The Sculpting Cheek Palette

 

I know that it would take a tonne of people from Kim Kardashian's squad to transform my chipmunk cheeks into anything resembling a sculpted face, but this is as close as I've come with ease to having anything resembling cheekbones, so lets just let me indulge for a moment. When this product hit my desk I thought it was cute, but didn't think much more if I'm honest. I'm not one to wear bronzer everyday, I prefer my highlight more intense than the daily average, and trying to pry a Chanel Joues Contraste blush out of my hands is a task in itself - but I'm happy to report that my cheek look lately was done with a single palette, from the drugstore!

Kate Moss for Rimmel London has created this sculpting palette in 002 Coral Glow* that is adorably packaged, and actually brings the goods when it comes to pigment and lasting power. For my first few uses I neglected the blush shade and used the aforementioned Chanel pan, but during the second week of use I figured that if I liked the contour and highlight shade that much, I should probably give the seemingly plain blush a red hot go. It turns out that Rimmel know what they're on about when it comes to cheeks - the easy to wear blush colour is a winner and I featured it in my recent favourites post!

pretty neat guide on the back of the packaging

I knew I needed to dedicate a post to this when I caught myself raving about it to my Mum, sister and nieces when they asked what I was wearing, and a few have since bought it for themselves on my recommendation. I use the very tame 'day appropriate' highlighter first on the tops of my cheekbones (or where they would be if you could see them) and then the contour shade underneath the cheekbones. I'm not game enough for a full on contoured look like Kim K (and this shade has some slight shimmer so I'm sure diehard contour fans wouldn't approve anyway!) but this blends with almost no effort to give my face a bit of shape, and I take it up through my temples and the top of my forehead which warms up my very pale complexion without looking like Snooki circa 2009.

A helpful photo if you've forgotten where cheeks are...LOL

This palette gets two thumbs up from me, and if you follow me on Snapchat (emmabovaryt) I'm sure you've spotted this product quite a few times in my flat lays and get ready with me shots! It's a bargain at $16.95 and my niece sent me a Snapchat saying she scored it for half price at last week, so keep your eyes peeled at the usual drugstore haunts (Priceline, Woolworths, Coles etc)

Emma x

*Product 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

Best Drugstore Beauty Buys

If you’re looking for a little pick-me-up the day before payday, the lure of Myer and its luxe cosmetic brands is often out of reach for many of us (payday itself is a whole other story!) It’s days like those where I turn to the drugstore aisles in search of a beauty fix, and in the sea of cheaply made duds there lies some gems that are really worth your while. I thought I’d skim through my drawers in search of the best drugstore beauty I own, and I came up with a lot more than I anticipated! I’ve split my recommendations into three categories to make things easier, and now is as good a time as any for my Australian readers to pick up a bargain with Priceline holding their 40% cosmetics sale for two days only (today and Wednesday 25th)

EYES:
I couldn't think of an eyeshadow palette from the Australian store that has really impressed me, so turned to my Total Intensity by Prestige Long Term Relationship Single Eyeshadows instead. The pigmentation is insane, I've got the MAC Club dupe Hocus Pocus and the stunning Bewitched. I don't wear these all the time but they are great quality, I'll need to do a full post for you soon as I think they're underrated. Eye staples that I use daily are also drugstore gems, Covergirl's Clump Crusher mascara and essence Long-Lasting Eyeliner in Hot Chocolate.

LIPS:
I'm loving lip pencils and long lasting lip products right now - the Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvet's are a firm favourite (shown here in the shades Frambourjoise and Pink Pong) but the newcomer from Rimmel is floating my boat right now, too - the Provocalips 16HR Kiss Proof Lip Colour in Make Your Move*. I've recently fallen for the $2 essence lipliners too and plan on picking up some back-ups during the Priceline sale (seriously, too cheap people!) but another more vibrant lip pencil option is the new Maybelline Color Drama Intense Velvet Lip Pencils*. I have been wearing the natural Nude Perfection* and the bright Fab Orange* over and over since they hit my desk!

BASE & BLUSH:
I'm a big fan of affordable foundation offerings, and the newest release on the street is the Covergirl Ready Set Gorgeous Oil Free Foundation. I've been trialling it and so far it hasn't knocked my beloved Covergirl Outlast Stay Fabulous 3in1 Foundation from the top spot, but it's still pretty good and worth a try! I struggled to think of a decent high street blush until I clapped eyes on my Maybelline Master Glaze Blush Sticks* in my everyday drawer (shown here in Coral Sheen, Pink Fever and Just-Pinched Pink) They are probably the only blush I'd strongly recommend from Priceline - if you've tried a great drugstore blush I'd love to hear about it though!

What drugstore staples do you swear by? Will you be picking anything up from the Priceline sale?
-Emma

*Provided for consideration. Honesty, always.

BYS Blush Trio - 4 Blush Palettes to Drive You Wild!

 

When I saw these gorgeous BYS blush trios for $4.50 at my local discount store, I knew I had to take them all home with me. The RRP price is $6.50, and I would still happily pay that per palette, no problems. I love the idea of having three blush shades in one handy palette, and I love that the packaging is clear on top so that you can see which palette you are picking up at a glance.

 

The packaging, while feeling a little cheap, is still really sturdy and has the positive feature of being really slim so it sits in my blush drawer with ease. I have a stack of the BYS blush singles which I also like, but I really think they’ve stepped it up with such bright shades this time around! All you need is the Real Techniques Stippling Brush for these to all be wearable, and just remember that a light hand works wonders with blushes like this and you’ll be fine. I have been wearing primarily these for well over a month now, and am showing no signs of stopping!

My obsession with bright pink cheeks has meant that On The Brightside has really won my heart over. I would say that I wear all 3 shades from this one pretty regularly, including the matte coral pink and the shimmery paler pink as well. For dolly pink lovers (Chanel Pink Explosion, MAC Dollymix, etc.) this is a bargain.

 Endless Summer is the next shade in this line up, a beautiful trio of burnt coral oranges that looks great on pale skin and darker skin alike. This might be best suited to lovers for shades like Nars Orgasm, or other coral toned shades like MAC Springsheen.

 

I would have to say that my very favourite palette from the 4 available is Coral Me In, and it is all because of that shimmery centre shade. I fell head over heels for this pretty shade, and the shimmer is so beautiful when buffed into the skin with my stippling brush that I just can’t get over it. Signs of blush obsession, anyone? It really makes me look 'glowy' rather than shimmery, and we all love that!

The fourth and final palette to choose from is probably my least favourite, though I think it would be the most wearable for the masses if my guess is correct. Heart Skipped A Beat is a trio of paler pink shades, one with a nice plummy tone, one a candy floss sort of tone and a mid tone in the centre. I think they are still really pretty and have been wearing them quite a bit as well, but we have to pick favourites in this beauty bloggin’ biz, ya know?

 

All of that being said, I would highly recommend that you grab a palette or two if you happen to track them down. They are being released as we speak, with lots of shelves already full of the bright trios. While you aren’t getting Burberry quality silkiness in the formula (or the luxe packaging) these are much better than their price tag suggests, and I have had no problems with them being too chalky or powdery since I apply them with the best brush - Cough buy the RT stippling brush cough.

 

Which palette would you grab for first?

Do you prefer shimmery blushes to matte or satin finishes?

 

 

*I purchased all of these with my own money. Honesty,always.

 

Winter Hands // Caramel Hot Chocolate, Gingerbread Chai Latte + Apple Cinnamon Punch

Considering a lot of the hand creams I adore come with a high price tag (L’Occitane, anyone?) I was surprised to see how cheap the new Winter Drinks hand creams from essence were when scanned at the checkout! For a measly $1.95 AUD I grabbed one of each variety- the sweet Caramel Hot Chocolate, fruity Apple Cinnamon Punch and the spicy Gingerbread Chai Latte. While these aren’t the most moisturising hand creams, they don’t leave a greasy residue and are a nice light lotion for my handbag, being packaged in cute lightweight tubes. If you really only wanted to buy one, I think the Caramel Hot Chocolate is pretty amazing for foodie scent lovers, but once on the skin Apple Cinnamon Punch is the one for me. This is an important thing to note: these smell way better on than in the tube, so keep that in mind if you are undecided on these cheap treats.

 

These are available from Priceline + Target, and so far the shelves seem pretty full so head down to nab them before word gets out and more people indulge in these wintery treats.

Which scent would you vote for? Are you a fan of foodie scented creams?