So how do they stack up? They are very well made.

The band is thin and the lash placement is very good.

They are extremely comfortable for every day wear and quite durable, after around 4 uses I had a couple of lashes sticking in odd directions but they were easy enough to smooth back into place.

You can see from the photos they make quite an impact. These are some of my all time favorite every day lashes. The only problem I have is the price. If I was living in Japan or they were the same price here as they retail for there I would probably ditch every other pair I had and stick with only Dolly Wink. Unfortunately as they don’t sell them properly here the lashes are only available via importers at pretty crazy prices.

VERDICT: I love the lashes, I guess this post is really saying PLEASE Dolly Wink, come and sell here in Australia I can’t afford to buy you at imported prices ;_; … or take me back to Japan so I can buy there! XD

So review.

I love the applicator, it’s a felt tip which dips into the ink bottle. I love felt applicators because their pointed shape allows very easy drawing for those who aren’t experienced with liquid liner. Liquid can be a bit more tricky to control than gel or pencil so it’s good to have an applicator which basically does the work for you. Because it’s a tapered edge you can just press it on in the shape you want rather than having to actually draw and run the risk of bumps. This also makes wings and flicks much easier to draw evenly as you just need to press the applicator on in that angle.

The applicator. Excuse the photo, I was doing my best Iron Chef intro. Apparently this cuisine will reign supreme.

And close ups of it applied.

The colour is extremely opaque and goes on very easily.

I find it easy to do very thick lines and very thin lines.

It stays on all day very well and doesn’t flake. I do debate it being “waterproof” while it doesn’t run in water I wouldn’t call it waterproof because it just rubs off with water for removal. I love that it does just clean off with water because it’s good for me at night time but I just probably wouldn’t describe it as waterproof XD

That’s pretty much the only bone I have to pick with this liner though. I’ve used it daily for around 2 months and I LOVE it. It’s on my Holy Grail list. 

Verdict: Goes on smooth, easy to apply, great applicator, doesn’t budge during the day, extreme love, don’t eat it.

And that’s the first of my all time favorite products :D Hope you enjoyed!

Bottom: Powder

Top: Smudging

Middle: Eyeshadow

Bottom: Fluffing/blending

Top: Angled eyeliner

Bottom: Concealer

So why do I use baking soda and is it suitable for you too?

Baking soda is awesome for cleaning a whole lot of things. I always have a supply of it because I also use it in place of shampoo. I know it doesn’t bother my skin or face in the same way that some other products do because I already use it on my hair. If you have any allergies or sensitivities be very careful and consult a doctor before committing to putting something on your face. Patch testing is good too.

It’s also extremely cheap at around $1.50 a box. It may or may not be suitable for you to use on your brushes. Soaking is always risky with brushes because if they are not well made it can loosen the glue used to hold the bristles in and therefore cause shedding. If your brushes shed already I wouldn’t recommend soaking them. I prefer soaking to other methods because I feel like it cleans better but honestly that’s probably just a mental thing haha!

So first thing is to fill a small container with warm water and adding a couple of teaspoons of the baking soda. Mix it around but don’t worry if it doesn’t completely dissolve.

One by one add a brush to the water and swoosh it around in the liquid. Make sure to get all of the bristles wet, you’ll probably start seeing powders and pigments coming out.

The water looks pretty gross after a few brushes!

Tip the container out and refill it with fresh warm water. Add some more baking soda and leave the brushes to soak for 20 minutes or so. This is when I usually clean my foundation brushes.

Again this may or may not be suitable for your brushes.

Once they have soaked I give each brush a quick run under clean water and make sure there’s no more dirt there with my fingers.

Smooth the bristles into shape again and squeeze out any water.

Leave them to dry completely  and you’ve got nice clean brushes ready to be used! I always leave this for a night when I know I won’t need them the next day so they can dry naturally. Some people will dry with a hair dryer to use right away but I don’t like that because it can loosen the glue as well as causing the bristles to dry out of shape.

That’s it! Clean brushes very cheap and easily :D

It’s fairly small, and the bristles are quite short. I would probably use it for foundation because I prefer larger blush brushes. The bottom section comes up to protect the bristles so when the lid goes on which is useful. The casing is made of metal with the pink logo printed on the side. The bristles are synthetic and I’d say probably medium quality.

Last of the limited editions, the sharpener.

Plastic with the printed logo, I don’t know if there’s much to review with a sharpener… it sure does sharpen pencils XD

Actually inside it comes with a little removable pick thing which I was wondering about. Is it to remove clogs or broken pieces of pencil?? Either way it does it’s job and looks cute! You can also flip the lid so it goes the other way and holds shavings in on the go.

On to the non-limited versions!

Two more polishes, the orangish Kawaii Coral and silver Le Fric C’est Chic.

The polish is a nice formula as I mentioned last time, the bottles are cute and the colours are interesting. The Kawaii Coral is a bright slightly milky orange it is opaque in two coats and stands out a lot. The Le Fric C’est Chic is a super shimmery silver that reminds me a lot of the Ulta3 silvers. It is opaque in one coat and would be great for konad because of the amount of shimmer.

Lipgloss in “Girly Lip”. I have the Baby Lip colour in this too and I love it to death as a neutral but this Girly version blows it out of the water. It’s a shiny dark pink with blue undertones… it’s pretty much my favorite shade of make up ever :D It lasts a while but it’s not what I would consider a long lasting gloss. The colour and finish totally make up for that though and it’s quickly become a colour that I use constantly!

Eye shadows! Desert Dore on the left and Gunflower on the right :D

This Desert Dore shade really surprised me. I normally hate neutrals but I found this to be so wearable that I fell in love. It has a gold shimmer through it and so it goes perfectly with pinks and stands out from my skin tone well. It lasts all day and doesn’t crease easily. One thing I love about these is that they stack, the tops are flat so if you have a couple of them you can stack them easily in a drawer.

The pink in this duo works perfectly with the above shade too and has a slight simmer in it so they mix really well. I wasn’t a big fan of the black shade in this one but I personally don’t use black a lot and it did go very well with the pink and neutral above.

And here are some photos of me wearing the make up! The lipgloss has worn off quite a bit at this point, it’s much brighter at first swipe.

Competition time!

Hello Kitty has 5 prize packs to give away:

Valued at $62.85 and are made up of three gorgeous Hello Kitty Cosmetics and three LIMITED EDITION Hello Kitty accessories:

• Hello Kitty Mirror Compact (Limited Edition available in April only)
• Hello Kitty Makeup Sharpener (Limited Edition available in April only)
• Hello Kitty Retractable Powder Brush (Limited Edition available in April only)
• Hello Kitty Nail Polish
• Hello Kitty Diamond Gloss
• Hello Kitty Duo Eye Shadow

To enter just leave a comment on this entry telling me which product is your favorite and why :D

Good luck everyone!

We relaxed on the beautiful antique looking couches and flicked through Japanese magazines looking at hair and nail designs. They had all of my favorite magazines including Nail Up and ViVi. At this point I also starting making mental notes of the decorations in the place because I kind of want our dream house in this style XD

I have couch-envy:

I know I need to stop posting decor photos and start talking about my experience but SO PRETTY!

After everyone arrived and we had settled in with our magazines and drinks we were introduced to the salon owner Taka, his stylists and the representative for Yuko straightening system.

We watched a video of a model getting her hair treated with the system and the change was pretty amazing, I have frizzy hair so it’s something I’ve always wondered about doing so watching the video made me want to learn more about it. I tend to like the volume my frizz gives though because it makes my hair look like cotton candy so I don’t know if I could commit to completely straight silky hair, I’d love to see how easy it is to curl and style treated hair afterward though. Have any of you guys tried this kind of system? Did you enjoy the results?

Next we all broke off to get treatments done, some girls went to get their hair styled while the rest of us went for nails. Celina was first up for nails because she needed to leave early and I sat in on her appointment to watch and take some photos :D

The nail artist at Tsumiki is none other than Clara H who has a great reputation around Melbourne for doing the best Japanese style 3D artwork. I’d seen her work before online and she’d been recommended to me so I was excited to see her work and get to experience it first hand!

She did little flowers on Celina’s fingers and they looked lovely. She needed something work appropriate and the end result looked really beautiful.

I was next in line for nails but unfortunately I had some stick-ons which I’d hastily done that morning thinking there wouldn’t be enough time for us all to get our nails done. Because of the time constraints Clara removed my stick ons and redid some nicer ones with a beautiful floral bow design. She invited me to come back when there wasn’t a time limit so she could try out something more over the top and do full acrylics. I can’t wait to show you all the other set she did, they are AWESOME! Hint: they are themed on a certain bunny mascot who’s name begins with B and ends with ERGAMOT :D

Wall of TINS polish… now I have polish envy too! XD

There were very fancy Hors D’oeuvres too by a famous local chef.

While we got our nails done the other girls were being treated to head massages and cut/colour/treatments. I was last through the hair area I think and it was nice because it gave me a chance to chat to the stylists as well as Taka himself!

I was given a shampoo and a lovely head massage then they completely blow dried my hair straight. Zomg it looks so long straight! Especially since I just cut a bunch of it off *_*

I didn’t want to do a cut/colour at the time so Taka suggested doing big crazy waves for styling instead and I loved that idea because I’ve never seen myself with waves. They had 3 stylists working to wave each section and tease it up with powders, it was so much fun watching the transformation in the mirror! I loved the style, it reminded me of Kumickey’s older mermaid hair :D SO CUTE! Actually having my hair like this makes me think getting a perm so I could do it properly for a few months!

Mermaid!

Once everyone was styled and had beautiful nails we were given a lot of information about the different products and sponsors of the store and I found quite a few products in the gift bag which I was interested in especially the Yuko Aqua G Base Hair Water which I’ve already started using.

So overall, I felt like a princess the entire time I was at the salon. The design and fit out really give a feeling of luxury and I found it really easy to drift off and relax in such a nice setting. The staff were genuinely friendly and really went out of their way to make our stay relaxing. I know it wasn’t just politeness put on for the event too because when I went back to get my nails done by Clara today every single one of them remembered me, asked questions following on from last time and were just as lovely. So yes I would totally recommend both the salon section and the nail section if you’re interested in Japanese styles and techniques. It was very cool to be in a salon that had magazines I actually read and whose stylists knew all of the trends and styles I see online. I’m absolutely looking forward to going back when my budget allows for it!

Thank you so much to everyone at Tsumiki for such a wonderful day and making my hair awesome! Thank you to Clara H for super cute nail art, I can’t wait to show you all the finished proper acrylics she did for me today!!

Bonus shot… CHAIR ENVY POSING! >:D

Double bonus shot, while I was getting my nails done today Taka showed us this video of a day in his life that his wife made from their FB page, it’s so funny! Totally gangster XD

• Hair ties
• Brush
• Bobby pins
• Hair spray

Curl the ends of the ponytail into a little loop.

Keep rolling upwards until you can’t go any further and you should have something like this:

From the side it will bow out and form a nice finish underneath.

From the front it looks like a curl.

So now you need to pin it in place. You should try to pin through the hair band to give it extra strength. Make sure you’re pinning it as close to the scalp as possible.

Repeat on the other side too.

Now you need to take care of the back, right now it looks terrible.

Take your brush and gently coax the divide together so it hides the gap. You can use your fingers and a few extra bobby pins at the bottom to keep it all in place.

This version isn’t so great but you can get the general idea…

Now you just need to style your fringe and any layers around your face. The style works better with layers around the face because they create an illusion of being the ends of the hair.

Taadaa!

Short hair without a major chop :D

Hope this was helpful, let me know if you have any questions!

This next one was the outfit I wore to the Topshop opening here, I’m super classy so I took the photos at McDonalds afterwards ;)

Dress: Jesus Diamante
Stockings: Ambra
Cardigan: Myer
Shoes: Mini Maos

My favorite part is the shoes :D

Now some of the outfits I wore while we were in Queensland! This was the only photo I got before the humidity destroyed my curls. I can’t believe I didn’t notice until now that I have my phone stuffed down my top >_< I was waiting for James to call me while trying to pack my bags and apparently I thought that was a good time to take photos, so much fail at multi tasking!

Outfit:
Dress: Infanta
Scarf: Can’t remember
Jumper: Femme Connection
Stockings: Myer leggings I changed to stockings
Shoes: Gift
Hair accessory: made my me

You know one of the best parts of staying at James’ parents house? Gigantic well lit mirror to take photos in front of!

Shirt: Savers
Shorts: Modified from Femme Connection
Usamimi- Junk store

And the mini styling wand obsession continues with this outfit XD

Dress: Ice Outlet store.

I really wish I’d remembered to take hairspray to QLD because the heat just killed any styling I tried to do after around 20 minutes! Next time ^_^

Have you guys got anything cool planned for the holidays this year?

• Brush
• Pretty hair comb
• Hair spray
• Bobby pin

Brush the hair upwards to it’s sticking out horizontally.

Now use your hands to fold it across like this:

Tuck all of the ends inside and fold them into the roll.

Should look something like this. You should run your fingers through the sides from right to left to make sure the hair is all sitting the right way.

Once it’s all folded inside it should look something like this:

Secure it with a comb on the side. To use the comb you should grab a bit of hair from the twist…

…pull it right to the side and push into the scalp back the way it came.

And it looks like this! You might want to put in some more bobby pins if you don’t think it’s stable enough.

Most likely you’ll need some pins in the top swirl part to stop it coming loose.

Hair spray over everything and smooth flyaways with your hands.

If you have any problems with the insides breaking out again just lightly brush the outer layer into place again using short strokes.

Now just style your fringe and that’s it!

All done! I didn’t notice the bit popping out until after I finished >_<

Other side:

Stylish and sleek, this is a good one for work as well as times you just want to look a bit more polished.

Hope that all made sense and let me know if you have any other questions!

Now the bb cream, I was SO happy with the finish on this one.

Peripera BB Cream- AU$18.50

Since The Face Shop discontinued my favorite bb cream I’ve been hunting for a new one but so far everything has either been too dark or yellow. The colour of this one is PERFECT. I am using the lighter shade “Light Beige”. The main features of this cream are SPF 50+, aloe extract and some vitamins to make skin extra smooth.

The finish is quite matte and the formula was very buildable depending on how I applied it. With a sponge it was light coverage, brush it was full and fingers were medium. I love the versatility of it and the face that it gave varying freckle coverage depending on how I applied. The site claims it lasts up to 24 hours and while I wouldn’t wear my make up that long I can vouch that it lasts all day and didn’t make my skin feel at all dry after. I haven’t noticed any improvement in my skins texture etc when not wearing it but it makes it look very fresh and pretty on.

The price makes me SO happy too, The Face Shop’s creams are around the $40 mark so this even with shipping is so much cheaper and in a much larger tube. I estimate that a tube of this would probably last me around a year. The tube is very pretty too, a very cute design and I prefer tubes like this because they store easily and are hygienic. I think this is the first time I haven’t had one negative thing to say about a bb/foundation XD

This is officially my HOLY GRAIL of bb creams.

Verdict: YES, DO WANT. Great texture, lasts well, good coverage.

My bare skin:

Same skin with Peripera bb cream:

Lastly one of the “Wonder of Lips” lipsticks.

Wonder of Lips in Shade 19 (not sure which this is on the site)- $15

Again the packaging on this one is beautiful, it’s a metallic pink tube with pink lace stamped on it. The formula is smooth and glides on easily. The pigmentation is a little odd because while it looks VERY bright in the tube one swipe leaves barely any colour behind. You can build it (seems to be a theme among all of the Peripera products) to be a very bright colour but that took a few times going over. I think this would be useful for people going from office jobs to out at night, during the day using one application and then at night darkening it up a bit.

VERDICT: Overall I really liked the colour and forumla and I would definitely look at more in the range.

This photo is 3 swipes:

The overall favorite of the bunch was definitely the bb cream which works perfectly for my skin and if you have similar skin to mine definitely check out Vanity Box for the new Peripera range.

Lasting power is longer than the Wakk Stain too. Previously if I was washing my hair every 3 days the dye would have noticeably faded within 7-10 days. Now it lasts 2-3 weeks before I feel I need to redo it, it also fades to nicer pastels so I could easily leave it longer and still like the colours.

Affordability-wise the tubes are around $14 from Priceline and considering how much I dilute them to get the pastel effect they last forever. Even when I was using just one colour, and with my gigantic amount of hair, a tube would last me around 4 months+ so I think it’s reasonable.

So more importantly, how did I mix up the colours together? I wanted to do my same gradient but just give it a bit more depth so I basically touched up the orange at the bottom and used the Pink Moon so smooth the lines of the gradient. This was the colour order:

And crappily Photoshop blended so you get the general idea:

I won’t be taking you into the shower with me so here’s a step by step example using a hair extension ;)

Squeeze some of each of the colours and some of the mixer on to a plate. I just use my hand when I’m in the shower.

Wet and brush through the hair so there are no tangles.

Mix the orange into a pastel tone, it should be bright but not too bright, I used 1/3rd dye to 2/3rds mixer. Apply the orange to the bottom.

Mix the Pretty Flamingo with mixer, it’s already really bright so 1/5th dye to mixer. Blend it into the orange really well with your fingers and continue upwards. These extensions aren’t my colour so it all looks a bit dark but you can get the idea!

Repeat with the Pink Moon but because this is a fairly pastel colour use 1/3rd dye to mixer. Apply and then do the section about it diluting the pink a bit more. Mix it all in with your fingers so there are no harsh edges and then wash out.

So you should have a nice smooth gradient like this. Of course these extensions are synthetic so the dye just washes off but in real hair it looks much better! Speaking of dying synthetic extensions, tomorrow’s post is how I actually coloured these ones permanently ^_^

And here’s the end result on real hair…

So overall, the stand out colour for me was Pink Moon, it’s a much bluer pink and so when it’s diluted it gives the most beautiful colours. I didn’t fall in love with Gold Finger but that was just personal colour preference. I’ve decided going forward that I want to keep a small amount of orange at the tips but mostly concentrate on the pastel of Pink Moon and use Pretty Flamingo to deepen the shade and give definition to the bottom half. So I would definitely continue purchasing Paintbox colours, yay for finding a good replacement!

That said, everyone and their dog has pink hair these days so maybe I’ll do something completely normal and go dark brown or something ;)

Actually what I *really* want to do once in my life is dye my fringe into a pastel rainbow! That’s something I’m a bit too scared to attempt myself though so I’m waiting until I can actually afford to go to a salon. Sometimes I think it would be totally nice to actually go to a salon for everything and have a whole pampering make over XD Do you guys cut/dye your own hair too or do you get yours done at a salon?

• 2 pairs of shoes
• 5 dresses (for 3 days plus a night event and one emergency change)
• 1 scarf
• Pajamas, underwear and a singlet
• Belt

I took two small bags with me, one for make up/bathroom stuff and one for accessories and anything else that didn’t fit.

The make up one:

Inside was:

• Brush
• Travel straightener
• Toothbrushes/paste
• Moisturiser
• Eyelashes/glue
• Brown shadow palette
• 4 Shadows in pink/purple/white shades
• Mascara
• Eyeliner
• Lipstick/gloss
• Hair ties
• Plastic bag to put wet toothbrushes in
• Mini containers of foundation/primer/hair spray
• Face masks for de-stressing at night (so important!)

Inside:

• iPad
• Tamagotchi (Hat)
• Phone
• Camera
• Headphones
• Microphone
• Money
• Pens
• Tissues
• Make up bag for doing my look on the plane
• Sunglasses
• Business cards
• Mini brush roll/toiletries
• Scarf (which can be used as a heap of different things in an emergency

There are:

• Mints
• Nail glue
• Perfume oil
• Handkerchief/face washer
• Jewellery I’m planning on wearing that day
• Comb
• Cuticle stick
• Lip glosses/sticks
• Mirror

• Mini travel brushes (duh…)
• Eyeliner
• Tissues and cotton buds
• bobby pins

Now that I’m traveling a reasonable amount for work the one thing I actually wanted to splurge a bit on was a good bathroom travel set. I spent quite a while looking for a cute one which held a good amount and in the end I didn’t have to splurge because I was contacted to review a local business called “Groomy“. To be honest I almost said no because it didn’t sound relevant for me to blog about… then I saw that they had an entire range which was pink with carousel print *_* So freaking cute!

The large set I received came with one gigantic bathroom bag which I would use when going on longer trips, 3 smaller bags (which I used at IMATS), the mini brush roll and a good old fashioned tissue holder. It’s been so long since I’ve seen tissue holders anywhere and I love this idea!
I really want to make a bunch of them so I have one to match every outfit/handbag now haha! You can see below a better shot of the cute fabric it’s all made of too.

The large bag is very large. It wouldn’t fit in my overnight bag but I could definitely see myself taking this overseas for an extended trip where we actually have a suitcase. All of the other bags fit comfortably inside it for storage in the mean time which is a plus. There are pockets on both sides of the main compartment as well as 4 elastic bottle pockets on the lid and an elastic strap for other things.

The main bathroom bag I took to IMATS was the second biggest one. It’s basically a smaller version of the above one with more pockets. 3 on the right and 3 with another elastic strap on the left. There is a huge amount of space in the center too even with all the pockets filled so I was really surprised that I could fit all my make up and have my brush/toothbrush/straightener in the middle! I also really liked all of the pockets and things as it made it much easier to get things out without spilling everything else everywhere.

The two smaller bags were useful for accessories and random things. They are very square so they hold a lot while also stacking easily in the bags. Everything (other than the tissue holder) was covered in clear plastic so spills etc were easily wiped away with no problems, it wasn’t the kind of super shiny plastic though so they didn’t look at all cheap. It looks a bit shiny in the photos but that was from the flash being so close.

The absolute best out of the bunch though was the mini brush roll/ beauty tool roll. Best idea ever! It fit my mini travel brushes easily but it was also the *perfect* size for cotton buds, bobby pins, eyeliner and cuticle sticks. I loved this one so much that I now keep it in my handbag regularly too.

So verdict, the set is probably in the more expensive price range but if you travel a lot I think good luggage is something worth splurging on and they are very good quality materials and very well sewn while still being adorable. With that in mind and knowing I’m probably going to be traveling a bit more often now, I’m currently saving up for the other items in the set. It’s a change (here in Aus at least) to see such cute girly prints too so if that’s up your alley definitely check out the Groomy website because they ship worldwide and have a lot of other cute items.

Do any of you have any awesome travel tips? I would love to hear them, especially if it involves being able to sleep on the plane because I suck at that!!

DAY 1 OVER!

DAY 2 OVER!!

This is actually my favorite out of all of the products. The idea is that it cuts down the time you spend blow drying, conditions the hair while also protecting it from heat. The best part? It actually works! I HATE blow drying my hair, I will do anything possible to avoid it. My hair dryer is heavy and with how long and thick my hair is it takes forever to do. Using this spray cut my drying time in half. After using it my hair felt silkier as well which is a big plus in my books. The formula is a two part thing which you shake to activate and then spray all over towel dried hair. It also smells quite nice, there’s a little hint of alcohol to it but mostly it’s just a nice floral- ish smell. Definitely DO WANT.

Free Shape, Hot Flex Spray
Price- 31.95

This is your basic heat activated hair spray. No alcohol scent at all in this one, just a sweet fresh smell and it’s another pump action spray. I found this to be a medium hold with heat and worked on pin curls fairly well without heat too. It worked nicely in conjunction with my straightener and I noticed that my hair stayed in place longer with it. While it didn’t take care of or smooth down fly aways like regular hair spray it kept the actual styles in place longer and felt light and non- crunchy. Kind of like not wearing anything at all. So I think the best use for this one would be for natural styles that involve heat styling but need to have movement. The kind of styles that take you a while to do but look like you just woke up with awesome hair ;) I’m now using this instead of my regular heat protector spray because it does double duty.

Hair Play, Dry Touch Up
Price- $28.95

This is a bit of an odd product. I was pretty much expecting a dry shampoo, it looks like a dry shampoo with the aerosol looking bottle etc but it’s not actually an aerosol and it’s not actually a dry shampoo. Generally with dry shampoos you spray at the roots to soak up oil and grossness, this one suggests that you spray around the middle and ends of the hair to give it new life. It was a bit hard for me to test it because generally I have more problems with oily roots than ends so it didn’t do much for me. Again this one has a very nice sweet smell with a tiny bit of an alcohol too. So while this one wasn’t any good for me it still left a nice finish and smelled good so I think it would probably suit someone who did have problems with limp ends.

Add Volume, Volumizing Spray
Price- $31.95

This is another of my personal favorites of this range. Volumizing spray :D James has been bugging me to try Volumizing spray for years because when he had hair he used to swear by it. I  complain about my lack of top volume all the time but I’m also very lazy so I ignored him until now XD So yes this smells just as nice as the rest of the range but does it work? Well yes. It works ridiculously well. Here is a terrible phone shot of me after I used it and blow dried for the first time.

Results speak for themselves I think! Once it’s in I was expecting it to make my hair feel dirtier but it just felt grippy not dirty which was a nice surprise. Big plus one. The ability to use wet and also dry for touch ups was great and the volume lasted for me pretty much until the next wash, very happy with this one!

Curl Up, Wave Foam Mousse
Price- $36.95

This reminds me so much of that gel shaving cream that James uses! It comes out as a gel which you then lather into a kind of foam and run through towel dried hair then blow dry on a diffuse setting or air dry. Like pretty much all of these products it has heat protector in it which is awesome. I chose to diffuse dry but my fickle hair couldn’t keep a curl that way. I had more success scrunching it with my fingers and then letting it air dry, the result was more like beachy waves. Quite a nice effect considering how little effort was involved! The smell of this one is kind of like the pink flavor of that Vitamin Water which is my favorite haha. My personal taste is for more heavily styled hair but I think this is nice for casual days.

So the first step in the range is the Facial Soap. The packaging is a standard tube, pretty average. It smelled kind of like cucumber and felt more like moisturiser than soap which was really interesting. It certainly felt like it was giving moisture back to my skin and didn’t leave it with that squeaky feeling some soaps leave. There was nothing about this that I specifically disliked but there was nothing that stood out either so I found it hard to want to keep using when the results weren’t visible.

Next is Toner. To be honest, this is the only thing out of the pack I’m planning to use again and I think it’s a very acquired taste. It smells VERY much like sterilising alcohol/hand sanitiser. Like… exactly like it. For some reason I like the smell but I think it will probably be too strong and hospital-ish for a lot people. In fact I know a lot of my friends who have tried it couldn’t get past the smell. It left my skin feeling super clean and smooth though and I found it was really refreshing right before bed. But yeah this is definitely something you need to smell before you buy it! Packaging was quite nice, felt substantial and not cheap.

Last up we have the moisturiser. First off I hate the bottle, it’s a screw top bottle with no dispenser at the top which is a personal hate of mine because it makes it a pain getting the correct amount out. The smell is kind of generic and fairly subtle. It rubbed in smoothly and feels a bit like velvety or almost sticky when rubbed in. I didn’t mind the texture or smell but again it was fairly average. I don’t think it made a difference to my skin so without being able to see the benefits I don’t think I would use it again.

VERDICT:

I really felt underwhelmed with this set and I don’t know if that was because I had high expectations or if it was just average products. Over the time I used this I didn’t notice any difference in my skin and I think it is just as dry as when I started. It could very well just be that it didn’t work with my skin type so I would totally suggest having a look in store and maybe getting some testers before committing to this or full sized products. The soap and moisturiser weren’t for me but I definitely like the toner and would repurchase it. Price-wise for a higher end starter kit with 3 items I would say AU$49 is on par and probably cheaper than I was expecting. Not for me but can’t hurt to sample and see if it suits your skin!

The event it’s self was a huge amount of fun, it was held at Liquid Hair Salon and there were demonstrations of Dermalogica and Cloud 9 as well as make up from Miss Kitty and my nail display.

My models for the day were Sherry and Neena who were both so lovely and accommodating for me. I did a rose design on Neena and leopard print on Sherry.

I’m always nervous when doing nails for other people but I was even more so at having to talk and answer questions at the same time. Talking isn’t really my strong point but once I got to know the girls and we all got chatting a bit I felt so much better! It was like hanging  out with my friends :D I know Saku video’d the whole process so if she uploads it I’ll post a link for the rest of you.

There was an awesomely delicious spread from Monnie at Cupcake Treats. We hadn’t eaten much all day so I spent a lot of time monopolizing the food table :P

We only spent the day in Adelaide so James and I got up super early to fly in the morning and then out right afterwards. I had been hoping to go to dinner with the rest of the girls but there was an early curfew on the airport so even on the last flight we missed out ;_;

This is totally my favorite photo of the day, I wish I had gotten to see Kitty’s display to understand what was going on here XD

The best part of the day for me was getting to meet girls that I’ve been talking to online for months (or in some cases years!) in person finally!

Of course getting to play with nails was fun too! We covered all of the basics in my awesomely technical manner: splotches, squiggles, stripes and decals ;)

Being a blogger meet there was an influx of awesome cameras ;)

Liquid Hair was decked out in some serious bling, very appropriate!

The Dermalogica display was really informative and they presented us with some great information on the FITE women’s charity too.

With the amount of running around we had done that day (plus the getting up super early) I almost volunteered myself for the facial haha!

I found Emma’s Cloud9 demonstration really interesting too and it made me think about upgrading my hair appliances a step and maybe giving my wand another try! I’m pretty good with the straightener but no matter how I try I fail miserable at using those styling wands which is why I still haven’t reviewed/done tutorials with the one I have >_<

I got to see the O heated roller system in action too which cleared up a lot of questions I had about it! Emma also showed us an interesting powder which is supposed to take the place of teasing/back combing. That was something I was very interested in!

Speaking of hair products, if anyone has a good heavy duty hair spray recommendation please let me know, they’ve discontinued my black label Cedel ;_;

Other than my display I spent most of the time getting to know the girls and answering questions about blogging. Next time I definitely want to stay for a couple of days so we can hang out more and see the sights!

Biggest thank you of the day goes to Celeste for organising my trip and being a wonderful host! Thank you for ferrying us around, being so organised and for letting me borrow your nail polishes!

Thank you as well to the Adelaide girls for being so nice to me! It sounds obvious but I was blown away with how nice people were, we had so many offers of lifts and at one point my eyes were watering from hay fever and no thought at all Jac was straight to her bag looking for antihistamines for me! *so appreciative*

Kitty’s make up presentation using all kinds of cool colours:

Everyone seemed to have such a wonderful time. Driving around there has gotten me thinking about moving again XD Such cheap rent too!!

Of course it was another good excuse to hand out business cards, I’m completely obsessed with them right now. Probably good too because my printing company gave me double the amount I ordered so I’ve got quite a few to hand out!

If you want to see the rest of James’ photos click over here for the full Adelaide Beauty Conference Gallery!

The event ended  with thank you’s, cheers and gift bags. Celeste surprised me with some really lovely gifts as well, I’m really lucky to have wonderful friends like her! I ended having to leave most of it with her because of my lack of baggage but I can’t wait to try out what I did bring. Especially the Ardel 6 week false lashes, that sounds like such a cool idea so I’m going to try them tonight!

Cheers to everyone and thank you all so much for having me as your blogging exchange student!

Now something I’ve been looking forward to (and dreading slightly) my first vlog! I debated for a while how to pronounce vlog (as in VEE-log or like blog with a v) and settled on VEE log because rather than being short for “video blog” I’m going to make them short Violet’s Log mwahahaha! Now I can make all kinds of nerdy Captain’s Log jokes too ;P

I’m still getting the hang of recording and remembering to look at the camera but it was fun to put together so I might start doing them more often if you all enjoy it ^_^

Thank you so much to all of the Adelaide girls for giving me such an awesome intro!!!
Ok that’s it from me for now, I hope you all enjoyed coming with me to Adelaide and had as fun of a time as I did!!

What you need to make your own false lashes:

• Fabric, something thin and easy to take apart, I’m using organza which is perfect
• Small scissors
• Hair Straightener

So cut most of the selvage off but leave around a 1-2mm edge on the bottom, this will form the band of the lashes which will eventually hold the glue! Make sure you leave enough there that it doesn’t completely unravel.

You will need the rectangle to be as wide as you want the lashes then as tall as you want the longest part of the lashes. Better to leave them a bit longer than you think because you can always trim down later.

This is where it gets a bit tedious! What you need to do is slowly pull out all of the horizontal bits of thread in the fabric. You can use a pin to pry them free a couple at a time, nice and easy but very boring.

What you’ll end up with is something along these lines and a bunch of little threads all over your work space:

Getting there but they don’t fit the shape of your eye yet so gently pull and coax the base into a semi circle. It should have a little bit of give to it so it will hold shape. You can see the before and after below.

I made mine very wide because I didn’t know how long I wanted them to be, here’s one of my other lashes beside it.

So trim them down to the correct width.

Use the little scissors to cut the lash threads into whatever shape/length you want. I wanted them to be small in the middle then wing out. I also wanted to make the lengths more natural so I make sure not to cut straight across but instead by pointing inwards and snipping in small strokes.

Snip snip…

Taadaaa. Awesome but they don’t curl like lashes should so if you were to wear them now they would look pretty silly!!

To curl them we need heat but not too much heat because it’s effectively made of plastic and we don’t want to melt them!

The first thing I tried was to smooth the lashes carefully (VERY CAREFUL SO YOU DON’T BURN YOURSELF)  over the curved edge of my straightener.

While indeed that did work, it wasn’t the smooth curve that I was looking for.

What came to the rescue in the end was my laptop tray table’s metal legs! Perfectly curved and conducts heat well. You can use anything this shape which conducts heat without melting (so no plastic!).

I held the lash on.

Covered it with a piece of fabric to hold in place and avoid burning fingers…

And used the heat of the straightener!

Bam lashes!

Gigantic lashes :D Spindly, long and fun to wear!

These are the kind of lashes that make me want to make smouldering faces XD

SMOULDER!!

So there you have it! My first attempt at making lashes went pretty well, I’m happy with them and I want to make a heap more of them in different styles :D I kind of want to try it with patterned fabric too and make some multi coloured ones, so many possibilities!

Hand cream from daiso- $2.80

Hands down (hahaha pun fully intended), my favorite hand cream of all time. It’s not fancy, not scented and doesn’t come in a pretty package but it makes my hands feel so good after using it that it could turn them purple and I wouldn’t care. The lack of scent is major selling point for me but if you prefer scented creams you could always very easily add some yourself. You only need a little bit to go a very long way and it takes very little effort to rub in. It’s absorbed into the skin very well and doesn’t leave that slimy hands feeling later. I have pretty much zero downsides to this other than it comes in a seriously unattractive bright orange bottle. Can’t say I care at that price though!

Ignore the big acrylic paint stain in the photo below, it just goes to show that I have it on hand so much that I gave it double duty as a palette for some nail art ;)

Eyeliner from Tokuya $3.50 or less if you get it during a sale

I had never been one for pencil eyeliners until now. I hated how hard they were to apply, how they never got in the right places and always just smudged off my face. On a whim I bought a black mechanical liner from Tokuya and it was one of the best make up purchases I’ve made to date. Completely opened up my eyes (so many stupid puns today!) to the world of waterlines and quicky applied smokey liner etc. You don’t get a huge amount of product for your money but considering everything else I still think it’s worth while. The fact that you can twist it to get more rather than needing a sharpener is great and the ability to twist it down and keep in your handbag is a plus too, in fact the size in general is a big plus because it weighs practically nothing. Available in a couple of colours I have tried the black and brown and love both. They apply smoothly but not so smooth as to end up in places you didn’t intend. For me, these last all day which is great, I can apply them and know they are still going to be there by the time I get home.

Eyebrow pencil from Tokuya $3.50 of less if you get on sale

Another Tokuya find, these eyebrow pencils come in a heap of colours including grey which I don’t see too often. As with the eyeliners the application is smooth but not too smooth, it is easily coaxed into place and lasts very well. The amount of product isn’t much but you pay for the portability and convinience. Definitely a big plus. It comes with a lid for travel (which I have already lost). I don’t like how long the plastic part is compared to the amount of product inside, I think it could be smaller but small negative in a lot of positives.

Priceline fragrant talc $2 English rose.

I think fragrant talc reminds a lot of girls of their grandmother’s scented draw liners, which in my eyes isn’t nessecarily a bad thing. At $2 this bottle has lasted me well over a year and I don’t even think I’m half way through. It’s versatile as a body powder, something to quickly add a little scent if you’re in a hurry, to absorb scent off dirty clothes if you’re desperately out of clean laundry and my all time favorite use: as a last resort dry shampoo. While it doesn’t exactly clean hair it does soak up oils and lightens dark roots temporarily. Just shake onto the hair, leave for a few minutes then brush out. It gives hair a thicker more grippy texture which can be useful when styling. Definitely not a replacement for actually cleaning your hair but in a pinch it will do and it smells lovely!

Lipgloss from Daiso $2.80

Berry pink lip gloss which is heavy on the shimmer? Hell yes. The packaging is very plain and scratches easily in my handbag but this is a fantastic everyday lip gloss which doesn’t break the budget. It’s a decent sized bottle and the formula is much less sticky than most cheap lip glosses. They had around 5 or so colours when I was there so a decent range.

The FaceShop and Missha glitter polishes. Between $3.50-4.95 depending on polish and store.

I love cheap nail polish. Cheap nail polishes mean I can buy more colours and make more designs :D As far as glitter polishes go, I think Missha and The Face Shop have the best ones. Missha’s glitters are super pigmented (review here) and give fantastic coverage while The Face Shop  has a big range of versatile colours.

The picture below is my all time favorite Face Shop polish, its a sheer pearlish colour with silver glitter. It layers beautifully over any number of colours and has a really beautiful forumla. The only think I hate is the bottle, it’s just hard to get much out of.

Those were the ones I had on hand to photograph but there are so many more that I love so…

Other awesome budget beauty picks:

BYS Shimmer Dust

I’ve posted about that here before including a video of the insane shimmer :D Love it! It’s around $4 and a little tub will last you forever

Ulta 3 Polishes

Now if you are looking for cheap polishes you can’t go past Ulta3, they have a huge range of colours and are usually between $2-3. I have it on good authority from my lovely friend You’ve Got Nail that they even have colours which are Chanel dupes. For $2!! I’ve reviewed them here, here and here.

Priceline Lucky Dip

Technically not an ongoing beauty buy (at least I don’t think so) but at the moment Priceline is doing charity lucky dips. They donate products and you give a gold coin donation and pick one. I’ve gotten some really awesome stuff over the last week from there (photos coming) and the money going to charity is an awesome bonus!

First up is the Vanity Box Ameli Soft Primer- $32.50

Find the product here! 

Thoughts:

I am not an expert on primer as I’ve only just started using it recently but this one has worked better than any of the others I’ve tried so far. The texture is very different to others I’ve tried, rather than being runny and kind of like a thin moisturiser this one is more like a gel which is a little sticky. I think it works so much better because of the slight stickiness so when you put other products over the top, it grips them super well. I’ve been trying out wearing blush and without the primer it rubbed off very quickly, with my FOA primer it lasted around 6 hours, with this it lasted maybe 8-10 before needing re-application so I was quite impressed. It goes on very smoothly and feels very velvetish. As far as the smell goes, it is scented very lightly with something fresh and a little floral but mostly it just has that “expensive cosmetics” smell. At $32.50 it’s fairly mid range as far as price goes, the bottle is about average so I think it would last around 3 months of every day use.

VERDICT: Grips products very well and locks them in, pleasant but not overpowering scent, mid range price but reasonable value for someone wants long lasting make up. DO WANT.

Ameli Eyeshadow pots- #61 Orange Skin- $13.00
Find the product here. 

Thoughts:

I have 4 different colours to review on these pots so firstly some general thoughts on them. The pots are made from a shiny dark silver plastic, they look quite sleek and are very light so you could take them in a handbag if you needed. That said they are pretty damn big so if you wanted to take more than one colour it probably wouldn’t be much use. They feel fairly sturdy to use and are easy to open and shut (even with long nails). Some of them came with round foam applicators. I threw those away because they were the diameter of the container and so seemed too big to be used on the eyes with much precision.

Ok thoughts on this specific colour, I have always hated oranges so I was worried when I got this that I would automatically dislike it. I gave it a try though and it’s kind of growing on me. I still hate oranges in general but I managed to wear this in a way that I didn’t feel weird so I’m going to experiment with it more and see if I can overcome my fear. The colour itself is what I would describe as teracotta, it has a very smooth consistency and while being fairly pigmented it’s still quite subtle and easy to blend. So nothing to fault about the actual shadow, I just am not good with this colour XD

VERDICT: Not my colour, good quality shadow, large amount of product justifies the price if it’s a colour you use all the time. DO WANT (but not for me)

Quick swatches of all 4 colours left to right: Dress Killer, Orange Skin, Arabian Night, Pink Spot

#176 Dress Killer Shadow- $12.50
Link to product. 

Thoughts:

Depending on the light this is either a nice dusty pink or purple. It has a slight blue shimmer to it which creates a really pretty effect in different lighting situations but can only be seen if you look really closely. Again it goes on very smoothly, blends beautifully and feels very light on. This is the kind of eyeshadow that feels like you’re not wearing anything. The colour is something I would wear very often and I think it’s quite versatile because you can wear it plain for a natural look or dress it up with lashes etc.

Verdict: Great quality, nice colour, versatile and lasts well through the day. DO WANT.

#511 Arabian Nights- $16.50
Link to product. 

Thoughts:

Very interesting colour combination, it’s a very deep purple with a silver shimmer to it but the base appears to be a brown. It blends really well with the other colours in the range and they all compliment each other nicely. Very pigmented but I found it was much easier to get the base purple/brown to stick to my lids than the actual shimmer so I had to pack on quite a bit to get the shiny aspect. Fantastic as a dark colour to blend and give a little pop of light but if you’re looking for something super sparkly this probably isn’t it. Other than being a little harder to apply, this has all the same positives as the other colours: smooth, stayed on well and blended nicely.

VERDICT: Just like the others it’s a good quality shadow. Not as shimmery on as it looks in the pot, great for blending and adding depth to other colours. Good as a complimenting colour. DO WANT.

#503 Pink Spot- $16.50
Link to product here. 

Thoughts:

ZOMG SHINY. Yes that was my first though! This one is for serious glitter lovers, it is a super shiny highly pigmented and sparkly Barbie pink. I can see this making some serious 80′s music video themed outfit appearances. I think a lot of people would be put off by the intensity it has in the jar but when it’s actually on it blends beautifully and can be thinned down to add just a touch of pigment and sparkle. When it’s thinned out a bit it’s more of a pastel baby pink with shimmer. I like this a lot because it gives you a lot of options while still being cute and sparkly. For a shimmer this intese it’s very smooth and just like the rest in the range it blends well and last all day.

VERDICT: Great quality, very versatile colour, the brightness in the pan might be a bit off putting which is a shame considering how wonderful the shadow itself is. DO WANT.

All in all I was very impressed with the quality of everything and I think it rivals some much more expensive brands in terms of cost to product/quality ratio. Now here are some shots in action!

I’m wearing the Orange Skin all over my lid, the Dress Killer on the outer 1/3rd in a C shape and Arabian Nights along the lash line.

Quite a pretty natural look!

I’m still not completely sold on the orange but what do you guys think? ^_^
If any of you are interested in purchasing from Vanity Box they have some special offers for my readers below:

1. Get a store credit worth $5(valid on sale items too) for a limited time of 2 weeks, if you head over to the post here and fill out a 6 question survey.

2. Buyers that leave constructive reviews once they’ve received the item (members that register on the site can leave reviews on product pages) are eligible for store credits worth $5 or $10 . This is available for up to 10 reviewers a month and this is an ongoing offer.

3. For the next two weeks orders over $35 qualify for a free plat lip colour of their choice, normally worth $9.50. Just quote the code “Violet LeBeaux” and choose the colour you want in the Vanity Box checkout comments box.

Gave it a good spray either side and on the top:

Not bad!

Very Something About Mary ;)

Now how will it go when I brush it out…

After 3 brushes:

A couple more…

Good as new.

There’s something in this formula which just seems to be magic with my hair, even when it’s down I can spray it over gently, give it a tiny brush and it’s in place but still really natural and there is actually movement. I think the versatility is what makes this a really interesting product and that’s probably why Cedel has been in business with it since the 30′s. No fancy gimmicks, it just works. They also make mini handbag sized ones so plus one for that too.

Verdict- Strong smell but works better than any other spray I’ve used. Price is great, bottle is big and it’s very versatile. I wont be switching any time soon. DO WANT

The lovely You’ve Got Nail got it all on video so I would suggest taking a look see for a really interesting interview!

The highlight of the night for me was when he mentioned that the Illamasqua girls at the Chadstone counter had recommended me to him and told him to look out for me. So sweet!

All of the lovely ladies and Julian together:

The rest of James’ photos are here!

That week was so busy, the previous day there was an event at Kiehls to promote the fact that they are lowering their Australian prices to be more in line with the international prices. OMG A BEAUTY COMPANY LISTENED TO OUR COMPLAINING!!!

We were treated to yummy sushi :D

The full list of prices being dropped can be found in store, some of them are up to 50% less now!

Celina and I with the lovely PR agent Jess who is super tall and had the cutest outfit.

I had to take a photo of her shoes because they were EPIC! I can’t believe she had been walking in these all day!!

Most of the MBBE girls were there as well as other bloggers, it was awesome getting to meet so many new lovely people!

We each had our skin looked at and were recommended custom products to suit. This is my attendant Daniel, he was super nice and even managed to squeeze in advice for James XD

No other company has ever bothered to ask James if he wanted samples so he was pretty chuffed! I’m going to force him to write a review of them here too mwahaha! I’ll be reviewing the products I was given too after I’ve tested them suitably.

We learnt about the history of the brand and spoke about the price drop. I have to say that I am in favor of anything that involves bringing Aus prices to a reasonable point compared to the rest of the world.

Dr Skeleton is in the house!

Favorite photo of the day involved stealing James’ hat ;) It was a really wonderful night out yay for Kiehls and I’ll let you all know how I go with the products!

The rest of James’ photos are here.

I’ve been digging through all my old photos looking for something specific so I thought I would posts some of the ones I found on the way today.

I found this photo the other day and it made me miss Brisbane a bit, well not so much Brisbane as our old house. We used to have a direct view into the city from our old place, this was the view from our balcony at sunset:

Speaking of pretty views this is the view from James’ parents place on the Sunshine Coast. Sometimes they would let us have a holiday there and I totally miss that too! Waking up to the ocean is nice, though there was about 12093091283 birds that lived in that tree outside who made it their mission to wake me up every morning at like 5am *_*

Saw these ages ago, heehee clearly someone who works for this company has been spending too much time listening to me…

James and I are mature as ever…

We do pay for our immaturity though, there was something in that icing which burned like hell! We ended up having red marks in the shape of the moustaches for a few hours after *_*

I found these photos of progress doing embroidery and it made me want to start up again.

I have so many half finished crafts laying around that it’s probably a bad idea though >_< They are all really long term projects though like cross stitches or big embroidery bags or other things that take lots of time and commitment so I find it hard to have motivation to keep going if I can see the end in sight. I really want to start knitting something again too but I feel like I should finish the other stuff first. Bleh, I’m in a crafting rutt and I need to re-motivate myself.

I think it’s probably all the rain that makes me just want to sit inside with a hot chocolate and nap all day. Very bad for productivity but damn nice anyway!

I’ve set up my sewing machine properly now so it’s out all the time in hopes of motivting myself. Maybe I’ll set up my tea warmer there too to bribe myself off the couch and away from the computer haha!

All the rain makes me want to buy cute gumboots for walking around town too XD I keep seeing cute designs around…

I also tried to clean out my nail polish collection but that just resulted in making a bit of a mess >_<

James continues to experiment with alternative hair styles but I’m not sure any of them are working for him…

I’m still completely fascinated with the architecture here and it seems everywhere we go has a pretty  building or a stunning interior…

And I suppose that’s about it for now… I should stop procrastinating by writing this and go try to finish those crafts I was talking about!

Do you guys get into a crafting rut sometimes too? How do you all find motivation to get started again!? I need suggestions ;_; Should I try to persevere and finish my big long term crafts which I’m bored of or should I get right back into it with something small, easy and fun?

The idea is that you press it to your eyelid then drag to the side to apply. You can see from the picture that the paddle was a bit small for my eye but after blending it didn’t matter much.

After once swipe most of the make up was on my eye. Though it wasn’t very easy to apply with precision.

The right eye seems to have a lot more of the white than the left and I couldn’t get them very close to the lash line because of the shape of the paddle. Having an upwards curve at the bottom seems like a good idea but when your eye is closed the curve really needs to point down to match the eye shape.

After the swipe:

Nothing was left on the paddle:

After applying the other one, it looked like there was more of the top silver colour on the right than the left, once it was blended you couldn’t tell though.

I used a brush to blend the colours in and distribute them evenly around the lid and this was the result.

So all in all I like the idea and it’s very easy to use. The colours blended well and while they didn’t look good on me I imagine the colours would go well on someone with a different skin tone. For the long term it would be much more cost effective to just buy a palette of eye shadow, a brush and learn how to apply yourself but these definitely have a place. They would be great for girls just getting started in make up or for girls who don’t normally wear make up at all to use at special events. They don’t require any skill to use and provide a nice result but you also lose out on the ability to completely customize a look to the most flattering one for your skin tone and shape so it’s 50/50.

Verdict- definitely have a purpose and would be great for girls who don’t know how to apply make up. Easy to use, applied smoothly and decent result. DO WANT but for my kid sister (if I actually had one ) or to teach friends how to apply make up or if I only had like 5min to get ready. These would be a good back up plan for last minute outings or to keep in your handbag for emergencies ;)

Apply 2 coats of base coat and wait until completely dry. The base colour I used was White Gold.

The next colour I’m using is Gold. This is where the tiny paint brush comes in handy!

Paint little splotches all over the nails randomly.

They don’t need to be even or the same size, you can make them as big or small as you like.

Last colour I’m using is Bronze.

Use the tiny paint brush to edge the spotches. Don’t worry about being neat about it and don’t go around the edge in a complete circle, you want it to be broken up into 2-3 parts with gaps between them.

Let it dry, apply a clear top coat for extra shine and you’re done!

You could reverse the colours to put a light leopard print on a dark background for a really pretty effect too.

This is a really good pattern to break your teeth on if you’ve never tried nail art before because it doesn’t matter if you make mistakes :D

Hand Cream- $10

The hand cream has a really thick texture and while you don’t need much to cover your hands, it feels like it doesn’t soak in completely. I found that if I used just a little too much it could be hard to actually rub it all in. Even an hour later when I went to wash my hands they turned that slightly slimy texture. I loved the smell though. The strongest smell in this one was the black currant and jasmine. A big plus I give it, is that while it smells nice and strong coming out from the bottle, after rubbing in the smell is just subtle and doesn’t linger for an annoying length of time. I’ve had hand creams before where I needed to wash them off because the smell just lingered and gave me a headache after a while and this wasn’t one of them. Overall I think the size is appropriate for the price and considering how rich it is, the tube will probably last months! TAKE IT OR LEAVE IT!

Body Wash- $15

The body wash comes in a nicely sized pump bottle which matches the lotion perfectly. It suggests either use in the shower or as a hand wash, I chose shower but I love products which can do double duty. The smell straight out of the bottle is mostly pomegranate but once water hits and you start rubbing in it turns to black currant, reminds me a ridiculous amount of black currant Soothers, you know the purple ones? The biggest problem I have with this is that the pump itself puts out a small amount of product, not so bad if it wasn’t quite thick and therefore hard work to pump in the first place. It would be a fine amount if you were using it as a hand wash, but should be more for body wash. It lathers well, cleans pretty well and leaves a hint of scent behind. Oh my god the smell is amazing, it could turn me completely purple and I would still buy it for the smell XD DO WANT!

Body Lotion- $15

Same very pretty bottle as the body wash but in white. Love the graphics on the bottle, so pretty! Again the lotion is quite thick though and the pump only puts out a tiny bit at a time so it can be tiring to try to get enough out of the bottle. It’s a nice texture and easy to rub in and absorbs well. Feels moisturizing but obviously being a lotion rather than moisturizer it’s not a substitute for a proper skin care routine. The smell lingers longer than the hand lotion and you don’t need much to go a long way. You can really smell the violets in this one, once rubbed in the pomegranate and black currant remain. Very yummy and I found myself sniffing for hours afterwards. This I would definitely buy again. DO WANT.

I haven’t tried the soap that was sent because I much prefer body wash to bar soap so I can’t really comment on it other than to say the packaging was really cute and it smelled as lovely in the box as everything else in the collection. If and when I do I will update this review.

Overall I love this collection. The prices are decent at $10-15 per item and being stocked at Target means it’s very easily available. While there is some room for improvement in the formulas and packaging, I would definitely put any other items with this fragrance onto my wish list. It’s sweet, refreshing but not too overpowering or sticky. DO WANT.

Price: $19.95

Basically it is supposed to shine and smooth down all of your little fly away hairs. I’m sure there is all kind of fancy technology employed to do that but that sort of thing you can read about on their website.

It comes in the form of a glue stick XD The idea is that you can take it anywhere and use it on the go. You are supposed to smooth it straight onto your hair, I found that doing that was too much product and too hard to see what I was doing so instead I applied to my hand and then wiped it onto the hair.

It seems like an odd thing glue-sticking your hair but I remember at school when girls I knew used *actual* glue sticks to do this if they were desperate hahaha!

So does it work? You be the judge…

Before. Unbrushed hair first thing in the morning:

After. Applied very lightly on hands and smoothed down, no brushing:

So yes it does work, and it works very well. You would think it would be heavy and oily to get such a dramatic result but it’s really not. My hair didn’t feel greasy and I couldn’t notice much of a difference at all. There is a light plesent scent with it, kind of smells like a hair salon actually XD

I think the biggest fan of this product surprisingly enough was actually James. As a photographer he is forever having to photoshop out fly away hairs from client work, after one use with me he wanted to take mine to use on shoots. I didn’t want to give it up though so now we argue over who can take it on certain days XD I feel almost like we need a lawyer approved joint custody arrangement!!

VERDICT: Love it. Again pricey but you need so little of it to get results that I imagine it would last for a *very* long time and therefore be worth the investment. James says it’s a must for photographers and I would agree that I can tell when I’ve used it/not used it in outfit photos! DO WANT.

Now small bonus with these reviews, from May 1st if you buy any 2 KMS products you get this cute little travel bag as well as a change to win a $1000 travel voucher. Clearly they know how I think because it’s got my travel motto stamped on it:

“I didn’t come all this way not to look good”

Inside it’s got a bunch of little bottles, sprays and jars to put your travel beauty products. Clear case so you can take it on the plane with you and a pocket inside to hold make up. They even were nice enough to print my name and address onto the label for me XD

So summary? I am very glad that KMS put those first products into the MBBE gift bags because if they hadn’t I probably wouldn’t have been introduced to some of my current favorite products.Very much looking forward to trying and testing more from them in the future. Thumbs up from me.

• Felt
• Needle and thread
• Velcro strips

First cut out the main shape of the bow in black felt. I didn’t have any large pieces yet so I did it in sections and stitched them together. It’s a fairly easy shape but if anyone wants it let me know and I’ll put up a pattern.

Separate the two sides of your velcro. The side you want to use it the scratchy one not the soft one. The soft one won’t grab on to your hair.

Cut enough so you can cover as much of the bow as possible, I needed two strips.

Stitch it in place and cut off the extra.

Now it’s time to add in the main colour of the bow. Cut out the red pieces of felt like below. They need to be a couple of mm smaller than the black so it appears as if there’s a border.

Stitch it together and you’re finished :D

Useful, cute and distracting from how sleep deprived you look first thing in the morning ;D Now that’s the trifecta!

This is what they look like out of the packet, the texture is very slippery and jelly-ish also they were quite cold.

This provides quite a problem as they don’t like staying on the face!! The website suggests that there’s “no need to lie down” and suggests you apply them while doing any number of things such as cooking dinner, watching tv or in the car. I couldn’t even get them to stay on while sitting still so I would be surprised if they lasted through cooking dinner… I think someone might end up with a not so nice surprise in their lasagne XD

Seriously… there are like 30 outtake photos of me doing this trying to get them to stay on for the photo.

But I got one!! So you’re supposed to leave them on for around half an hour, I managed to keep mine on that long by laying down and watching tv. They feel silky and cool while on and if they were easier to keep on I think they would be really awesome.

Afterwards the feeling is very nice. My eyes did seem less puffy after use but long term I didn’t notice much difference in my skin. I think they felt very nice and the short term results were good but long term they are nice but not a miracle cure for bags.

VERDICT: Very nice feeling afterwards, more of a luxury than a necessity. Between the slipperiness and the packet making a mess they could be a lot easier to use. The price works out to $3.60 per pair so that’s about average for eye treatments/individual face masks here in Aus. DO WANT.

Bare lips:

One coat:

The only major problem that I have with this lipstick is that it has a serious tendency to migrate… like really badly even if you’ve done everything right. Primer, lip liner etc does nothing. This is not one of those kiss-your-boyfriend-drink-from-a-cup-no-marks lipstick commercials XD It’s really pigmented too so once you’ve gotten it on something it can be hard to get out without staining, white shirts beware!

VERDICT: Great colour, the price and migration do kind of suck though. Probably wouldn’t purchase again but certainly wouldn’t throw it out. TAKE IT OR LEAVE IT.

I knit in garter stitch until I had finished a complete square.

And then cast off leaving around 20cm of extra yarn as a tail.

Now place the square like this with the tail at the top.

Basically we’re going to squish down the point into the centre to form the top of the heart…

So using a needle stitch from the top corner down and bunch it up. Tie off and weave any ends in.

Taadaa hearts!

Give them a wash and they are ready to use ^_^ I use mine to remove make up at the end of the day because it’s so soft and gentle and once dirty, can just be thrown in the wash. Considering the whole ball of yarn cost $5 you could make 1 for each day of the week and never buy cotton pads again. +1 for the environment  and much cuter too XD

The price here in Aus for one of these is $42 (according to their website) which is on par with other high end brands here. Unfortunately as per usual here in Aus we pay more than twice as much for most of our cosmetics that those overseas for absolutely no reason whatsoever >:(

The coverage was medium, nothing wow but still good enough to replace a tinted moisturiser.

I had a really hard time being excited about this one and that probably had to do with the smell, it is very strongly scented :( It’s one of those smells that you either love or hate and it smacks you in the face pretty hard so this cream is something you should really test out in store before buying!

Bare Skin:

With cream:

It didn’t pick up very well in the photos but this shade (whatever it was) was really orangeish on me. After I put it on I felt like the victim of a bad fake tan >_< Definitely for those with yellow undertones rather than pink.

VERDICT: Not for me. At all. May be good for those who have yellow tones and don’t mind the strong scent. Definitely one to try in store or get samples of before you buy ^_^ TAKE IT OR LEAVE IT.

The texture is very light, wet and creamy. It takes a little while to dry and is fine to be applied with fingers or sponges (for better coverage). I found it was a bit wet to apply with a brush but that was just personal preference. It feels more like moisturiser than foundation on.

Plain skin:

As you can see from the photo below it only offers light coverage, not enough to get rid of freckles but enough to make a difference. The slight shimmer gives a really dewy effect rather than just being shiny which I love! Until very recently when I started testing others I’ve been wearing this cream almost every day since I got it and the tube is still about half full, to me that’s pretty good value.

The packaging is ok, better than a bottle because you can be precise about how much to get out but I still prefer pumps. Pretty none the less ^_^

With a layer of the cream applied very hastily with fingers (sponge looks nicer with better coverage):

VERDICT: Decent price, good if you’re looking for light coverage. Shimmer doesn’t look over the top even in the sun. Takes a while to dry which can be annoying but other than that pretty good. Suits light skin tones. DO WANT.

And one of these ones which are supposed to go over a pony tail on big clippies:

I bought my extensions from Bodyline and they were very cheap but decent quality. For the two of them I think I paid about $18. By using extensions you can do this style with pretty much any length hair at all ^_^

Also obviously these extensions don’t match my hair colour since I dyed my hair again but hopefully that will make it easier for you to see what is my hair and what is extensions!

What you need:

• 1 set of hair extensions on clip in tracks (curled)
• 1 matching clip in ponytail (curled)
• Bobby pins
• Brush
• Hair Spray

Ok starting with clean brushed hair, grab the track extension and fold up the track like this:

Holding it in one hand, use your other hand to grab half of the tips, scrunch it up…

Plonk it on the top of your head like this…

You should have a couple of long curls hanging down the side like this and the rest piled on top in random curls. Pin it in place ^_^

Divide your natural hair in 3 sections, one on each side and one at the back. On the side that has the hanging bit, pull the section of natural hair backwards.

Scrunch it up in your hand loosely and pin it at the back of your head where the top of the extensions meet your scalp…

Pinned it looks all scrunchy like this:

Repeat on the other side…

Pin it down!

Ok time for the clippy part!

On the side that had the hanging curls, hold them up and out of the way for a second. Clip the hair piece right above your ear and into your natural hair…

Let go of the curls so they fall over the top and you end up with something like this…

Now that is much too unbalanced on the side for my tastes and it looks terrible at the back so lets finish up! You should still have a piece hanging down the back of your natural hair. Pull that up…

Scrunch it up…

Pin it in place ^_^

Now let’s cover the back up so it blends in more ^_^ Grab a handfull of the side ponytail her from the top:

Pull it around the back and pin in place over the top of your natural hair. You can chose to leave a couple of strands hanging down or you could pin them up to your head.

Hair spray the hell out of it ^_^

If you need to, fix up the curls with your fingers so they are perfect.

There you have it! You can add some bows or flowers or clippies or something else to decorate it!

From the side…

And the other side!

So there you go! If you practice you can have it all up and finished in about 15 minutes :D Hope you enjoyed the tutorial ^_^

Using your finger or a pin start sectioning a piece of hair starting from the top of your ear and moving backwards.

Clip it up and out of the way:

Underneath that and just behind the ear take a small section of hair:

Plait that section ^_^

Use a pin or a hair tie to keep it from coming loose for the moment.

Now on the other side of your head take a section near the top and pin it out of the way:

Plait another section under that and secure the end  ^_^

Now with the first plait you made pull it over the top of your head like so:

Pin it on place like this:

Using the second plait make a loop:

Continue with the loop so it turns into a figure 8. Here you can either make it really tight so it looks like a bow or looser so it looks like a heart when it’s finished:

Pin it in place and cover the pins using a flower or another decoration:

Now you can unclip all of the sections you pulled back and fluff them up. You should have something like this:

Finished!

From one side:

And the other:

From here you could curl the rest of your hair for a more dressy look or leave it straight or wavy ^_^

Depending on what else you’re wearing at the time this can either be a really dressed up style or nice and casual!

It’s quite a heavy cream, which offers good build-able coverage. It is fairly thick, almost like sunscreen which I suppose makes sense considering the SPF25 in it XD

The texture means that it can be difficult to get an even coverage. Fingers don’t cut it with this one, I got the best coverage using brushes but sponges worked alright too.

No make up:

Just the BB cream:

As you can see it does cover my freckles very well but it also has a darker tone than my skin so I look a little dull. I think it would work well on someone a little darker than me. The texture felt quite heavy to begin with but after it was completely dry I didn’t notice it anymore.

Lasted well throughout the day and the coverage was good by the end of the day. I would say this is more on the hardcore spectrum of BB Cream, if you were to layer foundation over this (or even just a thicker layer of BB) you should be able to cover pretty much anything you want. If you wanted one less step this is probably enough to replace foundation.

VERDICT: Quality is good, coverage can be very good if applied well. Bit orange for me but nice none the less. Super useful bottle, large amount of cream. Generally DO WANT but on someone else’s skin.