What am I Using Now?

I got more than a little bit excited when I was tagged by Ondo Lady to do a beauty post. Unbeknown to many, buying, trying and lusting after beauty products used to be one of my favourite pastimes. My fascination started when I was a kid. Whenever I could get the opportunity to have a nose round my mum’s bedroom I’d rummage through her make up bag and plaster my lips with her fire engine red Fashion Fair lipstick and orangey brown loose face powder (speaking of which, Fashion Fair have seriously upgraded their range, check them out). Then I'd top it off with a spritz of her Giorgio Beverly Hills perfume. Next I would take a bath, and douse myself in mum’s treasured Jean Nate after bath splash (wow that took me back, had to resort to Googling it as I’d forgotten the name). Now who remembers the green liquid with the pungent perfumey smell? To me the product sums up the gloriously decadent 80’s. I would use it and instantly feel all glamorous and sophisticated like the iconic Alexis Colby. My penchant for luxury beauty items would occasionally get me into trouble though. I can recall when I was probably around 13, my mum sent me down the road to buy shampoo. Now ordinarily she’d buy a cheapo brand like Vosene spefically catered towards European hair that cost a couple of quid. But I’d since discovered products for black hair in mags like Essence and Ebony so took it upon myself to use £3.99 of her £5 to buy a shampoo by Dax. Funny that, I thought she’d be appreciative of the gesture. But lord did I feel her wrath when I got back home and received a thorough cussing. And trust me, my mum was/is no shouter. So me being me decided to get a job (working for my mum ironically) so I’d be able to buy my own damn products. Then years later I got the upgrade - a Saturday job in Superdrug in Lewisham. Wa-hay! Believe me when I say I thought I had died and ascended to beauty heaven. These days I’m not as obsessive as I used to be, but still have my favourites. Check out my current hot list:

Hair

Shampoo - Organic Root Stimulator Uplifting Shampoo - I’ve been using this for a few years now and it really works for me. Leaves your scalp feeling squeaky clean, and it’s not drying either.

Conditioner - Organic Root Stimulator - Hair Mayonnaise - Every black woman should have a jar of this in their bathroom. I’ve got natural hair so my hair has a tendency to get really dry and needs regular deep conditioning. For best results, I leave it on for a few hours and when I wash off my hair feels super soft and tangle free.

Styling products – Carol’s Daughter - Hair Milk. I read about this product on the fabulous Afrobella blog. As Carol’s Daughter is no longer available in the UK I had to ask my friend to cop me a bottle when she went to New York last year. Trust me ladies, it’s worth the hype. My hair absorbs moisture like crazy, but Hair Milk leaves my hair feeling silky smooth for days. 

Body

Cleanse – Raddox Shower Gel 
Moisturise – I used to be hopelessly devoted to Palmers Cocoa Butter, but as my local beauty supply store are getting too outrageous with their prices (I really am my mother’s daughter, right?), I’ve now made a switch to the worthy and much cheaper Queen Helene’s Cocoa and Mango Butter. Smells good enough to eat too, yum. 

Deodorant – Really not that fussed about brands, but at the moment I’m using Palmolive Soft and Gentle Aromatherapy Sensual: Jasmine and Rose Orchid extract. 

Sun care – "None at the mo but I guess I should get on it" - ditto! 

Face

Cleanse – I used to be able to use anything on my face until around the age of 19 when my skin became hyper sensitive. So as you can imagine, once I find a product that works, I use it for a long time. At the moment that product is Neutrogena Visibly Clear: Gentle Exfoliating Wash.

Moisturise – Dermatological E-45 Cream

Mask - Again, likely to cause a break out, so I don’t use. 

Lip Balm - Shevelle, my beauty Ed buddy always winces when I say this, but for me good old fashioned Vaseline does the trick. 

Makeup 

Primer – MAC Studio Fix powder NW45
Eye Shadow – Don’t really wear eye shadow anymore. Takes too much time. 
Eyeliner - Revlon
Lip gloss – Shev blessed me with a beautiful gloss recently called Candy Shop Mocha Mania. Gorgeous finish, stays on forever and smells like coffee too. Mmmm. 
Mascara – No preference for any particular brand. 
Nail Polish - I’m impatient so tend to buy Rimmel’s 60 Seconds polish. 

I tag Disney Rollergirl, K Hart, Kwana Writes, Adenike's World and Waltzing Matilda

I'd also love to hear about your favourite beauty buys and beauty stories. 

The Cocoa Diaries feautured on The Musings of Ondo Lady

Hey folks, wow am I seriously behind on my postings or what? Earlier on in the week I was featured on the wonderful The Musings of Ondo Lady blog, and interviewed by Ronke about The Cocoa Diaries. The interview was quite a defining moment for me, as it was my first official interview as a blogger, yay. If you’ve yet to check it out give it a read and let me know what you think. Click here.

And once again, thanks Ronke. 

Oooh oooh oooh Ms Grace

Only just seeing this now - the inimitable Grace Jones being interviewed by Jonathan Ross for his show last Friday. Miss Thang is still as maddy maddy as ever. In the interview she discusses how red wine has contributed to her youthful looks, her somewhat lax approach to disciplining her son (which I thought was hilarious), and growing up in a strict Christian household in Jamaica. I can't even imagine Grace sitting on a church pew, bible in hand, singing Rock of Ages. This woman needs to write her autobiography, because no doubt God broke the mould when he made her. 

Discovering: Speech Debelle

Am I the only latecomer to this particular party?  A couple of days ago I had never heard of south London lyricist Speech Debelle, before reading Matilda's brilliantly written feature article in the Independent (well done girlie) as well as Malcolm Mackenzie's profile in this evening's edition of The London Paper. I've just checked out a couple of her tracks and all I can say is hmmm, interesting. Her style and vocal delivery is going to be a bit of a grower methinks (squeaky voice juxtaposed against sombre subject matters = a confused me), but she seems like a really engaging character so I am willing to be patient. Plus, she doesn't look or sound like any other emcee around right now, which warrants a multitude of gold stars for that alone.  See below and judge for yourselves. 

Acoustically Kelly

The UK's own adopted sister, Kelly Rowland, performed an acoustic set of her new single "When Love Takes Over" at Radio 1's Big Weekender Live Lounge a couple of days ago. For the most part I think it's quite a nice performance, although to coin a Randy Jackson phrase, " a lil' pitchy in parts".    Nonetheless I'm still rooting for Kells, and look forward to hearing her solo stuff in the not too distant future. She seems well suited to that whole laid-back, unplugged, intimate venue vibe. 

The Rebirth of Mica

What becomes of an eighties soul diva, who was once considered the most talented vocalist this country has produced, before the proverbial rug was pulled from under her feet? Well in the case of Mica Paris, the answer was to try her hand at something new. The singer blazed into the charts in 1988 with the stellar album 'So Good’, before falling off the radar as she struggled to forge a solid musical identity. But she wasn’t quite ready to disappear altogether. Like most practical thinking sistas, our Meesh simply learned how to diversify. The south east London born and bred vocalist went on to host the successful 'Soul Solutions' series on BBC Radio Two, starred in a West End musical, and acted as a fashion/life guru in the popular prime time series What Not To Wear. (We won’t focus too much attention to the reality TV lows of Celeb Air or Strictly Come Dancing, nah, we‘ll just pretend they never happened). Now just over twenty years after her debut release, Mica is back with a new studio set called “Born Again". The album consists of 12, ultra polished, mature, easy listeners. Lead single “Baby Come Back” was produced by James Morrison and has that finger snapping, pop/rock ambience that mainstream audiences should latch onto. There are also a few surprise cover versions in the mix. Eric Benet’s “You’re The Only One” which is featured on his current set “Love & Life” gets the Paris voice over, which suits her trademark throaty vocal delivery to a tee. There’s also a remake of the Keyshia Cole track “I Remember", which if I’m being honest sounds a tad more believable from the current queen of ‘achy-breaky-heart’ ballads. Mica closes the set with a walk down memory lane courtesy of a subtle acoustic version of her hit single “My One Temptation”, as well as everybody’s favourite jazz standard - “Summertime". While not surprisingly “Born Again” doesn’t have a standout club banger such as the Omar produced “I Should Have Known Better"(1990), it’s good to have her back… it really is. And if you’ve yet to check out one of Mica’s live shows, I strongly recommend you do so. Visit www.micaparis.com for updates.

Mo' Dizzee

Mr Rascal appeared on Jonathan Wossy last night, and I found the interview quick a chuckle. In case you missed it, check it out.