Saturday 30 July 2016

Nelf Cosmetics Face & Body Illuminator Review

Nelf Cosmetics sent me their newly launched Face & Body Illuminator some time ago. This product has been a new entrant in my vanity kit, as I didn't find it that essential to have one. But now after using it on few occasions, I know what role an illuminator or highlighter plays in creating flawless makeup look.

Product Details:
This smooth, silky powder contains sophisticated shimmer and light-reflecting particles that give skin a luminous, radiant look. You really have to see it to appreciate how insanely beautiful it is! It also provides the color payoff of a loose powder, with the convenience of a pressed powder.
Nelf Face & Body Illuminator comes in a square cardboard box in black & red color theme similar to most of their products. The actual product is packaged in a round plastic container. The transparent container has not-so-fancy black lid and you may find the ingredient list printed on its bottom.
The container has two slots inside, the top of which holds a nice puff applicator placed on it and the lower one holds the product. 
This illuminator is in finely-milled, silky smooth powder form. It has sophisticated microfine shimmer liberally spread all over. Since it is my first experience with an illuminator powder, I suspected this to look so shimmery that it might not be practical to use on everyday basis, but would only suit to enhance a party look. Also the shade looked more of whitish tone as I swatched it on my wrist. But going ahead with the proper application on my face specially on cheekbones and bowbones, it added a life to dullness of skin very beautifully.  
The powder blends and sets in a jiffy without looking unnaturally sparkly and instantly boosts skin radiance on application. The illuminator powder is a multiuse product to be used smartly to enhance the features you love in your body. Its effect lasts for 4-5 hours as I tried on myself this humid season, which is reasonably good. The only drawback is that there are no other shades launched yet that would surely be required by beauties of different skin tones, but I expect the brand will soon increase the range.
Not only this is a budget friendly facial makeup item (at just Rs 399), but also doubles up as a body highlighter. Simply puff on this powder wherever you want to create a youthful glow. Its versatile and adaptable enough for no special occasion. Specially the women like me who avoid use of obviously noticeable illuminator would love this product. So add this product in your next makeup purchase list.

Price: Rs. 399
Qty: 15 gm
Shelf Life: 3 yrs

*PR Sample.


Thursday 28 July 2016

Nelf Cosmetics Makeup Remover Review

Hello Girls

Tell me honestly, how concerned you are for your facial beauty.. do you care enough to remove all the makeup you wore whole day using a makeup remover or just splash some water on your face thinking that the job is done?

I did this blunder for years and rectifying it now by using a soothing makeup remover with 95% natural ingredients. Wanna know the details which product is that? Go ahead...

Product Info: 
Wipe away makeup in a flash with the Nelf Makeup Remover. Removing makeup becomes a piece of cake with this powerful makeup remover. This soap free makeup remover easily breaks down stubborn makeup, enriched with natural extracts of aloe vera & green tea to give you cleansing, purifying & soothing effects.
Application :
Shake well before use. Soak a cotton pad with the remover and apply all over your face and neck.


Ingredients:
Many a times, we overlook the presence of a makeup remover in our beauty regime. But removal of makeup is equally important and unavoidable step as it is to wear makeup. The Nelf makeup remover is a soap free liquid in watery thin consistency. The minty green color product is infused with Green Tea and Aloe Vera.
It comes in a transparent plastic bottle that lets you take the product out using the pump dispenser mechanism. There is another protective cap to cover the pump nozzle.
The most suitable time to use the makeup remover is before bed time so that the skin may breathe all the night and feel fresh next morning, but I don't mind using it at any time when I reach home after work and can't tolerate the pollutants sitting on my face for the whole day.

I pour little quantity of the makeup remover on a cotton pad and gently swipe it on my face. It does removes long wearing makeup including lipcolor and kajal without rubbing repeatedly. To clean the waterproof mascara & eyeliner, I needed to swipe two to three times, probably because I had been cleaning in more tender strokes on delicate eyelashes of my super-sensitive eyes. The makeup remover liquid is not irritant on skin, rather soothes the skin for its calming ingredients like aloe vera and green tea.

When I pump some product out of the bottle, it comes with foam which feels slightly soapy to me after the removal of makeup. So I clean my face with a soft wet towel to ensure properly cleansed skin.

Since the use of makeup remover brings you the skin that is free of all impurities, there is less chance of developing pimples, skin allergies or blemish.

Nelf's makeup remover is suitable for all skin types. As I'm using it on my dry skin, it hasn't worsen the condition of my skin by disturbing natural moisture level of skin. Not to forget, that the product has light fragrance that leaves you feel refreshingly smelling afterwards. 

You may buy 100 ml. pack at Rs 400
In all, Nelf Makeup Remover is a product tough on any makeup, but gentle to skin. You need not battle cleaning any residual off your skin to eliminate heaviest makeup. 

*PR Sample

Tuesday 26 July 2016

DIY- Plastic Planters In Cute Doll Shape

Let's make our home an expression of happiness. How about making someone welcome you with a cute smile every time you enter your home? Nope! I've not deputed an ever-smiling gatekeeper, but these are the beautiful planter-dolls that you may place at any corner of your house for a unique decoration with positive feel of greenery.

And if you want to make few for your dream house, here are the easy steps -
Material Required for 1 Doll:

  • Large Plastic Pots - 3 nos.
  • Small Plastic Pots - 12 or 14 nos.
  • Brush
  • Acrylic Paints
  • Scissors
  • Piece of cloth in Black Color
  • A stitched dress for doll (Optional)
  • Silicon Adhesive 
  • A Piece of Rope

How to go about it:

1. To make arms and legs:

  • Pierce a hole at the base of every pot.
  • Place 3 or 4 small pots upside down one above the another.
  • Take the rope through the holes pierced in all pots and attach them together putting a knot under the lowermost pot. 
  • It will make either an arm or leg of the doll.
  • Repeat these steps 3 times more so that you have 2 arms and 2 legs ready with you. (Make sure to use the same number of pots to make both the arms as well as both legs to maintain the symmetry in the size)

 2. To make the upper and lower portion of body:

  • Place one of the bigger pot upside down and cover it with the sticthed piece of cloth to resemble like the dress of doll. You make completely skip using the cloth dress and paint the dress with acrylic paints.
  • Now place two bigger pots over this dressed pot in such a manner that it holds the dress due to its weight. The inner pot is actually the one that will be used as real planter.

3. To attach the arms and legs with central body parts:
Use silicon adhesive to stick the arms and legs at the proper position. It will be easily done since the plastic pots are light-weight than clay pots. If it doesn't work, the piece of ropes can be knotted together to tie the body parts and then be painted beautifully.

4. Finally, paint the eyes and lips on the topmost pot with some cute funny expressions using acrylic paints and stick a stripped black cloth neatly on the back side of facial painted pot to look like doll's hair.

The happy planters are ready to decorate your garden, balcony, staircase or any neglected area of home so brightly. There can be a number of variations in designs depending on your creativity, time constraints, material available and ofcourse how passionate you are ;) There is one more design here.
Did you like this home decoration DIY?  Have you tried this kind of home decoration ever? If yes, I'm eager to know your creative ideas...

Adorn Classy Titan Watches & Raise Your Style Quotient

The other day, in a hurry to reach office in time, I forgot to wear my wrist watch. While driving towards my destination, as I looked down to my wrist to quickly calculate how many minutes I have to safely scan my finger on the biometric device at the outer gate of my office; only then I realized that I was missing my indispensable accessory at home :/

You might be wondering if wearing a watch still makes sense, when most of our smart devices give access to digital or analog clocks!! Well, despite all the sensible argument that we can make, I have never discontinued my years old habit of flaunting a watch every single day.

Infact whoever loves to wear watches like me, has his/her own reasons of showing what's on their wrist. If you’re unsure about your watch choices, look around to see what watches are in trend and then ultimately step towards a reliable brand to pick the accessory aptly complimenting your style. 
When I say 'brand', I don't mean that you should go into debt to own an expensive high-end watch beyond your budget, but wisely narrow your choices for a durable and incredibly trustworthy name. To tell you about myself, I have a sharp inclination towards Titan watches and I truly find every piece they make as an asset to treasure.

There are watches crafted thoughtfully to finish off a gentleman's suit and tie look or to luxuriate a fashionista's sassy party look. One may go for currently popular 'Busy Dial' watch or stay loyal to a timeless design of timepiece. Apart from men watches, gorgeous feminine designs in different metalic color tones are something to add to your collection. 
If you feel that watches are only office-wear accessories to spell your professional dressing, think again... You would love to have sporty watches that favour your casual dressing while going for an outing friends or while spending quality time with family on a leisurely holiday.
Hey! feeling like indulging in a hassle-free purchase for a classy wrist watch now?? Wait no more for the weekend to come and let you explore the local shopping malls. You can find a wonderful variety of sophisticated, upmarket and elegant watches through online shopping portals sipping cold coffee comfortably on your couch. Yeah, though the most challenging job is not to browse through an appealing array of designs of watches, but is to resist your urge to order multiple timepieces ;) lolz. A friendly advice is to give a loving glance to all of them and finally make the most graceful one your mate ;) 

Saturday 23 July 2016

Weave Stories With Your Child's Imagination & Colgate Magical Sea World Packs

Children are extremely imaginative. For my son, he has this inclination towards spotting shapes in clouds and then so fondly telling me to follow his finger, pointing towards sky so that I may also perceive the idea in his mind. It may be a boring practice for many, but I've always encouraged my son; because to me, it's a real time instance of pattern recognition which ultimately is essential for every human. As a parent, I support this imaginative play in my child for his cognitive development
too.
Nowadays, the over-occupied schedule and strenuous lifestyle barely leave parents with any leisurely time to spend constructively with children, like it used to be a few decades ago in my childhood days. Among many other parent- child interaction activities, I genuinely miss the age-old tradition of storytelling the most that our parents used to follow since time immemorial. 

Recently on a grocery shopping spree, my son spotted the Colgate Dental Cream Pack on the display and reminded me of the TV commercial that shows children spinning incredible tales and stories in their fantasy using the characters hidden inside Magical Sea World packs. Unlike my usual response to turn down his unacceptable demands, he found me closely reading the description on the pack and so feeling hopeful sent a loving flying kiss in air for me ;) I knew it was the time to unwind my childhood memories now with my son and #ColgateMagicalStories. So I bought not one or two, but all four variants of Magical Sea World packs of Colgate to have as many water creatures in them and bring alive the lost art of storytelling in my kid.

Aww! the little story-teller somehow managed to control his excitement on the way back home and enthusiastically helped me unload the shopping stuff so that we may sit together as early as possible for the adventure and fun. While I cooked our last meal for the day, my boy showed his motor skills to quickly cut the packs and free those hidden characters underneath. And see who all came out...

Post dinner and brushing his teeth with Colgate Dental Cream, his spontaneous statement to me was "mumma, now onwards I'll brush my teeth twice a day without a miss and won't trouble you to remind me every night..." ;) It was a blessing in disguise that my boy actually thought of being responsible..
And finally the time arrived to indulge the type of imaginative play that we both were looking forward to broaden our horizons through a story. 

So here goes now the story in my son Shamit's words: 

Sadie is the daughter of Mr. Blackbeard who does business in great waters and is away from home most of the times. He usually visits home twice an year and stays with his family for a month during every visit. 
This time when Mr. Blackbeard came home, Sadie found a treasure hunt map in his bag and excitedly asked her dad whether they can go for an adventurous under-water treasure hunt since she had her school vacations too. 
Mr. Blackbeard didn't believe in such imaginary stories, but decided to give his daughter a memory to cherish forever. So they packed their stuff and started their journey. 
The world under the water was beautiful beyond words and Sadie was enjoying watching different creatures so closely. Her dad kept on telling her interesting facts about every creature like crabs, star fish, sword fish, sea turtle, sea horse and her favourite friendly dolphins. 
Sadie was living her dreams and was wishing to see a lovely mermaid sitting on a rock like her storybooks. Though she could not see a mermaid, but following the route map, they reached an underwater castle. 
Sadie couldn't believe her eyes seeing an octopus protecting a golden box full of expensive items and gold coins. After some struggle defeating the octopus, Mr. Blackbeard could take the treasure in his possession. The duo felt they had won over the world and started their return journey richer and happier :) On their way back, Sadie exclaimed "dad, we will donate half of this money to the orphanage in out town, so that the kids over there can enjoy better facilities of life." Dad nodded and hugged his daughter tightly.

Now imagine, if a child can come up with such a meaningful message with his creative thinking, how easily we parents can inculcate qualities like wisdom, courage, honesty in them from an early age. I have decided to spare 10-15 minutes every night now onwards, so that I may celebrate childhood of my junior in a constructive manner through #ColgateMagicalStories.

When was the last time your child told you a story? Do give them wings of imagination and let them unlock their creativity..

Friday 22 July 2016

Nelf Super Lasting 9to6 Lipsticks (Shade 26 & 27) Review

If I put forward my confession about makeup application, I find it so tricky to work precisely with most products and keep on perfecting myself every time. But the one thing that I may wear with ultimate confidence is the lip makeup. Be it lip liner, lip stain or lipstick; I know I'm good to go :) And then comes another tough part i.e. to find that irresistible lipstick shade that's worth showing off for gorgeous pouts :)

Few weeks ago, I received two great lipsticks in my Nelf makeup kit from their All Day Long 9to6 collection. And you might be guessing it correct that I couldn't wait one single day to start wearing those. Co-incidentally, I had to attend few family functions during past weeks and it was the best time to evaluate how these lipsticks behave..
So here is my experience:

Product claims:A lipstick isn't just a lipstick anymore. Nelf brings you a range of 36 high performance shades that sit on your lips all day long. Enriched with Vitamin E that conditions your lips and softens them. Add some elegance and achieve smooth lips.

Price: Rs 250 each 
Shades that I received:
Romantic Girl 26
I Can Change 27
The lipsticks come in black cardboard packaging that holds the lipstick inside. The lipsticks itself are also in single colored packaging i.e. all over black with brand name printed on it in silver font color. When I tried to open the lipstick for the first time, I could not find the opening joint of the stick even after looking at it quite carefully. Then I noticed "Open Here" mark on the top of glass cap (shown in the image below).
You have to press this glass area from the center and a sleek silver stick comes out from other end :) I have no other lipsticks in my collection with such mechanism ;)
The ingredients list is missing on the lipstick as well as the brand website which I suggest the brand to update.
The lipsticks are super pigmented. As creamy as butter in texture, these are so amazing to give true color in single swipe. Looking at the swatches below, you might find the lipsticks shimmery, but it doesn't glitter prominently on the lips.
There is a faint, sweet fragrance in the lipsticks that is not bothersome and you can only smell it if brought closer to nose to sniff.

As mentioned above, I used these lipsticks while attending some functions and truly loved their rich finish on my lips. For 6-7 hours, the lipstick color stayed evenly on lips with bare minimum fading surviving my snacks, drinks n dinner in between. This is the most effective wear time, I would say. The lipsticks are not powdery or matte, so can be worn without worries of drying of lips.

These non-drying, color-rich, long wear lipsticks are available in numerous eye catching colors from pale pink to ravishing red and everything in between.

The pocket-friendly price of Rs 250 is surely a winning entry and is up to compete with products in the genre :)
Do give it a shot when buying yourself a new lipcolor next time!!

*PR Sample.

Wednesday 20 July 2016

Homemade Oats Chocolates - Recipe

Hello Everyone

Do you want a healthier version of chocolates that you can relish without feeling guilty? Then I have a quick recipe to make these yummy Oat Chocolates at home in no time..
Ingredients Required:
Oats – 1 ½ Cups
Cocoa Powder – 5 tbsp
Unsalted Butter – 3 tbsp
Sugar – 1 ½ Cups
Milk Powder – 125 gms
Vanilla Extract – 1 tbsp
Water – ½ Cup

Method:
1. Mix sugar in water in a pan, turn on the flame and bring it to boil. Keep the liquid on the low flame until it turns into one string consistency syrup.

2. Turn the flame off. Add butter and vanilla extract to the syrup. Mix until the butter melts and all ingredients in the pan blend nicely.

3. Now start pouring the milk powder and cocoa powder into the syrup while whisking all ingredients in the pan smoothly.

4. When the mixture turns into silky, runny batter without any lumps, add oats and stir to combine.

5. Pour spoonful of mixture onto greased chocolate molds of different shapes and let it cool at room temperature for some time.

6. Lastly, refrigerate the chocolate molds until the chocolates get hardened. And the yummy homemade chocolates are ready to satiate your cravings. These chocolates can be stored in airtight containers for few days.

Tip: you may cover the mold with a cling sheet during refrigeration to avoid the layer of ice being formed on top of chocolates.

Hope you love these delicious delights ;) Do let me know your views in comments below.


Tuesday 19 July 2016

Germfree Toilet Trips Are A Reality Now - Courtesy PeeSafe

Toilet Trips are one of those most frequent trips that we do not take for pleasure and enjoyment, but under obligation to relive ourselves ;) {just kidding}

I believe most of us ensure keeping our bathrooms and toilet seats sparkling clean, but the probability of contracting infections from the germs on toilet seat cannot be disregarded.

I honestly feel that the risks posed by dirty toilet seats are not only caused at public toilets, but the apparently clean looking bathrooms of our homes also bear tiny disease-causing bugs that become the obvious reason of our illness many a times. But not any more, when PeeSafe is there to offer you a safe and germ-free toilet experience.

The name PeeSafe is not new to me as I had received a pack of PeeSafe Wet Wipes in my Princess Coffer Box last month and its now my true companion. And now I'm in a position to express my opinion about the product.
Though I have used wipes from different brands also, but the impressive thing about PeeSafe Wipes is that these are multipurpose wet wipes that can be utilized not only to clean your intimate area down there, but can also serve you to wipe your dirty hands, remove dirt from furniture, cutlery or any other dust-laden surface. These can also be used to mop a cut, a scratch or injured skin on any part of body in case of minor wound to avoid germs spread the disease.

The story doesn't conclude here..the latter part focuses on yet another product from the brand that takes intimate hygiene one step ahead. The product is PeeSafe Toilet Seat Sanitizer Spray. 
The idea of this product is to kill the deadly germs sitting concealed on toilet seats, flush knobs, door knobs, taps or at any place where harmful bacteria are expected. One can spritz the PeeSafe spray on the toilet seat from a distance of 25cms and can use the toilet after 5 seconds. The brand claims to kill 99.9% germs which is worth appreciating.
I had my apprehensions of experiencing peculiar smell in the spray, But interestingly, both the PeeSafe Wipes as well as the Spray have pleasant fragrance that deodorize the area and excellently blankets the bad odors.

The wipes and spray bottle are quite handy and light weight, so are easy to carry in your office handbag or travel kit to ensure healthy sanitization condition everywhere you go.

Quick look at Ingredient List:

Buying Guide:
PeeSafe Toilet Seat Sanitizer Spray : Rs. 150 for 75ml
 PeeSafe Multiuse Wipes : Rs 60 for a pack of 10 wipes.
I can swear by efficacy of such wonderful products and HIGHLY RECOMMEND for everyone to use these, because your health deserves the best of care.
*PR Sample.


Sunday 17 July 2016

Nelf Velvet Shine Lip Gloss (Coral Quartz, Valentine Red) - Price and Swatches

Hey everyone

If you know that I recently started my YouTube channel with the unboxing video of Nelf Cosmetics Vanity Kit, then you must have heard me mention about lip glosses in the kit.

Product Info:
Want a lip gloss shinier than your diamonds? Big news! There’s a new gloss in town! and it’s everything you’ve ever dreamed of…. Fabulous shades and SUPER shiny. This is the latest must-have accessory! A perfect lipgloss to give you that velvety shine.

Packaging:
Nelf Velvet Shine Lip Gloss packs are long, sleek, cylindrical bottles. They have golden screw cap that will open up as a spongy applicator as you open it.

The details of shade number and name is printed on the label under the lip gloss bottle. The shade Valentine Red is numbered VS04 and Coral Quartz is numbered VS02.
I'm not a lip gloss person so lip glosses are not my usual pick. At any point of time, I would prefer lipsticks over glosses. And that is the reason you won't find any lipgloss reviews of my blog earlier. But the lipsticks devotees like me should also try out variation for a newer look. ;)

So today I'm going to show you swatches of two different shades of Nelf Velvet Shine Lip Glosses that I received.. The Valentine Red is a deep red that flatters most Indian skin tones and the Coral Quartz is girly shade to put on every day.

The lip glosses are light-weight in texture. The spongy applicator that comes along the gloss gives precise coverage as it has slight slanted cut over it.

I think the color pay off depends of darkness of shade of glosses. The Valentine Red offered better pigmentation than Coral Quartz. Though the lip glosses are sheerer than a lipstick as expected, still the shades which I got are able to hide any discoloration on lips, if any.

The application of lip glosses feels bit sticky to me as I'm not used to and has the tendency to wear off much easy than lipstick. As far as staying power is concerned, the lip glosses can't survive a complete meal and fade away. But I don't mind reapplication as I like how my lips highlight my face with a glossy lustre and feel nicely moist for longer time than a lipstick.
Price: Rs 325 each
Shelf Life: 3 yrs
The detailed ingredient list is printed on outer cardboard box of lip gloss.
To sum up, Nelf Velvet Shine Lip glosses are pretty attractive. None of these two shades that I got are shimmery so I need not to wait for party time to wear these. I'm sure that wearing these lip glosses during winters will save my lips from getting dry cracks too as the ingredients include jojoba oil and castor oil, almond oil too.
I'm glad that I've started plying with a new makeup product and enjoying it :)

Do share what do you prefer - a lipstick or a lipgloss and which is your favourite brand?

*PR Sample