I wish I was more of a hip hop head. I know a little bit...but the songs I know really barely scratch the surface. I really like A Tribe Called Quest. They have a lot more songs than just this one song I'm sharing today...but this is my favorite, favorite song by the group
This past week was a week of cooking food, food. Which I always appreciate because then I don't struggle trying to think of things to make.
Starting with pasta. I love making a big pasta dish because it makes so much and the leftovers mean I can skip cooking a few extra days. I didn't follow the instructions exactly. But this dish was just..OK. Fine for a weekday dinner but not something I would make again. It didn't even begin to touch the Alfredo I made a couple of a weeks ago. But that also took a lot more work since I made the pasta myself. This was fine though...
Kalastyle claims:
Active marine algae extracted from select seaweeds act as a protective moisturizer for the skin. Seaweed is a gentle clarifier, removing impurities while leaving the skin ultra-fresh, clean & soft. These skin-boosting properties combined with our lightly floral, beachy scent make this a classic, top-selling bar.
Seaweed is: hydrating + nourishing
Notes: a warm summer breeze with a hint of gentle florals
Key Ingredients: sustainable palm oil (RSPO certified), red algae, seaweed extracts.
made in usa
Many of their bars have a star ingredient that they seem to revolve around. This one being seaweed. You can find quite a bit of Seaweed skincare things- The Body Shop has a seaweed line for oily/combination skin that has been around ages. Lush has/had a seaweed mask, bath bombs, and a few soaps that used it. It's really supposed to be an amazing ingredient for the skin.
I'm not sure how much it really does for your skin in a rinse off product- but I did notice my skin was really soft using this and not very dry at all.
The only thing I didn't much care for was the scent. Floral beachy sounds like something I would love but it really reminds me of a baking soda carpet refresher I had from Arm and Hammer. It's not a bad scent at all...it's just not my cup of tea and I don't want to be reminded of carpet refresher. Mostly I would end up going nose blind to it anyway- it just seems to fade into the background after you bubble it up. I really wanted to love it though..and I wouldn't be surprised if most other people do. I can just be very picky sometimes.
Ingredients are fine. It is very annoying that they don't list the ingredients on the website- which they definitely should do...I would be interested in ordering from their website if I could see what the ingredients were supposed to be.
Ingredients
sodium palmate, sodium palm kernelate, water, glycerin, sodium gluconate, red algae extract, seaweed extract x2, sorbitol, sodium benzoate, salt, parsley powder, palm acid, sodium chloride, palm kernel acid, titanium dioxide, fragrance
It will run you 9 dollars for 4 oz...it's not cheap. But I do like that it's under $10. Wouldn't be a repurchase for me---but I am still looking forward to trying other variations from the brand. I also really need to try to get my hands on some actual Swedish beauty brands- I think that would be fun.
Then again, I think she just looks stunning in just about all the costumes in the show.
But anyway...back to a pretty basic and boring nail polish review.
Just some Maybelline.
Maybelline claims:
Whether a glittery top coat or an elaborate nail design - the Express Nails Nail Polish Remover Acetone-Free from Maybelline New York removes any residue and ensures perfectly cleansed nails that are excellently prepared for the new manicure. The acetone-free formula is particularly gentle and does not stress nails and cuticles, but gives them rich care and valuable moisture thanks to the avocado oil it contains - also perfect for artificial nails.
made in France (bought in Germany- the US version is probably made in the US)
I didn't know it was Acetone free when I bought it. I didn't read it. Actually as I'm doing the review I am just now realizing it's acetone free. I usually prefer Acetone removers because I find them to be most effective. I don't like removers that take a lot of rubbing to remove nail polish- or ones that feel so harsh like they are damaging your nails by drying them up. And usually I find that's what Acetone free nail polishes do.
Except this one.
This one is pretty amazing. It melts the nail polish right off. I'm not left with much- if any under the nails or caught in the nail line. And it does all that without excessively drying my nails or causing them any damage.
And it smells so nice and leaves a pretty nice scent. Or at least it smells nice when you consider that it is still nail polish remover and has that underlying smell.
I saved my Zoya remove nail polish bottle which I just refill. The packaging is not bad but I tend to pour too much and I just prefer the Zoya pump bottle. I'll probably keep and refill it forever.
The only thing is it's pretty expensive for the amount you get- so I wouldn't buy it all the time. I think I might alternate with the the store brands local to me and I am definitely more willing to pick up and try the Acetone free versions now.
Ingredients:
ETHYL ACETATE, ALCOHOL, AQUA / WATER, GLYCERIN, PARFUM / FRAGRANCE, PERSEA GRATISSIMA OIL / AVOCADO OIL, BENZYL SALICYLATE, BENZOPHENONE-1, BENZYL ALCOHOL, HEXYL CINNAMAL, LIMONENE, EUGENOL, LINANOL, HYDROXYCITRONELLAL, GERANIOL, CI 42090 / BLUE 1
Overall, I love it. It could be one of my favorite removers and bonus is that it is usually available pretty local to me.
Lush claims:
Cleanse your body with this heady patchouli, refreshing orange oil, and zesty lemongrass shower gel for an uplifting experience. One of Lush’s most iconic fine fragrances, Karma has been a much loved scent at Lush for over 20 years, inspired by the sunny days and hippy vibes of a 1970’s London summer. Translate this feeling into good deeds for even greater Karma.
Made in Canada
What's in it for you?
- Fresh orange juice brightens and cleanses skin
- Many of Karma Kream's sister products, such as perfume, soap, and body lotion, can be layered to create a heavenly signature scent
- Patchouli, pine and Brazilian orange oils blend to create this iconic scent
Leaving the world Lusher than we found it
- We've made our recyclable bottles thinner to further reduce unnecessary plastic
- This self-preserving product is formulated to stay fresh and effective without added synthetic preservatives
- Our dark Sumatran patchouli oil comes from a remarkable producer, the Gayo Lues Permaculture Center in Indonesia. Their practices are designed to support the health of Sumatra and Borneo islands’ ecosystems, protecting the primary rainforest and its inhabitants, like the noble orangutans.
The Karma scent is really a classic Lush scent and one of my favorites that Lush do. Which is not surprising. They really know how to do a patchouli. I've tried a few things from the Karma line- the re-useable bubble bottle, the bar soap and now I am finally reviewing the gel. It took them a few years to come out with the shower gel- but I'm really glad they did. It last's longer than the bar soap will and even though it's very expensive, I think you get better value vs the soap. But I do think I prefer the scent of the soap over the gel. It just smells a bit better.
But this still does capture the Karma scent well. I love the scent- it's Patchouli- Orange. And maybe a few more scents blended in. I love it so much I have played around with making my own blend with essential oils. And I have gotten pretty close too. I even tried dupes off Etsy- but they are never as good as the scent from Lush. It's a very unique gel- I haven't smelled anything really similar enough from any other company. It's nice and strong in the shower and when my bottle was newer it really lingered around too. Not so much now that my bottle is getting a bit older though
I don't think the scent would be for everybody but I do think it's one everyone should experience just once. Even if you aren't a patchouli fan I would say this is worth sampling.
Otherwise it works just like any other shower gel- lathers well, doesn't dry my skin (at all), rinses clean.
Probably the best thing about Lush Shower gels- the ingredients. It has typical ingredients- but they always throw in some goodies which is pretty unique to Lush. It has actual Patchouli oil, a bit of Orange Juice, Lemongrass...just all the good stuff that I like to see in an ingredient list.
ingredients:
Water, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Sodium Cocoamphoacetate, glycerin, lemongrass infusion, laurel betaine, fragrance, fresh orange juice, dark sumatran patchouli oil, Brazilian orange oil, lavandin oil, pine oil, lemongrass oil, elemi oil, lactic acid, citral, citronella, geraniol, hydroxycitronellol, limonene, linalool, red 4,
Overall, even though I prefer the bar soap scent over the gel...I still really love the scent. It's something that I could see myself purchasing again and it's definitely making my year end favorites!
We are knocking the posts out early today since I have a list of things I want to get done today. This was an ok week in the kitchen.
I made a Cranberry Nut Bread. It came from the Vitamix cookbook and you are supposed to use the Vitamix but I couldn't bring myself to do it. You really don't need to Vitamix to make a quick bread. So I just made it like I would make any other quick bread. It was OK. I think my whole wheat flour is getting a little old- but I finally used up the last of it so I'm happy about that. I also used dried cranberries instead of fresh because fresh is not in season. Overall, it was OK. I also forgot- I reduced the sugar to about 3/4 cup instead of a whole cup. I do that in any bread I make. But yeah..just OK. Wouldn't make this particular recipe again. It made a decent snack for work though and I froze a few pieces for net week too. This isn't the exact recipe but similar enough...
