December Favourites & New Year Update*

Hi beauties! I hope your new year was fabulous! I took a little time off over Christmas and New Years just to relax and regroup. I actually became sick over New Years and I’m only now starting to feel like myself again. While 2014 wasn’t terrible by any means, it was a little tough (everybody goes through necessary trials and tribulations I suppose!) so I’m a little anxious about 2015, but I’m *hoping* it turns out to be a touch easier than 2014. As long as we are kinder to ourselves (which can be super tough in itself!) and to others, I think we will do ok 🙂

All the commotion around Christmas and New Years has made me feel a little deflated and disillusioned by the beauty world  if I’m honest . Not only because I was sick, but I was a little sick of the advertisements, sales and bloggers blogging about shopping, christmas collections, gift guides etc. It’s so easy to get caught up in these perfectly portrayed ‘lifestyles’ in the bloger-sphere and youtube world, when really, it isn’t the ‘real’ world and it can become very materialistic and a facade. Makeup and beauty should be about discovering gems and finding the magic in makeup products and application techniques. Often this magic disappears when it’s all about new releases and limited edition products (which don’t end up being that great most of the time). It’s a never ending rat race and can become exhausting. Hopefully I can present product reviews, makeup and skincare techniques and news a little differently, to bring the magic back! I also will be starting the $100 beauty challenge sometime this week (don’t forget to like my Facebook page and Instagram account to stay in the loop!) so stay tuned if you would like to join in and go on a little spending ‘detox’ 🙂

Now back to the main discussion topic of this post – December’s beauty favourites! I was considering doing a post on my favourite products of 2014, but I figured there was way to many of those posts floating around and most of my favourites have already been mentioned in previous posts, so it would have been repetitive (my favourites don’t change around that often either, because you know, they’re my favourites lol). I decided to try and find some ‘new’ products within my collection which have been making more of a appearance lately, so here they are 🙂

First up – face wipes. I tried these Wotnot facial wipes ages ago and loved them <3 The ‘cloth’ used in these facial wipes is sooo very very soft, that no other facial wipe beats it. There was a catch however, that prevented me from buying them on a regular bases – they had to be purchased online with an added shipping fee, making them twice as expensive compared to supermarket brands. Being the ‘savvy’ shopper that I am 😛 I stuck with Simple face wipes or the Olay variety. Now however, these babies are available at Priceline which is fantastic! It means you can pick them up easily in store for only $7.99 (25 wipes in a pack). I have the ‘original’ wipes which are suitable for normal and sensitive skin, but they are also do wipes for combination/oily skin.

Wotnot wipes are 100% biodegradable and compostable, which is great news for the environment. They also contain organic rosehip and sweet almond oil, aloe vera, vitamin E and glycerin. I wouldn’t say that these babies remove all waterproof makeup well, but they are gentle and remove regular makeup and grime really well. These will be my staple facial wipes from now on (as long as they are available!) 🙂

Next up we have another easily accessible and cheap goodie from Woolworth’s own brand, ‘Woolworths Select’. These are clear hair elastics – not the most exciting product but if you have ever bought clear hair elastics before, you know that they are usually very thin and break/snap very easily (they also have a tendency to pull at your hair). These elastics are different because they are quite thick and don’t snap, so you can reuse them (less waste!). I believe you get 50 elastics in a pack for about $4.60 and you can find them at your local Woolworths supermarket – not bad!

I wanted a summery highlighter and I happened to spot a Polish MUA on Youtube use this loose powder version from Laura Mercier, called Mineral Illuminating Powder in Candlelight. It gave the model such a subtle yet gorgeous rosey glow, so I decided to buy it online without checking it out in person first. I wasn’t disappointed either 😉

Being a loose powder, you receive a lot of product (9.06g or 0.34 oz) so this pot will last me forever. It is very finely milled, without any obvious chunks of shimmer (especially once applied, the shimmer particles aren’t obvious or detectable at all). It’s a gorgeous rosey gold hue, which may be just a touch warm toned.

If you have a fair skin tone (like myself) I would recommend using a fan brush to apply this highlighter so that you don’t over apply it. I couldn’t find the Laura Mercier Mineral Illuminating Powder on every website selling Laura Mercier products which surprised me, but you can find it at Adore Beauty for $60. The illuminating powder also comes in a shade called Starlight, described as a soft beige gold. I bet that shade would also be lovely…

Up next we have a makeup setting spray. I wasn’t sure about these types of products, but the Urban Decay version had lots of good reviews written about it so I gave it a whirl – and you know what, it actually works! lol While it’s from urban Decay, the spray is actually manufactured by Skindinavia who also do their own line of makeup setting sprays (and has a wider variety of them). I have the ‘original’ All Nighter Long-Lasting version of this setting spray, which keeps your makeup looking fresh, dewey and on your skin all day. Urban Decay also does a version for oily skins (I believe it’s called De-Slick Oil Control Setting Spray), which is meant to help keep your skin matte and keep your makeup from sliding around on your face.

I have a small 30ml bottle of this spray, which is perfect for travelling (and for testing out). As Urban Decay products are difficult to obtain here in Australia, once I run out of this little guy, I think I will purchase an original Skindinavia setting spray from Adore Beauty (they also do mini-sizes).

I really want to get my hair ‘into shape’ this year and grow it longer. To do that, my hair is going to need to be super healthy (if you have fine hair, you know how difficult growing your hair out can be!). I plan to do a thorough hair care post soon, but for now I wanted to introduce you beauties to Evo’s sea salt spray, Salty Dog Cocktail Beach Spray. I thought this guy wouldn’t have to much holding power and yet it does a mighty fine job at adding some waves into my hair without weighing it down. It also doesn’t add to much texture or crunch (to much ‘crunch’ makes my hair feel oh so dry) and works just as well on dry hair as it does on wet hair. It also smells delicious, perfect for summer! For $26.95, this guy is a summer staple for me (more details to come as mentioned).

Toners – a controversial bunch they are! I think toners are great, especially before applying serums/oils/moisturisers to your skin (check out my Toners 101 guide here if you don’t believe me!) as they help provide a touch more moisture to your skin and help other products apply more easily and sink in more effectively. One of my favourite toners is Futurederm’s own 7 Wonders Antioxidant Rich Toner, which feels super refreshing on the skin and smells delightful.

I’m a fan of all tea products, especially this one which uses a variety of teas (green, white and red) and grape seed extract to help deliver an antioxidant punch for your skin. I do wish this came with a spray applicator so that I wouldn’t have to use cotton pads and could instead spray it directly onto my skin (you could pour a little of the product into the palm of your hand and then slap it on, but that could potentially become a little messy and hurt lol) but that’s ok, because I still love it! You can find this toner in the Futurederm shop for $29.00.

I’ve had this Benefit Bathina Take a Picture It Lasts Longer Body Balm for years. Not because I don’t like it, but because it’s my ‘special occasion’ body highlighter and it just seems to last forever. It’s a gorgeously packaged pink-gold cream, with quite a bit of slip to it. It doesn’t contain any glitter, but rather highlights the skin subtly, with a sophisticated gleam. It also smells like Benefit’s Bathina fragrance (all of Benefit’s body products contain the same signiture scent) which I swear smells like Gwen Stefani’s original Lamb perfume (which I was a huge fan of back in the day!), sweet yet a touch woody/oriental? It’s so cute and a little bit retro without being gimmicky (as some Benefit products can tend to be).

I’m trying to use this body balm more often this summer, just to perk up regular summer days. I wanted to photograph a swatch for you, but it was to subtle to show up on camera. It is also a gorgeous body balm for colder winter months, as it isn’t over the top. This body balm would also make a gorgeous gift! At $55 it’s a touch expensive but very economical.

Walter the super cute and festive wombat.

That wraps up my short but sweet December beauty favourites beauty bees! Let me know if there are any posts you would like to see on Beauty Bee Adventures in the coming months and I will do my best to make it happen 🙂

How are you going in the new years? Feel re-energized or perhaps run down? We got this, so let’s keep our chins up!

Catch ya next time,

Beauty Bee~

Please follow and like us:

#WotnotFacialWipes #seasalthairtexturiser #toner #beautyfavourites #Skindinavia #UrbanDecayAllNighterMakeupSettingSpray #roseygoldpowderhighlighter #EvoSaltyDogCocktailBeachSpray #NewYear2015 #BenefitBathinaTakeaPictureItLastsLongerBodyBalm #WoolworthsSelectClearHairElastics #Futurederm7wondersAntioxidantRichWater #LauraMercierMineralIlluminatingPowderCandlelight #Decemberfavourites