Alternative to Mothball

I don't think lots of people use moth ball in uk as I don't see them in shops that often. But, in Asia, when I was in HK, you can find them in every single supermarket. As my bf has to send his stuff back home by ship, so I was looking for alternative to mothball.

Cedarwood is a good choice, but I find another choice of DIY!

Material you need:

• Some paper tea bags or muslin bags
• Cotton ball/  cotton pleat
• Strings
• Dried mint
• Dried lavender
• Dried thyme
• Dried rosemary
• Cedarwood essential oil

Method

• Drop 2 drops of cedarwood essential oil onto the cotton ball
• Mix all the herbs
• Pour 1/4 tsp of the herbs in the bag
• Put the cotton ball in the bag
• Use the string to tie up the bag

And you are done!

Isn't this simple?

Kyanvi

DIY Storage for Cosmetics + My collection!!!!!

After the ' eye shadow pressing project', I have taken another DIY at home and after 7+ hours, I have finally completed it! By using the existing materials at home, I have come out this cardboard drawer unit. Although it is quite time consuming, this is quite worth the while as I have checked out the options available on high street, there isn't much to choose from. The plastic unit that I used before is nice and cheap, but they are rather small and swallow. The cardboard drawer units available in W H Smith are far too costly, do you want to pay £13 for this? [Yea, I know, the cupcakes are lovely, but costly @.@]

So I decided to make my own at home.

Materials required

• Scissors, kitchen one can cut though the cardboard easily, while paper craft ones are easy to cut round the corners
• sellotape
• old magazines/ papper bags
• cutter/ pen knife (not necessarily but I much prefer using this than scissors)
• Glue/ any adhersives
• lots of boxes in different sizes

Method

1. Arrange the boxes and have a rough idea of the unit that you want
2. Cut the smaller boxes to fit in the big box as drawers
3. Wrap the boxes with pages that you cut out from the magazine [for the outter surface of the big box, I recommended to use shopping bags as they are bigger in size]
4. Use the left over cardboard and fold them into shape like this, [, and stick them in the middle of the bigger box to give extra support.
5. Put your makeup back in and you are done!

N.B. if you want to partition the drawers, use the cardboard that you cut out from the small boxes or use the boxes that come with your skincare products [I even use the box that contain pantyliners before =.=]

And closer looks + inside the drawers,

All my sleek palettes and other palettes are inside 4 graze box. [and you don't know graze? Graze is a company that deliver fruit/ nuts box by royal mail right to your office/ home and they are £2.99 each, check out here and get your first box for free]

Got the mini brushes and primer samples inside the box while the rest of the samples are somewhere else, really want to sort them out again, but have to wait till I have moved to a new place.

All my lippies on the top right.

A gap on the top left as I have ran out of boxes that this small, so just put the boxes and palettes here at the time being.

Mascara and some eyeliners on the middle left. I did not put the partition in the middle on purpose, but as I have limited choices on the boxes I have, I cut a square box into half and stick them back face to face.

Eye shadows on the middle right.

Concealers, foundations and blushes at the bottom 2.

So what do you think? I personally really like my drawer unit now as save me some money and can reuse lots of the paper which is good to save some trees.

Kyanvi.

p.s. extra credit to my boy friend as he has to run to tesco at late 10 to get me a new glue stick!

My eye shadow palette after 7 hours, yes, I really meant it!

I received my empty 28 eye shadow palette today from the postman this morning, and I have been working on this till now, which is around 7 hours! I can't believe it, it actually need to take me that long, as I still got lots stuff to do... sigh...

Anyway, here's my palette

To do this, you need

• a empty palette
• rubbing alcohol - to disinfect the pans and dissolve the powder
• glycerin
• 2 pipettes
• 2 small bowl to hold the alcohol and glycerin as you don't want to contaminate your big bottle of alcohol and glycerin
• small bowl or measuring spoon - a tablespoon size is handy as one teaspoon of the liquid mixture can fit in a 26mm diameter pan perfectly.
• lots of tissues and wet tissues
• small wooden or plastic sticks and spoons
• 1 10p coin
• a muslin cloth or other cloth 
• a huge bowl of water to wash hand and the utensils.

I know lots of people have different method. I used just alcohol before and it was terrible. This time I add glycerin in, just like how you make a mixing medium, around 50:50 alcohol and glycerin. The result this time is much better as glycerin is thick and viscous, so I can make a smoother and thicker paste into the pan more easily.

So what do you think?

I am so tired now with all the work.

See you next time.

K.

p.s. I am off  to Liverpool later on this month, what you recommend that I should definitely go and visit or which restaurant is good?

Another version of DIY Brush Cover/ Guard by Aiyoh

In my previous post, I have made a small tutorial on how to make your own brush cover (Click here to review the post), and a fellow blogger, Aiyoh from Philippines has improved my idea, and with her permission, I just want to share her idea with you all. (Click here to see her post)

Instead of using random fabric, Aiyoh used a stretchy fabric (which I am not sure of the name as well, it will be great if anyone can help me out) and needle & nylon threat. For anyone who is good at needlework or cannot find any Hemming web tape, this is a much easier option, I suppose. lol

Since the method is roughly the same, I won't rewrite the procedure again, so refer my previous post or Aiyoh's post for more help!

Kyanvi.

DIY Brush Cover/ Guard

I have read lots of reviews relating the advantages of using a brush guard to keep the makeup brushes in shape....But consider the price of the brush guard that is available on the market and the actual use, I was trying to find an alternative way.

So here we are:

You need the following:

Iron

Some clothes (old or new, but make sure they are clean/ washed)

Hemming web tape (can get in any supermarket)

Scissor

Pin (optional)

Fold up the cloth to match the size of the brush, then, cut a piece of the Hemming web tape that is similar to the size of the overlap of the cloth, and pin it the cloth.

(Note that make sure the cloth can go though the whole brush from the bottom, as when you put the cover on, it should go from the bottom to top, so that it smooths the hair of the brush. I actually made a mistake and made the cover too small, as the bottom of The Body Shop brush is too big compare with its head @.@)

Apply the iron on top of the cloth to melt the Hemming web tape and hold around 5-10 secs to make sure it sticks.

Then that's it, it is very easy to do!

And here's the 9 that I did yesterday. I think I got these cloths from a sofa company, think they are samples of their sofa covers, that'y why they are all in different colour, pattern and texture.

So what do you think of this?

Kyanvi.

Neal's Yard Rosemary & Cedarwood Hair Treatment

I bought this book a while ago, and found a recipe that helps out my bf's hair loss problem. Since I just made a refill today, so I may just share this to you. Apparently, this has received glowing praise in the past for helping hair to grow and the treatment will keep for up to 30 months.

You need:

10 drops Cedarwood essential oil

20 drops Rosemary essential oil

100g cocount oil

A glass jar 

2 bowl/ mixing dish

Hot water

Method

1. Melt the coconut oil by standing a bowl/ dish in a bowl of hot water

2. When the coconut oil melts, add the essential oils

3. Pour into the container for storage

To use

Warm some oil by rubbing it in the palm of your hand and work it through your hair and scalp.

Then wait for 30mins.

Remove the oil by applying shampoo before adding water.

Hope this make sense. For more reference, please refer to 'Recipes for Natural Beauty' by Romy Fraser  (ISBN: 978-1-905339-29-7) and for the ingredients, all of them can be found on Neal's Yard stores or their website @ Neal's Yard Remedies.

Kyanvi.

(Please note that I quote this recipe from the book Recipes for Natural Beauty and please do a skin test before you start using the product)

Camexpo @ Earls Court, Oct 09

This is a very belated post. I went to the natural beauty exhibition, Camexpo with my friend during October. Normally, I won't go for such exhibition, but since my friend got hold of free entry tickets (as she contact one of the exhibitor), so why not?

but then, I don't know what had happened and why I have forgot them till now...hm....

So here's the stuff I bought

Yogi Tea

I think I got this 3 of £5. I only tried the Rose when I got it, I thought it was okay and can have a go. But when I drank that at home, I just found the taste bit too dilute and weak. Also, Lotus is not nice, it is kind of strange, but I don't know how to describe... So probably, I won't buy this brand again...

Aromantic

If anyone interested in DIY skincare & makeup, this is a good equipment store, as they have a good range available. The price online is different though, as they charged the VAT on top of the labelled price. But during the exhibition, it is VAT off and extra 10% discount too...

Balm Balm

This is the reason that my friend want to go to this exhibition, as their products are only available online. (although their lip balms are available in Boots nowadays) Their products are quite good, esp the face balm, I must say, cause an extra dose of shea butter & bees wax is always good for dry skin. I didn't like it in the 1st place, but when the weather was getting colder and colder, the heater was getting hotter, so my skin kind of dried up, so extra layer oil helps.

The essential oils weren't the cheapest in the show or compare with the shops outside, but since they are 100% organic, so why not give it a go?

Also, apparently, it is popular before in HK as some famous models love their products, don't know anyone heard of that?

Cahn Aromatherapy

For £6, this tiny face mist is very expensive. But the only reason I bought this is that this company produce skincare products for lots of high end deparment store and so I just though I should give it a go.

The smell of the mist is really nice. The smell of geranium & sandalwood is perfectly balance. It really nourishes and keep my skin calm.

Munchy Seeds

As the name said all, it is best used for munching, and nuts & seeds give all the essential vitamins and mineral for our skins. So perfect for skin. There are few more favour other than the 1 I bought and they are also available in Waitrose too.

Kyanvi.

p.s. here are the useful site related to this:

Camexpo

Cahn Aromatherapy

Munchy Seeds

Balm Balm

Aromantic

Summary of the products that I like for 2009

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

I was planning to write my last piece of review right before the end of 2009, but then, i was distracted and was watching Black Bulter (黒執事), so didn't have time to type up @.@ I either stayed at home or went out shopping right after new year, so didn't have time to surf online too.

Here's the top 10 products, both skincare and makeup that I love most

(N.B. not in a particular order)

1. e.l.f. Studio Bronzer - Cool

I always looking for a palette that can do shape and sculpt together at the same time...But there aren't many option available from Boots/ Superdrugs. The most famous one is the M.A.C. Sculpt & Shape Duo like the one below

But then, I found it rather expensive... So I use this as an example and found an other alternative.

For £3.50, this e.l.f. bronzer is really good for this purpose... (which I will type a review if I had the time...sigh~)

2. Everyday Mineral Angled Brush 

For USD$ 8, this is the best brush that I have and it is perfect for mineral makeup. Sadly, this is not available on everyminerals.com... if I know this earlier, I will at least buy 2-3 more...sigh~ so I have to take extra care to keep it well....

3. e.l.f. Shimmering Facial Whip - Spotlight

see more details on my recent post -> Click Here

4. Estee Lauder Double Wear Mascara

I prefer Lancome's  or Primark's mascara more before, and I didn't like Estee Lauder's mascara before as I have a bad experience... But then, after I used this. It is perfect, it lasted and extended my lashes well. Also, one more good point, it is easy to brush on without clotting my eye lashes.

5. e.l.f. Mini Makeup Collection

see more details on my recent post -> Click Here

6. Avon Care Rich Moisture Glycerine Hand Cream

see more details on my recent post ->Click Here

7. Homemade Lavender, Rose Face Cream

see more details on my recent post ->Click Here

8. Olay Total Effects Radiance Enhance Cream Wash

This is my favourite cleanser at the moment, as it is cheap and effective. It removed excess oil and dust gently without giving the skin a hard time. It is good for everyday use.

9.  Garnier Eye Roll On

I have already bought a spare new one even though I haven't finish the old one yet... But there's 1 annoying point though... I just saw online Boots.com, there will be a new caffeine roll on which is used for dark circle.... i cant wait !!!!!!!!

10.  Botanics Organic Rosewater Toner

There's a few more things I want to put in this summary... But then... since I have already chosen a face cream, so I think I should put a toner here instead...

Kyanvi

Care for Dry Skin in Winter I - Home Made Rose, Lavender Cream

Q: What is little pot about?

A: For my poor skin as the old dry, irritant problem has come back and revisited me again.

Basically, my skin is very sensitive and once it is irritated, rashes/ pimple type thing will just all over my cheek and chin area. So I have tired a few products that seem help to smooth the situation, which I will write up when I have K.O. my management readings.

I always forgot to carry my lotions as I don't normally bring a handbag out, so I actually found 2 good products from Boots accidentally when I decided I need some lotion on and can't wait till back home.

This is the recent luck.

Ingredients

Boots Traditional Skin Care Moisturising Cream (£3.xx for 200ml)

Aromantic Organic Lavender Water (around £2 for 100ml)

The Body Shop Rose Essential Oil (diluted in base oil)

The Body Shop Tea Tree Oil

A small, clean cosmetic jar (50p each from Aromantic)

A clean spoon/ specula

Note

Lavender water can be any other brand or even replace with lavender essential oil. This is also apply to the Rose Oil, any rose oil can be used.

The amount of essential oils should be adjusted accordingly. I used 2 drops of Tea Tree, 14 drops of Rose and 20 drops of Lavender Water for a 15ml portion.

The reason that I add 2 drops of Tea Tree oil as it has an antifungal properties and use for skin infections. I always concern that my old skin problem isn't just skin irritant but other infections, so just add Tee Tree oil in case there's anything. (Although I did see a GP once and he said it wasn't any infections, only skin irritant by sunscreen lotion @.@)

According to the book Recipes for Natural Beauty by Neal's Yard Remedies, essential oils for dry and sensitive skin are rose and chamomile. That's why I use rose as I got the one with base oil, so it wont be too concentrate for my skin, as this is the 1st time I mix this.

Health advise

If the problem last for more than a week and no sign of healing, please seek proper medical help.

Do try this mixture at the inner end of the arm incase of skin irritant.

Also, most importantly, this is just my personal mixture, it may not suit you.

At last

What the texture of this traditional moisturising cream like?

Like those old, thick cream that probably your parents put on your skin when you were young. It's kinda like Baby cream/butter and it reminds me of the famous Japanese ointment, Oronine H Ointment (娥羅納英).

It claims to contain Vitamin A, E & Pro- Vitamin B5, which are the essentials for skin. Also, when I was tying this, I read the label more carefully and it said there's total Vitamin E content 6000mg for 200ml. That's a lot to me...

Although there will not be a lot of Glycerin as it is at the 2nd line on the ingredient list, I found it much nicer than those products suppose to be hydrated. This is because, in England, it's very easy to loss the moisture from the skin due to the heaters, therefore it is much ideal for me to 'seal up' my skin by using a layer of thin oil.

One last tip

I put Vaseline on my face before I go into the shower and wash my hair. This is because Vaseline acts as a protective barrier, it traps the moisture on my skin and the hot water won't able to remove the moisture and oil from my skin. But do have to wash it off with cleanser as I found it quite dirty to keep it on. (p.s. the current cleanser I am using at the moment is that Olay Total Effect Radiance Enhance Cream Wash (£5.86 for 150ml at Boots) which is quite good as it won't 'leave' my skin dry)

Sorry for dragging on, I am too 'talkative' and hope this helps.

Kyanvi

p.s. Boots Traditional Skin Care Moisturising Cream
Score 75/100
(deduct point as it is quite thick, I won't use it daily unless my skin is really dry)

Lush Face Mask Review 1

I just used the face mask 'a crush course in skincare' 1 minute ago.

The smell, the texture of the paste is really nice. It smells like lemon & avocado. There is also some lemon peel or avocado peel, as there were small square of fruit skin. After I put the paste on my face, the paste dries up slowly.

After I washed it off, I didnt found my skin more hydrated than before, instead bit dryer, but it is firmer. This is a really good point for me as my skin is really hydrated and smooth, but it rather too soft, not firm.

By looking up the ingredient online, I think I can replicate a similar mask with the following ingredients:

• Avocado
• Lemon
• Glycerine
• Sandelwood oil
• Lavander oil
• Yoghurt
• Chamolie oil
  

My DIY Make Up Palette 2

When I was browsing in Muji this afternoon, found out a cheap PP pill case, only 85p, so thought I can have another go to make my own palette. (as the white case is £3.xx, I found it rather expensive, although I prefer the white ABS more now @.@)

Anyway, the reason that I want to make my own palette is that I am not an eyeshadow freak/lover, as I much prefer using Kohl or other eyeliner pencil, since they are easy to control, like kids using colour pencil @.@ The palettes available are more eyeshadow base or even jus cheek, eye & lip palette. The only problems is that I just want a pressed power/foundation to reconceal my areas and the eyeliner that has fade out during the time. Also, I just need some eyeshadow or eyeliner to reline my eyes. So that's why I did the one below and the one in previous post.

Well, I put a blush in this one... as I think even though this doesn't look as grand as the other, but this fits perfectly well into my suit pocket or ladies handbag for special occasion.



Close Look:
LHS->RHS:
DiorSkin Extreme Fit Moist Compact Foundation SPF25
The Body Shop Blush (Rose) -> I only have 1 main blush, as I don't need blush at all, only during those day in the month...
No. 7 Eyeshadow palette (Graphite)

The Dior and No7 are in their original pan, but for the Body Shop one, I have to 'borrow' a pan from my other eyeshadow palette that I bought in Bonjour (HK), as I don't have any empty pans and the one I found online are all circles.... Therefore, anyone knows what company sells square pans?

My DIY Make UP Palette

See post 推介!! $88 自組彩妝寶盒 @ http://www.theztyle.com/bbs/viewthread.php?tid=3049&highlight=%E7%84%A1%E5%8D%B0), I thought this is a good idea.

Can't find the case in that post in London Muji, so have to stick to the one without mirror.. But can always stick another one though....

So here's the end product which took me a few hour as this is my 1st time @.@:

Close Look:

Top

LHS: DiorSkin Extreme Fit Moist Compact Foundation SPF25

RHS: The Body Shop Eye Colour Fusion Shade: Fusion Brown

the Gold & white e/s, I forgot what they are, bought from Sasa few years ago, the packing all wear out.. @.@

Bottom

LHS: Sponge

RHS: 17 Lip Gloss Bonjour Monsieur

Don't know whether anyone can guess where the blue palette from.. they are acutally the original packing of my Dior foundation sample, I used 2 sample and just cut the base out to fit into this Muji card case.

Also, remove the original metal pan that hold the foundation and repress the foundation as i need the metal pan for another palette. As the pan is glued on, so use nail polish remover to dissolve the glue and use rubbing alcohol to clean it before you press anything into it.

p.s. i need to find a few mini lip brush, but seems quite difficult @.@