Revlon Colourburst Matte Balms in Unapologetic and Showy

These have been around for a while now, and Ive seen that most people have picked them up. They just came out in the UK before I left England and was tempted there, but didn't end up picking any up until I saw a $10 off Revlon products in Myer a few weeks ago. I was a huge fan of the Just Bitten Kissable balm stains, and couldn't pass up a matte version!

First I'll just comment on the packaging. I found the writing on the side rubbed off the old kissable balm stains super quickly, and these have been kicking around in my handbag for a good fortnight without anything coming off. I think that alone is impressive. They're wind up, which I love - nothing worse than a thick lip crayon that you have to sharpen!

They have the same minty scent as the kissable lips balms, which I love.

Unapologetic is a lovely coral colour, my favourite lip colour! Showy is a nice bright pink.

As for the formula, they're so lovely. You can see in the swatches below that they can cling to dry patches, which is pretty common in matte formulas anyway. They're so easy to apply too. They aren't entirely matte, like Mac Ruby Woo is, but they're good enough for me.
I found Unapologetic lasts a fair bit longer than Showy, and after applying a couple of times is hard to get off when you're taking your makeup off at the end of the night because it's stained your lips. Showy needs a bit more touching up, and rubs off when eating.

Unapologetic and Showy  

Unapologetic (top) and Showy (bottom) - Sunlight

Natural light

With flash.

Showy (bottom) compared to Kissable balm stain in lovesick (top). Their packaging is very similar in colour, but you can see they're quite different, something I was worried about when I bought Showy.

If I can find a deal as good as that again I'll definitely be picking up more. What are your favourite shades of the matte balms?

Food Friday: New favourite toy and changing eating habits.

Fitness and healthy eating isn't something I've shared before on the blog. It's not something I've really been sharing in any part of my life. Especially healthy eating. While in England I had the worst diet. Chips and crips, pizza and beer made up the majority of my diet, and I think my health suffered for it. One of the ladies at work had bought one of those 'mix and go' blenders, where you put the fruit and veg in the cup and blend it, so you can drink out of it too. I thought it was a fantastic idea, and something I should think about getting when I get home. I'll let you in on a secret here: I've never eaten fruit. I just could never stand it. I wouldn't even touch berry yoghurts or muffins. This had to change if I wanted to get healthy.

When I got home I pulled out mum and dad's old juicer, and started making juices in the mornings. I wasn't a fan of all the wastage, and you had to use a lot of vegetables to make a small amount of juice. I started looking for a good 'mix and go' blender, but wasn't happy with what I could find, and then along came the Bellini Gourmet Wizard, which comes with 7 cups, 2 blades and a juicer attachment. Perfect!

So since then I've been trying out loads of different combinations of smoothies. I bought bags of frozen berries, cut up and froze a pineapple, and kept my fridge stocked with lots of veggies. I've been getting a lot of inspiration from Sandra from The Black Pearl Blog, including how to make nut milks (almond milk with dates and vanilla... amazing!!). I've been drinking them for breakfast, and although I usually need something else with my breakfast to fill me up, I've been adding a lot more fruit and veg to my diet that I would usually have. I'd love to share a few of my recipes with you in the future, so stay tuned.

Here's one of my favourite smoothies at the moment. Made with baby spinach, apple, blueberries and cucumber with cranberry juice. This was the first smoothie I made with avocado and I was super pleased. I usually add flaxseed when I'm making a smoothie in the morning to try and keep me fuller for longer - flaxseed has fibre and protein. For someone who usually has a sweet iced coffee and vegemite on toast for breakfast, this is pretty yummy. I guess it's all the sugar in the cranberry juice, which I hope to soon replace with coconut water, or even just water (coconut water is a little expensive).

 

The Gourmet Wizard, although small, is pretty good at blending everything up to a smooth drink. I only have problems when I'm using frozen mango I get a few chunks of mango because they're not cut up small enough. It's also not great with ice, so I'll have to play around with that a bit - maybe use smaller cubes, because I love a good cocktail slushy! I have had a few problems with the blender wearing away in a few places, the base of the blades, and the notches at the top of the cup (you can see them just underneath the blue ring of the cup below). So far it still functions well though. I usually only blend for around 10-20 seconds at a time as I'm worried about burning out the motor (which I've read is a common problem in blenders this size).

Ulta3 Speckle Polishes: Egg-cellent and Bunny Bloom

Ulta3 released these Speckle polishes before easter, but in true Ulta3 fashion they've been nearly impossible to find. I was lucky enough to spot a reasonably full stand when I visited a Terry White, and I wasn't even looking for them!

Speckle polishes are something I've been wanting to get into for a while now, since Illamasqua's first ones made their way onto everyones blogs. It seems Ulta3 are the first cheaper brand to copy them, which was fantastic, because I love their nail polishes! I picked up Egg-cellent and Bunny Bloom. 

Egg-cellent is a mint green, and Bunny Bloom is a strawberry milkshake pink (yep, that's what I'm using to describe it!) I wasn't really keen on picking up the other colours. They both have small black circles and larger black hexagonal matte glitters in them. To be honest, the formula isn't that great. I know they're a budget brand, but they're other nail polishes are fantastic, and this wasn't up to scratch. It was really goopy and thick to apply, and because it was so thick, it's hard to see anything beneath the top layer. The polishes would also benefit from more larger glitters. 
All this being said, I have seen these polishes look really nice on other people. My nails are awful. Really awful. And I think that effected how the polishes applied, because I needed 2 thick coats of Sally Hansen Nail Rehab. This, along with Burt's Bees Lemon Butter Cuticle Cream seem to be helping my nails strengthen. A top coat probably wouldn't hurt either.

 

What do you think of the Ulta3 speckle polishes? Have you managed to find them? Or do you have another favourite brand for speckle polishes?

Top 5 UK products

I've been home a while now, so I thought it was about time to let you guys in on a few amazing products I picked up while I was overseas. Some of these are easy to get here (even if they're a fair bit more expensive) but others will be more tricky.
Also, a sneak peak of one of the Ulta3 speckle polishes!

Rimmel Apocalips - Nova and Across the Universe

These were something I got just before we left, and I'm glad I did. They're lovely colours! I have 2 other shades - Luna and Galaxy, but I've kind of stopped using them. The new shades I've picked up are much more vibrant colours. Nova is a light pink, and Across the Universe is a dark red. You can get Nova here, but Across the Universe was only just release when I left England. It'll be perfect for 

MUA Colour Blast Eyeshadow tint - Bring it Back

This is SUCH a good eyeshadow base! It's so easy to apply, easy to blend, and once you put shadow over it, it's not going anywhere! By itself I'll admit that it's pretty awful, it fades away within a couple of hours, but it turns to gold when you pop some shadow on it. For £3, it's an excellent product!

Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer - Fair

While I was away I misplaced my Maybelline dream lumi touch concealer and it was tough to decide what concealer to pick up. I was a bit worried about this one, I only use concealer under my eyes and thought this one might be a bit thick, and I was tossing between a few different ones. I'm so glad I chose this, because it does work perfectly under your eyes, especially if you warm it up between your fingers first.

Sleek Blush by 3 - Lace

I'm mostly chuffed by the huge mirror in this palette. It's so great for when you're traveling! Apart from that, the shades are beautiful, and they're easy to blend. I'm bummed I didn't pick up more while I was there, especially Pink Lemonade! See my review of this blush here.

MUA One Direction Kiss You Lipsticks - Moments, Rock Me, I Want, I Wish

This range! So good! I kinda like One Direction, and snapped this up in a second. All the lipsticks are fantastic colour, and apply creamy and pigmented. Rock Me, the lavender, is definitely my favourite of the lot. Not bad for £3 ($5ish) See my review here.

Swatches!

1. Apocalips - Nova and Across the Universe  2. MUA - Bring it Back   3. Collection - Fair

4. Sleek Blush by 3

5. MUA Top - I wish, Rock Me  Bottom - I want, Moments.

It was hard to chose. Seriously hard. So I'd like to give special mentions to Urban Decay Naked 3 (I wasn't going to add it because obviously it was my favourite), Maybelline Baby Lips - Pink Punch (Such a nice colour, our babylips have nothing on these! And it smells good. It would have made the list if I hadn't lost it!) and Rimmel Scandaleyes Lycra Flex (I absolutely hated this when I first got it. I only realised it was fantastic after I got home, after I had sent it home before I left the UK!)

Urban Decay Ammo Palette

Another lovely prize from a giveaway from Sophie from Born to Buy was the Urban Decay Ammo Palette. At the time I won this, I didn't have any other UD shadows. Before I got home and got my mitts on this palette, I bought myself the Naked 3 Palette (read my review here). I loved it, so was excited about getting to play with some colourful UD shadows!

This palette is in cardboard, but is surprisingly sturdy. I wouldn't be worried about traveling with it at all. This is the first release, which comes with the dreaded double ended sponge applicator. It's not my first choice of applicator, but I do find it comes in handy with cream eyeshadows and to highlight the inner corner of my eye. It comes with 10 of Urban Decay's best selling eyeshadows, which are a lovely mix of colours and neutrals, so a large amount of looks can be created with this palette. They are arranged in pairs, so the top colours compliment the colours below them, but you really can use any combination of colours!

Smog - Deep caramel shimmer
Mildew - Light mossy green shimmer
Oil Slick - Glittery black
Last Call - A lovely deep pink shimmer
Chopper - Light carmel with glitter.
Maui Wowie - golden brown with glitter. (FYI, this is also the name of a strain of marijuana. I did not find what I expected when I googled this shade name.)
Shattered - Light blue with glitter
Polyester Bride - Off white shimmer
Grifter -  Light pinky lavender with glitter.
Sin - Champagne shimmer, the perfect highlight shade.

In direct Sunlight - in the same order as the palette.

Natural light.

With flash.

The formulas are lovely and pigmented, and so easy to blend. There is a lot of fall out with glitter, but I haven't found it to be a problem. Last Call is my favourite of the lot, but I find it to be the least pigmented of the lot. Maybe that's just me being picky, or maybe it's because I'm not using a primer. I'm on the search for the perfect pink, this is lovely, but not it. There is also enough neutrals in this palette to create every day looks, maybe not so much work appropriate because there is a lot of glitter and shimmer. I've had a lot of fun playing around with the the colour in this palette and I really can't wait to get my hands on some more UD shadows!

This palette is available off Beauty Bay, in the second release of the palette - Ammo 2. This release comes with a 'good karma' brush rather than the sponge applicator, and a primer potion sample. Also, the shades are apparently Urban Decya

What's your favourite Urban Decay palette? Or your favourite colourful palette?

OPI Euro Centrale minis!

The OPI Euro Centrale collection has been out for a while now, I know. I never really paid much attention to it before I went to Europe. But now I've been to Eastern Europe, the area which these polishes base their names from, I've opened my eyes and realised how pretty these colours actually are! They're like little souvenirs of my adventures! I was eyeing the larger bottles off towards the end of my travels, and although I knew there was a mini collection somewhere, I was going to wait and buy a few full sized bottles when I got to duty free in Sydney airport. But of course, they didn't have them. But then my lovely friend Patty bought these for me when we went for coffee recently because she's amazing.

The mini collection consists of 4 colours,

Can't find my Czechbook - Bluey teal. It also makes use of a pun that got extremely overused while in Prague.

Suzi's Hungary AGAIN! - Coraly Red. Another overused pun from my trip.

You're such a BudaPest - Grey toned purple. This joke also doesn't work if you're using the Hungarian pronunciation - 'Budapesht'.

OY - Another Polish Joke! - Yellow gold glitter with a clear base.

Can't find my Czechbook and You're such a BudaPest both apply opaque with about 3 coats, Suzi's Hungary AGAIN! only takes 2 coats, and the glitter takes about 4 coats, and that's with a colour as a base. The glitter in OY-Another Polish joke is really tiny, and quite sparse. When I applied it over 1 coat of You're such a BudaPest, I needed 4 coasts to get a decent coverage, and could have even gone another coat. That being said, because the glitter is so tiny, you could get away with just using one thin coat over other polishes to give them a nice gold shimmer. If you're looking for a full on gold glitter, I would suggest trying Ulta3 Precious (if you can get your hands on it).
There is a little bit of shimmer in You're such a Budapest, but you can only really notice it in certain lights, like in direct sunlight. Unfortunately it doesn't photograph, so I can't show you.
They wear like your average polish. I usually find I get chipping the day I apply polish, which I found with Can't find my Czechbook, but I've worn You're such a BudaPest for a day now and had no chips! This was over Essence Studio Nails XXL nail thickener, and only had Essence nail art express dry drops put on top.

Can't find my Czechbook, Suzi's Hungary AGAIN!, You're such a BudaPest, OY-Another Polish Joke.

Natural Light

Sunlight

I think the mini's are an excellent way of allowing you to own a lot of a collection, without having to spend all your money on full sized bottles. They can be quite annoying to apply, as you need to make sure the brush is really full of polish to avoid the polish going on unevenly.
This set also had the colours I wanted from the collection, except for Polka.com which is a really beautiful blue, teal and purple glitter.

OY-Another Polish joke and You're such a BudaPest

Can't find my Czechbook

Wish list: Now I'm home

I've had enough time now to sit down and browse through some blogs. And I think my wallet wishes I hadn't! There's so much I need to catch up on beauty wise, and it couldn't come at a worse time... when I don't have an income!

1. Too Faced Chocolate Bar palette            2. Benefit lollitint
3. L'orel Paris False Lash Butterfly Wings mascara             4. MAC lipstick in Saint Germain  
 5. Nars blush in Gilda

I must have been living under a rock for a month because I have only just noticed the Too Faced Chocolate Bar eyeshadow palette. This is seriously pretty! I really love how the 2 highlight shades are bigger, because I end up using up the highlight shades way quicker than any other. The shade range is beautiful. You can never have too many neutral palettes, right?

Lollitint came out a while back now, and I have had a chance to look at it in store. It's gorgeous! I think it's the perfect shade for a tint. Light pink with a hint of lavender. I have one benefit tint, which I don't really use, but I think I would get a good deal of use out of this.

I confess, I'm someone who doesn't throw their mascaras out every 6 months. I throw them out when they start drying up and not working as well as they used to. I'm at a point where most of my mascaras are getting to that stage, so I'm starting to look at a new mascara. This one really caught my eye. I have seen an add for it, and I really wish they wouldn't use fake lashes to advertise mascara! The plastic wand is the type I like, and I love the idea of the winged brush.

I wish I bought more MAC lipsticks overseas, but there weren't any that stuck out as something I needed. Until I got home and decided I need more light pinks. Saint Germain seems like the perfect pink to fill the (rather small) void in my lipstick collection, it just sucks that they're so much more expensive in Australia! I might need to look up some dupes!

Lastly, as you saw in my previous post, I've fallen in love with Nars blushes. A trip to Mecca is in order I think, but I've had a look online and Gilda really stuck out to me. I love orange toned blushes, peaches and corals are my favourite.