Operation Nails SOS - The Results

About five months ago I started to trial a nail strengthener, nail/cuticle oil and hand cream to see if I could repair my badly damaged nails and restore them to a healthy condition. Over this time I think I've given them a fair chance to work and have really put them to the test given the previous state of my nails. You can see the original post here and an update after the first week here, but here's a reminder of what they looked like back in February...

And here are my nails now...



I will be posting this Nails of the Day shortly...

You can find the OPI Kiss Me On My Tulips post here from June

As you can see I had an issue with weak, brittle nails that easily split and peeled, and I suffered with a problem of my thumb nails breaking very far down the nail on a regular basis. It may have taken longer than I expected to get results but its been well worth it in the end.

In my quest for the perfect nail I was testing the following products; Duri Rejuvacote nail strengthener, Elemis Exotic Frangipani Moisture Melt and finally, Aveeno hand cream.

The Verdict
In short, I absolutely love all of these products. Independently they are fantastic - from smell, texture to functionality.

Aveeno hand cream - as far as hand creams go, this ticks the boxes for me. Non-greasy,  rich enough to tackle my dry skin but quickly absorbed and light feeling. It is paraben free and unscented but still manages to smell nice. This is a great drugstore product (retails for around £5 for 75ml) but there is currently an offer on at Boots for £3.40. I would definitely repurchase.

Elemis Exotic Frangipani Moisture Melt - This is a multifunctional oil that I was told was great on nails and cuticles and this really feels like an indulgent home treatment product. You need to warm the bottle (not directly) in order to melt the oil - hence the name - and I do this by standing it in a small bowl of boiling water for about 30 seconds. The result, a warm, fabulous smelling oil - think sweet almond and vanilla massage oil - that when rubbed over nails and cuticles really moisturises and softens and helps manage the hard skin (that i bite from time to time) around my nails. This is an expensive product to just use as a nail treatment - retails at £29.70 for 100ml, however as this can be used for body and hair as well it is a good investment. If the price tag still seems too high, then you could always do what I did and get a smaller bottle as part of the regular offers that Elemis run such as pick five travel size products when you buy two full size.

Duri Rejuvacote - I think the most important thing I have to say about this product is that IT ACTUALLY WORKS. My nail health as improved vastly over the course of this trial and I now experience zero splitting or peeling. Obviously I still have some breakages, but my nails are no longer dry and brittle. I went for a manicure recently and even the beautician I see regularly comented how good my nails looked! The downside to the product is that it does peel off quite easily = after applying a coat every day or most days, once it starts to peel it looks really bad, but I would say this is a small price to pay for overall improved nails. Unfortunately the nail treatment has to be applied to completely dry nails meaning that it does not bind with the nail if you use hand cream or an oil at the same time, so its best to have a morning and evening routine so you can use all the products. Also the bottle went a bit gunky before I'd completely finished it so it was too thick to apply, however I will be repurchasing this product. If you were only going to buy one product out of the three I would recommend it to be this one - I bought mine off Amazon for about £10.

I am so happy, however I do still suffer with the severe breakage of my thumb nails only. As previously mentioned, this happens very far down the nail and is very painful and has occured twice since I started using these products.

So what next?
I will be repurchasing Duri Rejuvacote to continue looking after my nails, but first I am going to try another product. The lovely team over at Mavala, a beauty company that specialises in nail care, hosted a live Q and A session on Twitter (@MavalaUK) where you could pose your nail problems to their expert team. I contacted them with a question about my thumb nail breaking issue and they explained that I may have damaged the nail matrix (where the nail cells are formed) which means it has a weak point. This damage can be permanent but they suggested I try their Nailactan product which works on the matrix to produce healthier cells. They have sent me a sample which I am going to use until it runs out and of course I will report back! In the meantime if you wish to find out more about Mavala products you can visit their website http://www.mavala.co.uk/

Have you tried any of these products or which ones do you use in your nail care routine?

Lindsey

Neal's Yard Remedies Organics

Many of you who are regular readers of my blog will know that one of my absolute favourite beauty brands is Neal's Yard Remedies, and I'd been thinking about signing up to be a consultant to sell through their home beauty arm NYR Organics for some time. 

When I saw the offer that came out today I knew it was the perfect opportunity as NYR have halved the usual joining fee. I get the starter kit which includes the Chamomile Cleanser, Rehydrating Rose Toner, Frankincense Hydrating Cream, Geranium and Orange Hand Cream, White Tea Toning Eye Gel and the award winning Beauty Sleep Concentrate. This meant I could get all these gorgeous products, worth £130 for just £45 - a complete bargain for anyone who loves NYR products!

Part of the reason for starting my blog was because of my love for beauty products but also to learn new skills and make myself more employable to move into a completely different industry to my current "day job". Signing up to be an NYR consultant seemed like another logical step to gain even more experience in the beauty industry as well as getting to work more closely with a great brand.

I wanted to write this post to be very transparent about the fact that I will be working as an NYR consultant however the main purpose of this blog as a fun outlet for my beauty and music passion still remains the same. I will still write reviews of some NYR products I love, buy and use, but will remain completely honest in my opinions and will disclose any free samples in each post. At the end of the day I would hate anyone to be unhappy with a purchase based on duff or dishonest reviews I'd written!

More than my opinions, I'd like to use my blog to find out what you think about NYR products - both your experiences and opinions as well as ideas you'd like to see so feel free to ask any questions or leave comments on this post as usual - I love to hear from you!

You can read my previous reviews on two great products - Wild Rose Beauty Balm and White Tea Facial Mist.

If you're interested in taking advantage of the deal above you can open an account here which will get you all the products above for £45 as well as 25% discount off all future purchases.

Lindsey

Cool as a Cucumber

For those of you who follow me on Instagram (theresonlyonelb) you'll have already seen I'm an expert when it comes to coordinating my face mask with my outfit but I thought I'd share it with the rest of you.

I've been working in London this week and enjoying the hot temperatures - it must have reached 30 degrees on Tuesday. To send off a work colleague, we were invited to Stein's (a Bavarian restaurant/bar) on the river in Richmond and after a few beers at lunch it was only a matter of time before we bailed from the office to take advantage of the warm weather in the evening.

Drinking in the sun for a few hours at lunch and after work as well as just general London sweaty/dirtiness left me feeling greasy, red and a bit tight-faced (despite wearing product with spf) and when I'm working away I tend to only have my essentals in my washbag so I popped into Superdrug on my way back to my hotel to buy a face mask.

My face pre-mask

Given that I have sensitive skin and I'm quite careful about products that I use on my face I opted for the Superdrug own brand Cucumber Cooling Clay Mask as it was suitable for my skin type and paraben free.

The mask has a lovely thick texture and when first applied it did have a cooling effect. After a few minutes I did notice a slight tingling - nothing uncomfortable but slightly surprising after the initial cooling sensation. Not sure if this was the product or just my sun abused face from earlier in the day! 

There was far too much product in the sachet for one person - even applied liberally I was struggling to use it all up and I reckon you could get two applications worth so definitely good value at 99p.

The packet said to leave on for 10-15 minutes and as you can see, the product had barely dried after this time -again because I'd applied the whole sachet and I'm not sure this was needed.



Face Mask after 15 minutes



Face after mask

The product was quite stubborn to wash off (excuse the wet hair as a result!) but had definitely calmed my skin removing the grease but still leaving it feeling soft and calmed.

Which face mask do you use?

Lindsey

Track of the Week: Luke Larrell & Victor Reid

I am SO excited about sharing my track of the week today. I first heard it a couple of months ago and have only managed to ID it last weekend! Once I'd got the details I was literally shrieking at the laptop - you can't imagine the buzz of finally finding a gem when you've been trawling through so much shit music recently.

So without further ado, I'd like to introduce London boys Luke Larrell & Victor Reid featuring Verses with their wicked track titled Serious People.

I highly recommend you turn this one up loud, its got some badass groove.

Serious People was released on 2nd July on London label Audio Rehab...

Enjoy!

Would love to know what you think?

Lindsey

Weekend Hot Mix: James Winter

The week has absolutely flown by for me, which means its time for another Weekend Hot Mix. I've got a cracking hour of house music for you from James Winter.

James has recently signed to Leeds label Love Not Money Records and is a resident for local night In:Vision as well as Apogee in London. I met him back in March when he played alongside Franck Roger at Wire and I think he's an exciting DJ and producer with an ear for a great track. 



Enjoy this one folks and have a great weekend!


Lindsey

Matalan Christmas Press Day

It had to be the first sunny and twenty-two degree afternoon we've had for a while on the day that I'm heading to the plush Hospital club in Covent Garden to check out Matalan's new Christmas collection. But don't think that stopped me getting in the festive spirit - it was hard not to when you set your eyes on all the gorgeous decorations and caught a sniff of the real Christmas trees!

I was greeted by Becky who offered to show me round the collection and it was great to get a personal tour and have a chat so I felt completely welcome.

What I noticed immediately about the main women's collection was how nice it was to see such vibrant and varied colours and textures. From chiffon, velvet and sequins combined with prints in the Canyon Child collection to the frosted colour palette wih metallics, embellishment and feminine edge of the Winter Wonderland collection. This dress definitely has the making of a bestseller!

Matalan is also relaunching its plus size range, Rogers and Rogers offering peplum and baroque detail as well as loads of colour and sparkle from sizes 18-30.

Rogers & Rogers Collection



Whilst there were a few pieces that I liked including the blue baroque style trousers, it was the footwear and bags that really got me excited... Gorgeous burgundy, sparkles, wedges, wedged hi-tops for under £30, as well as embellished slippers and oversized clutches both at around the £8 mark - this is the perfect collection as the nights draw in and the party season starts!

If I had to pick a favourite it would be the wedge hi-tops, available in burgundy and a stone/beige for the bargain price of £22. This is such good value and definitely a price tag I would be willing to pay for such a trendy item that may not be around next summer! (you can see how I would style hi-tops in this post).

I've also got my eye on this gorgeous maroon faux fur coat... only problem is its in the kids range! I'm hoping I can squeeze into this one as Matalan stock up to age 16. Again this is a steal at £25...

Aside from the womenswear, menswear and kidswear there were some lovely home collections including bedding, nightwear and Christmas decorations...

Overall I was really impressed with the collection - the designs are completely on trend, I love the colour palettes and they offer such good value for money. The collection will hit stores at the end of August/start of September.

Which are your favourite items from the collection?

Lindsey

Happy Birthday To Me...

I'm not a girl who worries about my age or getting old (there's always botox right?) and back on the 5th July I celebrated my *ahem* 28th birthday. One drawback that people always talk about is that birthdays and Christmas get progressively more disappointing as you get older.

Well, speaking from experience I can happily inform you all that this is a load of old (excuse the pun) baloney... as this year's birthday was the best I've ever had... If you are easily offended by mild bragging of lavish presents I advise you to look away now ;)

Aside from it being a Thursday and having to work, I had a lovely evening with a meal at my favourite restaurant in Leeds, Blackhouse Grill - I had the wild mushroom tart with leek and brie, followed by the sashimi grade tuna loin. Apologies for no pics but I feel a bit awkward about taking photos in nice restaurants - just trust me it was amazing!

In addition to that, I was a very lucky girl this year as thanks to my boyfriend I am now the proud owner of the stunning Mulberry Roxanne!

The handbag is simply perfect. Whilst I get that the Bayswater is a classic, I knew it wasn’t for me – not just because everyone has one, but I’m not a fan of the slouchy leather. The Roxanne has a much more industrial feel – I love the pocket, buckle and rivet detail and the leather is a lot stiffer and I get the feeling will be more hardwearing over the years.

He also bought me a pair of leopard print Converse...

Not just spoiled by my boyfriend (major major brownie points for him btw), I also received some cash and some of my favourite Neal's Yard goodies from my family and the love continued with my best friend Helen buying me the Naked palette by Urban Decay! I'll do a separate post reviewing these soon...

A note to all girls out there - proof its always good to have a publicly documented wish list ;) Those of you that saw my April wishlist will know that I was already lucky enough to be bought the Sugarhill Boutique Cherry Bomb Shift Dress (OOTD here) so I was gobsmacked to virtually complete the set.

Lucky and spoiled doesn't even come close!

When is your birthday and what are you hoping for this year?

Lindsey

ASOS £100 Style Challenge

To celebrate hitting 1000 followers on Twitter, Discount Coder (@DiscountCoder) are running a competition to win a £100 ASOS voucher. All you have to do is style an outfit made up of items from ASOS for a maximum of £100.

I've seen the competition on a couple of blogs so thought I'd give it a try myself... I have to say this was a lot harder than I thought, as despite there being a lot of bargains on ASOS at the moment, £100 doesn't get you very far when you have a full outfit including accessories to style.

Anyway here is my look...

ASOS T-Shirt with Quilted Section £18.00

ASOS Mini Skirt in Leather Look £25.00

ASOS DENY Wedge High Top Trainers With Suede Detail £45.00

ASOS Skull and Floral Scarf £12.00

Total Cost = £100

Here is a full length photo of the scarf so you can see how it would complement the outfit:

I've opted for some key sports luxe features (you can see my post about sports luxe here) - the wedge high top trainers are bang on trend and set to stay for A/W 2012 (I've seen a sneak preview of a gorgeous pair in the New Look collection on Instagram). I've teamed them with a panelled leather look skirt, again this item will be great right through to next season with the gothic trend all over the catwalk.

The scarf will also be perfect into autumn (gothic trend and weather!) and I like the floral twist on the ever popular skull print, also adding some girliness to the sporty look. I've gone for a short hemline and textured layers with the quilting and scarf to help balance out the chunky wedge trainers.

I'm really happy with this outfit and its definitely something I would like to wear... you never know, if I win the competition I might just treat myself to these exact items! I think they come together well but individually are great capsule wardrobe pieces that will carry through to next year.

If you'd like to enter the competition yourself, visit Discount Coder's website here.

What do you think of the outfit? Would you wear wedge trainers?

Lindsey

Track of the Week: Desos

The post-holiday blues have well and truly kicked in, so what better than a tune that immediately transports me back to Ibiza lying on a day bed, drink in hand as the sun is coming down...

Ghetto Love by Desos (Original Mix) is the perfect blend of deep house, a techy vibe with that lush rolling bass and finished with the smoothest saxaphone you can imagine.

Deso Records, based in Denmark,  promotes itself as "Deep and Raw" and they are bang on the money with this track. Unfortunately for the non-DJ's, this one was out on 11th June on vinyl only and I can't see any mention of a digital release at the moment.

Looks like I'll have to enjoy this one on Soundcloud for now...




Hope you like it!

Lindsey

NYR White Tea Facial Mist

I am already a regular user of Neal's Yard Remedies White Tea Face Mask so was delighted to be sent the White Tea Facial Mist to try out.*

Neal's Yard describe this product as "a gentle facial mist to calm refresh and rehydrate the skin. To be used after cleansing to tone the skin, or spritz throughout the day, even over make up, for a refreshing hydrating boost".

I've been trying this out for a month now and it couldn't have come at a better time given the warm weather we had been having (seems like a distant memory now!) and with my recent holidays to Ibiza and Marbella.

If you follow me on Twitter you'll know that I had been working out every day to get beach body ready and after exercise I do suffer with an extremely beetroot-esque face. This is the ideal product to refresh the face and cool you down but it also has calming properties - it helped soothe my red face and return it to normal colour within a few minutes. It left my skin feeling good too, definitely more plumped rather than the tightness I can sometimes feel after showering after an intense work out.

The product is infused with antioxidant white tea, calming organic aloe vera, aromatherapeutic organic essential oils and soothing Bach Flower Remedies. It smells lovely, and whilst I wouln't say it leaves a residue on the face, it definitely feels like a moisturising layer is left on the skin. It is also 92% organic, paraben free and vegan friendly.

I thought this product would probably be quite expensive and therefore it would be nice as a gift but maybe not something I would buy for myself as I haven't previously used a facial mist. However, I was surprised when I checked the price that this was only £10.50 for a 45ml bottle and definitely think its a worthwhile edition to any skincare regime, particularly during the summer months or if you exercise frequently.

You can find the full product details and buy the product here.

 

Do you use a facial mist or would you try one?

Lindsey

*All items marked with a asterisk (*) are gifted items or pr samples.