Take Me For A Test Drive Honey

Breath of Fresh Air and Eau Roma Water

2011-12-17T06:43:00.000+02:00

I have tested three Lush toners and some steamers, but the ones with a stable place in my cabinet are Breath of Fresh Air and Eau Roma Water.

The number one for me is Eau Roma Water. According to Lush it is actually meant for "dry, sensitive or mature skin" and my skin is all that. This toner never irritates my skin. There's rose and lavender - I've heard that lavender is not ok for all of us sensitive girls, but if that's not your problem, then ERW is worth testing.

Breath of Fresh Air is lovely during the summer. I love the ingredients: sea water, seaweed, aloe.. I can just smell the ocean when I spray this all over my face. I use this together with Eau Roma Water, because Breath of Fresh Air irritates my skin a bit, if I use only it for several days.

I have also tested Tea Tree Water even though it's meant for oily skin. Nice scent and no irritations, although I just used it couple of times. My Lush loving male friend likes to use it and he's got oily skin.

I use these toners in the morning and it always feels luxurious - lovely scents in soft mist.. Sometimes I spray a little over makeup and then during the day a little spritz freshens in a second. It's a good idea to keep another bottle by your desktop and whenever you need a break, then spray some roses and lavenders, relax and enjoy (my employer should buy me this stuff, it improves my job quality ;)).

Additional benefit of buying any of these toners is that you'll get that bottle and you can reuse it. Just fill it with something else; how about sea salt water, your own scent mix, etc? If you like Lush steamers, you can pour the water into a toner bottle and reuse that too (just for a few days I think and let the water cool first). As a last tip I suggest that you place the bottle in the fridge during those super hot summer days.. remember them? Summer will come, we just need to enjoy winter first. Yes, enjoy! Just remember; don't spray toner on your face and run into freezing air while still all wet..

Heidi Klum did it again

2011-10-30T20:39:00.002+02:00

Heidi Klum did it again. Every year she's got the best Halloween costume. For those costumes, all goblins and witches will salute you, Heidi!

Breath Of God

2011-10-04T18:14:00.005+03:00

Breath of God - what a masterpiece. I have a bottle from Be Never Too Busy To Be Beautiful days. This bottle is no longer available. Luckily the scent came back from Lush as part of the Gorilla perfumes. It's now sold in a simple, black package instead of this eccentric bottle.

The most important issue is that it is available. The package is not important, the scent is.

I read reviews about Breath of God. I got interested. Even the name was so.. big and strange. I mean, Breath of God? It's nothing like the usual PinkStars-BlingSexy-Some CelebWow names. I read more descriptions. It sounded like the perfect scent. But you know how sometimes you think you'll like something and IRL your nose says no thanks and disagrees? I ordered the sample first. I tested with excitement - would I love or hate it or would it be just bland?

It was so good that tears came to my eyes and dear readers, I'm telling you the truth. I smelled smoke and forests. I was suddenly at the riverside close to my birthplace where the winds blow over the water bringing notes of forests and smoke and something wild. First images settled on my skin and mind. The scent lured me and stayed with me. Later the Yang turned into Yin and I could smell flowers, but not those ordinary big blossoming ones, but something different. Wild flowers, flowers deep in the forests.

It's perfect, original and in balance.

You know a good scent when it has all the phases and not just one slap in your nose. You know it's good when it stays and lingers and the last phase holds on. You know you love it when you get your imagination running wild and you get an genuine aesthetic experience instead of feeling just fashionable or sexy.

"Wearing it, I feel a sense of wonder that so late in the perfume game there still can be such profound invention." - Perfumes The A to Z Guide by Luca Turin and Tania Sanchez. Check out my review of their book.

When you read other reviews of Breath of God you notice words like weird, surprising, original, different, masculine and feminine. This scent might scare the pants off you if you're not ready for it. But I recommend: be brave, test it. There's no other perfume like it.

While B Never Too Busy To Be Beautiful was gone and all its perfumes unavailable, I was afraid to use this. I planned on holding on to every drop of it as long as I could and then keep the bottle. You know how good scent lingers on the empty bottle? I was so happy when Gorilla Perfumes marched in Lush stores, because then I could open my perfume cabinet and experience the Breath of God again.

There's neroli, lemon, melon, jasmine, rose, vetivert, sandalwood, cedarwood, amber and musk in Breath of God. They sound like ordinary ingredients. But the composition is not. I have sniffed the solid one in Lush shop and it was ok too. I haven't tested those separated parts Inhale and Exhale yet. I wonder if I'll ever test them - why, when there already is the one and only Breath of God.

Smith’s Mocha Rose Lip Balm

2011-10-03T19:06:00.001+03:00

Vanilla, chocolate and coffee = perfect combination. Or purrrfect, as Mr Cat would put it.

I was happy with Smith's Minted Rose Lip Balm, but I just had to get this one too. Minted Rose scent is fresh and minty. Mocha Rose is sweet, but not too sweet. There's that note of good coffee and vanilla.. absolutely gorgeous.

I have both in my cabinet and I never take them with me. I only apply these in the morning and in the evening. That's because I use my finger for applying and at home I can do it right after washing my hands. I just know that if I had these babies with me during the day, I would sink my (bacteria-covered) finger into the jar. The scents are so yummy. You cannot resist them.

There are other Rosebuds in the garden of Smith's too. How about the classic Rosebud? Some brambleberry or strawberry? Menthol and eucalyptus? I want to have them all.

I feel so good every time I apply this. No matter how awful the weather or how stressful the day, applying some Rosebud on my lips is a moment of real luxury and happiness.

Best Anti-ageing products according to Good Housekeeping

2011-10-02T07:00:00.000+03:00

I found an article of Good Housekeeping's first annual anti-aging awards and there is one product I'm testing right now. I'm testing really hard.. it's not really working, at least not yet, but I'm not giving up until I've used at least one tube.

Good Housekeeping test seems to be quite extensive compared to some usual mag surveys ("let's ask readers and then get some ads from companies plus add some Editors choices too"). Good Housekeeping Research Institute tested 90 products on 820 volunteers, conducted more than 3,000 lab tests, and tallied 1,800+ questionnaires to find the 26 best anti-aging beauty products.

There is something for all among the chosen products. They are not all expensive either. The one I'm testing is Boots No7 Protect & Perfect Intense Beauty Serum. Virve from Ostolakossa blog recommended that one in her blog and explained how it's loved by many happy customers - it's a real bestseller. It should "reveal younger-looking skin in just 4 weeks" and damn it, my skin is rebelling against it.. I let you know more about it when the tube is empty :)

Back to that Good Housekeeping article; I would like to test these too:

Vichy LiftActiv Retinol HA Night
Olay Body Quench Plus Age Defying Body Lotion
Dior Capture Totale Multi-Perfection Hand Repair Creme SPF (I love spending money on hand creams)
Boots No7 Advanced Renewal Anti-ageing Glycolic Peel Kit or Clarins Bright Plus HP Brightening Peel (peel stuff sounds a bit scary, but I'll be brave. Woman must be brave when facing dangerous enemies like wrinkles)
Peter Thomas Roth Firmx Growth Factor Extreme Neuropeptide Serum (neuropeptide. Sounds scientific so it must work ;))
Banana Boat Ultra Defense SPF 50 Lotion (I think I have a tester. Now I only need to find it and check if it's too old)

Have you tested any of these yet?

I must state that in my opinion the most important anti-aging weapons are healthy food, some vitamins and minerals (like vitamin D3), exercise that you enjoy doing, sleeping well & enough, fresh air & nature, love and happiness.

I sincerely believe all those things will brighten any ageing face and body. I'm using military language when writing about aging, but hey, aging is not all bad. You get smarter and wiser when you get older. You learn. You have a better self-esteem. You know that one lame jacket will not ruin the rest of your life and that potential boyfriend's shoes are not the only issue you should check (Honey's traumatic teenage memories :))

A Phytoprogenium Shampoo, a Phytobaume Conditioner and a Phyto 7 Hydrating Cream

2011-10-01T14:00:00.000+03:00

I tested Phyto's products by using couple of travel size packages. The kit included shampoo (biggest bottle), conditioner (small tube) and a hydrating cream (tiny tube, not in the picture).

I usually like travel sizes and test packages. But these were all wrong sizes! Shampoo lasted forever - I don't use much shampoo. Conditioner tube was so small. It wasn't enough for my long locks. All wrong.. I need lots of conditioner and just a little bit of shampoo.

These Phytos promise "to balance and stimulate the scalp in order to help healthy hair grow". Nice. I would like a healthy scalp with fast-growing hair. IRL my scalp is very sensitive and my hair grows soooooo slow. Then more promises: "plant extracts of mallow, olive leaf, almond milk, help hydrate, detangle and protect without weighing hair down". Sounds good. Part of cosmetic experience is getting the placebo effect from reading the clever marketing text :)

Well, here comes my verdict:

Shampoo was mild. Nothing really special
I liked the scent
Conditioner didn't condition enough, my mane would have wanted something more nourishing and detangling. But perhaps this was due to the small amount of the conditioner. And also it's not supposed to "weigh your hair down" which usually means that it's more likely to be a light conditioner instead of a heavier one. This is meant for normal and fine hair. Fine hair is difficult, because too much nourishment will make it limp and tired.
Cream. The tube was so tiny. It was like Bratz doll's hair gel tube. "Hydrating cream" sounds so great, I felt like I was moisturizing my hair when applying it. The cream is a daily leave-in treatment for fine and medium-textured hair. I liked the results; not too heavy or dirty looking hair, nor tangled and too bouncy either. Just perfect!

I liked the Hydrating Cream a lot so I might purchase it again. There's none of these evil ingredients in it: sulfates, synthetic fragrances, petrochemicals, phthalates. As a perfume lover I think I have overdosed my body with phthalates so it's nice to have something that's so pure.

What do you think about the new layout? Updated 2.10.2011

2011-09-29T17:59:00.002+03:00

I was getting bored with the old layout. It was a bit old-fashioned and who ever wants to be outdated? I have been considering changing blogger to some other system, which would give me more freedom with the layout and more possibilities to code by myself etc..

Wake up, Honey! If you don't have time to post as often as you wish, then.. forget that idea at least for now :)

So I looked at some options blogger offers and found this. Now you can choose the layout! Just click those links under the title on the top and you'll get different views. ~~You can still search - there's that empty field on the top right.~~ That search doesn't search - sometimes you might get some results, but it's not ok. For example I have posted about Thalgo. When you search for it you'll get no results :( I don't know yet how to fix it. I would also like to add some additional information to the layout, for example labels. They are visible in some views, but not all of them are listed. Annoying!

So please use Google for searching my blog site, if there something you're looking for.

That little pic there is from weheartit.com (I love that site)

The Joy of Jelly, Sweetie Pie and Whoosh

2011-09-17T10:51:00.000+03:00

Here comes Honey's amazing adventures in the Wobbly Blob Land :) I had tried Lush jellies before, but they were those Christmas and Halloween specials. So I purchased 2 of the jelly products; Sweetie Pie and Whoosh. Then in my next order I got samples of the them all, including Joy of Jelly. I do love samples and if you've already tested one, you can make your friends happy by giving them a little sample present :)

The Joy of Jelly is my fav. It's on the discontinued list now, so I guess I belong to a minority and the others are more popular. Sigh.

Shower jellies divide Lush users. It seems that you either love them or hate them. They are slimey little .. blobs, that easily slip from your hands and end up in the sewer without touching your skin. There are several ways you can use them:

freeze them. Then use them like lovely little ice cubes (you might freeze the whole blob or tear it into little blobs.
put a small blob on loofah (my beau does it like this)
take a piece, rub your hands together, and then go over your body
take a small blob and hold it in your hands, smoothing over your skin (this is the most difficult method, I kinda like it. Battle of the blob)

I have washed my hair with piece of jelly too and I have crushed some on my bathtub and both experiments were successful :)

Jellies are really jellies; wobbly blobs with great colours and scent. Usually you can check the these blobs in Lush shops if you're too scared to test one without first witnessing its behaviour IRL.

Whoosh is for those moments that you need something refreshing. It's got a beautiful blue colour and it will awaken you in a second. Need energy? Feel tired? Then it's time for some Whoosh therapy.

Sweetie Pie is dark purple jelly with cassis and cherries. There's also some glitter, but don't worry, this one doesn't turn you into a disco ball. At least I haven't really noticed any huge glittering on my skin afterwards. It's a bit like Ultimate Shine shampoo, no huge glitter residue after usage, which is a good thing.

The orange one on the right is one of last year's Halloween products, Calacas jelly. My beau loved it.

Oh, The Joy of Jelly. I loved its scent. It's got lilac and pink stripes, the scent is full of jasmin, ylang and musk. Some say it's a granny scent, but hey, I love old perfumes and I love The Joy of Jelly's scent. It's a scent made for a woman, deep and sensual. I should get some before it's gone :(

The absolutely best part of jellies is the fact that they will not dry your skin. There's seaweed and they just babywash your skin and leave it soft and suberb. So if soaps are too harsh for you, check out the jellies.

Heavanilli & Strawberry Feels Forever Massage Bars

2011-09-14T09:58:00.000+03:00

Hurry up if you like sweet scents! Both of these Lush massage bars are going to be discontinued. For me they were way too sweet.

I used Heavanilli despite its sweetness. There's vanilla ;) with some jasmine and tonka. They say men love vanilla scent so you might want to try this as your secret weapon. I love the way the bar is designed - it's pretty. The pink/red part didn't make a mess (as with some chocolate bars happens). I do like vanilla myself, but the overall scent was just so sugary.

Strawberry Feels Forever was too much for me. First of all, strawberries are beautiful, but I didn't like the look of this bar. It reminded me of Freddy Krueger's face :D Maybe Lush will bring this bar's evil Halloween twin version back.. that would be great. Here's my free idea: call it Freddy and add some wicked scent in addition to all that sweetness.

Too much for me meant that I gave this one away. It's very sweet in an ice-creamy-flowery way.

These 2 bars will be discontinued in UK but I guess you can stack them up from the British and local European shops, in case you fall in love with them.

Temporary Lip Tattoos?

2011-09-10T20:04:00.005+03:00

I was browsing Asos.com. Just display shopping ..isn't that equal to window shopping ;) I'm trying to control my shopping habits. Then I found the Violent Lips Temporary Lip Tattoos. I want to buy one. Or two. Just for the sake of testing :)

I mean, the idea sounds bad. How on earth can those lip tattoos work? Does someone use Lip Tattoos? Well, according to Youtube the answer is yes:

And it seems that these tattoos have been around for a while. I'm really tempted to try one, even though I'm pretty sure I cannot go to work with those pink lips :D Maybe I could, if I worked in a circus.. and what about kissing? Would your pink or striped lips be transferred on your partner's lips? So it's no longer lipstick on the collar, it's pink dots on the lips. I guess kissing is out of the picture with these, which makes ordinary lipstick so much more appealing, doesn't it?

Guerlain Secret De Pureté Biphase Eye And Lip Makeup Remover

2011-09-09T17:28:00.000+03:00

It's time to present my current eye makeup remover by Guerlain. This product promises to remove also waterproof makeup with a gentle touch.

First you need to shake the bottle well, so that the layers mix. After that just take a moist cotton pad, pour some Guerlain magic into it and wipe your eyes. The stuff is very oily - the texture feels nice on my dry lids. Although I prefer some rinsing with water afterwards.

This is for both eyes and lips. There's some clever marketing going on - I mean I have always used eye makeup remover for my lips too :)

The text on the bottle says "smooths & soothes", well, I don't know about that.. if I get some of this inside my eyelids, it hurts. But that happens with all cleansers.

The bottle is pretty too. Turquoise-blue liquid inside with golden text on the bottle plus a gold top. Even if your eyes feel a bit oily afterwards, you can just rest them on this bottle on your shelf ;) I think you could do the same with a cheaper product, but in case you want some extra, get this one. It's pretty and you can easily clean every trace of makeup with it. While cleaning, you can imagine how little "crystal lotus flowers" are soothing your sore but luxuriously pampered eyes :)

The Comforter and Blue Skies and Fluffy White Clouds

2011-09-04T19:43:00.000+03:00

These two cute bubble bars are both great in their own way. My fav is the Blue Skies and Fluffy White Clouds, although there are days when I need The Comforter.

The Comforter is sweet and more feminine. It's berrymerry; full of blackcurrant. I love eating fresh blackcurrants in the garden and bathing with The Comforter has similar magic in it. The water is purple-reddish underneath huge bubbles and the scent lingers in the air, comforting you.

Sometimes The Comforter is too sweet for me. I yearn for something totally different. That's why I always have Blue Skies and Fluffy White Clouds in my Lush stash.

The water in the tab will be blue, but you cannot see it without some splashing.. The scent is absolutely lovely; patchouli and frankincense.

When I lull in my bathtub I hear Orb's lyrics in Little Fluffy Clouds:

Interviewer: "What were the skies like when you were young?"

Jones: "They went on forever – They - When I w- We lived in Arizona, and the skies always had little fluffy clouds in 'em, and, uh... they were long... and clear and... there were lots of stars at night. And, uh, when it would rain, it would all turn - it- They were beautiful, the most beautiful skies as a matter of fact. Um, the sunsets were purple and red and yellow and on fire, and the clouds would catch the colours everywhere. That's uh, neat 'cause I used to look at them all the time, when I was little. You don't see that. You might still see them in the desert."

Afterwards I emerge from my bathroom happy and reborn :)

Both Comforter and BSAFWC are big bars, so you'll get several baths from one piece. Unless you want to have bubbles up to your bathroom ceiling.

Cosmic Dreamcatcher

2011-09-03T09:15:00.000+03:00

It has been a long time since I got and was able to use my Cosmic Dreamcatcher, so I guess it's time to write some words about it. Yes, I wrote "was able to use it", because when it arrived, the scent almost knocked me out. So strong and annoying..!

I placed it in a drawer and left it there. R.I.P. little massage bar I thought, I'll throw you away one day. I just couldn't stand the scent - maybe my Catcher was a very fresh piece with extra heavy scent.

I let it be there, hidden, for weeks.. for a month.. The scent was powerful everytime I opened the drawer. Then one evening I took it and tested it.

I fell asleep immediately after applying the Cosmic Dreamcatcher. Then next evening I used it again. And slept well. And suddenly I realized that the strange Lush magic had happened again; first you dislike something, then you fall in love with it. I kept using the bar until it vanished.

Now I'm thinking about ordering some more, because there will be new Lush products coming soon (and Halloween & Christmas products, too). I'm afraid they might let this herbal baby go, because it's a retro product and I suspect the scent is too much for some customers.

The bar itself is very moisturizing and the scent is ..herbal. There's vetivert, frankincense, sage and thyme (my nose was thinking about paprika and peppers first) . Hippy, strong, herbal. Herbal slap in your face, which makes you sleep sleep sleep. If you're brave enough, I recommend that you test this.

And the bride of this year is... Kate Moss

2011-07-03T11:10:00.002+03:00

If you ask me, Kate Moss wins the title of the most stylish bride of the year 2011. She manages that relaxed bohemian style even in her wedding day. Lovely dress by Galliano and the groom's suit is fine too.

I also love those bridesmaids and especially how their hair is free with simple flower wreaths.

(picture from iltalehti.com)

Guerlain's Super Aqua-Day Cooling Facial Stick

2011-06-23T18:07:00.008+03:00

It's been a while since I posted so let's play it cool :) I got to know this super skin stick by Guerlain last summer and now it's time to list its pros and cons.

Pros

- it really does cool you skin. You'll feel fresh and it's great during hot season

- it glides over your skin, feels almost like air, so very light and melts super easily

- sticks are easy to carry around. Just throw this into your bag. Since this is not in a liquid form, you can also carry it on planes (+ you'll need the extra moisture there)

- pretty baby blue package with that grand Guerlain logo

Cons

- my facial skin gets irritated after continuous usage. But my neck and decollete area love this

- the scent makes me think of some mosquito repellent. It's not that bad, but there's something similar

- I'm not sure whether a stick stays clean enough, if you consider bacteria (as a sensitive girl I'm always thinking about that issue). After all, you apply it straight from the stick and if there are some germs on your skin, they'll be transferred back into the stick.. Where they can multiply.. but this is better than sinking your fingers into a jar and then to you face and back to the jar, you know. Just make sure you'll get a new stick if you cannot use it fast enough (I wouldn't use the same stick after summer for example)

- Guerlain is not the cheapest brand available so you need to pay a bit more if you want this blue wonder stick

I'm more into Guerlain makeup than skincare, but this moisturizing & cooling stick has found a place in my cabinet too. After all it's nice to have a special "decollete product".

Recently I've found some other stick products and new ways of using sticks, so there will me more Honey's amazing stick stories in the future.

Alkamaar

2011-04-15T07:10:00.006+03:00

Alkamaar soap has got honeysuckle, amaranth, vetivert and jasmine. Sounds good? I thought so too. Lush site describes its "intoxicating midnight aroma" and calls it the most luxurious soap they've ever created.

I had my hopes high when I finally got my retro Alkamaar. And it was so disappointing!

The soap looks very ordinary in its nude colour and basic shape. That's no problem, if the scent is great. But mine didn't really have a scent. It was very, very mild and barely there. I either got a weak piece or all the Alkamaars are really like this.

Big disappointment and I was actually happy when I could throw it away. Of course I used it, it was ok, but nothing superior to other Lush soaps. Luckily this wasn't the only soap in my package ;)

Charlotte Island

2011-03-07T15:31:00.003+02:00

I tested Charlotte Island last summer, but never reviewed it. Spring is on and summer is getting closer, so it's time to travel to Charlotte Island again. Although I have lost my ticket..

Pros:

You don't have to sunbathe - this is a healthier and safer way to get some tan
The scent is lovely. It's fruity and nom nom
You can wash it off in the evening. Or in the morning :) You don't have to fear that you'll end up looking like a human orange or tanorexic if it doesn't suit you

Cons:

It made me look dirty. Seriously I looked like someone who has been living in a forest for a decade. My skin is so dry that it just drank the chocolate-looking fluid in a nanosecond and I wasn't able to apply it fast enough

I gave my bottle away so I quess I'll stay pale and interesting, but you might want to try this product. I think the shade is great for most of the women and the scent is adorable.

Jackie Oates Colour Supplement

2011-03-06T14:46:00.003+02:00

Thanks Lush for creating the Jackie Oates version for us pale girls & improving the safety of the British web shop:

I have the Light Yellow Colour Supplement as you might remember. It was too dark for me so I had to mix it with some moisturizer. But then, Jackie Oates appeared. I ordered it asap from the British web shop:

It is perfect for me. It's light enough, it doesn't irritate and I don't have to mix and blend it to make it ok for my skin tone.

Just look at these messy jars... but I'll get into that later.

It gives you very light coverage - that means you may have to use some concealer if your skin is behaving badly. Or just dab some more over your problem areas. Another issue is the scent.. I think about potatoes every time I use this. It's not overpowering though. Hey, if everything else is perfect, I don't really mind :)

What's a problem for me is the jar. I mean it's not so hygienic. You need to use some tool to get the stuff out of it. I don't recommend using your fingers, that way you just insert bacteria and that's not a good idea. Jars are also messy compared to tubes etc. When you need to travel, the content will shake and you'll end up with messy looking jars just like me.

I do like the shade - it's pale enough - and the fact that my skin tolerates it, but I wish the package was different. It's like 99% perfect which is kinda good.

My apologies

2011-03-06T12:26:00.029+02:00

I have been away for so long. Why? Perhaps I..

..got stuck in an interesting conversation. Or maybe the wine was too good...

..bought a house in the tropics and spent my days like a lizard, being lazy..

..took a really long bath..

..was being creative with artsy things and forgot everything..

..went swimming and ended up reading an interesting book..

..gave birth to a mermaid baby..

..started hoarding in a chic way..

..bought a horse..

..tried desperately to learn baking..

..was busy decorating..

..went on a holiday with my beau..

..started to test food and fur instead of cosmetics and perfume..

..was sick..

..was lost in fashion..

..was in awe of all the beauty around me..

..was practising my Urdhva Dhanurasana..

..went hunting for the perfect skirt..

..it was my evil twin!

Ok, now it's time to stop playing around. I'm sorry I've been away for so long. I actually had some sorrows in my personal life and I needed a break. Although I missed this blog all the way and felt bad of not posting anything. My sincere apologies.

Most of the pics are from weheartit.com (I love it, do you?) and some I found while googleing.

6th and 7th day of the 6 Days Beauty Mask

2010-12-20T19:17:00.005+02:00

Six days are over and so is my experiment of 6 Days Beauty Masks. The result? I don' think I'll buy this package again.

The mask number 6 was quite ok; there was camellia sinensis leaf extract and calendula. The scent was nice and my skin felt ok. Nothing superior, but ok.

And on the 7th day I rested. My skin felt dryer, especially on the sensitive areas. I admit that the cold and windy weather might have had some affect too. But still, I feel that I rather buy some masks that I really like than use several different ones in a row, even though I don't prefer all of them.

I have to reveal now that I have the "Alice in the Wonderland All-in-One Special 15-Piece Set" mask package waiting for me in my cabinet.. 15 different My Beauty Diary masks. But I need to take a mask vacation now and let my skin rest awhile.

6 Days Beauty Masks - Day 5

2010-12-16T19:33:00.004+02:00

2 more masks to go and now it feels like the Day 5 is the best mask day ever :)

Day 5 promises to slim my face. There's beta-glucan, hydrolyed silk and arnica montana flower extract. The scent is gooood and even though I admit it might just be the placebo effect, I feel like my cheeks have been shaped and my face detoxified. Puffiness is gone for good.

This would be great on its own, after some salty food and partying. My skin just loved it.

Baby Foot is available in Finland in Life shops

2010-12-15T18:59:00.004+02:00

Remember when I tested the Baby Foot Easy Pack Deep Skin Foot Exfoliation? I just read from the latest Kauneus ja terveys mag that it's now available in Life shops in Finland. So go and get your baby feet for yourself or as Christmas presents for someone with not-so-baby-feet ;)

6 Days Beauty Masks - days 3 and 4

2010-12-15T18:29:00.002+02:00

I continued my experiment with the 6 Days Beauty Masks. Lucky me, I was satisfied with the day 3 and 4 masks :)

Day 3 was "3D firming and lifting" - there was protein extract, rhizobian gum and sodium ascorbyl phospate. All these ingredients should make your skin renew itself, with improved elasticity and firmness. Well, I just adored the scent and my skin liked the day 3 with 3D too!

Then on the fourth day it was time for "four seasons brightening". I had already a bit annoyed skin due to some holiday lunch and delicacies, but this mask was great. It soothed the redness and my skin looked rested and nice.

6 Days Beauty Masks - day 1 and 2

2010-12-13T18:43:00.003+02:00

I purchased "6 Days Beauty Masks" package, because I was curious. Could this six day regimen work for me? The final verdict will come after the mask number 6.

The idea is that you use all the masks in 6 days and get "superior cleansing and hydration, as well as a slimming effect". The masks are very moist and soft. You can actually attach the mask to your ears and there's an extra part that goes under your chin. I guess that will take care of the slimming and lifting ;) At least you'll look like you're recovering from some serious plastic surgery.. And please remember to warn your male friends and partners before appearing in front of them wearing this kind of a mask.

The mask number 1 is for "initial cleaning". There's cucumber, willow bark and papain. The scent was nice and even though I felt a slight tingling on my cheeks, it passed and my skin looked nice afterwards.

The mask number 2 is "double hydrating". Sounds good, right? There's xylitol and salvia officinalis. I don't think salvia is good for me. I hated the scent and my face itched. After removing the mask there was some redness on my cheeks and I decided to wash my face and not massage the excess into my skin.

In coming days I'll be experiencing something like this:

Day 3: Third Dimension Firming & Lifting
Day 4: Four Seasons Brightening with Bird's Nest
Day 5: Five Stars Slimming
Day 6: Six Senses Soothing & Calming

I hope they are better than the number 2, otherwise I'll end up with a red and irritated skin. At least the last one should be soothing and calming.

I read about this system from Jossu's blog and bought my masks from Yesstyle.com.

Vanha Markki Soaps

2010-12-10T12:56:00.007+02:00

I bought some Vanha Markki soaps from Stockmann:

They are pretty, but that's about it. I'm not that satisfied with the scents. I gave some of them as presents (after some serious sniffing). I kept Aurinkotanssi, Omena and Merivesi for myself and for my beau.

Merivesi (=sea soap) annoyed me - it was too sharp and overpowering, just like some strong men's aftershave. And that was something I thought I would like a lot. Well, I was wrong.

Omena (= apple soap) was for my beau. He likes apple scents and I wanted something he would love. It was ok.

Aurinkotanssi (= sun dance) was not so good. In fact it was horrible, if you ask my nose. I disliked it, my beau used it (so probably it's not that awful after all) but as soon as it got into a small piece, I threw it into the trash bin. Good riddance I though. Let's get some good old Lush instead..

I have to say that these are very pretty even though I don't prefer the scents:

Please tell me if there's a good scent that you love among this brand? I think I gave the best as presents; the Midsummer Rose and the Chocolate one.

Eating pizza in a rose garden - 13 Soap Unlucky for Dirt

2010-12-09T12:49:00.003+02:00

Antibacterial has never been this natural and pretty. Usually when you hear the word "antibacterial" you immediately think how the germs are developing resistance because we humans overuse antibacterial products. But hear me out, the "chemical" in this soap is oregano.

Yes, it's the herb you sprinkle over your pizza. Oregano is a cleansing herb. Here it's mixed with rose and honey. The scent is weird. My first reaction was not very positive. It is just like sitting in a rose garden with a huge pizza. But as with many other strange Lush scents, I grew into liking this.

I keep buying this soap again and again. I love the scent, I love the idea of a herbal soap that fights even MRSA and in addition to that I love the way it looks. It's pretty, red, with some carvings.

I salute you, 13 Soap, the Super Wondersoap of them all, for keeping us safe from the evil bacteria.

Please do not mind my nail polish in that pic. Just admire the soap ;)

Jelly Belly Bath Time Recipe Set

2010-12-07T05:42:00.002+02:00

I love Jelly Beans. Well, what do you say when you see this kind of a Jelly Belly bath set? You drool and then you click Add to bag :) That's what I did when I saw this package in Asos.com:

Cute overload:

It's a big box of Jelly Belly bath products with recipes (although the pots and bottles are quite small, 70 g and 50 ml):

You can mix and match the scents..

There are 3 pots of bath crystals:

Plus 3 bottles of bubble crème and 3 bottles of bath & shower gel:

For example Blueberry scent:

You can mix or use them one by one. You might be tempted to eat Jelly Belly beans at the same time.. the scents are as yummy as they sound. And the mixes.. mudpie, chocolate covered cherries, ... The only con is that these are not very moisturizing. The ingredient list is not for those who want to avoid unnecessary chemicals:

In spite of that I loved this set. I'll use these with some oils and salts, when I need to add a sweet scent. This is a cute Christmas present for someone, maybe with a package of edible Jelly Belly candies.

I also loved loved loved the little whisk. I decided to use it in my kitchen instead of the bathroom - I mix mini smoothies with it. It's so tiny and perfect for that.

Messy Matryoshka

2010-11-21T07:29:00.002+02:00

Matryoshka is a cute Christmas present from Lush. Even though I dislike So White scent, I wanted to have this little doll. The package is so clever; there are 2 soaps and bath ballistics all in this doll shape, with a little scarf.

My Matryoshka was a messy one, it had melted during its travel to me. The "how to use" paper was oozing with gooey stuff.

The doll was pretty:

The best part of this soap&bath doll is the Cinders bath ballistic - I just love it. But there's only one Cinders (and it's quite small) and all the other parts are So White scented. Of course you'll get that pretty little scarf, which in your hands is a perfect little hankerchief. I have lost mine.. it's somewhere waiting for a good washing, but I think it was made from recycled items.

I first took the red soap and dear readers, it was not pretty at all.. it looked like I had butchered something in my sink. The water was red and the shape of the soap was so awkward I had to cut the head off!

The green soap looks more like an Egyptian mummy or a sacrophagus, since there are no engravings :D

If you want to give this doll as a present, I suggest that you go to a Lush shop and select one that's in good shape.

If you love So White then you'll love this too. So White scent is full of fresh apples and it's loved by many.

There's a dog in the package!

2010-11-17T14:24:00.006+02:00

I got a big package from Lush and I feel like it's Christmas already :)

Mr Cat was also very interested in.. But what was there? A smelly dog called Harvey!

Among Christmas products I got some golden oldies retro Christmas stuff like Christmas Carol:

One of the pretties ballistics, Lil'l Lush Pud:

And something to warm me during the winter, Christmas Kisses:

And some more, but I have to mention this one - Hollywood Bubble Bar. I heard that Lush will discontinue it and I just had to get some. Hollywood has the same sensual scent as Fever massage bar, which was also discontinued :( I will miss these products. Luckily Fever can be found from the Finnish web shop still.

I'm having a ball - testing all the new products and enjoying the familiar ones. I'll try to review as much as I can, too.

Here's that evil little Mr Cat trying to get something for himself.. he actually tried to eat it. So be careful out there, if you have a cat.

Calavera & Calacas

2010-11-01T16:04:00.007+02:00

I love Halloween time, but this year my Lush-Halloween was a bit of a disappointment. Everything had the same scent and there were only 3 products to choose. First I liked Lady Catrina, but eventually it turned into love & hate relationship. Can you have a relationship with a soap? Of course you can ;) I guess I was a bit jealous of Lady Catrina, since my beau loved it and used it to pieces.

Calavera bath ballistic had a very citrusy scent and it was actually Lady Catrina, that damned shapeshifter, in a ballistic form.

I loved the colours.

Bright yellow and green, it worked well with the scent.

Little frothy foam with some bubbles too.

There were real marigold petals inside the ballistic:

I love marigold petals, so I didn't mind the messiness.

There weren't so many of them:

I also got the orange Calacas lime jelly:

I wondered where the skull was..

...and there it was, upside down in the jar. And what a great looking skull it was. Absolutely brilliant colour too. My skin loves this wobbly monster. That's the great thing about jellies, they are gentle with your skin.

Here's my top3:
1. Calacas. Good looks and bright colours (there were green and yellow too), that's what you need on a dark autumn night
2. Calavera. It's a bath ballistic and love bathing.. Great colour and lovely petals
3. Lady Catrina. I guess even though I didn't fancy her, I need to get more if she reappears next year. If you ask me, she could stay in Tuonela for a couple of years and in the meanwhile, I will stack up as many Magic quadrodecahedrals I can get (they're available in Lush's Retro Christmas products).

Lady Catrina's Lovely Hat

2010-10-26T16:58:00.006+03:00

Halloween is near..... so I'm testing Lush's Halloween products of course. Here's a pic of Lady Catrina soap from Lush page, doesn't it look .. horrendeus but lovely?

I read some reviews about the horrrrrrendous violet foam that you'll get with Lady Catrina. Now let's look at what I got from Lush when I ordered this soap:

Now what is that? Looks like some weird sofa to me? Piece of a puzzle? It's all pink with a dab of violet colour.

I think it must be the flower in Lady Catrina's Hat! I kinda like it. I wasn't expecting anything like this I have to admit. I thought that I would get a piece of dark lilac soap.

The scent was really nice in the beginning, sharp and fruity and absolutely nice. There's agave nectar among other nice ingredients, so your skin will love this too.

Then suddenly I got flasbacks of Something Wicked. I don't understand why this soap made me think about Something Wicked.. I wish I had a piece of it so I could compare the scents, is there really something or is it just my nose playing trick or treat with me :)

I found out that my beau just loves the soap. It's broken in small pieces now, because he's using it all the time. This is an interesting soap indeed, strong & stimulating - just perfect for the Halloween time.

Is she good or what? Jared Look

2010-10-11T15:39:00.002+03:00

Yes, I mean she, not he. That's not Jared:

Beautiful Blogger Award :)

2010-10-06T16:03:00.003+03:00

Thank you Inaria :) Check out her blog while I try to think about my 7 confessions ;)

I miss my Ruby Red Slippers

2010-10-06T15:32:00.012+03:00

This year Lush didn't bring back my favorite Christmas bubble bar, the gorgeous Ruby Red Slippers. Also another fav Christmas product, Jingle Bells, is missing from the list. They have gone to Lush heaven. I miss them both :(

I want to wallow in my memories.. Maybe it will appear in Retro Christmas products? I really hope so. I always used one Ruby Red Slippers on Christmas Eve.

Oh.. my magic bubbles..

But this year there are some interesting new Christmas products. I haven't ordered any yet, because it's Halloween soon and after that it's time to start thinking about Christmas. Check out:

CoalFace

2010-09-22T06:07:00.001+03:00

I have to say that I love samples. Sometimes you get what you asked for and sometimes ..something else. And it might surprise you positively :)

I got this little CoalFace - a hard piece of black stuff. Hmm..

Since I almost always dress in black I adored the way it looked of course:

But I was certain that it would be too harsh for my skin. Little did I know, it was just perfect during summer! I loved CoalFace. I used this alternately with Vichy's Normaderm Purifying Cleansing Gel. And if I have to compare, CoalFace won the battle.

I learned an important lesson this summer - you can use a stronger cleanser if you moisturize afterwards. I liked this so much I visited the Finnish Citykäytävä shop to get it.. only to find out it was sold out. So I placed it on my wish list. Maybe it's too strong for me during winter, but there will be summer next year again.

It was too hard for my hair

2010-09-21T14:48:00.002+03:00

I had a test piece of Lush's Hard Solid Shampoo. I took it with me when traveling (solid products are so nice when traveling by plane) and tried to like it several times.

It washed my hair well and the result was not bad. But the scent.. it was too overpowering. Flower attack! I tried not to inhale while washing my hair and that's not something I want to do while shampooing. I want to like the scent. So finally I dumped this one and took some Jumping Juniper with me instead :)

Hard is meant for areas with hard water. Or maybe I should say "was" since Hard is nowhere to be found in the British or the Finnish web shop. I have to say that I don't miss Hard at all.

DHC Concentrated Eye Cream, Extra Nighttime Moisture, Mild Lotion, Deep Cleansing Oil, Coenzyme Cream

2010-09-19T10:33:00.005+03:00

I did some testing with DHC samples. DHC is a Japanese skincare company.

Deep Cleansing Oil felt wonderful. I wished I had more samples, it was so good. It's very thick oil that takes off all your makeup and daily dirt. I can easily understand why this product is DHC's "most popular product worldwide". It's easy to rinse and there's olive oil and vitamin E in it. Good stuff!

Coenzyme Cream was nice and quite ok, but not superior compared to Eucerin's Q10 Active Anti-Wrinkle Cream. I think I'll stick with Eucerin with this one ..and some nutricosmetics - I take Q10 internally. For the moment, my choice is Doctor's Best High Absorption CoQ10,with Bioperine, 100 mg, 120 Veggie Caps from iHerb.com.

I really hate that spamming of iHerb codes, but I decided to add mine in this blog too. Just in case IF you really feel that some of my iHerb recommendations were useful and you've never purchased from them before. In that case I thank you for using my code. It's KOR838 - you'll earn 5 dollars and I'll get a small reward too. iHerb has got some great products and I will post about them in the future.

Mild Lotion was interesting. I was waiting for a regular toner, but it was oily! There's "calming cucumber and soothing glycerin" and surely it's ok for all skin types, even dry ones. It's not a toner in my opinion. It's more like a serum, an oily serum.

DHC Concentrated Eye Cream and Extra Nighttime Moisture were problematic. Especially the Eye Cream. I woke up with swollen eyes, but I thought that maybe I overdosed it. I applied it again in the morning and this time I applied it to my whole face. Mistake.. I got an itchy, red face within seconds. I had to wash my face and it was red for a long time. There's something in this eye cream that doesn't get along with my skin. Ingredient list looks like this:

water/aqua/eau, butylene glycol, caprylic/capric triglyceride, olea europaea (olive) fruit oil, stearic acid, hydrogenated palm oil, squalane, glycerin, pentylene glycol, polysorbate 60, leuconostoc/radish root ferment filtrate, cetyl alcohol, sorbitan stearate, alcohol, phenoxyethanol, potassium hydroxide, rosmarinus officinalis (rosemary) leaf extract, carbomer, magnesium aluminum silicate, dipotassium glycyrrhizate, tocopherol, biosaccharide gum-1, aesculus hippocastanum (horse chestnut) seed extract, sodium hyaluronate, sasa veitchii leaf extract, panax ginseng root extract, cucumis sativus (cucumber) fruit extract, royal jelly extract, citric acid

I'm not sure what was it or was it some combination, but this was a horrible experience. I really liked that cleansing oil and mild lotion "toner", but the eye cream made me a bit worried.

I did some changes in layout

2010-09-19T10:31:00.002+03:00

I hope it's ok for you, dear readers. Althouhg I'm not totally satisfied, I need to dive into html code soon..

Travalo Mini Refillable Spray

2010-09-18T12:10:00.009+03:00

This is one lovely gadget. I don't have to carry my mini perfume bottles with me when I travel:

I purchased this from Garden.co.uk.

Travalo is a pocket sized 8cc refillable travel perfume atomizer spray bottle that refills in seconds with a unique repeat pump action:

You take away the top part from your chosen perfume bottle. Then you place the Travalo on top of it and pump. Perfume gets inside of the Travalo.

The only con I can think is that you cannot really change the perfume. I mean once you've had some Prada Infusion d'Iris in your Travalo, you cannot fill it with some other perfume. It will surely mix. Still, this is a great item to have and much safer than some testers or mini bottles.

By the way, while I was traveling with my new Travalo I read the latest Finnair mags and noticed some Travalo ads :) You can get this from airports too.

Sea-buckthorn oil

2010-09-08T15:11:00.004+03:00

I purchased this little dark brown bottle from a Finnish shop Pieni Tuoksukauppa. In my opinion, Hippophae rhamnoides is a superfood. If you cannot eat it, nourish your skin by applying it in its oil form. Although I have to warn you, this will colour your skin very orange :)

This is not something for romantic evenings, unless your beau is a superfood freak and just cannot wait until he can massage some superfood oil on your superbody..

There's a strong smell too, but it's all worthwhile - my skin loves this oil. I like to apply this prior to sauna and sometimes in the evenings. When I wake up, it's all absorbed and my skin feels and looks relaxed, moisturized and rested.

Honey's skin says, thumbs up, this is good for your skin :)

Aloe Vera and Joe Blasco saved my summer face

2010-09-06T06:32:00.001+03:00

I will never travel to sunny places without 2 products in the future. During the summer I managed to burn my face - not badly, but my skin was bright red for a couple of days - and I don't know how I would have survived without these 2 items. I was staying by the seaside and in the evening I felt that my face was hot and from the mirror I could see this strange red and white raccoon-superdummy-face (yes, dear readers. I was wearing huge sunglasses..). Fortunately I had:

a little Lush pot (they are really useful. Never throw them away, wash them and use them when traveling) filled with aloe vera gel. I applied it several times during the evening and the following days. It instantly soothes and you'll feel better. I swear it makes the recovery faster
my old and trustworthy Joe Blasco Ultrabase Cream Foundation in Alabaster. I almost left it home, because it's quite a heavy foundation to be used during the summertime. This product helped me to cover my red areas the next day and the following days. Nobody noticed my skin!

My skin didn't burn badly and I'm thankful for that. I will be extra cautious in the future. Sun is great, but only in small doses for me :)

Montage Jeunesse Zen Flower Sensitive Masque

2010-09-04T18:00:00.003+03:00

I like that White Chocolate Masque so much that I just keep buying more of it instead of testing other Mongate Jeunesse masks.. but when I saw the text "sensitive skin" I just had to get it. Girl with a sensitive skin, that's me.

At home I noticed that the package is different. There are 2 different products in it; the mask itself and a moisturizer/serum.

The mask looks lovely, it's thick, creamy and greenish. But the scent isn't good. It makes me think of glue or some paint. I tried not to breath through my nose and waited..

..and rinsed my face. My skin felt quite good. I applied the serum. It's very fluid and the scent is bad too. I liked the fact that it gave me a matte result, but somehow my skin felt a bit numb. My face looked visibly better and brighter but the feeling of numbness was strange. I don't really understand the reaction at all. I touched my face and it felt weird. I need to get another mask and test again. This might be really good when your skin is behaving badly and hurting.

Vichy Normaderm Purifying Cleansing Gel

2010-09-04T05:19:00.001+03:00

I wouldn't use this kind of a product regularly. Normaderm Purifying Cleansing Gel is good for oily skin while my skin is more dry and sensitive. But I'm going to clean my face occasionally with a product like this. Why? It was perfect during the hot summer! My skin was oilier than usually and I felt that I needed something that really does the job.

After using this my face feels a bit tight, but that I can help with some serums and a good moisturizer. The gel is sticky, but when you add water, it changes into mild foam and glides over your face. Just couple of dots of the stuff is enough. The scent is very fresh. I still have a small 30 ml bottle of Vichy's cleansing gel and I might get more before next summer - this would be perfect for my beau.

Bubblegum, Mint Julips & Sweet Lips

2010-09-02T14:41:00.005+03:00

I was quite certain that this Lush product was actually a bit useless. I mean, it's so easy to mix sugar with some oil and perhaps add some scent. I could do it myself, I thought, until.. Lush sent me my latest package with 3 samples. Little tiny pots filled with small amounts of Mint Julips, Sweet Lips and Bubblegum lip scrubs.

When I opened them, I was in love. Just because of the scents :) It was hard to decide which one to test first. Bubblegum has got the Snow Fairy scent. And the colour.. bright pink. Sweet Lips has got a chocolate scent and my favourite Mint Julips is just like mint chocolate. They are all very candylike, sweet and lovely.

I tested the Sweet Lips first and my lips got a bit swollen. That scared me, I thought that there's something that irritates my skin. I decided to test again and scrub more gently and that was the trick. No problems whatsoever. So don't scrub hard, be gentle.

The peppermint in Mint Julips might tingle, but my lips just love it. I cannot stop thinking about After Eight chocolate while using this. I will purchase a jar of Mint Julips for myself when these samples are gone (they seem to last forever).

I love the fact that the ingredient list is so simple, that you could actually lick the product from your lips. I rinse with water, because sugar is not good your teeth and I use this after brushing my teeth. I just love this. My lips feel soft and moisturized and I just know that this is what I need now when the weather is getting colder. No more chappy lips for me!

I love Veganese

2010-05-16T20:57:00.004+03:00

My hair must be vegan.

I haven't found the HG of hair conditioners among Lush conditioners yet, but so far, Veganese is the best of them all for me and for my mane.

I purchased Veganese with feeble hope. I have tested so many Lush conditioners and since I had heard that Veganese is very light and nothing special, I wasn't expecting anything grand. But I just love Veganese! It's the best of them all for me. It detangles my hair even though it is light. My mane feels conditioned and soft afterwards. Lavander, lemon, seaweed and rosemary do the trick. It doesn't make my hair flat and heavy, instead it's all bouncy and healthy after some vegan care and pampering :)

Ice Hotel

2010-04-22T06:45:00.000+03:00

If you ask me, I prefer the real Ice Hotel instead of this. Or couple of drinks in the Ice Bar :)

This bubble bar was inspired by the Swedish Ice Hotel.. we do have those here in Finland too, but since I live here, I'm not that tempted with coldness, ice and snow. I was curious, how would Ice Cube lookalike behave in a hot tub?

Well, for me it was a disappointment, because there was too much peppermint in my piece. I don't like that feeling.. that you're bathing in the middle of toothpaste. So far I haven't really liked any of the "icy and snowy" ballistics from Lush. It does make great bubbles and it looks pretty. There's a bit glitter on the top, but it's colourful.. it should be silvery..

Lush should create one ballistic just for me, it should be white with some green sprinkles on top with a hint of pine in the scent. And maybe some cloudberry oil in it. They could call it Snowball. Wouldn't it be marvellous if you could design a bath ballistic or a bubble bar yourself? Or if you could choose the colour of the ballistic.. *dreaming*

e.l.f. Healthy Glow Bronzing Powder

2010-04-21T14:57:00.000+03:00

I'm not that good with bronzers so this kind of product is perfect for me. This is e.l.f. Healthy Glow Bronzing Powder in Luminance. It's very subtle, even I cannot go wrong with it :) And since it's from e.l.f., it's ridiculously cheap (just 1.5£).

This is the lightest shade there is and I just love the little whisper of colour on my cheeks. I'll use this more and more now when the summer sun is finally starting to warm up my skin.

Snap, Crackle and Pop. I mean Space Girl

2010-04-20T22:39:00.004+03:00

Space Girl has landed on Honey's bathroom:

It's lilac ufo with some sparkle.

It fizzies really fast and the bathwater seems to go light blue and milky..

I want to test more of these Space Girls, because my ballistic was a bit disappointing; the colour was greyish and not deep at all. The scent was good, but very very mild. It was dry and a bit powdery, interesting but too weak.

There was glitter, but just a hint of it.

There's the lovely sound effect in Space Girl - the same that Lush had in Cinders bath ballistics during Christmas time. Little popping can be heard when listening carefully :) Snap, Crackle and Pop in my bath tub.

But as I said, I think my first test ballistic was a dud. At least I hope so, because I want more sounds, more colour and more scent from a ballistic with this kind of look and name :)

Mitchum Smart Solid antiperspirant

2010-04-13T04:49:00.001+03:00

I heard good rumours about Mitchum antiperspirants so of course I had to test them!

I got this one with a scent for women and also the other one with a scent for men. There's also one without scent, but since I didn't find it, I chose these two.

Dear ladies, the "Powder" scent for women is horrible. I can't stand it at all! I ended up using the male version, because I preferred that scent. My beau used the ladies version - the scent is so mild that he didn't smell all roses.. We were cross-antiperspirant-using :D

The stuff works. It keeps your armpits dry. It doesn't mess your black clothes as deodorants usually do (I hate that).

There's one serious problem in addition to the scent - when you've used almost the whole thing, the stick breaks into pieces. Usually a large chunk breaks off and falls into your sink or floor. I repurchased the antiperspirant and the same thing happened again. So you cannot use it all unless you're willing to apply it with your fingers..

Matrix Essentials Instacure Leave In Treatment

2010-04-12T04:58:00.000+03:00

I'm still trying to learn how to use leave in treatments. Some of them make my hair stiff and dry, some detangele, some soften. I got this huge 400 ml bottle of Matrix treatment from Beautybay.com.

The scent is mild and quite ok. I spray this to my damp hair after washing and conditioning. My hair feels softer and tangles are not so bad. But if I overdose, my hair will go limp and flat.

I don't like the size of the bottle. I have small hands and I would prefer something smaller (not to mention the fact that I like testing new stuff and this will of course last longer..). Travel size version would be nice (maybe there are some available and I should check that out). But at least I can use this .. compared to those TRESsemmé products that I have stared at shops :o Those huge things are totally impossible for me. When it comes to hair product packages I definitely think smaller is better!

My hair is having some kind of shedding period right now so I try to be extra gentle with it. I suspect that this is happening for 2 reasons; it's springtime and I have had to wear some kind of headgear during the cold season. And the other reason is the my hair is chemically treated - it's lighter and that is stressful for the skin and for the hair. Thankfully the dark root look is still quite fashionable ;) because I want to pamper my hair right now and not do anything that would strain it more.

Helping Hands

2010-04-11T07:20:00.000+03:00

I've been testing 2 of Lush's hand creams and here's the other one. I have this small pump bottle which is nice to take with you when traveling etc. This stuff makes my hands feel softer:

I don't like the scent at all. It makes me think about mud or porridge, but it's tolerable. I use it without puking..

I can use this during daytime, because it's a bit lighter than some other Lush products. It's not superlight and super fast absorbing though. I pump the stuff on the back of my hand and then rub the backs of my hands together. Applying it like that enables me to keep going without messing my keyboard or papers.

e.l.f. Natural Radience Blusher

2010-04-11T04:04:00.000+03:00

Small and modest package with a modest shade:

The shade is called Innocence and it really is innocent. Very nice, subtle shade with a hint of colour.

I had trouble with the package again; I tried to open the lid, but there's no lid. Instead you just slide it open.

I'm blush shy and it's hard for me to use blushes and bronzers. Therefore this is just perfect for me, nothing too bright. Even I can apply this without ending up looking ridiculous. The stuff is very powdery and it crumbles easily - I think this will not last for a long time. But that's the way I like it, then I can get some more and maybe even test other shades too.

e.l.f. Super Glossy Lip Shine SPF 15

2010-04-08T04:09:00.000+03:00

I don't like this lip gloss at all. It's very sticky and I hate that glue-like feeling on my lips. I rather use something lighter and keep reapplying it.

The shade is Goddess and I don't like it either. It's too beige, too brown, too nude. The scent of the glue, oops, I mean gloss, doesn't appeal to me either. It's something called "Grape Vanilla".. So is there anything good in this product? Well, yes. This is very cheap and there's sun protection.

If you like thick, sticky lip gloss that makes your lips shine while keeping them protected then you might like this. I don't and if I want something for my lips from e.l.f it's going to be that simple and lovely Therapeutic Conditioning Lip Balm.

e.l.f. New Moisture Care Lip Color

2010-04-07T04:01:00.000+03:00

I don't get this lip.. thingie at all. The mechanism is weird. When I got this, I didn't read any manuals (and should you really need a manual for a lipstick?), I just tried to figure it out. I clicked and twisted different parts. I felt like a prehistoric ape woman checking out some weird future tool.

Finally I managed to "activate" it, as e.l.f. site describes the process. You need to twist it 10-20 times to make the colour to appear. After the first time, you need just a couple of twists. You can see the result below:

The shade is Cherry Tart but it's not what I expected. It looks different in the web site pic. IRL it's too red and too dark. Dark lip colour needs to be applied with care and with this kind of system, I'm not going to succeed.

This feels good and moisturizing on my lips. But I cannot use this at all without some serious blotting and maybe powder and definitely B's Barrier - otherwise the colour and gloss will smear and pass my lipline. I don't even have wrinkles around my mouth, but I hate that "oops I applied my lip colour over my lipline" look.

I also wonder why does it say Luscious Liquid Lipstick in the thing itself? When it's called Moisture Care Lip Color?

Honey, I Washed The Kids

2010-04-06T04:07:00.000+03:00

I guess this is one of the most popular Lush soaps. After the first inhale, I was in love too. Sometimes honey scents annoy me, but here it's in perfect symphony with the other ingredients. The scent is honey & toffee and it's very addictive.

I think I got my first piece with the Lush Legends gift.. it looks so modest there, together with Ice Blue and Karma, with the hatbox glittering. You can also buy Sweetie Soap Stack to get it with I Should Coco and Rockstar. Or just go and get a chunk of your own.

It keeps your hands and body soft and clean. It soothes your mind and makes even rainy days a bit better with its lovely scent. If Karma is too strong for your taste and Sea Vegetable too strange, try Honey, I Washed The Kids. I bet you'll love it too.

Where is Green Day Bubble Bar?

2010-04-05T11:31:00.000+03:00

I beg you Gods and Goddesses at Lush, bring back my fav bubble bar!
Please. I miss it so much.

It's nowhere. It used to be available in the Finnish web shop. Not anymore. It's not in the British Retro shop. I searched and I found it. It's availabe in USA. Do you mean I need to fly there to get me some Green Day? Really?

It's a nice idea though. I might shop some other stuff too. But how many Green Days can fly back with me? It would be nice to get it here in Europe too.

I used to have several bars in my stash. Not anymore. Not anymore, said the Honey (see, I'm starting to sound like Edgar Allan Poe and I'm not sure whether he would like me to misuse his poetry when I'm talking about bubble bars).

Oh the memories. Oh my love, my dearest, Green Day. You made me feel like I was bathing in green forest, with the wind and birds and sunshine and wilderness. I'll wait for you. Or I'll fly to you, either way, we need to be together - Honey & Green Day.

e.l.f. Nourishing Cuticle Pen

2010-04-05T04:04:00.002+03:00

This cuticle pen is only 1.50£ in the British e.l.f. webshop:

This is not as good as the LCN nail care pen, because the LCN "brush" is softer. I recently bought a new LCN pen for myself. With the e.l.f. pen I wouldn't use the word brush at all, it's more like a hard pen. But this is almost as good and so much cheaper. There are lots of good ingredients; vitamins, aloe vera, avocado and almond oil.

If your cuticles are screaming for moisture, I wouldn't rely solely on these pens. Instead I would rub coconut oil and heavier creams, for example Lush's Lemony Flutter on the nails and cuticles in the evenings. That's the foundation of good cuticle care.

These pens are superb when you're traveling and at work. They don't leave your fingertips too oily and creamy; you can just keep working. Your hands will look instantly prettier, because dry cuticles do not look nice. You might think it's a small issue, but actually there's a huge difference between cared and moisturized cuticles and dry, harsh ones. People do notice your cuticles. This is an instant fix - get a pen like this, place it in your purse or by your desk - then apply it before important dates or meetings, at the same time you add a dab of your chosen scent and check out your makeup.

Lush Smileys :)

2010-04-04T16:29:00.004+03:00

I wish you happy springtime with these 2 special Lush goodies.

Below we have the Happy soap, which I got as a freebie from a Finnish Lush shop. It was a small piece of sunshine in its bright yellowness. It has a wonderful orange fruit scent. And that little smiley face made me smile every morning, again and again.

Same happy smiley here as a massage bar (and please Lush, more naked men in the front page of Lush Times, thanks). I got this with the Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes package. It's the Each Peach massage bar. I realized that I haven't reviewed Each Peach, even thought I have used one whole bar.. first I liked it, but eventually I felt that it was too fruity and sweet, at least if used as a whole body moisturizer. But it's ok in small doses.

I wish I could have used these 2 at the same time. That would have been fun. I hope we Lushies will get more Smiley versions in the future.

Beautiful Blogger award :)

2010-04-04T13:13:00.004+03:00

Lovely blogger Katy Wilko made me so happy - she gave me this Beautiful Blogger award:

Thank you Katy :) Please check out her blog!

The rules of this award are:

1. Thank the person who nominated you
2. Copy the award and place it on your blog
3. Link to the person who nominated you
4. Tell seven things about yourself
5. Nominate seven bloggers, if you choose
6. Post links to the seven blogs if you do choose to nominate others

7 things about Honey:

- the last horror movie I saw was the Unborn. It was so "scary" that I fell asleep in the middle of it and woke up whenever someone screamed. Then I kept sleeping.
- I bought an acupuncture mat in November 2009. Now I have 4 of them, plus a pillow AND a couple of acupuncture rings. And I use them every day.
- I once shaped my eyebrows with men's disposable razor (my excuse: I was a bit tipsy). Fortunately I didn't shave them all off. Quite good result actually, but I'm too shamed to reveal this IRL
- I can sing, but I my whistling is plain terrible
- I learned to do the padma asana while surfing on the net. I took one leg and streched it, placed it on the table, then over the other leg. One day I noticed, that I can do it. So, surfing internet can be physically rewarding!
- I can wiggle my ears
- I want to buy a pole and start doing pole dancing. It looks great and my body needs upper body strenght. I dream about doing the death lay up in the ceiling and spinning hours like a happy little monkey. In reality, I think it would take me years to do anything grand. But it might be fun.

Nominations

I want to nominate 55 bloggers instead of seven. Check them out from the right column. I nominate all my lovely followers out there :) If you use Bloglovin or Blogilista, you are nominated too. Take the award and pass it on. Kisses & hugs!

Pine Tar & Menthol, Chocolate and Apple soaps

2010-04-04T04:20:00.000+03:00

I tested some lovely Osmia soaps - now they're all gone, but of course I have pics of them. Osmia soaps are handmade in Finland and my all time fav is the Peat Soap, but these were nice too.

The first one is the Chocolate soap. The scent was so very real and NOM that I wanted to bite the soap. Which I didn't, but it made me think that maybe these soaps aren't that good if you have kids. They might actually do that..

Chocolate soap was lovely!

Then there was the Apple soap. My beau liked the scent a lot. Fresh apples, that cannot be bad - but I didn't like the look of the soap that much. All those colourful little pieces.. makes me think about Lush's Something Wicked bath melt. Not stylish. A bit tacky?

Apple soaps should have just one pure single colour of an apple; yellow, red or green :)

Pine Tar & Menthol had the same kind of pieces but not so colourful. I love love love the tar scent. Menthol makes it sharper and more refreshing. I still prefer just pure tar.

Here's the inci list from the tar bar. The "pyroleum pini" is the tar, and there's also peat and eucalyptus in addition to menthol and other ingredients.

I need to check out my soap stash.. I want to purchase more Osmia soaps. But maybe I need to use all my Lush ones first. I have couple of Sea Vegetables, Snowcakes, Angel's Delights there waiting. I need to do an inventory.. isn't it strange, the urge to buy more, when you don't really need to?

TommyGuns Sage And Basil Shampoo For Oily Confused Hair And Scalp

2010-04-03T10:06:00.002+03:00

This is my beau's shampoo, but as usually, I tested it too.

This green TommyGuns shampoo is meant for oily hair, so it's not for me. My beau however loves this. He also likes the scent. I just like the colour of the stuff :) The basil here is not the one I love and the overall scent is.. horrible. For some reason it makes me think about mold. When my beau has used this, I try to close my nostrils and breath through my mouth. Fortunately the scent doesn't linger for a long time.

As I mentioned, the best thing here is the deep green colour. At least I can turn the bottle upside down and back again and enjoy the tiny smelly performance that it presents to me.

Selene 176

2010-04-02T10:26:00.005+03:00

Selene nail polish number 176 - pretty, fun and useless:

I couldn't resist it so I got this tiny little bottle..

..and I'm happy that it's so tiny. It's useless, I say.

It's basically clear nail polish with little colourful stars. It would be so much easier to use ordinary stars or stickers without the polish. You end up digging and fishing the little stars from the bottle to get some of those little devils out of the bottle and into your nails.

The stars are also sticking out and they're sharp - maybe I could have applied it with more care, but I was so annoyed after hunting the stars, that I had no patience. Anyway, the edges are sharp and they stick to my hair. My hair doesn't like this nail polish.

The end result is so Eighties, but it might not be so bad with a lighter base. I used NYX Girls Nail Polish in Charcoal Pearl. It's a lovely, pearly dark grey. I should have just enjoyed it without the damned stars.

I think I'll use the rest of this starry mess on my toe nails. I don't usually put my toes to my head. Unless I'm trying to be a yogini.

Coming ... nail polishes

2010-04-01T21:38:00.003+03:00

After throwing lots of old nail polishes away I was pleased with myself. I was satisfied. I had a nice, small collection. Then there was a sale at Cherryculture.com. And all my plans were ruined. But I'm happy. They are all sooooo pretty! Specially those light blue glittery and green ones.

Light Yellow Colour Supplement

2010-03-30T06:40:00.002+03:00

When I noticed the new Colour Supplement products in Lush's site, I knew I wanted to test them. I'm always searching for the perfect foundation because of my pale and sensitive skin. There are other "blend-it-yourself" products out there too, but I have never tested them.

So I ordered a little jar of Light Yellow for myself. There's also Light Pink, Dark Yellow and Dark Pink. I wanted the yellow, because I have some redness in my skin that I want to hide and yellow shade does it. And I think that there's a hint of honey in my skin tone, especially during summer.

There's for example fresh rose petal infusion & soya and rice bran oils in it. You can see all the ingredient lists from Lush site if you want to check them out.

I think that the little 20 g jar will last for a long time since I need to blend it with moisturizer.

Here's my naked arm with a bit different lightning. There's nothing there but the ghoulish base tone and some pigment problems.. and some red areas too. I occasionally get atopic eczema spots on my arms, so this is a sensitive area.

First I applied just the colour supplement. It looks nice.. and it feels good; moisturizing and creamy.

But when I smear it on my skin, I can clearly see that it's way too dark for me.

I washed it away and took my new jar of Celestial moisturizer.

I mixed Celestial and Light Yellow.. this is a bit like cooking, you mix and test and try..

I hope you can see from these pics that it mixes well with a moisturizer. The shade is lighter and not so very yellow and it looks natural.

I used a lot of the stuff for the pics but for my face I need just a small amount of it. If I overdo it, I'll be very yellow and strange looking Honey. Because of the blending I feel that this is more like a tinted moisturizer for me. It doesn't cover that well, but it gives you a nice natural look that's very nude. If my skin is misbehaving, I need to use some other stuff for covering problem areas.

My skin likes the product, it doesn't irritate at all. That's always a big bonus. Because of the blending process I don't like to use this when I'm on hurry. At the same time I quite like the blending - there are so many different variations of tones and shades in human skin. I think every foundation is actually a compromise and it's only with blending that you can find the perfect shade. Your skin tone also changes during the year. Why use different products when you can mix and solve it yourself?

You might want to add a little powder on top of this - it depends on your skin type. This might be a bit heavy for oilier skins. If you have tested this too, please comment. I also found out that this works well with Lush moisturizers but when I tried to apply this over some basic silicony moisturizer, it all sort of .. peeled away. I moved my fingers on my skin and I could roll the whole thing off!

I keep using and testing this and for a natural look on sunny summer days, I think this is The Foundation for me.

Hello there!

2010-03-30T06:31:00.004+03:00

Hello there dear readers,

I just want to let you know that I'm alive and well and I haven't fallen asleep in my bathtub ;)

Thanks for your lovely comments, too.

For some reason all the pics in my blog were missing yesterday. But now everything is fine again so I think it was some Blogger problem.

Coming soon..

2010-03-16T22:00:00.004+02:00

There's stuff from Urban Decay, Elisabeth Arden, Coastal Scents, Meow Cosmetics, e.l.f., Cherry Culture and of course Lush stuff and pretty bottles of perfume waiting.. there's B Never Too Busy To Be Beautiful scents, Estee Lauder, Prada, even Gap. There are 16 new nail polishes traveling to my address plus all the other new nail stuff. And I haven't tested Konad yet..

And the Camo is not this yellow! I need better pictures of it. I love love this Camo Quad:

I have enough Lush soaps. Why I want more? I have star shaped Snow Cake.. I have 2 different shower jellies.. bath ballistics.. some of them here.. lots of them in cabinets waiting..

Retro stuff..

New stuff!

Happy Blooming & Think Pink (cuter)

2010-03-16T20:53:00.008+02:00

I tested the new bath melt; Happy Blooming and I wasn't happy at all. It's actually 3 melts in one piece. After the first testing I knew that it wasn't meant for me. So I needed to add something to get rid of the 2 melts... I have lots of these little bath ballistics, they're extra gifts from Lush's British webshop. They're lovely, but smaller than your usual ballistics. I decided to take Think Pink, because I don't fancy it anymore.. Here it's posing together with small Big Blue :) and Supernova:

The Happy Blooming has got cherry scent and it's way too heavy for my nose. Cherry scents can be annoying, I can only tolerate small doses of it. And there I was, bathing in strong cherry liquid. The melt is orangey-peachy-red.

The strangest thing was that it didn't melt well..! I had a small blob in the bottom of my tub afterwards. I used all three pieces and every time there was this weird cherryblob there. I want a bath melt that melts.

I threw the Think Pink (smaller & cuter) in the tub after the Happy Blooming.

Think Pink looks cute but nowadays I feel that it's way too sweet for me. I have tested the bigger one too and I rather keep it on a table, looking pretty.

It was quite nice mixture of cherry-orange-red and blueish-pink-deep-red..

But somehow I felt like I was floating in the middle of melting ice cream, candy and bubblegum. And some lipstick, too.

I will not get more Happy Blooming or Think Pink no matter how pretty they look. I will give away the rest of my cuter but smaller Think Pinks too. I had an overdose of pinkish blobs.

Lush massage bars that I cannot stand; Sexy Boy, Mange Too and Therapy

2010-03-13T08:22:00.005+02:00

There are some Lush products that I don't like. Some of them I even dislike, cannot stand and hate (remember Evil Gingerman? I'll come back to him later..).

Therapy. This is the only one of these 3 that I can use, but I don't really want to. I can use it now and then, but not often. There's something in its scent that annoys me. I have used couple of bars so it's not that horrible. I can happily use this on my feet and it does its moisturizing job well. I just grow tired of the scent now and then and need a break.

Oh, Mange Too. I was waiting for it, because I know it's loved by many Lushies. When it arrived, I tried to like it.

It looks so pretty. There's honey. Too much of it! I cannot use this at all. The scent makes me grin. I placed the lovely bar in one room and I use it as a room scent. When I open the door of that room I always smell the Mange Too and .. know that this is the only way I can use it.

I tried to use it, you can see that below.. That shadow looks so appropriate there :D

It is Mr BlackCat who's inspecting the Mange Too. He didn't like it either.

Let's go down the memory lane then.. November last year.. I met the horrendous Evil Gingerman and I took pics of him together with Sexy Boy. Gingerman made Sexy Boy look good, but he wasn't. He was just looking angelic:

I tried, I really tried. Every time Sexy Boy touched my skin, I wanted to rush into shower and scrub hard with some Karma soap. I gave it to my beau and he's now using it as a cabinet scent. I really used this several times, but then I decided that I don't want to torture myself - there are so many lovely Lush massage bars that I can use.

Catastrophe Cosmetic Fresh Mask by Lush

2010-03-11T05:12:00.002+02:00

Lush's fresh face masks are great. You need to use them fast unless you throw them into your freezer - I've never done that, because I want to use them when they're really fresh and not super cold.. I wonder will it be the same if you need to melt it first? Maybe I need to try with a small amount..

I love this mask. There are blueberries, which I like.. you could eat fresh blueberries at the same time, because they're so healthy. You'll look like a na'vi while wearing this mask which is a bonus too :D

You can't forget to rinse this off, because it will start falling off by itself. Yes, it will dry and then it looks like this:

Catastrophe Cosmetic promised to soothe and calm my skin and that's what it did. I looked rested and my skin was at peace with the universe (yes, it's actually a na'vi mask..). I'm getting more of this!

Elizabeth Arden Shimmer Powder, Nude Shimmer

2010-03-10T04:29:00.002+02:00

Some time ago I purchased the Elizabeth Arden Luxury Color Collection and this lovely shimmer powder was a part of the package. I love this product. There's just a hint of colour and the shimmer is very subtle, natural and lovely. Purrrfect!

The EA package had all this in a red carry-all bag:

Colour Sun Blush Palette with 6 Eye Shadows; Terra Bronze, Pink Petal, Golden, Siren, Vanilla and Smoky Taupe
Small cosmetic case
Pink Rose Palette with 6 Eye Shadows; Graphite, Platinum, Orchid Pink, Marine Blue, Sliver Plum and Lucky
Cheek colour
Make Up Brush Trio
Lip Gloss in Pink Pout
Lip Pencils; Taupe and Cocoa Rose
Eye Pencils in Gunmetal and Espresso
Exceptional Lipstick in Honey Blush
Colour Intrigue Effects Lipstick in Geranium Shimmer
Ceramide Plump Perfect Lipstick in Perfect Rose
Ceramide Lash Extending Treatment Mascara in Black
Shimmer Powder in Nude Shimmer
Pretty Eau de Parfum

This lovely shimmer is maybe the best of all that. It was a surprise for me, because shimmer powder makes me think of disco balls and bronzed stripes on (my) pale face. I think I need to get more of this or something similar from Elisabeth Arden when I've finished with this first package.

White & green glitter nails

2010-03-09T04:35:00.000+02:00

I started with Depend 105; very subtle white shimmer.

That was nice, but I wanted to add something. Miss Selene 170 came to rescue:

Very pale nails with just a hint of green glitter on the tips. I liked this a lot. Easy to create and doesn't demand much skill; still you get a nice blending effect and sophisticated sparkle.

Depend environmental friendly nail polish remover

2010-03-08T04:13:00.003+02:00

This nail polish remover was recommended by Virve and since I was running out of remover, I decided to test this. I’m glad I did!

Earlier I thought that all nail polish removers are harsh and that there’s no way they could actually do any good to my nails. The only thing I was checking was whether there was acetone or not, since that’s a big no-no for LCN nails. Now I have natural nails, but I’m not going back to using any of those previous removers. This one feels so good.

The liquid feels oily, there’s a nice scent and after removal my fingertips aren’t yelling for moisture and rescue. Removing functionality is as good as with other removers. There’s also the environment bonus – this stuff is “biologically degradable and less harmful to the ozone layer”. That’s great. Honey’s nails and the world is saved.

Removing glittery polish isn’t any easier with this though. I read from Just blushing blog about this clever removing method and I’m going to test that too. Could it be so easy? Just wipe your nails with polish remover, place some cotton on top of that and then wrap your fingertips in aluminium foil; after 5 minutes you can just pull the wrappings off together with the nail polish! I must try that out. I'm a bit afraid that this method might dry my skin and nails, but then I'll just get an extra dose of Lush's Lemony Flutter.

Skinlite Relax Soothing Aloe Masque and Hydrating Herb Mask

2010-03-07T06:52:00.004+02:00

This is a story of a good mask and a bad mask. The lesson of the story is that you shouldn't judge a mask by your own assumptions. The right way is to test them ;)

Both masks are by Skinlite, it's a Korean brand. Let's start with Relax Soothing Aloe Mask. Sounds promising, doesn't it?

In every pic I look like Edward Cullen. Well.. not really, but my skin looks like his :D Seriously, my face was glittering like a giant pale diamond.

It's very gel-like and gooey. If you want to test this, make sure your hair is out of your face, otherwise it will get stuck there too.

I thought that this would be good, because of the "relax", "soothing" and "aloe vera". But right away I started feeling that horrible tingling on my cheek area. After rinsing it got worse.

I had red, itchy cheeks. That is not what I expected. It was really bright for the whole evening. In that pic above you can see the redness starting to appear. Those beige spots are freckles.

I wonder, when do freckles turn into those feared age spots? I think I might know the answer. It's when your freckles start to multiply. I think I've passed that point and now it's all downhill.. but I like going downhill, it's fun ;)

Back to the test lab, Honey! This is the other Skinlite mask, the Hydrating Herb Mask and it's a paper mask:

I was afraid after the Aloe experiment and I've had bad experiences with paper masks, too. Herbs can be risky when your skin is sensitive.

I slapped the mask on. My face never fits the paper masks. I'm not doing it that carefully either. I placed this over my face while staring at my computers.. It felt cold, but good.

I surfed the web looking like a mummy and then I went to the bathroom for removal.. I took the mask away and wiped my neck, decollete and arms with it. My face was so bright and clear. No redness, nothing. It was seriously lighter and felt supergood. To my surprise Hydrating Herb Mask and my skin have a love affair.

So aloe mask was a no-no but herbal mask was a success. This story has a happy ending after all.

Aqua Mirablis Underwater

2010-03-06T08:42:00.003+02:00

My fav Lush bath melt right now is Aqua Mirablis Underwater. I just keep reordering it, because I'm hooked:

It's a retro product..

..and it looks a bit strange, doesn't it?

Never mind my overgrown nail polish there.. just keep your eyes on the bath melt. Marigold petals (which I happen to love too) float away when it hits the water:

It makes your bath water moisturizing and you can take the piece and scrub your body while floating there.

The scent is heavenly for me. It's so clean and pure.

My skin loves it!

I feel like a reborn Honey after Aqua Mirablis Underwater bath affair.

..and the Winner is.... Aqua Mirabilis!

2010-03-05T04:25:00.004+02:00

This is the Winner of Lush's body scrub & moisturizers for me right now; the Aqua Mirabilis:

It's not as sexy as You Snap the Whip and not as universally loved as Buffy, but for me it's the number one. Almond shells and perfumed oils do the trick. It looks like a beige little cake, but it smells like a divine cookie from heaven.

I love this product. It feels so luxurious to scrub with this. There's only one thing better than this and it's the Aqua Mirablis Underwater - I love love love that bath melt and I'll post about it too.

..and the Second Runner-Up is... Buffy!

2010-03-04T04:12:00.000+02:00

Buffy the Dead Skin Slayer from Lush:

It's one of Lush's most liked products, but for me it's still the Second Runner-Up and not the best available. I'll reveal the winner in tomorrow's post :) The First Runner-Up is of course You Snap the Whip, which is fabulous & sexy and nothing less.

Buffy is a really good product. You take this little square piece of butters and beans to the shower with you and scrub your wet skin with it. You'll get rid of those old skin cells and you'll get loads of moisture on your skin. Compared to other scrubs out there, this is a masterpiece. Normal scrubs just scrub and then you'll need to apply loads of moisturizer afterwards. But because Buffy has got a lot of cocoa and shea butter, you'll skin will love this. I recommend you try this. If You Snap the Whip scares you with all its dark messiness, get Buffy.

My oldest lipsticks...

2010-03-03T03:35:00.000+02:00

These are Elisabeth Arden lipsticks; Amethyst 024 & "something" 307.

I just love the packages and I cannot throw these away. These are very, very old lipsticks. But still..

... just look at the beauty of these cases. I have some new Elisabeth Arden lipsticks and they all look so boring.

And as you can see, I have hardly used these. I either have too many lipsticks and glosses or I'm not just applying them often enough.

The Sicillian - just what Honey needs when it's snowstroming outside!

2010-03-02T14:12:00.004+02:00

It has been snowing, snowing and snowing in Finland...

This is my antidote for all that snow! The Sicillian Bath Ballistic from Lush.

It's from their retro section. It's has nothing to do with snow. That's good..

It's full of citrus oils so if you're not a fan of those, stay away. There's orange, tangerine, mandarin, bergamot and neroli.

It's a bit messy, but not the worst of them. There will be some Marigold petals floating in your bath tub, unless you sock it.

I didn't, because I wanted to remember the summer..

It's refreshing and full of sunshine.

The Sicillian will sing you a lullaby of lemons and gardens, while it's full blaze winter outside.

I really needed this. I loved those lemon slices so much. I will survive this winter :)

I'll start humming this when I think about The Sicillian:

Meow Cosmetics samples

2010-03-01T06:20:00.001+02:00

I ordered loads of samples from Meow Cosmetics - mostly mineral foundation in different shades and some concealers too. I got some free samples on top of that. I feel almost desparate, there are so many and I should try to find the best match for my skin..!

Everything was wrapped in this cool cat print paper. The web shop is also a cat person's dream. I have heard good reviews of the shop, but I think I might have ordered just because of the cat crazyness in their design and brand :)

Coastal Scents Black Deluxe Reptile Brush Set

2010-02-28T08:27:00.012+02:00

I'm not that into brushes as you may have noticed. I don't have a huge collection of brushes - I like to use my fingers. There's also the fact that a brush can irritate my sensitive skin if it's too harsh or used with too much force.

For some time I have been wanting to test something from Coastal Scents and finally I did - I got this brush set and also the Camo Quad.

The bag looks like it's made of snake skin, but no worries, it's all fake :)

You can place all your brushes inside and roll it into a nice package.

I realized that all of the brushes are not synthetic when I got the package. And it's there in the web site so it was my own fault. I should have read it more carefully.

I chose this one because the red wooden handles look so pretty. I will only use the bag when traveling, because I like storing my brushes like this:

I haven't yet tested all the brushes, but my first impression is that they are very good. Only the biggest brush has shed a bit. I hope it will stop. The bag had a strong, plastic smell but I left it out in the terrace to get some (really cold) air and that took care of the problem.

I also washed the brushes right away.

The big brushes are soft and nice.

There are 15 brushes in the package.

Foundation brush feels good too.

You can never have too many brow/lash combs & brushes!

I really needed some eye makeup brushes.

Blending tools..

Small, smaller and big & fluffy. I can see that Mr Cat has dropped his hair there too.. now that's not good.. I call myself a hygiene freak, but I can tolerate a lot of cat hair. Strange.

First I thought of ordering just some separate brushes but I couldn't resist the idea of getting so many in one package.

I'll keep on testing..

And if any of these gives me trouble..

or lots of pleasure and happiness..

I will blog about it :)

I use brushes against their purpose, by the way. I like using tiny lip brushes for my eye makeup and eye makeup brushes for concealing, etc.

I like this little fan brush a lot. You can easily sweep away any fallen eye makeup with it. I want to have a big one, too.

I think all the big ones were sold out, when I placed my order.

This one looks good for concealing and eye makeup.

And this one is made for blending.

I think my yearn for some brushes is satisfied for a while. I'm also satisfied with Coastal Scents. I really liked that Camo Quad a lot.

If you want to see more of these brushes, check out tknokitten's youtube vid:

Magic Mushroom for Friday Night

2010-02-19T17:58:00.007+02:00

Mushroom. Magical one. It looks dangerous, but do not worry:

Just throw it in your bathtub!

Then watch the magic happen.. mountains of bubbles. Try to climb them. It's a good idea to have a buddy in your bathtub so you can do this together.

White and red, red and white. Under white bubblemountains lurks the red water.

Splatter fun!

Mmmm.. and the scent; Vanillary & Yummy Yummy. You can broke it in 2 or you can enjoy the magic at 1 go.

Magic Mushroom was Lush's Valentine special and I totally, throughly enjoyed it. And yes, I used the whole mushroom and I was a renewed Honey when I reached the top of the white mountain.

Bath Roses & Epsom Salt

2010-02-14T20:58:00.007+02:00

Cheap stuff is sometimes the best. And so pretty.

I bought some Bath Roses, just because they looked so beautiful.

White sugar little roses with a lovely scent.

I had a plan..

I had some Epsom Salt and I wanted something with it.. something with a scent. So I got these little roses..

I got my Epsom Salt from Pieni Tuoksukauppa. I love Epsom Salt.

It's so relaxing. I'm totally hooked on it. It makes me feel so good. I added one of the little roses..

Lovely.

My Pradas

2010-02-14T20:39:00.003+02:00

Just bragging with one pic. All my Prada Perfume Babies here :)

Infusion d'Iris, L'Eau Ambree, Prada Tendre. These treasures are kept in my perfume cabinet and they make my days brighter.

R.I.P. Alexander McQueen

2010-02-11T20:32:00.003+02:00

I miss you. I loved you art.

Body Shop Green Apple Bath and Shower Gel

2010-02-10T14:16:00.002+02:00

This product is my beau's fav one for showering & shampooing. He loves the scent and I love the scent on him :) And it is good; fresh, yummy apples in green, liquid form.

He uses this for his hair and body. I haven't tried this as a bath product, because I'm a bit afraid of the stuff. Sometimes apples give me problems - I'm really sensitive to them. But I love the scent.

There's also aloe vera in the ingredients list. Aloe vera is always a bonus - I love it. And oh yes, this is also one of those reborn oldies from the Eighties and early Nineties - Body Shop's retro products. Well done, Body Shop. I'm pretty sure my beau will insist on buying more of this.

Beige Floating Island

2010-02-10T14:10:00.005+02:00

Last time my Floating Island bath melt was white. Now I got a beige one:

But it was still good, nourishing and luxurious. This was a sandy, tanned Floating Island. You'll never know what kind of island will you land with Lush Airlines ;)

Vichy 48Hr Intensive Anti-Perspirant

2010-02-07T09:43:00.004+02:00

I have found a new antiperspirant with a tolerable scent. I still prefer totally unscented antiperspirants, because

I don't want any extra scents to mess with my chosen perfume
Usually deodorant scents are very, very horrible

But this one is actually quite good. The scent is clean, soaplike and mild. It's just on the borderline of whether it annoys me or not. I can use it :)

It's also very effective antiperspirant. If you want to avoid aluminum, don't get this one, because there are at least 2 different kinds of it in the ingredient list. I would like to avoid aluminum too, but if I must choose between being smelly or using it, I choose using it.. I cannot bear the though of sweating in public. I sweat a lot and I'm a bit paranoid about keeping it under control.

I have been applying this in the morning, but after reading some reviews I realized that I could do the applying in the evening, just like with my Bats antiperspirant. This product also promises to protect you from sweat for 48 hours - I might test that, too. Maybe I could lessen the amount of aluminum load. By the way, I have tested one crystal stone deodorant and I need to post about it later (I liked it!).

This product is alcohol-free and at least my sensitive armpits like it. So if you need a strong tool for perspiration prevention, try might want to try this one.

La Roche Posay Active C Cream for Dry Skin

2010-02-06T08:38:00.000+02:00

Vitamin C is supposedly good for aging skin. I have always thought that vitamins are best when taken internally, but finally I surrended and decided to test it on my skin too. So I got this tube and started using it daily..

..until I saw my face in bright light at my workplace ladies room. I looked like I had some serious liver problems. My skin had a yellow tint. And my pale brows were seriously yellow. I tried to rub it off and then pretend that everything was normal :) Colleagues were probably thinking that poor pale Honey has had some weird fake tan experiment.

My skin does like the cream, it feels good but I cannot use it daily. I need to have breaks, apply it in the evenings and be careful of not colouring my facial hair :D I can't really say whether it improves the wrinkle issue or not. I refuse to test it only on the other half of my face. That would be too strange, half-yellow Honey..

I think I'll use this mostly on my décolleté area, because it needs help and it's a good idea to nourish that particular area before summertime and sunlight. And if I get very yellow, I can cover it up ;)

Lip Service

2010-02-05T12:19:00.005+02:00

Lip Service is Lush's lip balm, meant for dry lips and it's said to be very nourishing. It's actually one of their oldest products - which must mean that it's generally loved by all you Lushies out there.

I have hard times just testing it. Because it's so **** hard! I cannot get it out of the tin. I don't really like using my finger and with this it's worse, because you need to dig. And you still cannot get it out. If you use your nail or some tool, then it's possible.

The scent is not very nice either, it's a bit boring for my nose. There are good ingredients in it, like cocoa and shea butters, different oils, etc. If only I could get it out and on my lips..

I went to Lush site and read that "it softens lips, heels, toes, cuticles and elbows" and I got an idea. I'm going to poke my elbows in there. I have dry elbows. They need moisture. This will be my elbow moisturizer :)

The Ex Factor

2010-02-03T10:22:00.007+02:00

Ex is sitting on my knee, smiling and flashing his little heart..

No matter how cute he is, I'll throw him in water. I'm gonna do some ex exorcism:

He's a really fast fizzier:

Good riddance! This is so nice :) Every girl should do this. You'll dissolve "memories of useless men" as Lush puts it and end up having a great bath.

You'll get a turquoise water (bliss!) and Butterball ballistic's lovely scent.

The Ex Factor is Lush's Valentine product, so get it while you can.

Baby Foot Easy Pack Deep Skin Foot Exfoliation

2010-01-27T14:58:00.007+02:00

In order to get baby foot, I needed to have mummy foot first. Or should I say snake foot? Snakes do get a new skin when they need it :) This is a mask for your feet:

There were interesting but a bit horrible pictures of the future..

The package had good instructions:

There were 2 plastic sock masks inside, filled with liquid.

You wear the mask for 2 hours. It felt a bit strange. It was like your feet were having a 2 hour bath, swimming in liquid socks.

After 2 hours you need to remove the mask and rinse well with water. The liquid had an interesting gluelike scent. Then comes the hard part - you have to wait a couple of days. I was certain that nothing would happen. But I was wrong. Baby Foot works. Here comes probably the ugliest pic I have ever taken of my feet:

It started to peel after a week. I was yelling and jumping when I noticed it. I don't think my beau quite got my joy ;) I mean I was so happy, that the skin in my feet was peeling. I was doing strange asanas in my living room to show him _my peeling feet_ :D

Actually he wanted to try it too when I explained him the idea. Unfortunately I had only this one package, because I wanted to test it first. My feet are still doing the peeling. I want more of these masks. The skin is softer underneath and I know that now I can moisturize my feet better when the old skin has gone. Of course this will not peel really hard calluses, but it helps a bit and then you can just moisturize.

I found a video of these cute sock masks from youtube too:

I purchased my Baby Foot from sasa.com.

If you want to see more peeling feet - check out Baby Foot Peeling Contest in Japan.

Cosmed Whitening Collagen Firming Gel Mask Intensive Formula

2010-01-25T08:37:00.001+02:00

This is a lovely mask. I absolutely love this!

I was a bit worried about the "whitening" ad talk - I mean, I cannot get much whiter unless I want to be an albino and I'm ghoulish enough already.. But I think the whitening means that the product will even out all kinds of skin discolorings; pigment patches, redness, etc and maybe it will brighten the skin to make it more fresh looking. And I do need all those things.

Thank you Cosmetic Goddesses that there was some English text in the package :D

Inside the silvery hi-tech bag there was a very, very moist white mask with a perfume scent. I just loved the scent. A bit old-fashioned scent, just the way I like it. I placed the mask on my face and tapped lightly with my fingers.. (yes I do have white baby hair in my face.. )

The mask was very wet and I even put my fingers in the empty bag and dig out the fluid...

.. and smeared it on my neck and hands.

There were no irritations, which was nice. I removed the mask after some 30 minutes and let the fluid sunk in and I also wiped my neck and hands with the mask once more before throwing it away. Here's my cheek, still wet, right after removing the mask:

My skin was brighter and the overall look rested and good. I still have some little freckles but that's ok, I wasn't expecting them to disappear. But my cheeks are less red and the colour is even. My face looks like I've just returned from one week spa holiday. I'm so happy I've got another mask in my mask stash waiting.

Coolaulin Hair Conditioner

2010-01-24T13:53:00.004+02:00

I tested Coolaulin. My hair said no thanks. That means that I haven't yet found a Lush hair conditioner that my mane could accept. I do like Lush's hair treatments, but I just don't get the conditioners.

This one has got fresh coconuts so I thought that this would be it. But it's too light, watery and it doesn't feel good. I feel that my hair needs more. More conditioning. I prefer using natural coconut oil as a hair conditioner and that works so much better.

First I liked the scent, but then I started disliking it too. It wasn't pure coconut scent.. there was this strange "wet cardboard" scent in it that I sometimes get from Lush products.

Do you think that I'll give up now and decide that there is not yet a Lush hair conditioner for me? Of course not :) I'm going to test Veganese :D It's supposed to be the lightest one, so I'm not expecting much.

Aubrey Organics GPB conditioner

2010-01-23T14:11:00.002+02:00

I just love this hair conditioner! I purchased this from iHerb.com just out of curiosity. I had heard and read some good reviews about Aubrey Organics products, so I decided to test some. The GPB comes from "Glycogen Protein, Balancing" and the conditioner is meant for all hair types. It's creamy and heavy conditioner with a strong scent. My mane gets silky soft when I use it. It feels like GPB is actually nourishing it.

You would expect to find some very modern and scientific ingredients after the marvellous result, but GPB is actually 100% natural. There are no parabens or petrochemicals in it. Here are the ingredients copied from iHerb.com page: amino acid complex & horsetail extract, organic aloe vera, glycoprotein & lactalbumin, coconut fatty acid cream base, wheat germ oil, organic rosemary oil, organic sage oil, coltsfoot extract, nettle extract, balsam oil, Aubrey's Preservatives (citrus seed extract, vitamins A, C and E).

I use this as a basic conditioner and also as a deep conditioner. I don't apply GPB to my scalp because even though my hair loves it, I need to protect my sensitive skin. My skin itches a bit if GPB touches it, but fortunately it's just a minor sensation. I always use a shower cap with this so the skin in my neck and back is protected.

I really want to test more Aubrey Organics stuff now. There are some dry hair products that are probably even better than GPB. My hair ends need moisture so maybe I'll get me some Honeysuckle Rose Conditioner next. It sounds lovely :)

Bookworming

2010-01-21T13:35:00.011+02:00

I've been reading some books, new and old ones.. Here's a glimpse of the future.. I will review some of them for sure.

David Wolfe: Eating for Beauty

Peter Walsh: It's All Too Much

..and Does This Clutter Make My Butt Look Fat?

Nina Garcia: The Little Black Book of Style

..and The Style Strategy

..and The One Hundred

Michael Pollan: In Defence of Food

Robert Jones: Makeup Makeovers

Eve Pearl: Plastic Surgery Without Surgery. The Miracle of Makeup Techniques

Donna Farhi: Yoga Mind, Body & Spirit

Petri Räisänen: Astanga

Steven Pratt: Super Foods

Terje Nordberg: Runner's Guidebook

Caroline Cox: Vintage shoes

Christmas Kisses Bubble Bar

2010-01-21T08:33:00.000+02:00

Clove, cinnamon, orange, lime, benzoin, patchouli... maybe the best of the spicy bath cocktails made by Lush. Warming and lovely.

My piece was a bit ugly looking, but that didn't matter. It gave me lots of bubbles and I was wrapped inside the comforting scent.

Christmas Kisses was from the retro section and now I know why so many Lushies love this bar. It's just what you need when it's cold and dark outside and you desperately need something to make you feel alive again.

Father Christmas

2010-01-20T10:42:00.000+02:00

A soap that looks like any basic soap with a very basic soap scent. That's Father Christmas. Its colour is deep blue. My piece got lighter with usage, but there's nothing extra grand in it either.. it's just blue. Quite dark.

I think most of the Lush soaps are so different and special that something like Father Christmas might even be a bit disappointing.

There are lots of ingredients in this soap: cranberries, apple juice, oils, ylang ylang, jasmine, rose, bergamot... and the result: basic soap scent. I actually like a basic soap scent a lot, so it was ok for me. This soap was subtle, simple and classic, not trendy and wild at all. I used this together with my fav Christmas Lush soap; the one and only Snowcake.

Cinders <3

2010-01-14T12:27:00.000+02:00

This little baby here was maybe the best of Lush Christmas 2009 products:

It's small, but pretty. They could bring it back for Easter..

There's a sound effect in it :)

It crackles just like a fireplace. Unless you get a dud, so you need several of these to avoid that kind of a misery..

There's orange and cinnamon in it. The scent is the best part of this ballistic, even better than the crackling sound. It's warm, spicy, comforting. Several hours after my first test I noticed that the fabulous Cinders scent was still all around me.

Malt Solid Shampoo by Pieni Tuoksukauppa

2010-01-13T05:55:00.003+02:00

I tested Pieni Tuoksukauppa's malt shampoo. Here's the INCI list: Sodium olivate, sodium cocoate, sodium castorate, butyrospermum parkii butter, camellia oleifera oil, simmondsia chinensis oil, malt extract, aqua. So it's not your regular shampoo. It's very natural and mild. There are instructions in the shop site about this; you could use for example vinegar rinse afterwards, etc.

I didn't use any rinses, but I still liked this. It doesn't give you that overwashed superclean feeling, but if you need something mild, then this might be good for you. My only complaint is the shape. It's quite hard and a round shape would make it easier to use.

The Blonde Solid Shampoo

2010-01-12T06:00:00.001+02:00

Not so pretty picture this time.. this is how my Blonde shampoo looked like when I decided to throw it away. The smell was ok and it was doing its job, but since I had used it for ages I felt safer to put it to rest..

Blonde is good for blondes but for other shades too. Blondes love it because it's full of natural ingredients that may lighten your hair shade a bit; chamomile, marigold and lemon juice. I'm not sure about the lightning effect, but it's a good shampoo and also very nice looking in its blondeness. There are even lemon slices in it :)

I've also tested a small piece of Trichomania and I loved it, so I might get a bigger piece of that. My only complaint with these 2 solid shampoos is that I don't like the shape. I like those round little solid ones and I wish Lush would bring out these ones in that shape too. Round ones are easier to use and without sharp edges you can even rub them straight into your hair. You can of course cut these ones, but I would like to have a small, rounde Blonde.