Project 50 Pan Update!

When I started Project 50 Pan I thought it would be an easy task to complete. Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would struggle with making no purchases the way that I have. The first few days were obscene. This was mainly because I was exposed to a lot of gorgeous shops and wasn't allowed to buy anything. Whilst I have had a few Birthdays and Mother's Day to buy gifts for I think it is actually worse buying for other people when you know you can't buy for yourself! Please don't think I'm evil but I found myself resenting my Mum because I had to give her a gorgeous candle that I wasn't allowed to buy for myself for Mother's Day. Lol!

Here I am 15 Days into Project 50 Pan and I am so proud to report that I have not made one single beauty purchase! Even I thought I would have slipped up by now. As much as I have been tempted to shop I keep willing myself not to because I do not want to have to admit that I have failed to you guys and all my Family and Friends who are watching me attempt this! I know a few of my Family and Friends are waiting for me to fail with baited breath! It's not easy though, in fact it is so much more challenging than you would think.

It's time for me to be real here people and as I am all about sharing I think it is only fair that I make a few confessions.

I have raided my big beauty closet (aka a 4 door built in floor to ceiling wardrobe) in search of any products that were half empty or almost finished. I have removed all of them and started using them like a mad woman in a desperate and somewhat pathetic attempt to finish them.

I saw my Mum had finished a hair product and sneakily went through the rubbish looking for the packaging so I could pretend it was an empty of mine. Unfortunately she busted me and said that I was cheating!

I asked myself if one cotton bud was a full sized beauty product and if so could I just use 50 cotton buds and declare the task a complete success?

I have been burning 5 candles at once trying to get rid of them. I am trying to stick to the same scent family but desperate times call for desperate measures right?

I have never successfully completed a task anything like this before. It is kind of gut wrenching to think of all the hardship going on in other parts of the world and even here in Australia and here I am worrying about not being able to buy beauty products because I am on a self imposed ban! Something I am realising though is we live such a privileged existence and I shamefully admit I kind of like it! I never realised how much money I spend on beauty goods and how I gravitate towards the beauty counters, toiletry sections and cosmetics departments of stores. It's like waving a red flag at a bull when I enter a store.

Here is a picture of my empties so far:

1. Nak Aromas Shampoo with Argan Oil - This is a good general shampoo that I have repurchased many times. It has the added benefits of argan oil and it leaves my baby fine hair soft and hydrated. It retails for around $18 for 250ml and is available at Price Attack, wholesalers and various salons and online stores.

2. Lush Oatfix Fresh Face Mask - This mask is another product I constantly repurchase. It is made with Oats, Bananas, Crushed Almonds and Vanilla and is designed for dry or sensitive skin. I like to use this mask if my skin is looking a bit dehydrated and dull. It leaves my skin feeling soft and hydrated. This Mask has a limited shelf life of around 3 weeks and must be kept refrigerated. It costs around $16 for 75g and is available at Lush Stores as well as online at www.lush.com.au

3. Wotnot Face Wipes - I was initially put on to these wipes by my friend Anissa over at www.beautifullyglossy.blogspot.com The appealing thing about these wipes is that they are all natural with no added nasty ingredients. They are great at removing makeup and taking the day off. The one thing I did find with these wipes is that the essential oils in them did irritate my sensitive eyes a little bit. Wotnot Wipes retail for around $15 for 25 wipes.

4. Lydia Jordane Eye Lifting Cream - I have loved this eye cream for many years now. My eyes are very sensitive and this eye cream doesn't irritate them at all. I could never be without this in my skin care routine even though I use other eye creams this is the old faithful I always end up coming back to. It contains lots of beautiful ingredients including Yeast Beta Glucan, Hyaluronic Acid, Vegetable Ceramides, Phyto Ceramide, Rosehip Oil and Evening Primrose Oil. It retails for around $56 for 15ml. It can be purchased via professional beauty salons and online.

5. The Body Shop Earth Lovers Watermelon and Eucalyptus Shower Gel - I love the Earth Lovers Shower Gels from The Body Shop. They smell amazing and are also free from Sulphates, Parabens and Colourants.  They cost $14.95 for 250ml and are available at The Body Shop or www.thebodyshop.com.au

6. Beauty and The Bees Rosewater Toning Mist - Beauty and The Bees is a Tasmanian owned company that makes natural products free of sulphates and nasty chemicals. The Rosewater Toning Mist smells absolutely gorgeous. It is without doubt my favourite rosewater that I have ever tried. It costs $19.95 for 100ml and is available at www.beebeauty.com

7. Lush Twilight Shower Gel - This lavender scented shower gel was a limited edition product from Lush for Halloween last year. It is not currently available but I am hoping that Lush will bring this back this year for Halloween. It is lavender scented but not in an old lady stinky kind of way. It almost has a candied sweet scent to it probably because of the tonka note in it. I have loved using this product especially in the evening before bed.

8. Alpha H Phase 1 Wash- This wash has been renamed Clear Skin Daily Face Wash. It retails for around $34 for 100mls of product. This face wash was recommended to me by a friend when I was experiencing constant small breakouts around my chin. It contains Eucalyptus and Tea Tree to heal, calm and soothe the skin and help control excess sebum. It is designed to prevent future breakouts.

When I first started using this product I noticed within a week my breakouts were healing and my skin was calmer in general. This face wash is designed for people aged 12-40 with oily skin types.

I have a few more empties but have decided to hold them over until my next Project 50 Pan update. Are any of you attempting your own no buy or use up project at the moment? If so how are you going?


Note: I am not sponsored by any of the above mentioned brands or companies. All products were purchased with my own money and all opinions are entirely my own.

Project 50 Pan (eeeeeek)!

I am a shameless over consumer. I excessively collect beauty products and shamefully admit that I never even use half of them. For some reason I just keep buying them and it wasn't until recently that I realised how out of control my little beauty habit had became. I was watching an episode of Hoarders on TV and my Mother turned to me and said ''you are going to end up on that show''! This in itself wasn't a revelation. I am a Hoarder (although I prefer to call it an avid collector). I think the fact that I still have my Barbie Doll collection from my childhood stored in my Dad's garage will attest to this!

It suddenly occurred to me the sheer volume of products I have is taking over my home and I am not using even a fraction of the products that I buy. I decided to have a good look at the state of my home. Three large double bedrooms and a study have been taken over by my beauty collection. Chests of drawers intended for clothing are filled with makeup. Wardrobes are stacked from floor to ceiling with scented candles, many of which have never been opened let alone used. The Bathrooms are cluttered with more products than a small village of women could ever use in a lifetime. Heaven forbid the house ever catch on fire as the volume of perfume I have is enough to cause a massive explosion.

Clearly I need to take action and stage a self induced intervention. Enter Project 50 Pan! I started telling friends and family that I was going to use up 50 products across the entire beauty spectrum before purchasing one more single item from the Makeup, Hair Care, Skin Care, Candle or Bath and Body categories. Of course everyone I told of my mission laughed and told me they couldn't wait to see me fail. It became obvious to me that I have became a joke and that nobody thinks I can stop beauty shopping. I decided I needed to make my commitment to this cause known so I hereby pledge to donate $200 to a charity of my choice for every breach of Project 50 Pan I make. Yes that's right $200! Ouch that will hurt. As much as I like to donate to charity I do not want to be donating money in that volume to them on a regular basis. In fact so determined am I to be successful at project 50 pan that it is my hope to not have to donate any money at all!

It is going to be tough because barely a week ever goes buy that I don't make multiple beauty purchases. Shopping for beauty products has became such a huge part of my everyday life. I have spent so much money building this ridiculous collection of stuff and at the end of the day I need to take responsibility for all the money I have wasted and start looking for more productive ways to spend my time and my money. I am hoping that project 50 pan will help me save some money and start to make inroads on my massive beauty collection. I will be posting regular updates on my progress of project 50 pan right here on my blog. I am asking all my subscribers to get behind me and support me on my quest to successfully complete my goal.

This is going to be hard for me and I am sure I am going to need your help to keep me motivated on my quest. I will be posting pictures of my empty products along the way. On completion of project 50 pan I will be randomly selecting a subscriber to give away a prize to. I am unsure what the prize will include as yet but it will include the much sought after Urban Decay Naked 2 Palette amongst other things. So here we go - Let project 50 Pan begin! Wish me luck!

Note: Things such as Toothpaste, Deoderant and Mouthwash are not included as beauty products. They are essential products that are allowed to be repurchased. However all other items including shampoo and conditioners are a part of Project 50 Pan as are makeup wipes, removers etc.

My Second Visit To The Benefit Brow Bar!

My regular readers will remember that just prior to Christmas I had my first visit to a Benefit Brow Bar. Whilst I was away I decided I would give them another go and see how my two experiences compared.

On my first visit you will recall that the Benefit team tried to sell me everything but the kitchen sink but the service I received was great. I wish I could say the same this time. Upon walking into the Myer Store the actual assistant that ended up doing my Brow Shape was standing outside smoking. After signing into the brow bar she returned inside the Brow Bar and called out my name. Thankfully she did use some hand disinfectant before commencing my brow shape.

I took my seat and told my service consultant I just wanted a brow tidy. She was very rough with me and I can't remember feeling so much discomfort before during a wax. She was slapping wax on and ripping it off very roughly, not even applying pressure for some relief after taking the wax strips off. Thankfully my ordeal was over in under 7 minutes. We conversed very little. What truly surprised me was that she didn't try to sell me anything. I was a little concerned that she didn't bother to freshen up my makeup or conceal any of the redness which stuck out like nobodies business after she had finished. I didn't care I just wanted out of there!

The next day I had red bumps all around my brows. I have experienced this before on a few occasions but it isn't typical. This settled within a few days and in general I was very happy with how my brows had been shaped. Now a week later they look great. However the unpleasant experience really wasn't worth it.

My general thoughts are that I will not be returning to a Benefit Brow Bar again anytime in the near future. I would much prefer to stick to a Beauty Salon where I am made feel comfortable and welcome. I am really disappointed because I love Benefit as a brand. I think that I will stick to just purchasing their products in the future.


Note: I am not sponsored by Benefit or Benefit Brow Bars. My service was fully paid for by my own money and all opinions are exclusively my own.

Diesel Loverdose

This week I purchased the brand new fragrance offering from Diesel. I was particularly looking forward to the release of this fragrance since I heard the notes in it included Mandarin, Lemon, Star Anise, Gardenia, Jasmine, Licorice, Vanilla, Ambrox, Cedar and Sandalwood. When I had my first sniff of Loverdose I wasn't at all disappointed.

I like sweet fragrances. I always have, although my taste is somewhat maturing as I get older and I now wear fragrances from all fragrance families, the days of smelling like a sickly sweet lolly shop are thankfully behind me. I guess as I approach my mid thirties my life experiences and I like to think a little bit of wisdom is making my taste perhaps a tiny bit more refined than it once was.

Loverdose is still a sweet scent but it is a little more grown up than some of the other sweet scents on the market (Britney Spears I am looking at you). Diesel created this fragrance with the 25-55 age group in mind. I personally think age should not influence scent and that anyone can wear any scent regardless of age.

The bottle is a translucent purple heart with faceted glass which resembles a diamond. It has a black lid and a black sword going through the bottle from the inside (eludes to a sword through the heart one would assume).

This fragrance lasts a long time on my skin and I love wearing it. Best of all at the moment if you buy a 75ml bottle from Myer or The Perfume Connection you get a 30ml bottle for free as a gift with purchase. The 30ml bottle is gorgeous to keep in your handbag. The 75ml costs $110.

I would recommend this fragrance to anyone who likes a sweet scent. It is so feminine and pretty.

Note: I am not sponsored by Diesel, Myer or The Perfume Connection. This fragrance was purchased with my own money and all opinions are entirely my own.

Clean Fragrances

Last weekend I had a little interstate trip and did a little shopping. I went a little crazy on fragrances.

I was wandering around Kit Cosmetics when I came across the Clean Fragrance range. I am currently loving crisp clean scented fragrances so naturally I had to stop and have a sniff.

(Pictured Above Left to Right - Clean Shower Fresh EDP, Warm Cotton EDP and Fresh Laundry EDP)

There are around five different fragrances in the Clean range. I decided to get three of them in the 30ml bottles ($45 each) because I couldn't decide which I liked better. You can also get the fragrances in 60ml bottles for $76.95 each or the cute 10ml roller balls for $24.95 each). As far as I know Clean fragrances are sold exclusively through Kit Cosmetics and Mecca Maxima Stores in Australia.

I have worn each of these fragrances and I still can't decide which one is my favourite. They last a good six to eight hours on my skin so their staying power gets a big thumbs up from me.

When I apply these fragrances they make me feel so fresh and clean (hence the name). The scents evoke feelings of just getting out of the shower and feeling all crisp and clean or perhaps even just getting into fresh white sheets on my bed.

Anyone that knows me personally will tell you that perfume is like my crack. It makes me happy and can transform my mood in an instant. I am digging these Clean fragrances like nobodies business and I am so hooked on them that I am considering ordering the others that I didn't get. Best of all Clean is an eco-conscious collection so no harm is done to the environment with these.

Call me strange but this morning I bathed my two fur babies Banjo and Molly and it suddenly occurred to me that the Clean Fragrances would smell good on them to. Okay so there's nothing worse than the scent of wet doggy, so after their blow dry I spritzed a little Warm Cotton into their coats. I get the impression that Banjo was really feeling it but Molly still prefers her beloved Katy Perry Purrrr. I'll keep that in mind for future reference LOL!!

For anyone who likes clean, crisp, fresh scents I highly recommend checking out the Clean range. The best thing about them is that they aren't common so you will certainly have something unique when wearing them.


Note: I am not sponsored by Clean fragrances or Kit Cosmetics. All products were purchased with my own money and all opinions are my own.

Long Time No See!

Hi Guys,
I am so sorry for my eight week absence. I haven't been well and unfortunately with my health status that means sometimes I will disappear off the face of the earth for a while.

I am sincerely sorry for the lack of posting on my blog recently. I am very much an all or nothing type of person and I didn't want to do posts when I wasn't feeling great and able to give my all to them.

I hope every single one of you are doing well and having a great 2012 so far!

So without further ado I will get started on what we are all here for and get back to posting.

Thank you so much for your patience and understanding.


Kxo

Happy New Year Blabber!

Hey Everyone,
Sorry I have been so absent from posting during December. I have been very busy with lots of social occasions and Christmas etc and things tended to get a little bit busy. I am now back and refreshed and excited to start blogging more regularly from now on.

I hope everyone has had an amazing start to 2012.

Christmas was crazy and to be honest I am so glad that it is over! Boxing day I am usually out shopping the sales like a mad woman but I was so exhausted this year that I slept all day. The thing is on Christmas day we have a huge day with so much crammed in that we literally don't stop. Up at 5am and rushing for breakfast followed by visiting the cemetery's where the graves lie of loved ones past. We then hot foot it up the East Coast of Tasmania to my Mum's Sisters house (around a 2 hour drive), have a huge seafood and traditional Christmas lunch then we hightail it back down south (another 2 hour drive) and host around 30 for Dinner. Christmas Day usually ends sometime early on Boxing Day Morning. Boxing Day we have friends and people we didn't get to see the day before over again. It's all very draining!

New Years Eve was very quiet. I honestly couldn't have thought of anything worse than being in big crowds surrounded by drunk hooligans watching fireworks. Something tells me I am getting old! Instead we went to my Cousins house for a lovely dinner and helped celebrate her Husbands 40th Birthday. We were home at 9.30, mainly because I was worried about the puppies if anyone started letting fireworks off in the park lands down below. Here's where the story gets really pathetic, when the clock struck midnight and everyone else was screaming Happy New Year I was in bed!

New years day was great. I got to catch up with all my relatives at my Uncles 60th Birthday and have a good chat with my cousins who were home for the holidays from Queensland. It's always great to see them.

On January 2nd I went to The Taste of Tasmania which is a part of the annual Summer Festival here in Tasmania. Basically it all coincides with The Sydney To Hobart Yacht Race (which I love).

Tasmania is known for it's amazing food and produce especially it's fruit and seafood. The Taste of Tasmania is Basically a big food festival showcasing some of Tasmania's best food and wine. On Monday I spent much of the day there enjoying things such as Pink Eye Potatoes With Sweet Chilli and Sour Cream, Huon Valley Mushrooms with Chilli Plum Sauce, Thai Chilli Calamari with Palm Sugar, Mixed Tasmanian Berries amongst other things!

I hope you have all had a great holiday season whether you celebrate Christmas or not. I hope 2012 brings all you want and more. I look forward to getting to know you all more throughout the year.

I want to thank each and every single one of you for your support with my Blog. I honestly still can't believe that anyone would want to read anything I write. As many of you know I have multiple illnesses which keep me confined to home a lot and this blog gives me an outlet to talk about the things I love such as makeup and beauty products. Again thank you so much for your support and friendship.

If anyone has any requests on blog posts you would like see please feel free to make your suggestions in the comments below.