{ Review & First Impressions } Bellabox Australia

I'm sure a lot of you beauty junkies have heard of Bellabox and if not here is a quick run down. Bellabox is a monthly subscription service in which you will receive a box of at least 5 beauty samples from a variety of brands. In Australia, a box per month is priced at $15 plus a postage fee of $2.95. I personally think the concept of a beauty box or beauty bag is great and fascinating. It allows you to try products from different brands, even those you may have never heard of before. What makes it exciting for me is that element of surprise when you receive and open up the box and then discovering the goodies and hopefully finding new and amazing beauty products! It's really like giving a present to yourself! 

When Bellabox contacted me to review and test out their March box I was like heckkk yes! I've never signed up for any of these beauty subscription services and getting the experience to try it out was exciting for me.

Here's my March box....

Honestly, when I first opened up my box and saw the contents inside I was pretty underwhelmed. Knowing that it's a beauty box, the random Stabilo highlighter threw me off. The only product that really intrigued me was the foot mask. I haven't had the chance to use it yet but I definitely will! My job requires me to stand for hours which can make the skin on my heels quite hard and calloused so fingers crossed this mask does the job!

I'm hoping my feet will smell like apples afterwards! ^.^

Never heard of the brand but I'm down to try a new shampoo and conditioner :) EDIT: Just tried these and I really do like it. I quite like the 'manly' cologne-like scent. I especially enjoyed the conditioner, it left my hair so silky smooth, soft and tangle free :D

Good ol' Palmer's. I like their skin therapy oil but never tried their moisturizing day cream. Smells soooo cocoa butter-y. They recommend to apply the cream on your face and neck area but I think the scent is just a bit too strong for my liking to put on my face. It feels great as a hand cream though!

Hmm... :/ I do like their highlighters doe.

Got the Colour Theory eye pencil in 'Emerald'. Different to the blacks or browns I normally gravitate towards but I'll find a way to wear it!

So many people love Ardell lashes but I'm really not a fan. Even their demi wispies that everyone wears and loves just does not look good on me :( I find their lashes lack that curl that my small monolid eyes need! I'm not getting a good vibe with the style of these 109 lashes unfortunately. I will try them out but I don't have high expectations, wishing I'll be proved wrong though!

Even though I was disappointed with most of the products in this March box, I kind of want to try it out and see if I get better and more exciting products in future monthly boxes. I've seen some of their previous boxes and I was truly impressed with the samples people were receiving. I guess March wasn't their month.

xo Laura

* Disclaimer: The products mentioned above were sent to me by Bellabox Australia for review purposes. My reviews are always 100% my honest opinion *

{ Review + Swatches } My Makeup Geek Eyeshadow Collection

After many requests, I have finally decided to make a post dedicated to all my Makeup Geek eyeshadows! This is so exciting for me because I have really only started to notice her eyeshadows some time last year and they have now quickly become one of, or dare I say my absolute favourite eyeshadows to wear. The quality of these eyeshadows are seriously top notch, super buttery, smooth and finely milled and for the price ($5.99 for the regular eyeshadows and $9.99 for the foiled eyeshadows) you really can't go wrong with these.

I've really warmed to the idea of purchasing single pan eyeshadows ever since I started my Makeup Geek eyeshadow collection. I think building your own palette is a fantastic idea and one that saves a ton of space, especially if you're storing them in Z palettes! Z palettes are amazing and the ones I have pictured above is an extra large one, which currently stores my neutral eyeshadows and a large one for my more colourful shadows.

1st Row: Shimma Shimma, Vanilla Bean, Peach Smoothie, Creme Brulee, Latte, Frappe, Cocoa Bear

2nd Row: Preppy, Mocha, Brown Sugar, Bada Bing, Grandstand (FE), Mesmerized (FE), Flame Thrower (FE)

3rd Row: Hipster, Homecoming, Taupe Notch, Gold Digger, Bleached Blonde, Glamorous, Pretentious

4th Row: Cosmopolitan, Goddess, Prom Night, Moondust, Cinderella, Country Girl, Cupcake

5th Row: Unexpected, Bitten, Mango Tango, Burlesque, Drama Queen, Corrupt

(FE): Foiled Eyeshadow

L-R: Shimma Shimma, Vanilla Bean, Peach Smoothie, Creme Brulee, Latte, Frappe, Cocoa Bear

 L-R: Preppy, Mocha, Brown Sugar, Bada Bing, Grandstand (FE), Mesmerized (FE), Flame Thrower (FE)

L-R: Hipster, Homecoming, Taupe Notch, Gold Digger, Bleached Blonde, Glamorous, Pretentious

 L-R: Cosmopolitan, Goddess, Prom Night, Moondust, Cinderella, Country Girl, Cupcake

 L-R: Unexpected, Bitten, Mango Tango, Burlesque, Drama Queen, Corrupt

The majority of these eyeshadows are super pigmented, buttery and smooth to swatch as you can see from the photos although a few of the lighter matte shadows tend to be a bit powdery and dry when I swatched them. They make amazing transition shades and brow highlights though as they are not super saturated in pigment. When her foiled eyeshadows came out and I first tested them out, I was so blown away by how silky they apply and how much colour pay off and metallic-ness they give (Grandstand, Mesmerized and Flame Thrower are my top picks!). If you think her regular eyeshadows are great, you must really check out her foiled eyeshadows. They are on another level! I'm really anticipating on additional shades to the foiled eyeshadow collection in the future!

1st Row: Ice Queen, Mercury, Graphite, Stealth

2nd Row: Pixie Dust, Shimmermint, Poison Ivy, Houdini (FE)

3rd Row: Mermaid, Ocean Breeze, Center Stage (FE), Caitlin Rose (FE)

4th Row: Chickadee

 L-R: Ice Queen, Mercury, Graphite, Stealth, Pixie Dust, Shimmermint

 L-R: Poison Ivy, Houdini (FE), Mermaid, Ocean Breeze, Center Stage (FE), Caitlin Rose (FE), Chickadee

Pros:

• Great price point- inexpensive for the quality you get
• Very blendable
• Great colour pay off, rich in pigmentation
• Amazing and wide range of shades and finishes
• Worldwide shipping and fairly quick too
• So smooth, silky and buttery when applied
• Long lasting even without eye primer
• The fact they come in pan form and can be easily stored in magnetized palettes saves so much space
• Apparently they make great and less expensive dupes to MAC eyeshadows (can't say much about this as I don't have any MAC eyeshadows to compare them to)

Cons:  

• Can't think of many cons...if I'm being picky, maybe that some of the matte shadows are a bit powdery and dry and also they need more shades in their foiled eyeshadow line asap! :)
• Caitlin Rose and Center Stage foiled eyeshadows were slightly disappointing in terms of how metallic/foiled and pigmented they are compared to the other foiled eyeshadows. They required more layers to build up the colour

Hope you enjoyed this swatchfest!! I truly think Makeup Geek produce the BEST eyeshadows currently on the market and they are sooo worth the investment. Which are your favourites?

xo Laura

 

* Disclaimer: This is a non-sponsored post and I am in no way affiliated with Makeup Geek. The products mentioned were purchased with my own money and as always my reviews are 100% my honest opinion *

{ Review + Swatches } Charlotte Tilbury Haul PART 1: "The Dolce Vita" Palette & "Penelope Pink" Lipstick

Here's to part 1 of my Charlotte Tilbury haul! Prepare yourself for a ton of beautiful shots of her Luxury Palette in 'The Dolce Vita' and her K.I.S.S.I.N.G lipstick in 'Penelope Pink'. Charlotte Tilbury's makeup line just exudes extreme class and beauty. I absolutely adore the rose gold/maroon packaging and the products themselves actually perform incredibly well.

'The Dolce Vita' palette is a gorgeous warm-toned quad containing a light pinkish champagne, a reddish brown, a sparkling gold-bronze and a deep chocolate brown. These are not the most buttery or pigmented or silkiest eyeshadows I've tried to be perfectly honest. These powders lean to more the drier side but are not chalky. I was a bit let down when I initially swatched these shadows on my hand because I was expecting a ton of pigmentation but these eyeshadows perform so differently when applied on the eyelids. On the eyelids, these shadows have amazing colour pay off and because of this slightly dry formula, there is no fall out at all!

I had the hardest time deciding which lipstick from the line I wanted to purchase. Since I've never tried Charlotte Tilbury's products before prior to this haul, I of course wanted to stick to a nude/neutral everyday wearable colour. 'Penelope Pink' is a stunning nude-pink shade. This lipstick is extremely creamy, moisturising and velvety- so comfortable to wear. They claim that these lipsticks are free from parabens and contain a rich anti-oxidant that will naturally protect your lips from harmful UV rays. They provide such a pretty healthy shine on the lips and are an absolutely dream to apply.

The rose gold bullet is hands down one of my favourite lipstick packaging ever. The design is very old hollywood glamour-esque (the whole collection is actually!) yet simple yet still so classy and feminine. I definitely need to purchase more of her lipsticks!

Lined with Jordana's Easyliner in 'Honey Dip'

Stay tuned for Part 2 of my haul where I'll be reviewing and swatching Charlotte's 'Filmstar Bronze & Glow' and her Cheek to Chic blush!

xo Laura

* Disclaimer: This is a non-sponsored post and I am in no way affiliated with Charlotte Tilbury. The products mentioned were purchased with my own money and as always my reviews are 100% my honest opinion *