by Candice DeVille | Jun 15, 2015 | Beauty Reviews
It’s a typical mid June grey day and I was wondering just what this week would bring, when I remembered I had my June Bella Box to open! Even though it technically arrived on Friday evening, I like to leave these things to enjoy over a cup of tea and a little sense of ceremony. Little treats to yourself make such a difference when you need a pick me up. Sometimes it’s food, sometimes it’s wine, but I do love how the Bella Box is a treat for so many senses. So in goes the Earl Grey and out come the goodies!
Bella Box is a monthly subscription beauty trial service. For $17.99 a set mix of product samples arrive boxed up at your door. Then I get to play with them, put them through their paces and determine if any of these bits and pieces make the grade for my kit.
Yes, good packaging makes me happy. Having the Bella Box arrive in the mail gives you that feeling of a gift arrive. “Why thank you Me, you’re too kind!” This month, the June Bella Box contained…
- A Universal Beauty lip tint stick in pink which will be trialled over the coming week for its level of pash appropriateness.
- A Burt’s Bees lip balm, which again I will be trialling particularly overnight to keep those lips in good condition.
- A vial of JOY by Jean Patou, no doubt for luring said pash partner to my lair.
- Original Source vegan shower wash, specifically designed to enrich skin moisture. Let’s see how stroke-able I get.
- Aveda Damage Remedy which is just for me to give my hair some TLC after all the drying winter indoor heat.
What have you done to treat yourself this week?
by Candice DeVille | Nov 12, 2014 | Beauty Reviews, Skin Care, sponsors
Brought to you by Nuffnang and Neutrogena
Great skin is the foundation to a great look.
If really want to pull off the #IWokeUpLikeThis look with #NoMakeup #NoFilter, then you’d better be paying good attention to your skin. There is no makeup that can truly imitate the glow of well-maintained, hydrated skin. Trust me, I know.
As a makeup artist I see women of all ages, sans makeup, on a regular basis. It’s instantly obvious who takes care of their skin and who doesn’t. I’m often shocked to hear clients say they are at least ten years younger than their skin appears to be.
Eating well, getting enough sleep and staying out of the sun are all vital to great skin, but there are now fantastic products out there to help us make the best of our efforts.
When it comes to moisture, it should be your number one priority in skin maintenance. Our bodies already produce a very clever substance known as hyaluronic acid. Its job is to cushion joints, hydrate the skin and the hair, and helps our skin retain its elasticity. It’s an amazing molecule, which can retain up to 1000 times its own weight in water. The problem is though, that the levels our body naturally produces degrades daily, and as we age, this process speeds up.
So what can we do? Fortunately for us, the technology of the beauty industry has caught up to the point where they’re able to produce high quality gels to keep us hydrated. The main problem has been the very high price point; until now.
Neutrogena has just launched their Hydro Boost Water Gel range to much fanfare and anticipation. A luxury product, with the same efficacy and results as those more than twice the price! The Neutrogena Hydro Boost Water Gel is a pale blue, silky gel substance that is instantly absorbed into the skin. With no greasy residue, it leaves your skin feeling instantly hydrated, supple and smooth.
No matter the weather, we lose so much moisture from our skin each day. It may be the natural climate, the artificial climate (air conditioning / heating), or simple daily perspiration. Keeping up your water is one thing, but we want to make sure it gets to where it is needed and doesn’t immediately evaporate. I’ve spent a lot of time working with different skin hydrating solutions, and hyaluronic acid is by far the most effective ingredient in seeing instant results.
Having such an affordable option as Neutrogena Hydro Boost Gel may revolutionise your skin care regime. You won’t need the big bucks to get the big name glow, just this little blue pot of hydrating molecules.
Try it for yourself, and I’d bet you’ll be impressed with the results too!
I even have a Hydro Boost special hamper pack to give away!
You could win the ultimate hydrating hamper including these products from the Hydro Boost range.
| NEUTROGENA® HydroBoost Water Gel 50g $24.99 |
| NEUTROGENA® HydroBoost Night Concentrate 50g $24.99 |
| NEUTROGENA® HydroBoost Gel SPF15 40mL $24.99 |
| NEUTROGENA® HydroBoost Eye Roll On 15g $19.95 |
Quite the beauty haul!
All you need to do is tell me in the comments, why the Hydro Boost Water Gel appeals to you.
Terms and Conditions for this giveaway can be found here.
by Candice DeVille | Jun 5, 2014 | Beauty Reviews, Tutorials-Video
I’ve been shopping again and came up with 3 fab and cheap beauty finds! Here in Australia we know that our beauty products are significantly more expensive than the rest of the world, so I’m always on the look out for effective and inexpensive alternatives to share with you.
Today I’m back on my video game, and have three fantastic finds to share with you. Some you may have heard of before and some that may surprise you!
Just which product gave me this incredibly quick and effective look? Find out in today’s video episode.
by Helen McLean | May 20, 2014 | Food & Drinks
This visual culinary surprise, comes from a recipe book titled “The Art & Soul of Baking”, a hefty 500 page recipe book. There was no accompanying photo with this recipe, I was drawn to it simply because it had “Mexican” in the title. So you can imagine my surprise when I took a peek in the oven and saw the spectacular form taking place!
The actual title of the American recipe is “Mexican Chocolate Crackle Cookies”, however to save confusion for our family and other Australian readers, I refer to them as “cracked chocolate cookies”, as they are far from the children’s party treat we all know so well.
Although the recipe itself is not too advanced, you will need to plan ahead with this one. Once the yummy chocolate mass has been put together (butter, brewed coffee, chopped chocolate, eggs, sugar, flour, toasted almonds, cinnamon, baking powder & chili powder), it will need to be refrigerated for 1-2 hours, before making them into chocolately balls of goodness, ready to coat in sugar (granulated), and then more sugar (icing).
Why the reference to Mexico?
As far as I can tell, it’s only due to the addition of the chili powder in the list of ingredients. While this can be omitted, the spiciness from the chili is only slight and adds a nice warming aftertaste. It’s nothing to shy away from, and worth trying out.
If you wanted to make these cookies more Mexican, you could use traditional Mexican chocolate instead. You can buy Mexican chocolate (and other Mexican foods) from El Cielo.
These are so good looking, you’ll want to invite friends and family over for morning tea to show them off. You could even package a few of these up in clear cellophane bags sealed with a mix of green, white and red ribbons, and a hand written tag that says “Muchas Gracias“, for perfect little ‘thank you’ gifts.
Storage
The recipe states that they are best eaten same day and that any left overs can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for 3-4 days. They are very more-ish so they probably won’t last the next day, however we have successfully kept these for a few days, uncovered.
Being the hostess with the mostess
This little tip in the book is fantastic, although I have never tried it myself. If you wish to create some for now and some for another time for almost “spur-of-the-moment cookies”, place the uncoated balls of chocolate on a tray in the freezer for 30-60 mins, then transfer them to a plastic freezer bag! You can freeze them for up to 3 months and when required, coat them in sugar and pop them in the oven and bake for about 16 minutes.
Full recipe ingredients and method can be found in:
Title: The Art & Soul of Baking, © 2008
By: Sur La Table with Cindy Mushet
Publisher: Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC
Recipe: Mexican Chocolate Crackle Cookies
Page: 286
Styling notes:
Saucer with grapevine, from Daiso
by Candice DeVille | Sep 15, 2011 | Beauty Reviews, Makeup
Are you always on the hunt for a stay on lipstick that actually works? How to get your lipstick to stay on is one of my most frequently asked questions, and unfortunately there is only so much you can do short of tattooing your lips. My everyday tips for wearing red lipstick will help you to a degree, but serious staying power? I always thought that was the realm of fantasy. Until I tried this stuff.
In my eternal quest to try all the red lipsticks on the market (how full are my bathrooms cupboards?!), the minute I saw these new Maybelline Super Stay 24 hour Colour advertised I wanted to put it to the test. My test came in two parts, as I didn’t want to invest the money off the cuff on the very slim chance it may actually work, so this is what I did.
FRIDAY
1.00pm- Wander into Target (also available at Priceline and on sale at the moment I think) and start casing the joint to uncover this new lipcolour.
1.05pm- Get distracted by liquid liners before remembering again why I was there.
1.15pm – Find the VM stand for the new Maybelline lipcolour and am amazed at the huge number of colours on offer. Which red do I want?
1.20pm – decide that before picking a colour, I should give this a proper hard core trial. So I paint a slash onto the heel of my hand, following the instructions and waiting for it to dry. this ought to be good given how many times a day I wash my hands. I wonder if it will last more than the next three hours.
6.00pm – Am marvelling to my girls that the lip colour is STILL there! What kind of thing is this?
SATURDAY
9.00am – It’s even lasted the night without any fading. Okay then you stubborn stuff, here’s a real test.
11.00am – Clean the whole house, including bathrooms without gloves on.
3.00pm – Beer and wonderment.. and also a bit of a worry. The lipstick is still there, clean and bright; what the hell is in this stuff??
After such a vigorous non facial test, I decided to give it a go and see how it lasted through eating, drinking, greasy foods and the ultimate pash. AND IT DOES!!
Here’s the thing though, none of these stay on lipsticks are going to remain highly moisture filled, so you do need to keep applying a balm over the top. When you apply it, you need to paint it on carefully with your lips somewhat stretched so they are flat. Then you have to wait about 4 minutes for it to dry and stop being sticky before applying the balm. The feeling is a little odd, like there is a bit of a barrier between you and the world, but for the results it is worth it.
While it doesn’t dry out and crack like others I’ve tried, if you don’t apply the balm, there is a tendency to chew at your lips if it gets too dry and that will simply peel the colour off. But if you can avoid doing this, you will actually have lips that last overnight! And it really doesn’t smear, smudge or kiss off!
So as you can see this was a big winner for me, so much so that I bought three different reds, each fabulous!
Keep Up The Flame – A non shimmery red with an almost warm hue.
Reliable Raspberry – A more hot pink version of red.
All Day Cherry– My fast favourite with a touch of shimmer and a rich blue red, cherry hue.
(Shown in the image holding them left to right – Cherry, Flame, Raspberry. Wearing All Day Cherry.)
Verdict – At around $21.00 these are definitely worth the money and something you should have handy for big nights out or gastronomic adventures when you need to look your best.
