Filofax Love: Filofax Metropol Personal Organiser

Every New Year I become really excited; despite this electronic age I'm an old fashion chick who loves nothing more to write my appointments in a diary. My mother gave me my first diary when I first left for University; It was a A5 day-to-a-page and I loved it. I used to write copious notes, documenting what I did and where I'd been.

I felt like a change and began researching other alternatives and decided upon a Filofax. This was the easy part, deciding which Filofax style I wanted to try took me two months; keep in mind that some people have  their Filofax's for years, I knew I wanted to get this right. During this two month period I stalked the aisles of WHSmith and John Lewis, I knew I was obsessing when I began taking pictures of the various Filoxfax styles side by side and drooling over them. Eventually it was the texture of  the Metropol (Personal) that sold me and I made my purchase - not looking back since.

I have a mobile / smart phone so don't need  a diary......

There is something final about placing an appointment in my diary, I find that I'm less likely to change or flake on the event.  I have to work at being organised and find the additional inserts / side pockets help me to keep track of projects. Since having my son I've had to become uber organised due to additional doctors, hospital, midwives and other baby appointments; my filofax has been getting some serious love.

How do you organise yourself: mobile / on-line / diary?

HAIRepair Vital Oils For Hair and Scalp (Review)

Ever come across a product that you love and are surprised that it’s not been championed by others? 

ORS HAIRepair Vital Oils Hair and Scalp For Hair & Scalp is this product for me.

What the company say: 

This non greasy oil revitalizes dry hair and relieves dry scalp. Formulated with a rich blend of eight oils including grapeseed and sweet almonds oils. Easily penetrates the hair shaft and soothes the scalp. It won’t weigh the hair down or clog the pores.

I'm no stranger to the HAIRepair line from ORS, regularly using the Nourishing Conditioner and Anti Breakage Creme and was happy to return home to find a few items waiting for me from their reps.  When my hair was permed it was very fine and didn’t like heavy oils at all; since transitioning this has continued to be the case. HAIRepair Vital Oils For Hair & Scalp was used by me after washing, to seal my ends and revitalise my hair weekly. The sweet smelling oil is lightweight, non greasy and extremely effective. My hair thanked me for using it by co-operating and not breaking. After giving birth I went through a period of having some serious dry hair despite breastfeeding and this was one of the products I attribute to maintaining my sanity -there is a school of thought that believes that nursing after birth starves off any of the (hormonal) changes that invariably occur to hair. I would rub a tiny amount (10p size) into my hair and it enabled me to get a comb through my hair without breaking when I wanted to create a parting. The nifty applicator provided some help to my dry looking scalp and it didn’t stain or seep through my headscarf like some of the heavier oils I have used.  

Whilst there is something to be said for having differing oils bottled separately, I am a big fan of HAIRepair Vital Oils and recommend it for my reforming product junkies tired of buying copious amounts of oils or for anyone new to moisturising and sealing who want a single product to impart the benefits / goodness oil into their hair. 

Check out my previous review on ORS HAIRepair line (Conditioner) and their response to my question on the moisture / protein balance of the line.

My thanks to ORS's reps in the UK for gifting this product to me.

What are your favourite oils to use and why?





*Feel free to check out my Discloure Policy regarding gifted item(s)

Recipe For A Valentine's Day Outfit

My recipe for a good valentine's day outfit.

With over ten valentines and counting with hubby, I have learnt that
men can be quite visual beings. We tend to overdo / over-think things
and - all pink outfits *shudder* so I have decided to share my'winning'
formula for valentine date nights.

What is your 'winning' valentine's day outfit?

Dry Heels? Compeed Overnight Cracked Heel Cream

A recent debate at among friends left me no choice but to post how I try to avoid the dreaded ashy feet / dry heel problem. I am one of those people who use a foot cream every day! In fact, the thought of putting my feet into a any shoe / sandal / slipper without any sort of emollient on breaks me out in a sweat. I just cant do it.

Compeed's Overnight Cracked Heel Cream is one of my favourite 'go-to'. Nice and thick in consistency, its rich formula leave you in no doubt that your feet will keep the dreaded ash away. Containing the blessed Urea and Lactic Acid, over time my heel's skin changed in texture to one that wouldn't cause me any embarrassment. I found that other creams merely coasted my skin, building up a nasty film over time and loved that this cream didn't.

But I have really bad skin on my heels....
If you do then I would suggest some serious TLC. The web is littered with solutions to remove hard skin, but I find nothing beats a good soak and scrub. My favourite combination: warm water, drops of Tea Tree oil or lemon (good for antibacterial properties- excellent for people with funky toenails) and rough salt. Soak for a good 20 minutes and then, using a pumice stone, scrub the hell out of the skin - taking care not to cut the skin.  Take good care to dry your feet, slather them with a really rich, moisturising product such as the Compeed or Shea Butter. Depending on how much you want to treat yourself - I tend to do this when I'm having a night in - wrap feet in cling film, then socks after a good trim and cut the nails. Leave overnight and then enjoy the renewed skin on your feet! A good soak once a week, coupled with a good moisturising routine for badly damaged feet for six weeks should help the skin sort itself out. If all else  fails I would suggest visiting your GP / Chiropodist.

How do you keep your feet looking good?

Hat's off to ya Ma'am

I've become an even bigger fan of hats since beginning to transition 

my hair back to it's natural state. I loved the whole Saint Laurent 

(YSL to me always!) aesthetic with the wide fedoras and recently

picked up a wide brimmed felt hat from Peacocks that I obsessed 

over when I first laid eyes on it. Unfortunately for my purse I saw 

another trilby and will be going back to purchase on pay-day. I have

messed around with a few ideas on how I'm gonna style these hats 

and the results are below.

Baby On Board

So, you may have noticed there has been a severe lack of posts on my blog  over the last year.....

As the title suggests I was in fact pregnant and have now given birth, whoo hooo!

Whilst hubby and I were extremely happy to be expecting,this pregnancy was not without hiccups along the way: I was unfortunately severely anaemic during the majority of the pregnancy and found it hard to breathe, let along find the energy to blog. The hospital told us we were having a girl and out popped my son! That said, baby is healthy and happy so expect to see additional items on my pregnancy / motherhood on this blog, as I found reading about real life experiences to be helpful to me during this humongous period of change.

Hair
Weirdly it's like my body knew it would be going through a change, in January I made the decision to revert my hair to it's natural state from perm and so expect a few posts on my experiences (good & very bad). The regrowth has been a revelation; I feel as if I'm having to relearn how to manage with my Afro hair after fifteen plus years of having a perm! It's been hard for me style the two, very different textures without loads of hair breaking off or the teeth of my comb breaking.

Hopefully, as my son grows, I will be able to catch a few minutes to write and I plan to post on the rare days that I have off from full on mummy duties.

elf HD Blush

ELF HD Blush
(L-R) Encore, Showstopper, Diva

EyesLipsFace (elf)'s HD  Blush had been on my watch list for a while. Touted as being a credible, affordable dupe for MakeUpForever's HD Blushes, I - like many other UK make-up lovers- waited impatiently for them to reach our shores after watching / reading about them on the internet.

These blushes are sold in the UK for £3.75, earlier this year I managed to get my paws on three of the five HD Blushes: Encore / Showstopper/ Diva, taking advantage of elf's 50% discount on all Studio products. I found these blushes to be creamy in texture and was initially scared of just how pigmented they are. To say a small amount goes a loooooooooong way is an understatement and necessary to avoid wastage. As you can see from my swatches, I placed a relatively small amount on my arm and had an obscene amount left over. A stippling or elf's power brush is a must for application to avoid staining your fingers. You need to ensure that you blend, blend, blend in order to avoid coco the clown cheeks. It would be a good idea to practice before using the blush directly on your face. 

Pros

• Highly pigmented and colour choice of the above blushes = excellent for WOC. 
• Extremely affordable at £3.75 for 10ml and value for money due to amount required.
• Long lasting
• Multi use- I've seen YouTuber's using the excess on lips as stain or base for lipstick. 

Negative

• Pump dispenser allows for wastage, heavy fingers beware.
• Availability- website regularly shows popular colours as being out of stock. 

Overall I am a fan. I am confident that I will be ordering Superstar once it shows as being back in stock and am really proud of elf for bring us a product that could have remained in the land of high end brands to the masses, at an affordable price point without compromising on quality.

I wish more brands would be as honest elf in their pricing to consumers. 

Have you tried HD Blushes  what are your thoughts?