October Favourites 2012

Now that October has ended, it's time for a rehash of my favourites for the month!

Beauty Favourites...

Beauty

– Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua foundation (in the colour Beige Rose 10)

I purchased this foundation a few weeks ago after all of the hype about it inspired me to get my hands on it. I’ll do a full review of this soon, but I will say it has a gorgeous finish and is so luminous and gorgeous on the skin. It seems to even get better on my skin as the day progresses somehow! It's a great every day foundation, and I'm really happy with it so far.

Nails

–Essie’s Boxer Shorts

Without flash

With flash

This polish was purchased online because it’s not available in Australia for some reason. Boxer Shorts is a bluey purple creamy polish, that looks different in different lights. I was convinced it was blue until everyone said it was purple and then I’ve felt confused ever since! It’s so gorgeous on every skin tone and it is a really pretty, happy colour. I think it’s hopped into my top five nail polishes of all time already! I just love it more than most polishes I’ve tried ever.

Skincare/Bodycare

– Dior One Essential Skin Boosting Super Serum

This is just incredible. Goes on after toning and before moisturising (I do it at night before bed). It just leaves my skin baby soft and it looks so glowing and fresh in the morning after I’ve used it. You know how sometimes your skin feels a bit rougher and you can sometimes feel tiny little bumps on your forehead caused by dehydration? This completely wipes them out and rehydrates your skin, leaving it softer and smoother than ever.

General Favourites...

Food

- Sweet and Salty Popcorn (Coles brand)

Source

I don’t even like popcorn, but I love this. This is actually addictive. My friend brought it over and was like Kate you will love this. I initially was disbelieving as I never eat popcorn because to me it tastes boring, but this is something special. The salty sweet thing just works, and creates a dream team of flavor that is unbeatable in my opinion. Perfect for movie nights and a relatively healthier snack if you feel like junk food.

TV Show

– The Vampire Diaries

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This show has escalated so fast up the line of my favourite shows that it’s jumped into my absolute best top favourites. And keep in mind I watch an insane amount of TV shows! To be honest it seemed stupid before I watched it, but after a few episodes I was addicted to the drama, the thrill, the characters and the romance. The best romance ever, mind you. I LOVE DAMON! If you watch it let me know who you are rooting for Elena to end up with! If you don't watch it, then start now. You won't be sorry.

DVD

– Man on Fire

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I wanted to watch this movie because my friend said the film Taken ripped the idea off from this film. It was very similar, but as a whole I preferred Taken as I just love that film. But this was still really good, but kind of dark and depressing and a bit slow in parts (which Taken is definitely not!). 

I feel that this film's iconic status can basically be attributed to the littlest actor in the film - Dakota Fanning. She is an absolute star and she acts better than most adults I've ever seen. When she acted scared or worried or anything in the film I felt like my heart was being ripped out and felt like crying! Look how cute her little face is in that picture above awww! After watching it I googled Dakota Fanning's other films, and put them all on my list of must see films! She made this film.

Film

- Argo

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I saw this recently as my boyfriend picked it as our movie choice, and it was actually amazing (good choice Rich!). It's based on a true story where Iran takes some American hostages and it centres around the CIA's elaborate and crazy plan to smuggle them out unnoticed. They do this under the guise of filming a (fake) Hollywood movie, and the plan is just so crazy it might actually work... see it to find out what happens! It's full of thriller, on the edge of your seat moments, with humour and drama too. Ben Affleck directed, produced and was the lead actor in this film, and I think he did mighty well!

Clothing

– Black lace peplum top from Portmans

This top is amazing for many reasons. It’s feminine and girly and pretty, and the sheer lace up the top looks so lovely. It’s so flattering as black is slimming, it cinches in at the waist and slightly flares out into a peplum design over my stomach. But it’s very subtle for a peplum which I like. It looks great over a skirt or jeans and is very office or just general life appropriate.

Jewellery

– Rose gold and silver coin pendant necklace from Mocha

My lovely auntie bought this for me as a present and I just love it! I wear it almost every day and it goes with everything. I love rose gold teamed with silver, and the design is so pretty. The necklace feels nice and sturdy and really good quality whilst still having a delicate chain. I just love this necklace so much and it goes with everything in my wardrobe.

Item

- Glasshouse Christmas Party candle 

I recently posted about this candle in my Christmas haul. It has made my whole room smell like Christmas and the smell is just so incredibly festive and delicious and such a pleasure to my nose. It has an orange/ginger/nutmeg/sweet spicy smell. Pick it up before it all sells out because it is a limited addition!

So there you have my October favourites! Hope you all had a great October and Halloween, and if you are in Melbourne that you are enjoying the racing season and Spring! 

Hope your November has started off well :) I've got a four day weekend ahead of me so I am incredibly happy! xx

Iconic American Foods Everyone Should Try

So yesterday I went to America. Well kind of. Sort of. Okay not really. 

I actually went to a super store called USA Foods. It is basically a supermarket stocked with exclusively American items, which you can't really find anywhere else in Australia. It's heaven for homesick American expatriates, tourists, those wanting to throw a mega Halloween party, and just anyone vaguely Americurious. I personally just wanted to see how many variations of weird sweet foods I could get my hands on! 

I went with my boyfriend as practice for our America trip next year. I purchased some of the top iconic American foods one should taste to truly experience America in all it's sweet fantastic glory.

So this is what I bought and what I thought of each item...

Reese's Puffs cereal

What the cereal looks like

This was the thing I was most excited about! A cereal with my favourite Reese's peanut butter cups in it? What could better! 

Looked cool, smelt like the peanut butter cups, was very hyped... all good so far. Then I had my first bite...

I really, really wanted to love it, but something was off. After much consideration I've put it down to the Hershey's cocoa used. It's weird and fake tasting. And it tastes like floury low quality powder is coating every puff. I thought about it and realised I find the chocolate on Hershey's kisses average, so maybe it's that? I don't know... it's just underwhelming and fake tasting. A let down :(

Verdict: C

Lucky Charms cereal

What the cereal looks like

Yum!

I wasn't even going to purchase this, but I'd heard good things and it looked so pretty! It's the most amazing looking cereal I've ever seen, with cereal in the shape of different little charms and big colorful marshmallows in lucky charm shapes. 

And it's not just the appearance that's amazing, it's also incredible tasting! Maybe because it's not coated in horrible fake tasting cocoa powder like the other two cereals I bought! Also the marshmallows don't really taste like marshmallows and are kind of crunchy, but trust me that's a good thing. They are so sweet and yummy!

Verdict: What an A+ cereal in every department! Well perhaps not in health and well, perhaps not in being very breakfasty at all (should be a dessert). But hey, what do you expect from American breakfasts!

Kellogg's Smorz cereal

What the cereal looks like

So here I wanted a bowl of s'mores in all their gooey, melty chocolatey marshmallowed glory. But what I got was a bowl of freeze dried marshmallows mixed in amongst gross cocoa powdered little crunchy biscuits. I really feel like this disgusting cocoa powder should have been identified as a bad thing and eliminated from all American cereal by now! Disappointing.

Verdict: C

Toast 'Em Pop Ups - Frosted S'mores flavour

My desired s'mores experience was much better created in my toaster than in my bowl thank goodness. This was a yummy biscuity tasting rectangle filled inside with a melty gooey mix of chocolate and marshmallow. Very warm and comforting. Pretty impressed with this, and it tastes better than the competing Pop Tarts offering. 

Verdict: A-

Wrigley's Dessert Delights Mint Chocolate Chip Gum

Dessert in a gum. Tastes like mint chocolate ice cream. Has like 5 calories total, thus guilt free. Looks like Essie's Mint Candy Apple colour. Amazing. Yum. 

Verdict: A+

Wrigley's Dessert Delights Strawberry Shortcake Gum

Alright but not better than normal strawberry gum by Wrigley's. Just okay tasting, but a novelty. 

Verdict: B-

Big Red gum

A spicy hot cinnamon gum that burns your mouth and nose a bit. Pretty interesting flavour but I think I prefer sweet tasting gums. And it doesn't do that stick to your head burn and sear a red mark on your face thing anymore! Probably for the best, but less fun :p

Verdict: B-

To find out more about USA Foods and where you can find it in Melbourne check out this website.

Have you tried any of these foods? What do you think? What are some other American things I should try, keeping in mind I'm travelling there soon! I need your help and guidance guys! :P

P.S. I have decided to only do Survey Sunday's every second Sunday from now on in case you were wondering. This will allow me to write more posts of substance and will also help me think of new, exciting questions! Turns out it isn't easy to think of an infinite number of questions! Doing it every fortnight will keep it fresh and fun :D So they'll be back next week! xx

The Beginnings of Christmas - My First Festive Haul of 2012!

I know some of you will think this is probably about a month premature, but boy oh boy am I excited for Christmas already! 

You can really identify a grinch by their frequent exclamations of horror and annoyance such as "Whaaaaat?! Christmas decorations are up already... but it's only August/September/October!?"

Well I'm here to tell you, WHO CARES IF IT'S ONLY AUGUST/SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER IT'S CHRISTMAS DAMN IT! WHO ARE YOU... THE FUN POLICE!?

Whewww. Glad I got that out of my system.

So anyway, I am excited and already feeling so festive as you can probably tell. Over the course of this week, during many a lunch break from work, I checked out all of the new Christmas product ranges just released this week from many of my favourite brands. And I bought a fair bit for myself too...

So I wanted to show you some of the goodies I bought, and hopefully they will give you some gift buying ideas for your family/friends, or even just for yourself (like these were for me!).


First up we have the most incredible smelling Christmas candle I've ever encountered. It's by the iconic candle brand Glasshouse, who have just released three Christmas candles for the festive season.

I purchased one candle, which was my favourite of the three. It's called Christmas Party, and the scent is described as a "celebratory blend of ground nutmeg, orange and shaved ginger to capture the party spirit". To me it smells like a fresh, sweet, light mix of tangy orange, which is beautifully balanced by the smell of Christmas spices and cooking. It's simply amazing, and not too heavy or laden with deep spices or headache inducing. It lifts the spirits and is a pleasure to smell.

Also how cute is the jar, which you can continue to use long after the last wax has burned out.

They don't come cheap, at a whopping $40 (sadly they don't come in the cheaper smaller size that retails for around $16). But the smell of Christmas and the memories and emotion that evokes... I feel that's pretty priceless :P Also they last for absolutely ages. My last one served me at least a good year of sporadic burning (lasts over 80 hours). And the scent is so strong then even when it isn't burning the whole room smells like the candle, so it's almost unnecessary to burn it lots. I just love the scent so much I'd be happy to use it any time of the year. I purchased this candle from David Jones.



Next up I checked out the Christmas offerings from the gorgeous brand Philosophy. Their new gift packs were so adorable! The one I ended up purchased was called 'The Bake Shoppe'.  The products come in the cutest box, and inside are two of the yummiest sounding body products I've ever seen!

The first body product is a shampoo/shower gel/bubble bath called Christmas Cookie. It actually is like going to a Mrs Fields store, biting into a freshly made vanillary cookie and smelling the delicious smell wafting out of the crumbley goodness. It froths up so well as a shower gel, and it is the most luxurious experience to lather yourself with the foamy cookie bubbles. In the bath it's like being in a hot oven of baking Christmas cookies, with lots of bubbles and froth. I haven't used it as a shampoo yet (have any of you used these type of products as shampoos? Thoughts?).

The second body product is a body lotion called 'Sweet Creamy Frosting'. It smells exactly like vanilla or caramel frosting on a cupcake, and the delicious smell lingers on your body for hours after application. I especially love this lotion because Philopsophy don't seem to offer complementary lotion options of their shower gel type scents. So I had to snap this up while it was available.

This gift pack cost $30, which is the same price as a full bottle of their regular sized shower gels (each of the bottles in this pack is half the size of the big ones). Philosophy is sold in Melbourne only at David Jones on Bourke Street. I think this would make a great gift/Kris Kringle for Christmas, or just a must grab item for yourself :P 
They've also brought out a Candy Cane full size shower gel which would also make a great gift! I just would prefer to bathe in cakes in preference to mint.

Although not technically created for Christmas, I'm also in love with another of Philosophy's products I picked up this week - their Cinnamon Buns shower gel! This is my favourite product by them. It smells exactly like a vanilla chai latte. The lather and foam it creates is like bathing in a mug of chai. I can't adequately convey to you how genius and luxurious and wonderful this product is, only that you must get it. Now.

It's $30 and would make an excellent present for anyone who is as much of a sweet tooth and a stickler for indulgent sweet bath and body products as I am. I just love how each of their products has a recipe on the front of them too!



Next we have a festive foodie item. My sister brought home with her a surprise for us the other day... one of my favourite Christmas snacks! 

They are German Glazed Lebkuchen which you can buy here from Aldi shops. Basically they are soft gingerbread covered with a sugar glaze with a chocolate base and they come in different colours and shapes. They are delicious and very festive and cheap! Get your hands on some if you get the chance.


To finish off on a Christmassy high, check out these festive nails of my sisters:

They remind me of Christmas holly or mistletoe! 

This is how she created them:

-Painted a white base with OPI's Alpine Snow
-Blobbed Essie's Fiesta on the nails for the berries/flowers
-Added dimension to the blobs using Essie's Bahama Mama on a toothpick
-Used Essie's Mint Candy Apple for the leaves
-Added dimension to the leaves using OPI's Fly (Nicki Minaj collection)


So that's it guys! Hope this post got you thinking about some good Christmas ideas and started to get you pumped about the festive season. I had fun typing it and thinking about Christmas!

Which brands Christmas ranges are you most excited about? I'm looking forward to checking out Lush and The Body Shop next. Do you get excited about Christmas as early as me, or do you think I'm crazy? :P

P.S. There are only 58 days until Christmas!!

Nails of the Week

This week has been a very nail focused week in our household. Just thought I'd share with you some of the polishes and nail art that I've been excited about this week! 

First up is my most recent nail polish purchase...

OPI's Just Spotted The Lizard

Without flash - truest to actual colour

With flash - shows how sparkly it is under certain lights

This polish is part of the OPI Spiderman collection that is currently available. It has been widely hailed as the exact dupe for Chanel's much acclaimed Peridot polish. Everyone seems to be talking about this colour and much excitement resulted when OPI released this cheaper alternative. 

My thoughts on the polish? 

That it really confuses me! It's like a chameleon polish, one second I love the colour, the next I'm not too sure. It's a brilliantly metallic sparkly gold colour with tinges of green, and it's one of those polishes with duo chromatic properties. It goes on brilliantly and smoothly with a great formula and lasts for ages. One coat is nearly opaque but two makes it look extra sparkly. 

But I don't tend to like gold polishes, or yellow, or even this kind of mustard green. And I don't love metallics. So really I should probably loathe this, and to be honest I did look past it at first. My sister then recommended it to me and then it really caught my eye. Opal is my favourite gemstone and in the bottle this polish looks very opaly, which was its main drawcard as far as I was concerned. But sadly this does not translate to the nail (please tell me if you know of any actual Opal looking polishes!).

This colour is at it's best under natural sunlight. I'm still very unsure about it, torn between thinking it's only alright and loving it. Perhaps it will grow on me. I don't really understand why there's so much hype surrounding this colour?! However, I have been complimented on my nails today far more than usual so perhaps that says something.

Either way definitely buy this over Peridot, they look identical! 



Next my friend did an excellent job of nail art this week. And the result was this very cool, abstract type pattern:

She said she painted the base coat first and then waited until it was completely dry. Then she used sticky tape to tape off a few abstract lines on her nails, and then painted black polish over the top. Once that was completely dry she peeled the tape off and voila! 
I think this would also look great using pastel colours, or all metallics.



Then we have another creation from my sister who has particularly enjoyed venturing into the world of nail art lately. Im not quite sure what pattern she was doing, but it sure looks great! It kind of reminds me of an American flag pattern or something.

Without flash

With flash

It was my lovely Mum's birthday this week too - Happy Birthday Mum! Part of her present from my sister included these two nail polishes, which I also love!

L-R: OPI's Java Mauve-A and Revlon's Raisin Rage

Java Mauve-A is a creamy dusky pinky brown colour, and Raisin Rage is a darker creamy plummy pink colour.

I think both are really great colours for everyday wear, and particularly suit women over 40. They are both great dusky, pinky colours which complement most complexions without looking over the top.


So that's my week so far of nail polish purchasing and decorating. It's becoming an addiction I swear!

Have you tried any of these polishes? What do you think of these colours? Also please let me know if you know of a good Opal looking polish!

Hope you are all having great weeks! xx

Survey Sunday - October 21st 2012

It's Survey Sunday time!! Here we go...

1. Have you ever broken a bone, and if so what one?
Never! *touches wood* But I have dislocated a few fingers a couple of times playing basketball.

2. Do you have any tattoos or piercings? If so where and what of?
Just my ears are pierced. I am so scared of needles that it took me until year 9 to summon up the courage to go, and even then it was like a lamb going to slaughter situation. Barely hurt, but it’s the psychological aspect of needles I can’t take! No tattoos, that’s a few too many needles thanks!

3. What concerts have you been to? What was your favourite and least favourite?
I’ve been to quite a few. Lots of festival type ones like Big Day Out, Groovin the Moo, Pyramid Rock and Sound Relief, and then other solo ones. Probably my favourite solo concert I've ever been to was The Cure. Also another favourite was Vampire Weekend, they were absolutely amazing. And Bloc Party was incredible too.

I went to the Animal Collective concert and really didn’t like their set. Instead of playing their famous songs they just jammed randomly and it was absolutely terrible. Just messy loud noise. Also I went to Pyramid Rock the year all the music was cancelled on New Years because of the huge storm that occurred. Was the craziest thing ever, so many angry people camping out and so much rain and thunder. Bad combination.

4. Favourite meal of the day?
I would say it’s dinner, just because I always rush breakfast, and never feel like a massive lunch. I’m a snacker. But I like to have a sit down dinner or go out for a meal. I actually really do like going out for breakfast or brunch though, it feels fancy and the food choices (eggs/pancakes/French toast etc) are divine.

5. What is your favourite cartoon character?
Without a doubt it’s Ike Broflovski from South Park. I’m obsessed with that little man. I have watched every single episode that he is in, and just squirm with delight when he is on screen. I know this is a weird answer but don’t judge me guys. Just go watch him and you’ll see what I mean! “DON’T KICK THE GODDAMN BABY”

Source

6. What is your favourite topping on a pancake?
Generally I just like some maple syrup, sometimes with some creamy butter. Otherwise I sometimes like to mix it up with some nutella and banana. Or perhaps some hot chocolate fudge and sprinkles. But I'm not really a lemon and sugar kind of girl. Anything else though... love my strawberries and hot apple and nuts options from The Pancake Parlour. I am also a big fan of the potato and cheese pancake at this establishment. Basically it's just my favourite restaurant ever. Lovely.

7. Do you face towards or away from the water in the shower?
This is a very odd question! It came up in a discussion I had tonight and we were all surprised at the results when people did things differently to ourselves! I am a face the water person. I need to keep my hair dry when I'm not washing it, plus I just like facing the stream of water so I can see it. You have better control over the water this way! I think I swapped halfway through my life though. When I was younger I wore a shower cap and then I faced away because my hair wouldn't get wet. I just hate the feeling of my whole head being under water, it feels like I'm being water boarded or something. Haha this is such a weird question :P

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So now it's your turn to answer the questions! I look forward to reading your answers!

1. Have you ever broken a bone, and if so what one? 

2. Do you have any tattoos or piercings? If so where and what of?

3. What concerts have you been to? What was your favourite and least favourite?

4. Favourite meal of the day? 

5. What is your favourite cartoon character? 

6. What is your favourite topping on a pancake?

7. Do you face towards or away from the water in the shower?