Pretty Pretty Pretty

Pretty pretty people: Karyl from Mary Kay August 20, 2008

I was raving about the Mary Kay hand treatment we tried out at the last couple of PPP parties. Turns out my friend knows Wellington’s senior sales director of Mary Kay, Karyl Anderson. So my friend jacked up a meeting between me and Jo and the lovely Karyl. Turns out Karyl has led an interesting life and career. She’s such an inspirational lady, we are stoked she responded to our PPP questions…

Karyl’s been with Mary Kay for 19 years and joined when teaching nursing and raising a three year old. She also found Pilates 6 years ago and loved it so much decided to train as an Instructor. Karyl teaches Pilates at Hearts & Bones Pilates Studio, Ghuznee Street in Wellington.

What made you get into Mary Kay?

Mary Kay Ash founded the company way back in 1963 & did so because she wanted to empower women. Her philosophies are what sets us apart as a company and that’s what ‘sold’ me on joining. She had taken early retirement because she was fed up with the way women were treated as second best compared to men in sales positions (we’re talking Mad Men times). Started writing down how she would run a company and then decided to do exactly that. She and her mother had used products developed by a hide tanner, for over 10 years and Mary Kay bought the formulations from his grand-daughter.  Our business plan allows women to be as successful as they’re prepared to work for.

What motivates you to stay in the “industry”?

I have a team of 80 independent Beauty Consultants and I love working with, inspiring and teaching them. Mary Kay Cosmetics is committed to enriching the lives of women, we still make our own products, remain a family owned business and are continually improving our product range. The company offer a 90 day, 100% satisfaction guarantee – Mary Kay Ash couldn’t stand the way women would take a product home, realize it didn’t suit, yet couldn’t return it!! I love being my own boss, love the flexibility of being self-employed, love the rewards and sister hood. We have a very special ‘deal’ at the moment – you can join Mary Kay for ONLY $99 instead of $229. Available until the end of August.

What are the constant best sellers?

·         TimeWise our quick & easy 3:1 Cleanser (cleanses, exfoliates & tones) and Age-Fighting Moisturiser. 

·         Our amazing Oil-free Eye Make-up Remover. It’s only $25 & it’s amazing. My favourite!!

·         Mineral Powder Foundation (recently released)

·         TimeWise Day & Night Solution

·         Satin Hands Pampering Set – prettyprettypretty knows how good that is!

·         Microdermabrasion Set

What do you wear/do to make yourself feel good?

I use my skin care twice a day (religiously). I wear make-up every day because I love the way my skin feels & looks. I buff my body in the shower every couple of days because I love smooth, soft skin. I love soaking in the bath and was given some Crabtree& Evelyn La Source Bath Tablets for my birthday last year which I ADORE!  

How would you define pretty?

Pretty’s about feeling feminine or sassy in your own skin: looking after and taking care of yourself.

I’d love to offer your prettyprettypretty ‘readers’ a free beauty appointment with Mary Kay. They can have that one-on-one or with a small group (4-5) of friends. No obligation. My numbers (04) 383-8393 027 4344-566 or e-mail me karylanderson@xtra.co.nz

Men’s skincare - are they for real? August 12, 2008

Many many traditionally female-focused skincare lines now promote men’s skincare ranges. Is it just marketing widening their consumer net by rebranding the same old products? Or do men have particular skincare needs that only specialised products satisfy?

I think the answer to both these questions is a paradoxical Yes, which is sad for men. You see, I visited a well-respected site that convinced me that men probably do require different skin products to women, and a quick google-ing seemed to confirm this.

productfiend.com says:

guys really do need to use some products that are formulated for men. You see, man skin tends to be oilier, more acidic and have bigger pores with smaller sebaceous glands, so girly cleansers and moisturizers just don’t cut it. In addition, guys have thicker skin due to more collagen, so they don’t show aging as early as we do but when they start to get lines, there’s some serious wrinkle action.
Plus, on top of that, you’re probably shaving 50 percent of that skin, scraping away protective top layers every single day! Ouch.

However, industry practice doesn’t seem to reflect this difference between men and women. Some time ago a Clinique counter lady let it slip to me that their men’s M Lotion was just the same as the women’s Dramatically Different Moisturising Lotion. I found this ingredients list for men’s M lotion:

Purified Water, Mineral Oil, Sesame Oil, Propylene Glycol, Tea-stearate, Glyceryl Stearate, Lanolin Alcohol, Petrolatum, Methylparaben, Propylparaben, fd and c yellow no. 5 (CI19140), fd and c yellow no.6 (CI15985), d and c red no. 33 (CI172000) [iln5386]

and the women’s Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion has exactly the same ingredients, listed in the same order (implying quantities are similar if not the same).

What the deuce??? Are men being gyped??? Are they being tricked by clever marketing into buying products designed for women’s skin???

Win the ultimate Skinfood prize pack July 31, 2008

Oh my stars we are so very very very excited about this. You know that we’ve been loving on Skinfood’s body-butter since before we started this site, right? Well the lovely Stephanie from Skinfood has given us a set of every Skinfood product to give away! I think that deserves a few more exclamation marks. !!! That’s a $85 retail value, because their products are so reasonably priced. There’s bodybutter, moisturiser, scrub, a masque and more (and unfortunately, I left the box of goodies on my desk at work, I’ll update when I can), and part of the awesomeness of Skinfood is that it’s Unisexual, so both boys and girls can share the love. We kind of don’t want to give this away, but on the other hand, we do love to share the goodness around. So, how can you win the pack, or our runner-up prizes of giftboxes from the first PPP party? The rules are after the jump.
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In the news: natural cosmetics July 24, 2008

From the NZ Herald - two articles on natural cosmetics and skincare. We’re lucky in NZ to be able to buy a range of natural brands at reasonable prices (my favourite’s Living Nature, which is uber expensive overseas). And there’s Skinfood, another PPP favourite. And of course our very own Jo has been in the kitchen making lovely, natural scrubs and bathbombs for some time now.

The 9 ways to green your cosmetics

Looking good without the chemicals

Beauty tips from a pretty lady June 18, 2008

I love these tips - thanks for the beauty round-up Megan!! (hope you don’t mind me linking to ya!) And you have some smart friends. I’ll have to check out this elizabeth arden 8 hour cream…

And while we’re sharing - I don’t actually cleanse, scrub or tone my skin either. I’ve got a foaming face wash in the shower and other than that it’s just moisturiser. Not that my skin’s great, but i don’t notice the difference from when i used to cleanse, scrub and tone.

But I do use a warm wet flannel (facecloth) on my face every day - that’s the best exfoliant I reckon.  The heat opens the pores and water is the best solvent. Just go easy on the eye area.

Pore minimiser June 8, 2008

I have tried and tried to take some photos of my pores before and after using Clinique’s Pore Minimizer Instant Perfecter. But my camera doesn’t pick up the required detail, so you’ll just have to take my word for the results.

I got the Instant Perfecter as a free-gift-with-purchase from Clinique a while ago, along with their Pore Minimizer Refining Lotion.

They say:

Camouflages the look of enlarged pores to immediately create a smooth, perfected look. Long wearing, oil-free formula is water and sweat resistant.

I have to say I was surprised to see a difference in the look of my pores, especially around the creases of my nose and on my chin. If only my camera would pick up the difference too so I could show you. The feel of the Instant Perfecter is lovely on the skin - soft, kinda powdery, giving a smooth finish. It’s a good replacement for foundation (if you don’t worry about ‘coverage’) as it’s tinted too.

The Refining Lotion I got to try is more of a long term thing so difficult to tell if it makes any difference to pore size at all. It’s the kind of product you’d need faith in, so I’m not gonna recommend it.

I reckon the Instant Perfecter is well worth a try though - the results are instant so you can see for yourself in store before buying it. Maybe you could ask for a sample to take home…

You can read other reviews of this product here at totalbeauty.com

How Does She Do It? Complexion May 19, 2008

Meet sisters Kim & Fran. These gals have fabulous skin, and always look fresh and glowing. So they’ve got genes and youth on their sides… but there’s also some secrets they let me in on….

Kim’s routine:

I’ve maintained a similar beauty regime for over 5 years now, adding bits and pieces based on the advice of my sister (she’s an ex-beauty therapist!).

First, I cleanse my face day and night with Simple Moisturising Foaming Facial Wash. This can be a bit ineffective on make up around my eyes, but I like the Simple brand, so I’ve stuck with it. They are perfume free and good for sensitive skin. Then, every second day I exfoliate with Estee Lauder Idealist Micro-D Deep Thermal Refinisher. This is a ‘splurge product’ (about $52 on Strawberry Net or $100 + at the counter!) but is well worth it as I still get a bit of acne now and again. I really noticed the difference in the way the surface of my skin felt after using it. After that, I always use Simple Rich Moisturising Cream.

I find it good to clean my face and apply my make up straight away, so my face doesn’t get greasy again. I start with Aveda Liquid Foundation. It has a fairly light coverage, so feels like you’re wearing nothing and is really easy to apply. Recently I’ve started using MAC pressed powder on top of my foundation. This product is wicked if you’ve got oily or combination skin, especially in summer. Sometimes if I’m going out after work I’ll re-apply the powder.

On Sundays I go make up free. I read somewhere that it is a good idea to let your skin breath once in a while. Also, I figure it’s a good idea to remember what you look like completely natural once a week to keep it real!

And here is Fran’s…

· First I apply primer. Currently I’m using Mac Prep + Prime face. This smooths and softens your skin.
· Next I apply my foundation - Estee Lauder Double Wear - with a foundation brush. This gives a smooth, even application.

· Next I apply Mac Select Sheer powder. This sets my makeup and gives it a nice soft look, being so sheer it doesn’t give that dry cakey look that many powders do.

· After this I always use blusher, again Mac Powder Blush. I always use makeup brushes that I clean regularly. They range from pricey Estee Lauder ones to Mac and cheap QVS brushes from Farmers.

· I do not touch up anything during the day except lipsticks, as all my products are applied properly to last, or are specific long lasting products.

· At the end of the day this all gets removed with a thorough double cleanse!!

Free Sample: Living Nature May 14, 2008

I should’ve called this post ‘The Living Nature Bonanza’. As you can see from the photo I have quite a booty of free samples from Living Nature when I merely asked to try their foaming cleanser. I’ve always found Living Nature very forthcoming with the freebies, so recommend them next time you need not only a cheap thrill but a free thrill.

I won’t review each of the samples - there’s too many. Living Nature’s all pretty good though. But I will say they have a new smell, kinda eucalyptus, which I don’t like so much as the old smell. And I especially like their moisturisers and the firming eye cream - it’s perfect under make-up and is sooooo refreshing.

What are your thoughts? (especially Rachel).

Living Nature special offers:UPDATE 2/05/08 April 30, 2008

UPDATE: Health 2000 on Lambton Quay, Welly, is having a sale - 25% off LN products!!! Maybe other Health2000s are too, i dunno??

What a lovely day it is, and you are looking very lovely too dear reader!

My complement is sincere, dear ones, but also thoughtfully placed so that you may be more likely to forgive me for my error - I must apologise that i have been writing so long, yet not made one mention of Mother Nature! Afterall, She is what all that is pretty springs from year on year. Forgive me readers, and let me make it up to you.

New Zealand’s own Living Nature skincare and cosmetics is one of my favourite brands. And right now they have a load of special offers and gifts. Check them out online, or visit one of their stores - if you’re in Welly pop into the one on Lambton Quay.

Living Nature products are made from nature, they contain only natural preservatives and all ingredients are derived from the earth. They do not test on animals or use animal ingredients.

I have tried many of their products and intend to do some reviews for you. I use their moisturisers every day, they smell and feel so good. Their make-up range varies, but they do get better and better as Living Nature is always reviewing and improving their products.

And they have lots of free samples…

Free Sample: Elizabeth Arden April 24, 2008

The lady at the Elizabeth Arden counter made the mistake of engaging me in conversation. i’m only after your freebies, lady! I strung her along, oohing and aaahing over her wares, picking the right moment to hit her up for some free samples - hand ‘em over dollface!!

Here’s the sample she gave me.

Much more generous than the Napoleon sample (see previous post), this one lasted three applications. So if you’re into free this one is good value.

It’s an eye cream and moisturiser for ladies between 20-35 years who want to prevent lines and all that hoohaa.

Here’s the skinny: They are both very rich creams, really thick. i was surprised that they did soak into my skin.
The face cream smells really strongly. I don’t feel comfortable with fragranced products as it reminds how chemically they are.

Both creams are very smoothing. My skin does feel soft and smooth.