Review: Josie Maran Coconut Watercolour eyeshadow

I have seen this product raved about so much, that naturally, I wanted to try it out. I got the shade Rainforest Green, which is a beautiful emerald green shade, which is metallic looking and ever so slightly shimmery.

The package is quite unique, in a glass bottle that looks like a dropper. It's got a doe foot applicator and thinking about it now, it's very similar like those YSL and Giorgio Armani cream to powder eyeshadow that have been coming out recently, except this is with Coconut water.

First Impression/ use: 
I don't know what it is, but *spoiler alert* it is a hot mess of a product. Is it me? Is it the product? I really have no idea. Let's talk about it a little to see what the deal is.

I followed the instructions, so I know it's not that. I shook it to disperse the product around, as instructed, yet the bulk of the product stayed at the bottom of the bottle. I shook it harder, Nothing. I then took the applicator and tried to jimmy/ swish the product from the bottom to get it moving around. Nothing. So I'm basically left with this watery, slightly coloured, liquid. It applied like crap (because it's just "water" is a guess....).

Second point: It didn't dry. Whatever colour payoff I did get, was then also let down by the fact that it took forever to dry and I couldn't even open my eyes fully as the colour transferred to my upper lid/ crease area. So this is definitely not a product for those with hooded eyes.

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Second use: (swatched)
I wrote the start of this blog a while back and just hated this, however, just to make sure my opinion was the same, I just shook it up and swatched it on my hand and it's now "working". It swatched perfectly and mostly dried down, but it did take a good couple of minutes to do so. It wasn't wet to touch, but it was easily smeared when touched, so it never 100% fully dried.

L-R: Swatched with about 5 layers; blended out
(photo in natural sunny light)

Second use: (eyes)
As I went to use this properly, I shook it but when I gently scraped the applicator on the sides to remove excess product, it broke off! Really not having a good time with this product. I still wanted to continue testing this out, but it was uber tricky after the applicator broke on me, however, I persevered and just used a concealer brush on my eye. First layer on both eyes (one primed with a paintpot and nude eyeshadow; one completely bare) and it creased and was ultra sheer. Second layer I blended out with my finger, and it is very easy to blend. I think it applied pretty much the same on both eyes (primed and not primed).

The broken applicator :(

After 6 hours wear, it still looks the same as when first applied, so the product hasn't moved, but the lid looks extremely sheer and creased as noted when first applied. So it didn't get any worse, except for the lids. 

This is not ideal for those who like good coverage, have oily lids or are time limited. I would not recommend this to anyone who is a novice at makeup either. I feel like I have a very good handle on makeup, and just couldn't make it work. 

The 1 pro I can see out of this product. It washes off so easy. Like, just add water easy. Also could be a con though, if your eyes water or you cry easily or at photos of kittens and puppies, you're going to look like a hot mess.

It's seriously such a shame that this failed so hard for me, when opaque (swatched), it is the most prettiest emerald shade that sparkles perfectly. The only way I can see this working is if you have a lot of time up your sleeve and you love the grungy look. 


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Would I repurchase?: 
I'm so tempted to get the rose gold shade, Rio De Rose Gold, but, no. I will not be buying any more of these after the experience I had. 

Available: Mecca Maxima, Kit Cosmetics and mecca.com.au

RRP: $25

PS. if you know how you're actually supposed to use this product, please let me know. 

My Favourite nail polishes

I'm lazy when it comes to my nails. I love them looking pretty, but I don't always have time to go get acrylics put on and I hate how nail polish chips so easily. Regardless, I still love having colour on my nails. When I do use nail polish, these are my faves!!
PS. I ALWAYS have my toe nails painted, is it just me or does it look wrong with naked toe nails??


Chi Chi Just Chillaxin'
All aboard the greige train! Ummm this colour is amazing. This is a perfect all year 'round shade as its not too warm or too cool. I have been wearing this shade the most over the past 6 odd months that I've had it. LOVE!! Can I also say that the price for this is amazing. Like $5 for a bottle. Yes it's a little smaller than most, but it's great value for money and you're more likely to finish a bottle up. 





OPI Black Onyx
I love black nails, what can I say, I'm a goth at heart. Black always looks good, and in my opinion, the only colour you can "get away" with it being chipped, for that "grungy look" (if you're feeling lazy!). This shade is permanent and a staple in any collection.

OPI Baby It's Coal Outside
A gunmetal shade with silver micro glitter. I think the whole world knows about my current love affair with all things gunmetal. This shade was a limited edition from quite a few xmas's ago (2008 "Holiday in Toyland". Had to look it up, can't believe its 7 years old!!). 




China Glaze Nova
I absolutely love this glitter. I've used it so much theres basically nothing left and it's gone a little gunky, but I just can't bare to part with it. I need to find a suitable replacement. This type of polish is my fave for an accent nail. 





OPI Gaining Mole-mentum
I recently purchased this and it is the BEST gold flake glitter I've come across. It's more of a coppery gold vs a yellow gold, which most gold glitters are, (and I'm not so keen on. I'm picky when it comes to golds). This is another perfect accent nail glitter. You do need to layer it 3 times to get a good covering as it is gold flakes suspended in a clear base.



Essie Mint Candy Apple
Finally! A bit of colour haha. This one is an oldie but a goodie. I'm sure there's very few people/ ladies who haven't heard of this shade. It's such a pretty mint green. 



OPI What's With The Cattitude?
This shade was released with the "Shrek" collection in 2010. The perfect pastel blue. It's a creme that screams spring to me. 





OPI Flit a Bit
Another limited edition (which I guess most shades are these days)(it's from "Summer Flutter" 2010). My fave shade to wear in the summer and looks awesome with a tan. In my Back Pocket is very similar (which I also have haha. Love my oranges!!), although this has a slight shimmer to it vs IMBP being a creme. 



OPI Don't Toy With Me
Another xmas one, This one is also from the Holiday in Toyland collection alongside Baby, It's Coal Outside. It's a blue based red with fine micro silver glitter/ shimmer. My absolutely fave red!! This is a fave shade for my toes. 





As you can clearly see, I do love my OPI's. They have such an extensive range and soooooo many colours. I have a lot of nailpolishes (over 50 shades and finishes).


What's your favourite shade?

A random collection of comparison swatches

I'm someone who really seems to struggle with finding comparison swatches, or even swatches in general. I can never find 2 swatches of products in the one swatch when I want, so I thought I'd post a collection here of all the swatches that I've personally struggled to find. I'm sure I'm not the only one!

I hope you find this useful, and I'll keep adding to this as we go along.
All swatched on MAC NW20 skin with lightbox lighting. Click on pics for better resolution.


MAC Toldeo Chlorofill pearl glide vs MAC Sourpuss technakohl vs By Terry Green Fizz Aqua Print eyeshadow:

MAC Lady Danger lipstick vs MAC Neon Orange lipstick vs MAC Morange lipstick vs MAC Good to Go prolongwear lipstick:

Too Faced Melted Sugar vs Too Faced Melted Nude lipstick:

Colour Smash: Orange

Up next in these colour style faves is ORANGE! Oooh my, how I love my oranges. Orange lipstick is my ultimate go to shade and I'd own every single one of I could!

L-R: Lady Danger, Neon Orange, Morange and Good to Go. 

MAC Morange
A bright, amplified lipstick, not for the faint of heart, or colourshy. I do find this does tend to get a bit patchy if you don't have super smooth lips, so I'd definitely exfoliate before breaking out this little number.
Available: at MAC counters, stores and online.
RRP: $36

MAC Neon Orange
Ok so this shade is pretty much identical to Morage. In shade and in finish, making this 
also an amplified finish. This is probably my favourite orange lipstick there is. 
Available: MAC counters, stores and online.
RRP: $36

MAC Lady Danger
This one's a matte finish lipstick. I wasn't sure how to swing this shade red vs orange, but I think it definitely sways more orange. I never understood the fascination with this shade until I "purchased"* it. It is stunning! If you really want to make a statement and feel glamourous/ sexy, this is the shade you need. Even if that's not what you're about, you still need it.
Available: at MAC counters, stores and online.
RRP: $36
* by purchased, I mean b2m'd. Which is how I get most "classic" MAC lipsticks these days. However in saying that I got this for "free", I would most definitely purchase this again.

MAC Good to Go
This lipstick is the pro long wear creme formula, so it's long wearing and more of a matte finish. I would describe this as Morange that is longer lasting on the lips (due to its finish of course). Maybe just slightly darker. I find this creamier too.
Available: at MAC counters, stores and online.
RRP: $40

L-R: Lady Danger, Neon Orange, Morange and Good to Go. 

With Flash/ L-R: Lady Danger, Neon Orange, Morange and Good to Go. 

Bobbi Brown Nectar shimmerbrick
Ooh the shimmer shimmer. I love BB shimmerbricks. They are definitely my fave products from her entirely line. These are great highlighters to accompany a similar toned/ coloured blush on the cheekbones. You could also use these as an eyeshadow too. 
Available: at BB counters, online, Mecca Cosmetica and meccacosmetica.com.au.
RRP: $72

MAC Peaches
This is a beautiful peach blush shade that looks very natural but is buildable if you want something a littler more of a statement. It is a sheer tone formula with little to no shimmer or sparkle. 
Available: at MAC stores, counters and online.
RRP: $40

MAC Orange
This eyeshadow is a matte finish and is great to have as you can use this as an accent/ crease colour to use with browns or bronzes, or even a festive, colourful, summer look which you can pair with pinks, fuchsias and what have you. I would definitely recommend a nice bold orange eyeshadow to have in your collection. 
Available: at MAC counters, stores and online.
RRP: $33

OPI In My Back Pocket
I love OPI nail polishes. Good formula and an amazing selection of shades and textures.Oranges are my fave in summer, and look great against a tan.
Available: David Jones, Myer and selected nail/ beauty salons.
RRP: $19.95

The Body Shop Satsuma body wash
This is the most delicious, citrusy scent! It smells so fresh and invigorating. It is limited edition (as all good things in life are), however, it does come out very regularly and a must have! (Usually after Christmas). There is always a good solid selection of Satsuma goodies to your liking too, not just the bodywash. I also have the sorbet and soaps. 
Available: The Body Shop (yes, it's available now)
RRP: from $9.95

The Body Shop Vitamin C Mircodermabrasion scrub
An intense scrub that is described as an "at home microdermabrasion ". You use this no more than twice a week and it does wonders for my skin. If you're after something stronger than a normal scrub, this is the ones for you!
Available: The Body Shop
RRP: $34.95

MAC Genuine Orange chromagraphic pencil
This is a yellow based pencil that is multipurpose, so great for use as a lip liner, and if you're a little more adventurous, an eyeliner (the reason I bought it).
Available: MAC PRO stores or maccosmetics.com.au
RRP: $32


What are your orange faves?

Review: Shanghai Suzy lipsticks

 I saw Chloe Morello wear army pants and flip flops a Shanghai Suzy lipstick so I bought army pants and flip flops a Shanghai Suzy lipstick... Lol. 

I had never heard of the brand Shanghai Suzy until recently. I was watching a tutorial of Chloe Morello's and absolutely LOVED the lip colour she used. After a little digging/ watching/ reading, I discovered it to be this Shanghai Suzy. The shade and intrigue of never hearing about this brand definitely made me go 'oohhh, what IS this and why have I never heard of it before? I LOVE makeup so how could this be?'
Naturally, I googled it and landed onto the website to discover a small range of lipsticks. Only lipsticks. It seemed like a relatively new company, and as many new and small companies do, start out with a small range and make it perfect before launching into other products. I had a look around at the colours on offer and they definitely all seemed like nice "me" colours but I definitely wanted to play it safe and just get the pink lipstick Chloe used (which was Miss Amy Baby Pink).
I was pleasantly surprised at how cheap it was for a lipstick ($12.95). However, I guess that means it could go either way, bad quality or good quality at a really good price. ALL the intrigue!

It arrived 2 days later. Express shipping, so nice and fast. I ripped into that baby like a kid at Xmas and applied it. It was packaged in a cute little purple and clear cellophane type wrapper with a faux flower which was a nice touch. It felt more personal and sent out with thought, which I like.
The lipsticks come in a rectangular black case which have the shade of the lipstick on the top, the name and formula on the bottom and Shanghai Suzy written along the side in silver writing. The packaging feels hardwearing and secure.

What about the lipstick? Nice and smooth to apply. Good texture and the smell!? When you're used to most lipsticks having a subtle or vanillary smell, this definitely surprises you. So what does it smell like you ask? GRAPE BUBBLEGUM!!!! Not.even.kidding. It is the craziest, bizzare and most awesome thing to be in a lipstick. It still trips me out every time I use the lipsticks (which is a lot!).  It might be off putting to those who don't like grape bubblegum or that kind of candy smell. It's not super strongly scented but you can definitely smell it and know immediately what it is.

I've gone back 3 times to purchase these, as with each shade I fall more and more in love with the lipsticks, and there's definitely quite a few to "collect". From comments I have seen around the place (mostly Instagram), I believe each shade is a limited edition so once they're sold out, they don't get re-stocked and they are released each season with the new seasons predicted hottest colours. The great thing about the brand too, if you really do love them, you can buy them in packs. They currently have the offer of buy 3 get 1 free or buy the whole wardrobe of shades (8 in total) at $65 which makes them discounted to $8.13 each; or of course, you can buy them individually.
Each time I've purchased, they've always arrived 2 days later using express shipping (from Melbourne to Adelaide), and shipping is $6.95 regardless of how many are purchased.

Shanghai Suzy lipsticks come in 2 formulas: matte and nourishing

* Miss Amy Baby Pink (matte) *
This shade is THE perfect baby pink. It is a matte but it doesn't feel dry in the slightest and probably the most "moisturising" matte lipstick I have ever worn. It is quite thick (good thick, not bad thick), and with only 2 swipes, is completely opaque and covers my lips nicely. Miss Amy stays put throughout the day, wears evenly and doesn't get cakey at any stage. I only have to reapply after eating.

* Miss Ally Amethyst (matte) *
Miss Ally is definitely not for the faint of heart. This is a very bright, mid toned purple with a blue base and very bold. I used this shade with a lip liner the first time using it, which did affect the application as it didn't feel as opaque as Miss Amy did and felt not right (almost chalky and gritty). I haven't tried using lip liners with any other shade, but even at this point, I'd suggest you go without. After a second, separate application (without lipliner), it applied much better, however, it's definitely not as opaque as the others. It still wears well but not as long as Miss Amy or Miss Christina.
Please note: I use a lip liner all over my lips vs just lining. Maybe that was my problem. You can always experiment with what works for you?

* Miss Leah Baby Cocoa (nourishing) *
To be honest, of all the Shanghai Suzy lipsticks I have, this is probably the most personally disappointing, not for the product itself, but purely because I actually thought this was a much slightly lighter shade. However, this is the perfect shade if you're wanting to dabble with the currently trending 90's "Kylie Jenner" lips without a really red "brick" shade (which I'm actually not for. The 90's need to stay in the 90's lol). This is the only shade I own that is the nourishing formula (its enriched with jojoba oil which makes it nourishing), and is very nice to wear (not that any of them aren't). This formula would definitely help if you do have dry, cracked lips without making the situation worse. Miss Leah does need more regular applications as the formula does wear more quickly due to it not being a matte and more hydrating. I get about 2-3 hours wear before reapplying.
Ps. After wearing this shade more and more, I am definitely really loving this shade, it's almost a "my lips but better" kind of shade.

* Miss Christina Neon Guava (matte) *
I LOVE this shade! Probably my fave out of the 5. It is the most summery and bright without being scary or obnoxious. It's the perfect blend of pink and coral. Long wearing, the only time I have to reapply is after eating and it was opaque with only 2 swipes. Because it is a neon/ super bright shade, it's definitely a shade to apply with attention, as it can stain very easily and can leave those tell tale red signs of tried removal that you get after "colouring outside the lines", or a wild pash session haha.

* Miss Sally Watermelon (matte) *
I feel like I had to work a little bit harder to get this to look "perfect" on my lips. I feel like Miss Sally also needed a good 3 swipes to be nice and opaque. It is also one of those shades that can stain very easily and can be hard to erase those tell-tale signs you can get after either not applying properly and outside of the lip line and trying to wipe it off,  I find it to be more on the red side of "watermelon", but it is absolutely gorgeous and anothing amazing summer shade.

None of the lipsticks bled or feathered on me.

L-R: Miss Amy, Miss Leah, Miss Ally, Miss Sally and Miss Christina. 

I wholeheartedly recommend these lipsticks. They are great value for money and are such amazing quality. There is definitely a shade for everyone, no matter what their style or preference of shades. I'll definitely be repurchasing more from the current seasons selection, and in future. I think the coral one will be next on my list! They're also not tested on animals and vegan!

My picks:
Miss Amy Baby Pink
Miss Christina Neon Guava


Available: shanghaisuzy.com (there's also a stockists page on the website)
RRP: $12.95 (+ $6.95 for shipping)