Almost 3 weeks ago Jolene at The Sticker Monster sent me a package of fun things to review for your guys and seeing as I have such a sweet spot for deco I just couldn’t say no to making a decoden tutorial 😀
This is a super long post but stay with me because I’m going to show you how to make a whole bunch of really cool things!
Now onwards to the review!
This was the package that arrived on my doorstep… I couldn’t believe how much was packed into it! The delicate items were very well protected and nothing was damaged at all. It took around 1 week to arrive from Malaysia. Shipping- 5/5I had to giggle at the adorable business card!
So what was inside?
Several packs of Swarovski crystals in many colours and sizes. I’ve never used Swarovskibefore so I was really excited to try them out.
Lots of yummy plastic cabochon, pretzels, flowers, whipped cream and chocolates! This was my favorite part of the package, mwahaha more sweets to add to my collection!
10 fimo fruit canes in some really fun designs.
Pre-glued jewels on sheets in cute designs
Pre-glued pearls, big jewels and mini boullions in gold and silver.
Of course there was a whole host of their trademarked stickers! Glow in the dark, glittery and little hearts, totally adorable!
Prestuck felt sheet and furry leopard fabric sheet.
Jolene was also lovely enough to include 2 sheets of special deco protection paper. Basically the idea is that you glue your deco design to the sticker and then put it on your expensive items (laptop/cellphone/whatever) and then if you don’t like the design/want to sell your laptop you can remove it with no damage!
So I think the questions you’re all asking by now is “What on earth did you do with all of these supplies??”…
Well I was a little overwhelmed with all the design ideas so it took me a while to decide what to do first XD
First thing I did was decorate my make up brushes!
So you need:
Make up brushes
Preglued jewel stripes
Scissors
It’s really easy to do… just measure how many rows of jewels you need while they are still on the plastic, remove the plastic, stick them down and press down for a minute to make sure the glue sticks.
I chose to add the jewels at the top of the metal band because it won’t interfere when I need to wash them.
I had some jewels left over so I added a stripe to each of the ends ^_^
Very easy to do and very pretty no? Over the last 3 weeks I’ve used my brushes every day and washed them as per usual with no damage at all. The only tip I have is don’t submerge the pre-stuck jewels in water, if you do by accident just pat it dry with a paper towel.
I liked it so much that I did my Magical Pick deco tool as well! My lovely friend Jinsent this to me and as soon as I can get the proper internet back I’m going to tell you all about it!
Now onto some real nail art 😀
Have you guys ever used fimo canes? They are so much fun! I’ve actually got pretty much a lifetime supply of them now because the delightful Jacie sent me a bunch of them which are going to be featured in another tutorial too ^_^
So I’ll cover the basics here… they are made of fimo or sculpy and they come in sticks with pretty much any design you can think of.
Using a *very* sharp knife you cut them into small slices. This can be really tricky because they like to roll around. I got around this by taping the cane to the cutting board so I could have more control with my hands.
You want the slices to be *really* thin because it makes them more flexible to shape around your nails when you stick them on.
Apparently you can get over 100 slices from one cane sometimes! I got sore hands after cutting for a while so I made James finish them off XD I cut them all up at once so I never have to do it again!
Keeping on the topic of nailart… these are the nails that I’ve been wearing for the last two weeks. Over two weeks I managed to move house with these babies on so they were super durable!
I used the little silver boullions to fill in spaces between the diamantes, it gives it lots of extra punch!
Heehee typically I managed to lose my first nail like 20min before James was ready to take the photos yesterday *_* You can spot one of the little fimo cane bows from Jacie in there too ^_^
I decided to experiment by using a big fabric bow this time too. It was very durable and went well and by using hand sanitiser a lot I was able to keep it nice and hygienic. Cute but I probably wouldn’t do it again because I fiddled with it too much! You can see the nails survived the move by my skin didn’t, time for a hand treatment!
Next it’s sticker time!
I’ve been looking at ways to deco my laptop for a while, I deco’d the entire front section twice but didn’t like either design. The second I saw these little heart shaped stickers I knew I wanted to stick them to my keyboard!
It’s fairly self explanatory… I just stuck them on randomly ^_^
I also used some matching yummy macaron/sweets stickers that the lovely Trashtastikagave me and went crazy with them!
LOVE the finished product and it’s a great starting point to inspire the rest of my laptop’s design. I’m going to use the deco protection sheets on the back of my laptop and start again with an even better design!
This next project was probably my biggest overall… I was very inspired by the leopard print fabric and the pre-glued deco sheets to finally decorate my little handy camera and it’s case 😀
First thing I did was add some of the little black rose stickers to all of the buttons on the back of the camera. They were the perfect size! The flash from the camera makes them look kind of shiny but in natural light you can’t see the sticker part you only see the black roses with silver outlines.
Nice and classy unlike the rest of my design which pretty much slaps you in the face with the pink 😉
I used the prestuck jewels and the sticky leopard print for the case.
Again this was one of the easiest project I’ve ever done… I stuck the sheet of jewels on the front of the case, it fit perfectly!
And I stuck leopard print on the rest of the case. I added a stripe of lace to cover the line… and that’s it!
I keep it in my purse all the time and it’s been really great, none of the jewels have come off the sheet which surprised me as I’ve always assumed they aren’t very durable. Very happily surprised!
Now on to the actual camera! I wanted this to be sweets themed but I didn’t want it to be completely crazy. It also needed to fit back in the case which was a bit of a tight fit to begin with *_*
I played around with the design a bit and decided that this would be perfect to try out using Swarovski‘s for the first time!
I used a lot of the cabachons, the prestuck pearls (which I removed the stick backs from and glued down) and several colours of crystals. This is what I ended up with after around an hour!
Totally cute but not too crazy!
Like?
I got a request a little while ago from a reader asking for cute ideas to store nail art supplies and nails there is another tutorial coming on this as well but here’s a quick and easy idea for you!
This is one of the boxes I keep my supplies in…
It took me about 2 minutes to cut out the sticky backed felt and cover the box! SUPER EASY.
It needed a little something extra so I added some of the other cute stickers in the pack ^_^
This is completely random but this is the rest of the sheet the stickers came on… all the cutest ones like the little bears weren’t actually cut out as stickers XD I just cut them out and stuck them on anyway!
Last but not least I used some of the other Swarovskicrystals to jazz up a little heart photo thingy that I got aaaages ago. I put in some purikura of James, Susie and I and deco’d around the edges.
Sorry Susie parts of you got covered in jewels ;_;
I really loved using the Swarovski‘s, they certainly do shine a hell of a lot more than acrylics! They are much heavier but I think they are going to be so much more durable too. Love durability!
So now you’ve seen all the fun things I got to make here’s my final review on The Sticker Monster!
Communication-
Every email I sent was replied to very very promptly, in fact I don’t think I ever waited more than about 12hrs for a response about anything. If you live in Malaysia Jolene also has her mobile number online for inquiries and even arranged meet ups if you want to buy a certain number of products. To top that off she is super polite, very friendly and really knows a whole lot about her products. She actually collects and uses them herself so if you have questions about anything she has proper first hand knowledge.
Prices-
All of the prices are in Malaysian currency (RM). When converting to Australia Dollars the prices are really cheap! Things like the sticky fabric sheets and pre-stuck jewel sheets were around half the price of what I’ve seen them for in shops here in Aus. Even when you factor in shipping it’s still much more cost effective.
Quality-
I didn’t find one single piece in the selection I got that I wasn’t happy with the quality. A lot of the things like the jewel sheets and the Swarovski‘s far exceeded my expectations. Even little things like comparing the silver/gold boullions to ones that I had previously ordered from a nailart site in bulk, the Sticker Monster boullions were slightly larger, shinier and more uniform in size than the bulk ones. Couldn’t be more pleased with everything.
Overall-
Considering the prices, exchange rate, ridiculous number of products actually available on the site and the super friendly service… I’m already putting together a mental order list 😀 DO WANT!!!
Let me know if you have suggestions for another decoden tutorial!
Today’s review is of Manicare Glam Eyes False Lashes 😀 The type I’m reviewing is called “Jessica”.
Until recently lashes haven’t been very popular in Australia (or at least in Queensland) and so nice and reasonably priced lashes have been quite hard to find.
While it’s getting easier to find lashes they are still quite expensive. These ones retail for around AU$9.95 which in my opinion (as someone who wears lashes almost every day) is quite over priced.
I’ve decided to caption this photo “SURPRISE LASHES!”
The quality is very good, they are very fine lashes and the band is thin and natural. They are flexible and seem to be reasonably sturdy for their thickness. I’ve worn my pair 6 times with no noticeable degradation and no lost lashes.
They come pre-glued which I hate, I washed the glue off and threw away the tube it came with in favor of my everyday brand. Their colour is a nice matt black and they are definitely not shiny like the some of the cheaper brands. The lash band is very thin and blended well with my eyes even when I was not wearing other make up.
When worn they look quite natural because of the fine lashes. They are nice and long and create a statement without being ridiculously dramatic. While a lot of people would probably use them as a smokey night time lash where as I prefer them for a day time dolly look without the effort.
Verdict- Quite pricey but a very good quality lash. Good if you are a casual lash wearer, not cost effective for every day use. DO WANT (but for a better price).
Also today is my birthday so I might be really energetic at blogging and post a photo or two later for you all ^_^
Have you guys tried the Manicare Glam Eyes range or do you have other favorite false lashes?
I am definitely not biased about her awesomeness even though she has dubbed me as the “MacGuyver of Hime style” ROFL!
So for this post I’ve blatantly copied her in the hopes that some of her awesome will rub off on me 😛
Ok so that’s not totally true but last week she posted about her current beauty favorites and she asked to see ours… so here are mine…
Skin care beauty favorites!
I have become completely obsessed with skin care lately so these first products are the most important things in my whole bathroom.
Skin MD Shielding Lotion-
This is my first step to my day after showering. It doesn’t matter what moisturizer is best for your skin, using it is the important part! Very yummy food for your skin 😀
Neutorgena Oil Free Make Up Remover-
I searched long and hard for a good make up remover and came up with a big fat zero. I had pretty much lost hope until SuperKawaiiMama recommended me this Neutrogena one. It is FANTASTIC. I can’t say how much I love this, it’s so important to take off make up before bed especially if you have sensitive skin. This isn’t greasy, it doesn’t hurt your eyes and it removes every trace of make up. I’m going to do a proper review of it soon and show you all how well it works!
Bases!
Bourjois Brush Concealer-
Haha ’nuff said!
Innoxa Satin Sheen Buttermilk Foundation-
I use this to get a nice even finish and I top it off with the Innoxa pressed powder too. Innoxa is one of the only brands I found that actually make things that suit my skin tone. I like this foundation because I can throw it on and still feel like I’m just wearing moisturiser but come out with pretty even skin!
The eyes!
Lash Me Type 1 Eyelash Adhesive-
I love my lashes and I just couldn’t use them without a good glue! While This glue is a little questionable in quality compared to other glues I’ve used… it still does the trick and it doesn’t irritate my allergies which is a major plus. It does contain latex but it is paraben free. I really wish it came in a better container though, it’s so runny that this one is just wasteful 🙁
Bourjois Volume Glamour Ultra Curl Mascara-
I may have bought this *partially* for the pretty packaging but it’s actually one of the best mascaras I’ve ever used! A girl always need a good mascara even with no other make up! It gives really good length and it give my eyes minimum irritation. LOVE the cute packaging and love the formula.
Bourjois 06 Noir Cobolt Eye Shadow-
Plain good old black eye shadow. I use this wet as my eyeliner and dry and a shading shadow. It blends and wears well, has a really dark colour and after 6 months of every day use I’ve barely made a dent in it.
Bourjois 90 Blanc Diaphane-
A nice while eye shadow is again a staple of my make up wardrobe. With a good white and a good black shadow you can create the base for almost any look. I like this one especially because it has a slight pearl finish to it so it’s not harsh
The Face Shop Jewel Powder in pink-
Another one recommended to me by SuperKawaiiMama when we were in Melbourne last. This is a really pretty shimmer powder that I use to highlight and emphasize the corners of my eyes. Even with no other make up this will really make your eyes pop!
I like that the Bourjois powders also come with mini mirrors so you can take them on the go!
Lips!
Bourjois Lip Stain 88 Cyber cassis-
This is my favorite lip stain ever. It stays on all day and only requires lip gloss touch ups. The colour goes with pretty much everything I own and depending on how you layer it and work with the lip gloss it can give you a variety of shades.
Bourjois Effect 3D Cosmic 23-
This is the top coat I use almost every day with my lip stain. It is choc full of glitter which is why I love it and unlike a lot of other glitter glosses I’ve used it doesn’t have that sandy chunky feel. Nice and so sticky that your hair gets caught all over your face in the wind 😀
Hair!
Cedel Hair Lacquer- Black
Surprisingly enough I tend to go through a lot of hair spray. I’ve tried a lot of different brands but this is the one I always go back to. The hold is amazing, I swear you could go rock climbing and come back without a hair out of place! I love the smell too, it reminds me of when I worked in a theater ^_^
Vidal Sassoon Velvet Hot Rollers-
I have notoriously hard to curl hair so when I want beautiful bouncy hime style curls this is what I go for. It’s quick and easy to do and doesn’t damage hair as much as other direct heat products can. I think my favorite thing about hot rollers is that you can pop them in, go have something to eat or check your emails and then come back to big beautiful hair!
Evening everyone, Cover Girl mascara review time 😀
I always have lots of trouble finding nice mascaras so I’m going to gradually review all of the ones I’ve tested out in the search for the perfect mascara! Today I’m comparing and reviewing two Covergirl mascaras, the Lash Blast and the Volume Exact…
This was my go-to mascara for almost two years, if you layer it on thick it can give you some crazy lashes.
It has a very fancy looking brush which is made of silicone like tendrils. Actually it kind of looks like those spiky silicone glow in the dark raver earrings that were popular for 2 minutes in the 90’s. The brush is very thick at the ends which is great for doing the outer lashes but can make it challenging to get small lashes at the inner corner of your eyes. It does however make it really easy to throw on mascara last minute if you’re in a hurry.
It does take a while to dry, I have bad hay fever too so I tend to sneeze and end up looking like a panda XD
The colour it produces is a really dark black and the formula is very thick. As you can see in the photo it does have a tendency to clump a bit but if you are wearing it with false lashes you can’t tell.
Allergy experiences: This mascara tends to irritate my eyes quite a bit compared to others I’ve now found. At the end of the day I would always have tiny chunks of black lodged in my eye (eww) which doesn’t seem to happen with others I’ve used.
I have less experience with this mascara but I used it for around 2 months. This mascara has a much thinner formula than the Lash blast and it goes on very easily. The brush again looks like one of those weird 90’s silicone pointy earrings but this one is quite thin and the end is nicely pointed to easily reach small lashes.
This doesn’t give the volume that the other does but it’s a good mascara in it’s own right. It goes on quite easily and seems to dry a little faster. It’s very useful for a more subtle day look. It’s a little lighter in tone than the dark black of the Lash Blast.
Allergy experiences: This one doesn’t irritate my eyes as much as the Lash Blast but at the end of the day I would still feel a slight puffiness.
I used one on each eye below so you can see the differences.
Comparatively speaking you can see that Lash Blast looks more clumpy than Volume Exact but the colour is definitely a bit darker.
Verdicts…
Lash Blast- Good volume, great for under false lashes. Brush can be too thick to get to small lashes without making a mess. BUT… can be clumpy and leaves yucky junk in my eyes. TAKE IT OR LEAVE IT.
Volume Exact- Nice formula, no clumps, good lengthening, easy to use brush and good for day looks. Possibly not enough bang for more bold styles but still very pretty. DO WANT.
So are you all getting ready for Sneaker Sunday this week? Hope you enjoyed the Cover Girl review! 😀
Lots of people have been wondering what came in my Priceline bag XD
A few weeks ago those of your who follow me on Twitter would have heard all of my excited tweets about the Priceline goodie bag. For my non-Australian readers basically Priceline is a make up/beauty store here and every year they have a deal where if you spend $50 on certain brands you receive a bag full of fun products for around $150. They have lots of samples but even better they have full products too. And it all comes in a very sturdy bag.
If you want more information you should go and check out Chai Gyaru’s post about it all.
This is what came in mine:
Lots of hair products (yay!), Palmer’s moisturiser, lip glosses and false eyelashes 😀
I’ve got to say I was completely happy with how many products and how usable everything was! I spend the $50 on things that I actually needed and was going to buy anyway.So as you were all so interested in what was in the pack I figured I would review them all ^_^
Some things I won’t be reviewing… like this Revlon Colour Stay Foundation which was waaaay to dark for me.
So first review!
CoverGirl Outlast Lip Stain
I’m not sure what the colour was called but the number is 425 and it’s a berry colour with slight purple tones. This one didn’t come with the goody bag but I bought it to make up the $50 to get it ^_^
Design:
I really liked the idea of a felt pen style applicator but after using it several times it definitely has it’s positives and negatives. For instance, the colour only comes out of the very tip of the felt part which makes application kind of awkward. Also have you ever tried to use a pen upside down for an extended period of time? The ink just runs the other way and it’s pretty much the same with this, doing your bottom lip is easy but depending on your technique getting the top lip perfect might be more difficult.
Colour:
I thought this was actually quite a versatile colour. the photo below is just one coat but if you layer it a couple of times you could get a nice dark plum tone.
Lasting power:
Holy bajeebus does this stay on for a long time! Seriously, this really is a “stain” in a literal sense. I even had trouble removing it at the end of the day with make up remover. One thing I found was that if you wear several coats it can wear unevenly during the day. I would definitely suggest using a lip balm or something underneath this because by itself it is kind of drying.
Verdict:
Even though it’s not perfect application I think it is fantastic as a base with a subtle lip gloss over the top for a little shine. I think the colour is really pretty and versatile, it’s a base colour that you could change so much depending on your outfit and mood. DO WANT.
The shipping was super fast, coming all the way to Australia only took a few days. I was actually surprised when the post came as I hadn’t been expecting it! The packaging was as expected, everything wrapped in tissue paper and tied with a cute bow.
Ruffle Socks
These socks are US$5, they are branded as Leg Avenue and are 100% Nylon. Available in pink, white, black and red.
The main lace used in them is a very soft and comfortable to wear while the top ruffle is made out of standard nylon lace and is not quite as soft. These ones are taller than most of the other ankle socks I’ve had over the years which makes them quite versatile. They are tall enough that they look cute with very tall heels but if you fold them down a little more they would be cute with sneakers too.
The one thing that I found a bit odd with these socks is that the seam is sewn under the foot and up the back. It’s not a big deal, but I think that after a long day of walking around it might be uncomfortable.
Verdict-
Lace quality aside I think these are a very cute way to top off an outfit ^_^
Over the knee socks:
These socks are on sale for US$8 and come in lots of other colours. These are quite interesting because they are billed as Eco Socks…
“Surprisingly soft over the knee eco socks by The Sock Boutique. These soft and comfortable regenerated socks are earth friendly and go above the knee to thigh high. The cuff has holds the socks up perfectly without leaving a dent in your skin. 85% Regenerated Cotton/Acrylic/Poly (*regenerated from preconsumer (unused) fabrics*) 10% Nylon 5% Elastic”
So recycled socks= good for the environment hurrah!
The colour of these is really vibrant and they came up to around mid-thigh length. After wearing them for walking all day they had migrated around 2 inches down which is pretty good. I also have quite small legs so they would probably fit others more snugly ^_^ I thought they were very comfortable for a full day’s walking. Quality-wise they are right for the price, they are not as high quality as say Innocent World but they sure don’t cost $25 either XD They are soft and comfy, warm enough to wear in the Australian winter and stay up nicely. The description was right too, they didn’t leave horrible bands on the tops of my legs at the end of the day either which I was very happy about!
A close up of the stitching in the toes.
Verdict-
Comfy socks that stay up well through the day and come in lots of cute colours ^_^ Do want!
Bonus outfit photo of what I was wearing that day 😀
This post is also for everyone who has been asking me where they can get white stockings/tights like the ones I wear. It’s very hard to find here in Aus, especially if you want good quality opaque ones. I can’t attest to how opaque these are but the Sock Boutique also sells white opaques here for US$7. Problem solved, hurray for The Sock Boutique! 😀
Illustrator. Strong tea, knitting, watercolours, and making a video game called Moonlight in Garland. Living with her adorable husband Jimmy, fluffy puppy Miss Lottie and Bergamot Bunny in Melbourne, Australia.
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