Sugar Cubed

Martes, Nobyembre 20, 2012

Sugar Cubed

Sugar Cubed could be described as the baby sister to Brown Sugar. It is the brainchild of Mark O’Keefe who realised that in the recession there was a market for a salon targeted at the 18-28 year old market who are looking for funky and on-trend styles at a reasonable price. Now, I am *slightly* above the demographic age but when I got to see Sugar Cubed in person on Wednesday night I was impressed. The place was really buzzing but it was obvious that there was serious attention to detail in the design without it being overly done. Look at the pics to see for yourself!
Sugarcubed
The salon – without party guests!
(Pics provided by Hunter Communications)
The wash room and the beauty room
For me everything looked great while still being practical and comfortable – I’m at a stage in life where that’s important I guess. :P The most interesting bit was discovering that the backwash area (which features really space age/futuristic looking pods) includes smartphone-docking stations so clients can listen to their own music. Why have other salons not thought of this?
The one part of the salon that I didn’t manage to get a photo of was the Soda Stream bar. I thought this was just there for the launch night, but it’s a permanent fixture! Certainly beats the regular tea/coffee offer you get in most salons! :)
Sigarcubed Kohl cosmetics hair products
Sugar Cubed use L’Oreal products for colour and treatment of your hair. It also introduces expert Tiago Rodrigues and the exclusive GKHair 15 week blowdry which it claims restores damaged hair to its original, vibrant and healthy state. There is an introductory offer starting from €150 but I’m not sure how long it’s running for so snap it up quickly.
They also have their own range of cosmetics – KOHL cosmetics (facebook). I didn’t get a chance to swatch these but they looked similar to other products I have seen so I would be confident in them. I really don’t think the Brown Sugar/Sugar Cubed teams would accept anything substandard in their salons.
Find Sugar Cubed at the Westbury Mall, Clarendon Street, Dublin 2 or call them (01) 6725750. Online, Sugar Cubed can be found herehere and here. For any students reading they offer a 10% student discount Monday – Wednesday with a valid ID card.
I know I will be paying them a visit before too long. I fancy a makeover and they seem perfectly skilled to help me with that!

Review ~ Merumaya Iconic Youth Serum*

Linggo, Nobyembre 18, 2012

Review ~ Merumaya Iconic Youth Serum*

I received this product as a PR sample back in July when I met with Lehka Mohanlal and Maleka Dattu (owner) (see post here). I had provided them with a description of my skin in advance of the meeting and they chose this product as the one in the line that they felt would be of most benefit to my skin. I’ve had a good chance to put it through it’s paces at this stage and it has become a firm favourite!
As I have repeatedly said, I have dry sensitive skin. This serum has been *amazing* for days when it’s feeling a little temperamental. It provides the nourishment my skin needs while also providing a protective layer to keep it safe from irritants.  The scent is very luxurious smelling and I just can’t put into words how amazing my skin feels after use. This is a great serum for days I need to wear makeup too as it is not overly oily. I’ve struggled with other serums and moisturisers, finding that they can sit on my skin rather than absorbing making wearing makeup impossible. Not so with this and with a primer over it my makeup lasts perfectly!
The packaging of this product is also great. I have worked out that it takes 1 1/2 pumps to cover my face so there is never any waste. The fact that it is in a pump also means that air is not getting at it so it lasts for longer and as you are not needing to put your fingers into it it’s also perfectly hygienic. Win win all round!
You can find Merumaya products in Arnotts (here) and the Iconic Youth Serum is priced at €43.50. I’d definitely recommend it!

Favourite Cheek Product

Martes, Nobyembre 13, 2012

Favourite Cheek Product

What a difference a month makes! When I was setting out the topics for #JuneBBC I felt like this would be a challenge as in my head I would have to choose from a blusher, bronzer and highlighter and choose one item out of those. I suspected it would be my Mary-Lou Manizer highlighter from The Balm as I really love it. Mine was purchased from MakeUp Forever on Clarendon Street in Dublin 2 after a very long search but has lived up to the hype!
Instead over the last six weeks or so I have steadily fallen in love with my Urban Decay Naked Flushed palette. This retails for €26 and I got mine in Debenhams during one of their 10% off promotions and also had a €5 voucher to use so mine was a bargain at under €20!
Urban Decay Naked Flushed palette
The Urban Decay Naked Flushed palette is a trio of face products in a compact yet sturdy casing. This coupled with the large mirror inside make it ideal for using on the go! The products are amazing and seem to be the perfect shades for almost every skin type. There is a slight satin finish in both the blusher and the bronzer but this just serves to help make your skin look more ‘glowing’ rather than actually shimmery. For me, the highlighter in this set is the stand out product. It is just the perfect almost iridescent shade that with just a little blending looks seamless on your skin. This is an absolute winner in my books and the only negative I can see is that the products don’t seem to be available individually should I hit pan on one before the rest run out.
What do you think of Urban Decay’s Naked range? Have you any of the items?

Procrastinating Beauty Blogger Tag

Procrastinating Beauty Blogger Tag


1) Name a beauty regime that you barely do.
Cleanse, tone and moisturise. I’m not great at doing this. I cleanse and moisturise 99% of the time but I can’t remember the last time I used a toner!
2) Is washing your make up brushes something you do regularly?
I do them as they are needed but I haven’t done it in a while so really need to get around to it ASAP! I have a massive stash of brushes so I tend to let it build up a bit and then spend an evening at it. I will not use dirty brushes though.
3) How long will you last with chipped nail polish?
Not long! I’d rather pick it all off and go without than have it looking chipped. That’s why I love Shellac.
4) How long do you put off buying/replacing a new beauty or nail polish product even if you need it (i.e. a new base coat or a new foundation etc)?
I don’t! In fact, I’m more likely to buy it well in advance and end up with a stash of them. It’s like I have a fear of ever finishing a product!
5) What is your worst beauty habit?
I’d consider this to be like the “Things I suck at” tag so you can read that here.
6) Name something non-beauty related you put off doing all the time?
Housework! I hate it – but it has to be done as I also don’t like living in dirt!
7) When going out somewhere, do you leave getting ready until the last minute or not?
It depends! I will either be last minute or I will spend forever getting ready… There’s no medium!
8) Can you commit to spending bans?
Yes, but I usually allow myself one or two loopholes so that I can purchase sensibly rather than trying to not shop at all.
9) How organised is your make up and nail polish collection?
It’s a bit messy at the moment as I was away and haven’t put everything back in it’s place yet plus I did a bit of a de-stash yesterday. It’s normally pretty good though as I have a set up I am really happy with.
10) What is the longest amount of time you’ve gone without writing a blog post?
In between my two blogs I took a break for about 18 months. On this blog I think my longest break was almost 7 weeks over Christmas last year.
Pinapagana ng Blogger.