Today I'm sharing with you the 6 products I could not live without. I'm not entirely up to date with the premise of this tag, but I interpreted it as 'if I could only choose 6 products to use for the rest of whenever / if I could only take 6 products with me what would they be?'
I thought pretty hard about this one, and obviously wanted products that are good quality, that don't need me to work too hard for them, and that are staples in my collection.
So I went with:
Eyeshadow: my Urban Decay Naked palette
Face: my Inglot blush palette (I have a full review of this with swatches coming up next week so stay tuned for that!) and a concealer (I have the Maybelline concealer in their FitMe range photographed for demonstration purposes)
Tools: Real Techniques stippling brush
Mascara: The Falsies Flared Volum' Express
Lips: a red lippie. I chose Loreal's Ravishing Red as I love the colour payoff and creamy texture of this one.
Check out the video below for more information about each of the products!
This morning I had a meeting for work, and we were told the theme was 'Valentines'. Like I need an excuse to paint my nails red!
This is a new colour to my collection and whilst it's a deeper red than I'd usually go for I think it's quite sophisticated. For the accent nail I'm wearing a glitter top coat to add some sparkle. Lots of people propose on Valentines so let's just say this is like the bling bling of a diamond ring.
These colours are:
- Base colour: O.P.I - Kennelbunk-Port
- Accent nail: Australis - Nail Glitter Top Coat in Shimmy Shake.
Do you normally celebrate Valentine's Day or ignore it? We tend to ignore it, but I'm a sucker for themed work events.
So January's come and gone. How's 2013 treating you so far? I'm still forgetting we've hit the new year - and keep dating everything "2012". C'mon Michaela. Get with the TIMES.
Not too many favourites this month, on account of the hot weather and my refusal to wear make up that will just slide right off in those circumstances.
Hair Care
I feel like I'm the last person in the world to figure this out, but those sock donut bun makers are truly genius. They make your hair look so put together and polished in under 2 minutes. I've been relying on this for those mornings that I'm rushing to work, and usually style it by teasing around my crown so I don't look toooo prim and proper.
I've also been playing around a lot with my new hot roller set, and have been using the Toni&Guy Spray Gel for Curls. I think this was about $15 in Coles, which is okay for what it does. I hate the way it comes out of the bottle though - I would prefer a fine mist, whereas it prefers to come out more concentrated. That being said, it does hold curls pretty well without weighing them down.
Skin Care
My skin has been acting up something shocking these past couple of months. Nothing I was doing was settling it down, and not only were my pores more blocked than usual, but I was getting acne type pimples all along my chin. Gross. So I decided to try out Dermalogica's Special Cleansing Gel and my word is this amazing. It has cleared my skin up really well in the two weeks I've been using it. Total convert.
I've been using Sukin's Hydrating Mist Toner for the better part of a year now, but I truly appreciate it in the hotter weather. It is just so refreshing and cooling. I use it once I get out of the shower and spray it all over my face and neck. If I'm at home and it's been a particularly hot day I'll give my skin a quick spray with this and I'm feeling all good again!
Make-Up
Not much make-up has been worn this month. Unless I'm going out to a special occasion or to work, I've tried to avoid it as much as possible. Again, the heat (In case you haven't heard me whine enough about it). I love a good neutral palette for those mornings when I don't want to think and I've been loving playing with the MUA Heaven and Earth palette. The colours in this are all really pigmented and all go really well together, so you can't really go wrong - even if you haven't had your morning coffee yet.
For those times when I have wanted it to look like I've put a lot of effort in but I haven't I've slathered on Revlon's Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in Crush. It's a bit vampy for Summer, but whatever. I love it.
A couple of months ago I also ordered this Inglot blush palette online. I've been loving the coral colour (second from the right) - (I think it's number 30. I matched it up to my receipt order and swatches online because the damn thing is so hard to get out of the palette now that it's in there.). It's a lot subtler than it looks in the pan and I think it's a really nice colour for Summer.
To hear more ramblings, check out the video below - my kitten Romulus makes an appearance!
I get asked often in real life how I keep my hair so healthy while at the same time keeping it so blonde. Let me tell you; being bleached is never easy! Quick run-down of my hair history:
I started going blonde when I was about 15, with some highlights and foils at the hairdresser. I did this for about 2-3 years, until my lovely hairdresser moved to New Zealand (and I cried and threw a tantrum; NOW who is going to do my hair!?) She did such a great job, at such a great price and I was too scared to visit another hairdresser for colouring. So I turned to packet dyes to touch up my roots and all was well in the world. This ended up also being expensive. And I wasn't that good at doing it myself and ended up with weirdo patches. J asked me why don't I just bleach it because that's cheaper and quicker. Uhm, because it's scary, that's why.
Anyway, I'm lucky my boy experimented with colouring his hair because he's done it for me ever since.
So if you want me to do a post about bleaching your hair let me know and I'll happily comply.
Now onto what I do to keep it healthy:
Shampoo
I only shampoo my hair about twice a week. Shock, horror. Your hair doesn't actually need cleaning that often, and is in better condition the less you strip it of its natural oils. Who woulda thunk it?
At the moment I'm using Lush's Seanik and I love it. It contains salt for body and volume but the nori helps soften the hair as well. The lather of this one is really creamy, which I also like because I feel it's not as harsh on my hair (although it does still contain sulfates. Blah!)
Conditioner
Every time I re-do my roots and wash the bleach out, I immediately put on the Sckwarzkopf Ultimate Repair Anti-Damage Mask, and let that soak in for a few minutes. I've been using this product for a few years, and have repurchased it many times. This mask is great value for money and I really like the 'deep condition' I get from using it.
For normal conditioning, I use Tresemme's Moisture Rich Conditioner (in the blue bottle). I absolutely swear by this - my hair just soaks it up and it leaves my tresses smooth and shiny.
As a 'special treat' for my hair I'll occasionally switch it up and also use the Organix Cocoa Butter conditioner. This one actually smells like chocolate (not like synthetic chocolate) and is really good at moisturising. It is a bit expensive though, which is why I tend to only use it sporadically. If I could afford it, I would buy/use this more often.
Treatments
I am still loving Loreal's Elvive Extraordinary Oil and have done an entire review on it: here. So go check that out.
I've been trying out the Davroe Smooth Senses Straightening Balm when I blow dry my hair and I think it's doing a pretty good job at taming fly-aways.
For more info and general rambling, check out my video below.
Just a warning though that not only do I have chronic bitchface in the thumbnail, but I was slightly distracted that day - so not my best work. The general message still gets across though.
What are your holy grail hair products? How often do you wash your hair?
