Dream Week - enjoying #7daysoflipstick for LGFB

Swiping on some bright lipstick to raise awareness for a good cause? No worries! Spring brights will be gracing my lips for the next week to support Look Good...Feel Better's Dream Week (August 31st - September 6th)

day 1 of Dream Week for LGFB!

LGFB helps women cope with the physical side effects of cancer treatment by holding free workshops, and I am a firm believer that a big part of coping with an illness is about mindset. If feeling better about how you look can help you push through the pain and hardships of illness then I am all for it, and being a beauty blogger means that cosmetics are the key to that for me.

 

Our family actually lost my beautiful Aunty just 6 months ago to cancer, and last week in particular was a really hard one for me. I was writing out our guest list for the wedding, and broke down into tears when I had to write my Uncle's name without hers beside it. I think I'm still numb to the idea that she is gone and it is only just starting to hit home now, so I've been all for waterproof mascara this week.

 

Cancer is an illness that touches so many people in many different ways, and I'm grateful to LGFB for providing support for women undergoing their treatment in this respect.

 

All you have to do to get involved is rock a new lipstick (or a bright one) and if you want to pick up a new lip colour, David Jones and Myer will donate $1 from every one sold during Dream Week to LGFB. Be sure to post up your lippie snaps on Instagram using the #7daysoflipstick and @LGFBAustralia tag - I'm loving the lipstick lemmings this is creating for me!

Check out these links for more information:

Dream Week

Volunteering

Fundraising

 

After my 7 days of lipstick I'll be posting up a round up for you to peruse - I would love to see some of you share your pouts this week! What lipstick shade do you want to see me wear?

 

Emma x

The Lip Product Addict Tag

I’ve watched so many of these videos on YouTube and decided I needed to join in the fun! It originally started with this video and just kept on rolling through my favourite YouTubers (check Jessica’s here, my favourite!) I couldn’t stick to just single product answers though, so settle in for some lip product musing!

 

Favourite balm/treatment?
I didn’t think I had this many favourites, you’d think having this many I’d have softer lips than I do! Before bed I like to use my Korres Jasmine Lip Butter which smells amazing and is thick and nourishing. During the day at home I’ll often use one of my Jack Black lip balms, right now my scent of choice is Black Tea + Blackberry but the Lavender is #1 in my books. I keep my Maybelline Baby Lips Energizing Orange in my handbag (cute packaging is a win!) and the one I couldn’t leave out was Carmex Moisture Plus – pictured is Sheer Pink Tint* but any of the varieties are loves of mine, even the original clear one.

Best eye-catching red?

Natural Compatibles ‘Berry’* really knocks it out of the park for me, it’s deep and bold and makes me feel like I can do anything when I wear it.

 

Best luxury& best drugstore?
Lately I’ve dipped my toe into some luxury lip products that I hadn’t tried before, but the luxury line I know best is from YSL and their Rouge Pur Couture in Rose Bergamasque is an incredible lipstick. For drugstore, the first line that came to mind was the Covergirl Jumbo Gloss Balms – they are pigmented, give a great satin sheen and are comfortable on the lips. Haute Pink Twist* is probably my favourite shade from the line so far!

Best MAC lipstick?
MAC Girl About Town is my favourite show stopping pink and I love to whip it out in the dead of winter with a cute beanie – I have a photo on my fridge of Mister and I and I have Girl About Town on, makes me smile every time. Viva Glam Cyndi is another amazing lipstick from MAC that is one of my favourite lipsticks – what can I say, the brand is good when it comes to lippies!

The most disappointing?
Illamasqua Maiden* is so opaque, it felt like I was applying acrylic paint to my lips. The colour in the tube looks really nice but the intense formula is just not for me with Illamasqua, sheer glosses and opaque lipsticks are definitely the way to go with this brand. The Rimmel Vinyl glosses are my sisters favourite but are disappointing to me because they go off so quickly! It isn’t a problem for her though because she always loses them before they turn…

Liner - yes or no?
Far too lazy to use lipliner – I think I only own a red and nude toned one, but I don’t remember ever using them.

Best gloss?
Dior makes the prettiest glosses, though I often wish they had more crème options as a lot of the shades I love have quite a bit of shimmer in them, which makes them a bit harder to wear. I also adore the Nars gloss formulation, though I’ve only tried the old version and not the revamped one so I can’t speak much about that. I bought a mini gloss pack from Mecca Maxima a few years ago and have loved it hard!

Something extra!

The lip products I’ve used lately! These are the tubes that have been kicking around in my Muji or in my handbag for the past little while – a beautiful Sisley Phyto Lip-Twist crayon in a gorgeous pink shade, a sheer red essence gloss and two of the new Maybelline Colour Elixir’s!

I hope you enjoyed my lip product addict tag, I would love to see your answers so feel free to copy + paste and link me up to your posts if you don't feel like writing it into the comments.

Emma x

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Favourite balm/treatment?

Best eye-catching red?

Best luxury and best drugstore?

Best MAC lipstick?

The most disappointing?

Liner- yes or no?

Best gloss?

Something extra!

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The Autumn Transition - Lips



I think I may have slipped into a wintery state of mind while I was picking these lip shades, but if I'm honest, I've been cherishing every icy wind Melbourne has thrown at me lately so I can't say that it is a big surprise. Since I'm quite fair (ghost white, perhaps?) plum and wine shades tend to suit me, or at least they do in my opinion. A nice blush and a shot of sheer dark lip gets me pumped for cooler weather and I've pulled out some colours to inspire my autumn palette.

 A mix of high and low-end products eventuated from my rummage through the newly built makeup drawers (sadly not an Ikea Alex, but just as loved by me!) The effort to push myself into using my unloved lip products is also highlighted in this lot, with the book-ends of the line-up being practically brand new in condition.

For a juicier lip look I grabbed out my YSL Glossy Stain in Mauve Pigmente and my L'Oreal Shine Caresse in Lolita*. I haven't used the Shine Caresse's all that much despite being hyped for their release for the longest time, and the YSL Glossy Stain is a shade that sometimes streaks and is a bit dark for most of my daytime looks. Luckily I quite like wearing these out at night (lasting power and such) so this slots nicely into the line-up. 

YSL Mauve Pigmente - Revlon Berry Smoothie - Natural Compatibles Berry - L'Oreal Lolita* - MAC Plumful - Maybelline Lust for Blush*

In what seems to be an alarming trend now that I'm looking at it, yet another lip range that I own but don't use often is the Revlon Lip Butters - yes, those infamous sheer balm type products that often don't pack enough punch for me! Berry Smoothie seems like a good shade to ease myself into using these (important considering I own pretty much the entire original shade line-up!) Same goes for Lust for Blush*, which I have heard so many great things about but I was too love struck by Petal Rebel* (<3) to give it so much as a decent swatch.

The serious ball players for autumn? Natural Compatibles Berry*, my beloved matte lipstick that makes me feel a million dollars and that I would hate to be without. Every year when the air chills I pull this stunner out and swoon over how amazing it is to have a lipstick make me feel this way *love letter to Berry, over and out!* Another true lip love of mine is MAC Plumful, which in my opinion is the perfect shade to ease anyone into plum or wine lips.

So what do we think of my lip picks?
Do you have any nice plum, berry or wine toned lip shades I need to swatch?

Emma @ emmabovarybeauty


*Marked products were provided for consideration. Honesty, always.

Pink Peachy Popping

While perusing my local Beauty Spot (link) I saw a Smooch makeup stand filled with products I had never seen before. They resembled Nars rubberized packaging and were priced around the $5/$10 mark, and so I thought it safe to take a gamble and bring some of the products home with me. I chose the blush duo in Peachy, and a lipstick in Popping Pink.

 

 

I had a play with everything, and when I got home I brought up Google and tried to find out more about the Smooch brand. It turns out they are a UK based company who draw inspiration from lingerie for their cosmetics, and was a little taken aback when I saw that their tagline is “Cosmetics with sex appeal” While I’m not sure that the other makeup products in my drawer are attracted to the Smooch goodies, but I’m loving the way they make me look!

 

 

 

The Peachy blush duo comes in a single pan, with a shimmery side sitting alongside a deeper matte shade. I find that my blush brush picks up both shades equally, and so treat this as a single blush colour rather than a duo as the brand does. It imparts a glow to the skin without using chunky shimmer and glitter, and I like that it is pigmented but easy enough to sheer out and wear every day. In the swatches I’ve shown you both sides of the pan, then them mixed together to show you what the colour ultimately appears like on the cheek.

 

 

 

Popping Pink is so smooth to apply, it sort of feels like a lip balm as it glides on really easily, but the colour is definitely vibrant enough. I didn’t mind taking a gamble on a cheapie like this, but I am really glad that I’ve found a winner with this! The packaging is matte black with pink lace edges on the tube and cap, and it is a little bit young for me but cute nevertheless. It isn’t too bright either, but can be built up a little if you like your lips to wow.

 

 

One swipe, then two, then three
 

 

Peachy (heavy) on the cheek and Popping Pink on the lips!

 



 

What do you think of the Smooch look?

Will you be picking up either of these?

 

 

Back 2 Mac // How to,Photos, Hot Tahiti

MAC Cosmetics have a terrific program called Back 2 MAC which allows you to exchange 6 empty/depotted items for a brand new lipstick. I have heard some people talking about being able to exchange for a gloss or shadow at some stores, possibly overseas or PRO, but I am content with lipsticks! To read more about the program, click on this link and be taken to the MAC site's explanation.

After my massive depotting session, I collected 6 pots and took them along to the Myer Bourke St store to swap them for a fresh new MAC lippy! I went to the MAC counter aiming to get a pale pink or nude lipstick, and walked away with Hot Tahiti...

Hot Tahiti is a terracotta sort of red lipstick...definitely not a pale pink or a nude! It's a glaze finish which I really like as it looks juicy on my lips but not glossy.

As you can see it is not a nude but still quite a toned down red shade, which makes it even more versatile for me.

I loved that even though I just grabbed a random pretty shade and swapped for it, I found something I really like! Considering it was free, I really couldn't go wrong!

What do you think of Hot Tahiti?
Have you Back2Mac'ed?
What MAC shade would you choose?

YSL Rose Bergamasque - #6 Rouge Pur Couture - swatches, photos, review

  

I have to give credit for my recent YSL obsession to Jessica, who never fails to entice me into a new purchase with each blog post and video. She mentioned this particular shade here and wore it here, and as usual I was unable to hold back from the purchase.

YSL Rouge Pur Couture in #6 Rose Bergamasque is a stunning glossy creamy nude with peachy pink tones that is perfect for me as an everyday lip colour.

Rose Bergamasque is number 6 in the Rouge Pur Couture range, which I find to have less slip than the Rouge Volupte counterparts. I find this easier to apply than my other YSL lipsticks, and it feels the most comfortable on the lips as well.

It is the little touches on YSL products that make their price tag justifiable for me. The YSL engraved onto the inside of the bullet is a luxurious touch, and the solid snap that the lid makes upon closure means I am not afraid of this being ruined in my handbag throughout the day.

Despite loving the formula of these Rouge Pur Couture's more than the other YSL formulations, I find the packaging of them the least appealing. While I still find them solid and beautiful, I adore the rounded style of the Rouge Volupte's much more, and it may sound petty but having to match up the YSL logo when replacing the cap drives me batty sometimes!

Swatch!

So much beauty, I really cannot stop swooning.

I thought I would show you a swatch of Rose Bergamasque next to my other favourite YSL lipstick, which is 01 Nude Beige from the Rouge Volupte line. You can see that the Rouge Volupte is creamier and less peachy than Rose Bergamasque, and I think that is what makes a touch harder to wear than the Rouge Pur Couture shade. For the record, I am a fair-bear and wear shade NC15 in MAC, 51 in Bourjois etc so keep that in mind when I mention how much this shade suits me. Having said that, I can see this working beautifully on darker skin tones as well!

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This picture makes Rose Bergamasque appear a tiny bit peachier than it looks in real life, but it is pretty accurate otherwise.

*

I really like the way Rose Bergamasque feels and looks on me, and despite the higher price tag it is something I would repurchase. I love YSL as a brand and I find that the products are high quality (from the things I've tried) and worth the price tag.

YSL Rouge Pur Couture's retail for $50 AUD and are available from Myer, David Jones and anywhere else you find a YSL counter.

This product was purchased by me and I am in no way affiliated with the YSL brand, though I would love to be ;P

MAC Asian Flower- Swatches, Photos, Review, FOTD

When my sights are set on acquiring something, I become obsessive about it. I saw Asian Flower on Nancy here and could not stop thinking about from that moment on. Each time I was at a MAC counter I would enquire about the shade and its release date, but the SA's never knew what I was talking about ><  Then I stumbled across it on counter, and never looked back!

The new Sheen Supreme formula from MAC is housed in a tube unlike the other lipstick offerings from MAC. This Sleek tube is cold to the touch and looks great in my lipstick holder. A word of warning though, this is a tube you really have to pull on to be able to open, you have to be careful not to hurt your lipstick or have it go flying out of your hands.

The Sheen Supreme formula is very moisturising, and because of that I don't find that it lasts for a long time on my lips. It lasts for a reasonable amount of time, though, so I'm still a happy camper.

A creamy lavender shade, I thought Asian Flower might not work with my pale skin tone, but I find it flattering most of the time. Sometimes I find myself falling in love with a product despite it not 'suiting' me- it's just like falling in love, sometimes it just clicks, ya know?

Asian Flower has enough of a pink edge to make it something I reach for quite often.

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Would you wear this sort of shade? What are your thoughts on lilac lipsticks? How have your dealings with the MAC SA's been in the past?