Garnier Ambre Solaire 'No Streaks' Dry Mist Self Tanning

Let's face it, a lot of us pale girls look a lot healthier with a subtle tan right? I personally can't stand having my milk-bottles legs out and with the summery weather beginning to appear I really wanted to have a go at fake tan.  I don't like sun beds because of the damage they do to your skin and being a busy Mummy I don't have time to lay in the garden cooking myself for hours.

After a browse and reading a few mixed reviews online I decided on trying the Garnier Ambre Solaire dry mist.  Luckily for me it was on special offer at tesco, I bought the body and face mist together for £12, the usual price is £11 for the body spray and £8 for the face mist (not the cheapest self-tanning on the market but sometimes you get what you pay for).

I had a shower and exfoliated with a shower puff like it says to on the bottle. I used St.Ives Apricot face scrub on my face. Having read a couple reviews most people recommended using a little moisturiser on dry areas such as knees and elbows so I thought it best to do that too.  I used Garnier Intense 7 days moisturiser in very small amounts.

What I found with this product was that you must make sure that you spray from 40cm away or further like it says on the bottle, if you spray too close to your skin you will end up looking a bit streaky.

I needed a second coat the following day to get the colour that I wanted.  I am quite fair so I used the light version of the spays.  I was very happy with the colour as I did not go orangey at all! It looked very natural and golden.  It gets easier to apply with practice and I must say, I am a complete novice when it comes to self tanning but I think I've been converted! I feel more confident about wearing summery clothes and dresses and I think that I look healthier with a little glow :) I definitely recommend this product to anyone who wants to give fake tan a go.

! - ALWAYS FOLLOW THE INSTRUCTIONS - EXFOLIATE - SPRAY FROM A DISTANCE - IN A WELL VENTILATED PLACE - !

Happy Tanning Ladies and Gents! x

VO5 Texture Spray

I was out grocery shopping in tesco and saw this was on offer so I decided to give it a try. So that you know my hair type is coloured, long and naturally wavy.

I had a shower, washed, conditioned and towel dried my hair then let it air dry naturally for a little while (my hair is long so it takes ages to dry!).  Whilst my hair was still damp I sprayed the texture spray, scrunching as I went along.  I tried to spray in sections so that all of my hair was covered and I scrunched from the root, turning my head upside down and scrunching for maximised volume. I left my hair to dry naturally and was fairly pleased with the results, my hair was more wavy than usual and had loads of lovely volume - only downside to this product was that it made my hair quite knotty by the end of the day. I think it would be better if used with a diffuser. I will use this again as I love it when my hair has a bit of oomph!

If anyone else had tried this out I'd love to hear your views x

Quotes

Just a quick one, a little example of the sort of quote graphics I like to make x Will be adding more shortly, for now here's a little taster:

If you like that and would like to read more funny parenting-related quotes check out my quotes page!

Toodles darlings! xoxo

Face wash and Microdermabrasion

Hello my lovelies :)

I decided to do a review on face washes and also wanted to spread the word about the amazing results of microdermabrasion skin treatments which I myself have had to reduce acne scarring.  I have combination skin which is very sensitive, I have tried lots and lots of different face washes all making promises of resolving my skin problems - yeah right! I found that face washes either gave me break outs or dried my skin up too much leaving me with rough dry patches/wrinkly skin! It has taken me years but I have finally found a few diamonds!

My top 4 face washes/scrubs:

 Avene Thermal - This face wash was recommended to me by my dermatologist and it is fabulous for acne-prone skin, not only did I find that it reduced any redness I had but it balanced my skin so that it was neither oily or dry.  It is probably one of the more expensive face washes on the market at around £12 but it's worth it and lasts forever as you need the smallest amount! Available at boots.com







St Ives Naturally Clear Apricot Scrub - Costing only £3 this scrub is a bargain! I absolutely love it, I am prone to blackheads and have found that since using this scrub my skin is balanced, soft and smooth and my pores are clear. Love it! I am using this one twice a day at the moment it is that gentle! You can buy this in most large supermarkets, I picked it up at superdrugs.co.uk

 Witch Gentle Exfoliating Wash - This is very gentle on my sensitive skin and it did prevent break outs; however, I found that the 'exfoliating' aspect was not brilliant and my skin did not feel exfoliated after use, there are not really enough beads in it to use it as an exfoliater.

Simple Clear Skin Oil-Balancing Wash - Another very gentle cleanser that I found good at preventing break outs.  The only downside I found with this cleanser was that it had a tendency to dry my skin out if I used it too much.








What is Micordermabrasion?

Microdermabrasion is a treatment offered by some beauty therapists and dermatologists.  It involves small crystals being used to remove the top layer of skin in order to stimulate new cell growth and remove dead cells (along with yucky blackheads!). They use a machine that simultaneously shoots crystals at your skin and suctions up dead cells/dirt and uses crystals. I had moderate acne scarring from my teenage years which really bothered me and meant that I was applying quick thick layers of concealer and foundation daily to try to hide my scars.  I sought a consultation with a specialist at sk:n clinics.  They were absolutely brilliant with me and after assessing my skin they advised a course of microdermabrasion treatments.  They can be pricey; however, if you purchase in bulk you get much better value for money.  Along with microdermabrasion I was given a recommended skin care routine and variety of products to improve my skin and care for it whilst having treatment.  I had 5 sessions, one a week. The difference was amazing! I did not have scarring anymore, my skin was smooth and my complexion even. I recommend this treatment 100 percent and it is something that you can have from time to time if you feel your skin is looking dull.

Points to note:

• If you are having microdermabrasion you MUST wear suncream afterwards.  The fresh new skin is not used to direct sunlight and will burn easily.
• It may not be suitable for intense scarring.
• The number of sessions an individual requires may vary.
• In my opinion it is best to seek the advice of a specialist.

I highly recommend sk:n clinics who also offer several other procedures, for a price list and treatment guide check out their website:
 http://www.sknclinics.co.uk

That's it for now folks! x

Busy bumble me

Been a bit busy lately, will update soon with some product reviews and cute mummy/daddy goodies like fb cover pics and twitter headers, patience is a virtue!  Xx

Pelvic Girdle Pain

Hey everyone! x

If you didn't already know, I suffered with and still battle Pelvic Girdle Pain.  It is an extremely uncomfortable condition that plagued me throughout my pregnancy and causes me discomfort to this day. There are several different causes for the condition, it can be brought on by trauma or strain to the back for example or it can be a genetic issue. I have just added an information page to my blog which I hope you will find useful. Has anyone else experience some from of pelvic pain, lower back back, sciatica or SPD? If so I would love to hear your experiences of these conditions and your tips for easing the discomfort.  I have had physiotherapy which has helped a lot, I find the best things are:

• A hot bath with deep heat bubble bath (available from most pharmacies)
• Deep heat thermal self-adhesive pads
• Voltarol Emulgel (external use) (This was prescribed by my GP, it contains diclofenac so may not be suitable for everyone)

I have also followed the advice of my doctor and I sit on dining chairs rather than the sofa, if I do sit on the sofa I prop myself up with cushions to ensure good posture.  I am always careful when bending and lifting, making sure that I lift from my legs rather than my back.  I do not go on fair ground rides and I avoid loading my baby's buggy up with heavy shopping and try to shop little and often or get my groceries delivered. I wear flat shoes and try to make sure that I keep my back straight when walking. Posture is the key ladies! x

Toodles for now x

Cute Girls Hairstyles

Hey all :)

I just wanted to share a fantastic website with you all - that's if you don't already know about it:

http://www.cutegirlshairstyles.com/

There are some brilliant and extremely cute hair styles on this site for both short and long hair accompanied by easy to follow video tutorials - I have tried some of them out and absolutely love them!

If you check out the site let me know which styles you thought were the cutest
! Personally I love the dinsey princess hair styles! Here's an example from their style gallery:

That's all for today!

Updates

Hiya :)

I've made a few changes to my blog layout and pages today, check out some of my favorite quotes on parenting - I would love to hear your favorite child related quotes! Share them by commenting! x

Hobby Craft and Baby Books

So the weather was lovely and me and the fella decided to go for a walk to the new hobby craft store in the local area.  I was really excited as I love anything arty and having new projects to work on in my free time (hence this blog!) - the one thing that caught my attention on this visit was scrap booking!

I've got a baby record book which is beautiful and very sweet, you can record dates of first smiles etc and add pictures, but I felt that if I made my daughter a scrapbook it would be more personal as I would have designed it myself and been able to put in little notes here and there and write accounts of events myself, stick in tickets from days out - you get the idea! In the midst of all my enthusiasm I hadn't realised the cost of the pretty embellishments and coloured/patterned paper I was picking up! It looks like this scrap book is going to take me a while to put together... They did have some cheap artistic activities to do with kids which I thought were brilliant and I will be going back for another browse, just wish scrap booking materials were a little bit cheaper.

What's in your baby bag?

Hello Mums, Dads and Guardians.. sometimes I feel like Mary Poppins with the amount of things I have in my baby bag (or should I say mini backpack?!)

In my baby bag I carry daily:

• Mini dispenser of my daughters Eczema cream
• Dettol anti-bacterial hand gel
• Changing mat
• Nappies/pull-ups
• Wipes
• Bonjela
• Bepanthen
• Thermometer
• Juice in a Nuby cup
• A snack by Annabel Karmel
• Spare outfit in case of spillages or accidents
• High factor children's sun cream (when the weather is nice)

What do other parents carry in their bags? Are there any must have products? My daughter is 1 and a half so I have introduced her to her delightful musical minnie mouse potty which claps and cheers when she flushes the pretend handle. I realised that going out would be tricky so I have invested in a Potette Plus, a pink portable potty from mothercare. My daughter hasn't used it yet but I'm optimistic that it will be helpful in awkward situations or days out where there are no toilets available (or as is most often the case they are too dirty and smelly to be used!).

Apps

I can now post and check comments via my samsung galaxy, you've got to love the play store! I can also manage the bubbablog.co.uk facebook page straight from my phone, love my Samsung, the only thing I miss about my old blackberry is bbm.

First post

So this is my first official post, I'm still adding content and getting things running smoothly but if anyone has any ideas, suggestions or review requests please let me know! 

Before you leave don't forget to take part in this week's bubbablog poll, I will be doing a different one each week :)

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