Lab Muffin Guide: What’s in a moisturiser?

(Roger McLassus) We all know what a moisturiser does (it moisturises, duh!) – but what exactly goes in one, and how does it work? Skin dryness is, quite simply,  when your skin loses too much water (the technical term is transepidermal water loss, or TEWL). Moisturisers are used to slow water evaporating, and restore the original soft texture and look …

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Vitamin C – what does it do for your skin?

  (André Karwath/Aka) There are a lot of things that are supposed to be good for your skin. Today I’m looking at one that is in a lot of anti-ageing products, and has rave reviews on Makeupalley – vitamin C. Vitamin C (aka L-ascorbic acid) is essential in your diet – it has a lot of roles in the functioning …

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Review: Crabtree & Evelyn India Hicks Island Living Spider Lily Body Cream

SummaryMoisturising components – shea butter, avocado butter, mango seed oil, olive oil, grapeseed oilEffectiveness – a little goes a long way!Scent – “tropical green citrus”Packaging – lovely, heavy, durable containerPrice – $0.23/g This product has a mouthful of a name! It’s my favourite “indulgence” beauty product. And yes, it does great things for your cuticles too! I received this for …

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What the Hell Is pH?

Lab Muffin Guide: What the hell is pH?

One thing that a lot of cosmetic companies have recently been incorporating into their marketing talk is the concept of pH and pH balance. Yay science! But what does it all mean? Here’s a quick rundown on the science of pH, acids and bases, and what that means for your skincare products. What is pH? pH is a measure of …

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DIY Skincare – Oatmeal Science

One of my interests is DIY skincare – I love cheap alternatives to expensive brands that work even better! My best friend is getting married next weekend and I’ve been trying to clear up my slightly neglected face with some SOS skincare, so I’ve revisited one of my favourites – oatmeal. Oatmeal is one of those rare traditional remedies your …

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My top 8 of 2011

These are the 8 health/beauty things I couldn’t do without this year, in no particular order:     1. Seche Vite – quick dry, smudge-fixing, shiny goodness.     2. Shea butter – all-round awesome moisturiser. I use it straight out of the tub, but I’ll probably scent and whip it soon.     3. Eyeliner brush – I do …

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Fact-check: The Science of Face Washing

One of my friends recently asked me why you can’t solely use oil for cleaning your face. The answer is quite simple – water doesn’t dissolve oil, so you need something that does. If you’ve been on this planet for more than 10 years, you should have noticed by now that oil and water don’t mix (if you haven’t, please …

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Review: Burt’s Bees Lemon Butter Cuticle Balm

  Summary Main moisturisers – sweet almond oil, beeswax Texture – greasy balm Packaging – cute tin Price – $0.88/g, but you won’t need to use much Burt’s Bees is an American company which has gotten a lot easier to find here in the last couple of years. Their Lemon Butter Cuticle Balm is the first product I’ve tried of …

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