MAVALA Via Veneto

I have a new crush...it's name is MAVALA Via Veneto!!

My new crush ;) 

This colour is beautifully elegant aaand has a hint of sassy-ness! I can imagine Cinderella wearing a shade like this to go with her stunning ballgown and unforgettable shoes. Just imagine what The Prince would have said if she was trying to pull off grotesque coloured nails. This proves that nail polish matters, when trying to make a statement.

I must say, I didn't think much of the colour by looking at the bottle but once it was brushed onto my nails, I couldn't stop staring!

The shade is washed out pink-caramel colour but it was the stunning shimmer-gloss finish that got me so worked up. It has a certain 'feel' about it, making it irresistible to stare at all day and admire

Due to my carelessness, the polish started chipping from day 2 but was only really noticeable from day 4 because it is quite a light shade.

I used a Mavala base and top coat which I will be reviewing next. I am convinced these products helped add the beautiful finish to my manicure.

I have many light/neutral colours in my polish collection but this one by Mavala is so unique I don't actually want to compare it to the others. It is for this specific reason, I love nail polishes. Even though there are thousands of colours out there, they are all unique and you can never have enough!!

Follow Mavala South Africa on Twitter to get new on fab releases. You can also follow me here as I will be reviewing more Mavala products next week!

Live Healthy: Update #7

So it has been quite a while since my last Live Healthy update because life happened! But I haven't forgotten my live healthy ways so here's what I've been up to:

My latest gym session and some snacks. I really needed a pick me up so I treated myself and my colleagues to bright cupcakes! I have found that adding fresh fruit like banana's and apples to plain oats, makes it taste much better.

Fruit shake time!! The best way to boost your immune system is by giving it tons of fruit. 

Have you ever been to Fruit and Veg Food Lovers Market? They are in most major cities. Fruit and Veg on steroids as I call it. They have dirt cheap specials that change every week. In the beginning of June we bought a veg special which was 7kg potatoes, a pocket of oranges, a pocket of butternut and a huge box of tomatoes for just R100. 

This weekend I bought their fruit special (hence the fruit shake). A packet of banana's, apples, oranges, two punnets of strawberries and one large paw paw for R50. Crazy right!? 

I always saw buying food was an expensive attribute to living healthy but after seeing these specials it is definitely do-able!

Gym wise, I've been a terrible girl! I have only been going once a week as it is year end at my firm and once I get home I just pass out. This week I am hoping to play a little catch up. I have my gym contract through our medical aid so in order for me to save money I need to go at least 3 times a week.

I also have to start running my little behind off for the Spar Women's race happening on the 31st of August which I noted in my last update. 

Later this week I will be announcing a possible 2014 resolution that will be a sequel to my Live Healthy 2013 resolution. I am really excited for this!

Here's a motivational poster that has kept me going these past few weeks :)

Follow my Pinspiration board here.

TTFN

Clean fun with The Beauty Factory's new "Originals" range

As soon as I hear the word originals, I think of Vampire Diaries (addict right here) and that leads me to a very philosophical thought. Originals are the base of everything. Without the originals, things would not be as they are today and it is very important to give originals the respect they deserve.

The new Originals range from The Beauty Factory definitely has my respect. 

Remember when soap was just soap? This new range from The Beauty Factory reminds us that sometimes our body just needs the plain ol' good stuff. No added ingredients to confuse our skin into thinking it needs something it doesn't. 

Here they are:

 The Body Polisher - 

My favourite of the three products which were sent to me by Beauty Factory. This 'polisher' has the most divine scent, just like clean PJ's that have just come out of the tumble dryer on a cold winters night *Bliss*. It has small little micro beads that lightly exfoliate your skin giving it a soft, polished, feeling. 

One thing I find extremely irritating about body exfoliators (the ones I've used) is, they don't have a 'soapy' texture so you end up using 2 products to satisfy your skins needs (cleaning & getting rid of dead skin). This is not the case with the Originals Body Polisher. It's soapy and polishes away any nasty dead skin clinging on for no reason. Perfect!!

The Hand Mask - 

I am still getting to know this product. I'ts unlike anything I've tried before. It's almost like the cream version of a waster-less hand cleanser. You know, like the ones you buy at clicks. It absorbs in like three seconds which totally messes with my mind. Usually you fight with creams, and skin, for up to 15 min before it completely absorbs. I guess this 'deep moisturises' your skin, giving it a jolt of moisture. I like it!

The Hand and Nail Cream -

This is a very simple cream that does what it needs to. It smells fresh and it is perfect to keep in your draw at work. 

I am really impressed with this fresh approach to skin care from The Beauty Factory. It's good to see that the technological advances has not affected their products. This balances nicely with the great brands who do use the new technological advances. The best of both worlds which you get to choose from. If it's plain, clean fun you're looking for then The Beauty Factory has something for you.

Like The Beauty Factory on Facebook for news on their products or pop over to their newly launched online store and shop your heart out!

#COSMOpolished

If you follow me on Twitter (if you don't, why not!?) then you would have seen that last week Wednesday I was invited to a night out on the town, Kramerville/Sandton, for a "Polished" event hosted by Cosmopolitan magazine and Revlon SA.

Here are some snaps from the night:

The Rooftop Venue view, posh seating area's and the stations where we got to do our nails.

Fellow beauty bloggers Nicola and Zaahira. Nicola got a huge Revlon hamper for her stunning nail art!

The awesome Revlon products we got to use on the night.

I got to meet an awesome Miss Claira-Bella reader, Hildegarde, we were serenaded while we got to try some great nail art techniques.

The delicious food we got to munch on and the champagne was flowing

Thanks so much to Cosmo and Revlon for inviting me to this event. I will be doing a full event review next week and tell you exactly what went down so keep posted :)

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Don't forget about Daddy!

Dads also need some TLC and what better way than to give him a gift voucher to The Laser Beautique this fathers day (16 June 2013)!

Elizabeth Arden Beautiful Colour Luminous Lip Gloss

Just hearing the name Elizabeth Arden makes me squirm with joy because it can only mean one thing; spoils! That’s exactly what the BB ladies did by sending me the new luminous lip gloss. I was utterly spoilt!

 Elizabeth Arden’s packaging is never too much for the eye to handle but still has elegance about it. Less is more! This Luminous lip gloss is very similar if not exactly from the same factory as GOSH’s light n shine lip-gloss. Square shaped with a handy mirror stuck on the side. It also has a thick applicator, covering more of your lip when applying.

The colour I received was "Latte" which is a yummy hot chocolaty colour and the scent is almost edible. The consistency of the gloss is sticky but firm (meaning it won’t just fall off your lips like syrup) and won’t really budge whilst drinking your morning coffee upon arrival at work. Your boss will walk in and your lips will still be shining *Que Rihanna’s “shine bright like a diamond” song*.

I was worried the chocolate colour would make me look a lil pasty but it actually turned out to be quite transparent. If you have good blood flow and your lips are bright pink, you will have a rosy tint after applying the gloss. You can also put a small amount on top of your lip stick to get versatility from the gloss.

Read my review on Beauty Bulletin for more details on what I thought.

Thanks to Elizabeth Arden and Beauty Bulletin for allowing me to review this amazing product!
If you want the chance to get some free goodies to review then sign up as a VIP member on Beauty Bulletin and you might be picked to receive next month's product send out. Literally anyone can sign up from anywhere!

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RIP my sweet princess

This past weekend was awful. Besides being flat broke after our car broke down twice in two months, my sweet little gerbil girl had to be put down :(

She had a tumor on her one kidney which was quite aggressive. On top of the tumor were cysts which were popping one by one, filling her stomach with fluid and squashing all her other organs. I didn't want her to suffer anymore so I decided to put her down.

I'm not sure if there is a gerbil heaven but wherever she is now, I hope she is happy.

RIP

Nails Inc "Porchester Square"

I'm back for another Nails Inc review and this time its on the very original lilac-grey colour called Porchester Square.

Need to refresh your memory? Read my previous Nails Inc reviews here.

I am starting to like this brand more and more after my not-so-great experience with their leather effect  nail polish. I really love the quality of this polish. It did not streak and after applying two coats, I realized that I could have gotten away with only one. 

My manicure lasted 5 days with a top coat which is a little above average for nails polishes I wear, but chipping was quite visible from day 3.

This colour is really stunning and can compliment any winter wardrobe. I love that it has a slight lilac tint to the grey as plain grey can be rather monotonous. This is definitely a one of a kind polish!

You can find all Nails Inc products at Edgars and Red Square stores. Follow them on Twitter and like their Facebook page for news on products.

Thanks to Nails Inc for letting me try this pretty polish!

Yardley's Midnight Fever sparkle polish

I have been really excited to do this 'pretty polish' review because this has very quickly become my favourite winter polish and I really wanted to share it with you. This is the 4D polish from Yardley in the colour "Midnight Fever".

 To be honset, I dont really like the 4D claim because it isnt really 4D but none the less, its still pretty awesome.

My first love-factor would definitely be that its purple and it has tons of sparkle. Its perfect for winter but it still gives me a pick me up feeling on cold days.

The durability of this Yardley polish was pretty impressive. It lasted a solid 4 days without a top coat and faded rather than chipped (but everyone's nails differ). 

Colour pay off was so-so. I had to apply 2 coats to achieve the colour in the pictures above but it could  do with 3 coats. Seeing as the colour is so pretty, I don't mind investing the time applying 3 many coats!

This polish got me tons of attention at the office. So much so that I actually had to bring the bottle of polish and paint 2 co-workers' nails. They "just have to have it". I will definitely be wearing it again!

Let me know what your current favourite polish is in the comments below or on Twitter. You can also use the new tagging feature on Instagram to show me your pretty polishes!

Simple French Manicure

I was in a 'playing around' mood a weeks ago and did my nails (by "did" I mean try do something other than just painting them a solid colour like I usually do). I don't normally do french manicure designs because they are such a mission to do and it turns into a big mess. Then I found a very handy white tip painter by Essence and gave it a try. Here is what I came up with (as shared on Instagram);

View the original design here.

What I used:

1. After filing and buffing my nails I applied one coat of ZOYA's Anchor Basecoat. This is my current favourite basecoat.

2. Then I used Essence's white tip painter pen (R29.95). This pen is so simple to use and gives a really precise line from it's thin tip. I made my french manicure tips free handed but you can always go ahead and apply those strips if your hand isn't too stable.

3. I mixed some acrylic paints to make my coloured stripes. I wasn't really going for a specific colour so I just played around a bit until I was happy. I used a striping brush from my nail art brush collection to paint the stripes. Very simple. (I actually forgot what the original design looked liked so I made a star instead of a pretty flower. I might redo it later)

4. After that was all dry I applied my Rose French manicure topcaot from Rimmel. This adds that pretty seal to french manicures.

5. Luckily I had some diamante drops from my Nails Inc Rebel set (review coming soon) so I stuck one at the base of each star and voila!

I love how simple this design is and it is rather inexpensive. I will try do more simple ideas that anyone can do at home. Let me know what you think in the comments below or Tweet me!

My every day cosmetics

I have a system in place to make my mornings less stressful and enables me to get ready for work pretty quickly. I have a box which houses all my essential cosmetics that I wear everyday. That way I can just haul my box out and apply my makeup without having to search for items that get lost in a big collection in unorganized storage.

My essentials box (excuse the dirty fingerprint marks)

Seeing as I use these products every day you can consider them in my 'favourites' category. Here they are starting with my base/clear canvas.

I'm not a huge fan of foundations so I only use BB creams and tinted moisturisers unless it's a special occasion. I am still madly in love with Essence's stay all day concealer! I use it for the dark bags under my eyes and as an eye primer.

Essence's My Skin tinted moisuriser, Ponds flawless radiance BB cream, Essence's All-in-one BB cream and Essence's stay all day concealer.

Next are my shading/colouring cosmetics. I like wearing a simple face so I don't really go crazy with bright blushes and crazy contouring. I use Physicians Formula's mineral glow pearls (2P translucent Pearl) to add a bit of shine to my dry winter skin, Gosh's Multicolour Blush (51 Bronze Pie) for a teeny bit of cheekbone contouring and Catrice's cream blush stick (C02 birds of paradise) for rosy cheeks and I set it with Yardley's Stayfast Velvet blush in 'Cashmere'.

Physicians Formula mineral pearls, Catrice's Cream blush stick, Gosh's Multicolour blush, Yardley's stayfast velvet blush.

Lastly I do my eyes! I use Gosh's brow kit to define my brow shape and set them in place. For my eyesahdow, I have been using NYX's Jazz Night 10 colour eye shadow palette because it has some great winter shades. I highlight with Gosh's smokey eyes palette (just the white) and I finish off by curling my lashes and applying mascara. I vary between Rimmel's Scandal eyes mascara, Rimmel's brand new lash accelerator endless mascara and Yardley's Luscious lush lashes mascara, all depending on my mood.

Gosh's Eyebrow Kit, Gosh's Smokey eye palette, Rimmel's Lash accelerator endless mascara, Rimmel's Scandal eyes mascara, Yardley's Luscious lush lashes mascara, NYX's Jazz nights eye shadow palette.

These seem to be my winter staple cosmetics so I will do an update in spring. Let me know if you like these collection type of blog posts and I'll start doing more :)

Feel free to click on the links I have provided above. They go to the reviews for each product!