How Lush saved my skin!

Good morning everyone!

This post is dedicated to a little Haul from Lush on the weekend, as well as a Lush based skincare routine for anyone else who has problem skin (think face demons, sensitivity and redness). 

I am the kind of person who had perfect skin through high school, and thought I'd skipped the awful acne stage that everyone seems to go through.... and then wham! As soon as I hit my early twenties, it was like my face exploded. From baby smooth skin, to cystic acne.... and my skin has never been the same again, despite trying just about everything! 

After trying everything, from gentle cleansers, to harsh products like ProActiv! I could get the active acne to clear up for short periods, but found that the scarring and discolouration was a lot harder to hide (further on my new skin routine at the end of this post)..

My fellow Paper&Blush writer and all-round-bestie, Courtney, finally convinced me to give Lush's "Fresh Pharmacy" a go - with tales of how wonderful it has been for her sister who had similar skin issues... While we were in Melbourne on the weekend, we found a Lush store, and goodies were purchased!

Living in a small(ish) town, I don't have easy access to Lush, other than their online store.... but half the fun shopping at Lush is the overwhelming scent that seeps from the storefront. So I made the trip worthwhile... My purchases included:

Angels on Bare Skin - Fresh Facial Cleanser - $16.95 / 100g.

Events out skin tone, reduces redness and improves the health and appearance of y our skin, giving it a natural healthy glow. Recommended for use daily, to one or twice a week as a scrub – depending on your skin type.
 

Full of Grace - Facial Serum - $14.95 / 20g.

A solid serum to calm sensitive skin, with fresh rose ptals, Portobello mushrooms and soothing rainforest butters. Can be used under a mask, for increased intensity, or nightly as a face serum. This is said to encourage skin repair. Can be used daily.

Fresh Farmacy Cleanser - $15.95 / 100g.

Firstly, yes, that’s how they spell Farmacy! It is not a typo… it contains cleansing chamomile and calamine bar for troublesome skin. Fresh Farmacy is the soothing, cleansing bar to reach for whenever you see a spot rearing its ugly head. It makes a tiny bit of froth to clean your face gently, and because it’s made with masses of calamine and chamomile, it’s one of the most calming cleansers known to humankind. We add rose, tea tree and lavender essential oils for their powerful, skin-calming properties. It doesn't only deal with spots; it soothes and eases other skin troubles, too. Just break of a small chunk, store it in a soap container, and use as required.

& lastly, a bit of a treat for me to hide in the bathroom for those days where I just want to have a relaxing hot bath!

Honey Farm Gift Pack - $38.50 / 400g (5 items)

(Includes: Honey Bee Bomb, Butterball Bath Bomb, 100g Honey I Washed the Kids Soap, 100g Honey I Washed the Kids Shower Gel, Soft Coeur Massage Bar)

My daily routine:

Now that I have these goodies, I intend on using them exclusively in order to see what works, and to be able to provide feedback and recommendations to you guys! I took some ‘before’ photos of my skin (without any makeup, so excuse the dark eye circles) in order to give you an idea of how angry & unhappy my skin looks at the moment… 

Using these products, my current routine is as follows:

Morning: Angels on Bare Skin scrub, followed by washing with Fresh Farmacy.

Night: Wash with Fresh Farmacy, followed by a thin layer of Full of Grace.

I started using these products on Sunday 3^rd August, and already I can see a huge improvement - there is less redness, and reduced acne! Woohoo!... I’ll continue for the next few weeks, and do a follow up post so you can all see for yourself how it’s going.

Until next time, we'd love to hear your thoughts or suggestions for problem skin, so please leave your thoughts in the comments below.

~ Jo

Creswick Market - Local treasures!

Hi everyone!

This past weekend, my parents were visiting from Sydney, and we decided to head on out to Creswick to browse the markets.... there had been a lot of hype about these markets on facebook, and if nothing else, I think they definitely have their marketing down pat!

The Creswick Market is open every third Saturday from 9:00am till 1:00pm, and has a collection of stalls from local produce, trades, arts and crafts.

Each month, they create a Facebook event where hundreds of people can mark themselves as attending. As an attendee you receive updates, sneak peaks and important information in the lead up to the event.

Overall, we were quite impressed with the goodies on offer. There really was something for everyone, and despite the miserably cold weather, quite a number of people turned up on the day!

Of most interest to me, were the stalls inside the hall - a nice mix of homewares, craft and fashion items. There were two businesses in particular that have completely blown me away with their customer service and amazing quality, so of course I wanted to share them with you here on the blog!

Bok Bok B'Gerk - http://www.bokbokbgerk.com.au

I stood in awe, wanting to buy all the things at this stall. Bok Bok B'Gerk is a range of eco friendly, wooden jewellery items. Some items have kept their wooden finish, while others have a coloured acrylic coating - and they come in a wide range of cute designs. The collections include an assortment of earings, necklaces, brooches, hair clips and cuff links...

I purchased these beauties;

  

Bok Bok B'gerk also has an "earring of the month" program, where you can get a pair of mystery earrings in the mail once a month for a period of your choice (see their website for more details). I am so very tempted by this, and also have a handful of designs still on my wish list.. I can already tell there will be more purchases... we just need her to make a pair of Deer earrings for Courtney!

DayST - https://www.facebook.com/1DAYST

Day St sells 100% handmade soy candles, and is owned and operated by a lovely young lady, with an amazing sense of smell! The candles are scented around mostly food based items such as Rainbow Paddle Pops, Cappuccino, Apple Pie & Strawberry Milkshake, but she also has candles that smell exactly like a burning camp fire, or mens aftershave.. but the amazing part isn't just the scents! The presentation is just adorable, with candles in an assortment of forms, from mason jars and teacups, to sundae glasses, cupcakes and milk jars. Seriously, you couldn't get any cuter!

I purchased two candles this time, but already want more! This time I purchased "Cappachino" which smells like freshly ground coffee beans, & "Country Kitchen" which smells like a mixture of apple pie, cinnamon and fresh baked treats!

Already looking forward to the next market, to see what other goodies are in store! If you have any other markets that are a must see, please feel free to let us know in the comments below - or perhaps you know of a local business that doesn't get enough recognition? we'd love to hear about them, and perhaps feature them on our blog if its a product we are interested in! 

Until next time...

Jo x 

Gelicious - Review & Tutorial

Hi ladies (& lads),

So the first blog post would typically be an introduction to the writer(s), and an opening into what the blog future holds. However, I like to challenge the norm, and have instead got a review post to get us started! I have been trying to get this post up for a week (or two?), and the introduction has not yet happened... so hold on tight, let the mystery take hold, and in the mean time, enjoy my review of the Gelicious nail system! (An intro into the girls behind the mirror will be with you in the near future, I promise).. x

Last week (maybe the week before, due to delays in getting this post live) I got a new order of Gelicious nail polishes, during their 40% Off sale! I thought I'd do a review and tutorial for anyone sitting on the fence for DIY Gel manicures.

I have ordered from Gelicious in the past, but it has been some time since my last order. I have always found that the staff are incredibly helpful, and went out of their way to help with my order after some technical difficulties during the cart checkout process. The sale had ended before I could resolve my cart issues, so the staff honoured the discount to ensure I could still place my order at the same price. They also called to make sure everything was working smoothly and to answer any questions I had!

So what did I order? Well, I may have gone a little overboard... but for such a great price, who wouldn't! On top of their 40% off sale, they also had a buy 3, get the 4th one free! So I ordered 9 polishes, and only paid for 8. Of those 8, I received a 40% discount!

I ordered an extra top coat and base coat, as well as the following colours:

I think my favourite so far would have to be After Glow, which is a thick glittery silver consistency! I have only used it on my accent nails so far, but it received a lot of compliments. I'm due to do my nails again now, so i'll give one of the other colours a go and see what the reaction is! Overall though, I do think they are great quality. There is a great range of colours, and from the ones I have used so far, they are all very vibrant and rich, with 2 coats giving a great coverage. 

One of the most asked questions I receive about this product is the how long it lasts. For me personally, a Gelicious manicure can last me up to and including 14 days if I have properly cared for it during that time. I am a picker, so as soon as bits start to get lose or raggedy at the edges I tend to pull them off, so 2 weeks is a great wear time for me! Of course, as with any manicure though, conditions can shorten this time-frame greatly. For example, after filming my YouTube video on this product, I had a spa pamper day which involved soaking in warm water for hours, followed by a hot stone massage, in which I ended up soaked in oil from head to toe! This wasn't the best for my manicure (but boy did my body appreciate the pamper!), and by the end of the pamper day my nails were starting to come away from the nails...  this was at about the 5 day mark since having painted my nails. Still a fair effort, considering!

I've had people suggest using a primer to improve cohesion (I believe Shellac has a primer coat for this very reason?), however i've never felt the need to get a primer... I do have the undercoat which I purchased as part of this last order, but it is an optional part of the process and therefore does not make a huge difference in the application. 

The colour range is quite impressive, and I believe there has been several new colours since this image (below) was published (including the "Royal Baby" collection, of which 2 of my new polishes are from). They have also just released a matte top coat, which I am uber excited to order and play with - as matte shades are my new winter fave!

Cost? Their polishes retail at $45 - $49 which I do think is pretty steep but they have sales on most (if not all) of the time, bringing each bottle down to roughly $30. Couple this with their starter packs (which include a UV lamp to cure the polish and a top coat) which start at approximately $189 (currently selling for $119), I think you can get a great bargain if you shop the sales and stock up when the price is right! 

If you'd like to see my video, which includes application of the product, please click on the link below which will direct you to my YouTube channel. While you are there, don't forget to give the video a thumbs up so that I know you've visited, especially if you'd like to see more video reviews and tutorials just like this!

Any questions? comments? I'd love to hear your own experiences with this product.. Please share your thoughts in the comments below.

Until next time..  

x Joanne