A Mini American Beauty Haul

Hello again!

I think I am finally (after being home for a week) settling back into some sort of normal again, which includes getting back into my blog!

If you guys didn't know, I was lucky enough to jetset around the states for 4 weeks with my boyfriend on one hell of a holiday!

I have been dying to try out all of my new beauty goodies I purchased on holidays, but wanted to leave it until I could grab some snaps! #bloglife

I really didn't buy a whole lot this trip for a couple of reasons.
1. I have a LOT of makeup already that I don't really use/have occasions to wear/ forget is there and
2. The exchange rate absolutely sucked this time around. Stuff that is normally cheap in America was either more expensive after I converted it back into Australian dollars or around the same price that I could grab it back home.

I did however grab a few pieces that I couldn't get back here in Oz or that were still cheaper after working out the AUD pricing.

Lets start with the pieces from Bath and Body Works. These bits are hard to come by in Australia, however you can grab selected bits from Bath Body and Home.
I picked up 3 travel sized products as they had a promo going, plus they're just easier to cart around. The first is the Velvet Sugar fragrance mist. I had purchased the body wash from Bath Body and Home a while back. This smells SO nice! super sweet. It reminds me of those red love heart lollipops I used to get as a kid!! (who else remembers those??)
I also got the Warm Vanilla Sugar scented body wash and lotion. A lovely sweet but subtle scent.
Then last but not least the hand sanitisers. I love that Bath and Body Works make so many different scents. It's nice not to have to smell so antibacterial after you sanitise your hands. I got the scents Cosy Vanilla Cream and Berry Scary.

Next up are the bits I purchased from Walmart. This is where I found things were still a fair bit cheaper than home and a couple items I hadn't seen in our stores yet.
I got the L'Oreal Miss Manga Rock waterproof mascara in Blackest Black. I had heard good things about the regular Miss Manga mascaras and these were only like $7 USD.
I also grabbed the L'Oreal La Lacque lip crayon in the colour 203 Lacquerized. A glossy fire engine red.
I picked a Milani Powder Blush in the colour Romantic Rose. The picture doesn't really show its true colour but its a lovely dusky rose.
I stocked up on some more Vaseline Lip Therapy Pots. This one is the cocoa butter scent. If you follow me on instagram (@eclecticclash) you would have seen me raving about the creme brûlée flavour.
The last one I'm really excited to try! The Jergens Wet Skin Moisturiser with added coconut oil. If you're a coconut scent fan, you will love this. Perfect for the warmer weather! (when it finally decides to make its way to Victoria...) It's a little different to the Nivea after shower lotion as you don't have to rinse the Jergens lotion off. Just shower, turn off the water, apply to wet skin then pat dry. Sounds really great to me!

Finally I have the bits I grabbed for myself from Sephora. Let me tell you I restrained myself HARD in this store. I wanted everything! I did however grab mainly Kat Von D things as you just can't get them in Australia (apart from Sydney Sephora, which don't do internet orders) I am eagerly awaiting the Melbourne grand opening. This girl will take the day off work if she has to to be there! #eagerbeaver
I purchased one of her new Everlasting Liquid Lipsticks in the colour Outlaw a beautiful traditional blue based red. I could have lashed out and bought majority of the colours available, something for everyone. These are my favourite kinds of lipsticks. Matte and SUPER long-lasting. The swatches on my hand lasted all day long. Perfect for a night out!
I also got a regular Studded Kiss Lipstick in the colour Motorhead. It's a gorgeous matte wine/plum/burgundy red/purple it transfers a lot lighter than the colour of the bullet.

Now I knew before I left home that I wanted to get a Kat Von D Tattoo Liner. This is a lot of YouTuber/bloggers fave liner on the market. BUT! There is a new kid on the block. The Ink! Liner. I thought when I picked it up that it was the same thing but I asked the lady working there at the time if there was any difference and she swatched them together.
This new ink liner is SO much more pigmented than the tattoo liner and it literally does not budge. I can definitely see the hype about her products.

Now this last one was a bit of a splurge for me. I'm not normally a big spender when it comes to makeup. I like my drugstore products but I just had to come home with a Naked Palette. After much deliberation on which one I would get I settled with Naked 2 as i thought I'd get the most wear out of those colours.

And that was my little haul! Very paired back for someone like myself but I'm really happy with all my bits. Besides, this trip was more about just getting away and enjoying each others company and the locations (and lets be honest, THE FOOD) than spending all my money on things I really didn't need.

Let me know if you've tried any of the above or if there's other things you'd like to recommend!

Xx

My Long Haul Flight Beauty Essentials.

EEEEP! It's almost that time to start packing my stuff for my trip away!! SO excited but also a little nervy. Im not really sure why I get like I do, but I freak out that I'm going to forget to do something before I leave or leave something important at home. #neurotic

This post is all about what I plan to take in my hand luggage to keep my skin in check mid flight!

As I've spoken about in my previous post, long haul flights wreak havoc on the skin. All of that recycled air drying everything out.

The following are items I hope are going to keep my skin calm and refreshed on my long ass trip to New York City!

1. Formula 10.0.6 Clarifying Facial Wipes - $6.99AUD
Perfect for taking off any makeup or just for a nice refresh after a nap.

2. Antipodes Night Replenish Serum - $58.99AUD
A beautiful serum to put some moisture back into your skin after a cleanse.

3. Maybelline Baby Lips - $3.95AUD
There's really nothing worse than dry lips in my books. Especially when you have nothing to put on them. I once resorted to hand cream at work because I'd left my lip balm at home. (Don't recommend that by the way) These lip balms would have to be my absolute favourite. No touching the balm involved so no germ spreading. They also smell amazing! Mango Pie, Anti-Oxident Berry and Lychee Addict (pictured) are my faves!

4. Rosken Intensive Moisture Hand Cream - $3.99AUD
I got this hand cream as a freebie in a gift bag from Priceline and I really enjoy it. It doesn't soak in super quick but it is for "very dry hands" It has a lovely subtle scent and will be perfect for the plane.

5. Avene Thermal Spring Water - $9.99AUD
I love this stuff on flights or on really hot days to refresh your skin. Spritz it on over makeup or on a fresh face as a toner.

6. Antipodes Avocado Pear Nourishing Night Cream - $52.99AUD
This is my current love and will be used on the daily over my trip. It is super nourishing and hydrating and I will be lathering this on after take off.

7. Jessica Simpson Fancy Rollerball 15ml (part of a gift pack) - $39.00AUD
This little rollerball is part of a gift pack and would have to be my favourite scent and one i wear on a daily basis. The 100ml bottle will be travelling in my main bag. No being stinky for me!

So those are my main squeezes for my carry on. Is there anything you think I might be missing?
Let me know!

Xx

Product Review || Maybelline Color Drama Lip Pencils

It's another lip product review! This time I've got the Maybelline Color Drama Lip Pencil.

These are apparently a great dupe for the NARS Velvet Lip Pencils, although I will have to take their word for it as I don't own any.

I really love these lip pencils. They are SUPER pigmented, silky smooth to apply and I didn't find they bled either! Score!

Being a pencil lippy, some people don't like to have to sharpen them and would prefer a wind up. I on the other hand don't mind. I think with a pigmented stick like this, it's easier to have a sharper edge to get to the edges of the lip better. (Colour in between the lines)

I am a big red lip girl, so of course I had to buy the two reds in the collection. Red Essential, what I class as the classic red lip. Lovely and rich with a blue undertone, perfect on any skin type. The other is Light It Up, a bright fire engine red.

The other two colours were a little out of my comfort zone but I loved the swatches, so I took a chance and I'm glad I did!

In With Coral is the most out there one for me. A bright pinky coral, it was a little harder to get a smooth even coverage with this one and I could see it getting a little patchy quicker than the others, but I really love the colour. I think the trick with this one is to have really well prepped lips and apply a little lip balm on beforehand.

The other is called Pink So Chic. A gorgeous dark dusky pink, again something I normally wouldn't gravitate towards but I loved the swatch. This is probably the easiest colour to wear every day, I found it a little less matte than the others which I liked, it felt more like a moisturising lipstick than a matte lippy.

I would highly recommend these to anybody who will stop and listen and I will definitely be out to (more likely than not) buy the rest of the collection.

I was lucky enough to score mine half price at a Chemist Warehouse sale, but on the regular they're only $9.95!

Available from the usual haunts, Priceline, Chemist Warehouse, Kmart and some Coles and Woolies!
(Priceline have actually got these on sale right now as we speak for $5.95!) Run, don't walk... Click here to shop!

I'd love to know what you think about these! Leave me a note below about which colour you think I should get next!

Xx

Product Review || Rimmel Oh My Gloss!

A new kid on the block... Today I have the shiny new Rimmel Oh My Gloss! lip gloss.

Being a mine worker 6 days a week, I'm normally more of a Chapstick/Maybelline Baby Lips type of gal, but when these pretty little things showed up in my mailbox I was more than willing to give them a test run.

I don't own too many glassy lip lacquer type glosses as I find they're always too thick and super sticky. The Oh My Gloss! range is surprisingly smooth and glides on like a dream, making it a lovely everyday staple.
It's formulated with Argan oil and vitamin E leaving a silky soft feel on your kisser!

On their own the glosses deliver a nice sheer colour, nothing too out there for those who aren't into a bold lip.

They claim to deliver 6 hours of colour and shine, I wouldn't say they lasted that long on me, but I found the gloss to have hung around even after eating and a few glasses of wine! #winning

They have a nice doe foot applicator and I love the tubes sexy curves! Very sleek.

With a range of pinks, reds, mauves, nudes and a clear gloss, there's something for everybody!
I have been grabbing the clear gloss to layer on top of my matte lipsticks, turning them into super pretty wet look glossy brights! Sometimes it's just nice to be able to smoosh your lips together without the grip from a matte lip!

There are 8 colours to choose from in the line and they sell for $13.95AUD. 

Available from all of the usual haunts. Priceline, Chemist Warehouse, Target, Kmart and selected Coles and Woolworths supermarkets.

The three I received were the Crystal Clear, a red called Ooh La La (left) and a sparkly pinky nude called Love Bug (right).

The only slight negative for me about the gloss would be the scent. It doesn't have one. A nice peppermint or vanilla smell to it would have made it a bit more appealing to me, although this might be a bonus for some.  

Well, do I recommend these I hear you all asking? Yes! Perfect for an everyday casual look, great to add some sparkle over the top of lipsticks, or for those days you just want a sheer wash of colour. 

Definitely worth a swatch next time you're browsing the makeup isles. 

Let me know if you have tried these out and what you thought down below!

Xx

Product Review || Iluka Nourish cream cleanser.

I'm finally starting to realise that I no longer need "blemish control/acne fighting" cleansers or "oil free" moisturisers in my life.

Having now entered the "late 20's" age bracket, my skin is a changin' and I have had to go in search of a new cleanser that didn't strip my face of all its natural oils and leave it feeling tight and dried up.

I made a v-line to my local Priceline for a wander around and stumbled across the new Iluka range by Natalie Imbruglia. It's a gorgeous, all natural skincare line that is 100% Australian made. A big plus in my book. It's also paraben/sulphate free and there is most importantly no testing on animals!

The packaging was definitely eye catching sitting on the shelf, I think it has a high end look.

I wanted to try out a cream cleanser as they are a lot more hydrating on the skin. 

This particular one is beautiful! A nice subtle smell, not at all overwhelming. It was a little different to use than a foaming cleanser. This doesn't foam but it does feel great on the skin. It doesn't sting the eyes and once washed off, it doesn't leave any oily residue and my face still has that lovely washed fresh feeling.

I am yet to use it to see if it is any good at taking off makeup (I love my Body Shop Camomile cleansing butter for makeup removal) but as my morning wake me up... It. Is. Love.

The Iluka range carries everything from day/night/eye creams, cleansers, toners, exfoliators, oils, a primer and a lip care product.

I am definitely keen to try out the day and night cream and the eye serum.

If this one cleanser is anything to go by, they will be making a regular appearance on my bathroom vanity. 

Xx

The Christmas Gift Guide Trilogy || Part One. Stocking Fillers for him and her

It's closing in on that time of year again! December 1st marks the countdown to the family feasts, drinking far too much punch and the best part... Opening presents!

To help you get organised for this festive season, I have decided to make things a little bit easier for you all by putting together a Christmas gift guide!

Part One is all about the stocking fillers (gifts under $40)

First up is for the ladies!

1. Poptastic Gift. Lush. $11.95AUD
A cute little box from Lush with 2 bath bombs inside. Perfect for anyone who loves bath time.

2. High Roller Beauty Case. Cotton On. $16.95AUD
Great for any sisters, besties or makeup addicts, a handy travel beauty case with a fun print.

3. Rimmel Brit Kit. Target. $20.00AUD
An awesome gift pack from Rimmel. A black mascara, taupe coloured eyeliner, a sexy red lipstick and a black glitter nail polish. Definitely a bag of classics and one I will be putting on my Christmas list.

4. Paddywax Relish Sweet Cream & Honey Candle. Myer $14.99AUD
Everybody loves a candle don't they? Sweet cream and honey sounds divine and the mason jar just tops off the cuteness level for me.

5. Squared Studs. Cotton On. $6.95AUD
Cute coloured studs, perfect for the party girls.

6. Coconut Gift Cube. The Body Shop. $9.95AUD
A perfect secret Santa gift or for the girls who love their bath and beauty products. The body shop coconut scent is to die for. This little pack comes with a shower cream and body milk with a super soft loofa. Also comes in shea, wild argan oil, mango and strawberry scents.

7. Ashdene Over the Hedgerow Fox Mug. Myer. $14.95AUD
I'm a tea drinker. So therefore I have a bit of a thing for collecting tea cups. These are beautiful. With four different woodland animals to collect, these would make a great gift for anyone who likes their hot drinks.

8. Fred Drinkup Babushka Carafe. Myer. $24.95AUD
Another fun Kris Kringle gift. I own one of these and it lives on my bedside table. Perfect for having a drink before bed and with the top lid/drinking glass on top it stops all of the dust getting in there.

9. Peace Hand Ring Holder. Sportsgirl. $16.95
A super fun gift for your friends. I'd be stoked to unwrap this one on Christmas Day.




Now for the men in your lives.

1. Tommy Snapback. Cotton On. $9.95AUD
I think most guys would be happy with this hat. A simple design that would suit a range of dudes.

2. Cafe Racer Workshop Water Bottle. Myer. $39.95AUD
Something for the motorbike lovers out there. A cool drink bottle they can take to work or use while out in the working on their "man stuff"

3. Lonely Planet You Only Live Once 1st Edition. Myer. $29.99AUD
A cool book written by the lonely planet full of "bucket list" places to see and ideas to reignite the old passions from wanting to learn an instrument or a language. A bit of an eclectic mix of places and things everybody should try at least once. A super fun gift for anyone!

4. Selfie Scope. Cotton On. $19.95AUD
One word. FUN!! A cool gift for those boys who like a good gadget for their phones. An awesome way to get some good group pics or videos. Comes with a bluetooth shutter remote. Even I would like one of these!

5. Pac Man Magnets. Myer $12.95AUD
The retro resurgence is still going strong. People young and old love and know of Pac Man. I think these are a cool stocking filler.

6. Fred Mr Tea Man Infuser. Myer $12.95AUD
Again with the tea. This time a fun infuser for the guys in your life to make tea fun.

7. 50 Fifty Space Invaders Colour Changing Mug. Myer $19.95AUD
Another fun retro gift for the arcade games playing boy. A cool Space Invaders mug that changes as you fill it with hot water.

8. Bailey Case. Cotton On. $12.95AUD
A cool case for your guy to keep his shaving gear or toiletries in.



And that concludes part one of my Christmas gift guide trilogy. I hope it has sparked some ideas for your Christmas shopping adventures. Stay tuned for part 2...

Xx

Review || Zoella Beauty Range.

Another review!

I'm sure anyone who is into the blogging and YouTube world is familiar with Zoella and her new range of products. If not, check out her blog here and her YouTube channel here.

So when they were released on feelunique.com I of course put my order in. 

There are 7 pieces in the range. 

2 makeup/pencil cases, the bath bomb, body lotion, shower/bath gel, a fragrance mist and a candle.

The candle and fragrance were what I was interested in most but they were sold out of the candles and they won't post the fragrance overseas.

The 3 pieces I did get were the Creamy Madly Dreamy Body Lotion, the Fizz Bar and the Soak Opera Bath Soak And Shower Cream.

All 3 products have the same scent. A sweet, floral, musk smell. Not overpowering but very feminine and pretty. I love the packaging design. The bright pinks and gold with polka dots and lace is definitely something that I would gravitate towards in stores.

The body lotion is lovely, it doesn't leave your skin feeling greasy. The bath fizz block is something that is one of a kind in the way it is shaped. It looks like a chocolate bar with 8 squares inside that you can break up and put into your bath. It's nice to be able to get more than one use out of it rather than the regular one use round bath bombs. The shower cream/bath soak makes great bubbles in the bath and lathers up lovely in the shower and leaves you smelling of the fragrance afterwards which is nice.

Overall I think the range is really great! It caters for her younger tween audience as well as people like me in their mid to late 20's. They are super affordable too. Each item was around the $10AUD mark. 

Definitely worth a try if you're in the market for some nice bath products, or also a lovely Christmas present for any ladies in your life. I even think my Mum would enjoy these.

Xx

Review || Palmers Coconut Oil Formula Deep Conditioning Protein Pack

Hello lovelies!

Today I thought I would do a product review! The Palmers coconut oil formula deep conditioning protein packs. (quite the mouthful)

Palmers has been around in Australia since 1997 with the arrival of the popular Palmers cocoa butter.
Today, there is a whole range of products for the body, face, hair, bath products and something for mother and baby.

I purchased the protein packs a while back on Catch Of The Day, purely because it was around $10 for a box of 10 and I figured they would smell amazing as I love coconut and I love the smell of their cocoa butter.
I wasn't disappointed.

These little morsels of coconutty yums left my hair SOO soft!

It says on the back of the packet it restores hair that has been severely damaged by sun, styling, colouring or processing.
With pure coconut oil and vitamin E this combo penetrates deeper for when you need a little more from your conditioning treatment.

It also claims that because of the small molecular structure of coconut oil, this treatment will be able to penetrate deeper into the hair and strengthen the follicles to protect hair growth.
It replaces the natural proteins that have been stripped from damaged hair and delivers maximum hydration.

MASSIVE ticks in my book.

I have colour treated hair that very rarely gets covered by a hat and also gets the odd heat treatment around once a week, so this really was screaming at me to try it.

So after shampooing the hair and rinsing, you run this goodness all through your luscious locks and leave for 10-20 minutes.
Now normally I ain't got time for thaaaat, so I make sure hair wash is the first thing I do when I get in the shower so the treatment gets a good 5 minutes in my hair to work its magic, otherwise I wait until I feel like a bath then I will let it soak while I catch up on one of my trashy TV shows on my laptop!

Rinse well and voila! You are done and you now own the worlds most softest hair.

Now for the extra details.

These are 60g packets and I definitely suggest using only half of the packet. I used a whole one first up and found it was just way too much.

I didn't find it weighed down my hair at all or left it greasy and the smell lasts for AGES in your hair which I really loved.

It's recommended you use them once a week with the Palmers Coconut Oil Formula Shampoo and Conditioner which you can find here.

I think after using the protein packs I will give the shampoo and conditioner a try. If they smell the same I'll be super happy!

Now, I'm not sure why but I can't seem to find these in store anywhere, but did find an online stockist. If you're interested in trying these out, click here.

Let me know in the comments what your favourite hair mask is!

Until next time.

Xx

My Top Fragrance List || Priceline's 40% Off Fragrance Sale

Priceline!! You're still on the massive sale bandwagon. This time it's 40% off all fragrance! For 2 days only. Tuesday 26th and Wednesday 27th August. I'm super excited about this one as I am quite possibly the worlds biggest perfume hoarder...

So, I'm going to share with you my top picks that already live with me and that I would definitely repurchase, plus a couple of extras that I don't yet own but would like to sniff out and maybe take home.

And here are the few I am going to suss out tomorrow and have a smell of to see if I can find myself a new fun scent for the warmer weather that is on its way.

So I hope I have given you a little bit of insight into what is out there in the fragrance world and to help you out if you are in the market for something new. Maybe there is a new signature scent for you in this mix.

Let me know if you already own any of the above or if you have any scents you think I should check out!

Xx

Top 5 Drugstore Foundations

As the name suggests I have for you today my top 5 drugstore foundations.

Now this is a little bit of a top 4 plus maybe number 6 on my list.

I'm missing the Revlon Colorstay foundation for oily/combination skin. A definite top 5 contender but I am all out at the moment and as you can see, have a few others to use up before I re-purchase.

So my number 1 fave at the moment would definitely be the Maybelline SuperStay 24HR Foundation.
My shade is Classic Ivory.
I would say a medium coverage but buildable to a full. Really creamy, easy to blend. Covers 90% of blemishes and pigmentation on my skin. I still need concealer and powder to cover the dark circles under my eyes, but I am yet to find anything that is a full blown miracle worker on those.

P.S! This foundation is currently 1/2 price at PRICELINE Right NOWS!! Normally $21.95AUD you can pick it up for $10.97AUD! Hurry though, sale ends Monday August 25th.

Second would be the Rimmel Wake Me Up Foundation in the shade 100 Ivory. I love this one for the day time. It has teensy tiny little shimmery bits in it, which, when you look in the bottle you think. "Oh man, I'm going to look like I've had a fight with the illuminator" But really, they are hardly visible... Trust me, you will not look like Edward Cullen when your skin hits the sunlight...

It gives fairly decent coverage, but not too heavy. Smells pleasant enough. Contains SPF 15. Bonus! Just remember if you're going out for a night on the town, it may be wise to choose another foundation if you don't want to look like Casper the ghost in your flash photography.

Oh, also! Priceline has 25% off ALL Rimmel at the mo', so grab this baby for $14.96AUD instead of the regular $19.95AUD.

NEXT!

3rd place goes to the Bourjois Healthy Mix Foundation. Shade No53 Light Beige. I would call this a "Your Skin But Better" foundation. Smells really lovely (clearly bad at describing scents) but lovely is as good as you're going to get from me.
Again, a light to medium coverage, but definitely buildable. It claims to "leave you looking flawless for 16 hours". Not going to lie, not sure if I've ever had makeup on for that long before. No SPF in this one so a sunscreen underneath is a must. (unless you're a night owl)

Number 4 is another Maybelline must have, the Fit Me Shine-Free Foundation Stick. I have the shade 220.
I really enjoy this foundation, the fact i can just smear it over my face and blend in with my fingers or my Sigma F80 Flat Kabuki.
Feels quite oily when you first put it on but when you blend it out it dries to a powder/matt finish.

The one thing I love about the Maybelline Fit Me range is that once you find out what number you are closest to, you then just have to find the matching numbers in the concealer and powder and you have the perfect set! This also comes in a liquid foundation, but I'm yet to try.

Again, pick it up half price at Priceline until Monday peeps!

Which leaves me at the lucky last...  The Max Factor Pan Stik.
This baby is the super heavy duty bad boy you need for MAXIMUM coverage. I'm talking, goodbye freckles, goodbye redness. It really does cover a lot!

Being for normal/dry skin, I find this needs a powder to set my T-zone. Max factor do say it will leave you with a dewy finish but because I am a bit of an oily girl, I always go for a matt finish. Definitely needs a good buffing into the skin so you don't end up looking like you've got a face mask on but if you're looking for a really good cover up, this is a gem! Also smells like baby powder! Lovely!

Well, I hope you have found this a little bit useful and have maybe found another foundation you like the look of trying out.

Be sure to let me know if you have tried any of the above and also drop me a line and let me know of any others you think I should know about!

Xx