Sparkling Diwali Contest (Closed)

#SparklingDiwaliContest begins now...

Win Ozone Organic Advantage CTM kit & Ozone ITIS Plus Care worth Rs. 1100 each.

Rules:

1. Like Alive n Kicking and Ozone Ayurvedics
2. Answer in comments - "How to take best care of eyes or an easy home remedy for eye care". Tag your friends with your answer. That's it!! 

Contest closes on 5th October midnight. We'll pick 2 winners from pool of qualified entries.

About the hamper that you may win:The Organic Advantage CTM kit includes 4 full-sized products i.e. Ozone Classic Cleanser, Walnut Scrub, Classic Rose Toner and All Purpose Almond Massage Cream that will give you instant glow that we all crave for festive season.

ITIS Plus Care Eye Drops is a herbal solution for eyes enriched with 11 organic herbal actives with the added advantage of hydroxy propyl methyl cellulose (HPMC) are eye drops which protect against eye strain and tear loss by keeping them moist, nourished and protecting against fatigue, dryness, irritation, itchiness, infection, pink eyes, conjunctivitis, swollen eyelid, watery eyes, burning sensation in the eyes and grittiness.

So get going and post your entries!!

Winners Update (7.10.2017)
Mahua Banerjee and Aaron d Verma have won this contest. The winners are requested to DM us the postal details to claim their gifts with 24 hrs, else new winners will be selected.

Optifresh Kids Strawberry Toothpaste Review

Sparkling gel toothpaste with delicious strawberry flavour makes brushing teeth more fun. Contains the recommended daily dose of fluoride for cleaning and strengthening milk teeth. Gentle cleaning suitable for children from 2-6 years old.

Whatever number of teeth your child has, you certainly need access to best quality toothpaste for his dental hygiene. Most parents would look for a gentle formula recommended by dentists, pediatricians, and pharmacists to clean teeth. 

For the little ones who love fruit flavours, Oriflame brought a flavourful toothpaste Optifresh Kids in Strawberry taste. The bright red coloured gel paste looks so lovely that it can simply get those locked jaws open easily ;) 

The tube is decorated with happy croc and comes in a small 50ml tube so that it easier for kids to handle. Attractive, colourful packaging like this one really interests children. 

I first tested the toothpaste myself and found that it's a very soothing treatment to the gums and teeth. It's best suited for first time brushing and for the sensitive gums.

It doesn't foam like the ones that we adults use. But I think a pea-size quantity is sufficient for kids to clean their little teeth, else they swallow a part of it. The child should be supervised by any of the parents to spit out and rinse the mouth after brushing.

Ingredients:

SORBITOL, AQUA, GLYCERIN, HYDRATED SILICA, PEG-8, SODIUM LAURYL SULFATE, CELLULOSE GUM, AROMA, SODIUM SACCHARIN, ETHYLHEXYLGLYCERIN, SODIUM FLUORIDE, TRISODIUM PHOSPHATE, MICA, SODIUM CARBONATE, PHENOXYETHANOL, CI 16035, CI 77891, CI 15985

Order the product just for Rs 99

This toothpaste doesn't cause damage to natural enamel of the teeth neither it gives any white spots on teeth arising due to excess fluoride rather it contains minimal amount of fluoride that benefit developing teeth of kids. 

For the age group of 2-6 yrs, Optifresh toothpaste provides an active defense system against bacteria and promotes a habit of daily brushing for shiny, white teeth of your little ones.

Navratri Special Giveaway - Win Dresses

Need something to bring fervour to your Navratri / Durga Puja Celebration? Someone very dear of mine has come up with a brilliant contest for this festive season and I'm super excited for it. 

Let's congratulate E-Mega Mart India for the launch of their website and providing many categories of products including clothing, makeup, skincare, jewellery and much more.

For Navratri contest, here is your lucky chance to own some nice ETHNIC CLOTHING from their newest collection that will end your search for a lovely dress to flaunt this festive season.

What can you win: 
3 winners will be picked from pool of qualified entries based on active participation. Judges decision will be final and binding.

• Winner 1 gets a Lehanga Choli worth MRP 1159/-
• Winner 2 gets a Stitched Kurti worth MRP 1050/-
• Winner 3 gets an Unstitched Dress Material worth MRP 599/- (presently on discount at the website) 

Compulsory Steps:

1. Post the link of your favourite dress from emegamartindia.com in the comment under this contest post.
2. Like E-Mega Mart India on  and Facebook, Twitter and Instagram
3. Like Alive n Kicking on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. 
4. Don't forget to share the contest post on all the platforms and invite your friends.
5. Comment on this post for extra entry. 

Please note:

– Contest closes on 28th September, 2017.
– It's a sponsored contest, so Alive n Kicking won't be held responsible for delay/loss of prizes. The prizes will only be sent in available size and no customization / preference will be entertained.
– Contest is open to residents of India only of age 18 years and above.
– Previous winners are eligible to win again, but the unfollowers/unsubscribers won't be allowed.
– The winners will be required to acknowledge receiving their prize and share the picture.

Winners Update: We've selected following winners in sync with a discussion with the brand.
1st prize goes to Chetna Kundalwal.
2nd prize goes to Simran Sandhu.
3rd prize goes to Shivani Kunal Gupta
Congratulations ladies!! Do send us your complete postal details via DM within 24 hrs (else new winners will be selected) so that we may forward it to the sponsors. Please acknowledge receiving your gifts once its delivered and share the pics.

Finger Licking Recipes from FunFoods by Dr. Oetker

Enjoy the festive, fun-filled month of September by creating some quick and easy recipes at home! Indulge in the finger-licking recipes, specially curated for the festive season by Chef Gaurav Chadha, In-house Chef, Dr. Oetker India Pvt. Ltd. FunFoods by Dr. Oetker promises you a good time this festive season!

Some of these innovative recipes include:

Sago Pudding 

Servings: 2

Level: Beginner

Preparation Time: 20 Minutes

Cooking Time:  10 Minutes

Ingredients

300 ml Full Cream Milk

100 gm Sago (Sabudana), soaked in cold water for 1 hour

½ tsp Cinnamon Powder

¼ tsp Vanilla Essence

100 gm Sugar

50 g (3 tbsp) Dr. Oetker FunFoods Veg Mayonnaise Original

3 tsp Berry Compote

½ medium Apple, sliced                                                   

1 Mint Sprig

Directions

1    Heat saucepan (low flame), add milk, sago, cinnamon powder and vanilla essence. Keep stirring until mixture starts to boil.

2.    Add sugar and mayonnaise to above mixture. Stir and cook until mixture thickens. Keep it aside to cool.

3.     Add berry compote at bottom of glass or serving bowl, pour over the pudding, garnish it with apple, mint and serve.

Tip: Instead of berry compote, you can also use fruit jam.

Nacho and Corn Chaat            

Servings: 2

Level: Beginner

Preparation time: 15 Minutes

Ingredients:

1 small Onion, chopped

2-3 Green Chilly, chopped

1 medium Tomato, chopped

3-4 Coriander Leaves, chopped

1 tbsp Tomato Ketchup

1 tsp Chaat Masala Powder

½ tsp Red Chilli Powder

Black Salt

100 g Nachos, Jalapeno flavour

60 g Sweet Corn Kernels, warm

1 tbsp Sev

60 g (4 tbsp) Dr. Oetker FunFoods Veg Mayonnaise Original

Directions:

1         In a bowl, add onion, green chilies, tomato, coriander, mayonnaise, ketchup, chaat masala, red chili powder and black salt. Mix well

2         For Assembling: Place nachos around the plate, add above mixture in the middle, sprinkle corn. Garnish with sev and serve.

Peanut Butter Kachori      

                                            
Servings: 4
Level: Intermediate
Preparation Time: 20 Minutes
Cooking Time: 30 Minutes

Ingredients:

1 tbsp Desiccated Coconut Powder

50 g (3 tbsp) Dr. Oetker FunFoods Peanut Butter Crunchy

2 tbsp Almonds, chopped

2 tbsp Cashewnut, chopped

250 g Refined Flour

30 g (2 tbsp) Sugar

50 g (3tbsp) Clarified Butter

100 ml Water

500 ml Vegetable Oil

Directions:

1.       For stuffing-In a bowl mix coconut, peanut Butter, almonds and cashews.  

2.       In another bowl, mix flour, sugar, ghee & water. Knead until dough is smooth. Divide dough into 15 equal balls.

3.       Roll each ball into 6inch dia. round chapatti. Place 1tbsp of stuffing in centre, pull the edges of the dough to wrap the filling & give shape of kachori.  

4.       Heat oil (low flame) in kadhai, fry kachori until golden brown in color. Serve. 

Potato and Mayonnaise Chaat 

Servings: 2

Level: Beginner

Preparation time: 15 Minutes

Cooking Time:  10 Minutes

Ingredients:

200 g Baby Potato, boiled (use with skin potato)

1 tbsp Mix Dry Italian Herbs (Oregano, Basil, Thyme and Parsley)

2 tsp Red Chilli Powder

2 Garlic Cloves, chopped

Salt

Black Pepper Powder

60 g (4 tbsp) Dr. Oetker FunFoods Veg Mayonnaise Garlic

2 tbsp Refined Flour

2 tbsp Corn Flour

50 ml Water

100 ml Vegetable Oil

2-3 no Spring Onion, chopped

Directions:

1       Gently press the potatoes, using your hands and keep them aside.

2         For Cajun Spice Mix: In a bowl, add mix Italian herbs, red chilli powder, garlic, salt, and black pepper. Mix well.

3         In another bowl, add 1 tbsp mayonnaise, refined flour, corn flour, water and Cajun spice. Mix well until smooth mixture is formed. Add potatoes and gently mix.

4         Heat oil in a kadhai (medium flame) and deep fry above potatoes for 5 minutes or until crisp.

5         In a bowl, add spring onion, remaining mayonnaise and fried potatoes. Gently mix well and serve hot.

Smart Ways to Ensure Hygiene for School-going Children

Having belonged to the education industry for more than one and a half decades now, I strongly advocate the fact that children should be imparted with knowledge of 'health and hygiene' above and beyond tutoring them for essential subjects in schools. And by way of that, not just enhance the scholastic curriculum, but empower the children with good habits of maintaining high degree of personal hygiene since young age.

Ideally, the school authorities and parents should team up for a collaborative effort that ensures forming a defence system against diseases that pose serious risk to children's health. The checklist that can help battle poor hygiene in smarter ways includes:

Scrub Those Germs Away:
Guide your child to wash his hands at critical times like before eating food, after using the toilet, after coughing or sneezing, and after handling the garbage bin. Instilling this habit significantly eliminates the probability of various bugs that might make your child fall sick. I personally recommend packing dermatologist tested, alcohol-free hand sanitizing wipes in your child's school bag that can be used for routine cleaning, in case of non-accessibility of water.

Image Credit

Personal Hygiene:
Good hygiene habits should be introduced to children in primary schooling age even if they don't completely understand how staying clean can greatly impact the quality of life. Parents should help imbibe basic grooming habits in their children by behaving and acting in an ideal manner themselves. Simple everyday rituals like brushing your teeth, taking a shower, changing clothes, clipping fingernails etc. should be religiously practised. This will ensure that kids do not fall prey to communicable diseases or skip school/studies.

Besides, with so many diseases like dengue, chikungunya and malaria around, it is a must to use personal outdoor mosquito protection, as these diseases are spread by day biting mosquitoes. Make it a habit to apply mosquito repellents before stepping out.

While kids might not be comfortable with sticky creams, encourage them to use the Good knight Fabric Roll-On, an innovative mosquito repellent for all day long protection at school. Just need to apply 4 dots on their clothes and they are protected from mosquitoes for up to 8 hours.

It is 100% natural and paediatrician certified making it completely safe for use. The best part is that it needs to be applied on clothes, and not on your skin (it is non-staining).

Clean Toilets/Restrooms:

Children have a right to basic facilities such as clean school toilets. The school administration must ensure availability of water in the toilets on a regular basis. The areas like wash basins, soap dispensers, door knobs, handles etc. should be disinfected by the school crew members on a daily basis to avoid spread of germs. The issue of stinking odour within the vicinity of toilets/restrooms should be handled by spraying air fresheners after sweeping and mopping.

Image Credit 

Garbage Disposal:

Within the school campus, a lot of waste material gets collected in bins by the end of the day that becomes one of the main reason for various bacterial diseases and respiratory allergies. These dumping grounds can also become a hotspot for disease-causing mosquitoes. The school may conduct an eco-awareness activity among students to dig garbage pits away from the classroom area where they can dump this waste and allow it to decompose into manure. Not only will this add up to the learning aspect, but will also prevent outbreak of infectious ailments among children.

Image Credit  

Dealing with Illness:
Despite practising correct sanitation guidelines, if you suspect that your child might be exposed to unclean surroundings while off to school or if he/she has earlier demonstrated symptoms of weakened immune system, precautionary measures must be taken beforehand.

Parents should get their child vaccinated during the time of year when they tend to fall ill. Strictly avoid sending your child to school if he shows signs of being unwell because the shared spaces and supplies facilitate quick transmission of germs from one student to another.

Being major contributors of a child's well-being, parents and school authorities can greatly influence behavioural pattern of children and ensure that they exercise optimal hygiene habits to enhance the longevity of a healthy life.

Image Credit

Oriflame The ONE 5-in-1 Colour Stylist Lipstick Intense Collection Review

I'm much of a lipstick devotee, if one has to pick the most adorable cosmetic item. That's one reason I keep on hunting newer shades and better formula every now and then. Today I have to show you my newest lipsticks from Oriflame.

About The ONE 5-in-1 Colour Stylist Lipstick Intense Collection:
Be brave and go bold with the intense colour lipstick trend, by experimenting with latest vibrant shades. Rich and nourishing lipsticks in intense shades, semi-matte finishes and lasting colours.

Ingredients:

Octyldodecanol, Ricinus Communis Seed Oil, Triisodecyl Trimellitate, Diisostearyl Dimer Dilinoleate, Polyethylene, Silica, Mica, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Copernicia Cerifera Cera, Cera Microcristallina, Isopropyl Lanolate, Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil, Helianthus Annuus Seed Cera, Paraffin, Pentaerythrityl Tetracaprylate/Tetracaprate, Tocopheryl Acetate, Simmondsia Chinensis Seed Oil, Persea Gratissima Oil, Parfum, Shorea Robusta Resin, and Rhus Verniciflua Peel.

The lipsticks have traditional bullet styled packaging that comes in a cardboard box. The outer box will quickly sum up all the info regarding shade number, shade name, mfg/expiry date, ingredient list etc.
 The lipstick bullet itself prints shade no. and shade name at its bottom. The bullet cap shuts with a click and doesn't open loose as you turn it upside down.

Shades Available: 

The ONE 5-in-1 Colour Stylist Lipstick Intense currently offers 6 shades, all bright and vibrant. I so love the catchy shade names (mentioned in the individual images).

Rose Ray is a shade that looks rich to create a polished look. 

Orange Pop is a gorgeously beautiful shade to brighten your face. There was a time I used to shy away from such shades and thought it would make me look darker, but I swear I love it so so much now. I somehow feel happier that just a swipe or two of this lipstick adds life to my overall look on any day

Flamingo Fuschia is a dazzling shade of pink that goes with outfit of any colour easily when its hard to decide what shade to apply. I actually get compliments everytime when it gives a intense glow to my face.

Vivid Violet is a shade of violet with a prominent hint of pink to it when applied to lips. I probably tried this shade for the first time and I'm yet to convince myselfwhether it actually suits my complexion. I would have loved it if it showed up with more darker tone of purple.

Sunset Red is my absolute favourite as an everyday wearable shade. I have a deep inclination towards such warm shades. This one is perfect for women of any age group and beautifully enhances charm of darker skin tones too. My mom liked it the best ;)

Coral Burst has to be a must-have for those who neither wear deep shades like maroons and browns nor flaunt blazing shades like fuschia. It looks striking on most Indian skin tones including fair, medium to dark.  

The ONE 5-in-1 Colour Stylist Lipstick Intense Collection has all rich shades which look cheerful and seductive ;) What I miss in the range is the shades like brown/copper/chocolate/berry. The lipsticks offer nice coverage in two swipes. It's a creamy and smooth formula that goes on lips absolutely easily and is comfortable to wear. My lips feel hydrated all the time it stays on lips and there is no need of moisturizing your lips before application of these lipsticks. But the downside is that it transfers easily, becuase it doesn't settle to matte finish. This also limits the staying time to around 4 hrs max. The lipsticks have mild scent that can be smelt from the product directly, but is not felt when worn on lips (which is a plus for me).  Each of the lipstick is 4g in qty and the shelf life is 3 yrs. Can be ordered here at Rs 550 each.

For me, this collection of lipsticks fares good enough in most criteria including shades, shine, price etc; I wish it could have stayed bit longer (but would find those two minutes to touch up to look stunning).

Activelle Anti-perspirant 24h Deodorant Review

Staying sweat-free and stink-free is not only an issue in hot summer days, but can be a task for every single day of an year for many of us. 

About Activelle
Activelle is Oriflame's high performance deodorant/antiperspirant range with a unique formulation that inhibits odour while caring for your skin.

About Anti-perspirant 24h Deodorant

All day intense protection and freshness, containing cotton powder for a pleasantly smooth and non-sticky underarm feeling.

*Efficient 24h protection (clinically tested)
*Anti-white marks
*New delicate feminine fragrance
*Alcohol free
*Dermatologically tested

Key Ingredients:

Cotton powder: Made from the whole cotton fiber, cotton powder has high absorbency properties for effective protection.

Other Ingredients
Aqua, Aluminum Chlorohydrate, Steareth-2, PPG-15 Stearyl Ether, Steareth-21, Glycerin, Cyclopentasiloxane, Cyclohexasiloxane, Parfum, C12-13 Alkyl Lactate, Allantoin, Benzyl Salicylate, Hexyl Cinnamal, Citronellol, Linalool, Coumarin, Alpha-Isomethyl Ionone, Propylene Glycol, Quartz Powder, Cinnamyl Alcohol, Geraniol, Gossypium Herbaceum Powder, Methylparaben

Activelle anti-perspirant deodorant is a roll-on format of deoderants that comes in a chic curvy packaging. It's a white coloured plastic bottle with a skyblue colored screw cap. The curve in the middle of the bottle aids in better grip while you rub it. The tiny size of roll-on makes it ideal for hand luggage when travelling.

The bottle cap, when unscrewed, shows a crystal ball-like mechanism on the bottle head that rotates when you roll it over your skin.

The best way to apply the roll-on deoderants is to wash and pat dry the body part that is more prone to perspire (usually armpits are target area for a roll on, but do try it under your feet if you sweat excessively in your shoes and need a good product to fight foul smell), shake the bottle a few times and roll it on the skin with adequate pressure in circular motion. Make sure you neither apply it on wet skin and also let it air-dry to enhance the longevity. 

Activelle deoderant has lovely floral fragrance that instantly refreshes you without being over-powering. The fragrance doesn't lasts for 24 hours as claimed, but keeps you odour-free for good number of hours and then you need to reapply (depends on personal experience though). 

It didn't cause me any stickyness, irritation, rashes or allergic reactions. It gets completely invisible post application and doesn't leave any stains on dark coloured clothes that makes it a great plus for me. If you worry about darkeneing of armpit area after using a roll-on, it showed me no such signs of changing my skin tone at all.

Activelle has many reasons for it to own to reduce sweat and odour cuasing bacteria. It's a pocket-friendly product for every day use that is easily available in online stores and local shops for Rs 199 for 50 ml.

Are you a fan of roll-on type of anti-perspirants or prefer spray format? While this debate stands open, I'll come up soon with a dedicated post of Body Sprays :)

Pro Tip: Try using this product to curb sweat and smell behind your knees, bikini line or even under your breasts; you'll be amazed by the result ;)