How To Get Glowing Skin All Year Round

No matter who you are, nobody wants skin that looks dull. We all want healthy, glowing skin that looks fabulous all year round. But stress, the weather and lack of care can take it’s toll on our skin making it look dry, blemished and tired. This can be aging and take a long time to rectify. Many of us will use makeup and harsh skincare products that can often make your skin’s condition worse. So use this guide to learn how you can achieve radiant, clear skin that you can be proud to show off all year round. 

 Protect your skin from the sun

While being out in the sunshine can feel fantastic, the sun’s rays can cause wrinkles, burning and dryness. You can also experience peeling and blistering from being in direct sunlight. The best form of prevention is protecting your skin with sunscreen and staying in the shade. The sunscreen will form a barrier that can prevent burning and tightness of the skin, which can be extremely uncomfortable. Remember to apply every hour for maximum protection. Also, don’t forget to continue using your sunscreen throughout the winter too. It can also protect your delicate skin from chapping and drying out due to winter weather conditions.

Clean your brushes and smartphone

This might sound like an odd tip, but your makeup brushes and smartphone can harbour dirt, bacteria and germs. Putting these onto your face every day can encourage spots and pimples to develop and can cause irritation to your skin’s surface. To keep these at bay, you need to clean your makeup brushes at least once a week, with warm water and soap.  Make sure they are thoroughly dried out before using them again and wash your hands before blending in your concealer or foundation. You also need to clean your smartphone regularly with an antibacterial wipe that won’t damage the screen. These measures should prevent the spread of germs and bacteria and prevent your skin from becoming overly oily and dry.

Work out a suitable sequence

For your skin care products to be most effective, you need to establish an order. Lack of thought in your skincare could mean that some of your products are not working as well as they could. Heavy creams such as moisturizers can block lighter toners and cleansers from entering your skin. So if your skin’s condition is not improving this could be why. Always start with your lightest cleansing product first and end with your thicker moisturizer. This will ensure they are penetrating your skin and doing their job.

If you find that your products are too harsh and cause your skin to dry out or become irritated, you may need to use more natural based products. Click here for some homemade remedies and skincare ideas that will be more beneficial to your sensitive skin.

Good skin health requires patience and a little know-how to achieve, but it is not impossible. Try out all or just some of these suggestions until you find a combination that works for you and feel happier in your own skin.

Mastering Lipstick When You Are A Beauty Beginner

Lipstick is one of the most valuable items in a woman’s makeup bag. It can showcase your personality, add color to an outfit and fill you with confidence. Yet many women convince themselves that they can’t wear it and that it doesn’t suit them. But the reality is that all woman can look good when they wear lipstick. You just need to apply it correctly, choose the right shade and feel amazing when wearing it. If you’re a beauty beginner, who is desperate to master lipstick but unsure how this quick guide is for you.

Do lipstick research

Lipsticks come in an array of shades and styles which can make choosing the perfect one feel overwhelming. The best way to know what kind of lipsticks you should be looking for is by doing some research before you hit the shops. Look into different lipstick brands such as nyx cosmetics and MAC to see what they have to offer. You may find that some have a wider selection of colours than others and that their prices vary considerably. It can also be worthwhile to read reviews on how well certain lipsticks performed. This will ensure you avoid brands that are producing lower quality products. Also, make sure you determine the differences between the finishes lipsticks can have. Matte, gloss and satin are just a few examples which all create their own unique look.

Find the perfect shade

Before you start buying lipsticks in a rainbow of colours, you need to find out shades suit your skin tone. To do this, look at images of celebrities who have a similar skin tone to you to see what shades they look good in. This can also make it easier to see what shades you should avoid too. Another option is to have a consultation with a makeup artist at a local beauty counter. The artist can advise you on what shades will best suit you while also allowing you to try different options before you buy. Don’t feel pressured into trying shades that are too dark or bold straight away. Instead, opt for more subtle lipsticks and glosses that you can wear anytime.

Buy the right tools

If you want to apply lipstick correctly, you need to ensure you have the right tools to help you. A toothbrush, lip brush and lip pencil are both crucial if you want your lipstick to look flawless and last all day. Use the toothbrush to gently exfoliate your lips to ensure they are smooth. Then use your lip liner, which should be in a similar shade to draw around the shape of your lips. The liner can also be applied onto your lips to create a base coat. To finish, brush your lip brush over your lipstick and apply directly onto your lips. Stay within the lines to create a sharp and professional looking finish.

Now you know how there should be nothing stopping you from wearing lipstick on date night or to the office. Don’t be afraid to get experimental and have fun with the colours you choose. You may be surprised at just how good they look on you.

Some things you can’t live without….

I came to the realisation on the weekend that there are some things in life that you just cannot live without….my fridge being one of them. Its amazing how you take that thing that sits in your kitchen all year for granted, until it breaks down, which is what happened to us on the weekend.

Our fridge had been working fine and had shown no signs of sickness or going down with a slight cold or fever, until that is we invited some friends over for dinner on Saturday night. Just like a naughty child it said enough is enough and threw a tantrum. “I’m not taking any more yummy food and bottles of wine being stuck into Gods knows where”.

So it just gave up the ghost late on Saturday morning – leaving us to scramble around with eskys etc to put our shopping in.

And the chances of getting a fridge repair man out on a Saturday are non-existent. My other half suggested renting a fridge from Rentacentre as he had done back in his back-packer days when he first came to Oz – but as our fridge is less than two years old there is no point in throwing it out.

Luckily or unfortunately whichever way you want to look at it our dishwasher had broken down in the office and so I had to call to have that repaired last week, phoned a local mob which I can highly recommend Oxford Service Appliance Repairs, came out when they said they would and carried out our dishwasher repairs in no time at all.

So had them on speed dial to repair my fridge – which they did. Same guy called out to our apartment and even remembered my name from last week…

As for our dinner party all ended well in the end – wine was a little warmer than usual and the beer was definitely room temperature but sure my other half is Irish and should be well used to that!!

Till next time

Becky

How To Keep Your Skin Hydrated In The Summer

The summer is a time where I am the most dehydrated.  As a resident of the desert, my skin suffers from the lack of moisture in the environment.  I have learned a few ways to keep dehydration from occurring and I’d love to share them with you here.

Tip #1: Drink H2O

Your body loses fluids when you sweat in high heat.  If you’re losing fluids, you need to increase your fluid intake so that you can restore your body’s natural hydration levels.  Dehydration can cause your skin to look more dry and wrinkled which can be improved with proper hydration.  The best way to make sure you are hydrated throughout the day is invest in a bottle that helps you track how much water you drink.
Aim to drink eight 8oz glasses per day and increase your intake if you are exercising.

Tip #2: Use  Hydrating Skincare Products

Choosing the right product for skincare can be overwhelming.  To keep from dehydrating your skin, you need skincare that protects, restores and fortifies with moisture you can feel.  My favourite products to use by Aquation.  Their skincare is powered by Hydro Balance™ which is an advanced dual phase technology that delivers hydration and creates an invisible barrier to help prevent moisture loss while encapsulated actives penetrate deeply for long-lasting hydration.

After using the following three products (Aquation Gentle Moisturizing Cleanser, Aquation Daily Moisturizing Lotion, and Aquation Moisturizing Cream) for a couple of weeks, I noticed an extraordinary difference in my skin.  It felt smooth hydrated and replenished.  If you are looking for a product that has a strong perfume or spa smell, Aquation is not for you.  It honestly smells like what they would give you at the hospital.  Great for people who are allergic to those types of ingredients.

Tip #3: Exfoliate

I’ve talked about exfoliation extensively before. To refresh your memory, exfoliating the skin removes dead cells and improves hydration from toners and moisturizers.  Personally, I exfoliate my face and body once a week.  After I exfoliate, my skin is super soft and feels refreshed.  Please consult your dermatologist for what type of scrub to use for your skin type.

As the summer ends and weather starts to change,  you may have to tweak your skincare regimen.  Let us know if you enjoyed this article and we can help you with more tips for the winter weather!  

Charles & Camilla - Welcome to Sydney

Welcome to Sydney Charles & Camilla. 

Charles and Camilla stopped off in Sydney Harbour today for their first official engagement at Garden Island in Sydney Harbour. Unfortunately the weather was not as good as it has been all week and the sky was a bit greyer than normal. The royal couple touched down at Sydney Airport last night and the rain stopped just in time for them to have a quick chat with Governor Marie Bashir and Premier Barry O'Farrell before dashing off to their awaiting car. Prince Charles was dressed in a smart grey pin-striped suit with a poppy in his lapel. Camilla, wearing a camel trench coat, looked a little tired after the couple's busy day in Tasmania. After watching sheep run about in Hobart yesterday morning, the royal couple will spend today taking in the beauty of the Harbour and beaches.

Couldn't help joining the crowds on my way to work this morning and taking a photo of this cheeky cruise company that had a big Royal Suite Available on the bow of their luxury cruises ship.

They must have put this up in case Charles and Camilla wanted a last minute cruise....

Get Gorgeous Tips

Well now that the weather has finally warmed up in Sydney and summer is just around the corner I thought I would share some tips on how to get gorgeous for summer.

Also as the social season hits high gear starting with Melbourne Cup in a couple of weeks, there's barely enough time to swipe on mascara in between after-work parties and weekends away!!

While we all love going to the beach in and enjoying the summer sunshine we should be careful as the strong Aussie sun takes away the skin moisture making it dehydrated. It is then the right time to take care of your skin from getting wrinkled in summer.

Get Gorgeous Skin

Here are some ideas to get gorgeous skin this summer:

Sunscreen

Applying the right sunscreen on your skin in summer is essential. Application of a sun block/sunscreen in summer doesn’t make a gorgeous skin but at least it protects your skin from any further damage.

Shades

Wearing sun glasses on Sydney’s glarey days is one of the best beauty tips. This stops you squinting and prevents crows feet around your eyes.

Cleansing

Skin in summer gets oily too due to heat, use a fine cleanser everyday in order to get a gorgeous skin result.

Protecting the Pout

Don’t make your lips oily in summer. Along with a gorgeous skin you need to maintain your lips too by applying a SPF infused lip balm on the lips.

Look Around for Shade

As we keep getting told stay out of the mid day sun between 12-3pm – hard to do some days though when you just want to get out of the office for a while. If it is still unavoidable to be outdoors, then try to stay in shade as much as possible. This will help you to get gorgeous skin.

 

 

The Postman Always Rings Twice

The Postman Always Rings Twice - or at least he did this week...
Hands up who doesn't love getting free stuff? Thats the best thing about arriving home from work and checking my mailbox to see more free samples have arrived this week....

Just before everything thinks that I get free samples from companies because I write a blog, well you are wrong that is not the case these are freely available to anyone - but having said that if any companies do want to send me free samples I might write about them and review them if they are up to spec...

No the free samples that I receive are available to anyone, I signed up to get free Olay skincare samples at VIP Offers – the discount coupon site. But I think you can also sign up at Rouge Mag to get Olay skincare samples too.

It sort of puzzles me though when you do explore the web looking for free samples how many websites are actually out there....and in some warehouse somewhere there are thousands of miniature bottles of shampoo, skincare, coffee, laundry detergent you name it and they are probably getting stuffed into an envelope right now!!

You just have to know how to find the ones you are interested in finding..

And these days, who isn’t interested in getting some free stuff.  Plus a shampoo sample is handy to stick in my gym bag... and I just refill it as and when required, shh don’t tell anyone that though or my name might go on a free sample black list that is held somewhere...


Even when I login into Facebook I am now being offered free samples for this and free samples for that.... ahhhh.

I will need a bigger mailbox at this rate or maybe I get get postie just to drop around once a week in his ute with my samples!!

Till next time

Becky
 ps check back soon - I let you know what I think of my Olay samples!!

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Charm Bracelet For A Special Birthday!

So it’s that time of the year and looking at my calendar, my little niece’s birthday is only a few weeks away! I racked my brain for something really special since it’s her 15^th so I frantically asked around to all my friends and heaps of them suggested Pandora jewellery as a classy and stylish gift. I thought it would be a great idea for a younger girl because you start them off with a few charms then they can collect a whole heap as they grow up and experience the whole world! There aren’t really any stores around here that I could find carrying Pandora Jewellery, but on the website there’s this nifty bracelet designer that lets you try out different combinations from all of Pandora’s product range and preview the result. I spent so much time on the website I started designing my own bracelet!
But back to my niece… I thought a leather bracelet might be more her style because I want something she can wear pretty much every day. I think the leather goes really well with anything, even the school uniform that she has to wear for the next few years. As for the charms I went for a silver opal charm that’s classy and girly to which I think looks great against the black. It’s also the birthstone of October and is a really Aussie stone in my opinion! I decided to get another charm and this time I saw a Murano glass bead with these really pretty stained patterns that I just know she’ll love. Last I thought I might just throw in a few spacers to even out the bracelet and to get her on her way to filling the rest of the space up.
So here’s the final result from the website’s app:

  

I think it looks like a perfect gift for a 15^th birthday but I’m not sure. I’ll have to look at my nearest store and really hold it in my hands before I decide, but for now I’m feeling pretty good about my gift. Now I need to log off the computer for sure… the more I look at the pretty and intricate charms around the website the more I want to get my own! It’s never too late to start a bracelet is it?? Well Christmas is just around the corner and maybe if I drop a few hints I can get one for myself haha. Here’s the website:http://www.pandora.net/en-au  enter at your own risk!!

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Free Product Samples

OMG...I got a nice little surprise when I got home from work yesterday. It was my free sample of Pantene shampoo and conditioner..I got it by subscribing to Rouge Mag the online beauty tips mag.

Nowadays given how costly everything seems to be in Sydney I love getting some free stuff. I have even been taking advantage of some of the daily deal websites and discount coupons websites lately as it is a great way of saving some money. Specially when it comes to eating out, which we like to do from time to time some of the deal sites have some great restaurant coupons and restaurant deals so it makes having a night out a bit less expensive.

I have to say though at first I was a bit reluctant to get into the whole deal thing as initially you could never get a restaurant booking and when you did you were offered a different menu but all that seems to be sorted out now that the heat has died down.

Anyway looking forward to trying my Pantene samples, will come in handy when I go to the beach or swimming pool which given the hot weather in the last few days might be this weekend.

 

Till next time

Becky

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Interesting Hair Colour Facts

So I’ve been giving more thought towards hair colours, and I’ve been inspired by my trip to Freedom and our new furniture that I’ve thought of going with red hair colouring or maybe some subtle streaks of lighter browns for better texture in my natural colour. At my weekly trim with the salon I talked to my hairdresser and she actually had some pretty interesting facts and figures that I haven’t considered before with hair colouring. It seems each shade of hair colour has its own unique properties which complicates the situation even more! Here are a few tips I can remember for those out there doing home hair colouring:

Red Hair Colouring
Apparently this is the most fragile of all the colours and if you’re doing this it might not last as long and you need to be more careful with it. If you go red remember to always use a colour safe shampoo and conditioner. It’s also the most damaging to hair strands, so salons are really careful doing red hair colouring on already damaged hair or something that’s just undergone heat or chemical perms. Also not everyone can wear red – it looks the best with skin that has pink undertones.

Brown Hair Colouring
Brunettes have it ways easier than reds. It’s the kindest to hair health and also the easiest to maintain, that is unless you are a natural platinum blonde in which case you’ll need root touch ups pretty often. The disadvantage of brown hair colouring is that it often blends all together and looks really two-dimensional. The hairdresser said she advises most people to go for either a really dark chocolate brown or a lighter colour with highlights to avoid looking too boring.

Blonde Colouring

When salons lighten hair they have to use really powerful chemicals. In fact the hairdresser told me blonde is usually the worst for hair since it almost always means using really nasty chemicals. Yikes! I might have to reconsider my little experiment. Another thing I forgot is the regrowth of my natural colour…some people can pull off a natural transition but I’d hate to have to keep putting root touch ups every week.

So there you have it, some simple hair colouring advice. So much I didn’t know! If you’ve got some useful info don’t hold back…Share in comments!

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Anti Dandruff Remedies At Home

My other half has been complaining lately that he feels stressed out and a bit tired all the time. I guess me telling him to stop whining didn’t help his stress levels either....

But lately though he has been suffering from dandruff which I suppose is an embarrassing enough problem that gets a lot worse when you’re stressed out, tired or if your’re not eating right.

It really is quite an embarrassing thing to deal with and having an itchy scalp and being forced to wear light clothing all the time isn’t any fun either. I asked a friend of mine who had studied homeopathic and natural treatments to help me help my partner out.

She gave me a huge list and I picked out a few that sounded the most pleasant and tried to see what would work for him. Here are the treatments and how I found them to work out for me:

 

·         Olive Oil: Apparently this was something that was used as a dandruff treatment since ancient times. I have to admit he wasn’t all that enthusiastic about rubbing pure oil all over his hair and scalp but he had enough of dealing with an itchy, flaky scalp. My directions were to rub extra virgin olive oil directly onto the scalp and then to leave it overnight. He slept on a towel as not to ruin my good sheets. It actually worked quite well, after doing the treatment for a few days I noticed a lot less dandruff, but as soon as he went back to his normal routine the flakes returned to their normal level and I wasn’t too big of a fan of oiling his scalp every night.

 

·         The Vinegar Rinse: If you think the olive oil soak sounds a bit unpleasant then this one definitely isn’t for you. Do your normal routine in the shower, shampooing and conditioner or whatever, and right at the end rinse your hair and scalp with a mixture of half vinegar and half water. Be careful not to get any of the vinegar in your eyes as this will be very uncomfortable. This actually worked quite well, but I just couldn’t take the smell, the whole apartment reminded me of a chipper!! I read online that people worked around this by shampooing in the morning to get the vinegar out, but I found this dried out his scalp really badly and made the dandruff and itchy scalp worse.

·         The Beer Rinse: So according to my homeopath friend beer is high in vitamin B because of the yeast that’s in it. I figure the smell can’t be as bad as vinegar or as uncomfortable as olive oil soakings so I sneak a bottle of his favourite brew from the fridge and get him to rinse his hair at the end of his shower just like the vinegar treatment. Out of all the treatments this one definitely worked the best in getting rid of dandruff and making his scalp feel fairly normal and not oversensitive, and it was pleasant enough that we could stick through it for a couple of weeks. The smell was gone by morning and a pleasant side effect was that his hair seemed to be a little shinier that usual.

 

He says he is happy to give the beer rinse a few more tries to see if it actually works, I’m sure he is, it is the best excuse I’ve heard yet to go to the bottle shop. “Just going to pick up a case of beer – eh sorry anti dandruff shampoo!!!”

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Till next time

 

Becky

 

 

 

 

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Do Blondes Have More Fun.....

Well now that the warmer weather is on the way I am deciding whether to lighten my locks or not, just a couple of shades lighter nothing to drastic.

Looks like I am not the only one to dye my hair though as much as my other half complains about me hogging the bathroom when I am colouring my hair at home. It looks like I might be in good company lots of celebrities use hair colour to improve their image, even Fiona Bruce the glamourous BBC newsreader dyes her hair to cover up the grey.

Sometimes I feel I would love to go really crazy with my hair colour like a bright pink or something – but I know that I would soon get sick of it and would want to change it back again.

Just need to get my driving licence photos out of the way then might go a little crazy....

Anyone else out there ever regretted doing something too drastic with their hair???

 

 

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Sofa Shopping...

Well what a job I had this weekend. Trying to get my boyfriend to go visit a furniture store is like asking him would he mind if I stick pins in his eyes!! But he finally relented so off we trekked to our local Moore Park Freedom Furniture store this weekend. Having received their email last weekend notifying me of their buy one sofa get one half price promotion I just couldn’t help myself.

As is usual on a weekend Moore Park Supacentre was thronged and I was just beginning to think that this was a bad idea myself when we found a parking spot. Before battling the other furniture shoppers we armed ourselves with a good strong coffee and were then ready to fight the crowds.

First stop was Freedom Furniture to check out their range of sofas, they have a great range of good quality sofas at an affordable price. After much discussion and hopping up and down from one sofa to the next we finally decided on the Frenchie 2.5 seater sofa in a sort of greeny colour.

Delivery is booked for during the week and we look forward to many happy hours watching TV on our new sofa..we also bought a nice red spindle side table while we were there as we felt we needed something to bring home that day to show for all our efforts.

Photo above of our new table taken with my new Instagram app which I'm loving...
Till next time

Becky

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Get Rid of Frizzy Hair...

Do you ever find that your hair gets to frizzy? I know I certainly do and I find it quite annoying. Maybe it’s your hair texture — super fine, naturally curly, or kinky. Whatever the cause, you've got a case of the frizzies. And I think it happens to all of us girls at some stage....

Do not fear though. Thanks to products made for naturally curly hair, fighting frizz is easier than ever. You can make it even easier by considering these frizz-related factors.

You might be more likely to deal with daily frizz in the warmer weather.  Specially with a hot Australian summer on the way it’s the season for head-to-toe beauty dilemmas, but frizz can happen any time of year. If you're lucky, your hair will have a favourite season when it magically falls into the perfect style.

But harsh, forced air in the winter, dew and rain in the spring, or the onset of dry autumn cold can lead to frazzled ends and poufy hair. If it’s cold and dry, consider using shea-butter-based styling products to seal in moisture. If it's hot and humid, light, oil-based products just might do the trick.

If you walk into your hair salon with a head full of frizz, your hair stylist’s most likely reaction will be to crank up the dryer or hair straightener. If you want to maintain the healthy appearance of your hair, cease and desist the high heat. Make sure you use a heat-protecting spray, and ask your stylist to use an ionic blow-dryer, which compresses the hair cuticles and helps reduce frizz.

Some frizz-prone women ditch shampoo altogether and switch to just using conditioner to wash their hair on a weekly basis. Adding a regular deep conditioning treatment to your product stash is crucial. If you have fine hair, hot oil could be your best friend. Thicker, coarser hair tends to respond well to creamy, dense conditioning treatments. 

If you've been using a regular supermarket shampoo, try switching to something gentler, like a cleansing cream or one-step cleansing conditioners. Or you could try something like Pantene Always Smooth Hair moisturiser, which is great for protecting curly and wavy hair while controlling the dreaded frizz.

Becky

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