Thursday, 30 October 2014

NYX Love in Paris Palette Review

Hello again!
Behold! Something lovely this way comes. This was a complete impulse buy - randomly browsing the NYX stand at my local Clicks, I thought "Oh, pretty!" and popped this palette in my basket.


This is the Love in Paris palette in the shade Je Ne Sais Quoi. Ain't it pretty?
I'll start by saying that a primer is a must for these shadows. Without a primer, the colours aren't as bold or vibrant as I would like, and they slip off the lids after a couple hours.


Looking at the first row: the first colour is a lovely, shimmery champagne that is gorgeous as a highlight in the inner corner (it's also lovely to press on the lid over a darker shade for some sparkle). Next is a pretty dark brown with golden flecks - I love this shade for deepening the outer corner or running along the upper and lower lashlines for some subtle liner. The last one in this row is disappointing for me; it's a cool-toned light brown with duo-chrome shimmer that doesn't really look like anything on the lid. I wish this shade was more vibrant, because it's so so pretty in the pan.

Second row: first up is a matte, warm brown; this shade is gorgeously pigmented and a great transition colour! It's great on it's own, in the crease, or used to smoke out black liner. The middle one is a lovely, shimmery, warm-toned light brown, which is pretty on the lid, but needs a few layers to show up the same colour as in the pan. Lastly, we have a satin cream colour, which is a perfect browbone highlight!

Third row: this first one is a bit tricky: it's basically a silver glitter, and it's hard to work with on its own. However, this shade is stunning when patted on the lid with a finger! It adds a really pretty glitter to any look that might be a bit lacking. The next one is a plum shade with some sparkly flecks, but it's almost matte on the eye. This one is lovely on its own, under the bottom lashes, or used in the crease to warm things up a bit. Finally, the last shade: this one is fantastic! It's a completely matte, super-intense black. How hard is it to find one of those?! This shade is great for making any look more dramatic, and I really love it as a liner: I take a small angled brush, press the shade into my lashline, wing it out a bit, smoke it out with the matte brown and I'm good to go!

Have you tried this palette or others from the Love in Paris range? What are your thoughts?
Until next time xx

Friday, 26 September 2014

Thoughts on Empties

Hello loves!

I've only really been into trying out and comparing makeup for around 2 years, and this is literally the first time I've ever re-purchased a product. My Ralo Brilliant Lash Mascara is almost ready to be tossed away and I must say, I almost had a little panic when I discovered this! As a result, I hurriedly dashed off to get a new one! This is a really wet mascara and can't be applied too hastily (tried that - big mess), but it's so beautifully lengthening and defining that it's totally worth the faff! If you haven't tried it, it gets a huge thumbs up from me.

Another thing that I recently ran out of was the Catrice Re-touch Light-reflecting Concealer. Now I really did like this! It was so easy to apply, it covered up blemishes, redness and under-eye circles, and it felt like there was nothing on my skin. However, I'm not going to repurchase this. It finished so quickly, and I've had other concealers that lasted much longer and only cost half the price! If you're looking for an affordable concealer pen, then I recommend this one, but I'm much happier with my longer-lived stick concealer.

Lastly, I've been using the Clicks Skin Essentials 3 in 1 Facial Wipes, and I've nearly gone through a pack of them. These wipes are excellent; they're gentle, remove all my makeup, and have a pleasantly fresh scent. These are supposed to cleanse, tone and remove makeup, but I wouldn't use them in place of skincare products. They're also really inexpensive and remove waterproof eye makeup in just a few swipes.

Have you tried any of these products? Let me know :).
Until next time xx

Monday, 8 September 2014

Spring Nails

Hello lovelies!
I found this gorgeous nail polish at Ralo the other day, and I love it so much that I just had to share it with you.
It's from their Professional range and it's one of the quick drying ones. I just really liked the lilac colour; I though it would be very pretty for Spring and I didn't have anything like it in my collection. After wearing this polish, I only have good things to say about it. I applied two coats to get the desired opacity and I am so so happy with the finish! It looks shiny and gel-like, and lasted several days on my nails without chipping. As an added bonus, this polish was also super easy to remove! I hate it when it takes three or four cotton pads to remove my nail colour, but this one completely vanished after one! This one is a goodie, and I recommend it if you're looking for a cute Spring colour.

What are your favourite shades for Spring?
Until next time xx 

Friday, 15 August 2014

"Beat the Winter Blues" Makeup Look

Hello lovely people!
I absolutely LOVE this kind of look for when I'm feeling down and need a little pick-me-up (this happens frequently in winter because I can't stand the cold!).  So this is what I like to wear to beat the winter blues:
  • Catrice Re-touch Light-reflecting Concealer in light beige on any spots or scars
  • Beauty Treats Love Crush Bronzer in 02 on the cheeks and eyes
  • Ralo Jumbo Eyeliner Pencil in Cocoa along the upper lash-line
  • Ralo Brilliant Lash Mascara
  • Wet n Wild MegaLast Lipstick in Sugar Plum Fairy with a bit of clear or pink gloss over the top.




So for those of us in the Southern Hemisphere, just hang on a little longer! Spring is around the corner :)
Does anyone else love a bright lipstick to perk up their mood? Let me know!

Until next time xx

Sunday, 10 August 2014

Over-night Makeup Bag

Hello everyone! Today I though I'd share with you what I pack in my makeup bag when I'm not at home. I don't always pack the same things, but this is the standard amount and types of products that I take with me.


I don't wear foundation every day, but I have some scars and spots that I usually want to hide; for that I use Catrice's Re-touch Light-reflecting Concealer Pen in the colour 020 Light Beige. Then I have the Prime and Fine Eyeshadow Base also from Catrice. For eyeshadow I like to take a palette so that I have some options to work with. Here I took with me the Wet n Wild Walking the Red Carpet one, and I just had a little shading brush as well. I took Ralo's Jumbo Eyeliner Pencil in Coco and the Catrice Lashes to Kill Volume Mascara. Lastly, I had with me a mineral brush to use with the Beauty Treats Love Crush Bronzer in the shade 02 (this is great because it works as a bronzer and a blush!).
That's it! I like to keep things really simple when I go away, just so that I don't have to pack a whole lot of stuff.

Let me know what you pack in your over-night makeup bag :)
Until next time xx

Sunday, 3 August 2014

Clicks and Dischem Haul

Hello lovelys! So another haul... typical me.

First up from Clicks is this Wet n Wild H2O Proof Liquid Eyeliner in the shade Black Brown (I meant to pick up the black one, but didn't check the label... oops). This stuff is seriously waterproof and needs a good oil to remove. I'm still getting used to the brush, which is like very hard felt.

Then I also saw this Clicks brand duo-fibre Mineral Brush - I've been looking for something like this for a while, so I am really glad that I came across it!

As seen in my previous post, I was seriously attracted to this Wet n Wild Walking the Red Carpet palette (which I think is a fantastic purchase).

 I saw this Beauty Treats Love Crush Bronzer at Dischem and I thought I'd give it a try. It just looks so cute and it was really inexpensive.

After looking for a good orangy-coral for a little while, I finally found the Maybelline Color Sensational Vivid Lipstick in the shade Vibrant Mandarin. I'm soooo excited to try this out for spring and summer!

And lastly, back to Clicks, I purchased two of the Wet n Wild Megalast Lipsticks in the shades Sugar Plum Fairy (which is a lovely pinky-purple) and Rosebud (a pretty pink).

I hope everyone is having a great Sunday :)
Until next time xx

Sunday, 27 July 2014

Wet n Wild Walking the Red Carpet Palette Review

Aloha!
I saw this new Wet n Wild palette (#StudentBudget) at Clicks recently and I was a bit indecisive about whether or not to pick it up. I thought some of the shades might be similar to the Comfort Zone palette, which I already have, but the two golden shades and the light matte brown are what convinced me to buy it.


The left-hand column has a matte light pink, matte light brown, a gorgeous slightly shimmery brown and a dark matte brown, all of which are just as buttery and soft as I've come to expect from this line. The pink and light brown shades are lovely for blending out darker colours, and the brown is also great as a crease contour. The shimmery brown is absolutely stunning! It's a great colour for all over the lid and has the most beautiful, subtle sparkle to it that I just love.Then the definer shade is super dark, so it's great for lining the eyes or creating a smokey look.


On the right-hand side, we have a pearly white, glittery yellow-gold, a shimmery copper-golden colour, and rich chocolate brown with golden shimmer. The white is a gorgeous highlight for the inner corner and the chocolate is so smooth and beautiful for placing all over the lid or in the outer corners. These two shades are soft and creamy. The two golden shades are more difficult to work with. The yellow-gold is a bit dry and flaky, so although it's a very pretty colour, it tends to have some fall-out and can be difficult to blend. The copper-gold is more creamy than the yellow one and doesn't have the fall-out problem, but it's also just a little more difficult to work with than the other shades.


The pigmentation of all the shades is really amazing and won't let you down if you're a fan of Wet n Wild shadows. Overall, I think this is a versatile palette that would be a great one to pick up if you don't have these sort of shades already. This is a limited edition palette, so hurry to your nearest Clicks if you want to pick one up! There's also a limited edition purple palette, but I decided not to get that one.

Let me know if you've tried this palette or the purple one! I'd love to know what you think of them.
Until next time xx