Biologi Review

Bonjour mes amis, ca va? I hope you’ve all been well, today I wanted to share a post I did last year over at Beyond Your Mirror about one the best organic skincare brands I’ve ever come across. I’m re-sharing this post because I’ll be reviewing a few other products soon and for anyone who hasn’t seen this post or for those that don’t know of Biologi then I thought I’d introduce you to the basics to get you started. Enjoy friends X

Hi lovelies, it’s so good to be back. I hope you’ve all been having a great week so far and have some nice relaxing plans for the weekend ahead.

Today I wanted to share with you a few new products I’ve been using from Biologi. I first heard about Biologi a few months ago and have to admit I was a little skeptical that three products could replace almost everything in our skin care routine. Now don’t worry I’m not about to tell you to throw out your favourite body mousse or night serum but I am going to share with you the results I have personally experienced using Biologi’s Bf, Bd and Bk serums for the last few months and I’ll explain what makes them work so well all on their own.

So as I said I’d heard of Biologi and their Bf serum and although I was skeptical my curiosity had been pricked enough to buy it and give it a go. After all, it’s what I do for you gals and guys. I research to find the best chemical free products around, try them and let you know what I thought.

Before I get started though here’s a little important information on these products. I must say that each product is plant-based and the fruit enzyme extracted and each product is solely one plant ingredient. I’ll explain. The extraction method captures the plants phyto-active nutrients at their most potent, leaving the concentrated life force straight from the plants cells. There are absolutely no fragrances, harmful chemicals or even water, simply 100% plant serum that is wild harvested and sustainable. The serums are never diluted, altered, synthesized or manipulated in any way. Biologi look after the plant to bottle process entirely themselves. These days most skin care is with 2% active ingredients, however Biologi is 100% active and as the plant works in itself it works on your skin enabling it to penetrate deeper into the epidermis to repair, restore and give your skin a more hydrated glow.

Biologi Bf Serum ~ Biologi’s Bf serum is made with Finger Lime (fruit extract) a unique blend of fruit acids and vitamin C. This is your all over body serum and a great one to start with for your face as well. You might notice a slight sticky feeling the first few times perhaps even for a week or longer but this is completely normal and means the serum is working and doing its job. Start with this serum once a day until you feel the stickiness has gone and then you can use it twice a day if you like. If you’re using this on your face start with once a day in the morning, however keep reading below as I’m about to cover it in more detail as we talk about the Bd serum.

Biologi Bd Serum ~ Biologi’s Bd serum is made from the amazing Davidson Plum (fruit extract). This is your new face ‘moisturizer’. I’m loving this serum and since I’ve been using it I’m amazed at the difference in my skin and sun damage pigmentation. I don’t have a lot of sun damage just one or two small areas from not using sunscreen in my 20’s but man I’m amazed at how much its lightened. Unfortunately I didn’t think to take before and after pictures as I’d already started with the Bf serum before switching to the Bd serum. Now if you’re going to start using either Bf or Bd serum in your skin care routine then don’t do what I did and go straight to using it twice a day lol! Thankfully for me I was already using an organic and chemical free skin care system as well as clean and green makeup…Inika for example. So for me my skin didn’t really purge (break out) at all using the Bf serum but it did a little using the Bd serum but it cleared up very quickly. Ok, so when you start with your new serum you start by using it once a day in the morning for the first week and then use your regular moisturizer in the evening. In the second week you keep using your serum every morning and then alternative nights. So Monday night your serum, Tuesday night your regular nightly moisturizer and so on. Now if you notice some purging don’t freak out and stop using the serum! It means the serum is working and doing it’s job and your skin is going to love you for it. Mine sure does. By week three you can now start using the serum both morning and night and your skin should be glowing like the sun…woohoo.

Biologi Bk Serum ~ Biologi’s Bk serum is made from the popular Kakadu Plum (fruit extract). This is your new eye ‘cream’. Bk is a great serum and really helps minimize fine lines and pigmentation with its high levels of vitmain C. What I love about this oil is you can use it as an all over serum on your face and on the body where you may have sun damage, like the back of your hands. In fact I find Biologi is the only thing that has gotten my hands and cuticles back in great shape. It’s also remarkably improved the fine lines around my eyes and being as I’m turning 44 soon I’m definitely wanting those lines reduced. Now with Bk you only need the slightest amount of serum (a quarter pump) to use around both eyes and yes you can use your Bd serum afterwards but keep reading below because there’s some special points to consider when using the serums.

How to use the serums together?

Now technically you don’t use the serums together in the traditional sense. Being as the serums are 100% active plant cells you don’t overlap the serums. Simply put the serums don’t like each other. They like you and love your skin but their not friends to each other. So if you layer them or mix them together in your hand you can actually destroy and decrease some of the plant actives found in the serums, like vitamin C…..so it’s best to keep the serums separate to get maximum potency and have an AM and a PM serum. However, that doesn’t mean you can’t use your Bd (eye) serum on your eye area and then use Bk (face) serum on the rest of your face. Simply be mindful of where you’ve placed your Bd serum and try not to go over the area with the Bk serum. It’s really not as daunting as it sounds and you’ll have the knack of it in no time.

How much serum to use?

With the Bf serum you use two pumps per body area or limb if you like. So two pumps for each arm, two pumps for each leg and so on. you may need 2 or three pumps for your back/buttocks and torso/breast area. Yes that’s right lovelies I said breast area!! We need to look after all of our skin and your breasts will love you for it too.

Now with the Bk serum you only need one pump for your face and down your neck. If you’re wanting to include your decolletage (and I highly recommend you do) then you’ll need two pumps of your Bk serum

As we mentioned before with the Bd serum you only need the smallest amount around the eyes and it can be tricky to get that quarter pump but just press gently and you’ll get it. If too much product comes out simply use what you need and use the rest on your cuticles/hands and watch them transform.

Who can use Biologi Serums?

The short answer is…everyone! Yes it’s suitable for everyone in the family to use so if you have family members with eczema, psoriasis, dry/flakey skin, pigmentation, sun damage, sunburn or even nappy rash then get your Biologi out and use the Bf on everyone as it’s the most gentle. It’s extremely good for babies with rashes and because it’s 100% plant-based it’s not going to hurt them and you have peace of mind knowing to chemicals are going into their blood stream via their skin. So Biologi is absolutely great for everyone and every age.

My thoughts on Biologi.

Well lovelies, you know I only share products with you that are truly amazing, do what they say they do and are good for you. After using Biologi for the last three months (update almost 2yrs now) I have to say I’ve gone from being skeptical to a long life customer because the products work. Who would have guessed just one ingredient could do so much for your skin from head to toe but when your using a plant in its true form with nothing altered then is it really any surprise what nature has given us to use? And doesn’t it explain why in so many other cultures women have amazing skin right into their 70’s, 80’s and 90’s? It’s because they’re using plants in the natural state with absolutely no nasties added….it’s really not rocket science, it’s common sense. You want great skin then stay away from chemicals and toxins and watch your skin improve.

Personally I’m a huge fan of Biologi and will continue to use it and now my daughter is at an age where she’s beginning her own skincare routine I’ll be making sure she only uses the best that Biologi has to offer.

As always lovelies if you have any questions or comments leave them below and I’ll get back to you and if your wanting to check out Biologi then you can find them here….have a great day and take care.

Michelle x

Keeping Busy In A New Way Of Life…

Bonjour, bonjour ca va? Hello lovely friends how are you all? I know I say this all the time but I can’t believe I’ve been gone so long. As most of you know I’ve contemplated closing the blog because in the past I just felt I haven’t had much to say and honestly I really just have not felt the urge to blog as my mojo seemed to have completely upped and left me. However the universe has gone and made life very interesting of late with the Covid19 virus and by interesting I mean we’re all having to isolate unless it’s to go out for the essentials like food, prescriptions and paint from Bunnings lol.

So I thought what better time to pick up the blog than now. I’m sure I’ll have plenty to rant about with kids home 24/7, school holidays being completely indoors and trying to get as many decor projects done as I can without leaving the house for supplies to keep my sanity.

As of today my kids have been off school for just over a week and as of next Monday the school holidays start a week early. Who knows what will happen next term but it looks like it will be online learning if the kids can’t get back to classrooms. We have done some very basic schooling activities, some gardening, baking, going for a bike ride and we’re doing our meetings (if you’re new here we’re Jehovah’s Witnesses) on Zoom as we can’t go to the Kingdom Hall. The zoom meeting was a lot of fun especially for the kids as they tried to find all their friends and see each other on the computer. We have another meeting tonight we’re looking forward to and Francis and I have made some brownies for supper after the meeting then it’s off to bed for the kids.

For me personally I am keeping everything running to the same routine as if they were still going to school. We might be up a little later in the morning but bed times haven’t changed. Let’s face it, mama needs her peace and quiet after a full day of everybody home all day so when 7:30pm rolls round that’s my time lol.

Now I can’t share our usual ventures and day trips with you at the moment because we’re not allowed to go out just for fun and most places we go to have been closed down any way due to isolation restrictions. So what I’m going to share with you today is a little revamp project I did yesterday as I’m in preparation to revamp the kids bedrooms and yesterday I started with Bec’s bedside table and desk.

I bought Bec’s bedside table and desk early last year from Kmart after we got home from Tassie. They were a simple beachwood look that were nice and light next to her bed I painted a blue/green colour.

Bec’s room after setting it up last year….

Last week I saw a friend on Instagram had used a beautiful coloured paint on her bedside tables by British Paints called Rose Revival. I immediately fell in love with the colour and knew it would look amazing on Bec’s bedside table and desk. Although I wasn’t sure if Bec would go for it as she’s such a tomboy and has for years said how much she hates pink! Seriously don’t all girls like pink in some way? Well I showed her the colour and she really liked it (shock, horror!) and said she’d be happy for me to paint her furniture in that colour. So I took an ‘essential’ trip to Bunnings (good thing we needed whipper snipper blades any way) and bought a sample pot of paint in Rose Revival.

Not long after getting home Chris and Bec set up Monopoly (I refuse to play with Chris lol) and Francis was playing his Lego game on the PS4 so I set up with the paint and got on with the job of revamping. As soon as I put paint to wood I knew it was the right colour choice and I loved it even more than seeing it on my friends feed on IG.

It literally only took me the afternoon to paint both pieces of furniture and give them a coat of Annie Sloan Lacquer to protect the finish. Everything was left to dry thoroughly overnight and then went back into Bec’s room this morning.

Bedside table looking fab…

Desk looking fab and chic….

I decided to leave the legs a light colour as then they still tie in with the Pony picture and her bookcase plus give the illusion of being a floating bedside table and desk. Next in Bec’s room is to repaint her bed in an amazing colour that’s a secret for now, her main drawers and a new carpet rug for the floor as we have the worst carpet I’ve ever had in a rental. But before I continue on with Bec’s room I’ll be tackling Francis’ drawers with some paint as well but I’m really struggling to decide on a colour. I already know I’ll be repainting his bed in a gloss black, however as his room is quite small I don’t want two dark pieces of furniture together in his room. If you’ve got any suggestions feel free to leave them in the comments section below.

Colour suggestions welcome…I plan to keep the original bone handles…

So as you can see I’m definitely keeping busy and have lots to do through this self-isolation period including plenty more gardening and a heap of crocheting. But honestly revamping furniture is my most favourite thing to do as I find it really therapeutic to put some music on (hello blue eyes) and get lost in the painting process. It’s safe to say that nothing will be safe for the next however long we’re in isolation for. If it’s still long enough it’s bound to be painted lol……

Well I’m off for now but it feels so good to be back and sharing my projects with you all. I hope you’re keeping yourself well and somewhat busy while in isolation. I’d love to hear from you and know what you’re doing to keep you and your family busy during isolation so feel free to say hi in the comments and tell me what you’re up to.

Au revoir pour le moment…..Michelle x

Throwback Saturday/Shabby Chic Chalk Paint Chair…..

Bonjour and how are we all going today?? I hope everyone is having a great week and loving the fact the weekend is just around the corner, I know I am.

Well a while ago, (5 and a half months to be exact) I started a little project with chalk paint. At the time Chalk Paint wasn’t available in Australia so I had to make my own after doing some research on how to. (I’ll share with you in a bit how to diy  chalk paint) As I was down to five dining room chairs (as one was broken…oops) I decided to revamp one chair, give it a new lease of life and keep it as a spare chair for whenever we needed one.

I’d been researching Annie Sloans’ Chalk Paint as it’s a wonderful product because there’s no need to sand, prime and undercoat before painting, simply slap on the paint and it adheres to just about any surface. So I armed myself with the knowledge of how to make my own as Annie’s wasn’t available to me and I set to work on my chair.

My spare chair….

First coat of chalk paint

I have to admit I was a little worried while waiting for the first coat of paint to dry as it wasn’t what I was expecting and it felt so rough. However I would soon find out all would be well.

Completely finished and shabby chic…..

I actually wasn’t going to make it shabby chic but when Chris put the wrought iron back rest back in it chipped some paint and as I was out of paint I thought why not distress it a little and go shabby chic…..and I’m so glad I did.

Just dressing it up….

The secret to chalk painting is the waxing at the end, that’s what takes it from feeling rough to smooth and silky. I thought I’d keep this chair and then I had a niggling feeling to try and sell it, which is an idea I’ve been toying with fora while now. After speaking with very clever chick (she knows who she is 🙂 ) I decided to list it on our local buy, sell and swap page for $35….and what do you know…within two hours it sold to a lovely lady here in town who runs a business I love visiting….who knew my little project which really only cost me the price of a sample pot of paint would generate me some cash….I have to admit I’m pretty chuffed and looking forward to doing the next two chairs.

Chalk Paint Recipe

 Interior satin or wash and wear paint….

Plaster of paris

vaseline

good paint brushes…

Clear furniture finishing wax

2 soft cloths

Take an old ice cream container and fill it with about 1-1 1/2 cups of paint then add about three tablespoons of plaster of paris. Mix until you have a thickish consistency. If it’s too thick add a dash of water and mix again. (I made my first batch too thick but it’s easy enough to fix.) To see if you’ve got the right consistency try painting an area of what your painting in an inconspicuous spot and see how it covers. If it slides off add a little more plaster of paris. You may need to play around a bit until you get it right. Once it’s the right consistency go ahead and paint your heart out.

Now the vaseline is only for if you want to distress the piece. Simply wipe on a very thin layer where you plan to distress and paint straight over the top of it. Don’t worry the paint will stick. When you go to sand those spots back later the paint just falls away and saves alot of time.

You’ll need the wax to give your newly painted item a protective layer from chipping and it takes your paint from feeling rough to smooth. Simply take one cloth (I use microfibre dish washing cloths from the supermarket) and wipe the wax over an area and then wipe it off with the other cloth. Keep doing sections at a time until you’ve finished the whole piece. It’ll need to cure for a few hours once you’re done but after that it’s brand new.

I hope you all have fun with chalk paint and if you have any questions please feel free to leave a comment and I’ll get back to you asap.

Well I’m off for now so until next time take care and Au revoir…

Michelle xo

Organizing My Home With Help From Kmart….

Bonjour mes amis, ca va? How’s everyone doing? I hope you’re all well and have had a good week and yey it’s Saturday! Thank you for all the love on my last post about Aprons, if you missed it you can find it here. And so many of you are still loving my Lemonade Scone Recipe which makes me really happy and I hope you’re enjoying them as much as we do. If you missed it you’ll find it here. Bon Appetite!

So today I just wanted to share some home hacks with you that I’ve been implementing around the house. Admittedly I’m not one to stay organized for long and partly because I have a houseful of people who like to put things back wherever they feel like it. So I organize and then in a week it’s a mess again. However after seeing some great storage ideas on Instagram it motivated me to take a different approach and I have to say it’s working a treat and after a month of things being organized, they’re still where I put them…..wonders will never cease, I swear.

Like most people (I’m sure it’s not just me) my two biggest problem areas are my pantry and my linen cupboard. Both just never seem to stay organized for long but I was determined to work it out. Unfortunately I forgot to take a before pic of the inside of my pantry but I’ll show you how I’ve organized it with a lot of help from Kmart!!

Tidy and Organized with all storage from Kmart

The white containers are organized into categories. So I have one that holds all my baking needs, one for the kids snacks, one with every day condiments like pasta sauce, gravox etc and one that holds all the UHT milk and many different teas (still in their boxes). I also have two clear roll out containers that hold all tin food. These containers are a game changer and I wish I’d known about them years ago. I have one small black basket which I keep for things that won’t fit in the containers, so like the extra coffee and extra rolled oats that are waiting to be used.

The top shelf is where my oldest son keeps his few snacks etc

Apart from the Moccona coffee jars all other jars are from Kmart ranging in price from $1 to $4 which is so affordable and makes it easier to switch out all that plastic packaging to a healthy glass jar.

These roll out containers are amazing.

Down the very bottom I keep a container with all my cookbooks along with the tub that holds our picnic bag and reusable shopping bags.

This in the most organized pantry I’ve ever had.

On the very top shelf I have an awesome clear container with a lid (next to the Juice Plus, if you want to know more just leave a comment 🙂 ) that is our first aid container. I actually found this in the kitchen storage aisle in Kmart and loved the fact it was see through which means I can see what I have without having to rummage around.

I love these wire shelves which increase your ability to be able to see what you have, they really do create more room. All the round containers with cereal in them are again from Kmart as are the labels on the lids. On the next shelf down I’ve used the step tray (that’s what I call it lol) so my everyday items like salt, pepper, olive oil etc are on hand and I can go straight to them. I’ve also used two long trays, one to hold a few other essentials and one for bread. Have you ever noticed there’s never anywhere to put the bread? Well now there is in my pantry. I didn’t want a bulky bread tin that was going to take up too much room so I thought the tray was a better alternative.

It can take a little planning but it’s definitely worth the effort.

It’s taken me a few runs of where to put everything so it all works efficiently and I’m happy to say I’ve found a layout that works well and is easy enough for the family to find what they need too.

The other area of the house I’ve been working on is my laundry as it’s another area that seems to always be a mess, especially the linen cupboard. Again I’ve used a few storage solutions from Kmart that have proven to be space savers and life savers and this time I remembered to take a before and after pic.

Neat, tidy, organized and making life easier.

Completely disorganized and driving me mad.

 

I have moved a few things that had just been thrown in my linen cupboard to the cupboard under my trough as they don’t really belong in a linen cupboard……think tins of paint and a battery charger for the lawn mower.

I was able to fold and stack all our winter blankets on the top shelf as there’s quite a bit of height up there. I bought the black containers (same as the white ones in the pantry) from Kmart and assigned one for each lot of sheets….so I have one for my sheets and one for extra quilt covers. Then I have one each for Bec and Francis’ sheets. The small basket between the kids sheets hold our soap berries and napisan in some lovely canisters I got from Kmart a couple of months ago now.

In the stripey cubes (bought from Kmart about 2 years ago) I have all my products for making my natural deodorant, face masks and oil blends. In the white box down the very bottom (gifted to me by a friend) I have have spare extension cords and extra brushes for the vacuum cleaner.

As I said before I’ve never really been one to be super organized but I can really see how it makes life a lot easier and keeps things more manageable in general. I only wish I’d been this organized years ago but at least it’s done now and I’ll be keeping it this way permanently.

If you’re struggling with your organization and messy cupboards then maybe it’s time to look at really organizing your home and making life easier for yourself. Everything I’ve used you can find at Kmart ranging in price from $1 to $9…..that’s very affordable to have an orderly home and peace of mind when you open your cupboards. If you’d like any tips feel free to leave a message below or come follow me over at Instagram and send me a message. You’ll find me as @ma_bellevie_

Well I hope that’s been somewhat inspiring for you all. I’m off to whip up lunch on this beautiful Saturday….I’ll catch you again soon.

Au revoir…..Michelle x

 

Did We Really Need To Cut The Apron Strings?

Bonjour mes amis, ca va? How is everyone doing? After a couple of months of illness and craziness going on I finally feel like I can sit down and write a post. I’d like to thank you all for the love on my Lemonade Scone Recipe and if you gave it a try I’d love to know how they turned out for you. That kind of leads me into today’s post….When I made the scones I was wearing my apron, because I’m a messy cook and if I don’t I’ll end up covered in flour……anyone else relate?

So I’ve been wearing my apron most days now when I’m cooking and tend to leave it on if I’ve got other house cleaning to do to save my clothes. I’ve lost count of how many tops I’ve ruined and lost over the years due to oil splatters or cleaning products (before using toxic free cleaning products) getting on my clothes and then admittedly I have somewhat of a hissy fit because yet again another piece of clothing is ruined.

Source ~ Pinterest

This led me to realize that our great grandparents, grandparents and probably some of our mothers always wore an apron during the day while they were home cleaning and cooking yet somewhere along the way the humble apron was abandoned and you don’t see them in many homes any more let alone being worn. So I thought I’d investigate why.

It appears women started throwing off their aprons in the sixties with the rise of feminism as they didn’t want to be portrayed as a domesticated subservient woman whose only job was to cook, clean and serve their husbands. And while I can relate to the freedoms feminism pushed for I also think in pushing so hard to become independent the feminist movement lost some of it’s femininity that women inherently have. But this is not about whether feminism is right or wrong, it’s simply about how somethings that were thrown away with the movement are now coming back to a whole new generation of women. Women who consider themselves creators once that apron goes on, whether it be creating a cake, sewing a new dress or sitting at a potters wheel creating something new.

For me personally I’ve always had a thing for aprons, tea towels, pot holders etc simply because I love the fabric and the feel of a new piece to my kitchen decor and wardrobe. I haven’t always owned an apron but I’ve always admired them and while I do own one now I love the feeling of putting in on when I start to cook, being a cake or dinner for the family. When that apron is on I feel more focused, like I can create anything and I have to admit as I said I’m a really messy cook so to be able wipe my hands on myself knowing I’m not wrecking anything is great peace of mind and it saves me going through all my tea towels.

My humble apron from House…not on the pretty side but definitely on the functional side and it’s comfy….

It also gives me a good excuse to get my sewing machine out and be creative. While I bought my apron from House I thought I’d try my hand at making my own apron. I have a couple of designs in mind I want to try and I’ll share them once I’ve made them.

So I guess what I really want to know is did we really need to cut those apron strings? Personally I don’t think we did. To me an apron isn’t a sign of domesticity and being subservient to our partners, it’s a functional garment that offers protection to the clothes we invest in, to protect them and that quite often makes you feel like a focused superwoman on a mission. So embrace an apron and save your clothes from being spoiled and if you happen to feel a little more feminine with an apron on then more power to you for bringing back what our foremothers knew….an apron doesn’t make you a slave but it will protect and make your clothes last longer.

Au revoir…..Michelle x

Weekend Wandering…

Bonjour mes amis, ca va? I hope you’re all well and thank you so much for all the love on my last post. I’m so glad you enjoyed it and if you missed it you can find it here. Well believe it or not I’ve been trying to get another post up for the last week but there’s always something I’ve got to do that ends up sidetracking me. It also didn’t help that after my last post everyone came down with head colds. Francis got croup yet again first, then it developed into a nasty head cold which saw him have the week off school. Thankfully it’s all passed now and the kids are back at school and I’m back to my usual routine and finding a few projects to do along the way but I’ll share those with you soon.

Despite the fact it’s Tuesday I’m still in weekend mode. You see Sunday we went down to Nannup to the Flower & Garden Festival that’s on every year in August and it was a beautiful sunny day with a few grey clouds but no rain in sight just that beautiful early spring feeling when the sun starts to get a little warmer, the days are a little longer and the nights aren’t as cool. I think Spring has to be my favourite time of year but then I kind of love each season for it’s differences…..maybe that’s another post for another day.

Beautiful Tulips in Bloom

Big sister and Little brother

We’re regulars to Nannup and know the area well as it’s not far from Busselton where we used to live and it was good to be back for a visit. It was so lovely to wander around and take in all the beautiful tulips in full bloom, feel the sun on my skin, smell all the delicious food cooking and really just have a relaxing afternoon with the kids. We wandered up the road past barrels of tulips and over to the food lane as naturally the kids were hungry as soon as we got there. If we’d walked further we would’ve found more food options for the kids but they were both willing to give a traditional German hotdog a go as did Chris. Chris really enjoyed his and the kids liked them though Bec thought it was a little salty lol….Francis gave his a good go but in the end I ended up finishing his sausage which personally I thought was super delicious, much better than a regular Aussie sausage by far. I actually went over to the French Crepe Van and got une crêpe au beurre, citron et sucre (a crepe with butter, lemon and sugar) and man it was so good. I also got to practice my French when ordering as the two lovely gentleman running the van were French, so I met them with a big Bonjour and left them with a confident Merci, Au revoir and I have to say they were both surprised and impressed I spoke French to them and it made me feel like I’ll be able to tackle France pretty well.

I love these red and white tulips and the red ones smelled beautiful

This was one big butterfly and it almost landed on my jacket…thankfully it stayed put on the flower long enough to get a picture of it

So after we ate (and spoke french :))  Chis took the kids to get an ice cream which saw Francis come back with a honeycomb ice cream from Simmo’s and Bec come back with flavoured shaved ice….who knew there was such a thing lol…..so as they were both enjoying their treats we wandered off down the road to see what else was waiting for us and this was where we saw there were many more food choices but we had been happy with what we acquired for lunch so it was nice to know for next time there’s more variety but we weren’t too worried at that moment. There were lots of things to see from natural skin care, hand crafted wooden utensils for the kitchen and naturally, plants. After all it is a flower and garden festival. Francis desperately wanted to buy something so instead of some cheap toy that would inevitably end up in the bin I steered him towards the plants and after a little looking he chose a small geranium plant that he could look after himself. It’s a white ruffle variety so I’m looking forward to it flowering to see these flowers as they’re quite pretty. Once Francis had his little plant pot tucked in his arm we headed off down the road again and looked at all the different things that were on offer. I spotted some home made Cherry Jam but decided to get some on the way back so we could keep walking and not have to stop the kids again.

Flavoured shaved ice

Simmo’s honeycomb ice cream

We eventually came to the end of the road where they had some vintage cars on display and the next thing you know Chris, Bec and Francis were all in heaven lol…….I have to admit I do love older cars a lot more than newer cars. I find old cars have more character to them. You can look at an old Thunderbird (which there was a pale pink one on display) and know it’s got an amazing history and could probably tell you a thing or two if it could speak. We all kind of drifted apart looking at the cars as Chris was drooling over an old Ford, Bec was taking pictures of everything and Francis was busting to sit in one but they were only for show and he happily looked at the cars and commented on how cool they were. For me personally, it was the red Aston Martin that got me…ahhhh now there’s a car I could get in, hit the road and not look back….hmmmm maybe a good thing I don’t own one. I’ve always loved red convertibles ever since watching Get Smart as a kid, there’s just something about them. After everyone getting their car fix Bec spotted a suspension bridge she wanted to walk across so Chris took Bec and Francis for a walk across the bridge and I headed back in the direction we’d come from all on my lonesome.

As I was walking back it was so good to just meander up the road on my own in relative peace and quiet and take in my surroundings and I found myself thinking that this must be what the regular marchés (markets) in France must be like only on a weekly basis and not a yearly event. I could feel myself being transported to France and I was completely enjoying being on my own smelling the tulips and taking my time to really enjoy my surroundings. As I was walking I spotted the Cherry Jam again and went to get some and then remembered I didn’t have any cash on me as it was in Chris wallet from lunch, so I kept on walking, took some more pictures, stopped in at a little soap shop and had a look and a smell then walked over to where a lady had her garden open near where we parked the car. By this time Chris and the kids were on their way back to catch up to me. I introduced myself to Roz who owned the house where the garden was open and we had a lovely chat about gardens and being kids climbing trees and running around backyards when we were younger and how unfortunately most kids don’t have that any more. We agreed there’s nothing like a good size yard for kids to burn off their energy in and really there’s no better place than the country to do it. 

It was getting later in the afternoon but I enjoyed wandering on my own

Feeling as though I was at a marche in France

Hmmmm which way should I go?

Chris and the kids met me at Roz and had a wander through her lovely garden and we chatted a little longer about how we’d love to get back to the country and out of suburbia in time. Roz is one of the few people to have her garden open every weekend for visitors to enjoy and I’m sure we’ll see her again. We said our goodbyes and good days to Roz and then hopped in the car to head out to Busselton to call in and see some friends for a while as we hadn’t seen them recently and I had bags of clothes and shoes for their kids. I love passing down clothes with friends as you know it just helps out a little with at least one expense.

And now here we are it’s Tuesday night and the house is quiet (apart from being able to hear Francis talking to himself in bed) and I’m still thinking how lovely the weekend was and how amazing the weather has been the last three weeks really. I don’t know what’s going on with the weather but we’ve had a very short, mild and dry winter and it looks like we’re heading for an early spring which is quite alright with me as I’m enjoying the warmer days and looking forward to summer. I’m planning on spending plenty of time at the beach and outdoors in general this summer, though I do tend to say that every summer and every summer we spend plenty of time at the beach and outdoors but this year we might try camping! I’ll let you know how that pans out.

Au revoir pour le moment…..Michelle x

A big beautiful Jacaranda tree…I can’t wait to go back and see them in bloom full of purple.

Throwback Saturday….

Bonjour mes amis, ca va? Merci on all the love on yesterdays post. I have a feeling it may have resonated with some of you and that makes me happy, 1 – because it means I’m more than likely not the only one my age still in blogging land lol and 2 – perhaps it means you either grew up with the same amazing music I did or you too have blasted it into your children to the point now where they know all your 80’s songs by heart. It really is great to be a parent at times lol.

So today I’m not a hundred percent well as I’ve picked up the lurgy from the kids. The only downside with winter and it being so cold is when everyone’s sick it can be a bit difficult to open up the house and air out all those bugs, so you eventually end up harbouring the little buggers and then they latch onto everyone. Well today the sun was shining and the air was fresh, cool but fresh, so all my doors are open and the fresh air came in to sweep out the house. The one thing that bugs me with our place is we don’t get any actual sunshine in the house, plenty of daylight but not actual sun. Hopefully this might be remedied in the next twelve months and a bigger yard as well!

So being as I’m not up to doing much today I thought I’d throwback and share a few revamping projects I did a few years ago now when I was just getting to know chalk paint. In the beginning I was making my own until I found Annie Sloan Chalk Paint and fell in love, now I’ve been using it ever since. So here we go….I’m looking forward to doing more projects this year.

This was the very first revamping project I ever did with home made chalk paint and shabby chic style. I made the chalk paint myself with some colours I picked up from Bunnings. And I’m happy to report I sold these two chairs for $80 dollars at the time….not bad considering they were my old dining room chairs and the paint only cost me about $10 all up.

Worn and tired after too many years being out in the weather…

Refreshed and resting in it’s new home on the front porch….

Here we have my outdoor bench seat I bought with me from Perth to Busselton. I originally bought it at Bunnings (like most everything) and stained it a walnut colour. However after a long life outside in all the elements the stain wore off. So when we moved to this house I decided to bring it back to life with some home made chalk paint in white and sat it safe on the porch out of the weather. We had many a good cup of coffee on that porch and of all our houses this is the one I miss the most.

Love these blue and white colours…

I think these drawers have got to be one of my favourite and one of my best projects I’ve ever done. We bought Francis and Bec a set of second hand plain brown drawers (very first pic) and I went to work revamping them. I did Francis’ in my home made white and blue chalk paint, replaced the knobs and distressed it a little. Bec’s was a longer labour of love as I painted the bones of hers white then modge podged it with gorgeous Paris fabric from spotlight. As you can see on both sets I’ve alternated the drawers and given the knobs some character by painting Francis’ and placing alternate coloured knobs on drawers and then cover Bec’s knobs with the fabric before putting them back on.

I absolutely loved doing these drawers and as time consuming as it was I was ecstatic with the results and was really sad when we had to sell them when we moved to Tassie. I’d love to find another set of drawers and recreate them, especially Bec’s Paris drawers, she used to get all her friends asking about them all the time and where she got them. When friends and family learned I had done both but especially Bec’s they were always amazed that I found the time and had the patients to get it done. But it’s something I love to do and once I get started nothing gets in my way of me finishing.

Ok so I’ve just realized that if I share all my revamping projects this is going to be an extremely long post, so what I think I’ll do is share some more next Saturday and keep going with throwback Saturday until I run out of revamping posts. What do you think? I think it’s a plan as there’s lots more I’d like to share with you and if you’re new to the blog and haven’t or don’t have time to go through the archives then this gives you a good way to get to know me and what I’ve been blogging about the last seven years.

So with that said here’s one last pic until I catch you next time…..gorgeous colour isn’t it? I’ll share the story behind this next week 🙂

Au revoir pour le moment……Michelle x

A New Potager/Jardin….

Source ~ Pinterest

Hi there and welcome back….I’ve done it yet again and been gone for too long. Sometimes I really think I should just put this baby to bed and be done with it. I’ve changed the blog names too many times and have lost readers, I’m terrible of late at posting consistently and I really feel like I’m just talking to myself these days as I just don’t seem to be reaching anyone. On the other hand I love having a place to write and somewhere to share my thoughts and what I’ve been up to and one day my kids will be able to go through the blog and see what it was I was always doing on the computer and how much of it they’re in.

Today I thought I’d share a new little project I started working on this week. If (and that’s a very big if) you’ve been following me through all the changes, you’ll know a few years ago I started a Potager (french for vegetable garden) at a previous house we were living in. However we ended up moving and it was left behind, we then were in Tassie and didn’t have a chance to start one there but now we’re somewhat settled (I always have itchy feet) I felt like I needed plants around me and what better things to grow than things you can eat. We actually don’t have much of a yard here let alone a bit of soil to plant much so most things are being grown in pots.

It all started with a rosemary bush I bought a few months ago and pretty much stayed at the rosemary but while we were in one of my fave hardware places last week….Bunnings naturally…..I saw some beautiful lavender with the most gorgeous pink double blooms I haven’t seen before and knew I had to buy one and buy one I did. I then took a trip to Kmart to buy a pot for it as I wanted it to match the pot I’d bought for the rosemary.

How gorgeous is this Lavender and I love these pots

Admittedly both plants sat in their Bunnings pots for another week until we were gardening this last week preparing for a house inspection. As we were pruning plants already here and mowing the lawn we realized we needed a new shovel and some potting mix so off to Bunnings we went again. This time however I really wanted to buy a Lots o Lemons Lemon Tree. I’d been wanting one for ages and being as we simply don’t have the yard space for a tree to reach full maturity I thought a dwarf variety would be a great idea. So we headed over to the fruit trees and for Chris I took a painfully long time choosing a tree but to me I was inspecting the health of the tree, making sure there was no disease, no branches crossing over each other or too crowded in etc….you know, the things responsible gardeners look for lol….So I eventually picked my tree but wasn’t 100% sure and as I was talking to Chris I spotted a dwarf Fig Tree!! OMG I was in heaven. I love figs probably more than any other fruit and I adore Fig Trees and how massive they get and the shapes of the leaves……I pretty much love trees guys but some I love much harder than others….so off I went again inspecting the fig trees and deliberating as to which one I would bring home with me. (I’m even fussy on the way the trunk of a tree has developed…..I know, it’s a problem. If it has a crooked trunk I won’t buy it lol) I found the cutest Figalicious tree with a good trunk, nice healthy leaves and even a few figs on it which made me soooooo happy. 

So now we have our trees we go off to choose some good sized pots that they can grow into and will last some time in. It was actually a pretty easy decision and one that Chris and I both agreed on as we rarely agree on anything design wise or garden wise lol but this was a victory for both of us, we’d agreed on the colour and shape of our pots. Who knows maybe one day we will agree on the decor of our house……lol who am I kidding that’ll never happen we have completely different tastes and thankfully I win out most of the time. Any way after choosing our pots we went to get the right sort of potting mix and as we were putting it in the trolley I decided I had the wrong lemon tree after all and told Chris we needed to change it to which again he thought I was right. Seriously this never happens lol…..so back at lemon trees I put my tree back and start sorting through all the other trees. After another five to ten minutes I finally decide on a tree that looked right to me.

Now, much to Chris’ disgust (lol) I decided to take the kids over to the veggies as they’re always wanting to grow something and after much deliberation on Bec’s part she ended up choosing carrots and garlic. Bec was rapped with her garlic until I pointed out it takes 38 weeks to harvest! The look on her face was priceless but she stuck with her garlic and it’ll give her something to maintain and look after. Francis decided on a strawberry bush, probably because he loves eating them. With both kids happy with veggies I decided I needed to get another lavender bush as it would be a pity to just have one, I also wanted another rosemary bush but they didn’t have any….oh well c’est la vie there’s always next week. On our way out of the gardening section Chris spotted the Bonsai trees and decided to have a look at them for Bec as she’d been wanting a plant to keep in her room. Honestly I think deliberating over the Bonsai trees took longer than choosing everything else but Bec was happy with her little tree and we bought a new pot and some bonsai pottig mix to re-pot it as it’s four years old and a root was exposed. Finally we headed to the checkout but not without  stopping to look at potato seedlings. You see in Tassie we found the best potatoes on the planet that we’d never had before….Dutch Cream Potatoes…..however they’re not available here in Western Australian supermarkets, I have no idea why but personally I think it’s crazy. So any way Bunnings had Dutch Cream Potato seedlings which got Bec all excited and as badly as she wanted to buy them I knew we didn’t have room to grow them. I had however heard of growing potatoes in hessian bags so I’m looking into that and if it’s doable then we’ll be back for our Dutch Creams.

Finally we made it to and through the check out, out to the car and home again. Bec was busting to put her carrots in the ground but by the time we got home it was getting late and quite cold and we needed to finish the bigger jobs off first…like getting the weeds out of the very small garden bed. It took a couple of days but we got Bec’s carrots and garlic in the ground surrounding her one surviving tomato bush from the summer. I potted up my lavender and rosemary bushes and then realized I was a pot short so I’ll be off to Kmart to get another one on the weekend. I also potted up my lemon and fig trees after taking forever to decide where I was going to put them. In the end I went for one either side of our bedroom door that leads to the backyard.

lots o lemons

Things are now starting to feel a little more like a jardin out there which makes me feel better and less restless. Honestly our yard is so small it’s really a courtyard with lawn and I find it quite depressing not having much space around me, especially after being on an acre in Tassie but it’s looking a little more homely now and I intend to fill it up with a lot more plants. This way we’ll have a mobile garden, so if we move house, everything will be coming with us and I can keep my French Jardin with me. I love french gardens and they way they look perfectly put together but really they can be quite haphazard but it’s the way they come together and you’ll find all french gardens have flowers in them and usually lots of geraniums which are also another love of mine thanks to my grandma for sharing her love of them too.

So with our french way of living here in Australia we’re starting to bring in our Potager/Jardin as well. It’s not always easy trying to get a very Australian family to live another way of life but with our trip to France in a couple of years I’m determined to try and get them to at least attempt a more french way of life to prepare for our trip. It’s the little things that are keeping me sane at the moment and being in the jardin this week felt so blissful, productive and joyous and that’s something I haven’t felt in quite a while.

 

Dermaplaning

Hi Lovelies…I hope you’re keeping well on this chilly Friday. Can you believe we’re halfway through the year? Where has that time gone. It’s been an amazing year so far and lets hope it keeps up that way. I’m so glad you all enjoyed my last post on our Natural Deodorant and if you missed it you can read it here.

Today I wanted to talk to you about a new beauty treatment that seems to still be not known very well and I have to admit when I heard of Dermaplaning my first thought was Derma-what? However after doing some research….ok lots of research I was very surprised to learn that Dermaplaning is basically shaving your face and honestly I didn’t really know if this was going to be for me. I mean really we women shaving our faces! Yeah I honestly thought I would pass on this trend no matter how good the results were meant to be. However after seeing a couple of my girls on Instagram opening up the subject on Dermaplaning I had another think about it and although I still felt a little awkward with my decision I decided to give it a go. Now for me one of the main reasons I decided to try Dermaplaning was because ever since I’ve hit peri-menopause I have had a few stubborn hormonal hairs that come along every month and big the life out of me. It’s like they grow overnight….one minute they’re not there the next they’ve turned up while I’ve been sleeping. You know the ones, those stubborn coarse black hairs that only a pair of tweezers can get rid of. Well no more for me.

Dermaplaning is basically a form of exfoliation as you’re removing not only the unwanted hair but dead skin cells as well which leaves skin feeling much fresher and helps cell turnover.

There are a few different methods of Dermaplaning so I’ll cover those now. First of all the procedure can be done it quite a few salons however I’ve seen it priced as high as $650 and honestly there’s no way I’m paying that price. There are a few facial grooming tools and my research is leading me towards the Michael Todd Sonic Smooth Dermaplaning System. After reading the reviews on this product I have to say they’re outstanding and those who have tried it, love it. There are the cheaper facial/eyebrow trimmers however I don’t think they would be able to get a truly smooth result. And then there’s a trusty old (but seriously use a new one lol) razor which has been around for forever.

Ok so lets cover a few techniques and then I’ll give you my experience and results. First up you need to use a product to give your face some slip. If you’re using a razor there’s a couple of options. You can use an organic facial cleanser simply by lathering it all over your face then proceeding to Dermaplane (shave) the peach fuzz off your face, however you might find there’s not enough slip with a cleanser. The other option with a razor is to use a facial cleansing oil as this will stick to your skin for longer while Dermaplaning and it’ll keep your face moisturized during and after. If you’re using a facial/eyebrow groomer it’s recommended to use it dry however I’m thinking this could be very irritating on the skin and very likely leave a rash. If you have a Michael Todd Sonic Smooth then it comes with an oil to use on your skin and replacement blades as well.

Michael Todd Sonic Smooth Dermaplaning Kit

Safety razors are a great option and a great way to be more waste free as well.

I opted to use a razor before I made any investments in any beauty tools. I also decided to use a facial cleansing oil as it’s how I cleanse my face every night and knew the slip would be good. I’ll admit it felt completely weird shaving my face and all I could think was if my hubby walked in he’d be thinking I’ve lost my mind lol……it was surprisingly quick and easy to do and the biggest thing was to learn to get just the right amount of pressure that would remove the hair but not cut myself. The great thing with using an oil is it allowed me to go back in and feel if there were any areas I’d missed. Thankfully there weren’t so I continued on by soaking a flannel is some hottish water and then steamed the rest of the oil into my face as well as wiping off excess fuzz that may have been left behind. I couldn’t believe how smooth my skin felt but it also felt sticky even after applying a serum. I figured it would just take a little getting used to and honestly the sticky feeling bugged me for a good week. The second time I Dermaplaned was about four days later and I decided to try it with a cleanser and while the results were good I actually found it a little irritating to my skin doing it this way. Probably because the cleanser comes off whereas when using an oil there’s residue. This time I still wasn’t liking that brand new sticky feeling but loved the smoothness of my skin. The sticky feeling definitely settles down by the second day after Dermaplaning but does take some getting used to.

I’ve now been Dermaplaning for a month and love it. My skin is clearer with more of a glow, I’m not worried about those hormonal hairs that bug me and my makeup goes on better and has an overall better look to it. I’m now Dermaplaning twice a week as I feel this is suffice for my skin and my lifestyle and I’m still using a razor and facial oil but am looking into purchasing the Sonic Smooth as I’d love to try it and review it for myself. Honestly lovelies after being so skeptical about this treatment I’m glad I gave it a go as my skin is loving it. Yep I still feel a little weird shaving my face and still haven’t told my hubby yet either lol….I kind of plan to do it while he’s at work…I suppose he’ll catch on one day when he realizes my skin is smoother than his lol…..if you feel awkward then know it’s a completely natural reaction as this is not something we’re encouraged to do growing up and honestly I don’t think it’s a treatment that needs to be done until your in your thirties and hormones start wreaking a little havoc on your body. However do what feels right for you but do make sure everything you use is new and clean. Don’t use your hubby’s razor, get your own. And the men’s razors are ten times better than the women’s razors which I think we’re all probably ware of anyway.

If you’ve got any questions feel free to reach out, I’m only to happy to answer them and help you on your way. If you’ve already taken up the practice of Deramplaning then I’d love to hear how you found it and your results. Take care for now and I’ll catch you soon.

Michelle x

A New BYM Product….

Hello Lovelies! Oh it’s so good to be back. You wouldn’t believe how crazy, busy things have been here or maybe you would…whichever way believe me I’ve been super busy. I have been meaning to post for so long and keep getting sidetracked but that’s only because I’ve been working on something super exciting and I was holding off sharing it with you until it was perfect and all ready to go. And now it is, so let me share with you what’s kept me so busy.

Say hello to Beyond Your Mirror’s first Lavender & Rosemary Natural Deodorant!!

I’m so excited to launch this product and if you follow me on Instagram then you may have seen me officially launch it a week or so ago for pre-order. Well now we have the labels on jars we have officially launched and you can find them over on the website on the SHOP page where you’ll notice we have three size options.

I decided to have sample sizes because even though our deodorants are bicarb free there’s still a chance of reaction so I wanted to give you the opportunity to try before committing to a full size product. SO at the moment we have our sample size of 5gms perfect to try and make sure you don’t react, our travel size of 15gms which is amazing for your gym bag or going away on holiday and our 60gm jar. We will be doing a 120gm jar soon as well as a vegan formula in the not to distant future. I’ve also written a blog post on the website about why I created my own bicarb free deodorant and you can read that here.

This really has been a labor of love and joy as I have to say I had many doubts along the way about whether or not I was crazy to attempt this but I’m so glad I did. I’ve created a product I love that works phenomenally well and smells amazing. In creating this deodorant I’ve not only thought of my needs but of yours as well. There are so many of us who react to bicarb and other ingredients too and I wanted to create something that would work without worrying about reacting. After months of use on myself (and my hubby) there’s been no reaction and that makes me so happy because it means hopefully the majority of you won’t react either.

 

60 gm Jar

15gm travel size….5gm pics coming soon

We still have a couple of BYM (Beyond You Mirror….it gets to be a mouthful lol) Products to share and while the heavenly hibiscus face mask is on the website for pre-order I’m just putting the finishing touches on it and our new Golden Glow Mask….more on that one soon.

At the moment shipping is only open to Australia but if you’re an international customer and would like to purchase then feel free to contact me or leave a message below and we can chat. Otherwise for all my Australian readers if you head over to the website we have a 25% off sale store wide when you use the code WINTER25. Being as Winter has started so beautifully here with a week of sunshine I felt like celebrating the fact it’s Winter and spreading a little sunshine of my own so a 25% discount sale it is because why not. The sale runs from today to Sunday 9th June 2019 and be quick because I’m happy to say our deodorants are going quick. Make sure to subscribe to our newsletter so you don’t miss out on all the news.

Now is a great time to stock up on Frankie’s Blendz.

Well lovelies there you have it and I hope you enjoy the post on the website which again you can find here. I will share both face masks with you as soon as they’re finalized and I have some other really exciting things in the works coming up too that I can’t wait to share with you and you know I will as soon as I can. Have a wonderful day and enjoy the sunshine…..and the 25% Discount 🙂

Michelle x