Benefit's Watt's Up Highlighter Review

 Hey there! On today's agenda I have a few snaps and a quick review of Benefit's renowned highlighter Watt's Up! A quick background on this product; this was a Christmas present to me from my family last year and it came in the 'Perk Up & Away' Gift Set. It comes in a very cute and quirky purple tube. You wind it up at the bottom and apply directly onto your cheek bones and then you can blend it out with the sponge applicator at the base. I personally apply it directly onto my cheekbones and blend it with my fingers, then with the excess I lightly run it down the bridge of my nose and cupids bow etc. 

Now onto the actually product, it is described as a 'soft focus highlighter for face'. I could bang on about this all day, but basically because it is that tan/golden highlight colour, it easily blends into foundation seamlessly  unlike white highlighters which can look a bit to obvious and I find it easier to apply than powder highlighters. So it is a creamy consistency which makes blending a dream, and then dries to a powder like finish. It has a great lasting powder and in my opinion just looks better as the day goes on! Unfortunately the rest of my highlighting products are now reserved in my draw, collecting dust because Watt's Up has become the number one, definitely better than any other highlighting product I've tried. 

Its not the cheapest highlighter on the block, nor is it the most expensive, coming in at AU$30 for 9.4grams. I love it and think it is worth it, because it has repressed any urges I have of buying any other highlighters and I know that it is going to last a very long time. I'm not sure if this is worth mentioning but I am a NW20 skin tone, or 'natural beige' in a lot of drug store foundations. I only say this for those who are thinking of buying this who have a pale complexion, you might need to get an opinion of someone of a similar skin tone, because like I said it is golden but blends well, so it might be a little bit too dark or it might be perfectly fine, I just can't confirm it. All in all, I highly recommend this product to everyone, but especially to those who are new to highlighting!

Ashleigh xo

Chanel Eye Shadow Quad in 18 Kaska Beige Review

Chanel Les 4 Ombres Quadra Eye Shadow

18 Kaska Beige

Hey there! (Scroll down to bottom for personal update) Look I'm just come out and say it, I really reeeaaaally DO NOT recommened this quad. Phew, I'm glad I got that off my chest, if youre interested to here why though, keep on reading! (EDIT: After reading what I have just written I must say it doesn't reflect my normal professionalism, but if you're reading this then I must have decided to post it anyway!)

I bought this product quite some time ago (back when I was young and foolish) and didn't do a lot of research into it prior. Infact this was my exact mentality of purchasing it:
1. OMG OMG OMG CHANEL...I must have it.
2. I'm sure it going to be great, it is chanel after all
3. Its worth the money because theyre neutral shades, so I'll get plenty of use of it
4. It will be like my naked pallette only more compact and classier
 WRONG. WRONG. WRONG. WRONG.

Basically this pallette costs a limb and the colour pay off in return is awful. In the swatches above^ that is me pratically scrubbing the eye shadows to get a lil somthin' to photograph. Personally, if im going to pay thaaaat much for four eyeshadows, I would like to actually be able to see the product on my lovely little lids. I admit they are pretty to look at in the pan and the packaging is oh so chic, but at the end of the day this quad is just sitting in my drawer collecting dust. I do love how Chanel are thoughtful of their customers, as they provide a little booklet on how to apply the shadows and a protective velvet bags as well. Anywho, here are some pretty pictures of it...

Sorry this is quite a negative post (and a bit crazy, I'm quite excited if you can't tell), but I thought this needed to be said, but keep in mind that this is only my opinion, I'm sure there is someone somewhere in this world that loves this quad... maybe.

It's not letting me make those images any bigger, I'm very sorry! 

Personal Update: I am so very sorry I haven't been posting much as of late, I promise I do have a reasonable(ish) excuse, although you can be the judge of that:

1. Year 12! Recently it was  the end of term rush where every subject decides to give you a SAC which of course requires a boatload of studying and took up most of my time

2. I recently turned 17 & it was Easter, so my time has been spent a) throwing a birthday part for 70+ people, b) seeing family and c) consuming far too much chocolate

3. As mentioned I turned 17, which also turned into me thinking about what I am doing in life and thinking all things about the future, I might dare call it a quarter life crisis. But regardless, I have survived and belive it or not, I think I have finally decided on what I want to do with my future (or atleast the next 7 years). So if anything, I have had quite a rewarding crisis and now that I have worked out my hopes and goals, I can properly focus on those instead of worrying about what they should be... does that make any sense? It make sense in my teenage head, but to the rest of the world... maybe not. Alas, all is well and I think (fingers crossed) I will begin blogging on a more regular basis. Thank you all for sticking by meeeee! I hope you are all well

Ashleigh xo 

Soap & Glory's Soaper Heroes Gift Set Review

 Hey there! About a month ago, I ventured to the heavenly Mecca Cosmetica and came across this godsend,  Soap & Glory's 'Soaper Heroes' gift set  (AU$34.95 OR £13.00) b. A while ago I made a wishlist post which contained a couple of the products found in this gift set, so when I found it I knew I had to buy it! It is basically just an array of Soap & Glory's best sellers in smaller travel/sample sized products. It is perfect for those who, like me, are scared of commitment, so you can just try out the products and see what you like before you commit to a huge full sized product. Genius, I know!

A quick rundown of what you get:

Top (left-right): 'Flake Away' body scrub & 'The Righteous Butter' body butter

Bottom (left-right: 'Girligo' moisturising body mist, 'Clean On Me' shower gel & 'Hair Supply' hair repair mask.

Flake Away body scrub (50mL)

This is possibly my new favourite exfoliator, I usually use it before applying fake tan or when trying to remove it and it works a treat! It is very much a basic sugar scrub that smells divine  but it may leave a slight oily residue if you don't wash it off properly.

 The Righteous Butter body butter (50mL)

This is also a gorgeous product, it does a great job of doing what it is supposed to; moisturising! It is pleasantly scented but nothing too overpowering. I can't really fault this product.

Girligo moisturising body mist (75mL)

I have never tried anything like this product before and to be honest it was probably what I was least excited about getting, but I think I was too quick to judge. It has a very fresh, clean scent and lightly moisturises the skin. I have used this a could of times in conjunction with The Righteous Butter prior to fake tanning. I spray this stuff all over my extremities and then only use The Righteous Butter on drier areas such as my knees. It has made such a difference with the longevity and seamlessness of my fake tan and my skin loves me for it, so I am one happy girl. 

Clean On Me shower gel (100mL)

This is described as a skin softening shower gel and it does just that! I really like the clean scent, so you don't have to worry about it clashing with your perfume or some other scented product and it lathers nicely.

Hair Supply hair mask (50mL)

This hair mask can be left in for 3+ minutes for a deep condition or you can use it on a more regular basis and use it as though you would conditioner. It makes my hair feel like I just left the salon, I reeeeeeeally like it, but it does tend to make my hair that little bit oilier quicker. This would be great for those with dry hair though!

Overall I am extremely happy with this purchase, I will definitely be going back a repurchasing some of the full sized products once these travel sizes run out. This was my first time purchasing Soap & Glory and I was really impressed. It was cheaper than I expected (only AU$34.95 OR £13.00) but that doesn't compromise the quality of the products. I wouldn't call them luxurious but they are better than a lot of products I have tried in the past and that are on the market! Sorry I talk so much, next time I'll try and have a shorter post hahaha.

I hope you are all doing well!

Ashleigh xo

Maybelline: One By One Volum’ Express Mascara Review

One By One Volum’ Express Mascara 

I am going to try my best and make this review a bit short and snappy because I am absolutely overwhelmed with homework/study that I should be doing right now! I bought this mascara back in January I believe (it was featured in my first little drugstore haul), mainly because it was on sale and I knew my well loved 'The Magnum' mascara was slowly reaching the end of its days. (P.S. you can check out a review of that mascara  HERE). I was hoping the One By One mascara would be a good replacement, but unfortunately I was sadly mistaken. I am just going to come right out and say it, I reeeeaally DO NOT recommend this mascara!

 The main reason why I don't like this mascara is because it smudges and flakes worse than anything I have ever used. In it's defence I am used to using waterproof mascara, (until recently I found out how detrimental that is to your lashes) but still the fact that I cant last a day a school without this causing panda eyes is a bit unforgivable. I also don't like that wand (although now I am just getting fussy with personal preference), it does do a great job of separating each individual lash, but the wand is so flimsy and rubbery that it was just annoying and unpleasant to apply. I won't go into too much more detail on the wand, as you can see the shape/size of it in the picture below, But I am sure some people out there really like wands like that, I know some of my friends do. It definitely lengthens the lashes quite well but cannot hold a curl to save it's life! The one thing that I do like about this mascara is that it comes off at night extremely easy, but like I said, it doesn't have great longevity in general. 

Overall I think that there a million and one other mascara options out there in the same price range that do a much better job than this one, (black smudging and flakes under your eyes is never a good look in my books!) I think I might just pass this mascara along to my sister, because I have got a fresh tube of the Maybelline Falsies mascara just waiting to be used! I am usually a fan of Maybelline mascaras, so I was quite surprised with how much I didn't like this one. 

Anywho, thats about all from my end! I hope all is well where ever you may be & have a lovely day!

Ashleigh xo

Makeup Products Finding A New Home

Hey there! This is a post that is pretty much in direct reference to my previous post, 'Makeup Confession', about cleaning out my makeup and not hoarding products that I never really use. I went through my makeup collection as promised and have picked out a handful of products that (for whatever reason) go untouched and will be given to a couple of my friends. There were a some 'if, buts and maybes,' over a few products that narrowly missed out on making this post, so I will be keeping a close eye on them and try to use them over the coming weeks to get my final opinion on them. Anywho I will stop yacking on and get started on the products and why I no longer want them! :)

NYX Rouge Cream Blush in (left) 09 Orange & (right) 05 Glow

I had heard some great reviews on these cream blushes and because you can't get NYX blushes here in Australia, I went a little bit crazy and bought three without even swatching them whilst holidaying overseas. I think the main reason why I haven't gotten on well with these blushes is because I have quite oily skin and their staying power isn't very good. When I applied these to my cheeks it honestly just reminded me of when I had acne on my cheeks in my younger years. They are quite greasy (not good for my oily skin at all) and seemed to just amplify the imperfections of my skin. I can't say it's specifically this cream blush to fault as these were the first kind of cream blush I have ever tried, I just dont think I am much of a cream blush kind of gal! A friend of mine is keen to try out some NYX products so I thought they might better off in her hands. As I said I did by three blushes, so I am hanging on to one of them; 'Natural,' just to give it a few more goes and see if I can make it work for my skin a little better. Side note: to increase the saying power of these blushes you can always set them with another powder blush, although to me that just seemed a little bit relentless and applying the cream blush in the first blush seemed a little pointless if I was just trying to cover it up.

Bobbi Brown Diamond Dust Shadow in Snowflake

Before I jump in I just want to point out that this eye shadow is no longer available from Bobbi Brown as they were from a collection with two other shades a few years ago I believe. It is basically a very icy white shadow that is really chunky/flaky. I guess that shouldn't exactly be a surprise considering the name of the product! I thought it would be a great inner highlight but it just doesn't look that great, it doesn't adhere well to the skin and the fact that is is so chunky is a turn off for me. 

Napoleon Perdis Colour Disc in #20

I love a lot of things about this eye shadow; the pigmentation, the texture, the packaging ect. It was actually a birthday present to me last year from my brothers girlfriend who was a training makeup artist for NP at the time, so whether or not these were available to the general public I am unsure (sorry), but I do know that the packaging overall has changed! So the only reason I am passing this eye shadow on is because blue is not my colour... at all, what. so. ever. I can't see myself pulling off a blue eye shadow look in a million years! Hence, I am giving it to someone who I think may actually be able to pull off a blue eye. I do however, have three other colour discs in more wearable colours which I do love and adore!

Napoleon Perdis Ultra Pearl in #27

Much of what I said before about the colour disc does for this product as well! Somehow it has an even more luxurious texture; so smooth and blends like a dream. To be honest I was a bit on the fence about getting rid of this eye shadow, because it is so lovely, but I have a friend in mind who I know will get a lot more use of it than I! I have more golden eye shadows than I need, and this one is just that little bit too yellow for my liking! That being said I wouldn't mind coming across this formulation of eye shadow in a few different shades!

Garnier Light Brightening Eye Roll On

Essentially this product is supposed to brighten under your eye (surprise surprise) and reduce the appearance of dark circles. To be blunt; I couldn't notice a difference when using this, actually it might just land it's way in the bin because it isn't really a product I would recommend for anyone. However, (it's not all bad news) I have used another Garnier roll on treatment for under you eyes which is tinted and uses caffeine I believe to immediately reduce dark circles/puffy eyes, and I really did enjoy that. So if you're interested, definitely give that one a go, its called the Garnier Anti-Dark-Circle Eye Roller.

Revlon Just Bitten Lipstain + Balm in Passion

Somehow I managed to get this product confused with the Revlon Just Bitten KISSABLE BALM STAIN (which I looooooooooove)! This however is not something I would recommend at aaaaall, its basically just a pink texta/marker to draw on your lips! I only used it about twice, but I am told they dry out super quickly as well, I really urge to not bother with this product at all, ever! (Promise me you wont?)

NYX Eyebrow Cake Powder in 05 Brunette

I also bought this whilst I was holidaying just to try something new, because I had never come across something like it before. It is two different shades of brown (basically just eye shadows) and then a little pan of wax used to set your brows. I already have thick eyebrows and when I use something to try and fill them in or anything, I just look ridiculous! I was chatting to a friend and she was telling me how she was looking for a new brow product, so I just thought I should pass this along to her, as I struggle to see myself wearing it outside the confinement of my bedroom. I really have no comment on the quality of the product as I don't have any experiences with comparable brow powders and I only used it a handful of times (sorry, I know that is really not even a slightly helpful)!

There we have it folks, that is the first of my makeup clean outs! If you are interested in reading the post 'Makeup Confession', I will link it HERE! All in all, I think the people I am giving these products too will be happy to receive and it is actually quite a nice, refreshing feeling to pass these on!

I hope you are all having a loooovely weekend,

Ashleigh xo

Makeup Confession #personalpost

Hey there! Now I’ll apologise in advance if this kind of post doesn’t appeal to you, it’s not my typical sort of post but it is definitely something I wanted to share with you all. This is beginning to sound like it’s something super serious diary entry but it really isn’t that big of a deal. 
Basically I started collecting makeup about two years ago, I had been interested in makeup for A LOT longer than that, but because of my young age I didn’t have the finances to, let’s say, ‘support my obsession’ until two years ago. At the time I will admit, I was really naive and had the mindset ‘the bigger my collection, the better my collection’ so over time I’ve accumulated a ‘larger than your average’ makeup collection. In saying that I am merely comparing it to the amount of makeup my personal friends outside the blogging/YouTube world have, in comparison to many YouTubers my makeup collection would well… not even compare. I guess what the funny thing is that it was watching all these big Youtubers with HUGE makeup collections two years ago that made me want to collect as much as them, but now something inside me has changed and I am almost cringing when I watch some of the makeup collection videos that in the past I would have loved. I don’t want to spend my money (and on a bigger scale; my life) collecting 50+ blushes that will sit in a drawer collecting dust for years. I want to spend my money travelling, helping others and spoiling the people I love. Don’t get me wrong, I am sure there are many people in this world who can do all of the above and own 50 blushes, but I personally can’t see myself having the best of both worlds (at this point in time anyway). By no means do I think makeup is a waste of money, nor will I stop purchasing it, but I am definitely going to start shopping more wisely and have the mindset of QUALITY OVER QUANTITY. 

I think this has kind of been in the back of my mind for a while but what has really persuaded me to make this post was Jenn Im from ClothesEncounters. She didn’t directly make any statement like what I have just made, but from observing her and her showing her own makeup in a few of her videos, she just seems to have a good amount. Not a million different eye shadows and blushes, just the select few which she enjoys and then the most variable product in her makeup was a few different shades lipsticks. I think I am starting to get overwhelmed a little bit in the midst of my own collection – ‘so much makeup so little time’. I even find myself for some unknown reason holding on to cosmetics which I genuinely don’t use or even like, probably because in the past I thought it made my collection look good, but in reality it’s just collecting dust. So I am going to do a clean out of my makeup and ship the products I don’t particularly enjoy to my loved ones, because they will probably enjoy them more than I do!

Source: weheartit.com

Sorry now I am just waffling on and on! Basically to do this in a quick summary:

1.       I am going to reduce my makeup purchasing, minimalize my impulse purchasing and do a bit more research in to products prior to purchasing  to limit the chance of me being disappointed in them or wasting money

2.       I will clean out my makeup, passing on unwanted items to a new home

3.       Focusing on using the products that I have!

4.       Opt for QUALITY over QUANTITY

I assure you my makeup collection isn’t actually that big, but for me I am just starting to find it a little overwhelming I suppose. Also, I don’t want to come across as hypocritical when I post future hauls and all, because I by no means am saying am never buying anymore beauty products, the purchases made will be more thought through and will get used regularly!

I hope this didn’t leave the wrong impression but it probably does seem a bit weird coming from a beauty blogger, buuuut I guess I am a bit of weird beauty blogger (& that’s how I like it)! Please leave your thoughts below, as I would love to read and reply to them all :D

I hope you all are having a lovely weekend!

Ashleigh xo

My MAC Eye Shadow Collection

Hey there! This post is pretty self-explanatory, here is my MAC eye shadow collection. I thought I had better get this post up sooner rather than later because I am thinking about depotting all of these bad boys and putting them into a couple of quad palettes. In Australia these retail for $33.00, so they aren't exactly the cheapest eye shadows on the block, but I do highly recommended them particularly for getting neutrals so you know you’ll get your money’s worth of. In saying that, there are plenty of cheaper dupes for these colours; it’s really just up to you.

Top Row, Left to Right:

Honey Lust (Lustre), Naked Lunch (Frost), Brule (Satin), Yogurt (Matte) Crystal Avalanche (Veluxe Pearl)

Bottom Row, Left to Right:

Amber Lights (Frost), Satin Taupe (Frost), Handwritten (Matte²), Woodwinked (Veluxe Pearl) & Cranberry (Frost).  

OUTSIDE NATURAL LIGHTING
Same As Shown in Previous Photo:  Top Row, Left to Right:

Honey Lust , Naked Lunch, Brule, Yogurt, Crystal Avalanche

Bottom Row, Left to Right:

Amber Lights, Satin Taupe, Handwritten, Woodwinked & Cranberry  

INSIDE NATURAL LIGHTING

My favourite finish of eye shadow would definitely have to be Veluxe Pearl, they are just so soft and velvet-y, but unfortunately they don’t have a wide colour range in that finish so the next best thing would have to be the frosts in my opinion. My least favourite eye shadow I own would definitely have to be Cranberry, even though it is absolutely stunning in the pan, it really doesn't suit me (something I should have thought about before I bought it).

Below is a picture of my four favourite eye shadows. From left to right they are:

Naked Lunch, Woodwinked, Satin Taupe & Brule

From Left to Right: Naked Lunch, Woodwinked, Satin Taupe & Brule

Fun Fact: The First ever MAC eye shadow I bought was when Brule when I was 14! I chose it because I was so overwhelmed with all the colours and I thought a highly reecommened  neutral was the best way to go!

What was the first MAC eyeshadow you purchased?

Ashleigh xo