July 30, 2013

DIOR Mystic Metallics - Constellation Palette

I have a beautiful palette to show you today, and especially if you're a fan of purple tones you will want to add this to your collection. It's the Dior Mystic Metallics 5 Couleur palette in Constellation* which is from their Fall 2013 collection.


July 28, 2013

A long awaited date night and FOTD

Last night the husband went out on a date night. The last time we went out to dinner without our little boy was 4 months ago and it ended in a frantic phone call to us that he wasn't sleeping and was screaming the house down, so we ended up rushing home to relieve my poor mum who was babysitting. Ever since then we've taken Luca out with us whenever we've gone out to dinner, and some nights it's been good, some... eh... not so good. Lets just say a 1 year old and restaurants don't always mix well.

Anyway we decided we needed some time to ourselves, so mum came over to babysit again. I'm pleased to say all went well, Luca slept pretty much the whole time we were out, and the husband and I had some much needed time to ourselves.
Photo taken with flash - it was too dark otherwise.

July 24, 2013

Makeup geek eyeshadows: Review & Swatches

If you like watching beauty gurus on YouTube then chances are you know of Makeup Geek, a.k.a. Marlena. Marlena has created her own line of makeup and after seeing some beautiful swatches of her eyeshadows on various blogs I decided to try them out myself. They are US $5.99 each in pan form, or US $7.99 in a compact.

July 23, 2013

Glitter Accent Mani

I love glitter nail polish but I hate the hassle of removing it. So I decided to do an accent mani instead, painting only the ring fingers of both hands with a glitter polish. I quite like it, as it's blingy enough to satisfy my glitter cravings yet I won't have to slave for hours to get the glitter off when I've had enough.


July 21, 2013

My son's 1st birthday party

As you may already know my son turned 1 year old last week. I know, where does the time fly! We had a small party for him at our place last Sunday for close family and friends.
It was very difficult getting him to smile!
Luca doesn't like crowds and can only handle the excitement for short periods of time, so I decided to have it over afternoon tea, and serve finger foods and sweets. I made most of the food except for a couple of things which my mum made and brought over.

July 18, 2013

A new medium size Z-Palette

I love Z Palettes. Those empty palettes with a magnetised base are very handy to organise your single eyeshadows in. I already have the small one (fits 9 x 26mm pans, e.g. MAC sized) and the large one (fits 28 x 26mm pans). HERE is my post on the large Z Palette. It also comes in an extra large Pro size.

In a few weeks we're going on an overseas holiday for 2 months and I really wanted an empty palette that was in between the two I already had to take along with me. The small one was too small, I couldn't possibly cull down my eyeshadows and only take 9 with me! And the large one was so big... Yes, first world problems! Well what do you know? Z Palette now comes in a medium size! Woohoo!

It's called Z Palette 4U and it fits 15 round pan eyeshadows. I think the size is absolutely perfect. It comes with 15 round magnetic stickers to use with eyeshadows that aren't already magnetised (ahem, MAC, ahem).
Z Palette 4U

Here is how Z Palette 4U compares to the small and the large palettes.



I bought mine from the Makeupgeek store for $16.99 US (yes, they ship to Australia), but it's also available at Makeup And Glow for $25 AUD. PS: I also bought some eyeshadows from Makeupgeek and I'll review/swatch them later... but they are fabulous!

Have you used Z Palettes? How do you organise your single eyeshadows?


July 16, 2013

Two products to get your glow on

When it comes to my face I generally prefer a matte base, but with glowing cheeks. For some reason I really don't like how my skin looks when it's glowing all over (makes me feel like an oil slick!). Here are two products in my arsenal to help get my glow on: NARS Albatross and The Make Up Store High Tech Lighter in Stardust*
L/R: NARS Albatross, Make Up Store Stardust
NARS Albatross
I've always wanted to try Albatross as it seems the perfect highlighter shade, i.e. colourless! Most highlighters I've seen either have a pink or a peach tinge, which is fine if I'm layering over a matching blush but Albatross is more versatile and can be worn over any blush without compromising the underlying colour. It's a powder product, and does appear slightly chalky in the pan but it looks great on the cheeks. It has a slight golden gleam that looks pretty natural on as you'll be able to see at the end of this post

Make Up Store Stardust
I was sent this product in a Press pack. I'm not generally into cream products as I worry they'll glide off my skin, but not this one. The texture of this is very thick, in fact it's a bit hard to spread on the cheeks because it's so thick, but once applied (I use a stippling brush), this won't budge for hours. Colour - wise it looks like a warm white/gold shade, however when swatched it's almost exactly the same as Albatross. I plan on using this one a lot more during summer, as I prefer to use cream products during warmer months.

July 15, 2013

United States of Accessories: Plus WIN 2 x $50 Gift Vouchers to spend at David Jones

This month sees the launch of United States of Accessories at David Jones, a first ever initiative dedicated to its leading portfolio of cult American accessory brands. For two weeks starting July 14, David Jones will celebrate their star spangled range of shoes, handbags and accessories from Proenza Schouler to Marc Jacobs, Calvin Klein, to Coach, Steve Madden to Kardashian Kollection with a campaign that will delight you on both a digital and in store level.

And guess what? I have teamed up with David Jones to offer you 2 x $50 vouchers for you to spend at David Jones online on accessories.

Here are my personal picks from the U.S. Of Accessories range!
1. Guess Tote, 2. Marc Jacobs Watch, 3. Guess Boots, 4. Michael Kors Sunglasses, 5. Kardashian Kollection bag

July 12, 2013

One year old today....

Happy Birthday my sweet little Luca. I can't believe you are now 1 year old. Where has the time flown? You have grown from a chubby faced baby into a gorgeous little boy, with sparkling big brown eyes and an infectious smile. You're a happy little dragon and you make your parents very very happy. Even though you've only been with us for a year, I can't imagine life without you, and I don't remember life before you. Love you lots. xx
Photo from my Instagram

July 10, 2013

BYS Blush Trio review

Besides lipsticks, blushes are my next favourite item of makeup. I have so many of them, and heaven knows I don't need any more. But when I was at Gloss Cosmetics the other day "just browsing" (seriously Lilit, you know you can't "just browse"), anyway, I was just browsing at Gloss and I saw these blush trios I was hooked. As much as I tried to resist, the very reasonable price tag of $6.95 plus the gorgeous shades won me over. I ended up buying Endless Summer, but then that same day I was sent a PR sample of it in Heart Skipped A Beat. Karma! See, I was meant to have them.

July 08, 2013

Quick wintery FOTD with mauve lips

With winter well and truly here in Australia when it comes to lipsticks I'm gravitating more towards plummy and mauvey shades. My usual pinks and peaches just don't look right when it's cold and gloomy outside. One of my favourite lipsticks that is perfect for the season is Australis Long Wear lipstick in Uber Cool (see my swatches of the complete Long Wear collection HERE).
Wearing Australis lipstick in Uber Cool

July 06, 2013

How I organise my lipsticks on the cheap

Ages ago I posted about how I store my lipsticks (click HERE for that post). I use a plastic storage container with compartments, which I bought from Bunnings for around $8. You can get similar ones at art supply stores, fabric stores or ebay. I've even seen them at some of the larger supermarkets and they're usually all under $10 and come in various sizes. The one I have is deep enough for me to store my lippies in and still manage to close the lid.


July 05, 2013

Speckled mani for the weekend

Just a quick nail post for you today, a beautiful black and white speckled top coat worn over a nude base.

Speckled top coats are perfect for those of us that love nail art, but don't have the patience (or talent) to do it ourselves! I'm wearing 2 coats of Covergirl Always Naked from the Outlast Stay Brilliant range, topped with 2 coats of Ulta3* top coat in Stop The Press.

Can I just say I love love love this Covergirl polish. The colour is a perfect nude, but it lasts and lasts on my nails without chipping. I wore it for 6 days straight with not a chip in sight. And now that I've topped it with the Ulta3 top coat, I think I'll get at least another 4 days out of it as the top coat will hide any cracks and chips from showing. As for Ulta3, they keep impressing me with their fashion forward colours and finishes, and they're only $2.00! Highly recommended.

July 03, 2013

The one where I went shopping without makeup on! Plus WIN a $300 Style Wardrobe Audit: CLOSED


This is post is sponsored by Nuffnang

Remember a few weeks ago when I told you about the time I had my portrait done thanks to Clearasil, and I was asked to remove all my makeup? (Click HERE for that post). Well after I had my portrait done I had some errands to run and do the week’s grocery shopping.

If you’ve been a follower of my blog for a while you probably know that I’m all about glamming up, and I never leave the house unless I have makeup on even if it’s a bit of concealer and mascara. I just don’t feel put together otherwise.

Well on this particular day I had no time at all to go back home, put makeup on, then go back out to the shops. So yes, I braved the shops sans makeup. And you know what? I survived! It wasn’t as horrible as I imagined it would be. My skin was in good condition (thank you Clearasil Vitamins & Extracts for not breaking me out like I thought you might), my hair was behaving itself, so I had the confidence to face the world without makeup on!

Excuse the poor quality of the photo, I only had my iPhone on me.  Oh and I'm not wearing lipstick, my lips were just stained from the bright red lippy I had on beforehand. 


Back to Clearasil Vitamins & Extracts.

I’ve now been using this face wash every day for about a month. You might remember from my original post (click HERE) that having fairly clear skin to begin with, I was worried that any change in my skincare routine would cause a break out. Also the Clearasil I knew from years ago was all about getting rid of pimples. Yet Clearasil Vitamins & Extracts is about maintaining clear skin. It contains a good balance of active ingredients strong enough to prevent breakouts (that would be the salicylic acid at work), but nourishing nutrients that help to maintain clear skin and keep it from drying out (thank you Vitamin E, pomegranate and avocado extracts). I’m pleased to say that not only did my face not freak out, it actually feels clearer than ever. I still experience slight dryness straight after using it, but lets not forget I already have dry skin to begin with. Nothing a good moisturiser can’t fix.

My skin now, after using Clearasil Vitamins & Extracts for over a month. I'm not wearing foundation in this pic, just concealer, powder and blush.

Giveaway time!
Well my dear readers, I have some good news for you. Clearasil are giving away a Style Wardrobe Audit (worth up to $300) to help you improve your confidence and look your best when out and about.

To enter
In order to win the Style Wardrobe Audit all you have to do is answer the following question. Would you do an activity bare faced that you'd normally wear make up for? Why, or why not?

The winner will be picked by Nuffnang and Clearasil. The giveaway is open to Australian residents only and closes 5pm AEDST 15th July 2013. For full terms and conditions see HERE.


Update: The winner, as picked by the sponsors, is Sarah from More Than Adored. The winner has been notified and prize claimed. 

July 01, 2013

MAC Pink Pearl Pop lipstick

This was one of the lippies that I hauled recently (see haul post HERE). Pink Pearl Pop is part of the Cremesheen + Pearl collection which is a recent addition to the MAC permanent lipstick line. Even though I have a tonne of pink lipsticks, this particular one caught my eye as despite being so vibrant it looks very subtle when on the lips. It's one of those lipsticks that you can apply without a mirror and know that you're not going to look like a clown.


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