Beauty Blog

L’Onglex is on a diet of sorts

September 29th, 2010
It’s been a while since we at L’Onglex have said Yes to anything healthy…..what with the summer being over and the evenings getting shorter we have been drowning our sorrows portions of CCC* washed down with the mouthwatering delights of a tub of B&J’s.
Just as our skin has begun to tell us our diet excesses are about to lay waste to our complexion a very strange thing happened in the form of Totally Tranquil Facial Hydrating Lotion landing with a flourish on the L’Onglex beauty desk.
Made by none other than Yes to Tomatoes and packed with the hydrating power of 26 different Dead Sea minerals, organic tomatoes, rosemary and watermelon – the lotion is a powerful antioxidant and works a treat at soaking up the damage of an overactive sebum thus clearing skin and keeping pesky spots at bay.
Perfect for oily and combination skin, the goodies smell delicious and the thick formula does a nice job of keeping skin hydrated. To think there was us staring deeply into the window of our fast food souls and telling ourselves we’d have to change our nasty diets to get healthy skin !
CCC* – curry chips and cheese.

yes_to_tomatoes

It’s been a while since we at L’Onglex have said Yes to anything healthy…..what with the summer being over and the evenings getting shorter we have been drowning our sorrows in piping hot portions of CCC* washed down with the mouthwatering delights of tubs of B&J’s.

Just as our skin has begun to tell us our diet excesses are about to lay waste to our complexion a very strange thing happened in the form of Totally Tranquil Facial Hydrating Lotion landing with a flourish on the L’Onglex beauty desk.

Made by none other than Yes to Tomatoes and packed with the hydrating power of 26 different Dead Sea minerals, organic tomatoes, rosemary and watermelon – the lotion is a powerful antioxidant and works a treat at soaking up the damage of an overactive sebum thus clearing skin and keeping pesky spots at bay.

Perfect for oily and combination skin, the goodies smell delicious and the thick formula does a nice job of keeping skin hydrated. To think that only the other day L’Onglex was staring deeply into the window of our fast food souls and telling ourselves we’d have to change our nasty habits to get healthy skin …. result  !

CCC* – curry chips and cheese.

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Posted in Anti ageing, Beauty news, Beauty reviews, Face creams, L'Onglex loves, Skincare, Yes To Carrots |

Home made hand cream … it’s Monday Mary Make and Do

September 27th, 2010
home_made_hand_creamHome made hand cream … it’s Mary Make and Do
Question: What’s hot one minute, cold the next, then dry, then wet, then really wet ?
Answer: Autumn !
Not wishing to drag out the subject too much we’ve been looking for a recipe for a hand cream that might just prevent that weird and rather itchy feeling you get in your hands at this time of year. Nothing too strong, nothing too weak and something to protect and moisturise.
Enter Mary Make and Do for Monday by way of a homemade hand cream which does all of the above and will also store well for the colder months. Having tried similar recipes before this one should work quite nicely when it comes to avoiding the dreaded ‘flake’ and as it’s as cheap as chips it shouldn’t break the bank.
Here’s what you’ll need …
For this creation you’ll need….
4 Table spoons of Beeswax
2 Table spoons of  Shea  butter
8 Table spoons of Evening Primrose Oil
10 drops of Lavender essential oil
Here’s how it’s done ….
Place an empty bowl inside a saucepan of boiling water making sure the water doesn’t come over the sides. Then place the Beeswax and Shea butter inside the bowl and allow to melt. Once the mixture looks clear and translucent add the evening primrose oil and then the essential oils and mix with a wooden spoon until smooth. Once the mixture has been stirred remove the bowl and mixture from the pan and pop the liquid into a jar until it hardens …eh volia….nourishing hand cream in a flash!

home_made_hand_cream

Question: What’s hot one minute, cold the next, then dry, then wet, then really wet ?

Answer: Autumn !

Not wishing to drag out the subject too much we’ve been looking for a recipe for a hand cream that might just prevent that weird and rather itchy feeling you get in your hands at this time of year. Nothing too strong, nothing too weak and something to protect and moisturise.

Enter Mary Make and Do for Monday by way of a homemade hand cream which does all of the above and will also store well for the colder months. Having tried similar recipes before this one should work quite nicely when it comes to avoiding the dreaded ‘flake’ and as it’s as cheap as chips it shouldn’t break the bank.

Here’s what you’ll need …

4 Table spoons of Beeswax

2 Table spoons of  Shea  butter

8 Table spoons of Evening Primrose Oil

10 drops of Lavender essential oil

Here’s how it’s done ….

Place an empty bowl inside a saucepan of boiling water making sure the water doesn’t come over the sides. Then place the Beeswax and Shea butter inside the bowl and allow to melt. Once the mixture looks clear and translucent add the evening primrose oil and then the essential oils and mix with a wooden spoon until smooth. Once the mixture has been stirred remove the bowl and mixture from the pan and pop the liquid into a jar until it hardens …eh volia….nourishing hand cream in a flash!

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Posted in Beauty treatments, Body creams, DIY beauty, Mary make and do, Skincare |

Light therapy for acne ?

September 21st, 2010
Light therapy for acne
With Light Therapy being an established procedure in the treatment of outbreaks, scars and fine lines it was only a matter of time before some bright spark ( excuse the pun ) came up with a version for home use.
Beloved by the likes of Natalie Imbruglia and if the rumours are true Carla Bruni, a Canadian company have developed the Tanda Light Therapy Skincare System which hits shelves in the UK and promises the same results as treatments currently available through dermatologists and facialists.
The hand held devices mimic the light frequencies used in clinic based treatments and at €300 it’s makers claim the Tanda system works out as a much cheaper option than a number of salon appointments.
The light therapy is available with two specific light types, Regenerate, which emits a red light to the dermis to promote collagen production for fine lines and wrinkles and Clear, which uses a blue light to reduce blemishes, bacteria colonies and minimise future outbreaks.
As we’re yet to try either we urge caution but as both Light Therapy models have so far promised good results in independent tests we figure we might keep an eye on it. Apparently the Clear model has seen 100 per cent of testers experiencing a significant reduction in acne lesions and 90 per cent finding that outbreaks were lessened.
If any L’Onglex readers have tried light therapy we’d be interested to know how you got on and whether you thought it was worth the money ?

acne_light_therapy_ireland

With Light Therapy being an established procedure in the treatment of outbreaks, scars and fine lines it was only a matter of time before some bright spark ( excuse the pun ) came up with a version for home use.

Beloved by the likes of Natalie Imbruglia and if the rumours are true Carla Bruni, a Canadian company have developed the Tanda Light Therapy Skincare System which hits shelves in the UK and promises the same results as treatments currently available through dermatologists and facialists.

The hand held devices mimic the light frequencies used in clinic based treatments and at €300 it’s makers claim the Tanda system works out as a much cheaper option than a number of salon appointments.

Available with two specific light types, Regenerate, which emits a red light to the dermis to promote collagen production for fine lines and wrinkles and Clear, which uses a blue light to reduce blemishes, bacteria colonies and minimise future outbreaks.

As we’re yet to try either we urge caution but as both Light Therapy models have so far promised good results in independent tests we figure we might keep an eye on it. Apparently the Clear model has seen 100 per cent of testers experiencing a significant reduction in acne lesions and 90 per cent finding that outbreaks were lessened.

If any L’Onglex readers have tried light therapy we’d be interested to know how you got on and whether you thought it was worth the money ?

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Posted in Beauty gadgets, Beauty news, Beauty treatments, Skincare |

Bath time just got a little more decadent!

September 14th, 2010
Those of you who frequent these pages often will know we’ve got more then a soft spot for Chanel so when news of the Coco Mademoiselle toiletries collection speed into Longlex HQ there were more then a few squeals of delight as well as a few visa cards running for cover.
Beautifully fragranced with notes of the orient , the luxury bath goodies which hit shelves in October include an oil, a gel and lotion but with prices starting at €37 for the bath gel these are definitely a splurge our bank manager would not approve of!
We however see it quite differently………while we don’t usually condone such decadence at bath time, we can’t help but feel that it will definitely help when it comes to peeling ourselves from our warm beds and into the shower during the cold winter months…..and anything that gets us out of bed earlier can only be good for our work flow which in tern is good for our bank balance so we definitely see it as a good long term investment!

coco_chanel_bath_gel

Those of you who frequent these pages often will know we’ve got more then a soft spot for Chanel so when news of the Coco Mademoiselle Toiletries Collection sped into Longlex HQ there were the obvious squeals of delight as well as a few groans of misery from those whose visa cards haven’t recovered from the new Tom Ford.

Beautifully fragranced with notes of the orient, the luxury bath goodies will hit shelves in October and include an oil, a gel and a lotion.  With prices starting at €37 for the bath gel these definitely fall into the “beg the bank manager” category but we have worked out a way we can justify spending the money …. we think !

By our reckoning winter is cold and getting out from under a warm duvet is difficult. Anything which can motivate us to get out from under the duvet and into the shower a little bit quicker is bound to be good for the bank balance as in the long run as it means we don’t get the sack …. convinced ??

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Posted in Beauty news, Beauty reviews, Chanel, Skincare |

good idea, but is ageing a disease ?

September 7th, 2010
Is ageing a disease ?
French beauty brand Givenchy seems to think so. News reaches the L’Onglex desk that their latest product Vax’in For Youth is a serum that treats skin aging as if it were a disease and aims to give us all a way of turning back the clock by replicating the effect of a traditional vaccine by subjecting the skin to the elements which cause stress and skin ageing in the hope the skin will stimulate more of the cells that regenerate and renew the skin.
For a product which has only been tested on 32 women over the course of a month and hasn’t been peer reviewed were not sure we can say one way or the other that it works but it might be worth keeping an eye out for. On the other hand given it costs around €70 a pop were pretty sure the price alone would add to L’Onglex’s frown lines rather than take them away but if it is true we think we like the theory.
As those of you who read these pages are aware we don’t really plug things we haven’t tried and treat most sciencey-boffin-stuff whilst wearing a very sceptical face we are also slightly concerned that nobody thought of this earlier … I mean why now ? And the final point this raises is ageing actually a disease anyway ? Shouldn’t the body age ? If everyone could order skin on demand would we feel any better for it ? L’Onglex is confused !

vax'in_for_youth_givenchy

French beauty brand Givenchy seems to think so.

News reaches the L’Onglex desk that their latest product Vax’in For Youth, is a serum that treats skin aging as if it were a disease and aims to give us all a way of turning back the clock.

Working like a traditional vaccine the serum introduces the skin to small doses of the elements which cause stress and skin ageing in the hope the skin will stimulate more of the cells that regenerate and renew !

For a product which has only been tested on 32 women over the course of a month and hasn’t been peer reviewed we’re not sure we can say one way or the other that it works but it might be worth keeping an eye out for.

On the other hand given it costs around €70 a pop were pretty sure the price alone would add to L’Onglex’s frown lines rather than take them away but if it is true we think we like the theory.

As those of you who read these pages are aware we don’t really plug things we haven’t tried and treat most sciencey-boffin-stuff whilst wearing a very sceptical face.

The other thing that concerns us is why nobody thought of this earlier … I mean why now, and anyway, is ageing actually a disease ? Shouldn’t the body age ? If everyone could order skin on demand would we feel any better for it or would we just be hung up about something else ?

L’Onglex is confused !

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Posted in Anti ageing, Beauty news, Face creams, Skincare |

Make like Cleopatra …. it’s Mary Make and Do.

August 23rd, 2010
Make like Cleopatra …. it’s Mary Make and Do.
Fancy the warm sensuous decadence that only bathing like an Egyptian Queen can give you ….
Thought so ! This weeks Mary Make and Do is a homemade version of the fabulous Cleopatra milk bath and not only is it rather good fun it’s also terribly good for your skin.
Apart from the novelty of it milk has been proven to work wonders on the skin for the not very simple reason that it contains loads of alpha hydroxy acid. Whilst we won’t claim to be too up on the sciencey bit we can at least say that we know that alpha hydroxy acid hydrates, nourishes and also acts as a natural emulsifier to help with skin to help regeneration.
Here’s what you’ll need ….
2-3 cups powdered milk (dry)
1 Tbsp. dried orange peel
2 teaspoon dried lavender flowers
2 teaspoon dried rosemary
Here’s how it’s done …..
Mix all the ingredients together and pour into a clear glass bottle add some warm water and allow the dry ingredients to soften and mix well before pouring into a warm bath half a cup at a time. Once the mix has made the water go a translucent colour simply pop on a shower-cap ( don’t get the milk too near your hair ) and sing badly until the water goes cold.
Although the bath is divine, L’Onglex recommends removal of personage before you look like an orange peel.
More Mary Make and Do’s coming soon …. probably on Monday as this rhymes !

milk_bath_recipe

Fancy the warm sensuous decadence that only bathing like an Egyptian Queen can give you …thought so !

This weeks Mary Make and Do is a homemade version of the fabulous Cleopatra milk bath and not only is it rather good fun it’s also terribly good for your skin.

Apart from the novelty factor milk has been proven to work wonders on the skin for the not very simple reason that it contains loads of alpha hydroxy acid. Whilst we won’t claim to be too up on the sciencey bit we can at least say that we know that alpha hydroxy acid hydrates, nourishes and also acts as a natural emulsifier to help with skin to help regeneration.

Here’s what you’ll need ….

2-3 cups powdered milk (dry)

1 Tbsp. dried orange peel

2 teaspoon dried lavender flowers

2 teaspoon dried rosemary

Here’s how it’s done …..

Mix all the ingredients together and pour into a clear glass bottle. Then add some warm water and allow the dry ingredients to soften and mix together before for twenty minutes. Once the mix has softened run a bath and pour the mix into the bathwater half a cup at a time.

When the mix has made the water go a translucent colour simply pop on a shower-cap ( don’t get the milk too near your hair ) and sing badly until the water goes cold and everyone else is outside banging on the door.

Although the bath is divine, L’Onglex recommends removal of personage before you look like too much like the dried orange peel in the recipe.

More Mary Make and Do’s coming soon !

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Posted in DIY beauty, Mary make and do, Natural Beauty, Skincare |

Jennifer Anistons beauty regime

August 20th, 2010

jennifer_anniston_beauty_routine

L’Onglex’s addiction to gossip websites shows no sign of abating ! It’s bad enough we can’t actually go without a print fix of Heat and Closer but we are currently developing a rather unhealthy obsession with celebrity tittle tattle which is pretty much all we’re clicking on.

Obviously with us having the blog, and work, and other things to do we figure something has to give somewhere and just as L’Onglex was about to vow never to click on a celebrity story for as-long-as-we-shall-live-cross-our-hearts-and-hope-to-die-swear-on-our-dogs-life along comes news that Jennifer Aniston’s beauty regime only costs her €30 per month.

Yup – it seems that all those hours aren’t wasted and the golden girl herself gets a glowing complexion because she uses nothing more than the naturally soapy goodness to be had from Neutrogena Transparent Facial Bar and a drop or two of moisturiser !

Quite why Jennifer looks so much better than L’Onglex is beyond us as we in these parts seem to spend more in a day than Jennifer spends in a month. Perhaps our sallow complexion may be something to do with the fact that we spend all our time in front of a computer screen clicking celebrity beauty stories.

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Posted in Beauty news, Budget beauty buys, Celebrity beauty, Skincare |

Mary Make and Do – the porridge facial

August 17th, 2010
Glowing skin is something we’re all after here at L’Onglex HQ so when we came across a recipe for a face mask which promises to take the grey away we were even more surprised that the main ingredient is porridge.
Yup seems that as well as being a not so delicious but incredibly nutritious breakfast time treat the oats contain an ingredient called beta glucam which works a treat on wrinkles and restores sun damaged skin. Along with cucumber which is great for cleaning and cleansing we imagine that this does no harm either.
The ingredients for this one are quite simple but there is some chopping involved so make sure to give yourself a bit of time.
To make the mask you will need….
1/4 cup of chopped cucumber
1/4 cup of milk
1/2 cup of porridge oats
Here’s how it’s done ….
Pop the ingredients into a bowl and pulse blend with a hand blender for about a minute or until the mixture looks soft and pulpy.
Once it’s soft , apply it to your face and neck and let it work it’s magic for 20 minutes before gently rinsing with warm water.
So there you have it – soft, smooth, glowing skin can be yours in no time at all and we’ll bring you more Mary Make and Do’s next week.

2227141

Glowing skin is something we’re all after here at L’Onglex HQ so when we came across a recipe for a face mask which promises to take the grey away we were even more surprised to discover that the main ingredient is none other than porridge.

Yup seems that as well as being a not so delicious but incredibly nutritious breakfast time treat the oats contain an ingredient called beta glucam which works a treat on wrinkles and restores sun damaged skin. Along with cucumber which is great for cleaning and cleansing this one we think is a bit of a keeper.

The ingredients for this one are quite simple but there is some chopping involved so make sure to give yourself a bit of time.

To make the mask you will need….

1/4 cup of chopped cucumber

1/4 cup of milk

1/2 cup of porridge oats

Here’s how it’s done ….

Pop the ingredients into a bowl and leave to soak for half an hour. Once the porridge oats have softened slightly pulse blend with a hand blender for about a minute or until the mixture looks soft and pulpy.

Once you’re sure there aren’t too many lumpy bits apply  the mix to your face and neck and leave to work it’s magic for 20 minutes or so before gently rinsing with warm water.

There you have it ! Soft, smooth, glowing summer skin can be yours in no time at all. We’ll bring you more Mary Make and Do’s next week.

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Posted in Beauty trends, DIY beauty, Mary make and do, Natural Beauty, Skincare |

Breath of fresh air by Lush

August 17th, 2010

lush_breath_of_fresh_air

Clear blue skys, fresh air and rugged coastlines are not normally things we look for in our beauty products but when we got wind of the fab facial toner A Breath Of Fresh Air from Lush we couldn’t quite work out how we hadn’t thought of it before.

Aloe vera, seaweed and rosemary oil combine to hydrate, tone and cool and seeing as the toner comes in a 250g bottle you won’t need to scrimp on the spritz.

With the weather being so warm of late we’ve been guilty of drying out our skin with the air con so this has been something of a find seen as the blend of ingredients from the sea are designed to care for skin that has become dry and rough during the day - this we like!

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Posted in Beauty reviews, L'Onglex loves, Lush, Natural Beauty, Skincare |

€220 for a face cream made of apples ?

August 12th, 2010

swiss_apple_face_cream

News that UK retailer Superdrug are to bring out a £9.99 skin repair serum is currently making L’Onglex quite excited !

The Optimum overnight skin renewal serum uses a particular swiss apple extract known as PhytoCellTec Malus Domestica which currently does the rounds in more expensive treatments for as much as €270 a jar.

Said by Sciencey folks in white coats to stimulate skin cell regeneration by as much as 80% the people at Superdrug reckon they can nail the product for a measly €12.50.

Quite how and why they can get it at this price confuses L’Onglex but having been assured the product is genuine and that savings will be made through bulk buying with no advertising costs we think there may be some truth that they can produce what is supposed to be a wonder product at a discount price.

Obviously we await the Irish version with anticipation but following the success of ALDI’s Lacurra range of own brand products which used the Sny-Ake formula at a fraction of the cost of similar products it did get us thinking that we might all be paying a bit less for decent face creams in the future.

Probably the last thing to consider is the small matter of how Uttwiler Spatlauber apple extract became such a wonder product that people are prepared to pay the best part of €270 for a jar in the first place.

Even the Swiss laboratory who make the active ingredient have only ever claimed that it ‘offers a promise of real skin rejuvenation’ and also mention that the ‘anti-ageing benefit could not be confirmed in a clinical trial’ .

We much prefer the Superdrug price !

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Posted in Anti ageing, Beauty news, Beauty trends, Face creams, Skincare |


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