10 favourite beauty products of 2012

2012 was a good product year for me, I tried a lot of new things and now have some new loves.

So I'm just going to throw skincare, makeup and hair products in at random as I think of them.

As always, my beloved Ultrabland must make this list. I have not been able to try something else without always coming back to Ultrabland. It's good shit. Can be inconvenient - requires hot water, a wash cloth, can be difficult to get off, people freak out about washing your face with oils, etc. but it makes my skin happy.

Bobbi Brown Creamy Concealer is my favourite under eye concealer of all time. It covers really well, looks natural, stays on well, doesn't dry out the eye area and blends easily. What more could you want?

Perfect Potion Rosemary Conditioner is an awesome chemical-free conditioner for dry hair. It makes my hair feel super soft and moisturised without the use of chemicals and silicones, which I love. Plus it has very little scent, so I don't have to worry about it mixing with my fragrance (I like to spray perfume in my hair because it lasts longer than on skin).

Lush Eyes Right Mascara is a great everyday mascara that is easy to remove and doesn't damage lashes. It lasts all day and doesn't require scrubbing to get it off. Also it's quite a wet formula so it doesn't clump and looks more natural.

Benefit They're Real Mascara makes my lashes looks more dramatic than Eyes Right without clumping or being difficult to remove. The packaging is cute and I like the wand, I'm usually opposed to the plastic kinds of wand, instead of the spooly kind, but this really works. The product lasts nicely on lashes too, so I don't have to worry about a little light rain.

Lily Lolo Mineral Foundation and Concealer is my favourite mineral foundation (and foundation in general) of all time. It's cheap (£12.49 for 10grams that lasts me a little less than a year), covers redness and discolouration like a champ, comes in many shades, samples are available, doesn't wash off for swimming, doesn't irritate my skin (something unheard of for me) and blends in easily. The concealer is really nice too, also cheap, covers pimples really well (I wouldn't use it for under eye darkens as it can be a bit dry) and lasts all day too.

By Terry Rose De Rose Sheer Liquid Blush in Fresh Rose is my favourite blush of all time. It goes on really smooth, blends in easier than any other liquid blush I've ever tried, has subtle shimmer that highlights nicely and isn't too intense, so it's easy to apply quickly. It makes me looks healthier and looks natural and pretty.

Lush Catastrophe Cosmetic Face Mask is the best face mask for irritated or sensitive skin. It works really well on sunburn too, I burnt my back up a few months ago, apply Catastrophe Cosmetic on it when I got home and it was completely gone when I took it off a few minutes later. Catastrophe keeps my skin from freaking out too hard if I'm not being as careful with it as I should be.

My new 3 prong black wattle wood hair fork from this etsy shop is awesome. I've been having difficulty with buns lately because my hair is dry and damaged now thanks to the dye, whenever I put my hair in a bun it went all crinkly, angry and even more dry in the ends. I assumed it was the ends being squished under a hair tie so I bought a hair fork from Votepalantine and am so pleased with it! It holds my hair securely (even more securely than a hair band) and doesn't screw with my ends, win win! Also it looks pretty sweet because I bought this one but in black wattle wood, that looks kind of like the fire nation hair things that Azula and Zuko wore in the Avatar: The Last Airbender series.

Moroccan Oil Hydrating Styling Cream is my replacement for the sadly discontinued The Big Tease from Lush. It has silicone and chemicals and all that, but I only use it sometimes, so I haven't seen any damage form it. I like this cream for straightening out kinks from having my hair in a ponytail and for smoothing down flyaways.

Vampy purple eyes tutorial

So I did this for my vampire halloween costume and thought at least one of you might be interested.

Products used (obviously you can use whatever you want or have on hand):
- Lush Feeling Younger illuminator
- MAC Crush Metal Pigment 1 (a dark purple and pinky lilac)
- Lush Eyes Right mascara
- Benefit Benetint cheek and lip tint
- MAC Fluidline eyeliner in Blacktrack
- MAC Carbon eyeshadow
- MAC Painterly paint pot
- Revlon Colorstay eyeliner in Black

You're going to want to start with a base or primer of some sort, to keep the shadow from creasing, fading, making sure it's as vibrant as possible, etc.

Apply Painterly (or something similar) all over the lid and brow bone. Wait a minute for it to set.

I bought these from AllCosmeticsWholesale.com here. And so far all that I've bought from them has been real, so I'd recommend this website for cheap and discontinued makeup.

Anyhow, apply a shimmery lilac eye shadow to the lid and a little bit above the crease. Then apply a dark purple in and above the crease in a sideways v (so the purple is in the crease as well as going towards the outer corner), there should be some colourless space between the shadow and eyebrow. Apply some MAC carbon to the outer corner of the v to darken it. Take a fluffy brush with no colour on it and blend the dark purple outwards to get rid of any harsh lines.

Line the upper lid thickly with a black gel eyeliner (MAC Fluidline in Blacktrack) getting thinner towards the inner corner. Then line the upper and lower waterlines with a black waterproof pencil eyeliner (Revlon Colorstay) 3/4 of the way in.

Apply whichever mascara you like, waterproof is best, but I really like Lush's Eyes Right because when I wash it off it doesn't take any of my eyelashes with it.

Apply a red cheek tint (Benefit Benetint) to the apples of your cheeks and an illuminator (Lush Feeling Younger) to your cheekbones and cupid's bow

Then apply a dark lipstick if you want it extra vampy.

August Lust Have It! box

I was so stoked when I received this, I've been looking forward to it all month. I was a little disappointed that it didn't come in a little makeup bag like it did for the past two months. It came in a white box with a black ribbon tied around it, looked nice, but I couldn't use it for anything.

tanGo Tanning Glove

I don't really know what I'm going to do with this since I don't self tan...I can't think of any other uses. Objectively, it seems nice. It's one of those microfiber towels (not a glove), small, soft.

Tigi Rockaholic Rock Out Shine Blaster

I was so excited to try this! I am a huge fan of Tigi products, I love the packaging and concepts behind the products.

Rock Out feels silicon-y and smooth when smoothed through the hands and applies to the hair without leaving a residue or weighing it down. It softened the hair and left it with a nice shine. I think this would be really good for after using heat styling products, especially after straightening.

Appelles Body Booster Skin Lotion, Body Bar Vegetable Soap, Skin Detox Shower Gel - all in the Wild Berry scent

Over all, these products smell amazing. Really delicious. My first thought when smelling them was apple and raspberry. It's a really sweet fruity scent and I love it.

I haven't tried the shower gel yet, so if I think it's any good I'll review it later.

Appelles Body Bar Vegetable Soap

My favourite of the three, I use this as hand soap by my bathroom sink and every time I wash my hands I end up smelling them for ages afterwards. So delicious.
It's a lovely red colour, lathers into a milky foam and the scent stays on your hands for quite a while. I wash my hands a lot because I'm a bit weird, so my hands smell like it all day.

Appelles Body Booster Skin Lotion

I was well excited for this also, has the same scent as the soap and moisturises quite well. It's an oil based lotion, so it packs a good moisturising punch and it isn't tested on animals, so that's a plus. It comes in quite a small bottle (I believe the one I got was full size), so I'm not sure you would get many uses out of it or how cost effective it is. Probably wouldn't buy it again because of this, but I love the scent, so I'll definitely buy the soap.

ModelCo Eyeliner in Black

Not a very creamy eyeliner, it's quite...thick? If you can describe a pencil that way. Like it doesn't go on very smoothly and is kinda dry, so the colour isn't very black and it would be hard to make precise lines.

However, the dryness of it makes it surprisingly waterproof. I took this photo yesterday and still have a bit of the eyeliner on my hand. And I tested it on my hand before I tried the Appelles soap, so even with soap and water it didn't come off. It's possibly too waterproof, I don't know how you'd get it off at the end of the day.

Marc Jacobs DOT

I'm not a huge fan of this perfume, probably won't purchase the full size, but I think I'll use the tester atomiser.
It's a bit too chemically for me, I'm a big fan of natural scents, mostly florals. This smells kinda like passionfruit and pineapple and chemicals at first spray. As it dries it's a lot softer, and goes kind of sweet and musky. I want to describe it as vintage or heirloom, but I don't think perfumes are generally described that way.

Lancome Hypnôse Doll Eyes Waterproof mascara

I've been trying out Lancome's Hypnôse Doll Eyes mascara in the shade Waterproof for a few weeks now and I think it is a very good mascara, especially in it being waterproof.

It applies nicely, separating and lengthening the lashes, it's very black and about as waterproof as mascaras come. Never have I doubted that this mascara will stay put in all conditions, it passed the dreary rainy London weather, excessive sweating under the hot Roman sun and even stayed when I was home sick and crying.

All that does come with a compromise. It's so difficult to get off. I don't know what this stuff is made of, but it takes a lot to get off. So far Bioderma Crealine/Sensibio H20 micelle solution seems to do alright, I have to soak two cotton rounds in the solution and leave them on my eyes for a minute or so and then wipe off. It gets most of the mascara off, but takes a few eyelashes too. So probably not best for everyday wear.

The brush is conical, making it easier to get all of the lashes and adding more volume to the outer corner lashes (a trick many makeup artists use with false lashes - applying half lashes to the outer corners opens the eye).

So all in all this mascara is very good if you plan on scuba diving or have a long night ahead, but not so great if you're just popping to the store as it is quite difficult to remove.

Vichy Dermablend Corrective Foundation review (Spoiler alert: it's awesome)

While I was in Italy I picked up Vichy Dermablend Corrective Foundation in a chemist. I'd heard lots of really good things about it around the interwebs and was super stoked when I saw it, I thought I'd have to order it online because it's a European brand.

It's a corrective foundation, meaning that because it contains Vichy Thermal Water it will soothe the skin and is full coverage without being thick.

I bought shades 15 Opal and 25 Nude to mix, I use a majority of Opal to a drop of Nude to create the perfect colour for my skin (I'm MAC NC20). The foundation colours blend together really nicely, so it's not difficult to create your own colour. Since there are limited shades I think this is a good compromise.

I use it as a concealer because it is completely full coverage (too much coverage for a full face), it covers my dark circles really well and has a easy to blend consistency.

I apply it with a Sigma P84 Precision Angled brush (my favourite under eye concealer brush of all time), first mixing the colours on the back of my hand and then apply with my fingertips and smoothing with the brush. Then I go over it lightly with a translucent powder to set.

15 Opal

15 Opal and 25 Nude

Mixed

I made my personal record for fastest full face of makeup with this foundation, 3 minutes flat when I had gotten all dressed up for a fancy dinner, but forget to do my makeup with five minutes until we had to leave. It included concealer (Vichy Dermablend Corrective Foundation - 15 Opal and 25 Nude), mineral foundation (Lily Lolo mineral foundation - Blondie), blush (Benefit Box o' Powder - Dandelion, powder (Mattify - Translucent) and mascara (Lancome Doll Eyes - Waterproof Black). Pretty proud of myself.

Anyway, the foundation is allergy tested (which I don't understand because people can be allergic to anything), tested on sensitive skin, eyes and contact wearers, fragrance free, dermatologist tested, ophthalmologist tested and non-comedogenic.
Take whatever you want from that, they only things that mean anything to me are fragrance free and ophthalmologist tested, the rest would be all down to what the particular tester was sensitive to.

Pros:
- It covers really well
- Inexpensive
- Hasn't irritated my skin or eyes at all
- Able to mix colours to match skin perfectly
- Applies nicely
- Doesn't come in a ridiculous amount that I could never use within the used by time
- Squeeze bottle - my preference for cream/liquid makeup packaging
- Natural looking finish
- Not limited edition

Cons:
- Not available in Australia

So generally this gets a million stars out of five.

Flying long distances – What I take in my carry on luggage

Assuming you're checking some luggage and not just taking carry on. This is more so for longer trips, what to bring for the plane itself.

I'm flying to Italy in a week, quite excited and nervous. Especially because I have a constant fear of the airport people losing my luggage and thus losing my mass amounts of makeup and beloved skin care products.

Because of my fear of losing my products, I go to drastic measures to make sure that I would have them for however long it would take them to find my luggage. So I bring around a weeks worth of products with me on the plane.

My 1 quart bag will contain something like this:
- 30ml Bioderma Créaline/Sensibio H20 (review coming soon) - makeup remover and cleanser. I like this because you don’t need to wash it off, so it’s good for cleansing on a flight when there’s not a lot of water available
- 20ml Perfect Potion Moisture Base - my everyday moisturiser
- 15ml jojoba oil - also used as a moisturiser
- 50ml aloe vera gel - very moisturising and good for when my skin's irritated
- 10ml shea butter - I use this as a lip balm and nighttime eye cream. It’s also really good for any irritation I get on my skin
- Three samples of hand cream
- 10ml Yes to Carrots Nourishing Reparative Night Cream (also review coming soon) – lovin’ this night cream, feels really lovely to apply and not much is needed, super moisturising.
- 15ml Perfect Potion Herbal Renewal Eye Cream
- 15ml Dermalogica Skin Hydrating Booster
- 10ml Elizabeth Arden 8-Hour Cream – Really moisturising treatment, I use it for my lips or any irritated and dry bits on my skin.
- 20ml Lush Snow Fairy shower gel – super sweet scent, very satisfying for washing off all the plane funk

My non-liquid items will be:
- A few Lush toothy tabs – great dry alternative to toothpaste that’s not messy like tooth powder
- A change of clothes – I wear leggings and a t-shirt onto the plane (I know, leggings aren’t pants, but my God they’re comfy for a plane ride), and then bring jeans and another shirt for when I shower during the lay over
- iPad, books, things to do, etc. – also a charger for my iPad because they have power outlets on the flight I’m taking and it would be really annoying to have to go and buy one if they lose my luggage
- Lush Soak and Float solid shampoo and Jungle solid conditioner
- A comb, hair ties and such
- And I’ll buy some gum at the airport for takeoff and landing

I’ve been very tempted to bring my new curling iron with me in my carry on, I love it so much and I don’t want to lose it! I doubt they’ll lose my luggage (I will be taking precautionary measures such as printing out my itinerary and putting it in the first pocket of my suitcase), but I’m still anxious.

MAC ladies

For some reason MAC stores always have the meanest shop assistants. It confuses me greatly as to how and why they were hired when they're obviously not good people. Very occasionally there'll be a nice person (like the madam that works at the Carindale MAC, with whom I am gradually forming a friendship with), but more often than not the assistants will be total bitches.

It gets to a point where I don't really want to go to MAC because of the bitches, but I love MAC, so what am I to do?!

I think it's some pretty weird business that MAC's doing if I don't want to go into the store, whilst also really wanting to.

Creating matte lip colours from non-matte colours

I bought a new It Started With a Kiss from Lush yesterday so that I could have one for home and one for my purse and I discovered something amazing. It Started With a Kiss, like all Lush lip tints, is a glossyish finish, but, just like glossy lipsticks, you can powder over them with translucent powder and turn them into matte lipsticks! So now I have a lovely matte red to play with yay.

So in more detail what I do is apply the lipstick like normal, blot with tissues, powder the lips, reapply lipstick and repowder. It also makes the colour last longer so that's yet another plus.

Lush A Million Kisses lip tint review

So Lush seems to have decided that the fans like lip tints, so they will give us lip tints for a limited time, bastards. I don't know why they keep doing this to us, giving us something awesome and then snatching it away. Because they're bitches, that's why.

So A Million Kisses was released recently for valentine's day and my store just got it in! I of course bought two and will probably buy another one every time I go in.

It's similar to It Started With a Kiss lip tint in that it's red, but really the texture is most similar to Chilli Tingle or Latte from Christmas, much more solid, not super moisturising (but definitely not drying, far from drying), with crazy colour pay off. So it's awesome, pretty much.

A Million Kisses' colour is so awesome, I really hope that we continue getting brighter colours. It's darker and berry coloured than It Started With a Kiss and a little goes a long way, so it'd be easy to build it to a full colour or to keep it sheer. I'm really in love with this colour, I wish it was permanent (though with Lush nothing is really permanent *cough cough* what is this bullshit about all of the hair gels being discontinued?? Why?!)

In other news, there's a bruise on my arm that is getting progressively darker. I don't know how it happened or why it's worsening...It was yellow yesterday, now it's more purplish red. I have no recollection of smashing my arm into anything...

Best of 2011: Beauty

Skincare
- Lush Ultrabland cleanser
- Perfect Potion Moisture Base moisturiser
- Jojoba oil - as a moisturiser
- Perfect Potion Bare Faced exfoliant
- Manuka honey - for masks
- Lavender oil - for pimples
- Arthur Lawrence Cleanser III - as a mask

Makeup
- Urban Decay Naked palette
- Sigma brushes
- Sigmax brushes - F84 and P84 for foundation and concealer
- MAC eyeshadows
- NARS Sheer Glow foundation
- Hourglass Veil mineral primer
- MAC Blacktrack Fluidline eyeliner
- Benefit Get Bent liner brush

Hair
- Coconut oil
- Lush The Big Tease styling gel
- Lush Godiva solid shampoo
- Lush Jungle solid conditioner
- Perfect Potion Rosemary Conditioner
- Perfect Potion Chamomile Shampoo

NARS Sheer Glow Foundation and Hourglass Veil Mineral Primer review

So I've been trying out some new products for the past few days and I am very impressed. I recently decided to venture forth from my love of mineral foundation into the land of the unknown, liquid foundation. I also decided that I wanted to try some primers because so many makeup gurus swear that they're a must have.

I had first thought that I would try the Laura Mercier oil-free tinted moisturiser because it has good reviews and I was interested, but then I discovered that Mecca Cosmetica sells cosmetic brands that are usually only sold in pretty much every country other than Australia, AND there is one in Queen St Mall which is where I go for all of my cosmetic needs (there's a Lush there).

So I mosey on down there, into Mecca and head straight for the NARS section. It was all so very pretty. So I got a sample of NARS Sheer Glow in Deauville (which I have learnt is pronounced kind of like "doorville") and the sales assistant also put some primer on my skin when she tested the colours on me, so I also got a sample of the Hourglass Veil Mineral Primer, I've been using the samples for the past few days and I am oh so very pleased.My skin hasn't broken out or gotten even a little bit irritated, and that's saying something for my extremely sensitive skin.

NARS Sheer Glow looks so nice and I don't need very much to cover everything, so I think a bottle will last me a very long time. It has a dewy finish, but not too dewy, more luminous than anything. The packaging is simple, glass bottle with a screw on lid, no pump. The colour selection is really good too, heaps to choose from and I'd say I have my colour matched very well with Deauville.

The Hourglass primer is awesome as well, the texture is really nice, like silky smooth kind of texture in liquid form, not silicone-y feeling at all...weird and nice at the same time. The packaging is really good too, it comes in a sturdy frosted glass bottle with a pump, which is super awesome as I've had to order a pump for NARS, and it just generally looks fancy, which you would expect as it is a bit pricey, but definitely worth it. Also the pump screws off, so once you've used it all, you can reuse the bottle for something else.
It keeps my skin softly matted, not too matte, which I like about it, I'm all about the dewy with my dry skin, and the NARS Sheer Glow stayed on all through my shopping trip and other adventures, looking pretty well perfect by the end of each day.

So if you're interested in either then definitely get yourself some samples, try them out and maybe come back to get the full sized, and I would recommend you buy the NARS pump if they have them wherever you buy it (they didn't at my Mecca), I don't like having to tip out a certain amount of the bottle.

Daily makeup routine

My makeup routine changes very often, I like to try new products until I'm sure I have what works the best and then wait a little bit until new things come out and continue my search. My school makeup routine would comprise of mineral foundation/tinted moisturiser, concealer, blush and Lush Snow Fairy lip tint.

Things I use often

Weekends and holidays are usually a lot more elaborate.
1. Prime. An important step in my makeup routine. Priming keeps anything that you apply to your face in place and decreases shine, it also creates a smooth canvas for foundation to glide over. I have been using Hourglass Veil Mineral Primer lately and I'm loving it, because it's a liquid mineral primer it feels really interesting when you apply it, also really hard to describe. It hasn't irritated my skin so far and it neutralises a lot of discolouration and makes my foundation look even more luminous. So I dot it on my face, not much, probably one or two dots per face section, eg. left cheek, right cheek, forehead, nose, chin; and rub it in so that it covers my entire face. I then wait for it to sink in and set a bit, while I'm waiting I would apply an eye primer to the lid and underneath the eye to keep concealer and shadows from creasing. I've been using Smashbox Photo Finish lid primer, not sure how I feel about this one, it gets the job done, but I'm sure there are better ones out there (I will soon be trying the Urban Decay Primer Potion that so many people love).

2. Foundation. I enjoy playing with different foundations, so I usually do full foundation when I go out on weekends. Right now I'm trying out NARS Sheer glow and loving it so far. I also dot it on two to three dots per face section and blend it in with the Sigma F84 brush, this is my current favourite brush for foundation, it creates an air brushes finish and doesn't absorb product.

3. Concealer. I apply it with my fingers and blend it under my eyes, around my nose and on any blemishes. I'm using Maybelline Fit Me concealer right now, but I don't really like it, I think I'll go back to the Lancome Effacernes concealer.

4. Blush. Loving benefit tint/blushes at the moment, probably because it's so damn hot and I don't like to have heaps of powder on my face when I'm going to sweat it off, so cheek tints works much better. I apply a few swipes on the apples of my cheeks and blend outward with my fingers. I also like that I don't have to wash brush when I use these blushes.

5. Eyeshadow. I've been enjoying using a pearly yellow/white colour as a base and then a soft brown in the crease lately, but I usually like to go more dramatic if it's the weekend because I can't experiment with eyeshadows during the week. So I would apply a base colour of my choosing, for example, a soft pink, then blend a much darker mauve-y pink into the crease and maybe darken it more with MAC Carbon or an even darker pink. Then apply MAC Blanc Type with a fluffy brush on the brow bone and blend out harsh lines. And apply a highlight colour to the brow bone, I like Benefit Creaseless Cream Eyeshadow in Tattle Tale.

6. Eyeliner. I nearly always use a gel/cream eyeliner, I like the control the brush gives you and the range of colours that they come in. I really like MAC Fluidlines, but haven't tried many others, so I still need to try some before I can say which is my favourite. For the pink eyeshadow, I would use a brown eyeliner, so it's not too harsh, or you can use purple if you like. So apply a thin line across the eye and maybe wing it out slightly or thicken it at the outer corner. I use Benefit Get Bent liner brush, but I like to use a thin, dense painters brush as well.

7. Mascara. Pretty self explanatory, curl your lashes, apply mascara. My current favourite waterproof (it has been raining so goddamn much lately) mascara is the Bloom Full & Flirty Waterproof mascara. After using that I comb them with a lash spooly. And my favourite non-waterproof is Benefit BadGal Plum (as you can tell, I quite enjoy Benefit products), it looks really good with green or blue eyes and makes the whites of the eyes appear whiter and brighter.

8. Brows. Since I've dyed my hair, I fill in my brows if I'm going out. I use a brownish colour (Mudpie by Lily Lolo) that is similar to the hair surrounding my face and fill them in with the angled brush from EcoTools, starting from the centre and working to the tail, then using the leftover on the brush at the innermost part.

Tada! Done! Happy, fun times and partying now.

Favourite things of 2011

Numero uno!
Just in general, Sigma brushes. They are the bomb, super dope, high quality, but also very cheap brushes. I love all of mine, they are most definitely comparable to MAC brushes. My favourites especially are the Sigmax kabuki brushes, love the F80 and F82. Neither of them shed at all, like literally not one hair has come off of them in the months that I have owned them.

The F80 is my favourite for liquid foundation, stipple it on, then buff it in. It gives a flawless finish and doesn't absorb the product.

The F82 is my favourite for mineral foundation, just blend it straight onto the face and it all looks perfect and lovely.

Deus
Lush Ultrabland is the best thing to happen to my face in the whole of forever, that shit is insane. Like, life changingly insane.

You can read about my love for it here and also here, because I love it that damn much.

Sanban
Apples. Before I got my braces off this year, I hadn't bitten into an apple in two damn years. The day after I got them off I was on block exams, so I brought an apple with me to eat as a way of celebrating finishing my math exam. When I got out of that test, I was so excited. I took my apple out of my bag, brought it to my lips and stopped. I couldn't even remember how to eat a damn apple, it took my friends' encouragement and getting over the fear that my teeth will break off, but I bit into that apple and it was the best damn apple of my entire life.

I will never forget that apple.

Quatro
The NARS Beautiful Life Palette is so awesome. Before I bought it I hadn't tried any NARS products (damn you, Australia), but now I am so addicted, I must order more! The lip colours in it are super pigmented for non stick lippies, I especially love the darker pink on the right side, Funny Face, that looks really lovely. The multiples are cool, I don't really see all the hype with Orgasm, it's a pretty pink and all, but I'm pretty sure it's all in the name, well done, NARS, well done. Copacabana is an awesome highlighter, I use it all over my face (brow bone, cheeks, nose) and it looks very nice. The packaging is really good, it zips up and it has a huge mirror above the colours.

Fem
Benefit Creaseless Cream Eyeshadows in general are darn awesome, great pigmentation, stay fairly well and are pearly, but not super shimmery, but I love them especially in Busy Signal, Get Figgy and Tattle Tale. I like Busy Signal and Get Figgy as crease colours and Tattle Tale is an awesome highlight colour, also a nice lid colour.

Seks
Lancome Color Fever lipstick in 312 Pink in the Limo is a super pretty bright pink colour that I love wearing underneath Lush Snow Fairy lip tint. It's a nice pop of colour, that isn't too dramatic and I think would look good on all pale gals, but it's sadly been discontinued, though I'm sure there are a lot of dupes.

Shtatë (That's Albanian for "seven")
MAC fluidline eye liners in Blacktrack and Dipdown are my favourite gel eyeliners, granted, I haven't tried many, but these have served me well for some time now. Blacktrack is very black and is easy to make thick or subtle lines with and Dipdown is a softer brown colour that looks good for less dramatic eye looks. They are fairly water-proof, don't smudge and go on nicely.

Otto
Benefit cheek and lip stains, I love them all, Posietine, Cha Cha tint and Benetint, they're all awesome, interesting and fun to use. Great pigmentation, not too much so as it being too hard to get the right amount, but you also don't have to apply a heap to get some colour, love 'em.

Nege
Benefit Get Bent liner brush. When I bought this a while ago, I loved it, then I started trying new brushes and like them more, now I've come back to it and once again I love it. You can create both really thin and really thick lines with it and the bent head makes it really easy to use. Also, I've had it for ages and it hasn't split or frayed.

Tíz
Laura Mercier Tightline Cake eye liner is da bomb. So good for really thin lines and I like that because it's a powder, it allows less bacteria to collect. It's also a bit interesting and different from the normal eye liners on the market and it seems fairly water-proof so far. I just use normal water with it, as I've read some bad reviews of the activator liquid.

Ellefu
Benefit Badgal Plum mascara is my favourite mascara of all time, I just wish it was water-proof, even still, I'll wear it in the rain because it looks so good. It doesn't clump or give you spider lashes or anything bad, it just looks awesome and the purple colour makes your eyes look brighter and whiter.

Twaalf
The British TV show, Misfits, is my current favourite show. Even without Nathan, who was so freaking funny, it's still awesome. I've grown to like Rudy and I'm really enjoying the non-romance between Kelly and Seth. I love Kelly. I fookin' love her!

Well, that's about it, I'm going to go and watch Misfits now, catch ya tomorrow!