What I wore: Winter Daisies

I wore this last week when I had a job interview in a clothing store (didn't work out by the way, boo!). I bought this dress back when it was warm, just after I got home from England. I only got a few wears out of it in the warmer weather, it shrunk a little in the wash so it was a little too short for me to wear without tights. But now it's winter, I can chuck a pair of tights on underneath and a cardigan on and it's perfect. Because this dress is very neutral, I can really go out there with colours for everything else, and I love coloured cardigans and tights. Kmart have a bunch of pink and purple tights at the moment for only $3. I may have gone a little crazy and bought at least one pair of each colour. So far no holes, so I'm pretty happy! You can also see my tattoos through them, which I love. As for the cardigan, both Cotton On and SES had a bunch of coloured cardigans last Autum/Winter, but I haven't seen them this year. Modcloth have a bunch of rad coloured cardigans, but are a little more expensive.

What I wore: Autumn Leaves

It's finally autumn! The leaves are starting to change to yellow, red and purple, the temperature is staying around 20 degrees during the day and I can finally wear tights comfortably! It seemed like Autumn never wanted to come.

Dress: Red White and Cute Dress from Modcloth, Tights: Factorie (last year), Boots: Kmart (last year)

Bracelets: Cotton On Earrings: Cotton On, Necklace: Lovisa

What I wore: Confetti dress

excuse the duck face

I bought this dress towards the end of last year off Modcloth and I really love it. It was reduced from like $90, and I was contemplating buying it at full price, but then it went on sale for half price! I had to get it then, but left it too late and they had sold out of my size. Just when I was about to order it a size down, my size came back on sale! Fate! It is a little frumpy, the bust is huuuge! I could probably get it tailored but I don't really mind. Possibly the best thing about it, after the awesome print that makes me think of confetti, is that it has pockets! It's still been reasonably warm here. We had a nice week where it was really cool, but now it's hot again. I really really cant wait for the weather to cool down more so I can start wearing tights and cardigans again (I bought some lovely scarfs and a granny jumper that reminds me of Grifindor from work recently and I can't wait to be able to wear them!).

Products:

Nude by Nature Undercover Airbrush Mineral Primer

Bourjois Healthy Mix Foundation in 51

Rimmel Stay Matte powder in Peach Glow

Essence Renesmee Red Blush

MUA Shimmer Kisses Bronzer

MUA Pro-Brow eyebrow kit

L'Oreal Color Infallible Tender Caramel

MUA Undressed palette shade 1 and 4

MUA single matte shadow shade 19

Revlon Photoready 3D volume Mascara

Ulta3 Lipliner in Honey Bun

MAC Angel

This is basically what I've been doing with my face lately! Neutral eyes and lip, no liner, bronzer. I dug Tender Caramel out recently because for some reason I didn't get much use from it after i bought it and I've been loving it lately! Same goes for the Revlon 3D volume mascara, for some reason it sat in my draw unloved... but it gives amazing length (not so sure about volume though). The formula is a little wet and I've managed to poke my eye with it more than once, so it took a little to warm up to it. I've also dug out my Essence Renesmee Red blush from the Breaking Dawn Pt. 2 collection, which I hid because it's scary lookin'. Candice from YouReview inspired me to give it another go after reading this post and I've been applying it with a very light hand and we've been getting along ever since. The Rimmel Stay Matte is a new purchase and so far, so good!

Today I'm going to my university graduation! 3 years of hard work (ok, just work) and I get a degree! Yipee!

What have you been wearing a lot lately?

Win the MUA shimmer kisses bronzer and undressed palette in my giveaway!

What I wore: beach stripes

It's still super hot here, so I'm still wearing dresses and strappy sandals.

Face

Essence My Base illuminating make up base

Bourjois healthy mix foundation in 51

Maybelline Dream Lumi Touch highlighting Concealer

Covergirl line exact liquid liner

L'Oreal colour infallible eyeshadow in Innocent turquoise and tender caramel

Lancome Cils Booster XL super enhancing mascara base

Covergirl LashBlast Volume mascara

Australis Lick the Icing lipstick

I got this dress on sale on Urban Outfitters last year after seeing it on Kaelah's blog. I didn't wear it much because it was heading into winter here, and the fabric is really strange and definitely more suited for summer. At the start of summer I still didn't wear it much because it has a really weird fitting bust which is very large. If you can get past that, the stripes on this dress scream summer at the beach, and I love wearing it with these bright yellow sandals that I got from Modcloth which are a bit too big for me but are super comfy, even with my wide feet. On a not too cold day this dress is good in winter when paired with bright stockings and a cardigan. I also love these earrings that I got from my boyfriends sister for Christmas. I've been loving wearing mismatched earrings lately and she got me a pack of 3 sets of mismatched earrings. I really love them!

The boyfriend and I have started really getting into organising our trip to the UK. We're booking flights next week! I'll have a post up on the weekend about our trip. I'll probably be posting a bit more about travel soon, as I'm getting super excited about it and it's all I want to talk about! It also means I've really got to start saving money, so no more hauls, and I'm only allowed to buy beauty products when I run out of something. I do have a decent stash I'll be able to post about however, and I think I'll be incorporating a lot more fashion and wish list posts to make up for lack of reviews, ect.

What I wore: Sweet Hearts

I've been thinking about doing some more outfit post, especially after finding a few really rad clothing items lately.

Face: Maybelline Dream Lumi Touch Highlighting concealer, Body Shop Extra Virgin Mineral foundation, touched up with Maybelline Dream Matte powder.

Benefit Hervana blush, touched up with Essence Cherry Blossom Girl blush

Covergirl LineExact Liquid eyeliner, Covergirl LastBlast Volume mascara

Revlon Kissable BalmStain in Romantic

Admittedly, this dress is from my work (Cotton On, $29.95 if anyone is interested). When I first saw it when we were unpacking stock I thought the print was a little tacky, and the shape was horrible, and it was too thin. Then I decided to try it on, just in case, and I was pretty much blown away (shhh, I know you've all had moments when you basically fall in love with an item of clothing!). Turns out on second thoughts, I think the print is super cute, the shape is super flattering on me, and the fabric isn't as thin as it first appeared. I'm also stoked that this dress could easily be layered to be worn in the cooler months.

I have a real interest in anatomy, so I think this necklace is super rad. 

George wanted to play while I was taking pictures.

Lately I've been hanging out with my friends a lot, going out to dinner and ice cream and coffee dates, and it's been super fun. I usually spend a lot of my down time at home doing not much, so it's been a nice change. I've been offered to stay on at work after my Christmas contract runs out, which is awesome! I really like working in a clothing shop (yep... I'm liking working in retail!!), and it's a great change from what I've been doing for the last 5 years working in coffee shops. Hopefully I'll manage to swing enough shifts so I can save enough money for when I head over to the UK at the end of May. I also got my marks back from my final class, so I will be graduating university in March!

L'Oreal color infallible eyeshadow review +FOTD

If you read my recent wish list, you'll see I've been lusting after one of the eyeshadows from the Miss Candy collection after seeing them on Makeup and Macaroons. After looking in Priceline with no luck, I decided to check out Target. I found their Miss Candy stand fully stocked, AND 25% off! Win! I love all the colours in the collection but decided to go with the 2 most wearable ones, Tender Caramel and Innocent Turquoise. I also managed to pick up an Australis Ready to Mingle set for $5 (Australis has been discontinued from Target and they had heaps of Australis on sale, but most things weren't cheap enough), Maybelline babylips in pink blast (because I've somehow lost the other million babylips I owned) and had an embarrassing moment in the counter where I had accidentally picked up the tester instead of a new eyeshadow (whoops!!). Anyway, onto the actual product.

These eyeshadows are so creamy and pigmented and just all round lovely. They last a long time on your lids without creasing or smudging (They didn't even budge when I had a bit of a cry when my car broke down).  They're both iridescent and Innocent Turquoise has hints of gold through the pan, but they don't show up when used. I've also found that Tender Caramel works great as a base for a neutral smokey eye look.

swatches without flash

swatches with flash

I used both eyeshadows when I went to work the other day, with Tender Caramel all over the lid, and Innocent Turquoise as a liner. I really like using this colour as a liner, and think it adds a nice subtle bit of colour.

What I used

Bourjois healthy mix foundation in 51

Benefit Girl Meets Pearl

Benefit Sugarbomb blush

L'Oreal color infallible eyeshadow in Tender Caramel

L'Oreal color infallible eyeshadow in Innocent Turquoise

Covergirl lashblastvolume mascara

The Body Shop lipstick in 48

Now, I'm in a bit of a pickle here. I really like these eyeshadows and would consider buying more (especially the other's from Miss Candy, if on sale), however I know L'Oreal are known to conduct animal testing. I try to buy cruelty free whenever I can (sometimes I can't resist temptation, which is why I could never be a vegetarian, or rich) but lately I've bought a few products from another brand who don't claim to be cruelty free (Revlon). I've done a lot of reading and it does seem that things surrounding animal testing are a lot better than they used to be (a lot of companies claim they only conduct animal testing when required by law, which I think seems a bit fishy if other companies can manage to be cruelty free). However I would still rather buy from brands that actually have the cruelty free logo on their products (which isn't all that hard, seeing as Australis, Face of Australia and Covergirl are all cruelty free).

FOTD: Body Shop makeover

Yesterday I went to get a makeover at the Body Shop! A friend of mine had one, spent a lot of money and got another one so she gave it to me. I chose yesterday because I went out to dinner for my boyfriend's birthday. I've only ever had one makeover before, which was pretty rushed and I felt a little uncomfortable because it was in the middle of the mall, but it was a good experience and I learnt a bit (although I don't think enough - I was too scared to ask questions!). The makeovers usually cost $40, but this is fully redeemable in products. I scored another makeover when I made some purchases after the session, which I gave to my boyfriends sister.

It was a good experience. It started with cleansing, toning and moisturising the face using their aloe range for sensitive skin. She then matched my foundation using Extra Virgin mineral powder - which is suited for dry skin. I wanted a natural look, but she suggested using a hint of purple in the eye to make it stand out. She gave me a few options but I opted for purple eyeliner with subtle brown shadow, which I thought looked really good. Then she put the foundation on, then mascara (I hate when other people to my mascara, it's so uncomfortable. Everyone always comments on how long my lash's are so it kinda makes up for it), and a little bit of light blush. I chose a light pink on my lips.  Although this was in the shop, it didn't feel uncomfortable, and the lady was very happy to answer any questions I had about products she used (and didn't make me feel like an idiot for not knowing what toner is supposed to do). It was on a weekday afternoon, so the shop wasn't busy. If I were going again I would make sure I chose a time that was quiet.

Excuse the iphone photos - my good camera was at the boyfriends place.

I ended up buying the powder (shade 105 - rose ivory) and lipstick (shade 48) she used, along with their hemp handcream as my hands have been really really dry lately. I'm very happy with the powder, it gives a light coverage that's good for summer and is also SPF 25, and feels really good on my skin. The lipstick is pretty... in the bullet. Unfortunately it doesn't show up well on my lips (and especially upsetting as it was $23!!). I guess it's a 'your lips but better' kinda lippy, but that's not what I was after. Hopefully I can get it to work, but if it doesn't I may have to give it away. I haven't used the hand creme enough to really know how well it works, but I've got high hopes. I really like the smell of it too.

Powder

lipstick

heavy swatch of the lipstick

lipstick in natural light.