Thursday, July 31, 2014

Macaroon Making Workshop At 15 On Orange

If you follow me on Instagram (if you don't you really should click here) you would have seen that I attended my first #BWB meet up a few weekends ago. It was a Macaroon making workshop at the 15 On Orange Hotel and I must say I seriously had the best time ever. Now I will admit, on my way there I almost turned back home a few times and kept trying to think of excuses not to go because I kept replaying scenes of Mean girls in my head haha you know being the new girl and all. BUT I have to say after getting there and receiving the warmest welcome and having a conversation about balls in my mouth, it was all fun and laughter from there on out.

15 on Orange is truly a magnificent hotel, I can't even explain how amazing the decor is (dude they have gold couches in their elevators your not even understanding me!) And there is a shoe boutique inside, SHOES!!! I went in a little scared because I can honestly not cook to save my life but as soon as we met executive Chef Sanel and Pastry Chef Retha my fears quickly disappeared. They are truly the nicest and most patient ladies ever (we were a large group of ladies with a supply of champagne need I say more!!)

Now I will admit I probably will never be able to make my own macaroon and I wouldn't even try but I can say I learnt why my Lemon meringues have so much syrup in them and I learnt that there is actually allot of types of meringues like who knew! I did get to mix some colourful meringues and chop some chocolates (see I do get my hands dirty) and then I "attempted" piping which I am sorry who ever says that shit is easy punch them in the face. We then attempted to make our own macaroons and damn were some of those ladies good at it. Mine turned out um okay I guess I mean they looked like Macaroons and tasted like them to hahaha. We were then lead on a small tour of the hotel which kinda got delayed because there was a HUGE ASS mirror um can we say GROUP SELFIE!

I had the most amazing time ever this was really a fun workshop and I honestly cannot wait to see all these ladies again! I wish I took more pics of the gorgeous Hotel but seriously having a group of ladies together is not always an organized affair so if you wanna see some great pics head on over to Elzannes's blog Klets & Kook this lady was there to do some business I tell you.










 













You can arrange an event like this through the hotel yourself, they do it for groups of 12 or more people for around R259.00 per person.

For more enquiries please visit:
Address: 15 Orange Street, Cape Town
Phone: 021-4698000
Facebook: Africanpridehotels
Twitter: @APHotels


Wednesday, July 30, 2014

♥ Birthday Wish List ♥

Todays wish list is probably all on the higher end side and most of them unfortunately not available here in South Africa but these are all things I am hoping to get my hands on over the next few months. 


♥ 1. Urban Decay - Naked 3 Palette ♥ 2. Nars - Sheer Glow Foundation
♥ 3. Benefit - Rockateur Blush ♥ 4. 27 Pinkx - Face Palette
♥ 5. Sigma - F20 Powder Brush ♥ 6. TheBalm - Mary Lou Manizer High Lighter

Tuesday, July 29, 2014

A Box Bursting With Love and John Freida Hair Heroes

A couple of months ago I was lucky enough to have received a perfectly wrapped box of love for my hair from the lovely people over at John Freida. Each product specifically picked out according to my hair needs. The fact that each box was individually picked out and packed for each of us shows the dedication and hard work put in and I thank them so much for it!


Brilliant Brunette Liquid Shine Illuminating Shampoo and Conditioner. 
Cleanses while it drenches your hair with pure shine for a high-gloss finish. 
It is formulated with Crystalline complex to penetrate the damaged areas of the hair while it polishes each strand to help reflect the light and create crystal clear shine. What does this mean to us normal people? Well, it repairs the hair and makes it shine like a disco ball! The first time I used the shampoo I thought it might be a clarifying shampoo because it is completely clear but I couldn't find anything to confirm or deny this. The conditioner is white and looks like it is filled with glitter, which was quite a surprise the first time I used it but it is oh so pretty! After the first use I could instantly see a big difference in my hair, it was really soft and had a healthy shine even with a old dye job. It refreshed it and made it look lively and brought shine back to my natural hair colour making it look bouncy and healthy.



Available at Clicks stores 250ml for R95 each

Full Repair Perfect Ends Deep Infusion Serum
Helps protect medium-textured over worked hair from high heat. 
The serum is formulated with Inca Inchi a lightweight micro-oil rich in omega 3. You are meant to use one pump rubbed together in the palm of your hands and applied to the ends of your hair concentrating on the damaged parts. It is absorbed into the strands of hair and it's meant to leave your hair smooth, shiny and full of body. This was one of my favourite products it took that crunch away at the bottom and left it feeling just as soft and smooth as the rest of the shaft. It doesn't repair the split ends not sure it claims to do this either but it does leave your hair feeling super soft, healthy and protected. 



Available at Clicks stores 50ml for R110

Frizz-Ease 100% Shine Glossing Mist
Delivers a burst of high-gloss shine and glistening finish. 
This was another product I loved. It is basically a clear nail polish for your hair. I used it on days I used dry shampoo it basically gives an instant spray of glossy shine to your hair. Like glitter in a bottle! You hold it about 20-30 cm away from your hair spray and instant shine it also helps flatten and control flyways. 



Available at Clicks 75ml for R99

Frizz-Ease Heat Defeat Protective Styling Spray
Designed to work with heat styling tools to condition and straighten the strands as it helps block humidity and rehydrate hair for ultra safe styling. 
I only used this spray a hand full of times, it did help protect my hair from heat styling but I found that the product built up in my hair and left it feeling heavy and weighed down. My hair felt dirtier quicker and oil was more visible much quicker. This was the one product that didn't work for me. 



Available at Clicks 75ml for R99

I loved the shampoo and conditioner definitely something I would repurchase, the glossing mist is something handy to have on days you wanna stretch your wash but still have the healthy natural shine. The deep repair serum is a hair hero I think every person needs it has made the ends of my hair so much healthier and softer. The only thing I would not repurchase is the heat protection spray this product unfortunately did not work for my hair, but I wouldn't say not to give it a try my preferences and how I like my hair to feel might just be different to yours 


Friday, July 25, 2014

Friday Find - Beauty Box SA

Recently I have been searching high and low for affordable makeup storage in South Africa and although I did finally get my hands on my very own unit (you can read my post here) I did come across some really nice companies along the way! And as promised I will do some posts over the next few days and share some that I did find. Ill start it off with one of the first companies I found Beauty Box SA their units range from single stackable to 5 drawer units.


What the company had to say: Made from clear Perspex these sparkling units are ideal storage for your makeup collection. Custom made, they come in a variety of sizes and options of crystal or plain knobs. And with or without flap top lids.

Prices:
Single stackable - R300
2 Drawer units - R1000
4 Drawer units - R1250
5 Drawer units - R1550

Contact Via:
Instagram: @beautyboxsa
Facebook: Beauty Box SA
Mobile: 0718788988

Please note that this is not a review, I was not sent any of these items so I cannot say for sure how they look or the quality. I am simply sharing as promised of the companies I have found along the way, so your more than welcome to contact them and find out for yourself. I do believe that they are looking at adding makeup brushes and a lipstick stand which I would be really eager to check out given the chance.

Thursday, July 24, 2014

Avon CC Cream in Natural Beige

I received the new Avon CC cream a couple of weeks ago from the lovely ladies over at Beauty Bulletin to review and have been using it on and off over the past two or three weeks. I think this is only the second CC cream I have actually tried, the first being the Chanel which was nice with light to medium coverage but that only comes out in one shade which only worked for me in the winter.


The Avon CC cream has a range of 9 shades ranging from Ivory which is the lightest shade to Sable which is the darkest. I received Natural beige which is the darkest of the 4 light shades and was a pretty good match for my skin. It has a SPF of 50 which is pretty high for any CC cream and I've only ever used it in the day so I cant vouch for the effects of flash photography.  It claims to have light to medium buildable coverage for dark spots and uneven skin tone. It contains liquorice and Vitamin C to improve dullness and skin tone.


I would describe this CC cream as a tinted moisturizer because it had no coverage effects at all on me. I wore it on days I wanted a minimal no makeup day but still wanted a even skin tone which it does give. If you need coverage for problem areas your going to have to use a concealer of some sort but if your just looking for a light veil of even skin tone then this CC cream would be perfect. I basically just used it as a sun screen that added a touch of colour which is always beneficial. On its own it lasted about 3 to 4 hours on my skin and with a primer I got about another hours wear out of it. If your ok with skin that looks glowy then this would be nice but if you have oily skin then this will not work for you at all as it accentuates oily areas. I found that trying to build it just added to the oil so I would not recommend this. Really good product for minimal no makeup makeup.

This CC Cream goes for R84.95 on the Avon website