Christmas Day Nails 2013

Hi guys, I am finally getting around to posting the nails I wore on Christmas Day. I wore 'Hot Fever' from Kit Cosmetics, which is a deep red based fuchsia, with Face of Australia's 'Studio 54' over the top. I think the polish looks slightly more red in the pictures, than it does in real life as well.

Part of me regretted not going with a more christmassy nail but oh well. The combination of 'Hot Fever' and 'Studio 54' looked great and 'Studio 54' is simply amazing. I have the same combo on my toe nails and I think 'Studio 54' will be gracing my toe nails with different combinations of colours all summer long.

I hope you all had a very merry Christmas and are having a relaxing break. I can't believe it's been days and days since I last posted.This time of year always seems to fly and then in a blink of an eye it's all over and back to the long hard slog that uni is. Not that I'm complaining because at the end of the day if I want to get my dream job I have to get qualified first! :) 

Cheers :)

Kit Essential Kit Facial Moisturiser SPF 15 Review

Today I'm reviewing the essential kit facial moisturiser with SPF 15 from Kit Cosmetics which retails for $34.95. I've been using it quite a lot in the past couple of months and think I have finally "sussed it out" sufficiently to write a review. Before I really get into it, I guess I should point out that I've been using this in the autumn/winter months and my skin type is normal / combination, I think.

 The areas I'm going to cover are: packaging, scent, formula and effectiveness. If you think I've forgotten anything or have any questions please feel free to leave a comment below.

Packaging - The packaging for this product is great, despite being quite simple. it's a sturdy plastic container with a convenient pump and clear plastic lid. I really love the styling of the packaging. I've never used a moisturiser with a pump before, and I love it! There's no waste of product and it's also hygienic. The only thing I don't love is that the plastic lid is easily cracked.

Packaging score: 9.5/10

Scent - The scent of this moisturiser is really nice. I'm pretty hopeless at describing scents so I'm not going to attempt it but what I can say is that the scent is quite a modern scent (does that make sense?) and is quite delicate. It's not overwhelming and doesn't linger all day so if you don't like scents it shouldn't worry you too much.

Scent score: 10/10

Formula - This moisturiser has a lightweight creamy consistency that is rapidly absorbed by your skin and glides effortlessly across your skin. You only need one pump to cover your entire face. I love how once you've applied it there is no residue left on your skin and it doesn't feel like you are wearing anything yucky on your skin. It works well with make-up and doesn't seem to make my make-up wear off quicker. Another bonus is that it includes SPF 15.

Also, I guess this fits under the formula heading... It's free from parabens, phthalates, sulphates and synthetic colours which is amazing. I really applaud Kit for 1) making a moisturiser without the above mentioned nasty chemicals, and 2) for stating it explicitly on their packaging! Give yourself a pat on the back Kit :)

Formula score: 8.5/10

Effectiveness - This isn't the most intensive moisturiser out there but nonetheless it does moisturise my skin sufficiently. It gets rid of my dry patches without making me oily and keeps my skin feeling hydrated all day.

Effectiveness score: 8/10

Overall this is a really lovely moisturiser, that has a lovely lightweight consistency, sinks in quickly, works effectively, smells lovely, contains SPF 15 and doesn't contain parabens, phthalates, sulphates and synthetic colours. If you are looking for a new moisturiser I would definitely recommend you check this out.

Thanks for reading,
cheers

Product vs. Product - Kit vs Vaseline

This week's battle between two products focuses on body moisturisers, body lotions.... or whatever you want to call them.

We have  Vaseline's total moisture aloe fresh daily light lotion spf 15 against Kit's Hand & Body Lotion. Each of these products I have owned for around a year and to be honest, I love them both. There are a few differences though, so here goes.

The vaseline retails for around $8.00 for 200ml and is easily found in chemists,supermarkets and shops like Target. It is made in Australia :)

The Kit Hand & Body Lotion retails for $29.95 for 200ml. You can purchase it from Kit stores, kit kiosks located at Myer or online here:http://www.kitcosmetics.com.au/products/kitcosmetics/essentialkithandandbodylotion/

Notes on Kit's Hand & Body Lotion

• Delightful, sophisticated scent with tones of lemongrass and yummy oils. I love the smell!
• Absorbs into the skin very quickly and leaves your skin feeling moist. 
• No yucky greasy feeling after application. If applying onto your hands, you can use your hands pretty much straight away. You don't end up feeling slimy!
• Combined hand and body lotion that serves two functions effectively without compromising on anything (it's a great hand lotion as well as being a body lotion). 
• Made in Australia. 
• Contains no parabens, phthalates or sulphates. 
• Comes in a useful pump bottle. 
• Packaging is simple but classy.

Overall score 10/10

Notes on Vaseline's total moisture aloe fresh daily light lotion spf 15

• Ok so I know I said I loved the smell of the kit lotion (and I do) but I also really love the smell of the Vaseline lotion. No, I'm not that fussy with my scents but these two lotions have really great scents and dare I say it......these two lotions are my absolute favourites!) This lotion smells very 'green', if that makes sense?
• Sinks into the skin very quickly and doesn't leave any residue. Skin feels very moist after application and smooth. 
• SPF 15 and protects against both UVA and UVB rays, always a plus although if I was going into the sun I would put SPF 30 on. I like this lotion though for days when I'm not sure what I'm doing and want to play it safe or if I won't be in the sun much. 
• Packaging is pretty standard but functional. 
• I'm not sure if it is intended to be used as a hand lotion but I can't see why not. 
• Made in Australia. 

Overall score 10/10

To test each of these lotions out I applied one to each leg, two days in a row (yes I know, my testing technique was quite poor) and tried to decide which leg felt smoother on the second evening.  The 'kit' leg felt marginally smoother although both lotions did a great job of keeping my skin hydrated. As a combined lotion the Kit lotion is brilliant. I would highly recommend it's use as a hand lotion as well as a general purpose body lotion. However, despite being a lot cheaper, the Vaseline lotion also performed brilliantly. I know this review is pretty pointless because I can't pick a winner!!!! Sorry!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

I am going to say that both products are winners and I would recommend them both to you :) 

If you want something cheap and for general purpose and for your body mostly (not as a independent hand lotion) go for the Vaseline however if you want a lotion that you can use on your hands and body equally go for the Kit lotion. 

Have you tried either of these products? Do you have a favourite lotion? 

Cheers and have a great weekend!

31 Day Challenge Day 9 - Rainbow Nails

Hi guys :) I hope you all  have a wonderful weekend.
The theme for day 9 is 'rainbow nails'. For some inspiration I had a look on the internet and found heaps of wonderful people who had drew beautifully curved rainbows onto their nails, complete with cute little fluffy clouds. I didn't think I could pull that off so I went a bit metaphorical with this challenge.

 For middle finger I used sticky tape to create a bold rainbow using:

• Ulta3's blue marlin & mermaid green
• Essence's Meet Me Now 
• Kit's Start Up. 

Finally I used an awesome nail art pen that I just got to do the white stripes (will post more about this pen soon so stay tuned). Sadly by the time I could take photos the lines had smudged a bit so they are not as crisp as I wanted them to be for the photos but oh well, maybe it is even better that they are wonky....could represents clouds or something.

Before I put the white stripes on my nails this is how it looked. Maybe I shouldn't have done the stripes???

Sorry about the lack of clean-up on this nail. My cuticles are really sore at the moment so I decided not to pick and rub them with nail polish remover like a crazy lady to get rid of all the mess. Thank goodness my other fingers look slightly better! Sorry! I know they look terrible :/

For my ring finger I used Essence's 'Meet Me Now' and Revlon's 'Fall Mood' for the tip. I really like how this turned out. Huh? How is this related to rainbows? Well you know how people always say if you go to the end of a rainbow you will find a pot of gold? Well..... the golden bronze tip is suppose to represent that pot of gold and the pink? Well all rainbows have pink in them right? Hahaha yeah I know.... bit out there :)

Finally for my index finger I used a limited edition polish by Face of Australia called 'Lets Go Scuba Diving'. I love this polish and there will be a post about it very soon. BTW - if you are in Oz and still want any of the Barbados polishes I would suggest getting to the shops ASAP. The shelves are quite empty and not a lot of these polishes are around anymore :(I also used the white nail art pen to do some polka dots. Not sure how this relates to rainbows but I really wanted to try out my new pen!

So those are my rainbow nails. What do you think of them?

And as always please check out the other lovely bloggers participating in this challenge!

Sally Morgan

http://nailpron.blogspot.co.uk/

Nikki Muldrew

http://www.cutie-cles.blogspot.ca

Kimberly Rybak

http://www.bleedglitter.com/

Felicia Renee Banuelos

http://fesnails.blogspot.com/

Belén

http://nailpolishlane.blogspot.com.es/

Cristina Santos

http://theclockwisenailpolish.blogspot.pt/

Courtney Mendoza

http://cute-iclechronicles.com

Natalie Elise

www.walkinmyeyeshadow.com

Rebecca Russell

 http://rebeccasramblings-tenderheartr.blogspot.com/

Jessica Beswick

http://rubysnails.blogspot.com/

Raquel Soares

http://9mluniverse.blogspot.pt/

Briana

http://nailacollegedropout.blogspot.com/

Kimberly L

http://to-polish-or-not.blogspot.ca/

Kelly Cooke

http://crazynaillady.blogspot.com

Carina Martins

http://polishitall.blogspot.pt/

 

Laura Carls

http://justagirlandherpolish.blogspot.com/

The Winter Challenge Day 1 - Purple Nails

For day one of the winter challenge I have used one of my favourite polishes, Kit's "Start Up" a super glossy creme in a dusty deep purple. The purple kind of reminds of grapes or eggplant. I'm not sure really how to describe this lovely colour.....

Kit Cosmetics are made in Australia and I'm not sure about the nail polish but for their make-up and skin care ranges they do not test on animals. If you live in Victoria you can find Kit products at most Myers and they also have their own stand-along stores which are beautiful. If you are not in Australia you can buy online http://www.kitcosmetics.com.au/ 

This polish was super easy to apply and after one coat it was totally wearable, I opted for two coats because I am planning on wearing this for a few days and I always seem to miss bits so need that second coat to hide my mistakes! 


Score: 10/10

Review: Kit Cosmetic - hand and body lotion

You know those beauty staples that you cannot live without? Well this is one of mine so I have decided to share it with you:)

It is a beautiful light lotion with a faint smell of lemon grass that doesn't leave you feeling sticky and is absorbed into your skin really quickly. I feel like I'm not quite articulating my love for this enough so I'm going to resort to a 'old-school' pros and cons list. 

Pros 

• Makes your hands feel amazing!
• Sinks in quickly.
• Smell is not overpowering but is really lovely and relaxing. 
• Packaging is really attractive. 
• Made in Australia
• No sticky feeling or nasty film.
• You don't need a lot, it goes far.

Cons

•  $29.95 for 200ml.
• It's so good you can't live without it :) 

Kit cosmetics are not only sold in 'Kit' stores but also at some Myer stores. Or if you are not in Australia you can buy online http://www.kitcosmetics.com.au/products/kitcosmetics/essentialkithandandbodylotion/