How To: Depot MAC Shadows

There I sat, with my MAC shadows in hand and a pretty forlon looking palette. I decided to depot them all, even the ones I'd been avoiding. I was worried I would chip my favourites being so clumsy...let's see how I went!

I've used Fleur's tutorial here a couple of times and find it to be the safest, so once again I got to work. With this you'll need a straightener, greaseproof paper, a sharp knife (and I like to have tweezers on hand!) some round magnets and your shadows. As you can see in the image above, I have the tutorial loaded in case I need to be reminded of what to do next. Please note that you have to be really careful when doing this, I take no liability for anyones actions! 

First step is to wiggle the knife in the front of the MAC packaging, where the actual pan meets the plastic around it (it's a little line near the front opening). Once you've gotten the pan out (as in first image) you place the greaseproof paper onto the hot plate of the straightener, with the pan on top of it. You want to avoid actual contact between the hot plate and the plastic, as it could be dangerous. Wait around 15 seconds (depending on straightener, I'd go for a little and see how much you can wiggle) and carefully lift your MAC pan up. Wiggle the knife into the centre of the back of the pan, and the glue should have melted enough for you to be able to prise the metal pan away from the plastic portion.

Immediately place your magnetic round onto the wet glue (to take advantage of it) I purchased my magnetic stickers from ebay, much cheaper that way I think. The next step is to put the plastic from the pan back into the round casing, and remove the name label to put onto the depotted shadow. To do this, you place the casing back onto the greaseproof paper and wait 7 seconds, then the label should come away easily. Pop it onto the back of your MAC pan, and there you have it!

The shadow I was most worried about depotting was my beloved limited edition shades, and as you can see here the Outre packaging looks a little worse for wear here. This shouldn't affect it's back to MAC capabilities though. The shadows all survived, so I'd say this was a successful venture!

My palette is slowly but surely filling up, I am looking into getting some more neutral shades soon as well as some proper brights. I would love any MAC shadow recommendations in the comments below, I'm quite new to the MAC shadow game (compared to the average girl) so would love your assistance!

I have a post coming up with swatches and names of all of these shadows, let me know if that is something you'd be interested in seeing and I'll fast track it!

 

gelati manicure

Xristos Anesti for those who have just celebrated Orthodox Easter! I had a great day with Chris' family eating delicious Greek food and relaxing in the sunshine all day long. An afternoon nap reinvigorated me and I ended up hopping on the treadmil(4 kms, go team!) and then painted my nails. An Easter themed manicure seemed to be the best thing to do, but to be honest I was thinking of beautiful gelati and pastel coloured tones in general when I was doing this.

Scrambling through my polish collection, I couldn't decide between my favourite pastel shades, so I chose to use them all!

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Australis' Sweet Pea was a natural choice, it's a mint sort of shade with more green tones than other mints I own. It's quite a bit darker and greener in person than this photo suggests, so be sure to have a look at it in Priceline. Such a beauty!

This is my favourite from the bunch I used, ever since seeing Allison (Amarixe on YouTube) rave about pastel yellow polishes in this video, I haven't been able to get it out of my head. This Face of Australia Luxe polish in Lemon Sorbet is quite opaque for a yellow polish, and I really like it.

OPI Pink-Ing Of You is a sweet pale pink shade that looks great as an overall mani, but worked so well with this combination. 3 coats is best for this polish, but they dry quickly so it's not bother.

Pinata Purple* came from the Kit Cosmetics Viva La Colour collection a while back, but I'm sure I've seen similar colours in the permanent Kit line. This is the least pastel of the bunch, but I think it adds a nice splash of brights to the look while still blending into it. I need to get my hands on a pretty lilac polish, does anyone have recommendations or reviews? Please comment or link me below!

Another beauty from the Face of Australia Luxe line, Minty Mojito is  a beautiful opaque mint shade that is to die for. I have a few mint polishes, but this one does hold a special place in my heart and I enjoy the formula as well.

I topped each nail off with Kit Cosmetics Base/Top Coat*, which I also used underneath each shade. A nice amount of shine, I am in the middle of trialling this so will let you know how chip-free my mani stays!

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My very favourite of the bunch! I can't get over how lovely Face of Australia polishes are, especially considering that they cost less than a fiver! Lemon Sorbet is one of my FOA favourites.

What do you think of my pastel gelati manicure?

How did you spend your Easter, whichever weekend it was?

Which shade do you think is a standout here?

Items marked * were provided for consideration for review, which in no way affects my choosing them for this mani, or my opinion of them. Honesty, always.

MAC Painterly Paint Pot

As much as I adore new cosmetic releases and squeal over a bright shadow or new gloss, the staples in my collection are the glue that holds it all together. Without my MAC Painterly, my eyeshadows would all be worthless, as crease-city is not a destination I am fond of. This is, to date, the best product I have found to prime my lids with before eyeshadow.

Painterly is part of the permanent line of MAC products, and in my experience is more effective at gripping onto shadows than products like Urban Decay Primer Potion or drugstore eye primers. It makes the colours of my shadows appear more vibrant and it's really easy to blend over, which is really important when considering an eyeshadow primer.

Paint Pots come in 5g glass jars which feel nice and heavy in the hand, with a sturdy black plastic lid. Each morning I pop on my facial moisturiser then swipe a small amount of Painterly onto each eyelid. I then flick through my collection to decide on what look I'm going to create that day. By that time Painterly has had time to settle, and I go about applying my eyeshadows. I find that if I apply this at 6.45am, by the time 6.45pm rolls around my eyes are still looking good. I don't experience any fading or smudging, and I am happily crease-free unless I take a nap during the day. Even then, I'm usually okay. Sigh, the life of a uni student!

I have been using this pot for over a year now and as you can see I have plenty left. I use this at least once each day, and as I wear eyeshadow almost every day I would say this is great value! I must mention that I prefer the creamier Paint Pots over their glittery counterparts (like Genuine Treasure from the Posh Paradise collection) as I find these a million times easier to spread and work with in general.

Painterly doesn't contain glitter or shimmer so can be used with muted daytime looks or under a smokey eye for night. It's a beige colour that is a touch darker than my uber-pale skin tone, and this works perfectly for me.

As you can see, it's a really natural looking product. I found myself without this for 4 days last week and I couldn't bear using my eyeshadows without it, so just wore liquid liner. I don't like having bare lids with my liquid liner, however, as I like to use Painterly and a neutral shade to mask the discoloration on my lids even if the shadow is not the focus. This is why I think Painterly would make a great staple in anyones collection, if if you don't wear full on eyeshadow all the time.

On the MAC website Paint Pots are described as 'eye colours' but they really are so much more than that. They come in range of neutral shades (check them out here) so if you have a darker skin tone or want a darker base, you should be able to find one. I have my eye on Rubenesque next, but am trying to fill up my MAC palette so we will see.

Paint Pots retail for $35AUD or $17.50 USD.

Yes, the difference is ridiculous but there you go. Lucky the Paint Pots are worth the $35!

What eyeshadow primer do you swear by?

What is your favourite Paint Pot shade?

*This product was purchased with my own moolah, I have received no compensation for this review. Honesty, always.

Empties, January-March

I've had these piling up since the start of the year, and neglected to post them monthly like I usually do. Here are my empties from the beginning of year 'til now!

A stack of hair stuff, not all of it is completely empty but I'm sick of using hair products that don't help my dandruff just to use them up.

Garnier Fructis Sensitive Scalp shampoo- This is the first shampoo I've found that actually keeps my dandruff at bay! Will post a full review eventually, suffice to say I have already repurchased.

  

Terax Crema- the best conditioner I have ever tried, review here.

Cedel Anti-Dandruff shampoo- didn't finish this,it was quite a while ago that I used it so I can't remember much about it.

Sunsilk Scalp-Care anti-dandruff shampoo-Same as above, can't remember this doing much at all and so it was never finished.

QV Gentle Shampoo- not gentle, this made my head itch and flake like mad. Used this as shaving lotion to finish it up, and it wasn't good at that either.

Garnier Fructis Citrus Detox shampoo- this was decent, but I prefer the blue bottle so I won't repurchase this kind.

Cedel Dry Shampoo- I really like this, it's a little more expensive than the one I've been using but I think the bottle is nice and stands out on my cabinet. I will repurchase eventually.

Rexona Girl Dance deodorant-This scent wasn't my cup of tea, I prefer the Tropical version of this in the white and pink can.

Face of Australia Gentle Makeup Remover-this is a great affordable makeup remover, I was originally sent this but this is the one I repurchased. I will buy this again, my original review is here.

A whole bunch of empty face wipe packets as well as a Priceline lip wipes one, and some cotton round packaging.

Clinique Anti-Blemish Solutions Moisturiser- This was a nice moisturiser but I seemed to use it up too fast, so the price tag is a bit annoying. I will probably repurchase but not for a while.

Johnsons Holiday Skin Body Lotion-I remember this being a really nice gradual tanner, but it's so old that it probably doesn't work anymore so out it goes!

RoC Complete Lift Moisturiser- was so hard to squeeze anything out of these wincey sample tubes. I remember this being a nice consistency and creamy but nothing outstanding. I think the packaging just irritated me too much. These came in a beauty box, I believe.

 

Nougat London Fig and Pink Cedar hand cream*- This sample size was lovely, the scent is very strong but because I was fond of it I really didn't mind. I got this in a Primped sample bag ages ago, it's a very lovely introduction to the cute Nougat London range.

Hissyfit Handywork SPF30 hand cream*- this sample was from the same Primped bag, and hi 5 to Hissyfit for making a hand cream with such high SPF! Lovely and sinks in fast, will repurchase (eventually, I have a lot of hand creams to use up!)

 

Sasy N Savy Rose and Lavender Hand Cream- loved the scent, but while I appreciate that the company are trying to stand out with their name, they're standing out for all the wrong reasons.

Original Source Shea Butter and Honey Shower Cream- Chris and I adore these, they smell amazing and are such great quality. We grab a whole box full when they go on sale at the supermarket or chemist (they're on sale at Chemist Warehouse right now...) Love, will continue to repurchase and will review soon.

1SkinSolutions Lime Thyme shower gel*- will be reviewing this soon, I really enjoyed the scent.

Imperial Leather Foamburst shower gel in Coconut and Tiare Flower- I found this to be really moisturising, and lasted quite a long time. I think the scent is nice, but for some reason I didn't love it like I knew I should. I may try this again as it lathers wonderfully, but will probably choose a different scent.

Trishave Shave Creme*- the tea tree in this made me feel great, as I knew if I were to nick myself it's sanitary. I liked that this was non-foaming and that they made note of it on the packaging, it covered the legs really well and was nice to use. Non-drying and affordable, win. Smell is very strong though, just something to keep in mind.

Items marked * were either free samples or were provided for consideration for review. This doesn't affect my opinion of the products. Honesty, always.

bye bye goose man!

Chris had been mentioning that he had developed tiny bumps on his upper arm and bicep, and I was clueless as to how to fix his problem. He said 'you're the beauty blogger!help me!' and so off I went to find out what to do. Okay, so as I googled I became distracted reading some of my favourite blogs, but lo and behold there the answer lay!

Vita from Making Up 4 My Age is one of the sweetest bloggers I know, and she mentioned the Palmer's Skin Smoothing lotion in her empties here. Vita mentioned that it contained alpha/beta hydroxy and worked well at keeping her keratosis (or goose flesh!) under control! I connected the dots and realised that my man was suffering from keratosis as well, so I nicked up to Priceline and picked him up a bottle.

Palmer's Skin Smoothing lotion claims that it will "remove dry skin cells...[and] uncovers healthier looking skin".

The lotion is based on the Palmers cocoa butter formula with vitamin E. Palmer's says that

"This fast-absorbing lotion helps redue the appearance of fine line and wrinkles and evens skin tone. Your skin will feel soft, smooth and healthy with no greasy after-feel."

Chris is much more confident since using this smoothing lotion and his skin is moisturised and goose-flesh free. I am absolutely enthralled with the fresh yet masculine scent it has, and can't help but snuggle up to Chris once he applies it. It's so refreshing to find a product that does exactly what it promises plus more, and is affordable and easy to find.

This is a definite repurchase for me, it is a lovely lotion even without the benefits of the Alpha/Beta Hydroxy, and so Chris is happy to use this each night over any other I've purchased for him. If you suffer from keratosis or know someone who is driven crazy with it, let them know about this!

Palmer's Skin Smoothing Lotion retails for $9.95 for 250ml and is available from Priceline, Target, Kmart, Big W, Price Attack, Hairhouse Warehouse, pharmacies and supermarkets.

More information about Palmer's can be found here.

Have you ever suffered from keratosis?

 What producs from the Palmer's range do you love?

This product was purchased with my own moolah. Honesty, always.

The Inglot Inventory: a bronzed navy FOTD

I am a massive lover of navy eyeshadow, and instead of using the black I fear I always turn to its blue buddy. Here is a look I wore to university the other day.

I wanted to use colours from my Inglot palettes, and when Mum gifted me this jumper it inspired me to utilise the gorgeous deep brown and dark navy of its threads in an eye look.

Apart from the fact that I look super-dopey above, check out the sweater! Same colours,  no?

Face: 

Bourjois Healthymix Foundation in 51

Face of Australia Loose Powder in Outback Translucent*

NYX powder blush in Peach

Eyes:

MAC Painterly paint pot

Inglot  D.S 483 (navy shade)

Inglot Bronze shadow (unknown number!)

Urban Decay Virgin (highlight)

Mirenesse Tightliner in Black

Lancome Hypnose Doll Eyes mascara

Lips:

Can't remember what I had on here, but I know I used my Estee Lauder gloss in Blush for the rest of the day.

How do you wear navy on your eyes?

Do you wear looks like this during the day?

How often do you match your eye shadow to your clothing?

a golden guest

A make up artist by no means, I still love to slap some of my collection onto other peoples faces for fun. My girl Candice and I were getting ready to go to a hen's night (we had to look good, I was maid of honour!!) and she let me do her up.

Candice's dress had golden tones in it, so we went with a full on eye (compared to what she normally wears, anyway)

I laid out the Urban Decay Naked palette before her and let her have free reign. Half-Baked it was, and I snuck Virgin as her highlight and chose Mercury from TopShop for her crease (amazing colour, post up ASAP!)

I made Candice line her own eyes as I wasn't confident of my capability to liquid line someone elses eye, and she used Maybelline Line Define (which has been discontinued, to her horror) and a Maybelline mascara, too.

I think her eye shape and skin tone works really well with this look, and the smudge of Half-Baked under her eye makes such a dramatic difference to her normal eye look. I'm not sure what made me pair Mercury with the golden tones, but I really like the contrast and it made her eyes really pop. She wore a nude lip gloss with this look, and the face looked just as good on the way home in the early hours of the morning as it did when we left for the hen's night!

You can't really see how nice her eyes look when they're all scrunched up, but you can most definitely see how much of a cutie she is! And don't mind my pose, it comes naturally after a champagne or two! I am super washed out in this photo but I love it anyway, it was taken on the party bus on the way to the second or third club.

What night look do you lean toward?

Are you a bright lip-lover or smoky eye wearer?