Beauty & Wellbeing Routine: Conor Mines, Perth Food Blogger.

Conor runs the successful food blog http://www.holdthebeef.com.

♥ First up, briefly tell us a little bit about yourself!

I’m in my mid-late twenties (some may argue the “mid-“ is stretching it a bit these days), completing the final year of my PhD in environmental engineering, and these days find myself spending most of what time I have left over in the day either talking about, reading about or writing about food.

Although I love to bag it, I love living in Perth but regular travel is necessary for my mental health.

♥ Tell us about your daily beauty routine.

It’s really very basic, and sometimes I wonder when I’ll become a proper grownup and start wearing makeup to work and using night creams. I cleanse, tone and moisturise in the morning, then normally wear a SPF-ed tinted moisturiser through the day.

I’d love to say I drink gallons of water a day and always get at least 8 hours of restful sleep but this is rarely the case! Herbal teas keep my water intake at somewhat acceptable levels and coffee keeps my body from punishing me too much about the amount of sleep I let it have.

♥ What’s the one beauty treatment you can’t live without? And your favourite place to have it done?

After discovering its joys about a year ago, I am an IPL convert. It’s like magic. Smooth, smooth magic. I was getting it done at Erazer in Claremont and found them to be really good, but my last treatment was done at Hairfree Centre in Booragoon after seeing it promoted on Wellness WA.

♥ Who do you trust with your hair in Perth, and why?

I go to Steve at LASH in Inglewood. He always does a great job, is really affordable, is fun to talk to, never berates me for how long I leave it between visits and he makes decent coffee. He also keeps his magazines up to date, and I never have to resort to reading about Simone Warne or Bec Hewitt.

♥ Favourite budget / at home beauty treatment?

I bought an epilator on eBay a few years ago and have found it to be a great way to save money on leg waxes without having to resort to shaving. It’s a bit old and only works when plugged into the wall, but it’s not like I’d want to go do it down at the park or something anyway.

Natio Tinted Moisturiser RRP $17.23

♥ Your three, absolutely cannot live without, favourite products?

Toothpicks – my teeth gaps are on a constant mission to embarrass me, and I always have toothpicks on hand to thwart their plans.

Natio Tinted Moisturiser – it adds a bit of colour to my face while protecting me from the sun.

Facial Wipes – these are perfect for lazy people who want to keep their face clean, and are a godsend at the end of a big night out.

♥ Do you have any secret tips you use to keep looking / feeling great?

Smile 🙂

♥ What beauty treatment/ wellbeing activity would you love to try but haven’t yet? (Due to time, money, scared etc!)

I’m curious to see how my body and mind would respond to being in an Isolation tank. While I’m not overly afraid of suffering from claustrophobia inside one, I am apprehensive about paying good money to potentially spend an hour being bored and trying to stop thinking about what I need to buy at the supermarket, how badly I need a haircut, how I really should book myself in for another IPL treatment etc.

♥ Describe a typical day of eating for you.

Eating is one of my main priorities in life, and there is some part of my brain that is constantly thinking about my next meal, even while I’m eating my current meal.

My typical day will start with breakfast of a bowl of steel cut oat porridge with assorted fresh fruits, natural yoghurt, stewed rhubarb and a sprinkling of dried fruits on top.

Lunch will be something like sushi, a wrap and salad, or an enormous chicken or tuna salad.

My standard boring dinner is some sort of embarrassingly large stir fry with a huge amount of vegetables and a protein such as chicken, tofu or fish. I am also constantly snacking throughout the day, and can fade pretty quickly if I have to go very long without sustenance.

♥ Describe your fitness routine.

Given that one of my favourite pastimes is eating, and I am not blessed with magical genes, I maintain a decent fitness routine in order to fit into my clothes and also to keep myself strong and healthy.

Despite the mostly horrendous music, I’m a big fan of the Les Mills group fitness classes. I do Body Pump three times a week and Body Step twice a week when it suits my schedule. I’ve also recently set myself the potentially ridiculous goal of running the half marathon component of the Busselton Half Ironman in May of next year, so have just started doing interval training once a week, and a “long run” once a week. So far my definition of “long” is 10km, which isn’t even half a half marathon. I’m glad May is a long way off, and that Busselton is nice and flat.

♥ Do you take part in any alternative therapies or take supplements? If so, discuss.

Although I have a good diet, I take a daily multivitamin and fish oil supplements in case I’m somehow missing any vital nutrients. I went through a sustained period of getting regular acupuncture, and found it very beneficial for many reasons, but have fallen out of the habit at the moment. I also can’t go long without a neck/shoulder massage and treat myself whenever I can, which is never often enough.

Any questions for Conor?!

Be well,

xoxo