RamblingRose

I wanted to like OPI but after using it a couple of times once it had dried it left tiny bubbles and holes on the nail polish on my nail where other brands dont do that

Intrigued by the concept of "just add water" to adhere lashes. I've tried most other types of lashes: standard glue, magnetic, adhesive eyeliner. Was interested to see how these compared.

Gorgeous style. Taking the lashes out of the pack, they were quite stiff. The lashes are pre glued. The instructions say to dip in water. I tried dipping my finger in water and running it across the lash band. This wasn't enough. I dipped the lash band in water and got the root of the lashes wet also.

Admittedly, instructions said to wait 1 min and I probably waited a bit less than that and tried to apply the lash. Very stingy in my eyes! I think it's cause the water/glue mixture ran right into my eyes. It wouldn't stay on much to my frustration.

After trying twice more, I still couldn't get them to adhere, or for a long duration; I gave up and used adhesive eyeliner. Did somewhat manage to get the other lash adhered with water. One for each eye to compare.

The water one lasted 4 hours before I had to remove and reapply. It wouldn't stay on. Says it is for 3 applications but I couldn't get a full one use.

This is just my experience with it, but it's not for me. I'm glad i can still get use out of the lashes using adhesive eyeliner but no more water use. It's not something I'd purchase but would still recommend if your looking for an alternative lash option. It may work out better for you and if not, lashes can still be used with a glue option.

After hearing so many you tubers go on about how amazing this foundation was I finally gave in and purchased a tube myself. Note the one the you tubers rave on is not the same formulation as the one you can purchase here and I think the overseas formulation might be a bit better than this.

I wanted to try as it claims to last for 24 hours and is matte.

It comes in a nice little tube with a small nozzle which is good, as it means you don't squeeze it and a heap of product oozes out!

It's quite easy to see how much is left in the tube as most of the tube is transparent.

Price wise, it's not too bad, especially compared to double wear which some say this can be a dupe for.

I choose shade 20 Sand which was a pretty good match for me over winter, not so much for summer.

The best way I found to apply it was with a brush or beauty blender - both were equally as easy to apply and seemed to produce the same result.

The formulation is fairly liquid but not too liquid, which I like.

For my oily skin it wasn't too bad but I won't purchase again as it definitely does not last 24 hours - I think it could claim to last around 7-8 hours. By the end of the work day I can start to notice it sliding around my face big time. It came off my nose and chin the quickest as those are the places I seem to touch the most. It improves if you set it, but I feel with a matte foundation you shouldn't have to set it.

Coverage wise, huge fail - this is not a heavy coverage foundation as stated on the tube. It's medium at best!

All in all it's not bad, but for me, it's not good enough to repurchase.

I selected Essie Gel Couture in “Spiked With Style” (#360) for this trial. The polish is bottled in a clear twisted Essie branded glass bottle, so that the colour of the deep red polish is visible through the glass, while the top coat is in an opaque white twisted bottle.

There is no base coat with this gel couture system. It’s designed to be used as a two-step process; two coasts of colour followed by one coat of ‘platinum grade finish’ top coat.

To start, I filed and shaped my nails, pushed back the cuticles, gave them a light buff and then cleansed them well with nail polish remover to remove any natural nail oils before applying the first coat of polish.

The wide, flat, round ended brush mirrors the cuticle area perfectly, making it really easy to get a perfect coat in just 4 swipes of the brush; one down the middle, one down each side, and then one across the tip to cap the free edge. By the time I’d painted my second hand, the thin layer of polish on the first hand was dry and ready for a second coat.

Something I did notice is that this polish has quite a cold feel on the nails with each layer, including the top coat. Any accidental messes on the skin are easily cleaned up with a bit of nail polish remover on a cotton bud.

I did wait 10 minutes between applying the second coat and the top coat, as I wanted to be sure that the colour was dry. The top coat has a really nice thin consistency that applies really well. It’s better than any other traditional lacquer top coat that I’ve used the the past. It doesn’t smudge the colour coats below (like some top coats do), and has a very smooth looking and vibrant high-shine.

Silly me dinged one of my thumbs before the top coat was dry, and smudged the colour underneath, but it was easily fixed by rubbing a finger dipped in a tiny bit of nail polish remover lightly over the dented polish to smooth it out, and then simply reapplying a coat of top coat after the initial application had dried fully.

Lipodol Cleansing Face Oil is manufactured in South Africa and distributed by Union Swiss (the makers of Bio-Oil) to New Zealand. Union Swiss have launched six skincare oils under the brand name "Lipidol" to bring oils into the daily skincare routine and help the skin to retain moisture.

Lipidol Cleansing Face Oil effectively removes dirt, impurities and make-up without completely stripping the skin's mantle (the natural oily layer needed to protect and moisturiser your skin).

The cleansing oil is a beautiful turquoise colour with no artificial smell or scent and is packaged in a clear plastic, 125ml bottle with a screw top white lid which is sealed in a plastic wrapper. The bottle is is the perfect size to store in the bathroom or in a travel bag.

After being really disappointed with a different brand's Cleansing Balm, I thought I'd try a cleansing oil instead and Lipidol was really affordable.

I have used this oil over the bathroom basin, as well as in the shower. It's easy to use and needs to be applied to a dry face. Pour some of the oil into the palm of your hand, rub hands together and massage the oil over your dry face and eye make-up to bind any dirt, impurities and make-up with the oil.

I usually use about a teaspoonful on a full face of make-up (half a teaspoon for light make-up) and I do lightly massage it around my eyes and over my eyelids and eyelashes, using really light pressure and the pads of my ring fingertips to remove eyeliner and mascara. Add a little warm water and continue massaging, the oil will emulsify into a watery, creamy solution that can easily be rinsed off with warm water and it leaves absolutely no oily residue. As it emulsifies completely, it doesn't leave eyes feeling blurry or filmy like other oil cleansing methods might.

I will definitely repurchase this product and highly recommend it.

A full sized 25ml tube of Natural Instinct Dark Circle & Wrinkle Correction Eye Cream was in a BBBE Box that I bought. This eye cream promises to intensively hydrate, reduce puffiness and smooth fine lines, while banishing dark circles and lifting the eye area. It contains Troxerutin, a powerful plant derived anti-inflammatory active ingredient to help reduce the appearance of dark circles and puffiness, while promoting cell renewal; Saccharide Isomerate, to provide intense hydration and strengthen skin; Coffee Seed Oil to reduce puffiness and promote firmer looking skin; and Aloe Vera to soothe and nurture the delicate eye area.

This eye cream can be used morning and night (after cleansing), by gently dabbing the cream on around the eye area with the ring fingers. Ring fingers are always used to apply eye cream, as they exert the least amount of pressure and don't tug at the delicate skin.

So far, this eye cream is one of my favorites. It works really well, and is also free from petrochemicals, mineral oils, sulphates, silicones, parabens, animal derivatives, and artificial fragrances and colours, just to name a few. It is vegan friendly, and not tested on animals.

There is only one thing that I don't really like about Natural Instinct Dark Circle & Wrinkle Correction Eye Cream, and that is the size of the tube. 25ml is a rather large tube for an eye cream, and having an expiry date of 12 months after opening, I doubt that I'm going to finish the entire tube before it's due to be replaced. I would much prefer a 10ml or 15ml tube that I can simply replace when I run out, rather than having a large tube of wasted, expired product that I probably will have to throw away.

Other than that, Natural Instinct Dark Circle & Wrinkle Correction Eye Cream is lovely. It does hydrate and moisturize the delicate skin around my eyes, it is easily absorbed, it does help reduce puffiness and dark circles that I get from bad hayfever, and it does help to smooth out and reduce the appearance of fine lines. I'll definitely be repurchasing this eye cream in the future, and would recommend it.

I'd been looking for a purple or violet mascara for a long time, and after trying Almay's "Black Plum" which was disappointing, I found NYX Colour Mascara in Purple.

The colour was exactly what I was looking for - a bright, vibrant purple. I have quite dark eyelashes, so I had to layer quite a few coats to get the colour to show, and it didn't add any length or volume to my lashes. It has a standard mascara wand that is not huge and fluffy, but like a regular spoolie. The formula of the mascara doesn't clump for flake, and it easily coats each individual lash, washing off easily at the end of the day with a foaming cleanser.

It's a great, affordable coloured mascara that I would consider repurchasing, as I haven't come across any other decent purple-coloured mascaras that are actually a true purple or violet colour.

I bought my e.l.f. Small Stipple Brush from Kmart, and it has a unique two-layer two-tone black and white bristle design with soft textured layers, which help to create an almost airbrushed effect when used to apply foundation.

The brush makes it easy to create a sheer to light application by swirling the brush around in circles, spreading the foundation over the skin, and can also be used to build up coverage to medium or full by dabbing or "stippling" the foundation in areas that need extra coverage. The design of the bristles makes it easy to get into those hard to reach places around the corners of the nose and under the eyes.

This brush is perfect to use with cream, liquid and even powder products, and the bristles remain soft even after many washes, just be careful not to get the ferrule wet (the metal part that holds the bristles onto the handle), as getting water inside the ferrule will cause the glue to soften and weaken, which causes bristles to fall out.

For a cheap, affordable brush, I was quite surprised that it worked so well. It's great for use on oily and combination skins, although I'd be a little wary of using a stipple brush on sensitive or very dry skin, as a brush can aggravate sensitive skin or highlight very dry patches of skin by lifting them (a sponge or beauty blender is usually best to use on very dry skin).

A full size, 100ml tube of Skinfood Gel Cleanser was the Day 21 gift in a 2017 beauty Advent Calendar.

Made in New Zealand with bio-active ingredients, including guava, mango, papaya and cucumber extract, this gel cleanser promises to naturally cleanse and soothe the face, leaving skin fresh and soft.

So, does it live up to its promises? Well, I found this gel cleanser to be really gentle, yet quite effective, even on oily skin. It doesn't foam up like a foaming cleanser, but it does produce a tiny bit of lather when a little water is added and it rinses away cleanly, leaving no residue. As with most of Skinfood's products, it smells delicious!

I only have one problem with this product, and that is with the packaging. The gel has a very liquid consistency, so when the flip top tube is opened and upended to squeeze a little out, it's really hard to control how much product comes out. The gel literally just runs out on its own without the tube even being squeezed. A pump-style bottle (or even the same tube with a pump nozzle) would be a lot easier to use and much more economical, as I find I wasted a lot of product while it was in the original Skinfood packaging.

To sum it up, I do like this cleanser and would consider repurchasing it, but only of the packaging is changed.

For the price its fine, but it drys in the tube quickly and you get minimal product, so you'd have to constantly repurchase it. It was annoying to use as it was dry and made eyeliner difficult, was a lovely dark black when it came on though, but you'd have to have the time to use this product, not in a rushed scenario.