Favourite Winter lipsticks

I love dark vampy lipstick, and winter time is perfect for bringing out those sultry shades.

These are my faves and what I'm wearing this season!

MAC Russian Red (matte)
A Red can be a winter classic. Russian Red is blue based which fits in with those colder months (vs being yellow/ orange based). It's a great way to use a little colour against those blacks, greys and other darker shades.
Purchase: MAC stores, counters and online
RRP: $36

Shanghai Suzy Mrs French Winter Maroon (matte)
I love Shanghai Suzy, and this range of winter shades are amazing. This is a beautiful plum and very wearable. This sways more burgundy than MAC Rebel. It also smells like grape bubblegum
Purchase: Shanghaisuzy.com
RRP: $12.95

MAC Rebel (satin)
This is my ultimate go to shade for winter, but then again, I definitely wear this all year round. It's a beautiful plum, which sways purple vs burgundy. This is a staple in anybody's lipstick stash.
Purchase: MAC store, counters and online
RRP: $36

Colourpop Pitch (matte)
This is such a 90s shade. Deep chocolate brown. I like this version as its so cheap, so you can try it out without breaking the bank. Pitch has full coverage, and even though it's described as a matte, its a very nourishing matte and not that flat, traditional matte.
Purchase: Colourpop.com
RRP: $5USD

OCC Sebastian
Cheating a little bit, this is a pencil, but OCC do do this in a lip tar to match (Or you could also try MAC Stone when that comes out, which is a matte). This is very on trend right now, that kind of stone, dark beige lip. If you want to try out this colour but it washes you out a little, try using this as an ombre lip on the outside with a nice nude in the middle (I like MAC Patisserie for an ombre look).
Purchase: Lipstickrepublic.com.au
RRP: $20 (lip tar $24)

Swatches T-B: Russian Red, Mrs French, Rebel, Pitch and Sebastian. 

What shades are you loving for winter? 

Winter Skin Saviours

We all know that winter is horrible to our skin. With heaters, air conditioners and the cold air, our skin gets dehydrated very quickly and what happens to our skin when it dries out? The "cracks" start to appear. By cracks, this could be anything from flaky skin, to those pesky fine lines showing up more and more frequently. So we must hydrate! Today I'm going to show you some of my fave products to get back that beautiful skin.

In winter, you may need a richer moisturiser to really penetrate the skin vs something a bit lighter in summer. HOWEVER, YOU ALSO STILL NEED A SUNSCREEN. Those rays are gonna get ya, trust me. Is it night 24/7 during winter? No, therefore the sun is still out, even if it's raining 24/7.
TOP TIP: Your hands and décolletage are the first places to start showing signs of ageing so slather on that sunscreen on those 2 places.
Sunscreen: Anything SPF30+ is best.
Try:
Eco Tan Natural Coconut Sunscreen
Available: Shelivescrueltyfree.com and most health food shops
RRP: $39.95 

The Cancer Council
Available: Priceline
RRP: from $6.99

Moisturiser:
The Body Shop Drops of Youth Bouncy Sleeping Mask
Available: The Body Shop
RRP: $44.95

Eye creams are a must in winter to help combat those fine lines.
Kate Somerville Cytocell: this is a beautiful eye cream that is not super thick but feels like it's doing its job. I've been using this lately and really enjoying it.
Available: Mecca Cosmetica, Maxima and mecca.com.au
RRP: $98

Origins Plantscription anti-anging eye treatment: I really enjoy this eye cream too, and I also enjoy the smell. To me it smells natural but not everyone will like it.
Available: Mecca Maxima and mecca.com.au
RRP: $58

Flaky skin, and lips are also prevalent in winter, so a lip scrub and balm is a must!
Lush lip scrub: I'm still working on my Santa lips from xmas, but the bubblegum is also delicious!
Available: Lush stores and online
RRP: $9.95

Sara Happ lip scrub: try the vanilla bean or creme brûlée, YUM!
Available: beautybay.com
RRP: $31 (free shipping)

The Body Shop lip balm: this comes in an assortment of flavours, my faves being Honey, Watermelon and Shea.
Available: The Body Shop and bodyshop.com.au
RRP: $6.95

Sukin Nourishing lip balm
Available: Priceline
RRP: $7.99

Nivea Lip Butter in Vanilla & Macadamia and Caramel Creme
Available: Priceline
RRP: $5.70

The body also needs attention, so a moisturising body scrub is always a good choice:
Frank Body scrub: because this is loaded with sweet almond and orange oils (it smells like jaffas!), this is the perfect choice for hot showers, and leaves your skin feeling super smooth and super hydrated, because really, who wants to rub moisturiser all over themselves after a hot shower, in the cold.
Available: frankbody.com
RRP: $14.95 (free shipping within Australia, from $6.45 Rest of the World).

Something to soothe the winter blues:
Tea: I'm a massive fan of flavoured teas. It's a delicious, warm way to warm up. My faves would be Governors Estate Peach tea, Qi Green tea, Matcha Maiden Matcha, T2 Toasty Nougat, Toasty Warm, Turkish Apple, and Apple Crumble.
GE Peach: Coles supermarkets
Qi Green: Woolworths supermarkets
Matcha Maiden: matchamaiden.com
T2: online and T2 stores

Fashion Edit: Gunmetal

Gunmetal! I LOVE it! It's smokey, it's rock, it's perfection!

Why do I love gunmetal? It's the perfect "inbetween" shade. It's not as harsh as black but it's not a "typical" metal like silver or gold. It's this winters "it" metal and it's easy to see why. It's the perfect accompaniment to burgundy, blue, grey and black. It stands out in an edgy way without being over the top, and one of the biggest reasons I love it, it's different. You never really see this shade around too often. 

Without further ado, here are my gunmetal must haves for this winter... 

Beauty:

* Makeup Store glitter eyeliner in "Showstopper"

$26
Makeup Store and beautybay.com

* Urban Decay 24/7 eyeliner in "Uzi" 
$30 (mecca), $33 (beautybay) 
Mecca Maxima, mecca.com.au and beautybay.com

* Stila Smudgestick eyeliner in "Triggerfish"
$26
Mecca Cosmetica, mecca.com.au and beautybay.com

* Australis Metallix cream eyeshadow in "Lana Del Grey"
$8.95
Priceline

* Makeup Geek eyeshadow in "Graphite" and "Stealth"
$5.99USD each
makeupgeek.com

Graphite

Stealth

* MAC Extra Dimension eyeshadow in "Legendary Lure" (due for release June/July)

MAC counters, stores and maccosmetics.com.au

* OPI nail polish in "Lucerne-tainly Look Marvellous" (Swiss collection)
$19.99

David Jones, Myer, Price Attack, selected pharmacies and nail salons

* Makeup Store Strass in "Silver Rain"
$28
Makeup Store

What do you think of gunmetal? How do you wear it?