DIY Skincare: Egg White & Lemon Juice Mask

It’s been a while since I posted a ‘make your own skincare’ post. This recipe is perfect for this time of year and is suitable for all skin types. It gently exfoliates whilst brightening, toning and clarifying your skin.
What you need

• Still bottled water
• 1 large egg white
• Half of a lemon

*Optional – Witchhazel or rosewater (from you local health shop)
Beat the egg white until it forms stiff peeks.

Squeeze one teaspoon of lemon juice from the lemon.

Gently fold the juice into the egg white. Apply it to your face and neck, leave it for 2o minutes to work its magic. Rinse with lukewarm water and a muslin cloth (or cotton wool pads), pat dry.
If you have any witch hazel or rosewater you can dab some on the skin. Follow with your moisturiser.
This mask last 6 hours in the fridge. I tend to make a batch when I have someone to share it with. Once a week will do it!

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My Hair Saviour – Olive Oil & Egg Hair Mask

My has been going through a bit of a dry spell lately. I blame hormones. Of course, I blame those on just about everything :) As you can gather I spend a lot of money on hair care products but I did wonder if I could revert to my old ways and use something from my kitchen to improve the quality of my hair.
I settled on this recipe and have been delighted with the results.
OLIVE OIL AND EGG HAIR MASK:

• 4 Tablespoons olive oil
• 2 eggs

Apply to dry hair. Leave on hair for at least 15 minutes (I waited 30 minutes). Then wash you hair as normal.
I tried this three times over the past week and my hair feels soft, shiny and manageable. It’s not greasy or dry. It’s just right. It’s almost like the mask normalised my hair.
Definitely worth a try!
Any home remedies to share??

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Kill a spot with apple!

I woke yesterday morning to the awful sensation of a spot brewing. Now, not one of those little spots, I shan’t moan about those. This felt more like Vesuvius.  One of those blind spot lumps that hurt like a mother when you move your facial muscles. If I wasn’t on holiday I would have gone straight to the acne product drawer in my pink room – You know you have issues with spots when you have a shelf dedicated to products claiming to clear them!
Instead I thralled the internet looking for a natural solution. One of the simplest ones I came across was using an apple. Having one of those sitting in my fruit bowl I decided I had nothing left to loose.

All I did was pore boiling water over a slice of apple and wait 3-5 minutes for it to soften. I then popped it over the spot whilst still warm and left it there for 20 minutes. Afterward I patted the area with a warm cotton ball. I repeated this is the afternoon and at night. This morning the spot was gone. Result!
Apparent apple is highly antiseptic. it kills bacteria and protects from infection. They also contain AHA’s which is a natural exfoliant. I’ll definitely be using this again.
From what I’ve read you need to get those big sore spots just as they’re coming up. This mightn’t have worked had I waited a few days.
Have you any natural remedies?

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Smooth Feet

I mentioned Avon Pedi Peel by Foot Works in a recent video and thought it deserved a blog mention.
For me, having smooth feet is one of the nicest feelings in the world. I have spent so much money on foot products over the years. For a while I was using the Ped-Egg. Although I got great results I noticed that the skin grew back much faster and worse than before. When I researched this I found that when the skin in under attack (from grating, cutting etc) it responds through over compensation. So not only does new skin grow back but it can grow back faster and thicker. This wouldn’t be a problem if you used Ped-Egg regularly. But for me,the dry skin I get on my heels doens’t warrant that amount of work.
I ordered the Avon Pedi Peel pads from my local Avon rep about 6 months ago. Before I go to bed I wipe a pad on both heels and bin it.
When I’m showering I then use my own Lavender Oat Scrub Bar on my feet (very gently). I no longer have dry skin, my feet are baby smooth.
What do you do to keep dry skin on your feet at bay?

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How to do your own Pedicure

As part of my resolution to relax more, today I am giving myself a DIY Pedicure.I am very impatient when it comes to waiting for polish to dry. Very often I can’t sit long enough and I end up ruining it before it has set. To combat this I like to light some candles and have a cup of tea whilst my polish dries.

What you need:

• Basin of warm water with a few drops of essential oil
• Towel
• Nail polish remover
• Nail buffing block
• Foam toe separators
• Cotton Wool Pads
• Nail File
• Orangewood Stick / Cuticle Pusher
• Nailbrush
• Exfolianting scrub
• Cuticle removing cream/oil
• Foot cream
• Tweezers
• Base coat
• Top coat
• Nail polish

Steps

• Soak your feet in warm water with essential oil for about 3 minutes. I like using Lavender Oil for relaxation or Peppermint Oil if you fancy tingly fresh feet.
• Remove feet and rub some exfoliating scrub (or sea salt) to your feet and scrub away dead skin. Rinse feet thoroughly
• Use a nailbrush to clean under nails and pat dry your feet.
• Take an orange stick while your cuticles are soft and gently push them back.
• Take the nail file and file your nails into the shape you like. Remember to file in one direction, not back and forth, working from the side of the nail to middle of nail tip and down to the other side.
• Apply Foot cream to your exfoliated feet. Take the soft towel and rub off any excess cream from the toenails before you apply polish.
• Pluck any hairs.
• Put foam toe separators on your feet.
• Apply base coat, two coats of colour and then topcoat. Wait at least 2-3 minutes between coats.

Hello beautifully groomed feet! Best of all, there are no salon bills.

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Catrice Ultimate Nail Lacquer

I picked up Catrice Ultimate Nail Lacquer in Clay-ton, My Hero, which is number 230. It’s a taupe shade with gold pearl running through it. I’ve taken a few images to show the  the difference the light makes to this polishes appearance.

Sometimes it looks grey, other times you can see the gold running through and the polish appears on the beige scale.

There’s no point if faffing around, I love it! End of.

It’s creamy but fluid, two coats is perfect. One coat isn’t enough and it isn’t a nice colour at this stage. It goes with every outfit, it’s chic and works with most skin-tones thanks to its’ taupeness with an undercurrent of gold pearl.

I bought my bottle from my local pharmacy for €2.99. Bargain! The bottle has 10ml of product.
I applied a clear top coat over this polish and it didn’t chip for 3 days. I love the colour, love the formulation, love the price, just love full stop!
There was a gorgeous jade green and navy that I wanted from this range too but unfortunately they were out of stock. I shall be returning! Do you recommend any Catrice shades?
What are you wearing on your nails today?

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Nails of the Day… June 9, 2012

I’m traveling today so I wanted to wear something cheery but durable on my nails. I opted for pink, surprise, surprise. It’s actually quite different to all of the other pink polishes I own (that’s my story and I’m sticking to it!).

Butter London Primrose Hill Picnic

Some swatches (2 coats of polish and all taken in natural light)…

Ignore the state of my cuticles, they have never been in such a bad way. You may have heard me mention the matching Lippy in a recent post. They are so pretty together…

I’ve said this so often but I love Butter London nail polishes. They quality is excellent, the application is a dream. The finish is beautiful and they last a few days longer for me than my usual polishes. Another pro is that they dry quite quickly too.

You can buy Butter London lacquers from here or they are also on sale in Avoca or Fran and Jane (I also heard someone mention they picked one up in Oasis).

Any Butter London recommendations?

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Lippy by Butter London Primrose Hill – Review & Pics June 5, 2012

Butter London make gorgeous nail polishes, this we know. But I hadn’t heard anything of their Lippy’s until one arrived through my door a few weeks back. It’s in Primrose Hill Picnic, what a whimsical name. It’s a bright pink and I’m just in love with it!

Before I get to the review I’ll add some swatches and show you what it looks like on my mug. The great thing about this Lippy is that it can be worn in its intense form or a little lighter. I photographed both.
Lighter…

Intense…

I applied two layers for the intense look. Now I have I have heard it said that there is no point in a lip only picture when swatching lip products, that you want to see what it looks like with the rest of the makeup. Here goes…

Now on with the review.
Texture Lippy’s remind me a lot of the Lip Tars from Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics. It is thick and well, tar like. This means it adheres very well to the lips. This isn’t one of those sheer, smoosh it on over everything glosses. You need a mirror to apply since the colour is intense and you want to keep it within the lip line.
Pigmentation Amazing. ‘Nuff said.
Finish It looks like you have gone to the bother of applying both lipstick and lipgloss but you haven’t. It looks creamy, opaque and glossy. It’s more lipsticky than lip gloss if you know what I mean.
Staying Power I have found this to be the most long lasting gloss I’ve come across. I would put this down to the texture – which you will either love or hate. It will be reliable on a night out or special event, for a gloss.
Price and where to buy €17 from here. Well worth the price tag in my opinion! Top notch stuff. Butter London is also on sale in Avoca or Fran and Jane.
Love!

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