Light and Dark by Leighton Denny

I was really pleased when i was asked to review the new signature scent by Leighton Denny _Light and Dark.

Leighton Denny MBE is an international expert within the beauty industry, The Leighton Denny brand is best known for its nail varnish and tanning products, but now Leighton Denny have launched a signature scent "light and dark"

image from leighton denny.com

The packaging is very sheek, with clean lines and a simple pattern finished in black and white which complements the scent perfectly. The bottle is a soft star shape and a delicate sheer cap finishes the bottle, theres no big name across the bottle just a gentle reminder on the bottom.

When the perfume is first sprayed i notice the Musk and Myrhh, then the floral tones of Lily and Gargdenia creep in and finally the freshness or Mandarin with the sweetness of peach complete the mix of Light and Dark.  

Its not the longest lasting of fragrances and wears away after a few hours but there was a trace of the scent at the end of the day.  

 Retailing at £40 ish (depending on where you buy light and dark) its priced at the higher end of the market, which is probably about right as an established brand in the beauty industry you wouldn't expect anything less. 

Light and Dark has received mixed reviews since its launch, and I'm sure it will be in a lot of ladies stocking this christmas! i wouldn't personally buy Light and Dark as its not strong enough and i prefer a fresher smell, however if someone brought this for me as a gift i would use it quite happily.

"I received this product from everything cosmetic as part of their team trial programme. Everything Cosmetic is an international cosmetic network connecting you to beauty products, services, deals, directories and competitions. Visit everything cosmetic to become part of their review team"

beauty through the ages

At school i was never really interested in history, but researching beauty through the ages has definatly got my interest now!

As famous for her love life as for her beauty, Cleopatra seemed a good place to start.

Cleopatra

Most of us have heard how she bathed in baths of milk and honey, but I was interested to read that she also like to use apple Cider vinegar as this is a form of alcohol, alcohol is widely used to help close the pores on the face it also will tighten and tone the skin, and interestingly enough it is rumoured that actress Scarlett Johansen uses this on her face as toner. Cleopatra was also a lover of fragrances and fragrant flowers most famously frankincense, Neroli and Myrrh. And Neroli is still a popular ingredient found in many products today:

• Massage oils- said to sooth tired and ached muscles
• Perfume- blends well with other oils and fragrances and on its own has a sweet, citrus floral smell.
• Food and drink- (this is my favourite find) is rumoured to be the secret ingredient in Coca Cola! 

http://www.beautyandtips.com/beauty-2/beauty-secrets-of-cleopatra/

http://www.lifecellantiagingtips.com/beauty-nile-cleopatras-timeless-beauty-tips/

The Victorians

As Queen Elizabeth came to the throne, cosmetics and make up we're thrown away, the Victorian ages were about showing your wealth, pale skin was extremely desirable as it showed that you were not out in the sun all day working, women were known to put various lotions and potions on their skin to lighten their complexion, some of which were extremely dangerous however a popular one used was Zinc Oxide still dangerous but safer then previous recipes!

It was also popular to make your own skincare from your kitchen, herbs and essential oils and not forgetting secret recipes passed down from grandparents. One of the scariest stories I read was the Victorian face peel, they would dilute sulphuric acid and brush it onto the skin, burning away the wrinkles. Another popular treatment was a beef lard face mask! I'm guessing that will by for dryer skins? Yuk! But at least after Sunday dinner the fats not gone to waste!

http://vl203.wordpress.com/2010/09/24/victorian-beauty-tips/
http://www.historyundressed.com/2010/04/victorian-ladys-toilette-by-kathleen.html

World war 1
During these tragic years it amazed me that Helena Rubinstein and Elizabeth Arden opened boutique salons. and intresntingly Vogue featured Helena Rubinstein's products as an "antidote to wrinkles and gloom caused by wartime struggles"!

So despite or the pain and suffering, beauty still carried on evolving, As George Selfridge brought cosmetics to the front of the shop in the world famous Selfridges, Woman started to discover more readily available skincare, Coco butter, Almond oil and Lanolin had now started to become available, which meant woman had more choice and options, though i imagine during the war it wasn't as easy to get hold of!
http://glamourdaze.com/history-of-makeup/1900-1919

So there you go a little taste of how woman have always been concerned about how beautiful they are, make sure you come back to read part 2 to discover more secrets of skincare 

This weeks round up Friday 10th October

Dare i say it with Christmas 11 weeks away and some very lucky beauty bloggers have started to show sneak peaks of luxury beauty advent calendars, my personal favourite was pixiwoo who have got some very nice brands to review i am very very jealous, but its only right that my children should have chocolate calendars instead of Mummies luxury beauty one!!!!!
heres the link to make you all depressed and want one, (however if any of said companies would like me to review theirs i am sure i can find the time to do so)

http://www.pixiwoo.com/2014/10/luxury-advent-calendars.html

As the cold weather is starting to set in make sure you moisturise your hands as well as your face, my hands have got very dry quickly as i am swapping my usual hand cream to my L'occitane one, i do this every winter and i swear by their formula and love the different scents and limited editions so grab yours today or buy marie claire this month and get one free!

A very big congratulations to the British beauty blogger has collaborated with Marks and Spencer's on a limited edition cosmetic range which launches this month, Jane Cunningham is well established within the beauty industry and has had 4 books published to name a few of her acomplishments, her blog is great and covers all aspects of beauty from high street to high end so worth a look.

This week i have signed up to my first beauty box i opted for https://www.lovemebeauty.com 

so i will keep you posted on whats in the box, which is due to arrive any day now!!

And finally don't forget to read my post on Gadgets and Gizmos part 2, where i give my honest opinion on a home use facial device

Have great weekend 

Gadgets and gizmos part 2

EMS Therapy what is it and what has this got to do with a facial?

Actually lots and over the next few years home devices are going to become more readily available, easy to use and more affordable, so yes you will want to know what EMS therapy is and what results it can achieve.

It was Luigi Galvani who first discovered EMS in 1791, by moving a frogs leg using electrical current (sounds like something from a frankenstein film but stay with me)

Over 100's years and as with most cosmetic advances this was first pioneered in the medical field as a form of rehabilitation in the 1960's for athletes, to aide muscle growth/endurance or to help the muscle recover post injury.
By sending electrical pulses into the targeted muscle you can then force the muscle to contract, this has many uses as i previously mentioned.

What has this got to do with my face?

There are 42 muscles in our face, overtime these sadly will loose their firmness, this can then make the skin appear thin and less defined,

The Lovely Farrah at Neo Elegance recommend i try the Face lift pro. not only does it have EMS therapy with 4 intensity settings but they have cleverly combined this with LED therapy, put the two together and you have a very advanced home treatment.

 

I started using the device about 4 weeks ago, 2-3 times a week, using different LED,s and slowly increasing the intensity, and I am really really very impressed!

You can feel the muscles very slightly tigniting But it's actually very pleasant,I love LED therapy, so i switch between blue light when I feel a break out coming or my skin feels oily, purple light when I need a pick me up and a lift, and when I've had a good deep cleanse and detox I opt for yellow which is great for clearing and helps drain away impurities. I use the Bio Swiss vitamin cream which my skins loves.
My skin so far has cleared vastly, I'm less oily, my pores are shrinking and my skin feels firmer and looks like I have just had a facial. And as a busy mummy it's perfect 10 minutes 2-3 times a week A must have for any mummy!

This isn't the only gadget Neo Elegance have developed and I can't wait to get my hands on there newest product but this would be telling................