Friday 30 January 2009

Natio Face Mask Purifier


Whilst this is a nice face mask, it's not one that I'll repurchase, as there are other masks that I find to be much more effective.

When I use a face mask I expect my skin to feel soft and smooth for a few days to a week afterward, but I don't get that with my Natio Face Mask Purifier.

Regardless of that, it is a nice mask. It has a soft clay/herbal scent, it feels lovely on my skin and dries fast, without that uncomfortable, tight feeling that some masks have when they dry. After I've used it my skin feels lovely and smooth, but unfortunately this only lasts for a few hours.

I don't notice any refining of my skin's texture or any change to the impurities, but using this mask is a nice excuse to relax for a little while.

Ingredients: water, glycerin, bentonite, Kaolin, polysorbate 60, titanium dioxide CI 77891, PVP, sesamum indicurn seed oil, cellulose gum, phenoxyethanol, sodium benzoate, fragrance, jasminum officinale oil, citrus medica limonum peel oil, cymbopogon martini oil, methylparaben, propylparaben.

Thursday 29 January 2009

ModelCo Face Base Skin Primer


I find ModelCo's primer to be almost identical to the Smashbox primer, with only a few slight differences. It's a great product, and even better because it's Australian. It makes my foundation apply smoothly, stops it sinking into fine lines, and helps it to last all day without fading or creasing. It only takes a small, pea sized amount to cover my whole face, so a tube lasts me around six months. I have dry skin, and don't find this primer to be drying.

Here's what ModelCo have to say about their primer: face base is a hydrating skin primer that visibly improves the look and texture of the skin by smoothing out fine lines and pores. It creates an even flawless base for make-up and keeps foundation on for up to 10 hours. Face Base’s oil-free, long-lasting silky formula is suitable for all skin types. Enriched with nourishing vitamins c & e, Face Base's clear formula glides on to give you the perfect second skin.

The first of the differences that I've noticed is availability. The ModelCo primer is available at David Jones stores and online at the ModelCo store, where the Smashbox primer is only available online at Adore Beauty and on TVSN.

The second of the differences is the price. ModelCo's primer is $34 and Smashbox's primer is $69.

The last of the differences is application. The Smashbox primer can just be rubbed on. The ModelCo primer needs to be rubbed in well or else it balls up. So when I'm applying it, I'll rub it in, and when I feel it starting to ball up I keep on rubbing it in so that it's thoroughly applied. Then I leave it for a few minutes before I apply my foundation. I find that when I don't rub it in properly my foundation balls up when I apply it, and that's never a good thing.


Wednesday 28 January 2009

Vitry Glass Nail File


If you don't have one of these already, you need to get one. Before I discovered the amazingness of the glass nail file, I used diamond files. They worked well, but always left a lot of overhangs, rough edges and mess.

And then one fateful day I read a message board where a lady was raving about how amazing her glass nail file was. Naturally, I had to get one for myself. I paid $15 for my Vitry nail file, from Priceline. I've had it for about five years, and it's still like new. Vitry say that their nail files will last forever, and if that's the case, then $15 is a bargain.

I can't imagine using any other type of nail file now. My glass nail file makes my nails smooth without any rough edges, overhangs or shavings. It's the best nail file I've ever used. I also find that it's very gentle on my nails and doesn't crack or split them.

In my opinion, a glass nail file is an essential part of everyone's collection.

Tuesday 27 January 2009

Olay Total Effects Cream

Olay claims that this is a seven in one anti ageing moisturiser. When it first came out, these claims are the reason I bought it. As with a lot of claims made by skin care companies, I didn't find this to be true, but I have found that it's an effective moisturiser for normal to slightly dry skin.

Over the years I've gone through at least five bottles of Total Effects cream. I've been sitting here trying to think of how to describe it, and I'm not coming up with a lot. It's not an exciting moisturiser, but it does the job. For me it's not a favorite, but when I need a good, basic moisturiser this is what I use. It isn't anti ageing, it doesn't do anything other than keep my skin moisturised. It sinks in quickly and doesn't leave my skin feeling greasy. I usually buy the SPF 15 version.

There are four different versions available, they are: Normal, Normal with SPF 15, Fragrance Free, Fragrance Free with SPF 15.

This is what Olay has to say about Total Effects Cream:

Total Effects cream provides the benefits of 7 anti-ageing treatments in one bottle - think line minimization, nourishing hydration, improved skin tone, gentle exfoliation, pore refinement, anti-oxidant protection and subtle lifting, all in one cream.

New Olay Total Effects provides the benefits of:

1. Line minimisation: Reduces the appearance of fine wrinkles.

2. Nourishing Moisturisation: Soothes dry skin.

3. Tone Enhancement: Evens skin tone for more balanced color.

4. Gentle Exfoliation: Smoothes and evens skin texture .

5. Pore Refinement: Minimises the appearance of pores.

6. With Anti-Oxidants: Helps protect skin's moisture barrier.

7. Subtle Lifting: Hydrates for firmer skin appearance.

Monday 26 January 2009

I'm back!

Happy Australia Day! It's my brother's birthday today, he says that we should all thank him for allowing us to have a day off to celebrate his birthday, haha.

It's been a rough start to the year, but I'm finally back and raring to go. I've got a pile of products here ready to review so will be posting regularly from now on.

This year I'm continuing a resolution that I started last year, which is using up products before buying more. I did pretty well with that last year, and am hoping to do even better this year.

I've also changed the way I apply my facial serums and moisturisers. Instead of rubbing them onto my face, I'm rubbing the product between my palms and then patting it onto my face and neck. I'm not sure if this will make any difference, but it feels like a nicer way to apply my skin care.

And the other thing I'm doing this year is making sure that I use a face mask every week. It's a very quick and simple way to make a big difference to my skin. I use the method that my friend Gem posted about on her website, you can read the post here: Gem's DIY Weekly Facial.
Before I read Gem's post I hadn't thought about applying a facial oil before a mask, but now I wouldn't apply a mask without using a facial oil, cause it makes such a huge difference.

What do you think of the new layout?

I hope you've all had a great start to 2009!

Monday 19 January 2009

Palmer's Coconut Oil Formula Shampoo and Conditioner



Even thought I'm a fan of Palmer's products, I wasn't sure if trying this shampoo and conditioner would be a good idea. Since I've been lightening my hair I haven't had any success with cheaper hair care products. But when I saw that I could get a banded pack of the shampoo and conditioner for $10, I figured it was worth a try.

I've been using my Coconut Oil Formula products for two months now, and can happily say that I love them. They're keeping my hair hydrated, clean and healthy. With other cheap shampoo's and conditioners I've found that they dry my hair out, but this isn't the case with the Palmer's products. They're conditioning, so perfect for colour treated hair like mine.

As you've probably guessed, they have a gorgeous coconut scent. When I first got them the scent was overpowering, but thankfully it's faded now. After washing my hair does smell faintly of coconut, but it's a very subtle, pleasant scent.

This is what Palmer's have to say about the Coconut Formula Conditioning shampoo: A blend of the finest natural coconut oil and vitamin e, it's gentle cleansing, neutralising base helps to soften dry, brittle hair. Maybe be used on permed, pressed or bleached hair.

And this is what they have to say about the conditioner: Smooth and repair dry, damaged hair with the Polynesian secret for beautiful hair - pure coconut oil. This natural conditioner from the tropics strengthens and seals hair's cuticle, moisturises and softens hair, shines all day. Pure coconut oil is combined with keratin and panthenol to strengthen and improve the hair so that hair is silky and manageable, full of body and bounce, straighter with less frizz.

Would I buy these products again? Definitely, they do a great job at a great price!

Shampoo Ingredients: water, sodium lauryl sulfate, sodium laureath sulfate, cocoamide DEA, glycol stearate, sodium choloride, cocos nucifera oil, tocopheryl acetate, polyquaternium-10, fragrance, benzyl benzoate, coumarin, quaternium-15, methylparaben, propylparaben, tetrasodium EDTA, hydroxypropyl methycellulose, phosphoric acid.

Conditioner Ingredients: water, dicetyldimonium chloride, trimethylsiylamodimethicone, cetyl alcohol, stearyl alcohol, stearamiodopropyl dimethylamine, propylene glycol, cocos nucifera oil, hair keratin amino acids, tocopheryl acetate, glycerine soja oil, sodium hydroxymethylglycinate, citric acid, methylparaben, cetearyl alcohol, ceteareth-20, fragrance, benzyl benzoate, coumarin.

Thursday 15 January 2009

Today's Haul



I love Priceline. It's such a great store, with so many amazing products. There isn't a week that goes by that I don't visit Priceline and have a wander around.

I was in there today to get some Ardell Brow Gel and to pick up my favorite moisturiser, Dove's Energy Glow, which is on sale at the moment for $5.99 (it's usually around $15.99), when I noticed a few new things.



The first, and most exciting was Covergirl's Amazemint lip glosses. I've been hoping that we'd get these here, and am so excited that we did. They've got a great range of colours, there were four that I wanted to get, but I managed to restrict myself to two (I'll probably go back and get the other two tomorrow). They're the Wetslick lip balms flavoured and scented with Crest peppermint oil. I've only used mine a few times so far, but I'm in love with it already. I'll do a full review in a few weeks when I've properly tested it out.

I got a gorgeous pink called Pink Positive, and a lovely soft red called Red Riot.


The other new product I got was BOA's Repairing lip balm. It only cost $1.99 and smells amazing. I haven't tried this yet, so will report back later. They had the whole range of BOA products, they looked really nice. I'm looking forward to trying more from this line soon.

Wednesday 14 January 2009

Duwop Prime Venom


Duwop call this a lip plumping balm. I've only used it as a primer, so can't really comment on how it does as a balm. As a primer it feels moisturising, however I only use it once a day. I find that some balms can feel hydrating, but when used over the course of a few days turn out not to be moisturising.

As a primer, I really like this. In fact I like it as much as I like Guerlain's Lip Lift, which is great considering it's a lot cheaper. Prime Venom is a clear, matte primer with a tingle to it. I don't notice any plumping, however it does make my lips look less wrinkly.

Used under lipstick Prime Venom helps my lipsticks last longer and stops them bleeding.

Would I buy it again? Yes, it's a great product.

Ingredients: macadamia ternifolia seed oil, beeswax (cera alba), helianthus annus (sunflower) seed oil, flavours/aroma, euphorbia cerifera (candelilla) was, carnauba wax, persea gratissima (avocado) oil, ethyl macadamiate, camerllia sinensis (green tea leaf) extract, hydrated silica, ozokerite, methoxypropanediol, tocopheryl acetate.

Monday 12 January 2009

Moon Haven Soaps



On boxing day I went to my favorite store, Moon Haven, and picked up a few goodies. I was very restrained and only bought three soaps and a lip balm. After I left though I was really annoyed, cause I'd meant to buy a cleanser and forgot about it. But that's a great excuse to place an online order! This visit I got soaps in Romance, Dusky Rose and Country Spice. Country Spice and Dusky Rose are two of my favorites, and Romance is one that I haven't tried before, but it smells amazing.

As usual, my visit to the Moon Haven store was a delight. It truly is a little piece of heaven. I could happily have wandered around smelling things for hours. If I lived down that way I'd be on the doorstep begging for a job.

These are still my favorite soaps ever. I've tried lots of different soaps, but none of them are as good as Moon Haven's. They smell amazing, they clean my skin without leaving it feeling dry or tight, and they're all natural.



There are so many different scents and types to choose from, there's something to suit everyone. They even have Freo Dockers and West Coast Eagles soaps.

Country Spice is an amazing exfoliating soap. Other exfoliating soaps I've tried have been too harsh and left my skin feeling scratched, but Country Spice isn't like that. It has really gentle but effective spices and white clay, that exfoliate without scratching. I highly recommend this soap for people looking for a gentle exfoliant.

Friday 9 January 2009

Moo Goo Tingling Honey Lip Balm

I'm quickly becoming a huge fan of Moo Good products. The products that I've tried so far have been very effective, and reasonably priced. I'll definitely be trying more products from Moo Goo in the future.

At the moment I'm loving their Tingling Honey Lip Balm. I like lip balms that have a bit of a tingle or cool feeling to them, so I really love this. It's more of a cool feeling than a tingling. It's that feeling you get when you apply peppermint to your lips, and they feel all cool? That's the feeling I get from this balm. It lasts for about five minutes then disappears.

This could well become one of my favorite lip balms. It's very hydrating and even works when my lips are cracked. The balm goes on smoothly and has a very soft shine. It has a lovely lemony scent that fades quickly after application, with no flavour.

Amazingly, I find that this balm lasts on me for at least two hours before I need to reapply. It also works well under lipstick and gloss as a primer.

If you haven't already, it's worth checking out their website, which is really cute.

Would I buy it again? Definitely, it's quickly becoming one of my favorite balms.

Ingredients: beeswax, cocoa butter, jojoba oil, coconut oil, soybean oil, castor oil, apricot kernel oil, sesame oil, vitamin E, allantoin, cold pressed lemon oil, menthol from mentha arvensis plant.

Wednesday 7 January 2009

Palmers Cocoa Butter Formula Soothing Oil

I know that this product is meant for pregnant women, but I really like it. It's made to be used on dry itchy belly skin. Obviously, that's not what I used it for. What I love it for is a moisturising shower oil.

I have tried using it as a moisturiser for dry skin, but it didn't do a very good job, however as a shower oil it's amazing. I use it two different ways. When my skin is in pretty good condition I use it as I would a normal shower gel. When my skin is really dry I'll put it all over myself after I've finished showering, and before I dry off, then I pat myself dry, and I'm left with super soft, moisturised skin. If I'm really, really dry I'll apply a moisturiser over the top of the oil.

As with most Palmer's products, Soothing Oil smells like chocolate, but the scent fades quickly after application.

Monday 5 January 2009

Elemis Gentle Rose Exfoliator

Elemis has only recently become available in Australia, at Myer stores. It's a luxury British spa and skincare brand. Thanks to all the raves from my friend Music I couldn't resist buying a few products.

I'm really loving this scrub. It smells like roses and is very gentle. I can use it every second day and it doesn't irritate my sensitive skin at all. I dampen my skin and gently massage in light circular motions then remove it with warm water. It leaves my skin feeling soft, smooth and moisturised. I don't get any tightness or irritation like I do with some other scrubs.

Also, in the box was a sample of Daily Redness Relief. I've never known a company to include samples with their products like this, and think it's a great idea.

This is what Elemis has to say about Gentle Rose Exfoliator: Contains hydrating absolute of rose and micro-spherical jojoba beads to gently exfoliate the surface of the skin, leaving it silky smooth and soft to the touch. Cucumber extract, rich in vitamin c, a natural anti-oxidant, moisturises as it soothes and refreshes. Can be used daily to slough away dirt and dead skin cells to achieve a glowing, youthful complexion.

Would I buy it again? Definitely it's a gorgeous product.

Ingredients:water (aqua), glycerin, propylene glycol, jojoba esters, PEG/PPG-144/4 dimethicone, polysorbate 20, rosa damascena flower absolute, cucumis sativus (cucumber) fruit extract, carbomer, PEG-120 methyl glucose dioleate, tromethamine, sodium PCA, disodium EDTA, phenoxyethannol, PEG-40 hydrogenated castor oil, methylparaben, butylparaben, ethylparaben, propylparaben, methylchloroisothiazolinone, red 4 (CI14700), methylisothiazolinone.