Weekly Loves #07

Another week has gone by, and I am very glad it is over. It has been an extremely stressful week and I am only just feeling like I have gotten better. I have a bit of an odd list of favorites this week but I will share them with you regardless! 

Maybelline New York Instant Age Rewind Eraser Dark Circles Treatment Concealer

It is an extremely long named product but it is great, I have been getting up early and going to bed late so this has been a necessary staple in my beauty routine. This conceals my dark under eye circles and is meant to also help treat dark circles. The built in sponge is a worry to some people due to hygienic concerns but I am yet to find a problem as my skin is clean on application and I don't share the product with anyone else. This retails for $18.95 AU and it is easy to use up this product quickly so it isn't the cheapest option, however you can usually get this on sale and it really is worth it if you suffer from dark under eye circles.

Real Techniques Blush Brush

Please excuse the unwashed brush but I am cleaning my brushes soon and rather than a wet brush I believe a used one would look a bit better. I really love this brush, it picks up the perfect amount of blush even on those really pigmented blushes that would make anyone look like a part of the circus. This brush retails for $22.99 in Australia, but you can grab this off the iHerb website for $9.99 US and pay only $4 shipping (I recommend buying more so the postage is worth it, but $14 is still better than $23!). 

Sukin Certified Organic Rose Hip Oil

I have really been enjoying using this oil, I was a little worried at first that it may cause my skin to breakout but it has been clearing up my skin and slowly fading any scars I have. It goes on a little greasy but soon it is absorbed by your skin and I always wake up with hydrated skin. You can read my review on this product here. This particular rose hip oil retails for $19.95 for 25ml but there are a lot of options out their for rose hip oil. 

Dermaveen Eczema Cream

I have been suffering from my right hand being super dry and peeling (gross I know) and my partner likes to believe that it's from all the strong products I use on my face. I mentioned this to my mum and my dad suffers from a skin conditon, my mum just believed it was a form of dermatitis so we picked up this cream to fix it up. Before I started using this the dry skin kept spreading and spreading but now that I have been using this a few times a day it has stopped spreading and is not as visibly dry. So far this cream has been working great and I really hope it continues to improve. I picked this up for $10.99 AU for 100ml at my local chemist. 

Love Liz xx

Current Foundations

Hello Everyone

I have been placed on a spending ban, I say placed as I wanted to take a break from spending, but my friend is keeping me in check and making sure that I stick to it (Thankyou!!). I have decided to shop my stash for a while and only buy new things once I have finished something similar that I already own. This however is leaving me a little bit lacking in blog posts as hauls are my favourite. So I decided I should write about things I have had for quite a while and just have never featured in my blog.

Today I wanted to talk to you about the three foundations that I have been using lately. I have mentioned two of them previously, so I will not repeat myself and just update you as to how I feel about those now during summer time. 

This is the scar on my hand that I will use to swatch for comparison

Revlon Colorstay Makeup for Combination/Oily Skin

This is probably my third or possibly fourth bottle of Revlon Colorstay for combination/oily skin and I have finished the bottle completely! This is possibly a holy grail product for me and I am surprised that I have yet to repurchase this as I like to always have one in my stash for times like this when I have run out. I think I have not repurchased this as the current bottle I have is in shade 180 Sand Beige which is currently too light for me at winter, I remember having a darker shade last summer but it did not match me very well so I was dissatisfied with it. 

I love this foundation, I have oily/blemish prone skin and this provides long wearing full coverage. I do still need to set my foundation with powder and use some later on in the day, but this stays on my face and does not slide off which I have found with many other foundations. When I purchased this it had no pump so it could be quite wasteful to use when you have a full bottle, but they now are sold with a pump so yay for that! I will probably be repurchasing this after I finish the next foundation I will mention. 

I tend to buy this online as it retails for $34.95 AU for 30ml in store, I typically can find it for around $18-20 AU from US sellers on eBay as Revlon retails for a much lower price point in the US than here in Australia. 

Pros:
- Full coverage
- Long lasting
- Cheap when purchasing it off eBay

Cons:
- Has a strong smell to it
- Expensive to purchase in store

Swatch of Revlon Colorstay Makeup

Bourjois Paris Healthy Mix Foundation

I mentioned this in my previous post here, but now I have actually had time to test this. I purchased this in shade 54 Beige as the lighter beige shade 53 was sold out. This does match my current tanned skincare provided that I make sure I blend it down my neck, nothing worse than two different skin tones from your face to your neck. I tried to find this on the Bourjois Paris website however it is not featured there anymore, only the healthy mix serum is there. I purchased the healthy mix foundation over the healthy mix foundation serum as I had read that the healthy mix foundation provided more coverage than the serum version. This is still lighter coverage than my Revlon foundation, but I have found that if I wait a few minutes I can layer up this foundation where I want it.

I think the main thing I love about this foundation is that it comes with a pump, so I never have to worry about wasted product so I believe that I will get more use out of this product. It also is much nicer smell than my usual foundations, a bit like fruit I believe but the smell does not linger on my face nor did it cause any sensitivity. It does last quite a while on my skin with powder, not the 16 hours it claims but more like 6-8 depending on what I am doing and how hot the weather is. I think I will need to use this a few more times as to whether I would repurchase this over my Revlon Colorstay. So far I have to stay that Colorstay is higher up on the list. The healthy mix foundation does retail for cheaper at $32 AU for 30ml, I purchased it for $24 on sale however. 

Pros:
- Smells nice
- Coverage can be built up
- Comes with a pump
- Often on sale

Cons:
- Not quite the right shade for me
- Not as long lasting as it claims

Swatch of Bourjois Paris Healthy Mix Foundation

Estée Lauder Double Wear Stay-In-Place Makeup

I have done a review of this product here, and I am still very much in love with this foundation. I do not use it as an everyday makeup but more for special occasions. I must say that it is not great for events in which photos will be taken as it does cast a white look on your face in flash photography thanks to the spf 10 that is included in this foundation. It has a high price point at $50 AU for 30ml but I think that it is highly worth it, a little goes a long way.

Pros:
- Full coverage
- Lasts all day
- Oil free, fragrance free and non-acenegenic
- Small pea size amount will blend and cover your entire face
- Beautiful packaging

Cons:
- Does have a strong medicinal smell
- No pump
- Expensive

Swatch of Estee Lauder Stay-In-Place Makeup 

I originally used my Real Techniques buffing brush from the core collection to apply my foundation but I recently purchased the expert face brush from their range and I have to admit I have been loving it just that bit more than the buffing brush! 

What is your favourite foundation?

Love Liz xx

Another Haul

Hey Everyone

I have another haul to share with you today, this was the result of some online shopping, one package was from a month ago, whilst the other only a week. I will list the products in groups of which website I purchased them from, one was a pleasant experience but the other not so much, and I will have to think carefully about next time I want to purchase off their website. Unfortunately this is not full reviews of the products as I only just received them today, but I can follow up with reviews later if you guys are interested. 

iHerb.com

I have purchased twice now from iHerb and both times have been for the Real Techniques by Samantha Chapman brushes, which as any beauty guru could tell you are amazing for their price. As I have mentioned in a previous post, I started out with the core collection and then received the blush brush, expert face brush and the your eyes/enhanced starter set. I have no idea what I was thinking as I desperately needed a new powder brush as my current brush is cheap and has been shedding all over my face. So I looked up the prices in Priceline and eBay and it was cheaper to purchase them off iHerb and pay for express shipping than it was to buy in store.

Your Base/Flawless Powder Brush

This is a rather large but fluffy powder brush that looks like it could do my whole face in just a few small sweeps! It does feel lovely and soft and not scratchy at all on my face. If like the other brushes in the range, I know this will hold up well with continued use and washing. My other brushes have yet to shed unlike some of the other brushes I own. I purchased this for $9.99 US or $11.18 AU, in Priceline it retails for $24.99 but is currently 20% off.

Your Finished/Perfected Stippling Brush

I am not 100% sure what to use this brush for, the lovely Samantha Chapman does provide youtube tutorials of how to use her brushes though, I will watch the one for this brush very soon. The packaging claims  that the stippling brush is her

Trade secret for creating airbrushed, high definition results with all types of makeup.

This brush costs only $9.99 US or  $11.18 AU, it retails for $22.99 AU in Priceline but is currently on sale with 20% off.

 E.L.F Tone Correcting Concealer

I placed this in my online basket on a whim as my current under eye concealer is starting to show signs of running out! I could not resist purchasing this for $2.99 US or $3.35 AU, I will just use this after my current concealer has run out and while I am waiting to research what new concealer to try. I am considering buying the Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Eraser Dark Circles Concealer and Treatment, which I have heard quite good reviews about.

BeautyBay

This is the second purchase I have made on BeautyBay and unfortunately I was left fairly disappointed with the service provided. The website quotes 7-10 days for their international saver delivery which is provided at no cost for any orders off their site, my last delivery took around 25 days to arrive, and although longer than last time I was still happy with free shipping. This time around I had still not received my items for close to a month, so I emailed their customer service and asked what the process was, and told them I was happy to wait a bit longer as I knew that it had been Christmas time so a busy time of year for the postal services. I received a quick reply which was an automated response, it mainly told me I should have paid for tracking, there was not much they could do and that it should arrive. Obviously it did arrive so I can not complain about that, I realise that once it leaves the warehouse or what have you it is in the hands of the postal company. Never have I received such poor customer service however, even when buying cheap items off eBay the sellers are more considerate and helpful than the customer service I talked to. I googled the problem and it seems like a lot of people have had very similar issues with BeautyBay. I am just left disappointed with the lack of help I received, but I understand their side to the story. Ultimately I will try to shop off other websites with cheaper tracking parcel options in future.

Pixi Eye Glow Cube

This was part of the many presents I received from my partner for Christmas, of course it never arrived on time, hence why it wasn't featured in the What I got For Christmas 2013 post.  Unfortunately I am unwilling to part with the money to purchase an Urban Decay Naked Palette, instead I chose this palette which contains 2 eye base powders in a cute little pull out drawer in the bottom along with 2 duo sponge applicators, and 16 eye shadows in the top compartment. This palette is said to be

Daylight-hued eye-glow-in-a-cube of silky coordinated lid-finishers wraps your lids in embellished lustrous metallics. Fresh, natural & youthful, this palette enhances with creamy gold, nude, caramel & ancient bronze colours.

 This sounds like the perfect palette for me and I am excited to create a few new eye looks with it. I purchased this for $30.70 AU, but it is currently on sale for $28.90 AU off the BeautyBay website. 

Head Jog Teasing Brush 103

I have misplaced most of my combs somewhere and was interested in purchasing a teasing comb for quite a while now. This is a fairly cheap brush for $5.10 AU but it feels like it is nice quality and looks like it will last a while. I am excited to try this out and see how it goes teasing my thick hair!

BeautyBay Premier Service

I paid an extra $2.71 AU for the premier service added to my order. The premier service includes having your order dispatched within 24 hours of ordering and you receive at least one deluxe sample with your order. With my order I received a BeautyBay.com blending sponge (which is not available for purchase to Australia, yet they can ship it to me as a sample?) which after some digging, I discovered retails for $9.00 AU. I also received a sample of Jane Iredale's Glow Time Mineral BB Cream, I have not tried anything by Jane Iredale as I believe it is not the easiest to get a hold of in Australia. I am not a huge fan of BB creams but I am always willing to try out new ones in order to find one I am a fan of. Overall I think it was well worth the extra $2.71 for this 'premium service', I love surprises and am always happy to try out new beauty or skincare products.

Have you had any bad experiences with online shopping? Or bought any new items recently?

Love Liz xx