Australian Care Package with Diary of a Beauty Padawan!

Early in my blogging days (like, way back when I did my Hunger Games posts), I had this lovely Australian reader named Shae. Little did I know at the time that Shae would become a great friend of mine, and then go to create her own blog, Diary of a Beauty Padawan! While she and I have both been incredibly busy due to our college schedules, we still occasionally like to freak out and fan girl over the newest beauty products, and some country-specific brands that we love!

This isn't necessarily a beauty swap, like our last post together was, but more of a care package from her to me, filled with all kinds of Australian makeup goodies! I thought I'd type up a post giving you my first impressions of the fun things she sent me.

The first thing that caught my eye was the Sunset palette by Chi Chi. Chi Chi is known for having gorgeously pigmented, affordable eyeshadow palettes, and this is now the second one I own! The first one was the Chi Chi Brights palette she also sent me a while back. When she asked which one I wanted and gave me the choice between two, I'm pretty sure my exact words to her were "The Sunset one speaks to me on a personal level." And it is even more stunning in person!

The eyeliner she sent me was kind of a joke, because of the name, but it is truly a gorgeous purple liner -- which is perfect for my hazel eyes. This specific eyeliner, appropriately named "Beauty School Dropout," was sold in a limited edition set, and unfortunately is no longer sold. Hopefully they'll come out with it permanently though, because this color is gorgeous!

The next bunch of eye products she sent my way were from a few different brands. The black liner on the left is by Model Co, and is called the Eye Define Crayon Liner. While, yes, it is just a basic twist-up black liner, the coolest part about it is that it comes with a built-in sharpener! Never will you be condemned to a dull line with this liner, because the sharpener pops right into the cap. The swatch for this has been included with the Chi Chi liner above.

The Face of Australia Colour Max "Gold Mine" quad is a simple little neutral quad that is just perfect to throw in your bag and go. It's got 4 neutral shades ranging from light to dark, and is easily blendable! These shadows aren't crazy pigmented, but if you're on the go, you might want the forgiveness that these shadows give. 

Lastly for the eyes are these two neutral cream shadows by Australis. But don't be fooled into thinking they're just ordinary cream shadows. These cream shadows pack a serious punch, and are super metallic! I was actually really surprised when I dipped my finger in them, because I wasn't expecting a cream product. But as soon as I swatched them, I knew they were magic. 

Now moving onto my favorite part -- the lips! The two on the left took me by surprise, because they look like the cult favorite Lip Butters by Revlon, but they're in blue and silver! While it looks like Revlon Lip Butters have been discontinued in Australia, we can still get them here in the United States, but not in these blue and silver shades. Fortunately (or unfortunately, depends on how you look at it), these two shades don't come off as opaque as some of the Revlon Lip Butters often do, but rather are more of a sheer, shimmery formula, that I didn't bother swatching because it really doesn't pick up as much of a color. 

The Face of Australia Lip Paints are very intense (but somewhat messy) liquid lipsticks. You really need very little product to apply these, which I totally forgot when I went to swatch them, which resulted in messy swatches. I think these have been discontinued, though, as I can't find them on the FOA website. However, I love the pigmentation and shine of these lip paints, and they stain your lips, so even when they wear off, you're still left with some color!

And onto the last few products! The first product is by a brand called Boe Beauty, and this particular lip gloss is no longer sold on their website. But I can tell you that it smells like peaches! It is relatively glittery though, and a little bit grainy, but if you can get past that, it smells really, really good and makes your lips look super plump! 

Next are the Velourlips Matte Lip Creams by Australis in "Grandmaster Pash" and "Los Angel-es." "Grandmaster Pash" is part of their AC❤ME collection, which is really interesting because, while the product is matte, it also has like a metallic sheen. It's kind of hard to describe, and something you may just have to experience for yourself! In terms of color, it's a super wearable brick red shade. "Los Angel-es" is a super bright bubble gum pink, not for the faint of heart! I'm not sure if I'll ever be able to pull this color off (but you know I'll try), but I don't have anything like this in my collection! 

Also from Australis are the Colour Inject Lip Gloss and the Cray For Colour Lip Gloss Crayon. I didn't swatch the Colour Inject Lip Gloss because it is very sheer, with just a very subtle hint of color, but the Lip Gloss Crayon is super pigmented but still hydrating! The shade she got me is called "Twisting Roses," and is an orangey red shade that is super fun for spring.

That's all for this post! I'm hoping to get a tutorial up using a few of these products soon. Is there anything you'd like to try? Anything you want to see a tutorial for? Let me know in the comments below!

Again, a HUGE thank you to Shae for sending me all these products! Go over to her blog and send her some love for me!

- D. 

Beauty Swap with Diary of a Beauty Padawan!

If you've read my blog for a while now, you'll know that Sarah is one of my dearest internet friends. We initially met after I did my first Johanna Mason look almost a year ago, when she messaged me on Tumblr about how much she loved the look! Not too long after, Sarah started her own beauty blog, Diary of a Beauty Padawan, and since then she has become the Obi-Wan to my Qui Gon Jinn. Although I definitely think she's earned the title of Jedi Knight by now ;)

She and I always rave about various products, often which we can't usually get in our own country (considering she's from Australia). Not too long ago, she and I decided to send each other some products that the other couldn't get! If you want to see what I sent her, head on over to her post.

She sent me some things from three different brands: Australis, Face of Australia, and Kit Cosmetics. Most of them were lip products, because Sarah knows I'm definitely a lipstick junkie, but she also sent me an eyeshadow trio and a brow tint/gel!

For me, the most exciting part of this swap were the lipsticks! As you can see, Sarah definitely knows the colors I lean toward. From Kit Cosmetics, she sent me two incredibly gorgeous lipsticks. The first was "Go Deeper," which is a really pretty plum color that isn't quite like anything I have in my collection. The second, "Night Walker," was my absolute favorite of the bunch. It is a deep, almost brownish plum color. It's incredibly similar to "Black Cherry" from Revlon. The last lipstick is from Face of Australia, and is called "Ruby Delight." This lipstick has an SPF of 30, which is fantastic, and it's incredibly light on the lips. Of course, as the name implies, it is a true ruby color, and is almost like a glossier version of MAC "Russian Red." All of these lipsticks have beautiful pigmentation, and feel light as air on the lips! I think of the three, however, "Go Deeper" has the best texture and pigmentation.

This Pout Paste by Australis is very unique. It's not quite a gloss but not quite a liquid lipstick. The only product I can think to compare it to would be the Maybelline Color Elixirs. However, I almost have to say I find this to be even more pigmented than the Color Elixirs! I'm not entirely sure what color Sarah sent me, but based on the website I would say it's probably "Make Me Blush," and it's a super flattering muted magenta color. The next product is the Lip Paint from Face of Australia. This is one scary product, to be honest. When I first applied, it I expected it to be super sheer, like the Clinique Black Honey Almost Lipstick. It's nothing like that at all. For one, if you decide to purchase this product, don't try to apply it straight out of the tube. I learned that the hard way. The best way to apply it is in small amounts, with a lip brush. It's tedious, I'll admit. However, if you're patient, and wait a minute or two between each layer, you end up with this gorgeous, glossy, cabernet type color. 

Finally, the eye products! The Tint My Brow Brow Gel is a game changer. It reminds me a lot of the Benefit Gimme Brow Brow Gel, without the fibers. For me, most days, if I'm wearing no makeup but still trying to make my brows look good, Gimme Brow is a bit much, since it does add a bit more oomph to the brows. However, the Tint My Brow deposits just enough color to fill in your brows without making them look filled in! The color I have is "Dark Brown." Finally, the IntensifEYE Shadow Trio (which it seems like they no longer sell), in "Fancy Pants." According to the packaging, these shadows can be used wet or dry, and I would definitely recommend using them wet. When used dry, they are incredibly chalky and blend away in a single swipe, however, when used wet, they are creamy and pigmented and absolutely stunning! 

Huge thanks to Sarah for sending me all these wonderful products! If you are interested in seeing what I sent over to Australia from the United States, definitely go check out her blog post. In fact, go check it out anyway, because she is so fun and absolutely hilarious!

- D.