The Reward of a Rant!!!

Ok so I have some awesomely amazing people in my life...yup I am surrounded by amazingness- FACT!! Why do I say this...read on...

So when I got home from a pretty miserable day at work with a sprained wrist; when the doorbell rang and the UPS man said "PINDORIA"? I was like SURE!!! This wasn't for me I don't recall ordering anything but there in the box I saw my name...then my eyes fell on the name in the corner "Ohm Patel" - INSTANT response?? NO WAY SHE IS CRAZY!!! Yep my fabulous cousin had sent something from the USA...and this was what was in it...

This was just such an amazing surprise and it derived from me having a little rant on my Get those Baby Lips post a few days ago. I was ranting on about the fact that the USA always got the better cosmetics than the UK especially when they are manufactured in France (if someone would like to shed some light on why this is it would be much appreciated) !!! 

This particular product; the Maybelline Baby Lips in Grapevine is not available in the UK, and my cousin is so kind and sympathises with us Britons she sent me this along with my brother-in laws contributions of Sour Patch Kids (YUMMM)!!

I was so excited to try this; it has the most amazing Grape smell (tastes good as well). It does not have any SPF however is actually A LOT more moisturising than any of the other ones I have purchased in the UK. I'm going to give this the day test tomorrow...but I am beginning to think they are slightly different in the formula and here is my theory; they must change something in the UK versions in order for them to be sold here because I could instantly tell the difference in the feel of it on my lips. I could be totally wrong and just in the mind frame that everything from America is amazing!! 

I have swatched the product on my hand; and although quite a strong colour in the actual bullet it has no real prominent tint on the skin or lips like Pink Punch or Cherry Me. It comes up nude on my lips however leaves a subtle glossy look. I don't know if you can see it but it has been swatched just under the tag "grapevine".

As for the Sour Patch Kids...my nephew Dev and I have already nom nom'd into one packet...and will soon be on the next I am sure!!! (Thanks Ohm) 

I am still smiling so much from the love I have received from across the ocean...and would like to say a huge thank you to Hina & Ohm for this...this post is dedicated to my lil munchkin Sakshi who I can not wait to see in a few months...Thank you again...much love & hugs to you guys x o x o 

My Baby Lips Review where you can see my little rant:

http://ahalyamua.blogspot.co.uk/2013/08/get-those-baby-lips.html

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My new Better Skin attempt- MD Formulations

I am about to embark on a new skin regime and I thought I would share this with you all!!!

For most of my life I haven't really had great skin, either because I wasn't using the right products or hormonal changes...just the standard problems most people face with their skin. I had very mild acne when I was younger and as I grew older I started understanding that I had to use products that were right for my skin...

But all this time, I was convinced my skin was just plain Oily! Any time I was asked what my skin type was at makeup and skincare counters, my answer would be oily. Loan be hold...I am in fact Combination and I only really found that out or realised this fact after I completed my makeup course! I started understanding skin and more importantly MY skin. Since then I had been using products that were working for my skin, I would get the odd breakout but otherwise I was fine. 

Then it all went down hill, earlier this year I fell ill and was on medication that totally ruined my skin...it was dry...very dry and itchy!! I was breaking out with small white heads on my chin, forehead and cheeks. It was so bad I thought I had acne again. I did everything to get my skin back in balance; facials, masks, steam etc. Eventually after a few visits to my doctor it started getting much better. I tried to go back to my original skin routine, but it wasn't working as well as it used to. So I knew I had to look elsewhere...

For a long time a friend of mine, who is also a beautician advised me on a skincare range she uses on herself and on clients for facials- MD Formualtions a skincare line by Bare Escentuals I read up on this skincare line before I went into purchasing it. The key ingredient in the the products is a Glycolic Compound which is a combination of water, Glycolic Acid and Ammonium Glycolate. This compound works with the skins natural PH and is not irritant and is also safe for those to use that have sensitive skin. The idea behind this is that it continues to work on your skin throughout the day/night as an exfoliant. Eventually after a lot of reading and researching I decided to give it a go; now I have spent an immense amount of money on Skincare products in the hopes to get my skin perfect or at least back to its normal state and I have heard the MD Formulation products are not cheap either. Luckily they have starter kits; an Anti-blemish, Illuminating, Anti-ageing and Sensitive Anti-ageing. It was obvious to me I needed the Anti-blemish and after a consultation and MD Formualtions facial; which was amazing, my skin was glowing and felt like it had been cleaned deep under many layers. My beautician friend and I agreed this was the best choice. 


Below you can see what comes in the kit 

The kit comes with a set of instructions for AM and PM. They do advise to only do the AM routine for 2 weeks so that your skin is gradually adapting to the skincare regime/ treatment.

After the two weeks, you are able to add in the Vit-A Plus Clearing Complex by which time your skin would have adapted to the use of Glycolic Compound. 
This particular kit is said to last you for a month and a little goes a long way. So I am on day one and very excited to finally try this regime out. 
I will put an update on this after using it for two weeks, before using the Vit-A Plus and then a follow up after a week of using all of the products. 

In addition to the facials from this range MD Formulations also offer a Glycolic Peel for those that use their products and is only to be used on skin that has been using their regime continuously. So after a month of using these products I am hoping to do one of those too. 

I will report back as to how I got on with these in 2 weeks, so keep a look out.

Thanks for passing by and reading...Janki x o x o

MD Formualtions Anti-Blemish Solutions Kit purchased from http://www.xquisitebeauty.co.uk/index.php

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Get those Baby Lips!

We have all heard about them, they are loved by so many beauty/makeup gurus from the USA, and finally they are available in the UK!! 

I couldn't wait to get my hands on these, and was twiddling my thumbs wondering when Maybelline would consider us worthy of getting some Baby Lips! I have tried many lip balms and lip treatments all throughout the year...be it winter or summer I have dry lips which in turn means they will chap and peel. So after all the reviews on Youtube and in blogs that I had come across about these "Baby Lips" lip balms (because lets face it that is exactly what they are just with a cuter more fun name) I had to have them!!! 

There are only six available at the moment in the UK, which are the similar to the original ones that were initially released in the USA. I say similar because they have Grapevine which isn't out here and instead we have a clear/natural one called Intense Care (they have also had more collections and limited editions released since the originals came out which are not out here in the UK) I got my six on offer from Boots priced at £2.99 each. They are also available from Superdrug. (I will put the links below) 

The formula is creamy and out of the six, three of them have no colour or tint in them and these are the ones that have SPF 20 so these are great for the summer and if your going away! The tinted ones unfortunately do not have SPF 20 in them (USA versions do apparently).

Although they are all different in smell and name they all have the same purpose. Two of the non-tinted ones offer a bit more hydration and moisture to the lips than the others and this is their purpose as one is called Hydrate and the other Intense Care. 

I have tried them all apart from Intense Care, as I mentioned before in the USA they have one that is tinted and called Grape Vine and I just do not understand why we didn't get the same. Instead we got a "treatment" lip balm! I might save that one for the winter when my lips get even drier!!

So to the ones I did try and and love...

Hydrate

It does what is says on the tin (bullet in this case) it is great for dry lips like mine, it smells amazing almost citrusy with a hint of vanilla. I found with this it really did work on my lips; normally I would put on lip balm or Vaseline in the morning, get to work and my lips would have no moisture and would be dry again. With this one I didn't need to reapply till mid-morning by which time I had a coffee and drank water from a bottle. Even after it had come off my lips were not dry and really did feel soft. I think (don't quote me on this) this is the equivalent to the USA version "Quenched".

Mint Fresh

Which is the equivalent of the USA one "Peppermint". This is also is of no colour or tint and has SPF 20. I found this one really refreshing, obviously it smells minty hence the name but it also gave a slight tingling sensation; nothing excessive and didn't last very long. The lip balm itself is a total miss...it does nothing for my lips otherwise it doesn't last very long and I have found I am putting it on a lot more often than Hydrate. 

Then I opened the tinted ones (excitement)!!!! I was really excited about these because they are the ones I saw and read most about. 

Peach Kiss 

So this one is "tinted" as such, however I'm brown and this is tinted brown so I am just going to go ahead and say its neutral. It came up neutral on my lips and hand (see swatch below) so I use it as a gloss. It smells peachy and it is a pleasant smell not too strong. As for hydration and keeping lips soft, it doesn't work as well as Hydrate and again I just feel I am re-applying more often. 

Pink Punch 

This is the only one that has the best colour pay off. Its bright pink in colour and it shows up like that on my lips as well. I liked this the best out of the tinted ones. It's great for me as I like to wear a bit of colour on my lips especially to work. Hydration level is again not that great and I've got to a point with this that it smells so great I just lick it off and apply more (ooops)!! 

Cherry Me

This the one that disappointed me the most. Why? Because look at the colour and OMG the smell a lush cherry scent...its gorgeous!!! Although I had heard Pink Punch was the best colour pay off I thought this one would still give a nice red/rosey tint to my lips...sadly no. It might as well have been another colourless one!! However smelt divine and tasted well...amazing!! 


This is how they all swatched on my hand...

All in all, I like these; I enjoy using them too; but this whole keeping my lips baby soft and not dry is definitely not what they are best for because my lips do dry out after using this and I am having to re-apply. I can't include Intense care in this conclusion as I have not tried it. (Will update this when I do). If I am honest I don't think I would re-purchase any of them other than Hydrate again as I benefited from that the best especially because of the SPF 20. 


I have to say using Hydrate as a base before applying a lipstick was great, it really helped my lipstick apply smoothly on to my lips and it didn't bleed out of my lip line either. To be honest I am more of a lipstick & Lip Gloss girl, which is why I prefer the Revlon Lip Butters as they have more of a colour pay off but for those that love lip balms and prefer them over lipsticks and lip tints then these are definitely something you would want to invest in.

If any of you have tried any of the Baby Lips let me know what you think...everyone is different and everyones expectations are different.

PS. How annoying is it that these products are MADE IN FRANCE (EUROPE) but the USA get them before we do in the UK (EUROPE)...I just do not get how these cosmetic companies work (...ok Rant over)

Thanks for passing by...Janki x o x o

Baby Lips at Boots (3 for 2 offer) http://www.boots.com/en/Maybelline-Baby-Lips-Lip-Balm_1365477/ 

Baby Lips at Superdrug (3 for 2 offer) http://www.superdrug.com/make-up/lips/icat/makeup-lips?sort=name&sort=release&parentCategoryRef=makeup-lips&order=asc&order=desc&q=*&brand=Maybelline

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