by VioletLeBeaux | Nov 11, 2010 | Beauty, Review
Dry shampoo is kind of a foreign concept for me. I tend to use talcum powder on my fringe/roots if they’re dirty between washes because it’s cheap, it works well and it smells lovely (mine is scented like roses). I thought this would be quite fun to try when I got it in my MBBE bags 😀
![]()
|
So the idea is that when your hair is dirty between washes and you don’t have time to wash it…Spray this in…
Leave it for a couple of minutes… brush it out… and enjoy clean hair!
Spraying it in was very chilly so I think it would be quite nice in Summer! It felt like powder once it was in and then after brushing out it did make a difference. I liked that the smell wasn’t over powering but unfortunately it wasn’t overly nice either.
The feeling after brushing was definitely an improvement but not really what I wold call clean either.
The price online is around $6 which is more expensive than talcum powder but I think it would be totally worth it from a convenience point of view to keep at work or to take with you traveling overseas. So far I’ve gotten 4 uses our of it and I think I’ve used around 1/4 of it (roughly judging by how full it feels).
VERDICT: Good for traveling, does it’s job but definitely not a replacement for washing your hair! DO WANT (but probably only if I was traveling) |
by VioletLeBeaux | Nov 5, 2010 | Beauty, Review
I was so excited to receive these lashes from the lovely She Falls Softly! I love pink, I love lashes so combining the two is the ultimate in awesomeness!!
They are 1/2 length and meant to be used as a little accent at the end of your lashes. They have a clear band which I found to be good as it was easy to disguise. The only problem with the band I found was that it was a little shiny so I had to disguise it a little with a little eyeliner to match it in with the rest of my look.
![]()
|
They were a bit long for my natural lashes so I layered them with another set of mostly natural looking falsies for a really cute effect. James thought they looked really subtle but I got maybe 4 random compliments for strangers on them that day so clearly they stand out a bit! |
I wore them with fairly subdued make up and my hair in a low side bun. I added a pink streak to my hair to tie it all together and finished with a little white flower handmade by Reece.
VERDICT: Soft, pretty and good quality. Very good for an added point of interest in an outfit. Not sure where you can buy them or the price but DO WANT.
by VioletLeBeaux | Nov 3, 2010 | Beauty, Review
I don’t usually like brown tones… in anything. It just never appealed to me so I was kind of meh when I saw the Maybelline palette that came in the MBBE bags:
It was very… brown. I’ve never really tried brown tones because I didn’t think they suited my skin at all but these colours were so sparkly that I decided to give it a go for once!
![]()
|
This was the result:
Here I am wearing each of the colours in the palette with some dark brown eyeliner and mascara:
You know what… I actually really liked it! I think the reason is that they are all a little sparkly and more metallic than your usual browns. With the dark brown liner it reminds me a lot of a 60’s look ^_^
As for the quality, it went on very smoothly, stayed on pretty much all day and blended awesomely. I don’t think you can really ask for much more than that from eye shadow!! The colours were super complimentary and I would love to see some of the other colours from this line.
At AU$16.95 the price is about what I would expect from a “drug store brand” here.
VERDICT: Quality is really good, price is good, overall… really good! DO WANT
Bonus shot: I bought myself half a wheel of brie as a treat! WIN !! Oh yes of course I would use it as a gigantic smiley mouth! 😀
So what do you think? Browns yay or nay? |
by VioletLeBeaux | Oct 27, 2010 | Beauty, Review
My background in design means I tend to notice the little things. Little things like packaging and the way products are presented. Sure just having a product that is presented poorly probably won’t stop be buying it if I really want it but I think that brands who over look nice packaging really miss out on a selling point because if a package is nice enough I find ways to reuse them and thus have their brand in my house and mind for longer.
With the abundance of products in the goodie bags from MBBE it was quite hard to try and pick something to start off and try (I know my life is so hard right hahaha:P) but something caught my eye…
MOR Emporium Lychee Flower Body Butter. *Beautifully* packaged. So much so that I pried off the little plastic seal as a keep sake and kept the box for trinkets 😀 Tick number 1!
![]()
|
So on to the actual body butter! Comes in a large round black plastic container and retails for $29.95.
Texture-wise this body butter is fairly thick and a little on the waxy side, it felt very luxurious going on but I don’t think it’s slippery enough to give massages with which is what I mostly use my body butters for. Value-wise I thought the size:price ratio was about average for a product of this quality.
The biggest point: I cannot describe to you how good this smells, there are simply no words. I seriously wish I could invent smell-o-vision blog posts for this because it is the best thing I have ever smelt in my life. It’s really fruity and sweet and… good. My bad descriptions are why I am no good at wine tastings XD
Verdict: Thick texture, FANTASTIC smell, reasonable price. DO WANT.
So MOR were lovely enough so send me out one of their little gift sets. This one is also lychee flower fragrance and contains a perfume oil and a soapette. It retails for AU$19.95. Details here.
Again super props for the packaging. Everything about MOR screams decadence at an affordable price to me. I swear when they created this all, they had me in mind XD I’m so imagining the conversation… “Ok so Violet likes pink packaging… check! Reusable tins… check! Pretty vintage floral designs… check! Attention to details… check! etc etc etc”
Anyway…. let’s start with the soap. Packaging is a reusable tin which I now store my bobby pins in 😀 The soap again has that same delicious smell. I found the smell to be quite strong (in a good way) when it was in the tin but then once I got it into the shower it was more subtle. It felt lovely and buttery on but did still leave that icky soap feeling which I’m not a fan of, the feeling only lasted until I got out of the shower though.
The perfume oil is I think my favorite of all the products I tried. Again, has a super cute re-usable package which I’m thinking might live in my handbag to keep bobby pins or lipstick in. Glides on smoothly and has just enough scent to be enjoyable without being overpowering. It’s the kind of scent that is pleasant but the guy at the other end of the train carriage isn’t going to get a wiff of XD
I’ve worn it several times now and almost every time it’s gotten a compliment 😀
VERDICT: For the set I think the value is very good, I probably would have bought the soap tin even if it didn’t come with the soap XD The smell is heavenly and I think they would make very good gifts coming up to Christmas…. specifically gifts to me so I can try the other flavors (marshmallow anyone!?)… Are you reading this Mum?? DO WANT |
by VioletLeBeaux | Oct 24, 2010 | Beauty, Review
I love face masks and pretty much anything that involves putting it on and being able to relax for a few minutes so I was very happy to try the Absolutely Gorgeous Pink Clay Exfoliating Maskwhich came in my MBBE gift bag.
I was even more excited when I checked out their website and all of their products are 100% paraben free as well as being Australian made and owned! The cute pink girly logo on the site helped too XD
![]()
|
Ignoring all of that the mask comes in quite a big container as you can see and it retails for AU$34.95. I’ve used it maybe 5 times so far and have barely made a real dent in it yet, so I think the price is fair considering the number of uses you would end up getting.
Application is quite smooth, and the smell was pleasant but not overpowering. My skin is very sensitive and now that I’m looking on the website, it actually says this is not suitable for sensitive skin >_< |
The mask has tiny little beads for exfoliation which were a little hard on my skin and the first time I used it there was a minor burning sensation so I would agree that this is best for less sensitive skin.
The results are really good though, after using it my skin felt really smooth and I’ve definitely noticed an improvement after several uses 😀 I would definitely be interested in trying out some of the other items from the range as it’s so hard to find decent quality products which are paraben free and don’t cost an arm and a leg *_*
VERDICT: Suited for less sensitive skin but still does a really good job and is paraben free. A bit pricey but considering the volume still quite good. DO WANT.
by VioletLeBeaux | Oct 17, 2010 | Review
One of the goodie bags from the MBBE event was a lovely little pack of Estée Lauder products. Today I’m going to review the Pure Colour “Gloss Stick” in Orchid Dream which is the middle of the products below: 
I’ve always had a soft spot for EL lipsticks, my first bright red was one of theirs and a present from James ^_^ Unfortunately budget means I haven’t been able to afford any of their products since then.
![]()
|
When I found this in the gift bags, I was really excited to try it out as the shade looks exactly like the kind of thing I like: berry pink with a blue sheen to it. A little glitter but not so much that I look like I’ve just stumbled out of a children’s television show.The idea of this product is quite interesting because it’s supposed to be about half way between a gloss and a lipstick. The consistancy was unlike any lip product I’ve used before… along the lines of softened butter so it *really* just melts on to your lips.
According to their website it’s supposed to improve lip condition and add plumpness if used for 4+ weeks. I haven’t used it for that long yet and didn’t notice any changes during the time I did. I’m not fussed because I don’t think I need plumper lips but if that’s something you want to consider before buying then I suggest Googling for some more reviews. |
I found it stayed on quite well, I needed touch ups after eating but nothing too major and the silky feel lasted as long as the colour. The biggest plus for this was how moisturized my lips felt when I had it on 😀 My lips tend to be a little dry and this just felt like heaven in stick form!
Bare lips:
With “Orchid Dream”:
Price-wise the Australian website lists it as $42.00 (though this colour isn’t listed because I think it is a limited edition) which for me is way out of my price range. In this case you pay for quality though so if I had an infinite supply of money I would probably buy this in every shade it came in. As it is I’m going to be using this one down to the last piece I can scrape out and hope that I’ve had a wind fall by then XD
VERDICT: Very good for an every day shade, lasts quite well. Super moisturising, no over powering smell, glides on like butter. DO WANT.
