Olive Oil: My new best friend! :D

Olive oil. A natural product that has been on the market for hundreds of years and now all of a sudden, everyone claims to have rediscovered it. Hyped up you say? I say it's hyped up for a reason!
I have been listening to so many people rave about olive oil, and in a way it was always something I did not completely comprehend. But today, I became aware of this treasure. And I wanted to research the matter further and find all the ways olive oil can be introduced into an everyday life.

As we all know, olive oil is mostly a substance used for cooking. There are numerous recipes that include olive oil in books and online. Therefore, I will not be getting to much into that part. Let me just say that olive oil is a very good antioxidant, it contains vitamins A and B and many other antioxidants that help your body get rid of substances such as radiation, smoke (cigarette smoke, but also cars and other) and alcohol. It helps the regeneration of the skin and brings back that healthy glow.
It is also said that olive oil benefits weight loss. Also, it decreases risks of heart disease, prevents cancer, helps digestion, improves brain function, bone health and also, tastes quite nice in my opinion.

But I am much more interested in the different manners one can use olive oil that do not include ingesting it.
Through a list, I am going to explain all the ways I used olive oil, + what I found online that could be interesting.

Lets start from the head down...

HAIR:

-Olive oil is the best to use in hair masks! My personal favorite: olive oil and eggs with a little bit of honey! I mix 5 tablespoons of olive oil with 2 eggs and 2 teaspoons of honey. You can also leave out the honey and just do olive oil and eggs, or leave out the eggs and just do honey and olive oil. I put it all into my hair from my ears down (I don't put it on my roots, and also I have pretty thick and long hair, so eye your mixture according to your hair type) and after that, I like to cover my hair with a shower cap or foil and leave that on for about 15 minutes, rinse well. The mask works wonders for my hair. I wouldn't suggest doing it more than once a week though.
-Another thing I like to do to my hair is to put it into my hair while I'm on the beach or at the pool. Just a little bit to protect my hair from the chlorine, the salt and the sun

FACE:

To continue with the list of places you can use olive oil on (which, you will see, is quite long)...
-Olive oil can be used as a mask, mixing olive oil and avocado into a nice paste, leaving it on for 5 to 10 minutes, and then rinsing it off.
-Also, you can mix olive oil, an egg and honey *again* for a good face mask as well.
-Olive oil can be used on its own as a face mask and can help you cleanse your face. Just use some warm water on the face, and after that apply olive oil to the face, wait until your face has absorbed it and rinse it off.
-Used as a cleanser, olive oil should help you get rid of all of your acne and blemishes. Rub some olive oil into the skin with circular motions, the imperfections should start coming out of your skin. After you use olive oil, wash your face with a cleanser that contains glycerin.
-I use olive oil when I cannot find or do not own a makeup remover to remove eye and face make up, after that I just follow with my usual skincare routine.
-Face/Body Scrub: Olive oil + a bit of salt and the scrub is ready. The salt removes dead skin cells, while the oil moisturizes the skin. Just remember to be gentle when using it on your face.
-It will also help with scaring and wounds. Apply a generous amount onto those spots every day and watch your face change in front of your eyes.
-Apply some to your chapped lips and it will help for sure.
-Another thing I wanted to mention. I know a lot of women have a problem with hair growth on their upper lip. I personally like to use those depilatory strips you can buy in drugstores. They usually come in a package along with some moisturizing wipes to use afterwards. I find to always use those up quicker than the actual strips. When I find myself in lack of those wipes, I use olive oil to remove any wax that might be left and to moisturize that area.

BODY:

-Shaving! I could not wait to get to this part. I tried to use olive oil instead of a shaving cream. I have to admit: I was very skeptical about it. As soon as I started shaving I was amazed. It was so easy and quick. The razor just glided over my skin. After I rinsed off the residue, it left my skin soft and moisturized. I didn't have to use any lotion because the olive oil did it all.
-Body scrub. I already mentioned it above.
-You can also add a few drops of olive oil to your bath to hydrate your skin.
-Sun bathing: apply some before going into the sun along with the sunscreen and it will help get a better tan.

You can see why I love olive oil so much. :)
Thank you for reading!

Fashion trends: Fall/Winter 2012/13. :)

The summer is slowly going by, and all of the summer trends people were so excited to see and wear start to fade away, one thought is forming in my head. What comes next?
I was going through the magazine Elle the other day and noticed that a few minor spaces were filled with fall trends, so I decided to get informed about the topic further. The easiest way for this were, of course, fashion shows. So I started watching fashion shows and lookbooks, going through sites such as style.com, vogue, and harpers bazaar. I came out with loads of interesting conclusions which I would love to share.

As it is with everything, some trends determined for the upcoming season have amazed me, others not so much, but I have also learned to love a few I did not initially like. Let me tell you a bit more about it.

The first and probably one of the biggest trends I have seen is the military style. Buttons, shoulder pads and that rough texture. Along with it I saw trends such as: purple, knitted jumpers and glitter, glitter, glitter. Glittery eyes, lips, dresses, even eyebrows (Chanel). Speaking of: big, accentuate eyebrows are supposed to be in as well, but I'll talk about beauty trends more in my next post. Other fashion trends? Line skirts, brocade, capes, gloves, monochrome prints, collars and peplums, big coats, natty prints, lace, fabric blocking, leather, pink, loose trousers, fit and flare skirts, bold digital skirts, fur enhanced shoulders, oriental prints, native prints, boho, leopard... Since it would take me lots and lots of pages to describe what I have seen, I will be talking about the once that I found most interesting.

What caught my eye first were those pilgrim shoes Marc Jacobs showed on his fashion show. I wasn't sure about them at first, but with a bit less *bling*, I think I would be able to pull it off even in an everyday outfit, and once fall starts, I believe lots of other brands will come up with cheaper versions of the same shoe.

The already mentioned texture blocking is another thing I found quite likable. After the color blocking trend, so hyped up in spring and summer, I was interested to see whether or not we'll get to see something similar in the upcoming season. And it came and blew everyone away. I love how they mix delicate and rough fabrics and make an entire new look out of it. I'm sure we will be seeing a lot of it in different stores already, from evening and special occasion wears, to street style and casual wears. Along with it, I am also going to mention the material I have seen almost everywhere: lace.

Another trend transitioning from summer to fall and winter is the so called dip-dye trend. The neon, vivid colors are being replaced by more subtle colors and colors more appropriate for the colder months of the year. And not only are the clothes dip-dyed! The hair is as well.

Pink. Purple. Mustard yellow. Yellow. Olive green. Red. Gold. Brown. Gray. Nude. Black. White. Green. All of these are the colors for the upcoming season. The already well known colors for the season are not a surprise, the pink, purple and yellow trend on the other hand are a relatively new thing for fall. 

Speaking of colors and textures, I also have to add the two B's that are waiting to be worn next season. Baroque and Broaches. Baroque is represented by the color combination of black and gold. While broaches  complemented the looks of many. Ralph Lauren was the one that presented the best combination of both in my opinion.                                                                       

I found the collection introduced by Mango to be one of the most wearable, but still trendy collections. I absolutely adore the dark green jacket on the left. It reminds me of the one Burberry showed in its collection. The sweater beneath is the perfect representation of the knitted sweater trend. On the right, the all red shows the one color scheme trend, with the high neck and the military style jacket. Love love love! I can't wait to hit the stores when the time comes for it. I also saw a beautiful coat in Zara the other day. It was a dark blue coat with an a-line cut and studded sleeves. Tried it on. Fell in love with it. Still, I have decided to wait a little and see if I really want it since it was quite pricey.

I also found a nice picture showing the so called ''Schiaparelli Pink lady'' trend that is huge as well. From what I have seen, H&M is launching a very wearable and interesting collection as well. I have been to the store closest to me and checked out what they were having at that moment. Even though the stores are far from stocked, I'm expecting a lot.

D&G's sunglasses are the last item I really loved and therefore don't want to forget mentioning. The flower detail gives a certain elegance and vintage feel to it all, without being over the top. In love with these as well!

If you are feeling down, dress up!

All in all, I am looking forward to the next season, as there is a lot to expect and a lot to explore. The next post I am planning to do is one about make up, nail and hair trends for fall, so stay tuned for that! :) Hope you enjoyed the fashion trends from my point of view. Enjoy! :)