Beauty Must Have of the Week: Moisturiser

Barely a day goes by, when I'm not moaning about my oily skin. It's almost as if my brain has just become programmed with the data that tells it to moan about it, as much as physically possible, as if moaning will somehow fix it. But, for the record, moaning, no matter how much you do it, never solved anything.

Bearing that in mind, it might seem a little bit odd to suggest Moisturiser, of all things, to be my Beauty Must Have of the Week. Why? Because for a very long time, I didn't think that I should be using moisturiser, purely because I had oily skin.

My belief was, that because my skin was already thick with oil, placing more into it would just clog up the pores, creating break outs, and leaving an even bigger oil slick on my face. But, apparently this isn't entirely accurate!

Moisturising is crucial, no matter what your skin is like, whether it is dry, oily or combination, because the cream is full of vitamins and nutrients that our skin needs in order to glow, and to stay completely nourished. This is important, because modern life is just a nightmare for our skin, as it strips away the goodness that our body naturally produces.

However, it is also important to make sure that you only use a moisturiser that has been designed for your skin type. It doesn't matter if you prefer a cream, liquid, gel etc, as long as it suits your skins needs.

For dry skin, you'll want something that adds moisture, however, for oily skin, you'll be looking for a product that nourishes your skin, but regulates the amount of sebum that your skin releases, at the same time, in order to help combat that awful shine on the skins surface. In this case, you are most likely going to be looking for a moisturiser that is not oil based.

Just remember that a little goes a long way, when it comes to moisturiser, and try to use your products first thing in the morning, before y ou head out to face the world, and last thing at night, allowing your skin to get it's nourishment whilst you are sleeping.

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Rimmel Nail Rescue 14-Day Challenge

It's no secret that I bite my nails. I've done it since my first year of Primary School, in roughly 1989, and I no doubt always will bite them. Nevertheless, since I've gotten more into doing my nails with Nail Art, such as Konad, I've found that I'm biting them a great deal less. This is of course brilliant news for my poor nails. Unfortunately, 22 years of incessant nail biting has led me to discover that I have very weak nails.

To be fair, I've never really paid that much attention to my nails. I very rarely moisturise them, other than when I use Hand Cream, I don't do anything to my cuticles (I don't thin I'd know where to begin!).
But after accidentally ripping part of my thumb nail off, I've come to the conclusion that it really is time to actually do something good for my previously unloved talons.

Rimmel currently have a 3 for 2 offer on all of their products, in both Boots and Tesco, so I decided to have a brief browse. The thing is, I wasn't actually looking for something to specifically treat weak nails, but rather for a Base Coat, because I'd noticed a few Beauty Bloggers going on about how important it is to use one. Whilst looking at the nail polishes, I noticed that they also sell a Nail Rescue product, that strengthens the nails in 14 days.

So, I decided to take up Rimmel's challenge to make my nails stronger in 14 days, and yep, you guessed it. You guys are most definitely coming with me.

It's now been three days since I actually started the challenge, which involved:

Day One: Applying a first coat to each nail

Day Two: Applying a second coat to each nail

I'm on Day Three now, and I don't actually need to do anything else until Day Seven. BUT, i'm finding the whole thing to be a little bit weird, because I have to admit that I am not a fan of clear nails. Personally, I find it to be bloody boring, and I'm finding that I just want to put something else with more colour oiver the top, but I'm not sure if you're allowed to or not, so I won't.

I can't believe that I'm going to be colourless for 14 days whilsy my beautiful oranges, greens, pinks and blues are all stuck in the Fridge totally unloved. And with my new Base Coat and another E.L.F product waiting to be tried, it's tough. But, I really want stronger nails, so that my nails will hopefully be too tough to bite!!

Anyway, Day Three and I'm already noticing a difference in my nails. They genuinely feel harder, if that makes any sense. I can definitely imagine having major issues trying to bite them, but even if they're not pysically strong enough to prevent the biting, I've noticed that because I have this stuff on my nails, I'm more actively trying not to bite them. And it seems to be working....for now anyway!

I guess the real challenge comes on Tuesday. I bite my nails, predominantly, when I'm nervous (in Secondary School, the majority of my nail biting occured whilst standing in the queue, waiting to do the High Jump!), and I am definitely expecting to be nervous on Tuesday morning!!

That's where I am so far, and I'm intending to post again regarding how my nails are doing over these 14 days, so remember to keep checking back!

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Tangle Teezer

You might be aware that I am on a crazed mission to find products that will help to tackle the annoyance that is my tangled hair. Why? Because it drives me bananas, and I fear what it is doing to my poor fine hair, which is already susceptible to damage, as it is.

So, when I came across this interesting device, called the Tangle Teezer, I just had to give it a try, and the lovelies agreed to let me have one to try out, so you can imagine I get very, very excited about testing this one out.

The Tangle Teezer and Me: I have a confession to make (yes, another one, I seem to confess something in most of my blog posts, these days), but I've actually been aware of the Tangle Teezer for around four years. Why? Because Shaun P, the talented Hairdresser who devised this beauty is from the same small East Coast town as me (crazy, but true), and I remember when he appeared on Dragons Den, way back in 2007.

Unfortunately, at the time, the Dragons poo-pooed his idea, which I remember screaming at the tell (not quite literally), and not being able to understand, because the idea is just ingenious to anyone, like me, who struggles with knots, or has children with tangled hair. In fact, I remember calling the Dragons "idiots" for letting this idea slip away. Okay, so maybe they didn't get the notion of needed something for tangled hair, but we fine-haired folk did! I longed, so much to try that little brush, but honestly believed it would never happen, since the Dragons had failed to invest.

The Tangle Teezer made a very brief emergence, about a year later, in 2008, when my Hairdresser at the time, mentioned that she liked using it for tangled hair (after noticing how knotty mine got), and she'd recommended that I give it a try. Sadly, at the time, I hadn't been able to get hold of one.

First forward to yesterday, and whoopee, I finally have one sitting in my hot little hand, waiting for me to try!

First Impression: The Tangle Teezer is certainly an interesting little brush, which fits quite neatly into the hand.

A few people have commented that the brush seems to be a bit cheap, and that it looks like it would break easily, but I don't think that it's any more "weak" looking than any other comb, and I do think that the value should be in whether it works or not, rather than what it looks like.

How I used it: One of the biggest challenges I have with my hair, is getting the knots out before I wash it. I usually try to do this, to help my hair to not be too tangled after I've washed it, but when my hair is greasy, I normally can't manage to do, it very often, I'll just give up. The Tangle Teezer, however, zipped straight through my knots, with very little problem. And, even when it did hit a snag (so-to-speak), it didn't take too much effort to get rid of the problem.

After I had applied the shampoo, I decided to give the Tangle Teezer a try to attempt at working the shampoo through my hair evenly. I did this, because the massage motion of shampooing tends to make my hair knotted, but the Tangle Teezer had no problems at all. In fact, when I was rinsing the shampoo out, I could instantly feel the difference in my hair, because it just felt so much nicer.

I used this method again, when I used the Conditioner, in order to ditribute the product evenly through the hair, and again was impressed with how easily the brush went through my hair.

After getting out of the bath, I left my hair for a while, without touching it with anything other than a towel, which I used to pat it dry. Whilst it is drying is another time when my hair is at it's worst for getting out knots. Typically the longer I leave it, the harder they are to get out. Nevertheless, the Tangle Teezer found my tangles (admittedly, by this stage, there weren't many left) a doddle!

Who would I recommend the Tangle Teezer to? I absolutely love this product, perhaps even more than I'd initially expected to (and my expectations were pretty high!). So, I would most definitely recommend it to anyone who has issues with knots, no matter whether their hair is fine or thick.

Price: The one I had, costs around £10.20 (with the VAT increase), but there are other models that cost up to £13.26 (with the VAT increase).

Where to Buy:  Tangleteezer.com direct, or the website can tell you where your local stockists are (typically Hair Salons).

Promotions: The Tangle Teezer is currently working alongside the Disney film "Tangled".

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Tips: Greasy Roots

Did you know? That if you have oily skin, you are more likely to have greasy hair as well? This might seem pretty obvious, but I have to confess, that I didn't know this, so I thought I'd share that with you guys, just in case :)

So, if you're like me and didn't know that fact, then you're probably wondering how the two are connected. And, that's easy enough to answer.

Basically, our skin is made up of lots of microscopic glands, known as Sebaceous glands, and it is these little wonders of nature, that secrete and regulate the sebum, or moisture, that our skin needs in order to stay nourished and healthy looking. However, if these glands don't provide enough sebum to the skin, you'll find that your skin dries out quickly, whilst if the glands produce too much, yep, you've guessed it, you'll find that you have oily skin!

But, my tip this week isn't about combating your oily skin, but rather your greasy roots.

Tip: When washing your hair, don't massage the root-area with the balls of your fingers, because this will just stimulate the sebaceous glands, and encourage them to produce more sebum, which you really don't need, or want.

Instead, try rubbing the shampoo into your hair by placing your hands flat on your hand and gently massaging with the lengths of your fingers. This is also beneficial if you have fine hair, that is prone to knotting, because you're not rubbing your hair in a way that clumps them all together.

Note: This was actually a tip that myold hairdresser told me over ten years ago :-D

Okay, so hands up if you hate, no detest, greasy roots!

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E.L.F Light Red Nail Polish

Red Nail Polish and Me: I have a confession to make. I have to admit, that when it comes to red nail polish, I am a little bit of a snob.In my honest opinion, it's the colour I wore when I was six years old, and got more of it on my hands than anywhere near my nails. It's the colour I wore with bright blue eyeshadow, bright pink lipstick and bright pink blusher. It's a shade of nail polish that I associate with blonde, not too bright "dolls". It's a colour that I associate with old women.

Hence, it is a nail polish colour that I have avoided like the absolute plague! And in my adult life, I have most definitely never owned one!

So what changed my mind? I'm not really sure. I think when you start writing a beauty blog, you are forced to open up to trying things that you wouldn't normally be interested in, which is fun, because you find that your snobbery towards certain shades and styles are usually unrealistic.

I think that I just realised that the beauty industry has moved on substantially since I was six years old, and I guess I just wanted to see if I could make myself like the colour, I mean, I wear red tops, my winter coat is red and I do infact own a red lipstick (albeit not worn since 2003!!), so why can't I wear a red nail polish?

So, with that in mind, here's my review of E.L.F's Light Red Polish:

Opening it Up: The first thing I noticed when I came to this nail polish, was the huge packaging that encompassed this bottle. For a company that sells their products exclusively online, and not in a shop, I really don't think I understand the purpose of all this fancy packaging? It serves no real purpose as far as I can see, and seems like a complete waste of cardboard and plastic.

I don't think that I have ever come across a nail varnish that came in a box, except when I've bought OPI Mini Sets or similar.

Maybe I've been buying the wrong kinds of polish?

The Bottle: I have to say that I quite like the shape of the bottle, because the "rectangle"-ness of the shape made it easier to grab (sometime my hands get quite oily, and round bottles can slip out of my hands!).

The Brush: Again, I really liked the brush, mainly for the size of it. I'm very fond of nail polishes that have quite large brushes, because it means that you cover your nail in less strokes, and when you're rubbish as applying polish in the first place, less strokes always helps. Admittedly, it isn't quite as wide as the latest generation of Rimmel nail polish brushes, but it still worked a treat.

Application: As I already said, application was quick due to the brush, but I was also impressed with the instant intensity of the colour. With a lot of polishes, I tend to find that you don't really get a good feel for the colour until the second coat (at least), so it was nice not to have to wait to see what the colour was going to be like.

Aaaaand, what did I think about the colour: Hmm, I have to say.....that....I....loved it! I think that out of any shade of red, that I had to try to ween my way back into liking red polish (not that I ever really liked it!), this was the perfect one. Why? Because it isn't that really bright, really glossy kind of red that I often had my snobbery around. Instead, it's a much deeper red, and in some lights it actually looks like a browny-red, which was interesting. I'm really not sure how accurate the name "Light" Red is, but who am I to be picky?

I think that you can just about tell in the picture, but the colour in the bottle does look to be a little lighter than it does on my nails. I definitely feel that the colour is much darker once it has dried.

So, am I now a Red Polish Convert? Weeeell, I still think I'd be a little bit picky if I ever bought another polish, but I could be tempted to buy one, if it's a deeper shade, rather than a bright one.

And on the Record? Yes, okay, I'm a Red Polish Convert! *sigh* Beaten again!

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Debate: Price or Reward

I was just reading Hannah's blog over at Betwixt Beauty, and a comment made about her post started making me think about what motivates me to buy products, and where I buy them from. So, I thought I'd start a couple of debates going:

One. Retailers - Boots or Superdrug

First of all, which retailer do you predominantly shop at? Do you choose Superdrug, who are cheap. Or do you choose Boots, who are generally more expensive, but offer the incentive of having a rewards scheme? In this case which is more important, price or reward?

My Opinion:  At first, I thought to myself, well, of course I'd take the cheaper option, but then I really sat down and thought about it, and I realised that in the real world, I actually find myself heading to Boots more often than Superdrug. Why? Because whatever I buy from Boots is going to give me points on my Boots Card. And we all know what points make right...?

Your Opinion: Which would you choose: Boots (Rewards) or Superdrug (Cheap)? Leave your thoughts below...

Two. Products - Cheap or Reward

Our Second debate looks at actual products. There are two items for sale. They're both pretty much the same product, and they're a product that you genuinely need. One is reasonably priced, whilst the other is  more expensive. However, the more expensive one comes with a money-off voucher. Do you choose the cheaper option, or the most expensive one and happily take the reward?

My Opinion: This is a toughy. If the "reward" was a free gift that wasn't too bad, this would be easy, I'd take the expensive one, because we all love the idea of a freebie. But, when it comes to a money-off voucher, it's harder to decide.  Ultimately, I have to think that I'd take the cheaper option, purely because, as a rule, money-off vouchers tend to be for products that I wouldn't want in the first place. But, then their often for money off products that I wouldn't alternatively try, so it really is tough!

Your Opinion: Again, which would you choose? Nice and cheap, or expensive but a reward in the shape of a voucher. Join the debate in the comments below :)

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Return of the Spring Mac

Spring is finally in the air (thank goodness!), and it might still be slightly chilly, but most of us are now starting to look for a jacket to see us through the milder weather, until Summer arrives. And if you are anything like me, you probably can not wait to throw away your over-sized but warm coat for something a little bit nicer.


This Spring Seasons coats seem to be favouring the Mac, once again, which for us larger ladies, is brilliant, because the latest trends for Macs tend to be fitted around the waist, or have a waist-synching belt, that are really great at creating a really nice curve. This is nice if you're a little larger than you'd like, and don't have a lot of shape (it's also great for slimmer, boyish figures too of course!)

Last season, I had a Mac that was relatively short in length, but fortunately, this year most shops seem to be opting for a little longer, which is much better if you are seeking a jacket that hides your bum or tummy.

I've had a little scout around, and I managed to find some absolutely gorgeous Macs, just to just you all a little idea about what there is on offer, in some of the most popular providers of larger sized clothing.

Piped Mac

From: New Look

Collection: Inspired

Available in: Sizes 18 to 26

Price: £31.99 (Previously £39.99)

I absolutely adore this Mac, and am strongly considering buying it myself...

expect I don't actually need a new jacket! But, then again since when did that stop me :P

Stone Double Breasted Mac

(not "Breated" as the website states!)

From: Dorothy Perkins

Available in: Sizes 6 to 22

 Price: £45

I also have a double breasted Mac, not like this, but I love this one all the same.

However, if you have a large "chest", I really don't recommend buying a doubled breasted jacket,

because it'll just make them look enormous!

Of course, Mac's aren't for everyone, but here is a Military-style jacket that I think is so lovely, that I just had to share it with you:

Black Stretch Twill Military Jacket

From: Yours Clothing

Available in: Sizes 16 to 32 

(However Sizes 24 and 26-28 are both currently out-of-stock)

Price: £38

Although my jacket is a Mac, it is very similar in style to this one, 

which I think is just too cute!

 Are you looking forward to getting out of your big winter coat? What do you plan on wearing this coming Spring Season, which can not come soon enough!?

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Pantene Aqua Light Conditioner

Pantene Aqua Light and Me: Regular readers might be thinking "hang on, haven't you already reviewed Pantene's Aqua Light Conditioner?", and you'd be right, I originally reviewed it, alongside the Pantene Aqua Light Shampoo back in August. But, I've literally just started using the Conditioner (minus the Shampoo), and I really wanted to do a little update, with my latest findings from my experiences.

Why I chose to Buy the Conditioner for a Second time: Following on from yesterdays post about needing to have a Wide Tooth Comb, in the long battle against knots, well I'm about to explain just how much I miss having one, because I left my special detangling one at the Parents about a month ago, and I haven't been home to get it yet.

With my hair being relatively long these days (which is what happens when you can't find a Hairdresser that you settle with), it has gotten incredibly knotty, so not having my Wide Tooth Detangling Comb, combing my hair has become an absolute nightmare! And if you don't believe me, last Wednesday (the day I actually ended up buying the Conditioner), I spent roughly half an hour trying to get the knots out of my hair!! And when I say "get", what I really mean is "hacking".

As you can imagine this was probably not very good for my hair, so I decided that I was going to have to bite the bullet, say bye-bye to my cheapy, but nice 91p Boots Conditioner, and invest in the definitely not so cheap Pantene Aqua Light one instead.

So, why Aqua Light? I deliberately had Pantene's Aqua Light in mind, before I'd even dried my hair, because I remembered how amazing the product had left my hair when I first tried it last August. I remember how it was light and didn't leave my hair feeling bogged down, but I also remember how my hair had been free from knots.

And did it Conquer my Knots? Now, it's important to point out that when I used the Aqua Light products last year, I had much shorter hair. That means that my hair is more prone to knotting, because it's so fine. But, I've been using it for a week now (ish), and I have to say that whilst I do still have a little bit of a problem with my hair being tangled, it is a great deal better now thanks to the Pantene Conditioner.

Seriously, if that is not hard evidence of how great Pantene's Aqua Light Range is for fine hair, then I have no idea what is! I absolutely love this conditioner, and I am definitely more willing to fork out the extra cash for a product that genuinely helps with my annoyingly knotty hair!

My hair says "Thank You!"

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Twenty Questions

I've been on the thievery again, and stole this from someone's blog, but I haven't done one of these blog posts in a while, so thought I'd do one today. Sit back, and enjoy!

1. Are you a night or a morning person? I am most definitely a night person. I try to be a morning person now that I work for myself, but it just never happens!

2. What was your favorite childhood cartoon? Oh god, there were so many: Care Bears, Count Duckula, Cities of Gold, Yogi Bear, Gummi Bears.

3. Are you are a collector of anything?  It wasn't intentional, but I seem to have grown a collection of cat "things", it's mainly ornaments, but I also have some cat pictures on the wall in my flat. I also have a collection of video games, although it really isn't that big.

4. What do you usually think of before going to sleep? At the minute how bloody cold it is. But no it varies, sometimes I wish I was bringing in a little more money out of my writing, and other times I'm thinking about ways of making my blog better for my readers!

5. Whats you favorite colour? Well that one is easy peasy - purple!

6. Have you ever been addicted to a video or computer game? Oh, many times! The last game was the latest Star Ocean for the PS3, but since the PS3 lives with the boyfriend and not me, I've started playing Final Fantasy 12, but not really addicted to it, although I was when it first came out!

7. Do you have any bad habits? I have many!! Nail biting, not believing in myself, lacking confidence to name but a few!

8. Name 3 of your best personality traits? I like to think I'm a nice person who wouldn't intentionally go out of my way to hurt anyone, I'm considerate of others (I spend a lifetime holding open doors for people....some might call this "mug"-like, but I think it's just being a decent person) and I often put other people before me.

9. Do you have any tattoos or piercings? I have my ears pierced once, and my nose pierced. I had my nose pierced when I was in year 11, but I haven't worn anything in it for a good couple of years. It's not that I've grown out of it, as such, but more that I grew tired of losing the nose studs and having to buy new ones all the time!

10. Whats the first thing you notice about the opposite sex? Eyes, or their smile


11. Do you consider yourself to be a clean or messy person? I would really love to say that I'm a neat and tidy type of gal, but I'm really not. I have never been tidy, and I don't expect that I ever will be. I do try to keep my flat clean, as in I do the washing up (albeit not religiously), I clean the floors and work tops and I vacuum, but I don't put a huge amount of effort it, because I just think that life is too short and I'd much rather be blogging, writing or doing something more fun.

12. If you could live anywhere where would it be and why? Up in the mountains in the summer, and somewhere warmer in the winter. I grew up spending my summers up in the mountains of North Wales, and it is just so beautiful up there. The scenery is just spectacular. But, I really would not fancy one of their harsh winters, so I'd have to choose somewhere a little nicer for the winters. I don't necesarily want to go somewhere hot, like Australia, because heatwaves at Christmas just feels odd, but somewhere where I don't have to wear ten pairs of socks would be lovely.

13. What's your favorite song right now? I am so out of touch with the majority of modern music...I think it's a sign of getting ever so closer to the big 3-0. These days I tend to just like songs without really knowing what it is, but recently I currently a song by Bruno Mars and another by McFly (never thought that I would ever use "like" and "McFly" in the same sentence, but there you go!)


14. Do you have any hidden talent? If someone asks me what else an actor has been in (besides what we're currently watching), nine times out of ten I can tell them at least one film or TV show (go on, test me!!)

15. Name one thing people don't know about you? I was the Web Designer for the Creative Writing Society at Uni, but I never actually did anything, because the Tech guys in charge of society web space were all useless!

16. What is your favorite movie of all time? The Wizard of Oz. It is one of those films that I have been watching since before I can remember, and has always been a part of my life. I've always loved the shift between black and white to colour, and think that it was very ahead of its time.




Something else people might not know about me: when I was about nine, I was in The Wizard of Oz on Ice!!

17. Do you know the meaning of your name? This is from memory, so it could be wrong but: Kathryn (or Katherine), from the Greek word Kathos meaning "pure".

18. Which You Tuber would you like to meet in person? Lauren Luke. She is such an inspiration to everywhere, and just goes to show that you don't need qualifications or a posh accent to be successful.

19. What are the three closest things to you at the moment? My phone, my laptop and my Ripcurl backpack (random? yes)

20. Who would you like to tag? Everybody!! Come on, you know you want to ;)

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Beauty Must Have of the Week: Wide Tooth Comb

What is a Wide Tooth Comb? A wide tooth comb is pretty self-explantarory. The teeth (the bit that you comb through your hair with) on a standarrd comb tend to be quite close together. However, on a wide tooth comb they are further apart.

Who should be using a Wide Tooth Comb? Did you know that your hair is at its weakest whilst it is wet? But, whilst it is still wet is the best time to be combing it.

However, wide tooth combs are especially important for anyone with:

a. Fine hair, that is prone to getting knotty or tangled easily
b. Anyone who knows that their hair is damaged
c. Anyone who has particularly long hair
d. Anyone who has tangles either all the time, or occassionally.

Why should you be using a Wide Tooth Comb? Using a wide tooth comb is much gentler on your hair, wriggling through your tangles with ease, without excessive pulling that could damage your locks.

TIP: If like me, you have hair that tangles regularly, you might want to choose a wide tooth comb that is specifically made for this purpose. Instead of having straight teeth like other combs, detangling ones have pairs of teeth that curl into eachother. This design allows the teeth to get through your knots with ease, and trust me when I say a lot less pain!

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Lush back on their Feet

It is so nice to see that the Lush website is back up and running, following being "hacked" a while back. I am an absolutely huge fan of Lush, and can not go past a store without going in. I am usually led their by my nose, even if I'm in a town I've never been to, and didn't even know it was there, because let's face it, you can always smell Lush before you see it, and never in a bad way!

I've witnessed other popular websites that have suffered from "attacks" that have never gone back up, especially not selling products, because they're too afraid of it happening again, so I'm really glad that Lush haven't allowed some pathetic idiots to rain on their parade, so to speak. Lush are a great company (albeit sometimes a little too expensive for my likings), and not having a local one where I live, it's nice to be able to have an online browse again, even if I can't smell their beautiful aromas (oooh, I'll just have to sit here and imagine that for a little while........okay, and I'm back....maybe.....)

So, how exactly have Lush attempted to tackle the problem, and prevent it from happening again? Well, instead of just repeating what they have already said so beautifully, here's the official line from their new (apparently "temporary", but hopefully not too temporary!) website:

"...you will see that our payment page now takes you away from the Lush website and directly to our card providers site, where your payment is safely in the hands of the big boys at the money institutions. You can shop with confidence knowing that your details will be safe."

Whilst having a little browse around the website, I also found it sorta sad that they felt the need to thank us loyal customers for trusting them enough to come back, because anyone who has ever shopped at Lush knows how great they are, in so many ways.

In fact, going off-par a little here, Lush is one of only two shops I've come across in England (the other being my beloved Paperchase) where every single time I go in, the staff make me feel like they're happy I'm there, that I'm not burdening them, and they never make me feel like they have somewhere else they would much rather be. They're always so helpful, and I can honestly say that I have never, ever had a bad experience (I also don't think that I have ever been strong enough to walk out of Lush empty-handed, but that's something else entirely ;-P)

So, yay, I am not off to have a better lookie around their website (shame I'm too skint at the minute to buy anything though :( )

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Tip: Beautiful Hands

If, like myself, you bite your nails, or, unlike me, have really dry skin on your hands, the chances are that at some point or other, you've suffered from something called "hand nail". This sounds pretty scary, I have to admit, but it isn't as grotesque as the name probably implies.

Hang nail is when a small part of the skin around the nail breaks, and is caused, as you might guess by either having very dry skin, or nail biting. The worst part about hang nails, isn't necessarily how ugly they are (because they're really not very attractive), but how painful they can be. Unfortunately, that pain is never helped by the inane need to pick at it, or worse bite it, in fact, doing either of these will definitely make it worse for you.

Instead of picking or gnawing it off (that really does sound gross!), the key is to understand the cause, and to combat that cause, which is dried out skin. So, the remedy is to moisturise, of course!

Nevertheless, it's easy to reach for your favourite hand cream, but if you find that you've run out, or the boyfriend has stolen it (despite his profuse protests to the contrary), all is most definitely not lost. The solution?

Olive Oil.

No, really. Olive oil is actually incredibly nourishing, and works at building up your skins elasticity. I know Olive Oil doesn't smell quite as nice as moisturisers, but most of us have it already in our kitchen cupboards, so it's really cheap. And you know how much I love the word "cheap"!

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Diet Coke? Erm, No Thanks! *Rant Coming*

Like most bloggers, I spend a lot of time reading other people's blogs. Partially because I'm a nosey little bugger (shush you at the back!), partially because I want to make myself extremely jealous of all the stuff I can't afford (no Violins today please!) and also because it's a great way of finding out about offers and such, that I might have missed.

On Monday and Tuesday, I started noticing a lot of people blogging about Diet Coke's latest offer of Buy Two Bottles and get a free gift, which after last years Diet Coke and Nails Inc expedition, I was interested to see how this nail polish would pan out, because like Nails Inc, I've never heard of MUA.

So, I trundled off to Superdrug yesterday, with my mum, to see what all the fuss was about, and two things annoyed me:

1. I managed to find the Diet Cokes, with the label telling me that if I bought two bottles of Diet Coke, I could get a MUA Nail Duo Set (or something along those line) for free. Okay, that's nice, but where exactly are these MUA sets? Hmm...when Boots did their Nails Inc offer last year, the nail varnishes were on the same stand, but nowhere in the entire shop could I find what was described on the advert in front of the Diet Cokes.

2. Although I didn't find what was actually on offer, I did manage to find the actual MUA stand, and I have to say that I was a little bit disgusted at the fact that the MUA cosmetic range is only £1 anyway!

So, let me get this straight. You want me to buy two bottles of a drink that I don't particularly like, at an extortionate price, just to get a free product, from a range that is only worth £1 in the first place??

Okay, so maybe the free gift was worth more than that (I wouldn't have a clue, I still haven't seen it), but I really can't figure out the motivation for anyone, unless you're intending to buy two bottles of Diet Coke in the first place!

Please tell me, if I got this wrong somewhere, but I honestly do not think that this is any kind of "bargain" at all!

Aaaand, my rant is over!

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TESTING 1, 2, 1, 2

Okay, so this is just a test to see if I can blog from my Smartphone. I have to say it'll be cool if I can! Anyway, I had a little treat from the little elves over at E.L.F which I'm really excited about :-)

I've purchased from E.L.F only once before, and I only bought a load of brushes and tools, so I've never actually sampled any of their cosmetic lines.

I have to admit that I don't really expect that much from them, because they're so cheap, and it's difficult not to question how they can offer quality AND value when so many other companies apparently can't.

But, ultimately, I'm hoping to be able to prove myself wrong, so expect some groovy E.L.F-shaped reviews to be heading this way very soon! Ooh excited!!
I'll be reviewing:

NEW Light Red Nail Polish
NEW Sunset Nail Polish
Eyelid Primer
Coffee Liquid Eyeliner
Black Cream Eyeliner
Zit Zapper

Has anyone else tried any of these E.L.F products? What did you think of them?

UPDATE: Just adding a picture of everything in the box, so that you can see what I bought :)

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The Hottie and the Nottie: February

Wow, I really haven't done one of the Hottie and the Nottie blogs in a very long time, in fact I haven't done one since way back in September! So I thought I'd kick off the monthly tradition with a new one. And it seems to be a good time of year to be re-starting this one :) But, it's only going to be a short one today, mainly because I couldn't think of much at the minute!!

Loving

The End of Winter. Okay, so we still have just over a month until Spring officially arrives, and the clocks "spring" forward, giving us more hours of daylight in the evening, but I can definitely tell that it is on its way, because I can just smell it in the air. I know that probably sounds really weird, but I honestly do think that you can notice the change from Winter to Spring more than between any of the other seasons. It's perhaps because the bitter coldness makes horrible smells like car exhaust fumes and fag smoke linger more prominently, but I think that Spring smells fresher. Plus, I've started to notice the Snow Drops pushing out of the ground in my parents back garden, so I can imagine that the Daffodils aren't going to be far behind. After such a horrible December when England just came to an absolute stand-still at the hands of the snow, it is always nice to see the sunshine, and feel a slightly milder breeze! I'll also be glad to get out of my big winter coat, and into my nice Spring jacket :-D

Loathing

Banks. I won't go into a huge amount of detail, but when did it become so difficult to open a new bank account? When I wanted a Credit Card, they couldn't throw one at me quick enough, but now I feel like I'm being treated like a criminal, just because I work for myself, and don't have an Employer to prove my income. But, seriously, why do I need to prove my income to open a blinking bank account? It's not like I'm asking for credit, which they need to make sure I can pay. I just want a basic, no frills, bank account. This is apparently too much to ask! It's even more irritating that even though we (the taxpayers) bailed them out, meaning that surely we should be having a little more power over how they are run, they are in fact dictating to us how we run our own bank accounts. I think the older generation had it right with hiding cash under the mattress ;-)

What about you guys? What are you really looking forward to this month? Nicer weather? A holiday coming up? Maybe you're starting a new job, or have just found love!



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The Hindrance of Hairdressers

 Afternoon guys,

I hate going to the hairdressers. Which could definitely be the reason why I haven't visited one in around nine months. This is actually quite common for me, and I haven't actually had a regular hairdresser since I left Uni, in 2005.

From the age of ten, up to around 19, I went to one hairdresser, and one hairdresser alone. We started using her pretty much from the day she opened her doors, and we stayed with her until she shut up shop. In those nine years, it never even crossed my mind to use anyone else. In fact, I spent the summer of 1997 sweeping up her floors and making cups of coffee for £15 a day, and coming to the firm conclusion that hairdressing was not where I wanted to be, in life.

For a while, I started using a large national chain, in both my home town and where I was at Uni, but after successive bad experiences:

• The first visit was fine, and the amount charged wasn't too bad.
• The second visit they claimed that they couldn't cut my hair dry, even though they'd done it last time, and of course charged me more for the pleasure of having a wet cut.
• My third visit was the worst. I arrived about ten minutes after they opened, and they weren't particularly busy, but the whole visit took an hour and half for a simple trim.
• I also wasn't impressed with how they put all these products on your hair, that you don't necessarily want, but go along with, only to find out at the end that they've charged you for the pleasure!! I wouldn't mind if they had told me that I would have been charged, so that I could have said no!!

After the third visit, I moved on.

During my final year at Uni, I started using a great independent hairdressers that was just across the road from my shared house, and they even did a fantastic job on my hair for my final year May Ball, which I was very happy with! I was very disappointed to have to stop using them, when I moved back home.

In the six years since then, I have used more independent hairdressers than I can name.

One my brother recommended because they were cheap. And yeah, they did a fab job, but whilst they might have been cheap for him, they certainly weren't for ladies cuts (noting that at that point my brother had his hair styled).

For a while, I used a dirt cheap hairdressers in my hometown (cheap as in £5) and I really should have known better. The girls working there were all more interesting in discussing their private lives with eachother than doing my hair, and I absolutely hated using them, other than the fact that they were cheap, and since I was (at that point) unemployed, I couldn't afford much better!

The best hairdresser I ever visisted, I only visited once before he shut up shop, and strangely, the only male that has done my hair (well, except the barber who used to cut my hair when I was about five!!). He was European (I was never 100% certain where he was from), and he was so passionate about his job, that it was a shame he had to close. But, he was obviously struggling because his prices were too cheap for his talents really. I mean, when I said what I wanted doing, he openly questioned whether it was the right style for my face shape and hair type. And he wasn't afraid to say what he thought would look good. It's a shame that more hairdressers aren't as driven as he was.

When I started working for a Motorhome Manufacturers in 2007, I started going to an up market hair salon, that I loved. It was the type of place where they have different levels of hair dressers, from the trainees to the Top Dogs, with varying price, which was nice. And they had fancy sofas, and brought you cups of tea. And, they actually had a proper conversation with you, not the half-arsed "going on holiday" type conversations that I'd had at the cheap hairdressers. They were a little expensive, but I liked them.

Unfortunately, since I've been working for myself, I haven't really been able to afford to go back to them, so I'd been visiting a nice-ish hairdressers. Nice in the sense that they were moderately cheap, but actually put effort into my hair. Not nice in the sense that I sometimes get the impression that they have somewhere better to be. Needless to say, I don't visit them very often, and now I've moved out of town, I don't have a hairdresser at all.

I can't really be the only person that has so much trouble choosing a hair dressers that feels right, can I? But, it really does seem that if you want a good one, you have to be willing to pay a little more money, or find that hidden gem whose talents really are wasted where they are!

Is anyone else fussy about choosing a hairdresser? I'd love to hear your stories, good and bad :)

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A Quirky Valentine Treat

Happy Valentines Day all,

No matter if you are in a relationship or not, it's one of those days that is a little bit like Marmite: You either love it, or hate it! As someone in a relationship, I have to say that I like the fact that we try to do something special for it, but yes, I do still think it's become way too commercial, and I get sick of seeing pink and red love hearts everywhere from Bakeries to Charity Shop windows! It's a little bit nauseating, at times.

But, nevertheless, it's also an opportunity to buy some nice little goodies to pamper yourself with, and let's face it, we don't really need an excuse to pamper ourselves, but it's always nice to have one anyway.

Image courtesy of Lush

So, I've been scouring the interweb for a nice little goody that would make a great Valentine's gift (for yourself of course), but is just quirky enough to please even the most sceptical non-fans of the pinkest day of the year! And I found this for you lovelies:

Pucker Up, Princess

This oddly adorable Limited Edition Frog is currently available, for just £2.75 from Lush. Just dunk ther frog-shaped ballistic in the bath tub, and let the cocoa butter and almond oil work their magic. So, if you are currently on the market, you never know, your Prince (or Princess) Charming might just hop your way sometime soon. Or even if you're not on the market, maybe it'll magically remind them that today is actually Valentine's Day - well, it's worth a try, right?

I may just have to go buy this for myself. The other half might not like it, but I think it's funny :-P

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Sanctuary Polishing Hot Cloth Cleanser

Why I bought this brand: So, I'm getting straight into the review today, and the reason I bought it was quite simple! I had a £5-off voucher from Boots, which included the Sanctuary facial skincare range! Well, that's only half the reason, to be fair. I've actually tried a couple of Sanctuary products over the years, and I have to say that I'm always really impressed.

Yes, Sanctuary is expensive, but sometimes, I think that it's nice to have some expensive spa-type products, that I use occassionally, meaning that they last longer, and because they were expensive and only used rarely, when I actually do use them, they feel kinda special, and it makes the event a nicer one.

Why I chose this specific product: In all honesty, it was because it was one of the cheapest products in the Sanctuary range, that a. my local Boots stocks, and b. that I haven't tried in the past.

I was also interested as to how a "hot cloth cleanser" would work, and I was quite intrigued as to what would actually be in the box. So, this is a completely new experience for me.

So, what does come in the box? More than I expected actually, since I wasn't expected much more than a fancy face cloth. But, inside the box was:

• A Muslin Cloth - This is different to a normal face cloth, because they are made using a tighter weave, and some experts claim that they they slightly exfoliate your skin, in a gentle way. I don't know if this is true or not, because I've never used muslin, or even really heard of it, other than in passing.
• 125ml tube of Cleanser

 How do you use it? This product is really easy to use:

1. Soak the muslin cloth in hot water (from the tap is fine), wring it out quickly, and open it out before placing it over your face. This is done to open up your pores, allowing the cleanser to get into them.
2. Squirt a little of the cleanser onto your hand, and carefully massage the product all over your face and neck. The packaging recommends doing this is circular motions.This works at clearing grease and dirt out of your pores.
3. Soak the cloth in the probably now warm water, and carefully wipe off the cleanser. The packaging calls this "polishing", but to me, it's just a fancy marketing term for wiping it off!!
4. Run your cloth under the cold tap, and rinse the product off it.
5. Whilst the cloth is still cool place it flat over your face for roughly 30 seconds. This will close your pores up, ensuring that no dirt can get inside them. 
6. Pat your face dry using a clean towel.
7. Apply a good facial moisturiser, of your choice.

What did I think of the cleanser? Personally, the cleanser didn't smell particularly nice at all. It was a very light, but strange smell that I just couldn't describe at all. It was a much thicker cleanser than the kind I typically use.

What did I think of using the Muslin cloth? I actually really enjoyed the whole process of laying a warm and then cold cloth over my face. There was something quite relaxing about it, especially when I was using the cloth hot.

I've read a few people saying that they use muslin cloth for their cleanser, instead of using cotton wool, and I can definitely understand why they do, for a couple of reasons:

1. I sometimes find that cottom wool has hard bits of cotton in. Of course, we have to remember that cottom is a natural product so it's inevitable for these bits to get left behind sometimes, but I find that they can be harsh and scratchy.
2. Let's face it, throwing away cotton wool after every use isn't very environmentally friendly. So, the fact that you can machine wash a muslin cloth, and many claim that they last a very long time, the environment likes them much better!

Overall Result: My skin felt really great after the very first use. It felt really clean, and refreshed. Nicely, it left my skin feeling slightly tight, but not as irritatingly tight as some mud packs do, where you have to exercise your face just to stop it feeling so weird. Instead, the tightness is more gentle, and feel more normal, if that makes sense.

Was it worth the money? Was it worth the £5.20 that I paid with my £5-off voucher? Yes, it definitely was. I certainly intend to keep using it, as it was intended (you know how sometimes you buy these fancy sets, but you only end up using part of it, because the whole process is so fiddly?).

Was it worth the original price of £10.20? Honestly, I'm not so sure. On the one hand, I can imagine both the cleanser and the muslin cloth lasting me a long time, but on the other hand, I can imagine that it's possible to have a similar experience cheaper, by buying a pack of muslin cloths, and a normal cleanser.

But, despite that, I'm glad to have learnt a new way of cleansing, instead of having to buy cotton wool every couple of months!

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Pay Your Interns, Dammit!!

This is a topic that several beauty bloggers have been talking about, but most notably British Beauty Blogger, from whom the badge here, was taken.

Now, I don't work in the beauty industry. Writing and the Media are more my area of...well, I'd like to say expertise, but sometimes I think that's just being optimistic! But, as a speaker within the industry of beauty (sort of), I still feel like I should give my thoughts on this subject.

After I finished University, six years ago, I was determined that I was going to work in the Publishing industry, that I was going to be this hot-shot Editor who spends her days reading manuscripts and helping to piece together the next big sellers.

Nevertheless, the Publishing Industry, is very much like the Beauty one (which is why I'm bringing it up, if you hadn't already guessed!). It is an absolute nightmare to get in to, and even harder if you try going in via the front door. Or in "blantant" English, you have no chance in hell of succeeding through the most common methods of simply applying for the lowest position in the Department you'd like to be working in, and gradually work up. Why? Because these days practically everyone wants to work in either: Publishing, Beauty or the Media.And with the economic climate still being wobbly, this means more people applying for fewer available vacancies.

Unfortunately, this means that we have to think of other ways into said desired position. And, for many of us, this involves doing an internship/work placement/work experince or whatever you want to call it, because other than length, they're all generally the same thing anyway.

I, personally, undertook two work placements in the September and October of 2005, at two of the countries leading Publishing Houses. I won't name them, because well, I don't fancy being sued! But, I have to say, that whilst both of them did offer me compensation to cover "food and transport", I thought that the amount given was incredibly disgusting, looking back on it. I can't remember how much I was given exactly, but I remember it really wasn't enough to cover more than a very basic lunch, if I was lucky.

The point I'm getting to here, is at the time, I was under the impression that this was absolutely normal.

So, there I was, 21-years-old, slightly naive, desperately craving this job opportunity in Publishing, doing all this work that they weren't "really" paying me for, trying to make a great impression, whilst the bosses at the top were laughing at their practically free labour, because they don't have to hire a full member of staff to do it. And when you consider that most departments at one of the Publishers had at least one, maybe two interns at any one time, that's a lot of very cheap labour you have there! And did any of us get a job at the end of it? Of course not! I know a few of us tried, but I don't know anyone who succeeded that way.

I'm sure some people do, of course, succeed via this route, but I'm not convinced that "some" employers are even willing to try, they're more interested in saving money and keeping costs down. And the sad thing is, that a lot of us impressionable souls (queue the violins) are willing to do it, because we don't know any better, and are made to believe that this is "just the way things are".

Whew. I know this blog is getting rambley and long, but I think that it's definitely time for things to change. These young men and women are working hard to do a great job, trying to impress, but it's falling on deaf ear of money-grabbing Bosses.

So listen up, beauty companies, pay your interns! Because without them, who'd be making you all those cups of coffee eh? Who'd brighten up your day with their youthful optimism, and slightly annoying happiness?

I rest my case :-P

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