Archive for the ‘Tried and tested’ Category

Ah, forgive the silence; I have been holidaying in sunny Sardinia, but don’t worry, I didn’t leave my beauty head at home.

A lot of black women I come across think that being on a beach holiday is the perfect opportunity to be a ‘natural’ beauty – i.e. no base, Vaseline instead of lip gloss, etc etc. I, however, beg to differ. Of course I am not an advocate of looking like Jordan meets Danny La Rue while walking along the beach, but come on ladies, even on holiday, there is a reason God gave us Mac, Nars, Lancome et al. So with that in mind, despite packing lots of ‘just in case’ products, these five things turned out to be my fail safe beauties.

Prestige Mascara - Okay I have used tons of mascaras – some that cost three times as much as this – and I have to say, this mascara has blown me away. It’s great! You get really thick, full lashes and it doesn’t smudge. Though I have no idea if it’s waterproof – I can’t swim so the water never got past my chest. For those who didn’t know, swimming and black hair are not really great buddies. £4.99, available at Boots stores nationwide.

RMK Oil Cleanser - When I die and go to heaven, as well as my purple velvet made to order sofas, I will be taking this cleanser. It is the one thing that cleans my face perfectly regardless of the hardness of the water. Available at Selfridges.

Elizabeth Arden 8 hour cream – Great for sunburn, peeling and a multitude of other skin complaints. Yes, black people burn in the sun too! Available at all good department stores.

PIXI Lip Blush – I love this lip stain. It is matte – without being drying – giving you super-natural looking bee stung lips and a colour that lasts nearly all day. £16.00 from www.pixibeauty.com

Olive oil - On day two of my holiday I went to the supermarket, bought the biggest bottle of olive oil I could find and literally doused my hair in it. “Why?” you ask? Because the sun was turning my hair into straw, that’s why! The olive oil worked wonders though; my hair really softened up and by the end of the week I had a semi normal looking Afro.

If someone offered to take 5 years off your face without the use of surgery, chemicals, injections or any effort on your part, other than turning up to be pampered for an hour, what would you say?

…Me too… which is why I toddled along to Portland Place in central London to see acupuncture specialist Ross Barr.

Ross does not just focus on the face – he looks at the functions of your body as a whole – because a lot of the facial signs of ageing are caused by sluggish, inefficient organs. For example, if your kidneys are not working properly you will get dark circles under your eyes.

Apparently my liver needed relaxing so Ross added a couple of needles to my feet to harmonise it with my Stomach, promoting blood flow around the body. He then set to work on my face and neck. The facial consisted of:

-15 Minutes of Seitai Acupressure on the shoulders neck & face to energise the area, increase blood flow and relax you.

-15 Minutes of Chinese Guasha fine wrinkle treatment using Jade tools, which are moved quickly and lightly over all the fine lines and wrinkles on your face, literally erasing them.

-20 Minutes of warming specific acupuncture points on the head, face & neck using a Japanese Tiger Warmer (filled with smoking Scented Moxa which warms the rounded point making it a most relaxing tool to use on facial points, see image on left).

-10 minutes of Seitai point massage on the arms, hands & feet, which basically transports you to a world of marshmallow and bunnies…

When I checked the mirror it looked like I had had botox on my forehead, no wrinkles AT ALL, for a 32 year old that is not bad going! The rest of my face looked plumped and rosy and the effects lasted for 2 weeks. This would be a great treat to have just before a big event like a wedding or a party you know your ex will be at!

I would avoid working heavy machinery or doing intricate maths for at least an hour after this treatment as it takes a while for the marshmallow effect to wear off.

The Anti-ageing Acupressure Facial costs £68, for more information go to www.rossbarr.com

Bourjois has launched the Effet 3D Max lip gloss which claims to have 33% more shine thanks to shine micro-activators (a bit techy but we’ll go with it). What’s great is that not only is it ultra glossy but it’s not at all sticky, so you won’t be peeling your hair off you lips every five seconds when there’s a bit of a breeze. It glides on easily leaving a silky smooth layer of shine to make your lips look more than kissable and has a lovely sweet smell.

Something else we love about this lipgloss is its clever applicator. Its spatula-like shape spreads the gloss on quickly and evenly so that you need less gloss for that perfect pout. Hurrah – Jolie lips in a jiffy! Put a bit of this on and you are guaranteed an immediate confidence boost.

The Effet 3D Max Lipgloss comes in six shades that all contain a touch of pink and a dash of shimmer. Our favourite is Rose Gold.  

£7.82 from Boots and other leading retailers.

Most women will agree that shaving your underarms everyday can be a bit of a pain, literally. Repeatedly shaving the same area can cause the skin to become itchy and irritated and instigates shaving rash. So when we saw the new Dove Wild Rose HairMinimising deodorant we couldn’t wait to try it out.

“Underarms will feel and look smoother for longer, and hair will feel softer, finer and easier to remove,” claim Dove. They say that continuous use over a four week period will have visible results. So we got some of you to test it for us and the verdict was a bit of a mixed bag.

The most amusing feature of this product is its rather phallic shape. However, once you get over the giggling you realise that it really does sit nicely in your hand and is easy to spray. It doesn’t leave any annoying white marks on dark clothing and isn’t chalky like a lot of spray-ons. The rose scent is subtle and will not overpower any other fragrances you may be wearing, but if you prefer a stronger smelling deodorant then this is probably not for you. In terms of the actual anti-sweat side of things, all of you approved. Some of you even put it to the test on holiday and happily found yourself without a single annoying wet patch, happy times!

But what we all really want to know is does it actually reduce hair growth? Debatable. Many of you reported that hair was visibly finer, the need to shave was reduced, and the skin felt ‘less itchy and scratchy within days’. However, others found that it didn’t really do anything at all and you were shaving just as regularly as you always have. The jury is still out on this one. If you’ve tried it, let us know your verdict. – Catherine Bohrsmann

I’ve never been one to endlessly question “does my bum look big in this?” I have long been pleasantly overweight and never hugely bothered by it. 

But I recently discovered the joys of walking and, in true Forrest Gump fashion (albeit a little slower), I found that once I started I couldn’t stop. 

I have tried wearing running shoes and they are comfortable, but have little added effect. So when I saw a pair of very desirable, red patent FitFlops, curiosity got the better of me and I decided to give fitness’ newest fad a try. 

FitFlops, designed by two experts in Biomechanics, have a microwobbleboard midsole that mimics the gait of walking barefoot, but with more muscle load. They claim to give you “a workout while you walk”,  improving posture and muscle tone, while strengthening the muscles in the feet, legs and buttocks. 

But do they live up to the hype? Yes! Since discovering FitFlops I walk nowhere without them. They look good, are insanely comfortable, and what’s more, they work.  My bum is not as big and, better still, it is toned and lifted. My legs also look decidedly better, too. I am proud to say the difference is noticeable. 

My only caution is don’t over wear your FitFlops, and try them on first. You may need a bigger size than usual if your instep is high, or your foot is wide. – Stacia Prince

I absolutely love Lancome’s mascaras which is why when I heard about their new Lash primer, I was first in the queue to try one out.

The Oscillation Powerbooster (£24.50) is the first primer to use the vibration technology sweeping the mascara industry recently. This to me makes more sense for a conditioning primer than a mascara because it helps get the formulation right into the roots of the lashes.

The formulation includes a complex called. ‘Madecassoside’, an extract used in hair-loss prevention products; as well as anti-ager Arginine and conditioners Pro-Vitamin B5 and Jojoba Oil which protect and strengthen the lashes.

After using this every day for 2 weeks, I found this to be a really lovely lash conditioner which limits the damage mascara addiction can do. The vibrations really help to get good lash coverage. The only downside was that the product is slightly too heavy and thickening for my fine, blond lashes and I found it clumped them together making my lashes look a bit fake and sparse. – Alexia Inge

Available nationwide from the 1st August on www.lancome.co.uk.

Cult Beauty brand Skin.NY has just started legal proceedings against Boots charging the retailer with misleading the public over claims to do with the extremely successful Protect and Perfect Beauty Serum.

After clinical trials at the University of Manchester, the mostly positive results were reported in the British Journal of Dermatology, but Skin.NY is accusing Boots of misleading the public by making false claims about the study.

According to Skin.ny, Boots claimed that the ‘No7 Protect and Perfect was the first anti-wrinkle cream to be proven to be effective in clinical trials’, but Skin.NY’s Radical Restructure Complex was proven and published in the same journal in 2003 with better results that Protect and Perfect over a shorter period.

Both products are extremely good, but I think the public is tired of the, ‘Hope in a jar’ selling mentality that so many skincare companies have and seeing as the EU watchdog rarely gets involved in this area, it is good to see a certain amount of self policing happening in the industry.

As a young girl, following my bath, my mother would oil my skin with cocoa butter and olive oil. She always felt that if you were not properly moisturised you looked ‘poor’ and didn’t come from a ‘good home’, (Go figure). Needless to say, by the time she finished, you could literally fry an egg on me. Oh yes, parents are so reasonable.

Nowadays, I still feel the same way about not wanting to be so greasy. At the same time, I would like a body moisturiser that is oily enough to really moisturise black skin. I have searched and searched and it’s actually quite difficult. Lots of black girls I know have reverted, in their frustration, to the old school classic – Palmers Cocoa Butter. This is deemed to be the original and the best and I do love it too but it can make me feel quite hot (not in a good way) and also after a while the sweet smell that I loved as a child starts to make me nauseous.

I’ve tried the Body Shop Body Butters which are pretty good but strangely not always heavy enough in the winter. So what to do? I’ve discovered the joys of Body Oils – they definitely bridge the gap.

Abahna’s version in Frangipani and Orange Blossom is the first one I discovered and it has been an absolute godsend. It smells delicious and comes in gorgeous packaging. Also with the spray format, you don’t end up with more oil than you actually need. I also love the Miller Harris body oil in Fleur Oriental and Ila Body Oil for Vital Energy. They are a fabulous way to wear a pretty fragrance in the summer. Korres’ Coriander Body Oil was also impressive – particularly since I thought I’d hate it – the African in me thought ‘Why would I put coriander on my skin?’ But hey what can I say, I can’t explain it but it just works.

Read the musings of an anonymous beauty writer who happens to be a black woman with a thing or two to say about the state of beauty for women of colour every week on Cult Beauty.