NEW! Australis AC On Tour Contouring & Highlighting Kit AND Oh Hai Brow! (Review and Swatches)

Everyone has been OMG excited with the release of the Australis Contour&Highlighting Kit, with it completely selling out in just two weeks. I was super lucky to score the very last one at my local Priceline...these have been a bit tricky to track down with all stores near me selling out. 

So what is the attraction? The Contour Kit is a dead-ringer for the Anastasia Beverley Hills Contour Kit and at only $16.95. 

While I was in Priceline I also picked up the 'Oh Hai Brow' brow shaping kit, which I think is also new. 

The packaging is sleek, plain and sturdy. The brow shaping kit is shiny, whereas the contour kit is matte, which means fingerprints show up a little easier on it. 

The contour kit has six shades, named 1 through to 6. Shade one (top row, left) has peachy undertones, shade two (top row, middle) has yellow undertones, and shade three (top row, right) has golden undertones with a bit of shimmer. 

Shade four (bottom row, left) is a warm, mid-brown, shade five (bottom row, middle) is a cool toned brown, and shade six (bottom, right) is a reddish-brown. 

Natural light + with flash. 

Natural light. 

I love, the highlight shades that come with this, and think that each colour is really versatile. Shade three is definitely my favourite for reflecting light, but I really do love them all. 

The contour shades are a bit of a different story. Shade five looks ridiculously ashy on me, and is not a colour I would wear day-to-day. I don't think that number six works that well on me either, because it is slightly red-toned. I do like shade four. 

I have been loving the brow kit, and am surprised that it suits me so well (as far as I know there is only one colour in the range, which is a massive bummer). I've never used a brow wax before, and I thought the one contained in this kit would be too dark. I use the shade on the left for filling in over the wax, and it balances it out quite nicely. I also really love the highlighter shade that's been included. 

Did you manage to get your hands on the Contour kit before it sold out? 

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Sydney Noodle Markets

Last Thursday I met up with Oishee at the Sydney Noodle Markets in Hyde Park. 

This was my first time (although I have walked through in previous years I've never "Attended" per se) so I was pretty keen to try some delicious food. 

Apparently almost every person in Sydney was there, because it was almost claustrophobia-inducing busy. The atmosphere overall wasn't too bad, despite the crowds. I loved all the Asian touches... the lanterns, the giant cat character, the pandas on the light globes, the ping pong! 

The food was amazing. Oishee got a Vietnamese prawn salad, and I went for some dumplings. 

When lining up for the dumplings I had an older Chinese woman approach me, desperate to find out if the dumplings were traditional, or "Sydney style". She was such a sweetheart, and asked to take a photo of me with my food - not with her and me...just me. So random, but flattering. 

 

Did you make it to the Noodle Markets this year? Have you been in years past? Is it weird that we went to a noodle market and yet neither of us ate noodles?



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Holiday Planning...

It's been a while since J and I went on a holiday.
So we've been talking and making plans, and decided we're heading off to New Zealand in the new year!

When I was younger I really wanted to visit New Zealand to go bungee jumping. Now I'm a bit older, I seem to have lost that fearlessness, because that's no longer at the top of my list. I'm so keen to check out the Hobbit Holes, the hot springs at Rotorua, the history at Waitangi, snorkelling off the North Island and taking in the beauty that is that country.

Every pay slip I've been squirreling away money and hopefully soon will have enough to pay for flights and accommodation. I keep the guide books at my desk, and longingly look over them in between poring over my law textbooks. They're providing a nice distraction amongst the crazy that is end of semester exams.

The planning is very much still in its infancy. I've been jotting down notes in my kikki.K 'Travel Notes' planner, and flagging notes to come back to in my guide books, all with just a vague idea of what we want out of this holiday, and how much we want to spend.
It's not only the thought of heading overseas that excites me, but the planning and anticipation excites me too.

What are your travel tips? Have you been to New Zealand? Any places we must check out? I'm taking as many recommendations as I can!




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New In: Sunscreen

I'm very much an advocate for sun safety and health, and have spoken before about how important it is for me to apply sunscreen daily.
Not only does increased sun exposure cause your skin to age faster, but it also puts you at risk of melanoma, and in Australia particularly, we have the worst rates for skin cancer in the world.

So when I was contacted about a new sunscreen by Banana Boat, I didn't hesitate to try it out.

The Sport Cool Zone - 50+SPF is a spray on sunscreen that is designed to cool and refresh, as well as providing a ridiculous amount of sun protection.

If you're one of those people who don't like wearing sunscreen - why is that?
Banana Boat did global research into this and found that a recurring answer was people didn't like the way that sunscreen left them feeling hotter and stickier after applying it - this was amplified when playing sports outside.
So this sunscreen is designed specifically to reduce that discomfort.

I love this product, for so many different reasons.

• It's a spray application, which makes it really quick and easy to apply. It sprays on clear, so there's no chance you'll get any colour transfer onto your clothes. 
• When sprayed, it cools on contact and dries fast, so there really is no mess and sticky-ness after applying it. 
• It's infused with aloe which is soothing, and it actually does feel refreshing to use it.
• It's water and sweat resistant, so you don't have to worry about it rubbing off earlier than it should (although you should still apply sunscreen frequently if you're sweating lots or playing in water)
• It's got broad spectrum UVA/UVB protection, and is recommended by the Skin Cancer Foundation International. 
• I've worn this almost every day for a month and haven't got burnt once (and we've had some crazy hot days recently). I've also given it to J to use when he does gardening outside in the sun, and he also hasn't got burnt when using it, so I guess that means its working! 
• The cap has a lock, which is good if you're going to carry it in your bag when out at the beach or out playing sports. 
• It's relatively cheap, with a RRP of $16.99

The only thing I don't like about this product is the scent.
It doesn't really smell like sunscreen, but it has a kind of alcohol-y bug-repellent scent to it. It's not really enough to bother me to not use it though.
You also need to be a little careful when spraying because if it's windy it can end up in your mouth, and it doesn't taste that great.

The active sunscreen ingredients are chemical, rather than physical: Octocrylene (7% w/w), Oxybenzone (3.50% w/w), and Butyl Methoxydibenzoylmethane (2.10% w/w). 

This means it offers more broad sun protection than some physical sunscreens, however you MUST apply 20 minutes before going into the sun to get proper protection. 

Are you crazy about applying sunscreen, like me?

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My Week in Pictures #58

I put Rommy's kitty bed on the washing machine to be washed, and within the hour he had taken up napping on it. Oh well, I guess it can be washed later! 

Lots of handstand practice lately. Finally feel like I'm getting enough balance to control the descent of my legs into scorpion. If only I were flexible enough to make this look impressive! 

I am absolutely loving that it's sunny when I head home from work. The train views over the water always brighten up my afternoon. 

My fellow pole ninja, James

An absolute honour to clean the poles for this wonderful lady, Sergia Louise! 

Cynthia and Oryx are amazing performers, and I really hope I get to pole with them again!

After Lisa D's workshop

Kristy Sellars! 

Pole Evolution's production 'Elements' was on Saturday, at the Factory Theatre. My foot still aches from 8 hours of climbing up and down the pole, making sure it was cleaned and prepped with grip for each dancer. The entire day was so fun though, I would absolutely do it again - foot pain and all. There were so many amazing performers, and I am left feeling totally inspired. I also got to take a workshop with the amazing Lisa D, and learn lots of new and crazy things. 

Jen (who put together the Pole Evolution dance company, and the Elements show) put together little goodie bags for all the dancers and stage crew on the night. This was such a nice surprise! We each received a 'Pole Evolutions' shirt, some snacks and treats to keep our sugar levels and energy up throughout the day, and the cutest notebook, with beautiful hand-written messages inside. 

I just loved being part of the show so much, and cannot explain how wonderful it is to be involved with such an amazing group of women and men. 

See-through shirt is see-through. 

Did anyone else get caught in tonight's storm? I was heading home from a physio appointment (yet another rib injury), which is about 3km from my house, when the skies went dark. All of a sudden the skies opened up and I got absolutely saturated. I still had a couple of km's to walk until I got home, and it was mostly an uphill struggle (literally). I stood at the lights waiting for them to change, getting absolutely drenched and feeling absolutely miserable. I turned up my music, and thought 'well, it's just water, just walk faster'. 

...And then the hail started. 

I was almost in tears...there was literally nowhere I could stand undercover, the rain and wind were really foreceful, my work clothes and my suede shoes were getting destroyed, there were ice rocks falling on me, and seriously, I was just over it. 

And then, this truck pulls up next to me, and this guy (Peter) opens the window and asks me if I need a lift. 

I quickly weighed up whether he was a predator, decided he wasn't, and gratefully accepted his offer. I told him I only needed to go to the end of the street... we got about half way there and then I noticed I couldn't find my phone. He starts freaking out for me, and asks me if I want him to turn around to go get it. But then I saw it on the floor of his truck (which was covered in tools and materials), it had obviously just fallen out of my pocket when I jumped in. 

I can't even explain how grateful I was for this guy pulling over - it was at least another 25 minute walk with another couple sets of lights on the way. I still got home drenched, but a lot quicker than I otherwise would have. 

It's just really nice to be reminded that there are lovely people out there.

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NEWSFLASH! Brands Sephora Australia will be stocking!

Sephora have officially announced what brands they'll be bringing to Aussie-land when they launch in December! 

• Alterna
• Andrea Fulerton
• Antonym
• Arcona
• Aspar
• BECCA
• BITE
• Clean
• Cover FX 
• Creme Simon
• Dr.Jart
• Elizabeth & James
• Estelle & Thild
• Etat Libre d'Orange
• For Beloved One
• Formula X
• Givenchy Colour
• Hello Kitty
• IT Cosmetics
• Kat Von D 
• Leif
• LQD
• MAKE UP FOREVER
• Marc Jacobs Beauty
• Nee'mah
• Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics
• Ole Henriksen
• Patricks
• Percy & Reed
• Perfekt
• Sephora Collection
• Shiffa
• Skin Inc.
• Tarte

New brands will be introduced over the first 12 months of business, and eventually Sephora will be stocking upwards of 200 brands!!

As well as announcing that they'll price-match to the U.S I am just getting more and more excited about December. 

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Her Fashion Box: September

September's Her Fashion Box was titled "Pearlfection", and paid homage to the return of pearls as a trend, and the return of the warmer weather that Spring has to offer. My box got a little bashed up in the delivery, but that's okay. 

So many goodies this month! 

There were three main fashion items in this month's box. The super cute pearl 'Chisel' earrings (RRP $14.99), and the "Two Pearls in a Pod" ring (RRP $12.99) are pretty much the definition of classic. I am so happy that the ring fits me perfectly - there is pretty much nothing worse than missing out on item because it doesn't fit you. I've spoken before about my sensitivity to cheap metal. One of my readers suggested putting some clear nailpolish over the metal, so I might try that to see if I can get some wear out of these earrings, because they are pretty nice. 

(That being said I kind of like the earrings that were in the Trendy box, but that's the gamble you take when you sign up to a particular style)

So many beauty items this month! 

We got a full-sized (500mL) bottle of the 'BX Bit of a Soft Touch' nourishing body milk (RRP $7.99). Unfortunately mine leaked throughout my box in transit. This has aloe vera, goat's milk powder, peach and honey, manuka honey extract, sea salt and lots of other good things in it. It also smells really nice, so this went straight in my shower. 

So I'm a little confused about the next items... I think the Orly nailpolish and toe separators were a gift for completing the review survey about last month's box. 

The magazine has a page about the 'Brauer Paw Paw lip shimmer', but I didn't receive that in my box. So not sure if they just forgot to put it in my box or what happened with that, but I'm obviously sad, because nobody likes missing out. 

We also got a 'smoothie booster' sachet (20g RRP $30.00 for 30 day pack). Not too sure what's in this, and I don't really make smoothies so I might pass this along to my sister, who does. 

I really love the addition of the sunnies this month! I love sunglasses, and these have come just in time for the warm weather.
We also received these cute samples of Ime Natural perfume (5mL RRP $12 each). There's nine different scents, I received the 'Eu-ter-pe' (cool) scent, which is described as being clean and crisp. I really like it, and think it will be great for Summer.
The perfume range is made from 100% botanical ingredients, so there's no synthetic-y smell to it, and they're accredited cruelty free and toxic free, yay!




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Recently, in Pictures #57

How did it become October so quickly?



In less than 6 weeks I will have finished my final exams, and be finished with my Undergrad degrees. I've been precariously balancing studying for my undergrad with my postgrad diploma, as well as working long hours at two jobs. It will all be worth it when I have those three, very expensive, bits of paper though. Or so I tell myself.
Unwinding with frivolous reading and beautiful candles has been a necessity.

J's brother and sister-in-law stayed with us last weekend. We finally got around to checking out Cornersmith in Marrickville. J had the poached eggs, I had the meatloaf. All produce is locally sourced, which is awesome. So many noms. 

Rommy, always sleeping on clean washing. We recently discovered he actually really likes hiding on top of the fridge, which is super naughty. The first time we caught him up there was hilarious - we were kind of in shock to see him up there, and he knew he was being naughty. As soon as we called out his name, he sheepishly jumped down and ran away to hide so he wouldn't get in trouble hahaha. 

Finally getting the "hang" part of handstanding. I am perfectly fine freebalancing in front of a wall now. Take away that wall though, and it's like my hips completely forget how to go over my head. 

 

The pole studio I attend has a show on next week at the Factory Theatre, called "Elements". I'm helping out on the night as a pole cleaner, so have been lucky enough to attend all the rehearsals. Oh my god, talk about inspiring. Watching all these incredible dancers has kicked my butt into gear, and I'm training lots and lots lately. Not for anything in particular, just to push my own strength. 

 

In beauty news, I was lucky enough to attend Colour Theory's launch of their new skincare line, Skin Theory. The launch was on the brand's first birthday, so there were lots of fun things, like a make-up bar, nail bar and brow bar. I am won over by all their pretty spring nail polish colours - and $4 each!! 

I also have so many new and exciting things to share on the blog in the upcoming months. New packages, new products, new looks...

The weather has been so warm and beautiful lately, I cannot even explain how happy the sun is making me (although I am apparently very deficient in Vit D according to my Dr so maybe that's why?) Spring is my favourite season, ever. And our mulberry tree started fruiting again - yum! 

And the doggies played in the NRL Grand Final last night against the South Sydney Rabbitohs. Ran into my little bro in the street so of course had to get a selfie with him, of us both wearing our jerseys.
I watched the game with my cousin at the Erko...which is in South Sydney land. Things got awkward being the only blue jersey in the pub... I felt very outnumbered haha.
We sadly lost, but I like the Rabbits so it's not all bad.



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