Resolutions Are Made To Be Broken

I have a confession to make. This is a haul post. And everybody knows what that means. 

In my defence, I've wanted Comfort Zone for almost nine months. Purchasing something that costs less than $10 after wanting it for months and months is reasonable, non?

I've wanted to try the infamous Wet 'N Wild Color Icon eyeshadows for about 9 months, after seeing them spark off a huge flurry of beauty Youtuber praise. A couple of trios stood out (Walking on Eggshells, Silent Treatment), as did the brown and gold Vanity 6-pan palette, but the fairest of them all was Comfort Zone, an 8-pan palette containing such a variety of versatile shades (and a couple of MAC dupes) sufficient to create almost any eye makeup look. I had it on my BeautyJoint shopping list for a couple of weeks, but wasn't sure what other items I wanted, putting off placing the order while perusing NYX, Milani, Seche and Revlon. What rocked my happy-browsing boat was the fact that both Comfort Zone and the Revlon Mineral Finishing Powder in Brighten ran out of stock. The former because it was wildly popular and priced at $7.99, and the latter because it was discontinued. I lost all motivation to buy anything from beautyjoint.com and my life resumed normalcy. However, last week I placed the order for these after being made aware via Youtube comment replies that the Comfort Zone palette was back instock on BeautyJoint.com. Customer service was lovely and friendly, and I got a shipping confirmation email a day after placing the order. The parcel arrived, something which my other orders have yet to do, 10 days after my placing the order. Impressive. I was genuinely confused when I saw the parcel, thinking 'What is this? Sigma brushes?'. After having a full out war with the packing tape, I was faced with yet another battle: the bubble wrap. I'd been worried about Comfort Zone handling the journey across the North Pacific Ocean as Wet 'N Wild shadows are known for being incredibly sensitive, but I shouldn't have been: it was swaddled in enough padding to withstand a drop from a two-storey building (yay grade 7 egg drop projects!). I even dropped it whilst peeling off the first layer of bubble wrap and had a mini heart attack, but it survived in mint condition. A huge thumbs-up for BeautyJoint. 

I was a good girl, and only ordered two things. Firstly, the Wet 'N Wild Color Icon Eyeshadow palette in Comfort Zone. Everyone's heard about this palette one way or another- Wet 'N Wild's eyeshadow formula is renowned for being 'buttery smooth, incredibly pigmented, super soft'. I have nothing original to add- I completely agree. The eight satin/shimmer eyeshadows do not disappoint. I do have to admit that the palette's smaller than I thought it would be, but it's all the more suitable for travelling. Though I'm not entirely sure I'd take it anywhere for fear of something happening to it- it's not exactly the easiest product to replace.

The left side- The right side

I particularly like the left Browbone and Eyelid shades, (*I've experimented with the browbone shade as a cheekbone highlight and the eyelid shade as a cheek colour and they both work nicely), the left brown Crease shade and the right Browbone shade. They definitely come out a lot warmer than they look in the pan. The left Browbone shade especially so (alleged MAC Vex dupe), it's a lot more golden when swatched. The left Eyelid shade reminds me of the olive gold-green shade in the Sleek Original palette. The left Definer shade (alleged MAC Club dupe) looks very pretty and fun to swatch (and boy do I get swatch-happy), but I don't see myself getting a lot of wear out of it. The right Crease shade is by far my least favourite- I like the look of it (reminds me of MAC's Black Tied) but it is so crumbly that one tap of the brush sends a puff of black speckles settling over the surface of the other shadows. 
It comes with a double-ended sponge-tip and brush applicator, but you won't catch me using them when I got an Ecotools eye brush set not long ago. 
This is a great investment of $7.99, and I daresay it was worth breaking the spending ban for it. :)

The only other product I bought was a Revlon Super Lustrous lipstick in 415 Pink in the Afternoon (refraining from buying anything else, after all, I AM on that makeup diet *cough*). I own a handful of lipsticks that I don't wear often because I'm more of a lip balm girl, but since the mark-up for Revlon lipsticks is ridiculous (at $21.95 AUD each), I thought it would be worthwhile to throw a wearable pink lipstick into the cart. For $5.99, this yellow-based rose-pink creme lipstick was definitely worth it. For my first pink/Revlon lipstick purchase, I don't think I did too badly. :) (Though MUA and this post did lend a hand. ;))

The entire order cost a little over $20, including shipping- well-spent, I should think!
Since slipping up with this order, I'm back on track with my makeup diet- a lovely 3.5 months left! 
Thanks for reading, take care and God bless! xx

August Favourites

This winter is not winter. It's like spring has sprung early. I've been neglecting foundation because it doesn't feel quite right on my skin. So out come concealer and BB cream and powder foundation instead. Or, I do what I've always done and go without, because I love my sleep. And because even 10am lectures warrant a nice sleeping-in. I've been taking it easy this month and haven't blogged as much as usual. Anyhow- here are my August favourites and an uncharacteristic number of lip products.

Laura Mercier Undercover concealer duo

I like both of these concealers, but they're not life-changing, though the Secret Concealer is comes pretty close. I want to try YSL Touche Eclat if I can still find it at Chemist Warehouse. And the Sonia Kashuk Hidden Agenda Concealer Palette, but it's not available locally, and I can't find it on eBay either.

Ecotools 6 piece Eye Brush Set

I don't wear eye makeup OUT, but I like playing with this (with my Sleek palettes) when I'm not studying at my desk. And despite abusing the Small Shader Brush in this post, I find it's actually really nice. Shaped like a miniature MAC 239.

Bourjois Blushes

After dedicating a post to these (and saying I didn't like wearing Rose D'Or), I tried Rose D'Or and I love it. I wear Rose Ambre on cloudier days, but Rose D'Or's not your typical winter shade. I cannot express how much I dislike this year's winter. Saying it's 'mild' would be a gross understatement- I noticed we hit 27 degrees in the house. In the MIDDLE of WINTER, INDOORS. The point I'm making is that I can wear Rose D'Or because it's no longer winter in Brisbane. Brisbane winters may comprise of beautiful cool, sunny days, but wearing a peacoat and boots upon departing the house at 7am and having to carry the coat around for literally the next 9 hours, because it's something like 28 degrees out, is not fun.

Maybelline Full 'N Soft Waterproof Mascara

I've been using mascara like a ritual this month. And I think it's doing something, because my sister peered at me when she came home from school and remarked that I looked different, like I was wearing circle lenses or something. I like Full 'N Soft waterproof, but I want to see if it can be beaten by other ones because despite holding a curl reasonably well, it does droop a teensy bit.

Bobbi Brown Eyeshadow in Mahogany

Perfect brow shade for people with black hair (though my hair's the typical brown-black thanks to the blasting Australian sun). Mine's old- they've repackaged the shadows- they're now square.

Maybelline Color Tattoo in Bad to the Bronze

Couldn't be happier with this purchase. I often regret buying things, simply because I could have done wiser things with my money and I've bought a lot of things on stupid, impulsive whims 'because they're cheap', but this: no way. And I bought it full priced too. :)

Maybelline Baby Lips balm in Relieving Menthol

I'm making progress with this: I was surprised to see how much I'd used up- I like it a lot. The mintiness and scent is a nice change from the usual sweet lip products.

Napoleon Perdis Luxe Lip Gloss in Perfect Peach

I've posted about this here. I like how it's balmy (which I never thought lip glosses could be!) and hydrating. Yay for magazine loopholes!

Korres Lip Butter in Pomegranate and Wild Rose

Only the best tinted balms ever. Hydrating, and they last for ages too- I don't see myself running low soon. Recently rediscovered Wild Rose after a long bout of Pomegranate. Surprising myself, I've been liking the lighter pinks and peaches recently (though I could never go to the point of nude lipsticks), after actively disliking them in favour or darker brown-pinks because I think there's nothing worse than having lipstick settle into fine lines of the lips, and if it's bright pink or peach, it's even more obvious. But I love the look of the Revlon lip butter in Cotton Candy, and I want the L'Oreal Rouge Caresse lipsticks to come to Australia- whether we're getting the US or UK versions is yet to be seen. Considering we got the US Color Tattoos (the names are different, e.g Tough as Taupe vs Permanent Taupe, and Bad to the Bronze vs On and On Bronze) and Maybelline is owned by the L'Oreal group, I have a feeling we may be getting the US Rouge Caresse lipsticks, but I'm hoping for the UK ones because I like their packaging and shades better.

Conditioner

My hair's really low-maintenance, so I usually don't bother with anything but shampoo, and the occasional dab of R.D Protein Cream, but this winter the cold and the sun, and the heating and the wind have all taken their toll so I've been diligently using conditioner. :)

SortedFood

Being a budding amateur foodie (I been reading cookbooks in my spare time for years xD), I was really happy to find SortedFood through MissGlamorazzi and Fleurdeforce. The Sorted boys' target audience are Uni students, so they simplify their recipes, but I still like watching their videos despite their constant breaking the rules of traditional methods, or as they call it 'a Sorted twist'.

And I really enjoyed Masterchef All Stars- the only other shows I show equal amounts of dedication to are Doctor Who and Once Upon A Time, but Doctor Who is now reruns of reruns, and Once Upon A Time has finished running the first season. However, I've been particularly Asian in the past few days and have gotten back into kdrama. Oh noes.

I'm trying to steer clear of online shopping because I have no faith in the postal service anymore. I have 4 parcels in transit at the moment. Some of them are 2 months late. Grr. It's a love-hate relationship. Some of the best products out are only available online! E.g Sleek and the Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stains. I want to get the Real Techniques Blush Brush (after much internal debate), but it's on iHerb = international delivery, risking my parcel getting lost/sent to the wrong house/held up at customs. Should I? Will be better than my Ecotools blush brush? But I already have a blush brush- do I need another one? I'm the most fickle person when it comes to shopping. It's tiresome. 

Thanks for reading, take care and God bless! xx

7 Deadly Sins of Beauty Tag

I'm losing faith in the customs and postal service and their capability of delivering parcels, so I thought since I don't have any purchases to post about like I thought I would (I promised parcel hauls two months ago), I decided I would do this very old tag! I'm very unfashionably late in doing this tag, but meh.

THE QUESTIONS!

1. GREED: What is your most inexpensive beauty item? What is your most expensive?

You all know I'm a fan of cheap and cheerful products, so my most inexpensive beauty item would be an Essence product- the one that I've gotten the most wear out of is the Metallic Eye Pencil in White Divine, which I got on sale for $1. My most expensive singular beauty item that I've bought for myself would be my Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum foundation, which I bought from ASOS. Or my brushes. The Real Techniques Core Collection cost me $24 with shipping, but without shipping, the Bourjois foundation cost me more. I know, I'm a cheapskate. I got all my high-end products from my mum. ^__^ Thanks Mum!

2. WRATH: What beauty products do you have a love/hate relationship with? Which have been the hardest to get?

Highlighter. And bronzer. I find that highlighter can look amazing and glowy at times, but can also look like oil shine. As for bronzer, I can't figure it out! All the recent 'bronzed' videos on Youtube look gorgeous (Lisa Eldridge's especially so), but it's just not for me.
The most inaccessible beauty products would probably be the same as Michelle's, which are Sleek palettes. They're only available online, and only from the UK at that. :(

3. GLUTTONY: What are your most delicious beauty products?Korres lip butters. I don't own any flavoured beauty products, but the scent of the Jasmine lip butter in particular is lovely.


4. SLOTH: What beauty product do you neglect, due to laziness?
Primer. I use my day cream as a base. Highlighter and contour come a close second (and third) but I neglect primer even more often.


5. PRIDE: What beauty product gives you the most self confidence?
Foundation. And powder. I don't wear makeup everyday, but when I do, foundation definitely makes me feel more confident in knowing my uneven skin tone, acne and hyper-pigmentation is somewhat masked (although the coverage of Healthy Mix Serum is light :p).

6. LUST: What attributes do you find most attractive in the opposite sex?
Bizarre question. But I like guys that are tall and lean, with broad shoulders, nice hair, and a kind face. 

7. ENVY: What items would you most like to receive as a gift?

When faced with this question by my friends, I never know what to say in reply. However, for the sake of the tag, my answer would be perfume or palettes. Perfumes are a personal lot, but you can't go wrong with neutral palettes! Unless, of course, they already own it :p. Stella by Stella McCartney and the Urban Decay Naked palette are on my wishlist.

I should think just about everybody's done this, or has had the chance and didn't want to do this, but by all means, tag yourselves if you'd like! It's fun.

Thanks for reading, take care and God bless! xx

The Loophole That Got Me Some Napoleon Perdis

So the magazine that the lip gloss is positioned atop is probably a dead giveaway, but here's the little tale of how I acquired the gorgeous lip gloss in the photo. So if you read my blog, you'll know that I'm on a makeup diet. So that means no buying. Not buying makeup after three intense months of a rather addictive and expensive makeup hobby that was restrained only by the limits of my meagre income is a difficult yet necessary task. It's a refreshing period of putting things into perspective and seeing how blessed we are in the first world country that we live in. I've tried really hard not to buy anything, even when I spotted the Barry M lip gloss in Coral on ASOS that Tanya Burr's always ranting and raving about, I held back and didn't buy it. *proud*

However, today on my way home from work while waiting for my bus, I had a little stroll through a tiny newsagent's with a secret motive to re-evaluate the Becca Eye Tint that's currently a freebie with Madison magazine, but the more I held it in my hand the more certain I felt that it would easily be defeated by my little pot of Bad to the Bronze. So I placed Madison back on the shelf and had a cursory glance at the magazine rack adjacent, where I spotted Marie Claire- some discounted July editions, to which were tacked freebie Napoleon Perdis Luxe Lip Glosses 'valued at $25'. For five dollars, how could I not?

(Excuse the nails. Doing the dishes an awful lot more often is wreaking havoc with my hands.)

I'm more of a lip balm girl. I love it; not quite as much as Essiebutton does, but if I had to pick one lip product, it would be balm (preferably Korres lip butters). I don't mind lipstick, but it's a bit too high maintenance for me. My pet peeve lip product, however, is lip gloss. Gloss means hair sticking to lips. Gloss brings back memories of tacky novelty packaging (e.g little cupcakes) and juicy tubes. I don't hold gloss in high regard. This gloss, however, is an exception and has changed my mind.

This 'Luxe Lip Gloss' is in the shade Perfect Peach and like the Revlon Lip Butter in Peach Parfait, is too close to my natural lip colour for the gloss to have much effect on pigmentation. And it's not really a peach. It's more of a coral pink watermelon colour. I'm sorry- with every post, I get closer to the self-realisation that I cannot describe things. But the photos are clear enough and the lighting's okay so it's pretty accurate and true-to-real-life. But I like the gold and silver flake-shaped shimmer particles (note: shimmer, not glitter like Peach Parfait), it's balmy and comfortable to wear, does something along the lines of hydration, and it doesn't transfer after settling in. It's a bit sticky, but you can't have it all, right? And it doesn't do the faux-collagen plumping thing that some lipglosses boast, which I absolutely hate because my already-full lips have earned me some bizarre comments over the years, including a Chinese friend telling me I look Eurasian. I took it as a compliment (superior Eurasian genes: best of both worlds?!), but I look Chinese. I do, I know it. 

To me, Perfect Peach smells like watermelon candy or the Body Shop's Strawberry Born Lippy lip balm, which brings back memories. Good times. It's flavourless, which I appreciate because I like to think I've outgrown licking off my gloss (Lip Smacker rollerball memories, anyone?).

The packaging is, for lack of a better word, tasteful. The plastic tube is remarkably sturdy, and I like the ('brilliant cut'- the gemstone geek in me interjects) multi-faceted handle of the wand, and the fact that it comes with a soft brush applicator instead of a harsh plastic-bristle brush like Bourjois glosses or the generic doe-footed sponge applicator. It's the little things, you know?

I was wanting the Revlon Colorburst lip gloss in Peony, and this is kindaaa similar, AND it's from Napoleon, AND it was technically free with a $5 magazine. That's undeniably spectacular. I'm increasingly being drawn towards investment shopping and the Clarins Instant Light Natural Lip Perfector is on my wishlist, but to get a high end gloss and a magazine (which did have a few nice features: hello 'Best Beauty Buys' ;)) at a fifth of the value of the gloss, this purchase made sense to both my inner shopper and the rational conscience that's been telling me to stop buying cheap drugstore brands, all without breaking my make up diet spending ban! Who doesn't love quality freebies?

Thanks for reading, take care and God bless! xx

Make Up Diet Update

I've been good, and haven't bought any makeup since making a bold makeup diet proclamation. While I am appreciating the familiar faces of products in my collection, I hate being restricted and have a feeling I may cave before my goal date (Christmas 2012), especially when mid-sem exams roll around and I feel like some retail therapy. With MAC a-calling for a first date (I'm eyeing the Mineralize Skinfinish in Soft and Gentle), and the lure of the Laura Mercier mineral powder on Strawberrynet, not to mention the entire wishlist I recently posted, I'm all too weak to carry on for another four months.

Despite browsing more than I should (online is one thing, but the wander through Priceline was definitely uncalled for), I have been making an effort to shop the stash a bit, as there's little else to entertain myself with (when it comes to new makeup, that is). Sorry about the products all being ones making a repeat appearance.

Clockwise from top left:

Revlon Colorburst Lip Butter in Peach Parfait

Very well-loved, and for a good reason too: this is a more sanitary alternative to the Korres Lip Butter in Pomegranate which I've been using everyday. I hate the gold sparkles, but reluctantly overlook them in favour of the easy application.

Bobbi Brown eyeshadow in Mahogany

I've been making a conscious effort to fill in my brows and quite like it. This is a very pigmented ash brown eyeshadow that will last me a very very long time.

Bourjois Blush in Rose Ambre

You all know I love this. Read back a few posts if you haven't yet heard me gush about this blush pot.

Maybelline Color Tattoo in Bad to the Bronze
I like this. A lot. I've certainly posted enough about it.

Laura Mercier Undercover concealer duo in UC-3
Wish I'd discovered this earlier! It's not perfect, but I do like both concealers very much and have been using them daily.

Photo above:
Sleek Storm palette
I've been playing with this (in conjunction with my Ecotools 6 piece eye brush set) and am constantly patting myself on the back for getting it. Alas, being the incontent human being I am, I have my sights set on the UD Naked palette next.

Fancy Love EDT
I wasn't one to wear perfume everyday, but having received a veritable hamper of perfumes for my 18th, I find myself returning to this creamy, floral Jessica Simpson perfume, despite the celebrity fragrance stigma. 

Ecotools Blush Brush
I'm lemming for the Real Techniques' rendition, but I'm making myself make do with this one until I can't take it anymore.

So far, so good with the spending ban, but it's going to take a considerable amount of effort to continue with it for another 4 months! 

Thanks for reading, take care, and God bless! xx 

Hand Food

I posted about this hand cream in my July Favourites post, and I like it so much I think I'll dedicate a whole post to it. I've been using Crabtree and Evelyn Hand Therapy in Lavender for the past two years, and it's great, but it's running out. Look at it- it's battered, and old, and I'm tiring of the smell (which I didn't mind before!). It also costs $20 for 50mL of product, which is pretty expensive. 

So when I saw Soap and Glory popping up in some older Youtube videos, in particular the Hand Food hand cream, I thought I'd give it a go. It's available at Kit Cosmetics in Myer for $5.95 for 50mL or $12.95 for 100mL. I bought the 50mL, and it's perfect for tossing into my bag. Well, to be honest I put it with my hand sanitiser and tissues in a little pouch and then that gets tossed into my bag. The plastic packaging is sturdy and the flip top lid clicks down quite securely. The aluminium tube of the Crabtree and Evelyn packaging is completely unsuitable for carrying around, which is why it lives by my bed.

The cream itself is just a white moisturiser, but it's lovely- it sinks in quickly, not at all greasy, and leaves the hands feeling nice and soft. The scent is nice too- apparently it's the 'signature Soap and Glory fragrance'. It's quite floral and sweet. I like it.

Crabtree and Evelyn Hand Therapy says "Our intensive conditioning hand cream leaves hands feeling softer with each use. Formulated with macadamia nut oil, shea butter and lavender oil to moisturise and soothe the hands, and myrrh to help condition cuticles and nails."

Soap and Glory says "non-greasy hand cream with shea butter, madamia oil and marshmallow" and "Apply Hand Food Hand Cream as often as you want to soften, smooth and soothe dry, chapped, or otherwise hampered hands".

Both function well. I think the Crabtree and Evelyn works just a tiny bit better than the Soap and Glory- it just sinks in a little better- and Crabtree and Evelyn comes in lots of different scents, so if you WANT to splash out on a hand cream, and you don't like the Soap and Glory scent, go with Crabtree and Evelyn. Personally though, the price point and the scent of the Soap and Glory Hand Food wins for me. So when this tube of Crabtree and Evelyn Hand Therapy runs out, I'm going to toddle back to Kit Cosmetics to purchase the 100mL of the Hand Food for a fraction of the price of one 50mL Crabtree and Evelyn Hand Therapy.

Thanks for reading, take care, and God bless! xx

Get Ready With Me! [Winter 2012]

I've learnt A LOT over the past three months, and my getting-ready-routine has changed accordingly. I don't really care for much eye makeup at the moment, I'm sure that will change, but right now I just cannot be bothered fumbling with eyeshadow and eyeliner. The only exception to that is my pot of Maybelline Color Tattoo in Bad to the Bronze, but I don't use it on a daily basis. University and work don't call for much makeup and I prefer to keep things very basic and very natural. I've kept to the same steps in my routine for about a month now, and the only thing I really change up is the blush, which I pick from the three Bourjois blushes that I posted about here. There are shortcut-type products, but I don't use those as much as the ones pictured. My skin's been pretty good so I don't have to take a separate concealer to blemishes. My whole routine takes me less than 15 minutes.

[I forgot to include this, but I don't do it every day: Laura Mercier Undercover concealer- Secret Concealer under the eyes. *Forgot to include: when I have additional time, I fill in my brows with Chi Chi brow wax, Bobbi Brown Mahogany eyeshadow and an angled brush.]

01 Dove Essential Nutrients Day Cream SPF15

02 Maybelline Baby Lips lip balm in Relieving Menthol

03 Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum gel foundation in 53 Beige Clair

04 Real Techniques by Samantha Chapman Buffing Brush

Great combination. The foundation's consistency makes it so easy to apply, and it photographs well too. The Buffing brush is wonderful tool. If anything happens to it, I'm ordering another one immediately.

05 Face of Australia Translucent Loose Powder

06 Ecotools Bronzer Brush

I really love the dewy 'semi-matte' finish of the Bourjois foundation, but I can't go without some powder- my skin needs the stuff. I'm so happy with the Ecotools Bronzer Brush! It applies powder with such ease. But if I'm in a hurry, I'll use Maybelline Dream Matte powder instead of fumbling with the loose powder, which can be a little messy. 

A tip I wish I'd learnt before I bought this powder is to poke some holes through the plastic sticker instead of peeling it off- you get better control that way. I made the mistake of starting to take off the sticker, and peeled the sticker off a few holes on the side.  I've since cut away the redundant plastic so that I can sort of shake out the powder as needed instead of having it fly everywhere.

07 Bourjois Blush in 74 Rose Ambre 

08 Ecotools Blush Brush

After a stint with its sibling Ambre D'Or last week, I'm back to using Rose Ambre. It's such a pretty colour.

09 Shiseido Eyelash Curler

10 Maybelline Full 'N Soft Waterproof Mascara

I think mascara gives sufficient definition to the eyes with minimal fuss- I cannot be bothered faffing about with eyeliner and pencil liners and eyeshadow when my uneven eyelids make the process so tiresome. The Shiseido eyelash curler is a beautiful tool. BUY IT.

11 Korres Lip Butter in Pomegranate

Pretty colour, easy application and it smells lovely. I love this product. I like that it imparts sheer colour without making it look like you've got tonnes of product on. I also like that it cost me about $4. Win!

So that's my routine. I'm in a bit of a rut. It's a rut-ine.

Thanks for reading, take care and God bless! xx

Adorable 'Little Pot Blushes'

Bourjois blushes are by far my favourite blushes to date- leaving even my YSL cream blush in the dust. The little pots are adorable and the French names are enchanting. Unlike the rude, sexual names of NARS blushers, the names of Bourjois blushes are positively delightful for example, Lilas D'Or and Rose Coup de Foudre. The only thing which could spoil these blushes would be the clumsy, utterly unsophisticated manner in which I butcher the pronunciation.

I own 5 of these 'little pot blushes' and they haven't disappointed me yet. I'm using three on rotation, don't wear one often (Rose D'Or), and am saving the last one (Rose Frisson) for a giveaway or a present, because I'm happy with the ones I'm using, and they'll last me quite a while. The four I've tried are Rose Ambre, Ambre D'Or, Rose Coup de Foudre and Rose D'Or. 

 Swatchies:

Rose Ambre

Ambre D'Or

Rose Coup de Foudre

Rose D'Or

Rose Ambre's a matte, plummy rose pink. Ambre D'Or is a true representation of rose gold (the same can't be said for Sleek's Rose Gold), with lots of gold shimmer. Rose Coup de Foudre is a apricot/peach pink with a silver sheen. Rose D'Or is a cool pink with lots and lots of gold shimmer. Out of the four, I've worn Rose Ambre, Ambre D'Or and Rose Coup de Foudre a lot more than Rose D'Or. Not being a fan of doll cheeks or cool pinks, I'm happily neglecting Rose D'Or in favour of the other three. I can't really choose a favourite out of the three that I do use- Rose Ambre's such a pretty colour and the only matte blush I have, Rose Coup De Foudre is a perfect apricot-pink and not too sparkly, which I love, and Ambre D'Or is the prettiest rose gold hue and I like using it on days I'm not wearing particularly girlish outfits because it's not outright pink.

They're paraben-free (huge thumbs up), and strongly scented, and the rosy, powdery fragrance is probably a deal-breaker for some people, but I personally really like it. The pigmentation is good, nothing extreme (e.g Sleek blushes), and using the right brush (my brush of choice is the Ecotools blush brush, but I hear the Real Techniques ones are fantastic too ;D) makes the job a little easier. I have to confess that I'm a little lost when applying blush sometimes, wondering if both sides are even, if the blush suits the rest of the makeup I've got on, if I'm using the right technique to apply...

The little pots have a small mirror on the inside of the lid, but I never use it because it's too small. A round curved brush (to fit the curvature of the baked blush and the small round pot) is enclosed, but it's too small and thin to apply the powder with. The pots' closures can vary- some are latches, some are magnetic. I find the magnetic ones a delight to use, and a vast improvement from the latches.

The ONE negative I can think of is that the nature of the 'Bourjois baked technology' powder sometimes results in the surface sealing off. I've had this trouble with both the Bourjois blush and bronzer, but if you scratch a teeny bit off the top layer, it works out fine.

Swatched 2-3x each

L-R: Rose Ambre, Ambre D'Or, Rose Coup de Foudre and Rose D'Or

They're on the pricey side of pharmacy/drugstore/highstreet cosmetics, and retail for $20.00 apiece, but recently Target had a mass discount on them and they were all $4.83 (odd number), which is a bit of a miracle and too good to resist, non? I bought Rose Ambre on sale previously, but picked up the other four (greedy, I know :S ) for under $5 in the sale. If you're quick, you might still find some!

Thanks for reading, take care, and God bless! xx

Five Favourite Beauty Youtubers

It was ridiculously difficult to narrow it down to five, but I had a think about the channels that I constantly check for new videos, whose videos I watch over again and whose new uploads in my subscriptions make me happy and excited. 

1. Essiebutton
She's hilarious, she does accents and she likes a good mix of brands. I love love love her videos, and her blog, and her couple/lifestyle blog goose/button.

2. MissGlamorazzi
I really like Ingrid's makeup style, she's super pretty and I find her videos particularly helpful because she's got oily skin and brunette colouring too. Ingrid comes in a Youtube 'package' with Fleur of fleurdeforce and Tanya of pixi2woo, and all their boyfriends. Tanya's boyfriend Jim is the brother of the Pixiwoo sisters, so they feature in his videos too. That circle of friends is so adorable and I love watching their vlogs.

3. ViviannaDoesMakeup
Anna's a relatively new discovery, but I love love love her makeup style. Her skintype and colouring make her tips really helpful, and her blog is such a lovely read.

4. Zoella
She's adorable, her blog is lovely, and she's so pretty! I love her accent, and her haul and tag videos. Zoe's videos often feature cameos by her brother Joe and her best friend Louise of Sprinkleofglitter.

5. frmheadtotoe
One of my first beauty youtuber discoveries- Jen is so so pretty, she's got monolids and uses a good mix of low and high end products. 

*Pixiwoo sisters and Lisa Eldridge and Bubzbeauty are some favourites too. I regard Pixiwoo and Lisa Eldridge as reference gurus, and watch their videos more for furthering knowledge than entertainment value.

I spend so much time on Youtube. I wonder what percentage of my life I will have spent watching other people's videos...

Anyhow, take care and God bless! xx

New Ecotools!

In the holidays, I impulsively ordered all the brushes I'd been wanting from iHerb! I'm still waiting for the Real Techniques Stippling Brush and the Queen Helene Mint Julep Masque, which are alarmingly late, seeing as I placed that order before ordering these brushes. 

Ecotools are probably the best low-end brushes on the market. They don't shed, they're inexpensive, cruelty-free and worth much more than they cost. Of course, if purchased from Priceline they'll cost a small fortune in comparison to the prices on iHerb. At Priceline, the eye brush set costs $20.99 full price, while the bronzer brush costs $18.99 full price. I bought the eye brush set for $7.22 and the bronzer brush for $8.50. Yay for iHerb!

I ordered the 6 piece eye brush set, which includes 5 synthetic, cruelty-free bamboo brushes and a flimsy cotton case. This post factored largely in my decision to purchase this set, and I thoroughly agree with what Lena said about the brushes' uses. Their names are complete misnomers- use them however you want. 

Large Eye Brush 

I would use this for browbone highlight or a sweep of champagne or beige powder shadow all over the lid. It's massive, but if using a light-coloured eyeshadow, I personally wouldn't mind using a larger brush because there's less room for error.

Angled Crease Brush 

I like the notion of using this for blending out darker colour in the outer 'v' or using it for browbone highlight. Not that I highlight my browbone very often because I prefer to spend more time on my face makeup than my eye makeup, but this brush isn't dense enough for packing on base colour.

Highlighting Brush

This is a blending brush. There's no doubt about it. I already own an Ecotools blending brush (which was called an 'eye shading brush' on the tin) and it performs exceptionally well.

Petite Eye Shading Brush

This is tiny. I cannot imagine anybody uses this as a shader brush- I would use it for inner corner and tear duct highlight.

Smudge Brush

Personally I wouldn't use this very often, because I keep my eye makeup to a minimum, but this is the one brush where I completely agree with what it says on the tin; smudging out shadow or liner on the lower lashline. 

The other item I bought in this order is the Bronzer Brush, which is massive. I was getting tired of using my Ecotools Mineral Powder Brush and Baby Kabuki for powder- they're too small and a little scratchy for buffing in powder to set face makeup. I wanted the Real Techniques Powder Brush but I disliked the longer bristles because powder would fly all over the place; what I wanted was essentially a kabuki on a handle, and I'm so happy to say that this was exactly what I was looking for. It is so so soft and dense. The thick handle is a little clunky, but on the other hand it's not a pain to use like I feared it might be. It's chunky but not difficult to manage. Very happy with this purchase.

I'm really happy with these- and I have iHerb to thank for stocking Ecotools at standard American prices! Oh, if purchasing from iHerb for the first time, make sure you look up a discount code. BUY123 was the one that I used for $5 off. 

Take care, and God bless! xx

Living Vicariously

With my spending ban going on, and being held accountable by both my sister and my Blogger friends, I've been good and not buying makeup for myself, but nobody said anything about buying for others! My Swiss exchange host sister's eighteenth birthday is coming up, so I thought I'd send her some Australian bits and bobs for a present. 

I've bought Tim Tams and Honey and Eucalyptus sweets, and I thought I'd include some Aussie makeup products too. Yay for living vicariously through friends! I'm including a Face of Australia Impact-Full Volumising Mascara I had around (brand new, mind) because I've converted to waterproof mascaras and I'm not going back to regular formula so I have no use for it, and I had a look around Sportsgirl to see what else I could send over. 
I purchased a Sportsgirl Give Some Lip liquid lip colour in Peaches and Cream, an apricot-pink gloss, and a Glow With It Marble Bronzer. I believe the bronzer's new, because it's not even on the website yet- not sure if the shimmer will be detrimental to the usability, but I loved the look of it- hello there, MAC MSF or Revlon Mineral Finishing Powder dupe?- and would probably have bought it for myself if I could, but I can't, so I bought it for her instead! It swatches a shimmery light brown, so it would make a gorgeous eyeshadow too. I was going to get her the Australis palette that I've been wanting for ages, but I'm not sure she'll use it. :S I'm considering an Australis lipstick in Jive or Honky Tonk, so that I cover the (tiny) Australian brand spectrum.
*I wound up purchasing and including an Australis Colour Inject lipstick in Jive. :) I hope it looks good on her- she's got fair skin, blonde-light brown hair and blue eyes. Honky Tonk must be limited edition, because I didn't see it.

I don't want to send too much because mailing it would cost a fortune, but if I'm not including something incredible, it would be such a shame. 
I hope she likes the items I've chosen!

Take care and God bless! xx