Kylie Pang

Skincare

So I’ve done A LOT of Tennis posts, in fact, they are all I’ve been blogging about recently. So I’ve decided to do something else for a change. I’m going to talk about my skincare, and what products I use on a day to day basis.

I suffer from eczema, it’s not as bad as it used to be when I was younger but it crops up every now and again. I have very sensitive and dry skin, so I’m always cautious on what I use. My body isn’t as sensitive as my face, so using scented products isn’t as bad as it would be for my face.

On my face I use:

Bobbi Brown Protective Face Lotion, with SPF 15.

This stuff is heavenly! Its very light but gives enough moisture to keep my face hydrated all day. As it has SPF in it, I don’t have to worry about putting another SPF on. You only need a pea sized amount for your face, and so this product although a bit pricey at £33 a bottle, lasts a good 6-8 months. I’ve been through 3 bottles already, and I can’t say it’s going to stop there.

For spots or blemishes I use Savlon. 

Now I know this is supposed to be for little cuts and bruises, but for me its a soft cream which heals my problem areas quickly. You can apply it regularly and its a light cream so doesn’t feel too sticky on your face. It keeps you moisturised and I’ve sworn by this cream for years.

The third product I use for my face is Oilatum Cream for dry skin and eczema.

This is a more recent product that I’ve found to work wonders. Its great for dry patches, and with regular application you can have soft skin within a few days of getting any sort of rash or irritation. Just apply a small amount to the problem area and let the skin soak in the moisture. Its quite a thick cream so a little goes a long way, but its amazing.

For removing my make-up and usually its mainly for eye make up as I don’t like wearing foundation, as I like to let my skin breathe, especially when I have eczema or any irritation, I find covering it up will just make the healing process take longer. I use Boots Essentials Cleansing Lotion. (couldn’t find the correct image… sorry)

This is so good! I put some on a damp cotton pad and then just remove my eye makeup. It doesn’t leave you with any panda eyes in the morning and doesn’t give you any stinging or irritation in the eyes. It’s a cheap and cheerful product and does the job quickly and effectively. I highly recommend this cleanser, and as it has a cucumber base, its very cooling on the skin.

So these are the basics I use for my skin everyday, and it really doesn’t change much, as if I’ve found a product that works, I will stick to it. Until next time :)

Tennis Talk - Wimbledon

So I know Wimbledon hasn’t quite finished yet, but for the Rafael Nadal fans… it has. In the second round against Lukas Rosol. I was one of the biggest Grand Slam upsets in a long time. But at the end of the day it’s only a tennis match and to give credit to Rosol, he had one killer serve and forehand. It’s a shame that it was just that one time, and he was out in the 3rd round…

Djokovic, Federer, Murray and Tsonga are all in the semi finals tomorrow, and with Rafa out of the way, I think Murray may have a chance to be in the finals, not saying that he has an easy chance to win, when you think about who’s on the other side of the draw, but who knows.

So thats’s it for me on Wimbledon. I guess we look ahead to the Olympics and Paralympics and see what the world of tennis brings to SW19 for the second time this year :)

Tennis Talk - French Open

So honestly there isn’t really much to say, and I’m a bit late on the bandwagon, but I have to mention how happy and pleased I am that Rafael Nadal won his record breaking 7th Roland Garros title!!!

With this match, history was literally at stake, it was either the Novak Slam, with him holding all 4 major titles at one time which hadn’t been done since Rod Laver in like the 1960s or the first ever man to win 7 Roland Garros titles, and my Rafa did it!!! It was a great success which was clearly very emotional and meant a lot for him and his team, friends and family. So with another trophy in his cabinet, on to Wimbledon :)

Tennis Talk - Rome

WOW WEE!!! This week was a good week for the Rafael Nadal fans out there. 

In the beautiful city of Rome, the Foro Italico, back on the red stuff. It’s all going well. The players on the tour were delighted to be playing on the red clay again. This was another Masters 1000 event (1000 ranking points to play for) the last in the clay court season in the run up to Roland Garros!!! 

All the top players were at this event. Andy Murray got kicked out by Richard Gasquet in the 3rd Round, the clay court season hasn’t been the greatest success for him this year. David Ferrer played an excellent semi-final against Rafa. Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer also played an exciting match in the semis, which then left Rafa and Djokovic to play in yet another final.

The last time these two met was in Monte Carlo, where Rafa finally broke the losing streak against Novak and on Monday Rafa got him back again :) It was a long awaited final, as the match was cancelled on Sunday, due to the rain. The final was close all the way through, with both players breaking each others serve. However, in the end Rafa came up on top, winning his 6th Rome title, and claiming his no.2 spot in the rankings!

So that’s that, and I shall speak to you in Paris :)

Tennis Talk - Madrid

Madrid… The birth of the blue clay.

Some players loved it, most people hated it. According to players it was too slippery, not traditional and just too hard to play on. This was one of the players favourite tournament, a Masters 1000, so a 1000 ranking points to play for, then it quickly became their most un-liked tournament. However, the infamous Roger Federer proved that it wasn’t that bad and came up on top winning the trophy, world no.2 title and a Men in Black 3 suit, which was presented by Will Smith.

It was a funny week for the top players. With Rafael Nadal sadly going out in the 3rd Round! Not even making it to the 1/4 finals, the King of Clay was not a happy person with the changes to the clay, and threatened the tournament that if changes weren’t made he would not return to this tournament next year. Djokovic got knocked out in the 1/4 finals, and so therefore it showed that he was not a fan of the blue clay either, and Andy Murray? He didn’t even turn up!

So for me as a Rafa fanatic, it was a short but not very sweet tournament and now he’s No.3 in the world, but I’m sure that won’t last long ;) So we now look onto Rome. Where there is a beautiful city, and a court laid with RED clay. See you soon :)

Tennis Talk - Barcelona

So onto the next clay tournament! Barcelona! This is a Masters 500 (so 500 ranking points to win).

This just happens to be another tournament which Rafael Nadal has won 6 times before! It’s in the heart of Barcelona, and always attracts all the Spanish tennis players as they are playing on home land.

This year Rafa defeated David Ferrer a fellow Spanish player, making it his 7th Barcelona win. Each time these two have met in Barcelona, Rafa has always come up on top. He’s not called the King of Clay for nothing! He played very well this week, and I do feel sorry for David, as the efforts he put in today were tremendous. 

See you in Madrid :)

Tennis Talk

So seeing as one of my passions is tennis, I’ve decided to write a summary blog post after each tournament has past.

Quick summary for tennis tournaments. There are many tournaments a year, 4 main ones called the Grand Slams worth 2000 ranking points. These are the Australian Open, Roland Garros (Paris), Wimbledon (London), and the US Open. Then there are around 8 main Masters 1000s worth 1000 ranking points, and many other Masters 500, worth 500 ranking points. When you participate, you obviously aim to win the tournament to win the ranking points to become the best tennis players in the world. If you go out as a runner up, 3rd round, 4th, 5th etc you will get less points. Your points accumulate throughout the year to find out the best tennis players in the world. It’s complicated to understand but you’ll get it eventually.

I forgot to write about last week’s Tournament Monte Carlo, so I’m going to add 2 updates at once.

From the 16th to the 22nd April 2012, the Monte Carlo Tournament took place. This is one of the most beautiful tournaments of the tennis calendar, in my opinion. Its in Monaco, and the centre court over looks the sea. 

Monte Carlo has be won by my favourite tennis player Rafael Nadal, 8 times in a row! This is a tennis record and a great achievement. It is the first Masters 1000 clay tournament in the year to start the clay season. 

This year Rafa won yet again :D He defeated Novak Djokovic in the final, whom has beaten him in their last 7 encounters. All the recent defeats has taken a toll on Rafa, so this win meant a lot to him. He not only finally beat the world number one but also made a record in the Tennis open era, to hold the most consecutive titles.

On to the next tournament :)

Climbing

I love climbing. There isn’t much to say, but I’m sure I’ll think of something ;) 

So I’ve been climbing for 2 years or so and have really been getting into it. I’ve always enjoyed climbing, and have done it in many activities during school. It’s only recently that I’ve decided to really go climb regularly. 

For me it is really important to have a partner that you really get on with, because at the end of the day, it is them who is holding you up and saving you from falling from a great height. My partner was a much better climber than myself when we first started, but as you practice more, you get stronger and more agile so our levels are now more or less the same.

Climbing takes a lot of strength, from your fingers to toes, to arm and legs. It also requires some mind strength, you’ve really got to work out your routes, and really try to push yourself to climb harder graded routes. 

Climbing, can be expensive, although if you are really interested in the sport, and willing to sign up for a membership then I think it’s really worth it. The equipment is also quite pricey, and it took me the 2 years of climbing to finally feel the need to splurge on everything.

For climbing you’ll need, a harness, climbing shoes, chalk bag, a carabiner and a billet device. All these products can cost quite a bit of money, a harness can cost anything from £45 to the £100s. Climbing shoes can cost from £35-£120. The rest are fairly reasonably priced. Of course the pricing can always depend on the brand of the products, for example one of the best climbing shoe brands are la sportiva, but if you do your research you can get it at a much cheaper price.

Harness wise, Black Diamond is also a good size.

I really did my research and spent just under £100 for all my equipment and I really got my money’s worth.

There are many climbing locations over the country, and I really do encourage you to give it a try. It’s a great work out, and really helps you to tone up your body and build up your strength.

Okay, I think that’s enough about climbing, and I know that this sport may not interest anyone but for those who are interested I hope this helps. Happy Climbing :)

Positivity

Being positive all the time is difficult, but for me, its something I try to be everyday. Some people who know me, will recognise that I’m very rarely grumpy, unless it’s being sarcastic of course! I know that it’s probably impossible to be happy every hour of everyday, and everyone has their moods and down times, but at the end of the day, unless you’re starving, homeless and severely sick then I don’t really see why. Now this might be bold statement to say, but I truly believe in putting everything into perspective.

Now I’ve been very privileged, and had a pretty nice upbringing (not perfect but pretty good). So honestly, I’ve never had anything major to be upset or negative about. I try to always look at the positive side of things, and really say to myself, well at least I have a roof over my head, and people who love me. Now I can be quite brutal sometimes… if you’ve just been through a break up with a boyfriend who cheated on you, and you’re really upset because you thought he was the one… well I’ll probably be the one being like, look good riddance to him! There is no need for people like that in your life, and now it’s time to move on! Harsh I know… but true.

Anyway… focusing on positivity. I always think that most things you do in life will be for a positive reason. You should never be afraid of trying something if you think it will go wrong. You’ll never know till you try and if you never try, you may have missed out on a great opportunity. I truly believe everything happens for a reason, and somehow, however difficult some times may be, it will all work out in the end. 

Now don’t get me wrong. I have days when I fell fed up, and to be honest it doesn’t take much to make me happy again. A good laugh with friends, some good music or even some tasty food. If you don’t take life too seriously, then you shouldn’t feel yourself being down. 

I’m very grateful for everything I have, and for the opportunities I’ve been given and I really appreciate what I have. Now I’m not saying I’m always satisfied, and being a girl loving fashion and beauty and everything else in the world, there will always be things I will want… Its inevitable. But I can say so far in my 18 years of existence, I’ve had a pretty good time, so for me I know, that however bad my problems are, there will probably be someone out there who’s got it worse.

For those who are really down and feeling sad and negative, I honestly hope that everything works out in the end, and good luck. So I’ve rambled on enough now, and I hope that you can be more positive in life or even help someone else to be more positive. The world would be such a better place if everyone smiled a bit more to each other. So for now I’ll say goodbye and see you later :)

Yankee Candles

Being at University, allows you to be independent, and live a life away from you family and friends back home. You’ve left everything you’ve done for the past 18 years or so behind you and now you’re starting a new chapter in your life. However, even though you’re leaving your home, you still want to bring ‘home’ with you. 

Being in University accommodation, can be dull and depressing. With square rooms, and bog standard furniture, you always want to make you room as homely as possible. After all, you are living there for a whole year, and it’s probably the only place which you can call your own. 

For me, I’ve put photos on the walls, pinned stuff on my board, and put my favourite bedspread on. These little things, all make your room, a little more unique. Recently, I’ve been really getting into burning scented candles. It can make your room change completely. If you have a spicy and warm scent, it can make you feel really cosy, or if you have a really fresh and citrusy scent, it can make your room feel clean and inviting.

My favourite candle brand is Yankee Candle. Now this is an American brand, but becoming more and more popular over here in England. Especially over the Christmas period, candles became a new craze, and you wanted one in every scent.

A few of my favourite scents are…

Mandarin Cranberry.

This is a very citrusy scent but smells warm at the same time. This is my favourite scent. It makes my room feel very inviting and comforting.

Next is Fluffy Towels.

This is a very clean and refreshing scent. I love to burn this when I’ve just cleaned my room. It’s also quite a warm scent, and literally smells like fresh laundry, and I love it.

Lastly, Strawberry Buttercream.

Now this is a very sweet scent, and for some may be quite sickly. But I really like it. Its vanillary and you can also smell the citrusy strawberry scents. This is a very girly and feminine scent and I think really suits those who love smelling delicious and want their rooms to smell the same.

Now Yankee Canldes can be a bit pricey, but they last for a very long time, and really fill up the whole room. The scent lingers for a long time even when you’ve blown them out, so I think it’s really worth it. They also do really lovely seasonal scents. The Christmas ones are lovely, especially Christmas Eve. There are many scents, which I want to try, and I think there is a scent for everyone. Till next time… :)