Mid Week Review - Australis Part II

Well, I am back again with another Australis review. My last Australis review was actually quite popoular, also make sure you catch up on all my previous Mid Week Reviews. This week I am reviewing a foundation that I had been recently using and I think it is one of the most popular Australis foundations, the Oh2Glow foundation.

Australis has marketed this foundation as a light diffusing foundation that has great coverage and provides a natural glow. It has Vitamins A, E and C and Aloe Vera which means it's really hydrating for the skin and I would also like to mention that it is cruelty free and completely vegan! I purchased this from Priceline but you can get Australis from quite a few places here in Australia, or even their website. This foundation retails for $22.95 (AUD) which is pretty standard for drugstore foundations in Australia.

I have been using this foundation for over a month now, and it's been what I use everyday. When I first started using it, I really loved this foundation. I think it is super hydrating and gives an even coverage and nice finish to the skin. Then a few weeks into using it started going really funny on my skin, it would start separating and going patchy which I thought was really weird as I hadn't changed anything.

As for quality, I do think it is a great quality however it doesn't even compare to any of the high end foundations I use like Nars Sheer Glow or Too Faced Born This Way. The only downside is that they don't have a super big range of shades, however they have just released their shade adjusting drops which is going to allow people to get a more accurate match. The consistancy of this foundation is amazing though and it just applies easily.

I love the coverage of this foundation, however I hate using a damp sponge to blend it out. The best way to apply and blend the foundation out is to use a dense kabuki type brush to buff it into the skin. It blends out super well and is super buildable which is good for days where you want a more intense coverage.

As for wear throughout the day it does tend to last a few hours, if you use it with a primer. With this foundation I opted for the Australis primer and setting it with a loose powder, which seemed to help it last through the day, however towards the end it did start to get patchy. I don't know why it was starting to split and go patchy but I think it may have been the heat, as we were getting some quite warm days the past few weeks.

I'm not too sure if it is worth the money - I feel that if you are spending almost $25 on a drugstore foundation you may as well just spend that extra $25 for a high end one. However, if you are looking for that slightly cheaper, vegan alternative this is a good option. You get 28ml, compared to the previously mentioned high end foundations that have 30ml it is good value for money.

Overall, I love this foundation but I don't tend to reach for it on days that I want that long lasting, flawless base minus the patchyness. If you are looking for a good drugstore foundation I do think this is one of the better ones and definitely recommend getting it, or even waiting until Priceline have their sales to get it slightly cheaper. The only thing that I don't like about it is that it goes patchy but I don't think that's the foundations fault as I have only noticed it on the really hot days recently.

Do you use this foundation? What do you think? Do you have any other drugstore recommendations?

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Mid Week Review - Kylie Cosmetics

I am fairly sure there is hundreds of reviews of these lip kits out there but I really wanted to give you guys my honest review and experience with these popular beauty products.

Liquid lipsticks have definitely become a trend over the past 6-12 months and hopefully you have read my favourite liquid lipsticks post. When Kylie announced she was releasing matte liquid lipsticks I knew I had to grab some, so the two shades I picked up were KoKo K and Exposed. I'll be honest, it took me a while to purchase these as they would sell out so quickly, but I finally got them!

I love these liquid lipsticks, although I have noticed the quality of both these lipkits differs quite a bit, however they are both really nice on the lips. I love KoKo K, it is definitely my favourite colour out of the two. The formula is very creamy and doesn't dry out the lips, however I have had a few issues with the Exposed lipkit. My main concern with this shade is that once it dried it started to flake and peel from my lips. Even when I was just pressing my lips together it would start to peel, which kind of sucks because I end up having to just take it all off.

I don't have any issue with the lip liners. I think they are great. They are very creamy and glide on the lips so well, plus they are super pigmented. You can use them on their own but they really make the liquid lipstick last much longer.

Apart from the issue with Exposed, KoKo K is very long lasting whether you use the lip liner or not. You definitely only need one coat of the liquid lipsticks as it is very pigmented and is true to the colour on the packaging and bottle.

The lipkits cost $29USD which equates to around $38AUD, with shipping adding up to $15USD which is almost $20AUD. I would definitely say that this is a high end price point, so it isn't cheap but the product is great. Considering it was shipping from the US it was quite fast - it took just under 2 weeks to be delivered, which is great.

Considering you get two products, I don't think $38 is that bad for the lipkit, however the shipping cost is a bit extravagent. So, if you are wanting to get these products I'd suggest waiting for when Kylie announce free shipping or discounted shipping.

I would suggest trying out these lipkits if you are a fan of liquid lipsticks. I know that Kylie changed the formula so I could've possibly gotten the old formula of Exposed  hence having issues with the longevity and wear. I have not had any issues with KoKo K so I definitely want to purchase more colours. It is very high quality, doesn't dry out your lips and doesn't get tacky or sticky which is what I love about matte liquid lipsticks.

Let me know what you think about the Kylie Lip Kit and which shades I should get.

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Mid Week Review - Australis

Hey, look who is sticking to a schedule! If you missed last weeks review you can read it here. This week I will be reviewing the Australis Contour and Highlight palette. I've been using this palette for almost 2 years now and I have a few mixed opinions on it.

Countouring has become such a trend and this is definitely a more affordable option for anyone who is just starting out, this palette comes in both cream and powder formulas and also has light, medium and dark palettes. Although I do have the cream contour palette, today I am reviewing the powder contour palette.

I don't mind the quality of this palette, however I do think that some of the darker contour shades can be really difficult to blend so I do suggest using a tiny amount to start out with and blend before adding anymore colour. Personally, I haven't tried any high end contour kits so I can't make any comparisons to those but for under $20, it is a decent product.

I'm quite pale so I always tend to use a cool toned, lighter contour shade like the one in the middle, as for highlighting I'm not a real fan of the banana shade. I know this comes as a shock as EVERYONE loves a good banana powder but for me it is wayyy too yellow for my skin.

I prefer to use the pinker powder to just set under my eyes and even underneath the contour to create a more carved out line. The third highlight shade in this palette is my favourite drugstore highlighter. It adds a nice glow to the cheekbones and also works well on the brow bone and as an inner corner highlight.

The powder probably isn't the highest quality as it has a lot of kick back which you can kind of see on the pans already, and also some of the darker shades don't blend that well. Although the blendability of some shades is difficult, it isn't completely impossible to work with. I will add that it does last all day and doesn't tend to fade at all.

You can see from these swatches that they are very pigmented which is why they are quite difficult to blend but as I previously stated, using a little at a time and blending between application will make it a lot more smoother.

I bought this palette at Priceline here in Australia, however you can purchase it from the Australis website as well. It retails for $16.95 here but for all my Australian readers, Priceline currently has a 40% off cosmetic sale. For a drugstore product this is quite a fair price. It comes down to around $3 per pan which is very reasonable. 

I've had this for almost 2 years and only 2 shades have hit pan, admittingly I haven't used this palette everyday but there is a consistant use. With the darker contour shades, a little goes a long way so for the price it lasts quite a long time. As for the highlight shades, it's easy to use a lot of them as they tend to cover a larger area compared to the contour shades. 

Overall, this product would be great for someones first contour kit. Just remember that blending is key with this palette, also a little tends to go a long way with the contour shades. Personally I really like this palette but I have recently purchased a new contour palette that I'm testing out for now. For a drugstore contour kit I definitely think it is worth purchasing and recommend you go and try it out.

Have you used this contour kit? What do you think of it?

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Mid Week Review - Maybelline

I've been trying to think of a weekly series I could start up and figured that a weekly review would be a good place to start. It's also a way I can share what I've been loving and trying out, besides who doesn't love a good, honest review?

First up, I've recently come to the end of the Maybelline Age Rewind Concealer and can I just say this is a holy grail concealer! It has been featured in quite a few posts recently, mostly favourites which you can see here and here, as well as being listed in my Must Have Beauty Products post.

This concealer has been raved about for years and I only recently was able to try it out and I can safely say that I love it! For a drugstore concealer it can be compared to many high end concealer products and can even be better than the latter. I do think this is a vew high quality product, especially when it is under $20. The only downside is that it is only available in three shades, so for darker complexions it isn't really suitable.

The Priceline website states that it is formulated with Goji berries that helps to reduce puffyness and erase dark circles and fine lines. Admittingly, some days I do have quite puffy eyes and it did help to conceal and reduce their appearance so it's quite effective in that sense, however I found it didn't last the whole day which is kind of a let down. I don't have many fine lines, but it did quite well at hiding them for most of the day, but it isn't something I am super worried about unlike the dark circles.

I love the formula of this concealer! It is a gorgeous creamy consistancy and using the sponge applicator allows the product to go on evenly which is a real plus for me. I tend to use this product under my eyes and to highlight the bridge of my nose, forehead and chin so the sponge allows for easy application on those areas.

This concealer provides amazing coverage, and a little goes a long way. One thing I like in a concealer is one that doesn't crease and go patchy under the eyes which is why I love this one. There is very minimal creasing and if set with a powder it doesn't go patchy or look cakey. The last thing you want is for your undereyes to look cakey.

In Australia, this product retails for $18.95 at Priceline for 5.9ml of product. This is pretty good, as a higher end concealer like Urban Decay Naked Skin which retails for $46 for only 5ml of product. I found this concealer didn't last as long as the Urban Decay one, which could be due to the product not being as thick. Although the sponge applicator is great, I feel that most of the product gets absorbed by the sponge which kinda sucks. Another downside is that there's a small amount of product that get's left behind in the bottom of tube and I have no idea how to open this up to get it out.

Overall, I highly recommend this product. Although it does have some downfalls, I can look past that especially considering how affordable it is for the quality. I haven't rushed out to buy another one as I have recently repurchased the Urban Decay concealer and currently testing out the Too Faced Born This Way concealer, which has been ticked off my wishlist. Both will be included in a Mid Week Review shortly!

Have you tried out this concealer? What do you think?

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