When in Rome...

Buy your daughter lots of makeup goodies! Haha I have the best mother in the world. Fact! Every time she goes away she always brings me back some really awesome makeup goodies.

This time was no different. I thought I'd share with you guys the goodies she got me.

Look at all those goodies! So spoilt.

Sephora

Mum knows how much I want to go to Sephora so whenever she is in a country that has one she always picks me up a few things I have been lusting over.

Urban Decay Primer Potion

Benefit They're Real Mascara

La Roche-Posay Hydreane Legere Moisturiser

I've never had a full size primer potion before so was pretty happy with this as I am almost out of all my mini sizes. Benefit's They're Real mascara has been so hyped I just had to give it a try. The last thing is this moisturiser that mum had been raving about. It's a french moisturiser from La Roche-Posay called Hydreane Legere. It's quite thin and gel-like in texture which I love but it is still quite hydrating. It also smells amazing, possibly the best smelling moisturiser I've used.

MAC

While in Dubai, taking advantage of the cheaper prices, mum picked me up a few MAC goodies. These products have been on my shopping list for a long time but you know how MAC prices are here!  It makes me feel like I'm getting ripped off every time I walk up to the counter.

MAC Paint Pot in Bare Study (92.00AED = $24.30AUD)

MAC Mineralised Skin Finish in Soft & Gentle (122.00AED = $32.20AUD)

MAC Lipstick in Snob (81.00AED = $21.40AUD)

Bare Study is a gorgeous beige/champagne colour with a lot of sheen to it. It doesn't apply as pigmented as I would like but its still great as a base or a simple wash of colour when I am not wearing eyeshadow.

Soft & Gentle is my first MSF from MAC and I really like it. Its a gorgeous champagne colour with quite a bit of shimmer. I think I'll have to be careful with this one as it might make me look like a bit of a disco ball if I apply too much.

Snob is a satin finish lipstick in the neutral/mid toned pink family. Perfect to pair with a smokey eye on a night out, which I'm sure I will be doing quite soon.

L-R: Snob lipstick, Bare Study paint pot and Soft & Gentle MSF

I've also done a bit of shopping myself lately, picking up a few goodies from MAC duty free on the way back from NZ as well as one thing from a local chemist.

MAC Paint Pot in Groundwork

MAC Eye Kohl in Teddy

Revlon ColorStay Aqua Mineral Makeup

Groundwork had been on my wish list for ages now, ever since seeing Lisa Eldridge and the Pixiwoo girls using it in a few tutorials on YouTube. Its a matte mid toned brown cream shadow which works great as a base or simply on its own as an all over colour. 

Teddy eye kohl was another that's been on the list for a while. I don't own a whole lot of brown eye liners so I was in need of a good one and this one has a hint of gold sparkle in it which makes it a bit more interesting than the average brown liner.

I also picked up Revlon's ColorStay Aqua Mineral Makeup while at a local chemist the other day as it was on sale for $10 and I thought it might be a good alternative to my MAC MSF natural. I've used it a couple of times to set my makeup and so far it has been good. One interesting thing about it is that it has a cooling effect when you apply it to the skin, making it great for hot days!

Groundwork paint pot, Teddy eye kohl, Revlon powder (if you can see it!)

Do you have awesome relatives that bring you back pressies too? What have you bought recently?

Hannah xox

June Favourites (on time for once!!)

Look at me being all good and posting my favourites at the end of the month and not half way through like usual haha June hasn't been the best of months for me as I have been sick for two thirds of it :( But I am almost all better now so yay! 

Here's just a quick post showing you what I have been loving for the month of June :)

Rimmel Hide the Blemish Concealer in Soft Honey

I love this concealer, even though it is a stick concealer it is really creamy and is great for both under eyes and covering blemishes. 

Natio Liquid Bronzer

My friend Taz and I bought this on sale from David Jones a few weeks ago and are both really loving it. I've been using this to contour my face and find that it looks really natural but gives you a gorgeous glow.

MAC Omega Eyeshadow

I have been using this shadow to fill in my brows lately and love it. Even though my brows are quite dark I find that this works really well to fill in the sparse areas of my brows without leaving them looking too full. 

Physicians Formula Happy Booster Blush in Natural

Not only is this blush adorable but its gorgeous pinky colour gives your cheeks a nice natural looking flush.

Physicians Formula Eye Enhancing Gel Eyeliner - the Purple from the Green Eyes Set

This is without doubt the creamiest gel eyeliner I've tried and is a super vibrant purple that looks amazing against my green eyes.

Maybelline Colour Tattoo Cream Eyeshadow in Bad to the Bronze

I bought 3 of these off of ebay recently as I thought we'd have to wait forever to get them here in Oz. However, I have since discovered these are being released any day now! doh haha I think they will be about $11.95 so not too expensive either for once! This particular shade is a  gorgeous shimmery bronze that blends really nicely and is long-lasting. Perfect for a quick day or night look.

Real Techniques Brushes

These are only a few but all the brushes are incredible. These have become my favourite brushes within only a week of receiving them. They are super soft and dense but still flexible allowing for seamless blending/application.

And here is everything swatched :)

L-R: Natio Liquid Bronzer, Rimmel Concealer, MAC Omega, PF blush,
Bad to the Bronze and PF gel eyeliner.

Have you tried any of these products?? What have you been loving this past month??

Hannah xox

MAC & Physician's Formula Haul

So recently Catch Of the Day had a big MAC sale on. Usually when this happens their aren't many products that catch my eye as they are generally the less popular shades, however, this time I saw a few products I had been lusting over for a while so I snapped them up quick (or Mum did for me - I was at work).

Being the makeup junkie I am I also picked up a few of the new Physician's Formula products from Priceline stands over the weekend as well as a few random items.

MAC Omega Matte Eyeshadow

I bought Omega as I was in need of a matte brown colour for blending out my eyeshadow and this is perfect. It is a light colour so it's the perfect blending colour for those with pale skin.

MAC Nylon Frost Eyeshadow

Nylon is quite a popular shade and I can see why, its a great highlight or all over lid colour. This reminds me of an eyeshadow version of Nars Albatross highlight. 

MAC Hush Cream Colour Base

As you probably know by now I am a bit of a highlighter junkie. The pictures may make Hush seem more like a blush than a highlight colour but I can tell you it comes off a lot lighter than in the pan. It leaves a gorgeous pinky gold sheen on the cheekbones.

MAC Trace Gold Sheer Shimmertone Blush

Just as Hush looks like a blush but is a highlighter Trace Gold is a blush which looks like a bronzer! I'd heard Sarah Hawkinson on YouTube rave about this blush and always love her makeup so when I saw it on the website I snapped it up. Wore this today and its beautiful!

Physician's Formula Happy Booster Blushes Rose & Natural

These were all over YouTube a while back and as we are so far behind here in Oz these only just arrived in stores. They are so cute I could not resist picking them up. They come off quite light but are definitely buildable as you can see from the swatch. 

Physician's Formula Custom Eye Enhancing Gel CreamLiner for
Green Eyes - excuse the ripped packaging Tasha got to it!

Just like the blushes the gel cream liners have only just arrived as well. These are the creamiest gel eyeliners I have ever tried and the colours are absolutely gorgeous! They are also quite long-lasting as I discovered when trying to wash them off my arm and they wouldn't budge!

Savvy by DB Precision Pen Eyeliner in Blackest Black and
Models Prefer Metallic Black Eyeshadow Pencil

I was in need of a new liquid liner and the pen form is my favourite kind so decided to pick up a cheapie from Savvy by DB. The Models Prefer pencil I bought to use as a base for a smokey eye.

What have you guys hauled lately?? Any new products you are loving??

Hannah xo

POBM FOTD featuring MAC's Vegas Volt Lippie

Meeting 17 other beauty bloggers is a pretty daunting thing when you are trying to decide what makeup you want to wear. I decided I wanted to keep my eyes quite natural but still made up and go with a bright orangey-red lip using MAC's lippie in Vegas Volt.

Here's how it turned out :) *Excuse the sunnies mark! haha*

I'd been eyeing this particular MAC lippie for quite some time but could never justify the price, especially when I have so many lipsticks already. Luckily my mum knew I wanted it and bought it for me for Christmas :) It's an amplified cream formula which I find really moisturising and very wearable despite it's brightness.

On my cheeks I am wearing another new favourite MAC's blush in Peaches. It's a gorgeous orange toned blush which pairs perfectly with Vegas Volt. 

What's your favourite MAC lipstick??

Hope you all had an awesome weekend! I'm currently settling down for the Jurassic Park marathon! Haha

Love Hannah xox

October Faves and Empties!!

Better late than never right?? haha 

I'm going to begin this post by saying what I say every time I do a favourites post...I can't believe how fast this year is going!! November already? Are you kidding me?!!!

Anyway onto the products that I have been loving this month.

October Favourites!!

1. Ulta3 Eyeshadow Palette in Money Bags ($6.95AUD from Terry White Chemist)

Since buying this palette I have been using it pretty much everyday. It's so compact and has all the colours I need to create a nice neutral look, which makes my morning makeup routine go a lot faster. The colours are very pigmented and soft and they apply nicely to the eyes. The only downside is they are a tiny bit crumbly. 

Ulta3 Eyeshadow Palette in Money Bags

2. Savvy by DB Jumbo Bronzer in Terracotta ($9.95AUD from Priceline)

I have previously given my thoughts on this bronzer here. It's a great cheap matte bronzer perfect for contouring!

Savvy by DB Jumbo Bronzer in Terracotta

3. Dior Highlighter in Amber Diamond ($50.50AUD from Strawberrynet.com)

This is the prettiest makeup product I own (also the most expensive!). It is a gorgeous subtle highlighter that just makes you feel instantly prettier. 

Dior Amber Diamond

4. Urban Decay Eyeshadow in Sin ($10.99USD from Allcosmeticswholesale.com)

Speaking of highlighters I have been loving using Sin as a cheek highlight this month. It's more of an obvious looking highlighter but still looks really gorgeous. 

Urban Decay eyeshadow in Sin

5. MAC Cream Blush in Ladyblush ($41AUD from MAC)

My mum recently gave this to me after her trip overseas. I had been lusting after it for a long time and I love it. It's been on my cheeks pretty much the whole of October. It's a gorgeous natural pinky colour. (For some reason it looks a lot more apricot toned in the picture and swatch but its more of a pink)

MAC Cream Blush in Ladyblush

6. The Lip Combo of MAC's Girl About Town lipstick ($36AUD from MAC) and Nars Lipgloss in Turkish Delight ($24USD from Kissandmakeupny.com)

I didn't think Girl About Town suited me until one night when I added Turkish Delight over the top of it and it looked amazing! (See swatch below) It tones it down slightly while making it a little less harsh and cool-toned against my pale skin. This has been my go-to lip combo for nights out this month.

Nars lipgloss in Turkish Delight and MAC's lipstick in Girl About Town

7. MAC MSF Natural in Light/Medium ($47AUD from MAC)

I love this face powder. It looks so natural on the skin. I either use this lightly as a setting powder or with a setting spray to dampen it and then I buff it into the skin as my foundation. Either way it looks great.

MAC MSF Natural in Light/Medium

And those are my (late) favourites for the month of October. I hope you enjoyed!! 

Haha you didn't think I would leave you hanging like that did you....Here are the swatches ;)

L-R: Terracotta Bronzer, Amber Diamond, Ladyblush, Sin,
Girl About Town and Turkish Delight.

I also wanted to include a few empties in this post as I only had 4 and didn't think it warranted a separate post. So here is what I finished this October :)

October Empties!!

These are all products I love and will continue to buy over and over. First is the pink Dove deodarant. I use Dove deodorant as I love the scents they have and I find them quite moisturising. I also find they last the whole day which is always a plus. 

Next is my favourite body wash, it's the Original Source Shea Butter and Honey Shower Cream. I buy this from my local supermarket and am so in love with it. It has the most amazing creamy honey scent. 

Blake and I both use the Redwin Vitamen E Cream as our daily moisturiser and both love it. It is so moisturising and I swear this is a big reason why my skin has cleared up so much. The best bit? It's only $3 from Priceline. 

Lastly is the Nivea lip balm in Hydro Care. This is my favourite out of this line of lip balms and probably one of my fave balms in general. It's super moisturising and lasts a long time on the lips. 

What were your favourites this past month? And what have you guys used up???

Hannah xoxo

P.S. Don't forget to enter my 100 follower giveaway, open until the 13th November!! See the post below this one.

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

Dupe Alert: MAC Girl About Town Lippie

While swatching my lipstick collection the other day I noticed that two of the colours I own look very similar...so today I decided to investigate it a little further and believe I may have stumbled upon a possible dupe for MAC's lipstick in Girl About Town.

The possible dupe?? Rimmel's Moisture Renew lipstick in 320 Funtime Fuchsia.

How are they similar?

• Both are very moisturising formulas;
• They are both scented, although a prefer the vanilla smell of the MAC to the floral and slightly waxy smell of the Rimmel;
• Both are reasonably long-wearing;
• They both have nice packaging, although the Rimmel's bright purple tube is a tad cuter. I also found that the Rimmel lippie seems to lock together a bit more securely than the MAC one.
• Both are very pigmented.

How they differ?

• Girl About Town is slightly more on the cooler toned side when compared with Funtime Fuchsia which has a clear reddish undertone to it. So on colour they are not an exact dupe.
• Funtime Fuchsia also has a little bit more of a glossy finish to it;
• Price wise there is a huge difference. In Oz the MAC lippie retails for $36AUD where as the Rimmel retails for $13.95AUD.

MAC's Girl About Town

Rimmel's Funtime Fuchsia

L: Rimmel, R: MAC

While they are not an exact colour match they are both very gorgeous hot pink lippies with quite similar formulas that feel nice when applied to the lips. If you don't like the idea of spending $36 on the Girl About Town lipstick I would definitely recommend checking out Funtime Fuchsia. You can purchase MAC lipsticks from the Mac website or in-store. Rimmel is available at most chemists and pricelines around the country. 

Robbie prefers the smell of the MAC lippie haha

Have you tried either of these lippies???


Hannah xox

It's haul time :) ACW haul

So a little while ago I placed an order for some makeup items on All Cosmetics Wholesale. I love this site! It has lots of great high-end makeup items for cheap and stocks a lot of discontinued items too.

A lot of the more popular products that appear on ACW can go out of stock really quickly so if you have your eye on something that you know is a popular product and you see it's in stock I would get it sooner rather than later or it could be snapped up.

ACW Haul...How gorgeous is the UD palette's packaging?? *in love*

So the first item I saw on there that I already own and wanted a back up of is Sin eyeshadow by Urban Decay. Sin is hands down my favourite eyeshadow, it instantly brightens up your eye and just makes your eyes look gorgeous with no effort. I already own it in my Naked palette and Ammo palette but both have huge dents in them so thought I'd pick up a back up. ACW Price: $9.99USD Urban Decay Price: $17USD

UD Vegan Palette, Sin eyeshadow, Sin primer potion.

I then saw the Urban Decay Vegan Palette and fell in love with the packaging! For $32.99USD it wasn't the best deal (UD price $34USD) but I really wanted to try the 24/7 liner and Sin primer potion that came with it. Urban Decay shadows are also my fave shadows so I thought a few more wouldn't hurt.

L-R: Minx, Urb, Gunmetal, Twice Baked, Smog & Half Baked.

L-R: UD Sin eyeshadow, 24/7 liner in Zero & Sin primer potion.

I then moved onto the MAC section and found 2 cult items that they actually had it stock so I snapped them up fast. The first is the 217 blending brush. I have heard so many great things about this brush and I don't own any MAC brushes so thought this would be a great start to my collection. ACW price: $21.99USD, MAC price: $22.50USD or $37AUD.

MAC lipstick Girl About Town,  MAC 217 Blending Brush, EL Sunlight Coral

The second item is a lipstick in Girl About Town. I've seen multiple bloggers using this lipstick namely Lilit from Makeup and Macaroons. I'm still not sure about how this looks on my lips, I think the colour might age me a bit but I'm still experimenting with it. This was also my first MAC lipstick and I have to say the texture (it's an amplified creme) is amazing and staying power is good too, will definitely be picking up some more soon! This was $13.99USD which is a bargain compared with the aussie price of $36AUD.

Sticking with lipsticks I also bought an Estee Lauder pure colour gloss stick in Sunlight Coral. I am in love with this colour and the formula of this lipstick, it is more like a very pigmented gloss that has great staying power. It doesn't feel like a lipstick at all but you still get the pigmentation of one. This was a bargain at only $10.99USD. Aussie price: $42AUD.

L-R: L'Oreal eyeliner, Girl About Town & Sunlight Coral.

Lastly I picked up two L'oreal products. First is the Voluminous mascara in black which was only $3.99USD and an eyeliner pencil in carbon black which was also $3.99USD. I've never tried Voluminous before and have heard good things so for 4 bucks I couldn't say no. The liner I bought as I was in need of a new black pencil liner (I totally forgot that I had already got the 24/7 liner lol)

L'Oreal Voluminous mascara, L'Oreal Pencil Perfect in Carbon Black

So altogether I ended up spending $97.93USD. Shipping was $22USD. I chose USPS Priority Mail and it took 16 days to arrive, which isn't too bad I suppose. I thought it was reasonable considering how much I was saving on the products themselves. It was packaged really well it a padded bag and then a box and each item was wrapped in bubble wrap. 

Have you ordered from this site before?? If so what'd you get? Also if you know of any other great sites you can get great deals on for high end makeup let me know please :)