Tagged!

Tagged by: Fastidious Babe
I will always wear: Black
I will never wear: Animal prints
My bad-clothes-day advice: Don't step out of the house if you're looking less than cuteness.
I Know I look great when: I smile.
Smart travel tip: Im like Fastidious in this one...my cardinal rules...Travel light and moisturize
To me summer means: The world is one big party for three months.

To Fastidious...Cyberspace would be a really boring place without you.

Hard Candy

http://www.musicvideocast.com/2008/06/madonna-give-it-2-me-music-video.html

Inspirational and relentless in her quest to push boundaries and defy convention, she's proved herself to be an example to all of us however we choose to lead our lives, of what its like to have a will to live rather than simply exist...and this new album is nothing less than classic Madonna style to charter into new waters...with an urban beat and a hiphop club vibe to it, its a different direction from the polished techno trancey previous Confessions album and a long way from the cheeky playful girl that called everyone out over 20 years ago to take a Holiday.

I love 'Give it to me' with a video directed by fashion photographer Tom Munro, which reminds me of an ode to the superglam 70's era at Studio 54..with its catchy beat and delicious lyrics, Im in the mood to let my hair down and lose myself in the rhythm grooving to the beat...Enjoy the link above

'Miles Away'...'Shes not me'...'beat goes on'...'Devil wouldn't recognize you'...'Voices' are on repeat in my player...lol actually the whole album is perfect for summer.

Someone To Watch Over Me

I love the postman :)

It started off as the worst morning ever...one that I havent had in a while...even the arrival of my new louby's and fave beauty stash couldn't distract me, I still found myself absolutely devastated...midday in the midst of my darkened mood my eye caught the calender and I almost sighed with relief at the fact that I could have a lame excuse to pin my deeply buried sorrows, had I not been in a serious oblivion of blues..

Despite the fact that Im not superstitious, I'd like to believe that what happened today was due to an unlucky coincidence with time...maybe repressing so much is really not a good thing...sometimes thats the price one has to pay for being so in touch with so much...Ive come to the firm realization that ignorance really can be bliss.

Like a dark looming cloud it sailed away, thanks in all part to to the bestest presence in my life who keeps making everything okay when I feel like nothing can be alright again...Noone can stick around the way you do and noone can deal with my temporary bouts of insanity with such dignified assertiveness and compassion as youve shown..If I havent been blessed with ignorance, Ive definitely been blessed with you xx

Its almost midnight and the better part of the evening definitely brightened up...Im going to sign off with a toasting ritual from Fastidious Babe.

To the people in our lives who keep us grounded and remind us to smile

Have a starry night xoxo

Readers requests

I got a question the other night from one of my bubblylicious readers asking me about her skincare concerns..I promised to to post in my next entry.

"spots. blackheads. and when your face doesnt have that glow. i hate putting make up on. i just hate seeing my face look so dull."

It sounds like you have combination skin...the breakouts, and the 'dullness' is a result of dryness and lack of exfoliation...The natural skin cycle where new cells come up to the surface and older ones are shed off naturally takes about 22 days...as we get older this cycle takes longer with cells rising to the surface and clumping up on your skin..it doesnt help moisturizer penetrate your skin and the clumps reflect the light rays haphazardly to give a dull looking appearance...oil and bacteria are trapped under the skin and give you blemishes...the blackheads are a result of oil and dead skin cells clogged in the pore itself which when exposed to air oxidize to produce the dark colour you see.
To help facilitate the process you need to regularly polish your skin yourself with a scrub suited for your skin type twice a week or have sessions of microdermabrasion at a skin clinic.
I recommend you start with a gentle babysoft cleanser twice a day so you wont irritate your skin...Dermalogica ultracalming cleanser...Natura Bisse cleanser for sensitive skin...Cle De Peau fraiche (found at Faces is delicious and I think will work really well for you) and the gold standard Cetaphil (found at most drugstores).
During the day apply a light oil free moisturizer and at night youll need something that can internally work to exfoliate...I literally swear by Chanels microsolutions ampoules...21 small ampoules for 21 days applied at night containing 10% Glycolic acid work gently on your skin without redness peeling or irritation..you can follow that up with the same moisurizer you used in the morning...Hydramax gel cream works well in tandem with any kind of blemish treatment and wont interfere in the treatment.
Keep a bottle of Mario Badescu drying lotion at hand (found in Areej) to put on new spots at night...they clear up quickly in 2-3 days with this...or dot some Clinique emergency masque on problem areas and let it dry out blemishes while you snooze.
Depending on how bad the breakouts are you could go to a derm and ask for Minocin antibiotic tabs for 1-3 months as well as having a full blood workup to check on hormone levels that are strongly linked to acne.
As for makeup steer clear of any foundation this summer..its not going to help you...if you need cover try Clarins Teint Souffle its gorgeous..or mineral foundation Barescentuals does a great job, found at Sephora.
Keep your makeup brushes regularly clean..change your pillow cases daily and keep hair and hands off your face.
Try this for 21 days and we can move on to the next step when youre done..the key is you jut have to be patient.
Keep me posted.

To the Anonymous music request...I posted lots of my fave tracks on youtube videos before I installed my player you can look through those and heres a quickie list of my own according to my mood today

A.M:
Miles away-Madonna
Devil wouldnt recognize you-Madonna
Voices-Madonna

Afternoon:
Let me think about it-Ida Corr (I blast this on my way out of the hospital after a long day on my feet)
Im that chick-Mariah Carey
Heartbreaker-will.i.am

Early evening:
Paris lounge-Llorca
Seemingly sleepy-late night alumni
Cant get enough of your love-Barry white (ultimate feel good happy song)
Tell me what you want-Mase feat.Total
Close to you-Maxi Priest ( 20 years on and Im still in love with the beat theres nothing sexier than this)
The mating game-Bittersweet

Bedtime:
More than ever people-Levitation
Ride it-Jay sean
Anything by Sade

Eccentricities

1. I love to eat dessert before dinner.

2. I pour Tabasco Habanero sauce on almost everything.

3. As sexist as this sounds my morning drives to work...and to the mall...in fact anywhere, have grounded my firm belief that women drivers are insane..theyre best left to chauffeurs.

4.I love to drop random scandalous comments in the middle of a conversation for the kick of the shock value :)

5.When Im bored I amuse myself internally by studying people intently and discover things that the person in front of me wouldn't want me to know.

6.I have morning music, afternoon music, evening music and late night tunes all divided into those categories and Ill play those tracks according to my mood.

Im a hippie at heart.


Love you lots Nyxxie...get out of the boardroom!
Kytheria...have a good one x
xxx

Everyday is a weekend

The season officially starts....Bust out the bikinis and the gorgeous cover ups...don on the grecian sandals and make sure your ipods list is full of pumping summer tunes...Hang on, we forgot something important...summertimes slew of skin concerns...the right SPF...the perfect moisturizer...shine control and the eternal question...how to keep summer hair silky smooth at the beach and outdoors...Well worry not, Bubbly's here to the rescue with some of the most wondrous discoveries and advice for my favorite bubblylicious readers.

CHANELS HYDRAMAX
For the past few years Ive been a loyal of Chanel's Hydramax and whomever I have recommended it to has led to a cult following...simply because it works...
The delicious scent...the continuous moisture all day and all night and now they've launched a newer version...Hydramax Active which means an even better result for your skin.
Although it comes in three different textures I recommend the Cream Gel for summer...you can do what I did and switch to Cream for winter...thats so lushhhhhhh....there's also a tinted moisturizer for days at the beach or simply at work...I mean who wants to hit work in the morning with foundation in the summer?

CREME DE LA MER
After all of my loyalty to Hydramax which was a part of my secret to my flawless skin, lol the rest is genetics...I realized that I needed something more than moisture for me...I wanted a simple moisturizer for sensitive skin that works as an anti-aging product too (prevention is better than cure)...although there are a hundred million claims from different luxury brands, with my beauty savvy I knew which one I had to channel for myself personally...and so I headed to the beauty counter bought the items and went home to test run it through my standard 8 vigorous weeks of testing...and Im happy to report my skin thanked me by revealing dewy fresh baby softness...Im hooked for life!
I love the La Mer Gel Creme formulation and the fantastic Face Mist that is perfect for trips to the beach to boost moisture levels or even a spray indoors at home or work to combat drying effects of the airconditioning system.
The Refining Facial is divinityyyyy....its the perfect exfoliator with real diamond dust that glide so softly on your kin to reveal a fresher you.
Oil control throughout the day? No problem Creme de la mer's Oil Absorbing Lotion nixxes shine beautifully.

SPF AND TANNERS

Clarins UV PLUS SPF 40 merged wth e3p their antipollution screen tp produce divinity results...goes on as light as air on your face and leaves no greasy residue.
For the body I love Neutrogena SPF 85 drytouch and it comes in a cooling version spray for serious coverage of hard to reach areas....cool your skin later with an aloe vera spray and a milk bath and dont forget to carry Clarins SOS sunburning relief stick and balm.
Self tanners are Fake Bake....ModelCo and the gold standard St Tropez.
For the fairer paler ones like me Ive found the most delicious products formulated especially for pale skin...lol finalyyyyyy...Clarins delicious self tanning cream...and Cliniques touch of bronze.
Dont forget to scrub and moisturize with Kiehls Soy body polish and Creme De Corp in Light before applying.

BEACHY HAIR

Kerastase has the cutest soleil range to protect your hair from sun chlorine in the pool and damage...and an overnight product to work on your tresses to transform them into silk by morning
Im loving Frederic Fekkai's Lavender and Honey conditioner to soothe dry scalps and the Shea Butter Shampoo and Mask post beach exposure.
Wrap your hair in a silk scarf to protect it from the suns rays...crucial for those with coloured hair...I love Pucci and Missoni for their fresh bursts of colour.


MAKEUP

The look this summer is ultra glam....dab on some a soft lipbalm or Chanels aqualumiere lipshine...the texture made me melt its stunning...Guerlains range this season is divine...swirl a brush over their terracotta moisturizing powder or spray with their bronze spray in three colours light medium and dark for different intensities..then add a light tint to your cheeks,,,Benefits Poisie is like their cult Benetint except
its a fresh pink...or go for the Nars stick in orgasm.
Keep your nails with fresh colours...I discovered Chanel in Cassis and Cherry

Now that your armed and fabulous dont forget to put on your sexy oversized shades on your way out, theyre useful in more ways than one ;)
Bubblywishes to a sexy fantabulous uninhibited summer...go knock yourselves out!

Interlude

Theres a moment of peace. A moment of stillness that washes over me. In that place in time I feel the nanoseconds stretch into an eternity...all that Ive ever known and all that could ever occur, come together to wake me up from my trancelike state of realism.

I never dreamed of it...It definitely catches me off guard...Through my eyes if I could define it,life is in moments.
Through the silence I expect to feel nothing...its who I am...
I stood and the quietness screamed back at me, deafening me with ambivalence...mixed emotions and only one voice in my head resonating within me...my voice breaking free of my self imposed restrictions to tell me what I already know.
Even after all, here...Im glad that detachment and reality failed to function.
Its good to feel.