In the Spotlight // Highlighters

I have another In the Spotlight post coming at you today, only this time we're literally in the spotlight as we take a look at my highlighter collection! It's about to get LOUIS LITT up in here! I've been meaning to do this post for a while and I think I'm pretty happy with my current collection. The Anastasia Beverly Hills x Nicole Glow Kit is calling my name though... but alas, here we are at the moment! I've tried to organise them by colour family for best comparison. I'll also try to be brief but we could be in for a long one!

Colour Families // The Berries and Burgundies

Although winter is almost gone for us Aussies, I thought I would squeeze out another colour families post featuring my favourite winter-appropriate hue - berries and burgundies! I absolutely adore these vampy purples and reds on the lips and the nails, so I have quite the collection to share with you all (plus an eyeshadow and a few blushes!). 

Collective Haul // May 2015

I think it's fair to say that May has been a DOOZY spending-wise. A few excuses reasons for this: 1) it was my birthday month! #treatyoself was in full swing, I got some birthday money and gift vouchers - so I was fully justified in my spending ;), 2) some of these were gifts and giveaway wins and 3) My last proper collective haul was back in January! :O But I have been spending in between...check my instagram for some insta hauls. Oops. But after this I'm going on a bit of a semi-official beauty spending ban! I need to start saving up for my trip to the US next year (I'll be doing some major spending over there, no doubt, no doubt) and I've decided I want to re-do my makeup storage! I'm moving into my sister's old room since she's moved out and it's bigger than my current room, and so I've been getting really into homewares :P Dats gonna be my uni break project! And I'm excited. Anyway - buckle up kids, it's a long one!

So Apparently I Like Nude Lipstick Now?

BACK AT IT. Sorry for the momentary lapse in post/s last Thursday. Uni assessment has finally caught up with my procrastinatory ways! It pains me to have missed a post (for the first time EVER), but I've got to get my priorities straight! I can't promise that the schedule will be back 100%, but I'll try and have a post up at least once a week. Anyway - onto today's post: my sudden affection for nude lipsticks?! If you remember back in the early days, I was all about dem bold lips. I rarely wore nude shades, considering that most of the ones I tried clashed terribly with my skintone and made me look dead. Well, quite recently I've been reaching for nudey/neutral shades more and more because I've found some that actually suit me! Let's get into them, shall we?

Monthly Favourites // February 2015

Farewell February, you probably won't be missed. Half of February I was extremely anxious and nervous for starting university, while the other half was O-week and actually at uni! So far it's been pretty okay, can't say I've made many friendlies (*cough* typical) but there'll be plenty of time for that...right???? So now that I'm a uni student and all, I've sort of been getting back into the groove of daily makeup, and sussing out what's "appropriate". I've noticed that not a lot of people wear much makeup to uni so I haven't exactly been pulling out the bold lips or smoky eyes...but here is what I've been wearing a lot of! Also...it's Autumn now! Thought I'd get into the spirit with a knit background lel, even though I probably won't be wearing this till Winter - it's still hot as a mofo out there!

Sheer Lip Shopping

I consider myself a lover of the majority of lip product formulas out there; glosses, velvety matte lipsticks, liquid lipsticks, the list goes on really! One that I'll always be partial toward though is the sheer, glossy lipstick! I've been gravitating toward them lately as I get into the groove of a minimal, everyday makeup look for uni, which of course justifies my buying more right? :P A few new additions to the stash are the Topshop Sheer Lips in the shades Alibi and Play With Fire. I managed to pick these up on sale so let's see how they performed, what with so many similar formulas out there!

Collective Haul // MAKIN' IT RAIN

...or at least I think I am. Now that I have a job and a wee bit of spare monies in my pocket, I seem to be spending it all up! Especially that I work at Priceline, I seem to buy something every time I work... (okay, an exaggeration but my 25% off discount is SO DANGEROUS). In my defense, this is very collective and stretches back to boxing day sales, and also, a lot of it was on sale/I only paid full price for a couple of things! There are a few things that I've bought but haven't hauled which I've featured here and here. Keep reading to see what I blew all my cash on... (it's a pretty long-ass post).

Formalities

As you may have seen from my Instagram, this past Saturday was my grade 12 Formal! Exciting times really. I had a really fun night, and even though my feet were killing me, I made sure to have a ball jigging it on the d-floor. It was also quite emotional and overwhelming as this is an event I've been looking forward to for years, and of course another reminder that my schooling life will be over very soon! A few of you guys asked to see some snaps from the day, so here they are!

I got my makeup done at Mecca Cosmetica. I was originally going to do it myself however I realised that the products I wanted to buy would've cost more than getting it done, so I decided to go down the Mecca route as they have literally every product I would've wanted to be used! I had a very specific look in mind (it was actually one of the MSFW looks a Mecca makeup artist created that I spotted in an email from them) and luckily the lovely gal who did my makeup did it exactly how I wanted (shoutout to Courteney, even though she doesn't know about this blog lol)! She took her time and I didn't feel intimidated to ask for certain products at all, I'm so happy with how it came out!

Products used (from what I can recall):

Face:
NARS Pro-Prime Pore-Refining Primer
NARS Sheer Glow Foundation in Punjab
NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer in Ginger

By Terry Hyaluronic Hydra Powder
NARS Contour Blush Duo in Paloma
NARS Laguna Bronzer
NARS Orgasm Blush
Stila Kitten Eyeshadow (as a highlight)

Eyes:
Hourglass Arch Brow Sculpting Pencil in Dark Brunette
NARS Smudge Proof Eyeshadow Base
Stila Kitten Eyeshadow
Stila Magnificent Metals Foil Finish Eyeshadow in Kitten (mixed with Stila Stay All Day liquid eye primer)
Kevyn Aucoin Eye Pencil Primatif in Black
Chantecaille Mascara (not sure which one)
Ardell Short Flare Black Individual lashes and Lash Grip (applied myself)

Lips:
NARS Satin Lip Pencil in Lodhi 

I'm really happy with the products she picked out - she pretty much read my mind in regards to what I've been wanting to try! Though I did request a couple of things like the lip colour and foundation, and the eye look obviously. Seriously though, I love the way it came out. The wing is defining and accentuating without being too overbearing or dramatic, the glitter is super pretty yet not too garish, and the lip matched my clutch, and although it was quite bold, it didn't clash with the eyes. Also loved how flawless my skin looked yet it wasn't cakey or too matte and felt super light. The whole look lasted really well through the night, I only touched up my lips a couple of times, mostly because I wanted to be fancy and touch up my lipstick. My cheek products hardly faded and my mascara/eyeliner didn't smudge at all! It cost $90 with the full amount redeemable on products. My haulage will be coming up in a post very soon ;)

I did my own hair, and am super happy with how it came out - even though I was a little rushed. I was going for the "faux undercut/side shave look", inspired by Natalie Dormer and Sophie Turner at SDCC this year haha, here are the babes. Since my dress is quite delicate/pretty, I wanted to add a bit of edginess in the hair/makeup/accessories. I had a deep side part and my mum did a tight french braid down the side. I swooped my hair to the other side and used a 1 1/4 inch curling iron/barrel (thanks for the loan Tam!) to put in some loose curls/defined waves. I used the Kerastase Ciment Thermique as a heat protectant and it left my hair feeling super soft! Definitely a fan. I also used the Matrix Design Pulse Hair Lock Extra Strong Hold Hairspray which worked quite well. It did leave hair feeling a wee bit hard feeling if you sprayed too much - but not so bad considering it's Extra Strong! They held really well through the night full of dancing!

Dress: ASOS (available here)
Shoes: Tony Bianco (not that you can see them but here's a pic)
Ear Cuff: H&M
Bracelet: Topshop
Rings: Lovisa
Clutch: Etsy (I think, it's my sister's) and insert made by me (out of a Mecca Maxima bag haha)!
Nails: Maybelline Bleached Neons in Sun Flare

I really love my dress actually, I like how it's simple but still a little glitzy/glam with the embellishment. I really like how flowy the skirt is and the sheer panel underneath the cropped top. It looks a bit more pink in the photos online, but I still liked the colour in real life, though it was a bit more beige! The sequins were silver however I was adamant on gold jewellery, so I decided to "mix metals" and I think it turned out really well.

I really loved the clear clutch too. I was set on peachy-pink (of course) so I decided to make the insert out of what I had lying around the house. I really love the pop of colour! I think if I had gone nude, it would have been a bit too drab for my liking.

The gorgeous gals.

Something we do at our school's formals are entrances! Everyone arrives at the "pre-formal" in a vehicle/mode of transportation and walk in on a red carpet - ooh la la! It's always really fun to see what everyone comes in - usually fancy or classic cars, limos, etc but it's always cool to come in something different! We decided to hire out a trackless train and it was so fun haha! We decorated it with fairy lights, and even drove it down to the dinner venue which was only 5 minutes away - but we were choo choo-ing on the roads!

The night was definitely one to remember, such a fun time with all my closest friends, and of course it was amazing to get dressed up for the night. It makes me sad to know that soon it will be all over and weird to think that I won't see my friends everyday at school. Enough sappy times, I hope you guys enjoyed this post!

What was your formal/prom experience like?

HAUL-I-DAYS

Haulidays, hauls for days, you get the idea. I only ever go on shopping sprees when I go on school holidays, which is like four times a year, so splurges are totally justifiable, right? A lot of this haul was for my upcoming Formal. I was originally going to do my own makeup, seeing as I'm scared of people messing it up, or doing it wrong, and me being too shy to speak up about it. But, I wanted to buy quite a lot of things which would've ended up costing more than getting it done, so I just decided to book in at Mecca Cosmetica. They have legit every product I'd want to be used and the cost is redeemable on products bweheheh >:).

Puretopia Sleep & Renew Rejuvinating & Firming Night Face Moisturiser

(srsly Puretopia why the such long names) I'm nearly out of my current night cream (Trilogy Rosapene Night Cream) and as much as I'd like to repurchase, it's $45 and I thought I'd try something new! I really like the spray toner from Puretopia so I thought I'd give this one a go. It has really nice ingredients like Rose hip oil and Vitamins C & E. Even if this isn't the greatest, I always mix in a few drops of a facial oil so hopefully it works out!

Soap & Glory The Breakfast Scrub

Oh sweet jebus, I've been wanting this scrub for the longest time. Every time I go into Mecca/Kit I sniff this and cry a little inside, it smells so delicious. It's also my first proper scrub and my reasoning is that Summer is coming up - gotta get Summer ready! Lol, who am I kidding, I don't go outside. But also so I can get my limbs somewhat nice looking for Formal - scaly, lizard ness be gone! I was considering getting a scrub from Dirty Works which is the dupe brand, but I realised they really aren't that cheap! Their scrub is $13 and S&G is $16, just pay in a few extra bucks and get the real deal hey.

Decleor System Corps Lait Hydratant Moisturising Body Milk*

I was recently sent this from Facial Co and after a bit of a kerfuffle with mis-sent products, I finally got my hands on it! I've been using it and really liking it, it is a lightweight moisturiser that doesn't leave the skin feeling heavy or sticky, but rather glowy. Perfect for Summer!

Kerastase Ciment Thermique*

Kerastase has just released a new generation of their best selling Thermiques. I was sent Ciment Thermique which is a heat protectant that is thermo-activated and will help strengthen the hair fibre from within - apparently! I try to avoid heat as much as possible, purely because my hair is so damaged. I will definitely be giving this a go though, and will let you guys know how it fares!

Bourjois Healthy Balance Unifying Powder

Bout time I got this powder right? It's been raved about by just about everyone for being the 'non-powder' powder. It sets but still keeps skin radiant whilst adding a little extra coverage. Also apparently a dupe for the Chanel Les Beiges powders and Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk powder. I bought this since I hit pan on my other face powder - Australis Fresh and Flawless, plus Bourjois was doing a gift with purchase when you spent $19.95. The powder was $20. Unfortunately they were out of stock of the Bourjois GWPs, so I got an Almay one instead, which I'm quite excited about seeing as I haven't tried anything from them. Thank you Tam for picking this up for me!

Almay Get Up & Grow Mascara

The GWP came with this mascara which I'm actually pretty excited to use seeing as Emily Noel raves about it all the time! 

Almay Longwear & Waterproof eye makeup remover pads

I've also heard pretty great things about these. I tried one the other night and it definitely got off my waterproof mascara! The pads themselves are saturated in an oily solution which helps break down product. Very convenient little pads! The GWP came in a clear bag which I think will actually be quite good for in flight and things like that. 

Topshop Glow Stick in Spotlight

I've been seeing these cheek blushes and highlighters popping up everywhere online, and I spotted this guy on clearance for half price, coming down to $11. I really liked the colour when swatched, it's quite a sheeny, glowy light pink in the convenience of a chubby stick. I think it would work well as a layering highlighter, or blush/highlighter hybrid. 

Ardell Individuals Flare Short Black

I picked these up for my Formal and I decided to go down the individual lash route to try it out, knowing that they're supposed to give a more natural, fluttery lash look. I like the customisable-ness of them. I got the short ones since they seemed the best length for me - they're still longer than my natural eyelashes but nothing obscene - the long ones are CRAY. And there wasn't a set with just medium and short. I expect I can get very voluminous lashes with these - hopefully! These were $10.

Maybelline Colour Show Bleached Neons in Sun Flare

I was not aware that Maybelline were bringing over the Bleached Neons range, but they only had the nail polishes. Shame really, because I loved the look of the LE shades of the Elixirs and Colour Whispers. I was on the hunt for a pale peachy-pink polish for Formal, all the peachy pinks I have are mid-tone, and me being the fussy biatch needed something paler apparently! Nothing satisfied me in Priceline (seriously I got every peachy-pink polish to compare them (shoutout to Daphne for helping me choose ;) ), so I decided to go with Sun Flare. It's not exactly what I wanted, it's very much on the peach side of things, but I really like it and I think it will go with my dress/situation haha.

Tweezerman Mini Slant Tweezers

I picked these up on clearance at David Jones for about $11 I think, which I thought was a pretty great price! I've been wanting to try Tweezerman tweezers for ages, and trust me, my old pair of tweezers were SO old, and blunt and pretty dang terrible at doing their job. These Tweezerman ones are so damn sharp they could cut a b*tch, legit. Took me a while to master them, but they've definitely made plucking ma brows a little less stressful. Plus, the bee print is SO cute.

Jewellery - Topshop and Lovisa

I needed to pick up some jewellery to go with my dress. My dress has silver in it but since I'm so damn keen on wearing gold, I decided to go for the mixing metals thang of gold and silver. It works because the dress itself is a creamy-beige (wow it sounds so appealing) so it goes well with gold. I really liked wearing midi rings for my Semi, and decided to do the same for my Formal. I think the dress just suits much daintier jewellery. I picked up some gold rings from Lovisa and a bracelet from Topshop which has silver and gold - I think it's quite cute. But GUYS, do you see that triangle ring I bought!? BASTILLE RING. Seriously, it ain't just any old triangle, it screams BASTILLE TRIANGLE. I'm a little obsessed. Just a little.

Hope you guys enjoyed my haul! Formal is coming up very soon, less than two weeks in fact :O So yah, I'm defo in Formal prep mode.

*Products sent for consideration.

Monthly Favourites // February 2014

The shortest month of the year is near its end, and so comes the Autumn season! I'm not sure if I'm that excited for the cooler months, but since it has been SO bloody hot here, I'm definitely ready for a break. I'm here to bring you my collection of favourite products for the month. I don't have very many, but I do have some new products and some rediscovered.

Sanctuary Spa Brightening Facial Radiance Exfoliator

My scrub of choice for the month. I've been using this 2-3 times a week and have been enjoying it. I'd say it's medium on the scale of abrasive-ness, it's composed of a gel base and scrubby granules as well as fruit extracts to help chemically exfoliate. The granules aren't very dense though, so I find myself using more product than usual (maybe 1.5 peas?). My skin feels very soft after use though, in terms of brightening, I'm yet to see significant result.

Rimmel Lash Accelerator Endless Mascara

For the days I've been wearing mascara it was most often this one. I really like that the brush is thin(ish) but still very bristly and grabs all the lashes. It lengthens, defines and thickens the lashes, looking very natural and without clumping. It says with "fibres" but I actually don't notice that it contains any.

Maybelline Fit Me Concealer in the shade Medium

I've been thoroughly enjoying this concealer lately. It's much quicker and more convenient that having to dip from a pan. The shade is a good match, it has a good coverage (not totally full though) and works well for both under the eyes and around the face, without accentuating dry patches.

Topshop Head over Heels, theBalm Frat Boy

Topshop Cream Blush in Head over Heels and theBalm Powder blush in Frat Boy

I've been on a serious peachy-pink blush kick this month (aren't I always though?) and I pretty much wore these two exclusively. Before this month, I hadn't worn HOH for so long mainly because I never really knew the best way to apply it. I've since found the best brush to apply this cream-to-powder with (which I will talk about next). I also wasn't wearing Frat Boy nearly as much as I should have been as it's in a palette which I keep in my eye drawer and always forget about when it comes to applying blush. I made a point of putting the palette on top of my daily makeup storage after seeing it in so many b/vloggers favourites and have worn it so much since. It actually pulls a lot more peach when applied to my face, it's also very long lasting!

Real Techniques Multi-Task Brush

I recently made a few purchases off of iHerb (my sister was making an order) and picked up a few of the RT things I've been wanting. This is in the Travel Essentials kit and what I've been using to apply the Topshop blush as well as my face powder. Lily Pebbles recently described it as being a mix between the Blush brush and the Buffing brush, and I couldn't agree more! It is still fluffy, but is also a bit more dense than the blush brush. It's density picks up the product really well, but it's fluffiness blends it out effortlessly. I don't use this for more pigmented blushes though as I think it's probably a bit too dense.

Australis Fresh & Flawless Pressed Powder in the shade Darkest Brown

A long time fave right here and one that I've been reaching for pretty much everyday this month. It's perfect for topping off BB creams or sheerer coverage foundations. It sets and mattifies with a natural matte finish and adds a tad more coverage. It's a very soft, and creamy powder that never looks cakey or powdery on the skin.

Chvrches The Bones of What you Believe

Lastly I have a music favourite! I've been listening to this album pretty much on repeat for the month. A band I discovered through the Triple J Hottest Hundred (which I've also been loving listening to) and one that I pretty much fell in love with immediately! I love their style of synthpop and their songs are seriously awesome. Not a single one on the album I don't like. It's been making studying a lot less dreary!

Monthly Favourites | February 2013

Today I have my monthly favourites for February! This month has seriously zoomed past, not to be cliched or anything, but it really has! Here are a few things that I've really been enjoying.

First up for the face:

The Skin79 Super+ Hot Pink BB cream (review here) has been my go-to base for the month. It is just so easy! I slap it on as the last step of my skincare. It provides moisture without making my face oily, has an SPF of 25, decent light coverage and a slew of other skincare benefits! Although this oxidizes quite close to my skin tone, I still find that I appear to have a slight grey cast or that my face looks quite pale and washed out. To perk up my face I use another product featured in this post!

Rimmel Stay Matte powder in the shade 001 Transparent has been my setting powder of choice. It doesn't add any more coverage to the face so it doesn't look cakey, nor does it look powdery. It sets everything nicely and controls oil for me to be matte for a good 4-6 hours depending on what I'm doing or what the weather is like. It's super good for touch ups too!

My new fave concealer is the Sonia Kashuk Hidden Agenda Concealer palette (review here). I love that I can mix the colours to achieve my perfect match and the neutralizer works really well for reducing redness. Not a huge fan of the powder, but I'm a lover of the rest of the palette!

Brows, Eyes and Cheeks:

Here's a bit of a sneak peek into my brow routine!

First up I fill them in with the Dolly Wink Eyebrow Powder in the shade Dark Chocolate (review here) with my Essence Angled Eyeliner brush. It is really thin and stiff so it applies the powder in really natural, hair-like strokes. I really reccommend it for less than $3! The colour of the powder matches really well with my hair colour and gives me nice full while naturally defined brows.

I top off my brows with coat of the Essence clear gel mascara which does the trick! It sets my brows, keeping them in place all day whilst helping the colour last longer. Very cheap and does the job. Wish I could say the same for the packaging though! The spoolie from mine has completely broken off of the lid, it's still usable so I'll try and finish the tube!

The MAC Eyeshadow in the shade All that glitters has been a lovely all over lid colour. It's not too metallic but it is just such a beautiful shade which I am in love with! 

Like I said earlier, to perk up my face and give it a bit more warmth I've been reaching for the Topshop Blush in the shade Head over heels (review here). It's just such a sweet peachy-pink shade with a subtle gold shimmer to give a lovely glow. It also has amazing staying power!

Lastly for the lips, Essence lipstick in All about Cupcake has been my go-to. Such a cute name and shade of pink that looks wonderfully natural. It's a definite my-lips-but-pinker colour. It is a bit sheer and glossy which is what I love about it. Decently moisturizing and very cheap!

That sums it up for the products I've been using this month! What have you guys been loving using in February?

Top Makeup

Today I have a couple of items from Topshop's line of makeup to review!

I picked up these Topshop bits while I was overseas and fortunately, unlike the clothes, their makeup range was relatively cheap. I bought a cream blush in the shade Head over Heels and a lipstick in the shade Ohh La La.

I absolutely love the packaging on both of these products! The blush is packed in a sturdy, matte, plastic container with cute grey polka dots on the front and a mirror inside. The lipstick is housed in a matte metal tube with grey stripes.

Head over Heels is a very pretty peachy-pink shade with fine gold shimmer throughout. The formula is very nice and despite it being a cream blush, it applies and dries down to a dry finish as if it were a powder blush. It is nicely pigmented and easy to blend with even your fingers!

 

Ohh La La is a light coral shade with pink undertones. It is a creamy lipstick with no shimmer and the pigmentation on this one isn't extremely opaque but it gives a nice glossy finish to the lips. It isn't at all drying to the lips either! It does have a slight scent that I can't describe but I do really like.

Ohh La La lipstick, Head over Heels blush

Overall I really like both of these products and for the price they are really nice. They both last really well on the face and lips. My only regret is...that I didn't buy more!

Haul from Abroad

Recently I returned from my month long adventures in South Africa and a brief four nights in Hong Kong. Of course, I had to do a bit of beauty shopping!

I picked up some things from some brands that you can't get in Australia and also things that were a bit cheaper over there.

From South Africa I picked up:

Revlon Lip Butter in Berry Smoothie

Topshop lipstick in Ohh La La

Topshop Cream blush in Head over Heels

Catrice Defining Duo Blush in Peach Sorbet

The Body Shop Eye definer in Moonstone

Revlon Colorstay Nail Enamel in Spanish Moss (with free Top coat)

Sinful Colors Cinderella (Which can now be purchased in Priceline and Target stores)

Catrice Genius in the bottle

Yardley Twist nails in Sunset Glaze

From Hong Kong I picked up:

Dolly Wink eyebrow powder in Dark Chocolate

Majolica Majorca Lash Expander Frame Plus Mascara

Dolly Wink liquid eyeliner in Black

Shu Uemura Eyelash Curlers

Skin79 Super BB cream in hot pink

That's it for my haul from abroad and I will have reviews up soon for most of these products so stay tuned!