My Experience With Laser Hair Removal

*If you're just interested in reading about what happens during the appointment, scroll down to the heading "During the Appointment"

I am very particular about the hair on my body: I Do NOT Like It. 

Unless it's the hair on my head, or my brows (lashes included too), it must go. Even in the middle of Winter, when I'm wearing nothing but pants and jumpers, I still shave religiously. I don't do this for other people, no sir. I do this purely for myself. I love the feeling of hair free legs (those sheets were made to feel smooth), I dislike the look of hair under my arms and most importantly: I despise any hair on my downstairs region. 

I've tried every form of hair removal on each of these body parts; shaving, waxing, hair removal cream and even using an epilator (only on my bikini line for my lady. No thanks to any further.) Now, all of these forms of hair removals are great- they're just not long lasting or permanent. 

Shaving: for me is the worst form. I just can't seem to learn how to not cut and slice my legs whenever I shave. Plus it's insanely itchy whenever the hair grows back.

Hair Removal Creams: I usually use this on my downstairs region and also further down back (if you catch my drift) and it's amazing. Only problem- just like shaving the hair grows back almost immediately. 

Waxing and Epilation: These are my two favourite forms of hair removal (of those I've already named) They are also the most painful, but it does take an extra few days (maybe even week if you're lucky) until the hair grows back.

Reality is all of these hair removal options are exactly the same. They remove the hair, yes, but the hair will always come back. Due to the fact like I said previously, I'm not a fan of hair in general, I needed a more long term solution. 

My friend has the same hate as me when it comes to hair on his body. His chest to be exact. Just like me, he hated the fact it was there and would always continuously shave it off at the first sign of it. That is until he discovered Laser Hair Removal. 
Now at the time he discovered this- I was learning about it in my diploma of Beauty Therapy, but was yet to try it myself. Reality is: I was actually scared to try it. It was a somewhat new form of hair removal, not that many people were doing it and who knew what the results would be like. So when my friend tried it for himself and was starting to see amazing and ideal results- his hair taking longer and longer after each session to grow back. Also less and less- I had to try it myself!

When I first researched Laser Hair removal I was actually quite surprised at the cost of it. The place I ended up choosing to go to had a "special" on (I say "special" as it had been that for the last year and a bit) where you would get both your Brazilian and Underarms treated for only $59 a session. Now, if you're a regular waxer you'll know the cost of getting a wax can be anything from $50+ each wax. So to see this long term, permanent hair removal solution which included two different body regions for basically the same price as waxing- it made me wonder why I hadn't tried this sooner. 

Now due to the fact I was currently studying this in college- I knew you would need an estimate of 10 sessions spread out every 4 weeks for this to work. When you calculate that cost- it's ridiculously cheaper than spending the rest of your life paying for a wax and someone to rip your lips off. The only problem with this hair removal is it's not available for everyone. 

If the roots of the hair you want removed are very fair (no colour to them) you will not be able to get this treatment as laser hair removal works by light travelling down the hair follicle and "zapping" the membrane (the hairs brain cell basically). If you have no colour to the hair follicle, the laser will not target anything in particular and will just disperse all over. Therefore not "killing" the cell.

 To find out if you're suitable for this treatment all you need to do is get a pair of tweezers and pull out 5 hairs from the area you're interested in and if the majority of those hairs are dark, then you're suitable. So if 3 of the 5 are dark based hair, you're good. 2 or 1 out of 5- you may possibly not be suitable and you should be prepared for the technician to let you know this if you decide to book an appointment. 

DURING THE APPOINTMENT

Once you get to your first appointment and your beautician determines if you're suitable for this treatment (remember the tweezing), you'll be asked to remove you underwear and put on some nifty sunnies which resemble those of a speed dealers from the movies 

After you've put on your amazing and spiffy new accessory your beautician will then coat the area to be treated with a gel to help protect your skin from burning- as it is a bright light constantly being flashed against the skin.  Once they have done that they will get the machine and grab the Light handle and start placing it on your skin and making it "zap" you. Now, it doesn't hurt at all. I would compare it to an elastic band gently being flicked against your skin. It is a bit of a shock to begin with as you're not too sure what to expect- but pain is not it. 

If you're getting your Brazilian done there are two places its' a bit intense with the elastic band flicking feeling. They are; your bottom and also right on your lips. Like I said before though it isn't something you'd compare to a strong overwhelming pain. If you can wax you can definitely do this. Waxing is a hundred times more painful than Laser.

After every part has been zapped your beautician will then smooth some "soothing gel/cream" onto the areas and tell you to put your clothes on and that's it! 

It really is so simple! I'm up to my 4th treatment now and can see such great results! I use to shave my underarms daily and now I literally shave just over every fortnight- if that. My downstairs I use to shave every second day, but now I literally can get away with over a fortnight. It's amazing. The hair is getting finer and there is a whole lot less of it! I would recommend Laser Hair Removal to anyone who currently does Any form of hair removal treatment. 

Let me know in the comments below if you think Laser will be something you try for yourself!

Until Next Time, xox


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How to make your own Plumping Lip Scrub!

As I am sure you're all very aware- lip plumpers can be very expensive, and half the time they don't give results anywhere near what you want. To buy a plumper which gives minimum results you'll be looking at paying near of +$30. Which is not really ideal for  a product which doesn't really do much.

Today I am telling you how you can make your own lip plumper, which also doubles as a lip scrub, for literally a fraction of the cost- and it actually works!

 I've purchased name brand lip plumpers in the past (my most recent being:Too Faced Lip Injection Extreme) and have found this at home solution gives results identical, if not better, than these brand names. 

**What You Need:

3/4 Teaspoon Coconut oil

1 Teaspoon Sugar (raw/brown/white depending on how much you want to exfoliate)

^1/2  Teaspoon Cinnamon

Toothbrush 

Small Bowl/Container to store product in. 

METHOD: 

Mix all the ingredients together in a small bowl. Once they have successfully combined with each other grab your toothbrush (preferably one you don't use on your teeth) and put some of the product onto the toothbrush and then apply to your lips- doing so in circular motions. 

You want to exfoliate your lips and also stimulate the blood flow (which makes your lips plump.) If you don't have a toothbrush, no need to worry- you can just apply the scrub onto a finger and apply that way.

 Do this for 2-3 minutes and once you feel you've exfoliated enough: grab a damp cloth and wipe off the excess product. Or, you can choose to lick it off as all the ingredients are completely edible ;)

Now I don't know about you but I find this alternative to brand name plumpers to be ridiculously cheaper and also gives amazing results! What do you think?

Top: Before. Bottom: After

**When making this scrub/plumper I tend to only make enough for one use, but you can easily make as much as you like and store the product in an airtight container for future uses. 

^ If you are not wanting to plump your lips and just want to make a product that exfoliates them: just remove the cinnamon from your ingredients :)

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How To Make Your Own 'Frank Body Scrub'

Unless you've been living under a rock for the past year and a bit, you would have heard of 'Frank.' Which, as I'm sure you all know, is the new craze which has flooded through social media. If you don't have yourself a batch of Frank it's probably certain one of your friends do. For those who are not acquainted with Frank, all He is is a coffee scrub mixed with ingredients that are said to; even skin tones, rid you of cellulite, reduce the appearance of scarring (acne) etc. Basically it's promoted as a Miracle scrub if we're honest. 

I have used Frank a few times now and can honestly say I love it! It leaves my skin silky smooth after every use, rids me of small blemishes I have and recently I've even started to notice fine stretch marks fading. Now I'm not referring to really noticeable ones- I'm referring to the ones only I myself can see easily- but either way it's still happening! 

Now, the packet of Frank you get when you purchase it online, really isn't the biggest. I would say you're pushing for 4 uses out of each packet and you're paying between $14-$20 (AUD) for each purchase. This is usually the case when you buy from companies though- they need to make money. If you're like me and like to get worth for what you pay for you can easily make Frank yourself! Here is how:

WHAT YOU NEED:

Ground Coffee (1/2 Cup)

Brown Sugar (1/4 Cup)

Himalayan Salt (1/4 Cup)

Sweet Almond Oil (2 Tbl Spoons)

Jojoba Oil (1 Tbl Spoon)

Unrefined Coconut Oil (3 Tbl Spoons)

All you need to do is mix all of these ingredients in a big mixing bowl using a spoon. The measurements I've given are just a guide line: you can use however much, or little, of each ingredient as you like. It does make sense to have coffee as the main ingredient though as it is a coffee scrub. 

Basically you want a solid mixture still which just has all these liquids (oils) soaked into the scrub so that when you use it on your body it evenly distributes the oils into your skin. Making your own 'Frank Scrub,' or 'Jar of Dirt' as I like to call it, is so much cheaper than purchasing it online. When you buy all the ingredients you will be paying slightly more than $20 BUT you will get more than triple the amount of the final product than when you purchase from Frank. Plus you actually get to choose how much of each ingredient you want to put into your own scrub.

To store the finished Scrub you can get as creative as you like. I usually purchase a cheap jar from my local $2 store, and because I do live in an area which is very humid, I tend to store my coffee scrub in the fridge. 

Give it a shot for yourself and let me know how you go! Get Naked with your own creation

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Why I Stopped Using Moroccan Oil

If you are a blonde, like myself, you will be very aware that your hair needs a little extra care in order to feel and be healthy. Many people have discovered the Morroccanoil treatment in their journey of fixing their hair which is crying out for help. Whilst this product does have great results and does in fact do as it advertises, there is one giant problem with using this product on blonde hair. It makes your hair brassy no matter how little, or how much of the product you use on yourself.

 If you're a blonde you will know anything which makes your hair brassy is your worst enemy. Hence the need to invest in toners and use them so religiously. Now, the Moroccanoil treatment does have a slight 'rusty' colour to it. Which, when used on any hair colour other than blonde, is fine. Blonde hair will grasp onto any form of colour, due to the fact it is stripped of all of its own. This product will settle onto the hair follicle and then also slightly "stain" it which then makes your hair become that nasty brassy colour we, as blondes, try to avoid. 

If you are okay with toning your hair as often as you use Moroccanoil treatment on your hair, then this will not be a problem for you. You can achieve all the benefits that this product gives and will just have to tone your hair more often. But, if you're like me and pay a bit of money for your toner you don't want to feel like you're pouring your money down the drain (along with your toner), you will find using Moroccanoil Treatment to not be the best option for you. 

The good news is I have found an alternative which has made my hair feel and become as healthy (if not more so) than Moroccanoil Treatment! The other good news- it is so much more affordable. What is it I hear you ask? Coconut oil. Organic, Extra Virgin Coconut Oil to be exact.

I bought my jar which is 300grams from my local health food store for only $7.95. You can also pick them up from any supermarket and I'm sure they would be slightly cheaper than a Health Food store. That is basically nothing compared to spending over $40 for 100ml of Moroccanoil Treatment, which stains your hair and therefore makes you spend more money on other products as well. 

Now, you don't use this the same way as you would Moroccanoil Treatment. When using Moroccanoil Treatment you can either use it on towel dried, or dry hair and you're good to go. That is not the case with coconut oil. When using coconut oil you should use it the night before washing your hair, apply a small amount (as a little really does go a long way) and comb through to the ends. Your hair may look and be 'greasy' but that is because it is a pure oil you have put through your hair. The longer you keep this on the better. Then, wash your hair like normal and you will instantly see and feel the results.

Here are some facts about the benefits of using coconut oil in your hair:
- coconut oil stimulates hair growth
- coconut oil moisturises dry hair
- coconut oil adds lustre, shine and softness to the hair
- coconut oil prevents breakage and split ends, contributing to hair length
- coconut oil slows down hair loss

Why doesn't Coconut Oil make your hair brassy like Moroccanoil Treatment does? Purely because coconut oil has no colour and therefore has nothing for your hair to grasp onto- other than all the benefits. 

I hope all you blondes out there who had been using Moroccanoil Treatment and found their hair was becoming brassy quicker find this very helpful!

Until next time xx

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Summer Body Guide Part 2

As Promised in my previous Post here is Part Two to my Summer Body Guide.

 By now I'm sure you can definitely see the change in your body I had promised you. I am also sure that there were a few days you wanted to give up as you felt you couldn't do it any longer. If you're still here now I want to congratulate you on achieving what you have! You should be proud of yourself. I told you it wasn't going to be easy, but I hope by now you can see it has, and will continue to be worth it. 

The second half of this guide IS scarier than the first, and it is a main reason I split it in two parts. If you read ahead to the end of this Guide before even starting I'm sure the intensity of what is to follow would've scared some of you away: with doubts you were unable to even attempt what is left to this Guide. After getting halfway, I hope you hold a different perspective and have learnt you are actually capable of achieving a lot more than you first assumed.

 So without further ramblings and pats on backs I shall give you Part 2 to My Summer Body Guide.

 DAY SIXTEEN:

80 Squats

DAY SEVENTEEN:

75 Sit-ups

100 Crunches

45 Leg Raises

12 Pushups

50 Squats

65 Secs Plank

DAY EIGHTEEN:

80 Sit-ups

110 Crunches

48 Leg Raises

14 Pushups

125 Squats

70 Secs Plank

DAY NINETEEN:

85 Sit-ups

120 Crunches

50 Leg Raises

15 Pushups

50 Squats

75 Secs Plank

DAY TWENTY:

REST DAY

DAY TWENTY ONE:

90 Sit-ups

130 Crunches

52 Leg Raises

15 Pushups

145 Squats

80 Secs Plank

DAY TWENTY TWO:

95 Sit-ups

140 Crunches

55 Leg Raises

16 Pushups

80 Squats

85 Secs Plank

DAY TWENTY THREE:

100 Sit-ups

150 Crunches

58 Leg Raises

17 Pushups

40 Squats

90 Secs Plank

DAY TWENTY FOUR:

100 Squats

DAY TWENTY FIVE:

105 Sit-ups

160 Crunches

60 Leg Raises

17 Pushups

95 Secs Plank

DAY TWENTY SIX:

110 Sit-ups

170 Crunches

60 Leg Raises

18 Pushups

75 Squats

100 Secs Plank

DAY TWENTY SEVEN:

115 Sit-ups

180 Crunches

62 Leg Raises

19 Pushups

50 Squats

110 Secs Plank

DAY TWENTY EIGHT:

150 Squats

DAY TWENTY NINE:

120 Sit-ups

190 Crunches

62 Leg Raises

19 Pushups

95 Squats

115 Secs Plank

DAY THIRTY:

125 Sit-ups

200 Crunches

65 Leg Raises

20 Pushups

175 Squats

120 Secs Plank

Now that you've completed this Guide I hope you have achieved the Summer Body which you originally wanted. I also hope you've all gained more self confidence and faith in yourself in what you're capable of achieving.

 Let me know in the comments how you all went, and if you will be continuing this Guide but personalising it to yourself!

I hope you all are proud to show off everything you've worked your bum off to achieve for this Summer, and no longer feel like beached sea life when asked to bathe in the sun with your friends!

Until next time xx

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PureTAN review.

Fake Tans and myself definitely have a Love-Hate relationship. We've been at it for years. Sometimes they can please me, other times they make me want to exfoliate my whole top layer of skin off and start again. I've experienced many orange, streaky and overly potent smelling tans. But still, I keep going back to them hoping maybe one day we'll be able to connect properly and make things work. 

Today is that day my dear readers! Today I am happy to announce that Fake Tans and Myself are finally in a committed, serious and trusting relationship. Their name is PureTAN. 

I can honestly say this is the Best tan I have ever experienced in my life. It does not streak, come out orange and better yet it does not leave you with that disgusting overly strong fake tan smell EVERY other tan on the market leaves you with. To be honest the smell of fake tan is what puts me off most. All day the only thing you can smell is that, and the people you walk past/stand near can smell it too. Which is a complete giveaway that the colour of your body is in fact from a bottle. PureTAN does not give you this embarrassment though.

I have used this tan for over two months now and every time I've used it I've had 100% positive (amazing) results. Every time. What other tan can you say that about? Not many I'm sure. I would recommend using this tan with the mitt (or your own) that PureTAN sell as it evenly distributes the product onto your skin- therefore not making it streak.

Another great thing about this tan is that it only takes 1 hour for it to process for a light tan, 2 hours for a medium and 3 hours for a dark. As soon as you apply the product to your body you can instantly see the difference it gives.

In my review I am including photos so you can see for yourself how this tan works and the end result it gives. So lets get straight into it!

As you can see I am naturally very pale, so when it becomes the warmer months I do tend to reach for my bottle of brown to not stand out as much. I also do prefer having some colour to my skin as I feel I look healthier and also when I am a tone or so darker I feel my body looks more defined.

I usually begin applying tan from my legs then work my way up. Here you can see what the fake tan looks like on my leg as soon as I've applied it vs what my leg looks like with no tan on at all.

After applying the tan to my whole body you can instantly tell I am wearing fake tan, but that's okay because I really do not plan on going out whilst the tan is developing. Nor should you. It's not what I look like during the process time that worries me anyway- it's all about the final product. 

I only left this tan on for 2 hours, not the whole 3, as because I'm naturally pale (and everyone knows it) I didn't want to do something so extreme and make people know it was fake. Once people get use to me being this tone I can then extend my developing time to the 3 as if I've naturally just become darker with time. It's how you fake it properly. You should never really fake tan so extreme on the first go if you want a 'natural' look. It's all about making it look natural, so naturally it takes a bit of time. After washing all the product off this is what I looked like. 

As you can see it is very natural looking and nothing too dramatic to what I originally was. It isn't orange and hasn't streaked at all. If i keep applying this every 2-3 days it will gradually become darker, which is exactly what I want. You can also understand now with what I meant before in saying that being tanned gives me more definition. 

After washing the tan off I used another PureTAN product which is their coconut oil, and slathered that all over my body to give moisture to it so the tan will hopefully last longer

Even after the next day and another shower I felt the tan still lasted as great as the first day. 

I've also included photos of me outside in natural light so you can get an idea what it looks like in the real world.

the next day

I happily give this product review a 10/10. There is absolutely nothing to fault with this tan. I completely Love it and I am going to keep on using it until it decides it no longer loves me (which I hope never happens)

You can buy this product off their website https://puretan.com.au/ or from your local Priceline.

Why I Jab My Face With Needles & You Should Too

I will be the first to raise my hand if the question "who has problem skin?" is asked. True, I'll admit it isn't as bad as I make it out to be, but for me I would much rather if it were a lot clearer than it is. I've tried many (many many) different products, my bin will tell you that. I've increased the amount of water I drink a day, and even try (most days) to have a healthy diet, but nothing seems to completely fix my skin. 

After doing a fair bit of research on micro needling, I finally had the courage to buy my own "mini" micro needler. Now, I didn't spend big $$ on a fancy pancy machine. 1 because I do not have money to waste on products that "may" work, and 2 even if I did have the money I wouldn't be able to justify to myself spending so much on one item. So I did what I do best- I resorted to E-bay. 

All I did was search "micro needler" and found many different results. The product I ended up choosing for myself was about $18 including postage, so if it did end up being a dud, it wasn't that huge a dent in my amazing bank account. Just a Large Maccas meal and Mcflurry really, and hey my skin would probably appreciate the miss on that meal. 

Now if you're not familiar what micro needling does- feel free to Google it. Long story short though is micro needling is a machine/ roller (in my case) which has many many tiny needles sticking out of it, that then goes over your skin puncturing it and causing 'trauma' which then signals to the cells that they need to be regenerated. Therefore creating fresher, newer and hopefully healthier cells. 

The Derma Roller I purchased was 0.5mm (the needles length) which has 192 needles on it. 

I have used this probably 3 times now and already can say my skin is so much clearer! I have less noticeable (acne) scarring (not completely gone), less pimples and even my pores seem to not be as obvious as before. Only thing I am not a fan of when using this on my skin is it does 'hurt' a bit when rolling it over the skin as you do need to give Some pressure when rolling. Not so much that you're digging it into your skin, but enough so that there is some impact. I found after using it my face feels a bit 'burnt' and goes red for the next few hours. I do however have very sensitive skin so this could possibly not be as bad with other people. I've found using Bio Oil and a moisturiser with Vitamin E does help shorten this effect though. 

So reality is (for me) I do not need to go out and spend over $200 on a machine that basically does the exact same thing this one does for me for only $18. The only obvious difference is mine isn't powered so I do have to put pressure onto the gadget myself when using it, oh the shock of doing some work myself! But really, is it honestly worth the big gap in $$?

Who Is The Girl Behind The Posts?

Hello Everyone! 

I figured it would make sense that my first post be an introduction to myself so that you can get to know a bit about the girl behind the keyboard.

My name is Carissa, I am a 23 year old female from somewhere in Australia.
I love; reading, writing, all things beauty and also creating my own products for myself.

The aim of this Blog is to be Beauty Related. Whether it be product reviews, tips and tricks, looks I've created or even products I've made myself. I want to be able to share with you all everything I know and learn. There may possibly be the odd occasional 'non beauty' related post, but mainly I want it to be Beauty Focused. 

I have my own Youtube Channel; www.youtube.com/carissamcholme 
I like to think it is entertaining, but I may also be the only one who views it that way. I don't make videos for other people, I literally make them because I enjoy everything that is involved in creating one. I guess you could call it a hobby which I happen to share publicly. 

I'm a very honest and open person, which is both positive and negative. 
I love juice. I love lace. I love drinking out of a straw.

Anything else you want to know about Me, do not hesitate to ask :)

I hope you can enjoy this Blog as much as I know I'll enjoy writing it.