Australis Pout Paste: Review & swatches

 Yesterday I gave you guys my first impressions on the brand new Australis Pout Paste. Today, we'll have a closer look and see how it performs.

It comes in 3 different colours; Pash Me Pink, Berry Nice Kiss, and Love Bites. They are all super-pigmented and the colour really lasts. It's a sticky vinyl-sheen type of gloss feel, with the colour output and staying power of a lipstick!

Yesterday I compared them to OCC Lip Tar, and they really are very similar in their characteristics.

I do like that these ones have an applicator wand, though, and the fact that they are an aussie brand who are cruelty free is another couple of huge bonuses.

Unfortunately for my readers in the USA, I'm not 100% sure where/if you can get Australis products in the states, but try online, and see if you can find these. They're great value at $12.95AUD!

The colours in this picture from top to bottom are: Pash Me Pink, Berry Nice Kiss, and Love Bites.
You can see for yourselves how pigmented they are, and I didn't lay them on thick at all.

You can buy these online at www.australiscosmetics.com.au, or you can find a stockist near you on their website. I know that they are available at Priceline stores nationally.

First Impressions: Australis Pout Paste

I'll let the video do the talking for me today, stay tuned for a proper review of this product tomorrow!

I think I might have a problem....lip product excess!

 I posted a little while ago, a post about "goo hoarding". This week, I took a look in my lip products box (I have my makeup organized into 5 litre tubs, by product type), and it struck me that I may have a hoarding problem.
The picture above is the inside of my lip products box. Not even organized, just all thrown in there.

 First up, here they are, all organized and neat so that you can see what I have.

This first picture is lip care products (lip balms, etc), lip pencils, and plumping products, as well as a couple of sample sized Benefit tints.

Next up are my lipsticks. I don't have a lot of them, because I'm not really a lipstick kinda gal. If I had to choose a favourite, I'd go with the Modelco matte red one (second from left in the bottom row) because it's gorgeous and everything-proof!








Last of all, my lipglosses. So many of them that I need two pictures to show you!

As you can see, I really love my pink shades. For special occasions, I like a plum, and for everyday, I prefer nude-type shades.

My current favourites are the Benefit "life on the A list" salmon-y colour, and my new Yes to Carrots C-me-shine nude colour, as well as the Illamasqua one in Belladonna.

 In this last picture are my MAC glosses. Some are the real deal, some are knock-offs. I honestly can't tell the difference in the actual product itself.

Also there are some other brands here, the Max Factor sparkly one is super cute, the Bloom one is a lovely shade, and the Silk Oil of Morocco one is fantastic, and I love the colour, but it's more of a liquid lipstick than a gloss, and it wears off strangely, leaving a line of very light pink on your inner lip which just looks weird. It does smell amazing, though.

So...what do you think? Am I a hoarder? Is it time to do a cull of some of these products?None of them are particularly old, I just have so many of them, and i can't seem to stop acquiring more and more!

Trendsday: Lips'n'tips

Colour blocking is officially done, over with, goneski from the trends of 2013.

What's stepping into its place? The old "Lips'n'Tips" from the 50's! Matching lipstick to your nail and toenail polish for a refined look.

I, personally, couldn't be happier! I loveovelove anything retro that dates back to the 40's and 50's, and this is no exception.

Two notable brands who have hopped onto this trend right from the start, and they have both released lips'n'tips packs so we don't have to go searching for perfectly matched lipglosses and nail polishes.

OPI and Butter London have got some really gorgeous matchy-matchy colours for us to try. I was checking the OPI ones out this week in my local beauty supply store and I am having a hard time choosing just one. It may need to be a double feature!

I'll pop a review up once I have tried them out. I haven't tried lipgloss from OPI, but I did used to use their Avoplex lip treatment before they discontinued it, and LOVED it.

What do you think of the new lips'n'tips trend?

Discount beauty haul sneak peek: CK delicious pout lipgloss

 I've had some products arrive from my little shopping sprees at Dollar cosmetics club, so I'm putting together a haul post and video for you guys to see what I got.

In the meantime, I'm a little bit busy taking children to appointments, so I thought I'd give you this little sneak peek at one of the products: Calvin Klein Delicious Pout lipgloss in the colour "Sparkle".

The packaging is classic CK, very stylish, clean, simple-looking, with their logo on the neck of the gloss. It's a typical squeeze-tube setup with a sturdy applicator tip.

The gloss goes on smooth, just a tiny bit sticky (which will have me in the bad books with the fella, but we sometimes need to sacrifice a little for beauty!) and with the perfect amount of shimmer and shine.

The scent and taste of the gloss (a very important point!) are pleasant, and I'll probably make this a regular in my stable of punk glosses. At $8 (less than half of the RRP) from cosmetics corner, it's a steal, and I may go back for the other, more neutral colour that they have in stock.

Stay tuned later for my full discount makeup haul!

Gloss Goss: Katy's spring picks

It's no secret that I lovelovelove pink lipgloss. It forms an important part of my signature look. Here are some of my fabulous favourites for spring:

Natio Rich colour cream gloss in Happy is a deep, rich pink with a shimmery sparkle to it that really makes my lips pop!

BYS diamond shine gloss in Precious is an all-year-round favourite of mine that blends exactly to the natural colour of my lips to just give them a slightly deeper colour.

Benefit Posietint is a poppy-coloured lip and cheek tint in an almost salmon hue that I use for my lips and to give my cheeks a little boost when I don't want a blushed-up look.

Australis Plumptastic is for the times when I want a little boost in the fullness of my lips. It tingles and plumps up my lips while giving me a light pink tint.

MAC Dazzleglass in Smile is a lovely nude-ish salmon colour with a slight lustre to it, it was my very favourite lipgloss for many years, and has now fallen into my regular lineup all year round.

So there you go, my favourite pink lipglosses for spring!

What's your favourite gloss?

Most of these products were purchased by me, however, the Natio gloss was provided to me for review by the lovely people at Natio. My opinions are always my own, and it has earned its way into my favourites completely on its own merit.

Monday how-to by request: Red Lips

This week's how-to Monday is by request from reader Jenni, who asked me to do a how-to about red lipstick and how to make it look good, no matter your skin tone.

Well, to begin with, the main thing you want to do to achieve that timeless bombshell look with red lipstick is to apply a second coat of mascara, some black liquid liner, maybe some false lashes, and keep the eye makeup simple and elegant. Use neautral tones, lighter shades, perhaps a very delicately smoked eye. The easiest way to end up looking more drag queen than silver screen princess is to over-do the eye makeup and team it with bright red lips.

Thursday Reviews: Australis Rush Hour Palette.

 In amongst my discount makeup haul the other day, I picked up this awesome Australis Cosmetics Rush Hour "Pinks on the go" Palette. It has everything you need to create colour on your face in one handy little compact. First, let me apologize for the state of my brows. Next Monday's how-to is DIY eyebrow waxing, and I'm leaving them just a little longer than I usually would, especially when I know they are going to be photographed!

So, let's have a look at this palette. It has a handy lip brush and sponge tip applicator included in the packaging, but you'll have to carry a blush brush along with your mascara for this one. Still, with everything else you need already in the compact, it takes up almost no space even in a handbag! The blush is a soft, creamy peach-pink, perfect for most skintones that would suit the rest of the palette. Then we have a quad of eyeshadows, which I've used all of in my makeup look below.

There is a very light, shimmery ice-pink, which I've used up to the brow bone, a dusty pink which I've used over the entire lid and blended in just above the crease, an almost-plum hue which looks lovely over the entire lid, and a brown, which I've used into my outer corners for a bit of depth. Overall, I think it's created quite a good look. To that, I added my usual combination of gel liner and pencil liner, and a super volumizing mascara, and I was all done with the eyes.

I applied the blush sparingly, as I don't like to go out all rouged-up, but it's definitely a product that you could build up if you wanted to create a more intense colour.

The tonings of this palette suit my complexion perfectly, so I'm really happy with my purchase.

Then it was onto the lips for a finishing touch. There are 2 lip glosses, in nude-pink tones, and a lipstick in this dusty pink colour that I've used in the makeup look. It went on really smoothly, and has lasted through eating and drinking several hours after I applied it. The bonus of it is that if I do need to reapply, it's all right there in my handbag, brush and all!

I'm really pleased with this palette. It's definitely something I'll use "on the go", as the name suggests, as well as at home on a regular basis. And here's the best part...the RRP on this little gem is $12.95... yes, that's not a typo. All Australis products retail for less than $20, a fact that they are very proud of. It means that everyone can afford great quality, animal friendly products from a well established (25 years!!!!) company with a great name.

Well done, Australis!