Review: Rimmel Provocalips 16HR Kiss Proof Lip Colours...

...and how they kept my lipstick game strong over the festive season!

Let me be honest - when Rimmel initially released their Provocalips 16HR Kiss Proof Lip Colours I wasn't going to jump on the bandwagon because I figured I'd been there and done that years ago.  So of course as it goes with all new releases the hype starts building (which I duly ignore), and then my friends start raving (maybe there's something to this?), and then finally in mid December the PR company sends me some samples to try (okay then I'll try these and find out for myself!)


Provocalips 16HR Kiss Proof Lip Colours promise:

•  Kiss proof, transfer proof, food proof high impact endless colour.
•  No tight feeling or dry lips. Lips feel smooth and moisturized all day long.
•  Easy removal with Oil based makeup remover. 

  

 

 First up, I have the say the packaging is too cute (my admitted weakness) and being colour coded makes it easy to see which colour you're grabbing for. 

 

The application itself is a two step process.  First, colour is applied directly to clean, unprimed lips, then allowed to dry for around 60 seconds WITHOUT smooshing or smacking your lips together (or your lip colour could adhere to itself and peel or flake).  Once dry, the clear topcoat is applied to seal the colour and moisturise the lips.  Both the colour and topcoats are easily applied with the doe foot applicators.  I found the topcoat was a must, as although the lip colour will dry transfer-proof alone, it feels uncomfortably tacky on the lips without it. This means the finish of these lip colours is shiny - at least until the topcoat wears off.

 

 

The first thing I noticed is how incredibly richly pigmented these are and I had opaque colour on my lips in one swipe. These can still be built up to some degree with extra coats before the colour sets although not too heavily because it can result in a too thick coat of product, prone to peeling from the lips. Honestly though I think a single coat of colour should really be enough - as you'll see when you get to my swatches later in the post!

 

Once the colour is set, it is 100% SET and mine did not budge through all the eating and kissing I did throughout the festive season.  It was a huge relief to be able to wear bright lip colours without worrying about leaving lipstick prints on family and friends' cheeks, nor about having to touch up my lip colour after lunch or dinner and finally not worrying about colour bleeding outside my middle aged lip line!

 

These do wear very comfortably for a long wearing lip colour too and I didn't find myself rushing to reapply the moisturising topcoat because I really didn't need it.  The initial application is enough to seal in the tackiness too so it's a set and forget it for the rest of the day situation.

 

I received 3 of the 8 shades available to review and because I was won over I ended up buying another because of course I needed a long-wearing red for Christmas day!

 

 Top to bottom:  Skinny Dipping, I'll Call You, Little Minx, Kiss Me You Fool

 

Swatched on the back of my hand Left to Right:

Skinny Dipping, I'll Call You, Little Minx, Kiss Me You Fool

 

 

And now for the documented wear test!

 

Provocalips shade I'll Call You freshly applied at 10:00 am -  I decided to pout for a change...

 

 

And those brutal but necessary close ups:

 

10:00 am lips

 

7:30 pm lips in fading light with top coat freshly applied

 

The only sign of wear is where the colour has faded from the inner portion of my lips after a long day of lunching and grazing with friends and to be honest, had I not pouted my lips this wouldn't be noticeable at all.  If I was concerned with the fading (which I wasn't because I was back at home) a quick reapplication of colour in the centre of the lip would freshen it up perfectly.  I kept my Provocalips on for the rest of the day and it stayed like this until I chose to take it off at 11:00 pm with some eye & lip makeup remover.  

 

 

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Yes, I totally get the hype and I'm more than impressed Rimmel Provocalips 16HR Kiss Proof Lip Colours - I think they are a very reasonable buy at $17.95 each too.

Rimmel Provocalips 16HR Kiss Proof Lip Colours are available at:

Priceline, Priceline Pharmacy, Big W, Woolworths, Coles, Chemist Warehouse, My Chemist,
Target and Kmart and various Independent Pharmacies.

 

 Have you tried these?

 

 

(This product was provided for my consideration.  All comments and opinions are my own.)

 



OPI: Glamour Game

Taking a brief break from COLOUR and venturing back into neutral manicure territory I found this old holiday polish from OPI in my stash, ready to satisfy my needs for something neutral with a little twist.  When I say old, I mean older than I realised actually as Glamour Game harks back to OPI's 2008 Holiday collection Holiday In Toyland! Time is most definitely flying for me!

Glamour Game is an almost white gold metallic polish, with the tiniest shimmery flecks in the mix - just enough to lift it out of the ordinary.  I applied two coats and finished with top coat to smooth it over and here's the result.  Oh yes, please forgive my weird looking pointer/index fingernail - it's the result of a rough mending job as my nail had begun to tear. I gave up and nubbinized my nails the following week!

Shade

 

Sun

 

So my year is off to a good start as I've managed to put up three posts this week - as long as I keep to a minimum of two per week I'll be more than happy with my output!

That's all for week 1, 2015!


December's farewelled products and the final 2014 empties tallies by category!

Are you ready for my final 2014 empties post? Seeing as I was in the mood for summing up the year I've included yearly tallies at the end of the post too - I wanted to know what things I got through the most and see if there were any surprises...

 

Skin care

 

132) Renew You Q10 & Hyaluronic Acid Intense Hydration Hydrogel Masque (1 treatment) - This is the most unusual sheet mask I've tried because it's a 2-piece mask, and rather than tissue or cloth it's a slippery, rubbery gel-like mask which I actually found a little claustrophobic on my face.  I could feel the slight tingle of acids working their magic on my skin and my skin definitely felt smoother after one treatment. Truth be told though - because I found the experience more claustrophobic than relaxing I won't be buying this particular sheet mask again.

 

133) Kirkland Daily Facial Cleansing Towelettes (30 towelettes) - Forgive me but I still have two more packs of these to finish.  Not bad but nowhere near the HG of cleansing clothes. I'm actually starting to wean myself off the habit so it's probably going to be a while before I finish them.

 

 

134) Chu Lip Balm (Tokyo Mode Night) - You probably think I ate this because I got through it so quickly! This Japanese lip balm wins on cute packaging alone but the honey, lemon tea and bergamot scent was very appealing to me also.  This balm was not at all waxy and melted onto the lips so it wasn't a surprise I finished it in under two months.  Still, I wish I'd bought more of the six scents/flavours to try and I wouldn't need my arm twisted too hard to order some online from the Japan Trend Shop! (Sorry Liz I forgot to draw on the eyes and nose for this shot :p)

 

135)  Face of Australia Gentle Make-up Remover (125ml/4.23 fl.oz) - I'm onto another backup of this gentle remover which takes off waterproof eye makeup and more recently it's passed the test on long-lasting lip colours too.

 



Hand and body care

 

136) Bath & BodyWorks Warm Vanilla Sugar Shea & Vitamin E Shower Gel (3 fl.oz/88 ml) -  I am literally KICKING myself for not loading up my luggage (or at least buying the full size) of this cosy scented shower gel when I was in Hawaii. This shower gel foams up so well it's like taking a standing up bubble bath and leaves my skin delicately scented and moisturised - Gimme more! Thanks again Liz for introducing me to this delicious scent!

 

137) Natio Wellness Body Scrub (450g/15.8oz) - I enjoy this scrub in a tub. See a more detailed review here.

 

 

138) Natio Meditate Body Butter (Yoga Scent Narcissus Attar 100g/3.5oz) - Scented with Narcissus Jonquilla Flower oil, this body butter smelt heavenly but is unfortunately discontinued.

 

139) Palmer's Cocoa Butter Formula Concentrated Cream (30g/1.1oz) - I'd actually packed this for my overseas trip a few months ago but a little goes a long way so it made its way back home again.  A little squeeze of the tube is all that's needed to get enough of this rich cream to deeply moisturise my elbows or feet and it absorbs in seconds.

 

140) Palmer's Anti-Aging Smoothing Lotion 250ml/8.5 fl.oz)* - This is one of my favourite body lotions because it exfoliates and smooths the keratosis on my skin in addition to moisturising.  I have quite a stash of body moisturisers to get through at the moment but this will be at the top of my repurchase list.

 

 

140) OPI Expert Touch Lacquer Remover (120ml/4 fl.oz) - Surprise! Surprise! NOT! Another empty bottle of OPI remover to add to the tally.

 

Cosmetics

 

141) Models Prefer BB Pressed Powder (Light/Medium) - One of the disappointments for the year.  Despite its claims this BB powder offered very minimal coverage when worn alone and I resorted to using it as a finishing powder although it wasn't great at mattifying either.  Will. Not. Repurchase.

 



Fragrance

 

142) Guerlain La Petite Robe Noire EDT (1 ml/.03 oz. sample) - This sweet fragrance does smell PRETTY and youthful, perfect for the wearer of a cute little black dress like that illustrated on the vial. I did enjoy it though and remain hopeful that it's not too young for me just yet! Top notes are black cherry, bergamot, red berries and almond. Mid notes are Bulgarian and Turkish roses, licorice and smoked black tea. Aniseed, tonka bean, vanilla, iris and patchouli form the base.

 

143) Witchery Fresh Blossom rollerball (12ml/0.4 fl.oz) - Australian fashion brand Witchery describe this as "sensuous and uncomplicated" and l liked the slightly syrupy citrusy scent for everyday wear - don't laugh but it reminds me of orange syrup cake!  Still it's very subtle and soft, and unlikely to offend anyone. I bought this fragrance from a warehouse store and can't find anything online about it so I'm sure it's been discontinued.  

 

 

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So THAT comes to a grand total of 143 products emptied for the year comprising of the following sorted by category.  Keep reading if you're into the numbers...

 

 

 

Skin care:

• 10 packs of cleansing wipes (this will not continue on the same scale!)
• 7 full sized (and 1 travel size) makeup removers
• 4 sheet masks
• 3 full sized (and 1 travel size) day creams
• 3 lip treatments/balms
• 2 full sized (and 4 travel sized) facial cleansers
• 2 full sized (and 1 travel size) serums
• 2 peel off mask sachets
• 1 full size (and 2 travel sized) night cream
• 1 facial scrub
• 1 cleansing (micellar) water
• 1 face mask tube
• 1 papaw ointment tube
• 2 sample tubes eye cream  

 

 

Hand and body care:

• 11 nail polish removers
• 9 hand creams
• 6 body butters
• 5 body scrubs
• 4 full sized (and 1 travel sized) body washes
• 3 full sized (and 2 travel sized) body lotions
• 3 hand washes
• 1 foot cream
• 1 nail polish top coat
• 1 body exfoliating towelette

 

 

Cosmetics:

• 6 lipsticks
• 6 tubes of mascara
• 5 lip glosses
• 3 concealers
• 2 BB powders
• 1 full sized (and 2 travel sized) eye primers
• 1 eye shadow palette
• 1 eye shadow single
• 1 eyeliner pencil
• 1 mineral foundation
• 1 powder blush
• 1 pressed powder
• 1 primer

(I also culled 6 additional lipsticks, an eye shadow palette, mascara and tinted sunscreen although these did not count towards the empties tally. I hope for much more culling this year!)

 

 

Haircare: 

• 1 full sized (and 1 travel sized) shampoo
• 1 full sized (and 1 travel sized) conditioner
• 1 volumizing spray

(Haircare was the least accurate category of all as I only counted shampoos and conditioners I reviewed last year. I don't know if you guys are interested in my usual shampooing routine in 2015??)

 

 

Fragrance:

• 5 full sized bottles
• 9 sample vials

 

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And OMG that was the FULL story for 2014! 





 

 

 (Products marked * were provided for my consideration.  All comments and opinions are my own.)

Maybelline Color Sensational Bleached Neons: Coral Heat

Welcome to 2015 everyone!

 

Before I do my final 2014 empties post I'm squeezing in a very quick, very summery nail polish from Maybelline's recently released Bleached Neons collection.  I was fooled by this polish - not really taking the 'neon' hint obviously - because I thought it looked more like a pastel and I even thought it might actually be subdued? Hah!! Who was I kidding?

 

A name like Coral Heat is meant to be taken seriously because, yup, this is a rather glowingly neon pink-orange shade.  Yes it's light but it's still kind of bright. This isn't quite the scarily vivid orange worn on safety gear but not too far off it either - I felt a bit conspicuous wearing Coral Heat around the office, and half expected it to glow in the dark too.  No, of course it didn't glow in the dark but this polish really contrasted with my skin and gave me an instant 'tan'.

 

Application-wise this went on like a dream too!

 

All pictures taken in indirect daylight:

 

 

 

It's very summer holiday appropriate though, don't you think?

 

 



My 2015 beauty resolutions

This post is one I've been thinking about considerably over the last month or so.  Most of 2014 was devoted to going on a beauty diet to curb my impulse spending on cosmetics so what do I want to get out of 2015?

 

The beauty diet (basically it was 2 products out for every 1 new product in) did have a lingering effect on me and I've noticed how much more deliberate I've become with my makeup purchases - I must also thank  Sophie, Anissa, and Norlin for joining me and lending their support.  Just yesterday I stalked the higher end beauty counters for sale bargains and I walked away with nothing! I'd hoped to find a certain high end mascara on sale and because that particular mascara wasn't discounted I decided I wasn't going to buy something else just for the sake of it, see? Something has obviously switched over in my brain. 

  

Okay enough patting myself on the back.  Moving onto 2015 goals I've decided I can loosen the reigns just a little so here's what I plan to do:

 

1) Rather than doing 2 for 1 this year I'll use up (or cull) at least 1 makeup product before I buy a new product.  Based on my new 'restrained' behaviour I'm hopeful that won't automatically mean I run to the makeup counter every time I have another empty! Basically I'm going to genuinely want/desire/need something first. If it passes that test then it's a green light for me! 

 

On the other hand here's where I've UPPED the ante...

The lingering lip glosses

 

2) I've got waaaaay too many lip glosses in my collection so I'm going on a lip gloss buying ban FOR THE YEAR!  It shouldn't be as hard as it sounds seeing as I'm favouring mattes and longwearing lipsticks at the moment.  Having said that, hopefully I will actually finish some of my glosses and I'll also have a good hard look/sniff at which ones need to go due to old age and expiration.

 The bronzer bonanza

 

3) My bronzers all look so new and unloved! I've already pledged on Instagram that I'm going to start wearing my bronzers and contouring products more regularly this year and now I'm going up the ante by challenging myself to hit pan on a bronzer!!! HITTING PAN ON A BRONZER?!? CAN I DO IT??? If I can I plan on finally treating myself to a Guerlain bronzer (something I've had on my wishlist since the start of 2014)!

 

4) Finally, not so much a beauty plan but a blogging pledge:  I'll make sure to post at least twice a week in 2015.  Of course if I get that burst of creative energy I'll get onto it more frequently but I've been a bit all over the place this year and a couple of posts a week is very doable without me feeling pressured :)


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Well I think I've got enough beauty rules for 2015.  Will you be setting yourself any challenges or resolutions for the coming year?

 



W7: Dawn Raider

Hi everyone! I hope you're all enjoying the holiday season :)

 

Sorry for my unannounced hiatus.  I was feeling quite a bit tired towards the end of my working year and I guess I didn't realize quite how mentally tired I was until I after I finished work on the 17th.  One day dragged out to the next and the next until a few weeks slipped by. Anyway I hope you get what I mean.  Now I'm finally getting ideas swirling away in my head for future posts - and I also have a ton of nail swatches - so let me get back on this blogging bike again starting with this nail post!

 

I wore this deep blue polish from W7 a few weeks ago when the weather was kind of dreary and I wasn't feeling in the mood for bright spring/summer colours.  Dawn Raider is basically fine silver glitter swimming in an inky navy blue jelly base so the glitter itself appears quite blue on the nail. The glitter mix and colour base are very dense so two coats easily did the job for me.  I finished with a single layer of top coat but would recommend two for a smooth glassy veneer - I still had some bumpiness on my nails although obviously not enough to annoy me to apply that second layer!

 

Shade

 

 

Sun

 

Until next time!



November's farewelled products

 

Ahhh...the second last empties for the year and I don't know how it happened but settle in because it's going to be a big one!! The thing that really pleases me is I even managed to finish some more makeup AFTER all of that overseas hauling a couple of months ago...

 

Skin care

 

120) La Clinica Anti Ageing Gentle Milk Facial Cleanser (10ml/0.35 fl.oz travel size)* - To change it up between other cleansers I gave this little tube a run and I enjoyed the soothing feeling of a milky cleanser.  I'll definitely be using my full sized version when the cooler months roll around again and my skin craves something a little more on the rich side.

 

121) La Clinica Firming Lift Helixer Facial Serum (30ml/1.05 fl.oz)* - This contains snail secretion filtrate which made me a little squeamish at first - I wasn't accustomed to snail slime on my face - but I got over that and found that this serum absorbed quickly and did feel firming on my skin. 

 

122) La Clinica White Brilliant Intensive Correcting Foaming Cleanser (200ml/7.04 fl.oz)* - This unscented foaming cleanser lasted several months in my shower caddy so I almost got bored with it! The foamy formula is very light and gentle, almost dissolving into the skin and rinsed off in a flash.

 

 

123) eos Lip Balm Sphere (Medicated Tangerine) - I'm biased towards these little balm balls so it won't surprise you when I say I enjoyed this medicated version. Tangerine with a slight hint of menthol, this balm went on with a slightly heavier feel than the regular version but worked well as an affordable overnight lip treatment.  My husband appreciated the flavour too!

 

124) Face of Australia Gentle Make-up Remover (125ml/4.23 fl.oz) - This isn't the first time and won't be the last time I use this colourless makeup remover.  It gently removes all eye makeup without any stinging or oily residue and doesn't cost a bomb either.  

 

Hand and body care

 

124) OPI Original Polish Remover (120ml/4 fl.oz) - I prefer OPI's Expert Touch because it removes my polish faster and with less effort but I bought this as my next best option when I couldn't get my favourite.

 

125) Dermaveen Everyday Intensive Hand Cream (100ml) - I turned to this old faithful in the colder weather when my hands were at their worst because it's formulated for sensitive skin and moisturises without aggravating my seasonal eczema.  I'm sure I'll repurchase it when I need to again.

 

126) Crabtree & Evelyn Summer Hill Hand Therapy (25g/0.9 oz) - Another mini tube of hand cream I carried around in my purse.  The rich but easily absorbed formula is as I've come to expect and the fruity floral Summer Hill fragrance balances perfectly on the edge of being potent without becoming overpowering.  I've got to say the C & E Iris scented hand cream I'm using right now is absolutely amazing and I'm tempted to rub it onto my pulse points!

 

Cosmetics

127) Essence lipstick (Fairytale) - I bought this lippy when I first started blogging over 3 years ago so I suppose it's a little bit of a sentimental empty - I don't even think Essence sells this lipstick formula anymore (in Australia at least).  Fairytale was a sheer but buildable mauve for a low key lip colour so it was well loved and even well travelled, coming along with me on my last overseas trip!

 

128) Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion Eyeshadow Base - This tiny genie bottle tube came with the original UD Naked palette I bought last year.  A reliable choice if you're after a colourless base to hold eyeshadow in place, and my oily lids are thankful for that so I've finally bought a full size tube.

 

129) BYS Lash Extend Mascara (Black)* - This mascara came as part of a two-step lash pack with a scary dry fibre lash primer which I threw out months ago because of the fear of loose fibres getting into my eyes.  On its own BYS Lash Extend wears more like a black lash tint so I ended up hardly ever using it. 

 

Culled...

Maybelline Color Sensational Pop Stick (Raspberry Ice) - Surely this won the award for the lip product which did NOTHING.  No colour, no gloss, no moisturising properties. Nothing. I held onto it for so long because of the novelty of having a lip thingy which looked like a jello sculpture and THAT'S IT. It's time to go...

 

Invisible Zinc Tinted Daywear SPF 30+ (Light) - I bought this as a multi-tasking facial sunscreen for a tropical holiday a few years ago, wore it a few times then put it away and 'forgot' about it. Not really forgot - the problem was the overly greasy, heavy formula which I couldn't handle. Now the tube's past its expiry date so it's well and truly too late to figure out how to make it work. 

 

Fragrance

 

130) Chanel Allure Sensuelle EDP (50ml) - Damn I loved this fragrance! If I owned a vat of it I would wear it every day, but Chanel is one of those more expensive fragrance options so I'll just dream on.  This comes across as a crisp fresh citrusy scent at first but then enriches with a seductive patchouli undertone which envelops me - I could inhale it for hours.  So what are the notes?  Top notes contain bergamot, mandarin and pink pepper. Mid notes are composed of jasmine, rose, iris, candied fruits and vetiver followed by the base notes of French vanilla, amber, patchouli and frankincense.

 

131) Estee Lauder Beyond Paradise EDT (10ml travel size) - I packed this summery tropical floral for my overseas trip to wear when we got to Hawaii. The top notes are Eden mist, orange blossom, blue hyacinth, and Jaboticaba berry. The floral mid notes are laelia orchid, pink honeysuckle, Japanese mahonia, while base notes are Natal plum blossom, golden melaleuca, zebrano wood, ambrette seed.

 

 

So that's it until I do the final empties roundup for 2014 and then I have to consider if I'm making any beauty resolutions for the new year!  One resolution surely ought to be getting my empties posts out in a more timely fashion...

 

 

 (Products marked * were provided for my consideration.  All comments and opinions are my own.)