NVEY ECO #168

Despite being a beauty blogger (and therefore owning the infamous Urban Decay Naked Palette 1&2!) I feel as though I'm lacking in the neutral shadow department. I have quite a few bright shades floating around in my collection, but I only have two or three that I feel I can whip onto my eyes and run out the door in. I've been dabbling in indie cosmetics, but I've really been yearning for something in a solid compact that I can throw in my bag to take anywhere. And look who came along...

NVEY ECO shade 168 looks quite unassuming in the pan, but comes to life on the lid with champagne glints throughout the light brown base.

These shadows have a quite a soft and somewhat crumbly texture, so a light hand is all you need to get enough product. It's quite pigmented but not as much as Inglot, so would be great for the cosmetic obsessed or those just beginning their collection.

I have been using my NVEY ECO shadows for a while now, and was excited to find out that they were at the recent Golden Globes and jazzed up some gorgeous celebrities!

Though I don't watch Jennifer Love Hewitt's television show, I've seen a few things she has done and find her incredibly beautiful. If NVEY ECO is good enough for her pretty mug, it's definitely good enough for mine!

Stunning!

NVEY ECO shadows are available here for $29.95 AUD.

Have you tried anything from NVEY ECO?
What are your favourite neutral shadows?

*This product was provided for consideration for review which in no way affects my review or opinion of the product. For more, see my disclosure policy here.

the seven deadly beauty sins

Saw this 'seven deadly beauty sins' tag over here and thought it looked like fun!

GREED
Most Inexpensive and Expensive Product?
My most inexpensive would have to be the lipgloss I managed to nab for the pricely sum of ONE CENT! That was a very happy day indeed, and I posted about it here. My most expensive would be my Urban Decay Naked palette which my sister bought me from evilbay, and my Nars Danmari palette which was around $120 AUD from Mecca Cosmetica.

the magical fantastical Danmari lies within!
WRATH
What Products Do You Have A Love/Hate Relationship With?
A weird one, but I'd have to say moisturisers! I can never seem to find one that hydates my face enough without sending it into oily town, and it frustrates me. Other that that, I'd have to say bronzer. I love the look of contoured, sculptured cheeks (the dream of all those with chipmunk cheeks I suppose) but the horrible skin on my cheek combined with being so fair makes making bronzer work a nightmare!

aw chipmunk! (image source here)
What Has Been Hardest To Find?
My struggle to get my hands on the Urban Decay Naked palette is the first thing that comes to mind. In a way it drives me insane to see it so regularly available now, but around Christmas 2010 it was hell! I waited so long for it to come into stock on Beauty Bay, and happily ordered it for my sister to give to me as a gift. An hour later, heart sinks as they email me to say that it is out of stock. Not cool, I had already received my confirmation and everything! As I said up above I ended up buying it from evilbay (my sister rocks!) so alls well that ends well.

GLUTTONY
What Are Your Most Delicious Beauty Products?
My Korres Jasmine lip butter is so ridiculously delicious smelling it drives me mad. I also love all of my MAC lippies that little bit more for their lovely vanilla scent. An honorable mention goes to my Soap and Glory Hand Food cream, which smells like My Cherie Dior <3 Swoon!

review of this is here

SLOTH
What Beauty Product Do You Neglect Due To Laziness?
I'm pretty good with things like scrubs and masks, and though I have the odd slip up I generally always take my makeup off before bed. I neglect concealer, which is pretty silly because I have terrible skin that needs spot coverage, but I can never be bothered. I find all the ones I've tried to be really drying and makes them look worse, which is probably a factor in my laziness.

this pic came from this post

PRIDE
What Beauty Product Gives You Most Confidence?
I had to think about this one. I hardly go without mascara, but if I had to choose one thing to make me feel my best it'd have to be my foundation/tinted moisturiser. It evens everything out and makes me look alive, and I love it. Blush comes close though, but never looks as good on a baseless face in my opinion.

LUST
What Attributes Do You Find Most Attractive In The Opposite Sex?
I like them to be tanky/stocky! Obviously personality is numero uno, but lust isn't about love it's about general physicalities. I don't think I've ever found myself attracted to a slim/thin guy, and I'm glad Chris isn't runty even though I'd love him regardless. He once asked me if I'd still love him if he lost his weight and muscle! I said yes of course, then handed him a slice of pizza ;)

ENVY
What Item Would You Most Like To Receive As A Gift?
A big house with a room for all of my cosmetics and books would be ideal! Right now I am gunning for a new blush for my valentine gift- duty free here I come!

a face, featuring Danmari and drugstore wonders

Days without make up just aren't doing it for me lately. I feel like I need that little bit of creativity in the morning to jump start my day. This is the face I painted on the other day to celebrate one of my nephew's birthdays in the park with his mothers group- was such a lovely day, filled with chatter, lollies and running around with little ones.

This is my fallback look, I wear quite a lot of coral and orange so it goes with that really well.

I like quite a heavy blush, and this was no exception.

A simple wash of a champagne neutral over the lid and my Lancome Doll Eyes mascara.

*

Most of these items are my favourites of the moment, and so you might see them in my January favourites as well. It's mostly drugstore/priceline stuff, with a touch of high end in there.

Danmari palette: Nars Orgasm

Danmari palette: Nars Hungry Heart highlighter

 Maybelline Dream Matte Powder

 Loujene brow powder (darkest one)

Ardell clear brow gel

Essence gel liner in Midnight in Paris

Revlon Super Lustrous gloss in Coral Reef

Maybelline Color Sensational in Coral Pop

L'Oreal Color Infallible in Sahara Treasure

Hidden away are the Dove tinted moisturiser (beige) and Lancome Doll Eyes mascara.

My most common FOTD's tend to feature coral lips...

How often do you wear a coral/orange lip?

What are some of your favourite coral products?

(All items featured in this post were purchased by me, except for Sahara Treasure + Nars Danmari palette (Christmas gifts from Chris) and Dream Matte Powder (gift from best friend Candice). Honesty,always.)

my beauty valentine...

Beauty bloggers, I know you get that feeling. You're eyes lock, your heart quickens, and your palms begin to sweat. You reach out, breathing heavily, and try to grasp for that beautiful shadow/blush/lipstick.
Once it hits your face, it's even better.

My Valentine this year, apart from zee fiance, is this bad boy:

my treasure, indeed

I have quite the collection of L'Oreal Infallible shadows, and find the texture to be incredibly smooth and buttery when applied. They come with an insert which keeps the loose powder compact, and I apply this shade, Sahara Treasure, with a dense synthetic brush all over the lid.

You can tell I wear it almost all of the time, right? But there is nothing nicer than seeing a well-loved product.

I wear MAC paint pot in Painterly under this, and find that it's deep enough to be a stand alone shade, but the way it glints champagne in certain lights makes it look like you've put in more effort than you actually have.

*

A neutral with a lot of sexy sheen!

Looks quite light here, the sun coming in from the window caught the champagne sheen.

I'm just head over heels for both the Infallible formula and this shade. I was so happy when Chris bought me some for Christmas, and this one was a random that he chose so it's even better! I'll be sharing my Infallible collection (yes I have enough for it to be a collection!) soon. I also have a FOTD coming up which features Sahara Treasure, so look out for that.

What is your beauty valentine?
A Chanel cherie? A Dior darling? A beautiful balm?
Tell me the one product that's making your heart beat fast!

get some good karma!

 

This is a well-loved eyeshadow compact indeed! I bought this Australis duo in 'Karma' for my best friend Candice (who blogs over here) a while ago, even though she wasn't huge on wearing makeup. I suppose it is part of my role as a beauty blogger to push products into the hands of those around me, to try and spread the beauty obsession.

I've slowly but surely gotten her into makeup (eyeshadows at least!) and I love seeing what looks she comes up with when we meet for brunch. I found this in a clearance tub and knew I didn't need it, but couldn't pass it up and thought they colours would look great on Candice- I was right!

Candice already has a really nice almond eye shape, but the way she's done her liquid liner really excentuates it.  I often have trouble applying shadow to my lower lash line as it sometimes irritates, but Candice does it all the time and it really completes the look in my opinion.

Candice swept the golden champagne shade from the palette across her lid and popped the turquoise shade in her crease and outer third and along the lower lashline. This is a quick and easy look that is really pretty, and I know Candice can do it in a flash because a little birdy told me it's her fall back look ;P

What is your fallback look?

What do you think of Candice's EOTD?

Pretty in Pink // My top 5 pink polishes

I thought that this would be appropriate seeing as Valentine's day is all about the pinks and the reds!  I don't have the biggest polish collection, but I still have plenty of choice when I give myself a mani at home.

I was happy to see that when I rounded these up there was quite a variety in terms of shade, even though the majority are a cream formula.

Maybelline Mini Colorama in #5 Cotton Candy $5.95 AUD

I find that these mini Maybelline formula's last better than most other brands on me, and I love this shimmery pink that really does look the colour of cotton candy, or fairy floss as we call it here in Australia.

Ulta3 Bo Peep $2.50AUD approx.

Bo Peep is a bright fuschia colour that I adore! I find that even though I'm pale, I look alright in these bright colours. They also make me smile when I look at them, so it's win-win!

OPI Pink-ing of You $19.95 AUD

Apart from this having a gorgeous name, it was a bargain that I picked up from duty free last time I went overseas. It's a nice pale pink that I find quite plain, so I like to jazz it up with a glitter over the top!

Kit Cosmetics Chiquita Pink $15.95 AUD here

This came out with the Viva La Colour collection, which was one of the most exciting collections I've seen in a long time. It's a plummy, wintery sort of pink that makes me want to wrap myself in a big oatmeal knit and read a book.

The Face Shop PK110 $3.00 AUD

This not-so-cutely named shade is my Barbie polish- pale pink, creamy, simple, stunning. I love the bottle shape, and the affordable price tag. This is darker than OPI Pink-ing of You and I like that.

As in order above: PK110, Chiquita Pink, Pink-ing Of You, Bo Peep, Cotton Candy

Cotton Candy and Bo Peep

Bo Peep and Pink-ing Of You

*

What are some of your favourite pink polishes?

I'd love to get some recommendations on what I should buy next!

A Giant Benefit Haul

I had seen Hervana online and since I'd been looking for a new pink blush to depend on, she became it. Sadly, being in Australia means we have to wait an eternity for products to hit our shores. I decided to make my first order from the U.S. Benefit online store, which had free shipping when you spend $95 (normally free when you spend $115) Candice wanted a few things, too, so we combined our order and ended up spending just under $150.

I've never tried the Benefit Creaseless cream eyeshadows before, and when I saw this brand new golden shade Farenheit Fab I decided I would give it a crack. I recently realised I have a shortage of gold in my cosmetic collection, so I'm working on rectifying that.

*

Knew I needed to try the new They're Real mascara after hearing raves from some of my favourite bloggers, including a YouTube review from Amarixe here!

I ummed and aaahed over which boxed blush to choose in my order, I was contemplating Coralista and Chris voted for it as well, but I went with my gut instinct and chose Dallas instead. It's a plummy sort of shade, and reminds me of Nars Sin a little. I love blushes like this on my fair skin, so I'll see how I go.

*
Candice purchased the High Beam highlighter, and the Pocket Pal Benetint which is in pen form and contains their classic Benetint with a clear gloss on the other end. You are able to choose two samples with your order, and I chose the Stay Don't Stray shadow and concealer primer for Candice and the Hello Flawless powder cover-up for myself. (I don't have any pictures of Candice's items, she will have them up on her blog when she reviews them!) 

*

So this is how you receive a pressed powder sample! It's a sheet of it pressed onto the cardboard, with a cute little powder puff included.
Now, onto the reason for the haul, the beautiful Hervana blush!

*cue angels singing*

Could this be any cuter? It smells like lollies and has four shades in a pinwheel design, and the box says the blush has good karma! I'm elated to have this in my hot little hands, and to have saved money overall despite hauling all of these beauties. I've shown the price comparisons below so you can see what you'd save if you chose to buy from the online U.S store as opposed to a counter in Australia.

Hervana/Dallas: $28 USD each / $51 AUD
They're Real mascara: $22 USD / $38 AUD
Creaseless Cream: $19 USD / $35 AUD
Pocket Pal: $20 USD / $39 AUD
High Beam: $26 USD / $45 AUD
Total haul: $143
What I would've paid here? $259

The price difference between countries is quite astounding, and makes me think about how expensive cosmetics in Australia really are.

Do you have a favourite from Benefit?
What do you think of the price differences?
Are you lemming Hervana,too?