Spring Peaches

It finally feels like spring is actually upon us, and I've been taking advantage by spending as much time as I can outside with the dogs and soaking up some much-needed Vitamin D! Being heavily pregnant has meant walks are short and very tiring so I've just been popping a chair in the garden and letting the boys run around while I relax- never have I appreciated our front fence more! The fresh air has been lifting my spirits and I've also gotten some reading done which has been lovely. I was also inspired to dig through my makeup drawers a little and came up with some products I haven't used in a while to freshen up my everyday look - I was very much drawn to peach tones! 

The Too Faced Sweet Peach palette has a lot of mixed reviews from what I've seen online, but I really like it and appreciate that there are some easy to wear neutral shades in it that I can just throw on when I'm tired. I do wish the green shade shone through more when I put it on my lids but it's still lovely and I've been getting a fair bit of use from it lately. I also pulled out my favourite peachy gloss Revlon Pango Peach which I adore as I don't need a mirror to apply it, which makes it so easy to reapply while I'm out and about. Possibly the most exciting additions to my routine are MAC Paint Pot in Rubenesque (which never fails to remind me of Ingrid Nilsen aka Miss Glamorazzi, who introduced me to the shade on her YouTube channel!) and MAC Springsheen Blush which is a darker orange-peach shade. I haven't bought anything from MAC in the longest time but have been enjoying exploring my old favourites from the brand - such a throwback! 

Have you thrown anything new into your routine with the change in weather? When is the last time you purchased from MAC?

-Emma 

The May Makeup Bag

May felt like a whirlwind for me, and I relied on a stack of beauty products to keep me looking somewhat presentable as I tried to stay awake without taking a nap everyday! While in Queensland I kept my makeup low-key as none of the family on my husband's side indulge in beauty products, but the other three weeks it was business as usual with a lot more concealer piled on out of necessity.

I'm still testing out the Morphe 35T palette despite receiving it as a gift for Christmas last year...some days I adore it, and others I'm frustrated that the shade in the pan is nothing like what the shadow actually looks like on my eyelids! I'm also fond of palettes with named shades which this lacks, but I still think this bad boy was worth the money and have been dipping into new colours almost every morning on top of my MAC Painterly Paint Pot. I've also been using my sample of Too Faced Better Than Sex mascara that came in a Beauty Loop box from Mecca Maxima - love how long those little tubes last!

Base seemed to be the usual suspects in May - I've repurchased my Rimmel Fix & Protect Makeup Primer and always have a tube of Rimmel BB Cream Matte on the go (both were originally PR samples that ended up in my permanent rotation, love when that happens!) I've moved onto a new pressed powder to use up, the Maybelline SuperStay 24HR Waterproof Powder* which gives a bit of coverage on top of my liquid base which I like. My saviour in May was definitely my Clarins Instant Concealer*, my pregnancy hormones are out of control right now and I'm spottier than I've ever been so layering this high coverage concealer is making me feel less self-conscious about my skin. It's still driving me nuts though!

I've been rotating my blushes fairly well recently but my most used shades in May were definitely from this Too Faced Love Flush Blush palette - I've been loving how pigmented they are and I have been trying out a denser brush laid on the side to apply them, and I'm digging the effect! How Deep is Your Love and Love Hangover might take the cake as my favourite shades right now...

Lips have been pretty low key as they've been quite dry and chapped (and I had a horrible pimple followed by a horrible cold sore all in the one fortnight - thanks weakened immune system!) I've been using balms but have also had a stack of nude/MLBB lip liners stashed in my bag for a bit of definition - the ones pictured are Savvy by DB and essence but a whole range of others were worn in May.

So that's my May makeup bag done and dusted! I'm looking forward to throwing some new things into my June makeup bag to spice things up a bit.
Emma x

*Provided for consideration. Honesty, always.

Flushed with Love - Romantic Makeup Look & Product Round Up

I'm in a very loved up state of mind at the moment - I've got the weddings of close friends coming up which I'm very excited about, and after being ill I've come to realise who truly loves and cares for me completely which has been humbling. 

Valentine's Day is usually a pretty quiet affair in our home, Mister and I will either go out for dinner or bring home some takeaway, so the focus seems to be on not being the ones who have to cook! I think it's nice to celebrate love in whatever form it takes in your life, I'll be at home with the doggies all day and plan to shower them in love with healthy treats and lots of tummy rubs - it doesn't have to just be about a romantic partner, you know!

Another thing I'll be making heart eyes at today? My makeup collection. We finally caved and bought an Ikea Alex which Mister lovingly built for me, so it was a helluva lot easier to grab out some romantic makeup to get me in the mood for love! I used some of the products to create a soft and easy makeup look - please go easy on me, it was the first time I had worn makeup in weeks!

Products Used 
MAC Painterly Paint pot
Too Faced Bon Bons palette - shades Almond Truffle, Satin Sheets and Divinity
L'Oreal Infallible Shadow in Golden Mahogany
Max Factor Masterpiece Glamour Extensions Mascara*
Covergirl Outlast Stay Fabulous Foundation in 810
MAC Mineralize Skin Finish Natural in Light
essence Girls Just Wanna Have Fun Highlighter in 01 Lady's Night
Too Faced Love Flush Blush palette - shade Love Hangover
Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvet - Don't Pink Of It!

How are you spending Valentine's Day?
Emma x

*Product provided for consideration. Honesty, always.

Glowy Natural Makeup Look with YSL, MAC & Too Faced Bon Bons Palette

I've been absolutely smashing my beloved Too Faced Bon Bons palette lately, so last week I snapped a few pictures of my mug and the products I used for this easy, natural everyday makeup look. I've been using the Bon Bons palette as my go-to as I adore the mix of matte shades with the shimmery options, and the crease shades really suit my complexion so it's a one-and-done kind of palette for me!

EYES
~MAC Painterly Paint Pot as my eye base
~Too Faced Bon Bons Palette (Molasses Chip all over the lid, Malted in the crease, Satin Sheets for my inner corner and Divinity for my brow bone)
~essence LongLasting Eye Pencil in Hot Scorch
~Max Factor Masterpiece Glamour Extensions mascara

FACE
~Rimmel Fix&Protect Makeup Primer SPF25*
~Yves Saint Laurent Le Teint Touche Éclat foundation*, which really does give that glowy base that so many beauty girls love!
~MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural 
~Maybelline Master Hi-Light Hi-Lighting Blush in Coral* 

LIPS
~MAC Prolongwear Lip Pencil in In Control*
~essence Velvet Mat 23 Lipstick

 

I've been loving simple looks like this lately, but have also been pushing myself back into bright lips so perhaps my next makeup look will have a bright lip front and centre...any colour recommendations to inspire me?

-Emma x

 

*Marked products provided for consideration. Honesty, always.

Winter Kissed Cheeks with essence // Winter Wonderful Blush

I recently fell into the trap of using only my high end blushes each morning when I put on my face, and while my love for the likes of Chanel and MAC run strong I knew it meant I was neglecting a whole stack of other wonderful blushes! I'm still being a bit of a blush snob (as you will see in my upcoming blush rotation post!) but have added a cheek trio into my routine, as well as this newly released and limited edition blush from one of my favourite affordable brands, essence! 

The Winter Wonderful collection was full of some pretty neat looking products, but the one that spoke to me straight away was the Winter Kissed Cheeks blush - I mean, look at that embossing and the mix of pink, peach and nude!? I also knew from experience that the limited edition blushes tend to be more pigmented than the standard run of essence blushes, so that pop of hot pink was a welcome addition for a truly winter-appropriate flush.



Each shade swatched individually, then mixed

There are small particles of glimmer in the powder but in swatches and during use it translates to a satin finish, and almost a matte/satin finish on the cheeks for me. I like how easy it is to add a pop of colour to my apples without having to blend it out much at all, and I'm happy to report that the flush of pink colour lasted all day on my cheeks when I trialled it. I'm constantly frustrated by blushes that fade, so to have a pan around the $6 AUD mark that stays put leaves a big smile on my face for sure.

Are you a blush snob too?
What is your favourite high end and drugstore blush?
-Emma x

Haul // Surratt Beauty, H&M, MAC and more

My hauling habits have definitely changed over the past few years; when I once coveted and brought home every little thing I liked the look of, I'm now more sensible and think about if I would actually use the item, and how much I actually want the item as well. I'm sure I'll stumble again as time goes on but I'm enjoying shopping a lot more now, and being selective in my choices means my collection has never been more exciting to me! I recently spent some time in the city for meetings and tacked a round of shopping onto the end of it, and I thought I'd post a collective haul for you all.

A few homey bits made the cut, including a gorgeous foil Kikki K print, H&M Marble Tray and a bronze basket that I plan on using as my 'new product' stash holder on my desk. I also bought some new pens from Kikki K and the pink version of my beloved 'dog scarf' from Ishka - because one dog scarf is just not enough, my friends.

Bits from the new essence Brit-Tea collection made it into my shopping basket as well, and I found some Avene skincare on sale at Chemist Warehouse that I thought would be great to try after I use up my La Roche-Posay Effaclar Duo+. A trio of Coco-Cola flavoured Lip Smackers were too cute to resist and I finally found the MAC Make You Mine blush I've been searching for since JemOrJerrica started using it in her makeup videos - lemming finally satisfied! Did you know that they've opened up a freestanding MAC counter in Melbourne Central, and that it sells pans just like the Chapel St Pro Store does? I just found that out and am very happy about it!

The crowning glory of my haul? This stunner from Surratt Beauty... 

After reading Liz's post on this silky smooth Surratt Beauty Artistique Blush beauty I knew I had to pick it up. After missing the shade Ponceau online when it sold out, I went to the Myer Melbourne Mecca Cosmetica counter to swatch it and I was immediately sold! Naturally I'm trialling it for a full review so be on the look out for that post soon.

Have you hauled anything fun lately?
Have you changed your hauling habits too?
-Emma

The Grey Nude

I don't need much of a push when it comes to buying new lipsticks, and when the one you're lemming comes in at a measly $4.70 it's hard to feel guilty about the whole situation. I initially saw essence Come Naturally from the new nude lip collection on Angela's blog, and after subsequently spotting it on Sleep and Water I was sold hook, line and sinker! I had already purchased Cool Nude from the Nude Longlasting Lipstick release (seen in this favourites post) but I didn't think I would be able to pull off the purple and grey tones of Come Naturally....



Nosy Charlie wanted to know why I was taking so many photos of a tube of lipstick!

One thing I really like about the essence nude lipstick release is the packaging - the different tube colours make it easy to identify a shade in my overflowing stash and I think the embossing on the bullet itself warrants a higher price tag than the small sum these actually cost. The finish is satin and wears well, and being nude it doesn't give me any hassle as it wears off throughout the day, making it a wonderful work day shade for me. The thin black band around the tube is quite chic and the closure is really secure, which is worth noting if you often tote your lipsticks in a handbag pocket as I do.



essence 'Come Naturally'
essence 'Cool Nude'
Chanel Rouge Coco Shine 'Boy'
Lancôme Shine Lover Lipstick in '212 Twisted Beige'*
Colourpop Lippie Stix in 'Lumiere'

As in order above

to show the difference in finish and pigmentation

As it turns out, Come Naturally is a very wearable trend shade! The purple tones mix in nicely with the grey cast and I find the overall colour quite flattering on my pale complexion - it's neutral enough to wear with most any look, but is different and interesting at the same time. A lot of my nude lipsticks lean brown and the 'my lips but better MLBB' shades lean quite pink, so I feel like having this taupe shade really rounds out my neutral lip stash quite nicely. It's definitely a nice affordable way to dip a toe into the trendy pond of Kylie Jenner-esque/90's lips, that is for sure.

What do you think of neutral shades like this?
What neutral lippy is your all time favourite?
-Emma x


*Marked product was provided for consideration. Honesty, always.

Love & Sound - Face of the Day

After sharing the haulage and swatches of the new essence Love & Sound Collection in this post I thought it would be helpful to share a makeup look with you - especially since I've barely had the Glastonberry eyeshadow off my lids since I bought it! The collection is inspired by the festival season and I find that really cute but doesn't fit my interests in the slightest! I'm one of a rare breed who avoids concerts/festivals/gigs and would rather chill at home and watch a concert DVD or a music video channel - having said that, the best concerts I've been to are Nicki Minaj's stadium tour and an intimate gig Katy Perry did in Melbourne before she really became famous. Enough of the rambling, onto the makeup look!

#messyhairdontcare

These snaps were from the first wear of Glastonberry after I returned home from shopping with Mumma Bovary, and initially I had a few of the new Urban Decay Naked Smoky eyeshadows on and just used my finger to press Glastonberry all over the lid. This super simple application has become my favourite way to wear this shade - throw your usual neutral shadows over a primer (I'm currently using the Nars Smudge-Proof Eyeshadow Base) and then dab on some of this to spice it up! I'm not normally one to use single shadows, I'm much more of a palette kinda gal, but this is one I'm sure I'll put to good use!

I'm sporting my pretty standard makeup look for the rest of this post since it was all applied for a day with my Mumma - my L'Oreal Infallible Matte Foundation with the matching primer underneath, and a dusting of the essence ombre blush Sunset @ Centre Stage (which is a 'throw it on with anything' kind of colour for me) which I applied over my makeup just to try it out.

Are you a festival lover, or a homebody like me?
What is the best music event you've ever been to?
What box would you tick in a survey about 'interests' - music, movies, reading or playing sports?
-Emma x

essence Love & Sound Collection

On my last shopping jaunt with Mumma Bovary I spotted the new essence Love & Sound collection on the shelves at Priceline - naturally I made grabby hands for a few bits and pieces and thought I'd share what I chose and my initial thoughts on them! Limited edition blushes are a natural choice for the #blushfiend in me, and the unique eyeshadow shades really tempted me as well. I also restocked my favourite daily eyeliner, the essence Long Lasting Eye Pencil in Hot Chocolate as my current one is almost empty.

essence Long Lasting Eyeliner in Hot Chocolate
I've spoken about this eyeliner a whole lot on the blog, and stand by my love for the deep chocolate cream shade - the price tag of around $3 also cements my love for it! I wear it most often smudged into my upper lash line for some subtle definition, and it's something I buy back-ups of regularly in case essence lose their minds and discontinue this amazing eyeliner range.

essence Love & Sound Eyeshadow in Glastonberry
This immediately grabbed my attention and I was quick to throw the last pan into my shopping basket - I was also tempted by the peachy colour, but I'm currently trimming down my makeup collection so didn't feel it was a 'need', just a 'want' so I left it aside. Glastonberry immediately reminds me of Angela from Caffeine Induced, so imagine how weird it was to hop straight onto her blog after the shopping trip to see that she has just bought the shade, too! It's a wearable yet pigmented wine colour with a brown tone to it that just makes my eyes pop - I've been throwing it over a champagne shade everyday since I bought it and it's rocking my world right now. Spoiler alert: it will definitely feature in my next Currently Loving post!

essence Love & Sound Multi-Colour Blush in Sunset @ Centre Stage
Limited edition? Tick. Ombre? Tick. Stunning? TICK! I didn't even think twice about this one, the ombre blush formula from essence is of such high quality for the price tag and the colour seemed a bit different to most of my shade thanks to the plum tones of the first shade section of the pan. I did wonder if it would be similar to my essence Blush Up Powder Blush in Heat Wave or Pinky Flow, but I'm happy to report that they are quite different (comparisons are below for you!)

Heat Wave, Sunset @ Centre Stage

Heat Wave, Sunset @ Centre Stage, Pinky Flow

Each shade strip of Sunset @ Centre Stage

Heat Wave individual shades swatched // Sunset @ Centre Stage individual shades swatched

Heat Wave swirled together swatch, Pinky Flow swirled together swatch, Sunset @ Centre Stage swirled together swatch

I'm really pleased with my choices from this collection and think I'll get a lot of wear from them - other than these bits I was only really tempted by the mauve lipstick, but that was sadly sold out. Here is the rest of the collection if you're interested! I think I'm looking forward to the new Brit-Tea collection that should be out at Target any day now a little bit more (it's yet to be released at mine, has it hit yours?)

Later in the week I'll be posting a makeup look using these new Love & Sound products, so look out for that if you're interested!

Hope you're having a wonderful day!
-Emma

*I personally purchased these products. Honesty, always.