Review: Alpha-H Skincare Products from FacialCo

For the past 6 months I've been trialling products from a skincare brand called Alpha-H from FacialCo and today I'll be sharing my thoughts on a few products from this range.  

The three full-sized products I've trialled are as follows (L-R):

• Gentle Daily Exfoliant with Papaya and Pineapple
• Absolute Eye Complex with Cucumber & Vitamin B5
• Daily Essential Moisturiser SPF 30+

I also had a chance to trial their Dry/Sensitive 5-Piece skincare set:

This set included the following products ranging from 7.5 ml to 30 ml (L-R):

• Balancing Cleanser with Aloe Vera
• Gentle Daily Exfoliant with Papaya & Pineapple
• Absolute Eye Complex with Cucumber & Vitamin B5
• Protection Plus Daily SPF 50+
• Essential Hydration Cream

Alpha-H is an Australian skincare brand committed to being a global leader in corrective and preventative skincare by creating revolutionary cosmeceutical formulations  of concentrated and balance performance ingredients. As seen on their packaging, Alpha-H aims for simplicity in their products being easy to use and multi-functional. Alpha-H stands for elegance and and intelligence, promising to deliver better functioning skin and letting the the products do the talking,

I trialled the 5-piece set of miniatures first because I wanted my skincare routine to completely start from scratch by using these products to cleanse, exfoliate, refresh, protect and nourish. They were also great for me to take with me on my short trip to Melbourne as they made for perfect travel-sized products.

Products in a cute zip pouch

I managed to finish a few of these products before the others had finished which meant that some products were missing from my skincare routine but I guess that generally happens anyway, hey! 

Step 1: Cleanse

The Balancing Cleanser was very creamy and gentle on my skin, I felt that it did a really nice job with removing my face makeup and didn't leave my skin feeling tight or uncomfortable afterwards. The aloe vera scent is quite subtle too so it isn't overpowering or likely to cause any irritations on sensitive skin.

Step 2: Exfoliate

The Gentle Daily Exfoliant is a dry powder which turns into a smooth paste when mixed with water. It is a micro-exfoliating treatment with zero abrasion - it is seriously the gentlest exfoliant I have ever used! It was a joy to use each day because I normally would only exfoliate once or twice a week as my usual ones have microbeads or a grainy texture that feels too harsh to be used daily but this is the perfect exfoliator for dry and sensitive skin as it won't strip away too much of the superficial skin layer.

Step 3: Refine:

The Absolute Eye Complex is used to refine the eye area to refresh and hydrate the delicate skin. It feels really cool on the skin, just like how a cucumber slice feels over the eye and its extremely lightweight. 

Step 4: Protect

The Protection Plus Daily SPF 50+ is a sunscreen with a beige tint and with its SPF 50+ protection, it offers a very high shield against harmful UVA/UVB rays. I love how it isn't like a typical sunscreen that feels sticky afterwards, it feels more like a moisturiser as it is non-greasy and mattified.

Step 5: Nourish

The Essential Hydration Cream was my go-to and it definitely helped with the hydration on my skin, one of my biggest problems as my skin tends to be on the dehydrated side, making it dry and flaky sometimes.

Two out of the three full-sized products were in the 5-piece skincare set which meant that when these ran/run out, I could continue using them as part of my routine, especially for the daily exfoliant which ran out fairly quickly so it was great that I had the full-sized one too!

The Daily Essential Moisturiser is great for those with dry skin as it works to restore the skin as well as provide SPF sun protection to stop UV rays from penetrating the skin. It can be use on its own or underneath makeup as it is non-greasy and leaves the skin feeling smooth.

This particular range and products are perfect for people with dry/sensitive skin like myself as these products have very mild scents and won't clog pores or cause breakouts/irritability.

These products can be purchased from FacialCo, the little sister of Ry, Australia's biggest online skin, hair and beauty store. FacialCo provides luxury, professional skincare products at the lowest prices and aim to provide the ultimate customer experience with standard delivery being free Australia wide.

A questjen for you:

What skincare brands are you currently using?
Along with Alpha-H, I am also using products from SK-II and Kiehl's - happy to do a review on either of these or both ☺

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Disclaimer: Products were provided for consideration. This is not a sponsored post, nor am I affiliated with any of the companies mentioned above. Links are not affiliate links. All opinions stated by me are 100% honest and free from bias. See more at http://www.questjen.com/p/disclaimer.html for full disclaimer.

My Experience at Evolve Skin Rejuvenation Clinic

Hi everyone! I can't believe we're already one month down into the new year, I hope you've all had a fabulous start to 2016. For me it's been good so far and I'm looking forward to seeing how the next 11 months will turn out. I must say, 2015 made me experience the highest of highs and the lowest of lows but through it all it taught me so many life lessons and now I can move forward and become a stronger person. Hoping that 2016 will be my year, fingers crossed.
Towards the end of 2015, I received an email from Milly on behalf of Evolve Skin Rejuvenation Clinic about a lovely opportunity where I was offered 3 facial treatments customised to cater to my skin type to improve its health and overall appearance. Prior to receiving this email, I hadn't heard of Evolve Skin Rejuvenation Clinic and little did I know that it was within short travelling distance from my house which made it very convenient. I had never had any facial treatments done before as I had always been worried about experiencing an adverse reaction due to my very sensitive skin but after being reassured by Evolve's Managing Director Wendii that I'd be in safe hands and my skin would not be compromised, I no longer felt unsure about going along with the treatments. I decided to take up this opportunity and I ended up having 3 facial treatments and 1 consultation in between.
This post is going to be a recount of my treatments where I'll be sharing my thoughts and feedback.

Evolve also specialises in beauty treatments such as makeup, waxing, spray-tanning and nail treatments

Treatment #1 - December 22 2015
As I stepped in I was warmly greeted by beauty therapist Niki who was going to be doing my facial treatment that day. Before having my facial treatment, I filled out some paper work addressing my skin concerns and listed any health or medical issues and my lifestyle factors. This was the best way for the therapists to understand which skin rejuvenation treatment would be most suitable for each client. While filling in these papers, I was offered some herbal tea which I found to be quite nice and soothing.

The treatment room I was in - very purple!

We spoke about my current skin condition and what my concerns are and it was decided that the best treatment for my skin was the Enzyme Boost, a gentle exfoliation for a dry dehydrated skin which was definitely one of my main concerns. The products used for this treatment were Chi Para-Medical Aesthetics and the range is pictured below in the turquoise green and white:

This first session went for about 60 minutes and it was for sure, one of the most relaxing experiences I've ever had. I told Niki that it was my first time having a facial treatment done and she told me that they do get quite addictive and after this first session I can certainly see why! To lay down with your eyes closed and have a trained professional gently cleanse your face felt amazing and after this treatment I couldn't wait to come back in for my next in two week's time.
Consultation -  January 4 2016
During the Christmas and New Year period I noticed that my skin was experiencing a few breakouts and my skin rarely experiences any breakouts, including that time of the month where I may only get one max. I hadn't changed anything about my diet (at least not prior to the Christmas family feast) or used any new products on my face. I had a few spots on my forehead and a couple on my cheeks that had me feeling rather concerned and apprehensive about this treatment and its suitability to my skin. I had a consultation with Meagan who is a very trained therapist and would be able to assess my skin and perform IPL/LED treatments to clear the breakouts. After assessing my skin, it appeared that IPL/LED treatments were not necessary and that my skin was experiencing these breakouts from my skin going through a cleansing and elimination process. Meagan provided me with a sample of green tea to apply on the breakouts and to protect them from scarring.

This is a UV magnifying lamp used to assess the skin's condition

Treatment #2 - January 13 2016
My skin was looking much better for my second treatment as my breakouts had cleared up and my skin felt much more hydrated after the first treatment and also from using the Chi B3 Barrier Repair Serum which was provided to me after my first treatment. I use this serum daily underneath my moisturiser and despite it being clear and non-thick/greasy, some may find it to be a little heavy however my skin absolutely loves it and completely soaks it up which is great! Definitely helps to hydrate my skin by providing a barrier protection to reduce water loss.

Meagan took care of me for my second treatment and despite the breakouts from my first treatment, the Enzyme Boost treatment was still the best choice for me. My skin just needed to get used to the treatment process as it wasn't any of the products that caused any irritations to my skin, thankfully. I go by the 'less is more' saying when it comes to caring for my skin and selecting which products to use.
This time I was in a green room which looked like this:

Sorry if that light is super blinding, sorry!

Once again I left the clinic feeling fresh and rejuvenated and I could tell that my skin loved it. I had just one more session to go and I was looking forward to having that same feeling again.

Treatment #3 (Final treatment) - January 27 2016
For my final treatment I was looked after by Niki which was great as she was able to assess my skin again and see how much had changed since the first treatment. She told me that my skin had improved in hydration which was extremely pleasant to hear, knowing that the treatments were working for me in conjunction with using the B3 serum daily. 

A closer look at the Chi Para-Medical Aesthetics products

I will briefly run through the procedures from this treatment which were the same as the previous two and seeing as I didn't note anything down, I'm going to give a shoutout to Susan from Fashion Adventurer who has also blogged about her experience at Evolve and she's managed to list out her procedure which sounds very similar to mine. Thanks Susan!
1. Niki cleansed my face with the Chi Rose Oil Cleansing Mousse, containing calming and nourishing properties rose. I love mousse cleansers, they always feel gentle on my skin.
2. For my first treatment, I remember Niki used the Chi Rose Petal Spritz but I don't remember this being used in my third treatment. 
3. My second treatment with Meagan involved a sheet mask where a steamer was used while the mask was on. My treatments with Niki involved the application of the Chi Bio Enzyme Peel as a smooth paste. This was left on for 5-10 minutes and acted as an exfoliant during the removal process.
4. The exfoliant was removed using an electronic brush similar to that of a Clarisonic to get rid of the dead skin cells on the surface.
5. The steamer was used again to moisten my face after the mask and a hot towel was used to remove the debris from the exfoliant. This felt so lovely, especially when the hot towel was placed over my face and decolletage.
6. It was either the Chi H2O Hydrating Cream or the Chi O2 Revitalising Face Cream that was used as a moisturiser, followed by the Cosmedix Reflect Natural Sunscreen applied onto the face. I was informed to not wash my face after this treatment as it was best to leave everything to be absorbed into my skin overnight however I wasn't able to leave it on overnight as I always feel more comfortable going to bed with a fresh face. Just like how I can't go to bed with a face full of makeup, that's a big no-no!
My skin has felt much smoother and more supple since commencing the treatment and I am no longer having issues with dryness on my T-zone! Thank you Evolve for the lovely first-time facial treatment experience :)

I have a $50 off voucher for anyone who is interested in having a beauty treatment at Evolve - a perfect treat for or before Valentine's Day! You can simply download this voucher, print it out and take it with you to your appointment.

Also there's a chance to win a $200 Pamper Pack if you leave a review for Evolve Clinic on Google Reviews before February 14th.
I'll now leave you with this quote that was up in the green room:

Questjen for you:
Have you had any facial treatments done before?
I'm curious to hear about your experiences, good or bad and the results!

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Disclaimer: Services were provided for consideration purposes. This is not a sponsored post, nor am I affiliated with any of the companies mentioned above. Links are not affiliate links. All opinions are stated by me and are 100% honest, free from bias. See more at http://www.questjen.com/p/disclaimer.html for full disclaimer.

February Favourites ♥

Wow, it's already March! A new season has begun and another month has gone 'bye' (pun intended). I've decided to share my favourites from February, however I have many favourite products, including the ones from my 10 favourite products of 2012 (still loving those!) and from my recent hauls there have been products which turned out to be some of my favourites of all time. What I'll be sharing in this post are the products that I haven't showcased/mentioned on here before. This is a great time for me to do just that!

In no particular order, here are my favourites items from February 2014:

kikki.K 2014 Weekly Cute Diary: Small

Of course, this isn't all to it but this particular page is cool, and no I don't have it empty! At the time I took the picture it was

Reasons for purchasing:

I need a diary to keep me organised as it helps me to document my plans, deadlines and give me all sorts of reminders. In 2012 I had one just like this but bigger and when I used my diary last year (which was great but not designed this way), I really started to miss the colourfulness of my previous diary! I'm a sucker for cute/pretty designs, hence I repurchased this diary for 2014. 

Reasons for favourite-ing:

The size is perfect for my bag and every time I pick it up and use it, it makes me feel happy from just seeing all of the decorations on the pages. I like how there is a removable notebook and a sheet of stickers inside. Despite it being more on the pricey side in comparison to other diaries, I don't feel that tempted to purchase a different sort. I feel that it's worth the money :)

OPI Mariah Carey Minis 3 Pack

'Silent Stars Go By'

Believe it or not but I had never bought OPI nail polish before until I bought this set. I have one full-sized OPI nail polish from the first ABC (beauty conference) goodie bag which was a bit too dark for my liking ('Lincoln Park After Dark') and I found the formula and lasting power to be similar to my Essie nail polishes I had purchased from blog sales. Plus I rarelyyyy get the chance to wear nail polishes due to my work regulations.

Reasons for purchasing:

I went shopping for a friend's birthday gift and found myself looking in the OPI section. This 3 pack was discounted to just $12 (RRP $17.95) and although I didn't exactly need new nail polish, I thought to myself, "oh, I might as well buy it since it's on sale!" and these shades are perfect for me! I love pinks and purples for nail polish, they're the shades that I wear the most :) I was also keen to try to Liquid Sand range which gives a textured matte finish as seen on blog reviews I've read.

Reasons for favourite-ing:

I am a fan of glittery nail polish, especially ones that brush on nicely and last long. OPI nail polishes are definitely high quality (who doesn't agree with me?) and I am really happy to add these to my nail polish collection. And since I'm not much of a nail polish-wearer (I so would be if I could be!), having these mini sizes is best in case one/all dry out as I'd hate to have to chuck a full bottle away if I only used it a couple of times. I like having variety and minis are good enough for me :D

Ego Sunsense SPF 50+ Moisturising Face

Reasons for purchasing:

This brand was recommended to me by a friend when I was looking for a new moisturiser for my face that can give me high SPF protection. Usually when I go out I use BB Cream which gives me coverage and sun protection but some days I prefer to let me skin breathe and wear something more lightweight. It was under $10 which to me is fair for a 100 mL product and I was happy to pay that much to try it out.

Reasons for favourite-ing:

During February's heatwave, I needed something that could help soothe the dryness of my skin from the deadly sun and protect it from getting burnt. As cheesy as this sounds, this was my saviour!! Light, non-greasy, suitable for my sensitive/dry skin and can be used as a base for my makeup which I did a couple of times. Some of my foundations have none or little SPF protection, thus having this applied underneath solves that problem. I like the packaging because it makes it easy to carry around with me.

 The Face Shop Lovely Me:Ex Make Me Star Waterproof Gel Liner

L-R: 06 Celebrity, 04 Disco Purple, 05 Sky Fever, 08 Moon Silver, Indigo Blue. Smudge tip at the bottom

Reasons for purchasing:

These purchases were from my massive The Face Shop haul that I didn't get around to sharing as a post (In total, 21 products purchased). Sadly the shop in my city had to close and so they were forced to clear out all of their stock. I hadn't purchased any products from The Face Shop before because there was never anything that caught my eye or attention. However when I visited during their closing down sales, these coloured eyeliner pencils had me intrigued and as a result I bought 5 different colours, $3.30 each (RRP $16.50 each instore). I wanted to try using different eyeliner colours besides the usual black that I use.

Endorsed by one of my favourite SNSD girls, Seohyun!

Reasons for favourite-ing:

I love the way these eyeliners glide on and the gel consistency is quite smooth compared to an ordinary Kohl pencil which can sometimes drag along the skin and not leave a nice, crisp line. I can use them on my upper and lower lash line and also as eyeshadow with the smudge tip. I need more waterproof pencil eyeliners too! Most of the ones I have don't last very long or end up smudging really easily. Damn, I wish I could have purchased all of the colours but there was very limited stock. I could always buy them online.

The Face Shop Lovely Me:Ex Stick Eyes

L-R: 03 Violet, 07 Dark Purple, 06 Dark Brown

Reasons for purchasing:

More from The Face Shop haul! Eyeshadow sticks like these are so easy to use and they seem to be very popular for Asian brand cosmetics. It makes applying eyeshadow very quick compared to using eyeshadow palettes with a brush/sponge applicator. I don't have many of these eyeshadow/shimmer sticks and since they were only $2.60 each (RRP $13 instore), they were an absolute steal so I grabbed these colours out of the limited selection.

Reasons for favourite-ing:

They glide on nicely over my thin eyelids without any pulling and tugging and I'm happy with how the colours look on me. No sharpening is required - all that's needed to do is twist the bottom like a lipstick. Also these are handy to put in your handbag for touch-ups :)

 The Face Shop Lovely Me:Ex Design My Eyebrow (Auto)
Brown, Dark Brown and Black Brown

Automatic pencil on one end, spoolie aka mascara brush on the other

Reasons for purchasing:

The Face Shop normally sells these for $11 each instore and with the sale they went down to $2.20 each! It's a must for me to fill in my brows unless I'm just going to uni/work and I thought that this would be a good investment. They last for 24 months after opening - that gives me two years to be done with them and I'm pretty sure I can do that, even while having all opened at the same time and alternating between them. And you might be wondering why I purchased 3 different shades... well, it was hard to pick just one when there's so many shades of brown and I'm not a natural brunette but I'm always dyeing my hair brown, sometimes light and sometimes dark. So for that reason, I felt that it was best for me to get 3 different browns to match however my hair looks I suppose, hehe. Also buying 3 is still cheaper than buying 1 for its RRP.

Reasons for favourite-ing:

These are my first automatic eyebrow pencils and I think I prefer them a little more than eyebrow pencils that need sharpening. The triangular shape works well with the direction of the hairs on the brow, depending on how it's angled. I found that this type of design and application gives a more natural look and I don't have to worry about my brows looking too harsh as the colour is build-able and you can choose to keep it really natural/faint or bold. Having a spoolie on the end is always handy for blending.

Face cleansers and scrubs

L-R: Innisfree The Minimum Facial Cleanser for Sensitive Skin,
The Face Shop Pore Minimiser Scrub,
Australian Pure Beauty Sensitive Face Scrub

I've been trying a range of cleansers for my sensitive skin and seeing whether they work well and don't irritate my skin. These 3 cleansers/scrubs have been the stand out products for me so far and I've been alternating between them each day, but mostly sticking with the cleanser as my go-to because it's the most gentle out of the 3.

Reasons for purchasing:

Innisfree: This was from my recent Sasa haul which I also didn't get around to sharing. I did a search for sensitive skin cleansers and this popped up so I decided to give it a try, plus it was only $6 USD. Since it's a fragrance-free foam, I figured that it would be very gentle with its light, airy texture.

The Face Shop: Purchased for the sake of the sale again and I have pretty big pores that I want to minimise. Even with products that say 'for all skin types', I still feel sceptical and hesitant to try the product because I in the past I have had skin reactions to products that say just that. But I bought it and tried it anyway - RRP $17.70 instore, bought for $7.

Australian Pure Beauty: N/A. A product from the ABC 2013 goodie bag :)

Reasons for favourite-ing:

Innisfree: It cleans my face well for something so gentle and I get no irritations. I like the pump dispenser as it's good for keeping the amount used consistent and 1 pump is enough for me. I would recommend this if you need a cleanser and have sensitive skin, or even if you don't have sensitive skin.

The Face Shop: It smells really nice and the blue micro beads don't feel harsh on my skin. It has a clear, gel-like consistency and it didn't irritate my skin - in fact it made my skin feel super smooth and I reckon my pores did become smaller! I won't hesitate to reach for this again.

Australian Pure Beauty: This one is a very grainy, sand-like and thick scrub where for me, a little goes a long way. I use about a pea size for my whole face and my skin feels smooth and refreshed afterwards. If this had been a product saying 'for all skin types' and I saw the texture of the scrub... I would have been very concerned about using it but since it says 'sensitive', I felt relaxed about giving it a try. Wording, packaging and appearance can have such a huge effect on one's perception, expectation and psychological thoughts.

 Clinique Chubby Stick Moisturising Lip Colour Balm in Chunky Cherry

Reasons for purchasing:

N/A. It was from quite a while ago, from an ABC goodie bag. And I had only recently started using it.

Reasons for favourite-ing:

It's like a lip balm with colour and I am obsessed with using tinted/coloured lip balms because I love the colour pay-off and having my lips nice and moisturised is what I need more than want! I can't use drying, mattefying lipsticks, I know I'll have that habit of licking my lips every few minutes or so. It may look great for some but it surely won't feel great for me. I think the reason why I've had it for a while and haven't used it is because of the colour - I'm more of a pinks/neutrals lipstick wearer however I am starting to really like red lippies all of a sudden. And it may look very red from the tube but the application is sheer. It's sooooo moisturising and it would be nice to have more of these type of lip crayons/balms ^_^

 Guinot One-Step Cleansing Water Face and Eyes

Reasons for purchasing:

N/A. From last year's ABC goodie bag.

Reasons for favourite-ing:

I haven't gotten into the Micellar Water Cleanser craze yet because most are quite up there in terms of pricing and I feel that average cleansers with water under $10 do enough for me. I always need to wash my face after removing my makeup anyway. But that doesn't stop me from being curious about Micellar Waters and wanting to try them. I'm not too sure if this product is classified as one because it doesn't say so on the bottle like most of them do. However the directions of use at the back of the bottle seems to indicate that it does work like one because it says, "pour on a cotton pad, then cleanse the entire face".

Here are the lovely swatches from the products mentioned in this post

The remains after one swipe of a cotton pad with the Guinot product

(The waterproof gel eyeliner remains! How good are they?!)

I would say that this cleansing water is really gentle and effective for face makeup more than eye makeup that's waterproof. Of course it can remove waterproof eye makeup too but it would require a bit of rubbing and/or more product. This doesn't put me off using the product or making it a favourite... I see it more as a toner than a cleanser and I'm happy to use this product to remove my face makeup :) The scent is gorgeous (think flowers) and surprisingly doesn't irritate my skin. I still like it even though there could be better products out there.

And that's a wrap!!! I always plan to have short and simple posts but I get very carried away when talking about things I LOVE and end up making these posts go on and on! Well it's over now, finally haha.

An easy questjen of the week:

February favourites - what are some of yours?

Keen to find out what people are liking/disliking!

Disclaimer: Products mentioned in this post were purchased by me unless stated otherwise. This is not a sponsored post, nor am I affiliated with any of the companies acknowledged. All opinions are stated by me with 100% honesty with no bias. 

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ADL Beauty Conference 2013 - Beauty with a Conscience

Hi all! Another year of assessments and exams is over and now I can finally put my feet up and blog 'til my heart is content. Which is what I'll be doing this week before I jet off overseas on Sunday for 3 weeks. I know right, I just made my blogging comeback after about a month and now I'll be gone again! I'll have blog posts scheduled to be published during my trip so the blog will get updated even while I'm away :)

Exactly one month ago, the annual Adelaide Beauty Conference was held and this year's theme was 'Beauty with a Conscience', to support cruelty-free brands and organic brands, and to highlight and emphasise the fact that animal testing is not necessary. We, as makeup and skincare enthusiasts love finding products that are perfect to suit our needs and some, if not the majority of us, may not give much thought on how the product was made and the ingredients in the products (besides the main, beneficial ones that are clearly mentioned on the packaging). There are many cosmetic and skincare brands out there which do test on animals. I won't list any here but you can find a list of them if you search it up on Google.

 Group shot of the attendees! Can you spot me?

Credit: Adelaide Beauty Conference

I didn't have the chance to take a proper outfit shot so I shall use the ones that I took in the toilets that day lol :(

 Dress: ASOS (thanks to Marie's voucher giveaway, aka completely free! ♥)
Also wearing my cat ears headband for the first time

Kept my makeup very simple

My bow name tag, moved to the middle

The lovely founder of ABC, Celeste, welcoming us to the event

This year's ABC was unlike the previous ones in terms of the duration of the event. The first one in 2011 was an evening event, last year's was an afternoon event and this year's... well, it was 9 to 5 event haha, so pretty much all day. I ain't complaining though, I was happy for it to be much longer than the previous ones! I enjoy attending these beauty conferences ^^

Oh and a big hello to those who were new to ABBM/ABC! I didn't get the chance to personally meet you all but hopefully I can in the future meet-ups. I noticed that there were quite a number of new faces :)

First on the agenda was a presentation of the brand, Guinot Institut Paris, by Laura Pritchard, director and national trainer for Guinot Australia.

In case you aren't aware, 'Guinot' is pronounced as 'gee-no' with the 'gee' being pronounced like the word 'geek'. Many of us had trouble pronouncing it but after a little guidance we nailed it!

This presentation was followed by a live facial using Guinot products on one of our lucky attendees, Christine.

 One of the products used

This is the aromatic mask and wow, it covers everything except for the nostrils! Looks quite freaky but cool at the same time. I wonder what it feels like to have that mask on...

 And voila, it came off in one piece! I was so amazed. Not a single piece broke off.

At the end of the presentation, Robyn Hollands, the national public relations manager of Guinot Australia gave us each a goodie bag filled with samples of the products used for the facial, a full-sized one-step cleansing product (similar to Bioderma!) and a pair of flip-flops. They were the perfect size for me (37), I wonder if they were all the same size or varied?

 Robyn in the midst of handing out the goodie bags.

She was so lovely and she complimented my dress and shoes :)

Oh yeah, I haven't showed a picture of my shoes yet. Luckily I snapped a picture randomly while sitting down:

My nude wedges

It was then time for a 20-minute morning tea break. Not very relevant to mention in this post but I snapped a picture of the food so I might as well share it. Don't we all like food pictures?

Then it was time for the next presentation - Couleur Caramel and Love Organics by the gorgeous Jaala Dyer, founder of Love Organic Beauty who has worked with the French organic and natural makeup brand Couleur Caramel for a number of years.

Love Organic Beauty was created to inspire Australian women to look at natural beauty products that are ethically produced and environmentally sustainable without toxic or harmful ingredients.

 Many Couleur Caramel products for us to try out and swatch

 How gorgeous are these?? Sorry I had trouble focusing it! (I was still a noob with using my compact SLR)

 The blue liquid eyeliner swatch looks incredible

The focus looks much better here because I manually did it with my phone's camera

Afterwards there was a competition where makeup looks were judged based on categories such as "most creative"

Winners received Couleur Caramel goodie bags

This was followed by a vegan lunch sponsored by Two-Bit Villains. It was my first time trying a vegan burger. It was pretty good :)

Vegan burger, creamy vanilla soda and a bag of lollies

Next presentation - Davroe Haircare presented by the director of Davroe Hair Wellness, Mary Centofanti:

 

I hadn't heard of Davroe and I couldn't believe that it was established right here in my home state of South Australia! What I admire about the range is that the products are natural, gentle on the hair and scalp and kind to the environment. Plus I love the packaging!

It was hair demo time and one lucky blogger was to be chosen randomly as the candidate and it happened to be... Ant! Look at the hold on that mohawk!

The most interesting and important piece of information that I gained from this presentation was about the use of anti-dandruff shampoos. I have a bit of noticeable dandruff and for the longest time I've felt that it was my biggest issue, hence I stuck to using anti-dandruff shampoos. I learnt that anti-dandruff shampoos shouldn't be used often and should only be used once and put away for future use if needed. Anti-dandruff shampoo is meant to get rid of the dandruff and for it to not appear again for at least a couple of weeks or for it to never appear again if you're lucky. Afterwards you'd just use regular shampoo and if the dandruff re-appears, just use it again.

You could think of it like medicine, for example, if you have a persistent cough you'd take cough syrup until you stop coughing. You wouldn't continue taking it if you're cured. Same with anti-dandruff shampoos - use it once and it should get rid of your dandruff. If not then it's just not doing it for you so you should switch to a different brand. If it works then yay, put it away and start using regular shampoo again :) If it wasn't for this piece of information, I'd still be using my anti-dandruff shampoo without stopping!

 Large, colourful range of Davroe hair products to cater to individuals

We each had the chance to have a short 'consultation' with Mary to select the right Davroe hair care range and I was offered the Colour Senses range due to my dyed my hair:

A box of 4 full-sized products! And omg this range is pink and white *_* Perfection!

I've switched from my regular shampoo to the Davroe range and I am dead-set loving it and I wish that I had discovered this brand earlier. I also love the smell of it all, ahhhh.

Social break time with scrumptious cupcakes sponsored by The Cupcake Table. Yay to the amazing food sponsors, thanks so much!

 Left: Gluten-free Orange and Almond

Top to bottom: Choc Guiness, Banana Caramel and Caramel Popcorn

I immediately had my eyes set on the Caramel Popcorn cupcake 'cause I love all things caramel and DAYYYUM it was delicious!

After the break it was time to get serious with the legalities of blogging with a presentation by Paul the barrister on blogging without getting sued. Such an interesting presentation with loads of questions from our bloggers fired away at him. I was too amused that I didn't take a single photo. The main points were that you should never defame someone (especially someone who could sue you) and if someone takes a photo of you, that photo belongs to them, not you. Also the copyright symbol doesn't mean as much as we may think and all in all, NEVER plagiarise!! Of course laws and legislations differ from state to state and country to country so the best advice would be to do just stick to the rules and do the right thing - common sense really :)

Last but definitely not least was a photography workshop presented by Christina from The Hungry Australian. I found this to be very informative and helpful, especially as I had only just purchased my compact SLR before attending this event. I was still getting used to using it and Christina shared many great tips on camera usage, the use of props and suitable lighting techniques.

 Through a slide show, Christina showed us how her photography has improved over the years

 Her food shots are so appetising!

 This was my favourite shot that she showed

We went out on our own to take photos for a while, utilising the new tips that we learnt from Christina's presentation. I took my pictures outside because it was such a nice spring day:

More goodies for us to take home with People for Plants items :) Thank you sponsors!

Overall it was a very enjoyable beauty conference and it wouldn't have been possible without the awesome committee who dedicated hours and hours of their time to organise the event - thanks so much Celeste, Kate, Steph, Sherry and Monnie. I cannot wait for next year's!

Also big thanks to Susannah who was able to give me a lift home that day. If it weren't for her, I would've had to catch public transport. And I had no idea that we lived so close to each other :)

Leaving you now with some pictures with these amazing blogger girls - Sherry (left) and Kitty (right):

I wish I could have included some candid shots from the photographers and such but since the event went on much longer than previous years, there's just too much footage for them to sort out and hence have not uploaded any stills yet. Once they do get released though, I'll most likely tweet through my favourite pictures (not as spam tweeting, don't worry!)

Questjen of the week:

How much does 'cruelty-free' mean to you?

My thoughts: After attending this beauty blogger conference, it's made me think twice about purchasing makeup from brands which are not cruelty-free. Being more knowledgeable and aware about this issue has changed my perspective for the better. There will always be alternatives out there which won't cause harm to our environment and to our little furry friends. I don't want to come across as preachy or anything... but I strongly believe that animal testing is completely unnecessary for cosmetics. I'd be happy to put my hand up and test makeup products before they go out onto the market.