Review: Dr. Andrew Weil for Origins Mega-Mushroom Skin Relief Face Mask

mask

I asked Jules to bring this mask back from London for me because I had been dying to try something from the Origins range, and this product seemed the most suited to my skincare needs. This mask claims to rapidly reduce visible redness, blotchiness and reactivity – the perfect anecdote for my irritable, sensitive skin. The magic ingredient, allegedly, is mushrooms (which you will no doubt have gathered from the name), which Dr Weil maintains are essential for the well-being of your skin, and play a particularly crucial role in the reduction of inflammation. Does it work? No. Or rather, not in…

Mother’s Day Beauty Buys: On a Budget

Mother's Day Beauty Buys on a Budget

If your mum is anything like mine, then she doesn’t spend lots of time or money on herself. Mother’s Day is the perfect opportunity to spoil her with a treat from the beauty department and here are my favourite finds if you’re on a budget: Essie Nail Polish in Ole Caliente – R100 African Extracts Spa Treatment Pack – R100 The Body Shop Honey & Oat 3 in 1 Scrub Mask – R125 LUSH Dream Cream body lotion – R155 Crabtree & Evelyn Gardeners Hand Cream Mini Kit – R160 Stila Stay All Day Liquid Lipstick in Patina – R180 Clinique Bottom Lash Mascara – R180

April Favourites: Jules

April Favourites

So all my favourite and most-used products this month are from overseas but I had to be honest and include them because otherwise this wouldn’t really be a list of my monthly favourites! They’re all things I bought in London and have used pretty much every day since. By the way – do you guys want me to do a haul and show you all the stuff I bought or does that sound boring? Let me know in the comments. Mini product reviews for each of these after the jump.

April Favourites: Camilla

Camilla's April Favourites

Tom Ford Lip Color Shine in Frolic: Julia gave this to me as part of my 30th birthday present – does my best friend know how to spoil me or what? I think I actually squealed when I opened it. It’s a beautiful, soft coral colour with a subtle shimmer shot through it, and whilst the finish is quite sheer and glossy, it is definitely buildable. It has more of a balm-like consistency, which I like as it’s so smooth and creamy, but it does also mean that it’s easy to over-apply. I am trying to use it sparingly because…

NEW: MAC Temperature Rising Collection

MAC Temperature Rising Collection

MAC’s latest collection, Temperature Rising is now in-store. Our sale spy at the V&A Waterfront spotted the store being stocked with all manner of gorgeous new goodies, so if you like the look of this collection, I suggest you check it out. I was bitterly disappointed to miss out on buying ANYTHING from the Archie’s Girls collection because I made the mistake of going to the store at 11am on the day of the launch and it was sold out already. Extreme sadface. Here’s the official collection description: “MAC captures the steamy nocturnal scene in a vivid summer colour collection.…

Cruelty-Free Beauty: Hair Products

Cruelty Free Haircare

Last in our list of cruelty-free beauty products available in South Africa (we did cosmetics and skincare earlier in the week) is hair products! Tarah, one of our readers, asked us on Twitter for some help finding shampoos, conditioners and styling products that weren’t tested on animals, besides the obvious ones like LUSH and The Body Shop. It was that tweet that inspired this whole series so thanks Tarah! There are quite a few cruelty-free haircare brands out there and Wellness Warehouse is a real goldmine. Unfortunately it’s difficult to find a good variety of reasonably priced, bunny-friendly haircare in the…

Skincare 101 with Caroline Hirons and Pixiwoo

Regular readers will know much Julia and I respect and admire Caroline Hirons and the Pixiwoo sisters, Samantha Chapman and Nicola Haste. I could listen to them talk about skincare and makeup for the rest of my life, and I’d still be captivated by them. The Pixiwoo girls sat down with Caroline to have a chat about her routine and her favourite products, and she also imparted some of her much-sought-after skincare advice as well as a few handy tips and tricks (for example, don’t keep any beauty products in the bathroom – it’s too hot and the products will…

Cruelty-Free Beauty: Skincare

Leona Lewis for The Body Shop: Cruelty Free Beauty

Following on from Monday’s post about cruelty-free cosmetics, we have now compiled a list of locally-available skincare products, many of which are organic, vegan and/or produced in South Africa too. As before, brands marked with an asterisk appear on PETA’s list of companies that don’t test on animals. You can learn more by visiting the PETA website, LeapingBunny.org, GoCrueltyFree.org and the Vegan SA product directory.   Montagne Jeunesse* (Clicks, Dischem, Hyperama and Pick ‘n Pay) Balm Balm (Stockists) Esse (Stockists) African Extracts (Spar, Pick ‘n Pay, Checkers and Dischem, selected Clicks stores and pharmacies) Neal’s Yard Remedies* (Woolworths, rubybox) Crabtree & Evelyn* (Store locator) Dr Hauschka* (Stockists) Paula’s Choice*…