6 Beauty Products You Must Own

A go-to neutral palette

If you're ever in a rush it's good to know that your trusty neutral palette is ready and waiting to be swept over your eye lids. It's good if your palette has a shade for highlighting as well as a shade that you can use as a liner if you're short on time.

I love the Bare Minerals palette in 'The Truth' for a quick and easy eye.

A perfect blending brush

Nothing makes your eyeshadow application more simple than a perfect blending brush. You want a brush that you can reach for to apply all of your eyeshadow, rather than having to swap brushes for different things.

I love the MAC 217 brush (I have about 4 of them) for sweeping shadow over the lid, defining the crease and darkening the lash line.

A tinted moisturiser or BB cream

If you don't like to wear foundation every day then a tinted moisturiser or BB cream is perfect for those days when you're just grocery shopping or running errands but still want a little bit of coverage. This way you don't have to fuss over a perfect application and you can just buff it into your skin with clean fingers.

I love the Garnier BB Cream

 A my-lips-but-better lip colour

A perfect lip stick to make your natural lip colour shine. Your my-lips-but-better colour should be one shade lighter or darker than your natural lip colour (depending on your preference). It will be different for every person but generally it will be a rose tones colour to match your natural lip shade.

I love MAC Gem of Roses and Chanel Legende.

A rose tinted bronzer
A bronzer with a subtle rose tint to quickly make your face more awake and defined. When you don't have time (or can't be bothered) contouring, a rose tinted bronzer can be swept just above your contour line (about an inch below your cheekbones) to brighten up your face.

I love Chanel Soleil Tan de Chanel in Sable Rose

An exact-match concealer

To quickly cover any imperfections on your face or under your eyes, a concealer that matches your skin tone exactly will do the trick. On most days I use a corrector before my concealer and then use a concealer slightly too light for me and take the time to blend it in properly. But when I'm running out the door and don't have time for a full face of make up, nothing beats an exact match concealer for a quick and easy cover.

I love Cle de Peau Concealer and MAC Mineralise Concealer

Why I use and love the Clé de Peau Concealer (but haven't written a review on it)

The Clé de Peau Concealer must have had a bit of publicity recently because about 5 different people have asked me about it and whether or not it's worth the money.

I've tried to write a review so many times because it's a product I've used every day for about 11 months and think it's a wonderful product.

But, like many beauty bloggers, I find it hard to pin point exactly why it's so great and worth the hefty price tag. This review is going to be odd but it's the only way I can properly explain the product and all its positives.

It costs a small fortune, but it lasts a long time.

I've just reached the bottom of my concealer stick, but there's about 2-3 months worth still sitting in the tube, I just have to use a concealer brush to dig into it. I've been using it since last April so the stick so it took a year to work through the stick, adding on the 2-3 months worth still left in the bottom of the tube this concealer is going to last me well into June-July. Sure, it's a lot to pay up front but it works out cheaper in the long run because it's the only concealer I have needed to buy for over a year.

It's full coverage, lasts all day and doesn't crease.

The coverage is opaque but you can sheer it down a little if you want too (this comes in handy if it doesn't exactly match your skin tone). It’s not going to move on your skin or fade throughout the day and it doesn’t crease. The main reason it doesn’t crease is because you need to use such a small amount of the product that there’s simply not enough on the skin for it to sink into lines.

It doesn’t oxidise, even on my combination/oily skin.

Oxidisation happens when the natural oils from your skin don’t mix well with a tinted product like foundation and concealer. Oxidisation causes the product to turn orange. I haven’t had any problems with oxidisation from this concealer.

It’s a multi-tasker, great for under eyes and on the face.

I use it under my eyes as my primary concealer and on my face for any blemishes or red spots. It’s quite a thick concealer so it’s best applied with finger tips. The warmth of your finger helps the concealer blend easily on the face. I use my fingers to pat it out and blend the edges.

It looks natural.

This is the really draw card for the concealer, it doesn’t cover so much that your skin is washed out and it’s obvious that you’re wearing excess make up on certain areas. It covers just enough to give a really natural finish while still letting your skin glow through the product. This fact is what will make you either love or hate the concealer. The natural look is why it’s been a favourite among make up artists for so long and why it continues to win awards year after year.

The reason the product is so hard to review is because I’m sure you can find other products that do all of the above things but Clé de Peau is different and it’s really hard to pin point exactly why.

Okay, now for the cons.

Limited shades.

The Clé de Peau concealer comes in only 4 shades and considering the fact that skin doesn’t come in only 4 shades this can be annoying. I have very light skin (MAC NW10-15) and the lightest shade (Ivory) is just probably just slightly too dark for me but it still works fine as long as it’s blended.

That’s all, that’s the only con I can throw at it. I’m not counting the price as a con because it lasts for such a long time.

It’s important to remember that this is a concealer, not a corrector. It wonderfully conceals imperfections and slight dark spots on the skin such as under eye circles but if you have very dark circles under your eyes, you need to use a corrector as well as a concealer. My under eye circles are quite dark, it’s one of the many joys associated with fair skin, so I need to use a pink toned corrector before I use concealer. I use Bobbi Brown Corrector in Light Bisque before I apply the Clé de Peau concealer and the final look is heavenly.

The bottom line is that yes, the Clé de Peau concealer is wonderful and I do recommend it. I will be repurchasing it when I eventually make my way down to the bottom of the tube. 

The Clé de Peau Concealer costs $70 from Nordstrom in the US or $90-$112 in Australia (depending on your state and where you purchase it)

(I'm posting this review early for a friend and will post a swatch picture as soon as possible)

Animal Testing - Clé de Peau does not test on animals

Tag: Why do I wear make up?

 

 

I stole this tag from Rachel at Beauty Behind the Imperfections (I adore her, you should forget about reading this post and just go straight to her blog) and to give it a whirl. If you do it too make sure link me in the comments below, I'd love to read it!

1. When did you begin loving make up?

 

I've always been into make up and beauty, I would save my pocket money to buy Bonnie Bell lip balms or Impulse Body Sprays from a really young age. I'd shuffle through the discount bins at cheap beauty stores in search of eye shadow palettes or lip glosses.
My first real experience buying 'real' make up (rather than cheap items at discount stores) was when I was 13 and went shopping with my older cousin. She was really into ChiChi make up and I followed her lead and spent all my savings on a set of two lip glosses, a lipstick, two cream eye shadows and two eyeliners. I rocked the crap out of those products like you wouldn't believe. Too bad the cream eye shadows were both silver, the eyeliners were blue and purple and the lipstick was dark, dark purple. I looked like sick witch. But don't worry, I've evolved.

 

2. How do you feel without make up?

 

I feel fine without make up, I don't wear make up at home (removing it is the first thing I do when I walk in the door) but I don't leave the house without it.

It doesn't take me long to put on my daily face of make up and I only ever wear products that feel comfortable on my skin, especially when it comes to foundation. I'm just not comfortable in the outside world without make up on. I wear a complete face of make up to work 5 days a week and I will usually do the same on Saturdays when I run errands or do whatever I need to do. I try to stay home on Sundays and either relax or blog as well as give my skin a well deserved rest and no make up.

 

3. What do you like about make up?

 

I've always had a wild creativity and an over-active imagination, make up is just an expansion of that. I'm fascinated with colours and how they work together and respond to each other. Plus there's the obvious reasons like feeling more confident, enhancing natural features, etc. I just love beauty products, there's no logical reason for it but I get a nice sense of joy from playing with make up. Ultimately I'm just a girl, standing in front of the Myer beauty department, asking it to love her.

 

4. List three 'Holy Grail' items.

 

Tarte Lights, Camera Lashes! Mascara. I cannot tell you how many tubes of this I've gone through, but I can tell you that right now I have three backups in my drawer ready to be used. I've tried a ridiculous amount of mascaras, this one is amazing, the ultimate bees knees.

Organic Rose Hip Oil. I use it every night on my cheeks, nose and forehead and every 2 or 3 nights I'll also apply it over my chin and jaw (where I'm more prone to blemishes). I've been using it for years and will never stop, it's done amazing things for my skin and is the best product I've found to help with oil control. I also use it on my elbows, knees or any irritations I have on my skin. I've tried many brands, Kosmea and Kora Organics are my two favourites.

Laura Mercier Caviar Sticks. These incredible cream eye shadows are the best in their league, they apply so easily and there is enough time to blend them out before they lock themselves into place. Once they're set, they're not going to move or crease all day. The shade variety was always quite limited but new shades are launching in Australia this month.

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NOTD: OPI 'My Vampire Is Buff' - Review

My Vampire Is Buff is an off-white shade, leaning slightly towards a beige/peach undertone. I've always been a fan of white nail polish but it just doesn't suit my fair skin, My Vampire Is Buff however is a nice neutral-warm colour that wears easily on any skin tone.

The formula is typical of OPI nail polishes, quite thick to apply and opaque in two coats. Like any pastel shade it can be prone to streaking but it's not as bad as others. If you use a steady hand and let each coat dry completely you'll be fine. The finish of the polish is incredibly glossy and smooth and it dried down nicely.

It wore on me for 3 days before chipping (my typical wear time is 3-4 days), but the chipping was only minor and could have been unnoticed for another day or two.

The colour is gorgeous and a great shade to transition your nails into Autumn. I believe the shade is limited edition so if you adore is as much as I do, I'd rush to pick it up.

You can find it at David Jones in Australia for $20 (releasing late March) or for $8 at Ulta in the US (out now).

What's In My Bag This Week?

The final issue of Grazia Magazine, sad. I don't read any magazines consistently but I've always enjoyed Grazia when I've picked it up and it will definitely be missed.

My new Personalised Planner. I only received this last week but have been busy filling in all my current plans.

Soy Crisps are my current on-the-go snack of choice, a small tub of these lasts me about a week. Carrying a snack with you saves so much money for those mid-afternoon hunger pangs.

Lemony Flutter Cuticle Butter from Lush. I've been taking epic care of my cuticles this week, it was getting to the point where they just weren't softening so I've been treating them with love and respect while letting them grow. Growing out your cuticles may sound weird but sometimes it's the best thing for them (even if I can't wait to cut them back again).

Kora Organics Energising Facial Mist. I've only had this for a couple of days but I'm enjoying it so far. I use it as a toner at night after I cleanse my face and also to refresh my make up during the day.

Dior Creme de Rose lip balm is the newest edition to my balm stash and I really like it but I've only had it for a week and I've already hit pan. How annoying..

Chanel La Favorite is my lipstick of choice at the moment. It's a gorgeous coral that leans slightly towards a tangerine colour. It's the perfect shade for these last days of summer.

NOTD: OPI 'Stay The Night' Liquid Sand - Review!

I'm a fan of super glossy cream nail polishes. I don't wear matte, suede or satin finishes and shimmer rarely finds a place to land on my nails. But, being the curious person I am, when OPI released their new 'Liquid Sand' finish in the Mariah Carey collection I jumped straight on it.

Stay The Night is a dark grey liquid sand with a pinkish red fine glitter. It applies just like any other nail polish but as it sets you start to see the 'sand' appear on the surface. It's a little thicker than a standard nail polish but is incredibly easy to apply and dries quickly.

I used two coats to achieve the desired Liquid Sand finish and I have to say that it's actually pretty nice. But personally, I need glossy nails. I wasted no time in throwing on a top coat to all but one of my nails to test out the wear.

Usually I get about 3-4 days of wear before I need to change my nail polish, as soon as there’s a chip, scratch or dent I will remove it all. Stay The Night went for 7 solid days before it slightly chipped on a couple of the corners, I never get that kind of wear from a standard nail polish. The nails with top coat and the nail without all chipped at around the same time, the top coat made no difference to the wear time.

I have to say that while I enjoyed this polish without the top coat, it's such a show off shade when it's glossy. I had countless people asking what nail polish it was or just generally complimenting the colour and shimmer in the polish.

The only downfall was that this polish was such a pain to remove, worse than any of the glitter nail polishes I've tried, it took a good 15 minutes of scrubbing before I had clean nails.

This polish was a pain in the neck to photograph, I tried indoors and outdoors but I couldn't get a good photo of the dimension of the polish, so I stole one.

The picture at the top of this post is mine, the picture below was taken from The Polish-Aholic, with a top coat and without. 

I'm not overly interested in the other Liquid Sand shades available at the moment but if more are released and there's one that appeals to me I would be happy to buy another.

This would be an excellent finish for anyone who's interested in trying matte nail polish but wants something a bit more interesting.

Haul! Kora Organics

I've been looking at the Kora Organics line for a while now (one of my 2012 resolutions was to find a more natural skin care routine) but was hesitant to buy it because I'm allergic to lavender and most of the products are filled with it.

I tested a few of the lavender-free products on my arms and didn't have a reaction so I went ahead and decided to give three of the products a try.

The first one I bought was the Cream Cleanser for normal, dry or sensitive skin. I have oily sensitive skin but I always opt for the sensitive skin products. This one does have lavender in it but it's almost at the bottom of the ingredients list. I tested it out on my wrist and didn't have a reaction to it so I went back to the pharmacy and took a sample of it to test on my jaw line. I still didn't have a reaction so I figured it was pretty safe. I presume that because I'm washing it off pretty quickly it's not having a chance to irritate my skin. I've used it a couple of times and am liking it so far but I'll do a full review soon.

The next product is the Exfoliating Cream for all skin types. I use an enzyme exfoliator every 4 days and a regular exfoliator at the two day period in between (so I exfoliate every 2 days). This one has no lavender in it (yay!).

Then I chose the Energising Citrus Mist for all skin types. This was the only mist without lavender (which was really the entire reason I chose this one).

I adore the packaging of these products and they look great on my bathroom shelf. I'm not a fan of the scent of any of the products but it doesn't linger, once you wash it off the scent goes with it.

I'll do a full review on all of these products when I've used them more.

Have you ever used any of the Kora Organics products? If so, let me know below!

NEW PRODUCT! Nivea Lip Butters (Review)

I adore a good lip balm, my lips chap easily and I am always looking for products to keep them hydrated throughout the day. I've been a long-time fan of Niveas Essential Care Lip Balm Stick and have used it on and off for the past few years.

It seems like most brands are diving into the 'Lip Butter' trend with all guns blazing at the moment but I was glad to see an attempt by a brand that has a good history with making lip balms.

Nivea released four lip butters and I have three of them. Smooth Kiss is an unscented, unflavoured lip butter, Raspberry Rose Kiss has a strong raspberry scent with a slight hint of rose and a mildly sweet taste, Vanilla and Macadamia Kiss has a creamy vanilla scent with a mildly nutty sweet taste. The other lip butter released was Caramel Cream Kiss.

The scents are really nice, they don't smell cheap or over-fragranced.

After I moved on from my initial disappointment that these lip balms contain petroleum, (a common lip balm ingredient but one I try to avoid) I gave them all a two day spin to test out their power.

All of the lip butters performed in the same way. The texture is fairly thick and creamy but not at all sticky, they all apply clear and the scent and taste wears off fairly quickly.

They moisturised quite well but once they had absorbed there was no lingering effects. They took about an hour to absorb completely (a normal time frame) but I then needed to apply the balm again, it didn't keep my lips hydrated. I like my lip balms to keep my lips hydrated for at least another hour after it has absorbed. This could also be because my lips aren't used to using petroleum based products.

Ultimately, the lip butters are decent for a non-treatment balm. The ingredients are pretty typical of a lip balm but the creamy texture and scents will make these more favoured. However I'll continue using my Nivea Essential Care lip balm on a day-to-day basis. I find it more nourishing and it doesn't contain petroleum.

Each lip butter contains 16.7g of product, by comparison the Nivea Essential Care contains only 4.8g of product. Those in the US can find them at Rite Aid, they will be released in Australia in mid-April with a price tag around $7.

NOTD: Essie 'Damsel In A Dress'

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I'm not really a fan of shimmer nail polish but when I saw 'Damsel In A Dress' by Essie my heart melted into a pile of shimmering purple goodness. 

Damsel In A Dress is a deep, incredibly rich purple with the most beautiful micro-shimmer, making the polish look almost metallic. The texture is smooth and applies evenly. Two coats gives an opaque finish and lets the colour really show off how beautiful it is. 

It wore for 4 days on me without chipping (which is typical wear on me) and the finish was still perfect when I took it off, there wasn't any fading or dull areas like there can be with some micro-glitter polishes. 

I adore this polish, it will definitely grace my fingernails again soon.