I have to say, I'm a little bit in love with reading posts that fall under the category of 'Monthly Favourites'. Whether it's the excitement of finding a new product listed that seems to be worth trying, the surprise of seeing an old one that's reemerged and charmed it's way back into the blogger's heart, or simply a case of general nosiness - I just adore them! So, I thought I'd give this pony a ride. Without further adieu, I give you my monthly favourites for the month of May.
MAC Paint Pot in Bare Study
I picked this up during my time in New York City last September, and have been steadily pawing my way through it. This month in particular. As many of you may know, this is a lovely champagne coloured eye-base. It's a cream-to-powder formulation that can be worn underneath eyeshadow, or applied all over the lid as a sheer colour. I must admit, I found it a little difficult to work with to begin with. If I accidentally applied too much in the one spot, it created a patchy, scaly effect. Also, if I wasn't quick enough, it would dry and set before I could blend it evenly. I've since found that to avoid this, the best thing to do is to ditch the makeup brush, and simply swipe it on with my finger. Also, less is more. The reason that it was looking a little patchy on my eyes to begin with, was that I was trying to apply too much of it. Technical stuff aside though, this is a really beautiful, brightening shade, and a fantastic base for my eye shadow. Nothing creases with this baby on!
Revlon Nutri-Colour Creme
You may remember this little baby from my
Chaddy Haul post. It's a colour depositing treatment for your hair, and I can't recommend it highly enough. I have dry, colour-treated hair, and I can safely say that this has completely replaced my deep conditioning treatments. Not only does it make my locks all smooth and moisturised, it noticeably ups the vibrancy of my colour. The current red dye I'm using has a tendency to go pink after a month or so, but I feel like this product has really kept the fading at bay. At my recommendation, a friend of mine (with purple hair) also bought a tube in 200 Violet, and we both noticed how much it improved the intensity of her colour after a single use. I've already picked up another 100ml tube of this wonder-product in 600 Fire Red, but have since found the larger 250ml pump bottle for the tantalising price of AUD $23.70 on
Beauty Bay. That's less than I payed retail for the 100ml! Plus a pump bottle is far more convenient than trying to squeeze the creme out of a tube with my awkwardly glove-adorned hands!
Ulta 3 Nail Polish
I've gone a bit gaga over these polishes this month; picking up a whopping 7 shades! I found out about them through Bellabox when I received Enchanted in their April box. These polishes are absolutely exceptional for the price. Only 50 cents a bottle at Coles, would you believe?! They apply nicely, dry quickly, and with a quick coat of my Sally Hansen Insta-Dri over the top, you can't tell them apart from the more high-end brands. I even received a few compliments on Lagoon when wearing it at work. My absolute favourite shade this month though, has to be Blue Marlin: a bright blue creme.
This shade is to die for. It seems to make the skin on my hands seem fairer and 'cleaner' if that makes any sense. If you're interested in oohing and ahhing over the entire Ulta 3 shade range, there's a brilliant page of swatches and descriptions
here.
Silk Oil of Morocco Lip Gloss in Ruby
Another beauty box find! I received this one in this month's Bellabox, and I've been reaching for it ever since. As I understand it, this is a fairly new brand. The lip gloss contains argan oil, which of course is known for it's nourishing qualities. So it just makes sense that it would eventually find it's way into a lip product. Another reason I've been loving this gloss, is it's divine peppermint scent. Why don't more lip products smell like peppermint?! As far as the colour payoff goes, it's sheer enough that it can be applied without too much fuss, and compliments pretty much any look. I should mention that the two things I don't like about this product is the steep price (AUD $29.95), and the fact that it takes a lot of dipping the wand in and out of the tube to get enough product for one application. Regardless though, this has definitely been a favourite of mine this month (just bring it down in price please Bellabox!)
Lush Volcano Foot Mask
I bought this with a friend specifically for a girly day of face masks, cupcakes, manicures and Disney films. To begin with, I had dismissed it because it only came in a 225gm tub, which was far too big and a little too pricey. As luck would have it though, a 125gm version was in stock for the first time on the day we decided to visit the store. Yay! Back on track though, this is a foot mask and scrub that cleanses, deodorises and exfoliates. You're meant to rub the product all over dry feet, wrap them in glad wrap for 10 minutes, and then massage and rinse. I found that this mask was such a nice alternative to the usual foot scrubs and stones. It contains pumice to rub away dead skin cells, as well as cleansing, softening and anti fungal goodies like lemon oil, papaya and cinnamon. It also smells like tomatoes in a big way, as it contains them for their anti-stink properties! This did absolute wonders for bringing my feet back to a non-embarrassing state! I also found this to be a much gentler (yet still effective) option than using an abrasive scrubby paddle or stone. Such a lovely treat. Especially for a girl who's on her feet all day, every day.
Maybelline Full 'n Soft Mascara
I used this mascara back in the day and loved it, but for whatever reason (curiosity I suppose) I decided to stray away from it and try a few others. While I did like some of the other mascaras, L'Oreal Volume Million Lashes and Covergirl's LashBlast for example, nothing worked for me quite like the Full 'n Soft. So this month I decided to repurchase it, and my love for this beautiful mascara has only grown! It separates, lifts and adds volume without looking spiky and overdone. Plus clumping is minimal to none. It certainly lives up to it's name. With this on, my lashes seem much fuller and not at all brittle. Also, I definitely feel that it's reduced my lash fallout significantly. Which is a big plus for me. While this mascara is marketed as being a more natural day-time mascara, I've been wearing it on nights out this month without any hesitation. I think it can look really glamorous and lovely. Love love love it!
Caudalie Cleansing Water
Of course, my monthly favourites would not be complete without my newest obsession - my Caudalie Cleanser. I wont go into too much detail with this one as I already did a pretty in depth review about it
here. I will say however, that this has become a staple in my nightly skincare routine this month, and I can definitely see myself repurchasing this when it runs out.
Well, that about wraps things up. Happy June everyone!
