Hello my loves! 

A really nifty thing happened this weekend… Ziba is now on Pinterest!

I swore I would keep my social media channels down to the bare minimum (Twitter and Facebook).

And while I already had a Pinterest account, I only made it for my own personal amusement. It had nothing to do with Ziba and I wasn’t using it very much.

For the longest time, I had only one board on it called Homework. Basically, it was just me FANTASIZING to myself about how my move out west is going to change everything and how my new house is going to be insanely spacious and feng shui.

This was what Pinterest was to me: an online space for sublimating domestic fantasies. Like little girls playing tea party.

But… after much encouragement from my readers, I decided to make better use of my Pinterest account and transform it into a Lifestyle Visual Outlet for Ziba.

So! Do check out Ziba’s Pinterest Page 

And begin a visual exploration on themes of Beauty, Elegance, Soul, Wit and so much more! 

And now for your reading pleasure…

So today, I’m actually starting a new weekly feature called Sunday Love, Link and Magic.

It will be a time for me to share with you some of the most interesting bits of the week.

And for the very first feature, I’ve decided to share some of the most interesting posts that I’ve read this week! They’re written by other bloggers who I either follow regularly or have just recently discovered.

And I would love for you to discover them too!

Fantastic blog posts that I’ve read this week:

1) Top 20 Hydrating Foods & How To Incorporate Them In Your Daily Life – by Storybook Apothecary

Staying hydrated is important for keeping our skin healthy and glowing. And while many people try to get all their hydration through drinking water, it’s a lot easier AND tastier to get your hydration through the foods that you eat. This post highlights the great variety of skin nourishing and water-rich foods out there!

2) My current 3 Favorite Sunscreens - by ROKderm

ROKderm, who is a dermatologist to-be and a bona fide skincare guru, does not play around when it comes to the sun! She takes sun protection very seriously. As should you! Here are three sunscreens that she uses and recommends, all of them with at least SPF50. Read this review and see if there’s a sunscreen here that might work for you.

3) Old souvenirs – My First Start As A Makeup Artist – by Kris Discoveries

Kris is a beauty blogger who I consider to be a kindred spirit! She lived in Paris for many years, she is constantly traveling and she has serious entrepreneurial aspirations! In fact, she just recently launched her own beauty shop online. In this post, Kris reminisces about her first experiences as a makeup artist and gushes about how terrible her hair looked! But actually, I think she looked rather adorable.

4) Why I Love Rose Flower Water - by MademoiselleNature

I was very happy to discover MademoiselleNature, another blogger who writes about simple and sensible beauty tips, natural products, shopping for french cosmetics and analyzing things from a scientific approach!  In this post, she lists all the beautifying properties of rose floral water. I too love rose floral water. If you’ve never tried rose floral water before, then I beg of you… try it! It will make you see life en rose.

5) Fashion Blogging: It’s Not Just About Pretty Pictures - by Beautifully Invisible

If you’re a blogger and you have moments of doubt about what you’re doing, read this! I was inspired by the thoughtfulness of this post. It celebrates the invisible fashion blogger (I just substituted “fashion” with “beauty”) who doesn’t fall into any categories but just blogs for the love of it.

6) Spring Workout – by Healthy Frenchie

A French girl living in Canada and passionate about healthy living. I’m inspired by her level of dedication when it comes to fitness. And I also envy the natural outdoors in which she gets to play and do her workouts. I’m looking forward to reading more about her quest for a healthier way of living.

7) OST Pure Vitamin C20 Serum - By SweetJellyBean

Before I found Mad Hippie’s Vitamin C serum, I was always on the lookout of good vitamin C serums. This is a very thorough and positive review, and you should check it out if you’re shopping around for Vitamin C serums (though personally, I would probably stick with Mad Hippie’s Vitamin C serum because it’s free of suspicious sounding ingredients).

8) Highstreet vs. High End Eye Cream: Is The Price Really Justified - by Beautiful Solutions

If you’ve wondered whether it’s worth it to invest in pricey eye creams, you should read this article. Beautiful Solutions did her research quite well and her findings may help to clear up some questions you’ve had about eye creams. For example, why can’t you just use a regular moisturizer on your eyes?

9) Finding a suitable natural facial SPF – by Sugarpuffish 

Sugarpuffish has been on the lookout for natural facial sunscreen. And as someone who refers to herself as “Queen of the Allergies,” I imagine she’s got some meticulously high standards. In this post, she recommends a few natural sunscreens. And one of them, John Masters Organics SPF 30 Natural Mineral Sunscreen, has been on my radar for quite some time now.

And last but not least…

10) Sunday Reads - by Luchessa

Luchessa has regularly been doing the Sunday Reads feature on her blog. And in fact, she was the one who encouraged me to write this post today. So be sure to visit her post as well and have a look around on her blog for more interesting reads and digs!

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By the way!

If you look under the Follow Along section on the sidebar to your right…

You’ll also notice that I’ve brought back the Bloglovin icon and the Hellocoton icon (french version) back.

I know some of my readers use these platforms, so I wanted to make it easy for them to follow Ziba through these channels.

Ok! This ends today’s Sunday Love, Link and Magic feature!

I hope you’ll tune in next Sunday for another showcase of interesting beauty bits and bobs from the week.

I was instinctively drawn to the skincare brand Mad Hippie because I myself am a mad hippie!

But as I am also a serious skincare fanatic, products need more than just a clever name to capture my interest.

I like my skincare products to be highly natural. And full of top notch quality ingredients. And I want them to work!

So when I read the ingredients in Mad Hippie skincare products and saw that they were loaded with super star ingredients from natural sources, I was very eager to try them and see just how well they work.

A quick word about the brand…  Mad Hippie is a small, new-ish American cosmetics brand from Austin, Texas. Their products are made with a high content of natural ingredients.

Though they do not carry the organic label, it does not necessarily mean that they are cutting corners. I’ve found some cosmetics brands before who refuse to put the organic label on their products because they do not agree with how low the standards are in order for a company to be labelled organic.

Maybe Mad Hippie is one of them? I promise I will look further into this matter of why they do not have the organic label on their products.

In any case, on to my review of the two Mad Hippie products that I’ve been using for the past six weeks… the Vitamin C Serum and the Eye Cream!

MAD HIPPIE VITAMIN C SERUM

This serum is packed with eight active ingredients, including Vitamin C and E, Hyaluronic Acid, and Ferulic Acid.

Vitamin C is a powerful anti-oxidant in skincare. It fights against free radical damage and slows down aging. It has been shown to regenerate collagen and improve the appearance of wrinkles. In addition, Vitamin C lightens pigmentation and helps to brighten your overall complexion.

I was originally looking at Skinceutical’s C E Ferulic treatment, which costs a whopping $153.00! But then I saw that Mad Hippie’s Vitamin C serum also contains Vitamin E and ferulic acid, for less than a fourth of the price. Obviously, I went with Mad Hippie.

Vitamin E and Ferulic Acid are also anti-oxidants that can prevent the signs of aging and protect against environmental pollutants as well as against the damaging effects of UV rays.

How To Use: The serum comes in a glass bottle with a glass dropper. This actually makes it really easy to apply. You can use the serum either in the morning or the evening. And then follow it up with your regular moisturizer.

My experience: I only use this serum once every third night. If you’re curious as to what my skincare routine is like, you can read about it here. When I do use this serum, I tend to be very generous with it. I put a drop on my forehead, each cheek, my chin and my nose. I then lightly massage it onto my skin with my fingertips.

The serum comes out as a clear liquid, with a sticky gel-like consistency. The scent is light and pleasant, with sweet floral overtones.

Once the serum is absorbed, I noticed that my skin feels taut immediately afterwards and takes on a bright sheen.

The Results: …are amazing! However, they became only apparent to me after one month of use.

And what did I notice? The lines that were forming around my mouth and on my forehead have been visibly reduced. My skin feels smoother and firmer. The dark blemishes on my check have lightened. And my complexion has overall become brighter.

What I Like About Mad Hippie’s Vitamin C Serum:

- The results!
- Reduced lines
- Smooth, firm skin
- Lightened blemishes
- Brighter complexion
- The price is really good for what it does
- Easy to use with the dropper
- Loaded with great ingredients
- Flower Power packaging!

What I Don’t Like About It:
- It could be a little more hydrating

How Much: $27.19 for 30 ml / 1.02 fl oz on iherb.com

Would I Buy It Again: Definitely!

Ingredients: 

Water Deionized, Vitamin C (Sodium Ascorbyl Phosphate), Alkyl Benzoate, Vegetable Glycerin, Water, Glycerin, Sodium Levulinate, Sodium Anisate, Clary Sage (Salvia Sclarea), Grapefruit (Citrus Grandis), Hyaluronic acid, Amorphophallus Konjac Root Powder, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf, Vitamin E (Tocotrienol), Ferulic acid, Chamomile Flower Extract (Recutita Matricaria), Sodium Phytate, Xanthum Gum, Hydroxyethylcellulose

MAD HIPPE EYE CREAM

This eye cream is loaded with 16 Active Ingredients. Jeeze Louise, right?

The featured active ingredients are peptides, ceramides, pomegranate and white tea. But what caught my attention in the first place were the Vitamin K, Vitamin C and Vitamin E. 

Vitamin K is an ingredient to look for if you suffer from dark under eye circles. The eye cream also contains titanium dioxide, which has sun-protective properties and helps to prevent further darkening of the skin.

So, I specifically chose this cream with the hope that it would help to banish my dark under eye circles.

How To Use: The cream comes in an air-tight plastic bottle with a pump. You gently massage the cream onto the skin beside & below the eyes. And you’re supposed to use this twice daily.

My experience: So I actually use this cream once a day, as I still have another cream that I’m trying to finish. The texture of the cream is light and absorbs easily. The scent subtly hints of berries.

The cream feels soothing and is excellent at hydrating the skin around my eyes! It also works well under makeup.

Results: The cream is very good at hydrating the delicate skin around my eyes. It feels soothing and helps reduce puffiness.

The ingredients are supposed to help protect my skin against external aggressors and thus, slow down the formation of wrinkles and sagging. But the result of such preventive measures are hard to assess.

As far as reducing the appearance of dark circles under my eyes however… I can’t say that it’s helped too much.

What I Like About Mad Hippie’s Eye Cream:

- Hydrating
- Soothing
- Reduces puffiness
- Loaded with great ingredients
- Helps to protect the skin against external aggressors
- Helps to strengthen the skin and reinforce collagen production
- Works well under makeup
- The price isn’t too bad for what it does
- Flower Power packaging!

What I Don’t Like About It:

- Not that effective at banishing my dark circles

How Much: $19.99 for 15 ml / 0.5 fl oz on iherb.com

Would I Buy It Again: I wouldn’t say it’s high on my re-purchase list.

Ingredients: 

Water, Niacinamide, Regu-Age, Eyeliss, Haloxyl, Matrixyl 3000, Glycerin, Vitamin K ( Phytonadione ), Titanium Dioxide, Vitamin E (Tocopheryl Acetate), Squalene, Cholecalciferol, Vitamin C (Sodium Ascorbyl Phosphate), Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein, Argan Oil, Potassium Sorbate, Chamomile Flower Extract (Recutita Matricaria), Vitamin E Acetate, Ceramide 3, Buckwheat Wax, White Tea (Camellia Sinensis Extract), Pomegranate Seed Oil (Punica Granatum), Sorbic Acid

Concluding Thoughts

I was very pleased with Mad Hippie’s Vitamin C serum!

But I was rather disappointed with the Eye Cream. Too bad! Keep in mind that I was looking for very specific results. So the eye cream might work quite well for you.

Also, Mad Hippie offers a 100% money-back guarantee if you are unhappy with a product and you return the unused portion within 60 days.

So I’d say, it’s well worth the risk of giving Mad Hippie a try!

Would you give Mad Hippie a try? Also, if you’ve had great results from an eye cream–especially at reducing dark under-eye circles, I’d love to know about it!

Two Lipsticks And A Lover is a book written by Helena Frith Powell.

It’s a guide to help you “unlock your inner French woman.” Another version of this book was published under the title “All You Need To Be Impossibly French.”

Helena Frith Powell is a British writer and journalist who lived in France at the time of writing this book. In this book, she set out to investigate what exactly makes French women so elegant, glamorous, chic and super thin?

But are they really?

Again, as with my other article on 5 Classic French Beauty Tips, I have to start out with a caveat. These stereotypes of French women are just that. Stereotypes. And during her investigation, Helena mainly talks to illustrious, upper class and super wealthy french women to reinforce these stereotypes.

I would safely bet that the majority of french women do not live according to these stereotypes.

Nevertheless, the book is an entertaining read.

And there are a lot of cultural and lifestyle observations here that we can learn from and perhaps, even adapt into our own lives. 

Personally, I’m a big fan of the zen approach that french women have towards exercise.

The gym culture and the marathon culture really hasn’t taken off in France as it has in the U.S. Instead, women prefer more serene forms of exercise. Like walking, cycling, ballet floor barre exercises, yoga, playing with their children, and especially making love!

As Helena put it, french women “treat exercise rather like they do food; a little everyday.”

When it comes to food, they never deprive themselves. But the key is that they eat some kind of fruit and vegetable everyday, they eat small portions and they stop when they’re no longer hungry.

In order to maintain their figure, they also make use of slimming creams and gels. I’ve seen these a lot in the pharmacies and parfumeries. While I’m here I probably ought to just try one.

If you’re curious as to which slimming creams to try, Helena cites a study that rank L’Oréal’s Plénitude Perfect Slim and Elancyl’s Concentré-Lissant Chrono-Actif as the top two most effective creams. Both are available in the UK.

Another admirable french characteristic is their positive attitude towards aging.

Older women in France are still looked upon as sexy and desirable. In fact, lots of older women past their 50s still take very good care of themselves and even take on younger men as lovers.

The absolute key to the French way of ageing? Staying natural. French women don’t fearfully cling on to their youthfulness or try to completely eradicate the passage of time. Also, they see beauty as something to work on.

If you want to age gracefully, start early by protecting your skin from the sun and eating well.

The book focused a lot on french women’s obsession with sexy, matching lingerie.

There was also a chapter on fashion and observations about how french fashion has adapted to modern times. These days, it’s quite normal to pair a Chanel jacket with jeans and a t-shirt. Ironically, although haute couture originated in France, french people these days can no longer afford them. Haute couture is now made mainly for the delight of foreigners with money. 

There were many other cultural observations in the book that I found fascinating, but not really having to do much with beauty or style. Things like cattiness among french women and work ethics (or lack thereof).

It would be interesting to hear what french women have to say upon reading these observations about themselves.

Many times I found myself laughing out loud while reading some of the observations about french people. Especially because I personally have had the pleasure of experiencing the truth behind them. For example, the stereotypes about horrible french customer service? I’d say 75 percent of the time, it’s true.

The part that made me laugh the most though were Helena’s observations on the french tolerance for taking on lovers and extra-marital affairs.

While Americans and Brits have puritan and rigid attitudes towards marriage, french people see fidelity as “arbitrary and sterile”. To the french, love (or lust) excuses everything.

French men and women can have lovers outside of their marriage. Provided that they keep things on the DL, of course.

While writing this book, Helena herself flirts with the idea of having an affair with a mysterious french man, who she anonymously refers to as B.

And do their flirtatious games turn into something more serious?

Well, you’ll just have to read the book to find out.

Find The Book: Two Lipsticks And a Lover On Amazon.
About The Author: Helena Frith Powell’s Website.