Suzi-soo and her blogettes...back in business?!

Blogettes.. I once again am posting to apologise :( I absolutely adore blogging but it seems setting up and establishing 2 business is actually much more time consuming and difficult than perhaps I first expected. Well, actually that's a bit of a lie, I knew it would be difficult but thought my insomnia-cal tendencies would allow me a few extra hours each day to keep on top of everything. Thats where I went wrong... right now I reckon that even if I was awake 24hrs a day I still wouldnt have enough time to do everything!!

This absolute mania coupled with my love of the finer detail has meant that while I have continued to purchase and review products I have not had the time to type up hugely detailed blogs or in many cases to do the "sciencey" research.

So, I found myself questioning the future of this particular blog at this point in time. I toyed with closing it down but can't bring myself to do it - I love doing my reviews and heck I need an excuse for some bathroom relaxation time now more than ever! So if you guys are all ok with it I'm back! I'm going to do more regular yet smaller blogs which are not quite as time consuming and will aim to do a full Sooz Review every 4-6 weeks!

There will be plenty of sparkle, glitter and festive fun in the coming weeks - Yeay!

I hope all is forgiven and you will follow me once more...

Sooz xx

Good things to come...

Well to my very dear blogettes - I am so very sorry that I have been so absent for so long. I have had a frantic couple of months with very little time off (currently on day 5 of a 12 day straight work stint pulling back to back shifts too and getting about 4hrs sleep a night) sob sob!! However, ye will be pleased to hear that while I haven't been blogging I have been testing my little heart out... yes yes nothing aids assignment procrastination like a stash of beauty goodies!

So I figured perhaps I should give you, my loyal and patient followers, a preview of some of my reviews to come. These are all already tested, blogs started and awaiting publishing VERY SOON! 

Watch this space ladies and lads...

ooo so sparkly and pretty!!

So I finally got my hands on some swarovski crystals in an array of sizes (ss5, ss10 and ss20) and decided to give myself a serious accent nail on my ring finger to test them. I cured them on with clear UV gel and then used 3 week mani, Bio Sculpture Gel, in Ivory Beige on the other fingers to really highlight the blingyness. The polish bottle in the pic below is the same shade as the gel fyi!

Here's an image of the result... let me know what ye think.. 

I'm loving it and while I can understand it looking amazing on all 10 fingers it would cost a fortune to do, take AGES and be wopper bling so perhaps not suitable for returning to work on Tuesday. I am seriously tempted to do it on my 2 big toes too though and maybe a silver mirror minx on the rest of them..?? Oh god let's be honest I've started a new obsession!!

Swooning my self silly over OPI's New York City Ballet Collection

I've always had a particular fondness for OPI polishes and I'm not sure where this started but suspect its something to do with Executive VP & Artistic Director, Suzi Weiss-Fischmann and the regular polishes named after her. For those of you now giggling at my sadness and impressionability tell me you don't think names such as "Suzi Skies in the Pyrenees", "Crepes Suzi-ette" and "It's a Doozie says Suzi" are incredibly cute?! Anyway I digress. Fellow fans will know that OPI regularly collaborate with  brands, celebrities and film studios with limited edition issues. Their latest has literally blown me away... it's a collaboration with the New York City Ballet and I am smitten!

The Details:

Well the range has six shades and I can honestly say I love them all equally (an expensive and daunting prospect!).  They are up there with my regular favourites in terms of colours - beautiful classical soft pastels. They are quite sheer however so to get a nice opaque finish you will have to layer them up. OPI polish generally is quite liquid and almost watery compared to other polishes so will take a bit of getting used to for newbies to the brand. They are however brilliant and pretty chip resistant so stick with it!

OPI comes in at the pricier end of the scale but it is a pro polish so you get pro results. Bottles usually come in at €12.99+ for 15mls of product. Stockists include McCabes Pharmacies, many salons and also a little mobile beautician known as Nail Candi by Suzi (shameless plug I'm afraid!).

The Images:

From left to right:

My Pointe Exactly - a beautiful sheer dove grey

Care to Danse - a bang on trend soft lilac

You Callin' me a Lyre? -  the palest of sheer pinks (much lighter in reality than image depicts)

Barre my Soul - a sheer nude colour

Don't Touch my Tutu! - a wispy white

Pirouette my Whistle - an OPI glitter classic with small and large silver glitter particles in clear polish

The Sceincey Bit:

I'm sure I've covered this in my previous party polish blog at Christmas last year but in 2007 OPI succumbed to public pressure and the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics and became 3 Free. That is they no longer use DBP (Dibutyl Phytate), Formaldehyde and Toulene. Basically for us as consumers its a healthier polish to use now!

The Conclusion:

Well what can I say - this is probably my favourite item of the many I've blogged about to date. I am a total ballet fanatic anyway so in fairness the names alone were enough to reel me in. Add in the imagery of NYC Ballerinas, and the colours that are so graceful, balletic and fashionable and I was sold. They are absolutely beautiful and I believe your real struggle will be deciding which ones not to buy!

Re-Gen Oil - Another Great Aldi Dupe!

Well as my regular followers probably know I'm a big fan of quality bargain products and Aldi has regularly come good in this area. It's latest beauty offering is called Re-Gen Oil and one look at the packaging and you can guess  what better known brand it's duping - Bio-Oil of course! Bio-Oil hit the global market in 2002 as a specialist skincare oil improving the appearance of stretch marks, scars, uneven skin tone and signs of aging. It is also ideal for dehydrated skin.

The Detail:

Well this came in the form of a "special buy" which means it's a one off special, while stocks last only. It was due to hit the stores on Thursday 10th May but I couldn't find it in my local Aldi yet today there was a reasonable sized pile of products so either they landed late across the board, or my local got it's stock late and the other stores I checked had sold out (my previous assumption when unable to find it). I realise it sounds a bit mad to assume something new to the shelves in Aldi would sell out but believe me their beauty goods do... in minutes! I was very fortunate to grab a solitary bottle of their Miracle Oil, a MoroccanOil Dupe (which I'm loving by the way) after visiting 3 stores in search for it by 11am on the day it was launched. Anyhow, I digress... my point there was to create a sense of urgency if you are interested... GO...NOW!! There was two options to choose from the subject of the review, Re-Gen Oil, 125mls for €4.99 and secondly the Re-Gen Cream, 125mls also for €4.99. That's a whole lot of product for relatively small spend. Comparatively Bio-Oil comes in at about €10.99 for a measly 60mls!

The Images: 

The packaging & product:

A press shot of Bio-Oil, the muse for Aldi's above Re-Gen Oil:

The Sciencey Bit:

Right well as I mentioned above I've only just picked up this product so haven't used it much at all so my real review is an ingredients based comparative one. Bio-Oil lists 30 ingredients whereas Re-Gen Oil has a lot less at only 17. I've listed below the different types of ingredients and comparisons:

1. Oils (Base/carrier oils)

Re-Gen Oil has 4 oils in total here, all found in Bio Oil also and mainly synthetic. None are desperately alarming but purists would probably not be happy with some of them (mineral oil aka Parafinnium Liquidium for example). Bio-Oil has 3 further natural oils and a chemical anti-oxidant also. In my opinion, (limited cosmetic ingredients knowledge allowing) only one of these additional ingredients is of any huge consequence and this is Bisabolol which is a naturally occurring anti-inflammatory. 

2. Botanicals (essential oils)

Both products contain the same 4 essential oils - Lavander, Rosemary, Chamomile and Calendula. 

3. Vitamins

Both products contain the same vitamin ingredients - Vitamin A great for regeneration and Vitamin E a powerful anti-oxidant.

4. Colour

Both products include a red colouring and Bio-Oil contains a further Violet colouring also.

5. Fragrance

This is where the two products really differ. Bio Oil has a total of 12 fragrance ingredients, 4 of which occur in Re-Gen Oil also and a whopping 7 of which are synthesized scents. Re-Gen Oil has 6 fragrance ingredients, the 2 which don't appear in Bio-Oil are, rather disappointingly, synthetic. 

The Conclusion:

As usual I find the ingredient lists of the products so intriguing. The key ingredients - botanicals and vitamins are identical and ironically these are the best bits about the products. Colours and Fragrances annoy me in products as in all honesty we'd probably be happier with less of each for a healthier and safer product. Bio Oil wins out in terms of carrier oils and this may be important as they may aid the absorption of the essential oils or botanicals as I have headed them above. In reality this may make it a better product, I am unsure and would need an aromatherapists opinion on this. However of the additional ingredients found in Bio-Oil 5 need to be listed ingredients due to their potential allergen affect. This worries me slightly in a product marketed with strong natural connotations.

As ever, I believe money doesn't always buy better products or ingredients. Bio-Oil is a world renowned, award winning product and I am not in any way knocking it. Some of it's ingredients raised my eyebrows sure, but then that happens when you analyze most product ingredients lists. I reckon Re-Gen Oil is a great cheap alternative. My plan is to pop a few drops in my bath as a skin conditioner, to use it as an intense treatment weekly and finally I am hopeful it will be a great solution to my recent bout of, as of yet, unexplained blemishes. Are you going to buy this? If so let me know your thoughts and plans for it....

*If using either oil during pregnancy I would recommend getting your doctor's approval first*

Lee Stafford - my hair "go to guy"

Now this title is somewhat misleading in that Lee and I, unfortunately, are not besties! In fact if he passed me on the street he wouldn't bat an eyelid unless I wasn't acting anywhere near as cool as I should do when meeting a sleb! Anyway, what I mean to say is that Lee Stafford's hair care range has long being a favourite of mine. So much so that I never even thought to blog about them because they have always just been there and are not a new product or indeed new range. However as I run low and need to head to Boots (Lee Stafford products are sold exclusively through Boots in the UK and Ireland.) to re-stock I realised that up to now this was my little secret and for the sake of hair everywhere I suppose I should share it!!

The Details:

One of the many things I love about Lee Stafford is he is a real business man, making it to the top through hard work and slog. He got his big break in 1997 when he won British Men's Hairdresser of the year and he's gone from strength to strength since. In 2001 he launched his hair care range, now called ThE PiNK RaNge (yes spelled all funny like that), and I remember getting my grubby little hands on some soon after for my 19th Birthday. My first and longest love was his Poker Straight Glistening Balm which was a pot of silver speckled hair smoothing balm which tamed my frizz and gave super sparkle...god bless me I went through pots of the stuff and when it was discontinued  I nearly lost all reason! However, today I am thankful for this as he replaced it with an entire Poker Straight range and the Shine Serum is clearly a better, more mature product than the glittery balm guise of it's predecessor! I also adore from this range his Poker Straight Treatment which comes (pictured below) in a giant tub, well 200mls, which lives perennially in my shower. I whack it on between shampooing and conditioning and when your hair dries (either naturally or by hairdrier) it hardly needs a straightener as its so sleek and shiny after this treatment. This comes in at apx €10 and I reckon is a bargain for the wonders it works.

Another staple in my bathroom is his Dry Shampoo and again I have been using this for years, long before people even knew about dry shampoos much less the market leading brand Batiste. I will admit I bought a batiste mini once to compare but unsurprisingly there was no comparison. I have continued to use Mr Stafford's ever since and with much delight last year they brought out shades also for mid brunette and dark hair. For anyone who has never used dry shampoo shame on you!! GO, grab a bottle now. It is amazing... you spray it on and its all grey & powdery (unless you use a coloured one) you rub it in with fingers or my preference, a dry towel and hey presto you have non greasy lovely locks for one more day. I use this to get an extra day from my salon blow dry, used it to train my hair out of ever other day shampoos, use it to shade greys when I'm overdue a colour touch up and finally i ALWAYS use it when styling my hair into an upstyle to give it extra hold and volume. As you are probably beginning to gather - it's entirely multifunctional and great! Coming in at apx €8 for 150mls.

The Images:

Poker Straight Treatment packaging (a little worn from living in my shower!):

Poker Straight Treatment - the actual product:

Dry Shampoo Dark:

The Sciencey Bit:

The poker straight treatment includes panthenol which is a provitamin of B5 and basically acts as a moisturizer. It frequently appears in shampoos and conditioners as it seals the hair by coating it and lubricating it making strands appear shiny. This treatment also contains hydrolysed silk extracts to prevent breakage and split ends. Finally it contains P2FiFTY COMPLEX which apparently contains vitamin E, a thermal protecting polymer and living desert extracts of olive leaf and cactus flower for extreme heat protection.

Dry shampoo is a powdered shampoo which acts without water. The powder absorbs excess sebum (hairs natural oil) and is then brushed out. Regular shampoo removes sebum, scalp particles, styling products, and dirt from the hair and is then washed away. Therefore dry shampoo, while not as effective at removing everything it does improve hair's look and feel between washes.

The Conclusion:

By the way I've raved about Lee and his lovely products so far I reckon you can guess what my conclusion is but humour me....

Lee Stafford products have long been a favourite and for good reason too. Since their launch 11 years ago he has modified and expanded the range bit by bit with each new addition being as high quality or even better than the rest. My favourite bit about ThE PiNK RaNge? well it has to be the smell... these products smell good enough to eat which makes slathering them all over your head very enjoyable indeed!  I could have blogged on so many more of his products but for brevity had to show restrain! Hold Tight Hair Spray, colour love shampoo & Conditioners the list goes on and on - I've yet to try one of his products I don't love.

Rarely Boots do a 3 for 2 on these but when they do get buying ladies... they are well worth it. In the meantime if you fancy dipping your toes in the water without splurging grab some of his mini's to see what works for you. More recently Lee has brought to market a new range called AgranOil from MoRocco which I have yet to try so if you go for any of these let me know what you think!!

 Finally while I researched for my blog I learned that only today Lee launched his range in America via Duane Reades in NYC... so now my blog seems all the more timely!

Ombré nails - love or hate them?!

Well the ombré trend is only growing stronger and stronger with more celebs donning ombré hair (which personally I'm loving). So while I am a fan of all things beautifully co-ordinated I struggle a little with the thoughts of multiple colours on my fingers...but in the name of research and for you my lovely readers I figured I should give it a try!

The Details:

Well the word ombré comes from french meaning shaded or shading. It's been borrowed by the fashion world to describe extreme bayalaged hair (with dark roots graduating lighter down the length of the hair), garments, lips (which are immense and every time I sport this look i get tonnes of compliments on them) and finally the seemingly least popular ombré trend - nails. So there are two ways to achieve the ombré trend on your fingertips and that's either with the graduation of colour on the individual nail or across all 5 fingers. The first option is the harder to achieve in my opinion so I went for the latter for all you at home diy-ers. (besides it just helps justify my every growing collection of polishes with varying shades of the same colour!!). I first tried it when I couldn't decide what colour top to wear on a night out but had to get my nails done hours earlier. I was toying with yellows and oranges for my outfit so figures if i did both on my nails I was free to choose either top! The second one was because I'm still undecided so thought something bolder may work..its really strange for me as I hardly ever wear blue polishes opting for the turquoise and pastel blue/green options but unsurprisingly I found many a blue in my polish collection so there you go!!

The Images:

The yellow/orange attempt:

Polishes Used from L-R (Pinkie to thumb!): Leighton Denny Brick Road, Catrice Bye, Bye Birdie!, Leighton Denny Bon Bon, Essence Marble Mania Peaches, Barry M Peach Melba.

The blue/green attempt:

Polishes Used from L-R (Pinkie to thumb!): Glo Baby Glo! (discontinued Penneys Brand) Electric Blue,  MUA Shade 9, Glo Baby Glo! Cyan, Bio Sculpture Turquoise Teacup, Catrice Am I blue or green?

The Sciencey Bit:

Well apparently there is quite a bit of psychology behind ombré. If you look at the beautiful animals designers take their inspiration from, cheetahs, leopards, zebras and peacocks for example, you will notice that all of these have shading and markings that draw our eyes to them. There is research that shows sexual selection is linked to these adornments in the animal kingdom so humans now are replicating these adornments in a contrived manner!!

The Conclusion:

Honestly?? I'm not convinced! I think they definitely achieve their goal of being eye catching and have a very definite pro of justifying my array of polishes in varieties of one shade. In reality however I reckon most normal, non obsessed people probably would not have 5 bottles of gradients of one polish shade and therefore can be costly to achieve. I'd recommend either buying some Catrice or Essence polishes to achieve the look without breaking the bank or some brands are now bringing out ombré packs so you don't have to do the work of shade matching. This would also help avoid another negative I found while wearing a multitude of polish brands - different nails had different wear/chip resistance with one poor brand ruining the entire look far to quickly.

Both sets above got lots of comments when I wore them but often it was someone telling me they liked one particular colour. I did however get an awful lot of compliments with people really loving the look. Personally I reckon nails look much prettier when they are all of uniform length and colour. Ombré is just too haphazard for me in this regard! I reckon the gradient on one nail only may be more to my liking... that way I'd still have 10 matching fingers! I would however LOVE to do the ombré hair look in brown to blonde... think its fab!