Thursday, September 29, 2011

EOTD using Urban Decay Vegan Palette

Hey guys!!! I'm back :)

The last week was AMAZING but also a little crazy. We had 7 of Blake's friends over staying with us from Geelong...yep that's right 7 in our little house! It was messy but lots of fun, we had our housewarming and also went to Parklife. Hence the reason for my lack of blogging lately. But I'm back :)

This is an EOTD I wore a few days before the boys came over. I cracked out my Urban Decay Vegan palette for this one. I love the packaging of this palette and the colours are pretty nice (although I wish they had used a highlight colour instead of adding the blue shade)

UD Vegan Palette - See wouldn't a highlight colour be perfect
instead of that lonely blue colour!!


Inner corner: Half Baked
Lid colour: Urb
Outer Corner: Twice Baked
Crease/Blending colour: Smog
Black liner (sorry can't remember which one!)
Black mascara (sorry can't remember which one!)


I also blended the colours under the eye in the same order :)



I still can't take these photos without a depressed look! haha

Hope I haven't missed out on too much since I have been gone, it feels like I have been gone forever! Can't wait to get back into the swing of things.

Hope you all had a great day!!


Hannah xox

Friday, September 23, 2011

Gone awol!

Hey guys,

Just wanted to let you know that I probably won't be able to get a post up for the next few days. We have got 7 of Blake's friends from Geelong staying with us....the house is crazy right now!!

But I will be sure to get back to it when they leave next week. It's our housewarming (finally) tomorrow night so I'm really looking forward to that.

Here's a pic I thought you'd enjoy of Tasha "helping" me take photos for my last post.


Hope you are all awesome!!! 


And for those of you attending ABBW this weekend, so jealous!!!


Hannah xoxo

Sunday, September 18, 2011

Mini Haul and First Impressions

Hey guys,

Hope you all had an amazing weekend! I did a little shopping this weekend and thought I would show you guys the things I picked up and my first impressions. 

Clockwise from left: Savvy Jumbo Bronzer in Terracotta, Garnier ,
1000 Hours Individual Lashes, Savvy Liquid Eyeliner in Brown,
Sally Hansen Hard as Nails Xtreme Wear Nail colour in 320 Fuchsia Power.

The first thing I picked out was a bronzer. I have been umming and ahhing about getting the Australis Jumbo Bronzer but at $19.95 wasn't sure it was worth it. Instead this one caught my eye. It is the Savvy by DB Jumbo Bronzer in Terracotta. It was much better value at just $9.95. 

First impression of this product is really great. The colour of this bronzer is perfect for my skin tone and it doesn't come off orange at all. It is a matte bronzer so it is perfect for contouring. The packaging is pretty good, the plastic casing seems to be quite sturdy and it comes with a pretty sun and stars pattern within the powder. 


Savvy Jumbo Bronzer in Terracotta

When compared to Nars Laguna and Bourjois Chocolate Bronzer.

In the pic above you can see it compared with Nars Laguna (my HG bronzer) and the Bourjois Delice de Poudre in 51. As you can see the colour is very comparable to both. Laguna contains a little bit of shimmer whereas the Savvy is completely matte. It is also not as orange toned as the Bourjois bronzer. And for less than $10AUD when compared to ~$30 for the other two depending on where you buy them it is a lot better value.

Savvy by DB Liquid Eyeliner in Brown.

While at the Savvy display I noticed the eye products were all on special. This particular eyeliner was only $2.97. I tested out the black and the brown on my hand and was blown away by the pigmentation of this liquid liner. As you can see in the picture above the Savy stands up against my other liquid liners in terms of pigmentation.

Individual Lashes by 1000 Hour.

I picked up some 1000 Hour Individual lashes as I have never tried individuals before and I am keen to try them just at the outer corner of my lash line. These are the medium length lashes and they cost $8.99AUD for 60 with glue included.

Don't mind the terrible application, I was in
quite a rush as I had a dinner to get to.

Then as I walked past the Sally Hansen display I noticed that the polishes were on special. The Xtreme Wear Nail Colours were only $3.95AUD (normally $6.95AUD). Of course there was only 3 left haha This bright barbie pink was the one that appealed to me most so I quickly added it to my cart before it was snapped up. 

When I got home I decided to try this out and I loveeee this polish. The formula is quite thick but it dries surprisingly fast. I took a shower and washed my hair within 10 minutes of applying this and it didn't budge. In the picture above I am only wearing one coat so you can see how opaque it is. 

Garnier Self-Tanner

I saw this for sale in Target for only like $4 (RRP $13.95). I've been wanting to test out self tanners for a while now but was always too chicken and didn't want to turn orange. I tested this one out today and it is a very light self-tanner. It was easy to apply and didn't smell too much like fake-tanner but didn't quite give me as much of a tan as I was hoping so I'm going to have to keep testing it out. 


Have you guys tried any of these products before?? What did you think?

Hope you had a great weekend!!

Hannah xoxo


Monday, September 12, 2011

Review: MAC 217 Brush

So today I wanted to talk about the MAC 217 brush.

Gotta love that MAC logo

Let me start by just saying if you do not own this brush GO AND GET IT NOW! Seriously, this brush makes eyeshadow looks a breeze to master! 

Now I know that MAC brushes are pretty expensive. Here in Oz this brush retails for $37AUD. But I will tell you now you won't regret purchasing this brush (Although I would recommend you buy it from ACW, I got mine for $22USD when I was placing an order with them).

In all it's shining glory.

This brush is everything you want in an eyeshadow brush. It's soft, dense and has the perfect shape for both applying and blending out colours. I think the key to this brushes magic is that it is pinched at the base, which gives it that extra bit of density giving you more control but it widens to a fluffy top which is perfect for blending. 

Front View
Side View

Now I know that people say this is the one MAC brush you have to get and I didn't really buy into all that much I mean how can it be so different from all the others but it is! I haven't really seen another brush that is a good dupe for the 217. 

View from up top, you can see the density of this brush.

I own a lot of Sigma brushes and have heard that the supposed dupe from them is the E35 but as you can see in this photo, the shapes are completely different. It isn't pinched at the base and is more of a rounded shape. It is also quite a bit taller than the 217. Not much of a dupe at all. 

MAC on the left, Sigma on the right.

The only downside about the 217 is that it's white and we all know what that means....it is very hard to keep white! It stains, like any white brush and while you can get it quite clean it's never going to be that bright white like it is when you first buy it. 

Another great thing about this brush is that it doesn't shed. I have had it for quite a while now and it has gone through quite a few washes without shedding a hair. The Sigma brush on the other hand has shed a couple of hairs. Ever try getting a white brush hair out of your eye?? It's no fun trust me haha

If I haven't convinced you to buy this brush then I hope someone else can, trust me you need it. Even if you don't think you do. 

The MAC 217 brush is available at MAC stores or online at the MAC site. But if you don't want to pay the hefty aussie price tag I suggest getting it from All Cosmetics Wholesale. Here's the link to it. 


Do you own this brush? Do you think it's a must-have like me?

Hannah xox



Saturday, September 10, 2011

Natural FOTD and EOTD

Hey guys,

Today is a very lazy day. Just a little bit of shopping and some house work on the agenda so I decided to go for a very natural look this morning.



Base:

L'Oreal Base Magique (review here)
Covergirl Trublend Foundation in Ivory 01
L'Oreal Touch Magique Illumination Concealer
MAC MSF Natural in Light/Medium
Australis Makeup Finishing Spritz

Cheeks;

Revlon Skinlights Skin Brightener 01 Natural Light as a highlighter
Bourjois Delice de Poudre Bronzing Powder in 51
Australis Creme Colour in Flirtatious Pink



Eyes;

Napoleon Perdis Auto Pilot Eye Primer
Nyx Jumbo Eye Pencil in Milk (inner corner and brow bone)
MAC Brule all over lid
MAC Blanc Type as brow bone highlight
MAC Patina in the crease
MAC Twinx in the outer corner
Models Prefer Jet Black Mascara (very light coating)



Lips;

Nars Chihuahua lipgloss

I like the natural look especially on days where I am not doing much but still want to wear makeup in case we decide to leave the house. 

Do you guys like natural looks? Or do you prefer dramatic all out looks? 

Hannah xoxo

Sunday, September 4, 2011

Beauty Blog Hop!!

Hey guys,

Thought I'd get on the bandwagon and share the beauty blog love with this beauty blog hop!! I am a bit of a noob at this so I entered my blog post title where my blog name should be doh!! haha Oh well here it is anyway. Enjoy all these fabulous blogs and add your own!



Hannah xoxo

Product Review: L'Oreal Base Magique Face Primer

Sorry about the lack of posting this week I have been a bad beauty blogger!! 

Today's post is a review on a face primer I recently bought. It is the L'Oreal Base Magique Primer. 



This is the 3rd face primer that I have tested out. The other two are Napoleon Perdis Auto Pilot and the Face of Australia Face Base 3 in 1 Primer SPF 15. I found those primers ok but I didn't really notice any difference in the time my makeup lasted, which is the main reason I was using a primer in the first place. So I kinda went a bit off primers after that. 

Then I purchased the L'Oreal Base Magique and boy have I changed my mind about primers. Applying this cream before I apply my foundation makes my foundation last twice as long as normal no joke!



This is a silicon-based primer so it feels very velvety on the skin and makes your skin feel extremely smooth. The other two primers I own aren't silicon based and I think that is why there weren't as effective as this one at keeping my makeup put. 

It is quite a thick consistency but if you rub it between your fingers first and then apply it doesn't feel as thick. You might think because of the thickness it would feel heavy on the skin but I don't find this is the case. I still use a moisturiser before applying this primer as it doesn't offer the skin much moisture.

See how rich and thick it is?

What L'Oreal says it does;

"A unique blend of silicon oils and soft light powder create a sensational smoothing velvet formula to refine the skin. Smoothes wrinkles and fine lines. Perfectly hides pores. Skin Imperfections are corrected. Prolongs foundation wear and sets make-up." (Taken from the box)

What I believe it does;

  • It definitely prolongs the wear of makeup. My makeup lasts a full day at work and then some when I have this underneath it. 
  • Smoothes the skin. It does makes your skin feel a lot smoother and makes the foundation glide on better. It sinks into any imperfections such as fine lines and stops the makeup settling in them.
  • It does to an extent correct skin imperfections. I mean it isn't going to magically make your skin look flawless but I find that it does help tone down my redness and any spots I have.

Swatched on my arm

The cons;

  • For some people the fact that this is a silicon based primer might put them off. Frankly I don't know too much about the effects of silicon on the skin...except that Blake uses it at work and it never comes off his hands! This comes off just like any other makeup with some makeup remover.
  • For the size I think it is a little pricey. This retails for $29.95AUD and only contains 15ml. I have been using this for a couple of weeks and there is already quite a large hole. 

See the very noticeable hole??

Would I re-purchase? 

Despite the price-tag I would re-purchase this, especially if there was a special on and it was discounted. Even if it wasn't I would still re-purchase to have for times when I need my makeup to last the distance. 

Where can you get it??

I purchased this in Priceline, however I assume it would be available in most places that stock L'Oreal products.



Have you guys tried this primer? Do you use a primer? What's your fave?

Hannah xoxo