Mac eyeshadow reviews - Flourishing + Graphology

So a while ago I blogged about a Blog Sale haul. I managed to get two mac eyeshadows at incredible prices.

L:Graphology • R: Flourishing 

Both are matte shades (the formula I wear most often) and are beautiful! I have never been disappointed by a Mac product before and I am happy to say that this has lived up to my Mac standards. They are creamy while still being powder shadows and they are incredibly easy to blend.

Please ignore my alien like fingers. I swear they are normal looking in real life.

Graphology is a dark purple that looks black. I could not capture the color no matter how hard I tried! I think it would be perfect for a more subtle smokey eye. Sometimes a very dark black can be quite harsh.

Flourishing is khaki green and I chose to buy it because I own nothing in this color. Its very pretty but I have no idea what to wear it with.

Any ideas?

A few goodbyes (and a little hello)

No, I will not be leaving my blog. Although, I haven't posted in ages I promise you I have a really good reason. I have finished my third year of college... And hopefully, if I pass everything I will have my degree in Graphic Design!
So over the last couple of weeks I have been trying to finish up my degree and work as hard as possible.

And now for the hello... I started working as an art intern at Cosmopolitan magazine! I work 9-5 everyday but I love it. It feels good to come home and know that I don't have crazy deadlines to work on.

I have gone from drinking this in a day...

To chilling with this little guy at lunch...

I hope your week has been great so far!

Packing

I recently went away for about 5 days and I was quite shocked to see how much makeup I had to pack. When I got back, I realized that I had actually used most of what I had took.

My friend then asked me what if I could choose one thing to take with me, what would I choose? I couldn't decide on one thing and I am now torn between red lipstick and concealer!

What make up item can you not live without?

Girl Meets Dress

I was contacted a while back by Girl Meets Dress to blog about their site. At first, I didn't want to because their service was for UK residents only. I then realized that quite a few of my followers are from the UK.

Girl Meets Dress is an online service that allows you to hire a dress for a special occasion and then you can return it once you have worn it. I think its such a great idea because I tend to buy or have dresses made and I end up never wearing them again!

Girl Meets Dress also allows you to create wish lists so that you can save dresses that you are interested in. The dresses in the above images are once that I thought  were pretty. I also love that they have so many different designs up, which gives me inspiration for the next time I need a dress.
They have quite a few designer brands, including Victoria Beckhan, D&G, Stella McCartney, Marc Jacobs and much more.

I really wish South Africa had a service like this. It would make my life a lot easier.
Visit the Girl Meets Dress site here and start making your own wish list!

Wet n Wild comes to South Africa

Yesterday I was speaking about how excited I am about the lipstick I had received in a blog sale because Wet n Wild is not available here!.

I was browsing twitter when I saw Freebees PR (view their blog here) tweet about Wet n Wild coming to South Africa!

Go and like their Facebook page (here) so that we can all know when exactly it gets here. 

Sleek Pout Polish in Electro Peach

I mentioned in yesterdays post that I received this Sleek product when I ordered a few things from a blog sale. I hadn't tried Sleek when the full range was sold in South Africa. Zando now sells a select amount of their products.

When I saw the colour, I thought it wouldn't suit me. I never wear coral or orange. I tried it on and changed my mind immediately. Unlike most lip balms, this one is incredibly pigmented. Its definitely not a sheer lip balm. Its also not too sticky which I like. I did need to reapply often but I do that with most lip balms. I also like that it has SPF15, making it perfect for the warm weather thats to come.

I think its perfect for summer when I feel like wearing very little makeup but I still want a pretty lip color!

Blog Sale Haul!

Recently, Nicole from Princess Noo blog (visit her here) had a blog sale. I immediately emailed her  because her prices were so reasonable.

I had actually only ordered the Mac products from her. She kindly included the Sleek Pout Polish and Wet n Wild lipstick! I was so excited because Wet n Wild is not available here.

Items:
Mac Pro long wear lipstick in Love Forever!
Mac matte eyeshadow in Graphology (deep purple)
Mac matte eyeshadow in Flourishing (khaki green)
Sleek Pout Polish in Electro Peach
Wet n Wild lipstick in Cherry Picking

I will be reviewing these products soon but let me know if theres anything here that you are really interested in so that I can get the review up sooner!

Brands I wish were in South Africa- Paul and Joe

Paul and Joe is a french brand that has always been attractive to me. Theres not much I can say about them except that any crazy cat lady would love them! Their packaging and actual product is beautiful.

Visit the Paul and Joe Website here.

Montagne Jeunesse T-Zone Peel Off Mask

I bought this mask from Clicks because it was on sale and because I like to try out different masks all the time. This mask has no color and it is a peel off mask so I thought it would be perfect for me.

When I applied the mask, my cheeks began to burn. I thought that might just be the tea tree in the mask so I left it. After a few seconds, the burning stopped. Once the mask had dried, I tried to peel it off. It hurt so much. I was literally in tears as I peeled the mask off. My cheeks were ridiculously red the rest of the day and my skin was very dry. I was too scared to try the moisturizer that came with the mask after my experience.

I don't like to post negative reviews but I do feel like I need to warn others about this. I will definitely not be repurchasing or recommending this mask.

Have you ever experienced something similar?

Kardashian Beauty is coming to SA!

If theres one thing you should know about me, it would be that I am slightly obsessed with the Kardashians. My everyday make up bag is from their Dash store in New York. I own all the seasons of their show. I love them.

When I heard they had launched a beauty line, I was so excited. I thought it would never come to South Africa. I read an article today on The Wall Street Journal that confirmed they would be launching in Stuttafords.

"Azulade Marketing projects that after the initial limited launch in STUTTAFORDS' 15 stores, Kardashian Beauty will expand its distribution throughout the country in 2014 to up to 700 additional retail venues with the future distribution it has underway."

You can read the rest of the article here. I made a little collage of the products that have caught my eye on their website. Let me know if anything has caught your eye!

Visit the Kardashian Beauty site here

Im back!

Its been quite a while since I have last written a blog post. Over the last 5 weeks I have been working on a really big assignment and hopefully, I now only have about 2 months left before I finish my degree! Its going to be a tough 2 months but it will not be as crazy as the last 5 weeks.

I could have easily blogged during my 5 weeks but I was so tired that I probably would have just written anything. I want my posts to actually be helpful. So from Monday onwards, I will begin posting reviews and my other usual ramblings. I would like to do consistent themes at least twice a week (like my "Brands I wish were in South Africa" Wednesday posts). I will be spending my weekend thinking about that!

Also I would like to thank everyone who has visited my blog over the last couple of weeks! My views have gone up tremendously and I reached 10 000 page views without even knowing it! Maybe by 15 000 or 20 000 views, I will host a giveaway! Depending on my student budget! :)

A little blogging hiatus

So, if you are a follower on my blog, you would have noticed that I haven't posted in a while. I feel like I do this often and I end up having to apologies all the time. As much as I do not want to give you a list of excuses, the last two weeks have been crazy.
I had the flu and I was trying to get an assignment done. I have also been given a new assignment and I have been trying to focus on that. I also went for a hair cut, which for me is a big deal because I never cut my hair. It is always long. I took quite a bit off and its still ridiculously long.

As I type this, my lip has swollen to about double its usual size (too much info?) due to an allergic reaction to something unknown.
Its been a bit crazy in my life.

Anyways, as this week comes to an end, I thought I would share with you the very few highlights of the past two weeks.

A candy bar!

Supper with my friends (my sock bun and ghetto gold chain made an appearance)

I bought a new Mac lipstick in the shade Media!

I was sent these to review and I am very excited about it.

What have been the highlight/s of your week?

Brands I wish were in South Africa- Chantecaille

Chantecaille is a luxury skincare and beauty brands that I have admired for a while. I cannot explain how beautiful their products are so I will just have to show you.

View their website (here) to see more of their beautiful products!

When boredom strikes

I haven't really been blogging really over the last few days because I have the flu. I have been ridiculously bored in bed and I decided to start googling (that is a word, right?) a few things. I came across a DIY chocolate face mask for dehydrated winter skin.

Source

Ingredients

1 tsp cocoa powder

1 tsp yogurt 

1 tsp honey

All you have to do is blend the ingredients together and apply to clean skin! I have tried this mask on my own skin and it worked quite nicely. My skin felt hydrated and soft.

According to the website "The cocoa powder is a great source of antioxidants, the honey acts as a humectant and the yogurt soothes the skin. It’s the perfect mask for the winter season since it helps rehydrate the skin. If you have extra-dry skin, I recommend replacing the yogurt with almond oil for better results. "

Inglot haul

Yesterday I walked pass the Inglot store in Canal Walk and they had a big red sign up advertising their 50% off sale. When I went in store, they told me the sale items were actually now 70% off.
This is what I ended up getting.

The first two pans are concealers which were reduced to R25 from R79. I got a lighter shade for winter and a darker one for summer. I absolutely love it. My dark circles vanished completely and it blended perfectly with my skin tone.

The lipsticks I randomly took because the palette was free if you filled it. Although, number 75 is the perfect ox blood color that I have been searching for. These were reduced to R20 from R69.

In total I paid R110 for 2 concealers and 3 lipsticks, plus a palette with a mirror that was meant to be R365.

The sale is on till they have sold out all their sale stock. So go and have a look at what they have as soon as possible.
Have you ever purchased anything from Inglot? I might go back to see what else they have!

Brands I wish were available in South Africa- Tarte

Tarte is one of those brands that have focused on everything you look for in makeup. The are also a cruelty free and eco friendly brand. Most of their products last 12 hours, contain a SPF and are waterproof. I cannot decide what I want most from them so here are the things that I would really like from them.

View their website here.

Simple moisturizer review

I have been looking for an everyday moisturizer that won't be too oily for everyday use for a while now. I then came across the Simple brand in Clicks.

What I really like about this moisturizer is that it contains no perfume. It has absolutely no smell. I hate using a face cream that has a strong scent. It also contains vitamin B5 and glycerine to help soften your skin. 

I also love that this moisturizer does not make my skin oily but it still keeps it moisturized. Simple also has a heavier version of this lotion for more dry skin. 

The only thing I do not like about this moisturizer is that it does not contain a SPF.

Have you tried anything from the simple range?

Brands I wish were available in South Africa- Sleek

Although Sleek is available on Zando in South Africa, their selection is not as great as the selection you can get in the UK. I have read on Sleeks twitter page that they are going to relaunch the brand in South Africa, which I am quite excited about. Here are a few of the things I would like from Sleek but are not available here.

The things I would really like from them is the blush in Rose Gold and the Blush by 3 in Sweet Cheeks. The Contour Kit looks promising too as it has a matte bronzer, something I have not been able to find recently.

Have you tried anything from Sleek? What are your favorite products?

How to perfect the cat eye

Before I perfected my own method of creating a cat eye, I searched for the easiest method online. I came across a blog called The Beauty Department that uploads the best tutorials. I find that their method of "stamping" your flick with a angled eyeliner brush is simple and works well. 

Source

I hope this is helpful! It was my go-to method for quite a while.

Wish list #1

Today I thought I would do a different kind of post. The following items are things I really want and I would like to purchase in the future.

The product I am most likely to purchase over the next few weeks is the Mac Lipstick in Hang Up, the Studio Fix concealer and the Essence bronzer.
The Batiste dry shampoo for dark hair is always sold out wherever I go so I shall just continue hunting for that.
The Revlon lip butters and the YSL Rouge Volupte always look beautiful but the price has put me off from buying them. I really do want to try one out though.
I have heard only great things about the Tangle Teezer and i figured my incredibly long and knotty hair could benefit from it!

Whats on your wish list?

The Comforter

In winter, I am more likely to take long baths than to take a shower. Fun fact though, I have been allergic to bubble bath since I was a kid. When Lush opened up in South Africa, I bought their bath products because they are made with fresh ingredients and my body did not react badly to it.

The Comforter has to be my favorite bubble bar from Lush. It smells like berries and ice cream (thats about as descriptive as I get). Their bubble bars are easy to use. You can break off a small piece, hold it under running water as you pour your bath water and watch the bubbles form! Your entire bathroom will smell like the bubble bar and you will be left with a pink bubble bath. Your fingers also turn a scary shade of pink but once you rinse your hands, that goes away.

Brands I wish were available in South Africa- Sigma Beauty

I have been watching beauty gurus on Youtube for several years and they all rave about Sigma Brushes. Although they do ship internationally, I wish I could find them conveniently in South Africa. Here are some of the products I would love to try from them.

They have a glove that you can wear to clean your brushes, makeup and brow tools but their best sellers are their brushes! The blue set is a travel kit while the black (which I will ask for my birthday next year, if I remember) is something I have always wanted.