Wahanda Salon App

After seeing a few TV adverts about Wahanda, I decided to give it a go. To be honest, apart from the hairdressers, I've only ever been to a salon once and that was a for a pedicure when I was 13 in LA. It does intrigue me, so I thought I'd download it and see what it was all about!

All you have to do it create an account with your name, email and location. It's super simple to join up. The app then finds all the salons in your local area and filters out their treatments into 8 main categories. Each category also has sub-categories. If no-one if your local area does a treatment you want, you can expand your mileage.

The Categories

Hair - filing under hair you can choose from haircuts & hairdressing, blow dry, hair colouring & highlights, hair conditioning & scalp, hair consulting and Brazilian blow dry keratin treatments.

Massage - showing offers of a variety of different massages: therapeutic massage, deep tissue massage, Swedish massage, aromatherapy massage, stone massage and Indian head massage. 

Face - facials, eyebrows & eyelash, microdermabrasion, HD brows, men's facial and eye treatments.

Hair Removal - waxing, hollywood waxing, brazilian waxing, threading, French bikini wax and laser hair removal.

Nails - choose from a manicure, pedicure, gel nails, two-week manicure, foot scrub and nail extensions & overlays.

Body - body wraps, body exfoliation, spray tanning & sunless tanning, body, steam & sauna therapy and cellulite treatments.

Med & Dental - includes dental, teeth whitening, fresh breath, cosmetic injectables, dermal fillers and collagen treatments.

Spa - the spa category searches for local spa's near you so you can book anything from spa breaks to specific treatments.

All categories have the option of all treatments so you can see prices and what salons offer what treatments, or you can go on "other" and search for the treatment you want.

I haven't booked anything yet, but I'm planning on a massage and maybe a manicure!

I really rate this app, it works really smoothly and is perfect if you fancy treating yourself or a salon regular.

Have you tried out Wahanda?

Ellie x

First Impressions: Magnitone Lucid

During the #BHTwitterParty that happened a few weeks ago, I was lucky enough to get my hands on the Magnitone Lucid* to try out! I've seen these nifty little cleansing brushes and I am so excited to finally have my hands on one.

This is a really cool piece of kit that is definitely going to up my skincare game. The Magnitone Lucid is powered by Active Electromagnetic Technology, which means they send electromagnetic pulsations into the skin which will naturally cleanse your pores and remove dead skin cells, which will leave you with bright, clear and fresh skin.

Use the Magnitone Lucid with your favourite cleanser, only needing to use for 1 minute. It has a built in timer too, which will help tell you when your minutes up. I used mine with my favourite Superdrug Tea Tree Grapefruit face wash. It's also totally waterproof, which makes it a great shower accessory.

I really love the charging system. As it's waterproof, there are no electrical outputs on this. It's charger is a wireless magnetic "stone", that you plug into the mains to charge. It also comes with an adapter so you can take it on holiday too! It's a small detail but one that makes a huge difference. Also, each charge lasts for about 2 weeks, which I'm super impressed with!

I am so impressed with this, I really can't wait to see what my skins looks like after 7 days. I'll report back with that next week. So far all I can say is after 1 use, my skin looked a lot brighter, clearer and was so smooth!

You can buy the Magnitone Lucid here

Ellie x

* These items were kindly gifted to me for the purpose of review

SebaMed Clear Face: Cleansing Bar, Deep Cleansing Toner & Care Gel - First Impressions

SebaMed is probably my new favourite skincare brand. Although I have only been trying out 3 products from their Clear Face range*, I can already tell it's some pretty good stuff. Especially created for acne/spot-prone skin, Clear Face is made to combat those pesky (and common) outbreaks whilst pH balancing your skin to 5.5.

The 3 products I have been sent are the Cleansing Bar, the Deep Cleansing Toner and the Care Gel. All of which fight against your spots and blackheads whilst pH balancing your skin to leave it healthy.

The Cleansing Bar

I really like this cleansing bar, as it really makes your skin look and feel clean, without irritating it. As my skin is quite sensitive, it's always nice to find a product that doesn't upset it. SebaMed say that this bar is perfect for those with mild acne.

Deep Cleansing Toner

The deep cleansing toner really does deep cleanse! I feel like this is a bit too strong for my incredibly sensitive skin and brings out the redness a bit in my skin, which I try to avoid at all times. This is definitely something that I'd use when I was having a troublesome time with my skin. SebaMed say that this toner is great for oily/combination skin.

Care Gel

I think the care gel is probably my favourite from the range, as I find it really does help my skin calm down and really smooths it out. It isn't a moisturiser, but rather something to apply before your moisturiser, or at least that's how I think suits it best. SebaMed say that this care gel is great for all skin-types that are spot/acne-prone.

So, what have I found in the last few days using these Clear Face products? Well, my skin is looking 100% better, even my mum has commented to say it looks clearer - and that's just from 2 days use! I would definitely recommend to those with mild acne problems or spot-prone skin.

I am currently doing a 28-day challenge with these products - so I'll be writing a review then to see how my skin has changed!

I'm now eyeing up the sensitive skin range...

Ellie x

* These items were kindly gifted to me for the purpose of review

New Additions to my (Affordable) Skincare

I've had the same skincare routine/products for so long, in fact it wasn't long ago I posted my everyday skincare routine. I'm still using the same products, I have just enhanced the routine with some extras!

PURE TEA TREE OIL
I think buying pure tea tree oil was a bit short-sighted, as I didn't realise you had to mix the pure oil with another oil to dilute it. Silly I know, but hey we all learn somewhere! When I run out I'm definitely going to pick up the blended version. I've been using this at night, mixing it with some E45 as I feel like it doesn't work so well with other oils, even though you are meant to mix it with other oils. My face is visibly smoother, clearer and less red the next morning - so I am extremely happy with this!

PINK GRAPEFRUIT FACE WASH

Pink grapefruit has been around for a while now in the skincare world, but I didn't really know about it's benefits for your skin until fairly recently. I decided to pick this up as I really like Superdrug's Tea Tree range. I feel like it does make a difference to how clear my skin looks, and it hasn't broken me out, caused any irritation and didn't sting like some face washes do.

NATURALLY RADIANT RADIANCE SERUM
Another Superdrug-own range, this one being the Naturally Radiant range. The range is really interesting and has lots of things to brighten up your skin, from serums and eyecreams to night creams and overnight peels. I really like this serum and I've been using it underneath my E45 to just add something else to my skin. I feel like it helps keep my skin from feeling to "flat".

Overall I am really happy with my new additions. I'm loving Superdrug's own skincare ranges, I'd highly recommend them to anyone who needs skincare to fit into a budget!

Ellie x

Hair Removal - My Story, Products to Remove Hair & Loving Yourself

Hair removal?! Not the usual thing I see coming up on my feed, but something we all do. I'm currently battling myself, I've hated how I look for pretty much my whole life and now I'm doing something about it. Exercising to feel good and to tone myself up a bit, healthy eating to make me feel good inside and hopefully make me look better on the outside and hair removal.. because well as a dark-featured girl I am plagued and it embarrasses me totally to the point where I now wear long-sleeves every single day. Enough.

When I was younger, I was always tanned. As someone with olive skin, I pick up the sun in no time, going on holiday twice a year seriously helped keep me dark, disguising/bleaching the hairs on my arms and body. Now, I can't afford to go on holiday (venturing away from England for the first time in 5 years in August however), and I am paler than ever have been, and I'm noticing my dark hairs more than ever and I hate it.

I know I'm not alone, but I rarely see any women with hair on their arms, lower back, or anywhere really. I know body hair is normal and something I (and you reading this if this is something you experience) shouldn't be embarrassed of, but yet I do feel embarrassed and like it's not normal. Body standards of women have certainly changed, nothing is real and there seems to be so much pressure on us ladies to be completely hair-free and "perfect". I disagree with this, as having hair is completely natural and I don't think you should have to change yourself so others think you are pretty or to live up to standards set by the media. All that matters is that you love yourself for who you are.

And although I'm not planning on changing myself for anyone, as I am purely exercising and eating right to feel better inside, the one thing I cannot shake is my dark hair. So I am doing something about it. I've never wanted to shave my arms as I don't fancy stubble or the constant commitment, so however I have bought wax strips, hair removal cream and bleach.

WAX STRIPS

I bought Veet Ready to Use Easy Grip wax strips for the worst of the hair on my arms. They come in packs of 40, so will last a while! Waxing lasts longer than shaving and will help to discourage growth/make hair seem finer after frequent use which is a result I'm hoping for more than anything! Although it can be uncomfortable, it's something you get used to - kind of like doing your eyebrows!
My experience - it was really easy and simple, and really didn't hurt half as much as I thought it would! It has given me such smooth soft skin, I love the result!

HAIR REMOVAL CREAM
Something I'm sure we've all dabbled in at some point in our lives, hair removal cream is fairly quick and easy and something I picked up for the finer hairs (but not as fine as facial hair). I picked up Veet 3 Minute Cream mainly because it was on offer and because Veet seems to be a more trusted brand in the hair removal world.
My experience - I really like this hair removal cream, it of course doesn't smell great but smells a lot better than some hair removal creams I've used. I left it on for the maximum amount of time (6 minutes) rather than 3 minutes so not to be disappointed and it has worked a treat. Great product!

BLEACH
Something I always saw in the bathroom cupboard growing up but wasn't sure what it was... Jolen Cream Bleach is for my really fine hairs and for facial hair, my mum literally swears by it. I don't want to remove any hair on my face (unless this doesn't work) in fear of them coming back worse or stubbly, so turning them blonde will hopefully disguise them!
My experience - this was the most time-consuming out of the three, but well worth it. Every hair I bleached has pretty much turned invisible, I love it! 

Loving yourself, being happy and confident in who you are is so important and nothing should get in the way of accepting who you are. All your friends, family and loved ones don't care for you imperfections, they are what makes you, you. Everyone has flaws! But if something is stopping you from loving yourself, being happy and confident then you can always change it, just make sure you do it in a healthy and safe way.

I would love to know if anyone else struggles with dark body hair, and what you thought of my post!

Ellie x

My Super Easy Skincare Routine

I am definitely lazy when it comes to skincare. As much as I love pampering treats for my skin, I mostly can't afford it and/or would much rather have a quick fix to taking off my makeup and cleansing my face so I can get into bed as fast as possible. 

I use budget skincare that others may look over when browsing through Superdrug, but honestly, my skin has never been better.

MORNING
Morning skincare is the easiest and quickest as there's no makeup to remove. I just use a 2-in-1 cleanser and toner, moisturise and I'm done.

My cleanser is from Superdrugs Tea Tree range, and is a 2-in-1 as it also tones! I picked this up as I needed an emergency cleanser whilst on my travels, and I fell in love. It really refreshes and cleans my skin, and my skin has never been better. I think what I love the most about this is that it's non-greasy, I hate when cleansers leave your face feeling greasy. This just leaves you with clean, fresh skin.

My moisturiser is E45! I've never strayed from this little gem. I've tried other moisturisers, but I just don't get on with them. This does the job for me and leaves me with lovely moisturised skin.

NIGHT

My nighttime routine is super easy as well! I start off by clearing off most my makeup with face wipes, then cleanse the rest of my makeup off with my Superdrug Tea Tree cleanser and toner, treat any spots and moisturise.

I don't use a specific brand for my face wipes, as I do only use them to get the worst of my makeup off (especially tough mascaras), so it's usually the cheapest I can find or ones that have an offer on. I don't see the big deal with face wipes that the online beauty world has created. Without face wipes I'd be using 10x more cleanser and cotton pads, which cost way more money to replace! Of course they probably aren't hygienic, but really, it's no different to covering a cotton pad with cleanser and rubbing it all over your face, but there we go. Mini rant over.
To treat spots, I like to use Sudocrem. I've found it's the most effective and quickest way to treat spots

SKIN TREATS
Every few days I treat my skin with exfoliation and face masks. I think exfoliating your skin should be an important part of your routine, as it scrubs away any dead skin cells leaving you with fresh, brighter skin. It will hopefully also be an end to those pesky dry-patches, I get them around my nose the most and I find exfoliating really helps reduce this.

I've been loving Superdrugs Tea Tree Exfoliating Scrub, as it has a decent amount of scrub (and not just a couple of beads like other exfoliating products) so you really feel the difference after using it.

For masks, I personally love the Superdrug face masks. They come in reusable tubes and really do help your skin, depending on what you're after. I own three of these: Superberry Exfoliating, Aloe Vera De-Stressing and Vitamin E Hydrating. I wrote a review on all three of these, view it here!

PRODUCTS

Superdrug Tea Tree Cleanser & Toner - £3.29
E45 (350ml) - £6.95 (currently £4.63)

Sudocrem - £2.55

Superdrug Tea Tree Exfoliating Scrub - £3.29
Superdrug Superberry Exfoliating Face Mask - £2.59
Superdrug Aloe Vera De-Stressing Face Mask - £2.59

My whole skincare kit comes to around £21, which is an absolute bargain seeing as you can spend £20 on a cleanser alone. I may use budget skincare, but my skin has never been better!

Ellie x

Philosophy Pure Grace: Fragrance, Shower Gel & Body Creme

Hello!

More Christmas gift reviews today in the form of Philosophy's Pure Grace set. This set is simply gorgeous.

The Pure Grace collection smells like soap and water, which is amazingly fresh and clean. I just keep imagining using this set, then getting into crisp clean bed sheets. I can't think of anything feeling more luxurious. The feel and smell of clean is, in my opinion, one of the best things ever.

What I also love about this set is the packaging, I really appreciate simplistic clean designs and this certainly didn't disappoint in that area.

The super clean, fresh fragrance of these products is addicting. What I liked when I tested the shower gel and body creme is that they were very moisturising and felt very luxe, and although it is quite heavily fragranced, I wasn't irritated at all. 

I think I'm going to really enjoy this set and I would most likely re-purchase the items when I run out!

Have you tried anything from Philosophy?

Ellie x

Lush Christmas Candy Box

Hello!

I haven't actually done a post about Lush before which I guess is a bit weird as they're one of my favourite stores on the highstreet. I was thrilled to receive the Christmas Candy Box for Christmas, as it has all of my favourite scented products in. I love the bubblegum/candyfloss/vanilla scented things from Lush, I have such a sweet tooth!

In the box includes a Candy Mountain bubble bar, a Rock Star soap, a Butter Bear bath bomb and Snow Fairy shower gel. Mmm!

Candy Mountain Bubble Bar

"For mountains of sparkling, creamy candy pink bubbles, add a bit of magic to your bath." This little mountain is a super cute pink and white cone of sweetness. It smells very much like candy, think vanilla-y candyfloss!

Rock Star

"This creamy soap takes you on an away day with its nostalgic smell of seaside rock to satisfy your sweet tooth." Rock Star is a pretty pink star that smells of sugary sweet vanilla! I have heard that this leaves your skin super soft after, so I'm really looking forward to trying this out.

Butter Bear
"A creamy vanilla-scented bath with cocoa butter to soften the skin." I bought a few Butter Bears as gifts this year so I'm glad I've got one for myself! I absolutely love the smell of these, vanilla with a hint of cocoa butter, plus they're super cute shaped as tiny teddy bears!

Snow Fairy
"Sprinkle a little fairy dust into your day with this candy-scented sparkling shower gel." Again, I bought some as gifts and I'm so happy I now have one of my own. I love Lush shower gels but this is by far my favourite, as someone with a nose for sugar I can't resist the mega-sweet bubblegum scent!

I love this gift set and everything in it! I wish these scents were around for the duration of the year rather than around Christmas - especially Snow Fairy!

Did you get any Lush items for Christmas?

Ellie x

Superdrug Face Masks

Hello!

I think it's about time I review these bad boys as I now have 3 and I love them all! Superdrug have their own range of face masks which come in a tube meaning you can use them again and again. They seriously last a long while, so you really get your moneys worth out of £2.59!

Hydrating: Vitamin E
This was the first mask I bought as I needed/wanted something that would help my poor dried out skin! Now a few months later I'm back on track and it's feeling healthier, but I still love this mask to give me baby smooth skin. This mask is quite different from any I've ever tried as it doesn't dry to your face like other masks, it stays on like a moisturiser and looks/feels like a moisturiser too! This mask is recommended for normal to dry skin.

De-stressing: Aloe Vera
This I picked up for the sake of it as Superdrug had a little promo on at the time, so I wasn't really sure what to expect. However, I have been pleasantly surprised! This mask really helps my skin calm down as I get some pretty hefty redness from time to time. As well as making my skin super soft and lovely, I definitely saw a difference in my angry skin. Like a "normal" mask, this does dry on your skin. This mask is recommended for normal to combination skin.

Exfoliating: Superberry
Now this is one I'd wanted to get my hands on for a while. I love the occasional exfoliation so the promise of that combined with the lovely berry scent was a winner with me. I felt this really did exfoliate my skin but in a gentle way, so my skin wasn't left feeling aggravated after. It also left me with soft skin (like all these masks do, I love it!), and I also feel like my skin looked brighter and healthier after. Like the de-stressing mask, this too dries out as it is a mud mask. This mask is recommend for all skin types.

Available to buy from Superdrug

Have you tried these masks?

Ellie x

Anatomicals No Old Bags Allowed Eye Gel

Hello!

I remember when this came out or at least became a huge blogger hype as I can just remember seeing pictures of this little bad boy all over my reading list. Now, fast forward however long it's been I'm only just trying it out!

I absolutely adore the packaging of this, like all Anatomicals products it's a bit quirky and I love the writing on it. I find it so amusing and pretty clever, I actually really love when brands package like this.
I also love the tube itself, it's super easy to use and again has Anatomicals quirky packaging. I love tubes like this, they have a professional feel to them and it also makes it easy to get a precise amount of product and is also hygienic. The only thing I'm concerned about is when I reach the end of the tube I may struggle to get product out, kind of like a toothpaste tube!

The product itself is lovely, I'm definitely sold into eye gels after trying this. I've been suffering a lot lately with puffy bags under my eyes as I'm tired literally all the time haha. I've found this definitely does cool them down and help reduce the puffiness, helping even out my cheeks as the bags are so bad!

I'm definitely a lot happier with my under-eye area after using this. It's a fab little eye gel and for only £3.49 you really can't go wrong. I would recommend this if you're feeling insecure about your under-eye bags!

Buy here

Ellie x

First Impression: REN Skincare Hot Cloth Cleanser*

Yesterday I picked up InStyle as I fancied a read, to be honest the freebie caught my eye the most. A REN sample size Hot Cloth Cleanser and cloth. 

Even though I've only used this a few times, I'm impressed. I much prefer it to my current cleanser, and I'm almost tempted to have a little spend on REN. This cleanser doesn't upset my skin and removes my make-up (even eye make-up) and leaves me with lovely fresh feeling skin which isn't dry or tight. I don't feel like I need to immediately reach for my moisturiser after, which is a lovely feeling. It didn't aggravate the redness in my skin either, which is heaven sent. So done with redness, honestly. 

I am very impressed with this cleanser, and I may purchase a full size bottle. I recommend it already, I've even got my mum trying it. If you don't want to spend £16 before trying it, pick up an InStyle magazine whilst you can!

REN Hot Cloth Cleanser - £16, 150ml