Beauty in the Sky

Update and Favourites

Megan — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 08:59:49 +0000

It has been ages since I last posted to Beauty in the Sky and that’s because I’ve been embarking on new adventures as well as organising a lot of aspects of my life. I was offered a job with a major airline and I’m currently about a third of the way through ground school so study has taken over my life while I learn new procedures and new aircraft, I’m very excited to have gained this position and am determined to excel in this role.

I also had my braces removed and I’m loving my new smile, I’m so pleased with how my teeth turned out and I have some before and after pictures that my dentist sent me. It is a bit of an intense close up of my mouth since they use these plastic gadgets to hold your lips out the way but I’m sure you can all handle the gumminess!

I also purchased a car since now that I have this job it became very apparent that I can’t rely on public transport. I was lucky enough to find a great little car a green Toyota Echo that I’ve christened Betty.

Products I’m absolutely obsessed with at the moment:

Dermalogica Multi-vitamin Serum – I received this at an event, the first I’ve been to since moving to Melbourne and I’m amazed at the results. My skin feels firmer, fresher, brighter – all of that good stuff. I’ve just about finished the tube and so I made sure to quickly re-purchase another one, I also got the Skin Perfect Primer to try so I could take advantage of the current Willow gift with purchase going on at Dermalogica. I’ll be writing a more in depth review of this particular product in due course but with how busy I’ve been lately I don’t know when I’ll be able to finish it.

Adderton Mineral Foundation – I received this at Beauty Blogger’s Utopia last year and it has become my go to face powder since I love the airbrushed finish it gives my skin while taking away shine. The shade I received is probably a little too fair for me right now but in winter it will match perfectly.

Clinique Lash Power Mascara – I honestly didn’t think much of this mascara at first but now I’m obsessed, it’s a tubing formula so very long lasting and perfect for contact lens wearers. The brush is slim and elegant with quite short bristles that combs through lashes beautifully without any clumps. While it doesn’t give huge volume or length it stays put so well that I’m very happy to keep using this mascara for a long time before switching out to something else.

Brauers Lip Shimmers – These cute little tubes of moisturising paw paw lip balms give the moisturising and smoothing effects of paw paw while also giving me a little bit of colour.

Michel Mercier Detangling Hairbrush – I am obsessed with this hairbrush, I honestly didn’t think it would work at all since it has much shorter bristles than I’m used to but it works beautifully at detangling my long, wavy and often unruly hair. This can be purchased from Priceline for $19.99 and come in three variants for thick, normal or fine hair.

That’s it from me at the moment until I can manage some time to blog in between all of my study, I’ve been feeling very left out of all the amazing blogger events going on around Melbourne since they’ve all seemed to coincide with work so I’ve really missed catching up with all the gorgeous Melbourne girls. Once training is complete I’ll be able to have some semblance of a social life again!

Valley Girl Sheet Masks

Megan — Tue, 19 Feb 2013 00:56:08 +0000

I’m really excited to announce that Valley Girl have started selling sheet masks in their stores, available in packs of three for $6.95 and sourced from Korea. I took some on the road with me on a work trip and they were ideal to put moisture back into skin that has been dehydrated from constant flying. They come in the cutest packaging and are extremely good value for money.

For good quality, nourishing and pampering sheet masks then these are well worth a look!

*Products provided for review consideration in accordance with this Beauty in the Sky’s Disclosure Policy.

Peach Delights from The Body Shop

Megan — Sat, 02 Feb 2013 00:57:34 +0000

The Body Shop create some of the most beautifully scented bath and body products and I was lucky enough to be invited to trial the latest limited edition collection – Vineyard Peach. The range contains a body butter, body wash, body scrub and a body lotion which carry the most beautifully authentic scent of lush ripe peaches.

The body lotion and body wash are the more light weight products in the range and the body scrub and body butter are more heavily scented. I love the way my whole bathroom is filled with the scent of peaches after using these products.

The range is limited edition so do snap it up if you’re a fan of peach scents, I made sure to go in and purchase a couple of back ups of the body butter!

Available from The Body Shop.

December Empties

Megan — Sat, 19 Jan 2013 09:36:09 +0000

I’ve been sitting on this post since the end of December, apologies for getting out so late since we’re almost into February but I’ve had a busy time of it over the Christmas and New Year period and I’m just trying to get myself back into the habit of regular blog posting again.

Innoxa Exhilarate Body Lotion (350ml) – I can’t say I’m a fan of the Innoxa scent and this lotion wasn’t the easiest to rub in however it moisturised adequately and the packaging was beautiful.

Santorini Intensive Cellulite Treatment (250ml) – I don’t believe that a cream can rid you of cellulite however I just enjoyed using this since it moisturised beautifully and the sweet orange oil scent it to die for.

The Body Shop Cranberry Joy Body Polish (200ml) - My boyfriend has to take the credit for using this, I only got sent this a few weeks ago and he’s churned through it at lightning speed! I’ll have to get hime some more since he likes it so much.

Biore Makeup Removing Wipes (25packet) – These had a lovely fresh scent and were very well saturated with makeup remover, I did find the wipes themselves a little thin but they work really well at removing makeup although heavy eye makeup was a little tougher to remove.

Swisspers Cotton Wipes (80packet) – I go through a tonne of cotton pads but I don’t really stick to any particular brand, I just buy whatever is available at the time.

Clinique High Impact Mascara – Have had this mascara for months and haven’t used it in a while so thought it was time to toss it out.

Maybelline The Falsies Volum’ Express Mascara Waterproof – I like this mascara but the brush is so weird looking and mine was looking mangled so I’ve decided to toss it.

Jack Black Lip Balm in Natural Mint and Shea Butter – Obsessed with Jack Black lip balms, I picked up some more from Addicted to Lipbalm which has sadly now closed down. I also finished a tube of Jack Black Lip Balm in Vanilla and Lavender.

Kosmea Purifying Cream Cleanser and Clarifying Facial Wash (20ml samples) – Have had these lurking around in my bathroom for a while and thought I’d better use them up, I love Kosmea products and these are lovely gentle cleansers.

Going into 2013 my goal is to try and use up products completely before moving onto something new, I also want to cut down on clutter in the bathroom and bedroom and try not to keep accumulating too many new products. However I have already been splurging on new products especially The Body Shop and Benefit but I’m justifying those purchases as having been Birthday gifts to myself!

Ella Bache 50+ Sunscreen

Megan — Mon, 07 Jan 2013 08:27:16 +0000

The latest innovation in sun protection comes in the form of 50+ sunscreens that have recently been introduced onto the Australian market. Living with such harsh and hot weather makes wearing the strongest sun protection possible an absolute necessity. I was recently offered the chance to trial Ella Bache’s Great 50+Face Saver Active for the face and the Ella Bache Great 50+ Sportsbloc Active for the body.

Ella Baché’s SPF 50+ range from the leaders in advanced skincare not only provides balanced UVA/B broad spectrum but offers an exclusive super-fruit complex combined with moisturising and protective skincare benefits. The natural ingredients include pomegranate, cranberry, grape seed, lanolin, macadamia nut oil, squalane from olive oil and vitamin E delivering a valuable second line of defence by providing additional protection and moisturisation. SPF50+ provides the highest protection against UV induced premature ageing.

Over the weekend I was fortunate enough to spend a weekend out on Lake Eildon on a houseboat and spent loads of time swimming, tubing and laying on a lilo getting some sun. In amongst all the relaxing and activities my boyfriend and I made sure we applied plenty of 50+ sunscreen and we both had very different opinions of the product.

I was expecting something quite white and thick however the Ella Bache sunscreens are more of a thick gel like consistency, I found the product quite difficult to work into the skin and it has an extremely greasy texture, making it very difficult to wash off – this is good if you are swimming and in the water constantly but frustrating if you want to wash it off your hands. I found that even though it went on clear it seemed to turn slightly white on the skin once your skin was wet which was a little strange. I found it way too oily and greasy for my face and unfortunately my already oily to begin with skin freaked out and I broke out with a couple of pimples after the first day using these products but I’m glad to report that I didn’t get burnt at all. Unfortunately I won’t re-use this product because my skin reacted badly to the oily and greasy texture, something like Invisible Zinc agrees much better with my skin.

My boyfriend on the other hand really enjoyed the sunscreen, he’s not as fussy about texture and greasiness so for him it worked a treat. Not a single sunburn after three very hot days out and about in the sunshine so he would very gladly continue to keep using the products.

Great 50+Face Saver Active retails for $44 for a 130ml tube or $69 for a 375ml pump.

Great 50+ Sportsbloc Active retails for $44 for mls.

*Products provided for review consideration in accordance with this site’s Disclosure Policy.

Where have I been?

Megan — Fri, 28 Dec 2012 05:58:48 +0000

Sorry to have been AWOL for quite some time now, my website has been taking a back seat to work commitments and personal commitments, I’m away for long stretches with work and don’t have access to the internet at all times as well as the comfort of having all of my products close at hand. I’ve also found since moving to Melbourne I haven’t been able to shop or haul beauty products as much as I’d like since I can’t really afford it. I’m hoping that in the new year I can revitalise my website and get some enjoyment out of it again. But here’s what I’ve been up to lately:

Flying:

Took a jaunt down to Antarctica, not a place many people can say they’ve set foot on so I’m very happy I got to experience it.

Watching:

Addicted to Fringe, a show which no one seems to have heard of so I don’t think it even gets shown in Australia, reminds me of The X-Files minus the aliens but with loads of strange phenomena and gore.

Products I’m Loving:

Clarins Beauty Flash Balm – The hype and amazing reviews of this had me curious so I purchased a tube and I’m amazed at how fabulous this product is. It seems to tighten and repair my skin like a miracle, it’s supposed to be used as a mask and then washed off however I’ve been putting it on at night and sleeping with it so I can wake up looking like a new woman. Works amazingly when I’m away on work trips and haven’t slept much as it perks my skin right up.

L’Occitane Shea Butter Hand Cream – This has been taking pride of place in my handbag, moisturises beautifully with a soft powdery scent. L’Occitane is one of the few brands that I when I walk into the store I actually enjoy the retail shopping experience, the staff are friendly and knowledgeable and are always very generous with samples.

Scunci Pin Twirls – This was another product I was curious about trying so I picked up a packet and I love how easy they are to use. I love to twist my hair up into a high loose bun and twirl one of these through, it seems to feel more comfortable than using a hair elastic to secure my hair which pulls at my scalp. I haven’t tried styling my hair with these for work but I’m curious to see if I could get through airport security without them beeping.

Products I’m Loathing:

Travalo – I thought this refillable travel perfume dispenser would become an essential companion when I’m away on work trips however the first time I took it on a flight it leaked my beloved Roberto Cavalli perfume all through my handbag, I was so disappointed and unfortunately since I was away for 8 days I was stuck with it. It ended up having to be propped upside down in my hotel bathroom and couldn’t come with me anywhere – Complete waste of money and perfume.

I hope you enjoyed my little update of what I’ve been up to lately, I promise to try and do updates like these more often and bring you plenty more beauty and makeup reviews and looks. I’m also working on streamlining my makeup storage and blogging area so that I can photograph it and create a post since I love reading these kinds of posts I thought it was about time I did one of my own. I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas with family and are looking forward to the promise that a new year brings.

Christmas Gift Ideas from The Body Shop

Megan — Wed, 12 Dec 2012 00:00:00 +0000

At the start of the month I was fortunate enough to be invited to an event to launch the 2012 range of Limited Edition range of products from the Body Shop. As luck would have it I ended being out of the state and was unable to attend at the last minute however the lovely Alix who organised the event put together a selection of the products for me to have a play around with and I think all of these would make great gifts.

The Body Shop Ginger Sparkle or Cranberry Joy Body Polishes ($20.95AUD) – My personal favourite is the gingery, citrus scent of the Ginger Sparkle and my boyfriend loves the over the top sweetness of Cranberry Joy. These are lightly exfoliating and are also available in shower gels and body butters.

The Body Shop Colourglide Shine Lipstick in Ruby Sparkle ($24.95AUD) – Is a gorgeous shimmery, shiny red lipstick that is a dream to apply and is the perfect Christmas party look. I love that rose gold on the inside of the lipstick tube, since it will match so perfectly with all my rose gold accessories.

The Body Shop Eye Palette in Smoky Copper ($39.95AUD) – This palette contains the exact colours I’m always attracted to, golds, browns and copper tones and the dose of shimmer in each is perfect for the holiday season.

The Sparkler All Over Shimmer in Copper ($39.95AUD) – is a stunning atomiser containing a finely milled loose shimmer powder which can be used on the face body or hair. I love this for adding that little bit of extra sparkle to your Christmas look, I love that over this period it’s a lot more acceptable to be adventurous with makeup and hair looks so experimenting with shimmer is a lot of fun. It’s also available in Enchanting Gold.

Thanks Alix for sending me out these gorgeous products, I really need to get myself down to Body Shop while all of these products are still available because I want more Ginger Sparkle products in my life!

*Products were provided for review consideration in accordance with this sites Disclosure Policy.

ModelCo Fibre Lash

Megan — Sat, 08 Dec 2012 23:00:00 +0000

The idea of brush on false eyelashes has had me intrigued for a while and I’ve always been dying to trial this product from ModelCo but at $35 it is a little on the steep side, not as expensive as high end mascaras but still more than I’m willing to fork out so when I saw this being offered as the free gift with Cleo magazine I thought it would be a great way to finally try out this product and see for myself how it works.

Step 1: Apply one coat of the extension mascara to clean lashes from base to tip, ensuring every lash is coated.

Step 2: Now apply one coat of ModelCo’s brush on lash fibres.

Step 3: Finish off by applying another generous coating of black extension mascara, gently moving the brush from side to side with each stroke for maximum length and thickness.

The top row shows my lashes with the mascara alone, second row shows my lashes with the fibres applied and the bottom row you can see the finished effect. I’m really pleased with how the fibre lashes performed, they didn’t smudge or flake off and the held up really well throughout the day. I would recommend this product as it was very easy to use, long lasting and gives you a lovely long lashed fluttery look without the need for false eyelashes.

ModelCo Fibrelash retails for $35 however I got it with a Cleo magazine for about $7.50.

How to pack light – Makeup

Megan — Tue, 04 Dec 2012 09:35:00 +0000

After working for almost 5 years as a flight attendant now I’ve been able to work out some really good ways to streamline the makeup that I take with me for work trips and so I’ve compiled some of my best advice and favourite products for achieving a multitude of looks while still packing minimal products.

All in one palettes come in very handy and my top two are the Becca Avalon Palette and the Estee Lauder Ingenious Colour Palette. I know that it can be extremely difficult to find ones in which every item is useful but the limited edition ones available as travel exclusives at the airport tend to be best suited for travel.

The Estee Lauder Ingenious Colour Palette contains a translucent powder, four long lasting lipsticks, four eyeshadows a blush and a mascara. The Becca Avalon Palette contains two eyeshadows, a cream highlight, a lip and cheek creme and a cake eyeliner.

A multitude of makeup brushes is not essential, I try and stick to cream eyeshadow and blushes so I can just use my fingers, I’ll apply foundation and concealer with fingers too. The only brushes I have found that I can’t live without is my Royal and Langnickel Taklon Detail Liner Brush which I use for gel liner and my Ecotools Powder Brush which I use for powdering my face. My favourite cream eyeshadows are Benefit Creaseless Creams or Maybelline Colour Tattoo and my favourite cream blushes are from Topshop and Illamasqua. The Illamasqua cream blushes can even be worn on the lips making them even more perfect and versatile for travel.

A really nifty brush set is the Ecotools Touch Up Kit which is the perfect size to travel with and can be purchased from Priceline for $19.95AUD.

Think about the climate where you will be going on your trip if you’re going somewhere warm and sunny then rather than wearing foundation go for something lighter like a tinted moisturiser or BB Cream. Often these products will contain sunscreen for added sun protection. Some great face products that also have added sunscreen are the Dermalogica Cover Tint, Innoxa Tinted Moisturiser and Palmer’s Eventone BB Cream.

Try and avoid bringing too many lip products. This is the trap that we women always seem to fall into, lipsticks, glosses and balms are all very small so what can it hurt to bring a few extras along? It can’t hurt but it also creates unnecessary clutter and I make a point of ensuring that every product I travel with serves a purpose and gets used. I try to always just bring a lipbalm (Jack Black) a coloured moisturising gloss (Korres Lip Butter) and one lipstick for the days that I’m working and need to add a little something to my makeup (Bobbi Brown Rich Lip Colour).

However also being a beauty blogger means that I’ll inevitably pack a few extra items just for research and testing purposes so I’m the first one to break my own rules! What do you pack makeup-wise when travelling, are you efficient and streamlined or do you pack enough to fill another suitcase?

November Empties

Megan — Sat, 01 Dec 2012 09:05:00 +0000

The year has just flown by and I can’t believe there is only one month to go, it’s hard to believe that at the start of the year I was still in Perth and I’ve since moved to Melbourne, started a new job and moved in with my boyfriend. So many changes but one thing that hasn’t changed is my love of beauty products and I’ve been using up a lot of products lately particularly since I’ve been going away on long trips for work it’s forced me to use up one product at a time rather than be chopping and changing different products nightly.

MooGoo Milk Shampoo and MooGoo Cream Conditioner (500ml) – Love these and find they work amazingly on my very sensitive and easily irritated scalp, I’ve already re-purchased and will continue to re-purchase.

*U Little Beauty Natural Repair Hair Masque (100ml) – This was obtained from a beauty sample box I believe and I wasn’t overly fond of it, the smell reminded me of Clag glue and the texture wasn’t all that rich and conditioning to my hair.

*Dr Lewinn’s Bio Care Oil (100ml) – I was obsessed with this oil and would slather myself in it from head to toe, smells so lovely as well and made my skin feel so smooth and moisturised.

*Mary Kay Botanical Effects Cleanse (113g) – I really liked this cleanser as it is designed for Normal/Sensitive skin, it’s extremely gentle, had a lovely fresh, clean scent with a milky texture.

*Mor Hand Cream in Blood Orange (50ml) – This was one of the lovely products received while at Beauty Bloggers Utopia and while the packaging and fragrance were divine the cream itself did not work for me at all, particularly when I was flying it seemed to make my hands feel drier than ever so this product received the dubious honour of becoming my body lotion in order to use it all up.

Swisspers Organic Cotton Makeup Pads (80 pack) – I really liked these cotton pads particularly since they’re certified organic making them free of any chlorine or viscose making them alllergy and irritation free. Wanted to re-purchase them but couldn’t find them again!

Nivea Invisible Spray Deodorant – This was just for travel use only, I’m not a huge fan of Nivea deodorants as I’m not overly fond of the scent and they just don’t work for me.

*Clinique Turnaround Overnight Radiance Moisturiser (7ml) – This was inside the lovely Lust Have it! gift received during Beauty Bloggers Utopia, I found this quite a rich, moisturising cream perfect to wear at night however I was saddened to drop the little pot on my last trip while I was using it and spilled most of the contents everywhere so I never got to really use it up properly.

*Serenade Organic Restore Eye Cream (5ml) – I received this as part of POBM at the start of the year and was really blown away by the products. It is all certified organic as well as being locally made in the south west region of Western Australia.

*Roberto Cavalli Eau De Parfum (1.2ml Sample) – This also featured in the Lust Have it! gift received at BBU and I loved it so much that I had my boyfriend pick me up a full size bottle from duty free when he travelled to Singapore last month.

Palmolive Naturals Milk and Shea Butter Shower Milk (500ml) – Love this stuff as I find it doesn’t dry out my skin and it’s very affordable. Have already re-purchased in the Milk and Honey variation.

The Face Shop Collagen Mask – Collagen masks are my absolute favourite and I love how taut and glowing they leave my skin.

It’s My Beauty Diary Platinum and Pearl Lift and Stretch Mask – This one had a section that goes over your neck and I loved using it in my hotel room for a night of pampering after a long day of work.

L’Occitane Shine Mask (sample sachet) – This was given to me when I purchased a hand cream from L’Occitane and I have to say I loved it after only one use, my hair was left shiny and luscious – am seriously thinking about buying a full size of this.

L’Occitane Ultra Rich Face Cream (sample sachet) – Another gift from L’Occitane, can’t really comment on this since I only used it once and lately I have been using all different face creams without any dramas. Smells lovely though and I do like a lot of the L’Occitane Shea Butter range of products especially the hand cream.

So that’s my huge pile of empties this month, I really need to re-organise and clear out some products but I think I’ll make that a project for December so that I can start 2013 fresh, de-cluttered and organised.