Current Favourites - April/May 2015

April and May have been a whirlwind of work, health issues and lots of hard days which I'm glad to have survived with my sanity intact! I've been using 'Maui meditation' to get me through those tough spots (aka, dreaming of the times I spend sunbaking in Maui on the honeymoon!) and playing around with some beauty bits to keep me content. I hardly ever reach for purple or mauve makeup bits but it's basically all I've wanted to wear for a while now - what is happening to me?!  

I've become a lot more interested in lip products, instead of forgetting to apply anything in the morning as I often do, I've been lining my lips with my essence lipliner 'Satin Mauve' which is a great wearable yet spunky mauve for me, or sometimes turning to the new nude in my collection, essence 'Cool Nude'. MAC 'Hot Tahiti' is something that I'm currently thrilled with - I was searching for an easy to wear red and didn't realise that it was sitting in my stash the whole time! The glaze finish and terracotta tone makes this a perfect everyday red for me and I think it will cop a beating come winter in Melbourne (though it feels like winter right now, so...)

 

I've been wearing the purple shade from my No7 Smoky Rose Quad, a gorgeous mid-tone purple with golden shimmer that reminds me of Laura Mercier 'African Violet' which is a favourite of both myself and Vita (Making Up 4 My Age) I've been pairing it with a dash of essence eyeliner 'Berry Merry' along my upper lashline and I've been loving it sick - I've finally found a purple look I can love!

I've been using Maybelline Color Tattoo 'Bad to the Bronze' daily in hopes of using it up (I probably should have entered it into my Project Use It Up now that I think about it...) and am appreciating how wonderful the shade is under so many eyeshadows - it could do with being a bit creamier at this stage of its makeup life, but I suppose that is to be expected. A newcomer into the favourite ranks is the Clinique Take The Day Off Cleansing Balm, a gorgeously plain and silky balm that has whipped my skin into shape in recent weeks.

 

What have you been loving?

-Emma

Hitting Pan

On one particular day a few weeks ago, I was in need of some good luck and as I sat down to do my makeup at my desk in the morning my mind was rolling ahead to the big day I had planned and wasn’t really on task. Naturally I reached for my standard and classic eye combination of MAC ‘Jaunty’ with MAC ‘Coquette’ over a base of Maybelline Color Tattoo ‘Bad to the Bronze’ as I often do during distracted mornings, and lo and behold I looked down after applying the cream base to see a glint of pan (in this case, glass jar!) peeking out at me! I immediately took it as a sign of good luck, as a pan hit has to be one of the best feelings for a blogger, don’t you think? A sign of love and respect for a product! 

 

I thought nothing else of it until I finished my eye look, and saw that a glint of pan was also peeking out at me from my single MAC shadow ‘Coquette’! Such is my love for this perfect crease shade, I have avoided depotting it as I like to be able to take it with me when I travel and find it easier in its original packaging. To have two pan hits in a single day might seem silly to some, but I went on to have a great day and it seems that the dual pan hit indeed brought me the luck I craved for the day!

How often do you hit pan? Does it make you feel good, or disappointed that you’re almost out of a much loved beauty product?

-Emma

April Favourites // All About Eyes

I’ve been relishing in the tonal variations of the neutral eye shadows in my collection this month, and even more so since I’ve been focused on teaching. With less time for intricate blending and the like, I have come to appreciate the ease and beauty of these shades. Once again my Maybelline Color Tattoo in Bad to the Bronze is among my favourites, especially when layered under Maybelline Silken Taupe to create an icy neutral sort of eye look.

  

Burberry has also been gracing my lids often, with my two pans (Pale Barley & Rosewood) getting quite a workout during April. I love how long these shadows last on my lids without creasing, and they are so quick to blend that I hardly have to work on them in the early morning, pre-coffee haze.

 

Liner is another eye product that is fast becoming one of the most exciting parts of my makeup routine, despite it once being something I rarely reached for. The Australis Curve Ink* still impresses me with its amazing lasting power and easy to use (though unusual) packaging. For pencil I’ve been loving Hot Chocolate from essence, which is a self-sharpening chocolate stick that I’ve been using lightly along my lash line to create a nice shape and intensify my mascara as well.

Speaking of mascara, I’ve been loving my Covergirl Clump Crusher, using my Face of Australia Impact Curl mascara coating my lower lashes daily.  I know a lot of people aren’t a fan of lots of mascara on the bottom lashes, but I love the way it opens my eyes right up. I feel as though I can wear less makeup on the rest of my face when I use mascara on my lower lashes, so I have been using it for the majority of this month.

 

So April is wrapped up, a month of lots of lashes, liner galore and pretty neutral shadows to cover my lids. I hadn’t planned on having an eye centred favourites list for this month, but things happen!

How often do you wear mascara on your lower lashes?

Are you a liquid liner or pencil gal?

 

*Marked items provided for consideration.

 

 

March Favourites

March was a hectic month for me as I began my post graduate degree at university. All of a sudden it all feels real and the pressure is immense, but if anything it made me appreciate the stars in my beauty stash more than ever as I loved relaxing and enjoying them throughout the month.

I did play around with my eye shadows quite a bit this month, I loved a heap of deep chocolate shades (as seen in this look!) I used the Bad to the Bronze Maybelline Color Tattoo as a base quite often, and also on its own if I was feeling lazy. I couldn’t tear myself away from the Australis Curve Ink eyeliner*, jet black, long lasting and goes well with my Covergirl Clump Crusher mascara. I’m still in the habit of using YSL Touche Eclat No.2* under my eyes to brighten, it covers up late nights and energy drink fuelled bad behaviour really well!

Pink lips were it and a bit this month, seriously couldn’t get enough of the hot new Face of Australia shade Peaches & Cream, which isn’t very well named but by goodness it is probably the best shade they have ever released. As soon as I saw it on the shelf at Priceline I was like a moth to flame, and even Mumma Bovary said “Oh that is YOUR colour!” In the basket it went, and I’ve been wearing it a lot this month. Maybelline Juicy Bubblegum is another great pink that I find easy to wear, and since I’ve been favouring a glossy look I've been teaming it with one of my all-time favourite glosses, essence Me & My Ice Cream. Another obsession that I’ve been indulging in is a flashback to my younger days, where lip smackers filled my school dress pockets and I was never without one. This Strawberry/Kiwi Kool Aid scent is so damn good, and it reminds me of a scent from my childhood but I just can’t put a finger on what it is. Regardless, I’ve been loving these lip products silly this month.

 

The Face of Australia Face Base primer has crept back into my daily routine and I don’t really know why I stopped using it. Feels just like a moisturiser rather than a velvety finish primer, and from blog posts I’ve read it is actually the Napoleon Perdis primer repackaged and much cheaper! Surprisingly my most worn and most loved blush for March was Cream Soda from the MAC Archie’s Girl collection. Chris bought me this as I was upset about not being able to find Prom Princess (ended up getting it later) and I’ve worn this one more than PP! Another product that has jumped back into my daily routine is the grungy looking Prestige brow gel, I’d forgotten how much of a difference you can make to your face just by grooming your brows well!

 

Now that my brain is focused on university and all the joys that come along with it, I neglected to include my Dove Body Milk for Dry Skin* and the object of my nail polish love affair. L’Oreal Color Riche in Luxembourg Garden* has truly stolen my heart, it isn’t often that I reapply the same colour time after time but I have been aching to reapply this every single time I do my nails.

What would you love to try from this lot of favourites? What pink lip product do you swear by?

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

 

Favourites for January ft. Chanel, Haus of Gloi + more

 

An edit of the products I loved the most in January would be incomplete without the mention of my beloved Dermalogica Precleanse*. I feel as though my skin is happier now that I’m using this before my cleanser, so it is a definite favourite for me right now.

 

The Endota Spa Lavender & Alpine Pepper hand cream* is the best hand cream I’ve tried, and I’ve been loving popping this on as I watch YouTube videos at night time. I’ve been meticulous with moisturising my bod as well this year, and my Haus of Gloi pumpkin butter in Twice is Nice smells like amazing almond sugar cookies, and is thick and intense for my skin.

Despite it being summer in Australia and peach blushes being spruiked, my obsession with bright pink cheeks still reigns! Chanel Pink Explosion is naturally still in my everyday makeup bag, joined by the affordable Fierce Fuschia from BYS.

 

 

The YSL Touche Eclat* was something I didn’t think I would love as much as I do, but it really does work magic on brightening up my face, and I’ve found that throwing a bit on blemishes (not straight from the brush, don’t worry!) works wonders if I’m in a pinch. Barry M’s Toffee gloss is something I bought after seeing Ingrid (aka Miss Glamorazzi on YT) rave about it, and she was right! Smells amazing and is a great wearable nude, made better by the cheap price tag on ASOS.

Even though I tried to branch out with my eyeshadow choices during the first month of the year, all I could manage when I wasn’t doing a look soley for the blog featured these shades. L’Oreal's Infallible’s are one of my very favourite shadow formulations, and Metallic Lilac is fast becoming my colour of choice from the stack that I have. Paired with MAC’s Moth Brown=heaven!  Maybelline’s Colour Tattoo in Bad to the Bronze finally got some loving on my lids, after I realised that I needed it smudged along the lower lashline for it to work on me.

What products did you love hardest in January? Anything new I need to check out?

 

*Marked items were provided for consideration, but are legitimate favourites. Honesty, always.