tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-66035642658826670912024-02-19T17:55:28.793+11:00The Science of BeautyThe science behind new break-throughs, theories and products in the beauty world.Sarah Kretchmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01904819632824704480noreply@blogger.comBlogger264125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6603564265882667091.post-34383344945971135262013-04-22T16:49:00.000+10:002013-04-22T19:59:08.644+10:00Priceline selling grey market fragrancesToday I was sent a press release from Priceline which included a gift guide for Mother's Day. Ordinarily, I quite like these press releases as it gives me some good ideas about what to write about. Amongst other beauty items, the press release contained four perfumes - from Lancome, Estee Lauder, Juicy Couture and Marc Jacobs. You might have seen my little rant yesterday about how I was pissed off that <a href="http://sarah-thescienceofbeauty.blogspot.com.au/2013/04/orly-purple-crush-be-braveim-very-much.html" target="_blank">Priceline sold grey market Orly polishes</a>. In light of this, I decided that I would contact the PR's from each of these brands to find out whether Priceline was an authorised stockist for the perfumes. This is what I found out from the PRs:<br />
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Priceline is <b>NOT </b>an authorised stockist of Lancome.<br />
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Priceline is <b>NOT </b>an authorised stockist of Estee Lauder.<br />
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Priceline is <b>NOT </b>an authorised stockist of Juicy Couture.<br />
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Priceline is <b>NOT </b>an authorised stockist of Marc Jacobs.<br />
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This means that Priceline are also selling fragrances sourced from the grey market.<br />
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<b>What is so bad about grey market fragrances?</b><br />
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I have gone into the whole issue of grey market cosmetics in much more detail <a href="http://sarah-thescienceofbeauty.blogspot.com.au/2012/07/risks-you-take-when-buying-grey-market.html" target="_blank">here</a>, but basically grey market fragrances are fragrances sourced from a non-authorised seller. This means that the authenticity of the fragrance cannot be guaranteed. So, you might be buying a cheaply made fake perfume or a genuine perfume that has been diluted to make it go further, or a genuine perfume that has been sitting in a warehouse for the last 10 years. This is bad, not only for the consumer who might end up purchasing a fake perfume made with dodgy ingredients that could cause a reaction, but also for the brands. If someone buys a perfume that they believe is genuine and it smells terrible, or has really poor staying power (due to being diluted), or worse case scenario they have a severe reaction to the dodgy ingredients, then they will never buy that perfume again. They will also most likely complain to their friends, or complain online.<br />
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StrawberryNet are probably the most well know seller of grey market cosmetics. I don't think that any brand would authorise them to resell their stock. However, when you purchase from them most people do so knowing that they are taking a risk that they may end up with a sub-par product. The problem with Priceline selling grey market cosmetics and fragrances is that the majority of people would believe that they are buying genuine products from an authorised reseller. Now, I am not saying that Priceline are selling fakes. I don't know know whether the fragrances they sell are fake or genuine - but that there is the problem - I don't know if they are fake but then I also don't know if they are genuine as they have not been sourced from an authorised distributor.<br />
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I am not trying to bad mouth Priceline here as I have happily shopped there for years. However, I do believe that we have the right to know whether we are buying genuine stock or not. As long as you are educated and are happy to take the risk of buying grey market cosmetics and fragrances, then go for it. But, I would hate for people to end up disappointed with their purchases and not know why it was not as good as they were expecting. Not all the fragrances in the press release I was sent were cheap. One was selling for $140, which is a lot of money to spend on something that cannot be guaranteed to be genuine. Up until yesterday I had no idea that Priceline sold grey market sourced goods, so I suspect that many other people would be similarly blinded to this fact.<br />
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Anyway, I am not saying don't shop at Priceline. Just trying to educate. If you are looking to purchase genuine fragrances, your best bet is Myer and David Jones. Or, if you are in doubt, go to the website for the brand of fragrance you are purchasing and it will either provide a list of authorised stockists or a customer service number that you can call.<br />
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Has this changed your opinion of Priceline at all? What are your thoughts on the grey market? Do you prefer to steer clear and spend your hard earned cash on genuine products or do you prefer to hunt down a bargain?<br />
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<br />Sarah Kretchmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01904819632824704480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6603564265882667091.post-50206117749013164452013-04-14T22:19:00.000+10:002013-04-15T08:05:56.677+10:00Why detoxes are a waste of your time and money<br />
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I repeatedly see people asking advice on forums as to which
is the best detox to do. Whenever I see this question I want to scream at the
person 'no, don't do it. It is a waste of your time and money'...but I don't. I
don't want to cause a scene, or start a barrage of backlash from people
claiming that it worked for them. Instead, I will present the facts and let you
decide for yourself if it is worth doing.</div>
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Before I start, I just want to clarify that when I am
referring to detox I mean the ones that you buy where you have to take a
million various tablets a day and stick to a very restricted diet. If you are
going to 'detox' by simply eating healthily then all power to you. That will
most definitely do wonders for your body. These detox kits won't. They will
produce results; however, the results will be temporary.</div>
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<b>Why detoxes don't
work<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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Firstly, the companies who are marketing the detoxes talk about removing toxins
that have built up in the body. So, what are these toxins? They don't say. They
remain vague and just leave you to let your imagination run wild. Do they mean
chemicals, waste products from digestion, bacteria? I guess I imagined it as
the waste products from digestion but it would be interesting to hear what
other people perceive as the 'toxins' in their bodies.<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
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I read an interesting article on British Beauty Blogger
about how <a href="http://www.britishbeautyblogger.com/2013/04/how-veet-gave-chinese-women-a-problem-they-never-had.html" target="_blank">Veet gave Chinese women a problem they never had</a>. Chinese
women naturally have very little body hair so hair removal products have always
been poor sellers. Therefore, Reckitt Benckiser (who own Veet) devised a
marketing campaign to convince Chinese that any body hair is unsightly and
released ads equating hair free skin with health, confidence and "shining
glory" (the full marketing concept can be read <a href="http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2012-10-18/convincing-women-in-china-theyre-too-hairy" target="_blank">here</a>). I feel that this is the same as what is
happening in regards to detoxes. The marketers of the products have convinced
us that our bodies are full of these so called 'toxins', from our unhealthy
lifestyles, that need to be removed with a detox.</div>
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Toxins don't build up in your body. We have a liver and
kidneys to filter out waste products. That is their job. If toxins were to
build up in your system you would be incredibly sick, and most likely on
dialysis. It would be a sign that you are in end stage kidney failure. You
would not simply feel sluggish or have dull skin.<br />
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<b>EDIT: </b>one of my readers has correctly pointed out that there are certain cases where toxic chemicals can build up in your system. She gave the example she gave is a condition called MTHFR where the body lacks an enzyme making it unable to break down B vitamins. Another example is that some people are unable to break down iron and so it builds up in their livers. Also, exposure to heavy metals can lead to heavy metal poisoning. These are all very serious cases with serious implications (my reader had 5 miscarriages before her toxic condition was discovered), but are easily diagnosed with a simple blood test. If you suspect that toxic chemicals are building up in your body, don't go on a detox. Seek medical advice as you will most likely medical intervention to treat your problem.<br />
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<b>Claims<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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The marketers will claim that you will lose weight after
doing a detox. That is true. In fact, I guarantee that you will lose
weight. I also guarantee that you will put the weight straight back on.</div>
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Why do you lose weight? Two reasons: firstly, the the detox
will likely have a laxative as one of the tablets that you have to take. Our
intestines contain a few kilos of fecal matter, water and food in various
stages of digestion. A laxative speeds that out of your system so, essentially,
your intestine are empty. In addition, the detox will often be liquid based so
you are not refilling the intestines with food to digest. This will also give
you a nice flat stomach. However, the second you resume eating solids and quit
taking laxatives your intestines will refill (as they are meant to) and hence,
your weight will go up. Late last year, thanks to The Crazy Kid, I got a nasty
case of gastro. I spent 12 hours being violently ill from both ends followed by
another two days of being very fragile and unable to eat much at all. After
three days of this I had the flattest stomach and looked like I had lost a
tonne of weight (we don't have scales that work). I have to admit that I was a
bit excited that I had finally shifted the last of the baby weight who was
carrying. Well, my new post detox gastro body lasted all of a week. Thanks to
the gastro, my intestines had been totally emptied of all of their contents
giving me a flat stomach. As soon as I resumed normal eating, out popped the
tummy and I realised that I hadn't actually lost any weight - well not any fat,
anyway.</div>
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The second reason you lose weight is that the detoxes often
put you on a low carb diet. When carbs are stored in you body to be used as
energy at a later time, they are also store water with them. Therefore, when
you go on the low carb diet, you will use up your stored carbs and release the
water that is stored with them and, voila, more weight loss. You will probably
notice that you need to urinate often whilst on the detox. This is partly due
to the stored water being released. But, again, once you resume eating carbs
your body will exactly what it is programmed to do and will store them to use
as an energy source and when it does it will also store water with them; hence,
the weight will come straight back. </div>
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Another claim you will hear associated with detoxes is that
it will make your skin glow. Again, I can pretty much guarantee this will
happen but it isn't really due to the detox but more to the amount of fluid you
consume. You will often have to drink litres of fluids whilst on a detox and
that is always going to do wonders for your skin. The best my skin has ever
looked was just after having The Crazy Kid. In hospital, the nurses were
forcing me to drink a 500ml bottle every hour or so and when I got home I just
continued doing this. My skin looked amazing. It glowed like it never had
before and was so plumped out and fresh looking. When I had Kiki I wasn't as
diligent at drinking so much water and I never ended up having the same amazing
glowing skin. </div>
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Another claim marketing angle often used with detoxes is to
give your liver/kidneys a break from processing toxins. This is ridiculous. You
would never say to yourself, I must lie in bed for 3 days and avoid exercising
to give my heart a break from pumping; or, go on oxygen to give your lungs a
break. Obviously, if you are abusing your body by consuming excess alcohol or
other poisons then yes you should cut back but the detox kits are unnecessary.</div>
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You won't do yourself any harm being on a detox (as long as
you are not on it long term), and I guess if you want a flat stomach quickly
for a special event it is a way to do it; however, you have to be aware that
you will be cranky as all hell as you would not have been consuming enough
kilojules; you will most likely be headachy and you probably won't be feeling
great at all. Plus, in a few days time you will go straight back to how you
were before the detox. I guess you have to weight up whether it is worth it (if
you are planning on doing this before your wedding then I would STRONGLY advise
against it - your wedding will be the happiest day of your life but also one of
the most full on days and you need to have a good energy reserve to get through
it. The last thing that you want on your wedding day is to have a rip roaring
head ache or be woozy due to lack of energy). </div>
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If you feel you need to ‘detox’ then, rather than spend your
money on one of these kits, you are better off eating as clean as possible. Eat
foods as close to their natural state as possible and rather than do this for a
couple of days make it part of your life style (easy for me to say whilst I
munch on an Easter Egg as I type this!). </div>
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The majority of the info in this article I learnt at uni. I
did try searching the internet for facts to back up what I was saying and was
bombarded with website after website offering dodgy detox ‘facts’. A few sites
claim that there is such thing as ‘mucoid plaques’ which are faecal deposits on
the linings of the intestines that could be from food you ate years and years
ago. They claim that if you do their detox you will release these plaques into
the toilet (they provide pictures that are quite disgusting – long snakes of
poo). There is no such thing as a mucoid plaque. The long poo snakes come from
the bulking agents, such as psyllium husks, in the detox. It is very tough
navigating the internet to find trust worthy information that.</div>
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What are your thoughts on detoxes? Worth the pain and
discomfort or a load of crap?</div>
Sarah Kretchmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01904819632824704480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6603564265882667091.post-21891066145896019582013-04-09T21:24:00.000+10:002013-04-09T21:24:11.827+10:00Need some pampering? Win a 60 minute facial of your choice at SpaQ QT HotelThe other day, I experienced what was perhaps the most amazing facial that I have ever had, at SpaQ QT Sydney. I am pretty sure that I floated out of the spa! If you missed my review then you can check it out <a href="http://sarah-thescienceofbeauty.blogspot.com.au/2013/04/spaq-qt-sydney-advanced-repair.html" target="_blank">here</a>.<br />
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I have some great news! Thanks to SpaQ QT one lucky reader will win a 60 minute facial of their choice at the SpaQ at either the Sydney, Gold Coast or Port Douglas QT Hotels. You can check out the various facials they offer <a href="https://www.spa-q.com.au/" target="_blank">here</a> and start day dreaming about which one you would choose. Will you keep the facial for yourself or give it to Mum for Mothers Day? (Sorry Mum, but I would keep it for myself!).</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwiOeAFrOsUwnLhQIaal9bZjLkQLb62fM6L2U2NfRRzu2CaI-Z6_94rm9uKkLd_UESOgjmoC7mEKgzwwienl5RfPDnMFu8WKM1kMBR5ZZrEgCOk0XFbRrr9tJCY2NYA3b1FzdKVlk9GegF/s1600/spaq+treatment+room.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwiOeAFrOsUwnLhQIaal9bZjLkQLb62fM6L2U2NfRRzu2CaI-Z6_94rm9uKkLd_UESOgjmoC7mEKgzwwienl5RfPDnMFu8WKM1kMBR5ZZrEgCOk0XFbRrr9tJCY2NYA3b1FzdKVlk9GegF/s400/spaq+treatment+room.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div>
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For this giveaway I have decided to use Rafflecopter to make it a bit easier ( I hope). There are six different ways in which you can enter (and you can enter as many or a few ways as you like), plus you can tweet about the giveaway each day to gain bonus entries.<br />
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The giveaway will run until midnight AEST on 21/4/13. The giveaway is open to anyone but you have to be able to make it to the SpaQ in either Sydney, Gold Coast or Port Douglas. The winner will be randomly drawn.<br />
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Good luck!<br />
<br /></div>
<a class="rafl" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/894f740/" id="rc-894f740" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a>
<script src="//d12vno17mo87cx.cloudfront.net/embed/rafl/cptr.js"></script>Sarah Kretchmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01904819632824704480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6603564265882667091.post-88388804767462485252013-04-08T07:00:00.000+10:002013-04-08T07:00:00.896+10:00Jen D'Arcy's Archibald Prize portrait of Julia Morris painted using only OPI lacquers<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
As a brand, OPI seems to me like it has a good sense of humour: the colour names are usually amusing, the colour range is extensive and pushes the limit and stars are lining up to collaborate and create their own lines. It is a fun brand. So, it was perfectly fitting that artist Jen D'Arcy would choose OPI as her paint medium to do a portrait of comedian Julia Morris. Jen D'Arcy consumed over 1071 bottles of OPI (16 litres of
nail lacquer), painting directly from individual OPI bottles, to complete the
portrait. OPI offers over 300 different shades, so there was never a concern in
terms of providing the right colour palettes.</div>
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Commenting on behalf of OPI, Bill McKendrick Managing
Director of OPI Australia said “We were thrilled to be part of such as quirky,
creative and innovative project. OPI is all about colour, being creative and
innovative, so this project spoke volumes in terms of what OPI offers as a
brand.”</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNTIQA8Cg3hZV3QhNzuKpRm7FMyz3TP1SKnmcrnCDvQrda4ZmID9CIZGJmQNh2JPzrRjvSB2o4sW3EN4J53WN38iGgWJpNU9bC6DonB_to_a1D9kfQ006zc1cZokWxLfHklk-B_dg1SiHL/s1600/opi+archibald+prize+julia+morris.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNTIQA8Cg3hZV3QhNzuKpRm7FMyz3TP1SKnmcrnCDvQrda4ZmID9CIZGJmQNh2JPzrRjvSB2o4sW3EN4J53WN38iGgWJpNU9bC6DonB_to_a1D9kfQ006zc1cZokWxLfHklk-B_dg1SiHL/s400/opi+archibald+prize+julia+morris.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Obviously, as a comedian, Julia Morris has a wonderful sense of humour. “I am a massive fan of Jen D’Arcy's. work, so when she approached me
with her genius idea of using nail lacquer to paint my portrait, it really
appealed to my sense of humour. In fact, as young people would say; it made me
LOL!"</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgga8BmWt06UtQu5Jw_4V3XqqReGfyainsKO1Ot8lzoUPzMxOydhdWgd22spuvEKF-ZzwcHJQU84qQkraqBK58nu4wTTHNaTg1nsLqVv-0xfqsIOmduNFP4InUbg7Cqh2ft72gPBtlP-Wfl/s1600/opi+archibald+prize+julia+morris2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgga8BmWt06UtQu5Jw_4V3XqqReGfyainsKO1Ot8lzoUPzMxOydhdWgd22spuvEKF-ZzwcHJQU84qQkraqBK58nu4wTTHNaTg1nsLqVv-0xfqsIOmduNFP4InUbg7Cqh2ft72gPBtlP-Wfl/s400/opi+archibald+prize+julia+morris2.jpg" width="266" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd4hyphenhyphenHFuWgTHtemHpDbrIvLu5kIulkONcY5As8lZT6wM87o-LbfBPUyV5jWduj0emNz4ksUI0fByupyxj__Lxxan6z1jflVq22hgwmJonKga9ZIp5e7ROtGVci1ystSNgPGwcB4KfL2Mpp/s1600/opi+archibald+prize+julia+morris3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd4hyphenhyphenHFuWgTHtemHpDbrIvLu5kIulkONcY5As8lZT6wM87o-LbfBPUyV5jWduj0emNz4ksUI0fByupyxj__Lxxan6z1jflVq22hgwmJonKga9ZIp5e7ROtGVci1ystSNgPGwcB4KfL2Mpp/s400/opi+archibald+prize+julia+morris3.jpg" width="266" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje5a8EnXkqPwbQ97BJ4ZdF085KxFBys3Cp-81dEFaR5BrUHT5xEQ4yCSudS4LudKZDLhYSGFK41NQytzT_4-0yXstbCmrVFH_ubV5e-f-rwCN6iM-GHhygHBfVFvY5lbwJGbc7wxV4N3DD/s1600/opi+archibald+prize+julia+morris6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje5a8EnXkqPwbQ97BJ4ZdF085KxFBys3Cp-81dEFaR5BrUHT5xEQ4yCSudS4LudKZDLhYSGFK41NQytzT_4-0yXstbCmrVFH_ubV5e-f-rwCN6iM-GHhygHBfVFvY5lbwJGbc7wxV4N3DD/s400/opi+archibald+prize+julia+morris6.jpg" width="266" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">When I head about the idea of this portrait I imagined it to be quite small, but it is massive - larger than life size. No wonder it took <span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">over
1071 bottles of OPI (16 litres of nail lacquer) to complete.</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwngI6g7LCZn45FY6ykyX202yABGar0AUQ42uhdH0gU-ygy76giWDetu7-TUyk4Gy5L7Zn14UL86cShFNELYV2IidhrhSAiwPjCYMMGnT4mjfUPqSNY4i6BIjIvxAEXZ4irvRIVdw72b7C/s1600/opi+archibald+prize+julia+morris9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwngI6g7LCZn45FY6ykyX202yABGar0AUQ42uhdH0gU-ygy76giWDetu7-TUyk4Gy5L7Zn14UL86cShFNELYV2IidhrhSAiwPjCYMMGnT4mjfUPqSNY4i6BIjIvxAEXZ4irvRIVdw72b7C/s400/opi+archibald+prize+julia+morris9.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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If you have ever wondered why OPI needed so many different shades of red, you now have your answer!</div>
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It is phenomenal to think that Jen D'Arcy painted the entire artwork directly from the bottle using the OPI brushes. I guess, if she made a mistake then a dab of nail polish remover would fix it right up! </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdit7EPDzM5FzxcVSIriEjunJEfvLKn0iEhe7FDHDvm-pbfD0SCE78yVgaPfOYruvMJzDHDVe4kETo5vFPelQG4HX4px_mg2sUGNy60Zr2woRPjsO6tc6k4cUY8eFOJScQXnSmpYUm5Hyt/s1600/opi+archibald+prize+julia+morris4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdit7EPDzM5FzxcVSIriEjunJEfvLKn0iEhe7FDHDvm-pbfD0SCE78yVgaPfOYruvMJzDHDVe4kETo5vFPelQG4HX4px_mg2sUGNy60Zr2woRPjsO6tc6k4cUY8eFOJScQXnSmpYUm5Hyt/s400/opi+archibald+prize+julia+morris4.jpg" width="266" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSdjbecPbVOJ0PQkSB5mlOu6arF8SGEcMY_urzp2P5TcLZzp_ycW4-VJvQNlzwTCfcMSKODaZdJdX0nXtdkrAbOKKYgY25u1HUBb5IQRq3OUPFtzP8tTZGUQvA_APwFSEicqJpIh7jla9x/s1600/opi+archibald+prize+julia+morris8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSdjbecPbVOJ0PQkSB5mlOu6arF8SGEcMY_urzp2P5TcLZzp_ycW4-VJvQNlzwTCfcMSKODaZdJdX0nXtdkrAbOKKYgY25u1HUBb5IQRq3OUPFtzP8tTZGUQvA_APwFSEicqJpIh7jla9x/s400/opi+archibald+prize+julia+morris8.jpg" width="266" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM1nisaSsP_83N6zVdHVFIr0i3AS_UQ1X58Qwy2Gu6DzNOvh9adMZ82mcQj0eMfwmZH440Iv71BMCHJ3ixCugRmVUj8IRSAegZXGjIQ8FYkYHQD2Dtx04cwyxNu_z3JBuxJ0zeT-jdpb_4/s1600/opi+archibald+prize+julia+morris10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM1nisaSsP_83N6zVdHVFIr0i3AS_UQ1X58Qwy2Gu6DzNOvh9adMZ82mcQj0eMfwmZH440Iv71BMCHJ3ixCugRmVUj8IRSAegZXGjIQ8FYkYHQD2Dtx04cwyxNu_z3JBuxJ0zeT-jdpb_4/s400/opi+archibald+prize+julia+morris10.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh17F-ZdMmfm1yMdG4UJUgcm5Bz77an3CYqJRFDDqQd-VKs5tkzqHFuUEG7p2LM_fJ1XdKhot9fAJQm4ORh01A4TU231dQjk6kvvRKByITQpOFIyLO1WKW8ASqw67c_a8r92-Opd1ADapHr/s1600/opi+archibald+prize+julia+morris12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="321" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh17F-ZdMmfm1yMdG4UJUgcm5Bz77an3CYqJRFDDqQd-VKs5tkzqHFuUEG7p2LM_fJ1XdKhot9fAJQm4ORh01A4TU231dQjk6kvvRKByITQpOFIyLO1WKW8ASqw67c_a8r92-Opd1ADapHr/s400/opi+archibald+prize+julia+morris12.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The finished product</td></tr>
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FYI: The Archibald Prize is one of Australia’s oldest and most
prestigious art prizes. It’s awarded to the best portrait painting, preferentially
of some man or woman distinguished in art, letters, science or politics. The
Archibald Prize was first awarded in 1921. In establishing the prize, JF
Archibald’s aim was to foster portraiture as well as support artists and
perpetuate the memory of great Australians. Over the years some of Australia’s
most prominent artists have entered and the subjects have been equally
celebrated in their fields. The Archibald Prize winner will be announced: 22
March 2013, whilst the People’s Choice winner will be announced on 16th May
2013. The Archibald Prize 2013 exhibition will be shown from 23rd March until
2nd June 2013.Sarah Kretchmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01904819632824704480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6603564265882667091.post-55892691327194344422013-04-07T20:47:00.002+10:002013-04-07T20:47:14.476+10:00SpaQ QT Sydney ADVANCED REPAIR CORRECTING FACIAL<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I was invited to try a freshly picked treatment of my choice
at <a href="https://www.spa-q.com.au/" target="_blank">SpaQ</a> at the QT Hotel in Sydney. I'm a sucker for facials so thought that the
choice would be easy...until I studied their extensive <a href="https://www.spa-q.com.au/sydney/treatments/" target="_blank">treatment menu</a>. I was
tossing up between their <a href="https://www.spa-q.com.au/sydney/treatment-type/facial-therapy-by-kerstin-florian/" target="_blank">Signature Caviar Facial</a> (because it intrigued me); a <a href="https://www.spa-q.com.au/sydney/treatment-type/massage/" target="_blank">Mastery Massage</a> (as I have been having issues with my back thanks to lugging The Crazy Kid and Kiki around); or the<a href="https://www.spa-q.com.au/sydney/treatment-type/body-exfoliation-masks/" target="_blank"> Coffee and Sea Kelp Contour Wrap </a>(mostly because I have never had a wrap before and would love to try it but also because the skin on my stomach is still loose from pregnancy so I'd love to firm it up). I finally decided to go with their signature
caviar facial (told you I was a sucker for facials!). Now, the only reason I chose the caviar facial was because it
sounded so unique and I wanted to review an experience that you couldn't get at
another salon. I imagined them pouring a jar of caviar on my face and popping
the little pearls - I was partially intrigued and partially concerned that I
would walk out smelling all fishy. I needn't have worried, though, as I was
advised that the caviar facial is for mature skin types and that the <a href="https://www.spa-q.com.au/sydney/treatment-type/facial-therapy-by-kerstin-florian/" target="_blank">Advance Repair Correcting Facial</a> would be
more suitable for my skin concerns. I decided to heed the expert advice and went with this facial. Also, in case you are wondering whether you do have a jar of caviar poured
on your face during the caviar facial - it turns out you don't. The facial is
actually performed using Kerstin Florian products that are infused with caviar!</div>
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When you have a treatment at SpaQ you are entitled to use their Turkish Hammam
inspired steam room prior to your treatment. It is advised that you arrive 45
minutes before your scheduled treatment to take advantage of it. I highly
recommend that you do as I left the steam room feeling so deeply relaxed, it
felt as if my muscles had liquefied It is a unisex steam room so make sure
that you take your swimmers along. It gets very warm in there but it never got unbearably
hot (like it can in a sauna). The steam becomes so thick that can't see in front of you and I did find
it a little hard to breathe - the high humidity made me want to cough. However,
it was never bad enough that I wanted to get out. Within minutes, water was
dripping off me. I thought it might have been sweat dripping off so I licked my
arm to check (as you do!) and it wasn't salty, so water it was! Another lady
joined me in there after I had been in there for about 15 minutes and we then
spent the next 30 minutes nattering away and the time just flew.
You can see in the photo below what the steam room looks like. I would like to
pretend that this is me in the photo, but in reality my boobs now point south
and my tummy would need a lot of photoshopping (or sit ups, but that ain't
going to happen!) to look like that. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXqWZnivlAl4yG7D2E9SlUvaMjBrvARf_G76l69VpApTgDbXGcgBMtjT56nBeOyWfPMIHgbxmGU7A_M-j8AkW_xowLiz6SdAZ55RBU-WWJXfwC2yJE6WNT0XyBds6mMGH77ukDOweeD3Nr/s1600/spaq+hammam.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXqWZnivlAl4yG7D2E9SlUvaMjBrvARf_G76l69VpApTgDbXGcgBMtjT56nBeOyWfPMIHgbxmGU7A_M-j8AkW_xowLiz6SdAZ55RBU-WWJXfwC2yJE6WNT0XyBds6mMGH77ukDOweeD3Nr/s400/spaq+hammam.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I couldn't take photos due to the steam so got this image from their<br /> <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/SpaQ-QT-Sydney/239647696158317?fref=ts" target="_blank">Facebook Page</a></td></tr>
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When it was time for our treatments we were collected from the steam room and led to cosy waiting room where we were offered water or herbal tea. Minutes later my therapist arrived to take me up to my treatment room. You can see just how comfortable the treatment rooms are.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3_27WgZgk4AyGGsME5TaM3VyZ5jC1KELHLbpGPLR2ke8hK793q2Fdtn_ZmiB9z09dnlig8zfqvWWphVbjGIODxKn2K5JkWMzvQ7Us2ayUCyoBsuLjTOEaBqplV-TaNzTSUOGs9TwxcVIe/s1600/spaq+treatment+room.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3_27WgZgk4AyGGsME5TaM3VyZ5jC1KELHLbpGPLR2ke8hK793q2Fdtn_ZmiB9z09dnlig8zfqvWWphVbjGIODxKn2K5JkWMzvQ7Us2ayUCyoBsuLjTOEaBqplV-TaNzTSUOGs9TwxcVIe/s400/spaq+treatment+room.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Another photo from their <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/SpaQ-QT-Sydney/239647696158317?fref=ts" target="_blank">Facebook Page</a></td></tr>
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Now, I am going to try and describe the facial as best as I can but I have a
feeling that I lost consciousness during the procedure. I could feel myself
drifting away but was sure that I stayed awake the whole time. That was until I
tried to go through in my head everything that occurred in preparation for
writing this review. There are a few black spots in my memory so I must have
drifted off. Whilst the mask was on I was told there would be an intensive
scalp massage but I just can't recollect it at all. Yet, my hair was a mess and
there was product all through my hair, so clearly it did happen I just bloody
well slept through it. I hope I didn't talk in my sleep, or snore, or fart....!
I think I was just already so damn relaxed from the steam room that it wasn't
going to take much at all to send me to the land of the nods!</div>
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I originally requested the caviar facial as I wanted a unique experience. Then,
when I found out that I wasn't going to be having the caviar facial, I expected
that it would be your stock standard facial. I can't tell you how wrong I was.
Although this facial followed the usual steps of cleanse, exfoliate, mask then
moisturise, massage and acupressure played a major part of the process. This
took the facial to a whole other level. Not only was my skin being treated, I
was being pampered and nurtured. Once it was over, I honestly don't think that
I have ever felt so relaxed in my whole life. It felt like I floated out of the
salon! This is how SpaQ describe the <a href="https://www.spa-q.com.au/sydney/treatment-type/facial-therapy-by-kerstin-florian/" target="_blank">Advance Repair Correcting Facial</a>. </div>
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<i>Age really is just a number. This 21st century treatment leaves you looking eternally fresh faced whatever your age. It is customised to your skin, whether your focus is hyperpigmentation, congestion, fine lines or premature ageing. Intense multi acid or enzymatic peeling renews the skin on the face, neck, décolleté and hands, while hyaluronic acid, vitamins, and glycolic acid, brightens the skin’s surface. Relaxation comes in the form of a circulation boosting massage and a balancing nourishing mask, which delivers skin back to its former glory.</i></div>
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The therapist put some lavender oil on her hands and held them over my face and
asked me to inhale deeply three times. Once I had done that she ran her hands
over my chest, up my neck and cheeks before massaging my temples then she ran
her hands through my hair. The facial then started, as all facials do, with a
cleanse. I think I might have had two cleanses, a cream cleanse followed by a
foam cleanse. As mentioned above, the products weren't simply applied to the
face but they were massaged in and the massage was quite firm, but heavenly.
The facial covered my chest and face (of course!) and after each step a hot
towel was placed on my chest then it was wrapped around my face and the product
was wiped off. The therapist then rolled up the towel and pulled it across my
neck in a kind of sawing motion. This is a terrible description but I can think
how else to describe it but damn it felt good. I have just gotten all tingly
thinking about it!</div>
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Next I had an enzyme peel. I was warned that this step does tingle and
was told that if it becomes unbearable to let her know and she would remove it
for me. It did seriously tingle/sting but was never unbearable. Once the enzyme
was on, my therapist asked where it was tingling most (interestingly, it was my
eyebrows) and brushed over that area with the brush she used to apply the
enzyme. The brushing action soothed the stinging sensation and was what stopped
it from becoming unbearable. She continued brushing all over my face until it
was time to remove the enzyme with the hot towel. </div>
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Here is where things start to get a little bit hazy in my memory and where I
suspect that I fell asleep. I remember having the most divine facial massage
but can't remember if this was done with the mask or with oils. What I think
happened was a clay mask was applied and this was allowed to dry on my face and
whilst it was drying I had the intense scalp massage. Whilst I can't remember
the scalp massage I do remember having my hands and arms massaged as well and
that was seriously relaxing. I think the clay mask was then removed with the
hot towel and then my face was massaged with oil. It was a very firm massage
and one that they a famous for. It is the massage that is key to the youthful
appearance you are left with afterwards. Every single drop of tension is firmly
massaged out of your face until you are left pretty much slack jawed you are in
such a relaxed state.</div>
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The final step of the facial was the application of moisturiser. Then an
eye-pack was placed across my eyes and slippers were put on my feet for me. I
can't tell you how nice it feels to have someone put slippers on your feet for
you! </div>
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The final result was that I was left in such an intense state of relaxation it felt like I was floating. I literally have never felt like that before. I kind of wished I was staying at the hotel (QT Sydney) so that I could have gone back to my room, sunggled under the doona and slept for a few hours. Actually, over the Easter long weekend, the spa was open for 24 hours each day so you could have had a late night treatment then gone straight to bed to have, what I would assume would be the greatest sleep of your life.<br />
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SpaQ can be found on level M of the QT Sydney hotel. The hotel is located at 49 Market St, Sydney. It can be a little tricky to spot as it is just a little entrance way right next to the State Theatre. I had a little panic when I was walking up Market street as I couldn't see the hotel anywhere and suddenly thought that maybe I was meant to be elsewhere in the city but then saw the funky QT logo hanging from the roof and new I was in the right place.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKC4sMpbqWCaPhL4H2aVJFfPfcwvHmwkCLsBbtT2H8j6Ip3i-EUAsKceH0j1DDnFZ1jlvTK__sU7wrt-GYZGHmZM4oTMwmIVYddCul_EeZnVIiKEEwcGfeXlOTi1BXqGPp9gEo93FwTHzs/s1600/008.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKC4sMpbqWCaPhL4H2aVJFfPfcwvHmwkCLsBbtT2H8j6Ip3i-EUAsKceH0j1DDnFZ1jlvTK__sU7wrt-GYZGHmZM4oTMwmIVYddCul_EeZnVIiKEEwcGfeXlOTi1BXqGPp9gEo93FwTHzs/s400/008.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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As soon as you enter the entrance way to the hotel the decor is pure class. I know a spa shouldn't be judged on the hallway you walk down, but that is exactly what I did and I knew that I was going to be in for a wonderful treat.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEvc0MMJ-avl1kfKdfzjNUOOeooZfVFUfehb5g364YbzqphNp8eT3-Jrs8Kcr-jFCAaZPOWvBS0JSSh8Ytom_eB9IgU_Tn9LsAVDh1iERot1BMxJPi5-b2e-H4ltDlRqWsDq6uNs49j-1o/s1600/009.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEvc0MMJ-avl1kfKdfzjNUOOeooZfVFUfehb5g364YbzqphNp8eT3-Jrs8Kcr-jFCAaZPOWvBS0JSSh8Ytom_eB9IgU_Tn9LsAVDh1iERot1BMxJPi5-b2e-H4ltDlRqWsDq6uNs49j-1o/s400/009.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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After my treatment, I was shown the Kerstin Florian products that were used on me and had the opportunity to buy them (though no pressure was placed on me to do so). The sell the enzyme peel on pre-soaked pads that can be used at home. I would have been quite tempted by those but unfortunately they were sold out.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-cOTTsMZToW8PoQlqAQgqwTxC8EDZ8z1jbiYfpMQWwrFcTnXxospqzmXTfebYS3ybSQW21R1l2_oLalcPqfIL910zjUcO2zio62iQ9I-vIr1v35VjSH34N6VaiK5ENUugMd2uCxrez8v9/s1600/014.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-cOTTsMZToW8PoQlqAQgqwTxC8EDZ8z1jbiYfpMQWwrFcTnXxospqzmXTfebYS3ybSQW21R1l2_oLalcPqfIL910zjUcO2zio62iQ9I-vIr1v35VjSH34N6VaiK5ENUugMd2uCxrez8v9/s400/014.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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I will definitely return to SpaQ for another treatment, I loved my facial so much. Next time I think that I will give the Coffee and Sea Kelp Contour Wrap a go. I would have put a request to get this for Mothers Day but will actually be in Thailand at that time so I guess I will just have to wait until my birthday. Hubby and I haven't had a weekend away from the kids so perhaps this will be the perfect opportunity - not only could we get a treatment but then follow it up with a glorious full nights sleep!<br />
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There are three QT Hotels, each with their own SpaQ - Sydney, Gold Coast and Port Douglas.<br />
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What has been your best facial experience and what made it so special?<br />
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<i>All opinions are my own and I received no remuneration for this post. This treatment was provided for consideration.</i>Sarah Kretchmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01904819632824704480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6603564265882667091.post-87039241257243679762013-04-07T07:20:00.000+10:002013-04-07T07:20:24.066+10:00How To Repair Sun Damaged Skin<br />
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I have another guest post for you today. This one comes from Selina from <a href="http://www.beautystorm.com.au/" target="_blank">Beautystorm</a>. <a href="http://www.beautystorm.com.au/" target="_blank">Beautystorm</a> are proudly the cheapest stockists of
Dermalogica products in Australia and provide online skin consultations with
their in house Skincare Therapists. Selina will be giving us advice on how to repair sun damaged skin. Whilst we are blessed to be living in such a sun drenched country, here in Australia, as a consequence the majority of us will have sun damaged skin. Here are Selina's tips to repair some of the damage:</div>
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The severe, Australian suncauses a multitude of cases of
serious skin damage every year. However, there are ways, to repair rough, dry,
wrinkled skin that may also suffer from redness and brown spots.</div>
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The very first step to reverse some of that skin damage is
some gentle cleansing. Never wash the face with an ordinary bar of soap. This
will make the situation worse and cause severe dry skin.</div>
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In order to wash the sun-damaged skin effectively without
causing further injury, use a gentle exfoliating facial cleanser. This will
remove, not only dirt and oil, but also the top layer of dead skin cells,
providing a nice glow. This will reveal fresh skin cells ready for treatment.</div>
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After cleansing the skin, follow with a mud mask or a facial
mask made specifically for skin that’s been damaged by the sun. The purpose of
a mask is to draw out impurities in the skin while adding key ingredients like
moisturisers and minerals back into the skin.</div>
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After gently rinsing the purifying mask, a lotion, cream or
serum containing key ingredients should be applied to the skin. The difference
between the three is that a lotion is best for daytime use, worn under makeup
or for those prone to breakouts. Creams are considered heavier and best used at
night or for those with dry skin. Serums are usually highly concentrated
formulas that can be used day or night, but a little goes a long way. Those
with the most severe sun damaged skin should use them.</div>
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Any formulation, whether it is a lotion, cream or serum will
work best if it contains a retinoid, CoQ10, vitamin C or collagen. Those with
sensitive skin should stay away from high concentrations of both vitamin C or a retinoid. They may see better results with a collagen-based cream, serum or
lotion.</div>
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What are all these formulations? A retinoid is actually a
form of vitamin A. It prompts the skin cells to turn over rapidly, revealing
fresh new cells. Vitamin C helps boost the production of something already in
the body: collagen. Using synthetic collagen helps the body use more of what it
needs for nice, firm, elastic skin. CoQ10 prevents oxidation of the cells,
which leads to free radicals, which is toxic to our skin.</div>
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To supplement these steps to repair sun-damaged skin from
the inside out should be a diet loaded with antioxidants from fruits and vegetables
and full hydration with water to also help reverse the sun damage.</div>
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For more information on how to repair sun damaged skin and
beauty products online, visit <a href="http://www.beautystorm.com.au/">www.beautystorm.com.au</a>.</div>
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Thanks Selina, the only thing that I would add to this article is to get your hands on either a serum or mask that contains hyaluronic acid. Hyaluronic acid can attract 100 times it weight in water. It is a humectant - this means it draws and retains moisture. So, when it used in a mask or serum it draws moisture to your skin. Dermalogica actually have one of the best hyaluronic serums on the market in their <a href="http://www.beautystorm.com.au/products/Dermalogica-Skin-Hydrating-Booster.html" target="_blank">Skin Hydration Booster</a>. A product like this will produce instant hydration but needs to be used regularly to maintain this hydration.</div>
Sarah Kretchmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01904819632824704480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6603564265882667091.post-50392875086811373442013-04-01T08:38:00.001+11:002013-04-01T08:38:26.942+11:00WIN: Aphelia Cosmetology Skincare PackI have now brought you three reviews of the Aphelia Cosmetology acne products from three different guest reviewers. Here is: <a href="http://sarah-thescienceofbeauty.blogspot.com.au/2013/02/the-acne-series-guest-review-of-aphelia.html" style="text-align: center;" target="_blank">Andrea's review (age 33)</a>; <a href="http://sarah-thescienceofbeauty.blogspot.com.au/2013/02/the-acne-series-guest-review-2-of.html" style="text-align: center;" target="_blank">Jenny's review (age 20)</a> and <a href="http://sarah-thescienceofbeauty.blogspot.com.au/2013/03/the-acne-series-guest-review-3-of.html" style="text-align: center;" target="_blank">Nalini's review (age 30)</a>.<br />
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The Aphelia Cosmetology herbal skincare range is based on
Traditional Chinese Medicine. Rather than rely on one 'hero herb' in an
otherwise basic formulation, Aphelia Cosmetology uses a precise prescription of
herbs to create a formulation that heals and nurtures your skin.<br />
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The acne range from Aphelia Cosmetology is truly unique - it is the world’s
only acne solution with no Benzoyl Peroxide & Salicylic Acid that has been
proven with independent <i>in vitro</i> (this means in a petri dish or in a
test tube) tests to inhibit acne bacterium for 6 hours at 99.96% (I have a copy
of these studies which I will go through in more detail in another post). This
means that the acne range from Aphelia Cosmetology won't produce the side
effects that Benzoyl Peroxide & Salicylic Acid may cause such as drying and
irritating you skin.<br />
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<span style="text-align: center;">If you think that this might be something that you would like to try then you are in luck - I have a pack of the Aphelia Cosmetology skincare to give away.</span><br />
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<span style="text-align: center;">What your pack will include: Oasis
Acne Solution, Classic Skin Purifier Cleansing Beauty Oil and the Master Cleanse.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib2a_sc6Mpja_ZO7pjOcdS_QqQjIZuW7cmSjWPXeITSiT8VNjE6zt665k8aLMMZ9WsCgC436PB4ruzP83EyApm-HdYlS47FrG21NK3N7Ai-aUKxYorjSLgm0klqOpFe17fnHqH_nORhyphenhyphen3A/s1600/Premium+cleansing+beauty+oil+by+Aphelia+.+Clenases+gently+and+maitains+skins+moisture+and+removes+makeup.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="186" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib2a_sc6Mpja_ZO7pjOcdS_QqQjIZuW7cmSjWPXeITSiT8VNjE6zt665k8aLMMZ9WsCgC436PB4ruzP83EyApm-HdYlS47FrG21NK3N7Ai-aUKxYorjSLgm0klqOpFe17fnHqH_nORhyphenhyphen3A/s400/Premium+cleansing+beauty+oil+by+Aphelia+.+Clenases+gently+and+maitains+skins+moisture+and+removes+makeup.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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To win, all you have to do is follow me by either GFC, Facebook or email and then comment with the answer the following question:</div>
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What is your worst pimple/acne experience?</div>
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The winner will be drawn randomly (so don't worry if your story isn't too horrific!).</div>
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Want to hear mine? It happened when I was about 14 and is a classic why you should not squeeze pimples story. I woke up one Saturday with a smallish pimple right on the tip of my nose. I had a party to go to later that night so wanted it gone. It had a white head on it so I thought that I could squeeze it but when I did nothing came out. So, I tried again. Still nothing. So I popped it with a pin. A little bit of gunk came out but it still looked like more was there but it just wasn't coming so I gave up and put some toner on it (that seemed the right thing to do in my 14 year old wisdom). Clearly it wasn't. An hour later it had tripled in size and was now yellow, so clearly infected. So, of course I squeezed it again but only water pus came out. For the rest of the day, each time it was allowed it scab over, within minutes it would be full of yellow pus again. It was hideous and now the surrounding skin was also bright red and swollen. In fact, it was so swollen the tip of my nose was now in my line of vision which just further irritated me and reminded me it was there. I spent the entire day putting a dab of every product I own on it every 5 minutes. In hindsight, none of these products were antiseptics so were never going to clear the infection - I think they just further inflamed it. By the time time the party rocked around, I had managed to get rid of the yellow infection but now had a rather large scab on the end of my nose plus my entire nose was very much Rudolf like. To say that it was noticeable is an understatement. The redness was actually so bad that my nose looked sunburned; however, it was the middle of winter so that was not possible. I remember people asking what happened to my nose at the party. For some reason, I recall being really embarrassed to admit that I had a pimple so made some lie up about hurting my nose. I have no idea why I was so embarrassed to have a pimple since, as the party was full of 14 year olds, I would say that every single person there would have had one on their face at that time! As a 32 year old looking back at my 14 year old self, I no longer feel that situation was embarrassing and am surprised how strongly I felt shame about that pimple. Teenagers are a funny species - one that we will never fully understand, even having had once been one!</div>
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Anyway, this competition will run until 8.00pm (AEST)on Sunday April 14th and the winner will be contacted by email. I have two methods of commenting below - if you use Intense Debate (the bottom comment section) there is no need to provide an email address as it gets sent to me with your comment. However, if you comment with Nuffnang X Conversations can you please leave your email address so I can contact you. This competition is open Australia Wide. </div>
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Sarah Kretchmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01904819632824704480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6603564265882667091.post-79279434525968720922013-03-31T09:09:00.002+11:002013-03-31T09:09:12.481+11:00The Acne Series: Guest Review 3 of Aphelia Cosmetology<div class="MsoNormal">
I was lucky enough to get three acne skincare packs from Aphelia Cosmetology for guest reviewers with acne to trial for me. I think that this is important because the treatment of acne is such a personalised journey that it is good to hear about the results of the skincare from a variety of people.<br />
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In the third review of this series, Nalini from <a href="http://www.themadeupmaiden.com/" target="_blank">The Made Up Maiden </a>has reviewed this acne set for me. Nalini is 30 and has troublesome skin. She has tried many products to fix it without a lot of luck.<br />
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Here is Nalini's review:</div>
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I've always thought the journey to clear skin can be quite a
complicated one. There are just so many things that affect the condition of
your skin; genetics, skincare, diet, hormones, weather, stress...the list is
endless.</div>
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In my case, both parents had acne when they were younger,
and I had hopes that my acne would fade once I left my teens. My skin isn't
completely horrendous, but I do have some minimal scarring on my cheeks (which
goes away after a little while), and the odd large pimple on my chin during
those hormonal times, which goes away after a while but is still really
frustrating when it happens! I'm 30 years old, so it looks like these problems
are here to stay. I have contemplated taking hormonal pills or medication aimed
at reducing acne, but decided that the possible side effects haven't really
been worth the benefit.</div>
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As a result, I was really keen to explore the Aphelia
Cosmetology range and see if it lives up to the promise of helping with acne
troubled skin. I would classify my skin as combination, the t-zone gets a
little oily towards midday, while the rest of my skin is pretty much classified
as 'normal'. I received the following items.</div>
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<b>Master Cleanse Deep Cleanse Fluid:</b></div>
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This was the foaming cleanser that I used morning and night.
It's packaged in a slimline silver tube that you pump to get the cleanser out.
Like all foaming cleansers, you only need a tiny amount for your entire face.
All you need to do is dispense into wet hands, rub together, and gently apply
in circular motions. I felt that it was quite good at cleaning my face and my
skin didn't feel dry or tight afterwards. It's also unscented, which is good
because certain scents can really put me off using a product.</div>
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<b>Classic Skin Purifier Cleansing Oil:</b></div>
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This is the cleansing oil that is packaged with the
treatment essence. I didn't mind this product too much, it's basically
unscented and you apply it by dispensing a couple of pumps into your hands,
apply all over your face, then damped your hands and massage to emulsify. I felt
that this did a fair job of cleansing my makeup off, but I did feel that it
didn't quite work as well as my much beloved Shu Uemura cleansing oil. I
ordinarily double cleanse at night, once using the cleansing oil, and then
follow up using the deep cleanse foaming fluid. Using this left my skin feeling
quite supple and clean. What I liked most about this is it's packaged in a
clear tube, which is very handy at estimating how much you have left before you
need to repurchase.</div>
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<b>Acne treatment 12+5 essence:</b></div>
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This is basically the star item in the range, as it's
supposed to target the blemishes. I was initially a little put off by this.
It's packaged in a pump-action, slimline tube, with the essence being a yellow,
clear liquid with a very strong scent. I'm hard pressed to define it but I
would say that it's quite herbal. It does fade a little while after application
but it did take me a while to get accustomed to the scent. You're supposed to
put this on after you've cleansed and dried your face, concentrating on
blemishes before spreading the remaining product over the rest of your face.</div>
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Overall, I must say that I did notice a change in my skin.
It's much clearer than it used to be and I don't get breakouts as often as I
did. However, as I mentioned in my introduction, there are many factors that
could have contributed to this, so I'm not really sure if it's because of
regular use of these products.</div>
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I do like the range though and I would probably repurchase
the deep cleanse fluid and the essence, the only downside is I find the essence
a little expensive at $49 a bottle. It does come packaged in a set with the
cleansing oil, which retails at $49.95 (making it much more affordable to get
the set), but I happen to like the foaming cleanser more than I like the oil.
This leads to me to believe that paying $49 for just the essence alone isn't
quite justified.</div>
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Thanks for your detailed review, Nalini.<br />
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If you missed the two other reviews in this series, you can find them <a href="http://sarah-thescienceofbeauty.blogspot.com.au/2013/02/the-acne-series-guest-review-of-aphelia.html" target="_blank">here</a> and <a href="http://sarah-thescienceofbeauty.blogspot.com.au/2013/02/the-acne-series-guest-review-2-of.html" target="_blank">here</a>.<br />
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If you would like to try Aphelia Cosmetology to see if it can fix your acne then you are in luck. I am giving away an entire set of the products that you have seen reviewed here. I will have the link to that giveaway up this afternoon.<br />
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What has been your acne Holy Grail products?<br />
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<i>All opinions are my own or Nalini's own and we received no remuneration for this post. The products were provided to Nalini for her consideration.</i>Sarah Kretchmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01904819632824704480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6603564265882667091.post-6005567813833036012013-03-27T21:24:00.002+11:002013-03-27T21:25:51.940+11:00Get Pampered at Gallo Hair<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3y7IlSmsrc15va9oErv3hl2V8JmHZKyxPbbv7HXi1cHUbCaodYANDF42hcBUNUkoye5TfbQUiudSYUo91M55nmkI_VorkgsCaf_AZ8XQ9j876UV2T1PkuJPTY1-puEipheB0QconOwOK0/s1600/gallo+hair.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="182" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3y7IlSmsrc15va9oErv3hl2V8JmHZKyxPbbv7HXi1cHUbCaodYANDF42hcBUNUkoye5TfbQUiudSYUo91M55nmkI_VorkgsCaf_AZ8XQ9j876UV2T1PkuJPTY1-puEipheB0QconOwOK0/s400/gallo+hair.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gallo Hair, East Sydney (<a href="http://gallohair.com/salon/" target="_blank">image source</a>)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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It has been about 18 months since I last had a haircut. Way. Too. Long. Though, it has been pretty cool having long hair, for once, as I usually keep it quite short. When I was a povo student I used to get my hair cut once or twice a year. I would grow it and grow it then one day snap and get it all chopped off. Once I started working full time, I decided it was time to get regular haircuts and actually maintain a hair style. The look that I was going for was the curly pob (below is my favourite photo of this haircut as well as a cute pic of The Crazy Kid at 3 weeks of age). For three years I got my hair cut every 8-10 weeks and it was in the best condition ever. And then I had kids...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEhPeXetGOSVsfyG1denoOrQwb0G9CHw0NaEMwOoPDyX6qoRNZZMr7SXj9LZgZaL1pX77TpmEDkYjG5469KPUIpcknTxOGWdYWeyDK7HLAM7eQC2OO4ihRDXt9kSU-02OimG9eQQhdDM5c/s1600/Issac+Scott+Kretchmer++009.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEhPeXetGOSVsfyG1denoOrQwb0G9CHw0NaEMwOoPDyX6qoRNZZMr7SXj9LZgZaL1pX77TpmEDkYjG5469KPUIpcknTxOGWdYWeyDK7HLAM7eQC2OO4ihRDXt9kSU-02OimG9eQQhdDM5c/s320/Issac+Scott+Kretchmer++009.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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`<br />
After The Crazy Kid came along I dropped back to twice yearly haircuts, then when Kiki joined our family I gave up getting my haircut.<br />
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Just before Christmas, I was invited to experience a treatment and blow dry and treatment at Gallo Hair in East Sydney and I snapped up the opportunity. Gallo Hair is situated in a renovated town house on the trendy Crown Street in East Sydney. I nearly missed it walking past. Once you are inside, it is such a stunning and classy looking salon. Unlike one that I have been in before. It is ultra modern with plenty of glass and mirrors and they had gorgeous touch of vases of fresh flowers everywhere. Unfortunately I was too shy to take any photos once I was inside. There were other clients there and I just felt weir taking happy snaps so I have lifted a couple from the internet so that you can see what I am talking about.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBwzq0CuIVmtOV4HSfWVLovCGycz9RfRn4Q09B725DI5CwfL-BFTin8kUnNiKMbJ7EGWbRM3qCX_myn3rW9oTt9JEvh5jY1GoFXrNYZ6cK3f8LPCsniP3EkJoWgJbXF4gvRdxXtQ6Xxxhm/s1600/105.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBwzq0CuIVmtOV4HSfWVLovCGycz9RfRn4Q09B725DI5CwfL-BFTin8kUnNiKMbJ7EGWbRM3qCX_myn3rW9oTt9JEvh5jY1GoFXrNYZ6cK3f8LPCsniP3EkJoWgJbXF4gvRdxXtQ6Xxxhm/s400/105.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gallo Hair from the outside. Apologies for the dodgy photo - it was bright and I <br />got some serious reflection.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2DFQJOQMvchqwcOQEwPh4B2G3XjB4OIR_GFFsCsuThTGFLIItI1V5rderEka10ec5I8Z-pbljuoIDf2_o21nfEV-8ivJp8zaKgJoj1ZJIHtErHtD5XU1ZWzVAOwkbKgQrnhrXeRFCaXRL/s1600/Gallo+hair+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="252" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2DFQJOQMvchqwcOQEwPh4B2G3XjB4OIR_GFFsCsuThTGFLIItI1V5rderEka10ec5I8Z-pbljuoIDf2_o21nfEV-8ivJp8zaKgJoj1ZJIHtErHtD5XU1ZWzVAOwkbKgQrnhrXeRFCaXRL/s400/Gallo+hair+2.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The ultra modern interior <a href="http://www.truelocal.com.au/business/gallo-hair/surry-hills" target="_blank">Image source</a></td></tr>
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Upon arrival, I was offered a glass of bubbly but Kiki was still on the boob so I declined and went with water instead.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Before my treatment and blow dry </td></tr>
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My hair was washed and then I discussed with my hair dresser which treatment would be best for my hair. I confessed that it had been well over a year since I last got my haircut so she suggested a protein treatment to repair damage. My hair was washed then the treatment applied and whilst it was on I had the most heavenly 10 minute head massage ever. I'm pretty sure that I lost consciousness there for a moment!<br />
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After the treatment it was time for the blow dry. I was dying to find out just how long my hair was. Having curly hair, you loose about 1/3 of the length to curl and bounce. Another thing I was looking forward to was having swishy hair. Curly hair doesn't swish so it is such a novelty having straight hair that you can swish!<br />
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I was stoked with the results. My hair looked fantastic. It looked so healthy, even though it hadn't been cut in so long. The effects of the treatment lasted for a good few weeks. I noticed my curls were neater and more well defined, and my hair felt soft and had lost the dryness it had prior to the treatment. I had a wedding later that day and the bride actually commented to me how good my hair looked (she had never seen me with straight hair so it was a big change!).<br />
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Gallo Hair has been around for 10 years and is highly respected both in Sydney and Australia wide. The salon has created looks for Channel 7 News and A Current Affairs shows for the likes of Samantha
Armytage, Chris Bath, Monique Wright & Talitha Cummins plus many more at 7. Other
celebrity clients include Jacki Weaver, Catherine Martin & Baz Lurhman.<br />
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Gallo Hair is located at 132 Crown St East Sydney.<br />
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Do you get regular haircuts or can years pass between snips? How good are head massages! Are they your favourite part of the hairdresser experience?<br />
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<i>All opinions are my own and I received no remuneration for this post. This service was provided for consideration.</i>Sarah Kretchmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01904819632824704480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6603564265882667091.post-12389300232287913262013-03-23T08:19:00.000+11:002013-03-23T08:19:23.710+11:00Urban Spa Urban IndulgenceI love going to the spa. Honestly, who doesn't. These days, unfortunately, my spa trips are few and far between. I blame the damn kids for that one! So, as you can imagine, I was pretty damn excited when the in-laws presented me with an Urban Spa voucher for the Urban Indulgence package: one hour hot stone Lomi Lomi massage followed by a Heavenly Spa Facial - two hours on indulgent bliss, for Christmas.<br />
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I had never had a hot stone massage before so was very much looking forward to this, if nothing else out of curiosity about what is involved. Whenever you see pictures advertising a hot stone massage, the beautiful model always has a bunch of largish stones on her back so I wasn't sure whether it was more an acupressure experience where they left the stones strategically placed on the back to work their magic or whether it was an actual massage. Turns out that it is an actual massage. I requested a firm massage as my back has really been giving me issues. Carrying 15kgs of Crazy Kid or 9kgs of Kiki (or 26kgs of double babies) really isn't too good for the back so it had been causing me problems for a couple of months. My therapist (the lovely Kristy) gave me an expertly firm massage and used a small, smooth hot stone, along with her hands, to perform the massage. It was quite a unique experience as one minute I could sense that she was using her hands to do the massage then then next I'd get a sweep of hotness as the stone was run over me. It really was a delightful sensory experience. As my back was a problem area, Kristy spent 30 minutes just on that then the other 30 minutes was spent on the rest of my body. I could feel myself drifting in and out of consciousness throughout the massage. One really special thing about this massage was that the massage table was heated. Such a small touch, but one that was greatly appreciated (although it was a great contributor to my lack of consciousness!).<br />
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All too soon, the massage was over and it was time for the facial. I actually requested to get my brows waxed whilst I was there as I take no care of them at all so it's nice to have them looking neat, for once!<br />
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Kristy asked what my skin concerns were. I usually have fairly decent skin but recently I have been super slack in taking care of it as I have just been too damn tired. I was expecting it to be a little congested (actually, I knew it was - I have a bountiful blackhead farm on my nose!) and possibly a little dehydrated. Kristy then looked at closely with a special light and came to the same conclusions as me. There was a lot of congestion on the nose, forehead and chin, with above average oil flow in these areas and the cheeks and eye areas were dehydrated. She then devised a personalised facial to tackle these issues. The facial consisted of a cleanse, exfoliation, deep cleanse/pore treatment, oxygen plumping and a personalised mask. For the exfoliation, a masked was applied then buffed off with a brush that felt absolutely amazing...like a hairy animal was gently crawling over my face. This brush didn't oscillate as fast as the <a href="http://sarah-thescienceofbeauty.blogspot.com.au/2013/02/the-clarisonic-mia-review.html" target="_blank">Clarisonic</a> does and I actually found myself preferring the slower speed. This brush was used after every step and it was such a delightful inclusion in facial.<br />
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Whilst the exfoliating mask was on, I was able to choose between having a 5 minute scalp, hand or foot massage - I went with scalp massage and it was divine...I could have laid there all day having my scalp massaged! For the personalised mask, I had a rose mask to rehydrate my skin. Again, while that was on I got another massage, this time of my neck and shoulders. Heaven!<br />
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The two hours of pampering left me feeling so blissed out, almost like I was walking on air. My skin was plump and clear, and a week on it is still looking hydrated. My mother-in-law looked after The Crazy Kid and Kiki whilst I was pampered and I have to confess that I didn't really want to go back to them once I was finished. I wanted to go home to sleep and embrace my blissed out state for a bit longer!<br />
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It was the little things that put this treatment above treatments that I have had in the past. I love that my therapist didn't leave the room whilst my masks were on but instead added some extra pampering with the massages. I hate it when the therapist walks outs and leaves me whilst a mask is on...makes me feel a little ripped off, so the massages were very much appreciated. I loved the heated massage table. It kept me nice and toasty during the treatments and added to my relaxation. And I loved the brush used after every step in the facial.<br />
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This was definitely one of the better spa experiences I have had and one that left me feeling so relaxed afterwards. A week on I still have no pain in my back and my skin still looks beautifully hydrated (although the blackhead farm is already producing another crop ready for harvest!). If you or anyone you know needs some serious pampering, I'd definitely recommend the Urban Indulgence package.<br />
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I went to the salon in Avalon; however, there are spas all over the place. Have a look <a href="http://www.urbanspa.com.au/" target="_blank">here</a> to find one near you.<br />
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What has been your best spa experience? Have you ever had a terrible experience at a spa?<br />
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<i>All opinions are my own and I received no remuneration for this post. This package was a Christmas gift from the in-laws.</i>Sarah Kretchmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01904819632824704480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6603564265882667091.post-4015688517520813562013-03-22T14:46:00.002+11:002013-03-22T14:46:39.583+11:00Winners of the Burt's Bees Giveaway<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Apologies that it has taken me so long to get around to drawing this comp. We have been having a really rough time getting The Crazy Kid to bed of an evening. It's taking me a minimum of 30 minutes, sometimes more than an hour to get him down. I am not allowed to the leave the room until he is asleep otherwise he screams the house. Hubby is not allowed to put him to bed otherwise he screams the house down. He will then wake up throughout the night and notice that I am not in his room any more and scream the house down so just about every night I end up sleeping in his bed with him. It is driving us crazy and we are at a loss what to do. He was always such an awesome sleeper, would pretty much put himself to bed then not make a sound all night. Now bedtimes are a total nightmare. As cool as his car bed is, I would still prefer to wake up beside my husband in my own bed and not next to my 3 year old in his car bed. He started preschool this year so we suspect that is behind his issues, we just don't know how to fix them. Any tips would be very much welcome.</div>
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Anyway, back to the real reason for this post - to draw the winners of my Burt's Bees comp. Thank you so much for your support in this giveaway. I got a massive 117 entries which I was stoked about. Lets start with the winner of the Sweet Kisses giftpack.</div>
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The winner is Alicia (aliciaraul)!</div>
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Now to the Treats for your Sweet gift pack:</div>
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And the winner is Kate (katwasmi)!</div>
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I will now contact the winners.</div>
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Just a heads up that I will be overseas for most of May and don't see me preparing any scheduled posts so I am going to put a massive giveaway instead. I hope you pop by regularly but if not, at least make sure that you stop by in May!</div>
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Sarah Kretchmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01904819632824704480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6603564265882667091.post-67426745285785377772013-03-12T17:14:00.000+11:002013-03-12T17:14:07.948+11:00Winner of the $50 Groupon gift voucherA huge thank you to everyone for entering my giveaway of a <a href="http://sarah-thescienceofbeauty.blogspot.com.au/2013/02/who-wants-50-groupon-voucher.html" target="_blank">$50 Groupon Voucher</a>. I ended up with a massive 86 entries.<br />
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The 31st entry was from Michelle Gray. Congrats!<br />
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Michelle, I will be contacting you via email and Twitter.<br />
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Don't worry if you didn't win this giveaway, I am just about to draw the Burt's Bees comp and then I will be hosting another giveaway tomorrow so please come back and check it out (hint...it is for a $100 voucher somewhere awesome!).Sarah Kretchmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01904819632824704480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6603564265882667091.post-13622632877113153112013-03-04T07:00:00.000+11:002013-03-04T07:00:01.420+11:00OPI Euro Centrale: You're Such a BudaPest swatch <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Another swatch - this one is from OPI's Euro Centrale range. This range is super varied and there is a colour in it to suit everyone. When I get my butt into gear I will do a post showcasing the whole range, but for now here is You're Such a BudaPest.</div>
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I would say this is a blue but The Crazy Kid insists that it is a purple. Either way, the formulation is beautiful. You can just about get away with one coat though there is the tiniest amount of streakiness. Two coats and it is perfection.</div>
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So, who is right - me or The Crazy Kid? Is this a blue or a purple?<br />
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<i>All opinions are my own and I received no remuneration for this post. This polish was provided for consideration.</i></div>
Sarah Kretchmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01904819632824704480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6603564265882667091.post-13028298325337181302013-03-02T11:37:00.002+11:002013-03-02T11:37:27.865+11:00OPI Modern Family She's Lily SomethingHere is the next swatch I have for you from the <a href="http://sarah-thescienceofbeauty.blogspot.com.au/2013/02/opi-modern-family-collection.html" target="_blank">Nicole by OPI Modern Family Collection</a> - She's Lily Something. This is described by OPI as a <i>fantasy land filled with glittery pick, confetti and stars.</i><br />
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Ordinarily, I would say that OPI are the glitter pro's. Their formulations are usually flawless. However, I had issues with this one. All of my stars sunk to the bottom of the bottle and it took ages to shake them back into the formulation and, even then, it was very difficult to pick them up with the brush. I initially did one thin top coat on each nail and half of my nails did not end up with even a single star on them. I then went back and did a second coat and this time made an effort to keep dipping the brush back in the bottle until it pick up a star. I then had to dab the polish on kind of thickly to get the stars to stay.<br />
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The final look is quite effective and funky but I am not sure if it is worth the effort. I love the random stars and the glitter is awesome. It is very fine and a mixture of pink and hologram. There is plenty of it and it gives the nail a reflective sheen.<br />
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I did have one other issue with the stars. The corners of the stars lifted up easily which made the nails kind of sharp and scratchy. Maybe I should have applied another top coat over them to really seal them in. As cool as the stars look once applied, I don't think that they were worth all the effort.<br />
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The below swatches of She's Lily Something have been applied over butter LONDON Molly-coddled (swatched<a href="http://sarah-thescienceofbeauty.blogspot.com.au/2013/03/butter-london-molly-coddled-swatch-cure.html" target="_blank"> here</a>).<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO6JJ32cpxiaeKBawBYo8AQRVVw37gKXSEdtVHK67dznm8I1TFMFGyrrI6m0n0X2qGaf20z6uWLKsVsddcA4nSW8T5yfxkRi4XgOQShYjIy38qKCfVz1Yb2sQwMOvZAAB6ATo0RdcJUQuh/s1600/opi+modern+family+shes+lily+something5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO6JJ32cpxiaeKBawBYo8AQRVVw37gKXSEdtVHK67dznm8I1TFMFGyrrI6m0n0X2qGaf20z6uWLKsVsddcA4nSW8T5yfxkRi4XgOQShYjIy38qKCfVz1Yb2sQwMOvZAAB6ATo0RdcJUQuh/s320/opi+modern+family+shes+lily+something5.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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If you missed my swatch of Luke of the Draw from the same collection <a href="http://sarah-thescienceofbeauty.blogspot.com.au/2013/02/nicole-by-opi-modern-family-luke-of-draw.html" target="_blank">here</a> it is.<br />
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What are your thoughts on the stars - worth the effort or give it a miss?<br />
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<i>All opinions are my own and I received no remuneration for this post. She's Lily Something was provided for consideration.</i>Sarah Kretchmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01904819632824704480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6603564265882667091.post-15676175692052785192013-03-01T22:55:00.000+11:002013-03-01T22:55:14.371+11:00Butter London Molly Coddled Swatch - a cure for my end of Summer bluesThe First of March is my most hated day of the year. Every year, without fail, I feel a little bit depressed on the First of March. I absolutely love summer. I love the hot weather, the skimpy clothes, the summer fruits and the party seasons. I only have good memories of summer - Christmas time, six weeks holidays when in school then three months off whilst at uni. In my eyes, there is not one bad thing about summer. That is why I hate the First of March. Yes, it is still hot. Yes, my summer fruits are still in season and I can still wear my skimpy clothes, but, in my mind, it means that winter is near. The weather is only going to get colder and my favourite time of the year is official over.<br />
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In an attempt to lift my end of Summer blues I decided to give myself a bright, cheerful manicure. The colour I choose was a luscious purple cream from butter LONDON called Molly-Coddled. It was just about opaque after one coat, just ever so slightly streaky. Two coats, completely opaque and streak free.<br />
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If you haven't previously heard of butter LONDON, it is a nail polish brand with a massive range of high fashion colours and it's products are formulated without the use of the
harmful ingredients like Formaldehyde, Toluene, DBP or Parabens. butter LONDON
was the first company to sell 3 Free nail lacquer in the United States. Formaldehyde is one of the biggest nasties that I make a real effort to avoid. I did my PhD in Forensics and spent a lot of time watching autopsies. Once the body parts have been harvested, they are stored in Formaldehyde to be preserved. The Formaldehyde alters the proteins in the tissue to stop them breaking down - fine for the dead, not something I want to use whilst I am alive. It is nasty, nasty stuff.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFg4o6_wX3G0yylqkal6nYBo_ssjYuP6HFbX2YFUr2NE7ugUJC-PsCYDh3iEw9om8o9is33Oxmti-sUwKlm2eKrW8U3-RPimXydVFaAxIrq3XUxXy9kvXGutLJafh_FIB09zN6CyCsNlNo/s1600/Butter+london+molly+coddled.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFg4o6_wX3G0yylqkal6nYBo_ssjYuP6HFbX2YFUr2NE7ugUJC-PsCYDh3iEw9om8o9is33Oxmti-sUwKlm2eKrW8U3-RPimXydVFaAxIrq3XUxXy9kvXGutLJafh_FIB09zN6CyCsNlNo/s320/Butter+london+molly+coddled.JPG" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">(apologies for this photo - it looked in focus<br />on my phone. I have put a glitter top coat on so<br />can't re-photograph)</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYWc_8fHRNfhFPA2yjl9yAB7rtjFkSdD4-zpdivK5xyxLiXLQ2ksHjS-weF8e9Itbtez1GBlJtThC14cd2bBN3ZgBLdZGPASv8YEneJjIfmIufUnKgslA_8ZJxT-ctI0N0AhJPLe0VrCTY/s1600/Butter+london+molly+coddled2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYWc_8fHRNfhFPA2yjl9yAB7rtjFkSdD4-zpdivK5xyxLiXLQ2ksHjS-weF8e9Itbtez1GBlJtThC14cd2bBN3ZgBLdZGPASv8YEneJjIfmIufUnKgslA_8ZJxT-ctI0N0AhJPLe0VrCTY/s320/Butter+london+molly+coddled2.JPG" width="239" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXomvcbySoN-8vmzXpZFF-1aRfiKbN9CvF_HhS_oM2RiUxhvy7jJX668hudcbNPcxbmmbCJaEdKszqSezdDot9AsHflT9UtYYXv2sorqYwUI_bGRTQxu-YIgsIoz06Jn_nppXXC9hsJ9Hu/s1600/Butter+london+molly+coddled3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXomvcbySoN-8vmzXpZFF-1aRfiKbN9CvF_HhS_oM2RiUxhvy7jJX668hudcbNPcxbmmbCJaEdKszqSezdDot9AsHflT9UtYYXv2sorqYwUI_bGRTQxu-YIgsIoz06Jn_nppXXC9hsJ9Hu/s320/Butter+london+molly+coddled3.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZyZuEovsUSpYF8uiQQr-GJAiZDXyoGpjEnqw3I_rZxoSY0x2uahZkpqfbyP6J1NGfy9rnH842V1Ni5whuW9oQDg8OZVQKnN0673fFPutVsSqmR4jr-XGMM6qt2fbmLMdNE6bqL2_2Kq9G/s1600/Butter+london+molly+coddled4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZyZuEovsUSpYF8uiQQr-GJAiZDXyoGpjEnqw3I_rZxoSY0x2uahZkpqfbyP6J1NGfy9rnH842V1Ni5whuW9oQDg8OZVQKnN0673fFPutVsSqmR4jr-XGMM6qt2fbmLMdNE6bqL2_2Kq9G/s320/Butter+london+molly+coddled4.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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butter LONDON polishes can be purchased from <a href="https://www.facebook.com/beautifullifeindustries?fref=ts" target="_blank">Beautiful Life Industries</a> for $20.00 with free delivery. Below is a sample of some of the other colours in their range.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzSJy8n8NP1KGYeoXdZ_FgddwHU1S5qSesgkmIqsGopQyQEAYqvQ8hKRl-a8QdhkMQXhbIoMQX5tVZ6djuJHGohDFCpZL9oA5qax6s3byGwyVa2WKmsSXeMcAdprdziC4dkufdyzBonF68/s1600/butter+london.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzSJy8n8NP1KGYeoXdZ_FgddwHU1S5qSesgkmIqsGopQyQEAYqvQ8hKRl-a8QdhkMQXhbIoMQX5tVZ6djuJHGohDFCpZL9oA5qax6s3byGwyVa2WKmsSXeMcAdprdziC4dkufdyzBonF68/s400/butter+london.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Have you tried butter LONDON before? Are you a summer lover or a winter fan?<br />
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<i>All opinions are my own and I received no remuneration for this post. Molly-coddled was provided for consideration.</i>Sarah Kretchmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01904819632824704480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6603564265882667091.post-24835096838529353312013-02-28T20:45:00.000+11:002013-02-28T20:45:21.809+11:00Do you know you're shit from your shit?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
I started reading beauty blogs rather than magazines because I loved their honesty. With magazines, I was always a little suspicious that the review wasn't true, that it was more an advertorial than an honest article. Blogs seemed more honest - I never distrusted the review. Plus they went into so much more depth than magazines ever did. I think that the day I discovered beauty blogs was probably also the day my magazine addiction came to an end.</div>
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BUT, there is one issue that I do have with blogs and that is editing, or grammar to be more precise. Now, don't get me wrong, it is not all blogs that I have this issue with. In fact, the majority of blogs I do read are very well written. But, I still come across a few that don't know the difference between <b style="font-style: italic;">your </b>&<b style="font-style: italic;"> you're</b>; <b><i>where, we're</i></b> & <b><i>were</i></b>; and<i> <b>their, there</b></i> & <i><b>they're</b></i> and this is a massive pet hate of mine. The odd typo doesn't bother me. We all make them. I know I do as I usually only proof read once but repeatedly writing there instead of their or where instead of were drives me mental. I just want to bust out a red pen and edit the post.</div>
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The carton below, which is floating around Facebook at the moment, was my inspiration for writing this post as it really highlights how, by making the slightest grammatical error, the entire meaning of the sentence changes.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZfCbtFyaYlH4sabTSHcGHYsZdjcdGjvHPGEOiStprlW21Z0KR4gqOuruysp_9F0knsbzdB0Fy0em27opslW6SjTa43iZwxFUhl_Et5a3OnsRLtiN13BiGT3W2P00oOKsG2R5B7L4WklvI/s1600/grammar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="277" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZfCbtFyaYlH4sabTSHcGHYsZdjcdGjvHPGEOiStprlW21Z0KR4gqOuruysp_9F0knsbzdB0Fy0em27opslW6SjTa43iZwxFUhl_Et5a3OnsRLtiN13BiGT3W2P00oOKsG2R5B7L4WklvI/s400/grammar.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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I suspect that, if you are a similar grammar fanatic, you are sitting here, nodding your head, thinking 'man, that drives me crazy, too!'. If you are not a grammar fanatic then you might be thinking 'hey, what are you whinging about - it is only a couple of letters out of order'. This is why it annoys me so much - I read a sentence but it doesn't quite make sense, so I have to go back and read it again to get an understanding. As soon as I start doing that, I am no longer reading the content of the post but am instead trying to decipher what is being written. As soon as I have stumbled over a few sentences I give up and stop reading.</div>
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Remember, when it comes to blogs, we are being immediately judged on what we have written (as well as the quality of images used). The judgement I make when reading an article with numerous grammatical errors is that if you haven't gone to the effort of proof reading your post then why should I go to the effort of reading it. If you want to come across as professional, make an effort to ensure that your grammar is correct.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8LVHEx5QAzPrzr5tY9fJvVsJtCeTQVamc_FYr373XbS7BfOmPvvoukEe1s9pOKw6TX8lM-g7XDDl-o3A1VMBkMIPRArzYG5Qn-TzJJYZTIiTeyQgJ6Yj_LhD7g_rmCeDGN3MAh247qKiy/s1600/grammar2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="280" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8LVHEx5QAzPrzr5tY9fJvVsJtCeTQVamc_FYr373XbS7BfOmPvvoukEe1s9pOKw6TX8lM-g7XDDl-o3A1VMBkMIPRArzYG5Qn-TzJJYZTIiTeyQgJ6Yj_LhD7g_rmCeDGN3MAh247qKiy/s400/grammar2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Here are some grammar tips:<br />
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<b>Your and you're</b><br />
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<ul>
<li><b>Your - </b>opposite of my: I really love <b><i>your</i></b> eye shadow</li>
<li><b>You're - </b>short for you are: <b><i>You're</i></b> going to love the new OPI range coming out.</li>
</ul>
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A really good tip to work out if you are using the correct your/you're is to replace it with 'my' in the sentence. If the sentence still makes sense with 'my' in it then you should be using 'your'. If it doesn't make sense then you should be using 'you're'.</div>
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<b>There, their and they're</b><br />
<ul>
<li><b>There - </b>refers to a location: the lipstick is on the table over <i><b>there</b></i></li>
<li><b>Their -</b><i style="font-weight: bold;"> </i>refers to possession: Estee Lauder is my favourite brand. I love <i><b>their</b> </i>lipsticks</li>
<li><b>They're - </b>is short for they are: Have you heard about the new lip butters? <b><i>They're</i></b> going to be the hottest beauty trend of the season.</li>
</ul>
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<b>Where, were, we're</b></div>
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<ul>
<li><b>Where - </b>means place: <i style="font-weight: bold;">Where </i>do you store your makeup?</li>
<li><b>Were - </b>past tense: I thought you <b><i>were</i></b> going to wear you new perfume. </li>
<li><b>We're - </b>short for we are: We're going to Myers this afternoon to check out the sales.</li>
</ul>
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<b>Know, no and now</b></div>
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This one gets abused a bit although I suspect that it is more out of laziness rather than not knowing the rule</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li><b>Know - </b>refers to thought: I <b><i>know</i></b> purple eye shadow makes my green eyes pop.</li>
<li><b>No - </b>opposite of yes: <b><i>No,</i></b> you cannot borrow my mascara.</li>
<li><b>Now - </b>present time: I stink. I need to put deodorant on<b><i> now</i></b>.</li>
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I hope that these tips have been useful and that I haven't come across as arrogant. </div>
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What are your thoughts on grammar? Do grammatical errors drive you crazy or are you oblivious to them?</div>
Sarah Kretchmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01904819632824704480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6603564265882667091.post-37756367802369212972013-02-28T18:39:00.000+11:002013-02-28T18:39:26.880+11:00Kérastase Paris and the new Cristalliste available online for the first time<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
In Australia, Kérastase Paris has previously been unavailable online - you have had to go into salons to stock up. For a limited time, that is about to change. <a href="http://www.adorebeauty.com.au/kerastase.html" target="_blank">Adore Beauty</a> is hosting a pop up online store stocking the Cristalliste range as it is launched in Australia. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhLMZ6cy7bWS5RlAwwLaz9HITyFXcyBAHn_4cwU87JbpDiKn2kiOAhnVXfdVs9LNKGucm8hP-ZtCu9RVplJdDZwl1LcfntB3gPDGE5Vq9Y_ueAHITgSjkx7tFj8SOb0Z3ay_0miOWeAXFY/s1600/CRISTALLISTE_RANGE_LD.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhLMZ6cy7bWS5RlAwwLaz9HITyFXcyBAHn_4cwU87JbpDiKn2kiOAhnVXfdVs9LNKGucm8hP-ZtCu9RVplJdDZwl1LcfntB3gPDGE5Vq9Y_ueAHITgSjkx7tFj8SOb0Z3ay_0miOWeAXFY/s320/CRISTALLISTE_RANGE_LD.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b>The Cristalliste Collection: </b></div>
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Cristalliste Bain Cristal Fins - Luminous Perfecting Shampoo
- Fine Hair - $38 </div>
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Cristalliste Bain Cristal Epais - Luminous Perfecting
Shampoo - Thick Hair - $38 </div>
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Cristalliste Lait Cristal - Luminous Perfecting Conditioner
- $44.50 </div>
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Cristalliste Lumiére Liquide - Luminous Perfecting Essence -
$44 </div>
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<br />From the 1st of March you will be able to buy the entire Cristalliste Collection online at <a href="http://www.adorebeauty.com.au/kerastase.html" target="_blank">Adore Beauty</a>. The Cristalliste Collection is perfect for long hair as it leaves it smooth and shiny without weighing it down. Have a look <a href="http://www.adorebeauty.com.au/kerastase.html" target="_blank">here</a> for more detailed information on the range<br />
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Do you use Kerastase products? Do you prefer to buy your hair products in a salon or online (or at the supermarket)?Sarah Kretchmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01904819632824704480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6603564265882667091.post-17293360879845868082013-02-24T15:24:00.001+11:002013-02-24T15:24:29.934+11:00Schwarzkopf Ultimate Colour Home Hair Colouring Launch<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
This week I attended the launch of Schwarzkopf's Ultimate Colour Home Hair Coluring. I haven't attended many product launches since Kiki was born. I just found it too hard organising baby sitters for her and the Crazy Kid. I have to confess that I went to this launch for the wrong reasons. As soon as I soon as I saw on the invitation that menu being served at the launch had been prepared by two hatted chef Christine Mansfield I accepted immediately. It may have been the wrong reason for going to a launch but thank God that I did because I actually walked away from the launch more excited about the new product that I had just leant about, rather than the food eaten (and the food was bloody fantastic so that says a lot about the product!).</div>
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Ultimate Colour is a world first innovation in home hair colour. It is a foam colour that is re-usable. With every other home hair colour on the market, you have to mix the colourant with the developer before applying the dye. This means that if there is any left over it cannot be saved and reused. The difference with Ultimate Colour is that the developer and colourant are housed in different compartments within the bottle and when you press to release the colouring foam, an equal amount of both the colourant and developer squirt out leaving you with a pile of white developer foam and coloured foam on your hand. You can then mix the two together on your hand, or if you are particularly lazy, apply it straight to your hair and mix it on your head. Any left over dye can then be saved for up to 3 years for the next application. If you have longer hair it will be enough for a root touch up but if you have short hair (as in a typical man's length hair) you can potentially get 3 or more applications out of a bottle.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirObT8D2uFmMx3DvOJeiJms84MVNG0rvaZP1cOb_KjzrFwDRnL2e9kY0AyBNMCtmy21s0a2HC4qUxFI4V1EP_qgoTdJnbNhst3soXA0Ft5tOsjbincw8e4cyGXkgccvD2AidRXRYWXPe6f/s1600/M-+SLIDE+13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirObT8D2uFmMx3DvOJeiJms84MVNG0rvaZP1cOb_KjzrFwDRnL2e9kY0AyBNMCtmy21s0a2HC4qUxFI4V1EP_qgoTdJnbNhst3soXA0Ft5tOsjbincw8e4cyGXkgccvD2AidRXRYWXPe6f/s400/M-+SLIDE+13.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Back in my DINK days (double income no kids), I would always pay someone to colour my hair. Once the Crazy Kid, and then his sister came along I had neither the time nor the disposable cash to get my hair regularly coloured at a hairdresser. So, I returned to my stingy student days and resumed colouring my own hair at home. I had thought that the best thing to happen to home hair colouring was the introduction of the foam dyes. I absolutely love them and find that the results really are salon worthy. I make no mess when I use them, have no drips and never end up with missed patches in my hair. My favourite, to date, has been the <a href="http://sarah-thescienceofbeauty.blogspot.com.au/2012/06/john-frieda-precision-foam-colour.html" target="_blank">John Frieda Precision Foam Colour</a> and I have returned to this one about 4 or 5 times. But the one thing the really annoyed me was that I would always have a third of a bottle of the dye left that I would end up having to chuck. Then, a couple of months down the track, the colour would still be looking rich; however, my bloody grey hairs would be rearing their ugly heads again meaning that I would have to buy a new packet of dye just to hide the handful of greys that were annoying the crap out of me! (I did try plucking them for a while but unfortunately am loosing that battle and, if you have ever wondered whether the rumour is true that if you pull a grey hair out then seven grow back, it isn't - see <a href="http://sarah-thescienceofbeauty.blogspot.com.au/2011/06/if-you-pull-out-grey-hair-do-seven-new.html" target="_blank">here</a>).</div>
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I haven't had the opportunity to trial Ultimate Colour just yet as the stock had just arrived in the country at the time of the launch, but hope to do so in the coming weeks. At the moment they have 9 colours in the range, which you can see below. The colours that I plan on testing are 465 Dark Chocolate Brown and possibly 668 Hazelnut (though I am not sure whether my naturally dark brown hair would be too dark for this shade) and then, come winter, I like to put a red shade through my hair so will take 388 Dark Red Brown for a test drive.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqyyxPSwDgoVgcZ28oQBdYKkHqhkTWjMNa5HP8tCnICQBUhmswvUvctbRMNz2l6JYurwBCXFCWIypbQ_AQKrdWYMmZ5wqaXQYJ3Q2pNXwe1pxpr6c0YPjbOq5gM5I1VLAVodRMlB5SAZi4/s1600/ULTIMATE+STYLING+100+2D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqyyxPSwDgoVgcZ28oQBdYKkHqhkTWjMNa5HP8tCnICQBUhmswvUvctbRMNz2l6JYurwBCXFCWIypbQ_AQKrdWYMmZ5wqaXQYJ3Q2pNXwe1pxpr6c0YPjbOq5gM5I1VLAVodRMlB5SAZi4/s400/ULTIMATE+STYLING+100+2D.jpg" width="165" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBdIcy1o1RkxIPWbLOrZyRpf6LOvlf5KlSUjxGS7CtRWwQ-Vlbysib83tQTJQlNAFFlh3qHU9ho9uG_il46S0MV2MJnzYSh8aX2Jay7Tm2CdD_q_h7mFm1Y22A69_wx8aJqqATrTsqIHyX/s1600/ULTIMATE+STYLING+400+2D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBdIcy1o1RkxIPWbLOrZyRpf6LOvlf5KlSUjxGS7CtRWwQ-Vlbysib83tQTJQlNAFFlh3qHU9ho9uG_il46S0MV2MJnzYSh8aX2Jay7Tm2CdD_q_h7mFm1Y22A69_wx8aJqqATrTsqIHyX/s400/ULTIMATE+STYLING+400+2D.jpg" width="165" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6vTcPnBejc5ZRIaHSJSU3354F2YP1eGXri5adRLZ0UnUCTalF5MNb1quMuxXK0kNURFvzOGWwg9wuM7kdPaYQftsWciYwh7cMPhzgeJFs53tEVZQCyYjHVkRrIpbm2DsSHF6aNNlMOaGj/s1600/ULTIMATE+STYLING+665+2D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6vTcPnBejc5ZRIaHSJSU3354F2YP1eGXri5adRLZ0UnUCTalF5MNb1quMuxXK0kNURFvzOGWwg9wuM7kdPaYQftsWciYwh7cMPhzgeJFs53tEVZQCyYjHVkRrIpbm2DsSHF6aNNlMOaGj/s400/ULTIMATE+STYLING+665+2D.jpg" width="165" /></a></div>
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At this stage I am not sure of an exact release date or price for the Schwarzkopf Ultimate Colour but will have that information on hand when I review the product so will update then.</div>
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What are your thoughts? Are you excited? Which colour in the range would you go for? </div>
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Sarah Kretchmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01904819632824704480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6603564265882667091.post-15689853266319046502013-02-23T21:49:00.001+11:002013-03-02T18:33:14.872+11:00Nicole by OPI Modern Family: Luke of the Draw<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
The other day I brought you the news that Nicole By OPI had released a <a href="http://sarah-thescienceofbeauty.blogspot.com.au/2013/02/opi-modern-family-collection.html" target="_blank">Modern Family Collection</a>. Here is my first swatch from the range - Luke of the Draw. OPI describes it as <i>an adventurous gunmetal grey; </i>however, I would not describe it that way at all. It is a black jelly base jam packed with tonnes of various shaped silver glitter pieces. The effect, once applied, is striking. The different shaped glitter gives the final finish a real depth - a bit like staring into a star packed milky way. The glitter applies very thickly so there is only slight gaps between the particles. The glitter is easy to apply and two thin coats is all it takes for totally opaque coverage. After the first coat it looks patchy and streaky but this completely clears up after the second coat.</div>
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I absolutely love this polish.. I have not seen a glitter polish like it before. Most glitters seem to be sparse topcoats but this is a glitter packed lacquer. It is super sparkly when on and quite striking.</div>
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The swatches below are all two coats, with one top coat shot in various lights.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhx3rAztdSI4z3CsV8Olk5bfTh_rPP6GHXQ2h8JBbyw8nwNko3KI1rKd2AilHZg7BAOCJRNQQfKusBM5jfDz7cB3LIWjFtUfrWk8l3gYU4ZyaLNyPM_gqED0_f0KYwm0tUlpGb5a_pvI1U/s1600/OPI+modern+family+Luke+of+the+draw5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhx3rAztdSI4z3CsV8Olk5bfTh_rPP6GHXQ2h8JBbyw8nwNko3KI1rKd2AilHZg7BAOCJRNQQfKusBM5jfDz7cB3LIWjFtUfrWk8l3gYU4ZyaLNyPM_gqED0_f0KYwm0tUlpGb5a_pvI1U/s320/OPI+modern+family+Luke+of+the+draw5.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRWdxjGESQ841cv83tCoYBKdpoDSlAX63YRcoyT5RHx_uz6cz9odZXt8W6EKvefFug9I7eBRkAmND8nI1Oe9L5gflCBgH47qcF_NAy8d6uH0XXiYa2yysc2wMhLTfiow1UuyOm5Y7mDRkh/s1600/OPI+modern+family+Luke+of+the+draw9.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRWdxjGESQ841cv83tCoYBKdpoDSlAX63YRcoyT5RHx_uz6cz9odZXt8W6EKvefFug9I7eBRkAmND8nI1Oe9L5gflCBgH47qcF_NAy8d6uH0XXiYa2yysc2wMhLTfiow1UuyOm5Y7mDRkh/s320/OPI+modern+family+Luke+of+the+draw9.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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Luke of the Draw and the rest of the Nicole by OPI Modern Family range will be available from 14th March at selected pharmacies Hairhouse Warehouse, Petra Haircare and on-line at www.nicolebyopi.com.au, $14.95 RRP incl. GST. For stockists contact 1800 358 999 or visit <a href="http://www.nicolebyopi.com/">www.nicolebyopi.com</a></div>
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Have you discovered any other glitter polishes that are jam packed with glitter - I'd love suggestions!</div>
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<i>All opinions are my own and I received no remuneration for this post. Luke of the Draw was provided for consideration.</i></div>
Sarah Kretchmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01904819632824704480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6603564265882667091.post-6918774083432837922013-02-22T13:40:00.001+11:002013-02-22T17:30:53.952+11:00Who wants a $50 Groupon VoucherIf you haven't heard of group buying and the daily deals sites then I'm afraid you must have been living under a rock. They have been hugely popular of late. The way they work is that various companies offer either products, services or travel deals at greatly reduced prices, but a minimum number of people need to buy the deal for it to go live. Your credit card does not get charged until the minimum number has been reach and the deal becomes live. For example if a deal needs a minimum of 20 people and only 15 attempt to buy the offer then the offer doesn't go live and no one gets charged and no purchase is made. Once 20 people buy, your credit card will be charged and you will receive your purchase. There are quite a few of these sites out there, one of which is <a href="http://www.groupon.com.au/">Groupon</a>. Before today, I had shopped from a few of these sites, and had always had a favourable experience but had not yet tried Groupon.<br />
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Before recommending it to you I wanted to try it for myself. My mother in law has bought me a couple of deals from Groupon but I personally hadn't tried purchasing from them. I found the whole process to be super simple. I just searched the <a href="http://www.groupon.com.au/">Groupon website</a> for all of their deals. I am based in Sydney so was searching all of the Sydney deals. The deals are broken up into categories: Sydney deals (or wherever your location is - these are the experience deals), shopping deals and travel deals. There are some awesome travel deals on there but I am off to Japan and Thailand in May so won't be going on any more holidays this year! I was also quite tempted by a couple of the shopping deals, but I ended up buying a Sydney deal. All I had to was click the green BUY button, enter quantity then the payment page came up. I was provided with a $20 voucher so I entered that code in the REDEEM VOUCHER box then used Paypal to pay the balance. Seconds later I received an email saying that my order had been received and that once the deal was over I would receive my voucher. About 5 minutes later, two emails arrived with my vouchers attached. Super, super easy!<br />
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So, what did I buy? I did want to get something beauty related since that is the subject of this blog but none of the experience deals tickled my fancy at the moment. I have a hair dresser than I am happy with and the rest either weren't local to me or just weren't for things that I needed done (if there was deal on a hot stone massage I would have snapped it up in a second - I have been dying to try that!). I was tempted by the <a href="http://www.groupon.com.au/in/.Y3BTDb/,716766175?RAF=RFO_TWITTER_USRCLK">Prolash Eyelash Growth Enhancer</a> as I have always to know whether these actually work (I believe they do as I have read good things but have never personally tried one of these products) but, in all honesty, I have naturally quite long eye lashes so I would have just been getting it for the sake of buying. Instead, I got something I know the Crazy Kid would love - two unlimited ride passes for the <a href="http://www.groupon.com.au/in/.Y3BTDb/,716775157">Sydney Family Show</a> (we went last year and it is similar to the Royal Easter Show but smaller and has free entry, which is perfect for younger kids who have tendency to crack it after a couple of hours so you don't waste all that entry fee!). Now, all I have to do is take our vouchers to the show and we will be given wristbands that give us unlimited rides.<br />
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Now here is the good part. I have a $50.00 Groupon voucher up for grabs. To be in the draw to win it all you have to do is enter is one or all of the following (you get once entry per task):<br />
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<li>Follow me on GFC or by email</li>
<li>Follow me on <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Science-of-Beauty/310943825586832">Facebook</a></li>
<li>Share this giveaway on Facebook</li>
<li>Follow me on <a href="https://twitter.com/Skretchs">Twitter</a></li>
<li>Tweet the following: Who wants a $50.00 Groupon voucher?? Head here to win one. http://t.co/OR53bfOMg4 @GrouponAUS <span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;"> </span><span class="invisible" style="font-size: 0px; line-height: 0;">http</span></li>
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Once you have done any/all of the above can you please leave a comment in the comment sections letting me know how you entered and what your name is (ie if you follow on GFC then just comment 'GFC - (your GFC name) or for Facebook comment 'Facebook - your name'). Please leave one comment per task (ie so if you do all 5 tasks then you should leave 5 comments) so that way I can randomly draw the winners from the list of entries in the comments (sorry if this is annoying but its quicker for me to draw a number then see which name corresponds rather than having to transport everything into Excel).<br />
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<o:p> This competition is only open to Australian residents and will run until 8.00pm (AEDST) Friday 8th March.</o:p><br />
<o:p><br /></o:p><o:p>Good luck!</o:p><br />
<o:p><br /></o:p><o:p><br />ps In case you missed it, I am also giving away two <a href="http://sarah-thescienceofbeauty.blogspot.com.au/2013/02/burts-bees-giftpack-giveaway.html" target="_blank">Burt's Bees gift packs</a></o:p><br />
<o:p><br /></o:p><o:p><br /></o:p><o:p><i>All opinions are my own. I received a $20 Groupon voucher to test their site but also used my own money in the purchase. </i></o:p></div>
Sarah Kretchmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01904819632824704480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6603564265882667091.post-70045644334276309512013-02-21T23:11:00.002+11:002013-02-21T23:11:51.451+11:00OPI Modern Family Collection<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoOzimfkrbZC1Qqv-x7jPILKwK8vKLM-B4TVZBsrXnn3XOEHWOX5YvhWuqVfn_LrVbpjbiXcYNvpb5YgVEkPlUkGkuJVISJMA5GMNDQQiJa4hVVy9lh8zwUhVX-loQT4eS4FcwFXPVb0bn/s1600/opi+modern+family+range.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoOzimfkrbZC1Qqv-x7jPILKwK8vKLM-B4TVZBsrXnn3XOEHWOX5YvhWuqVfn_LrVbpjbiXcYNvpb5YgVEkPlUkGkuJVISJMA5GMNDQQiJa4hVVy9lh8zwUhVX-loQT4eS4FcwFXPVb0bn/s320/opi+modern+family+range.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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At the moment my husband and I have 3 favourite shows - Sons of Anarchy (we are a bit late to jump on this bandwagon and are only just watching season 1 on Foxtel), My Kitchen Rules (my hubby is actually a doppelganger for Pete Evens but it is Manu that I have the crush on....he could talk to me all day long!) and Modern Family. There is next to no chance that there will ever be a Sons of Anarchy collaboration with OPI (unless they decide that we need 12 different shades of gunmetal with the odd blood red thrown in!), and even less a chance of a MKR collection, but, great news...Nicole by OPI has collaborated with our third favourite show to create the Modern Family Collection. Each lacquer in the collection represents the personality of the character it is named after and, in usual OPI form, the names are all quite amusing.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSGq2eP6ikcFI8eEl57FsbZIET4ilX7lclfxpaHbrPhQQUqhdpQBSQsncY3dpm1hA04B22v7Ik4ElOnlpLBb60RxOGncxJW-Z0OvQrWOTUV7NVn8T9VNjtLMo2kK3fcf7l6BJQRJ6EUL4e/s1600/opi+modern+family+range+top+row.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="201" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSGq2eP6ikcFI8eEl57FsbZIET4ilX7lclfxpaHbrPhQQUqhdpQBSQsncY3dpm1hA04B22v7Ik4ElOnlpLBb60RxOGncxJW-Z0OvQrWOTUV7NVn8T9VNjtLMo2kK3fcf7l6BJQRJ6EUL4e/s400/opi+modern+family+range+top+row.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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The colours are (from left to right):</div>
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My Jay or The Highway – a sophisticated pale taupe grey</div>
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A Phil’s Paradise – a desirable slate grey that will SELL, SELL, SELL</div>
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Candid Cameron – this year’s Pantone Colour of the Year, Emerald Green</div>
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What’s The Mitch-uation – a more serious shade of Olympic
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Back in My Gloria Day – a rich sexy plum</div>
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Basking in Gloria – a rich ruby red that is saucy and spicy</div>
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She’s Lily Something – a fantasy land filled with glittery pink, confetti and stars</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK1W9mO7LPXQUAaAEyCRBN-bZHO73Tb_jpvh8s9dWKkSq_s0qUAuQWzP5W2eX1Q8kIzHZn6xko71Y1_zo_VcFvv8q8Vr-cRi84L0whpcYu18v99YGxQbciTndsQIZgROj6Xz085y_oPLn1/s1600/opi+modern+family+range+bottom+row.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="198" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK1W9mO7LPXQUAaAEyCRBN-bZHO73Tb_jpvh8s9dWKkSq_s0qUAuQWzP5W2eX1Q8kIzHZn6xko71Y1_zo_VcFvv8q8Vr-cRi84L0whpcYu18v99YGxQbciTndsQIZgROj6Xz085y_oPLn1/s400/opi+modern+family+range+bottom+row.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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The colours continued are (from left to right):</div>
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Am I Making Myself Claire? – a delicate shade of lilac</div>
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Alex by the Books – a subtle yet intelligent mint green</div>
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Stand By Your Manny – a beautiful pale blue</div>
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I Do De-Claire – a frosty rose pink</div>
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A Like Haley Story – a fabulous coral pink</div>
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Haley Good Looking – a feminine pink glitter that will
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Luke of the Draw - an adventurous gunmetal grey</div>
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There are so many colours in this range that I want to try - it looks like such a wearable range. The only shade that doesn't really tickle my fancy is My Jay or The Highway - taupes just aren't my cup of tea. I should have swatches up of a couple of them in the next couple of weeks so keep your eyes out (or if you are desperate to see swatches now, have a look at <a href="http://www.thepolishaholic.com/2012/12/Nicole-by-OPI-Modern-Family-Collection-Swatches-Review.html">The Polish Aholic</a> - her swatches are divine!).</div>
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The Nicole by OPI Modern Family range will be available from
14th March at selected pharmacies Hairhouse Warehouse, Petra Haircare and
on-line at www.nicolebyopi.com.au, $14.95 RRP incl. GST. For stockists contact 1800 358 999 or visit <a href="http://www.nicolebyopi.com/">www.nicolebyopi.com</a>.</div>
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What are your thoughts on the range? Are there any colours that you are dying to try?</div>
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Sarah Kretchmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01904819632824704480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6603564265882667091.post-78798850634153891352013-02-15T08:45:00.001+11:002013-02-15T08:45:52.628+11:00February BellaBox<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
I have posted about the <a href="http://sarah-thescienceofbeauty.blogspot.com.au/2011/05/want-to-try-4-5-or-8-10-new-beauty.html">sample box phenomenon</a> in the past but have never experienced a bellabox sample box for myself...until now!</div>
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For $15 per month you will get 5 of the latest prestige, boutique and cult
beauty products from around the world. They have around 150 brands on board so there is a huge range of potential products that you could receive. You can see the full list of brands <a href="https://bellabox.com.au/index.php/brands">here</a>. </div>
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When you sign up, you fill in an online profile and then get sent a box tailored to your profile. Four different boxes go out each month. For the purpose of this review, I was just sent a random box so one of the products wasn't suitable for me; however, had they had my profile this most likely would not have happened.</div>
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So, what was in my February box?</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0Zz_XYenckw-nDVLqSTBEt2tbMyRhA22f4Pkoxf09WmwQ1c5N9XZxVUjbyWtURZ2LpsE7kGXgWahL98K_DqcbmoOjfStb3k5TAE2KdNR_hnLrlmp9tbzuvT8xvcEvVnn29ld6Eobb4ti2/s1600/bellabox+feb3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0Zz_XYenckw-nDVLqSTBEt2tbMyRhA22f4Pkoxf09WmwQ1c5N9XZxVUjbyWtURZ2LpsE7kGXgWahL98K_DqcbmoOjfStb3k5TAE2KdNR_hnLrlmp9tbzuvT8xvcEvVnn29ld6Eobb4ti2/s320/bellabox+feb3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<br />
I got Box C and in it was:<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>Bastiste dry shampoo 30g - I have heard nothing but rave reviews for this so quite excited to try it (value $2)</li>
<li>John Freida Sheer Blonde Colour Renew Tone Correcting shampoo and conditioner 45ml - I am a brunette so if I were a subscriber I would have been a tad annoyed receiving this; however, I am sure that if I were a subscriber and they had in my profile that I am a brunette then I shouldn't have received this. (value - about $6.50)</li>
<li>Naturals Natural Paw Paw ointment 7g - handy for the handbag. (value - $1.40)</li>
<li>Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure polish in 677 Shoot the Moon - a glorious metallic silver shade - one I'd definitely get plenty of wear out of (full size - value $14.95)</li>
<li>Gatineau DefiLift 3D Resculpting Lift Cream 15ml - at 32 this is definitely the type of product I am now in the market for and 15ml is a very generous size (value $42)</li>
<li>U Skin Solutions Nourishing Cleansing Milk (not sure the volume - maybe 5ml?) - smells all herbally and divine, I look forward to trying it. (value - about $1.50)</li>
</ul>
<div>
Total value of the box - $68.35. Definitely worth the $15 subscription fee.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
I have listed below the contents of all 4 boxes for you to compare. The sizes of the products listed are the full sizes, not the sizes received in each box (I'm not sure what they are). It looks like every box got the Bastiste Dry Shampoo and a U Skin Solutions sample but then the other contents varied.</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>What I loved about bellabox:</b></div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>great value - my box was worth $68.35 so over four times the cost price of $15</li>
<li>great range of products - I had hair care, skin care and nail polish</li>
<li>good quality brands</li>
</ul>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>What I didn't like:</b></div>
</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>It's only a minor thing but I am not sure whether I like the four different boxes. I am the type of person to get box envy so would prefer that the boxes are the same but personalised - ie my box would have contained the John Frieda Brilliant Brunette range rather than the blonde products. However, in saying that I am guessing that you would have been giving the option, in the preferences, to select the type of products you prefer ie make up, skincare etc and I would have chosen skincare as that is my real passion. Looking at the list of products, Box D is most likely the one for us skincare junkies and I would have loved that box, so maybe it is not such a bad thing after all.</li>
</ul>
<div>
<b>BellaBaby and Men's Box</b></div>
</div>
<div>
When I was surfing the bellabox website for more info I discovered that they have a <a href="http://bellabox.com.au/men-box-membership.html">men's box</a> ($30 per quarter) and a <a href="http://bellabox.com.au/baby-box-membership.html">baby box</a> ($24.95 per month). To be perfectly honest, the men's box is not something that would interest my husband. He likes looking after his skin but is a creature of habit and doesn't like changing his products much - why fix something that already works! However, The bellababy box is something that very much interests me. I have a 3 year old and a 9 month old so am forever testing out new products on them. The Crazy Kid has normal skin so I can use pretty much whatever I like on him (though interestingly he is very sensitive to sunscreens); however, Kiki has sensitive skin with a tendency to get eczema so I need to be quite careful with her. This would be a great way to find out what works for her and what doesn't. $24.95 is a little on the pricey side for baby products - I am not sure whether I would normally spend that on products for my kids each month but I am a fair way into my parenting journey. In the early days I found myself at Priceline every second day picking up something new to fix The Crazy Kids latest nappy rash/graze/gunky eyes/skin irritation so a box like this would have been awesome. A three month subscription would be the perfect post birth present for a new mum.</div>
<br />
<br />
Anyway, so far I have been impressed with bellabox. For those that are interested, here are the contents of all four boxes that went out in Feb.<br />
<br />
Box A<br />
<br />
<b>EYE OF HORUS EYELINER IN BRONZE AMULET GODDESS PENCIL OR CHARCOAL OBSIDIAN GODDESS PENCIL – LUXE! </b>Incorporating all the features of the traditional smokey pencil but in a stunning bronze or charcoal shade. Get the most shimmering eyes in the room! RRP $30.00 available at bellabox.com.au<br />
<br />
<b>FING’RS NAIL MAKEUP – COLOUR PRODUCT! </b>Frost your fingers with these mega-watt Fing’rs nail stickers and add easy self-expression to your everyday manicure! 22 nail stickers RRP $9.99 available at Coles and Kmart<br />
<br />
<b>JOHN FRIEDA FRIZZ-EASE DREAM CURLS CURL PERFECTING SPRAY – CULT CLASSIC </b>Want sexy waves that last? Turn to Frizz Ease. A few spritzes will help to hold pre-styled curls, or add definition and extra waves to naturally curly locks. Time to confidently flick your stunning mane around in front of your main squeeze! 198ml RRP $16.99 available at Coles, Woolworths, Priceline, Target and selected pharmacies nationally<br />
<br />
<b>BATISTE DRY SHAMPOO – MUST HAVE </b>Our bb favourite Batiste is back in their new pretty in pink packaging – we guarantee it’ll be the new love of your life next time you need fresh locks fast! 150ml RRP $9.95 available at supermarkets and pharmacies<br />
<br />
<b>U SKIN SOLUTIONS CLARIFYING CLEANSING GEL - SUPER SKIN CARE </b>This refreshing cleansing gel, with lemon myrtle and the antibacterial properties of tea-tree, helps to thoroughly remove dirt and impurities from the skin’s surface, all while smelling sweet! 125ml RRP $32.95 available at bellabox.com.au<br />
<br />
OR<br />
<br />
<b>U SKIN SOLUTIONS CLEAN AND GO EXFOLIATING GEL CLEANSER - SUPER SKIN CARE </b>This two in one cleansing and exfoliating solution is perfect for keeping pores clear and clean. Calendula, antibacterial tea-tree oil and super fine bamboo beads leave your skin feeling soft and smooth! 125ml RRP $30.95 available at bellabox.com.au<br />
<br />
<b>BANANA BOAT SPORT SPF 30+ – BONUS PRODUCT! </b>It’s still summer, so make sure you are taking extra care to look after your skin with the Banana Boat range. It’s a must for essential skin care! 200g RRP $14.99 available at grocery retailers, pharmacies and convenience outlets<br />
<br />
<b>Box B</b><br />
<br />
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<b>NUXE HUILE PRODIGIEUSE – LUXE! </b>There is a reason this multipurpose oil is a French
favourite. Giving intense nourishment for face, body and hair without a greasy
after-touch, the sweet scented oil will become your favourite too. 50ml RRP $24.95 available at bellabox.com.au</div>
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<b>SALLY HANSEN COMPLETE SALON MANICURE – COLOUR PRODUCT! </b>No time for a salon mani? No stress! Achieve the at-home
quality trifecta: a gel-like shine finish, fast and easy application and chip
resistance. Enjoy your choice of three shimmering shades: Mermaids Tail, Golden
Rule and Shoot the Moon. 14.7ml RRP $14.95 available at Priceline and selected
pharmacies</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>JOHN FRIEDA FRIZZ-EASE DREAM CURLS CURL PERFECTING SPRAY – CULT
CLASSIC </b>Want sexy waves that last? Turn to Frizz Ease. A few
spritzes will help to hold pre-styled curls, or add definition and extra waves
to naturally curly locks. Time to confidently flick your stunning mane around
in front of your main squeeze! 198ml RRP $16.99 available at Coles, Woolworths, Priceline,
Target and selected pharmacies nationally</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>BATISTE DRY SHAMPOO – MUST HAVE </b>Our bb favourite Batiste is back in their new pretty in pink
packaging – we guarantee it’ll be the new love of your life next time you need
fresh locks fast! 150ml RRP $9.95 available at supermarkets and pharmacies</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>U SKIN SOLUTIONS CLEAN AND GO EXFOLIATING GEL CLEANSER - SUPER
SKIN CARE </b>This two in one cleansing and exfoliating solution is
perfect for keeping pores clear and clean. Calendula, antibacterial tea-tree
oil and super fine bamboo beads leave your skin feeling soft and smooth! 125ml RRP $30.95 available at bellabox.com.au</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>BANANA BOAT SPORT SPF 30+ – BONUS PRODUCT! </b>It’s still summer, so make sure you are taking extra care to
look after your skin with the Banana Boat range. It’s a must for essential skin
care! 200g RRP $14.99 available at grocery retailers, pharmacies
and convenience outlets</div>
<br />
<b>Box C</b><br />
<br />
<br />
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<b>GATINEAU MOISTURISING RANGE – LUXE! ENJOY ONE OF THE
FOLLOWING</b>: Melatogenine Future Plus Day and Night Cream 50ml RRP $240,
Melatogenine Day Cream 50ml RRP $165, Defi Lift 3d Throat & Décolleté Cream
50ml RRP $140, Defi Lift Resculpting Lift Cream with Botufix 50ml RRP $165,
Nutriactive Nourishing Day Cream 50ml RRP $$98, Gatineau Aquamemory Moisture
Replenish Cream 50ml RRP $104. For more information visit bellabox.com.au</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>SALLY HANSEN COMPLETE SALON MANICURE – COLOUR PRODUCT! </b>No time for a salon mani? No stress! Achieve the at-home
quality trifecta: a gel-like shine finish, fast and easy application and chip
resistance. Enjoy your choice of three shimmering shades: Mermaids Tail, Golden
Rule and Shoot the Moon. 14.7ml RRP $14.95 available at Priceline and selected
pharmacies</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>NATRALUS NATURAL PAW PAW OINTMENT - ESSENTIAL </b>Add a touch of natural shine to your pout this V-day. No
petrochemicals with all paw paw means your lips will feel soft and free to kiss
whomever they please! 30g RRP $5.95 available at bellabox.com.au</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>BATISTE DRY SHAMPOO – MUST HAVE </b>Our bb favourite Batiste is back in their new pretty in pink
packaging – we guarantee it’ll be the new love of your life next time you need
fresh locks fast! 150ml RRP $9.95 available at supermarkets and pharmacies</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>JOHN FRIEDA SHEER BLONDE COLOUR RENEW TONE CORRECTING
SHAMPOO AND CONDITIONER OR JOHN FRIEDA SHEER BLONDE GO BLONDER LIGHTENING
SHAMPOO AND CONDITIONER – CULT CLASSIC </b>Go longer in between colour treatments with new looking
locks! Get your best hair yet this V-Day and flick your stunning mane in front
of your main squeeze! Both 250ml RRP $17.99 available at Coles, Woolworths,
Priceline, Target and selected pharmacies nationally</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>U SKIN SOLUTIONS CLEAN AND GO EXFOLIATING GEL CLEANSER - SUPER
SKIN CARE </b>This two in one cleansing and exfoliating solution is
perfect for keeping pores clear and clean. Calendula, antibacterial tea-tree
oil and super fine bamboo beads leave your skin feeling soft and smooth! 125ml RRP $30.95 available at bellabox.com.au</div>
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OR</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>U SKIN SOLUTIONS NOURISHING CLEANSING MILK - SUPER SKIN CARE </b>This nourishing cleansing milk with added vitamin B5,
Australian sandalwood and lilly pilly helps assist the gently elimination of
daily grime and impurities, and feels silky, smooth and luxurious on your skin! 125ml RRP $32.95 available at bellabox.com.au</div>
<br />
<br />
<b>Box D</b><br />
<br />
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<b>BE IN AWE SKIN SAMSKRTA SKIN POLISH – LUXE </b><span style="text-indent: -18pt;">Designed to remove dead skin cells and leave
skin looking (and feeling!) soft and radiant, this polish combines cranberry
extract, gluconic acid, vitamin B3 and co-enzyme Q10 with micro jojoba beads.
Hello vibrant shimmering skin! </span><span style="text-indent: -18pt;">30ml RRP $29.00 available at bellabox.com.au</span></div>
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<span style="text-indent: -18pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<b>SALLY HANSEN COMPLETE SALON MANICURE – COLOUR PRODUCT! </b>No time for a salon mani? No stress! Achieve the at-home
quality trifecta: a gel-like shine finish, fast and easy application and chip
resistance. Enjoy your choice of three shimmering shades: Mermaids Tail, Golden
Rule and Shoot the Moon. 14.7ml RRP $14.95 available at Priceline and selected
pharmacies</div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>BIODERMA CREALINE H2O - CULT! </b>This cult cleansing water removes every trace of makeup
(even waterproof mascara) as well as the impurities in your skin at a cellular
level. Plus, it’s safe on eyes. Wonder product alert! 250ml RRP $29.95 available at bellabox.com.au</div>
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<b>BATISTE DRY SHAMPOO – MUST HAVE </b>Our bb favourite Batiste is back in their new pretty in pink
packaging – we guarantee it’ll be the new love of your life next time you need
fresh locks fast! 150ml RRP $9.95 available at supermarkets and pharmacies</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>U SKIN SOLUTIONS CLEAN AND GO EXFOLIATING GEL CLEANSER - SUPER
SKIN CARE </b>This two in one cleansing and exfoliating solution is
perfect for keeping pores clear and clean. Calendula, antibacterial tea-tree
oil and super fine bamboo beads leave your skin feeling soft and smooth! 125ml RRP $30.95 available at bellabox.com.au</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>BANANA BOAT EVERYDAY SPF 30+ – BONUS PRODUCT! </b>It’s still summer, so make sure you are taking extra care to
look after your skin and using a top notch SPF. Our pick? The Banana Boat
range. Because you can’t shimmer and shine without nourished and cared for
skin! 200g RRP $14.99 available at grocery retailers, pharmacies
and convenience outlets<br />
<br />
You can subscribe to bellabox box <a href="http://bellabox.com.au/box-membership.html/">here</a>. They offer either a month by month subscription ($15/month) or a yearly subscription ($165) or 3, 6, or 12 month gift subscriptions,<br />
<br />
What are your thoughts on sample boxes. Do you love receiving your box of goodies each month or are you up to your eyeballs in samples?<br />
<br />
<br />
<i>All opinions are my own and I received no remuneration for this post. This box was provided for consideration.</i></div>
Sarah Kretchmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01904819632824704480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6603564265882667091.post-42593968351016639832013-02-12T21:10:00.001+11:002013-02-12T21:10:31.397+11:00OPI Oz The Great and Powerful: When Monkeys Fly! swatch<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
There is a new Oz movie coming out - Oz the Great and Powerful. It is the prequel to The Wizard of Oz and tells the story of how many of the characters ended up in the land of Oz.</div>
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To celebrate the release of the movie, OPI have created a new range of lacquers inspired by the movie - the Oz the Great and Powerful range. As soon as I heard that there was a range based on The Wizard of Oz, I straight away imagined sparkly ruby red and emerald green - but, of course, they are colours from the original movie and not the latest installment. Instead, the Oz the Great and Powerful range is all soft shades and glitters, described by OPI as:</div>
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<i>The soft shade limited edition range by OPI - Oz the Great
and Powerful - is bursting with magic and excitement designed to capture the
magic and whimsy portrayed in the film. The collection features soft neutrals
in white, beige and pink combined with glittery shades of white, gold and
silver</i>.</div>
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There are seven shades in this range:</div>
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<b>Which is Witch</b>, a silver glitter lacquer with a magical
iridescent sparkle.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA6TL4X2BTlTfYKGw8ApFUJCKqEeE183PCb0-J3ddhPvv6bKmRbDM9ASvqD2S5uAuDMppy7MBjmLaAurloziYRYPyoCgFm8Z0t5FIZv0cdBryNPgoAa-DYubP-rxVgPFClyQvdMV0yKAj1/s1600/opi+oz+the+great+and+powerful+Which+is+Witch.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA6TL4X2BTlTfYKGw8ApFUJCKqEeE183PCb0-J3ddhPvv6bKmRbDM9ASvqD2S5uAuDMppy7MBjmLaAurloziYRYPyoCgFm8Z0t5FIZv0cdBryNPgoAa-DYubP-rxVgPFClyQvdMV0yKAj1/s1600/opi+oz+the+great+and+powerful+Which+is+Witch.jpg" /></a></div>
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<b>Glints of Glinda</b>, only a good witch could turn beige from
bland to chic.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga860zY-H96Dt82pEHg6xpRKI-qqB_L6dN7Wcj8N1j0LVChuekazhFl3RoQV5IsFEh4WtyHCSSdcxOziSuyE6xTrEJ7Mldw9JU8eZLam-frWVAsCWaq-ttkOHuov3N8ofoWGTe12_Zm7fE/s1600/opi+oz+the+great+and+powerful+Glints+of+Glinda.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga860zY-H96Dt82pEHg6xpRKI-qqB_L6dN7Wcj8N1j0LVChuekazhFl3RoQV5IsFEh4WtyHCSSdcxOziSuyE6xTrEJ7Mldw9JU8eZLam-frWVAsCWaq-ttkOHuov3N8ofoWGTe12_Zm7fE/s1600/opi+oz+the+great+and+powerful+Glints+of+Glinda.jpg" /></a></div>
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<b>When Monkeys Fly!</b> you will go bananas for this gold
confetti (swatches below).</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4vPzKvp3UItC-Q7QvWLx9Q3-t2eW4ZkBMBXhy_6ljya2pfR0Oz_yo6TV3Ni5pLC0aCzHrwCvt2zhIse9WL2WIDRA8Sz9thUhKAgXXF1F4kg9V593H-iSjgEgp6s6_Y2ktASWscQz-8OeF/s1600/opi+oz+the+great+and+powerful+When+Monkeys+Fly!.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4vPzKvp3UItC-Q7QvWLx9Q3-t2eW4ZkBMBXhy_6ljya2pfR0Oz_yo6TV3Ni5pLC0aCzHrwCvt2zhIse9WL2WIDRA8Sz9thUhKAgXXF1F4kg9V593H-iSjgEgp6s6_Y2ktASWscQz-8OeF/s1600/opi+oz+the+great+and+powerful+When+Monkeys+Fly!.jpg" /></a></div>
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<b>Don’t Burst My Bubble</b>, an irresistible white like puffs of
clouds</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4RdhM9JOszQEI3j1EGGBcCWB5calgwQqs0r9tvziSMhOZNlwoqQrU07HKyvf_V3AHvGKLDlKv_YTLv49aNGWKLajJaUl77L3bEjS3-jyvpYiRnrhb8Lzf3PtfqpjjYcXtMfY6voBcL7Ap/s1600/opi+oz+the+great+and+powerful+Don%E2%80%99t+Burst+My+Bubble.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4RdhM9JOszQEI3j1EGGBcCWB5calgwQqs0r9tvziSMhOZNlwoqQrU07HKyvf_V3AHvGKLDlKv_YTLv49aNGWKLajJaUl77L3bEjS3-jyvpYiRnrhb8Lzf3PtfqpjjYcXtMfY6voBcL7Ap/s1600/opi+oz+the+great+and+powerful+Don%E2%80%99t+Burst+My+Bubble.jpg" /></a></div>
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<b>Lights of Emerald City</b>, like a white confetti spray bursting
with excitement</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsCOs-ykunx8-ODg0gw5lDxeDeFoA0S0lF4gngGj30aK4Q1ivemhMdA9q2lsV5ri-h12roBQeB-34B3rD23qmAaZqUkkew-dJJB1STmClaXy2jEwsz_3MXYwJNrZZ7WKHkwor7ecgR7aCQ/s1600/opi+oz+the+great+and+powerful+Lights+of+Emerald+City.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsCOs-ykunx8-ODg0gw5lDxeDeFoA0S0lF4gngGj30aK4Q1ivemhMdA9q2lsV5ri-h12roBQeB-34B3rD23qmAaZqUkkew-dJJB1STmClaXy2jEwsz_3MXYwJNrZZ7WKHkwor7ecgR7aCQ/s1600/opi+oz+the+great+and+powerful+Lights+of+Emerald+City.jpg" /></a></div>
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<b>I Theodora You</b>, an adorable sheer pink that is bewitching.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYShhLpzkP4-AO8srxtD8TbGAGNYW-jBFWoQN-wCbkIH0VzYoF5C-ipUUOt-UIbHpxgulSHyOEqcWQTGIFnKO7hiDlGzbwFvPhVBYC9WSzACE3sfAsi3jGNMpbYvCStgskQjk5ZTWKfYcx/s1600/opi+oz+the+great+and+powerful+I+Theodora+You.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYShhLpzkP4-AO8srxtD8TbGAGNYW-jBFWoQN-wCbkIH0VzYoF5C-ipUUOt-UIbHpxgulSHyOEqcWQTGIFnKO7hiDlGzbwFvPhVBYC9WSzACE3sfAsi3jGNMpbYvCStgskQjk5ZTWKfYcx/s1600/opi+oz+the+great+and+powerful+I+Theodora+You.jpg" /></a></div>
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<b>What Wizardry is This?</b> – designed specifically for The Great
Wizard - a rich taupe hue with reflective sparkle in OPI’s new Liquid Sand
formula</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWuv3fgyuIhxcUK8WgIigj9JDPjMWzaKOBoCixFxRRfO6LXVA2bNRtedUcvP4QSm06cz-hK4cp5Wz0zIUOSbYuWM84qbU0wpXbXqwSTh-0EYsEo3UI4qF62j888_3FI9u5_gPEA16-_sGO/s1600/opi+oz+the+great+and+powerful+What+Wizardry+is+This.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWuv3fgyuIhxcUK8WgIigj9JDPjMWzaKOBoCixFxRRfO6LXVA2bNRtedUcvP4QSm06cz-hK4cp5Wz0zIUOSbYuWM84qbU0wpXbXqwSTh-0EYsEo3UI4qF62j888_3FI9u5_gPEA16-_sGO/s1600/opi+oz+the+great+and+powerful+What+Wizardry+is+This.jpg" /></a></div>
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I managed to get my hands on When Monkeys Fly! and have swatched it below. When Monkeys Fly! is a glittery top coat with a mixture of 3 different types of glitter - super chunky gold circles, tiny hologram specks and slightly larger hexagonal (or perhaps octagonal!) hologram disks. In the swatches below I have just applied one coat. The large round gold glitter randomly scatters over the nails, so some nails end up with only a couple of dots whilst others have heaps. The gold glitter is really striking - it looks a little bit like diamontes on the nails. I have swatched this over two different colours and it looks fantastic over both. I honestly think that it would look amazing over just about any colour (probably not gold - would get lost on that one, but any other colour!).</div>
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<b>When Monkeys Fly! swatched over Suzi's Hungary AGAIN (from the Euro Centrale range)</b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRxFcEkWhXsbDEmUGutzX8tqjb7PIVc0IPtnCeKipUWQKhWBW2Dy2t-G6REp9PH6oUstTsDaP7x1dhLNOfRPNmulJSmrf_M8eN2GUdasjKtc-fejI1BxHOFaqXa1hwKSG5fPHvtpgBu4CC/s1600/opi+when+monkeys+fly+over+suzis+hungary+AGAIN2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRxFcEkWhXsbDEmUGutzX8tqjb7PIVc0IPtnCeKipUWQKhWBW2Dy2t-G6REp9PH6oUstTsDaP7x1dhLNOfRPNmulJSmrf_M8eN2GUdasjKtc-fejI1BxHOFaqXa1hwKSG5fPHvtpgBu4CC/s320/opi+when+monkeys+fly+over+suzis+hungary+AGAIN2.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTqvAicCjLmmRIRL-8F6d01Y7qJrVHyYeykIjjBefTQ-uqd2LMv33iJlLYKkLamOzbble3jdpPb12hhTNfdH5sQRJWvB5D27x3c3pgnn4VpNY_INgDB5VjlFBzbt-n2dUnYIdj0-l_P-2c/s1600/opi+when+monkeys+fly+over+suzis+hungary+AGAIN.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTqvAicCjLmmRIRL-8F6d01Y7qJrVHyYeykIjjBefTQ-uqd2LMv33iJlLYKkLamOzbble3jdpPb12hhTNfdH5sQRJWvB5D27x3c3pgnn4VpNY_INgDB5VjlFBzbt-n2dUnYIdj0-l_P-2c/s320/opi+when+monkeys+fly+over+suzis+hungary+AGAIN.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9_nFOAwLM6xRXt8V1gDPx4w4gcOrrVljzEpy6BHOQW7dZeshOFirMXGfcO64yxO0bAh0zJwoY0b9dhdfPmYKMDB5EgA5XCx3sEmipopKHeyxmrs42WOLugEQ3gxGIZFj5yHGMOe5LzRSY/s1600/opi+when+monkeys+fly+over+suzis+hungary+AGAIN3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9_nFOAwLM6xRXt8V1gDPx4w4gcOrrVljzEpy6BHOQW7dZeshOFirMXGfcO64yxO0bAh0zJwoY0b9dhdfPmYKMDB5EgA5XCx3sEmipopKHeyxmrs42WOLugEQ3gxGIZFj5yHGMOe5LzRSY/s320/opi+when+monkeys+fly+over+suzis+hungary+AGAIN3.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7RYvmNKZ3873x-peIZRt086qrXXnRV5Tu2sR2gSYmVbYsmops-k9CVrWecIRY0tAIFecP6EkXbvhpg8fNJ5vUL0n1miSPM-K0NM0PdrGD5dw0ufxFSMgqW5P_oVOwBEDq079-3drxd5tf/s1600/opi+when+monkeys+fly+over+suzis+hungary+AGAIN4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7RYvmNKZ3873x-peIZRt086qrXXnRV5Tu2sR2gSYmVbYsmops-k9CVrWecIRY0tAIFecP6EkXbvhpg8fNJ5vUL0n1miSPM-K0NM0PdrGD5dw0ufxFSMgqW5P_oVOwBEDq079-3drxd5tf/s320/opi+when+monkeys+fly+over+suzis+hungary+AGAIN4.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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<b style="text-align: center;">When Monkeys Fly! swatched over You're Such a BudaPest (from the Euro Centrale range)</b><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbHlYET9yJfgia6HIdHotMLP42c9oNfmC651jBsC1Ig7QY-Lf365P7WFEFqFKTCgy3AnXIkWb-J6haB5BGXWcFX5WnPNEjM5Any_B_8f8bcVM8vzDtgVRzRaJaNbKxcEPcdTPfh1z0-gxF/s1600/opi+when+monkeys+fly+over+youre+such+a+budapest.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbHlYET9yJfgia6HIdHotMLP42c9oNfmC651jBsC1Ig7QY-Lf365P7WFEFqFKTCgy3AnXIkWb-J6haB5BGXWcFX5WnPNEjM5Any_B_8f8bcVM8vzDtgVRzRaJaNbKxcEPcdTPfh1z0-gxF/s320/opi+when+monkeys+fly+over+youre+such+a+budapest.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuXv5ibTQ7MUgW4p1m6Cf7k-RO1kRMc5KbEAVJ3nJfjFyhR3mBK8v_mm-xJ9RMq81uSJfKi1oXr0WF0h3SnaZOrDW0FSm4YKBe3bQoEAGtW92aloObkJiJklZ754yhXCH49sll3pBKwric/s1600/opi+when+monkeys+fly+over+youre+such+a+budapest2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuXv5ibTQ7MUgW4p1m6Cf7k-RO1kRMc5KbEAVJ3nJfjFyhR3mBK8v_mm-xJ9RMq81uSJfKi1oXr0WF0h3SnaZOrDW0FSm4YKBe3bQoEAGtW92aloObkJiJklZ754yhXCH49sll3pBKwric/s320/opi+when+monkeys+fly+over+youre+such+a+budapest2.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKNhxVH4RYGcCee2SdXsRKj2yWlZHr4OIc7YfZOZhaDk-s9jRgZx_pEMYD9ujaeAPlAAhkMSiRIzaqXrGknuHgT4T051Uzpme8bTxjV-ehLTRKMD-jtTdtGjNZBTfiFKLJWW_9Bc2bTc2E/s1600/opi+when+monkeys+fly+over+youre+such+a+budapest3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKNhxVH4RYGcCee2SdXsRKj2yWlZHr4OIc7YfZOZhaDk-s9jRgZx_pEMYD9ujaeAPlAAhkMSiRIzaqXrGknuHgT4T051Uzpme8bTxjV-ehLTRKMD-jtTdtGjNZBTfiFKLJWW_9Bc2bTc2E/s320/opi+when+monkeys+fly+over+youre+such+a+budapest3.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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OPI’s Oz the Great and Powerful will be available from mid
February at selected salons, David Jones and Myers, $19.95. For more
information on stockists contact 1800 358 999 or www.opi.net.au.</div>
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What are your thoughts on When Monkeys Fly? Do you love the chunky gold glitter? What colours are you hoping to get your hands on from the Oz the Great and Powerful range?</div>
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<i>All opinions are my own and I received no remuneration for this post. When Monkeys Fly! was provided for consideration.</i></div>
Sarah Kretchmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01904819632824704480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6603564265882667091.post-49104373362676953692013-02-11T20:48:00.001+11:002013-04-01T07:50:48.261+11:00The Acne Series: Guest Review 2 of Aphelia Cosmetology<br />
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<span lang="EN-US">The other day I brought you a <a href="http://sarah-thescienceofbeauty.blogspot.com.au/2013/02/the-acne-series-guest-review-of-aphelia.html">guest review</a> of the Oasis Acne range from Aphelia Cosmetology. I have mentioned before, but the journey to perfect skin for acne sufferers is often not clear cut and what works for one person many not work for another. Therefore, for the Aphelia Cosmetology acne range I have recruited three different acne sufferers to trial it.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">The second reviewer I have is Jenny. Jenny is 20 and has bad acne on her forehead. Here is her review:</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">I spent the majority of my teenage years
not appreciating that I had nice clear skin and I never felt the need to wear
makeup since I had nothing to cover up anyway. I only ever got the odd spot or
two and that was pretty rare as I can’t remember even one time when I might’ve
freaked out over a breakout.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">When I reached year 12 in high school, I
started to get lots and lots of break outs and it was all concentrated on my
forehead. I can even tell you how it started as it literally started overnight
with little pimples on my forehead which grew and grew and I soon had a
breakout on my forehead which has never cleared in the last 3 years.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">My breakouts are consistent and never go
away. I always have a small amount of pimples on my forehead and I get some
pretty nasty big ones during that time of the month. They tend to stay around
for about a week but the little ones pop up as the old ones go away. My acne
has also spread to both my cheeks (although the left cheek is significantly
clearer than the right) and occasionally I also get pimples under my bottom lip
and above my top lip near my nose.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">You’ll see in my photos later, that I scar
very easily. Some of the pimples that I got during the trial turned into red
dots that stay red for weeks. I still have the scars today! It had nothing to
do with the products and everything to do with the way my skin is as it happens
regardless of the products that I use.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">I’ve tried everything at least once from
not using cleanser at all (just water), not wearing makeup, using natural
products and using different brands like Nivea, Garnier, Biotherm, Khiels,
Estée Lauder and Clinique. Nothing has even come close to clearing up my skin,
let alone reducing the amount of pimples. I put my hand up for trying out these
products when Sarah gave out a call for people to trial the products as I
thought that it couldn’t hurt to change up my skincare regime again, especially
since it wasn’t working anyway.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">I admit that I didn’t really look too much
into the brand that was offering the products for trial so when I first opened
the package that Sarah sent me, I noticed that there was Chinese writing on the
side of the boxes. Immediately, my boyfriend and I got a bit freaked out as we
know that Chinese products can often smell quite bad. As children, our parents
forced us to eat really smelly black medicine and we’re both familiar with
Chinese traditional medicines and the awful smell that some of them can have.
Luckily, the smell of the Aphelia products wasn’t too bad.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">There were 3 products that I was sent to
try.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><b>Master Cleanse Deep Cleanse Fluid:</b></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">This was the cleanser that I used in the
morning and at night. It looks like liquid soap and it also smells like it. To
use the cleanser, I put a small amount (literally one or two small pumps) in my
hand and then added water to it. When you rub the cleanser and the water
together, it foams up and turns white. While I felt like it cleaned my face, I
also felt like I was just using plain soap on my face as it really stripped it
of the oils. My hands would also feel really dry afterwards. I think that the
cleanser would be better suited for people with really oily skin unlike mine
which is mostly dry.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><b>Acne treatment 12+5 essence:</b></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">This was an essence that I had to use twice
a day (morning and night). It’s a clear runny liquid with a strong herbal smell
that I put on my face after I washed it. The instructions told me to focus on
the blemishes but that the essence needed to be put on the whole face. I wasn’t
a fan of it as the smell lingers even when the essence has been absorbed. I
found it hard to spread it on my face as it’s so runny that it kind of dripped
off my face unless I worked fast. However, I felt that this step was important
as the cleanser dried my face out so much.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><b>Classic skin Purifier Cleansing Beauty Oil:</b></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">The instructions said that it was good at
removing makeup so I used it as a makeup remover each night. It didn’t make
sense to use it as a cleanser since I already used the Master Cleanse Deep
Cleanse Fluid as my cleanser.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">This didn’t have a strong smell but it
smelled faintly like the cleanser. It had a light oil consistency to it and I
used it by putting it onto cotton wool pads and wiping it over my face.
Interestingly, the instructions said that you didn’t have to wash your face
afterwards but you could if you felt like it was “merited”. Because I did this
step before cleansing, I obviously washed it off each night.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">It was good as a makeup remover and I
definitely rate it higher than some of the makeup remover wipes that I’ve been
using. It did a good job removing everything but I should probably point out
that I normally only wear some concealer and eyeliner so I don’t wear heavy
makeup.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">Overall, I didn’t see a huge change in my
breakouts. It did reduce the large ones as I only saw 2-3 in a month. I think
that no products will clear my skin and that my acne may be due to my diet or
hormones. I think that people who get breakouts because they have oily or
congested skin will benefit from this range. I’ve seen other reviews where people
have noticed a huge difference and I’m so jealous!</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">I think that the Classic Skin Purifier
Beauty Oil is the stand out product and will suit any one. The cleanser is a
bit harsh but good if you’re targeting really oily or congested areas on your
face. I think that the smell of the essence really lets it down as I got pretty
sick of the unpleasant smell. I’m sure that some people wouldn’t mind as “no
pain, no gain” but I personally wouldn’t buy it for myself.</span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTr2E_A-NkiEyNLATE5Jyaa4Pzih0nVLHvqBBCU7MzRxNtzXlcNj1GP4WMPQgxvMgcMtyweuOR9kVsvqOq_TvKPstA_ejU3V2bC5aGNttjDFQxF9Lt20luV1SkFIy7xf7QSthU9oC9P1Oz/s1600/Aphelia+Before+forehead+(2).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="158" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTr2E_A-NkiEyNLATE5Jyaa4Pzih0nVLHvqBBCU7MzRxNtzXlcNj1GP4WMPQgxvMgcMtyweuOR9kVsvqOq_TvKPstA_ejU3V2bC5aGNttjDFQxF9Lt20luV1SkFIy7xf7QSthU9oC9P1Oz/s320/Aphelia+Before+forehead+(2).jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Before forehead photo</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8B3GlNNX7uCVPXfLRT7cgBRC5aEEOq09Lk02lqpZx95hqrtImrbXQCchurob2hRKkGcvmgvBZFVelehQudtc5qIqljVVgRWakbw3f9xPV1nhqyRnfC6VXws7f0LzqPrqwyULOzbA_c52s/s1600/Aphelia+After+forehead+(2).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="175" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8B3GlNNX7uCVPXfLRT7cgBRC5aEEOq09Lk02lqpZx95hqrtImrbXQCchurob2hRKkGcvmgvBZFVelehQudtc5qIqljVVgRWakbw3f9xPV1nhqyRnfC6VXws7f0LzqPrqwyULOzbA_c52s/s320/Aphelia+After+forehead+(2).jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">After forehead photo</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS0sMio_EzXzRvQAiWOfskv57969zWxlGrPMdn3u9NdkzsMxglnGPyglnAgl6IIz2nNDDL-HywYdhnEII2hykWJQ3GnJPH6iTMSDiikLzaHNEyGdtse-Q2lET6yNQ6nOGxsP5fKj6Wntpd/s1600/Aphelia+Before+right+cheek+(2).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS0sMio_EzXzRvQAiWOfskv57969zWxlGrPMdn3u9NdkzsMxglnGPyglnAgl6IIz2nNDDL-HywYdhnEII2hykWJQ3GnJPH6iTMSDiikLzaHNEyGdtse-Q2lET6yNQ6nOGxsP5fKj6Wntpd/s320/Aphelia+Before+right+cheek+(2).jpg" width="154" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJFWR-P13n27yT7Issiz6ABSuRU3nb7jGDOWQepK3Lg_vqyncTCt7KSvNPJko3ZVE9jAf8ZIbFScocZJmVvODE6_dczMD0MyIJXjolXb08uiKTQXkuUD0JmpMMBAdzC4J_ke0O8PYAJRfa/s1600/Aphelia+After+right+cheek+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJFWR-P13n27yT7Issiz6ABSuRU3nb7jGDOWQepK3Lg_vqyncTCt7KSvNPJko3ZVE9jAf8ZIbFScocZJmVvODE6_dczMD0MyIJXjolXb08uiKTQXkuUD0JmpMMBAdzC4J_ke0O8PYAJRfa/s320/Aphelia+After+right+cheek+%25282%2529.jpg" width="177" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">Before (left) and after (right) pictures of the cheek</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">What are your thoughts on the scent of a product? Does the way a product smells ever stop you from using it?</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">Just a heads up, after I post the third review of these products I will be giving away a set so keep your eyes out!</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><i>All opinions are mine or Jenny's own and we received no remuneration for this post. These products were provided to Jenny for consideration.</i></span></div>
Sarah Kretchmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01904819632824704480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6603564265882667091.post-46365310725140677762013-02-10T10:35:00.002+11:002013-02-10T10:35:41.699+11:00The Clarisonic Mia: A review<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnLmqqZw7z7DzPxyKEBHfEThe270XWemFlj0siSS_C9BS2mAf3mjfHoG01nWKxzEybOgPjIHleVaP-ZnVABVOYHFolgMR06nnjq0WXO1wFPLgJqkSzJsyq0xZdrvug3tPUgEvngPJMblWy/s1600/clarisonic+mia2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnLmqqZw7z7DzPxyKEBHfEThe270XWemFlj0siSS_C9BS2mAf3mjfHoG01nWKxzEybOgPjIHleVaP-ZnVABVOYHFolgMR06nnjq0WXO1wFPLgJqkSzJsyq0xZdrvug3tPUgEvngPJMblWy/s320/clarisonic+mia2.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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<b style="text-align: start;">How to use it: </b><span style="text-align: start;">I used it once a day in the shower in the morning. I would apply cleanser to my face first, wet the Clarisonic under the shower then turn it on. It would immediately start buzzing and vibrating. I then gently massaged it over my face. The Clarisonic Mia has an automatic timer that switches it off after one minute. I would start cleansing my chin by massaging it in small circles. I usually spend around 10 seconds on the chin. I then do each cheek and jawline, this time massaging large circles with the brush. Again I would spend 10 seconds on each cheek/jawline and another 10 seconds on the nose. For the nose I just hold the brush over it, trying hard to get into the corner of my nose as this is a problem area for me. I then finish off by spending about 20 seconds on my forehead as I am getting a fair amount of congestion there at the moment.</span></div>
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The bristle on the Clarisonic Mia are quite soft but you don't want to press too hard. The Clarisonic isn't actually meant for use as an abrasive exfoliant - it uses ultrasonic vibration to shake loose cell debris and dirt then the brush sweeps them away. I found that if I ever did press a little bit too hard it would leave my skin feeling a little raw. However, this feeling didn't linger and within minutes the raw feeling had subsided.</div>
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Although the Clarisonic is an electric device, it is full water proof. The charger attaches to it magnetically so there is no entry point into the device for water to get in, hence why it can be used in the shower. This is absolutely brilliant as I do my cleansing in the shower so wouldn't want to have to incorporate an extra step when I got out. Since it is completely water proof I actually store the device in the shower. With two young kids I usually have to bolt into the shower when they are both happily occupied with something or when one of them is sleeping so this leaves me quite forgetful to bring products in with me. As soon as I get in the shower I see my Clarisonic in there waiting for me and it reminds me to use it.</div>
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I tested the Clarisonic with multiple different cleansers - the provided cream
cleanser and a couple of my own foaming cleansers. I think I prefer a foaming
cleanser with it as the cream cleanser tends to disappear in the bristles so at
times it feels like I am using it without a cleanser which feels a tiny bit
abrasive.<br />
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To clean the Clarisonic what I do is, once its 1 minute cycle has finished, I
then turn it on again and massage it over the palm of my hand under running
water until no hint of cleanser remains.<br />
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Once you have finished the one minute cycle with the Clarisonic your skin still
needs to be rinsed under running water to remove any remaining cleanser. This
is where you will first notice just how damn soft your skin is. After the first
time I used it I kept rinsing and rinsing my face thinking it still had
cleanser on it, it was so soft and slippery, until I realised that was how my
skin now felt,<br />
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After exiting the shower I noticed my skin was looking shiny like it had been
buffed. This faded once I applied serum or moisturiser. After the first time I
used it I was quite surprised at how much more quickly my moisturiser absorbed
in. I usually apply moisturiser then brush my teeth and afterwards my skin is
usually still tacky and shiny. After using the Clarisonic, my moisturiser had
fully absorbed by the time I had brushed my teeth.<br />
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In the first week after using it I noticed a few white heads appearing on my
forehead. They were only tiny so I think it must have been all of the gunk in
my pores rising to the surface. They cleared up and since then my forehead has
been looking a lot smoother. This last year my cleansing routine has gone out
the window. I had a baby 9 months ago and have been in a constant state of
exhaustion and so lost interesting in maintaining my skin. This has left my
forehead looking very bumpy. The Clarisonic has changed that . One minute of
cleansing with it each day has made such a difference. And because it is making
a difference I actually get a little bit excited about cleansing, my skin has
been looking so much smooth and feeling incredibly soft in the two weeks that I
have been using it.<br />
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This is one beauty device that is actually worthy of all of the hype around it.
Such a simple addition to your cleansing routine makes such a difference
therefore I cannot recommend this any more highly. It is definitely a
worthwhile beauty investment.</div>
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Here is a little video review that I did for <a href="http://www.beautyheaven.com.au/">Beauty Heaven</a> on the Clarisonic Mia:</div>
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/mHLybrYi-DU" width="560"></iframe><br />
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The Clarisonic Mia retails at $139 and can be bought at Myer or online at <a href="http://www.facialcompany.com.au/Shop/file/Product/cat/81/pid/2739/Clarisonic-Mia-Sonic-Skin-Cleansing-System.htm">The Facial Company</a> (as can replacement brush heads).<br />
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What beauty device can you not live without?<br />
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<i>All opinions are my own and I received no remuneration for this post. The Clarisonic Mia was provided to me for consideration as part of <a href="http://www.beautyheaven.com.au/">Beauty Heaven's Trial Team</a>.</i>Sarah Kretchmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01904819632824704480noreply@blogger.com