I got my brows tattooed!

You might remember from an earlier post that I was thinking of getting my brows featherstroke tattooed. My own natural brows are very patchy from years of overplucking, and I was getting sick of filling them in each morning. When you see the state of my natural brows you'll know exactly why I HAVE to fill them in. The solution? Feather stroke tattoo, which I got done recently.

Here's a before/after photo for your viewing pleasure before I get started on the post. Please note this is picture heavy.

Picture source (@la_belle_parra)

This type of tattoo is designed to mimic real hair and look really natural, so you don't get the solid coloured brows that can make you look like Morticia Addams. It's semi-permanent, meaning that it's not going to last forever so there's no risk that I'll be 80 yrs old with grey hair and super dark arched brows. This type of tattoo lasts anywhere up to 5 years, depending on your hair and skin type.

I've had a lot of questions from people about the process, so I thought I'd do a blog post about my experience. Just remember these are my opinions based on my experience, if you are considering getting feather stroke brow tattoos I suggest you find a reputable salon that does it and ask for a consultation so they can give you more in-depth answers.

Pixi Beauty product review

A little while ago I was sent some goodies from Pixi Beauty. Pixi Beauty isn't that well known in Australia, at least not to me, however their UK store delivers worldwide, and they also stock them at Sephora Australia if you happen to live near one. Today I'm showing you 3 items which really stood out for me.

September Top 5

Hello lovelies.

September was a bit of a tough month for me. I caught tonsillitis, twice. The baby grew out of the newborn stage, which means no longer could I rely on marathon naps lasting 3hrs, and the 3yr old suddenly turned into a threenager and required constant attention. But did this mean I stopped wearing makeup? Hell no. Except maybe on some of the sick at home days. But what it meant is I stuck to boring old, but very trusty, neutral shades to get me through the tough times.

1. Zoeva Rose Golden Eyeshadow Palette - new addition to my makeup family and I love love love it. The colours are pigmented and amazing quality, with no fall out. And best of all, all the shades are wearable and application is a no-brainer, any shade even just quickly applied on the lid will work.

2. LA Girl Matte Pigment Glosses (Colours pictured here are Dreamy & Playful)- these are the kind that you apply like a gloss and they dry to a super matte budge proof finish. These are the best type of lippies to wear when you have young kids as they won't transfer onto them (if you're like me and constantly cuddle and kiss them).

3. Illamasqua Blush in Naked Rose - my trusty favourite, it's a neutral rose pink that is not over the top and gives just the right amount colour to my cheeks. I'm sure you can tell from the pan that this gets a lot of wear!

4. Rimmel 60 Second Nail Polish in Lose Your Lingerie - this soft pink polish hardly left my nails all month. Why? Dries super quickly, laps about a week without chips and goes with absolutely any outfit I wear.

5. Carmex Original Lipbalm - See point number 2. Those super matte lippies are also super drying on the lips. Not to mention the fact being sick also dries out the lips. I've been using the original Carmex for years and years as I find this is the only lip balm that actually moisturises my lips without simply masking the dryness.

What have been your favourites in September?

L'Oreal Color Riche Nail Polish in #857 Chantilly Lace

I adore the look of crisp white nails, but some white nail polishes can make it look like you dipped your fingers in liquid paper (remember those?). I was so glad I found this one from L'Oreal called Chantilly Lace, as not only does it not look like liquid paper, it's also fairly long lasting (5 days no chips). And these cute little bottles are such a perfect size, as I tend to use up these polishes before they go clumpy or dry out.

I'm wearing 3 coats in these pics because I like a really opaque look, but I think even 2 would be enough.

Do you wear white nail polish?

Too Faced Better Than Sex Mascara Review

There's so much hype about this mascara isn't there? Not surprising, considering the big claims it makes.  But does it deliver?

The box it comes in claims that this mascara gives 1,944% more volume! That's a big claim! I wouldn't say I thought my lashes were 1,944% more volumized but it certainly did make them thicker, blacker, and longer. I can't give you a percentage, coz how do you even work that out people?

Some updates and stuff

ON LIFE
Firstly, apologies for the long unexplained absence. Actually I'm sure you can guess the main reason for my absence. BABY. Make that BABY + TODDLER! We're still trying to get the hang of going from a family of 3 to a family of 4, and boy that little bundle of baby makes life that little bit more busier. Baby Lola is 12 weeks old now, I know, where's the time gone? While she's generally a pretty chilled baby, sleeping and eating pretty well, trying to balance that with an extremely active 3 year old boy means one tired mamma here. So yes, that's the main reason I've been a bit MIA here, though from time to time you've probably caught me on Instagram (@lilitsblog).


ON BLOGGING
The other reason for the absence is... I'd lost my blogging mojo. I started this blog 5 years ago as a hobby. It was never meant to be my career, or my main source of income. That's what I have a proper paying corporate job for (yes, boring, boring but that's what pays my bills). My blog is purely meant to be an outlet for me to talk makeup with like minded individuals instead of boring my husband to tears over how many nude lipsticks a girl should own. But lately it just seems like everywhere I turn there are articles on how to increase blog traffic, how to monetise your blog, how to sell advertising space. Aaaaghhh. STOP! And this of course made me feel like I should be doing more with my blog too, which in turn started stressing me out because I didn't actually want to turn it into my career but felt like with my high stats I really should, otherwise I'm being taken for a ride. Again, aaaghhhh. STOP! So I've decided if I'm to continue blogging without feeling like it's a massive chore, then I should just blog about what I want to blog about, not feel obligated to any company, not feel like I need to pimp it out on all kinds of social media to increase traffic, and definitely not feel like I'm being taken for a ride because I'm blogging about a PR sample for free (after all, this is a hobby and the fact that I get sent free makeup is a privilege not an entitlement). Oh and stop reading articles titled Top 10 Ways to Make Money From Your Blog.
*Of course there's nothing wrong with wanting to monetise your blog or turn it into your career, I'm purely taking about how it's not right for me. 


ON HAULING
So ummm... I've been hauling. Online hauling to be precise. You see in the newborn days there are a lot of sleepless nights, which means nights spent surfing the web at 3am while feeding your baby for the 4th time that night. And surfing the web almost always leads me to online shops so as a result I've ended up with some orders from Luxola (Zoeva Palettes and a brush), Belle Bambi (LA Girl Matte Glosses) and Mecca Maxima (Too Faced Better Than S*x Mascara). I might review them over the next few weeks so keep an eye out for it.


ON BROWS
So I've decided to get me some brows. I've got really scraggly brows from years of over plucking which I constantly fill in every morning. I've decided to save myself 10 mins each morning and get my brows feather stroke tattooed. Now before you freak out and think colour blocked Morticia Adams brows, feather stroke tattoos look more natural as they're drawn to mimic hair. I'm booked in for a consultation later next month, and will be getting the tattoos in early November (the place I chose were booked out until then, surely it's a sign that they're good?!). And of course I will write all about my experience here on the blog... unless they turn out horrible, in which case I'll go into hiding for 3 years until they fade. And in case you want to see what feather stroke tattoos look like, here's a before/after pic from Lana Tarek Brows. They're not the ones I'm going to for my brows as they were too far for me to travel, but the place I chose had excellent portfolio of their work as well.

Source: https://instagram.com/_lanatarek/

Well, that's it from me for now and thanks for hanging in there! I know this was a mega post but I felt like I had to provide this update before normal blogging resumes.

Xx

Makeup look with Zoeva, DB Cosmetics and L.A Girl

Recently I've been on a bit of an online shopping spree. Blame it on Instagram. First it was the DB Cosmetics Contour Kit (which I blogged about HERE), then Zoeva Cosmetics eyeshadow palettes kept popping up on my feed. And the icing on the cake was the L.A. Girl Matte Flat Finish Pigment Glosses which had me reaching for my wallet. I've been extremely happy with my purchases, and have been reaching for them almost daily. And lo and behold, here's a look I came up with.

Pretty much my standard look really, fresh skin, neutral eyes and bright lips.

DB Cosmetics Contour Kit Review & Swatches

Yes, I have a lot of contour palettes. And yes, I know contouring is no longer cool - it's all about strobing now (and seriously, can we just call it highlighting already?), but this was one contour palette I couldn't pass on and not just because it was less than $10!.

I first spotted the DB Cosmetics Contour Kit ($9.95!) on my Instagram feed. It wasn't available in stores yet, but you could do a pre-order online and of course I did just that. When it arrived, my only regret was not ordering 2 of them as I think these will sell out quickly.

Bobbi Brown Telluride Eye Palette Review

You know I love a good neutral palette, in fact I probably have far too many and I doubt I'll use any of them up in the foreseeable future. But when I was offered a PR sample of this Bobbi Brown palette  I couldn't say no, because you know, neutral.

She's here...

If you follow me on Instagram then you probably already know this... but I wanted to take this opportunity to formally introduce my little girl, born 2 weeks ago!

This is Lola Evelyn, born 16 June 2015 weighing 4.38kgs and 51cm tall.

A few hours old

Two weeks old and already has the duck face down pat!

The 2 products helping me fake a good night's sleep

Before we get started on the product review, there are 2 things you need to know.
a. I have an almost 3yr old son that still comes into our bed at night.
b. I'm currently 9.5 months pregnant (aaaghhhhh!!!!)

Those two things combined mean that I have been sleeping pretty badly lately! The 3yr old snuggles to me so tightly (burrows into me more like it), that if I'm not careful I'll fall off the edge of the bed. And the pregnancy bit means I get up a thousand times a night for bathroom breaks. So to say that a good night's sleep hasn't been happening for me lately is an understatement. And it showed. On my skin, under my eyes and just all over.

I was this close to going to the shops and buying my favourite Maybelline concealer which helped me fake good sleep after I'd just had baby #1. But then after rummaging through my stash I came across these 2 products I was sent a while back from Physician's Formula and thought I'd give them a go. And what do you know, they're great!

Lipstick Tales: Laura Mercier Creme Smooth Lip Colour in Dry Rose

I'm a huge fan of Laura Mercier, but so far I've only ever tried their eye products (the Luxe Colour Wardrobe which I reviewed HERE is till a favourite!). I was recently sent one of their lipsticks to try out, and oh my, it's delish!

The Creme Smooth Lip Colour in Dry Rose is hydrating, it's creamy, it's pigmented and it's long lasting. Everything you'd want from a lipstick wrapped in an elegant case. One swipe is enough for full opaque coverage, and you don't even need a lipliner with it as due to the pigmentation it's easy enough to get a nice sharp outline to your lips.

36 week belly update

Aagghhhh.... I'm now just a little over 36 weeks pregnant! That's 9 months to those of you not in the know when it comes to pregnancy countdowns. When I was pregnant the first time around I did fairly regular belly updates, but this 2nd time the last time I did one was at 29 weeks! The major reason for that is that almost all my spare time is spent with my son who at 3yrs old still demands a lot of attention. And by the time he goes to sleep at night I'm too tired to do anything productive.

I'm still working full-time, but this is my last week at work then I'm off for 12 months. Working full-time this late into my pregnancy was probably not such a great idea, but I'd rather have that extra time off to spend with the baby than take leave early and sit around at home waiting for her to arrive. Oh and in case you haven't read any of my previous updates, it's a girl! Yes, we'll have a pigeon pair. Why do they even call it that, a boy/girl sibling?

Besides being constantly exhausted, aching all over (yes, back pain and rib pain made a visit to me early on at around 16 weeks and have stuck around), I'm also feeling a lot like a whale and miss my previous flexibility and fitness levels (don't get me wrong, I was never that fit to begin with, but I could at least walk further than 10m without huffing and puffing and needing to stop to take a rest!). One of the hardest things has been not having the energy or the flexibility to play with my son.

So far I've put on a total of 17kgs, and really I don't even want to think about it. I eat relatively healthy but the weight has piled on. I put on pretty much the same amount during my first pregnancy and lost most of it fairly easily so I'll worry about it later.

Enough about me, the baby - she's doing great! Touch wood everything is developing perfectly with her. She's a chunky little one, already weighing in at 3.5kgs (her brother was also a chunky one, what can I say I make big babies!) And apparently she has a lot of hair already, so I'm keen to see what she'll look like. My son has my eyes, but his daddy's fair curly hair. I do wonder if this baby will just look like a girlier version of my son or look completely different. Only time will tell.

Thanks for reading! And thanks for your continued support of my blog. xx

Brows brows brows - favourite brow products

A few years ago if you'd asked me what's the one beauty product I can't live without, I probably would have said mascara. Now it would have to be eyebrow pencil. Why? Because nicely done brows will really frame the face, giving it definition, making eyes look bigger and even slim down the cheeks. And well, because I have really yucky and patchy brows from years of over plucking, so a good brow product is absolutely essential for me.

Here is what I have on rotation. All of them purchased with my own hard earned cash, and repurchased over and over and over again.

Physicians Formula "Ooh La la Sexy Eyes Trio" Review

A while back I was sent a very generous goody bag of new Physicians Formula products but I am yet to tackle it properly and see what's inside. I blame the fact that at 8.5 months pregnant my energy levels are at an all time low. But I did manage to take a quick peek inside the goody bag and this eyeliner trio caught my eye, so I thought a review is in order!

What is it?
The Physicians Formula Sexy Booster Ooh La La Sexy Eyes Trio (phew, mouthful!) is a trio of eyeliners designed to help you create a variety of eye looks. They're also hypoallergenic, dermatologist tested and safe for sensitive eyes. The eyeliners come in a little carry case. You get:

• A felt tip liquid eyeliner to help you create a cat-eye flick
• A kohl kajal eyeliner for dark and dramatic looks, works also perfectly on inner rims
• An automatic eyeliner pencil for every day looks

A dupe for Lime Crime Utopia? Yeah, close enough!

Excuse the somewhat long and unexplained absence. We had no internet for a couple of weeks, then we went on a mini getaway to the Blue Mountains and before I knew it it was 3 weeks since my last post! Oops.

In other news, I'd been meaning to do a comparison post of the Lime Crime Velveteen in Utopia with the Savvy Ultra Matte lip colour in Icon, as I had a sneaking suspicion they might be dupes. So here it is.

Swatched side by side they're close, but not perfect. Icon is definitely more purple based whereas Utopia is warmer. However worn on the lips, and given enough time to dry on the lips, they're actually pretty darn close! In the lip swatch below I'm wearing Icon on the bottom lip with Utopia on top. I'm sure if you look closely enough you can tell the difference in shades, but to just a passing observer the difference is negligent.

Shopping my stash FOTD #1 - Featuring Sleek and MakeupGeek

Every once in a while I like to dig into my makeup stash and dig up something I haven't used in a while. Last weekend I re-discovered some old favourite Makeupgeek eyeshadows that were gathering dust, and a bright matte Sleek lipstick I used to wear a lot but then neglected for a while.

Makeup Look with some new Urban Decay and Bare Minerals purchases and a quick 29 week belly update

A few days after Urban Decay finally hit our shores I thought I'd go down to my local Mecca Maxima store and check it out. Blog research, you know. I definitely did not have a shopping list, and I sure as hell had no intention of ever getting the UD Naked 3 palette. But you know what, I got it, and it's awesome! I always assumed that the rose-gold tones in Naked 3 would not work with my complexion, that they might make my eyes look bloodshot or tired but in fact they're very versatile colours and surprisingly work well even with my dark features.

Besides the UD Naked 3 I also picked up another Bare Minerals lipstick, this time in the colour Fly High. I've become quite a fan of these lippies as they're super creamy, moisturising and surprisingly long lasting. Plus they're reasonably priced ($26) for the quality you get.

Here's a simple look that I did today wearing both new products.

The Makeup Framer

You know how sometimes makeup is just too pretty to hide in your draws and you want to show it off? Well, here's an idea of how you can show off your pretty eyeshadows - in The Makeup Framer!

Star of the Month: March

The Star of the Month posts are kind of like monthly favourites posts, but instead of posting about a variety of products (because my favourites don't change often), I only post about 1 item which has been a stand out for me that month.

For this month the Star of the Month has to be the Australis Contouring & Highlighting Kit, and I'm sure you can tell by the ratty condition of the palette how much use it's been getting from me lately. The middle highlight shade is fabulous at brightening my under eye area, and the middle contour shade is the perfect colour for me to fake cheekbones with. And let's face it, with this pregnancy I've put on 10kgs already so I need all the help I can get to fake cheekbones!

When they first released this palette it sold out so quickly from Priceline, but they're back in stock now, and well worth the $16.95 price tag.

HERE is my original review where you can see swatches.

What has been your favourite product for March?

Essence Nude Lips

I'm quite a fan of the Essence (yes, that cheapie brand) mascaras but up until recently I hadn't tried their lipsticks. I was sent a lovely press pack from them of some of their new releases, and the following lip products caught my eye. And yes, you could say that I'm going through a Nude lip phase right now, lucky, because the Essence April releases are all about the Nudes.

Can we just take a moment to admire the beautiful bullet of these lippies? Don't they look luxe? Far more decadent than their $4.70 price tag! Yes, less than $5 each.

The colours I have, left to right, are:

Lipstick in Nude #01 Wearing Only A Smile - This is a fairly sheer milky nude. It's far too light for my colouring and I really cannot get away with wearing it. Maybe someone with a fairer complexion can get better use of it.
Lipstick in Nude #03 Come Naturally - Love this mauve/nude shade. It's a cool toned nude which looks almost purple under different lights, but it's an amazing shade that I'll get a lot of wear out of.
XXXL Lipgloss in #01 Shy Beauty - Very sheer, light milky beige. Could be a dupe for NARS Turkish Delight.
XXXL Lipgloss in #03 Taste The Sweets - Sheer medium nude, looks great worn over lipstick to add some dimension.

My thoughts on the lipsticks
They are incredibly lightweight, feel almost like I have nothing on my lips. They glided on nicely, though the lighter colour did accentuate the dryness of my lips but I think it had more to do with the colour than the quality. I love the packaging and the bullet with the "e" logo on it just screams luxury to me. As they're so light weight, they also did not last long on my lips. Maybe 2 hours. Personally I prefer a matte lip that I can get to last a whole day on me, so these aren't something I'd reach for all the time but I have been wearing the darker shade quite a lot on weekends when I don't want to feel like I've got a tonne of makeup on.

My thoughts on the lip glosses
I'm not really a gloss wearer, and I wouldn't say these converted me to a gloss chick. Worn alone they only seemed to add shine to my lips, but they did look great layered over lipsticks for that added dimension. Also, I was pleasantly surprised at how non-sticky they were, and best of all they did not bleed past my lip lines. So if you are a lip gloss wearer, do check them out as at $4.10 that's the price of a latte in Sydney!

And here are a few lip swatches.

Have you tried any Essence lipsticks? Or anything from the brand at all?


*PR Samples

Do you always use a face powder?

Before I started blogging, (actually, even after blogging for a few years) I assumed that everyone always used a powder to set their foundation. I would read blog reviews where the blogger would write about the lack of longevity of a foundation, and I'd be left wondering "what are you talking about, I have that same foundation and it lasts a whole day on me!".

Then I realised, of course! It's because they're probably not setting it with powder! A little bit of digging around and asking my (blogger and non-blogger) friends confirmed my suspicions, that not everybody uses a face powder every single time to set their foundation.

As for me, ever since I started wearing foundation (and that's a long time!), I have always, always, set my makeup with some kind of powder afterwards. I have fairly dry skin so it's not as if my makeup will slide off my skin, but I just prefer the smooth finish that a powder gives, not to mention the longevity.

Here are the ones I've got currently in rotation, clockwise from left:

Sabaya powder foundation #05 - This is a UAE brand which I picked up from Dubai a couple of years ago. It's actually quite heavy (it's meant to be worn without a foundation), so I only use it on special occasions or when my skin is looking particularly cr*p and I want to hide all blemishes.

L'Oreal BB Powder in Light - this is really nice and lightweight, I don't take any notice of the BB claims on it, but it sets my makeup beautifully. The colour is too light for me at the moment so I'm saving it for winter.

MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural in Medium - As you can tell from the pan I use this a lot. In fact I have about 6 empty cases of these in my draw waiting to be Back 2 MAC -ed. It really doesn't look or feel like I have any powder on my skin, as the finish is really natural. But it does help prolong the longevity of my foundation.

Maybelline 24hr Super Stay powder in Sand - This is probably my HG powder. I'm never without one and use it almost every day. Forget the 24hr claim, but this definitely does make my foundation last all day.

Do you powder your face each time you use a foundation? Any favourite finishing powders?

L'Oreal L'Ombre Pure Eyeshadows in #201 Cafe Saint Germain and #502 Quartz Fume

I saw these at Priceline the other day but they didn't have the colours I was after. Lucky, as I next came across them at Big W where they were 30% off. Score! It was like I was meant to have them!

The L'Oreal L'Ombre Pure Eyeshadows are a fairly new release in Australia, and they have the most amazing pigmentation. They're very soft and almost gel like to the touch, but they apply and stay on like powder eyeshadows. If you've tried their Infallible range, they're very similar in texture but not as crumbly.

The colours that appealed to me most were #201 (Nude) Cafe Saint Germain and #502 (Lumiere) Quartz Fume. They are very typical me colours, and I'm sure I have lots of dupes for these but it was the finish that I couldn't go past. The two I picked are both metallic, but they also come in matte finishes as well.

Belly update: week 23

Can you believe I'm 23 weeks pregnant? No, me neither. It seems like only yesterday that I made the announcement about my pregnancy (it was actually 11 weeks ago!). I had visions of me doing a fortnightly update on how everything is going but as you can see I didn't. I'm sure you noticed that my blogging has been a bit sporadic lately too. Being pregnant while looking after a toddler and working almost full-time (4 days a week) means that by the end of the day I'm beat, but here I am finally with a belly update.

The biggest news to share is the gender of the baby... it's a

GIRL!!!!

Star of the Month: February

I have good intentions of doing a favourites post each month, but the reality is my list of favourites hardly changes from month to month. Sure, there will be some stand out items that haven't been featured before but the majority of things I use on a daily basis are the same. So I thought instead of doing a monthly favourites, at the end of each month I do a Star of the Month post where I will show you the one stand out item for that month.

For me February has been all about this one blush which I've had for a few years now. It is Illamasqua powder blush in Lover. You can read my original review HERE.

Like all Illamasqua blushes this is very finely milled and highly pigmented so a light hand is needed. It's extremely long lasting, i.e. apply in the morning and still have rosy (or in this case, peachy) cheeks at the end of the day. And it also blends really well. As February is still summer in Australia, the peachy/apricot shade has been great for sunny days. It would look great with a tan too and really warms up the complexion.

So there you have it, this has been my one stand out item for the month of February.

Also honourable mention goes to The Urban Decay Naked On The Go Palette, which I've been using almost daily for the past month or two but I'm not going to write about it as I reviewed it recently HERE.

What has been your favourite product this month?

Current Favourite Nailpolish: L'Oreal Color Riche Polish in Peach Neglige

A quickie post from me, showing my current favourite nail polish. Ever since I bought this about a month ago I've been pretty much only wearing this. It goes with everything, makes my hands look tanned and best of all it lasts about 5 days without any chips. Oh and did I mention it's 5 Free?

IT is L'Oreal Color Riche Nail polish in Peach Neglige. I'd say it's more a cream than a peach, but whatever, it's gorgeous. It's definitely one of the best neutrals out there, so if you're hunting for a good suit-most shade that will look good at work, on weekends, at parties and at play then give this colour a go.

Wearing 2 coats of L'Oreal Peach Neglige

Do you like neutral polishes? What's your favourite?

Melbourne Mini-break - inside my travel makeup bag

This past weekend we went to Melbourne on a family mini-break. Our plane tickets came with carry on luggage only, so I had to refrain from taking too many things on board. It was a perfect opportunity to test drive my Urban Decay On The Go Palette and see if it really is as good for travel as I imagined it would be. And? Yep, it's great! As you can see I only needed to add a few extras to have a complete makeup kit handy for a 4 day getaway.

Here's what I took with me:

• Urban Decay On The Go Palette - in it you get 6 eyeshadows (matte brown used on my brows), 1 bronzer (good as a contour), 1 blush, mascara, eyeliner and lipgloss (I replaced the lipgloss and took my own instead). Full review HERE.
• Maybelline Dream Liquid Mousse foundation in Nude
• Sabaya Powder foundation - I got this in Dubai a while back, it's good for mattifying and setting foundation. 
• 2 x Australis Velourlips matte lip creams (in MI-A-MEE and LUN-DUN) - full review HERE
• Bare Minerals lip stick in Speak your Mind (full review HERE)
• Victoria's Secret perfume in Eau So Sexy

Plus of course I took various brushes with me, but on the whole this was a fairly small travel makeup bag and I didn't even feel like I should have brought more with me.

As for Melbourne - ah, I love Melbourne. I used to go there quite a lot for work and also just for fun with the husband as he has family there. We love the cafe culture there, the tiny laneways and hidden bars. But the Melbourne that we loved as a couple is not exactly family friendly when you have a toddler in tow. So this time around instead of staying in the city we stayed in an apartment in St Kilda beach - still the fantastic cafe culture that we love (plus the variety of European cake shops!), but in a more family friendly atmosphere.

Yarra river

Luna Park 

St Kilda beach and pier 

Delicious breads at the Queen Victoria Markets - give me all the carbs! NOW!

St Kilda markets 

Decisions, decisions - my son at Brunetti's 

I'll have that one!