Healthy skin all year around!

Summer is here (in New Zealand) and that means the beach, the sun and the sand! I've started hitting the waters early this month and got me a mean as tan :) I am a bit naughty though because I haven't been putting on SPF on my skin (which is a BIG NO-NO!). So today, I vowed that every time I go out under the sun I will now start using SPF lotions. But this isn't only about SPF lotions, it's about taking care of your skin in general.

I am one of those girls who cannot live without body lotions. I have tried a variety of lotions and I know which one is right for me. But before I break it all down to you, let me review these body lotions I have tried in the past. Oh, and may I add, when I buy body lotions, I buy BIG ones (750 ml) because I use it everyday all over my body after showering, or after sun bathing (to prevent my skin from peeling) and it does wonders to my skin.

I like my body lotion to smell nice or yummy and also something that absorbs into my skin quickly which means less time spent slathering the lotion all over my body (it can be quite tiring you know).

Here is my top 5:

5. Freeman Body Lotion in Shea Butter and Lemongrass

Okay, so this product didn't really impress me much except that it smells really nice like a tropical fruit or something like that. The texture of the lotion was too thin and when I applied it on my skin, it felt like water. It didn't absorb much as the lotion was still visible after several slatherifications and so I gave up and just left it there to dry by itself. The color is pure white with an almost runny texture - not good for a moisturizer. This is good for normal skin but I do not recommend this if your skin is dry to very dry as this will not do the trick.

All in all, it gave my skin a fresh pleasant smell all day long but without the moisturization it needed.

4. Skin Milk Body Lotion

I discovered this at the start of the year when I was on the hunt for a new lotion and voila! It was on sale for only $8 so I bought two big momma ones which made me happy of course and both of them lasted me for 2 months :) What I like about this product is that it smells like a baby powder. It smells nice and subtle, not too overpowering. The texture was in the mid-range, it wasn't runny or too thick. But when I apply it on my skin, it doesn't absorb well (and like I said before, I want a lotion that absorbs pretty quick without having to keep massaging it on my skin). Also, the moisture doesn't last the whole day so instead of only applying it in the morning, you have to do it at night too because of its lack of staying power. I did enjoy it eventhough it wasn't the perfect one for me. The packaging was what caught my attention, as shown in the picture, it is shaped like an old milk bottle.. how cute! 

All in all, it was average. Nothing too great -  just a normal lotion.

3. St Ives Body Lotion in Vanilla

I bought this solely because of its softening properties, oh and of course, the smell! It smells so yummy that every time I use it it relaxes me........ hmmmmmmmm I can still remember the feeling hahaha! Anyway back to the topic, this is nearly perfect except that when I apply it all over my body after showering and then I get dressed, the lotion kinda sticks to my clothes and that's not very nice. It doesn't stain the clothes but it kinda dampens it a bit and the smell sticks as well. I didn't like that. But on the bright side, it did leave my skin feeling nice and smooth all day. I didn't feel the need to apply it twice a day as its staying power is lasting.
All in all, I would definitely buy this again and I 'll have to wait for the lotion to absorb before I get dressed to avoid the lotion from dampening my clothes.

2. Palmer's Cocoa Butter Formula

I am obsessed with this lotion! It smells sooooo yummy just like the scent of chocolate ohmygosh it's heavenly. Okay, before I get a bit carried away, first things first! Let's talk about the actual lotion itself, it comes in a creamy yellow color and the texture is soft and just pretty much right, i.e. not too liquidy or too creamy. It is amazing! When I apply it, the smell just stays on for hours and hours and everyone will definitely notice that chocolatey scent :) And oh la la! The lotion quickly absorbs into the skin making it so easy to apply and frees you a lot of time to do something else. What I don't like about this product is that it is a bit too expensive for its size. I bought mine for $8.50 and that's only in a 250mL bottle. So if you're the type of person who don't mind spending that amount of money for a small bottle then this is for you!

1. Vaseline Cocoa Butter Body Lotion

I have finally found the perfect one for me!!! Vaseline has yet again won my heart with this amazing body lotion that's affordable, quick absorbing, moisturizing, smells nice and is available in this gigantic bottle 750mL! The scent is not too overpowering and the color is also yellowy cream just like the Palmer's one. It absorbs quickly and lasts the whole day - which means you don't need to apply it again at night. Perfect! I always bring this along with me wherever I go to keep my skin feeling nice and soft :) Try it for yourself, I highly recommend it.

The many uses of Vaseline Petroleum Jelly

I started using Vaseline petroleum jelly after having my eyelash extensions removed as it really damaged my eyelashes due to the fact that they were there for six months and they were weighing my natural lashes down therefore stopping their growth. So I researched yet again and found a solution! Vaseline petroleum jelly :) It is so helpful that after 2weeks of applying it to my eyelashes every night, my lashes grew longer than ever and they were stronger and shinier too! I looooooved it :D 

Vaseline does not make eyelashes grow thicker or longer, but it helps strengthen and condition it making the lashes last longer and live their maximum "life span" instead of falling out prematurely. There you go boys and girls, the secret to healthy eyelashes. 

These are the steps I experimented with when I was still using Vaseline on my eyelashes:

1. Dip your finger into the jar and get a little bit of the jelly
2. Close your eye and then apply it using your finger on your eyelashes while your eye is closed. This technique will make sure that all the lashes are coated including the bottom lashes too.
3. Done.

Easy right? It's no rocket science and it does work.

Other uses of Vaseline Jelly:

• Makeup remover (eye makeup)
• Moisturizer (although I don't recommend you use it on your face)
• Perfect for chapped lips
• Use it on unruly eyebrows to tame and shape it
• Combine it with melted chocolate and use it as a flavored lip balm
• Put a coat of vaseline on cracked heels every night and then wear socks - this will help soften and moisturize the skin and help it heal
• Applying vaseline to your teeth prevents lipstick from sticking to them
• Use with lipstick to create cream blusher for your cheeks
• Removes makeup stains from clothing
• Put vaseline on your lips and leave on for a few minutes then use a toothbrush to exfoliate leaving your lips nice and smooth
• Mix with sea salt to make a body/face scrub

..and so much more!

Homemade Beauty Part 1 - OLIVE OIL

Hello hello! And welcome to my ever so interesting blog :) Finally I am here in front of my laptop BLOGGING! Wow it's been so long and I really didn't know where to start, but obviously I know now because I have made up my mind and I will be talking about natural beauty tricks that I've been doing in the past couple of weeks.

First of all, let me tell you about the revelation I had that made me start using natural products this summer: I have been researching (due to boredom) about beauty products and how they are made. This made me shit my pants (not literally, but my brain probably did) and I was so shocked that even though they say it's "natural this, and natural that, and paraben free, or fragrance free" they still have chemicals in them. I mean duh, you don't open your cleanser and see a fruit in there do you? Or open it and you see something like an unprocessed vanilla pod or what have you. Anyway, my point is, no matter how hard people try to advertise and label their products as "organic" or "chemical free" you can go to the back of the bottle and read the ingredients yourself!

So here is what I discovered, well you probably have heard of this before. I am just justifying the fact that they actually DO WORK!

OLIVE OIL

Let's face it, olive oil has been used in the olden olden days, back where the dinosaurs roam the earth (oh hell, the dinosaurs probably even used it to keep their leathery skin nice and shiny.. who knows?) or more precisely, back where early civilization existed. Women from these times used olive oil for various beauty purposes: may it be for their hair, their face or their body, olive oil gives moisturization like no other. It is the only oil that doesn't clog pores and best of all, it is readily absorbed by the skin and it does not have any harmful side effects like the products in the market. Olive oil is loaded with nutrition and antioxidants such as vit A and E which makes it oh so nutritious especially for your skin.

Okay so some beauty bloggers would say it is better to use Extra Virgin Olive Oil, I disagree. Olive oil is olive oil and whether you use EVOO or plain olive oil, it will have the same effect. Now, let's get started:

FACE:
I have oily skin and I have tried numerous moisturizers that would not add to the oiliness already present and boom more breakouts and bumps! I tried olive oil as it is natural and there are no harmful chemicals that can irritate my already sensitive skin. The theory behind this idea is that oil absorbs oil (well we all know that water does not mix with oil, they basically repel each other) so as I have said before, olive oil does not block pores (non-comedogenic)  which I really love and also it dissolves the oil in your skin that's trapped in your pores for a clearer more radiant skin. Olive oil also helps clear acne marks due to its regenrating properties which helps skin cells replace dead ones for a better complexion.

1. If you are doing this first thing in the morning, I recommend that you put two drops each of the oil on both sides of your face and just gently massage it all over using upward circular strokes - this will help the blood circulation in your face running giving you a rosy fresh glow. 
2. Rinse your face with glycerin soap, I recommend Neutrogena (the transparent soap) and pat dry.
3. Apply your normal whatever it is that you put on your face and so on.
4. If you are doing this at night before bed time which I highly recommend that you do, cleanse your face first with this soap, pat dry, and then apply the oil as per number 1.
5. At this stage, your face will feel a bit grainy while you massage it as the oil is deeply cleansing your skin from dirt, oil, makeup residue and other things that were on your face (hahaha!).
6. Leave the oil on your face for about 30 minutes and if you're really keen, you can use a face towel, dip it in hot water, rinse it abit so that it wouldn't be too hot and then rest it on your face till it has cooled down. This will open up the pores and help loosen it even more to reach the deepest of the deep LOL
7. Rinse with lukewarm water, pat dry and you are ready for bed!

And that's it ladies and gentlemen :)

Toni&Guy Beach Curl Spray Vs. Juuce Pure Sea Salt Spray

So here we are in the battle of the HAIR TEXTURIZING SPRAYS!

When I buy a texturizing spray, the criteria I have in mind would be something that wouldn't be too heavy on my hair, cause brittleness or get my hair oily the next day. I have tried so many products and so far, these two stood out:



TONI&GUY Beach Curl Spray


What I LOVE with this product:

• When I spray it on my hair, it doesn't make it too sticky and I can still run my fingers through it :)
• The packaging is cute with its pink and metalic look, it sure is eye catching 
• You can use it both on damp and dry hair and the results are still amazing
• It is affordable at $11.99 it is more than worth its price

What I DON'T LIKE about this product:

• It has the "TONI&GUY Signature Smell" that everyone (well most) doesn't like. It's musky with a hint of weirdness. But that doesn't bother me really (really).
• The nozzle doesn't disperse the vapor evenly - i.e. its more like a hose on "jet" setting - so you'd have to make sure that the can is about 15-30 cm away from your hair when you spray so it doesn't saturate one area of your hair only

Rating: 4/5

Juuce Pure Sea Salt Spray


What I LOVE with this product:

• I love the smell of it! It has a coconutty smell that is absolutely delicious :) It's very summery.
• I love the packaging which comes in a tall bluish see through plastic container which has an "aqua" effect.
• The nozzle dispenses the vapor evenly as it is very fine 
• It protects your hair from the harmful rays of the sun as it has UVA/UVB (perfect for summmmer!)

What I DON'T LIKE about this product:

• If you spray too much 2 or more on one part of the hair, then it makes it really sticky and the strands stick together and become hard
• It's quite expensive as I got mine from a hair salon at about $30 NZD
• It gets a bit greasy the day after using it, which is a big no no.

Rating: 3.5/5

So it is now up to you to choose which type of texturizing hair spray is right for you :)
Both are suitable to apply before curling your hair and they both give volume when sprayed on the roots when blow dryed.