Ooh La Lashes: Cathyfly Checks Out Lash Extensions Up To my Eyes

Friday, November 20th, 2009

lashes

It seems the humble mascara isn’t enough for us any more. The amazing growth in popularity of eyelashes in the past few years means that no makeup application is complete without the addition of a set of false eyelashes to finish off the party look. The availability of high quality false lashes on the high street (from Mac to Ardell) has given all of us access to a beauty trick previously the preserve of make-up artists and those lucky enough to avail of their services.

The latest development in our love affair with false lashes is the growth of lash bars and lash specialists around the country who are now offering semi-permanent eyelash extensions that promise to last up to six weeks. One such specialist is Elaine McParland of Up to my Eyes in Greystones, who I paid a visit to a couple of weeks ago for a Xen Tan, and who has customers travelling from all over Ireland to have her add flutter to their peepers. As well as adding glamour to your look, lash extensions can also be a godsend for anyone who has very fine eyelashes, including older women or anyone who has suffered from hair loss.

Up to my Eyes is located in a spacious studio beside Elaine’s home in Greystones, a very relaxing and welcoming space, with amazing ‘before and after’ photos on the walls of clients who’ve had lash extensions. First, I filled out a questionnaire designed to assess my eye sensitivity and what type of effect I wanted to go for. Elaine explained the different types of lashes available – there’s a mind-boggling selection of lengths, finishes, colours and curl types, and three strengths of glue for different levels of eye sensitivity. I had been a bit nervous, but I knew I was in good hands, as this is clearly a lady who is passionate about lashes and really knows her stuff.

(more…)

Tags: lash extensions, lashes
Posted in Brands, treatment & product reviews, Eyes, Lips and Cheeks | 8 Comments »

Avon Anew Reversalist Serum: Me Likey

Friday, November 20th, 2009

avon

The first time I used Reversalist, €41.50, from Avon’s Anew range, I knew that it reminded me of something. The texture, the immediate and visible effect on skin, even the smell - almost every element of the product felt very familiar to me. The packaging did not, as was abundantly clear the second time I used it, when I managed to squirt the stuff all across the bathroom.

Reversalist looks like something that wouldn’t have appeared out of place as a prop on the latest Star Trek movie. It’s a sealed red and grey capsule from which product is dispensed via a small nozzle on one side of the capsule, ordered out by a push-button mechanism on the other.

Formulated to deal with the anti-aging concerns of women in their 40s and specifically to dramatically reverse the look of wrinkles, Reversalist is the first bit of skincare kit to contain Activinal Wrinkle Reversal Technology. This is designed to stimulate the production of Activin, which is a repairing protein complex naturally produced by the skin in response to cuts to assist wound repair.

It certainly smooths skin on application - much like Esteé Lauder’s Idealist, which is the product it reminded me of so much. And while I initially wasn’t really expecting to see lasting results, after two week’s use, I find that my skin does look more even toned and there is a perceptible softening of the lines in my forehead - all without clogging my pores or causing me to break out.

Tags: Avon, pores, serum, wrinkles
Posted in Brands, treatment & product reviews, Skincare | 4 Comments »

L’Oréal Professionnel Play Ball Slick Caramel: Smooth Operator

Thursday, November 19th, 2009

playball

“Here, this is for you” I said, handing over a tube of L’Oréal Professionnel Play Ball Slick Caramel, €17.20, to Himself without giving the label a second glance.

It was an honest mistake - for one thing, this stuff comes in a matte white cylindrical container with glossy bright orange ends. Very haircare-for-boys looking, I thought. And since the focus of a lot of the Play Ball line is to add texture and hold to shorter hair, I suppose I automatically assumed that this was a product unlikely to be suited to my longer locks.

But, eh, actually it’s a straightening and smoothing aid for medium to long hair, as I realised when the offending article was returned to me toot sweet and I gave the instructions the once over. Ah right so, Ted.

The contents of the tube are as white as the packaging, a non-sticky gel cream formulation that smells a wee bit sugary sweet. L’Oréal Professionnel sez: “Apply Play Ball Slick Caramel Smoothing Cream to towel-dried hair before blow-drying or over the lengths and ends to smooth before straightening.” I sez: When applied, Play Ball Slick Caramel Smoothing Cream sent me into a tailspin of complete and utter panic. From mid-lengths to ends, my hair looked like it’d been dipped it in a deep fat fryer.

And not one where the oil had been changed in living memory.

Post-straightening, however, it was a different story. Lovely, glossy, super straight gruaig that told flyaways to eff off was mine, all mine, without a hint of chipper hair. Used on wet hair before drying, it was a similar story - any kinks seemed to just fall out magically and hair was left straight with only the very minimum of effort. I pretty much just blast dried it, without a nozzle, only using a brush in the final moments.

Sorry for misjudging you so terribly, Play Ball Slick Caramel…

(P.S. - Is it just me, or does “Play Ball Slick Caramel” sound absolutely filthy yet strangely delicious..?)

Tags: Hair & Hair Removal, L'Oreal professionnel, straightening
Posted in Brands, treatment & product reviews, Hair & Hair Removal | 7 Comments »

I’m loving Angels instead. Well not really. Angel Therapy not for the likes of me

Wednesday, November 18th, 2009

istock_000004694785xsmall

The therapist came out to where Kirstie and I were relaxing on loungers. “Who is for the [insert mumbo jumbo therapy name here] treatment?” she asked kindly.

We looked at one another.

“Eh… her… not me… eh I dunno”

With reluctance I put down my trashy mag. In the end I was the creathur who had to go and do it. Lying on the bed in the treatment room, crystals were passed over me and I was told the name of my own special angel who was “in the room with us. Can you feel him?”

“Er… no”

“He’s very powerful.” (Some Reiki is done on me). ” Can you feel him now?”

“No, sorry”

“Look , I’ll open the door.” (makes gesture like huge wind almost knocking her over when door is opened) “So many of them! Rushing, rushing through the door. Eager to meet you. Oh can’t you feel it?”

“Really sorry, I can’t feel anything.”

In the end I had to (unconvincingly) pretend to feel an angel and submit to his wisdom. Perhaps there’s something wrong with my aura - but this kind of therapy does nothing for me. I only like therapies involving squeezing out blackheads and conditioning hair etc. Obviously I haven’t spiritually evolved. What about you?

Tags: alternative therapies, angel therapy, ridiculous, unevolved
Posted in Brands, treatment & product reviews, Diet & Wellbeing | 31 Comments »

Beaut.ie Tools: The Blemish Extractor

Tuesday, November 17th, 2009

extractor

So I told you about the lovely Lancome mascara topcoat that I procured from Sephora in Barcelona a couple of weeks ago. However, I also snuck some decidedly less fancy items into my shopping basket, like their double-ended blemish extractor. Most brands do a version of this implement with loops at either end - The Body Shop have one that’s almost totally identical for about a fiver - designed to hoke blackheads and whiteheads right out of the pores they’ve been squatting in while doing minimal damage to skin.

Implements like these are a good idea if you’re inclined to prod and poke the bejaysus out of your mush on a regular basis, because they’ll satisfy your need for a squeeze in a controlled way. I’ve been putting it through its paces while trying to hide it from Himself (he goes mental at the merest hint of post-squeeze redness: “Will you leave your poor face alone?!”), doing battle with the bane-of-my-life areas of congestion around my nose and chin.

The good news is that, while the large size of the loops on my particular model mean it’s a bit unwieldy around fiddly areas like the sides of the nose or on really weeny blemishes, it actually makes a pretty good fist of extractions. Its effectiveness can be increased by using it after a shower so that pores are wiiiide open. And provided you don’t use wildly excessive pressure which would cause nearly as much damage as if you’d got stuck in with your nails, you shouldn’t be left with any long-lasting tell-tale red marks.

I went to town with mine on Sunday night - first thing on Monday morning, Himself said approvingly “Your skin looks great, doesn’t it? Are you going to keep leaving it alone?”

Mwah hah hah!

Tags: extractions, Sephora, tools
Posted in Brands, treatment & product reviews, Gadgets, Books & Accessories | 22 Comments »

Adventures in Tanning: The Winter Files With Xen Tan

Monday, November 16th, 2009

xen_tan_luxe

Last week, we took a look at Rimmel Sunshimmer as an option for a quick tanning fix for pasty winter skin. Instant tans are great for a night out when you just want to give your arms and décolletage a quick bronzing to take the blue look away. But there are some drawbacks:

You may spend the night in a perverse dilemma of “I hope I do/I hope I don’t score,” in the knowledge that the Farmer’s Tan look is a guaranteed passion-killer (Unless your scoring ground of choice is Copper Face Jacks or McGowan’s, but I digress…)
The amount of precipitation that comes with any given Irish winter means that you can usually add to Dilemma Number One, the fear of a splash of rain or sleet smudging your bronzed glow
Instant tans can be a bit of a messy palaver for a full body application.

So once the winter laziness sets in, if an occasion does arise where a ‘proper’ tan is in order, say a winter wedding or black tie affair, I generally turn to the salon spray tan option.

I recently got the chance to satisfy my curiosity about the new Xen-Tan (pronounced Zen Tan), which has been much hyped in the UK recently, not least by one Mr Gok Wan. It claims to be ‘a revolutionary fake tan treatment that’s been carefully developed to provide a beautiful, olive tan in minutes… no more bad odours, no more orange, no more mess and no more streaking!’ Lofty claims indeed. So how did it do?

(more…)

Tags: spray tan, tan, xen tan
Posted in Brands, treatment & product reviews, Hands, Body & Feet | 9 Comments »

Glow On: Benefit One Hot Minute

Monday, November 16th, 2009

one hot minute

I’ve been checking out Benefit’s newbie, One Hot Minute over the past couple of weeks, and here’s the verdict.

“For a gorgeous “gaze at me glow” sweep this loose rose-gold finishing powder over your complexion and décolleté. All it takes is…one hot minute!,” is the Benefit blurb and as usual, the packaging is pretty and witty. One Hot Minute thankfully comes in a metal tin, so it’s transportable. All good.

Also good is the dispensing mechanism inside: the interface to the powder isn’t completely open, rather it’s a bit like talc where there’s several holes punched through an inner lid, so it’s not wasteful. Bad is the brush. Yuck, I didn’t like this little wimpy approximation of a fan brush, so I ditched it, but at least it gives you a clue as to how you should apply this - whisper-fine, a light touch is what’s required.

The powder itself is a peachy-bronze that feels nice and silky and has subtle shimmer. It’s pretty, but the problem for me is that there’s just too much colour in it and I did look like I was having a hot minute. A hot flush minute. Sigh.

The only reason this isn’t for me is because I’m too pale as it is and it’s November - I’ll revisit this in the summer, but if your skintone is darker or you go for that look then this is going to be a hit. You can use it elsewhere too - down the legs and on the décolleté, which makes it a bit of a multi-tasker if the shade suits. €34.50 is the damage but you’ll get it cheaper if you go direct to www.benefitcosmetics.com.

Tags: Benefit, bronzer
Posted in Brands, treatment & product reviews, Eyes, Lips and Cheeks | 6 Comments »

Art Deco Long-Lasting Oil Free Foundation with SPF20

Friday, November 13th, 2009

artdeco

“Your make-up looks nice” said Himself in passing the other day.

Now, it is most uncommon for Himself to notice my make-up without some serious prompting and much waving of newly painted nails/fluttering of freshly coated eyelashes in his direction and lots of “look, look, did you see my new whatever?”

Anyway, the make-up I was wearing that day was Art Deco’s Long-Lasting Oil Free Foundation, €25.10, and indeed it is quite nice. It’s a fluid foundation, a little thinner in consistency than my go-to Estee Lauder Double Wear Light, that gives medium-to-full coverage with a natural matte finish.

All of which means it’s just the sort of thing I’d normally go for, but this isn’t going to become a HG staple type product for me. That’s because my once wicked oily skin has normalised quite nicely in the last wee while and I found that, despite the inclusion of vitamin E to keep skin moisturised, I noticed quite a bit of drying and flakiness while wearing this foundation. Blub.

That said, I think it would be a great alternative to Double Wear Light for anyone with oilslick skin who finds the EL offering too heavy!

Tags: art deco, foundation, oily skin
Posted in Bases, Foundations & Concealers, Brands, treatment & product reviews | 11 Comments »

Nuxe Hand & Nail Cream: Niiice

Thursday, November 12th, 2009

nuxe-images-june-09-085

It’s been a while since I came across a hand cream to rival Clarins much lauded Hand & Nail Cream for a place in my affections. Aveda’s Hand Relief was on the shopping list, obviously, for comedy value and a snigger every time I used it. But Nuxe have saved me from my inner teenage boy humour with their Reve de Miel Hand & Nail Cream, €12 - and hey, it’s easy to remember since it’s basically called exactly the same thing as the Clarins offering!

It’s for dry, damaged, sensitive hands, and contains Chilean rose, avocado and sweet almond oils to nourish and fortify damaged tissue, and acacia honey to repair and restore elasticity. Rich and cosseting and luxurious in texture, it’s absorbed quickly to leave no icky greasy residue on hands. Oh, and it smells only norjus.

Lovely jubbly.

Tags: hand cream, Nuxe
Posted in Brands, treatment & product reviews, Hands, Body & Feet | 20 Comments »

Rimmel Volume Flash doesn’t do it for me

Tuesday, November 10th, 2009

volume flash

Here it is standing red and phallically proud in its product shot. Reminding me of a small red langer. Oh if only I had subscribed to Readers Digest (like Bill) in good time I would be able to think of at least twenty more words to describe it. And it promises much - ten times more volume for weedy lashes.

But does it deliver? Sadly, no.

Rimmel had a corker of a new mascara this year - Glam Eyes Lash Flirt. And I was also quite taken with the fat lash capabilities of Rimmel Lash Maxx (despite the comb)

Okay so Volume Flash got plus points for not having that ultra annoying comb style brush that Rimmel are so fond of. But as for maximum oooomph? Nah, I wasn’t really feeling it. The temptation to put on loads to rev up the volume just led to clumps of eyelashes forming.

This is a decent mascara but it’s not a great volume mascara. Now where did I put my application for Readers Digest again…

Tags: mascara, Rimmel
Posted in Brands, treatment & product reviews, Eyes, Lips and Cheeks | 8 Comments »