Category Archives: beauty news

There are people who can “do” nails and people who simply can’t. I fall into the latter category; the very height of my nail-painting capabilities is applying a bright colour without going over the edges. I can just about do that now – first time – without having to spend ten minutes fixing my mistakes with a remover-soaked cotton bud! But a whole Nail Artistry set? With gems and stickers and complicated patterns? I’ll leave that to the girls who know what they’re doing – with steady hands and the patience of a saint. This week I asked Martha from @NailTechMartha to create something beautiful with Dior’s Nail Artistry box. Here’s the lovely Martha:

There’s a link to Martha’s Instagram below – her page is a colourful scrapbook of the different nail designs that she creates for clients, from the most natural French mani to the more outrageous, hot-pink pointy extensions! It was no wonder that the Nail Artistry Box got her pulse racing – the set included stencils, gems, tweezers and two polishes; a chrome effect one and a gel top coat. Like a dressing-up box, but for your nails. I would have absolutely no idea what to do with that lot, but it seems that Martha had a bit of a field day! Chromed nails, sparkly nails, little glittery stars…

I particularly like the diagonal pink-and-chrome nail and the fully-gemmed accent nail. Perfectly done. Martha is a pro nail technician, but she said “the stencils are fun and easy enough for anyone to apply, though patience is key when you’re waiting to peel the sticker off”, and she was also impressed with the chrome polish – “quick to apply and dried fast”. Martha loved the gel top coat – “very shiny, and again, quick drying. It sealed in the manicure beautifully” and was surprised that it gave such a professional gel finish without the need for any UV light. The only really tricky part was the gem application, Martha said that the gems are quite difficult to handle. (I suppose that’s where the “patience of a saint” part comes in handy!)

This set would make a great gift for nail enthusiasts; I like the fact that Martha has been able to create so many different looks and that they all look chic and sophisticated rather than the usual glitz that I associate with nail artistry. I’ll definitely be investing in a bottle of the gel top coat – you can buy it individually here, it’s £19 – and I might even be tempted by an accent nail or two! You can find the Nail Artistry box at Selfridges here – it’s £46. The pink that Martha has used in the shots is not included, but I love it – it’s shade 547, Bouquet. You can find that online at FeelUnique. I’ll be setting Martha another nail task soon, in the meantime make sure you’re following her on Instagram.

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At the end of January I began a two-month-long clear skin experiment with Viridian Nutrition. As you will probably know (because I simply never shut up about it) I’ve been battling with quite severe hormonal cystic acne for over a year and a half now. My skin has been a real sore point for me both emotionally and physically and I’ve tried countless methods looking for help to battle the acne beast, from antibiotics and avoiding dairy to holistic methods, juicing and taking every superfood possible.

Someday soon I’m going to sit and write down my full acne journey for you, because I really feel like this spotty chapter of my life is coming to an end now, and I have a lot to share about what has and what hasn’t worked for me. For now though, let’s get back to Viridian!

I’ve been taking the Clear Skin Complex capsules and Clear Skin Omega Oil for over two months now and the results have been amazing. I’ve been taking pictures of my skin for the past year and I really wanted to show a before and after from taking these, but I’m not ready to show them yet (sorry!), they make me cringe so badly because they’re just so awful, and even though I can see the major improvement, my cheeks are peppered in scars from the war zone it’s having to recover from.

I take two Clear Skin Complex capsules every morning with breakfast, these capsules are described as ‘a specially formulated blend of targeted minerals, botanicals and fat-soluble carotenoids in a base of probiotics’.

The capsules contain:

• Probiotics
• Burdock Root
• Gotu Kola
• Lutein
• Natural Beta-Carotene/Carotenoid complex
• Zinc
• Astaxanthin
• Selenium
• Lycopene.

“There are numerous research papers indicating the use of nutrition in skin health and consistent through this research are three factors: Inflammation, Free radical damage and Digestion. Organic Clear Skin Omega Oil provides a reliable source of omegas 3, 6 and 9 essential fatty acids. Dominant in omega 3, this oil also contains a range of fat-soluble antioxidants including vitamin E and carotenoids plus phytosterols and flavonoids.”

The oil contains:

• Organic Golden Flaxseed Oil 79%
• Organic Perilla Seed Oil 7%
• Organic Avocado Oil 4%
• Organic Pumpkin Seed Oil 3%
• Organic Argan Oil 2%
• Organic Sea Buckthorn Oil 1%
• Organic Pomegranate Seed Oil 1%
• Organic Blackcurrant Seed Oil 0.5%
• Organic Elderberry Seed Oil 0.5%

This oil is beneficial in two major ways, firstly the essential fatty acids improve skin health with hydration and healing leaving it looking calmer, plumper, more hydrated and smoother. The EFA’s also encourage thinning of the sebum in clogged pores, and redness, itchiness and painful acne all responds well to the anti-inflammatory benefits. Omega-3 is also amazing for healthy hair and nail growth.
Secondly, flaxseed oil contains phytoestrogens which help stabilise our estrogen-progesterone ratio that can have beneficial effects on the menstrual cycle and hormonal acne (yes!).

To take this oil I’ve simply been adding 2-3 teaspoons into my smoothies. It adds a slightly nutty/earthy taste but it’s nothing major and I barely notice it now.

So what about results?

By the end of month one my skin was so much softer and calmer, it was smoother and looked brighter. I had a huge cyst on my cheek just as I started taking the supplements which was just starting to heal and has left a quite a large, deep scar but other than that I noticed nothing but steady improvement, especially on my perioral dermatitis and the overall texture of my skin.

By month two things were really starting to look up. I haven’t had any cystic acne since month two. That time of the month has just been, which is usually the worst and when I get my worst cysts, but this month I experienced only one spot on my chin and what felt like a tiny cyst on my cheek that never came to be anything and disappeared after a couple of days without leaving any red mark!!
My boyfriend even commented on how much better my skin is looking lately, so the changes must be noticeable and not just in my head 😉

My scars are finally healing without new additions every month and my left cheek which is the better less heavily scarred cheek almost look normal these days. I’m still working on the texture and indentations left behind which will take much, much longer to correct but it’s progress. My skin is nowhere near perfect, I still have little spots popping up here and there and quite oily skin but hey, rome wasn’t built in a day.
I’m now starting month 3 and I’m hoping by month 4 I can start taking just one capsule a day to make it more economical and just maintain the benefits, as well as purchasing Viridians’ Organic Flaxseed oil instead which is cheaper than the Omega Oil.

Do you take any supplements for your skin? if so which?

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It was many moons ago now that I mentioned the Bravura London Salicylic Acid Peel, only really in passing because I had just purchased it. The comments I recieved on that post were pretty much all about Bravura, either saying how it was amazing, or they wanted to try it… so here I am 4 months later to let you know my thoughts! You certainly can’t say I don’t put some serious testing time into my reviews 😉

I’m going to point out straight away that this product isn’t natural or green like the products I usually feature, however I’ve copied the ingredients below so you can see that they’re actually quite simple and for a product that is a chemical peel and is washed off, I think it’s a-okay. Bravura products are also cruelty free and

I went for the Bravura Salicylic Acid Peel (£9.59) because I’d been suffering with a tonne of blocked pores thanks to my crazy oily and hormonal imbalanced skin. Salicylic acid is incredibly effective at treating acne, blackheads and oily skin, more so than glycolic and lactic acids which are better for treating texture, hyperpigmentation and wrinkles. The Bravura Peels are designed to be used every other day and the lower concentration of salicylic acid allows for an effective regular treatment for congested skin without any irritation. I only use my peel 1-2 times a week, as I’ve found this is the perfect amount to keep my skin ticking over nicely whilst working on banishing blackheads and blemishes.

I started out by using the peel for only 4 minutes at a time, but have worked up to leaving it on for up to half an hour without any tingling or discomfort. The peel must be applied to clean and dry skin that has had time to return to a balanced PH level, either by waiting 30 minutes after cleansing or by using an PH balancing toner before use, this is a important step so make sure you don’t forget! The peel itself looks and feels exactly like water (as that is the main ingredient) and works best when applied with a brush, I use an old synthetic paint brush but you can also buy brushes from Bravura for about £3.

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