My Bedroom Tour - A little bit eclectic ...

So I recently was lucky enough to get my own room, FINALLY after 10 years of sharing with my sister I have my own bit of space! :D

I said I would never do a Room Tour before because I was always sharing my room but now that everything in it belongs to me I don't feel like I'm exposing someone else's privacy to the world, so here we go.

My room is a complete mix of things, nothing really matches or 'goes together' in the proper sense of the word but I think in the overall 'look' it all comes together very nicely and makes me feel that I'm in a place where I can be comfortable and relax.

As you enter the room you will see that on the back of my door I have a hanging rack, this is where I keep all my scarves and a pair of 'Angel Wings'. Right next to this is my collage wall where I stick random and inspirational pictures, items and quotes with a couple of photos thrown in. This wall has been with me for a couple of years now, I even moved it from my old room to here very carefully :D

The back of my door and part of the collage wall

Part of collage wall and picture wall opp door

When you look into my room on the right you will see a wooden cupboard with two doors, my dad made this a few years ago and I claimed it so that I could store my stuff in. The top shelf has baskets along the shelf that contain face products, larger pallets and perfumes. The lower shelf has two baskets, one for body products and the other for hair products. There is also space for a few boxes, my airless spray and random stuff that I don't want on display. I used to have my products on open shelves but they were getting too dusty and messy all the time so I thought putting them away was a great idea.

On top of this cupboard is my Djembe, random ornaments, paper holder and my indoor/outdoor fireplace. Above the cupboard on the wall I have artwork and photoframes.

Wooden cupboard that my dad made years ago

After the cupboard comes my makeup trolley, I got this for Christmas about two years ago from http://www.dealsdirect.com.au/ and it has served me well. It has 10 shallow drawers and two shelves and is made of metal. I've put a stationery holder from Big W on the second shelf to hold my earrings, pigments, samples etc. This shelf also holds my brushes and heat mat for my hair tools.  The top shelf is where I keep my makeup brushes and jewelry.

Next comes my tall bookshelf where you wont really find many books, hehehe :) I keep a few books and files on the high shelf and basically this whole bookshelf is full of ornaments, and boxes with stuff in them :P I try not to put too much on here and leave free space but it seems to be a drop-off centre for bits and pieces so I'm constantly moving stuff :/ The bottom two shelves have boxes that store stuff, I've used empty 'I Love It' sample boxes and a 'Glossy Box' and just glued labels on the front so I know what's in them, a large blue box holds all my wires so they don't get lost and there's a file in the corner with some school stuff I kept and information for future studies.

Makeup trolley, jewelry and bookcase

I then have my drawers under the window where I keep folded clothes. This was a thrift store find, it's a great height and the colour is nicely mellowed with age. I keep my jewerly box, ipod speaker etc here and this is also where I film my videos 90% of the time. On my window I have some deep purple floor length faux suede curtains that came from BigW.

Drawers that hold my folded clothes, leopard box for
bits and bobs, journal, jewelry box that I use the mirror when
I'm filming. Ipod speakers and other random stuff

My bed is next, it's actually my old (I'm talking really really old) bunk bed which my dad converted into a daybed for me. He made the sides and back out of wood and made them nicely curved with a cutout in the center of the back, it almost looks like a love heart. We then covered the wood with some old '1950's Home Journals' (that my mum had collected years and years ago from garage sales), covered them with a coat of clear and then painted a black strip around it and the back posts were left on so that I could hang my lights up :)

My bed has a double sided quilt on, one side has a mini-print which is showing in the photos and the other is a patchword design and there's lots of different pillows and cushions to add some colour and interest to the room. I've got my lil collection of stuffed toys too :D

Above my bed is my butterfly wall. There's an iron art piece from Target coming from the corner and then there's a fluttering of painted black butterflies across the wall. I'll have a blog post 'how to' on this very soon.

Bed converted from bunk bed with back posts left for
hanging lights

The bottom of my bed has wood going across like rails so this is where I hang my extra blanket and a quilt that I made when I was little.

There's an old guitar in the corner, more artwork on the wall, my hat and scarf hanging from a nail and a couple more butterflies before you come to my wardrobe. This is where I keep all my hanging clothes, handbags, keyboards, good shoes etc.

Wardrobe ... not very exciting ;P

Under the bed I have a box of magazines and books, a box for casual everyday shoes and a box to keep all my electrical hair appliances in.

So that's it!! hahaha I hope you enjoyed this little tour, I love the look of it especially at night when I have my fairy lights on :D To me it's a mix of things I love which makes a great, almost eclectic style bedroom, a little bit pretty, a little bit boho and indie and a lot of me. :) :)

You can see the video of the tour HERE

Lost without laptop ......

Well it seems now that I have my lovely new camera the home computer refuses to accept it's 'fancy' files and my sister had to return her laptop to school this week!!! Which leaves me with no way of uploading my video files to edit and put on youtube :( for the time being anyway!

Photo property of HP

I've ordered a new laptop which I'm really hoping will do the job well but it won't be available until sometime next week and I can only record a certain amount of footage on my camera because the files are large which means I can't pre-record too much :/ So until then I'm having a little break, thinking of new ideas for videos and twiddling my thumbs hahaha :D

The laptop I've ordered is a HP Pavilion G6-1217TU with 500GB Hard Drive and 4GB RAM which will be able to handle the files easily.  I would have loved a MAC but it's a bit out of my budget range right now as I'm saving for my course later in the year and I only just bought my new camera so I need to be cautious on what I'm spending.

* Update - I was able to pick up my laptop earlier than expected YAY!!!!!! and it's now in my hot little hands :D

DIY Exfoliating Facial Scrub

This is a really simple and cheap beauty treatment that anyone can do, I've been a little slack with my skincare lately so I'm trying out some new routines to kick off the New Year.

Did you know that Brown Sugar is a wonderful natural exfoliant that works for all skin types?

Or that the 'Coconut' is highly nutritious and rich in fiber, vitamins and minerals. It is also classified as a 'functional food' because it provides many health benefits?

Apparently the oil of the coconut has healing properties far beyond that of any other dietary oil and is used in traditional medicine among Asian and Pacific populations extensively and is considered to be the 'healthiest oil' :) 

'Coconut Oil' aids in exfoliating the outer layer of dead skin cells, making the skin smoother. It penetrates the deeper skin layers and helps strengthen the underlying tisues.  'Coconut Oil' goes solid in cooler temperatures and is a great staple to have around, you can use it to shave and to deep condition the tips of your hair and also to remove your makeup. It is also really yummy in your salads and smoothies (just don't use too much). Coconut Oil is a wonderful moisturiser on it's own for your whole body, the trick is to remember that 'a little goes a long way'

Ingredients:

*  1 tablespjoon Brown Sugar

*  approx 1 tsp (more or less, add drops if you need them) of Coconut Oil

Preparation:

Put the brown sugar in the palm of your hand

Add the Coconut Oil

Stir in your palm with your finger or spoon creating a paste (not too thin)

Add more oil or sugar if needed

Massage into clean skin in a circular motion

Rinse off with warm water

Apply a warm (but not hot) washcloth to your face and massage gently for about 2 mins

Moisturise with your favourite moisturiser :)

If you don't have Coconut Oil you can substitute for Cold Pressed Olive Oil instead but just remember that Olive Oil is much thicker than Coconut Oil and is not such a good idea for oily skin.

GIVEAWAY - Circle Lenses from Shoppingholics.com

Shoppingholics.com have kindly provided a Giveaway to one of my subscribers on YouTube. They will give one person a set of Circle Lens to their prescription and in a style of their choice.

To enter go HERE and simply watch the video and follow the instructions in the butt bar (description box)! :D

Good luck, Giveaway will end on 18th January, 2012 (aussie time)

Fynale 'May Rose' Circle Lenses

I was recently sent a pair of Fynale soft Circle Lenses from Shoppingholics.com in the ‘May Rose’ style that you can see HERE

As this was my very first time using any sort of Contact Lens I can only give a review from that point of view. When the package first arrived I followed the instructions and carefully opened the secure containers that the lenses were in, being careful not to cut myself. I rinsed and cleaned my animal lens holder and filled with contact solution and then put the lenses in there.

After about 12 hours I attempted to place the lens in my eye with no luck, it just wouldn’t go where I wanted, hehehe. Case rinsed and cleaned again I put them aside to try another day.

Many days passed and then a few weeks!!!! Ooooops! Before I came around to trying them once again :) This time I was determined to get those things in my eyes but of course I had to re-rinse and clean the solution and case properly and let them sit before I could :/

Ok, so finally I’m trying my lenses again :D This time with eye drops in and steely determination I begin. It was so funny, they would go everywhere but in my eyes, they sat so prettily on my lashes, daintily on my cheeks and even precariously on my mirror …… don’t ask ….. hahahaha

So after about 30 minutes I managed to get the first one in, YAYYYYY!!!! Strangely enough the second one went in pretty much straight away after that.

They felt weird at first which I’m sure is normal for someone’s first time using them. My eyes seemed a little blurry but not so much that I couldn’t read or anything. My prescription was 0.0 as I don’t need glasses for anything.

Cirlce lens are supposed to make your eyeball appear larger than it is but I didn’t really see this, I have large eyes to begin with so that’s probably why, it was fun to see my eyes a different colour and the flower effect the lenses give was really cool.

I probably left them in for about 2 hours which I think was long enough for my first try. They were comfortable enough and I was able to see properly while wearing them. 

Removing them was quite simple, of course the first eye took longer than the second, I tried a couple of different methods for taking them out, the first being where you pull up the top lid with one finger and pull the lower lid down with another finger and then squeeze the lids together with your other hand causing the lens to pop out, it did work but when I opened my eye the lens strangely enough reattached itself to my pupil!! Hahahaha

The second method worked better for me, opening the lids with one hand and gently pinching the lens off with the other hand using the finger pads, not the nails.

Always be careful with anything around your eyes, check with your eye doctor for your prescription and base curve before ordering any type of lens and if you are under 18 you should have your parent's permission.

The lens I used was the Korean ‘May Rose’ Fynale Circle Lens with a 15.0mm diameter and 8.6mm base curve. It has 42% water content so you need to be sure to use eyedrops or solution with them.

Photo curtesy of Shoppingholics.com

My final opinion on these lenses is that they are a fun accessory to try out, I would not want to be wearing them often but I can definitely see the attraction.

I found Shoppingholics.com to be very helpful and their service was good, their pictures on the site are pretty true to life so I wasn’t disappointed with what I received. They do provide a very cute animal lens case with each set of lenses and the packaging is also really lovely.

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