Monday, May 27, 2013

Review: LUSH Cupcake Fresh Face Mask




LUSH say: "Chocolate heaven for oily and teenage skin. Its action removes excess oil and calms breakouts. Rhassoul mud cleans and soothes, linseed, cocoa butter and cocoa powder soften the skin. Balancing peppermint, spearmint and sandalwood oils complete this effective and delicious experience."




The novelty factor of this product (for me, anyway!) is quite simply overwhelming. It's a CHOCOLATE FACE MASK, you guys! It looks chocolatey and it smells chocolatey. And in the interests of giving a well-rounded review, yes, I tasted it. You should probably resist the urge to taste it, because the little gritty bits overpower the fact that it's chocolatey, and basically it's like eating dirt. I spat it out. Lucky you are not meant to actually eat it.




Let's talk about smearing Cupcake, this fresh face mask from Lush on your (OK, my) face. It's fun! You end up with a brown face, it smells delightful while it's drying, and applying it is a really pleasant feeling. The tiny gritty bits work as an exfoliant when you put Cupcake on, massaging your face and removing unwanted dead skin cells. It's a satisfying experience, and provided you use a fairly thin layer, it takes only five to ten minutes for this baby to dry. Afterwards, my skin felt soft and supple, and looked healthy, calm and more balanced. Cupcake is perfect for my oily, breakout-prone skin, as the ingredients work to absorb excess oils and soothe pimples.

I normally use a face mask just once a week, however Cupcake was so gentle and soothing, that I upped it to three times a week. I also did this because the one disadvantage of all those gorgeous fresh ingredients, is the short expiry date (for example, my mask was made on 29/4/2013 and expired on 20/5/2013 - that's less than a month to use the entire 75g tub). So I really had to work actively to try and use the product up. Cupcake is so hip and cool, it's vital that you keep it chillin' in the fridge (OK, it might be to preserve the fresh ingredients). Whatevs, dudes. Some of the fresh ingredients in Cupcake include linseed, cocoa powder, cocoa butter, Rhassoul mud, mint, peppermint, spearmint and sandalwood oils.




I'd recommend Lush Cupcake Face Mask to teenagers, people with oily skin and those who suffer breakouts. I have oily, pimple-prone skin and this really worked to calm my blemishes and balance my complexion, reducing the annoying shinies. I've had much clearer skin since I started using this mask, so it may also work to prevent breakouts.

Disclaimer: This product was provided by PR for review. No money was offered/accepted. This review is my honest opinion.

Wednesday, May 22, 2013

The Body Shop Haul: Eyeshadow, Shower Gel. Oh My!


If there are two products I don't need, it's shower gel and eyeshadow palettes. Which is why I took advantage of The Body Shop's recent online clearance sale to purchase ...... shower gels and eyeshadows. I'm so addicted to shower gels lately, I just want to try every kind! Also, I'm a fan of The Body Shop's Shimmer Cubes, having bought two in the past, and who can pass up a heavily reduced Smoky Copper palette? Not I!




THE BODY SHOP HAUL
Moroccan Rose Shower Gel
Dreams Unlimited Body Wash
Neroli Jasmin Shower Gel
Japanese Cherry Blossom Bath & Shower Gel
Lily Cole Shimmer Cubes Palette
Smoky Copper Eye Palette










Disclaimer: All products were purchased with my own money.

Monday, May 20, 2013

Review: LUSH Flying Fox Shower Gel




LUSH say: 'The sex-appeal honey shower gel. Lascivious, licentious, vivacious and insatiable. With the finest aphrodisiac essential oils - masses of jasmine! Plus the best three for controlling PMS.'

This sensual shower gel from LUSH hit me almost immediately with its exotic fragrance and had me feeling tingly all over. In a sexy way, you guys. When I first read the bottle, I took the aphrodisiac claim with a grain of salt, but as soon as I dispersed this baby into my hand and massaged it over my body, the strong smell that wafted up seriously made me want to initiate sexy time with hubby. I decided then and there Flying Fox would be my 'night shower' gel, for obvious reasons! Oh, and also because it's relaxing and a great way to wind down after a stressful day. On closer inspection of the product ingredients, along with honey, other inclusions are jasmine, ylang, cypress and palmarosa.




The consistency is quite runny (more fluid than Lush's Ponche) and the colour is slightly yellow; it basically looks like a diluted version of heated up honey (see above photo). As I rubbed Flying Fox into my skin it almost felt like I was cleansing with an oil. It only produces a low lather, but provides a satisfying clean, leaving my skin soft and supple. If there ever was a Lush shower gel that you could share with your partner, I'd say this would be it. It seems the most Unisex of the range, given the somewhat masculine smell.




Although Lush's grapefruity Happy Hippy is still my all-time favourite shower gel, Flying Fox is certainly a fun to use, sensual, exotic-smelling, sexy-thought-provoking cleanser that may add some spice to your love life. Bow chicka wow wow!

Lush Flying Fox shower gel comes in three sizes (100g, 250g and 500g) and you can buy it instore or online here.




Disclaimer: This product was provided by PR for review. No money was offered/accepted. This review is my honest opinion.

Saturday, May 18, 2013

Sky High Mani with Holographic Detail


The problem with having a massive nail polish collection is deciding what combination to put together. So Many Options. So I was extra chuffed when Sky High + Speck-tacular = Fabulousness. So pretty!


The bottles


Products Used:
Rimmel 60 Seconds in Sky High
Australis Crystal Top Coat in Speck-tacular

Two coats were needed of the Rimmel Sky High. The formula seemed thin on the first application, but by the second coat it was considerably thicker and even mildly difficult to apply. The Australis top coat applied like a freakin' dream :)

Colour win!


Bottle hold


With the holographic top coat. Pretty!


Shiny, sparkly and fabulous!

Disclaimer: Both products were bought with my own money.




Tuesday, May 14, 2013

Colour Me Pretty Priceline Haul!


I'm actually proud this is such a conservative Haul considering I haven't hit the shops in what feels like forever. Armed with my Priceline Beauty Club voucher and a mindful of pretty coloured lippies and nail polishes, I raped my local store of the following goodies .......



Left to Right, Back then Front:

L'Oreal Paris Feria Preference Permanent Colour in Metallic Silver Blonde
Batiste Dry Shampoo XXL Volume
Rimmel Kate Moss Lasting Finish Matte Lipstick in 106
Rimmel Kate Moss Lasting Finish Lipstick in 16
Rimmel Kate Moss Lasting Finish Lipstick in 20
Rimmel 60 Seconds Nail Polish in Sun Downer
Rimmel 60 Seconds Nail Polish in Sky High
Rimmel 60 Seconds Nail Polish in Portobello Pink

106 (matte), 16, 20
Sun Downer, Sky High, Portobello Pink

*Priceline had a 'Buy 2, Get the 3rd Free' deal on Rimmel products :)


What have you hauled lately?


Sunday, May 12, 2013

Review: LUSH Figs and Leaves Soap



LUSH say: "Serve your skin some nutritious figs before it leaves. Figs are wonderfully nutritious and good for your body, and their little brown seeds will exfoliate the skin. But it’s the scent of this soap that draws you in. Floral, with an undertone of eastern exoticism."

It's official. Lush Figs and Leaves has surpassed lemony Sexy Peel as my new favourite soap. Both of them happen to be Lush products, and if you're familiar with my blog, you've probably seen my Lush hauls, and know how smitten I am with the brand. If not, lookie here (Epic Lush Haul. Finally!) and here (Lush Haul and Mini-Reviews: Bigger, Longer, Lusher).

Lush soaps are handmade from fresh ingredients and the brand itself is against animal testing and is well-known for their environmental policy, which you can read more about here. Figs and Leaves is a Vegan product. The first thing that hits you is how rustic the soap looks, quickly followed by the fragrance. I've tried many a Lush soap, often sweet-smelling (Rock Star, The Godmother, Honey I Washed The Kids), but with Figs And Leaves you get something entirely different. I'm quite inept at describing fragrances, but I'd call it an earthy, woody smell that reminds me of trees and nature.



The soap takes a while to lather, but then foams to a mid-level. My favourite feature of Figs and Leaves is the way it feels when I use it. I absolutely adore exfoliating soaps, and this is one of the best I've tried. It starts off quite smooth, but with continued use, the little round, brown fig seeds are revealed (see photo above), and these are your exfoliating buddies. It feels like a giant massage as you lather the figgy goodness into your skin. It's a full-on exfoliation experience and some may find the particles a bit painful, but I love it! It feels like you are gently scratching your whole body, with the added bonus of ridding yourself of those unwanted dead skin cells.

Figs And Leaves leaves (!) my skin feeling soft, smooth, moisturised and hydrated. Overall, I'm very pleased with the fragrance, feel and texture of Figs and Leaves and would recommend it to anyone looking for an effective exfoliating soap. This baby has made its way onto my list of must-have products, and I'll be buying one once Mr. Figs and Leaves pictured above runs out.

Disclaimer: This product was provided by PR for review. No money was offered/accepted. This review is my honest opinion.

Tuesday, May 7, 2013

11 Facts and 11 Questions


It always scares the hell out of me to get personal, but I read this '11 Facts, 11 Questions' tag post on Suzanne's blog Don't They Know Who I Am? and I thought it would be fun. Besides, it's good to scare yourself every once in a while! I'm not tagging anyone, if you read this and want to do it too, that's great!

It simply involves revealing 11 Random Facts about yourself and answering 11 Set Questions. Here goes ....


11 RANDOM FACTS

1. I have no memories of my life before the age of 12 or 13, and even then I'm vague. For example, I only know I've had Birthday parties as a kid from the photos I've seen. I have the worst memory ever (except for song lyrics - see number 5).

2. I got blocked by actor Nick Frost (Hot Fuzz, Shaun of the Dead) on Twitter for telling him he had a surprisingly nice face. He sent me an insulting DM first, then blocked me. It was a big deal to me and I went on the hugest Twitter rant about it. He clearly can't take a joke.

3. I'm a massive Trekkie, and I've been to over 10 Star Trek conventions, the best being the 40th Anniversary convention in Las Vegas, where I met William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy!

4. I like to buy cookbooks then never cook any of the recipes in them. I'm horrible at sticking to recipes, and love throwing ingredients in the pan and seeing what happens!

5. When I was about 12 my best friend and I put on a stage production of Grease for our parents. Actually, it was just us in costume in her lounge room singing all the songs to our bemused folks. I was Danny Zuko. I still know every song by heart.

6. I once had some Absinthe in a restaurant in Mexico. Everything seemed quite 3D, and vividly colourful objects seemed to pop out at me, but I may have been imagining it.

7. The second toe on my left foot is shaped remarkably like ET: The Extraterrestrial.

8. I used to have a pet frog. I still like frogs, but I don't want another one as a pet.

9. My signature dish is Spaghetti Bolognaise. The sauce is made from scratch and I am super-skilled at it. Sometimes I believe it may be my Superpower. :)

10. I'm really fussy about public toilets when I'm out. I always try to get the end cubicle, and hate toilets with big gaps under and either side of the door, because I feel like people are looking in.

11. I hate wearing sneakers because my feet feel claustrophobic in them. For this reason, I always get shoes one size bigger than my actual feet.




11 QUESTIONS

1. What was your first beauty product you can remember?
I can't remember (see number 1 above) but going by photos it was probably some fetching blue eyeliner!

2. If you could choose how the world ends, what would you choose?
We were all just characters in an intricate computer game. The game crashes and the whole world and everyone in it vanishes. It cannot be restored. (I think I copied some of this from the Matrix movies).

3. What is your best organisational tip?
I'm the most disorganised person I know, however I do multitask by checking Instagram while I'm on the toilet.

4. If you were on death row, what would your last meal be?
Ravioli Ricotta with lots of creamy Carbonara Sauce and parmesan cheese, with a side of Potato Bake, Hungry Jacks Bacon Deluxe burger, some more crispy bacon by itself, potato chips, onion rings and a Pan Pepperoni Pizza (large). Then for dessert, I'd have a slice of Banana Caramel Pie, followed by a slice of Cheesecake, Pavlova, Chocolate Mud cake and Carrot Cake because you've got to be healthy (and that's got a vegetable in it).

5. Have you ever been on TV?
I fucking hope not!

6. What animal would you choose as your “totem animal”?
I tried to pick Unicorn, but apparently it's not a Totem Animal. :( So I'll go with Butterfly, because I'd love to fly, and I'm always striving for beauty.

7. If you could have sex with any superhero, who would you choose and why?
I'm glad you asked. A threeway with Iron Man and Batman, please. (Christian Bale version). I dare not elaborate, for fear of getting super-filthy.

8. Can you fake any accents?
Yes, I can do American, British, Indian and Asian. Badly.

9. What is the first thing you can remember of me (Don't They Know Who I Am?)?
Your hilarious, quirky tweets! (@HogSandwich).

10. Choose one sense and one sense only. That’s it for the rest of your life. 
Sight, because I don't trust my ability to apply lipstick or watch a Leo movie without it.

11. Rollercoasters, yay or nay?
Oh hell no. Hell to the no.



Wednesday, May 1, 2013

Wordless Wednesday: Fudgehenge


From the warped mind that brought you Soaphenge, I present.....

FUDGEHENGE!





Flavours, left to right (bottom photo):
Jaffa, Choc Mint, Coconut Ice, Chocolate, Cookies and Cream, Peanut Butter.