August Favourites, 2012

August have been a fairly average month for me. When I When I say it was average I don't mean it was bad, I just mean nothing momentous happened (well, that I can remember..). I've been getting stuck into a couple of assignments lately, meaning I haven't had as much time for friends, which isn't fun. I guess the silver lining is that it's all over at the end of this semester. YAY!

Anyway, I'm sure you all don't care about my fun life. Let's get into my beauty favourites! I haven't tried many products this semester, so I'm actually surprised with the number of products I managed to rustle up. 

Ulta3 Pretty Pastels Spring 2012 Collection

At the start of August I received a very exciting package in the mail, Ulta3's Pretty Pastels Spring 2012 nail polish collection. This package was a total surprise to me and, as I'm sure you can imagine, very exciting! 

"Pastel hues, from sweet pale pinks to sky blues, make nails look feminine, clean and fun, and they perfectly complement a glowing spring tan. Update your nail wardrobe with the prettiest of pastels! The versatile new nail shades are the ultimate fashion accessory this spring and summer" 

- Ulta3 Spring/Summer 2012 Pretty Pastels press release

SOURCE
Left to Right: Corsican Rose, Soft Hydrangea, Pink Peony,
Lilac Bloom, Pale Dahlia and Orange Blossom

Saucy Sweethearts GIVEAWAY!

On Saturday I uploaded a haul featuring all the fantastic products I received from Saucy Sweethearts (to read the post, click here). As always, I was so excited to receive these products and looking forward to giving everything a try, however I decided  that it was only fair for me to share some of the goodies with you all. 

Sounds fair, don't you think? Let's get into it!

Left to Right: Grumpy Girl Body Spray in Lick Me All Over,  Cleanse Your Soul 3-in-1 Body
Bubbles in Black Raspberry Vanilla and Grumpy Girl Foaming Sugar Scrub in Aye Carumbai

I will be giving away the following products - 

• Grumpy Girl Body Spray in Lick Me All Over: Cantaloupe, raspberries, kumquats and grapefruit infused with violets and jasmine 
• Cleanse Your Soul 3-in-1 Body Bubbles in Black Raspberry Vanilla: Tart berry scent with just enough vanilla 
• Grumpy Girl Foaming Sugar Scrub in Aye Carumbai: Margarita lovers won't believe how true this scent is to the refreshing salty-lime tequila drink that brings us so much joy 

Goodbye, Black Nail Polish

In October I uploaded a Nail Polish Collection post. As I said in the post, I'm pretty boring when it comes to nail polishes and I like to stick to neutrals, purely because I find that they go with everything.

I've always been one for black nail polish. I find it works well with every outfit and, to be honest, I don't think it looks that bad as it starts to chip. It all adds to the look, right? Lately, however, I've been making a conscious effort to try to be more creative with my nail polishes and, as much as it pains me to say it, I love bright nail polishes! Who'da thunk it? 

Saucy Sweethearts Haul

Yesterday I received a fantastic parcel from Saucy Sweethearts, an online store established in Western Australia. I was lucky enough to be a sent a number products to review and I can't wait to share it all with you!

"At Saucy Sweethearts we love celebrating women! Women are such a diverse sex and each one of us deserves to be able to feel, look and smell fantastic whether you're heading out on the town with your girls or having a lovely night in pampering yourself. 

Our goal is to provide you with the most amazing bath, body, cosmetics and hair care products we can get our hands on without you having to pay an extortionate amount of postage."

- Saucy Sweethearts 

Lust Have It! August, 2012

Today my August Lust Have It! pack arrived, as well as some eyelashes I'd bought on eBay and a very exciting package from a company (stay tuned tomorrow). 

This months pack was a beautifully wrapped white box with black ribbon to celebrate their first birthday. The box was a lot larger than I'm used to, but it had some great products in it. In case you're wondering, I got the Fun and Flirty pack. Well, I think I did. The top of the information card says 'Fun and Flirty July Lust Haves' and it's August.. 

I only received this box today, so I'm unable to review the products. Instead, I'll type out the information provided to me so you're able to get some insight into the items. If possible, I'll also include my initial thoughts.

UPDATED Foundation Routine

Four months I uploaded my first Foundation Routine video to YouTube four months and, since then, a lot has changed. I decided to film an updated routine last weekend. Once again, I have included the video in this post but I will also give a little overview below!

Bellabox August, 2012

I came home today to find my August Bellabox waiting for me. YAY! Much like July's box, this month's box was full of fantastic treats for the face, body and hair. As far as the number of products per box goes, Bellabox seems to be leading the competition!

As you can see from the photo above, this month's box was packaged in a box once more. The contents of last month's box came in a small blue make up bag last month and, although I like the bags from Lust Have It!, this one was far too small to be practical. 

I only received this box today, so I'm unable to review the products. Instead, I'll type out the information provided to me so you're able to get some insight into the items. If possible, I'll also include my initial thoughts.

Essence 'Rebels' Trend Edition Giveaway WINNER

As with all giveaways, this is the most exciting part for me - Announcing the winner. This competition had 28 fantastic entries and, as always, I've loved reading what everyone thought of the Essence Rebels Trend Edition, especially after seeing my swatches and review. 

For reviews and swatches of the entire trend edition, click here. The Rebels Trend Edition will be available from September and I highly urge people to check it out, there are some fantastic products!

And now, let's get into announcing the winner

And the winner issssssssssssss...

Tahlia Stewart!

"I'm not so much a fan of the mascara only because I usually go for volume over length. Buuuuuut, I really love the idea of a cheek and lip two in one product because I have soooo many things I carry around with me all day in case I need to touch up and if this means I can eliminate one of these things, I'm all for it! I really like the mauve shade. I think I'm too pale to pull of the rebel delight neutral shade The nail polish shades are really different! I used to be so boring with my nail polish and recently I've been trying lots of different things. I loooooove the cracked look!! And I would LOVE to experiment with those colours too! :D x"

Congratulations, Tahlia. Wow, after reading your super long entry, you totally deserved to win! Please email me at dontstopbuying@hotmail.com, to organise the postage of your prize. If unclaimed within the 48 hours, a new winner will be announced. 

Thanks again to everyone who entered the competition, I always love reading your answers! I love having giveaways, as I'm sure you know, so don't forget to check back regularly. 

Always look your best,

Sophie

x

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SPOT GIVEAWAY

Hey, everyone, head over to Born to Buy's Official Facebook page for a spot giveaway which will be announced soon! 

Click here to enter my Essence Trend Edition nail giveaway!

Always look your best,

Sophie

x

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First Impression: Bourjois 1, 2, 3 Perfect Foundation

Today I bought the Bourjois 1, 2, 3 Perfect Foundation from Priceline using my $10 off all Bourjois offer (to view and print this, click here). This foundation is sold at Priceline for $32.00 but, using my $10.00 off voucher, I bought it for $22.00.

Initially I was going to buy the Bourjois Healthy Mix Foundation, but I saw this was a new release and decided to give this a try instead.

The 1, 2, 3, Perfect Foundation has three colour correcting pigments -

• Yellow pigments: To conceal dark circles
• Mauve pigments: To correct dullness and boost radiance
• Green pigments: To neutralise skintone for an even complexion

Being one with slightly red cheeks, I like the sound of this. I also like the way it's meant to boost radiance. Every girl needs that, right? 

I applied this foundation for the first time this afternoon and, although I'm happy with it, it's hard to review it after only wearing it 15 minutes. 

Left to right: Before and after

This product applied well and went on very smooth with my Sigma F80 Flat Top Kabuki brush (click here for the review). I found, however, that it didn't conceal the redness on my cheeks, even when I added extra product and focused it on that area. I tried both stippling and circular motions, but nothing seemed to even out the colouring.

What's Your Make Up Style? TAG!

I love doing and reading TAG posts. They're a great way of getting to know some of the people whose blogs you read and, well, it's a fun to read people's answers (click here for my This Or That TAG and here for my Seven Deadly Sins of Beauty TAG). 

I saw this tag on Beauty In a Bottle's blog and, although I wasn't tagged, I decided to do it anyway.

As you can see from the title, this is called the What's Your Make Up Style? TAG. Let's get into it!

1. EEK! You've got five minutes to do your make up for a date. What's your minimum?

Far out. Talk about leaving things 'til the last minute. Although my skin has drastically improved, I sometimes still have the bad skin mindset, so I'd definitely want to apply my foundation. It would probably be foundation, powder, slight contouring, blush with a cheek and lip pot (probably my Essence Cheek and Lip Pot or my MAC Casual Colour), Paint Pot, mascara and lip colour from the cheek and lip pot.

2. Pick a trend - crazy cat eyeliner, super hot pink blush or feathered false lashes? 

Is this for everyday wear or going out? If it's for everyday wear I'd have to go with the Crazy Cat Eyeliner. If it's for the occasional night out, why not be creative and get your false lash on?

3. If you had to either give up all makeup for two months or give up your skincare for a week, which would you pick? 

Giving up skincare for a week. Why? Firstly, make up can do a lot to hide bad skin. Also, I'm really happy with my skincare routine now so, even if I was without it for a week, I'm sure it'd clear up the nastiness of the week.

Sigma F80 Flat Top Kabuki Review

The Sigma F80 Flat Top Kabuki Brush is one that everyone talks about. It's all over YouTube, reviewed everywhere and loved by all. In February (see my haul) I purchased two brushes from the Sigmax line from Sigma. These brushes are created with Sigmax fibers and are designed to apply powder, cream and liquid products without absorbing most of the product in the bristles.

Deciding which brush I wanted to buy from the collection was difficult as there's five. Although they're all very much the same, their shapes are very different and they all work well for different people and purposes. In the end I decided on the F80 purely because it seemed the safest.

For me, this brush was love at first use. Using this brush made foundation application so effortless and flawless, especially after using my hands for so long (previously I'd never found a brush I liked). 

Belated Kit Cosmetics Haul!

After hitting up LUSH on July 21 (click here to read about LUSH's Emotional Brilliance products), I also headed to MYER to pick up a few products that I was running out of. 

Before I continue, however, let me apologise for the delay in uploading this! If you read my Dilemma! post, you'll know that I was having difficulties uploading photos to my blog so I took some time to try and figure it all out. I'm now back and I have a lot of time to make up for, so stay tuned!

Anyway, as much as I like to look around the beauty section of MYER, I headed straight to the Kit Cosmetics counter. Although I was in the Perth and there is a Kit Cosmetics store nearby, I choose to buy my products from the MYER Kit counter as I am able to redeem MyerOne points. Surely lots of people do this, right?

Angry Eyebrows

So, everyone, I'm in a bit of a pickle and I'd love some help/advice. Why? Because I have very angry eyebrows. Two out of the last three times I've had my eyebrows waxed (gotta get rid of the monobrow somehow, right?) the skin that has been waxed has broken out. Can anyone help?

Left eye/eyebrow
Please excuse the quality, was taken on my iPhone

On Sunday, August 5, I had the top and bottom of my brows waxed, as well as the middle, and it's happened again! Although I have the whole area waxed, the top and bottom seems to be where the biggest break out it.

Essence 'Rebels' Trend Edition Giveaway

In June I was sent a beautifully wrapped package from Essence, much to my surprise. This package contained the products from their Rebels Trend Edition, as well as a press release with information on the products and their release. For swatches and reviews of the products within the collection, click here.

Along with a number of make up products, I was also sent the five nail polishes that will feature in the collection.

As much as I love the colours (especially now I'm trying to be more adventurous with my nail polish), I figured it would be only fair for me to share some of the goodies with you all.

So, without that in mind, it's giveaway time!

Left to Right: #04 Rebelizer, #01 Mauve like a Rockstar, #02 Rebel Delight, 

#03 Peach Punk and Rock Coat in #01 Punk Royal

I will be giving away the following products

• Essence Latex Nail Polish in #01 Mauve like a Rockstar
• Essence Latex Nail Polish in #02 Rebel Delight
• Essence Latex Nail Polish in #03 Peach Punk
• Essence Latex Nail Polish in #04 Rebelizer
• Essence Rock Coat in #01 Runk Royal

LUSH Emotional Brilliance

LUSH. When I say (well, technically type) LUSH, what do you think of? Smelly soap, bath stuff and some skincare? Is that it? Well that's about to change with the launch of their new cosmetics line, Emotional Brilliance!

LUSH kept their Emotional Brilliance collection a total secret until July 21, 2012. On May 24, 2012, LUSH uploaded a cryptic YouTube video (click here to watch it), purely designed to tease hardcore fans such as myself. For two months we had no idea what the collection would involve, although there was speculations that it was this, that and everything in between!

Before I continue, no, you're not reading this wrong. I DID say June. This post is very late and I have no excuse other than laziness. Sorry! 

On July 21, I, along with my friend Amy, was up bright and early and headed into LUSH for the launch of Emotional Brilliance. My LUSH (Perth Plaza Arcade, if you're wondering) was taking bookings from 8am-10am on the 21st, providing people with an appointment with an opportunity to have one-on-one time with a Lushie (sales assistant) to get to know the product.