Tuesday 30 April 2013

Review: Australis Fresh and Flawless Powder Foundation


I've been dying to get my hands on this product ever since I saw gossmakeupartist's video which highlights on using powder foundation to cover large areas of imperfections. This product is a dead on dupe for MAC's Studio Fix Powder Plus Foundation. While MAC's costs around $60 in New Zealand, you can get Australis's for $20.50 instead.

Quick Pros:

♥  Inexpensive
♥  A matte face powder
♥  Controls oil
♥  Medium coverage
♥  Cruelty free

Quick Cons:

♥  Not full coverage
♥  Only available in 3 shades
♥  Not suitable for dry skin
♥  No SPF

You know you've enjoyed a product when you buy it once, use it up and buy it again. Well, that's what happened with me and this product. I personally think powder foundation is great since it's easy to apply and take with you for touch ups. This powder provides a solid medium coverage when used alone - covering minor blemishes and evening out skin tone. Combined with another foundation it can provide you with full coverage.

My shade is in Deep Natural - one of three shades. The shade selection isn't very wide, unfortunately, catering to those with fair to tanned skin tones.

The powder itself was created to control oil and it does just that. I usually get oily on my forehead on my T-Zone and I've had about 4 hours of wear before needing to touch up. However, when your face does start to get oily, it gives your skin a nice glow rather than totally matte.

It's almost winter here and when I apply this powder to my cheeks they start to feel a bit dry, therefore I wouldn't recommend this for those with dry skin. For those with oily to combination skin, this product is perfect for controlling unnecessary grease on the face! In winter I'll probably have to use a really good moisturiser with SPF so my face doesn't end up feeling tight.

All in all, this is definitely worth trying out. Especially if you live in NZ and you're strapped on cash. Don't underestimate this little gem by Australis.



Have you tried this product out? What did you think? Leave a comment below!


Monday 22 April 2013

Sweet Sixteen


Happy Birthday to me ^_^



(Psst: I'm wearing a navy blue smokey eye from TheBalm's Meet Matte Palette! You can see my review here!)

Review: TheBalm Meet Matte Eyeshadow Palette


My name day was on a 21st, I'm finally 16! As a gift for myself, I purchased this popular palette by TheBalm. It's got 9 gorgeous matte shades that are both wearable and fashionable.


Packaging:
The palette comes in a sturdy board case that fits in the palm. I found the palette a bit smaller than expected...but don't all good things come in small sizes?

Shades:
9 shades! What I love about this palette is that every shade is different from each other, from a warm beige to a bright teal. They're all matte, which makes them very wearable.

Product:
The shadows are silky and smooth to the touch and go on smoothly on the eyelid. However, some shades don't have as good pigmentation as the others. Matt Horowitz (a navy blue) and Matt Schilling (a teal) both come off fairly light on the skin if used without a good primer/base. However, the rest of the shades seem to have fine color pay-off.

Overall: 4/5
The palette wasn't as awesome as I expected to be, however, I think its a wonderful item for those looking for an all matte palette. You get one palette with 9 shades, all which vary from different colours, giving you a wide range of options to choose from.

Monday 8 April 2013

Tutorial: Simple Cat-Eye/Winged Eyeliner for Hooded/Almond Eyes!

Hey guys! Today I've got a tutorial for you - this one is on how to do a simple winged eyeliner for those of us who have Asian eyes or hooded eyes. Eye makeup has always been my vice because of my eye shape. It's hooded in the inner corners, but not on the outer corners. This makes knowing where to place my eyeshadows and eyeliners extremely difficult. However, upon seeing this picture of Karlie Kloss...


...I decided to recreate this dramatic look into something wearable for hooded eyes! It's somewhere between a simple winged eyeliner and a bold cat-eye. I used liquid liner for this look as it was what I had on hand, however gel eyeliner with a fine tip brush would probably be the best products for creating this look as it's long lasting and dark. Alternatively, you can use a creamy kohl pencil and then layer a matte black eyeshadow on top for staying power.


Keep reading if you want to know how to recreate this look for yourself!




I've already applied a base and a translucent powder to my face. Use your primer on your lids if you have one!


Start by drawing the 'wings' of the eyeliner. Do this by drawing a small line that follows up from the outside corner of your bottom lash line.


Draw a line from where your crease ends to the line you drew before to create a true wing.


Keep your eyes open and draw along your crease. You can choose to draw this all the way into the inner corner or stop 3/4 of the way in.


Fill in your lid with your liquid liner/gel liner/kohl pencil.


I cleaned up the look and sharpened the edges with a q-tip dipped in make-up remover. Apply a matte black eyeshadow over the top of the eyeliner to make it dark and give staying power.


That's it! I added a highlight into my inner corners, filled in my brows, added blush, mascara and some lipstick to complete the look.


Simple, no? Please give this tutorial a try if you've got hooded lids too! Good luck!

Products used:
  • K-Palette Real Lasting Eyeliner in Black
  • Chi-Chi Black Eyeshadow

Let me know what you think in the comments!