{EBAY DUPE} iMagic 12 Flash Colour Case - First Impression

I was astonished when I heard about a possie dupe for the Make Up For Ever Flash Palette, I've been lusting after that palette for a very long time. There's something about bright cream colours that gets me interested. But alas, that particular palette is $99 USD and almost impossible to find in Australia so I went searching and came across the iMagic Flash Palette...

It originally took a while to arrive, a little less than a month- but I didn't mind, eBay can be pretty rubbish when it comes to timing. I was so happy to see that it was just as bright as in the photos and that the colours seemed pretty true to the description in terms of texture 

I had to hold off on swatching until I got out my camera (it was a 10 minute tourture, I promise) but once I started swatching I was so pleasantly surprised. (all images are with one swipe of colour)

There are two shades in the palette are metallic- but nowhere near as pigmented as the matte vivid shades. They're kind of lack lustre but I'm not too disappointed , I'm sure I've got my fair share of metallic eyeshadows from Makeup Geek and/or ChiChi to get me through. 

The rest of the colours are incredible,  ridiculously creamy, pigmented and blendable, I mixed some of the colours together in the image to the right and they moulded together beautifully to create a purple & orange colour!

Major Pros: 

-creamy 

-pigmented 

-blendable/mixable

-safe ingredients 

- true to colour as seen on website 

Minor Cons:

- metallic shades aren't very pigmented 

- stains the skin (wouldn't recommend for long wear (5+ hours)) 

-smudge without setting with powder 

-crease on the eyes without setting 

Overall I think the palette is incredible, I will have to check out the wear time and staining problem an update in an insta photo (heads up, they do stain). I hope you'll be seeing this palette quite a lot in our Australian summer time 

Thank you for reading! I hope you have a lovely day , check out my insta for other looks using this palette and makeup in general; chelseadawidowski

-chelchea :))) 

Christmas Makeup Look - Gold Eyes & Pink-Red Lips

ITS DECEMBER! This look is simple, classic and stunning for the festive season. I think it would work well in both wintery and summery seasons, seeing as Aus is in summer atm. Regardless, its gorgeous, and features a bronzy-gold eye and a pinky red lip :)

BASE:

I tried something new for my base, I was in my beloved Kmart when I saw a foundation shade that might actually fit me. I picked up ELFs' Flawless Finish Foundation in Porcelain, which unfortunately pulled a bit pink on me, but it was definitely light enough (major plus). It was my first time trying it in this look and I was positively surprised by the amount of coverage, even while using a beauty blender, as well as the overall blendability. The fragrance is pretty strong, and almost floral- but it didnt bother me much at all.
I used my trusty Maybelline Fit Me Concealer, in 15 FAIR and ELF's under eye setting powder for exactly that.

CHEEKS:
I did a pretty standard look on the cheeks for me, contoured with Model's Prefer's Contour Kit (middle bottom shade) and warmed up the cheeks with a peachy blush from essence called Secret It Girl, I highlighted as always with the MaryLouMansier by TheBalm, because I basically can't live without it- and that was the cheeks all done! super simple.

EYES:
Today I used my favourite palette in the whole world - The Too Faced Chocolate Bar Palette. I thought it was especially fitting after receiving it for Christmas last year. I started with a bit of Milk Chocolate and Salted Caramel in the crease. I deepened the outer V, and a small portion of the inner third with haute chocolate & Hazelnut and to add that christmassy, festive feel, I patted on some Creme Brûlée with my finger to add the perfect gold holiday sparkle. I used the two crease colours under my eyes to ground the look and added a bronze liner into the water line to further smoke out the look for a 'night time' feel. This particular liner is a Model's Prefer Infinite Colour Eye Pencil in Choc Frost (hmm a chocolate theme- this is technically discontinued but the line is still available) but any bronzy or brown colour will work just as well. I mixed Champagne Truffle and MaryLou as my inner corner highlight to brighten everything up, added some Loreal Miss Manga Mascara and I was set. I did add some half lashes from Ardell in the 301 Black style,  just to make the look as dressy as possible. For brows, I used my Rimmel Colour Tattoo in Tough As Taupe and the Rimmel Brow This Way in Blonde to keep them in place all day.

LIPS:
The star of the show! It's currently summer in SLIGHTLY more pink-red. This particular shade is from Daiso, (I talk about it in this blogpost), and its perfect! Its not matte so it might not last through a christmas dinner BUT it looks gorgeous, and wears super well until the 3-4 hour mark when a touch up in definitely needed. Also a lip liner wouldn't go astray seeing as it SO creamy and pigmented, but for $2.80AUD it is a MAJOR steal.
Australia so I thought rather than going a deep, traditional red, I would brighten it up a bit with this

thats it! Thank you so much for reading, if you got this far, I really appreciate it! For more photos on this look and other relevant things, check out my instagram chelseadawidowski (theres also a direct link in the icon to the right)

Thank you again
-Chelchea :))))

3 WAYS TO WEAR BLUE MASCARA

I feel as though blue mascara has a very trashy stigma about it, people are terrified of anything blue on their eyes because of the fear of looking like MiMi from the Drew Carey show, or just a stereotypical 80's popstar. BUT blue mascara can make a huge impact to a look, and take it from simple to extra-ordinary instantly. In this post, I show you three looks; a minimal, a smokey and a summer look. I will apologise now for the rubbish photos, as the camera was doing no justice to the looks, and I just wasn't looking my best, So close ups and descriptions will have to do ..(sorry!)

THE MASCARA

Loreal Miss Manga Mascara is INCREDBLE! it can be a little thick and clumpy but I don't really mind, but if you're someone who likes thin separated lashes, this definitely isn't for you. I have used the black and purple in the past, and I love it! I always get compliments when I wear the purple, because of how subtle but effective it is. The blue is a whole other story, the blue pigment in this is insane! It's a blue-turquoise and is true to colour on the lashes. I didnt know this before the first time I used it (in The Minimal), so I used a white mascara primer I had from Daiso, and It didn't really do much, so dont stress about that step...

THE MINIMAL
For the first two looks, I AGAIN used the same products as I do in my Full-Coverage Foundation Routine ( Which WILL be up soon (as I've said a million times))
For eyes, I have kept it ridiculously simple, with just a tiny tiny TINY bit of of Makeup Geek's Creme Brûlée in the crease, and the mascara primer + the mascara itself. As all of the other Miss Manga Mascaras, it's a little chunky and very dramatic but that's my favourite type of mascara;
 Go chunky or go home. I only used a TINY bit of Maybelline's Hi-Light blush in 20 Pink Rose to add a touch of colour and to match in with the lips. Speaking of, The lip product used is Too Faced's melted lipstick in Melted Peony, which is the PERFECT baby pink colour for Spring here in Australia. It is VERY soft on the lips and has a fairly good wear time, considering how creamy it is. My brows are quite strong here, but I really dig it, I used the Maybelline Colour Tattoo in Tough As Taupe and the Rimmel Brow This Way brow gel in Blonde.
This look is perfect if you're a bit scared to try a brighter mascara (this was my first time using it) and the simplicity of it almost makes it look classy - who thought BLUE mascara would be classy??? (its not classy)

THE SMOKY 
The more dramatic of the three looks in the eye department; This doesn't necessarily show case the mascara as the focal point as The Minimal does, it's used as more of an accent colour. As mentioned previously, I did my full coverage foundation routine BUT did it after my eye makeup in case their was dreaded fallout from the darker matte colours. For the eyes, I used all Makeup Geek shadows.
Creme Brûlée in the crease, Mocha & Cocoa Bear all over the lid and Corrupt concentrated in the outer corner. I used Shimma Shimma & MaryLouManizer to brighten up the inner corner and give the look some light. Both Mocha and Corrupt (neutral brown + black) were smoked out under the lower lash line too. I really wish I would've added a navy or black liner into the water lines for a more dramatic effect but me being me, did not think of that at the time. I then used the star-of-the-show mascara for the pop of colour. I didnt use any blush in this look because I didn't want any of the colours to compete. For lips, I used Maybellines Colour Sensation lipstick in 215 Totally Toffee for a neutral nude that doesn't compete with the eyes.
In addition, to make this look more dramatic you could focus more black on the lid, add liner, add lashes and a darker lip but I felt as though the mascara might be hidden through all of the adaptations. (still kicking myself that I didnt add any liner though)

THE SUMMER 
I want to recreate this look, It doesn't look as good as I wanted it to, but you do get the idea. I think i just wanted the blue under the lash line to be more vibrant and smokey but the blue shadow I began with made the look a bit too patchy and harsh :(
regardless, I used the burjois 123 perfect CC cream in 31 Ivory and Maybelline concealer in Fair 15 to conceal. I powdered with the Ambient Lighting Powder in Dim Light and highlighted with Nars' Albatross. I contoured/ bronzed lightly with ChiChi Cosmetic's I'm Every Woman baked eyeshadow- which is a lovely not-too-warm colour for very pale people. No blush and same eyebrow products again
The eyes are a bit difficult to explain but basically, I wanted alot of warmth and orange shades on the lid and cool, cobalt colours on the lower lash line. I used a combination of the BH cosmetics Back To The 80's palette (which had the chalky blue) and also the exotic palette by ChiChi Cosmetics, which added some vibrancy back into the look. Again, I applied the primer and mascara and was yet again impressed with the vividness of the formula.
I went quite bright with the lips; when I used to work in a pharmacy// beauty store hybrid, I LOVED ombre lips, so I channelled that again for the first time in 6 months. I used two very affordable products, SAVVY Cosmetics' Coral (darker orange) and Diaso's (unnamed)(light peach) creme lipstick that was swatched in this blogpost. I blended the two, focusing the SAVVY lipstick on the outer corners and the Daiso in the centre and I was done :)

Thank you again to anyone who reads this, I hope you enjoyed this post
Check out other makeup bits and pieces that don't make it onto my blog via my Instagram: chelseadawidowski.

Chelchea :))))))

SIMPLE + NATURAL Everyday Makeup

This is the easiest, glowiest, and most simple everyday makeup you might ever see. I've been away from this blog for a little longer than a month, because I suck, and I didn't account or prepare posts while I was doing my exams. I had 0 motivation as all I could think about was different theories and policies for my 3/4 Business Management exam. However, both year 11 + 12 exams have now finished and I have roughly 2 and a half months to put all my effort into my holidays ( and to this blog ).

I lived in this makeup for about a month (dw, I washed it off every night), and I thought that this was the perfect post to help explain my M.I.A tendencies....

first off :
BASE!

I tossed up between a BB cream or concealer by itself depending on both the amount of sleep I got, and the amount of blemishes that had popped up overnight. Now, Im not saying that you need to cover everything all the time, around this time of year (in Australia), everyone is ONLY REALLY caring about themselves and their study, so don't worry about a silly pimple coming through.
I digress..., The Bourjois 123 Perfect CC cream is incredible coverage for a CC cream, it's closer to a lighter weight foundation which is great for a slightly not-so-great skin day. The colour section is not too bad, the lightest shade (31 IVORY) suits a neutral NC15-20, so it can pull a bit pink on my slightly-yellow, VERY pale skin.

The other alternative, which is pictured, is a heavier coverage concealer + corrector DUO. I personally use a mixture of the Kryolan Concealer Wheel and either Mac ProLong Wear or Maybelline Fit Me concealer.
Under the eyes:
1. Warm the two peachier colours from the wheel (PH + OH) onto your hand/finger
2. Apply to the under eye using your ring-finger in dabbing motion (remembering to get right into the inner corner where it tends to be darkest.
3. blend out edges + add the concealer on top
4. repeat patting motions until all blended and covered
5. Set with either a transparent powder or yellow toned power (quickly)

Blemishes:
repeat the above steps, but using a more neutral to green concealer, depending on how red the blemish is (I personally use RN1 in the wheel). Add your normal concealer over and top off with a translucent powder, just in case the yellow is too harsh and makes the blemish become more obvious.

CHEEKS
A little bit of blush + highlight can totally alter your look, so you look put together and alive, even if you're not feeling it on the inside. I usually use a pinky-rose colour, such as the Maybelline Master HI-light in 20 PINK ROSE or rosiest colour from the BH Cheek palette.
As for highlight, if I have only used concealer and no foundation, I'll go in with an Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powder in either DIM light or INCANDESCENT LIGHT. This gives a very natural glow, and doesn't look especially sparkly on the skin. If I have gone in with the CC cream, I'll reach for either a VERY small amount of The Balm's MaryLouManizer, or a small amount of Makeup Geek' Shimma Shimma.

EYES

Probably the most basic thing you'll ever witness. I will smear on the Maybelline Colour Tattoo in Barely Branded and top with a similar shadow (I used Too Faced Champagne Truffle) and maybe place a matte shade in the crease ( the Rosy BH cosmetics blush would be PERFECT here). Curled lashes, 2 coats of Loreal's Miss Manga Mascara, a bright inner corner highlight (I used Mary Lou) and a small amount of Rimmel's Nude eyeliner and you look awake, living and almost ready to take on the world (or revise for 12 hours). In addition, I added a small amount of Inglot's 506 eyebrow pencil into my brows, and set it with Rimmel's Brow This Way gel in Blonde - quick, but nothing revolutionary.

LIPS

I would applaud anyone who can find the time to apply a liquid lipstick , or even a normal lipstick when you're stressed or rushing (or barely awake), but this alternative is great, glossy and unfortunately pricey. The YSL Tint-In-Oil in #6 is my first YSL product and I LOVE it to bits. It takes 0.3 seconds to apply and sinks into the lips super easily. It provides an almost bright, put-together lip while moisturising your lips. The lasting power of the colour is not fantastic but you can still feel it moisturising your lips hours after applying. It's perfect for an everyday look, and there's no awkward smearing or patchy fading.

WE ARE DONE.
although this seems like an extravagantly long blogpost, this makeup would take well under 20 minutes to do, maybe even 10 without distractions...
Anyways, Thank you for reading, hope you have a great day and sorry for being M.I.A, hopefully I can be more persistent, even if it's just for me

- Chelchea :)))))

Chi Chi Cosmetics Sponges & Glitter Liners Review

Chi Chi Cosmetics have been a favourite of mine for a long long time. I feel like they're pretty good at keeping up with trends now, and their price range isn't bad at all for the ridiculous upscale in Australian beauty products. Two new sets have made their way into my life and I can firmly say that they are some of the girliest, prettiest and most colourful makeup items I own.

Beauty Sponges have been a major craze since the Beauty Blender made it's way into many Beauty Blogger's lives.  I haven't tried the original, but the Real Techniques Miracle Complexion Sponge (here) had previously been the only sponge applicator I tried, and I loved it. In australia, the sponge is roughly $17 but when I came across Chi Chi's instagram I spotted a four pack of sponges for roughly $15-$20, so when I was next at myer, I picked them up. I also saw a little box with 6 glitter eyeliners in it. I've only ever tried one other glitter eyeliner from BH cosmetics in a silver colour with cooler coloured reflect, its beautiful! but it flakes horribly. After picking up both items I went home and immediately tried them.

The sponges themselves are quite soft and bouncy, even without water but with water they expand almost double the size and have a very springy touch to them. Personally I've only used the blue and yellow so far but I think the constancy will continue. I find them on par with the real techniques one, and they make blending out any liquid & cream products effortless. 100% Recommend

I love ANYTHING sparkly (with the exception of frosty lipstick) and these eyeliners are incredible, especially for the 6 pack//$20 price point. Im not sure if they are a limited edition set to go along with the rest of their christmas sets, but if they are, FIND THEM QUICKLY. They are some of the most gorgeous glitters I've ever seen and the turquoise one is my favourite, which is very surprising since blue isn't usually my thing. The colours themselves are each individually beautiful and can apply slightly patchy. I find they work best by dabbing rather than swiping, to get the most glitter pay off. The champagne, pinky one is slightly more harder to work with and the glitters come out sparingly but it is still beautiful. These are so easy to incorporate into eye look, and might even be useful for a halloween glittery highlight, They look great over a white base (shown in images) but look even more stunning over a black gel eyeliner. These are beyond perfect for the spring and upcoming summer, I can't wait!!

Overall, you'll probably be seeing these incorporated into an eye look soon, as I'm finding them super difficult to put them down. Even my teacher complimented me on the champagne one!
I can find either of the sets online atm BUT you can check out their instagram or their website and hopefully they'll add them soon! Chi Chi can also be found in store and Myer and Target

I hope this was helpful! definitely check them out if you can :)))
-Chelchea

Makeup Geek Insomnia Pigment Makeup Look

To celebrate the new release Makeup Geek duo chrome pigments and eyeshadow pans, i thought i would share a look I've done with the original due chrome pigment "Insomnia". This pigment has floated around throughout the beauty community for a long time, but still manages to create effortlessly glamourous eye looks. I paired the blue-green // red brown duo chrome with a warm, red toned crease and a nude lip: standard.

I did my eyes before my base in this look because of the rich pigment, i didnt want blue fallout across my cheeks.
The eyes were done as follows:

1. MUG creme brûlée in the crease and across the lid
2. MUG insomnia pigment on entire lid, focusing on the outer half (I wet my brush for the very centre of the lid to bring out more of the teal reflect.
3. MUG bitten all throughout the outer corner and the crease to bring out the warmer side of the pigment
4. MUG creme brûlée and bitten under the lower lash line, not exaggerating or going down too far
4. Finished with mascara! (Loreal Miss Manga)


For the base, I again did my full coverage foundation routine (which will become a post eventually), with the addition of my newest highlighter Mary LouManizer by TheBalm which is so so dreamy and luminous. I added the peach colour from my BH cosmetics blush palette, which came up quite orangey on my skin, just an FYI for fellow pale people.

For lips, I didnt feel the need to line them , seeing as all the emphasis was going toward the eyes and highlighter. I added Rimmel's Apocolips Lip (gloss? melted lipstick?) in Nude Eclipse. And that was it! the final look, so so super easy, but very effective (and not TOO crazy for daytime)

Thankyou for viewing this post :)) I hope it was helpful in some way
-Chelchea

Korean Makeup and Skincare Review!

There is no doubt that korean makeup and skincare has skyrocketed, not only by the various beauty bloggers discovering them but by the sheer quality of them! So far, I've only ordered off of w2beauty.com and bought in store at Daiso but even with my limited collection it is clear that this tier of makeup and skincare is slowly becoming some of my favourites.

In terms of skincare, the only items I've thoroughly tested have been the Blackhead Out- White Clay Nose Pack and the Panda's Dream So Cool Eye Stick. The White Clay works as a mask that you put over any areas where blackheads appear (for me: nose, chin and occasionally forehead), you then wait until the paste dries, and then peal off, much like a pore strip. I find that it actually removes blackheads, and for me, the tight feeling afterward isn't nearly as uncomfortable as normal pore strips. 9/10 for sure
In all honesty, I originally bought the Eye Stick for the cute packaging (which is a reoccuring theme in most korean skincare and makeup). The Eye Stick is meant to be used as an alternative to eye cream, however, I dont find it nourishing enough as an overnight cream. Instead, I use it before makeup (at the same time as I put on primer) and it works as a perfect base underneath my MAC prolong wear concealer, which is well-known for its high coverage but also, a very drying factor. Overall I'm entirely happy with both products.

In terms of service, w2beauty.com was exceptional! It didn't take too long to arrive in australia, and came with a LOAD of free samples (some pictured above), definitely check it out if you're looking into buying korean makeup and skincare online- and on a side note, the lolly they included (shown in top image) was incredibly delicious.

Im constantly darting in and out of Daiso, whether it be for makeup wipes, bobby pins, eyelashes or even cute cat figurines (I can't help myself), Daiso offers a good range in most things. Their $2.80 price point (FOR EVERYTHING), is great! especially for trying out products you aren't sure on.
Originally I went into Daiso looking for some makeup wipes for makeup course's kit and a lipstick because again, I can't help myself. Because there are no testers, I wasnt expecting much from the lipsticks I picked up, however, I was completely blown away with the opacity and full pigmentation in both lipsticks! Peachy-orange lipsticks are my absolute favourite to wear, and this lipstick is fast becoming one of my favourites, the other is a bright red (that will be featured in a makeup look soon), with small, almost undetectable glitters (which thankfully does not grate against your lips throughout the day).  Both lipstick are very moisturinging and have a sheen to them, more so in the red, which means their wear time isn't mind-blowing, but still exceptional for a $3 lipstick. Next time I go into Daiso, I might have to pick up a few more colours in each of the collections. Neither of the lipsticks have any indication of brands/colours in English but they're easy to find in-store!



Thank you so much for reading, I hope this review was helpful! Don't forget to follow me on instagram (chelseadawidowski) to see when I next post :)
- Chelchea

60s Inspired - Soft Neutral / Warm Cut Crease

So after watching, and loving, The Man from U.N.C.L.E i was completely inspired by the sixties and their incredible makeup. However, on my hooded and green/hazel eyes, I decided to change up the usual grey or navy cut crease, to a slightly warmer, neutral one.


EYES:
I started with a bare face, as I tend to muck up my liner at some point. I added an eye base and transparent powder.
I put Makeup Geek's (MUG) Creme Brûlée lightly through the crease
Then added a very light amount of MUG Mocha (and continued to do that for a
To further define and cut the crease I used ELF's cream eyeliner in Expresso, and cleaned it up with a small amount of Rimmel's Wake Me Up concealer in Ivory and a random bone coloured shadow to set it
I added a smaller wing across the lash line using Inglot's gel eyeliner in #77 but didn't connect the cut crease with this line as I find it makes my eyes look more hooded and small.
I used a large amount of MUG Mocha to blend out the lower lash line and added a white eyeliner (NYX jumbo eye pencil in Milk) to add a typical 60's feel
Finally I added some lashes, from Daiso in a black and brown blend to give some drama

FACE: I did my usual full coverage foundation routine (minus the highlight) to give a matte base typically used in the 60's. I will post my full coverage foundation (and base) routine in the next couple of weeks)

LIPS: I strayed away from the typical baby pink lips that are usually seen in the 60's, instead, i used a neutral (and slightly dark) lip combination which included
Revlon ColourStay Lip Liner in Rose to outline and slightly overdraw
And Mac Matte Lipstick in Velvet Teddy to fill the entire lips







Thank you for reading and viewing this makeup look :))))))
- Chelchea
(pls forgive the awful posing and picture taking- wasn't my day today)

HELLO !

SO,
I tried blogging once before, and failed miserably, so this a fresh start and a new blog. This blog will (hopefully) be filled with beauty reviews, mini pictorial tutorials and a few lifestyle bits and pieces. Basically, this will be a creative outlet, and something to keep me busy.


-Chelchea :)))))