Current Makeup Wishlist

I don't do these often because generally there's just too many things I'm lusting over at one time but for the past month or so I've been really diligent with my makeup spending ban and I think I can count on one hand the amount of products I've bought, all of which were either essential- brow gel or on an offer too good to refuse. So, naturally my little mental list has been steadily growing but it's also made me realise that I, as one person do not need the amount of makeup I have nor do I get enough use out of everything in my stash. Us as beauty obsessed gals and bloggers do tend to hoard and I know it's not about need with us, we're sucked in by company's pretty packaging and advertising and the promise of making us look like we've just stepped of the VS runway. This being said I am being much more selective about the makeup I do buy and I'm doing a lot less 'oh it's a good price, I'll buy it and use it one day' and the 'it's all the hype on instagram and youtube, I NEED it.' Most recently I surprised myself with MAC's abundance of limited edition launches; I said to myself if there's something amazing I will buy it but nothing grabbed me enough to make me want to spend. I know to most this will be like woww... good on you, you resisted spending almost 2 hours pay on a blush or lipstick (not) but to other beauty obsessed ladies, you get me!

Blimey I ramble.. ok so these are the products that I'm currently wanting but it will be a slow and steady accumulation if I am to even buy any/all of these.

L-R Clockwise- Chanel Perfection Lumiere Velvet, Benefit Watts Up, Zoeva brushes, Makeup Geek eyeshadows, MAC Lip Prep + Prime, Nars Eye Primer, MAC Prep + Prime Highlighting Pens, Real Techniques Sponge, By Terry Ombre Blackstar in Misty Rock.  

As much as I would like to waltz on in to David Jones, Myer & Mecca and spend up a storm because I'm constantly #feelingspendy I can't do that to my poor savings so instead I'll just treat myself every now and then.

Review | L'Oreal Ever Sleek Shampoo & Conditioner

In my time I have gone through a hell of a lot of shampoo and conditioner, both supermarket as well as salon brands. When I was younger my mum always used to say she swore I just poured it down the plughole because I went through it so quickly but I stand by the fact it's because I have quite thick and at the moment, long hair. For that reason when I was younger I never bothered with expensive haircare and it wasn't until recent years when I started buying my own that I experimented a bit more with salon brands and highend shampoos and conditioners. Some were good, some meh and some really bad. Like highend makeup, I hate spending a lot of money on a product to use it and find out I hate it but unfortunately with haircare there's no samples, it works differently for everyone so it can be seriously hit and miss! 

I think it was madam Estee (essiebutton) who I first saw rave about L'Oreal's Hair Expertise sulfate-free ranges. With a quick google search, I read more positive reviews and at $15 a bottle I thought I'd give it a go. In terms of a better than basic supermarket range shampoo and conditioner the price isn't too unreasonable and of course Priceline always has amazing offers on. The first of these ranges I tried was EverCreme shampoo, conditioner and deep repair masque. Used it, loved it, repurchased it. I was very impressed with the way it left my hair and the masque did a great job as a more intensive repair. If you follow me on instagram (@beautylocale) you may have seen that when I was on a short getaway with my Mum I realised I'd forgotten to bring any type of hair serum or oil so I dashed to Priceline and after much pacing the aisle and weighing up all my options (as I am a devoted MorrocanOil-er and hadn't tried many of the products) I bought the EverSleek Frizz Taming Creme Serum. Once again I was impressed with the way this left my hair so during Priceline's most recent 40% off haircare offer I stocked up and purchased both the EverSleek and EverCreme shampoo and conditioners. 

Ok so onto the duo of the hour! I'm almost through the bottles so I feel it's time to review and share my thoughts. I'm sure you can guess..? I'm impressed. No surprises here, the EverSleek range is another nail on the head by L'Oreal and I will definitely be repurchasing it. My hair is thick, I wouldn't say wiry but most definitely frizzy. As a youngin I was that girl with the low pony and a halo of frizz around the frame of my face. With age it has definitely calmed down but I do still straighten my front frizzies as I call them, on the daily. Using this combination has left my hair on the whole a lot more sleek as it intends and nice and soft. The smell, like all the products is super yummy and does stay in your hair so when you flick it you can smell it which I really like. As I briefly mentioned before these are sulfate and silicone free and don't leave any kind of build up nor do I feel they weigh my hair down. 

The verdict:

What they say - Fully and weightlessly smoothed , your hair becomes incredibly soft, with exceptional 
body and a silky feel. Intensely nourished and repaired, your hair reveals a new kind of beauty.

What I say- Agreed! As you can probably gather, I really like this range and I will continue to use it and the EverCreme range on rotation. 

Review | Nuxe Dry Oil

Nuxe is a French pharmacy brand that I discovered a few years ago, probably around the same time as La Roche Posay. The brand is very Eco-friendly and base their products in natural origin cosmetology which gets my immediate thumbs up. In the past I've used their eye cream, skincare and I'm currently using one of their facial moisturisers but this post is more focused on their Dry Oil (Huile Prodigeuse) a multitasking product that comes with and without shimmer- I have with. It is said to be used to nourish, repair and soften your face, body and hair in one single step. Winner of many beauty awards and recipient of much Internet rave and review I had to give it a go. I bought this bottle from Escentual during one of their 1/3 off French pharmacy brand sales but I did spot it in Priceline the other day as more of their stores are stocking Nuxe and other French pharmacy brands.

It has a fresh sort of floral scent which is quite strong if you're not a big fan of scented products. I like to use this on my arms and legs and it leaves my skin moisturised and only slightly shimmery which is nice especially for the evenings. I have been brave enough to use this in my hair but when it was almost due for a wash and I'm glad I did because I didn't really understand how an oil of this consistency wouldn't make your hair look greasy even through the ends. In saying that I absolutely love it for my body, it is a dry oil so it absorbs into nothing and feels matte if that makes any sense whatsoever.. 

It's something different than I've ever used before in terms of it being a dry oil and I always love a good multitasking product!

The shimmer is very subtle so there's no danger of hitting the sunshine and suddenly looking like a disco ball! It just leaves your skin looking healthy, hydrated and lightly fragranced. 

Review | NYX Butter Glosses

This is probably only the 16272829th post on NYX's Butter Glosses but ah well, I just wanted to share my thoughts with the blogosphere as well. Now that Target has answered many an Aussie beauty's prayer and brought NYX to us, these are much more readily available and still under $10 if I'm not wrong. With 30% off at Target a while ago now, I did pick up a sneaky two more glosses in the sale but they aren't photographed because I took these before then so these are the original few I've bought online from both Cherry Culture and Beauty Joint.

Before these I really wasn't a huge fan of lipgloss at all, I just thought them to be sticky and fussy and not your hair's best friend when you're walking in the wind. Butter glosses have me 100% converted though- since getting into these I've been buying and trying a lot more glosses and I'm slowly but surely understanding their purpose. These are still my favourite formula of gloss that I've tried in my rediscovery of the gloss because they smell absolutely amazing like sweet vanilla, aren't sticky or tacky and feel really nice on the lips. If I'm wearing these at work and talking non stop they aren't the most long lasting and they don't stain which is a plus because it makes for an easy reapplication. 

My favourite shades have to be Creme Brûlée and my more recent purchase- Tiramisu. Both are beautiful natural lip shades and just go with everything and anything. If you haven't boarded this bandwagon then what you waiting for?!

L-R: Peach Cobbler, Strawberry Parfait, Tiramisu, Maple Blondie, Vanilla Cream Pie, Creme Brulee

Plus they have the cutest names!  

Friends' Faces | 21st Birthday

Last weekend one of my bestest pal's celebrated her 21st birthday and after much umming and ahhing I agreed to do her makeup for the evening. I was a bit hesitant to be the one to do her makeup for her party because I was worried about it not turning out exactly how she would've wanted it and then that could've been a whole palava and I would have felt terrible. However, after us doing a bit of a practice I said I'd do it but made her promise to be 100% honest; here's how it turned out, I could not tell you for the life of me what I used because I was dipping into a bit of everything. I had my MAC, Inglot and Urban Decay Naked 2 palettes on hand so definitely shadows from those. Beautiful lashes from House of Lashes and L'Oreal True Match for her base.

One of my other best gal pals also asked me to do her makeup or at least her eyes if we didn't have time and as she was wearing a white dress, she wanted a warm bronzey toned eye to compliment it. I used only the Urban Decay Naked 2 palette for her eyes and I don't know if it's the difference in skin/hair colour but I feel like they looked a lot better on her skin tone than they do on mine. Ainsley's base of choice was her tried and true Bourjois Healthy Mix and some natural lashes also from House of Lashes.

I wanted to take a makeup mess/progress shots but it ended up being a legitimate makeup mess and there just wasn't time! I in no way think I'm a makeup artist or have any special skill whatsoever I more just wanted to show off my beautiful friends' faces.

Review | Topshop Makeup

Before Topshop made it to our shores it used to be much more of a hot commodity and anytime I was lucky enough to make it over to Europe I would be in their stores quicker than you could say hot damn! From a young age I was obsessed with Topshop and thought it was soooooo cool. These days I'm not as enamoured with it, I just find the Sydney store a bit meh and overpriced so its just an occasional online lurk BUT one thing I do love from Topshop regardless, is their makeup line. It's quite popular with the British blogger ladies so I think they may have introduced me to the wonder that is their reasonably priced makeup bits. I've bought some here and overseas and am willing to pay the Aussie prices for it so that's saying something!

Nevada, Innocent, Flush (Cream Blush)

I think the first thing I bought was their lipstick in Innocent, a beautiful everyday pink shade and the formula is beautiful, long wearing and opaque. Next additions to the collection I think were purchased at the same time so it's Nevada lipstick and their cream blush in Flush. 99% sure both of these were recommendations from YouTubers and if I'm not wrong, from Zoella and Tanya Burr. The lipsticks are packaged in metal bullets which mades them nice and sturdy and also something a little different than the general plastic packaging that comes with cheaper makeup lines.  For some reason I completely forgot to photograph the 4 or 5 nail polishes I also have from their line, some glittery and some plain and they're all fab! Lovely brush and nice and opaque and again long lasting. My best friend recently bought one of their Lip Lacquer type products and it looks amazing! It's glossy and turns into a stain and it's a beautiful deep red shade so next time I venture in store I may keep my eye out for these.. 

Review | Sleek 'Storm' Eyeshadow Palette

When let loose in a UK drugstore like Boots or Superdrug this gal goes a little cray. On more recent trips when I have been more into makeup and beauty my family and friends have just been astonished at how much I; number 1.buy and number 2. The amount of time I spend in there. My dad spent a great deal of time waiting outside Sephora and Boots while I casually perused the aisles and swatched everything in sight.. Priceline is definitely catching up in terms of having more variety in brand range and special deals but if you've been to a UK drugstore you'll understand my longing. Boots especially, was like a haven- they stock both high and low end beauty brands and they have amazing deals on all the time. Of course when I'm there I look for products that I can't get from Australia and today we're talking Sleek MakeUP.

Again these YouTube enablers will be the death of my bank account but so much talk has been given to Sleek eyeshadow and blush palettes. Their Blush by 3 in Lace made a huge wave on the beauty grapevine because it was dubbed a NARS dupe. It may have been Fleurdeforce who first caught my attention with the Storm eyeshadow palette and it was immediately on my list. I spotted it in Superdrug and it was in my clutches together with one of their limited edition blush palettes. Today I'm giving focus to the Storm palette which as you'll notice from my photos, gets quite a bit of love and attention. A lovely combination of matte and shimmers the shade range is beautiful from light to dark and the pigmentation is spot on. These smooth as butter shadows glide over the lids and blend in seamlessly. I even turned to this palette for my 21st birthday makeup look which is saying something! Everything about these shadows is beautiful- the pigmentation, texture, colour payoff, lasting power and shade range. 

I can't praise this palette anymore, I definitely recommend it for a one stop shop and as a bonus is very affordable from their website which does ship internationally.

Random one swipe swatches of both matte & shimmer shades