by VioletLeBeaux | Sep 9, 2009 | Beauty, Hair, Review
Good morning everyone! Continuing my “Hair and Make Up” theme of blog posts this week, today I’m going to be reviewing some of the beauty products I’ve been using lately.
Review- 1000 Hour Eyelash Adhesive:
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Background information: I have sensitive skin and allergies such as hay-fever etc. Over the last 3 years I have had a lot of medical problems resulting in be having many tests done. The over use of latex equipment made my allergies a lot worse. As a child I had eczema and I still have moderate asthma. After using lash glue and liquid eyeliner that contained latex for around 6 months I developed a full blown allergy to that. Since then I have been searching for an alternative.
Experiences: I bought this glue from Priceline after seeing it was “hypoallergenic” and did not contain latex. Before using it I did a test swatch on my wrist to make sure there was no reaction. Nothing happened on my wrist so I applied the eyelashes. I wore them for around half an hour to test them out. I took them off and around 2 and 1/2 hours later washed off the glue completely in the shower. My eyes were a little itchy but other than that fine.
The next morning I woke up like this: 
As you can see I had a very severe allergic reaction. When I woke up I couldn’t physically open my eyes because they were so swollen. Now 5 days later my eyes are still slightly swollen and itchy as all hell. 
I emailed the manufacturer (who’s name is very comfortingly “ChemCorp”) and received a reply on Monday lunch time asking for more details about what had happened. They also asked me to send the bottle back so they could analyze it. After a couple of emails back and forth this was the response I got as to why it happened:
Thank you for your prompt reply.
Firstly, I would like to apologise for the disappointment you have experienced with our product. Customer satisfaction is something Chemcorp holds in high regards and its of great concern when one of our customers is not 100% happy with our product.
As I am sure you are aware you haveexperienced an allergic reaction. It seems that you indeed have very sensitive skin, particularly in your eye area. We have sold over 50,000 1000 Hour Eyelash Adhesive and yours is the first complaint we have had.
We employ a regulatory company who makes sure all our products conform to all regulatory requirements. When a products is said to be hypoallergenic,
it is claimed it causes fewer allergic reactions. People with severe allergies and/or asthma may still be affected. 1000 Hour Eyelash adhesive has been put through tests specifically designed for sensitivity and allergenicity. All tests returned acceptable results. Hence despite the product being tested satisfactorily for reduced allergenicity and you having a negative skin patch test, you most regrettable suffered a reaction.
In regards to the allergens. Even though a product may contain suspected allergens, if the suspect ingredients are below the “risk” concentration, then it is acceptable and reasonable to describe the product as hypoallergenic.
Our recommendations are that you go to your pharmacy and seek advice in regard to a suitable antihistamine that will help reduce the allergic reaction. Also you should take note of all the ingredients so that you can ensure you will not be exposed to any of these ingredients in the future. We would like to fully reimburse you for the cost of the product and any associated pharmacy/medical costs.
We would like to thank you for alerting us to your reaction. If you would like any further information or have any questions please do not hesitate to ask.
Kind regards.
Now I did my own research into the ingredients and it turns out that two of the four listed on the packet are known allergens. So I’m a little bleh on their ability to call it a “hypo allergenic” product when there are 2 allergens in it.
Price: $7.95 (as far as I remember)
Verdict: To be honest I still love the product. It sticks well, it dries perfectly clear and in a reasonable amount of time. When I had a complaint it was resolved in quick and satisfactory manner. That said if you have any kind of allergies or asthma you should seriously think about whether it’s worth developing an allergy to this. BE VERY CAREFUL. If anyone knows of a lash glue which is actually non-allergenic let me know please?
Rating:4/10 (If I wasn’t horrible allergic then the rating would be 8/10) r />
Review: L’Oreal Preference “Scandinavian Blonde”
Background information: My hair was blonde (exact colour as in these photos) with around 3cm of very light brown regrowth. Experiences: Bought this dye to cover the regrowth. It did not. When buying it I made sure to check the color guide, according to that my hair should have turned out the same as the front cover. I put the dye in as per the instructions. The mixture looked suspiciously dark but I gave it the benefit of the doubt… It looks like this in: 
And you know what? When I washed it out it still looked like that. Very much not a light blonde, much more like an ashy light brown. It also stripped all of the warm tones out of my hair. It didn’t cover my regrowth, it just left a strange line. Price: $12.95 Verdict: Very unhappy with the results, not remotely like the front cover. Rating: 1/10
Review- L’Oreal Excellence Creme
Background information: After the complete failure of the “Scandinavian Blonde” I decided to use this to get the natural reds back in my hair. Experiences: Again I checked the swatches on the side of the box and it should have turned out the nice coppery colour on the front. It did not. It turned my hair a medium mousy brown. The one positive thing I have to say about this dye is the applicator comb is awesome! It made the usually painful application process super easy. Normally it would take me around 20min to apply, it took less that 5 with this comb. Price: $9.95 Verdict: Crappy colour, good applicator. Rating: 3/10
Background information: This set was a gift from Nuffnang. It is supposed to make your hair softer, shinier and protect against heat damage Experiences: This has actually been really nice. All 3 samples pretty much have a coconut kind of smell, personally I hate coconut but most people find it pleasant so I won’t mark it down to much for that! I thought the texture was nice and creamy and it felt good in my hair. The leave in Velvet Whip was what I was most looking forward to and I was pleasantly surprised. Normally leave in conditioners make my hair really frizzy or stringy, this seemed to be a perfect balance and my hair was soft all day. Price: Samples free from Nuffnang Verdict: After using it for a week my hair is softer and smooth. Rating: 8/10
Review- L’Oreal Superior Preference.
Background information: This was the first shade of copper I used after bleaching for the first time. I wasn’t quite ready to go completely blonde so this was a great in between colour. Experiences: This one actually went on exactly how it should and turned the colour on the box! Shock horror! You can see how my hair looked in this post for an after pic. Price: $8.95 Verdict: Really liked the colour, though it didn’t have a fancy applicator. Rating: 8/10
Review- L’Oreal Super Blonde Prelightener Creme
Background information: I have used this 3 times, the first two to strip out my red hair dye and the third to correct the mistakes of the “Scandinavian Blonde” etc. Basically it is supposed to strip out dye or lighten your naturally dark hair. Experiences: I can’t say how much I like this bleach. After using it 3 times my hair hasn’t sustained any lasting damage at all. It corrected the Scandinavian incident easily and now my hair is back to it’s blonde glory! It also brought out a lot of the orange tones in my hair. The only thing that I don’t like is that it takes over an hour to complete as you have to apply it in two lots. The applicator also sucks. Other than those two minor flaws I am going to continue using this to manage my regrowth. Price: $14.95 Verdict: Love the colour, it’s a little pricey but well worth it. Rating: 9/10
Extra~
Now that you’ve made it through this many reviews you deserve a treat 😉 Here are some photo of me with a lady bug that was in our garden the other day! How cute! 
Unfortunately around 4 seconds later it pooped on me! EWW! 
So are there any hair or beauty products you want to see me review? See you next post 😀
by VioletLeBeaux | Aug 17, 2009 | Life, Review
Well a lot of you guys are my friends on Poupee Girl so I thought I’d have a talk about the new Jewel system that they’re implementing now.
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If you want to know what poupee girl is have a look at my original post here.
So Katherine announced the other day that they are going to being a new campaign called Jewels.
What is it?
-Poupee has a currency of ribbons, you can earn ribbons to buy cute clothes for your Poupee at the market and at special events at Katherine’s shop. About a year or so ago they put in a new feature where you could buy ribbons. The basic idea with jewels is that now instead of being able to buy ribbons you will be able to buy jewels, a second currency.
So? What do jewels get me?
Well the only thing you can do with jewels is buy clothes at the special Jewel floor of Katherine’s shop.
And what’s the point of this?
Well judging by the current trend they are now only going to release the cutest items on the special floor of Katherine’s store. So what it boils down to is that if you want the super cute items you’ll have to spend real money and buy jewels. It also seems you won’t be able to use your jewels to buy anything other than the special items.
Apparently several other free to play webgames have gone the same way as Poupee and are more and more often implementing pay to play parts of the site. I am in no way against the creators and people who work on the site making money, they totally deserve it with the cool games they create… but I think there are much better ways to do things than this. Firstly Poupee is already full of subtle advertising, every time you leave a comment there is fine print advertising underneath. Not the mention the special even sales at Katherine’s shop which link to real world items. More special events please!
So what do other users think? Is this going to change the way you play Poupee Girl?
by VioletLeBeaux | Aug 10, 2009 | Review
Time for another review, this time of local yoghurt shop Yogen Fruz!
I’ve been trying to get healthy lately. I know, I know, it’s lame but a diet of only cheese burgers will eventually cause me to not be able to fit into that lovely Jesus Diamante jsk! But I loooove candy and sweets and pretty much everything that’s bad for me!
And so the search for a delicious sweet treat that won’t balloon my waist!
What is it?
Well basically it’s frozen yogurt. You can order it two ways “Blend it” or “Top it”. Blend it is where you pick some fruit and the puree the yogurt with it until it’s a smooth delicious mess. Top it is where you pick a flavor and then they put some fruit/nuts/sweets/random other thing of your choice on top
The buzz around this is that it’s actually a healthy-ish snack because it’s got pro-biotics and vitamins and junk in it.
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Personally I couldn’t care less as long as it tastes good.
The store just opened up at our local shopping center (Garden City as well as Carindale) so I decided to give it a go.
I ordered a Green Tea Top It with strawberries and mochi toppings. Yes that’s right they have mochi toppings! Here’s what it looks like:
Firstly how cute is it? The presentation was really well done and there were a good number of toppings. The prices are a little expensive, a regular was around $5.95 I think.
The taste was delicious. Normally I’m not a huge fan of green tea flavoured things but this was awesome! So freaking good I can’t even describe it.
Good points:
-Apparently healthy
-So freaking tasty
-Nice staff
-Cute presentation
-Addictive, though maybe that’s a negative!
Now here are the bad points:
-Out of the 5 times I’ve been I was charged 3 different prices for the same item. Possibly just teething problems in a new shop.
-Not really a negative but “Mochi” is spelled “Moochie” and I had to explain exactly what it was to the staff because they had never heard of it, one girl thought they were mini marshmallows ahahahaha!
So then… the final verdict? Well even if it’s not the cheapest thing in the world it’s still delicious so I’ll be going back!
And more importantly it’s made me want to experiment with my own frozen yogurt. I’ve bought some green tea powder and some yogurt so I’ll let you all know the results ^_^
So what’s your favorite healthy snack? Have you tried Yogen Fruz?
by VioletLeBeaux | Jun 1, 2009 | Review
This week’s shop post is a Pretty Paris review.
I’ll be doing a proper update tomorrow so I hope you guys enjoy this for now 😀
Products- Handmade jewelery using vintage or vintage inspired findings and cabochon roses.
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Prices- Other than the Australian exchange rate sucking the prices are really reasonable for handmade jewelery. I bought this ring and this hair clipand it came to US11.99 plus shipping which I think is great for something handmade and absolutely beautiful.Service- I have to say that the service was fantastic! I had previously commented on a blog about the hair clip but accidentally purchased the wrong one. Heather picked up on my mistake and emailed me straight away to confirm which one I wanted. Fantastic personal service exactly as it should be.
Shipping- Everything was shipped via airmail and arrived around 2 weeks after I ordered which is standard when coming from America. My items were shipped in an adorable little box which was a lovely surprise and came with a cute flier. Everything was bubble wrapped very securely and the clip was attached to a cute little wish ticket.
Overall it was a fantastic experience and I would definitely buy from Pretty Paris again. I’ve worn the ring several times and it has been very hard wearing so far which is great. The hair slide is perfect for days when I want to look cute but can’t be bothered getting completely dressed up.
by VioletLeBeaux | May 6, 2009 | Decoden, Hair, Hime Gyaru, Review
Japanese export site Strapya World Review.
Hello everyone and welcome to my first shop review! Be warned this is a big post with LOTS of pictures. I thought long and hard about which shop to review first but all the online spending that my K-Rudd Stimulus Money let me do gave me an idea! Everyone is always asking where I get my deco supplies from so here is a review on…
Strapya World!
Now a little background info:
Shop- Strapya-World Url- https://www.strapya-world.com/index.html Location- Japan
Products- Decoden supplies, little fake foods, cell phone straps, Disney and Hello Kitty accessories, random Japanese kitschy junk.
Prices- Well it’s a bit hard to compare as it depends on the exchange rate. Prices are in Japanese Yen. You’re paying more than you’d actually pay in Japan but most of the prices are still quite reasonable as long as your exchange rate doesn’t suck as hard as the Australian Dollar.
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Service- I have ordered with Strapya a couple of times and each time the service has been quite good. Items are shipped promptly and the only time I’ve had to email the response was quick and solved my problems. Note though that English is their second language so expect to have to be a little creative with reading any replies :)Shipping- Either surface mail or EMS, I always choose EMS for overseas packages because I don’t trust Australia Post. Also the EMS guy knows to ring my door bell rather than just leaving a note to go pick the package up. For some reason AusPost can’t grasp this fact. Shipping is very quick!Now some photos and more info!
I placed my order on the 25th of April and it arrived at my door on the 1st of May, this included a weekend so it wasn’t posted until the 27th… effectively it took 3 working days to get here.
This is what I ordered, everything arrived bubble wrapped for protection. Mostly deco supplies with one big thing…
A PEARL IN A CAN! (click to be taken to the Strapya listing)
So when I read about this I thought it sounded hilarious! As you all know… I LOVE pearls so how could I pass up the chance to get my own pearl out of a real oyster in a can?! So terribly Japanese it’s awesome.
Here is my adventure with Pearl In A Can..
It comes in a cute little box with some cute Engrish on it. There are 5 colours of pearl that you can get inside and each has a different meaning, more on that later. 
Things get a bit messy so I would suggest you get a tray or do this over a sink! Inside the box you’ll find the can with the oyster, instructions, a little tool to open the oyster and the necklace in a little blue heart display.
Make sure you read the label… apparently you shouldn’t eat the oyster… I don’t know who would be dumb enough to eat an oyster floating in some kind of alcohol which has been un-refrigerated for several days in the sun… but someone obviously was because there are a LOT of warnings XD
Now make sure to read the instructions and get out this little tool thing.
This is the oyster. If you think it looks gross, you should wait for the smell…
Open up your can with the ring pull and try not to breathe in the over-powering vinegar/alcohol smell.
Heehee it looks silly!
Now pull it out and grab your tool (hahaha)! Wedge it into the oyster and open him up!
Look I found a pearl!!
Make sure to give it a wash and discard the oyster and can!
How cute is that?
Which colour did you get? I got Cream which apparently means success! Go me! Bring on my success! The other colours you can get are: White- Intelligence Cream- Success Pink- Health Purple- Property Black- Love
Now we’ve got the pearl you should get the little cage necklace!
Open it up and pop in the pearl!
Put it back on the necklace and there you go!
How cute is that? I think it’s a great little novelty, especially since it’s currently on sale 90% off for US$9.75. Because it comes in such a nice package it would make a really nice gift.
Of course now you’ve spent all this time making your necklace you should spend some time checking yourself out 😀 Fantastic!
Final thoughts: Strapya- Though it’s not the cheapest, the items are cute, the quality is good and there is lots to choose from. I would recommend it! Pearl in a can- Fun to play with, a good gift and a damn cute necklace in the end!
Now my 2 questions for you guys… 1. Did you like this review? Does it need more/less humor? Would you read more of these? 2. What do you think of my new hair extensions??
As an after thought to all of this, I’ve been featured on Pink Expertise! Wow it seems like I’ve gotten a lot of features lately, it’s been really lovely! Thank you all for reading my blog, you guys are so awesome!
If you want to check out the feature just click the link below 🙂 http://thelifebehindthecoach.typepad.com/pink_expertise/2009 /05/inability-to-give-up.html
by VioletLeBeaux | Feb 2, 2009 | Review
Poupee Girl is one of the most addictive websites around. It’s kind of like fashion crack.
I don’t think that there is a Lolita online that hasn’t succumbed to the delicious perils of the Poupee world.
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Basically it’s an online wardrobe, you post photos of clothing and items you have and are given virtual “Ribbons” which are the currency used to buy virtual clothing for you “Poupee Girl” who is a little virtual dress up doll. Think the paper dolls you played with as a kid but all grown up with expensive brand items.
It’s a great time wasting site with games, a forum and a whole bunch of other things to keep you entertained. Your Poupee girl can interact with other girls in the café and you can leave comments about the items that people upload to their closets. It’s also a great way to show off your awesome wardrobe without seeming like a complete brand whore!The only pitfall that girls like me (with no self control) should be aware of it that you can actually buy ribbons. SELF CONTROL GIRLS! Remember you’re spending real money, don’t go overboard!
As you can see I had a very severe allergic reaction. When I woke up I couldn’t physically open my eyes because they were so swollen. Now 5 days later my eyes are still slightly swollen and itchy as all hell. 
I emailed the manufacturer (who’s name is very comfortingly “ChemCorp”) and received a reply on Monday lunch time asking for more details about what had happened. They also asked me to send the bottle back so they could analyze it. After a couple of emails back and forth this was the response I got as to why it happened:
Background information: My hair was blonde (exact colour as in these photos) with around 3cm of very light brown regrowth. Experiences: Bought this dye to cover the regrowth. It did not. When buying it I made sure to check the color guide, according to that my hair should have turned out the same as the front cover. I put the dye in as per the instructions. The mixture looked suspiciously dark but I gave it the benefit of the doubt… It looks like this in: 
And you know what? When I washed it out it still looked like that. Very much not a light blonde, much more like an ashy light brown. It also stripped all of the warm tones out of my hair. It didn’t cover my regrowth, it just left a strange line. Price: $12.95 Verdict: Very unhappy with the results, not remotely like the front cover. Rating: 1/10 
Background information: After the complete failure of the “Scandinavian Blonde” I decided to use this to get the natural reds back in my hair. Experiences: Again I checked the swatches on the side of the box and it should have turned out the nice coppery colour on the front. It did not. It turned my hair a medium mousy brown. The one positive thing I have to say about this dye is the applicator comb is awesome! It made the usually painful application process super easy. Normally it would take me around 20min to apply, it took less that 5 with this comb. Price: $9.95 Verdict: Crappy colour, good applicator. Rating: 3/10 
Background information: This set was a gift from Nuffnang. It is supposed to make your hair softer, shinier and protect against heat damage Experiences: This has actually been really nice. All 3 samples pretty much have a coconut kind of smell, personally I hate coconut but most people find it pleasant so I won’t mark it down to much for that! I thought the texture was nice and creamy and it felt good in my hair. The leave in Velvet Whip was what I was most looking forward to and I was pleasantly surprised. Normally leave in conditioners make my hair really frizzy or stringy, this seemed to be a perfect balance and my hair was soft all day. Price: Samples free from Nuffnang Verdict: After using it for a week my hair is softer and smooth. Rating: 8/10
Background information: This was the first shade of copper I used after bleaching for the first time. I wasn’t quite ready to go completely blonde so this was a great in between colour. Experiences: This one actually went on exactly how it should and turned the colour on the box! Shock horror! You can see how my hair looked in this post for an after pic. Price: $8.95 Verdict: Really liked the colour, though it didn’t have a fancy applicator. Rating: 8/10 
Background information: I have used this 3 times, the first two to strip out my red hair dye and the third to correct the mistakes of the “Scandinavian Blonde” etc. Basically it is supposed to strip out dye or lighten your naturally dark hair. Experiences: I can’t say how much I like this bleach. After using it 3 times my hair hasn’t sustained any lasting damage at all. It corrected the Scandinavian incident easily and now my hair is back to it’s blonde glory! It also brought out a lot of the orange tones in my hair. The only thing that I don’t like is that it takes over an hour to complete as you have to apply it in two lots. The applicator also sucks. Other than those two minor flaws I am going to continue using this to manage my regrowth. Price: $14.95 Verdict: Love the colour, it’s a little pricey but well worth it. Rating: 9/10
Unfortunately around 4 seconds later it pooped on me! EWW! 
So are there any hair or beauty products you want to see me review? See you next post 😀
