90s Babes

Friendly reminder to every girl needing it rn: your weight doesn’t define you. Wether you’re big, small, chubby, curvy, skinny. It doesn’t matter. You are enough.

*A confusing success story*

Hi Cleo. I’ve never done one of these before but something odd happened to me about three weeks ago and I was hoping you could help me understand. So I’m African and I attend a university in Europe. I flew home for summer and on the 2nd of this month I had to fly back to school. And I’m probably flying back home for Christmas this December. It’s a long flight about 7 hours from my country to Dubai and then 5 hours from Dubai to my final destination. So because I’ve been having to do long flights from home to school I’ve been desiring flying first class. It seems so comfortable and luxurious than sitting in economy for hours on end. Even in the airport, all the privileges that you get from being a first class passenger are so great and I wanted that to make travelling easier. But of course it’s really expensive and it’s not something that I was actively going to manifest because being able to afford a ticket to go home is a privilege in itself and I’m fine with that. Anyways so on the first flight to Dubai I was on the double decker plane where it’s business and first class on the top and economy on the bottom. And I kid you not I spent the entire flight sort of complaining to my self and just wishing to be in the top deck all comfortable and shit. Just basically doing all the things you’re not supposed to do when it comes to manifesting. And again I wasn’t trying to manifest first class or business class so I didn’t care. And even though I was uncomfortable I was sort of happy that people get to be comfy in first class I was happy for them and wishing I was them. So I get to Dubai wait 5 hours to connect and as I was boarding the plane the guy checking the boarding passes goes “Hold on one second you’ve been upgraded so let me change your boarding pass” HUH?! I was so confused and I asked him why I got upgraded and he just shrugged, he looked confused as to why I would even ask him that but hello???? this is Emirates are they really just upgrading random college kids to business class? So yes I got upgraded to business class and it was magical (I’ll dm you pictures of proof) It was everything I wanted and expected it to be but I don’t see why I was upgraded when I did the exact opposite of everything you’re supposed to do in terms of manifesting. Yes I have first class on my mood board and all but still I was in such a lack mindset so why did I manifest this still?

well first of all.. congrats😭 hope you enjoyed ⬇️⬇️

and as for why it manifested. i honestly think it had to do with you constantly visualizing being in first class. because you could say something as simple as “i will never go on a rollercoaster” and by you saying that, you envision it. that’s my best explanation 😭. hey i just do the manifesting shit okay go ask sammy😂🤷🏽‍♀️. BUT! with that situation you should start affirming that things always work out for you and you always get what you want so that more things like that happen.

y’all better not inbox me worrying about “so if i envision what i don’t desire it will manifest 😧” NO! that’s all imma say.. i don’t wanna hear it

11/30 Days of Aphrodite

11) Talk about how you personally see Aphrodite

I will always remember the first time Aphrodite came to me in a dream. She was walking towards me from the beach, the scent of the sea in the air and the song of the waves serenading her. Before I even really took her completely in, I knew it was her. There was just this strange mix of calmness and intensity that could only be described as Aphrodite. When she got close enough that I could actually take her beauty in I realized that she didn’t stick to one look. Her hair was long then short, curly then straight. Her skin was pale and then dark and then every gorgeous shade in between. Even her body was in a constant state of transformation, each part of her varying in its plumpness and thinness. She was ever changing, fully representing the endless amount if beauty that has, does, and will ever exist. I saw all of you in her. And that’s how i personally see Aphrodite. 

LULU STYLE !

lulu mlist ♡ asks / taglist open

notes. reblogs are appreciated, let me know what you think!

— : EVERYDAY

many people have said that lulu dresses like a character from a late 90s sitcom, which isn't far from the truth

she draws inspiration from ashley banks, moesha, and tia and tamera from sister, sister

she loves layering and two buttoned shirts

she loves wearing oversized clothes that make it look like her body is drowning

she doesn’t have a specific colour palette, but black and brown are probably her most worn

— : PRACTICE

she isn’t picky when it comes to pants when practicing and has even grown comfortable dancing in jeans

with tops, they just have to be oversized really

it doesn’t matter to her if it’s a button up, a hoodie or a regular t-shirt

— : SHOES

she barely wears sneakers and her go to shoes are sandals

she wears them everywhere and matches them with her outfits

as for heels, she doesn’t like them that high and the thicker the heel, the better

this goes for her boots too, even though they are her least worn shoes

— : ACCESSORIES

whether it’s with a bandana or a scarf, she more often than not has her locs wrapped

ever since she started making her own jewellery, they are the only ones she wears

her favourite piece of jewellery are rings and she is in love with her clay ring collection

she thinks the small sunglasses are the cutest but since she needs glasses tp see, she wears contacts under her sunglasses

Happy Early Summer 💗🌸☀️👙🌤️🐬

“wild hearts are untamable.”🍒

Secrets to the Arabian Princess Scent 💐🧴🪷

So with Arab perfumes becoming popular in the West due to their strong projection and beautiful smell, and the Arab world becoming known for our knowledge on how to smell good af, I (a half Moroccan) am going to reveal some other ways we ensure we smell amazing to the girlies on Tumblr who are interested in Arab perfumes or just in generally smelling amazing 😍 Most tips are Moroccan but many apply to the Arab world in general (under the cut because this turned into a long post) ✨💞💐

1) Good Eating Habits: When my mother moved here to Europe, she was immediately struck by how the people seemed to smell like "pig." And that's no coincidence. You are what you eat, so coming from a country where nobody eats pig to one where everyone eats it, of course you're going to be struck by people smelling like it from the inside out. Not just that, but in the Arab world, it's also way less common for people to eat takeout and drink alcohol, whereas in many parts of the West, these things are a normal part of many people's diets and affects their natural scent. A lot of Arabs have also talked about how Westerners smell like "milk," and this is because Westerners tend to consume more dairy products than people in the East do. It's also common for Arabs to eat fruit as dessert instead of having cakes or cookies all the time (although speaking of cookies and cakes, the scents of rosewater, orange blossom water, almonds, honey, vanilla, oranges and lemons commonly used in Arab baking fill up the house with a wonderful smell while they're baking). Teas made from various herbal infusions are popular throughout the Arab world. Spearmint, peppermint, sage, cardamom, cinnamon, hibiscus, chamomile, anise, and thyme are commonly used to flavor tea in MENA. Dried lime tea is drunk in the Arabian Peninsula. Coffee flavoured with cardamom is also common. I especially like Turkish coffee. Spices like cinnamon, cardamom, and cloves are commonly used in cooking, and the scent of them can cling to your clothes and hair. Herbs like mint and parsley, which have natural deodorising properties, are often used in meals.

I'm not saying that you need to cut any foods out in order to smell good, but you should consider reducing the amounts of unhealthy foods and red meats you eat, and make sure to drink plenty of water and eat veggies and fruit daily.

2) Keeping a Clean House: Here in Ireland, a lot of people don't clean their houses every day. I know multiple people that only clean their floor once a week, and have a couple of neighbours who don't do much cleaning themselves and just have a housekeeper visit to clean once a week. But in Morocco, people clean daily. The home is also deep cleaned once a week, we even wash the walls. We don't wear shoes inside, and not just that, but we also have different slippers specifically for wearing inside the bathroom. Living in a clean space is important for smelling good, because no matter what you do, you'll always end up smelling like wherever you live due to spending so much time there. The scent will cling to your clothes and hair. Which means if your house smells dirty, you will also smell dirty.

As well as making sure the house is clean, Arabs also make it smell pretty with extras. For example, in Morocco it's common to burn incense or bakhour (perfumed wood chips), and the scent permeates your clothes. People also keep pieces of musk in their wardrobes (wrapped in a handkerchief). It come in scents like orange blossom, jasmine, amber, sandalwood, chamomile and lavender. An unused bar of soap or a sachet of potpourri in your wardrobe will do the same job though if you can't or don't want to buy musk. The musk can also be used as a scented wax melt, a home scent (you just leave it in a bowl), a body perfume (rub it on your skin), a hair perfume (rub on your palms and run through the hair), or to scent bathwater. Solid perfume made from natural ingredients has the same effect. I like Lush Rose Jam solid perfume, as it smells like sweet roses and Turkish delight, and a little goes a long way.

Specific to Marrakech, you can buy jasmine balls which you just leave around the house (if you're not in Marrakech, you can just leave potpourri or dried flowers and herbs in sachets on your desk, bedside table, etc). The Marrakech herbal shops also sell sandalwood bark which you burn. Oud and amber are also burned. Herbs like lavender are sprinkled under carpets and rugs so the scent rises as they're stepped on. Room sprays from brands like Nabeel are used, which come in a range of lovely scents (like the warm vanilla and oud Kanz or the rich floral Raunaq).

3) Personal Hygiene: In the Arab world, people shower daily. In Morocco, we also go to the hammam (public bath) once a week, and we sit in the sauna room, and then rub our bodies with sabon beldi (black soap), a natural soap made from olive oil and black olives, leaving it on for a few minutes before rinsing it off. Then we scrub our skin with a kessa glove after it's marinated. Exfoliating dead skin regularly makes perfume cling to you better (if you order Korean bath towels from Amazon, they're very similar to Moroccan kessa gloves and you use them in a similar way). Then after washing our hair, we use a ghassoul clay mask (some people also rub henna into their skin). After washing the clay off, many people rub rosewater or argan oil into their skin before heading to the relaxation area to enjoy refreshments. As well as helping us smell good, it also makes our skin incomparably soft. When my parents were newlyweds, my father remarked on how he'd never felt a woman with such soft skin in his life before. My mother attributes it to regularly using the hammams before moving here.

Obviously not everyone has access to a hammam, but you can create a similar experience at home. Just sit in a steamy hot shower for 10-15 minutes, wash your skin with a natural soap and leave it on for a few minutes before rinsing off and exfoliating with a glove. Then tone with rosewater and apply oil to your body.

Dukhan treatments (smoke baths) are practiced in Sudan. Married women and brides anoint themselves with oil, before sitting over a chair with a hole in the centre. Under the seat, there is a pit, in which acacia wood, frankincense, or other aromatic woods and resins are burned in a clay vessel.

As well as showering daily (and using the hammam regularly if you're Maghrebi), many people in the Arab world also perform wudu (ritual cleansing) five times a day before praying.

Women commonly apply Musk Al Tahara (white musk), an attar that smells like vanilla, flowers and soft musk on the external parts of their vulva after periods.

Alum was commonly used as a natural deodorant in the Arab world in the past, and some still use it today.

Bidets are also common in the Arab world. In the Anglosphere they're uncommon, but it's easy to get a portable bidet (a small squeezable bottle with a nozzle) online.

We also wash our hands before meals, with a pitcher of water which is passed around the room. In Turkey, they use kolonya, made from fig blossoms, jasmine, rose, or citrus to disinfect their hands. In Morocco, it's common for women to scent their hands with rosewater or orange blossom water after meals.

4) Fragrances, Lotions and Potions: In the Arab world, perfumes are incredible. They're oil-based, so they have excellent projection and longevity. The olfactory notes commonly used in them are beautiful too: delicate rosewater and orange blossom water, exotic oud, sweet amber, vibrant roses and jasmine. In Morocco, gardenia scents are popular, even among men.

Emirati perfumes are the most well known in the West and are super good. Some personal favourites of mine include Oud Mood by Lattafa (Caramel, rose, saffron, and oud), Fatima Pink by Zimaya (Sweet rose that smells like a bit like Turkish delight. it's a dupe of the French Parfums De Marly Delina, however, the actual Delina smells very similar to generic rose oil perfumes you can get in the Arab world to begin with so Zimaya was basically able to dupe it to a T. Their version lasts really long too), Ameerat Al Arab by Lattafa (jasmine, a hint of oud, slightly citrusy. Also the name means "Arabian Princess" in English), Fakhar Rose by Lattafa (sweet, fruity, and very floral) and Yara by Lattafa (floral, amber, vanilla and strawberry). I buy my perfumes from Dubai Perfume Shop in Dublin, but they can be easily found online. Some well-known Arab perfume houses include Lattafa, Al Rehab, Zimaya, Al Qurashi, Amouage, Afnan, Ajmal, Asdaaf, Al Haramain, Armaf, Kayali, Maison Alhambra, and Swiss Arabian, but there are hundreds more.

As well as sprayable perfume, perfume oil is also used. It usually comes in rollerballs or small containers, is inexpensive, and lasts for ages. Like spray perfume, it comes in a huge variety of scents. You can also put it in diffusers or add some to cotton balls and leave in your wardrobe to scent clothes and linens.

Arabs know when to wear perfumes. For example, a rich, sweet, strong oud and vanilla scent will be beautiful in colder weather. But in warm weather, it will become cloying and sickly. Musk, amber and saffron are popular in winter, while rose, orange blossom and jasmine are popular in summer.

In the Arab world, many stalls in the Medina sell gorgeous oils, fragrances and soaps that are inexpensive. For example, the musk I mentioned above. As well as making your home smell incredible, you can also rub it on your body and you'll smell good for days.

Rosewater is commonly used as a toner and to remove makeup. In the town of Skoura, where my great grandparents were from, men even use it to shave with! Orange blossom water is also used in Arab beauty routines in a similar way to rosewater. You can apply either to a bath for extra luxury.

Argan oil is commonly used in Morocco on both skin and hair, as well as the less well-known but just as good prickly pear oil (which is very high in vitamin E). Pure argan oil actually smells mild and not fragrant (similar to olive oil), but for beauty, things like rose oil and menthol are commonly added, so it smells pretty good. Throughout the Middle East and North Africa, jasmine hair oil, castor oil and sweet almond oil (I like putting it in my baths and on my body) are easy to find. Usually Middle Eastern and South Asian shops in the West sell them too.

Honey and almond masks have been used since ancient times, and to this day are still popular. You can buy them basically anywhere. Homemade face masks made from honey and yoghurt or crushed figs and yoghurt are also used.

Aloe Vera is used to treat dry skin, acne, and sunburns. It has a cool and refreshing scent, perfect for the hot climate in many parts of the Arabian world. I like applying it after shaving as it's soothing, natural, and absorbs easily.

Frankincense, a resin used in the Middle East and North Africa for thousands of years, was traditionally used as a natural perfume. It's commonly used in incense. Frankincense oil is also good for the skin.

Bakhour and incense, as well as being used to scent the home, can also be used to scent the hair and clothes. Hold your clothes or hair over a brazier with incense burning inside, and the perfumed smoke will cling on to them.

There are many beautiful scented soaps available in the Arab world. If you go to Turkish or Arab supermarkets, a lot of them will have a section where they sell hygiene products, including soaps with ingredients like argan, rose and oud, and olive oil. I've even found Syrian Aleppo soap before. You can just buy soaps from regular stores in scents like rose, jasmine, honey and almond, orange blossom and sandalwood for achieving that exotic scent though.

As well as using various oils, perfumes, and fragrant beauty treatments, Arab women also know how to layer these different scents to add dimension to them and avoid clashing. For example, a rose perfume over a vanilla lotion will always smell good. Other combinations that are good include almond and vanilla, rose and oud, rose and jasmine, lavender and lemon, rose and orange blossom, and orange blossom and vanilla. But there are many different combinations you can use to achieve a delicious scent that's unique to you.

I hope this was helpful, stay pretty ✨