Almay One Coat Get Up & Grow Mascara

                             

I’ve been super excited about this mascara and wanted to post up a review of it ages ago because of how happy I am with the results - BUT I held off because one of the promises the packaging made to me was that the formula would help strengthen and lengthen my lashes so I wanted to wait to see if there were noticeable results.

But first thing’s first - if you’re after the ‘I have naturally long, fluttery lashes look’, then this mascara is your new best friend. It produces fantastic lash separation with almost zero clumping - I remember when I first saw the brush, I was very much in doubt that the uniformly large brush and bristles would help me catch my teeny inner corner lashes but - lo and behold - it did just that! 

Unfortunately, this mascara smudges like there’s no tomorrow and yet is as difficult to remove as a waterproof mascara (even though I’m pretty sure the one I have is non-waterproof.) It’ll start smudging onto my lower lash line (and for the record - I use mascara on my top lashes only) within hours of putting it on and one time when I had an afternoon nap without removing it first, I woke up looking like I belonged in the panda-bear enclosure at the zoo. 

In terms of my lash health, I haven’t really seen any noticeable changes, but I had pretty healthy lashes to begin with so I’m not too fussed that I haven’t suddenly developed false lash-esque eyelashes overnight. 

The Lowdown: Lovely long, natural-looking lashes? Check. Fantastic wear time? Not so much. Maybe the waterproof formula would do a better job of not smudging on every surface within a 3 mile radius. 

Almay One Coat Mascara is available from Priceline and since I got it in my Bellabox I have no idea how much it retails for, but from memory it’s around $19.95AUD. 

Revlon Super Lustrous Lip Gloss in Coral Reef

Revlon Super Lustrous Lip Gloss in Coral Reef

Silly me. I always thought that lip glosses could never be truly pigmented. Until one quiet Sunday at work, when I spotted this little beauty. 

I've always been more of a lip gloss girl, just because of the don't-have-to-pull-out-a-mirror-every-time-I-want-my-lips-to-look-nice effortlessness (or you can call it plain laziness.) But one of the downsides of said effortlessness is that generally, pigmentation isn't all that great.

So imagine my surprise when I discovered this lip gloss not only is super glossy and easy to apply, but it's also (very) pigmented with decent wear as well! Only downside is that the colour tends to emphasise any dryness/flakiness you might have on your lips, so I tend to wear it on top of a moisturising lip balm - this mutes out the colour a little, but it's a much better look than having bits of coral lip flakes coming off your mouth (sorry...)

The Lowdown: Excellent pigmentation with a couple of hours of wear but needs to be applied on extra-specially healthy, moisturised lips. 

Revlon Super Lustrous lip glosses are available from Priceline, Target, Kmart and selected pharmacies and retails for around $21.95 AUD. 

BellaBox August

• EmerginC Phytocell Cream and Kombucha cleanser (small samples) - CANIJUSTSAY I tried the cleanser this afternoon in my shower and now my skin feels like silk! Product smells a bit weird (I've noticed most 'natural/organic' products tend to,) but I can overlook that given how good it probably is for my skin :) 
• Aveeno Daily Moisturising Lotion 
• Luk Beautifood Lip Nourish
• LUSH Cosmetics Ro's Argan Body Conditioner - haven't tried LUSH products before but THIS THING SMELLS AMAZING!!!! Probably the most surprising thing is that the scent actually lasts, because my skin doesn't tend to hold onto scents for long. And it makes my skin feel unbelievably soft. Win!
• Aurora Spa Rose Otto & Nettle Clarifying Shampoo and Burdock & Rose Revitalising Conditioner - tried it today and again, funny smell (but fortunately not too overpowering or lingering after I rinsed everything out.) It makes my hair feel soft enough, but I'll have to give it another few days before I can say anything conclusive. 

I had a look on the BellaBox website to see what else was up for grabs this month & I really would've liked the Bourjois Smoky Pencil or the Eye of Horus Liquid Define Eyeliner, but all in all I'm pretty impressed for my 2nd box and I'm already looking forward to next month's box! 

Schwarzkopf Extra Care Super Styling Lacquer (Extreme Hold)

I have (yet another) confession to make - I'm one of those people who washes my hair everyday, despite knowing that doing so will only strip my hair of its natural oils and dry it out further. But I CANNOT STAND the feeling of 1-day-old hair - the greasiness and itch factor is exceptionally uncomfortable and since I've been blessed with curly hair, dry shampoos don't really do it for me (looking like I'm sporting dandruff is not such a hot look.)

But I've been so impressed by Schwarzkopf's hair spray lately! The first time I used it was after I straightened my hair for a party and used this to hold everything together and the second time was for my pharmacy ball. On both occasions, I went without washing my hair for at least a day and yet it still managed to look (almost) as fresh as it did when I just came out of the shower. I expected exceptional hold from this product, yes, but the oil control for my hair (and especially my fringe, which tends to fall apart after just a day) was a nice little bonus for me :)

Of course, becaues it's still a hair spray, you do need to be careful with how you spray it on - too close for too long and you'll end up with hair crunchier than Fruit Loops. I've also found the spray doesn't hold my hairstyle against wind as well as I'd hoped, and I've yet to give it a good run under humid/wet conditions. So far, though, it's definitely become a staple for my hair!

The Lowdown: Decent hold for hairstyles with long lasting results and fantastic oil control. Best hairspray I've owned in awhile!

Schwarzkopf's Hair Care range is available from Priceline, Target, Woolworths and selected pharmacies.

Urban Decay Naked 2 Palette

This palette is like an old veteran on Youtube beauty channels - the sequel to the original favourite, UD Naked2 contains more taupe and bronze shades than the first and comes equipped with a double ended good karma brush and lip junkie lip gloss.

I've been wanting to get my hands on the Naked palettes for a long time now, but didn't know where to find it! Once I managed to locate a reputable site that shipped to Australia, I was still on the fence about spending $50 on an eyeshadow palette - I've never spent that much on any form of makeup, ever! But, being a former maths nerd, I worked out that getting 12 eyeshadows for that amount turned out to be a bit of a bargain after all ;)

I'm not even kidding when I say this has got to be the best investment I've ever made! The shadows are very 'Ngoc' colours - neutral, natural shades that I can easily team with pretty much any other eyeshadow that I own or would ever hope of owning. And when I use these shadows, I feel like they bring light and attention to my eyes without looking like I've got a tonne of makeup on.

My favourite shadow is 'Booty Call' - I use that all over my lid and then blend in a darker shade on my outer crease - it really makes my eyes look wider and gives me an overall more 'awake' look. The brush that comes with the palette is great as well - the only thing I'd mention is that the bristles of the flat end are quite stiff so I press it into my powder eyeshadows to load up on colour rather than using strokes otherwise I end up shredding my eyeshadows and getting a lot of fallout as a result.

The Lowdown: A versatile palette with a range of colours to create both natural and smokey eye looks, this is definitely something every girl needs to have in her makeup collection. Shadows are extremely pigmented and easily blended out with little fallout (even with the more shimmery shadows.) Worth every $$ I spent!

Where to buy (AUSTRALIAN GIRLIES, TAKE NOTE!) - while American lovelies can easily get it shipped to them from Sephora, Ulta, or the Urban Decay website itself for US $50, unfortunately these sites don't ship Down Under, which is how I discovered Beauty Bay. The Urban Decay Naked 2 Palette will cost you $52.60 AUD, but if you follow @beautybay on Twitter, you'll get an immediate 10% off voucher to use straightaway. Shipping is also free worldwide.

Carmex Moisture Plus Ultra Hydrating Lip Balm

Carmex Moisture Plus Ultra Hydrating Lip Balm

I’ll let you in on a little secret. No, actually, while I’m at it, I’ll let you in on two - first of all, I’m terrible when it comes to taking care of my lips. I don’t drink enough water for starters, so they’re always dry, and then I don’t use lip balm on them frequently enough to combat the dryness.

Secondly, the tingly-lip sensation I got when I used a Carmex product for the first time kinda freaked me out. And put me off from using their lip balms again. 

BUT I got the Carmex Moisture Plus Ultra Hydrating Lip Balm (what is it with beauty companies and lengthy names nowadays?) in my July Bellabox and since the lip gloss I used daily was running out anyway, I decided to give it a go. And boy, am I glad I did! 

Once I got pass my aversion to the tingling sensation (and, dare I say - actually begin to like it,) it became a daily staple for my lip care routine. I absolutely love the way it goes on and the appearance of naturally healthy lips that it gives. And of course, the softness lasts for the whole day. Unfortunately I haven’t been blessed with the most pigmented lips on the planet, so I tend to avoid clear glosses or balms, but this particular lip balm doesn’t seem to have the thick, waxy texture that some others do and so all I get are lovely, glossy lips without looking washed out. 

I’ve been using this everyday and especially recommend it for those of you who, like me, suffer from Sahara Desert-esque dry lips. As soon as I finish this tube, I’ll definitely be repurchasing! 

The Lowdown: Instantly healthier looking lips with a natural shine and a formulation that will leave your lips feeling soft long after the balm has been washed/eaten/god-knows-what-elsed off. 

Carmex Moisture Plus Ultra Hydrating Lip Balm can be purchased from Priceline, Woolworths, and selected pharmacies and retails for about $6.99 AUD. 

Yay for healthy lips!

July Favourites

Urban Decay Naked 2 Palette

Carmex Moisture Plus Ultra Hydrating Lip Balm

 Napoleon Perdis Prismatic Eye Shadow Quad #2

SkinVitals Masks

 Revlon Super Lustrous Lip Gloss in Coral Reef

Schwarzkopf Extra Care Super Styling Lacquer (Extreme Hold)

These are the products I used the most during the past month, with the exception of the SCW Hairspray, which makes it into the list because it impressed me the most! Detailed reviews of the individual products will be coming up shortly, so hold tight!