Saturday, June 25, 2016

EVENT: REXONA x YOGA BY THE SEA



I recently attended Yoga by the Sea with Rexona and Social Soup. It was on a day where flooding had been predicted and I was flood ready with my thongs (even though the sun came out towards noon!). The event took place at Tamarama SLSC with windows facing the stormy sea. It's been a while since I have done Yoga and I did struggle through a couple of poses, but our instructor was incredibly soothing and went around correcting postures throughout the session. Now that's what I call a proactive Yoga instructor! Following the hour long Yoga session, we were treated to coconut water and had some time to pick up our box of goodies and yoga mat.  








Following the Yoga session were invited to hang out with Soup at Panama House to get to know each other and network with Soup and all the lovely ladies at the event. We had a chat about Soup, vegan restaurants, Rexona and exchanged handles. Not to mention the food was absolutely delicious! I ordered a chai latte (with actual tea chai leaves, not sugary powder) and corned beef hash brown (which was a first for me!). Panama House is highly recommended!





Group Photo by Kahlia @ Soup
Wasn't kidding, I really did wear thongs!



We were give some Rexona products to trial, this range is clinically tested, one of the ladies I met at the event advised that it actually minimises sweating! I gave two to mum, ever since we got our arm pits lasered we started sweating more and began to experience body odours. Due to the ridiculously cold Sydney weather, I've haven't had the chance to really work up a sweat, but I will go for a run soon and hopefully these babies will keep all the sweat and odours at bay!



And back home, there's mum doing her stretches :)

This was such a fantastic and productive event, I certainly never get up to do Yoga at 9am on a Saturday, so Thank you Soup and Rexona! It was wonderful meeting all the lovely ladies and Kahlia and Belle from Soup!

Disclaimer: Lily not Louise attended this event as a guest of Soup and Rexona.

Wednesday, June 22, 2016

Winter Edit: Hands ft Jurlique and Lanolips Lano Hands


The one thing I am terrified about is signs of ageing.

Mum always told me that our age is often given away by our hands and neck. I confess that I have never been the one for hand creams and it's probably my own doing that my hands looks older than my face - although some days I like to think that I was born with slightly wrinkly hands.

The past month had been extremely chilly, I woefully regret not packing a hand cream in my bag during Vivid. As pretty as the Sydney lights were, my hands were dry, cold and started to generate static from my Polyester jacket, I couldn't wait to get home and put on my hand cream.

This post is hand cream focused because I want to ensure that we are well equipped with handy hand creams this winter (yes lots of puns!). I wanted to share with you hand creams mum and I love and adore.


JURLIQUE HAND CREAMS

First up, a fabulous trio pack from Jurlique. If you didn't know this already, Jurlique is created by a Botanist and a Biochemist in Adelaide Hills, their mission is to connect people back to nature. Hence they created a skincare line combining alchemy, herbal medicine and homeopath. I am quite into natural healing for my general and overall wellbeing at the moment.

As a teen, I worked in retail, Jurlique was THE skincare brand that I would always oohh and ahh over every time I walked past their counter. The aesthetics of their hand cream is beyond simple visual pleasantness, the beauty is spread across four out of five senses - for me anyway! As a tactile person, I enjoy the matte feel of Jurlique's hand cream packaging, the hand cream itself is thick and creamy, but at the same time light weight and non-greasy. As for the scent, you'd be pleasantly surprised with the variety; Rose, Citrus and Lavender. I think my favourite is Lavender, but I love all three scents to be honest. It's quite strong upon application, however it will leave your skin feeling soft with a lingering pleasant and muted citrus, rose or lavender scent. Mum felt that the scent is quite strong, however, my nose felt it was it was just right.

You can find Jurlique's hand creams in Myer and David Jones.
Website: http://www.jurlique.com.au/


LANOLIN LANO HANDS

Lanolips Australia is another iconic Australia brand. Kirsten Carriol is the brain behind this brand, Kristen's father is an award winning research pioneer in DNA who provided the secret to skin moisturisation - Lanolin. Lanolin is a naturally occurring substance found on sheep's wool to help protect and keep the wool dry. All products from Lanolips Australia is 100% cruelty free and natural. For example, a sheep's wool needs to be shed in order for it to function properly, just like how a cow needs to be milked so they don't get an infection.

I'm sure we have all seen or used Lanolips Lip Ointment at some point (even though I haven't tried it myself  - shame shame shame!) and have read amazing reviews for chapped lips. Well, these hand creams deliver results, the cream itself melts onto my hands, it has a slightly melty texture that glides onto my hands with ease. Immediately upon application my hands felt smooth and supple. This too is light weight, non greasy or sticky. Scent wise, in this particular trio there's Rose (everyday), Rose (Intense) and Lemon. My favourite is Lemon (because I love lemon meringue and lemon desserts.. is that bias?), Mum's favourite is Rose Intense, the scent lasts for ages! I personally feel that the scents are quite strong, yet Mum's nose begs the differ, she feel it's very well balanced - different nose, different opinions!

Lanolin Lano Hands can be found in David Jones, Mecca, Priceline and selected Pharmacies.
Website: http://www.lanolips.com/au/


I love both products and can't think of a single con for either. There are a few differentiating factors between the two products from our experience i.e., the colour of the cream, texture (Jurlique is a little bit thicker, although the outcome and results of the hand creams are both extremely positive), the lids (Jurlique has a flip top cap and Lanolin Lano Hands has a screw on lid) and the scent (so make sure you have a smell to compare to ensure you purchase the product with the right scent for you).

Both are highly recommended  :)

*These products were provided for editorial purposes, all opinions are our own.

Monday, June 13, 2016

Colour Theory: Nordic Light Collection + Swatches and Video


While I was in Singapore almost 2 months ago, I read an article about the Nordic Light and how this is the last year to see the lights vividly and that it will lay "dormant" to some degree for the next decade!!! I was tempted to fly to Iceland just to have a look at this natural wonder, that's when my partner threw some common sense into me and convinced me to put it off because a) We can't afford it as we were already on a holiday at that time and b) we don't have time!

Thankfully I had Colour Theory's Nordic Light Collection handy to live vicariously through my makeup. This collection is inspired by the beautiful Scandinavian nights as a part of Colour Theory's Autumn/Winter range. Before we even get into the review, I just want to say that Colour Theory is a fantastic affordable range with a wide variety of products under $10.


Colour Theory Eye Shadow Palette in Ice Ice Baby - $10

When I see this palette I start humming Vanilla Ice. It's inevitable given the name!
I don't usually use frosty colours on my lids as my staples are neutrals and purples. But I really liked the outcome (check the video below). Colours are quite frosty and relatively pigmented, I think it will work on all skin types. As for wear time, I wore this for a solid 8 hours, shadows stayed put at 4-5 hour mark and by 8 hours most of the darker shades had faded, with portion of the lighter shade still visible. I was amazed that I didn't notice any creasing.

Colour Theory Colour Corrector - $10

This product is a winner, my favourite out of the whole collection. I have previously used and purchased ridiculously expensive colour correctors that did absolutely nothing and ended up using the product as a translucent powder. That became the norm for me so the first time I used this colour corrector (see video below) I used it as a sheer pressed powder to finish off the look. But it colour corrected like a boss, even my skin looked brighter and I had to touch up on my blush. I was blown away!

According to product claims, this product is great for:
- Neutralising redness
- Brightening dull skin
- Lightening dark spots
- Evening out skin tone


Colour Theory Nordic Nudes Lipstick - $6 ea
Left to right: Barely There, Pure Zen and I-See Pink

These lipsticks are ridiculously pretty and frosty looking, unfortunately due to my medium skin tone it's difficult for me to wear nude/frosty lipsticks without looking washed out. I-See Pink is probably the only lipsticks that I am able to wear on a regular basis without having to really think about my makeup. Barely There (pink) and Pure Zen (nude) are beautiful colours but I haven't been able to make it work on my fairly pigmented lips. Both looks extremely pale on my lips, I think it would be a great lip product for when I dress up as a unicorn to go to Supanova on Sunday.


Colour Theory Nail Polish - $4ea

I had a blast playing with these nail polishes (see swatch pictures below), the brushes have a flat tip which makes it an effective polka dotter (won't be perfectly shaped, but the rustic feel is what I love about it). I find pastel shades difficult to apply in general as it's always an effort to ensure the polish is even. These polishes were very pretty, I did notice some chipping around the 3rd day which is quite standard.


SWATCHES

Ice Ice Baby Palette

Top to Bottom: Barely There, I-See Pink, Pure Zen

Apre Ski (purple) and Cashmere Kisses (Pink)

Minted (green) and Snow Bunny (lavender) 


MAKEUP VIDEO





*Products in this post was provided for editorial purposes, all opinions are my own.



Saturday, June 11, 2016

EVENT: Ego Pharmaceuticals QV Launch ft Brand Ambassador Kate Ritchie




I recently had the pleasure of joining QV's campaign launch welcoming their new ambassador Kate Ritchie. The event took place at the iconic QVB Tearoom, this is my foodie shame moment as I have never actually been to the Tearoom and only admired the photos I've seen online. I was blown away by the beautiful interior decor, high ceilings, chandeliers... like a child in a candy store. This couldn't have been a more perfect venue for the launch!

To start off, we were greeted by drinks, I had a melon tea, orange and raspberry juice. I love events as it is the perfect time to reunite with known bloggers and meet new ones.

Related: Elucent National Costume Launch



Following a quick mingle, we were seated at our table with a QV centre piece and seasonal fruit platters. We each had a yoghurt, honey and chia seed cup - I've been craving this all week after watching a few YouTube video about breakfast options.




We received a very informative presentation from Dr Penny Alexander who is a Dermatologist from The Skin Hospital in Darlinghurst. I have included a great slide below from Dr Alexander's presentation to assist with skin prep for this winter!

Dr Penny Alexander



 

 We were also treated to a Q and A session with Kate Ritchie, the new face of QV, she is as gorgeous in the media as she is in person! Kate walked us through her first experience with QV and how she fell in love with the products before she became their ambassador. Kate was such a lovely and genuine person, it was a pleasure meeting her!

All seriousness aside, let's have a look at the delicious breakfast Lauren from Ego Skincare had organised for us! For main we had twice cooked egg, black forest bake house smoked gypsy ham, brioche and salsa verde (I'm an egg and ham girl, this was DELICIOUS!!!!)

There's also a cute bottle of Glycerin pictured below, that was not eaten but I did almost pour the content in my yoghurt as I usually associate Glycerin with food and sweeteners. Glyerin is actually a key ingredient in QV products - that's why our skin feels so smooth, soft and hydrated after use :)

Yoghurt cup and fruit platter

 



After breakfast we head over to get our skin checked to see exactly how much hydration we have. It was on a scale of 0 to 100. I've used this twice previous on my face and both times the machine indicated I have severely dehydrated skin. Unfortunately we were unable to use this on our made up face so we had to test our body parts. I came out with a 30/100 (dehydrated skin). Looks like i'll need to lather some more moisturiser on my body!

Below was the content of our goodie bag, we were spoiled by QV!






And here's a photo of myself with Kate Ritchie. I couldn't pass this opportunity. Although my photo posture is still a work in process.

A massive thanks to QV for having me!!!

Sunday, June 5, 2016

Empties: February to May 2016




Wow, what a weekend. Our garage experienced flooding over night and we didn't have sand bags! Fingers crossed that the weather will clear up tomorrow in time for the working week. I actually pre-wrote this post in May and had been avoiding typing due a tendon inflammation to my right arm :( Until that gets better I will probably stick to a post per week.

Well, I didn't end up finishing as many products as I would like and it took me ages to gather the empties below. Why am I so slow!!!! :(



Ego QV Shower Milk*
I was sent this product by Ego Skincare, this shower milk is different to all other shower products I have used before. It feels like a thin lotion and doesn't lather (I wish it did though!!). I had to teach my partner how to use the shower as he felt the product wasn't coming off in the shower, rather leaving a moisture layer. Personally I do prefer a shower product that lathers.


Fountain Hyaluronic Molecule and La Molecule Phyto-Collagene*
I have previously written an indepth review on these products, unfortunately it just did not do anything for me. Read full review here.


Vitamin Body Wash*
I received this in a MeMe box, this is a Korean product. A lovely pink body wash that smells like cotton candy. It's no different to other body wash.



Elucent Whitening Night Moisturiser*
This night cream is nice and thick, less is more with this product. Too much and it'll roll off your face. It has a pleasant scent and leaves my face feeling supple. Since the cream is quite thick, my face still feels moist in the morning. Instead of a whitening effect, my skin looked more dewy.


Alpha H Liquid Gold Smoothing and Perfecting Mask
This is a lovely product, it's actually one of my first masks - this shows exactly how long it takes for me to finish up products!! Alpha H Leaves my face feeling quite smooth, however it doesn't clean out my pores as much as some of the other masks.

John Plunkett Glyco Peel
I had really high hopes for this product, however after a few weeks of use, I didn't really notice a lot of changes to my skin :( I think my skin needs salon grade peels. I stopped using the product for a few months and the texture changed, there were brown bits in the tube... so I thought it's time for the bin.

Seacret Ocean Mist Lotion
This was actually one of mum's empties. Despite our dislike for the sales assistants attacking us with creams in Westfield. Seacret actually delivers. It's a light, non greasy and hydrating. Mum loved it!!






Gatineu Refreshing Melting Scrub
This a decent scrub but I didn't experience any meting effect :/ I wasn't sure what I was suppose to experience actually. The little exfoliating particles in the scrub was gentle and didn't scratch my face. My skin did feel more refreshed following the use of this product.


Dermalogica Charcoal Rescue Masque
I received two samples of this product. The first time I used it I left it on for ages - my bad habit with facial masques.. I feel that it'll provide more effects if I leave it on for longer. It was a big mistake, my face went bright red after washing. Second time round, I washed it off after 8 minutes and my skin felt smooth with all my pores cleared and cleansed.

*Press samples featured

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