hide puffiness and in the long run, reduce fine lines and wrinkles.

The important thing when choosing is to consider, as you would do other skin products, the ingredients and if you are sensitive to them, your kind of skin (dry/normal/oily/sensitive) and the results you are after. If I wanted an eyecream, I'd want one that brightens,moisturises and is natural. You might need one that reduces dark circles or one that reduces puffiness and fine lines, or one that is calming. Don't just buy any eyecream or else you might not be impressed with your purchase. You must also invest in one which gives good value for money. With most eye creams you only need a little at a time but look at the net weight and the price and ask yourself if it is a reasonable investment. Your best bet is to read customer reviews. There is nothing more handy than the experience of someone who has tried it before (eyecream.org and eyecream. com are two places to start). Watch out for magazine and other media reviews. You will probably not get it right the first time you try and you may need to try a few different creams before you find the one that works for you. My advice would be to give it about 4-6 weeks for results to start showing. Mischievous had a go with the Garnier eye cream. This is another experiment from Total Beauty. Don't forget the SPF as sun damage can accelerate wrinkling and also you can get skin cancers around the eyes. Most eyecreams do not have have SPF so I would suggest an SPF moisturiser over the eye cream or an SPF foundation. Use eyecreams overnight if you are trying to replenish the moisture content or cause cell regeneration. I use Burt's bees radiance Eye Cream on myself.  Like I said it is all about preference.

Using a good eye cream can save you from looking like you need 100 years of sleep everyday! Hopefully you'll be more adventurous with your make-up when you realise that the fine lines aren't so bad anymore...

Stay beautiful...

Amarya.com- Organic beauty store review

Type: Website- UK based online store
Products/Services- Certified organic beauty products
Shipping- UK/EU/International
Relationship with Brand: None

Rating:

Ease of use:

Product pricing:

Shipping cost:

Packaging and delivery:


Overall rating:

Do we recommend it: Yes!

Details:
Finally we have a 100% certified organic beauty store in UK! Amarya is an online store that sells certified organic beauty products. They also have a store and salon in London, where they offer therapeutic services. I took advantage of a promotion which I saw on facebook and purchased a few products from them.

I had been searching for a particular lotion from Santa Verde for a very long time and was excited at discovering they stocked it. I don't have to pay €15.50 for shipping from Germany any more.
They have a wide variety of brands and I was very impressed with how my products arrived in 2 days, especially as I didn't pay a dime for shipping.This store offers free shipping on all UK orders and 28 days money back guarantee.

The downside of course is the cost of the products. Certified organic products tend to be more expensive than regular ones anyway. The Santa Verde Medium Aloe Vera cream cost €19.90 (£18.10) from SV and £28.00 from Amarya. It is still cheaper than buying from SV and paying the cost of shipping though. The cost may be justified by the purity of what you are buying. You know that extra care was taken when that product was being made and it has gone through a certification process and passed.

If you are a natural beauty freak I would certainly recommend you visit this store. Right now they are offering free gift wrapping services and a free gift when you spend £35.00 or more. Perfect timing for the festive season.

On the side: In my part of the world- Amarya means first time bride. It is a word associated with innocence :)


Stay beautiful...

LUSH fresh face mask- BB Seaweed

Success!! I finally found a LUSH Fresh Face Mask (FFM) that works after my previous disaster.

I have just discovered the joy of BBSeaweed FFM and I love it.

LUSH BB SEAWEED (£6.45)


HRP rating:

What can I say I love this mask. I believe it was designed for normal skin. It looks very complex and has a grainy texture. You can literally see seaweeds sticking out of here and there but it really does give your face a very silky smooth feel albeit temporarily. It also has a calming effect, which I put down to the Aloe Vera in it.

I think you get about 10 uses in it and at 6.49 it is worth it. It has all the advantages of being natural and fresh (no preservatives) and all you need is a good 10 minutes on a Wednesday and Saturday evening to incorporate this into your skin care routine. It works wonders!

My number one problem with this FFM is how it clogs my drain with annoyingly large seaweed particles, which could have been shrunk into smaller pieces before incorporating. You can just pick them out of the mask. It then takes ages to wash off, especially the bits that get stuck to the hairline, because it dries very quickly and has a thick consistency. Also, it needs to be stored in the fridge and you have to remember that before you head upstairs to the shower. This might be that little bit of effort that makes you less likely to use it, and then it goes to waste because it only lasts 3 weeks. If you do not have an accessible LUSH store, forget this product because you cannot order it online.

Would I recommend it? Only if you are dedicated. It gets 3.5 crowns solely on its smoothing and calming properties but for everything else, it is an effort. Make sure you try it on an inconspicuous area before using it on your face, you don't want to look like a tomato afterwards.

Fav Fives for November pt 1

1. Krasey beauty's holiday gift info. Make sure to keep an eye on her blog for lots of great ideas on Christmas shopping and gifts.
2. Temptalia's updates on Spring 2010 collections. I know it is holiday season and we are trying to get our heads round X-mas but its a breath of fresh air to see something different and exciting. At least we can look forward to spring already.
3. Make-up your mind by François Nars. What an amazing book! I will be reviewing it very soon. You can see pretty much how every look is created, with very clear before and after pictures and a transparent sheet of what was applied. Awesome.
4. Lauren Luke's bollywood barbie tutorial. This is an easy look that you can rock all year round with any skin tone if you like to experiment with colours. I love the glitter :)
5. Jane Iredale's Just Kissed lip plumper in Milan. You have to try this lip plumper out to understand where I'm coming from. It is 100% natural and lasts for hours (unless I do anything nutty). I love the tingling effect.

Red cheeks be gone!

Do you have red cheeks? They can be quite annoying sometimes, especially the days when you look like you are wearing tabasco sauce on your cheeks. Not to worry here are a few tips that might solve the problem.

1. Firstly, make sure it is not a serious medical issue. For things like severe rosacea etc, you might need to see a dermatologist.
2. Use products which are designed for sensitive skin as part of your skin care routine. These will usually have no fragrance/colouring or other known irritants.
3. Make sure you are not allergic to any product before you use it, You can always try it on an inconspicuous area (behind the ears for example) before using it on your face.
4. Do not forget your sunscreen. UV rays are known culprits when it comes to redness and inflammation of the skin.
   
5. Try a soothing cream. This is my favourite instant redness relief technique. I use the artistry soothing cream because I love the how consistent and moisturising it is but you can use any other soothing cream. Soothing creams have calming ingredients like lavender and chamomile and they usually tone down the redness.
6. Use a tinted moisturiser underneath your foundation or on its own. Tinted moisturisers are exactly what they say- tinted and therefore they hide the redness. I use Jane Iredale's tinted moisturiser. As well as being tinted to tone down the redness, it has a calming effect too due to the algae extract in it.
7. Use a medium-high coverage foundation. This is guaranteed to town down some of the redness even if it is just a bit. I love 4-in-1 mineral foundations (foundation, concealer, SPF and powder). They are very effective at toning down redness because of their added concealing and SPF properties, and are also less likely to irritate the skin as they are mineral based. You can get one of these from Bare Minerals, Jane Iredale, Pur Minerals etc. I love the Jane Iredale one because it is pressed and hence no mess and it has the highest SPF(20).
8. Consider colour correction. The best colour for concealing redness is green. Boots No.7 colour calming base is the only green moisturiser/cream I've come across. It is the equivalent of using a tinted moisturiser as a primer for your make-up except that this is tinted green and is specially designed to antagonise redness. I have not tried this method before. The other option (also suitable for red spots) is to use a green based concealer/colour corrector before/after your foundation to hide any remaining redness. You can get colour correctors from most make-up brands. Ben Nye and Graftobian have some very good colour wheels.
   

I think most men would not fancy being caught with a foundation in their bathroom. If you don't mind that, there are products that have been designed for men. Jane Iredale has one such product. If you do mind however, you can just stick with a soothing cream or a tinted moisturiser.

Hopefully by the time you have done all this, the redness would have been killed!
Remember that this is only a temporary measure and if you are looking for a long term solution, a dermatologist might be a better option.

Stay beautiful...

Burt's Bees Citrus Scrub- Keep your skin dewy this winter

Its winter and your skin will not like it because the harsh cold weather does not do any justice to it. Cold air reduces the moisture content of your skin resulting in a dry flaky skin (also affects the elbows, heels, lips etc). Keeping yourself hydrated by drinking lots of fluids (avoid caffeine), moisturising reularly, avoiding the cold weather when you can and staying in a low humidity area are all ways of reducing this problem.

A fast and very effective way of keeping your skin healthy is exfoliation. When you exfoliate you remove the dead skin cells on the surface, leaving the skin looking dewy all year round. This is especially important in the winter when your skin is more vulnerable to accumulating dead cells than it would normally be.
Exfoliation is very easy and is something you can do as part of your morning routine. I usually do this twice a week, in the shower after I've cleansed my face. Try not to exfoliate too often because you then get rid of most of the protective layer of your skin and it becomes irritable/inflamed.
I know there are a lot of exfoliating agents out there but I am going to tell you about one that I believe really works.

Burt's Bees Citrus Scrub (£8.81 @ boots)









HRP rating:


Ingredients: glycerin, sweet almond oil, sweet almond seed meal, oat kernel flour, citrus sweet orange peel powder, rose flower powder, pecan shell powder, grapefruit extract, nutmeg fruit powder, clove flower powder, rosemary leaf extract, tocopherol (Vit E), soybean oil, water, glucose, fragrance, canola oil, sodium chloride, glucose oxidase, lactoperoxidase, geraniol, limonene.

As you may have guessed I am obsessed with natural products. I love this scrub very much. It comes dry in a 57g glass jar, which I suspect will last for months (at least 3 months I'd say). You only need a tiny amount to work into a paste. I've been using it for about 2 months now and when I use it I can feel it exfoliating away. Sometimes I get to the point where it starts to feel 'tingly' and I know I have to stop scrubbing away. This is why I would not recommend using it more than twice a week- it is quite strong. The orange oil is moisturising and gives it a kind of sweet scent. My skin always feels lighter and softer after I've used this, ready for toning and moisturising.

Do not exfoliate on a day where you use another pore cleansing product e.g a pore cleansing mask or a facial treatment. It will most likely be too harsh for your skin.



The problem with this scrub is that you have to work it into a paste and it takes a while to get going (about 30 secs, which is considerable time if you are rushing in the morning). Also, because of the way it is packaged dry in a glass jar, using it in the shower is a problem. Water can easily get into it and you must not allow that to happen.
If you want to have a ready made scrub then this is not for you, try the Peach and Willowbark Pore Scrub from Burt's Bees (I havn't tried this). There will be inevitably be many exfoliants if you walk into drugstore X or visit any cosmetic website. Find the one that works for you but I sincerely believe that exfoliation is an important step to include in your skin care regime and this is the exfoliant I would recommend.

If you do not live in the UK, I believe you can get this from most drugstores also. I got mine from ecohamster at 8.50 and 1.49 shipping.

Stay beautiful...

LUSH Obsession

Eight years it took, eight long wasted years before I discovered LUSH! Isn't that disgraceful?

I received the 'shiny happy people' package on my last birthday from my dear Leeds course mates (I miss them so...)

We were having a meal at Zizzi's (Italian restaurant) and I remember thinking that the Calamari had a very fruity delicious scent. Little did I know there was a box of LUSH goodies hiding under the table.

I have always known LUSH as the shop that scents the whole street. I occasionally indulge my senses in the round candy looking 'things' and leave.

I loved my birthday present- it had some funky products with even funkier names- Happy Hippy shower gel, some ginger-bread-man-looking soap (Up You Gets emotibomb) and another soap called Sandstone. I absolutely loved these products and I found myself wondering how I never discovered them. I had a constant shower affair with the Happy Hippy since then.

The products came in popcorn and guess what? Yes, you are right. Her Majesty chewed the popcorn! Not all of it. It looked so enticing and the scent was so irresistible. The taste however is a story for another day.

I've gone into a natural craze now and I cannot stand anything remotely non-natural near my skin. I know LUSH is not 100% natural (e.g. Parabens) but it is better than many other brands.
I visited my local LUSH store and after spending 45 minutes walking round the store (at this point the attendant was wondering if I went there to steal), I invested in Cocoa Lotion, Dreamwash, Sugar scrub and Brazened Honey Fresh Face Mask (FFM)


Brazened Honey (£6.45)

HRP rating:

FFMs are wonderful. It doesn't get fresher than buying from ice and using fresh from the fridge. I love that LUSH products have an expiry date. There is no doubt as to when to throw them away, though I doubt I will ever have to throw away a LUSH product. I like the brazened honey FFM because it acts as an exfoliator and a mask and I would have been happy to save some pounds on an exfoliator. However (quite unfortunately as I love anything honey based), my skin does not like whatever fragrance is in there. As soon as I put it on, it was reminiscent of molten lava crawling my face so I had to wash it off ASAP! I tried it twice, same result. I tried it in the store on my neck and it was fine, but on my face it burns. What a shame. I have to throw away a LUSH product :(
One disadvantage of the FFMs is that they have a short shelf-life (5 weeks I think) as they have no preservatives. This means you have to use them often (twice I week I would recomend) to avoid wasting them. Their effects are not permanent or cumulative either. They are only good at temporarily making your face awesome, so you have to use them continuously. In a way I guess that could be an advantage. At least you know that nothing sneaky is accumulating in your skin.

Ingredients: Kaolin, Talc, Fresh lime juice, Sage, Rosemary and Juniperberry infusion, Free range eggs, Honey, Glycerine, Fresh fennel, Ground almond shells, Almond oil, Bentonite gel, Fresh ginger root, Fresh parsley, Fresh coriander, Ground tumeric, Ground cardamom, Clove bud oil, Ginger oil, Vetivert oil, Juniperberry oil, Benzyl salicylate, Eugenol, Geraniol, Benzyl benzoate, Linalool, Perfume.


Sugar Scrub (£2.50)

HRP rating:

What more can I say about sugar scrub except that it is sugar and scrubs your body? I love it. It has an invigorating fragrance that wakes you up instantly. You can feel it working as you scrub away.I don't know about the ingredients, I'm guessing sugar crystals, fragrance, some kind of soap. Basically I have no idea.
The only problem with this product is that it melts away in the shower. It might be better to break it into two and use one half at a time, or find a suitable container to store it in the shower.


Dreamwash (£8.37)


HRP rating:

I confess, I cheated on the Happy Hippy. In short I dumped him. I don't know how to explain in words my love for this product. It is a skin-saver! I had been battling with a fungal-looking thing on my left foot for about six months and I tried a lot of things. I got fed up with anti-fungals and resorted to different creams. Nothing worked until I met Dreamwash. 3 weeks of Dreamwash and my foot is now free. I wish I had before and after pictures. It is super amazing and I have no idea how it works. As a medic I should be more inquisitve but honestly I don't care. I suspect some pharmaceutical companies will soon be making complaints. Anyone who mentions skin problem- my automatic answer is Dreamwash.
I have taken away half a crown only because I am a foam freak, and it doesn't foam as much as I'd like it to. Otherwise, I would recommend this to anyone, especially if you have an uneven skin tone.

Ingredients: Calamine powder, Aloe vera gel, Water, Sodium palm kernelate, Glycerine, Sodium stearate, Rose absolute, Chamomile oil, Tea tree oil, Lavender oil, Sodium chloride, EDTA, Tetrasodium editronate, Linalool, Perfume.


Coco Lotion (£8.50)



HRP rating:

I'm drawn to cocoa skin care products. It has something to do with cocoa being abundant in the Southern part of Nigeria hence I grew up knowing all it's amazing skin properties. Coco Lotion is no different. I lied, it is better than every other cocoa product I've used. I love how natural this product is, it has no artificial fragrance but it smells lovely anyway. It is perfect if you have dry skin or uneven skin tones. It does not feel heavy but it still moisturises and does it's job.
It gets 4 crowns because it is not super moisturising. If you have very dry skin, you might find yourself using a lot more, or using it twice.

All in all, I'm a fully converted LUSH-ness. The products work very well together. The brand itself is all about the planet. They use little or no packaging (hence the popcorn) and if they use any, you can guarantee that it is either recyclable or they are working on recycling it. If you take 5 empty black pots back, you get a free FFM, and all you had to do was to help the planet by recycling your empty pots. Isn't that awesome? If you have never tried Lush products, what are you waiting for?

Stay beautiful...