Switching to the Dark Side

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Happy Tuesday!

After coming very close to purchasing Mac Media lipstick a while ago common sense kicked in at the last minute and I realised that in reality it's not a colour I would wear often and I really should go with a cheaper version instead. This led me to pick up Maxfactor's So Berry. It was pretty much the first dark colour I came across that I liked and happened to be on sale (I took that as a sign!).

Anyway the weather is lousy today (winter is most definitely on its way boo hoo) so I decided to ditch the brights and play around with a dark lip.

So Berry is a really pretty deep berry colour but I am really not used to seeing myself wear such a dark lip, it's such a dramatic change! I actually don't mind it but can't imagine myself wearing it out anytime soon. One reason being that my friend told me I looked scary haha. Maybe in the middle of winter I might pull it out again and have a play.

As I only have dodgey webcam pics of me wearing it here is a swatch. The colour and intensity of this lipstick can definitely be built up which is great. As you can see the swatch is a bit lighter and you can add more of a berry tint to the lips unlike in the pics of me wearing it piled on. If I am ever brave enough to wear it I think I will start out sheer and work my way up!

Plus because I can here is a pic of the rings I am currenlty sporting. The one on the left is from Diva & the right I think I picked up from some market stall.

 

Be honest, does it scare you or you a fan or the dark side?

xx

Nail tutorial - Gold & Silver Leopard

Seeing as I'm going through a bit of a leopard print phase I thought I would have a crack at gold and silver leopard print. I think it's kind of cute so I thought I would show everyone step by step how I did it.

So here is how I got this result...

It was surprisingly simple to do and I used; Ulta3 polish in Antique Copper, Ulta3 polish in Silver Grey, Seche Vite, Black nail art pen and a thin paintbrush.

I started of by applying 2 coats of the gold colour for the base & let it dry completely.

Then using the paintbrush I used the silver polish to paint small random spots & shapes on each nail. It was really hard to capture the silver on the gold but hopefully these pics give you the general idea.

Next I outlined the silver spots with the black nail art pen. I wasn't too fussed being to precise so I just roughly went around the edges. Once the nail pen dried I applied a coat of Seche Vite. Make sure the nail art pen is compelety dry or you will smudge it like me. Patience is not my strength!

And that is it. Done and done

 

Hope everyone is having a great weekend and doing very productive things like painting their nails!

:)

Give me a fat lip!

I love luscious lips! I wish I had bigger lips but unfortunately my lips aren't that plump so I will have to settle for the quick fix, lip plumping glosses. I choose the Sally Hansen Lip Inflation extreme mainly because it was inexpensive ($7), claimed to be extreme and I didn't mind having a new clear gloss anyway. 

First of all I love the packaging. The long shiny gold tube is much nicer than other glosses I own. Instead of the slanted sponge it has a brush which I don't mind. This one is just a clear gloss with no colour or shimmer.  It's supposed to be cinnamon flavoured but I thought it smelt like on old cinnamon smell. The scent is reasonably strong. You can smell it on your lips and I didn't find it very pleasant.

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The gloss itself is nice, its high shine, not too sticky with decent staying power. When I first applied it it did tingle and almost sting but it was nothing unbearable. Now I wouldn't go as far to say that I have "pale thin lips" but I could do with a little extra help so without further ado here are the before and after snaps.

Before 

After

Honestly I don't think it had a plumping effect on me. I definitely don't think it gave me lips to rival Angelina's! The gloss may make my lips appear slightly bigger because of the shine it adds but as you can see the difference in minscule! Oh well at least I have a new clear gloss which I'm sure will come in handy.

What do you think?

Bodyneeds2 Haul

Hope everyone has had a great start to the week :)

I recently ordered some Mac samples at the thebodyneeds2.com when they had a sale. I have ordered samples from The Body Needs 2 before and they have provided really great service both times. I love their 1cent specials which they have each week, who couldn't resist for 1c! The last three samples are thebodyneeds2 1cent samples. Here is what i got...

 Mac Fluidline in Macroviolet, Blitz & Glitz, Rich Ground & Waveline and Mac Paint Pot in Dangerous Cuvee

Mac Cream Color Base in Tickle Me Pink & Hush 

Mac Pigment in Vanilla, Naked, Spiriualize & Antique Green

 

Mac glitter in reflects gold, Reflects Pearl & 3D Silver glitter

Bodyneeds2 samples in Silver Dusk Iridescent powder, Regard Sable Nacre & Elegance

 I love getting samples. It's so great to get sample before jumping in and buying the whole product and I don't feel guilty about spending more money on makeup. I'm really glad I got samples of the fluidlines. They are ok but I'm not going to buy the full size products. I now have my eye on the Bobbi brown gel liners. I also use so little of the pigments that I really couldn't justify buying full size for most pigments anyway.


Imogen x


 

Hair Grips

I'm currently getting ready to go out thought I would do a super quick post showing you these cute hair grips that I'm using. They are velcro hair grip sort of things and they are pretty nifty. I picked them up at my local Asian beauty store (which I love!) for not much money and they are coming in handy.

The idea is that they keep your hair out of your face whilst you do your makeup without ruining your hair or leaving any kinks in your hair which other types of clips/bobby pins leave. As they are so lightweight they don't really press on your hair and leave it looking fine after your makeup. So far they have done the job, I wouldn't mind if they had a tiny bit more grip but it's not big deal.

Here they are in action..

I love mine! Have you tried anything like these?

x

St Paddy's NOTD

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I'm getting into the swing of St Patrick's day with green nails. I don't own much green anything so this is about the best I can do! 

The colour is Barry M's Mint Green nail paint. It's a tad more green and less blue in real life than it appears in the pics. It was really easy to apply and very appropriate for today I thought :)

Happy St Patrick's Day!

Perfume Love

Happy Humpday everyone!

I'm always on the hunt for new perfumes so thought I would share my favourites.

Here are my favourite 6 perfumes at the moment (clockwise from top left)

1. Vera Wang Princess. This is the fragrance I wear most both in the day and the evening. First of all I love the bottle but I love the smell too. Princess is a subtle feminine scent which is perfect for day to day wear.

2. Britney Spears Radiance. Suprisingly great! It's a fruity and light perfume which is not as heavy as some of her other fragrances. Nice everyday perfume and comes in a nice bottle too.

3. Georgio Armani Diamonds. This is one of my favourite smells. I have been using this for ages and got another bottle for my birthday. This perfume is a really sweet scent which I know not everyone likes but it's a nice break from my everyday perfumes.

4. Viktor & Rolf Flowerbomb. This is a gorgeous perfume which smells luxurious and makes me feel nice when I wear it. This is my treat perfume which I wear on special occassions or feel like treating myself. It's a lovely sweet & floral scent. Yum.

5. Chanel Chance Eau Fraiche. This is the fragrance I wear most other days. It's a fresh scent with a hint of citrus. It's not a sweet as the other perfumes so it's a great staple. A few sprays before I walk out the door perks me up and makes me feel divine.

6. Harijuku Lovers Baby. This perfume is a really soft, clean, fresh scent. For starters the bottle is adorable but the perfume is great everyday scent which isn't over the top and it's really reasonable value. 

What are your favourite perfumes? I could always do with more perfumes and would love any recommendations :)

x 

NOTD: Coney Island Cotton Candy

I have had this nail polish for quite a while and have finally got around to wearing it. I must say I quite like it. I usually go for brighter or darker colours so this is a nice change. I actually bought it with a job interview in mind but never got around to using it. I think it would be a great interview colour, it looks polished and not to over the top.

It's a really pretty sheer pinky pinky nude but it is really high maintenance! I needed 3 coats to get an opaque colour and I had to apply each coat carefully to avoid streaking. The first coat was so sheer and boring that I thought it would not work but it did. It was an effort to apply but now that it's finished I think it may be worth it

I think this colour would look better on a different skin tone to mine but I like it anyway. It's a very clean & simple color. I think I may be a nude nail convert, at least for this week anyway :P 

Are you a fan of nude nails?

Imogen x

Want clean & soft brushes?

I cannot begin to tell you how desperately my brushes were in need of a good deep clean. So I finally got around to it today after procrastinating for ages and had forgotten how nice clean makeup brushes were :P

I had run out of my old baby shampoo so ducked down to the shops and bought this Johnson's baby conditioning shampoo and I'm impressed.

I dampened each brush under warm water, put a pea sized amount of the shampoo in the palm of my hand, lathered it up and rinsed a repeated a few times until the brushes were non foamy and the water ran clear.

This shampoo has made my brushes feel amazingly soft and clean. It is the best brush cleaner I have used so far. It got rid of all the colour and marks really easily and made them feel really lovely.

It's been ages since my brushes have looked and felt so nice, new and clean. I just want to keep touching them. The thought of dirtying them is just too much!

Will be sticking to this brush cleaner for a while. 

What do you use to clean your brushes?

Blush Crush

k.
I am a blush addict so I thought I would share my latest blush crush: Mac's Well Dressed.

I think Well dressed in an amazing colour. For some reason I often overlook it but have been loving it the last few weeks. On my light skinned complexion it's perfect. It's a light baby pink with a slight hint of shimmer. After one application it's really light which is nice and subtle for the daytime but it can be built up to add a nice pop of pink.

Well dressed is amazing for those fair skinned ladies so if you’re pale go ahead and try it!

:)

7 Random Facts

Hey everyone,

I was awarded a versatile blogger award by the gorgeous Mary from fashionfrommary (go check her out!). Thanks Mary!

So here are my 7 random facts; 

1. I have an obsession with leopard print. Despite how tacky it is I love it!

2. I am a serial hair dyer. I am never content my hair colour and am already planning my next colour a few days after dying it. In a short space of time I have been red, black (yuck), dark brown, light bright ombre and now blondish. Hoping to go even lighter when I save up some more pennies :)

3. In a month I'm moving to Melbourne which is about 9 hours from where I currently am. I'm scared & excited all at once! 

4. I like to make my own jewellery. I don't claim it's any good but it's fun and I like the satisfaction.

5. One of my favourite foods ever is vegemite. I eat it most days & can't get enough. I guess it figures as I am Australian.

6. As of 2 months ago I am the proud owner of a communications degree with a double major in Advertising/Marekting & Film Studies!

7. I LOVE baking. Anything from cakes, slices, muffins and patty cakes. I find it really fun & relaxing. Here is my latest creation. They were simply made with mini oreos and mini M&M's, yum.

 

I tag whoever wants to do it. So here are the rules;
1. Thank the person who awarded you the award and link them in the post!
2. Tell everyone seven random facts about yourself.
3. Pass the award to seven other lovely bloggers.  :)
4. Contact each blogger and let them know you have passed this award onto them.

 Let me know of you do, it's fun and I love seeing the random facts that everyone comes up with.

x

Glow glow glow

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Hi,

I'm back with a long overdue product review/rave. I bought this for myself about 4 months ago in my last ever week at university. I really shouldn't have lashed out but had lusting after it for so long I decided to treat myself and it was worth every penny. It's the much raved about Dior Amber Diamond shimmer powder and it is amazing!

  

I love this product! I have tried a range of different highlighters and this is one of my all time favs. It gives the most gorgeous natural glowing sheen and makes me look so radiant. It is the priciest of all highlighters I have tried but it is totally worth it and it comes in a super cute velvet case.

The powder has a soft texture with no weird glitter and it  blends into the skin with ease and lasts really well. I use it to highlight my cheekbones, cupids bow and occasionally my tear ducts. Amber Diamond gives the the "glow" in all right places.

Honestly I could keep raving about this product but I'm sure you get the idea. Outstanding! If you have been wanting it I would cave and get it, it's beautiful (and will last your forever) 

x

NOTD: Leopard Print Love

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Hello beautiful ladies.

I bought these leopard print nail stickers from Diva a while back and have been itching to wear them since. I was going out on the weekend for birthday drinks & realised that my outfit was mainly black so it was the perfect opportunity to pull them out and put them on.

They are really thin stickers which you just pull off the sheet and apply the right sized one to each nail. I have used different brands of nail stickers before and in comparison these were rubbish. They were tricky to not rip, cracked when I applied them and didn't stick well BUT they looked cute!

Leopard print and studs - I'm happy!

As you can see they looked alright from a distance but up close they are not too neat, no prizes for me. Overall I love the look, they are delightfully tacky! I would not buy this brand again but I will be hunting down some other leopard print nail stickers. They are a cute change from block colour and instantly add some fun to otherwise dull outfits.

Hope everyone had a fab weekend!