First Aid Beauty: Ultra Repair Cream

If you've been following my blog for a while, you know by now that I have a combination to oily skin. But when I went to NYC, my skin dried out like nothing else. My l'Oréal gel moisturiser did not help at all, so I had to find a solution which hydrated my skin without making it burst out into oils.

I found the First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Cream at Sephora. I've heard about it onlline and it has gotten a lot of good reviews, so I thought I'd give a fair chance. If I didn't like it for my face, I could still use it for my body.

First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Cream

As soon as I opened it, I was surprised it looked like a thick cream. Yes, it would give back the moisture I need, but will it make me look shiny as well? Luckily it didn't. It's probably due to the cold weather I had there.

Back in Belgium, where it's not warm but not as cold in NYC as well, I tried this out on my skin.

I must say, this cream does absorbs fairly quick and well. I'm quite pleased with this product as I will be able to use a cream. Me! A cream! :)

It's fragrance free, free of parabens and it's safe for those with sensitive skin.

I bought a travel size as well in case I would like it. Turns out I kind of love it! I'm also bought the cleanser, which received good reviews as well. I'm excited to give that one a try and I'll keep you all posted on it!

NYC beauty haul

Hi everyone!

If you remember well, my last haul was a beauty haul from Thailand. If you haven't read it yet, click here to give it a read :) This time I've got another interesting beauty haul from the other side of the world: New York City baby!!

I went ALL OUT to get myself goodies, so let's jump right into it, shall we

Here you'll see my little beauty collection I got from  Victoria Secret/Pink (their junior line).

I got 2 body mists, a pink glittery nail polish and a rollerball of one of their best sold perfumes: Night.

Since I heard so much from US drugstores, I just had to drop by a Walgreens to get me some stuff :)

• Yes To Tomatoes moisturiser 
• Aveeno Postively Radiant moisturiser with SPF30
• Bioré Pore Unclogging Scrub
• It's a 10 Miracle Leave-In Product Keratin
• Maybelline Mega Plush mascara
• Essie polishes
• Tweezermans
• Tresemme's heat protection spray
• Eye shadow palettes: CoverGirl and Wet 'n Wild
• Maybelline Dream Matte Powder

3rd stop: Sephora, oh yeah!

If there's one place I splurged like a nut, it's Sephora. We don't have a Sephora in Belgium, we used to have one in the Netherlands, but unfortunately they've decided to break the Dutch beauties hearts and remove all Sephora's (all 2 :p)...

• Fragrance samplers are a great way to introduce scents without splurging a ton of money. There's a voucher included as well to exchange one of the rollerballs for it: I got the Viva La Juicy rollerball.
• Boscia luminizing black mask
• First Aid Ultra Repair Cream (travel size)
• First Aid Deep Cleanser
• Deborah Lippmann La Vie En Rose. I've already posted a NOTW on this polish. If you want to see how this looks like, don't hesitate to have a look.
• Butter London polish
• Fresh Sugar tinted lipbalm
• Boscia blotting sheets
• Shiseido eye lash curler
• Sephora dual end brush: powder and blush
• Dior Serum Maximizer
• NARS eye shadow palette: Charade
• NARS concealer: Custard

You haven't shopped in the Big Apple, unless you've stopped by Macy's :)

• Tarte Maracuja Oil
• Simple exfoliating wipes
• Maybelline clear mascara
• L'Oréal polishes
• Benefit Porefessional primer
• Benefit They're Real mascara (sample size)
• Maybelline Instant Age rewinder 
• Milani blush: Luminoso
• Revlon eye shadow palette
• Benefit PoreFessional: Zero Agent Shine

And my last stop was at Bath&Body Works. I wanted to shop here for a couple of years now, but unfortunately they don't ship to Belgium. I was extremely excited when I ran into a Bath&Body Works. This is what I got: 

Paris L'Amour: fragrance mist, body cream

Cherry Blossom: shower gel, fragrance mist, body cream

5 hand sanitizers: Pink Chiffon, Paris L'Amour, Cherry Blossom, Sweet Pea, Market Peach

I have to admit, I never went that crazy with buying beauty stuff as I have been this time. 

I got very enthusiastic when seeing all goodies I've been seeing in video's all these years, and finally... I could get them myself, in person!

Hope you all like this post. I'll be posting some reviews on some of the items, but if there are some you'd like me to post my thoughts on, you can go ahead and comment in the bottom box below :)

Beauty meets food: Gonna boil myself a tea bag

Since I have Chinese roots, I was bound to drink tea each and every day when I was little. I have to admit that growing up, my tea liking had diminished, but that doesn't take away how healthy and yummy tea is. 

Next to that, you can also use a tea bag for beauty purposes. Keep on reading if you're wondering what a tea bag can do for you :)

• Face
• Skin: I like to use different face cleansing methods: scrub, foam cleanser, Clarisonic, ... To make sure my face doesn't get used to a certain way of cleansing, I like to have an occasional face steam. I like to boil some water in a large bowl and add some tea bags. I like to use mint tea (for the fragrance) or green tea (for its antioxidant properties). Put a towel over your head and bend over the bowl. The towel should act as a wall so the steam can't escape. The steam will open your pores and hydrate the skin. As soon as the steam is gone, take a handkerchief and dip it in the tea and rub it over your face. Your skin will feel silky smooth and clean.
• Eyes: Cool tea bags can be used to de-puff your swollen eyes. Press the teabag slightly on the eye for about 15 minutes. The tea's acid will de-puff the eyes and reduce the puffiness in the eye area.
• Body: In case you forgot to wear SPF when you were out in the sun and you got yourself a sunburn, a tea bag (green tea especially) can sooth the burn which takes the ache away.

As I already mentioned, a tea bag is used to drink tea. (Well d'uh?) Drinking tea is very healthy for the body. It's commonly known that tea contains antioxidants which is a great source for antioxidant nutrition.
To sum up just a few advantages from drinking tea are:

• it can reduce the risk of heart attack
• it might protect against a lot of cancers
• it might provide UV protection
• it can improve bone mineral density and strength
• it hydrates the body

Next to these 5, it has a lot more positive effects to the body than you think. The only thing I can say is that tea is VERY good for you. Just make sure you have actual tea such as green or black tea. Herbal tea is not a real tea!

This was my last blog post on the series beauty meets food. I hope you liked this serie and I surely hope you've learned something from it and tried it. See y'all soon!

Beauty meets food: I don't eat no ham 'n eggs

 
To egg or not to egg?
By eating eggs, you'll get some vitamin B, proteins and a whole lot of nutrients in your body. The feeling of being full will withhold you from gravitating towards snacks. Let's see what other things an egg can do for your body.

• Brain: Egg yolk contains vitamin B and choline. Choline is important for neurotransmitter function, cell membranes, liver function and lipid metabolism. Pregnant women, this one's for you: choline's supposedly to be good for you too because it stimulates the development of the baby's brain.
  If that wasn't enough good news, egg yolk helps to produce the happy hormones such as serotonin and dopamine. 
• Face:For those with hyper pigmentation here's a face mask you can easily make. Take some lemon juice and egg white, mix it up and apply to your face. The lemon juice will whiten the areas where you need it and the egg white will tighten those pores. Wash it off with cold water after letting it sit for about 15 minutes, et voilà, hello fresh face!
• Body: Haven't you noticed that a lot of sport athletes prefer eating eggs after a work out? That's because they need to take in their proteins. Egg whites can be absorbed entirely by the body.  
• Hair: Since you have some egg yolk left over from your face mask, use this to condition your hair. Egg yolk contains proteins to fight against hair loss, moisturizes and strengthens the hair.

How do you like your eggs? In your mouth or for beauty purposes? :)

Beauty meets food: Oh my hair smells like chocolate

tyyu!è § ,wsftyké:àç!èyktkazeee v cpmoi

Oh, I'm sorry, I was just wiping the rest of the chocolate away that fell on my keyboard.
For real, who doesn't likes to eat chocolate from time to time. Ladies? Don't you hide now, I need you to back me up on this one.

But hey, for all you chocolate lovers out there, did you know that eating chocolate is actually healthy! YAY! I'm not saying that you can finally justify eating tons of chocolate, but it has got some benefits that I think you should know. Let's jump right into it, shall we?

• Hair
• Dull: Let's start off with a dark chocolate hair mask? Sounds good? All you need is honey, yoghurt and dark, unsweetened chocolate. Wrap it up with a plastic foil so the mix can do its job. Rinse it off with cold water after letting it sit in for about an hour and hello shiny hair!
• Length: Dark chocolate contains iron, calcium and 10 kinds of vitamins and minerals. By eating a tiny amount of dark chocolate on a daily basis (yes, every day!), you'll get much healthier and stronger hair!
• Skin
• UV-protection: Have you ever heard of flavonoids? They're like antioxidants that can protect your skin from sunburns, redness and other signs of damage caused by UV. Did you know that you can actually recover and moisturize your skin with dark chocolate after it has been exposed to the sun?
• Anti-ageing: Cocoa in chocolate can reduce the stress hormones, which means that collagen won't go anywhere, and that means less wrinkles.
• Dry skin: Remember that dark chocolate contains iron, calcium and 10 kinds of vitamins and minerals? Well, these make sure that your skin is being nurtured as well which will give it that dewy look you always try to create with your foundation and highlighter.
• Body
  
  • Heart: Guess what helps to protect blood vessels from rupture, enhance the activity of vitamin C, prevent inflammation of the body? Yes! Flavonoids! These can actually lower your blood pressure and reduce your cholesterol by up to 10%. 
  • Mind: Did you know that dark chocolate can actually serve as a feel good treat? It can give you that mental boost whenever you're in need of it. It stimulates the production of endorphins, which are chemicals in the pleasure section of the brain. Next to endorphins, we also have serotonin which acts as an anti-depressant. No wonder we gravitate towards chocolate when we're feeling a bit down...

Whenever it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Well, in this case, it's actually false. Chocolate is good for you, especially dark chocolate. Can I get a whoot whoot!! *cricket noise*

Anyway... Do you know any other chocolate secret that you use in your beauty regimen?Go ahead and share with me, because I'll be more than excited to try it out!

Beauty meets food: She wore lemon

Lemons.
Pro, they can be refreshing in your beverage.

Con, they make you make funny faces.
Pro, it can take the fishy smell out of a fish.
Con, they are just way too sour.
Pro, it can be your bbf (yes, bbf), your best beauty friend.

Let me tell you about the benefits a lemon can have for your beauty regimen. And let's face it, who doesn't have a lemon laying around in their kitchen? If you're really one of those exceptions, I'm sure the supermarket isn't too far away from you.

Lemons have calcium, vitamin C, magnesium, kalium and minerals, which are healthy for your hair, skin, teeth and nails. If you're thinking "wow, good stuff those lemons", you're wrong. Bare in mind that lemon juice cannot, again canNOT, have too long skin contact. Please do pay attention to the warnings in the explanations.

This being said, let's get this sour party started!

• Hair
• Dull: Nowadays there are plenty of people who like to color their hair. If they go lighter, the hairdressers use chemical bleach on your hair. Instead of using something chemical why not use lemon juicy? If you add a bit of lemon juice to your conditioner, brush it out, go sit in the sun for a few hours and wash it out afterwards. Warning: Sitting in the sun for too long won't do good to your hair. If you want to have your hair lighter, repeat this process until satisfied. It may take longer and you may not be putting anything chemical on your hair, lemon juice can dry out your hair.
• Dandruff: Do you have a dry scalp? Do people keep asking you whether it's snowing outside? Do you happen to have coco oil, honey and lemon juice near you? Well, then let's start making your own hair mask! Mix the 3 ingredients, let it work into your scalp for about 10 minutes and rinse off with a lot of water.
• Teeth: Who doesn't want whiter teeth? You can easily make your own teeth whitening home remedy by adding baking soda to lemon juice. This will bubble when mixed and can be applied to your teeth with a cotton swab. Warning: Let it sit for about a minute, depending on how sensitive your teeth are. Afterwards make sure to brush your teeth because otherwise the lemon juice will erode your teeth.
• Skin
• Breakouts: Lemons are antibacterial, period. This can be used as a natural method to fight against those breakouts. Just rub some lemon juice over your face, let it work in for about 5 to 10 minutes and wash it all off with water. Warning: Do I need to say to be careful to not get the lemon juice into your eyes? If so, rinse it off with plenty of water.
• Hyperpigmentation: Unless your skin is perfect and don't have dark spots or scarves from former breakouts, you can skip this part. The sour of a lemon juice can lighten the dark spots on the face.
• Oily skin types: Those with oily skin types, I got your back folks! Lemon juice can be used to soak up the oils on your face. Warning: Don't overdo this because if your skin thinks it's too dry it will produce some more oils, and we do not want more oils on our slippery faces!
• Body
• Armpits: Did you know you can lighten your dark armpits with some lemon juice? You can cut the lemon so that you still have something comfortable to hold, put some sugar on top of it and rub it into your armpits. The sugar will exfoliate to remove the dead skin cells and the lemon juice will make the darkened armpits lighter. Warning: don't do this after you've shaved. your skin's already quite sensitive and eventual razor cuts and lemon juice don't really go together.
• Nails: If you didn't know, yes I'm a nail junkie. If my NOTW's aren't good enough of a proof, I'm a nail polish hoarder who likes to try out all colors of all brands. This had made my nails quite brittle and yellow. To strengthen them and get their original color back, just apply a mix of some olive oil and lemon juice.

Do you have any home remedies you'd like to share using lemon juice? Or let me know whether you have tried out one of these remedies. Don't be shy and keep me posted in the comment bar below.

Announcement beauty meets food series

Hi everyone,

This blog post will be rather short.

I would like to announce that I'll be posting a short series of articles this week about home remedies with ingredients you can easily find at home. These posts should help you in how to improve your beauty regimen.

I was inspired by reading recipes in magazines and thought of how some of the key ingredients cannot only be used to feed the body but also to take care of the body from the outside.

People have published a lot of articles on these ingredients before, but these has been given the true Mistletea-stamp to it (aka: these might work better on some of you than others. There are remedies I've mentioned that I haven't tried, but I've heard or read a lot of experiments and information from friends, magazines, beauty salons, etc. I did try the majority of the remedies and they did work on me)

Should you be interested, keep those eyes peeled for some beauty-meets-food information :)


P.S.: Should you recognize any of the songs in the upcoming post titles, go ahead and tell me in the blog post's comment bar below!

Me against UV rays

Hi there everyone!

If you've read my last blog post, you know I'm whined over and over on UV rays and how it's important that you should protect your skin from any damage.

Today I'll be talking about a couple of items I've been using this year to protect myself from those evil rays!

First off, the face!
If you've read this blog for a while, you may know by now that I have a combination to oily skin type. In other words: the kind where you can fry your fish and chips in!
During the summer the oils decide to have a party in my face and stay there for a about the entire season.

Eucerin sun fluid mattifying face - SPF50

When applying a sunscreen on the face, the oils are dying to come out. That's why I've been on the look out for a mattifying sunscreen. Believe me, I never knew about its existence until I accidentally bumped into one when I was in the doctor's waiting room. It's the Eucerin sun fluid mattifying for the face.

Turns out this sample is a pretty darn good sunscreen for me :)

It leaves a semi-matte finish on my skin and it has a high SPF of 50. What more can my skin ask for?

And yes, I'm planning on getting a full size bottle!





Before discovering this baby, I actually did some research on a good sunscreen and I heard/read several good reviews on the following:

 

Shiseido Expert Sun Aging Protection Lotion - SPF30

The Shiseido sunscreen is known for its blue bottle and the orange cap. This sunscreen is meant to be applied for the face as well as the body. When going to the beach, I thought it would come in handy to get a 2 in 1 and one which is very water resistant and sand-proof.

It's a light, non-sticky sun protection lotion that will fight against the UVA and UVB rays. Don't give those wrinkles and sunburns any chance by protecting you against both rays!

I did try to apply this on my face, but my face became rather greasy after a few hours. I prefer this sunscreen for my body and will be using the Eucerin one for my face :)




And something you often forget to protect from UV rays as well: your hair!
I have black hair, but after getting a perm the sun damage has caused my hair to turn slightly dark brown. I must admit that I like the brownish hints of colour, but honestly... I know that the discoloration is merely a sign of sun damage.

Wella Professionals Lifetex vitamin shake

When going on a sunny holiday I make sure to bring along my hair protecting vitamin shake!
This is a vitamin shake that will nourish and protect your hair from sun damage. As you can see on the picture, it has a milk base and an oily base which you should shake up (hence the name vitamin shake) before spritzing it into your hair.

The milk base has sun protection ingredients, while the macadamia seed oil protects your from damage from the sun, sea and chlorine.

It gives a lot of moisture to the hair so the hair doesn't dry out. Do keep in mind that this shake contains a UV filter, to make sure it combats those UV rays!
 




These were my 3 essentials that I'll be rocking this summer.
Tell me, what are your must haves for the scorching hot season?