Farmers is offering Mix It Up readers the chance to win one of four 30 ml bottles valued at $65 each. To enter email christine@mixitup.co.nz For more information on Farmers Beauty and Fragrance ranges, visit your local store or at  www.farmers.co.nz

New to the Paul Mitchell Awapuhi Wild Ginger range this month, the Hydromist Blow-Out Spray and Hydrocream Whip provide a voluminous follow up after shampooing and conditioning. Expect a salon-worthy blow dry out the pre-dry spray, adding volume and a silky finish, then finish off with the whip to fight frizz. Paul Mitchell Awapuhi Wild Ginger Hydrocream Whip – $32.95 and Hydromist Blow-Out Spray – $29.95. The full range includes: Moisturising Lather Shampoo, Keratin Cream Rinse, Keratin Intensive Treatment, Styling Treatment Oil, Finishing Spray, Shine Spray, and Texturising Sea Spray.

Dermalogica is my skincare brand of choice and they recently sent me a couple of products to keep my skin protected against the elements. I’m a gel cleanser fan and use the Special Cleansing Gel twice a day. This winter I plan to use the Ultra Calming Cleanser in the morning instead,  the soothing blend of Raspberry, Lavender, Coneflower and cucumber extracts help calm and cool the redness and heat associated with reactive, sensitised or over-processed skin, as well as rosacea (which I suffer from occasionally) Fragile, winter skin is pampered and signs of wear and tear are stopped before they show physically on the skin’s surface. This cleanser also strengthens the skin’s protective barrier (great if you spend a lot of time outdoors and suffer from ‘red cheeks’) Oat Complex also works on burning, itching skins.

The perfect day cream to use after this cleanser is Dermalogica’s Barrier Repair. It’s been re-formulated to be even better than the original and contains no water (yes, there are people out there that can’t use water on their skin) and also contains the brand’s exclusive Ultra-Calming Complex to calm reactive skin down before it shows those pesky, embarrassing signs (inflammation being the main culprit).

Nivea held a luncheon this week to talk about women’s beauty secrets, tips and routines. They asked all the attendees to contribute a tip or secret and then complied them into a book and a select few onto their very own canvasses. A few of the best/most unusual include; “tap lip balm on your cheekbones for instant faux radiance’, ‘mix rosehip oil with your night cream to boost radiance and help fade scars’ and ‘eye make-up remover is the late night saviour when you want to remove stubborn red lipstick stains from your lips or those pesky nightclub stamps from your arm’.

It really makes you think about all the crazy things and all the time we spend beautifying and maintaining ourselves. That is why it’s nice to remember that there are products out there like Nivea, which cover your basics so easily. Nivea has been making quality skincare for Australasian women (and men) for over 100 years! Their tried and true products have become a staple in our beauty regimes and remain as effective as they are easy on the pocket.

My favourite Nivea product has always been the hand cream, as my hands need lotion everyday since my teenage job as a kitchen hand. Nivea hand cream moisturises deeply and is absorbed fully so you don’t have greasy hands afterwards…you need those hands to do stuff! Now they have added to their hand care range the new Express Hydration Hand Fluid (RRP $5.89), which does just what it says.

Nivea have also given their body moisturisers like the Irresistibly Smooth Body Lotion  (400ml RRP $9.49) and the Body Firming Q10PLUS Lotion  (400ml RRP $10.99) a new look and a pump bottle, so your basic beauty care just got even easier. 

They also use the CoEnzyme Q10 in their day and night face creams, and have just added Creatine, which works with the Q10 to supply energy to help the skin renewal processes. At an RRP of $19.99 for both the NIVEA VISAGE Anti-Wrinkle Q10PLUS Day Cream and the Anti-Wrinkle Q10PLUS Night Cream, it’s hard to beat. Quick, easy, inexpensive and effective, what more could you ask for?

Rebecca Faulkner

Tracklist -

 01. Lawrence Arabia – Travelling Shoes

02. Princess Chelsea – Ice Reign

03. Pikachunes – Metronome

04. So So Modern – Holiday from Crude Futures

05. Watercolours – Night Swimmer

06. She’s So Rad – Videos

07. Grayson Gilmour – Humble Punk Rock

08.The Eversons – Hot For Me

09. Cool Rainbows – Tidal Wave

10. The Glad Eyes – We’ve Got it All

11. Bannerman – The Year That Has Gone

12. Joe Blossom – Thinking of You

13. Ivory Coast – Longtime Love

14. Wet Wings – Feeeel It

15. The Golden Awesome – Ruby

 The Barkers’ tracksuit pant can definitely be considered a classic as far as New Zealand fashion history goes, love them or dislike them immensely, seeing a pair of these pants in present day is guaranteed to put a smile on your face and make you giggle. Worn a few sizes too big and most probably stolen off your boyfriend, Barkers sold a phenomenal 50,00 pairs back in the 80′s and 90′s in the washed out, muted shades of grey, mauve, rust, moss green and the classic grey marle.

Barkers is celebrating its 40th year in business this year and realised there was never going to be a better time to re-launch a classic whilst the current fashion-hysteria for the 1990′s is still in full swing. You can pick up a pair of your own for $89.00 from you nearest Barkers store or Barkers online here

 I wore a shade last night I can’t mention the name of yet (the collection is embargoed till the end of the month) but  I can however give you the lowdown on the wear-ability. I chose a bright orange shade to trial. Personally I am used to forever checking if my lipstick is still on and applying more. The Pro Longwear Lip Creme texture certainly felt different, very light, I applied about three coats which was probably overkill, but I do like a bright lip. It seemed to feel like it was drying (which is usually what longwear lipsticks do and then look like you own a corpse’s lips) however it dried and then looked creamy, which is impossibly crazy, but true.

Three hours and no mirror checks later I got home and checked it’s progress…still bright, still creamy and still looking good, M.A.C use a flexible film-former to provide transfer resistance to get you through a dumplings dinner, the longest kiss or just a busy day.

Permanant shades available are Made To Last, Till Tomorrow, Sweet Ever After, Faithfully Yours, Goes and Goes, Love Forever!, Perpetual Flame, Unlimited, Overtime, Extended Play, Good To Go, Prolong, To the Future!, So Very Good, Dress It Up, Positively Dashing, Endless Drama, Soulfully Rich & Soft Sell. Plus four more amazing colours in the embarged collection you will soon hear about! RRP $48.00

CARNATION MIST – A rose petal pink which would attract Hummingbirds to nectar and touches your lips with a healthy pink natural glow. FUCHSIA SHOCK – A delicious, flamboyant fuchsia pink which will brighten any gloomy day with an injection of head-turning colour. CORAL DAWN – This tangerine orange shade projects onto your lips a richly exotic reddish orange, backed with lemon notes. This colour has been dubbed as the ‘new red! SAND STORM – Inspired by the rugged natural beauty of Highway 1 USA . Sand Storm is nature at its finest which envelopes the lips in a subtly sandy brown shade.

As WORLD’s new flagship store WORLD Britomart is the epitome of WORLD’s current direction and the acme of retail experience in New Zealand. With an exclusive and luxurious mix of all three parts of WORLD – Men’s and Women’s Collection and WORLD Beauty – this enviroment is an enclave of WORLD’s spirit and personality. Once again WORLD has collaborated with Meredith Lee of European Antiques and Furnishings to create an environment of extraordinary proportions.

A change has occurred in Mt Eden – BLOC has landed at 20 Normanby Rd. Bo Concept has opened its second story space to a host of avid retailers including Pencil Boutique, Citta, Collect-ed, Tivoli and Geneva Audio brands. This new concept space is a characterful reminder of unique design based shopping with a variety of brands and instincts to suit all shoppers. WORLD Beauty Store and Pencil Boutique have joined forces to create and eclectic and eccentric environment true to the roots of both brands being at one time equally irreverent and luxurious in each chosen field. WORLD Beauty is offering a condensed showcase of its classic lines with Aesop Skincare, Cire Trudon Candles, Medik8 skincare, Pre de Provence Soaps, Argan Oil, Holistic Hair Care, Mason & Pearson hairbrushes, Marvis Toothpaste, Claus Porto Soap and Candles. Fragrances from Acqua di Parma, Fragonard, Miller et Bertaux, Guerlain, Carthusia, Rance, Juliette has a Gun, and Lubin’s epic Idole fragrance.

The world of online retail has been joined by a rather unique little home for a discerning shopper. WORLD’s Online Shop is an effort to give the e-shopper an emotional and “WORLD-ish” experience. With video’s by Garth Badger to accompany each personally selected product giving the item, whether it be a Cire Trudon Candle or a pair of WORLD Map Tights, a mood and giving each individual item the precedence it deserves. Check it out here