Cosmetic Cupcake

This post is sponsored by Nuffnang.

When I was in Hong Kong recently, there were promo posters everywhere for Taylor Swift’s upcoming Red album. I’ve always been a fan of her makeup looks – her skin is always glowing and she looks so polished and fresh faced. In this particular pic she’s rocking a cherry red lip, winged liner and paired it with a cute black and white retro top and I loved the look so much I had to recreate it as soon as I got home! She’s been sporting a similar look while out and about on her promo tour for the new album this month and I love seeing the pics as it gives me great beauty inspiration. Her flawless skin and red pout look fantastic and is a look that would suit everyone.


You too can get flawless red carpet ready skin at home with the Clearasil PerfectaWash which I’ve introduced to you previously. Celebrities may have their makeup artists to help them look picture perfect but makeup can only hide so much. It’s important to start off with good basics like cleansing and moisturising twice daily and making sure to remove all traces of makeup at the end of the night to help achieve a healthy and glowing complexion.


While trialling the Clearasil PerfectaWash I must say my skin has been behaving itself and I haven’t experienced as many breakouts as usual. I’ve been rocking the natural look as much as I can so I started off with a sheer base by using Make Up For Ever Face and Body foundation in 20. I skipped powder and just used MAC Select Moisture Cover concealer in NW20 to conceal my dark circles (lack of sleep!). Taylor only has a hint of colour on her cheeks as the lip colour is so strong so I contoured my cheeks using Estee Lauder Bronze Goddess and skipped the blush.


I applied a wash of Illamasqua Cream Pigment in Hollow and winged out my Face of Australia liquid liner for a small cat eye. On the lower lash line I smudged Make Up For Ever Aqua Eyes liner in black on the outer third of my eye and I finished with Dolly Wink Long mascara.

For my bright red lips I lined my lips using Shisheido The Makeup Lip Liner & Pencil in Red Rouge and applied Tom Ford Lip Color in Cherry Lush!


I have another Clearasil PerfectaWash Dispenser & Refill to give away to ONE luck reader! If you didn't win last time here's another chance to get your hands on one. All you have to do is answer the following question:

Have you tried the new Clearasil PerfectaWash, what were your thoughts?
Leave me a comment with your answer below for your chance to win! Easy! The competition is open to Australian residents only and ends at 5pm AEST on November 22nd 2012. The winner will be chosen by Nuffnang. See Terms & Conditions here.

GOOD LUCK!!

The winner of my last Clearasil PerfectaWash giveaway was Crepe and her prize is on it's way to her now!

Aaaaaaaaaaaand I'm back from my trip! I hope you've all been fab =D 2 weeks seriously is not enough time for a decent holiday, it just went by way too quickly! I spent time with my grandparents and also doing wedding stuff (got so much stuff ordered and organised!) which didn't leave too much time for shopping so my wallet is happy haha. I went over with a specific wishlist as I'm on a tight budget so my haul this time is far less than my usual ones! I have way too many products and I still need to get off my butt and do a blog sale! I bought quite a bit of clothing though this time and also shoes but I can't be bothered taking pics of those oops. Here's my haul!


Polishes!! 3 of the Essie Mirror Metallics, China Glaze Wicked collection and one from the Bohemian collection, innisfree glitters, Deborah Lippmanns, a Jessica and a peripera.


I met up with the lovely Jen as always and she very very kindly gave me a $50 Make Up For Ever voucher! I was only going to get one polish from the Black Tango collection but they were buy 2 get 1 free so of course I couldn't resist and ended up with the whole collection! I also picked up a Aqua Eyes Liner. They are the BEST liners!


Some nail art stuff of course! Fauxnad plates, nail art brushes, nail decals and stickers, fimo, palette and some cabochons.


Yes I indeed did lug home a 1L bottle of Zoya Remove lol. It was on sale and it's so hard to get here! The downfall to polishing my nails all the time is staining so I let myself get talked into getting the Cuccio Sicilian nail whitening paste. Here's hoping it works!


The shu uemura eyelash curler is my HG and I was tossing up between getting the gold or the mon shu girl curler and ended up going with mon shu girl. Karl Lagerfield rocks and I'm a sucker for a charm.


A few misc items! A refill for my Clinique powder, YSL glossy stain, MAC Select Moisturecover concealer, Kiehl's Cryste Marine eye cream and one of the new Clinique Chubby Stick shades.


I've heard so much stuff about the Bioderma I had to try it out. It's so much cheaper in HK!


Of course I got some face masks! I'm kind of obsessed with them lol. I actually bought 4 more boxes but had to leave them behind because my luggage was too heavy. The darn Zoya Remove!


Kracie poppin' cookin' is the bomb so I got a few more kits. If you haven't heard of them I HIGHLY recommend you check out RRcherrypie's blog and YouTube channel! You will be addicted!


My sister got an iphone 4S a while back and nicked some of the cases I got last time so I had to restock my supply haha. The MJ and Kate Spades I got for a bargain at Ladies Market so they're obviously not real xp


So that's my haul! I haven't done a haul post in a while because I've been on no buys. I hope you enjoyed my post!

Thanks for looking as always =)

This post is sponsored by Nuffnang and Clearasil.

It’s finally spring here in Australia! I LOVE this time of year as it means I can break out the pretty colours I put away for winter, dewy skin and enjoy a fresh-faced look. One of the biggest beauty trends this spring is the no-makeup look and a twist is the barely there makeup look as I prefer a bit of colour in Spring. To achieve this look it doesn’t actually mean one doesn’t wear makeup though! For me it’s about enhancing your features for a fresh faced look by working with colours that suit your skintone. We want to enhance rather than conceal our natural beauty! Because I’m quite fair I love using peach and pink tones and this look is often my go to for spring.


Great skin is always the perfect canvas to start any makeup look but especially for the barely there makeup look! It’s a huge confidence boost when you can leave the house wearing minimal makeup or having only used just a few products. The Clearasil PerfectaWash can help you put your best face forward every day without makeup with the Super Fruit Extract and Soothing Plant Extract formulas to help soothe and protect against blemishes for visibly clearer skin. Something I think all of us ladies covet! The Clearasil PerfectaWash dispenses just the right amount of cleanser using the unique automated face wash dispenser that delivers exactly 1.5mls of product each time.


The automated dosage system prevents drying out the skin using too much product and active ingredients can irritate the skin and cause further problems. My skin is still a little on the dry side from winter and the formulas contain Vitamin E and antioxidants which are known for their soothing properties so are gentle enough for daily use. They’re dermatologist tested and with the combination of pimple fighting and beneficial ingredients it’s perfect for all young adult skin types to help attain clear skin.



I love a dewy finish in spring so I used the Clinique Even Better Foundation in 01 for a slightly heavier coverage than I would normally use as I find can get away with not having to use concealer when my skin is behaving well. It evens out my skintone and covers any blemishes or acne scarring well. I set it with Face of Australia Translucent Powder and I lightly swept MAC powder blush in Hipness on the apples of my cheeks for a just pinched look. I couldn’t resist a bit of highlighter so I used Benefit Watts Up highlighter on my cheekbones!

For the eyes, I primed my lids using Too Faced Shadow Insurance and applied a very soft wash of pink using MAC eyeshadow in Ego and highlighted my brow bone using MAC eyeshadow in Shroom. I used a teeny bit of the dark brown shade from the Stila eyeshadow trio in gold glow in my outer corner and added Illamasqua Powder eye shadow in Synth to the centre of my lid. I lined my eyes lightly using Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-On Shadow Pencil in Juju and 2 coats of Dolly Wink Volume mascara and one coat of Clinique Bottom Lash mascara in black.


For the lips I used Chanel Rouge Coco Shine in Flirt for a sheer peach lip. I prefer using these lipstick-balm hybrids in the warmer months for a more natural look.


Fancy trying out the Clearasil PerfectaWash yourself? I'm giving away a Clearasil PerfectaWash Automatic Facewash Dispenser & Refill to ONE lucky reader! All you have to do is answer the following question:

Have you tried the new Clearasil PerfectaWash, what were your thoughts?
Leave me a comment with your answer below for your chance to win! The competition is open to Australian residents only and ends at 5pm AEST on October 28th 2012. The winner will be chosen by Nuffnang. See Terms & Conditions here.

Good luck!

Clinique debuted the latest addition to their Long Last Lipstick collection during New York Fashion Week this year. The bright coral shade Runway Coral was inspired by the makeup look created for Karen Walker's Spring/Summer 2012 runway show by Clinique's Global Colour Artist Jenna Menard and has been been turned into an online exclusive shade.


What they say:

"Direct from Fashion Week in NYC! Get the look - and the vibrant coral lip colour - created by Jenna Menard, for Karen Walker's Spring/Summer 2012 runway show. Here for a limited time - and just in time for Autumn too.

“Karen wanted the models to look youthful and feminine with a sophisticated twist,” explains Jenna Menard. “So I kept the eye very simple, the cheeks healthy and then went for a strong, vibrant lip. I chose bright coral because it’s less expected than red, and I went to the Clinique lab to create exactly the right shade. It worked with Karen's entire collection as well as all the model's skin tones.”

Hi ladies! I'm finally back after my long absence. I've been back home now for a few days but I've been so rundown I haven't felt like doing much at all let alone come home and blog after work. Plus I got food poisoning a few days ago argh! So annoying! Anyway, here is my haul post for you all which is much requested every time I go to Hong Kong =) I didn't have a lot of time to shop this trip but I actually came home with nearly the same amount of stuff as I usually do or more even *shakes head* I work better under pressure what can I say! Looking at my previous HK haul posts they all sort of look similar.. I always tend to stock up on the same brands and things haha.

WARNING: This post is INSANELY pic heavy! I was going to split it into 2 posts but I couldn't be bothered xp I'm making up for not blogging for so long I guess!


I'm not responsible for creating any lemmings!


My nail polish haul for this trip. Not a lot because I have a crazy amount of untrieds! I limited myself to picking up some lemmings which included Color Club Where's the Soiree, OPI Alpine Snow (I needed a new bottle), 3 of the Essie Luxeffects and Zoya Roxy. The BK holos are getting discontinued so I stocked up on a few colours to include in swaps. Also a Lajour duochrome recommended to me by my fellow polish and food lover Abby. Thanks for the tip Abby! Also two magnetic polishes from a random brand I came across too.


These Canmake polishes deserve a pic on their own! These are their new Nail Topping Coat polishes to create easy ice-cream nail art. They also released a chocolate coloured polish (pictured on the left) with some adorable pastels to help create the look. I was itching to get the pastels too but had to show restraint every time I walked past a Canmake counter since I have dupes at home =( I am SUPER excited to try these out!

I was offered the opportunity to review false eyelashes by Maggie from online store KKcenterHK recently. KKcenterHK is an online store based in Hong Kong that sells makeup, wigs, nail items, false eyelashes and other assorted items. Maggie kindly allowed me to choose which false eyelashes I wanted so I chose ES A26 after much deliberation and here is my experience with them. I've mentioned this before but I must warn you that I’m a noob when it comes to applying falsies but I’m slowly getting more practise so please excuse the beginner application!


The lashes arrived in about 10 working days and were packed in a padded envelope. You get 10 pairs of lashes per box which is great!


ES A26 are black natural criss cross lashes and are priced at $2.80US per box which equates to only $0.28US per pair! What a steal. After seeing them in real life, they are a little more dramatic than what I was hoping for but these would be fantastic for a night out. They are very long and luxurious looking!


Below is a pic of my naked eye - ie. lashes not curled, no eyeshadow, no mascara and no eyeliner. Clearly I was not blessed with long, luscious eyelashes but at least I have some haha. They look super light in this pic but in real life my eyelashes are quite black.


Here's my eye lined with heroine make smooth liquid eyeliner in black, NYX eyeshadow, lashes curled and a coat of MAC Dazzlelash:


The lashes were too long so I trimmed the ends and then applied them using Duo Eyelash adhesive in clear-white. Below are pics with them applied. I didn't realise until after I took them off that I hadn't blended my natural and false eyelashes together very well so please excuse that. I really should leave makeup application to the experts and just do nails xD


Whoa just look at the HUGE difference! I love the look of these on me and they really opened my eyes up giving me a dolly look. I will definitely be rocking these on a Friday night out! The band on these are a little stiff compared to others I have but they still felt very comfortable on. They are also not the most natural looking lashes but for lashes this length it's pretty obvious they aren't natural lashes. Plus for the price they retail for one can't complain at all!!

You can really see my natural lashes in this pic. FAIL xp


Will I repurchase: As I only wear falsies when I go out, this box will last me for a while so I probably won't need to repurchase this particular style. I will however definitely consider purchasing other styles! I'm looking for some natural looking falsies that are budget friendly and KKCenterhk is definitely the place to go. You can purchase your own eyelashes from their site here.

A big thank you to Maggie from KKCenterhk for providing me with this product! I was sent the above product to sample but this in no way influenced my review in any way. As always, my reviews are my 100% honest opinion.

Do you enjoy wearing false eyelashes? What brand/type are your favourite?

Thanks for looking!

Greetings from HK ladies! Hope you're all well =) I wasn't expecting to be able to blog so soon but I've been kept inside most of the day because of my darned sickness. My nose is running like a tap and I'm coughing like mad so I played it safe today. I'm a terrible flyer (air sickness plus a mild fear of flying) so the 9hour flight didn't help make me feel any better. Lets just say I could not WAIT to land!

It's been wonderful seeing my family, even though I have to keep my distance so I don't infect them all haha. It's extra nice this year too because I came with my mum and sis too who haven't been to HK for 2 years AND the boy will be joining us later. Normally we go at different times - I go with the boy at the start of the year and mum and sis at the end of the year so it's nice to be all together even though it can be annoying too hehe. A year goes by so quickly in some ways yet so slowly in others. It's been a year since I last saw my beloved grandparents yet it felt like only yesterday I was having yumcha with them!

Even though I didn't go out today except to the local shopping centre for some snacks, I still have a mini haul to show you courtesy of my awesome aunty. My aunty is one of the best shoppers and she is always happy to hunt down limited edition stuff for me during the year. I only asked for 2 things and I got them today! Word of warning for posts while I'm in HK - my pics will be of substandard quality because I don't have proper lighting or photoshop for my pics.


As soon as I saw the press release for the Jill Stuart Sweet Bride Collection I was head over heels in love. I knew I HAD to get my hands on the Double Ring nail collection Diamond and Pearl - it is simply too beautiful for words! I really wanted the mirror too but it was completely sold out by the time my aunty got to the store which was only something like 5 hours after it was released! Insane I tell you.


My crappy pics don't do it justice - it is sooooo pretty! I am so happy to have this set =) It's so sweet and feminine and I can so see myself using these if/when I get married! The set includes 2 beautiful lacquers and 3D nail stickers contained in a ring pillow pouch. It's so nice I don't want to use it =p


MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in Stereo Rose - my 1st one yay! I think at the time this was released in Aus I had assessments so I didn't have a chance to check out Myer. Can't wait to try it out!


I normally go to HK during Chinese New Year but I didn't get to this year unfortunately. And it just happened to be my year too - Year of the Tiger!! Argh. I love everything about New Year in HK - the festivities, the food, the atmosphere and of course the red packets! One of the highlights is going to the Lunar New Year Fair at Victoria Park to browse and purchase the plushies and knick knacks. My cousin kindly bought these 2 cute tiger plushies for me early in the year!


My grandparents cooked dinner tonight and we had some of my favourite foods which included seafood, veges and quail eggs! I love it when my grandpa cooks =)


One of my uncles then stopped by with some yummy desserts. Sydney desperately needs an awesome dessert place - dessert places in HK are like no other! We have Meet Fresh but we need MORE! I couldn't have anything cold (darn being sick!) so I had glutinous rice balls with black sesame while my sis had strawberry shaved ice dessert with dragon fruit. Mmmmmmm!


Thanks for looking ladies!