Review: OPI Silver Shatter

^Above Photo: This is after 4 days of wear.

I've been curious about OPI Shatter polishes for a while & when I saw them on Catch Of The Day for a great price I decided to give them a go. I purchased Red, Silver & White.

Silver is definitely my favourite of the 3 as it seems to work the best for me.

How to use it?

At first I had problems getting this polish to shatter properly however I realised I wasn't giving the base coats enough time to dry, once I did that it worked well & I'm getting better every time I use it.

What does it look like?

The Silver Shatter has a beautiful glittery silver sparkle to it which looks better with a clear topcoat. It's really eye-catching & definitely gets noticed! When I first put it on it seemed to look like lumps of glitter, but I was using too much. The trick is to use a thin coat all over the nail.

I've tried it over a number of colours, but I find the best colour is an opaque black. A dark navy or purple would probably work just as well.

In the picture to the right I have:

2 x coats of Ulta3's Midnight (Black)
1 x thin coat of OPI's Silver Shatter
4 x coats (1 per day) of Ulta3's clear Non Chip Clear polish.

Verdict

I can't help looking at this nail polish, especially in the sun. It's amazing. I also get a LOT of compliments wherever I go. I will continue to use Silver Shatter & definitely recommend it!

Review: LUSH Porridge Soap

Porridge soap is a strange animal. I purchased it about 3 months ago & we've had an interesting relationship ever since!

Since purchasing my first LUSH soap (Vanilla In The Mist - I haven't reviewed this yet) I've been trying out a few different LUSH soaps & realised that I hadn't even smelt this one. Let me tell you, it was love at first sniff!

I asked the SA to cut me a great big chunk. I couldn't stop smelling the new package during my shopping trip!

Here's what LUSH says about Porridge soap.

"Start the day the Goldilocks way with a helping or three of porridge oats. Ideal for sensitive skin; irresistible to everyone else. Oats are soothing for the skin and will gently exfoliate, while orange juice is refreshing and naturally toning. Rise and shine with some delicious porridge."

How does it look & smell?

Porridge looks quite nondescript, maybe a little boring. Basically it's a light beige soap with little brown spots all through it which are pieces of pinhead oatmeal. The smell of this soap is amazing - mostly - let me explain that shortly.

The first sniff is intoxicating. The best way for me to describe it is a vanilla caramel concoction, dripping with maple syrup & treacle. None of these scents are actually in Porridge, one of the main ingredients is Orange juice!

Using Porridge

Porridge has a very soft feel & lathers well. Yes, it does contain SLS, which is why. It is also very moisturising - it contains coconut oil. Each use of this soap leaves my skin feeling soft & luxurious.

The pinhead oatmeal pieces help exfoliate skin quite well. I've read reviews about the oatmeal pieces being so hard that they've scratched peoples skin. That hasn't happened to me.

Speaking of the Oatmeal.... one thing that I have found is that after each use is I end up between 10 to 20 pieces or more at the bottom of the bathtub. They look like little bugs. :) This may be an issue to those who have drains that clog easily, therefore you may want to use a plug that captures them.

How to make Porridge last a little bit longer.

Porridge is quite soft & I find that it starts to melt when you touch it. For the same reason, you go through it a lot quicker than other soaps. I was shocked at the amount of "shrinkage" this soap has upon each use. I did a little research & found that people suggest you "cure" the soap to make it last longer. I had (luckily) already my large piece into smaller pieces & keep them in a plastic container. I took out a new piece & put it on top of the container to sit in the air for a few weeks. The longer the piece was out, the harder it became. The piece that I "cured" lasted a bit longer than the uncured peices, melting & shrinking a tiny bit less.

I also make sure I don't wet Porridge, instead I use it on already wet skin. After use, put this soap on a draining rack if you can. Sitting it in water will allow it to continue to melt. You will also get an oozing trail of brown goo coming out of the soap.

The Dr Jekyll & Mr Hyde of Soap

Now, the strange thing is that whilst using Porridge, I found that the scent changed after a few uses. I was enjoying the intoxicating sweet scent when it suddenly turned into wet burnt toast. The smell wasn't very nice at all & I instantly regretted buying it. I put it on a rack to dry. The next time I went into the bathroom I smelt the soap again expecting the wet burnt toast smell, but it was back to the sweet maple syrup smell. How odd! I've smelt the "change" in scent a few more times after using Porridge but it's inconsistent. It doesn't happen every time I use it, just every now and again - so it's not enough to turn me off. Isn't that strange?

What are the Ingredients

Water (Aqua), Rapeseed Oil; Coconut Oil (Brassica napus; Cocos nucifera), Propylene Glycol, Pinhead Oatmeal (Avena sativa), Fresh Organic Orange Juice (Citrus Aurantium dulcis), Titanium Dioxide, Sodium Hydroxide, Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Perfume, Labdanum Resinoid (Cistus labdaniferus), Sweet Wild Orange Oil (Citrus sinensis), Glycerine, Sodium Chloride, EDTA, Tetrasodium Etidronate, *Limonene

Conclusion

I really enjoy using Porridge & will most probably repurchase it when my current piece(s) run out. This will be quite a while since I have a few soaps on rotation. I heard on the grapevine that LUSH may be discontinuing Porridge so it's possible by the time I get through it, it will be gone anyway..

I recommend Porridge if you have dry & especially flakey skin. If you like sweet smells you will love using it - but keep in mind a possible change of scent (described above).

My rating: 7 out of 10

Summary:

Pros: Beautiful scent (mostly), Lathers well, exfoliates well.
Cons: Messy (Oatmeal pieces, it also oozes goo), melts easily, is used up quickly, the scent can change.

GWP: MOR Cosmetics @ Myer

Saw this little GWP & thought that someone might enjoy it! :-)

Spend $39.95 on the MOR Range at Myer & receive the following bonus products (valued at $72.80) with your purchase;

• Marshmallow Tote Bag
• Perfume Oil 9ml
• Hand Cream 50ml &
• Soapette 60g

Offer ends Sunday 25 September 2011

Review: NYX Jumbo Eye Pencils

I've been using the NYX Jumbo Pencils for a few months now, after seeing a few raves on YouTube. I was intrigued on how they can be used as a base to help your eyeshadows look better.

I purchased Milk (White) & Black Bean (Black) as I felt that these colours would be the most usable.

How I use NYX Jumbo Pencils as a base

I saw some demos on YouTube where the Jumbo Pencils are "drawn" on to make a solid colour. I tried this, and noticed that eyeshadow colours look even better layered on top of the solid Jumbo pencil colour, however the thicker you put these on your lids, the more prone it is to crease as it's like a thick waxy layer. Not a good look in the middle of the day! It works much better as a thin layer.

After trial & error I've found that the best way to use these is over a primer, I use Too Faced Shadow Insurance (TFSI). I dot the pencil lightly all over the lid (like leopard spots) then use my ring finger to gently blend the dots together.

I usually use Milk as a base for brighter colours (greens, oranges, light browns, golds etc) which helps make them true to colour (as they are in the pan). I use Black Bean as a base for dark colours, for the same reason.

I also use Milk as is a base for my highlight just under my brow too, which works well.

I haven't used the Jumbo pencils as an eyeliner so I can't comment on that.

I have noticed depotting tutorials on YouTube as well, which I will look at doing as this will save product, rather than using a pencil sharpener & lose some of the colour in shavings.

Cost

I purchased the NYX Jumbo Eye Pencils for $5.95AU each. Much cheaper than using a gel eyeliner as a base (which is what I was originally looking at).

Verdict

I'm finding myself using these pencils more often now that they've become a staple to my daily makeup routine. They DO make eyeshadows look more vibrant & are easy to use when you get the hang of them. I use Milk more often than Black Bean, but only because I usually only wear lighter colours to work.

These pencils are hard to find in retail stores in Australia (apparently they are around but I've never seen them for sale) however are easily obtained online. Depotting these pencils may be tricky. I watched a few videos showing how to do it in a microwave but I've been putting it off. I think it's inevitable though as I know they will last a lot longer this way. I will write another post when I eventually get around to it!

My rating: 7.5 out of 10

Summary:
Pros: Cheap, easy to use, easy to store.
Cons: Using too much can crease on eyelids, hard to find in stores in Australia (but easy to find online)



Review: American Cream Conditioner by LUSH Cosmetics

A few months ago I purchased a small bottle of American Cream unsniffed on a whim (as you do!) as it was recommended to me. It contains Vanilla Absolute, my favourite scent!

This is what LUSH says about American Cream:-

"Double-strength conditioning cocktail. American Cream was inspired by a vision of 1950s US milk bars, bright red-leather-and-chrome, neon-lit cafes, where teenagers would meet and drink frothy, fruity milkshakes. Our creamy conditioner is what the girls would have used to make their hair soft before going out on a date, dressed up in their bobby socks and circular skirts. The scent of honey, vanilla, strawberries and oranges is so sexy and sweet that dates can’t stay away."

What does it smell like?

It's gorgeous! :-)

I found the scent a little strange at first, probably as I was expecting it to be mostly vanilla with a bit of strawberry mixed in. I hadn't really taken much notice of the advertising copy. All I heard was "VANILLA", which I am obsessed with. I woke up from my vanilla dream & read the description, the scent made more sense. Yes, you smell vanilla, but you also get a hint of strawberry, honey & a lot of orange. There's also another twist in the scent, which I'm guessing is the Lavender.

American Cream is very aromatic & one of the best smelling conditioners I've ever used. My favourite thing about it, is that the scent remains in the hair when it dries, & lasts until I wash my hair again! I love the whiffs of fragrance I smell during the day.

How does it perform?

To be honest, I was expecting a lot more from this conditioner considering that it's meant to be double strength. Don't get me wrong, it works well, but I find that I have to use a big blob of it to get the softness I want in my hair.

Considering the price (see below) I don't want to use too much each time. The bottle would be finished in no time! So what I do is, make sure I use a gentle shampoo - I usually pair it with LUSH's Curly Wurly which is quite conditioning on its own - & smooth on a small blob of American Cream just for the scent.

The bottle is similar to LUSH's other bottles, and one good thing is that it's clear so you can actually see how much you have left. I find that some of their bottles are black plastic which makes it hard to guess how much is left.

Cost

American Cream is quite pricey & costs more than drugstore conditioners. The best value size is the bigger bottle (500g). The prices are as follows:

100g $13.95
250g $23.50
500g $33.95

SLS in a Conditioner????

One thing that confused me is the addition of SLS. I know that this ingredient is in some shampoos (and others advertise the fact that they are SLS free) however I didn't realise that it was used in Conditioners too! I immediately looked at all my other conditioners - none of them had SLS. From my limited knowledge about chemicals, what I understand about this ingredient, it allows a shampoo to to sud/foam up. But why is it in a conditioner? If anyone can shed light on that, please let me know!

Verdict:

I do enjoy using American Cream but don't class it as a necessary product. As a conditioner, it doesn't perform better than any basic conditioners. The one thing I really love about American Cream is the scent, especially as it lasts until you wash your hair again. So I guess I'm using it as hair perfume. If the scent disappeared after washing, I wouldn't have even considered a re-purchase.

If you fall in love with the scent, it's more economical to purchase the big bottle. The small bottle is tiny & almost half the price of the biggest one.

I have to say, I'm not sure if I will repurchase American Cream when I run out of my 500g bottle, but I expect it to last a long time due to the fact that I just smooth a small amount on simply for the scent.

Pros & Cons Summary:

Pros: Scent, Clear bottle & simple packaging
Cons: Cost, Only a "double" conditioner if you use a lot, contains SLS?

My Rating: 7 out of 10 (all points for the scent)

Ingredients:

Honey Water (Aqua), Vanilla Pod Infusion (Vanilla planifolia), Propylene Glycol (Propylene Glycol), Fresh Organic Oranges (Citrus aurantium dulcis), Cetearyl Alcohol & Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (Cetearyl Alcohol & Sodium Lauryl Sulfate), Fresh Strawberries (Fragaria vesca), Perfume (Perfume), Lanolin (Lanolin), Cetrimonium Bromide (Cetrimonium Bromide), Cetearyl Alcohol (Cetearyl Alcohol), Vanilla Absolute (Vanilla planifolia), Clary Sage Oil (Salvia sclarea), Lavender Oil (Lavandula angustifolia), Benzoin Resinoid (Styrax tonkinensis pierre), Linalool (Linalool), Coumarin (Coumarin)

Review: LUSH Snow Fairy Shower Gel (& First Online Order)

After hearing so much about Snow Fairy Shower Gel, I decided to try a small bottle.

When the Lush Xmas In July Sale was originally on, Snow Fairy sold out the very same day, so I missed out. :(

A few days later however, Lush Australasia tweeted that they had more stock in. I had a free shipping code given to me when my local Lush closed down so I decided to take advantage of it & created an online order.

First Impressions of Lush Mail Order

Ordering was a little frustrating as I accidently typed in the wrong expiry date for my credit card. Instead of letting me go back & correct it, I had to start a new order all over again.

My products were delivered in 4 days, which is longer than what I'm used to, considering Lush are in Sydney too.

Snow Fairy Shower Gel

This is what Lush say about Snow Fairy:

Sparkly, candy floss pink, sweet-as-sugar shower gel for fruity, fluffy fairies. Only visiting for Christmas ! Lather all over your body (and your hair when you're in a hurry)

Snow Fairy is known as a seasonal/limited edition product, only sold during the Christmas period (November/December) & it seems, Xmas In July. This is fantastic marketing as it's very much in demand. I often see people mention online that they always "stock up" on many bottles to last until it's sold again.

If people are clambering over each other to get their hands on the "Fairy" it has to be good right??????

How Does It Smell?

I was already familiar with the Snow Fairy scent as I have the Snow Fairy Lip Tint. The Lip Tint has a lovely strong scent which appeals to my sweet tooth as it's very similar to Red Frog lollies.

The Snow Fairy Shower Gel is similar, especially when you "sniff" it from the bottle, however when you actually use it, it also has a strange chemical note which reminds me of paint. This surprised me as I haven't noticed any strange scents in their other products. I tried shaking it up to mix the product in case it had settled, to no avail.

Looking at the ingredients, it doesn't have any of the essential oils that some Lush products have, not even vanilla - it's just perfume & chemicals. No wonder it smells artificial. Considering the lack of expensive ingredients, Snow Fairy should be cheap to make, but Lush charges a lot for it anyway.

How Does It Clean?

It seems to clean & lather fine - just like drug store shower gels containing perfume & glycerine, nothing special. My skin doesn't seem to be any softer than drug store shower gels.

How Does It Look?

Snow Fairy is a nice shade of pink, but the only thing I really like about this gel is the pretty purple glitter. Unfortunately it doesn't seem to stay on your skin. This could be a good thing for some people, but being the one redeeming feature of Snow Fairy, I hoped that the glitter would stick around. It doesn't. :( It also settles at bottom of the bottle. To send the glitter back through the bottle, you have to store Snow Fairy upside down.

Verdict

The strange chemical note is a huge disappointment to me, as without that I would probably really enjoy using this gel, chemicals or not.

I will probably use the bottle up, as it wasn't cheap, but I won't be purchasing Snow Fairy Shower Gel again. Not even for the purple glitter. I will stick to my I Love... Raspberry & Blackberry or Strawberries & Milkshake Bubble Bath & Shower Gel which actually have virtually the same ingredients however are much cheaper, & smell so much better.

If you're reading about the Snow Fairy hype & want to try it, I would suggest going to a store at Christmas time to get a sample just in case you don't end up liking it.

My rating: 2 out of 10

David Jones Beauty Heritage Tote Deluxe Sampler

I was browsing David Jones yesterday & saw a new I Love... Cosmetics bubble bath in Lemons & Lime. I immediately took it over to the register as I love this brand (can't wait to use it!).

At the register the SA told me about their Deluxe Sampler for $19.95. I looked at what was in it & grabbed it right away. It has some really good things in it, a few which I had looked at in the past & thought about trying, but haven't gotten around to. It's a great opportunity to try new products PLUS the tote bag is very cute, big & zips up too - it will come in handy.

Hopefully you might be wanting to try some of these products, or wanting to stock up. If so, this is a great haul at a good price.

There seemed to be different coloured OPI nail polish (I got a beautiful, dark sparkly plum colour - but there were also other colours), as well as a choice between 4 products (see the blue writing below) so have a look at a few bags if you have a selection.

Here's some info:

DAVID JONES BEAUTY

HERITAGE TOTE DELUXE SAMPLER
$19.95 with any beauty purchase*

VALUED AT OVER $125
Contains 5 full size and 5 travel size beauty products.

Contents include:

David Jones Beauty Moisture Cream Lipstick SPF 15.4g
Aveda Dry Remidy Hair Care Trio 3 x 10ml
The Aromatherapy Co. Hand and Body Lotion 200ml
OPI Nail Lacquer 3.75ml
Nude By Nature Nude Oil 25ml
Burts Bees Honey Lip Balm 8.5g
Revlon Age Defying with DNA Advantage 10ml
Natio Mineral Pressed Powder 12g

Plus the following:

Gorgeous Cosmetics Lip Liner 1.15g & Crabtree & Evelyn Iris Hand Therapy 25ml

OR

Bloom Mini Lip Gloss & Al'chemy A'kin Leave In Conditioner 150ml

*Offer available on full-priced beauty including make-up, skincare, haircare, bath & body products and beauty accessories. While stocks last, one Haritage Tote per customer. Samples in Heritage Tote will vary.