X-10 Shine Spray for Hair Extensions.

These are my lovely new extensions.

I now have the theme song from Ariel hurled at me left, right and centre. But you know what? I'm pretty much ok with that (Ariel is frickin' awesome).

For anyone who is interested, I bought them from Amazon for £40. They are 16 inch Remy hair, which I initially bought in a light brown colour and dyed with Schwartzkopf Live Colour XXL in Red Passion 43.

You may have read that I have bought the X-10 extension care range recently but I haven't had a chance to review them properly yet because I haven't actually washed my hair yet!!

HOWEVER,

Today, I did use the shine spray on my waves (achieved by sleeping with a plait).

It was really fab.

I've used a number of shine sprays and shine serums on my hair and I definitely would say that this is the best I have used so far.

I only applied it to the ends of my hair to avoid looking greasy. I used about 3 squirts in total, one to each side of my head and one at the back, before combing through.

What the spray did was to create shine without looking greasy or weighing the hair down, smooth down flyaways as well as frizz.

What more could you want from a shine spray really?

*****

Love,
Ren xxxxxx

Chanel Coco Mademoiselle Body Lotion Review #2

"This is the BEST moisturiser ever!"
Said the canny sales assistant to a susceptible (and very generous) boyfriend.

I was given this body lotion as a birthday present, along with the fragrance and I have to say (before anything) that I love the smell. It is amazing. I smell like a rich person, living in a vintage-chic maisonette in the heart of Paris. I smell like I probably own a chest of diamond necklaces that I don't need to wear. It's great. It's amazing. Well done Chanel. 

BUT... is it the best moisturiser ever?

I would have to, very unfortunately, say no.

On the pluses, it is very lightweight and dries quickly. It's not greasy. When used with the perfume, it makes the scent last longer. It's also Chanel, so when people ask what you are wearing, you can smile smugly and say, "Oh, just Coco Mademoiselle."

However, it doesn't leave my skin noticeably softer. It does feel great when you first put it on but the lasting soft-skin feeling isn't really there. I don't get home from work and still feel luxurious. My boyfriend doesn't comment that I have lovely soft skin, like he does when I use other body lotions - if the person who feels your skin more than anyone else doesn't notice the difference, well, what is the point?!

If I had paid £37 for this, I would be disappointed.

Perhaps the body cream is different and more satisfying, but I would rather stick to my Cocoa Butter, if it's all the same to anyone.

Love,
Ren xxxxxxxxxxxx

X-10 Hair Extension Care Kit - Review #1

Hello all!

I have recently bought the X-10 hair extension care kit because (big surprise), I've had some new hair extensions!

I always find when I add length to my hair, the extensions become dry, frizzy and unmanageable. They look rubbish. I regret paying lots of money for good hair. Life doesn't seem worth living anymore. Waah.

SO, after speaking to a hairdresser, she recommended this extension care kit (and also said don't brush your extensions when they are wet. This is proving difficult!!) and I've decided to give it a go.


What is included in the kit:

• Hair extension shampoo (250 ml)
• Hair extension conditioner (250ml)
• Leave-in treatment (250ml)
• Shine spray (125ml)

According to the product description, these products are specially formulated to gently cleanse fibre and natural hair extensions. The conditioner can be used as your natural hair conditioner and it has a light weight formula which de-tangles hair and leaves extensions soft, silky and manageable. The leave in conditioner to be used once a fortnight that will replenish and restores the hair's health, leaving it soft with a radiant shine. Finally, the shine spray is a light weight, non greasy formula to enhance the condition and strength of your hair, giving it luxuriously gloss finish. Once hair is styled, spray an even mist of shine spray all over your hair and gently comb through with a wide tooth comb.

This all sounds great, but we'll have to see how it affects my new extensions :) 

Love,

Ren xxxxx

20th Century Body Cream.

According to eHow, around 80% of women use hand or body cream regularly. 

I can definitely believe that! I have to moisturise my face every day and try to remember to moisturise my body every day

But what caused this boom in moisturiser popularity? When did it become such a widespread routine for many women?

The answer is fairly obvious - television and the expansion of the advertising industry. 

TV really began in the early 1930s and in Britian, the well known BBC began broadcasting regularly in 1932. Obviously broadcasting slowed down at the outbreak of the Second World War but by 1947, there were 54,000 licensed TVs in Britain.

TV meant that companies could broadcast their products to a huge range of consumers and this explains why  the use of moisturiser became more widespread.  

Also, as time has progressed, creams have moved away from the animal fat and animal based ingredients used (probably because of an increase in awareness for animal rights). There has been a move to more natural oils, like palm kernal or coconut oil, which as we have seen, has its roots in ancient moisturising techniques. 

However, petrolium jelly (like Vaseline!) is still popular. Another feature of modern moisturiser is the sheer range of varieties availale. From tanning, to anti-wrinkle, to lightening, to hair reducing, to vitamin enriched...the list is endless!

Keep checking back for more cosmetics and beauty history, product reviews and lots more posts!

Love,

Ren xxxx

Quick thoughts and a twitter account!

Well today has been VERY busy at work but when I have had a moment to think these two random thoughts have popped into my tiny head:

1.  Does my mint lipgloss actually freshen my breath?
2.  I wish non-transferable makeup actually didn't transfer onto my clothes. I am wearing a white dress today and it has orange all over it now...damn you Rimmel.  I look like a tramp. 

ALSO. 

Ren Beauty now has a twitter account.

Please follow for updates and my ramblings in 160 characters!

Click here for excellent tweets from Ren.

Lots of love,

Ren

xxx

Renaissance/Victorian women & their body cream.

So,

Our female ancestors from ancient Egypt, Rome and Greece used more natural ingredients to keep their skin soft.

However, during the Renaissance period, women (and men!) used a mixture of white lead and mercury to alter their complexions - often resulting in illness and death. Definitely not one to try at home.

BUT this period also brought the idea of scented lotions and body creams. This was because of essential oils making their away over to Britain following the crusades. Smelling good became as essential as soft, silky skin!

Although there was the white lead/mercury fiasco, creams were still mostly made from natural ingredients, like beeswax, oils and fruit.



This all changed in the Victorian period.

Industrialisation became a part of everyday life and with that came the popular use of petroleum jelly and lanolin (waxy stuff that comes from sheep). These were used all over the body, as many creams are used today.
Also, manufactured moisturiser became more popular (as opposed to home made creams) and widespread distribution was developed.

A step toward the more chemically produced creams that we are used to today began in the Victorian period although natural oils and animal products were still popular!

So what next?
See the next post for advertising, 20th century body creams and how they developed to what we have today! :)

Love,
Ren

The history of body moisturiser.

Picture it. 
It's a Friday night.
After a long week at work, you take a bath and afterwards you slather on some cocoa butter, thinking "thank god we have the silky skin gods at Palmer's" (because this is clearly what we all think when we moisturise). 
Voila. Soft skin is achieved without much thought.

But what did us girls do before we had Boots? Or Superdrug?

Ancient civilisations:
Women used a combination of animal fat, avocado and a variety of oils to soften their skin.

This is true of biblical and Egyptian women, where olive oil or sesame oil was used (particularly by Cleopatra who also is thought to have bathed in donkey's milk. Normal.). In the bible, moisturiser is described as being made was made from olive oil and various spices.

Olive oil was the most popular moisturiser in ancient Greece and the first cold cream is credited to the Roman physician Galen - who melted beeswax and added water in approximately 200BC. 

SO...

Clearly we've come a long way from bathing in milk and spreading cooking oil over our bodies but what happened next?!

See the next post for body cream history from the Rennaissance to the Victorian period AND 

what beauty secrets we can learn from our ancestors.

Love,
Ren