Lipstick -Revlon - Moon Drops - Hot Coral 712
whatisaspacebar 10/6/2011 9:22:00 PM
This is a lovely colour that grabs attention. I normally avoid bold reds/oranges as they clash with my cool, fair skin. When applied light to medium on my lips, this colour looks gorgeous. I noticed a lot of people looking the first time I wore it- in a good way! I lined my lips with Max Factor 'Fire' lipliner and put a bit of clear gloss on my lips to complete the look. I teamed it with a smokey eye look which worked really well. Even as the lipstick wore off, it still looked lovely. Hot Coral has a 60's glamour quality to it (think Mad Men) that I really like. It's a POP colour but not in a gaudy, over-the-top way. Looks really good when worn with a black dress. Check it out. Will repurchase when the need arises.
3 out of 3 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Cleansers -LUSH - Angels on Bare Skin
whatisaspacebar 9/18/2011 8:40:00 AM
I'm onto my second tub of this. I have dry, sensitive skin and find it soothes, softens and generally makes my skin feel refreshed and "clean". I need to point out that I DON'T use it to remove make up, or as an exfoliator. Not really sure the product is meant for those things anyway. I clean my skin/ remove make up first then use AOBS, then moisturise. Sometimes I let it dry and leave it on like a facial mask (well it is basically clay anyway) , then rinse off. Works a treat. Potential cons could be the smell- not that I find it objectionable- and messiness of the seeds in it- again not something I personally find unmanageable. Really good for sensitive skin because there's no alcohol or other nasties in it. I'll repurchase for sure.
3 out of 3 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Blush -MAC - Sheertone Blush in Coygirl
whatisaspacebar 8/31/2011 11:48:00 PM
A fabulous colour for fair cool skin. It looks very bleh in the pan- a lilac tinged pink- but really compliments my complexion when applied. It's easy to build and blend, and looks very natural on the skin. A winner for people who need blue toned pinks for their cheekbones. It's replaced Dame as my HG blush- so obviously I will repurchase.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Eye Shadow -MAC - Plumage - Matte e/s
whatisaspacebar 8/28/2011 11:49:00 AM
A WOW colour for green eyes (particularly olive/sea green eyes). I wear it lightly on the lid with a black smokey eye and it makes my eyes P.O.P! Wearing it, my eyes have a gravitational pull that other people's eyes are drawn too- in a good way! It's very pigmented and is easy to blend. Note: Due to the hefty import tax placed on make-up in Australia I always rate Mac products as very expensive- $33 for a small pan of eyeshadow is ridonkulous!
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Misc Beauty Tools -Clarisonic - Pro Skincare Brush
whatisaspacebar 8/28/2011 11:42:00 AM
With a product like this I think it's helpful to update my results as a guide for others. My skin can be best described as fair, cool, dry, sensitive with early signs of sun damage and age spots/light wrinkles. I should also mention I recently swapped from using sorbelene cream to cetaphil moisturising cream for dry, sensitive skin as I realised sorbelene was really drying my skin out. For reference, I am using the clarisonic sensitive head. Day 1: Skin was very inflamed on the cheeks immediately after use; however skin already looked smoother and glowing. Used (am using) the cleansing lotion sample that came with clarisonic. Day 2: Skin looks healthier, skin did not get inflamed after use. Pin sized acne has appeared on a few places on my cheeks (never ever had acne there before). Day 3: Skin still looks fresh, but more acne has appeared on my cheeks and side of my face. Day 4: Stopped using clarisonic cleanser and used cetaphil cleanser for sensitive skin instead. No more breakouts and skin feels better. Day 5: No more acne. Skin looks glowing, fresh, smooth and healthy. Fine wrinkles around eyes improved- but not gone. Pores still visible (but only if I lean close to a mirror). Skin tone has markedly improved! So, after one week of using the clarisonic I'm very pleased with the results. My skin has acquired a softer feel and look and generally feels "happier". The tight, dry feeling has completely gone. Unfortunately, as I switched using sorbelene to cetaphil moisturising cream, I'm not sure how much is the clarisonic and how much is the new moisturiser. Pretty sure it's 99.9% the clarisonic's doing. Oh, and despite what other people have said, the clarisonic DOES exfoliate the skin. Unless you have the skin of a rhinoceros, then I'm pretty sure a giant brush whizzing over your face will polish and lightly exfoliate your skin. I was very nervous purchasing this rather expensive product but it's proven its worth thus far a hundred times over. I'm a cynical person and I've been convinced. Will update again if I notice any further +ve or -ve changes in my skin. My only advice would be to use the cleanser that agrees with your skin rather than the samples that come with the clarisonic. I'm certain they are what caused my initial acne flare ups (I don't believe in this so called "skin purging" I've read about). They stopped completely as soon as I switched to cetaphil. All in all an excellent investment for my skin and my appearance! UPDATE: It's been 2 weeks now and my skin has no breakouts and looks healthier and fresher than it has in years. My makeup applies evenly and I find myself using a lot less of it as my skin appearance has improved beyond my expectations. I look younger. I've started using the clarisonic twice a day- morning and evening and my skin is handling it fine. I wish wish wish I'd bought one of these miracle wands years ago. 2nd UPDATE: So it's been a few months now and my skin remains smooth and healthier/younger feeling/looking. Have learned though, that you shouldn't use it evening and morning- once a day is enough- as it can agitate the skin and cause breakouts. When this happened, I let my skin "settle" and stopped using the clarisonic for a few days. Other than that- it's marvellous.
10 out of 10 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Conditioner -Pantene - Pro-V Always Smooth Conditioner
whatisaspacebar 8/24/2011 9:17:00 PM
Attention fellow thick wavy/curly haired girls- consider this conditioner to help you tame the beast! For years I bought shampoo and conditioner for dry hair, coarse hair or curly hair. I read Dita Von Teese used this conditioner and she's always got fantastic hair. So I tried this because I wanted to see if could calm the frizz and make it look sleek. It did and it still does. Basically, it makes my hair go into long, non-frizzy curls (I comb it under the shower when adding the shampoo then rinse and add this to the bottom section of my long hair, rinse. Then I add mousse to it while it's wet to set it) and makes it sit like a 1940s glamour-do. I use the matching shampoo for it too. Ah, bliss. I guess the only downside to this is, whereas my other shampoos for curly or dry hair made my hair dry in such a way that I could wear it again the next day without washing, I find this one gives me great hair for one day but my curls look mangled and misshapen the next morning and I have to rewash it or tie it up. A small price to pay- much like the cost of this conditioner. I'm very happy with it.
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Moisturizers -MAC - Strobe Cream
whatisaspacebar 8/15/2011 9:47:00 AM
Glowing, dewy, radiant healthy skin. If you don't have this naturally, then strobe cream will fake it for you. I prefer to use it as a contour rather than over my entire face. I'm so impressed by this product because it's easy to use, doesn't harm my sensitive skin and actually delivers on it's promise to make skin glow. I hate to admit this, but this stuff is "mac crack"- I'm addicted and I will repurchase!
3 out of 3 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Lip Gloss -NARS - Lip Lacquer in Chelsea Girls
whatisaspacebar 8/14/2011 9:56:00 AM
I can't decide whether it smells more like rancid zinc sunscreen, or a mix of hay and horse manure. Either way, it's aromatic... for all the wrong reasons. CG is a muted pinky beige colour that would suit most people I suppose... but it needs constant reapplying, and the realisation that I am accidentally ingesting that foul smelling gloss is a bit stomach turning. Frankly, there is a plethora of better options to buy than CG. I'm going to use it until it's gone (because it was pricey) then NEVER repurchase.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Eyes -Revlon - Colorstay 12 Hour Eyeshadow quad "Lavender Meadow"
whatisaspacebar 8/11/2011 1:29:00 PM
Well you know something's good when you hesitate writing a review for it because you want to keep the secret to yourself. This is a great quad for green eyes. The bottom shadow- a dark lavender- is pretty much my "go to" colour. It emphasises my eyes in a really flattering way. Recently, I got bored and explored the mac range of shadows. Honestly, they were more expensive and nowhere near as workable as the Revlon shadows. I'll have to keep using them to get my money's worth but at least I've learned to value Revlon's superior eye shadows. I use the dark lavender shadow with black, with a dark plum, with light eggplants, with babydoll pinks- with a mix of all of them or on its own. It's got excellent application control so you can wear it sheer or opaque. It's such a gorgeous colour that no matter how many other shades I try, I always end up coming back to this one. I just wish Revlon made it in a solo case- I seldom use the other shades so it's a bit wasteful. Love it love it love it!
4 out of 4 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Mascara -L'Oreal - Voluminous Million Lashes
whatisaspacebar 8/7/2011 10:13:00 AM
Lies! It does not give you thick, enviable lashes. At best, it applies a fairly modest coat. no length, no thickness, no joy! I'm a BIG fan of L'oreal's Lash Architect (pretty much my HG), so this was a HUGE disappointment. Go buy Lash Architect for something closer to a million lashes. Buy this and you're wasting your money.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Eye Shadow -MAC - Shadowy Lady
whatisaspacebar 8/7/2011 8:36:00 AM
A great colour for green eyes- as all dark purples seem to be. It takes several applications to make it show up on your skin which is annoying- but it blends really well and you can build and build and build it on. I found that if I apply a "base" shadow, something gold or beige like mac's kid first, then shadowy lady isn't so "shadowy" as it were and takes fewer applications to make it "solid". If you're after a matt shadow that goes on strongly, I'd recommend you check out some of the Revlon eyeshadows. I would repurchase this colour because I like the way it blends with other colours and compliments my eye colour, but perhaps it's not for everyone. I encourage people to try before they buy. EDIT: I dug into my pan a little to get a powdery amount on my fingertip. It goes on amazingly heavily that way and is easy to blend. It's a great colour when it decides to show up! I'll probably repurchase because it's so flattering to my green eyes. Still love Revlon's Lavender Meadow eyeshadow the best though. All mac products are expensive in Australia due to the import tax so I've rated it accordingly.
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Skincare - Body -Bio Oil - All Products
whatisaspacebar 8/6/2011 11:30:00 PM
So here's my personal experience of using Bio-Oil. Over hyped, yucky feeling bleh oil. I have sensitive, dry skin with the first signs of sun damage on my cheeks. I got this oil because it was supposed to be a magnificent cure-all for so many skin afflictions. It felt awful on, like my skin was being smothered and did not sink in well. I never felt overly moisturised and it did not visibly improve the look of my skin. But I persisted because everyone was raving about it. So imagine my relief when I discovered it contains a lot of those chemical nasties that we're meant to avoid. I threw out the rest of my bottle with a sense of relief. My sister is a neurologist who is ridiculously thorough when it comes to researching any topic. When she was pregnant, she did not use Bio-Oil to keep stretch marks away; she used concentrated vitamin e. Recently, I've gone back to using virgin olive oil and coarsely ground sea salt as an exfoliant for my face. It's made it smoother, clearer and shaved back the dull, aged look that was settling into my features. To the ladies who love this product (although I agree with another reviewer who suspects a lot of these are fake reviews by the company to sell product), I'm truly happy for ya. For me, it felt like scented baby oil (and hopefully you already know how BAD baby oil is for your skin) and was about as useful. Do some research on it first- outside of anonymous reviewers- before you purchase it. Sophie Uliano's book 'Gorgeously Green' has a great section on make-up and all the nasties.
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Mascara -BeneFit Cosmetics - They're Real
whatisaspacebar 8/6/2011 10:35:00 PM
PROS: -Does lengthen your lashes- significantly so. I noticed it made my eyes look wider because the lashes were pulled up and out. -Brush spikes give you good control CONS: -Does not thicken lashes- the sales girl will lie and say it does. I found applying several coats makes it clump and I end up looking like I have those "drawn on" sad clown lashes. -Despite checking with the seller first about how easy it is to remove (she assured me it was very easy), after using make-up remover, face steaming and moisturiser cream, and thinking everything was hunky-dory, I woke up the next day and one of my eyes was sealed shut. I had little clumps of mascara all over my lashes. That's never happened with any mascara I've used before. I find it's quite difficult to remove. I use olive oil to break it down and thick moisturiser to clear the rest. Summary: depends what you want in your mascara. If you're after plump volume- give They're Real a miss. If you simply want length then you'll ADORE it. Personally really to love what it does for my lashes and will repurchase. Best mascara I've ever tried.
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Lipstick -MAC - Cyber
whatisaspacebar 8/5/2011 12:56:00 PM
A very dramatic "vampire/ gothic" dark purple/berry colour. I'm going to be blunt and say it's a "young person's" shade. On me, I dab a light amount on my lips (I stress LIGHT amount otherwise it's too overpowering) and apply a soft pink lipgloss over the top to dilute the colour and give it a nice shine. Mac 'currant' lipliner is a good match for cyber- when worn lightly. Cyber works well with dark hair. I haven't had a problem with feathering like some other reviewers have mentioned. A strong colour that lasts on the lips. I'd probably repurchase it as it's good value for money; especially considering how long one tube is going to last me. Note: All mac products get a high rating for price from me as Australia's luxury import tax makes them VERY expensive. $36 for a tube of lipstick :(
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Brows -MAC - Impeccable Brow Pencil - Taupe
whatisaspacebar 8/5/2011 12:43:00 PM
Very waxy which means it's hard to over apply and accidentally look like a Disney Villain. Suits dark brown eyebrows nicely. I (ambitiously) tried 'Dirty Blonde' first and found it was too light. Looks natural on- a must try for dark haired lasses!
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No