Review: theCream - 100% Natural, 75% Colostrum, 0% Bull!

A delectable blend of New Zealand Colostrum, Coconut/Palm wax and cold pressed oils of Organic Aloe, Rice, Orange, Apricot, Meadowfoam, Vanilla, Blueberry and Hemp with Natural Silica, Zinc Oxide, Organic Bentonite clay and Colloidal silver.
Loaded with naturally occurring vitamins A, C, D, E, B1, B2, B6, B12, folic acid, 22 amino acids and trace minerals for total skin health and beauty.

Well I don’t know about you, but that sounds very impressive to say the least. But is it as good as it sounds? Check out these testimonials:

‘I love how it feels when it goes on. It’s wonderful and I am so satisfied with it!!! Thank you!!’ Lisa R
‘I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I can see the difference in my face in just two applications of theCream. My skin looks awesome. When are they coming out with a body lotion for my creepy arms and legs? Deb M
‘I have to say that of all the stuff I’ve used, it is brilliant. ‘ Evelyn A
‘Absolutely love this product! My skin hasn’t looked this great in years! Thank you theCream’. MH

After reading all the rave reviews, when the opportunity arose to try out theCream, you can be sure that I jumped at it!

The first thing that struck me was the packaging. The airless, vacuum packaging was developed especially to stop microbiotic life forms in the air from getting in and feasting on this – which would cause the product to go off. So clever!

After trying it as a lip balm (did I mention I LOVE multi-use products?!), I couldn’t wait to use it all over my face. You can definitely smell the Orange oil in this, but it is not irritating at all – and the scent does not linger, which is nice.

I’ve found that I need two pumps to cover my face, and am happy to say that it massages in very quickly, leaving my skin feeling delectably soft and smooth.  I also put it all over my lips as I said earlier, which means I don’t have to worry about using a lip balm in the mornings!

I’ve been using theCream religiously now for a month, and as usual didn’t really have any expectations about it – so you can imagine my surprise when I realised that the usual breakouts I get had become much less frequent. Seriously, I can’t remember a time when my skin looked this good. Most creams look greasy on my sensitive, oily skin, but this one is pretty unique in that it moisturises deeply, without being irritating at all. I am a definite convert!!

theCream is exclusively available in New Zealand at Health2000. Check it out for yourself, you will not be disappointed!

Thanks for viewing!
oxo

Review: Trilogy Ultra Hydrating Face Cream

Banish dry, dehydrated skin and restore a soft, smooth complexion with this intensely moisturising moisture recovery cream.
Manuka Honey, rich in minerals and vitamins, draws moisture to the skin, helping to promote healing while botanical moisturisers Evening Primrose and Coconut hydrate and soften. The gentle fragrance which includes soothing Lavender will help relax and calm the senses.

Trilogy to me, has always meant rosehip oil. When I think of them, that is the first thing that comes to mind. Sure I knew they had other products, but had never really heard anything about them, so when I was contacted by Health2000 asking me to review the Trilogy Ultra Hydrating Face Cream, I jumped at the chance! 

If you follow my blog, you will know that I have quite oily/sensitive skin which tends to flare up whenever the opportunity arises (usually when I have an important event coming up, as you'd expect!), so using a rich face cream like this would probably seem like a pretty silly idea! But I actually have a few really dry areas on my face that need some TLC.

I have been using the Ultra Hydrating Face Cream for over 2 weeks now and I am surprised by the results!
It is fragranced, which usually means terrible things for my sensitive skin and allergies, but it hasn't affected me at all! Infact I find the gentle lavender scent to be quite soothing and calming, and I swear putting it on at night gives me a better sleep!
It is definitely a very rich cream, which can sometimes be a bit too much for my oily skin - so there have been a couple of days where I haven't been able to use it all over my face, and have instead just applied it on the really dry areas. This seems to work really well.

The real winner for me though, is how it looks under my makeup. To be honest with you, I expected it to make my face look and feel greasy, but it seems to create the perfect semi-matte base for my makeup! It also seems to take away some of the redness I get - amazing!

Not only am I enjoying this product, but I've seen my Mum eyeing it up a bit! It would actually be perfect for her dehydrated skin so I might even let her try it. Hahaha!
Highly recommend this to anyone who has dull, dry areas on their face - even if you're like me and have oily skin! You can check this out along with some other Trilogy products here.

Thanks for viewing!
oxo

January 2013 Favourites!

Wow, I haven't done a favourites post in so long - so I thought I better get my act together and let ya'll know what I've been loving!

To be honest with you, for the majority of January I was up north camping. So makeup was pretty much a no go. I mean what's the point in wearing it when you know it's all gonna come off at the beach anyway, right?

What I have been loving at this time of year is sunscreen! Living in NZ, pretty much puts us right under the hole in the ozone layer, so I feel like a high SPF sunscreen is an absolute must. I am quite fussy though, I hate that horrible thick gunky feeling that you find with most of them - so am always on the lookout for a new one

.The face sunscreen that I am basically in love with is the Sunsense Daily Face SPF 50+. Now I have to confess to you guys, that I got a bunch of samples of this - so I haven't even had to actually purchase the full size yet! Yay!
Honestly, I had never even considered trying this before because I just assumed that it would be thick and gross, but then a lot of people started recommending it to me, and because I had access to samples, I figured there was nothing to lose! I am so glad I gave it a go, because it has this awesome invisible tint matte finish that is perfect to wear on its own or under foundation.

The sunscreen I've been using on my body is the Nivea Ultra Beach Protect Sunscreen Spray SPF 30+. As you can see, I have lost the lid for this! I just love this; so easy to apply, absorbed quickly and actually works - provided you remember to reapply it regularly that is! Hahaha

Hair-wise, I've been loving my CHS Slip and CHS Curl Keeper. With no power to use my hair dryer or hair straightener, I needed to let my hair dry naturally - which can be a problem when your curls are frizzy and out of control! Using the Slip was great to get all tangles out of my hair, and the Curl Keeper is amazing at defining curls while controlling frizz.

The Body Shop Cranberry Joy shower gel has been my go to shower gel this month. I absolutely love smelling nice, and The Body Shop products pretty much never disappoint! Cranberry Joy is part of their Christmas limited edition range, so I made sure to stock up because it's one of my favourites!

That's pretty much my favourites for the month of January! I know there wasn't anything too exciting, but these are all great products that I have literally been using on a daily basis.
Thanks for viewing lovelies!
oxo

Mascara Time: Maybelline Volum' Express Falsies Flared

Maybelline Volum' Express Falsies Flared is the newest mascara from Maybelline to hit the shelves here in New Zealand.
I was lucky enough to be sent one for review, so have been using it religiously for about 2 weeks now.

The patented spoon curler brush is designed to fan out the lashes from corner-to-corner and the Pro-Keratin formula is supposed to provide instant volume without clumping.
But does it work?

After using the Rimmel Scandaleyes Mascara for so long, I found the formula on this to be extremely dry. I also found that it didn't really hold a curl that well either, and my eyelashes tended to droop a little by the end of the day.

The brush itself was quite good at getting all the individual eyelashes, and seperated them quite nicely without too much clumping - but again I didn't find it to be very helpful at actually curling the lashes. Curling is essential for me, so this was a bit disappointing.

Overall, I didn't think this was a bad mascara, but probably wouldn't repurchase it.
Thanks for viewing!
oxo

Findation... Find Your Foundation Match!

Ever wanted to buy a foundation online but were unsure about which colour to choose? Findation is here to help!

It has never been easier to find a foundation match. Findation helps you find a foundation by using an algorithim to recommend similar shades, based on the matches entered by other foundation users.

Basically what you do is sign in (with either Twitter or Facebook) and enter in the foundation matches you already know. For example, I know for sure that MAC Face & Body in C2 is a perfect match for me, and so is Graftobian Hi Def Foundation in Ingenue. I can then use those choices to find my recommendations for other brands. It's genius!

I actually can't even begin to show you guys how excited I am about this, living in New Zealand makes it hard for me to shop for foundations, because the range here is so limited. I rely heavily on online shopping, and this is going to make things so much easier.

Thanks to the amazing GlossQueen for posting about this site, or I probably wouldn't have found out about it!

Hope you all find this as helpful as I have.
Thanks for viewing!
oxo

Swatch Watch: Yaby World Of Pearl Paints Palette

Yaby Cosmetics. By now, you've probably heard of them and like me, have drooled over all their beautifully pigmented products.
You may have already seen my review on the Yaby Dramatically Neutral palette and know that I am a huge fan of their eyeshadows - but the World of Pearl Paints palette is even more amazing than I expected.

The colours are intensely bright and the formula is to die for. They feel more like a cream but in powder form. They blend effortlessly and once again I'm shocked at how little you actually need to use! Would you also believe that they're waterproof? What more could you want?!

I decided to swatch the whole palette for you to see, beware, after this you'll be dying to get your hands on it!

Sooo pretty!
If you'd like to get your hands on one of these amazing palettes, head on over to Yaby Cosmetics.
Thanks for viewing!
oxo

Review: Rimmel Scandaleyes Mascara

I was lucky enough to be chosen to review the new Rimmel Scandaleyes mascara, which I’ve been using religiously for over a week now.
I am always on the hunt for a good mascara, and am hardly ever satisfied with one – so I tend to go through quite a few! I actually have a few unopened ones that are waiting to be used, but really wanted to try this one first.

The first thing that struck me was how big the brush is – this thing is huge! I know it says it’s 50% larger and everything, but I was still surprised when I saw it.

The formula itself is a little more liquidy (how’s that for a word?) than I would like it to be, I feel like it takes longer to dry – which can be a little annoying.  It is very black though, which I love. There is nothing worse, in my opinion, than buying a black mascara and it turning out to be more of a dull dark grey.

I have to say, I wasn’t really expecting great things from this. I have used Rimmel mascaras in the past, and haven’t been that impressed. They’ve always been fairly good, but never anything that I would actually repurchase.

At first, I found it quite tricky applying Scandaleyes, because the size of the brush felt so awkward! After a couple of uses though, I soon got used to it. As I said before, liquidy formulas annoy me because of the drying time – but oh my goodness, once it dries it really holds a curl! I mean, really. It also thickens and lengthens my lashes quite nicely, which every girl wants, I’m sure!

Overall, this is a mascara I will be purchasing and wouldn’t hesitate in recommending it. Give it a go for yourself and let me know what you think!

Thanks for viewing!
oxo

Since I've been MIA...

And am home from work today because I have a massive sinus infection, I thought I would do one of those tags. :)

Vital Statistics:

-Name: Christel

-Nicknames: Chrissy, Kitty, Choo Choo, Chriddle etc.

-Birthday: 16 September 1987 - so old!!

-Place of Birth: Auckland, New Zealand

-Zodiac Sign: Virgo!

-Male or Female: Female

-Occupation: Pharmacy Assistant/Freelance Makeup Artist

Appearance:

-Hair Color: Currently my natural colour of 'medium brown'. Growing out the black that it has been for the past year or so!

-Hair Length: Long? Although not long enough, if you ask me.

-Eye color: Brown/Hazel.

-Best Feature: I dunno? My eyes possibly, I think I get the most compliments on them.

-Height: 5'4'', Yup - I'm a shorty!

-Braces?: Never needed them, thank goodness! My sister did, and they always looked so painful :(

-Glasses?: Yes! I'm short sighted, so I have to wear them full time. I choose to wear contact lenses 90% of the time though - although I have to say that glasses are so much more convenient to wear!

-Piercings: I have 14 ear piercings and 1 nose piercing. I used to have my navel and labret pierced back in the day, but they actually both grew out (which was quite disgusting!) and I haven't bothered getting them redone.

-Tattoos: Two. One is of two phoenixes on my back, that my sister bought for my 19th birthday, and the other is a turtle on my lower back (TRAMP STAMP!). I love both and have been planning more for awhile now.

-Righty or Lefty: Righty!

Your 'Firsts':

-First best friend: Sophie I think.. back in primary, we were great buds, but we've since lost touch. I do see her around now and then, and always say hello!

-First Award: I actually don't know. I remember getting all these awards in primary, but I can't for the life of me remember what they were for.

-First Sport You Joined: Netball! I used to play Centre. Good times.

-First Real Vacation: The first one that I really remember was the first time my family and I went up north camping when I was 7.. it was the start of a tradition and we've been back every year since then!

-First Concert: 48may I think.. they were a pretty big local band over here at one stage, and to be honest, I had a major crush on the lead singer - Jon! We used to go to a lot of their concerts, and ended up being quite friendly with the band, up to the point where they started recognising us! Ahh good memories..

Favorites:

-Movie: Step Brothers, Anchorman, Titanic, Once Were Warriors, American History X, Forest Gump, The Green Mile, Inception, Blood Diamond, Pirates of the Caribbean, ALL Tim Burton movies, The Hangover 1 & 2, Elf, Talladega Nights.. and so many more!

-TV Show: Revenge! Omg, I am obsessed with this program - I even bought a new TV, just so I could watch it! Hahaha. Craaazy. I also love Home and Away, How I Met Your Mother, The Big Bang Theory, Modern Family and Jersey Shore.

-Colors: Black, purple, turquoise, bronze.

-Song: Oh come on, how could I possibly choose? I LOVE music, and could never narrow it down to just one.

-Candy: Cadbury cream eggs and Kit Kats.

-Restaurant: I'm not really a restaurant person, I never go out to dinner or anything! Whenever I eat out, it's usually sushi or Subway. Hahaha!

-Store: DressMart is my favey!

-Book: I love the Twilight series! But am actually on the lookout for a new series to get into..

-Magazine: I like those foodie magazines... and That's Life! Surprisingly I don't often read fashion mags, I prefer to read articles and blogs online.

-Shoes: Wedges and ballet flats!

Currently:

-Feeling: Sick! :( And very sleepy..

-Single or Taken: Single

-Eating: I just had a doughnut... not particularly healthy, but what can ya do? :P

-Listening To: Revenge, hahaha.

-Thinking About: If I'll be well enough to go to work tomorrow, I hate being sick at home. It feels so unnatural!

-Wanting: My package to show up!

-Watching: Revenge! 

-Wearing: Trackies -  my awesome Ridgeline ones. Honestly, if you live in New Zealand, you need to get your hand on a pair of these track pants. They are SO warm and comfy. Also wearing this oversized grey t shirt from Supre.

Future:

-Want Children?: Yes, I would love to have kids one day!

-Want to be Married: I've always been against marriage, but to be honest, if it was the right person, I would definitely consider it.

-Careers in Mind: I'm starting to lean towards a career as a pharmacy technician.. but I am still undecided.

-Where do you want to live?: I would love to live up north, where we go camping. Since we bought a section there last year, one day that might be a reality!

Do You Believe In:

-God: Nope.

-Miracles: Not really.

-Love At First sight: I wish! But it seems pretty unlikely to be honest. :P

-Ghosts: Definitely.

-Aliens: I'm started to believe in them more and more...

-Soul Mates: Yes I do! Mine must be out there somewhere right? Hahaha

-Heaven: Yes

-Hell: Yes

-Kissing on The First Date:Yes

-Yourself: Everyone has to. :)

That was fun! Now I tag all of you to do it! If you do, please leave me a comment so I can take a look!

Thanks for viewing!
oxo