Beauty of the Earth EOTD/COTD

COTD?  Does Cheek of the Day even exist?

Well, in this blog it does!  :)

Ok, so first look - Peacock on the mobile lid (up to the crease) and under the eye, with Mississippi Mud in the crease, black liner on inner rim and black mascara.  These shadows are a breeze to blend, but just be warned - being a loose powder means that you really need to place the shadow where you want it, rather than brushing the shadow on.  Otherwise it will spread too far - and with dark colours it can mean starting over again.

Second - Big Ego with Wicked blended over the top.

Now for the cheek!  Obviously this is Georgia Peach...

... but what happens when I blend a little bit of Wicked over the top?

Amazing!  Not just a highlight, but it actually brings it to more of a pink rather than peach!  It did need to be buffed back, which is testament to the strong pigment.  But so easy to use.

I love blending - it's always full of surprises :)

P.S.  Oops!  Forgot to show you the gloss - I really like it!  A soft nude, but the sparkle keeps it interesting.  Super smooth and non-sticky texture, yet slightly thicker to keep it on the lip for longer.  I'm buying more for sure!

Australis Haul - Part One!

 had the pleasure of attending some makeup artist workshops run by the awesome Mandi Levanah in Sydney, which were amazing.  She willingly shared the secrets of the industry that she had to learn the hard way, and I am forever thankful for her.  She's also sparked my obsession with manicures and OPI polishes, but that wasn't hard!  So if she ever reads this - thank you so much, and I can't wait to do another workshop with you :)

As part of the workshops we got a goody bag!  Yay for freebies!  And it featured a number of Australis products, which was interesting as their low price point can often reflect poor quality.  But she swore to us that times have changed, and we'd love these products.  And, like so many other things, she was right!

First of all - Colour Inject Mineral Lipstick in Cha Cha

This was surprisingly sheer, and took a couple of coats to build up to this intensity.  This isn't a tone of red I would usually wear, but the smooth and moisturising formulation has me interested.  I think I'll keep this to mix with other colours, but I may pick up a different colour in this range. A RRP of $12.95 for such a wearable formulation is music to my (poor) ears.

Next - Perfection Brush On Lip & Cheek Tint

I've always kept clear or lip & cheek tints, as I'm naturally (too) rosy and thought they would highlight my overall redness.  But I was pleasantly surprised with this combo!  I had an English-rose flush to my cheeks and a subtle stain to my lips that was totally wearable.  Add some volumising mascara (vibrations anyone?) and I'd be ready to leave the house.  This could be my new winter look!

RRP $10.95 (bargain!)

Lucky last - Jumbo Mineral Bronzing Powder

Mandi swore we'd be surprised at this product - she claimed it was the perfect bronzer colour.  And she was totally right!  A soft bronze sheen illumnated my cheeks but in an oh-so-subtle way.  I did have to buff this colour after application to soften the edges, but that may be because it was applied straight over liquid foundation (for the smoothest result I should have powdered my face first).  And I'm not a fan of tans or bronzing, but this was a great contour that just added warmth to my cheeks.  And for RRP $19.95 for 35g of product, you get a lot of bronzing for your buck.

Check out the difference - the cheek tint is on the lips and the left cheek, the bronzer is on the right.

(gosh I look serious - makeup testing requires concentration!)

The lipstick will need some tweaking before it enters my makeup bag, but the lip/cheek tint and the bronzer are going straight to the pool room (oh, how very 'Aussie' of me!).  I always wrote off Australis as poor quality, but these products have proved me wrong.  I love it when that happens!

Next up: review of Australis brushes and a lip gloss - will the surprising results continue?  Stay tuned!