Skincare | Lipglossiping

Category: Skincare

Wednesday, March 3rd, 2010

Lanolips Lip Ointment

After suffering for the past 4 months with flaky, dry lips… I’ve finally found my cure. Let me tell you a bit about it…

Lanolips is an Australian brand that proudly produces one of the most natural cosmetic products on earth.

The Lanolips lineup currently includes 2 core products:

~ Lanolips Lip Ointment with Colour 12.5ml (AUD13.95/£8.40)

~ Lanolips 101 Ointment 17.5ml (AUD17.95/£11)

I was sent the range for review consideration over a month ago now and I tell you now without a scrap of embarrassment despite the risk of sounding like I’m gushing…. this stuff has made a big difference to my life.

I could tell you all about how pure and natural the ointments are, I could share the anecdotes about how it’s so safe it can be used on the mouths of new-born babies… but to be honest, you can find all that out by visiting their website. I wanna tell you why from this day forward, I’m never going to be without a tube of this in my handbag.

But let me first concentrate on the Lanolips Ointment with Colour.

These are fabulous lip gloss alternatives. They’re sheer, but the colour is build-able. Thanks to a completely non-sticky formula, you can also apply without fear of errant breezes gluing your hairdo to your face.

The shades:

Rose is a milky-toned soft pink, perfect for paler skin-tones and also works fabulously to tone down bright lipsticks a touch. I feel it may be a little too pale for darker skintones and WOC unless you apply with a light hand or like the super pale look.

Dark Honey is a true dark nude shade, I would imagine this is flattering to all skin-tones – very easy to wear. It’s a “your lips but better” shade for me.

Sunshine is a warm, summery coral. It’s beautiful.. and on paper, is probably my favourite. But unfortunately, it doesn’t flatter my cool skin-tone quite as well as the others.

Apples is described byLanolips as “the colour of babies lips” and I totally get that decription, it’s a rosebud red. I’m afraid it looks a touch warmer in my swatch than in real life though, sorry about that!

There’s also another, newly released shade called Rhubarb which has been described as a deep, vibrant pink, but I don’t have that one to show you.

Scent-less and taste-less, I’ll be using these daily in the Summer when I want something a little lighter, a little more natural and glowy.

The main point to remember with the entire Lanolips range is the core ingredient, the fundamental base upon which all this colour frivolity has been added – the ultra-moisturising Lanolin. It keeps my lips supple and so far is improving tone and texture unlike anything else I’ve tried.

Having sad that, there are still a couple of things that I’d change.

I’d personally prefer a slanted plastic applicator so that I could use the tube to applythe product instead of my finger. I’d also like to see the packaging include the word ‘tint’ somewhere for clarification. The colours look SO bright in the tube, I’d be surprised if there weren’t at least a few consumers who were expecting more colour payoff upon application.

That aside, onto my favourite product!

Lanolips 101 Ointment is the DADDY. It’s the no-nonsense “what you see is what you get” multi-purpose cure-all.

The stand-alone tube, slightly bigger than the rest at 17.5ml, contains nothing but pure ultra medical-grade lanolin. To be (un)fair, it’s kinda boring… it’s unscented, unflavoured, uncoloured, un…inspiring… yeah, it’s a whole lot of ‘uns’.

But it’s this little marvel that I’m marking up as my lip saviour today.

I’m not new to lanolin. I was a big fan of Lansinoh throughout the months I breastfed my baby. Lansinoh saved my poor nips (tmi?) on many occasions whilst me and the babs were still both figuring out what the hell we were supposed to be doing. I’ve even tried to use Lansinoh on my lips before… but it’s too damn sticky. I used to be able to bear it for about 15 minutes before having to grab a tissue and wipe it off. I’ve been told by Lansinoh PR that it’s not as sticky as it used to be, but I only have the experience of my year-old tube to compare to.

Lanolips advise you to use the Lanolips 101 Ointment generously but I haven’t found that I’ve needed to apply it very thickly at all. Which is just aswell, ‘cos I hate that feeling where you’ve got about 8″ of product built up on your lips.

I use the Lanolips 101 Ointment in a number of ways:

1. On my lips before bed as a moisturiser
2. A thin layer underneath lipstick to moisturise and stop matte lipsticks looking like crap
3. A thin layer above lipstick to add shine
4. On Leila’s eczema
5. On my cuticles at night as an intensive moisturiser.

I think out of all those uses, the one that stands out to me… the one reason that I’ll be repurchasing this product for as long as I can get my grubby little hands on it is #2.

Is that shallow? Surely I should choose the fact that it’s a fabulous lip conditioner? Or um… wait, maybe I should have chosen the fact that it diminishes my daughter’s eczema patches… but um… I can wear my OCC Lip Tars without looking like I’ve been mummified!

I can wear my Revlon and MAC mattes lipsticks again – the joy! I’ve spent months trying different lip balms underneath with no success. On the rare occasion that a lip balm has succeeded at keeping my lips smooth, the lippie has inevitably slid off my face after 20 minutes. If anything, as long as I keep my layer of Lanolips nice and thin, it’s almost as if it gives my lipstick something to adhere to!

The cheapest online stockist I can find offering international delivery is MakeUWell who charge 10AUD (about £6) for postage.

Lanolips 101 Ointment *is* my solution. Now I just need someone to come along and stock it in the UK so I don’t have to pay international postage charges. Is that really too much to ask?

Posted in Lip Colour, Reviews, Skincare | 10 Comments »

Sunday, February 28th, 2010

Hei Poa – Monoi Beauty Oil

Back when February was still so new I was calling it January, I blogged about this:

Hei Poa Pur Monoi Beauty Oil, my skin was bone dry at the time and as a fan of most body oils anyway, I was keen to try another.

I ordered from Zuneta and it arrived within two days with a couple of posh samples enclosed as a bonus!

It’s not particularly attractive in it’s solid state, infact… it’s not at all appetising until you unscrew the lid and give it a sniff. The unmistakable scent of Frangipani fills your nostrils, a beautiful tropical aroma.

So how do you turn it from that solid, waxy-looking state into a warm oily texture ready for use on your skin or your hair?

I fill a jug with hot tap water and simply sit the bottle in the water whilst I’m in the shower. It takes about 4-5 minutes to melt completely, but you don’t need to melt the whole bottle. If you only wanted a little, you could be done in 30-40 seconds.

Not a huge thing… but a point of note is that the labelling on the bottle is waterproof and has so far remained intact despite being submerged countless times! I hate paper labels on bath products that disintegrate as soon as they get a splash of water on them!

After about a minute in the hot water, I pulled the bottle out and although you can see it’s not completely melted, there’s enough there for one application.

I find the Hei Poa to be a particularly dry body oil, it’s not massively ‘glidey’ and once I’ve started to spread, it drags a touch on my skin. The flip-side to that is that I’m not left feeling at all greasy. It’s a trade off that I’m happy with. The oil leaves my skin feeling noticeably smoother with a beautiful sheen and delicate scent.

I’m a very happy Hei Poa convert!

What to try next? The ‘golden glow’ version or the shower/bath oil? – decisions, decisions!

Posted in Bodycare, Hei Poa, Skincare | 5 Comments »

Saturday, February 27th, 2010

Daniele de Winter – Choc Beaute

Back in December, I added a box of Daniele de Winter Choc Beauté to my Chrismas Wishlist.

Well who says you don’t get what you wish for?

The box is a lot smaller than I imagined. Priced at €17.94, you’d kinda hope for something bigger than your hand right?

Remember, the USP (unique selling point) for these choccies is the fact that: “Choc Beauté are delicious chocolates designed to make your skin more beautiful”

Wow, take a look in the mirror Choc Beaute! You look like poo. Literally. Rabbit pooh or Sheep pooh I can’t decide, but some kind of excrement regardless.

So basically, the chocs have added anti-oxidants and vitamins that help battle some of the factors that make skin lose it’s elasticity. Of course, you could just take some multi-vitamins and eat a healthy diet to get the same benefits, but where’s the fun in that?

But how about the taste test? That’s what really counts right?

Well… let’s just say… next Christmas, I’m gonna be asking for chocolates that make you UGLY.

Posted in Skincare | 8 Comments »

Thursday, February 18th, 2010

Oh good grief…

…Introducing, AcneApp:

Everyone recognises Apple’s iPhone tag line “There’s an app for that!”, but check out Dr. Greg Pearson’s novel use of the latest in mobile technology.

AcneApp has been developed as a potential mini-alternative to professional light treatment. It uses 420 nanometer blue light to fight bacteria and 550 nanometer red light, which is said to help kill bacteria and promote collagen growth.

In theory, you could be zapping your zits whilst catching up on the bestie’s latest boyfriend drama. Or perhaps not, seeing as it’s yet to be clinically tested. Still, it’s a great way to up your dose of cell phone radiation in the quest for perfect skin.

Posted in Skincare | 5 Comments »

Monday, February 15th, 2010

Deep Skincare – Splendid Smooth Legs

Deep Skincare are a fairly new Dutch brand that I hadn’t heard of until they contacted me in December to ask if I’d like some products for review consideration. Taking a look at their ‘about’ page… they seem quite hippy in a love each other, love yourself kinda way. Which is nice! Not enough people love me and I could do with some more harmony in my life.

Anyway, enough of all that! Looky looky leg balm!

Splendid Smooth Legs. What a rubbish name. It’s like one of those bad Japanese translations isn’t it? I think they should have added a “silky” in their somewhere to really tip it over the edge.

Housed in a heavy dark glass jar with a fairly plain label, the product has a nice simple look. Understated. I like it.

The first thing you notice when you unscrew the lid is the smell. Immediately recognisable… Taking a look at the ingredients confirms the source of the scent: Camphor and Menthol. Vaporub anyone? I love the smell of Vicks, but I know some people hate it, so beware! Once on the skin, it takes about 15 minutes for the scent to fade completely.

The cream is thick but lightweight, a beautiful texture, it feels instantly cooling as it makes contact with the skin, fantastic for weary legs.

Looking more closely at the ingredients, the cream contains Arnica which is widely believed to help reduce inflammation, bruising and encourage the dilation of blood vessels and capillaries under the skin. Witch Hazel also puts in an appearance on the ingredient list, a natural astringent often put to use as a treatment for varicose veins.

Exactly the ingredients I want to revive and massage into my legs after a full day on my feet.

They say:

Deep: Splendid Smooth Legs sports an invigorating and active formula. A delicious treat to pamper weary or swollen legs. Due to the purely natural ingredients, this balm has a very wholesome effect.

Rather than every-day use as suggested on the jar, I’ve been using this a few times a week. A small amount goes a long way and leaves my legs feeling refreshed, cooled and less ‘heavy’ than before. In the Summer, I do a lot of walking and I can’t wait to put it to good daily use as part of a post-bath routine!

While I remember, I also applied this in the middle of the night a few days ago after waking up with cramp in my calf, it really relaxed the tightness in the muscle and for once I didn’t get that limping you get the next morning when you don’t catch cramp in time. I’d really recommend this as a hugely useful gift for mamas-to-be. I suffered horrendous leg cramps in my 3rd trimester and would have loved a pot of this.

Do you neglect your legs? I’m ashamed to admit that mine don’t generally get much attention other than a nice shaving gel. I don’t know why I’m so lax, varicose veins ain’t pretty!

You can purchase Deep Skincare online from their website. Splendid Smooth Legs is priced at £14.21 for 250ml.

If you want to learn more about taking good care of your pins, check out The Leg Room. What Kate doesn’t know about legs, isn’t worth knowing.

Posted in Bodycare, Deep Skincare, Reviews, Skincare | 5 Comments »

Sunday, February 14th, 2010

Xen-Tan Transform Luxe Self-Tan

I was sent a tube of this to try after I couldn’t fit in a proper salon tan job on my last London visit. I’ve bored you all senseless MANY times moaning about my uber paleness. I know that pale is kinda ‘in’, but that’s porcelain pale… smooth creamy ivory skin. Which, I don’t have.

I have blue pale. Blue pale with red blotches. Combine that with bingo wings and you have some sexy upper arms right there.

Having said that, I’m scared of anything that darkens my skin. Bronzer, fake tan, eating chocolate biscuits without a plate… soooo I’ve kinda put off using this. Every time I went to crack it open, I’d remember some important thing I had to do in the next few days and screwed the lid back on terrified of appearing in public looking like a satsuma.

Well, I couldn’t put it off any longer. ‘Cos I have nothing to do for about a week. Enough time for any hideosity to fade if something went wrong.

Xen Tan is widely regarded as one of the best faux tanners on the market (don’t you prefer the word ‘faux’ to ‘fake’?), The manufacturer’s say:

Transform has been developed especially for today’s growing gradual tan market, giving the same delicious daily dose of moisture you’ve come to expect from Xen-Tan but with an extra boost of tanning ingredient to deliver a silky smooth olive glow. With a wonderful fresh vanilla scent, its advanced formula means fewer applications are needed. Apply just like an everyday moisturiser for sun-kissed skin that’s streak-free, sumptuously soft and never ever orange.

Can’t go wrong then can I?….

I did it. I grabbed the bull by the horns, or the um bottle by the lid and just. did. it. I’d bought a tanning mitt in preparation and used that to apply.

The cream goes on smoothly and does feel quite moisturising. The scent is heavenly! True vanilla with no biscuits in sight!

I finished in less than 10 minutes and washed my hands like I was supposed to. Unfortunately, I then forgot to apply he stuff to the back of my hands after washing them (what a n00b). It’s ok though, it just means you guys get to see how natural and un-orange the colour is on me.

I went to bed slightly sticky, but still smelling full on like a tasty vanilla pod. I woke up, bronzed, gorgeous healthy looking and stinking of a 1 year old hob nob. I jumped in the shower and emerged all clean-smelling again!

I love the tan. It’s a beautiful golden olive tone with no hint of orange. I keep catching sight of myself in the mirror (oh ok, *looking* at myself) and it seems very strange not to see a big pasty face looking back at me. I really look about a 100% healthier.

I need to get this application malarky down. For a first attempt, I’m happy. I exfoliated and moisturised the day before tanning and that seemed to work well to avoid dirty looking knees and elbows (Thanks to Saskia for the tanning tips!).

I think I’ve shamed myself enough this week with my dodgy hair… but… here, have a pic of a bad tan line.

I dunno what’s with the perfect v… but anyway, the photo is more to demonstrate the lovely shade of tan I am rather than my inability to remember simple bloody instructions. And incase you were wondering, I’ve worn foundation on my hand today to minimize my mark of stupidity.

See, S.M.U.G

I was nervous putting it on my face, really nervous! I waited till the mitt had a small even covering of cream and I don’t think I used very much at all. Infact, for the most part I think I over applied.. considering how little product I applied to my face and how even it’s come out, I probably need to use about 1/2 of the product that I initially applied to achieve a good result.

I’m so happy with Xen-Tan and I’ve shocked myself by how good a job I’ve made of it (forgetting the hands for a moment) there are no streaks, blobs or any other tell tale signs of tanning fakery. I may well become a bit of a tan addict, although I’m intrinsically LAZY, and self-tanning takes dedication. Regardless, I’ll be buying a bottle of this for the summer!

Xen-Tan Transform LUXE is £23.95 for 236ml.

Xen-Tan is available from Selfridges, Harvey Nichols and House of Fraser stores or visit www.xen-tan.co.uk

Posted in Bodycare, Skincare, Xen-Tan | 9 Comments »