Christmas Gift Guide - Luxury Edition Part 2: Gadgets and Electrical Beauty!

Christmas shopping can invariably lead to stress, headache, and panic (for the unprepared, last minute Larrys, like I am this year)… not to mention extremely painful feet and potential for mild assault from other keen shoppers if you’re braving the shops, rather than shopping online. Personally, I try to stick to buying online as much as I can, so as to avoid the physically painful part, at least.

Now I know there’s loads of gift guides floating around, but I firmly believe that you can never have too much inspiration if you’re truly stumped for things to buy – especially if like me, you have to buy both for the people who seemingly have everything, and also the people who actually want nothing (thanks dad… a jumper it is then, again); and so I’ve compiled a couple of guides for you covering a whole host of fabulous looking ‘stuff and things’ in the hope that I can maybe inspire you on the perfect gifts to buy for your nearest and dearest.

This guide focuses on luxurious and expensive products… my favourite. It was always going to be seriously difficult to keep the amount of ‘stuff and things’ that I want, errrr I mean that would be lovely for you to purchase for your loved ones to so few items – especially spanning so many categories such as gadgets, accessories, jewellery and more, and so I’ve split this particular guide into 3 posts for easier digestion!

And so without further ado, here’s a whole heap of fabulousness that I’d personally love to own/receive. I could probably have just called all these guides ‘Claire’s Wish Lists’ if I’m honest.

1. Alienware Area-51 Gaming PC £3,000 (or less, maybe) – If you’re anything like me, you put your computer through a lot of shit and expect it to deal with it all promptly, and without complaining. I actually have a top of the range gaming laptop, which doesn’t really do this at all, in fact it failed miserably on many counts – shame on you Samsung. So I think that any self-respecting fellow computer abuser would benefit greatly from a desktop system that could potentially put up with more being thrown at it, and be able to ‘man up’ through the tough times.

2. Pioneer CDJ 2000 Nexus & DJM 2000 Nexus Set £4,378 – Since being back in ‘clubber mode’ music has played an even larger part in my life, to the point that I rarely have the chance to catch up with any TV series that I enjoy as I’ve always got music on instead, errrk. Anyway, I’d pretty much do anything for this set up as this is the crème de la crème of DJ set ups; and just look how pretty they are – all the lovely lights… and there I go again with my magpie tendencies. Seriously though, this is a beast of a set up, as is reflected in the price; however if you have the money, then these would definitely be a present that wowed your recipient. Especially if it was me, ha.

3. Samsung Galaxy Note 4 £599 – I own the Note 3 and I love it, although I suffer with this expensive glitch within me that makes me feel like I NEED every new phone that comes out, ever. I don’t know what’s so addictive about getting a new phone, but I love it. And so I can’t wait for April when I can upgrade to this beauty… although I suspect that when the Galaxy S6 is released shortly after, I’ll want that too, and when the Note 5 comes out in September, I’ll also want that. Basically, I want the moon on a stick, and then some. I’m not even that materialistic as I put more value on relationships, memories and experiences… but that doesn’t stop me liking, and coveting lots of ‘stuff and things’ at the same time.

4. Caci Microlift ‘Personal Facial Toning System’ £350 – This claims to lift and tone the face and jawline, and reduce wrinkle depth by over 1/3. Well sign me up; I’m totally up for some of that action! I’d love to see how effective it is, and this is why it’s going straight on my wishlist.

5. Sqoom Skin Treatment Device £549 – This is something that caught my eye a couple of months ago due to the seemingly multitasking nature of it. The device is said to deep cleanse, massage, improve texture, wrinkles, acne and even skin conditions such as psoriasis, something that appeals to me on many levels as I’ve suffered with psoriasis for as long as I can remember, and I’m obviously not getting any younger, so the anti-aging claims also appeal to me greatly. I believe the gels that you can buy are what tackle each ‘problem’ rather than the device, but this is something I will actually be reviewing soon on here, so keep your eyes peeled for that one. Exciting, eh. ;-)

6. Philips Lumea Precision Plus (SC2006/11) IPL Hair Removal System £350 – Removing body hair is such a chore, right?! There has been an influx of at home laser/IPL devices in the last few years, giving us mere mortals the chance to lessen this chore, almost permanently (maintenance is needed as new follicles ‘wake up’ at different times) and save time in the future to boot (hurrah). I’ve heard nothing but good things from people who have used these devices, with time saved in getting ready and also things like no ingrown hairs, always being 'match fit' if you get my drift and suchlike. It’s miles cheaper than going to a salon, and can be done in the privacy of your own home, making it ultra-convenient too.

So just a handful of gadgets and electrical beauty products that could make a loved ones Christmas. Would any of these be on your wishlist? :-)

Part 3 coming soon...

This post originated at www.thebeautyscoop.co.uk

My Essential Pre-Holiday Beauty Preparation!

I love holidays; I love everything about them (minus the packing and remembering of important things like passports etc, the paying for the holiday, and mostly the coming home); but I definitely love the excitement of looking forward to it, starting the holiday early at the airport - and yes I do mean boozing at wherever they'll put up with us in the departure lounge, boarding the plane, arriving (love it when that heat hits you as you step off the plane), and then of course the holiday itself.

However, before I go on holiday, there are definitely beauty chores that need tending to so that my holiday is as chore free as possible. I mean who wants to be shaving daily, or doing nail polish etc. when there's fun to be had?! Not me, that’s for sure! That's why I'm letting you know about my absolute essentials when it comes to my own holiday beauty preparation.

Hair Appointments:

The first chore to be tackled was my hair, because, other than the roots needing to be done, I wanted my hair colour as fresh and as vibrant as possible for the whole holiday; and with the potential for excessive fading due to the sun and swimming pool action, this was even more important for me. I stuck with the same colour combination I've been having recently, as I felt that a change (not in overall colour, just the tips) could mean that the colour build up that I had achieved so far with the orange-y tips could all be undone, thus there would be even more risk of fading.

I recommend having your hair colour done a few days before you fly if you're going for something slightly new/different, that way you have time to make alterations, should it not be to your liking. Otherwise, get it done as close to your departure time as possible for longevity.

Manicures and Pedicures:

Before gel nail polish existed, I would just go for a bog standard manicure before my holiday, in the hope that my nails would look nice for as long as possible; but then end up having to re-do or top up my nails myself throughout the holiday, since normal polish is extremely prone to fading and chipping very quickly, more so when in a holiday environment.

Nowadays, we have gel polish... thank god, and it has been an absolute godsend because it absolutely 100% lasts for my entire holiday (well unless I'm going on an extended break of more than 3 weeks - I wish!) without chipping, or fading. I had gel polish on both my finger and toe nails, which lasted for the entire holiday, and then some. In fact, the only reason it had to come off was due to regrowth. Although I actually have a post coming up soon about how to extend your gel polish a little longer, if only down to regrowth starting to show. I got my nails done the day before I went on holiday, which worked well for me as they lasted perfectly.

For your reference, I had my nails done at Blink Brow Bar at Selfridges in Manchester; and the colours I believe I had were Artistic Colour Gloss in shades Sexy (the coral-y pink shade on all but 'feature' ring finger), Sultry (the orange shade on my feature finger) and Halo (the sparkly top coat on my thumb and ring fingers)!

Hair Removal:

Well I've already written an article on hair removal recently, so I won't go into it in too much detail as you can read that here! However, when I go on holiday, I absolutely need to feel like I am hair free for the entire time. I mean nobody wants to be in a bikini with hairs that have escaped, or grown back poking out, do they (ew)?!

So, I tend to schedule in a bikini (Hollywood) and thigh wax as standard and then epilate the rest of my body (underarms and lower legs) as I can just about take the epilation pain there but then I keep on top of the fuzz with the epilator, if and when I need to whilst over there - which is rare, but I take it with me anyway! Now that I am doing some at home laser hair removal, I'm hoping that this will be a redundant step for future holidays though.

I also make sure my eyebrows are freshly threaded, as nobody likes a messy brow. ;-)

This isn't an eyelash perm image, it's an old image from a very old Max Factor False Lash Effect post.

Eyelashes:

I think this is another holiday essential if you want your eyelashes to look great whilst by the pool/on the beach during the day, but don't want to be putting makeup on for whatever reason. I personally don't wear makeup at all throughout the day whilst on holiday, unless going to a day time event/club - so having my eyelashes 'done' just makes me feel better about that.

I was actually due to have my eyelashes either permed or extended at Blink Brow Bar on the day that I left the country. However due to a mishap beyond my control, I was unable to make it there that day. I will be having these done on another occasion, so expect a separate review post on this soon.

Others:

Lots of people have fake tan applied before they jet off on their jollies, but I find this to be a total waste of time, since as soon as you hit the pool, the chlorine actually strips the tan straight off. If you're planning on staying poolside, this may not be such an issue, but I definitely like taking dips to cool down, at the very least. I do take a few short sunbed sessions to prepare my skin for the sun before I go, not necessarily the healthiest option, but I do find it helps to prevent overcooking my skin the moment I get there.

Weight loss - I always try to diet and tone up before a holiday. The fact that people will be seeing me in not much more than 'glorified underwear' through the day is a large factor in this. Obviously this is a personal thing, you may not need to lose any (lucky thing) but if you do, timing with this will depend on how much you need or want to lose.

Exfoliation is a key treatment to do both before and throughout your holiday if you're planning on tanning. The more you exfoliate, the better your tan will be, and the longer it will last. Dead, dry skin is not a good look at any time though. I tend to use a nice body scrub AND a scrubby mitt or sponge to slough away any dead cells.

So there you have it, my holiday preparation essentials. I would normally have posted this earlier in the year, however I obviously still had a lot going on then with my personal life (and then technical issues), so it's a case of better late than never and this will hopefully help those of you jetting off for some winter sun. You lucky things.

What holiday preparation do you do?

This post originated at www.thebeautyscoop.co.uk

The Chore That is: Hair Removal - Saying Farewell to The Fuzz!

Me, preparing for my waxing at the Fake Bake Boutique in Manchester.

I’ve always said that men have it easy. No periods, no child birth, no hair and makeup tasks to deal with (for most men anyway, and as much as I love hair & beauty in their entirety, they can be a bit of a chore at times with how long it takes to get ready), and… no having to religiously remove hair from almost all of their body!! The fact that those few reasons are just the main few ‘perks’ of being a bloke that came to the top of my head prove my point as I’m sure there’s plenty more to boot.

Anyway, how you remove your body hair is a personal choice to each and every one of us, but one thing that remains the same, it’s never, ever enjoyable. It is a chore, there’s no getting away from this fact, AND there is always, always a down side to each hair removal technique. I should know, I've tried most methods in a bid to say a final farewell to the fuzz.

Let’s look at the main contenders, and my view on each one:

Shaving: Well this is a quick fix, cheap, and easily done if in a rush… if the errr need to shave arises unexpectedly, you know what I am talking about girls. Sounds great, but it doesn’t last. The fact that it lasts basically no time at all, the stubble that comes shortly after (sometimes the same day, depending on how unfortunate your hair growth is for you), potential shaving cuts (ouch) and shaving rash definitely put me off using this as my regular hair removal routine – unless as part of a laser hair removal course, which I’ll move onto near the end of this post.

Hair removal creams: Yuck, I hate these. They have never really worked on my hair, so are probably only good for fine/fair hair and not much of it. They’re messy, smelly and again don’t work for long – I also find them time consuming, since you’re supposed to leave the cream on to dissolve the hair which is an arduous task, since you can’t do much else other than wait. This is even worse if you're treating a more delicate, or hidden area that may require you to hold your arms high in the air/above your head, or worse... hold your legs open for the entire time - lovely. The 'rough' stubble isn’t quite as much of an issue as shaving, since the hair isn’t cut off as bluntly, but you will still get a rapid regrowth that you will feel, since the follicle is left intact.

Waxing: This was my choice of hair removal for many years, visiting a salon religiously every 4 weeks to have my body hair ripped from the follicles. I was always happy with the smooth finish that waxing left me with, and the fact that it lasted a good few weeks before I felt like I was getting some regrowth. What I wasn’t happy with was ingrown hairs, the cost of going somewhere decent to get a Brazilian or a Hollywood and the having to leave it until there was enough regrowth to be removed for the smoothness to return. Let’s face it ladies, it’s not ideal to *have* to let your hair grow, when you want to be ‘match fit’ 100% of the time, is it?! It’s also incredibly painful, especially in sensitive areas (armpits and bikini area being the worst culprits). That being said, I did have a couple of waxing appointments (at the Fake Bake Boutique in Selfridges, Manchester) just before my holiday and just after for the immediate and long lasting 'effect' that I required, both of which I was over the moon with (no ingrown hairs etc).

Epilating: In-between waxes, I would often find myself epilating should the need to be fuzz free arise. And, I actually maintained my hair free status for quite some time using epilation. This was actually a godsend, as; with decent epilators you can remove hair as short as a grain of sand, which means you have the benefit of removing the hair from the follicle (and the longevity with the result), with no need to actually grow the hair to a length that you’re not entirely comfortable with.

The downsides to epilation is that I find it a lot more painful than waxing, as you’re ripping less hairs out in one go which is slightly more tortuous – to put it mildly, it’s not something you could do from scratch in sensitive areas (unless you’re a sadist and actually enjoy pain), and it can take a bit of time to get a good result, depending on how good your epilators is. Plus there’s a slightly larger outlay to start with when buying a decent epilator (I recommend the higher end Braun models), which I do think is worthwhile, as they do make the job easier and less painful (ish), but will pay for themselves over time!

Laser hair removal: Now this is a slightly newer kid on the block, and whilst has been done in salons and clinics for a good few years, the at home alternatives have only been around a very short time indeed. It’s not a quick fix either; treatment can take 6 months or more to be successful; however it is the longest lasting hair removal method to date. The laser attacks the hair follicle and effectively destroys it/puts it to ‘sleep’, this method is usually called ‘permanent hair removal’ but actually does require some maintenance to keep all follicles on your body asleep/dead. This upkeep is made easier (and cheaper) by the use of ‘at home’ machines such as the Philips Lumea Precision Plus, Tria, HoMedics me Pro and suchlike (although the outlay on these machines are in the hundreds, but compared to the thousands for salon treatments over large areas do offer value for money).

To prepare for laser hair removal you need to shave the area 24 hours before treatment, and then use the laser on the skin/have it used on you by a therapist (depending on whether you're having it done in clinic or at home). The sensation of laser hair removal isn't entirely painless, but depending on your pain threshold/tolerance shouldn't be too uncomfortable. I liken it to being pinged by a hot elastic band - it's totally bearable for me, anyway.  Over the course of treatments, you'll notice your hair regrowth lessening and getting finer, and patches of hair free areas increasing. This is totally satisfying to see, as you can see the treatment is doing what it's meant to. The finished effect of this is smooth skin, usually without even having little dots where the follicle is/was.

The downsides, as touched on are the cost, the length of time it takes for the treatment to work, the having to shave areas being treated (which means no longevity in hair removal until the treatment has run its course) and for some, the pain. However, all that being said, I do think it's totally worth doing in the long run.

Other methods of hair removal include Electrolysis, sugaring, no!no! Hair PRO and 'sanding hair off' with mitts such as the Silky Mitt but I haven't had as much experience (or any at all in some cases) with these, so I have left them off and focused on the main players. Nor have I spoken about threading, as on larger areas, I don’t think it would work so well and would be faaaar too time consuming.

I think, if push came to shove, and I had to choose my favourite method, I would choose to laser those follicles into submission, over the rest - purely for the longevity, even though it does take longer to get our final smooth result. However I think epilation (as maintenance after waxing) would be my second choice because it's a happy medium between the rest.

How do you prefer to de-fuzz? Do you find it a chore, do you have any tips that you might like to share?

This post originated at www.thebeautyscoop.co.uk

My Bikini/Beach Body Challenge!

Possibly the only 'before' picture I can bear to show, from being in the garden the other week.

Going on holiday is always something to look forward to, especially if you're going abroad... getting out in the sun with your nearest and dearest and partying the nights away is absolute perfection for me. However, there is ALWAYS one bugbear that I dread (and I'm sure many of you do too), and that's getting my body out in full view in a bikini.

I have lost over 5 stone in weight, which is great but I still have about 1 stone or so still to go, and also with plenty of wobbly bits to tone up before I'd feel 'happy' being so bare, especially in front of a lot of friends this time (including male friends)... now I am single and not jetting off with my ex.

So, I have made it my mission to get my body bikini ready by the time I go away at the beginning of September, which gives me approximately 11 weeks to get in shape and ready for public viewing (god help me). I'm looking to slim down, tone up and generally get my body (and my face for that matter) looking the absolute best they can, including my skin tone/texture, hair removal and suchlike. :-)

I'd love to be able to go and have the fat sucked right out of my problem areas (tummy, bingo wings, inner thighs, back fat and hips - to list a few, ha), but my budget would not run to that unfortunately. :-(

So, unless I have a lottery win, I'll just have to do it the hard way with diet and exercise. That being said, I will be trialing products in the run up to the holiday that claim to help with weight loss, firming and toning and generally getting my body and skin in shape. So, expect lots of beach body posts once I am back, letting you know how well I did, and how well I felt specific products worked.

I'll also be finishing off with a recap detailing my results, including the highs, lows and what I felt worked the most, for me.

Are any of you off on your jollies? If so, what have you done/are you doing to prep for them? x

This post originated at www.thebeautyscoop.co.uk

BIC Search For Miss Sunshine 2012!

BIC® Shavers are on the hunt for 4 lucky ladies to represent BIC® Soleil® Shavers this summer. If you are chosen as one of the lucky four then you will be whisked off to St Tropez for three days (two nights) where you'll take part in a glamorous beach photoshoot, which will be featured in Closer magazine later in the summer. You'll also have the chance to enjoy and explore the French Riviera, and 'take in the exquisite coastline and culture' - sounds fun, doesn't it!!

The chosen four will represent the spirit of the four women's shavers in the Soleil® range, with one girl winning the overall title of Miss Sunshine 2012.

The spirit of each shaver is listed within the competition app on their Facebook page, and you take a little quiz to determine which spirit you best represent:

• BIC® Miss Soleil® ('active lifestyle, young and fun),
• BIC® Soleil® Lady ('for the woman on the go, looking for a quality shave'),
• BIC® Soleil® Scent™ ('pamper yourself and smell great! Indulgent nights in and weekends away'), and
• BIC® Soleil® Bella® ('for a lady who loves a little luxury! Chic and discerning')

You then get the option to include a written (you need to include a photograph), or video submisson to enter into the competition, if you wish. I took the test and came out as BIC® Miss Soleil®, which was a surprise to me as I totally thought I'd be BIC Soleil Bella... given my love of luxury brands.

So, if this sounds like a prize you can get down with, then get yourself over to the BIC Soleil Just Live Facebook page to determine your shaver personality; and don't forget to let BIC® Soleil® know why you should win this once in a lifetime prize.

Applicants must be able to travel between August 1st and August 3rd 2012, and entries must be in by 12th June 2012.

Full terms and conditions can be found within the competition app on Facebook.

Find out more now

Enter the contest now

Visit the Facebook Page


Sponsored Post
Viral video by ebuzzing

This post originated at www.thebeautyscoop.co.uk

Hair Removal - Threading To Be Precise!

So I found myself signing up to have my brows threaded the other day, in my local Tesco store no less; they had a half price treatment offer on which meant that threading would cost me just £5! I have only minimal experience of threading from many years ago, when a beauty therapist showed me how it was done (after having a bikini wax); but it's been around for absolutely AGES and I had heard good things about it in general so was looking forward to seeing the end result.

I was a bit worried when I felt them removing hair from the top of my brows as although I have always thought they were a bit wishy washy and, well rubbish in general up there, I had always had it drummed into me that you do your hair removal and shaping from the bottom of the brow only so I was feeling a slight panic, whilst hoping that they actually knew what they were doing. It also felt like they were taking loads off, just to add to my worries whilst it was being done.

 It turned out to be needless worrying as all my worries were alleviated once they showed me the results; my brows have never looked so defined, and the hair they had taken from the top? Well that wasn’t anywhere near as much as I had felt it was. Obviously it’s always better to try and leave that top brow hair untouched but in my case I really do feel like it has helped my brow shape.

I’ve seen many places charging a small fortune for threading, which is frankly unnecessary as it only requires threads of cotton and a minimal amount of their time (mine took no more than 10 minutes); however I also wouldn’t advise that you just choose a therapist/salon purely because they are the cheapest either. Don’t be scared to ask questions, how long they have been doing it etc because you don’t want to walk out of the salon unhappy with the results – remember they can’t just reattach the hair once they’ve taken it off.

As a side note, I also had my lashes and brows tinted at the same time (how could I refuse when they were also half price, just £2.50 each) amd whilst the lash tint was quite nice, I don’t feel it made a massive amount of difference to my already fairly dark lashes. The eyebrow tint however, was amazing. I recommend it to you all, even if you get a DIY home kit and follow the Lauren Luke video on YouTube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d7AGZOOKl_k

Tweezerman Limited Edition Polka Dot Swarovski® Tweezers!

“Bring on the glamour and show off some Bling. Being truly fabulous means never sacrificing quality — luckily you don’t have to choose: outfit your beauty kit with the unparalleled, award-winning function and brilliant style of our world-famous Slant® with these Special Edition Swarovski® Crystal bejeweled tweezers. Stainless steel with enamel colour finishes.”

I couldn’t help myself when I saw this special edition pair of Tweezerman tweezers, they totally satisfy my magpie urges as they are littered with Swarovski crystals. At their RRP of around £26 you may think they’re pointless and that an ordinary, cheaper pair of Tweezermans would do the job just the same and to some degree, you’d be correct. 

Just look at them though, they’re so pretty and sparkly that it begs the question who WOULDN’T want to use them and then see them looking so pretty on their dressing table? Plus, they’re an investment, they will survive the test of time (providing they don’t get dropped) and they also benefit from the free sharpening for life deal that Tweezerman offers, as per the rest of the range. Not to mention that if we all went for functionality over looks/style then there would be no fashion or beauty industries to start with, and probably no use for tweezers at all for that matter *shudder*.

They're available in 3 colours, but I chose black.

Directions for use:

• Always tweeze one hair at a time in direction of hair growth.
• For expert brow shaping, use the broad side of the Slant for general tweezing and flip tweezer to use the tip of the higher side of the edge for precision work.
• Clean only the tweezer tips with an alcohol-moistened pad after each use.
• Clean crystals by rubbing lightly with a clean, smooth cloth.
• Do not soak tweezer body in water/solution or heat-sterilise.
• As with any fine crystal, handle with care.
• When not in use, keep in case to avoid dulling or breaking by scratching against or dropping on hard surfaces.

TIP: If you can, try to tweeze AFTER a bath or after steaming your face as it should hurt less because your pores are already open from the heat! Whilst I am aware that it’s fairly well known fact, I thought it worth a mention anyway – just in case there was somebody who was unaware of this.

You know you want to... (I felt like Keith Lemon on that Celebrity Juice advert then, ha) x

Wax On, Wax Ooof - My Thoughts On The Rio Complete Wax Kit!

Advantages: Smooth hair free skin, Save money, Convenient, Easy, works well, Easy & cheap for replacement bits

Disadvantages: A little painful (you get used to it), Have to let hair grow to wax it off  

Thinking about body hair reminded me of a fantastic piece of kit that I have owned for the last few years; it’s the Rio Complete Wax Kit and it’s for use at home. I had never heard of this until I was given it as a present a few Christmases ago because my sister had sworn by it ever since she had owned one herself and knew I would make good use of it.

The box contains a number of items that have various uses:

• 1 black and silver unit with a dial on it and a mains lead to plug it in, this is the main item that is used to heat the wax that you use (as it’s a warm wax system) and the dial enables you to control the temperature of the wax and also turn the unit off. This is quite quick to heat up, so you don’t have to spend ages sitting and waiting for your wax to even start to melt.

• 2 silver mini saucepan-type cups with black handles,  these are what hold the wax to heat it up in the unit and also are fully transportable to wherever you are waxing so that there’s less chance of wax getting stuck to everything in-between the unit and your skin. Although you should still keep the heating unit nearby as the wax does cool down if you leave it out too long and can become harder to use, not to mention more painful.

• Spatulas – a number of these (I haven’t counted, but there’s quite a few) and these are for applying the wax to your skin. I have found that whilst these are decent for most areas, they feel a bit too big for my eyebrows and I am not confident using them in that area for fear of ripping out too much hair. For this reason I went to eBay and found some smaller ones for a reasonable price.

• Wax equipment cleaner – to remove waxy residue from bits from equipment that it should not be on, or to try and help to clean any accidental spillages. It says it is effective to use on all surfaces, including plastic and natural fibres – although I haven’t really had any major spillages in the time that I have owned this product *touch wood*.

• A tub of soft wax – this is the most common kind of wax that you’re used to that gets applied with the spatula and then removed using a waxing strip. It’s decent quality and does the job; it’s cheap to replace too, which is a bonus – I’d recommend replacing it with tea tree wax when the time comes as tea tree helps to soothe the skin.

• Hard wax – This used to come in blocks that you broke into quarters but these days comes in flakes in a sealed plastic bag, this is easier to use as you don’t have to break fingers/nails to get the ‘portion’ you require into the cup so it can be heated. It doesn’t need wax strips to remove the wax from the body, but you do have to wait for it to cool down and set/get hard (which traps the hair in the wax) before you can peel the edge a little and then rip it off and the hair will come out along with it. This is said to be better for more sensitive areas and will cause less skin irritation than normal soft wax with no interference with the lymphatic flow, it’s also less sticky than soft wax. Obviously because it has to go hard and set first, it does take a little bit longer (and more patience) but it is definitely worth using.

• Waxing Strips – To remove the soft wax, along with the hair from your body; these can be folded once one side has been used and reused (all be it being a little shorter, but still very useable). This means that you don’t have to buy replacements quite so quickly; although I have found they are quite cheap to replace anyway, but it’s also more environmentally friendly to do it this way which is another incentive to do it. You can also cut the strips into smaller strips for use around the eyebrows or any other smaller/more intricate waxing areas.

• Instruction book – Pretty self explanatory really, and definitely worth reading.

• A DVD – This may or may not come with it, my sister got one and I did not – apparently this has guides for the more ‘troublesome’ areas of the body (bikini, underarms etc), but I have never thought ‘oh I could really do with a DVD to watch for this bit’ so I don’t think it is essential really.

Application of the wax is easy, dip the spatula into the wax (whichever one you’re using) and coat it with a small amount for the soft wax and enough to make a thick coat for the hard wax - make sure you don’t have any wax ready to drip as you move it away from the cup (just for neatness really) and smooth it over your skin following the direction of the hair. Another tip for neatness is to dedicate an old towel to the task and have it under the body part being waxed so if any wax does drip, it drips on something that you don’t mind getting ruined.

Removal of the wax is an easy action in itself, however the pain you anticipate will make it the most difficult thing you could think of doing to yourself. Whilst I’m not saying that it’s not painful, it isn’t anywhere near as painful as it is if you hesitate and end up pulling the skin so like they say for plasters, do it quick and in one go if you can. Pull the skin taut too as this will stop the skin being pulled as much and can help lessen the pain. The action to remove the wax is to either put the wax strip over and smooth over it and then pull AGAINST the direction of the hair (ie opposite to the way you smoothed the wax on) for the soft wax, or once the hard wax has set peel a little bit up at the edge and then rip that up in the same way as mentioned for the soft wax.

You may also find that you need help with hard to reach areas and bikini line etc, but I usually find my fella is more than happy to help on these occasions. I have saved a HUGE amount in salon costs in the time I have had mine so finding somebody help is a small price to pay.

This product is available in many places, most notably Tesco online and Amazon, priced around the £39 mark which is a fantastic price for such a brilliant product that WILL save you money if you replace your salon visits with it, and will save you the embarrassment of stubbly bits from shaving, or hairy bits from not doing anything (haha)!

Rio manufactures in the UK, which is brilliant for economy and environment alike. They have a page dedicated to their environmental actions and aims for the future here: http://www.riobeauty.com/Rio_Beauty/greener_rio.html

Body Hair - Grooming?!

So, Julia’s recently been snapped again with her (hairy) arms in the air, waving (well lifting) them like she just don’t care! I truly believe that she doesn’t care at all; because anybody who is willing to lift their arms up without having first defuzzed them is very, very brave. It's even more brave (or stupid - however you wish to look at it) when the world's paparazzi are nearby watching and taking photos. I salute her for having the guts to do it, but really could not imagine being as bold as to do it myself; in fact I will be getting mine lasered off soon.

What do you guys make of it?

Wilkinson Sword Intuition Plus Sensitive Care Razor

Advantages: Easy to use, Quick, Relatively Close Shave!

Disadvantages: Soap runs down quickly, Hair sticks to soap and in blades, The price

I am a member of a site called bzzagent and had been given this product to trial which is how I came to trial the item and thus have this opinion of the product to share with you all.

I must say, I am usually a *rip the hair straight out of the folicle* kind of girl using wax and my epilator; but you do sometimes get the odd time that you need a quick fix in that inbetween, so I do like to have a razor in just in case so receiving this was good for this kind of occasion!

I found that using this razor was very easy and made light work of my shaving needs. Using the intuition plus means that there's no need for separate foam and thus shaving is instantly easier and quicker so less time and pain standing on one leg, holding your leg up, balancing it in an awkward position and not fiddling around with a few different objects/tops etc. However, with the lack of foam came the problem that you couldn't easily see where had you had already shaved (unless your legs were terribly hairy to start with of course, ha) so you have to have a good feel to make sure it's smooth, not such a big problem but definitely worth noting if you're planning on making a purchase.

The razor itself was easy to hold (easier than normal razors I found as it was chunkier and with a more non slip surface, although not as easy to flip around) and made light work of the job, meaning I didn't have to scrape and scrape at my legs for the hair to be removed which can irritate skin and risk cutting yourself too.

I did find that the 'soap' kept the blade from my leg to start with, but then wore down quickly, more so on one side quicker than the other, which meant that I did have to flick the razor around a bit to get more use out of it. This isn't a massive issue and to be honest, I'm not sure how or if this could have been avoided. It's certainly not a deal breaker as to if I'd carry on using this razor though in-between waxing when I need to get rid of hair quickly.

Another problem I discovered was that I found that hair I had shaven off stuck to the soap and in the blades, which was difficult to get off/out and looked unsightly so I hid the razor out of sight as that is just embarrassing in my opinion. This also meant that I did not use the holder it came with.

Afterwards, my skin did feel smooth but I didn't feel that it completely removed the need to moisturise separately. I'd certainly recommend it for anybody who wants to try it though as it cut down my time shaving and made it a lot easier for me in the shower; although the price is on the expensive side. The blades cost anywhere around the £5-7 mark which is a bit steep, but then I guess if you factor in the fact that you don't need to buy separate foam, it doesn't seem as bad.

Buy the razor here! 

Cheap replacement blades!

Summary: Intuitive product but isn't without fault.