Image – Clare Wiese-Wentzel

My Favourite Wireless Headphones

beats-wireless-white — Beats Wireless Headphones in White

Truth be told, I was hesitant to run this post as I wouldn’t want anyone thinking this it’s been paid for. There is a LOT of marketing going on around Beats By Dr Dre Wireless Headphones. But know this: there are few things I dislike more than paid-for posts or bloggers who sell their souls to big advertisers. That ain’t me.

Last night, while mindlessly surfing the net on my laptop, my nifty other half quietly and inconspicuously got the wireless headphones I purchased a while ago, during a trip to London, synced up to his iTunes and…placed them on my head to play me a song. To put it mildly, I was instantly and magically transported from a mundane, internet-surfing, vanilla world into a land of crystal clear, energizing and soul-uplifting music – the kind that makes you want to get up and boogie all by yourself in the living room (you know, like those hot chicks always do in cheesy radio station ads).

To put it another way: whilst listening to whatever tune it was (I don’t even remember which particular one was playing when I was overcome by the wonder of Beats By Dr Dre), I actually found myself looking forward to next week’s gym sessions (a Very Rare Occurrence). I should probably add, this is kind of the reason why I bought these wireless babies in the first place: running/jogging/training is enough of a challenge, I don’t need annoying and tangly wires running up and down my arm, just so that I can tune out of cardio hell and into my favourite playlist of embarrassingly corny gym tunes. I want ease, I want comfort and, of course, I want crystal clear sound. Thank you, Dr Dre, you have provided.

Awesome Photo by Jean-Pierre Uys — My 30th Birthday Party. Awesome Photo by The Incredibly Talented Jean-Pierre Uys.

Pros Controls on the ear cup let you switch tracks and adjust volume without pulling out your music player. Headphones, though wirelessly enabled, can also be used with a wire (to connect to non-synced devices on aeroplanes, at the gym etc.) Headphones are rechargeable with a USB power cable and they don’t take batteries. They’re also pretty easy to sync up to your bluetooth devices.

Cons All the Dr Dre headphones are super expensive, but after trying them out, I can see why. They cost in the region of USD 279.00, depending on which country you’re in. (Tip: try buying them at any international airport to at least get them tax free.)

Stockists Visit beatsbydre.com and select your country for information on where to buy.

World’s Best Décolletage Cream

During my mid-20s, I started noticing (with a fair amount of disdain, I might add) some fine creases developing on the surface of my décolletage. Since those pesky little lines were most prominent in the mornings and took a while to ‘fade’, I couldn’t help but think that my preferred foetal sleeping position (pretty much curled up in a ball) was to blame. (If I am being completely honest with myself, though, I’m sure my years of sun-tanning and of course the inevitable decrease in skin elasticity as we grow older, have played their parts as well.)

Whatever the cause, I needed a solution! After seeing many dermatologists and trying what could easily have been 20 (very expensive) product ranges, I came across the international cult favourite Mama Mio Boob Tube Bust & Neck Firmer. After about four to five nights of applying a generous amount of this cream to my décolletage, I saw a noticeable difference: my skin looked firmer, smoother and significantly younger in the morning. It was almost as if the magic ingredients in this product kept my skin from forming lines during the night-time in said curled-up foetal position. If you’re looking for a miracle potion to tighten, firm or smooth out your bust/neck area, this is as close as I believe you’re going to get. Try it.

Featured In Vogue, Heat, Allure, OK!, The Daily Telegraph, Glamour (to name a few).

PS If you don’t believe me (or the magazine clippings shown above), perhaps you’ll take Jessica Alba’s word for it: apparently, she’s a die-hard fan. The best part? This range, originally developed for pregnant mommies-to-be, is completely organic and free of harmful chemicals. That’s a major bonus, in my books. Any cons? The dispensing mechanism for this lotion could be better, as the pumps on Mamo Mio products sometimes stop working after a few uses. Price Approximately £29.50 or the equivalent in your national currency.

STOCKISTS

Cape Town Dante Wellness Spa, Sea Point.

Other Check out the Mamo Mio website to find your nearest stockist or order online.

Why I Adore Chanel’s Iconic Foundations

For dry or mature skin, there is – quite simply – no other foundation quite like the iconic Chanel Vitalumiere: it’s light-weight and looks completely natural, yet provides just enough moisture and coverage to give you an instantly radiant complexion. It’s got the whole ‘dewy skin’ thing down pat and revives tired skin in a second. (If your skin tends to be oily or prone to breaking out, this product will be too rich for you.)

For combination to oily skin, you’ll do well to invest in the high-coverage and mattifying version called Perfection Lumiere. Its long-wearing semi-matte finish hides all kinds of skin sins without that dreaded caked-on effect.

Lastly, if you’re one of those lucky B’s who happen to have perfect skin, you probably won’t need anything heavier than the Vitalumiere Aqua.

Note This best-selling foundation range doesn’t come cheap, with prices ranging from about USD55. Make sure you buy the right version for your skin type (oily, dry or combination) and the right colour shade (there are over 20 to choose from). Take a friend with you, get the store assistant to put some tester product on your face and walk outside to check the shade in the sunlight. In-store lighting will not give you an accurate reflection.

Stockists

Cape Town, Johannesburg, Durban Edgars

London Selfridges Beauty Department

New York Macy’s Beauty Department

World’s Best Affordable Eye-Makeup Remover

This is just a quick post to share a recently discovered little gem with you all, especially those girls who (like me) enjoy a smokey eye and struggle to get through the day without a good dose of mascara.

I recently ran out of my usual eye make-up remover and, since it’s not yet available in South Africa, a trip to my local pharmacy was urgently called for. (My eyes weren’t loving me last week when I tried hopelessly, night after night, to remove every trace of my eye makeup with my facial cleanser.)

I must confess, my hopes were slim that I would find a pharmacy-brand eye makeup remover that would do the job, properly and throughly, without irritating my eyes or taking ages. Oh, but how I was mistaken… The lovely assistant on duty recommended I try their pharmacy’s best-sellng Vichy Purete Thermale Waterproof Eye Makeup Remover For Sensitive Eyes: what a dream discovery it turned out to be.

With a quick and gentle swipe of a lightly soaked cotton-pad, this stuff removed every last trace of black mascara (I’m partial to the heavy-duty-waterproof kind) without my eyes batting a lid (pun intended). The best part of all: it’s free of nasty parabens. (Trust the French.) The worst part? If you have to ask, the packaging could probably do with a redesign.

Stockists

SA Bantry Bay Pharmacy, Victoria Road, Cape Town, and all other Vichy-stocking pharmacies.

International Visit www.vichy.com or www.vichy.co.uk for stockist information and online purchasing.

World’s Best Hairdryer

If you haven’t yet discovered the hairdryer brand, Parlux, prepare to get blown away (silly pun intended). I was introduced to this super powerful and incredibly efficient hairdryer by my hairdresser a few years ago and I’ve never looked back. What’s more, I subsequently started noticing that each and every hair salon I’ve visited (whether in London, New York or Cape Town) uses Parlux, and only Parlux, hairdryers. No wonder it’s seen as the No 1 choice of hair care professionals.

Once you’ve used it, you’ll see what all the fuss is about. A word of warning, though: you’ll probably end up like me, lugging it around with you wherever you go (all other hairdryers, especially the ones in hotels, simply don’t compare). There are various models but the one which has gained the most international awards and media attention is the Parlux 3200 Compact which features a super-powerful 1900 watts motor, yet weighs only 490grams. I call it The Little Hairdryer That Could.

Awards In Style Best Beauty Buys Winner 2012, Your Hair Awards Winner 2012, Hair Awards 2012.

Stockists

SA Try your nearest Partners Hair Design (there’s a branch in the V&A Waterfront, Cape Town) that stocks them.

International Buy online at www.parlux.co.uk (if you live in the UK) or www.parluxus.com (if you live in the USA).

World’s Best Self-Tanner

Despite the known dangers of sun exposure, I refused for many years to use self-tanning products: they were messy, stinky and almost always looked obvious. This includes the big brand-name products whom I won’t name and shame here. At one stage, I would only associate myself with self-tan if I had it done at a professional salon, applied by a professional beautician, for a (VERY) special event. Even then, sprinting out of the salon (post-spray), hoping nobody will catch you in your tracksuit looking like you’ve just lost a mud fight, is not my idea of a relaxing spa treatment. Not to mention the drying time, the no-showering time and the general disruption of your day.

All of this changed when I stumbled across the St Tropez Gradual Tan Everyday Body Moisturizer Medium/Dark during time spent in the USA. This product works like a moisturizer, which you simply apply before bedtime, as you would any old moisturizer. It takes about three minutes to dry and won’t stain your sheets. Best of all, you’ll wake up looking ever-so-gently sun-kissed, with no streaky bits and no bad smell (it does have a slight scent, but not one that’s offensive).

Awards Winner of Elle Beauty Awards, Company Beauty Awards and InStyle Best Beauty Buys.

Who is it for? Anyone who wants to slowly build up a golden tan. Note: this product is not for anyone who wants to resemble Miss Hawaiian Tropics or Ross in that Friends episode.

Application Exfoliate well before massaging this luxurious lotion in from top to toe. Don’t worry if you go over the same area twice, it’s only missed areas that’ll look uneven. Wait for the lotion to be absorbed before getting dressed and remember to wash the palms of your hands and in between your fingers after use. Use daily for a subtle golden boost to winter or sun-tanned skin. Don’t apply to broken, irritated or sensitive skin.

Stockists

SA Most large Clicks outlets stock the St Tropez range.

International You will find this product at all leading department store beauty departments and certain spas across the globe. If you want to have it delivered to your door, visit www.st-tropez.com to place your order.

World’s Best Pore-Minimizer

Throughout my travels, I have found certain beauty products to consistently appear in the personal makeup bags of professional makeup artists. Why? Probably because these products deliver.

If you’ve been looking for a primer that truly, really and sincerely works when it comes to minimizing the appearance of large pores, you can stop looking and invest in Benefit’s best-selling The Porefessional. You’ll soon wonder how you ever lived without it. And you’ll see why makeup artists choose not to.

How did I discover this miracle balm? I’d read about it one too many times in one too many beauty magazines and I could no longer ignore the possibility that it might actually work! To my astonishment, I watched – with my first application – as my pores went from in your face (no pun intended) to barely there. While this primer does not eradicate pores completely (what does?), it’s as good as I believe it’s going to get. And, for those evenings when you want to look your absolute best, you won’t want to do without it.

Application Apply a small amount of this silky, lightweight balm alone, under or over makeup. Pat onto problem areas and blend gently with fingertips. The translucent, oil-free formula complements all skin tones and also helps makeup stay put for longer.

Stockists Leading department stores across the globe, including Selfridges in London, Benefit Cosmetics Online (UK) or Benefit Cosmetics Online (USA).

CPT’s Best Mobile Massage

I find the idea of traveling to a spa for a massage, only to get up after 60 or 90 minutes of near-comatose bliss (to get dressed, make payment, pay for parking) almost completely counter-productive. Except, of course, when I’m staying at some isolated resort on some exotic island and getting a massage is likely the most ‘active’ thing I’ll do all day;)

To me, no amount of classical background music, fluffy white robes or spa-induced zen can compete with the utter luxury of having my masseur come to me. Assuming, of course, the masseur in question knows what he or she is doing and has strong hands. In my experience, a bad massage (when your masseur tickles your back with the strength of a doom-sprayed mosquito) is worse than no massage at all – especially for us neurotic control freak types who struggle with sitting still.

I’d like to introduce you to a fabulosu friend of mine, Norbert Rossel, a highly qualified sports masseur, who ticks all the boxes: he’s mobile (although he also practices from an exclusive guest house in Cape Town), has hands of steel and decades of experience. Originally from Germany, where he once assisted the national Olympic swim team, Norbert now lives and works in Cape Town. Besides massage, Norbert is qualified in physiotherapy, sports science, chiropractic and acupuncture, with a particularly extensive knowledge of the world’s most cutting-edge holistic therapies. Let’s just say he’s on my speed dial and I can’t live without him.

Details If you live in Cape Town, contact Norbert on 084-582-5323 to book your appointment. He is able to travel within the greater Cape Town area at no additional cost. Norbert works only via word of mouth, so – if you decide to give him a call – please tell him I referred you.

CPT’s Best Blow Dry

Lameez did my hair for my 30th birthday party. — Lameez gave me these gorgeous locks for my 30th birthday party.

I have been fortunate enough to travel all over the world and, often, on these trips, I have had the need for a good blow dry (as one does): whether it be for a special event or just to lift my mood and restore my ‘chi’ after a long-haul international flight.

To my perpetual dismay, however, regardless of how many pounds or dollars I’ve spent at the latest/hottest/most exclusive hair salons dotted across the globe, I have yet to come across a hair stylist who can inject my hair with as much bouncy, volumising, root-lifted body as Lameez Barendse at HAIR on Kloof Nek Road in Cape Town (021-422-2269). She uses all the tricks (volumising mousse, velcro curlers, curling tongs, hair spray and good old-fashioned backcombing) to get the job done and to get it to last. She’s super quick too, which, to me, is a plus.

I met Lameez one rainy Saturday morning, about 5 years ago, when she was still working at AURA in Green Point. I waltzed in looking for someone to fix my at-home-fringe-cutting disaster. And there she was. She fixed it in a jiffy and didn’t even charge me. I’ve never looked back (and my hair has never looked better:) PS She’s a very busy girl, so book your body-boosting blow dry well in advance.

CPT’s Best Manicure

If you live in Cape Town, South Africa, or you plan to visit it any time soon, there is only one place (and one woman) to go to for the perfect manicure. Believe me when I say I have kissed many a mani/pedi-frog and after finding Terri (who currently works at Dante Wellness Spa in Sea Point, Cape Town, 021-434-1011) she became my manicurist for life. The wonder-woman is highly experienced and it shows: she stays within the lines and she knows how to paint so that polish lasts. (She’s also not one of those annoying nail technicians who do a shoddy paint job and then touch it up with acetone-dipped buds afterwords. She doesn’t need to. She gets it right the first time around.)

If you’re an old fashioned gal who swears by traditional nail polish, you’ll love Dante’s selection of cool Essie colours. My all-time personal favourites are Wicked, a deep and dark sinister red, and of course the famous Ballet Slippers, an award-winning, best-selling classic pale pink with a sheer finish. However, I prefer Gelish and CND Shellac: not for their range of colours, which I think could be better, but for their sheer practicality: these soak-off gel polishes need zero dry time, stay on far longer than traditional polish and, if applied properly, will not chip off after a few days. (You do need to return to the salon, though, to have the gel soaked off, once your nails have grown out.)

My favourite Gelish colour is Black Cherry Berry (similar to Essie’s Wicked) and my go-to Shellac shade is Romantique (a light creamy colour that needs to be applied three times to give even coverage, since it’s quite sheer).

PS I can’t believe I am actually giving away this entry in my little black book, as Terri is already super busy and now she will probably become even busier, meaning I will have to call weeks in advance! I do, however, feel that – when it comes to avoiding what I call ‘spa-sasters’ – sharing is caring. Life’s just too short to have bad nails!