Christmas Makeup Look...

Oh hello there!! I cannot believe it’s been so long since I last posted. I have been running around like a chicken without a head getting ready for our trip down to Ben’s mom in Fouriesberg. After a hectic road trip, we are finally here and I can sit down, relax and chat with all of you.

So I’m going to show you a little holiday inspired makeup look. 

I went with a subtle golden eye, as 90% of my Christmas celebrations are happening during the day this year, so I thought I would keep things on the lighter side.

Here is a breakdown of what I used

On My Face

1. Catrice Prime and Fine Pore Refining Anti-Shine Base
2. Palladio Green Concealer
3. Garnier BB Cream Miracle Skin Perfector - Light
4. Yardley Airbrush Foundation - Ivory 01
5. Revlon Colourstay Stay Active - 001 Buff
6. Catrice Camouflage Cream - 010 Ivory
7. Catrice Prime and Fine Mattifying Powder - 010 Translucent 

On My Eyes

1. Essence All About Sunrise
2. Essence Sooo Glow Cream to Powder Highlighter
3. Catrice Better Than False Lashes
4. Smudge Felt Liner Blackest Black

    - Smudge 2 in 1 Eyebrow and Fix - Black

    - Smudge Waterproof Gel Eyeliner - Dark Bronze

    - Maybelline The Collossal Kajal - Black

On My Lips

Revlon Colourburst Lipstick - 070 Soft Nude

Revlon Lip Liner - Nude

A subtle look for a summers day!

Would love to see if you recreate this look, so tag me in your pics :)

Until next time…

A Little Bit of Sparkly Shimmer...

In South Africa come Christmas time we are in full blown summer. Most people are able to sport a little summer bronzing, making us pale, pasty can't-go-in-the-sunners pretty bleak about the lack of gleam.


However I did find a little something to give you a sparkle, tanned skin or pale, during your Christmas celebrations.

I found this gem at Woolworths while I was doing a food shop two weeks ago. What initially made me buy it was the fact that it said Illuminating. It's no secret that when you have a little glow to you, you instantly feel more confident. 


Not to get you confused, this is by no means a self tanner, it is a nourishing cream with a little shimmer. I attempted a little swatch for you to see...

 As you can see it gives you a stunning little gleam! With Cocoa Butter and Vitamin E, your skin is left feeling soft and nourished.


With a snazzy little price tag of R59.99, this is a perfect Christmas treat :)


Until tomorrow...

Christmas Jams...

It’s no secret that my life revolves around music, so it’s only fitting that the thing that gets me into the Christmas spirit is some awesome jams. I’m not talking the old faithful tunes (don’t get me wrong, I love the originals), I’m talking about more modern covers that have been done.


So I have scoured the internet to bring to you my 5 Favourite Christmas Jams! I hope you enjoy my little Christmas Countdown, let me know if these give you the Christmas feels ;)

DISCLAIMER: I don't own any of these songs, I am just spreading the Christmas cheer ;)

5. Silent Night Live - Pentatonix



4. Ariana Grande - Santa Tell Me

3. Faith Hill - Where Are You Christmas 

2. Pentatonix - Little Drummer Boy

1. Tchaikovsky - Sugar Plum Fairy

I love love love all of these songs! Do you have any favourites? Let me know!

Until tomorrow...

Christmas Cheer...

For today's picture challenge I will be spreading some Christmas Cheer showing you my decorations. This will be mainly a picture post...a new style for me, so I hope you enjoy!

Until tomorrow...

DIY Stocking Stuffer...

With the line of business I am in, I have a lot of little people who are expecting Christmas gifts at their last lessons for the year. So I like to do a little DIY to keep within budget and make sure my students know how much I appreciate al of their hard work.

Enter the little chocolate boxes...


These little things are brilliant for client gifts or for stocking stuffers :) They are simple and easy to make all you need is:

Chocolate Hollow Balls - Woolworths

Chinese Take Away Boxes - Pick 'n Pay

Mini Crackers - Westpack

Glass Jar - Westpack

Raffia - Westpack

For the Chinese Take Out Boxes...

Cut some of the Raffia into the bottom of the box...

Drop in some chocolate balls...

 Tie a little cracker to the side and seal...

For a more "grown-up" gift, I decided to use a glass jar instead.
I just tied a little Raffia around the jar and followed to steps...

And this is the end product...

So simple and pretty!


If you make these, I'd love to see it, so tag me in your pics!!


Until tomorrow...

Rad Red Lip...

'Tis the season to rock a gorgeous red lip! I don't often sport a red lip, but this year I thought, why not? So I went on the hunt for the perfect red lipstick. I'm not to fond of a super bright red colour on myself, my skin tone doesn't work well with those. And my goodness was it a massion to find one that I like. After swatching a million red lipsticks, I kid you not, I have the picture to prove it!

Anyway, I finally stumbled across this little gem from MaxFactor...



MaxFactor Colour Elixir Giant Pen Stick in the shade 35 Passionate Red.

Technically this isn't a lipstick, it's more like a giant pen, a lip drawing pen! I wasn't certain if I liked the shade, until I swatched it, and the world around me faded away. This awesome lip pen not only produces the most stunning shade of red, but it has tiny little shimmery-ness. Perfect for the holiday season!



I decided to test the wear and how the formula would react to my lips. My lips don't generally work well with lipsticks, they get all dry and peely, not the most ideal of looks. But this formula is rich and moisturizing leaving my lips looking and feeling moisturized and soft. As it's not a matt formula, it did move around a little, but I didn't end up looking like a clown by the end of the evening.




It is highly highly pigmented and I love the fact that application is so simple. As lipsticks go, it carries a reasonable price of R 139.99 at Clicks. I am intrigued to see how the sharpening of this little pen will go, I will definitely give an update on how that pans out!

I'd love to see your red lips, so feel free to tag me in your pics so I can have a looky loo!

Until tomorrow...

My Secret Weapon...

Blemishes! The bane of my existence and the LAST thing I want popping it's ugly little head into my day. But unfortunately for me I have acne prone skin, skin that is prone to break outs during stress and the dreaded monthly cycle. I have far from perfect skin, but I do have a secret weapon that allows me to "fake it till I make it". 


Let me introduce you to my secret weapon...




Palladio Green Concealer! Yes, I said a green concealer. You're probably thinking to yourself "right, she's lost it." and I would've agreed with you a few months back, before I tried it. 

Let me explain. One of the worst parts about a pimple (other than the actual pimple) is the redness that comes with it. In order to combat the redness, we need something to balance it out. If we take a little squizz at the colour wheel, you will see that red is opposite to green, and there lies our answer. The green concealer cancels out the red hues of pimples, birth marks, acne and even scars. 


The best way, in my opinion, to use this product is to mix a small amount of the green concealer with your normal toned concealer. Make sure not to put too much green in the mix or you may end up looking a little Shrek-ish! Not all green concealers are the same shade of green, many vary and you will need to find the one that works best for you. I find that this little tube from Palladio works best for my skin tone.


This concelear is a very resonable R 69.99 when I purchased it about two months ago from Dischem. A little goes a long way, definately a brilliant buy!


I'm off to go cover some pimples ;)


Until tomorrow...

Favourite Festive Scent...

No one wants to smell gross, especially not during the holidays when you have to see your family and friends, that's how horrible nicknames are birthed. But if you know me, you'll know that I'm not all that fond of perfume. I have about two that I switch between and I'm good (NO! You cannot take my girl card away!).


Although I don't often wear perfume, I do like to smell nice. One of my most favourite scents is....



I'd like to introduce you to the yummiest smelling trio you will ever meet, Woolworths Vanilla and Brown Sugar range! I absolutely love love love the scent of these three, let me try give you an idea. 

Cast your mind back to when you were a wee little lady, you'd arrive at your granny's house and the first thing you smell as you rush through that door is the magical heavenly scent of freshly backed cookies. The warm, cozy, rich glorious smell of fresh-out-the-oven cookies....aaaaaaaaah....

Now who wouldn't want to smell like a fresh-out-the-oven cookie?? Ok I know there are probably a lot of people who don't want to, and that's cool, but I'm not one of them!

It's not only the scent that makes me love these products. The foam bath contains Wheat Protein, this is a brilliant ingredient that helps to retain the moisture in your skin. I sometimes get out of the bath and feel like my skin has been sucked dry, which is weird after lying in a huge tub of water, but not with this foam bath. The Wheat Protein leaves my skin feeling soft and hydrated.

For a little extra hyrdation-ness I like to slap on some of the body butter. This little jar contains one of my most favourite miracle oils...Argan Oil. Another brilliant way to keep your skin hydrated and smooth. 

Lastly in my lovely trio is the hand cream. I carry this with me where ever I go to keep my paws pretty and smelling edible :)

So if you want to join me in the cookie smell gang, head over to Woolworths and give these guys a little try. The foam bath and body butter retail for R 65 and the hand lotion is R 45.

I'd love to hear if you give this a try, so let me know!

Until tomorrow....

All I Want For Christmas...

It's been a good 15 years since the last time I made a Christmas wish list...and now I feel old! Usually Christmas creeps up on me and by the time Christmas day actually comes, I haven't given any thought to what I would've asked for. I'm very lucky to have the people in my life that I do, they know me better than I know myself half the time, so they have this down.

I'm not going to be one of those people who say that all I want for Christmas is to be with family, don't get me wrong, I do want to be with family and I want them happy. But come on, who doesn't want to open gifts ;)

So today I will be showing you a few of the things that I would like for Christmas. My birthday is 10 days after Christmas, so I combined my Christmas List, Birthday List and Work-Your-Butt-For-It-List all into one :) So lets dive into this...

As you can see, there is a stong "minty" theme, as usual ;)

I have categorized everything into where you can get them, prices as well as links to the stores.

1. Urban Decay Naked 3 Pallette

    PRICE: R 1250

    SHOP: Hashtag Awesome

2. Real Techniques Miracle Complexion Sponge

    PRICE: R 100

    SHOP: MYMAKEUP_ESSENTIALS. To shop you will need to contact them via email, if you                        click the link it will take you straight to their instagram page where you can get more                  details:)

3. Brushegg

    PRICE: R110

    SHOP: MYMAKEUP_ESSENTIALS

4. Toy Minty Sparrow

     PRICE: R 99

     SHOP: Toy 

5. Luxury Acrylic Organizer

    PRICE: R 1800

    SHOP: Pink27x

6. GHD Soft Curl Tong Set

     PRICE: R1899

     SHOP: Retail Box

7. Nescafe Dulce Gusto

    PRICE: R 1799

    SHOP: Takealot.com

8. Arrow Adventure Temporary Tattoo

    PRICE: R 70

    SHOP: Oh One One

9. Lush Festive Funtimes

    PRICE: R435

    SHOP: Lush South Africa

10. Sigmax 5 Piece Precision Kit for Eyes

      PRICE: R 420 a set

      SHOP: MYMAKEUP_ESSENTIALS

I had so much fun compiling this list, hopefully Santa will pick his favourite and get the elves on it ;)

Did any of these make your Christmas list?

Until tomorrow....

A Merry Manicure...

One of the best things about the festive season is that you can bring out ll of your glittery, shiney, sparkly over the top nail polishes...and just go wild!! Well that's what I do any way :)

My first festive mani is something a little more subtle so that I can ease my fingers into the festivities. 

Aaaaaa...the glittery goodness. 

As my main colour, I used a regular favourite here on the blog. Yes you guessed it, Morgan Taylor's Water Baby. I love how versatile this little colour is. I painted 4 of my 5 fingers with two coats of this wonderful pale blue.

On the tips of 4 of my nails, I swept this pretty silver and blue glitter polish.I also used this as my accent nail. Now the polish has no name and the company that makes it, I'm guessing, is called Passion Nail Lacquer. I found this pretty polish in the nail bin at Dischem. I'm hoping there are more because this polish actually works brilliantly and it only cost me R 19.99, what a bargain!

Christmas to me is all about the glittery sprakly wonder, and this mani makes me think of snow flakes and white Christmases.

Tomorrow I'll be showing you my Christmas list, in the hopes that Santa will send me a few little treats ;)

Until tomorrow....

The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year...

I couldn't be more happy that it's December :) I am shocked at how quickly this year has gone, so much has changed for me this year and I am in need of a little time off.


For Ben and I, this is the first year that we are celebrating Christmas in our first home together. We lived in a commune situation for the first couple years of our relationship, so now that we have our own space, I have gone a little Christmas crazy :)


I have also decided to hop on another photo-a-day challenge on Instagram, I absolutely LOVE these challenges and the lovely Chicara from lipglosskisses.com has created such an awesome one for the December month.

How cute is it? If you would like to get involved it's so simple! You post when you can, you can interpret the subject how you would like and just have fun :) Don't forget to tag @lipglosskissesdotcom and use the hashtag #lipglosskissmas. I can't wait to see everyones's posts.

So for today I am going to show you one of my favourite ornaments. My mom received this ornament from a friend years ago and I have always been in love with this little lady.

Obviously she only comes out in December, although I would love to see her all year round :)

Make sure to pop in tomorrow to see one of my many merry mani's!

Until tomorrow....

Face Pack Friday: Yardley Oatmeal Brightening Scrub/Mask

I'm super excited to intoduce a new little feature I will be doing on the blog..Face Pack Friday! There is nothing better than coming home after a long week at work, kicking your shoes off, pouring your favourite drink, lazing on the couch and slapping on a face mask. Bliss!

I love putting on a face mask at the end of the week to get rid of the pesky build up from the weeks make up.

This week I'm introducing you to one of my all time favourite masks, Yardley's Oatmeal Brightening Scrub & Mask...

I first discovered this face mask in 2010, I was looking for a mask that would exfoliate and give my skin a little wake up, my little friend over here delivered.

With actual oat and grapefruit extracts in, you could eat it for breakfast, but I wouldn't as it smells rather clay like ;)

I pop the mask on in an even layer and leave on my face until it has gone super hard, can't move your face kind of hard :) Once the mask has set, I find the best way to remove the mask is by lightly wetting your face with warm water, and working the mask off in cicular motions to allow the mask to gently exfoliate your face. You may need to change the water as the little exfoliating pieces don't disintegrate.

The Oatmeal Mask definately does leave your face looking radiant and glowing. Pop on your favourite moisturiser and you are good to go!

You can also use this mask as a bi-weekly exfoliating scrub, you could use it every day, but I don't like to over exfoliate my skin.

The best part of this mask, its only R 74.95! How's that for a bargain! You can purchase at Pick 'n Pay, Dischem, Clicks and even Foschini.

I'd love to know which is your favourite face mask, let me know in the comments below!

Until next time...

LL