New Revlon Colorstay Eyeshadow Sets

From the pages of "Why didn't they think of this earlier?" comes the latest eye shadow offering from Revlon, every shade comes in its own size depending on how often most people would tend to use each colour for a gorgeous contoured eye.
I can't be the only person who goes through the lightest shade and has to buy another individual pot of eye-shadow to work with the palette again! Another bonus is the fact that these are 16 hour Colorstay eye shadows, they'll last!
The range of combinations also go from gorgeous neutrals to eye popping colours so hopefully they'll suit all tastes too, my favourites for the coming winter months is Goddess, Soft greys with a light pink to liven it up.

That's just a handful of the colours available! I counted 16 different combinations that I found on the internet!

Do you have any other "Why didn't I think of that?" beauty wonders? 

Source: Revlon

Bought! Floral Jeans and Kitty Headscarf

I've been eyeing off a pair of floral jeans for sometime to add to my arsenal for the season. If you do or don't know, I've started training five days a week and don't have as much free time as I used to, but one perk is indeed my shrinking waistline. I thought I might have to send them back due to fit but I don't!
ASOS currently have a small but good range of floral denim, you need a choice of prints to ensure you can buy somethng that will work with the rest of your wardrobe. For me it was a fight between this pair and a lighter pair, which the darker print ultimately one... though the lighter pair may be saved until Spring if they're still available, such bright and zingy shades!

Also picked up this too cute headscarf, You buys know me! How could I resist this print?? It's a long rectangle that I can also tie around my neck, Scarves are my next fashion trademark, I've come to realize just how good they are in the sort of cold but still not freezing weather we get in Brisbane, and are easy to take off and on in my office environment.

Can you see the little bows around their necks??

Both Items are available from ASOS.com

Tribal Nail Art Stamping

So it's safe to say that I am in love with my new toy! To the point where a manicure doesn't last more then about two days because I already have a new idea for what I want on my nails. Addict.
Here is what I'm wearing now, I used plate QA15. I originally bought it for the cute little kittens on it, but the tribal patterns are pretty spot on the trend money right now too. Alpine skiing anyone?

Polish used: Kleancolor in Mocha and Konad Special Polish in black. Stamp QA15

Bought! John Freida Salon Shape Air Styler

Hands up who wants an easier way to blow dry at home? I should be seeing a lot of hands in the air! Priceline are doing a fantastic deal in the last week where if you spent $40 on products across ten or so ranges you got a goodie bag packed with almost $200 worth of product! Since I missed the beauty version of this the other month I was dying to get my paws on this one, and lucky me, the new John Freida air styler was just around $50. You can check out more details about the bag deal here!

I've been stalking this kind of product since I spotted it come out around a year ago, but I couldn't justify the near $100 price tag that came with it. So I decided to wait until something more thrifty came out, and I love it. Instead of juggling a brush and a blow-dryer and still quite frankly needing another hand to assist to get a good result at home, this type of tool combines the dryer and brush in one. I have my hair styled in less then ten minutes (excluding prior drying time) and don't get so frustrated with my hair not doing what I want.
The styler comes with three settings; low temp, high temp and a cold shot to set your style. The end result was that I have shiny, bouncy, oomphy, straight hair with a nice sense of movement through the ends. Perfect.
While I don't have any real problems with the styler, I did buy it thinking that the brush head would rotate, it doesn't, but it's still very user friendly and easy to use without this feature.

Have you tried this product or something similar before? What did you think?

How to be thrifty with Nail strips

Nails art was something I admit that I always thought was trashy. Those long, decorated talons always signified someone who wasn't very desirable to me. Just like sweaters and bold shoulders before them it amazes me just how our opinion can be swayed.
So I'm into nail art now. I don't grow my nails out long, and I don't cover every nail until it is encrusted with a mass of crap like some others I've seen, but a cute watercolour mani, or half moon style, or a feature nail with a cute motif? Yes, that is cute and chic to me
For more then one reason should you keep your nails short. They are far lower maintenance then long nails, and in my opinion, its the long length that makes them trashy. If you look at the tips of your fingers from the palm side of your hands you should either not see your nails or they should be just peeking over the top.
Also, they help you get more out of nail strips and wraps!
With the style of wrap sold by Sally Hansen and Manicare, the strips are double sided, and not something I'd consider cheap! Store bought strips can vary between $5-$15 (Aus) depending on the brand and discounts. That's almost a dollar per strip at the higher end! But if you're careful you can easily use one strip to do two nails if they're on the short side. Just cut it in half before you peel the backing strip off.
Another method you could use is to use the strips as a feature nail. By using only one strip per hand on your ring finger (my favourite to emphasise) per polish job, you get a more unique look too.
I've used this technique with the Manicare Glamnails range, and Sally Hansen, and found that the glitter strips in both brands are really very comparable.

Cloud Nail Stamp Art

Just a quickie, the more I practise with the Salon Express I bought the other day the better the results have been. I have bought a stack of plates including one with this cute cloud motif.
Also slowly building up an arsenal of colours to play with. I find it funny that my right hand turned out so much better then my left considering I'm right handed.
The plate used is Konad M79  and the colours used were Party Blue in Maybelline's mini Colorama range, and the white is a cheap one that I bought months ago, not the proper stamping polish. So it has shown up not as opaque as I would've liked, but it's a first attempt!

Have to keep my nails this short for training, sadface. I think it's a really cute design though, and it's been pretty cheap to try out, costing less then a salon manicure to get everything to set up.

Bought! Trilogy Rosehip Oil

It's been kind of hard to miss the hype that has become a deafening roar in the beauty industry about Rosehip oil. It's about time I gave it a try really! After hunting around for a brand that wouldn't break the bank without compromising on quality I decided to buy from the brand Trilogy, you really can't do much better when a label states only one ingredient in the product! Also it's kind of hard to ignore the masses of awards the product has won.
As someone with rather oily skin I have to admit I'm sceptical about whether the benefits will outweigh the fact that I'm putting oil on my skin, even if it is just 3 drops twice a day. However, I'm sad to admit that I look my age and could look younger, it's time to try something new!
The biggest boasts about Rosehip oil are the ability to improve skin texture and moisture levels, as well as aid in prevention of lines and wrinkles. it also contains antioxidants and all the good fatty acids and omegas that aid in healthy supple and youthful skin. What have I got to lose?

Have you tried Rosehip Oil before? How did it work for you?

Make up in your 20's

Ladies of the world I have a gripe. Time after time I read in magazines and articles the advice that 'during your twenties is the ideal time to try it all, neon lipstick with crazy eye-shadow? Go for it!'
No, no, oh dear god, NO.
What they don't go into to explain normally is that yes, your twenties is indeed the time to experiment and try it all, but for goodness sake, try one thing at a time! You may feel invincible  but you are still very susceptible to look like a drag queen, in fact, the idea that if you overdo it you could look like a drag queen will continue your entire life really ...
Ultimately, do try it all. Smoky eyes, contoured eyes, different colours and intensities, eye-liner, strong brows, bleached brows. Bronzer to contour, bronzer to tan, peach blush, tones of red, pink and coral and your cheeks. bold lips, pale lips, glosses, butters, everything! So long as you only highlight one feature at a time do it, but please, please don't do it all at once!
Also, your twenties is the best time to try trends. The best example I can think of right now is of course the massively popular nail art trend. In your twenties you can get away with crazy designs, but once you hit thirty or even forty, anything beyond a gorgeous slick of colour and maybe a feature nail is starting to head into scary territory.
In closing, try things in your twenties, but not all at once!

Product Review: Salon Express Nail stamper

You know those intricate designs you see advertised in nail bars? You know the ones, too delicate to possibly imagine doing with a brush? I've always been too scared to ask for them, and being a massive fan of DIY I was stoked when I found this kit. I picked one up from eBay the other week and now that I have had a good chance to play around with it, I thought I'd tell you guys about it. Admittedly, the ads for this product are frightening in their zeal, once you get past that though, the product is actually pretty nifty.
Salon express is a lot like the brand called Konad, from Korea I think that have the original version of this DIY style of nail stamping, I thought I'd give the cheaper one a go and see how I like it before I commit to the original.
The kit comes with five plates with a myriad of more then 40 designs, I read that you can get different designs in different kits but these are the ones I received, not the cutest unfortunately but you can buy additional plates online:

Salon Express complete kit contents

After just a few goes I was pretty happy with my results. My best piece of advice for you is to make sure you REALLY get the angle right when you are scraping off the extra nail polish. I found tilting the scraper at about 45 degrees made all the difference.
One negative I did find is that the whole nail designs that came with the kit were too small to cover my entire nails. it covered my pinky fine but there is a hope in hell it would fit my thumb!
Like all things in life it takes a bit of practise and the right tools to get it right. You can use normal nail polish with the kit, but I highly recommend to use the highly pigmented colours sold by Konad and other brands. I found that the white polish sold for use in French Manicures comes up nicely though.
If you're interested in buying more plates for your kit, I have found a store online that stocks Konad and other plates and special polishes. I have to say now that I haven't bought from them yet but I'm in the process of putting an order through now, I'll let you know how it goes! They also have an eBay store that sells stock for a little more but gives you the peace of mind that comes from eBay shopping.

Have you tried at home nail stamping? How did you go?

Mercedes Benz Fashion Week Australia

You'd have to be living under a fashionably void rock to have missed the fact that it's the biggest week in Australian fashion! Very jealous of anyone who is down in Sydney to enjoy it, but for now I'll just have to be happy with checking out the incredible coverage. Here's a quick look at what has caught my eye.

I was so excited to read that Romance Was Born would be having a comic book hero themed show! Their range is always great for pieces that stun, you can't fade into the background in them. My favourite look of the show is the gorgeous black and white dotty dress, it's taken the idea of how they shade in comic books and would make a fantastic conversational piece! I want.

I'm in love with the hair and make up at the Toi Et Moi show too. There were two hair looks for the show and the one I'm adoring is the gorgeous shabby buns, perfect to work with the humid conditions over winter. You can emulate it by creating a high bun with teasing and a braid as a feature. if your hair is looking too sleek, use your palm to muss it up. Chic, flicked eyeliner completes the look with a slightly coral lip.