Monday 31 August 2009

Benefit Creaseless Cream Shadow/Liner

I've wanted to try Benefit's Creaseless Cream shadows for years and finally got around to buying some. Half of me loves them and the other half doesn't. As an eyeliner they're amazing however as an eye shadow they just don't work for me. I purchased two colours, Skinny Jeans, which is the pewter shown below in the first picture, and Strut which is described as a smoky denim and is shown in the second picture below.


Benefit says: Our do-it-all cream shadow lines, shades and contours eyes with its alluring crease-proof, smudge-proof formula. Go as sheer or as dramatic as you like with buildable color. Either way, these shadows stay put!what else you need to know:These gorgeous creams come in 12 blendable shades that can be worn alone or mixed for endless custom looks.

I haven't had any luck using these as an eye shadow. I've tried all different ways and they always crease on me. They'll crease within a few hours of application. I've tried using them with primer and without. I've tried using eye cream before I apply them and not using eye cream. I've also tried applying them with an eye shadow brush and applying them with my fingers, but no matter how I apply them they always crease. So as an eye shadow they're a huge fail for me. One of my friends at work uses them and they don't crease on her at all, I'm not sure why that is.


As an eye liner though, they're amazing. The texture is soft and creamy so they are super easy to apply and blend. They stay put all day without smudging or disappearing. The colour is deep and intense and stays that way all day. I've found that I can use these for a smudged, smoky look or for a sharp, defined look and they work really well both ways.

Would I buy this again? Yes, they're great and long lasting as an eye liner.




Ingredients: cyclopentasiloxane, isododecane, polyethylene, polymethylmethacrylate, dimethicone, disteardimonium hectorite, propylene carbonate, silica.

Friday 28 August 2009

Estee Lauder Nutritious Vita-Mineral Makeup

I've always loved Estee Lauder foundations, they have a great range and I can always find something to suit my needs. I got Nutritious when they had a gwp on a while ago and I'm really happy with it. It's a light to medium coverage foundation that evens out my skin tone without looking really obvious. It doesn't sink into fine lines and has a soft, slightly dewy finish. When I wear this my skin looks refreshed and healthy. As it's oil free I don't end up looking oily or shiny half way through the day.

The texture of this is very light, I don't feel like I'm wearing foundation when I have it on. Unlike some oil free foundations, my skin doesn't feel dry or tight when I'm wearing Nutritious.

Estee Lauder says: Healthy Radiance The only mineral makeup perfected by Estée Lauder skincare. The nutrient-rich formula includes: Minerals to help protect and fortify the skin to build up its natural defenses. Vitamins A, C and E to help improve skin’s overall condition and maintain its healthy radiance. Pomegranate extract-known as a super-potent antioxidant to help protect skin against daily free-radical assaults. Looks Good. Feels Good. Is Good.

Benefits: Erases signs of fatigue. Enhances the beauty of your skin with a natural, vibrant finish. Oil free. Controls and absorbs oil without drying skin. Gentle enough for sensitive skin.

I can't say if this has been improving the condition of my skin. I've been using it for a few months now and so far I haven't noticed any difference in my skin's condition. I paid $66(AUD) for a 30ml tube.

Would I buy it again? Yes, it's a very nice foundation.

Ingredients: Water, cyclopentasiloxane, phenyl trimethicone, hdi/trimethylol hexyllactone crosspolymer, glycerin, butylene glycol, peg-10 dimethicone, dimethicone, titanium dioxide, quaternium-90 bentonite, silica, octyldodecyl stearoyl stearate, ethylhexylglycerin, phenyl methicone, punica granatum sterols, polysilicone-11, trifluorom ethyl c1-4 alkyl dimethicone, polyglyceryl-4 isostearate, hexyl laurate, cetyl peg/ppg-10/1 dimethicone, c9-15 fluoroalcohol phosphate, laureth-7, lecithin, propylene carbonate, tocopheryl acetate, triethoxycaprylysilane, methicone, talc, nylon-12, zinc stearate, tetrahexyl decyl ascorbate, alumina, zeolite, sodium chloride, xanthan gum, magnesium aluminum silicate, calcium silicate, disodium edta, potassium sorbate, scorbic acid, sodium dehydroacetate, phenoxyethanol, chlorphenesin.

Thursday 27 August 2009

Prada Shielding Balm SPF 15

I can believe I haven't already reviewed Prada's Shielding Lip Balm. I've been using them for years and always have one stashed in my handbag. They're cute little balms that come in tiny 1.5ml squeeze tubes. The box I have contained 10 tubes, however I think the new ones only have 8 tubes. They come in individually sealed envelopes as you can see in the picture above.

At the moment I'm using Tint 6 which is a pretty, cool toned red. I really like these balms. They're very moisturising and as they are so tiny they're easy to carry around. They come in a lovely range of different colours and there's also a clear version. I'd have to say these are my favorite tinted balms. The texture is thick and creamy and they last about three hours before I need to reapply. Even though the tubes are tiny they last a surprisingly long time. With daily use a tube lasts me around a week.

The only problem I have with Prada balms is they're not very easy to find and they're quite expensive. I got my current ones from Myer, but I don't think they sell them anymore. They're available online though and cost around $40 (AUD).

Prada says: A pure lip enhancing tinted balm that provides an instant buffed shine and a plump finish to lips as it protects over the long term with environmental screens and UVA/UVB filters.
Would I buy these again? Yes, they're beautiful balms.

Active Ingredients: Octinoxate 7.5%, octisalate 1%, avobenzone 1%.
Other Ingredients: Lanolin oil, butyrospermum parkii, beeswax, ethylhexyl methoxycinnamate, euphorbia cerifera wax, simmondsia chinensis seed oil, mica, vp/hexadecene copolymer, phenyl trimethicone, persea gratissima oil, macadamia ternifolia seed oil, ricinus communis seed oil, tocopheryl acetate, ethylhexyl salicylate, butyl methoxydibonzoylmethane, fragrance, panthenol, silica, talc, methylparaben, propylparaben, yellow 10 lake, red 7 lake, red 28 lake, iron oxides, red 33 lake, iron oxides.

Wednesday 26 August 2009

Project 10 Pan for skincare

I've decided to do a Project 10 Pan for skincare. I have a lot of products that I need to use up and I need to stop buying more. I'm also thinking about doing it for hair care, but I'll decide that one later. I'm happy to say that since I finished the Ten Tubes Test I've finished another five lip products and I intend to keep on going. I also haven't bought any new lip products, so I'm pleased about that.

So as of today I'm starting Project 10 Pan for skincare. I won't buy any new skincare until I've used up ten of my current products. I'm going to include lip balms in with my skincare, even though I don't think I'll be finishing and balms soon.

I have a few products that I hope to finish soon, so hopefully I'll be reporting back soon.

Tuesday 25 August 2009

Ponds Wet Cleansing Towelettes



Ponds says: Pond's Wet Cleansing Towelettes, the No. 1 brand of wet cleansing towelettes, gently remove make-up and even waterproof mascara. Clinical studies have shown that Pond’s towelettes remove the make-up that other brands leave behind – taking off up to 40 percent more than other leading towelettes. Available in three varieties, they are ophthalmologist and dermatologist tested for a gentle face cleansing experience.
Pond's Original Clean Towelettes are more effective at removing make-up than any other leading towelette. Contains Triple Tea Antioxidant Complex, Vitamin E and Chamomile, Luxuriously quilted cloths with a unique diamond texture allow for a deep clean without leaving any residue behind.

I don't normally use cleansing wipes, all the brands that I've tried have either been too drying or haven't removed my make-up very well, so I just use baby wipes instead. However, since I discovered Pond's Wet Cleansing Towelettes I've been converted, they're amazing! They easily remove all of my make-up, including eye make-up and are not at all drying. I only have to wipe my face once to get all my face make-up off, although I usually go over my eyes twice to get all the mascara off.

I'm happy to say that these wipes aren't at all drying. They don't irritate my sensitive skin and haven't caused any redness or irritation. After I've used them my skin feels clean and soft.



One of my favorite things about these wipes is the container. As you can see from the picture above, they come in a little box so that instead of having to lay them down on my bench top they stand up. This means that they look good and take up less room than they would if they were laying down.

Ingredients: water, hexylene glycol, anthemis nobilis (chamomile) flower extract, tocopheryl acetate (vitamin e acetate), camellia sinensis (green tea) leaf extract, camellia sinensis (white tea) leaf extract, cyclopia intermedia (honeybush) leaf extract, polysorbate 20, sodium lauroamphoacetate, peg-40 hydrogenated castor oil, benzyl alcohol, xylitylglucoside, anhydroxylitol, xylitol, fragrance, citric acid, dimdm hydantoin, butylene glycol, iodopropynyl butylcarbamate.

Would I buy them again? Yes, they're on my must have list now.

Monday 24 August 2009

Australis Perfection Brush On Mineral Lip Gloss


Australis have recently bought out a Perfection range consisting of brush on products. I think this is a great idea as they are easy to use and being pen style makes them easy to carry around in my handbag. The Perfection range has Foundation, Mineral Illuminator, Mineral Bronzer, Mineral Lip Gloss, Lip and Cheek Tint and Eyeshadow. All of the products are priced under $18, which makes them very affordable.

Mineral Lip Gloss comes in a sleek looking black click tube. I have Botticelli which is a beautiful pinky mauve. I'm really happy with this gloss. It's shiny without being sticky and lasts a few hours before I need to reapply. The texture is creamy and moisturising, it feels more like a balm than a gloss. It's fragrance and flavour free.

Since I got this I've used it every day and the more I use it the more I love it. I'm very tempted to go out and buy some more colours. I love the versatility of these. I can apply one layer for a sheer shine, a few layers for a light colour and apply over lipstick to brighten the colour of my lipstick.

Australis says: A stroke of genius, a brush with fame... Following on from the success of the Australis Perfection Brush on Collection launch comes the new Australis Perfection Brush On Mineral Lip Gloss. The light, smooth mineral formula includes nature's finest beauty secrets such as jojoba and vitamin E for moisturising and orange oil for conditioning - helping you maintain healthy looking lips all year round in eight beautiful natural looking shades. The easy-to-use brush on applicator and click button is designed to allow you more control to create the look you want without wasting any product. Wear it on it's own or over lipstick, there's a shade to suit everyone.

Would I buy it? Yes, it's a lovely, reasonably priced gloss that is fast becoming a favorite.

Wednesday 19 August 2009

Korres Wild Rose Foundation


Korres says: Long lasting foundation for a flawless, radiant finish. Smooth to apply and easy to blend, it offers natural looking coverage and sun protection. Wild Rose, a natural source of vitamin C, works to repair fine lines and brighten uneven skin tone.

I've only been using this for a month so it's too soon to say if it's working to repair fine lines and brighten my skin tone, so I'll do a follow up review in a few months to report back on that.

So far I'm really happy with this foundation. The first thing I noticed when I opened the bottle is that it has a lovely soft rose scent. I can't smell it once the foundation is on, but it's a lovely smell.
This is a lovely foundation. It gives a sheer, long lasting finish and makes my skin look smooth and luminous.

I apply my Wild Rose Foundation with my Beauty Blender when I want a sheer finish and with my fingers when I want a heavier coverage. I normally set it with a light dusting of powder, which gives a more matte look, but it can also be worn without powder for a more luminous look. I have this in WRF1 which is the lightest shade.

Would I buy it again? Yes, it's a lovely foundation.

More about Korres: Korres natural products is a Greek company with roots in the first Homeopathic pharmacy of Athens. The first Korres product was an aromatic herbal syrup with hone and aniseed, a recipe inspired by 'rakomelon', a warming spirit-with-honey concoction, which George Korres' grandfather used to favour is his hometown on the island of Naxos. Utilising the experience with 3000 homeopathic remedies of herbal origin and hundreds of herbal preparations, the company today offers more than 500 skin and hair care products, suncare, a full colour line, nutraceuticals and a herbal-pharmacy range of products.

Ingredients: aqua, isododecane, titanium dioxide, cyclopentasiloxane, polyglyceryl-10 triisostearate, ethylhexyl methoxycinnamate, mica, glycerin, bis-hydroxyethoxypropyl dimethicone/ipdi/sorbitan stearate copolymer, zinc stearate, silica, caprylyl dimethicone ethoxy glucoside, hydrogenated styrene/isoprene copolymer, sodium chloride, dimethicone, dimethicone/vinyl dimethicone crosspolymer, rosa canina fruit extract, potassium sorbate, chlorphenesin, parfum, sodicum dehydroacetate, mannitol, sorbitol, butylene glycol, acetyl tyrosine, laureth-4, tocopherol, proline, ascorbyl palmitate, algin, adenosine triphosphate, hydrolyzed vegetable protein, carbomer, acacia senegal, serine, hexylene glycol, fructose, glucose, sucrose, urea, dextrin, alanine, glutamic acid, aspartic acid.

Monday 17 August 2009

The Body Shop Sheer Lip Shine



The Body Shop says: A beautiful range of luxurious moisturising lipsticks that offer sheer colour coverage with a high shine finish and a sweet scent on application.

I say: They're right. These are lovely lipsticks. They smell lovely (like papaya), and are fragrance free. I don't agree with the moisturising part though. They aren't drying, but I wouldn't say they're moisturising either.
These are like a sheer lip gloss, but in a stick version. They're sheer, shiny and provide a sheer wash of colour. Due to the sheerness they don't last very long on, but that's to be expected with products like this.



I have this in 01 - Pink. It's a beautiful, sheer pink that is very close to my natural lip colour. To see the full colour range click here. Sheer Lip Shines cost $23.95(AUD).

Would I buy it again? Yes, I'm already eying up another one, there is a beautiful, sheer red colour that I really want.

Ingredients: ricinus communis (castor seed) oil, meadowfoam (limnanthes alba) seed oil, propylene glycol dicaprylate/dicaprate, euphorbia cerifera (candelilla) wax, synthetic wax, sclerocarya birrea (marula) oil, copernica cerifera (carnauba) wax, flavour, methylparaben, butylparaben, ethylparaben, tocopherol, isobutylparaben, propylparaben. May contain: mica, iron oxides, titanium dioxide, red 7 lake, red 27 lake, yellow 5 lake, red 6 lake, blue 1 lake.

Sunday 16 August 2009

A review coming up

I don't usually post about upcoming reviews, but I just had to tell you that I may have finally found the perfect under eye concealer. I've only worn it once so far, but I wore it for six hours and it didn't sink into my fine lines at all. Amazing! I'm going to test it out further and report back, but at the moment I'm excitedly hopeful that I may have found my holy grail concealer.

Monday 10 August 2009

Korres Sunflower Oil Shimmering Eye Shadow


As I've gotten older I've started to realise that shimmery eye shadows aren't always flattering. When I was younger they were fine, but now I find that some of them make my eye lids look really crepey, which is not a good look. So I went on the hunt for an eye shadow with a subtle shimmer and found Korres Shimmering eye shadows.

I have this in 12S Base which Korres describes as a sheer opalescent taupe. It's a beautiful colour. The shimmer is very subtle and doesn't make my eye lids look crepey. The colour is sheer but buildable.

The one problem I have with it is that it flakes really easily. When I got mine home it'd already started flaking from one of the corners and now that I've been using it for about a month a larger section of the corner has flaked off. I'm really not sure why this has happened as I haven't dropped it and it lives at home in my make-up case, so it hasn't been getting knocked around at all.

Would I buy it again? Yes, it's a lovely eye shadow, I'm keen to try more colours in the range.

Friday 7 August 2009

Maybelline Superstay Lipcolour


Maybelline says: This long-wearing lip colour creates 16 feel-good hours of luminous colour. Flexible formula moves with your lips for no caking or flaking. Ultra-conditioning, refillable balm seals in softness for all-day comfort.
Superaway Lip color Remover with Vitamin E gently removes all traces of long wear lip colour
For best results
apply the liquid colour to your clean, bare lips. Then it’s two minutes to perfection! Remember to allow a full two minutes to dry, then apply ultra-conditioning balm to seal in softness. Reapply balm as needed.

Sounds great doesn't it? I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm always skeptical about the claims of cosmetic companies because so often they don't live up to their claims. Superstay Lip colour sort of lives up to its claims.

I really like the colour selection available, there are some gorgeous colours. I have this in Mauve, which is a gorgeous natural looking colour. I don't find this lasts 16 hours on me, it lasts about 1/2 a day before all the colour is gone. As with all the other long lasting lipsticks I've tried it starts out feeling sticky and then once it's dry I don't feel it on my lips at all.

The balm that comes with Superstay is really nice. I like that it can be replaced too, so if you finish the balm before the lipstick you can get another balm.

Would I buy it again? Yes, it's a fairly good product.

Wednesday 5 August 2009

Elizabeth Arden 8 Hour Cream Intensive Moisturising Hand Cream



Elizabeth Arden says: The perfect companion to our original classic. This fast-absorbing gel cream for the hands moisturizes for up to eight hours. Soothing emollients smooth and soften rough, weather-exposed skin. Signs of dryness and cracking are reversed so hands look and feel soft and touchable.

I have to agree with those claims. This is now one of my favorite hand creams. I use it mainly when I'm at work as it's super moisturising and sinks in so quickly. I can apply it and then go straight back to typing, without worrying about having sticky hands.

Originally I got this as part of a GWP but have since purchased the full sized as it works so well. The only down side to this is the fragrance. I don't mind it, in fact I find it quite pleasant, but it's quite a strong, herbal scent that stays around for a while.

As EA claims, this really is an intensive moisturising cream, it's great for dry winter hands. I use this twice a day and within a few days my dry hands are soft and healthy again.


The Legend
Created in 1930 by Elizabeth Arden to soothe skin, Eight Hour Cream Skin Protectant became an instant and overwhelming success. What made it so effective is a combination of petrolatum, a skin-soothing beta-hydroxy in one of its first cosmetic uses, and vitamin E. The apricot colored balm was so beneficial to her clients, Miss Arden used it to soothe her famous thoroughbred horses' legs. Even its name came about thanks to a remarkable performance - a loyal client used it to treat her child's skinned knee and "eight hours later" the skin was all better.


Would I buy it again? Yes.

Monday 3 August 2009

It's over!


The Ten Tubes Test is now officially over. The four products above were the last three lip products I finished, plus my MLS balm that I forgot to take a photo of. As you can see above I finished my MAC and Jemma glosses plus my Shizen lip balm, bringing me to a total of ten lip products finished. I'm amazed that I finished ten products so quickly. I didn't finish all of the products that I'd started out wanting to finish, but I finished ten products so I'm happy.

I've learned a few things from this. I've decided that I'm just going to use one or two products at a time until I use them up. So I'll use two balms (a stick balm and a pot balm), one or two different glosses and one or two different lipsticks. If I do that I'll actually use things up. I've also realised that it doesn't take that long to use things up.

Here's the pile of products that I wanted to use up. Out of this pile I used up five products and I'll keep working on the rest. I'm seriously considering continuing an adapted version of the Ten Tubes Test. I'll allow myself to buy one new lip product for every five that I use up. That way I'll slowly be reducing my stash of products.