Blown away? Lee Stafford Blow Dry Your Hair Faster Spray

I can’t imagine I need much explanation of what this product does as it’s all there for you in the name.

But does it work? Well, the jury’s out for me. 

The idea is you spray it onto towel dried hair and then let it work its magic, styling as normal. It did seem to dry much quicker when I allowed my hair to dry naturally but when I used a hair dryer, well, I can’t say it made that much difference to the time I took. So the bottle’s claim I could stay in bed longer was sadly false.

However, this baby does some other quite impressive things that help it work its way back into my good books.

First of all it detangles – a Godsend for people like me whose hair only has to be away from a brush for a matter of seconds before knotting up. The other bonus is that the spray has a heat protection agent that stops damage to hair and prevents it going all static. 

If I condition then there’s nothing but well behaved hair; if I don’t condition then I can spritz a bit more on after I’ve dried and it’s instantly calmed. 

I wouldn’t say this was a must-have produce, but it certainly makes life a little easier, and I’m pro anything that says it will protect my locks from the dreaded daily heat abuse of hairdryers and tongs.

Milton Jones: Lion Whisperer, The New Alexander Theatre, Birmingham

“I get paid to look stupid, so you can see how I’m winning.” Milton Jones’ response to a heckler who dared to criticise his sartorial choices. For the record I liked the shirt, but the incident did provide an answer to how this master of one-liners would deal with hecklers – by batting them back down with a witty retort, just as any other comedian.

Apart from his heckler combating skills, Jones – probably best known as a panellist on Mock The Week and from his Radio 4 show – is not like many other comedians and his act is all the more entertaining for that. A master of wordplay his gags can conjure up an image in just a few sentences; his counterparts would have a whole skit building up to one of his punch lines. 

When it comes to the gag count you certainly get your money’s worth, not only with the sheer volume of quips but also the quality of the writing. There may be puns but they are on such a level that you’d never groan, only laugh and clap in admiration wishing you’d thought of it yourself. 

Leave behind your fears you would have to sit through a barrage of gags with one-liners being relentlessly fired at you as Jones has a number of devices up his sleeves (including an appearance from one of his many grandfathers) to keep his routine fresh. 

Undeniably, Jones is one of the most inventive comedians around and with admirable support from newcomer James Acaster this tour is one to catch if you get a chance.

Ace of Base: Revlon ColorStay

Foundation may seem boring when compared with all the show stealers –  glitter eyeliners and shadows, colour pop lip sticks and bright nail paints –  but getting the right shade and type of foundation for your skin will give your look a certain polish.

I can accept that but show me where, as a ‘pale and interesting’ girl, I can get said correct shade. All too often make-up manufacturers seem to think if you’re a little pale you want to warm up your skin by adding orange tones to your base. We don’t. Sure, we love a bit of colour, but we’re not Jordan – orange foundation is never going to be a good look.

At the opposite end of the scale are the manufacturers who seem to think we have pink skin. Maybe after spending a little too long in the sun without protection but otherwise, no.

So when I read about Revlon ColourStay online I had to head down to Boots to give it a go. ColorStay has loads of different shades of foundation that is bound to suit most people. It even goes to the other end of the spectrum by having a range of shades for ladies with darker skin.

The great thing is that there are two formulas too – one for oily/combination skin and one for dry skin, so never again will you find the shade you want in a formula you don’t. It also has SPF 6, which isn’t great to be honest, but it’s better than nothing I suppose. Maybe if Revlon could work on getting it to at least SPF 15? Pretty please?

Anyhow, I really did like this foundation. It gave really good coverage for those hangover/ spotty/ general frightening face days and it really did last. Many foundations I use disappear along with my powder by lunch time, but this one was still there at night.  It didn’t go all patchy on my face either.

The one downside is that there is no pump on the bottle. You have to pour it out on to a foundation brush, sponge or your hand and as it’s quite a thick formula it can take some time.

Revlon ColorStay

I found the best way to apply was using my fingers as it does dry quickly. If I used a brush it sometimes left brushstrokes on my face. Use the sponge and again you could see the marks; I looked like a designer from 90s decorating show Changing Rooms had rag rolled my face.

It’s priced at around £13 (depending on offers) which isn’t too bad as you can make it last a few months. I’d definitely use it again.

Crunchy brunchy: Rumblers oat clusters and yoghurt

It’s another foodie delight today as I’ve just discovered these handy little tubs. I have to eat breakfast but some mornings I just don’t feel like eating it straight away, yet that leaves me with no time to actually eat it until I get to work.

Then there's the second problem of having something portable to take to the office. I can’t really take cereal and milk, especially as my office milk police will hound anyone that uses the milk for anything other than splashing into a hot drink. 

Usually I’ll take a bagel but when I stumbled across the Rumblers on a trip to the supermarket I was happy to find something a little different to add to my breakfast repertoire. It was only a pound too.

Once you peel off the wrapper there are two compartments; one with granola style oaty mix (and a foldable spoon hidden away) and the other with a foil-topped tub of nice runny yoghurt.

I, for one, was glad of the runniness. I often read magazines that suggest I have a yogurt poured over cereal but, to be honest, you can’t really do that with normal pots of yoghurts. They just don’t make the cereal soggy enough. Well, you can breathe a sigh of relief that this does the job perfectly.

There were little curls of chocolate in too which some British folk may turn their noses up at, but as a fan of continental breakfasts I was very pleased. Luckily it’s just a small amount so I don’t think your blood sugar will be sky rocketing. It had a delicious vanilla flavour that tasted suitably fresh for the morning.

If I wanted to be picky I could quibble with the fold up spoon. I mean, the handle was covered in melted chocolate curls making the meal a bit messy, and it was also prone to folding itself back up, but they are only minor points. On taste I’d give it a nine out of ten.

The best, most important, thing? It kept me full until lunch time with no need for a sneaky snack. Yes I could hold on to one of the Graze box punnets for another day.

Picky eating: Graze Box

For the past couple of weeks I’ve been trying to up my game when it comes to eating healthily. I’m not the sort of girl who can push a salad around my plate then claim I’m full; I need three square meals a day, plus snacks. It’s the snacks that are often my downfall, especially at work when the vending machine is calling.

So when a colleague of mine started getting Graze boxes delivered to work I was intrigued. Turns out this company will send you boxes of four healthy snacks – including nuts and seeds, dried fruits, crackers, breads, olives, dips and even a bit of chocolate. You can have the boxes delivered as often or as little as you like and you can go online to rate the snacks they send, so if you get dried apricots through the post (blergh) then you can bin them to ensure they never darken your door again.

I have to say I have been enjoying them and the free time I get from no longer having to plan snacks to take to work with me. The boxes are a bit expensive (£3.49 for four tubs, free delivery) but when you think of the cost of a bag of nuts or fruit in the supermarket it doesn’t seem that bad and they do get bonus points for making things more convenient for me. I’m a bit of a cheapskate so

It’s only been two weeks of my five week trial but so far my favourite has been a punnet of olives and one they call Jaffa Cake, which has four whole buttons of dark chocolate in amongst orange sultanas and hazelnuts. Each of the snacks I’ve had are less than 200 calories, although most are around the 120 calorie mark.

I’m going to keep up with my self-imposed trial and see how I go from there, but I’ve resisted the dreaded vending machine and feel better for eating less junk food.

In search of the Holy Grail: lip balm that works (well, sort of)

Following my greasy hair confession in my previous post it may come as a shock to you that I have quite dry skin particularly the lips.
I’ve read articles that say lip balms dry your lips out, and I can believe it, but sadly I discovered this too late and had already fallen prey to their promises. I’m now a lip balm-aholic and I’m not sure there’s a cure. I always have one about my person (if I don’t I get a bit panicky) and have one for every handbag lest I forget to pop one in when I change bags.
I try to avoid petroleum when I pick up a lip balm as I heard it dries your lips event more apparently* and it can’t be good for the environment, but as I usually buy them in moments of desperation it’s not always possible. Such was the case when I picked up a Palmer’s lip butter on Saturday.

The lip butter itself is clear and gives you a slight gloss, but it’s not sticky. I’ve been out in the wind this week and my hair hasn’t stuck to my lips - always a plus point. It comes in a squeezy tube with an applicator so you can use it on the go and has the famous coco butter formula and vitamin E, which is meant to be great for the skin.

It claims to have a dark chocolate and peppermint flavour but it’s not very strong. It tastes kind of medicinal but let’s just say if I bought some actual mints with this level of ‘flavour’ then I’d demand my money back! Anyway, it’s not a problem as I don’t want to keep eating it off my own face.

All in all it’s very soothing and seems to have kept the flakiness away despite the change in season and the dreaded air con whirring into action at work. My lips still feel a little tight nearly a week after I first bought it, but the skin’s not peeling away. Joy!

It does have petroleum in it so that would be the downside I reckon, and it’s pricier than I would normally opt for at about £2.50. Overall I think I’ll keep using it for the time being. Have you tried it? Which lip balms work for you?

*I don’t actually remember where I read this but it might be true.

Feeling fruity: I Love Juicy shampoo

In my teenage years it wasn’t the traditional pimples that plagued me but the horror of greasy hair.

My locks are just too fine and start to look lank by the evening.

While my classmates caked themselves in orange foundation and Hide The Blemish and spent hours ‘scrunching’ their perms I was up at the lark’s cough washing my hair. Every day.

I remember one day – my 16th birthday and also the day of our school photo – I didn’t rinse properly and overzealous use of hairspray left my head looking like the inside of a discarded chip wrapper.

Lather, rinse, repeat has been my daily mantra for more than 15 years despite being told off by hairdressers. “Why?” was the incredulous, and slightly disgusted, cry from one stylist when he was told of my daily washing routine. He insisted I could leave until the second day by using dry shampoo and maybe even a third by ‘slicking’ it back into a ponytail.

Unfortunately I’m yet to be convinced by the dry shampoo thing. I mean they’re great if you like to look like a Georgian courtesan but the white powdered look is not for me.

 I Love Juicy

So it was with trepidation that I tried I Love Juicy from the lovely people at Lush. I read an online recommendation which promised to leave my crowning glory grease free. It has pineapple and grapefruit  in and lots of other yummy sounding things and many suggested I would, shock horror, be able to go a day without washing my hair.

I’m still not convinced on that front, although I have been known to skip a day of washing in recent weeks (I know, amazing). The stuff cuts through the grime and leaves my hair all swishy, but not all fluffy or static (the other bugbear of having super fine tresses).

Using it for a few days in a row left my locks shiny and glossy looking giving me a higher percentage of good hair days.

Cheers for making it, Caroline!

It doesn’t lather up the way ‘normal’ shampoos do so if you want to pretend you’re on a hair care advert then maybe it’s not for you, but a little does go a long way. The other good thing is that Lush are environmentally conscious and it’s suitable for vegans, meaning no bunnies were harmed in getting the product to market. Result!

Butter me up: Soap and Glory Righteous Butter

I’ve just got back from a staycation with lots of walking and the season has taken a lurch towards winter. It can only mean one thing – horrible, flaky skin.

My nose was first to start the trend but as a sufferer of dry skin my legs, and particularly my shins, weren’t far behind. So it was a relief to know I still had my Soap and Glory Righteous Butter to hand.

This body butter was actually part of a gift set I got for Christmas and it’s still going strong. It’s made with shea butter and is so rich and moisturising that a little goes a long way. It leaves my skin feeling really smooth. If I’ve been particularly neglectful of my feet then they tend to go hard and manky, but this sorts them out.

My thirsty shins tend to lap it up so it sinks in quite quickly and doesn’t sit on the skin or make you feel clammy, soothes my skin and the smell is pretty delicious too. I adore putting it on after a nice long soak in the bath as it makes me feel thoroughly pampered (I hate the word pampered but it’s the only word to use for such an occasion).

It’s only available in Boots and is classed as luxury bathing, but the prices are very reasonable, especially when you consider you can use it all over. I’ve even used it on my lips in place of lip salve and, to be honest, it’s probably better than lip salve.

On the more frivolous side of things the packaging is fantastic with kitsch vintage images and a humorous tone, plus I love how all the products in the range have witty names.

I can’t really complain at all about this product at all except maybe the packaging doesn’t have to be quite so pink. But if that’s all I can quibble on then it’s pretty safe to say it’s a winner. Lovely.

Witch Anti-blemish Skin Clearing Primer

Anti-blemish witchcraft from Witch.

http://www.boots.com/en/Witch-Anti-Blemish-Skin-Clearing-Primer-With-Witch-Hazel-Extract-30ml_1160734/

I’m in two minds about primer. On the one hand I can see the sense in preparing your skin for make-up. After all, an artist or even a painter and decorator would prepare their work surface ready for painting. On the other hand, I’m quite lazy and this seems like an extra step that denies me snozzing time in the morning.

I’ve tried primer (Smashbox) before, and have been impressed by its ability to ‘airbrush’ my face. I wasn’t so impressed that it seemed to react against my sensitive skin. 

Nonetheless, I was keen to try the Witch primer.  It promises to mattify the skin “absorbing excess oils, providing a smooth, silky base that helps you achieve an even and long lasting finish. My face is dry and flaky yet terribly shiny. I’ve also been suffering spots of late, so on reading the description I was hooked.

So was I impressed? Well yes and no. It didn’t deliver the airbrush magic of the Smashbox primer, but then it is around a quarter of the price at around £6.99. But it gave me a great base and my foundation lasted a lot longer. 

It’s also supposed to protect you skin from getting further blemishes, and it certainly did that. The way it works is by forming a ‘barrier’ to stop your pores being blocked by make-up gunk (nice) and I say it performs really well. It even seemed to reduce existing spots much quicker than with my foundation alone.

It didn’t react with my skin but I found I had to leave it to ‘settle’ on the skin for a minute or two first; otherwise I ended up with strange splodges of foundation/ primer gloop around my nose.

The downsides? Well, it didn’t mattify as much as I’d have liked. Maybe I’m just born to shine.

The other thing was that it had a bit of an odd smell. Witch Hazel I imagine, but it bugged me for hours until I figured out what it was. I made my boyfriend smell my face to see if he could detect it (weird I know) and I can confirm that no one else will get a whiff of it. 

I’d probably buy this again, but being quite fickle it would only be until I found a more mattifying formulation, or if I had a massive spot outbreak. 

Did you buy this product and what did you think?

The one where I set out my stall

How many times have you bought a bit of make-up, a DVD, moisturiser, a book or even a tin of soup and found it’s, well, a bit rubbish?

If you’re anything like me it’s a few thousand times. And when you’ve found something that is amazing and that you loved, or experienced some great customer service, have you wanted to sing it from the rooftops? Me too.

That’s the thinking behind my scribblings here.

I have to admit that even though I’ve got a little bit of a background in marketing sometimes all my cynicism goes out of the window. A mascara that will give me the doe eyed of Cheryl Cole you say? Let me at it. A hairspray that turns my fine and feeble tresses into a lustrous, full volume, glossy mane. Where do I sign up?

Every purchase I make could be the one. The one to change me into the ‘me’ I want to be. That’s what those marketing bods want and I fall for it every time. It inevitably leads to disappointment when the scales fall from my eyes and I realise it’s just another bit of stuff to clutter up my house.

But no more – I can’t promise I won’t buy anymore goodies, but I will promise I will make a note of what I’ve bought and, more importantly, whether I thought it was any good.

Everything featured will be stuff I’ve bought and will not be purchased specifically for the blog. If for some reason a company decides to send me something then I will tell you and review it fairly and objectively.

I’m not here to put people off, just give my honest opinion, as I know everyone is different and what works for me may not work for you. Besides, the economy could do with the fiscal boost from our purses and who am I to argue? All I can hope for is that this blog saves me from my shopaholic side and if anyone else reads it then, frankly, that’s a bonus.