New Stuff!!

So due to illness and the general messing around getting ready for my "Sexy Birthday Party" I've been a bit slack with the blog!

Today I will be writing about new stuff!!!!
First of all my new hair!!

Ah. So mysterious. Haha.
I used InVision blue dust free bleach and InVision 40V Developer from Hairquip, and I used white toner, midnight blue, and lagoon blue from Directions.

Vanilla Choc Mars Bar:
Massive let down. I love Vanilla flavoured things-I wish Nesquik would bring back their vanilla milkshake powder because it was SO GOOD... Companies always stop making things I like-but I'll save that for another blog.
So, here I was thinking that this Mars bar would taste...well....like vanilla... fair assumption I thought... 

It doesn't. My first bite was a big (or rather small) mouthful of disappointment. It pretty much tasted like a normal Mars bar, but sweeter. I thought I had better not dismiss it that quickly. I am extremely picky about food and can often pick up subtle flavours. So I decided to break it down. I took away the caramel, and the chocolate, and was left with the "vanilla nougat". FINALLY I could taste the vanilla! But even by itself it wasn't very strong. If you're wanting to have the taste of eating more sugar while eating a Mars bar, this is the bar for you, if you're looking for a smooth vanilla taste, you will have to look elsewhere.

Pepsi Max Lime:
A little bit of a let down (lol). I don't usually drink Pepsi Max over Pepsi (and I'd like to take the time to point out that our fizzy/soda/soft drink here isn't quite the same as in the states even though it has the same name). When I saw this drink was in the supermarket I already knew I was going to try it. I try new drinks that seem like they could be decent. So anyway, I opened up the bottle and took a sip expecting it to taste.... you know it... like lime!! 

It didn't.
Now, here's the thing. I think normal Pepsi Max tastes horrible. I much prefer the normal Pepsi to Pepsi Max. The normal Pepsi can be a bit much for me though. Pepsi Max Lime is a light Pepsi that tastes a whole lot better than Pepsi Max-so lighter than Pepsi, better tasting than Pepsi Max.
However, if you're wanting a Pepsi Lime flavour similar to the refreshing taste of Diet Coke Lime-you're shit out of luck. Maybe buy some limes and make your own?

3B Face Saver Gel:
I'm not afraid to admit I get sweaty. We all sweat. We all know we all sweat lol. Some people sweat more from different places. You have the standard lots of sweat from the armpits, but some people sweat more from behind their knees, from their back, from their chest, from their feet...
I sweat more from my face! And it is SO ANNOYING.
Now, just to clarify, when I say that I sweat more from my face, my face never smells gross lol but I'm not going to spray my face with deodorant.
It ruined my makeup-especially my eye makeup because most of it came from where I have massive bags under my eyes lol (oh so beautiful! haha!) And I'm pretty sure after going in shops that have the heat turned WAY up, or through supermarket checkouts where they have the vents, I looked like a dishevelled sweaty girl who just ran to get her items... It was very frustrating.

So when I saw an ad on tv for this new gel, I knew I had to try it out.
The first pharmacy I went to had it for about $21-I thought that was quite expensive! I found it cheaper at another one.
One of the best purchases ever. Only a small amount of this gel is needed, you just apply it like you would primer-then if you're wearing makeup you put your primer, then foundation etc on top as usual.
It lasted all night, not once did my makeup slip due to sweat or oilyness. If you have a problem with this, I suggest you try it out for yourself.
Note: Do not accidentally get any in your mouth-it tastes horrible lol!

OTHER USEFUL/GOOD ITEMS:

• Sukin products- Sukin have a line of natural products including shampoo, conditioner, body scrub etc. I have tried the conditioner, and a friend has tried the shampoo and conditioner and we both love it!
• Homebrand soda water- I know not many people like soda water with other things let alone by itself, but I do. I don't want to spend a lot on soda water because, well, it's water. I usually buy Budget, but was recently bought Homebrand, and the Homebrand one tastes better imo.
• Nair 7 minute bleach- This is a bleach for facial hair (and I think it's ok for armpit hair as well? I don't know lol read the box). Basically it works in 4-7 minutes. Ladies, we have hair all over our bodies, and let's face it, sometimes in some places it's more noticeable than we want it to be. The Nair facial hair bleach is a sensitive bleach that's easy to use and effective-and it's not too expensive either!
• Lip liner- Chances are if you're using lipstick, you already know to use lip liner to line the outside of your lips. This helps prevent the lipstick from bleeding out onto your face lol and gives a good solid outline. What you may not know of is this little trick- line your lips with your lip liner, then use your finger (or applicator brush/wand) to smudge it out onto the rest of your lips. Re-line the outside for a solid outline, and apply lipstick as normal. This helps your lip colour stay in place longer, and have a more solid colour without having to put more lipstick on.

If anyone wants any tips or recommendations for something, just ask in the comments, and if I can help out, I'm happy to =)
~^_^~

Rapunzel! Let Down Your....oh?

HAIR!!! Most of us love it, some of us hate it, some of us aren't really bothered, but if you're a girl chances are you care about your hair! I know I do!
I've always had something I don't like about my hair. When I was younger it was incredibly curly-but all my friends had straight hair. When I was about 12 I started getting some white hair-I was told it was genetic, yahoo! NOT! I will never forget a girl telling me in highschool one day that she thought I had cool hair, and asked me where I got it streaked. Back then I didn't know much about hair, or dye, I didn't even know what streaking hair was! Then I went through several years of being in between ringlets and straight-pretty much just this big boof around my face. Now years on I have decided on a radical change. I have been ill so have lost a lot of my hair and now have a LOT of white/grey, and since the water got changed where I live I have had scalp issues. Something needed to give. I needed to change something. I needed a big change with my hair for me, and with my birthday coming up, I started to think about a new look.
I decided to go blue. Not your average dye job lol I could just stick blue dye in my hair and go ta daa! But that wouldn't work out very well on my dark hair. So of course, I need to bleach it.
The big B word when it comes to hair. Everyone thinks "bleaching! No! That'll kill your hair!" so many people think it'll all fall off, you'll get chemical burns etc etc... while we can't say that's never happened, it's not what happens all the time, and it won't necessarily happen to you. Here's the thing about bleaching hair... if you do it right, you can get really good results... if you don't, things could go very wrong. I suggest if you are thinking about bleaching your hair, do your research-a lot of it. You need to know if you hair will withstand bleaching, if you will be able to bleach your hair effectively, and if you have any colour in you need to get rid of it.... get a good bleach-not a cheap one, it'll be worth it.
So I had decided on bleaching. Problem was I was worried that it might not go well, that the condition of my hair might not be so great due to everything that has happened to it over the last six months.
I spent days reading up on hair tips, what's good for your hair, what you can do to help your hair, and what is bad for your hair. There were two things that stood out the most:
GOOD: Oils. Sunflower oil, argan oil, coconut oil etc and for dry and damaged hair natural things like nettle, aloe, silk extract, and horsetail...and pH balanced
BAD: SLS/ALS or Sodium Lauryl Sulphate/Sodium Laureth Sulfate/Ammonium Lauryl Sulphate

What does SLS/ALS do? Basically it's what cleans your hair. What we don't get told though is that it's a harsh surfactant (cleaner). Why are they putting something used in cleaner for rockets into our shampoo? It's something that is not being widely addressed and I'm hoping it changes because these chemicals COULD be the reason for some scalp issues or even damaging your hair-it's stripping everything off it.
But what does this have to do with hair dye and bleaching? We all know bleaching hair does damage it to an extent, but there are ways you can minimise the damage. You can start by using shampoos free of things like sulphates so that your hair is as pH balanced as possible and as healthy as possible-you want it to keep all those good things. Also, we all know that hair dye fades. Always. And we all know that the more you wash your hair, the more the dye will fade. BUT did you know that part of that reason is because of sulphates? They are stripping the colour bit by bit every time you wash your hair with those shampoos. Switching to sulphate free products will help prolong your colour.
I went down to the local wholefoods store to get some sulphate free shampoo and conditioner-I got a pH balanced shampoo with things like sesame oil, sunflower oil, horsetail, essential oils, and many other good things in it, and I got Sukin conditioner from a pharmacy.
The first time I used them I noticed a difference. I had less scalp irritation, my hair felt cleaner and softer. I didn't need to use much of either - probably about half the usual amount (which I was pleased with because they are not your cheap $5 a bottle hair products). It came out almost the same as what I would usually get with having to have two lots of mixed shampoo and two lots of mixed conditioner. So if you're having scalp or dry/frizzy hair issues, I would definitely look at getting a more natural sulfate free shampoo.
Which brings me to the shampoo brush.
I never knew this thing existed, in fact when I won it from something quite a long time ago, I thought it was a pet brush! (google it I'm too lazy to get a picture of mine lol). The shampoo brush helps work shampoo and conditioner into your hair and scalp so you get a better distribution of product and not too much in one place, and it gets right down to your scalp. It also helps remove all the stuff you don't want sitting on your scalp so you get a really good clean. I have had more success with this little hand held brush than I have with ANY anti dandruff shampoo. Put down your head and shoulders, your garnier, your prescription shampoo -all of which have SLS by the way- and find yourself a shampoo brush! You may still need treatment of some sort-it won't "cure" anything, but give it a go, you might be suprised!
This weekend I will be bleaching my hair and giving a review on Hairquip's "In Vision" dust free blue bleach power and their developer.
Remember-if you're going to dye your hair do a strand test and a patch test! It might seem annoying and a waste of time, but it's better for something to go wrong on a few strands of hair, or that tiny bit on your arm, rather than your entire head of hair and scalp!!
~^_^~

(Anti) Valentines?

So I've started a blog. I was about to write yet another rant on our favourite social website -the big F B- and thought that this was the time to start a blog. I've been thinking about it for years, and lately blogs seem to be generating a fair amount of interest, so onto the bandwagon I hop.
Seeing as this is my first post (of what will probably be many), I'd like to point out that you shouldn't expect much from this blog. I may post a ton of things that you may not agree with, and that's fine, just go write your own blog about it =) Also, I rarely write short pieces. If you don't like it, don't read it, no one is forcing you to. Or maybe someone is, in which case, you should probably try and get help with that.
I *plan* to do a few things with this blog. Number 1 is rant obviously, it helps me to be a nicer person when I venture out into public, I also plan to share my baking or craft creations, favourite products, and of course my least favourite products. I will also happily share various tips I've picked up over the years if it's called for in some way-there's always a way!

So with that out of the way, let's get into the first rant..

Valentines day is coming up. Two days away in my part of the world, and I cannot wait! I cannot wait, that is, until it is over. Now, those who know me may be sitting there thinking "Wait what? You have a significant other!"
Yes, yes I do, but that doesn't automatically mean I love Valentines day..
Valentines day has got to be one of the biggest crocks out there, I would even go as far as to say it's worse than Christmas. Why? Because it involves people's emotions more. The thing is though, it shouldn't.
Don't get me wrong, I am under no illusion about why people DO get so emotionally involved in Valentines day. If you don't have a significant other, no matter where you go chances are you'll see so many "love drunk" couples being all smoochy and lovey you'll want to puke-or run into the arms of a bottle of booze.. (for me it's the former).. If you do have a significant other you might look forward to the look on their face when you reveal an organised suprise, or when they open that present you spent hours agonising over.
I know these things because I used to be like that. I would try and think of what kind of thing my significant other would like to do, where they would like to go, what could I get them that would make them happy?
I like to make people I care about happy (I should hope everyone does, though I know a few people that concept missed lol).
This is where my problem with Valentines day starts. We want to make the people we care about happy. For most people there is no one way. This is where we get sucked into a load of bs that I personally think has the strong potential to mess up a relationship. Valentines ruin relationships? Never!
Some of you will know that due to recent events, plus my birthday coming up, funds are a bit tight. I was under the impression that my significant other and I weren't doing anything for Valentines (just like Christmas) because neither of us have a decent amount of the moolah at the moment. A friend asked what we were doing, and I outright told him nothing because we have no money, and I discussed it with my significant other. I was fine with that. We're still together now, after recent events, and anyone who's been in the same situation can tell you that what we just went through is one of THE biggest tests on your relationship out there (minus the obviously stupid things like adultery and such-and by that I mean don't cheat on your partner). I know I love him, and I know he loves me (I could get all sentimental and soppy about this, but I'm not going to). So when he uttered the words "what do you want to do for Valentines day?" I had no words. My mind went blank. I think I cautiously said "I thought we weren't doing anything 'cause we have no money?".
Which brings me to today's discovery. A local daily deal website emailed me with their latest bunch of crap (I have yet to be offered anything of interest), in it I saw something about roses, I thought eh Valentines day, must be cheap surely, I'll go have a look, it might be nice.
When I got to the page my mouth dropped open. They were calling HOW MUCH for a single rose a deal? Twelve dollars. They were charging twelve dollars, on special, for one rose. Normally that ONE ROSE costs TWENTY FIVE DOLLARS. If either price seems reasonable to you then you're either out of your mind or you have a good enough pay packet to not give one iota of a shit, because that is ridiculous. You can get a freaking rose bush for less than that.
I remember years ago I decided to buy a rose (amoung other things) for the guy I was with at the time... It cost me nine dollars-which I thought was expensive, but I didn't get your general red open rose so I thought it was an ok trade off.
But that's only where it starts. It starts with roses, or chocolates, or candy, or jewellery, and the next thing you know you've got all of them plus dinner plans and no money for the next two months.
Where does it end? Just like everything else with girls Valentines is another thing that's super competitive. Oh what'd your boyfriend get you? Oh a bunch of flowers? Mine got me a diamond bracelet. Oh wow you guys didn't have sex? But it's Valentines! -I didn't realise sex had pre programmed dates that I was obliged to attend.
What a lot of us don't realise is that it's also a pretty big deal for the guys too. Most guys are the caretaker types. We all know they can be a bit immature and immersed in their own worlds, but for a lot of guys they just want to take care of their girl (or guy). When they have guy friends who are also in relationships, they might feel less of a man, less of a provider, if they feel that their friend's significant other did more than he did himself. And girls don't do a whole hell of a lot to prevent that.
Apart from the obvious and ridiculous level that the commercialism of Valentines has risen to, here are some other reasons I don't like Valentines day.
A point I mentioned above-expectations. People expect you and your other half to do things. Sex, dinner, give presents are all amoung the most expected. But why? Why do we all have to go to dinner on that day? Why do we have to give presents on that day? Why do we supposedly have to express our love on THAT DAY?! I'm not a big fan of doing anything anyone tells me to, so I sure as hell have a problem with being expected to have an emotional outpouring of love on a specific day. I'd like to think we're capable of suprising each other with little things throughout the year-I was pleasantly suprised a little while ago when my other half cleaned the kitchen.
It's not really a suprise on Valentines day. I personally would rather have a nice suprise ...when it's a suprise..
I much prefer to go out to dinner when mutually agreed and organised-not just because everybody else is. Which brings me to the next reason I don't much like Valentines day.
I don't much like people. This is something, if you don't already know, you will come to learn. What does this have to do with Valentines? They're everywhere on this day. More than usual. And being all soppy *puke*. I personally have a bit of an issue with PDA. I don't really like it, I think that sort of thing is personal and should be (mostly-mostly!!!!) kept that way. Personal. In your own personal space.  Certainly not in the seat right in front of me on the bus. And definitely not while I'm trying to eat my damn dinner. If I were rich enough I would arrange home massages. THAT is what I think would be fantastic. Something relaxing.
Why is Valentines day such a big deal? So competitive? So commercialised? Why can't we just relax with our loved one? We'd all probably say that that is what we *do* do. But deep down most of us will acknowledge that that's not entirely true.
Whether you do or don't have a special someone to share this Valentines day with, just remember, it's a DAY. That's all it is. Relax and enjoy it however you choose to, you'll enjoy it so much more when you stop worrying about it so much... (and when you find a place away from all those sickening highschool students who are "in love")
~^_^~