All Eyes on the L'Oreal Mono Shadows

Sometimes (a lot of the time) for more reasons than one, I dislike living in the Southern Hemisphere. As big a first world problem as it is, makeup and beauty launches 6 months behind everyone else is one of my peeves! I get how ridiculous and vain that sounds, don't even worry. It's just those products you see hit the screen from UK & US beauties and you're like :| need. now.

Breaking Nude, Cafe Saint Germain, Quartz Fume

The L'Oreal Mono Shadows were one of those launches. After the success and my love for the Infallible shadows, I was excited for these. They launched with a couple of different finishes- there's the mattes, lumiere and nude. I picked out one of each and love them all. These, like the Infallible shadows, are super creamy and pigmented and are more like a pressed pigment than an eyeshadow. Worn alone or with other shadows, I've been loving these since I bought them. The only negatives I have are that one of them fell out of the pan after a short drop and the darker shades do have a bit of a fall out but I think you kind of just expect that with a product like this.

Breaking Nude, Cafe Saint Germain, Quartz Fume

The Debate | To Prime or Not?

"To prime, or not to prime.. That is the question." - Anon

But really, should we be worried about using a primer or just not bother and skip the whole faff completely? I was asking myself this very question maybe 6 months ago before I had really tried a few primers or seen any difference when I had used one for that matter. Beauty brands seem to be bringing out more and more primers these days that are designed to combat various issues and problem points- oiliness, redness, pores, dullness, dehydration, dark spots, pigmentation, textural issues; the list goes on! There are a few brands in particular that have become quite regarded for their primers like Benefit's Porefessional and now their new release for anti-shine as well as Smashbox's wide range of primers combatting almost all of the previously mentioned issues. As well as this, more and more 'accessible' and I suppose drugstore brands are bringing out their own versions of similar products which is what prompted me to write this post. With the release of an awaited 'drugstore' product I felt slightly more well-rounded in the primer world and able to share with the blogosphere my thoughts.

All Over Face
The Hourglass Mineral Veil Primer which I think if I mention once more I'm going to annoy myself for being so boring and anyone who is reading this. I've expressed my love and adoration for this product many times so check out previous posts if you're interested.

L'Oreal Magic Blur- Available from Priceline so it is much more accessible and retails for $24.99. This product created a big hype in the YouTube land as well as all over beauty blogs. It was one of the first drugstore primers to create a wide interest and I waited and waited for it to hit our Australian shores. Months later, during a casual stroll in my local Priceline there it was on the middle shelf just at eye-line for my ease, the Magic Blur! Here to save the day and blur all my imperfections and make me look airbrushed in real life all day everyday. Safe to say I had fairly high hopes for this little tube. I've only used it a few times now and despite this being recommended as an all over face product, I think for my skin type it's better suited to just being focused on problem areas like my t-zone and the pores beside my nose. So far I haven't been overly impressed with how it seems to make my face more oily rather than having the opposite effect that I hoped for. It does fill in the pores so this can fit into two categories of this post but I might do a more detailed post in the future when I've been using it for longer.

Pores
Benefit Porefessional, like the Hourglass primer I don't think I need to say anymore on this product. It is  a cult product for a reason. It fills in the pores to create a more smooth surface and doesn't break up your makeup throughout the day, make my skin more oily nor does it highlight my pores and make them centre of attention.

Innoxa Pore Vanishing Cream A great drugstore dupe for the Benefit Porefessional and does match up pretty well to it's Benefit counterpart. It is still a silicone texture making it great for filling in pores but the texture is slightly (only ever so) to the Benefit. I bought this on recommendation from Australian YouTube gals and was intrigued and excited to try a more affordable product and see if it truly does compare. I would say it is a great alternative, I'm not sure it has the same lasting power as the Benefit but if it is more in your price range then it is a great product but I guess same with a lot of things, the original is often the better.

Eyelids
Urban Decay Primer Potion was the first eye primer I had ever used and I've been using it for probably six months consistently as in I reach for it everyday that I'm wearing makeup, whether it be only eyeliner or a full on eye for a night out. I like to know that whatever I'm putting on my lids is going to stay and not crease if I'm going to put in the time and effort to blend it all in! Plus it's just not the look I want to have my eyeshadow creasing and smudging throughout the day.

Too Faced Shadow Insurance  One of my beautiful pals bought me the Too Faced Blogger Box from Sephora while she was in the States and this was one of the products included. I haven't tried a great deal of Too Faced products, not for any particular reason, just haven't been on my radar too much so I was very excited to have minis of some of their more popular products to test out. In comparison to the Urban Decay it's extremely similar in texture and smell and for me it has the same great lasting power and helps my eyeshadow stay all day and avoid creasing.

On the 'To Try' list are the L'Oreal Lumi Magique which is more for radiating and creating that glowy, dewy skin so I'm reserving that for Winter to brighten up my skin. Also for eyes, my next purchase I think will be the Nars Smudge Proof Eyeshadow base which has been recommended online as well as to me by advisors at beauty counters.

Not so impressed- despite my mentioning them at them beginning of this post, the Smashbox Photo Finish Primers. I got a tester of the original oil-free version from Mecca Maxima and very glad I didn't purchase it because I felt it did more bad than good. My makeup definitely didn't last all day and from memory just broke up especially in my t-zone and around my nose. Not a fan and I don't think I even finished my little tester pot.

Instagram- @beautylocale

Brush Free Makeup

There comes in a point in my week, generally a Sunday when I do my weekly deep clean of my brushes then realise, oh wait I need to go somewhere and therefore need to do my makeup.. or even if I go to do my makeup in the morning, depending on how late I cleaned them, they're not always dry enough for me to be able to use. So came the dilemma but also the solution! After remembering Anna's Post from last year which had obviously been stored in my subconscious because I knew I'd be in this situation months down the track, I felt fairly confident that I could go caveman and have a good go at getting as close to the final effect I would've had with brushes.


So it began. By the way, I'm also considering the Beauty Blender a brush in this instance because it would generally be drying with all my other brushes.

Foundation- pretty obvious, no need for explanation here. My Chanel Mat Lumiere actually recommends using your fingers so that's a bonus that it does blend well. Recently I've also used the new L'Oreal Nude Magique and blended it in with my fingers and I really like the result as it is meant to be a liquid to powder formula so works well in this instance. Something heavier like Estee Lauder Double Wear I think I would avoid in this situation just because of the amount of blending it needs to look fairly natural and seamless. So, base- tick. Again, concealer is pretty self explanatory, I generally apply it with my fingers anyway to warm up the product and blend it in well- tick.

Generally I would go on to my brows next and this is where I may cheat only slightly because both my brow pencils by Maybelline and Hourglass have little spooly brushes on the end so they are still at my disposal. Not entirely sure how i could manage to do tidy brows completely brush free.. they would be quite harsh indeed. Next up, eyes. The obvious choice for this would be a cream product and no surprise I tend to use a Maybelline Colour Tattoo or Benefit's Creaseless Cream Shadow as they're both super easy to apply and blend in with your finger and I have a few different shades. To further intensify the lids, I like to apply either a shadow or pressed pigment because they can be patted on using your ring finger and will generally be quite neat. I like the L'Oreal Infallible Eyeshadows because they have a beautiful shade range and are so buttery to apply. Not as easy to do is a transition shade through the crease so I usually avoid this by just taking my base shadow a bit higher than usual. Eyeliner in the waterline or smudged out with my finger again on the upper lash line then mascara = eyes, tick!

Next is back to the base and bringing some colour back to my cheeks and face. As Anna explains in the post you can use the side part of your hand, below your thumb that connects to your wrist (I hope my overly scientific explanations are clear) to in fact contour because it's the perfect shape to fit in the hollows of your cheeks. So using either a powder bronzer or the Bourjois Bronzing primer I'll do that and then apply a cream blush using patting motions to the apples of my cheeks and drag it upwards towards the hairline for a more flattering look.

If it's a night time look, I'll apply some liquid highlighter like Benefit Sun Beam or a powder to the highpoints of my cheeks and under the brow bone. Finish with a spritz of setting spray because it's a bit difficult to powder and set your face without a brush, and that's it! It's actually quite easy, just make sure you have a makeup wipe handy because it can get a bit messy and you may run out of fingers if you don't.

Let me know if you have any brush-free tricks!

 Instagram- @beautylocale

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.

Haircare Routine from Wet to Dry

I'm not one to put a lot of time and effort into my hair and it's only recently that I've started doing more regular treatments to try and restore my dry ends. In saying that though, there are a few products that I do run through my hair after I've washed it (so 2-3 times a week) but other than that I just spritz some heat protectant in everyday before straightening to taming the front frizzies.

I have quite thick, wavy hair and it is also a bit frizzy but much less than it used to be when I was younger. I've used MorrocanOil religiously for probably over 2 years now and it's been the only product I've really used together with heat protectant because I've always been quite weary about further damaging my hair. These days I've started incorporating more into my haircare routine from wet to dry so here's a bit of a rundown of what I'm currently using. 

From towel dried to blow dry I always start with either a pea size of MorrocanOil or more recently L'Oreal Ever Sleek serum or even both. Both of these are great for taming frizz and overall smoothing but I feel the MorrocanOil does a bit more for treating and repairing my hair whereas L'Oreal is more for just sleeking everything down. I then move onto drying my hair which I am far from professional at and generally I just dry my hair using a Tangle Teezer or my hands to pull the hair taught so it dries more straight. Before starting this I spritz Tresemme Keratin Smooth Heat Protectant all over my hair, comb through with my fingers and give it a few minutes to sink in. Then on a low-medium heat I dry my hair as best as I can and just do about 3/4  (because there is a lot of it) and just let the rest air dry. I then clip my hair into a loose bun to kind of smooth it down and make it less fluffy, I'll keep getting ready for a few minutes then go back to straighten the front bits around the edge of my face. I don't like to straighten immediately after drying because I feel like that's a lot of intense heat on my hair in one go so I do like to leave my hair to cool down for a little bit. Once I've completely finished and straightened what I want to fix up I like to use a pea size drop of Bumble & Bumble's Invisible Oil all over, starting from the ends to further tame frizz and smooth everything down. If my ends are feeling particularly dry I'll add a tiny amount of John Freida's Frizz Ease Finishing Creme just to the ends avoiding the roots completely because this is quite a heavy product. 

So there we have a brief rundown of my wet to dry haircare routine and the products I reach for once I've washed my hair. Products I use for styling and curling is separate to the products I've mentioned, these are just for haircare and making everything look a bit more sleek and smooth! 

Sunday Saviours

Sunday evenings have become my pamper/rejuvenating night so I can start my week feeling fresh and pampered! Here are a few bits and pieces that I generally like to do and products I love using.

If it's a wash hair day, I'll treat my locks to a hair mask if I haven't already that week and at the moment I'm loving the L'Oreal EverCreme Deep Nourishing Masque which you just pop on for a few minutes after shampooing while you're in the shower. As that's soaking in and working it's magic I like to exfoliate and use either the Soap & Glory Flake Away or Breakfast Scrub exfoliants or if I have a few more minutes, the Frank Coffee Body Scrub. All smell amazing and leave my skin feeling silky smooth but the Frank one is meant to reduce scarring and even out skin texture and minimise all the bits that us ladies hate.

Next I like to moisturise and for an all over option I love the Aesop Body Balms or a more recent find is the L'Occitane Firming and Smoothing Milk Concentrate which is part of their 'Amande' range and boy does this smell good. Well, obviously all of these do otherwise why would I have bought them?! Sunday evenings also call for a good old face mask and at the moment I have a few on rotation depending on my skin's need so I'll use either the Origins 10 Minute Recovery Mask or their Clear Improvement Charcoal Mask which I've sadly just finished and need to repurchase. I'm also loving Lush's Mask of Magnaminty which is amazing for clarifying and exfoliating. A nice hydrating facial moisturiser and eye cream to follow up and I'm done.

Once I'm feeling fresh as a daisy I like to do my nails for the week or at least the beginning of the week. A good base coat like Essie's Ridge Filler or Sally Hansen Bottom Coat then a few coats of whatever colour I'm feeling that particular evening followed by a top coat to protect it and give it extra shine, either Seche Vite or Sally Hansen Insta Dry. When they're definitely dry (key word- definitely. Too many times have I been impatient and not waited long enough and resulted in smudging.. so annoying and definitely #firstworldproblems) I'll use a nice hand moisturiser, generally one of the mini L'Occitane offerings that I have laying around.

And I'm done! Feel ultra pampered, fresh and ready for the week ahead! What do you like to do on your pamper evenings?

Instagram- @beautylocale

A Few March Favourites

Can't believe we're in April already, this year seems to be speeding by which is both worrying and exciting because the end of the year has more exciting things for me to look forward to! Thought I'd share with you a few of my favourites that I've been enjoying not only throughout March but this year to date as I haven't done a 'favourites' post as such yet. I do often post my thoughts and mini reviews on my instagram (@beautylocale) if you prefer more tidbits and brief reviews/thoughts on products I've been using.

To prevent this post from being thousands of words long, I'll just give a short-ish review and try to make my thoughts succinct. Yeah good luck Millie, aka Queen of Rambling..

Alrighty first up I'll talk about the newest addition to L'Oreal's base range- Nude Magique which is a recent launch for us Aussies but I'm pretty sure was launched maybe even last year for the Northern Hemisphere. This is definitely receiving mixed reviews from what I've seen but I'm really enjoying it so far. I find it hard to get a foundation that I love, doesn't break me out/irritate my skin, is a good match and lastly doesn't make my skin extra oily. This is described as a liquid to powder formula which I've definitely found. It is a very watery consistency but when applied does turn to a more powdery finish but not cakey-powdery. I have shade #120 Pure Ivory which is the lightest shade in the range and a pretty good match for me. (For reference I'm a MAC NC 15-20). This has pretty good lasting power, doesn't break up too badly throughout the day and *touch wood* hasn't reacted with my skin.

The Hourglass Ambient Lighting Palette. *Insert heart-eyed emoji* Honestly I wish I could make that face in real life because everything would be communicated so much more easily. I was excited that they brought out a trio palette so I could get a taster for these powders as individually I think they run for around $62 and the palette came in at just over $100 from memory.. Absolutely love Dim Light for giving my skin that diffused look and evens out texture beautifully. Incandescent Light is a beautiful highlight shade for more evening type looks on the high points of the face without shining like a disco ball. Again from Hourglass is their most recent release- the Ambient Lighting Blush which I have in Dim Infusion, a beautiful coral with lighter tones marbled through it. No exaggeration I think I've worn this 99% of the days since I purchased it and I was not disappointed. Again there's a lot of mixed reviews on these I think mostly because of the huge hype that was created and so therefore I guess people have high hopes but I for one, am in love and want more. Oh dear.

Mario Basdescu Drying Lotion; I have heard so much about this product on YouTube and the like but since I found my holy grail Origins Spot Remover, I didn't think I needed it. I was wrong. I find this is really good for spots that I can feel lurking under the surface waiting to pounce whereas the Origins one I like more for spots that have already surfaced that need drying out. I like to apply the Drying Lotion to any spots or whiteheads that need aren't necessarily visible but I can feel and know will eventually come out. Anyway gross talk over, the stuff is good and very effective.

My Inglot Freedom Palette that I put together at the Bondi Junction store in Sydney at the end of last year. I wanted something that if necessary, I could throw in my bag and would have everything I need to do my makeup on the go. More and more I was finding myself having to do my makeup on the train, well at least my mascara if i had to run out the door. Now I have learnt to better manage my time but I still reach for this palette almost every day for an easy 'everyday' eye for work. The colours are all neutral, so right up my alley and I find they complement my eyes nicely. The quality is definitely comparable to that of MAC and Urban Decay and these run for around $10 each plus the palette but still well under the price point of MAC in Australia.

This past month I've really been loving lipgloss for everyday, especially at work I do a lot of talking so I find lipglosses to be a bit more hydrating and comfortable for a long day. No surprise, like every other beauty junkie I've been in love with the NYX Butter Glosses. I have a few shades, love them all and everything about them. In the past I've really not been into lipgloss much (Check out my lipstick tag, I wrote more on this) mostly because of the tacky feel and that overly glossy look it's just not for me but these have absolutely changed my mind. They feel really nice on the lips, very smooth not gritty and not tacky my lips definitely don't get stuck together when I'm wearing these. Continuing on the lipgloss chat, during Priceline's 40% off sale I picked up one of the new Maybelline ColourSensational High Shine gloss in 110- Mirrored Mauve. At first I wasn't sure about the smell but it's grown on me and now I'm just trying to figure out what it actually reminds me of.. definitely something sweet I'm thinking a soft drink or lolly but every time I wear it I'm still trying to pinpoint what it is!

I've also been really conscious of my hair looking a bit dry in recent months so I bought the L'Oreal EverCreme Deep Nourishing Masque to go with my shampoo and conditioner because I knew I loved those already and this is no different. I use this at least once a week depending on how many times I wash my hair and just leave it on for a few minutes after shampooing, rinse it out and that's it. It doesn't take 10-15 minutes like a lot of others do which is one of the reasons I love it so much. I can honestly tell a big difference in my hair, it's less frizzy and feels a lot softer.

Last of all is a perfume I've been loving which is YSL's Manifesto. I bought this for my mum last year when I was in Europe because she'd asked me to but there was no tester when I bought it so I just went on her word. Obviously I didn't open it before I gave it to her so had no idea what it smelt like but then everyday she wore it I was like I need that it smells sooo good! So, I put it on my Christmas wishlist and I was lucky enough to be given it. I just got a 30mL size becauseI had wanted to keep it in my handbag but the bottle is quite heavy and I didn't want to forget about it. I'm almost halfway through already, which considering how many perfumes I have on rotation at the moment is pretty impressive and a sure sign that I love it. It's top notes are bergamot and green notes with base notes of sambac jasmine, sensual woods and vanilla. That is probably quite useless sorry.. I just took it from the YSL website. If you're in a department store I advise you to go and give it a sniff!

A few little extras I'll throw in are some albums I've had on repeat on my ipod, in my car and on my laptop so I think I like them a little bit.. Beyonce's self titled album is amazing, I'm definitely not the first one to say it so I won't ramble on about it. Also, Pharrell's new album GIRL which I bought the other week off iTunes and I really like the whole album. It's quite different from the single 'Happy' which is the only song that's been released. There's cameos from Justin Timberlake and Alicia Keys and I've just really been enjoying it.

There are so many more but I won't keep rambling for now, I'll just reserve my thoughts for later down the track..

Regular posts on Instagram- @beautylocale

The Trend | Lip Lacquers

It seems like a new company every month is launching their version of the lip lacquer that is very on trend at the moment. If I'm not mistaken, I think it started with YSL's Rouge Pur Couture Glossy Stains and it's baby sister L'Oreal's entry into the drugstore/chemist market made the whole trend much more readily available to a wider audience. Then with Rimmel's Apocalips, it's like glossy stain mania all around!

Seeing as I have a few from different brands, I thought I would do not so much a review but an overview of what I have in my collection. My first entry into the glossy stain market was a purchase of the YSL because at the time there was such a big amount of hype in the blogoshphere and YouTube arena that I thought, hey they look interesting.. There is very little difference between these and the later released version by L'Oreal except for maybe lasting time but seeing as they're under the same company umbrella, some similarities are to be expected. With these, they look best layered so the first coat appears fairly sheer and creates the stain and one or two more coats creates a beautiful opaque glossy stain that lasts for hours as well as pretty well through eating, drinking and talking.

Rimmel's Apocalips however, are more a one swipe, opaque jobby and aren't as staining as they YSL or L'Oreal. Apocalips have received a ridiculous amount of hype so I'm sure you're aware of their existence but it is definitely well deserved. These things are very good especially for a 'drugstore' product. Each time Priceline or ASOS is having a sale these are one of the first things I gravitate towards and add to my existing shades. They're just too easy to throw in your bag and pop on during the day or throughout the evening for a beautiful, glossy lip in 2 seconds. The applicators on all of these are similar doe foot applicators which make it easy to create a nice curve on the upper lip and get into the corners of the mouth. In fact, the L'Oreal and YSL are exactly the same.

Last of all is Lush's addition with their 'Fresh Handmade Colour' that can be used all over the face so as a blusher, eyeshadow or lip colour. The two shades I have, I've only ever used as lip colours and I bought them with that intention. The launch of these products came with that fun wheel that you and a Lush assistant spin with your eyes closed and you pick colours and those colours have meanings which are meant to be applicable to you and your personality (See, this is where companies get me with gimmicky launches and interactive things like this) So naturally I bought two of the shades which I found completely applicable to me and happened to love the colours as well. These too come with a doe foot applicator and, like Rimmel are opaque within one swipe and are foolproof to apply. They last for hours and because it's Lush are fairly natural and 100% cruelty free so extra thumbs up.

YSL Rouge Pur Couture no. 16, 21

L'Oreal Lip Shine Caresse (L-R)  no. 300, 402, 101

Rimmel Apocalips (L-R) - Big Bang,  Stellar,  Nova,  Luna, Nude Eclipse

Lush Handmade Colour- Decisive, Passionate

From these swatches you can see that in terms of one swipe payoff, Rimmel probably comes out trumps but in terms of lasting power and less transfer then the other three brands- L'Oreal, YSL and Lush would get my vote in that respect.

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