My Little Holiday

Hey guys, as I mentioned in my last post, I went away for a few days last week. Matt and I drove down the South Coast (well, he drove, I passengered) and stayed at my family's holiday house. It's a little fishing town, really small and our house is right on the water which is really lovely. We were only down there for 2 nights but we had a great time and I haven't got any beauty or fashion posts lined up at the moment so I thought I'd just share some happy snaps.

Literally woke bolt upright randomly one morning then ran outside to take this picture.

The park had one of those cool spider web pyramid things, so we climbed, obvs.

There is the best chicken diner that does amazing chips. Checking my insty (trust) while we wait

This is what's outside our house. So blessed.

There's kangaroos. It's kinda the best.

I wanna bring some more exciting and original stuff to the blog so I'll work hard on planning cool stuff to show you guys. Uni is going to be pretty hectic for the next month (Hello 3000 word essay due next week that I haven't started) but after that it's a two month break with all the time in the world to do blog stuff! Also will have an op-shop haul/photo shoot up soon once I get the chance to shoot some photos with my friend Liv.

catch ya
xx

What's in my Travel Makeup Bag?

As you read this I am down the South Coast enjoying a few days away with my family and Matt, taking a break from work. I thought it would only be right to show you guys the things I've taken away with me, sticking to just the essentials. My makeup bag is a decent size without being too huge, basically the perfect size for a few days.

First Aid Beauty Face Cleanser You guys know I love this and its miniature size makes it perfect for saving space in loaded bags. In combination with my next product it works a treat.

The Body Shop Muslin Cloth I just bought this yesterday and I already really like it. I'm the kind of person that spills water everywhere when I was my face, but this stops me from flooding the bathroom because I can just wipe my cleanser away!

Garnier Skin Naturals Moisture Match Illuminating Light Lotion for Normal Skin I haven't tried this yet because I only got it today but I've been on the hunt for a new daily moisturiser for ages and this one seemed to tick all the boxes. Light? Check. Non-greasy? Check. SPF? Check. Plus it smells yummy and I've been having good luck with Garnier lately so I thought it was worth a shot.

Nivea Stress Protect Deodorant Is it just me that finds these tiny cans cute? I got this one as a sample and figured that a few days away was a good time to use it, rather than having a full-size can unnecessarily take up space in my bag. Did I mention I'm a chronic over-packer?

Bioderma Créaline H2O Micellar Water Again with the mini stuff, I just think this is so cute, and it works really well. I was going to take makeup wipes to save space, but considering I'll probably only be wearing mascara most days, I figured it make more sense to bring this, plus some cotton rounds and q-tips.

Revlon Colourburst Lacquer Balm in Demure My lovely mother bought me this for Easter and it's the perfect natural colour for everyday.

Revlon Colourburst Matte Balm in Audacious Just in case I need a bright lip one day, this is a pretty coral colour light enough for day time but bold enough for night.

Covergirl Smoochies Lip Balm in #sweet tweet This smells delicious and is another good everyday natural plus it's moisturising. Bonus!

Neutrogena Naturals Lip Balm This is my holy grail lip balm, it's super light but massively hydrating. I love it.

Real Techniques Deluxe Crease Brush This one is brilliant for blending in concealer. I swear I never use the RT brushes for their specified use.

Nude By Nature Large Shader Brush This is my new favourite for applying base eyeshadows, perfect for a simple eye look.

Real Techniques Base Shadow Brush Perfect for blending colour into the crease.

Kmart Eyeshadow Palette This is part of Kmart's in-house makeup brand that I'm keen to try, it seems as though it might be decent and it's a nice colour combination. Good for a simple eye-look just incase we decide to go out one night.

Maybelline Fit Me Concealer in Fair This is a good concealer that covers well and is probably the best dupe for the Collection Concealer that I've found. Concealer is one of my essentials wherever I go because I typically don't need foundation, but if I get a pimple, I like to be able to cover it.

Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil in Perversion Jazzes up a plain eye look quite well, plus it's a hark back to when I first started wearing makeup and rocked a heavy waterline.

Maybelline New York Master Precise Liquid Liner Again, just incase I feel like rocking a wing for a slightly more fancy look.

Revlon Lash Potion by Grow Luscious I'm trialling this one and it creates a pretty natural lash look so it's just right for a family holiday where minimal makeup is required.

The Body Shop White Musk Libertine Fragrance Mist This scent was the first one my boyfriend bought me so I love this. I opted to take this away because it's pretty compact and because it's a fragrance mist it'll be nice and light.


That's about it! I've been taking some photos while I'm away so look forward to a change in scenery for the next few posts!


xx
talk soon

Easter Eggstravaganza! Part Four: Easter Inspired Makeup Look

Hey guys and welcome to the final part of Easter Eggstravaganza! This makeup look is one of my favourites to create and with the pastel colours it's very Easter-y so I thought I'd show you guys how I do it for the last Easter post.

Start out with a clean, fresh face. To remove makeup and other dirt I use a few cotton rounds and the new Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water, it gets rid of absolutely everything.

Next step we have the foundation BUT lately I've been trialling a new foundation method, known as the Wayne Goss Method. This involves putting your powder on before your foundation, which sounds weird but actually gives a really lovely finish to your skin.

 So what you want to do is pat your favourite powder onto your clean, moisturised skin, I used the Australis Pressed Powder in Natural and applied it with my Real Techniques Blush Brush which is absolutely huge so it's perfect for powdering. Next up, buff your foundation into your skin just as you normally would, I used a Real Techniques Expert Face Brush to apply the Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum Gel Foundation in Light Vanilla. After this I just lightly powder any spots that are looking too shiny, but I don't add too much powder because you don't want to look cakey. You'll also see that I filled in my brows which involves first combing them out using the Napoleon Perdis Eyebrow Spooly from the NP Regal Brush Set, then filling them in with 'Naked' from Urban Decay's Naked Palette using the Real Techniques Brow Brush and then brushing them out again so it looks a little more natural.

I applied NYX 'Milk' Jumbo Eye Pencil as a base, the left is what it looks like blended and the right is when I first apply it. Next using a Nude by Nature Large Eye Brush I patted the shadow 'Strawberry Cream' from ModelsPrefer Sweet Kisses Palette over the outer two thirds of my eyelids making sure that the pink goes on with some vibrancy. Any pink shadow will work.

Next up taking 'A2' from TheBalm's Bon Voyage Palette I blend that purple colour through my crease using the Real Techniques Base Shadow Brush. It's really important to blend this well, as the magic of this look lies in an easy flow between the colours with no harsh lines.

Add a light blue colour to your inner third and take it down into your inner corner. I used a brush from the ModelsPrefer Sweet Kisses Palette that is quite dense and nicely domed to apply 'B2' from TheBalm's Bon Voyage Palette.

The last step for eyeshadow was to take 'Champagne Truffle' from Too Faced's Chocolate Bar Palette and pat this over the pink shadow just to give it that pearlescent look. Then I took 'White Chocolate' from that same palette and used an e.l.f Eyeshadow "C" Brush to pat this onto my brow bone to highlight.

Moving on to eyeliner I used Urban Decay's 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil in Perversion to tight-line, an important step that both makes your lashes look more full but also makes liquid liner blend more naturally. For liquid liner I used Maybelline New York's Master Precise Liquid Liner which is a high-quality, matte black liner. Draw in some wings that suit your eye shape, giving a reasonably big flick to enhance the whimsy of the look. I also added two coats of Too Faced's LashGASM Mascara, just use your favourite.

Finishing off the face, very lightly contour, it should only be subtle because the eyes are very bold. For my cheeks I used products from the ModelsPrefer Sweet Kisses Palette. To contour I used 'Cinnamon Spice' and the Napoleon Perdis Blush Brush. Next up pick a light pink, sheer blush, just to give your face a tiny bit of colour, I used 'Marshmallow' with the Real Techniques Contour Brush . Finally, highlight, this step is especially important for the magic of the look, I used 'Macaron' with the e.l.f Stipple Brush.

Finally, add a coat of pink gloss and you're good to go! I used NYX's Mega Shine Lip Gloss in Gold Pink. 

I hope you guys enjoyed my Easter Eggstravaganza, it was tough taking the photos and getting the content up every day but it was also really fun. Sorry I was late with a couple of the posts, our internet chose the worst time to cap. I hope you had a great long weekend!

xx

talk soon

Easter Eggstravaganza! Part Three: Four Ways to Wear Florals

Today I thought I'd give an outfit post another go and came up with four Easter inspired floral outfits. Although we're heading towards winter pretty quickly, I'm determined to hang onto the last shreds of summer and channel it through my wardrobe with bright patterns and feminine styling. Apologies for the lack of quality in the photos, I took them pretty quickly and in a shaded area so they're not as crisp as I'd like. Also, let's just ignore the fact that I can't pose to save my life.

Outfit One - Keeping it Casual

I liked the idea of this outfit as being perfect for an Easter Egg Hunt or something similar, it's casual and simple, but still classy.
Top: Secondhand from a market
Jeans: Pearl Mid-Rise Skinny by Lee Cooper for Big W
Shoes: Converse
Sunglasses: Mink Pink
Earrings: Colette by Colette Hayman

Outfit Two: Florals for a Night Out

My head was literally so bad in this I had to crop it. Anyway, ignoring that, I really like this outfit. I wish these pants were a little more slim-fitting as they have a tendency to look like pajamas but the pattern on them is so pretty. I toughened it up and made it a bit more night-time appropriate by drawing out the black accent from the pants and tailoring the rest of the outfit around that.

Top: Hot Options from Target
Pants: Sussan
Shoes: Dotti

Outfit Three: Ladylike and Simple

This is such a pretty dress and I need to find more occasions to wear it! So quick and easy to throw on this one dress and still look so put-together.

Dress: Princess Highway from Myer
Shoes: Rubi Shoes

Outfit Four: Subdued Florals

This outfit might just be my favourite of the four, I like that it's not overstated but is still very cool. The floral within the print is very subtle, it's a sort of paisley/floral combo that works well.

Kimono: Cotton On
Top: Target
Skirt: SES
Shoes: Sportsgirl


And that's a wrap. I hope you enjoyed this post while absolutely stuffing yourself with chocolate. See you guys tomorrow for the last instalment of Easter Eggstravaganza!

xx
talk soon

Easter Eggstravaganza! Part Two: Palette Profile ModelsPrefer Sweet Kisses

 Hey Guys, sorry I didn't have this post up yesterday, our internet has capped and it's been an absolute nightmare trying to get the photos to upload onto blogger. Anyway, it's finally here, Easter Eggstravaganza Part Two! 

The Stats

Name: Sweet Treats Palette

Brand: ModelsPrefer

Price: Originally $25AUD

Contents: 16 Eye shadows, 2 blushes, 1 bronzer, 1 highlighter, brow gel, mascara, double ended eye shadow brush

I’ve done a few higher-end palette profiles, so I figured it was about time I did a bit of a “drugstore” version, which I found the perfect solution for when wandering through Priceline the other day. This baby was in the sale section for $10, a pretty big bargain for 22 products and a double-ended tool. I snatched it up and decided it would be a good fit for part two of my Easter Eggstravaganza. Let’s get into it!

Top to Bottom: Butter Cream, Toffee, Chocolate Whip, Truffle

Top to Bottom: Almond Nougat, Cocoa, Pistachio, Mint Slice

Top to Bottom: Cherry Ripe, Strawberry Cream, Black Forest, Maple Fudge

Top to Bottom: Honey Crunch, Caramel, Praline, Dark Cluster

So essentially this palette is a big tin that comes with two layers of products. On top are the shadows, which vary in quality but come in a really diverse and interesting colour range. It has a nice mix of neutrals and bold shades, making it an ideal all-rounder. As I said though, varied quality. For the most part it’s actually surprisingly good, with some really smooth and buttery shades, like Toffee and Honey Crunch. Two of the colours in the palette are completely unusable, Cherry Ripe and Caramel, as you’ll see in the swatches, they’re very sheer, and to get that amount of colour I literally had to scratch at the shadows. Most of the shades are somewhere in the middle; quite powdery but with good colour payoff.

L to R: Macaron, Cinnamon Spice, Marshmallow, Peach Parfait

All four off these face products are really smooth and have good pigmentation; I’d use them on a day-to-day basis because I think they’re really decent, especially considering the price.

Mascara Wand above, Brow Gel wand below.

I wore a full face of this makeup for a day, just to see how it fared, and in particular to try out the mascara and the brow gel. The mascara was really good, it reminds me of TooFaced’s LashGasm Mascara. It had really good staying power and did all the things you’d expect a good mascara to do, so much so that I think I'll try out some other ModelsPrefer mascaras. As for the brow gel, I liked it because it didn’t make my brows feel all stiff, but in saying that, I don’t think it really did anything in the way of keeping them in place either. As for the brush, the domed end is really nice and dense, but the flat end isn’t as useful, perhaps because I’m not really a fan of flat shader brushes. The eye primer was a bit of a strange consistency, but felt similar to Urban Decay's primer potion. I'm not sure whether it was due to the primer, but the shadows did last through a day of work which is a good sign.

Well, I think that's about all for now, and I'll have Part Three of the Easter Eggstravaganza up later today. Hope you're enjoying the long weekend, and Happy Easter!

xx

talk soon