little white truths

I've just wound-up Project Dent for an Hourglass blush and I've decided to introduce another blush to replace it: that is, a bronzer that I bought for the purposes of using as a blush because I loved the colour but it doesn't work on my skintone for bronzing.

Yep, it's my Urban Decay Beached Bronzer in Sunkissed. I bought both shades of this product when the formula came out, and while I do like it, it's not my favourite so I wouldn't buy either one of them again.

Do note, though, that I like the 'blush' (this one in Sunkissed) better than the bronzer (Bronzed), simply because it's a colour that I didn't have in my collection before and I can wear it with a lot of things. Bronzed wasn't a unique shade in my collection, which is why I've already panned it.

If you're interested, I've reviewed Sunkissed here.

Here's how it's looking today, 1 September 2018:

Same shot, enhanced for clarity:

As you can see, I've already got a dip happening in the centre of this pan so it shouldn't be too hard to deepen that over the next fortnight.

I can also see the faintest whisper of the ring pattern in the surface of this product, so I'm hoping to make that more obvious over the next two weeks.

Wish me luck! What I might do tomorrow is remove my Jaclyn Hill Morphe palette from circulation earlier than intended because I'm ready to move on, and instead bring in one of my brighter Marc Jacobs palettes to dent alongside this nude blush.

Hope all's well with you, and speak soon x

We've got plenty on this weekend so I'm not sure how much blogging I'll get done - which of course means that my August empties posts and also my August Project Pan update likely won't happen until next week.

While that's ok, it's a bit annoying to fall this far behind so I'd at least like to try to move through a few smaller posts that are due now - this being one of them.

As you may know, these Hourglass blushes are my absolute favourites and I honestly don't think I'll ever find a formula that beats them. I've reviewed this one here.

One thing I'll note is that this blush is currently the oldest beauty product I own so I was interested in seeing whether or not the formula had become less beautiful over time (it's at least four years old now, perhaps closer to five), and what I can say is this:

While at first I thought some of the airbrushing effect had gone (so it didn't look as angelic on the skin), what I did was remove the top layer with sticky tape, and I'm pleased to report that the product underneath still holds its integrity and looks as good as my newer Hourglass blushes. Definitely worth noting. Having said this, I'd prefer to start panning this product sooner rather than later, before it loses some of its brilliance. Perhaps next year.

Anyhoo. Here's how Dim Infusion looked two weeks ago:

And here's how it's looking now:

Below I've enhanced the above two shots for clarity.

Two weeks ago:

And now: 

As you can see, there's not much visible difference between the before and after shots (there never is, with Hourglass products), but I can certainly see some differences between the surface marks on both pans.

The original shots appear to have more air-bubbles overall and the later shots appear to be a little smoother. You should also be able to see that a lot of the remaining marks are in different spots or look different themselves (eg in terms of size and/or shape), so I've at least moved through enough of the product to uncover new air-bubbles while removing some of the old ones.

Overall it's been a successful round of Project Dent because I've discovered that this blush is not only working as well as it always did, but also that it would be better to pan it sooner rather than later because the upper layers of powder will eventually start to lose some of their efficacy.

Now, to choose my next item for Project Dent...

Hope all's well with you, and speak soon x

This week has been an absolute nightmare, let me tell you. Both kids have been louder, crazier and more demanding than usual, my parents are overseas (so no babysitters) and my husband's working hours have become a little longer because he's recently received a promotion.

What this means is that I haven't been able to write as much as usual, nor have I been able to practise mindfulness in the spare moments because there are none. Unsurprisingly, it's incredibly difficult to meditate and quieten your mind when toddlers are screaming at you and demanding snacks every two seconds.

Less writing and no mindfulness means a fizzing, crackling mind. This is how a person goes from coping towards not coping in the space of a fortnight, so thank golly we're headed for the weekend now and I'll at least have Mex at home and therefore another set of hands on deck.

I digress. This hand cream. I really like it, and I'm picky with hand creams because my skin is dry so I need something hydrating, but I'm also using my hands a lot so I don't want something that's too heavy or slippery.

Thankfully this product treads exactly the right balance between being effective while still being practical for day-use and I'm loving it. I would absolutely recommend it, and I do plan on buying myself one when I've finished mine because it suits my skin. More on that below.

Origins claims/product details:

• Lavish hands in long-lasting smoothness with this daily hand treatment that revives rough, chapped and uneven skin
• A non-greasy daily hand treatment that works to relieve dryness, smooth roughness and even skintone
• With its star ingredient, rose of jericho, plus an array of other skin revitalisers such as trehalose and sea haricots, these properties work hand-in-hand to nourish dehydrated skin, restore UV damage and soften chapped, cracked hands
• The result is skin that is brighter, silky smooth and evenly textured
• Dermatologist tested
• RRP $23 AUD for 50ml

Verdict

I'm really enjoying this product and I recommend it.

It's a white cream with a sweet and green, garden-like scent. It's quite thick and rich so it mightn't be for those who don't like heavier products, but for my dry skin, it's perfect and it's a great hand cream for the cooler months.

Do note that I've given this to my husband to try too, and he also really likes it. This is relevant because he has normal skin and doesn't like anything that's too greasy, so if he likes it, that says something. Plus he's tried more hand creams than I have because he's something of a hand cream junkie (don't tell the boys ;)) - so he's a good person to use as a back-up tester in this department.

What I like about this product is that it spreads and absorbs well, and it does a fantastic job of bringing some relief to my dry skin. This is especially important at the moment because I have chilblains and my hands are red, blistered, cracked and irritated - so anything that offers some cooling comfort to my skin is very much welcome. This cream also hasn't irritated any open wounds I have on my hands from my chilblains, so that's worth mentioning too.

On the claims: yes this has helped treat my rough, chapped skin; yes it's non-greasy and yes it has helped relieve dryness; no I haven't noticed any change in my my skintone (as in, it hasn't evened out my complexion); and yes it has nourished my dehydrated skin and made it feel smoother.

Overall I think this is an excellent hand cream and it's now among my favourites. It's helped my dry skin and it's a pleasure to use because it feels so nourishing without weighing my skin down. It's also not ridiculously priced, and while I normally buy hand creams from the pharmacy, I'm willing to make an exception with this one.

Lovely.

I bought these cotton cloths a while ago because I needed to add something to my cart in order to get free shipping, and I also needed some new face cloths so I thought I would try them.

I'm sorry to say that I don't think they're great - which I wasn't expecting because they're from Alpha-H (my favourite skincare brand) - and while I'll use them, I still want to find myself some other cloths because these aren't right for me. More on that below.

Alpha-H claims/product details:

• Ideal for removing your preferred Alpha-H cleanser or mask
• Reveal a fresh radiant complexion every day of the week with a soft cotton cloth that gently exfoliates the skin while sweeping away daily grime and makeup
• Suitable for all skin types
• Contains seven pure cotton muslin cloths
• RRP $29 AUD for seven cloths, but do shop around (I paid less than $20 for mine)

Verdict

This will be a short review because there's not much to say about cotton cloths, but suffice to say that these don't work as well for me as I'd hoped.

They're beautifully presented in a little box, rolled up and tied with ribbons, but as soon as I picked one up, I sensed that it wouldn't be the right face cloth for me personally.

My issue is that they're very thin and not soft (more like a stiff handkerchief than a towel), so they don't hold water as well as I would like.

Also, they don't feel soft against my skin and there's something a little abrasive about them. Yes one side is more textured and the other is more smooth, but when it comes to wiping one across my face, both sides feel the same: that is, not soft enough for me.

Plus because these don't hold water very well, I feel like like they're not effective enough either. I have to use the entire cloth (both sides) to remove my makeup, and they're a little larger than your average face-cloth so if I'm using the entire surface area each time, that's not a good sign. 

On that, while normally I can use one of my face cloths four times (half of one side, then the other side, then flip it over and repeat) before washing one, with these, I need one whole cloth per use. This means more washing, so they're not as practical (or as environmentally friendly) as I would like them to be.

Overall I don't recommend these and I plan to replace mine with something else as soon as possible. They're not effective, I don't like how they feel against my skin and they're also not environmentally friendly, considering that I need to wash one after each use.

Not for me.

Hello and welcome to another Project Pan mini update! Yes I'm due to write August's full update post now, but I'm so far behind in my posting this month that I thought I'd write a quick mini update today and then go from there.

It's been a tough couple of weeks, I must say. Everything's fine but my son has taken full ownership of the terrible twos now (although he's not yet two), so we're in an adjustment period and it's been nigh-impossible to get on the computer.

Hoh well. We're here now. 

So, I've finally finished my Inika primer, which I've been panning for god knows how long. 

While I absolutely love this product, it was the oldest primer in my collection so I'm glad I've finished it. It's also a better product for winter because it's so hydrating - so better that I've finished it now, just as we're about to move into Spring.

I've also managed to finish my Revlon HD Lip Gel in Vineyard, which didn't take me long to pan because there's only 1.7g of product in these things. 

Yes I like the formula and yes I've scraped out the remainder of the product so I could put it into a little pot, meaning I've got a raspberry on-hand in future if needed (I only have three lipsticks left!) - but for these purposes, the packaging is empty and I'm calling this product done.

As for replacements, I'm not going to worry about that for now - instead I'll introduce some additional items in August's update (when I finally get to it). I still have empties posts to do for August too...

Ach. At least the sun's out ; )

That's all from me. Hope all's well with you, and speak soon x

I've been meaning to review this facial oil for ages now but as so often happens, it's fallen victim to more urgent posts so it's only today that I'm finally sitting down to review it.

The product came as a freebie with Priceline's Pink Diamond rewards program, and I chose it as one of my two items from the available selection because I have dry skin and another facial oil will never go astray.

I've been using it for a couple of months now and I have a few uses left at best, so I'd better review it before it's gone for good!

I hadn't heard of this brand before so I had a quick look at its website.

Verdict

This is a nice facial oil and I'm glad I've tried it. Do note, though, that while it's not unreasonably priced, it's more expensive than most of the budget facial oils I've used and enjoyed - eg those from The Ordinary, or my personal favourite, Natural Instinct's Rejuvenating Rosehip Oil (reviewed here) - plus you only get 20ml of product in this while the others contain a standard 30ml.

It's a lightweight oil that smells faintly herbal and absorbs well. It's hydrating without feeling too oily or heavy on the skin, so it may suit those with oily skin who don't like super rich oils.

On that, it's lightweight enough that I can use it both morning and evening without worrying that my makeup will slip around over it, and I can't say this of all facial oils so that's a plus. 

Having said this, I also don't think it's as nourishing as other oils I've used (perhaps it's too thin for that), so for my dry skin, it's not the right product for the cooler months when I need something with more punch. It might work better for my skin in summer.

One thing to note is that I seem to need a lot more of this per application than I do other oils. I've no idea why that is because it does spread well; perhaps it's simply that my skin is at its driest at the moment so it may be clinging to product more than usual. Still, I wanted to point this out because, given that you only get 20ml, I'm burning through this faster than I would like so it's not good value for me on a price-per-use basis.

In terms of what it's doing for my skin other than hydrating it, I don't think it performs backflips and I'm not sure that it necessarily protects/rejuvenates my skin as claimed or stimulates collagen production (which is a hard claim to gauge anyway). It's just an oil, and I remain convinced that most oils don't do much else than hydrate and nourish.

Overall I like this product well enough, but I wouldn't go for this over something that's cheaper and contains more product because it doesn't do any more than the other pharmacy-brand oils I've tried. 

Nice.

I wrote my makeup no buy update this morning so I thought I'd check back in now and write a quick update for my skincare low buy.

As you may know, I did no buys for both skincare and makeup during the first half of this year, and I switched to a low buy for skincare after my birthday month in June because by then I'd got my stores down enough that I wasn't overloaded anymore.

My skincare budget for each month is $100, which sounds like a lot until you remember that this doesn't get you very far in Australia!

Let's see what I bought during August.

* Image courtesy of adorebeauty.com.au

L'Occitane Aqua Gel Cleanser (RRP $32 AUD for 195ml)

While I need another cleanser like I need a hole in the head, what's missing from my stash is a plain, gentle, non-foaming cleanser without active ingredients - and this one has been on my list to try for ages.

It's apparently ideal for all skin types, and it should remove impurities, excess oil and makeup residue, leaving your skin feeling refreshed, hydrated and clean.

Since L'Occitane was on promotion recently at Adore Beauty - and since I also had a $20 gift card to spend - I went ahead and finally bit the bullet.

I just needed to add a second L'Occitane product to my cart to qualify for the free gift, and to also get me over the line for free shipping...

* Image courtesy of adorebeauty.com.au

L'Occitane Shea Cleansing Oil (RRP $32 AUD for 200ml)

This cleansing oil has been on my wishlist for years. I kept meaning to buy it, but then different brands were half-price at Priceline so I opted for other cleansing oils instead. 

But because I needed a plain cleanser, had my gift card and L'Occitane purchases came with a GWP if you bought two products, I finally went ahead and bought it.

It's described as a delicate, silky-textured cleansing oil that efficiently removes impurities and makeup (including waterproof makeup) in a single step. It should cleanse the skin without stripping it, leaving it looking fresh and radiant. 

Can't wait to use this! It's been a long time coming...

In sum

Well, with the gift card I only spent $43 on skincare this month: pretty good for me!

This means I have an extra $57 to add to next month's budget if I want to use it - and I do have a Goldfaden MD cream that I've been wanting to buy for ages (that costs $124), so perhaps next month will be the month : )

Hope all's well with you, and speak soon x

* All images courtesy of unsplash.com unless otherwise indicated

It's not quite the end of August but I thought I'd check in now because there won't be any more purchases this month, and before you say 'wait, you're not meant to have any purchases when you're on a no buy', let me explain.

My husband bought me two $50 gift cards this month (one for Mecca and one for Sephora), which was a complete surprise. He did this because we had visitors from Mexico earlier in August, and because my parents are overseas and my son decided that he would throw tantrums wherever we went, what this meant was that I did a lot more solo kid-minding than we'd planned. No dinners, lunches or sight-seeing for me. Surprise gift cards for me instead. Yay!

As you may know, gift card purchases are 'allowed' under my no buy rules, and since I don't need skincare at the moment but I am running low on some makeup items, I put the gift-card money towards things I actually needed.

Let's have a look.

* Image courtesy of mecca.com.au

Hourglass Confession Ultra Slim High Intensity Refillable Lipstick in I Lust For

Yep, I bought myself a second one, which I'd promised to do once my makeup no buy ended - but since I had a $50 gift card and these retail for $49 (with the packaging; the refills are cheaper), I went ahead and bought another one.

Why do so now, rather than waiting until the end of my no buy? For the simple reason that I only have three lipsticks left and I don't have a nude - and I need one! So rather than being stuck with choosing between an orange, a raspberry and a terracotta on the daily (which really limits what I can do with my eyeshadow and blush), I went ahead and filled the nude gap.

I guess you could call this an essential purchase, to be honest - also allowed under my no buy rules - but in any event, my gift card was best-used for a lipstick rather than anything else. And I wanted to spend it now: it's been a bugger of a month and I reckon I deserve a special treat ; )

* Image courtesy of mecca.com.au

Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion (Original)

The only eye primer I own is on its last legs and I was going to have to replace it anyway in September, so I threw the travel-size into my cart along with the above lipstick (plus a couple of $3 body-care minis to get me over the line for free shipping).

I'm using the anti-ageing version of this primer at the moment and it's not great for longevity (some of my eyeshadows crease over it, too), so I thought I'd better try the original and see if it's as good as everyone says.

Plus I love that you can buy these in travel-size. Most eye primers have six to twelve-month shelf-lives, and I don't know how on earth you'd get through a full-sized eye primer in that time unless you're a makeup artist, since you use so little per application.

Looking forward! I'm sick of using an eye primer that doesn't work as well as I need it to.

* Image courtesy of anastasiabeverlyhills.com

Anastasia Beverly Hills Powder Bronzer in Saddle

As you may know, this bronzer has been on my wishlist from the moment I first saw the swatches. It's exactly the shade I've been looking for ever since my Stila Sun Bronzer in Dark ran out, and I was planning to buy it as soon as my spending ban lifted - but I ended up using my $50 gift card on it for a few reasons.

First, I've already finished three bronzers this year and I'm currently working on a fourth, so there's been room in my collection for another one for a while.

Second, these things are often out of stock (and like many new and popular releases, they 'magically' become out of stock whenever Sephora has one of its 20 per cent off sales - do you really think we haven't worked that out Sephora?) so I wanted to grab it while I could.

Third, Sephora FINALLY had a 500-point perk arrive this month, and I've been waiting to use my points on one of those for over a year - which is why I used the gift card now so I could get the Caudalie skincare set, rather than waiting until my no-buy ends in October and discovering that it had sold out.

Can't wait to use this thing! It's the shade I've been waiting for, for far too long.

In sum

That's all from me. While I've managed to acquire three makeup items this month, all three were allowed under my no buy rules.

Given that I had two unexpected gift cards show up this month so I was able to buy two things that were on my wishlist, I may end up extending my no buy past the end of September - especially because none of the upcoming festive releases we've seen so far have tickled my fancy. We'll see.

Hope all's well with you, and speak soon x

* All images courtesy of unsplash.com unless otherwise indicated

I barely slept last night so my brain's in all-sorts and I've been lying awake in bed for hours, debating whether or not to come downstairs and get on the computer before the kids wake up (fingers crossed), or whether to just lie in bed and rest my body before the onslaught of a full day at home with two pre-schoolers begins.

In the end I picked the computer - not something I do a lot these days because my body needs all the physical rest it can get. But sometimes it's nice to arrive downstairs and make my coffee in silence for once, and god forbid, to drink it while it's still hot (fingers crossed again).

I'm tired, I'm cold, it's going to be a long day...

Sounds like a good day for a monthly positives post.

Hello and welcome to my Pan that Palette update for August!

It's been a reasonable panning month and I've made some good progress on all three of the items I'm currently panning, and I'm still hopeful that I can knock out quite a few more pans before the end of the year. We shall see.

Let's get down to business, starting with the item I introduced in July to replace the Hourglass blush trio I finished.

Here's how my Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit Vol 2 (Surreal Light) looked last month:

And here's how it's looking now:

As you can see, I've made some good progress on this over the past month. The pale blush (centre top) is moving quickly, although that's because I've been able to use it as an all-over finishing powder. Yes it works as a blush on me, but if I use just a light dusting, it works like an Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powder would (ie, it blurs imperfections and offers a slight glow). I expect to finish this in September.

The bright blush I'm using not only as a blush, but I'm also adding some to the Laura Mercier highlighter I'm panning (which is too cool and frosty for me on its own). I also run a little over a finished eye look just to add that Hourglass soft-focus finish, and while I'm not sure I'll be able to finish the whole pan by Christmas, there's a reasonable amount gone already so I might be lucky.

As for the highlighter, you can see that I've kept working on the centre of the pan and there's a wider dip there now. I use this constantly on the eyes and also on the face (noting that I generally use the aforementioned Laura Mercier highlighter on the collarbones).

I reckon it's a line-ball call in terms of whether I can finish this by the end of the year. Fingers crossed!

Next up, my Burberry quad. I'm so over this thing, I can't tell you. Why? Because I only love one of the shadows in this palette (the dusty rose that I'm not panning) and also because the green is deceptive: it looks muddy grey on my skin.

There's how my palette looked last month:

And here's how it's looking now:

As you can see, I'm getting there with both the green and brown shades, which I'm using mixed as my brow colour, and I may well get there next month. 

I'm so close now that I might start double-purposing these shades in an attempt to finish them. Once I've done that, I'll be putting the dusty rose into my custom palette so I can call this quad empty.

I cannot tell you how much I'm looking forward to moving on from this thing!

Last up, my custom palette. As you may know, this product has seen a lot of change since I first started panning it, and while I've finished quite a few shadows now, the ones I have left are pretty slow going.

Here's how it looked last month:

And now:

As always, let's work in sections.

Left side, last month:

And now: