Thursday, 15 January 2015

An Age Old Dilemma and Anti-Wrinkle Injections

Is there a person among us who has never worried about growing old and all the afflictions which come with the natural ageing process? Weaker eye sight, deteriorating teeth, sore muscles, and cranky old joints are just some of old age’s side effects which terrify us. And yet, perhaps the scariest of them all is the inevitable arrival of wrinkles, especially on our faces.

I mean, these are faces we have been proud of all through our lives. They identify us, define us, and help us become attracted to another - or many others. In an increasingly appearance conscious world, one where we are constantly connected to everyone else on the planet through social media, a person’s face has become their single greatest asset.

Obviously then, if anything were to happen to our faces, be it accidental or natural, we would be completely terrified. So it is for most of us, and so it was for a dear friend of mine. Now, before I tell you about her dilemma and her experiences with the solution she found, let me quickly explain that Rachel, to me, is absolutely gorgeous. She is a little older than me, loves the outdoors, and has a constantly lively personality.

So what then, you ask, is the problem? Well, her lifestyle, with the prolonged exposure to the sun and the wind, combined with the fact that she is almost always smiling and laughing, had left her with the odd wrinkle on her face, and quite a few smile and laughter lines. If you ask me, they added a touch of wisdom and even more charm to her appearance, and I told her so. Yet, she was adamant about rejuvenating her skin and restoring its smooth and youthful appearance. Her solution: skin treatment with Botox for wrinkles from a private cosmetic clinic in Harley Street, London.

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Honestly, I was incredibly nervous when I first heard her intentions. After all, how many botched up Botox jobs had I seen on celebrities? I didn’t know much about anti-wrinkle injections then, and some of my uncertainty must have gotten to Rachel too, because she became rather nervous as the date of her first appointment at the clinic drew closer. She dove into research, having done none of it before making the appointment in her usual, act-first-think-later style.

I was curious myself, so I helped her with the research, and what we found on the internet didn’t quite help us reassure ourselves. The day of the appointment came, and Rachel begged me to go with her - for moral support, if nothing else. As it turns out, that first day was a simple consultation with the doctor to discuss Rachel’s background and medical history, but his answers to our questions did help to calm us down considerably.

Once the clinic had formulated a treatment plan for Rachel’s wrinkles, they called her back, and she dragged me along once again. The doctor began by examining her ability to move different facial muscles, and then mapped out the area which was to be treated. Then, and this was the really scary part for me, he made several small injections into Rachel’s face, explaining that they would target the muscles which were causing the wrinkles, and each worked at a different, specific depth and with varying volumes of fluid.

Ten minutes later, it was done, and a week afterwards, Rachel had her natural, smooth, glowing skin again. She told me the injections had felt like little mosquito bites, but that it had all been worth it, for she felt like she looked at least 5 years younger, if not more. She did too! The results totally amazed me, and have me convinced that when I eventually, inevitably get wrinkles, I would undergo the same treatment, and if possible, from the same clinic.

**Guestpost

Wednesday, 14 January 2015

Emu Australia Boots Charlotte Black

Now the frost is settling and we have threats of snow, it is time to dust off the warm snug boots and hide my toes until the Spring. 

Shoetique have an amazing range of boots to choose from and I finally managed to settle on the most amazing boots from Emu, infact I have wanted them for ages and ages but have never bought them.  Let me introduce you to the Emu Australia Boots Charlotte** which I opted for in Black, the other colour option is Chocolate.





I can't even begin to tell you how amazing these boots are they are just fantastic, so snug and warm and perfect for this weather.

As calf length boots, they can be styled with everything and best of all they are totally waterproof! So they can be worn under and over your jeans, leggings, with a dress, with a skirt and they just look so good.






These boots feature a black suede upper which is built with a waterproof membrane and sealed seems which ensure no water gets in. The really thick sheepskin linings provide a lot of warmth and make them extremely comfortable to wear, almost like walking on springs they are so soft and bouncy. The sheepskin is also said to naturally remove moisture which in turn keeps your feet and your boots smelling fresh. The sole of the boot is texturised rubber which gives it a good old grip on those frosty slippery surfaces and is completely flat.

These boots are easy to pull on and off and have the Emu logo on back of heel and button straps for added detail and I absolutely love them.  They have been perfect for this freezing cold weather and my feet have been as snug as a bug.

If you are looking for a new pair of boots, then get yourself over to Shoetique because they have an amazing sale on right now!

Tuesday, 13 January 2015

Nivea Body Lotion


When it comes to products the one that I am the useless at applying is a cream after being in the bath or shower, I just always seem to forget to do it, even when I am faffing about in a towel drying my hair.  So when I was sent some lovely Nivea products to use, I decided I was going to do my best to use them every day after showering and at a weekend when I had my bath, even if that meant setting a reminder in my phone or leaving post it notes on my mirror!

Nivea as a brand is one that I have a love/hate relationship, I either really like something or I really hate it.  I like some products but not others and body creams are not something I have tried until now and I have three different products to share with you.



The first one if the Rich Nourishing lotion with Hydra IQ and Almond Oil and it is designed for dry skin.   It said to restore and replenish lost moisture whilst enhancing the skin's natural protective layer and 24 hour moisturisation.  As a crème it is a really thick luxurious formula, so you really do only need to use such a small amount.  As it is designed for dry skin, I concentrated on using it on my legs which is where they can become almost reptilian in texture.  Does it work? Actually yes it does, even I was surprised that it was so moisturising on my skin and it left my legs feeling really hydrated.



The second is called Express Hydration for normal skin and it is designed to be use everyday.  Using Sea Minerals and Hydra IQ the formula is light and absorbs almost as soon as it comes into contact with your skin leaving behind soft, smooth and supple skin.  I have used this one on all body parts and I absolutely love the formula because you don't have to sit around and wait for it to dry and it leaves a really lovely subtle scent on the skin.  Does it moisturise, yes it does and it is perfect for people on the go who want to add a little extra TLC.



The final product is called Irresistibly Smooth which is again designed for dry skin and has the added inclusion of Shea Butter and Hydra IQ to leave your skin feeling unbelievably smooth and hydrated.  I have been using this every night and the formula is a mix of the other two, quite luxurious in feel but absorbs as soon as it comes into contact with the skin and again it leaves behind a subtle Shea Butter scent which I am a huge fan of.



The one thing all three of these products have in common is the Hydra IQ which is said to promote a non-stop moisture from within the skin. The formula supports the skins own water channels to enhance your natural moisturisation.



Overall, I really like these body lotions and my favourite has to be Express Hydration because the formula is just so lovely and your skin feels instantly smooth after application.  Costing around £3.49 each for a 250ml bottle, these products are affordable and they last quite a long time.  They are also dermatologically tested and they are perfect for winter.

Are you a fan of Nivea products?

 

Invisible Braces V's Vanity

Growing up I had no problem with my teeth, even now in my 30's I've not had a single filling or a tooth removed and I have always looked after my teeth, my only slight issue is that my teeth aren't as straight as I would have liked them to be and vanity got in the way of me doing anything about it.  My work colleagues son isn't so lucky, his mouth is apparently too small to house all of his teeth and having to have at least one extracted, he has been told he needs braces to close up that gap and to pull all of his teeth into line.
Invisible Braces V's Vanity
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Braces on teeth are nothing new, plenty of my friends growing up had retainer like braces or the ones which are fixed permanently to them for a good few years, the end result being lovely nice poker straight teeth.  I was slightly worried for my nephew, I remember the name calling when I was at school and looking back, it wasn't nice, taunts like 'train tracks' and 'metal mickey' probably still haunt my high school friend Michaela to this day.  However, now with a lot of cosmetic dentistry you can have what are called invisible braces or even ceramic braces, all options that were never around as I was growing up, apparently even Justin Bieber had invisible braces!. 

Invisible braces are said to be a way to straighten your teeth without having the discomfort and inconvenience of wires and brackets. This is where braces cost London comes into its own, using a series of clear, removable aligners, you can handle crowding, gaps, overbites, underbites and almost all other alignment problems.

I am really impressed with how many changes have been made with braces on teeth, more so because I have a fear of false teeth, something I have mentioned in another post and I hope that should any of my nieces or nephews ever need to have this work done on their teeth, they won't face the cruel taunts my friends did as children and should my vanity have not got in the way and this option was available to me then, I might have had those nice perfect straight teeth.

Did you have a brace growing up?









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