I've been lashed and I love it!

In preparation of Blogopolis this weekend (yes I am mentioning it again) I dropped into Lash Me at North Lakes for a brow shape n' tint and some eyelash extensions. I know this seems a little over the top for a convention, but I had been hearing about their new Cheveux Eyelash extensions and this seemed like a great time to give them a whirl.

What makes these extensions different is that that are made from human hair. I know this sounds a little Buffalo Bill (from Silence of the Lambs) but I have only heard great things. They are cruelty free, lightweight, finer than mink or acrylic and have a consistent curl.

My technician was magic fingers Michelle. She is so light fingered, gentle and is a complete perfectionist. I love that. There was not one unruly brow hair that went unplucked or one stubby lash that went unattended.

This is my before. I am kind of surprised how sparse my lashes and brows are looking in the photo. 

After, I only have a little eyeliner on. I can not wait to see how these babies look with some liquid eyeliner and shadow.

I love that Katrina at Lash Me is always on the lookout for the latest and best products in her field. I think she really knocked it out of the park with these. She has now opened up salons in Noosa, Melbourne and Sydney.

Lash Me Extensions
14 Discovery Drive, North Lakes
1300 LASH ME
(Also in Paddington and New Farm)
www.lashme.com.au

I received the product to review but I did not receive any payment to review it. I am happy to receive payment but I will always give an honest opinion.

Prep work for Blogopolis

I wasn't planning on going to Blogopolis in Sydney. I knew it was on and I was watching the excitement grow.

My dream was to be better prepared, more confident, have a killer wardrobe and go next year.

My husband decided differently, He told me to book a ticket and off he trotted to buy plane tickets for the family and book a hotel. Woo hoo!!

Now I have to rush to fit in the important stuff
1. Visit Lash me for their new Lash extension and a brow shape;
2. Visit Beautiful You for shellac nails and a trim;
3. Go to Chermside and hit the shops for an outfit that screams comfort and confident; and
4. Freak out. I am so nervous with crowds.

High brow, low brow or just unruly

As you know I love a great brow. I recently had Lash Me make them over and they did a fantastic job, you can re-live that moment here.

Now, they have offered Redcliffe Style readers 50% off their brow package for the month of May. This includes Brow wax, sculpt, and tint. Usually $45 but now $22.50 for you!!

This is to celebrate Mother's day. But I think quite a few men can benefit from some light manscaping of their brows too.

Just tell 'em Rachel sent ya.


Lash Me
14 Discovery Drive, North Lakes
1300 LASHME
www.lashme.com.au

Eyebrows! Are you more like Bert or Ernie

I  am a little obsessed with eyebrows. I believe they can make or break your look. Not all of us are blessed with thick brows to play with, I know I am not. My eyebrows start and finish in the wrong spots, are sparse and patchy. I naturally have daggy brows.

The best advice I can give you is to find a professional, a beautician or brow specialist that can look at your face and brows and create the best and most flattering brows for you.

I think Bert stole Ernie's eyebrows

I went straight to the top and convinced Katrina Beckett and Michelle from Lash Me to talk to me. Katrina is a Lash and brow guru with salons in North Lakes, Paddington, New Farm and St Kilda. As well as talking eyebrows, they are going to groom my brows.

The trend these days are for brows to be thicker and more naturally groomed, defined but not heavy handed. You want to find the best shape for your brows while keeping their natural appearance. This is the most flattering and make you look younger. Eyebrows that are too thin, nike ticked or over plucked looked dated and ageing.

Brow waxing - How often? This really depends on each person because their needs are different. If your hair is darker, thicker hair or fast growing you may need to visit every two weeks initially but if you have sparse, slow growing hair you could go as long as 4 - 6 weeks. I usually go for 4 - 8 weeks because my hair is thin and grows slowly and I pull out the odd obvious stray. Do not pull out strays if you are unsure. Michelle said that one hair can make all the difference.

Also, make sure your beautician is using the correct wax. You want a nice soft wax for sensitive areas like your face. I have been to beauticians who use the wrong wax and they have still successfully removed strays but taken my skin with them. When this scabs over you are looking significantly worse for a little while.

Gentle hands, Michelle had fingers like little butterfly kisses. There was no pain and I could have fallen asleep if I wasn't there to pick her brain. She said that it is important to keep the skin taunt and that reduces pain and also keeps your skin attached.

At home, Use a eyebrow pencil or shadow to fill in the gaps, make sure you have the right colour and use little strokes. Pluck the odd stray if you must but be prepared for the wrath of your eyebrow specialist if you mess up.

Before

My eyebrows are uneven, spare, patchy

After

Neat, shaped, trimmed and tinted

This photo is taken immediately after my makeover. The tinting will fade a little and the redness reduce and I will be left with gorgeous, perfectly shaped, youth creating brows.


Lash Me
14 Discovery Drive, North Lakes
1300 LASHME
www.lashme.com.au

Great Celebrity brows Camilla Belle

Jennifer Aniston

Bad Celebrity brows - Fergie

Pamela Anderson

Miss Piggy

Hiiiiii-yaa!! Maybe she is always angry because she doesn't have eyebrows. I would be.

What a nice day!

Yesterday I look my girls down to Valori Coffee Lounge in Scarborough for a lesson in paper making.  Lesa Hepburn was the paper expert and she was amazing with all the eager children.  I got to sit back and nurse my excellent coffee (made with Neli beans) and delicious Hazelnut log.  Well, I almost got to enjoy the log until the girls saw my eyes roll in delight when I took a bite and they escaped the paper making briefly to demolish the remaining 3/4.

Lesa makes gorgeous paper, gives lessons and you can also order paper making kits from her.  Have a look at her websites How to make paper kit and Red Hot Fibre

Then I delivered my little angels to a good friend and I skipped off to visit Katrina at Lash me. I love Katrina, she does an amazing job and she is always so cool to hang out with. She had some serious work to do with my overgrow brows but she took to the challenge with gusto and I went from Wolverine to a lady in a few minutes. Lash me is at North Lakes and specialised in Lashes, brows and spray tanning.

Then because the day was so beautiful, we finished the day of with a dip in the pool and a chilled Corona. What a great ending to a summer day!

Lash me.....

I'll admit it, I have a slight addiction to mascara. I am not blessed with thick, cow-like lashes, so I love a little liquid eyeliner and mascara. Now, I have been released of my mascara addiction. What a relief!

Thank you Lash Me. I have discovered the beauty of Lash extensions. I like to think of myself as a fairly low-maintenance girl. I can see that Lash extensions might seem high maintenance. But, now I'll save myself at least two minutes each time I get ready. If I am going out at night, then it's four minutes every day. 28 minutes a week, two hours a month = I have reclaimed one day a year! How awesome is that? I think I will devote my extra day to charity.

Katrina is the owner and was my lash expert today. I think I have met my new BFF. She is so fun and makes you feel comfortable immediately. This was my first extension experience and I was expecting some discomfort or stinging, but nothing. I don't feel like I have anything on my lashes at all. Looking in the mirror, they look great. They don't look silly or too long. They open up my eyes and I look naturally just a little bit sexier, Grrrr. I'll definitely be making an appointment for my refills in 4 weeks.

Lash Me have been open at this location for around a year and has been so popular that they have already opened new locations (Paddington and New Farm). I understand they have some big announcements coming up soon, so keep an eye on their Facebook page.

They also do eyebrows, party lashes and make-up.

In the meantime, I am practicing fluttering my lovely, mascaraless lashes for my husbands Christmas party this weekend.

Lash Me

1300 Lash me

www.lashme.com.au

14 Discovery Drive, North Lakes (Evergreen Centre)

Before - Mascara and liquid liner

After - liquid liner and Lash Me extensions