Pinkcupcake

Thank You Billy xo

2010-05-03T22:33:00.004+10:00

Two weeks ago I lost my beloved Maltese Dog Billy. I can't put into words how totally and utterly devastated I have been.

To some people Billy was just a cute white fluffy dog. To me he was the best friend I ever had, my constant companion and my Soul Mate.

Billy was brought for me, by my family, at a time when I was not expected to live for very long. I was gravely ill and the Doctors were convinced my time was up and I would not survive. Somehow this little puppy gave me the will to live and I truly believe with all my heart that he gave me the strength and the courage to fight for my life. He helped me believe in myself and believe that my life was worth fighting for.

Nine years have passed and unfortunately little Billy's heart gave in before mine did. The sense of loss I feel is almost too much to bare. However I take comfort in knowing that a part of Billy will always be with me and he also took a part of me with him.

Billy was and always will be the great love of my life. I will be getting two new little Maltese puppies by years end but they will never replace my Billy but hopefully a little bit of Billy will live on in them.

So thanks for everything Bill, Until we meet aagain my little man, Mummy loves you xo

Bath and Body Haul

2010-01-20T19:37:00.014+11:00

Yesterday after having some treatment for a nasty kidney stone I got a few presents from friends and family. Everyone knows that the Pinkster loves a bubble bath so it was hardly surprising that I received a few bath and body type gifts. How funny is it that people bring me beauty products instead of flowers when I'm sick.

Anyway just thought I would share my little haul with you and give my thoughts on the products I received. If there is anything that anyone would like me to review more thoroughly just let me know and I will happily oblige.

The Body Shop Milk Bath - This has been a firm favourite of mine for many years. I couldn't say how many tubs of this stuff I have been through but trust me it's lots! Just about every bath I ever have contains a couple of tablespoons of this white powder.

When applied to running bath water the white powder turns the water into a milky bath of bubbles. It is said to have a light fragrance but with all the other concoctions I add to my bath I seriously can't say that the smell has any significance. I find this quite moisturising and I love the creaminess it adds to the bath.

This retails at $13.95 for a 250g tub. This is excellent value for money considering the amount of product you get and The Body Shop recommends only using only 1 tablespoon per bath so 250 grams will last quite a while.

Pink Tip: Add some of your favourite bubble bath or shower gel with this to bath water to give yourself a milkshake style bath.

The Body Shop Spa Wisdom Polynesia Lime and Coconut Shower Gel - For those of you that like tropical scented products this will be right up you alley. Besides it smelling amazing it also contains rice and apricot stone which provide exfoliating properties. I have to say that this is definitely more of a shower gel than a scrub. The scrub particles are very mild and quite frankly don't provide a whole lot of exfoliation. It lathers very well and the scent is so gorgeous and uplifting.

The Spa Wisdom Coconut & Lime Shower Gel retails for $25.95 for 250ml. It's a little more expensive than The Body Shops normal line of shower gels but I really like this and will repurchase it.

Pink Tip: Decant this into a hand wash pump and leave it by the sink. It makes a gorgeous hand wash.

The Body Shop Shea Whip Body Lotion - This is one of my favourite body lotions. It is a whipped creamy light and fluffy consistency that absorbs rapidly into the skin leaving skin extremely soft, smooth and hydrated. It doesn't leave any greasy residue. I use this most mornings after my shower. It isn't scented so won't clash with any fragrance I apply.

Shea Whip Body Lotion retails for $21.95 for 250ml or $5.95 for the mini 60ml. I think this would be especially good for people with sensitive skin. I really love this lotion and it is definitely one that I use all the time. It is the perfect consistency for daytime or evening. I prefer to use a thicker body butter at night in winter but during the summer I use this a lot at night also.

I highly rate this product. It's simple but very effective. I definitely regard this as one of my top 10 body lotions.

The Body Shop Shea Shower Cream - Rich, creamy and hydrating this shower cream is luxury in a bottle. It is seriously good, lightly scented and lathers into a rich foam.

Shea Shower Cream retails for $12.95 for 250ml or $5.95 for the mini 60ml bottle.
The Body Shop Drench Sponge - This is very much like a sea sponge but is synthetically produced for environmental purposes. Upon contact with water this sponge is super soft and gives shower gels the most incredible lather. When dry the sponge becomes very hard but softens right up upon contact with water again. I love my drench sponge!

Drench Sponge retails for $16.95

Lush Grease Lightening - This gel is my new favourite zit zapper. It is a newly released Lush product containing thyme, tea tree, rosemary, witch hazel and aloe vera. It is a gel consistency and dries invisibly on the skin. It is also good for drying out any overly oily areas on your face.

Grease Lightening retails for $13.50 for a 45g bottle and comes with a handy pump.

Lily-Flame Morning Dewberry Scented Candle - As you would know from previous posts I absolutely love Lily-Flame candles. They are beautifully presented in a cute little tin and have a 35 hour burn time and throw a good scent. Lily-Flame candles are approximately $33 each. Morning Dewberry is a fresh, fruity scent.

Images Thanks To:

www.thebodyshop.com.au

www.lush.com.au

www.lilyflame.com.au

Earthquake in Haiti Crisis

2010-01-19T21:46:00.003+11:00

When things happen in the world like the devastating earthquake which has hit Haiti it really makes me assess what is truly important in life. Sure we all love our beauty products and pretty things but at this time I feel that our fellow human beings in Haiti need our financial help more than we need beauty products.

I have donated to the Haiti appeal and the Australian public have now donated over 5 million dollars I believe (besides the aid that the Federal Government has pledged). If every person in this country donated just $1 to the appeal we would raise 20 million dollars.

I know a lot of people out there are doing it tough in this economic climate but I urge everyone to give what they can. Even if you can offer love, support, prayers and spread the word it will all help.

Lets get behind the Haiti appeal, I know I hope people would do the same if disaster ever hits our country again. We got so much support when the Fires of 2009 devastated the Victorian community of Marysville and surrounds, so lets give back what we can to people who so desperately need our help in Haiti.

Fragrance

2010-01-17T22:31:00.017+11:00

I first fell in love with fragrance when I was a little girl. I remember being four or five years old and standing at my Grandmother's dresser touching all her bottles of perfume that she kept on a silver tray. She had five or six bottles and they looked so pretty and elegant just sitting there. I vividly remember three of the fragrances being Chanel No 5, Estee Lauder Youth Dew and Jean Patou's Joy.

Every time I would visit my Grandmother I would stand at her dresser hoping that she would come in and give me a spray of one of her perfumes. She usually did and then told me when I was old enough she would buy me my own special perfume. Unfortunately my Grandmother died when I was just seven years old so that promise never came to fruition but I did get given her perfumes when she passed. I still have them today but have never sprayed them since she died, I am sure by now they would smell utterly ghastly but because they were hers I keep them anyway.

This might give you some insight into how my love affair with perfume and fragrance began and why today it is still one of my most favourite things in the entire world.

Fragrance can transport me to another time and place. When I smell Estee Lauder Youth Dew, Chanel No 5 or Jean Patou's Joy I am a five year old little girl standing in my Grandma's bedroom. When I smell Ralph Lauren's Romance I think of my first kiss that I had with the love of my life. When I smell Stella McCartney's Stella I remember the day my youngest God Daughter was born. I love how a fragrance can remind you of people, times and places.

My sense of smell is probably the sense I most value out of all my senses, such is my love affair with fragrance. People think I am crazy but fragrance makes me happy and it is something that I could live without but wouldn't ever want to live without.

I started collecting perfume when I was around nineteen. It started off when I discovered a brand called Calvin Klein. I started wearing One, followed by Be, followed by Eternity. Then it just snowballed from there and literally all of my money was spent on perfume.

My perfume collection is pretty big. I am sure there are many people out there with far bigger collections but I currently have more than 600 bottles in mine. People often say to me "but doesn't it go off"? The answer is yes but the point is, I collect perfume for the bottles as much as the scent and I don't really care if a bottle spoils. It is still in my collection and if I love it that much I would simply go and buy myself a fresh bottle.

There are many perfumes in my collection that I no longer like and would never wear again but having them in my collection and just being able to look at them is like taking a walk down memory lane. To me being able to remember precious moments, silly moments and even sad moments by looking through a perfume collection is such a magical experience. It's something I wouldn't trade for anything in the world.

I am often asked what my favourite fragrance is and that is a strangely difficult question for me to answer because it is ever changing from year to year.

Here are some of my current favourites:

Jo Malone Blue Agava and Cacao Calogne

Chanel Coco Mademoiselle EDP

Jeanne Lanvin EDP

Flowerbomb EDP By Victor & Rolf

Chanel Coco Mademoiselle EDT

At Home Pedicures

2010-01-17T19:48:00.004+11:00

Sundays have became at home pedicure days of late for me much to the horror of my Podiatrist. As I am diabetic my medical professionals insist I consult a Podiatrist for all foot care issues. God forbid I ever cut my own nails or let a Beauty Therapist touch my feet (which regardless of what anyone says happens once a month every month lol).

Anyway my at home pedicures are pretty basic but I love doing them because I like my feet to look nice and feels smooth.

Step 1 - A nice foot soak for around 15 minutes in a bucket filled with warm water, a few drops of essential oil and a fizzing Lush Bath Bomb.

Step 2 - Dry off feet and attack heels with a foot file to remove any rough or hard skin. Don't be shy get in there are file the crap out of them.

Step 3 - Apply some Solar Oil to cuticles and gently push cuticles back.

Step 4 - Massage a scrub all over feet for a few minutes. Then rinse off in a bucket of water and dry off feet.

Step 5 - Apply a coat of Creative Nail Designs Super Sticky Base Coat.

Step 6 - Apply a coat of desired nail colour, allow to dry and repeat.

Step 7 - Apply a coat of either OPI's Drip Dry or Creative Nail Designs Air Dry. Allow nails to completely dry.

Step 8 - Massage a rich foot cream or body butter into feet and pop on some socks to allow the lotion to thoroughly moisturise the feet.

Nail polish colour of the week is OPI - Lincoln Park After Dark!

NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil Review

2010-01-13T20:59:00.003+11:00

NYX Jumbo Eye Pencils have became a firm favourite in my makeup collection. This is surprising because I am very much a high end cosmetics floozy and never really venture down to the lower end of the market. I am no snob but I admit there are certain brands that I always tend to gravitate toward ( hello M.A.C, Chanel, YSL, Dior, Giorgio Armani, By Terry, Nars, Stila and Co).

After hearing so many raves about these NYX Jumbo Eye Pencils on You Tube I decided I needed to try them out for myself so I ordered some online.

Nyx Jumbo Eye Pencils are, as the name suggests, big chunky pencils for eyes. They have multiple uses as cream eye shadows, eye shadow bases and eye liners.

The texture of the pencils is very smooth, soft and creamy. The colour payoff is fantastic with lots of pigment. The product blends easily and smudges well.

The only fault I can find with these pencils is that if a lid primer isn't used (eg Urban Decay Primer Potion) they will tend to crease a little bit. However I always use a lid primer and by doing so don't experience any creasing at all.

The pencils come in a wide variety of colours and the beauty of them is that they are so inexpensive that everyone can try them and the quality is great.

The Colours I have so far include:

Black Bean - Black
Iced Mocha - Shimmery Cool Chocolate
Pots & Pans - Dark Silvery Grey
Dark Brown - Dark Chocolate Brown
Milk - Creamy White
Horse Radish - Silvery Mid Green
Oyster - Light Icy Pink
Slate - Dark Grey/Purple
Lavender - Iced Lilac
Purple - Dark Purple

Overall I love these pencils. They are very easy to use and glide on like silk. I use mine as cream eye shadows or I layer powder shadows over the top (this makes the powder shadow colour pop like nobodies business).

I wouldn't advise anyone to carry these pencils around in their bags on very hot days as the pencils are so soft they will most certainly melt or break.

In case anyone is interested I purchase my NYX Jumbo Pencils in Australia from www.crushcosmetics.com.au and they cost $4.95 each. They are .5 gram in weight.

*I am not affiliated with Crush Cosmetics
Image Thanks To www.nyxcosmetics.com

Lime Crime Lipstick Review

2010-01-12T19:48:00.006+11:00

Just prior to Christmas I was overjoyed to purchase my first Lime Crime lipstick ever!

The day this arrived at my door was seriously a joyous occasion, well for me anyway, but perhaps a terrifying experience for my Postie.

Picture this:

A 32 year old woman answers the door in hot pink P.J's covered in rubber duckies to greet her friendly Postman. Postman says "I have a package please sign here". The 32 year old woman then starts shrieking and jumping up and down on the spot clapping her hands saying "Oh wow I didn't think this would get here so fast". The Postman looks puzzled and somewhat alarmed. He shoves the package into the 32 year old woman's arms and leaves before she can even sign for the package. He drives rather quickly up the driveway and disappears like a bat out of hell never to be seen since.

This Postie is apparently so traumatised he now just dumps any packages on the doorstep and doesn't even bother ringing the bell.

Anyway the point of all the excitement is that amongst other things in this package is my first ever Lime Crime Lipstick! Being a psychopathic pink loving lunatic perhaps this image will give you some insight into why I was so excited.

Now I do realise that this type of thing may not appeal to everyone but for me, a six year old girl masquerading in a 32 year old body, this lipstick packaging is the stuff that fairy floss coated dreams are made of.

Enough about the packaging, now down to the actual product. Lime Crime's Great Pink Planet Lipstick is an opaque pastel pink shade. It's texture is very rich and creamy with no shimmer or glitter particles. It is a very wearable colour and is one of my favourite lipsticks ever! This lipstick is appropriate for daytime or evening looks but as the lipstick is quite attention grabbing I prefer to wear it during the day with very basic played down eye and cheek makeup. That is quite the contradiction considering Lime Crime the brand represents bold, brash, loud, proud and out there (well in my opinion anyway).

Images Thanks To www.limecrime.com

Philosophy Red Licorice Shower Gel

2010-01-11T09:15:00.003+11:00

Lush's Snow Fairy has some tough competition! Last night I used Philosophy's Red Licorice Shower Gel for the first time and all I can say is OH MY GOD! Now Snow Fairy is quite possibly my favourite shower gel of all time (along with Philosophy's Cinnamon Buns), but gee after using this I don't know anymore.

There's something special about Philosophy's shower gels. I've never met one I didn't like. They are so rich, creamy and decadent. The scents are ridiculously good and they are simply a pure treat to use.

Philosophy says you can use their gels as shampoo, shower gel or bubble bath. I can't say I have ever used one as a shampoo but they make amazing smelling bubbles in the tub.

Red Licorice smells, well, exactly like red licorice. It reminds me of the sweet scent that wafts through the air when you open a fresh bag of strawberry licorice. I am a sweet scentaholic so this floats my boat big time. Now I must go as I need to go and find as much of this as I can on the internet and give the credit card a workout!

The Body Shop Japanese Cherry Blossom Review

2010-01-10T19:54:00.007+11:00

For my Birthday I received products from The Body Shops Japanese Cherry Blossom range. I had been sniffing these products every time I popped into The Body Shop hoping that someone might get them for my Birthday or Christmas. Okay I dropped some hints e.g leaving little notes to Santa attached to the bathroom mirror, dragging friends into The Body Shop saying "oh isn't this nice, how cool would it be to get these products for my Birthday" LOL!

Anyway just a quick review on the products I received.

I would describe The Body Shops Japanese Cherry Blossom scent as a very soft, feminine, floral fragrance. The scent is very gentle and not at all overpowering but at the same time you can still smell it lingering gently on the skin for a couple of hours after application. It is certainly not a scent that you can't smell 5 minutes after applying but it also not a scent that lasts on my skin all day either.

This might sound really strange but I adore putting this scent on at night before hopping into bed. It somehow makes me feel pretty and feminine and I love to sniff it as I read my book before going off to sleep. That's not to say that I don't enjoy wearing it during the day either but it's such a pleasant experience for me to wear this scent to bed that it has kind of became my signature bed time fragrance. So does anyone else have a bed time fragrance?

Japanese Cherry Blossom Shower Gel - This is a soap free shower gel that smells quite sweet as it lathers up in the shower. A gorgeous light pink colour, it cleans the skin and leaves a hint of fragrance behind once rinsed off.

Japanese Cherry Blossom Body Butter - I have to tell you I am a huge fan of The Body Shop's Body Butters and this one is probably my favourite scent out of all the Body Butters. I love the pale pink packaging with the black lid. I love the texture of the thick butter and it absorbs very easily into the skin without leaving any greasy residue. I tend to use the body butter on my arms, chest, tummy and back in the evenings before bed. The Body Butter makes my skin super soft and well hydrated.

Japanese Cherry Blossom Body Puree - I love this so much I just want to eat it up. It's a soft silky emulsion that the skin drinks up so quickly upon application. I prefer to use the Body Puree during the day or on my legs in the evenings. I find the Body Butters don't absorb into my legs very well so this lighter lotion is ideal. This leaves the skin deliciously scented, soft and smooth.

Japanese Cherry Blossom Ea De Toilette - This fragrance comes in a very simple but pretty 50ml bottle. The scent is quite light and contains soft floral, musk and sandalwood notes. This scent is perfect for the person who enjoys soft feminine scents which don't scream look at me to anyone within a 10 kilometer radius. It is so gentle and pretty, classy and understated. This fragrance also makes a gorgeous room and linen spray!

Eyelid Primers

2010-01-10T11:43:00.006+11:00

There really isn't anything worse than creased eye shadow on an otherwise perfectly made up face. When I think of the years I walked around with creased eye shadow it makes me cringe in horror. When I discovered eyelid primers I think it was truly one of the best things, beauty wise, that ever happened to me.

These days thanks to the magicians who invented lid primers I can apply my eye shadow with confidence knowing that at the end of the day my makeup is going to be perfectly intact until I remove it with eye makeup remover.

There are lots of different eyelid primers on the market but I have four foolproof surefire staples that I guarantee will not disappoint.

1. Urban Decay Primer Potion - This is what I refer to as my miracle cream in a tube. If I had to choose only one lid primer it would definitely be my UDPP! This light textured base ensures eye makeup will not budge until you take it off with eye makeup remover. The only fault I can find with UDPP is that the packaging is a little inconvenient. A lot of product gets stuck in the curves of the container and you have to cut open the container to remove the excess. I was shocked at how much product was still in the container because it was impossible to get out with the doe foot applicator. Once cutting open the tube you need to put your excess UDPP immediately into an airtight container otherwise it may dry out.

Too Faced Shadow Insurance - This was one of the first eyelid primers I ever used. It works just as effectively as UDPP and is packaged in a convenient tube. I find Too Faced Shadow Insurance requires a little more time to dry on the lid than UDPP but it's equally as effective. The tube packaging is very convenient as it allows you to squeeze every mere morsel of product out until it's completely empty.

Pop Beauty Eye Magnet Primer - This is another effective eye primer which comes in pen like packaging with a brush applicator. Holds eye makeup in place and prevents creasing. I prefer to put the product on my fingertips as opposed to brushing it on.

M.A.C Paint Pots - whilst not specifically an eye lid primer these pots are fantastic multipurpose products. They can be used as cream eye shadows or eye shadow bases. They are fantastic for bringing out colour intensity in powder shadows and they also ensure your eye makeup stays put all day. If you were to choose only one Paint Pot and wanted to use it only as a lid primer I would suggest Soft Ochre as it is a matte flesh toned shade.

My Favourite Eye Cream

2010-01-09T23:31:00.005+11:00

I have been on a crusade for years to find my holy grail eye cream. I have tried many different eye creams and balms from simple generic types to upmarket ones that cost hundreds of dollars. There have been eye creams that I have really enjoyed using but I had never found one that worked in a multidimensional way on things like puffiness, dark circles, effects of aging and hydration. I had certainly never found one that delivered every single thing it promised. There are so many one trick wonder creams out there it all became quite confusing.

In early 2009 my Beauty Therapist put me onto Lydia Jordane's Firming Eye Gel. I bought it and immediately saw that my puffiness disappeared quite quickly upon application. It felt cool on my skin and seemed to hydrate well. The firming eye gel is fantastic for puffiness and I keep mine in the fridge which makes it extra effective upon application.

The next time I had a facial I noticed that there was another Eye Cream in the Lydia Jordane range called Eye Lifting Cream. My Beauty Therapist advised me I didn't need it as it was for more mature skins and as I had no visible wrinkles, lines or signs of aging as yet she felt it was unwarranted. Well me being me totally defied and ignored my Beauty Therapists advice and told her I wanted the Eye Lifting Cream anyway LOL!! As it turns out purchasing the Lydia Jordane Eye Lifting Cream was the best act of defiance I ever committed.

Lydia Jordane Eye Lifting Cream is without a doubt the best eye cream I have ever used. It's hydrating, firming, lifting, de-puffing and anti-aging all in one. I had a few fine dehydration lines around my eyes (believe me they really were there) and within days they had disappeared.

I have been using this cream for almost a year now and I really wouldn't even bother looking for another. This does everything I need and you know what the best part is? It is super affordable at less than $60 Australian. The tiniest little bit goes a long way and I just love it. If you can get a sample of this I would highly recommend trying it.

Favourite Scented Candles

2010-01-09T10:49:00.014+11:00

I am a huge fan of scented candles. I have been collecting them for many years now but even though I burn them constantly my collection just seems to keep growing. As much as I tell myself I really should use what I already have before buying anymore it never seems to happen!

There's something about a gorgeous smelling candle that I just can't resist. I love the way the scent of a good quality candle will linger through the house for hours even after you have stopped burning it.

People often as me what my favourite brand of scented candles are but to be honest I don't really have one particular brand that I favour. I favour lots of different brands. As long as the candle is good quality and gives a good scent throw is all that really matters to me.

I think when it comes to buying candles you really do get what you pay for. I remember buying scented candles from discount stores that smelled great at the time but when I burned them there was no scent throw at all. I learned rather quickly that it is better to invest a bit more money on a quality scented candle if you really want to indulge your senses.

Some of the candles I really enjoy include:

Glasshouse Candles - These candles are made right here in Australia and really are one of the best value candles I have ever encountered. Each candle comes in a gorgeous glass jar and is triple scented with a burning time of between 80 and 100 hours. The scent throw from Glasshouse candles is amazing. Here in Australia they cost $35 each and I seriously doubt anyone could find better value for money than these beautiful candles.

Lily-Flame Candles - I first discovered these in a small boutique that I like to shop at. What really got my attention was the gorgeous tins the candles came in. I mean seriously guys how cute are those tins? Initially I only purchased one candle because I wanted to try it out and see how good it was before I invested in more. The very first Lily-Flame Candle I tried was Powder Puff. I got it because it was pink and just smelled like candy.

I must admit my expectations were not high for these candles. They seemed quite small and whilst ridiculously cute I thought they were more a novelty type candle as opposed to a seriously good scented candle. Much to my surprise the throw from Powder Puff was excellent and the scent just divine. Naturally I had to go and buy more. I now have around 20 Lily-Flame candles in my collection and I love each and every one of them. These candles are made in England, cost around $34 here in Australia and have a burning time of around 30 hours.

Jo Malone Candles - If you ever want to be transported to a place of pure luxury and self indulgence invest in a Jo Malone scented candle. These candles are absolutely gorgeous. Be warned though that once you try one you will be instantaneously addicted. I love to take a bubble bath and add one of my Jo Malone Bath Oils to it and then also have the matching candle burning in the bathroom at the same time...........HEAVEN!!

Jo Malone Candles are $100 each and burn for around 80-100 hours. My three favourite scents from the range are Blue Agava and Cacao, Waterlily and Lotus Blossom and French Lime Blossom.

Voluspa Candles - These candles are superb. Elegantly but simply housed in a glass jar with a black lid these candles let their scent do the talking. Each 8oz candle burns for around 85 hours. Voluspa make their candles in a variety of shapes and sizes. They have quite a few different collections also. My favourite Voluspa scent is Crisp Champagne from The Basic Black Collection. Voluspa candles cost around $55 Australian for the 8oz size.

Diptyque Candles - These candles are arguably the most famous scented candles in the world. Loved by celebrities and people everywhere these candles are the ultimate indulgence. Each candle burns for approximately 90-100 hours and costs around $100 here in Australia. They give a strong scent throw and come in many different scents. My personal favourite is Jasmine.

Archipelago Candles - These candles are amongst my very favourites! Now I don't like to play favourites but these candles are amazing. I would say without a doubt these particular candles give the strongest scent throw of any candle I have ever tried. They are very large soy candles that burn for around 80-100 hours. When I light these my entire house becomes enveloped in the most amazing sensory experience. My favourite Archipelago scents are Caramel, Sweet Pea, Vanilla, Jasmine, Razberry and Espresso. These cost $55 each here in Australia and in my opinion are excellent value for money.

Dusk Candles - Dusk is an Australian company. I always like to support local companies where I can. Dusk candles to me are different in that they produce scents that you just aren't going to find a dupe for anywhere else. They aren't as strongly scented as some of my other candles but they are great quality and you can definitely scent an entire house with one of these burning. I prefer to buy the larger jar candles from dusk because they provide the biggest scent throw. I find the smaller candles don't quite throw enough scent for my liking. However these beautiful frosted glass jars with lids are just divine. At just $20 Australian each they burn for around 50 hours. My favourite scents include Vanilla Bean, Strawberry Shake and Cosmopolitan. Dusk are always inventing new lines and scents so there's always something new and exciting to try.

Salt City Candles - I only discovered this brand towards the end of last year. I read a few rave reviews on their candles and decided I had to try them for myself. Salt City candles come in three different sizes at $25 for the smaller 10oz Jar, $35 for the medium 16oz Jar and $45 for the large 26oz Jar here in Australia. These are triple scented candles that give a fantastic scent throw. My favourite scents from Salt City include Cinnamon Vanilla, Caribbean, French Vanilla and Apple Cinnamon.

L'Occitane Scented Candles - I have loved L'Occitane candles for the longest time. I may be biased because I love L'Occitane as a brand and have been using it for years, but their scented candles are so lovely. They throw a good scent but not at all in an overpowering way. I call them my softly scented candles. That probably sounds so strange considering I just said they throw a good scent but they just seem to subtly scent a room without taking over the room if you know what I mean. Most L'occitane candles are priced between $30-$40 here in Australia. I am really enjoying my Sweet Cherry L'Occitane candle at the moment.

So there's just a small snippet of some of my favourite scented candles. I seriously could blog on forever about candles! If anyone knows of any other great candle companies please let me know. My philosophy is you can never have too many scented candles!!

Look At My Flowers

2010-01-08T21:17:00.005+11:00

I received these lovely flowers yesterday! So Pretty and much appreciated!

MY BABY!

2010-01-08T20:47:00.005+11:00

Here is a pic of my beautiful little baby boy! Even though he is nine he will always be my baby!

Favourite Christmas/Birthday Gifts

2010-01-08T19:01:00.010+11:00

I was a very lucky girl this Christmas and was very spoiled by my family and friends. I get extra spoiled because it's my Birthday on Christmas Eve so I kinda get double presents all at once.

So I'm not going to bore you with every little thing I got for Christmas and my Birthday but I will give you a sneak peak at some of my favourite pressies for 2009!

Tiffany & Co Mini Bead Bracelet With Oval Return To Tiffany Charm -

I got this from my lovely Parents and it looks so cute against my larger Tiffany Bead Bracelet. I have been wearing it all the time since Christmas!

Louis Vuitton Speedy 30 Damier Azur Canvas - I have been wanting this bag for a long time. I love my Louis Vuitton Original Monogram Speedy 30 and use it all the time. Is it wrong that I am now thinking I need the Damier Canvas Speedy 30 just so I have one in every canvas? Anyway I am in love with my new bag, thing is, I just don't get why the Azur and Original Monogram Speedy 30's have a plain canvas lining and the Damier has a gorgeous red lining. Why can't they all have that red lining?

Next on my favourite present list is my new black Chanel sunglasses! Love my sunglasses and have quite a few designer pairs these days.You know how some people get socks and jocks in their Christmas stocking each year? Yeah well from my Mama I always get a 100ml bottle of Jo Malone Blue Agava and Cacao Cologne. This is one of my favourite perfumes and lets face it, it really is better than socks and jocks isn't it!!

Lastly and the biggest surprise was my Tiffany & Co Bubbles Ring, I love it!!

A Quick Hi!

2010-01-08T18:45:00.002+11:00

Hey Guys,
Sorry I haven't posted in a while, I have some family issues at the moment which is occupying my time but I will be posting things I have previously been working on for my blog. Hope everyone is well and Happy New Year to every single one of you! It's so funny how many people tell me they read my blog but don't actually subscribe Lol!! Perhaps that is telling me something!!

Pink List of Current Favourite Things!

2010-01-06T12:59:00.008+11:00

1. Lush Fairy Tail and Sugar Babe Sugar Scrubs - These are serious scrubs. I have tried many different body scrubs and have to say that these new additions from Lush are right up there with the best of them. Fairy Tail was limited edition for Christmas but if you hurry you can still get them from Lush online and right now they have a buy 1 get 1 free deal on. Fairy Tail is my favourite because it smells like Strawberry (exactly the same as Lush's Yummy, Yummy, Yummy shower cream). Sugar Babe has a coconut oil liquid centre and contains ylang ylang and mimosa blossom scents. Sugar Scrub is the green one and smells of fennel and ginger root, I find this one less appealing because I am not overly fond of the scent, however all three are extremely effective scrubs and I highly recommend giving them a go.

2. Kikki-K and Smiggle Stationary - I am going through a huge stationary phase at the moment and have bought a lot of different things from both Kikki-K and Smiggle. I just love cute little odds and bobs like electric erasers, huge paper clips, little wooden candy striped pegs, cute pens and paper.

3. Coco Mademoiselle Perfume - I have this in both the edt and edp and had forgotten how much I really love this fragrance. No wonder it's a cult favourite. It's gorgeous. In summer I prefer to wear the Edt during the day as it's a bit lighter but I do love to wear the Edp at night.

4. Stila Natural Finish Oil Free Foundation - I am loving this foundation and it was the only one I wore over Christmas. Whilst it is oil free it is surprisingly moisturising. It provides medium buildable coverage and feels nice and light on the skin. It costs $80 for around 30ml but is well worth the investment.

5. Korres Vanilla Plum Shower Gel, Body Butter and Plum Lip Butter - Given to me by a gorgeous friend for Christmas. I love this stuff! I am so sad it is limited edition. It is one of my favourite scents at the moment. Thanks so much to the gorgeous Emma for this delicious gift!

6. Lush Snow Fairy Solid Perfume and Shower Gel - This had to get a mention because it will soon be departed until December this year. Needless to say I have purchased enough shower gel to last me until then :)!!

7. Lydia Jordane Eye Lifting Cream - Hands down my favourite eye cream ever. Results are so evident within just days of using this. Think I may have to dedicate an entire post to my current obsession with Lydia Jordane skin care.

8. Archipelago Vanilla Candle - This smells so good, the throw of scent from Archipelago candles is amazing. Very strong and gorgeous smelling.

9. M.A.C Eye Shadows in Midnight Madness and Devil May Care - From the Magic Mirth and Mischief collection these eye shadow duos have been my go to shadows over the festive season. Densely pigmented with glittery, shimmery components! Gosh I love these. Think I will order backups because these are shadows I know I am going to use constantly.

10. OPI Nail Polish in Suzi Skis The Pyrenees - I got this for Christmas and love the shade. I am very much a dark toes girl so this shade is perfect for me.

The Aftermath of Christmas

2009-12-27T20:52:00.002+11:00

So here I am laying on the couch at my parents house two days after Christmas sipping Coke Zero from the can trying to recover from a massive few days.

I can't believe Christmas has been! It all seems to have passed in a blur but I enjoyed it nonetheless.

Each year in our family we have a bet on who will get the worst Christmas present for the year. Everyone who participates puts $25 into the kitty and once voting has occurred the person who got the worst present gets the kitty money to go and buy themselves a decent present!

I have won the past couple of years with one "worst" Christmas present being a bottle of Tweed perfume and another being a box of out of date biscuits (and I mean out of date to the tune of 2 years). This year however I fear I may not be in the running even though I did get a voucher for the local Chemist who sells crap all! My Brother got a cracker this year, an aunt gave him a big beer money box and a pair of those hideous satin boxer shorts with static flying from every thread. Voting closes on New Years Eve so I will let you know who wins this year.

Christmas day was fun although incredibly hectic. My God Children had a fabulous day and it was great seeing them all so happy and excited. I do believe that children can be over indulged though and this year was definitely off the radar present wise for them.

Something I find hilarious though is my 5 year old God Son! He wasn't overly fussed with all his toys but he went off over all his clothes! He just loved them and I fear I have created a designer loving mini me. My Mum was giving me daggers when my God Son opened his presents and said "look I got Nike's" and oh look Santa bough Dulcie ate Cabana (aka Dolce and Gabbana)!

I got some beautiful gifts this year thanks to my beautiful family and friends who I love and adore more than anything else on this earth. Lots of treats that I will surely enjoy using and wearing. A few Blue Boxes from Tiffany & Co and lots of perfumes and beauty bits and pieces that I love etc.

Hope everyone had a brilliant Christmas and has a Safe and Happy New Year.

Merry Christmas Everyone!

2009-12-24T18:39:00.003+11:00

Christmas is such a magical time of year. I love every aspect of Christmas from decorating the tree to wrapping gifts and singing carols (albeit rather badly).

In my family Christmas really doesn't begin until 12.00am on December 25th because it is my Birthday on Christmas Eve and my Parents have always made Christmas Eve all about me and my Birthday and heaven help anyone that tries to give me a combined Christmas/Birthday present or card (you wouldn't believe how many relatives try and get away with this lol).

So we are just preparing to have Pink Cupcakes with my God Children to celebrate me becoming another year older. It's so lovely to have all of my family around me. The best presents I received today was a hug and a kiss from all of my family and my Godson giving me a present that he made all by himself. You simply can't put a price on those things.

Tonight we will watch Carols on tv as we bring out the family Christmas ornaments and hang them on our tree. We have very special Christmas ornaments hand painted with all our family members names on each one. When someone passes away another family member will hang the ornament in their honor. I love this tradition and even if someone has died it doesn't make me sad at Christmas, it makes me feel really lucky and blessed that we had them in our lives at all. I am certainly a big believer in the phrase "It is better to have loved and lost than to never have loved at all".

Tonight we will hang our stockings in the lounge room of Mum and Dad's house and spread reindeer food up the driveway so that Santa will find his way to our door (we don't have a chimney). We will drink Eggnog and all give thanks for the many blessings we have in our lives. Mum will be roasting meat and wrapping last minute gifts. Dad will be annoying Mum. My Brother will be tipsy, J will be asleep on the couch and I will be entertaining my God Children until they go to bed around 9.30. At midnight I will slip out to Mass as I do every year.

It may surprise some people to learn that I am quite religious. It certainly isn't something I discuss with anyone. Members of my own immediate family don't even share my views. My religious and spiritual beliefs are something very personal to me. My faith is strong and it has seen me through some very difficult times in my life.

I just want to wish everyone a very Merry, Safe, Joyous Christmas. Sending you all lots of love, hugs and kisses at this very special time of year.

Be grateful for what you have, don't worry what you haven't got because in the end all that really matters is there here and now. As long as we have each other we are the richest people on earth.

Merry Christmas 2009

Christmas Shopping Mission Complete!!

2009-12-22T19:15:00.004+11:00

The past few weeks have been insanely busy for me. We had my Dad's 60th Birthday celebrations, a quick trip to Melbourne for some frantic Christmas shopping and the last few days have been filled with more last minute shopping! Ordinarily I love to shop but to be honest I am so over it and really don't want to see another shop, well not for a little while at least.

I am excited to say that I have finished my Christmas shopping! This is a record for me who is usually arguing with a five year old over the last Christmas Stocking on the shelves at store closing time on Christmas Eve!

I have asked Santa very nicely for some serious spoiling this Christmas, gee I hope he listened! I had my photo taken on Santa's knee with my God Son the other day, I have since heard Santa is in traction at the local hospital with his knee broken in ten places!!!

Party Makeup

2009-12-14T20:05:00.004+11:00

Party Look I Wore On The Weekend

I primed my skin with Napolean Perdis Autopilot Pre Foundation Primer and applied Urban Decay Primer Potion on my lids.

Foundation and Concealer - I used green concealer from my Coastal Scents Camo Quad to disguise a little redness around my nose. Next I applied Stila's Natural Finish Foundation followed up with Yves Saint Laurent Touche Eclat (under my eyes) and Laura Mercier Concealer. Finally I set the foundation with a light dusting of Smashbox Halo Powder.

Brows - Smashbox Brow Tech in Taupe

Eyes - As a base I used M.A.C Paint Pot in Blackground. I then mixed together two M.A.C Mineralize Shadows in Midnight Madness (from Magic, Mirth and Mischief) and Cinderfella (from Style Black). I added a spray of M.A.C's Fix+ to give the shadows a wet shiny look. The colour turned out to be a dark charcoal metallic grey. I then applied M.A.C False Lashes (lash 3). I lined the bottom lash line with M.A.C's Feline Eye Liner and the top lash line with M.A.C's Blacktrack Fluidline. I then smudged M.A.C Glitter in Reflects Antique Gold along the top lashline and set with Pop Sparkle Sauce. To finish the eyes I added several coats of Benefit Bad Gal mascara in black.

Cheeks - I used Nars Bronzer in Laguna on all areas where the sun would naturally hit. followed by Stila Convertible Colour in Petunia on the apples of my cheeks. To finish my cheeks I applied Nars Blush in Mata Hari.

Lips - Lips were lined with Duwop's Invisible Lip Liner. Next I applied Lime Crime's Great Pink Planet Lipstick followed by a coat of M.A.C Dazzleglass Creme in My Favourite Pink.

Happy 60th Birthday Dad - Part 2

2009-12-14T19:56:00.002+11:00

We had a lovely time celebrating my Dad's 60th Birthday on the weekend. We celebrated all weekend with family and close friends dining at some of Tasmania's best restaurants and visiting some popular tourist destinations with our international visitors. Everyone had a fabulous time and I am sure my Dad will never forget his 60th Birthday.

Girly Stocking Stuffer Ideas for Christmas

2009-12-11T14:14:00.003+11:00

Christmas stockings are huge in our family. We all hang a stocking with our name on it (including the animals) in my Parents lounge room and everyone buys little things to go in them for each other.

The rules at our parents place for Christmas Stockings are that nobody is supposed to know who put what in them (of course we all knows it was Santa)! Nothing that goes in the stockings is allowed to be valued at over $20. Nothing is allowed to be wrapped, it simply needs to be stuffed inside the stocking.

My stocking is pink (of course) with sequins and crystals all over it, I got an extra large one since I have been extra good this year I am hoping Santa will fill it up.

Some stocking stuffer ideas and also things I will be putting in my female family and friends stockings this year include:

100g Snow Fairy Shower Gel from Lush $9.95
Want To Believe Bath Melt from Lush $6.50
Star Melt Bath Melt from Lush $6.50
100g Father Frost Soap from Lush $8.50
100g Angels Delight Soap or Snowcake Soap from Lush $6.50 each

Mini Body Butters from The Body Shop $10.95
Mini Shower Gels and Body Lotions from The Body Shop around $5 each

CD's from Target or Big W around $18
Lindt Chocolate Bells around $6 from almost any store

OPI, Creative Nail Design or China Glaze Nail Polishes between $10 - $20 each!

Perfect Potion Lip Balm around $12

Lip Gloss

L'Occitane Mini Shea Hand Cream $14.95

Glitzy-Glam Initial Key Chains $10 each

Autobiography or Biography Books many under $20 at places like K-Mart

Pens and Stationary

Scented Candles

Homemade Biscuits, Slices or Gingerbread men

Small Piccolo of Champagne

Candy Canes

Flavoured Tea

Mini Calender

Movie Tickets

Itunes Voucher

Mini Haul

2009-12-11T12:48:00.004+11:00

Yesterday I had a couple of hours to fill in before meeting my family for Dinner in the city so I slipped by the shops (which is never a good sign for my bank balance). There is still quite a few presents I need to buy for Christmas but luckily my Mum and I are heading to Melbourne on Wednesday so I live in hope I will be able to buy the rest of my gifts for other people whilst I am there.

So yesterday I ended up picking up a few things from The Body Shop, Lush and Myer.

Lush:

Want To Believe Bath Melts x 10 (these are not all for me, I think they are hilarious because they look like a lump of coal, so I got them for some girlfriends as stocking stuffers for Christmas).
Chox Away Soap
You Shall Go To The Ball Gift Packs x 3 (because I love the Fairy Tail sugar scrub in them so much and you can't but it individually until the new year).

Myer:

Chanel Coco Mademoiselle EDT Perfume. I have this in the EDP but wanted something a bit lighter for summer so I picked this one up. I also got the body lotion to match.

The Body Shop:

Cherry Blossom EDT perfume - So pretty!

Makeup Of The Day!

2009-12-09T09:43:00.005+11:00

Stila Moisturising Primer

Nars Sheer Glow Foundation
Coastal Scents Camo Quad Concealer Palette in Light
Smashbox Halo
Smashbox Brow Tech in Taupe
Urban Decay Primer Potion
M.A.C Paintpot in Blackground
M.A.C Mineralize Eye Shadow Duo in Midnight Madness
M.A.C Fluidline in Dipdown
Smashbox Pencil Liner in Antique Gold
Clinique Lash Primer
M.A.C Plushlash Mascara
Nars Bronzer in Laguna
Stila Convertible Colour in Petunia (as a cream blush)
Nars Blush in Angelika
M.A.C Lipstick in Pervette
M.A.C Dazzleglass in Baby Sparks

Collective Haul!

2009-12-08T19:44:00.004+11:00

M.A.C, Dior, The Body Shop, YSL, Lush, Voluspa Candles and More!

Today I went to the shops looking for Christmas gifts for other people and managed to collect a pretty big haul for myself in a relatively short period of time (this seems to happen to me quite often).

I am one of those gift shoppers who will buy someone a product and then buy one for myself as well! It's utterly ridiculous and my credit card has a minor stroke every time I pull it out. You see this doesn't happen intentionally it just kind of happens by accident, well truth be told I have very little if any will power!! Now you might understand why I don't go near the shops if I am attempting to save! However today was unavoidable, it's Christmas right?

So today I stopped by my M.A.C counter and picked up a few things as well as ordered a couple of things online from the Baroque Boudoir Collection. If I really love something that's limited edition I will often buy backups of it so I will state "repurchase" next to the things I have bought backups of.

Baroque Boudoir I ordered:

1. Prive Lipstick
2. Preciousness Lip Gloss
3. Light Medium Mystery Powder

This range is so expensive! I would have liked a few more things but couldn't justify the spend. I hope it's worth it!!!

From M.A.C Counter:

Feline Eye Liner (repurchase) I love this liner so much from DSquared2 Collection. It came out once before and I didn't get a backup and I regretted it so I got another.

Dazleglass Cremes in My Favourite Pink (repurchase) and Perfectly Unordinary. I just love Dazzleglass Cremes and am hoping with all my heart M.A.C decide to make them a permanent part of its regular collection.

Magic Mirth and Mystery Mineralize Shadow Duos in Midnight Madness, Devil-May-Care (both repurchases) and Mayhem! I love these Mineralize shadows so much and have enjoyed using them enough to warrant the repurchases and a new addition to my collection.

Lipsticks - Total Wow (from Magic, Mirth and Mischief), Creme Cup, Speed Dial and Hot Gossip.

Lipglass Mini Holiday Set in Sexy Shenanigans.

China Glaze Nail Polish in It's Poppin, Evening Seduction and Lets Groove.

Mor Marshmallow Body Oil

Voluspa Three Wicked Candles in Dahlia Orange Bloom and Vanilla Creme Flower

Badger Fan Brush

YSL Touche Eclat in 02 - Chemist Warehouse have these in stock and on sale for just $39 each as opposed to the $70+ you will pay elsewhere.

Diorshow Blackout Mascara - Also at Chemist Warehouse for just $29 as opposed to $40 in department stores here in Australia.

The Body Shop -

Spa Wisdom Polynesia Lotus and Frangipani Body Puree
Spa Wisdom Polynesia Monoi Body Balm
Spa Wisdom Morocco Orange Blossom Finishing Mist (to spray on my pillow)
Coconut Body Butter
Moringa Body Butter Mini
Japanese Cherry Blossom Gift Pack

Lush - 10 x Star Bath Melts (cause I lurrrrrrrrrve them)

Joico Body Luxe Shampoo, Conditioner, Thickening Elixir and Root Lift. Schwarzkopf Bonacure Moisture Kick Spray Conditioner.

Okay so that all seems like an awful lot of product, but trust me I needed it like a hole in the head! All I can say is some people shop for clothes, some people shop for shoes, it just so happens that I shop for makeup, fragrance and bath and body products!!

Formal Makeup Application

2009-12-08T19:29:00.002+11:00

Today I did makeup application for seven year twelve leavers. It was only supposed to be six but unfortunately one poor girl had a disaster experience at a makeup counter and came along with her friend for some emergency reapplication.

I must admit it was a bit daunting having so many girls to do consecutively but I managed in the end. The entire process was so much fun and they were such a sweet group of girls. I will ask their permission to post pics on my blog. They all looked gorgeous and were extremely happy with the looks I created for them. All the products I used on the girls were from M.A.C cosmetics. M.A.C is my favourite cosmetics brand and I just love their products, they never let me down.

I have done a few basic makeup courses many years ago but am mostly self taught. I do makeup as a bit of a hobby because I love it so much. I love the transformation that different makeup looks can achieve. It is so much fun doing makeup for friends and family before a night out.

November Favourites

2009-12-07T18:43:00.003+11:00

Pink Picks For November

This November has seen the weather warm up, me return from a huge extended holiday and the shops rolling out their limited edition products just in time for the festive season. So here are a few of my favourite products from November.

Yves Saint Laurent Rouge Volupte Lipstick in Lingerie Pink - The packaging of these lipsticks is just gorgeous. They have a little mirror in the top and come in the most divine gold cases. Lingerie Pink is my perfect shade of pink.

Perfect Potion Lip Balm in Vanilla Bean - I have a lot of lip balms and I can say without a doubt that Perfect Potion lip balms are the best I have ever tried. I spent much of October/November on long flights and this lip balm kept my lips perfectly soft and hydrated.

Korres Pomegranate Face Wipes - These wipes are my favourite face wipes. They are a lot moister than other face wipes I have tried and are so gentle on my skin whilst removing every trace of makeup at the same time.

Yves Saint Laurent Parisienne Perfume - I love the smell of this fragrance. It somehow seems a little more grown up than my usual sweet scents and I just adore it. Of course I also got the matching body lotion and shower gel.

Smashbox Wish For The Perfect Pencils Set - Contains 5 eyeliners in very wearable colours of silver, peacock, bronze, purple and black.

Sephora Lash Stash - This contains 10 sample sized mascaras. I am someone who never and I mean NEVER gets through a tube of mascara before it's used by date so that makes these sizes absolutely perfect for me. The advantage with this kit is that I get to try lots of different brands and there isn't a lot of waste as I can simply toss and start a new one when it's 12 week shelf life expires.

Kat Von D Eye Shadow Palettes in Ludwig (smokey greens and browns) and Metal Orchestra (rich blues, greys and whites) - These shadow palettes are just gorgeous and are seriously pigmented.

M.A.C Studio Moisture Tint in Light - Undoubtedly my favourite tinted moisturiser ever. I love this stuff. It has a thick consistency but is actually very matte upon application. Strangely though I find this quite hydrating. This gives great coverage for a tinted moisturiser and has a touch of sunscreen in it. You would certainly need to use additional sunscreen with this especially here in Australia.

Strawberry Flowers Perfume by Fresh - This is a Sephora Exclusive but it smells so good. A really gorgeous scent for summer.

Lydia Jordane Lifting Eye Cream - Love this eye cream, one of the best I have ever used. It's an Australian product and costs around $55 and I can honestly say I like it better than other eye creams I have paid much more for. It firms the skin around the eye, decreases puffiness and makes fine dehydration lines disappear.

Candles By Victoria in Honey I washed The Youngins and I'm a Rockstar - The scents of these two candles are dupes of Lush's Honey I Washed The Kids and Rockstar soaps. I picked up masses of these candles whilst I was away. They smell gorgeous!

Christmas Wish

2009-12-06T22:44:00.003+11:00

I am like a little kid at Christmas. I get so excited about every aspect! I love being with my family and friends at this time of year. I love looking at Christmas lights and decorations. I love Carols By Candlelight and I love the giving and receiving of gifts.

Although it is all too easy to get caught up in the materialism of Christmas I am always so acutely aware that this time of year is not an easy time for many people. In a country that is so rich there is so much hardship, loneliness, homelessness and despair.

I wish with all my heart that I alone was able to make a huge difference to everyone who suffers at this time of year but in all reality this is not something that one person alone can achieve. However together as a human race simple acts of kindness can make this world a better place.

This year I plan to donate to the Salvation Army who I think are one of the most worthwhile causes on the planet. The Salvos do amazing things for people in need and I admire their work so much. I have already contributed to the K-Mart Giving Tree. I also hope to donate some food hampers to needy families in our area through our church. I am a huge animal lover so I will also be doing my bit for the RSPCA which is another of my favourite charities.

Of course I don't think my small contributions are going to make a huge difference but I hope in some small way they make someones day a little brighter.

So my Christmas wish is for everyone to try and help out people who are not as fortunate as we are at this special time of year. It doesn't have to be a money donation, it could be as simple as giving someone a smile and wishing them Merry Christmas or taking the time to go and say hello to someone who lives alone. It may be donating some of your time to a soup kitchen for the homeless or even sending a card to someone you haven't seen in ages.

So I encourage every single person to try and spread some Christmas cheer.

Giving Tree

2009-12-06T12:00:00.003+11:00

Christmas is my favourite time of the year. I love everything about Christmas. I love hearing the dorky Christmas Carols playing as I walk around the shops, I love how people decorate their homes with masses of lights.

On Friday I took my God Children to K-Mart. I got each of them to choose a tag off the K-Mart Giving Tree and then set them each a little project of finding a gift for the person on their tags within a $40 price limit.

It was quite disturbing to the two smallest children that they had to give away the presents they chose instead of keeping them for themselves. However once we had a little chat and explained to them the idea of the Giving Tree and that not everyone is as fortunate as they are they seemed okay with it. However Miss 6 must have thought about it quite deeply because later that evening she said to me "If those little kids don't get Christmas presents Santa must think they have been bad"!!! After some creative story telling I managed to convince her that Santa has been a victim of the credit crunch and he couldn't afford to buy presents for everyone this year either, which is why K-Mart are helping out!!!!!

Crush

2009-12-05T21:16:00.003+11:00

Today I stumbled upon a site that got me super excited. Finally I have found somewhere to buy coveted brands such as Barry M, Urban Decay, NYX, Lime Crime, Coastal Scents, China Glaze and Milani cosmetics.

I have been a fan of Barry M products for the longest time. I think they are great quality at super affordable prices.

I am also keen to try NYX's Jumbo Eye Pencils and China Glaze Nail Polishes as I have heard so many good things about them on You Tube.

Finally I am ecstatic to have found somewhere to buy my beloved Urban Decay Primer Potion from here in Australia.

Anyway the point is I made a rather large order from www.crushcosmetics.com.au today and within 5 minutes I had a personal reply saying my order would be dispatched first thing on Monday via express post.

I will be sure to review the products as soon as I receive them and let you know what I think.

Happy 60th Birthday Dad!

2009-12-05T15:08:00.003+11:00

I don't usually tend to write about myself and what goes on in my personal life in this blog, mainly because I am a private person and frankly I don't think anyone would care about what I get up to in my spare time. However I am going to make an exception here and let you all in on a big secret we have planned for my Dad's 60th Birthday next week.

My Dad is a very humble person. He has worked incredibly hard throughout his life (I'm talking 16 hour days) to provide our family with a very comfortable lifestyle. He always made sure we had everything we needed and worked his finger to the bone to give us (his kids) the very best education possible.

The thing about my Dad is that he is one of the most selfless people on earth. He never asks for anything. The rest of us in our family have all had big Birthday Parties to celebrate "big" Birthday occasions but Dad said he didn't want one. He didn't want one for his 40th or 50th and he doesn't want one for his 60th.

We were tempted to throw Dad the MOTHER of all surprise parties but knowing his wishes we decided that we wouldn't do that. However we have organised something very very special.

My Dad served in The Vietnam War and during his time there he became particularly close with a fellow Australian Soldier. They were great mates, but then his mate was badly hurt in Vietnam and had to be flown home to Australia and as he was from another state Dad didn't see him again. This man thankfully recovered (well as much as anyone who went to such a shocking war could recover) but ended up moving to Canada where he married and made a life for himself.

Dad often talked about this man over the years and then a couple of years ago out of the blue this man came looking for Dad. After an extensive search he located my Dad and the two began conversing via e-mail and the telephone. Late Last year this mans Sister came to Tasmania from her home in Adelaide and her and her husband came and spent a few days with us at our family home. She was the most delightful person and her visit got us conspiring a massive surprise for my Dad's 60th Birthday.

So next week on my Dad's 60th Birthday we are having a Birthday Dinner at a very nice restaurant and we have bought my Dad's old mate and his wife all the way from Canada as a very special surprise. They haven't seen each other in more than 35 years and I absolutely can't wait to shock the hell out of my Dad in the very best possible way.

I am sure it's going to be a very emotionally charged reunion. I am so excited to do this for my Dad. I have kept this massive secret for over a year but now that there is under a week to go until my Dad's 60th it is getting so hard to hold the secret in. What's worse is my Dad keeps talking about him and is organising a Christmas gift to send to Canada. Lol!!

Luckily there's no chance of my Dad reading this blog as he doesn't know it exists or even who the hell pinkcupcake is LOL. I just wanted to share that with you all.

Current Skin Care Routine

2009-12-04T20:23:00.002+11:00

Lately I have been keeping my skin care routine pretty consistent, which for me is a big deal because I never stick to using the same things for any prolonged period of time. For the last couple of months including my extended holiday I have been using:

Dermalogica PreCleanse
Dermalogica Ultra Calming Cleanser
Dermalogica Daily Microfoliant
Dermalogica Soothing Protection Spray
Dermalogica Skin Hydrating Booster
Dermalogica Active Moist (on t-zone in the evenings)
Dermalogica Skin Smoothing Cream (on cheeks in the evenings)
Ultraceuticals 30+ Moisturiser (during the day)
Lydia Jordane Eye Lifting Cream (seriously one of the best eye creams I have ever used)

My skin is feeling great using this combination of products. I highly recommend all of them.

The White Christmas Tree

2009-12-04T20:08:00.003+11:00

Today I went shopping with my Mum and God Daughters to do some Christmas shopping as well as purchase a new Christmas Tree for Mum and Dad's house!

Well it turned into a riot because the Christmas tree the kids had their hearts set on was Sold Out! It was a white one and they wanted to decorate it with pink and silver ornaments. Miss 6 decided that someone should ring Santa and tell him to bring more to K-Mart!! So a few tears and one pretend phone call later and I now have to drive 100km tomorrow to pick up this white tree from another store!!

I took the girls to Lush and they all walked out with little bags of goodies which they were thrilled about. There's something about sweet smelling things with lots of glitter and sparkles that excites my God Daughters beyond words (Hmmm I wonder who they get that from).

Next was a trip for the annual Santa photo and then some lunch at a nice restaurant. Why is it that no matter where you take kids to eat, or for that matter how nice the food is, they always want McDonalds?

Recent Perfume Purchases

2009-12-03T20:10:00.003+11:00

Whilst I was away I went a litte berserk on fragrance. It wasn't a conscious decision it just kinda happened!! So here are the fragrances I have recently purchased.

1. Micheal Kors Very Hollywood

2. Fresh Strawberry Flowers

3. Fresh Sugar Lychee

4. Vera Wang Flower Princess (repurchase)

5. Vera Wang Rock Princess

6. Yves Saint Laurent Parisienne

7. Chanel Coco Mademoiselle

8. Juicy Couture Viva La Juicy

9. Jessica Simpson Fancy and Jessica Simpson Fancy Love

10. Anna Sui Rock Me

11. Lolita Lempicka Forbidden Flower (repurchase)

12. Victor and Rolf Flowerbomb Extreme

13. Nina Ricci Ricci Ricci

14. Marc Jacobs Lola

15. Benefit Something About Sophia

16. Philosophy Falling In Love (repurchase)

17. Philosophy Pure Grace

18. Tokyo Milk Let Them Eat Cake

Ummmm yeah, so that's a whole lot of perfume huh? Lol

M.A.C Holiday Limited Editions

2009-12-03T18:02:00.004+11:00

I am loving all of M.A.C's Holiday 09 collections. I have been naughty and bought way too much of it. My justification is that it is limited edition and it's gorgeous. Whilst I was away recently I was able to get it at very cheap prices compared with here at home.

I am not going to review everything I have got because I haven't used some of it as yet but if there's anything at all anyone would like me to review just let me know and I will do my best to review it for you.

Magic Mirth and Mischief:

Mineralize Eye Shadow Duos in Devil May Care (a gorgeous shimmering lilac purple and glittery silver) and Midnight Madness (dirty dark grey brown and gold).

Total Wow Lipstick - A gorgeous berry shade which looks a lot brighter in the tube than it does upon application.

She-Zam Dazzleglass - A silver glitter gloss which looks great layered over a lipstick.

Ever So Rich Cremesheen Glass - A gorgeous sheer lilac colour.

Eye Palettes:

Smoke and Mirrors -The most amazing browns and perfect colours for a casual day look or sexy smoky eyes at night. This one has been the most popular eye palette from M.A.C's Holiday collection having sold out in many places very early after its release.

Sorceress - Gorgeous lilac, purples, grey, white and black with glitter shades. This was the first palette that caught my eye and it is my favourite of all four eye palettes.

Devil May Dare - This palette contains gorgeous pink/peach, natural nude cream, dark warm chocolates and a shimmery mint green shade.

Mystic Cool - This was the last palette I picked up mainly because it is my least favoruite of all four (that's not to say I don't love it but I just loved the others more). This contains pinks, creamy nude, dark blue, turquoise and a dark brown. I ended up buying this purely because I had the other three so thought I should complete the set and get the last one. It was also considerably less expensive than I could get it here so that was enough to convince me to buy it not that I really ever need much convincing to buy anything.

Lip Bag and Palettes:

Possessed By Pink Lip Palette - A cute little palette containing two shades of lipstick and one lip gloss in various pink shades. Such a cute little compact to pull out of your bag!

Put A Spell On You Pink Lip Bag - I must admit the thing that drew me to this lip bag was the bag itself! Stupid I know but I am such a sucker for cute packaging. I just love the pewter bag with the pink bobble and ribbon (it looks super cute in my bag). This bag contains one of my favourite Dazzleglasses Baby Sparks (which I was almost out of), Dream Lipstick and a little promo sized Dervish Lip Pencil.

Eye Bag:

Alakazam! Chocolate Eye Bag - Again this comes in a cute pewter bag (bigger than the lip bag) and contains Fluidline Eye Liner in Rich Ground, Zoomblack Mascara, 209 Eye Liner Brush and Melon Pigment.

Mischief Makers Collection:

Sexpot Smoky Mini Pigments/Glitter - Words can not describe how totally in love with this set I am. The colours are absolutely gorgeous and perfect for creating the perfect smoky eye. I think these mini pigments are a much better size than the regular pigment sizes which are so big I never seem to make a dent in the product let alone finish it. This set contains four pigments in Naked, Chocolate Brown, Sunnydaze and Dark Soul and one glitter in Reflects Antique Gold (which is actually the most beautiful coloured glitter I have ever seen).

Cool Capers Mini Pigments/Glitter - This set contains some gorgeous colours. It contains four mini pigments in Fuchsia (just mix with clear gloss to make a hot pink lip gloss), Grape, Kitchmas and Deep Blue Green and one glitter in Reflects Teal.

Haute High Jinks Mini Pigment/Glitter -Contains four mini pigments in Copperized, Museum Bronze, Jardin Aires and Rushmetal and Glitter in Reflects Gold.

Exclusives:

Pinkzapoppin Mineralize Kit- This kit contains three mineralize products including Light Flush Mineralize Skin Finish, Dainty Mineralize Blush and Love Connection Eye Shadow Duo as well as a M.A.C Kabuki Brush.

So far that is what I have from the Holiday collection at M.A.C! I plan on asking Santa for a couple of the mini lipglass sets. I also wouldn't mind a few more Mineralize Eye Shadows from Magic, Mirth and Mischief (I hope Santa is listening).

Lush Christmas Goodies Haul

2009-12-02T21:47:00.002+11:00

I love Christmas time at Lush. I look forward to seeing what products they come up with each year for their Christmas range. I went to Lush last week and stocked up on limited edition Christmas products. I think that Lush have pulled out all the stops this year and I just love their Christmas products for 2009!

Snow Fairy has been an absolute favourite product of mine for so many years now! Last year I actually purchased enough big bottles of it to see me through until this Christmas when it resurfaced in the stores again! I would be devastated if Snow Fairy was ever discontinued and disappeared!! My Mum gets me a big bottle of Snow Fairy every year for my Christmas stocking! You know how people get staples every year from their Mum? Well instead of socks and jocks I get Lush Snow Fairy.

Anyway back to my haul! I ended up picking up quite a few things:

Snow Fairy Shower Gel - So sweet and fruity and just my kind of scent! Love love love this.

Snow Fairy Solid Perfume - My eyes nearly popped out of my head I was so excited to see that Snow Fairy has been released in a solid perfume. I rather embarrassingly broke out into a little round of applause I was so thrilled about this product (much to the amusement of the Lush Staff)! It smells exactly the same as Snow Fairy Shower Gel. I love it and it lasts a really long time on my skin.

The Godmother Soap - Not a Christmas product but since I was celebrating all things Snow Fairy (and the Godmother soap smells exactly the same) I just had to get some.

Star Melt - A gorgeous pink star shaped bath met that smells exactly the same as Snow Fairy! This is giving my favourite Mmm Melting Marshmallow Moment Bath Melt a serious run for it's money. I must stock up on these so I have enough to see me through next Christmas Lol!

Fairy Tail - I think this is my favourite Lush product for Christmas (although I am mega excited this is going to be permanent). Basically it's a sugar scrub shaped like a little pink mouse with white chocolate eyes and a little string tail. It smells the same as Lush's Yummy Yummy Yummy Shower Cream (strawberry) and is an amazingly effective body scrub. It gave a thorough exfoliation and my skin felt amazing afterward.

Sexy Boy Massage Bar - This cute little fella is shaped like a gingerbread man. He is almost too cute to use. I find Lush's massage bars extremely moisturising. They leave the skin so soft and smelling delicious. Sexy Boy is white chocolate and lime scented although I can't seem to smell the lime it still smells amazing!

Want To Believe Bath Melt - This looks exactly like a lump of coal (but with sparkles). You know the old saying if you've been bad Santa will leave you coal instead of presents, well this coal smells kinda good so I couldn't see any girl being disappointed if Santa left this chunk of coal for them.

Cinders Bath Ballistic - This is a small bath bomb around the same size as Lush's famous butterball. It smells so good, like orange and cinnamon, and comes with popping candy built into it to make a crackling noise as you soak in your bath (supposedly to remind one of a burning open fireplace).

Little Lush Pud Bath Ballistic - Looks just like a little baby Christmas Pudding. This year lush made it smaller and I think it's somehow much better than the bigger one they have done in previous years just because the larger one was almost too strongly scented and became almost overpowering when in the tub. Lush Pud smells likes cloves and really makes me get into the Christmas spirit.

Satsumo Santa Bath Ballistic - This bath bomb is a really fat orange scented santa. It is so cute, I have to buy some more because my Mum stole my first one and My Godson abducted the second!

So White Bath Ballistic - A cute little white bath bomb that comes with shavings of Lush Bubble Bars within it. So once emulsified in the bath it will leave white bubbles on top of your bath to give the effect of snow. This one smells of rose, apples and oranges.

Double Fast Luck Emotibomb - This is a bath bomb for your shower. You simply pop it on the shower floor and as it fizzes away it releases essential oils of orange, lavender, patchouli, lemongrass and elemi. I find this really perks me up if I feel a bit sluggish in the morning and just for Christmas Lush have made it purple instead of its usual pink colour.

Saturnalia Bubble Bar - This gnome shaped Santa Bubble Bar has a funny story! It is known as No Name because it is given a different name in every Lush Store around the world. As I live in Hobart my store have named this little guy Ho Ho Hobart!

Ruby Red Slippers Bubble Bar - This is back for another year and sends your water a rather disturbing red colour, which to me is quite disturbing because it looks like some poor soul is bleeding to death in the tub. However the gorgeous smells of geranium, rose and tangerine oils compensate for the blood connotation!

Christmas Eve Bubble Bar - A blue glittery bar with a bright yellow moon. This was made to calm and sooth children into a deep slumber on Christmas Eve however I think it's smell of ylang ylang and jasmine is a more sexy adult scent.

Candy Cane Bubble Bar - This is exactly the same as Lush's Creamy Candy Bubble Bar (my fave) except it's redressed as a candy cane just for Christmas.

Angels Delight Soap - Another of my favourites that reappears every year at Lush for Christmas. This is a very sweet and fruity scented soap.

Father Frost Soap - Father Frost Soap is Lush's very first palm oil free soap. Lush is aiming to eliminate the use of palm oil in their soaps for the purpose of saving our planet. This initiative means that the Lush soaps aren't going to lather up quite as much but if it helps save our worlds Rain Forests I don't think there will be too many complaints. Father Frost is a dark blue soap which smells of garden blossoms.

Snowcake Soap - This all white soap looks just like snow. It is very lightly scented with benzoin and rose. This is a very unisex soap in my opinion so would be good for men also.

The thing I really love about Lush is their gift packs. They cater for every budget and are priced from $9.95 to $140. This makes them accessible for everyone.

Note: I am not affiliated with Lush in anyway, I was not paid to review these products and all products were chosen and paid for by me.

Revival From The Dead

2009-12-02T21:33:00.002+11:00

As usual I have been hopeless at updating my blog but in my defense I have had quite a bit going on recently.

Life right now is good, I am taking the time to smell the roses and appreciate the little things in life that often bring the greatest pleasure without even realising it.

Christmas is my favourite time of year. I love the decorations, the excitement in small children and even the dorky Christmas Carols playing in the shops. I love decorating the Christmas tree with my God Children and making Christmas themed gingerbread men. I love scattering Reindeer Food up the driveway of my parents house so Santa will know how to get to the chimney (well in our case the front door since we don't have a chimney).

One of the things I adore about the lead up to Christmas is the masses of limited edition beauty products that are available! Ohh it's all too much excitement!

Favourite Bath and Body Products!

2009-07-16T16:47:00.004+10:00

I have so many favourite products it's ridiculous! I change my mind all the time but here is a list of products I enjoy......... at the moment!

Lush Bubble Bar Slices

1. Lush Creamy Candy Bubble Bar
2. Lush The Comforter Bubble Bar
3. Lush Ma Bar Bubble Bar
4. Lush Pop In The Bath Bubble Bar
5. Lush Bathos Bubble Bar
6. Lush French Kiss Bubble Bar

Bath Oils

1. Jo Malone Blue Agava and Cacao Bath Oil
2. Jo Malone French Lime Blossom Bath Oil
3. Chanel No 5 Bath Oil - This is gorgeous a lot lighter than the fragrance
4. Jo Malone Lotus Blossom and Waterlily Bath Oil
5. Jo Malone Nectarine Blossom and Honey Bath Oil
6. Shizen Never Oily Bath Oil
7. The Body Shop Unscented Bath Oil

Soaps

1.Christian Dior Hypnotic Poison Soap
2.Lush Rock Star Soap
3.Lush Honey I Washed The Kids Soap
4.Mor Black Cherry Plum Soap
5.Mor Marshmallow Soap
6.Lush The God Mother Soap
7.Jo Malone Sandalwood Soap
8.Jo Malone Nectarine Blossom and Honey Soap

Lush Buttercreams

1. Emperor of Ice Cream
2. Lemslip
3. Ring of Roses
4. Almond Butter Cream
5. Skinny Dip

Shower Gels

1. Philosophy Falling In Love Shower Gel
2. Philosophy Cinnamon Buns Shower Gel
3. Jo Malone Kohdo Wood Lotus Blossom and Waterlily Shower Gel
4. Christian Dior Hypnotic Poison Shower Gel
5. Lush Snow Fairy Shower Gel
6. The Body Shop Cocoa Butter Shower Cream
7. Jo Malone Orange Blossom Shower Gel
8. L'Occitane Almond Shower Oil

Body Lotions

1. Benefit Touch Me Then Try To Leave Cream
2. L'Occitane Vanilla Flower Body Cream
3. L'Occitane Rosebud Body Cream
4. The Body Shop Shea Whip Body Lotion
5. Jo Malone Blue Agava and Cacao Body Lotion
6. Jo Malone Lotus Blossom and Waterlily Body Lotion
7. Jo Malone Blue Agava and Cacao Body Creme
8. Clinique Water Therapy Body Cream
9. Sohum Lychee Flower Body Milk
10. Jo Malone French Lime Blossom Body Creme

Body Butters

1. Mor Black Cherry Plum Body Butter
2. The Body Shop Wild Cherry Body Butter
3. Mor Marshmallow Body Butter
4. Lush Mange Too Massage Bar
5. The Body Shop Japanese Cherry Blossom Body Butter

Hand Creams

1. L'Occitane Shea Hand Cream
2. Archipelago Mango Hand Cream
3. Mecca Cosmetica Hand-elujah Age Defying Hand Treatment
4. Mecca Cosmetica Velvet Glove On-The-Go Hand Hydrator
5. L'Occitane Cherry Blossom Hand Cream
6. Lush The Soft Touch Hand Butter

Foot Creams

1. Mecca Cosmetica Baby Toes Foot Lotion
2. Lush Running To The Embassy Foot Body Butter
3. Eulactol Heel Balm Gold

Scented Candles

1. Jo Malone Blue Agava and Cacao Candle
2. Jo Malone Lotus Blossom and Waterlily Candle
3. Diptique Jasmine Candle
4. Archipelago Caramel Candle
5. Glasshouse Pipers Brook Candle
6. Glasshouse Cuba Candle
7. Burn Tahitian Vanilla Flower Candle
8. Voluspa Crisp Champagne Candle
9. Sohum White Christmas Candle
10. Sohum Pink Champagne Candle

Bath Time

2009-07-16T15:42:00.003+10:00

In my world there's a lot to be said about the good old bubble bath! I enjoy nothing more at the end of the day than lighting a gorgeous candle and sinking into a mountain of white fluffy bubbles and letting any stresses of the day float away.

Now don't get me wrong, I love my spa but nothing takes the place of my old fashioned claw foot bath. Besides products don't work in spa's unless you're going for the bubbles down the hall type effect!

I have loved bath time ever since I was a little girl. My Mum never had any trouble getting me in the bath, it was more a case of having trouble getting me out! I remember being small and toting my Avon Little Blossom Bubble Bath into the bathroom like it was my most prized possession on earth.

It's funny how things change as we grow older. My tastes have certainly matured but my love of the bubble bath still remains exactly the same. Of course these days I am more discerning about the products that I use. I love buying, sniffing, touching and playing with anything remotely bath like.

I spend hours pondering the likes of Lush, Myer, The Body Shop and little boutiques that sit on the outskirts of the Hobart CBD. The internet is another place I spend hours searching for the Holy Grail bath and body products that I long to find.

I have a bath that I consider my staple. It's the no brainer bath that doesn't require thought, just pop in the products and hop in. I will list the secret recipe below but shhhhh it's a secret Lol.

My No Brainer Bubble Bath:

Lush Creamy Candy Bubble Bar Slice - Crumble under warm running water to make mounds of cake smelling bubbles.

Lush Butterball - Pop this little one in before stepping into the bath. The cocoa butter will release and leave your skin feeling velvet soft.

Lush Sexxx Bomb Bath Ballistic - This smells of musk, jasmine and ylang ylang but more importantly it sends the water a beautiful shade of bright pink and lets face it what bath in my world would be complete without pink!!

MMM Bath Melt - Pop this gorgeous pink bath melt in when you sink back into the bath to relax. Sweet smells of pink marshmallow will disperse and take you to far away sweet places.

All you need now is to sit back and relax because finally you will know you have arrived..................... In bath time heaven!!

M.A.C Naked Honey Collection

2009-07-13T20:34:00.003+10:00

Just a short blog to let you know I got my hands on Naked Honey products today one day earlier than the official release date woohoo lol! I was also lucky enough to be given a sneak peek at some of the upcoming collections (but more about that later).

Naked Honey isn't the most fabulous collection M.A.C has even came out with, it's not going to be for everyone, but if you like the scent of honey and like your neutral colours be sure to check this out.

So from Naked Honey I ended up getting:

Naked Honey Skin Salve - The texture of this is not unlike Vaseline but it's made from beeswax, sunflower oil and other ''natural ingredients". It does smell really good! It can also be used anywhere from lips, cuticles, dry elbows or any dry areas on the skin and I am told it makes a great intensive eye treatment. Hmmm I will test this out and get back to you guys on how I find it.

Naked Honey Fragrance - This is so sweet smelling and seems to stay on my skin for ages. I am not usually a fan of M.A.C fragrances but I got this because I do actually really like the smell. If I don't use it as a perfume I will use it as a room spray. If you like Honeysuckle I would definitely have a sniff of this one.

Honey Light Highlighting Powder - This is so pretty. It comes with an embossed honeycomb pattern and is a shimmery peachy bronze colour.

Naked Honey Hand and Body Cream - This smells really yummy and absorbed into my hands so easily. Smells great layered with the Naked Honey fragrance.

Eye Shadows in Buckwheat (a gorgeous dark bronze brown), Creme De Miel (a frosty light gold) and Pollinator (a dark peachy pink colour). I have only tried these on the back of my hand so far but I think Buckwheat and Creme De Miel are neutral colours anyone could wear. They look so gorgeous and I can't wait to give these colours a road test tomorrow.

She's A Star Lipglass -This is a sheer shimmery gold shade. Gorgeous colour and great worn alone or over the top of a lipstick.

Things I Like and will probably go back to M.A.C for:

Naked Honey Body Wash -I should have got this too. I adore the smell of honey so I knew I would love it. However I already bought most of the collection and I didn't want to spend any more money!! Isn't it funny how something is on your 'I can live without list' but when you don't get it you can't stop thinking about it and it goes right to the top of your 'I can't live without list'!!

Queen Bee Lipglass - This is a beautiful peachy apricot shade. I should have got it but I thought at the time I wouldn't use it much. I prefer pink but now I am thinking I need to have this one.

Things I passed on:

Africananimal Fragrance - I personally don't like M.A.C fragrances because they smell a little heavy on alcohol to me. I liked the other Naked Honey Fragrance more so I got that one. Well it is limited edition (she smirks)!!

Buzz Lipglass - Just too dark for me but a gorgeous colour just the same.

M.A.C Paint Pots

2009-07-09T17:21:00.000+10:00

I am developing an unhealthy obsession with the M.A.C Paint Pot. I do know some people that don't like the Paint Pot but I honestly wouldn't be without these. My makeup wouldn't feel ''done'' without them.

I once used paint pots on their own (and they are perfectly fine alone) but now I tend to use them as an eyeshadow base and enhancer instead.

I find paint pots a lot easier to work with than Paint by M.A.C. Firstly I like the little tub as opposed to the tube that M.A.C Paints come in. The consistency is less thick than paint and frankly I find them easier to work with.

I hope M.A.C decides to come out with some new colours in the Paint Pots because I think they are brilliant and so underrated.

Paint Pots I have include:

Blackground - which is black with a tiny bit if shimmer. I can't rave enough about this one and it's one of my favourite makeup products at the moment. This is fabulous for bringing out the true tone of eye shadows. It looks a little scary in the pot but it really is one of the best eye products I have used in a long time. I heart Blackground!

Groundwork - This is medium brown neutral taupe without shimmer. This is great to use as a base with M.A.C shadows such as Mulch, Satin Taupe and Woodwinked.

Fresco Rose -A shimmering Pink, great to bring out the true colour of any pink shadows especially Expensive Pink, Da Bling, Star Violet, Dear Cupcake and Et Tu Bouquet from M.A.C!

Delft - This is a severe colour for me and probably the Paint Pot I use least. This would be fabulous on those who can get away with vibrant turquoise and teal colours. This is an extremely pigmented shimmery Teal Blue/Green colour. This is great worn alone or with shadows such as Electric Eel and Clarity from M.A.C!

Artifact - This is an amazing dark burgundy shimmer colour. I always wear this under M.A.C's Trax shadow!

Indianwood - A fantastic shimmery bronze that would suit any skin tone. I wear this underneith M.A.C's Woodwinked to really make the colour pop!

Bare Study - The most used Paint Pot I have. It is brillaint to prime lids as a base, as all Paint Pots are. It's a shimmery champagne colour and makes a great highlighter as well. This is the one Paint Pot I think everyone should own.

Painterly - A matte nude beige. This is great for prepping lids and also disguising any lid imperfections such as veins etc. This mattifies the lid area and primes the eye making it look perfectly natural. Great for wearing with lighter shadows as a base. If this was a powder shadow it would be M.A.C's Shroom.

Constructivist - This is the first Paint Pot I ever owned. As I wear a lot of dark brown shadows this is the perfect base. It's a shimmery dark brown and adds so much depth to brown eye shadows. I wear this a lot with M.A.C's Mulch.

Moss Scape - A shimmery deep moss green. Great to wear under shadows such as Sumptuous Olive, Green Smoke, Humid and Swimming by M.A.C!

Rubenesque - A beautiful shimmering golden peach. I love this paint pot so much. It's gorgeous on its own or with M.A.C's Goldmine or All That Glitters Shadows.

Greenstroke - I don't think you can get this one anymore but it is the most beautiful shimmery pale green!

Soft Ochre - The perfect neutral lid colour. This is very mattifying and is a soft beige colour. This is not unlike Painterly.

So there's all the Paint Pots I have from M.A.C. I don't think it is necessary to have every coloured Paint Pot in your kit, just one would be fine if you just wanted to use it as a base. To use for a base I would recommend Painterly for a matte colour base or Bare Study for a shimmery colour and highlight.

The Paint Pots are fantastic for grabbing powder shadow. They help your shadows last all day without creasing and help the colour of your shadow reach it's full potential. I find they make my shadows pop and help give a true colour reflect than if I just wore the shadow alone.

I still use Too Faced Shadow Insurance or Urban Decay's Primer Potion to prep my lids before using Paint Pots!

Miss Pink's Picks For June 2009

2009-07-05T12:52:00.000+10:00

So each month I am going to do a post on what my favourite beauty items are for the previous month. This month I am loving:

Urban Decay Primer Potion in Sin - A gorgeous champagne colour which is the perfect eye shadow base.

M.A.C Paint Pot in Blackground - This is such an amazing product. It is black with a touch of shimmer to it. The beauty of this product is that it really makes the true colour of your eye shadows pop! I purchased this after watching a You Tube Tutorial by Lollipop26. I simply apply a light coat with my finger and then pop a lighter shade of eye shadow over the top. It really adds depth to your eye shadow and allows the full colour pay off potential to be reached.

M.A.C Studio Sculpt Concealer - OMG I don't know how I ever survived without this. I was a bit undecided about it initially but now I am a convert. It gives fantastic coverage and doesn't settle in fine lines around the eyes. This is definitely better than Benfit's Erase Paste (and I love that concealer).

M.A.C Moistureblend Foundation - My favourite foundation for winter. It is so creamy and hydrating but not at all oily. It somehow feels comforting on the skin. It gives great coverage and is the foundation I am favouring at the moment.

M.A.C Bubbles Lipstick

2009-07-05T12:37:00.000+10:00

Bubbles lipstick from M.A.C came out as a part of the Sugar Sweet Collection. Initially I thought how weird to bring out a White Glaze Lipstick and who on earth would ever wear that. Yet here I am a few months later totally loving it and wearing it all the time. The trick is that you don't wear Bubbles on it's own (of course you could if you wanted to). I think the idea is to mix Bubbles with other lipsticks to create different colours or to bring out the true tone of a gloss. I think it's an ingenious product and have been having all sorts of fun mixing it with other lipsticks or glosses. This one is Limited Edition so I might have to grab a couple more as backups. The name is just so adorable also!

M.A.C Style Warriors Collection

2009-07-05T11:11:00.000+10:00

Hey Everyone,
I have been terribly slack with posts here but I promise to try harder from now on.

Makeup wise it's been a pretty eventful month for me, with many new purchases that have simply blown my mind and my credit card!!

I was hugely excited when M.A.C Style Warriors Collection was launched. I really loved this collection and thought that this and Rose Romance have been the best collections we have seen from M.A.C so far this year.

So I am going to do a quick review of my favourite products from the collection. I got most of it but I am not going to review everything because I figure there are gazillions of You Tube reviews and Blogs out there that cover most of that. However if there is something you are particularly interested in feel free to message me and I will definitely try and answer your questions.

Some of my favourite Style Warriors Products include:

On A Mission Beauty Powder Blush - This is just a really different and gorgeous colour. It is a purple plum shade which when applied does tend to come out more pink on the skin. It is so beautiful though and very highly pigmented.

Lustre Drops - The texture of these is so light and blends so easily into the skin. Other illuminators that I have used have been more heavy in texture and sometimes that makes them hard to work with. These however just melt into the skin!

I am pink obesessed so of course Pink Rebel was the obvious choice of colour for me in the Lustre Drops but I liked them so much I went back to my M.A.C Counter and also picked up Sun Rush Lustre Drops as well. Pink Rebel is a soft pearly pink liquid shimmery colour and Sun Rush is a pearly baby peach/bronze colour. I just pat these gently along the top of my cheek bones and they make a great highlighter!

Purple Rite and Brave New Bronze Lipsticks - These two are my favourites out of the lipsticks! The other two (Tribalist and Sunsational) perfectly fine but my heart belongs to the two I am about to mention. Brave New Bronze is the perfect nude shade for a fair lass such as myself! I don't think this would be a great shade for people with darker skins as it may not show up well or may wash out the complexion slightly. Purple Rite is a medium to bright magenta shade and is quite a bold strong colour. However it's very wearable when teamed with subtle makeup and works so well in making your lips the focal point of your look. Anyone could wear this colour in my opinion.

Lipglass -I purchased all the Lipglass shades from Style Warriors. The colours were all so pretty I couldn't resist! Liberated is probably my favourite. This one is a yellow pearly gold colour, now I know that sounds freaky but it applies quite sheer and the beauty of this product is that applied over the top of different lipstick shades or mixed with other glosses it gives all colours a totally different dimension. Fierce and Fabulous is another great colour. It is a bight magenta purple and is so pigmented it looks almost opaque and resembles a liquid lipstick more than a gloss. Gold Rebel is a great neutral shade of bronze. It is quite sheer but this one is great for all skintones. I like to apply it over a neutral lipstick (usually M.A.C's Blankety). Style Warrior is a very pigmented deep dark bronze.

Eye Shadows - I love the Eye Shadows from Style Warriors. My favourite is definitely Night Manoeuvres which is a rich dark charcoal brown shade. I am a huge fan of browns and this was so different to any other colour I had in my collection. This is fabulous for creating a smokey eye. I also really love Soft Force which is a frosty white colour. This is great to use as a highlighter and you could even use it as a base. I am quite obsessed with highlight and base colours at the moment. Vibrant Grape is a gorgeous vivid bright purple. It looks a bit shocking in the pot and at first I thought there was no way I was ever going to be able to pull off wearing it but with a light hand it looks amazing. Tempting (which is a part of the normal M.A.C line) I already had and Bright Future was a little too yellow for me so I left that one. Overall the eye shadows are definitely worth checking out from the Style Warriors collection.

Solar Bits - I had never tried Solar Bits before. I know they have been in previous M.A.C collections but I had never seen them before (must have been before I became a M.A.C Junkie lol). I was so excited about these that I ordered them online (yep all 3) prior to even knowing what they were like. I assumed they were going to be exactly the same as M.A.C Pigments.

Firstly the Solar Bits colours are quite phenomenal! Bronze Scape is a gorgeous deep yellow bronze with lots of gold pearl in it. Impassioned is my favoruite and is a beautiful cool taupe brown shade. Scatterays is a golden peach colour and is very similar to Melon Pigment from M.A.C.

The Solar Bits are quite tricky to work with and they can be quite messy which I know turns a lot of people off. They are a lot chunkier in consistency than pigments. However if you can apply the Solar Bits without making a total mess of yourself they look great and you can create different finishes with them. They are very richly pigmented and give brilliant colour pay off. In hindsight I think I would have only purchased one if I had my time over again and that would have been impassioned.

So there's the wrap up on Style Warriors. A great collection from M.A.C and well worth checking out!

Perfume!

2009-05-29T22:35:00.000+10:00

Amongst those who know me it is no secret that I am quite partial to buying fragrance. My collection has grown and grown over the last five years and is now getting ridiculously big.

I am finding that my tastes in fragrance are changing as I get older. I am a sucker for a sweet fragrance though. Although the sickly sweet ones aren't floating my boat as they once did. Perhaps this is an indication that I am maturing (well in a fragrance sense anyway lol).

I am by no means a fragrance snob either, I generally don't care who a fragrance is by, if I like it I like it and that is that.

Lolita Lempicka was my favourite perfume for a long time and then I moved on to Stila's Creme Bouquet which I have loved for the longest time. I still love both of them but when I discovered Jo Malone my loyalties shifted slightly.

I remember the first time I visted the Jo Malone counter in a department store in Melbourne. It was such a decadent experience. The counter looked gorgeous, the bottles so uniform crisp and clean and the matching bath oils, body lotions and candles sealed the deal.

The first Jo Malone fragrance I ever got was Nectarine Blossom and Honey. I am a real collector so naturally had to have the bath oil, body lotion and candle to match. The funny thing is that out of all my Jo Malone fragrances this is the one I use the least.

The Second Jo Malone fragrance I purchased was French Lime Blossom and ohhh how I love it! I have repurchased three times now and still love it as much as I did upon my first sniff.

My Favourite Jo Malone fragrance is Blue Agava and Cacao. I love this so much. It evokes imagery of fluffy birthday cake in my mind!

Other Jo Malone Fragrances in my collection include:

Lotus Blossom and Waterlily
Grapefruit
Honeysuckle and Jasmine
Vintage Gardenia
Pomegranate Noir
Red Roses
Wild Fig and Cassis

I am also excited because I just ordered a newby Sweet Lime and Cedar. I always buy the fragrance with all the other products and while it's a costly exercise I do love them so and my dresser looks so gorgeous with them all sitting there.

My Top 10 For Lips!

2009-05-29T19:30:00.000+10:00

Below is a list of my favourite Lip Products and beside each one I have listed my picks from the range.

1. Clinique Long Last Gloss Wear - Clearly Pink and Stellar Plum
2. M.A.C Lipstick - A Rose Romance, Angel and Chatterbox
3. M.A.C Lipglass - Sweet Strawberry (from the Hello Kitty Collection)
4. M.A.C Tinted Lip Conditioner - Petting Pink and Pink Fish (from the Hello Kitty Collection)
5. Smashbox Lip Enhancing Gloss - Pop and Pout
6. Bloom Mineral Lip Butters - Killing Me Softly and Like A Prayer
7. Styli Style Lip Liner - Pinkster
8. M.A.C Dazzleglass - Like Venus and Baby Sparks
9. Becca Glossy Lip Tints - Flirtini, Rosita and Julep
10. Benefit Silky Finish Lipsticks - Jing-A-Ling

These Are A Few Of My Favourite Things!

2009-05-29T13:36:00.000+10:00

Foundation - At the moment I am really loving Benefit's You Rebel Light which is a tinted moisturiser. I also love Jemma Kidd Light As Air Foundation, Ali Hamylton's Creme Foundation Compact (for when I want a tad more coverage), The Body Shop's Moisture Foundation, M.A.C's Select Moisture Blend (again this has slightly higher coverage) and Clarins Tinted Moisturiser.

I am quite fortunate that I have pretty good skin so I don't need something with a lot of coverage. However having said that I am definitely going to get Becca Stick Foundation and Compact Concealer in the next couple of weeks.

Concealers - I really love Benefit's Erase Paste for dark circles under my eyes but for more coverage I love Estee Lauder's Disappear Creme Concealer. This one doesn't settle in fine lines and gives great coverage. I also quite like Napolean Perdis Concealer in Amber. I like to set and finish my under eye concealer with Benefit's Powderflage. This is a light reflecting powder. I think this product is either one that you will love or hate and I have heard opinions supporting both off many people.

Powders - I have quite a few powders on the go at any given time. At the moment I am alternating between Halo by Smashbox, Studio Fix by M.A.C, Camera Finish by Napolean Perdis and Hello Flawless by Benefit. I use M.A.C Blot Powder if my skin gets a little shiny.

I consider Napolean Perdis Camera Finish to be my old faithful when it comes to powders. I think this product is a good one for me and when I don't really want to have to think about doing my makeup I always reach for this one because I know it won't let me down.

Halo by Smashbox is a hydrating, anti-aging mineral foundation. It's a powder but it gives great buildable coverage. I am loving this so much at the moment.

Brow Products - I only have three products that I ever use on my brows, these are Benefit Brow Zings, Smashbox Brow Tech and Clinique's Superfine Liner for brows.

Eye Bases - It is a big must for me to use an eyelid primer every day. If I don't my eye makeup isn't going to stay put. Trust me when I say that eye shadow on any part of the face other than eyes is not a good look on anyone. My top three eye primers are Urban Decay's Potion Eyelid Primer, Benefit Lemon Aid and Too Faced Shadow Insurance. I never use Lemon Aid alone but I always use it with Shadow Insurance all the time.

Eye Shadows - I seriously have way too many eye shadows. I look for good quality eye shadows with good colour payoff and durability. I prefer to use shadows by M.A.C, Smashbox, i.d Bare Minerals, Benefit, Christian Dior, Stila, Nars or Estee Lauder. However I think American Beauty, Flirt, Red Earth and The Body Shop do amazing shadows that are in the less expensive price range. My fool proof eye shadow combination by M.A.C is Shroom, Mulch and Goldmine.

Eye Liners - I love Jemma Kidd's Stay Put Liners, M.A.C Kohl Liners, Smashbox Jet Set Liner pots, Smashbox Pencils and Laura Mercier Liners from the Stormy Collection. Lately I have been experimenting more with liquid eye liners but I must say I am more confident with gel liners or pencils.

Mascara - I don't know why but I don't like waterproof mascara. I have never used them. It's just one of my many little beauty quirks. My favourite mascara is Benefit Bad Gal Big Lash Mascara followed by Becca's Ultimate Mascara, M.A.C's Plush Lash and Max Factors 2000 Calorie Mascara.

Pigments - M.A.C again is my favourite here but I have also ordered some from Spell cosmetics which I can't wait to try out. I like to press my pigments to make them easier to work with. They tend to be a bit messy loose.

Bronzer - I have three bronzers that I love. These include M.A.C Bronzing Powder in Golden, Nars Laguna and Benefit's Dallas. These are my foolproof bronzers. I have others but these are my top 3!

Creme Cheek Colours - The winner here is clear for me. I love Becca Creme Blushes, Lip and Cheek Beach Tints and Lip and Cheek Cremes. My favourite cheek colour is Rosebud by Becca. I also quite like M.A.C Blushcreme's ( Sweet William being my favourite amongst these).

Powder Blush - This is my biggest beauty weakness. I can not resist a gorgeous powder blush. I have way too many but yet I still continue to purchase them like a mad woman. I love love love M.A.C powder blushes. The shades are all too gorgeous for words (which is why I have so many of them). I also love all the different finishes you can get with M.A.C powder blushes. I also love Nars, Becca, Smashbox, Benefit, Flirt and American Beauty. Actually there's just too many for me to name individually. My favourite powder blush is probably Pink Swoon by M.A.C.

Lipsticks - There are so many that I love but I will give a special mention to Benefit's Silky Lip Colour in Jing-a- ling, M.A.C lipsticks in Angel, Chatterbox an A Rose Romance and also Dior and Chanel Lipsticks.

Glosses - Gosh my favourite changes every day but I can't go past M.A.C Lipglass, Lustreglass and Dazzleglass. I also love Becca's Glossy Lip Tints (Flirtini being my fave), Smashbox Full Potential Glosses and Clinique's Long Wear Glosses are a few that I am a fan of.

Highlighters - I really like Jemma Kidd All Over Dewy Radiance Cream in Iced Gold, Becca's Shimmering Skin Perfectors, Becca's Pressed Shimmer Powders and Smashbox Soft Lights.

So there's just a few of my favourite makeup things.

That's all for now guys XO

M.A.C Dazzleglass Glosses

2009-05-28T23:56:00.000+10:00

The first Dazzleglass from M.A.C I purchased ages ago was Funtabulous, a vivid bright purple pink shade with lots of shimmer and sparkle. I thought it looked so fabulous in the tube under the bright store lights. When I got it home I though "my golly Miss Pink what were you thinking". The colour just seemed so bright against my pale complexion. I stashed it away in my Tiffany & Co hatbox along with my massive collection of glosses and didn't really think about it anymore until M.A.C came up with the Double Dazzle Collection!

On one of my many visits to the M.A.C counter I spotted a gorgeous shade called Like Venus. The reason this caught my eye is that it is my ideal shade of pink, bubblegum pink! Of course I had to have it and I must say I am so in love with it I have three! This one perfect Dazzleglass made me suddenly need to revisit the entire collection.

The thing with Dazzlegalss is that they are very shimmery so if you're not into shimmer and a bit of sparkle these probably wouldn't be for you. I personally love me a little shimmer so these are floating my boat like nobodies business.

I have since purchased the following shades in the Dazzleglass Collection:

Baby Sparks - A gorgeous baby pink colour
Smile - A soft pale peachy coral colour
Steppin Out - A medium Pink Shade
Bare Necessity- A nude caramel peachy shade
Goldyrocks - A bright yellow gold which is gorgeous for layering over other shades of gloss and lipstick.
Extra Amps - A hot pink shade
Sugarrimmed - A very pale milky pink colour

Then today I arrived home to find a package on my doorstep from a good friend. Inside were two Dazzleglasses in:

Money Honey - A shimmery rose colour
Date Night - A dark plum shade.

I would like to thank my gorgeous friend for those most unexpected but lovely surprises. How cool is it that she got me two shades I didn't already have. Now there's a girl that does her homework or was it just a lucky guess?

I have since got my very first Dazzleglass in Funtabulous out again and have decided in small doses I can make it work!

That's all for now guys

XO

2009-05-27T22:54:00.001+10:00

So this is my first blog. I never imagined doing anything like this but some friends convinced me and they must have got me in a good mood because here I am!

If you are not interested in beauty products then you probably aren't going to find much joy here.

So lately I have been going through a M.A.C phase. At the moment M.A.C is my favourite cosmetics brand but I warn you this can change suddenly when something else tickles my fancy. I have many other favourite brands but more about them later!

I have really been digging M.A.C's A Rose Romance collection. I knew I was going to love this from the time I first read about it. It was quite shocking when my M.A.C counter got it in because I burst into applause when I saw it. This gained me some very strange looks from fellow shoppers but hey I was excited.

So after making several trips to M.A.C I now have a few pieces of the Rose Romance Collection. I will start by talking about my very favourite things.

My favourite product would have to be the Circa Plum pigment. This is so pretty. It's a shimmery plum purple colour and it's just gorgeous! It looks amazing layered with either the Shadowy Lady or Cranberry eye shadows from the same collection (yep I got those to). I actually got all the eye shadows including Sliverthorn, Et Tu Bouquet and Of Summer (which is a bright shimmering lilac shade).

I got both the Beauty Powders. They were too gorgeous to resist. I am favouring Summer Rose for some reason.

I picked up another trusty Fix + but from the A Rose Romance Collection. The only difference with this Fix + is that it is rose scented.

I got the A Rose Romance Lipstick which is such a pretty soft pink and for something a bit different I also got Odyssey Lipstick which is a rich plum wine shade.

As hard as it was to limit myself I decided to only get one lip glass in Magnetique which again is a rich plum wine colour.

I really want to get the mutiny pigment but this is so not a colour I can wear but I want it just because it looks pretty in the jar!

The Rose Romance collection is one of my favourite collections from M.A.C but Hello Kitty is my absolute favourite range ever!

I am now getting quite into the Dazzleglass lip glosses. I love me a bit of glitter in the lip gloss. I will tell you more about which ones I have a little later.

So here ends my first blog entry. I hope you guys are not all sleeping at your keyboards out of sheer boredom!

That's all for now xo