Go on, be a rebel...use soap on your face...I dare you!

I was introduced to the amazing range of handmade products from Okoii back in July and intended to post reviews in early September; however, was struck down with a particularly potent uterine parasite that left me comatosed on the couch each evening by about 8.00pm, so blogging had to take a massive back step. Now that my energy levels are returning I though that it is about time I told you about these amazing products!

Okoii products are handmade by Yoko, formally from Japan, now living in Australia. Her aim was to introduce Australian women to traditional natural ingredients from Japan and Asia that they may not previously have been aware of. Some of these ingredients have been used in Japan for upwards of 1000 years, and recently the benefits of such ingredients have been scientifically proven.

When you place an order with Okoii, your products are then made by hand, one by one, so you know that they are as fresh as they can possibly be. Other than Lush' Fresh Face Masks, I can't think of any other product that would be as fresh as Okoii. I find it quite exciting to know that when I purchase a product from Okoii, that it hasn't been sitting on the shelf of a warehouse for months, slowly deteriorating. It is recommended that the products be kept in the fridge to maintain their freshness and the all come with a recommended used by date that is between 3-6 months from when it was made.

The first product that I am going to introduce you to is the Luxury Rice Bran Face Soap. I decided to review this one on its own for two reasons. Firstly, it was my absolute favourite of all the Okoii products I tried; and secondly, it was actually the product that I was most fearful of trying. Why? Well, the first beauty rule that is drummed into every girls head is to NEVER USE SOAP ON YOUR FACE and I was being forced to break this rule (I am a first born goodie goodie who NEVER breaks the rules - this was tough for me to do!). Yoko assured me that this soap was incredibly gentle and was not at all drying. Lucky for her I am also a very trusting person so I decided to give it a go!

The soap arrived in the most beautiful packaging. It felt almost wrong to open it, but then a wrapped soap is pretty useless!

 

Inside the packaging was the gorgeous soap. The second the wrapper was off I was hit with the amazing floral fragrance that comes from the essential oils included in the soap. It is actually quite a subtle fragrance, which is perfect for a facial soap, yet after each time I used it my entire bathroom would smell of this gorgeous delicate floral scent.

The soap lathered really easily, with very little effort, and produced a luxurious creamy lather. I would always lather the soap up in my hands first then massage lather onto my face. The thing I was most worried about using a soap on my face was that it would be way too drying. However, whilst it left my feeling squeaky clean, it never left feeling tight or dry. I even tried not moisturising one morning after using it to see how it would feel and even after about 30 minutes it still didn't feel tight.

The description of the soap on the Okoii website states:

This luxury soap with high glycerine content will leave your skin with adequate oils. Also, this 100% all natural soap is very gentle to sensitive and matured skin. The unique addition to this soap is rice bran and rice bran oil, which will moisturise and smooth your skin.                       

If you have a look at the ingredient list (below) you will see why. The first 4 ingredients are all oils, then it is glycerine, hence why this soap really is non-drying.

Ingredients: Saponified Coconut Oil, Palm Oil, Castor Oil, Sunflower Oil, Glycerine, Purified Water, Sorbitol, Sorbetan Oleate, Soybean Protein, Rice Bran, Rice Bran Oil, Rice Powder, Honey, Vitamin E, Palmarosa Oil, Lavender Oil, and Geranium Oil

This soap is going to last you for absolutely ages making it excellent value. I used it twice a day for a month straight and I have barely made a dent in it. An 80g bar is $AU16.90 and can be purchased online from the Okoii store. As an added bonus, delivery is free within Australia and International delivery is only $AU10.00.

Are you game to use a soap on your face? Have you tried any Okoii products before? 

Why I keep getting fatter even though I vomit alot...

From the title of my post you are probably suspecting that I am:

• pregnant
• knocked up
• up the duff
• with child
• a bun in the oven
• in the family way
• on stork watch
• expecting
• in the pudding club
• my eggo is preggo
• up the spout
• in a fix
• be-child'd
• in a delicate state
• big with pig
• incubating
• caught the baby flu
• harbouring a uterine parasite
• sperminated

If you selected any of the above, then yes, you are correct! We are expecting baby number two and The Crazy Kid is going to be a big brother (actually, the thought of two Crazy's racing around the place is both hilarious and terrifying)!

I was debating whether to post about this as it is hardly beauty related, but in truth, it is affecting what I write. I have been careful not to give anything away until I passed the 12 week mark, though, just last night, when I posted my article on Nivea Products, I made a brief comment that I am avoiding Vitamin A. That was enough evidence for my good friend Katie to instantly message me with congratulations on my pregnancy (admittedly, Katie is a world famous pregnancy detector who can practically pick that you are pregnant before you even know yourself!!).

This pregnancy has really knocked me about. I never experienced tiredness with The Crazy Kid. I think that is because I am a normally very high energy person (some may say annoyingly high energy!) so when I lost half my energy being pregnant with Crazy, that just reduced me to a normal persons functioning energy levels. This time around it has been so different mostly because there is no time to rest when there is a Crazy Kid to fed, and change, and chase. For most of the first trimester I would pass out on the couch by 8.00pm at night. As I do most of my blogging at night that really affected it. In August, when I was really getting into the swing of things, I managed to post 22 times. Then in September is crashed down to 14 and so far in October I have only managed 10. The last week I have been feeling like the tiredness is lifting so hopefully that means more blogging!

I have also had (and still have) appalling morning sickness. I had it until week 32 with Crazy so I am hoping it doesn't last that long this time but I am still finding myself riding the porcelain bus 4 or 5 times a day. I can't drink anything other than water without vomiting (I did a blue spew an hour ago because I convinced myself that I could stomach a Seven Eleven blue lemonade Slurpee...I lost that bet!). This hasn't help my flailing energy levels.

I have a string of posts I have been wanting to write for a couple of months now. I feel so guilty at not getting around to it. Before I knew I was pregnant I emailed a PR a blog schedule and was sent a bunch of products to tie in with some planned articles and I have barely touched these products. I have just been too exhausted. Hopefully now my energy is returning I'll be able to get through them (and also learn a valuable lesson on not to over-commit myself in the future!).

So, there you have it - our exciting news! I am around 13 weeks now and am due late April/early May though I'm pushing for mid April - The Crazy Kid was nearly 2 weeks overdue because he is a stubborn little turd who was not going to let anyone tell him when he has to be born and even being induced was not enough to get him out of there so he had to be hacked and dragged out of my stomach, kicking, screaming and clinging on for dear life - so surely the next one will be kind and come out two weeks early instead! I have no idea what will happen to my beloved blog once I have two Crazy's to deal with. I hope it continues, though I have learnt with Crazy that I had absolutely no concept what-so-ever of what being a parent was like so cannot imagine what two are like. Crazy is in a good little routine now that I have forgotten how unpredictable newborns are. I plan to schedule posts and get some guest reviewers in to keep it going then fingers cross I can jump back in.

Have you managed to keep up your blog with two or more of your own Crazy Kids to deal with?

Any tips on how to bloody well stop puking so often?

How to work out which Nivea products will be right for you

Yesterday, in my post on Nivea Creme, I commented how I rarely buy skincare from the supermarket. The main reason for this is that I like to discuss my potential purchase with a sales assistant, make sure that it really is right for me, and to play around with testers to make sure I like the feel and smell of the product. Admittedly though, these days I tend to research products to death, through reading reviews on BeautyHeaven and beauty blogs, that by the time I am ready to purchase, I am practically an expert on the product. So, whilst I am very familiar with the Nivea brand, I have actually used very few of their face products and had no idea which ones suited my skin type and concerns. This was all to change at the Maxted Thomas PR Gala Dinner at ABBW.
At the Gala Dinner, the Nivea reps each had iPads which had an App that allowed them to recommend the best Nivea products for your individual needs. You completed a 60 second survey, choosing up to three skin concerns that you wanted treated. I think I choose anti-ageing/wrinkles as well as acne/problematic skin - yes, I have one of those annoying skin types that, as well as having fine lines that show my age, I still bloody well get the pimples I should have left behind in my teens.

Based on my choices, the following products were recommended to me:

Q10 Plus Anti-Wrinkle Light Day Cream

This is a lighter, non-greasy version of the original Q10 Plus Anti-Wrinkle Day Cream, specifically developed for combination and oily skin, for faster absorption and a non pore-clogging finish. The original Q10 Plus Anti-Wrinkle Day Cream is described by Nivea as an 'intensive hydrating Day Cream increases the natural Q10 level, fights wrinkles from within and visibly smoothes the skin'. It also contains SPF15 to prevent sun damage from causing new wrinkles (though if you are spending extended periods outside I would recommend additional sun protection such as Nivea's Light Feel Daily Face Veil).

I have only been using this for a couple of days and it is both incredibly hydrating and super light so it leaves my skin feeling soft and hydrated without being at all greasy. At this stage it is too early to comment on any anti-ageing effect so I will report back once I have given this cream a decent test drive but my first impressions are good!

Q10 Plus Anti-Wrinkle Night Cream



Like the original day cream, the Q10 Plus Anti-Wrinkle Night Cream contains Q10 and creatine to minimise existing wrinkles and prevent new ones from forming. It also contains vitamin A to assist the skin in healing itself overnight. I have yet to try this cream as I am avoiding vitamin A at the moment so will be reviewing this at a later date.

In addition to the products recommended by the App, I was also provided with some Daily Essentials Refreshing Facial Cleansing Wipes as I mentioned that I was a bit of a lazy cleanser. I am seriously in love with them! I have been using them every evening and for such little effort they really do remove all the daily grime on my face - it's quite incredible what comes off!

I was hoping the App would be available online for everyone to use but I can't find it anywhere. It was definitely available earlier in the year, through their Facebook page, but perhaps it has been taken down while they run the In Store/In Mall Skin Specialist sessions in celebration of 100 years of Nivea. To see if the Nivea Skin Specialists will be in a shopping centre near you, have a look at the list of locations here. I really hope that once the Skin Specialist sessions are over, Nivea will put the App on their website as it really is a brilliant tool to work out which Nivea products will be right for your skin type, especially as, in the majority of places that Nivea is sold, there is not a dedicated sales assistant who can assist with product choices.

Have you used the Nivea App to work out which products best suited your skin type?

Have you taken part in any of the other festivities to celebrate 100 years of Nivea?

My current obsession: Nivea Creme

As a rule I don't tend to buy my beauty products from the supermarket. Mostly because when I am buying my beauty products I like to browse for ages, sniffing and touching and fully testing the product before I take the plunge. When I am in the supermarket I just want to replenish The Crazy Kid's milk supply, my chocolate supply and my husbands Shapes supplies and get out of there with as few impulse buys as possible. So, it is most likely that reason I went so long without trying Nivea Creme. Either that or maybe it was because I always imagined it to be boring - like Nivea's version of Sorbalene cream - a simple, scentless, nondescript cream. I cannot believe how far off the mark I was.

Image courtesy of BeautyHeaven

Nivea had at stand at the Maxted Thomas PR Gala dinner at ABBW and they analysed our skin types then provided us with a complete collection of suitable products (I will go into more detail about this in another post). Once I had received my collection of goodies, the Nivea rep asked if there was anything else I'd like to try. 'I'm a bit addicted to the Creme, would it be OK if I grabbed a tub of that?' I asked. She laughed and said of course, apparently Creme addiction is a common affliction!

The first thing you notice, when you open a tub of Nivea Creme, is just how thick it is. It is the consistency of a balm or a body butter. You can literally turn the tub upside down and the Creme doesn't budge. I have a secret beauty fantasy that one day I would LOVE to bathe in a bath full of Nivea Creme. Or maybe go swimming in the vat of Nivea Creme at the Nivea factory (though that is a tad gross for anyone who subsequently buys one of those pots!). However, I suspect that this fantasy would fail miserably and that I'd either remain on the surface of the Creme, it's thickness supporting my weight; or I'd slowly sink, like in quicksand, to my untimely yet fragrant death.



The second thing you will notice is the incredible fragrance of the Nivea Creme. It is a very fresh floral fragrance that I utterly adore. In fact, if I could purchase this fragrance as I perfume I would and it would most likely become my signature scent. It is actually the fragrance of Nivea Creme that made it such a big seller in the early days of it's release - way back in 1911. There is an amazing review on the blog, 1000 Fragrances, on the history of Nivea Creme - in particular, it's fragrance. Basically, the formula for the fragrance was more complex than the actual recipe for the Creme - it was a true perfume composition with top notes, base notes and a dry down. Nivea Creme was never marketed as luxury product - it was an inexpensive mass produced product. It was released in an era when the women it was marketed to could rarely afford a luxury perfume, yet here was a beautifully fragranced moisturiser which contained 0.5% perfume, that lasted a long time on the skin. At a time where products were subtly fragranced at best, women started buying this Creme in droves and the immense success of Nivea Creme had begun.

The formulation of Nivea Creme is quite simple and is incredibly gentle making it suitable for use on the most sensitive skin, including on nappy rash. It is a mixture of water and fats, making it highly moisturising. In fact, Nivea were the first company to introduce a stable water in oil emulsifier. The secret to this was Eucerit, or lanolin - the fat from sheep's wool that is both greasy yet also absorbs water. Water, glycerine and Eucerit provide moisture to the skin whilst the fats in the Creme (Mineral oil, microcrystaline wax, paraffin and again Eucerit) lock the moisture into the skin. This leaves dry skin rehydrated and incredible soft.

Ingredients: Water, Mineral oil, Microcrystalline wax, Glycerine, Eucerit (lanolin alcohol), Paraffin, Panthenol, Magnesium sulfate, Decyl oleate, Octyldodecanol, Aluminium stearates, Citric acid, Magnesium stearate, Fragrance 

The Creme is incredibly rich, yet I find that it absorbs quite easily into the skin on my body. Every now and then I find myself craving a simple moisturiser for my face, especially when it has had a little too much exposure to the sun or wind. At these times I ditch my complex anti-ageing routine and use the Nivea Creme as I know that it will leave it hydrated and smooth. On my face, is very heavy and greasy - it does not absorb as well as it does on my body, so it is a night time only moisturiser for me. But when I wake in the mornings my skin is always amazingly soft and hydrated looking. It looks refreshed. Even with the heaviness of the Creme I have never had any issues with breakouts. This really is a gorgeous moisturiser that can be used on any part of your body - it is perhaps the most versitle product I own.

It seems that I am not the only person obsessed with Nivea Creme. I found the following two interesting stats online:

• Every second, a pot of Nivea Creme is sold somewhere in the world
• Enough tubs of Nivea Creme have been sold to supply one pot to every person who has ever been alive or is alive now

Such a simple cream really has made an impact on many, many people worldwide!

In Australia, you can buy Nivea Creme from supermarkets, pharmacies and Priceline stores. A 100ml tub will set you back $6.49 whilst a massive 200ml tub is only a tiny $9.16. At such a reasonable price, it really is one product that everyone should have a tub of, in their bathroom cabinet, for times when you skin needs a gentle yet serious moisture hit.

At this point in time I am unable to provide a quote for a bath tub full of Nivea Creme, hopefully Nivea rep will get back to us ASAP about the feasibility of this!

Have you tried Nivea Creme?

Do you share a similar beauty fantasy such as swimming in a vat of Nivea Creme?

What are your thoughts on the perfume - are you head over heals in love like me or is it not your cup of tea, or, heaven forbid, have you never tried the famous white Creme?

Pimp your favourite post in the Weekend Beauty Blog Hop

The Weekend Beauty Blog Hop was starting to get a bit boring so I have decided to change things up. Instead of listing your blog, I want you to post a link to your favourite blog post that you have written. Don't make reference to your blog but simply leave the title of your post so that it is a surprise to readers as to which blog they will end up at. I will post a link to one of my articles below so that you can see what I mean. If it is too hard to pick just one article to link to, you are more than welcome post more than once. After this week I will try and think of a theme each week, such as your favourite skincare post, or your most informative post. I would love suggestions if you have an ideas!

If you missed my original post on The Weekend Beauty Blog Hop, here's a quick explanation:

What is a blog hop?

A blog hop is a linky list that is SHARED ON MULTIPLE BLOGS.

When several blogs put the same linky list code on their blog, the exact same list appears on each blog.

Blog visitors can submit their entries on any blog that contains the list. The entries will appear on each blog where the list resides.

Blog readers see the same list on each blog, and can "HOP" from blog to blog seeing the same list of links to follow: BLOG HOP!

So basically, its an awesome way to discover new beauty blogs or have new readers discover yours. Or in the case of Pimp Your Favourite Post, its a great way to get new traffic to your favourite post.

The only rule is that your post must have some beauty content. That's it! Once you have joined, why don't you check out the other articles posted in the list - you may discover a brilliant post that you missed when it was originally published. Please Tweet or share a link to your Facebook account as the more posts we can get to on the list, the better the Weekend Beauty Blog Hop will be!

If you would like to do a post about this on your blog, by all means grab the code below. Feel free to lift any content from this post, all I ask is that you link where you got it from.

Hop away my friends, hop away! This link will be open from 7.30am on Saturday 22nd October until 7.30am on Monday 24th October (Australian Eastern Standard time).

In addition to the Weekend Beauty Blog Hop I have also set up a Beauty Blog Directory. If you would like your blog added to the Beauty Blog Directory leave a comment on that post or here with the following info:

1. Blog title
2. Blog URL
3. A brief sentence summarising the purpose of your blog (it can be your blog tag line if you like)
4. What country you are from. If you would also like to add your city and state, I will include that with your listing - that way you may be able to discover the fellow bloggers in your local area .

Once you have added your blog to the Beauty Blog Directory feel free to grab a button for your blog from the bottom of my right sidebar.

Enjoy the Blog Hop this weekend, beauty lovers!

Get this in your Santa sack: Fashion for Kiehl's Limited Edition Creme de Corps

Kiehl's has a long history of giving back to the community. This year, to celebrate 160 years of giving back, Kiehl's are donating $160,000 to global charities in three key areas: children's well being, environmental issues and HIV/AIDS research.

Kiehl's are continuing the tradition of giving, this Christmas, by teaming with three of Australia's top designers: sass & bide, ksubi and Zimmermann to create its holiday collection of Limited Edition Creme de Corps. Proceeds from Kiehl’s sale of each product in Australia will benefit the charity chosen by the three fashion houses.

So, what is the Creme de Corps? It is Kiehl's famous super rich moisturiser for dry skin that needs extra care and moisture nourishment. It contains Beta-Carotene which is an anti-oxidant used in vitamin A production (vitamin A is excellent for treating wrinkles and acne - very important in skin health); Cocoa Butter which softens and lubricates skin and is highly nourishing and moisturising; and Sesame Oil, which absorbs easily and softens the skin. Being so rich, the moisturiser takes a while to fully absorb into the skin, but once it does it leaves it incredibly soft and moisturiser. It is an absolute must over summer to prevent dry skin if you are planning on spending a lot of time at the beach. 

ksubi’s has chosen to support the charity War Child Australia. War Child International is a family of independent humanitarian organisations which work together to help children and young people affected by armed conflict. War Child Australia‘s major objectives are to raise awareness of War Child‘s work around the world and to raise funds for War Child‘s field projects. War Child Australia is staffed entirely by volunteers and has minimal administration costs, allowing over 99.9% of every dollar raised to be donated directly to aid projects around the world.  

ksubi: What was your inspiration behind the design?  We wanted to make something raw and fun so we used a black and white theme with hand drawn illustrations that have a distinct child like quality. We were inspired by kids, game shows, tatts, punk flyers, our friends.

sass & bide has chosen to honour Barnardos. For over 120 years Barnardos has been at the forefront of child welfare service provision and has embraced a tradition of innovation and holistic approach in our quest to find real, permanent solutions for Australian children in desperate need. By supporting the work of Barnardos you can create new dreams and outcomes to offer the adults of tomorrow a future free from neglect.

sass & bide: What’s your Inspiration behind the design? The bright colours & strong geometric shapes were inspired by the imaginative world of children where colours clash & contrast with each other.

Zimmermann’s charity of choice is the Starlight Children‘s Foundation. Since being formed as an Australian children‘s charity in 1988, the Starlight Children's Foundation has brightened the lives of seriously ill and hospitalised children, and their families, throughout Australia.

Living with illness or injury can cause enormous strain in the lives of children and their families. The pain, loneliness and isolation that sick children feel dominates their lives, and they often miss out on normal experiences that healthy children take for granted.

Starlight provides programs integral to the total care of seriously ill children – while health professionals focus on treating the illness, Starlight is there to lift the spirits of the child, giving them the opportunity to laugh, play and be a child again

Zimmermann: What’s your inspiration behind the design? I chose this print because I love the mix of colours, it feels summery in a soft vintage way.

The Limited Edition Creme de Corps will be available in all five sizes from November. They are available for purchase from the Kiehl‘s flagship Paddington boutique, as well as David Jones, Myer and Mecca Cosmetica. They will also be available in select sizes in ksubi, Zimmermann and sass & bide boutiques nationally. RRP $15.00 (75ml), $28.00 (125ml), $38.00 (250ml), $68.00 (500ml) and $98.00 (1L) or Limited Edition Trio $45.00 (3x 75ml).

I have my eyes on the Zimmermann designed floral bottle. Which designer bottler gets your heart racing? Will you be asking Santa for one of these?

Kiehl's have dropped ALL of their prices...$200 Kiehl's give voucher up for grabs

Earlier in the year, Kiehl's lowered their prices in Australia of their best selling products. I thought this was such a brilliant move by them as it would stop people looking overseas for better beauty bargains and remain loyal to their local distributor.

Well, I have some amazing news for you. Kiehl's have now lowered the price of ALL of their products in Australia byup to 48% - that's right - everything is now much cheaper with some items just about half what we used to pay.

To celebrate this price drop, Kiehl's are running a promotion where you could potentially win a $200 voucher to spend in their store. The first 5 bloggers who get 20 readers to post on the Kiehl's facebook page where they heard about the promotion and what their favourite Kiehl's product is and why, gets a $200 voucher to give to one of their lucky readers.

So what I need you to do is go to the Kiehl's facebook page: here and like it then:

Write on their wall: I heard about Price Drop #2 from The Science of Beauty and my favourite Kiehl’s product is the Line-Reducing Eye-Brightening Concentrate because it sinks straight in, leaving my eyes looking so refreshed and awake (replace the eye cream with your fav product and why).

5 lucky winners will then be drawn from the people who posted on their wall and they will each win a $200 voucher to spend in Kiehl's online store.

Good luck, beauties! 

Perfection in a bottle: Chanel Graphite Nail Polish

I will never own a Chanel suit. It is unlikely that I will ever own a (genuine) Chanel handbag. However, a Chanel nail polish was definitely attainable. Whilst they are ridiculously expensive compared with most other nail polishes ($AU39), they are still much more affordable than the $AU1,000,000,000 a handbag costs (or so I estimate as I have never actually priced one).

After seeing swatches of Peridot online, I knew that baby would one day be mine. The other two polishes in the collection - Quartz and Graphite - did not excite me the way Peridot did. That was until I read this review of Graphite on the Polish Police. Suddenly, Graphite was on my radar. It was stuck in my head like an ear worm; another baby, soon to be adopted.

I argued with myself for about a month on whether to get these polishes or not. Could I really spend nearly $80 on nail polish. It did seem rather excessive to me. Then, Myers sent me a $10 voucher for my birthday and I got a $30 voucher for doing a survey so the decision was made. For $38 of my own money (less than the cost of two OPI's!) I became the proud owner of Peridot and Graphite. Here is my review of Graphite.

Graphite is the most stunningly intriguing nail polish I have ever owned. In the bottle it looks a little bit dull and boring - grey and bland. But on the nail it is completely different. In some lights it is silvery, others a more gun metal grey, and in others it has almost a goldish tone to it. It is super sparkly, yet is not a glitter polish - though in saying that it appears more glitter than shimmer. It is quite opaque. Two coats and you can't see the nail line. In the photos below I have actually applied three coats (plus an addition two top coats of clear) because I was going to a wedding and I wanted it to be perfect. But ordinarily two would be sufficient.

When you apply the first coat there are actually quite a few rainbow sparkly particles in there but they get a bit lost with additional coats. If you look closely they are still there but they definitely don't stand out.

The polish is so easy to apply. It doesn't streak, the formula is gorgeous. In fact, as tough as it is to say this, I think this polish is probably worth $39. I am up to day three with this manicure and still no chips, though that may have something to so with the multiple coats and top coats I applied. When I did a Peridot manicure I did two coats without any top coat and it chipped the second day.

I am in love with this colour. It is both funky and classy. It matches anything. It is striking without be gaudy. It is perfection in a bottle.

I have tried to capture Graphite in as many different angles and lighting situations as possible to show off all of her personalities. The only thing I didn't manage to capture were the rainbow particles. I caught them in one photo, but it was completely out of focus so I couldn't bring myself to post it - it made me dizzy to look at. But you should be able to get an idea of all her other looks!

Quatz, Peridot and Graphite

Have you succumb to the lure of a Chanel nail polish?

The Weekend Beauty Blog Hop

TGIF because that means that it's time for the weekend beauty blog hop again! If you missed my original post, here's a quick explanation:

What is a blog hop?

A blog hop is a linky list that is SHARED ON MULTIPLE BLOGS.

When several blogs put the same linky list code on their blog, the exact same list appears on each blog.

Blog visitors can submit their entries on any blog that contains the list. The entries will appear on each blog where the list resides.

Blog readers see the same list on each blog, and can "HOP" from blog to blog seeing the same list of links to follow: BLOG HOP!

So basically, its an awesome way to discover new beauty blogs or have new readers discover yours. The only rule is that your blog must have some beauty content. That's it! Once you have joined, why don't you check out the other blogs in the list - you may discover a new 'beauty' to follow! Please Tweet or share a link to your Facebook account as the more blogs we can get to on the list, the better the Weekend Beauty Blog Hop will be!

If you would like to do a post about this on your blog, by all means grab the code below. Feel free to lift any content from this post, all I ask is that you link where you got it from.

Hop away my friends, hop away! This link will be open from 5.00pm on Friday 14th October until 5.00am on Monday 17th October (Australian Eastern Standard time).

In addition to the Weekend Beauty Blog Hop I have also set up a Beauty Blog Directory. If you would like your blog added to the Beauty Blog Directory leave a comment on that post or here with the following info:

1. Blog title
2. Blog URL
3. A brief sentence summarising the purpose of your blog (it can be your blog tag line if you like)
4. What country you are from. If you would also like to add your city and state, I will include that with your listing - that way you may be able to discover the fellow bloggers in your local area .

Once you have added your blog to the Beauty Blog Directory feel free to grab a button for your blog fromthe bottom of my right sidebar.

Enjoy the Blog Hop this weekend, beauty lovers!

What went down at ABBW 2011: a pictorial overview

A couple of weekends ago I attended the epic Australian Beauty Bloggers Weekend, a beauty blogging event organised by Jacie Galpin from You've Got Nail and Kimmi Nissen from The  Plastic Diaries. These two women did a phenomenal amount of work to make the weekend a reality and they really deserve a massive thank you. We all had such high expectations for the weekend, yet they were all surpassed by what unfolded. I hope to give you some insight into what went down over the weekend.

The amazing Jacie and Kimmi

I am a terrible photographer - mostly because I either don't remember to pack a camera, or when I do it never occurs to me to actually pull it out and take photos. Thankfully, there was an official photographer at ABBW - Liz Giacco. All images in this article have been taken by Liz Giacco for The Australian Beauty Bloggers Weekend, and are not to be reproduced, republished or reused without inclusion of this credit. Images remain the property of The Australian Beauty Bloggers Weekend. See the ABBW website for the full list of photos.

Day 1

IMATS

After registration, the weekend kicked off with a visit to IMATS. I have to admit that I was a tad disappointed with IMATS as, after the overwhelming size of the International Spa and Beauty Expo, I was expecting IMATS to be of similar size but it was actually much smaller. Plus, there were two brands that I really wanted to buy makeup from - Inglot and Makeup Forever (MUFE) but these were both ridiculously packed the entire day. I was just going along to impulse buy, though was after eyeshadows in particular from Inglot, but I just didn't have the patience to queue up forever. Next year I will do my homework ahead of time and hit the stands with a shopping list.

In addition to shopping, there were presentations on the centre stage. I managed to catch Elyssa Jade's presentation which was really entertaining. There were also student competitions going on throughout the day with the 'finished products' of their work walking around.

First stop: IMATS

IMATS in all its epicness

Thanks to the student competition, I saw
boobies...

...lots of boobies!

Julie from Me, My Best and I and I waiting for Elyssa Jade's
presentation 

We got fed and water at the Royal &
Langnickel hospitality tent

They also had makeup artists on hand to fix up
our makeup. This was fantastic for me as I was
too adventurous for my skills when applying my
makeup at 6.30am and effed it up pretty badly!

Beauty Directory Seminar

Next up was the Beauty Directory (BD) seminar. Beauty Directory is the industry leader in the beauty industry. This was my favourite segment of the weekend. It started off with a presentation by BD's managing director, Jackie Maxted who gave a really informative presentation on, as a blogger, how to develop relationships with PRs. This was particularly insightful as I have found that a lot of blogging is self taught so there is no one there to teach you the etiquette of approaching and working with PRs. This presentation as followed up with a round table discussion on our dealings, both good and bad, with working with PRs. BD were then going to take this info and use it to advise PRs on how to approach bloggers. 

After the seminar we then had the opportunity to mingle with a few brands - TriShave, Lapurete and Pure Therapy. I have to say that my product discovery of the weekend was the TriShave 3 in 1 shave cream for women. This is fragranced with tea tree and rose and is one of the most amazing smelling products - I can't believe how well those two scents work together - it actually makes me excited about shaving my legs as it means I get to use my shave cream again!

Jackie Maxted, imparting valuable wisdom 

Following the BD seminar we had a couple of hours free time. As it wasn't enough time to go home and come back in for the Gala Dinner, I decided to head back to IMATS and try and catch Napoleon Perdis' keynote address. I only manage to get the last half but found it to be really entertaining. Napoleon was talking about knowing your client and presenting yourself appropriately for that client. I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised that he still had an Aussie accent. For some reason I was expecting him to be 'Americanised'! Afterwards we were meant to have a meet and great with him which I was quite excited about - I had a couple of questions up my sleeves. But unfortunately I couldn't work out where we were meant to go and before I knew it Napoleon and his entourage was leaving in a shower of air kisses and waves, all complete with indoor sunglasses, just like a true superstar!

 

Maxted Thomas PR Gala Dinner

The final event of Day 1 was the Gala Dinner host by Maxted Thomas PR at the Establishment Ballroom. This was one of the most amazing events I have attended. When you first entered, before being seated for dinner, there were a variety of stands set up where you could mingle up close with brands.

There was an Orly nail bar where you could get the new gel polish applied. I decided against getting it done as I had just applied my new Chanel Peridot nail polish. I regretted my decision the next day, when my polish had already started to chip yet my fellow bloggers had gorgeous shiny nails. Oh well...you learn!

There was also a Sebastian mini hair salon where you could get your hair straightened or restyled. I was really tempted by this but as I have rather curly hair I was worried I'd be stuck in the salon for half the night. Would have been interesting seeing my hair straightened - it would probably go down to my bum once the curl is gone! 

In addition to these two bars there were stands set up for Burts Bees, Nivea, Remington and Coty perfumes. I was particularly impressed with Nivea - they discussed your skin concerns then gave you a complete skincare range ideally suited for these concerns - this meant you walked away with the perfect products for your skin (I also got a men's set for hubby - he was quite excited to find out that he got presents from the weekend as well!).

We were then seated at our tables for the dinner. We had set seats which was an excellent opportunity to meet new people. The food was amazing: entree was a goats cheese, candied walnut and pink leafy vegetable that I can't remember the name of salad; main was slow cooked beef cheek on sauteed potatoes (this was incredibly rich and i only managed to stomach half of it) the dessert was the most amazing passion fruit mousse - have a drool over the photo's below.

Throughout dinner we heard presentations from Ian Thomas, managing director of Maxted Thomas and Debbie Selikman, editor of beautyheaven.com.au. The night was meant to finish at 10.30 but by 10.15 I was absolutely shattered (as, like a little kid before Christmas, I was too excited the night before ABBW), so I head home a little early. I may as well have stayed as I was so wired from the day I still couldn't sleep that night! 

The Orly nail bar

The Sebastian mini salon

The Nivea spread

Me getting advice on Nivea products

Fancy a perfume refresher, Oh Lola?

 

Debbie Selikman and Ian Thomas

THE dessert

Day 2

Alpha-H breakfast event

Day 2 kicked off with a breakfast event. Unfortunately, it didn't click with me that we would be fed at the breakfast event. I got into the city a bit early so grabbed three hash browns from Maccas. Three hash browns was one too many and they didn't sit well at all, but when I ordered I thought I was too hungry for two.  Everyone else enjoyed a breakfast of yogurt and honey, fruit and mini quiches whilst I nursed an angry stomach.

We were then treated to a presentation from Michelle Doherty, the director of Alpha-H, who went through the brand; long time Alpha-H user and TV presenter Karen Ledbury gave a personal testimony on her experiences with the brand; then the national salon trainer Bianca Georgiou explained the Liquid Gold system in greater detail. I don't think that I have ever come across people who are more passionate about their brand than these three ladies - it really was quite inspiring.

 We then had a Face of Australia masterclass. The room was set up with mirrors and a full makeup kit and we were then given instructions on how to create four different looks. I started applying my own makeup but had actually worn my specs that day rather than contacts. It took me about 30 seconds to realise that it was impossible to apply makeup with my specs on and without them I couldn't see a thing. So, I recruited Carina Lofaro from Gilded Nails to do it for me, with Paula Sunsanguan from The Concealer overseeing the proceedings!

The final event of ABBW was a presentation from Bahar Etminan, founder and editor of Rescu. She went through how she got to where she is, including the collapse of her retail business then rebuilding and redirecting her business into the online lifestyle site rescu.com.au. She then went on to talk about professionalism in blogging. this segment actually created a huge amount of controversy within the room, with people going crazy on Twitter. The controversy came about with people interpreting Bahar as saying a hobby blogger won't be as respected as a professional blogger. However, the message I took away from this presentation was to be professional in all that you do when you blog, from how you present yourself, to never selling products, to always being respectful.

 

Bianca Georgiou for Alpha-H

The setup for the Face of Australia
masterclass

Carina Lofaro from Gilded Nails giving me a makeover

Bahar Etminan

So, that's what went down at ABBW. Apologies that it has taken me so long to get this post up - it took me a while to recover from the epic weekend!

The Weekend Beauty Blog Hop

After a short busy/lazy/tired related hiatus the Weekend Beauty Blog Hop is back! To make up for my lack of effort the last few weeks I'll really be promoting it this weekend to see how many blogs we can get on board...can we make it to 100?? I hope so! If you missed my original post, here's a quick explanation:

What is a blog hop?
A blog hop is a linky list that is SHARED ON MULTIPLE BLOGS.
When several blogs put the same linky list code on their blog, the exact same list appears on each blog.

Blog visitors can submit their entries on any blog that contains the list. The entries will appear on each blog where the list resides.

Blog readers see the same list on each blog, and can "HOP" from blog to blog seeing the same list of links to follow: BLOG HOP!

So basically, its an awesome way to discover new beauty blogs or have new readers discover yours. The only rule is that your blog must have some beauty content. That's it! Once you have joined, why don't you check out the other blogs in the list - you may discover a new 'beauty' to follow - haha awesome pun! Please Tweet or share a link to your Facebook account as the more blogs we can get to on the list, the better the Weekend Beauty Blog Hop will be! If you would like to do a post about this on your blog, by all means grab the code below. Feel free to lift any content from this post, all I ask is that you link where you got it from. Hop away my friends, hop away! This link will be open from 5.00pm on Friday 9th September until 5.00am on Monday 12th September (Australian Eastern Standard time).

In addition to the Weekend Beauty Blog Hop I have also set up a Beauty Blog Directory. If you would like your blog added to the Beauty Blog Directory leave a comment on that post or here with the following info:

1. Blog title
2. Blog URL
3. A brief sentence summarising the purpose of your blog (it can be your blog tag line if you like)
4. What country you are from. If you would also like to add your city and state, I will include that with your listing - that way you may be able to discover the fellow bloggers in your local area .

Once you have added your blog to the Beauty Blog Directory feel free to grab a button for your blog fromthe bottom of my right sidebar.
Enjoy the Blog Hop this weekend, beauty lovers!

Spa Ritual: Its Raining Men nail lacquer

I picked up two nail polishes at IMATS - Imaginarium (swatched here) and It's Raining Men. I had never heard of Spa Ritual before so just stuck to two - now I wish that I had bought more as I have heard that they are difficult to find (most likely why i hadn't previously heard of them!). Spa Ritual polishes are vegan plus DBP, formaldehyde and toluene free.

I have been a bit lazy when applying them and haven't used a top coat and they both still nice and shiny. Imaginarium started chipping after 2 days so with a top coat you'd probably get an extra day or two out of them.

It took three coats to get Its Raining Men to this colour intensity. After two coats there were no streaks but it was still a tad translucent - I could see my nail through the polish. Three coats makes it totally opaque.

It's Raining Men is a very wearable colour. It is not quite the statement colour that Imaginarium is but definitely one that will get plenty of wear.