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

Haute in the Heat with Essie for Summer 2014

Being the namesake of the recently released Essie summer collection, I was expecting Haute in the Heat* to be my very favourite from the shade range. It's described by Essie as a hot guava pink raspberry (quite fruity, right?) and it's nice alright, but not a patch on the stunning Ruffles and Feathers that was also released for the hot summer season. I am yet to do a full post on R&F but did feature it in my 2014 favourites, so you know it's a good 'un!

This shade actually graced my nails for my recent birthday celebrations, which this time around were quite low-key with a Doncaster shopping trip in which I only bought one beauty item. One! Times are a-changing, my friends. I also indulged in some delicious Thai food with my family and it was a nice way to celebrate turning a year older. It was also my first birthday as a wife which I thought was pretty cool!

Ultimately I was impressed by the formula of this polish, but I can't say the colour is going to be in any of my favourites any time soon. In a lot of lights this appeared red on my pale skin and while still pretty, that wasn't what I was going for and I probably should have turned to a true pink to satiate my bright needs. Having said that, the colour gathered a lot of compliments for me and I actually ended up gifting Mumma Bovary a bottle of Essie Style Hunter, which is a spot on dupe for this colour, after she raved about how much she loved my nail colour one time too many. If this colour is up your alley and you don't have anything similar, I would recommend it; otherwise, check out Ruffles & Feathers and get ready for your socks to be blown off...

Emma x

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

Essie Colors of Couture collection // photos, swatches and reviews

The beauty of a bright nail polish is a sight to behold, but the feeling you get wearing a perfectly executed neutral is something else altogether. Never do I feel more polished than when I'm sporting a nude shade on my nails, and from what I've heard in the blogosphere (and from beauty loving friends) Essie is where it's at for natural nails.

I was in the car with my sister and Mumma Bovary when I opened this PR parcel, and the car was literally filled with squee's as they all dove to nick some of my new polishes. I managed to snatch them all back and swatched them the very next day for you all! The collection coincides with the Mercedes Benz Fashion Week and is only available for purchase during the months of March and April for $16.95 AUD per bottle. Let me tell you, having Essie available at Priceline now is so wonderful for us Aussies!

Essie have given us a pretty broad spectrum of neutrals with this lot, ranging from deep and dark to stark and white with some beautiful tones in between.

My favourite of the bunch, Ladylike is a soft mauve and my very favourite shade from this round up. It flatters my pale hands with ease, but I think it would suit a wide range of skin tones.

I had a bit of trouble applying Ballet Slippers because of the bent bristles in my bottle - couple that with my lack of nail skills in general and it wasn't a happy household for a moment there.

Ballet Slippers is the iconic Essie pale pink that everyone seems to adore. This shade doesn't really speak to me personally, though I can see the appeal of having such a versatile shade in your collection.

Sand Tropez is another beautiful shade that I found really wearable. A sandy beige sort of colour, it has a touch of chocolate about it that I find really delicious looking on the nail.

Ah the stark white Blanc, a shade those who are adept at nail art would adore! I am pleased to have a good quality white shade in my stash for moments of need (I do tend to go through amateur nail art phases you know!) but found this tricky to use all over the nail. I should have been more careful when applying, but ultimately I'll be keeping this for nail art purposes only as it just didn't work with my super-pale skin tone.

Swooooon! Loving the look of this greige Master Plan, which is among my favourites from this classic Essie line up. Shades like this are the best of both worlds - polished and chic, but edgy and saying something at the same time!

Smokin' Hot was the most surprising of the polishes swatched. The eggplant tinged deep grey shade is a strange one, and I must admit I found my application skills lacking for this one. A bit more effort and 3 coats would have done this beautiful shade more justice, so I implore you to check out this post for a nicer view of this colour.

These classic and chic Essie staples were a joy to experience, and the stand outs in my opinion were definitely Ladylike, Sand Tropez and Master Plan.

 

What neutral nail shades do you adore?

Have you tried any classic Essie shades?

 

Emma @ emmabovarybeauty

Home Sweet Home // essence Winter collection // Photos, Swatches, Review

 

My love for the affordable German cosmetics brand essence has been well documented on this blog, and with each new collection my love seems to grow. The new Home Sweet Home collection has a distinctively wintery theme to it, which suits the rain and grey skies that Melbourne has been treating us to lately. I prefer cold weather in general, warm knits and boots are my thing and so when I saw the knitted embossing on the powders my heart just soared.

 

I usually only pick a few select items from a new collection as I have to keep my budget in mind, but the low prices of essence products make it hard to stop at just one or two pieces. The two blushes are so beautiful and are worthy of entering my blush drawer on looks alone, to be honest. I love the orange and hot pink mix of 02 Wool-D You Cuddle Me? but my favourite would have to be the pale pink and deep pink mix of 01 Knits For Chicks.

 

 

As with the other essence blushes I have tried in the past, these are a touch more chalky than I would like, but for the price I really don’t mind the formula at all. The colour lasts quite a while on the cheek, though naturally they don’t have the lasting power of a blush powder from the likes of Chanel or Tarte.

 

Now that I’ve gotten the hang of wearing neutral and brown shadows more often, I decided to pick up the chocolate shade along with the pale pink shadow. I plan on using the pale pink as a soft highlight, which is a tip I picked up from the beautiful Vita. The 3 eyeshadows from this collection are 01 Happy Couching, 02 Light the Fire, Place! and 03 My Home is my Castle.



blushes (individual stripes, then whole pan mixed) // eyeshadows



Though I liked the look of all 4 polishes from this collection, I was selective and really thought about which shade I would cherish the most. Hot Fruit Punch is a raspberry red and the berry twist in it really suits my colouring. I tend to wear these sorts of reds more than the fire engine varieties, so am happy to see more berry polishes coming out in stores.

 

What do you think of the wintery feel of this collection? What would you most like to see used in a makeup look?

 

*I personally purchased all of these items. Honesty, always.

Mum's Makeup Collection

Coming from a family who aren’t beauty crazed in the slightest, one must wonder how I became the way I am today. For the record, I’m blaming other beauty blogs for all the obsessions and temptations-good job,guys! My Mum, bless her, has a teensy makeup and skincare collection, the majority of which was bought by me or taken from my stash. She likes to wear a coloured liner once in a while, has just gotten hooked on blush, and uses an Avon lipliner as her tried and true lipcolour. Here is her stash!

 

 

This Savvy by DB blush was originally mine, but Ionce used it on Mum during a makeover and she laid claim to it. I can tell that beauty blogging has changed me, because my excitement at seeing her awesome pan hit was understood by nobody but me! I think this is her first blush, and I love the way it warms up her whole face. It kicks off quite a bit of powder but it is really cheap, and now that I know she will wear blush I can get her something a little pricier to use next time.

 

I bought Mum both of the essence palettes last year when she bemoaned her lack of eyeshadows, and she loves that they aren't crazily pigmented. It makes them easier to use for those who are new to applying eyeshadow, but they are nice enough for beauty lovers to enjoy as well! 

 

 

 

The Face of Australia Impact Curl mascara is one that I have gotten my whole family onto, it really opens the eye up and holds a curl well. The Aromatherapy Associates sample* is something Mum used while on the plane when she went overseas with Dad earlier in the year, and she said she likes the texture. Mum swears by the ultra-cheap Australian Lanolin Oil Night Cream, or indeed most other variations from the $3 Big W range. Her skin is baby soft, so maybe she knows something I don’t!?

What does your Mum keep in her beauty and skincare cabinet? I’d love to see your thoughts in the comments below (Mum is terrified that no-one will like the posts about her on my blog, so show her that isn’t true!)

essence Breaking Dawn Part 2 Collection // Photos, Swatches, Review

While I'm not up to speed on the Twilight films, I have read all of the novels and am a fan of most of essence's limited edition collections. I picked up everything from the Breaking Dawn part 2 collection, bar the glitter eyeliners.

 

This blush in the shade Renesmee Red seems a little scary in the pan, but when swatched it is sheer (in a good way) and stunning. A coral toned red shade, this is definitely one of the must-haves from this collection in my opinion.

 

The definite stand out must have from this collection is the well priced highlighter in the shade 01 Bella's Secret($5.95) I have already coerced my best friend into adding this to her collection, as it adds a diffused glow which is impressive for such an affordable powder. If I were to recommend anything from this collection, this would be it.

01 A Piece of Forever is a lipstick loaded with fine golden shimmer, and though I'm sure some people would be unsure about this, it is stunning by itself to add a sheen to the lips or over a red lip stain. I often use the Tread Gently Tendertone from MAC to add yellow shimmer to my lipsticks, but this is a wonderful cheap alternative.

The lipglosses seem on the watery side when compared to the Stay With Me lipglosses from the permanent line, which are housed in the same style tube. The colours themselves are also on the glassy/watery side in swatches, though I am yet to wear them on my lips so cannot comment too much at this stage. Both shades contain beautiful shimmer, 01 Alice Had A Vision - Again is a dark purple shade that matches the nail polish of the same name. 02 Renesmee Red is a candy apple red shade, matching the blush from this collection.

 

Four new pigment pots have been released with this collection, and though the swatches for 2 of them are promising, I'm finding it hard to make them work on the eye. They blend away to nothing quite easily, so I am planning on trialling them with a few different primers to see what works. 01 Jacob's Protection is a black base filled with multi coloured shimmer, and swatches are deep and pigmented. 02 Alice Had A Vision - Again is a blue toned black base filled with purple and navy shimmer, and swatches beautifully as well. 03 A Piece of Forever is an attempt at a champagne pigment that was incredibly difficult to swatch, and lacks colour and depth. I am unsure as to how I am going to make this work on the eye. 04 Edward's Love is supposed to be a black base filled with multi coloured glitter, but the colour literally falls from the skin and the glitter is actually rough and hurts to swatch. Would not recommend pigments 03 and 04.

 

The polishes from this collection are all really beautiful, there is a colour similar to the upcoming MAC Everything That Glitters (Sunday Girl swatches that here) and I am going to have swatches of these in a separate post during the week.

 

I like the high quality of the powders from this collection, and the matching names for certain shades is also a nice touch. Overall I think essence have done well with the theme of this collection, most shades seem well thought out and I adore the blush, highlighter and lipstick overall.

 

Each piece is priced below $6 AUD, with the highlighter being the most expensive.

Will you be picking up anything from the Breaking Dawn Part Two collection?

Have you been swept up with the Twilight phenomenon?

 

 

*I paid for all of these items myself. Honesty,always.