B&B! Q&A: What’s So Great About Clarins Double Serum?

Debbie McVicarDebbie McVicar is the Product Training Manager for Clarins. She very graciously answered our Qs about the new Double Serum, yet another addition to the Paris brand’s line of serums. Me, I can’t get enough of any new Clarins skin care launches, and even a serum-head like me wondered what was behind this new one. Let’s all find out, shall we?

What makes serums so great?
Serums are wonder products! They are highly concentrated in active ingredients and this makes them an essential part of any skincare routine, as they not only kick-start the skin’s functions but also help improve the performance of your daily targeted skincare products.

Clarins seem to make a lot of serums — what’s this one do that the others don’t?
Clarins recognised the power of serums many years ago, and formulated them to perform key functions in the skin, such as radiance boosting, skin lifting, Double Serum Stillife with cap lowresdraining and moisture boosting.

Our new Double Serum is the first complete age control serum in the range — it’s a multi tasking serum that will boost the levels of five vital age managing functions in the skin: hydration, nutrition, oxygenation, protection and regeneration. It is the essential serum for younger looking skin from the age of 25 and whatever skin type you may be. The results are firmer skin with minimised lines that also has new radiance, and a more even texture with less visible pores.

I am curious about how a product like this is developed. How long did it take to come up with it, how were the ingredients assembled, how many people worked on it?
This product is the seventh version of a serum that was first devised in 1985. It was then two separate phials which you had to use by mixing the two products together in your hands. Clarins have worked tirelessly over the last few years to produce the unique “double-chamber” container, meaning that we can use all the water soluble ingredients in a hydric chamber and all the oil soluble ones in a lipidic chamber.

This exceptional packaging allows us to use the highest number of active plant ingredients in one product than ever before, over 20 in fact! These are teamed with high tech molecules from our Clarins labs, giving us a super concentrated serum. The product also contains no emulsifiers which allow all these ingredients to move freely in the skin and target their own skin cells without sticking together – a better performance all round!

Can you talk about the four week intensive treatment? What are its benefits, and how does one ‘do’ it?
There are some under 25’s who really feel that anti-age products are not for them, yet but feel that their skin can occasionally feel and look “under par”. It may look tired and lifeless, with perhaps a few imperfections on the surface. Double serum can then come to the rescue as a four week intensive treatment which will help restore the skin to healthy functioning again. It would be used every day or night for four weeks under her favourite day or night cream, and then only used again when any future imbalances occur, ideally two or three times a year.

What kind of lifestyle changes would help this product work even better?
Try to assist the five vital functions in your body also, by drinking lots of water, eating healthy food, getting out in the fresh air as much as you can, getting enough restful sleep! And enjoy the simple pleasures in life!

***

On counter now, Clarins Paris Double Serum retails for €69.50/£49.50/$85

***

How’re They Doin’? Eyelash Extensions: Week 3

I didn’t bother updating Week 2, because I felt like such a first-world eejit. I mean, okay, the lashes get extremely tangled up in the gale force winds we’ve been experiencing in the last seven days or so. It is annoying, and also makes me worry about them — also annoying. So it was just a big pile-on of annoyance.

Here we are in week 3, however, and I have finally stopped treating these things like they are tiny newborn babies. They aren’t exactly that delicate. Neither am I back to scrubbing my face and eye area like I used to, which is good/bad. Good, because I am treating that like a tiny newborn baby, which should give me better mileage down the years; bad because am still not entirely convinced that I’m really doing a good job cleaning my face.

^ However, this has really gotten me onto the toner bandwagon, which is past time, probably.

> I am less bothered by them in the shower.

Here’s the original set:
EYELASHES the Original

The left eye, now:
WEEK 3 left

And the right:
WEEK 3 right

In fairness, I just snapped the photos without tweaking them. WYSIWYG, betches. They do present better when I nudge them around, but just so everybody is aware, it’s not like you wake up perfect.

Am I the only one always expecting miracles? *Sigh*

I have lost count of how many lashes I have lost — many wishes going begging! But I have to say, blowy weather notwithstanding, I am not as bothered by these as I was in the beginning.

Will I do them again? Maybe for a big event, but for everyday, I am not convinced that these are my thang.*

***

I got my eyelashes extended at Venus Medical in Dundrum. See venusmedical.ie for more info.

***

*Sue, you are so going to miss them when they are gone!

**

New Fave Lippy: No7 Moisture Drench in Waterlily

I took one look at this lipstick, new from No7, as part of their Limited Edition Ballerina Beauty Collection and thought, Nah. Too coral-ly for me.

NO 7 WATERLILY

Gotta love my open-mindedness. Chiding myself, I lashed some on, and voilá!

NO 7 WATERLILY ON

I love it! It’s so pretty, and fresh! And it as moisture-drenching as it claims in the name.

Also on the face, which isn’t shown to its best effect from that NO 7 BB CREAMastonishingly unflattering angle, is Beautiful Skin BB Cream, also from No7. This comes in three styles, for Dry/Very and Normal/Oily, in addition to the Normal/Dry that I am using.

I haz ambivalence re: BBs, and tend to only like those that are within spitting distance of being foundation. This gives great coverage, and yet I had that psychological benefit of not feeling like I had the fuss of foundation to deal with.

^^^ I don’t even know what that means, really. Foundation isn’t that much of a hassle, it’s not like, I don’t know, trying to shave your legs under pressure, or something. Foundation seems to imply Serious Day Ahead, maybe? Eh, let’s humour me, shall we?

Yes, Sue, there is a difference in attitude between foundations and BB creams…

Wait. That may be true.

***

No7 Moisture Drench Lipstick in Waterlily is €12.25; Beautiful Skin BB Cream is €16.95.

***

Let’s Do Thisssss, Part Two: Dr Lewinn’s Cosmetic Lift, Actually Doing It

Here we go! Giving ourselves a cosmetic lift, in the comfort of our own bath!

Here’s the before, for what it’s worth; iPhone, whilst always making my nose look bigger than it is, makes up for this unfortunate exaggeration by glossing over all fine lines and wrinkles. So:
DR L BEFORE

Here’s the line up, one more time.
DR L CONTENTS

First thing: cleanse thoroughly with the Gentle Facial Cleanser {the light green stuff.} I tell myself that this is a much different experience to my usual cleansing… but I think I only want that to be so. It does feel lovely and fresh, and I am using the cleanser the way an aesthetician would: gently, just like it says on the tin, rather than my usual rough-and-ready removal.

Second thing is to mix up the Cosmetic Lift Powder with a teaspoon of water. There is a mighty amount of powder in this jar! I reckon… I reckon there are at least 20 facial lifts in this jar? I was never any good at guessing the number of jelly beans, if ya get me. I think 20?
DR L THE POWDER

Look, there’s tonnes of powder, whatever.

Mixed with the water, you get this:
DR L THE MASK

Feh, thought I. That is nothing. Slightly annoyed, because this was taking time, and I had had to clean the sink, and everything, I started to paste it — I mean, stroke it, gently — onto my face, with the brush provided. I followed the diagramme and all, and started out a bit scabby because I was sure there wasn’t going to be enough.

This is why I am a bad baker! There was plenty!
DR L ALL GONE
In fact, I went over my face entirely at least thrice. I set my timer for 30 minutes — which was another rude awakening, because I hadn’t read that far along. I was only grateful that the delivery man had already come and gone.

Went back to the computer, typing with one hand and holding my specs up in front of my face. Not as super-efficient as you may think. I wondered what the heck was going to happen with this stuff on my face. So what, so it was going to dry? Dry into what?
DR L BWAHAHAHA
Bwahahahahahaha! Into this, a full-on, seriously squinchy mask. The kind where your lips are are beyond pursed — they are practically turned inside out. My very thoughts became pursed.

Now, I lovvvvve a good, squinchy mask. If you don’t, then you will dislike this in the extreme. But me: lovvvve it. I felt like all my pores were being individually shrunk. I never wanted it to end.

Then: two teaspoons of the cleanser mixed with water. This was eyeballed: I tried to use the teaspoon, but it was pointless in the extreme. You have to squueze the cleanser out, not scoop it out, so filling up the teaspoon was rendering fairly imposs. I mixed it, as directed with one teaspoon of water, and used the brush to stroke it all over my face. this served to loosen the mask — gently, gently — and then used a few cotton pads to get the last bits off.

The carnage. Not too terrible!
DR L SLIGHT CARNAGE

I pat my skin dry, applied a few pumps of the very green Tissue Firming Serum, which felt grand, and then cracked open the last jar, the Vitamin A Rejuvenation Cream.
DR L EEEP!

Wowee! Yellow! I really liked the texture of this, and you can definitely tell when it has all been absorbed.

After, in the wild, on my way to horses. Again, for what it’s worth.
AFTER in the WILD

I have to say, my pores have never felt smaller. And given the way that I’ve felt the weather has been beating up my skin, I felt uncommonly glowy.

I thought I would do this, you know, another time whenever. Nope! Gotta do this three times in ten days! So, five days from yesterday, I’ll be back in the bath — and black vest!

***

Let’s Do Thisssss, Part One: Dr Lewinn’s Cosmetic Lift

The thing that I loved so much about We Love Laser is that you show up, lie down, get zapped, and you’re done.

On the other hand, there was The Fear. I got over it, in less than three visits, and the Photo Facial is totally non-invasive, but what if you have a laser phobia or whatever?

Dr Lewinn proposes that you can give yourself a lift, sans zappage, at home.

DR L BOXSee? Says it right there on the box: Cosmetic Lift, and also, Facelift Without Surgery.

These are all the things in the box:
DR L CONTENTS

And these are all the directions:
DR L DIRECTIONS

So many wordsssssss. God, I’m lazy. Half the time I don’t read the packaging, which has resulted in some interesting uses of products: putting stuff on my face, for example, that is actually meant for my hair, or using an exfoliant for the face all over my bod. Whoops!

Also: mixing stuff up + me = disaster, because again: directions, and I so rarely believe that the measurements look correct, so I add more, or less, or whatever, and, big whoops! Don’t ask me to make scones!

But I’m interested in this product because I am interested in Dr Lewinn and all his works, since he’s been doing such a great job on my manky nails.

Okay! Here we go!

First, I had to go clean the sink in the bath. I’ll spare you the before — here’s the after.
DR L THE SINK

Then, all the things you pray won’t happen, happened: the phone rang, a delivery man came to the door, I realised that I ought to take off the big bulky fleece and put on a vest* — which I did, before the delivery man showed up, and boy is he glad I did! Should have gotten his number — and then then I realised that I needed to memorise the poxy directions because I absolutely can’t read anything anymore without my specs —

And then I stopped procrastinating and got down to business…

***

*That’s a tank top, to you Yanks.

***

£115; see here to buy online from the UK

***

Lip Balms That I Have {And Have Loved}

I’ve been upfront about my lip balm affection before, but the balms featured in that post? Gone, daddy, gone. There was also the one about the boots, which when I scrolled down to it, I was like Wha’? and then it made sense.

And then my pal Karen over at Lovely Girlie Bits posted about her sincere affection for the balm of lips, and gave us o’er here an auld mention. So, go have a look at alllll the balms that I had hanging about, under my desk, in a box.

I’m not ashamed! Because — because I actually need lip balms in my life!

When I was a child, my lips were so dry that I used to lick them all the time; this happened mostly in the winter, so I’d go out into the freezing cold {because I had to walk miles to school in the snow}{not really} and then they would get all chapped — so I would lick them some more, etc, etc. It was painful, and also not very lovely to look at. Poor wee Susan!

So, you see, my inner child is behind all this. I am healing my inner child. And by ‘all this’, I mean not only the thirteen lip treatments underneath my desk in the box, but also:

BALM on the desk

The three on the top of my desk…

BALM by the couch

The two that sit by my couch…

And most importantly…

BALM sue's bees

The one with my name on it!

I’ve enjoyed Burt’s Bees Beeswax Lip Balm in the past, and I find this particular potion, made from vitamin E and peppermint, to be especially ameliorative. Plus: tingly! In fact: I’ve got a wee tin of this by my bed, and it is my go-to good-night lip balm.

So I am happy to celebrate the 21st birthday of this balm, which sells one tube every two seconds, somewhere in the world.

Happily, at this festive time, there is even more good news: Burt’s Bees lip gloss wands are coming soon!

***

Next: what balm suits which mood!

***

Burt’s Bees Beeswax Lip Balm is available in all good health stores, and retails for €3.95

***

B&B! Q&A: Marie Reynolds

IMG_0648‘Candles are a a symbol of peace and light in a dark situation. They are lit for remembrance and hope, and many believe lighting candles are an extension of prayer. They also act as a source of focus to clear the mind in meditation.’
— Marie Reynolds

And, in fairness, they are vital components of sexytimes. Reynolds is a celebrated facialist, noted for the breadth of her experience in the world of skincare. Her line of luxury massage  candles, MRL Aromawax, have so much going for them, that it behove us to go straight to the source to answer — ha, ha — some burning questions…

How long was the idea for the massage candles in the works?
I have used Soya wax for many years in treatment, but felt they lacked a certain joie de vive. I also wanted the benefits of soya and shea butter as a treatment to be brought to the masses.

What was the process from concept to execution?
I had been to a talk at the House of Lords on the importance of British brands, and wanted to focus on a brand that was ‘home grown’ and organic that could be used on the skin. I was originally going to start off with skin care, but the time scale to create, test and release such products was too long. So I used my knowledge with aromatherapy and skincare in the form of MRL Aromawax Candles.

Being a therapist I know how well soya can be used with other ingredients, like sea salt to be adapted in treatments for body scrubs, or mixed with therapeutic mud for body wraps. Soya has a complete amino acid complex so the candle bases are extremely hydrating and nourishing, as well as healing and softening. Added into the mix are specific blends for refreshing, stimulating or relaxing the senses.

What’s great about using the soya is that it turns the candle into massage oil! I love the idea that the candle is romantic on two levels! How does one best get the warmed wax out of the jar?
The wax itself can be used solid: just rub your finger around the top of the candle and apply as a solid perfume. I actually have a candle at my desk and scoop it out to massage in my hands. The most effective way is to remove the wax when the wick it lit with a wooden spatula.

Common sense says, blow out the candle first… but won’t that wreck the mood?
If you pour the wax it will cause smoking, which is not nice. We don’t want anyone choking in an intimate setting! Scoop the wax with a spatula!

Lush Locks

What gave you the idea for the Lush Locks Hair Treatment Candle, and what is the best way to use these?
Many therapists use warm oil for Indian Head massage, so Lush Locks was born! The wax, when melted, can be used as a massage medium, or used as a conditioning treatment overnight: simply massage into the hair from root to end and in the morning wash as normal. The oil can be used sparingly as a balm for dry ends. The aroma is Wild Neroli and Champa Flowers, so they smell divine!

I personally cannot imagine life without candles, and am always tempted to pack up a bunch of ’em when I go visiting… can you talk a bit about the Travel Aromawax collection? Did you find yourself abroad, experiencing a candle emergency???
Well, I am afraid I cannot take credit for the Travel Candles! They were initially developed as samples; my dear friend and PR, Shirley Dumhall, said they would be ideal for a travel candle, and they seem to be a great hit! Actually, many people like to try them as a set which is  a great idea, that way you get a taster of all the candles.

How does candlelight help our feelings of wellbeing?
It goes without saying that any setting — be it a spa, salon, hotel room, bedroom, bathroom – once lit with a candle or even better, ‘candles’, evokes a sense of relaxation this has an immediate impact on our stress levels, mentally, emotionally and physically. The fact that the Aromawax Candles tap into the sense of smell and touch are an added benefit.

***

Marie Reynolds Aromawax Massage candles are priced as follows: 135g boxed candle is €40 (25 hours burning time); 50g Votive (10 hour burning time) is €11.50.

UPDATE! See here for a review of Lush Locks!

***

See mrlcandles.com for more information.

***

Eyelash Extensions, Week One: Wishes and Tweeeeeeezers

BEFORE N AFTERLest we forgot, here’s that photo again.

So, a couple of things:
> I have lost four lashes in a week. That leaves fifty-six. I think I have, happily, lost two one each eye! That’s four wishes I’ve got on the go, now I know how to do that properly. {Well, I thought I did, by I just checked and there’s all sorts of rules; I’m going to stick with the one that says to blow it off the tip of your finger as you make your wish.}

> The first one that fell out was an epic experience: I felt it come loose, and I didn’t catch it time, and it went into my WHERE IT GOT STUCKeye? You know the way? And this is worse, because it is plastic or whatever.

So I kept staring, to try to get enough water into my eye to wash it away {you know the what I mean.} All my nails were too short to tease it out, and then it shifted around and got stuck right in the curve of my eyeball, where it meets that part right at the corner? I have highlighted it at left. I couldn’t get it to move at all, so I — I had to use tweezers.

Tweeeezerrrrrs in my eyyyyyyyyyyyyyye!

> Obviously, now I am totally self-conscious about these things falling out. I worry about my hair catching on them. Will they get all smashed up in my sleep? I am concerned when I open the oven — will I met them off my face?

> I am finding them to be annoying in the shower. My face gets wet, I go to wipe it — mind the lashes!

> I am not entirely convinced I am getting all the eye makeup of, because: see above!

> My left eyelashes are way more tangly than my right! Is this a brain thing again?

In a nutshell: not too sure. So far, I am spending way too much time thinking/fretting/tending these yokes.

But/however/in fairness: they are soooo flicky. The ones at the outside alone are so long and so come-hither…

Let’s see how week two unfolds, shall we?

***

I got my eyelashes extended at Venus Medical in Dundrum. See venusmedical.ie for more info.

***

It’s Just a Twist to the Left! NUXE Nuxellence Jeunesse

Rocky Horror Picture Show? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?

I don’t know if I am excessively klutzy or not, but my heart sang at the sight of the design of Nuxe‘s imminent {February} launch of their new skincare product, Nuxellence Jeunesse. I may just be a packaging nerd. Probs a bit of both?

Look!

JEUNESSE LIDIt’s so clever and handy! There’s no cap to slip through your fingers and bounce onto the floor! It is great! Except there is some gap in the neural network in my brain that retains ‘which way to turn the top to open this’, or whatever, so now I will sing that song in my head all day, because it has become my mnemonic.

Speaking of Time Warps!

This is Youth and Radiance Revealing Fluid, and is designed to counteract the damage done by UV and pollution. It works by giving your mitochondria the will to live — or at least rejuvenate them for as long as mitochondria live. I mean, cells, they come and go, right? Can you tell I spend all my time drawing pretty pictures of the epidermis in biology, and no time a’tall actually listening?NUXELLENCE B&B

Anyway: all the natural ingredients that Nuxe have gathered together — passion flower, anchusa and poppy, hyaluronic acid, maca root and olive leaves — combine to repair 43% of damaged cells.

As always with Nuxe: the fragrance is spot on: fresh, clean, natural, healthy, and not overpowering.

I am using this like a serum, in that I top up with moisturiser after I let it sink in. It may just be my skin in this crap, crap weather, but my face felt really tight after application.  This is a good sign of youth, the tightness, but it wasn’t comfortable. But hey: any excuse to use lashings of the Crème Fraîche de Beauté collection, also from Nuxe.

How’s that earworm working for ya?

***

Nuxellence Jeunesse retails for €49.

***

But it’s the pelvic thru-u-u-st/That really drives you insay-ay-ay-ay-yayne…

***

Update! Venus Lash Extensions

The prices are actually €120 for full extension; infill will run between €50-60.

Just so we’re all on the same page!

And just for the craic, because, seriously:

BEFORE N AFTER***

Venus Lash is available at Venus Medical, Dundrum. 

Ring 01-2962747 for more info, or see venusmedical.ie.

***