Bellabox - March 2014
This months box debuted the gorgeous new Bellabox packaging! A really good quality box which is really cute. How exciting :)
This month I received:
1. ModelCo Party Proof Lipstick - Cream - Pinking of You
2. WoW Bath Gel
3. Pantene Aqua Light Shampoo and Conditioner
4. Dermalogica Clear Start Breakout Clearing Foaming Wash
5. Wotnot Facial Wipes - Oily/Sensitve skin
6. Thierry Mugler SOURCE - Angel and Alien Eau De Parfum
ModelCo Party Proof Lipstick - Cream - Pinking of You
I was super excited to receive this product but was hoping for the nude or dark red colour. Sadly, I received a shade that doesn't suit my skin tone 'Pinking of You' :( It's a really cute, light, bright pink that would suit a lighter skin tone than my olive skin. That's just the luck of the draw though so nothing I can do about that. It smells really nice and I love that it has a little mirror on the case! I will gift this to a friend who will suit the colour better. :)
WoW Bath Gel - Mandarin & Lime
This is a limited edition product by Romy. It was released into our Bellabox's so we could trial them and leave feedback before they release it publicly. I thought that was pretty cool. :) However, I have no idea when I will have time to have a bath. If I did, I would buy a heap of Lush bath bombs to indulge in. It smells really nice though, a fresh citrus scent, and maybe someday I could find the time from my busy mummy life to try this in a bath!
Pantene Aqua Light Shampoo and Conditioner
I haven't used Pantene since I was about 12 years old. I went to the hairdressers and they asked which shampoo I used which I told them Pantene and I was basically told off for using it as it contains silicon and other oils which isn't good for your hair. This has been a hot topic with Pantene for years and most hairdressers will tell you off for using it. I guess this is why they came up with this silicon free type and are trying to get us to give Pantene a second chance. However, only the shampoo is free from silicons and not the conditioner. I gave it a go anyway and it did leave my hair feeling fresh and light. My hair also air dried with less frizz than usual so that was good. :)
Dermalogica - Clear Start Breakout Clearing Foaming Wash
This product is amazing! At first I was just happy that it made my skin feel clean without over drying it. Then the second time I used it, after I had washed it off, it started to actually peel the dead layer of skin off my face. It exfoliated it like a professional facial and my pores were left incredibly cleansed. My face hasn't been this soft in forever and it's keeping it clear! As soon as this sample runs out (50ml which is a fair bit for a sample so I will actually have it for a while!) I am absolutely buying this and converting to as my daily face wash!
UPDATE: Bellabox had a flash sale where everything was 30% off so I bought this in full size as well as their blackhead clearing scrub!
I was so happy to see I received more Wotnot facial wipes! I loved the sample of the sensitive skin ones I got in my January box and am so happy to have the oily type now. My skin is actually combination so either works well for me. The wipes themselves feel like a soft cotton cloth which is so nice. Once again, I love these wipes and wish they were a bit cheaper.
Thierry Mugler SOURCE - Angel and Alien Eau De Parfum
These both smell really nice! I am really picky when it comes to perfumes and really only prefer the fruity scents. I tried Alien first and loved it. Alien is described as 'woody amber floral'. Angel is described as 'Oriental Gourmand' I am really happy I got to try these scents! If I had the money I would purchase Alien.
This months box was the best one I've received yet. Can't wait for April! :)
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Bellabox - February 2014
This month I received:
- Shanghai Suzy Lipstick - Miss Jade Orange - Matte
- Vaseline Ultimate 10
- Romy Shampoo & Conditioner
- Eylure Naturalites - Natural Volume Lash
- Montagne Jeunesse Blemish Mud Masque
- Gaia Skin Naturals Pink Grapefruit and Jasmine Foaming Cleanser
Shanghai Suzy Lipstick - Matte - Miss Jade Orange: As soon as I opened the box my eyes went straight to this lipstick. It looked so damn pretty and I felt so lucky to get it in my box this month! I opened it and omg, the smell of this is stuff is amazing! It is a purple grape scented lipstick which smells exactly like hubba bubba and I just want to eat it. The sad thing is, I received a colour that doesn't fit my complexion. :( I received 'Miss Jade Orange' and it is very orange. wahh. It looks terrible on me and I didn't even want to take a photo of it, I just wiped it off straight away. The texture wasn't very nice though either, very blotchy. I am so disappointed. :(
The Romy Shampoo & Conditioner was okay. The shampoo was a bit strange as it would not foam up in my hair. I had to use nearly the whole sample to get it to foam just a little bit enough to go through my hair. It did do the job though and my hair felt clean afterwards. The conditioner worked better and I only need a tiny bit for it to cover my hair. Afterwards my hair felt fresh and clean. The smell is very strong though and not a scent that I would choose in a shampoo & conditioner.
Eylure Naturalites - Natural Volume Lash: I have not used this product and not sure when I will get the chance to. I will save it for when a special occasion comes up where I will be going out to dinner or something. There's no point me trying it any sooner.
Vaseline Ultimate 10: I haven't used this product as I am using other moisturisers but will keep this product handy for my handbag or even traveling.
The Gaia Skin Naturals Pink Grapefruit and Jasmine Foaming Cleanser is okay. It sounds like it would smell great by the name of it but it actually smells very chemically. Which is strange considering this is an organic product. It does do the job though and left my skin feeling clean and fresh. I wouldn't use it again though.
Montagne Jeunesse Blemish Mud Masque: I used this after a long evening of trying to get James asleep. It was so relaxing and left my skin feeling lovely and fresh. These are like $1 something a little packet so I am going to make my way to Priceline sometime and grab a few. I want to try the peeling masks as well as some fruity masks. :) I was so happy with this little gem and it was so nice to have a little pampering after a long, hard day with a teething baby who won't sleep!
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Lush review
On one of my random explorations through tags and photos of Instagram, I stumbled across this brand of body & beauty products called Lush. Their website states:
"Fresh is at the core of who we are. Fresh ingredients, fresh inventions, fresh campaigns - it's even in our name!
Our products are handmade fresh locally in the Lush Kitchens in Sydney. Rather than relying on mass-produced, machine-made formulations and warehousing excess stock, LUSH makes products to order to ensure that everything delivered to our local shops and customers is as fresh as possible. We even add stickers on all of our products showing who made it, the day it was made and its use by date.
Our inventors started making products by visiting farmer's markets and flower shops, bringing their fresh fruits, vegetables and flowers back to their labs, and infusing them into their newest inventions. We're proud of every single ingredient we use in our products, and we list them in quantitative order on every pot, bottle, sign, web page and in the LUSH Times."
After browsing through their products, I instantly fell in love and wanted to try everything! I love that their products are vegetarian and majority vegan. Their bottles and containers are 100% made from recyclable plastics and you can even receive a free product from them if you bring in a certain amount of empty plastic pots.
I finally decided to go all out and buy a few products and spoil myself as a birthday present to myself. I was in desperate need to feel pampered and pretty again as becoming a new mum is totally draining, extremely exhausting and I have barely any time to myself at all anymore. This order was much needed!
My first order included:
1. Sweetie Pie Shower Jelly
2. Volcano Foot Mask
3. The Godmother Soap
4. Sugar Scrub
5. Honey I Washed The Kids Soap
When these bad boys were delivered to my door I was SO excited. The whole package smelt amazing even from the outside and I couldn't wait to dive in and smell + try everything!!!
Sweetie Pie Shower Jelly is freakin awesome! It is so much fun! I didn't expect it to keep its jelly shape, I thought you just broke off a blob of jelly and used it like shower gel. Nope. It stays as this super cool blob the shape of the container no matter how many times you get it out and use it. It smells DIVINE. I want to eat it so bad haha. It is so pretty too, has sparkles through it. It reminds me of a little jelly galaxy that smells like heaven. I keep this product in the fridge to keep it fresh and take it with my into the shower when I go to use it. I love, love LOVE this product so much and am probably going to buy it to gift to friends and family as everyone should try this awesome, crazy jelly at least once!
Volcano Foot Mask is such a wonderfully pampering product. Since being pregnant and giving birth, to add to the never ending list of changes your body goes through that no one tells you about - I ended up with extremely dry skin on my feet. I always had soft feet with no problems until recently. I treat myself every now and then using this foot mask and I feel like I'm at the salon every time. It smells like chai lattes and tingles like peppermint. I even convinced Adam to use it with me one night and he loved it just as much as I did. You don't get that many uses out of the pot so I use it as a special pampering treat every now and then when my feet are feeling like they need that boost of life. It leaves my feet so soft with a fresh tingling after feeling. Love it!
The Godmother Soap smells like raspberry licorice. Exactly like raspberry licorice. The scent fills the entire shower, bathroom and wafts out into the rest of the house when we use this soap. It smells so yummy. Sadly, it doesn't feel that great on the skin. I know it's a soap but it leaves my skin feeling really dried out which sucks because it smells soo nice!
Sugar Scrub is really nice. I didn't know what to expect when I looked at this product. It says not to put the whole bar under running water as it will melt so I was a little confused. I broke off a piece about 2cm big and left it on the shampoo rack as I showered. When my body was wet I rubbed the little piece in my hands and to my surprise it started to melt into a consistency inbetween a scrub and a gel. It covered my whole body and the grainy texture was an excellent exfoliant. The amazing part was that it actually feels like an oil after you rub it in! So it both exfoliates and then cleans & hydrates the skin. It smells like comforting essential oils. I love it! Such a wonderful product which is actually pretty cheap for what it does!
Honey I Washed The Kids Soap smells like honey and toffee. I seriously want to eat this all up. I waited until I finished The Godmother soap before using this one.
A few weeks after my first order, I saw that there were limited edition 'retro' products being released in the online store. I saw the Freeze shower gel and couldn't resist. I also bought the Wiccy Magic Muscle Massage bar + a Lush massage bar tin as Adam and I were in desperate need of a good massage for our constant baby bouncing/rocking backs!
My second order included:
1. Freeze Shower Gel
2. Wiccy Magic Muscle Massage Bar
3. Massage Bar Tin
4. Sparkle Toothy Tab
When my order arrived, I opened the package to find Lush had included a free sample of Sparkle Toothy Tabs. Yay! So that was a nice little surprise.
Sparkle Toothy Tabs are so strange, I've never seen anything like them before. They are basically little pill shaped things called 'tabs' and you chew them in your mouth to crush them then start brushing with a wet toothbrush to create the paste. Pretty neat! Afterwards my teeth felt so clean. Somehow, they felt cleaner and smoother than using regular toothpaste. The only downside was that this is a lemon based product so there was no minty taste to it which you are so used to when brushing your teeth. There is a minty flavour available though so I wouldn't mind trying that one as they are such a cool little product - would be perfect for travel.
Freeze Shower Gel is lovely. I love this stuff and use it nearly every day. Peppermint is such an amazing scent and it feels so good on your skin. When I use this I feel instantly freshened up as the whole shower fills with the strong, fresh, stimulating smell of peppermint. mmm!
Wiccy Magic Muscles Bar is wonderful! Lush describes it as a "spicy, tingly, muscle-soothing bar with aduki beans for a deeper rub. This is the one for sorting out aching muscles. The first time you use one of these, it feels very strange, as if a very small radiator has been turned on inside the part of your body you just massaged. Once you get used to it, you’ll start to run just for the pleasure of your Wiccy massage when you get home." I could not have said it better myself. I have such a bad back with chronic adhesions so I need regular massages. After having James, my back just continues to get worse as he needs to be rocked/bounced to sleep and held all the time. Adam gave me a massage with this and it felt just like I was at a professional masseuse. It smells yummy and felt absolutely incredible being rubbed over my back. I felt like I was in a massage coma after we used this beautiful thing! It just melts to your body heat and the aroma it emits is so delicious. Honestly, everyone should be treated to this at least once.
It's safe to say I love Lush. Absolutely LOVE it. I rave about these products constantly and wish I had the money to try everything!
https://www.lush.com.au/
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Bellabox - January 2014
This month I received:
1. Scandalous Rock Chick Wave Spray
2. Avene Soothing Moisture Mask
3. Avene Hydrance Optimale Rich Hydrating Cream
4. Model Co Fat Lash Mascara
5. Vaseline Aloe Fresh Daily Body Lotion SPF 15
6. Eleven Miracle Hair Treatment
7. Wotnot Facial Wipes
Scandelous Rock Chick Wave Spray: I was a bit apprehensive to try this product as my hair is just so thick and rarely works with these sorts of products. I followed the instructions and it looked pretty cool at first. It gave my hair super volume with beachy waves.
Throughout the day though it just sort of went limp and looked like a messy bob. Not even a cute one, it just looked really messy and felt gross. I would use it again though to style my hair if I was going out and wanted a bit of an up do for my short hair for a short period of time.
Avene Soothing Moisture Mask and Avene Hydrance Optimale Rich Hydrating Cream: I honestly haven't tried these products after trying my last Avene product from my December box. I had a reaction or something to the last product which left my skin feeling like it was burning and it felt really gross - remained like a mask of oil for the rest of the day. I might just gift these samples to a friend haha.
Model Co Fat Lash Mascara: I had high expectations for this mascara as Bellabox had hyped it up quite a bit before the boxes were sent out. Honestly, it was okay. It wasn't the worst mascara I've ever used but it also wasn't the best.
I had to apply numerous coats to get close to the same effect as my usual Maybelline Define a Lash mascara gives me. When I was removing it at the end of the night, it took 2 make up removing wipes to get rid of it with a lot of scrubbing and I still had some residue the next day. I know that's my own fault for applying about 4 coats but it was still really hard to remove considering it isn't even waterproof. I think I will gift this to a friend as it didn't work wonders for me but it may work for her.
Vaseline Aloe Fresh Daily Body Lotion SPF 15: Vaseline is always a winner. They know their stuff when it comes to hydrating the skin and never fail to deliver. This product leaves my skin feeling soft, fresh and moisturised. I didn't use it that much but am keeping it handy to use if we ever need relief from sunburn.
Eleven Miracle Hair Treatment: This product smells AMAZING! As soon as I opened the lid I went 'YUM!' Such a rich coconut scent to die for. I used it in my hair after I washed it and let it set as a leave in conditioner and my hair felt lovely & soft afterwards and just smelt so divine! I also saw on Instagram that Tahan from Big Brother 2013 uses this brand and her hair is lush so I'm also sold by that! Once my Argan oil runs out this is the next hair product I will splurge on.
Overall, I was very happy with this months box. My favourite would be the Eleven Miracle Hair Treatment and the WotNot Facial Wipes. Looking forward to next months. :)
www.bellabox.com.au
www.bellabox.com.au
James 3 month update
James is now 3 months! Ahhh where is the time going?! Seriously!
Weight: 6.4kg! Wow. He is getting soo chubby. It's absolutely adorable. I pinch his chubba cheeks every day. :) He is really filling out in his face and legs. His thighs are soo chunky haha!
Height: 60cm. He has grown 11cm since birth. He is getting really hard to hold upright now and bounce to calm him down when he is crying.
Routine: We finally have a routine! After trying to find something to follow for ages, I finally just decided to go with 'Sleep, feed, play'. It's as simple as that. I had stressed so much trying to figure out how I was going to try follow all these different kinds of routines when it was as easy as just putting him to sleep, feeding him when he wakes up, letting him play for a while and then back to sleep. Sometimes he doesn't need a feed straight after a sleep so it can also be 'sleep, play, feed, play' which still works great. It works wonderfully for James and I love that it is not set in stone for specific times. Ideally I would love to have a routine down to the hour but at this stage, this is working great for us.
Sleeping: HE SLEEPS THROUGH THE NIGHT! Oh my goodness. I am soo proud of him! It just randomly happened one night. I woke up at 3am and freaked out as he had been asleep for about 6 hours and missed a feed but when I checked on him he was sound asleep. I woke again at 5am and freaked out but still sound asleep. He finally woke up at 6 happy as can be. My boobs felt like they were going to actually explode though! They had not been that full since back in the hospital when my milk was coming in. Oww. He then went through a growth spurt at 11 weeks which upset his sleeping routine a fair bit but he bounced back and slept through the night again a few more times. He then went through a wonder week (which was hell) but afterwards he has been sleeping through the night ever since! We bath him at 7pm, feed at 7:30pm and then try get him to sleep from there. He can fall asleep anywhere from during the feed to 9pm. Then he will sleep through til 5:30am - 7am. It feels wonderful to be able to have a decent night sleep again. :) I found him like this one morning in his cot. what the hell?! hahaha.
Feeding: Breastfeeding is great for us now! We haven't had anymore problems. He latches great and his lactose overload has settled completely. I am still not eating dairy as both of us seem to be benefiting from it not being in my diet so I don't see why I should reintroduce it since we are happy without it. He still feeds every 2 hours which kinda sucks. Sometimes he can go a bit longer but very rarely. I am quite used to it now but I still dream of 3 - 4 hour feeds so I can have a bit of a break haha.
Milestones:
- Sleeping through the night! I am so proud of him for achieving this at such a young age and with no help. Like I said, he just randomly did it one night and has since been able to. So good. :)
- Standing up. Well sort of haha. He can bare weight on his legs now for a really long time. When he is sitting with you he pushes up and makes up lift him into a standing position and will have the biggest smile on his face. He will even giggle and chat while standing. He absolutely loves it, all he wants to do is stand! He has very strong legs and I have a feeling he will be walking before crawling just like Adam did as a baby. :P
- Hands! He can use his hands! At first it was just him batting at objects above him and then we went through a 'Wonder week' and bam. It was like overnight he suddenly could just grab stuff. He loves holding our water bottles and books the most.
- Chatting. He is such a little chatterbox. He will babble on what sounds like baby sentences. It's so cute. When he wakes up for his 6am feed I bring him into our bed and sometimes he will go back to sleep there and when he wakes up he lays there staring at me and talks and talks and talks. It is my favourite part of the day waking up to his bright and happy face chatting away and giggling at me. :)
James first Christmas - 2013
Merry Christmas!
Christmas this year was the best. Absolutely the best. Having a child at Christmas not only brings back the magic you feel from Christmas as a child but it ignites it even more.
James first Christmas was just so lovely. The weather was a typical Australian summer day - sooooo hot. I mean really, really hot. My parents came over to our house for Christmas lunch and to unwrap presents.
It was a really lovely day and of course, James was so spoilt! I love my little family and today was such a memorable day for us. I can't wait for Christmas next year when James will unwrap his presents himself! :)
Bellabox - December 2013
This month I signed up to bellabox.com.au to receive a monthly beauty box. I was really pleased with the prompt service of my Bellabox as I placed my order on the 16th and it arrived here a few days before Christmas.
These are products I received:
- Nuxe Huile Prodigieus beauty oil.
- Avene Cleanance K moisturiser
- Sinful colours nail polish
- Alfaparf Semi Di Lino Diamond Mask
- St Tropez Gradual Tan
- Eslor soothing refiner & cleanser, replenishing scrub, soothing cream, comforting mask.
- Palmer's Cocoa butter daily cleansing gel, daily calming facial lotion.
The first product I tried out was the Sinful colours nail polish.
The colour I received is 'Thimbleberry'. I wanted to paint my nails in this colour before Christmas so I would have cute festive nails for Christmas photos but with a 5 week old baby, it's not that easy to find the time haha. This polish is said to have a durable, chip resistant formula.
I did 2 coats which went on smoothly and also dried pretty fast. I don't usually wear a lighter shades of red as my skin tone matches darker shades better but it's a cute colour to wear over the Christmas season. I am on day 4 of wearing it and I am quite surprised and really impressed that it actually hasn't chipped at all yet. Great product.
The second product I tried was the Alfaparf Semi Di Lino Diamond Mask. This is a hair mask which you apply in the shower after shampooing. It is said to contain a colour fix complex that boosts the shine & intensity of your hair with UVA, UVB screens & antioxidants.
I let my hair air dry after using this product and it did feel softer. My hair is a frizz ball in this humidity so I didn't notice any shine straight away. I straightened my hair and definitely saw a difference. It was so silky soft, smooth and shiny. Love this product!
The next product I tried was Nuxe Huile Prodigieuse beauty oil. It is a multipurpose oil which can be used on any area of dry skin or even in the ends of dry hair. I used this on the balls of my feet as for some reason they have become really cracked and dry lately. :( The first thing I noticed was the lovely scent. It has a very strong perfume like smell which I find nice. I've dabbed the oil on my feet every morning and night after I shower for a few days now and it's helping keep moisture in to heal the cracked skin. I can't really use this product anywhere else on my body as my skin doesn't get dry.
Honestly, I hated this product. It is a daily oil-free moisturiser for all skin types. It is supposed to keep skin hydrated and diminish blackheads & breakouts by absorbing excess sebum. It did the total opposite for my skin. Not only was my face left oily & greasy all day, but it also actually burned my skin :/ By the end of the day when I washed it off, it felt like washing a layer of oil off my face. eugh.
I absolutely loved these products. The Eslor sample pack. The soothing refiner & cleanser left my skin feeling so clean but not dried out at all. The soothing cream left my skin feeling so fresh and smooth without leaving any oiliness. The replenishing scrub was pretty good, however, I think it needed something added to make it more of a mask as it was a very dry scrub, I loved the ingrediants in it though - very natural and fresh. The comforting mask was nice and left my skin feeling fresh. I loved the refining cleanser so much I might buy the full size once my current face wash runs out!
Palmer's products are always good. The Cocoa butter daily calming facial lotion feels great on my skin and I love the smell. The Cocoa butter cleansing gel was also awesome and left my skin feeling nice and fresh without drying it out. I would also consider buying the cleansing gel one day when my current face wash runs out!
I actually did not use this product and I don't think I ever will. Being half Filipino, I am already naturally tanned. I don't need any tanning products but I know this is a really popular brand so I will give it to a friend if they are interested in trying it out!
This months bellabox also came with a bonus limited edition bellabox tote bag. Pretty cute. I've been using it as my gym bag as I've just started going back to the gym (yay!). Overall, I am really happy with Bellabox and look forward to next month!
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