Sorry - it's Silver Shatter again!!

Hello :)

I know, you're probably tired of these crackle/shatter posts so I'm apologizing in advance!  I like adding shatter polishes not just to give standard manicures a twist but also extend their wear time.  I loved this icy mani so much I wore it for 3 days and had to share it. This is OPI's good ol' Silver Shatter worn over L'Oreal's steely Blue Laguna.

All pictures were taken outdoors in indirect daylight:

Thanks for looking!

Vita :)

Haul post: Bargain hunting!

I wanted to spoil myself with one final haul before I started my make-up ban so I wouldn't feel immediately deprived by my resolution - kind of like a last supper for beauty addicts!  For me a lot of pleasure comes from the act of buying as much as owning nice things so I spent a leisurely morning sampling and sniffing things as I shopped.  And although it wasn't intentional, I ended up scoring quite a few bargains!  All of these purchases were from Cosmetics Fragrance Direct and Priceline.

L-R:

Revlon (Peach Smoothie, Galaxy, Pink Again)
L'Oreal (187)

My first stop was Cosmetics Fragrance Direct.  I've just discovered a new outlet which has opened near my home - dangerous!  I dove into the Revlon polish bin and grabbed three beauties.

Peach Smoothie is one of the scented Revlons so it's supposed to dry down to a peach scent.  The scent was an afterthought for me because I was attracted to the creamy colour with ever so subtle crystelline sparkles.  To be honest I didn't really notice the scent when I was swatching either although I guess wearing it for a total of 5 minutes probably wasn't long enough for the peach scent to develop!

Galaxy grabbed me immediately because it's a glitter! Galaxy has a slightly edgy look to it as it contains fine black specks in the glitter mix.  It was quite sheer when I swatched it so it's definitely a layering polish.  I can't wait to wear this one over darker shades of blue, purple and black.

Pink Again is a bit of a throwback to the sorts of softer shades I wore when I was a teenager.  It looks like pink satin in the bottle and like candy-floss when swatched.

L'Oreal's 187 was actually a freebie tossed in with a Glam Shine gloss I bought at Priceline.  I chose this shade because it's a true orange creme and perfect for wearing this summer.

Swatched in same order as above:

MOR Orange Blossom Hand Cream

I'm not exactly running out of hand cream at the moment but I loved the sweet orange blossom scent when I tried this in-store and the tube design looks just a little special.  MOR is an Australian brand known for its exquisitely packaged soaps, fragrances and body products. It has a reputation as a luxe brand which sells gorgeous products perfect for special gifts.  This discontinued hand cream was retailing at the heavily reduced price of $8AUD so I considered it a gift to myself! 

L-R (and swatched in same order):
Revlon Colorburst Lipstick (Fuschia)
Revlon Matte Lipstick (Pink About It)
L'Oreal Glam Shine Fresh Lip Gloss (Aqua Lychee)

 

Why do Revlon discontinue these wonderful colours?  Both of the Revlon lippies I bought were discontinued shades but perfect summer colours so I snapped them up.

Colorburst Fuschia was a discount bin find at Priceline and I got it for $7AUD.  These lipsticks usually retail at $23.95AUD so this was a bargain.  I've got quite a collection of Colorburst lipsticks now because I love the lightweight feel on my lips and the colour payoff is good.  I've always had a 'thing' for fuschia and this lipstick looked like the perfect blue-toned fuschia to me.

Pink About It was another $7AUD purchase.  In the tube this is the perfect shade of watermelon pink and it swatched nicely on my hand.  I know matte lippies are still having a moment but I'm a little unsure how this will wear on me so we'll see...

Aqua Lychee is a super sheer, wet gloss and I'll be honest, I bought this to get the free nail polish!  It does have a yummy fruity scent and doesn't feel sticky on the lips so, yes, I'll wear it.  I'll use this gloss for layering (over the matte Pink About It maybe?) or throw it in my purse for a no-fuss summery shine on my nude lips.

Australis Lip Tricks lipstick palette

This palette was the only item I had to pay full price for, although it only cost $9.95AUD!   This palette contains 8 shades of Australis' Colour Inject Mineral Lipstick which is about half the entire colour range.   I've heard good things about Colour Inject lipsticks from the local beauty blogging community and the palette is a great way to try these out.  I couldn't bring myself to swatch this beautiful pristine palette just yet and I think it probably deserves a review of its own so watch out for one over the coming weeks.

There's nothing like a bundle of new lipsticks and nail polish colours to make a girl/beauty fanatic feel good!

Until next time.

Vita :)

L'Oreal - Blue Laguna

Today's polish is a discount find from last year.

Blue Laguna was apparently a limited edition from 2008 although I don't know if these particular polishes were ever launched here in Australia.   Ah well, I was lucky enough to find this medium blue shimmer polish lurking in the bargain bin of my local Chemist Warehouse.  Over the past year I've been on a hunt for periwinkle blue polish to "complete" my collection and this almost makes it, although I'd be more accurate describing it as a steely blue.  I don't own it to compare but from pictures I've seen Blue Laguna also reminds me a little of Essie's recently released Smooth Sailing.

This is two coats of colour with top coat:

Outdoors shade

 

Full sun

Until my next post.

Vita :)

Diagonal crackle mani with Sally Hansen Crackle Overcoat

I love doing diagonal tape mani's because they're so simple and striking to wear so when I saw a fabulous diagonal crackle mani on Nailside's blog (here) I just had to try it!

This is one fine coat of Sally Hansen's Vintage Violet applied over SugarBaby's lilac creme Time Out.  I experimented by applying a thicker coat of crackle on my other hand to see the difference but it turned out unevenly and didn't work at all, so it's a thin coat of crackle to achieve the best result as shown here:

I think this is a great fun idea to get more use out of shatter or crackle polishes and I was pretty happy with my first attempt.  What do you think?

Vita :)

REVIEW: Maybelline Express Care Eye & Lip Makeup Remover

A few months ago I received a bottle of Maybelline's Express Care Eye & Lip Makeup Remover free with another $15AUD Maybelline purchase.  Lately I've been using this in place of my usual L'Oreal remover and I've found it to be an identical quality product.   But - there are a few little differences that have wrenched me away from my up 'til now Holy Grail makeup remover L'Oreal.

Here they are sitting nicely together.  They look pretty similar and both work on the same principle - you shake the product to create an emulsion, then squeeze out onto a makeup or cotton pad and wipe over your eyelids, lashes and lips to remove make-up.

L-R:

L'Oreal Gentle Make-Up Remover for Eyes & Lips

Maybelline Express Care Eye & Lip Makeup Remover

So what do I like about both of these?

• Both are 2 in 1 products combining makeup remover oil and cleansing water
• Both product formulas feel gentle on my eyes and don't sting
• Neither leaves any greasy residue on my lids or in my eyes
• Both effectively remove waterproof eye make-up and long wearing lip products
• Both are suitable for contact lens wearers

Why do I prefer Maybelline's Express Care Eye & Lip Makeup Remover?
For me it's all about the packaging:  Maybelline's bottle design is superior because it has a screw-top lid and does not leak!  This always drove me mad about L'Oreal's remover, as the flip-top lid has a tendency to leak and dribble everywhere and was a nightmare when travelling.  I had to place it in a ziplock bag and guaranteed it would have leaked in there!

Maybelline's remover also provides slightly more bang for your buck although this wasn't a real deal-breaker for me. Maybelline costs around $8.95AUD per 90ml, compared to L'Oreal which costs $12.99AUD per 125ml.  (For some silly reason known only to me I decided to calculate cost per ml, and Maybelline comes out slightly ahead at 9.9cents per ml, compared to L'Oreal's 10.4cents per ml).

It seems Maybelline has more than one product scarily similar than L'Oreal and that's not surprising.  It's been brought to my attention and I've confirmed it here that Maybelline NY is one of the brands administered by the L'Oreal group.

That's all for now.

Vita :)

NOTD: SugarBaby - Time Out

How about a sweet pastel colour to remind us down here in (currently cool) Melbourne that it's actually the middle of summer?

I was seduced by the pretty colour of SugarBaby's Time Out a couple of months ago.  Time Out is a lilac creme with the sheerest purple shimmer highlight which is unfortunately only visible in the bottle.  I love all shades of purple so this is no exception, even though I know this pastel probably doesn't suit me as well as brighter tones.  Coverage was opaque and even in two coats.

Full sun:

Outdoors shade:

SugarBaby is an Australian beauty brand and their range is available in Myer stores nationally, selected pharmacies around Australia and New Zealand or online internationally at www.hula.com.au.  The SugarBaby nail colours retail at $9.95AUD per 10.5ml bottle. 

Until next time.

Vita :)

An oldie but goodie: OPI - Movin' Out (Pic heavy)

 Hi again!

When I was digging through my stash for Christmas holiday polishes last month I found a lovely old multichrome polish from OPI.  Movin' Out is from OPI's 2003 Holiday on Broadway collection and is a sheer sparkly purple multichrome which leans towards gold, green and purple as it moves in the light.

I didn't get around to wearing Movin' Out in December but after wearing the purple creme Wow! for a few days I decided it would be the perfect base to try it out and I wasn't disappointed at all.  This is two coats. 

All pictures taken in natural daylight.  I've posted lots of pictures to capture the colour shift:

 It looks like an oil slick in the bottle:

 

And in direct sunlight it looks like a sparkly purple....

This polish deserves more love from me for sure - Shame on me for leaving it neglected in my Helmer!  Next time I'll wear it over black.

Until next time.

Vita :)