Saturday 26 July 2014

Chi Chi Cosmetics Haul

Hi!!  Today's blog post is a haul of a number of items that I  purchased from Chi Chi Cosmetics.  The items were part of a special deal with Chi Chi and Shaaanxo (a gorgeous You Tuber from NZ).  She created a look using a number of these products (and others) and then you had the opportunity to purchase them at a special price......so of course I jumped at the chance to  test out some new products at a fantastic price!
 
So, what did I get.......

 
  • Glamorous Rich Gems Eyeshadow Palette
  • Natural Wall of Shimmer Face Powder
  • Mosaic Blush in Pink Peach
  • 3D Magic 3 in 1 Mascara
  • Living On A Prayer Matte Single Eyeshadow
  • Fabulous and Flawless Foundation in 5 Neutral Beige
  • Metallic Eyeshadow Stick in Barbarella
  • Eye Brightener
  • 3 in 1 Eye Concealer in Light
  • High Definition Eyebrow Pencil in Light Brown

NOW FOR SOME SWATCHES....


 
Blush, Face Powder and Single Eyeshadow
 The blush is a nice rosy pink colour, I swatched it by swirling my finger in the whole product however with a small blush brush you could concentrate the colours for a more peachy look, pink look, bronze look or rose look.  The face powder is more like a highlighter, as it is very shimmery and you don't want to have a completely shiny face (unless that's the look you are going for).  The matte single eyeshadow is very  pigmented and easy to blend out.  You could easily use this one colour for a matte gorgeous smokey eye!


 
Eye Highlighter, Eye Brightener, Metallic Eyeshadow Stick and Brow Pencil

The Eye Brightener is one of those cool multi use products, you can use the Highlighter on your brow bone and inner corner and the Brightener on the waterline, brow bone and inner corner.  Both are very pigmented and do not crease.  I would recommend you use it on your hand before you first use it, as it's very sharp and needs the end to be blunt so it doesn't scratch your eye.  I love using the Metallic Eyeshadow stick as an all over eye base (just make sure you use a primer first to stop creasing) or as an inner corner highlight.  The Eyebrow pencil is fantastic, I wasn't sure which shade to get (there are 3) so I went for the middle shade and the colour payoff is amazing, used with a light hand to fill in at the front of the brow and then a touch more pressure to create actual brow hairs, the spoolie to comb out the brows on the other end is excellent for dispersing the product through your brow.

 
Foundation (top) and Concealer (bottom)
For once a foundation that lives up to it's name, you have flawless skin that  still actually looks like skin.  I use a Beauty Blender (BB) to apply this and I only need 1 pump of product to give medium coverage, 1 pump usually gives me 1 layer of product and enough to  add a touch more coverage where I need it.  I would expect that with 2  pumps and 3 light layers of product it would give full coverage.  There are plenty of shades of the foundation and they have a great colour matching system so it's pretty fool proof not to choose the right shade.  I chose the Light Shade in the Concealer to use as a highlighter.  It's a lovely creamy concealer that's not too thick or too thin.  Blends out easily with fingers, a brush or BB.

 

Rich Gems Eyeshadow Palette

The Rich Gems Palette is very pretty with lots of lovely gem colours, all colours are shimmer or satin finish.  When I purchase a palette, I usually like to have 2 or 3 matte colours and a dark brown or black.  This palette has none of these, but it's still a lovely palette, you will notice from the swatches that lighter colours in the middle of the palette are not very pigmented and required a few swipes for any decent payoff.  My favourite colours from  the palette are the navy, copper, burgundy, purple and light cream. 

As you can see I haven't opened up the Mascara yet, I'm currently using 4  different ones at the moment and as it's best to toss a mascara after 3 months, I'm waiting to use up the ones I have.  I'll let you know what I think of it when I start using it.

So what products would I re-purchase? The Foundation and Eyebrow Pencil. 

All products were purchased by me and all opinions are my own.  Let me know if you would  like to see a look using all of these products so you can see how they work together.......

You can find Chi Chi Cosmetics at your local Target store or online at http://www.chichicosmetics.com 

Have you tried any products from Chi Chi?

Sunday 20 July 2014

Winter Skin Saviours

Hi Everyone!  I'm back.......Sorry for being so absent, I'm so slack I know!

It's the middle of winter in Australia and today I'm going to show you what my favourite winter skin saviours are.....as we all know skin in winter get's dry and starts to resemble tree bark (LOL) and I'm going to help you bring your skin back to life!

Body Products......

I love the Cussons Imperial Leather Body Wash range and the Cherry Blossom & Vanilla one is so creamy and smells divine!  The Nivea In-Shower Smooth  Lotion Skin Conditioner is so nice to use after you have shaved your legs and add moisture to your skin! 

In Winter I switch out my normal body moisturiser, usually Sorbolene, for a Body Oil and my two favourites are The Body Shop Spa Wisdom Polynesia Monoi Miracle Oil and Palmer's Cocoa Butter Formula Moisturizing Body Oil.  Body oils just don't leave your skin oily feeling, or mark your clothing either. 

 
 

 Hands and Feet......

Hands that look like bark and feet that are dry and rough begone!  I love the Nivea Anti Age Q10 Plus Hand Cream and the Palmer's Cocoa Butter Formula Foot Magic....can you see a trend with brands?  I pop this hand cream on straight before bed and wake up with soft hands and the Foot Magic works a dream when you put it on straight out of the shower and pop on some socks!



Lips

Wind causes havoc on my lips and to keep them moisturised I love my EOS lip balm in Summer Fruits, Nivea Lip Butter in Vanilla & Macadamia and my Holy Grail product is Lucas' Papaw Ointment!  If you ever have a cold and the constant blowing of the nose tears up your skin, slather the Papaw Ointment all over it, you'll never have that dry nose skin again!




 
Face

Moisturising facial sprays help not only with keeping your make up in place but adding extra hydration.  My two favourites for winter  are Cinema Secrets Moisture Spray and The Body Shop Vitamin E Face Mist.  Serums are best to apply prior to your day or night moisturiser as they sink into your third and fourth skin layers, I love the L'Oreal Luminosity Code to use during the day to add extra glow to the skin.  My favourite Eye Cream is the Origins GinZing Eye Cream, it has light reflecting properties that brighten and depuff.




More Face.....

I use a face mask 2 - 3 times a week, and to help keep the moisture in I use Quick Fix Facials Mega Moisture Gel Mask for Dry and Thirsty Skin.  This is like a bath for your face, my skin just drinks it up!  We've already talked about oils for your body, now let's talk about oils for your face......now before your say "I've got oily skin I can't use that", I'm saying yes you can!  If you use the correct product and one that is specifically for your face it will seriously change your life!  I love Josie Maran 100% Pure Argan Oil, Tarte Pure Maracuja Oil and Swisse Argan Face Oil.  I use facial oil every night after serum, moisturiser and eye cream.  When my skin feels especially parched I put a second layer on before bed.

 
 
 
Make Up
 
In Winter I switch up some of my make up products from powder formula to a cream/illuminating formula.  My favourite foundation is Rimmel Wake Me Up Foundation with Anti-Fatigue Effect + Radiant Glow with the matching concealer  Rimmel Wake Me Up Anti-Fatigue Effect + Radiant Glow, I use the Light colour to use as a highlighter.  The L'Oreal Lumi Magic Base Pure Light Primer is so beautiful, put it under any foundation and your skin looks so dewy and luminous!  A little bit goes a long way!  If I don't feel like wearing a foundation I  use Stila Stay All Day 10-in-1 HD Illuminating Beauty Balm, it's so beautiful and just gives your skin a lit glow!  Liquid Highlighters are lovely to use on the high points of your cheeks, tip of your nose and cupid's bow.  My two favourites are NYX Born to Glow Liquid Illuminator in Gleam and Benefit High Beam.  A cream bronzer on the contours of your face can look really natural and the Chanel Soleil Tan De Chanel is a matte luxurious bronzer, apply it with a stippling brush.  To bring a natural flush to the face a cream blush is lovely applied with (clean!) fingers or again a stippling brush, I love Stila Convertible Color in Peony and Josie Maran Coconut Watercolor Cheek Gelee in Pink Escape.  Matte lip colours look great in winter but if you have dry and chapped lips then a balm stain is your best option, I love the Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in Smitten.
 
 
 
I hope that some of these products help your winter skin and we make it into Spring with glowing, moisturised skin!
 
Tell me what your favourite Winter Skin Saviour is......