Do You Sleep in Your Masks? I Do.

Have done for years. Not the permanently oogy or flaky when dry ones, obviously. But the absorbable ones - oh yes!

I've done this for years. I never thought it was a big deal. Then I saw a review for a mask designed for sleeping in, and last week, Paula Begoun observed that if you sleep in a mask, the goodies may penetrate better (I paraphrase).

I began doing this as a young mum - being able to go to the loo in peace was a wonder, so time to luxuriate in a nice mask was a 'castles in the air' type deal. So, at night when I cleaned my face, I'd slap on a mask and fall into bed for a couple of hours. Then I'd get up, see to the child(ren) and go back for another couple of hours. When the sun rose (all too soon), I'd wash my face, moisturise and sunscreen, and away we'd go.

This was multi-tasking at it's best: using sleep time to attend to important self care.

I did that for years (decades even). Then, when I ran out of masks while somewhere on the road, I just forgot.

When I started back up again recently, I fell right back into the habit. No thought, it just happened.
And my skin is so much smoother and softer for it. I'd forgotten how much I love masks.




I don't use fancy expensive masks, just whatever I can buy cheaply (never tried sheet masks, don't intend to, I get claustrophobic if my face is covered). Currently using Kmart cheapies: Chocolate and Chia mask ($8), and a Rosehip, Jojoba Oil & Shea Butter ($3). I do break out my beloved BFB if my skin is really dry/cranky.

Next on the agenda - a soak in the tub.  In about 6 months time. We are already in the 40's (celcius - 100+ Farenheit) so no way am I going there just now. Til then, I'll keep up the sleeping self-care. And maybe try some of the other Kmart masks....... definitely stocking up on the Rosehip, Jojoba & Shea Butter one.

* I am aware that cheap masks are not for everyone. Some people don't like them because they ARE cheap. Others have skin issues with them. Nevertheless, using a creamy mask while sleeping is not dependent on price: just make sure it has absorbed somewhat before you go to bed.

I Want a Celebrity Makeup Item - WTH?!

This never, ever happens. I am against celebrity cosmetics/fragrances as a rule. I just don't like them. It is difficult to articulate the 'why', apart from celebrity fragrances all seem to smell the same. As in JLo fragrances all smell the same, Beyonce's all smell the same etc.

I can look at the bottles/packaging/palettes and go: "Ooooh, pretty!" but not want to buy.

And then along comes Queen RiRi (if I *must* acknowledge someone in pop culture as the Queen of Pop Culture, it will be BadGirlRiRi, not QueenBloodyBey)....

One seems at least semi-real, able to laugh at herself, and like she'd be a good laugh, while the other's life seems to be an eternal photoshoot. And I suspect that, unlike many celebrities who turn up and go 'Yes' 'No', 'Maybe' to other people's efforts,  Rihanna has quite a bit of input into the things that bear her name. Admittedly, it IS just a feeling. Anyhoo, I digress....

I've been keeping an eye on Fenty Beauty and Savage X Fenty (lingerie) since Rihanna launched both. I like the look of both. Fenty Beauty is a bit more - shiny - than I am used to, but I could work with it, I though.

Now I know I could. I saw this review of the Killawatt Foil palette, and I was GONE!! Not a fan of shiny, but neither is Nicola, who wrote the review. Yes, she uses highlighter and occasionally sparkle, but full on knock-your-eye-out shiny, no. Although she is expanding her makeup horizons in the latter half of this year.

Nicola inspired my desire for this palette by showing that you can blend down the shades, as well as building them up. SCORE!

Now all I need is the cash to get my hands on it. Because of course it is bloody Limited Edition!

I Need to Up My Game...

Not too much, but a little bit.

I really need to get serious with body moisturising - the summer has started early and my skin is woefully dry. Not like it gets in winter (that is scary). It's a different kind of dry: winter dry I can fix with a daily moisturising session. This is - different. I could soak in moisturiser all day, and still my skin wouldn't be right.

My feet are suffering the worst - thankfully I have a small tub of body butter but I am going to need more. Apparently most people get dry, cracked heels in the winter. Not me, summer all the way!

I am also going to need to watch how my hair copes with the heat - even though I wear a hat 99.9% of the time I am out, I can almost guarantee I will get bleaching.

I'm going to do masks twice a week for summer: the dry, dust and sweat will cause problems otherwise. Unless we actually get a wet season, then I will be in real trouble....

Contemplating a hya-thingy serum from The Ordinary. Really got to get some research done there.....

Well...... I Have Shopped a Bit (By My Standards)

And sadly, most of it has been from Woolies - not that there is anything wrong with Woolies (more on our 'local' store later), but imagine the strife I am going to get into on the way home from Tassie 👀

Obviously, I can shop there too (Big W, Kmart, Coles, various salons and boutiques), but I have to survive Melbourne and Brisbane airports.  On the way in, I will shop sunglasses - I have a 'thing' for Maui Jims - had done for years....

So, in the past few months I have bought:

Chocolate and Chia mask
BFB - replacement; never again will I be without this
Aldi Olive Oil and Green Tea scrub - new and will be buying a backup
MUD Lipstick - Pure Passion
MUD Blush - Pink
MUD Translucent Powder
MUD CC Cream
Revlon Kiss Balm - Coconut
Revlon Kiss Balm - Berry Burst
A powder brush for the blush/powder
A random no-brand mascara.

I plan more masks (sheets), The Ordinary hysomething acid serum and a Rimmel concealer. The sheet mask I can get through Woolies, The Ordinary and Rimmel I will locate on my wanderings; the Rimmel is probably available in Roma for that matter.

Now, before I head off, my local Woolies. These guys are great - everyone I have dealt with has been fantastically helpful and patient. The Online Manager - Sam - is a truly wonderful example of what customer service should be, and a lovely person to boot. While she will not see this, I wanted to put it out into the universe, because without her, my life would be a lot tougher...

ETA: In Tassie. Went to Kmart, walked out with 2 things, 1 planned (nude flats) the other semi-planned (Rosehip Oil & Shea Butter Mask). Grand total of purchases - $8AUD!

Another Edit: Went with J (son) to Kmart to get a vacuum cleaner, and did some more planned purchasing - a hat for work. My last one (straw) did not survive Basher the Work Ute (no roof/windows/suspension/brakes) in whom we belt around at 100kph at least twice a week. This one should, once I pad out the inside so it will fit my head (I have a small skull). Cost: $7!

Oh, and the Revlon Kiss Balm -fabulous! Wash of colour (Berry Burst, Coconut is clear), stays on through cups of tea (yep, I swiped and sipped). Needed a top-off after lunch (MASSIVE fish and chips).

A Creature of Habit

I realised last night, as I stood under the shower watching mud run down the drain, that I have become that most mundane of things: a creature of habit.

How did this happen? I have never really been interested in set schedules or routines, I adhere to them because society demands it. Otherwise, I could care less.

When I thought about it, this whole 'routine' thing came about because of environmental factors. It is uber dusty here, and dry. My skin and hair forever have a fine grit of dirt, which is worse after a windy day or a lick run, even if I wear a beanie to keep the ick out of my hair. So I started doing particular 'beauty chores' on set days.

Hair used to be washed every week to ten days, and I never used conditoner. Not for nearly 5 years. Now I do: I still wash my hair in (homemade) soap, but I do it twice a week, and I condition both times.

My face still gets washed morning and night, moisturiser both ends of the day (sorbolene mixed with olive, rice bran and grapeseed oils) but I have segued from wipes in the morning to a face washer. I have a few, and their sole purpose is to wash my face in the morning. I still have wipes, I use them when we are travelling, and to take my makeup off when I wear it, before washing. Night face washing is done in the shower, with that homemade soap.

Mondays and Thursdays, I use a green tea and olive oil facial scrub (thank you Aldi). These are lick run days, so these are the days I do my hair, unless we are going into town the next day, then it's a Tuesday wash, and a blowdry. Grocery days are always Wednesday: Woolies have less pick-ups on Wednesdays.

Masks are weekly: usually Friday. I forgot tonight, because I was working, so will do it tomorrow night instead. I like to use a mask Friday because I won't be back on the lick run until Monday, so my skin gets 2 whole days to benefit from the goodies in the mask.

The only thing that hasn't changed is my sunscreen addiction. I've been sunscreening every day for 30+ years, and it is so ingrained, I forgot to add it here. Every day, no matter the weather, or the time I surface, I wash, moisturise and sunscreen every part of me that will be exposed to the sun; even in winter in Tasmania. Yes, it is possible to be THAT pathetic.

I am kind of enjoying having a routine; it helps me keep track of the days, which can be difficult out here. Plus, it makes me mindful of what I am doing, and I need to do that more.

The Sunscreen Post

The inspiration for this post was Katy-Rose over at Modly Chic (a blog I have loved for - a long time), and a post she recently did on sunscreen.

I've been using sunscreen for..... over 3 decades. Closer to 3.5 decades I reckon. My mum went bonkers on it when I was in Grade 6 or 7. Before we moved out of Southern Hell to Northern What-the-Hell.  At the time, no-one wore sunscreen. NO-ONE!!! Baby oil and coconut oil were huge - anything with an SPF was scarcer than hen's teeth. But my mum found it. And enforced its use.

While I thought then she was off her rocker (I wanted coconut oil, loved the smell. Mum, not so much. The smell of coconut turns her green about the gills). I resisted strenuously. And lost. I hated having to be even more uncool than I already was, but now I am so very grateful she enforced sunscreen. As a result of her militant attitude I have very minimal sun damage, my eyesight is great (I wear sunglasses 365 days, have done since I was 17), and my skin is in great condition (that may be partly genetic, but also lifestyle).

What Mum knew, and I didn't was that there was (and is) a whopping hole in the ozone over Tasmania - no UV blocking. So those who were not using an SPF were exposed to UVB rays (these are the scary ones) at full force. We started, way back then, with SPF4. Now, I use SPF 50+ (blocks 98% of UVB rays).

I no longer live in Tasmania, but I still use sunscreen every day. I go out early with the dogs (about 90 minutes) and get my daily hit of sun exposure for Vitamin D (I have had deficiencies before and am at constant risk - thank you genetics!), come back in, clean my face and sunscreen everything that will be exposed to the sun. In the summer, I wear a hat with a big brim to protect my face; I tend to rely on that to protect my face, rather than reapplying. My body, I reapply every 3 to 4 hours; anything that is exposed to the sun gets sunscreened. My hands get redone after every wash. Even now, in winter...

No matter how much sunscreen I use, any part of me exposed to the sun will tan. I go black in places; not dark brown - black. Other parts, just dark brown. Still others, golden. No-sun-ever bits, lily-white.

I am not fussy about the sunscreen I use - just so long as it is the highest SPF I can lay hands on (50+). Currently, I am using an Aldi (supermarket in-house brand) one. As a child, I used whatever Mum could get. As an adult, I started out with Banana Boat, but that broke me out after a while. I switched to Hamilton's - same deal. Cancer Council sunscreen gave me a rash. Invisible Zinc was the best thing ever in its original formulation; then they changed it, and it became impossible to get to absorb. About 15 years ago, I bought a Coles cheapy (4 kids, all needing sunscreen) - a litre doesn't go far in those circumstances, and one day I used that on my face; I had run out of my IZ. And I was sold.

Aside from being a high SPF, my requirements for sunscreen are pretty simple; don't break me out. Don't be oily looking/feeling. Don't be drying. No heavy fragrances. No 'heavy' face feel. And do not mess up my makeup when I wear it - this was a BIG problem back in the 80's and 90's - sunscreen and foundation did not go well together.

I have never in my life relied on the SPF in makeup to protect my skin; most are low (15+ if you are lucky) and almost none are broad spectrum. Broad spectrum sunscreens offer protection from both UVA and UVB rays (while UVB is the truly deadly one, UVA isn't great for you).

I cannot, for the life of me, understand how people in Australia do not use a proper sunscreen - a broad spectrum one. And wear sunsafe hats and sunglasses. There are far more attractive options about these days, and with the education programs, no excuses for not wearing a broad spectrum high SPF sunscreen.

MUD - The Verdict

I have to say, I was surprised at myself, I used the makeup almost every day I was away. I did take a couple of days off, because I was feeling 'Meh!' and I just couldn't be bothered. And the day we did the final run home.

So, I was away for 12 days, and wore makeup for 9. I was very impressed. No colour change, no patchiness, no 'tired makeup' look. It all lasted (with the exception of the lipstick - no mirror=no checks) all day every day.

We're talking 6 a.m. til well after 7 p.m. I did re-do the night we went out for dinner, because I wanted a fresh face to match the rest of me.

The smell was still there in the CC cream, but I noticed it less. As I said earlier, I think that was in part at least due to my avoidance of fragranced items as a rule.

I was also impressed with the Rimmel eyeshadow palette. It stayed put and true to colour. No primer, no assistance other than a swipe of the CC cream across the lids - and some translucent powder over that. No creasing, no fallout with application, no transfer or fade.

One really good thing; I was forever blowing my nose in the mornings (cold wind on the ocean), and normally this would see my base transfer to the tissue. None of that with the BB cream. I checked immediately we got back to the in-laws unit (well, immediately after 'Hello' hugs with FIL).

For application I used my fingers for the CC cream, an old el cheapo e/s brush for my eyes, and an equally old puff for the powder. Which makes the results even more impressive.

I am now contemplating buying the 2 e/s palettes. And maybe a blush (and a brush to go with it). And also maybe some more lipsticks - because I need more than one shade to test. Right?