Review: Lush - Smitten - Almond Icing Hand Cream

Lush Smitten

Hi guys! For today I have a review about Lush's one of their hand creams. The reason why I'm reviewing it today is it's discontinued but still available! I already reviewed and really liked Handy Gurugu, do I like this one just as much? Read on to find out.

Like almond icing

According to Lush, Smitten is a protective, almond scented hand cream. It's a lighter hand cream with the same fragrance as the famous Snowcake soap. "Smitten is made with natural oils, calming chamomile and beeswax to protect the hands from extreme weather or nourish them when they need it most. Use it regularly for nice soft mitts. Chamomile is anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, bactericidal and sedative. Aromatherapists have used it to treat bruises, allergies, stress and depression. It is helpful for sensitive skins."

Kind to mitts?

Smitten has a very creamy texture and is definitely moisturizing. I do feel like the effect is quickly evaporated, but I still like it. The smell is famous, and while it does reminds me of almonds, I immediately thought: Play Doh! I thought I was crazy for thinking it smelled liked Play Doh, but a quick Google search showed me I'm not alone! So, Play Doh.. I think it's quite a funny smell, and it makes me a bit nostalgic, at times I love it, at times I hate it. The scent does wear off after an hour or so.

What's in it?

The ingredients look rather nice, Chamomile, Almond and other nice oils. I love the fact Lush is cruelty free, if you're vegan you can't use Smitten though, as it contains lanoline and beeswax. The one thing I don't get is why a company like Lush still uses parabens, but okay.
Overall, I quite like this product, even though I haven't decided on the smell yet. It's a good cream to take with you on the road, since it's quite light and quickly absorbed. For a more thorough moisturizing effect I'd recommend Handy Gurugu over this though! If you want to get this cream, get it fast as it's discontinued!

Ingredients

Chamomile Matricaria Infusion (Chamomilla recutita), Almond Oil (Prunus dulcis), Marigold Infusion (Calendula officinalis), Cold Pressed Flaxseed Oil (Linum usitatissimum), Glycerine, Stearic Acid, Cocoa Butter (Theobroma cacao), Cetearyl Alcohol, Cold Pressed Wheatgerm Oil (Triticum vulgare), Cold Pressed Avocado Oil (Persea gratissima), Coconut Butter (Cocos nucifera), Lanolin, Beeswax (Cera alba), Benzoin Resinoid (Styrax benzoin), Rose Absolute (Rosa centifolia), Cassie Absolute (Acacia farnesiana), Perfume, Triethanolamine, Methylparaben, Propylparaben.

Lush Smitten costs € 11,75 / 100g, or $17.95 / 3.5oz. Visit www.lush.com for more information.

Nail biting: Ditch that habit!

Ditch the biting

Some people don't believe me when I say I used to bite my nails. But I did. Real bad, and for years! I started this awful habit when I was pretty young, maybe around the age of seven? I bit my nails until they bled, not a pretty sight. Embarrased as I was, I always sat on my hands, I absolutey didn't want anyone to see them. But I always had a thing for my mom's nail polish though, it made me sad, looking at my nails. I'm not sure about all the reasons I ended up with this habit, but I managed to beat it!

If it's more serious...

Of course it depends on your reasons why you bite your nails, if there are serious psychological motives behind your addiction, I don't think this post is right for you. But, if you just got used to the biting, the habit, to the point of no return, let me tell you how I did it.

Why is nail biting bad?

There are actually quite some health risks attached to biting your nails. It's not very hygienic, you can end up with some serious infections. It isn't that great for your teeth as well, and not to mention the permanent damage you can do to your nails and cuticles.

Possible solutions

There are plenty of products on the market which you can polish on, that leave a horrendous taste. A friend of mine actually kicked her habit to the curb with Essence No More Bite. Many companies sell products like these. If you haven't tried them yet, give it a shot.

It didn't really work out for me though, it was a short term solution and I just kept biting through that bitter awful mess. At one point I just had enough, I wanted pretty, polished nails. So I decided to get acrylics. Best thing I've ever done for my nails. Not only did I realize how much I actually liked pretty nails, I just couldn't bite my way through them. Well, I know a lot of people can and do, but somehow I didn't feel like putting those acrylics in my mouth anymore. After a while that oral fixation disappeared and I didn't have to fight the urge anymore. I let my acrylics grow out, and here we are today.

What also works for a lot of people: baby them like crazy! File, moisturize, keep them polished at all times, and enjoy it! Your nails can be in pretty bad shape after you've bitten the shit out of them, so don't expect them to be nice, long and strong immediately. Everything will work out though, invest in a good nail hardener and ridge filler and just be nice to them. If you can't do it on your own, don't hesitate to tell some people, because they can help a great deal, especially when mindlessly put that finger in your mouth..

Any experiences to share?

So this was my personal story.. If you used to bite your nails, and have some great tips or tricks, please share!

How to: get velvety hands

Hi guys! Due to all kinds of crazy busy-ness, just a quick little tip for today: how to get smooth and velvety hands. Ages ago I got an excellent tip from Kirsten from TheDuchNailBlog: scrub your hands with sugar or salt with vinegar oil. By doing this you get rid of dead skin cells thus making your hands a whole lot smoother. If oil dries you out, finish with a rich handcream and you won't stop touching your own hands, I promise!

Clumsy?

If you're clumsy, like me, you'll be happy to know there are several pre made hand scrubs available. I tried the P2 - Ultra Clean Hand Peeling and let's see how I like it!

First thing I noticed was the smell, it's quite fresh but strong, reminding me of pomelos or grapefruits. You're supposed to use this several times a week, by taking a little, massage your hands with it and wash it off. The texture is really grainy, which makes sense, because it has a lot of sugar in it. I like how the sugar leaves me with smooth hands, but I hate how it gets under my nails. It's easily washed of and you won't end up with oily hands. I don't find this scrub to be very moisturizing on its own so I like to use a handcream afterwards, and with this routine I get the softest hands ever.

Ingredients

Sucrose, Helianthus annuus [sunflower] Seed Oil, Caprylic / Capric Triglyceride, Isopropyl Myristate, Cetearyl Alcohol, Glyceryl Stearate Se, Silica, Sodium Lauryl Sarcosinate, Tocopheryl Acetate, Fragrance, Water, Propanediol, Eclipta prostrata Extract, Propylene Glycol, Hibiscus sabdariffa Flower Extract, Lactic Acid, Phenoxyethanol, Methylparaben, Propylparaben, Ethylparaben, Butylparaben, Isobutylparaben, CI 26100, CI 47000th

Conclusion

I really like this scrub, it does a good job at exfoliating, I like the smell and how my hands feel afterwards. This product costs only 2.45 eur for 100 ml, but it's not easy to get (DM in Germany). Good news is, like I mentioned before, it's very easy to make your own scrub!

Review: Lush Handy Gurugu

Hi guys! Maybe it's just me, but when I'm in love with a product, things often go wrong.. My favorite hair mask: discontinued. My favorite veggie salad: not so veggie anymore. My favorite hand cream: they changed the formula. Can you believe this? I'm not kidding! But in a way I'm glad, because in the search of the next perfect hand cream I found a match. In fact, I love it even more than the previous cream I've been using.

Lush Handy Gurugu

First of all, Gurug..what?! Hell, I don't even know what it means but I do know Lush's Handy Gurugu is something special. Lush did this lovely writeup on their website:

You'd think because this hand lotion has such a light and fluffy consistency it would be lightly moisturizing, but Handy Gurugu is a rich cream that sinks in quickly and really goes to work on dry, sore hands. We mix in a multitude of butters including fresh Shea butter, purchased fairly from women who whip it up by hand in a village in Ghana (they're really strong - trust us we went and tried to whip it up ourselves and let's just say our arms were quiet puny compared to theirs)

And, as far as I'm concerned, they're not lying! Handy Gurugu is fabulously fluffy and light yet really moisturizing. It's quickly absorbed and doesn't leave my hands greasy (as with Smitten, which would be great for extremely dry winterhands), which is a major plus. I love the smell too. The scent is very strong though, I think you'll either hate or love it, it's definitely not for everyone. It reminds me of a giant herbal explosion; it smells extremely earthly. The smell lingers for a long time too, I can smell it almost throughout the entire day. If this makes you feel a bit reluctant, I'd suggest a little batting of the eyelids and ask for a sample to try it out!

For some people the packaging could be a downside, because it's in a tub you'll have to stick your fingers in it. If you don't want cream under your nails, use your knuckle to get the product out of the tub, I do this with day creams as well!

I love how Lush uses only cruelty free and fair trade ingredients. This is most likely bustin the price as well, but I don't mind paying a bit more for a good cause. The price of Lush products vary a lot depending on the country you live in, here in The Netherlands a jar of Handy Gurugu retails for €12,95 for 100gr (or $16 for 3.4oz)

So in conclusion, I found a new love in Handy Gurugu, if you ever happen to stumble upon a Lush, I'd say at least ask for a sample!

Ingredients

Rose Water (Rosa centifolia), Fair Trade Organic Shea Butter (Butyrospermum parkii), Glycerine, Stearic Acid, Organic Almond Oil (Prunus dulcis), Triethanolamine, Fresh Lemon Juice (Citrus limonum), Vanilla Absolute (Vanilla planifolia), Rose Absolute (Rosa centifolia), Chamomile Blue Oil (Matricaria chamomilla), Organic Evening Primrose Oil (Oenothera biennis), Organic Peanut Butter (Arachis hypogaea), Organic Pumpkinseed Butter (Cucurbita), Organic Cashew Nut Butter (Anacardium), Organic Almond Butter (Prunus dulcis), Tincture of Benzoin (Styrax benzoin), Cetearyl Alcohol, *Benzyl Salicylate, *Coumarin, *Geraniol, *Benzyl Benzoate, *Farnesol, *Limonene, *Linalool, Perfume, Chlorophyllin, Methylparaben, Propylparaben.

The Battle of the Balms

You probably all know by now that I love Lush's Lemony Flutter and just don't know when to stop, when it comes to my constant raving about it. It isn't the only good product for cuticles out there though, so I thought I'd share my opinions about some other Cuticle balms I've tried so far. I've used cremes and oils as well, but for today the focus is on balms.

	Sally Hansen - Cuticle Massage Cream The jar says this is a cream, but I'd like to disagree. From all four this one has the sturdiest substance, it's not soft at all. Also, it doesn't really melt when you apply this on your cuticles, so absorption isn't good at all with this one. If you put this on at night, it's definitely still there in the morning. The smell isn't that strong, it smells like Apricots, which is really nice. There's also a chance Sally Hansen tests on animals, since they never bothered to reply to my email where I expressed this concern. I give this product a 4 out of 10.
	Essence - SOS Nail & Cuticle Balm Now this is such a cute jar! When you first get this, the balm looks like a swirled candy cane, a sweet mix of pink and white. Essence SOS Nail & Cuticle balm contains shea butter and almond oil. This balm applies pretty smooth, and it does melt, absorption isn't perfect but it's not as bad as with the Sally Hansen balm. The smell of this one is strong! It smells like sweet almonds, I love it. I give this product a 7 out of 10.
	Lush - Lemony Flutter Ok, my beloved Lemony Flutter. Lemony Flutter contains lots of good stuff! Among the ingredients are many different oils like soya, flaxseed, avocado, castor and many more oils. The base of this balm is shea butter with fresh lemon infusion. This one goes on the smoothest of the bunch. It also leaves my cuticles the softest. Lemony Flutter is a bit greasy though, that's why I like to apply this product at night. The smell is very strong, I've heard some people can't stand it, but I love it. It smell like fresh lemons. I give this product a 9 out of 10.
	Burt's Bees - Lemon Butter Cuticle Cream I know the opinions differentiate on this, but I think this is the next best thing to Lemony Flutter. It contains beeswax and different oils like citrus and almond oil. The substance isn't as soft as LF, but I love that it goes on quite transparent, so it isn't that noticeable. Unlike all previously mentioned balms. The smell is lovely too, it's best described as the smell of Napoleon candy! I didn't find it to be as hydrating as Lemony Flutter and that's the only reason why it isn't my favorite. It was a neck to neck race though, so: I give this product a 8 out of 10.

So these were all my opinions, please share your favorites?

How to: Happy Cuticles!

Hi everyone! I've done a lot of swatching today, but my MacBook failed on me AGAIN :-(. I got it up and running again but most of my recent files are gone. I've been swatching some great colors by American Apparel, Diamond Cosmetics and Eyeko. So expect those soon, after I redid them, lol!
Since I don't have anything nice to show you, I figured I'd write about another subject I'm getting a lot of questions about, cuticle care. I've always had awful looking cuticles and after trying a lot of things, this is my routine now:

1. To cut or not to cut? A lot of people pick, or bite or cut their cuticles, using clippers or scissors. Please don't! I'm a firm believer of the no cutting regime, and I'll tell you why. Cuticles are a very important part of the nail growth cycle, when you tick them off, you're bound to see this reflect in your nail growth. Cuticles serve as a natural barrier to bacteria and fungus. If you fiddle with this too much, you'll lose this protection. And not too mention the risk of nasty infections that can lead to permanent nail damage. Yikes. If you insist on doing this, make sure you use sterile tools. As you can see in this very old picture, I, admittedly, used to cut mine too. You can see how annoyed they look, but I just didn't know how to care for them.	Sad cuticles :-(
Nfu Oh Cuticle Remover	2. Get rid of it After soaking in warm water, simply push back your cuticles with an orange stick or cuticle pusher. Be careful though, or you'll end up with damage anyway. Now, I've raved about this before, but I love love love Nfu Oh's Cuticle remover. I use this religiously and it makes a huge difference! There are different kinds of cuticle removers out there, the ones that just soften your cuticle and the ones that actually work. The latter are the so called A.H.A removers. Alpha Hydroxy Acids are natural exfoliators that dissolve and slough away dry, dead skin. Some other A.H.A. cuticle removers are CND Cuticle Eraser or OPI Avoplex Exfoliating Cuticle Treatment. Just apply the stuff on the cuticle and move an orange stick along the cuticle and watch the gunk come off!
3. Moisturize! Another huge part of taking care of your cuticles, is hydration. In order to keep them supple and healthy, you need to keep them hydrated. If I'm slacking, I'll notice this right away. There are a lot of products out there that promise moisturized cuticles, but I'm very picky. There are balms, oils, creams, butters, you name it. I think we're seeing oils the most and funnily enough I like these the least. They often contain mineral oil and they seem to dry out my cuticles even more. The product I'm using a LOT is Lemony Flutter by Lush. It does contain oils but probably in the right conjunction, because this stuff is miraculous. Every night before I go to bed, I slap this on and I wake up with super soft cuticles.	Lemony Flutter by Lush
Happy cuticle :-)	4. What do you do? So, that's all there is to it actually! Step away from the clippers & nippers, get a good cuticle remover and moisturize like there's no tomorrow. Some lovely Brazilian readers told me it's common for them to cut the cuticles, so I'm really curious to see how many of you are doing this: Do you cut your cuticles? No! Yes! Yes, but I'm not going to anymore    pollcode.com free polls

So now you know all about how I keep my cuticles happy, I hope this was helpful! Thanks for reading and I'll see you soon!
- Michèle

My current routine & products

Hi everyone! How's everyone doing? I'm getting a lot of questions regarding my routine or products I use and I keep promising making a post about it, so here it is :-).

	Nail polish remover is usually the first thing I'll use when I start a manicure. There are many kinds of remover available, but the mildest ones work best for me. My nails don't really mind whatever I use, they can stand straight acetone pretty well. But my skin tends to disagree! To avoid super dry and wrinkly skin I use either Sephora's acetone free remover or the one by Etos (acetone free as well, but way cheaper). I'll use Sephora's remover when my hands are a bit dry to begin with, since it contains Macadamia oil and vitamine E! I also love the smell of this one. The Etos remover is from a Dutch drugstore and I really like it, it's cheap, works fast and doesn't irritate my skin!
When my nails are nail polish free I like to file them a bit. I use a very fine buffer file to remove ridges and some staining. I don't really know what brand mine is, since it was a gift. I think I do this once a month. However, some times I use this file on the new growth only, to smoothen everything out without the risk of thinner nails. For shaping your nails I'd strongly advice getting a glass file. These files are so fine, they'll definitely cause less tearing. These may cost you a bit more, but they last you a long time! Mine is from Herome, and I'm not leaving the house without it ;-). When you file, do this in one direction to minimize any damage.
	This is something I absolutely love: Cuticle Remover by Nfu Oh. I apply this on my cuticles and after a bit of soaking I'll use a rosewood stick to get rid of any excess skin. I love it! I always think only little will come of, well usually I'm wrong. Some cuticle removers do absolutely nothing or irritate the hell out of my skin. Not this one! I've used little scissors in the past to cut my cuticles, but I'm not going there again. Why go through the hassle and pain (if you're as clumsy as I am) if there's stuff like this! After using this product you'll want to was your hands. Tada, no more messy cuticles! I do this once a week.
Now we're ready to apply base coat. I use different base coats for different reasons. When I choose to wear a sheer or jelly polish, I always grab OPI's Ridge Filler. This BC dries pretty opaque, which is very convenient when you want to avoid a visible nail line! Most of the times I use OPI's Natural Base Coat. It applies pretty well, but I found it doesn't prevent all staining. The bottle's almost empty, so I started looking for something else, and I've decided to give Sally Hansen's Nail Quencher a shot. I've only used it a few times, but I'm liking it so far. It's hydrating, contains no formaldehyde and I've heard it prevents staining pretty well. If you have any experience with this one, please do share!
	After applying base coat and a color, I always finish with a top coat. Not only because of the shine and the fact your polish will last longer, but because I want my polish to dry fast. That's right, I use a quick drying top coat. I've tried several but OPI's RapiDry and the David top coat work pretty well for me. RapiDry thickens up quite fast though, but nothing a little thinning can't fix. My current top coat is the David top coat. The formula of this is amazing, and it dries fast! Maybe a not as fast as OPI RapiDry but I think the formula makes up for that. It even fixes some bubbling in my nail polish! I've heard extremely different opinions about this product, but I like it a lot.
When everything is done, it's time to pamper your cuticles! Until recently I used different kinds of cuticle oils and balms, but I think I may have found my Holy Grail cuticle treatment: Lemony Flutter by Lush. Rubbing this lovely lemon scented butter into your cuticles will really help them remain soft and hydrated. I love doing this before I go to bed, so I wake up with really soft and healthy looking cuticles. I'm not a big fan of cuticle oils as some of them contain mineral oil and actually make my cuticles even dryer.
	Another crucial product in my routine is hand lotion, I can't live without it. I've been looking for the perfect hand lotion for quite some time. I've gone through a lot of brands but finally found one I really like. I use Nivea's Anti-Age Q10plus lotion, it absorbes rather quickly and doesn't leave my hands shiny at all. Also, after turning 26, I figured some anti aging stuff wouldn't hurt haha. I've actually already repurchased this a couple of times, which I can't say about the other 8 tubes of hand lotion that are condemned to the bottom drawer of my Helmer.

So now you know all about my routine and products I use. If you've used some of these yourself, please let me know how you like them!
I hope you find this article a bit helpful. Thanks for stopping by, take care and till next time!

Essence Hand Creme Winter Edition. Win a Complete Set!

Essence komt deze winter met een aantal nieuwe handcrèmes voor de winter in de heerlijke geuren witte chocolade&framboos, vanille&appel en chocolade&sinaasappel.

English: Essence brings us a couple of new hand cremes for winter in the wonderful scents white chocolate&raspberry, vanilla&apple and chocolate&orange.




Vooral de chocoladegeuren lijken mij wel wat! Je kunt nu een complete set winnen door een email te sturen naar beauty@essence.eu met als titel winter creation en het antwoord op de volgende vraag:

English: I'm really looking forward to the chocolate scented ones! You can win a complete set by sending an email to beauty@essence.eu with the title winter creation and the answer to the following question:

What is the pampering hand protection balm in the essence trend edition called?
a) 12h hand protection balm
b) 1 hour hand creme
c) 6h all around hand creme

I'm not sure if this is open to contesters outside the EU but there are no limits mentioned in the email I got about this contest.

Dirty Sexy Dangerous Money

Wat ben ik blij dat ik deze heb kunnen vinden voor hij overal uitverkocht is!
English: I'm so happy I found this one before it was sold out everywhere!

Misa Dirty Sexy Money is een lichte 'dusty' teal / turquoise uit de Living On The Fast Lane Collectie. Dekkend in twee laagjes en geweldige applicatie. Ik voorzie een mooie toekomst voor mij en Misa!

Op mijn ringvinger heb ik P2 Dangerous. Kan je geloven dat dit juweeltje maar €1,55 kost bij de DM-Drogeriemarkt in Duitsland?! De kwaliteit van deze lak is bijzonder goed en ze hebben erg goede kleuren. Dangerous is een donkere teal, dekkend in twee laagjes.
Hij is donkerder dan Diamond Cosmetics Don't Teal My Heart Away maar lang niet zo donker als Rescue Beauty Lounge Teal dus als je op zoek bent naar een dupe moet je nog even verder zoeken. Sorry. :(

English: Misa Dirty Sexy Money is a light dusty teal / turquoise from the Living On The Fast Lane Collection. Opaque in two coats and wonderful application. I foresee a beautiful future between me and Misa!

On my ringfinger I'm wearing P2 Dangerous. Can you believe this gem retails for only €1,55 at the DM-Drogeriemarkt in Germany?! The quality of this polish is excelent and they have a very good colour selection. Dangerous is a dark teal and opaque in two coats. It's darker than Diamond Cosmetics Don't Teal My Heart Away but nowhere near as dark as Rescue Beauty Lounge Teal so if you are looking for a dupe, this isn't it. Sorry. :(


Offtopic:

Ik heb zaterdag een playdate met een aantal dames uit het nagellaktopic op FOK! en van de nailboard van MakeUpAlley. Heb er enorm veel zin in! We beginnen 's middags, gaan samen eten en zien dan wel hoe laat het wordt. Morgen ga ik een enorme pan bolognesesaus maken voor het avondeten. Fles rode wijn, brood en salades en dan zijn we er helemaal klaar voor!
Nu nog bedenken wat ik met mijn nagels ga doen...

En nog meer nieuws: er staat vandaag een gast post van mij over handverzorging op The Nail Farm, de blog van mijn vriendin Thess. Neem een kijkje en volg haar blog want ze heeft belachelijk goede nail-art skills en heel veel kennis over nagels!

English: I have a play date this Saturday with a couple of ladies from the nail polish topic on FOK! and from the nailboard on MakeUpAlley. I'm really looking forward to it! We're starting in the afternoon, will be having dinner together and then we'll see what time we are done. Tomorrow I'm making a huge pan of bolognese sauce for the dinner. Bottle of red whine, bread and salads and we are set!
Now I just have to figure out what to do with my nails...

And more news: there will be a guest post of mine about hand care on The Nail Farm, a blog owned by my friend Thess. Check it out and follow her blog because she has crazy mad nail-art skills and a lot of knowledge about nails!