I’ve titled this post “Retail Therapy?” with a “?” as, believe it or not, I’m not an advocate of going shopping in attempt to boost mood. Unless…

1) The purchases are within your means – debt’s not much fun, and

2) You get some good deals!

Otherwise, once that little rush is over, you can feel a bit sorry for yourself… You might also clutter your place with things you don’t need (ahem avoiding looking at myself here haha!).

Some days ago I heard from fellow blogger Amy that local discount chemist chain Chemist Warehouse had slashed 50% (you read that right – FIFTY PERCENT!) off of makeup including brands like Maybelline and Revlon. (A discount like that is relatively rare in Australia.)

I thought I could resist the temptation…

… …

… !

At least a week after hearing the news, and having had a so/so morning I decided to visit a store nearby to just have a look. You know, do a general browse, and see if there was anything I “needed”. (I can’t speak for other bloggers but for me “need” can translate to thoughts such as “I must have a 5th red lipstick! No two reds are the same and what if I don’t pick this one up, I might not see it again and it might not be on sale for this cheap again and yada yada yada” – you get the drill! )

You didn’t believe me when I said I’d just browse, right? I walked away with this little bag full!

What was inside?

Three lippies – don’t you just love the name of the Mango one?! It has a slight shimmer and even smells a bit like mango; I am in love!

Swatched this evening in my kitchen – sorry peeps as lighting not 100% (fluro):

L to R: Mango Diamonds, 106, 20.

Some more Kosmea Rose Hip Oil – I saved $20 on this item alone (pats self on back)! Unfortunately they did not have any other Kosmea products in stock, as I would have bought up to save some serious $$$.

Last but by no means least, I bought this polish top coat from Sally Hansen. I’ve heard good things about it, and at half price (yep HALF PRICE! All Sally Hansen polish products are 1/2 price there at the moment – RUN! ) I just couldn’t walk past it. It was the last one!

I can’t say my little expedition lifted my mood but I am very happy with my purchases and will be wearing as much of these lippies as I can over the next few days and beyond. I love them! I’m very new to Rimmel (have only tried 2 polishes, a mascara and an eyeliner from them, and that was over a year ago) so I am interested to see how these go on me. When swatched they apply so smoothly! *swoons*

So my conclusion is this: shopping may not be “therapy” as such but by golly you can find some great things!

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See anything you’d like me to review?

Have you picked up any great bargains lately? Share with us where you got a great deal!

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Disclosure: As you can see, I bought all products featured here with my own money.
Views, as always, are 100% my own.

I would like to say, however, that I appreciate all of your comments, questions, and emails – so don’t be afraid to keep ‘em coming!

Also, I have just realised I forgot to update you on my progress with the Best Blogs 2013 competition run by the Australian Writer’s Centre (I mentioned entering the competition in March, over here)! A massive “thanks!!!! ” to all who voted for me in the People’s Choice round; unfortunately I was not a finalist but was up against hundreds of really awesome blogs. It is always fascinating to see how big and diverse the Aussie blogging community is and I discovered some new blogs in the process of participating; maybe you did too!

Now, it’s time for some fruity Innoxa goodness!

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Are you looking for a super shiny gloss? One that is versatile and can be worn alone or to add oomph to your favourite lippy, without interfering with the lippy shade? Importantly, do you want something that isn’t sticky?

Innoxa‘s Antioxidant Lip Glaze* may be just what you are looking for!

I have been trying two shades – a very pretty sheer pink called “Guava” and a subtle orangey-coral “Tangerine”. I have loved Guava so much that I have (embarrassingly and regretfully) misplaced it… I think it might be at work but I am not certain. I also think I could have left it in one of my many hand bags, but which one?! In any case, here is “Tangerine” alongside another product I’ll tell you about soon:

My favourite way to use these is to add moisture to my lips as well as super duper shine to lipsticks. In particular the Guava looks good on top of any pink, whilst Tangerine has looked nice layered on top of reds or corals. I have not done a bare swatch on my lips as they do not add much colour on their own for me; I’m not sure why this is because on other bloggers the colour is much more apparent (for example, you can see Melbourne based blogger Omega wearing Guava here).

They taste great and have a fruity aroma. I am so glad they aren’t sticky – it’s never nice to get your hair stuck to your lips and covered in gloss or lippy!

In case you are not already interested in these after reading about my experience ( ), Innoxa describe the glazes as follows:

INNOXA Antioxidant Lip Glazes combine key antioxidants to nourish and repair the lips. The five non-sticky fruit inspired glazes can be worn alone or paired with lipstick. Formulated to help increase collagen and encourage skin repair and renewal, the collection of glazes contains pomegranate seed oil, shea butter, vitamin E and green tea extract.

The Glazes retail at $14.95 each. Based on that I give the Glaze a Beautiful Rating of 9/10 – quality 5/5, value 4/5 (this is just me; I don’t like to spend much on lip gloss!).

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What is that other product in the first couple of photos?

Innoxa‘s Invisible Lip Shaper*.

I’m very happy with this product – in a nutshell it is a clear lip liner. Genius! You can use it with whichever lippie you want! No need to pack several liners when travelling! It is self sharpening too which is always a bonus.

I have found the Lip Shaper controls the bleed I can get with Wet n Wild lipsticks very well; it does a better job than Too Faced’s Lip Insurance!

The Lip Shaper retails at $14.95. I give it a Beautiful Rating of 10/10! (Quality 5/5, value 5/5.) It works and is just so handy.

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Both products can be found at Innoxa stockists (discount department stores, Myer, and select chemists) Australia wide, or you may wish to visit their website here.

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What do you think of the idea of a clear lip liner?

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Disclosure: products marked with a * were provided by PR for consideration. Views are my own;
I did not receive any monetary compensation for featuring these items on the site.
Please see the site’s disclosure policy here for more information

I haven’t reviewed a deodorant on this site for a while now, but it’s one of those essential products. You can’t monkey around with deodorant – especially in Australia’s harsh climate – and so I’m always on the lookout for effective ones. Once I find something I like I stick to it until I feel like trying something new or if there is a change in the formula and it is no longer working as effectively for me.

I was in the former situation when I was approached by Dove‘s PR to try the roll-on from their latest deodorant range – Dove Pure*.

Standard roller ball; packaging is good and the lid stays on very securely.

What is so good about Pure? It is:

• Fragrance free
• Paraben and colourant free, and
• Alcohol free!

It has been specifically designed for sensitive skin and also contains 1/4 moisturising ingredients. This is very handy as let’s face it, if you shave and need to apply deodorant immediately afterwards, you don’t want your skin even more irritated!

I am pleased to report that after trialling it in our up and down weather (unusually hot and now very cool) it has performed well and kept me fresh all day long! It has not irritated my skin at all and I did not notice any white marks on my clothing when using this. (This is also a big plus as usually I stick to “no white marks” aerosol deodorants due to past wardrobe + deodorant disasters!)

This product retails for $3.89 at usual Dove stockists (supermarkets and pharmacies Australia wide) and you can get it in an aerosol for $5.25.

Beautiful rating – 10/10 – quality 5/5, value 5/5. I couldn’t fault anything and think it is very reasonably priced.

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What is your go-to, trusted deodorant brand?

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Disclosure: products marked with a * were provided by PR for consideration. Views are my own;
I did not receive any monetary compensation for featuring these items on the site.
Please see the site’s disclosure policy here for more information

How has your week been? The cold weather has finally hit here and even my dog is wearing a jacket (at bed time, anyway!)!

Tonight I’m writing about some eye masks which I really love, from Japanese brand Kao. I hope you enjoy it!

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The eye masks I briefly mentioned in my recent Empties post sparked some interest! I’m glad about that as I had been planning a proper review for some time.

These are from Kao, which is a well known brand of skin care, cosmetics and general health products in Japan. (You can find their official website here, though it is in Japanese! You will be surprised at the other brands they own, as found here.)

image: Kao

My reading of the Japanese indicates these masks are part of the “megurizumu” range BUT in other reviews I am seeing it translated as “megurhythm”.  I’m no expert but it is important to be aware of possible spelling differences if searching for these online. I bought my pack of 14 masks for $24.95 AUD at a local Asian cosmetics shop, Kawaii Fashion, but you can also get them at sasa.com for a similar price. This works out to $1.78/mask! I’ve been using the chamomile fragrance but I have also seen these in citrus, rose, lavender, eucalyptus and fragrance free versions!

The “megurizumu” is in the red box to the left of this image.

You might be wondering what “megurizumu” means… The translation I could find which made the most sense to me is from the verb “meguru” – to go around. It is also used in other phrases to indicate travel or a tour.  So my guess is Kao are talking about circulation as I haven’t talked about the best part of this product yet – it heats up! (The warmth would be likely to stimulate blood circulation.)

When I first tried these, I was concerned it would feel too hot, particularly because you apply the mask to the delicate eye area. Good news – the temperature is warm rather than hot and just right! It creates a bit of a steam like sensation which is very relaxing, and you can smell the lovely herbal (in my case chamomile) scent at the same time. The scent is not overwhelming in my view, but as they have a fragrance free version it might be a bit strong for some. (I note the packaging indicates there is also ginger in it but I couldn’t smell that at all. For me this is awesome because I dislike ginger! )

My favourite time to use these is right before bed; I leave it on all night and let myself drift off! However I think these would also be great when travelling. I particularly like the idea of using them at work (see the diagram on the box, enlarged below) – LOL!

I can read that this says “ofisu no yasumi … [something!]” (office break/rest; we’d say coffee or tea break in English)

You don’t need to know any Japanese to use these!

This is one half, so you can see the little straps fit easily over the ears. They are made of a very soft stretchy gauze.

A blessing and curse with this product is that the masks are disposable. This is handy if you are using them when on the go, like on a flight, but they are so cute I feel that I am being a bit wasteful each time I throw one away! They aren’t re-usable, as the heat and lovely fragrance only lasts around 10 minutes.

I notice that Kao also produce these in larger patches that you can apply to sore muscles, like your shoulders. These would be really nice to try, particularly now it is getting colder.

My beautiful rating for the eye masks is 9/10 – quality 5/5, value 4/5 (I wish they could be reusable, even if only re-usable once!).

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Have you tried these before? What do you think?

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Disclosure: I bought these with my own money, after trying 1x mask as a gift from a friend.
Views, as always, are 100% my own.

I’ve gone through quite a bit of stuff in only a few weeks – funny how things can all run out at about the same time. It’s a bit like all my bills coming in at the same time, darn it!

Anyhow, we’ve got a few products in here that I have reviewed and/or otherwise featured in the past, as well as some new items and a random addition (will make sense in a minute!). I hope you find it interesting!

Here we go…

What have we got here? Lots of facial wipes (courtesy of Daiso, Kawaii Fashion, and Coles), hand wash (Bath & Body Works – yummy!), face/body wash, spray items, masks, one of my favourite foundations from Innoxa (mentioned many a time – original post on it here ), and some cotton make up removal pads (Swisspers Organic – not a standout product to me unfortunately). The “random” item is probably only recognisable to people who have visited or lived in Adelaide, but soon you will all find out what it is!

Things I thought you may like to know more about:

Moo Goo Milky Wash* – this product is designed for use on face or body. What is special about this and all cleansing products in the proudly Aussie Moo Goo range is that it is made up of “five natural cleansers that minimise skin irritation” (derived from glucose or coconut). It also contains milk proteins (hence the “moo” – geddit? ) to help keep the skin soft. I had used it as a body wash after receiving it at the 2012 Adelaide Beauty Conference and it lasted for so long! Only a small pump onto a shower puff was needed each wash for a gently cleansing and pleasantly scented (fragrant oil – faint but reminded me of milk bottle lollies!) bathing experience. I tried it on my face once (as I don’t regularly trial facial skin care products due to be being a bit careful with what I put on my face) and it was not drying at all. Double thumbs up for this! Moo Goo‘s official website is here if you would like more information.

Australis Wild At Heart perfume spray* and ardenbeauty perfume. This is new from Australis and is one of two fragrances in their I’m With the Band body spray range. Wild at Heart is my favourite of the two and is light and fruity. Handy to have in the handbag or gym bag for a quick freshen up, and could be worn by women in their teens through to forties (in my subjective opinion!). ardenbeauty is from Elizabeth Arden and is my signature scent! I have worn this for some years, since it was released in (guesstimating here) ~2002? It is a very fresh scent and is – almost – androgynous. It is not overly feminine which I like; I do wear men’s fragrances now and again! (Am I the only one who does this??? Surely not!)

This beauty is the bomb! Full and proper review coming soon of these Kao hotto (hot!) eye masks. This one is chammomile scented and by jove these are just great when you want to take 5 or if you have trouble getting to sleep. I had a bit of a giggle when I saw the image of the office worker (see the small image far right on the packaging) reclining with one of these on – I don’t know that these would be necessarily permitted in most workplaces but they would certainly help keep me chilled! LOL! I received one as a gift from my friend Madam M and loved it so much I went and bought a big box of them within 24 hours of trying it out!

Now, the random item:

A bus/train/tram ticket in Adelaide! Why have I included it here? We have recently switched over to the fancy and recyclable (which is a good idea in the long run I think) swipe cards, so I will never be able to get one of these again. Something I used to like with these is that on the reverse there are various sayings, which have never changed in all the years I have been using public transport (too many to count!). One of my favourites, cheesy as it may be, is “all sunshine makes a desert”. Farewell old Metroticket!

(We do not have “zones” in Adelaide’s public transport system, unlike most Australian cities. I expect this to change in the near future as Adelaide’s population is relatively small but spread out over a great distance. We are also one of the last Australian cities to get with the times and  establish an electrified train network – this is being worked on now. I look forward to this change but in the meantime it means there are no trains running at all near me. Trains are the fastest mode of public transport in Adelaide, meaning that being without them is quite an inconvenience, but I guess it’s a necessary evil!)

If there are any products that you would like me to go into further detail about which aren’t covered in the post here, just let me know in the comment section below and I’ll fill you in on my thoughts! I will indeed do a more detailed review of the eye masks soon.

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Does anything here interest you?

I’m curious… Do you like your local public transport system?

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Disclosure: products discussed that are marked with a * were provided by PR for consideration. Views are my own;
I did not receive any monetary compensation for featuring these items on the site.
Please see the site’s disclosure policy here for more information

As you may know, my Mum helps me with reviews from time to time. Hope she won’t mind this but… Here she is in her younger days!

(Excuse the image quality, as it is an iPad photo of the original photo.)

Here are links to some of the reviews/features she has helped me with to date, in case you are curious and/or are keen to read about how products perform on mature skin:

• Aveeno Intensive Night Cream
• Kosmea Day Spa
• Nutrimetics’ Restore skin care range
• Innoxa Renew skin care range
• DIY Face Scrub

She will next be appearing in our joint review of Kosmea‘s Apple of My Eye eye cream, so keep an eye out for it (pun not intended! )!

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How has your Mother’s Day been? Have you done anything special to treat your Mum, Grandma or yourself?

I am a big fan of shampoos and conditioners that are sulphate free, as they really help slow down the fading of bright hair colours (like my red!). As a result Organix is a brand I have been using off and on for some time, alternating and experimenting with other brands I discover along the way.

I have previously featured Organix on the blog here (historically my fave from them is their Coconut line, followed closely by their Mocha Espresso line – yum!), but if you are new to the brand they have been around for several years now and are one of the first brands to specialise in sulphate AND paraben free hair products. What I also like about them is that they don’t test on animals, they are easy to find (stocked at many supermarkets and chemists Australia wide), and they have a huge variety of products available, tailored to different hair types and hair concerns.

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Just over a month ago I had an opportunity to try a new (to me!) variety in the Organix range –  Vanilla Silk. I have been using the Shampoo* and Conditioner* in the Vanilla Silk line for the past 3 weeks…

Organix explain that this variety contains:

A totally indulgent blend of Tahitian vanilla bean oils to instantly nourish and moisturize your hair while silk amino proteins strengthen and seal your hair’s cuticles. A can’t-say-no combination to keep your hair looking silky, smooth and shiny.

How did I go? Can I say “no”?!

In a nutshell this is now one of my firm favourites in the Organix range. It adds moisture to my hair without being too heavy; as a result I can use this shampoo + conditioner set every wash without it weighing the hair down with repeated uses.

It smells and feels decadent on the hair too – yummo!

Like all Organix shampoos and conditioners you don’t need to use much per application; for my shoulder length-ish hair (texture: fine but lots of it!) I have been using a 20 cent piece equivalent of shampoo and the same of conditioner, but just apply the conditioner from the mid-lengths down.

So, if you have coloured hair (and want that colour to last!), fine hair, don’t want a shampoo and conditioner that will weigh your hair down – and/or just love vanilla (!) you may wish to give this a try. There is also a “blow dry crème” and Silk Serum available in this particular fragrance/set.

The Shampoo and Conditioner are currently selling for $15.99 AUD each at Priceline; if you keep your eyes peeled sometimes stockists will have sales on this brand and that is when I tend to stock up!

Beautiful Rating 10/10: quality 5/5, value 5/5. I can’t say “no”!

This week is going by realllly slowly for me, for some odd reason. Hope that isn’t the case for you!

Just dropping in to let you know the result of my recent Aveeno giveaway.

I used random.org to select a winner this time. Unfortunately the first “winner” drawn failed to respond to my email within 24 hours (as per T&Cs) so I had to redraw… The offical winner is:

Alison! Congratulations!

The prize will be in the mail tomorrow, using standard Australia Post mail services, Alison. Enjoy, Alison, and thank you to all who entered! x

Anyhow, I’m going to let the photos speak for themselves with this one… These are some BB creams I picked up when in Indonesia (original Indo haul post here if you missed that one ). The actual consistency and finish of the more expensive one of the three, the Caring Colours BB (AUD ~$3 equivalent), is quite nice but unfortunately way too dark for me. The other colours – well – I have never see anyone’s skin look like that ever! :-0

Too bad there were no testers available…

Martha Tillar is a well known brand of skin care and cosmetics in Indonesia. The head of the company, Martha, has developed and runs beauty schools in Jakarta as well as a day spa. I can’t say I’m a fan of the skin care products from her range that I have tried in the past (hence they are not featured on the blog!) but hey, different strokes for different folks.

Notice from L to R we have one which claims to whiten the skin, one designed to be “energizing” and “aromatic”, and the third “whitening” and “aromatic”. I noticed very little if any difference between the 2nd and 3rd products in terms of application and what not.

I quite like the packaging for this one, out of the box!

Swatched. Too dark for me, but I do like the finish and it felt nice on!

Now here comes the “what the?!” for the Sariayu range. I’ll show you some more information from the packaging first, just so you can check that out if interested:

It is YELLOW! Really yellow. Whilst I’ve used a DSLR in natural lighting for these images, it is even more yellow in real life if that is possible to imagine. I find it interesting to compare the shades of the first with these two, as each only came in one “standard” colour.

As a result, no Beautiful Rating is going to be provided for these, but if your skin tone matches the Caring Colours one you might want to check it out if ever in Indonesia or doing some online shopping! The markup might be a bit crazy online, however.

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Have you ever had a foundation or BB cream that hasn’t been what you expected? Tell us about it!

Hi everyone! I hope your week and weekend is going well; I apologise for the topsy turvy posting schedule of late!

I’ve got two posts going up today, with the second featuring an Asian beauty product from last year’s Indonesian haul. So stay tuned for that one too!

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As you may know, sometimes my Mum helps me out with product reviews. So when the chance arose to review a new night cream on the market, Mum was keen!

This is one of Aveeno’s latest products – Positively Radiant Intensive Night Cream* – and it promises to:

Give you an extra boost on all 5 factors of Radiance – Tone, texture, dullness, blotchiness and brown spots.

It contains a “Total Soy Complex” designed to give a natural boost to your skin’s natural beauty as well as vitamin B3, which is said to promote fresh and luminous looking skin.

When I was researching the product, I learnt that it is not so much age group based, but rather designed for a particular skin type. What I am saying is that people of any age group are said to be able to use this, but the Cream is apparently designed for skin which is on the dry side and needs a brighten up! My Mum is 60 and this becomes relevant as you will see…

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This is how my conversation (S) with Mum (M) about this product went, after she had used it for a fortnight:

S: Let’s start with first impressions. What did you think of the scent and texture of this Cream?

M: It is light, floral, kind of a fresh fragrance. The texture is a bit oily; it has an oily feel but blends into the skin quickly. It’s easily absorbed. A little goes a long way with this product.

S: How did it perform on your skin? Was it hydrating enough, or too much given you describe it as “oily”?

M:  My skin felt nice the morning after application, but it isn’t quite hydrating enough for me. I think this would be best suited to people in their 30s-early 50s, and women with more of an oily skin type than me [Mum’s skin is combination type that is getting drier with age].

S: That is useful information to know, given that the product hasn’t been specifically targeted at an age group. Did you note any changes with your skin with regards to the “5 factors of Radiance”  Aveeno promote?

M: I’m lucky in that I don’t really have issues with those 5 specific factors, so unfortunately I can’t comment on that!

S: OK so overall, what rating would you give this product out of 5 of quality and also value – this product retails at $14.99 AUD at stockists such as Chemist Warehouse???

M: I’d give it a 4/5 for quality –I like it but it’s just not ideally suited to me as I explained earlier. For value, 3/5 – fair price, similar to others on the market. [This brings the Beautiful Rating up to a 7/10].

Thanks Mum; I think it’s good to get different voices and skin types/ages/etc on here from time to time!

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= GIVEAWAY =

Aveeno’s PR have very kindly given me an extra one of Positively Radiant Intensive Night Cream to give away. This is a quick giveaway so that hopefully the winner will receive it in time for Mother’s Day – treat yourself or your Mum depending on skin type and needs!

How to Win & Terms and Conditions:

To have a chance of winning this (1x) Night Cream, all you have to do is ~

1. Be an Australian resident (sorry, due to postage costs AU only for this giveaway!).
2. Comment on this post with your full name (first name and last initial is OK).
3. Include a valid (working) email address.

Entries close at 11:59PM South Australian (SA) time Monday 6^th May 2013. The winner will be selected using random.org and I will email them on Tuesday the 7^th; they have 24 hours to respond to my email otherwise they forfeit the prize and a new winner will be selected.

I will send the prize (x1) via standard Australia Post mail services. I and Aveeno PR take no responsibility for lost or damaged mail. Please note that it takes approx. 2 working days, sometimes more, for mail to travel from Adelaide to an interstate address. (So the quicker the winner responds to my email, the better! ) I will also post an official winner’s announcement on the blog.

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Good Luck!!!!

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Disclosure: products marked with a * were provided by PR for consideration. Views are my own;
I did not receive any monetary compensation for featuring these items on the site.
Please see the site’s disclosure policy here for more information.