Friday 27 July 2012

Lust Have It July 2012


Better late than never! I finally got my July Lust Have It box today :)

Here we go.....

Baby Foot
This is a chemical exfoliatior for your feet. This kind of creeps me out. I don't know if I want my skin to peel for 2-7 days. That said, the instructions say you leave it on your feet for 2 hours. Sure, any excuse to put my feet up for a couple of hours and catch up on some TV sounds good. I'll let you know how I go.

Matrix Deep Smoothing Shampoo and Conditioner
I've always been interested to try matrix hair products. This range smooths frizzy and unruly hair. Yep that's me! I love the size of these samples too. Great for travelling.

Mirenesse Velvet Lip Lift Moisture Shine (No. 8)
I have never tried mirenesse lip glosses before so this should be interesting. I got a nudey brown colour. The blurb says it is extremely long wearing so I'm excited to test this out.

Avene Gentle Eye Make-Up Remover
This is a gel formula eye makeup remover. I generally like Avene. It was raining today so I was wearing waterproof mascara. Let's see how we go. It's a good travel size for makeup remover.

Avene Ystheal+ Cream
This is a retinol anti-aging cream from Avene. I use a prescription retinoid, so I won't get any use from this. I might pass it on.


All in all, not a bad box from lust have it. I just wasn't wowed by it, but it's pretty solid. Enough to keep me waiting for next months already!

What did you get in your box this month?

First Impressions: Garnier BB Cream Oil-Free (Oily/Combination Skin)



Garnier recently came out with a new BB Cream in their Miracle Skin Perfector range that is oil-free and aimed at oily & combination skin types. I paid AUD$11 for this during Priceline's 20% off sale (as of today it's still on!). I've been wearing it for a few days and I thought I'd give you an initial impressions review.

I was not a fan of the original Garnier BB Cream. It is very emollient and I found it never really set on my combination skin. It also has practically no coverage. I am pleased to say the Oil-free version is a completely different beast.
Left: Garnier Miracle Skin Perfector (original), Right: Garnier BB Cream Oil-free

The packaging is quite an elegant slimline squeezy tube with a pointy tip. It doesn't scream cheap and I prefer it to the original one. Scent wise - it is fragrance free so doesn't smell much, which is a massive bonus as the original has that awful fake "fresh" scent.

The texture of the Garnier Oil-free BB is very runny, not thick and creamy like the original. It is exceptionally easy to spread and doesn't set too quickly so you have time to work it.
Left: Original, Right: Oil-free

Colour wise, I have both these creams in Light and I prefer the yellow tone of the Oil-free version. The colour is also slightly lighter than the original. If you are super pale then Light will be too dark for you, it is leaning on too dark for me but I can work with it.
Left: Original, Right: Oil-free

The finish is surprisingly beautiful. It's a nice soft matte, very skin like. It is light to almost medium coverage and is particularly good at hiding areas of redness. The oil control is good, but not fantastic. I am oily on my nose and I still need to apply a mattifying primer to this area before applying the cream. I love the finish of this. Count me very surprised. It lasts around 8-10 hours and makes my skin feel so silky. I would happily wear it as an everyday natural coverage make up if it weren't for a couple of drawbacks for me.

Garnier BB Cream Oil-free Ingredients

Firstly, the only sunscreen I see is ethylhexyl methocycinnamate. This does not give any UVA protection that I can see (let me know if I'm wrong... they don't actually list the "actives"). Maybe a tiny bit of titanium dioxide - but that doesn't cover all UVA rays and I'm not sure if there's enough for it to be active. UVA rays age you and cause skin cancer. A separate sunscreen is a must, which is frustrating for an all-in-one product. Secondly, there is a high concentration of alcohol, which I am not happy with putting on my skin everyday as it dries my skin out and sensitises it.

Ahhhhh this is such a shame because I really love the formulation. Because I love the formulation so much I will use it on the sneaky, maybe if I'm just popping out to the supermarket or something and don't need the SPF. Overall my review is mixed. I'm sorry I can't come up with a more conclusive opinion.

Have you tried it?



Saturday 21 July 2012

Dry, winter skin - My Heroes!


So I have had a very busy week without much time to think of what on earth I was going to blog about. As luck would have it, I was reading the forums on beautyheaven and someone posted about dry skin under the eyes. This problem has plagued me alllllll winter and I have finally solved it! On the basis of such success, I thought I would share with you how I try to keep my skin hydrated over the cold, dry months.

1. SHE Pure Lift Eye Cream
I have been using this eye cream day and night for the past couple of weeks and it is awesome for the following reasons:
* Hydrating, yet lightweight
* Sinks in quickly
* Works well under concealer
* Does not irritate my skin
* Does not cause milia

Nuff said.. and it's only $14.95 from Priceline.

2. Clinique Moisture Surge
Clinique moisture surge is a lighweight, watery gel moisturiser. I don't use this moisturiser on it's own as it's not moisturising enough for me. It's designed to be used to supplement your moisturiser, and I find it's fantastic for that. It also leaves your skin silky and prepped for makeup without the silicone feel. It does have dimethicone in it, but in such small quantities it's not really worth noting. I slather this on over my normal moisturiser and also have a travel size in my purse to pat on over my makeup during the day if there are any dry and flakies. As you can see by how far through this jar I am, I LOVE THIS STUFF. Oh and also harmless on my acne prone skin.

Ingredients: Water, Cyclopentasiloxane, Butylene Glycol, Glycerin, Betula Alba (Birch) Bark Extract, Silybum Marianum (Lady's Thistle) Extract, Camellia Sinensis (Green Tea) Leaf Extract, Saccharomyces Lysate Extract, Sucrose, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Water, Trehalose, Hydroxyethyl Urea, Sorbitol, Oleth-10, Tromethamine, Caffeine, Hydrogenated Lecithin, Hydrolyzed Extensin, Sodium Hyaluronate, Tocopheryl Acetate, Palmitoyl Oligopeptide, Caprylyl Glycol, Dimethicone, Glyceryl Polymethacrylate, PEG-8, Ammonium
Acryloyldimethyltaurate/VP Copolymer, Magnesium Ascorbyl Phosphate, Carbomer, Hexylene Glycol, Disodium EDTA, Phenoxyethanol, Red 4 , Yellow 5

Available at Clinique counters.

3. Avene Eau Thermale (Thermal Spring Water)
This is a must have for me. Yes, I hear you all saying "just put water in a spray bottle". But I really like the mist that comes out of the Avene can. It takes ages for me to go through one of these bottles, so I will suffer the cost. I use this every morning after I finish my makeup as it makes my skin feel fresh and hydrated. It's also great to cool and soother the skin. Ahhhh the miracle that is water.

Available at Priceline and selected pharmacies.

4. Paula's Choice RESIST Weekly Resurfacing Treatment (10% Glycolic Acid)
For me, keeping dry winter skin at bay means two things: Hydration and Exfoliation. I find it particularly hard not to have a bit of dry skin because my skin is acne prone so I can't slather it in rich oils or butter, and also because I use epiduo topical treatment (adapalene and benzoyl peroxide). In order to keep my skin smooth and soft I use glycolic acid.

What is glycolic acid?
Glycolic acid is an alpha-hydroxy acid (AHA) produced from sugar cane. AHAs in low concentrations loosen the bonds between cells on the outermost layer of your skin. Basically, they get in there and take the top layer of your skin off. This may sounds nasty but if you've ever used a physical exfoliator with ground seeds or little beads, that is doing more than just taking off the top layer of your skin! Ouch.

How I lived without glycolic acid I'll never know. My pores are now clear and my skin smooth. My treatment of the moment is this 10% glycolic resurfacing treatment from Paula's Choice. For my skin, there is no irritation. I put this on once a week after cleansing in the evening, let it sit for half an hour and if my skin is tight I'll use some Clinique Moisture Surge gel. I've found exfoliating treatments work better without a moisturiser.

Ingredients: Water, Methylpropanediol (slip agent/penetration enhancer), Glycolic Acid (alpha hydroxy acid/exfoliant), Butylene Glycol (slip agent), Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice (water-binding agent), Sodium Hydroxide (pH adjuster), Camellia Sinensis (Green Tea) Leaf Extract (antioxidant), Sodium Ascorbyl Phosphate (vitamin C/antioxidant), Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate, Glycyrrhiza Glabra (Licorice) Root Extract (anti-irritants), Vitis Vinifera (Grape) Seed Extract (antioxidant),Arctium Lappa (Burdock) Root Extract, Avena Sativa (Oat) Kernel Extract (anti-irritants), Borago Officinalis (Borage) Extract, Boerhavia Diffusa Root Extract (antioxidants), Chamomilla Recutita (Matricaria) Flower Extract (anti-irritant), Lamium Album (White Nettle) Flower Extract (antioxidant), Salix Nigra (Willow) Bark Extract, Salix Alba (Willow) Bark Extract, Ulmus Fulva (Slippery Elm) Bark Extract (anti-irritants), Glycerin (skin-identical ingredient), Allantoin (anti-irritant) Propylene Glycol (solvent), Tetrasodium EDTA (chelating agent), Phenoxyethanol (preservative).

Paula's Choice has a range of great exfoliators and you can order samples and buy online here.

5. Haus of Gloi Sugar Exfoliant (Twice is Nice)
Exfoliating your body to keep it from getting dry and flaky is just as important as looking after your face. I've found these Haus of Gloi sugar scrubs to be amazing in winter. As you can see from the ingredients, it is choc-full of beneficial oils so it moisturises as well as scrubs. The scents are to die for. I'm using the Twice is Nice scent at the moment, I don't love it as much as some of the others, it's a bit sweet. I love the formulation though. My favorite scent is "depravity".. so decadent!

Haus of Gloi

6. Nuxe Reve de Miel Baume Levres (lip balm)
Ahhhhh Nuxe Reve de Miele lip balm, where were you all my life? This lip balm from the French skincare company, Nuxe, is amazing on my super dry lips. It is a super thick, waxy, putty like texture with a matt finish on your lips. For this reason I don't like using it during the day. I find my lipsticks don't spread well when I've applied this. I do however use it every evening. I use it after I've cleansed and then just before I turn the lights out to go to sleep. It is so hydrating and nothing moisturises quite like it. It also has a beautiful honey, beeswax scent. L.O.V.E.

I purchased mine from lifeandlooks here.


What is one product you can't live without in winter?

Wednesday 18 July 2012

Bellabox July 2012


This is my second Bellabox and count me impressed for the second time. Look how many samples there are! There is one thing I don't like, but maybe that's just me and I'm sure many people would appreciate it. All in all fantastic and I'm looking forward to next month's already :)

Neutrogena deep clean invigorating ultra-foam cleanser
Woah that is a long name! This is a full size cleanser - tick. However I hate Neutrogena cleansers with menthol. Why?! Why?! Why?! It bugs me so much to add menthol. It feels awful and irritates my skin to kingdom come. Does anyone like menthol in cleansers? It seems such a waste for lots of cleansers I would otherwise like.

Neutrogena deep clean gentle scrub (oil free)
This scrub looks nice and I look forward to trying it when I'm off my physical scrub ban.

Classic Carmex
For me carmex is like blistex's more moisturising cousin. I love me some carmex so 2 thumbs up. I do wish I got the strawberry stick I saw some people got because I've been wanting to try it. But still happy with this.

Nutri-Synergy Sensitive Skin Cleanser
This is a fantastic basic, moisturising cleanser for sensitive skin. The ingredients are very similar to the John Plunkett Anti-Aging Creme Cleanser... not surprising because this is made by John Plunkett too. I really like this style of cleansers to use after my foaming cleanser in the evening and by itself in the morning as they're moisturising and don't irritate my sensitive and acne-prone skin.

You, me & everybody Shady Lady Daily Face Milk SPF30+
I'm looking forward to trying this. I hope it doesn't irritate my skin as a fair few sunscreens do. If anyone is as nutso as me for ingredients, I emailed the company and asked for a full list of ingredients as only actives are listed on the box. Here they are: Caprylyl glycol, d-alpha-Tocopherol, Dexpanthenol, Glycerol, Octanohydroxamic acid and water. That's a great, short ingredients list with no ingredients that really concern me. I will update you on how this goes.

elf Eyeliner Brush
I don't love these flat eyeliner brushes, but impressed to see a brush included in the box.

Royal Moroccan The Platinum Series (Shampoo, Conditioner and Hair serum)
Another moroccan oil rip off jumping on the bandwagon. I'll use these and it's nice to receive a full set but not overly excited about the range itself.

Ulta3 Nail Polish in mulberry
What a gorgeous autumn/winter shade. Might put this on tonight!

Givenchy pi neo
This is a men's fragrance. The notes of aniseed, cedarwood, patchouli and vanilla sound right up my ally. Can't wait for my husband to get home from his business trip so I can force this one on him ;)


What did you think of this month's Bellabox?

Sunday 15 July 2012

NOTD: 1000 Hour Nail Foils in Pink Swirl

I tried nail stickers for the first time today. These are the 1000 hour nail foils in the design Pink Swirl. They were pretty easy to apply, just stick on your nail and file the ends off. Annoyingly, I have small nails and there weren't enough small sizes for my nails and I kind of had to hack at them a bit with some scissors.

I'm very interested about how long these will last on my nails!



What do you think? Pink and pretty!


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Thursday 12 July 2012

11 Questions Tag


Kristy Louise (here: http://summerxmermaids.blogspot.com.au/tagged me for the 11 questions tag. Being my second week in and I totally forgot to start off with an intro to me post, it's not a bad time for me to answer the questions so everyone can get to know me.

The rules:
·    Each person must post 11 things about themselves on their own blog
·    Answer the questions the tagger has sent you, as well as create 11 new questions for your 'taggers' to answer
·    Choose 11 people to tag and link them in your post  ... hmmm I don''t really know that many bloggers yet to tag!

11 facts:
1.  I love cycling
2.  I'm pretty short, coming in at a smidge under 5'4"
3.  I've been married for one (blissful) year
4.  Our small apartment is shared by a little Japanese Spitz puppy and a cat
5.  I'm studying for a PhD
6.  18 months ago my beauty product drawer consisted of a mineral powder, one eyeshadow, one blush and one mascara and one lipstick
7.  If I drink coffee after 2pm I can't sleep until well after midnight
8.  I am one of four siblings
9.  If I had to give up chocolate or caramel I would probably give up chocolate
10. I wish we had HBO in Australia
11. I can't stand sultanas in baked goods - the texture makes me vom - gross squished ants    


11 questions from Kristy:
1. Who is your Fashion style icon?
This one is tough, I kind of do my own thing. I really like Rachel Bilson's effortless, laid back style.
2. Who is your Beauty style icon?
I think Emma Stone is gorgeous and I love her fresh faced look.
3. What is your earliest memory from your childhood?
Haha this one is so sad. I remember walking down the street with my Mum and her giving me some of her Mint Pattie. To this day I love dark chocolate and mint.
4. First celebrity crush?
I never really went celebrity crazy when I was younger. Maybe being married does something to you because right now I have the biggest crush on Alexander Skarsgard (Eric from True Blood).
5. What time do you wake up on a weekday?
5am if I'm going cycling, otherwise 6:30.
6. If you could change anything about yourself, what would it be?
I have a couple of chronic health problems I would wish away.
7. What is your all time favourite song?
I am such a music slut that I don't know if I could name one. The first song that popped into my head was Adele - someone like you. I think I will be loving this one for a while.
8.  What is your holy-grail makeup product?
The only product I currently have that I would repurchase without question when it runs out is my MAC mineralize skinfinish natural in Medium (except I think maybe I would like to try Light+...so just a different colour!).
9. Favourite memory of being a teenager?
So many! I think all the memories of sleepovers with a couple of my girlfriends are hard to beat. I just don't spend so much girly time with my friends these days.
10. What is your favourite movie?
So many questions where I just have to name one favorite! I just don't swing that way ;) Hmmm GATTACA, The Fifth Element, Top Gun, The Princess Bride, Austin Powers, Zoolander.
11. What is your favourite way to unwind after a hard/stressful day?
Take the dog out for a walk with my partner and just enjoy being outside and let the stress melt away.

11 questions from me:
1. How often do you wash your hair?
2. If you could live a day over again, which one would it be?
3. What would you have for your last meal?
4. What's your favorite TV show?
5. What 5 items would you take with you to a desert island?
6. Maltesers... suck or crunch?
7. Describe your ultimate makeup product.
8. Where would you most like to visit in the world?
9. Which celebrity would you invite to dinner?
10. What is the best book you read last year?
11. What is the most attractive feature in men (or if you prefer, women)?

I wonder if it's like those chain mails and if I don't pass it on then I'm going to get warts all over my body and someone I love will break their leg or something. Just in case I've linked 11 random blogs that I follow (obviously I don't expect them all to do the tag, but in the interest of promotion for some wonderful ladies... ta-da!):

http://shrinkingwallet.blogspot.com/
http://my-cup-of-tequila.blogspot.com/
http://fridayisforever.blogspot.com/
http://kathrynsbeautyblog.blogspot.com/
http://www.chelseawears.com/
http://sprinkleofglitter.blogspot.com/
http://schoee.blogspot.com/
http://www.amarixe.com/
http://crosswiredreamers.blogspot.com/
http://www.eatpaintsniffglue.com/
http://www.essiebutton.com/

Puppy vs Chanel

Chanel wins this time.

Puppy beat Dior last week!

Tuesday 10 July 2012

Rimmel cream gel, Revlon whipped creme... it all sounds like desert to me!

UPDATE: Revlon Colorstay Whipped Creme Makeup is now available in Australia and retails for $34.95

Revlon Colorstay Whipped Creme Makeup has come out in the US recently, but knowing how long things take to get to Australia, I'm thinking we might have a while to wait. So me being ever impatient and reading glowing reviews about this foundation and thinking "oh yes that sounds amazing for me" after reading each one, I just ordered the damn thing on eBay. I know that Buff is a pretty good colour match for me in the Revlon Colorstay Normal/Dry so I crossed my fingers and ordered. Thankfully the colour match is near perfect. Lucky for everyone, I couldn't help making comparisons to Rimmel's Match Perfection Cream Gel foundation. This is great news because it's available in Australia and retails for a very reasonable $17.95.

Here's my comparison:
L-R: Rimmel Match Perfection Cream Gel Foundation in 100 (Ivory), Colorstay Whipped Creme Makeup in 150 (Buff)

Both of the foundations come in glass tubs. I hate this kind of packaging. I'm definitely a squeezy tube or pump kind of gal. OK so once we've come to grips with the breakable, messy, unhygienic and annoying to travel with glass packing, I can't help to notice the difference in size between the two. For reference, the Rimmel foundation is 18mL and the Revlon is 23.7mL. Soooo there is 25% more foundation from Revlon, but the tub is at least twice as big! It is huge. I don't know if I could ever justify putting it in my makeup bag for travel, it's about the same size as a Clinique moisturiser jar.


Annoying little plastic lids you have to take off and try not to put them on your counter foundation side down. The Revlon one fell and landed vegemite side down on bathroom floor yesterday.


Revlon describes the texture of their foundation as "whipped". I like Rimmel's "cream gel" description more as it makes more sense to me. The textures are almost identical. They're gel-like, creamy ("cream gel"), siliconey foundations that definitely sit somewhere between a liquid and a cream foundation. I find Rimmel's is notably smoother whereas Revlon's is thicker. This is evident when you use them and explains why Revlon just beats out Rimmel on the coverage stakes, whereas Rimmel's finish is more natural.

L-R: Rimmel and Revlon

Blended out, L-R: Rimmel and Revlon

For me, Rimmel loses out the most in colour choice. There's only a handful of shades so it might be hard to find your perfect match. As you can see from the swatches above, Rimmel's "Ivory" is much darker and peachier than the Revlon Colorstay. It's not as much of an issue when it's blended out, but if I layer Rimmel to increase coverage it's definitely too dark. On the topic of coverage both are are medium to medium/full coverage. They cover minor redness but acne and scarring does show through. They also both have a similar soft matte finish, which is my favorite kind of finish and feel lightweight on the skin. If you have oily skin you will definitely want to use a mattifying powder with both these foundations. To get a day's wear out of either of these foundations I need to use some form of powder on my combo skin - for most days MAC MSF Natural is great.

Unsurprisingly, Revlon Colorstay wins out in the long-lasting stakes. Both get through a full working day no worries with small amount of fading, but the Rimmel foundation can get slightly patchy around my oily T-zone if I do a lot of running around and I'm not sure how well it will hold up in the summer. Because of this I think the Rimmel one works well for dry through to combination skin, whereas I see Revlon working for all skin types. I read reviews where people noted the Revlon foundation clinging to dry patches, but I haven't found this. On me, neither foundation accentuates dry patches and even seems to smooth them out. No breakouts from either of these foundations - thumbs up.

So all in all I like both foundations. When I'm after more natural coverage that makes my skin feel outta this world smooth I like Rimmel's Match Perfection Cream Gel Foundation - if the colour match was better I think this might be a clear winner for me. For heavier coverage or if I'm after a 7am-10pm (workday to dinner) kind of wear I'll use the Revlon.

Have you tried either of these foundations? And what are your favorite neutral foundations if you have fair skin?

Saturday 7 July 2012

How to wear bright coral and orange lipsticks

So this is the little sister post of my favorite bright coral and orange lipstick one. Wearing bright lipstick can be daunting, particularly vibrant orange shades. The key is to keep the rest of your face muted. The other issue for me with wearing bright lipsticks is that I have big red splodges all over my face from some recent, horrendous breakouts. You don't want your lipstick competing for bright coloured attention with those.

So for me, rule #1 is to start with a flawless base, a good medium-full coverage foundation and some heavy duty concealing to get rid of the redness.

Secondly, neutral eyes. During the day, I  quite like nude with bright lips, so for me that's a little bit of brown or black pencil in the outer corners of my eyes and some mascara. For night time I might get jiggy with some neutral eyeshadows of the bronze or peach persuasion and/or a basic black winged eyeliner.

Lastly, I go for vibrant blushes but use them lightly. On me, blue based or baby pinks look awful with orangey lips - I don't know if this is across the board, or just me, but it's just so bad. My two favorites are Stila Convertible Color in Petunia and Benefit Coralista. Petunia is a vibrant bright pink, almost coral shade. As it's a cream blush that doesn't really dry down so to mute it I like to apply it before a light dusting of MAC MSF Natural, that also helps to set it. Coralista just works. Gorgeous coral blush that I can apply lightly for a coral glow. The other thing that works well is just using bronzer and skipping the blush.

L-R: Stila Convertible Color in Petunia, Benefit Coralista

Daytime, bright coral look

Rimmel Match Perfection Cream Gel Foundation in Ivory
Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Eraser Concealer in Fair
Maybelline Dream Lumi Touch in Ivory
Collection 2000 concealer in 1 (Light)
MAC MSF Natural in Medium
Stila Convertible Color in Petunia
MAC Prolongwear Bronzer in Nude on Board
MAC Eye Kohl in Teddy
SHE Mascara in Rich Black
Chanel Crayon Sourcils Sculpting Eyebrow Pencil in #10 Blond Clair
Clinique Long Last Lipstick in Runway Coral


And lastly, if in doubt as to how to match it with your outfit, wear black. 

I really need to get me some Bobbi Brown Corrector - look at those bad boys! My dark circles are bigger than my eyeballs....

How do you like to wear bright lipstick? And what's your favorite one? I'm always on the look out for more vibrant colours!


Friday 6 July 2012

Bright coral and orange lips feat. Clinique Runway Coral

So with corals and orange being pretty big right now, I thought I'd tell you how I like to wear these amazing lip colours. When it comes to make up, I'm not a big believer in there being a right way or a wrong way. I just muck around until I figure out what's right for me. I also don't know how these tips would apply to darker skinned people, but I think paler types are often the ones to shy away from bright colours - so maybe this will help all the little caspers out there like myself.


I'll start by showing some great coral and orange shades that I think should be very wearable.

L-R: MAC Tendertone in Purring, Clinique Long Last Lipstick in Runway Coral, Revlon Super Lustrous in Coralberry, Topshop Lipstick in Infrared, Revlon Lipgloss in Firecracker, L'oreal Nutrishine in Nuddy Coral

Lip balms and glosses
I've included a couple of sheer lip balm products in the mix because I find when I wear these long-lasting and bright colours I like to keep them a little bit glossy and hydrated. The MAC tendertone in Purring is a really nice super sheer orange that works great on top of coral and orange lipsticks. Unfortunately the tendertones are limited edition... but yay if you managed to get one - I love the fruity scent and SPF. I find the L'oreal Nutrishine in Nuddy Coral a great alternative. The light colour on your lips is so similar to the tendertone and it has a similar hydrating feel but in the convenience of a lipstick style package. Definitely recommend it. No fruity scent though :(



The Revlon Lipgloss in Firecracker is definitely my favorite high shine lipgloss for wearing over corals and oranges to deepen the orange. It looks red in the tube, but it's definitely a deep orange on the lips. It has no shimmer, just a high gloss finish. The scent is kind of like plasticky vanilla. I like it some kind of sick way - you know how you like mac & cheese from a packet even though it's totally fake and not real cheese - yeah, like that. The texture is thick but not too sticky as well.

The Lipsticks
Here are the lipsticks arranged from pinkest to pure orange.



L-R: Revlon Super Lustrous in Coralberry, Clinique Long Last Lipstick in Runway Coral, Topshop Lipstick in Infrared

... and swatches!!
1. Revlon Coralberry
2. Clinique Runway Coral
3. Topshop Infrared
4. Revlon Firecracker
5. MAC Purring
6. L'oreal Nuddy Coral


This blog post was inspired by the limited edition Clinique Long Last Lipstick in Runway Coral. You can still get it on the clinique website, and it's online exclusive (here). It a great, vibrant shade of coral that's on the pinker side so easier for the orange-o-phobes to wear. It's super long lasting, without a drying formula. The only thing I don't like is how it dried down matt after an hour or so. I can get over it by applying balm or gloss, but it would be perfect if it stayed a beautiful satin finish. I would definitely recommend this lipstick.


Clinique Runway Coral

If you are just toying with these brighter orange-ish shades then you can't go to far wrong with the Revlon Coralberry. The shade is a pretty close dupe for Clinique's Runway Coral, but a tad lighter and pinker. It doesn't have the pigment punch that Clinique's offering does, but for the lower price and easier to wear shade I think it's hard to pass up.


Revlon Coralberry


Now if you've toyed with the corals and think you're ready for the big guns, I L.O.V.E. Topshop's Infrared. It's $15.... yep that's Australian dollars, waltzing into Topshop and grabbing it off the shelf, not on special. I am so impressed by the formula. It reminds me a lot of MAC Cremesheen lipsticks . This is a bright orange that wears for hours and doesnt fade patchy. I am definitely going to get my hands on more of the shades. Just look at that pigmentation!


Topshop Infrared

I was going to make this a post on how to wear bright corals and orange but this has turned into a monster thesis. Stay tuned and I'll post up how to avoid clown face next time.




Tuesday 3 July 2012

REVIEW: Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stains

I've been hearing about the Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stains (we'll just refer to them as "the revlon stains" from now on shall we...) all over the net for a month or so. They've been released in the US but not other markets yet I don't think. As always, we'll probably be waiting ages for these in Australia, we did only just get the Revlon Lip Butters. So behind the times! I ordered mine off eBay at about $10 each.

These are the three colours I got:

Romantic - lovely brick red
Honey - mauvey, pinky, brown
Sweetheart - gorgeous fuschia


L-R: Sweetheart, Romantic, Honey


The problem I have with almost all lip products is that my lips are super dry. Even when a lipstick is "moisturising" I'm still slathering on half a tube of lip balm underneath to keep my lips hydrated. My lips will still dry out and after a few hours the lipstick has clung to my dry patches and me lips go all flaky and feral and the flakes are super pigmented with lipstick. It's gross. Anyway, all this "T.M.I." is for a reason - and that's that these revlon stains don't do that. They are really weightless in feel and although the gloss only lasts an hour or so the stain lasts for hours. I don't know if it's because there's less product on my lips but the revlon stains don't tend to give me the flakies. I also love that they don't have shimmer! I hate shimmer in lipsticks because it often turns out like previously mentioned flakies with sand in between. Anyway, so the texture and lasting power is great. Onto the colors....



Front-Back: Romantic, Honey, Sweetheart


I like Romantic, it's the kind of red I would wear as a statement lip. I haven't tested this, but I think one day I will try layering a red lippie over the top and kind of using it as a lip liner. I'll keep you posted. It's not a pure red, it's on the brick side of reds so makes my teeth a little yellow. But it's not the worst I've seen.

Honey is an amazing everyday colour. You'd think from the name that it's brown. But it's not. It has a bit of brown in there somewhere, but is mainly a light mauvey pink. On my light skin tone this is so wearable as it isn't that obvious but adds a touch of colour. It's great because I'll reapply after lunch and it pretty much lasts the day.

Sweeatheart is another favorite of mine. It's a bright fuscia, the first bright fuscia lip product I've owned and let me tell you I am going to buy more! Photo below. More words on the colour not needed. Winter go away and bring on spring!

I will definitely be purchasing more of these. They are the best lip product I have tried in a long time.



Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in Sweetheart



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