I tried this sunscreen by chance. I received it as a freebie a few months ago and pulled it out of my skincare cupboard just recently. I expected it to be like all other sunscreens I’ve tried. Maybe a little thicker in consistency, a bit greasy or a bit drying. But boy was I wrong! 🙅🏽‍♀️ For those Beauties who don’t live in Australia, Mecca Cosmetica and Mecca Maxima are beauty ‘speciality’ stores. Kinda like an Australian version of Sephora 🐨 A few years ago now, they rel

I love that we have SO much choice when it comes to sunscreens on the market! Not only are they sophisticated formulas that protect skin wonderfully against all different types of UV rays, they are also pleasant to use and perform a hybrid function of being good for your skin (treating and protecting like skincare does) and making it look good (like cosmetics and makeup!) 🙌🙌🙌 Higher end sunscreens in particular have exploded on the market and today I wanted to talk about t

I love reviewing sunscreens because they are SO important in our daily skincare routines! Rain, sunshine, Summer or Winter, we need to use sunscreen daily! I decided to review and compare two drugstore sunscreens today, as the last sunscreen I reviewed was on the more expensive side of the spectrum (Shiseido Perfect UV Protector WetForce HydroFresh SPF 50+). Both of these drugstore sunscreens are easily available in Australia and both contain an SPF of 50 plus. Perfect for if

After falling in love with Shiseido’s Perfect UV Protector WetForce SPF 50+ I asked my brother who was travelling in Asia, to pick me up some more sunscreen at Changi airport ✈️✈️✈️ He luckily pulled through for me and bought me a duo pack of the sunscreen PLUS the HydroFresh version (separately) 🙌 Rejoice! After using up the ‘original’ UV Protector which included the WetForce technology, I was really over the strong alcohol scent of the sunscreen but the formula and high su

I’ve been reading a lot about the effects of smog and pollution on skin and the news isn’t good lol… We all know free radicals aren’t great for our body and skin, but our body produces antioxidants to fight these nasties. The problem is that most of us are exposed to more free radicals than our body can handle (e.g. excessive sun exposure – UV rays bouncing off everything through holes in the ozone layer) and the sun isn’t the only problem. Pollution molecules or ‘dust’ parti

Rationale is one of my favourite Australian cosmeceutical brands. Their skincare products are so effective, but unfortunately also expensive… They recently (ok, maybe a year or two ago now) branched out into makeup, but it’s makeup with a difference. Each colour product has an SPF rating of 50+ which is perfect for the hot Australian climate. The makeup products also contain lots of botanicals and skin loving ingredients, which I expected from a brand that is all about skin h

I received this sunscreen from Paris thanks to a giveaway she held to mark her blog’s birthday. It’s a favourite of hers, and the original Extra Smooth Sun Protection with an SPF of 30+ has been around for a long time. I think most Beauty Bees would recognise the curved bright cobalt blue bottle! And yet, I had never tried it before. This is the ‘new-ish’ version, with an SPF of 50+ and ‘WetForce’ protection (more on that later). One thing that confuses me greatly is the diff

Being the good Beauty Bee that I am, sunscreen in my morning routine is a must! I bought the Dermalogica Dynamic Skin Recovery SPF 50 a few weeks ago, so I’ve been giving it a good run for it’s money. Moisturisers which contain a high SPF, are soooo much better than they used to be (no more thick, sticky & greasy formulas!) so let’s see how this one faired, especially next to the Alpha H Protection Plus Daily SPF 50+! 😉 Dermalogica is an American brand started by skin therap

My skin loves Tatcha goodies. Not only are the products beautiful and exotic sounding (yes, that’s the marketing, but that doesn’t bother me) but they contain GREAT ingredients that also have scientific backing behind them. If only they were a little cheaper or easier to get a hold of (cheaper international shipping please!). In any case, from time to time I do treat myself, because I am a skincare fanatic of sorts (I wouldn’t sell a kidney for good skin, but I think preventi

Spring is the perfect time to revamp some of your makeup bag and start showing some more skin! Here are some of my favourite products for Spring, which will keep you well prepared for the sunny days ahead! Body Scrub, my pick: Pure Fiji Coconut Sugar Rub in Starfruit. Everyone needs a good ‘ol scrubbing after winter! Scrubbing off all the layered up dead skin cells will not only increase circulation to your skin, making it look better and firmer, but it will allow any moistur

Trying to be extra sun savvy this summer (as all beauty bees should strive to be!) I figured that if wearing sunscreen everyday is super important, then going out into the hot sun with only a protected face isn’t the most sun savvy. My arms, shoulders and décolletage tend to be exposed on very hot days, so I was looking for a body sunscreen that I could wear almost every day to. Some people might ask why not just use your face sunscreen on your body, however they tend to be s

I received this 15ml sample with an issue of Marie Claire a few months ago. I’m most definitely a fan of mineral sunscreens for everyday use on the face (to find out why, check out my sunscreen 101 post here!) so a tinted version is a great idea for slapping on quickly when your in a rush or if you want a low key look. Everyone knows I’m not a huge fan of BB creams – one of the reasons being because of the shade ranges. I love that this light tinted moisturiser is actually ‘l

I mentioned in my Eye Care 101 post that I recommend using two eye creams – one to suit your needs during the day and another one to regenerate the skin around your eyes are night. As you might guess, the same logic applies to all your other skin care products. The new year might be the perfect time to ‘scrub up’ your skin care routine and make sure you are using your skin care products consistently and at the right time! Why bother using products at the ‘right’ time? Well wh

A few months ago Marie Claire offered a 30ml bottle of SK-II Facial Essence and this month they are offering a 15ml tube of Invisible Zinc’s tinted daywear with their December issue. Usually magazines offer crappy free gifts, but I have to say I’m impressed with these latest offerings! I have used the original invisible zinc but not the tinted version. The magazine offers two shades, light and medium. I picked the light shade. The free gift isn’t offered everywhere you buy Ma

Summers coming up incredibly quickly here in the Southern hemisphere (I can’t believe its NOVEMBER! – how crazy is that!) so it’s probably the perfect time to talk about the importance of using sunscreen! These days, we are spoilt with choice when it comes to sunscreens. While that’s a good thing, it can also get very confusing. Should we use sunscreen all year round? Do we use the same sunscreen at the beach and then daily, on our face under makeup? Or do we need a separate

I wanted to share with you my favourite staples when it comes to makeup products. No matter what ‘look’ I’m going for or what occasion I may be preparing for – my face/base products are *almost* always the same! To me the skin is the most important feature of my makeup (though that’s different for everybody). I figure that if you have found something that works, why not stick to it! If you can get your base makeup down pat and use products which suit your skin tone, your skin