How I Look After My Stretched Ears

I love my stretched ears. They are, after my tattoos at least, my favorite modification I have on my body. I've been stretching my ears for 2 years, and they're currently at 14mm. That's not huge, I grant you, but on my tiny ears, it's pretty sizable. Anyways, I digress. Today I'm going to talk to you about what I do to look after my stretched ears. 





Cleaning:

I clean my ears in the shower, like most people with stretched ears. I slip out my plugs, use a little bit of soap (or shower gel, or antibacterial wash) and clean the entire lobe, get it all sudsy, then rinse with lovely warm water. Then I clean my plugs. 


Generally just running them under the shower head does the job, but from time to time I give them a good wipe over with surgical spirits to make sure they're totally germ-free. Then I pop my plugs back in. All clean. 

Moisturizing: 

Anyone with stretched ears will tell you, moisturizing is a key part of the maintenance of stretched ears. I use Vitamin E in a few forms.   

After showering and whenever I feel it's necessary, I use Kelkin Vitamin E Cream. Now I use this on my face but any time I use any creams, I take them from the pot with cotton wool buds, so I don't contaminate the pot with my icky finger germs! I pop a little on my lobes after showering or if I'm going out in the cold for the day to keep my ears looking lovely. I even bring a mini tub of Vitamin E cream and some cotton buds in my handbag in case I might need to pop a little cream on them during the day. 

Massaging:

 A couple of times per week I burst a Sona Vitamin E capsule and rub the oil on my lobes before bedtime. Vitamin E encourages new growth and healthy skin, a must for anyone with stretched ears! 

If you've little lobes like me, massaging them helps to promote blood-flow and new cell growth. When I'm moisturizing my ears, I massage the lobes for a minute or two to stimulate the flow of blood to them. This helps to thicken them up over time which is great if you want to stretch your ears to bigger sizes.




Other Stuff: 

If it's cold, keep your ears warm. Don't wear steel, wear wood or glass. Wear a hat that covers your ears if you can! Some people I've seen on YouTube with bigger stretched lobes are able to wrap them around their ears near their face, which allows their body heat to keep their lobes warm - while I can't do that, I can say it's a good idea for those who can! 

Wear nice stuff in your holes. I favor stone, almost exclusively, but I also really like to wear glass too. Glass can be made into spirals and fancy shapes, where stone cannot, so it's nice to have some fancy glass plugs for special wear. I also really like the satisfying weight that you can feel with stone and glass.

So there you have it, how I look after my stretched ears. Hopefully you found this useful if you are new to stretched ear care and if you're more seasoned than I am, please do let me know your tips!! 

Amy

xo

Twitter // Facebook

Cara Derm Seaweed Soothing Lotion

When I find a product with words like "Made In Ireland", "100% Natural", "Sustainable" and "Renewable" on the label, I'm immediately drawn to it.

Image: Ebay

For the first review of 2015, I've got the wonderful Caraderm Seaweed Soothing Lotion, which just so happens to have all of these lovely words, and more upon the label! And when it's made in Northern Ireland and has been featured on Dragon Den, I found myself even more intrigued.

"Has calming properties and helps skin retain essential lipids. Also may be applied after sun-exposure, waxing and tattoo."

I'm really digging this lovely, clear lotion. It has no smell, it's not sticky, it's not greasy and it leaves absolutely no residue behind. I've been using it during the healing process for my latest tattoo and it's been a fabulous addition! During the day I apply this and then first thing in the morning and last thing before sleep I apply E45 in conjunction.

I've found when you apply it, a little goes a long way, which makes its great value for money and saves on waste. One pump is sufficient to cover a rather large area such as my forearm. If you suffer from eczema, rashes or acne, this could really be a viable option for the treatment or maintenance of those conditions. It is absorbed by the skin really well and leaves no residue whatsoever.

All in all, this product is tippy-top-notch, giving great results in the healing of my tattoo! I'm going to incorporate it into my skincare regime further and report back to you in due course!

Caraderm Seaweed Soothing Lotion was 6.99 in my local chemist, and can be found on the website.

Thanks to Caraderm, I've experienced the fastest healing of a tattoo in years. 

Have you ever tried Caraderm before? 

Amy

x

Twitter // Facebook // Pinterest

Dream Dots For Spots*

I've never looked forward to getting a spot, until the good folks at Dream Dots sent me these babies!! I have been waiting to get some pimples so I can try them and see how they fare. 

However, when you are waiting to get a spot it seems like your skin gets really good just to spite you... 

The premise is simple, get a spot, stick on a Dream Dot, go to bed and wake up with a smaller, less inflamed spot. You do this for between 1-3 nights, and every morning when you get up, the Dream Dot will have changed colour, having turned white as it works. When you take off the Dream Dot, you cleanse your face as normal. The dots are soft and comfortable, they move as your face moves but never come unattached!

The packaging doesn't tell you what the active ingredients are, but I have to say I'm leaning heavily towards either magic or fairy-dust. These things are the business, make no mistake. Add to that that they are Cruelty Free and Vegan, what more could you want from a product. They do a great job on spots, and they are not causing harm or suffering to lovely furry creatures!! 

I wish it was worth me attaching a picture of these little round dots of love, but they match my skin so closely, there's no point. I tweeted Dream Dots and we were joking about playing "Spot The Dot", that's how invisible they are. You're going to have to trust me that after two nights on a big, dirty spot, and one on a little pimple on my top lip, there is nearly no trace of either and no scabbing to boot. The redness on my chin spot is gone, the skin is soft and I'm so impressed I think I may be in love. 

Dream Dots retail for 14.95 for a pack of 24 and 24.95 for a pack of 48. You can get them in most pharmacies and on the Dream Dots website. 

Be sure to check out these little circles of magic, I promise you wont go wrong! 

If you've tried these, let me know what you thought!! 

Amy

xx

Twitter // Facebook // Pinterest

*This product was sent for consideration by Dream Dots, all opinions are my own*

Review - Mondss Underarm Wear*

Mondss!

When Jane McTernan contacted me about reviewing Mondss Underarm Wear, I was intriuged. 

At the time, I was after starting a new job and I thought they would be perfect to keep me fresh in the kitchens, where the heat, the sweat and the lack of comfort can be rife. When you sweat in a kitchen, you'd want to be sure your anti-perspirant is on point. So when these dropped through the letter box, I knew I was going to put them through one HELL of a trial, just to see what they are really made of. 

Mondss are shaped like a blunt wedge shape, with sticky adhesive all the way around bar a small section in the middle of each side to allow your armpit to bend. They are SO comfortable, they're soft and they are discreet. They lasted me for a whole afternoon the first time I used them... 

Now since they arrived I got let go from that job, so I've trialled them during a hardcore session in my own kitchen, where I have no whites to conceal the sweat and the potential for whiffy-ness. I used them last time I made a cake, which took 2 hours to bake and left the kitchen absolutely stifling, and meant I had to prep, cook, clean and finish all by myself. I wore a grey-marl Hobbit shirt, known for showing sweat stains and everything was perfect!! 

Last week I wore them to Zumba to see if they would be suitable for wearing in the gym, out running or for a general workout, and I'm pleased to report that they are as much suited to active-wear as they are to wearing to work or a party. Admittedly the extra movement encumbers the adhesive and means it wont last you a whole day but if you find you sweat like a beast in the gym, these are for you!! 

Check out Janes wonderful product at Mondss.com.
They retail for 9.99 and at the moment, if you buy 3 packs, you get free shipping! 

If you have tried Mondss, let me know how you got on!! 

Amy

xx

Twitter // Facebook // Pinterest

*Sponsored post, all opinions are my own

WIN!! 1 Years Supply of Water Wipes

To celebrate breaking 100,000 visitors to my blog, I am hosting a giveaway with huge thanks to the wonderful folks at Irish Breeze, the wonderful company who make my beloved Water Wipes.

Never heard of them? Check out the website HERE, where you can find all the amazing testimonials of other people like myself who adore these wonderful wipes!! 

Enter down below in the Rafflecopter and a winner will be chosen on the 30th. When the winner is chosen I will contact them and arrange to have your Water Wipes prize couriered out to you directly from their HQ.

This giveaway is only open to Irish readers!! 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Best of luck!! 

Amy

xx

Twitter // Facebook // Pinterest