Hair : The Correct Way To Blow dry Maltese Hair

 By: Unknown    00:18  No comments

In Malta, we are blessed with many beautiful things but one thing we definitely aren't blessed with is weather-friendly hair and easily manageable hair (although the latter one does apply for a lucky few) The weather in Malta tends to be very humid, enabling our already rather coarse and frizzy hair to guess what ? Frizz.

So how do we beat the frizz and get long-lasting smooth and sleek hair? I sat down with Gordon Mayo, CEO and director of Toni and Guy Malta and asked him a few questions.

Q&A with Gordon Mayo - The Correct Way To Blow dry Maltese Hair

My first question is a bit of a story. Over the years, I've had many disastrous blow outs. There has been many a time when I have had to watch my hair frizz into a puff ball, merely an hour or two after leaving the salon. However, on occasion, irrespective of ongoing humidity, I have also seen my blow dry withstand the climate and perform a miracle - remain sleek and smooth for a few days. This leads me to believe that there must be different techniques in existence for blow drying hair. Am I right?

Gordon - Yes, there are two different ways to use heat styling - Cohesive Setting or Heating Set. The latter method is the one that should be used on frizz-prone hair - it basically involves drying out all the moisture using a heating element set on the highest setting. The bonds of the hair will be stretched and moulded into a new shape. The first method does not use as much heat and is generally used on less frizz-prone hair to simply shape it.

My next question is of course about the damage all this heat must be doing to our hair. 

Gordon -  Luckily enough, our frizzy hair tends to have more cuticles protecting the hair shaft and can withstand more heat. However, heat protecting products should always be used - no blow dry should be performed without the use of heat protection. Many of these products are actually heat activated and will give off a smoke signal when the hair is readily straightened which means - stop.

Next, I want to know what happens in severe humidity / dew?

Gordon - The heating set technique the hair is no longer an absorbent so it will reject the moisture in the air and remain straight. 

But what about steam?

Gordon - Steam is dangerous - if steam or hot water makes contact with hair that has been set using heat se.t then the bonds will be broken and the hair will frizz.

Any other tricks?

Gordon - An important trick is to always finish off a blow dry using the cold setting on the dryer. The cold air closes the head pores sweat glands in the hair that all the heat has just opened and turns the hair back into its negative state i.e 'fixes it'.

Read More

Beauty : DEFINED BROWS

 By: Unknown    04:30  No comments

Some months ago, I mentioned having had my eyebrows done using a definition method. This meant is, as the name implies to provide much more definition than previously used techniques. I promised further explanation and as I always say - better late than never.

The idea of fully defined eyebrows was born from the idea of the proprietary system HD brows, this system was developed as a seven-step treatment involving threading, tweezing and colour-dyeing. I didn’t actually go for the official HD brows - I opted for a similar service offered by Luisa at Femme Beauty in Attard that’s really well priced at just 4 euros.

The steps in the process were the following

1. CONSULTATION - Luisa examined the shape of my face and the natural shape of my eyebrows. In my case I have a bit of a hole at the top of one of them, she determined which shape would work best so as to minimise the appearance of this hole..
2. TINTING - Dye was applied to my brows - the dye is important so as to draw more attention to the brows and get a more uniform colour across even the sparser hairs.
3. WAXING - The third step was the use of high precision wax to remove unwanted hair, both from below and above the brow, this last bit is really important to achieve that fully defined look.
4. TWEEZING - Tweezing was then also used to remove those odd, stray hairs that didn’t get picked up by the wax.
5. SOOTHING - After waxing any hair off, it’s always really important to have a good soothing cream applied and it feels really good too.
6. FINISHING OFF - This is when I got to look in the mirror, ask questions and ask about how to use an eyebrow pencil to fill in any gaps there might be. In my case, the hole was so much less visible I’m actually opting not to use the eyebrow pencil unless it;s really a special occassion.

Remember that defined does not mean sparse or over-plucked, you can choose to have them thick but still defined.

Read More

Beauty : Olaplex Treatment

 By: Unknown    23:31  1 comment

In the land of hair styling and in particular hair colouring, there's a new product in town that everyone is talking about - Olaplex. According to the gabber, Olaplex, it seems, has managed to do what hair stylists have always dreamt about - repair hair. The word is that this is not just a temporary superficial repair of split ends that ends with your next wash - no, an actual, permanent repair of the bonds. 

From the website " this dream team invented a single ingredient chemistry, that is free of silicone or oils, that links broken bonds in the hair during and after chemical services making them stronger than they were before. "

Now why did I mention hair colouring? This product is mainly designed with the intention of being used during hair colouring processes, especially chemical bleaching. The idea is, that you can chemically bleach, re-bleach and re-bleach, as long as Olaplex is used within the bleaching process, there will be no damage to the hair.

After listening to about 4 different hair stylists glorify this product, I wanted to try it out but I don't bleach my hair. I checked and found out that there's also an in-salon stand-alone Olaplex treatment, designed to simply repair the hair. After all the hairstyling I had done over the last few months, my hair was looking rather damaged and unhappy - check out pic below - mega split ends. The top most pic is the end result after the treatment.

The standalone treatment is called a Reparative Treatment. First my hair was washed, then Olaplex Bond Multiplier was applied combed through, my hair was wrapped in clingfilm and it was left on for about 15 minutes. Next, the Olaplex Bond Perfector was applied and left on for another 10 minutes, then my hair was washed again. I was quite impressed by the difference in my hair texture after, my hair looked shinier, healthier and the split ends were gone. To finish off, here is the 'after' pic again.

Read More

Beauty : Olay Total Effects Day Moisturiser

 By: Unknown    00:00  No comments

Today's review is  about the Olay Total Effects Day Moisturiser product. It's been a while since I posted beauty reviews but I'm going to try and make it a blog rule that every Monday, come rain or shine, there'll be a new beauty review up on the blog.

Olay is one of those product lines that has always intrigued me. I admit, I'm mainly a bit of a product snob when it comes to skincare, I generally use products that are a bit on the pricey side like Clinique, Decleor, Estee Lauder. However, Olay gets really rave reviews, both from friends and blogs and magazines. When they approached me and asked me if I'd like to try out some of their products, I immediately said yes, I figured at the very least I'd get to satisfy my lingering curiosity.

The first thing I noticed when looking at the packaging is that the moisturiser has an SPF of 15 which was enough protection for May but would need sunblock to be worn over for the hotter months. The second thing I noticed is that the moisturiser has a pump-like application. I absolutely rave about pump applicators. I hate pot-style dispensers - I always feel worried about what germs I could possibly be inserting into the pot when extracting the cream, I always take too much and it always gets stuck underneath my nails. So points in favour for the pump.

For this product, these are the 7 official claims:

1. Visibly smoothes fine lines and wrinkles

2. Evens skin tone appearance

3. Enhances brightness

4. Minimizes the look of pores

5. Visibly reduces age spots

6. Restores firmness

7. Replenishes moisture

I used this product every morning for two weeks. There's nothing remarkable about my morning beauty routine. I generally like to start by cleaning my face, toning it, applying eye cream and applying moisturiser. 

Review Points

Line minimization - I get fine lines due to dryness or dehydration but am not yet suffering from age lines or wrinkles so couldn't really test this one

Tone & Brightness enhancement - I didn't really see any difference to my overall skin tone colour but my complexion did look nice and well rested somehow, as though it was really happy.

Pore refinement - I have some open pores, so had this feature worked, I'd have been a happy bunny, sadly I saw no difference.

Age spots - I don't have any age spots but I do have a couple of sun spots and those are still there.

Mositurising & Hydrating Effect - Pretty good, from the first day, by the evening, I had no dry patches anywhere - something which I have previously experienced with other products. Also, foundation stayed put on top of it and didn't cake or melt off.

Others :

Dries quickly - I refuse to wait a length of time between applying moisturiser and applying makup so a fast drying time is essential to me. This faired well.

Overall Review

I liked this moisturiser, comparing it to other much pricier ones I've used, I did not feel that this product did the job any worse than they did. In fact, I've continued to use it in the mornings - it's taken up a place of residence in my gym bag since I start most days with a gym session.

I did not feel that it meets all of the claims it makes, or at least in my case it didn't but in my experience that's generally true of most beauty products.

Read More

Green Faces & Ainhoa Facials

 By: Unknown    00:30  No comments

Whenever I travel, especially to colder climates my skin tends to get a bit unhappy so last Tuesday, I was really looking forward to this facial appointment at Femme Beauty in Attard. Luisa Musimeci, my beauty therapist led me to a lovely, quiet room at the back of the salon, switched on some candles, acquired some blankets and began to examine my face. She promptly declared it to be dehydrated and in need of a good pore cleanse. 

I'm sure most of the women reading this post have had a facial at some point or other but for those who haven't, you can live through this one through me, using your imagination.

So Luisa kicked the whole thing off by using a milk cleanser to cleanse my face from the day's makeup and dirt. Next came a second, deeper foam cleanser followed by a scrub to exfoliate the dead cells and stimulate production of new ones. After declaring my skin cleansed from all evil dirty stuff, she applied a collagen gel serum to plump and hydrate my (so thirsty) face.

Up next was my favourite part - massage time, neck, shoulders face..ooh...heavenly. And just when I felt all relaxed came the least favourite part - extractions and blackhead removal (she declared total war on those evil black things). When that was over, it was time to proudly own a GREEN FACE for some time -  a deep cleansing mask to you know clean my face some more.

Once the green face was off, last but not least, the finishing touch is the serum applied once again and a hydrating cream to guide me through the night.

I woke up the next morning, with lovely, refreshed-looking skin and barely a blackhead or blocked pore in sight. Brilliant 90 minutes of relaxation and facial health treatments using Ainhoa products (sold at the salon) -can't wait for the next one. 

If you want to check the salon out they've got a Facebook Page right about here

Read More

Events : Femme Beauty in Attard

 By: Unknown    00:30  No comments

Today I attended the launch of the newly revamped Femme Beauty, the place responsible for my ever-beautiful nails. The beauty salon offers beauty services incl makeup by Luisa Musumeci and nail technician services by Christina Martinez. Some links to previous nail concoctions I have had done are a purple metallic one , a red and gold one , pretty in pink and many many more.

The girls have recently both taken over and refurbished the salon. The interior revamp has given the place a lovely, cosy feel with purple, green and gold being the main colours. Both girls are lovely, dedicated people who always put their customers first.

There was also the woman from My Melts present, a product being sold at the salon. This is a really innovative product - perfumed, soy wax melts designed to be placed over an oil burner, producing an intoxicating fragrance.

The newly launched Gellish Spring Colours

My nails for the night - right in theme for the occassion

And for a parting thought - this quote below, placed up on their wall is a lovely message to all of us. It is designed to lift our spirits and give us courage especially when our dreams seem too big - let's continue dreaming & maybe one day our dreams will come true, just like theirs.

Follow these girls on FACEBOOK

Read More

Beauty Post : LABELM Styling Irons

 By: Unknown    13:03  No comments

It's Fashion Week preparation time and these little babies above are going to be one of the first things I pack !!

Sooooooo, to give a bit of context - last Christmas, after re-Keratin treating my hair, I decided to invest some of my hard-earned cash in a good pair of straighteners / styling irons. My first point of call was of course GHD - it's all anybody mentions - but then I found out that LABELM (Toni&Guy's brainchild)  had just released a brand new, swanky pair of white titanium styling irons.

Truth be told, this an expensive purchase, so I wanted to be sure my money would get me the best option, I needed to research. I set about investigating the matter.

The GHD ones are industry tried and tested and these from LABELM are still pretty new on the market so it was a bit hard to find reviews. A couple of hair stylists who had already used them in salons told me they had found them pretty nifty. 

Then came the specs comparison - I LOVED the fact that the temperature setting is adjustable, something other straighteners, including ghd don't always have - my hair is pretty fine so too much unnecessary heat can really damage it and if it's just a quick iron in the morning - there's no need for too much heat. 

• The price was another favourable point - simply put - they're cheaper. 
• The white option is really clean and pretty but it also comes in a black finish
• I love the heat mat pouch it comes with, I'm always worried I'm going to burn something.

As you've probably guessed, I ended up buying the LABELM ones, I've been really enjoying using them - the operation is really smooth, my hair never gets stuck, they heat up really quickly and oh yes - they straighten my hair pretty well too.  

The only thing I don't like, is that they're big and it's a bit hard to get at my little baby hair - I've hit myself in the head a couple of times trying to achieve this. They now need to launch version 2 - a little mini one which will sit prettily right next to this one, to be picked up when its time to get at those little 'uns.

Read More

Beauty Post : Coloured eyeliners

 By: Unknown    04:56  No comments

I've mentioned using coloured eyeliners before, I had showed this look using a light bright blue here and another wearing purple eyeliner here. I'm still super in love with the concept. It's a great and super quick way to add a pop of colour to your look. Truth be told, you barely need any other eye makeup.

In this picture above I used a sprinkling of MAC eyeshadow and some Maybelline Rocket Mascara and then applied this super long lasting KIKO GREEN EYELINER. It's waterproof and doesn't budge for the entire day. 

I've got other colours too - pink, blue , purple - love them all. I also found this green eyeliner from lookfantastic that looks great but I haven't tried yet.

Photo by Kurt Paris

Read More

Beauty Post : ARK SKINCARE PRIMER

 By: Unknown    07:46  No comments

Last September when I travelled to London for Fashion Week, I attended a beauty event at which I was introduced to Ark Skincare. Before I left, they were kind enough to gift me this Anti-Ageing Skin Protector Primer with SPF 30. I've been using it nearly every day ever since. The product contains a bunch of useful and beneficial ingredients - shea butter, extracts of jojoba, vitamin E , mimosa and sunflower. It is a primer meaning it is designed for use under makeup, possibly, if desired, over moisturiser - it smoothens skin out quite well and foundation glides on more easily after using this product.

I love the fact that it has a high SPF but doesn't feel greasy at all, I've used it both in the warmer months (October in Malta is around 23 degrees Celsius) and during this last much colder month. It has performed well in both climates and my makeup stayed on without budging or flaking for long periods of time in both cases.

The product retails at 36 gbp so it's not in the cheap but neither the unaffordable category, plus a little product goes a long way. I'm pretty sure I will be repurchasing it once the product runs out. I'm now thinking of adding this ARK exfoliator which I also found on lookfantastic.com a and this ARK moisturiser to my collection

Read More

Beauty Post : LABELM Sea Salt Spray - by Alexia

 By: Unknown    00:38  No comments

Some time ago I reviewed the Sea Salt Spray by LABELM which I had found to work pretty well at creating 'beach hair'. I have a certain hair type (naturally curly hair) so my review can only be useful to people with similar hair...along came Alexia Micallef Gatt asking questions about how I thought this would work on her mostly straight hair and the idea of her reviewing it popped into my head soooo read on to hear her thoughts on this product.

Alexia's Words

I must admit that my hair is actually one of my favourite things about myself because it’s really easy to manage - a quick dry with the hairdryer, some taming of the curly baby hair with the straightener and boom READY! Despite this, sometimes I feel it’s super boring!!! I have very fine hair so I can never really get it to be super straight and sleek (unless I get a great blow dry at a salon), at the same time, I can't manage to make curls or waves last the day.  I've always lusted after that luscious beach wave look. I've tried curling irons, wands and even rollers but they always left me with the desired result for about 20 mins and then it’s back to my boring, natural, semi-wave. I had given up and now when hair stylists ask me how I want my hair done for a modelling show or event, I always reply, straight (regretfully).

My Natural Hair

So yes, I was recently introduced to the LabelM sea salt spray. At first I was skeptical but the possibility of beach waves on demand was too hard to resist and I decided to give this a go. It’s AMAZING - truly a miracle for people with boring hair like mine. It’s also really simple to use and is potentially damage-free, unlike curling irons which can cause damage through heat. 

Here's my process

After washing my hair, I spray the product in my hair a few times and then start drying my hair with a hair dryer. Over time, I've found that it helps to scrunch the hair up and down as you are drying it. 

When my hair is almost dry, I pull it into a loose bun held by a small clip and put the dryer close enough to continue drying it. I recommend making sure the bun is loose if it’s larger waves you’re after - the tighter the bun; the tighter the wave.

I then keep my hair pulled into the bun and only remove it a few minutes or so before I need to go out - this is to further help the product form a loose curl. Voila’-  luscious beach babe waves in just those simple steps. To make sure the waves don’t straighten out as the days go by, I keep my hair in a loose bun whenever I’m home. 

I definitely highly recommended this salon-quality product - a must-have for girls like me who would like to achieve this look with minimal damage to their hair.

Photo Taken at Launch of Gagliardi, Left : Model Beverly Tonna

Read More

Beauty Post : PUPA Vamp Eyeshadow

 By: Unknown    06:37  No comments

Whenever I'm packing for a trip abroad, I always hassle when it comes to choosing what makeup to take with me. I always want way too many things. On a recent trip to Paris which you can read more about here, I decided to take this aptly named PUPA Vamp eyeshadow from their Paris Experience Autumn Collection - perfect time to test it I thought - well with all the madness the past month has brought I completely forgot about it until I saw this photo and my purple eye shadow struck me and ....then I remembered.. 

This photo was taken after about 4 hrs that it has been applied and it still looks great. I love the colour because it works both as a standalone colour or as part of a blend.. the quality is very smooth and it glides on easily. In general, I always like PUPA makeup and the best part is they're such great value for money. 

Read More

Beauty : LABELM BLONDE SERIES

 By: Unknown    06:12  No comments

One of the latest products from LABELM is their brightening blonde system - the claim is that it "gradually lightens and brightens while gently cleansing and nourishing hair to prevent dryness, tangling and breakage". Not being a natural or fake blonde myself, I couldn't really review these ones so I found Marta Monzani who was happy to do it.

Review by Marta Monzani

• There has been a change in my hair colour, it is a subtle change and whether or not you notice the change depends also on the light, but knowing my hair, I can see the change!

• My hair colour is a natural ash blond, but it does not have a uniform shade - I have lighter and darker streaks, especially when I am not in the sun for long periods (this tends to only happen when I am on holiday in summer), the colour becomes almost opaque and a bit dull (this summer I did not go on holiday so dull it is).

• After 3 weeks of Label M shampoo and conditioner -  I now have lighter, luminous shades of honey blond and shinier hair. The base colour remains the same and as usual my roots are still somewhat darker. 

Other points in their favour is that you only need a really small quantity of shampoo so it lasts for ages, the foam and scent are amazing, and my hair somehow seems to remain clean for longer . I also loved that the conditioner did not make the hair heavier or greasy, it is almost like a beauty crème which made it silky.

Read More

Beauty : Gellish Review

 By: Unknown    23:28  No comments

I've been posting my 'monthly nails look' for the past month, generally capturing the photos right after I'd have just done them but you may have noticed I skipped a month. I decided to turn this next post into a review and show you what they look like at the end - after three weeks have passed.

I first tried Gellish when it first made an appearance in Malta and being honest I wasn't a big fan. I switched beauty parlours around a few times and some worked and some didn't - at a couple of places they removed the polish badly, wreaking havoc on my nails, at others I could never find availability when I needed so then they'd chip and I'd try and remove them myself..  Anyway, I had given up and was sticking to normal polish but last June the Gellish Importers who also have a beauty parlour at Femme Beauty in Attard suggested sponsoring my nails. My first reaction was to say no but I thoguht it'd be rude and I decided to give Gellish a last go.

I'm not sure what exactly made all the difference - maybe the appointment availability, certainly they take great care to ensure the nail isn't damaged during removal and they use a product called structure build to make the polish extra long lasting.

Since last May, I haven't had a single break in my nails, my nails are hard, the polish never chips and my nails always look perfect - I visit the salon every three weeks and these photos were taken today, three weeks after my last visit. These three weeks included lots of typing on keyboards, travelling abroad, working out, washing stuff..everything basically. Of course, there's some visible growth and some cuticle showing but they still look good.

Read More

Beauty Post : TRESemme Keratin Smooth 7 Days Treatment

 By: Unknown    05:30  No comments

Some time ago I reviewed the TRESemme Keratin Smooth 7 Days Shampoo & Conditioner. I was also given the heat activated treatment to trial and this is meant to give you smooth hair for 7 days.

Directions :

• Wash hair with shampoo and conditioner
• Apply Treatment
• Blowdry 
• Flat iron hair straight using straighteners (3 passes per section)

You can see the results in the picture above - I don't think I really need to explain that it worked incredibly well ... and to be honest I didn't even apply three passes with the straighteners per hair section, I mean the whole process from start to finish only took me ten minutes. Of course remember my hair is fine, anyone with thicker hair will need more time to complete this process.

Don't forget to enter my EYBROW EXTENSIONS COMPETITION

Read More

Beauty Post : TRESemme Keratin Smooth 7 Days Shampoo & Conditioner

 By: Unknown    03:14  1 comment

I was recently asked to trial the TRESemme Keratin Smooth 7 Days Shampoo & Conditioner and since I'm a product junkie * hoarder, my immediate response was 'why not?'.

The products are meant to be keratin fused and thereby will help to eliminate frizz and provide smoother hair. My hair is currently in its natural curly, frizzy state so it seemed like a good a time as any to try this one out. It's also meant to have lower sulfates and therefore be gentler.

Process: I simply washed my hair twice using the shampoo, rinsed it out, applied conditioner and rinsed that out too. I then styled my hair using my normal styling curly hair products.

Result: My hair was less curly than it usually is, the curls were less tight and a bit more 'stretched' if you know what I mean. It wasn't a particularly humid day when I tried these products but resulting hairstyle had no frizz whatsoever.

Review: 8/10 I knocked two points off simply because the shampoo still has sulfates albeit a lower amount,  I try to avoid any sulfates and sulfates also means it cannot be used if you've had the professional keratin blowdry applied. Otherwise, these products get the job they promise done.  

Should you buy it? This depends on what you want - do you want straighter hair ? If no then don't get this because it will diminish the bounce of your curl and waves. Do you want less frizzy, less curly hair, do you want hair that will be easier to blow dry straight ? - then these are for you.

Read More

Monthly Nails Inspiration : Blue & Grey

 By: Unknown    08:18  No comments

Blue and grey aren't always the most likely colour team but they actually make a very good team. This particular vibrant shade of dark blue paired with a simple grey sets the tone for Autumn and the approaching Winter. As per usual the brilliant Christina at Femme Beauty did the job.

Blue and grey are actually really popular this season for clothes, accessories and shoes. 

Here's a mood clothing board with some of my favourite blue and grey picks. 

1. River Island FUR vegan leather jacket, - I love love love this fur jacket, vegan means high quality non-leather type of material. I can see this over jeans, over black leather trousers, over a skirt, over everything really.
2. Converse high low tops
     - converse remain the 'cool kids shoes', these in particular are are a really great shade., a denim jacket is a winter staple.
3. Batman Sweater - well there's nothing much to say other than..these rules.
4. Denim Jacket - A denim jacket is a staple, if you don't already have one, invest in one and wear over everything. If you already have one, you might prefer this purple one
5. Blue skirt - big, flouncy skirts are a thing this season, wear them with tough biker boots like these so as to avoid looking like a fairy or a ballerina. 
6.  Long sweater top- a basic everyone needs.

And for my final blue pick - these brilliant riding boots from ALDO that are part of my 30% off collaboration - last few days left !

Read More

Beauty Post : LABELM Sea Salt Spray

 By: Unknown    07:15  No comments

Sea Salt sprays promise a lot - they promise that tousled beach hair dream - those waves and curls that look so gorgeous, along with sun kissed skin. This product from LABELM promises to create beach hair.

The directions state to apply it onto damp hair but I've tried it on wet, damp and dry hair. It gives different results for all three methods - The first method didn't really give much of an effect in my opinion. The second resulted in a thicker head of curls (photo above), the last method resulted in thicker hair but also slightly gunky - this last method might work on straighter hair though as it would probably give an edgy, textured vibe.

The verdict - This isn't a stand-alone product, at least not on my hair. In the photos above, I applied it after using leave-in-conditioner and used a curling spray after. I did try use it alone but my curls didn't shape up well and there was a lot of frizz in my hair. However, when combined with other curling products, my curls were looser and fuller somehow so I liked the effect a lot.

I'm not sure if it is a necessary product in my daily hair ritual to be honest as I like my curls even when I don't use it and since my hair is quite curly I do tend to get volume most days. Having said that, it's a godsend for upstyles and if more volume is something you need on a daily basis, then you will probably love this spray.

Read More

Competition : A little slice of Relaxing Heaven

 By: Unknown    03:27  No comments

Clare Agius whose name should be familiar with most Maltese people, has recently opened up a lovely beauty Salon - Healing - right in the middle of Sliema, at Park Hotel (round the corner from Cardini Restaurant). Lovely salon and the best part - it's open on Sundays. Last week she invited me over to experience a heavenly luxury facial.

We're all so busy all the time, sometimes we end up neglecting the things we should be taking care of most, my skin often ends up being a casualty of my lifestyle and my face really needed this treatment.

Suzanne, the therapist works relaxing magic with her amazing hands - she used exclusively Babor cosmetic products which are great - and started out with a good cleansing including using a steam machine, this was followed by a mild peeling treatment, extraction and then a 35 minute massage using vitamin e, at which point she also applied paraffin treatment to my hands. I then had a calming mask applied to my face and last an algae active fluid called ampul. I left there calm and relaxed and my skin looked amazing the next day.

And now for the good news - Clare is giving the chance for one lucky reader to win this facial

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Read More

Beauty Post : Nails : Purple Metallic Inspiration

 By: Unknown    23:34  No comments

 When it comes to my monthly nail look change, sometimes I know exactly what I want, other times it takes a bit of deliberation. This time I had absolutely no clue, I hadn't had time to give it any thought, it was early in the morning - my mind was a complete blank. However when I arrived at Femme Beauty Salon, Christina showed me the new Gellish colours that had just arrived and as soon as I saw this metallic purple, I swooned. I've always loved pinks and purples and I also love metallics - together deadly combination. Couldn't resist finding you some other things (above) to swoon over ...that purple Burberry trench in particular ...*lust*.

We decided to combine the purple with this cream pretty neutral colour that looks great next to the metallic..and Christina came up with the idea of having one finger with dots..*love*

Read More

Beauty Post : LABELM LEAVE-IN CONDITIONER

 By: Unknown    05:46  No comments

Anyone who has curly hair knows that frizz is our worst nightmare. Frizz seems to happen due to a number of factors - dry hair, wind, humid weather, products not working well ..but for me the biggest factor is always the dryness. My hair is the opposite of oily..it seems to have absolutely no ability to form any oil whatsoever.

There was a time when I spent quite some time reading up on curly hair and curly hair products and one thing I had read was to leave conditioner in your  hair i.e not rinse it out - they weren't talking about leave in conditioner, just normal conditioner you use when you wash your hair after shampooing. I tried this many times and to be honest it works very well but then a hairdresser once pointed out that it was probably damaging my hair and causing product buildup leading to an inability for my hair to grow properly (in fact my hair was splitting). 

I moved on to leave in conditioners but they just never seemed to provide enough conditioning, hair still seemed dry, frizz still appeared. LABELM UK recently suggested to me at LFW that I try their leave in conditioner and I have to say it's great. I got it from LABELM Malta when I got back. It's not sticky but at the same time does the job ..it even seems to somehow hold the curl. I used it when I snapped that photo above (I did use other styling products that I normally use (specifically Bumble and Bumble hair creme and John Frieda Dream curls on that day) but it was a really windy day and whilst normally the curls would have dried out in all that wind ..they didn't - yipeee !

Method of Application - just worked into hair after shampooing and conditioning and then continued styling as normal.

Read More