My Redhead Rambles for A.Vogel

This month I have been super busy writing for work, contributing to both the main A.Vogel blog and stress blog. For the past few weeks I have been putting the NEW Rock Chick Natural Deodorant from Crystal Spring (my first ever natural deodorant) to test and I have written a post about my experience. I also wrote a post about A.Vogel Hayfever Pollen Forecast App and devised a 7 step guide to combating stress which bride-to-be (like me) can follow, pulled together from the wisdom of past brides and A.Vogel’s stress expert Marianna Kilburn! Read on for a summary of each post and a link to my full post on A.Vogel’s blog to find out more…

Crystal Spring Rock Chick Natural Deodorant for Girls (or Women!)

For the past few months I have been replacing many of my everyday beauty products with natural green products. From reading about other people’s experience this isn’t a quick process and it’s better to do it gradually, so each month I have changed several small things. Recently I made the decision to start thinking about the perfume, body spray and deodorant I use every day and look at replacing these with more natural products to help me stay fresh and still smell pretty.

I have done a bit of research on the perfume side and ordered my first testers, which I promised to tell you all about when they arrive and I try them. But the one thing I have managed to do is ditch my usual Nivea deodorant and replace it with Crystal Spring’s NEW Rock Chick for Girls! Okay so I know I am hardly a girl, but the packaging really appealed to me (as it is suppose to young/teenage girls) so I had to give it a try – what can I say I’m a sucker for the colour purple and sparkly silver stars, what girl/woman isn’t! Read my full blog post and find out if I loved it (I will give you a clue – I’m still using it!) here >>>

Don’t stress…I have my something borrowed for that!

My wedding planning stress post for A.Vogel recently started a Twitter discussion between two other blogging brides-to-be Debi from DibDabDebs and Karis from Practical Ever After and myself. Both are getting married this year and by the sounds of it their stress levels are sky-high. My 7 steps to combat wedding stress post was created following many conversation with my married friends who all warned me of the stress I am about to experience and after speaking with Debi and Karis its only confirmed that I really need to listen to their advice!

So far I have only experienced small moments of stress, like when I realised how big my other half’s family is and how we may have to upset some people if we want to stick to our day guest number. Seeing the costs of photography and videographer also made my stress level also caused a moment of panic until I stepped back and explore other options. Hopefully if I follow ‘my own advice’ I will be spared the big stressed out bridezilla moments I fear or at least manage my stress better when it does happen. Read my full blog post and find out about all the advice I received to combat wedding planning stress here >>>

Atchoo! There must be an app for this!

Well it’s definitely that season again! I’m not taking about spring, with its eagerly awaited light nights and blossoming flowers but rather a less anticipated time – the dreaded hayfever season!!! I am lucky enough not to suffer hayfever, usually it’s just prickly heat I have to attend with, but my other half is very prone to the sniffles and itchy eyes! The other morning I heard the first beginnings of the sound that has haunted me nearly every spring/summer morning for far too long – sniff, sniff, sniff!!!!

This year I plan to ‘arm’ my other half with the A.Vogel Hayfever Pollen Forecast App by downloading it on his smartphone and stock up on plenty of Pollinosan. So hopefully we can enjoy the next couple of months sneeze free… Read my full blog post and find out more about the Pollen Forecast app & how it can help here >>>

Going Bare Faced for Cancer Awareness!

Anyone with a Facebook or Twitter account yesterday couldn’t fail to spot all the make up free selfies that were going around. Whether it was just another social media fad or a moment of digital marketing genius, I for one don’t care either way, all I care about is it that it was an amazing way to highlight cancer awareness and raise extra donations for Cancer Research UK.

According to the charity they didn’t start the selfie campaign but I’m sure they are very happy with whoever did. There seemed to be some negatively surrounding the selfies yesterday, which I could not believe. True maybe some people were posting a make up free selfie just to be a part of the craze or even to show off how good they looked without make up. But there was a lot of women who really did it to help and donated (like me) to Cancer Research UK – well I had to after scary everyone with my picture.

The other great thing I saw was an increase of information about breast cancer awareness and how to spot the signs, which really is so important. I check myself regularly but only for lumps, whereas the graphic I saw online yesterday (below) really showed I wasn’t checking the right way.

So well done to all you brave women who bared all (spots & all) to show your support, to the women who also donated and also to the brilliance of whoever started this social craze – you did a really good thing!  We have all be touched by cancer in some way so any activity that raises awareness of this family/friend stealer is worth it in my books!

Have you done your Make up free selfie yet? Don’t forget to text BEAT to 70099 to donate £3 to Cancer Research UK! Go bared faced and lets kick cancers butt!

Proud to go make up free for cancer awareness,

Annmarie x x

The Very Inspiring Blogger Award

After only blogging for 4 months I was extremely proud and very touched to be nominated for the Very Inspiring Blogger award by two very inspiring ladies themselves – Annie from Hello Purple Clouds and Liz from Smells Like Green Spirit. You have both made a wee newbie blogger extremely happy so thank you so much.

So on with the award, the rules are……

1. Thank the person who nominated you and link back to their blog.
2. Display the award on your blog sidebar or awards page.
3. Share 7 random facts about yourself.
4. Nominate about 15 other bloggers for the award.
5. Let your chosen bloggers know they have been nominated and link to your post.

7 things about me ……

1. I used to hate being a redhead, now I love it! it’s my most defining feature I think – I really wish I could tell 10-year-old Annie that those girls that are teasing you now are going to be trying to dye their hair your colour when your all older!
2. I LOVE to read – I get through 3 to 5 books a week
3. My favourite book is Pride & Prejudice.  I first read it when I was 13 and have read it over 100 times since
4. My fiancé and I first met when we went to school together.  He asked me out but I was too shy to say yes.  He left school a week later at the end of 4^th year and I never saw him again until 10 years later when we befriended each other on BEBO – the rest as they say is history
5. My idol growing up was Ariel from the Little Mermaid – there was not a lot of redheads around then
6. My favourite food is Bernard Matthews Mini Kievs – I could eat them every night

7. My favourite living thing is the whole world is my dog Cassie, she is a rescue dog I got for my birthday when I was 21.  She is now a very old pampered pooch and lives with my parents and I miss her so much if I don’t see her for a few days.

Thanks again to Annie and Liz for nominating me. The rules state I have now to nominate 15 other inspiring bloggers.  Now most of these bloggers are so inspiring that they probably already have this award, so if you do ladies please just take this as a complement and a thank you for inspiring me so much.  These are the bloggers who inspire me and teach me to live a better, prettier and greener life every day!

My inspiring nominations go to:

Rachel from All Natural Aspirations

Ana from Ana goes green

Sarah from Sugar Puffish

Sandra from Beauty Balm

Liz from Well Meaning Being

Leanne from Lass and Lipstick

Louise from Kinder Health and Beauty

Jenny from Redhead Beauty Diaries

Dana from Hearty Habits

Evelyn from We were raised by wolves

Amber from Ambers Beauty Talk

Charlie from Sophia’s Choice

Jen from Jen’s Green Skin

Laura from Laura K

Gem from Buff Beauty

Thank you

Annmarie x

{A Redhead’s Review} Klorane Nettle Shampoo and Bioderma Sensibio H20 Michelle Solution

Au revoir oily hair, bonjour cleansed skin…

For as long as I can remember my hair has always been prone to oiliness. When I tell my friends I have to wash my hair everyday they always seem shocked and then smugly (note the hint of jealousy here from me) tell me they can go at least three days or more without washing their hair!

You can imagine then how my interest was well and truly caught when a few weeks ago Escentual, the premier beauty website posted on Twitter that they were looking for bloggers to test an oil control shampoo from Klorane. I instantly thought that will do for me, so I virtually put my hand up and volunteered to get my oily hair under control.

Not long after that I received an amazing bundle of goodies from Escentual, not only containing the shampoo but also a cleanser for dry skin and lots of samples and extra goodies – it was like they had been a fly on my wall listening to me moan about my oily hair and dry face!

So first of all the Klorane Nettle Shampoo *(£4.50 for 200ml)

The first thing I noticed when I used it for the first time was the amazing smell of nettles. It might not be to everyone’s taste but it really brought back great memories of my childhood, running around the fields at the back of my house with my friends. I found that this smell of nature first thing in the morning was particularly refreshing and revitalising.

A gentle shampoo, it promises to detox your scalp and give you more time between washes, working to regularise the amount of oil your scalp produces while slowing its spread throughout the hair.

I noticed the difference straight away and after several weeks of using it in the morning by the evening my hair still looks and feels fresh (usually I would need washed again if I was going out at night – yip twice in one day!!!) and I have even been brave enough to go two days now without washing or using dry shampoo (miracles do happen!). It maybe isn’t three days like my friends but an extra day is amazing to me! And the more I use it the better the oil control seems to be.

I did notice my ends become a bit more dry, which is the only part of my hair that doesn’t seem to be affected with oiliness! I used a little more conditioner on my ends, and some argan oil to combat this, avoiding my roots.

This aside after using this shampoo for several weeks my hair isn’t as oily, stays fresher for longer and I even noticed my hair being more fuller and bouncier than usual, another bonus. So if you have oil control problems like me, this is a must try!

Bioderma Sensibio H20 Michelle Solution* (£4.50-£9.99 – 100ml /250ml)

This little gift of a skincare product has officially revolutionised the condition of my skin and my face thanks it (and Escentual for sending me it) very much. I quickly realized that after googling this cleanser and reading positive reviews after positive reviews about it, why it is so popular!

So I am very happy to add yet another glowing review to the list!

A gentle cleanser which removes make up, it also contains soothing active ingredients to prevent the skin feeling irritated. As well as leaving my skin feeling clean and refreshed, it doesn’t leave my skin dry or tight like other cleansers have and also it has greatly reduced the redness of my face, which my usual cleansers bring out. The cleanser together with my Miss Polly Natural Skincare Facial Serum have made a noticeable improvement to my skin, making it less dry and I now don’t seem to be getting as many spots – result!

It’s really easy to use as well. Its non-rise, just soak a cotton pad with the cleanser and then wipe over face and neck. And extra joy, it even removes waterproof mascara. All in all this is an amazing product and its well and truly earned its top spot in my new daily cleansing routine. So if you are looking for a hypoallergenic, cleanser designed for sensitive skin and to reduce redness then this may be the perfect ‘solution’ for you.

*Please note I received PR samples of these products but my positive experience and opinions are all my own and have not been influence in any way.