IndieAna- In Search of the HolyGrail

I really wanted to try one of my Dawn Eyes Cosmetics Premium loose eye shadows. They are multi-chrome, beautiful and needed to be applied to my lids. So, I took the opportunity to also create a Makeup Mess post. If you read my first Makeup Mess, you'll notice some of the same products, but I did change some things up. I'll begin with eye products. Elf Mad About Matte Eye Shadow Palette- I used 2 of these shadows in my crease, they make fantastic transition shades. Suva Beauty Block Party Eye Shadow Palette- I blended the navy blue shade into my outer "v". It is very pigmented, yet surprisingly blends easily, without being patchy.                                  Dawn Eyes Cosmetics Premium Eye Shadow in - I applied the star of the show on my lid over a sticky base. It is stunning, shifting from bronze to green to purple.  It's so hard to capture on camera, so take my wo...

When I went to a recent cosmetics sale at Priceline an eye shadow palette was definitely not on my radar. It has been years since I've bought drugstore eye shadow because the quality is a bit meh in my opinion. Well, I happened to come across a tester of the Australis Neutralize palette and of course I couldn't help but swatch. I immediately put one in my shopping basket. The palette contains 20 shades no less. Fancy packaging is something I am often drawn to, but I do like the practicality of being able to see the eye shadows through a clear plastic lid. As the name suggests, the shades are neutral, ranging from warm to cool, but there also some pink shades, too. Let's get on with the swatches. There is a mix of metallics and mattes. Every need is covered to complete an eye look. From a colour to set eye primer, a highlight shade, crease shades, outer corner and of course lid shades. We all know that I love a shimmery lid shade! The metallics ar...

Before I had a break from blogging, I started monthly favourites. This year I am trying not to buy so much, so I tend to stick to the same products. I do still discover items that I love, so I decided I will share my favourites whenever I have a handful of items to show. I have 6 products to show you that I have been loving. Nivea Medicated Lip Repair- This was an add on product to an order I had made through iHerb. I've gotta get that free shipping, right? I wasn't expecting to love this lip balm. It feels nourishing and the cooling effect is soothing on my dry lips. Lip balms don't generally get me excited, but this one is fantastic. Etude House Sunprise Sunscreen - This is a mineral sunscreen lotion that gives no white cast and is not greasy. Once absorbed, it is dry to the touch and being a lotion it is weightless. It seems that my favourite sunscreens are K-beauty ones. I really wish Australia had options like these and I didn't have to order online. ...

The reason I didn't write a monthly Beauty Favourites post in 2017 was because I spent much of it trying to finish set products in my project pans. I see the value in panning, but it meant that I didn't try many new products. I do have a handful of faves that although not new in 2017 were new to me, so I thought I would rave about them to you. Skin79 Water Wrapping Sunscreen - This is the best physical sunscreen I have used, ever . It is so easy to apply. There is no greasiness and no white cast, once absorbed, my skin is dry to the touch. I love that it's not thick and doesn't feel like I'm wearing a mask, yet it is hydrating. It's amazing, unfortunately it can be difficult to find. Australis Fresh and Flawless Powder- I am always late to the party, but last year (that is so weird to say!) I fell in love with this powder. It is so soft and creamy. Gives me that airbrushed look without being cakey. This finishing powder sets my foundation and ...

I really do like to create a lot of purple nail looks and today I have yet another one to show you. What can I say? I love purple! I started with Australis Nail Colour in #bethatgirl for my base colour. I then used a fine brush to paint small stripes of the frosted blue polish You Blew Me Away from FOA. That's it, so easy! Thanks for reading! xx

I was gifted some pretty nail art designs and cute embellishments from a lovely lady from Portugal who I am friends with on Instagram. Her account is @sarahpequena. She sells them, but sent some to me with no expectations of blog post or review purposes. The hardest part was choosing what to use first! I decided to use some of the blue diamantes, which went perfectly with the one in the floral design positioned in the 3rd row, last 2.  To go with the blue theme, I wanted a purple toned ombre. I chose Models Inc Opalescent as a base colour, using 2 coats.  To create the ombre, I painted a line of Opalescent onto a sponge repeating with a line of Australis #bethatgirl right next to it, overlapping slightly. I then positioned the sponge so that the purple polish would be placed on the tips of my nails. With a dabbing motion, moving up and down slightly, I was able to create the ombre. I hope I'm making sense! If you google ombre or gradient nails, there's ...

This year I have been panning (or trying to use up) an eye shadow palette. I was using the 88 Warm palette on a daily basis for eye contouring, so decided I would go for gold and see if I could empty the pans. So far, I've finished 36 pans, removing the pan once it's done which is so satisfying! My goal was to totally finish it, but I'm probably going to bin the palette when I've used the shadows that I enjoy using. I'm not really one to wear greys and silvers, plus there's some colours that don't have enough colour pay off for my liking. To be honest, I'm pretty stoked to get this far!  Face W7 concealer Garnier BB cream for oily/combo skin Models Prefer Argan concealer Silk Naturals Bronze Blur Powder 88 Warm palette for bronzer, highlight and blush Eyes 88 Warm palette ColourPop Cosmetics eye shadow in Cornelius YBF Universal Brow pencil Poni Cosmetics White Knight Mascara Urban Decay 24/7 eye liner in Bourbon ...

For this Christmas look, I went for a very wearable option. Something I'd be comfortable wearing during the festive season. Some regular products I wear daily, mixed with other not-so-loved makeup. Face W7 Photo-Shoot Foundation  Silk Naturals HD Peach Concealer Dr Lewinn's Anti-Aging Concealer Makeup Revolution "Blushing Hearts" blush  Australis Face-A-Holic compact, the highlighter Highlighter and blush swatches.  Eyes Maybelline Color Tattoo in "Barely Branded" 88 Warm Palette Earth Glo Minerals eye shadow in "Northern Lights" Mirenesse black 24 Hr Gel  Models Prefer Eye Liner in "Lime Tart" Mirenesse Cougar Mascara YBF Universal Eyebrow Pencil Lid colour, crease shades and Models Prefer eye liner. Lips Models Prefer Invisible Lip Liner MUA Cosmetics Lip Boom in "Bring It" Lip Boom lipstick and gloss. I wanted a fairly neutral, yet shi...