My 'The Body Shop' Skin Care Routine

Hey Everyone,

After a really long time and going through lots of trial and error and also spending (or rather investing) a lot of moolah, I have finally found a skin care regime that is actually working for me and is amazing enough to flaunt here.

Being blessed with  good skin is one thing but maintaining the same is another and it is easier to know when your skin does not seem to be as good as it should be. So contrary to popular belief that I needn't do much for my skin, I actually have to do much more.

So, within a couple of years of coming back to India, I found few amazing The Body Shop (TBS) products that are helping me to maintain my skin.

Without talking more, let's get on with this trio of products that I am loving right now-

1. TBS Drops of Light Pure Clarifying Foam Wash

2. TBS Oils of Life Intensely Revitalizing Facial Oil

3. TBS Oils of Life Intensely Revitalizing Gel Cream

TBS Drops of Light Pure Clarifying Foam Wash

Product Description- A rich and creamy foam cleanser to clarify and purify the skin.

My experience- Gives a rich creamy lather and the brightening effect can be seen after a couple of washes itself. It goes really well with my combination-oily skin. Only a drop works well for the whole face.

Price ₹1525 for 125ml

TBS Oils of Life Intensely Revitalizing Facial Oil

Product Description- Infused with three precious seed oils and a blend of seven essential oils, we've created the Oils of Life™ Intensely Revitalizing Facial Oil. The lightweight and quickly absorbing texture leaves a non-sticky finish, melting onto the skin, leaving it silky and soft. Instantly, skin appears smoother, more radiant, revived, revitalized and nourished. After 4 weeks, the signs of aging appear reduced, wrinkles appear minimized, and skin feels more elastic and firm.

My Experience- One of the best serums I have found in these few years. I was a bit skeptical about using oil on my mildly oily skin but when I felt the texture in the store, I thought of giving it a try and am glad that I did. I mix a couple of drops with the cream and apply twice a day. The skin really feels soft and smooth and definitely after using more than a month now, I can feel the difference in the texture.

Price ₹3095 for 30ml

TBS Oils of Life Intensely Revitalizing Gel Cream

Product Description- By infusing 3 precious seed oils from around the world, known for their revitalising and repairing properties on skin – Black Cumin seed oil from Egypt, Camellia seed oil from China and Rosehip seed oil from Chile – in to a dewy-fresh gel cream with illuminating micro-pearls, we created a lighter alternative to the cream that intensely revitalises skin. Skin feels instantly freshly hydrated and suppler. From the moment it touches the skin, this Intensely Revitalising Gel Cream delicately melts onto the face, leaving a fresh light finish without a greasy feel.

Cold-pressed seed oils to preserve potent properties and ensure the utmost affinity to skin.

Melting but light and non-greasy.

Skin feels freshly recharged with moisture, appears visibly smoother and revived with radiance

My Experience- The Cream comes in two variants- cream and gel based. Due to my combination-oily skin, I picked up Gel cream. It feels really light on the face and moisturizes very well. There is no oil buildup or greasiness on the face either during the day or night. The skin feels hydrated and fresh. 

Price ₹2095 for 50ml

My skin is really feeling great after using the Drops of Light Face Wash and Oils of Life Face Serum and Gel cream for almost two months now and I think I am going to stick to it for a while now... till I get something better. For me skincare is the best investment you can make for yourself. Makeup can hide all the flaws but its the good skin that makes all the difference.

Have you tried Oils of Life range from The Body Shop? How was your experience? Please share in the comments

Signing off for now

Website Review- Aplava

Aplava is a beauty website with a wide range of beauty products ranging from skin care, makeup, hair care, bath & body, fragrances and baby products too. The products are from various segments- drugstore to premium. You have to go online, select your products and they'll ship them free... Sounds Familiar? Of course! It is an online beauty site, so that's what they do!

But here comes something that makes Aplava different from the other online beauty websites- when you register your account, you are asked for your beauty profile. You have to tell about your Skin Type, kind of activities you do, your tendency to sweat, your skin tone, hair type etc. Then the products are recommended based on your beauty type so everything shown to you would be personalized to you. Isn't that wonderful. You won't see a wonderful foundation only to realize later that there is no color for your skin tone!

The brands range from Maybelline, L'oreal, Dermalogica, O3, Bodyography, Braun, Faces, Gillette, Just Herbs, Olay, Revlon, Sebamed, Vichy, Wild Earth and many others.
The check out process is simple and delivery is free. You get complimentary samples with every order.
There is a loyalty program for beauty shoppers- Apalava Prestige, wherein you are given double points for every purchase and also early access to deals and new products!

Another wonderful news is that they are having upto 50% off Summer Sale. I am sure you all would love to check it out!

I am going for my shopping spree... Are you coming???

Signing off for now

Review- OrganicMill Face Lep & Aloe Day Gel

Hey Everybody,

Yes... it's been really long that I haven't been here but I have been doing some amazing stuff, about which I'll talk some other time. 

This post is regarding some interesting products that I was sent from OrganicMill to try and review. OrganicMill is a Greater Noida based company founded by Ms. Dishi Jain out of her passion to do something different with beauty products. She started with organic and natural formulation for lip balm in July 2015 and has not looked back ever since. She has around 15 products in her kitty ranging from skin care, hair care, soaps etc. and is coming up with few more soon. All products are made personally by her when ordered and contain all natural and organic ingredients.

Out of her range of products, she sent me Aloe Day Gel and Face Lep.

ALOE DAY GEL

Product Description- Aloe Vera Gel with SPF 30 helps to protect your skin from harmful UV rays and aloe vera helps in various skin issues  like Acne & Pimples, Ageing, Dehydrated Skin, Sunburns, Pigmentation and Marks. It gives you fresh and healthy skin with a glow.

Ingredients & Instructions

Review

Aloe Gel was one product I was really looking forward to. Aloe vera with Sun protection could be the best thing that you can put on your face in summers specially if your skin is combination-oily like mine. It could be great summer time product as aloe vera also helps in soothing sunburns. The tea tree oil will help to counter all skin types of skin irritation.

The gel was quite soothing and cooling on the skin. Kept my skin oily free for around 4 hours. I usually apply it in the morning and put on my makeup over it.

A wonderful product this is.

Price

Rs. 450 for 30gm

FACE LEP

Product Description- Face Lep is a blend of 20 herbs and flowers (Neem, Manjishtha, Aloe Vera, Turmeric, Tulsi, Red Sandalwood, Khus etc.) with Fuller's Earth (Multani Mitti). It helps to cure various problems like pimples and acne, open pores, blackheads, acne marks, ageing and suntan. It also helps in enhancing, exfoliating and nourishing the skin making it clear soft and radiant.

Instructions- The product is like a powder that can be used with OrganicMill Toner or green tea extract for oily and sensitive skin and can be used with curd for dry, normal or ageing skin. Keep it on for 15-20 minutes and rinse with water.

Review

                                        

I used the Face Lep with green tea extract and kept it on for 15 minutes. Then scrubbed before taking off with water. It left my face really soft and smooth taking off all the white heads in the first use itself. I use it every 2-3 days as a face scrub now. 

Price

Rs. 500 for 70gm.

Both the products are really good and gave the desired result. Apart from these, OrganicMill has other products like Lip Balm, Lip Scrub, Toner, Body Scrub, Hair Oil, Night Cream, Under Eye Cream, Bath Salt, Glycerin Soap, Hand and Foot Mask and are coming up with new products soon. Products are decently priced and I am going to go back for few more things.

How to Order?

The products are custom made on order. To place order, You can connect on Organicmill FB Page or can call/whatsapp +919971648091.

Reader's Offer

Quote 'makeupsutra' while placing the order and get 10% off on your first order.

Looking forward to try more products and share the review.

See you all soon, Signing off for now

Review- An Experience that reinstated my trust in Lakme Salon

Lakme Salon used to be my go-to place whenever I was looking to get pampered since 2010 both in Bangalore and Delhi. After we left for Japan in 2011, Lakme used to be the preferred place for beauty services whenever we used to come back. 

In 2014, when we moved back to Mumbai, I was looking to get rebonding done for my hair and went to a Lakme Salon because of the trust I had on the brand but was not very happy with the service and also the attitude of the staff. Anyways, I brushed off the experience as one off but again a similar thing happened at a Lakme Salon in Delhi where I went for getting my hair styled for an occasion and had the worst possible experience. The staff was not sure what to do and ultimately I had to guide them to get something done. This completely shattered my trust in the brand and I decided never to go back to Lakme again as the quality of services and staff had deteriorated significantly.

I patronised other salons specially for my pedicure. My regular pedicurist left the salon and one day after reading a lot of reviews about Lakme Salon, Hiranandani, Powai, I decided to go there and get my pedicure done from their Star Pedicurist Mr. Prabhakar and also booked an appointment for Face Cleanup with Shilpa.  

On reaching the salon, I was taken to a private room for cleanup. Shilpa suggested to go for Tangy Cleanup considering my combination skin and an Algae Collagen Mask. She was very particular about hygiene throughout the service and explained and showed all the products she was using on my face. It was a good experience but I told her that I'll give my feedback after 2 days when my skin settles down after the cleanup. And after two days, my skin is feeling wonderful!

Next was the appointment with Mr. Prabhakar. He suggested to go for the basic aroma pedicure because of the less time I had in hand. The pedicure was amazing, not a speck of dead skin on my feet and a relaxing massage. I was also told that his family is been into this field as pedicurist for decades now and he himself is working for more than 20 years. Yet, after completing the service, he asked me to check the feet for dead skin or dirt... I was wondering, where could this man go wrong with all those years behind him. It was an amazing experience and looks like I'll be a regular there.

Jasleen, the owner of the salon was courteous and humble; and is doing a great job of maintaining the image of the brand with her staff. With this experience, I think I can go back to Lakme with restored trust.

Would you like to share a similar experience, Please do so in comments! Looking forward to hear from you all!

Signing off for now

Mother's Day Special

Today's post is dedicated to a lady, who's my friend, my teacher, my guide, my inspiration, my strength, a never ending support and most important, MY MOM. She's the one who taught me all about life and has been my constant strength. She is emotionally the strongest person in our family and today also I look upto her when it comes to taking an emotional or sensitive decision. She has influenced me in such a way that whenever I am in a trouble, I often think of her and wonder how she would have handled this situation and most of the time I get my answers otherwise she's just a phone call away! For her, I can only say Mamma...You are the best!

This is a small composition by me, for her, for you and for all the mothers...

Wishing all Mums, a very Happy Mother's Day!

Signing off for now

Review- Butterly Yours 'Bhasad Organizer'

Hey  Everyone,

I can understand the post headline could be incomprehensible for most of you makeup junkies and you all must be wondering if I have just put in some random words and a slang! But No! All the words in the headline describe a simple product from the brand 'Butterly Yours' that is presented in a totally different way with a unique twist.

First of all it has nothing to do with makeup and beauty... then why the review on Makeup Sutra? This is because it is something that we all would prefer to use in our life to organize and prioritize our tasks and make our life simpler... So yes you all got it... It's a planner/ Organizer.

But what's so special about it that it's grtting featured on Makeup Sutra? Yes, first because it caught my fancy and second, I instantly got tickled by the unique twist that it has.

So what's this whole 'unique twist' thing all about?

So this is not your usual planner with a leather cover and pages inside saying date/day/time and stuff.

This is a BHASAD ORGANIZER!

If you are not sure what Bhasad (read as भसड) means... here it goes for you- As per urban dictionary, "when people have nothing to do and doing bakchodi simultaneously, the environment is referred to as bhasad." The outcome of this whole situation is utter chaos.

So this 'Bhasad Organizer' will keep your Bhasad sightly more organized and planned so that the focus can be on important and urgent tasks. 

It has a swanky leather cover with an option of getting it personalized so it looks the part it plays but once you open that and look inside... it is not what you would have expected! Each page is divided into 4 sections to prioritize your to-do list... so you can put your tasks under following headings- Bhasad (Urgent & Important), O Teri Ki (Important not Urgent), Bhains ki Aankh (Urgent not Important) and Dekh Lenge Yaar (Not Important Not Urgent). This complete Desi Dilli Tadka cracked me up and brought out the hidden Dilli Girl and I could already see my other Delhi friends reacting to it in a similar fashion!! I can see it bringing in a lot of entertainment throughout the day.

So, you see it is an ideal gift too if you want to amuse some one or to tickle their sense of humor!

And another great thing about this is size... it's around 6 inches square that can fit in your bag and quite portable!

Price and How to Order?

So, this novel and entertaining planner is priced at just ₹349 and can be ordered from http://www.butterlyyours.com/ 

It can be customized in terms of colors (Black/ Pink/ Green/ Yellow) and can be personalized with your name!

Have a look at mine :)

What do you think of this interesting Organizer? Do share in comments...

Want to own this? We might come up with something... Keep a look out!

Signing off for now

Beauty Resolutions 2016

Everyone goes in to make resolutions in a hope that they can follow them even after the first week of January and I am no different. I prefer to set realistic goals and take them through the year... So let's go and check out my beauty resolutions for 2016... I know I am late to make resolutions, but wanted to let 2016 sink in so that they are more realistic... :D

1. Drink lots of water during the day... even though I do it now but want to keep doing it forever
2. Follow CTM (Cleansing, Toning, Moisturizing) religiously
3. Experiment with makeup and try looks that are beyond my comfort zone
4. Getting a good 6-7 hours sleep every night... will have to work really hard for this
5.  Be regular with this blog... again a lot of hard work required here ;)

What are your beauty resolutions for 2016? Do leave a comment

Signing off for now

Pigment Haul- Inglot & MAC

Hey everyone!

I am back after a shopping spree basically wanted to refill my stock of pigments. If you are wondering which pigments I am talking about, let me tell you- Pigments are highly concentrated loose colors. They are mainly used as eye shadow but can also be used as eyeliner (will tell you how in another post!), some as highlighters. The effect could be anywhere from subtle to intense depending on the application.

So, basically I went to MAC store to pick up two of my favorite pigments- Rose and Blue Brown. Though I found Rose but Blue Brown was as usual out of stock so decided to check Inglot for their AMC Pure Pigment Eye shadow in 85, which is as close as possible to Blue Brown. And while at Inglot store, I decided to pick up a couple more pigments.Without further delay... let me share some pics of my PIGMENT HAUL!!

Inglot AMC Pure Pigment Eye Shadow No.85- This is a blue brown pigment with brown base and blue glitter. It is one of my favorite pigments when I just need to pop up the eyes a bit. It's a beautiful combination and goes very well with the Indian skin tones.

Inglot AMC Pure Pigment Eye Shadow No.86- This is another pretty color with copper base and pinkish purple glitter. It is wonderful when used for brides for reception or cocktail as eye shadow or in center to pop up the eyes. Can also be used to pop up the lips.

Inglot AMC Pure Pigment Eye Shadow No.84- A wonderful color for Indian tones. This was an impulse buy but am glad I picked it up. It is a light copperish base with green glitter pigments. Amazing for brides specially when they are wearing the traditional red outfit. This color gives a nice contrast with green pigments.

MAC Rose- This is another beautiful color and one of my favorites. This can add a bit of glitz and glam anywhere on the face. It is a deep rose pink base with gold glitters. It can be used as eye shadow or highlighter. It can also be mixed with a moisturizer and used as blush. It can also be used a lip color. It is simply an awesome thing to have in your kitty.

The price of Inglot AMC Pure Pigment Eye Shadows is Rs.1100/- for 2 gms pot while the MAC is for Rs.1850/- for 4.5g bottle.

Have you tried pigments? Which Brands and shades are your favorite? Do leave a comment a share your views.

Signing off for now

Oriflame Product Review

Hey everyone,

Recently I was contacted by Oriflame to review some of their products. November catalog was shared with me and I was to pick up 3 products of my choice for review. I selected following products-

1. Giordani Gold Bronzing Pearls in Natural Radiance

2. The One Power Shine Lipstick in Trendy Berry

3. Very Me Soft 'N' Glam Eye shadow in Sweet Olive

Let's talk about each product in detail

Giordani Gold Bronzing Pearls in Natural Radiance

Product Description- A simple swirl with the brush and the perfect blend of micro pearls will give your skin a seamless, natural glow and flawless luminescence. Enriched with precious mica and silica minerals for a more radiant look.

My Take- I always get fascinated with things that are different. So bronzing pearls caught my eye and was the first product that I ordered for. Though I was a bit disappointed with the packaging, the plastic bowl and the flap lid in dirty yellow color... When the product name says gold, I was expecting something better. There is a sponge to keep the beads in place.

Anyways, coming to the product now- the beads are pink and brownish. I used a blush brush to apply, the color is not very intense but the shine is. Very difficult to get color in the picture even after building up. I would prefer to use it as a highlighter than as a blush.

Rating- 4/5

The One Power Shine Lipstick in Trendy Berry

I went ahead and ordered this lipstick as I am a big fan of shimmer and glitter and love it even more on lips in a subtle way.

Product Description- Medium coverage lipstick in pearly shades with ultra-reflective MetaShine pearls for amplified shine. Infused with caring LipKiss Complex for softer, smoother lips and even more shine.

My Take on the Product- The lipstick is everything it promise. Medium coverage, gives good shine and keep your lips moisturized. The color is a pretty pink-berry. It stays on comfortably for 4 hours without any lip primer or lip liner and beyond that, the color starts fading but the shine stays.

In all, very happy with the product.

The One Power Shine Lipstick in Trendy Berry- without flash

The One Power Shine Lipstick in Trendy Berry- with flash

Rating- 5/5

Very Me Soft 'N' Glam Eye shadow in Sweet Olive

I have been on a look out for green eye shadow for a while now and love to try them wherever I find one, hence picked this one.

Product Description- The eye shadow duo that’s as versatile as your mood! Apply it dry for a soft, shimmering finish; apply it wet for intense metallic glamour.

My Take on the Product- This eye shadow duo comes in a clear plastic packaging. There is an olive green and a dark moss green color. The colors are not very intense. One swipe doesn't show much. If used wet, it looks better with metallic effect. Overall, nothing great but not bad either.

Rating- 3.5/5

The overall experience was fairly good. Would love to try few more products here

How do you like Oriflame products? Have you tried any of the above products? How do you like them? Please comment and share your views.

Signing off for now

My Nail Art Experiments

Hey Everyone,
Every year I try to do something that I have never done before and if it sustains my interest, I try to master is over a period. So, this year my fascination took me to nails. I was always infatuated with nails though toe nails had higher priority than finger nails but then I got nail extensions for my finger nails and wanted to try nail art. I started with nail art and moved on to doing extensions etc.

Sharing few of my nail art designs

#ChristmasNailArt

#ChristmasNailArt

#ChristmasNailArt

#BlackandGoldNailArt

#BlackandWhiteNailArt

#PeacockNailArt

How do you like them. Please share your view in the commets

Signing off for now

Guest Post- 10 MakeUp Tips to Look Gorgeous this Winter by Gayathry Pillai

Sweaty summers are gone and cool winters have finally stepped in. The days are getting shorter and cold nights are getting longer. It's time for getting yourself prepared to welcome winter. Being beautiful always during winter is not that easy. You need to be specific when it comes to all the products that you use during winter season. It should match with your skin type and tone as well.

A lot of things are needed to be taken care of when it comes to makeup during the winter. In fact, a whole revamping of your makeup kit will be needed to get a gorgeous look during winters. Have a look at 10 makeup tips you should follow this winter to look gorgeous. Make sure you imply them on your routine so that you do not fall out…

Before starting of with the makeup, make sure that you apply moisturizer on your body to keep is soft, supple and moist. Winters can make your skin go dry and chapped. So apply any good body moisturizer twice daily. Oil based moisturizer will be more suitable for the season rather than the water based one. Buy moisturizer at affordable rates from Snapdeal.

Make sure that you use any good oil based face cream on your face to avoid over dryness of the skin. Any branded face cream that suits your skin tone is a good choice. Apply a little of it on your face and spread it evenly for a smooth finish.

If you are too particular in using foundation, make sure that you use a light matte or a soufflé as it can sync well with the winter look. Also try for tinted powder with slight shimmer to get a perfect winter look. Buy branded foundation online from Flipkart at the lowest price.

Using bronzer during this season will make you look gorgeous. The season demands a subtle look during the day time and a bright look during the night.

Play with your eyes this season because it will enhance the beauty of your face. Define your eyes with black or brown. Go for the smoky look which would be a perfect one for the season. Make sure that you highlight all your best features including eyes, lips and brows.

Do not forget to use dark shades for your lips. Use red lipstick as the season demands it. Moreover it will add more color and glamour to your winter look.

Any bright color goes well with this season but one can also opt for neutral shades as well if they prefer. Nude, pink, browns, greys- try them too!

Do not salivate your lips as it will make them chapped and drier. Use lip balms frequently whenever you feel your lips are getting dry.

Light shades will be the best choice if you are using the blush. Go for the pinks, corals, browns, and even gold this season. Choose the right color based on your skin tone.

Last but not the least, give a care to your hair as well as your hairstyle does create an impact on how you look with your makeup on. High chances are there for your hair to become frizzy during this season. Use defrizzer on your hair so that it can be well-maintained.

Author- Gayathry Pillai

Finally... Found my desired Red Nail Paint

Hey Everyone,

If you have been following my blog, you would know how desperately I was searching for a red nail paint... it's not just any red nail paint, It is a particular type of Red Nail Paint (Read here  for more on that)... and finally I am happy to say that I found it before the year ended.

So, without wasting any more time on that, let me introduce you all to my newfound love- Nubar G181 Fire Sparkle. It's a bright red with glitters and with a top coat gives a glassy finish. Absolutely what I was looking for... I found it the first time at BBlunt, RCity while getting a pedicure (Read here). Then I had to get my hands on it and which I did manage to a few weeks ago.

About Nubar Nail Lacquers

Nubar nail lacquers are Formaldehyde, Phthalate and Toluene free. These are few of the commonly found ingredients in nail enamel that are carcinogenic.

The finish is quite opaque even after the first coat. Couldn't wait to click few pics with Fire Sparkle

Nubar G181 Fire Sparkle Without Flash

Nubar G181 Fire Sparkle With Flash

Also, tried some simple nail art using Nubar Nail Art Pens... Another amazing product... will rave about it in another post!!

How do you like my favorite Red? Do leave your comment and share your views

Signing off for now

Intense, Long Lasting, Reasonably Priced Eye Liner?? Dream or Reality?

Hey Beauties,

I know it's been long... actually realllly long that I have posted on my blog. But, to compensate for the gap... here I am with something absolutely interesting.

How often we are looking for an eyeliner which doesn't smudge, is waterproof and long lasting, easy to apply, mess free and above all... it should fit well in your pocket.

Trying various products for few months now... some in India, some from abroad imported here... some popular and some trying to make an entry into Indian market. In this quest, I found a product that fits into all the above requirements. This product is from Lebanon and made in Taiwan and is just making an entry into Indian markets and is available through distributors only.

So how did I catch hold of this product? The importer of this product gave me two samples of this product to use and review over a period of few weeks. And I was hooked to this product from the first day...

Well... let me just take the mystery away and unveil the product- This is PROVOC Semi permanent eyeliner pencil.

Product Claims

An intense range of semi-permanent makeup pencils that are designed to grab attention. Provoc long lasting, easy to apply makeup pencils come with-

• Semi Permanent Formula
• Waterproof
• Intense Colors
• One Stroke Application
• Outstanding Color Range
• Easy Take Off with Waterproof Makeup Remover

My Take on the Product

These are sharpenable pencils that comes with a transparent plastic lid and a colour indicator and number on the pencil.

The texture is absolutely smooth and creamy and great for one stroke application as claimed. The color is intense and a wide variety of colors are available (29 colors to be exact!). The colors range from the basic black, brown to blues, greens, purples, metallic; from matte to shimmer, basically everything that one can think of in terms of eye pencil.

To test their staying power, I let the black one on my oily eyelids and waterline for the whole day and I went on with my usual routine and at night when I went to remove my makeup, the eyeliner was still intact and intense. That was it... One stroke application, stays on for more than 8 hours, amazing colours... what more can you demand from an eyeliner. It's like using a gel liner without the mess.

Coming to most important part... so how much do these cost?
They are priced at Rs.600 and currently available at few places like some high end beauty salons. If you really want to try them out you can always mail me at nsur20@gmail.com or get connected at my facebook page https://www.facebook.com/mirrorimageandstyle and I'll get them shipped to you and if you quote "MAKEOVER", you get 10% discount on MRP.

What do you look out for in an eyeliner pencil? Do leave a comment

Signing off for now