Party/New Year's Makeup

Not everyone goes out partying on New Year's Eve, especially if they are young but even if you spend New Year's at home with your family it can still be a good excuse to put on a bit of makeup and have fun.

I've always loved the 1950's Pinup Girl makeup look but thought it may be a little too 'sexy' for my age so I used it for inspiration for a 'softened' pinup inspired party look! :)

I'm really happy with how it turned out with the paler eyes and bold lips. The eyelashes are really cute too, not full length and complete the look nicely. The lashes are 'accentuate' from Lash Republic and were enclosed in the December 'Lust Have It' box.

Check out my tutorial on how to achieve this look HERE

I hope you liked this look and I hope everyone has a safe and fun New Year's Eve :)

Glittery Sparkles and Christmas ...

There's just something about Christmas that brings out all the sparkles, glitter and shiny things around the house but why stop there? Sparkle up your makeup a little by adding some cosmetic glitters to your eyes and even your face if you like. You can have a very neutral eyeshadow look and just pop a little glitter on the lids or glitter eyeliner on the outer corners to bring that Christmassy look to life :)

A sprinkle of fine glitter on the higher part of your cheek towards your temples can also look very effective but be careful if you're planning on taking lots of photos because glitter can give a strange look when the flash goes off!

I've found that to get glitter to stick to your eyeshadow you can use special fixatives such as Inglot's Duraline, simple eyedrops or a touch of water but another way is to use a sheer liquid glitter eyeliner such as the NYX 'Crystal Silver' or 'Crystal Hip' (these don't often contain a lot of glitter particles). Pit it over your lid and then before it dries add your glitter of choice and it will stay on for ages once it's dried. So don't throw out those liquid glitter eyeliners you think look too sparse because they can come in useful.

Be careful when using glitter near your eyes, only ever use cosmetic glitter as it's shaped a different way and is very very fine. NEVER use craft or body glitter anywhere near your eyes.

Always be sure to wipe or brush away any fallout, yes you will have fallout with glitter, it's assured :) hahaha

A little silver, gold or clear glitter near your collar bones or shoulders (very little) can give a lovely look for New Years as well.

Take a peek at my 'Sparkly Christmas Makeup' tutorial to see just how easy it is.

Don't be scared of what other's think, it's Christmas and what better way to feel festive than by being just as sparkly and a beautiful glittery ornament ..... well maybe not that sparkly but defs enought to make you feel good    :D hehehehe 

Modiva Professional Curling Irons

Modiva Professional 32mm Curling Iron
Photo property of Modiva

Some of you may know that I already had the 25mm Curling Iron from Modiva and that I love it to bits!!

Modiva have now brought out the 32mm and 13mm Professional Curling Irons to add to the range and now they are all in sleek white, the 32mm being more suited to mid to long hair and the 13mm for mid to shorter hair.

The 32mmIron looks exactly the same as the 25mm but bigger, it has the 360 deg swivel cord, heats to 210 deg Celcius, has a 100% tourmaline barrel, clipless barrel, heats quickly and comes with a heat protective glove (bonus).

I have always found the Modiva Curling Irons to create wonderful long lasting curls and highly recommend them.

The only drawbacks are the high heat setting but of course you just don’t leave them on your hair for too long, judge for yourself and your hair thickness, usually between 7 – 10 seconds. 

Price - $89.95 (au)

Heat Protective Silicon Mat

Modiva now sell Silicon Heat Protective Mats to set your curling iron on to prevent any surface from overheating and getting burnt.  The mat is covered in tiny bumps to prevent your Curling Iron from slipping and can be used with any of your heating products.

Price - $7.95 (au)


You can see my tutorial and review 

15% Discount


If you are interested in purchasing one of their Curling Irons for Christmas you can use the coupon code 'lilcammo93' at checkout for a 15% discount and if you order before 2.00 pm on 22nd December, 2011 and live in Australia you will get free overnight express shipping guaranteed to arrive for Christmas.


Visit Modiva Professional for your clipless Curling Irons in Australia :) - http://tinyurl.com/ModivaCurlingIrons

NEW Sigma ‘Extravaganza Face Kit’

18K Gold Brushes anyone?

Ok, now I know that this kit won’t be for everyone .... but ‘WOW’, isn’t it pretty :)

I think that this face kit would be great for the girl that has almost everything and is wanting some ‘luxury’ in her makeup bag. With four face brushes that have 18k gold plated ferrules and natural bristles they come together with a deluxe carry case which is perfect for travelling and they just scream LUXURY!!! :)

Brushes included:

F90 – Fan Brush

F92 – Blush Brush

F94 – Kabuki Brush

F95 – Powder Brush

Of course you will have to pay for these babies and that price is $210.00 which makes them a little out of reach for the average teenage girl wanting to buy a few good brushes, hehehe but something we can all dream about.

Visit Sigma Beauty HERE for great makeup brushes.

Christmas Gift Ideas

Hi everyone, I just thought I'd share a few ideas that I think would make excellent gifts for either yourself or someone else this Christmas.

Of course there are many many more great gift ideas out there but sometimes it's hard to come up with something a little different :)

Cute Nail Art for Beginners with Meliney.com incl GIVEAWAY!!

If your interested in Nail Art then you will love Meliney.com which specialises in the 'Konad Nail Stamping' System and also carries many decorative nail art supplies and tools.

I recently had the chance to play around with the 'Konad Stamp' set and to my surprise it actually works quite well, even for someone like me who's never really had a chance to do my nails very much due to 'school rules' and who also has teeny tiny nails (think 10 year old size!!) hahaha.

A basic set will cost you about $17.99 and includes:

Stamper and Scraper
Special Nail Polish
Image Plate

and then you can build upon this at your leisure and skill level.

So how it works is you...

* Make sure your nails are clean and dry, they can be bare or already have nail polish on.
* Find the image on the plate you want to apply to your nail and paint over it with the 'Special Nailpolish'.
* Quickly scrape the excess off the plate and stamp the image with the stamper.
* Position the stamper on your nail where you wish to apply the image. Roll the stamp across your nail firmly and in one motion and you should have your image on your nail looking lovely :)

You can then decorate the design or just add a topcoat of clear polish to finish it off.

Now there are a couple of things to note here, one is that practice makes perfect!!! Yes it does take a few times to get the hang of it so I'd suggest playing with bare nails to start with until you feel confident in your new found skills. The next is that the positioning and timing are VERY important, if the weather is hot the polish will dry quickly so you won't be able to transfer it as well.

These are very fun kits to play with and I'm hoping to play more now that I'm almost finished school. There are lots of different patterned plates, polishes and accessories available to suit any style. I think these kits would make great gifts for Christmas or Birthdays for your best friends.

Meliney also has a YouTube Channel where you can watch some excellent tutorials for nail art, not only using the Konad Stamp but using other techniques as well.

Check out Meliney's latest tutorial which also includes a great GIVEAWAY

Check out Meliney.com's Store - HERE
and Meliney's YouTube Channel - HERE

NEW Vegan Makeup Brushes - Sigma's 'Mr & Mrs Bunny' Kits

Many people prefer to use vegan products and makeup brushes are no exception. Sigma has now added to their family of 'Sigmax' brushes by bringing out the 'Mr & Mrs Bunny' Collection.  There are two kits, one is a Travel sized kit and the other a full sized Esential Kit. Mr kits are in the classic black colour and Mrs kits are in a pretty pastel blue with pink ferrules.

Brushes included in the Travel Kit are:

E30 - Pencil Brush

E40 - Tapered Blending Brush

E55 - Eye Shading Brush

E65 - Small Angle Brush

F30 - Large Powder Brush

F40 - Large Angled Contour Brush

F60 - Foundation Brush

Travel Kit sells for $59.00

Brushes included in the Essential Kit are:

E05 - Eyeliner Brush

E30 - Pencil Brush

E40 - Tapered Blending Brush

E55 - Eye Shading Brush

E60 - Large Shader Brush

E65 - Small Angle Brush

E70 - Medium Angle Brush

F30 - Large Powder Brush

F40 - Large Angled Contour Brush

F50 - Duo Fibre Brush

F60 - Foundation Brush

F70 - Concealer Brush

Essential Kit sells for $109.00

* All images are the property of SigmaBeauty

Beautiful Wavy Hair with VS Sassoon 'Wave Envy' - Review

I received the VS Sassoon 'Wave Envy' back in September and have been trialing it over the past couple of months :) You can see how it looks in my 'Let's Illuminate the World Together' video that I made for the Breast Cancer Awareness Campaign.

Once again I'm not disappointed by VS Sassoon, I find all their products quite easy to use and well priced.  The 'Wave Envy' is NOT a curling tool, it is a WAVING tool and this is exactly what it does.  All you do is section off your hair, clamp it in the 'Wave Envy' near the scalp and hold for about 7 seconds, once it is done you move the tool down your hair until you reach the ends, interlocking the waves as you go to get a nice flow of waves!! :)

It does take some time to do all your hair but the results are really worth it, these waves hold beautifully for a long time and all you really have to do is apply a 'heat protector'.

The 'Wave Envy' has a cool tip so it's easy to hold on to, it has three heat settings and a swivel cord so you don't get all tangled up.

I actually love the effect that the 'Wave Envy' gives but as always don't recommend using heat on your hair too often. (I will have a video up shortly using this tool and will link it here)

The VS Sassoon 'Wave Envy' retails for around $52.95 which is pretty good value for money

Maybelline 'Fit Me' Foundation and Pressed Powder

Recently I've been using the Maybelline 'Fit Me' range Foundation and Pressed Powder in shade 125.

Packaging:


Let's start with the packaging shall we, the foundation is packaged in a glass bottle that looks pretty sleek but I personally find it a bit difficult to get the right amount of foundation out, the formula is quite thin so I tend to tip too much out, a pump would have been a great inclusion for this foundation. The packaging on the pressed powder I found was great, it contains both a mirror and sponge applicator underneath the powder compartment and the lid is 'see through' so you can see what's in there :)

Foundation:

This is a sheer to medium coverage foundation that applies smoothly and I find it doesn't 'cake' over time. It's great for dry to normal skin types and even without using a primer it gives a lovely finish without accentuating large pores or inconsistencies. You can also build up the coverage by layering without it looking 'built up' and it will still feel lightweight. I find it blends really nicely and allows your skin to show through yet still be covered. You can apply it with your fingertips, brush or sponge and still get a nice finish.

There are quite a lot of shades to choose from, I find the shade I chose is a little dark for me right now so I may get the lighter shade as well, that way I can also mix the two shades for when my skin 'tans' a little in the summer. The foundation also contains an SPF 18 which is a great bonus :)


As with most foundations, if you have dry skin you should work on that first by moisturising before applying your foundation and if you have oily tendencies, perhaps a foundation geared towards your skin type would be a better purchase. I have a combination skin so I do find I get a little oily on my T-zone through the day but nothing a little powder can't fix and probably nothing more than I do with some other foundations, although it could be the humid weather we have been having lately too.

I do find that this foundation changes colour slightly in the beginning so if you can 'test' it and let it 'oxidize' for a while before purchasing that would be great so that you get the right shade. It doesn't change too dramatically on me but each person is different.

Pressed Powder:

I have no problems with the pressed powder, I've been using it quite a lot and have found it to be light and easy to use. It applies smoothly and evenly and is a great tool to use for my T-zone when it gets a little oily. As with the foundation, there is a great range of shades to choose from. I do prefer to use a brush with mine instead of the sponge as I like the finish better but the sponge is a good thing to have for touch ups when you're out and don't want to be carrying too much around with you.

**********************

Overall, I think for the price you pay you are getting a pretty good product, these are not marketed as 'high end' or as 'full coverage' and will not suit everyone. Like anything, if you can try it before you buy it you shouldn't be disappointed. This is not my 'favourite' but it does the job :) The only downside would be the size of the product itself, I would have preferred it a little bit bigger.

** Unfortunately I couldn't take my own photos because my camera was being stubborn, the photos in this post are the property of Maybelline.com.au

I'm Back, November Sample Boxes and New Toys :)

I'm Back

YAY!!!! I returned from Schoolies in one piece, safe and sound :) I had a great time, it was a real 'eye opener' but I'm sooooo glad I went.  I think the key to schoolies is having great friends around you and to watch out for each other at all times :) and have FUN!!! I went with my best friend Juanita and another wonderful friend of our's 'Jessie', we all got along great and kept an eye on each other, hehehe :D I think the only disappointing thing about our trip was that we had booked a 'studio' apartment and only had a kettle and fridge!!! There were only cups, saucers and spoons and that's it :( Of course that's what you get in a 'studio' style room but we didn't give that any thought before we went, hahaha ..... take note, if you want to cook get a room with a kitchen!!!! :) We did survive, we bought lots of noodles, sandwich stuff and fruit and also got pizza :))) The resort put on a free BBQ breakfast every day so we filled up on that too.

Snorkeling with the girls ... hehehe :D

New Toys

I'm back now and will be recording and uploading videos again very soon.Unfortunately my video camera lost it's mind over the past week or so (it has been mucking up for a while now) and I finally had to buy a new one when I got home.  I bought the JVC GZHM30 High Def camera in red for $249.00. It's a cheap little camera that should do the job quite well, or so I've been told. Yes there are better quality HD cameras out there but when it comes to editing, saving and uploading to youtube you don't need it to take forever which is what the other 'better' cameras will do, the less time it takes me to upload, the better it is and more enjoyable. I guess trial and error and time will see how well it works.

Photo property of WOW Sight and Sound

(* Update *)
I ended up returning this camera because it didn't perform the way I wanted, it also felt a little too flimsy for me. I bought the Canon T31100 instead and so far I'm very happy with it).


My phone was also dying a very slow and painful death lately so I upgraded to the Ipod 4s .......... what can I say, I'm in lurvvvvvvvvvvve :))))))) compared to my old nokia it's a dream although I still need to work some things out.

Photo property of  Apple Iphone

November Sample Boxes (Australia)

Because November was so busy and hectic I didn't get a chance to photograph the individual Sample boxes because most arrived just before I went away, so I'll just tell you what was inside them. This month I received the 'I Love This Box', 'Lust Have It', 'GlossyBox' and 'Bellabox' boxes. It was the first month for the 'I Love This Box' and I was quite happy with it, the scent throughout the box was just lovely and I found out it was from the shampoo and conditioner that were sent. It was very moreish, maybe the sample box people should take note that we like 'scented boxes' :))) hahahaha This was also the first month for 'Glossy Box' (formerly 'Beauty Box') and I was not disappointed at all, in fact this was my fav box so far of 'Beauty Box' and was just as good as 'Glossy Box'.  I t has to be noted that the box did arrive 'disappointingly late' in the month, the 28th to be exact, but I'm sure when there's a takeover things don't always go smoothly so they are forgiven this month :)))

What was in them??????   Here we go ...

I Love This Box

Caudalie Paris - Set of 3 Facial Care Samples - Moisturiser, Anti-wrinkle serum and nourishing cream
NVEY Eco's Taupe (#172) Eyeshadow
Essie French Affair Collection - Spring 2011 Nail Polish
Keratinology by Sunsilk - Salon Perfection Hair Collection - Shampoo and Conditioner (smells lovely)
POD - Liquid Tan Gradual Tanning Face Serum

Lust Have It

RoC - Complete Lift New Techology Daily Moisturiser
Nude by Nature - Lip Liner in 'Chique Natural'
Lancome - Tresor Midnight Rose - Perfume sample x 2
Hawley International - Miracle Shine 2 Step Miracle Nail Shiner
Kerastase - Nectar Thermique - Heat protectant

Glossy Box

Jurlique - Purely Age Defying Ultra Firm & Lift Cream
Bio Oil - Bio oil for ageing, scars and stretchmarks etc.
Esie - Summer Nail Colour
Bobbi Brown - Cleansing Oil
Mirenesse - 3D Forever Lip Gloss
Bonus - Bag of pink jelly beans ........... yummy :)

Bella Box

Lancome Visionnaire - Cult - Advanced skin corrector
Erborian - 4 x sachet samples - BB Cream, Total Eye, Yuza Sobert, Elixir Au Ginseng
Gatineau Melatogenine Force Collagene - Cult - Anti-wrinkle cream
Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics (OCC) Lip Tar
Orofluido - Hair Elixir
Twistband - Hair tie

NEW 'Make Me Up' Travel Edition Brushes by Sigma Beauty

The next new product to be launched by Sigma Beauty is the 'Make Me Up' Travel Edition kit. You may remember the wonderful 'Make Me Up' kit that came out earlier this year that contained 12 full sized brushes in a multifunctional container? Well this is a 'Travel sized' edition of that.  

This kit has 7 fun sized brushes chosen from the 'Essentials Kit' and comes in four colour combinations - 'Make Me Blush' (Coral), 'Make Me Classy' (Black), 'Make Me Cool' (Aqua) and 'Make Me Crazy' (Purple).

Brushes included are:

E30 - Pencil Brush

E40 - Tapered Blending Brush

E55 - Eye Shading Brush

E65 - Small Angle Brush

F30 - Large Powder Brush

F40 - Large Angled Contour Brush

F60 - Foundation Brush

You know, I wasn't too sure if I would use travel sized brushes because I really love my original Sigma Brushes and take them wherever I go (just ask my friends, they love me for it, hehehe :)) but after trying out 'The Cities Collection' and enjoying the convenient lightweight size of them I think they are amazing, I find myself using them all the time at home and will definitely be taking them when I sleep away from now on :)

Travel sized brushes are designed to help keep weight down while traveling and they take up less room in your suitcase/bag, the handy container will protect the brushes from damage and also provide a convenient place to put them on arrival. They are also a great 'starting set' for young girls just getting in to makeup, they are easy to hold for small hands and have all the basic brushes you need and it's a super Christmas Gift idea.

Make Me Blush - Coral

Make Me Crazy - Purple

Make Me Classy - Black

Make Me Cool - Aqua

These great kits sell for $59.00 each and you can find all Sigma Brushes HERE

*  Photos property of 'Sigma Beauty'

HURRY!!! Black Friday Sales 25th November ...

So I quickly had a scan around and and found a few sites that were having great 'Black Friday' Sales.  If you're not sure what a 'Black Friday' Sale is then I'll quickly explain.  In the US, the day after Thanksgiving a lot of Stores have sales to start the 'Christmas Shopping' period and it's supposed to mark the time when retailers are starting to make a profit in their business, like being 'in the black'  :)

Here's a few I found:

Sigma Beauty -
Free Shipping Worldwide - 9am - 5pm CST only - 25th Nov, 2011- use Code BF2011


Camera Ready Cosmetics -
20% - 60% of the 'Sale Category' - starting on 24th November, 2011 - 6pm PCT


Cherry Culture -
20% off everything - use Code TGS20 - ends 27th November, 2011


Sedona Lace -
25% off entire order (over $15) - use Code Black25 - ends 25th November, 2011


Luminess Air -
Up to 83% off (while stocks last)




* This is a prescheduled post
* Please note that these dates are in US times

NEW 'The Cities' Travel Collection Brushes by Sigma Beauty

As I mentioned in a previous blog post, Sigma Beauty are releasing some wonderful new products in the coming weeks and this series is the first to hit the store!! :) Sigma Beauty's Limited Edition Travel Collection is glamorous and fashionable and contains seven travel sized brushes from the 'Essential' and 'Premium' kits.

There are four different kits representing four different Cities.

London - with it's 18k gold ferrules (metal bits) and Chestnut coloured handles ($89)

Paris - having red ferrules and handles to represent the Romance of this City ($59)

Tokyo - in recognition of this trend setting City it has electrifying Pink handles and ferrules ($59)

New York - every stylish and sleek in black with silver ferrules ($59)

Each of these kits contains the following brushes:

E05 Eyeliner 

E35 Tapered Blending

E45 Small Tapered Blending

E60 Large Shader

F05 Small Contour

F15 Duo Fibre

F30 Large Powder

The brushes come in a functional travel sized container in the corresponding colour that also converts into two brush holders to keep you organised on your travels.

Visit Sigma Beauty for these and other great brushes and kits!! :)

LONDON

PARIS

TOKYO

NEW YORK

* this is a pre-scheduled post
* photos property of SigmaBeauty

School Formal 2011 - Finally ♡

If you have been reading my weekly posts, thankyou. It's been fun documenting my preparations over the past three weeks :)

So this last week has been fun, I had my hair trimmed 'just a little' and found some time to pamper my nails.  I decided to do my own nails for the day because I preferred to pay $15 for nailpolish rather than much more for a salon to do them!!! I chose 'Serial Dater' by Chi Chi for my fingers and 'Nude Shimmer' by Natio for my toes. I went for a nude toe so that it wouldn't clash with my shoes.


I needed to wash my hair a day or two before my Hair Appointment on the Saturday so that it wasn't 'too clean' for the updo, the only problem was that I was at the beach on Thursday for our last School Excursion and again on Friday morning after 'last rollcall' to do the annual 'School Leavers Beach Run'.  If you're not sure what that is, let me enlighten you a little :)  It's a tradition in my area that all Year 12 School leavers go to the beach after they have been released from school on the last morning and they all run into the ocean in their uniforms, it's kinda like a 'rite of passage' thing hahahaha, anyway it's fun and it was a hot day so why not!! :)


Back on track ....


So I washed my hair late on Friday after a full day. Also on Friday I was packing my bags for my Schoolies trip which starts on Sunday, bright and early!!! Yeah I will be up at about 4.00am for that one! x___x


Saturday morning -- finished packing, painted my nails, answered a few messages etc and then off to the Hairdresser at about 12.00 noon.


Home about 1.00pm which gives me about 2 hrs to get myself ready for my Formal :) That should be enough ..... hehehehe :D Oh noooooooo, the hairdresser did a terrible job on my hair, I had to re-do the whole front bit myself which really made me upset.  The ladies that normally worked at the Salon were not there this day and new people had taken over!!!! I didn't know this when I made the appointment :( Mine was the last appointmet of the day so there was no going back to get it fixed up :/


Anyway, once I fix my hair I feel a little rushed to do my makeup, it's really hot today too so that didn't help much.  


By about 2.45pm I'm ready and it's time for a few photos then I'm off to see my Grandparents, more photos and then we drive to my friends house where a large group of us will be picked up by 'The Hummer'!!!! Yay!! we hired a 14 seat Hummer to take us to the Formal in style :) It's a 4.00pm pickup and we should get to our Formal at 5.00pm where I'm sure there will be more photos on the red/black carpet, more photos inside and even more 'official photos' before the actual seating takes place at around 6.00 - 6.30 pm.


I love my dress, I love the 'sunset' type colours in it, the ruffles and the lacing and of course the fit and style.  I wanted something a little different from the regular dresses that people wear and when I tried this on It just felt 'right' :) and it was also pretty light and cool for such a hot day!! :)

Back of dress

Earrings and Bracelets

I decided to film a 'Get Ready with Me' video for my Formal but because I ended up being a little rushed and frustrated I'm not sure how it will turn out, so when I get back in about a week I'll upload something to my Channel but in the meantime I hope you've enjoyed these quick photos.

My friends and I in front of the Hummer about to leave

Thank you for taking this journey with me, Year 12 has been a challenging year in many ways. It's been great to share my experience with others and I really hope that someone finds my posts helpful in the future :)


Love Cassie ♡ 

School Formal 2011 - One Week to go ...

I really can't believe all my studies for school are now over!!! I had my last Assessment on Friday WOOT WOO!!!! Now for the final week of school, if you can really call it that, I just have to tie things up, you know, return text books, laptop and long lost library books etc. I have my Graduation Ceremony on the Wednesday night, our final senior assembly on Thursday (which the Year 12's get to host) followed by an excursion and then just a safety talk and sign off on Friday morning :D :D :D then that's it!!!! :))))

So my Formal is on the Saturday night, 19th November to be exact which is honestly a stupid day to have it since Schoolies officially starts on the 19th!!!! Only our School Principal could have planned that :/

Hair:

This past week I managed to get the hair dye I was after, it was actually on special for $8.95 and was the last one in that colour (Darkest Chocolate No. 323). It was hiding in a different spot, someone else must have picked it up and put it back in the wrong spot so I thought they didn't have it!! So glad they did. I dyed my hair on Tuesday afternoon so that's something else to check off my list :)

I'm going to try to squeeze in a 'trim' before my Formal just to tidy the ends up.

Outfit:

I got to try on my complete outfit for the Formal and I'm happy to report that I'm very very happy with the overall look. It's fun and young and I really like the way it all came together, it makes me feel like an 'exotic princess' hahahaha :P So for a run down on how much this has cost me ...

Dress                                   $199.00 - I know COMPLETE BARGAIN!!!!!
Shoes                                  $111.00 - on sale
Bag                                         34.95 - on sale
Jewelry                                $  39.95 - Already had some of it
Hair Accessory                    $  20.00
Underwear                           $  40.00
Hair Dye                              $    8.95
Hair Appointment                 $  75.00
Car Hire                               $  52.00

Total                                    $580.85

I haven't included any makeup costs in this because the only real thing I bought specifically for my Formal was my Estee Lauder Foundation but I probably would have bought it eventually anyway.

I never set out to find things on 'Sale' or anything like that, I went to find something that I really liked. Formal shopping can  add up very quickly, even when you get things that are on sale it still gets expensive! I was very lucky to find my dress, we were prepared to pay more than that when we set out but we didn't have to. A few of the other girls in my year also said they ended up going with dresses that were much cheaper than they originally planned because 'they like them', and isn't that what it's all about in the end :)

When you plan your Formal it makes sense to spread the costs out so you don't have to pay for everything in one go.  If you start looking for your dress at least 3-4 months before the day then you will have time to find all your accessories etc and pay for them gradually. It's also nice to know you have your outfit ready and you can relax a little in that last week.

I guess my real luxury items were my shoes and getting my hair done on the day.

Makeup:

This week I cleaned all my makeup brushes, I had a little breakout last week which prompted me to do this :/

Nails:

Ok so this is still the one that is eluding me!! :( Maybe it's because I've never been allowed to paint my nails for school or anything that they are always the last to get attention.  So this week they are going to be pampered for sure, I don't have much on for school so there really is no excuse. Wish me luck!!! :)))

******************

Because I will be leaving for my Schoolies holiday very early Sunday morning, I will probably just post a picture of the final look on facebook and maybe on here before I leave for my Formal.  Once I come back from Schoolies I will put up a video.

Accessorize with SolidRose.com

About six or seven weeks ago I was sent a box full of goodies from solidrose.com to try out and if I liked them I could do a review or mention them in a video or something but was under no obligation to talk about them at all!  Well I liked them, in fact I liked them a lot, I featured them in my very first 'Show & Tell' video, and I find myself grabbing for a lot of the pieces all the time.  Now these aren't 'real' jewels, they are what is known as 'dress jewelry' that is usually worn for a season or two and that's it.You can buy the same quality items from places like Diva, Target or Equip here in Australia.

A selection of bracelets and rings

Necklaces

What is different about these pieces is the price, these items sell for at least half the price that the stores in Australia do. Their packaging was adequate and nothing was broken, actually nothing has broken after all these weeks either! It took about a week for the package to arrive as they have a warehouse in Australia which is a bonus and I found their customer service to be great.

This site regularly updates stock, looking there today I see there are quite a few new items available and they also stock makeup.

From the experience I've had with SolidRose.com I can recommend them, obviously the more you buy the better the deal when it comes to postage which in Australia is about $9.00.  For young girls it's a great site as they really don't want to be spending lots of money on accessories that they may not wear next year!!!

Another great idea to keep in mind for Christmas and Birthday gifts.

Great variety of earrings

You can visit SolidRose.com HERE

Beyonce 'Pulse' eau de parfum

Last week on my shopping trip I walked through Myer's perfume department (as you do, always ... :)) and there in it's glory, flashing lights and all, was Beyonce 'Pulse' on display!!! :) Well of course I had to try it didn't I, I then went around sampling numerous other perfumes on the little cards making myself a little light headed, hehehe, sniffed at the coffee beans and continued on :)

I liked it, I kept going back to the swatch and smelling it and I really liked it.

It's described as being a 'citrus, floral gourmand (someone who enjoys gourmet), anchored by Beyonce's favourite flower, the orchid'.

To me it's much more like passion fruit in a way, very sweet and quite tropical. It smells young and fun and is pretty strong to start with but then gets a little bit powdery as the fragrance matures but not too much. I really wanted a new perfume for the warmer weather and it was a toss up between 'Pulse' and 'Sensuous Nude', can you guess which one I decided to buy???? Yeah, I bought 'Pulse' this time around and am pleased with my puchase.

For $89.00 I got

100ml (3.4fl oz) eau de parfum vaporisor - natural spray
15ml (0.5fl oz) eau de parfum vaporisor - natural spray
75ml (2.5fl oz) luminous body milk
75ml (2.5fl oz) luminous hower cream

The 100ml bottle normally sells for $89.00 (in australia).  There was a choice between the boxed package I chose or you could get a large tote bag with your purchase instead.

The bottle is designed to stand 'upside down' with the large silver lids, which are inspired by Beyonce's costumes, being removable from the bottles and the body milk has a 'shimmer' to it which I didn't realise until I got outside. I felt a little like a vampire when I went in the sun, hahaha, I guess this would look great for night time partying.

Of course you have to remember this fragrance is not a concentrate so for an all-day scent you may need to reapply a few times, a little disappointing that it looses it's fragrance so quickly. That's one of the reasons I went for the boxed package, so that I could carry the smaller bottle in my handbag!! :)

In my opinion this is a scent for a younger person.

The packaging is pretty flash and I'm sure I'll find a use for the box. My only other real disappointment is that it didn't come with the flashing lights like the ones on the display :P hahaha :) and yes, I did ask! hahahaha :D

Sneak Peek of 'NEW' Sigma products ...

Sigma always have something new up their sleeve and this time around it's more than one NEW thing!!! In fact there are quite a few new product releases about to take place over November and December. Some of them are in fact brand new releases and some are repackaged into more convenient sets.

As I haven't trialed or even seen these products in real life yet, I can only show you a few pictures of what's in store and update you as they are released for sale so if you're looking for something for Christmas for yourself or as a gift for someone special, you might want to consider Sigma for that special gift.

Also, a little birdie told me that there will be a 'Black Friday Sale' at Sigma, Black Friday is 24th November which is a day I will be away, so I'll arrange to have a post scheduled for this!!!

The Cities Collection (travel size)

Make Me Up Collection (Travel Edition)

The Bunny Collection (Vegan friendly)

The Extravaganza Face Kit (18k gold plated)

The Extravaganza Complete Kit (18k gold plated)

* All photos curtesy of 'SigmaBeauty'

School Formal 2011 - Two Week Countdown ...

With less than two weeks to go to my Formal I'm pleased to say I managed to cross a few things off my list from last week's post, YAY!!!

Dress:


As I said last week I have my dress already but I wanted to mention that if you do have your dress already or bought it months ago, it's a good idea to put it away where you can't see it all the time, I got my mum to look after mine so I didn't see it all the time, the reason for this is because after a while it may loose it's appeal because you see it a lot!  I've only seen mine about 3 times briefly since I got it home and will be trying it on this coming week with all my accessories etc just to make sure everything works! Then it will go away again until my Formal :) It may sound a strange thing to do but I don't want to fall 'out of love' with it.

Accessories:


This week I found the bracelets for my Formal, I already had two 'marilyn monroe' style bracelets which cost me about $20.00 but I wanted to add to them for a bit of variety and found a bundle of three that will work great, they are sparkly with gold accents, they cost $19.95.  I've decided to wear a pair of earrings I already had, they are a nice medium length large gems set in silver but they're not 'over the top' so they won't grab too much attention.

Shoes and Clutch:


After weeks of searching and trying shoes on I finally found a pair that will work well, Myer had some new stock in on Wednesday and luckily the pair I found are a great match.  They are 'Guess' brand, delicately glittered and very high!! :D ..... some walking practice will be in order before the big event :)  The shoes were initially $149.00 but they were on sale and I got them for $111.00 YAY!!

I also found my Clutch for the night, it's satin with sparkles down the centre which match with my 'marilyn monroe' bracelets nicely.  It's an 'Arabella' brand and the cost of the clutch was $34.95 down from $59.99 :) :)

Hair:


I've cut back on using heat on my hair as much as I can this week and using a 'Deep Conditioner' to keep it looking and feeling great.  I went to get my hair dye but they didn't have the right colour that I want so I will have to keep looking in different stores this coming week and find it, I really want it dyed by the end of the week :/

Nails:


Not much has been done to them as life keeps getting in the way and keeping me busy :/ I haven't broken any so that's a good thing :P

Skin:


I've drank a lot more water this past week and also more green tea.  I've had a little breakout on my chin which is a bit annoying but this is what happens sometimes so hopefully it will settle down again by Formal.

Tanning:


So I've decided to go 'natural' for Formal, after being burned last weekend and getting 'strap marks' I'm making an effort to apply lots of suncream and stay out of the sun as much as I can.  Wearing different styled tops when out walking will help too so that I don't get a definite line going where my tops are.

Makeup:


I've been practicing different methods of applying my foundation to get a 'flawless' finish this week.

Transport:


Our transport times were finally confirmed by the Company and everyone agrees on everything so that is good know.  There are about 14 of us travelling together to the Formal and we get the vehicle for one hour, should be good :D :D

****************

Lately I've noticed quite a bit more stress at school between friendships, with final testing coming up this week, formal arrangements to make, schoolies events to finalise and just generally finishing our education it's such a lot to think about but it's still important to take time out for ourselves in between everything else, no point in making yourself sick with worry and stress, I'm making sure I go for walks with my boyfriend and to socialise with my friends outside of school, it helps keep me relaxed and grounded which helps me to enjoy the end of my schooling :) :) :)  Remember to breathe!!!

Schoolies 2011- Almost Here!!!!

I'm getting so excited now because along with the end of School Graduation and Year 12 Formal comes Schoolies!!!!  For anyone not knowing what this is, it's a celebration by all Year 12 School leavers at the end of their schooling :) In some States it's also called 'Leavers'.


It usually goes for about 3 -4 weeks, generally the first week is for Queensland the second for New South Wales and then the third for the other States (although this does change some years) .... but that doesn't mean you can't go whenever you want.  It's a week long party for you and your friends and usually the first time you get to go away without your family :D 


The most famous place to go is Surfers Paradise on the Gold Coast in Queensland, it's where 30,000+ school leavers go to party and party hard, so if that is your scene then that's the place for you.


Of course not everyone wants to be part of that 30,000+ crowd so they choose other destinations for their party week.  There's Byron Bay in New South Wales, Lorne in Melbourne, Victor Harbour in SA, Rottnest in WA and the Whitsundays in Northern Queensland, just to name a few, that all have planned Schoolies events and security.  If that's still not your thing you may want to find your own place to enjoy yourself and just hang with your friends, many choose quieter spots along the coastline or some even go to Bali or Fiji for their celebrations, the choice is yours!! :) Probably best to choose the location that suits your personality and your budget the best.


For a full look at Schoolies and to find out all locations visit 'Schoolies.com'


Wherever you decide to spend your time remember to make it great.  Be with friends you can trust and have the time of your life with :) :) Over the years 'Schoolies' has got a lot of bad press because of a handful of incidents, there's so many good news stories come back from schoolies, not everyone goes to get drunk and cause trouble!!  It's easy to get a bit nervous about going to Schoolies but If you choose the destination to suit your needs properly you should have a great time :)


Leading up to Schoolies it's easy to forget basic boring stuff such as budgeting, shopping etc etc so take a bit of time to discuss things with your friends before you go, you don't want to find out everyone has twice as much money as you so they can do heaps more stuff than you, that would really suck!!!!! Remember too, you will probably need a 'house budget' for basics like nibblies, coffee, juice,  toilet paper etc, you know the stuff you never want to run out of :) Even in a lot of resorts you will only be given the basics for your room so you and your friends will have to buy stuff. Take advantage of free breakfasts and nibblies whenever you can and fill up through the day hahaha that way you wont have to buy as much food each day and may only need to buy your dinner :P


What to take:
yourself :)
your friends  ..... hahaha
your Year 12 ID !!!
money - you need enough to buy food, drinks and entertainment every day you are away and extra for emergencies :) different locations call for different costs (check before you go)
clothes - if you're lazy and don't want to wash, take enough for the whole week!!
makeup - of course :)
shoes - comfy ones
mobile and recharger - if you're on pre-paid be sure to have plenty of credit


Don't take:
bad attitude
anything too valuable


**************


The 'Red Frog Crew' is a Schoolies Support Network which has a positive presence in the Schoolies party week, they offer help in many ways from cooking and cleaning to emotional help when it's needed. They also provide entertainment and chill-out zones throughout the week in some destinations :)


Take advantage of the 'Red Frogs' people who are there to help you, they will come and cook you up some frog pancakes if you want them to, they will also walk you back to your accommodation if you get stranded or feel unsafe in any way!! :)  


MOST IMPORTANT THING:  STAY SAFE!!!, there's a life beyond schoolies!!!!! :D


Be sure to have their number keyed into your mobile - 1300557123

School Formal 2011 - Three Week Countdown ...

My Year 12 School Formal is in three weeks time so to keep myself on track and maybe help a few others out there I thought I would do a 'Three Week Countdown' to the event :)  This is 'Week Three'

Dress:
I have my dress already picked out but if you don't, now is really the time to get that out of the way! When I picked mine I tried to wipe my mind of any 'pre-conceived' ideas and styles and just went for what was available.  Luckily for me the very first dress in the very first shop was IT!! :D I just loved it so there was no reason to keep looking, YAY!! I hope you find your perfect dress just as easy.

Accessories:
Picking accessories can be done at the same time as buying the dress but we all know that you don't always find what you're looking for.  I purchased some earrings, ring and bracelets but left the dress in the car when I did this and when I got home they just didn't look right with the gown :(

With three weeks to go and my mission is to try to find the perfect accessories for the night.  My dress is patterned and strapless so I'm going for some medium length dangly earrings, bracelet and ring and forgetting about a necklace as I want to draw attention to my face.  I can either go 'vintage' or 'semi-sparkly' with my dress and have about three colours that would work.  Luckily my dress has some extra long laces on it that reach the ground so I'm able to trim a sample of the end to pop in my handbag so I don't forget the colours when out shopping.  I also gave my date a sample this way for his suit/accessories.

Shoes and Clutch:
I still need to find the right shoes!!! This is probably the hardest job so far, I've looked at so many shoes in my area and none shout 'PERFECT' to me so I'm still looking and hoping for new stock.  I would really love to get them this week because that would give me time to 'play' in them around the house and break them in :)  I was also thinking a small clutch bag would be good on the night, one that will do the job but not draw a lot of attention as my dress is patterned so it's probably best to keep a clutch more simple. There's not a lot you need to take with you to Formal but here's a sampling of what to put in your clutch:

Lipstick/Lipgloss
Mirror
Powder
Eyeliner
Mobile Phone
Perfume
Small Camera

Hair:
I booked my hair appointment a couple of days ago, I thought it would be a nice treat and pamper session to have my hair done for the day.  I will be getting a trim this coming weekend to tidy it up and may be re-dyeing it 'darkest chocolate' so it doesn't look tired and dull. I haven't settled on the exact style yet but it will probably be an updo of some type :)

Nails:
Let's not forget about our nails!!! I tend to forget about these little things a lot but I'm making a real effort to have them looking nice for Formal.  I'll be keeping them well trimmed and filed and using my cuticle cream by Burts Bees to get them looking as nice as I can. I'm still deciding whether to get a new set of Gel Nails or not? I'll let you know :) Toe nails are just as important, if you're wearing a lovely pair of peep toes or sandals you want your toes looking cute so some pampering is recommended for toes too!!

Skin:
I've started to drink more water this week, the weather is warming up and I want my skin looking nice so water can be your best friend.  A once a week face mask should help out too.  Don't forget the skin on your shoulders, chest and back areas.  If you're wearing a strapless dress or even shoestring straps you're going to be showing off the skin in those areas so try a gentle exfoliating scrub on your back and shoulders once a week.  Don't use this on your chest as the skin here is quite gentle, a cleanser on this area would probably work better and don't forget your neck :)

Get someone to help you with your back and gently massage the scrub in for you.

Tanning:
To tan or not to tan??? Now may be the right time to think about your tan, if you want a fake self tan or spray tan and have never had one before at least you have three weeks to get it right, do not leave it for the week of the event!  For spray tans try to go to a quality salon, recommendations from friends are probably good for this one. Remember some self tanners can rub off in humidity (like sweating when you dance).

If you want a real tan, remember those tan lines!!!! They are not a good look in a strapless dress so be very careful not to get sun burned! :/

Makeup:
Start looking around for ideas for your makeup.  Book your makeup appointment now if you haven't already. I'm doing my own makeup for my formal as I feel comfortable about it and if you are too, start trying different looks now so that you know exactly what you want on the night, write down what you use in a book so that you don't forget and even take a photo up close so that you can look at it a couple of days later and see if you still like it and that it works well in photos.  Apparently a lot of the SPF foundations don't always turn out well on film/camera so test it out! :) :)

Transport:
By now hopefully you've arranged some sort of transport for the evening.  You will need a way of getting to the event and returning. There's a lot of ways you can arrive, helicopter :), motor cycle (watch that dress hahaha), Limo, Hummer, Carriage etc... Car hire can be a bit expensive if you go alone but if you book with a group of friends it will cut the costs down drastically and you can all arrive in style together, remember to allow and confirm time for photos before your formal if you want them.  Getting home or to an afterparty etc doesn't need to be as fancy, just be sure to have a safe and reliable ride to get you where you need to go and tell your parents or family exactly where you will be for safety's sake!!! You may want to change out of your formal clothes before partying on so they don't get ruined so arrange some extra clothes for this.

Ok, so this is like my 'Three Week's to Go' list of things to get organised, join me next week and see if I got them done and what still needs to be done!!!! :)