Epic Nail Foils - Where I Tried To Get A Bit Festive

Ok, so I may be a little late with getting this post up but you could also look at it the other way where I am just super early with getting in with the Christmas themed stuff for next year :-)

A little while ago I was approached by Epic Nail to try out their new Nail Foils and being a bit of a nail junkie I just couldn't resist saying yes.

I was lucky enough to be sent the Kaleidoscope kit which contains 6 gorgeous foil colours. There is Date Night (purple), Bonfire (red), Irish Flair (green), Karat (gold), The Deep (blue), and All Dolled Up (pink).

The kit also contains some instructions on two methods to try out using the foils (as above) as well as some glue and cuticle sticks.

I have never used nail foils before but love some of the effects I have seen others get when using them. I have to admit that it took me quite a few goes to get used to applying the foils and I found that it was best to wait around five minutes for the glue to dry before applying the foils even though the instructions say to wait around 1 minute.


Here is a look I decided to do for Christmas this year using Irish Flair, Karat and Bonfire:

Out of all of them Karat seemed to be the easiest to apply and it was also the most spectacular gold I have ever seen! Irish Flair applied a bit patchy but it was hard to tell if you didn't know because I used a similar green polish as an undercoat. 

Bonfire was also a little bit patchy but again I used a red polish underneath which made it hard to tell it wasn't all that even.

It is recommended to apply a top coat over the foils to give them a longer life but I tried out all four top coats that I own and every single one of them kept removing the finish from the foil and ruining the look. I did read somewhere that a water based top coast is recommended to stop this from happening but I obviously don't own one of these. I ended up opting for no top coat but unfortunately this meant the foils only lasted around 24 hours before started to show a lot of wear and tear. 

These foils are definitely a fun way to jazz up a regular manicure and you could get heaps of applications from each foil roll. To find out more about Epic Nail Foils you can visit their website here.

As a special treat for my dear readers, if you use the coupon code 'BLOGSPACE' prior to checkout you can get free standard shipping on all orders with a product spend of $30 or more. This offer will expire on the 31st of December.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas!!

Michelle xx 

November 2013 Favourites

So, I usually don't worry about posting about the products I used the most during a month because a lot of the time I mix things up so much that I tend to forget what I have loved more than others.

But, the month of November was just so hectic that I don't even really remember much of it and I found myself really using the above products practically every day because it meant that there was less for me to try and think about when I was getting ready.

Anyway, here is a break down of the products that kept me sane during the month of November.

Face
* Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum Gel Foundation in Vanilla - I have had this foundation tucked up in the back of my makeup cabinet for ages and finally cracked it open last month and instantly fell in love. I can't believe how gorgeous and lovely the texture is of this foundation and the coverage is perfect for my skin.
* Nude by Nature Soft Focus Illuminator - I found this to be the perfect partner for the Bourjois foundation when I wanted a bit more of a glow to my skin.
* Savoir Faire Cconcealer in Light - I've been really needing a bit more coverage under the eyes lately as sleep has been eluding me and for some reason I've had a lot of breakouts around my chin area since the weather has warmed up. This concealer blends perfectly with my skin tone and gives just the right amount of coverage.
* MAC Blush in Formal - This was a recent acquisition during November- in the Stroke of Midnight Lip & Cheek bag I reviewed a few days ago and I've just loved how versatile this pink is and how well it blends onto my cheeks to give a nice healthy glow.

Eyes/Brows
* Elizabeth Arden Colour Palette - I think I have shown this before a very long time ago. I always seem to break this old faithful out when I'm in a hurry because the two Graphite and Platinum eyeshadow shades gives a great quick and easy eye look that goes with practically everything. The blush in Sunblush makes a great bronzer too when I really want to get out the door quickly.  
* Calvin Klein Intense Eyeshadow in Aqua Shimmer - I seem to gravitate towards green eye makeup when the weather warms up and I just love this shade blended into the crease lightly to brighten up the eye area when I really feel like just going back to bed.
* Bobbi Brown Lash Glamour Extreme Lengthening Mascara in Black - This is one of my favourtie all-time mascaras and I always break it out when I want one that I can rely on without wondering whether it will be halfway down my face by the end of the day.
* Mirenesse Inside Out 27Hr Eye Kohl in Osiris - I love the shade of this eyeliner as it's a dark gunmetal grey and therefore not as intense as black. These eyeliners are great and I have every shade but I don't recommend using them on a very hot day as they can get extremely soft which makes them a bit harder to apply accurately.
* Ardell Brow Defining Kit - If you saw my recent review of this product it won't be any surprise as to why this has become a daily necessity for me. I just love it.
* Models Prefer Brow Highlighter - I've been using this mostly as a highlighter for the inner corners of the eyes to wake me up a bit more and it's definitely grown more on me for use as a brow highlighter too when I'm in a hurry. It also makes a great cheekbone highlighter in a pinch too.

Lips
* Models Prefer Ultra Lipgloss Pencil in Perfectly Polished - These pencils are so easy to apply when in a hurry and give a really great amount of colour on the lips.
* MAC Cremesheen Lipstick in How Darling! - You would have seen that this was only a recent aquisition for me during November and I have been obsessed with the milky pinkness ever since.

Hair/Body
* Evodia Coconut & Lime Fragrance Roll-On - I thought I would hate this when I got it as I'm normally not the biggest fan of fake coconut scents but when we flew to Tasmania for our holiday I took it due to it being nice and small to fit into my makeup bag and I kind of became a bit obsessed with it.
* Schwarzkopf Dry Shampoo - I received this to trial from Beautyheaven and can't get enough of it. I just love the fresh scent and it makes my hair feel really nice and clean in between shampoos.  

So those are the products I loved and lived with during the month of November.

What were some of your favourites during the month?

Michelle..

Natures Beauty Bag - November 2013

So there's a new subscription service in town called Natures Beauty Bag, and being the subscription junkie that I am I couldn't help but subscribe and see what it was like for myself.

Natures Beauty Bag specialises in organic and natural products which is something that I personally am so excited about. Here is a little bit about them which I grabbed from their website:

'We launched Natures Beauty Bag because we feel that everyone should experience quality natural and organic beauty products.

We strive to provide a variety of beauty product samples which benefit your health, beauty and general wellbeing and we believe in only providing our customers with the best.

We only provide products samples that we honestly and truly take pride in and every product is something that we ourselves would use.'

So, here is what came in the November bag:

1)  Ultra C Radiance Serum - This is a Rosehip Oil based serum rich in Vitamin C, Goji Berry, Co Enzyme Q10 & Chia Seed. I can't wait to try this out!

2) Rebifresh Cleansing Oil - This is a blend of Olive, Citrus and Apricot oils, plus certified organic lemon-scented Tea Tree. I've never had the greatest experiences with cleansing oil but will certainly give this one a go.

3) Australian Bush Essence Intensive Eye Serum - This is an organic eye serum which contains Australian Bush Flower Essences and Rose Stem Cells to care for the delicate tissue around the eyes. I've been paying particular attention to ensuring I am vigilent with applying an eye cream on a daily basis lately so will be interested to see how this one goes.

4) Maeve Mineral Vitality Face Serum - This serum contains regenerative and anti-inflammatory ingredients and is said to be perfect for environmentally stressed and mature skin. That's me in a nutshell so this is definitely on my 'try next' list.

5) Cherry Brown Natural Mineral Lipstick - These lipsticks are made with pure ingredients including apricot kernel oil and extra virgin macadamia oil. They are free from animal testing, petroleum products, palm oil in any form, animal ingredients, chemical additives, parabens, preservatives, synthetic dyes and colours, micronised ingredients and nanoparticles (Phew!) I received one in the shade 'Hot Pink' and it sure is what the name suggests, a super duper bright pink. I'll give a separate review and show some swatches in a future post so stay tuned.

6) Absolutely Gorgeous Organic Lip Balm - I have used a lot of Absolutely Gorgeous products in the past and have always been impressed. This lip balm is 100% organic and is in the flavour 'Coconut & Lime' which isn't too overpowering or sickly at all. I am a bit of a lip balm addict so will definitely get a lot of use out of this.

7) Morlife Greens Rush Bar - These bars contain a serve of Alkalising Greens pH7.3 powder and give an antioxidant equivalent of 5 serves of vegetables and fruit. They come in three different flavours being Banana Tropicana, Pineapple Zest and Cacao Mint. I received the Cacao Mint one and am intrigued enough to try it out soon.

 The list of included products comes on lovely recycled paper as shown above.

There was also a huge amount of product brochures and discount vouchers included as well to give you all the information you could want on the products received.

Overall I'm very happy with the Natures Beauty Bag and will definitely continue subscribing for the near future. It only comes every two months as well which I guess is a bit more practical as you get a bit more time to use each product before being bombarded with more.

Natures Beauty Bag is $29.95 every two months and you can either purchase a one-off bag is you like or purchase am ongoing subscription.

What does everyone think of the Natures Beauty Bag? Has anyone else subscribed to it yet?


Have a great weekend.

Michelle xx