Makeup & Hay Fever

When the Wattle blooms Spring is just around the corner.

Spring has Sprung and Hay fever Season is upon us!  Three out of Five members of my family 

suffer from hay fever including Miserable Me.  Hay fever is caused by an allergic reaction to 

pollen released seasonally from trees, grass, weeds, flowers, fungi and mold spores.  

Common symptoms include, sneezing, itchy watering eyes, blocked/running nose, 

itchy throat and sinus pressure/headaches.

A few tips I would like to pass on to you all to help minimise your symptoms are;

-  speak to your doctor or chemist about treatment, a combination of medication 
   tailored to your symptoms works best ie, anti-histamine tablets, nasal spray 
   and eye drops.
-  start taking hayfever remedies two weeks before the season starts to 
   lessen symptoms.
-  a spoonful of locally produced honey every day helps build immunity 
   (all year round).
-  keep windows and doors closed, switch to recycle on your air-conditioning in 
   the house and car.
-  protect your eyes by wearing sunglasses, keep your hair tied up and wear a hat 
   outside, hair is a great pollen catcher!
-  whilst outside, coat the inside of your nose with a thin layer of petroleum jelly, 
   it helps prevent pollen entering the nasal passages.
-  eliminate fermented foods ie:  alcohol, yeast, cheese, yoghurt, mushrooms, 
   pickles, olives, dried and processed foods.
-  eliminate Histimine releasing food 
   (they release histimine when you eat them causing reactions) ie;
   Chocolate, Bananas, Strawberries, Pineapple, Eggs, Milk, Fish, Shellfish 
   and Alcohol.

Unfortunately for me makeup isn't an option when I am having a really bad day.  Less is best on days like this so I don't end up looking like a Hung-Over Panda.   My red itchy eyes drive me crazy and I just have to rub them making it impossible to wear any kind of mascara.

Clinique all about eyes rich - Clarins Instant Smooth Perfecting Touch Primer
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Here are a few tips that work for me, during hayfever season and less is definitely best especially round the eyes.

-  regularly apply cold eye packs to calm red puffy eyes, cold soaked chamomile or 
   green tea bags kept in the fridge work great.
-  apply a good eye cream like Clinique's All About The Eyes to reduce puffiness 
   and dark circles
-  have your lashes dyed so you don't need to wear mascara.
-  reduce exposure to irritations from your skincare and makeup routine by going 
   hypo-allergenic ie;  Almay, Clinique, Covergirl, Maybelline, Neutrogena, Revlon, 
   Clarins, Physician's Formula all have hypo-allergenic lines.
-  apply a good face primer like Clarins Smooth Perfecting Touch, so you can wear 
   less makeup (I use this on my eyelids with no irritation before I apply eye shadow).

Almay intense i-color trio for browns - Almay get up & grow mascara - Almay for green eyes
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-  wear waterproof mascara to lessen chances of it smudging, flaking and 
   falling into your eyes.
-  wear cream eyeshadow, less chance of it falling into your eyes and 
   causing irritation
-  stay clear of loose powders, I prefer to stick to liquid foundation and 
   cream blush, NO face powder!
-  wear less on your eyes while accentuating your lips with a bright lipstick.
-  ALWAYS remember to completely remove ALL your makeup at night.

Dr. Lewinn's Skin Perfect - Revlon Nearly Naked ~ IVORY
VIVO Lipstick ~ TANGTASTIC - VIVO Colour Lip Crayon ~ SWEET DREAMS
VIVO Cheeky Cream Blusher ~ BLOOM
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Well these are little things that help me get through the hay fever season, I would love to hear what tips you have so please leave a comment below I would love to hear from you.

Jac x0x

Revlon Top Speed Celestial FX Nail Polish

Ok I caved........today while I was waiting for my son to finish his Piano lesson I quickly popped in to my local BigW and they had Celestial FX sitting right there on the shelf calling for me.  Eek!!

Priceline have Celestial FX  and Heart of Gold FX on sale for $9 this week 18th July.

Gorgeous gorgeous gorgeous, I love this polish.

I am dying to try this on my nails but I am into the second week of my Revitanail Nail Strengthener course and I am abstaining from nail polish because you have to add a coat of Revitanail every day for 7 days, remove the lot, start again and repeat for 28 days.  I am already seeing fantastic results but that's another review.

So......swatches it is!

The first swatch is just on it's own.  Celestial FX is a mix of holographic & silver Stars, Moons and Diamonds in a micro holo glitter gel base.

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I find it's best to start off with a coat of the micro glitter base, once that gets tacky, fish and dab on extra stars, moons and diamonds where you want them.  This also helps stop the larger glitter pieces from curling and helps glue them down.   Once you are happy with placement go over with another coat to seal it all.

I didn't find it too hard to fish out the larger glitter there is a lot in there, what frustrated me was when I wanted stars I got moons and vice versa, there are lots of diamonds, no worries fishing them out.

My favourite base was MODE High Fashion, a very dark blue which I think shows off Celestial to best effect.  I have tried to capture the swatches with different light effects, these were all taken at night under a day lamp.

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I love anything pink so could not swatch without a pink one!  This is essence ~ free hugs, the shade did something strange to the micro glitter but I still like it.

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This last swatch is Sally Hansen Lustre Shine ~  Azure.

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I hope you like my swatches, please let me know what you think of this polish in the comments below, I love to hear from you.

Jac x0x

Face of Australia glitterati review ~ Heart of Glass

(l-r)
Boogie Wonderland - Heart of Glass - Funky Town
Dancing Queen - Studio54 - Saturday Night Fever - Lookin for Some Hot Stuff - Disco Inferno

You can find out more about these Limited Edition Polishes at the Face of Australia Website here.

I haven't reviewed a nail polish in an age and I have had the entire new Limited Edition Face of Australia glitterati range for a while now so I thought I would share with you my thoughts on the nail polish I am wearing this week.

Heart of Glass

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Heart of Glass is part of FOA's disco themed glitter polishes and I have to admit I remember when this was a  Number 1 hit for Blondie back in 1979.  I didn't really like that song but I loved Hanging on the Telephone and Sunday Girl.

Heart of Glass is a milky pale pink polish with Red, Purple, Pink, Hot Pink, Holo Bars, White Glitter and Pink Hearts in varying glitter sizes.

It applies pretty easily and doesn't take too long to dry between coats.  I did have to fish for the Pink Hearts because they tend to sink and found the easiest thing to do what hold the bottle upside down between coats to bring the hearts to the top.  I found personally I needed three thin coats to reach desired opacity on it's own but only two thin coats as a top coat.

(l-r) 3 coats  ~  2 coats  ~  1 coat
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The above swatches give you a good idea of what glitter is in there and the difference between coats.  I found I was having to dab at some of the glitter to move it around.  You can also see the larger red squared and the pink hearts tend to curl but if you apply a good top coat they sit nicely.  The gel base builds up to a nice pale pink which doesn't show too well in my photo.

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This was a Limited Edition Pack I picked up from Priceline a few months ago and I thought I would use these as bases for the Heart of Glass polish.

Flirt  ~  Dreamer  ~  Elegant
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These three gorgeous shades from Revlon were the winners from a Revlon Inspires Competition where 5 Australian bloggers were invited to get inspired by their 3 favourite shades out of a collection of 24.  

Drop Dead Gorgeous Daily was the lucky winner and these were her three choices above.

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I applied two coats of Heart of Glass over the top of the three shades, I was quite happy with the results, I love pastel milky nail polish.  I haven't sealed these with a top coat but would do so on my nails to keep the glitter from curling.

When I took the photo below of my poor little nails I had been wearing this polish for two days.  In that time I had scrubbed and seasoned our campfire cast iron pots in preparation for our camping trip next week and I had just hand fed our cattle before coming in and taking this photo.  The point is, NO CHIPPING!  The nail polish has held up better than my poor skin.

Base coat - 2 coats Heart of Glass - Top coat
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I picked up the complete set for $4.95 per bottle online at Makeup Express and they are also available at Fashion Addict and Priceline.   I hope you like these swatches.  Have you picked up any of the Glitterati Range, what do you think?  Please let me know in the comments below.

Jac x0x

Everyday Nude makeup

I thought I would share with you some of the nude everyday makeup I wear to work.  I wear a minimal amount of makeup because I am outside but I still want that healthy glow.

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I don't have a lot of time in the morning as I am up at 4.30am most days, I really don't want to be applying lots of makeup in the wee hours but I still want to look good!

Olay CC Cream - Total Effects Tone Correcting Moisturiser with Sunscreen. - Light /Medium.  This is a sheer tinted moisturiser that claims to fight the 7 signs of ageing.   Gives me just enough colour to even out my skintone, moisturises, protects and adds a healthy glow.  

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Bourjois Paris Healthy Balance compact powder - Vanilla.  A very finely milled finishing powder, enriched with asian fruit extracts.  This powder is so nice, sets your foundation without collecting in your pores or drying your skin, no cakiness at all.  You hardly feel like you have this on but it removes any shine around your forehead, nose and chin.   Has a lovely fruity aroma I really like this one, great for touch ups during the day.

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 Maybelline Color Tattoo - Bad to the Bronze.  Gorgeous eyeshadow that you can wear all over your eye area, just apply heavier to the lid and then blend out.  Lasts all day with no creasing.

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These are the three brushes I have been carrying around in my little pink bunny here, they all do a terrific job, the Real Techniques brush is excellent for blending out the Color Tattoo eye shadow.

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(l-r):   Real Techniques - deluxe crease brush ~  Wotnot eyeshadow brush ~  MUA - F4 powder brush.

MUA Pro's Every Lash Waterproof mascara - Black.  This is my favourite mascara from the MUA range, it separates all my lashes beautifully with a minimum of fuss.  This mascara actually performs as described, the first coat lengthens and the second coat adds volume.  No clumping, no panda eyes and no flaking.

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REVLON JUST BITTEN KISSABLE BALM - Precious.  These are my favourite chubby crayon lip balms.  They have a moisturising stay-put formula, the colour is buildable the more you apply.  

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Precious starts out Nude on the lips but becomes pinker the more you apply.  Even when the gloss has worn off there is still a blush of pink stain on your lips.

OK so that's one of my day looks and some of the products I have been loving at the moment.  What do you like to wear during the day and what are some of your favourites?  Please comment below I would love to hear from you.

Jac x0x

Sandpit Nail Polish by Alanna Renee - Oz Indie Polish

Today I would like to share with you all one of the Australian Indie polishes I recently picked up from Alanna Renee.

www.alanna-renee.myshopify.com

This is Sandpit and Alanna describes her inspiration for this polish as;

"Sandpit has a mix of blue and yellow shreds, large green hex glitter, large and small red hex glitter and small black, white and brown glitter in a creamy brown base.  It's supposed to look like children's toys partially buried in the sand."

Alanna recommends to apply a base coat first, then 2-3 coats of Sandpit, allowing the polish to slightly dry between coats and finish with a top coat.

I love this polish, from a distance it appears nude and doesn't look like there is much going on with your nails but once you get up close and take a good look you see just how busy it really is.  To me all these lovely crayon colours reminds me of a Kindy Art Room.  Makes me smile every time I wear it.

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One coat of Sandpit to show just how much you pick up with one layer.

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After 3 coats coverage is opaque and very very busy, don't you just love it!!

Personally, I prefer to wear only one or two coats with a different shade base coat.  Drying time is shorter and it's not as thick, base coat, 3 layers of polish and top coat is too much for me.  You don't have to apply a top coat but it is important if you want a smooth finish.

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OPI ~  Did you 'ear about Van Gogh with two layers of SandPit

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CoverGirl Outlast Stay Brilliant ~ Toasted Almond and one coat of Sandpit

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Revlon Top Speed ~ Ocean and two coats of Sandpit.  This last one was a bit of an experiment, I wanted to see what would show through Sandpit if I used a completely different shade on the spectrum.  I was surprised by how opaque Sandpit was, a little of the Ocean shows through and I think it brightens the blue shreds but I am not enamoured by this blend.

This polish is thick with assorted hex glitter and it really isn't hard to apply, I did shake the bottle a little between each couple of nails just to keep the heavier hex mixed.  Sandpit stays wet long enough if you want to reposition the larger hex to your satisfaction.  I like to simply brush it on with no particular pattern because each nail is different and you just don't know what your going to find, chaotic and full of surprises just like a Kiddy's Sandpit!

Alanna if you read this I hope I did your polish justice as it is truly delightful and one of my favourites.

Alanna is one of the nicest Indie Polish makers I have come across and if you would like to visit her website and try her fantastic polishes for yourself please follow the link here.  Her polishes are $7.99 each, shipping is a flat $7 and FREE is you spend over $50 (Aus only).  These polishes are available internationally and you can find out more about that here.

I highly recommend you try this brand for yourself.  This is Alanna's latest collection and they are ALL gorgeous!!

www.alanna-renee.myshopify.com

Let me know what you think in the comments, I would love to hear from you.

St Patrick's Day Nail Polish

HAPPY ST PATRICK'S DAY

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This is just my little nail polish effort to help celebrate St Paddy's Day.

Growing up my sister and I used to chase Rainbows in the hopes of

finding that elusive pot of gold.

So I decided to put a little bit of green and gold on my nails today to help celebrate the occasion .

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Revlon Muse and SinfulColors Call You Later

Muse shows up darker on the nail  than it shows in the bottle.

Call You Later is a delightful glitter of green and gold.

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(l-r) Muse, Call You Later, Combined

I was quite happy with the result, not normally colours I would wear but I love

the effect the glitter has on Muse it really brightens up an Olive Drab.

Happy St Patrick's Day Everyone!!