NOTD - FOA Pastels polish, Castle on a Cloud

I'm sorry, I'm sorry, but I am here with yet another FOA polish. I don't know what it is but despite not really being a polish kind of person, I have been so into the FOA polishes in the past couple of months.

This NOTD features 'Castle on a Cloud,' a shimmery super light lavender, almost-white kind of shade. From a distance it looks like a light grey but close up it is obvious that there are underlying purple tones.

According to all nail polish laws, this should take approximately 8 coats to reach full opacity, but instead it took only two.

Unfortunately I have ridiculously shocking circulation in my hands (which often leaves my hands with a greyish tinge) and therefore although this polish was actually quite beautiful, it added to the corpse 'look' I have going. Not nice.

Other people seemed to like it though, and I certainly didn't hate it. Wearing such a neutral kind of polish was a nice change from all the brights I usually wear.

This chipped after three days of wear, about average in my opinion. It doesn't really have a glossy finish like some polishes, in fact it is quite a matte, almost dull finish, so after an extended wear time it can look almost grotty.

I quite like this polish, it was relatively quick drying and a non offensive, nice kind of colour. What are your thoughts?

Also, check out my ring - it was made in Cambodia by former street children and before it was a ring it was...a teaspoon!

Travel Times 1

This is a photo of the sunrise over Angkor Wat. We woke up at 4am to see this, and though it certainly wasn't the most spectacular sunrise I had ever seen, it was truly magical sitting amongst the oldest, largest temples in Cambodia with dragonflies and water lilies all around as the sun crept up over the land.

Travel Times!

As you may know, I recently went on a trip to Cambodia. It was without a doubt the best thing I have ever done in my (short) life, and I have come back quite a different person. I don't think this is surprising, especially considering the nature of the trip where we went to poorer communities to fund and contribute to the building of houses of those suffering from HIV/Aids. As you can imagine, returning to Australia has been quite difficult.

I have also had trouble coming to terms with my blog in fact, struggling with the fact that all that I used to post about seems so excessive and unnecessary. Don't worry, I am certainly not going to give it up because blogging has helped me in so many ways in my life, and beauty is still a hobby of mine, but I certainly have had a big think about everything and for the time being, purchasing cosmetics just isn't all that appealing. I doubt very much that this feeling will last forever, but this blog might be a little strange for the time being as I reevaluate it all and come to terms with how much I have in comparison to how little everyone had over in Cambodia, and attempt to justify my interest in makeup and beauty related things. If anyone has ever experienced this, I would love to hear your thoughts and how you feel about it all.

Anyway! Instead of one huge great post I wanted to space it out a little and post a picture or two from my trip every week for however long I feel compelled to! I thought you might appreciate that a little more than a gazillion word post overloaded with thousands of pictures! I shall call it 'Travel times!'

For this first post is the series photo above, a picture from the temple Ta Prohm at the Temples of Angkor that we visited, where the movie Tomb Raider was shot. I felt like I was in some kind of magical land at this temple, it was just so beautiful.

Keep an eye out every Monday for a photo and short explanation from my travels. Thank you all for continuing to support my blog while I was away too, I really appreciate the comments you left!

Clean and Clear Morning Burst Skin Brightening Facial Cleanser

When I acquired this from a free Priceline beauty bag I was very keen on trying this out and proving that it would not be an effective cleanser. After all, surely a fluorescent yellow liquid full of green lumps couldn't be good for my skin.

Wrong.

I have been using this consistently for months now and it works wonders. I don't think my skin has ever been better, and though I wouldn't put it down solely to this product it is certainly contributing to it!

Clean and Clear is a brand that I am very, very familiar with. We have been good friends for years now. However the skin care that I was using just didn't seem to be working as effectively as it once was. I don't know if there is any science behind this, but I felt as though my skin had kind of become used to the products and therefore they didn't work any longer. Whatever it was, it was time for a change.

I had seen numerous advertisements for this cleanser but it didn't entice me enough to go and pick some up. When I received it as a freebie I couldn't see why I shouldn't try it out.

As I mentioned, I have been using this before bed (despite that it is called 'Morning burst') for months and I cannot rave about it enough. I love that it isn't a scrub yet it does have the little beads in it that do add a bit of texture. They certainly don't act as a scrub but do a little more than a common cleanser would. They dissolve as you rub them into your skin, it's rather strange!

I love the scent of this, a fresh citrus burst that I can imagine would be overpowering for some, but I personally love it.

I find that this takes off all my makeup with ease, however the only complaint is that when I am having a dry skin day this works a little too well and is a little harsh.

I have found that my skin has been in excellent condition after having used this for a while now. I don't think it is all down to this product - the B.liv blackhead serum and moisturiser from the brand Simple would also have something to do with it - but this certainly helps. When I get blemishes I only get a couple however they are really big and take weeks to fade away (and sometimes leave permanent marks) but with this I have found my blemishes to be of a smaller, shorter nature.

I really enjoy using this cleanser because it feels so nice, works so well and smells so good. I think to have a combination of all these things really makes this stand out from other cleansers that may work just as well but aren't as fun to use!

I give this 8/10.

Rosehip Plus Rosehip Oil Skin Boost Roll On

Rosehip oil has been the talk of the (beauty) town for a while now. Everywhere I look bloggers seem to be raving about the stuff. It sounded cool, it looked cool but did it actually work? According to basically the whole world, yes it did.

I was sent this gorgeous little 'Rosehip oil skin boost roll on' from the brand  Rosehip plus. I was honestly thrilled and couldn't think of a better product to turn up on my doorstep.

For those of you who haven't heard anything about this magic rosehip oil, I'll tell you a little about it.

According to the packaging, it is a "100% pure and natural Australian certified skincare product, cold pressed from the seeds of the Rosehip (Rosa Canina), that's pure and nourishing, helping to support healthy looking skin with maximum efficacy."

This particular version of the product comes with a "hygienic massage roller ball" that allows you to apply product directly on required areas.

Apparently Rosehip Oil helps to:
- Reduce the appearance of scars/stretchmarks
- Maintain skin hydration
- Improve dry skin
- Minimise appearance of wrinkles/fine lines
- Promote elasticity and texture

Of course, to a rosehip oil newbie like myself, this all sounded terribly exciting, particularly 'reducing the appearance of scars' because my face has many old blemish scars that I would be quite happy to get rid of.

So, as I received this only days before leaving for Cambodia I packed this away in my carry on luggage bag (lucky it was under 100mL!) and prepared to use it non stop while travelling.

Upon opening my bag after a couple of flights, it became apparent that along with my roll on deodorant, facial moisturiser and mini shampoo, it had exploded everywhere and coated my lip balm and toothbrush in a film of orange oil. Apparently this isn't too good with planes.

I will say though that this is still a travelling kind of product. It is so simple and easy to use, compact and little, apart from the fact that it can't handle crazy cabin pressure (along with all my other toiletries) it really is good for busy people.

Anyway, this oil is an orange kind of colour (though not when it is rubbed in) and smells completely opposite to anything I was expecting. Perhaps it was really ignorant of me to think that this would smell like roses, but it doesn't. It's not a bad smell (or a particularly strong smell) but I guess it is just earthy. Nothing wrong with that.

It is really hard to judge the product's qualities and certainly the claims that it makes, but I will tell you that I do like this stuff and believe it to have improved the condition of my skin. It certainly does have ridiculous moisturising properties, although you would kind of expect that from an oil. I was pleasantly surprised that it sunk in relatively quickly though, a trait I am very impressed by. I also think that it improved the appearance of old blemish marks. It wasn't drastic, but I feel that after weeks of use they had faded a little.

So, what do I think overall? Well you can't really go wrong with an Australian owned and run brand, a rosehip oil that is cold pressed (oils extracted without chemicals or heat) and pretty, pretty packaging too! I really liked this product and I am so thankful that I was able to try it out.

If you are interested in giving the oh-so popular rosehip oil a try, you can't really go wrong with this little roll on, a total of $14.95.

I give this 7/10,

OOTD - Retail Therapy

 Sometimes when you are having a hard time you need a bit of retail therapy, so that is what Mum and I did a couple of weekends ago. I will post a little haul (there isn't much) but I thought I might write an OOTD as I quite liked what I wore.

I have never been much of a skirt person but I thought I may as well go crazy and wear one just because I felt like it! The one I'm wearing was from Factorie, but I have seen skirts like it absolutely everywhere.

My shirt is a boring old 3/4 length white one from Supre, often around $12 or so.

My scarf I picked up from the Op-shop for two dollars and I absolutely love it. It is a black checkered print and seems to work with every outfit. What a bargain!

For my shoes, they are from Rubi and almost always on sale. These are my third pair of the same shoe (can you tell how much I love them?) and I picked them up for $2.

I didn't wear much jewellery, just a lovely little bracelet and bow ring.

I did feel like I needed a bit of colour so I chose my brightest bag, a vibrant red weaving type thing with a brown strap. I was given this but I believe my friend purchased this from Sportsgirl.

I'm not terribly confident doing OOTD posts so please be nice!

NOTD - FOA Colour Pro Nail Enamel in Scream & Australis top coat in Speck-tacular

 

Sometimes you just need a break from the pastel polishes, and so when I was getting a little bored I found myself faced with black. Black!

 Let me just give you a bit of background information. Black nail polish terrifies me and is something that I have never tried in my life, and prior to the FOA Glitterati polishes, glitter was terribly scary too. To have combined the two and actually like the outcome is a big deal.

I tried so hard to capture the beauty of this Australis polish and I still don't think I did it justice. It is one of those polishes that I could stare at all day and I don't feel its 'wow factor' would ever wear off.

Having said all of that, I think perhaps my favourite part about these polishes was the ease at which I was able to remove them, considering they were a) black and b) glittery. I am so, so impressed. 

Using camera flash

Behind the Blog - YouReview

What? How could it be? Yes, for this Friday's Behind the Blog I am going to share a little about myself! Compared to many other bloggers I don't really share that much about myself so I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to do so while I am away and unable to organise one with another blogger.

I have really enjoyed getting the opportunity to interview other bloggers for this series, and as far as I am aware, many of you have enjoyed being able to find more out about some of the people behind the blogs you read regularly, as well as discovering new bloggers to follow. Hopefully you enjoy finding out a little more about me!

What is the significance of your blog name?
To be really honest with you, I don't know what possessed me to call my blog YouReview, especially because I never really even liked it from the beginning! I think I was just so excited to start up my blog that I rushed through the trickiest (and most important part) in an effort to start posting what I thought were wonderful posts but looking back were absolutely shocking! Oh how far I have come! Many times I have considered renaming my blog but now that it is quite established and has been linked on other blogs etc, I don't think it would be worth it.

Is beauty your only obsession?
Not at all, in fact it is almost a very secret obsession because few people realise I am so into makeup and beauty related things! I love science, though I don't think I know enough and dedicate enough time to it to call it an obsession, rather more of a strong interest...books! That's my other obsession, I love books.

What makes your blog different from others?
I think something that distinguishes this blog from others is my photographs - at least the fact that I take them outside among the greenery isn't something I have seen on too many other blogs. I was always very jealous of those who had fancy lighting set ups and incredible cameras (my camera cost $70 and is pretty rubbish!) who took stunning photos on white backgrounds. I could never achieve that so I decided to do a style of my own...photos outside. It's now become my 'thing' and I feel like I get better and better at it!

What is your dream career?
Early last year I did work experience for a week with 5 Speech Pathologists and since then I have completely latched on to the idea of becoming one. I have completed 3 work exp. placements with Speech Pathologists and am entirely sure that is what I want to do so I am really excited about eventually going to university to study that! For anyone who is at high school and thinking about work experience, I cannot recommend it enough!

Funnily enough, I really couldn't imagine working in the beauty industry because I am just so interested in health science/biological sciences. Beauty blogging is such an awesome hobby but something I don't consider as being a good career for me!

If you could feature on any TV show what would you pick?
The only TV shows that I watch are Big Bang Theory and an ABC series that isn't on at the moment called 'Call the Midwife.' I would totally feature on Big Bang Theory if I could!

What are your favourite books and movies?
As I mentioned, books are just about one of my favourite things in the world so it is ridiculously difficult to choose a favourite, but To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli and Looking for Alaska by John Green are probably in my top 10 however there are so many more I could ramble on about.
As for movies, I really don't get into them as much and cannot think of any that I absolutely love, though surely there must be a couple...

Though it was so strange being on this side of the Behind the Blog post, I really enjoyed it and hopefully you got to know me and my blog a little better!

If you would like to nominate a blogger to be featured, please don't hesitate to let me know by emailing me at candiceyoureview@yahoo.com

Australis Colour Inject Mineral Lipstick - Boogie Woogie

God I love lipsticks. Make that lip products. I love lip products of any kind, any shade. They're all wonderful. As my collection grows it seems as though my hunger for more is never subdued but over the past couple of months I have been quite disciplined, resisting potential purchases here there and everywhere. However...

It seems as though I have unofficially adopted this policy where I will only buy products that: a) are under $5 initially or b) have been reduced in a sale so that there is some kind of significant discount. I have always wanted to purchase the Australis lipstick in Honkey Tonk since seeing it on a couple of people's blogs but waited for it to go on sale (which never happened). In celebration of mother's day, Kmart were having crazy sales (see posts here and here) and I went to pick up some lipsticks for a measly $5 each! Unable to find the shade Honkey Tonk, I settled for Boogie Woogie, perhaps the most ridiculous cosmetic name I shall ever come across. I tell you, I was so close to picking up the Face of Australia lipstick in Peaches and Cream, but I resisted. I then googled swatches and feel as though I made the wrong choice, but I am very proud of my self control!

There were no testers in the shop so I was relying solely on my memory of blog swatches. When I got home I discovered that it was quite different to what I was expecting, which at first was a little disappointing but now seems to be a good thing.

Boogie Woogie is a vibrant medium to dark toned pink that looks almost hot pink in some lights. It isn't a 'my lips but better shade,' as it is too bright and attention grabbing for that, however it isn't too crazy and I believe could be worn in any situation under any circumstances. If I am really honest with you though, it is borderline an old lady kind of colour. Almost.

It is quite a pigmented lip colour and it is a fairly thick texture but it looks lovely and wears well, tending not to stick to dry patches like I have experienced in the past with other lipsticks.

The formula is good although it can be a little drying. It lasts a long time on the lips before wearing off however leaves a slight stain that lasts even after eating and drinking.

It has a very strong cosmetic type smell...not like the Face of Australia traditional lipstick smell, but a sweeter version. I can't decide whether I like it or not, but it really doesn't matter because you can't notice it when you are wearing it.

The packaging, in terms of being visually appealing, is okay. I wouldn't rave about it but the shiny black plastic with the pink writing and metallic pink band is hardly awful either. I don't like the look of the slanted lid (which reminds me of the Rimmel London Wake me up Foundation slanted lid) but it's really no big deal in the scheme of things. As is with all lipsticks, the sticker on the bottom telling you the shade is a very poor representation of the actual lipstick colour. And, as I mentioned, I absolutely despite the shade name...Boogie Woogie, what on Earth is that all about?!

I really like the formulation and nature of this lipstick, though I think I would have preferred an alternate shade (certainly Honky Tonk is still high up on my list).

I don't absolutely love this, I don't hate it either, I guess it is a decent, in the middle kind of lipstick that I will pick up when I don't know what else to wear.

I give this 7/10.

Palmer's Cocoa Body Butter Ultra Moisturising Cream

Palmer's iconic cocoa butter products are everywhere, yet naturally I have never tried any of them. Of course.

A friend of my recently passed this on to me to try out and I thought it was about time that I gave one of their products a shot!

Technically I have only ever tried one body butter, The Body Shop Strawberry Body Butter which I am in love with. It would take a lot for another body butter to impress me

This body butter comes in a 170g tub. I love the style of the packaging, and though it doesn't look terribly 'flashy' it's not ugly either. This claims to be made with natural cocoa butter, an 'ultra moisturising cream' and contains vitamin E. It says "the extra rich, moistursing formula melts into skin leaving it silky soft and smooth with an even, radiant tone. Perfect for dry to very dry skin."

Though the skin on my face is forever changing and cannot decide whether it wants to be dry or oily or somewhere in between, the skin on my legs is consistently dry, primarily due to neglect - I can never, ever be bothered to moisturise and look after my legs!

Since having acquired this product I have used it regularly to be able to write a decent review. I can say that it does do an excellent job locking in moisture, because my skin has been so smooth and moisturised of late.

I don't love this scent, in fact I would probably go as far to say that I don't like it. I don't really know how to describe it - there is an element of chocolate there - but it is kind of a little earthy and certainly not at all sweet. I'm not really a fan. Having said that, it is tolerable. My Mum and brother however, think it smells revolting. I would suggest discovering whether you like the scent or not before you buy this one because there is no guarantee.

When you apply this buttery yellow cream, the texture is very thick and takes a bit of effort to rub in however soaks into the skin quite quickly (more so than The Body Shop ones), though can feel a little sticky for the first two or so minutes. You only need a very small amount as a little goes a long way - I can tell that this product is going to last forever! I apply this before bed, both because I don't like the possibility of having slippery skin during the day as well as wanting to avoid the scent factor as much as possible.

I don't have a clue how much this costs but I wouldn't imagine it being more than about $15 dollars, considerably cheaper than The Body Shop's body butters.

I am pleased that I had the opportunity to try this out, and I certainly don't hate it or anything but it is nothing to rave about either. If you don't want to splash out on the gorgeous range of butters from The Body Shop then this is an excellent alternative in terms of formula and moisture, however the scent just isn't anything like my Strawberry favourite!

I give this 6 out of 10.

Behind the Blog - Reverie Belle

It's Friday, and of course time for another Behind the Blog. At this point in time there is a fair chance I am out building a brick house in rural Cambodia - crazy right?

But, never fear, I was super organised and managed to prepare a post with the lovely Karen from Reverie Belle Beauty Blog.

Karen's blog has the most beautiful, clear pictures that basically make me want every single product she posts about (whether she gives it a positive review or not!). I love her honest, detailed reviews - they are so helpful and enjoyable to read.

I asked Karen about her dream job, $250 winnings and being happy.

Why did you start blogging?
A friend of mine linked me her blog and after trawling through all her posts, I was inspired to start my own! I loved the thought of putting my own opinions in a blog post with people reading them too.

What is your dream career/job?
A dream job would be doing something where I can travel the world, have free food, be pampered and trial beauty and skincare products! Haha I wish. At the moment I am studying pharmacy which leads me to become a pharmacist.  I would love to work in a hospital setting, however I’m really keen to own my own café or something to do with hotel management! I am a person of many ambitions…

What is the best thing you have ever won?
The best thing I’ve ever won was a $250 Visa card! It was a nice surprise and I happily spent it all.

If you were to start your blog again, what would you do differently?
I would probably take more time to take better photos- I think the quality of photos in blogs are really the deal breaker for me! When I first started my blog, I really didn’t take much attention to how well my photos looked and if I could start it again, I would make sure they look amazing!

What are some things that never fail to make you happy?
Being with friends, enjoying good food (I love to eat!) and snuggling in bed with a cup of tea and a magazine to read.

Do you have any secret hobbies?
Secret hobbies… I like to collect labels and tags from nice clothes and accessories  I have bought, I don’t know why! They are just too pretty to throw away :P

Thank you Karen - I personally think your blog photos are brilliant!

If you would like to nominate a blogger to be featured, please don't hesitate to let me know by emailing me at candiceyoureview@yahoo.com.

NOTD - Face of Australia Pastels Polish in Easy Peasy Lemon Squeezy

I don't like yellow nail polishes. I only picked this FOA one in Easy Peasy Lemon Squeezy up because otherwise it would have been the only polish left on the shelf - and it was 75c. To be honest, I don't even know why I bothered trying it out on my nails but I'm glad I did because now I know that it could be worse. In fact, I think I even like this better than this awful shade I posted about here (which many of you told me you thought was gorgeous, so clearly my taste in polishes is absolutely crazy). Who would have thought?

As always when it comes to FOA polishes, the formula is smooth and easy to work with. The brush makes for easy application and though it is not a fast drying kind of formula, it's hardly slow either.

This shade required three coats to become opaque, fairly good in my opinion, especially as it is a pale yellow. I found that this shade changed colour according to the lighting - at times it was quite sickly and fluoescent but other times it was a creamy, pastel yellow (much like the yellow you would associate with baby colours).

Let me know what you think of this - I'm not really sure if I like it or not, but you seem to know what you are talking about so I will leave it up to you to decide!

Rimmel London Wake Me Up foundation - True Ivory

The Rimmel Wake me up foundation is one that I have heard bloggers and youtubers raving about for so long now, it almost seemed that I owned it because I heard about it so often. It never really occurred to me that perhaps I could make an effort to pick it up because I was content with my Garnier BB cream for super light coverage, and my Maybelline Superstay Foundation for super heavy coverage. But then I realised that was exactly the problem, I had nothing in between.

Sure, it sounds stupid considering I have so many tinted moisturisers and other bits and bobs here and there but I was really lacking in a staple, medium coverage foundation for everyday kind of wear.

The only problem was, being the stingy person that I am when I saw that it was approximately $20 I didn't want to pick it up. After all, people overseas were talking about getting it on sale for $6! Then Chemist Warehouse had a half price sale and I came home $10 short holding this little beauty in my hands.

My first major concern was that it was a little too dark for me. It is, but with expert blending and a little bronzer here and there I haven't had too many difficulties working with it. I do tan oh-so-slightly in the summer, so I expect this shade will be ideal. It does oxidise the tiniest bit so I think picking up a shade that is slightly too light would be the better choice.

The next thing I was worried about was the underlying shimmer that seemed to be a selling point for most people in regards to this foundation. I am definitely into shimmery highlighters and eyeshadow, but shimmery foundation...not so much. I do wish that there was a little bit less of it because it is noticeable, however it hasn't been enough to stop me wearing it on an everyday basis and no one has mentioned it yet, so I think I am safe to carry on using it. I also think (actually I am sure) that it contributes to the youthful, glowy finish that it gives off, and I am not about to give that up any time soon!

I am only 16 so I hardly need younger, glowing looking skin but it's certainly not as though when I apply it that I find it looks greasy and overkill. It is a medium level coverage but with the addition of concealer I am able to achieve a gorgeous flawless finish that is healthy and not too powdery, obvious looking. The amount of compliments I have had (some people thinking I wasn't wearing a scrap of makeup at all) is just brilliant - I am holding on to this product with two hands!

When I wear this I avoid any highlighters or illuminators because it makes it too sparkly and rather than looking healthly and glowing it crosses that line and appears greasy and shiny. My favourite way to apply this is with the Real Techniques Buffing Brush, but it also looks lovely just using your fingers.

In terms of the packaging, the bottle is a lot smaller than I ever imagined it being, at 30mL. It is a lovely glass bottle with raised text along one side and then a label printed on the front. I am not really in love with the orange colour theme, but I guess it could be worse. The bright orange cap on the top is a strange shape that I don't really like, embossed with the Rimmel logo, as is the case with most of their products.

I absolutely love the fact that it has a pump because it is so much less fiddly than my Maybelline foundation that I have to fiddle around with until I get the right amount out.

This foundation photographs fairly well, certainly when no flash is used but can look a little sparkly when flash photography is the only choice at night. For special occasions or nights out I wouldn't use this, preferring a matte, higher coverage choice instead.

I can definitely see why this foundation is so popular and why so many people use it because it does 'wake you up' and give you healthy, glowing skin.

I give this wonderful foundation 8/10.

L-R: Unblended, slightly blended