Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!

To those of you heading out, be safe and have fun.

To those of you that, like us, are staying home, make sure you do something, however small, to bring in the year.

I look forward to sharing some new finds with you next year!

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas Lovelies!

Hope you all have a wonderful day filled with love, laughter, fun and great food!

Love,

Olivia

Xxooxx

Skin B5

Afternoon Lovelies!

It's almost Christmas!  Where has the year gone?

I received an email from the lovely Michelle over at Skin B5 a couple of months ago, asking if i'd be interested in reviewing the range.  I jumped at the opportunity.  I'm a past cystic acne sufferer, and still get hormonal acne (although it's nothing like it used to be), and therefore am passionate about treatment options.

The Skin B5 philosophy is that in order to treat acne, you need to use products both externally and internally.  So the range consists of a cleanser, moisturiser and mask for the external, and 2 different tablets for the internal. 

There's the Acne Control Cleansing Mousse.  It (from the website) "Tightens & unclogs pores, Removes excess skin oil, Soothes troubled skin, Removes dead skin, Prevents breakouts, Refines skin texture,Effectively removes makeup"

I really like the cleanser, but i will dispute one thing.  I found it didn't remove makeup all that well.  Not a problem for me these days, i used a cleansing oil first and then used the cleanser, but i can see it being an issue for younger people.  As a teen i wore makeup each and every day, i hated my skin and tried everything i could to hide the acne i had.   And had i used a system like this, i wouldn't have strayed from it.  So, to me, a product like this either has to remove every miniscule amount of makeup, or there needs to be another step to the system to ensure that the issue is taken care of (even a list of acceptable products).

Other than that, i love this.  It leaves my skin soft and smooth, i find i don't need to exfoliate as it does a great job of removing dead skin, and it doesn't leave my skin feeling tight at the end.

The second step is the Skin Purifying Mask.  It "Cleanses acne prone skin - potent antibacterial properties, Purifies - absorbs and extracts oils and impurities, Soothes and heals skin surface and irritation, Helps to renew skin condition, FAST acting - see the difference in just 5 minutes!".

It really is a fast mask, you leave it on for 5-odd minutes, then rinse off.  You can use it as a mask twice a week, or as a spot treatment as needed.  It smells lovely, and really leaves your skin feeling beautiful.

Then finally there's the Acne Control Moisturiser,  It "Prevents breakouts, Non-comedogenic, Easily absorbed, Evens skin tone, Tightens pores, Control shine".

It's a thinner moisturiser, so i don't know how people with really dry skin would find it.  Otherwise it did what it claimed, and was the perfect finish to the other products.

Then we have the internal products.  There are 2 different tablets, one is the Acne Control Caplets (the smaller tablets), the other the Acne Control Extra Strength Tablets (the larger tablets). 

The Extra Strength Tablets are for those people with moderate to serious acne.  They "Potent formula to help control more serious acne, Helps control skin oil production - suitable for acne sufferers with very oily skin, Supports skin healing and renewal, Supports healthy immune function, Provides powerful anti-blemish antioxidants, Helps relieve stress".  The biggest surprise for me was how it worked on my stress levels.  I have anxiety, and my husband went away for 2 weeks when this package rocked up.  I was expecting (as was hubby) to be fairly frazzled by the time he came home, but i wasn't.  I was noticeably calmer, and things didn't get to me as much.  Plus my skin glowed :)

The Caplets are for those of us who have mild acne or occasional breakouts.  These have Vitex in them (which the others don't), which is a herb that helps regulate hormones (it's something women who have irregular cycles and are TTC turn to for help).  So these should help those of us who suffer from those hormonal breakouts.

After all that, the big question.  Did the range help my skin?

Honestly, i didn't notice a huge difference to my acne.  In saying that, my skin is pretty clear the majority of the time.  What i did notice was a change in my skin itself.  It was smoother, and clearer (if that makes sense).  It didn't seem to be clogged up with gunk, and if anything my pores and acne scars seemed less noticeable.  Plus it seemed to glow from within, with the added bonus of my stress and anxiety levels dropping dramatically.

The Skin B5 range is wonderful, and definitely worth trying for those of us who are battling acne and It's available from the Skin B5 website.

Thank you so much Michelle and the Skin B5 team for the opportunity to review the range!

Redpawpaw Summer 2015

Evening all!

It's that time again!  RPP have joined forces with Subscription Box Australia, so that's the Facebook page to ask questions on etc (i know last box it was a bit up in the air about why the RPP facebook page had disappeared, and whether or not the company was in trouble).  They also posted full spoilers for the box, although not all the spoilers were in my box (not sure if that's intentional, and you just get a random mix, or if there's stuff missing.  From past boxes it's probably a random mix).

But, on to the exciting part, the contents!

The box was really heavy!  Same box, as per usual.

Fantastic Thinner Bite Black Rice Crackers-sample size 10c
Nature Valley Crunchy Bars-sample size $1.98
Uncle Toby's Yoghurt and Strawberry Lunchbox Bars-full size $3.99
Belvita Breakfast Muesli Biscuits-full size $4.00

Campbell's Real Soup Bases in Moroccan, Italian and Asian-full size $5.00 each

Sipahh Chrismint Straws-sample size $1.28
Kraft Crunchy Hazelnut Spread-full size $5.70
Tic Tac Candy Cane-full size $1.69
Darrell Lea Choc Stix-full size 79c each

Well Good Coconut Flour-??  A lovely looking recipe for Banana and Raspberry bread was included, using this flour.
Qi Teas sample packs-??

Value=$35.12

Is it up to normal Redpawpaw standards?  Not really.  However everything in the box will get used.  I have raspberries here, and some overripe bananas, so that coconut flour has plans, i've already eaten the liquorice/milk choc stix, my eldest desperately wants a sipahh straw, and the rest will be eaten over time.  And i love that there were some Christmas-y items included.

I'd love to know your thoughts, i don't know how many people still subscribe to RPP, and whilst i think it's ok, i'm not sure about everyone else.

Jamberry Nail Wraps

Afternoon All!

I'm sure you've all heard of Jamberry by now (unless you live under a rock).  It's a huge craze that hit our shores from America at the start of October.  Jamberry are a range of nail products, mostly known for their nail wraps, but they also sell polishes, gel polishes and nail/hand care products.

The nail wraps are vinyl wraps that are made to stay put for up to 2 weeks.  You get 18 wraps per pack, which will do a couple of manicures and pedicures, plus some feature nails (which honestly depends on the size of your nails.  The bigger your nails the less you are going to get out of a pack.  The smallest wraps might fit Miss A's nails, but they don't come close to mine).  There are 300-odd designs, so something for everyone, and you can search by colour, finish, and by collection.

Application of the wraps is a bit fiddly (although if you're ever done gel nails at home, it's no harder or longer).  The wraps need to be heated to seal to your nails, which can be done with a hair dryer or you can buy a heater from Jamberry (i used a hair dryer, and didn't find it too difficult).  There are a few methods, and plenty of youtube tutorials covering them all, so i won't go in to too much detail.  The biggest problem i found was sourcing all the different things you need, without buying them all directly from the company.  You need an alcohol wipe (i ended up using my gel nails prep instead), a soft cuticle stick (which i think was the hardest of all, the wooden ones are a dime a dozen, but finding a soft one proved to be hard.  Priceline sell a Models Prefer one at a decent price, but it isn't the softest), sharp, small scissors, a nail file, tweezers and of course your heat source.  Some are easy to find, or you should have them on hand, but having to go out and source particular things just to do my nails put me off a bit.  Once you have them it isn't an issue, though.

These were my nails the first day i applied the wraps.  There were a few creases in some nails, but all in all they weren't too bad.  I found application to be fairly simple, however i think practice makes perfect.  If anything finding the right size for your nails was the hardest part, it's recommended that you pick a wrap slightly smaller than your nail, but finding that perfect size for some nails was difficult (you can cut the wraps if needed).  i love the way they look on my nails, though.

Wear after 2 days

Wear after 4 days

Wear after 6 days

I ended up taking the wraps off after 6 days.  As you can see by then they had lifted beyond repair (small lifts i had filed off until then).  To remove them i just used my DB Instant Nail Polish Remover and Primer.

I really enjoyed the wraps!  I kind of can't wait to use them again, to see if i can get a better result.  They are gorgeous, and lasted longer on my nails than gels.  They didn't last quite as long as i hoped, but that may have been user error.

Gripes are mainly with the company.  When looking for info for this post i found a lot of the website missing.  The links are there, but there is only an error message when you click on them.  Things like 'How to apply nails', 'contact us', 'about us', 'FAQs', things that if i was buying from the company i'd want to know.  I'd get it if the company had just opened for business, but they've been in Australia since the 1/10, so over 2.5 months.  I know there are demonstrators you can ask questions, but what happens if i don't know one?  Or i want to order at 2am and no-one's awake?  I can buy, but if i want to know anything else tough luck?  Seems off to me.

However none of that has anything to do with the demonstrator who kindly sent me these to try.  She's the lovely Alley Trumper https://alleytrumper.jamberry.com/au/en/ , and she would be happy to answer any questions you have about the wraps, or any other product in the Jamberry range.  Plus she has an amazing Facebook group where you can see other people's wraps, ask questions etc.

Thank you so much Alley!  I've loved trying them out.

Marie Claire The Parcel Summer Edit 2015

 Morning Lovelies!

Look what's here!  It actually arrived on Friday, but with all the end of year stuff we have going on atm, today is the first day i've had the chance to sit down and blog (Miss A and Master P had their school Christmas concert on monday, I had a craft group christmas party yesterday, we went to carols last night and Master T got to perform with his playgroup.  Add in my parents being here and the general work and we're flat out).

The box was packed!

First up, the 'colour' part of the box.  This quarter had a Maybelline NY Color Elixir Lip Gloss ($17.95), a Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure ($14.95) and a Maybelline NY The Colossal Pumped Up Volum' Express Mascara ($19.95).  The Color Elixir is a lovely lip gloss, not too sticky, the colour lasts a decent amount of time, and it's reasonably moisturising.  The nail polish, whilst a gorgeous colour, didn't last particularly well on my nails (but, of course, my nails tend to be oily, so polishes usually don't last a great deal of time).  As for the mascara, i haven't touched it.  I have a stock of mascaras waiting to be used, so this will have to wait for a little while.  With these, though, the price of the box is well and truly made back.

We have 2 Lonvitalite Face Masks ($39 for a pack of 5).  I just can't get excited over these, i have tonnes from various boxes over the years, and i'm not a huge face mask person (i just don't have the time for them).  A lot of people swear by them though.

Then we have sample sizes of Elizabeth Arden Superstart Skin Renewal Booster ($85), Paula's Choice Vitamin C Treatment ($70) and Michael Kors 24K Brilliant Gold ($110).  This is one of the reasons i really like The Parcel.  They send out high end samples, along with full sized products i can get at my local Priceline.  The Elizabeth Arden is 'clinically proven to restore the appearance of the skins surface layer for supple, smooth, more radiant looking skin' (sounds interesting), the Paula's Choice 'is ideal for spot-treating wrinkles, stubborn brown spots and post acne discolourations', and the Michael Kors is 'designed to reflect the opulence and luxury of the highly prized metal' (who knew gold smelt like jasmine?  From my time around jewellers it kinda smells like metal).

Following that, there is a sample size Swisse Deep Sea Hydrating Mist Toner ($9.99), a sample size Trilogy Make-up Be Gone Cleansing Balm ($36.90) and a Zoeva Eye Pencil ($17).  The toner is perfect for freshening up on the run this summer (which is supposed to be a scorcher), Trilogy stuff is always lovely and this smells lovely, and the brush (a 230 Luxe Pencil) is so lovely and soft.  I love getting brushes in boxes, especially good quality ones.

Finally we have travel sizes of OGX Argan Oil of Morocco Shampoo and Conditioner ($17.99).  I've wanted to try these, so now i can!  So far i'm not convinced that they're worth the money, the Aldi equivilent seems identical.

The Maybelline Lipgloss and Sally Hansen nail polish

In full sizes alone the Summer Edit of The Parcel is worth $69.85.  It has a great range of products and brands, and is perfect for the summer ahead. 

Lust Have It November 2015

Afternoon lovelies!

As i said at stupid o'clock this morning, my LHI box was on its way, and it has arrived.  LHI have had a few business changes, boxes have gone up by $2.95 a month for postage, and all shipping emails and payment emails are being handled electronically.  Which means we're getting info as it happens, and there's less chance of human error.

It's great to see our boxes before the end of the month!

 Bonus extras.  The 4 teabags that were supposed to be in sept box, and a couple of carefree pads.

 The rest of the box.  3 full size makeup items, 1 deluxe sample size makeup and a skincare sample.

 Manna Kadar Lip Chubbie-rrp $24-full size

Our sneak peek.  Mine's in the colour xoxo, which is a lovely plum.  These contain a primer and vit a and e, so they should last a decent amount of time and be moisturising.  I love this type of thing, and i haven't got one this colour, so i love this.

 Coral Colours Love Lips-rrp $6.99-full size

Mine's peach sorbet, and smells of coconut.  It's quite pigmented, and goes on nice and smoothly.

 Evelyn Iona Natural and Organic concealer-rrp $19.80-deluxe sample

I've received this previously in a Violet Box, and i still haven't tried it!  Maybe this is the push to do so.

 Ulta3 Cream Blush Stick-rrp $6.95-full size

Mine's in bold apricot, which in stick form looks really, really bright, but the swatch is lovely.  It looks like it should blend beautifully, and should be perfect for summer.

Garnier Miracle Day Cream-rrp $19.99-sample size

Meh!  It supposedly is a breakthrough formula, yadda, yadda.  It'll get used, just not overly excited about it.

Manna lip chubbie, coral colours lip love, evelyn iona concealer, ulta3 blush

It isn't the highest value box ever, but I'll use everything in it, and the colours aren't ones i already own 20 of, which is brilliant.

What do you think?  What colours did you get?

Priceline 40% off haul

Morning lovelies!  

It's 3.15am here, and for some reason I'm wide awake.  I think it might be the restless toddler next to me.  

Anyway, last week Priceline had 40% off all cosmetics  (as if you didn't know that already!).  My bb cream is almost finished, so i headed in to grab a new one.

I ended up grabbing the Savvy by db BB cream.  I don't mind the texture, but the light's a bit too light.  It might yet be stored away for winter when i don't have much of a tan.

And then there's the rest!

One of the first things i noticed in store were the sets of mini Australis Velourlips.  They're something I've wanted to try, but haven't wanted to fork out for 1 big tube, so these are perfect.  There were 3 different sets, a nudes and pinks, a darks and this one, which is brights.  They're normally $14.99 per set, but with the sale they came down to just under $9.  

Then, of course, i headed around to the Essence section.  There are a couple of new lip products in the Essence line up, and the Priceline i went to had both.  So introducing the liquid lipstick and the sheer and shine lipstick.  The liquid lipstick is on the higher end of Essence pricing at $4.99, and sheer and shine lipstick is the same price as the normal range.

All up this lovely little haul cost around $18, which i think is great for what i got.

I'm off to see if i can get back to sleep (mr monster has settled back down).  I have a little more playing to do and I'll write up some posts on my thoughts of the lip products (plus there's a lhi bag in the post, and 2 products I'm trialling.  It's a huge time here atm).

Talk to you soon!

Lust Have It Oct 2015

Afternoon all!

Well, as you can see, LHI were more on the ball last month.  Boxes were actually sent before the end of the month!  They made the executive decision to send the box without 2 of the products that were scheduled to appear in Oct, and instead subbed in 2 of the products from Nov (that had rocked up early).

Back to pink!

Nearly all fulled sized this month, with a bonus treat.

Hair and Me Hair Rejuvenation Treatment-$19.99-full size

I'm supposed to have written a nice long review about this already, but I really have mixed feelings about the product.  I'm going to use this one up, then write the review.

Bioderma Sensibio Light-$32.99-sample size

This is for sensitive and intolerant skin, is supposed to help soothe it.  I must admit i'm slightly over seeing Bioderma in boxes, but at least this is a different product.

Flormar Nail Enamel-$12-full size

The info card (which was emailed this month due to the sudden change in products) says this is supposed to be a mix of nail care, showing things like nail oils etc.  But the couple of blog posts i've seen are nail colours?  So the value might be different.  This was one of the substituted products, and it's a very pretty silver, perfect for Christmas.

Flormar Supershine Lipstick-????-full size

This is the second substitute.  The card doesn't even give this as an option (all it says is a mix of products, then lists the possibilities.  This lipstick variety is not listed), and as for price it says $30-$50 (although Flormar online seems a lot cheaper).  But i'm so happy i got a lipstick, and it's a lovely colour (a shimmery coral), perfect for summer.  It smells lovely, too, orange-y and biscuity.   Yum!

Lust Have It Highlighter Compact-$29.95-full size

I haven't seen LHI come out with their own product in ages!  This is a lovely highlighter, in the colour Sunset Strobe. It's a really natural peachy-gold, so it's going to give a nice subtle highlight.  Plus the compact has a nice big mirror.

Bonus-Atkins Chocolate Candies

Yum, chocolate

Skin Magic Tea-this was supposed to the the 5 missing from the Sept box, however it's only 1-again!

Highlighter swatch and lipstick

Well, what a mixed box!  The highlighter is lovely, the hair treatment i'm on the fence about, and the Flormar i'm not quite sure about yet (online it comes across as a very cheap brand, so quality is yet to be seen).  But with only the highlighter and the treatment the box is worth over double what i paid, so i'm still happy with it.

What do you think?  What mixed Flormar product did you get?

Lust Have It September 2015

Evening Lovelies!

Talk about a late box!  It's the 15/10 (on a side note, Hubby and i have been together 12.5 years today!), and the Sept LHI bag has just rocked up.  I expected it before we went away, then swore it would rock up whilst we were gone, it's here and we've been home 4 days! 

But it's here!  (I know i said that i wasn't going to resubscribe, but i missed the cut off to cancel in August, and somehow i've missed the cut off in Sept.  Oops!).

Black bag this month.  I love these bags, they're perfect for carrying little crochet projects around.

Certainly is a packed bag, 7 items!

White Glo Professional Choice Whitening Toothpaste-RRP $5.49-sample size

This is one of the few toothpastes i can stomach, so a sample never goes astray. 

Designer Brands Twist and Go Nail Polish Remover-RRP $4.99-full size

I had nail polish on, i took it off with this.  OMG, so quick, and it was glitter!  It does spill easily, though, so be careful with the angle you use it on.  But this is going straight on the rebuy list.  It has Royal Jelly, Vit C and E, Aloe Vera and Green Tea to help keep your nails healthy.  Supposed smells like berry, can say it does not (the things i do for you, i can assure you you should not stick your nose in this.  It stinks).  Honestly, don't care.  It works a treat.

Kerastase Resistance Bain Force Architecte and Resistance Masque Force Architecte-RRP $42 and $62-sample size

These are meant to repair and rejuvenate dry and damaged hair.  That is all the card says.  The masque smells delicious, though, but i think you'd be lucky to get 2 uses out of these.

Ofra Lip Liner-RRP $19.50-full size

This is the offender that made the bags so late!  It's a water resistant pencil (it does rub off, though), made with synthetic beeswax.  I honestly don't get this, it might work in America going in to autumn, but we're in spring.  I can't see myself using this (in the colour wine) much until next autumn, unless i layer it under a lighter colour.  Will have to have a play.

UB Cosmetics Tint Stick-RRP $23-full size

This is a felt tip pen looking thing, i could hand it to a kid and that's what they'd think it was.  It's a lip tint, a very expensive lip tint.  It is transfer proof (yet to test that claim), has b5 for hydration (?) and aloe vera to soothe (??).  If you've ever used a Korean lip tint, you'll know what this is like.  And you can pick up basic ones for under $2 (i did a review earlier in the year).  I like the pen applicator, but otherwise it's the same as the others.  No moisturisation, it definitely needs a balm over the top to make it comfortable for day long wear.  But i love the colour!

Bonus-Your Tea Skin Magic Tea-RRP $35 USD-sample size

There were supposed to be 6 of these, there's only 1.  Helps nourish and rejuvenate your skin.  This reminds me of the old LHI, where they'd include different products that were still beauty related.

Lip tint swatch and lip liner swatch

Lip tint on

It isn't the best box ever, but nor is it the worst.  Plus i found a new favourite product.

What's going on in your beauty world?  Anything new i need to know about?