I know I don't tend to blog about my beauty regime very much. I think this is due to a preponderant lack of confidence when it comes to my history and knowledge, with and of, beauty products in general. My mother was of the firm belief that natural is better, and I guess I never really disagreed. I did insist upon hair removal though, at quite a young age, however it took a lot of coaxing to convince her to regress.
Oh, I got to exercise most of the little rights of passage we all seem to partake in during our younger years. I still remember getting into mum's lipsticks and eye shadow and begging her to let me wear 'just a little rouge' on my lips, on one of our trips to town. She never let me though... said little girls that wore lipstick looked silly. They were from the 80's anyway.
So... I basically learnt everything I know from my school friends, and from trying different things and fiddling around on rainy days. And the fine-tuned result? The following is my current routine, with product listings.
Cleansing, Toning and Moisturising
I am a huge fan of Garnier's facial care products. These are the ones I like the best, and use every day during and after my shower.
The first (excuse the french, literally) is the Blackhead Clearing Scrub from the PureActive range, which is applied in the shower and rinsed off with cool water. It leaves your face feeling clean, refreshed and... minty? My shower is then followed by the application of the Pimple Reducing Toner (using a cotton pad) which helps to close pores tightly and mattify the skin, while also targetting impurities. I then apply a moisturiser, which is decided by the time of day:
Jour for morning (or 'day'), and Nuit for night. Also, as a note, I always try to apply moisturiser within 15 minutes of cleansing to prevent any excess oil production by my face! If you take the moisture away, you need to replace it - otherwise your body will. As I said, I love Garnier. Any impurities or breakouts are predominately banished when I follow this routine.
I purchase all said Garnier products from Woolworths.
Foundations and Basic Daily Make-up
Napoleon Perdis is my go-to guy for face paint. Oh yes, he and I? Going on 6 years strong. First off, foundation. NP stop it! I know you have Primer and it's really amazing and I do like to use it, but I am also a lady on a budget and I can't always afford these fine things!
I use China Doll and dust with Camera Finish - these give amazing cover. Then I use NP's Mosaic Bronzer to give definition to my cheeks and a sun-kissed glow. Finally, a swipe of mascara - only Maybelline. I am so into Colossal Volume Express Mascara. It is, hands down, the best mascara I have experienced so far in my young life. Eyelash-heavy thick is the best way to wear, and I swear, people are convinced I am wearing fake eyelashes. I've only ever worn fakies once, for a hair show, and I felt just that - fake. But they are fun to flutter!
Nights Out, Occasions and a Lipstick
Those are the basics, and I really don't elaborate on them much. I own two lipsticks - both Revlon Matte (<3) - Pink Pout and Nude Attitude. Two classics. When I go out I will a) nude my lips out and go with a slick of liquid eyeliner, coupled with a subtle smoky eye; or b) go with frosty, light pink lips and heavily liquid-lined, winged eyes. I love the idea of doing my make-up at home, then leaving it all behind and conquering the city with only coin for a cab and my trusty stick of nude lipstick.
And Finally, My Christmas Wish List.
Only a few things left to mention. I think I've pretty much pulled my skincare regime apart with pointy eyebrow tweezers and laid it all out here for you to see! Products I'd love to try in the very near future?
I definitely need some new brushes - I'd like to have a decadent Blush Brush and a new Bronzer/Powder Brush. I'd also love to get my hands on Revlon's Really Red... I'm yet to find the perfect matte red lipstick, and until I do I refuse to wear rouged lips in public. Perhaps this will be The One (Actually, I should really hit up Poppy King, she knows about this stuff I've heard!). And finally - but absolutely not leastly - NP's newest foundation creation: Sheer Genius. Promising perfect coverage under even the harshest of lights? well, I think there are a lot of lovelies who'd care to give this a whirl. So maybe when I finally have a go, I'll write a blog about it.
Just remember - in the words of True Beauty's Tyra Banks - 'true beauty is what's on the inside'.
xx B