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Mid-Week Beauty Masterclass: Face Mapping

They say the eyes are a window to your soul... fact.  But did they ever tell you that your face is a window to your general health, both inside and outside your body as well as your mental state?  The aim of this post is to give you an idea about face mapping and how it can help diagnose certain disorders just but analyzing the condition of that specific part of the face.  Having said that, always consult your doctor with regards medical advice.

Some General Info

Eastern medics, such as Chinese, have used face reading as a diagnostic tool for more than 2000 years.  So, next time you look in the mirror, take a few more minutes (preferably bare faced) and analyze the different  ares accordingly.  This post will also help you to make minor changes where needed to lead you to a more beautiful and healthy you, inside and outside!

Chinese medicine is based on the idea that there is a subtle flow of energy through the universe and our bodies.  It's thought this energy links parts of the face with particular organs, so inner health disorders can be detected.

Face reading has been used in China since the Confucian era (551 - 479BC) to help predict health problems and prevent illness.  

Chinese face reading also analyses the face shape.  Different shapes correspond with the five elements of Chinese philosophy - water, wood, fire, earth and metal, and are linked with character traits and emotions.

The practitioner also looks at the facial features and checks for harmony between hills (bones) and rivers (soft tissue).

Actual Face Mapping

Here's what a face map really looks like and what all the zones signify:

Zones 1 & 3: Traditionally, both of these zones are recognized as 'sisters' to the bladder and digestive system.  If you breakout frequently in this area, it might be a sign that you need to improve your elimination by drinking more water and eating more 'whole' foods.  You may also want to consider a detox period by cutting down on alcohol and caffeine, but don't expect an instant clear up a breakouts are a common side effect of detoxing.  Also, if possible, try and reduce stress as it may play havoc with your digestion.

Zone 2: The middle of the forehead, between the eyebrows, is related to the liver.  Congestion in this zone can indicate over consumption of alcohol, rich foods, and possibly a food allergy (such as lactose intolerance).  Also, cut back on alcohol and try to relax with calming activities such as meditation; stress is bad for your liver and frown lines.

Zones 4 & 10: The ears are a highly sensitive area related to the kidneys.  If you notice that your ears are very hot, you might be stressing them out - drink plenty of plain water and cut down on caffeine and alcohol.

Zones 5 & 9: The cheeks often give an accurate glimpse into any respiratory distress.  Smokers or people suffering from allergies generally experience fine, broken capillaries or congestion in this area.

Zones 6 & 8: The eyes are truly a window to the body's health because they are related to the kidneys.  Dark circles, while often hereditary, are made worse by dehydration and poor elimination.  Dark circles may also be a sign that you are working too hard or getting too little sleep.  Try to cut back on coffee, alcohol and rich, salty foods and instead eat more complex carbohydrates such as wholegrains.  The latter help your body release serotonin, a hormone that helps combat stress and its effects.  Also, increase the amount of sleep you get and take a well-earned break!  Furthermore, a blue-green bruised appearance at the inner corners of the eyes may indicate an imbalance in your pancreas (an organ that aids digestions and helps maintain blood sugar levels).  Avoid skipping meals as this can lead to a dip in blood sugar levels.

Zone 7: A reddened nose can indicate heightened blood pressure, or the early stages of rosacea.  Congestion around the upper lip can occur of you use comedogenic lipsticks and liners.  Reduce salt intake and eat more potassium rich foods such as bananas, fish, nuts and seeds to lower blood pressure and quit smoking - try to be more active and get your blood pressure checked regularly by your GP.  Skin irritations on the nose and lower cheeks may indicate a lung or bronchial imbalance.  Cut down on dairy foods, which can cause congestion.  Snack on apples, tomatoes and red grapes - they contain the antioxidant quercetin, which is believed to improve lung function.  Also, get plenty of fresh air.  Yoga breathing exercises can help stimulate your lungs.

Zones 11 & 13: If you've had extensive dental surgery done, you might notice a break-out along the jaw line and near the ears.

Zone 12: Breakouts or unusual hair growth can indicate hormonal imbalance, possibly caused by extreme stress.  Premenstrual breakouts are also very common on the chin.  If the sides of the chin are white and blotchy with congested pores, this may be due to a possible yeast infection.  Avoid foods containing sugars and yeasts.  Boost the immune system with plenty of exercise and zinc-rich foods, such as wheatgerm and liver, plus loads of vitamin C.  Try a probiotic supplement or live yoghurt to help re-establish the intestinal flora (beneficial bacteria in the gut).

Zone 14: Don't forget to take a look at your neck - its skin is just as fragile as that on your face, so it definitely needs the benefits of moisturisation and sun protection. 

Last but not least, do not ignore dry, cracked lips with spots at the corners as these can signify stomach acidity.  Avoid spicy and fatty foods as these stimulate acidity.  Alcohol, tension and coffee may also cause problems.  Have several small meals rather than two large ones.  Chew food well, eat slowly and try to relax as you eat.

That's it with regards face mapping ladies! I hope you found this post interesting and now, you can have a closer look at your faces and identify any possible underlying health problems.  If you see anything abnormal, always consult your GP for medical advice.

Monthly Favourites: August 2011

Hello ladies :) This month has passed by so quickly and so much has been going on in my life which brings me to my first favourite thing for this month... starting work as a full time Medical Laboratory Scientist :D So far I'm really enjoying my work I just hope this enthusiasm stays with me all along :)







On to my favourite beauty products for this month.  First up, are two new products that I recently got from ebay (full reviews coming soon), namely the Peel-Off Nose Clay Mask to remove black heads and Bubble White Effervescent Nail Cleaner.  So far I like the results delivered by both of these products but I will talk more in detail about them when I review them.

As far as lip products are concerned, I have been favouring the following this month:
~ e.l.f. Mineral Lipstick in Rosy Tan (perfect for work)
~ e.l.f. Super Glossy Lip Shine in Goddess (alone or paired with Rosy Tan)
~ e.l.f. Studio Matte Lip Color in Natural (another perfect shade for work/everyday which I like to wear either alone or in combination with Mauve Luxe)
~ e.l.f. Super Glossy Lip Shine in Mauve Luxe (paired with Natural Matte Lip Color).

Once again, I have been using Wet 'n' Wild Brulee, Cover Girl Mocha Latte and e.l.f. Sheer Mineral Booster on an everyday basis.

With regards accessories, I have been wearing mostly my new peacock earrings as well as these cute dress shaped earrings and this vintage nautical necklace (all from ebay).

What were your favourites this month ladies?

The Exit Interview Series: Volume #1

Hey dolls, I figured I should introduce this new series of posts in which apart from the monthly favourites at the end of each month, I would talk about products I finished during that same month and whether or not I will re-purchase the product.  In this first post, I have two products that I used up, namely, Maybelline Water Shine Lipstick in 02 Cocoa Shake (now 02 Beige Glace) and essence stay natural concealer in 01 Soft Beige.


I love both of these products, in fact, I have already bought back-ups for each of them!  I have previously reviewed both of these products and you can check out the reviews here (lipstick) and here (concealer).  

The one product I was most exited about to get a back up is the lipstick.  I first feared that Maybelline had discontinued this particular shade because I couldn't find it anywhere, neither in shops, nor online bar for an online beauty shop but it was too expensive to get it from there.  When I gave up all hopes of finding it, I was once browsing the Maybelline stand at a local supermarket and bam! right there it was! only, they had changed the name! I was so glad I could finally get a backup of this lipstick! I purchased it there and then as it was the last one remaining. I love this lipstick so much that I kept using my older one till it was impossible to get anymore product out hehe.

On the other hand, the concealer wasn't hard to find as essence is widely available here in Malta and I bought two back-ups.

That concludes my first post in this series. How did you find it? Do you think I should continue to do this kind of posts?

Review: Born Pretty Store Hello Kitty Nail Stickers

I have been meaning to do this review for ages now and since I have some free time to myself after a very hectic and busy day at work, I have compiled a list of products I have not yet reviewed and since these have been in my possession for quite some time, I decided to review them finally!

I got the stickers for free with a facebook promotion that Born Pretty Store were running on their facebook page.  Born Pretty sell all kinds of nail art supplies as well as some make-up and hair products and other lifestyle gadgets.

On to the actual review now! I got the stickers around 2 weeks after ordering them and Mum opened them while I was doing a client's nails and since my client loves Hello Kitty, we decided to put them to good use there and then!

The first thing I noticed about them is the cute pink packaging they come in as well as how easy they come off their protective backing.  They are really easy to adhere to the nails and you get 4 different Hello Kitty motifs for a total of 54 stickers.


The stickers are small enough to fit the nails are therefore also suitable for use by little girls.  They are all glittery and feel 3D but not so much that they will bother you.  The stickers stick on easily and they lasted for 4 whole weeks on my client's nails.  I'll leave you to the pictures now:



What do you think? Have you ever tried stickers from Born Pretty Store?  You can now get them at 10% off by using the code EBABK31 at checkout!


Collective Haul: Work-Wear, Accessories and some Beauty Products

Hello cupcakes :) This is a collective haul of stuff I bought during this month, ranging from work-wear, casual wear and some accessories to a couple of beauty products.

Let me start with the clothes first. As some of you maybe aware, I have officially started working as a Medical Laboratory Scientist within the major hospital in Malta.  Although we do not have a uniform at work except for our lab coats, I still want to look different then when I was a student so I figured it would be time to invest in some work-appropriate wedges that look cute and smart while at the same time, be comfortable enough to wear during my work days. So I headed to Valletta with Mum and managed to find a khaki-taupe coloured pair at Peacocks as well as some bargains which were on sale.  The shoes cost €26 as they are part of the new stock and were not on sale.




The jeans and the beach dress were a steal at the prices I got them (€11.25 instead of €25 for the dress; €12 instead of €40.50 for the boyfriend jeans & €10.50 instead of €39.50 for the medium wash jeans) and they fit nicely and feel really comfy :)  The tan belt was included with the mid-wash jeans and I really like the detailing on it and how the straps are intertwined with each other.

I went to Peacocks again on another day (you guys should have figured out that I love shopping at Peacocks by now!) as I needed some basic white and black bras as the ones I had were wearing off a little at the straps.  I settled on a basic two-pack which retailed for €10.50.  Of course, while at the store, I had to check out all the other fantastic clothes that they have and of course, I had to get something else apart from the bras no?  I got another pair of jeans for work which I only ended up paying €4.05 for!!! They were originally €16.50 and were marked down to €6.75 (this was the price shown on the tag) and when I got home, I realized I paid even less! Don't you just love it when this happens? ;P  I also got two cardigans from the new collection of which the pink is my absolute favourite (see pic on right for back detailing).  I paid €20.50 for the red one and €29 for the pink one.


Mum also bought me this cute striped polo neck from Terranova which was on sale for only €5.99.  It would be perfect with a longer sleeved top when the weather is colder :)

From the Bossini sale, I picked up another top which is pretty long and looks great with some wedges and jeans for work and with leggings for a more casual everyday look.  I also got this pair of light-feeling dove grey trousers which are perfect for work.  The top was €6 instead of €20 something and the trousers were €8 instead of €22.45. 

I also got some accessories and some random beauty products from ebay:

First I got this black head peel off mask that you apply to your nose and so far I'm quite happy with the results.  I got this after seeing a review about it from Enigma and decided to give it a go myself (read myself and the rest of my family + bf).  I got this for €4.14.  I also purchased a sachet of Bubble White to whiten my nails after all the polish they get applied onto them every week.  To be honest, I was expecting a little more product but so far I am managing to get a few good uses out of this sachet which I paid €6.20 for (in fact, I won't be re-purchasing even though it whitens my nails.  I will stick to my home-made treatment instead).

Lastly, here are some accessories I got from ebay as well.  Shipping was free for all the items except for the necklace.  First up, my favourite out of all! These lovely and colourful peacock shaped earrings (told you I love peacocks ;p)!  I only paid €2 for these and I love how they jazz up an outfit! Although they may seem big, they are really light and that makes me like them even more :)  I also got these dress shaped ones for €1.11 and this brown Cameo brooch which can also be worn as a pendant.  I paid €3.95 for this.  At €10.50 (shipping inc.), the necklace was the most expensive piece.  I had been looking for a nautical necklace for quite some time but I still couldn't find one I liked until I saw this and knew it had to be mine!  The locket and the swallow make it look more feminine and cute and it has a vintage feel to it which I absolutely adore!  It also came cutely packed and it was supplied in a pink organza bag as well.



I also got a set of empty containers from BornPrettyStore.com to keep my nail art steel beads in as the containers they were in were really impractical and were taking up a lot of space.  Just a quick reminder about a code for my readers here; for 10% off your order, remember to use the code EBABK31 at checkout :)


And that concludes my August collective haul! I have to be extra careful not to spend too much money now as my first pay is due in September then I will treat myself to some China Glaze polishes I have been lusting after as well as an Audrey Hepburn DVD collection featuring 6 of her most famous and best films :)

Till next post, stay beautiful :) 

Review: OrigiNails Bubble White 5 Minute Effervescent Nail Cleaner

Hello my lovelies :) Today's review is about this effervescent nail cleaner called Bubble White.  I have never seen reviews about it on blogs I follow but I came across it on a facebook group of which I am a member and I decided to give it a go.  So I looked it up on ebay and ordered a sachet which came in the mail about a week later.  I was expecting some more product as I paid €6.20 (the cheapest I could find) for it and the sachet only contains 11g of product so definitely I will not repurchase, at least from ebay.

However, here is my experience with the product itself.  The product, which is basically a white powder, is supplied in this paper sachet which looks pretty basic.  The powder smells very much like those effervescent tablets with which you can clean dentures and the instructions at the back say that you have to empty the contents of the package into 1/3 cup of warm water and soak your bare nails in the solution for 5 minutes (the product will stop effervescing but they claim it continues to work even after the bubbling stops).  I wasn't really sure that for €6.20 I would want to use up the product immediately at one go so I added some product to less water in order to make it last longer and get some more uses out of it.


My main concern to try out this product was the fact that it claims to whiten nails and as my nails are most of the time wearing polish, they do get yellowish at some point.  My traditional remedies are to go without polish for a week two (the cheapest way lol) or else apply a home-made scrub de-stainer which consists of olive oil (to strengthen the nails), some white vinegar and lemon juice (to whiten the nails) and some sugar (to exfoliate the skin); but I still wanted to see how this product performed.  Here's a picture of my nails as soon as I took off the nail polish.  You can see the tips are somewhat yellowy.  And here's a picture after I used this product for the first time:


I wasn't overly satisfied with the results but my nails still look whiter and my hands feel incredibly soft after this treatment. However, I can achieve the same result with my home-made treatment, thereby I won't repurchase this again.  Have you ever tried Bubble White ladies? How do you feel about it?

Review: Born Pretty Store 12 pot empty container set

Hello loves :) I hope each and everyone of you is doing fine :) Here's a quick review about this empty container set that I purchased from BornPrettyStore.com.

I was looking for some empty containers to store my bouillon steel beads because as you will see in the photos that follow, the containers they came into were simply impractical.  So I logged onto their website and decided to get these which also came with a clear plastic box to keep the pots all together.  I placed my order for which I used my Born Pretty Points and practically, I got the containers for free! (you can accumulate points by creating an account and submitting pictures and reviews of products you have bought from the site). The retail price is also quite affordable and it decreases per item if you purchase more than one in a single transaction.  Born Pretty Store also offer free shipping worldwide.  Since they are based in China, orders may take long to arrive but with this order, it arrived within less than 15 days so I was quite impressed.  The containers came in a plastic sleeve, all wrapped in a padded envelope to protect them against rough handling.

Here are a couple of pictures to show you in detail how the pots present themselves:


As you can see, they are made of a clear, sturdy plastic material which makes up for easy viewing of what's inside each pot.  They are suitable for a vast range of nail art supplies and decorations such as rhinestones, beads and dried flowers amongst others.  They are also suitable to store craft materials as well.

The lids close tightly so there is no risk of losing rhinestones and the clear box in which they come helps keep everything organized in one place and it also serves as a space-saver!

Here's how I transformed the way my steel beads were originally stored:



Much more organized huh?  The only thing is that if these sets came in sets of 16 instead of 12, I think it would have been better for me.  I could always have gotten another set but since I only needed like 2 or 3 pots more (that's why there are some mixed colours in the photo above), it wasn't really feasible.

However, I am really happy that none of the pots nor the box itself were broken and now my beads are nicely stored away in pots which are more practical for me to pick out the beads from!  Should you wish to get a set yourself, make sure you use the code below for a 10% off your order ;)


Review: The Face Shop Nose Clay Peel-Off Mask

While changing up my skin care products, I came across a review from Enigma about this black head remover and she included a link to the ebay seller she bought it from.

I thought it was worth a try even though I don't get a lot of black heads and blocked pores, I still get a few sometimes and this sounded like a great alternative to popping them myself/using nose strips which never did anything.  On to ebay I logged and got myself a tube for €4.14 for 50ml of product which is quite a good deal.

I got my package a week later and there were no leakages whatsoever and the product was shrink-wrapped and packed in bubble wrap.  The tube itself, to me, conveys an image of a spa... all clean and white and with a blackberry pictured on it.  The cap is a twist-off type and the nozzle also had a silver seal (pretty much like the ones on toothpastes).  On the back are ingredients and instructions but since they are in Korean, I couldn't understand a thing.

I use this product after I clean my face as per my everyday routine and apply it before the toner while my nose is still wet.  I recommend using a generous yet not thick a layer of product for it to be peeled off easily later on and I usually leave it for around ten minutes.  The texture is very mud like and the colour of the product is in fact a muddy soft of white but it dries quite fast.  I really like the fruity smell (blackberry) of this product as well.  It's not a strong smell but it is delightful. To peel off, you just have to pull it off gently.  For me, it never came off as one whole piece but it is easily removed and if there are some left over bits, you can rinse them off with some water.

Now for the results.  To be honest, I wasn't expecting this product to really deep clean my blocked pores the way it did! It gives instant results and the skin on and around my nose feels smooth and deeply cleaned.  Once a week, is enough for me to give my nose a deep clean.

The rest of my family have also tried this product after all my ranting and they all agreed that this mask does a really good job at cleaning out blocked pores and black heads.  Most importantly, it didn't break me out or cause my skin to react adversely.

Once finished, I will definitely get a back-up of this mask as the pricing is awesome and it does a very good job! Have you ever tried this mask or any other product from The Face Shop?

What's in my Work Bag?

As most of you probably know, I have started working as a Medical Laboratory Scientist mid-August so I thought I'd do a What's in my Work Bag? post for you all who want to have a nosey :P  Let me show you the bag first:


This is the bag I use on most days so that's why I chose it for this post.  I usually co-ordinate the bag with my outfit but this bag is big enough to hold everything including my lunch.  I got it from Bossini during some sale period and I like the muddy brown colour which matches most colours.  It has a little zip pocket at the bag and another one on the inside as well as two other inside pockets for a mobile phone and say a little mirror.  Let's get on to the contents: 


Apart from my mobile phone (which I took the photo with so it is not included in the picture), I carry with me my make-up bag; a notebook and pen so I can take note of new things/procedures; pink iPod Shuffle; some tissues; chewing gum; house keys which I attach to a butterfly key finder, a Betty Boop key-ring and a heart shaped key-ring with flowers, butterflies and a little rhinestone that Johan had given me as part of a Valentine's Day gift; and last but not least, my access card.

Here's what's in my make-up bag:


I carry all this stuff with me everyday and when that time of month approaches, I always make sure I have some sanitary towels.  In winter, I also like to carry with me an extra pair of socks should I happen to wet the others with rain.  So basically, all the contents are: Impulse deodorant, e.l.f. Shine Erasers, wet-wipes, comb, hand cream, glasses cleaning cloth, mirror, hand sanitizer, lipgloss, black kohl eye pencil, small nail file, basic sewing kit for emergencies and the lipstick I would be wearing on the day (shown here is the e.l.f. Studio Matte Lip Colour in Natural).

What do you carry with you ladies?