Glitterati and more glitter!

 When I won a giveaway and saw the Heart of Glass glitterati nail polish, I almost died of happiness! That very night, I went to my local 24/7 k-mart with the intention of buying a lot more of the polishes! Luckily for me (and unlucky for others) Heart of Glass was all sold out! I decided to narrow down to two glitters, and got the Disco Inferno and Boogie Wonderland. I may go back for Studio 54 and Dancing Queen too :P

One issue I had with the polishes was that it's extremely hard to scoop out the heart shaped glitters from Heart of Glass. And the long, thin glitters from Boogie Wonderland can curl up unless you place it on your nail in a certain orientation. Some of the thing glitters I managed to sit flat, but some I missed, and it was very annoying when the polish dried. I ended up ripping it off my nail and left me with long gashes in my polish :(

2 coats of Boogie Wonderland.

My friend just got back from a holiday in the Philippines and she brought me back all sort of goodies, and even some cute glitter nail polishes from Forever 21! I love Forever 21, but have only made one (HUGE) order once, due to shipping expenses :( She got me a Gold and Green glitter polish that had lots of big hexagonal glitters, as well as fine little glitters. The pink-ish polish applies almost clear, with lots of tiny, irridescent glitters that shimmer in the prettiest ways. The only issue I had with these polishes was that the glitter was very sparse, and it would require 10+ coats if you wanted a solid glitter nail look!

Quick (very dodgy) snap of my attempt at glitter gradient - I'm trying to use my new polishes at least once so this was killing two birds with one stone :P

My Priceline Haul

As many of you know, Priceline was having a 40% off sale for all cosmetics, and I couldn't help but knock off work early and head to my local Priceline to take advantage of this sale! Unfortunately, some of the things I wanted were already sold out (like the Loreal Nude Magique CC cream, Loreal Nude Magique BB cream, various shades of Revlon Lip butters, Essence lipsticks and FOA nail polishes), but I still managed to buy more than I need haha

Physicians Formula Mineral Wear Powder in Natural Biege 
I couldn't help but purchase two of these! These were actually incorrectly priced which is why I got them so cheap - I got them for $11.97 (RRP is $29.95)! So glad I had two in my basket! :P My mum loves these powders so I actually got them for her

Maybelline City Rescue Make-up Remover
This make-up remover is perfect for stubborn waterproof mascara! Couldn't help getting two (I have a major issue where I have 2-3 of my favourite products haha)

Innoxa Classic Lipstick in Deep Strawberry 
I love Innoxa lipsticks! This is a gorgeous plum colour that is perfect for Autumn!

Innoxa Nail Polish in Lemon
Finally got myself a pastel yellow polish! Can't wait to incorporate this in my future nail designs :P

Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum in 53
I've heard lots of raves about this in blogs and on youtube, and I'm glad to finally try it out! At the RRP of $32.00, I couldn't bear to try it in case I hated it, especially since knowing its much cheaper overseas. However, with 40% off, I figured WHY NOT, and I actually really like this product! It smells devine, and is the perfect match for my skin right now! I might have to do a full review on this because it really does live up to the hype!

Nude by Nature Papaw Ointment
Ahh, was so annoyed that this product was also in my LHI this month! I still haven't opened it yet since I've got a bit left in my Lucas Papaw Ointment!

I was so lucky that I have essence at my local priceline! Some of the essence products I bought were actually 50% off already, so I received a further 40% off that! If I had known, I would have stocked up much more :P

Essence Blush Brush
This brush is so cute, and would be perfect for travels, as you wouldn't worry about losing it since its so affordable!

Essence Silky Touch Blush
This is a gorgeous, light pink-peachy colour!

Essence Smoky Eye Kit (Brown)
This was actually 50% off and an extra 40% off! If I had known, I would have bought the black set too, but I didn't notice til I got home! :(

Essence Quick Dry Topcoat
I actually wanted the express nail polish drop thing (you know what I mean!) but that was sold out, so I picked this up instead.

Essence Nail Polish in 119 Boho Chic
This nail polish ended up costing 82 cents! I can't believe how cheap it was when I saw my receipt at home! Its such a lovely, peach colour with glitter and shimmery pieces, quite unique and something I don't have in my collection. Unfortunately, I have a LOAD of new nail polishes I still need to try so it might be a while before I try this out!

Did you take advantage of this amazing sale? I should have been saving but I was completely sucked in haha

April LHI

Today was a good day for make-up...made it to my local Priceline to score some bargains (I had to knock off work a tad early hehe), and came home to my LHI! :) Please excuse my crappy pics..I really need a camera or something for this :P

 Gosh Cosmetics Mono Eye Shadow RRP $16
Yay for make-up! I got a gorgeous deep, velvety purple that I cannot wait to incorporate into my smoky eye looks!

 Ocean Essences Crystal Microdermabrasion RRP $24.95
I'm glad I got this product, as there was either the Platinum Silver Face Mask ( RRP$9.99) or this item for my box. I've tried the face masks from Ocean Essences and I'm not too convinced by them. The Crystal Microdermabrasion is an exfoliant that you use 1-2 times weekly, and I am eager to see how effective this is!

Goldwell Dualsenses Ultra Volume Conditioner (RRP$20.95 for 300mL, received 75mL sample)
I love Goldwell products! All the samples we have received from Goldwell have been very generous, and work amazingly well! Hope this conditioner will bring life back to my hair :P

 Pink Tiger Duri Cosmetics Nail Tools: Buffer and Lint-free Gauze (No price listed)
To be honest, when I first saw this, I wondered why I had medical things in my box :P HAHA The gauze is meant to be used to remove old nail polish - but I don't really see any difference in using this or normal cotton pads :S I will still give these a try though!

Nude by Nature Papaw Ointment (RRP$5.95)
This was the very first thing I noticed about my box, because I bought this exact same item like 10 minutes before I opened my box at Priceline (see my haul here)! I hope that it's good since now I have 2 bottles of this!

There you go - my LHI for April! I'm actually quite happy with this month, and I will definitely be signing up for the annual box (I hope they stay at this quality though!) Only thing I was disappointed about was that I didn't get any of the items shown in the sneak peaks :( what a tease! :P

I won my first giveaway! :D

Last week, I found out that I won Sailor Klerr's giveaway! I was so excited to receive that news and even more excited when I got the parcel yesterday! :)

Cute glittery card I got ;)

Claire spoilt me with THREE MUA palettes! Pastels, Undressed and Glitterball!

I loveeeee MUA undressed, and I haven't got the other two palettes before so I'm really excited to try them out, especially the glitterball!

FOA gel eyeliner, Essence Cherry blossom girl blush and MUA shimmer kisses Bronzer

YAY the most exciting thing about this giveaway was the Essence Cherry Blossom Girl Blush! I was on a spending ban when they came out so I didn't get to buy it, though I was tempted very very many times :P I am so stoked that I get to try it now since it's out of stock everywhere I look now!

Australis lipstick in Lick the Icing, and MUA lipstick in Juicy :)

 SUPRISE ITEMS!!

FOA - Heart of Glass

When Claire said that she would include some surprise items in my prize, I did not expect it to be this many nail polishes! I was extremely happy to see the FOA pastels polish (since I never found it as I was too slow on the whole pastels bandwagon!) and THE NEW GLITTERATI POLISH!!! I've been reading a lot of reviews about glitter polishes lately, and been itching to get my hands on those gorgeous colours, especially some of the indie glitters! But this one from FOA is GORGEOUS! It's a milky pink colour with lots of different shaped pink-ish glitters, and also LOVE HEART GLITTERS! (Can you tell I'm excited with all my capital letters?!) I'm so so excited to try this out yayyy!

Thank you soo much Claire for the prize! Make sure you check out Sailor Klerr!! :D

NOTD

Couldn't sleep so I decided to do some nail art! I was inspired by the designs by cutepolish here.

I decided to do a pastel colour range since I bought 2 new polishes from Ulta today! I initially had planned to do 4 colours (the fourth being a pink) but my nails are so stumpy and short so could only fit 3 :(

Finished nail look (need to clean up edges but all that nail art has made me tired ;P)

Nail polishes used:

Essie - Bikini So Teeny

Ulta - Soft Hydrangea

Ulta - Lily White

Bloom - Flamingo Sande II (it was limited edition and is nearing the end of its life :( its all lumpy and hard to use ...so sad)

April Bellabox

Yay my bellabox arrived today - on time and in one piece - so thats already a plus :P It was actually quite heavy and chock full of things for me to try out. I think Bellabox is finally listening to all the negative feedback they have been getting, and I am quite happy with this box! Lots of brands/products I would not have thought to try out :)

 Indio Skin Tonic - Luxe
This toner is meant to hydrate the skin, and is made up of natural and botanical ingredients! Its a cute handbag sized bottle, smells pleasant (like pot pourri), and my favourite part about this is that it is a spray bottle! Perfect for travelling since there is no need for cotton balls!

 Lash Card - On Trend Tool
This was the product that was leaked on the FB page. It's a smart, convenient idea, but a business card does the same thing in my opinion, and has worked for me for a while now (I'm so messy with applying mascara!). Nevertheless, love that it is individually packaged and this will also go into my travel bag!

 Sally Hanson Magnetic Nail Colour - Colour
I've always wanted to try the Sally Hanson nail polishes! I claim to be an avid nail polish collector but I only just realised that I have no polishes by Sally Hanson! This is not a colour I would usually go for, but I guess this is why it's in a sample box ;P

Cedel Dry Conditioner - Essential
I received this in the Priceline Hair Bag a few months ago and I quite like this product. I actually prefer this smaller size to the full-sized product, just because I have a lot of hair products and I want to try and use up everything so that I can have an excuse to go buy more :P This dry conditioner comes out as a mousse, and smells like a salon (something that I'm not too fond of - I prefer hair products that have a sweet scent to it!).

 Aruyda Skin Perfecting Moisturiser - Natural
This sample was packaged in such a cute way, but unfortunately it leaked inside the little bag. From what I could salvage, it felt like a very nice moisturiser, and was a nice sample size as well! It's such a shame that it leaked (what are the chances of having leaking products in 2 consecutive boxes?!)

 Proplenish Marine Collagen Sachets - Natural
I'm a bit dubious about this product - you are meant to add the sachets to water and it's supposed to make your skin healthier. I am always skeptical of these kinds of products since my hair and nails pills that I bought last year did nothing for me.

Cellilux Glacial Mineral Gel - Cult

This gel works like a face mask, and that alone has made me happy. I've stated many times that I loveeee face masks, and I cannot wait to try this one out!

UPDATE: I tried the mask tonight and the texture of it was like a clay mask (for some reason, I expected it to be a clear gel haha) When I first applied it, my skin tingled a lot and it comes out a dark greyish colour, and dries like concrete (you can see it starting to dry on my upper lip in the image!). My skin felt really soft after taking it off, but I'm not sure I could bear to spend that much on a facemask when there are so many other brands I want to try! Also - try not to get any on your clothes - it's hard to wash out(and I learnt the hard way)!

Ayurda Skin Firming and Toning Cream
I believe this is a bonus sample, as there was no mention of it on my BB card! Its nice to receive extras, and the little pamphlet introduced all the products from Ayurda :)

Not a bad month for bellabox right? With the exception of the leaking moisturiser, I am quite happy with this box. It's definitely an improvement from previous months, and I'm glad they included a lot more products that weren't available from Coles :P

Liebster Award

I was really excited to be nominated for the Liebster award by Amber almost 2 months ago, and it's been on my growing to-do list for that long, but it actually slipped my mind until I got nominated again by Nika!! Ooops..I've been so caught up at my new job that I haven't really had the time to blog as much as I'd like :( So I'm going to cheat a little and combine the questions from these two lovely ladies today! :)

The Rules

• List 11 facts about yourself

• Answer the 11 questions asked by the blogger who nominated you

• Ask 11 new questions for the bloggers you nominate

• Choose 11 new bloggers with less than 200 followers to nominate

• Let everyone know they've been picked

11 Random Facts About Me

1. I only started getting into make-up after I finished uni last year!

2. I sing to myself when I'm at work and no one is around :P

3. Before I started working, I used to change my nail colour almost every day!

4. I am a massive hoarder!

5. One of my favourite beauty products was my first blush - it was a Playboy one (THE SHAME) and to this day, I still love it!

6. I listen to AM radio when I drive.

7. My room has the magical ability to make itself messy (no matter how much I clean it!)

8. I am an engineer  

9. I love playing the piano

10. I have more soft toys than my 10 year old sister!

11. I love Harry Potter!

Questions from Amber:

1. What is something you have done that made you proud of yourself?

I am currently on a spending ban (I want to save up for a trip at the end of the year) and I am proud to say that I have walked into Myer and Priceline several times and talked myself out of buying things!
2. What's your biggest fear?

I really fear loneliness.
3. If you could only use one beauty product for the rest of your life, what would it be?

This is a hard one! I would probably say mascara - it's one of the things I always reach for (even on the days I tell people I'm wearing no make-up!)
4. Whats your favourite weekend activity?

I love having a night out with my friends! We usually go to a restaurant and stay there til they kick us out :P
5. When putting makeup on, would you rather emphasise your eyes or lips?

My eyes!
6. What are you most excited for in 2013?

My trip at the end of the year! I've started planning already, and there a lots of places I want to go (and my shopping list is probably the longest list!)
7. What is your favourite restaurant?

I love Korean food, and theres this amazing little Korean restaurant called Joomak in Melbourne City. It's one of those secluded places that you can only find if you are looking for it!
8. What is your favourite beauty brand?

Another hard question! I would say that at the moment, I am really loving Benefit products!
9. Favourite healthy food?

Brocolli!
10. What is your favourite thing about blogging?

I love that there is no real obligation to write regularly - you have the freedom to choose when you write, how you write and what you write about. I also love that its an outlet for me to talk about one of my favourite things in the world - beauty!
11. Do you have any pets?

We have fish and canaries, but those aren't really my pets. I want a puppy! :(

Questions from Nika:

1. Who was the first person you told about writing a blog?

I told my ex (we were still together back then), and none of my other friends know about my blog :P

2. In what you are interested beside beauty?

I love music, shopping (hehehe), baking and scrapbooking!

3. If you could buy just one brand of makeup for the rest of your life, which would it be?

This is almost as hard as the question about one product for the rest of my life :P Since I am in love with Benefit at the moment, I will probably choose them! Benefit has everything from skincare to make-up anyways :P 

4. How much time you dedicate to your blog, per week?

I try to update my blog at least once a week (but I've been very slack lately)...I'd say probably 2-3 hours a week?

5. Who is your favourite beauty blogger, why?

That's like asking me what my favourite beauty product is! I love them all! I love reading everyones insight about beauty products, and for some reason, I especially love it when its a negative review (am I evil?)

6. What is your dream job?

Does 'being paid to do nothing' count as a job? haha 

It has been my dream for some time now to open up my own business - I've always wanted to make those amazing party cakes, and would love to be the head chef (baker?) in my own company!

7. Share one beauty trick, the best one.

Apply mascara first from the top of your lashes, and then apply from the bottom(the usual way)

8. What advice would you give for begginers on blogger?

Don't stress about the little things. I used to write a lot of posts that then got deleted straight away because I didn't like how one sentence sounded. Just write whatever comes to your mind, no one will judge you! :P

9. Do you wear any makeup when you are home?

It depends on my mood - sometimes I like to play with make-up and try out different looks when I'm at home

10. How do you apply make up (with brushes, fingers)?

Brushes!

11. Which person is most special in your life?

To be honest, I don't know. Everyone is special to me :P

Questions to my nominees:

1. What is your Holy Grail product?

2. Why did you start your blog?

3. What kind of music do you like?

4. What is your go-to nail polish colour?

5. Do you prefer a nude or bold lip?

6. What is one of your greatest achievements to date?

7. When did you start to use make-up? 

8. If you could only use 3 beauty products for an entire year, what would you use?

9. How long does it take for you to put on your make-up?

10. Whats your favourite food?

11. What would you buy with your last $10?

Nominees:

1.Amber

2.Nika

3.Lily

4.Claire

5.Sammi

6.Bridget

7.Samantha

8.Tammy

9.Lu

10.Kristen

11.Grace

Thanks to Amber and Nika for nominating me! And Amber, sorry it took me almost 2 months to answer your questions (better late than never, right?!) :D

March Bellabox

My mangled first box 

Box received today

Finally received my bellabox today! I had a bit of an issue with bellabox this month - as you can see from the image, my box arrived in a hideous state. I received the box with the Body milk and diamond mask from Ocean Essence, but they both leaked in my box, which was really such a shame as I wanted to try out the face mask (I am a face mask fanatic!). To make matters worse, I didn't receive my Glamourflage lip balm in this box :( Basically the only thing I could use in this box was the  DB lip pencil and the protein bar (which I gave to a friend who is trying to bulk :P). Bellabox was very nice about it, and promised to send out a new box to me - unfortunately, I got a completely different box. I think they must have run out of my box this month.

The box I received contained 3 lip products, a body milk and a cleansing face polish, as well as a bonus sample of museli. To be honest, I was really disappointed to receive this box, as there were a few products I was really excited to try in my original box, and also because I got 2 coconut products (for some reason I hate the coconut scent!). I guess its just luck of the draw, and I can't really complain because Bellabox was very good about this whole situation - I was just unlucky that I didn't like the contents of the box!