Your beauty guide!
If you use a separate cream for your eyes or not, is totally your choice. Some believe an eye cream is an essential part of our skincare routine. There are millions of eye-creams in the market to choose from. Today’s post as you can obviously tell from the title, is a review, a review of the only eye-cream I have used in my entire life and it is the It’s potent eye benefit cream from benefit cosmetics. (more…)
Summer is officially in and what are your plans for this summer? Getting sun-kissed in the beaches? Or some fun picnics with your kids to beautiful gardens, zoo maybe. Or strolling through some gorgeous cities and getting to know some new culture Summer for some is the best time for vacation, for some it is officially the beach season, some does not restrict to beaches its all about outdoor fun, mainly with your kids. Whatever you do, summer also calls for some extra skincare. Yes! like the special care you gave your skin during winters, your skin demands some special care during summer too. After all everybody wishes to have a healthy and beautiful skin, so you have to work for it. This post covers some basic summer skincare tips, following which will leave your skin at its best. And I know you don’t want to waste a lot of your fun-time in skincare so I am making it really easy for you. I have also included some summer makeup trends. (more…)
Black….Black and more black!
No! No! I am not being racist here, why I say this, you will know as you read this post. Today I am going to review a Black facial cleanser from Lush cosmetics, which comes in the normal Black pot of Lush and it has a name “dark angels”. Everything is black about this cleanser!
Black sugar and charcoal gently exfoliate and absorb excess oils to leave dull, oily or acne-prone skin feeling fresh and matte. Even oily skin can be sensitive, so we’ve made this one soft and soothing to calm redness and irritation, too. Its rhassoul mud base deep-cleanses to help prevent breakouts while vitamin rich cold-pressed organic avocado oil nourishes skin to leave it soft and lightly hydrated. Use all over for perfectly smooth, bright skin. An angel indeed!
Rhassoul Mud , Cold Pressed Organic Avocado Oil (Persea gratissima) , Glycerine , Powdered Charcoal ,Black Sugar (sucrose) , Sodium Lauroyl Sarcosinate ,Fragrance , Sandalwood Oil (Santalum austro-caledonicum vieill and Fusanus spicatus) , Rosewood oil (Aniba rosaeodora) , *Linalool , *Farnesol . *Occurs naturally in essential oils
Price for 100g is 75AED which is almost 20$ and dark angels can be found at all Lush stores and also online.
Solid cleansers always attract me , and if it comes from Lush I ought to try it out, main reason it does not contain any preservatives or parabens. When I picked up Dark angels I had high hopes as with any Lush product. The packaging as said earlier is the normal black pot as all Lush products. I bought the smallest tub. The weight of which is 100g. The color of the cleanser is black and the texture, now I don’t think it has a solid consistency nor liquid it comes somewhere in between, kind of powdery solid (What??) I really like the smell of Dark angels, can’t make out what the smell is, not charcoal anyways, but a nice soothing smell.
The method to use is very simple, take a pea-size on your palm and make a paste by adding warm water. Massage it onto your already dampened skin and rinse off with warm water. I keep it for some time before rinsing for better results.
If you have a white as pearl kind of sink, you are about to faint at this point. Because the application itself is messy, but you can avoid it by taking extra care while applying or making it in a paste form. Even if you take that one step of extra care, your sink is still not safe. Once you rinse off the cleanser, you hardly remember your bathroom sink was once white. It is so messy, leaves black stains all over. Wait, no! that is not the worst part, after rinsing if you expect beautiful glowing immediately and look yourself in the mirror, this time you are definitely fainting, if you missed the chance last time. Why because the dark angels stains not only your sink, it leaves black residue on your face too. Too black that after using it l have to get another cleanser to remove the stain. I use micellar water to remove the stain, otherwise the black residue refuses to move even if I rinse my face for the 245788990th time irrespective of whether I use normal, cold, warm or even hot water (do not use hot water though). I told you its all black!
Using a toner after cleansing can also help remove stains but not as effectively as a cleanser or micellar water. I think its better to use the dark angels in the shower, and it stains bath tub too. Forgot to tell, it also gets inside your pores making the situation even worse. The dark angels is not just a facial cleanser, it can also be used for your body. I have used it on my body and it stained my body too!
The above two images are of cotton pads used to remove the stains using micellar water and toner. I am sorry its gross, just wanted to show how mush it stains.
The dark angels is an exfoliating cleanser, but I strongly recommend rubbing with a very light hand. The particles in it are too harsh it can tear your skin (now that is a bit of an exaggeration, but it can damage your skin if you are not gentle). Hence this facial cleanser is not a good choice for people with sensitive skin.
If you ask me why there is too much of negativity today I can point out some really awesome things about the dark angels too. The dark angels leaves my skin smooth and beautiful (after I get rid of the black stain ofcourse). It removes dead skin cells, removes excess oil from my face, but does not leaves my skin dry, it locks in moisture and my skin feels really amazing. No wonder it has such amazing results, the ingredient list is so nice, the main ingredient Rhassoul mud helps to soften the skin, reduce oiliness, remove dead skin cells and tighten pores. Next charcoal helps in cleansing and detoxifying your skin, Avocado oil which helps to moisturize, soften and heal your skin along with the amazing anti-aging properties. Sandalwood oil brighten and lighten skin tone and also in treating blemishes, spots and scars. Rosewood oil has anti-aging benefits. Now if this mask contains all these amazing ingredients it should be showing some awesome results. The girl at Lush said this one is perfect for darker skin as it lightens the complexion, but it did not show any visible change in my complexion, to be honest.
The dark angels has a life of 3 months, after which it will not be suitable to use. When the sales girl told me this, my husband was like come on, this is not going to last until then but after using this for quite some time now, I am damn sure my small pot of 100g will not be over by 3 months, even if I use it every single day, which I do not recommend, since the exfoliation is too harsh to be used everyday.
The dark angels by Lush has definitely improved how my skin look and feel. But even if I ignore how it stains my sink and shower, I cannot neglect the fact that it leaves black residues on my skin. The dark angels really cleanses the impurities on my skin but leaves black residue due to which I have to use another cleanser to remove the stains. So is it really worth it? I don’t think so!Maybe due to the amazing skin benefits, you can use it as a face mask once a while instead of using it as a facial cleanser, but Lush has some really effective face masks like the Love Lettuce I have reviewed a few days back,so maybe it is a better idea to try them out, instead of this cleanser if you do not want to be look like a coal-miner. So my overall opinion would be to just pass. My rating is 3/5.
But if you want to use it for the benefits there are a few tips I would like to share which might help
Hi guys, How are you all?
If you are wondering where have I vanished, I had to go to India for my dear sister-in-laws wedding and if you have at least heard of big fat Indian weddings, you know what kept me busy for the two weeks! I also was the official make up artist for the bride, so had to do do some shopping prior to my travel. Now that I am back I thought of starting with a fun post, a drugstore makeup haul. Now who does not like make up haul posts,right! I am doing a drugstore one, because I got some amazing products, I can’t wait to share. So let’s begin!
The products I purchased are from Gosh, Nyx and Rimmel London,Karaja and Deborah Milano. I got these from Lifestyle stores.
I have not tried any products from Gosh, so thought of trying out a few and ended up buying some awesome products.
I have not tried this eye shadow palette yet, but love it even before using. Love the shades, great for both day and night make up. The palette contains 10 different shades and also a double-sided brush. The best part is that Gosh sells this eye shadow palette for just AED 90, I will be using this quite often, I am sure and my detailed review will be up soon.
I love that this blush comes in form of a stick. Super easy to use and the shade I have is 04 Passion, which is a beautiful pink shade.
I can’t really comment about this powder at this stage, since I have hardly used it. But so far so good!
I really love this concealer. Perfect for the under eye, instantly brightens the under eye. I have used this concealer a couple of times now and totally love it. Review will be up soon.
One range of products which everybody is raving about from Gosh are their lipsticks. I actually thought of buying lipsticks and ended up buying all the other stuff. The lipstick I bought is the shade 010 Matt Smoothie, which is a perfect neutral pink shade which suits my skin tone so well. I have worn this a few times and love how long-lasting these are. Spreads on like butter but gives a matt finish, so good!
This is an amazing lip crayon, which has a fine tip when compared to other lip crayons. The shade I bought is 010 Lady like.
I bought two lip liners 002 Antique Rose and 003 Cardinal Red, which are the closest match to the lipsticks I bought.
Ever since my Inaya came to my life, eye shadow sticks have been a boon for me, so easy to use and blend. So I can’t have enough of them. The shade I bought is Blue.
Rimmel London is one of my favorite drugstore brands.
I have been thinking of getting this one for a while now. The sculpting palette consists of a highlighter, a bronzer and a blush.
This is another eye shadow stick which is two sided with two different shades. The shade I got is 002 Kissed by rose gold. Love the name, Kissed by rose gold.
I can swear by the Rimmel Scandal eyes Rockin’ curves, love it so so much! But this time for a change thought of trying the Lycra flex, I have used it just once and I can tell this one is no competition to the Rockin’ curves, but just an average mascara.
Just a normal eye liner.
The shade I bought is 106, which is a fuschia pink.
I love this range from nyx! The shade I got is BLS12 Little Susie, which is a beautiful coral pink.
You might now think I am obsessed with eye shadow pencils. The jumbo eye pencil might be your favorite too. I bought my all time favorite shade 604 Milk and also 621A Pure Gold.
I don’t know about you, I have never heard about Karaja, my bad! I just got a smudging brush from the brand and I must say the brush is really good. A high quality brush.
The shade is 05, which compliments the Rimmel lipstick I bought.
These are the products I bought from Lifestyle, UAE. I will be using these products and will let you guys know how I feel.
I am sure, if you live anywhere in this planet you have definitely heard of Bio-oil, maybe used it? maybe thought of using it? We usually relate Bio-oil to pregnant women or mommies, but I am going to talk not just that, but how well it works for everyone. So let’s talk everything about Bio-oil and why it is a favorite skin care essential for some beautiful celebrities like Victoria Beckam, Kate Middleton, Priyanka Chopra and Shilpa Shetty. Ah! All my favorite people!
Bio‑Oil is a specialist skincare oil that helps improve the appearance of scars, stretch marks and uneven skin tone. It is also effective for aging and dehydrated skin. Bio‑Oil has won 284 skincare awards and has become the No.1 selling scar and stretch mark product in 20 countries since its global launch in 2002.
The Bio‑Oil formulation is a combination of plant extracts and vitamins suspended in an oil base. It contains the breakthrough ingredient PurCellin Oil™, which changes the formulation’s overall consistency, making it light and non-greasy. This ensures that the goodness contained in the vitamins and plant extracts is easily absorbed.
Botanicals
Calendula Officinalis Flower Extract (Calendula Oil)
Lavandula Angustifolia Oil (Lavender Oil)
Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf Oil (Rosemary Oil)
Anthemis Nobilis Flower Oil (Chamomile Oil)
Vitamins
Retinyl Palmitate (Vitamin A)
Tocopheryl Acetate (Vitamin E)
Oil base
Mineral Oil (Paraffinum Liquidum)
Triisononanoin
Cetearyl Ethylhexanoate
Isopropyl Myristate
Glycine Soja Oil
Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil
BHT
Bisabolol
Fragrance (Rose)
Alpha-Isomethyl Ionone
Amyl Cinnamal
Benzyl Salicylate
Citronellol
Coumarin
Eugenol
Farnesol
Geraniol
Hydroxycitronellal
Hydroxyisohexyl 3-Cyclohexene Carboxaldehyde
Limonene
Linalool
Color
Orange: CI 26100 (Red 17)
Price of a 125ml bottle is AED 75
Bio-oil comes in a bottle form and the oil comes out as drops. It is very easy to control the amount as it comes drop by drop. And trust me you need just two drops for your face and neck. I love the color of the oil, peach-ish orange. I also love the smell of it. I can’t make out what the smell is, reminds me of some spice? But the ingredient list mentions a lot of ingredients responsible or the smell. I know some people hate the smell of bio-oil (personal preferences huh?)
The consistency o Bio-oil is so light. The reason for the light consistency is supposed to be PurCellin Oil. Out of curiosity I googled to find out what the so called “break through ingredient” really is. What Google found out is that “PurCellin oil is a substance that comes from the preen gland oil of ducks.” My first reaction was “Yuckkk!” which then changed to “What? Seriously?!”.Then again I went through the ingredient list to find out more , but surprisingly, this oil has not been mentioned in the ingredient list. Now I have decided to move on so lets talk about other things about our star of the day- the Bio-oil!
Once you take the oil in your hands, it is completely transparent. Method to use is very simple, take two drops of the bio-oil and massage it into your skin, just two drops, not more. Once you apply the oil on your skin, you see that it is non-greasy and absorbs into your skin really fast. Even if you have oily skin, you can use bio-oil without much of a thought. Well, you know right, it is just a myth that oil skinned beauties cannot use oil in their skincare routine, a false one! Speaking about bio-oil it is so light and perfect for all types of skin.
Using Bio-oil leaves leaves my skin moisturized and has definitely improved the texture of my skin. I started using Bio-oil when I was pregnant,on my tummy area, mainly to prevent stretch marks. Well let me tell you one thing, it is always a better idea to start preventive measures for stretch marks than later treating it. Bio-oil has definitely helped me and I have very little not-so-visible stretch marks due to pregnancy. At this point let me also tell you that I have had stretch marks due to all the weight loss and weight gain I had during my adolescence. If you ask me if Bio-oil had helped me with getting rid of that, I would say not really. I haven’t expected it to because it is not easy to treat stretch marks which are older. Even the medical prescriptions does not show much results, so don’t expect Bio-oil to do some miracles. But it can definitely help to reduce the amount of strtch marks you get when you use it at pregnancy, and also show some really good results in reducing the appearance of the newly formed ones.
After using Bio-oil on my tummy area, I realized it is so moisturizing and then started using it on my body and later on my face. I have used it during the intense summers and extreme winters in the UAE and loved the results. Bio-oil claims to do a lot of work. It claims to be a specialist skincare for scars, stretch marks, uneven skin tone, ageing skin and dehydrated skin. I can’t really comment about all, but yes it has helped me with stretch marks, dehydrated skin. It has not done much to my uneven skin tone, and I don’t have much wrinkles or anything so cannot comment about aged skin. BUt I really think it can help to some extent because the ingredient list of Bio-oil is amazing. It has some excellent ingredients. I believe, via the powers of Vitamin E, Bi-oil can reduce the number of damaged cells from UV radiation and help to reduce free radicals that attack healthy cells, which would otherwise lead to premature aging and skin damage.
Apart from using Bio-oil for my body, I have used it as a cuticle oil and it works. I also use it on my feet to treat cracked heels, it does not treat cracked heels overnight, but yes by using for a few days it helps. I have heard that some people use it on their hair, but I have not!
Bio-oil leaves my skin plump and glowing. It has helped me with dehydrated skin and also stretch marks to some extent. It also helps to treat cracked heels. I love products that can multitask, for a low price it is a steal! But I do not agree with the claim of being a miracle product,it does help, but no miracles.
Inspire and be inspired!
Every achievement big or small, is valuable. I started The Beauty mascot four months back when I had no idea if this small blog of mine will be read by real people. My very first achievement after starting my blog was definitely when I realized my little beauty world has some amazing readership. I cannot boast of high blog traffic, but I am happy there are people who take time to read my blog and find my blog informative. Now this blog of mine has been nominated for the Liebster award. It might not be a great deal for some of you, but for me it gives me inspiration and hope. Thank you Kim from Always A New Day for the nomination.
Lets get started by answering the 11 questions Kim has asked me.
This blog of mine has made me confident enough of thinking about starting a lifestyle blog, where I can write more about me and more about the lovely country where I live, UAE.
2. How do you spend any me time you may have?
Me time does not even exist in my widest dreams now, to be honest! The reason, I have a 15 month old who just wont stop, she is running, jumping, and doing every possible thing. But if I ever get the luxury, I would choose to escape to a spa, get somebody else to do things for me. Or to keep it simple, I would love to take a beauty bath with a face mask on and just relax! Wow! I really need that right now.
3. Why did you start blogging?
I started blogging to share what I have got in terms of beauty, share beauty tips and tricks as well as make up tricks, beauty DIY’s, product reviews and every other thing related to beauty. Moreover, blogging gives you a platform, to share what you know and what you think and what you want others to know. My work stays there as long as I live and after, so that, when my li’l girl grow up she can be proud of her mommy,hopefully 😛
4.If your readers could read ONE post from you, which one would it be and why?
I’m really glad you asked this question Kim! Okay I have written a post about using avocado seed for facial massage, you can find it HERE. I think this trick is really amazing and cheap. Everybody should try it out.
5. Where is your favorite place to travel?
I have just been to a very few places. But out of all the places I have visited Switzerland is my absolute favorite. Right from the time I could remember I have always dreamt of snowy mountains , serene lakes, beautiful greenery; what a picturesque place it is!
Just a couple more questions, I promise!
6. What is a favorite recipe that you would suggest for everyone to try?
Now this one is tough. I can’t think of any. Lets try this, I make a curry leaves chicken curry, which is very easy. Just blend together curry leaves, onion, garlic and ginger to form a paste. In a saucepan add oil, to that add the curry leaves paste, cook it for some time, add tomatoes, green chilies and chicken. The spices you add are coriander powder and a little bit of red chili powder. Once the chicken is cooked add garam masala and top it up with coriander leaves. Don’t forget to add salt. There you have it, very easy but flavorful chicken curry. The best thing is that curry leaves are great for your skin and hair.
7. If you could travel anywhere, where would you go and who would go with you?
Hmm… If I can, I will visit all the places in the world and moon too, with my family of course! If I really should pick a place I would love to take my li’l cutie to Disneyland. We visited Disneyland two years back and those were the best days of our life! We had so much fun.
8. Describe yourself in one word?
Compassionate.
9. What is your favorite movie and why?
I can’t think of one movie right now! I really like the movie “A walk to remember” because this movie is all about unconditional love. I also love all Disney movies! There is an Indian movie “holiday” which is close to my heart because our story (me and my husband) is very much similar to that, only the love part!
10. What is one beauty product you cannot live without?
I cannot live without moisturizers and lip balms, not from any particular brand.
11. Share a favorite quote, Bible verse, or song lyric that motivates you?
“Where there is a will there is a way!
Now its my turn!
I Nominate:
The best thing about Liebster Award is that it is all about discovering and promoting new blogs and bloggers. I am really excited to nominate the following awesome bloggers!
Soumya @ Soumya Midhun
Aki @ AK Beautyworld
Preity @ Stay beautiful with preity
Lily @ Love Lily Jackson
Safi @The Beauty Inside Out
I would love them to answer the following questions! Don’t forget to check them out!
So we have come up to the end of this post! It was really fun and can’t wait to read what these awesome bloggers have to say!
Take care!
I am a real fan of shea butters. I use it for my face, hair, lips, body, feet and hands. Sometimes for moisturizing, sometimes for healing various skin issues ;sometimes alone sometimes along with other ingredients; shea butter is one amazing product! I have used shea butter body scrub (no, not homemade but from a very good brand) in the past and I love it! But I keep on trying and experimenting with different products and diy’s so I use some others at the moment. But a few days back I really missed my shea butter body scrub so I thought instead of buying it I should make it at home. So I went through the ingredient list of my favorite shea butter body scrub for inspiration (Please don’t use the word copying,!) and made my own shea butter body scrub at home! (more…)
I have a love for natural face masks. If you are not new to my blog, you probably know that! I have already written posts about a few of my favorite face masks which I make from natural and easily available ingredients. But it is not always possible to make my face masks because I have a 15 month old who is so hyperactive that sometimes I just wish she had been lazy! In that case when my skin is dull and needs some life, I opt for ready made face masks. What makes Lush standout of the other such skincare brands is definitely that they are made from the freshest and most natural ingredients. Yes, you can enjoy and benefit from the Lush face masks without being guilty of slathering on a bunch of chemicals. Today I am going to review one among a few of Lush’s face masks- Love Lettuce face mask! (more…)
Don’t just remove your makeup, let your skin benefit from it!
Applying makeup has therapeutic effects to most of us girls. If you don’t trust me,try this, when your angry or sad instead of that adult coloring books which is trending so much now, try applying some good lipstick (your favorite shade), or even better go for a full make up, it can instantly make you forget everything else! But I don’t think we feel the same about removing it! Removing your makeup is one heck of a job, especially those water proof ones! Some things don’t even want to get off our face, like this liquid lipstick I have reviewed some days back. And we all know it is a crime to go to sleep with your make up on (haha). Seriously removing makeup is so important for your skin to remain healthy. Otherwise using all the homemade masks or expensive skin care products will not show any results. I am not intending to say more about all it because we always get this advice from one and all. Moreover if I start, I will have to dedicate an entire post on it. So lets just talk about make up removers. Which is your favorite make up remover? What do you do when you run out of your favorite makeup remover? Do you choose any substitutes or diy makeup removers? (more…)
Have you been working out so hard for more than 6 months now but you have not seen any result so far? Have you been skipping that dessert since Christmas but you are still desperately looking at that sagging stomach? Have you been aiming and rushing to lose weight for the summer season but you can’t see the light at the end of the tunnel?
Amy Kitchingman, official presenter for Physique TV’s On The Go, former Miss Great Britain and the new media influencer for the humongous brand Victoria’s Secret sports collection enumerates 4 of the most common weight loss myths that can deceive you, with or without April Fool’s Day.
MYTH #1: THE GREEN LIGHT IS ON FOR ALL GREEN TEA
FACT: Green tea is definitely one of nature’s best gifts to mankind as it fights toxins, improves mental alertness and helps aid weight loss, but this doesn’t mean that all green tea products that are on the market are good for you.
I’ve seen green tea candy with 50 calories per candy, green tea chocolate with more than 100 calories, green tea chips with more than 200 calories per pack and the worst of them all – the green tea shake that has more than 500 calories per cup as much as a burger with fries!
Green tea is amazing but only in its purest form. The next time you see ‘green tea’ products, Read the back of the label. If theres anything in there that you cant pronounce,(and this rule goes for pretty much everything) and doesn’t sound like it comes straight from the green tea plant then put it down.
MYTH #2: DIET FOODS WILL MAKE YOU THIN
FACT: Although diet food may contain less calories, you have to think about all the nasties ( E numbers and chemicals we cant even pronounce) that have to go inside them to make them taste like the original version. Personally, I keep away from diet food and prefer to eat plenty of the right food,organic foods, in their natural state. Not only is this going to help me maintain my diet long term instead of binging on diet foods, that really aren’t going to satisfy my bodies nutritional needs. But natural foods are going to help my hair, teeth and skin look great too, as well as my waistline.
MYTH #3: LESS FOOD, LESS MISTAKE
FACT: This is probably the worst myth that anyone can believe and sadly there are still many people who believes it. Starving or skipping meals is the greatest mistake that you can do to your body. Our body is like a machine and it needs regular fuel to be able to work. Instead of creating a habit that may lead to disorders such as anorexia, try to develop a healthy eating routine in small portions such as 3 light meals and 2 snacks a day composed of fruits and nuts.
If you’re combining your diet with a work out you also need to be able to fuel that workout affectively. So feed your body!
MYTH #4: FITNESS IS A SPRINT, NOT A MARATHON
FACT: When people say they are starting a diet, I always ask their near term goals, which are usually to loose weight. And then the long term goals which are usually to keep the weight they have lost off. But to enable this to happen, you need to adapt to a healthy lifestyle. Not just a quick fix of the latest trending diet. These fads are never going to leave you with the long term results you want.
Adapting to an overall healthy lifestyle will help you achieve what it is you want, and help you maintain it. I lost a substantial amount of weight over 4 months but those changes that I made back then to enable me to loose the weight in the first place I still practise now.
Achieving your fitness goals is not a race, its about how you can make them benefit you the longest.
