NOTD: Revlon Charming with BYS Diamond Glitter Silk

This pretty mani was directly inspired by Maria of Nails Made Simple!

Maria posted a lilac and gold glitter mani a few weeks ago and I loved the combination.  I knew I had to wear something just like it so I created my version using Revlon's new lilac creme Charming with BYS Diamond Glitter Silk for the ring finger accent.  Diamond Glitter Silk is from BYS' Glam Glitter range and is a very fine white/gold glitter which opaquely covered my bare nail in two coats - very glammy without being too gritty.  Revlon's Charming was impressive too and wasn't sheer or patchy at all,  providing perfect smooth coverage in two coats.  It's a lovely soft creme but with just enough colour to make it interesting rather than pale and washed out. 

All pics were taken outdoors in cloudy conditions:

I'm still dreaming of spring!

Vita :)

Vintage Revlon polish: Hot Chilli

Hi Everyone!

If you blinked you probably missed it but I've had a mini break as I've been spending quality family time for the start of the school holidays - it's all about getting out and about, seeing the latest movies (The Amazing Spiderman) and just doing generally fun stuff so...blogging gets pushed a bit down the priority list. 

Today's mani is an old Revlon shade and I can't even find much on the interwebs about it! Hot Chilli is not exactly the colour of hot chilli peppers to my eye but a much deeper, vampier red.  It really reminds me of dried blood with it's deep brown-red tone.  This old polish was perfection in its formula and just glided onto the nails.  If anyone knows anything about this old timeless vampy please let me know!

The gloomy sunless weather was perfect to capture the winter mood...

Outdoors

Lamplight

Vampy shades like these have been around forever it seems - Yay or nay?

Until next time - I'm actually working on my first ever guest post next and of course I'll tell you all about it!

Vita :)

Layering with OPI Servin' Up Sparkle

Have I put up a layering post this week?  No??  Well it's about time for one then!

I bought the Serena Williams Glam Slam duo last year and being an unapologetic purple-holic I bought the Grape...Set...Match/Servin' Up Sparkle duo.  Not sure why I've not worn it yet and here I am cracking out the glitter top coat first!  This glitter polish is a silver 'party in a bottle' combo with its combination of holo hex glitter in a sea of silver microglitter.  I applied a single coat over the magenta China Glaze Fly base.  No top coat here so the effect is rough textured rather than the glassy snow globe look...

Full sun

Indirect sunlight

Thanks for looking!

Vita :)

New pastel polishes from Revlon

Whoa, two haul posts in a week!  This is a quick post to share my latest polish purchase...

Well...I noticed just last week that Revlon have overhauled their nail polish collection and launched a load of new colours onto the Australian market.  They've embraced colour in a big way and have moved away from their traditionally safer palette, introducing beautiful bright greens and blues and the colours of the rainbow really.  What caught my eye though were the pretty new pastels introduced into the range.  I feel like I was inspired by my spring wishes when I chose these three shades and they looked like they were meant to be together - in my possession!

Everything about these polishes make me think of spring, and their names are all suitably pretty too - no weird shade names here!  No swatches sorry, because I was so busy last weekend but here are some closeups of the individual bottles.  There is no doubt I will be wearing each and every one of these because they are so soft and girly:

211 Charming

Lavender creme

250 Flirt

Pink creme (looks like OPI Lucky Lucky Lavender to me...)

410 Dreamer

Powder blue creme

Somehow I don't think I'll be waiting the two months until spring to wear these!

Do you like wearing pastel polish?

Until next time.

Vita :)

REVIEW: June's farewelled products

We're officially half way through the year.  Not sure if I should be cheering or crying?!  I STILL haven't finished my lipstick ban but I have finished these bits and pieces over the past month - I swear I have nearly finished that ban.  It's just that long lasting lipsticks are, well, so long lasting (even in the tube!)...

Skin care

56) Yes to Blueberries Age Refresh Brightening Facial Towelettes (30 towelettes)

These wipes had quite a tart scent because of the apple and lemon peel included in the organic blueberry formula. Honestly? These are the least impressive cleansing wipes I've tried so far - they're not as moist as some so sometimes one wipe wasn't quite enough and they left my skin feeling a little tight,  meaning I had to use a night cream afterwards to feel comfortable.  One plus is the resealable flip-top opening but I definitely won't be repurchasing these.

57) Yes to Blueberries Age Refresh Daily Repairing Moisturiser (1.7 fl.oz/50ml)

Sweetly scented and very rich, I only needed a tiny amount to moisturise my face so it went a long way.  I learnt very quickly to be careful not to overdo it because it could become greasy and filmy on the skin. Good value for those who want their moisturiser minus the SPF and a single pump of the bottle dispenses just the right amount.  Nice but not special enough for me to repurchase.

58) L'Oreal Gentle Make-up Remover for Eyes & Lips (125ml)

I used this bottle up just to clear out my backlog of products.  It's a good, effective and gentle makeup remover but you probably know I've now switched my love to Maybelline's slightly cheaper, and much better packaged version.  I've got no more of these up my sleeve and I won't repurchase unless Maybelline discontinue their makeup remover!

59) Biotherm Age Fitness Power2 Active Smoothing Care (0.16fl.oz/5ml sample)

This teeny weeny tube gave me just enough product for three mornings and I was already seduced on the first morning!  The cream is light and absorbs easily into the skin and the scent - it's like a shower fresh wake me up - I loooved it.  I've read that this cream contains pure olive leaf concentrate, pure olive extracts and antioxidants and is targeted at reducing the signs of aging.  I'm intrigued enough to put it on my wish list.

Hand and body care

60) Aveeno Skin Relief Moisturising Lotion (12fl.oz/354ml)

This lotion was 'prescribed' to me by my doctor a few months ago when I was suffering with dry, itchy, hyper-sensitive skin.  This thick lotion contains natural colloidal oatmeal to provide long lasting soothing moisture and menthol for its cooling anti-itch properties. The minty menthol scent thankfully fades away quickly so it doesn't clash with any perfume.  It was a godsend when I was suffering and I slathered it from shoulders to ankles.  I would definitely use this again if I have another bout of sensitive, itchy skin.

61) Palmer's Skin Smoothing Lotion with Alpha/Beta Hydroxy & Shea butter (250ml - 8.5fl. oz)

This the second bottle I've finished for the year because it effectively controls my ongoing keratosis.  Yep, I'm onto my third bottle!

62) Manicare Nail Polish Remover (125ml)

Of course I have to include an empty bottle of polish remover in my monthly empties! The formula in this budget remover includes acetone with tea tree oil and vitamin E.  Slightly less effective than my usual OPI but I'll turn to this as a good cheaper alternative. 

Cosmetics

63) Essence Glossy Lipbalm (Pink Dragonfruit)
Here's the proof I've finally finished my lip gloss ban! This lovely fruity scented gloss was a juicy, vibrant pink with an almost indetectible shimmer and I know it only cost me a few dollars. Cheap and cheerful but sadly I think these have been discontinued in Australian stores at least. I'd definitely snap up more if they were still available here because the little tubes are so easy to tote around in my pocket.

64) YSL Touche Eclat (01)
The last one in my stash and the end of an era in my own beauty journey.  I used to swear by these luxe illuminating concealers for years until I discovered other newer, cheaper, and frankly better coverage versions. This was the first of its kind so it was groundbreaking when it was launched. Even though I've moved on I'll remember it fondly...

65) Rimmel Volume Flash x 10 Mascara (001 Black)
I don't want to tell you exactly how long I've been using this budget mascara - just know it's been way too long because it just goes on and on and on... It promises up to 10 x more volume and this creamy mascara does a pretty darn good job at thickening the lashes.  If I have to be picky about it, I did find it was a little too wet when I first used it so the formula needed to dry up a little to get the perfect creamy consistency.  At around $10AUD I would definitely repurchase. 

 

Fragrance

 

66) Narciso Rodriguez For Her Musc Collection EDP LE (.04fl.oz/1,2 ml sample)
I'm a fan of Narciso's Essence Eau de Musc and got this as a free sample when I made my Eau de Musc purchase. This fragrance has "...dominant aromas of musk, with aromas of ylang-ylang, jasmine and orange blossom". 

That's it for another month of empties!

Vita :)

China Glaze: Fly

A China Glaze haul is on the horizon for me soon.  In the meantime I went stash diving into my still small China Glaze collection and dug out this totally non-wintery shade to wear last weekend.

I bought my bottle of Fly from a local manicure salon late last year.  This subtly shimmery magenta is from an old Summer 2009 collection - Kicks.  The colour is totally beautiful IRL but it was somehow painful to photograph, and my camera struggled to focus properly on the pink shimmer residing in the finish.  This is two coats with top coat and thankfully I had some natural sunlight to work with...

Full sun

Shade

On a general note here are a few facts I just discovered about China Glaze while surfing the web tonight:  The polish formula is enriched with China Clay, said to strengthen nails and promote healthy nail growth.  Also, China Glaze is 3 Free and doesn't contain DBP, Toluene or Formaldehyde.

Until next time.

Vita :)

Luxe lip gloss purchases: Chanel & Dior

A big woo-hoo to me!!

I finally ended my gloss ban (evidence is coming up in my June empties post) and I'd promised myself a Chanel Glossimer as my luxe reward.  Now...Dior was also recommended as worth trying out (thank you Larie) so what's a girl to do but check them out too?  I stuck to my original Chanel selection, buying 119 Wild Rose and after playing with swatches at Dior I decided on a lovely summery pearl Ultra-Gloss - 556 Coral Fantasy.

Here are my new glosses still inside their boxes sitting in the sun - pristine except for a few rogue fingerprints...

...and here are the pretty new tubes - ta-dah!

Top - Bottom:

Chanel Glossimer - 119 Wild Rose

Dior Addict Ultra-Gloss Pearl - 556 Coral Fantasy

Wild Rose was a straightforward choice because I favour glosses that are close to my natural lip colour - you know, that MLBB look, and my lips naturally have a very mauvey undertone.  I've justified to myself  (haha, must justify expensive stuff!) that I'll get lots of wear because it's such an easy and versatile shade and should go with basically anything in terms of wardrobe and make up.

Dior's Coral Fantasy appealed to me because it's a pink-toned peach, pretty without being bright and garish - and damn it - just look at the lovely packaging!  Silly I know, and I should be past all of that at my age, but I still looove pretty packaging.  Seriously I was already sold on the idea of having a Dior gloss once I saw the tube design - I just had to find the colour to suit.  

I'm behaving like an over-exuberant kid but here's another gratuitous shot of the tubes lined up...

Swatched L - R:

Chanel Glossimer - 119 Wild Rose

Dior Addict Ultra-Gloss Pearl - 556 Coral Fantasy

The swatches reveal the difference in pigmentation and finish.  The Chanel Glossimer is certainly shiny and glossy but is more opaque and wears almost like a liquid lipstick, adding colour and definition with the slightest hint of shimmer.  The Dior Ultra-Gloss is sheerer and has more of a wet jelly look to it and seems to make my lips look fuller - according to the Dior website this illusion of fullness is due to "...the Spotlight Shine complex, a blend of glass microbeads coated in a crystalline elixir, plays with substance and shine to enhance color and provide an unbelievable volumizing effect". 

Both of these glosses feel smooth, with no grittiness and are non-sticky on the lips and the Dior feels particularly weightless.

For a better idea I've done some lip swatches - both of these are photographed indoors and in direct sunlight. I was surprised at the similarity of the colours on my lips although you can see the finish is distinctly different:

Chanel - 119 Wild Rose

Dior - 556 Coral Fantasy

What's your favourite luxe make up item?

Vita :)