Mini Beautorium Haul - April 2014

Happy Easter long weekend ^_^

I placed my Beautorium order on the 15th.... and it arrived on the 17th. Incredible velocity, beauty boxes ought to learn from this! If you're not a member, head to www.beautyheaven.com.au  to sign up and start collecting loyalty points!

Again, I only picked up 1 item this time round. (See my previous Beautorium order here). I paid $4.95 for postage - mind you the package was delivered via express post!

Looks like I ordered a whole bunch of products but I only ordered one!

Lonvitalite C8 Collagen Crystal Eye Mask 6pk

560 points

I've been progressing well with my previous eye masks, but I wanted to try something a little difference. I have previously trialed a couple of Lonvitalite face masks and I really liked the result so I thought I'd give it a go!

Now onto the freebies... BeautyHeaven is always so generous with freebies!

Left to Right -

Lapurete Okuru Facial and Toner
Lady Jayne Digital Romance Hair Ties - Yay!! I love these!
Glameyes Miranda Lashes - My first pair of falsies :O
Vagisil Feminine Wash - My inner child giggled. This is actually quite handy, a lot of women are experiencing irritations from using ordinary body wash or soap to clean their lady bits. pH balance is important!
Lapurete Night Cream


Did you order anything from Beautorium?

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Cafe Reviews: Three Williams + Bourke Street Bakery

I love myself a good cafe during the weekend, they are sanctuaries where I can forget about daily hassles, past fails and future aspirations for a while.

Admittedly, I don't go to as many cafes as I should, but out of the lot I have been to, here are my two favourites.

 Three Williams


I came here for brunch with a friend. The service was prompt and friendly. The staff really knows how to up-sell! You might find yourself sitting there for half a day with a full table.

Prawn Narnie $14

Grilled prawns, avocado, sweet corn and tomato salsa with aoli

Essentially a mouth-watering Naan bread sandwhich. The prawns were extremely tender, it melted in my mouth. My vocabulary does not permit me to express the deliciousness of this Narnie. The flavours of each ingredient complimented each other, it was well balanced.

Oh, this place is 110% children friendly. Just look at this indoor play corner!

Bourke Street Bakery

Finally made my way to Bourke Street Bakery on Bourke Street. I went to their Marrickville store and had a ginger tart a few years back, it didn't take my fancy.

We went to their Surry Hills store on a Saturday morning and boy, it was packed!


 

Top Row:

Lemon Curd Tart $4.50, Chocolate Tart $4.50, Rhubarb Danish $4.00

Bottom Row:

Rhubarb and Almond Tart $4.50, Chocolate and Raspberry Muffin $4.50

This was to share between two people... we might have been a little bit greedy. The chocolate was rich and velvety. My favourite was the Rhubarb Danish. 

By the time we started digging into the chocolate and raspberry muffin, I was was feeling a little sick in the stomach and required some savoury goods. Ahhh good ole' gluttony, I learnt my lesson.

This is not quite food related but I wanted to tell you guys about it.

My boyfriend surprised me and took me to Puppet Up at the Opera House last weekend. It was literally a night of laughter. The puppet show was initially created by Jim Henson, the creator of The Muppets.

Improvisation was the core of the show. The audience would yell out random topics and themes for the puppeteers (and puppets) to re-enact. I'll give you a brief run down of the topics we went through:

• Tom cruise as the only sane person on Oprah as a historical event
• Australia's Got Talent in mining, surfing and spinach
• The butt plug dance
• The re-enactment of the crucifixion with sausage puppets (incl. fishing references)
• Flatulation is annoying

I would highly recommend everyone to check them out if they come to your part of the world. Click here to find out more.

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Review: So...? Fragrances

 I have seen and read reviews for these gorgeous So...? fragrances on several blogs, now it's my turn! I could never pass on the offer as So...? accompanied me for most of my teenage transitions. I couldn't express my excitement when I was provided with the opportunity to try the products!

The packaging alone reminded me of the moonlight, good times, boogie. There was a euphoric sensation of sweet nostalgia when I smelt the fragrances.

So...? eau de toilette

 Notes: Tangerine, orange blossom and vanilla 

The original So...? Fragrance. The scent itself is quite sweet but I can smell a little bit of musk in there. I like using this at night. It's a little bit stronger than So...? Kiss me. I reckon this would also go well with a sophisticated day time look.

 So...? Kiss Me eau de toilette

Top Notes: Blackcurrant, pineapple and citron

Heart Notes: Floral with sweet vanilla

Base Notes: Musk and woody

This is hands down my favourite out of the three. I love my fresh/fruity/vanilla scents. I feel almost youthful when I'm wearing this. I've been putting my Marc Jacobs and Burberry perfumes on standby and using this everyday. Perfect for the day time. It gets addictive!

So...? Sinful eau de toilette

Top notes: Mint and pineapple

Heart notes: Violet and strawberry

Base notes:  Vanilla, praline and musk 

Here's another scent you can't put down, it smells sweet and a little musky. I smelt it once and had to smell it again and again. Oh so sinful! Spray this if you are daring.... it would also go well with a dinner date. It's such a versatile scent.

The scent lasted on my skin for about 5 hours... oh ...can I also say these cute little 30ml bottles would fit well in handbags ;)

Were you a So...? girl? Have you tried their fragrances?

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Graduation Makeup and Outfit Breakdown (OOTD & EOTD)

I graduated last Friday... again!

So... I might've spent 6 years at university, the first 4 years studying Psychology - mainly because I was  fresh out of high school, experiencing social/identity perplexities and was on the hunt for meaning, purpose, reason....  you know, the usual developmental stages of a teenager.  This bachelor's degree worked better than counseling or going to see a Psychologist. With 20k of HECS debt... I really did expect results. Eventually, I realised it wasn't something I can develop into.

Off I went, back into the wood works for 2 years of Masters. I learned more about empathy than I did in Psychology. I earned countless acquaintances and not enough friends to count. The first semester consisted of 4 days of work per week and skipping a lot of classes. By the time I began to attend uni studiously, cliques were formed and groups were established. Sprinkle some anti-social behaviour and Voila! I graduated with Distinction average - not that it matters in a Masters degree...

I told my mum that I'll go back to do my PhD one day, she threatened to throw all my make up away and told me "NO MORE UNI!!!!!"

I ordered two standard sized photos for $66 (by standard, I mean the ones you usually get developed for 10c at a photo shop) highway robbery? I'm still waiting for the photos to be delivered... so here's one I ripped off the online preview.

Now to the makeup breakdown....

Here's a picture of everything I used

Face

Shiseido Perfect Refining Foundation - I20

Revlon Concealer - Light

Bobbi Brown Sheer Powder - Soft Sand

Bobbi Brown Bronzer - Natural 01

Eyes

 Shiseido Shimmering Cream Eye Colour - BL711

Shiseido Eyelash Curler

Dollywink Mascara

Lips

Shiseido Perfect Rouge - RS612

The Natural Source Camouflage Colour Crayon - 037 (Used as a lip pencil)

Another gorgeous dress from Review Australia (http://review-australia.com/)

Shoes from  Rivers Australia (http://www.rivers.com.au/) - I swear they have really comfortable shoes!

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Lust Have It! - March 2014

I saw a small package outside my door as I arrived home, LHI are still putting together the new box. I don't mind receiving my products in bubble wrap.

Bloom Secret Weapon Concealer Kit

$20

FULL SIZE 

The most anticipated product of the box! I was happy that I selected the concealer kit instead of the eyeliner! There are 2 colour correctors, 3 different shades of concealer and 1 illuminator. I'm putting this in my purse!

 

Aveda intensive Hydrating Mask

150ml for $79.95

Received 7ml

A face mask for dryness and stress.. I've become rather oily as of late. But wouldn't mind giving this a try. This sample would probably last 1 use.

 

Gatineau Refreshing Melting Scrub 

75ml for $58

Received 15ml

Melting Scrub?! lol. That sounds appealing. It's an exfoliator, which I do need.

 

Klara Kiss Proof Lips in 03

8ml for $29

Received 1.2ml

YESSSS I didn't receive bright red! Love the colour, but it's so small!

 

Orly Nail Lacquer in Hottie

18ml for $18.95

Received 5.4ml

Never tried Orly before, very pretty pink colour. Happy to give this a go.

Recoverlyte

Hmmm.. I don't really have late nights anymore... I'm usually in bed by 9:30PM....I think I'll pass this onto someone else.

I didn't get any of the lucky dip again :( I wonder if the quality of the boxes are impacted due to the commencement of the lucky dip... I'm having mixed feelings about this box. There were a few products I'm relatively keen on, but they are so small and only 1 full size product :(

Better luck next month?

Event Review: Taste of Sydney - Centennial Park - 2014

 Taste of Sydney is a yearly event where a variety of well-known, prestigious restaurants and exhibitors come together at Centennial Park. You will literally experience a "taste" of Sydney. There were LOTS of samplers.

This has become one of our most anticipated event of the year - Yes, we will attend religiously, rain or shine. Click to see last year's review.

There were tickets at the door as per usual, I was smart this time and purchased their early bird tickets from Ticketek (as we all know, Ticketek is studious and often goes the extra mile to charged an additional $5 for printing my own tickets); $35 for 2 general admission tickets. $1 per crown. We bought 60 crowns ($60).

Thunder and storm greeted us upon arrival. Thankfully, the good people at Taste provided everyone with recyclable ponchos! Within an hour, the gloomy weather eased as we continued our food safari.

Aki's Indian Restaurant

Dahi Sev Poori

$6

Crispy wheat pockets with spiced potato and yoghurt. You'll get flavours bursting into your mouth. Hands down, the best dish out of everything we tried. This came 3rd for the best dish... it should be 1st, or at least 2nd..people must've had one too many cocktails when voting for the best dish.

Longrain

Crispy King Prawns with Green Chilli and Lime

$12

First time I've tried green chilli puree. The prawns were tender, but the shell around the prawn's head was quite tough.

Bloodwood

Polenta Chips with Gorgonzola Sauce

$6

I was hesitant with the gorgonzola sauce, but it was well balanced. Such a simple dish, such a hit! Oh, I would like the polenta chips to be a bit more crunchy.

Edible Bug Shop
Pistachio and Chocolate Cricket
Ant Sorbet

$8

My extremely brave, pescatarian boyfriend decided to try some novel delicacies. I wasn't too convinced at the idea of Ant Sorbet... especially since I have a mass ant infestation at home, so I guess it would have been counter intuitive of me spending money to eat Ants when there are so many at home... Am I right?!

As my boyfriend was eating his frozen insects, my curiosity took a bite.. maybe two.. or three... believe it or not it was quite nice. Couldn't really taste the bugs, the cricket was just crunchy and the ants in the sorbet were like a smaller and crunchier version of passionfruit. Don't worry guys, these bugs are farm grade and safe to eat.

Chow Bar & Eating House

Beggar's Chicken

$12

Here we have the Beggar's Chicken  with silken lemon tofu and vinegar red peanut. An infamous Chinese dish, the name itself was adapted from ancient Chinese folkore about a beggar roasting a chicken. How do you differentiate a beggar's chicken from a typical chicken? Well, a beggar's chicken is wrapped and roasted in clay.

Voted 1st for the best dish at Taste. To be honest, this didn't quite fulfill the numero uno spot for me. Some of the smaller pieces of the chicken was quite tough and dry. Not enough zest in the lemon tofu. The cabbage and peanuts were nice though. Maybe I didn't receive the quality dish? Or maybe I'm just extra picky?

Propolo

Fregola

$16

Fregola, calamari, cuttlefish ragu, prawns and mussels. My boyfriend got this dish, he said the tomatoes and calamari were the best bits. Otherwise he didn't like it. I personally wasn't too keen on it, mainly because of the fishy after taste... won't be a bad idea to put some ginger in it.

I got this gorgeous little cup cake just for entering a competition ^_^

***Probably a good idea to read before preceding***

We attended a few sessions at Dilmah Chef's Skillery. The first was with head chef Robert Taylor from Swine & Co. As indicated by their restaurant's name, their specialty is pig, especially suckling pig. Robert bought a friend with him, a 9 week old piglet for demonstration.

I was really glad that he bought the pig along, we're entering an age where our meat is so processed and industrialised, we forget where our food comes from. So, I think it's really important for people to see the source of our meat and the form it took before it got onto our plate. We need to acknowledge the fact that we are eating an animal... and not a flavoured cube of soft bits.

The second class we attended was with Peter Ridland, head chef from Jonah's. He introduced us to smoking a piece of cooked salmon with woodchips, tea and a smoke gun. The taste was "smokin"!

And some signature signs and what not from Taste of Sydney. The "Taste" sign bombarded with climbing children as per usual.

And some freebies ^_^

Did you go to Taste of Sydney this year? Thoughts?

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