Skin products: Prepping skin for special events

Source: pixgood.com

Hello my lovely readers!

Happy Festive Seasons! It's my favourite month of the year (besides September, which is my birth month!), and I am enjoying, relishing and captivating each moment I am spending. Ahh! December. 

Sooo, I have been away from blogging for quite long, due to professional commitments. Yeah, it's because of those sticky situations, others making emergencies for you, work stress, work pressure, and what not. I won't start rambling about that, it will take a whole blog post to share this with you all. But I'm sure you girls understand. 

Now that we are in December, all I can think about is shopping! I love shopping. And right now, though I am not in holidays and still working (and working till eve of New Year), I am making the most of my lunchtime by running into shops and quenching my thirst for shopping! Heheh. But, I am no Rebecca Bloomwood! ;) Heheh! I keep a tab on my budget and finances since I don't want those giddy moments when receiving bills or credit card statements. 

Ok, I have rambled enough now. 

Today, I though of sharing with you my skin routine to special events.

 December is packed with parties, dinner dates and lunch dates for the couples, and other exciting events which makes us want to look our best. I had recently been to my office's end of year party, and wanted to share with you all my routine to prepare myself for a special event.

Right now, it's summer in Mauritius. We are like in an oven over here. I love summer, but it's too hot during the day. I feel like I'm melting away on most days. My skin is thus oilier and is more prone to pimples. I have sensitive, combination to oily skin. But hey, summer also means long hours on the beach and enjoying the sea! 

Starting off, I cleanse my face and neck using mild soap or savon de marseille, which is currently working great for my skin. It is really soothing and I use it with warm water and a washcloth. I then indulge into a luxuriously nourishing bath. 

I firstly use the St Ives Purifying Sea Salt exfoliating body wash with an exfoliating glove followed by St Ives Nourishing Vanilla body wash. I love the scent of vanilla and including it in my bath really helps me relax and makes me smell yummy :) 

Source: St Ives.com

Source: St Ives.com

Following my bath, I use a face scrub and gently exfoliate my face and neck. It is an important step, since we want our makeup to glide on and be smooth looking. Following my scrub, I wash my face and use the Clarins Baume Beaute Eclaire as a face mask. This is the ultimate product for tired and dull skin. It really gives a boost to the skin and makes it look nicer and more smooth. 

Once the mask is removed, I like to put some ice in a plastic bag and put it on my eyes. It instantly gives a lift to the eyes, making it look pétillant/ sparking. I also like to press the ice gently over my face just to refresh my skin and make the pores look smaller. 

Finally, I apply my moisturiser (I am currently using Mixa Soin Rehydratant) after some time and then I prime my skin using Benefit's Porefessional primer. 

I noticed that the routine actually gave me a glow when my makeup was on and the finish was fresh and dewy, without using any mists or setting sprays. I love using MAC's Studio Fix Foundation (in NC 40) and Makeup Forever HD Foundation (in 127, as highlighter) for special events. These two work wonders together .

That's it about the routine. Hope this helps! And I really hope from the bottom of my heart that each one of you is having a superb December. As for me, I am off to watching a good movie on my laptop, with a nice cup of tea and some chocolate cookies. My little me-time :) heheh.

What is your skin routine for special events? And how is your December (and, shopping sprees) going on? :)

Please do share!

Lots and lots of love!

Ushi

xxx

Making Brown Eyes Sparkle: Gold Makeup Look

Products used for the eyes:

MAC Paint pot in Soft Ochre
Liquid black eyeliner
Eyeliner pencil in black
They're Real Mascara
MAC Rule eyeshadow
MAC Woodwinked eyeshadow

In the pursuit of Happiness

Over the course of the journey called life, we come across moments, though fleeting, which causes us immense pain, sadness, discouragement, fear, or simply a lack of trust in ourselves. Overcoming those negative feelings and facing those situations with the right attitude is often the key to peace and happiness. Easier said than done. 

But, I have personally experienced that doing the things that we love and adopting a positive attitude, whatever happens.

Whenever I feel sad, I try my best to shift my focus from the source of sadness, to my source of happiness. There are many things, however simple, which procure me with a great sense of well-being and happiness.

Pampering Time! My night time bath routine

My favourite thing after a stressful and hectic day at work and with studies, is to unwind myself and relax with a warm, long, delightful and perfumed bath! The time I spend to take my bath is like sacred for me. I totally get immersed and dedicate this time for myself only. No disturbances please! ;)

My night time bath is more elaborate than my morning one. At night, however, there is a whole ritual, as I like to call it. I usually apply a face mask which I let work on my skin while I dry exfoliate my body. Following that, I use my body wash and finish with moisturizer.

First off, I remove my makeup with a gentle cleanser and wash my face with warm water. I then exfoliate or apply a face mask to pamper my tired skin, depending on my 'skin's mood'. Yes. *Sigh* My skin has her own personality and behave differently each day.

Hello May! Please be nice to me! Feat. Yankee Candles

Hello my lovely readers!

I hope the new month of May has started well for you all. Mine has been just lovely! Since my final exams are nearing (and given today was a public holiday), I devoted my whole morning and afternoon to revision and practising past exams papers. And, I went to the beach in the evening. It was seriously awesome! I swam and let go all stress, worries, anything and everything dragging my energy level down. There was just me, the sea and the open sky... It was really uplifting and I felt rejuvenated.. Did I tell you I love the sea? ;) And I'm feeling soooo motivated now! :) 

So, I decided to write a post on my favourite candles from Yankee Candles. These guys seriously produce the best scented candles ever! I have always had a crave for scented candles ever since they came into existence! Lol. Here goes my favourite candles list:

1. Merry Marshmallow

This candle is soooooooooo delicious smelling! I simply adore it to bits! I wonder when a candy with this scent as flavour will be invented? Like, when I smell this, I remember Christmas, cupcakes with vanilla frosting, eclairs, December shopping, cozy nights.. Hmmmm.. This candle is a MUST-HAVE. It's sweet smelling but not a too overpowering sweet scent. It is really like a-sweet-vanilla-marshmallow scent, and the perfect time to lit this baby up, imo, is during winter nights. It is a comforting scent that will envelop you and your senses...

2. Beach Walk

I'm not even kidding, this one will totally blow you away! It has a musky sea scent that is so wonderful and pleasing. It's a scent that you can totally take in after a stressful day, and relaxing alone at home or with your spouse/ partner. For people who do not like sweet smelling candles, then this one is a sure bet for you. Buy this, and you will be asking for more! 

3. Beach Flowers

For those happy souls who love flower scents, well, this one is totally for you. Beach Flowers has a lovely scent of flowers, that lingers softly. It is light, fresh, and a really feminine scent. This one is a great spring scent, and something you can lit with guests around.

4. Beach Wood

This scent reminds me of spa, relaxation, hammam, sauna, and everything therapeutic. I think it's because of the deeper notes in the scent, but overall, this is an exotic scent that really relaxes you. Again, this one is not overwhelming. The tart candles can be a tad bit stronger than the ones in the jars, but nevertheless, it is a musky-sandalwood type scent, that stimulate your senses. It's just awesome for that romantic night with your lover (romantic rainy night is even better.. ;)... Yes, I am a romantic at heart ;) heheh)

What are your favourite scents? And do you have a special one for a special occasion/ date?

Please feel free to comment below and share your views.

Much Love,

xoxo

EOTD feat. Maybelline Color Tattoo On and On Bronze and MAC Satin Taupe!

I have recently purchased the Maybelling Color Tattoo 24Hr Cream Gel Shadow in On and On Bronze. It is such a gorgeous color! 

It's creamy bronzy and shimmery eyeshadow that glides smoothly on your eyelids when applied. I find it a lovely bronze metallic and I will gladly recommend it for a night out or a date. It adds sultriness to the eyes ;) woohoo!

Maybelline Color Tattoo in On and On Bronze

If you don't know yet, I am a HUGE bronze eye shadow junkie! I love 'em to bits! I adore metallic bronze eyeshadows and find it a really neutral look which you can spice up by darkening it or adding glitters. 

So, I was playing around with my makeup and did this eye makeup on my sweet sister, who happily lent me her eyes for some minutes so that I can do my masterpiece ;) heheh 

Here is the final look:

I really liked the final result and I'm so gonna use this for nights out or even a dinner date! ;)

The products that I used to achieve this look are:

Mac Paint Pot in Soft Ochre

Maybelline Color Tattoo On and On Bronze

Mac Satin Taupe

Mac Soft Brown

Mac Espresso

Nyx Glitter palette in Bronze Goddess

Bourgeois Beaux Art Liquid liner

Maybelline Falsies Mascara

Black Eye pencil

For the face, I used only moisturiser and some face powder to mattify the skin. 

Step 1. Use the Soft Ochre all over the eyelids as a base. You can use another base of your choice, so that the makeup stays in place and does not crease, esp. the eyelids are oily.

Step 2. Apply On and On Bronze on the eyelid stopping at the crease.

Step 3. Apply good old Mac Satin Taupe all over On and On Bronze. It will really bring out the taupe-iness of the shadow and make it look sexy ;)

Step 4. Blend Soft Brown or a medium toned brown eyeshadow in the crease, to add dimension to the eyes.

Step 5. In the outer crease, use a pencil brush to crease the V shape using Espresso or a dark brown eyeshadow. Then blend the harsh lines away with a blending brush.

Step 6. Apply eyeliner and falsies then two coats of mascara for that glamorous lashes. Drag the eyeliner to the inner corners and create a feline look by outlining the inner corners connecting them in a sharp V, and add light shadows to open up the eyes.

Step 7. Use the pencil brush and brush some On and On Bronze on the lower lashline and Espresso on top of it, to add definition to the eyes.

Step 8. Finally, add some gold glitters on top of the mobile eyelid -in the middle- and voila! The look is complete.

I recommend using a peachy pink blush- there are nice ones in Mac and Tarte- and nude lips.

Hope you try this look, and do leave comments below to share your thoughts on it!

Much love to you all!

xxxx

Review: Benefit's Hoola Bronzer

Hello Lovelies!

Hope you all are doing great!

I am SUPER happy today! My day went so smoothly and and I felt really energized during the day. I feel sooooo Happy!!! :) I think it's because I was able to sleep soundly last night, after so long time.

Anyway, so today I am going to review Benefit's Hoola Bronzer. I had ordered it online, on Benefit's website and it got delivered after almost three weeks.

The box contained the product ordered and two samples. The bronzer was on sale for $28 and for samples, I chose the Porefessional Pore Minimizing Powder and Fake Up concealer in Medium.

Hoola Bronzer, Fake Up Concealer and Porefessional Powder

The Star of the Box ;) The packaging is really cute and original.

As per the instructions, the bronzer should be brush across cheekbones and forehead for the tanned look.

Hoola Bronzer with brush and mirror

Hoola Bronzer

Without Hoola Bronzer

With Hoola Bronzer

You can already see the difference the bronzer makes from the above two pictures. In the second picture, the cheekbones are more prominent than in the first one and looks natural. No fakes over here ;)

Pros:
1. Perfect color for contouring. A MUST buy!
2. Staying power is great.
3. Comes with a brush, which makes it easier to create that high cheekbone effect.
4. LOVE the package. The powder comes in a box, which is really cute imo! :)

Cons:
1. Price. For the amount of product obtained, the bronzer is quite expensive. But it is something I know I will definitely repurchase because of the quality.

All I can say is that your makeup box is incomplete without the Hoola Bronzer. It is a product worth spending for and somethng you will not regret buying.

Do you have the Hoola Bronzer? How do you find it?

Please do leave your comments below. I'd love to hear about it :)

Much love,
xx

Happy Attitude, Happy Life

It is often said that the turn that our life takes and will take, depends majorly upon our attitude in life. And over all these years of my existence, I have come to see that this is absolutely true! It is our mind, our attitudes, our disposition will can make or break us. 

Being happy is our natural state, that's how we are meant to be. Like, remember when we used to be a child. That carefree nature, total bliss and excitement over doing things, looking forward to picnics, outings, and finding everything so amazing... 

That's what brings happiness. Especially in this world of today, where the main focus is on materialism. It is important for us to realise that there are small things in life which can procure us of immense happiness to our souls.

I just saw this post and thought of sharing it with you all. These 12 things are really important, and I am totally going to do this as a 12-day plan! ;) 

One thing a day! 

Hope this inspires you today and may happiness comes bountifully in your lives!

And remember, just smile and be happy! That's what counts the most in life! Happiness.

Makeup Haul :))))

Hellooooo Everyone!

Hope all of you are doing great.

I had done some online shopping on Ebay (mainly makeup stuff) and thought of sharing with you all the products that I bought and my thoughts thoughts on them. 

So, I will start off with my palette, which I am building gradually... Hehe. I am collecting MAC eyeshadows, and I must say, I am deeply impressed with the quality of the eyeshadows as well as their staying power. I bought some eyeshadows, which are mostly neutral colors. 

Beginners' Palette

I bought Soft Brown which is described as a soft golden peachy brown color which complements my warm undertones nicely. I use it mainly as a transition color in my crease. It shows off well on the lids and I find it to be a great color which can be used liberally during the day in the crease to create a soft definition. This is now one of my staple eyeshadows, which I would recommend to anyone starting to build their Mac eyeshadow collection to purchase.

Next color I got is All That Glitters, which is described as a beige with gold pearl with a Veluxe Pearl finish on Mac's website. But I personally find it to be a light pink peachy color with a frost finish. It looks frosty to be definitely, and is an amaaaaazing color! It is really suitable for an everyday look.

Expensive Pink is such a pretty color in itself. It is a pink with gold duochrome eyeshadow. I find it to be a rare color and so flattering. I'm absolutely in love with it! I use this on my eyelids on its own, with some eyeliner, and I'm ready to go! 

Satin Taupe has become another one of my favourite eyeshadows, and is a taupe with silver shimmer. It is another great color in itself, and can be used to create a gorgeous smokey eye. I use Espresso with this and it works perfectly! 

Espresso is described as a muted golden brown and is a dense brown color, absolutely great for the crease for added depth to the eyes. I use this on my lower lashline for more definition to the eyes during the day.

I also bought Rule eyeshadow, which is a vivid orange color. However, it does not come out as bright as it is in the below picture. I use this in my crease for added warmth when I am rocking gold eyeshadows, and the overall look is soooooo marvelous! I shall post pictures on the eyeshadow looks soonish! 

Last but not least, I bought Woodwinked, the much talked about eyeshadow. It is a muted gold color and I adore it. It is a neutral one and I love it! Yes, I am diggin' neutrals atm! ;)

For the face, I got the MAC Mineralized Skinfinish in Soft and Gentle. It is basically a gorgeous champagne color highlighter. Use this to highlight your cheekbones, and you will never use another highlighter, trust me! This product is waaayyyy amazing! It looks best at night though, and gives a nice glow to the cheeks which I absolutely love.

MAC Mineralized Skinfinish in Soft and Gentle

Swatch of Soft and Gentle, photo taken w/o flash

 Oops.. I almost forgot this one... Another eye product that I got is MAC's Pro Longwear Paint Pot in Soft Ochre. It is a yellow base for eyeshadows. I bought this after much research on the net since I wanted to get Painterly (which is more pink based). But I found out that the choice does not depend on our undertones (warm ,i.e. yellow undertones, if you have green veins and cool, i.e. pink undertones, if you have blue veins). But the base works on the type of eyeshadows you are applying. So this made more sense ;) If you are going to rock a pink based eyeshadow, such as pink or mauve, purple, eyeshadows then you should use Painterly as a base. And gold, or warm eyeshadows will look best with Soft Ochre as base. 

The eyeshadow base helps the eyeshadows to last longer and make the color more intense. You would never go back to putting eyeshadow on bare eyelids ever again once you start using the MAC's Paint Pot.

MAC's Paint Pot in Soft Ochre

It is a creamy, thick consistency. Smells quite funny though but the scent does not linger, which is great.

Swatch of Soft Ochre on my sister's hand ;)

Have you used any of the above products? How do you like it?

Leave your comments below to let me know!

x